Chapter 44
Many Years ago.
I walked into the classroom, the rain from the previous day had flooded the whole building. The place still had the telltale signs of being filled with water up to our ankles, so we would have to seek another set of desks until everything dried out.
There was someone in a sitting in the teacher's concrete desk.
"Huh, strange not seeing you with you girlfriend, Cadena." I voiced at the tall teen sitting there with his backpack still on him. He turned to look at me and didn't say anything returning to stare at the wall. "Right, problems in paradise? Don't tell me she got pregnant, and she got mad at you?"
That got his attention. "How did you know?"
I snorted. "Bro, you and her have been joined at the lips since middle school, I actually was wondering if your parent were waiting too long to marry the two of you."
"Really?"
"Dude, you were sucking each other's souls out in front of my old man. While class was still in session."
"Wait, when did your old man arrive?"
"He's the Economics professor."
"Oh."
"Don't worry about your GF, it's just shock that will run out"
"And if doesn't?"
"That'll the pregnancy. You gonna keep it?"
"How could I ever ask her to kill my first child?"
"…I dunno. But if you say yes and she says yes to the kid, you're in for some hellish 9 months ahead of you, my dude."
"Like what?"
"Well, to being with, hormones in pregnant girls go haywire and…"
And that… was how the strange friendship between the class's crazy loner and the most naïve teen alive began.
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Mei Tachibana looked at the screen in front of her, watching as sensors finalized scanning the tiny bottles she'd gained from a dream.
Major Yinsen had called them Fullbottles, and the substance inside of them as Nebula Gas. He'd given them a basic overview. The gas was toxic to humans, but resistance could be induced so the gas boosted their bodies instead. It caused aggression levels to spike and worked better on subjects with high levels of emotional stress. And it could be used to compress devices into itself and to deploy them when energized.
Her own Rider suit was as much as a mystery as Yinsen's was, even more so. When asked about it more, he'd said he'd tell everyone once Project DECADE was back online.
It had been kind of frustrating, but he'd given them basic safety guidelines to experiment with the devices and a few odd comments that kept nagging her. Such as the Driver being purely human technology, but very much alien in origin and made by the Devil himself. He said it totally made sense and that he would elaborate later, before being dragged away by one of the YoRHa girls to somewhere he was late to.
She'd been sharing lab space with Einstein and Tesla, brainstorming and trying to make sense of so much they'd been given. The 3D-Printing that was a least two hundred years ahead of its time, the robotics that shouldn't exist, the Super Carbon that defied everything she remembered about material science, the Honkai that continued to give her headaches and now the Fullbottles. So much to do that she knew, even if she cracked a little bit of their mysteries, she could push mankind a few decades ahead.
Born of a Legacy House, she'd been spared much of the hardship the rest of the world has suffered after the Third World War, her family had secured their wealth smartly and had been largely untouched by the attacks that had wiped out most of the world's digital systems. While many people struggled to rebuild, Mei had grown surrounded by knowledge and stories her family had hoarded before the old world ended. She dreamed of a world where science and reason were used to propel mankind forward.
But when she finally was allowed outside, she encountered that while the world had been restored to a mockery of what it was, science was relegated to become another tool for dictators and parties to secure their own power over the people. Only her parent's influence stopped her from being forcibly recruited by any government's 'Talent Pool' to be fed drugs to keep pumping out inventions to lay low any freedom the people might have. There were some other Legacy Heirs out that offered to sponsor her studies in the fledging universities born after the war, just to link her work as being fruit of theirs.
From what Miss Tesla and Miss Einstein said, the Eurovercities, Old universities that survived and had become countries of their own, had struggled and survived, although most has forgone their education days and just become full time governments. And some still fought over small cities like where they had been born, which had changed 'ownership' at least four times before they got out.
Mei loved their stories, sure, they had done some stuff to survive, but they really loved science not for the sake of just profit, but to make the world a better place.
Tesla's thesis on cybernetic implants to cure Parkinson's disease, Einstein's research on lightweight materials for construction that could double up as saferooms in case of bombardments, sure, those were twisted by their circumstances, but they sought their inventions to be profitable not for the sake of their wallets only, but to help the people they grew up with and had to leave behind.
Mei didn't know their feelings, but she could respect using science to protect those you love.
A terminal beeped, and she came closer to see the results.
It was… strange. The Super Carbon had molecular bonds that were… too strong. The analysis told her of how many reagents the terminal could identify, and she could see a few compound that didn't made sense on how they bonded with the base material. Those didn't occur naturally on earth, but didn't Yinsen say…
'Oh, Super Carbon wasn't meant for mechs initially, it was meant for space exploration.'
Right. Mei noted that Zero Gravity might change a lot how alloys were made, if one could allow this to be released to the public…
Right, forging in zero gravity might be too expensive…
Another beep, and Mei turned to another screen, results from the Build Driver analysis, more information on the bottles and… Alert?!
"Miss Tesla, are you getting this?" Mei turned to the other woman still awake at the hour.
"An attack?"
"Data transmission? Corrupted data? Self-correction? What in the world…?"
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In space, the last satellite of a particular Steel Locust-make had reached its assigned orbit, completing a network for a very specific purpose.
The moment the satellite finished connecting to the network and its sensors went online, it went back into self-maintenance mode to correct the errors it detected. Consulting with the network, it lowered its sensitivity parameters and activated its array once again.
The network reported the alarming readings to the Cores, and a particular observation was made about the readings matching with something going on in Geofront-1.
If someone had been able to see what the network had seen, they would have been horrified at the pulsing tendrils stretching across the cities of the world and the gaping hole in the Asian continent.
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The medical section of the Agartha Geofront was something only those rich enough would have been allowed to see in out in the world. However, in in the Geofront, even the First Aid Stations were decades above any treatment available in the surface.
The main medical building was a fully automated for the sake of sterility. Android and Human alike could be repaired without one interfering with another. LCL tanks provided raw materials and a Molecular Manipulator (based on the power of the Core of Thunder) allowed to craft replacements to close to any organ as long as it wasn't the brain. But theoretically, even the brain could be healed thanks to LCL tanks and specialized equipment.
Theoretically. No one in the network had any desire to procure a 'specimen' to test it.
The suddenly erratic signals sent the network into a frenzy, and by the time the android sent to retrieve Himeko and Core YSN, two new models stood at the doors of Emergency care.
YoRHa Type Healthcare, Models 1 & 2, Devola and Popola received the incapacitated Core's platform and set to work.
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Himeko waited for a while inside the hospital-like building for any information about Yinsen. She was told last night by a pink-haired girl that it could take while for the analysis results to come out. She'd woken up the next day in her room, a few of the YoRHa kids waiting for her to get dressed and move towards the hospital again.
Fifteen minutes ago, a King Raven landed nearby, and she saw as Mei, Tesla and Einstein came out. They saw her and she went to them. The YoRHa girls nearby let the humans interacts and received orders to show them to the medical sector's Hall 1.
The group continued talking until the Hall's door was reached and the rom revealed its size. Research Hall 1 was more of a theater with a stage and multiple rows of seats. But in front of those seats were advanced models of the holographic tables in use by Steel Locust and ports for direct connection for androids to use.
The place surprised the humans, and they were guided to the terminals. Devola and Popola took the stage and their images appeared on the holographic terminals in front of their audience. Next to them, Commander White appeared in her usual uniform. She looked to be somewhere away from the Geofront or Arsenal City, as it seemed to be late afternoon near her. Naki and Yua's images showed them to be somewhere on the surface hangars.
The commander spared no time to start. "Devola, Popola. Report."
"Ma'am, at 2220 hours yesterday, Major Himeko reported oddities with Core YSN. We initiated scans according to protocol." The twins showed a series of charts showing the condition of the downed core. a particular section highlighting a section of its organic brain that currently seemed to be overstimulated.
Naki's image took center place in their screens. "At 2256 hours, the Honkai detection array went online and sent these images back to us." The humans in the room went pale at the sight.
A massive dark spot covered the whole Chinese country along with parts of India, Mongolia and North Korea. The image exploded into thermals, infrareds, and a brand-new mode called Honkai Detection. In the former, the area looked like a hole had been bug out of the continent. In normal optics, it looked normal, but in the latter, it showed as some sort of tumor pulsed on top of the 'missing' land. Tendrils stretched across the world from the tumor into other places, which were quickly identified as cities. A lone tendril went through one highlighted place in the pacific.
Agartha.
The androids looked back at the humans, who apparently had forgotten how to breathe or move. Their gazes locked in terror at the monstrosity appearing from the composite images. But the moment the map showed the place the strangeness had taken over, their faces went blank, before repeating the same paling and loss of movement.
The network, tracking the scientists' every move, noted that the loop began the moment the humans laid eyes on the country designations. The cycle repeated until White's voice crossed over the comms. "Yua, Naki. Is this enough?" her voice was pained from looking at the humans she was sworn to protect suffer under her command while the Core YSN was unavailable. Devola and Popola were almost vibrating while clutching the medical bag filled tools ready to aid their charges.
"Plenty enough Commander. Active Frequancies locked. All EVAs in position. Counter-pulse in 5…"
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Outside the building, three giants raised their hands as their AT Fields thrummed with power. The network had managed to work around the [VOID] affecting the systems, allowing them to locate the cause. The humming took a feverish pitch as Naki finished inputting the safety margins for the energy pulse as the countdown reached zero.
At the moment, a ring of pure white shot out from the giants' risen hands, making a sound that anyone in the old world could identify as the Halo Array firing. The nature of the Geofront meant that while the power used to counteract the EM frequencies enforcing the [VOID] was the tiniest fraction of what the EVAs could manage, a small part of the pulse got out of the Geofront's thick walls. But the majority bounced back, filling the inside of the megastructure with something the humans would later call a 'louder version of white noise'.
Those who would watch the sensor recordings would see the tendril passing though the Geofront suddenly missing a part of itself, as if someone had taken bitten off an octopus' tentacle. The whole monstrosity shuddered, recoiling as if in pain and letting out a screech that rather than heard, was felt.
Across the world, people reported accidents as many who went on in their lives suddenly lost all consciousness, causing mayhem as doctor in the middle of surgeries, drivers and pilots fainted and their tasks went haywire in the middle of cities… or above them.
Chaos would reign around the world for a while.
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I woke up in to a white, unfamiliar ceiling. The last dregs of a dream clearing, leaving behind the strange peace waking up gave you.
A hospital, huh…
But looking into my hand and the different kind of scars there, I saw that yeah… the last year hasn't been a dream.
The door opened and I saw something that made me freeze. At the door a pair of heads covered in pink hair came closer and began inspecting the monitors surrounding my bed.
My mouth was open, as I had only seen these two behind a screen, dying to redeem mistakes done with no fault of their own. I knew I'd created YoRHa androids but this… "Devola? Popola?" I looked at the pair of characters that had been stuck in my head even if I hadn't finished either of their games.
The two of them turned to look at me and I saw that, so human like, their expressions cycled through confusion, surprise and a bit of… happiness? "Sir? You're awake!" The wavy hair clued me into this being Devola, who rushed me and began asking me questions in a rapid manner before a hand grabbed her shoulder and made her stop.
"Core YSN, it is good to see you awake." the one I could identify as Popola, due to her straight pink hair Both began the standard routine for anyone who woke up from unconsciousness that I'd grown used to in my previous life. Even with me sharing data from my Eva-lite body, they still wanted to do that. Something about pride as the first Healthcare models. And being recognized immediately by me as such.
I couldn't tell them that they were based on something fictional from my past, so I kept quiet. Their smiles were worth my silence.
As they finished, I noted that there was a strand of red hair poking from the door frame. I bit my lip as I tried to contain the laughter that would come out otherwise. Like a girl still in middle school, the top of Himeko's crimson hair was visible like an improvised ahoge. She was trying to spy on the twins during their tests on me and I caught her eye as she looked around the room. She froze in an expression I think she thought was her 'cool' face.
I smiled, and made some motions for her to come in. The twins didn't oppose it and allowed Himeko to come closer. My cybernetics completed their diagnosis I was good to go.
"Y-yo, Yinsen? Did you sleep well?"
"Himeko… kind of, although I think I left you hanging, sorry about that."
"No neverminded that… there was an alert after you… well, got into loop."
"Loop?"
"Yeah."
"Sorry." I couldn't believe I'd been taken down by a cognitohazard, of all things.
"No, I get it… well, the others explained what's going on…"
She told me just as the twins finished the diagnostics… and I felt the hairs on the back of my head stand straight.
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Steel Locust was meant to be an aid in minimizing the losses caused by the war against the Honkai. We would bear the brunt of the fight against the forces while keeping as much knowledge and weapons alive for the next era.
However, it seemed that we would have become far more than that, as I got into contact with Arthur Watts once again and offered our aid.
"I can see you have been busy, Major Yinsen" He looked haggard like a student in finals week. I didn't' envy him, only by having my body as it was had I avoided looking every bit the same.
"Some of our medical corps just returned but they've been wanting for action, sir. And yeah, figuring out something has been keeping anyone form noticing anything wrong with Asia has taken most of my time."
"Indeed, looking back, its almost obvious the lack of news coming from the Chinese was a red flag…"
"We'll be conducting recon on the situation. You can focus on the mainland, our medics should be arriving soon."
"We'll need your choppers more, son. A lot of the hubs are dispersed across the land and getting to the injured has been a major hurdle."
"I know. See you on the other side, Secretary."
"Likewise, Major."