The Devil Inventor: Doctor Devol

An uncertain amount of time had passed, but Kalin found himself very popular when he awoke.

The room was the same, but the amount of people had increased. There were at least a dozen guns trained on the hero, who sat helpless in the center of the encirclement with enough chains on him to restrain ten men. He attempted to emit his electricity, but any emissions seemed to find a focal point on his person, a large battery clamped to his leg.

"You like it?" Devol asked? Her voice had a slight mechanical twang to it. "It's a countermeasure specifically built for you, though I didn't expect to test it so early."

The crowd gave a malicious chortle, entertained by the Rydian's struggle. Kalin's eyes glanced outward and caught red beams of lights watching him. Automatons were watching from the shadows.

"You should know why I'm here." Kalin slurred. "The devastation at Rydia. Was that your doing?"

"Devastation?" Devol turned. "Did we do anything, Krudle?"

"Not yet," said a fellow scientist. Kalin recognized him as one of Devol's sons. "We did get a report from our spies saying aliens attacked the throne room three days ago."

"Aliens? How exciting! Have you met them, my dear Kalin?"

Kalin remained silent, letting the son explain the situation to her mother. The level of detail shook his Core. The traitors had to have been in the very room to have this much intel, not only in Ryza but in kingdoms all over the planet. Any place capable of telecommunications was funneled back to here, the heartland of evil, and while the picture wasn't complete, the deductions were too close for comfort.

"A spaceship!?" Devol cooed. "With a laser beam? Kalin, you didn't think we would build something so horrible, did you?"

"No." As much as he wanted it to be true. "You're not cruel enough to annihilate a city like that, slaughter its inhabitants."

"I do have a laser beam." She chuckled. It was exciting, if not infuriating to be outcompeted. "But it's such a shame, your kingdom. I'm sure this tragedy wouldn't have occurred if you all followed my rule."

Kalin stomped on the metal plating. "I'll kill you!"

The doctor laughed and ignored him, turning to her advisors. The more human soldiers started chatting with each other during the discussion.

"Hey, Kalin!" one of the soldiers hissed. "You killed my best friend a few years ago."

Kalin paused before speaking. "Was he a grunt like you?"

"Yeah?"

"Then he deserved it." A bullet whizzed by Kalin's head, a would-be fatal blow if he hadn't anticipated it. "You're fodder. You don't get to complain about dying."

"He's right, you know." Devol nodded.

Aside from a minor spike in violence, the room cooled as the leadership of the Obelisk briefed each other on current events. Kalin would listen from time to time, but exhaustion was taking over. He could still feel the drugs flowing through his system.

Devol concluded she had enough information and dismissed her family members to stare down her guest. Kalin could feel the perverse aura emanating from the scientist.

"You look nice," she said. "Have you been getting more sun?"

He refused to make eye contact. "That's none of your concern."

"You're looking better than me. I clearly don't take care of myself. Don't you think so?"

Kalin kept quiet. This was usual of her, something she picked up when he was younger and saw her more often. It frustrated him, especially as he thought of her two sons. Out of all of the Pandemians in the world, she was the most immoral. A disgusting woman.

"Why are you here?" She eased up. "Aside from killing me."

"There are refugees that need your help." The following words lurched out of his mouth. "I'm begging you, please help them."

"That's a strange thing to ask, coming from you."

"I'm not here to ask." Kalin leaned forward. "It's happening whether you want it or not."

"That's more like it." She poked him in the chest. She made a connection that pushed him back. It was ignorant of him not to look. He was clearly ignoring the machinery that lay underneath her skin. "And what if I refuse? They're not my people, so I have no reason to let them live. Unless you have something that could…convince me otherwise?" She leaned in and kissed him.

Pervert. Truly despicable. "You're a sick woman, you know that?"

"I know, it's great, but once I'm Empress of Ryza, that won't matter much, right?"

"I hope they'll get you next!"

"Do you? I have the most advanced technology on the planet. I have the industry you and your Emperor have been stealing for the past few years. You're so gung ho about me being the villain when I'm the best thing that's ever happened to this planet. I am truly astonishing."

"You're a monster, and you know it. This planet doesn't need you or those aliens."

"And yet we're both here, for now. Still, let's not get ahead of ourselves!"

She snapped her finger, and her associates brought out The Suit. They unrestrained the Pandemian long enough to be tossed into the thick, rubbery membrane and sealed him in like a straitjacket. A second layer was added for the mask, leaving only his eyes exposed. Finally, another set of batteries was latched to the top of his head, just in case the first battery exceeded capacity. No expense was spared to maintain the safety of the Obelisk.

"Now, if you may," she said with showmanship. "Onto the tour!"

The black tower had been hollowed out long before the modern age of Pandemian history, but the machinations of Dr. Devol had transformed the long, winding tower into a hyperefficient urban environment with floors upon floors of industry, research, and living. The tower housed prototypes and designs for the best inventions to be produced below, right next to the cramped, squalid cubic rooms the inhabitants expected to live in. Kalin could only look and reminisce about the large open farm at home.

Devol presented her work with much ego. "As you can see, I've been thriving for the past few years. Ever since we had to run repairs on the Core, we had to get innovative to ensure that the flow of energy wasn't interrupted, and from that struggle, we've made huge breakthroughs in our manufacturing. Tell me, how's that farm life of yours doing?"

"I'm not saying anything," Kalin grumbled, barely audible over the mask.

"Really? Well, I doubt it's anything worth talking about. That's what I envy about you, wild Ryzans. You're all able to take life slowly and let things pass, worshipping your absent gods. But look at all this! Aren't you astonished by my revolutionary designs?"

"Revolutionary?" He looked around calmly for effect. "This tower is barely habitable. Your quarters stink more than my barracks." 

Devol winced slightly. "The path of progress is not a comfortable one, Kalin. My mother and I discovered fields of science that you could only imagine. Built a great empire out of steel! Being content with the old world would kill me." 

The trip led them to an elevator shaft in the mid-levels, bringing the Doctor and Kalin past the tower's bottom and deep underground. The obsidian crisscrossed the shaft like the roots of a tree, losing its rigid structure to something more organic in shape. The cool air continued to hit them until a juncture had them pass the pipes where the air flowed, and a thick, sweltering heat tore at the inhabitants as if they were standing above a fire. It must've hit around 60 C when the shaft reached the cave system, and the hero of Rydia overlooked the heart of the Ublaneth Empire. 

Pandemians did not have a common vision of Hell, but if they did, it would look like this. The vast chasm glowed orange from the smelting process. Rows of massive crucibles littered the landscape, an endless sea of industry, sophisticated in its assets if rushed in terms of implementation, as the equipment showed signs of rapid displacement.

At the center of the underground facility lay a great black ball spun in the void of a rotation field, held together by an unimaginable force field. This device hung in mid-air, caressed and hung by cables and wiring leading up to the Obelisk a kilometer above. By all accounts, it shouldn't be running. Kalin couldn't tell where the power originated, but the device ran regardless.

"The Core," he sighed. "Are you sure the Earthlings didn't contact you first?"

"No, why?"

"It's nothing. Szeer just thought it would've been a better fit."

Devol paused, sensing a change in Kalin's demeanor. Did she convince him of her strength? Gods, she hoped so. "Your Pharaoh put that much faith in me?"

"He did."

"Why?"

"You're underground, and you have strong defenses."

"Most kingdoms know how to build a cave or a wall. Tell me why?"

"Because-." Kalin stopped, ready to vomit in his mask.

"I'm waiting."

The room was filled with around two thousand Ublanethans, thirty within earshot of the conversation. Soldiers and administrators were watching their mortal enemy in bondage as his voice spoke over the machinery and chaos. Devol watched him with a growing bliss as he opened his mouth.

"It's because you're competent, and we can trust you to save us all, even if it means giving in to you. For some reason, you've always been ahead of us, on the forefront, shaking up the world faster than we can keep up. It's daunting, honestly. I don't know if I can take it, but it's coming our way regardless, and if anyone knows anything about the upcoming apocalypse, I know you have an answer. So, will you help us?"

A split second stood between the two of them that lasted an eternity, and it was enough for Dr. Devol to shiver in ecstasy.

"Oh, I knew you always felt that way about me!" She laughed it off. "Don't worry, my love. Those poor, unfortunate aliens won't know what hit them. The Obelisk of Ublaneth will be this world's savior. Do you hear me!?"