NOVEL NEXT Chapter 27: Nori.
September 2184. Facility 7. Makeshift Lab.
The weight of the discovery pressed on everyone, tension hanging thick in the cold, sterile air of the makeshift lab. Jason was calm and methodical as always, his mind already outlining the necessary next steps. He activated the comms on his helmet, his voice measured despite the faint static that crackled in his ear.
"SES Super Destroyer Aegis of Integrity, do you read me?"
There was a brief pause before a response came through, fragmented by interference. "Barely, sir. Getting... mostly static. What do you need?"
Jason kept his tone steady, direct. "We need a SEAF team on-site with heavy weapons, along with a Ministry of Science team to recover samples. The SEAF team will also conduct a sweep behind us; we've left sections unexplored, and I don't want us blindsided."
"Understood, sir. Teams will be dispatched immediately. ETA is around thirty minutes. Also, the team examining the corpse has additional findings to report. They'll brief you when you return."
"Understood," Jason said, ending the transmission. Thirty minutes was longer than he preferred, but he knew better than to dwell on what couldn't be changed. He turned his attention back to the group, his sharp gaze assessing their reactions. Most of them were transfixed by the black choker—a seemingly innocuous object that radiated something deeply unsettling.
"Alright," Jason said, his calm voice cutting through the heavy silence. "I need someone to explain what happened to Uzi's mother. This clearly has a significant impact on all of you, and I need to understand why."
His words seemed to unearth an uncomfortable truth. The group exchanged wary glances, their unease palpable. Doll, in particular, had remained uncharacteristically silent, her expression a mixture of shock and something more deeply buried. Jason noted her behavior but didn't press her yet.
It was N who finally broke the silence. "It's a long story, sir. Years ago, we found Uzi's mother—Nori—at a place called Camp 98. She was part of a group of drones we discovered there. They all had name tags and wore those chokers."
Jason's eyes narrowed slightly. "Camp 98? What kind of facility was it?"
"An old abandoned site," N said, his voice steady but tinged with unease. "We didn't know what to make of it at the time. The drones seemed... different."
J spoke next, her tone carrying the weight of grim recollection. "Nori was one of them, and so was Yeva—Doll's mother."
Jason turned to V, who shifted uncomfortably but held his gaze. "I knew Nori personally," she said. "She seemed normal at first, but in the weeks before she disappeared, she started acting... strange. I thought maybe she'd just left her family. Now, seeing this, I'm not so sure."
Jason's attention shifted to the younger members of the group—Uzi, Doll, and Lizzy. His gaze lingered on Doll. "Doll, I assume your mother and Nori were close? Friends?"
Doll hesitated, her voice quiet but firm. "They were friends," she said, her words laced with an edge of something unspoken.
Jason noted her hesitation but chose not to press further—for now. "Alright. I need the full story. From the moment you found them at Camp 98 to when Nori disappeared. Every detail matters."
The group exchanged uncertain looks. Even Uzi, who had been fixated on the choker, looked up, her expression wary. Jason stood firm, his calm demeanor a steadying force amid the turmoil. Whatever truths they had buried in the past, he needed to uncover them. This was not a place for half-measures, and he knew better than to move forward blind.
2172. Copper 9. Surface.
Years after the storms began to wane, the surface of Copper 9 remained shrouded in impenetrable clouds. The faint, filtered light that pierced through was barely enough to illuminate the desolation. For the drone colony based at Bunker 00, survival had become an endless battle of attrition. Each expedition to scavenge for resources brought them closer to the brink. Supplies grew scarcer, forcing teams of workers and combat drones to venture further into the wasteland, despite the rising risks. Many small teams never returned, victims of the unknown hazards lurking in the icy ruins.
Khane, a worker drone with years of experience, led one such team. The drones trudged through the snow, their metal limbs groaning under the weight of scavenging tools. Khane studied a battered map, cobbled together from reconnaissance reports by combat drones. "According to the last flyover, there's a cluster of buildings not far from here. Stay close," he instructed, his synthetic voice steady despite the grim surroundings.
The team comprised mostly of newly forged worker drones, many on their first surface expedition. Above them, combat drones patrolled the skies, their dark silhouettes flitting between the thin clouds and the pale light of the gas giant overhead.
"I don't like this place," muttered a young worker drone, her optical sensors scanning the lifeless landscape of snow-draped trees and skeletal ruins. "Why would humans build anything here?"
Another drone, a hybrid with a small stinger-tipped tail, replied, "My mom said it wasn't always like this. It used to be warm…alive."
Khane turned to address the group, his optics dimming momentarily in a gesture of reflection. "She's right. This world was once lush and thriving. Then the SES unleashed their hellfire. Everything changed." He gestured to the horizon, where the dark shapes of buildings began to materialize. "Keep moving. We've got work to do."
As they approached the buildings, a worker drone's flashlight swept across a buried sign. "Sir, look at this."
Khane joined the drone, brushing snow off the faded lettering. "Camp 98." The name felt out of place. He signaled with his flashlight the combat drones to land, their arrival stirring a flurry of snow.
"Find something?" one combat drone asked, its tone wary.
"Just this sign and the buildings ahead. Any idea what this place might've been?" Khane asked.
"Not a clue," the combat drone replied after reading the signal. "But it doesn't look like a camp to me."
The group pressed on, with two combat drones taking to the skies once more. The remaining pair, V and J, stayed behind to guard the workers.
The main structure was a cabin, its wooden frame weathered but intact. Snow spilled through shattered windows, forming mounds against the walls. J hesitated. "Anyone else feels...uneasy?"
V nodded. "This place feels wrong. Not dangerous, just...wrong."
Inside, rows of desks lined the walls. Papers and debris littered the floor, and a gaping hole in the far wall let in the icy wind. Khane instructed the team, "Spread out. Look for anything useful, but don't wander out of sight."
Minutes later, a worker drone's panicked voice broke the silence. "Sir, you need to see this!"
Khane hurried to the source of the commotion, finding a skeleton slumped against a metal door. The bones were fragile, almost brittle as if the bitter cold had drained the last remnants of life long ago. Scratched into the wood above the skeleton were the words: "Forgive us."
Khane repeated the words aloud, puzzled. "Forgive us for what?"
V and J joined him, their optics narrowing as they examined the scene. J muttered, "Why didn't they run? What were they trying to protect?"
Together, the combat drones heaved the door open. It groaned in protest before revealing a hidden chamber lined with hospital beds. The sterile, clinical layout contrasted starkly with the rest of the building.
"It's a lab," V observed, stepping cautiously inside.
At the far end of the room, an overturned bed revealed a female drone sprawled on the floor. Her body was battered, her optics dark except for a flashing purple error message.
"Nori," Khane read from the name tag dangling from her choker. "Subject 02." He carefully removed a strange, cross-shaped device embedded in her neck. Moments later, her optics flickered to life.
Another drone lay nearby, identical in condition. "Yeva. Subject 048," Khane murmured, removing the device from her neck as well.
Nori's optics glowed faintly as she struggled to sit up. "Where…where are we?" Her voice was weak, her movements jerky.
"Camp 98," Khane answered. "How did you end up here?"
"I…I don't know," Nori stammered. "Everything feels...heavy."
J interjected, "Let's get them back to the bunker. It's getting late, and we don't want to be caught in a storm."
Khane nodded. As the group prepared to leave, he couldn't shake the lingering questions. What was this place? What were those devices? And who was the lone skeleton that had carved their final plea into the door?
As they disappeared into the night, the answers remained buried in the snow and shadows of Copper 9.
September 2184. Facility 7. Makeshift Lab.
Jason listened intently, the mystery gnawing at him. This was something that needed further investigation, but it troubled him deeply.
"That's something else. Did you ever figure out what was implanted in their necks—the device you mentioned?" Jason's voice was low, but his curiosity was evident.
V and J shook their heads. They hadn't figured it out—no clues, no trails to follow. It was a dead end.
"No clue. It was strange," V replied, her tone flat. "I looked it over, but it was fried. Seemed like a one-time use."
Jason turned to Doll, a flicker of hope in his eyes. "Doll, any chance I could meet your mother after this? Maybe ask her a few questions?"
Doll hesitated, her brow furrowing with concern. She looked at Jason for a long moment, unsure.
"I can ask her... but I think it's time we leave here and head back to the bunker," Doll said, her voice tinged with urgency. "I need to contact her anyway—let her know what we found."
"I can agree with that," Lizzy added, eager to get out.
Jason nodded, but before he could speak, N turned to Uzi, her expression a mix of worry and determination. "Uzi, you alright?"
Uzi, her head hanging low, shoved the black choker into her pocket. She spoke softly, barely above a whisper. "I'll... be fine. Let's just go."
Doll and Lizzy exchanged glances, sensing something deeper troubling Uzi, but said nothing.
Jason's voice cut through the silence. "This is a good sign, I suppose. But I understand it's hard to shake off. There's still a chance she's alive. All I'm seeing here is bug blood and bodies—nothing that says a drone was hurt. Too many unanswered questions. We can head back for now, but think about it—we could go through the tunnels to reach Bunker 00. We need to check out the bugs, too. The tunnels would be perfect for setting up choke points. A killing ground."
The room fell silent. Everyone turned to him, expressions ranging from disbelief to dread.
"You want us to go back through that tunnel? Full of those bugs?" Uzi's voice cracked with disbelief.
Lizzy shook her head. "That sounds like a terrible idea."
Doll, however, shrugged, indifferent to the bugs. "I'd say you're insane, but I suppose it's the quickest path back to the bunker."
V frowned, crossing her arms. "It wouldn't be hard to keep everyone safe, but if those bugs came at us in a swarm, we'd be in trouble—especially if they're still near that door."
J nodded, deep in thought. "I don't like it either, but we need the fuel from their bodies. And it'll tell us if they're getting any closer to Bunker 00."
"Adventure time!" N shouted, a grin plastered across his face, clearly excited by the prospect.
Jason exhaled and moved toward the door, signaling for the others to follow. It was time to check out the next phase, while the SEAF and Science team handled recovery. But one thing still gnawed at him: who—or what—had set up this lab? And how did Nori, Uzi's mother, fit into all of this? He hoped that during their trek through the tunnels, he'd finally get some answers. But there was still the pressing question of when Nori had left Bunker 00.
Edited thanks to ELE73CH.