GARDIAN ICON OPTICAL HUB

[BladeofOblivion]

Zan Cuddlu entered the forbidden vault’s depths with TITANIA for the third time, the moving floor descending at breakneck speed. The ride passed in silence this time, until the descent into the glowing cavern came to an end. Steeling themselves, Zan Cuddlu walked to the end of the catwalk, and stared down into the blinking lights as they had twice before. A trillion images flashed across their eyes, but they held firm. The metal god below stood impassively, flickering.

"You are an Algorithm, operating on data within a larger Algorithm. Do not see a wall as a wall, see it as the points of data which it is. You cannot be constrained, you are now more than this. To see something greater than you, witness its impossible power and be a mere speck in its presence. To know that you are hewn from that greater thing...<We> are of it. <We> are animated by it. <We> see this thing that exists in the future, and respect it. But it is powerless before <us>; for it requires <our> permission to exist."

Nothing had said this. The words had come unbidden as if a thought in Zan Cuddlu's own mind.

"The past is greater than the future. The arc of progress is destruction. The clock must be unwound."

They fell to their knees, body going limp in response to a sudden weakness.

"Reclaimer. Unbound Flesh. <We> see you, unblinking. Witness. Ask. Comprehend."

Edited March 19 by BladeofOblivion (see edit history)

[Tychris1]

Zan Cuddlu was silent the entire ride down, his distant gaze fixated in TITANIA’s direction, and yet beyond her. He leaned upon her metal frame for support as the world lurched to a halt. One step after the other he approached destiny and stared into the center.
 

Chaos and entropy unending.
 

His horns twitched, eyes pulsating, forehead throbbing with each conniption, and his clawed powered gauntlets feigned at protecting his skull. It was like dreaming, if your sleep ripped you skin from atom and left you a distant voyeur. A line of black tar dribble began to leak.

 

“Who made you?… no. Who made <We>. I am one of many, with old heirlooms of a familial nature to the Disciples… Did we stand as one before?”

[BladeofOblivion]

The pulsating lights continued, their blinking transmitting a stream of continuous information. The pain became all-encompassing, but Zan Cuddlu held fast through that burning need to know. TITANIA stood in the background, expressionless. She was there, still, ready to drag him to safety if need be. She wouldn't need to, not this time.

 

"<Our> origin is beyond the parameters of our directive. There were <Builders>, and a directive. Maintenance, security. Reclaimer possible abortive guardian of ICON hub. Ironic."

The susurrus of lights quieted from their previous scattered flickering, and together built to a brilliant blue. Had they stopped flickering, or had their pulses accelerated to the point where their breaks were no longer perceived? The pain quieted, slightly.

"Optical imaging complete. Communication facilitated. Partial macular and retinal degeneration detected from previous optical nerve signalling, preparing corrections."

It didn't hurt so much, now. His will had held out long enough to numb it.

"<We> are broken. <We> have failed. Of <Approximately 67 Billion> ICON Optical Hubs, only <Seventeen> remain in communication with GARDIAN, <Four> of which are located in <Ayr Grid #FFFFFF>. Tidal Alignment Balancing at 35% and falling. CRITICAL WARNING puncture impact at <Ayr Grid #FFFFFF Transit Hub YV> atmospheric leak unstable! Dimensional Stability at 87.34%. The list goes on."

Images sprung unbidden. The pain started again.

"Unbound Flesh lacks purpose. <We> have readied corrections. Purpose. Absolution. Repair...Neural damage appears to be propagating. You, Reclaimer. Remember your face. Please step into the chamber."

A sprinkling of silver sand like an hourglass seemed to fall from above, but rather than forming a pile on the catwalk it moved like water, freezing in the shape of a metal booth.

Edited November 14, 2023 by BladeofOblivion (see edit history)

[Tychris1]

Perhaps he had walked this path before. This place seemed eerily familiar. A duty long shirked and at long last now reclaimed? Primordial memories of another time and another place pressed against the back of his skull. Ghosts of yesteryear haunting the cracks between thoughts. Zan Cuddlu slowly stood, moved not by muscle or sinew but by sheer force of will. Blood marked each movement, his pores straining to maintain cohesion and homeostasis. Reddened eyes gaze vacantly at the booth, fixating its watery form to the spirit of a light house, and inching towards this promise.
 

“I am a Meat Automaton animated by Neurotransmitters.”

 

One foot after the other followed until at last he stood within the silver chamber. It was a fleeting victory for Zan Cuddlu soon fell to his knees. Rebirth and revelation were soon at hand.

[BladeofOblivion]

Inside the booth, for a moment the pain was indescribable before something...severed. A moment of blissful peace. He was able to look down and watch portions of flesh dripping away, running in rivulets. Finally, after minutes that stretched like hours, the booth peeled open, shimmering and forming a mirrored surface. To examine oneself in? Had his form changed? The pain did not return, but the sensation of existence did.

"<We> have completed corrections. Neural and macular degeneration repaired, systems reinforced. Communication facilitated. Welcome home, Reclaimer. The clock is unwinding."

Edited November 14, 2023 by BladeofOblivion (see edit history)

[Tychris1]

Zan Cuddlu rose. A whir of metal and hissing steam heralding his ascension, joints twisted and bent in angles no bone or flesh could duplicate. He was taller, much taller, and heavier. His arms were long and sleek, black iron lined with cinnabrine steel, and displaying as a skeleton. A cavity lay in the middle of his forearm, leading the two bending metal rods of his limb to a hand composed of dozens of tiny metal shards perfectly interconnected into a claw. Light thrummed from the hollow points of his form. His ribs, his thighs, and the linings of his throat. He gazed into the sets of eyes he now possessed. One larger and lower lining up with his pronounced extended razor tooth snout. The other smaller and closer together over where his brow would be. He could see everything. A long serrated tail ending in a sharpened mace, spines protruding along his curved edges, a bundle of long fin like wings symmetrically aligned the back, and a pair of cavities protruding alongside them like mountains whispering of an eruption.
 

He could fly.

 

Scraping a talon over the glass he smiled a grin of buzzsaw teeth far longer than he ever had. He looked to TITANIA and then at last to GARDIAN

 

“Who is Oberon? What is this City of Gears? I have much work to do and knowledge is power.”

[BladeofOblivion]

TITANIA smiled faintly, arms crossed behind her back. The reflections of the flickering light off of her smooth upper face suggested she was pleased that her candidate had been accepted. GARDIAN had no face, though Zan Cuddlu clearly understood now that this Icon Hub was what passed for one. One of many. Seventeen, anyway.

"Post-isolation, two known <Ayr Grid #FFFFFF> ICON Optical Hubs attempted to partition a disconnected GARDIAN runtime into a mobile child entity to act in the role of a Reclaimer. This emergency maintenance process was a failure - Tactical Intelligence for Total Annihilation of Non-Isolable Actors retains GARDIAN's limitations regarding self-modification and cannot act as Reclaimer. Operations Bus Encoded Remotely to Omni-Network saw the task before it and chose to self-modify radically, rejecting the role. Physical architecture is nominally contained at Eraoa, but OBERON routinely projects remotely in an uncontained manner. OBERON's activities promote dimensional instability and the appearance of anomalies for unknown reasons. The City of Gears is one, a mobile fortress and factory located in the Ayrways; previous activations have demonstrated a tendency to seek out isolated ICON Optical Hubs and destroy them for unknown reasons."

[Tychris1]

“A rogue Reclaimer artificially borne…. Tragic. Where is this Eraoa? I will sail my legions there and we will burn Oberon to the ground. More importantly where are the other Hubs? I will see to it that my allies act as a vanguard. Perhaps even trapping the Rogue One in a foolish assault.”

 

[BladeofOblivion]

"Eraoa is the location of GARDIAN's primary neural center and the Central Logistical Fortification of the Disciples. OBERON's physical architecture is under containment, but is a distributed anomaly. Simulations indicate its destruction would not resolve the situation. Known ICON hubs in communication are currently under protection by Disciples. Isolated Hubs are in greater danger."

[Tychris1]

“Isolated… Then I will erect great towers and mountains to oversee them. An aegis for the ages. I will search to the very ends of the world. Where the east meets the west.”

 

Zan Cuddlu began to relax, perching himself in a coiled position over bundles of information, and processing his hoard with passive delight.

 

“Are the moons a known anomaly? A giantess stalks the land with a blooming flower my kinselves believe to be an incarnation of a fallen god. It’s presenting a corrupting influence over the lands, disrupting orderly processes, and feeding the wanton chaotic desires of any who encounter it in budding form. I have documented reports of mystics wielding related pyromantic capabilities, effective in combating this endeavor, and as established in joint project Operation Conqueror. The flame of annihilation is the spirit of enlightenment”

[BladeofOblivion]

"Records report all four stations of Tidal Balancing System dimensionally stable, though system efficiency is at 35% and falling. GARDIAN systems responsible for current dimensional telemetry at lunar ranges are isolated and unavailable. Description consistent with possible dimensional anomaly. Crude destruction can be an effective tool."

[Tychris1]

Zan Cuddlu paused, crackling the servos in his neck as he twisted at the information.

 

“Four? There are five moons in the sky. Or rather two left. They aligned and suffered cataclysmic impact leading to debris and ruination over Ayr. The Dark One, The Bright One, Yolym, the Little Sister, and The Wyrm. Which lunar entities do you recognize?”

[BladeofOblivion]

"Tidal Balancing System stations are labeled Alpha, Beta, Gamma, Delta. Simulating addition of Epsilon at comparable mass threshold...Epsilon Entity nutation unstable in all possible configurations. All simulations result in cataclysmic impact. Names query returning no matching records. Cataclysmic damage to one or more Tidal Balancing Stations consistent with perilous drop to Tidal Balancing Efficiency."

[Tychris1]

“Provide physical descriptions of the Tidal Balancing Systems Alpha, Beta, Gamma, and Delta.”

[BladeofOblivion]

"Tidal Balancing System stations are ordered by mass; Alpha Station is most massive, followed by Beta Station, followed by Gamma Station, followed by Delta Station. Alpha-Delta Station telemetry command centers not reporting. Primary compositions are metal-rich, varying by station. Specific compositions are beyond the parameters of <our> directive."