-12- ELEVATOR
Taggart walked with Cosmo in an island of light among the shadows of the inner ruins of the Assembly Tower. Night had completely fallen. There was no seeing anywhere beyond the reach of the light of Cosmo's makeshift torch. Yet despite this, Cosmo walked with a quiet resolve and strong sense of direction.
Ever since the two had left the area where they had fought the Villain XPlode, neither had spoken a single word. Taggart was still overwhelmed by the death of James, and Cosmo was still focused on his mission. But Cosmo thought increasingly about the unlikely companion he had picked up on his journey. The sudden death of James so quickly after he had met the two citizens had Cosmo somewhat bewildered. After prolonged thought on the subject, he could not help but inquire about Taggart's decision to follow him.
"Why have you chosen to follow me?" Cosmo asked without warning. Taggart had no visible reaction to this. There were several seconds of silence before a response came.
"I don't know," he answered simply.
"There will be no Quaza where we are going," Cosmo reminded him.
"I know."
"Was that not what you and James came here for?"
"It was."
"So, why do you follow?" Taggart did not reply immediately. The only sounds around them were their footsteps and the crackling of the flame of Cosmo's torch. Words sounded strange in so solemn an environment.
"Because I don't know what else to do," Taggart finally answered. Cosmo accepted this. He knew James' death impacted Taggart severely.
"It is dangerous where we are going," Cosmo continued.
"I don't care," Taggart replied softly. Cosmo chose to end his discussion with Taggart at that. He was sympathetic to the blue and red citizen's sorrow, and did not want to keep him from following him.
The two walked within their moving island of light in the sea of shadows. They were careful to mind the inclines and declines of the ruins within the Assembly Tower. All the while, Cosmo had an undying sense of direction. In the endless shapes of fallen debris and thick shadows, Cosmo never once paused to check where they were. Taggart took notice of this, but said nothing. His mind remained on the death of James, his longtime friend, former coworker, fellow survivor, who came up with the idea to come to the Assembly Tower in the first place. James was the reason he was there at all.
Cosmo suddenly stopped; something he rarely did since they left the area where they fought XPlode. Taggart walked up behind him and saw Cosmo staring out into the shadows from where they stood. He searched the darkness for anything that might have served as the focus for his attention.
"Do you see it?" Cosmo asked. Taggart peered deeper into the shadows.
"No," he replied.
"Ahead lies the entrance to a tunnel," Cosmo said, pointing in a direction in front of them. "That is where we must go." He then turned to look at Taggart.
"No objections," Taggart assured him. Cosmo nodded, and led the two off into the darkness in the direction of the tunnel only Cosmo seemed able to see. As their island of light moved forward, the shape of a new mound of ruin began appearing before them. With the approach of Cosmo's torch, the maw of a tunnel opening came into view as well, a hole in the side of the mound of ruin. Cosmo stopped before it, and Taggart looked at him in amazement. He almost asked him how he knew where the tunnel was, and almost wanted to ask him how he knew where he was going at all. But this tunnel opening was proof to Taggart that Cosmo was certain of his direction and destination. That was enough to silence his questions.
"We enter," Cosmo said, walking forward into the tunnel. The light of his torch shrunk; slowly sucked into the mouth of the tunnel and illuminating its interior once it was swallowed. Taggart walked behind him, now more light available to them in their confines.
The path ahead could be seen in greater detail than when they were outside. A meandering downward sloping tunnel with jagged walls began forming in the light of Cosmo's torch. The irregularity of the tunnel's walls finally prompted Taggart to ask his guide about where they were going.
"Who made this tunnel?" he asked.
"You may soon meet him." Cosmo's reply was instant and mysterious. It chilled Taggart, who had then decided on silence.
After several minutes of wordless walking, the edge of Cosmo's torchlight began revealing ahead of them a sudden drop from where they stood in the tunnel. Cosmo rapidly extended his free hand out to order Taggart to stop. The blue and red citizen obeyed, and watched as Cosmo slowly approached the drop.
Cosmo walked himself up to the edge of the abrupt hole and peered down. He lifted his torch out into the opening of the hole to illuminate the drop. He was barely able to make out a bottom to the pit.
"It may seem deep," Cosmo said. "But it can be jumped." The black-armored citizen turned around and walked up to where Taggart stood behind him, carrying the flames of the torch with him. The light followed and cupped Cosmo's face in curling shadows that meshed with his blue eyes to create a haunting image. Taggart was slightly disturbed whenever he beheld Cosmo's face in this light. Nothing seemed real about him.
"You say you will follow," Cosmo said, eyes unblinking. "And follow you may. But once we jump down that hole, there will be no return."
"I accept," Taggart said with almost dutiful resolve. Cosmo nodded, and turned to walk back to the edge of the hole with Taggart not far behind.
Once they reached the edge, Cosmo leaned forward and peered down again into the hole.
"I will go first," he said. With his torch firmly in hand, Cosmo knelt down, then lifted himself over the edge and down into the pit. The flame on his torch trailed out as he descended, lighting the drop as he fell. Taggart watched Cosmo's shape travel down the hole and land hard on the ground at its bottom. The light from the torch settled, lighting the floor of the hole. Taggart could see Cosmo stand up and his two blue eyes looking back up at him.
"Jump!" Cosmo called out from the bottom of the pit. Taggart wanted to immediately mimic Cosmo's execution of the jump down, but felt reluctant. When asked, he did not care about passing a point of no return by jumping down. But staring directly into it changed that certainty. He quickly began internalizing Cosmo's words. He shook his head at Cosmo from above.
"I'm sorry, Cosmo," Taggart said, watching his words slowly echo downward. "I…I just can't." Cosmo stared up at Taggart, a tint of disappointment glazing over his blue eyes evident even from their distance.
"Very well," Cosmo said with lacking enthusiasm. "I must continue on alone. Farewell, Taggart." Cosmo then turned forward, and began walking down another tunnel that began at the bottom of the pit. Taggart watched as Cosmo disappeared into the tunnel.
"Farewell, Cosmo," Taggart replied, raising his voice and hoping it would reach Cosmo. There came no reply after that, and Taggart watched as the light of Cosmo's torch began disappearing into the tunnel he had taken.
Then, complete darkness enveloped Taggart. He had no sense of where he was any more, only that he was still near the pit Cosmo had leapt into. But moreover, he was alone. This frightened him more than the idea of passing a "point of no return," and then Taggart got to the ground and felt for the opening to the pit. As he ran his fingers along the ground, they slipped off and dangled into the air of the pit.
Taggart positioned himself for a jump into the pit. Sensing his weight sliding off of the ledge, Taggart took the jump into the shadows below. He braced himself for impact with the ground as he hurdled through the cold dark.
He hit the hard ground at the bottom of the pit, a brief sting from the impact rocking him. He stood up quickly and looked around for any sign of where Cosmo had gone. As he spun around, searching the pitch black for Cosmo's torch, he saw the black-armored citizen standing in a new tunnel beginning from where he stood. He held his torch and walked on.
"Cosmo!" Taggart shouted. Cosmo turned around and saw the blue and red citizen. A warm smile came across his face.
"So you have chosen to follow?" Cosmo asked. Taggart jogged up next to him and returned the smile.
"There would have been nowhere for me to go if I had left," Taggart said. "I'll follow."
"Very well," Cosmo said, then turned back to face the tunnel they were walking into. This tunnel was different than the one they had been walking down. Unlike the rugged terrain of the first tunnel, this one transitioned into a sleek, rectangular shape with clean walls designed in a familiar aesthetic. But what was more; the end of this corridor could be seen from where they stood. A few meters down from Cosmo and Taggart was a door that had illuminated in faint blue light the "H" symbol of the Hero Factory. The light occasionally flickered on and off.
"This place still has power?" Taggart asked.
"Yes, but very little," Cosmo replied. "Time is short." Then he broke off into a run and bolted down the corridor. Taggart raced after him, watching the trail of flame dangle behind Cosmo's torch.
The two arrived at the door with the flickering blue "H" logo. Next to the door was a panel with a single button on it. Cosmo then took his torch, then threw it onto the ground and stamped out the flame with his left foot. The light it provided vanished, and now the only light in the tunnel was the faint flickering of the blue "H." Shadows wandered in on them as this happened, and Cosmo's eerie blue eyes again came into focus.
"Behind this door is an elevator," Cosmo began. "It only goes down from here. When we enter, we will descend into a sinister place. The one who dug his way through the surface down to this buried corridor is the one I am after, and he is down there. When he sees me, he will know me. I will be forced to fight him. You will not understand everything that goes on. It may be frightening, but you must not interfere. You must let me do everything. When it is over, everything you know, everything that is, will change forever. Nothing will ever be the same after what I must do is done. Are you prepared for that?" Taggart nodded very slowly. Cosmo's words frightened him, but this far in he knew he had nothing to lose. He had no idea what Cosmo meant, but did not question his resolve.
"Am I going to die?" Taggart asked, as if the thought did not worry him.
"No," Cosmo said. "But when it is done, you will never be able to return to the life you live. It will be as if what you have lived was a dream. I repeat; are you prepared for what you will face?"
"I am." Taggart's words were scared but sincere. Cosmo nodded in response.
"We will enter the elevator," he continued. "When we do, remain silent. He may attempt to communicate with us from within. He must not know I am coming." Cosmo pressed the button on the panel, and the double door that the blue "H" symbol was built upon began sliding aside. It moved slowly, showing a serious lack of power. But eventually, the interior of an elevator was revealed. Even its interior lights were faint.
"Stay close, and let me handle everything from here," Cosmo told Taggart.
"Wait, Cosmo," Taggart said, stopping Cosmo before he entered the elevator.
"Please, we must hurry," Cosmo insisted.
"I understand," Taggart said. "But I have to know; who is it you're after?" Cosmo stared at him with a face sliding into a frown.
"A Villain," Cosmo managed after some thought. "Once a Hero, who I have a history with. I made him who he is today, and he in turn made me who I am. This cannot be allowed to last, so I must face him." Cosmo then walked into the elevator and extended his hand outward to Taggart. He said, "Please, make haste." Taggart nodded and joined him. The two stood inside the dark elevator, and Cosmo pressed a button on the interior wall. The double doors crawled slowly shut, and once closed the two citizens felt the elevator begin its descent. There was silence between them. Taggart remembered Cosmo's command to remain quiet while they rode the elevator. He looked around, waiting for the communication that Cosmo anticipated from their mysterious target.
The elevator occasionally jolted violently as it traveled downward. Taggart trusted Cosmo's assurance that he would not die, and despite the apparent danger he was not afraid of the rickety elevator's shaking. But he had no idea what Cosmo meant by never being able to "return to the life" he lived.
The elevator moved as though it was completely unstable, as if it were about to crash and break at any moment. Taggart placed his hands and back against the walls to steady himself, as if bracing for some kind of forceful impact. Cosmo stood calmly without any need for support.
Then after several seconds of descent, the sound of static entered the elevator from two speakers on opposite ends of the elevator's ceiling. Taggart was startled and looked up at them. Cosmo stood still, and urged Taggart with a motion of his hand to remain calm.
The static twisted. Strange sounds layered themselves on the grainy static, until a voice appeared that dwarfed everything coming from the speakers.
"So, another comes into my realm…" the fearsome, unnerving voice said slowly. Taggart began breathing nervously, but Cosmo remained still.
"I am surprised the elevator still works," the voice continued. "But no doubt, this will be its final voyage. And you, whoever you are, will not be able to return to the surface, especially after I am finished with you." Taggart was trembling with fear, and he shot an alarmed expression at Cosmo. Cosmo only shut his eyes and nodded.
The voice continued, "Is that you, XPlode?" This got Taggart's attention immediately. The being Cosmo claimed he was hunting, presumably the one speaking to him, was a Villain too according to the black-armored citizen. If he knew XPlode, then a much more terrible connection existed between Cosmo and events above.
"Have you come to try one last time to rob me of my glory?" the voice pressed. "You remain silent. No, you're not XPlode. He would never return. You're someone new. Don't think you'll be leaving here alive, newcomer. No one can be allowed to know what I am doing here. We will meet shortly. Then I'll decide how I'll dispose of you." After those words, the voice disappeared. A few more seconds of static came through before the speakers went silent.
Taggart was terrified, and Cosmo saw this. But the blue and red citizen remained silent just as he had told him to. The rickety elevator slid down its shaft with increasing turbulence. As the jolting intensified, the two citizens felt the elevator pick up in speed. Before it was merely rumbling down its shaft. Now it was barreling down. Even Cosmo had to steady himself against the wall. Taggart shut his eyes as the elevator picked up speed, further preparing for a coming slam. Cosmo did the same, knowing the elevator had lost all stability and was now plummeting purely on gravity.
The elevator eventually crashed onto the bottom of the shaft. The floor of the elevator cracked and pieces of its tiling burst up into the air of the elevator interior. Taggart and Cosmo tumbled to the ground on top of one another. When the shaking had ceased, the two lifted themselves up. The elevator had been damaged beyond repair. The double-doors leading to the other side were sealed shut.
"Do not fear," Cosmo said to Taggart. He then walked up to the double-doors and began pounding them with his fists. Eventually, he was able to bend one enough to reach his fingers into a crease. He then used as much physical strength as he had to pry them open. They only went so far, but an opening big enough for them to slip through had been made. Cosmo forced himself through the opening and out to the other side. Taggart saw this, and nervously followed. Cosmo helped him to his feet once he passed through, and when he did, the two citizens looked out at their new surroundings. A chamber stood before them. But toward the back of the chamber was something alien.
Reaching up from the floor to the ceiling and clinging to several places along the side walls of the chamber was a mass of a black gelatinous substance containing arching curves of blue across its surface. It clung to the back walls of the room like a giant mold, irregularly shaping and appearing as if it was alive. The room had no lights, only the blue glow rising off of the substance.
As Taggart was consumed by awe, he then found something frightful in the colors he saw. He looked over at Cosmo. His body, black in color, a blue helmet, and those haunting blue eyes, were the colors of this strange mass. Cosmo himself stood with head held high and expression stern before the bluish-black mass. He extended his hand out and placed it on Taggart's chest. Taggart knew what this meant; that he was to stay back. He obeyed, and watched as his ominous guide walked forward into the chamber, slowly approaching the monstrous blob.
"So…the newcomers arrive…" came the voice Taggart and Cosmo heard in the elevator, this time unaltered by static, deeper, and coming from all directions within the chamber. On the area of the black mass that had covered the back wall, the swirls of blue color that covered the substance's surface moved off to the sides of the wall, revealing an area of pure black on the surface. On this black backdrop, an image began appearing, the image of a face. Cosmo watched, unsurprised. The face that formed covered the entire area of the black mass that the blue colors had revealed. It was a face of a robot, a tusked, grim face with red eyes that burned through the shadows of the room.
"Is this what you have done with my power?" Cosmo shouted into the chamber, his deep voice booming with authority.
"Who are you, newcomer?" the voice asked, the image of the head on the mass moving as it spoke. "You aren't a Villain. No, you're a citizen, and you brought a friend." The image of the face then directed its gaze towards Taggart, who had been timidly crouching in the back of the room near the elevator. He was terrified he had been spotted.
"I want my staff back," Cosmo demanded, walking forward several steps. The face on the mass leaned backward, eyes bulging at those words. Though emotionless, the face conveyed disturbance on its black contours. After a few seconds, the face settled back in grim understanding.
"Cosmo…" the face said in a low, angry whisper that echoed throughout the chamber. Taggart watched with fright. The connection between the being on the mass and Cosmo was real.
"Von Ness…" Cosmo replied, mimicking the same tone in the face's voice.
"There is no 'Von Ness' anymore!" the face screamed. "I am Von Nebula!" Cosmo began smiling mockingly.
"Von Nebula, is it? I see you have chosen to emulate the magnificence of myself and my kin," Cosmo said after. "Yet, this…" and he raised his hands outward and turned around in a full circle to survey the entirety of the chamber. Cosmo continued, "This is what you do with my power? Disgusting."
"You'd never understand what I am doing, worm!" the face named Von Nebula asserted angrily. "I am building a new world, one devoid of roles and titles. A world without Heroes or Villains, Cosmo, a world you could have never built. A world you will not participate in! Look what the mighty Cosmo has been reduced to, a citizen! And I, the once lowly Hero Von Ness, am approaching transcendence. What have you come here for, worm? What did you hope to achieve?"
"My staff," Cosmo repeated. "I will have it."
"Such boldness," Von Nebula continued, areas of the mass around him beginning to pulsate. "But it does your mortal body no justice. Now you are the creature and I am the god. And I don't want you in my universe anymore." Cosmo only smiled at this. He extended out his hands as if offering himself before Von Nebula.
"Then attack me, fool!" he shouted with sinister joy in his voice. His smile became sadistic and cold. Taggart had moved as far back as he could, not understanding anything that was happening before him.
The regions of the mass that were pulsating produced long, snakelike tendrils of the bluish black substance that wobbled in place before steadying themselves. All had aimed themselves at Cosmo, who was unmoved and unafraid.
"Very well, worm," Von Nebula said. "I will kill you as I killed your kin, and then the universe will be mine."
With that, the tendrils burst into erratic movement. Simultaneously, they all hurtled towards Cosmo, racing down from their various heights towards the black citizen standing alone with arms outstretched. He welcomed them.
At once, all of the tendrils slammed into Cosmo. The bluish-black substance pierced Cosmo's body, blasting through from every angle that the tendrils collided with it. The force of this combined strike sent Cosmo stumbling back, but he rose quickly back to his feet. When he did, his body, all of the tendrils that had now punctured it, and the rest of the giant mass in the room began radiating a bright blue glow. A deep hum moaned into the room as this happened. Von Nebula's face watched in confusion at the sight of this. He shook his head on the mass in disbelief.
"What are you doing, worm?" he asked in fury. Cosmo only smiled, his eyes beaming blue light. His body coursed with the raw energy the substance held within its mass. Stored deep within this energy were memories, the memories of Cosmo, the memories of Von Nebula, and the memories of two others, two others who Von Nebula had killed, two others whose voices Cosmo had heard warning him of the coming of Von Nebula long before he regained his memory.
The flood of memories and events past stormed through Cosmo's mind. In those few seconds, his mind and memory became one with all who had touched the power he was now absorbing. The story of the fall of the Hero Factory, the fall of the old order, and the end of the universe as all had known it prior began replaying once again in his mind.