Chapter 137: Lord Valerius Assassin
Miles away, in a sector of space that was cold, orderly, and ruthlessly efficient, Lord Valerius sat on the throne-like command chair of his new flagship.
The sting of his public humiliation at the hands of Ryan Stone was still a fresh, burning wound in his soul. His Technocratic Hegemony, which he had declared with such arrogance, was already showing cracks.
Whispers of doubt and dissent were spreading through his ranks. His commanders had seen their best technology fail against Ryan’s "reality magic," and their faith was shaken.
Valerius knew he needed to regain control. He needed a decisive victory. He needed to prove that his way, the way of cold, hard technology, was superior.
He had become obsessed. His life was no longer about building a perfect society. It was about destroying Ryan Stone.
"Report," he snapped, his voice echoing on the sterile, silent bridge.
A subordinate officer stepped forward, his posture rigid. "My Lord, as you commanded, we have deployed the new Observer Drones to the borders of the Bastion Alliance. They are cloaked with our latest stealth technology, completely invisible to their sensors."
"And?" Valerius pressed, his fingers drumming impatiently on the armrest of his chair.
"And we have something," the officer said, a flicker of excitement in his voice. "Drone 734, positioned near the edge of Sector Gamma, has detected a most unusual energy signature."
A holographic image appeared in the air above the console. It showed the sleek, powerful form of the Odyssey. But behind the ship, reality itself seemed to be tearing open, not into the familiar swirl of a jump corridor, but into a sickly, purple-gray wound in space.