Chapter 16: The Crumbling Prison

On a planet close to Exora, the Chaos Knight stands in some ruins, which were created by older stars of the cosmos. Brave, valiant souls that sacrificed their lives to seal away a great demon god. The great demon, a powerful being who aides this knight, has been sharing their knowledge and expertise with this younger warrior. The Chaos Knight walks through the ruins. They are the size of four city blocks. In the front section of this fortress, there is a very large room with control panels and gizmos.

And of course, the husks of the fallen. Their bodies have decayed over time, so all that remains of those dead knights is their leftover shattered armor.

The room is dark and barely lit, filled with the humming sounds of gears and machinery. The previous batch of star warriors were unable to fully defeat the “demon” lord, but they subdued the machine god and knocked them unconscious. Just long enough to erect a powerful seal around her, formed with their spirits. And to further ensure no one could release her easily, the ruins were fortified with steel mechanical puppets, sentries, and other powerful weapons, designed to stop the monster from escaping.

The Chaos Knight looks at a monitor. It shows the interior area, where the red-haired android has been sealed in. A large, complex scientific tube is where that body has remained trapped in a green liquid. Four powerful-looking weapons are also inside that room. Those weapons, forged from the spirits of those noble knights, created an immensely powerful magical seal, forged from science and magic.

Something even the Chaos Knight was unable to break. She will have to wait.

The “Demon” Lord has regained most of her power while she has been asleep. She will eventually break free of her prison. Though she might be set free a little sooner. Perhaps.

She is not sure how, but the knight has a feeling.

A false demon lord has told the former goddess of the underrealm quite a lot of things. And has spurred the chaos kin on, telling her to fight the Star Warriors. While being trapped in that apparatus, the Proctor unit has projected her spirit form to talk to others. It has been sealed for millennia, much longer than the Chaos Knight has lived. The essence of the fake demon lord drew her towards this place. This prison was designed to hold this ancient menace. The remnants of the past sealed this Queen of Darkness away for more than fifty thousand years. As the dark-skinned woman ponders, footsteps can be heard approaching the two of them.

An ally. The machine god of Chaos. Quite different from his brother, she had fought not too long ago. That behemoth was one of the five god machines. Mighty beings that support the star warriors. Each of these ancient robots chose their potential partners in advance, providing them with aid, mental support, and guidance.

The Machine of Chaos was no different, though the arrogant monarch was less agreeable in a sense. This man, like her, followed the path of Chaos, but there was something different about him. The god was less of a rampaging beast and more resembled a king of nature. Someone who thrived in the midst of chaos but had a greater purpose, a greater reason to exist. The Chaos Knight had always felt there was something more to him. The woman had similar feelings about the Omni Knight. Even though she didn't like that noble machine, the chaotic girl couldn’t help but respect him to some degree. And she felt the same about this ancient king. Who stood tall, casting a tall shadow over the goddess.

This hulking god robot stood over seven feet tall, possessing jet-black armor and red eyes. There was a rather bemused expression on that battle-hardened face. Clearly, he was enjoying the sight of this friend of theirs.

“We meet again, Proctor unit. Or should I call you the fake demon lord?” He says loudly and forcefully. A red form floats in front of the two of them. It is a projection of the Chaos God's spirit. It seems to be able to speak to them through telepathy.

“Call me whatever you like, old friend. It has been a long time, hasn’t it? And it will be time for me to awaken soon. I can feel it. Those star warriors will be shuttered here by our superiors. The War Goddess will send a few towards me soon enough. Then.” She trails off. The ancient machine smirks in its tube, anticipating their arrival. Already, she can vaguely sense their powerful potential.

The billion-year-old unit has seen many things. Slaughtered even more who were foolish enough to fight her. Star warriors were created with little abandon in the beginning. But eventually, the Demon Lord and the Machine Angels, those loyal servants, improved their methodology.

Their training.

Tactics.

The warrior’s potential.

So, naturally, the fake Demon Lord began to struggle. And was defeated several times. The last defeat was the most dramatic, she remembers. Oh, the queen remembers the event fondly. The mountain of corpses they made together, with those beautiful star warriors. She laughs.

“Ah, you reminded me of the past! How delightful. It was a shame the last batch, well, failed. They defeated me, yet created something far worse than any of us could have imagined. A god machine that matches even you and your brother, Chaos brethren.” The Proctor unit says darkly to the giant humanoid machine standing next to the Chaos knight. His face merely becomes disgruntled. The memory was not a fond one. Of fighting that damned machine.

Even with the help of the star warriors and the other four god machines, they were barely able to seal that thing away. The thought makes the god clench a fist in frustration, cursing his lack of strength.

“You don't have to remind me. I remember. The scene is eternally etched in my mind. Of the Void Machine. That thing is still sealed away, remember? I told you the last time I spoke to you, after we defeated it. But.” The ancient machine god knows. That seal won't last forever. Just as the seal on the testing unit has faded over time, so will the seal on the void machine vanish. It was only a matter of time until the mistake from the past became the nightmare of the present.

The Demon Lord knows this better than any of them. Thus, they are moving their plans slightly forward. They don't have time to wait for that thing to wake up. The Chaos Knight merely glances at her brethren. Then, he stares at the taller man.

She considers him more of an older brother, really.

“I think you told me about that earlier, a bit.”

“I’ll tell you more about it later. It is something you and the others will fight. Don't worry about it too much. We aren't strong enough to fight it. Yet. I want you to focus more on the star warriors. The ones that rival you in strength, hmm?” Those words poked a nerve, making the brown-skinned woman look at him with a hint of anger.

“Nameless! Divine flash! Divine Hammer! Oh, I will enjoy fighting them. They must become stronger. Right now, they are weak. I want to face them at their best. Then, we can decide who is better. So, I will wait for now.” The Machine of Chaos knows this woman. Quite immature, this one is, but for now, is being patient.

In time, she will evolve, just as the Star warriors will. For now, that stupid knight was trapped in a mental labyrinth of her own design.

And perhaps, if someone defeats this naive god, it will benefit this child greatly. The ancient machine keeps those words to itself. His role is similar to his brother’s. The sentient robot is designed to aid and support warriors of the cosmos, but in his case, the unruly king guides the Chaos warriors.

He knows the truth.

The truth is that both sides, chaos and order, need each other. Alone, they are mighty, but flawed.

Together, when they can finally see past their differences and instead, be united by them. That will be the day the machine gods can rest easier. That will be yet another step towards defeating their true nemesis. The Ouroboros.

Order and chaos are not opposed; they merely are two sides of the same coin. The same concept. All the god machines know this well. They always choose their own partners. These girls are young, he thinks. And they have to learn as most young people do. Through experience. Even if the Machine of Chaos told this unruly woman right now, she would not listen at all.

The Chaos Knight was far too obsessed, far too petty.

To be fair, the unruly girl was defeated by a younger Nameless about eight years ago. Now, she is quite obsessed with that redhead and her sister. And, somehow. The Chaos Knight had gained knowledge about the five. The “chosen”. The god machine and the Proctor unit have been intentionally keeping her in the dark, telling that petulant woman only necessary information. But despite this, the woman still learnt pieces of the truth.

Somehow, the Chaos Knight had learned about the “five chosen”.

Five divine star warriors were created to become guardians of the stars.

Beings that will unite together and lead others. Inspiring others to reach their full, unleashed potential.

Where had she learned this? Who had taught this knowledge to the black-haired woman?

The Machine of Chaos was baffled how the hell she figured part of the plan out without any of them telling her a thing. The red and black king sighs mentally, watching his ally casually speak about her “love” of slaughtering Nameless’ friends.

He merely endures and nods along. For now.

Eventually, they were going to have to deal with this shit.

Luckily for him, the Magician already knew.

The Magician, a woman shrouded in even more mystery than the rest of them. The robed, white-haired lady knows all, sees all. That crazy sage knows everything.

All by design.

That woman was equally as much of a helpful friend as well as being a terrifying manipulator. She was the one who erased the memories of the Underrealm Goddess on that day after all. A day that was quite memorable. The day when Nameless defeated her with ease. It was quite an eventful moment.

His thoughts trail back towards the prophecy passed down by the natives. This prophecy had wormed its way deep into the somewhat simple and childlike mind of the Chaos Knight. Fueling her jealousy, her inadequacy.

Basically, the delusional girl wants to be one of the “chosen”.

Impossible, the King laughs darkly.

What a joke. She does not understand her true nature.

Right now, the dark-skinned woman is hardly different from those beasts she kills on a daily basis. But besides this, besides her flaws, the Machine of Chaos can sense something deeper inside of her. Something worth fighting for, a great light hidden in the encroaching stench of her own darkness.

For now, the old mech will play dumb. Play along with her farce.

In time, the warriors of Chaos will learn. Learn their proper place, their role, in the incoming conflict. The underrealm goddess looks back at him, concerned that he has grown quiet for so long.

“Something on your mind, my fellow?”

“Honestly, I am thinking about you. But.” The god machine sighs and then shrugs, accepting his predicament.

“It is not worth telling you now. Later when you have grown a bit more.” The Chaos Knight is puzzled but accepts his response. Despite those bad habits, she is quite intelligent.

“Fair enough. Look, I can tell. You two are only telling me what you think I need to hear. Which I find somewhat frustrating. But I can understand. You two have been through so much more than I have. This is just your best response to the plan and me. And I am aware. I am not always the most sensible. It is hard to rid myself of the feelings I have towards Nameless.” She stomps on the floor in frustration. A chuckle can be heard from a nearby Chaos god.

“If you know, then why do you keep acting like this? You think being envious and jealous is going to-” He gets cut off by a death stare and just laughs heartily.

As usual, all it took was one word to rev up that infantile obsession.

“Why not? That pissy young upstart. She is always questioning everything, always cutting deep into my psyche, my mind. And you expect me to like her? That girl who does not comply with order and hates the rules of society!” The woman yells, getting angrier than expected. The machine of Chaos merely looks at her gravely.

Clearly, these two will take the longest to get along, the red humanoid mech thinks. She carries on with her rant.

“And her sister just goes along with her bullshit, always siding with her stupidity. She is quite aware of her habits! The divine flash merely turns a blind eye to them. So, no, I can’t easily give it up. My feelings, my dislike. They merely increase every moment I think of them. But I am aware of it.” The black and white-robed woman turns, facing away from the two of them. Her anger was high for a moment, but then boiled down to more of a simmer after a couple of minutes.

The projection of their older battle sister remains silent. This was not something they could solve with words. When the girl gains more life experience, she will learn naturally how to deal with the rampaging problems that are weighing her down.

This was her newest protege, her little sis, as the replica unit likes to think of the Chaos warrior. One day, this one will fully follow in the footsteps of the great false demon.

The world will change when you change yourself, the fake demon lord thinks.

Perhaps these new star warriors will change the knights. Perhaps they will change all of them. Something is different about them. Even without meeting them, the stories these two told her convinced her.

They might just be able to do it.

Accomplish the impossible.

The Proctor unit somewhat understands why the machine gods and the magician have faith in them. They are merely waiting for the star warriors to prove themselves, to ensure they have not felt the wrong way. This was the impression the scarlet-haired woman got from the ancient machine lord.

“I don't have much to say about that matter. All I can say is, you have to find your own way to deal with that. For now, prepare yourself. It will only be a couple more weeks before I reawaken. It will be another fun time again, my old friend. I have gotten a little bored waiting for the final candidates, hmm?” The amused android laughs.

The Machine of Chaos kinda shrugs. “Not my fault, you know how the O.R.B and the Demon Lord are. Slow but methodical.”

“Indeed. Based on your input, I think I will have to ‘educate’ them. Give them a little proper training course. And it's a good warm-up for me. How long has it been? Fifty, sixty thousand? No, it has been more than a hundred thousand years. Time seems to flow so quickly. Hahahaha!” The red form laughs, amused again. These star warriors desperately need some help. Oh, how they will find it. Not in the way they want, though. The Ancient Proctor unit, naturally, is designed to test and judge whether the candidates can pass the test.

And the test is defeating the chaos lord and her allies. What better method could there be to test the star warriors’ unity? Their teamwork? None.

“Alright, enough playing around. Time to get back to our business. Chaos Knight, go back to Exora. Chaos Machine, you are free to go. You have told me enough. I will meet you again as soon as I get out of this damned facility. I can’t lie; the prison they made for me was pretty well constructed. Though not flawless.” Only Star warriors can open the door and unlock the magic seals surrounding her. Chaos energy was forcibly detected and filtered out, preventing the two from freeing their friend.

Such ingenuity.

It was looking forward to meeting the Divine Hammer; this creation candidate had great potential. Potential for war, she thought. The other two walk through a portal and return to where they need to be.

For now, she waits patiently awaiting her full awakening.