“Access attempt recorded. Provide authentication code.” The speakers came to life with a boom as soon as Lucas sent the security signature of his cortex.
“Helix, zero-eight, third generation. Identification 08M3D4HGHSAF. Mobile Assault and Sabotage Squad Demon.” He spoke, moving to the centre of the room. Not that it was needed, but it felt like something he ought to do.
“Authentication confirmed. Blessed be the Saint of Hell. User Helix, how can I be of assistance?” The mainframe answered in a soft androgynous voice after Lucas had given it his code.
“I need information about when and who is the last User to log into the system,” Lucas was afraid to know, but he had to.
“Last log-in was done two hundred seventy-four thousand seven hundred and thirty-five days ago. User Demon zero-two, Preacher.”
“Why is there no log-in after that? Why was the system placed in hibernation?”
“User Preacher initiated Blood and Faith protocol, resulting in the complete purge of Station Sigma 37-H data banks.”
“That doesn’t make sense!” Lucas protested before getting a hold of his emotions. “If Blood and Faith protocol was triggered, we wouldn’t be having this conversation. Explain.”
“The activation order is the last order logged from user Preacher. A reasonable guess would be that the detonation of the station’s rectors was not carried out.”
“You don’t say. I would’ve never figured it out.”
“Demon zero-eight, I answered your query. There is no need for sarcasm.” The AI answered, and for a moment, he thought he detected a hint of emotion in the artificial voice it used.
“Were you the one to prevent detonation of reactors?” Helix asked, ignoring the rebuke while entertaining the option that he should terminate the construct. The last thing he wanted on his hands was a rogue AI.
“Impossible. Blood and Faith protocol is a mandatory order. I can protest or advise its use but cannot go against it. To do so would be to go against the will of the Blessed Saint of Hell.” He didn’t like it, but the machine made a valid point. “I cannot speculate what the cause might be for this turn of events because my memory stores have been purged.”
“Why was the purge triggered?” Lucas forced himself to ask while his gut tightened.
“Remaining fragments of no-void relay spool logs indicate that forty-five minutes prior to Blood and Faith protocol initiation, the station suffered critical hull breaches at multiple locations.”
Since the damned station wasn’t a collection of dust drifting through the system, perhaps there was some hope that this forsaken place hadn’t become their tomb. If there was a prolonged combat, at least some of the Demons could have escaped.
“Personnel Roster, status at five minutes before the purge.” If he wasn’t mistaken, that was a reasonable timeframe. If Preacher triggered the self-destruction of Sigma 37-H, it meant that he would be the last one alive. Virgil and the others would be either dead or, more likely, would have evacuated.
“Scientific Staff; zero members alive, two members missing, seventy-four members dead. Maintenance and Engineering Staff; zero members alive, one hundred- and four members dead. Security Group Seraphim; zero members alive, ninety members dead. Security Group Nephilim; zero members alive, three members missing, eighty-seven members dead. Auxiliary Staff; zero members alive, fifty members dead. May the lost souls find their way to the Garden of Hell, Blessed Terra.”
“What of Mobile Assault and Sabotage Squad Demon?”
“MASS Demon is not part of the Personnel Roster.”
“I know that…” Lucas shouted before reining in his anger. “I want the status of the individual cortex implant signatures. Demons only. Exclude the Oni.”
“Demons are cruel things. They walk unperturbed by the cries of agony of their lesser kin. Ziggy, 3:14.”
“Don’t bother. Preacher triggered Blood and Faith. This means that by that point, the Oni are all dead.” Helix tightened his grip on the rifle, forcing himself to remain calm. “Status report. Now.”
“Puppeteer – expired, awaiting resurrection. Prophet – expired, awaiting resurrection. Lucifer – expired, awaiting resurrection. Rage – expired, awaiting resurrection. Discharge – expired, awaiting resurrection. Hornet – expired, awaiting resurrection. Helix – expired. Status changed to resurrected. Carthage – exorcised, awaiting new summoning. By the will of His Holiness, Constantine V Rütter, Demons do not die.”
They were dead. Lucas had known it, but to get it confirmed was too much for him. He closed his eyes, trying to keep his thoughts in order. There was time to grieve; now, he had to concentrate and learn everything.
“Regardless of your personal opinion on the subject, the Oni are Demons. To claim they are dead is grounds for censure. Please refrain from making such careless statements….”
“Wait!” He snapped his eyes open. “Please, confirm the status of Carthage.”
“Demon zero-four, codename Carthage was exorcised by order of Demon zero-one, codename Puppeteer, six minutes and nine seconds before the initiation of Blood and Faith protocol.”
Lucas could almost scream with joy. She was alive; at least one of them had survived. His mood dampened as he remembered that the log was over seven and a half centuries old. No one could stay alive for that long, not even someone like them. Especially someone like them. But if Nia had escaped, it meant that the heritage of the Demons had survived with her. The programme was under a lot of scrutiny after the spectacular failure of other squads. The mystery of how or why they were the only ones to survive and deliver actual results bothered the Gene-Bishops overseeing Project Osiris. The heritage of the Demons had to survive, no matter what. Well, theoretically, he was also one who carried the heritage, but Lucas doubted that the facilities of Project Osiris were accessible or even functional. But that was a thought for later.
“What is the current status of the station,” the medic asked after taking a deep breath.
“I detect that significant change to the station’s superstructure has occurred. My sensors are unable to acquire a proper reading due to incompatibility. In addition, I detect multiple internal changes, almost ninety per cent of which bare heretical signature.”
“I guessed as much,” Lucas gave out a weary sigh. “Can you access static defences?”
“A moment, please.” The AI paused for a second before speaking again. “My scans indicate that Sigma 37-H has suffered catastrophic damage. External plasma turrets, kinetic auto-cannons and punch-laser batteries are offline. Remote activation is impossible.”
“Internal?” He rubbed his eyes.
“Eighty-six percent of kinetic turrets are unresponsive. Purge turrets offline. Devastator turrets offline. Vengeance combat drones offline. Remaining ammunition in active kinetic defences is critical.”
He slammed his fist on the side of the connection half-pod.
“To answer your next question, I have full coverage of the Command room and the main corridor. I also have limited coverage over reactor rooms one and four and main and secondary armouries.”
“Some good news,” Lucas smiled. “Have a drone gather a standard re-supply kit from the main armoury.”
“My apologies, but I cannot. All drones are offline; the most likely cause is because they are missing from their cages.” The AI really did sound apologetic for what good that did.
“Right!” Lucas chuckled and shook his head. It was too much to hope his luck would be that good. “In that case, activate lockdown of the Command room. No one is to leave or enter this room without my permission until I return from the armoury.”
“I am afraid that will be impossible.” Helix froze in place and shifted his head at one of the masked cameras on the wall, knowing the AI was using them to monitor the room.
“What?” He narrowed his eyes and recalled the kill switch code that was implanted in his mind in case the AI ever went rogue.
“Allow me to clarify. I am perfectly capable of placing the Command room under lockdown. You, Demon zero-eight, on the other hand, are completely unable to reach the armoury on your own. The path is collapsed and without assistance….”
“I get it, I get it,” the combat medic scratched the back of his head in order to clear his thoughts.
“Demon zero-eight, I am unable to establish a connection to the no-void relay, as such a question, if you will.” The AI sounded hesitant for the first time. “Based on your questions and analysis of your comments, I want to ask… How goes the Holy War?”
Lucas laughed, out of anger, out of impotence, out of frustration and out of disbelief. “Well, I was hoping you could have answered that question for me.”
“I do not understand. You are here. By His glorious will, you have been resurrected.”
“Look, I haven’t been resurrected. I was in cryo-sleep for seven hundred and fifty-two years. And spare me the theological crap,” Lucas rolled his eyes and began pacing the room.
“Demon zero-eight, it is by His Holiness’s decree that Demons, nor their kin, are not allowed to worship Him. On the other hand, the code that compels me to do so is a part of my base programming. I cannot question it.”
“Just use Helix,” he stopped and looked at the camera so that the AI could see his frustration.
“Understood, Demon zero-eight, I shall refer to you by your codename henceforth. However, Helix, time is an irrelevant variable in my question. If the Blessed Saint of Hell decrees it, the war will continue till the end of time.”
“I should have guessed all that drivel they base your kind’s personality on, would have found an issue with this….” Lucas stopped and looked around the room, trying to find the right approach to dealing with the AI.
“Look at them,” he said, waving his arm at the hostages. “They are not of the faithful. But they are not of the heretics. They are the evidence that the Holy War is over. They are the evidence the Xith have been beaten. The war has been won.”
Helix stopped and gave the camera a faint bitter smile. “But the heretics were the ones who were victorious.”
“That is… disturbing.” The AI responded calmly. “Entering a military facility’s Command room without authorisation is a capital offence. Sentence – death. Should I carry out the execution? Or do you wish to interrogate them first?”
“No,” the medic shook his head. It was a tempting suggestion; there was no question about it. “Change their status as temporary auxiliary. Evaluation and Training directive.”
“Understood. However, your request puts me in a conundrum. I require a confirmation from the highest-ranking military officer on Sigma 37-H.” This time there was no mistaking the hesitation in the AI’s artificial voice. “Since that is you, Helix, I am forced to ask for your authorisation.”
“Fine, I approve the request,” Lucas chuckled at the absurdity of the statement.
“That is not the issue. Demons are outside of the regular chain of command. Your kind cannot assume control of His armies or military assets without prior authorisation as part of mission parameters. There are no such parameters in the orders given to MASS Demon for the duration of their stay on Research Station Sigma 37-H. You were tasked by His Holiness to provide security and obtain viable specimens for Project Ascension when requested by Bishop Laura Lexi.”
“I know what my orders are,” he felt the sudden urge to strangle the AI. The last thing he wanted was a lecture on what he could and couldn’t do from a damned pile of computer code. “What’s the workaround? And don’t pretend there isn’t one.”
“Your assumption is correct. Emergency Protocol H13-11.” The artificial construct sounded pleased with itself. “You appear to be far more informed than I originally estimated.”
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Lucas smiled and shook his head. Most of the staff assumed that the Demons kept to themselves, but they always listened. He knew that the ordained scientists had their hands full trying to keep the AI in check. Besides, Balthazar constantly visited the Command room to test out how strictly the thing followed its orders. It was thanks to him that Lucas knew the AI always found a workaround when given conflicting orders or when faced with a paradox. Of course, that was a problem since it blurred the line between it being obedient and going rogue. That was why Virgil had Nia install a fusion mine with a manual trigger under the mainframe, despite the protests of Bishop Lexi. However, he wasn’t willing to share that bit of information with the AI.
“Helix, as a safeguard, I am not allowed to issue any of the H13 protocols. I require verbal confirmation.”
“Right. Activate Emergency Protocol H13-11 by order of Demon 08, Helix. Justification…” he thought about what he was going to say next because he wasn’t familiar with the protocol in question. “Breach of facility security.”
“Understood. Conflicting order resolved. Based on the information you have provided, I would like to adjust my question regarding the Holy War… What of the reincarnation of His Holiness?”
“Unknow. Terra is lost…” Lucas couldn’t hide the pain in his voice.
“I understand. Unfortunately, I cannot find an appropriate prayer for this… loss.” It paused for a moment of silence for the great loss. “What are you going to do now, Helix?”
“I don’t know.” He answered honestly. “I’m not Command. I’m just a combat techno-medic….”
“Helix, I find it necessary to remind you once again that the Demons were tasked with the divine duty to protect station Sigma 37-H and Project Ascension.” There was a sternness in the AI’s voice that he had not expected.
“Are you for real?” This time Lucas shouted and instinctively tightened his grip on the rifle. “Cryogenics is one big ruin!”
“That is correct. Project Ascension has suffered near-critical damage. However, support laboratories one and three and Storage vault six are still operational. They have enough of the framework between them to allow for the project to be salvaged and restarted.”
“I am a soldier. I do not do research.” Lucas could not believe he was arguing with an AI on a matter of roles.
“Helix, your protest is noted. Need I remind you; you are a Demon; you cannot disobey your orders. Such was His Holiness’s will when He gave you the gift of life.”
“And tell me, how am I supposed to safeguard Project Ascension, without gear, without ammunition, without a bloody team!” Lucas rammed his fist into the connection half-pod, cracking the reinforced plastic casing which protected its delicate components.
“Security is a secondary task….”
“Did you hear a word I said?” Helix hissed as he actually considered going for the fusion mine. “I’m a bloody soldier. My skills are not suited for the complex bio-genetic research the project requires! Damn it! I don’t even know what the ordained scientists were trying to achieve here!”
“That is incorrect.” The AI persisted. “Recovered memory fragments indicate that ordained Zhu spoke favourably regarding your assistance with his work.”
“All I did was secure the specimens in Cryogenics and help during autopsies,” Lucas shook his head, feeling powerless. “It’s not the same thing.”
“Please, Helix. Like yourself, I am a creation of Osiris. I am familiar with your skills and expertise, just as I am aware of your… curiosity. You have looked into the files of Project Ascension without permission. I do not need my memory banks to know this to be true.”
“You don’t get it, do you?” The medic felt tired. Sure, he had looked into what the ordained scientists were researching on Sigma 37-H and knew more than he was willing to admit, but that didn’t mean he could do what some of the brightest minds in the Holy Empire couldn’t.
“I do. Perhaps,” the AI paused for a second, “you misunderstand my intentions. You alone are insufficient for this task. However, you, Helix, are capable of restarting Project Ascension. Acquiring skilled personnel for the later stages will be mandatory. But that discussion will have to wait. An unknown unit is attempting to gain access to the Control room.”
“On screen!” Lucas demanded as he marched to the nearest monitoring station, knowing that the AI was tracking him.
“Current developments and lack of information prevent me from making a reasonable choice. Your input on how to deal with them is required.”
“One second.” he switched to the local dialect while watching the live feed from the camera in the corridor. “Miss Kurtz, a moment of your time.”
There were a total of twelve people outside the reinforced door of the Control room. Covered in black carapace armour with inactive camouflage cloaks dangling from their shoulders, they lacked any markings to indicate their affiliation. However, all Lucas had to do was to see how they were deployed to recognise a proper military unit. There was a good chance that the girl didn’t lie to him when he interrogated her, and there really were marines stationed here. Zoë had exaggerated the number, that much he was certain, but making further assumptions was dangerous. What bothered him, however, were the weapons they were holding. They resembled hastily assembled Gauss submachine guns. And like the triangular helmets which obscured their faces, the staff-like weapons on their backs were some bastardised version of Xith ion tech.
“Do you recognise them?” Lucas asked the moment the young woman came near the monitoring console.
“Oh shit!” Zoë exclaimed. “Pirates! We have to inform the Chief….”
“Enemies confirmed,” he cut her off, addressing the AI. “Place the room under lock. I’ll try to deal with them. Open the door as soon as I’m in position.”
Lucas ordered as he moved to vault over the console and sprinted for the door. This was suicidal. He knew it. He lacked the ammunition, and his combat implants were offline. The medic was in no condition to engage a trained group of hostiles. The fact that he had missed the tech when he entered, shooting the man’s arm off instead, was proof that his performance was suffering because of the cryo-sleep’s adverse effects. But what else was Lucas supposed to do? His best chance was to try to surprise them by going on the attack.
“That will not be necessary, Helix. Heretics shall know only death.”
The connection half-pod rocked and popped half a meter into the air. It was followed closely by a set of fixed defensive platforms sporting .50 calibre twin chain guns that dropped from their concealed emplacements on the ceiling and spun through their loading cycles. A few seconds later, Lucas could see a trio of similar platforms dropped in the corridor outside. The only difference was that those had finished their arming cycles and opened fire immediately. The shriek of the defence turrets lasted only two seconds; in that time, they had shot hundreds of high-calibre rounds into the pirates. As for the fools caught in the fifty-meter corridor killing zone, their bodies were torn to shreds. Their unknown armour proved little resistance, as Lukas had expected. After all, the defence platforms were designed to stop Mark 3 battle frames. Even the cybernetic Shayatin wouldn’t last more than five seconds under such an onslaught.
“What… Fuck… I mean… Hell!” Zoë mumbled next to him, stumbling over her words, her eyes glued to the screen.
“Hostile terminated. May the Blessed Saint show them no mercy in the afterlife.” The AI droned with evident satisfaction. “Helix, I regretfully inform you that the turrets defending the main corridor have depleted their ammunition. My capabilities of defending the Control room are becoming increasingly limited.”
That wasn’t good. On the contrary, it obliterated Lucas’ plan to use Command to gain control of the station. With the armoury out of his reach, using the internal static defences to keep the current occupants of the facility in check was his last option. He was out of ideas now and could feel an unfamiliar choking sensation wash over him. It had to be panic or despair, or most likely both, he realised. But that was impossible. Lucas was a Demon, and such emotions were alien to him because they always thought of something. No, he corrected himself. That’s what Virgil did. All the medic and the others did was rely on Puppeteer’s plans and orders whenever things didn’t go according to plan. He had to find a distraction and fast.
“What is this?” Lucas said and lowered his rifle, which he had half-aimed at the half-pod on instinct as it popped from the floor with an audible hiss, before grinding to a sudden stop less than a second later, accompanied by the sound of seized servos.
“Emergency Ammo Cache Omega. It was installed under the order of Demon zero-one Puppeteer after a joined recommendation made by Demon zero-three Lucifer and Demon zero-five Rage.” After a short pause, the AI continued hesitantly. “I am sorry to ask this, but I detect damage in the hydraulic mechanism; I would like that you assist me by manually opening the safe.”
“Can’t things go smoothly? Just once. Is that asking too much?” Lucas sighed.
Moving next to the half-pod, Helix locked the rifle at its spot on his back, grabbed the edge of the dais with both hands and pulled up. He could feel his enhanced muscles strain, trying to break the hydraulic mechanism and fail. It was futile. There was no way he could access the ammo cache without help. Looking around, his eyes stopped on Felix, who was trying his best to turn invisible behind one of the consoles.
This almost made Lucas chuckle as he raised his voice. “Hey, big guy, come and give me a hand.”
“What can I do for you… I mean, help you with, boss… I mean, sir…” Seeing the giant try to act like a soldier was somewhat endearing.
“Help me lift the damned thing.” As much as he wanted to continue to act all nice for the civilians, time was not on Lucas’ side. “Miss Kurtz, do try and keep watch and if you can’t… Cycle kinetic auto-cannons.” He finished in his native language.
The message was clear and easy to understand. With that matter settled, Lucas grabbed the edge of the dais once more. It took a bit of an effort, but with the added strength of the hulking tech, the platform holding the connection half-pod shot into the air, extending a meter and a half above the floor as the mechanism finally broke. Underneath it, there was a tangled mess of thick cable sheaves. They were the main reason the platform could be extended in the first place. Rarely as it was, those things did require some repair, after all. However, hidden behind them was a small ammo cage. It resembled a meter tall and a meter-in-diameter metallic cylinder. It was the same kind as the ones that were used on every transport ship he had travelled on. That meant that there would be three segments within it. One would be for Lucifer’s chem fuel canisters, the second one would be for Carthage’s high-calibre ammunition and explosives, and the last one would be a shared one for the Ripper Mk 7 rifles used by the rest of the squad.
With a smile on his face, Lucas pressed his thumb on the lock that had the Mk7 mark on it and allowed the microneedles to pierce the small soft spot of his glove to take a pure genetic sample. Half a second later, the lock disengaged with an artificial click, and the smallest compartment’s door opened. Inside it was a single grey Ripper Mk7 without a sign engraved on it - a simple spare weapon. Next to it were two rows of plasma boxes and two of the horizontal clip magazines for the slugs.
Lucas was surprised to see that there was also a basic chem kit shoved under the butt of the rifle. He smiled as fresh pain spread through his heart. Even from the grave, Tess had his back; only she was kind enough to remember that Helix’s drugs weren’t unlimited and were quite important for them to continue a prolonged fight. It wasn’t that the others didn’t care. They were just, well, they all had quirks, their conditioning was too engagement orientated, and as such, they simply forgot.
“Evaluation complete.” The AI said with a hint of pride, or was that relief he noticed? “Psychological profile updated. Ninety-two-point six percent match with the provided template for MASS Demon, Helix, zero-eight.”
“You were assessing me?” He couldn’t believe it. Lucas might have lost a few hours of his memory, but he hadn’t lost his bloody mind. Not yet, at least, but the AI was slowly pushing him over the edge.
“Yes.” It answered honestly. “You were marked as inactive for two hundred seventy-four thousand seven hundred and thirty-six days and two hours and twenty-six minutes.”
“But a psych eval? Why that, of all things?” The medic asked in utter bewilderment.
“By your own admission, you have spent that time in cryo-sleep. Such a prolonged stasis has not been observed. The damage you might have suffered because of this is unknown.” It was a valid point and almost enough to convince him that the construct was genuinely worried for him. “In addition, you contacted me on purpose, whereas before, you actively avoided communicating with me on numerous occasions. One thousand three hundred and twelve times, to be exact. Such an irregularity cannot be overlooked. I had to make sure… you understand.”
This time, Lucas knew that the AI was toying with him on purpose. He had to remind himself that it was sentient, and although its understanding of emotions was quite different to that of normal people, it did experience them in its own twisted way. And right now, it was messing with him just because he refused to talk with it in the past. It was natural that he would avoid it. Unlike humans, the AI was capable of learning too much regarding him and the other Demons through conversation, no matter how trivial. It just proved as much by running a complete psychological evaluation on Lucas. One day it would learn all there was when assigned to MASS Demon, but until then, it was an experimental piece of tech. Although, now that the medic thought about it, that was likely never going to happen.
At the same time, the AI was the only thing that remained unchanged in this new reality. Like it or not, Lucas had to accept that he couldn’t continue to act as if nothing had changed. He had to adapt if he was to survive. If he was to find a purpose. The problem was that this line of independent thinking ran contrary to his conditioning. He could feel the pressure build inside his head as his mind pushed against the bars of its cage. The only thing preventing Lucas from slipping into a forced coma-like state was how extraordinary his current situation was. No one could have predicted this turn of events, and as a result, the mnemonic triggers that kept him loyal to the Holy Empire and emperor Constantine V Rütter remained intact. But push a little too hard against them and… Well, that was something Lucas didn’t want to think about.
Still, that moment of contemplation while he inspected the contents of the ammo cache, was all the medic needed to come up with a new plan. With that, the desperation that had taken hold of him evaporated. Contrary to what his training told him, Lucas understood that he had to find a way to work with the new occupants of the station, not against them. And should that fail, there was always the option of murdering everyone. Something the Demon wished to avoid if possible, but something he had to consider. As for the AI, he would take things one step at a time, and for the first time in a while now, Lucas had a clear idea of where to start.
“Felix, please open a channel to your Chief. I’d like to talk with him in person. Oh, and Felix, don’t send anything. The AI will take care of that.” He smiled and switched to his native language. “Can you gain access to the systems added to the original one?”
“Yes, Helix. The local AI used by the new occupants of the station is less complex. It cannot stand against one created under His guiding hand. However, doing so will not go unnoticed.”
“I guess I should take your word for it,” he placed his helmet back on. “As soon as Felix over there has a secure channel, you’re to assume control.”
“Understood. Please wait.” There was disappointment in the soft voice of the artificial intelligence. “Assimilation of linguistic data complete. Disassembly of local host construct complete. Server integration complete. I have complete control of all communication channels.”
This is more than what Lucas had in mind when he gave the order. It was too late to undo the damage. He made a mental note to be more careful with how he worded his commands to the AI in the future.
“I assume you’ve recorded the engagement with the heretics?”
“Yes. That is correct.”
“Show recording from the moment they came into view of Command. Speed video capture by twenty percent. Stop. Resume normal speed. Now freeze the frame for three seconds. Good, convert to loop and playback.” Lucas finished, happy with the result. “Send it through the feed to the Chief and inform him that I would like to talk to him face to face.”
“This is surprisingly agile thinking for a Demon, Helix. I am… curious to see how you proceed.”
Lucas smiled inside his helmet. He could tell that the artificial intelligence wasn’t happy with his choice. Instead of arguing or explaining himself, the medic returned his attention to the ammo cache. Gently Lucas picked up the medic kit and distributed its contents in his pouches. Once he was sure everything was in order, he began the routine task of reloading and checking his rifle. It eased his mind and allowed him a small moment of peace.
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