Ruler Of Iron And Flesh

Inian had a blast staying with Burt the past week. He would help Burt work on his exosuit however he could, and at night they would go out into the city to drink at bars and check out different events.

There was one showcase where many several mechanics working for the government showed off their mechas to the public. The public could vote on their favorite one, and this one man's mecha with a single arm and six machine guns on the side ended up winning.

At the end of the week, Burt's exosuit was completed.

"Finally!" Burt exclaimed. He looked at every inch of the suit. It was custom made to fit his massive frame.

"Nice job, Burt, it looks great!"

"Thank you; I may paint it a gold color to show it off even more!"

Inian chuckled, finding it funny that Burt had such flare.

Inian looked at the clock on the wall, "well, it's about time for me to head out. Thanks for letting me stay at your place, Burt."

"No worries! You've done plenty more for me," Burt said while gesturing towards the exosuit.

Inian smiled, "thank you anyway. I'll come back to get you if I found out anything about the descendants."

"I'll be here."

Inian then left with his new pack and headed back to the train station. He was soon on a sky train back towards the Aysel Palace.

He rode first class again, only this time, there were no pirate attacks, and it was a smooth ride.

Inian enjoyed looking out of the sky train, with the passing scenery, it was a beautiful view.

It was more fun to fly, but this was much more comfortable.

After a few days, he was back at the Aysel Palace, and his first order of business was to see if the Empress had any news.

He marched towards the keep where the guards stayed far out of his way. He looked in the throne room, but the Empress wasn't there.

He continued looking until he found her in the dining room, enjoying a nice dinner with a few other nobles.

They paused their meal to look up at the approaching Inian.

"Ah! Inian! Welcome! Would you like to join us?"

The nobles grumbled at this but didn't make too much noise. They didn't want to upset the Empress.

"Thank you for your hospitality Empress, but I just stopped by briefly to see if you had any news for me?"

Empress Sophia knew what he was talking about, "ah, that. Sadly we have no news yet, but I will find you and inform you if there is any."

"Thank you. Pardon my interruption of your meal."

He left the Empress to dine with the nobles remaining in the dining hall.

After he visited the Empress, it was time to visit back to the oasis outside the city.

He sprouted his wings and made was at the oasis in no time at all.

There were currently no monsters there, except for Kraque.

"Greetings! Your Majesty! I have important news for you!"

Inian raised his eyebrows, "really?! Go ahead and tell me then."

Kraque bowed, "of course. We've been using Reclusa's spiders to relay messages all across the continent, and four descendants have been discovered."

Inian's mouth opened wide, "you've found four of them, already? Nice job, Kraque! What can you tell me about each descendant?"

"Well, you already know of the youngest descendant living in the ocean currently. It is a Titan level monster that rules the seas. The third youngest is also a Titan level monster and lives in the desert here in the Empire. It is a sizeable worm-like creature that we will have to draw out from the underground."

Inian leaned forward, paying attention to every word Kraque spoke.

Kraque continued, "The second descendant lives in the tundra, and is a behemoth level monster. That roams there. It looks similar to that of an ice golem."

Inian stopped him, "wait, and I thought that these were all descendants of the dragon. Why do none of them look like dragons?"

"It is because they are generations down the line from the Dragon himself. They have changed forms to adapt to their environment more. However, the eldest descendant does look like a dragon, and he lives on High-Rock to the far north. He is a behemoth level monster and is the most powerful of his brethren. I would recommend taking out the other descendants first though, because they will come to the aid of the eldest if he is attacked, but they won't help out each other if the younger ones are attacked."

"Why is that?"

Kraque answered, "it is because of the genes the eldest carries. The eldest carries the purest genes of the old Dragon and therefore succeeds the lineage."

Inian nodded, "So I just need to finish off the other descendants, and then I can kill the eldest?"

Kraque nodded, "correct."

Inian clasped his hands together, "That's the plan then! Are there weaknesses for each descendant?"

Kraque shook his head, "sadly, none that I would know of. The only chance we have is fighting them head-on."

Inian sighed, "I guess that's what we'll do then. We'll start with the youngest descendant."

Chills ran up and down his body when he remembered the encounter with the descendant lurking beneath the water, how the monster laughed and casually threw him out.

'I'm not the same as I was back then,' Inian thought. He was determined to slay the beast.