Chapter 8 - Enter the Void

[DATA RECALL: VOICE_MEMO_SANTA]

[DATA RESEARCH. . . NOW<<<]

//*

▶SANTA: "Threats in the Outer? Why the hell are you asking me? Didn't you get all that on a data card?"

▶ASH: "Indeed. But mere data could hardly compare to your firsthand experience, Elder San."

▶SANTA: "Hmm. Well, that's true. Expertise comes from experience, after all, doesn't it?"

▶ASH: "Precisely."

▶SANTA: "All right. Why the hell not? Santa's special lecture, lesson one: Watch the terrain!"

▶ASH: "The terrain?"

▶SANTA: "The Outer is basically ruins. Ruins that have been abandoned for thousands of years. No one knows when something might collapse, or what bizarre traps might be hidden there. I knew a guy like that once. Bastard used to strut around decked out in some pretty expensive cyberware, but one wrong step turned him into a bloody smear..."

▶ASH: "I shall bear that in mind. What next?"

▶SANTA: "... Ahem. Next up: enemies! The ones you'll run into most often are the Grotesques."

▶ASH: "Grotesques?"

▶SANTA: "Right. Living things infected with a mysterious illness called Aberration Disease. The key words there are 'living things.' Animals, insects, humans—even plants turn into monsters if they catch it. No exceptions."

▶ASH: "Monsters... What do they look like?"

▶SANTA: "Can't describe them. Every one looks different. Though I guess the one thing they have in common is that they all look fucking hideous. Anyway, Grotesques tend to gather in packs. If you spot one, it means there are dozens nearby. So watch yourself."

▶ASH: "May I think of them as beasts that attack in packs?"

▶SANTA: "Uh... you're not wrong, but it'll feel a little different when you see them yourself."

▶ASH: "Understood. Ah, what of Sentinels? The data card says I should be wary of them... Why are you looking at me like that?"

▶SANTA: "It's just a little strange hearing that from you."

▶ASH: "What is?"

▶SANTA: "Sentinels are machines. You could call them defense systems produced in ancient times. So there are plenty of types. Turrets that pop out of nowhere, autonomous combat drones, even small walkers that charge straight at you. Some of them can even repair themselves, you know?"

▶ASH: "I see. But what does that have to do with me?"

▶SANTA: "... You're a machine too. A suspiciously unusual one, at that. Be honest. You've got some connection to the Sentinels, don't you? Isn't that swordsmanship of yours some ancient-civilization-whatever thing too?"

▶ASH: "No."

▶SANTA: "I'm telling you, there's definitely something there. I can feel it."

▶ASH: "... Have you any other advice?"

▶SANTA: "Sure. We haven't covered the most important thing yet, have we? Honestly, forget Grotesques and Sentinels. Something else is far more dangerous."

▶ASH: "And what is that?"

▶SANTA: "Remember this. The most dangerous thing in the Outer is..."

*//

Sector Gamma 7.

The largest of the Level 1 areas, known as the Underground Labyrinth.

Somewhere within it, a small party was making its way through the ruins.

"Mister! Look at this!"

That party consisted of Ash, who was mulling over Santa's advice, and Akina, who was crouching in a corner of the ruins. Shining her flashlight on her find, she murmured happily.

"This is called an energy cell. Apparently, it stores power in a completely different way. It can hold more energy in a much smaller space!"

"Is that so?"

Ash answered absently, continuing to scan their surroundings for any potential threats.

The Outer. In other words, the ruins of an ancient civilization.

Until now, Ash had known it only through data. In person, it was far more desolate and eerie than he had imagined.

It was, in essence, a collapsed ruin. All manner of sediment had accumulated over thousands of years, blocking out every trace of light as though they had descended into a basement. Even the air smelled musty, and every step left a footprint in the ashen dust.

Whenever a breeze blew into the passages, the air resonated through them, spreading a low, echoing moan.

To Ash, all of it was a threat. The space was unfamiliar enough already; with such an ominous atmosphere, he could not have lowered his guard even if he wanted to.

Not so Akina. From the moment they entered the ruins, she had been letting out delighted cries as she examined everything from cables along the walls to unidentifiable circuit boards.

Where did she get that nerve? What was it rooted in?

Ash pondered those questions even now, watching the dark passage.

An excessively enthusiastic Technomancer and an excessively wary Assault.

The pairing might have looked comical at first glance, but in fact, both were diligently doing their jobs. As the Technomancer, Akina needed to salvage something valuable from these ruins, while Ash's primary duty as the Assault was to protect her.

"Hmm. But it's broken. Another reject."

Akina tossed aside the energy cell she had been stroking with shining eyes only moments before. The hollow cell rolled across the floor.

"Is that one of little value as well?"

Akina nodded at Ash's question.

"Yes. It's junk. I guess we couldn't expect to find anything valuable that easily in a Level 1 area. Other Pathfinders will have cleaned it out already."

"Is that not why we accepted a 'mapping' commission?"

"Hehe. That's right."

Commissions.

For Pathfinders exploring beyond the city, commissions were an inseparable part of life. They were quite literally venturing into the unknown, making every experience they had a source of valuable information.

The mapping commission Ash and Akina had accepted was among the most common: visit an unexplored area and draw a map. That was what mapping entailed.

"Mister, how much farther to the commission area?"

At Akina's question, Ash pulled up his stored map of Gamma 7. The map unfolded across his optical sensors, and after a moment's calculation, he answered.

"Roughly two kilometers in a straight line."

"Hmm."

Akina considered that for a moment, then made up her mind.

"We're getting nowhere like this. I think we're better off ignoring everything else from now on and heading for the unexplored area."

"Quite right."

"There should be something worth sinking our teeth into there, right?"

Mapping commissions themselves did not pay well. Even so, many Pathfinders accepted them because an unexplored area was, by definition, unclaimed ground that no one had yet set foot in.

If they were going there anyway, why not earn a little extra? Mapping commissions were essentially a source of side income.

Ash knew this too, and nodded.

"There are sure to be some tasty morsels."

Akina burst out laughing.

"Don't say things like that in that fancy way of yours. Sometimes I swear you're more serious about credits than I am."

"Have we not incurred a debt? And to Elder San, who has shown us such kindness. A debtor's first priority is to repay what is owed as swiftly as possible. Would you not agree?"

"... Uh, of... course...?"

Akina's voice trailed off rather strangely. Ash looked at her.

"... Surely you were not planning to leave it unpaid?"

"What? No! I'm going to pay him back!"

"When?"

"... In ten years?"

What a little devil. And she had admitted to stealing an arm before, too.

As Ash shook his head and prepared a lengthy lecture on morality, Akina caught on and hurried into motion.

"Two kilometers isn't far! Let's get moving!"

Watching Akina stride fearlessly ahead, Ash sighed.

"Haa..."

Strictly speaking, he had no respiratory organs, so he used his voice module to produce a similar sound instead.

* * *

How long had they been walking down the passage?

Ash caught Akina by the shoulder as she walked ahead.

"Shh."

Before she could say anything, he covered her mouth. Startled, her eyes widened.

"What's wrong?"

Her voice was barely a whisper.

Ash did not answer at once, staring intently into the darkness. After a moment, he spoke.

"Do you hear it?"

"Hear what?"

"That sound. Beyond the darkness... there is something there."

Unfortunately, the direction Ash was looking was precisely the way they needed to go.

"I-is it a person?"

Akina's voice trembled slightly, as though fear had suddenly seized her. But this was no time to dwell on that.

Ash slowly drew the steel blade strapped to his back.

"I cannot say. But it does not sound human. It sounds rather more feral... as though in pain."

Something was there.

That fact alone instantly extinguished their cheerful mood.

"Lady A."

"Yes, Mister?"

"We have two options. One is to abandon this route and seek another."

"And the other?"

"Assess the situation, and if it seems manageable, fight our way through. Which would you choose?"

"We fight through. As long as you're all right with it."

"My thoughts exactly."

Ash stepped forward.

"I shall lead from here."

Akina nodded silently.

The two slowly advanced toward the source of the sound. Before long, Akina could hear the grotesque cries as well.

They passed collapsed buildings and heaps of refuse, finally drawing close to the source.

SCREEEECH!

The scream rang out louder than before.

Ash gestured for Akina to wait there, then proceeded alone down the narrowing passage.

Soon he reached its end. At last, Ash came face-to-face with the source of the sound.

SCREEEEE!

GRRRRGL...!

Each looked different.

One was a human braced against the ground on four arms. Another was a human whose skeletal frame stood out starkly. There was a human with dozens of legs, and another whose limbs trembled wildly as though it were dancing.

Calling them human was generous. Only their general shapes resembled people; their faces had melted, and scale-like growths covered their bodies. The sight was enough to make one's skin crawl.

It would have been better if they had looked entirely monstrous. The faint remnants of their former humanity only amplified their grotesqueness.

Ash quickly recognized what they were.

["Though I guess the one thing they have in common is that they all look fucking hideous."]

Grotesques.

The very creatures Santa had described—living things utterly transformed by Aberration Disease.

They were ravenously tearing into something, as though competing with one another. Ash adjusted his optical sensors to focus on it and saw that it was a human corpse.

Perhaps it had been a Pathfinder who came to map the unexplored area. Just like him and Akina.

Ash chose not to dwell on it. At the same time, he judged that this was his chance.

Four Grotesques in total. All engrossed in their meal.

Ash burst out of the passage and closed the distance in a single rush. The steel blade in his hand traced a streak of light. One Grotesque caught in its path split in two, spilling black blood.

GRRK?

It happened in an instant. Having cut down the skeletal one, Ash thrust again before the others could grasp what was happening. His blade pierced the four-armed creature's head.

The remaining two charged with monstrous shrieks: the one that danced incessantly and the one with dozens of legs.

Monsters that defied all reason were rushing him from either side, but Ash stood perfectly composed. He cut down the closer one—the dancer—and simultaneously drove his blade through the many-legged creature's face.

SKEE, SCREEEECH!

Even with its face pierced clean through, the Grotesque did not die. Instead, it thrashed, trying to kick him with its many legs.

Ash turned the blade upright and sliced vertically. The Grotesque split down the middle, thick black blood streaming from it.

"..."

A cold silence settled over the cavern that had been filled with grotesque clamor. Only a lone humanoid remained standing there, steel blade in hand.

Ash was about to call Akina when he suddenly lowered his gaze.

There lay the human the Grotesques had been devouring only moments before, eyes wide open as though filled with some terrible grievance.

Unable to simply turn away, Ash bent down and gently closed the cold eyelids. Then he offered a brief prayer for the dead man's rest.