Black Ops

Etan Za'Darmondiel.

21st of Trescia, 1492.

Vrurian Empire, Nytholon Territory. The Cuttleship, Mach 1.9 at 10 km altitude.

En-Route to Chor.

8:37 AM.

***

The strangest individual I had ever met and the only outworlder I had ever known stood across from my dreamscape crystal with a playful smile. But the words that fell out of his mouth could not have been more serious.

<<What path do you wish to take? And what change bring the Mortal Plane?>>

As if it were that simple. For me or any drow to decide their own destiny was… I daresay heretical. And yet, I was born with a destiny unlike any other drow, elf, or individual for that matter. I was trained in all things arcana, martial, and historical since the day I came out of Matron Etyl's accursed womb. All for one purpose. To teach Telin's Champion, the strangest individual I would ever meet, about the ways of the drow.

Since it was revealed he was to become a monk, I wondered if that too was my fate. And if so, was it dictated by Telin, the demon-spider, or the Champion himself? The Matrons and Abbot Eiriol especially rejoiced with the news. Even after they were made to wait for tenday after tenday, their ambitions only grew. Meanwhile, the tension in my body only increased.

Then, in a matter of minutes, my life changed. I was turned away from the halls. I was given machines and devices that shattered my foundations of what was possible. My dreamscape library was filled with my existing knowledge to make room for the endless stream of information Amun deposited onto me and it was still not enough. And yet… here I was, deciding my fate as casually as I would decide what to eat for breakfast.

I could only forcefully exhale air through my nose to indicate a dry laugh- a habit I seemed to pick up from this eccentric outworlder. <<You mean besides the obvious?>>

A stoic gaze paired with a light shrug was only the response I received; a gesture that could have meant anything, as far as this one was concerned.

<<Well. >> I sighed in defeat, choosing to build something of his claim of us being gods to build a portfolio of my own. He seemed to both grow eager for my answer and surmise my intention in the same breath, leaning forward over the crystal while I prepared to switch to the Common tongue to discuss those otherworldly aspects of his.

"I suppose Twilight or Moonlight are possibilities." I began. "Engineering is too far beyond my scope, although I am willing to learn enough to be competent with these devices. And as far as I'm aware, your Mana domain will only give me more arcana. Something I need not. Similarly, I have no wish to transform into a beast. Not unless it is one of the shadow dragons you claim to be the god of." I mused, though my face was as deadpan as his was earlier.

"That's not up to me." He flatly said, then raised his arm before I could reply, pulling three windows of solid light into view, each with a long list of moving images showcasing various abilities.

Although I wanted to ask, my focus was pulled to the first of the three lists, stacked atop the others like sheets of parchment.

The first listed the powers within Amun's portfolio. Many of them were recognizable at once, such as the swathes of silvery-blue light and the motes of golden light in a field of darkness. Others were more… archaic. Two of them were curses and deals, wherein Amun simply spoke to devastating effect on one while the other displayed an abyssal script composed in midair.

Yet more required the labels to realize. What was called Nuclear appeared as a fireball, if not a miniature sun. Electromagnetism transitioned between various types of light, showing an intensely bright light that crept down to the light levels used on the surface until it glowed red like a hot sword. Then died down to a series of waves. Even then, smaller windows were seen below it; one showing a lightning storm and the other showing many weapons adhered to a metal plate.

Of them all, though, two stuck out to me in particular. One was a grid-like matrix of white lines that seemed to go on ad infinitum. The fusion of the two most sought-after magical abilities. Spatial and Temporal magic. Two aspects of reality Amun and the ingenious deities of his realm realized to be intrinsically linked. Thus calling it Space-Time.

The second and far greater power was the miraculous purple energy Amun used to pull himself through the sky at amazing speeds and create void-sailing worlds out of the fabric of the realms. Power incarnate. Gravity.

Reaching out, I pulled the two abilities from the list, leaving the words as avatars for the abilities, poised directly overhead to standby. And with a wave, the list of powers was dismissed to reveal a much larger list. This one too had moving pictures to detail the aspects, powers, or abilities related to Amun's Engineering Domain.

Truth be told, most of them appealed to me, as they were largely replications of the Grandmaster Artificeer perks. The ones that did not were the ones associated with alchemy and, of course, artificing. That was not a surprise, however, it was Amun's arched brow and smooth voice breaking the silence once the avatars were floating overhead.

"Why these?" he asked.

"Biomimicry fascinates me," I explained, starting with the simplest one. "I'm sure you are aware, but martial arts is a form of this… philosophy?" I intoned, receiving a shrug in response. "Right. Well, I intend to utilize this practice, taking your aspects of Nature, Learning, Planning, and Research and Development to develop more fighting techniques and pass them along to your Legions, using your aspect of Teaching to do so. As it is only right, considering I was destined to be your teacher.

"I also have a penchant for Architecture, as many drow do. But I was the Head Monk of the Halls. I influenced a small part of the designs, as every head monk before me has. And, as a monk." I added. "It is only right for me to improve my mind by studying Science, Technology, Engineering, Art, and Mathematics.

"And finally." I focused my eyes on the remaining aspects, Reading and Writing, before gesturing around the library, allowing the sights to speak in my stead. And with that, finally, I received a readable expression. A smile. Whether it was pride or amusement or anything else was impossible for me to tell. But anything was better than shrugs and smirks.

When the next list came into view to showcase the aspects of Telin's Champion and the Mana Domain, I pulled only one of the four major aspects. Evolution. And with it came a realization of the change I would bring.

"With this." I began with conviction. "I will free our fellow drow as well as their slaves and show them a new path. This will be the change I make upon the realms. Through my work, drow will evolve into something new. Something free. Like we were long ago."

Amun said nothing. He only smiled, swiped to bring upon the list of the World Weaver's attributes, and then pushed forward one major and several minor aspects. Yet I pushed the minor ones back and took a second major one. Illusions and Dreams; as well as Creative Destruction.

When the aspects of Twilight fell before my eyes, a variation of the same event unfolded. With a push of his hand, the major aspect of Twilight and the minor aspect of stealth drifted into my circle, leaving the rest to be dismissed with the other lists.

Much to my surprise, a final list was revealed following the final domain. A list of aspects tied to Amun as both an individual and Telin's Champion. The major aspects were the Universe, Evolution, Sorcerers, and Divine Beasts. Yet there were many, many more minor aspects. And while I accepted all those given to me from Amun's hand, I silently inquired how he got many of them across the board.

"I've trained to fight since I was a small child," he said. "Somewhere along the line, I began to enjoy it. So there's Fighting and Training. Aside from that, I taught my vassals how to be Self-Sustaining and Self-Sufficient. And, since I came into this world, I've dedicated all my efforts toward creating what I know as a Military-Industrial-Empire. Albeit one with magic."

"And so Militaries, Industries, and Empires are aspects of your Engineering Domain." I snorted in disbelief.

"Well." He shrugged. "Civilizations, Guilds or Militaries, and Industries. But yes. I am the God-Emperor of Eotrom. Even then, though, I hardly know what that means in terms of what I can do. I'm only aware of the industrial part. Experiments need to be done. But that's neither here nor there." Waving the matter aside, he brought my attention up to the surprisingly long list of aspects floating above me.

"As far as you merging with a shadow dragon." He began after a long pause, pulling every fiber of my being to focus in on the strange outworlder. "The ones who follow her have to go through a ritual in the Shadow Realm to turn them into Gloom Shades. I doubt you'd want that. But, as far as I am aware, you'd either have to become a dragonborne or convince a shadow dragon to merge its soul with yours. Or kill one and merge with its body.

"They are my divine representations, sure." He shrugged as if it were the most common thing to say. "But it'll still take a lot of persuasive power to make it happen. It is something I'm willing to do, mind you. Just…" he winced. "Only after another shadow dragon is born. That said, they are affiliated with Twilight. So they'll enjoy your presence at the very least."

"A dragon enjoying my presence." I snorted. "Just when I thought nothing else could… as you say, blow my mind."

There was a silent huff of amusement. But otherwise, his eyes remained squinting at the words floating above me. His finger tapped at his chin for several long moments, building a smile that seemed to pull the tension higher and higher.

"The way I see it." He eventually began. "The path you've chosen is to create a war college, of sorts. You intend to use these powers to travel and learn so you can return and teach the Legions in earnest. And therein opens the door for your industry. Or rather, industries."

My inquisitive brow rose and he responded by bringing several tablets to life out of thin air. "There is an industry for information. As is there one for education. These tomes will teach you about both as well as something colloquially known as Professional Services. Like a… consultant for hire."

"I am unsure of that last part," I admitted. "But the rest is acceptable. In fact, I find myself delighted at the thought of becoming an archivist."

"An Astral Archivist." Amun corrected me with a playful smile. Then summoned another shower of tomes before continuing as if he never paused. "As for the change you've decided to bring, freeing and evolving drow, it will require a lot more than just power. You'll need skills and tactics unknown to these realms.

"Thus I would suggest this be your purpose in the Legio Noctis: Become the commander of the most elite unit within the organization. Like a Navy Seal with magic." He mused to himself.

This time, I could not withhold my curiosity. "The outworlders utilized seals…in their naval forces?"

The honest question spawned the most violent fit of laughter I had ever witnessed befall Amun. He doubled over on his knees, heaving while he looked at me with teary eyes and a helpless expression, dropped his head into his hands, and lifted his head seconds later to repeat the act.

"No." He wooed and whined down. "No. They were one of several groups known to be the finest warriors in the world. The groups like them were known as special forces, special operations, or black ops. Both soldiers and ghosts. They conducted assaults, raids, and reconnaissance missions that almost entirely remained unknown to the general public.

"Each nation had a version of them. Seals were of the country of my birth; before it splintered. They were human." He finally clarified with a snort. "The word itself is an acronym for Sea, Air, and Land. Places their teams prided themselves on being able to operate in with the utmost efficiency. Their doctrine was to drop in from the skies. Often directly into the ocean, where they would swim throughout the night to attack, kill, or capture a high-value target."

"Is that a common tactic, dropping out of the sky?" I asked, remembering the many instances across the VoidNet of humans falling from great heights and landing safely beneath vast canopies of fabric.

"Oh yeah!" Amun nodded. "There was a unit of medics- er… witches, who would drop out of the sky, falling into dangerous combat zones to rescue the wounded. Others were elite infantry with a doctrine to invade foreign lands by dropping battalions from the sky and destroying the enemy with extreme prejudice. Another country had commandos who excelled in hand-to-hand or close-quarters combat and underwent rigorous physical and psychological training to make them resilient to the worst kinds of torture imaginable.

"The most elite in the world were the true ghosts, however." He pointed out with an anticipatory grin. "If you can imagine the realm's greatest warrior melded with the mind of the greatest sage, that would describe these soldiers. They learned the languages, cultures, and economies of other nations before they entered them from the skies in the middle of the night.

"With their knowledge, they would train the disparaged locals, often arming them with weapons to form a militia. In other cases, they would influence the economy, cause the disappearance of an important figure, or steal important information. No matter the tactics used." Amun grinned wider. "A small team of a half-dozen warriors could destabilize a country to the point of neutralization, without a war ever breaking out.

"And yes." His grin spread from ear to ear as he affirmed the question he knew I'd ask. "They did all of this without magic."

"But unlike them," I said after I caught my breath, "we have magic. We can take the best parts of these elite warriors, merge them together, and create a legendary unit. Composed of only the finest, most dedicated Legionaries. Yes, it is perfect!"

"Yes." Amun nodded with an airy sigh, then began sidestepping the crystal to approach me with an outstretched hand. "And not just one legendary unit. A legendary unit for each member of the Troupe. Each is to be dedicated to a specific task or focus. You shall have yours, Etan. But so too shall you have a secret selection program. An assessment known only by the highest-ranking legionaries. Hand-picked from the top percentile from every training institution to be assessed for these black ops forces."

His feet stopped as his words ceased, planting his tooth-baring grin and divine-infused hand just within reach of my awe-inspired frame. "Deal?"

"Deal." I earnestly sank my hand into his and shook it vigorously, exploding the space between us in a flash of divine light.