"I keep having this….dream…"
Those words, that memory that was attached to them, kept echoing through my head as I drifted.
Intellectually, I could recognize that I was maybe half-conscious at best, and heavily concussed and potentially bleeding out at worst. I had no frame of reference for anything around me, as my mind was far too foggy for me to even focus on my senses.
And all the while, that same phrase kept repeating itself in my head…and bringing with it, things.
Thoughts and feelings, impressions of a place, of things seemingly beyond comprehension. Of an offer made to a desperate man, who accepted with the hopes of making something better for himself. Hopes that were quickly dashed when the true nature of the work that he had given himself to was revealed.
The memories, for that was the only thing they could be, become jumbled at that point. All I had were faint echoes of things that my mind was actively trying to suppress. Horrors and abuses that pushed the limit of decency, pleas for mercy unanswered, and a desperate struggle not to be consumed by the darkness, even as it writhed all around him, within him, even as he struggled in vain to break free.
And throughout it all, that phrase kept echoing, like some kind of mantra.
It was my seeking to understand why that pushed me back to full consciousness.
As I'd suspected, I was drifting in empty space on prior inertia, my Frame's impeller doing wonders for deflecting Micrometeorites and having somehow adjusted to absorb a great deal of stellar radiation as energy in place of its currently fluctuating reactor. A quick check of the critical numbers showed that life support was stable and would hold out more or less indefinitely unless something acted to change that. Refocusing my still blurry eyes told me very little, as I was drifting in what seemed to be a slow tumbling spiral, and had difficulty getting a good read on anything. Attempts to adjust my attitude to better scan the environment resulted in failure because of system irregularities that were still being rectified.
At least that explained why my head felt jumbled and confused. Thoth was elevating his core processes more than he usually did, and using the increased power to clear out the masses of junk data that had deposited itself in our systems. This, of course, meant that the sensor suite was disabled until Thoth could ensure proper functionality without…issues.
Speaking of issues, that reactor instability was…weird, though. Nothing I Knew of was capable of messing with a standard fusion reactor like that, let alone the extra power sources built into the frame proper as befitting a Chozo battlesuit. I'd have to take a closer look at things when I found a safe harbor…assuming that there was one nearby.
A rotation brought me a new visual of something I had thought I would never see again. The Earth stood out in all of its glory, its silent partner Luna floating alongside it just as serenely. Even from this distance, they were hard to truly miss, and yet they were a welcome sight for my eyes.
A more surprising sight was what looked like some kind of structure sitting in space between me and the homeworld. I didn't get enough time to get a proper look, but it very much seemed artificial.
Guess I had a target to aim for after all.
[System recalibration completed…process elevation confirmed and activated. Please give me a moment to assess your vitals, Satori.]
Ah…that must be Thoth. Guess that I was banged up enough to trigger the failsafes, then.
[It's not as bad as you make it seem. Mostly residual effects from being so close to a direct font of chaos and unreality without sufficient shielding. That will take time to bleed off. The rest is, by our standards, superficial damage and will be rectified momentarily.]
Ugh. figures that even when they fail, Chaos still manages to make life miserable.
Anyway, back to priorities. I need to get to solid ground ASAP, if only to get my bearings straight and sorted out. Also, I need to find Mio and Rico, too….assuming there was something for me to search with.
[Mio is currently unresponsive. Her Core was, until recently, sending me updates on her condition, but something has blocked transmission of data. Last status was that she had stable vitals and no permanent injuries. Estimated time until complete healing was approximately three days without outside influence.]
[Please be advised that the last known source of her locator beacon was either on or in the object we are drifting towards. Please give me a moment to restore sensors for a better look.]
I noted very clearly that Thoth had made no mention of Rico. I was very certain that was not an omission.
"Thoth, can we get attitude controls back first? I'd like to stop spinning, if at all possible, and the Mark Ones could be useful in figuring out what our situation is."
[Priority shift acknowledged. Executing now. Additional note: there was an active sensor sweep from an object from near the system edge approximately three seconds ago. Sensor profile is a rough match for a modified Imperial "Gazer" Auspex suite reconfigured for long range scans.]
"So we might have someone who got dragged with us as well?"
[Inconclusive. Scan was both brief and extremely low-power. I only noticed it due to similarities with the sensors of the ship we were working on, tentatively dubbed Rising Phoenix.]
[Attitude control restored. Impeller reconfiguring for active control. Be advised that Reactor instability has grown to 30%. Power draw will be unreliable. I am configuring for ambient power draw and battery operation. Please stand by.]
Fuck. I needed stable ground now more than ever.
Adjusting to keep my front towards our mystery object was easy. Alliance training included zero-gee components as a mandatory at all levels, and included a zero-gee combat course for N7 quals. Open space navigation was nothing to worry about.
The problem was that station I was moving towards. Now that I had a better look, I recognized it as a space station right off, though the profile of the place was troubling me greatly. I could swear I recognized the place–
"–don't worry. We'll take care of everything once we get there. You won't regret this one bit–"
I flinched as another memory dislodged itself from my mind, one that I was fairly certain that I had never actually lived through. What the hell was going on?
The station was getting closer as I pushed in more acceleration, the outline becoming clearer to my unassisted eyes. The station looked like a damned skyscraper in orbit for some reason, with a horizontal piece towards the bottom that seemed to anchor the whole mess and rendered the place like a cross. There were some thin objects that seemed to surround the place as well, but I had trouble making them out from a distance.
Overall, the place seemed pretty sleek and stylish, but also somehow…corporate.
Also, for some reason the mere sight of the place set me on edge, as if there as something…off.
[sensor recalibration complete. Be advised that sensors capability is reduced to 10% operational capacity until more coherent repairs can be effected.] Thoth actually seemed annoyed at that, almost as if the fact that his systems not being at perfect operation all the time was an insult somehow. I ignored it in favor of a scan of the station.
And what I saw made my blood run cold.
The thin objects I now had a good visualization of as part of a magnetic containment system for blocking stellar radiation–something I admitted was a nice touch, but also very dated and easily damaged due to not being integrated into the main hull. Fortunately, there was very little in the way of damage to the gridwork of panels that comprised the system.
No, it was almost everything else that was in shambles.
I was getting a clear read on multiple groupings of scattered debris all over the place, along with something that looked like it could have been a hull breach in the station itself. Several of them, in fact, in varying sizes. The clouds of debris were interfering massively with my ability to scan anything at a distance, and especially from beyond the artificial magnetosphere, but the little I could get painted a dismal tale.
[Reactor instability now at 50%. Recommend shutdown until problem is addressed.]
Fuck. out of time.
"Do it."
Main power going down was a jarring experience. Whereas before, I was all but invincible, my Impeller deflecting the worst of interstellar radiation with contemptuous ease, now I could feel the drain deflecting and shielding that radiation had on my hastily constructed battery packs. The tool was frightening to behold, and I immediately pushed Thoth into implementing as many ways of scavenging power as possible. The just as immediate mental response was not encouraging.
[estimated time until proper countermeasures 48 hours.]
And the station loomed ever larger as I got closer, somehow taking on an even more sinister air.
It was another hour before I was close enough to really be able to get a good viewpoint with my poor mark one eyeballs, and the sight only confirmed what my sensor sweeps had shown. The exterior of the station was not in a good shape. Loose cargo everywhere, at least two major hull breaches, what looked like an honest-to-god Space Shuttle in an odd holding orbit…it was a mess.
What the hell had happened here? And why did I have the distinct feeling that I already knew the answer?
Movement drew my attention. It was one of the panels for the now confirmed to be magnetic containment system, and there was what looked like a sign attached to it…one that apparently was meant to be powered, as it was blank.
Oh well. Probably not important anyway.
I placed myself at a stop relative to the station itself, just to get a better look at the place, and the sight was actually rather breathtaking: a rather nice mix of functional aesthetic and pleasing form that somehow made a quite enjoyable whole. Granted, the damned birds perched all over the place were tacky as hell and screamed 'Corporate', but I was willing to let that pass.
The good part about this is that I had a good run on both the shuttle that was sitting in that holding pattern and to what looked like a series of access airlocks for the station itself, though I was unsure if they were operable to begin with. Another quick sensor scan detected nothing too far out of the ordinary, even despite the severely degraded quality, so I made the call and moved in.
It was two minutes late that I saw the other side of the shuttle…and the wispy yellow-orange substance that was threading around the access hatch.
The sight of that substance sent a spike of raw panic through my system, one that I nearly couldn't control. It was only Thoth locking me out of my own controls almost immediately that prevented me from creating another tumble in the sudden panic attack. The complete and utter jumble of memories didn't help in the slightest–I was deluged in flashes and snippets of half-remembered events, feeling and emotions all connected to the primal fear of even seeing that thready shit.
The little bits that I was able to keep a hold of were even more confusing: an old pod of some kind, completely saturated in the stuff. A box, or some kind of cage. A fight for my very life against…something. And a...face? No, a body. Body type, really–an indistinct person in a red suit.
This was definitely a problem. I was having reactions to this place as if I should know DAMN well what it was, and yet consciously I had no clue whatsoever. Whatever this place was, or whatever had happened here, though, one thing was clear: the place was dangerous. I would need to keep my guard up at all times.
The sunlight happened to splash off of something, just then. Illuminating a logo just enough for me to see. It was a Stylized T, inside of a circle.
And the clear lettering below that logo: TRANSTAR.
And just like that, I now knew exactly where I was.
Talos I.
Home base of the Transtar corporation's Neuromod development efforts…and site of the Typhon outbreak that had ultimately ended up nearly exterminating humanity.
My feelings on the matter could be summed up in a single word.
"Fuck."
Calling this a disaster was putting it lightly.
The Typhon were absolutely the kind of threat that could not be safely contained if they got even the slightest foothold in the wider galaxy. Worse, this was apparently at the height of the outbreak, and actual lives were on the line while I sat here desperately trying not to panic as memories that were not entirely my own forced themselves into my consciousness.
Fine. I was here now, and from the looks of things, in a position to actually make a difference before things go completely to hell in a handbasket. More to the point. I was picking up Mio's locator signal from somewhere inside the station now that I was close enough for the passive detection equipment to pick it up…which was enough of a motivator to get me out of my half-contained panic and moving.
Because I wanted my goddamn woman back.
Needless to say, that was easier said than done, especially with her being unresponsive and the Typhon running about.
Think, think. This place was a goddamn video game in my home reality: what did I remember from it? What was important?
Oh. Right. Station access was possible, still, as long as I could get to an airlock. Hacking the things should be easy enough for me to pull off, and from there I'm back inside a proper atmosphere and in a place with potential sources of spare parts to fix my shit.
Best point of access for that would be one of the engineering workspaces, I think…
OH! That's right! Talos had an entire section dedicated to research and development of advanced technology called the Hardware Labs. I should be able to get in from there, and then it's a super easy access to multiple sources of spare parts, and with a minimal Typhon presence, if I remember correctly.
The only other place that made sense to try and get in from was Psychotronics, and that place was a deathtrap for the unprepared. I know that some other places had airlocks as well, but they were potentially in places where I would come under enhanced scrutiny right off the bat from survivors, which I didn't want until I figured out what was going on…
…and if Morgan Yu was still alive.
The station was big enough that trying to find Morgan to get answers was going to be…difficult, especially if they were active. Might be better to stay in one spot…
[Enhanced scan complete. I have located multiple lifeforms on the exterior of the station, one of which is emitting a transponder beacon.]
…
Fuck, that was one of the survivors, wasn't it? And in a spot where they were very likely to run out of air, no less. Was it possible for me to help, or not?
[Analysis indicates that it may be possible to construct an oxygen catalyst or deep scrubber for the standard Transtar suits that will extend vacuum operations time. It is theoretically possible to adapt this modification to a suit in use. Further modification will require suit life support systems to be disengaged.]
So, in theory, I could help whoever that was without exposing them to too much danger. That was nice to know.
I had managed to float inside of the Magnetosphere rings at this point, and the destruction wrought by the Typhon was ever more clear to see. As much as I wanted to go full force in this situation, I simply couldn't, for reasons both environmental and practical.
Environmental simply because I had no clue about how Talos would stand up to Valkyrie-grade weaponry used in anger, and really did not want to find out in a way that created even more hull breaches in the station, thus endangering more people. Practical because I was not on a rather strict power budget until I figured out what the hell had my reactor on the futz, and how I could get around the issue without making it worse. While this did lower my total potential offensive firepower, I was still very much lethal in my own right…if not necessarily super-lethal like a freaking Panzer Kunst practitioner or something.
[Several of the lifeforms are currently headed towards your location. I am also detecting a group of mechanical devices that are in the vicinity. Exercise caution.]
Eh? Is this just the Typhon moving around the exterior like normal, or is this something else?
In either case, I move to take cover in the shadow of one of the 'wings' of Talos, underneath a support beam for the exterior shell. If nothing else, this should let me slip by without causing too much trouble–
[Unknown signal interference detected. Attempting to compensate–error, unknow–E## RR($]
I would have said something. Really. Except my mind was pure fire. Something was attacking us, attacking Thoth, and through him myself–and doing a damn good job of it. Had Thoth not been a literal piece of advanced biotechnology, I would likely be dead right now.
Instead, I'm getting all kinds of cascade errors as my suit's systems go completely haywire. Thoth had (somehow) managed to disconnected everything truly vital from his core processes, but that still left him under attack, with my mind taking the (admittedly lessening) strain as he attempted to decouple my mental processes from his own.
Still hurt like a motherfucker, though, but I'm used to pain.
Movement caught my attention as something floated towards me almost sedately, an aura of power surrounding it that I could somehow feel was connected to the foreign influence over my Core and Frame. A series of mechanical devices shaped roughly like sloped briefcases floated alongside it, red lights sinister in the black of space.
Naturally, I counterattacked HARD. most systems were down, and pulling weapons out from storage was contraindicated, so I went for the default backup weapons and applied my own psionic talents against this thing…no, I remember these fuckers now.
Technopath.
Either way, it did NOT like the application of psionic claws and Tail blades to its person, and moved to evade while the damned briefcases swarmed me. Calling it chaotic didn't even do it justice, as while I was trained for zero-g combat, that training did not cover going full martial artist on a motherfucker in microgravity.
I decided that I would need to correct that later on, after I had survived the mess that I was in at the moment.
The briefcases were trying to use fucking flamethrowers on me, but were having severe issues with the Impeller field blocking the main portion of the damage and absorbing most of the heat generated for additional energy. The problem, however, was that fire was notoriously inefficient as an energy medium, and the recovered energy was minimal compared to the damage it was doing to my drastically weakened Impeller field.
The damn Telepath wasn't letting up either, throwing around electric shocks that were doing their own part at breaching my defenses, while continuing and even increasing the assault on Thoth's systems, forcing my impeller strength and control ever lower as the two of us were forced to lower sync simply so I could fight.
For my part, I was going completely balls to the wall, using my psionic armaments to rend and tear apart anything that got close enough for me to do so, and using what little attitude controls I had available to me to maneuver. The Briefcases–Operators, I remembered–went down easily enough, as they seemed to be rather suicidal in their charges against me. It was that damned Technopath that was being a little bitch about things, constantly moving out of my effective range and dodging around my blows so that I did minimal damage. It was frustrating to the extreme.
I grunted in pain as yet another electrical attack hit home, this one managing to break through the almost paper-thin impeller to get at the delicate systems within. The suit still had its own internal energy buffer, but that attack still managed to rip off at least 40 energy from even that, after being dampened by the impeller.
It was my frustration that managed to save me. I was so utterly sick and tired of the damned Typhon fucker picking me apart by degrees that I just lashed out at it…and in my thoughtlessness, unconsciously threw a magical bolt at it, which cored the fucker straight though. I watched as it struggled to remain alive and active, before slumping and falling apart into its constituent pieces, along with leftover Typhon bits.
Thoth, of course, immediately restored full functionality to all systems and got to work on a countermeasure based on the available combat data.
Or tried to, anyway.
[We have a problem. My combat estimates show that these 'Technopaths' have abilities exceeding my own in terms of cyberwarfare, mostly through attacking via an outside vector–]
"Psionic. The entire species is Psionic."
[-through psionic means, of which I currently do not have any means of countering. Furthermore, I was forced to vastly decrease all forms of effectiveness in my attempts to circumvent access to my core systems. Had I not done so, it is likely that this Technopath would have compromised my core functions–and through them, yourself as well. This is unacceptable.]
I rolled my eyes at the comment. "No kidding. I'm assuming that you have a plan that I'm not going to like, then?"
[As reduction of partner effective synchronization is one of the few methods available to combat the influence of these Technopaths, I will be using this method as an initial countermeasure. Unfortunately, the drawbacks of this method include degradation of impeller field strength and efficiency. However, this is the only viable option that I can see that will prevent you from being compromised.]
And in the process, offer up my damned partner as live bait. "And what about you? I'm supposed to just let you fight those things alone? Let you be compromised by them in my place?"
[Incorrect. The reduced synchronization meant to free up resources to combat any future incursions before and as they occur. Utilizing the available resources, I should be able to further analyze and adapt to the attack vectors used by this particular Typhon organism. In addition, the reduced strain will allow you more clarity of mind with which to fight. It is my intention to allow you to engage and destroy any typhon encountered with minima interference, until such time as I have fully adapted and/or integrated a solution into my core self.]
[I am sorry I cannot do more.]
I sighed. Of course he's bummed out. We got completely blindsided by these things, and they are almost tailor-made to rob us of our most useful equipment.
On the other hand, magic seemed to work wonders against the damn thing, despite my having had to do so completely on instinct because my brain was so scrambled.
"We'll figure out something and make it stick, Thoth. Don't worry. In the meantime, just keep an eye out for any mental influence on my person as well. I want to be able to get off a spell or something similar against anything that might prove to be a problem."
[Understood. Be advised: I have completed a basic structural analysis of the Talos I station. The usage of heavy weapons or integrated Valkyrie weaponry is not advised. Recommend low-to-moderate power magical attacks or securing weaponry on-site in order to prevent station damage.]
"Understood. Now let's get inside before more of those things show up."
[Displaying path to nearest internal access lock.]
I didn't even have to hack the airlock to get inside the station. Probably had been opened from the other side already–I remember that being a thing regarding security procedures for the station in the game. The reality was, so far, matching expectations.
And thus, I entered the Hardware Labs, the main tinker workshop for the station. As expected, the place was deserted, and I could not pick out even partial Typhon presence near my location.
This was good. Gave me time to reset myself.
"Thoth, you got a read on Mio's signal yet?"
"Negative. I have been unable to locate her beacon at this time, primarily due to ongoing countermeasure efforts. I can confirm that she is onboard the station."
Yeah, this was a thing, now. Thoth was stuck to verbal response until we had a working counter for Technopaths. While it sucked, massively, as one of the biggest benefits of a Valkyrie core was the sync, I would make do.
I took a more thorough look around the area. A lot of what I saw matched up with what had been presented in the game: the main floor of the machine shop with the satellite repair bay was closed and sealed, with the sparking panel controlling the mechanism clearly visible even from my location; the spaces towards the back of the floor where the radioactive storage tanks were located, including the one that was leaking; even the forward 'lobby' area along with the workstations set on the platforms to the side. A glance upward showed that the elevated powered catwalks and lifts were there as well.
Naturally, I was waiting for the other shoe to drop, and it was being stubborn in not arriving.
A quick check above the equipment cages (which were still blocked off) located the main treasure of the shop floor, and in fact Talos I in general: the Recycler and Fabricator systems.
The Recycler itself was an absolute marvel of technology: capable of breaking down any form of matter into its constituent parts, which would then be fed into the Fabricator to create anything that one could think of…or at least, anything that they had the fabrication plans for, I fully intended to take advantage of the presence of this technology.
Placing a hand on the Recycler, I began a scan of the machine itself with my powers. And I was not disappointed in the slightest. The knowledge of the technology flowed into my mind, and through me into Thoth's databanks as well. From what I could see, the recycler's process involved a trick of quantum-state conversion that was actually quite novel, allowing for changing even complete trash into forms usable as raw materials simply through changing the composition of the matter therein. There were limits, of course: the output matter would conform to one of three types, be it Organic, Mineral, or Synthetic, but beyond that literally anything could be converted.
Including the human body, much to the embarrassment and pain of a certain engineer who found this out the hard way.
It was quite fascinating…and I could already see several areas where my current tech knowledge could be used to do drastic and incredible upgrades to the entire process. I held out from actually trying to implement anything just yet, however, as the Recycler was but one half of the equation.
I walked over to the other half next. The Fabricator was an equal marvel to the recycler: instead of breaking down matter into its constituent parts, it took said constituent matter and reformed it into finished goods. It was literally only just shy of a replicator in utility, and in some ways it was actually superior to that fabled technology, despite being, in effect, a giant 3D printer.
My assimilation of the new technology complete, I let Thoth go to town on it with the extremely limited process power he was not using for our protection and moved to my next target. There as a terminal there, with access to the Talos I internal network.
The place was a goddamned Gold Mine.
Sure, the security was ridiculous. ICE (that's Intrusion Countermeasures Equipment for those in the back) that to a normal hacker would be blacker than the grave and slick as glass, a monster to frighten all but the most determined or foolhardy.
I, however, was far from normal by any means. And the Talos network, for all its vaunted security, was quickly and unceremoniously made into my personal bitch in short order.
With that, all but the most secure terminals and stations were open to me, with the notable exceptions from the system being the main data vault in Deep storage and the secure systems linked to the specialized mainframes down in Psychotronics. (Yes, there was even a network map left in there by an administrator that helpfully noted which systems were on separate networks or had specialized secure storage. How convenient!) The real treasure, however, was the fabrication plans. Blueprints for everything that could be and commonly were created by the Talos Fabricators were now within my grubby little hands.
Including the fabrication plans (and license) for neuromods.
I already had a viable workaround for the Neuromod problem, but that wasn't the point. The point was that I now had the official plans for the Neuromod proper…and nowhere on the design document did I see anything like the misimplemented 'safety feature' that I had heckled and ridiculed when I was researching my own implementation of the technology.
This had…implications. Ones that I really did not want to deal with at the moment.
Instead, I used the plans to dig out several important pieces of tech and/or gear for me to repurpose and use. With Thoth in a state where he could not properly operate my Frame's functions, the actual expressed portion thereof was a liability instead of a boon, so instead I was replacing it with tech of my own making, using the Talos standard spacesuit / uniform as a baseline. I also did a major overhaul of the ARTX propulsion system, just because I could, for use with this new suit.
The end result was something superior in all regards to the suits used by Talos personnel without being overly bulky or obviously armored, in my own colors of Blue and Green. A quick Query to Thoth and I had the basis for my future endeavors onboard the station ready to go.
I just had to change clothes, is all.
Upon further review, It really should not have surprised me that the fuckers waited until I was bare-ass naked to strike. It's how I would have done it, after all.
Unfortunately for them, I am highly perceptive to changes in my environment, meaning that when the mimics showed up and tried to pass themselves off as my clothes, I was perfectly capable of identifying the fuckers…and then immediately going in on the little shits in (not so) minor panic. This is where I found out that normal mimics are actually shockingly easy to kill, requiring only a single good hit from me to go out like so much trash.
It was actually kind of encouraging, really. Made me think that I might be capable of handling the station better than I thought.
I regret that thought, now. I really do.
The phantoms came out of fucking nowhere. One minute, nothing there. The next, suddenly there is this humanoid-shaped thing of blackness trying to burn me alive, along with a friend that liked to duplicate itself seemingly at random and leave corrosive puddles everywhere.
Taking those two down was a bitch. Apparently, Phantoms get a LOT more of a boost in durability compared to regular mimics. It was something to keep in mind, especially as the Phantoms came in variety packs instead of just one particular type…but a bit of ingenuity, a lot of dodging, and a very judicious application of extremely enhanced physical combat and the phantoms were down for the count…with only light damage to my brand-new suit.
My pride, of course, was in shambles.
I could already tell this was going to be a thing that happened.
Often.
Exiting the Machine shop only served to confirm those fears, as I had to fight two more phantoms and at least four mimics in the process.
At least it looked like Morgan fixed the busted conduit in front of the Machine Shop entrance…
"Systems re-integration completed. I am currently in low profile mode. Scanning local area for items of interest. Please stand by."
"Great. Let me know when you find something. I think I remember where the security room is at for this area, so I'm headed there."
"Understood."
The trek was simple and uninteresting. Most of the obvious opposition had tried their luck already, and had been dealt with appropriately…though I was expecting more to come eventually.
They always do.
The Security room was, surprisingly, unmolested, and had one of the Talos Issue PPN-8 Pistols, which I gleefully took for myself. Raiding the nearby security locker revealed that the turrets that would normally be stashed inside had been taken. A brief look around the atrium area of the hardware labs didn't show anything out of the ordinary, so I just assumed they got picked up at some point, likely by Morgan.
The Station chose that moment to shake violently, and for no discernible reason I suddenly had a feeling of intense trepidation and unease settle in my gut. I had the sudden urge to move, now, before something happened.
I chose to heed my instincts and hightailed it out of the hardware labs and into the Main Lobby.
The place…it looked…familiar?
At the least, it was nowhere near as wrecked as some of the other areas I'd seen so far were. If anything, it looked like the lobby had barely been touched. I personally found the distinction odd, but rolled with it nonetheless. I had an objective in mind now that I was here.
Pay no mind to the fact that I was desperately suppressing faded memories of the fact that I had been here before.
Subvocalization was a skill that got used often when in the field on operations, and I put it to good use now. "Thoth, anything on Mio's signal? Maybe we can attempt to triangulate the origin point."
Thoth, unfortunately, had no such protection, though he did keep the volume low. "Current scans yield no further useful data. I require more data for a precise reckoning. Without it, I can only give direction and strength of signal."
Again, unsurprised. This was kind of par for the course in this place, after all.
With the situation in mind, I decided to give the lobby a quick once over just in case someone managed to slip by…unfortunately, all I could find was scenes of carnage as dead crewmembers were strewn around the place haphazardly. A single Turret stood watch over the majority of the lobby proper, in its place at the corner of the main lobby floor area's right side when coming from the shuttle bay. Nothing else moved. Nothing else seemed to exist.
I felt more than heard the movement behind me that was off. Not a second later, the Turret opened fire, killing the mimic that I had noticed trying to sneak up on me. The Turret whirred, the barrel and sensors coming to rest on their new target: Me.
'Scanning target: no Typhon Material Detected."
So I register as clean to the turrets? Nice to know. I fully intend to take advantage of that.
Unfortunately for me, the Lobby was empty of anything actually useful to my cause. Worse, the main lift was still very much inop, meaning that whatever was causing it to malfunction was still in place. Taking that out was something I could probably do, if I could get to the source….
Wait. wasn't Morgan's office up here? Should probably check it out, maybe leave a message for them, assuming that they are still alive. It was a better option than just diddling my thumbs, at any rate.
Another noise nearby drew my attention.
There is actually a very unique sound to the larger (and by extension more powerful) Typhon forms moving around. I didn't notice it at first, likely because my first encounter with a Technopath was in vacuum, but it was definitely there. This sound is usually accompanied by a series of…distortions, I'll call them, that can be felt by those with psychic or psionic senses.
That I suddenly felt both was unnerving to the extreme.
A quick glance around showed that the only cover from the main area of the lobby that was available to me was the office space headed towards the Psychotronics division (the sign was really helpful). Having found said cover, I watched in wait for whatever had me on edge.
It didn't take long for the fucker to appear. Another Technopath, who conveniently took control of both the turret that I had seen earlier and one that I hadn't until just now, creating a rather nasty field of fire from which to harass anyone in the area.
And the fucker itself was just meandering around the Lobby like it owned the place, doing as it damn well pleased…no, wait, that movement is familiar. That almost looks like a kind of search pattern.
Is the damned Typhon actually looking for me?
That question was quickly sidelined when it turned and started beelining towards my position.
I took a quick glance around. Nothing really usable there, just these big-ass crates, one pistol with no ammo, and myself.
Hold on a second…the crates.
I couldn't help myself as a wild grin broke out on my face, a spike of adrenaline running through my body as I prepared to fight once again.
"Alright fucker. Let's see if you can take a hit, shall we?"
I didn't just move, I moved.
Speeds faster than anything that humanity had ever thought possible under its own power, reactions and reflexes on par with speeds of outright supercomputers, and a sheer sense of grace and surety that only came with a combination of raw talent and hard work.
All of this combined into one pure moment as I hefted the heaviest of the crates next to me as if it was a tissue box and hurled it at the Technopath with all of the force of a fired bullet. And immediately flowed with the throw itself, rolling into a launch position as I did so, and then followed right behind my projectile at blistering speed.
The technopath barely knew what hit it. The force of that crate was enough to knock it completely off-kilter, and actually push it back several feet in the process as well–which was not enough to get it out of range of my pounce. A magically-augmented palm strike was the immediate follow-up, the smack of my impact being drowned out by the Technopath's shell buckling under the strain of the hit.
Only for the second, more powerful strike to inflict even further damage and send it launching across the lobby space.
The turrets turned to fire at me, but I was already gone, bouncing (or rather launching) off of surfaces in order to maintain my speed and momentum as I moved in for the next attack. A mere three bounces was all it took for me to clear the space between us, and place me behind the Typhon creature's intended path.
One that I then corrected in violent fashion, another palm strike sending it flying upwards to the ceiling of the space. I landed briefly on the stairs leading to the trauma wing, and then launched upwards, reaching out telekinetically to grab the very same crate that I had used as an initial bullet–and that had yet to actually hit the ground since– and whipcracked it right back at the techno, with intended results. The poor crate busted, though…
The Typhon, on the other hand, was not in good shape. Instead of hovering around, it was currently falling from the air. Its shell was not just cracked but outright ruptured in places, the sheer power of the strikes it had been taking clear to see. It was leaking inky black liquid everywhere as it fell, and even I could see that it was on it's last legs.
So when I finally caught it, midair, I immediately flipped myself around and used my legs to launch it directly at one of the turrets that it had corrupted at extreme velocity.
The impact was satisfying to hear, as was the resulting death squeal of the Technopath itself. I landed, admittedly a bit hard, in a crouch nearby, body tensed and waiting for any other surprises.
None chose to appear.
After that, it was a simple process to get to the turret and reprogram it.
And just like that, the encounter was over.
"Battlefield assessment: Typhon Organism 'Technopath' was unable to attack us with its abilities, likely due to the speed of the assault against it. Recommend all further Typhon of the type be eliminated with similar prejudice."
Thoth really could be absolutely ruthless sometimes.
"Further assessment: current threat environment is unlikely to cause significant injury without an explicit lack of preparedness or attention on our part. I recommend we use this as a learning experience."
Yeah, no. "I am not treating this like a live-fire training exercise, Thoth. We have actual people in danger here."
"Understood. Be advised that likelihood of station personnel to trust you is low."
I knew that already. These fucktards are all very insular and clannish, even among themselves. It basically took a goddamn catastrophe going down for them to actually start properly working together…and even then Transtar somehow manages to fuck it up later, Ii I remember things correctly.
But that was for another time, and another place. I still had things to do here…and I think I was headed to check out Morgan Yu's office?
The trip up was uneventful. I noticed that the reception area for mister VP here didn't have a turret inside. My guess is that it was moved around to the general lobby area or something. I also made note of the multiple piles of Typhon remains around the office area.
The door was, of course, shut and locked. I, of course, did not care, and went in anyway.
And was surprised to see an operator inside.
"You are not a member of the crew."
I blinked, the voice of the operator bringing back more memories with it. Memories of who that voice belonged to.
Of what that person had done. To me.
I only just barely kept a scowl off of my face. "Maybe, maybe not. Who, or what, are you? And more importantly, where are the other survivors?"
The operator, surprisingly, responded. "I am January-2035, an Operator created by Morgan Yu. and you are?" That voice again…it kept gnawing at my memory, trying to jar something loose.
Either way. I saw no harm in answering. "Satori Green."
The operator seemed to pause for a moment. "Records check indicates that at "Satori Green" was listed as a volunteer for neuromod development. He is currently listed as missing."
I scoffed, words coming to me unbidden. "Volunteer. Yes, but of course I was a 'volunteer'. For everything that you do here. For all of the horrors that you inflict on people down there in that damn hole you call psychotronics. I know all about how you are feeding human beings to the Typhon down there, all in the name of harvesting them for your precious neuromods. And all of the lies that you tell people to get them up here in your little station, away from prying eyes." I had built up a bit of steam at this point, anger clearly leaking through in my tone.
I had no clue where this anger was coming from, but it compelled me to continue. "And even when you were warned by everyone around you that you were playing with fire, and would burn us all, did you listen? I TOLD YOU what was going to happen, directly from my own goddamn mouth after the last time you fuckers tried to kill me, and you still didn't listen. And now, here I am, trying to save your worthless hides from the very monster that your negligence unleashed on us all."
A phantom chose that moment to put in an appearance…only to be outright quartered with an offhand chopping motion of my hand. "And you want to act like you can't trust me? Fuck you, operator. I am the one that cannot trust YOU."
"Which is precisely why I know that you can help me."
I laughed. HARD. "you want…heh…you want me to help you? With what, destroying the station?"
"Yes."
That broke the spell of whatever had gotten into my head, leaving me slightly dazed in the process. I took a moment to look at this operator, this January, while my mind was still slotting things back into place.
"Huh. you are serious."
And what I saw lined up with what I knew of the games of old: January was indeed on a mission to destroy Talos I and prevent the Typhon from reaching Earth.
My question, and concern, was why did my memories conflict with this? And why did I have such a jumbled mess of memories for this place at all?
Wait.
I was a 'volunteer.' They, we, were generally poorly treated and used up as needed for neuromod experiments whenever the staff felt like it, often at the direction of Morgan or Alex Yu themselves. The only reason I'd had discrepancies would have been because…neuromod removal. It resets memories. Makes you forget. Do it enough, and–
The dam cracked. Memories that were both my own and not my own flooded into my mind, a reminder of what I had been put through.
They had done everything to me. Carrot and stick, easy and harsh approaches. Tons of neuromods, and complete removal, all one and the same. Memories that, by the very process by which neuromods work, should have vanished when they were removed.
Except mine did not…because I was something that they were not expecting, a find that was, for this program, beyond price: someone who was a natural human psion.
That it only took me killing the mimics they tried to feed me to, by hand, no less than four times before they asked the question why is another matter.
So…that explains the memories, then. Somewhat.
I trend back to the Operator I had been ignoring during my little episode. "Alright, fine. I'll believe you, for now. I have a few questions, though. First: I'm assuming that Morgan Yu is still alive. Where? Second, is there a record of anyone or anything being taken in by station personnel and used as some kind of test subject? Specifically not from groundside?"
January looked at me with its sensors. "For the first question: Morgan is indeed still alive. Right now, she should be inside of psychotronics, attempting to gain access to a service tunnel to the GUTS. As for the second…Morgan did in fact discover an odd person inside of psychotronics in one of the holding and observation cells. It looked female, but with…extra features not native to humanity. She is currently sedated until such time as further investigation can be conducted."
Mio.
Those fuckers had tried to EXPERIMENT on MIO.
Well, I knew where I was going, then.
"I'll be leaving, then. Do try to stay in touch. I'll be listening." I stated, as I tuned as walked out of the office.
January made no attempt to stop me.
It was on my way down to psychotronics that I got a mental nudge from Watts again.
Apparently, I had been too busy to take note of the forge synching up with more of its various constellations, and I now had a bevy of new abilities awaiting my approval to properly initialize.
The note attached to them explained my first question, as well: 'nodes were not brought on-line due to possibility of distraction during a major crisis. Right now, you are mostly safe, and should be able to handle anything unexpected.'
Nice to see that at least someone had my back in all of this mess.
As for the abilities in this batch? Well, there was a downright excess of the fuckers waiting for me.
I started paging though the executive summaries as I moved along. Some of them were simple enough to get across, or would add relatively minor boosts to things that I could already do at the moment. Others, like a certain ability and knowledge to mesh with machinery, I seemed to be using already by instinct. Hell, one of them was simply a magical herb garden.
There were two that were labeled as major doozies, though. Both called out specifically as being rather massively big deals, and for good reason: One was an entire lost art of magical crafting from a time of great upheaval in that world's magical community; the other was nothing less than an outright revolution in information warfare. As declared by a person who all but lived and breathed the very same.
Needless to say, I took the plunge while I still had the time.
I'd expected some kind of vision, a note, a reminder of some kind to give me the sheer breadth and depth of the matter. Instead, all I got was a rather tame and concise memory download that contained all that I needed to know, stripped of anything extraneous to the process itself.
Being where I was, with the memories that I now had? You're goddamn right I recognized the warning for what it was. This place was not going to be kind to me in the slightest.
I would just have to be unkind right back.
Psychotronics was a mixed bag for me. Very much so, due to what I now knew about the place. On the one hand, it was the main research hub for the Typhon, built around the original Kletka facility that even now contained the original Russian space vehicle that had been contaminated by the Typhon.
On the other hand, it was also a charnel house of flesh both human and alien alike, as 'volunteers' were used up in the creation of more Typhon, and the resulting Typhon then harvested for more exotic material to use in the creation of neuromods.
That the research had also yielded some very good results in controlling and anticipating Typhon behavior was incidental to the process.
In any case, I was here for my Dragon, after which I would decide how I dealt with the rest of the station. And the powers that be had better pray like all HELL that she is alright, or so help me…
I blinked, suddenly aware of the movement around me, and glanced around to see that I had very much accidentally driven the local Typhon population into a bit of a frenzy, baiting them into attacking me…and dying like the chumps they were. There were at least twenty dead mimics in front of me, each one crushed to death by my own hands…and I never even noticed it happening?
'Thoth, what the hell?"
"I have a hypothesis as to the current phenomenon. You are not a typhon, yet you are also clearly of a psionic nature. Your powers and theirs are likely on a differing wavelength or frequency of some kind, causing various effects when you unconsciously tap into those powers, even slightly. In this case, your anger, expressed through what I can only describe as your 'psionic aura' had a profound effect on the Typhon in the area."
Thoth paused, almost as if he was pondering something. "I suspect that this effect will only strengthen the longer you remain onboard this station. I have been monitoring your brain activity as part of my intrusion countermeasures, and there are several significant changes occurring as we speak."
"I believe that your psionic power is growing."
"And here I am in the middle of a species that will not like that fact, and is likely to evolve to deal with it. Great."
I was most definitely not amused by the bullshit.
Psychotronics was laid out exactly as I remembered it, complete with the security station being a waste of time against any real incursion or containment breach. That the two turrets here were even still operable was a miracle in and of itself.
I hacked the security terminal more to have a direct line into the system than anything else, and called up the crew logs, putting a trace on Morgan's locator band. As expected, she was moving around in this area, likely past the secure barrier. Unfortunately for me, that spot was hard-coded to require anyone entering the area to have a Psychoscope to even get in.
And, naturally, Mio's signal was coming from beyond the checkpoint. Morgan's too, but I could care less about that bitch.
So, the real issue here was getting past the block…yeah. I could do it…I think.
Just need to focus on one of those cargo containers over there, and remember…
The seals were Ram, boar, Ox, Dog, Snake, might as well do this slowly just in case…
The case landed outside the secure barrier, with myself on the other side. A success.
Now then, need to get to Mio and get the hell out of this deathtrap ASAP.
The Atrium area was new. In my memories, there were only four containers for Typhon, with one being empty, that container being the one that started the initial breach. Instead, there were six, the two extras being jammed in towards the end and the elevated catwalk expanded slightly to accommodate it. I paid the setup no mind past noticing the discrepancy.
"Thoth, we got a signal lock yet?"
"Wait one moment…signal acquired. Matching with Talos map…signal is coming from Labs A. I will set a waypoint."
Thoth didn't bother asking me to move quickly, nor would I have bothered with waiting for him to speak the words if he did. I was already moving at max speed straight to the area.
The examination room portion of Labs A had been converted into a sort of isolation chamber, one that was separate from the live testing labs further in. Inside, on a medical Gurney, was my Mio, looking for all the world like nothing was wrong at all.
I very deliberately forced myself to not rush to her side, "Thoth, please scan the area around Mio. I need to be sure."
Because this was the exact kind of trap that I would use for something that I thought too dangerous, and unless we were waaay out of pocket, Chaos was still a thing to worry about.
Fortunately, it seemed I needn't have worried. "Scan complete. No hostile lifeforms detected. attempting to force connection to Mio's Core. Standby…"
I did no such thing. Walking up to her, I gently picked her up off of the gurney, the loose hospital gown coming off with ease as I did so. A quick check confirmed what I thought had happened: her Impeller had been absorbing hits and punishment from the Typhon, preventing her from being harvested, and the humans around had likely been unsuccessful in their attempts to force matters upon her.
Reaching into her mind, I tweaked her nose a bit, just to get her attention. A mental equivalent of a groggy slap was my response, but it had spurred her to wakefulness. A few moments later, she opened her eyes, her own violet orbs locking solidly onto mine.
I couldn't help but be cheeky about it. "Sleeping on the job again, woman?"
Mio completely ignored by jab at her pride, instead taking the time to (intentionally) yawn cutely and do a little stretch, all the while making sure to stay firmly ensconced in my grip.
"I was wondering when you would show up. Where've you been, anyway?"
I chuckled. "Had to take the long way in. hope you weren't waiting too long, honey."
"Naah. just a few weeks, is all. These idiots tried to "study" me, and at least one of them had to be politely pushed away from my person by Minerva here" She tapped her chest for emphasis, and I knew her to be referencing her valkyrie core "but for the most part I just took a nap and healed up from the mess that jump had us in.
"As for you, mister…" and here she jabbed a finger directly into my face, "you do not need to be doing anything strenuous right now. I can still feel the excess chaotic energy trying to bleed out of you. Agitating that might end up killing you if you push the wrong way."
"Look who's talking, smartypants. I can feel the same from you, and I know for a fact that you got hit harder than I did, despite my trying to shield you from the worst of it.-"
"You will do no such thing. It is I who will shield You, husband. Deal with it." The note of finality in her tone was summarily ignored.
"So you do want that ring. I was curious about that…"
Mio had the decency to blush, but didn't bother to back down. "Only because you can't seem to get your foot out of your mouth and just say it already. Not my fault you don't want to commit."
Thoth had sent across the encounter data for the Typhon creatures (and especially the Technopath) that we'd come across up to this point, as well as the fabrication data for the suit that I'd designed for her. Minerva, unsurprisingly, made edits on the fly to suit Mio's personal taste (all of them blatantly and conspicuously superficial, no less) before fabbing a suit for her to wear as well.
All of this happening while the tow of us engaged in our happy bickering, which continued though us getting Mio properly dressed as well. (her comments on the matter will remain unstated, for personal reasons. Seriously, woman, there is a time and place…)
It wasn't until we were ready to leave the place that we received company. To my surprise, it wasn't more Typhon.
Instead, it was a Woman in a red and black Transtar suit, holding a shotgun directed in our general area. Her face was covered by a psychoscope, but the tension was clear in her posture.
Mio simply gave one of her usual dismissive glances.
I, on the other hand, gave that bitch a good, cold, HARD look.
"Well, well, well. If it isn't Doctor Yu. So nice to see you again, dear."
Yes, I went there. Welcome to Prey.
As a note: things are not entirely what they seem, which considering that this is freaking TALOS we're talking about, says a lot…but just bear with me for a bit, please. I do have a plan here, and I just need to get things worked out.
Anyway, Perks time. The previous chapter clocked in freaking massive, and the resulting perks are therefore also massive. I'll update for freebies later, here's the main set.
-Bolthole Protocol (Honor Harrington) (400CP)
While coming up with unbelievably advanced new designs may not be exactly your forte, what is is the reverse engineering of the same. You need only spend a few moments working at something to get a basic idea of how it works, and only get faster from there. No matter how advanced or obscure the technology, you can eventually work it out, with a thousandth the time and effort it would take anyone else.
-Forged Of Gods (Dungeon Keeper Ami) (400CP)
The powers of the light have their own strengths of course, among those is the ability to create hero gates through which no evil may pass, you also can now create these portals, with enough preparation it is possible to create hero gates strong enough to pass a small army through. This also grants you the knowledge of how to craft weapons and items out of adamantine, a metal that is made of the remains of a dead god, and even allows you to forge otherwise unbreakable metals as if they were steel.
-Mechanica (Ars Magica) (600CP)
In medieval Europe, Heron of Alexandria was known mostly for his philosophical works, but he also produced extensive texts on mathematics, physics and mechanics, which inspired a group of mechanic-mages known as the Mechanicians. These Mechanicians created magical mechanical beings known as Mechanica, some of which even had human-level intelligence.
This knowledge spread throughout much of the Eastern Roman Empire, but died out in the fifth century as a result of religious persecution. You now have the knowledge and skill to revive this tradition, being capable of building Mechanica yourself. While these can be designed to perform simple mechanical tasks, they can also duplicate spell effects, and, with extra effort, they can be awakened, granting them magic resistance, the intelligence of an average human and a personality based on their form and materials.
For example, a mechanical snake might be deceptive and prone to telling lies, while a being made from iron may be particularly stubborn. A being awakened this way begins its life very loyal to its creator, and will likely remain that way as long as it is not mistreated. Creating Mechanica does not require vis despite the fact that they will operate indefinitely if kept safe and well-maintained. The components required for their construction are very expensive, however.
-Neuromancer (Generic Cyberpunk) (200CP)
You've mastered the arts of interfacing machines and the human mind, able to both design and build things to seamlessly interface with the human nervous system and the actual consciousness housed within it. Building an implant or accessory to let people access the net with just a thought wouldn't be difficult at all, neither would making sure that a cybernetic connects so seamlessly with the user that it feels more natural than their original arm. You've
also mastered the use of such a simple if almost magical technology, not just it's construction. Combined with some programming skills, full immersion Virtual Reality would easily be within your grasp. You've bridged the gap between mind and machine, it's up to you to discover where you go with it from here.
-Chemical Synthesizer (Hive Queen Quest) (100CP)
This microwave sized machine is truly a wonder of modern science, able to synthesize any non-magical chemical known to man in up to 12 oz batches. Synthesizing a chemical takes roughly an hour and works via a small Tablet interface.
* A bit underpriced for any matter creator, even with the small volume and time needed, born from lacking knowledge that ever matter falls under chemical.
-Mechanic (Ragnarok Online) (300CP)
While the Mastersmith socketed and improved items, the Mechanic instead focuses on machines namely the mado- gear that they are known for. Their proficiency allows them to improve machines the same way a blacksmith might improve a sword, and Mechanics with extensive experience can slot machines to accept external improvements.
-An Adaptive Enemy (Eclipse Phase) (600CP)
You have taken the lesson of the Exurgent Virus to heart, and have made a breakthrough in programming viruses and other malware. By combining your malware with the neural models found in AGIs, you have the knowledge to create adaptive, digital smart viruses with just enough self- awareness to value their own continued survival. These smart-viruses are a head above the usual Kaos AIs, capable of working cooperatively, and in a creative manner, discovering and exploiting new weaknesses in software thrown against them, and overcoming obstacles or setbacks in the way of their high-level goals in unexpected and new ways. Even if they altered their own programming, you always retain Administrator command privileges over them.
-Machines, They Just Speak To Me (Firefly) (200CP)
You have no formal schooling, but can fine-tune and repair engines with nothing but shoe polish. You don't know what the parts are SUPPOSED to do, but you know how to make them work the way you want. You can diagnose a faulty part in the power core just by listening to the AC cycle, and can fix pretty much anything with naught but a wrench and some duct tape. It may not be pretty, and it may not last long, but it'll work.
-Grease Monkey (Bubblegum Crisis) (300CP)
What can you fix or build? What CAN'T you fix or build? Nothing, that's what. From hyper-cars to Buma, computers to Hardsuits, with the right tools and enough time and experiments, you can build it all, weaponry included.