“Well, she wasn’t lying when she said I could get good stuff here, but… how the hell did this end up here?”

  Before my eyes—and my recording lens—floating among other wreckage, was a large, ostentatious ship, covered in ornaments and luxurious details, with gold as its primary color. It was as if its owner had vast amounts of money but zero sense of taste.

  If that were all, it wouldn’t be a big deal, but what truly stood out was an enormous shield protruding from the front, as if they were afraid we might not notice it. Tremendously gaudy… if not for the fact that emblazoned on it was a golden crown with a mighty sword above it and a magnificent shield behind it: the coat of arms of the royal family of Altar.

  “A royal ship?” I felt chills just saying those words. Anything involving them is always serious business and best avoided. “A bit crude for a king… a prince, maybe?”

  I really didn’t want to get involved in anything related to that pack of eccentrics, but this was an emergency. Hmm, fine. If anything happened, the Princess could cover for me. In theory, she wasn’t royalty, but she held a similar position… I think.

  I steeled myself and guided my battered MechFrame toward the ship. It was in relatively good condition, probably thanks to the expensive materials used in its construction. Without hesitation, I headed straight for the hangar.

  “Bingo!”

  I quickly found my target. The hangar was packed with armors. The designs were a bit old—at most a century—but they were still mass-production units. Since they likely belonged to the personal guard of a member of the crown, their capabilities should be comparable to the current Leonidas models.

  “Come on, I need something better.” I moved toward the center, where something stole my attention, impossible to ignore. “Yeah, that’s definitely the ship owner’s armor.”

  Before my eyes stood a gigantic suit of dazzling—and extremely vulgar—golden armor. The design was incredible and majestic, evoking a powerful knight. It wore a red cape connected to the armor like a lion’s mane. The helmet bore beautiful engravings forming a crown. Beside it rested its primary weapons: a magnificent sword and a large shield.

  “It looks powerful, I won’t deny that, but picturing myself piloting it… Okay, first let’s check its capabilities.” I took an elevator up to the cockpit and powered up the display. “Just as I thought: a named unit.”

  Named units were custom-made armors for their user. Their stats and abilities couldn’t be achieved in mass-produced units, mainly due to economic factors. A single unit could be worth as much as a fully equipped squad, and sometimes they contained technology or materials that were extremely difficult to obtain.

  “Rex Dei Gratia? Is that your name? Sounds elegant.” I said to the armor. “Wow, the cockpit is a regeneration tank too. That’s expensive, no doubt—meant to keep its precious pilot safe,” I commented as I reviewed its features.

  I placed my hands on the controls.

  “Alright, Rex, let’s see what you can do.”

  Suddenly, I felt a scanner on my finger.

  [Unauthorized user.]

  “What?” I checked the alert. “Why?”

  [Incorrect bloodline.]

  “Bloodline? You’ve got to be kidding me!”

  It was locked to the pilot’s blood or that of their descendants. Only a member of the Altar royal family could pilot it.

  “Screw you! As if I even wanted to pilot this gaudy, vulgar mech anyway,” I muttered as I climbed down and kicked it. “You can stay here and rot in space.”

  I started looking for the next best option when, among the standard black armors, I spotted a different one I’d overlooked the first time, overshadowed by that stupid Rex.

  “Antennas? Horns? Ears?”

  Kneeling there was a gray unit—subtle, yet gleaming with metallic luster—and a slightly canine-shaped head. Without the ear-like antennae, I wouldn’t have noticed it. I didn’t see any main weapon.

  “Hey, buddy, you don’t look bad at all. You’ve got style.” I climbed into the cockpit to check it out. The system booted up; thank God there was still enough power. “You’re a named unit too? So, Cadejos. Let’s see what you can do.” I put my hands on the controls, praying there wouldn’t be any problems this time.

  “GET YOUR FILTHY HANDS OFF MY CADEJOS, YOU BASTARD!”

  Unauthorized usage: this tale is on Amazon without the author's consent. Report any sightings.

  Suddenly, a very rough-looking man appeared in front of me: long black hair, solid musculature, a few scars. Overall, he had the look of a thug.

  “A projection?”

  “You messed with the wrong armor, thief! Only I can pilot that unit. An alert has been sent to my device; I’ll be there shortly to give you the beating you deserve.”

  I stayed seated for a moment… and nothing happened. I figured he wouldn’t come into the Storm; if he did, he’d be dead. The good news was that it wasn’t a genetic lock, just a password. Top-tier security, nearly impossible to crack even with the best computers… decades ago.

  “Ahhh, technology really does advance by leaps and bounds,” I said as I linked in and shattered its security in the blink of an eye.

  Another projection appeared.

  “DAMN YOOOOOU! HOW DARE YOU TAKE MY CADEJOS?! DO YOU HAVE ANY IDEA HOW MUCH IT COST ME?! HOW MUCH I HAD TO SAVE?! THE JOBS I HAD TO DO?! AND NOW I HAVE TO PUT UP WITH THAT IDIOT PRINCE AND HIS STUPID GOLDEN ARMOR! ALL JUST TO HAVE MY OWN NAMED UNIT! YOU HAVE NO IDEA WHO YOU’VE MESSED WITH—I’LL FIND YOU! THE ENTIRE BLACK WOLF GANG WILL HUNT YOU DOWN! NO MATTER WHERE YOU HIDE, OR EVEN IF I HAVE TO COME BACK FROM DEATH ITSELF, I’LL FIND YOOOOOOOU!”

  I shut it off.

  “…He even took the time to record a message in case someone breached security. Wow, they really must have loved you, Cadejos,” I said as I adjusted the controls.

  Slowly, the armor rose to its feet. It still had some power, not enough for a prolonged battle, but sufficient for a few movements.

  “There you go, easy. I still need to give you some maintenance.” I moved into an open area. Cadejos responded incredibly well for having gone so long without moving. The quality of its construction was obvious.

  I threw a couple of punches and quick kicks, jumped, and hits. Each movement carried power and speed different from the Leonidas units, and that was with a light workout, far from its limits.

  “You’re amazing, Cadejos! I’m on par with the golden armor now,” I smiled as I patted the console. “Still, I was expecting something more flashy from a named unit. A special move, eye beams… You don’t happen to have a rocket punch, do you?”

  Maybe I was being greedy. It was a free named unit. It was clear how much it had cost its former owner.

  “Alright, you’re incredible. From now on, we’re partners, but I need to get you some kind of weapon; we can’t fight using just our fists.”

  I remembered that I still hadn’t linked to it with the circlet.

  “Of course, that’ll give me all the information I need.” I checked behind the seat and pulled out a circlet with a crystalline red processor. Finally, a Ruby! I liked Cadejos more and more. I put it on and felt my world expand; my mind evolving. The effect was far stronger than with Franky. I took a moment to get used to it. “Okay, I’ve settled down. Let’s see: weapons, weapons… here it is!” I started reading. “What? All of these?!”

  A long list of primary weapons unfolded before me: swords, spears, daggers, axes, sabers, rapiers, halberds, shields, tridents, laser weapons, heavy munitions, rocket launchers, armor-piercing battering rams.

  “Wow, your previous owner really wanted to be ready for anything,” I let out a whistle of admiration.

  But… where were they? I looked around the hangar; there wasn’t a single weapons rack in sight. Did they forget to load them? Are they sold separately? Am I seriously never going to escape DLC?

  “Well, whatever, I’ll get you something else later,” I said to the armor.

  It was a shame, they all looked amazing. Wielding that sword would’ve been incredible. I sighed as I mimed a slash at a pillar.

  The next instant, the pillar split cleanly in two.

  I froze. I looked at the pillar: a perfect cut. I looked at my hand… a sword.

  “……”

  I rubbed my eyes. I had to be tired. I looked again, and the sword was still there.

  “Whaaa…” I let go of the weapon, but it didn’t fall to the floor; it vanished into the air amid impossible geometric shapes and fractals.

  “……”

  I repeated the exercise: I mimed a slash, and nothing happened.

  “That’s better. I really should get some sleep. How does a sword appear just from grabbing at thin air?” I said more calmly as I made the motion of holding something.

  I felt my hand close around a hilt.

  “……”

  There it was, the sword in my hand.

  “……”

  I opened my hand and it vanished into a swirl of shapes.

  “……”

  I closed my hand and it returned to me. Open, close. Open, close.

  “What the hell is going on?!” I shouted, completely lost.

  I checked the manual through the circlet: weapons, weapons storage, dimensional hypercube.

  “…Oh, it’s just a dimensional hypercube!” I sighed in relief. “A dimensional hypercube?!” I ended up yelling as the meaning of my words sank in.

  As you know, objects can exist in multiple dimensions. For example, a flat, two-dimensional shape is a square; add another dimension and it becomes a cube. Add yet another, and it becomes a hypercube.

  Hypercubes cannot exist in our dimension, so a concept similar to stellar jump is used: matter is separated from our dimension while remaining anchored to it, usually through an object.

  A dimensional hypercube is basically a storage space where you can keep things outside the dimension and retrieve them when needed. I don’t need to explain how expensive that is, or how much secret technology it requires.

  “I never thought I’d be able to use one someday.”

  I was stunned, but above all, ecstatic. I looked at the long list of weapons in the storage.

  Now I understood why its owner had been so furious about losing it.

  “Cadejos, from now on you’ll be my most faithful companion. I don’t care if I have to fight some ancient corpse to keep you by my side!” I said as I stroked the controls.

  Overjoyed with my new partner, I headed back to the Princess, riding it so I could give it the maintenance it deserved.

  At last, a plot twist in my favor; this would definitely boost the view count.

  I reached the bridge and found her reviewing the recording of the fight with the golden armor frame by frame.

  “Princeeeess! I’m back, and I’ve got great news. I found an incredible partner. The next time I see that monster, we’ll see who beats up whom,” I said in high spirits.

  [Rob, you’re back already. Could you take a look at this?] she said, pausing the footage on a single frame.

  “At what?” I stepped closer to see.

  It appeared to be the moment when I dealt the most damage with my weapon and it was in the process of regenerating. On part of the armor, some kind of shape or marking could be seen.

  [I think it’s some kind of crest or insignia. Maybe we can identify its affiliation. It’s shaped like a cat, does it look familiar to you?]

  My eyes widened in disbelief. All the joy drained away instantly. I moved closer to the screen to be sure.

  “Damn it…! It’s not a cat,” I said bitterly. “It’s a lynx.”