39 Epilogue: ...As Another Begins

Opening Extraneous Log #1…

He walks through the hallway, back into his apartment unit, fishing out his keys as he takes off his raincoat and puts it on his shoulder, droplets of water hitting his jacket. He doesn't bother taking off his cap nor shades as he continues.

"You will need to take your medicine in an hour."

"Thanks for the reminder, SAAI… The police had been less strict about their security check-ups. Didn't check too much when they looked into my ID."

"The district we visited had less serious cops on the field right now, due to the rotations. The scanners were about to get a whiff of the concealments we put, but they discarded the ID too early."

"Then, we'll still have to pray that it stays that way. The food back in Rosetta's got better… Steak was no longer shit." The man said, inserting one of the keys into the doorknob's slit. "Seasoning is evenly put, too."

"They fired one of the old chefs because he was stubborn enough to avoid her recipe. The new chef is more talented, but will need more practice."

"Sounds about right." He pulls the key out and twists the knob, only to find out that he locked the door again. "SAAI… didn't we leave this place locked?" He inserts the key again, fiddling with the locked door.

"Yes, we locked the door. I have not seen any hostiles inside the house. No advanced concealments around." Once again, the man grips the knob with his gloved hands, breathing through his air mask.

"Funny… I hope no one got in."

He doesn't switch on the lights as he enters, pulling the gloves out of his hands and setting them to the adjacent desk, filled with newspapers and magazines. They were organized, but in a rough, random manner. The man curses, thinking that he should've done that when he had the chance. He reaches for the lamp on the wooden desk.

"Six years."

The man stops, looking around in the dark for the warped, synthesized voice. He closes the door behind him, slowly creaking as it closes. "Who's there?"

"A year, you've written, and six years, you've hidden. I am impressed… you're a difficult person to find, Arcturus."

Arcturus sees the glow of yellow-orange lines on the other side of the apartment block he was in, a faint silhouette of the figure next to the rocking chair.

"How did you-"

"Wiping yourself off of the grid, basic identity concealment, connections within other cities and districts… But a pattern always shows. The people looking for you, hunting you down, the communities protecting you by impersonating your being… They don't see it, but I do."

"Arcturus… I can't recognize this person in the databases… Oh, shit! I think there's a match," SAAI says, relaying the information within the HUD of Arcturus' glasses, where the artificial intelligence resides.

"W-What do you want?" he asks, pulling out his Glock. "Who are you, and how did you get in here?"

"Have you forgotten? If anyone else have heard me, they'd already recognize me… But it must have been the painkillers and medicine for your bone cancer. Do you still recall the hymns of Lindsey Stirling's violin? Have you reminisced upon the glory days of Moonton?"

"Arc… that's… that's…"

Arcturus points his gun to the glowing slits, his arms slightly trembling. He couldn't believe that he was speaking to him, in the metal. "S-Saber?"

"Now, it hit you. The protocol is a success, and it is relieving that it is, now that a new threat looms, Arcturus, seeking to destroy us."

The main light on the ceiling activates, illuminating the whole space. Saber was around three meters in front of Arcturus, equipped with his modified Monsoon armor. His headpiece looked at Arcturus blankly. The curtains were drawn, preventing anyone from seeing through the windows.

"Saber… what is it?"

"Arcturus… this is the Saber from D73. He's probably here for the drive!"

"Is the hard drive with you?" Saber approaches, but Arcturus flicks the gun's safety mode off.

"TELL ME… what is it?" he asks desperately. "The whole drive is injected within SAAI, I can plug him into my laptop, but you need to tell me what's wrong! What's happening to Gaius?!"

"D73 is safe."

"But why here, out of all places?! Is anyone with you?"

"More will arrive to Gaia soon to defend you. You're the asset we need to recover."

"W-Wait… asset?" Arcturus asks, confused. He lowers the gun and flicks the safety back on. "I'm going to die soon enough… why try and save me?"

"Good question, Writer of Dawn," the cyborg replies. "It's because you and your planet has made the most contribution for the Prophet Protocol… and now… the Abyss is coming for your head."

Extraneous Log #1 Ended.

1 NEW FILE HAS APPEARED WITHIN YOUR INBOX. WOULD YOU LIKE TO ACCESS IT?

DISABLING MEMETIC KILL AGENTS…

DISABLING IDENTITY SCANNERS…

Opening ***************.txt…

THEY

WILL

RETURN.