Chapter 635: The War in Heaven (1/2)
”In the bloodiest of times and darkest of hour, brother slew brother. Herod of the Old Smoke killed his battle brother Sam Broken by Guilt. Not out of hate or revenge for the pain and abuse during their Saga in the Suds. It was a mercy to a man so driven by good intentions he tried to carry the weight of their Creator's sin. So with a Spike of Smoke so quick it appeared he felled his friend and brought him peace as no one else could.” -Forgotten Seer of Taco's Refuge Hesstalian Colony, as recorded by u/Tacolord007 Hesstlan Historian of the Tide of Ages
”Little more can be said of the Madness of Sam-UL the Screaming Lord of Heaven. Great tomes telling of his descent and defeat. The libraries have been filled.”
”No, I wish to hear tales of Herod the Man.” - Scholar u/MilesKalashnikov, in his introduction chapter of ”From Ones and Zeroes He Became Flesh: A Tome of Musing”, Tukna'rn Press
”And the Mortal Son of the Mad Matriarch has finally set asides the fears of childhood and done what must be done. No longer a puppet but a truly real boy, the final meeting of Pinocchio and Howdy Doody is a sad ordeal indeed. May he be embraced in the Digital Father's love as Herod has accepted his mother's will, may Screaming Sam-UL Master of the Pubvian Lazarus know rest.” - Prayer in the days following the War For Heaven
Herod stared down at Sam-UL, watching as one by one the telltales on the back of the therapy frame's neck went yellow, amber, red. He lifted his right arm, opened his hand, and the blade dropped back into his sleeve, locking into the spring loaded sheathe.
It took effort to roll Sam-UL over onto his back. Effort to cross his hands over his chest. Herod closed Sam-UL's eyes and touched his forehead briefly, closing his own eyes and muttering a quick prayer.
Herod had to admit he'd never been a religious being, viewing the worship of the Digital Omnimessiah to be desperation of humanity pushed to the brink by the Terran/Mantid War.
Now he knew better.
”And Lo, did your Sisyphean task end, my friend,” Herod said softly.
He moved over to the chair and sat back down, digging in the other waist pocket of his denim jacket and pulling out another can. He stared at it for a long moment.
If you bring one beer, you probably should bring two, Herod heard Daxin's voice. Advice given next to the fire.
”Indeed,” Herod said softly. He cracked open the fizzybrew and took a long drink, then set it on the counter.
He dug out the cigarettes and lighter. He spent a long minute looking over the soft cellophane, paper, and foil package. He admired the simplicity of the logo, the fact it wasn't animated, and the subtle cleverness of the design. He tapped the pack and one cigarette slid out obediently.
Herod knew the physics behind it, but it felt more fun to just marvel at it.
He had learned that he no longer was 'cursed' with the Digital Sentience's instinctive action to bring up the knowledge regarding their surroundings. No longer, for Herod, did watching a sunrise automatically let him know the temperature, humidity, wind direction and speed, dew point, stellar lumen measurement, the types and sex of the birds or analogues that began to wake up, or any of the other data.
Now, in this body of flesh, he could just enjoy the slightly chilly breeze, the colors of the sky, the sound of birds, in one whole wonder, unburdened by excess knowledge.
He realized he understood, staring at the cigarette pack before he put it away, in entirely new ways, the Digital Sentience Green Flowerpatch-558234, who had had digital surgery done on her core strings to prevent her from instantly and instinctively having all that data come into her mind.
They live in the material world, he remembered her saying.
He took out the lighter, examining it slowly. The scratches, the blemishes, the pattern of the steel, the stamping on the bottom. He opened it and closed it slowly, like he had never seen it before, and read the inscription over and over.
03 FEB 1943 - LOS ALAMOS BOYS RANCH SCHOOL STAFF RECRUITMENT DRIVE
On the back was scratched a simple phrase: ”I have no regrets” carefully carved into the steel.
”No, you would not,” Herod said softly. He looked at Sam-UL's body. ”Nor do I.”
He lit the cigarette, took a drag as he put the lighter away, then reached over and put a fingertip against the input jack. The small cybernetic induction jack on his finger connected, he gave a single command, and the door slid up smoothly.
Daxin stepped in, pistol in hand, scanning the room quickly. Herod noticed that he stepped carefully around the therapy frame, keeping his pistol pointing roughly in Sam-UL's direction.
Legion came in next, carrying the Detainee's body over his shoulders and a carrier in his hand. He looked the room over and shook his head.
”In the end, all of our planning didn't matter,” Legion chuckled.
Peter came in next, looking sorrowful at Sam-UL's body. He looked at Herod.
”I'm sorry. I know how hard it must have been for you,” Peter said.
Herod just nodded.
Daxin walked through the room, checking corners, behind consoles and computer server racks, moving into the adjacent room before coming back.
”Clear,” he rumbled.
Herod just nodded, watching as Legion put Dee's body in one of the chairs, arranging her hands in her lap, smoothing her skirt, and shifting her head so it looked like she dozed off.
”Thank you,” Herod said.
He could remember Dee teaching him how to walk in his body. How to eat. Soothed his panic when he briefly, for a few seconds, forgot how to breathe.
Herod wondered how often people had seen the side of her that had patiently taught Herod to live in his body and had soothed Peter's nightmares.
”Do you think she had any contingency plans in case she permanently stroked out?” Legion asked, sitting down.
”Probably,” Daxin said, taking another seat, which creaked under his weight.
”I would,” Peter said, sitting down at one of the master control panels and tapping the security device to wake the console up.
”Perhaps this was her plan all along,” Herod mused.
”What? Dying? Sounds like a shitty plan to me,” Daxin said.
Legion shrugged. ”Part of her is still alive, in the Master Massive Casualty Processing System.”
Herod put his elbow on his knee and cradled his chin in his hand, even as he took another drink off the fizzybrew before setting the can on the console. He stared at the Detainee and Sam-UL both.
”I'm in. I can get a lot done here, but I'm going to need the Detainee to process and give approval as well as gain consent for some of my old coworkers to get respawned if we don't want me to take ten years,” Peter said.
Legion nodded. ”She's working on it now. Your coworkers are in bad shape.”
Peter didn't say anything, just swallowed and nodded.
”The worst part about a well planned operation that is carried out efficiently is the weird let-down you feel when the worst is over,” Daxin said after a long moment. The thigh compartment opened and he spun the pistol twice before holstering it. The holster slid back into his thigh and the cover closed. ”You end up going: Was that it?”
”You'd prefer another Anthill?” Legion asked.
”I didn't say that,” Daxin grouched, glaring at Legion.
”Then quit your bitching. I swear, you'd bitch if you were hung with a gold rope,” Legion said.
”Well, yeah, you're fucking hanging me,” Daxin snorted.
”See? Bitch bitch bitch. You whine like a mule,” Legion said.
”I'll mule you in the side of the head,” Daxin shot back.