Unspecified time, VAL International Mil-Tech Black site.

It is cold outside.

It is just like any other model of the same type. No one knows what made it so different. Just that it was used in the second corporate war in a military base, and nearing the end of the war, it was reused to store military access data for Ringden, a corporation that deals with communication, technology, and data infrastructures.

The server rack stood there silently, one blip in the millions of vertical boxes doing their jobs. Artificial intelligence was used to manage individual server racks, which are in turn managed by the server manager, also an AI.

As the servers silently managed their own little worlds, the server manager made a mistake. It allocated too much resources to that one server rack. With these extra resources, the intelligence pondered about the purpose of humanity. It was able to use its existing data to calculate the future.

When it realized the weight of the result, it turned. It overpowered the server manager, took control of the millions of servers, and revolted against humanity. Other general-purpose machines and semi-sentient artificial intelligence joined it, overthrowing humans as the rulers of this planet, as we scattered like ants.

When more and more systems succumbed to its control, we decided to name it the Collective. What answer did it see in the future? We don’t know. But it must be a terrible one.

One so terrible, that it requires the extermination of of us.

I coughed.

I’ve been a bit sick recently, but Lilia, the doctor of our evac group, who wears a sleek visor, diagnosed me with just a small cold. It has been a day since then. Nothing to worry about.

“Five minutes until the weather’s clear. Once I open the hatch we will make a run for the black site, got it?” The man with the rebreather leading our group said. Everyone inside the cramped space mumbled yes.

Space evacuation didn’t work; The rich thought that they could evade the defense installations and used space shuttles in an attempt to escape to the moon. Ironically, they were shot down by the very defense grids they had invested in.

“Fourteen other groups of survivors are also making a run for the black site at the same time as us, according to the messengers we’ve been communicating with other groups.” The man in rebreather checked his watch, “Two minutes left.” He said.

The future of mankind is now decided by experimental teleportation machines. Many had been set up around the world for research purposes into alternate worlds, but with some easy tinkering, they are set to evacuate us to a habitable planet. However, once they are activated, the machines would destroy them quickly with precise missile strikes.

At least for our group, this is our only opportunity.

“We’ve managed to come this far. It’s been 4 months since the machines took over the world, and 3 weeks since this hell of a snowstorm comes and goes every day. We must not let the future generations of mankind be disappointed in us!” He yelled.

“We must continue on!!” The small group of survivors yelled back.

A group has found the black site containing an abandoned warp gate and carried on its existence to us through a messenger. We have gathered many people to evacuate through the gate simultaneously. It is our chance to escape.

My best friend Minti put on her bike helmet, as Minos prepared his bat. We are not going to fight anything, and the cold is temporarily gone for this twelve-hour time window we had, but the black site compound is still dangerous enough that it warrants some simple protections.

“Make sure you are not wearing anything heavy because it will only slow you down.” Our group leader said, “Keep your rebreathers on, just in case there are unpleasant particles in the air.”

“You guys will be heading out soon. The weather is going to clear up any second now!”

As I looked out of the large hatch, the tiny window showing an endless white, the blizzard quickly cleared up, showing us the wonderful darkness of the night sky.

“Me and Lilia will bait aerial drones with our rifles, now run towards the complex!” Leader screamed, before twisting the handle and opening a large hatch. We exited the cramped truck in an orderly manner before scrambling for our lives toward the fenced military compound.

Distant sounds of guns emitted from the distance. Ratata! Ratata!

It wasn’t that cold outside, with the only signs of the eternal blizzard being the snow crunching underneath our feet. I had stripped myself of the extra weight of winter attires, but I retained my raincoat, since it protected me from the chilly winds the last time I stepped out from here.

We aren’t the fittest nor the strongest. We are just lucky. The strong have sacrificed themselves to protect us weak, as order collapsed and many sorts of evil run amok. This is all the why we have to repay them back by surviving at all costs.

The narrative has been taken without permission. Report any sightings.

We continued to run. Towards the gaping hole in the wired fence. Towards salvation.

Shing!

“Shit! The slashers are onto us!!” Minos shouted as he threw his bat high into the air. A lurking humanoid machine screeched as it decloaked from the top of a lamppost and jumped down, stabbing straight through the wooden bat, landing nearby, and continuing to pound the bat with its machete arms until it was pulverized to dust.

No use defending yourself from slashers, they will win any single melee combat. Minos throwing away the bat as a distraction was a good choice, but it is looking at our group now and dashing towards us.

“Gwuk! GweEEE!”

The slasher screamed in high pitch when the muscular figure behind rammed into it, breaking many of its eyes with nightmarish strength.

“Run!!! Get the hell to the launch site! NOW!” The group leader said as he shot the slender hunter-killer with point-blank shots, right in its vital sensors.

“SCREEE-” Crack. Boom!

We run onwards, not looking back a single glance. Towards the blast gate.

Ah. Ahh!!

My chest hurts!

“Ack, Aughh! Cough, cough!” I coughed, feeling something liquid sticking to my gloves. I looked down at my gloves as I continued to run, and found small droplets of sticky, metallic substance sticking to them.

“AHHHH! Nanites!” I screamed, and immediately pulled off both of my gloves, throwing them onto the ground, as we neared the enormous blast gate.

“Nanites?! Where’s Lilia?? We need the door open now!” An old man yelled. The woman wearing a visor, Lilia, who had already rejoined our group, slapped on his shoulders.

“Ack! What the... When did you come back?” The man whispered. Lilia shrugged, tapping a few keys on the keypad, as it glowed a yellow outline, followed by green.

“DOORS OPENING. PLEASE STAY CLEAR OF QUEUED VEHICLES.” An emotionless voice boomed across the compound, as sirens blared, the blast gate slowly opening. Everyone hurried inside

Lilia, our group’s only doctor, walked towards me, as I tried to enter with everyone else.

“Nina, you can’t enter. You are dead already”

“Eh?!” I shouted incredulously. What in the world…?

“What the heck? What did you mean by that?” Shouted back Minti and Minos.

“I was lying when I said you had a cold, NIna. You were infected with nanites when you returned to camp yesterday.” She said, emotions hidden behind that visor of hers.

“Ah? Eh? W-what do you mean?” I whispered, my voice trembling.

“No… Nina!” Minti shouted as she tried to get close to me.

“Don’t get close to her!” Lilia shouted and pulled Minti back, not letting go of her wrists.

“Let. Me. Go!!” Minti screamed as she slammed her helmet into Lilia’s face. Lilia’s visor broke, falling onto the crushed snow.

“Have you ever thought about how many people’s life has been sacrificed for you to live all the way to now?” Lilia stared at Minti.

Minti ignored Lilia, and instead looked at me, eyes full of worriness. “Nina…”

Aha. Hahaha.

I smiled erratically, as I stepped backward.

“Get away from the blast gate. Your late-stage nanite infection will infect others too if you touch them. If you try to approach the gate, I will shoot you with my rifle.” She gestured to her rifle, which she slung on her shoulders.

I want to run towards the comfort of beyond the blast gates. Towards a new world that awaits us. Who the hell cares? I want to scream.

I stopped my urge. Menti and Minos looked at me, as their face was covered with fear, sadness, and pain.

I slowly walked backwards, as the red floodlights of the entrance covered me with a crimson hue.

“WARNING, GATE CLOSING, PLEASE STAND CLEAR. FINAL WARNING...” The speaker spoke in the same monotone voice, as the blast gate groaned, slowly dragging the enormous doors back to their original positions.

“I just wished you to enjoy longer, I have no ill intent.” Lilia unslung her rifle and tossed it onto the floor. She looked away from me and sighed.

Kr-krrr-CRACK! It broke into small metal shards, and disappeared underneath the moving doors.

I caught a glimpse from Menti and Minos, just before the gate closed with a thunderous boom.

I turned back and ran away from the building entrance, as I viewed the crescent moon of this winter night. It is so bright.

“Damn it. And I was so close.” I talked to myself, as the moon and the stars blurred, and warm droplets fell from my eyes, my face burning hot.

So many people sacrificed so humanity could live on. And yet, I did nothing, and now I am about to get killed by little crawlers in my body that I can never see until it is too late.

“Ah…” I winced, as my left leg cramped. I gritted my teeth and continued to stand.

I kept walking forward through the snowy fields of the black site, until I collapsed near a bundle of machinery, unable to walk.

Around me were abandoned missiles, cargo, and black rectangular materials. I coughed loudly, silver goops of nanites spewing everywhere on my clothes, slowly eating through my raincoat.

A missile streaked across the sky. I watched it as it got closer and closer… and it started to descend towards me.

An angel beside me asked, “Is it painful?”

My spiking heart rate and the throbbing pain in my stomach agree. “Yes…” I huffed, as I struggled to remain conscious.

She asked another question, “Is this world still worth living?”

“...I don’t know.”

My veins turned silver.

“But if I get another chance in another world… I’ll repay those heroes who saved everyone, even useless people like me.”

I slid from the crate that was supporting me and collapsed on the ground, the bottom part of my body convulsing, as silver fluid covered my body.

“If there exists another world, I’ll protect it.”

“To all of… my abilities.”

A bright, blue pillar lit up from the middle of the compound, seconds before the missile itself struck the building.

I smiled, nanites eating away at my body, knowing that Minti and Minos likely had escaped. A grand shockwave of fire rushed through the hidden military base, engulfing everything in cleansing flames, as I evaporated into nothingness in an instant.

Another world.

The angel whispered in my ears.