Chapter 60: A Chilling Revelation

Hailstorm, Astra, and Reed, with their ample supply of healing potions, were prepared to carry on the fight the rest of the way down the facility. Unfortunately, they could not heal their decapitated robotic ally Blahsadfeguie, whose head they were tasked with carrying along. Fortunately for them, the rest of the Eho were easy to take down. It seemed as though their morale plummeted once they found out all three of their commanding officers had been killed.

It was such a breeze that Reed was hesitant to kill any of the other footsoldiers out of sheer pity. Astra and Hailstorm, on the other hand, felt very much differently.

The floor below the catwalk consisted of several cubicle-esque workstations, each one with a monitor and a large control panel similar to a keyboard. Much of the equipment had been smashed or otherwise damaged long before the heroes arrived, but those that were still intact showed views of various buildings and streets, interiors and exteriors. One of them even showed the inside of the church in Itchav, where they had met Tyappe. Seeing these images sent a chill down Reed's spine. Were these Eho watching him and his people this entire time?

Finally, after they were sure that they had cleared the facility of the last remaining Eho soldier, the group reached what appeared to be the basement floor. The conical ceiling lights were somewhat dimmer here, illuminating a concrete floor filled with large and complex machinery and assembly lines. It resembled a factory of sorts, though one notable difference was the presence of several cylindrical pods arranged in many rows. Each one looked large enough to hold a creature the size of a dragon, possibly bigger. Most of them were connected via a series of pipes to a large central console with a huge monitor and an even larger array of buttons, switches, and dials underneath.

All four of the heroes looked on in absolute awe, especially Astra, who could not have dreamed of encountering such advanced technology.

"So this is where the magic happens, huh..." commented Blah from within Reed's hands. "Funny... I don't think I ever had a clear image in my head of how it would look."

"You could store an army of clones down here..." Hail observed, tapping the doors on one of the pods apprehensively and producing a clang that echoed throughout the basement.

"I hope they're empty," worried Astra as she walked past the pods, heading for the console in the center.

"Oh God," Blah added, "what if a bunch of them suddenly jumped out and attacked-"

CLANG CLANG CLANG. Loud noises erupted suddenly from one of the pods closer to the center, causing everyone to jump out of their skin. All of them were transfixed on the pod, completely still.

The silence set over the group like a thick fog.

"...Hello?" called Astra, cautiously approaching the pod with her scythe at the ready. "Is someone in there?"

In response, the pod made another series of clangs - this time softer and with a distinct rhythm.

"Doesn't sound hostile..." Hail whispered, his stance relaxing slightly.

"Maybe that's what they want you to think," Blah warned.

The clanging continued, with a rhythm that was somewhat erratic. Suddenly, Astra's eyes widened in realization. "Is this Morse code?"

"Oh yeah, I think I have a program for that," Blah replied. The group fell silent as Blah concentrated on the noises. "Open... door..." recited Blah. "Green... button..."

Astra looked around the pod and spotted a small panel on the side with a handful of buttons of different colors. One of them was green. "Stand back," she called as she slowly reached toward the button, still holding her scythe in the other hand. Reed and Hail backed up, watching the doors with bated breath.

Beep.

With a gentle hiss, the doors slid open, light pouring into the pod. A purplish figure inside slowly came into view, shielding its eyes with its arm.

"Holy crap," remarked Blah. "Is that what- is that who I think it is?"

Once the doors were fully open, the figure stepped out into the room, stretching its long and thin limbs. It was humanoid in shape, though its skin was glossy and had a magenta coloration. It wore a plain white lab coat and slacks that seemed rather loose, and looked back and forth between the new arrivals with two large, bright red compound eyes that were almost perfectly round. The head lacked any other sort of facial features and was notably larger than the rest of the body proportionally.

"Thank you for freeing me." A voice, reminiscent of a middle-aged woman, sounded in the heads of Hailstorm, Astra, and Reed. It was not unlike Seraphina's original manner of speaking. "I was starting to think I'd be locked up in that pod forever..."

Reed, who had never heard anything like it before, nearly dropped Blah's head in bewilderment.

"Don't mention it," said Astra, causing Blah to raise a virtual eyebrow.

"Who mentioned what?" the robotic head queried.

"She's talking to us telepathically," Hail explained. "I guess you can't hear it..."

Blah glanced up at the alien. "Oh right, invero can do that..."

"...Ah," the voice continued. "I'm sorry, I'm not capable of making audible speech in this form. Um..." She looked between everyone again, folding her hands in front of her. "I could whip up something a bit more convenient for you. And easier on the eyes, to boot."

"Oh, that's okay," said Hail, "you don't have to go out of your way to..."

He trailed off as the invero made her way to the central console and pressed a series of buttons. The screen lit up and displayed an array of strange characters - presumably an alien language. The operator proceeded to hammer away at the buttons with all the speed of a receptionist on her fourth cup of coffee, and various text and icons flashed on the screen. All of the onlookers watched with childlike wonder as a three-dimensional humanoid wireframe began to rapidly construct itself on-screen. With a few more keystrokes, the wireframe turned into a realistic depiction of a pink-furred female Triff, whose proportions tweaked themselves until they settled on a petite, modest frame.

"Pink is such a charming and innocent color, don't you think?" the invero mused as she pressed a large button on the console, causing the machinery to whirr to life. A large, eliptical light above the pod she had come from turned green, while a light on another pod pulsed yellow. "I know you have a lot of questions," she presumed as she climbed back into the open pod, "but please, hold them until the end of the demonstration!"

"I-I don't know if I could have found the words in time," stuttered Hail as the doors closed around the invero.

Once they were secure, the pod's light changed to a bright blue. Loud churning filled the air as the yellow light flashed more and more rapidly until...

Ding! The noises gradually died down, and there was a sound like a liquid draining as the second pod's light slowly flashed green. The doors opened, and a thin steam billowed out.

"Ahh, much-"

The new voice was cut short as it erupted into a violent fit of coughing. Hail and Astra instinctively gathered around the pod to assist them if needed. A figure soon stumbled out of the pod, nearly falling over, but was promptly caught by Astra.

Much as Blah had expected, the new figure looked exactly like the Triff on the screen. Her fur was slightly damp and her torso and legs were covered in a white jumpsuit. Astra helped her onto her feet, where she soon found her balance and managed to stand up on her own, albeit a little shakily.

"I'll never get used to that..." she wheezed as soon as her coughing died down.

Reed, flabbergasted, glanced between the pod he had seen the alien enter, the console screen, and the pink Triff. Hail simply tilted his head as he tried to wrap his head around what just happened.

"Ha! It works!" exclaimed Blah happily. "It really works!"

"You bet it does," the Triff woman cheerfully affirmed. "A little dated, but invero technology usually pulls through."

"Did that machine..." started Hail, staring at the console and comparing the image on the screen with the one in reality, "...literally, just now, synthesize that body out of nothing... and then transfer your consciousness to it?"

"Wow, and here I thought I was going to have to provide a long-winded explanation!" She reached down and ruffled Hail's mane, with only mild resistance. "You're a smart stallion, you are!"

"Yeah, well," stammered the pegasus, blushing slightly, "this sort of stuff comes naturally after a while..."

"So let me guess..." Blah began. "You're an invero scientist who was captured by Charge's goons and forced to operate this equipment for them."

"Right again!" the scientist praised. "Not that that's a feat for you, Mr. Blahsadfeguie."

"You know us already?" questioned Astra.

"Of course. It's pretty hard not to learn everything about a group of people when your captors won't stop talking about them!" She strolled over to the console and pulled up a chair, plopping into it. "I'm sure you want to know about me now. We've got time, so ask away!" She grabbed her tail in one hand, twirling it playfully.

"Alright... what's your name?" asked Hail, still somewhat flustered.

"My name?" the former invero replied, spinning around in the chair and looking up at the ceiling. "Hmm... I don't technically have a name."

"...well then what are we supposed to call you?" the pony replied, raising an eyebrow.

"Invero may not have names," Blah added, "but they do have designations. It's a number that indicates one's precise ranking in the social order, which coincidentally happens to correspond with how round their eyes are."

"That's a weird way to discriminate..." remarked Astra.

"Ah," interjected the scientist, raising a finger, "but the rounder an invero's eyes, the better their vision. When you're closer to zero - that is, absolute perfection - you can see things in totally minute detail. Almost like a microscope. Which is why lower-end invero tend to find jobs as scientists and engineers, while higher-end invero get more mundane jobs. It's not discrimination - some of us are just better suited for certain work."

"I suppose that makes sense..." Astra rubbed her chin in thought, as though not totally convinced.

"Anyway," continued the scientist, "my designation... well, at least the first few digits... is three point one four one five nine-"

"Hold on," interrupted Blah. "Is it literally pi?"

The scientist suddenly leaned forward in her chair, seeming visibly offended by this. "No, no, there's only a few digits in common with pi. It's sheer coincidence."

"Well, that sounds like as good a name as any," said Blah. "Pi. Kinda cute, actually."

"...If she doesn't like the name," argued Astra, "we should respect that..."

The Triff sighed. "If it's more convenient for you, I'm fine with it. Maybe it'll grow on me..."

"I'm sure it will," encouraged Blah, causing Astra to roll her eyes. "So, Pi... I think you know why we're here."

"Right, yes," uttered Pi, snapping back into the moment. "You were wanting your old human body back. Is that correct?"

Blah nodded. Or at least, he would have, if he still had a neck to nod with. The realization only made him more antsy. "Yeah," he affirmed. "It's been a long time coming..."

"No problem." Pi spun around and began working the console again, stopping at the wire frame. "Do you have a DNA sample?"

"Right here." Astra produced a plastic bag with several strands of long, chestnut hair.

Pi took the bag and held it up close to her face, squinting at them. "I miss my vision... The price I pay for cuteness," she lamented, examining the hairs from many different angles. "Ah, here we are. There's at least one follicle here. I can work with this." She opened the bag, carefully pulling out one of the hairs and placing it in a circular tray on the nearby counter. A blue light shone from underneath it, and in moments, the wireframe shifted into a model of Blah's female self.

"Oh, right," sighed Blah. "You can change the sex to male, can't you?"

"A simple matter," Pi confirmed. "As well as any other modifications you'd like to make." She reached over to hit a button.

"Hold on a second," interrupted Hail, holding up a hoof and staring at the image on the screen. Pi froze. "Hey Astra..." The human girl tilted her head as Hail addressed her. "Take off your glasses and let your hair down. Just for a moment."

Astra blinked, giving Hail a curious look, but ultimately complied, sliding off her glasses and undoing her ponytail. There was a collective gasp. Everyone else immediately saw it. The image on screen was nearly identical to Astra.

"Are you sure those hairs were from my body?" Blah asked. "And you didn't get any of your own mixed in with them?"

"...I was well aware of the possibility," uttered Astra as she slipped her glasses back on. "I was very careful about it..." She studied the model carefully, slowly coming to the same conclusion.

"Pi," Blah called, "can you compare the DNA of two specimens with that thing?"

The scientist had already risen to approach the dumbfounded Astra. "Way ahead of you," she answered as she plucked a hair from the human's head. She didn't seem to feel it.

Pi placed Astra's hair on a second tray. The hair was scanned, and a second model appeared on the display, looking like an exact copy of the first. She pressed a few more buttons, and two sets of characters began piling onto the screen. Before long, a box popped up. Everyone nervously awaited the results.

"One hundred percent..." read Pi in astonishment. "The two samples match each other perfectly."

The group's collective gaze fell on Blah and Astra. Reed shrank away, thoroughly confused and holding Blah's head at a distance like one would a strange abandoned infant.

"So we're..." Blah paused as the thoughts circulated throughout his damaged circuitry. "That means we're... Twins...?"

Astra shook her head. "But my dad didn't mention another child... and you were clearly older than me..."

"But what if you were clones?" Hail spoke while staring at the floor. Everyone else fell silent. "Assuming Dr. Eggman wasn't lying, which, if he was, he should really get into acting... Astra was born biologically." He paused, turning around. "Which can only mean... Blah was a clone of her."

"No... but... how... that isn't..." Blah began to mutter unintelligible nonsense before finally gathering himself long enough to form a complete sentence. "If I was a clone, why am I so certain that I lived another life before...?"

"There are two possibilities," Astra somberly cut in. "Either all of your memories and knowledge were fabricated... or your soul originated from somewhere else."

"Well..." Pi stood up, drawing the attention of everyone in the room. "I suppose you were bound to find out eventually..."

"What?!" questioned Blah. "Y-you knew about all of this?"

"I was the one who facilitated the process, in fact..." Pi stared down at her feet, her ears drooping. "When Charge took over the facility, the first thing he demanded was a vessel of a special kind. He said something about needing it to bring someone into this world." The group hung on her every word. "He gave me a vial of blood and told me to create a clone using the DNA. Specifically, he wanted me to switch the sex and set the age to 21 years. I had no idea whose DNA it was, but if I didn't obey, they would have killed me for sure."

Her gaze drifted to the console. "I thought it was odd, and certainly fishy. So, in secret, I took as much information from the invero databanks about this multiverse and its inhabitants as I could, and loaded it into the brain of the clone as it was synthesized. I did this in the hopes that this clone would go on to stop Charge and reverse the damage he had done."

Blah felt as though his entire world had been turned inside out, beaten with a baseball bat, and tossed down a manhole. "S-so..." he uttered, "you are responsible for my existence... a-and everything I know... everything I am..."

Pi tilted her head. "One of the first things they teach you in engineering school..." she recounted. "You can't make any scientific progress without changing some of the fundamental variables that make up this universe. Souls will be created and destroyed, entire ecosystems will be built up and broken down at the whims of the experimenter, just to test some hypothesis... As long as it serves a purpose, your actions cannot be invalidated, and there is no greater purpose than the pursuit of knowledge."

"The invero mentality in a nutshell..." echoed Blah, the roboticness of his voice inflicting shivers on his listeners.

Hail stared at Pi in shock. "You can't go telling me that you don't feel any sort of guilt or remorse for... for..."

"For playing God," Astra finished.

Pi folded in on herself. "I never thought it was right either..." she admitted. "I got into genetics because I liked the idea of being whatever you wanted to be. To walk a mile in another organism's skin. Not to create souls and force them to serve your needs at their expense. I should have never obeyed Charge. Blah didn't ask to be created and endure all this suffering..."

"You're right, I..." Blah's voice flickered in and out, as if he was choking up. "I should never have existed..."

"Don't say that, now..." uttered Hail in a desperate attempt to hold his friend together.

"The life I thought I had was a lie!" Blah blurted out, nearly causing poor, shellshocked Reed to drop him. "Do you know what it's like to be thrown into an unfamiliar world, clinging onto the hope that you might one day return to the place you belong, only to find out that that place doesn't exist?!" Hail backed away nervously as Blah continued to explode. "I have no past, and the only people who are directly related to me never consented to my coming into being!"

"...but what does knowing that truly change?" Astra walked up to Blah and bent down to his level. "Whatever circumstances lead to your birth... Whatever purpose Charge needed you for... None of that matters. You've created your own path. You've made friends, you have family who loves you... And most importantly, you are a good-hearted person." She gestured to Reed, Hail, and Pi. "Your existence is just as valid as anyone else's here. And, for what it's worth..." Astra looked Blah straight in the eyes, more genuine than she had ever been. "I would be proud to call you my brother."

The room fell into a state of tense silence. Astra's words did not have any visible impact on Blah. Hail and Reed exchanged glances, worried that they might have broken him.

The tension was lifted when Blah made a noise vaguely reminiscent of a sob.

Blah wanted so desperately to leap out of Reed's hands and embrace his sister for the rest of time. His eyes washed over with virtual tears. "Astra..."

Hail exhaled, infinitely glad to be free of yet another emotional hurdle. "I hate to cut this moment short," he spoke, "but Blah is still in desperate need of a new body... and the longer we wait, the more time Charge has to retaliate."

"Right, of course..." Astra stood up, turning toward the stairs. "Reed, Hailstorm, you two run back through the facility, clean up the corpses, making sure they're still corpses, and ensure that the facility is secure. I'll hold onto Blah and we'll get him taken care of."

"No problem," Hail responded as he flew back upstairs. Reed absently handed off the robotic head to Astra before joining him.

"Very good," declared Pi, returning to her seat at the console. "So, male body..." With the press of a button, the displayed model changed to one very much resembling Blah's original human form. "Anything else you'd like me to change?"

Blah stared at the image for a good long while. This was the face that he had been given by Charge. From his perspective, it had been decades since he last wore it. Looking at it now, it almost felt alien to him. Did he really need to go back to that look? With this equipment, he could be literally anything he desired.

"Actually..." Blah began, an idea starting to hatch in his head. "Can you make me a dragon?"

Pi twitched in mild surprise. Astra incredulously glared down at the man who had made such a big deal out of getting his old human body back not too long ago. "Really."

"Yeah, really," Blah responded sincerely. "If I'm getting a new body, and my options are limitless, why not go all out with it?"

Astra still wasn't sure. Pi, on the other hand, suddenly jumped in excitement, beaming. "Ooh, yes!" she exclaimed, turning to the controls and typing up a storm. "I like your style! What sort of features would you like?"

"Well, a full-sized dragon, of course," Blah explained. "Not like an Eho, but more like Bellia." Pi nodded, and before long a model of a green dragon appeared on the screen. "And instead of fire, could it maybe breathe ice? I've always had a fondness for that element..."

Pi scratched under her chin. "Hmm, ice, that's a new one... but I do love a good challenge! And that sounds awesome!" She resumed typing. Detailed views of internal organs appeared and changed in shape and structure. Astra could hardly believe what she was seeing and hearing.

The tweaking went on for several minutes, with Blah being overly specific about several details, and Pi eagerly following his every instruction. The result was a tall and thick-framed dragon with white scales, smooth features, and piercing, icy blue eyes. Blah wanted to give it two heads, but Astra shot down that idea very quickly.

"It's perfect!" cried Blah. "Well... almost perfect, but close enough."

"Okay, let's get this party started!" Pi seemed just as excited as Blah, if not more so. She hastily pushed the button to start the process.

Two previously unused pods lit up much in the same way as the first pair. Astra carefully set Blah's head inside the open one and it promptly closed around him, leaving him in darkness. The machine noises kicked off. The noises were all that Blah could sense, but they seemed to be getting quieter. He started to lose touch with his own thoughts, like the sensation of drifting off into a deep sleep.

Blah woke up with a start. He found himself floating, suspended in a thick, lukewarm substance. He had the feeling in his extremities back, already a good sign, but he still could not see anything. He panicked as he realized his lungs were not taking in air, but it didn't seem to cause him any pain or discomfort. Still, in that brief moment of panic, he felt something else - a strange sensation deep inside his chest that reminded him of when he ate ice cream too quickly.

Suddenly, Blah felt himself lowering. He instinctively reached out with his arms and pressed his hands against the concave metal walls. His feet touched the ground. The fluid level dropped below his head, and he felt air rushing into his lungs to displace the substance. This was so jarring that he couldn't help but cough, expelling the material and replacing it with oxygen. The fluid had completely drained, and Blah felt heavy. Very heavy. A crack appeared on the wall, letting light pour through. It was far too bright. Blah felt as though he were being assaulted from all angles, internal and external.

When the pod fully opened, Blah crawled out into the open on a hand and two knees, shielding his coughs with his free hand. Two silhouettes, barely moving, looked down at him.

"Blah?" The concerned voice bounced around in his head.

"I'm okay," cried Blah, in a voice so different that it startled him into stopping his coughing. It was deep, somewhat raspy, and had a sort of backing growl to it. Both of the onlookers jolted in response. "Holy crap, do I really sound like that?!"

"You didn't specify anything about the voice," the pink figure shrugged. "I gave it the standard, with some mild tweaks for flavor. We can start over though, if you don't like it."

"No, no," Blah opposed, not thrilled with the idea of going through that again. "I'll get used to it. Plus, intimidation is a nice ability to have."

"It's one way of doing things, yes," admitted Astra, who had just finished coming into view. "How do you feel?"

Blah pushed himself to his feet. It didn't take him long to find his balance, with the thick weight behind him swishing around. He noticed that Astra and Pi were looking up at him now. Blah craned his long neck this way and that, loving the flexibility. He caught sight of a large and flat surface behind him and remembered gleefully that he had wings. He tried unfurling them to their fullest and flapping them a couple of times, letting them catch a large volume of air. Blah was enamored by how satisfying it felt.

Pi laughed. "He sure seems to be enjoying himself!" she noted. "Hey, try out the ice breath next! I'm dying to see how it turned out!"

Blah recalled the freezing sensation he had felt in his core. He attempted to pinpoint its exact location and shift all of his focus to that spot. To his astonishment, it quickly flared up much like before, and he could already feel a coldness welling up inside his throat. Astra and Pi each took a step back as Blah aimed his head like a fire hose at a nearby pod. The ice punched through his jaw, filling the room in the form of a frigid mist. The brunt of it hit the pod, causing it to ice over in seconds.

Seeing his handiwork, Blah emitted a very unfitting high-pitched squeal in excitement. He walked up to the frozen pod and poked at it. The ice was somewhat thin, but it had gotten deep in between the doors.

"That is terrifying..." commented Astra, shivering slightly.

Pi's fur was noticeably standing on end. "Amazing! Nailed it!"

The sound of footsteps coming down the stairs echoed through the room. "Wow, is it just me or is it nicer down here...?" came the voice of Hailstorm.

"Oh hey you're back," Blah called, turning around. Hail and Reed stopped dead in their tracks on the bottom steps. "Check me out!"

Hail wasted no time pulling out his crossbow. "Don't even think about touching them!"

"How'd we miss one...?" breathed Reed in shock, reaching for his clarinet.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa!" Blah interrupted, holding up his hands in surrender. "It's okay, it's just me!"

"Hail, it's Blah," Astra informed as she poked out from behind the white dragon. "He decided it was time to try a new look..."

Hail blinked in disbelief, not moving an inch. "How do I know you're not clones working for Charge...?"

"Aw, come on, Hail," Blah teased. "It wouldn't be very ice of us to deceive you like that."

Hail lowered his crossbow ever so slightly. "Did you really just say that?"

"No need to give me such a cold reception," continued Blah, donning a playful grin. "I'm the real Sadfeguie, snow joke!"

Hail's eye twitched. "Alright, you've made your case..." He tightened his grip on the weapon. "Now I really am going to kill you."

"...you don't still think it's not Blah, do you?" asked Astra with just a touch of concern.

"Oh, I know it's him alright."