Chapter 10: The Truth
"Some doors are best left unopened."
Akikta walked along a high catwalk, giving him a good view of some sectors within the factory.
The Cozy & Safe Factory site was known for its sturdy exterior, so he expected the place to be unlike the rest of Alterna's sunken and ruined areas. It wasn't.
Rust, decay, and lack of power destroyed many of the facilities and mechanisms. The machines that used to produce various products stopped mid-way through their respective tasks. Cracks were sprawled all over the wall, and pieces of the ceiling were missing, which allowed simulated light to shine down on darker areas.
"This place doesn't seem cozy at all..." Akikta commented, only for a panel on the catwalk to break off the second he stepped on it. It fell to the lower sections with a loud crash. Luckily, he did not fall with it. "Or safe." He finished, proceeding the rest of the way cautiously.
Once on the other side of the catwalk, Akikta found himself face-to-face with a blocked-off doorway. On the wall next to the door were three blacked-out triangular buttons. He pressed all three of them at the same time. They lit up green in response, and the door opened.
His brother used to work in these facilities, so Akikta was familiar with the mechanisms of the factory. The former scientists that worked here loved their puzzles; every door and contraption within the factory could only be opened or activated after a specific action was done. "Damn this place and its puzzles," Akikta muttered.
The power in this place was scarce, so he had to solve various puzzles to reroute power in order to open the doors he needed to go through. It was a tedious process.
Suddenly, and finally, something unexpected happened. Akikta accidentally input the wrong button sequence on the next door, though instead of all the buttons flashing red to indicate he got the pattern wrong, they flashed blue. The only colors they should've been able to flash were green or red. So why blue?
He got his answer when the wall to the side released steam and slid apart, revealing a passage he didn't know existed. "What the?" The shirtless boy approached and peered down the hidden hall.
It was dark, like a black abyss. It reminded him of Subject 7's body color. That alone was almost enough to deter him from even considering going down the dark corridor. But Akikta desperately wanted to know where this hidden passage led. It could take him right to Holdout Zone 7. There was only one way to find out.
He ventured down into the dark hall, holding his mask close to his chest. Akikta inched through the darkness, hoping he didn't fall into an unseeable hole or walk into a wall.
After a few minutes of slow walking, a light appeared in the distance. Visible light told Akikta the end of the dark hall was near. His pace increased. When he reached the end of the tunnel, he was surprised at what he saw.
Unlike prior rooms, the one Akikta wandered into didn't have a factory-esque appearance. It looked more like his father's office at home, only slightly bigger and a whole lot neater.
Lined on the walls were various schematics of different contraptions. One of which caught his attention; it looked familiar.
He gently unstuck the blueprint from the wall; on it were two pod designs. The top sketch of the pod looked identical to the cryo-pod Akikta went to sleep in. Next to it were labels that said various things. One label in particular stuck out, as it had a large arrow pointing from it to the top sketch of the pod. "Completed. Fully operational."
His eyes trailed down to the bottom sketch of the same pod, though this one looked more similar to the cryo-pods his friends went to sleep in.
His heart sank as he read the label next to the design. "Incomplete. Not enough time...?" The last sentence was scribbled under the bold word: Incomplete.
Father Axe was the one who built those pods, so Akikta had to assume he was the one who scribbled on the blueprint. So what did he mean by not enough time? And what were the blueprints doing here?
When the questions bubbled up in his head, Akikta noticed a workbench at the back of the room. Curiosity had him walk over, only to see two items that didn't belong amongst various tools. He set aside the blueprint for now.
The first item was a photo of Father Axe with another man. He and the man appeared to be standing in a field of bright green grass; in the distance were trees.
Wrinkles and slightly sagged skin that was common on Father Axe were notably scarce in this photo, and the background of the picture didn't look like a place from Alterna.
Father Axe's arm was wrapped around the man's shoulder while the other was throwing up a peace sign. Clearly, the two were friends. But Akikta doesn't recall ever seeing the man before, not in person or in other photos.
The man was wearing a hat. That, plus the tilt of his head, made everything except his eyes visible. He also held up a peace sign.
In his free hand was a strange black and white furry creature. It was small and had pointed ears with bright yellow eyes. It also had a tail, the tip of which resembled an arrow.
Akikta recognized the creature as a cat, but that realization confused him more. There were no other land animals in Alterna; only humans and sea life.
His attention turned to the second item of importance, a bright blue tape recorder. Akikta wouldn't have touched it, but the words "To Young Aku" were written on the front of the device with a black marker. This was meant for him.
Suddenly, this area made sense. The photo, the schematics. This was Father Axe's workshop. Well, secret workshop. It was completely sealed off and was in semi-perfect condition, just like the room Akikta awoke from cryosleep in.
A frown curled on his face. He had a gut feeling he wouldn't like whatever he was about to hear. Yet, this recording was intended for Akikta's ears. Since it was his grandfather who made the tape, he decided to give it a listen.
Without further hesitation, he pressed play.
"Young Aku, if you are hearing this... I can only assume the worse has happened." Immediately, the tone was somber. The background noise was light but slightly grainy. Even then, Akikta could hear the faint cracks in Father Axe's voice as the old man spoke. He evidently had just finished crying right before the recording started.
"I apologize in advance for this. I couldn't bring myself to tell you the truth. I was afraid you'd reject the idea and retaliate. I'm truly sorry..." Again, Akikta clutched his mask tightly. "Your scheduled cryosleep. It never was a test. I only told you that so you wouldn't freak out. If everything happens to be a false alarm, you will awaken in a week from now and will never hear this. But...I don't have high hopes for that scenario."
Father Axe's pessimistic attitude was, evidently, reasonable. It's been way more than a week, and Akikta was hearing it all.
"Projections of the Spirit Lifter's launch don't look good. Not at all. But your father and his colleagues won't listen to me. Their excitement to see the surface has made them blind to the problems with the Spirit Lifter. My team and I have analyzed the data repeatedly. We know the rocket is not fit for a test flight. But they think of us as senile old people who fear seeing the surface again." Father Axe explained. Hints of frustration and slight disappointment seeped into his tone of voice. "We survived what happened on the surface for a reason, but they don't see it that way. I have tried to reason with him, but he... they won't listen." Father Axe sighed in defeat.
"Understand, Young Aku; I had no choice but to build that pod for you." Akikta's eyes drifted back over to the schematic of the pod and then to the photo of Father Axe and the man with the cat. "I tried to do the same for your friends. I do not wish for you to be left alone, but there's just not enough time to perfect the others' pods. Even with your brother's help, the most we could accomplish were the prototypes. They're likely to fail..." Thankfully, Chaska was mentioned, so the memory of Akikta's dead friends did not cross his mind.
He had no idea his brother was in on this. They never kept secrets from each other. Never. He didn't know how to feel. "I modeled the cryo-pod chamber after my lab. Should disaster hit, you will be safe. That I can guarantee. Your pods have been set to open automatically two thousand years from now. That should be more than enough time for the disaster to pass." Akikta's eyes widened. It shocked him to learn he's been in that pod for an additional ten thousand years. On top of the fact that this vital recording never got to him, the catastrophe must've been far worse than O.R.C.A had let on.
"Young Aku, you may never forgive me for my decision. I will admit, I hesitated. I did not want to give you the burden of surviving a disaster others wouldn't. I-I know what that does to people. But, young Chaska insisted." A tear began sliding down Akikta's cheek. He wiped it away, not wanting to deal with those right now.
Chaska knew what was coming and still chose to save his little brother over himself. Akikta wasn't sure if he should hate his brother or praise him. "With any luck, there will be other survivors. Even if I live through this, I doubt people will prioritize an old man like myself." Father Axe exhaled softly, it being slightly distorted.
"When you wake, I don't know what exactly will await you. I wonder if any of us will survive and leave down descendants. Will we be able to repair what is destroyed? I don't even know if Alterna will be around by then." Uncertainty plagued Father Axe's usually confident voice. "But... I do know the surface will have healed from our species' past actions." The confidence reappeared abruptly. "Young Aku, I know what I'm about to say is selfish, but I know you've wanted this. Leave this place. Leave Alterna. Go see the surface. Live out the rest of your days under the sun's warm glow."
A soft creaking noise could be heard coming from Father Axe. "I regret the fact I may not be there with you physically when you see the surface. But know I'll always love you, Young Aku, no matter the life you choose to lead. I'll always-" Father Axe was interrupted by the sudden footsteps of someone else. Distant panting could be heard before a voice boomed out.
"Grandpa! It's Father!" There was no mistaking it. That was Chaska. "The Spirit Lifter! He's jumped the gun and got the others to do the test early!"
"How early?"
"Today!"
There was a brief silence before a new distant voice blared out from the intercoms in the background. Akikta couldn't make out what the voice was saying due to the grainy audio quality. "Son... no..." Father Axe mumbled. Soon after, the voice grew louder to where Akikta could finally hear it. It gave out a loud and clear countdown.
Akikta backed up, genuinely believing everything was happening in real-time.
When the countdown reached zero, a soft rumbling noise could be heard. It lasted briefly before a sudden impact boomed in the background, followed by distant explosions. They were extremely loud. Akikta could hear the rumbles and how many detonations were going off, even with the grainy audio.
"Oh n-" Father Axe cut out. A very faint but audible boom could be heard in the background. Father Axe and Chaska were no longer talking. The recording lasted for a few more seconds before ending abruptly.
Akikta hit the back of the wall, accidentally pressing a button he had missed previously. A new side entrance gradually opened up, revealing a new exit.
Akikta felt a terrible pain in his chest, causing him to grab it tightly. He took in deep breaths, gasping for oxygen. He didn't realize he had stopped breathing.
At the same time, something wet repeatedly landed on his hand and arm. Streams of tears were flooding down his face. No matter how many times he wiped them away, they kept coming.
He regrets listening to the tape recorder. He would've been better off not knowing the truth.
On the bright side, he had context for everything now. Unfortunately, that came at a price. Akikta was put in a pitiful emotional state for the next few minutes.
Eventually, he got himself together and wiped away the last few tear droplets. With a shaky breath, he turned to Father Axe's workbench.
The only thing Akikta wished he had gotten out of that recording was the whereabouts of his grandfather and brother. The workshop was still fine, and there were no remains in sight, so they didn't perish right after the recording ended. Assuming Father Axe recorded it here.
Though, even if they survived the catastrophic rocket failure, it's been so long; they were probably dead by now.
Akikta stood up straight and turned towards the new pathway that opened. "Don't worry, Father Axe. I'll see the surface. I swear it on you, the Great Spirit, and the rest of my family." He said confidently—the desire to escape this prison and the strength to continue filled his entire being. No one was going to stop him.
Not even that bastard, Subject 7.