The Martial Unity

The boy simply smiled with a measured calmness that was uncharacteristic of his age. His ethereal eyes possessed a depth of experience, wisdom, and life that was impossible for a boy of ten years of age.

He directed a pointed gaze towards the deputy commander. “I wouldn’t be too sure if I were you, Wiles.”

He spoke with the same cadence and tone of voice as the former Supreme Commander of the Evolutionary Army. His young ethereal eyes sharpened.

“The reality is that he defeated me. Twice. One of which I have the memories of,” the boy continued with a calm, composed tone of voice. “And then he took the fruits of my labor and made it his own. And then…”

The boy’s voice grew truly flummoxed. “…broke through to the Transcendent Realm.”

The boy turned towards the bland ceiling lights illuminating the room, closing his eyes.

“He’s beyond my reach.”

When he opened his eyes, their ethereal depths reckoned with grim severity. “The gulf between us has never been greater. What was the point of reincarnating in this form if the goal of acquiring revenge and overthrowing his reign is insurmountable?”

When the original supreme commander had transmitted his genetic legacy back to Moridia, he had programmed his memories into the biochemistry of the cell. However, because the eggs fertilized by his sperm cells didn’t contain that biochemistry, the resulting zygotes only inherited a portion of his memories.

Except for one.

One boy had managed to inherit every single memory of the former Supreme Commander from the very day he was born. It was the highest secret of the Evolutionary Army. They hadn’t been able to protect the secret that the generation of miracles inherited memories at all, since the Emperor of Water had managed to figure that out. And much to their shock and offense, he didn’t seem to care too much about it.

But they had managed to keep secret the one perfect reincarnation of the former Supreme Commander.

In any other time, this would have been a trump card of astronomical strategic value. The most powerful evolutionary warrior had obtained a second chance at life with all his memories intact in the body of a boy with limitless potential because of his superior genetics.

And yet, because of the unfathomable miracles and power of the Emperor of Water, they weren’t even sure if this advantage would even be able to allow them to compete with the Martial Transcendent and his civilization.

“There is only one way to break free from his control and to become the most powerful force in Gaia,” the boy remarked with a slow, calm tone of voice. “And that is to achieve Transcendence myself. The power of Transcendence is so overwhelming that it overrides everything else. It doesn’t matter how many other pathwalkers you have. It doesn’t matter how many other forces, warships, or superweapons you have. A Transcendent appears to be a force that can only be defeated with another Transcendent. But…”

The boy sharpened his ethereal eyes. “The only question is how do I achieve it.”

The deputy commander coughed. “Your Excellency, it appears that His Majesty actually intends to share the secret to the Transcendent Realm with all high-ranking pathwalkers.”

“…” the boy’s expression morphed into one of pained anger. “The sheer arrogance. Does he truly believe that nobody can defeat him? Does he think he’s invincible?”

The boy clenched his fists.

“How dare he makes light of the Evolutionary Army?”

He heaved a deep breath, shaking his head. “No matter. If he truly is that arrogant, then we will make use of it and make him eventually pay for his arrogance.”

He turned towards the deputy commander. “Once you find the secret to Transcendence, let me know. I will begin training to achieve it. I have a long way to go before I reach my former level of power. In that time, I want you to ensure that the Evolutionary Army doesn’t fall behind in this Race to the Stars.”

The boy’s eyes sharpened. “He’s truly arrogant if he’s allowing the expansion of civilization to be privatized. He will be surrendering over a tremendous amount of control and power to other parties. The fact that he’s doing this shows that he believes that he can control human civilization despite surrendering all that power. The arrogance truly grates on me. But if he’s willing to surrender that power, then we must be the ones to seize more than anybody else. Once we have conquered much of outer space and once I have returned to my previous state and have achieved Transcendence, then I shall finally pay him back and take over Gaian Civilization.”

The deputy commander’s eyes lit up. “Yes, Your Excellency. I will ensure that all the preparations are made. How much time will it take for you to reach your former state of power and achieve Transcendence?”

“With this body, surpassing my former peak is guaranteed,” the boy gazed at his hands. “This body is still young, but once it hits eighteen years of age. I will have entered my peak. However, for Transcendence…”

His expression grew solemn. “I suspect it will take me a decade or so as long as I understand it and have developed a concrete path to achieving it.”

He turned towards the deputy commander with a pointed gaze. “I’m going to go back into deep training and return to the army as a regular soldier and work my way up through the ranks all over again. You will lead our army to great conquest over the next ten years. That will be my order to you. Create an Empire and a throne for me to ascend for the day I Transcend. And more than anything, ensure that the Emperor of Water never finds out about our plans.”

“Yes,” Deputy Commander Wiles struck his chest. “I will keep that in mind, Your Excellency.”

“That bastard has my memories, so he knows you as well as I do,” the boy remarked. “It is best you wipe your memories of me. When the time is right, I will unlock them. If he finds out about our plans too soon, then he will undoubtedly strive to ruin them.”

Even as Gaian Civilization was on the cusp of racing to the stars in full force, the Evolutionary Army hatched its machinations for its eventual rise as the hegemon of Gaia.