"System, what the h.e.l.l is going on??"
As soon as Daneel regained his clarity after a few moments, this was the question that he posed to the system.
After making that astonis.h.i.+ng statement, the voice hadn"t gone silent. Loud laughter had followed it, and it still echoed in the room, making the hairs on both of their arms raise while their hearts thundered in their chests due to the bizarre experience that they were having.
Of course, the reason behind the bizarreness was clear: there was no one else but them in the G.o.dd.a.m.n room!
Even the system had to take a few moments to answer.
[a.n.a.lysis underway. Phenomena a.n.a.lysis Module does not detect a corporeal or incorporeal life form. Searching for suitable explanation.]
If even the system was trumped, then that only meant one thing: this was something of the Hero level which it could not yet tussle with, and that meant that it was definitely a threat that he could not take lightly.
Right away, Daneel activated all of his defensive mechanisms. Most of them were hidden, but even Faxul began to feel the terrifying undulations of Energy that were given off by hundreds of complex trinkets coming to life to protect their master.
Even the voice seemed to sense it, as it said, "Oh, you made the right call! I remember the last guy… He was so c.o.c.ky that he tried to attack, and he was quite fun to play with. Of course, he went in, and never came out. I wonder how he"s doing…"
Narrowing his eyebrows, Daneel decided to speak.
"Who are you?! And how is it possible for you to be alive even after all these years? Or is it that you"re someone who has come later, and is trying to masquerade as some being which is all-powerful, yet not even visible?"
The last sentence elicited a chuckle from the voice, which answered, "There is a very common term to describe me, and it must already have pa.s.sed through your mind. What is it? In fact, your colleague even mouthed it before…"
"Ghost!"
It was Faxul who said this, but the Daneel instantly spoke again.
"Of course, that"s the most common possibility, but it doesn"t fit. Even ghosts must interact with the elementary particles around them to exist, but I see nothing of the sort in front of me. There is only nothingness, and it is as if the source of your voice is something that I cannot even sense. So cut the c.r.a.p and just answer me properly."
Faxul couldn"t help but glance at Daneel as he said this, because he didn"t even know that ghosts were real. He had only spouted the word because of the stories that all children listened to when they were young, and this was the only instance in his life where he had started to think that they might be real.
Of course, Daneel knew this information because of everything he had obtained from the Empire and the Emperor, and at that time, there had even been a few Champion and Hero Paths which focused on attaining this kind of state, where one could be incorporeal and still exert power. It was simply a matter of branching out one"s consciousness in a safe manner, but even though the explanation was easy to give, the execution was very risky. It was powerful, but with a success rate of below 50%, it was only madmen who chose it.
Hearing Daneel"s words, the voice actually started to… cackle.
Before, there had at least been a semblance of sanity in what they had heard, but now, it became completely clear that what they were dealing with was something that had lost its mind.
The cackling went on and on, echoing in all the corners of the chamber, until it seemed to be emanating from within their skulls, itself.
Daneel even started to wonder whether some sort of spell was being cast which might be aiming to affect them in some way, but after checking, he saw that it was simply a psychological phenomenon due to the continuing sound.
Deciding to end it, he opened his mouth, but he stopped when it instantly cut off and was replaced by that voice, again.
"You, boy… Are an anomaly. You are from this age, and are from the civilian population. But you know about things from the age of the Empire, which means that you either obtained that information from a different source, or entered the Big Four and became really influential - so influential that you could access these kinds of records, which are all supposed to be sealed. Either way, you"re…special. Just like me! Welcome to Elysium, by the way. Be polite and shake the hand that is offered to you."
"Wh-"
The last line from the voice made Daneel ask what the h.e.l.l it was talking about, but a moment after that, the question died in his throat.
The skeleton with s.h.i.+ning bones that had been defending the door before abruptly moved, in a motion so fast that he almost missed it even though he was using the Basilisk"s Breath which he had activated right away.
It was standing right in front of him, towering over his head due to its height that was at least 3 feet taller than him, and its bony hand was held out.
Bewildered, Daneel shook it, and in the next instant, it went back to its place before- slumped on the door.
"There. Let me introduce myself, then. You are speaking to Edgar B. Ionof, prominent researcher and Pathfinder of the Empire of Angaria. I-"
"That"s impossible! Stop lying!"
Hearing the name, Daneel had been instantly given information about everything that came up in regards to it by the system.
That was why he exclaimed in this way, because according to the records… Edgar B. Ionof had had a different fate that was quite famous.
"You led the charge against the landing party of the opponent during the war, and you held them off for quite a long time until the Emperor chose to use the Grand Inheritance and turn them back, once and for all! You were supposed to have perished in that conflict! Don"t think you can fool me using-"
"Oh, so that"s how my father died? Thank you for the information! I must confess that all those who came before you had no interest in history, and this had no answer to my questions. He was always someone who wished for a glorious death, so it is good to hear that he obtained it. You are speaking to his son, good sir. Because you know so much about him, you must also know that he was one of the most talented in his generation- he holds the record for the 15th fastest person to break through to become a Hero, and even his Path was a top tier one, leading him to be appointed the commander of one of the strongest squadrons under the Emperor. Me, though… I had no talent, so I had no choice but to turn to research. I guess it was a blessing in disguise, though, because I was only at the Warrior level when the Apocalypse happened. Otherwise… I would be behind that wall, probably turned into dust! And there would have been no one here to properly welcome you! Oh, what a travesty that would have been! Haha!"
This extraordinary statement was followed by another long bout of laughter, and at this point, Daneel and Faxul looked at each other and understood that this person was definitely not right in his head.
Yet… His words had presented another conundrum. If he was truly at the Warrior level, as he said, then how was he doing this? How was he capable of something that the system could not detect?
It wasn"t that he could be lying, either. Only Warriors would have survived the Apocalypse and lived on to be in this room and seal this place, so how was he doing it?
As if he had noticed the confusion in his face, the rasping voice spoke again.
"Don"t feel so stumped by what you"re seeing. I can tell that you are someone who is used to understanding everything around him- I know, because that was exactly how I was. Sometimes in life, though… when you see something that you cannot explain, you have to come to terms with the fact that you are either not powerful enough, or not destined to find out what it is. In this case, however, you have me, who is willing to give you an answer! This… Is the Path that I found myself. I managed to find a way to bind my consciousness to my bones, so as long as they exist, I shall do so, too. Also, because I pumped my bones full of Energy right before I died, there is enough for me to sustain myself and do simple things now and then. You can feel that Energy, but you must have written it off as something that naturally emanates from those from the age of the Empire. You must also have seen that it is the same case in all the others here - well, they tried, but they failed. I was the only one who succeeded! I will live forever… But in this macabre form. Oh, well. Whoever would have imagined that the great researcher Edgar B. Ionof, who wrote an unparalleled paper on the restorative effect of the bones of Heroes and Champions when used in formations would permanently turn into the same form that he studied so much? If only my colleagues could see me now…they would rejoice that its the perfect fate for an arrogant sh*t like me! Hahaha-"
"Ahem."
This time, the voice was from behind them, but thankfully, they didn"t need to think to know who it was.
It was Elanev, who seemed to have recovered quite a bit of Energy, although he still looked pale.
Interrupting the voice"s laughter, he came forward and said, "That"s all very interesting…but let"s cut to the chase, because we really have something we need to do in the outside world. We came here to find power, so that we can take back everything that we"ve lost. It is obvious that you are someone who is on our side, so to speak, and somehow, you also clearly know about the situation outside. Yes, there is no Emperor Fenoras, but there is us- the Sovereigns of Angaria. Well, we christened ourselves as so, but it will become famous later- you can trust me on that. Anyway, I see that it might be in your best interest to aid us, and in return, we would definitely be willing to help you out in any way that you choose. So…what do you say?"
Daneel nodded inwardly as he heard Elanev stake their case, and he also felt the tone of urgency in the man"s voice.
He knew clearly that this was because just like him, Elanev was worried about Eloise and all the rest who were waiting for them in the outside world, without even knowing that they were doing so.
With this breakthrough, it seemed that his confidence had reached new heights.
Yet… When the voice answered after a few moments, what it said made all three of them open their eyes wide and gape at the family of skeletons in front of them.
"Oh, I would love to. But there is just one tiny, teeny problem. I can"t believe that you didn"t notice it until now… But don"t you think that it is just the bit circ.u.mspect that it seems as if all of us have died at the same time? Don"t worry, I won"t put you in suspense. The reason behind that.. Is that even with all those precautions, Elysium was invaded, and we were all killed instantly. Then, our diaries were changed, and it was made to look as if we had died after waiting for hundreds of years. As for the one who did all of that… He went inside, unaware that I had succeeded in training in this path. I don"t know who the h.e.l.l he is, but I do know one thing: he… is probably still alive, and if you go in there: You. Will. Die."