Price of Progress

Master Croghan thrust a needle into his face’s skin, and with it sewed a new patch to replace his fallen cheek. When he was done, he peered into the mirror. His left eye was made out of a gem, and in such a state, it did not need maintenance for now. However, his right eye was natural, and prone to decay. Of course, it was bloated again and was just about ready to burst.

“Gah… this is why I need apprentices,” he croaked.

Picking up the needle once more, he carefully burrowed it by the corner of his bulging eye, careful not to strike any of the green blisters near it. Once he got a solid grasp, he thrust in and let the accumulated pus burst out towards the mirror.

“Guh…” he groaned.

It was a painful process, but a relieving one. Once the excess body fluid was drained, Master Croghan pressed his eye back into the socket and blinked. It was stable once again. With that done, he brought a cotton cloth, drenched it with alcohol, and wiped at his injury.

The doors to his workshop opened.

“MASTER,” said Number CS-1. “I HAVE RETURNED.”

It entered the room, walking on with haggard steps. It was clearly damaged, though not quite to the point of crumbling.

The ReConstruct grasped in his hand a blue bird, one emanating with radiant energy. It was something that Master Croghan had been searching after for years on end. A Divine Scion.

“You found it,” said Master Croghan. “So, that burst of energy in the Silverpeak Mountains… it was this, wasn’t it?”

“YES, MY MASTER,” said Number CS-1.

Master Croghan seized the bird out from the ReConstruct’s hand, and tossed it into a bird cage.

“There, there…” said the Master, tapping at the cage, and invoking caws out from the bird.

“BASTION WAS THERE,” said Number CS-1.

“Bastion? Ah. That is what it was called by that traitorous apprentice of mine. Do not call it that. Number BS-8 is a traitor as well. Now, then. On to you. I believe that you seized this bird from the Silverpeak Mountains. It is far, but not so far it should have taken you this long to return with your wings. Why do you arrive only until now?”

The ReConstruct gave a glance over its shoulder.

“My wings were damaged in my fight against Number BS-8,” it said.

“And? You are equipped with the same automatic healing abilities I have granted him.”

There was no answer other than silence.

Number CS-1 was not entirely sure why he did not activate his healing protocols either.

“PERHAPS,” it said, “IT WAS TO PRESERVE THE DIVINE SCION. THIS UNIT WOULD HAVE NEEDED TO ENGAGE IN COMBAT AGAINST MONSTERS TO RECUPERATE FROM INJURY. DOING SO, HOWEVER, WOULD RISK THE ESCAPE OF THE SCION. PRIORITY WAS GIVEN TO THE LATTER.”

Master Croghan scoffed.

“So, that is why Brenna and Ranolkia are amassing military on the Akhronnan borders. Did you at least destroy Number BS-8 this time?”

“NO. HE IS MORE POWERFUL THAN LAST I ENCOUNTERED HIM. PERHAPS, I AM AT AN EVEN MATCH WITH HIM. I UNDERESTIMATED HIM.”

“Bah! You useless automaton,” he said. “Bring the Scion. I will use it right now. If Number BS-8 is as strong as you now, it will be a troublesome force. We will need to respond in kind.”

He picked up his cane and walked out from the workshop.

The ReConstruct took the bird cage and followed Master Croghan across a hallway leading to a bridge connecting to a different, smaller tower. The tower had a large dome at its helm. When the Master and the ReConstruct entered the forbidden tower, the candles immediately went lit.

Aside from the spiraling stairway, the inside of the tower was hollow. It was that way to accommodate a singular, colossal construction. It was a golem, of some kind, but of one of such a size that it filled nearly the entire tower just by itself.

“IS THIS SOME TITAN?” asked Number CS-1.

“The Stone Colossus,” said Master Croghan. “This is my master creation. A ten-meter tall construct body. Ah, for this I have worked on with all that I have for decades. This, and this alone, will be enough to stomp on the forces of those two pestilent nations. The only problem was finding a power source for it.”

“THE DIVINE SCION,” said Number CS-1.

“Of course it will be the Divine Scion, you rock-brain,” said Master Croghan. “That will be the power source.”

“MASTER CROGHAN,” said the ReConstruct. “I HAVE CONCERNS. WHAT ABOUT THE INTELLIGENCE OF THE COLOSSUS? WITHOUT A SOUL, IT WILL BE A MINDLESS BEING.”

Master Croghan cackled.

“Oh, Number CS-1,” he said. “It will have a soul. This titanic body will be a god among men, even greater than that absent, comatose Goddess. And it will be me.”

“YOU?” said Number CS-1. “FORGIVE ME, MASTER. IS THIS SOME SUIT TO BE PILOTED? THE SOUL TRANSFERRING PROCESS REQUIRES AN OVERSEER, AND WE HAVE NONE.”

Master Croghan guided the ReConstruct up the stairs of the tower, and on to a platform leading to the head of the colossus. When Master Croghan tapped at its forehead, mechanisms within it let the cranium unfold, revealing an open coffin within it.

“That will be my grave, Number CS-1,” said Master Croghan. “I will merge with this colossus now. My soul be as one with it. All that will be needed will be for the heart to be implanted.”

“INSTRUCTIONS UNCLEAR.”

“There!” said Master Croghan.

He pointed down to a separate platform, down some more flights of stairs, which lead to an opening chamber at the chest of the stone giant.

Number CS-1 walked down the stairs and peered into the chamber. It had a receptacle and a hook, meant to contain the Divine Scion. It had numerous runes within it, all meant to drain the energy from what was inside it.

“PROCEEDING WITH INSTRUCTIONS,” said Number CS-1.

“There is a risk of failure, Number CS-1, I will have you know” said Master Croghan. “Thirty percent. I have studied other ways to siphon energy from a Divine Scion, but those would require greater attunement. I do not have time for that. I will have to risk it! Now, Number CS-1… enter the chamber, and place the Divine Scion in its place!”

Master Croghan walked into the head chamber, and climbed into the coffin. As soon as he lied down, the cranium’s mechanism closed shut, encasing the Master in complete darkness.

Number CS-1 walked into the chest chamber. The Divine Scion fluttered its wings, banging at the cage from where it was encased.

“Stop!” said the bird. “Stop this!”

“I CANNOT,” said Number CS-1.

He attached the bird cage to the hook and affixed the base into its proper platform. As soon as the mechanisms latched, the runes inside the heart chamber glowed. In particular, a large crystal wall at the back of the chamber shone with red prominence.

“Stop!” cried out the Scion. “Please! You are better than this!”

The bird tried to phase through the cage, but the runes kept the bird in its place.

Number CS-1 paused as the doors of the chamber slowly began to close.

He peered into the eyes of the bird, and through those pitch-black mirrors, he saw a reflection of himself.

“Caw!” went the bird.

In its moment of desperation, it shot a burst of energy at Number CS-1, knocking him a step back. Being a Divine Scion, it was not capable of great destruction, so though it did not wound Siege, the energy was enough to overwhelm the ReConstruct’s runes.

Siege remembered how he had come to this world. In that infinitesimal moment, Number CS-1 remembered who he was.

“What am I doing?” said Siege.

“Caw?” said the bird.

“What the hell am I doing?!”

Without regarding it a single thought, the ReConstruct broke open the bird cage, and let the creature within fly out.

“Thank you!” said the Divine Scion. “I will never…”

A bolt of lightning surged from the red crystal of the chamber, leashing unto the Scion, and pulled it back into the receptacle.

Number CS-1 smacked away the cage and caught the bird, struggling against the pull of electricity bound to the screaming bird.

“I got you!” said the ReConstruct. “I got you!”

He walked towards the doors of the chamber and just managed to catch the edge before it closed. However, as he struggled on, he could not pull the bird any closer. The grasp of the crystal’s tether was too strong.

The ReConstruct’s hand slipped, letting the doors of the heart chamber shut close. He let go of the bird by accident, and saw it be levitated to the center of the chamber once more. The rest of the runes intensified in their shine, and hurled on their own tethers to siphon energy out from the Divine Scion.

“No…” muttered the ReConstruct.

He charged towards the red crystal, the source of the largest tether, and slammed his shoulder into it. Barely a dent. He punched and struck, using all the might remaining in his body.

It was no use.

“Siege!” said the Scion. “I will perish soon… this drain, this will take everything!”

“I cannot save you,” said Siege. “I… I am sorry.”

“Siege, you are better than what that man made you to be,” said the Scion. “I cannot save myself. But I can save one. I can save you!”

“What?” said Siege.

The binds of lightning intensified, seemingly taking energy with large gulps out from the Scion, and forming an unbearable amount of heat in that chamber.

“Will you accept?” said the Scion. “Will you accept to be saved?!”

Siege hesitated. If anything, at least he wanted to save that animal.

“Can you not come?” he said.

“No!” said the Scion. “I can only another, and only if they accept! This is all I can do. Accept! Accept my final wish!”

“Damn it all,” said Siege. “I accept!”