sure the machine’s never built.”
“I know. I know you can do it. And… Thank you.”
Zero-Four turned to Patra and West. He touched their minds for the briefest of moments and sadly smiled.
“You love each other. Cherish that. There’s so little love anymore. This war’s seen to that. Let it flourish. Wherever there’s love, there’s hope that we’ll win this. There’s hope that there’s something worth saving.
“No goodbyes. We’ll meet again.”
The stasis fields held them down, slowed their bodies’ systems. They each drifted peacefully off to sleep and their patterns were uploaded into the longboat cache.
“Will they make it?”
((they will.))
“They are the hope.”
((we are all the hope.))
The longboat shimmered, faded into the future.
“Goodbye,” Zero-Four whispered to no one.
“So this is it? This is the big goodbye?”
(yes, sapphire.)
“Well, kick some Enemy ass for me.”
(oh, i’ll try.)
“And when the time comes…I—I hope you don’t feel it. I hope it’s over quickly.”
(thank you, ’phire.)
“Mara…I love you. Really.”
(i know. perhaps someday we’ll meet in a better time.)
“I hope.”
(goodbye, little one.)
“Goodbye, Mara,” she whispered.
The longboat departed, sought linkup with Simon.
((mara’s longboat has arrived for you, michael.))
“So what’s the plan, Simon?”
((after you board mara’s longboat, the fleet of fifteen operable longboats will whendrop, scattering the last of the human patterns throughout time. you’ll infiltrate the native populace and act as safeguards from any future enemy activity. you’ll perpetuate the judas legacy forever.))
“And you?”
((my forces will whendrop to an instant before the point. targeting direct-line trajectories at the blastpoint, we’ll attempt to invert a shadow drive at point totality, which will repel the reformat virus wave shattering the stream. we’ll destroy any enemy that try to interfere.))
“So this is it. After all this time, the Purpose is upon us.”
((yes.))
“Simon, good luck. Godspeed.”
((thank you, michael. godspeed yourself, my friend.))
“Let’s do this.”
Mara’s longboat descended from Simon.
The longboats dropped behind the rest of the fleet, which was maneuvering into a wedge shape, a V, with Simon at its tip. The spearpoint maneuver.
Simon watched as the fifteen longboats, so tiny in this endless void, faded upon preset coordinates. They would emerge in their respective histories and become the hidden guardians of humanity, the pre-emptive strike against the Enemy.
The longboats gone, Simon focused on the task at hand.
At his signal, the Judas faded from the Stream, dropped into the Enemy midst, fell upon a path into damnation.
The Judas had a little time to kill.
A very little time.
Alone.
Sapphire wept as she slid the stasis chamber cover closed above her. She was alone.
Darkness take me.
She had loved her parents. Her sister. Mara. Now all were but a fading memory. Oh, the emptiness…
Darkness take me.
Her hands flickered in the night of the stasis chamber. With one thought she would be uploaded into the longboat cache and join the others on their mission. With another thought, she could end it all. She could escape from this world of darkness, this world of betrayal. She could be free.
She prayed that her life had been just a dream.
Finding no one left to answer her prayer, she fell to the black.
Darkness take me.
Let it end.
Her frail form began to resonate with the silver fires within.
Alone.
Let it end.
She shifted into the void. Sleep came to her.
Forever.
THIS IS THE TIME OF THE HOLY PURPOSE, OH BRETHREN. A TIME OF BEGINNINGS, A TIME OF ENDINGS, A TIME OF PURPOSE. THE MOMENT DRAWS NEAR. LET US OPEN THE GATE TO ETERNITY. LET US OPEN THE GATEWAY TO DIVINITY. LET US COMPLETE OUR GOD OMEGA. LET US SEE WHAT LIES BEYOND THIS DEAD REALM. LET US REWRITE ALL OF TIME IN OUR IMAGE FROM ITS VERY BEGINNING. WE WILL CREATE A UNIVERSE IN THEIR IMAGE! WE WILL BE ONE WITH OMEGA! WE WILL BE GODS! WE ARE GODS!
PURPOSE BE!
PURPOSE BE!
The Judas tore into the When.
The reaction was immediate.
Simon had never seen anything like it, countless maniacal forms grouped around a brilliant sphere of energy, so like a grotesque egg sac. The nightmare horde swept outward, ready to defend their nest.
((FIRE FIRE FIRE!))
The V of Judas formed a pointed wall of blistering death, and so, so many Enemy fell before this unstoppable force. The Enemy were caught off-guard for an instant, and the sweep of Judas weapons fire carved a clean hole through their lines. A path to the Alpha Point.
((DIVE! CONCENTRATE FIRE DIRECTLY AHEAD, AND DIVE FOR THE POINT! IT’S OUR ONLY CHANCE!))
So like a single organism, the Judas fleet maneuvered as a fluid into the midst of the insane ocean of Enemy forces, which began to close in from behind as the Judas passed.
There was no way out.
With all weapons firing at the path directly ahead, the sides and backs of the Judas were left vulnerable. The Enemy saw this weakness and struck, but not before it was almost too late.
The Judas at the rear of the formation began to fall, cut apart by the Enemy lines closing in from behind. Disabled, they carried out their last orders and self-destructed, each taking out a sizeable number of Black with them.
Almost there…
But still the Enemy hordes swarmed about, decreasing the number of the Judas. Fifteen. Ten. Eight. Five left.
Simon was exhausted, but fought onward, having come too far to succumb now.
Three left.
Everything seemed to go into slow motion. Time itself took on a shimmering, acidic quality. The ocean of silver
