Chapter 08 The Lose End

“This is as far as you go, doc,” Conor said, his voice low and menacing.

 His finger hovered over the trigger while the gates were slowly closing.

“What are you doing? What—” 

 “Sorry, Doc,” he interrupted, his tone cold and detached.

 “Orders are orders. You’re not coming with us.”

Ichiban’s eyes widened, her mind racing as she tried to process what was happening. 

“What are you talking about? You said your here to extract us! You said it yourself—”

Conor shook his head, his grip tightening on his rifle.

 “Eel Schmuck’s orders were clear: secure the cargo and eliminate any loose ends. You’re a loose end, Doc.”

Conor turned to Kaiju and asked, "So, we can safely assume you got the cargo?"

Kaiju pulled a vile from his pocket and flipped it in the air, saying, "Yeah, cargo is secure. We can leave."

Ichiban’s heart sank as the realization hit her. The vile in Kaiju's hands. The incident in the lab—the way the liquid had reacted so violently with water, the timing of sudden appearance of Conor and his men. It all made sense now. Too much sense.

“Kaiju! You bastard! You set me up. The reaction in the lab—it wasn’t an accident, was it? You knew what would happen. You wanted it to happen.”

 Ichiban’s hands clenched into fists, her nails digging into her palms as she fought to keep her anger in check.

 "Eel Schmuck wants to accelerate the Earth’s crystallization. He wants to doom humanity sooner, so that his planet colonization project gets recognized by the government. And you—you helped him. You sabotaged my work. You betrayed everything we stood for.”

Kaiju put away the vile back in his pocket, his face pale as he rubbed at his forearm.

 “Ichiban, he promised me a spot on the colony ships if things went the worst-case scenario. A chance to survive. I didn’t want to die here, not like this. None of us do. For what it's worth, I didn't expect it go so bad, I just wanted to stir some trouble and activate Code Red. I didn't mean for so many to die.”

Ichiban’s heart sank as the full weight of his betrayal settled over her. She had trusted him. Worked with him for years. And now, he had sold her out—sold humanity out—for a chance to save himself.

“You’re a coward,” she said, her voice cold and filled with disgust.

 “And you’ve doomed us all. The crystallization was going to destroy our planet in a year and now, we won’t even have that. Eel Schmuck will release it. The crystallization will spread faster than it is already. Millions—billions—will die because of you.”

Kaiju’s face crumpled, his voice breaking as he tried to defend himself.

 “Ichiban, please—I didn’t want this. This isn't what it looks like. You got it all wrong. I didn’t want anyone to get hurt. I just… I just wanted to—"

Just as Kaiju was about to finish his sentence, the ground beneath them erupted in a deafening explosion. The support beams holding Helios-9 over the concrete coffin had detonated, their charges triggered by the timer Ichiban had set. The mountain trembled violently, the force of the blast tossing everyone to the ground like ragdolls. The facility shifted, its massive structure groaning as it began to collapse into the abyss below.

Conor was the first to recover, his training kicking in as he scrambled to his feet. He pulled his pistol, his eyes locking onto Ichiban as she stumbled toward the closing gates. He fired a shot, the bullet ricocheting off the heavy steel as the gates slammed shut, sealing Ichiban inside the facility for a far worse fate than a bullet to the head.

The facility shifted again, the ground beneath them giving way as the support beams finally failed. Helios-9 plummeted into the concrete coffin, the impact sending another shockwave through the area. Dust and debris filled the air, the once-imposing facility now a crumbling ruin buried deep within the mountain.

Conor and his team staggered to their feet, their ears ringing and their bodies bruised from the blast. Conor turned to Kaiju, his voice sharp.

 “Doc, are you fine?”

Kaiju was on his knees, clutching his forearm. He winced as he inspected the blood soaking through his lab coat sleeve. 

“Yeah, I think so,” he said, his voice shaky. 

“Just a scratch from that damn creature. The one that fell through the ceilings in control room. Bastard grazed me.”

Conor’s eyes narrowed as he grabbed Kaiju’s arm, pulling the sleeve up to reveal the wound. The skin around the scratch was already beginning to harden, tiny crystalline formations spreading like frost across his flesh. Kaiju’s eyes widened in horror as he realized what was happening.

“Oh shit, oh shit! My arm! It’s crystalizing! I’m turning into one of those things! Help me! Please, you have to help me!”

Conor didn’t hesitate. His face was cold as he pulled army knife from his belt. Before Kaiju could react, Conor swung the blade in a swift, brutal arc, severing Kaiju’s arm just below the elbow. Blood sprayed across the ground as Kaiju screamed, his voice raw and filled with agony.

“My arm! You cut my arm! AAAAH! Fuuuuuuck! My arm!” 

Kaiju collapsed to his knees, clutching the stump where his arm had been. The severed limb hit the ground, the crystalline growth spreading rapidly until it exploded into a jagged formation of red crystal.

Conor knelt beside Kaiju, his voice low and steady as he applied a tourniquet to stop the bleeding. 

“You’re lucky I was quick. If that crystal had spread any further, you’d be dead—or worse.”

Kaiju’s face was pale, his breath coming in shallow gasps as he stared at the crystalline remains of his arm.

 “You… you cut off my arm…” he whispered, his voice trembling with shock and pain.

Conor’s expression didn’t change.

 “Better your arm than your life. Now, can you walk? We need to move. This place isn’t safe.”

Kaiju nodded weakly, his face slick with sweat as he struggled to his feet. Conor slung Kaiju’s good arm over his shoulder, supporting him as they moved away from the ruins of Helios-9 toward helipad. The rest of the team followed, their weapons raised and their eyes scanning the area for any sign of danger.

In the morning, a few hours before the disaster.

The lecture hall was alive with conversations. Professor Ichiban stood at the podium. She was known for her sharp wit, her unrelenting passion for science, and her ability to turn even the most mundane topics into something fascinating. But today her mind was elsewhere.

At the front of the room, Shujinko sat with his notebook open. He was Ichiban’s star student—bright, eager, and endlessly curious. His messy black hair gave him a somewhat disheveled appearance, but his eyes shone with a determination that Ichiban couldn’t help but admire. He was the kind of student who asked questions not to show off, but because he genuinely wanted to understand.

“Alright, settle down,” Ichiban said, “Today, we’re diving into the applications of nanotechnology. Marvel of human innovation? Or... a disaster waiting to happen? Shujinko, care to kick us off with a summary of last week’s reading?”

Shujinko straightened in his seat, his face lighting up at the opportunity.

 “Of course, Professor. Nanotech is the key to solving some of humanity's greatest problems! Imagine self-repairing materials, instant disease eradication, pollution breakdown at a molecular level—it's the next step in human evolution!”

Ichiban nodded, a faint smile tugging at the corners of her lips. 

“Good summary. But let’s dig deeper. What about the ethical implications? Should we be releasing engineered particles into ecosystems, even if they’re designed to help?”

Shujinko hesitated for a moment, his brow furrowing as he considered the question.

 “I think… if the benefits outweigh the risks, then yes. But we’d need strict regulations and oversight to prevent misuse or unintended consequences.”

Ichiban raised an eyebrow, her tone teasing.

 “Regulation? Oh, my dear boy. Have you met humanity? When has control ever stopped people from abusing power? What happens when those regulations fail, or when corporations decide profits are more important than safety?”

Shujinko’s face flushed, but he held his ground.

 “Then we hold them accountable. Every advancement has risks! Medicine, electricity, even the wheel was dangerous at one point! But if we only focus on what could go wrong, we’d never move forward!”

 “I admire your optimism, Shujinko. But the real world doesn’t always play by the rules. Still, it’s good to see someone who hasn’t been completely jaded yet.”

The banter continued throughout the session, Ichiban and Shujinko trading arguments and ideas with the ease of two people who had done this countless times before.