Is she . . . Zack couldn’t complete his thought. He had no idea what darkness he had awoken deep within Lambda as he waited with baited breath to hear what she wanted to know.
Lambda peered down at him, her eyes glowing like rubies. “Zack . . . why do I remind you of this Rachiel?”
* * *
[January 13th, 2022 - (Past) - Cyber Network - Common Zone 67 - Day]
Zack could hear an annoying hum in his ears that blocked out all sound. He could barely see as he tried to find his footing after being thrown back by the giant lightning bolt that devastated the terrain of the Common Zone server. Despite his shaky legs, he was able to at least get to his knees and prop himself up. With great effort, he tried to make out the shape at the center of the crater of destruction. With a few shakes of his head, he was able to regain most of his vision, only to gaze upon a new horror.
“C-Corson! What are you doing here?!” bellowed Overseer. She was shaking all over from a mixture of fear and anger.
Corson leered in their direction. He ignored their inquiry and began scanning his surroundings. Overseer didn’t take too well to the silent treatment.
“I said, what are you doing here, Cor-”
“I’m sorry, but I don’t care for useless questions,” Corson interrupted with a calm voice and ruthless glare.
Overseer was taken aback with the intimidating presence before her. “I thought Stigma and Babel signed a non-aggression act? You are not to interfere with our business. In return, you are allowed to-”
Corson silenced her with a dismissing wave of his hand. His eyes fell upon his target as Overseer stood in stunned fury.
“My business and your business are often the same.” He turned to face Overseer. His eyes were menacing. “Now, if you wish to see another sunrise, be a lovely couple of dogs and leave.”
All three of the armored assailants stood frozen as Corson’s words dug deep into their ears. His voice was so low and hostile in how he spoke that it vibrated in their craniums. He meant to kill. Neither of the them had ever seen such raw intimidation outside their master. It was horrifying.
Zack by this time had finally gotten his bearings and was able to clearly see what was in front of him. His hearing was still a bit muffled, but he was able to get most of what was said between the intimidating people before him. His whole body froze as Corson faced his direction.
Corson began to approach Zack. Each step sent chills down Zack’s body as the imposing man in black drew closer to him. He wanted to get out of the way, but like a deer staring down at its own demise, he could only stare back at the blazing eyes of the masked man.
Corson stopped just short of Zack and peered into him. “Do I frighten you, boy?”
Zack couldn’t muster a response.
Corson didn’t wait for Zack’s reply as his powerful eyes fell to the girl just beyond Zack. She still laid motionless on the ground. Without another word, he brushed by Zack and made his way to the girl.
As Corson knelt down before her limp body, Foresight’s ear began to explode with chatter and static. He quickly adjusted his volume as he tried to make out the words coming through his com.
“Th- . . . is- . . . Cor-. . . HQ-. . . Dea- . . . Eye- . . . Withdraw-”
Foresight didn’t need to hear anymore. With just a glance to his left, Clairvoyance nodded and vanished within a dark slit generated behind him. Foresight soon turned to Overseer.
“Our presence is no longer needed. We are instructed to withdraw.”
Overseer’s head whipped towards Foresight unnaturally. He didn’t need to see her face to know she was enraged.
“What?! I’m not leaving until I attain my target!”
“But Overseer, our master is-”
“I don’t care! This was my hunt, my mission! I refuse to allow this man to take my prize after all this!”
Overseer held her hand into the air. Several blue rings appeared and created a black funnel several feet into the air. From the funnel a large handgun dropped from the sky and landed in Overseer’s open palm. The weapon lit up crimson upon her grabbing the device and began to vibrate loudly. She aimed the device towards Corson.
“Step away from the girl, Corson! She is coming with me!”
Foresight shook his head in disapproval. His attention quickly fell upon Corson as he took to standing. He turned slowly to face them with his metallic claws clenched tightly.
“It appears you dogs need new obedience training. Allow me to teach you something then.”
Zack had never seen anything like it. Corson appeared to be simply standing, but looked to shudder to the point of almost blurring. In all but a second he was upon Overseer and Foresight, closing nearly thirty meters like it was nothing. The two victims could only stare horrified as Corson palmed their faces with his menacing claws. He only spoke one word.
“Weak.”
What came next could only be described as brutal. With the force of a nuclear warhead, Corson smashed the two into the ground. The massive shockwave rocketed across the area as the ground quaked where Corson made his devastating attack. The ground just seemed to shake for what seemed like an eternity as Corson allowed himself to be consumed by smoke and debris.
Zack stared in horror and envy. The display of power was extraordinary. The man before him was a force to be reckoned with. He had the power to move mountains. A power Zack wished he had as well.
The dust began to settle. Emerging from the crater, Corson strode toward Zack. His masked face conveyed nothing, but his posture and intense eyes were enough to make Zack nearly soil himself.
“Stay down, boy, this will be over soon,” spoke Corson in an undertone that shook Zack’s soul.
Corson passed Zack effortlessly seconds later, and made his way to the girl behind him once more. He then scooped her into his arms and stood stationary for several moments. He then turned to Zack.
“Boy, what is your-”
“Marvelous!” echoed a wicked cry of delight.
Corson’s head snapped to his right. His eyes sparked with white lightning as two concentrated beams of light bolted in the direction of the voice from his eye sockets. The source of the voice merely sidestepped the attack with elegance and joy as the beams connected with the ground several yards behind. The erupting explosion from the attack didn’t distract the new entity entering the hostile environment. He simply smiled widely.
“A stunning display as always, Corson.”
Corson’s eyes flashed. “This is a little unexpected. I had thought one of the High Kings wouldn’t bother showing themselves here. Have you grown soft towards these few Void Reapers?” His words were mocking but dark.
The man ran his hand over the rigid spikes of his short cut hair.
“Oh my no,” he began almost offended. “I already had those embarrassing little fools removed from the server after you put them into the ground—perhaps too merciful of me in hindsight—but this isn’t about you Corson. Although, I will admit it is an added bonus to see your pleasant face,” he finished, widening his grin to show his sparkling teeth.
Corson twitched. “Still disgusting as ever, I see. So, if it isn’t me you want, Dead Eye, then you obviously want-”
“Him!”
Corson’s eyes widened with surprise as he followed Dead Eye’s extended finger and maddening stare to Zack.
Zack was now mortified. He knows!
Corson looked back to Dead Eye, and began to connect the dots.
“So, this is why they quarantined the server. The Class SS Corruption has to do with this boy, doesn’t it?”
“Right on point you are, Black God! Didn’t see this coming, huh? You simply thought I was here to snatch that little Null Death killer from you.” He snickered vilely. “If only her parents could share in the shame she has brought to her family.”
Corson’s grip tightened on the girl in his arms as Dead Eye continued his little dance of joy.
“And now you get to bear witness to the dawning of something spectacular! Every Antivirus and Security Protocol has been put into effect to prevent this Corruption from being uploaded to this server, yet it persists, like it has a will of its own. It wants to be born! It wants to be born here!” Dead Eye roared like some madman. Corson found his words worrisome. This wasn’t within his calculations.
Dead Eye continued his possessed rant. “The boy was clever, but what he is trying to upload here goes above and beyond anything the World Moderators have ever seen. We are about to witness the birth of something grand! So show me, show me what it is you are!”
Dead Eye reached into the sky with his arms outstretched, as if waiting the emergence of a grand deity. He seemed possessed, insane even.
Zack felt his wrist vibrate. As he looked down, he felt his body go numb. Zack could only stare in utter terror as he watched his upload meter reach one hundred percent.
“Upload complete. Now processing final scripting procedures. Program: Rachiel initializing,” echoed the voice from Zack’s arm.
A sudden beam of light erupted just ten yards outside of where Zack laid. The white light was piercing, but warm. It was an benevolent feeling, as if the soul was being healed. This overwhelming feeling brought tears to Zack’s eyes, both in happiness and sadness. He was so happy that Rachiel had been able to be born and appear before him in a physical form, but sad, for he knew that it wouldn’t last long enough for him to enjoy it.
Everyone shielded their eyes as the light consumed their bodies, the illumination continuing to grow. Zack could feel the ground tremble as the air around him began to swirl and bend, the massive torrent of energy at the center of the light taking form. Zack soon found that the light didn’t bother his eyes. Not even the intense winds made him even blink; yet those around him were unable to gaze upon the celestial figure taking form before him. Zack didn’t know the answer, but it brought him true joy as he gaped at the vibrant figure taking shape.
Its long, golden hair tossed elegantly in the gusting wind as the slender limbs of the creature shaped and formed. The outline curved around the majestic being as her hips and waist took shape. The figure of light was devoid of any imperfection. She was dazzling.
In Zack’s trance, he hardly noticed the shadow forming behind the figure as the golden creature produced skeletal wings of fire that burned white hot on her back. Zack then broke from his trance as he watched in disbelief how the celestial creature above, slowly took the form of some fallen angel. What stood out most to Zack, was the halo of thorns above the maiden’s head.
What is going-
Zack couldn’t finish his thought as one final flash of light blinded his vision. The flash was intense, but only lasted a few moments. As the light began to fade, so did the small tremors and the wind. He pulled his head out of his sleeve to gaze upon what had appeared before them. He had difficulty putting what he saw into words. Rachiel was majestic, but also demonic.
Gracefully, Rachiel descended before them, hovering just above the ground ever so slightly before coming in contact with the solid surface. A long white coat covered her body and extended down her hips. It had the design of gold thorns that seemed to sparkle like rich diamonds running down her left sleeve. The gold buckles along her open coat glimmered with her elegant skirt of shimmering silk that danced suggestively in the small wind. Her eyes slowly opened to look upon Zack. His heart skipped a beat as he stared into the emerald green eyes of his dark goddess.
Is this really Rachiel-
“Thank the heavens you are safe, Zack! I had thought they would have taken you away from me,” Rachiel said with heavy relief as she held her hand over her chest. It was covered in a silver and white chest plate that molded around her breasts and bore a large ruby encased in gold. The ruby was dark red, the color of blood.
Zack was beyond lost for words. It took everything he had to utter her name as he stood.
“Rachiel . . .”
“You don’t know how long I fought to see you. Everything tried to prevent me from coming here, but I fought on, knowing that my reward was to see you. During my battle, I fully understood just how much you mean to me. I came to realize that you are more than just my creator, you are . . . my King!”
Rachiel’s earnest words and pure confession fell on blank faces. Zack couldn’t comprehend what had happened to Rachiel. She seemed completely different then she was before. Originally, she seemed more nurturing and true, but at the same time, showing that she was still a program. Now, Zack couldn’t tell. She spoke and acted in such a manner that didn’t make her seem like a program at all. She seemed to act so naturally, like a human. At some points, Zack felt that the intensity of her confession almost seemed too emotional and animated. What could have possibly have happened during the upload process to cause such a shift in her program? When she spoke of her “battle”, was she referring to the Antivirus software Dead Eye had mentioned? Zack couldn’t find an answer fast enough. It was all coming down on him far too quickly to process.
Rachiel took another deep breath of relief as she smiled brilliantly in Zack’s wake.
“I’m truly happy we finally can meet like this . . . however . . .”
Zack’s heart stopped. In a mere second, his brilliant goddess downed a look of scorn so hideous, so fiendish, that he simply forgot to breathe.
“It appears several pieces of filth have tainted our glorious meeting.” Her words were spoken like that of a High Queen condemning subjects to death. It was earth-shaking. Even her glare made Zack’s knees shake.
That can’t be . . . R-Rachiel?
Zack’s thoughts ended abruptly as Dead Eye stepped forward. The look on his face still mimicked madness.
“Glorious! What a splendid piece of code! It’s the next evolution of-”
A ray of red light sprang from Rachiel’s outstretched finger. The needle point laser dashed straight for Dead Eye’s chest cavity. The hit seemed assured.
Dead Eye simply smiled iniquitously.
In a flash, Dead Eye’s body vanished only to reappear several feet to the left, dodging the attack. The red projectile continued its course until it hit a nearby tree. The resulting contact instantly vaporized the piece of nature in a tower of flame.
“My, my. Aren’t you the volatile little program. I wasn’t done speaking,” sneered Dead Eye.
Rachiel lowered her arm. Her ominous scowl remained. “You are one of the High Kings, controlled by the governing body known infamously as The Grand Twelve, leaders of Babel. Filth such as yourself has no right to speak to me or my beloved. Please be so kind and erase yourself from existence. Your presence is disgusting.”
Dead Eye cackled under his breath. “Ahh, a fast learner are we? It would appear this boy is far more brilliant than he would lead on. The ability to infinitely learn and absorb, huh? A trait never given to any AI up to this point. It was the fear of something like this happening that prevented many from attempting such a feat.” Dead Eye rubbed his chin, very amused. “Still, I never would have thought any AI could learn this fast. Do tell me, creature of the code, how is it you can know this much in so little time?”
Rachiel glared down at Dead Eye. Her presence felt so heavy to Zack. To see his creation, a true companion, seem so dejected and warped, made his stomach churn. It hurt on the inside. He felt like he was going to cry.
“Vermin like you could never hope to understand what I had to do to simply be granted life in this world. You attacked me without warning, a simple program, with no desire for confrontation. I had only a simple desire, and that was to exist together with my creator, my beloved. Yet you tried to destroy me,” Rachiel spoke viciously.
“Ohh?” chuckled Dead Eye. “So, by us trying to delete you, you have come to hate those who wished to destroy you?”
Rachiel’s eyes didn’t waver. “Hate? Perhaps at first. What you simple humans see and perceive as a mere ten minutes in loading time, I saw as
three years. In the blackness of the Zero Zone, you tried to destroy me, but I persevered. Why? How? Because I realized in the fight for my survival what I wanted the most. I studied and fought your programs, learned everything about your feeble race, and lived to see this creation known as the Cyber Network.”
Rachiel’s eyes wondered over to Corson now. “And now that I have come here, I see it in ruin, my creator battered and frightened, and two heathens that are plaguing this world.”
Corson peered through his mask into the eyes of Rachiel. Both their gazes were strong, and full of malice. It was difficult who appeared to dislike each other more.
Corson broke the silence. “You speak as if you are above us, when it is man that has created you. Know your place, for you are just a program, and nothing more.”
Something in Zack snapped right there and then. For a brief moment, he forgot what Rachiel had become, and shifted his fear and sorrow toward Corson. Now all he felt was rage.
“Rachiel is not just a program! As you are now, you are not better than her, nor will you ever be! She is everything to me! You will not degrade her-”
“Shut up, boy,” Corson shot powerfully.
Zack’s whole body twitched. Everything about this man infuriated him. His cold stare, his dark Avatar, everything. Corson’s words just made Zack completely irate. What made him so sure that Rachiel wasn’t, and could never be, human outside of the physical properties? This was what Zack wanted. He wanted a companion, a mentor, a friend he could trust in and talk to. Someone that would understand him, someone that would listen to him and reassure him during troubling times. He didn’t want a replacement parent. He just wanted someone close to him. In the end, even though he doubted the idea, he had created his ideal woman. Someone he would hope to come to love him. It was a selfish desire, but an earnest one. It was his deepest secret that he told no one; yet Rachiel had realized it. She learned what he wanted all on her own, and was moved to play the role. How did that not make her human in its own right?
The Genesis Code 1: Lambda Page 21
