Our tram gradually came to a stop. The more it decelerated, the faster my circuitry accelerated. I felt like I was about to fall over and die from apprehension.
We were really at the heart of all this shit. The source of the plague wearing our city down.
Ding. The door slid open.
“We have arrived!” the computer cheered.
I got up and walked outside, the others following closely.
A huge, smooth, gleaming pillar stood in the middle of a flat cave clearing, rising up through the ceiling of the cave, with a small but elaborate door on the front. Nothing else in sight.
I looked at it for several seconds before realizing... this was the very bottom of Grilith Tower.
All along, Grilith was the root of Zynima's evil?
I was surprised by so many things down here that it didn't even rattle me that much. I was already on edge as it was.
“This is it, huh...” I shakily mumbled, walking towards the tower's entrance. No stopping to be shocked and bewildered. I just wanted this to be over.
Shock spoke up. “If this goes south and we don't make it out of here... it's been a pretty thrilling journey. Thanks, all of you.”
I tried not to think about it. The idea of losing my best friend was beyond horrifying.
“Thrilling is one way to put it,” I retorted. “But... yeah, uh. It's been fun, I guess.”
“You don't seem that nervous, Shock,” Nōne commented.
“I am,” she replied, “but I've had a good run. I'm ready to accept whatever fate is in store for me down here.”
“I respect that,” he added. “You've lived up to my faith.”
I glanced over to Lavil, trying to distract myself. “How're you holding up, Lavil?”
“You don't ask that question to a person about to commit a premeditated murder.”
Nice. That made me feel great.
The rest of our walk to the door was mostly devoid of small talk. The only noise was our metal footsteps against the stony floor. I would've preferred Lavil berating me over messing up or saying the wrong things than approaching the end of the road without a word.
“For the record,” Nōne broke the silence, “I don't know what to expect in here. Be on guard.”
The door was as sleek as the rest of the tower, with a glowing panel on the front. Lavil skated up in front of me and wasted no time putting his hand on the panel; it stopped glowing and the door slid open with a gentle hum.
In front of us was a short hallway into the tower with another similar looking door and panel on the other end. Was this an elevator? No matter. We all shuffled inside the room, and the door hummed shut behind us.
Same thing with the next door – Lavil skated over and put his hand on it, and the door opened.
What sat before us what a spectacular, alien room. It was a bright, open area with the strangest walls I'd ever seen: shiny, black surfaces with eerie, coloured glyphs and symbols running down its pulsing texture, painting the room with delicate glows.
Filling the room were shelves, bookcases, desks, and seats on every side, and a huge hexagon pattern on the floor I'd seen before on the ground level of Grilith tower.
Sitting on a seat in the middle of the room, reading a book, was...
...?
Historical turned to face us as we entered the room.
“Oh, wow,” he greeted us from the middle of the room. “You're... all here.”
“Yo, asshole, we're here to bury you six feet under!” Lavil announced. “Ready to get fucked?!”
“Ah, Lavil...” Historical closed his book, set it down on a nearby desk, and stood up from his chair. “With four of you here, I don't doubt your success. Seems as if my sins have finally caught up with me.”
“Don't start preaching all your shitty pity small talk now,” Lavil continued. “I'm gonna–”
Nōne grabbed Lavil by the arm, pulling him back.
Lavil tried to wriggle away, repeatedly punching Nōne in the face to no absolutely avail. “Get the fuck off me! Don't you dare try to stop me, you son of a bitch! I've been waiting for this moment for YEARS–”
“Let him talk. You've been longing to kill him? I've been longing to have a nice, lengthy conversation with him, and then kill him. Let's do it my way, hm?”
“If you fuck this up for me, I'll kill you too,” Lavil sneered.
“As if.” Nōne pushed Lavil away and quickly turned his attention back to Historical. “So! Let us talk, overlord.” He stepped closer to Historical. “I'm sure the others wouldn't mind listening in on an explanation.”
“Indeed. It's been a long time since you tried to kill me when we landed on this planet, yes? I would love nothing more than to explain as much as I can. Would any of you... care to take a seat?” Historical gestured to a few chairs and stools scattered around the middle of the room.
None of us took him up on the offer, except for Nōne, who went over and sat on a seat near Historical.
“Didn't you save me from Tangent?! I–” I didn't understand. Confusion rushed through my head. He was acting so casual.
“Fuck the seat. Start talking,” Lavil hissed, pointing his rifle at Historical, aiming down the scope. “You try anything and you're fucked.”
“Right, then,” Historical started, turning to the side as he picked up his sledgehammer. “Corruption. You're all aware of it, mhm? It's... it's not just some number that goes up and makes you less functional and coherent. It's a convenient name for something else. Something I'd consider a living entity. It was never meant to circulate through robots. And, certainly, nobody expected it to do anything to machines. But it does, oh, does it ever.” He put a hand on his face for a moment before turning to us. “Impure deaths... you're all aware of those as well, I'm sure. As it turns out, that's not the end for some unlucky few. If enough of it builds up in someone, ah... haha, well... I'm sure you'll all be finding out what that amounts to quite soon.”
“What's that supposed to mean?!” I barked, holding my weapon tighter.
“Apologies if that sounded more ominous than intended. The monster is me, not you.
“So, because of this... thing inside me, yes, I was the robot that captured and took the memories of those other bots. It was me. When I gave the corruption something to explore and learn, it took its influence off my drives for maybe a day or two. It gave me my body and mind back. It gave me my soul back, however impermanent it may have been, because it craves knowledge. No matter how many books I read, no matter how much I study, no matter how much I explore new concepts and old history, it still remains dissatisfied. It's always trying to consume, and there's no getting rid of it.”
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He started pacing around in circles. “I tried so many experiments. I took other machines into the reassignment station to test on them. I wanted to know if it was possible to rid someone of corruption, not in pursuit of some far-fetched godhood, but to rid people of this monster. I've seen what it can do to machines who've been completely overwhelmed by it, and I feared what might have happened if enough of it were to conglomerate. I wanted to stop it. But it was already influencing my actions and behaviour, almost as if it knew what I was trying to do. Who am I kidding – of course it knew.
“Like some cruel joke, I was never given a chance to live a life with my own neural network. I've been plagued with this “creature” for my entire life. I, myself, was an experiment in this regard. I can only fathom it's the reason I was given this thing back on planet Hallow: the Catastrophe Manipulator. I don't know what end it was supposed to be the means to, but it's given me the longevity to explore my options for this long.”
As he spoke those words – Catastrophe Manipulator – he turned away from us and raised his hands up towards the walls, towards the colourful, flowing symbols in the strange darkness, perpetually undulating behind some transparent barrier.
“It has the power to corrupt, and it has the power to purify. I don't entirely know how it works, despite my studies, but... it contains great power that could rid us of this disease.”
“So why didn't you do it, then?!” Lavil butted in. “If you have this amazing tool to cure corruption, why are you a scumbug shithead rather than the hero of Zynima?!”
“I simply can't help myself.” Historical shrugged. “You were lucky enough to catch me at this moment – a moment in which I still have control over my mind. Perhaps five or ten minutes from now, I'm going to become an incoherent, evil creature until I can feed the beast inside me some form of food, for lack of a better term. But until then, I am myself, the person I desperately wish I could be. That is why I saved you from Tangent, Aural. To save you from the actions of my other self.”
He put his hands on his face again, continuing his circles. “And I've been trying... I've been trying to tame it permanently, but never succeeded. However, there was something... someone... who had an adept understanding of all this. You all probably know who it is by now. That ship's AI, Lacuna. We go back a long time.
She was there when I was created. Way back, so many years ago on Hallow, Lacuna was there. I heard her talking with that man – the figure behind my conception. He infused me with this curse as his companions built me. This curse, this hellish entity that now courses through every one of us.”
“Elaborate. What do you mean every one of us?” Shock asked, her face and voice both stone cold.
“Corruption. It's in all of us. Everyone knows that. Why? I don't know. My creator probably has something to do with it.”
“Then who did this to you? Who is your creator?”
“A human named Redmond Severus.”
A human? One of those fabled beings that supposedly created all of robotkind?
“There's no way I'd find that man again,” Historical continued. “He's an obscure, well-hidden fellow. But imagine my surprise when I heard Lacuna would be leading the shipping vessel to Zynima! It was the only lead I had. I needed her.
“So I did what I had to do. I never wanted to attack that ship, but I could not let Lacuna get away. She was invaluable. When I found out she'd already eluded me, I went for my next best option. I went and got my hands dirty myself. Maybe, just maybe, someone else on that ship would have the knowledge I needed.”
“That was MY fucking ship, you asshole! You think you can just go and kidnap and break people because of your selfish whims?!” Shock screamed. I got ready to hold her back.
“Tsk, tsk, darling, it was my ship,” Nōne quietly pointed out.
“Shut it, smart ass,” she scowled at Nōne.
Historical slammed his hammer on the ground, sending a rumble throughout the tower, grabbing all of our attentions.
Lavil clicked something on his gun and kept his aim steady.
“Ahem. Which brought me to Trivo, that cutie,” Historical casually continued. “Interesting coincidence with her. I had no idea at the time; when I took what memory she had, imagine my delight when I found out she was part of Lacuna. But, of course, she still lacked the knowledge I needed. That part was still with her virtual half. I have no idea how she separated herself like that, but nevertheless: if she popped up anywhere, if she connected herself to any computer for any length of time, I would find her. I was almost lucky enough to catch her napping when she'd contacted Trivo for a rather lengthy conversation only a handful of hours ago, but Tangent's flaw – his lack of conscience, lack of tact – ruined that opportunity for me.”
“You MADE Tangent! You can control him!” I shouted. “All I'm hearing is bullshit!”
Historical paused again with a sigh. “Yes, I can, but on this note, I'd like to propose a question to you, Aural. One you should know the answer to.”
“What.”
“Why do you think I didn't tell Tangent to not attack your home in that tunnel?”
I was tempted to say “because you're shit,” but I kept quiet. I just shook my head.
“I just told you why. For the vast majority of my life, I am under the influence of the creature inside me. And it's... it's...”
Historical paused again, looking straight at me. As I stared back at him, a streak of liquid leaked out from the bottom of his left eye.
Black liquid.
He wiped his eye with his wrist, and slowly looked down at his hand.
“...Oh. Oh, uhh... ah, I'm not yet finished explaining. I can't have this happening now.” He turned and ran away from us, darting behind a bookshelf, feebly covering his face with one of his skeletal hands.
“Ay, ay! Get the fuck back here!” Lavil called out, following him. Nōne followed closely behind Lavil, prompting Shock and I to come too.
“No, I can't give in to your ignorant demands, not now, not now, I need... the book, where is the book?”
I saw Lavil raise the rifle to fire.
“Lavil, wait!” I raced up behind him.
Too late. Lavil opened fire. BANG-BANG-BANG filled the air as Lavil pulled the trigger over and over again, each shot piercing Historical's body.
With a loud grunt, Historical spun around and thrust his hammer out in front of him, which opened up into a wide, round shield. The rifle shots ricocheted off it, not even making a dent.
“Lavil II, I knew you were a mistake from day one. Your temperament would be this world's downfall.”
“Shut the fuck up!” Lavil kept firing, no matter how futile it was.
Lavil ran out of ammo. He began reloading his rifle.
Historical started lowering his shield, eventually dropping it on the ground. Black liquid was leaking from every orifice on his body – his eyes, his smile, his chest, his abdomen – and he was struggling just to stand up.
“Why... now...” Historical choked, “of all times...”
Lavil finished reloading. He immediately opened fire again.
Unshielded, Historical didn't stand a chance. One round struck him in the abdomen where he wasn't armoured, sending a spray of orange fluid out from his body like a small geyser. He fell to his knees.
I stood still and watched as Lavil exacted revenge on his creator.
“Fucking die! You are NOT about to get away from me again!” Lavil excitedly screamed, continuing his assault. “It's finally fucking over, bitch!”
“Gh–! You have no idea what you're doing, Lavil,” Historical yelped back.
As Lavil made more direct hits to Historical's lower body, the orange and grey robot collapsed on the ground.
Historical cried out as every shot hit him.
I stood still and watched.
Lavil lowered the rifle and skated towards Historical. “You had this coming for years, asshole!”
“It's... over... isn't it,” Historical groaned. “One chance... to explain... and I failed.”
“Don't say another fucking word! I'm 'boutta lose it with you ruining my life! Ruining Trivo's life! Killin' people and stealing their memories! You're DONE tormenting this world, motherfucker!!”
“Lavil... III...” Historical muttered, “don't... bother... coming.”
Lavil resumed shooting Historical at point blank. Bang, bang, bang.
Historical became limp on the ground, face first.
Lavil kept shooting.
I stood still and watched.
Lavil really just finished it. Historical... he was the one who did all those terrible things, and now Zynima's going to be free from his underworld reign? That's... that's what was happening, right?
The orange spray coming from Historical's abdomen gradually dissipated. Although, as Lavil kept filling his body with lead, small streaks of a different liquid started erupting from his body.
Black liquid.
I backed up. “Lavil! Stop! He's... he's dead!” I called out.
This felt terrible. Just like that, our adventure was seemingly over with one robot's death. On the other hand, that black liquid was making me uncomfortable. Why was it still arcing from his body?
“Uh, what the fuck?!” Lavil shouted, stepping back.
The black liquid coming from Historical's wounds wasn't arcing off his body anymore. It had become solid, forming several narrow appendages attached to the ground.
“What did I say, Lavil?” A voice rang through the room, coming from Historical's body. But it wasn't Historical's voice.
“Strike him down, now!” Nōne shouted as he jumped over to Historical's body, “before he tr– aagh!”
Historical was wrenched upright by the black appendages, smashing into both Nōne and Lavil with his body, sending the TV-head flying into a bookshelf with a loud grunt. The shelf collapsed, raining books and trinkets down on him. Lavil skid across the floor on his back right towards Shock, but she managed to jump to the side just in time.
“I must thank you. You have no idea how long I've been waiting for him to die. Now I can finally have a body to call my own.”
I tensed even more, readying my weapon. What the fuck was happening to him?!
Historical's floating body, suspended in the air via black, organic appendages attached to the floor, gently lowered to the ground, facing away from us. He landed on his feet, clearly no longer a corpse.
Shock and I took a step back. I couldn't understand what I was seeing.
“And with that... this city, all its inhabitants...” he said to us as he picked up his hammer, the black appendages retracting into his midsection. “This very planet, nothing more than a speck in this world...” He turned around to face us with his hammer gripped in both hands.
His eyes weren't horizontal lines anymore. Another vertical line had appeared on top of them, forming two sinister cross shapes.
“I don't believe we've met before. My name is Magnus.” His rickety wings unfurled from his back. “Welcome to Zynima.”