Myridia, 50 light-years from Earth
The ability of the Myridians to create new buildings in a matter of days has always amazed Max Black, but the newest Cathedral Of The Holy Slayer is just unbelievable.
It’s certainly an imposing building, with its many gothic towers and the massive stained glass window in the shape of the Ø symbol. On Earth it would take decades to build something like this, but on Myridia everything was done in less than a month.
Max doesn’t spend too much time admiring the view, even though he has some interest in the great number of paintings that are supposedly depicting the heroic deeds of the Vanguard.
He’s more concentrated on the fact that the Cathedral is under the protection of a militia that carries Null’s symbol, something Noriko would never approve.
He’s being escorted by armed soldiers, together with what looks like Kari Zel but is actually a shapeshifting Eros. They reach the elaborate silver altar, built around the StarScourge sword that is floating above the ground. Supreme Pontiff Ganos Lal is waiting for them.
<I hope the prisoners have not been harmed.> she tells the militia.
<We have followed our orders to the letter, Your Holiness.> one of the soldier replies.
<Whose orders, Lal? I sincerely doubt Null asked you to turn your church into an army!> Max says.
<That is literally what she asked me to do. She said it was time the Church took a more active role in this Galaxy.>
<Oh come on, am I supposed to believe that!?>
<You love your goddess very much.> “Kari” tells Lal, and in response her body glows pink before she transforms into an exact replica of Noriko Null herself.
<Lady Null!? But… I thought you went to Karun with my real self!?> Lal exclaims.
The militia is as confused as she is to see their goddess appear out of nowhere, and Max takes the opportunity to exploit the distraction. He elbows the nearest soldier in the stomach and steals his laser gun. An instant later he’s surrounded by duplicates, not to mention the other soldiers who are ready to shoot him down… but they all hesitate, their eyes pacing back and forth between Null and Lal as they struggle to decide who to trust.
<Don’t shoot them! They are under the protection of Null!> the Supreme Pontiff warns them.
<Then why take us prisoner!?> Max asks, pointing the gun at her.
<Lady Null’s orders… all members of the Vanguard should be detained at the Cathedral and left out of the public eye… unless she decides otherwise.> Lal answers, looking at Eros… who she is still seeing “him” as Null, just like everybody else.
<Uh? Oh, yeah, sure, everyone please leave us alone. For now, at least… that is an incredibly attractive uniform, how many of you are single?> “she” asks in a flirty tone.
<Just go and don’t tell anyone you saw us.> Max adds, keeping the gun for himself as every member of the militia reluctantly leaves. Only after they are alone he asks:
<We need to talk somewhere private. Can you leave the Cathedral without anyone noticing?>
<Sure, please follow me.> a newly created Lal duplicate answers, after appearing next to him.
<I’ll never get used to this place.> he shrugs.
The Mindscape
Noriko Null is getting used to her new status. She’s standing on top of the Monk’s snowy mountain, but she doesn’t feel cold… in fact, she doesn’t really feel anything.
She can’t exactly understand how, but it seems the Monk didn’t just do cosmetic changes to his angle of the Mindscape: it’s consuming far less processing power than other parts of this exotic realm, leaving her far more control over the environment.
Roxiana took advantage of this by locking her immediate predecessors, the Monk and the barbarian conqueror Lexar, into stone cages. Under her watch, they don’t seem to have regained consciousness.
<I’m getting bored. There’s nothing about those two that I haven’t learned already.> she complains.
<What is the Monk’s real name?> Noriko asks her, not bothering to turn around to look at her.
<I meant nothing of interest. What are you doing, dear?> Roxiana asks, approaching her successor.
Noriko is surrounded by dozens of holographic screens that float around her, changing the images every time she wills it. They represent scenes from her lifetime, projected memories that reconstructs the events around her.
<Figuring out how I “died”. The Nexus didn’t record my death, but I might be able to reconstruct it from bits and pieces scattered in my head… I think something went seriously wrong when the Nexus tried to copy me into the Mindscape. My memories appear to be highly fragmented.>
<Oh my. There sure are a lot of dead gods there.> Roxiana comments, analyzing the memories.
<It’s kind of my thing.> Noriko shrugs.
<These kind of memories seem to come natural to you. What about those you’re avoiding?> Roxiana asks, going for a holograms that keep positioning itself behind Noriko’s back. She grabs it and pulls it away, smiling when she studies it.
It shows Noriko kissing Todd Slate while he’s removing her bra.
<Give it back! That’s private!> Noriko complains, but Roxiana is far more experienced than her in this kind of environment and avoids being caught by floating upwards.
<Why would you want to suppress this? You seem to be enjoying yourself. We’re onto something.> the older host realizes, using that memory to extract other ones. First one showing Noriko crying after breaking up with Todd, then it’s her having an argument with Dmitry Voron.
<Stop looking into my head!!!> Noriko shouts, flying towards Roxiana and stealing back the memory… or at least trying to, because the hologram reacts by surrounding itself with an electric field that hurts the both of them as if they were still alive.
<I didn’t expect your mind to be so literal. Another painful breakup?> Roxiana asks.
<No, Dmitry and I didn’t… I mean we did break up, but the last time… the last…>
The electric field intensifies, and it’s easy to figure out that the pain is proportional to how much she tries to think about Voron.
<I don’t remember the last time I saw him. Why can’t I remember?>
<It’s probably for a good reason.> Roxiana says sarcastically: the sky has just turned completely black, and the electric field has escalated into generating a lightning storm so powerful that the simulation is showing signs of damage, with the mountain becoming a pixelated mess.
<I don’t care. I don’t want to forget.> Noriko replies, walking through the pain to approach the memory: pain is nothing new to her, and she knows this can’t possibly kill her.
Her hand is almost incinerated by the time she touches the hologram… and as if she just flipped a switch, the lightning storm ceases to exist. The damages to the environment, however, persist.
<I hope it was worth it.> Roxiana says, looking around to assess the damage. When she looks at Noriko again, she’s holding a new memory in her hands. And she’s crying.
<Dmitry… he died to save my life… and I got myself killed anyway…>
<Oh well. It happens. Why would you suppress that thought?> Roxiana wonders, genuinely surprised by another host caring that much about a civilian’s death.
<I didn’t. The Nexus did.> Noriko answers, her silver eyes shining through the tears; as she fully absorbs back her memories, what’s left of the mountain begins to shake violently.
<You’re not taking this away from me. Too many people sacrificed too much for me to die now.>
<Everybody thinks they deserve more time, dear. But no host has ever left the Mindscape in the last five billion years.>
<I don’t care. None of them were Null.> Noriko boasts, just in time before a chain of bright red energy appears around her. She tries to fly away or to create copies of herself, but the chains are far too quick. Both Noriko and Roxiana are captured and are forced to fall to the ground.
They see a Demon woman stand above them, using her Blood powers to free the Monk and Lexar.
<No sudden thoughts. Contrary to popular belief, it is possible to die twice here.>
<She knows, Apocalypse. Believe me, she knows.> a man adds, while pointing a gun at Null.
<The Scribe. How many times do I have to kill you!?> Noriko wonders.
900,000 light-years from Earth
The Swift Messenger is just a luxury ship: it was designed to cruise the Galaxy, not to travel to a different one. Lily modified its engine to a Negative Drive, but the rest of the ship hasn’t changed… including the fact that it completely lacks an infirmary.
Despite this, Dr. Catherine Kalama has insisted to use one of the bedrooms to take care of Vector.
She’s checking his pulse: he’s still in a coma, but his vitals are surprisingly strong considering Amaterasu basically burned him alive before they left Boreas.
<I’m surprised you saved his life.> Asclepius tells her. The god of medicine, a very buff man with the head of a much older person, is next to her.
<I’m a doctor. If we left him there I’m sure Leiko would’ve left him to die.>
<Oh I’m not complaining, I would’ve done the same. I’m sure you understand we can’t let him regain consciousness, though. At least not for now.>
<I can’t say I approve, but yes, I understand. Asclepius… how much do you know about how Drylon technology interacts with humans?>
<More than anyone alive. You’re worried about the effects the Nexus is having on your daughter and your companion?>
<Yes. The Nexus mutated Noriko’s brain to enhance it, but as far as I can tell Bob and Nalani’s brains have not been physically changed. Are they going to be alright?>
<For the moment, yes. Without a physical connection the Nexus can’t trigger the mutation, and so far it hasn’t uploaded new information… it’s just boosting their intellectual abilities.>
<But how!? Just because they share some of Noriko’s DNA? It doesn’t sound possible!>
<Drylon technology is known to seemingly break the laws of physics, so that is well beyond my area of expertise. The effects on your loved ones should disappear if Hades resurrects Null.>
<What do you you mean “if”!? Isn’t that the whole reason we’re going to his galaxy? If Hades can’t cure Noriko’s body…>
<It’s not a matter of whether he can, doctor. Hades is the lord of the dead, resurrecting a mortal is child’s play for him. The real question is whether he will want to… because if he doesn’t, we have little hope to change his mind.>
Argos, 100 light-years from Earth
The office of the President of the Mortal Republic is fit for a king, even if the throne is just there for an elaborate office desk.
President Aura waits impatiently. Her desk is quite empty, just a bust of her dead husband Alexer Syzar and a framed picture dating to her time as leader of the Hunter Pirates loyal to Artemis.
When Noriko Null is let inside, Aura gestures to the guard to leave the room. Both women skip the formalities, with Null sitting down on the other side of Aura’s desk.
<Why the android? You couldn’t bother to come yourself?> Aura asks; her security systems noticed this is not the original Null.
<A precaution. We both know I’m not welcomed on this planet anymore.>
<Does that surprise you? You’re turning your Church into your private army, Null. That’s treasonous and it won’t be tolerated anymore.>
<How can I be treasonous towards the Mortal Republic if I’m not a citizen? Earth is an independent reservation. And currently way beyond your reach, Aura.>
<So am I supposed to just let you do whatever you want? In my sector?>
<You are supposed to resign from your position and nominate me as your successor.>
<You can’t be serious, Null. This is a democracy, not a kingdom! You should know, you’re the one who wrote our Constitution! And you promised to your Church to never seek political office!>
<Things change. Recent events have led me to believe that this galaxy is not ready for democracy; look at how much the Mortal Republic has struggled to keep the order, while the Winter Kingdom thrives. They are laughing at your incompetence, Aura.>
<You have some nerve, Null. My husband died to save our democracy!>
<Oh please, your husband died because he was outsmarted by Ulysses. And let’s not kid ourselves, if Syzar had any noble intentions they always came second to his thirst for power. We both know the only reason he kept the various planetary governments in check is because he used his personal fortune to bribe them into submission. Just like you did… until today.>
<Is that a threat, Null?>
<A fact. You better check the Galactic Stock Exchange, Aura. As of five minutes ago, your family’s secret funds are into my possession. How long do you think you can hold power without them? Especially since a majority of your soldiers are more loyal to me than to you?>
<If you wanted a coup, Null, you should’ve come here with your Vanguard.>
<I’m giving you a choice, Aura. Hand over control of the Mortal Republic and we will avoid a civil war. And before you take rash decision, know that I have the full support of the Winter Kingdom.>
<I always knew that one day you would drop the pretense to care for anything but your personal glory, Null. But know this: I would rather burn down the entire Galaxy than see you on a throne.>
<Your reaction is disappointing… but not surprising. Goodbye, Aura, I very much doubt you will still be alive the next time I set foot on this planet.>
“Null” disappears in a bright flash of light; the office should be protected by a distortion field that prevents the use of teleporters… except those of Amazon design.
This helps the android avoid the sight of Aura flipping over her own desk out of sheer anger, before shouting:
<Get me the Armed Forces Council RIGHT NOW!!! As of this moment, we are at war with the Church of Null!!!>
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