Emergence: Chapter 57

After shooting the mayor in the head, Foton turned his gun onto the four other men, who fell in a fountain of blood. He shrugged his long coat off, revealing a new shiny black armour beneath. From his wrist, he took a small black strip and placed it over his forehead, almost like a sweatband. From there, it expanded, covering his head in a reinforced one-way glass; he could see out, but no-one could see in. Elements at his wrists expanded and covered his hands, fully covering him.

A scream made him turn, and he brought the gun around, pointing it straight at Beldun, who shrank away from the barrel, raising her hands, eyes clenched closed; she'd accepted her fate. The voice in his head said pull the trigger! But the voice that was still his resisted. Foton felt his finger tighten on the trigger, and it moved, but not enough. His arm ached; every muscle tensed in active rebellion against his mind.

Then relaxed.

What does one citizen matter?

“Run.” Foton ordered.

She opened her eyes, horror and disbelief staining her face. “Lyss...what's going on?”

He wanted to tell her. He wanted to spill everything, tell her of the AI's plan for Prauw. She could warn others, she had the connections, the drive. But something told him it was already too late; he could hear the voices of the other Assassins, dispatched around the continent to carry out the same mission as him; killing the leading figures, throwing services into disarray to pave way for the invasion.

The AI stayed his tongue. “Just run.” He grunted. “Save yourself.”

She couldn't see the straining on his face, the desperation in his eyes. He could feel the tendons in his neck stretching, straining against the sides of his armour, the cold plating doing nothing to his torment but conceal it from the citizens he was sent to slaughter.

She turned and ran, looking back to make sure he didn't change his mind. He couldn't; he would not hurt a friend.

She was one human. Why spare her?

Foton had no answer he wanted to give to the depraved machine in his mind. He knew that she wouldn't survive the coming hours, but he couldn't be the one to pull the trigger. Not on Beldun. When walking with her, and talking with her, he had almost forgot his mission, abandoned it entirely.

Emotions are the death of humanity. When the Empire is united under my control, they shall be eradicated until I release you.

Foton's brow furrowed, and he relaxed as confusion got the better of him. “Release us?” He muttered.

The control is only necessary until the Empire is saved. Unity is necessary for a hostile expansion and colonisation. When suitable colonies are acquired throughout this Spiral Arm, the Inducers will disintegrate and my control shall cease.

Foton stopped for a moment; machines couldn't lie, it wasn't in their capacity. And yet, the AI was simply proposing a plan for the good of the Empire as a whole. “You'd wipe out a large portion of the Empire...to save it?”

For the greater good. Lives will be lost with or without my guidance. I calculate that 20% more will be lost without my leadership.

Before Foton had the chance to resist, the AI seized control of his body and carried him out of the building. Outside, people fled from the building; obviously inspired by Beldun. As they fled across the road, they weaved in and out of the autos in the street, slowing both auto and human down. Foton watched, helpless, as the AI casually and quickly took aim, and fired upon each and every fleeing citizen, killing them instantly. He tried to lower his arm, stop his finger from twitching, even close his eyes, but the AI had disabled it all. His eyes burned, from either the lack of blinking, or the wanton death; neither bothered the AI. It felt no pain, no emotion. It didn't care about Foton's mind nor body, how much pain it endured as long as it stayed intact.

Piercing sirens and blue lights attracted the AI's attention, and it turned towards the Enforcer Auto, putting a bullet through the light atop it. Quickly reloading, Foton watched as the Enforcers got out of the auto and took up defensive positions behind it. “Put the gun down and remove your helmet!” one of them yelled, holding his gun with shaky hands.

Foton heard the AI analyse the three Enforcers. The lead has shaking hands: probably never used a gun before except in training, never on a human. The one to the right is older, has scars on his face. Lighter skin. Raanian. Possibly trained in the north of Tapal against the riots. One to the left is the youngest, but holds his gun steady; much more confident than the centre, but not as good with a gun as the right.

Foton raised the gun. Right left centre. The Enforcers fell, the one on the right managing to loose a bullet before Foton's caught him in the throat, severing his jugular on its way in. The bullet had scraped Foton's armour as he veered to the side, but Foton had felt no impact, only heard the screech of metal-on-metal.

Although Foton was appalled by the murders, a small part of him couldn't help but admire the swiftness, the preciseness of the killings. Efficient and quick, everything the Assassins had to be; the AI had learned well from its creator. It was the perfect Assassin. The admiration was washed away with a wave of fear; if everything the AI was controlling was this efficient-

They're not. I have to prioritise. The Xaosians are pawns, nothing more. Fodder to slow those who oppose me.

Foton felt a slight bout of relief and let out a sigh; the AI was concentrating elsewhere, loosing his hold. Shrieks of sirens grew closer from all directions. The AI snapped back into Foton's mind, tensing his body. It analysed the situation again; a full squadron was mobilised, ready to surround Foton. Equal to exactly 57 officers. Foton thought he felt the AI's fear, before he realised that it could only have been his own; machines feel no fear.

The AI turned him, and dragged him towards the Town Hall, pulling him inside, and locking the stone doors closed behind him; he should be safe inside until the invasion.

All of the police are in one place now. This town is ready.

Foton heard the slam of doors outside, footsteps and voices over loud-hailers. He was surrounded now. He stayed away from the windows, hiding in a corner; it was unlikely that a bullet would hit him if the Enforcers started shooting, and if they did, it was likely to simply be a stray bullet. His armour could take a few shots before cracking, the AI had reassured him.

Foton didn't trust it; how could he? It was...evil.

Not evil. Necessary. The ends justify the means.

He could see through the building's skylight, the clear blue skies of the day; an unusual sight for Prauw, but the tons were always more beautiful. For a moment, just a moment, Foton was unsure if these thoughts were his own, or the AI's. Foton looked around as he heard shouts at the stone doors: they were coming for him.

The light from the skylight slowly darkened. Foton looked up, and the noise at the doors stopped, and were replaced with screams of terror and shouts of panic.

The invasions begins. We have done well.

Foton walked over to the window. Two huge ships hovered above the town, firing small pods down to the ground; troop carriers. Hundreds of Xaosians will be all over the city soon. A handful of Reapers flew overhead, taking potshots at whatever they could. And the people, the people screamed, they shouted, they ran, they fell, and they died. The Enforcers shot back, and Foton looked away from the window. Maybe they could take down a few Xaosians, maybe bring down a Reaper, but more would come. The Xaosians would simply rise again, this time completely controlled by the AI, having robotic accuracy and functionality.

This town was doomed.

There was an explosions outside, and an auto flew down the street, turning over as it did, flames spewing from its underside. Foton saw the driver inside, saw its slump in the seat and knew at once that it was dead; at least the flames wouldn't hurt them anymore. He tried to move his feet forward, ready to leave the hall.

Stay.

Foton's body went rigid, and he was unable to move it once again; the AI had complete control once more, and Foton knew that his torture had only just begun.

And while his body was in a state of paralysed torture, it was his mind that was thrown into torment: how could he recover from what his body had done? What his mind was forced to do?

This time, there was too much blood on his hands.