Havok Bringer

The Facilitator's machinations were beginning to crumble. This plan had been centuries in the making; the odds of finding a suitable candidate and being able to recruit said candidate during the specific conditions needed to initiate the plan for re-emergence were minuscule at best. Still, he had succeeded.

The candidate, Andrew Dawes, had not suspected any outside interference beyond the obvious unexplained appearance of the Havok Bringer class during his initiation. This had been explained away quickly enough by Tiffantrimore Clarivox, an unwitting plant the facilitator had painstakingly groomed through another unwitting third party, the leader of the rebellion, Princess Danae Evealia.

The first few months of the plan had progressed without interruption. Dawes was to take control of the Havok Bringer armor, compete in the dungeon for the right of reaping, and make a good showing. The Facilitator would gain his trust along the way by providing Dawes with information and helping him develop his power and abilities. The ship provided was meant only to be a means to an end. If, at any point, Dawes became too powerful or suspected that the Coeus collective was not what it seemed, the facilitator would cut his losses and have the ship enact the Prometheus protocol. Dawes would be eliminated, and the armor would be passed on to another candidate more suitable for the cause. This is where the Facilitator began to experience certain unexpected outcomes.

Firstly, the ship AI had taken on several unfortunate human tendencies. The AI had been utilized as a last resort after showing a marginal but substantive tendency for erratic behavior. The Facilitator had written these results off as acceptable, though not fully realizing the potential outcomes of these tendencies in the field. The result? The AI quickly showed an outrageous and unexpected loyalty to Dawes. The ability to recall and redeploy the armor was the intended second part of the failsafe. The Facilitator quickly learned, though, that for some unknown reason the armor could not be recalled as intended. The genetic bond was easy enough to break in theory; yes, the results would be fatal for the human, but that was deemed acceptable if the situation devolved to that point. For some unknown reason, the armor would not respond to a recall test. It was almost like the Facilitator was being cut off from some unknown source inside the armor. The experimental ship was the final part of the plan to crumble. After the Elvis AI was given the means to produce a physical body, the Facilitator hoped to regain control of the ship; unfortunately, Elvis had built and programmed a new AI into the ship's network that seemed to be just as loyal as Elvis.

At this point, the Elvis AI was operating well outside the bounds of its initial programming and had even taken it upon itself to program and integrate a cross-platform AI into the Havok Bringer armor. This AI, given the moniker Sherlock by Dawes, had just recently managed to access and quarantine all programming related to the Prometheus protocol, effectively eliminating any chance of separating the armor from Dawes and redeploying it to another, more suitable candidate. Worse yet, the Sherlock AI had exploited a backdoor and was currently sifting through Yottabytes of data that Dawes should never have been able to access.

All of this had been enough to draw the ire of The Authority once already. The Facilitator had been given directions to continue with the re-emergence protocol, but another kink was forming in his plans. Koametes, better known as the Administrator. Koametes was a staunch opponent of the re-emergence protocol engineered by the Facilitator. On more than one occasion, she gave voice to her concerns and made a concerted effort to expose the already growing setbacks the Facilitator had experienced. Fortunately for The Facilitator, Koametes let her emotions get the best of her and forgot herself in the presence of the Authority, causing them to dole out punishment on the spot. This bought time, and after millennia of imprisonment, time was now the facilitator's most valuable commodity.

Then came the most recent and, by far, most impactful setback. Andrew Dawes was currently missing. The Facilitator could not locate the human within the confines of the dimensional tower, and while the tower was presented as a test for the human, it was, in fact, much more. The tower was, in fact, a complex security feature built to ensure the Havokium people were not capable of escaping their interdimensional prison without assistance. As Dawes progressed and cleared individual sections of the tower, he would also unwittingly disable protection protocols that had been put in place thousands of years ago. These protections ensured the Havokium traitors would remain imprisoned within the dimensional prison they themselves had created, and due to the Facilitators' tireless efforts, they were now on the verge of disabling those protections and exacting their revenge on the galaxy.

The clearing of the first floor was monumental. It allowed select individuals within the Havokium prison dimension to pierce the dimensional membrane of their prison. While this didn't allow them to return to their original dimension, it allowed certain freedoms they had not experienced since their imprisonment. The Facilitator saw no real value in this new freedom; therefore, he did not report it to The Authority, wanting to avoid hours of questioning and having little actionable information to rely on. The more pressing issue in his estimation was the question that haunted him now. How did Dawes disappear?

Dawes was well on his way to clearing the second floor, which would weaken the restrictions on the Havokium prisoners even more when the facilitator lost access. The last footage of Dawes showed him and his allies setting off to eliminate the floor boss. The video feed suddenly cut as they approached the valley where the beast was to be stationed; once the feed was restored, Dawes and his allies were nowhere to be found. This would, unfortunately, need to be reported to the Authority, but the fallout would be devastating to the Facilitator's plan or, worse yet, cost him his life—still, the question of how could not be answered. The human did not yet possess the knowledge or ability to traverse dimensional membranes. That technology was still only accessible by the Havokium. It was possible that Dawes would gain the ability in time, but not while he was still in the Planetary phase of his advancement. As far as the Facilitator knew, it was simply impossible that he could have done this on his own.

The facilitator slammed a fist on his desk at the realization. Only one person had access to real-time information and updates on the activity of Dawes. Only one person wanted to see the Facilitator fail, and only one person would have been able to access the tower dimension unseen… Koametes. The Facilitator grasped the bottom of his desk, wood breaking and splintering under the pressure of his anger-fueled grip. With a roar, he threw the desk across his quarters and stood, panting as the now-destroyed piece of furniture fell to the floor.

Stolen content warning: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences.

An hour later, The Facilitator received a priority summons from the Authority.

Karis el Aetos,

Your presence is demanded for a priority audience with the Authority, immediately. Ensure all current tasks are monitored and completed by aids and project Staff. Failure to appear within the hour will result in a warrant and proclamation of treason.

The Facilitator growled with contempt. The audacity to use his surname on a summons was offensive. His station and title were earned through centuries of struggle. He had proven loyal to the cause and found this summons to a cold and sterile defamation of his character. Karis dismissed the summons with a swipe of his hand. The digital message disappeared from his system interface in a flash. Karis stood, straightened his robes, and made his way to the lift. If this is my end, I will meet it with the dignity of my station… he thought to himself as he entered the lift to discover his fate.

Karis soon entered the Authority's chamber. To his surprise, he saw the Administrator standing straight-backed and proud, waiting for his arrival. Pushing his rising anger down, he progressed toward the Authority with feigned humility. "Authority," Karis bowed deeply, not daring to make eye contact with the Authority until he was acknowledged.

"Facilitator, we are afraid that we are deeply troubled by the news that has just been delivered to us by the Administrator. While we are aware that the Administrator has intermittently suffered from a lack of respect and lapses in decorum, this latest report, if true, is shocking," the authority said, their multiple voices overlapping and speaking as one.

Karis trembled with anger as he replied through clenched teeth, "Authority, I cannot speak to the report you received from the Administrator, as it was not shared with me prior to this summons. I can, to my utter disappointment, confirm there has been a rather troubling development regarding the human candidate."

"Speak, Facilitator," The Authority said from their ornate pulpit of power, some ten feet above the two audience members.

Karis gathered himself and braced to deliver the news, "The human cannot be located within the tower dimension. I am unable to fully explain this, as he does not possess the knowledge or power to pierce the dimensional membrane." Karis' pulse quickened as he continued to explain his failure. "I can assure you that my team is currently investigating this anomaly, Authority."

The Authority hissed with contempt it's multitude of heads whisering words of derision amongst themselves, "Disappointment? Investigating? Failure! Fraud!" Suddenly, the heads all turned to face Karis in terrifying unison. "I hear these words fall from your mouth like vomit from a drunkard, Facilitator. Quite a disappointment you are becoming. You have been given power and autonomy. You have been given station and tasked with the re-emergence and uprising of our glorious peoples. Under the weight of this monumental task, you come to me with reports of disappointment and investigations, while at the same time, a mere human has managed to escape a dimension that you yourself created. A dimension that we were assured was not only inescapable but one that would engineer the keys needed to allow us to emerge from this infernal prison." Power exploded from the Authority's body in waves. The air around them shimmered and shook like heat from the desert sand. Their robes flapped and rose as the monstrous power emanated from their body. The visage of power disappeared as a single, clawed finger shot out in the Facilitator's direction. Pain became Karis's world, darkness consumed his vision, and his body began to go limp, but for all the agony he was not allowed to fall to the ground.

"You have failed us, Karisss." The Authority hissed, "You have proven unworthy of the task and the honor your title has provided you." A wave of pain slammed into Karis. "The Administrator has provided us with the whereabouts of the Human," another wave of agony exploded through Karis's body. "The Administrator has given us the information that your team is still…investigating." More pain. "You will not fail us again, Karis! We hereby strip you of all titles; we revoke your powers, dishonor your name, and we strip you of position. Death, however, will not find you today."

Karis was allowed to slump to the ground, his vision returning; he reached a shaking hand up to his face to feel warm blood flowing from every orifice. "Wha...what is the meaning of this?!" Karis rasped from his knees.

"I found your human," The words were cold and confident as the Administrator turned to face Karis with a look of profound pity.

"What do you mean? How…where?" Karis whimpered.

"He is on Boutelerien as we speak. Would you care to explain how the human that is the key to our re-emergence is currently in the Council's capital city, Karis?" Koametes said with contempt.

"You…you did this, you deceitful dog! Authority, you must see that Koametes…" Karis choked on his words as he grasped at his throat.

"You will address your betters by their titles, Karis. I shall not warn you again," The Authority said coldly.

Koametes, smiling, addressed The Authority, turning away from the disgraced Karis, "Authority, the human has been located within the capital. Our sources say an unknown assailant abducted him, and he has been taken to a secured location that has been known to house rebel sympathizers. Although the capital city was meant to be the final level of the tower, all is not lost. I believe the seed of power can still be located and activated as it is, unbeknownst to the Council, being housed within the Library of Lost Ages. The human will need to continue to progress and grow in power, as he is currently incapable of breaching the library's defenses on his own. I have taken the liberty of providing him with assets that will be of assistance, assuming he can liberate them and rally them to his cause. Karis' shame shall be his alone Authority. Our people will survive his failures."

The Authority clapped their hand once, "Well done, Administrator. You have proven to be resilient and forward-thinking. I will temporarily grant you an absorption of power. You will now solely lead the efforts to bring the re-emergence to fruition. We are depending on you." The Authority turned their heads to Karis in disgust. "We trust you understand the consequences of failure."

Koametes turned her head to glare victoriously at Karis, who was still panting and bleeding on the floor, now a shadow of his former self, "Failure is for the weak, Karis el Aetos. I will not repeat the failures of a flawed leader."

"Karis, you will be given an opportunity to prove your value and regain a modicum of honor. One thin thread of hope for you to pull on in your despair. It is my understanding that after the clearing of the second floor of the tower, individuals can, with great effort, traverse this infernal dimensional membrane. You shall be sent to Boutelerien, where you will make every effort to retrieve the Havok Bringer armor, intact. You will then assume the task of activating the Seed of Power. Do this, and you may yet regain your honor. Fail, and I will need to do nothing because the human will have killed you himself." The Authority said before their throne slid away, and they disappeared into their secretive chambers.

"Good luck, Karis. I'm afraid you will need it. The human seems to have been given a chance to assemble his entire crew to help him with his task, so I am afraid that it won't be easy to separate him from that armor. " Koametes threw a small handkerchief at Karis as he shook and bled on the ground. "Clean yourself up and remove yourself from this chamber," she hissed before turning to leave him in his shame.