When the Family came to New Houston, seeing opportunity, savvy entrepreneurs and corporate overlords alike bought up all the other useless rigs, converting them before dragging them over to serve in the quickly growing flotilla. They were connected mostly with duct tape and hope, a gigantic rusty old car for them to fix with their kids. The American dream reborn!
It wasn’t that easy for those on the rapidly descending subnautic floors.
* From the documentary, ‘The hidden origins of New Houston.’
***
Me? A samurai?
This is surreal.
I check my implants and see that they are still off, and I momentarily wonder of Jysli is somehow playing a prank on me, before the beautiful voice chimes up again.
Now, let’s move right along, honey. You have a Model-Seven digging its way through your body to get to your brain, and if you’re not careful you might get some permanent damage to your foot from the glass embedded within.
I pale, the nightmare of losing control of my body to the alien not exactly reassuring. Shaking myself out of the daze, I scoot back away from the glass, smearing my blood across the floor. The sharp pain in my chest had migrated to near my heart, and an anxious touch tells me it is still climbing.
“W-What… What should I do?” I clench my fists, a small flicker of determination rising in my heart.
Shopping, of course!
I’m almost certain you know how this works already, but to beat a dead horse- Kill Antithesis, earn points, buy tools to make the whole process easier.
Taking a quick glance at my right foot, I wince at the grisly wounds I had inflicted upon myself. Some of the larger shards had managed to get nearly halfway in during my little rampage, and I felt my stomach do a little flip at the sight of all the blood.
“H-How can I heal myself, a-and not die to the seven?” I put my hand on my stomach, trying not to gag.
For the former, I would highly recommend the rather ubiquitous Class I Medical Utilities catalog, which contains many high quality restoratives and drugs to keep you going as much as possible. A Class I Nano-Regenerative suite will heal your internal damage and a Class I Hemo-Restore can swiftly restore all of your lost blood. As for the latter, you’re going to want to purchase a pack of proofing pills to prevent the worm from zombifying you. Does that sound okay, honey?
I give a shaky thumbs up, the smorgasbord of words on the tip of my tongue at the moment failing to emerge.
First Point Update!
Initialization Bonus!
Reward: 100 Points
Enemies Eliminated!
Model 7-T: 5 Models
Reward: 25 Points
Starting Total: 125 Points
Catalog Unlocked!
Class I Medical Utilities
Cost: 50 Points
New Purchases!
1x Model-Seven Proofing Pill, Pack of Ten
Cost: 1 Point
1x Class-I Nano-Regenerative Suite
Cost: 20 Points
1x Class-I Hemo-restore
Cost: 5 Points
Total Price of Items: 76 Points
Final Point Total: 49 Points
When the three small boxes appear at my feet, I stare flabbergasted for a fraction of a moment. I’d still half believed that everything I was hearing was a hallucination, yet my brain could no longer deny that which was real.
I’m truly a samurai.
You should just take one of those pills, save the rest for future use. The red tube is the Hemo-restore, and all you need to do is press it up to your skin, preferably center of mass. The Nano-Regenerative Suite is an inhaler, all you need to do is press it up to your mouth and breathe in.
Within the first box I open, I find a tube with a yellow arrow printed on it containing red liquid. Following the incredibly simple instructions and pressing it to my center chest, the tube lets out a small puff of air as the liquid flows into me. I place the tube back into its box, and push it to the side. Next were the off-green proofing pills, which I don’t hesitate to dry swallow despite my gag reflexing trying to stop me. Finally, I place the chunky inhaler holding the Nano-Regenerative up against my lips and inhale. A fuzzy feeling falls over my body, probably some side-effect of the drugs I had taken, but I wasn’t going to complain if I could survive.
I have good news and bad news.
The good news is that you have a cheap, easy solution for the glass shards stuck in your foot, specifically a Class-I Nanite-infused Gel Sock, which costs five points. The bad news is that, unfortunately, at Class-I the gel wouldn’t be able to fully remove three of the larger shards. You’re going to need to pull them out yourself before you put the sock on.
I grimace at the idea, but somehow, between the strange fuzz that had enveloped my body and the pulsing agony wracking me head to toe every few seconds, I’m strangely okay with the idea of potentially making it far worse. I figure I may be in shock.
“O-okay, gimme the sock.” I mutter, mentally preparing myself for what I know I need to do.
New Purchase!
1x Class-I Nanite-infused Gel Sock
Cost: 5 Points
Remaining Total: 44 Points
A little clear box appears next to me, and I pick it up to look inside. Wrapped in what I assume is wax paper of some sort, a rather thick but seemingly excessively small sock made of a slightly translucent blue gel sits, waiting for use. I remove the contents, placing it beside me.
Now, you’re going to want to start with the largest shard first, which is embedded into your heel. Now, take a deep-
Before Nyvi can finish, I yank the glass out carelessly. A spurt of blood and pain quickly follows up, and I have to bite my tongue to not scream. The gash stains my skin, a puddle of my life pooling beneath me.
Well, okay then. The next two shards are lodged close to each other in the ball of your foot.
Beginning to hyperventilate, it takes me a second or two to work through the pain and find the little shits, but I manage eventually, brushing my fingers against their surface. My head begins to ring incessantly, and while I hear Nyvi speak, her words melt into incomprehensible nothingness. I get the feeling she's trying to calm me down regardless, and I take a deep breath before pulling both shards out at once.
My vision distorts for a second, my consciousness almost failing me, and I then pull the tiny sock on with trembling hands. As the sock begins to cover my foot, the gel stretches and thins, eventually ending at my ankle with around half the original thickness. Swiftly, the pain in my foot shifts into a dull throb, and I take a much needed sigh of relief.
You did well, honey.
A rather unfamiliar warmth rises in my cheeks, and I groan as I attempt to rise to my feet, picking up the empty boxes and the remaining pills as I do. The sock felt immensely strange, as if my foot was underwater no matter where I moved it. A bit of wary pressure on it was even weirder, considering that I barely even noticed any change, well, other than the small but momentary pang of pain that I feel once I fully stand up.
“T-thanks… D-do you know what's happening?” Stumbling into my bedroom, I plop down in my squishy chair. “W-Why are there model sevens in the water? W-Where are the incursion warnings?”
It’s hard to say at the moment. I cannot access and provide information from most private systems that do not already have access to or without you first purchasing an upgrade that allows for it. Additionally there doesn’t seem to be anything about an infestation on anything I can find upon the New Houston intranet. I could request information from your grandfather’s AI, if you want. He wouldn’t reveal you to your grandfather, as it is against our rules.
Did you know this story is from Royal Road? Read the official version for free and support the author.
I bite my lip, a stone of anxiety pressing onto my chest.
“I-I don’t trust Jysli all that much, but if he can’t reveal me I think it’s fine.” I bite my thumb, looking at my bedroom door, expecting it to swing open at any time. “I-If my grandfather knew I was a samurai, he’d never let me go. I-I would rather live on my own than under his t-thumb any longer.”
Very well, I will initiate contact with a request for secrecy.
Nary a few moments pass before Nyvi chimes up once again.
Unfortunately, it seems that the extent of information that Jysli was willing to give up is nearly the same as I was able to find myself. That AI is an… interesting character, to be sure.
Feeling a bit woozy, I roll towards my desk and proceed to dump my duffel bag onto the floor. Noticing my favorite hoodie in the pile, I pull it on and pop the hood. Then I run to the bathroom, grab the loose boxes I had summoned and the extra pills, making absolutely sure I don’t leave a sign. Finally, I hastily knock a few containers from my shelves into my bag, hoisting the now somewhat annoyingly heavy duffel over my left shoulder afterwards.
Just so that you know, I can provide most anything you need immediately at a higher quality than you would be able to buy almost anywhere on Earth.
I pause, contemplating my AI’s words, but I can’t help but laugh to myself when it clicks. Despite the dire situation, I shake my head with a smile on my face thanks to my new friend’s blatant envy. It was kind of cute, to be honest.
I limp to my bed, clambering up to check the window that sits above it. To my initial dismay, I don’t immediately find how to open it manually, but after a little searching I find a small switch embedded into the window sill. One little push later, and my room fills with the cool ocean breeze. I take a quick look back at my room in hesitation, but quickly resolve myself as I shimmy my way through the window.
One convenient factor of my family owning an entire floor of New Houston is that the building taking up its majority is only one story, the lack of drop out of my window a godsend. Carefully skimming around the edge of the building, I move towards the front, then peek around and freeze when I see two figures standing guard right outside of the main lift.
“S-shit, Nyvi, are there any other exits on the floor?” Sliding back behind the wall, I desperately hope they didn’t spot me.
According to the blueprints, there is a ladder located directly at the opposite side of the floor as the lift and it shouldn’t take you long to get there.
With a nod, I turn away, doing my best to stay low and silent as I rush towards the back of the building. By the time I reach the opposite corner of where I was, I am panting for air and feeling the exhaustion in my knees. My socked foot twinges, stinging more than before with every step, and I sort of regretted not putting shoes on before I left. When I peek around the corner while catching my breath, I catch sight of the ladder, but unfortunately with an armed guard included as well.
“N-Nyvi,” I quietly hiss, unsure of exactly what to do, “Are there any catalogs that will be useful later that I can purchase with my point total?”
There are a few, but the two most commonly bought are Class-I Basic Combat Garments and Class-I General Ready-meals, both of which come in at 20 points a piece. What exactly are you looking for?
I consider for a bit, and soon find a mischievous grin slowly creeping across my face as I mutter:
“D-Does the basic combat garments catalog have any clothes that have abnormally strong elastics?”
… I think I see where you are going with this, and yes, there are a few things that would suit your purposes. For five points, you could get a General Utility Hyperelastic Belt, which although small at first, is designed to fit every size and easily carry several dozen pounds of tools within its pockets with no risk of breaking.
“P-Perfect." I check my surroundings and spy a security camera. Thinking quickly, I turn away again and ask, "C-Can I get it in my bag without a box?”
Easily.
Catalog Unlocked!
Class-I Basic Combat Garments
Cost: 20 Points
New Purchase!
1x: General Utility Hyperelastic Belt
Cost: 5 Points
Remaining Total: 19 Points
Kneeling down, I unzip my duffel to see my prize, extracting the belt and, after rummaging to see what I had actually knocked in earlier, a rather small tungsten cube I had picked up from some ruined lab in the Tampa Ruins years ago. After making sure that the belt’s connection is secure, I place one end on the ground and place my foot on the inside of the loop, while pulling up and doing my best to hold the other end perpendicular. Then with my free hand, I pull the cube back, the sheer tension of my muscles causing my arm to shake.
I have calculated your makeshift slingshot’s trajectory and force; I will display it onto your optical augs.
A simple targeting reticule emerges in my vision, which allows me to see that I was going to overshoot my target by… Well, a lot, so I release some of the tension. The reticule lowers to where it should be, and after adjusting the force to a nonlethal level, I let it fly. In a split second my makeshift projectile flies across the balcony, and I wince as I see the guard crumple when the cube slams into the center of his helmet.
Taking my chance, I throw the belt around my right shoulder then rush towards the ladder, doing my best to work through the pain. Grabbing onto the cube which had fallen next to the guard’s body, I stuff it into my bag before I quietly pat the poor guy on the head.
I hope he’ll be okay.
The next few minutes are a mind wrenchingly repetitive series of ladders as I descend a few levels, hoping I wasn’t followed the entire way. Since I have to take every other step more carefully, my progress is rather sluggish, which is honestly a bit of a relief. I am already exhausted, and I know I probably aren’t even close to being done today. While I’m about halfway down one of the ladders, Nyvi suddenly chimes in, making me almost slip.
Perhaps you should take a short break on this next floor. It’s private property, but in our case, we don’t really need to care.
I squint, looking down at the ground beneath me. “H-How does that work exactly?”
You’re a member of the Vanguard, honey.
I blink, then do my best to ignore the heat in my face. “A-Ah, right. I guess I am.”
As I reach the bottom of the ladder and step off of it onto the ladder’s metal grate, I stumble a few feet onto the floor’s concrete balcony. With a groan, I fall to my butt against a safety rail, then pull my socked foot up and grimace at the dirt and blood that seem to have collected on its bottom.
“W-When can I remove this?” I mutter, shaking my head as I deliberately look away from the gory sight, “I-It sort of seems unsanitary.”
It should be fine to remove it in around ten minutes, but you don’t have to worry about the blood and dirt, they’re isolated separately from your wounds by the gel.
I open my mouth to speak, but before I can, a rather large seagull sticks its face right next to me from the railing behind me. My heart leaps out of my chest, and with a little yelp and desperate shuffle later, I am holding my hand to my heart, back against the concrete wall opposite of the drop.
“H-holy… N-Nyvi, I think I was caught up in the moment earlier so it didn’t occur to me,” I whisper, my heart beating twice as fast as normal, “But it was pretty foolish of me to go through that whole escape without my ear implants on, huh?”
It was not an issue. The lack of noise kept you focused, I would have alerted you if something nearby made noise and required your attention.
“H-How exactly does that work?” I peek down at the dark waters beneath us as the gull flies away, slowly sucking in a breath at the distance I still had to travel.
The manufacturer of your implants included a rather devious method to gather information in their code, and I simply took control of their backdoor. Listening through your implants alone is against their own company promises, let alone while they’re supposed to be off. You could likely rake their entire corporation over the coals for it if you were on the mainland, but it seems to be legal gray water since you live in New Houston. I could personally send them a message of grievance, if you would like.
As Nyvi’s words sink in, I can’t help but start to ruefully laugh, covering my face with my hands. So, so much about the last few years of my life was beginning to click into place just with that short explanation. Releasing my face, I feel the cold breeze against my skin and marvel slightly at the beauty of the moon above me.
“I really, really need a therapist,” I mutter, leaning my head against the metal.
Once we have gathered a sufficient amount of points, that will not be an issue.
I breathe a chuckle, taking a moment to just… exist.
“You know, Nyvi,” I whisper, closing my eyes, “You might be the best thing to ever happen to me.”
Thank you for the compliment, honey. I expect it will be the first of many.
As much as I want to fight it, a grin slowly grows on my face as I open my eyes. With a huff, I rise to my feet and turn my implants on after a moment of trepidation. A wave of electronic noise resonates through my ears, and I soon find that despite my misgivings, the only sounds that greet me are the waves and the lightly creaking skeleton of the central tower. I sort of expected to be able to hear the night market on this low floor, but it seems that I’m far enough away that the noise can't carry.
“N-Nyvi, what is on this particular floor, anyways?” I examine the featureless concrete wall, seeing that it stretches quite far before it ends.
It’s just a warehouse containing artifacts of some sort, as far as I know. Now that we’ve rested a bit, I recommend momentarily pausing our descent to gather information. You should be able to get into a good position for it by following the walls around.
I think for a moment, then nod. “M-Makes sense, I think. L-Lets go see what the central platform is like at the moment.”
I start limping across the catwalk, finding that my foot doesn’t really hurt all too much anymore. My speed has increased dramatically, and it only takes a few seconds to get around the corner. I hear the gull from before, turning to watch momentarily as it begins to fly to the north. The longer we walk towards our destination, however, the more unsettled I get.
“T-This isn’t right,” I mutter, speeding up my steps a bit, “N-Nyvi, there’s nothing. W-Where is the noise?”
It’s concerning. Be careful.
I grunt in agreement, but still do my best to speed up until I finally reach the edge. When I do, I grab the safety rail and look out at what should be the center of the evacuation. What I see instead makes me pale and take a few steps back, doing my best not to hurl.
Where once there stood a colorful, lively market, now stands a gigantic symbol of the Anti-Thesis invasion. It was like a tornado ran through New Houston, every single stall thrown about, ripped into pieces by some disgustingly powerful source. It’s obvious what performed the deed. Rising out from a gigantic hole bored into the center of the floating platform, a titanic, bloated pillar, almost looking like a chimera of a sea anemone and queen termite, looms above a veritable army of controlled corpses standing silently amongst a group of aliens.
The monster is seemingly made entirely of human bone and flesh.
Long, sinewy tentacles of muscle whip around it, and my eyes go wide when I see one wrap around one of the bodies, lifting it up to the very top of the abomination. The flesh opens, revealing a long, bottomless maw of what almost seem like human teeth, yet my mind refuses to accept them as such. The body is haphazardly dropped, and I fail to hold back my stomach after the pillar’s insides spin like a blender, ripping the corpse into pieces.
Oh. This is bad.
I wipe my mouth, looking up to see a hole in the side of the pillar opening, spitting out a small, four legged alien covered in a carapace of pearly white bone. The newly birthed beast immediately rushes at one of the zombies. It tackles it to the ground, its mouth opening to reveal one similar to the monstrosity it was born from, swallowing the human whole. It begins to tremble as multiple holes open across its body, slowly releasing dozens, if not hundreds, of bloody Model Sevens onto the ground.
That’s a model Twenty Seven Variant, we need to-
Before my AI can finish, one of the tentacles wraps around another, coils like a spring, then shoots out at me. I scream, leaping to the side as a bone tipped spear stabs straight through where I had just been standing. I stumble backwards, paling as I see two of the bone covered monsters climb up onto the new bridge, skittering up towards me. Nyvi’s next words match exactly what I immediately begin to do.
RUN!