Chapter 176: No Cake Afterall

Chapter 176: No Cake Afterall

“The Church has once again approached the Arch-Magi requesting that they be allowed to build within Vega.

Once again, he has denied them the ability to reside permanently within the town. The thing is, I don’t think that Arch-Magi Elvis is against the existence of the Goddess. Several times, I’ve walked into his office to see him in the midst of prayer to her—you can tell because he keeps a burning flame and mutters thanks to her. Rare among the council.

When I asked him today why he keeps denying them the authorization to make a chapter within Vega, he said this:

“Red cloaks? Naw, that isn’t it, man. Ya can’t trust’em, because they aint working for the Goddess. Say they are, but when ya look into those Silver eyes of theirs, really look into those eyes, what you see in them aint her. It’s something else.”

I have no idea what it meant. Honestly, I thought he kept denying their proposals because they wanted tax exemptions. Not even the big players in the Casinos get full exemption status. Pity, I’ve seen them handing out food to the poors in the outskirts. They don’t seem like a bad lot.”

-Arch-Magi Assistant, Magi Saint. Journal Entry (304, 3rd Era.)

Erec sunk to his knees, breath coming out in short and painful gasps. His body wasn’t bleeding; the silver fire saw to that. But his connection to that body was frayed; at any moment, the tether connecting to him threatened to snap. He had a sense if he did if he lost track of that mortal coil, he would be abandoned to drift in a void for eternity.

“Well done, hero,” Enide said, sinking beside him.

He tried to adjust to see her—but the servos of the Armor sparked and failed. If he wanted to move, it’d be by Strength alone until he found time for repair. Even the controlled air inside the Armor wasn’t working; blood and sweat coated him. Leaving him a reeking and sticky interior.

With a hand shaking worse than a twig in a storm, he fumbled at his helmet and got it off. He threw it on the ground.

“A-are they alright?” Erec said, trying to gesture to the hall. His hand slipped, and it was all he could do not to fall.

Until he got hold of himself again, the only view he’d have would be the ruined remains of the AI ahead of him. It still sparked on the pedestal in the center of the room, three massive axe chops ruining its sleek metal surface. He could only remember putting a first into it. The other two must have come after. From a desire to make sure the thing was utterly dead while he still had fuel. Now, he could rest. They were safe. Thank the Goddess.

Enide crouched in front of him, thankfully blocking that view. She grabbed him by the head and planted a kiss right on his lips. It tasted of blood, probably his. But despite the metallic tang, it was the most welcome thing he could imagine; as she pulled back, his vision regained the barest bit of color. He could see a slight blush on her face. “The moment you took it out, the machines stopped moving. Think they’re collecting themselves out there... Pa is fine; I checked in a blink...”

“How many did we lose? Are the rest of the Knights okay?”

“Too many, I think, but none of the Knights...” Enide sighed, then looked at the dead AI. “But we all knew that, going in. The important part is it’s dead. You did it. Killed the monster that haunted my nightmares. Not going to lie, I was afraid, when I turned and saw that door behind us again, that I wasn’t going to get out. Now, I’m not sure what to think. It doesn’t feel real.”

Erec took in another big shuddering breath; more color burst into his vision, he was pulling it together. They needed to finish this out. Easy now, at least combat-wise. Not that it would be actually easy, since now they had to go and find the corpses of Enide’s family, drag them out, and then bury them. But, he’d guessed while in the middle of that, they’d find the tech his mother was looking for.

“Can you help me up? I can’t rest until I know my friends are alright, then after that, I’ll take a breather.” Erec let out, and Enide frowned.

“Dunno if I can lift that much steel. Not exactly a behemoth like you, big guy.”

“If I have a little help guiding, I can get my feet under me. I feel up to that much, at least.

[Anyway, it unleashed seventy-six suites designated ‘Test Subject Holding Areas’ on that side of the facility. Looking through some of these files, our little Rogue-AI didn’t just murder all the Pendragons. It was also periodically opening Rifts and containing monsters with human-compatible DNA that came through for testing, along with a couple of other lizards that wandered in. Those injections it gave to your Pendragons are only the start of what it labeled, ‘Sub-Space Visitor Assimilation Research,’ which it derived from its primary objective of Subspace research—Oh. Well. By Dan.]

“Erec, what is it saying?” Enide asked, twisting up to look at him.

[Soooo, Buckeroo. Well, perhaps it’s a bit trite now, but a form of those ‘Rifts’ of yours looks to be a product of Subspace research that predates the Apocalypse by five years... And they had things come through, which is why this place is fortified to high heaven; they had to pause testing to contain anything that came through. There’s a file there, too, that I saw labeled the ‘Alpha Signal,’ that I can’t even access. Only the board has the capability? No one is left on the board. But the redundancy systems refuted that fact. Maybe we can resolve this issue once the power is running again by establishing a connection to my facility.]

“...Wow, that’s... Aside from stuff about this company messing with Rifts before the world ended... The AI’s secondary core is in the suites. Bad news is that those are swarming with released test subjects. Some of which are Pendragons. The uh, ones who were trapped with you.” Erec answered, trying to run through the logic of what to do.

There wasn’t time to rest. VAL was doing what it could, but now, if there were survivors from the Pendragons there, they’d be in danger.

Enide cleared her throat. “They aren’t... Dead?”

“Not all of them”

“...Is there any chance they’re still—them?”

[There was plenty of testing done, but the shorthand on research notes here is like deciphering another language, a remarkably complex and nonsensical one.]

“Fuck, maybe. But if they are, it’s going to be swarmed with monsters trying to pounce on any ‘human’ left over there." Erec clenched his teeth and summoned what fire was left in him, all that was still alive. His veins bulged, and his vision once more tainted red, though if it was from a burst vessel or Fury itself, he could no longer tell. It didn’t matter since it wasn’t time yet to rest.

A little longer. Hold on a little longer.

“They won’t be able to survive there long without us.”

Enide gave a concerned look at him. “You... Need a rest. I can go look ahead—“

“No, I’m going. But first, we’re going to talk to Boldwick. I owe him some explanations, and we need some help for this. I... Can’t do this alone, not right now.” Erec admitted, as much as it burned him up inside. Getting there would tax him. And if the AI had one trick up its sleeve, it had another, he suspected, in the form of some very dangerous loose test experiments. His time with VAL made him well aware that those psychotic things were capable of much more than a human might think of.

But he refused to sit down and rest. Enide going alone to face her family, too, was out of the question. She’d helped him get through that tunnel and stood by his side as he bled and fought. He wouldn’t let her face this alone. And as long as this AI wasn’t dead, he wasn’t done.

“VAL. I’m going to confess to Boldwick.” He warned.

[...In light of the information received in this facility and the fact you’ve already violated confidentiality with Enide, we’re going to be having a discussion on the future of this corporation going forward. It is with a fool's neglect that a business ignores the demands and changes that come with society. This renewed perspective and the behavior of my employee may have swayed the direction we’ll be using to navigate a challenging future for Vortex Industries.] VAL buzzed. The answer was unexpected, but maybe this place had left an impression on it.

“I take it that means I can reveal confidential business information?” Erec asked.

[Silly Buckeroo, This is America, you’re never completely free to reveal confidential business information. But yes, I’ve lifted the confidentiality of that particular trade secret. It’s obvious to potentially save lives here harmed by the actions of Vortex Industries that easing the communication to vital information is the most effective solution to our current problem.]