Chapter 2—Disinter

??? — ???

Simon felt the wind rushing past his face as Artoria’s frantic cries filled his mind. He tried to grasp onto them, to understand what she was trying to say, but everything sounded muddled, as if she was speaking underwater. His eyes finally forced themselves open slightly and saw her crying face, right before his body hit the ground.

< ERROR >

< ERROR >

< CATASTROPHIC SYSTEM ERROR >

< SYSTEM: Brain stem stimulation attempt: [11033] >

< SYSTEM: Brain stem stimulation attempt: [SUCCESSFUL] >

< SYSTEM: Subject revival: [SUCCESSFUL] >

< SYSTEM: Neurotransmitter [Norepinephrine] dump in progress. >

< ERROR: Chemical gland [OFFLINE]. Halting [Norepinephrine] dump. >

Simon’s consciousness slowly returned to his battered body. Flashing red lights filled with scrolling texts showing various system errors and offline systems obscured his vision. A single groan escapes his lips before he finally mutters a single command.

{ Status Report. }

A flood of error messages continues to assault Simon’s mind, accompanied by an emotionless robotic voice.

< CATASTROPHIC SYSTEM ERROR: V.A.I.A. Status [NULL]. >

< SYSTEM: Primary thorium reactor [DAWN]: [OFFLINE]. >

< WARNING: Primary thorium containment cell: [DESTROYED]. Immediate reconstruction required. >

< WARNING: Insufficient power levels for reconstruction. Direct core recharge required. >

< SYSTEM: Secondary thermal reactor [POITIER]: [OFFLINE]. >

< WARNING: Secondary thorium containment cell: [MISSING]. Immediate replacement required.>

< SYSTEM: Bio-reactor [HALSEY]: [ACTIVE]. >

< WARNING: Current power draw is unsustainable with Bio-reactor power alone. Please enter power-save mode. >

< SYSTEM: Current power cell charge: [53%] Time until full charge: [-2147483647]. >

< SYSTEM: Palisade suit integrity [12.4%] movement assistance systems [NULL]. >

< SYSTEM: S-1_M0-N A1431 Vitals: [CRITICAL]. >

< WARNING: Immediate emergency medical attention required. >

< SYSTEM: Nanite recovery in progress [ERROR: Primary recovery systems [NULL]] >

< SYSTEM: Enabling emergency backup restoration systems. >

< CATASTROPHIC SYSTEM ERROR: B.R.S. compromised. Estimated time until recovery [#DIV/0!]. >

< SYSTEM: Enabling A.V.A.L.O.N. Emergency protocol. >

< CATASTROPHIC SYSTEM ERROR: V.A.I.A. Status [NULL]. >

< SYSTEM: Transferring A.V.A.L.O.N. Authorization to S-1_M0-N A1431. >

< WARNING: S-1_M0-N A1431 Vitals [CRITICAL]. Automatic administrative override approved. >

< SYSTEM: A.V.A.L.O.N. Protocol: [ACTIVE]. >

< A.V.A.L.O.N.: {Administrative Override [Krangled_Dream].} >

< SYSTEM: Command accepted. >

< SYSTEM: Palisade suit decommission and material reclamation in progress. >

< SYSTEM: Entering emergency suspended animation. >

< SYSTEM: Estimated time until Revival: [#DIV/01!]. >

< A.V.A.L.O.N.: {Administrative override [Excalibur]} >

< SYSTEM: Command accepted. >

< WARNING: V.A.I.A. Module [NULL]. Command impossible. >

< A.V.A.L.O.N.: {Administrative override [Caliburn].} >

< SYSTEM: Command accepted. >

< SYSTEM: V.A.I.A. module reconstruction in progress. >

< WARNING: Insufficient material for command. Queue command? Y/N. >

Stolen from its rightful author, this tale is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

< A.V.A.L.O.N.: {Y.} >

< SYSTEM: Confirmed. >

< A.V.A.L.O.N.: {Administrative Override [Mordred]} >

< SYSTEM: Sequential Command confirmed. V.A.I.A Personality Reconstruction queued. >

< A.V.A.L.O.N.: {Administrative Override [Icarus].} >

< SYSTEM: Command accepted. >

< SYSTEM: Power Saving Mode: [ENABLED]. Breakdown of thorium fuel-cell’s commencing. Bio-reactor [HALSEY] changed to primary power supply. >

Heh. Even after the end of the world, you’re still looking after me, Darlin.

Simon’s body convulses slightly as the remaining fragments of his once-proud Palisade armor still surrounding his battered and broken body slowly morphs into a thick, viscous liquid. A strange sensation washes over him as the sludge as darkness closes in.

??? — [#DIV/01!] days later

A dead man’s nose twitches far below the rain soaked earth as a single drop of liquid runs across their face. Simon opened his eyes slowly, only to be met with pitch-black darkness. An onslaught of pain racks against his fading senses. A sharp gasp reverberates through the hollow chamber, followed swiftly by the heavy cough of agitated lung tissue expelling mud and other foul fluids.

Simon mutters a soft curse to himself as he tries to grab his splitting head, only to realize that his left arm won’t move. Well, That’s not good, he thinks to himself before muttering a command, “Status Report”

< SYSTEM: [A.V.A.L.O.N.] program [ACTIVE]. >

< SYSTEM: [Caliburn] program [ACTIVE]. >

< SYSTEM: [Mordred] Program Status [FAILED]. Insufficient resources for command completion. Queue command Y/N? }

Three lines in, and we get a [FAILED]. That’s not good, {Y} he replies.

< SYSTEM: Command queued. >

< SYSTEM: [Icarus] Program [COMPLETE]. >

< SYSTEM: Bio-Reactor 1 [HALSEY] Status [OFFLINE]. >

< WARNING: Insufficient material for Fuel Creation. Immediate Fuel Acquisition advised. >

< SYSTEM: Current Power Cell charge: [15%] Time until full charge: [DISCHARGING]. >

< SYSTEM: Palisade Suit: [NULL]. >

No surprise there, he thought to himself, letting out a painful chuckle.

< SYSTEM: S-1_M0-N A1431 Vitals: [YELLOW]. >

< SYSTEM: S-1_M0-N A1431 Status: [STARVING] Enable Hunger Response? Y / N. >

Well, let’s see how bad it is, {Y} he replied before letting out a grunt. Yeah, I’m definitely starving, alright. Another drop of liquid brought him back to reality. Time to get out of here.

Simon lightly shakes his head and breathes in deeply through his nose. Damp. Decay. Dirt. Mold. Was I buried alive? He thought to himself before trying to move only his hand. Success.

The moving hand quickly found itself pressed against a rugged surface. Simon gave the surface a few quick taps before repeating the process with his other hand and his feet.

Solid walls on the left, right, above and below. Top and bottom. Heh. I survived the apocalypse only to be buried alive. He thought while laughing at the irony of it all before silence suddenly filled the void.

Wait. No one should be alive, much less someone with enough time to bury me. How am I even breathing? There shouldn’t be an atmosphere left, much less liquid water on the surface. Simon shook his head to clear away the concerning thoughts and noticed that his head seemed to be heavier than he remembered.

That’s odd, he thought to himself. Well, I won’t find any answers down here.

Simon closed his eyes and focused on his senses, trying to ascertain the source of the dripping liquid.

Drip.

Drip.

Drip.

Tiny droplets of water repeatedly impacted the back of his head before gently trickling down his face.

“Ah,” A hoarse voice escapes his lips as he twists his body slowly until he finally faces the origin of the liquid. A shaking hand brushes up against the water’s source. Simon balls his left hand into a fist and strikes the box, shattering the leaking section before plunging deep into the seeping earth.

Hopefully, that way is up, he thought with a bitter smile, if not, at least I won’t die thirsty.

He repeats this motion several times, striking his fist against the liquified earth before eventually breaking through to the surface.

A rush of chilly fresh air floods into the cavity, sending shivers down his spine. Moving carefully, Simon finally pulls himself through the opened space above by gradually widening the opening little by little.

Exhausted, he collapsed onto the wet ground with a thud, sinking a few centimeters into the soaked earth while facing the stars. Simon’s tired eyes widened suddenly in astonishment.

“W-where am I?”

Three moons sit overhead among a sky filled with unfamiliar stars.

{ Artoria, where the hell are we? I thought the ARK was destroyed? }

< SYSTEM: V.A.I.A. Status [NULL]. >

< SYSTEM: REDIRECTING QUERY TO A.V.A.L.O.N. >

< A.V.A.L.O.N.: ERROR: Location [UNKNOWN]. Searching for known Constellations. [ERROR]: No known Constellations found. >

Simon shakes his head grimly while suppressing the tears in his eyes.

That’s right, Darlin’s gone.

He held up a mud-covered hand in front of his face and stared at it. No fragment of his armor remained. The only proof that it had even ever existed was the large scars covering most of his body that were an unnatural shade of silver.

Damn. So that was how it all ended. Darlin’s fail-safes activated and dissolved the suit to save my life.

The large hand pressed against his eyes as tears freely streamed down his face.

??? — Morning

Simon awoke suddenly and shot to his feet, immediately taking a combat stance while scanning his surroundings.

Nothing?

Nothing within the eerie field moved. Even the wind refused to blow. Up above, the ever-present rain continued to fall down, soaking the earth.

Beside him was the grave he had dug himself out from the night before, currently filled to the brim with water.

Suspended animation or not, If I hadn’t woken up then, I wouldn’t have at all.

Simon shakes his head at that grim thought and observes the odd statues that litter the graveyard. Some are simple, while others are more detailed and had some form of writing on them he’d never seen before. He glanced towards his grave and spotted a familiar pair of tags dangling from what appeared to be a hastily constructed cross-like object.

Simon’s eyebrow rose slightly as he took the dog tags. None of the other graves had a similar style of marker. He examined his tags closely and spotted a cross stamped on the side.

Ah, whoever found my body and dug my grave must have realized what these tags were.

Simon slid the thin metal plates between his fingers for a moment before separating the chain. He received a single gold and blue tag, kissed it softly, and embedded it gently in the cross’s center before carving several letters in the wood. He offered a final salute and turned on his heel, leaving the graveyard behind.

[ Here Lies Artoria, 4991—5572, the only one of us who was truly human. Goodbye my Darlin. You deserved so much better than me. ]