Chapter 48 - The Reborn

Background color
Font
Font size
Line height

The sight of Jason, fully awake and in motion, has many of the troops retreat step by step into the deepest reaches of the room, and even with the masks on, the mouths fall wide open and others jerk their heads back and forth between each cybernetic being with a human face, incredulous things crossing their minds over this. Has the Zlocu gone that far? Or have the Inquisitors gone too far? So many questions, yet so little to answer.

"So, you're still alive after all," says one of the commandos, who still has the flesh as the rest, not unlike the beings' fate in front of them. "It's been awhile since I've seen you so..upgraded of sorts." 

Jason gives him a grin as he makes his way towards the commandos, and for a second, everyone just stands there, frozen stiff, unable to do anything as they watch him advance forward towards them until he stops in the middle. Then he waves his arms out and wide emphasizing the rest of his cybernetic companions, all standing still and observing the incredulous beings. He and two others sneer as Jason claps twice.

"It's more than an upgrade, it's a liberation. We're here to liberate you from your slavery to your own vices and sins and unleash our own truth. The people we were fighting for, the ones who gave up their lives for us, they're nothing more but self-serving, poor-spirited even, all while using others to cover their actions for something as vague as 'human power'. But at least, we got the chance to fight back, against that one constant that rules over us."

"What kind of sick tricks did the Zlocu play on your mind?" Davidson asks, still maintaining a rigid posture while aiming, the face included. Jason scoffs in response.

"Me and some others are called 'Liberated' for a reason, don't you know that?" he replies. "We were given these abilities, powers beyond any normal person's, and used to defeat the decadent system based on the greed and violence of men." He continues as he walks back and forth with the group of encircled men. "I'm no hypocrite, I admit it, and I'm proud that my comrades stood up and fought to put an end to such an agonizing constant for you all."

"That's nice and all, but I'm sure you're still willing to kill those different from your skin," another soldier taunts, this only makes Jason laugh even more.

"Make no mistake, and believe me, I'll make this real clear to all of you here. We are not the same beings you once knew before, not by any means. We are no longer the same and our ways are no longer the ways of a weakling." Jason then points to one of the reborn near a table. "This one, for instance, is what I can call a true friend now." The figure walks forward, and as he steps into the light, it reveals a face split in half, one with the flesh still intact, and the other being metal, a black mask type of face from the forehead up to the chin, all while giving a wide grin in his face.

"Adam Gordon?! The creationist preacher?" a soldier asks incredulously, wide eyes and all.

"He's one of the few who was able to understand his true self thanks to the Zlocu, and even managed to know the folly of the so-called Almighty. He's one of the living testaments of those who broke their chains to see what they're truly made of." 

"And not just that, why settle for many spiritual beings you call to pray and such, even when you know deep down it's nothing but an exercise in futility over your uselessness?" Adam replies, all while tapping Jason's shoulder and chuckling for a bit. 

"This is so unreal..." a soldier mutters, slightly shaking yet with a steady aim towards his mechanical targets.

"Oh, it is real, don't you even deny it!" another figure says while stepping, revealing Jack Dean himself, wearing an armor of his own, the same as Jason but with green and teal around it, and a gun instead of a hand. "Don't let my reputation deceive you. Because that Jack Dean who boasted about not being afraid of the weak is no more...you will see the true one and not that past version of me who I would spit on the face."

"Well said. Well said indeed. And to think we all believed you were just a bunch of sickos..." says a soldier, sounding somewhat skeptical as he glances around. "But it seems you really are those same people all along, and that fact just makes you even worse."

"No, it doesn't," Jason answers simply. "Allow me to show you those who received the opposite fate." He snaps his fingers, which is followed by the other three figures to approach near the dim light that shows the reborn cyborgs. The first one to enter is one man with a distinct nose, and a mechanical armor much like the rest, but with a hint of the sleek steel, almost like he could be from the Industrial Age.

"Levi Jacobs," Jason says, all while giving a nod to the man, who doesn't say any word. "Perhaps it could strike a name familiar to any of you."

"Yes...probably the worst senator Alabama had in years, and that's saying something," Davidson replies. Jason then points at the one with tan skin, the only mechanical part present in his face being that of pitch-black implanted visors.

"Joseph Allen, a nobody who thought of himself as a heroic conspiracy theorist. He really talked the talk, but never walked the walk. He always thought of himself as the most important person in the world, and that the Zlocu were nothing but a mere annoyance. I guess he didn't get the memo."

"How could anyone be so stupid to believe in that crap?" a female soldier asks.

"I believe no one more than himself, as you can see." He waves his arm around him to get a type of reaction, only to be met with silent, his expression frozen like a statue, not even blinking. Then, he gestures at one with a particularly feminine shape, and once the light draws near her, it's probably who looks the most changed. A smile, now faded away entirely, with bolts surrounding her chin, and with barely a trace of hair left.

"Allison Byrne? Why her?" Davidson says.

"Perhaps you could say she truly stuck to her ideals. If being a slave to fame and money was all she wanted, then we rebuilt her accordingly."

"Why did you do that? She couldn't possibly hurt anyone if that was the case." Another voice asks. This time, it's one with a distinctly southern accent.

"Oh, perhaps you never heard? She left her coworkers behind. Do you want to know why?" Jason asks. "Because she felt that her money would drain away from her possession the longer she stayed with them, and thus, that's what makes her history both a feat, yet also a disappointment." He nods to the woman, who only stands there, looking up at him with cold, lifeless eyes.

"That's pretty stupid, to be honest," Adam says as he leans towards Jason.

"Indeed, but that's how she saw it all. She was blinded by her own desires, and when she felt that she could no longer have them, she left it all behind."

"You're not going to try to convince us that everyone here changed, are you?" the female soldier asks.

"Of course not. You should know by now that we never go soft on traitors. You see it clearly between the 'Liberated' and the 'Enslaved', all part of a new collective to make sure the Zlocu sees what you truly are."

"What about us? What does this 'revelation' tells us about us and the future?" a soldier asks, to which Jason turns his head to look at the camera device.

"You will get your own answer, if you...join us," he replies, before turning back to the cyborgs. Some soldiers mutter to themselves but Davidson stands firm, regardless of the words Jason spat on him and his men.

"What makes you think we should accept it?" Jason turns back to him, his smile only getting wider as he folds his arm with his gaze focused on everyone present.

"Why? Have you ever looked at the last ten years? The wars, the financial meltdown, the exoduses. Every person claims to fight for something or at least express a sentiment that could make the masses happy. You claim to fight for your country or race, all beautiful words, but it's just that, a mere quote, a mere platitude." Davidson stays quiet as he keeps listening, knowing he isn't the only one that wants to hear more. "You humans only really seek to exterminate what they deem to be a threat to their existence and use layers and layers of justifications and platitudes to keep it going. All of it, all to convince yourself that you're stronger than anyone else, when in reality, you're all just the same, a mere cog in a pyramid of those who think have the power, fake power actually."

"And what do you mean by that?" Davidson asks.

"By me telling you this, I'm showing you that you're all just as bad as each other. You only care about yourselves, and only about the things that make you feel good. Your only real difference to the Zlocu is the sheer number of times you've been destroyed, and the fact that you are now alive to remember every single moment of it. That makes you nothing more than mindless machines programmed to obey your sins and vices. Such is the pitiful constant of the world."

"You're the one guilty of this. all that gall coming from one who choose to join the Zlocu in the first place," one retorts as he tries to step forward, only to be held back by Davidson, shaking his head.

"No," Jason says and takes a step forward. "They're here to open your eyes, to show the true purpose of this universe that will come once the Zlocu triumph."

"What do you mean?" Davidson asks.

"The only thing that can defeat the most powerful being in existence, is becoming more powerful, and either you defend yourself for the title, or you'll be outpowered in many ways. That will be the only constant of the new world the Zlocu will build. However, there's no point in power if it doesn't lead to a stronger society free of weaknesses."

"So you're saying we should join you because you'll give us strength?" the female soldier asks.

"No. You'll join us because we'll help you become strong enough to survive the potential extinction of stagnation, stagnation of peace."

There's silence after these words are uttered from his lips, as if they couldn't quite understand his meaning. Constant, stagnation, are these the only things a Zlocan thinks and feel? All of it feel so uncertain. As the silence continue, one soldier speaks up again, speaking directly to the man himself.

"That is...the saddest way to describe a situation, honestly. A sense that you're not in control of yourself neither feeling proud of the state of the world."

"You see, reality is often cruel, but it doesn't change the fact that... well, it's the truth." Jason nods. "But all hope is not lost, and the future isn't as bleak as you'd imagine, as long as you accept it as such. What we're trying to say is, our mission isn't to destroy this world. Quite the opposite, actually. We're trying to save it. You and me? We can make sure the world doesn't fall into complete ruin. That is, if you truly think there's more than you think of yourself."

Davidson looks at the troops once more, where they keep quiet, as if pondering if it's really worth it. Everything in their lives, every doubt they had, it's something life can throw at them every once in a while affecting what choice they can make and if they can change. But this a special case. From a human to a cyber weapon, all these kinds of questions hit a new light after these years. The scientists were already dead, all because they trusted too much. What else could they turn to? After a period of silence, Davidson then turns to Jason, an answer is already ready.

"We don't know what your goal is, but we know one thing."

"Oh, I'll take it that you will accept it?"

"Yes. We will...rather die for something than live for nothing." With that, Jason's smile vanishes, and so does Adam and Jack. That can only mean one thing.

"Suit yourself."

The lights go out, turning the whole room pitch dark once more as the soldiers scramble to turn on their night vision to see through the dark. The only light that shines through is the ones coming from the hole where the entrance is.

As the soldiers struggle to figure out what to do next, all of a sudden, a pair of red, mechanical eyes light up in the dark, all the way to the end of the hallway. Then another light up next to a desk, then more do, until six of them stare down at the group stranded in the dark room. 

All quiet, until a sword clank is heard, and then...

"Worthless," Jason says as he impales a soldier in the back with his sword, he gargles as crimson liquid drops from the hole before he's kicked away.

"We won't let you do this!" Davidson shouts as he and his men start firing, but none of their bullets seem to hit anything, only ricocheting impacts on the wall as rapid footsteps are heard.

Then, the sound of weapons clanging is heard once more, as the cyborgs start to fight back, then a sudden flash of light as the remaining lights go out. Now, the only thing that shines is the red lights from the eyes on the hall, two soldiers are sliced off by a chainsaw attached to an arm. And before one could react, a bullet impacts in his head, limping to the ground as others meet a similar fate. 

"Just fucking attack! Kill them all!" Davidson shouts to his men as he pulls the trigger on his gun, each bullet seemingly going off target, as one attacks with a flamethrower that causes some of them to scream as they twitch to the ground, trying to put off the flames.

"It doesn't matter, nothing you weaklings do will matter anymore," Adam says before he stabs a soldier in the neck with some daggers, then he pulls it hard enough to break the neck. He smiles as blood gushes from its severed artery. It's like an old ritual, killing with a flick of the wrist.

All of the soldiers can do is cover their face and let out a scream before the blood sprays on them.

"There is nothing to live for but this, shut up and die!" Jack shouts as continue to shot at the remaining soldiers, limping to the floor with some holes in their bodies, some with even brain splatter and crimson liquid spraying through the floor through each gunshot and slicing.

"I...won't lose...!" Davidson grunts as he tries to fire his gun, but it's no use, the only thing he can do is watch as his men are taken one by one.

"You have our word, we won't leave you behind either." Three voices echo throughout the halls as two cyborgs rush towards him, one grabs him by the throat and slams him against the wall, pinning him down. "Now you see your punishment for your insolence."

"This is...all I have left..."

"Too bad, now I'm taking it," Jason taunts before he slams his palm on his heart. "Rest in hell, filth!" He then pulls the palm out of the heart hard enough to rip it out of his body, Davidson can only scream as Jason crushes the heart and then tosses it down on the floor, shattering with his screams echoing through the corridors.

With that done, the lights go on again to display the full carnage of the aftermath. Jason turns around and walks away from the limp body, now smeared in blood. He notices the recorder near the soldier's porch, pulling it away as he displays his face clearly to the viewers from the recording. He then turns the recorder to the cyborgs smeared in blood, some still with the blank expressions, other with wide grins on their faces as they swipe the blood from their weapons. He turns it back to Davidson's body, and finally, turns towards himself once more.

"Are you listening...? UEF DOGS?!" he then throws the recorder to the ground and stomps it with his foot. With all set and done, he turns to his fellow cyborg as Adam and Jack chuckle from the aftermath.

"We set up a really good message, don't ya think? Now, what's next?" Adam asks.

"This place will become a burial ground soon, so best to evacuate," Jason replies.

"And the suckers from the surface?" Jack asks.

"Don't worry, they'll get their own surprise too. And luckily, just in time before the data of our powers and bodies are sent to all Zlocan bases around the world. Project Joshua will rise stronger than ever thanks to this. Now, let's move." With that, the cyborgs leave the room filled with corpses, a testament to their power before shutting the door, leaving the place shut down and out of sight.

"My...god..." Eddie utters in reaction to the scene he just witnessed, with others with their mouths open in shock or staring in pure silence. To see such men die at their hands, it was worse than they have ever witnessed in this war. Amira covers her mouth from this sight.

"The Zlocu has gone far enough...and this may not even be their worst yet," Logan says with a shaky tone. Something needs to be done after all.

"Let's go get Isaak's team out there before anything else-" Sylvester says before he's interrupted by a call from his intercom in contact with Luana. He pushes a button in his earpiece.

"Yes, AWACS Coruja?" Sylvester asks.

"Mr. Sylvester, and here I thought what we saw was the worst of the day. But our radar is spitting something nearby, two contacts...wait, three...five, ten...thirty?!"

"What the hell do you mean?"

"They look like Zlocan troops incoming, coming at full arsenal...at your direction."


You are reading the story above: TeenFic.Net