Chapter VI: Cataclysm

Nexuscape Integration eXpansion (NIX) Polytechnic, Central Park, Manhattan, USA. October 31 2203, 10:16 A.M.

NIX Security Sector: Interrogation Room.

Tetsuo's foot anxiously tapped the ground beneath the table, his trembling betraying his palpable anxiety. Yet, Lucy's gentle touch with her shoe silenced his nervousness. Their eyes locked, their gazes unwavering, as they both focused on Paul Sievernich. He meticulously poured over the confiscated document, which Lucy had dedicated countless hours to gather evidence, only to have it exploited by the man seated before them. Paul's eyes swiftly skimmed the contents, discarding pages as if deeming them unimportant. Yet, his gaze halted at a specific news article detailing the Onslaught of Alpha Centauri Manor and the pictures of NIX Researchers that had captured his attention.

"Where did you find this article and this picture?" Paul asked, displaying the newfound article and old picture to Tetsuo and Lucy. Interested, he awaited Lucy's response.

Lucy explained matter-of-factly, "I discovered it among the piles of other documents I've collected."

Paul's playful smile quickly faded, his scepticism evident. "Either you're telling the truth, or you possess an extraordinary talent for deceiving the lie detector," he retorted with a smirk, crossing his arms in disbelief.

Lucy simply shrugged, internally voicing her frustration while maintaining an air of nonchalance. "Don't believe me? Your loss. I am speaking the truth. We are getting nowhere."

Paul's impatience radiated through the room, evident in the way he eagerly awaited Lucy's and Tetsuo's responses. Swiftly moving on to his next question, he pressed, "What were both of you doing breaking and entering Dr. Buchanan's office?" The question hung in the air, creating a tense atmosphere that Lucy and Tetsuo dreaded. Being caught red-handed and unprepared was not part of their plan.

Paul, interpreting their silence as uncooperative, flashed a friendly smile that belied his displeasure. Entwining his hands on the table, he addressed them sternly, "I know what both of you have been up to. You're seeking evidence to prove Felix's innocence. However, you both know he's complicit, if not directly. Even if you find evidence to lessen his sentence, it won't make him a free man. He might be integrated back into the NIX, and that's what I believe you've been up to. Am I correct?" Paul locked eyes with Tetsuo and Lucy, searching for any hint of deception. Lucy maintained her composure, her eyes revealing a mix of calm and panic, while Tetsuo fared no better, nervously contemplating excuses to escape this precarious situation.

Continuing to exert pressure, Paul warned, "If you both don't cooperate, I'll treat you as criminals, expel you from NIX Polytechnic, and have you arrested. You'll be held accountable for breaking and entering into the Research Administrator's office without administrative clearance, spending the rest of your lives in the NIX Detention Center." His tone was grave, delivering the ultimatum with an air of finality that left no room for negotiation.

Breaking the silence, Lucy took a deep breath. "You are correct in your assumptions about our objectives, there is no denying that," she said, maintaining eye contact with Paul, who smiled at her confessions. "However, we do have clearance. You can't charge and imprison us with your false accusations nor share any information with you." Lucy regained her confidence, while Tetsuo looked at her with a blank stare, unsure where this conversation was heading.

"Is that so?" Paul retorted, his tone dripping with cockiness as he crossed his arms and leaned back into his seat, interpreting her words as nothing more than a bluff. Lucy stood her ground, her unwavering stare locking onto Paul's, creating a tense standoff. Their contest came to an abrupt end as a man with sandy blond hair entered the interrogation room, holding a tablet in hand.

"Mr. Sievernich, sir. You might want to look at this." The man handed the tablet to Paul and then stood aside, placing his hands behind his back and straightening his posture. Paul's demeanour shifted abruptly from arrogance to nervously agitated as he read the contents on the tablet. A heavy sigh escaped him.

"Alright, both of you grab your belongings and leave. No questions asked. Lieutenant Wazowski, please show them the way out." Tetsuo and Lucy were stunned by the unexpected turn of events. Without wasting a moment, they followed the directive, collecting their belongings and leaving the room under the guidance of Lieutenant Wazowski.

***

NIX Security Sector: Officers Quarters.

"Gunther-sensei, that was brilliant! How did you manage to forge the Administrator clearance?" Tetsuo excitedly asked his training coach, who was busy setting up his computer gaming sets. Lucy stacked up and sorting her confiscated documents into the boxes on the coffee table as she sat on the carpeted floor of Lt. Gunther Wazowski's Quarter.

Gunther revealed, "I didn't. Ms. Weiss was there, inquiring about Felix's situation at NIX Detention Center early in the morning. I just happened to retain a copy of her Administrator Psychometric Code. When I heard you guys got caught breaking into Dr. Buchanan's office, I immediately recognized who you were and what you were doing. I had to help you; I can't leave my 7th-year students in that situation," he explained, his attention divided between his computer setup and the conversation.

Upon hearing this, Tetsuo's demeanour shifted, and he became despondent. "Sievernich was right. Even if we did find evidence to help Felix, he won't be free because he is as guilty as he is accused to be." Tetsuo sat down on the sofa, slouching beside Lucy, and released a tired sigh, his gaze fixed on the pristine white ceiling.

Lucy, completing her task of filing the last document into the box, turned to face him. "Tetsuo, we can still help Felix. Remember the Missing People Case Reports, the last video recorded by Dr. Buchanan, and how Athena's Cube also resembles the package Felix delivered to the Paradox Movement? There are still many unanswered questions that we need to explore. Tetsuo, I can't do this alone," she implored softly.

Gunther quipped, "She's right, don't let her do all the hard work; be the gentlemen that all the ladies needed," loading the video games. Tetsuo took a deep breath, closed his eyes, then reopened them. "Alright, let's get to the bottom of this. This isn't just for Felix; it's for everyone like him," Tetsuo rose from the sofa, extending his hand to Lucy, who gladly took it as he hoisted her up from the carpeted floor.

 "By the way, how did you know that we will have the Administrative clearance?" Tetsuo asked Lucy curiously.

"I didn't. I made a gamble," Lucy answered.

"I'm going to drop these documents in my room. It won't take long," Lucy informed Tetsuo, who nodded in acknowledgment.

"Okay. Do you want to grab something to eat?" he asked.

"Yes, sounds good," Lucy replied.

Tetsuo glanced at the clock and groaned. "What is it?" Lucy asked with concern.

"I promised Eva I would help with her volunteer work at the NIX Halloween Festival, and that was nearly one hour ago!" Tetsuo confessed, guilt now weighing on him.

"Well then, let's get going. I'm sure she'll understand our reasons," Lucy encouraged him, and he smiled gratefully for her support.

"Gunther-sensei, we're showing ourselves out. Thank you for your help," Tetsuo called out to Gunther. His training coach, engrossed in a video game, absentmindedly waved his hand over his head. Simultaneously, Gunther was shouting into his microphone.

"Victor, how many times do I and Newt have to tell you? It's October 31st, not March 31st. Today is Halloween." Gunther fell silent, engrossed in the replies from his friend on the receiving end.

"Well, jokes on you, Victor. NIX Corp never built any space station. We searched for the space station where you said it might be located, and we found none!"

The argument among his friends left Lucy and Tetsuo bewildered. Lucy looked at Tetsuo, seeking clarification, but he simply shrugged, as lost as she was. They exited Lt. Wazowski's Quarter, leaving the perplexing conversation behind.

***

Enroute to West End NIX Halloween Festival

Tetsuo and Lucy hasten their strides, having traversed a considerable distance from the North End to the West End of Central Park. Despite the lengthy journey, they cleverly opt for a shortcut, affording Tetsuo ample time to indulge in his pizzarito that he bought from the NIX Bistro. Lucy briskly yet deftly guides him through the bustling crowds of festival volunteers, skilfully weaving through the people who either preparing or celebrating for the event.

Eva was discovered in an expansive area, deeply immersed in her phone, having successfully finished her volunteering assignment. Lucy and Tetsuo, maintaining a 17-minute distance from Eva, navigated through the bustling crowds. Yet, amidst the commotion, their attention was drawn to an unusual phenomenon on the ground. Subtle luminous particles emanated from the manicured grass. Without warning, the ground trembled beneath them, and an immense tower-like structure surged through the clear blue sky, shattering it like the projector screen made out of glass.

Emerging from the fractures in the sky, a profound obsidian rift unfolded—a colossal worm-like serpent rupturing the heavens wider than ever. The sinuous creature extended itself, weaving through the expanse of the sky, its vast shadow casting a partial shroud over the entirety of New York City. Swiftly, its inky tendrils expanded beyond the city limits, reaching across states and continents, ultimately enveloping the farthest reaches of the globe in an ominous embrace.

To the collective horror of all witnesses, the entire body of the serpent plummeted from the celestial heights, leaving no escape for anyone below. As the monstrous entity descended, a massive earthquake erupted, rending the land apart upon impact with the ground. The calamitous collision of the serpent's form and the earth beneath intensified the unfolding chaos.

***

NIX Space Station. Orbiting above the Atlantic Ocean. March 31 2073 7:03 A.M.

Victor rushed down the corridor as the Space Station rumbled, and electric wires crackled, strewn haphazardly from the walls and ceiling. The station had taken heavy damage and was beginning to fall apart. Engineers and technicians worked panic-stricken, arguing with one another in an attempt to maintain the station's integrity. Victor passed through the observation glass, providing a view of the giant Cosmos Flux Regulator. Within seconds, it overheated and exploded, causing the entire main hall to disintegrate, with the observation glass shattering. Victor managed to grab the railing behind him, and an emergency pressure field kicked in, preventing him from being sucked into the vacuum of space. After getting up with visible strain, he observed lifeless bodies floating outside.

Wasting no time, he pressed on with his journey, encountering numerous deceased security personnel along the way, their bodies appearing to have been mauled. Victor eventually reached the storage room and decided to take advantage of the opportunity to arm himself.

***

Victor entered the Control Centre of the NIX Space Station. After the seismic shock that had rocked the station, the Control Centre was in a state of discord. Many officers were giving commands through their telecoms, only to be answered by screams of being slaughtered. Evacuation was strictly prohibited under any circumstance. Disobeying this directive meant being vacuumed out into space. Admiral Karen scanned the holographic maps at the center, displaying the station sector by sector with details explaining the damages and the probability rate of the station's imminent destruction, the data showing a likely 57% and rising.

"Admiral, we have to evacuate everyone off this station. We fix what we can, and it's not improving," Victor pleaded with Admiral Karen, who fixed her black beady eyes on him. A static voice came through the telecom, "We need backup, I repeat, we need backup! The Voids have escaped their containment cells! Ahhh!" The last line ended with a scream, cutting to static.

"As you can see, Dr. Neumann, my job is to maintain and protect the NIX Space Station, and that is what I will be doing. So, my answer is no! Or do you want to be thrown out into space, be my guest. Now, get out of my sight and do your job!" With that resolute response, Victor decided he was going to take matters into his own hands.

***

Victor walked carefully, avoiding shattered glass as he readied his Phaser in a guard position. He made his way through the blinking light corridor to reach Pandora's containment cell. To his shock, he found her cell open, and Pandora was nowhere to be found. However, he noticed that she seemed to have left her cell with the belongings he had given her. There was one thing left behind – a dormouse doll that she had spent time knitting, accompanied by a note saying, "I am Outside."

Victor was confused by her implication. "I know she is outside, which I assume means she escaped, but what does she mean by outside? Where is outside?" he muttered as his thoughts raced. An announcement from the speaker broke his train of thought, "Admiral Karen Bridges is relieved of her duty. WE ARE EVACUATING NOW! EVERYONE GO TO THE FLIGHT DECK TO TAKE THE SHUTTLES! IF YOU CAN'T REACH THE FLIGHT DECK, TAKE THE EMERGENCY ESCAPE PODS! THE STATION WILL SELF-DESTRUCT IN 20 MINUTES!"

After hearing the urgent evacuation message, Victor hurriedly left Pandora's containment cell. However, when he was about to exit the Science Division, he abruptly halted in his tracks. The echoing sounds of stomping footsteps and metal grinding, accompanied by high-pitched screeching, reached his ears from the juncture of the hallway he had to pass through. A seven-feet-tall Void emerged, wielding twin crescent-shaped blades as its hands, its entire face covered by the entwined fingers of scaly hands.

Suddenly, a large lab-rat, the size of a house cat mutated by various experiments, burst out from a nearby ventilation system. Unexpectedly, the Void's face unclasped its fingers, unfolding its hands in a snap, revealing a bloodied, skinless, blob-like face that turned out to be an appendage. It launched and expanded its maw, striking the rat before it could react, and swallowed it whole, akin to a snake devouring its prey. Victor voiced his realization, "OH... That is a Big Weewoo."

The Void charged at Victor, crashing trays and equipment in its path. Victor aimed his Phaser and began shooting, only to be surprised when the laser-like projectiles bounced off its skin. With the Void closing in, Victor had no choice but to dodge at the last second, narrowly escaping intact as the Void swung its battleaxe, intended to cleave him in half. Activating his SDN Equipment, he phase-shifted himself from his original position to behind his assailant.

Instead of running away down the corridors, Victor dove into the ventilation system where the mutated rat had burst from, crawling as quickly as he could. The Void attempted to follow him, but due to its large stature, it couldn't fit. Desperately, it launched its appendage, catching Victor's boot and trying to use it to drag him out of the vent. Thinking on his feet, Victor changed his Phaser setting to flares and aimed at the exposed face of the Void. The creature screamed in fiery agony, letting go of Victor.

Seizing the opportunity, Victor continued to crawl deeper into the vent, confident in knowing the way to go.

In the midst of the ongoing evacuation, survivors hurriedly gathered as the countdown clock relentlessly ticked down to a mere ten minutes. The urgency was palpable, yet the chaos made it impossible to account for everyone. Victor, now on the Flight Deck, found himself facing unexpected hostility from Admiral Karen Bridges, who brandished her Phaser at the remaining survivors.

"Get back to work! All of you! We have to protect this station at all costs!" Admiral Bridges barked, her demeanor seething with paranoia. A voice of reason emerged from one of the survivors, presumably the leader, arguing for their immediate departure. "There is nothing to protect! The Voids are freed, and we are being slaughtered! The station will detonate in less than ten minutes; we have to leave!"

Defying Admiral Bridges' authority, Victor swiftly incapacitated her with a stun projectile from his Phaser. "Please, take her into the shuttle, and let's get moving. The station is about to blow," Victor ordered, his decisive action compelling the remaining survivors into compliance. As they manned the shuttles, a sudden impact reverberated through the station, as if something colossal had struck it. Horror painted the faces of everyone present as a colossal Wrym loomed outside, crashing into the station, shattering its structure, and blocking the escape route for the shuttles.

Panic swept through the survivors, their escape thwarted by the wreckage. A desperate plea arose: "What are we going to do?" Victor, grappling with the dire situation, found himself without answers. Yet, in the chaos, a faint violin melody filled the air. The survivors turned to witness a dark-haired woman floating in space outside the station, her music seemingly reinforcing the remaining structural integrity. She locked eyes with Victor, a smile playing on her lips, before conjuring another enchanting tune. Miraculously, the music lifted the debris, clearing the escape route for the shuttles and providing a chance for survival.

"Here's our chance. Let's go," Victor urged the survivors, who wasted no time boarding the shuttles. However, as the last person attempted to escape, a Void with a battleaxe hand snatched them away, a cruel reminder of the imminent danger. Victor, resolute and determined, made a split-second decision. "You all go; I will distract it. If I don't, you won't make it," he declared, commanding the crew to leave. Whispers of gratitude followed as the shuttle doors closed, drowning out the deafening roar of the engines. It acted as a magnet, drawing more Voids towards Victor and the escaping survivors. Unfazed, Victor utilised his SDN Equipment to the fullest. With precision and determination, he unleashed a barrage of shots, forming a protective barrier around the shuttles as it takes-off.

Victor, battered and bloodied, contemplated his dire circumstances. "Damn, I'm just an engineer. How did it come to this?" Surveying the remaining threat, the Battleaxe seemed to consume other Voids that Victor had already slain. "So, you're a big boy that needs to cannibalize, I see. Let's get this over with, just me and you." Checking that his SDN Equipment and Phaser had exhausted their artificial cosmos battery, he found only an M.J.O.L.N.I.R left. "I've never known how to use this, but Newt said you don't need to. Oh well, let's see how it goes," he muttered confidently, pulling out a small stellated dodecahedron the size of a ping pong ball. Glowing bright red, he clenched his fist, and it manifested into a longsword with a transparent blade resembling glass.

Battleaxe lowered itself and readied its blade hands in a fighting stance. Blades clashed as Battleaxe swung with great force, causing a strain on Victor's body as he tried to avoid its fast attacks and retaliate. The sound of a violin played once more, unexpectedly causing Battleaxe to writhe in pain. As the violin continued, Battleaxe's face unclasped, unfolding open. Seizing the opportunity, Victor used his sword to stab the exposed flesh, causing it to burn and dissolve.

Collapsing on the ground, Victor breathed laboriously. Footsteps approached, and he turned to find Pandora. She placed his arm over her shoulder, guiding him to nearby escape pods. Only one was operational. Pandora went to the console to start the launch sequence. "You should take it. You may be able to survive in space, but I doubt you can survive re-entry into Earth's atmosphere," Victor coughed. Pandora responded with hand signs, "There's no time to argue. You're human; I'm not. I can survive. So, you have to take it!" Desperately trying to convince him, her caring act made him smile. He got up, retrieved something from his jumpsuit pocket – a dormouse she made for him – and placed it inside the escape pod.

With an act of courage, he kissed Pandora, shocking her. Suddenly, he shoved her into the escape pod, and it auto-harnessed, locking her in. With the countdown to launch, Victor said, "You always let me listen to what you played, but for all the times I spent with you, I never played for you. Now, I'm returning the gesture." He picked up the violin he had gifted her and played the music as the pod hatch closed. Pandora watched him play as she was launched into space; his figure slowly disappeared, and the space station exploded until there was nothing left.

The pod directed itself toward Earth, leaving Pandora alone in silence. To her horror, the Wrym had engulfed the world, constricting it in its grasp. She realized that the shuttles that had escaped the station had also not made it.

***

Nexuscape Integration eXpansion (NIX) Polytechnic, Central Park, Manhattan, USA. October 31 2203, 12:12 P.M.

Eva's ears reverberated with a disorienting ring, the air thick with smoke and ashes, obscuring her vision. Coughing, she struggled to rise from the ground, only to be assailed by a throbbing headache. Gingerly touching her forehead, she realized she had a concussion, albeit a minor one. As her surroundings came into focus, she scanned the area, but a haze lingered, making it difficult to discern anything. In her disoriented state, she brushed against a surface that felt solid yet oddly mushy and slimy.

The haziness quickly dissipated, unveiling a startling revelation. Contrary to her initial perception, she hadn't collided with a wall but the colossal head of a serpent-like worm. Its bloodshot eye snapped open, revealing sclerae tainted in a rotten yellow hue. The entire eye structure consisted of myriad smaller eyes that twitched and spasmed independently, darting in multiple directions.

Eva cautiously takes a step backward, creating a considerable distance between herself and the creature's immense head. The ground trembles as the creature propels forward with alarming speed, sending shivers down Eva's spine. To her horror, the colossal worm is now on a trajectory towards NIX Polytechnic, flatten everything in its path. The worm raises its head several meters above the ground before plunging into the institution, causing a destruction that ripples through the foundation. The surrounding ground cracks, collapses, and sinks into chaos.

Reacting swiftly, Eva sprints with all her might in the opposite direction, the collapsing ground chasing after her in a matter of seconds. Utilizing broken pieces of the ground as precarious stepping stones, she manages to maintain a level trajectory, nearly reaching safety on the other side of the colossal chasm formed by the earthquake. Pushing herself to the limits, she propels off the last fragments of the ground, soaring across the gap.

Her hand barely catches the edge of the chasm, narrowly averting her impending demise. With depleting strength, she hoists herself up to safety and rolls onto the steady, non-broken ground. Exhausted and relieved, she gazes up at the sky, where black patches now mar the once serene blue expanse, resembling missing puzzle pieces scattered across the heavens.

Eva jolts upright, her mind brimming with apprehensions. "What just happened!? Was that the Void? It must be Thermosphere Magnitude, or higher! I have to find the others!" She pushes through the overgrown trees and bushes, eager to reach the clearing. Before her unfolds a scene of utter devastation, and massacres. Skyscrapers hover disarrayed, their once-ordered forms now transformed into a disorienting labyrinth, folding and floating in eerie synchrony. Vehicles on the ground lay overturned and engulfed in flames, strewn haphazardly across the area. A stern voice emanates from unseen speakers, cutting through the mayhem, "This is a large-scale Voids Incursion. Those who have undertaken the NIX Final Exam or the Voids Eradication Exam, please assist with the elimination effort."

In the midst of a disconcerting announcement, fearful screams pierce the air as desperate people flee from inhuman screeches belonging to the relentless pursuit of the grotesque Voids. These entities butcher unfortunate victims, transforming the once-thriving surroundings into a nightmarish battleground. The air is heavy with the acrid scent of bloodshed as the Voids voraciously devour their prey, leaving horror in their wake.

A laser-like projectile streaked through the air, cutting a swift path as NIX Security personnel, alongside military and law enforcement forces, formed a formidable line of defence against impending threats. In the midst of this chaotic confrontation, Eva sprinted desperately towards them. However, her rapid movement attracted the attention of twelve Void creatures—each roughly the size of a monkey—feasting on a nearby corpse. Their insect-like wings buzzed as they pursued her, hunger in their predatory movements.

Suddenly, a commanding voice pierced through the chaos, urgently calling out, "EVA, GET DOWN!" Reacting instinctively, she dropped to the ground. In the next moment, the twelve Void creatures were efficiently dispatched as laser-like projectiles impacted their bodies, causing them to combust and dissolve.

Upon lifting her gaze, Eva identified her saviour as Newt. He rushed in, offering a steadying hand to help her up, and promptly guided her to safety. The base of operations, strategically established by the NIX personnels, became a refuge from the menacing threat that loomed outside.

"Newt, have you seen Tetsuo and Lucy? There are also civilians named Sasha and Dani. Do you know where they are? And do you know what just happened?" Eva asked Newt with evident concern.

"Both Tetsuo and Lucy are dispatched, rescuing civilians on the Southwest End. As for the entire report on what just happened, the world has been literally wrecked. Voids emerged out of nowhere, NIX Polytechnic is gone, and we have billions of casualties after that colossal Wyrm wreaked havoc. A NIX Space Station impossibly materialized and crash-landed in the middle of Manhattan. I should have believed Victor!" Newt responded, venting out the frustration he had bottled up. He released a heavy sigh of grief. "Eva, we need all the help we can get. Nearly all the recruits and personnel are dead. They were in NIX Polytechnic, and Gunther went to collect them, as he telecomed me before the Wyrm destroyed the Polytechnic."

Eva was left stunned, placing her hands on her former mentor's shoulder. "I got this. Do what you can. I think Gunther would mock you in the afterlife if you give up." Newt nodded, "M.J.O.L.N.I.R and SDN Equipment are in the crates. NIX won't ban you; desperate times call for desperate measures." Eva walked towards the crates near the tent's wall and open its content as the text information appears holographically.

Multidimensional Judicator's Omniscient Locus Network Interface Relic (M.J.O.L.N.I.R): A weapon of unknown origin, the M.J.O.L.N.I.R, intricately linked to each Quasar or Pulsar upon affiliation with the NIX Corporation, channels an individual's inner psyche into a physical form. This unique weapon amalgamates with raw Cosmos energy properties, providing wielders with effective means to combat adversaries. The form and function of a M.J.O.L.N.I.R mirror the fears or complexes of the individual, essentially reflecting the contours of their heart and personality. Consequently, should a person undergo a change, their corresponding M.J.O.L.N.I.R will transform accordingly.

The Spatial Distortion Navigation Equipment (SDN Equipment): is a technology developed by NIX to enhance mobility in combat against the highly agile and intelligent Void. This equipment facilitates seamless movement in a 4D space, allowing users to shift from one point to another without traversing the physical space between them, as compared to conventional 3D navigation. Presented as a badge that transforms into a body harness through nanotechnology, the equipment covers a significant portion of the body below the neck. While it provides skilled users with exceptional mobility, mastery of its usage demands strength and skill honed through consistent practice. The equipment heavily relies on a limited artificial cosmos battery for operation.

Newt joined the battlefield, where the sounds of explosions and gunfire resonated. However, before leaving the tent, he turned to Eva.

"Eva, I believe this world we live in, is already our afterlife." With those words, he left for Eva to gear up.