Sometimes, the idea of nothing implicates more than anything else possibly could.
* Anonymous, 2024
***
I don’t hesitate at all, rushing back the way I had come from. My lungs heave, my heart a drumline as I probably run faster than I ever have before. My muscles scream, already exhausted from the climb down here, but I push through the pain. Unfortunately, It’s not even halfway to the corner that I realize I am not going to make it before the two things catch me, their legs now clattering against the rusted steel surface of the catwalk.
With my eyes darting around for any advantage I can muster, I nearly trip as my injured foot slips a bit. I gasp, catching myself on the railing before I immediately start running again, wiping my hand against my clothes to get off the rust residue it had left on my skin. This gives me an idea though, and while I’m not entirely sure it’s feasible, the sound of pursuit hastening behind me makes me disregard that worry. I clumsily get out the belt again, stuffing as many of the heavy objects I had hastily grabbed into its pocket as I can.
“N-Nyvi,” I pant, “There wouldn’t happen to be decent knuckle gloves in the combat garments catalog would there?”
There are, but they’d take the majority of your remaining points. I may see what you’re planning though.
I peek behind me, seeing the bone-clad monsters rushing towards me. I bite my tongue, then scream, “T-That’s fine, put the best I can get right on my hands!”
New Purchase!
1x Alloy-Infused GKG
Cost: 14 Points
Remaining Total: 5 Points
A pair of tight fitting gloves appear on my hands as I near the corner, the aliens right on my heels. I gulp, then slide to a stop right as I turn the corner, throwing the belt out in the air behind me, then whip it forward. It slams into the monster’s head right as it turns the corner, the distinct snap of shattering bone immediately following. It stumbles back a bit, and as the second plant begins to scramble over the sudden obstacle, I drop the belt and rush forward.
Dropping into the all too familiar close combat form drilled into me by my Grandfather for all those years, my knuckles popping as I clench my fists hard. I take a right swing at the Alien climbing its twin, my knuckles slamming into the bone carapace upon its head. It makes no noise as it falls over onto its back, its four little legs flailing in the air like an upside down tortoise. Taking my chance, after a quick step back, I drop low and slam a second, third, then fourth punch right into the same spot I had just hit. Its skull collapses upon the final hit, a goopy liquid uncomfortably similar to human blood splashing all over me as I do. I step back, shaking my aching hand while glaring down at the monster I just killed, when Nyvi screams at me.
DON’T RELAX, IT’S NOT OVER YET!
I have barely any time to react as the monster I had hit with the whip rams into my leg, knocking me over in the process. I scream in pain as it stomps on my right knee, a very, very loud crack occurring as it does.
Looming over me, the Alien’s maw widens, revealing those damn not-human teeth, right before it begins to rev up. Not having many more options, I fell back on the lessons the old man had forced me to learn. I slam my good knee into its stomach, then utilize my weight to push both of us to the side.
Over the edge of the catwalk.
For a moment, I am completely weightless, but I don’t pause to think about it. I frantically reach out with my gloves, desperately grabbing hold of the rusted steel platform. The monster flails its legs as it falls, slamming onto the wet dock dozens of feet below. Thankfully, the gloves that Nyvi got me are incredibly grippy, so I am easily able to scramble myself back up.
Unfortunately, I’m still not done. I’m unable to regain my footing, my shattered knee now throbbing with pain, so when I look at the corpse of the alien I killed to find a rather large swarm of model-Sevens writhing all over it, I blank a bit. Writhing over their brethren, the worms slowly grow, each one devouring the flesh of both themselves and the dead alien. I hiss through my teeth, then force myself to crawl to my belt, biting my tongue as I drag my limp leg behind me.
Pushing myself up to a half knee on my left leg, I whip the belt out, the weight of the hit crushing one of the bloated Sevens. The swarm of worms immediately stops their feast, their plans changing as close to two dozen of them begin to slither towards me. I hold back a scream as I swing the belt in wide strokes, knocking two or three away with each hit. It doesn’t do much to stop the horde, however, so after one final hit, I drop the belt again.
I begin to swing my right fist, crushing any worm that gets to close. When I have to, I do swing my left, but the muscles in that arm don’t work very well, so the blows are somewhat awkward at times. I sometimes have to punch twice if the worms don’t die from one, so they slowly begin to overtake me even as their numbers dwindle. I scream as one of the worms climbs up onto my left hand, biting down hard enough to rip out some flesh.
Something cracks in my head, and I grab the belt once again, taking the heavy pocket into my right hand. I slam it down over and over, crushing as many of the worms as I can with each hit, even if they are on my other arm. It’s as I’m slamming the makeshift weapon into one of the largest worms that I hear Nyvi speak.
Please calm down! It’s over!
I close my eyes and shake my head, my vision swirling as I find that I had just been fruitlessly hitting a dead worm.
“I-I-I- I won?” I manage to stutter, all the tension in my muscles slowly fading away.
You did an extremely good job honey, but we don’t have much time before the Twenty-Seven realizes those Seventeens failed.
I take a shallow breath, doing my best not to cry as I utter, “K-Knee, It hurts. H-Help me.”
It’ll be okay honey, put this right where it hurts.
Points Update!
Starting Total: 5 Points
Targets Eliminated!
2x: Model 17-T
Reward: 100 points
24x: Model 7-T
Reward: 120 Points
Total Gain: 220 Points
New purchase!
1x: Class-I Extending Brace with Auto-Injector
Cost: 25 Points
Final Total: 200 Points
A metallic disk appears next to me, and I shakily pick it up, then push it against my knee. Thin metal struts begin to grow out of it, wrapping around nearly my entire leg as all of them go tight. I hiss in pain at the sensation, but after a sharp poke in my thigh, the pain almost immediately vanishes. I take a shaky breath, recollecting myself as I look at the total carnage around me.
“T-This was… brutal,” I whisper, raising my trembling hands to see them coated in blood.
An understatement if you’ve ever made one, honey. Once you’re ready, we need to go down two more floors.
I take a few deep breaths, then slowly I shakily stand, leaning on the concrete wall to make sure I don’t stumble.
“W-Why down?” I take a hesitant step with my braced leg, thankfully feeling nothing but a miniscule dull pinch. “S-Shouldn’t it be safer to get farther away from that… T-That thing?”
It might seem like it, but there is a gondola two floors down we can take to go to the Family’s rig.
I blink, taking another step. “T-The Family? I-I didn’t know they had a rig here…”
They were given it in preparation for the First Gulf Offensive, five years after the fall of Corpus Christi. There isn’t an active staff there anymore, and it isn’t open to the public due to some complications, but all Samurai automatically gain the required credentials to enter.
“I-I’m surprised I’ve never heard about this…” I whisper, sorting through the infinite war stories grandfather would always boast about. None included the Family.
I’m not surprised, I can access the logs from here, and your Grandfather has only been there once in the last three decades.
“T-That seems… off.” I mutter as I reach the ladder, taking a deep breath as I once again begin my descent.
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It’s certainly strange, but not all members of the Vanguard are fans of the Family.
I slightly tilt my head in silent agreement, then begin to focus on not falling to my death. The brace is surprisingly easy to work with, almost like having an exoskeleton that allows me to move as if my knee wasn’t in a million pieces. I really don’t know exactly what I can do about that, but I quickly decide to not think about it. When we are safe, I’ll ask, but until then, I’ll focus on staying alive.
After five excruciating minutes of careful ladder action, I am able to get onto the gondola without a fuss, taking a seat as soon as I can. The tiny monorail jerks to life, quickly and effortlessly zooming upwards towards a distant tower. I peer out the dusty window, the once crystal clear waters now dark and murky, reflecting the image of the full moon above us nearly perfectly.
Less than five minutes later, we arrive at a strangely spotless rig, the surface of its steel an almost shiny silver, a far cry from the red hue of the central tower. I step out of the monorail to find a set of large automatic doors in front of me, so I immediately walk towards them. With a click, they unlock, revealing an astonishingly well kept building.
The lights flicker on as I enter, their yellow hue giving off a comfortable warmth. The walls and floors are covered in large, sterile white tiles, each inch of which seems to be meticulously cleaned to perfection. Beside the entrance is a small reception booth shrouded in glass, but no one sits behind it.
In fact, despite the seemingly perfectly kept state of the place, it’s seeming completely empty.
There is no furniture, no people, no technology. It’s eerie, and a deep unease fills me as I begin to roam the halls. Doors automatically shoot open when I walk past, revealing the barren innards of their rooms. I shiver when I peek into a room to see a gutted kitchen, waterlines and wires loosely dangling from the walls. I walk around a corner, then pause when I see a bathroom.
“N-Nyvi,” I ask, “I-Is there perhaps running water here?”
Unless the upkeep nanites failed somehow, there should be.
Taking a deep breath, I enter the restroom, relieving myself before walking over to the sink. I strip off my ruined clothes, then grimace as I look down at myself. I immediately begin to use the probably way too old bar soap that had been left behind to scrub away at my skin, doing my best to cleanse myself of the bloody gunk that I was covered in. Thankfully my hands had been spared thanks to my gloves, but the rest of me wasn’t so lucky.
After I finish the bits on my legs, I begin to work on my arms. I run the soap across my chest, grimacing at the small bump indicating that the nanites had not fully managed to remove the model seven from my body. I pause when I look in the mirror; It’s blurry as always, a fact that makes my heart drop. Biting my lip, I do my best to look away, but then a thought crosses my mind.
“U-Um… Nyvi?” I meekly say, “C-Can you perhaps… See what I look in the mirror through my eyes?”
I can.
I take a deep breath, closing my eyes as I say, “P-Please describe me. A-and you don’t need to make it sound better then it is..”
You are a rather sickly looking young adult, deep bags beneath your verdant emerald eyes. Your shaggy light brown hair has grown out to brush against your somewhat small ears, which are very slightly tilted away from your head. Your face is bony, but the sharp look reduces when you smile due to your dimples. Your lips are visibly chapped, and you seem to have gotten a cut on your nose sometime today.
I blink, then chuckle as I brush the cut on my nose. I hadn’t even realized it had happened until she mentioned it.
“W-Well…” I mutter, finishing the scrubbing of my skin, “I-I need some new clothes, can you choose some I won’t hate and doesn’t cost much?”
I can certainly try, also, you can remove that sock whenever you want now.
New Purchase!
1x Class-I Combat Top
Cost: 5 Points
1x Class-I Combat Skirt
Cost: 5 Points
Remaining Total: 190 Points
I freeze as two pieces of fabric appear in front of me, definitely taken aback by my AI’s choices. I first pull on the pastel yellow, flowy short sleeve top, which stretches down to my hips, then pick up the second item, staring at it for a few moments. Why did Nyvi choose a pleated white skirt, exactly? I hesitate, then slowly step into it, finding that the hem rests right on my knees. My heart does a little flip, sending incredibly incongruent feelings to my brain. Deciding to file that away for later thought, I rip off the disgusting gel sock and toss it into the pile of ruined clothes building up on the floor of the bathroom.
I stretch a bit, finding that the new clothes actually are really nice. I have a lot of freedom of movement, and the different airflow from the skirt was actually pretty refreshing. “O-Okay, I guess we should get a real weapon now, huh?”
It seems prudent. While fighting with your fists isn’t unheard, it’s rather unsuited to your personal style. May I recommend something for you?”
“I-I don’t really know what I want to fight with so…” I say, then immediately follow with, “W-Well, actually I don’t like guns, so uh, recommend something other than that, p-preferably with a wide variety of options that will be useful later. ”
Noted. After observing our situation, I have determined we would heavily benefit from a catalog specializing in aquatic environments. As such, I would recommend the Class-I Axonfin General Technologies catalog, which costs one hundred points. Then, you have a choice between a melee or ranged weapon for fifty points, leaving forty for emergency uses.
“U-Um.” I tap my chin, doing my best to figure out what the better option is. “Can you describe the weapons a bit more?”
Certainly, honey. First is the ASHR Harpoon-Halberd, a melee weapon designed with several interesting functions. First, while it does function as a normal harpoon, its tip is specially super heated, which can easily light our enemies on fire. This heat serves a second purpose as well, however. By sticking the superheated weapon into any biological material, the weapon will automatically create a brand new blade for slashing through your opponents with superheated fervor. Finally, it has a release function, which allows for you to easily let the blade loose, which is extremely useful for leaving burning metal or glass within a Model's body.
“W-Wait, I want that.” I put my hand out. “G-Gimme.”
Do you not wish to hear the ranged option?
“N-Not for now,” I murmur, “I-I like the sound of that thing and I really don’t wanna have to mull over this right now.”
Fair enough. Here you go.
Catalog Unlocked!
Class-I Axonfin Technologies
Cost: 100 Points
New Purchase!
1x: ASHR Harpoon-Halberd
Cost: 50 Points
Remaining Total: 40 Points
I grunt as the harpoon drops into my hand, a surprising heft to it that I hadn’t been expecting. I flip it around, tapping its viscous sharp tip on the ground, finding that the thing is taller than me by a few inches. Now, I’m not exactly the pinnacle of height at five five, but a six foot tall pole isn’t anything to sneeze at. I sigh, then grab my duffel and leave the bathroom.
I pause as soon as I step into the hallway however, something occuring to me.
“N-Nyvi, what’s next?”
I recommend we descend to sea level, where we can take one of the boats out of the hangar to a safe place to recoup and contact help.
“S-Sounds good to me,” I mutter, then begin to head down the stairs directly in front of the bathrooms. Turning halfway down, we end up directly beneath where we were before. As I walk through the hallway, I find to my confusion that there simply aren’t any doors here, so I walk down the passage until I turn a corner, where a door sits smackdab at the end, likely the exterior exit I was looking for.
However, about halfway through, I notice a second door a few feet away, seemingly leading to a different part of the building. I blink, then slowly walk over, flinching as the door stutters open, seemingly unwilling to reveal the dark void within. Far too curious about what this room was, I enter inside, and am sort of shocked to find that this part of the building seemed to be entirely open, a bit like an empty warehouse. I was expecting something a bit more interesting, but I jolt to a stop when all the noise I could hear outside disappears right as the door closes behind me.
Utter silence envelops me.
I walk in a bit further as Nyvi adjusts my augs, glancing down when I see the classic airbrush texture of graffiti. Then, I see another mark, though this one is a different color, followed by another. Everywhere I looked, there was more of the same, a kaleidoscopic hurricane of color. I squat down, running my hand over a crimson message, its words so simple despite raising so many questions.
“Give them back,” I whisper, contemplating it for a moment, before I move to the next one, an emerald green cry to the heavens, “Justice for the gulf…”
I stand up, taking one more step forward, when a lonely, warm light pops on within the eye of the storm. Three gigantic granite monoliths sit still and resolute, completely unmarred by the desperate pleas around it. Glowing text is sprawled across each of the monoliths, but the words they make on the two outside slabs takes my breath away.
Names.
Hundreds, if not thousands of names, carved deeply into each inch of the granite, memorials of a people I had not thought ever existed. I slowly approach, reaching my hand out to touch one of the names. I gasp as a video pops up in my augs, a young man happily dancing around with a woman in his arms. I put a hand on my heart, my eyes scanning each and every name.
Finally, I step to the odd monolith out, finding a poem scrawled upon its surface. I touch it, and another video appears, this one showing a morose female soldier, dressed in a white uniform, from I think the old U.S navy, standing at attention in front of the monument. As she begins to recite the poem, a small shiver roils across my skin.
”O sweet illusions of song
That tempt me everywhere,
In the lonely fields, and the throng
Of the crowded thoroughfare!
I approach and ye vanish away,
I grasp you, and ye are gone;
But ever by night and by day,
The melody soundeth on.
As the weary traveler sees
In desert or prairie vast,
Blue lakes, overhung with trees
That a pleasant shadow cast;
Fair towns with turrets high,
And shining roofs of gold,
That vanish as he draws nigh,
Like mists together rolled—
So I wander and wander along,
And forever before me gleams
The shining city of song,
In the beautiful land of dreams.
But when I would enter the gate
Of that golden atmosphere,
It is gone, and I wonder and wait
For the vision to reappear.”
— Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, Fata Morgana (1873)”
The woman bows as the video ends, once again the void of noise takes over. I slowly move a step back, contemplating everything now laid out before me. I bite my lip, then walk up and touch another name. A young girl, barely in her teenage years giggles as she runs along the beach, a wide smile on her face.
I grimace, then touch the next one, revealing a woman around my age flying a plane. The next is an older man, crying at the gift of a new car his family had given him. The one after that is of a baby, just born and with a whole life ahead of them.
I touch every single one, burning their faces and names into my memory. My sorrow soon fades, replaced with a miniscule yet blindingly bright rage. I scowl as I finish, my bones cracking as I clench my fists. I step backwards far enough that I can see all three monoliths, then take a picture.
“N-Nyvi,” I state, my voice no longer wavering, “Store that picture for me, and don’t let me lose it.”
Understood. If you’d like, I can tell you what happened during that incident.
I hesitate, then close my eyes and take a deep breath.
“N-No-”
I pause, clearing my throat, then begin to speak again, slower and more deliberately this time.
“No. I think I already understand what I need to do.” I turn, only opening my eyes once I hear the door slide open, the cacophony of New Houston flooding into my ears.
I take one final look back, then step out into the future.