Chapter 13
Glitch didn't even plan to entertain the thought of surrendering. He swept the Droid standing over him off his feet. He rose and drew his Level 3 Mining Laser. The Droid tried advancing on him again with his spear, but only until Glitch aimed his firearm in his direction. He kept the laser trained as he began charging it. He held the powerful red beam and prepared to fire. The Droid noticed the effect it had on his spear. The heat from the beam melted the steel before his very eyes. The superior weapon quickly deterred the Droid. Without a second thought, he lowered his defense and backed off.
"Wait, Glitch, me lad! No!"
Glitch heard Feeble and looked his way. The Droid previously holding him hostage was helping him up now. The last three Droids helped up Dr. Axon, Rev, and Melvin. It left Glitch perplexed, but he let down his Mining Laser anyway.
The Droid standing in front of him placed his spear inside the sleeve he carried on his back. "Myuk to no," he said.
He spoke in a different language. Glitch blinked, confused. "What'd he say?" he asked.
"He said, 'Sorry to alarm you'," Feeble revealed. "It's Droidic. An old, native tongue nearly lost to the rest of Iron Star. I speak some of it meself!"
"Feeble is right." Dr. Axon concentrated on the screen of one of his numerous devices. "My universal translator fails to recognize the language. It is extremely rare." He glanced at Feeble. "Could you ask if they mind me recording it?" he eagerly requested of him. "Ancient languages must be preserved!"
Feeble asked the leading native the same question in Droidic. He immediately answered back. Afterwards, Feeble turned to Dr. Axon and gave him an approving nod. Axon happily went to work on his translator.
"Nok?"
Everyone looked to their right. Another Droid native emerged from one of the passageways. Glitch quietly studied him. Like the others, he loosely resembled the standard Droid, except he was incredibly old. Glitch guessed they were all models that were long obsolete. The old Droid's paint, which was likely once blue, had faded with age, now nothing more than a pale gray. His optics, though they might have once shone brightly, were now dim and colorless. He still appeared to see fairly well, however.
The old native Droid moved closer to the five foreign travelers on his rusting staff. His antiquated eyes thoroughly scanned them. They landed on Feeble, and that was when they widened suddenly. Feeble calmly looked back at the Droid, reading him with a mutual level of respect with what little vision he had in his one left optic. Out of nowhere, the old Droid threw up his sleeved arms. He smiled at Feeble from ear to ear.
"Iron-Eye!" he exclaimed.
"Lorkrid!" Feeble threw out his arms the same way. He hobbled up to the bot and hugged him tightly.
Glitch and the others couldn't help but gawk at the pair. They recognized one another. They were like juvenile Droids, two boys excited for their play date. Feeble and Lorkrid danced around in each other's arms, singing pirate songs and giving the other noogies. Glitch had never witnessed such a blatantly strong bond between two old friends. They pulled away from each other a minute later, still grinning.
"I did not think we would see each other again after so many years, Feeble!" Lorkrid expressed.
"It be good seein' ye, too, Lorkrid, old pal!" Feeble gushed. He remembered his group and faced them. "This be Lorkrid, everyone!" he said. "I met him during me days as a pirate. Lorkrid, this be Axon, Glitch, and Melvin. The lass be Rev and the little bird be Dipper."
"I am honored to meet the comrades of such a wonderful friend as Feeble." Lorkrid bowed to them. "Enough meandering," he continued. "Guards, help me escort our guests into the city."
City? Glitch wondered silently to himself while following.
The native Droids led them through the same passage Lorkrid emerged from. It was like a hallway; it wound to the left until eventually leading to a door embedded in ice. Lorkrid pressed his hand against the center. The technology inside the door recognized his blueprint and slid open accordingly. The advancement surprised Glitch. On the surface, the natives appeared as though they preferred living without such utilities.
The door gave way to an immensely vast settlement located deep within the glacier. Glitch and the others couldn't even try to hide their astonishment. None of them had ever seen anything like the ice community, not even Dr. Axon. Lorkrid hadn't been exaggerating. It was a city after all—a mega city, to be exact.
"Only three of the passages you saw lead here," Lorkrid noted. "We came through one of them. The rest lead to booby traps."
"Uhh…what kind of booby traps?" Melvin had to ask.
"Spikes, mostly!" Lorkrid replied. "Others are rooms that close in on the bot to crush them. The remaining few have beheading devices that are triggered by motion sensors."
Melvin gulped. Rev giggled behind him.
Lorkrid led them into the heart of the mega city. Along the way, Glitch occasionally had to step out of the path of passersby moving on rickshaws. Other Droids traveled on the backs of creatures Glitch couldn't even begin to recognize. One of them was like a smaller variant of the sea monster from the cave. It made Glitch tense up a bit. The last thing he wanted to see was anything that remotely resembled that beast.
They reached the heart of the community. The mega city had multiple levels. It was essentially a frozen silo. Glitch craned his neck to try viewing the very top. It was high above; sunlight faintly came through a hole in the ice overhead. It was a window that had been frozen over. Glitch could only imagine how long it took to accomplish such an architectural feat. By the time Lorkrid settled them in a small hub, he'd already begun providing an explanation.
"This fortress was passed down to me by my predecessor Lulkkha over a century ago."
"This glacier's stood in one piece for that long?" Rev asked.
"Oh, not at all!" Lorkrid exclaimed. "It is not a glacier. It is manmade through and through. It is merely frozen over by the ice. We do not bother trying to keep it away. It only comes right back." He took a long puff from a pipe before continuing. "My people forged it with their bare hands millennia ago. It served as a stronghold against the Morbots."
"The Morbots?" Glitch sat up in his seat as his curiosity grew.
Lorkrid gravely nodded his head. "Yes," he muttered. "My people were among the last to have seen them—and live to tell about it."
Glitch took note of Lorkrid's forlorn demeanor. His attitude had changed. Feeble's face also darkened while sitting beside him. He knew where Lorkrid's story was headed. Glitch quietly recalled his mentioning of the Morbots' endeavors, of the things they did that had to be kept from future Droid generations. This, without a doubt, was one of them.
"Lulkkha told the story to me after it was passed down to him," Lorkrid went on. "It is tradition for the leaders to bestow the story of the Morbot gateway on their successors, so that they do not forget our people's history of sacrifice.
"It was not long after the treaty was formed between the Morbots and Droids, where the Droids were allowed to keep the planet's surface. The Morbots had just built the gateways, including the one beyond our fortress. We owned this part of the land. The gateway was a direct violation of the political agreement. Our tribe confronted them. While they were not too forward, we learned it was for malicious purposes. The Morbots intended to reclaim the surface for themselves. The gateways simply provided easy access.
"We threatened to have the gateway destroyed. However, the Morbots had other plans. The night of their attack was one not to be forgotten by our tribe. It was one of oilshed. Though, it was not the Morbots themselves who forged destruction on our land. It was their soldiers. They were bots sent by the Morbots to silence those who opposed their actions."
The guardian Droids, Glitch thought.
"They scared our tribe into submission," said Lorkrid. "They warned us not to bring their transgressions to the Droid government. Today, the gateway stands as a reminder of what occurred—of what could happen if any Droid dare enter or even mention its builders without fear of reprisal."
Lorkrid stopped momentarily to take another drag from his pipe. Glitch sat silent with the rest of his group. He caught a glimpse of Rev's worried eyes. Glitch felt his core skip a beat. What would Lorkrid and his people do if they found out he and Rev were guardian Droids themselves? He shifted uncomfortably, self-conscious now of the mark on the back of his head. He looked ahead to see Feeble lowering his gaze to the icy floor beneath them. Glitch knew what he was thinking.
"The latest of our generations fail to take the tale seriously." Lorkrid started speaking again. "They dismiss it as folklore, a scary story to keep juveniles from tampering with the gateway. But it is much more." He took yet another puff. "The lands are changing," he carried on. "Industrialization takes hold of this part of the world. A group of our men returned one day with talks of a grand fortress constructed among the mountains. It weeps dark clouds. They leave the air in its foreign stench."
He was referring to Dr. Exavolt's base in the mountains, Glitch gathered.
Feeble finally mustered the courage to face him. "There's something ye should know, Lorkrid."
"What might that be, friend?" Lorkrid's old optics curiously beamed at him.
Glitch held his breath.
"The young bots with us, the lad and the Sally." Feeble motioned to him and Rev with his hand. "There be somethin' 'bout them I should warn ye 'bout. It be part of the reason we're here."
Lorkrid patiently waited for the revelation.
"They be two of 'em, old pal." Feeble's iron face remained serious yet sincere. "They be two of the old guardians."
Glitch saw Lorkrid's body fall completely still. It was as if the cold had frozen his circuits. Glitch looked at Rev to see her more unsettled than ever. He quickly motioned for her to come to his side so he could protect her. She immediately understood and hurried to join him. Glitch got ready to pick out a gun. The situation was about to call for it.
"Oh." Lorkrid blinked toward Glitch and Rev, seemingly dumbfounded. "Oh," he repeated.
Glitch and Rev looked at each other, expecting the worst.
Lorkrid's dimming white optics narrowed with bitterness. He bolted to his feet. He pointed to Glitch and Rev with an ancient metal finger. "FIENDS!" he shouted.
He sounded an alarm, a loud, vocal cry from the throat. Every native Droid within vicinity stopped their daily tasks to peer the group's way. Glitch took Rev and moved away from Lorkrid. Feeble, Melvin, and Dr. Axon followed. Within seconds, the five of them found themselves huddled together in the center of a growing mob. Lorkrid stood against them with his fellow natives. He continued pointing at them and screaming.
Aw, crap, Glitch complained in his head.
"These foreigners do not belong!" Lorkrid's optics were wild with anger, a complete contrast to the hospitality he showed only minutes before. "Seize them! Seize the guardians of darkness and their accomplices! Execute them all!"
He yelled the order in his language. Glitch looked down at Feeble. "You wouldn't mind translatin' that for us, would ya?"
"They plan to kill us," Feeble simply stated.
"Uhm, ok, guys, what do we do?" Rev nervously asked. "I'm up for suggestions, just so ya know!"
"Lorkrid, enough of this!" Feeble pleaded. "Have ye become a madman?"
"My duty is to my tribe," Lorkrid growled. "My people shall not succumb to the will of the Morbots during my reign!"
The mob surged in uncomfortably close. Tribe warriors pushed themselves to the front of the crowd with their weapons drawn. One of them was emboldened enough to grab Rev by the hood of her beige overcoat. He aggressively yanked her forward to see the back of her green and blue head. He scowled at her mark. "Wicked she-guardian," he spat through a thick accent.
Glitch pulled his pickaxe off his backpack. He brought it down on the tribesman's hand. It forced him to release Rev and jump back screaming. He shouldn't have done that; it left Glitch livid. He socked the tribe warrior with enough force to dent one side of his head. The hook flattened him out on the ice. Glitch drew his Mining Laser and fired in front of the mob. A few tribe members scattered. The rest fell back but held their ground. The warning shots didn't keep them off. They pressed forward again—and attacked.
It's them or us. Glitch no longer had a choice. He opened fire on the first wave of attackers. The beams from his laser left holes in their frames. Rev kicked one in the chest and face, while Melvin shattered a block of ice across another's head. Dr. Axon fired a long beam from his rifle cannon. It tore through a sizable chunk of the crowd.
Lorkrid caught sight of the advanced weaponry. "Sorcery!" he rebuked.
"Arrrrgh!"
A kick to his stomach sent him writhing. He slowly looked up from the blow to find Feeble's dagger trained on him. His blatant rage left Lorkrid slightly uneasy.
"How dare ye do this to us, Lorkrid?" Feeble demanded. "What happened to our friendship? Have the ways of old tangled the wires in yer head?"
"My spirit is perfectly balanced," Lorkrid argued. "My conscience remains clear!"
He pulled himself upright and lunged at Feeble with a cry. Though it rasped with age, it once carried the strength of a capable warrior Droid. Feeble countered his attacks with both his rod and dagger. Lorkrid's staff clashed with his weapons, forming sparks with every swing. Feeble slipped between Lorkrid's legs. His move took the native leader by surprise as he jumped up behind him. He tried to retaliate, but Feeble was much quicker. He slashed Lorkrid once across the chest, then again across the gut. His dagger severed the metal under Lorkrid's weathered robe. He held the bleeding wounds, just as his oil darkened the front of his garment. He coughed, then crashed to his knees.
"I'm sorry, friend." Feeble watched him grow weaker.
Lorkrid's second cough brought up oil. "Save your patronizing pities," he sputtered. "They befall deaf ears. Your allegiance is to them, not me."
"I will give ye one more chance." Feeble firmly gripped his blade. "Call the attack off me crew. Or face the sting of me iron one last time."
"Never." Rage filled Lorkrid's dying breath. "Never!"
He stumbled toward Feeble with the last of his strength. Feeble readied himself.
"Morbots have no place here!" Lorkrid roared. "Neither do their creations, the ones who carry their genes! My duty is simple. It is to keep my people safe, to ensure they know the truth, to preserve and protect the Droidic name!"
Feeble didn't speak. He didn't agree or object.
"You know of their evils. You know the legends." Lorkrid pointed a shaky finger toward him. "Yet you help them," he accused. "You aid their fallen!"
Feeble kept silent. Even when Lorkrid was less than a foot away, he stood firm before him.
"They must perish!" Lorkrid's screams thundered through the heart of his city. "They must suffer like the byproducts of evil they are! And you must suffer with them, for any Droid who stands by them is no friend of mine!"
He drove himself at Feeble. But try as he might, he was no match. Feeble sent a blow across his head with his rod. He then proceeded to strike his dagger straight through Lorkrid's torso. Oil blackened the iron blade on the other side. Not too far away, the crowd attacking Glitch and the others stopped at the sight of their leader's demise. Lorkrid was still alive, surprisingly, even after Feeble retracted the dagger from his body. He reached forward to grab him, attempting to attack him a third time. It was his last. A final swipe from Feeble's dagger stopped his hand cold. It fell with his body, while his head remained in Feeble's grasp. His fading optics darted frantically for a moment before falling on the Droid who just slayed him.
"This…day…will haunt you." Partially garbled words escaped Lorkrid's lips. "May the Morbots torment your soul."
"They already have," Feeble muttered.
"Good. You are…a traitor. I side not…with those who rebel. I side not with those who question the narrative."
"Then you are no friend of mine, either."
It was the last thing Feeble said to Lorkrid before driving his blade through the head.
Glitch witnessed the death alongside the others. He watched Feeble gently place Lorkrid's head with his body. He put away his dagger and turned his back on the corpse.
The crowd of Droid natives flocked from the group in fear. A collective anguish erupted from them all. Their high-pitched wails rattled the foundation of the frozen mega city. The emotional tribe members yelled insults at the foreigner bots in the Droidic language.
"Morbot-lovers!"
"Traitors!"
"Heretics!"
"We should probably go!" Rev suggested.
The crowd made one last attempt at stopping them. It was their fiercest yet. Glitch thought fast. He whipped out an EMP Grenade and tossed it in the Droid natives' direction. They leaped back from it as it rolled toward them, startled by the modern technology. The bomb dispersed, releasing its electronic-interfering properties. It washed over the crowd of Droid natives, and they all slumped over without another movement.
"They're deactivated," Glitch imparted. "But it won't last forever. C'mon, let's hurry up and find that gateway while they're out."
They hurried to move deeper through the fortress. Feeble stayed where he was on the floor next to Lorkrid's body. Glitch paused to look at him. He didn't seem to be aware of anything else. Lorkrid's lifeless remains were all that captured his focus. Feeble sat alone with his old friend. His optic stayed closed and his head stayed bowed in prayer. He hurt inside. Glitch sympathetically watched him mourn before pressing on. It wasn't supposed to happen.
They found an exit. Glitch went up to the sliding door and pressed the center, in the same manner Lorkrid pressed the door leading into the city. A brief, red light pulsed through the ice.
"It's not gonna let us through," Glitch said. "We don't have clearance."
"Here, allow me."
Dr. Axon stepped closer and held a minicomputer up to the door. A code or two disabled the technology.
"Alright, try opening it manually!" Axon encouraged.
Glitch dug his fingers in the crevice between the door and the wall and pulled. He managed to get it open with moderate effort. Light poured in from outside, but not much. Heavy, opaque clouds rolled in from the east. The tundra outside darkened more with every second.
"We should make haste." Dr. Axon pointed to the screen on his weather device. "The storm is moving in!"
They hurried across the ice. Some time passed before the Morbot gateway came into view. Glitch felt his hopes go up. None of them stopped until they reached it. The storm's winds picked up substantially by the time they were standing in front of it. Glitch tried to ignore the increasing cold.
He turned to the others. "Who's got the chip?"
"I do!"
Rev pulled the power chip from her hip pouch and rolled up to him. She'd become the designated carrier. It was almost a consensus. Glitch accepted it from her and walked up to the gateway. He found the slot for the chip and carefully inserted it. The gateway sprung to life in the same way as the one in the canyons. Glitch stood back to avoid the strong flash of light. The light faded slightly but retained its presence in the runes engraved in the exterior.
"We did it!" Melvin cheered. Dipper happily flapped his aluminum wings in his arms.
Something powerful overtook Glitch's body. He rose into the air with an energized pulse. The sudden power claimed his mind and spirit against his will. It was all beyond his control. His conscience transcended their dimension.
...
Glitch came in for a soft landing on the Morbite surface. A quick scan of the area told him he was in a different place from the main central zone. It was like the Morbite space he first met Void in, only with minor changes. He could see his symbol glowing in one of his reflections.
She stood before him as usual. Glitch looked up at her.
"Pick it up, Glitch."
"Huh?" Glitch was already confused.
Void gently pointed to something on the floor between them. Glitch followed her finger. A weapon he'd never seen before shone faintly at his feet.
He lifted his head to see Void again. "What is it?" he asked her.
"It is your past and future," Void told him. "Your defense. For what opposed you before and for what is to come."
"I don't…"
"Pick it up, Glitch." Void remained calm and kind.
Glitch complied. He bent down and grabbed the weapon. He quietly studied it in his hands. It reminded him of his pickaxe, but it was much larger, with an even longer and sharper blade. Unlike the pickaxe, it was undoubtedly crafted for battle. He glanced at Void, still puzzled. "I don't get it," he said. "When am I gonna need this?"
He was ousted from the realm before he could get an answer.
...
Rev nervously analyzed her surroundings. She knew it was a Morbite room, but she still had so many questions. She wasn't sure what triggered her travel here or why. All she could do was slowly look around at the reflective, color-changing walls and hope desperately for an explanation.
"Hello?" she called. "Is anybody here?"
An unfamiliar robot manifested in front of her. Rev rolled backwards on her tires with a startled yelp.
"Ah, what the hell?!" she screeched. "Er, sorry, 'scuse my Droid, but…who are you?" She skimmed her up and down. "What are you?"
"If only you remembered." The robot's eyes glowed at her spitefully.
"What am I doing here?" Rev asked. "Where's Glitch? Is he here, too?"
The question seemed to infuriate the robot. Rev stared up at her, completely lost. She didn't mean to upset the female bot. For whatever reason, it was like Rev's presence alone agitated her to no end.
Needless to say, Rev didn't appreciate the bot's cold shoulder. She impatiently planted her hands on her carbon fiber hips. "Ok, Miss Thang!" she snapped. "I don't know what your frickin' deal is, but it ain't my fault."
The she-robot's optics glowed even more strongly upon hearing Rev's words. Rev couldn't care less. She rolled up to the robot on her tires, her hands still firmly planted on her hips.
"Lose. The attitude." She wasn't deterred, even as the she-robot towered over her.
To her surprise, the robot said nothing else. She angrily turned away. Rev stood her ground until she heard something. It sounded like sniffling. It dawned on her that the robot was crying. She must have kept her back turned to hide her tears. Her tiny sniffs made Rev feel guilty. She briefly averted her eyes and rubbed one of her arms. Even though the she-robot hadn't been cordial with her, she hadn't meant to hurt her in such a way.
"Uh, hey." Rev carefully moved closer. "Are you okay?" she gently asked.
She leaned a little to see the female bot's face. She wouldn't let her. Every time Rev tried, she moved in the opposite direction so that her back always stayed to her.
"I'm really sorry!" Rev tried to apologize. "I didn't mean to be catty, honest!"
The she-robot vanished into thin air. For a moment, Rev thought she could still faintly hear her sobs until they, too, faded from the room.
...
Glitch dropped to the ground once he left the astral realm. Dr. Axon and Melvin rushed around him. He allowed them to help him to his feet.
"Are you all right, Glitch?" The experience left Dr. Axon frantic.
"What happened?" Melvin asked.
Glitch rubbed his head to battle the dizzy spell. He remembered that neither of them ever saw him that way. "I'm fine, I'm all good," he assured them. "I did it before."
"Rev, as well?"
Melvin nervously pointed toward Rev's floating body. Glitch lifted his head to look at her. She'd entered the Morbots' astral realm, too. A pit of worry formed in Glitch's stomach as he wondered why she hadn't returned from it yet. "Rev?" He tried calling to her. "Rev, can you hear me?"
She finally dropped down. She gave a small, surprised yelp as her rump hit the snow. Glitch trudged over and helped her up. She gawked at him through a pair of stunned eyes.
"Ya good?"
Rev gave a swift nod. "Yeah," she breathed. "Yeah, I think I'm as good as I can be after experiencing something like that."
Something had visibly shaken her. Glitch could feel her shivering.
"What's wrong?" he asked her. "What'd you see?"
"I…I think I met Void," she said.
"What'd she say to you?" Glitch was curious straightaway.
"She didn't say much." Rev softly shook her head. "But she…wasn't happy."
Glitch listened to her.
"She didn't want me there." Rev lowered her worried gaze before fixing it on him again. "Why's that?"
Glitch genuinely had no clue. He knew it likely had to do with the past. Whatever it could've been, they were getting closer to discovering it. He felt it deep down.
"Am I bad?"
Glitch silently looked at her. Rev's optics faintly shimmered in the small amount of sunlight poking through the storm clouds. Her first encounter with Void didn't leave a very good impact on her.
"Am I bad?" Rev sadly repeated herself. "Did I do something wrong? Did I do something bad to Void?"
She was cut short by a sob. Glitch immediately moved to comfort her. He placed his arms around her while she cried. Dr. Axon lovingly patted her head, while Melvin lightly touched her arm. Dipper affectionately rubbed his head against her leg. Rev didn't react to any of it, however. She'd become lost in her worries.
"I wanna remember," she whispered. "I wanna remember so I can fix it."
They were interrupted by a dragging sound. They spotted Feeble making his way over the ice to join them. He pulled something behind him—something hidden inside a metal box. The others hurried up to meet him halfway.
"What do you have there, Feeble?" Axon asked him.
Feeble didn't respond, at least not with words. He placed the box in front of them and opened it, revealing what he kept inside.
It was Lorkrid.
"I'd like to bury 'em." Feeble's focus didn't leave him as he spoke. "They're allowin' me, his tribesmen. We might not've agreed on much today, but…"
"I understand." Dr. Axon dipped his head in respect. "Do what you must, my friend."
They followed Feeble over the ice. He stopped at a certain point. It wasn't too far from the fortress or the gateway, but clear of either's reach. He opened the box again to have one final moment with Lorkrid. Glitch and the others stood off to the side to allow him his time. Some of his words were swept away by the increasing winds. Others, though, were perfectly audible between the howls, including the last line.
"May the Morbots have mercy on yer tormented soul, Lorkrid."
Feeble wrapped him up tight when he finished. He made sure Lorkrid's remains were perfectly sealed within the box before pulling it a bit farther along. He stopped at the edge of the ice sheet he stood on. After a few more moments, he gently pushed the box over. He quietly watched it submerge, to be cradled by the dark waters below. Feeble wanted him to have a Droid pirate's burial. It aligned with the tribe's traditional way of burying their fallen, and it was the best way he knew how to honor Lorkrid. He hoped he was successful at keeping his legacy alive. Even if legacies didn't best serve him.