The floor of the Imperial Hall felt like ice against Orin Clays face. He tasted blood and dirt.Orin Clay. The sound filled the big room. The nobles standing around him did not try to hide their sneers. They whispered to each other making fun of him.He tried to get up. His arms would not work. They felt like they would break if he put any weight on them. His chest hurt a lot like someone was punching him from the inside.A little while ago Orin Clay was someone else. He was Arthur, a man who worked with computers in an office. He was good at his job. Made a lot of money.Then something strange happened. Orin Clay felt a pain in his arm and everything went black. When he woke up he was in a body.Now Orin Clays mind is a mess. He has memories of being a kid but he also remembers being a grown man who worked with computers.*My Soul Core,* Orin Clay thought. This is an idea for him but it feels important. *It is gone.*In the Aethelgard Empire the Soul Core is what makes you important.

The black sand of the Obsidian Frontier did not absorb the heat of the sun; it seemed to push it away giving off a low sharp chill that went through the soles of Orins boots.As they got closer to the broken ironwood forest the sounds of fighting grew from a murmur into a loud mix of violence. The air was thick with the smell of ozone burning oil and the clear metallic smell of blood. The Universal Archive System worked at its maximum mapping out the variables of the battlefield in clear cold lines of scrolling data.[TACTICAL VISUAL OVERLAY: ACTIVE][TARGET A: MAREN VANCE (MERCENARY CAPTAIN). CULTIVATION: STAGE 4 IRON-BODY ELITE. CURRENT STAMINA: 12%. CORE INTEGRITY: DAMAGED BY CORROSIVE MIASMA.][TARGET B: CORRUPTED BOAR (LEVEL 3 DIRE BEAST). PHYSICAL SCALE: 4.2 METERS. WEAKNESS: THE SPINAL DIRECTLY BEHIND THE SECONDARY ARMOR PLATING.][TIME UNTIL COMPROMISE OF ALLIED LINE: 114 SECONDS.]Orin crouched behind a ridge of volcanic glass his eyes on the clearing ahead. Maren Vance was a

The wind on the volcanic ridge did not scream it whispered, taking the heat from the blood of the men standing there.Five men from the Sol Syndicate held their swords tightly their bronze armor shining in the faint silver light coming from Kian Frosts new spear tip. The destruction of their machine had left a hole in the ground throwing pieces of copper and iron all over the black sand."You have a lot of guts to get in the way of our work boy," the leader of the Sol unit said. His name was Boros, a man with a face of old burn scars from working in the sulfur mines. His power core was pulsing with a green light that showed he was good with poison. "This area belongs to Master Sol. If you move things across the sand without permission it is against the rules. You will lose your things and your life."Orin Clay stood still his hands in his pockets. To the men he looked like a kid. A pale weak boy who was not a fighter and did not have any special powers.. To Orin Boros was just a simpl

‎‎The journey into the Cryos-Chasm was a test of planning and supplies.‎‎While heavy rain pounded the surface above turning the black sand into a slippery mess the inside of the newly found crack remained eerily quiet. The only sound was the ring of iron pitons being driven into the frozen rock and the steady hum of the Level 3 Void Seed on Orin Clays chest.‎‎[ENVIRONMENTAL RECONNAISSANCE: COMPLETED]‎‎[SUBTERRANEAN DEPTH: 114 METERS. INTERNAL TEMPERATURE: -18°C.]‎‎[ATMOSPHERIC DATA: HIGH DENSITY OF CONDENSED CRYOS-VAPOR. LIQUEFACTION INDEX: 82%.]‎‎[RESOURCE ALLOCATION PROFILE: CRYOS-CRYSTAL VEINS LATTICE STABLE. PURE ELEMENTAL MATRIX RETENTION: 99.4%]‎‎Orin stood on a platform lowered by heavy pulleys from the surface. Next to him Maren Vance adjusted her grip on her broadsword, her breath in the dim blue light. The chasm walls were made of translucent ice sheets, behind which thousands of jagged Cryos-Crystals grew.‎‎"It's beautiful " Maren said, her fingers tightening

‎The transition from a problem to a big threat required more than just strong weapons; it required complete control of the supply chain.‎‎In the three days after the removal of the Core-Breaker, the square of Black-Water Ridge stopped looking like a wild frontier town. Under Orin Clay’s planning it had been completely rebuilt into a very efficient distribution center. The messy collection of iron-sheet shacks was cleared away. Replaced by organized stone sorting areas where raw ore, Cryos-Crystals and refined zero-resistance bars were sorted, labeled and packed according to detailed logistical plans.‎‎Orin stood on the upper level of the administrative building looking out at the long line of transport wagons stretching toward the northern horizon. The Universal Archive System worked quickly its blue data arrays showing across his pupils in clean steady columns of logistical calculations.‎‎"The supply chain is getting stable Orin " Maren Vance said, stepping onto the level behin