S1-184
Questions answered
1:18 PM
11/19/3273
Dimension 9 - Undertale
Planet Earth - Mt Ebott
The Surface
Music
Undertale - Song That Might Play When You Fight Sans
Another comparison session between Michael and Sans in dimension 9 was underway.
Sans launched a bone attack, which Michael avoided with the Marksman's Dodge. "I gotta say, Michael. Your reaction time is really spot-on." Sans commended.
Conjuring a fan of three throwing knifes, Michael took a moment to respond. "Thanks. My wife and I have been training together." He threw out the knives, which Sans blocked with another bone attack.
"Don't think I've ever seen THAT attack."
"Hunter. Gunslinger. Way of a Thousand Cuts. Knife Trick."
"Ahh. A triple blade throw. That's impressive. What else you got?" Sans wondered.
Michael vaulted into the air, letting loose a volley of explosive knives. Sans blocked the attack by using a Gaster Blaster as a shield. "What the heck was that?"
"Blade Barrage. It replaces the Golden Gun. Remember the Hammer of Sol?" Michael asked, summoning said flaming mallet.
"Yeah. The Hammer of Sol. I remember."
"Let's just say..." The Hammer of Sol vanished from Michael's hand, replaced by a massive mallet on a staff made of fire. "It got an upgrade. Golem. Sunbreaker. Code of the Devastator. Burning Maul." Michael slammed down with the Burning Maul, sending out a small flame wave that soon erupted into a fire tornado.
Luckily, Sans had shifted out of the way, now sitting comfortably on another Gaster Blaster above the ground. "Yeesh. You've got some new tricks up your sleeves."
"I'm only getting started. Warlock. Stormcaller. Attunement of Control. Chaos Reach!"
Looking back down at Michael, Sans saw his sparring partner unleash a deadly beam of Arc Light. "HOLY-! A long-range beam of death!"
"Warlocks. They hunt for power at the edge of reality."
Taking an opportunity, Sans reoriented his Gaster Blaster to fire a beam at Michael. When the dust settled, Michael was unharmed, sitting in a glowing pool of energy. "Warlock. Dawnblade. Attunement of Grace. Well of Radiance. Greatly heals and empowers allies."
"You just powered through that blast like it was nothing!"
It was then that Michael glowed once again with surging Arc Light. "Golem. Striker. Code of the Missile. THUNDERCRASH!" In a burst of Arc Light, Michael flew into the air, completely covered in electricity. "Fly like a missile!" He made impact with the Gaster Blaster Sans was on, shattering it. "Crash like a meteor!"
Music
none
As Sans fell through the air, he heard Michael's voice once again. "Leap up and slam down! Ballistic Slam!" The Pilot could be seen rocketing downward, falling even faster than Sans, and with Arc Light coating his fist.
The moment Sans reached the ground, he shifted, ending up on the roof to his house. Michael made impact with the ground, leaving a big crater in his wake.
Music
Undertale - sans.
"OK. You've got a lot more skills than I do. I can't do any of that." Sans admitted, conceding defeat.
Michael stepped out of the crater he made, then stretched, hearing muscles pop and mechanical joints click. "Ahh... That felt good. So we know I've got the skills, but what about a phrase?"
"A phrase?"
"Some kind of catchy one-liner?"
Sans understood it now. "Ah. Yeah, I got me some of those." He then got down off the roof.
Music
Undertale - The Fallen Child
He closed his eyeholes, and when he opened them back up, the white lights in them were gone. "Do you wanna have a bad time?"
Music
Super Mario Sunshine - Bianco Hills
Michael started chuckling. "I can do better than that."
"Is that so? Then let's hear it."
"Heh. A 'bad time'... That's stale." He then cleared his throat and closed his eyes.
Music
Metroid: Other M - Nightmare Battle Unmasked
The ground started to crack and splinter, with jagged spikes breaking through the surface as five of Michael's Andromeda Cannons appeared out of nowhere. He opened his eyes, the Eye of the Traveler aglow. "Do you want to have the worst time of your very... short... life?"
Sans was visibly shuddering, his eye sockets wide.
Music
Super Mario Sunshine - Bianco Hills
In a matter of seconds, everything returned to normal, almost as if it had never happened. "That was easy." Michael stated.
"OK. That was terrifying."
Michael smirked. "What else you got? I'm just getting started."
Sans was surprised... even more. "Seriously? Alright."
Music
Undertale - The Choice
His eye sockets went empty black once again. "You'd be dead where you stand."
Michael's right eye flickered with the Light. "You'd be dead before you could even blink."
"That's... interesting. Hmm... How about this?"
Music
none
"Heya. You've been busy, huh? I've got a question for ya. You think even the worst person can change? That everyone can be a good person if they just try? Alright. Well, here's a better question. Do you wanna have a bad time? Because if you take another step forward, you're really not gonna like what happens next."
In Michael's head, Rocco spoke. "{I think this is the part where you take a step forward.}" He did just that.
"Welp. Sorry, old lady. This is why I never make promises." That rapidly-changing, aura-coated, heart-shaped soul appeared in front of Michael. "It's a beautiful day outside. Birds are singing. Flowers are blooming. On days like these, kids like you... should be burning in Hell."
Physically pushing his soul back into his chest, Michael responded. "Let me see what I can make with that."
Music
Super Mario Sunshine - Bianco Hills
After about a minute of careful thinking, Michael put together his own version of Sans's spiel. "Before I begin, who's the old lady you mentioned?"
"Toriel. She made me make a promise. I'll tell you about it another time."
"Alright. Here we go."
Music
Metroid Prime 3: Corruption - Helios Boss Theme
"Hi there. You've been keeping yourself occupied, haven't you? I have something to ask you. Do you believe even the worst creatures and entities can correct their behavior through any amount of effort with simple desire alone? Here's a better one. Do you want to have the worst time of your very... short... life? If you advance any further... Well, it'll be the last thing you ever do." Sans then took a step forward. "Heh. Don't say I didn't warn you. It's a nice day outside, isn't it? Birds are singing. Kids are playing. On beautiful days like these, abominations like you..." The air around them turned harsh, and the Eye of the Traveler glowed red. "...should be sent screaming back to the fiery depths of Hell from whence you came."
Sans jumped back. "Oh geez! Take a chill pill, man!"
Music
Super Mario Sunshine - Bianco Hills
Without warning, everything went back to normal. "I think we should just call it quits with our comparison sessions, since... there's nothing left to compare. Also, that last part was just horrifying. I mean... Seriously. Michael W Johnson, please calm down."
"Well OK then." Michael chuckled. "Anyway, I think that session went longer than we planned."
"I'll give you a shortcut."
1:31 PM
11/19/3273
Yionus's moon, Zuter - IMC testing site Echo-918
Chamber 137
Music
Metroid Prime 3: Corruption - Briefing Room & Ambience Theme
Eventually, Michael and Rocco had returned to their own dimension.
"{I think we should see how Ana's doing.}"
"Right. We still need to figure out how to move Rasputin and the rest of the Clovis Bray facility to the Frontier. Earth's solar system is pretty much kaput."
"{So... Rasputin's going to planet Korj?}"
"No. Planet Yixx. The IMC Sand Trap facility. 'Sand Trap' is the codename for a formerly decommissioned IMC refueling facility, which was reactivated after the Battle of Demeter. It was also the site of my very first mission in the IMC's ranks."
Rocco 'jumped' back in surprise. "{Your first mission?!}"
"It was where I met Jeeves, and got linked with Vanessa."
"{You met your third Titan, and got linked with your first. I should really study the IMC's mission records more. That stuff is absolutely fascinating.}"
"I knew you'd say that. Shall we head to Mars?"
1:47 PM
11/19/3273
Planet Mars - Hellas Basin
BrayTech Futurescape
Music
Destiny 2 - Hellas Basin
Upon reaching the BrayTech Futurescape on Mars, Michael made his way to Ana's relay, only to see a certain Exo. "Howdy, Michael." Mark-18 greeted.
"Hi, Mark. Where's Ana?" Michael looked around, seeing no sign of the Hunter he was looking for.
"Up in Hellas View. Ana and Jinju are preparing Rasputin for the move."
"Oh. Who's Jinju?"
"Ana's Ghost."
"Ah, OK."
Mark-18 then typed away at the makeshift terminal. "Well, with the Grasp of Nokris having been cut back by Rasputin's Escalation Protocol... and the Shadow's involvement, we've got more than enough time for the IMC crews to take this place apart and put it back together on planet Sholl."
"One of the arctic planets in the Frontier? That's where we put the Iron Temple!"
The Exo then looked through his own IMC PDA. "OK then. How about planet Frozic?"
"Frozic? You'll have to ask Dr. Hammond."
Out of nowhere, a familiar voice was heard. "OK. Rasputin's ready to be relocated, and the IMC crews are on their way." Ana then took notice of the visiting Pilot. "Hey, Michael."
"Hello, Ana. Did you know Mark was here?" Michael asked, gesturing to said Exo.
"Yeah. He's been here for a while. Mark's been a pretty big help around the place. I even found something that concerns him and his brothers. As it turns out, they were among the first to volunteer for the Exo program. To combat the memory loss from a reboot, they actually kept journals to record their live experiences."
"Hey, arctic beauty. Did Big Red have anything to say about me?" Was Mark-18... flirting with Ana?
Ana chuckled. "Yeah. He sends his regards."
Michael was confused by the Exo's sudden name for Ana. "Uh... Mark? Ana? Are you two a...?"
Ana finished his sentence. "A thing? I'd say so. Although I was in a relationship during my life as a Guardian, I recently found out that my romantic partner... ~sigh~ died in a Fallen ambush, about a month after your 'adventure' to the Prison of Elders with Cayde."
"While reading through my old journal, and combing the Clovis Bray archives for the name 'Mark', I stumbled across something. Apparently, Ana and I were in a relationship long before the Collapse. My journal goes all the way up to Mark-17, and then it just... cuts off."
Michael was intrigued. "What about Hayden and Tanner?"
"Their journals stop at Hayden-9 and Tanner-20. According to City records, the only Guardian capable of beating Cayde in a draw was Hayden-9, who actually had a wager on the duel. If Cayde won, Hayden-9 would be reset to a Hunter rookie under his mentorship after his reboot. If Hayden won, which he did, Cayde would consider him 'graduated'. He was rebooted to Hayden-10 shortly after, and was proclaimed to be no longer under Cayde's 'tutoring'. Tanner-20, however, helped Banshee with any and all weapons. When he was rebooted to Tanner-21, Banshee expressed a bit of sadness that his 'weapons buddy' would never be the same again."
It was then that Mindsight appeared. "{When I first brought you back, you had already been rebooted. Mark-17 took his last breath, yet Mark-18 had yet to take his first. You died during a reboot.}"
"Oh yeah. I remember. There was an ID card on that old coat I was wearing at the time. I was known as Mark Estrada, and I was one of the head researchers. Hayden was one of Clovis Bray's leading inventors, and I guess that would explain why he put his loyalty to the Iron Lords and eventually the Black Armory. Tanner was a field researcher, and one of the brightest minds of the Clovis Bray corporation."
Ana joined in. "According to Mindsight, Cyleena, and Argon, the Exo brothers were all found in the same chamber in the same facility here on Mars, but it wasn't this one. They were found in Meridian Bay. The Cabal exclusion zone."
"I think we should continue this conversation another time. The IMC crews are here. Michael, why don't you and Rocco head on home?"
Shrugging, Michael agreed. "Alright."
2:19 PM
11/19/3273
Planet Vez-2 - Suburban Cul-De-Sac
Aran-Johnson residence
Music
Chibi-Robo: Plug Into Adventure - Broad Daylight
Upon returning home, Michael noticed that Samus and Jenny were out, and that Cayde and Glitch Frisk were playing that Transformers Prime Wii game on Multiplayer Mode. It looked like a Brawl match. Cayde chose Bumblebee, and Glitch Frisk was playing Soundwave.
Eventually, a winner was decided. Bumblebee threw two punches through the air, then performed a backflip. Finally, he let out a few beeps.
P2
WIN
"You're good, Glitch Frisk. You must've been playing this for a while before we met." Cayde commended.
"I took an interest after I was moved here. I once took up residence in the IMC HQ civilian quarters, but then I was invited to live here."
Smiling at the new friendship, Michael took a look at the results on the screen.
P1 _ SOUNDWAVE _ 07 WINS
P2 _ BUMBLEBEE _ 09 WINS
Michael let out an impressed whistle, then headed upstairs to relax a bit. That comparison session earlier today certainly exhausted him.
"{I still can't believe all that we accomplished.}"
"Believe it, Rocco. We're living it. For real."
Suddenly, a beeping was heard. "{You got a call from Tony... S-Stank? Oh! Tony Stark!}"
Michael practically burst out into laughter. "Tony STANK?! PfpfpfpfHHHAAAAAhahahahahahaHAAA!"
"{OK, I will admit, that was pretty funny.}" Rocco stated as Michael took hold of the IMC PDA on the nightstand.
"Hey, Tony. What's new?"
Tony looked a bit serious on the screen. "It's about those documents you guys found in that underground lab in Colony G21 on Troy. I need you to come to Avenger Tower... alone, but... Rocco can come too. After all, he's your Ghost."
2:28 PM
11/19/3273
Planet Korj - Avengers Tower
Recreational center
Music
Metroid Fusion - Sector 1 SRX) SR388 Simulation Area
Once Michael's ship had touched down, he got out, seeing none other than Tony Stark waiting for him near the landing pad, and he was holding those documents.
"Interstellar Manufacturing Corporation 2nd Gen Pilot Michael W Johnson reporting for duty, Mr. Stark."
"Is that how you greet others when you get called in for stuff?" Tony wondered.
"It's how I greeted Sloane on Titan, just before she ordered me to help a lone Ghost find its Guardian in the Arcology. Said Guardian happened to be Leilani Valero, a member of the original Arcology crew."
Tony then handed Michael the first of the decoded documents, which was a picture of the cryptic writing on the wall of that ancient lab.
MacAllan didn't have the guts!
"Who's MacAllan?" Tony wondered.
"James MacAllan was an ex-IMC Executive Officer who led a mutiny onboard the IMS Odyssey, then joined the Militia. Feel free to look him up in the IMC's database when you have the time."
"Got it. Here's the next one."
OPERATION BIO-TERMINATION
LOG 1
Nobody here knows about my bio-weapon experiments with artificial human DNA, and I intend to keep it that way. The specimens I am generating may be basically human, but the genes that sets each individual human apart, I have isolated and removed them in my samples.
We are the advanced, and my specimens are the basics. I will prove the Militia wrong! My human bio-weapons will eradicate the IMC from within, leaving the Frontier to us!
It's like my father, who foolishly sided with the IMC, came to believe: human life is expendable.
Long live the Militia.
"That's freaky. Wait... General Marder... was a father? Interesting." Michael mused.
OPERATION BIO-TERMINATION
LOG 3
Three of the subjects are already showing signs of good health, the rest have been dismantled and recycled.
I don't know why, but HBW017 is showing very promising biological readings, so I injected an artificial genome to tell him apart. I took one of those Marvins from the IMS Odyssey and reprogrammed it to be my own personal servant. Now I see why the IMC has so many of them. Marvins are efficient labor drones. I should get myself more of these sometime.
"Ikora did point out a tube with 'HBW017' engraved on a panel in that lab."
OPERATION BIO-TERMINATION
LOG 5
HBW017 is almost ready to start aging, and I estimate that it'll be two or three weeks before I can put this project into motion.
I proposed the idea of biological warfare to MacAllan, but he just told me to forget it and 'find my sanity'! I will prove him wrong! This will work! IT HAS TO WORK!
"Sounds like MacAllan was right to say that. This guy's insane."
OPERATION BIO-TERMINATION
LOG 14
The IMC are attacking! It's too soon! Not now! NOT WHEN I'M SO CLOSE! I have to send out an SOS to the Militia, it's our only chance!
"This one most likely corresponds with when the IMC searched that colony for Militia forces." Michael was right.
"I took a sample from the remains of the DNA experiments in that lab, and I'm having FRIDAY run a few tests and scans."
"I'll have these sent to the IMC HQ. Thanks for the decryption."
"No problem."
2:28 PM
11/19/3273
Yionus's moon, Zuter - IMC testing site Echo-918
Chamber 137
Music
Metroid Prime 3: Corruption - Briefing Room & Ambience Theme
After handing the decoded documents to Spyglass for further processing, Michael had returned to the testing site housing the World Gate.
"{Wanna head back to dimension 5 and pay Ben a visit? How about dimension 10? There's still so much of Far Eden left to explore alongside Joule Adams.}"
"You sound excited."
"{Maybe we could go back to dimension 12 and see how Connor's doing in his investigation. Either that, or we could head to dimension 11 and explore Outertale. Maybe we could try Dimension Key 8 again? You DID make Glitch Frisk that promise.}"
"He was asleep. It's not like he'd have heard me whisper from the door."
"{What if we visit Samuel Henter again in dimension 3? Oh! Wait! How about we go to dimension 2? There are still instances of SCP-966 to hunt down. Your Light can protect you from the waves they give off that permanently inhibit your ability to sleep. Now that I think about it, I'm curious about the relationship between Frisk and Asriel. Let's go to dimension 9.}"
"There might be another new Key under construction."
"{Maybe we could head to dimension 1 and ask Error Sans for a passage to another of those alternate universes we don't have a Key for.}"
"That... actually peaks my interest."
Michael then went to the containment unit next to the World Gate's console and put his left hand on the scanner. The container opened, revealing every single Dimension Key in existence, all lined up on racks. He then pulled Dimension Key 1 off the top rack, and tossed it into the arch, where the Key opened its trans-dimensional portal of rushing energy.
Taking a Chrono-Extractor off the holding rack on the other side of the chamber, Michael neared the portal. He was about to step through, until his IMC PDA rang.
Pulling the PDA off his belt, Michael answered the call. "This is IMC Pilot Michael W Johnson. How may I help you?"
A female AI was on the other side. It was FRIDAY. "I've finished my scans of the DNA samples Mr Stark took from the ancient laboratory under Colony G21 on Troy, and I have reached a surprising conclusion."
"{FRIDAY actually came through for us, huh? That's... not surprising.}"
"What did you find, FRIDAY?"
"Other than the chromosomes that determine hair and eye color, the biological samples perfectly match your own genetic signature."
"I'm sorry. What?"
"Perhaps you should see for yourself." The screen's display changed, and Michael's eyes widened at what he saw.
Music
Doctor Who - Bad Wolf
Michael's attention drifted, and he absentmindedly dropped his PDA. It hit the ground, the screen now sporting a crack. Rocco was very much concerned. "{Michael, are... are you OK?}" No response. "{Rocco to Michael. Do you copy?}" Nothing.
Out of nowhere, Rocco felt a disturbance in the Light... in Michael's Light. He wasn't taking it well at all.
"{Michael, you're worrying me right now. Say somethi-}" Rocco was interrupted as Michael turned and sprinted through the rift.
Rocco sought to follow him, but the portal closed before he could. Separated from his Guardian, Rocco looked at Michael's PDA. Its cracked screen was displaying two holographic strands of DNA. The one on the left was from the samples, and the one on the right was from the Pilot himself. Between the two strands was the result of FRIDAY's scan.
GENETIC MATCH
100%
"{Michael came from that lab... He... He was one of those DNA experiments.}"
It all made sense now.
Michael was found within close proximity to the entrance to that lab, and so was that old Marvin.
Only one of the incubation tubes in that lab were broken, and it was from the outside.
Michael was HWB017.
Well, that... brings the mystery to a close... but in a very unexpected way.
The story's point of view didn't follow him into dimension 1 this time because... he needs some time to think... alone. That's gonna take a while.
See you... next time. Oh my cotton socks...