Chapter 690 — Speaker Anqian
Blade of Dawn · Page 2 of 4
The corridor had reached its end. The ornate alloy doors sensed the approach of visitors; the access system immediately read the identity data of the two dragons in human form. With a pleasant chime, a stream of beautiful flowing light passed across the doors, and the entrance to the Speaker's chamber opened.
In a broad circular hall, a pale golden platform stood at the center of the room. Masses of crystalline "crystal drapes" hung down around the platform, their surfaces constantly refreshing with vast seas of data and images. Upon the platform, a golden dragon as huge as a human house lay quietly prone upon a "throne" woven from countless cables, conduits, and fabric.
Even by dragon standards, he was already quite old. Once-beautiful scales had lost their luster, covering his enormous body like inferior copper plates. Along his spine were arrayed numerous ports and metal plates, linked to cables hanging from the ceiling. Traces of mechanical and biochemical modification covered the surface of that aged frame: beneath the skin lay luminescent bionic integument, and cold, hard alloy frames were joined to his talons.
Meiheng walked toward this half-mechanized dragon elder and bowed before the platform: "I pay my respects, Speaker Anqian."
The aged golden dragon lowered his head. A mechanical prosthetic eye set into his skull extended and adjusted its focus, yet the other, somewhat clouded biological eye still shone with wisdom and warmth. A gentle voice came from the speakers around him: "Ah, Meiheng... the finest agent of the Mithril Vault. Good child, have you come to have your bonus penalty revoked?"
Meiheng's eyes lit up at once: "May I?!"
"No."
"..."
After a brief and awkward silence, Meiheng recovered her composure and produced the object that had brought her back to Talond ahead of schedule: "Your Excellency Speaker, I have received a special commission. I hope you will examine it personally. In addition, I have some matters to report regarding recent changes on the Loren Continent."
"A commission? Commissions presented directly to me are rare... From the Elven Court, or some elemental lord?"
"Gaoyang[2] Cecil."
[2] The Chinese text again contains a doubled character, indicating an uncertain or garbled rendering of the name; the translation preserves the given form.
"...Mm-hm." Speaker Anqian fell briefly silent, then gave a soft laugh. The stack of manuscripts in Meiheng's hands drifted into the air, spreading out sheet by sheet before the Speaker's eyes. "...Let us hope it is not another case of 'permanent preservation'... Oh? The contents seem rather interesting."
In almost an instant the Speaker completed his scan and reading of all the manuscripts. Several connection terminals near his spine flickered faintly, and a supplementary thought unit near his skull awoke. Clearly the contents had aroused his interest—though only slightly.
"It includes an understanding of the productive forces and relations of production, along with deductions about social change... Not especially profound, but you say this was summarized by that Gaoyang Cecil in the present era?"
Meiheng kept her head lowered: "It should also include his experience from the Gondor Empire period."
"Ha... The productive structure of the Gondor Empire was deformed; their social system could hardly give rise to experience of this kind," Speaker Anqian said with a light laugh, a faint red glow flickering in his mechanical eye. "I am somewhat interested now. How does Gaoyang Cecil wish the Vault to handle this manuscript?"
"That is precisely what I came to report..." Meiheng raised her head, speaking with a smile.
Her report was detailed, covering not only the substance of Gaoyang Cecil's commission but also her own observations and assessment of that "pioneering hero." At the end, she also mentioned the current development of the Cecil Empire, and the continuation of that ancient Defiance Plan into the present age.