Story Reader / Main Story / 28 Polaris Bond / Story
You promised this wouldn't happen!
Chaofeng's roar is echoing in the command room. A broken pen lies quietly by the map table.
Remember what you said! You said restarting the Light Wall would solve everything!
We've sacrificed so much! We went through so much just to get this thing up and running, and now what? What am I supposed to do now?!
The Punishing is seeping into the ground! What kind of elimination is this?!
So many of us died for absolutely nothing!
The members of the Kowloong Crew in the command room are all holding their breaths. They have never seen their leader this angry.
Chaofeng notices his emotional outburst and takes a deep breath before picking up the pen he broke.
Sorry...
I was just relaying what Huaxu said... Maybe Huaxu made a mistake.
It looks like... the Light Wall can only eliminate the Hetero-Creatures' forms but not the Punishing in them.
The terminal on the map table continues to flash and beep.
I didn't know... I will take full responsibility.
Blaming is pointless at this point.
Pulao says with her head hanging.
The Light Wall... didn't solve everything, but it has slowed their advance.
The question is, what do we do next?
Maybe... we should send everyone onto the Nighter.
Can the Nighter break through the Punishing that's accumulated at the outer harbor?
Chaofeng shakes his head in despair.
No... the Nighter won't make it through the Punishing when it's so concentrated.
If we force it through the southern outer harbor... the Nighter would turn into a metal coffin.
Or... We have one last hope, but it's not up to me...
I don't need a suggestion robot in a machine.
Okay...
The other end disconnects.
Whatever happens, you can't stay here any longer.
Soon, the Hetero-Creatures will spread via the underground transport tunnels.
Retreat... to where?
Kowloong is right behind us.
There are a lot of mountains behind Kowloong and several inland safe zones...
But if we retreat now, our enemies will just show up at our doorstep again sooner or later.
Hey... I've got an idea.
The indicator light of a mechanoid that has been silently standing next to Hanying suddenly lights up.
Mr. Schulz?
Yes, it seems like these machines with self-awareness came from the Science Council, too. The models mentioned in these reports might be crucial clues.
And we just might gain a whole new perspective of civilization and the machines themselves if we learn about where these machines come from. I mean, they might have already formed a sizable group already.
There is nothing unusual about the person named "Hanying" whom Pulao refers to as "sister," but the mechanoid accompanying her is the odd one out in the room.
Has anyone considered... another way...
A natural course of events... An inevitable outcome of the process of evolution.
What did you say?
You realize that Lee might have come to the same conclusion as you, but Lee keeps his eyes trained on Schulz. His hand slowly moves to the gun beside him.
A perfect, free world, without any interference... An inorganic world.
With the shout, Lee, who is standing beside Hanying, draws his gun in a flash and points it at the mechanoid...
But it is too late.
Cough...
A sharp blade has pierced her chest from behind.
To everyone's surprise, it isn't blood that's seeping out of her body...
A mechanoid...
Hanying!
What's... happening?
Goodbye, hypocrite in human skin.
Lucia and Chrome couldn't draw their weapons in time because of the limited space in the war room. Only Lee reacted fast enough because he was prepared.
Bang!
A bullet grazes Hanying's face and buries into the wall behind her.
Despicable scum...
The mechanoid is using Hanying to block Lee's bullet. The blade in her chest is controlling her like a puppet.
Don't worry. This will all end soon.
The blue indicator light on the mechanoid begins to flash faster.
You... betrayed... the church...?
No. The church betrayed the church.
He pulls the blade from Hanying's body and she collapses onto the floor like a puppet without its strings.
This will all end soon, "Chief"...
Just before Hanging passes out, she sees Lucia drawing her blade and charging at the mechanoid with the rapidly blinking blue light.
This will all end soon, "Chief"...
Just before you pass out, you see Lee firing at the mechanoid with the rapidly blinking blue light.
You don't remember anything else after that, except dizziness and ringing in her ears...
Dust from the violent explosion is everywhere in the small war room. Every bone in your body is screaming in pain, as if the explosion has shattered them into pieces.
[player name]! [player name]! Liv! Wanshi!
I... will... become...
Death...
Hah!
Pulao lifts her Dragonbane and chops the destroyed mechanoid into two.
The broken voice module mixed in the dust is still using its last bit of energy to utter a bizarre final message.
I will... have my revenge...
I will... live...
That which does not kill me makes me stronger.
Why should I trust a councilor from Kurono?
You don't have to.
Asimov catches Liszt staring intensely at the report, so he pushes it away.
You must understand that Parliament wouldn't have passed that bill so quickly if Kurono didn't interfere.
And if it wasn't for me, you wouldn't have gotten your hands on that report.
So, are you here to reap the fruits of my hard work?
I prefer to call it "sharing."
Asimov hesitates for a moment before putting his hand on the report.
You of all people should know that I will make all of this public when I get a chance.
So why bother asking me all these questions now?
I won't stop you. If Kurono wanted to stop you, he would have gotten you kicked from the Science Council for many reasons.
With information and knowledge comes power, and power is authority.
In other words, you hold more power now than anyone in Babylonia.
...
If you want to hear it from me, keep quiet.
I will.
Liszt nods and sits down on the other side of the terminal.
Asimov pushes the report aside again and turns on the terminal.
Hello... hello?
Asimov tenses up right away after sensing something unusual.
What's going on? What happened?
Fine...
Asimov glances at Liszt next to him and keeps talking.
According to the report from this afternoon...
Yes.
I've noticed a few things on the report contents... but I can't say for sure if they're all connected yet.
Anyway, we have concluded that "Project Gestalt" was handled by Section 3 of the Science Council during the Golden Age.
But in the file... Villier was not the person who transferred from Kowloong back to the Council to lead the project.
That person's name is Igor Lvovich Landau.
You're right. He is a scientist from there. Before the Arctic Route Union was established, he was a professor at Elizabeth University and a renowned scholar during the Golden Age.
He transferred from Kowloong to the Council because he worked as a special consultant for the Fuxi Research Institute in Kowloong for a hefty sum and held an important position. He lived in Kowloong for over five years.
I'm sending you all the details I have on this scholar right now.
That's what I have.
He sure knows a lot. You can hardly tell that he's a physicist... But I double-checked with files from the Arctic Route Union's database. The info is accurate.
Yes.
No, I don't think Dominik would do something like that.
There must be more to this. I'll keep looking.
Another thing to keep in mind is that Villier, the Kowloong scientist, worked under Dr. Landau after joining the Science Council. This means Villier was involved in the core of the project.
After Gestalt was completed, Villier returned to Kowloong to lead the development of Huaxu.
Right, so I've found something else.
Asimov casts an uneasy glance at Liszt.
Things related to Gestalt and Babylonia.
The Control Court's actions gave me an idea, so I compared the current data on the Punishing Virus with some segments in Gestalt... Before Gestalt's core was transferred to Babylonia, it was already infected with the Punishing Virus.
To verify this, I examined Gestalt again but found no signs of infection.
Didn't you say that the scene Watanabe saw in his M.I.N.D was...
These... and these!
It targeted our biggest weakness...
Could it be that these viruses are intelligent?
We have to stop them!
That's right, [player name]. This conclusion matches the information you saw in Watanabe's M.I.N.D.
Other than Nithart, nobody knows what cleared Gestalt of the Punishing Virus.
One thing we know for sure is that during the operation to evacuate Gestalt's core from deep inside the Science Council, an unknown external force infiltrated the Deep Well of Gestalt. It increased the concentration of the Punishing Virus in there.
We don't know yet.
Or perhaps... we'll never know.
We didn't lose records during the Great Transfer during the chaos or by mistake, [player name].
Someone made sure it happened.
Yes.
But they also left behind some things... like the information on Babylonia, interstellar travel, and the interstellar colonization plan...
As you know, the mothership we now call Babylonia was actually an "Eden-II" class colony ship.
There was another, an earlier prototype class, the "Eden-I". This smaller model was built to test theories and spacefaring capabilities. The person who led its development... was Qu.
Under her guidance and investment, Kowloong took over the job of constructing this prototype vessel from the Science Council.
Qu probably also had influence over other aspects of Babylonia.
That's right.
She is probably the only one who knows the answer to that question.
Also... Babylonia isn't completely reliant on the Zero-Point Energy Reactor.
I found some information on the Science Council's previous interstellar program. It's called "Project Orient" and is directly connected to the World Government's "Project Eden" for space colonization.
The Tsiolkovsky Aerospace City, or Tsiolkovsky Launch Center, is located on the far northern border of Kowloong. It sits right next to the Arctic Route Union.
The interstellar "Project Orient" began there, and this launch center was built by Kowloong.
What I'm saying is that before, the Council decided to build Eden-I and II, they ordered many deep space exploration missions. The "Dawn-III" deep space probe used a fusion reactor. That was the precursor to the Zero-Point Energy Reactor.
So fusion reactors were initially developed for interstellar travel and colonization, and they have also passed the functional tests.
Wait.
So you mean...
Well... it's complicated.
This guy promised me that he wouldn't interfere with or try to influence our work.
So are you saying that Babylonia is already capable of using fusion reactors for its travel and colonization plans?
I can only say that... it has been technically tested.
Keep in mind that fusion reactors are less efficient for travel compared to Zero-Point Energy...
I got it...
Liszt turns around and leaves the meeting room in Section 2 with a stern face.
He... might have other arrangements.
Back to our discussion, [player name]. There's one more thing I believe has to do with you...
Norman Mining Corp?!
What could a mining contractor possibly have to do with this?
That underground city would be the Gestalt Deep Well beneath the Science Council, right?
Norman Group did have enough funds and power to build something like that.
Right below Kowloong?
Under the dim light inside the cart, Duheng lightens up from her sullen look, puts the terminal in front of everyone once more, and turns on the communication channel.
The terminal is flashing, but the sound isn't clear probably because they are moving at high speed.
Just like... what "Chief" said...
There really is another city beneath Kowloong...
You are trapped... but you can... enter Kowloong...
I will... allow you... to enter this city...
The gates of Tabula Akasha... The gates of history... will open for you...
