Chapter 23
Nearly blinded by the sudden exposure to extreme light, Aaron spilled from his roll hard on his back. His eyes took minutes to adjust as he was suddenly thrown into a world far from the Grid. The black stormy sky had vanished along with the grayscale contrast of the landscape. Even the ground he laid upon was pure white, traced with a dimensional grid shining blue through the haze of extreme white and forceful gusts of wind, threatening to throw him off his balance. The sky too was a clear existence of nothing. The feeling was surreal as he'd grown accustomed to the endless darkness of the Grid. Laid out on the hard ground, Aaron rolled to his stomach and groaned as he pushed to his feet. His vision was beginning to adjust to the exposure, allowing his senses to stabilize. "So this is the Beta Grid," he mumbled to himself over the roaring howl of the wind." The area had a different feel than that of the original Grid, more than just the lighting. Despite the brightness that engulfed the entire area, a dark presence seemed to linger. Aaron felt it like a heavy weight on his shoulders. Finally his vision cleared, allowing him to take in his surroundings. He stood on the outskirts of a cluster of tall, white buildings. Unlike the architecture of the Grid, the buildings were more or less boring, just great big blocks abandoned many cycles ago. In the center of the cluster, a single four pronged structure reached as the skeleton of an ornate pyramid. Something told him that was his target. With a final deep breath, Aaron stepped into the truly 'unknown'. His disc was drawn and ignited in his hand. He stepped cautiously with his empty hand out in front and disc leveled to his neckline. Harsh determination scrunched on his face, as he squinted through the brightness and wind. He finally came to the ring of buildings just outside of the heart of the cluster. Aaron quickly threw himself up against the flat, white wall of the closest building. He took another deep breath to calm himself, then spun into the area with his disc raised. Despite the intense brightness, his eyes grew wide from what he saw. Vyril stood in front of a podium like panel, working on a display of coding which was projected from Aaron's personal disc, hovering above just above the podium. Flanking her on either side, admiring her work was Scyluss and Avro. The pyramid like structure loomed in front of them, with a red glowing inside base. Slowly Avro turned with a blank yet disgusted face. From behind his hood, his eyes glowered at him. Scyluss turned just seconds later with a wicked grin on his demented, pale face.
"Too late User," he hissed.
"In just moments, our teacher will be released and salvation will be brought to the Grid," Avro declared in a gravely drone. Aaron shook his head defiantly.
"This ends now," he growled as he wound his arm around his chest before chucking in a curved course. The disc hummed as it rounded to Scyluss. With his throw, the disc would round into a collision with Scyluss then sail straight to Vyril and finish Avro; and it would be over. To his horror, the disc instead was stopped by a glowing red protective orb of energy which appeared when the disc bounded straight back at him. In shock, Aaron ducked and allowed the disc to fly over his flat chest. He caught it with minimal attention on the rebound. Scyluss laughed menacingly from inside the red surging shield. Aaron breathed heavily with his eyes wide in surprise and mouth open. He stood low allowing his defense down from the surprise.
"Foolish, User," the Disciple laughed again. "Nothing is greater than our teacher." Suddenly a surge of blue energy shot from the podium and flowed up the four prongs of the open pyramid. Vyril stepped back from the podium and turned to Scyluss.
"It is time," she announced in her droning voice. She finally turned to glower smugly at Aaron, side stepping as she and Scyluss swapped positions. Scyluss gracefully walked backwards, approaching the inside of the pyramid and stepping onto the glowing red base.
"Remember this moment, Bother and Sister, for this is the salvation of the Grid!" Scyluss' black, dead eyes suddenly flared like a flame, bursting with orange energy. The Disciple stood, outstretched in the middle of the base which flashed violently with red surges of light and energy. The energy from the base then exploded, overflowing from the skeleton of the pyramid. Scyluss screamed a sickening scream of agony as he was engulfed by the blast of energy. Through the red haze, Aaron watched as the robed Disciple changed completely. His form seemed to stretch and expand to a large being. Another surge of energy coursed through the pyramid, striking the figure inside the haze when it collected at the unresolved point of the prongs. The figure's scream morphed into a deep horrible roar. The energy inside the pyramid pressurized with a whine in the air before flashing brighter than even the pure white surroundings. Aaron retracted, shielding his eyes. The glowing red inside the pyramid died away yet remained in the form of a massive figure encased in the energy which surged about its body, coursing with scrolls of coding. Complex orange circuitry defined its edges and entwined throughout his body. The head of the figure was bald and almost squared. The only discernible features on its face were piercing, burning red pupils surrounded by white eyes. With a step that nearly shook the ground, the Master Control Program stepped from the Pyramid. In complete shock and awe, Avro and Vyril dropped to their knees, bowing low to their Master.
"The User," he bellowed with a thunderous, deep voice. "Without you this was not possible, I'll be sure to reward you with a swift end." Aaron stayed his ground, disc out and ready.
"You want the Grid, you'll have to get through me," he declared defiantly.
"Fool!" he roared. "Finish him!" Vyril's head snapped up and her eyes narrowed on Aaron along with Avro. Together they drew their discs and leapt up throwing them hard. Aaron stood fast, not daring to allow the MCP any chance. He deflected one of the sizzling discs with his own though couldn't round out of the path of the second in enough time. The disc sliced his arm, causing spurts of blood to fly. Aaron groaned as he grabbed his wound, dropping from his strained weariness. Vyril after retrieving her disc launched into the air over to Aaron's fallen form. Before being able to land on him, Aaron rolled away to his right. Vyril slowly turned her head to glare back at him. With a wince, Aaron rose to his knees. Vyril lunged her disc again. With a wave of his arm, he deflected the attack. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Avro jump and spin. Aaron directed his attention to the Disciple and waited to parry away his toss. He successfully blocked the attack and rose back to his feet, staying low and ready to pounce. Aaron was then seized from behind. Vyril trapped him, wrapping her arm around his neck, raising her disc above his head. Aaron struggled, trying to throw her off. Directly ahead of him, Aaron fixed his gaze on the Avro who spun around, charging his attack. Aaron growled as he continued to fight off Vyril from behind, using his disc to hold off hers which dangled threateningly above head. Avro finally released his disc, sending it flying towards its target. With a roar, Aaron grabbed Vyril's captivating arm and rolled her over his back. As she was flung the disc soared, striking her square in the back. The Disciple's wrist shattered in his solid grip as she erupted with a shrill scream. Aaron dropped to his knees again, feeling light headed and drained. The MCP's thunderous steps crashed as the massive being of energy stepped in closer, cackling maliciously with a distorted, heavy voice. Avro's face contorted in rage snarling evilly at Aaron's form. As he struggled to rise again, Aaron couldn't shake away the weakness he felt shuddering his body. Before on the Grid he could feel injuries regenerate over short time. But now, he was feeling drained, like a beached whale struggling on dry land. Nevertheless, his resolve was unwavering, standing straight as he stared straight into the black hexagonal eyes of Avro.
"You, you will be destroyed USER!" he shrieked. He flustered as he faced the behemoth of energy behind him. "Master, will you do nothing!" The MCP slowly turned its squared head, boring its gaze into the Disciple.
"Only the powerful can rule," he bellowed. Avro's contorted rage boiled further as he turned with a roar to face his opponent. Aaron's gaze darted from the Disciple to the MCP, wondering why the titan didn't act.
"Its not talking about you," Aaron growled in pain as he tried to steady his breathing. "You think its going to share its power?" The Disciple stooped as it took slow steps toward him.
"Its not power that which I seek," he droned. Avro then released a powerfull toss of his disc. Aaron threw himself to the ground, rolling out of danger as the disc sailed past his legs. He retaliated with a toss of his own which Avro wasn't ready for. The Disciple's disc dropped to the ground as it's owner shrieked and fell to pieces. Aaron breathing had run ragged while he struggled to stay sturdy on his feet. He fought the quake in his legs with every bit of strength he had. Out of nowhere, a massive, blazing foot dropped from above, nearly stomping down on him. Aaron had rolled again, emerging in a kneel. The MCP bellowed in laughter.
"How many more have to die?" Aaron growled, fighting to stay strong.
"As many more as needed to secure this system," the MCP said with its booming voice. "Starting with you." The energy which flowed visibly on the giant surged, collecting to his chest before firing a massive beam. Aaron dodged out of the destructive path of the beam, breaking into a run, before leaping behind cover as the beam burned through the buildings around them.