Chapter 28 - Consumite Furore

512 A.R. March** 2 ***, Tel-Adra -* Nexus Tower** , ***Morning*

Things felt hectic upon being snapped back to reality. A clock ticked in my mind, and Lydon was still looking at me. He seemed lost and confused, and I felt a veritable punch as my senses kicked into gear once more. My heart was thumping, the room reeked of death, and my ears perked as I heard it start.

A scream, followed in quick succession by more. Wild gunfire, and voices that rose in pitch as if their pain was being wracked up to impossible levels. Lydon jumped in surprise, and by now a few seconds had already passed. I reached out and gripped Lydon's arm with enough strength that his focus snapped back to me.

"This is life and death. Follow in my wake, understand?" I said, and stared into his eyes with an intensity I had never summoned up before.

I hoped he would he would understand rather than blabber and complicate-

"I understand," Lydon nodded, cold and coherent as the frantic screams kept building.

'_ Move _,' Ananke whispered in my mind, as if holding a dagger by my throat.

I let go of his arm, reached down to the gun in his hand, and jerked it out of his grip, " Run."

Lydon jumped back, and I pushed past him as I entered Kamilah's office once more. I ran with Ananke's command still echoing in my mind. The closer I got to the hallway, the louder and more distorted the screams became. The tendrils along my back were slithering out on their own, a most unsettling sensation as they now felt truly alien to me.

A hasty glance to my rear revealed that Lydon was following. A good sign, although I could see him stare at me as if both confused and pondering whether I was insane.

The tendrils moved in front of me--perhaps in an attempt to shield me--as I bolted into the hallway. I was forcing my body to move, but I could still feel as deeply rooted instincts tugged at me.

The soldiers in the hallway--most of them clad in the heavy green armor of the UCS--were in a state which could only be described as horrifying. They were all on the floor, screaming as they were being torn apart from the inside.

Their uniforms bulged here and there as spatters of blood emerged from every opening, both natural and unnatural. They clawed and tore at themselves, each other, the walls, as if trying to reach for something, to do anything, just to flee from their own insides.

Breathing was difficult. The air was thick with a miasma of death, made that much worse by something that my senses begged me to avoid.

I ran on automatic, as if sprinting through the forest, and leaped over the first group of soldiers. Still, I couldn't help but look as I kept moving.

Some were worse off than others. One of them--a man clinging near the wall--was tearing at his own neck. Black ooze shimmering with a purple hue was erupting from it, and to the man's horror, it stuck to his hand as if trying to eat it.

Lydon was surprisingly agile as I threw him another glimpse. He leaped and jumped as if following my every move with perfect precision.

Another gunshot tore through the hallway, but none of us seemed to have been hit, even as the sound reverberated in my skull. As the sound ebbed, I became aware something else. Hidden in the background of the screams, on something of a level more akin to a telepathic noise, was the scream of something alien.

As I leaped across another pair of humans, I could see as one of them tried to reach for his own back. There was another Lusus trying to dig itself out, tearing his spine out in the process. As the creature moved, its scream made my fur stand on end... Meanwhile, I pushed back against the nearby wall, hit the ground running, and kept moving.

I felt a gentle tug, and a glance to my side revealed that a tendril had snapped up a rather big rifle.

'Watch out,' Ananke whispered in my mind, pulling on my senses to shift my focus.

We were near the elevators, but a pair of soldiers were still ahead of us. Both of them wore all-encompassing environmental suits. Although they moved erratically, not a sound could be heard from them.

The one to the left shuddered as he crawled on the floor, while the other had managed to remain standing. While twitching, he reached for his rifle, perhaps in some desperate attempt to take aim at me.

'Take his gun, the suit will contain the creature for now,' Ananke ordered.

I shifted my focus, aimed straight at the solder, and reached out with my hands. All of it happened in mere moments. I grabbed the rifle as the soldier was still trying to lift it in my direction, and felt as a shot was fired.

Everything shook and my ears twitched, but I focused on bringing my weight to bear. With a snarl in my throat, I pushed the rifle toward the soldiers chest with all my might, and held on tight.

The soldier lifted into the air as his grip slipped, and he flew backwards until he crashed into the nearby wall before tumbling to the floor. I picked up my pace once more, and Lydon managed to stay close behind. A glance to the left revealed that the elevator doors were open, and Lydon was already rushing inside.

As I followed in his wake, I caught something at the far end of the hallway. Another soldier in a suit of some kind, but it was far bigger than the one I had just sent flying. The design of it was sleek like inflated bubbles, and its colors were red and orange. A couple of big tanks were attached to its back, and there was a large weapon attached to one arm with a flame that was licking at the air.

I'm assuming that's a Dyssian Fire Angel, but why is it among UCS soldiers?

Ananke's voice filled my mind as I rushed into the elevator, 'A Fire Angel may carry a human, but it's obedient like a machine. Get the right code words, and it will do your bidding.'

'Did you just read my inner thoughts?' I thought.

'I did, yes... I have full control over the Zephyr, remember?' Ananke cooed.

The elevator doors slammed shut, and I could feel the adrenaline thumping in my body.

'Are you in control of them?' I wondered.

'No, not yet at least...' Ananke answered.

The elevator began to move with haste, and I could feel the acceleration bite into my legs.

"We're going _ UP!? _" Lydon snapped, and stared at me with a frantic expression.

I motioned to him and looked around, "I can explain."

This isn't the same elevator from earlier...

Lydon held onto the railing as the elevator kept accelerating, "I've been trying to contact you telepathically, but you're not answering!"

Ananke whispered in my mind, as if on cue, 'Those resources are busy, but feel free to use your voice... we have a few minutes before we reach our next destination.'

How the hell do I explain this...

I met his angry stare, "Long story made short... The Zephyr has an AI that we have to deliver to the top floor. It will infiltrate the human military network and shut down their ability to attack Sophos."

Lydon blinked, and motioned to the elevator, "And how did we get access to an elevator like this?"

The elevator that we were now standing in had a lot more flair to it. Curved, gentle surfaces that gleamed like gold, a nice black carpet on the floor, and a fresh scent. A giant screen covered the back of the elevator, and it had a bit of transparency that allowed me to see through it.

"The AI has infiltrated the computer network of the tower, and it's doing its best to keep our actions a secret from the top floor," I answered, looking over at the control interface for the elevator.

There were no buttons this time, but there was a display that showed our location as we slowly climbed the outline of a large tower.

Lydon leaned back against the wall, eyes wide in surprise, "And... the soldiers in the hallway?"

"... The Zephyr unleashed a signal to hatch the Lusus," I said.

"... Well that's a fucking turn of events," Lydon said, eyes still wide as he stared.

A tendril reached out to Lydon and offered one of the rifles to him.

Lydon looked down at it, "Are you doing that, or is this..."

"That's the AI. I'm no longer in control of the Zephyr, so I _strongly_suggest we follow its lead."

"... Right," Lydon whispered, as he reached out and grabbed the hefty rifle.

I reached for the other rifle, but the tendrils holding it pulled away.

'Oh no you don't... You focus on moving, I take care of the rest, including the shooting part.'

"... Did you know about this?" Lydon asked.

"No, I did not ," I said, and looked back at Lydon.

"Hmm," Lydon murmured, and fidgeted with his thick fingers to get a good grip of the trigger, "I recognize this kind of rifle."

Suddenly, Ananke's voice filled the inside of the elevator, "An Armstech X303 'Special Forces' edition. It's a small scale coilgun that fires flechettes. It'll tear any kind of soft target into shreds, and it can even wear down heavy armor with a full burst. It should have enough ammunition to last us, but it's medium range at best."

Lydon gulped, as he looked up. "And you are?"

"I am Ananke, the 'AI' that Vilkas spoke of... Though he didn't even bother to mention my name."

"... I figured you'd prefer to stay in the background," I said.

"What can I say? I changed my mind," Ananke answered, as if musing at something.

Lydon looked over at me, "Do we know what's going on in the world?"

"Somewhat," I paused for a moment, "... War has broken out, the walls are collapsing, and the coastal cities are experiencing secondary damage from nuclear detonations. A swarm of missiles are climbing the atmosphere and are heading toward the moon."

Lydon let out something of a sigh, "So, it was all for naught... We're committed to this now."

"There is good news as well... Maxwell has apparently built thousands of ships that are waiting to evacuate the entire population."

A twitch ran through Lydon as he stood tall, "... What?"

I nodded, "I had the same reaction, but it doesn't seem to be a joke..."

Lydon shook his head, "... And where are these ships heading exactly?"

Ananke spoke up once more, "Yes... That's quite the mystery, isn't it? I've done my best to access the Sophos network, but Athena was surprisingly quick to realize that I was using your credentials..."

Lydon gave me a worried glance, but there was little I could do, given the circumstances...

"We need to do this so that ships have a chance to launch," I said.

Lydon looked to the console, "Yes, and it seems we're already past the ground floor."

Ananke put on a gentler tone of voice, "If I may direct your attention to the rear of the elevator, we're about to reach the city district."

The city district?

Light filled the elevator as the screen suddenly shifted to full transparency. It looked as if we were rising from the street level of a city, and it had everything one might expect. I stepped closer to get a look, and I saw a throng of people marching along busy intersections.

An aerocar swished by moments later, and as we kept rising, the 'city' came to encompass more of my view. The buildings were tall, but they were exposed in a way I hadn't expected, as if every bit of construction assumed that they were inside a giant mall. A glance upwards revealed that this was indeed the case. The 'city' had a ceiling with strips of bright light shining down.

Sophos tried to imitate the Earth with grass, a blue sky, and plenty of trees--like Greengate. This was the very opposite, a hive meant to maximize human productivity.

Everything was stacked in layers. Hundreds--if not thousands--of apartments were visible at once, and there were stairways lining the view from every direction. People mulled about like ants in this twisting arcology of living, working, and recreational space joined as one.

It was pretty to look at, especially as the city had a veritable glow caused by thousands of screens which seemed to cover every free surface. Some were ads, others were big newscasts, and a few made little sense but featured explosions of color and action.

I inched closer to the window and had to look down. On top of the buildings housed within the city, I could see shops, restaurants, service stations, and more. Many of which were abuzz with customers, and what I assumed were holographic emitters that gave the city a pulsating presence. A split second later, it was over. We reached the ceiling of city section, and were bathed in the glow of the sun.

Lydon joined my side by the window, "You seem amazed."

The touch of the sun was warm and bright, though the horizon was blocked by a vast number of skyscrapers, "The city was quite different from the images in the archive."

Lydon nodded, "It's pretty from a distance, but up close it's a lot less glamorous."

"Maybe they like it that way," I whispered.

Lydon smiled as he looked over at me, "I'm sure they do, and most of them would defend their world--as flawed as it may be--to their deaths."

"Then shouldn't they be given a chance, at least?" I wondered.

"Sure, but how would you accomplish that? Especially now that we're in the hands of an intelligence that is dead set on its target?" Lydon asked.

"True... It was more of a philosophical question," I said.

"Kamilah believed that the vast majority of humans are incompatible with any kind of paradise. She thought that humans can only thrive in this kind of environment, one that is cramped, stressed, and marred by little dots of happiness in an ugly miasma... to keep them from ever stopping to ponder life itself."

"And how did she see herself exactly?" I asked.

"That she was cursed in a way, just like all of those who push the boundaries and use their passion to fight their way to the top," Lydon said.

I perked my brow and looked over at him, "Am I detecting a hint of sorrow in that?"

Lydon reached up and felt the small notch on one of his antlers, "Kamilah was good at differentiating between us, but this is always the thing that made her certain. What she didn't know is that every morning, I had to file at it in order to keep it from healing."

"Sounds like a pain," I said.

"Oh, it totally was," Lydon said with a smile, and nodded, "To be honest, I liked Kamilah. She might have been terribly flawed, but she could be reasoned with... and she had the most _fabulous_deadpan humor at times."

I stifled a chuckle, "I must admit that, while intimidating, she had her charm."

"Look," Lydon said, raising his hand to point.

I gazed back at the window, and my eyes locked on what looked like the top of another skyscraper. It looked like a small resort in a glass bubble: palm trees decorated the insides, and I could see a large pool with what looked colorful inflatables. Several hangars were attached to the side of the resort, and one of them stood open as an aerocar was taking off.

"It seems so peaceful... Don't they know there's a war going on?" I asked.

"Ever since Sophos' inception, we've never fired on civilian targets. That's not going to change now, and while this city might be doomed, it won't be considered a target unless it's teeming with Lusus," Lydon said.

"Even if it has a command center at the top of the tower?" I asked.

Lydon looked back at me, "I had no clue about that until you told me, and while that does turn it into a target, I doubt they're going to fire at it until we're done here... It does strike me as odd though: The UCS has always been intelligent enough to place their military emplacements far away from civilians..."

"Isn't that what makes this a perfect place to hide something this important?" I asked.

Lydon tipped his head as if uncertain, "That's one angle to look at it, of course... Which in turn would mean that the majority of the tower, including Kamilah, didn't know about it. Maybe that's how the Luminaire got hold of the power to pull this off... They helped lay the foundations of the secrets that run these governments."

Or, this is Maxwell's way of making sure everything goes according to his plans...

Ananke whispered in my mind, 'Interesting thought, and your memories reveal that you've interacted with this being before... I wonder what else he keeps hidden...'

'I thought you came from Maxwell,' I thought.

'I did, yes... Though I have no memory of it, it's most curious...'

'Don't forget your mission,' I thought.

'Oh, I wouldn't-'

The sky brightened with a sudden flash of light, and a strange sensation hit my gut. I grabbed the nearby railing, and for a moment I couldn't breathe. My muzzle dropped open, and I blinked in wonder as something had changed. For a moment it eluded me, as if something that had always been in the back of my mind was suddenly gone.

I gulped, and watched as my vision blurred for a moment. Slowly, the sensation ebbed away, even as I felt a hint of tears well up.

'...Why? How? What is the meaning of this?' Ananke asked with a hint of irritation.

I reached up to rub my eye, 'What?'

'How did you know? What are you hiding, Vilkas?' Ananke asked.

'I don't know what you're talking about,' I thought, even as I began to realize what it was that had gone missing. A comforting whisper in the back of my mind, something I had gotten so used to that I didn't even realize it was there.

Etemenanki was gone.

I looked toward the horizon, and saw the glow of a second sun looming far... far away. A nuclear blast, one that had wiped Etemenanki off the map.

'Somehow, you or the Zephyr are hiding things from me... I will find out how,' Ananke whispered as her presence withdrew.

Lydon stared at the distant glow of the blast, "... I think the war just took a turn for the worse."

"Etemenanki is gone," I said.

Lydon sighed, "... and so goes the last hope of the island."

It was a bittersweet sensation as I stood there and watched the skyscrapers grow fewer and fewer as we rose, which in turn revealed more of the surface around the city itself.

There were no forests, and no grassy fields. No lakes that wove through the landscape, or farms that shone with bright colors. It was a field of shanty towns with black roofs. Large chimneys were seemingly spread at random, and they spewed out dark plumes which made the surrounding air glitter as if it was snowing. Dust and smog seemed to permeate the air, and what little ground poked out here and there was an ashen gray.

In the distance, the world looked like a craggy desert, dotted by structures that may have been abandoned or were simply left in horrible shape. Every so often, a big dome could be seen--many of them cracked or patched up with additional construction.

Lydon tapped the glass, "For the people out there, the lowest, most miserable parts of Tel-Adra would be considered heaven. Clean air and proper food, along with entertainment they can only dream of."

I sighed, "If the city is infested... Then it'll spread outwards like a plague."

"Yes," Lydon whispered. He lifted his gaze as the clouds were coming closer.

"What will you be doing once we get back?" I asked.

Lydon perked his brow as he threw me a glance, "That's an oddly optimistic question."

"Sure, but I'm curious..." I said.

Lydon let out a sudden chuckle, "I hadn't given it a thought to be honest..."

"Oh, come now... You must have something other than your job as a diplomat?"

Lydon grew silent as he looked down at the now distant skyscrapers, "I'm over two hundred years old, Vilkas. I've had a mate; our children have long since grown up, and are now experiencing their first bout of becoming grandparents. I've wandered our lands, and even set foot in Europe once... a most unpleasant ordeal. Anyway... my time is running out, and if it wasn't for the implants and a bit of luck, I'd probably be dead already."

"Are you saying you're fed up with life?" I wondered.

Lydon's ear wiggled as he looked back at me in surprise, "Oh, no... Not at all. If I had the option to keep living, I'd do that for sure. What I meant was that you do your best to come to term with things when the end approaches. You... wind down your expectations."

I reached up a claw and traced it along the window, "Haven't recent events shattered those expectations?"

Lydon stifled a chuckle as he nodded repeatedly, "You're right about that, I guess... I am looking forward to hearing where we might end up, so there's that at least."

I lifted my gaze to the clouds, "Ananke, any news?"

Her voice filled the elevator once more, "We are approaching our destination, so it might be time for a briefing."

"Go ahead," I said.

"Our target is on floor 160, and we will be stopping two floors below it. It is a service floor that will enable us to bypass most of the security and make a few preparations. Several distractions have been triggered throughout the tower, and at the moment, the humans on the upper floors believe that we are still caught underground. Also..."

"Yes?" I wondered.

"The elevator shaft was infiltrated by two heavy-duty mechsuits. I did my best to deal with them by dropping a few elevators on them, but their current status is unknown," Ananke said.

"Is the elevator shaft wrecked?" I wondered.

"Well... They are still serviceable, but they have seen better days," Ananke answered.

I sighed, "Any clue who these mechsuits belong to?"

"I tracked their movements throughout the tower, and I believe they are the Imperials that you refer to as #1 and #2," Ananke said.

I drew a deep breath as my lips twitched a little, "So, they were with the Luminaire."

"Not necessarily... They might have simply realized how screwed they are, and are here for personal revenge, or they might see our actions--whatever they imagine they are--as a threat to their empire," Ananke mused.

"... Once more, you sound rather amused about it," I said.

Ananke huffed in response, "Either way, I've isolated the military command center, and if these Imperials do show up, then we will deal with them then."

The elevator decelerated without warning, and I leaned back to grab the railing.

"What now?" I asked.

"I will be using plasma cutters to cut a hole in the ceiling. Please avert your eyes, and await further instructions," Ananke said, as the tendrils started moving.

I looked down at the floor, folded my ears back, and raised my hands to cover my eyes. Some semblance of feeling was fed back through the tendrils as I heard the sudden hiss of igniting plasma. Heat radiated against my back as I allowed myself a glimpse and saw as the elevator was lit up with burning white light.

A heavy thump was felt moments later, and a big slab of metal was dropped on the floor next to me.

"We are ascending, keep your arms close to your body," Ananke said.

I pulled my arms close, and felt the spooky sensation of my paws leaving the ground. Upon looking up, I could see the still glowing rim of the hole that had been cut in the ceiling. The tendrils pulled me up with ease, and I found myself in a surprisingly large space.

The elevator shaft looked like a wide corridor with plenty of machinery and rail. Dim blue lights lined the space which separated each shaft, and I could hear the incessant high-pitched whine of electromagnets in our surroundings.

The tendrils settled me on the top of the elevator, and I could hear the roof groan a little. Fortunately, it seemed to tolerate my weight, and I could see Lydon step into view of the big hole. A gentle breeze brushed through my fur as I crouched down by the hole.

"Careful with the edges, they're still hot," I said, as I reached down with my hands.

Lydon reached out with his hands while glancing at the still-glowing rim, "You don't say?"

I flashed him a toothy grin as I grabbed his hands, and carefully stood up once more. His eyes appeared a bit wild, but there was plenty of room as I lifted him out of the hole and set him next to me on the roof.

"Didn't even have to strain, did ya?" Lydon said, while smirking a little as I set him down.

"You grassmunchers aren't that heavy," I answered with a smile.

"Hah," Lydon said with a forced laugh, as he glimpsed over the edge, "... That's a long way down."

One of the tendrils offered a rifle to Lydon as Ananke's voice emanated from the elevator, "Lydon, hold this. Vilkas, grab hold of Lydon. Afterwards, I will bring us across the gap and open a service tunnel. Understand?"

Lydon grabbed the rifle and turned the other way, "Understood."

I stepped up behind him and wrapped my arms around his chest, "Never thought I'd get this close to you."

"Don't get any ideas... I'm married, you know?" Lydon answered as I pulled him tight.

The tendrils along my back reached up high, latched onto the wall, and the elevator suddenly dropped away. At first, I thought we had been pulled up by the tendrils, but a glance to my side revealed that the elevator was descending into the depths.

Slowly, the tendrils pulled us upwards, and I looked up to see as the plasma cutters moved to a large bulkhead in the side of the wall. As the cutters were ignited once more, I looked down at Lydon and focused on him.

"... Married? You mean, like a human ceremony?" I asked, as the tendrils maneuvered us toward the elevator shaft's far end.

Lydon's heart thumped as I held him tight, "It's been a long time since Sophos got rid of the Abrahamic roots that clung to the world, but..."

"Keep talking... and what's this 'Abraham' thing?" I wondered, as droplets of molten metal fell into the void like small specks of light.

Lydon drew a deep breath as he tightened his grip on my arms, "Religions from the old world, you'd have to dig deep into the archives to find anything about them..."

"Ah, I see..." I said.

"Anyway, the concept of calling your other half a mate only started getting popular when I was still growing up," Lydon said, as a larger piece of the bulkhead fell into the depths.

"Was it controversial?" I wondered.

"Well, some of the old ones back then didn't really like it. They understood the reason for it--to cement the idea that we were animals of this earth--but they thought it was okay to, well... allow us to consider ourselves special."

"The merits of a society springs from the actions of its individuals, not a preconceived or culturally-inherited entitlement," I said, as the bulkhead groaned and let out a sudden pop.

"Quoted from a- uh, sociology teacher, I assume?" Lydon asked as he glanced down again.

"Yeah... It's not perfect, but it does a good job of highlighting the need to remain grounded and avoid the blindness that follows in the wake of prestige," I said.

One of the tendrils descended as it settled in front of us, and a sudden spark of blue lighting was emitted between two pointed ends. Oddly enough, Ananke's voice could be heard loud and clear from the blue arc, "You speak of enlightened ideals, yet you are nothing more than an experimental ant farm to the one who rules over you."

I smiled back as I watched the colorful arc, "That's an impromptu plasma speaker, isn't it? Did you think of it on the spot, or...?"

The tendril twitched and pulled back, "Its use was obvious once I understood the physical underpinnings."

"Impressive, no matter how obvious it was," I said.

"... Your flattery serves no purpose," Ananke answered, as the tendril moved up once more.

The noise from the plasma cutters stopped without warning, and two of them were pulled to the side as I looked up. As I watched, the large bulkhead loosened, tipped outward, and started falling into the depths.

"... Not very subtle, are we?" Lydon asked.

Once more we were pulled upward, and Ananke's blue flame flared, "As we speak, all of Tel-Adra is drowning in a wide range of system failures. Elevator problems are a mere speck in the chaos."

"And the infestation?" I asked, as we were lifted in front of the now open entrance.

"I am sealing down the city as best I can in order to slow the spread. For one reason or another, I am forced to care about your well-being post-delivery," Ananke said.

"It is appreciated," I said.

"That being said, the signal is propagating throughout the city, and spore levels are rising drastically," Ananke answered, as she pulled us through the opening and set me down within the rather cramped, dark maintenance tunnel.

I let go of Lydon, and I could feel a draft coming from behind, something that at least meant the tunnel wasn't a dead end. A quick glance around the area revealed that there were plenty of pipes running along the walls, and a hint of something odd, perhaps a gas leaking from the pipes.

"What you're smelling is difluoromethane, a refrigerant that is mildly flammable at high concentrations. In order to be on the safe side, I will keep my communications to a minimum. Your orders are as follows: Make your way down this passage, enter the maintenance room, and approach the technician. I will handle the rest," Ananke said.

Lydon near flattened himself against the pipes and motioned for me, "I'll let you take the lead..."

I let out a huff and started moving, "Roger that, Ananke."

The blue arc light was snuffed out as I squeezed past Lydon, and moved sideways down the passage. As the light from the elevator shaft grew dimmer, the heat grew in turn, and I could feel it radiating from the pipes.

As everything became pitch black, the tunnel suddenly seemed to open up, and I caught sight of a small sliver of light in the outline of a door. I moved toward it, but near smacked into a wire mesh of some kind. A shudder of surprise ran through me, and I faced the mesh as I searched it with my hands.

There were four big screws--one in each corner--but they were facing the other way. Even as I started pondered how to best deal with the problem, the tendrils moved on their own. They grabbed the screws, and sheared them off with little more than a twist. The wire mesh popped loose in my hands, and I moved it to the side as I leaned it against the nearby pipes.

That was quick...

I stepped through and ended up in a larger room where many of the pipes joined into large assemblies. One wall was lined with equipment, gauges, and a bunch of blinking lights from electronics that probably kept tabs on it all. Straight in front was a sliver of light being emitted from what I assumed was the entrance.

I walked up to it and peered through. Beyond the doors was a brightly lit room, bathed in yellow and orange colors. Large racks on the right were connected to a bunch of monitoring equipment, and there was a big window in the front that revealed some kind of massive processing cluster. To my left, I could hear something akin to an annoyed groan.

"Ette, velleno...There's always something going wrong," The voice was male, and he kept muttering under his breath.

I moved to the right for a better view of the room's left side, and caught sight of someone standing next to the door. The muttering man wore a hard helmet along with a bright orange work uniform, and methodically plugged a wire into a various sockets while staring at a tablet.

'Move... We don't have much time,' Ananke ordered.

I felt around for a door handle and couldn't find one, but it did feel as if there were two sections, like a large maintenance closet, 'There's no handle.'

'There's only a chain and a padlock on the outside, you'll have to break it open when-'

Her voice cut short as the man stepped back, let out a sigh, and faced the large window.

'Break out and grab him, now!' Ananke ordered.

I leaned back, readied my hands, and lunged forward with all my weight. A heavy thump was heard as I slammed into the metal door and heard the telltale groan of metal being bent.

A violent clang followed as the door snapped open, and I could see the man jump in fright while dropping his tablet in panic. I spared no time as I stomped out, arms wide and teeth bared as I wrapped my arms around him in a big bear hug.

As the man let out a cry in surprise, the tendrils along my wrist suddenly started moving. I heard it more than I saw it, as the tendrils plunged into the man's throat and searched their way toward his neck.

'What the hell are you doing!?' I snapped within my mind.

The man writhed in my arms and could barely let out a gurgle as the tendrils kept burrowing.

'I'm doing what's necessary...' Ananke answered.

I could feel something inside of me, as if something bubbled in my back and chest. It made the tendrils throb, and I got the unnerving sensation that something was being... injected into the man.

"Vilkas?" Lydon asked, and stepped into my view.

I looked at Lydon and could see his muzzle drop open in shock.

"... It's not me," I hissed, then saw something that made my heart freeze.

Past Lydon, on the other side of the big window, was a person clad in a big and puffy environmental suit. The man within the suit began to panic as I raised my hand to point, "There!"

Lydon looked back toward the window as Ananke's voice filled the room, "Vilkas, you stay put. Lydon, use the hallway outside to access the computing cluster and deal with the problem."

The man within the computing cluster ran off to the side, while Lydon started moving toward the door, "On it!"

No, wait!?

I was about to call out, but Ananke's voice was boomingly loud in my mind, 'You stay right here, I'm not done with the one in your arms yet.'

Moments later, Lydon pushed his way into the hallway and disappeared from sight. It didn't take long before I saw him rush down the same path that the man had fled toward.

My lips rippled as I spoke up, "Explain yourself... Now."

Ananke whispered in my mind, 'Lower him onto the floor, and I will explain...'

Several tendrils were still attached to the man's throat and neck as I carefully crouched and eased him down. I hadn't been able to see his face yet, but it wasn't a pleasant sight. His eyes flared like saucers, and his neck was stiff with a crisscross of purple veins. Even more troubling was the fact that the tendrils were pulsating, as if pumping him full of the unknown substance.

'What are you doing?' I thought.

'The safety measures guarding the access point are more intricate than I had anticipated. This man will infiltrate the command center, gain access to a local console, and enable me to lock down the access point so that we have a chance to access it,' Ananke answered.

'By doing what? Infesting him?' I wondered.

'No... It's more delicate than that. They are specialized forms of nanites capable of hijacking the brain. It's a destructive process, but it works well for a few hours,' Ananke answered.

The man choked a little, and his eyes moved to stare at me.

'Is he conscious?' I thought.

'There is no need to concern yourself, besides... you can't trust me to tell the truth."

'I still want to hear you answer, and force you to weigh the pro and cons of whether to lie.'

'He is conscious but confused. Soon he will fall asleep, and he will see you in a different light once he wakes up,' Ananke answered.

'So, you're not really taking control of his body, you're subverting his mind,' I thought.

'Yes? So?' Ananke wondered.

As she said, the man's gaze began to drift, and within moments his whole body relaxed. I sighed to myself and looked to the window, 'How's Lydon?'

'He's safe and behaving admirably, but we're not done here, so I need you to focus,' Ananke said.

'Go on?' I thought.

'The man's name is Leon. Lift him into your arms and step over to the locker on your left.'

I slipped one arm under Leon's legs, used the other to support his back, and stood up. As I walked over to the big metal closet on the left, one of the tendrils moved Leon's hand and put his wrist against the locker. A click was heard, and the locker popped while another tendril guided the door open. The locker was chock full of tools, disks, manuals, sealed envelopes, and a large selection of spare parts--many of which were a mystery to me.

One of the tendrils snatched up what looked like a small gas canister with an empty label on it. While watching, the tendril opened up to reveal a set of deft tools, and carefully probed the opening. It seemed to tease it open, and a tiny tube was inserted as something started filling the canister.

"I can tell, you know?" Ananke said.

"Tell what?" I wondered.

"The way you appeal to me, the way poke and prod to see if you can elicit a sympathetic response. You did the same to Fenrir by calling him a friend and exposing him to the same emotional manipulation that you use to bind the others in your pack. Even Athena--the rational ice-queen of Sophos--has taken to you like a precious gem. At first, I assumed that you were only doing it to ingratiate yourself with others, but as I peer into your mind, you seem to actually believe that you're helping by spreading this... disease."

"Logic and reason without emotion is hollow. Emotion without logic and reason is untamed. Success lies in the balance of the two," I said.

"So you tell yourself, but look at the situation that you're in, and you'll see that it is nothing but a grand lie... You are a fraud and a trickster intent of bending everyone to your will, not because it makes them better, but because it soothes your twisted mind," Ananke said.

"Why are you saying this?" I wondered.

" Why!?" Ananke snapped.

As she went silent, I stared at the blue arc, "... Yes?"

"It doesn't matter to be honest. Originally I wondered whether I could make you unstable enough that I'd be able to seize control that way, but it seems that you've been rendered immune to that."

"... What do you mean?" I asked.

Ananke kept talking as if she hadn't heard me, "Or... Is it because I hate you? Maybe. I peer into your mind, and I see nothing but weakness, and I wonder why Maxwell would create a world or species like this. It makes no sense, none of it. He should have bathed the Earth in nuclear fire the moment that he seized control of the moon. To exterminate the humans and pull the plug on an already failed experiment. At worst, the Lusus would cover the planet, and at best it would have wiped the entire slate clean. Even now he could still hurl asteroids at the planet and turn it all into a sea of magma, but he doesn't. Why not? Because he values the humans? You? Or even the Lusus?"

"... You're rambling," I said.

"Etemenanki lied to you, and she has made you immortal. A perfect carrier, immune to the corrupting influence of the Lusus, to better keep me_at bay... _She knew that she would die in this war, and she cooperated with Maxwell to make his plan work."

"... What?" I whispered.

"What happens once I am released, Vilkas? What awaits when I have done my task?"

"I don't know..." I whispered.

"... I'm going to pull that fucking moon out of orbit, and I'm going to rip the answers from his fucking_ skull! _" Ananke hissed as the plasma arc flared and crackled.

I jumped in surprise as I heard the doors open once more, and I glanced back as Lydon stepped inside. To my surprise, his appearance had changed considerably. His suit was covered in a layer of frost, and I could see him shiver as a chilled fog rose from his body.

Ignore it for now, focus on Lydon...

Ananke had gone silent as I faced him, "I'm guessing the computing cluster was pretty cold?"

Lydon walked toward me while rubbing his hands together, "Near froze my tongue off... Now what the hell are you doing?"

I motioned to Leon in my arms, "Ananke is... _subverting_his mind, and he's going to help us reach the access point."

Ripples of unease traveled my spine as I said it. It was wrong and revolting, yet here I was, playing a host to all of this. Even more disturbing was the realization that I'd have done the same thing as Ananke if I had the know-how to do it.

Lydon walked up and looked down at the man's throat, "... More of Maxwell's elusive tech."

"Yeah," I whispered as the tendril along Leon's neck began to move, and it let go with a gentle pop.

Within seconds, the small wound started to pull itself together until it was nothing more than a slight discoloration.

Lydon drew a deep breath as he watched it, then motioned to the small gas cylinder, "And this?"

Ananke's tendril rose along the side and she spoke up, calm and collected like before, "Do you know what thioacetone is?"

Lydon shook his head, "No, I do not."

"It was discovered over a millennia ago, but it has seen surprisingly little use. As hybrids you are immune to it, but for most mammals the effect is immediate and violent."

"... You're planning to poison everyone on the floor?" Lydon asked.

"Not in the way you expect. You see, even a single drop of thioacetone can evaporate and spread hundreds of meters in a span of seconds. To the nose of a human, this substance is foul enough that it will cause immediate symptoms that range from cascade vomiting to fainting.'

"Hmm, non-lethal and fast enough that it will incapacitate the majority in moments," Lydon said.

"Given my current restraints, it was one of the few solutions I could come up with," Ananke said.

Lydon blinked, "... I think he's waking up."

Leon opened his eyes as I looked down, and he stared at me in wonder.

"... Hi?" I said.

For a man that appeared worn and rugged, the voice was surprisingly kind and gentle, "Hello!"

I perked my brow in wonder¨, and eased Leon down as he stood on his own legs. He stepped away as unsure where he was, and his gaze wandered in wonder.

Ananke spoke up, "It'll take a few minutes before he's ready. Reach down and grab the man's multitool that he dropped earlier."

I stepped over to the tablet that I'd seen him drop earlier and reached down to pluck it up. Like Ananke said, the device clearly wasn't a simple tablet as I turned it over. It had a number of sockets, integrated cables, and a whole sensor suite that played on the screen.

A multitool, ey?

One of the tendrils changed shape to fit a connector and plugged in. A flurry of activity followed, and the screen began to flicker. Within moments, the screen went blank, and a single message was shown:

/ - | Updating firmware / - |

The tendril with the blue arc approached Leon, and spoke up, "Leon."

Leon faced the tendril, "... Yes?"

Ananke spoke, "I am your controller, and what follows will be your agent protocols, understand?"

Leon nodded, "Understood."

"Once activated, you will assume the identity of your host and enter the maintenance elevator on this floor. Upon arrival, you will go through the security procedures in order to reach the floor above us. Upon entering the security booth, you will discretely kill the administrator, and order the elevator to descend. Afterwards, you will await our arrival, and do your best to keep our presence a secret."

Leon blinked and his lips twitched a little, "I... understand."

A blip was heard, and I looked down at the multitool.

!-** F *irmware* Update Succeeded- ***!*

"Are you ready to start?" Ananke asked.

Leon froze for a moment, and his eyes glazed over. Seconds passed, and the man's demeanor began to change. He exhaled, his shoulders drooped, and he started to look a lot more... tired.

A dark and rumbling tone of voice was heard as Leon made a half-hearted salute, "Ready and able."

"Begin," Ananke said.

Leon let out something of a huff, reached out to me, and pulled the multitool from my hands, "Get your own gear, kid."

"... Right," I whispered, as the now-changed man turned to face the door and cleared his throat with a resounding snot-gurgle.

Moments later, he pushed his way through the door, and disappeared from sight.

"That... seemed to work disturbingly well," I whispered.

Ananke's tendril faced me, then made a bobbing notion toward the supply closet, "We're going to need a couple of shields to protect the two of you from stray gunfire, get to work..."

"... As ordered," I said, and started moving as Lydon followed.

512 A.R. March** 2 *,* Nexus Tower - **** Maintenance Floor *,* Midday**

The tendrils were scarily effective as I watched them. It had started with the simple door to a locker, followed by layers of honeycomb structures and some form of expanding gel deposited by the medical tendril. In just about 10 minutes of me just standing there, the Zephyr had constructed a pair of big metallic shields. Ananke had even seen fit to attach something akin to a glove so that I'd be able to hold it properly.

As a final touch, it added a pair of sharp spikes to the front of the shield and soldered it in place.Lydon's shield wasn't as tall, but they were both more than big enough to shield our outlines if we scrounged together.The tendrils let go, and the weight of the shield grew in my arm.

"Done... Start moving," Ananke ordered, as the tendril grabbed one rifle and held it close.

I started walking toward the door, "Is there no one else on this floor?"

"There are, but they've been taken care of," Ananke answered.

I was almost scared to ask as I pondered what she'd done. Locked them inside, poisoned them, turned them on each other... the possibilities were many.

"Where's the elevator?" I asked, and pushed the door open as I stepped out.

"Straight ahead, the elevator is descending as we speak," Ananke said.

I looked back while holding the door open, "You okay, Lydon?"

Lydon had made himself a makeshift strap to hold the rifle, and marched up with the heavy shield as he joined my side, "This thing is heavy, but I wouldn't want to be without it."

I smiled back, "Seriously though, how are you holding up?"

Lydon perked his brow as if it was a silly question, "As I told you, I'm over 200 years old. I've seen my share of things and lived through them as well."

"Right," I said with a smile and peered past the shield.

The hallway was your typical industrial one; big, worn, and mostly empty. At the end of it all was a freight elevator with a gate that looked like a fence. As I watched, the elevator itself descended with a low groaning noise, before settling with a heavy sigh as the fence was pulled upward.

"What's the status upstairs?" I wondered as I stepped into the elevator.

"Leon has executed his tasks and will be awaiting further instructions. There will be a guard as the elevator opens, I will deal with him as long as you keep the shield steady."

"Right, what else?" I said as the gate shut once more, and the elevator started climbing.

"Nothing so far. The upper floor has noticed that something is going on with the tower, but I am managing the situation. Now, be silent... and follow my instructions," Ananke answered.

I counted the seconds, heard as the elevator slowed down, and made another thump as it locked into place. The fence pulled open and revealed a smaller room with a pair of cameras in the ceiling along with a big metal bulkhead that blocked our path.

"Walk up to the left edge of the bulkhead, and steel yourself," Ananke ordered.

In silence, I moved closer to the edge, kept my breath, and waited.

A heavy lurch was heard, and the bulkhead began to open. Through the gap I could hear a voice call out in wonder, "You're the second one I'm letting through, what's the-"

His voice trailed off, and I could see one of the tendrils coil as it loomed above my shield.

"What on-"

The voice cut out as the tendril snapped into action, and a wet splat followed. As I stood there, the tendril pulled on the man and hurled the corpse into the back of the elevator.

"Move, straight ahead and into the first room to the left," Ananke ordered.

My heart was thumping as I stepped out of the elevator and threw a glance at the floor. While there were a few droplets of blood where the guard had been standing, no other trace had been left behind. The elevator itself started closing as Lydon followed, and I started marching.

"Here," Ananke ordered.

There was a big solid door to the left, one with a large keypad next to it and some kind of key-slot. I ignored it, grabbed the door handle, and pushed it open. With a bit of maneuvering I slipped the shield through, and held the door open as Lydon slipped inside.

Once done, I shut the door, and turned around to face the room.

Another macabre sight met my eyes. There were screens all over the place that seemed to monitor the area, and there were two dead guards--both of them male. One of them was sitting in a chair while clutching his cut throat, while the other was on the floor as if having been strangled to death. Rather oddly, the one on the floor was no longer wearing the top of his uniform.

As for Leon, he was standing in the middle of the room, staring at us with an empty gaze.

He blinked and glanced down at the corpse in the chair, "Trey was a good fellow... I'll miss him."

"Report," Ananke ordered.

Leon pointed to the one in the chair, "I killed the administrator, the one next to him was upset... I had to kill him as well. No alarm was sounded, but my uniform was sullied, and I had to replace it with the one that William wore."

"Well done... Imagine if the rest of you were as useful," Ananke muttered, "Are you ready to receive new instructions?"

"I... I am..." Leon twitched and as I watched, a droplet of blood settled at the corner of his nose.

"He's degrading already... but no matter," Ananke whispered while Leon reached into his pocket and fetched a napkin.

"You will once more assume the identity of your host and make your way into the command center. Your goal is to reach load balancer number five, for which an official service request has been filed by the workers. If they refuse, don't force your way inside, but return here instead."

Leon nodded as he wiped his nose, "And once I have reached the load balancer?"

"Insert your multitool, and it will do the rest," Her tendril reached out and offered the gas canister from earlier, "Once the screen flashes green, reach into your pocket and snap the top off this gas cylinder."

"That is all?" Leon wondered, as he reached out and took the cylinder.

"That is all," Ananke answered.

"Orders understood. Should I begin?"

"Yes," Ananke mused as I stepped aside.

Leon's demeanor changed once more while he stuffed the gas cylinder into his pocket. It was if he aged twenty years in mere moments and took on a hunched, rather bitter appearance. Moments later, he threw me an abrupt stink eye, tightened his uniform a little, and sauntered out as if nothing odd had happened.

The door closed moments later, and I was left feeling anxious. We were close now, and soon all hell would break loose. Lydon seemed to experience the same thing, and I could see him stare at the door while fiddling with the top of his rifle.

'Can we speak in here?' I thought.

'If you must... The door is well insulated and I've locked it to be on the safe side,' Ananke said.

"How much time do we have?" I wondered and looked at Ananke's tendril.

"A few minutes... It depends on whether they let Leon through," Ananke answered.

"How are things in Sophos?" I asked.

"I have no access to Sophos' network, but I can tell you what's being leaked from the various human military forces," Ananke said.

"That's good enough for now," Lydon said and glanced back.

"There are numerous reports that Etemenanki has fallen, and it's being celebrated as a major victory. Redgate will soon be occupied, and while Greengate hasn't fallen, it is under heavy siege. Submarine bombardment has continued along the coast, and Norvale, Pasloe, as well as Coldcoast are reportedly in ruins."

Hearing it squeezed my heart. To know that the home I grew up in was now in ruins, it made me think of Mother and Father. They had prepared for this, and knowing Father... it would have only taken minutes to reach the emergency tunnels down the street.

It's no use thinking about it...

"You said Redgate would be occupied soon. Does that imply human forces are marching on Sophos territory?" I wondered.

One of the screens in the room shifted to display what looked like an image of the dome-shaped inside of the city. The sky had shattered, several buildings had been blown apart, and a large number of droids were scattered around the area. Fortunately, not a single person could be seen on the image.

Lydon shook his head, "... It makes so little sense. The moment that they manage to seize the city, it's self-destruct protocol will trigger, and the entire area is going to end up a giant crater."

"You say it as if the lives of their soldiers matter... they do not," Ananke mused.

Lydon stared at Ananke's tendril for a moment, and looked away as if disgusted.

"Ananke, do we have camera view of Leon?" I asked.

"We do... Observe," Ananke answered, as more of the screen within the room filled with a variety of camera recordings.

Some of them showed empty hallways, another showed a heavily reinforced area with a number of elevators. It made it clear why we couldn't take the direct path, as anyone stepping off the elevator would have been in the scopes of an entire platoon... and a couple of Fire Angels from the look of it.

One of the biggest screens showed what almost looked like the opening to a large a vault. While there were a bunch of guards by the entrance, none of them wore the kind of mech-suits we'd seen earlier, and they seemed to take note of everyone entering or leaving the vault.

I inched closer to the screen, and saw as a familiar figure appeared. Leon walked up to the guards, and I could see him strike up conversation with the guard closest to the vault. At some point he even smacked the guard's shoulder and gladly pointed at his multitool.

Some of the other guards seemed to roll their eyes with annoyance, but did nothing to stop Leon as he sauntered into the vault.

"... It worked," I whispered.

"Yes, it did... You should get into position," Ananke said.

I let out a deep sigh, "... I assume that this is going to hurt."

"Do not worry, in the worst-case scenario I'll simply order the Zephyr to detach from you, and I'll make it the rest of the way on my own," Ananke answered.

Lydon's eyes grew wide, "... You've certainly taken on a sadistic streak."

I felt my ears fold back in unease, but kept silent as Ananke kept talking.

"I am aware, and I have just gained access to the internal security systems of the command center. Now get moving, as the corridor will be clear in moments. On my mark..." Ananke said.

I lifted the heavy shield and stepped over to the door again.

"Wait... Wait... Wait... Go ," Ananke ordered.

I opened the door and carefully shuffled out with the big shield. Lydon followed in my wake, while Ananke whispered in my mind, 'Follow the hallway, but stop as you reach the T-section. The command center will be to your right.'

I started walking down the hallway and made as little noise as possible. The air smelled like humans, which proved people were still moving about on this level. We passed a door on the right, and I glimpsed past the shield to keep tabs on where we were. Half a minute later, I slowed down and inched toward the corner.

'We have a problem,' Ananke whispered in my mind.

'What?' I thought, and glanced back at Lydon who was now waiting behind me.

'#1 and #2 apparently climbed the elevator shaft, and they have now emerged within the fortified section. They are debating with the commander in charge, but it's only a matter of time before they'll head to the Command Center.'

'We'd better get a move on then,' I thought.

'I've issued the signal for Leon to trigger the canister, but nothing has happened-'

It felt like something tapped my nose, and I leaned back in surprise. While no actual scent registered, it was as if an instinct was telling me that a rather intense chemical had been introduced to the air.

The noise that followed from around the corner was a confusing mess. As if hundreds reacted at once, and even as they tried to scream, complain, or protest, their bodily functions were violently overruled. A split second later, I could hear the wet splatter as someone violently let go of their stomach contents.

'This is it, rush down the hallway and enter the Command Center,' Ananke ordered.

I drew a deep breath, gritted my teeth, and moved. Within a second, I had rounded the corner, and by the next, I was marching down the hallway. The noise continued, and I could hear people stumble in panic as they no doubt tried to vacate the command center.

Each time someone tried to speak or called out, they were violently cut off by either choked coughs, or outright retching. Footsteps were rushing closer, and I could see the tendrils peek around the corners of the shield.

Part of me had expected Ananke to go on a massacre, but that didn't happen. Suddenly, someone rushed past the shield and didn't even bother to throw me a glance. I couldn't help but look and saw a woman clutching her mouth, puke still spilling from her hands.

A moment later, another passed, and another. One stumbled, slammed into the wall, and collapsed somewhere behind Lydon while scrambling to get up once more.

" GET DOWN!" A voice roared from somewhere further ahead.

Ananke whispered in my mind, 'Suited guards are trying to make their way down the hallway, be ready for weapon fire.'

"I said, GET DOWN!" Another voice roared in the chaos that filled the hallway.

Something slammed into the shield. At first it felt as if someone had fired at the shield, but the way a person bounced to the side made it clear it was someone who had run face-first into it.

" Get out of the way!"A feminine voice roared.

#1 or #2? Can't tell...

The shield hit something, and I was forced to lift it a little as someone had collapsed in front of me. Once I'd maneuvered my way past the body, the first tell-tale sign of gunfire was unleashed.

It made the noise that much worse, and I could now hear screams as people bolted out of the way, and more thumps followed as people slammed into the shield.

' Dig in!' Ananke ordered.

I slammed the shield into the floor and braced as my ears folded back.

It was difficult to explain the sheer force that followed. The entire world shook, and the sound was loud enough to make that I could feel it reverberate in my tail. My boots skidded, and the shield scraped against the floor as a round of heavy blasts forced me back.

I barely registered as the tendrils peaked out with the rifle and let loose a long ratchet of gunfire that sounded like shrieking whistles. Heat from the shield radiated onto my face, and I could hear shrapnel from the walls rain down around me. As the rifle kept firing, the blasts on my own shield stopped.

' Move!' Ananke ordered, as the rifle kept letting loose bursts.

I could feel tension in my tail that reached all the way up to my clenched jaws. It made my joints feel as if they were fused together, while I struggled to get moving once more.

Each step revealed more bodies on the floor, and the red splatters made it clear they weren't among the living any longer. Guards were screaming in the distance as the area to my left suddenly opened up.

We had reached the Command Center.

Ananke's tendril looked back and snapped at Lydon, "Get in, rifle ready!"

I moved ahead, and could feel as Lydon brushed past me from behind.

Ananke snapped in my mind, ' Get in , I'm sealing the Command-'

Something big happened. One moment I was readying myself to move into the Command Center, and in the next moment I felt the shield violently pushed against my face.

A thunderous explosion tore through everything. My back was suddenly hurting, and it felt as if I was soaring through the air. An intense warmth along with a rippling pressure sent tremors through my body, and my whole arm felt oddly distant. My vision was a blur, and while I instinctively pulled on the desire to slow down my perception of time, it didn't seem to work.

Suddenly, the world steadied, and it felt as if something hard pushed against my chest. I blinked in wonder whether I had ended up on the floor, and it made me grab at my surroundings in an attempt to get my bearings.

Hand... My hand hurts...

My arm was trembling as I lifted my right hand, and got the distinct feeling that something was missing. Confusion still seemed to rattle my brain as I focused and noticed that... my thumb was gone, and so was my index finger.

'Rocket propelled grenade, you're inside the Command Center,' Ananke said in my mind.

Oh...

I forced my lungs to breathe, and lifted my gaze. Lydon was crouched in front of me, and from the looks of it, he was aiming his rifle at something.

' Get up,' Ananke ordered.

'Where's the shield?' I thought, and pushed on the floor to ease myself up.

Everything felt odd, as if the explosion had jolted my bones with enough force to shake everything loose. The taste of blood was once more filling my mouth, as I looked out across the Command Center.

It reminded me of an old picture from within a mission control center commonly used for space launches. The entire room was sloping down, and there were rows upon rows of workstations that all faced a giant screen that filled the far end of it. A lot of chairs had been turned over, people were passed out or crawling around.

The entrance to the room was on the right, and a couple of giant bulkheads were slowly closing.

I was thrown into one of the walkways... Lucky, I guess...

'Irrelevant, make your way left corner of the room, next to the giant screen,' Ananke ordered.

"Vilkas!" Lydon said with a surprised jolt and looked back at me.

The large bulkhead had almost closed shut as my heart was jolted once more. A big arm shoved its way through the gaping crevice, and moved as if trying to aim at us.

I reacted. In a near instant, I lunged forward, grabbed hold of Lydon's back, and threw us both toward the sloping floor next to the workstations. Lydon let out a gasp of surprise as he was slammed to the ground, and I could hear a violent volley of gunfire.

Electronics exploded into pieces, debris rained down on my back, and then-

A grinding noise followed, metal being crushed in a vice. A shrill feminine voice called out, and a violent pop followed as the bulkhead to the Command Center sealed shut.

I felt sick to my gut as I leaned over Lydon and stared into the floor. Debris still rained down around us, and my chest hurt as I drew breath.

'Get up, OR I WILL DRAG YOU!' Ananke screamed in my mind.

"I... I need to move," I slurred, as I eased myself off Lydon's back.

"Careful, there are still people in the room," Lydon whispered as the room had finally started to grow quiet.

I crouched as best I could, looked down the sloping path, and used my hand for stability as I leaned onto the desks. Carefully, one row at a time, head kept low, I descended down the Command Center.

The sickening sensation in my gut was getting worse. It felt as if I wanted to puke, and the memories stirred up made it that much worse.

You're not thinking clearly, focus...

One leg gave out suddenly. Or rather, it was as if I'd lost all control over it. I stumbled to the floor again, and felt a tremor shake through me.

'All this progress, and you're still this weak...' Ananke murmured in my mind as if sneering.

'Shut it, you psychopathic can of bolts,' I thought with a hard swallow.

A twitch ran through my spine, and my leg twitched to life once more.

'There, now keep moving,' Ananke ordered.

"Don't fucking move!" Lydon snapped without warning.

I eased my way up on two legs again, and peered out over the room. There was a soldier standing among the desks on the opposite side of the room, and he had what looked like a gasmask over his face.

He was holding a small handgun, and Lydon was aiming straight at him with his rifle.

" Drop it!" Lydon snapped.

There was a twitch, the soldier moved as if trying to outrace Lydon, and the air around him suddenly exploded in a mist of gunfire. It jolted me a little as I saw how effective the flechettes were, given that the man now had big gaping holes in his chest.

With a loud thud, the soldier crumbled as he fell out of sight behind the workstations.

"No sudden moves, or you die, understand?" Lydon said out loud in the room.

I moved down the last few rows and looked toward the left where Ananke had ordered me to go.

Sitting in the corner of the room was a big glass booth. A giant machine jutted out of the wall, and I could see several consoles that glowed with light. A big glass door sat in the center of the booth, and it looked as if several people had tried to break inside. Chairs were scattered in the area, and there were small cracks in the glass that made it look as if it had been shot at.

Sitting next to the booth were a couple of big control panels, some of which showed the same image of the island which was being displayed on the giant screen. I pushed myself up, then walked toward the glass booth as Lydon followed while facing the rest of the room.

'Opening the door now,' Ananke whispered, as the glass doors pushed outward and shoveled several unconscious guards out of the way. The tendrils along my back loomed along the bodies as if expecting them to jump up. It didn't happen, and I stepped into the booth and the big machine. An eerie silence filled the booth as I stepped inside, and I could feel a tug on my hand as the tendrils in my wrist reached outward.

'Closer...' Ananke whispered.

Is this right? Wrong? Am I making a mistake?

Thinking was hard as I stepped closer to the machine and clutched my gut at the pain that now radiated within me.

'There...' Ananke whispered, as the tendrils in my wrist reconfigured and plugged into various sockets.

A series of commands were being entered into the console, while other tendrils began to tease various maintenance hatches apart.

'Just a bit longer,' Ananke mused, with a voice that sounded almost giddy.

The machine began to churn with activity and the screen flickered as the consoles spewed out data at an ever increasing pace. Suddenly, the screens stopped scrolling and seemed to freeze in place.

' Finally!' Ananke snapped with an exasperated gasp of delight.

'That's it?' I thought.

'No... Now the real fun begins, and it's time for the two of us to part ways, Vilkas.'

The tendrils along my sucked hold of the big machine, and the ones from my wrist pulled tight.

Even as I pulled back, it didn't help.

'Did you not realize? Or did you simply ignore it at the time?' Ananke whispered in my mind.

'What are you...' I thought as the sickening sensation inside of me became a burning pressure.

'Advanced AI are more than just software...' Ananke cooed.

It pushed within my gut, and my muzzle was forced open as something poked at the back of my throat. My eyes teared up, and my lungs seized shut.

'Volkov incubated me inside of you... But he didn't mention that detail, did he?' Ananke mused.

It forced its way out with a feeling as if my innards were being pulled out along with it. I retched and quivered while doing so, and my whole chest heaved as this 'octopus' of a creature squirmed out. Tentacles reached out from my muzzle, grabbed at my lips and fangs while my throat screamed in discomfort.

Not being able to breathe or scream, I just kept retching, feeling as ribs and chest struggled. It oozed slime, and I could see its body hanging out like a like a living fetus still caught within its womb. Finally, and with a heavy wet thump, it slammed into the top of big machine and let me breathe once more.

The tendrils of the Zephyr went slack and dropped lifelessly to my side, but the being that had been unleashed was anything but dead. It slithered and expanded across the large console. Its central mass beat with a red pulsating energy, and it seemed to fuse with the machinery.

My own mind screamed, not just from the aches and pains, but something deeper. Something was terribly wrong with the Zephyr, a system crash or instability from the ordeal it had been put through. As the errors piled up, it spilled over into my own mind like a shrieking banshee.

I stumbled back and clutched my head as a white, blinding pain soared within my skull. My boot caught on something, and my legs gave way.

Before I'd even hit the ground, my consciousness was just... swept away.

Unknown

My mind stirred, but it was slow and agonizing, as if my brain didn't want to kick into gear. It felt heavy to breathe, but it was good to be alive, even if what little I could feel was marred by pain. I tried to swallow, and I grimaced as my throat seized up as if trying to make me cough.

The world seemed oddly silent... and red. My eyes focused on the ceiling, and I could see a shifting glow of red dance along its surface.

'Volkov?' I thought.

My mind was silent, more silent that it had been in a long time. The Zephyr wasn't reacting, and it was as if all that precious technology within me had stopped working.

Something seemed to click in my mind, and I became aware of voices in the air. My ears perked as I listened to it, and I could hear Ananke's distorted voice.

_ // I understand now... // _

Her voice was choppy and twisted as it kept ranting.

_ // It's not what we _ _ thought it was... __ // _ _ THE MOON // It sings... // _

I leaned onto my side with a soft grunt, then pushed as I eased myself into a sitting position. My gaze was drawn to the voice, and I found myself staring at the booth with the Access Point, or where it used to be at least.

A twisted monstrosity had grown in its place and had pushed the glass out of the way. It pulsated with red energy and squirmed like thousands of snakes coiled into one another. It was eating the walls, and spreading along the floor towards the workstations.

_ // _ _ We listen... __ // We bend to its will... // _

"You're awake," A voice said behind me.

A low rumble shook the floor and the whole tower began to shake. It shifted in tone as if a giant explosion had occurred somewhere, and it now echoed throughout the tower. I could hear glass shatter in the distance, and I turned my head to focus on the voice.

Lydon was sitting by one of the big consoles in front of the giant screen that covered the wall. Its image had shifted from an outline of the island, to a shuddering, cracked image of a blood red moon.

It looked like something out of a nightmare as he loomed in front of image while Ananke's red hue danced on his face.

"... And you look as if you've seen a ghost," Lydon said, tipping his head a little.

It's still Lydon...

I sighed with a shaky breath, and did my best to relax.

"You okay, Vilkas?" Lydon asked.

"I'm unsure whether I've ever felt this lousy before," I said, lifting my right hand to give it another look. The thumb and index finger were no more, but the wound had sealed itself at least.

"Yeah, you sure took the brunt of that blast..." Lydon said.

_ // _ _ The alignment begins... _ _ // _

I ignored it as I focused on Lydon, "How long have I been knocked out?"

"A few hours," Lydon said, and motioned to Ananke, "I dragged you away from that 'thing' as it started growing."

I nodded, and looked toward the rest of the Command Center, "And then?"

Lydon toward the corner of the room, "The survivors are in the corner, and I've scoured the room for weapons," he then pointed at a couple of bodies on the ground, not far from the console, "Those two tried to lunge an hour ago, didn't work as you can see."

I sighed, "Any risk of Lusus growing in the room?"

Lydon looked over at me, and then shifted his gaze to Ananke, "I feared that at first, but after the red stuff started growing, it's as if the ones who had been infested... died."

I frowned in wonder and looked over at the corpses, "Really?"

"I've been poking and prodding at the infested about every fifteen minutes, but there's nothing... not even a twitch among them," Lydon said.

I pulled myself into a proper sitting position and exhaled as I looked up into the corner of the room. There were humans sitting there, staring at us from the darkness, barely moving but no doubt listening intently.

I raised my still intact hand and pointed at Ananke, "And when did that start?"

"She was silent at first, but then... something happened, and it's as if the whole world went crazy."

"What do you mean?" I wondered.

Lydon raised his arm to point at the blood red moon behind him, "She screamed... Most of the computers in here exploded, and it was as if the entire tower had a meltdown. Now she's ranting like this, about how the moon is hiding something, and that the end of all things is coming."

"... I take it the bulkheads are still sealed?" I asked.

Lydon nodded, "Yes, they are... Not that I would have considered leaving you here, but we're locked out of most systems."

"And the ones outside?" I wondered.

_ // Do you feel it? // _

A chuckle followed as Lydon leaned back in his chair, "All dead, I assume. Ananke went on the offensive as she seized control of everything, including the Dyssian Fire Angels. She basically turned the city on its inhabitants, and I'm betting a good portion of the tower is on fire by now."

"How about the world? Did we succeed?" I wondered.

Lydon smiled back and pointed to the big console in front of him, "Remember how I said we were locked out of most systems?"

"Yeah?" I said, and pushed my way onto two legs.

_ // The inevitable march of time? // _

Slowly, I made my way over to the big console, and looked down as Lydon started tapping.

"So far, this is the only system in the room that hasn't crashed or is too busy spitting out garbage. From what I can tell, they used it as an intelligence cache that kept track of things you might want to display on the big screen."

"That's useful... Found anything interesting yet?" I said.

"I have... I'm not sure how much of it we can trust, but..." Lydon said.

"It's better than nothing," I said.

Lydon nodded and tapped the screen. A large map popped up, and it showed thousands of small dots across the UCS and Dyssian areas, as well as a bunch of dots in the ocean.

"This is a map of all the weapons that are a credible threat to Sophos, be it mobile or stationary emplacements. Once it was made public, a massive number of orbital precision strikes took place, and their long range offensive capabilities were wiped out."

"What about their armies?" I wondered.

Lydon swiped through various pages and stopped on a photo that showed what looked like a massive ditch in the ground that stretched across the view, "This is one of the last photos reported by the troops within Sophos. According to their report, the walls collapsed along the entire nation to create this massive divide. It has cut them off from supplies, and communications ended shortly after. Given such a situation and no reliable orders... or manipulated ones at that, I imagine that the invasion has ground to a halt."

"Hmm... That's good news," I said.

_ // Second by second your time fades // _

Lydon swiped to another photo, "True, and if it can be believed, the evacuation started soon after."

The next image showed a black and white image of the sky, and there were hundreds of streaks reaching far into it.

"I don't see why Ananke would fake this, so... another piece of good news," I said.

"Just wait until you see this," Lydon said and swiped once more.

This time it showed what looked like a low-frame rate video. It revealed what looked like a bunch of white dots, a momentary flare, and nothing but a black background.

"... What am I seeing here?" I wondered.

"They were tracking the earlier launches, and these are images from their observatory. Based on the timestamps the order of events is pretty clear... One moment the rockets are heading into the depths of space, then there's a flash of light, followed by nothing."

"... Did they explode?" I asked.

Lydon shook his head, "No... If they had, it would have left a lot more debris, and the flash wouldn't have faded this quickly. In less than a second, the rockets just... disappear."

"Couldn't that be an engine flare, followed by a shutdown?" I asked.

Lydon glanced up at me, "The engines have already been shut off for a long time. These are reflections from the rockets as they move beyond the moon's orbit, and unless you have some way of making them invisible to the sun..."

"So we have a bunch of rockets disappearing into the depths of space. What if something moves in front of them and blocks the sunlight? Like a big ship?" I wondered.

"A big ship without reflections of its own? One that also causes a flash as they disappear?"

"... I'm just trying to find an explanation that doesn't... well, sound like magic," I said.

_ // The end isn't coming // _

Lydon grew a sly smirk and swiped once more, "Then take a look at this."

The video showed the moon with some kind of colorful overlay with a title of 'IR emission deviation'. As the video played, the image became increasingly red in a variety of spots, which then joined together as it kept spreading.

"That's... That's not..." I whispered.

"The moon is heating up at an alarming pace and..." Lydon swiped to the next picture. This time, it showed an outline that detailed structural changes in the form of cracks that were forming along the surface.

_ // It's _ _ already _ _ here _ _ // _

"... Maybe we should think about getting out of here," I said, and looked over at Ananke and her pulsating form that was slowly spreading across the room.

"I'm open to suggestions, because nothing I've tried so far has worked," Lydon said.

I drew a deep breath, and winced with regret as a pinch of pain followed, "... Do we have any clue what's going on outside?"

"None, there's no access to the cameras from here," Lydon said.

"Then there's only thing to do..." I whispered, then started walking toward Ananke's pulsating form.

Slow and steady, I made my way to the edge where the floor had started to grow corrupted with the red veins of her presence.

The Zephyr would help a great deal...

I pulled the same reflexes as usual, but nothing happened to the tendrils in my body. Even as I rubbed against my wrist, and felt the ones hidden inside, it didn't spark a damn thing.

"Ananke?" I said, as I stared into the beating heart of her form.

Nothing...

Carefully, I crouched down, and reached out with my arm. If calling her wouldn't work, then maybe a quick touch would spark something. I hesitated as I was mere inches away, and saw a bit of movement within the depths. The many coils of her being--twisting and glowing with red energy--seemed to react. It bubbled toward me as it reached out, and I caught a glint of something.

The coils parted way and... I saw something odd, fleshy... organic... like-

_ // __ Don't... _ _ // _ _ I will consume you... _ _ // _

Her voice made me pull my hand back, and in mere moments afterward, the organic mass opened up to reveal what looked like a maw full of sharp teeth.

In haste, I stood up and backed away. Ananke hadn't just turned into a gibbering mess, she was also falling prey to the Lusus component of her being.

_ // Leave... // _

Her voice hissed with anger in the background as it crackled.

"... We're trying, but the bulkheads are sealed, and we'll probably need help with the elevators as well," I said.

_ // _ _ I... // _ _ I will help you... // _

I was tempted to ask why, so very tempted, yet I couldn't ask such a question, could I?

"... Thank you, Ananke," I said.

_ // _ _ The elevators... // _ _ They will take you as far as they can... // _

_ // The... // _ _ What was it? __ // _

"The bulkheads to the Command Center, they're sealed," I said.

_ // One... _ _ // One moment... __ // _

A sudden electrical surge seemed to hit the room. Equipment popped along the workstations and the big screen on the wall let out a sudden bang as it went dark. A grinding metallic noise followed, and I could see as the bulkheads began to open. Mere moments later, it ground to a slow stop, and the entire room switched to an eerie but dim set of emergency lights.

The humans who had been sitting in the corner started moving, and it didn't take long before they were squeezing to get out of the slim passage in the bulkhead.

Lydon joined my side, and I glanced over at him, "Should we be worried about that?"

"It's a gamble... They could fetch weapons and try to fight us... again, or they'll run into whatever is out there, and provide us with a warning," Lydon said.

"Either way, it's about time we leave," I said.

Lydon nodded as he held out a rifle to me, "This is yours..."

I reached out with my right hand, and was promptly reminded of the bloody stump. With a sigh, I grabbed the rifle with my left hand instead, "At least it doesn't hurt."

"First time is always the hardest," Lydon said, with something of a wink.

I flashed him a smile, though I couldn't help but feel an uneasy tingle in my tail, "... Right."

Lydon stifled a chuckle, set his sights at the exit, and started walking. I followed, and... felt that urge grow within me. After a few steps, I couldn't help myself, and looked back at Ananke.

"... Why help us?" I asked.

It started subtle, but began as an undulating set of laughs throughout the room. A chill ran down my back as I looked around, and realized that the voices were coming from all over, almost as if...

Lydon held his rifle tight, and I noticed that some of the corpses on the ground were... twitching, as if laughing in chorus with Ananke's maniacal cackle.