"The second most guarded place in the empire, the first before Merlin arrived, Inmo and the council may not see speed force as a weapon, but research on it still resides in this part of the facilities.
Franky, with his professional demeanor, continued to guide Inmo through the facilities, even though this was one of the places Inmo visited the most.
Things shouldn't have changed much, as the Emperor's journey lasted less than a year. However, thanks to the speed force, scientists were making years of scientific advances in months of work.
"Here we have the well-established biological weapons research laboratory. Before you ask, research on the zombie virus is still on hold." Years ago, the empire's scientists discovered a strange disease that only affected animals, causing them to hunt their own kind, thus spreading the disease that slowly killed the infected, giving them just enough time to propagate.
Over time, the disease died out along with its hosts that couldn't infect other animals. However, this was enough to make some empire scientists turn to the idea that there are things that can mimic something like a zombie virus.
And at this moment, the fact that all empire citizens had advanced intellects proved to be a problem because some zombie enthusiasts decided they would create a zombie virus.
Inmo should have foreseen this when he began introducing this concept in films and animations. The long history of creating biological weapons would eventually lead them to a zombie apocalypse. Fortunately, the council came to him to decide whether to accept the research proposal.
At the time, Inmo was concerned about the Earth. After all, if things got out of control, he would have to live in a world where only zombies existed. So, he decided to veto this research.
Now that Inmo could leave Earth, he thought it wouldn't hurt to let these apocalypse enthusiasts research what they wanted. He has to remember to discuss this with the council."
"Among the new weapons, we have one that utilizes speed force to rapidly age those who come into contact with the gas. We discovered how to create this gas while attempting to develop a remedy that would change the speed of cell regeneration, providing those who inhale it with an accelerated healing factor—quite beneficial for ordinary people."
Inmo, who was having parallel thoughts, finally returned his focus to Franky, who was discussing the latest research.
"Here, we have a weapon that employs a highly potent poison that leaves no traces. It can spread through the air over a long distance, but what makes it so deadly is that we can modify it to target a specific individual using that person's DNA."
Inmo was starting to be impressed, realizing where the inventions of his people were heading. They truly had time to spare.
After a series of presentations on weapons that could terrify any society fearing an apocalypse, Franky finally reached the section on mechanical weapons, swiftly passing through pistols, rifles, and the like, quickly moving on to large-scale weapons.
Franky and Inmo entered a large facility where they could see three massive ships being manufactured for launch by the end of the year. They would have many weapons capable of causing destruction, including a cannon that could hit a target on Earth even from outside the Earth's atmosphere.
Looking back, Inmo was now thinking that perhaps it would have been better not to have presented some ideas to his people, such as spy movies. But he was young and had plenty of free time; we can't blame him for everything.
After Franky showcased the weapons for world domination—sorry, weapons to protect the empire—he took the emperor to see the research on speed force.
"It seems we've arrived at the right time for the final preparations to completely shield the empire. Altering its speed makes it operate on a different frequency from this reality, so only someone with speed force can contemplate entering the empire's lands."
Inmo didn't need to say much about what would change in these weapons research; they were already on a good path. At the end of the tour, he gathered with the heads of each research group and briefed them on the plans for creating a new task force, giving almost the same speech he had given to the magical department, thus concluding his day and returning to the palace.
The palace was located in a secluded part of the city, an isolated place where Inmo spent most of his time, alone while enjoying his free time. But unlike before, the palace now welcomed new residents.
In the past, Inmo used to clean the entire castle himself, not wanting to have servants and the like. However, after Franky appeared, the robot was adamant about becoming a kind of butler, taking on this task. So, he moved into the castle. Another resident was Diana, the princess of Themyscira. Inmo saw no harm in letting her stay. He enjoyed the calm, but he also liked the moments he had with his friends. Merlin, addicted to work, lived in his own research facilities.
After this time in which Inmo changed some things, days passed, and the plans were going well. Inmo and Diana were getting closer, and Diana, who had become a big fan of the empire's media, understood what his feelings were about. Still, she wasn't ready to take the final step, to confess.
Inmo saw in Diana a friend. Who would have thought that she was similar to him? Nights that Inmo spent alone thinking about the past and the lonely future, he now had someone to share his time with. He spent the night talking to Diana as they watched movies and played games, taking their time as friends. He realized he felt something more for her, and he knew she felt something for him too. But he wanted to take things slowly, savoring every step he would take until they reached the end. In the future, he would look back on these memories and know that he had made the most of it.
Things continued like this until one day, while watching a movie, Inmo asked an unexpected question, "So when do you plan to return to Themyscira to report that you've completed the mission?"
"The bottles with the sealed gods were starting to gather dust on your dresser," Inmo tried to make a joke to lighten the mood.
"Well, aren't you afraid I won't come back?"
"Then I'd have to go after you."
Seeing that Diana didn't want to talk about it, Inmo had no choice but to push the subject. "You know, I've never seen that island. It must be beautiful, right?"
Diana opened her beautiful eyes wide in surprise, realizing where Inmo was heading. She was in internal conflict about what to do. One of the reasons she hadn't confessed to Inmo was the fact that his relationship with her people wasn't the best. But in the end, she gathered courage and spoke, not very confidently.
"Um... So, do you want to come with me?"
"Of course."
Inmo opened a big smile, thinking that he could finally resolve this matter hand in hand with Diana. This way, he could take another step in his relationship with her. It was agreed that he and Diana would return to Themyscira to clarify things.