“Sure thing, Admiral. Anything else?”
“No, thank you, Chief.”
This guy smells of trouble like burnt quadrinium in the core engine’s fuel chamber.
When Oryn arrived at the starport, she heard a roaring echo in the distance. Miseo had broken through her massive, icy prison. She had never made one as strong before, and she hadn’t expected any living being to escape so quickly.
Perhaps someone like Chase could escape any icy prison she could cast, thanks to his Ultra-Fury abilities, but most warriors would stay trapped and die.
Oryn took out the mental device from her pocket. She didn’t see any alternative; she had to regain control of Miseo’s mind before he caught up with her and killed her.
Would trying to control Miseo’s mind in his current state have any adverse effect on her?
Not really like I have a choice.
She applied the device to her right temple, selected Test Subject One on the mentally projected HUD and activated witness mode.
She went from her fearful state to one of pure and unquantifiable hatred beyond reason in a split second. Oryn felt compelled to remove the device; the overload of negative emotions was too much to bear. But she soldiered through them. Miseo was running towards the holes she had created bursting out of the palace. Soon he was in the air.
He flew at least ten times faster than she ever could. One thought overwhelmed her. The will to kill Oryn. The overlay of her own emotions on those of Miseo was confusing. On one hand, she felt Miseo’s obsession to kill her; on the other hand, her anxiety levels soared exponentially.
She located the command to activate mental override on the HUD, then froze. She had never expected to have to beta test this feature under such perilous conditions, and while her own life was at stake.
Oryn wondered how Miseo had been able to home in her location. While she could detect an enemy’s energy signature as well, the range was limited to hundreds of yards; thousands if she focused intensely on the task. But Miseo was flying towards her position even though she was miles away. She had to conclude that the treatment enhanced that ability as well.
She activated the mind-override controls, and the two separate centers of consciousness merged into one. The first few seconds in this new mode was overwhelming. She feared losing her own sanity in the process.
She focused on trying to control Miseo and affect his flight path, but by the time she understood how to affect Miseo’s body with her own troubled mind, he had entered the starport and was flying towards her ship.
That was part of her plan in the first place, to take him away from the palace, where he could do the most damage to her people. Oryn only had a few moments to come up with a plan. She wanted Miseo to come to her, but if she couldn’t fully control his actions, that would almost certainly result in her death.
She pushed with all her mental strength to get control over her brother’s body when he entered the ship. Then she saw herself through Miseo’s eyes and understood that she only had a few seconds to succeed or it would be the end of her.
She gave the ship a vocal command. “Take off and get to the designated coordinates at maximum burn.”
The ship’s engine roared to life, and a moment later they were high in Erevos’ upper atmosphere. At least Miseo was contained for the time being.
Seeing herself through his eyes as he approached was disconcerting. His intention to kill her was palpable. She pushed mentally and managed to stop him from taking more steps, but she felt an intense struggle to control his body fully. Controlling his thoughts seemed easier, but there was too much violent instinct at work to manage to reason with his conscious mind.
To make things worse, it took such a lot of focus to achieve so little that she lacked the necessary mental power to create attacks of her own. Miseo managed another step.
Her heart was pounding. One false move, one millisecond of inattention or reduced focus, and she would be history. She managed to slow his advance, but from time to time she would flinch, and he would take one more step towards her.
She didn’t know if the tech wasn’t working properly, or if his deeply rooted rage was simply too much to tame. Perhaps lowering the temperature around them could help, but she couldn’t divert her focus enough to make it happen.
If she didn’t do something soon, the stalemate would end and she knew what that meant. She focused as hard as she could and elevated her cold aura, releasing freezing air all around her.
Wrong move. It took too much of her focus away and Miseo took two more steps.
Miseo took the last step towards her and grabbed her by the throat. Soon she felt both sensations. Her neck being crushed as well as Miseo’s hand squeezing her to oblivion.
Chase could barely see anything in the darkness. He wondered if that was part of Gaia 2’s plan to intimidate him. Hopefully, his earlier training with Gaia had prepared him for what was to come. But Gaia hadn’t pushed him to the limits, while Gaia 2 would try to go beyond them at every turn.
Chase felt something coming towards him from above. He heard an object falling at high velocity and mentally braced himself. Some light came from behind. Gaia 2 wanted him to see what was coming towards him. A severed head fell a few yards away and bounced towards him.
It has begun.
The head rolled to within arm’s length, but the low light and position of the head didn’t allow Chase to identify it. He picked it up. His heart skipped a beat when he turned it, and more light came out of nowhere to reveal its face.
He was holding his son Chris’ head.
This isn’t real.
Chase kept repeating this in his mind, like a mantra. This was just the beginning; he had to stay strong and not get emotional. That was key. He had failed many times during his training and didn’t know how far he could be pushed. But if this was the first thing Gaia 2 threw at him, worse was yet to come. He braced himself for more horrible imagery.
Chris’ eyes were closed and his face conveyed pain and suffering. His skin was gray and the head felt cold to the touch. But then, suddenly, color returned to his son’s head and his eyes opened. It startled Chase and he almost dropped the head. As if this wasn’t creepy enough, Chris started speaking.
“This is your fault, Dad! All of it is your fault!”
Chase swallowed hard and tried not to let his concentration be affected by his emotions. He was in Gaia 2’s twisted AI mind, and in here she was free to affect the universe as she saw fit.
“Why did you do this to us?” asked Chris. “Why, Dad?”
Chase didn’t know if he should interact with the illusion. He would probably augment the risk of being emotionally drawn into this fictional reality, which could give Gaia 2 more power over him.
But then more objects fell around him. It was raining heads. Each rebounded on the ground with terrible, squishy sounds that made him cringe.
It didn’t take long for Chase to identify the heads rolling all around him, while more fell every second. Sarah, Daniel, Saroudis, Ares, Aphroditis and more. His adoptive parents, all his friends, those still alive but also the dead ones. Gaia 2 really meant business, and she didn’t intend to pull any punches. She would test Chase’s fears to the limit, and it was painfully obvious she knew what buttons to push.
This isn’t real. I won’t let her get under my skin.
Every time Chase formed a positive thought, something happened inside Gaia 2’s matrix to change the balance, to get Chase to react emotionally. He had to avoid playing that game for as long as possible, to get Gaia 2’s computing power high enough.
Chris’ head, still in Chase’s hands, cried bloody tears, and it flew from Chase’s grasp. He was glad to let it go as it levitated in front of him. The other fallen heads did the same, and they all bled. From the eyes, the ears, the mouth and the severed neck.
They all spoke in unison. “Why, Chase? Why did you do this to us?”
Chase’s heart beat faster. He focused on a happy
memory to divert his attention from the accusing heads, avoiding looking at them directly.
This won’t work with me. You’re wasting your time. I came to destroy you and that’s what will happen today.
Chase didn’t feel the need to talk aloud. Gaia 2 could pick up everything he was thinking while he was in her matrix.
“We shall see,” said Gaia 2.
Her voice echoed all around him, and was followed by a mad laugh that resonated deep inside Chase’s mind.
The blood dripping from all the heads added up, and soon an ocean of blood rose from the ground like a crimson tide.
This is just an illusion. None of this is real.
But the bloody tide kept rising and soon Chase was floating in the viscous, crimson liquid. He couldn’t see anything anymore, and soon lost his footing. He couldn’t tell which way was up or down, just that he was floating in blood. He closed his eyes and focused on something else, as Gaia had taught him.
It felt as if he was underwater in the middle of a terrible storm, being thrown in every direction, with no visibility whatsoever.
6
Cedric felt as if he had been burning for as long as he could remember. His entire world now consisted of only pain, the level of which he had never experienced before, and it kept increasing with every passing moment.
In that state of constant torture, feeling as if he was burning alive but unable to die and be done with it, he had lost the concept of time. Had it been minutes, days or years? He couldn’t tell.
Then he felt a little less pain with each new heartbeat and wondered why.
Talking in that state was nearly impossible but, after a few moments, he had the energy to scream a few words. “What is it, bitch? You’re tired of tormenting me?”
At first, there was no answer, but after a while he heard her evil voice in his thoughts.
Your friend Chase has come. I’m going to consume him like I’m consuming you right now.
Cedric regained some of his senses. Not too much, but enough to open his eyes again, though his mind had trouble understanding how he still had sight. His vision was blurry, and all he could see were flames everywhere.
Cedric laughed out loud.
“What’s so funny?”
“You’re as good as dead. If Chase has come for you he will destroy you. All I have to do is sit tight and soon you’ll be history.”
“Aren’t we confident? Chase is no match for me, and he will succumb to my infinite power soon enough.”
“Yet you feel the need to reassure yourself by telling me this. I think you’re afraid. Afraid that Chase can win.”
“Don’t be ridiculous, you puny human. And let me remind you that I can kill you anytime I desire. All that’s required is a single thought and your heart will stop beating, so I’d watch that vicious tongue of yours.”
Cedric laughed even harder.
“This isn’t funny!”
The pain was still intense but it decreased in small increments over time, giving Cedric the ability to talk with more ease.
“Oh, I beg to differ. It’s hilarious that you think I wouldn’t take death over this. You know nothing of us, and this will be your downfall.”
“And your faith in your friend will be yours.”
Cedric smiled. He felt something in his heart he hadn’t felt since Gaia 2 had first invaded his body. An emotion he thought had died a long time ago: hope.
Oryn gasped for air but her trachea was being crushed. She felt the effects of oxygen deprivation. It didn’t help her stay focused, and she feared her time had come. In her last moment of lucidity, induced by a high release of adrenaline, she found the strength to lay her hands on Miseo’s head and release as much cold as she could, one last time.
She felt the effect on him through the mental link. It froze some of his aggression, enough that she managed to take over his motor function and release his hands from her throat.
Some much-needed air filled her lungs. Clarity as well, as a second breath came to her. She re-applied a hand to her brother’s head, making sure to keep his brain numb with cold.
She then made him move to the back of the ship and enter the cryo-unit. When he was inside she activated the cryo-process. A handful of seconds later and he was deep in cryo-sleep. Oryn let herself fall on her knees, releasing most of the tension from her body.
That was close. Too close.
She reflected on what had just happened as she let more air fill her lungs and recovered from the mental strain of the link between their minds.
She vectored towards one of the orbiting shipyards. The last Fury ship being constructed was almost complete. She hacked into the computer core and triggered a fake engine overload to make sure the crew left the ship.
By the time her ship had arrived at the shipyard, many shuttles were leaving in a hurry.
Perfect.
She opened a channel to her scientist back on the surface.
“What can I do for you, Mistress?”
“Miseo almost killed me! I could barely control him. You need to tell me how to exert better control over him. He’s no use to me this way. And I’m not sure you are either unless you find a solution.”
The scientist swallowed hard. “Flood his system with a neuro-relaxant. It will numb his mind enough for you to control him better.”
“This better work, or there will be hell to pay.”
She didn’t bother letting him answer and cut off their communication.
She went back to the cryo-unit. Under normal circumstances, subjects in cryo-sleep looked peaceful, but that was not the case here. Miseo’s face was still deformed by the rage burning in him before he was cryogenized.
When her ship docked with the destroyer Eternal Wrath, she was hailed from the planet. A purple channel, indicating the call was being made from the palace. No doubt Arakan himself was making that call.
She had neither the patience nor the mental strength to come up with a convincing lie, so the call went unanswered, but that meant she had to act fast, before her father sent troops to investigate.
She linked her ship’s computer with the Eternal Wrath, canceled the false alarm and ordered the ship to exit dock.
Construction clamps detached as the destroyer’s engine roared to life. While she could hopefully keep controlling her brother with the aid of neuro-relaxant drugs, his life was pretty much forfeit. She needed to put his last living moments to good use.
She entered Earth’s coordinates into the Eternal Wrath’s computer and jumped the destroyer into hyperspace the moment the engines were ready.
She might as well use Miseo for something good. She would use him to take out Chase. The aftermath of what had happened on Erevos today would be unpleasant, but if she could bring back Chase’s head to her father, she could probably get away with it.
Get ready to die, Ultra Fury. Today will be your last day.
When he no longer felt oppressed by his surroundings, Chase tried re-opening his eyes and was surprised to find himself inside a regen tank, though the regen liquid was blood-colored. It was translucent enough that he could see what was happening outside. Shadows stood a few yards away. Little by little, the shadows became clearer.
Chase recognized Sarah; she was being held by the skull by the largest man Chase had ever seen. He didn’t know who he was, but he matched the description of Supreme Commander Arakan that Sarah had shared with him from the vision she had experienced with the help of a yet unborn Chris.
Next to him stood two other Furies that Chase identified as Oryn and Miseo. They were laughing at the scene, encouraging their father to end Sarah’s life.
Without realizing, Chase started breathing in the crimson-tinted regen liquid and immediately regretted it. His lungs were on fire the moment he did, but the pain was so intense and the fire inside his body so strong that he couldn’t keep from breathing.
Oryn approached the cylinder in which Chase was trapped and knocked on the glass.
“What is it, Laiyos? Is it getting hot in there?” She laughed.
Chase panicked, even though his conscious mind knew this wasn’t really happening. He had lost his focus just long enough to be affected by the laws of Gaia 2’s matrix.
Then Chase heard a familiar voice inside his head. Kvasir.
Chase, I’m in. I’ve started my hack. From now on I should be able to help you a little. The more I advance on my task, the more processing power Gaia 2 will have to divert to deal with both of us. I’ve also released Gaia inside the matrix and she’s going to try to get her full consciousness back. Hopefully this will help too.
Good, keep at it.
I will, but Chase?
What is it?
Your vitals don’t look good. Whatever is happening in there, you should try to get a mental grip on the situation. Your adrenaline levels have spiked, and your heartbeat is way too fast. We’re only at fifteen percent of diverted CPU. You need to regain control.
Roger that.
Chase looked at Oryn and calmed himself. He ignored the burning pain inside his lungs, locked his gaze with Oryn’s and smirked.
She smiled back at him and put her palm against the glass of his regen tank.
“Let me cool things down for you.” Her blue eyes, cold as ice, shone through.
A wave of cold permeated the glass and dropped the temperature inside the regen tank. Soon the clear, crimson liquid turned blue and froze, immobilizing Chase as the cold reached inside his body. Oryn laughed as more of Chase’s body froze.
I’m not scared. Oryn isn’t here, and I’m not going to let Gaia 2 screw with my mind.
When it felt as though his entire body had been nearly frozen, Chase focused all his mental energy to project a powerful mental image: a supernova exploding.
Armageddon Unleashed (Universe in Flames Book 7) Page 8