TheBipBoop2003
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75. A son
🕑 Added 2023-08-19 20:41:27 +0000 UTCIn the largest room of a modern house in fusion with the wild flora on the biggest island of an archipelago located between the reef of the Eastern Sea and the Bone Sanctuary of the main continent.
A tall muscular man wearing dark grey armor could be seen standing in front of a part of what would be a large ring of metal made of an unknown alloy, it was covered in intricate carvings of mysterious designs and it was held above the ground by a series of highly powerful magnets.
His silver eyes behind the visor of his helmet focused on the tip of a high-precision tool that was in his hand as he was continuing to scribe the thirtieth circuits of Element on top of the others in complex esoteric yet organic patterns similar to electronic circuits, roots, and muscles.
The tool was reminiscent in shape of a tattoo gun working on the molecular scale while he directed it in its intended way with nigh-perfect muscle control, his vision on two points, the first where the tip of the tool was with a camera and the second his regular eyesight is greatly enhanced by technology.
This was the one and only Liam and as usual, he was working hard and he was working on a part of his future Tek Replicator, a component of one of the two rings that had the purpose of stabilizing a pocket of reality obeying its own rules while the machine was turned on.
It was an incredibly powerful machine, a large one as well, the size of a house that could manipulate matter and to a lesser degree even warp reality on a local level. It was a machine that would lead the current humanity to go mad over it and most to nearly all advanced civilizations.
How he was doing it from an outside perspective would look like he was some kind of technological wizard working on some type of world-ending magical artifact, the trail of Elements inscribed on the metal almost like magical and mystical runes of unknown origin and purpose.
The fact he was in an almost trance-like state where his entire being was focused on the task at hand amplified this, carving and scribing the Element felt natural, and he could feel each millimeter of the lines he wrote. For him, it was akin to the feeling of a hair being tugged gently.
By many metrics what he was doing could be considered such. Magic, but magic is only an unexplained science after all and he had these sciences.
This was a project he had been working on and investing time in way before the success of growing Element months ago, he started on it even before the finishing of the Element Nexus facility.
Without this machine growing Element was pointless at best and a waste of time with a potential apocalyptic end at worst.
Here he couldn't simply bring a set amount of materials at a Terminal below an Obelisk and with a press of a button it will craft itself. It wasn't that easy. Every little fragment of this machine needed to be built from the ground up, but it was a blessing in disguise.
And what a complicated machine it was to build, the skeleton made of essentially metal alloy wasn't much of a problem aside from costing most of the stock in platinum, it was an admittedly complex structure on many points but it was just that, a structure was the 'magic' and the most complexity the part with pandorium on some point to replace material he couldn't get and of course Element.
And with this it couldn't be 3D printed directly from the Lesser Replicator, it was too elaborate and even if it could be he wouldn't have done so.
The Elements also needed to be destabilized before being fused to the surface, a step that needed constant monitoring; he wouldn't trust a machine with at least any of the ones at his disposal. And it needed to be done in a vacuumed and sterile space to avoid any potential errors
He was crafting it on Pandora, he wouldn't want to cause an Element outbreak as well.
And all of this to make a complex matrix of information that seemingly had no end, a matrix that was in total far longer than the distance between Pandora and Polyphemus, this for one single ring.
He could make Tek technology with the addition of a constant supply of Element now, he didn't absolutely need a Tek Replicator to do them like in the videogame but that would be a waste of time, a time he didn't have an infinite amount of.
It would take an extended period to build Tek by hand starting from the biggest and investing in it was as such the best option changing potential months and years of work to mere seconds.
Such was how drastic the difference was, and building a kilometers-high floating tower was not something he could do by hand. Even less so multiple to protect the entire moon.
The Tek Replicator could do nearly everything at extreme speed, precision, and efficiency as long as data, matters, and Elements were fed to it to create. With it, he would be able to modify whatever he may so desire to an unfathomable degree.
It wasn't a video game there was no rule or predesigned limitation with what he could and couldn't do. Only resources, time, and capabilities were the limits to what could be done with such a powerful tool.
Putting the Tek Replicator together would open the doors to most of everything he had on his mind and it would be the culmination of a majority of his effort since he took control of Hell's Gate.
And Liam found it mildly amusing that his main goal until now aside from directly surviving was to build more and more powerful crafting stations. The Tek Replicator was just a better 3D printer at the end of the day.
*Cawww!*
The sudden cry of one of his tetrapterons against the reinforced vacuum-sealed double door reached his ear by the microphones on it but he ignored it and continued at the same pace with his steady hand.
The inscribing of this fraction of the ring needed to be done in one session, this was why he did small pieces by small pieces, he couldn't work nonstop for several days and be expected of himself to not make potential mistakes even less so for months, he wasn't infallible. Or a full-blown machine that could do tasks 24/7.
That's why he worked when he was in his utmost shape physically and mentally, failures were unacceptable. He was aware he was not perfect and in the end, would make mistakes.
More so if he didn't notice this failure in the form of errors that will show their nocuous effect when the Tek Replicator is finalized leading to it potentially malfunctioning which could end in either nothing with the machine not turning on… Or with it collapsing on itself then imploding which would end up with it deleting a third of the moon from existence with it.
Only perfection for what is needed was acceptable. Liam couldn't do less, the best of himself was required any less and a grim future awaited him. Having succeeded in growing Element was but a single step between many an impossibly long and chaotic stairways
*Caaaawwwww!*
Other cries were heard, this time they were more rumors, longer, louder, and also through the mental link but Liam again didn't budge and continued on until the last few meters of inscriptions were perfectly done and finished correctly, scanners flashed from all aside of the room and he nodded in satisfaction at the positive results.
But it wasn't finished just yet.
Then with a mental command thick walls of a glass-like material slid up and down from the floor and ceiling encasing the piece of technology within. The temperature within that lowered to the point where most gasses would undergo deposition and turn solid by the use of electromagnetic radiation.
Another layer this time made of an alloy of various metals and polymers slid down in front of the glasses completely sealing it off.
With that done Liam walked toward the door which opened and closed as he passed into a small room where an added sound of air was heard. The room where he worked needed to stay in a sterile condition.
"Calm down, I know what hour it is and I'm not late you silly birds.", he said through the microphone as he took off his helmet and breathed out deeply, his face covered by a thin sheet of sweat while the white of his eyes was reddened slightly.
He mentally commanded the door to open and what entered his view was his four tetrapterons on top of the others who, like a card castle, fell at his boots thanks to them using the door until now to hold their weight and it earned a deep chuckle from him.
They were excited all right but there was time, being late was something he abhorred so the day was planned to the minute his tames didn't truly understand this it seemed. Well, he might have been locked in for quite some time too and they weren't unfeeling machines either or had perfect control of themselves.
In a few minutes, he ate, took a cold shower, and changed from his spacesuit to more casual clothes which consisted of a light blue short-sleeved shirt, a pair of white jeans, and dark grey sneakers.
All made by him for him and his insane bodily proportion. And those clothes won't stay this way for long before they pass through the recycling processes to turn into new clothes as he would simply rip them apart with his growth.
The shoes in particular were a very big annoyance, it was the same for any armor or suit too. Making cloth growing with him was only possible with a few types and it had several limitations that directly affected the integrity of the clothes. At best, he could make them stretchy but it wasn't for all fabrics and it's a problem Tek would solve as well.
A few minutes later after taking everything he needed, he arrived at his insectoid flying vehicle on the island's highest cliff.
The winds produced by multiple sets of half-translucent wings buzzing slowly bathing his face in soft winds and the squad of tetrapterons waiting for him inside, their excitement palpable in the air and potent through the links.
Climbing in it he rose high in the cloudless sky and oriented the vehicle toward a specific destination. There was no problem or urgency but today was a very special day for someone.
It was the 27th of July of the year 2159, and it had been six years since the biological son of Miles Quaritch and Paz Socorro was born.
It was the first time he was going to the kid's birthday in person, and it was because the kid in question asked him to come, but he would have in any case it's just that before he couldn't have realistically done so.
Between being on another moon, working on major projects, solving interspecies problems, and more he didn't have the timeframe for this until now. It displeased Liam greatly but that was life and he couldn't have everything he wanted, the one affected the most wasn't even him, it was Miles.
But as harsh as it sounded, he had more important matters for the betterment of everyone, he couldn't risk jeopardizing the life of many for the satisfaction of one, he had many responsibilities, some more important than others. Missing a few birthdays was better than no more birthdays for the future of everyone.
This meant he was delighted to be able to go today and this prompted him to push the seven engines of the aircraft to their maximum power resulting in the Rhyniocopter breaking the sound barrier and in a short span of time arriving at his destination, the abandoned mine where Grace and her mate lived.
The cameras below the cockpit showed Liam that waiting below him were four kids of which three weren't human, or at least fully humans, and Cupla his otter-like tame hovering close to the one today was his special day, all of his tames were here except Gladius and Aegis as one was naturally too aggressive to be close to anything aside from him and Kiri while he wasn't present and the other was a giant fish.
Opening the sliding door the four tetrapterons flew out immediately as they cawed and it was followed by him jumping down. He landed his right fist in the ground with one knee before he slowly looked up to the kid between the newly six-year-old and three years old for the youngest, then with a smirk his beard couldn't hide as he spoke jovially.
<Greeting Kiri, Lo'ak, Netyeam and...>, Liam wasn't able to finish that a ball of energy in the form of a child only wearing a pair of shorts ran straight up at him.
<Dad! You came! Yeaaahhhh!>, Miles almost yelled out with a bright smile as he secured himself on the mountain of a man's shoulders who slowly stood up causing the boy to cry out in amazement as he held onto the dark brown braided hair of the man.
'Yeah, Dad… I don't particularly find that unpleasant to hear.', Liam thought not changing his expression as he and the kids began the walk to the cottage with Miles beginning to babble to him about how he missed him and many things he wanted to do such as piloting the space shuttle or his personal aircraft.
Liam knew Miles didn't only see him as a father figure but as a father straight up even if the boy realized the two were unrelated, it was a strange but warm feeling.
One he didn't find unpleasant, it was a unique one he never experienced before and it made him feel human, something that now seemed almost alien to him. He had changed a lot, for the better or the worse, being a leader meant he couldn't be negligent at any point.
It was different yet very much similar to the tames he was the closest to, Gladius who for all intent and purpose was the closest thing to a child of his.
The bird was smart, very smart, not adult human level smart but self-aware and capable of complex emotions, it wasn't a pet but an individual yet still very much a tool in essence, an extension of his body and will, here lay the biggest difference. He loved the big bird but that was a fact, Gladius was a tool that remained.
But for him, someone being a tool didn't mean them being worthless or not deserving of a modicum amount of love, care, or respect. Twisted as it may be it was how he saw it.
The circumstances around Miles' situation as an orphan made that it might, no it would lead to future complications when he would reveal what happened to his biological parents depending on how the boy would react but that was unavoidable and he was a truthful individual, he would not lie.
The fact that for both Gladius and Miles, he was responsible for their orphaned state was morbidly ironic, and with this that he adopted one and was thinking of doing so for the second made it even more ironic.
But a son, something at his almost thirty years of mental age and six of physical one would have never thought of, a human one something that was a big responsibility and it was something he couldn't find himself to be aloof about.
More so when this situation was in large part the consequences of his own doing. He didn't know if he was ready, or if he would even do a good job at being an adoptive father, he was busy all the time and it wouldn't be smooth but closure needed to be given if not for him, for the kid.
Miles would always be taken care of at the end of the day while he would be absent, the kid would never be alone. He would not let something like this slide.
And it was added motivation to succeed in his plans, it wasn't only life on the lines after all, yes it was the main goal but succeeding with no one else was not what he would call a success.
He felt Eywa acknowledged his choice through their empathetic bond, a mix of pride with joy which led to his smile growing bigger by a little bit. It won't be easy but he never was one to say no to a challenge.
<Have you ever dreamed of controlling a "mecha", Miles?>, Liam suddenly said, and as a would-be adoptive father, he would have an adoptive son at least a fraction as capable and knowledgeable as he was. He wouldn't accept any less.
Love even if it was tough was still love. Augmentation might even be in order when the boy is old enough and wants to go under the scalpel. He won't take such a responsibility lightly.
Comments
TITOO
Because Liam is the closest thing to this for Miles, it doesn't need to be rational or logical considering it's about a kid. Miles felt left behind by his adoptive family with only one individual truly paying attention to him and this individual is Liam, it doesn't need to be a lot for a connection to grow. But I suppose adding a few more scenes would have been better.
Alba
It kind of feels like out of nowhere, we never saw why he think of Liam as his father, how it came to be etc.. We literally only have a single scene of them together before this
Laplase
In the movie and comics Miles was a good kid raised on Pandora even if not always accepted. So, he could be even better with Liam instead of Nash as a father, but it would still be better to explain in detail who his father was and Liam's role in his death. Before he invests fully into the relationship and teaches him too much.
