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The original was posted on /r/hfy by /u/duddlered on 2024-11-01 15:13:08+00:00.
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Sector 7-G hummed with the sound of advanced machinery as engineers, technicians, and high-ranking officials spoke in hushed whispers.
A whole host of prominent individuals within the United States Government were present, and each of them looked nervous and excited. Some knew of the details of what they would be shown, while others were left in the dark and stood there unsure of what to expect.
However, regardless of what they knew, the fact that Yzael was taking part in this little meeting spoke volumes about how important it was.
Feeling the eyes glued to her, Yzael cleared her throat, moved with grace and poise that befitted her people, and greeted each dignitary and shook their hands one by one. The High Elf was no stranger to these kinds of meetings. It was a rough start at first; these strange humans had equally strange customs, and decorum caused her to commit a few gaffs, but she was always a fast learner when push came to shove.
“Hello, Mr. Secretary.” Yzael greeted with a slight bow as she grasped Secretary of Defense Mark Leigh’s hand. “Major General Elizabeth Harper.” She sidestepped and grasped the Pentagon’s Program Executive Officer’s hand.
As she made her way through the crowd, Yzael's eyes held a glint of mischief as she came across a familiar face– a woman with striking blue hair, short Sun-elf ears, and an eyepatch covering her left eye. “Madam Lysandra.” She smiled, grasping her hand.
They had already met some hours ago and played off they were seeing each other for the first time as she greeted her, Yzael couldn’t help but break out into a smile. It was an unusually expressive display for a High Elf, but seeing her former freelancer captain doing well still brought no end of joy.
"It's really good to see you again," the High Elf continued, her long ears wiggling slightly with excitement. The two would be showing off their abilities today, and Yzael couldn’t wait to fight along with Lysandra again, even though it was just for a demonstration.
Lysandra, less constrained by the muted emotions typical of High Elves, beamed at Yzael, but she still tried her best to maintain a professional demeanor. She was well aware of the important figures surrounding them and how little sway she had compared to her longer-eared friend.
"I'm delighted to see you’ve found a place in this new world," Lysandra replied with a very warm tone. "We need to sit down for some tea when possible."
Yzael's face became even more expressive as her eyes lit up and her hands clapped lightly together. For a moment, she seemed to forget where she was and who was in attendance. "Oh! Oh! Yes!" she nearly shouted as her voice went up an octave. I've found quite the lovely place with these little fluffy creatures!"
She began enthusiastically describing a cat cafe she had visited as her usually reserved demeanor completely vanished. "And the confections! Oh, the confections!” she said, completely oblivious to the stares and Lysandas side-eyeing the officials nervously. I couldn’t quite believe what they had in this world! They reminded me of what they served in the Rakthul Consortium of Guids in the southern islands!"
Lysandra's interest was visibly piqued, but her attention remained fixed on the group of very important-looking people who stood watching them with raised eyebrows. The stark contrast between Yzael's sudden burst of enthusiasm and the formal, tense atmosphere of the room made her even more uneasy. Some officials had even started whispering to each other as they exchanged glances. A mix of confusion and amusement clouded their faces as one older man, dressed in a crisp military uniform, spoke about how Yzael reminded him of his daughter in this very moment.
Gently grabbing and squeezing Yzael's arm, Lysandra tried to bring her friend's attention back to their surroundings in a subtle manner. "That sounds wonderful," she said softly with a hint of warning. "Perhaps we can discuss it more... later?"
Suddenly realizing her lapse in decorum, Yzael straightened up, and her ears flattened slightly in embarrassment. "Yes, of course," She cleared her throat as her voice returned to its usual calm timbre. "We have much to catch up on, but now is not the time."
She then turned slightly to acknowledge the watching officials with a polite nod. "My apologies for the outburst. Shall we proceed with the briefing?"
For the most part, the humans in attendance just chuckled good-naturedly in response, waving away as if it wasn’t a big deal. One of them, a distinguished-looking man with salt-and-pepper hair, spoke up. "Don’t worry about it, Yzael. I think you even lightened the air a bit." He replied, noticing that tension had visibly lessened. However, we should really carry on with why we're here."
A few acknowledgments were heard, and as the atmosphere shifted, personnel started to move. Everyone present knew they were about to delve into something extraordinary, and they were eager to see just what in the world had been so confidential that hardly anyone was clued in on what was happening.
It was show time, and Yzael caught a bit of nerves as she suddenly found herself at a loss of words. She had always been a poor speaker and was far more comfortable talking about the technicalities of a project, but now she found herself on stop muttering and stammering. "Well, um... I um..." Her eyes darted to the project manager, the very same man who had saved her from a public gaff earlier.
"Allow me to take it from here," The man with the salt and pepper beard said as he sensed Yzael's discomfort and smoothly stepped forward. He cleared his throat and introduced himself. "Ladies and gentlemen, I'm Liam Hawthorne from Anduril Industries. What we're about to present won't just be groundbreaking— it’ll completely dictate the rules for warfare from here on out." He spoke in a familiar and confident voice before looking over to a trailer with oddly shaped structures covered with a tan tarp.
Liam gestured towards the first of the tarp-covered structure, "Under this covering lies the culmination of our collaboration with Yzael. Her intimate knowledge of the very principles and building blocks of this new energy had been invaluable.” He spoke, pacing back and forth with one hand collapsed over his abdomen and the other gesturing with his other at the generals and officials. “What we once called 'magic' is becoming less unknowable and entering the realm of something tangible and malleable."
“Melvin, if you would please.” He nodded to a group of technicians working around the trailers. "Let's unveil our breakthrough."
The technicians immediately got to work and jumped on top of and all around the trailer to gently remove the covers designed to obscure the shape beneath it. The tarp itself was a complex, multi-layered affair structure with irregular patterns and textures that confused anyone who tried to make out what was undear near it. The design drew a lot of attention, but its main purpose was to confuse satellite imaging and prevent accurate analysis of what was underneath.
As the tarp was slowly and methodically removed, the group of officials leaned forward in anticipation as they laid their eyes on a structure nearly 12 feet tall. With a final yank, everyone was greeted with a strange metallic grey device with white surfaces that gleamed under the facility's harsh lights.
Sporting an imposing array of circular panels facing outwards, the device also had six enlarged fins arranged in a manner that made everyone’s head tilt in wonder. At first glance, one wanted to call the entire thing a radar, but each fin was mounted vertically vertically and placed between panels covered in a grid of small, highly sensitive sensors.
The top of the structure was equally complex, housing an arrangement of antennas and what appeared to be specialized receivers. Meanwhile, the base of device the was significantly more robust and sat on removable tripods while also featuring mounting lugs with a heavy-duty stabilization system. It was apparent that the array was designed to be modular enough to mount it onto a vehicle.
Liam stood up a bit straighter and lifted his chin slightly higher as he scanned the group silently, allowing them to take in what they saw and make their own decisions. One of his sales techniques was to create dramatic pauses to build a little tension. "Ladies and gentlemen,” he paused again before looking each official and general in the eye. I introduce you to Spectre, which is the very first in arcane detection, triangulation, and countermeasure technology."
He then gestured towards the imposing and futuristic construction. "Spectre represents a breakthrough in a brand new field.” Liam clasped his hands together as he continued to pace. “By leveraging Yzael’s profound knowledge in what we’re calling thaumatodynamics, we have fused it with cutting-edge defense manufacturing and artificial intelligence.”
"Spectre's functionality is threefold," Liam Continued. First and foremost, it's used for arcane detection and classification.” He raised his hand and held out his index finger. By utilizing sophisticated sensor matrices and advanced spectral analysis, it can detect ambient alternative energy fluctuations and identify them through machine learning."
He paused brief...
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