Samuel served the group beer as Ang-Streum started informing them of the circumstances behind their arrival on Earth.
"My aides and I were off world…attending to a peace talk on one of our neighboring planet vassal kingdoms. When we received the alert of the attack, we quickly began our return journey. When we got closer, my battlecruiser was ambushed by several dozen battleships.
The four of us managed to escape the encirclement in an escape capsule but before we could enter a wormhole, the capsule was struck by an attack, causing us to lose control and plumet straight into your planet", Ang-Streum explained.
"My God! This guy sounds like a maniac. I can't believe you managed to escape successfully", Dr. Michelson said admiringly. "Knowing his character, I suspect he's going to be hot on our heels. This is probably the first time anyone has ever escaped his grasp.
I know for a fact that he was going to attack this planet sooner or later but with our presence here, his attack may very well come sooner than later…I'm sorry", Ang-Streum apologized with a bow of his head. His aides also bowed, joining their king to express their regret.
"You do not need to apologize. You said it yourself…he desires to control the entire universe so he was going to attack Earth sooner or later. The attack is just going to happen earlier than anticipated", Dr. Michelson stated.
"Yeah! And besides, if he thinks we would roll over and die he has another thing coming", Samuel added. Hearing this, Ang-Streum rose to his feet followed by his three aides.
"We are determined to end Mamon's reign of terror. The moment we met, I felt the enormous power hidden in you. I have no doubt that this planet will come out victorious We are humble refugees but if you will have us, we will like to humbly dedicate our strengths to your cause. Feel free to use us as your subordinates", Ang-Streum declared with a bow.
Samuel stood to his feet and approached them. He placed a hand on Ang-Streum's shoulder and helped him stand upright. "You are welcome to join us but not as subordinates…you will be our comrades. We do not seek people who are subservient to us but people who can stand next to us as equals. We are happy to have you", Samuel said, making his stance on the matter clear as he held out his hand for a handshake.
Ang-Streum smiled as he returned the handshake. "Thanks for having us", he replied.
"Now that that's out of the way, we need to delve into the strength of his armada", Samuel suggested. "You're right! Since Lisia has finished updating herself with the Nebulaxian data matrix, it should widen the scope of her abilities", Dr. Michelson informed.
"Can you tell me more about the matrix?" Samuel asked as flicked the cap of the bottle and took a sip of his beer. He turned to see the four Nebulaxians admiring the ice-cold beers before them.
"This tastes a little like brewed Gork berries but it's so much more delicious!" Lyn-Fe shouted in glee after taking a sip. "Yeah…I agree. It's truly wonderful", Dav-Nido added as he took a long chug.
Benji-Ha-Dad, without speaking, nodded in agreement as he enjoyed the beer in bliss. "If this makes you so happy, I can't imagine what you'll do when you get the chance to sample the finest cuisines on Earth", Dr. Michelson said with a proud smile.
"Getting back to the matrix…it is basically our planet's singular information hub. Every record is stored on it and any information that was transferred with Nebulaxian technology was automatically transferred through the matrix. It is quite similar to the system you currently have but unlike yours, the matrix does not have an independent artificial intelligence to govern it", Ang-Streum explained.
"Thanks for the information. Lisia will sift through all the data and sort them out for us in order of relevance. I'm sure we will get something helpful out of it", Dr. Michelson said.
"Let's talk about Mamon's forces then. What is the composition of his armada?" Samuel asked. "I'm not sure. Since the attack was sudden, we did not get the chance to find out. However, every battle ship has a built-in system that automatically scans the entire battlefield and records all ships in the vicinity. I'm positive the information is recorded on the matrix", Ang-Streum informed.
"Very well then…Lisia, please pull up the recorded composition of Mamon's armada", Dr. Michelson requested. "ACKNOWLEDGED! PROCESSING REQUEST…!", Lisia announced as a stream of data flashed across the screen.
"DATA RECOVERED! DISPLAYING NOW!" she said as multiple different space ship models, arranged in order of class, appeared on the screen.
"NOTICE! FROM THE BATTLE RECORDS, MAMON'S FORES ARE AS FOLLOWS:
A-CLASS WARSHIPS…TEN THOUSAND
B-CLASS WARSHIPS…NINE HUNDRED
C-CLASS BATTLESHIPS…ONE HUNDRED
D-CLASS BATTLESHIPS…TWENTY
E-CLASS BATTLECRUISERS…FIVE
F-CLASS DESTROYERS…ONE
THIS IS THE END OF THE LIST", Lisia ended. "Thank you, Lisia,", Samuel said to her and turned to Ang-Streum. "Can you describe what type of ship each of them is", he asked.
"Well, the A-Class warship's size is a third that of the capsule we came in, and can only hold up to ten warriors each. The B-Class warship is similar in size to that of our capsule, although meant for battle, and can hold up to seventy warriors.
They each get bigger and bigger the higher the class, with the C-Class holding up to two hundred men; the D-Class holding up to seven hundred men; the E-Class holding up to one thousand men and finally, the F-Class Destroyer, that most likely serves as Mamon's mothership, can hold up to five thousand men.
Also, ships that are C-Class and above have hangers that are capable of keeping other lower-level ships on standby so we can never truly estimate the actual number of the armada", Ang-Streum described.
"So, in this upcoming battle, we are to expect at least eleven thousand ships of differing strengths carrying at least…two hundred thousand warriors", Dr. Michelson said after doing a quick calculation in his head.
"They may have numbers and advanced technology, but we have superior power. If they attack us, we'll respond with ten times the ferocity", Samuel declared as his eyes sharpened into slits and he unconsciously released murderous intent scaring Ang-Streum and his three aides.
Noticing the effect of his murderous aura on them, he quickly took a deep breath and calmed himself down. "We estimate that he should launch an initial attack in a couple of your Earth weeks", Ang-Streum estimated.
"Well, let's talk about you now. What's up with the crystal looking thing on your forehead? None of your aides have it", Samuel enquired curiously.
"Well, I am… or was…one of many in my planet with the title of 'Chan-Drion'", Anthony informed.
"What's that?" Samuel asked. "Basically, on our planet, everyone is attuned with the mana in the air but among them, there are those who are born with the potential to manipulate the mana and cast spells to create miracles of sorts with it. That is what I am.
We even had educational facilities to specially train these potential candidates to help develop their skill.
These crystals appear naturally when the potential candidate for the title reaches a certain age. It is at the moment of its emergence that the title of Chan-Drion is awarded.
The crystals help draw in more mana enabling the Chan-Drion to cast multiple spells of varying strengths at a time.
I am currently the only Chan-Drion left as my aides did not manifest the crystal", Anthony explained.
"I see. Notwithstanding what happened to your people, I still think your power is quite amazing. In addition to your flight skill, I'm sure you were the most powerful", Samuel commended and the Nebulaxian king could only bow in gratitude.
"Anyway, I think you guys need to rest. I apologize for keeping you even though you just crash-landed on this planet and have not had the chance to recover. Let me show you to your rooms. Soon, we will be in for a serious battle for the safety of this planet…we all need to prepare", Dr. Michelson said as he led the four Nebulaxians towards the guest rooms.
"Should we inform the others of this?" Samuel asked after Dr. Michelson returned. "Silendiana is already aware but I don't think she has informed them yet. They are in Asia for a business conference after all. Let's inform them after they return. We can use the time to make sure of things", Dr. Michelson said, hinting at something.
Samuel nodded in understanding as he turned to leave. "I need to return back to the office. I'll check back tomorrow", Samuel said as he entered the elevator. "Please be careful…do not let your guard down", he added before the doors closed.