236 Machine Manifesto

As he was being carried through the air, Taigen managed to come back to his senses a little and called out to Viridi, asking her to fly around to the back of the big machine where the conveyor belt exited from. No matter what happened, Taigen was determined to see this through to the end, driven by that strange itch in his heart and the glimpse of her past that he had seen. He could not explain what was drawing him to her, and that was only making him more determined to save her, even though he knew he was probably already too late.

Viridi helped him out, and landed them both on an open balcony above the rear of the android assembly machine to wait. Taigen wanted to go down to where the conveyor emerged, but the large number of androids that had gathered there was a significant deterrent. It was strange, the machines were all clustered around as if waiting for something, like it was a ritual of some kind. Taigen would have never thought that the woman would have triggered this reaction from the machines.

{Had she known something about this place? Some secret or knowledge? Maybe Zoey can figure it out…} Taigen thought as he looked at the scene. Nothing was happening yet, but he didn't have to wait for long.

At a certain point, the conveyor stopped, and all the lights in the factory shut off aside from the main assembler. All the other machines aside from the assembly machine and the androids standing around in wait powered down. This was followed by the assembly machine lighting up like a blast furnace, the noise from it becoming louder and louder as its lights went from blazing red to a fierce, flaming blue that illuminated the factory with its light, casting eerie shadows that flickered ominously among the machines and along the walls.

Taigen didn't know what to feel as he stood there watching. He was anxious and concerned, but also understood that there was little chance of the woman surviving what was happening inside the machine. He partly blamed himself for not acting fast enough and being unable to save her in time, and now that his mind was slowly returning to normal, he realized what a fool he had been to rush out after her on a whim.

{Some clan leader I turned out to be,} he berated himself mentally. Just the shock of losing Saigo had caused him to end up in this situation, and now even the woman he had chased after was most likely lost to him as well. She would likely be turned into an unthinking, unfeeling machine like the others. Although he was not clear how a human being could be converted into a machine, it seemed like the most likely outcome based on the strange happenings taking place below.

"Viridi, thank you for saving me… I'm sorry my actions got you pulled out here too… I should not have run off like that." Taigen apologized to the big feline after a moment.

Viridi only looked at him with her intelligent, emerald eyes and then nodded slightly, as if she was telling him not to worry about it. Taigen had no clue how intelligent Viridi actually was, but he was sure she understood every word he said, so he was grateful for her understanding. She truly was an amazing creature that was only matched by her equally amazing partner. If she was not here, then he would surely be in a far worse situation that he was!

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His attention was pulled back to the scene below as the assembly machine seemed to be reaching a crescendo. The lights and noise it was giving off was a storm of noise and color, a mess of madness that had no rhyme or reason. The androids that were clustered around the back of the machine actually got down on their knees, lifting their arms as they were worshiping a god when this happened, an odd sight to be sure.

Soon after that, the assembly machine seemed to suddenly lose its energy as all its lights went dark and the screaming machinery inside it slowly spun down and went silent, leaving the factory silent as the last echoes faded away. Then, a light from the ceiling turned on, illuminating the back of the assembly machine where the conveyor exited from right before the belt started moving again. The onlookers, one human, a host of androids, and one magical cat, all watched earnestly as the belt rolled by, waiting to see what would be revealed.

Then, she appeared. She was still lying on her back with her eyes closed as she rolled out on the conveyor, but Taigen saw partly to his relief and partly to his dismay that she had been changed! Her body was still unclothed, and thanks to that the alterations the machine had made to the woman were easily spotted. There were now metallic silver lines that started from her scalp and traced down along her neck to her shoulders and arms, then along her sides to her legs and feet. The silver lines also branched out along the woman's collarbone and other details on her body, like her joints and extremities. Her hair had changed as well, going from brunette to bright yellow in color, and it's length had been shortened considerably, not even reaching her shoulders.

No doubt there were other changes that were not readily apparent, but Taigen was not thinking about that right now. He was glad that she appeared to have survived whatever the machine had done to her, but he was anxious and worried about what had been done at the same time. Then, his eyes lit up. An idea had sprung into his mind, and only with Viridi's help could him pull it off. So, he turned to the magical panther-dragon sitting next to him licking her paw with a pleading look in his eyes.

Viridi proved easy to persuade. She had nothing against helping Taigen, and his offer of free scratches anytime she wanted was a good deal, so she agreed to his request. With that settled, the two of them sprang into action.