Industrial Cthulhu: Starting as an Island Lord

The result was quite good—the monster's flesh and the soil, originally inseparable, had finally been parted.

The Pirate King's Court had already been reduced to a massive crater beneath the creature. Now, the monster that had once sprawled atop the Court dangled above the pit, suspended by countless Polluted Serpents that clung to the edges of the hole, barely keeping it from falling.

To be honest, it looked a bit ridiculous.

Now threading the sling ropes underneath it became much easier. The Banshees descended from one side of the crater and emerged from the other, threading the ropes right under the monster.

The *Heavenly Veil Behemoth* slowly hovered over the creature and began pulling the ropes, jettisoning all its ballast.

The immense airship generated an unfathomable amount of lift. The monster's body was hoisted completely into the air, with only the never-ending Polluted Serpents still attached. At last, people could see its full form.

It resembled an enormous octopus, as large as a small mountain. All trace of its former human form was gone—it looked entirely like some deep-sea abomination.

Its tentacles stretched out endlessly, extending to unknown distances. These Polluted Serpents were like a massive net—a net that blanketed the entire Storm Ocean.

The earth had long been drained of seawater. The old seabed was dry, and it hadn't taken much effort for the airship to lift the creature.

Hughes decided to fire it up for a test run. He had long had enough of this space where the Sea Temple lay. He wanted to see if they could finally leave.

That day, Monica, Nini, and Gaia gathered before the massive furnace. The ritual would be performed jointly by the three of them.

The Steel Liturgies before had always been carried out by Chloe, Monica, and Gaia. But now Chloe was gone, Monica had changed, and only Gaia remained.

Her expression had grown solemn. She was no longer that curious little girl. Only when she smiled did traces of her former self resurface.

Hughes looked at the trio before him, his heart filled with emotion. Without realizing it, everything had changed. What had once seemed ordinary—the trio that gave him daily headaches—was now no longer together.

No one even bombed the East Test Site's toilets anymore, though perhaps that wasn't something to be missed.

The ritual began swiftly. Gaia skillfully anointed the furnace with sacred oil. Monica danced with sacred artifacts in the dim candlelight. Her figure had matured. If her earlier dances had seemed comical, now they carried a hint of eerie grace.

Nini softly chanted the liturgy—not from memory, but guided by reminders from the other Banshees via Mind Link. Still, her recitation flowed smoothly.

Watching Nini chant, Hughes couldn't help but sigh.

He hadn't seen Chloe in a long time, yet her orange-red hair still often surfaced in his mind. A person one should've gradually forgotten remained unforgettable.

Seeing the ritual before him, he suddenly recalled those earlier times—how Chloe had recited the prayers so fluently. In the dim factory light, her short hair flickered like dancing fire.

Those moments that had gone uncherished were now gone for good, left only to be searched for again and again in memory.

With those thoughts in his heart, Hughes stepped forward and placed Chloe's diary at the top.

Below, the others danced and chanted. Chloe's diary lay at the very top, beside a portrait of her.

In black and white.

〖???〗

〖Uh, don't you all think this is a bit weird?〗

〖Can you take me down? At least take the portrait down. This is way too strange!〗

Chloe's handwriting surfaced on the diary.

Hughes quickly stepped up and scribbled:

【This is so you can still be part of it.】

〖.〗

〖Then maybe just take me down, please.〗

Hughes shook his head solemnly:

【No way. This is to honor your sacrifice, and to let you witness Castel's future. For all important events from now on, you'll be placed up there. The Holy Guard and the Moths Chasing Fire will also be able to pay respects.】

〖But I'm the one being honored! You all are commemorating, but I'm the one awkwardly hanging up there!〗

【What are you talking about? This is a sacred ritual—look, there's even your portrait beside it. Gaia is in tears. She really misses you.】

〖.〗

This time, Chloe fell silent.

Gaia was indeed crying. She carried out the ritual with absolute precision, not a tremble in her hands, but large tears streamed silently down her face.

In the dim firelight, those tears occasionally caught the glow, adding a faint brilliance to her otherwise expressionless face.

She had been Chloe's best friend. Chloe had also been the one she cared for most.

There had once been Monica too—but now, those memories were gone.

Gaia had always been a lonely person. Before Hughes came to the island, her happiest time each day was dinner, when her brother and father came home and told stories of the outside world.

Later, when she got to attend school, she studied hard, always ranking first. Zoe often praised her for being both talented and diligent.

She couldn't even tell whether it was love or fear of losing that life that drove her.

Back then, she believed that hard work would make everything better—and it did, for a time. She entered the advanced class, met Chloe and Monica. The two were always causing trouble, and she often got scolded along with them.

But they were kind to her. They were always together.

Then her brother sailed away from the island and never returned. She began spending her days staring blankly on the school steps. Later, the school was taken over by Murlocs, and even that spot was gone.

Eventually, Monica vanished too, and another piece of her memory went missing.

Chloe boarded an airship to scout the monster-infested seas. They hugged goodbye, Gaia in tears. The brash girl had patted her back to console her, saying not to worry—just to send more explosives.

Gaia had nodded. She had double-checked everything. The explosives were safe. She had been meticulous.

That gave her some comfort. The bombs were made by her own hand—she had faith in them.

But what came back was tragic news.

Her bombs had no issues, but Chloe still died.

No body. No final words. The message Chloe had given her life to deliver—Gaia had read it from Hughes. She said nothing, just returned to the factory, back to the production line, continuing to make explosives for Castel.

Her last friend was gone too.

Gaia was strong. She completed her tasks flawlessly and helped Castel through its crisis.

No one stood behind her anymore—how could she fall?

Many had written to Chloe in blood in her diary, but Gaia never had. When Hughes placed the diary in front of her, she pushed it away. In that moment, her heart felt utterly hollow.

She couldn't tell if it was fear of facing it, or an inability to forgive.

Chloe said nothing. Monica said nothing. The two of them watched their old friend, unsure how to comfort her.

They could never return to how things were.