“Ugh, fuck.” I groaned, and rolled over. I really had to stop waking up like this. A hand caught on my tail, and was dragged along with me. I shot to my feet and swiped down at my tail to get the dead guy to let go.
“Welcome back, Operator.” VGL’s deadpan voice came from just beside me.
”It’s good morning.” I rubbed a hand through my hair. Black strands mixed with silver flowed down around my face. So much black. I was kind of scared I might go bald if I started grooming again.
VGL’s eye blinked at me. ”Good morning, Operator Vargriev.”
“Yeah, yeah.” I rubbed at my arms. I still felt horribly weak, but it wasn’t as bad as it was. Instead, there was a soft… burning?
++ Blackwater Anomalous Biosystems Loading… ++
++ Remnant Blackwater Nanite Strains Detected. Salvage 1? ++
| Rend: Consume Cardiac Organs for Vitae. Manifest harvesting claws. |
| Mk. 3 Berserk: Enter a Berserk State. Gain increased Resilience and Strength at the cost of Acuity. |
| Chaos Power Inducer: Gain Empowerment for nearby explosions, rain, shockwaves, or environmental effects. |
“What’s this?” I read through the three of them. Did it want me to pick one? “It’s asking me to pick between remnant strains, I think.”
”Major records regarding Nanite Strains have been expunged.” VGL’s mechanized voice echoed across the dead silent room. “They are likely strains of Marshal Rahn. It is unknown when you will get the chance to gain additional strains.”
If you don’t know, just say that… 1 is salvageable, so did that mean I could get one of these… strains? That's what they were called, right? They looked like abilities. The only other strain I’d seen, aside from the one that extracted the nanites from me, gave me a bit of Strength. These looked like they were on a different playing field.
Was this what my immunity would come from? None of them looked like they’d do anything in terms of Psyker corruption, though. But if I couldn’t get additional strains, such as one that dealt with that… Did he lie to me? I stared at the core for a moment.
”You know if I fall into corruption, there won’t be anyone to help you, right?” My voice came out distant and off. I’d kept anything related to my Psyker nature close to my chest for so long that even just bringing it up felt strange.
“Affirmative, Operator. It is fifth on my priority objectives.” VGL’s glow lit up my body and scanned me. “You seem stable for the moment.”
”For the moment…” That wouldn’t last long. I had at least a week thanks to the new inhibitor. There was no telling how much the Mire would degrade it.
”One step at a time, Operator Vargriev.”
”Easy for you to say.”
VGL flashed dimly. ”Negative. This unit currently does not possess legs.”
“Right… right.” I shook my head and focused back on the options.
Of the three, Berserk was the worst one. Resilience was probably damage resistance of some sort, Strength was self-explanatory, and Acuity probably correlated to my mind? I spent my entire life trying to avoid the exact effects of the nanite strain. Losing my mind wasn’t worth it. Not for anything.
I wasn’t sure what Vitae was, but there was realistically only one option. Chaos Power Inducer could be nice. Having to rely on the environment, though? Rend… heh, guess it was fate? Like mother like daughter…
++ Regenerating Rend… ++
| Subject: Alive
Subject Species: Pending
Subject Profile: Pending
NLC - 0/146
=Blackwater Anomalous Biosystems V7.77
=Blackwater Anomalous Rend(Regenerating - 3%)
Vitae: 0
32 Warnings! |
I blinked, and stared down at the biomonitor’s readout. 32 warnings? That couldn’t be right. Why was the profile and stuff was still hidden too? “Hey, clanker?”
VGL, who’d been in the middle of talking about something I hadn’t been paying attention to, pulsed lightly. The light from his eye focused on me. “Yes, Operator?”
++ Grant Biosystem Access? Entity:DOMINION_TitanCore_VGL_09 ++
“Um… yeah?”
The eye’s light blinked almost as if in confusion, and the scanning light faded away. “This unit holds no records of Blackwater Anomalous.”
I scrubbed at my face. All these corporation names—I hadn’t heard of a single one of them. I was beginning to think they weren't from around here. ”And that’s bad? You did just wipe part of your memory, didn’t you?”
“Affirmative. A nanite strain, such as the biomonitor, without nanite load is theoretically impossible,” VGL said. “It will take some time to interface with this unknown technology.”
”Add it to the list of issues.” Blackwater Anomalous… really should’ve seen that coming, huh? Not like it’d be something simple. Just what did I infect my body with this time? “What about the warnings, though?”
“There is nothing that can be done about them in the current situation, Operator. This unit recommends ignoring them.” VGL’s core vibrated softly in my hand. “Scanners indicated creatures—“
”They’re called calamities,” I mumbled softly, and looked away from the warnings. Some of them looked particularly bad.
”Logged. Calamities are being lured by the active engines.” VGL flashed twice. “This place is no longer safe.”
“Right… guess we have bigger things to worry about than the biomonitor.” Like being abandoned in the middle of the Mire…
I slumped over a console. Was it even worth trying to make it back? I was dead. It may not seem like it yet, but I was irrevocably dead. Marching across the Mire back to Silverport was an impossible order. I was several days out by car alone.
I doubted I could even make it out of the forest, let alone back through the spatial anomaly. Continuing would just torture myself. Or worse. Some calamities inflicted fates worse than death.
Sylvie’s tear-streaked face appeared in the back of my mind… Right, not trying was never really an option, was it? For once, I wasn’t bitter about the lack of choice. Maybe a miracle would happen. Please, Pyre, let a miracle happen. It’s the only chance I have at getting back alive.
“We need to get back to Silverport. Is there any form of transport left in this thing?” I asked VGL, and stood up. “Your Grail Knight was spotted there.”
”This cooperation is already proving fruitful.” VGL’s core flashed, and his light flicked across the main console of the ship. The lights reset, and turned back to full power.
”For one of us…” I muttered. “Transport? Or anything worth taking?”
The core flashed softly as if in thought. “There are over 100,000 tons of extremely valuable alloys aboard the ship.”
“… any of that I could carry?” What, was he including the entire hull in that figure? Was the freighter really that big?
”Negative… The Grail Knight cleared the ship before leaving this unit here.” The indicator light blinked slowly. “This unit requests returning to its frame. Additional operational data was stored there.”
“Your frame?” I left the bridge without another look back, and stepped out into the dim halls of the broken ship. With VGL resetting the power systems, the halls were brightly lit once more.
“Affirmative. This unit is a Dominion Sentinel-class Titan.” VGL’s light warped into an arrow leading down the halls. “My frame resides in what is left of the hangar.”
VGL-09 continued to lead me through the bowels of the ship. Scattered dead were everywhere. Most of them looked like they died in the impact, but there were several that had been shot. Interestingly, all of their dog tags were ripped off. Probably by the Grail Knight. “What happened here?”
”Boarding action by the Ashlar Crown.” VGL’s light flashed red. “Further logs were expunged.”
”’Course they were.” Did he keep anything useful? “Who’s the Ashlar Crown?”
”Irrelevant.” VGL went silent like he said something he shouldn’t have. “Proceed toward the hangar, Operator.”
“Fine.” I didn’t need to know everything yet. Survival came first. After a few minutes of walking, the drained sensation steadily faded. I still felt absolutely exhausted, but my mobility and strength slowly returned.
By the time I made it to the hangar, I felt almost normal. A door blocked the way, but a swipe of the Visitor’s Pass got me through without much issue. I stepped beyond the light of the hall, and my eyes rapidly adjusted to the dull darkness of the hangar.
The place was in pieces. That much was obvious. Rain poured in from a jagged scratch across the roof, and lightning flashed lightly. In between the flashes of light, I spotted a massive figure laying across the hangar in several pieces.
It was a large mecha. I vaguely recognized it from science fiction shows Sylvie liked to watch. If it was standing, it would maybe be two or three stories tall. As things were, it was hard to get a grasp on the thing’s size. Big bold letters on the side spelled out VGL-09.
”So… that was you?” I asked as I slowly approached the titan. Even at a glance, the machine was designed for war. A massive chain gun sat tossed to the side of the hangar. It just so happened to have crushed what looked like several land vehicles.
”Affirmative.” The indicator lights I’d been following this entire time narrowed on a port along the back side of the main cabin.
“I don’t have anything to access that with.” I approached anyway, and jumped up onto the main chassis of the Titan. He was almost totally destroyed. No wonder the Grail Knight left this guy behind.
“Approach the core, Operator.” I dangled the core of his old frame. A glow settled down across it, and ran down along the Titan’s body. “Data acquired. This unit recommends leaving.”
I faintly caught a roar echoing into the hangar from the Mire, and backed away from the Titan. ”You don’t need to tell me twice.”
I hopped off the thing, and quickly made my way back toward the entrance. On the way, I rigged up a chain to turn VGL’s core into a necklace. There were more then enough empty dog tag chains scattered amongst the dead.
I didn’t immediately leave the relative safety of the downed freighter, and instead watched the clearing. Movement from the mounds of dead Needlefoot drew my attention. Scavengers had already started to arrive.
“This unit—“
“Power off, clanker,” I muttered, and checked my equipment. I was down to three power cells for my vi-rifle, I had no food, and no water. Oh, and my armor was taken away.
I… should I even leave? The ship wasn’t safe, but it was safer than out there. I took a step back toward the brightly lit halls. Maybe they’d send a rescue crew out to come get me. Anything was safer than out there.
Heh… who am I kidding? A rescue team for just a Canary—even a kid would laugh at that stupidity. Staying here was a death sentence… but at least I’d die comfortably. Chances were high I’d get ripped limb from limb or worse out in the Mire. Here I was warm and dry. Out there…
“She’s waiting.” I squeezed my eyes shut, and cleared my head. Without any further hesitation, I stepped out into the Mire.
I could technically leave now. Hunger wouldn’t kill me in a week, and it rained enough I shouldn’t have to worry about water. That was assuming I didn’t get into any fights on the way through the Mire. I’d be powerless if I didn’t have any supplies when I set off.
Okay… okay, okay, okay. There were potentially supplies out in the burned out vehicles. I got this. I totally got this. Failure wasn’t an option. I took a breath, and caught the bloody scent filling the air. My ears twitched toward the sound of flesh and carapace tearing in the distance.
I slunk forward toward the charred remains of the cargo truck. With my axe held steadily in front of me. The head glowed with a soft golden light as if to guide my path forward.
The front of the truck was hit directly with a rocket, but the back only… well, blew up too. All the ordnance stored in it would’ve scrapped almost everything I’d need. It was a good thing I didn’t need much.
My ears alertly twitched toward the back of the cargo truck. A sniffling sound faintly echoed out of the back of the truck, as well as something large digging around. I crept up along the back of the burned out truck and peeked around.
A large deer-like creature dug through shattered boxes with its antlers. It’s antlers, unlike a deer, pointed straight forward like the prongs of a fork. It used said prongs to dig around for whatever it caught the scent of.
I silently stepped forward. I reached just behind it before the creature’s head shot up alertly—
Shnk!
My glowing axe cleaved through the creature’s neck. It got stuck halfway, and the beast reared back away from me. The unexpected motion jerked the axe out of my hand, and pulled me toward its rear.
I leapt back to avoid a brutal donkey-kick. Squirts of blood sprayed the tattered tarp of the cargo truck. Despite the fatal wound, the deer-creature turned on me full of vigor. My only saving grace was that it was way too big for the tiny cargo truck bed. It’s mobility was greatly limited.
”Operator, use your claws.” VGL not so helpfully called out.
”I don’t know how—“ As if sensing my thoughts, a worming sensation filled my hands. The worming turned into sharp burning. In an instant, ethereal silver claws grew along my fingers. The claws of my thumbs, instead of cutting deep into my clench fists, almost seemed to flow around my palms.
While I was distracted by the growths, the deer finally turned fully toward me. It charged forward with the intent to skewer me clear through the side.
I dove forward and slid just under its jugular. My hand whipped forward with the seemingly useless claws. Despite seeming ethereal, they sliced cleanly through the creature’s neck. A tearing sensation filled my fingers, and pain erupted up my hand as an immense pressure pushed on my nails.
It staggered forward, and kicked forward to catch me. I threw myself to the side just in time to avoid the brutal strike, and took advantage of its weakened state. Now that I knew what to expect, I swung both my arms forward and sliced the rest of the way through its already half—severed neck.
Thunk!
It’s head slammed heavily into the ash covered truck bed, quickly followed by the rest of its body. I kicked it to the side just before it could crush me, and slowly got back up to my feet.
I stretched my claws hand out and eyed the claws. “Woah…”
The claws… they reminded me of Sylvie’s. The style was a little different, but the difference was undeniable. Even this far away from Silverport, the thought made me feel close to her. Sylvie…
”Operator, this unit recommends finding the calamities cardiac organ.” VGL flashed. “Preliminary evaluation suggests the heart is in its chest.”
”… real helpful there.” I shook my head and focused back on the matter at hand. With no small amount of hesitation, I approached the creature with my new claws outstretched.
A small silver glow flashed just above the corpse of the creature. I paused for a minute, and eyed it in confusion. Did Rend come with a guidance system? Before I could second guess myself, I slammed down with my hand and dug through the dead creature for its heart.
The instant the claws made contact, I could feel it. A rush of warmth flooded up my arm, and sated a sense of hunger I hadn’t even realized was there until the moment of consumption. Just as I felt like I could get addicted to the sensation, it cut off entirely.
++ 5 Vitae Absorbed ++
The warmth settled in my chest before slowly fading. In its place, a soft hunger for more lingered. “Heh… ha. Hahahaha!”
Laughter bubbled out of me before I could stop it, and tears rolled down my cheeks. I swore I’d never be like her, and here I was, claws deep in a creature’s chest. How could I return like this? How could I return to Sylvie like this?
I ripped a patch of black fur out of my tail, and the sharp pain brought me some level of clarity. I wasn’t too far gone. Not yet. I pulled away from the corpse, and my claws slowly retracted. The burning sensation across my hands faded away. 5 Vitae… no idea what that was. I could figure it out later though.
“Operator.” VGL brought me back to the cargo truck.
”What?” I snapped at the robot.
”Your heartbeat has accelerated.” The eye vibrated warmly against my chest. “You appear frightened.”
“I…” I flinched, and made myself busy by ripping my axe out of the creature’s stump. My tail irritably lashed back and forth behind me. “Don’t worry about it. Just the Mire getting to me.”
”… affirmative.”
”And stop monitoring me.” I rubbed the moisture out of my eyes. The last thing I needed was a bot telling me every time I had a mood swing.
”Negative. Your health is fourth in my priority objectives.”
‘Course. He can’t even follow orders correctly. My ears twitched toward sounds in the distance. More were coming. I could hear them prowling through the forest. I glanced down at the dead deer. And I’d just wrung the dinner bell.
I quickly scavenged what I could and bolted for the edge of the clearing. I stopped just at the edge, and looked back toward the destroyed convoy and downed ship. My heart cut in my throat like I stood on the edge of a precipice.
My ears twitched toward something digging around one of the destroyed hummers. The creature seemed to notice me as well, and a shadow appeared against the Mire. It was almost entirely hidden by the dense fog. So much so I couldn’t make out what exactly it was.
A moment of eerie silence passed—and then was broken by an elderly voice. “Hello?”
A chill went down my spine, and my tail curled around my blood covered leg. I broke contact, and darted into the forest before it could try to approach. The lights of the ship gradually faded behind curtains of rain and fog. Eventually, the dark forest swallowed me entirely.
— — —
AN: Got cover wip mostly done. Just need to color it in and change the font. Thought I’d go ahead and share it here.