Chapter 48

　　Merit slashed at the Scout Mech with his vibrating Progressive Blade, the weapon making a loud, piercing wail as it moved. His skilled opponent leapt backwards before the quick-moving Blade could reach him.

　　"Tsk." Merit muttered, frustrated at how well-coordinated Clan Toth was during this assault. This group was on an entirely new level compared to their earlier encounters. Their losses were mounting, and he doubted that many Insurrectionists would see victory at this rate.

　　"Thermal Warning!" A mechanical female voice stated abruptly.

　　Merit didn`t have long to ruminate on his failure as a beam of crimson light shot toward him from the side. In an instant, time appeared to slow down for him as his Neural Link strengthened. The rapid beam of light decelerated, and he felt that he could breathe for the first time today.

　　Instinctively knowing what to do to avoid it, Merit dug his right foot into the shattered concrete of the street beneath him, launching himself into the air and somersaulting. The beam passed inches beneath his torso, the light of its passing filling his vision as more Thermal Warnings sounded from its proximity.

　　The Scout Mech he had been fighting wasn`t so lucky. Its companion obviously didn`t care if it struck its allies. The beam burned through the upper half of the Mech, leaving only a pair of legs that glowed a bright reddish-orange.

　　As he flipped, Merit focused on the PPC firing Mech crouching behind a ruined building, the steam still rising off its gun`s barrel as the heat dissipated. Aiming his Laspistol carefully, he pulled the trigger.

　　Crack! A streak of blue-white laser fire slammed into the Mech`s shoulder, scorching its armour and denting it.

　　Crack! Merit`s next shot struck it in the eyes, burning a hole through the Sniper Mech`s optical Sensors. It stumbled backwards from the force, exposing its cockpit for a final shot from the Laspistol.

　　Time resumed its regular flow as he landed, his Mech`s head turning to assess the area for additional threats. Seeing nothing, Merit was about to move on to the next location and rejoin his companions when a voice called him through a private voice channel. His Mech`s sensors picked up the movement of one of his allies from behind him.

　　"Merit," Mare spoke, stepping out from behind the cover of a toppled building.

　　She gripped her railgun in both hands. The devastatingly powerful weapon had already eliminated several enemies. Merit was impressed by her skills. He hadn`t thought someone could wield the formidable weapon effectively while moving, her motions smooth and shots accurate.

　　Before he could respond, his instincts warned him of danger. Mare`s body posture was all wrong, aggressive and hostile towards him. Her tone was flat and cold. Merit thought they had developed a good rapport with each other over the last few weeks, becoming teammates, if not friends.

　　He was careful not to make any sudden movements, trying to get a feel for what had happened to drastically change her attitude towards him.

　　"Mare&if I did anything to offend-" Merit was cut off as Mare raised her railgun, pointing it directly at the cockpit of his Blade.

　　"Merit of Caledon. I finally figured out why the sight of you has been so off-putting. Merit&.Emeritus Caledon. You look exactly like the Old Duke of Caledon, which would only be possible if you somehow found a way to alter your appearance in the game.&or if you resembled him in real life. Did you think no one would recognize you, Kalen Caledon?" Mare asked, her tone filled with barely restrained anger.This content has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

　　"I wasn`t trying to hide it," Kal replied with a shrug that couldn`t be seen through his Mech. "Look, maybe we can discus-"

　　Mare`s shout cut off Kal.

　　"You and your family are traitors to the Emperor!" She screamed. Luckily, her voice only carried through their private communication channel, preventing everyone in the area from overhearing them.

　　"I should do everyone a favour and eliminate you now before you do more damage," Mare stated.

　　"Really? How would killing me in a game serve the Empire?" Kal replied, scoffing at the ridiculous notion. Now that she knew who he was, his time on Beluth was finished. Even if she kept that knowledge to herself, he wouldn`t spend limited time fighting with someone who wouldn`t listen to reason.

　　For the first time, Kal could see that his words reached Mare. She had temporarily forgotten they were in a game, the anger at his presence overpowering her reasoning. Her actions here would accomplish little more than kicking Kal out of the World Event.

　　"People like you are the reason I don`t advertise who I am. Judging someone by the actions of their parents, threatening me when I have done nothing to harm you or anyone else. I`ve seen your type before." Kal stated.

　　"Bold words from a traitor." Mare retorted, her railgun not moving an inch as it stayed trained on his Mech.

　　"And what about you? You don`t think I don`t recognize you for what you are? I can spot another Noble from lightyears away. Your physical characteristics, training and education. That haughty, better-than-thou attitude every single one of you has ingrained into your being during your time on Terra." Kal said.

　　Mare was surprised that he noticed. She thought she had hidden her Aristocratic background adequately during her time in the game. No one on her squad had guessed her origins, but she rarely encountered other Nobles outside of her family.

　　"Can you say your family hasn`t done anything you wished you could distance yourself from? That you would like to be judged for your worth and not by your name?" Kal pressed, and for a moment, the railgun wavered.

　　"At least I`m loyal to the Emperor," Mare said.

　　"So am I! I proved my loyalty for five hundred years! You can shout that you are loyal all you want, but what have you done? What have you sacrificed for that loyalty?!" Kal shouted, his anger bleeding into his tone.

　　Before Mare could reply, a large piece of concrete fell from a structure behind her, crashing onto the ground loudly. Turning to look at it for fear that it was an enemy Mech, she let her gaze leave Merit momentarily.

　　It was enough time for him to charge forward. When Mare looked at him again, he was on top of her, knocking the Railgun out of her hands and pushing her to the ground. Before she could even respond, a wailing Progressive Blade was pressed up against the metal exterior of her cockpit.

　　For Mare, time slowed to a crawl. Her vision filled with the jet-black Blade and the weapon in its hands. Even though she kept telling herself it was just a game, it felt so real! The terror and helplessness were unavoidable.

　　She could hear Kal let out a frustrated breath over the communication link before lowering his weapon, the sword in his hand falling silent.

　　"We`re done here," Merit stated, his voice cold and hard. Turning, he began to walk away, severing the link between himself and the group. His comms fell silent, leaving him blessedly alone once more.

　　"Don`t turn your back on me!" Mare screamed, filled with rage and shame at how easily he had bested her. The thought that the son of the Traitor himself was standing in front of her, and she had been helpless against him, was a disgrace that could not go unanswered.

　　For years, her parents had talked about the Rebellion and its effects on the Empire. They were too young to have fought in it, but her paternal Grandparents had both died in the fighting. To ignore Kalen Caledon now would feel as if she were disrespecting their memory.

　　Swiftly climbing to her feet, she charged forward to attack Merit just as another pair of Clan Toth Mechs came out of the ruins. Seeing two Insurrectionists, they raised their weapons and immediately fired.

　　Hearing the crack` of Lasgun fire, Merit spun around.

　　Time slowed for a moment, and he acted instinctively. Dashing back to Mare, he stood in front of her Mech protectively, shielding her with his body while raising his Laspistol.

　　His shots struck both Mechs accurately before their own hit his Mech in the chest.

　　"Warning, Reactor Overload Imminent." The mechanical voice spoke in his ear as the temperature rose around him. Shaking his head, disappointed at his actions, Kal`s vision went dark as he died.`

　　Mare watched as the Blade exploded, matched by the destruction of the two enemy Mechs. Confused by Merit`s sacrifice to protect her, she didn`t bother rejoining her companions. Logging out of the game, she awakened in the real world, the sound of rain against her room`s large windows filling the silence.

　　Leaving the Pod, she went to see the only person who could give her answers.