[LIVE BROADCAST] – PRIVATE – [SAVINGGRACE] - [1695.450]
Five Lives Unbound, Far Whisper, Approaching Sky, Seven Red Suns
AS: I would like to inform you that today will be the day of Irradiant’s departure.
AS: Team Microstructure has done an excellent job creating a truly remarkable invention to allow the friend of us all to continue existing, thriving even.
FW: You say it, Sky!
FW: We squeezed everything out of the possibilities. The staff will upgrade Shifting Gales to the processing qualities of late Generation 1 Iterators, all contained in a structure that is not much taller than I am.
FW: My dear Gales.~
FLU: I sent the final version of the building plans last cycle as requested by you, Approaching Sky. V 19.887 of the Microstructure will be virtually indestructible, thanks to various new Void-Fluid-based alloys.
FLU: I have added a redundancy file in the unlikely case that Shifting Gales will not have access to refined Void Fluid. The Microstructure should in that case be upgraded immediately after reaching your Superstructure, Sky.
FLU: That’s all from us two.
AS: Thank you for your diligent work.
AS: I am especially pleased with the marvel that is the Neuron Brain.
AS: You make me proud, Far Whisper. Perfect utilisation of our dated groundwork research.
FW: Aww.~
FW: Reminded me of old times. ^^
SRS: I would like to laud your entire Local Group, Sky, you included.
SRS: I kept Gales updated on our work, and she still can’t believe the lengths you all go for her.
SRS: In her name, I would like to thank you all for allowing her to have a second chance.
FLU: Hear, hear!
FLU: I hope it wasn’t too much of a hassle for you, Suns. To be part of Team Irradiant?
SRS: (SM) It was my pleasure to have gotten the chance to train my pupil. She is as ready as she can be with our limited-time training.
SRS: My little hero insisted on sharing their thoughts.~
SRS: We had our differences, but in the end, we managed to become a good team. But the main praise goes to Spearmaster, who trained Irradiant on a daily basis.
SRS: (SM) She is a good pupil. Please lead her to a swift and safe passage. And get her back before she can’t change any more.
AS: … Still as odd as the first time you wrote out Spearmaster’s thoughts.
AS: I will not let her leave alone. The tainted Overseer will accompany her.
FW: Oh, Sky? I sent you something that will help Irradiant with carrying the Neuron Brain.
FW: Construction of it requires a functional laboratory, after all, and, as Suns informed us many cycles ago… Gales’ kind of went up in smoke.
FW: And it will look adorable. :D
AS: A backpack. The hull consists of your Void Fluid Alloy.
AS: I can see the use of it. Protection as well as resources for Shifting Gales to bypass some crucial time we might require dearly.
AS: … Brainpack and the instruction pearl. With that, we have everything.
AS: Irradiant will leave my facility grounds by the end of the cycle. Project SAVINGGRACE is go.
SRS: I will inform Gales of the update on the mission status. She will be excited to hear that her efforts are not in vain.
SRS: Before I forget. Whisper? What is the state of the communication system that Gales wanted you to take a look at?
FW: In the fine-tuning phase. I have a working prototype, in theory, but I am not satisfied with some aspects of it.
FLU: ‘It has to be perfect’. Whisper! You have already gone to places nobody ever dared to dream of and are held up by visual designs and overlays.
FLU: She is too much of a perfectionist. I will try to help her finish the prototype before Gales meets up with you, Approaching Sky.
AS: That concludes the meeting. Godspeed to our Messenger.
The Cycle of saying her goodbyes to her father, her mentor, and their group of friends arrived at last. Irradiant was notably nervous as screen upon screen of the divine robots plopped into existence to accompany Irradiant one final time.
She saw the face of Seven Red Suns observing her with a warm expression; her mentor Spearmaster sat on their shoulder, a mouthless face full of pride and deep worry. Of all the people present, they were he ones who showed the most concern for her well-being.
Spears explained to her in excruciating detail the chances of her becoming more normal than they could ever dream to be. Irradiant felt the urgent desire of them to ensure that she could live the life Spears never could and never will be able to. But, unbeknownst to them, they achieved quite a different fascination cultivating in the young Scug’s heart. She was not afraid to be a freak. If she could eventually hug and snuggle with the Slugcat, she considered her adoptive dad, and without disintegrating them, she would be content with her fate.
Being a freak is cool, he involuntarily taught her. Among many other survival-related things. Irradiant felt as ready as one can be, and that was the work of Spearmaster’s actions, paired with Suns' helpful background info. The young hero-in-making greedily took in everything the synchronized duo had to say, determined to not let them down.
She didn’t interact that much with the purple machine goddess with a loud and annoying beeping voice. Unable to keep her tone levelled, Irradiant imagined her either as a very excitable or eccentric personality, which she sadly couldn’t understand. Unable to speak the language of gestures and maw-positions, they never directly exchanged words, only sometimes Sky decided to translate to her the most important sentences of the green glowing one.
She is responsible for the tasty sludge. Even if she is not patient enough to talk to me, she does have a good heart. And Spears finds her passionate personality fascinating. According to them, she was the main aspect of creating a solution. Her work means I have something to deliver to the machine goddess in need. And I like your antennas. I want to hunt the dangling lights.~
The other machine goddess, which Irradiant only interacted with sparingly, observed her in a calm and collected way through her four yellow-glowing eyes, the antenna on her left ear vibrating softly and continuously. Sky told her that she was the reason that Suns and Spears could even be here, which elevated Five Souls… was that her name?… to the most important Iterator in the room.
Without her, she would have gone crazy with the green father of hers. It was her doing, that the gentle duo took over and guided her through her confusion. Calm, collected, but very important. Irradiant liked her.
And, finally, the only Iterator in the room, who she had personal contact with. Approaching Sky held a strange-looking hardshell of her proportions in his hands, conversing with the other people present, appearing oddly lively for what he had shown before when interacting with her or Suns. She was able to read his body language better than she was able to understand those of the other. He was… proud? Excited? Despite his bored-sounding beeping, he showed more emotions than he had ever before. It was a big Cycle, after all, Irradiant noted to herself. All they had been working towards was now, she guessed correctly, located in that hard shell.
Irradiant couldn’t help herself but feel an odd sense of pride swelling in her chest. The green robot was acting so overwhelmed and helpless when she was younger, a mere pup according to Spears. But, over the many Cycles, he allowed himself to warm up to her, started to converse in gestures and even showed some hints of the affection Suns showed to her mentor. So, there was a passion in that clumsy god he required to cultivate to be able to act on it. What an interesting development. She was not the only green bean, which experienced growth, no. He did as well, probably because of her.
‘A nd now you must survive without me. Can you do that? I will be back soon, and that will be with your friend. Trust me! ’
Sky gazed at her with befuddled amusement, his pride challenged by the cheeky Slugcat. He answered in subtle movements, mostly to remain unreadable to Suns and Spears, she noticed.
‘I will manage. Worry only about yourself and Shifting Gales. Nothing else matters at the moment. ’
Irradiant’s gaze hardened up as she puffed up her chest, confirming his signed words with the necessary determination to render them all true. She then tensed up as the eyes of all present focused on her. The beeping of Sky and the others raised to a crescendo of alien voices as, she assumed, final preparations for her mission were discussed in the big group.
The mostly happy beeping, however, told the Slugcat that they were quite pleased, to say the least. She could imagine why, given their efforts had led to a definitive solution to saving their friend.
All that was left was her delivering the package.
‘ I am ready to leave, ’ she signed to the group when Spearmaster looked at her. ‘ Swift and quick and with success. The essence of my mission. We should hurry! ’
‘Patience,’ Spears replied in amusement to their pupil’s impatience. ‘They want to properly say their goodbyes. I will translate everything for you.’
“Now, now. Please calm down and focus, y'all. I know it has been a while since the last time I hosted an over-regional meeting involving my whole Group… with Gales on Suns’ speed dial.
But we do not matter today. Who does is our adorable little friend down there.
Suns and Spearmaster will ensure that every word spoken will be understood by Irradiant. Please speak in a decently slow pace to not give the purple darling too many issues with tangling up their arms.
Now, then. Irradiant? In my position as the Coordinator of the region, I have worked on something small myself, which could be quite useful for you. We are quite restricted in our timeframe, even with our quite admirable speed we have shown to still possess. Gales might be in a much worse shape when you arrive on her island. I have integrated a shielded antenna in your backpack. If Gales requires aid, she can use the transmission device to call us to guide her through the process.
Bear in mind that the juice is limited. This is too small in its dimensions to be able to maintain a communication grid.
You got that?”
“Spearmaster requests to use simpler words. Irradiant… did understand. ‘ A device for emergencies, not for her, but for Gales. Got it. ’ So please, as a reference: Keep your sentence structure limited. You said it yourself, Lives.”
“Apologies.” Lived turned away her half-present apparition of repurposed holographic screens, now looking the other way to shield her shame. “Too excited to talk about the adorable-looking backpack.”
“We all are. Gales as well, who reads a transmission of mine as we speak. With a latency of a couple of minutes, however.”
“Gales!? She is with us?... Well, as much here with us as currently possible. Hello, bestie.~”
Whisper caught herself a moment later, focusing on Irradiant again, her expression softening up, glowing gems now shimmering dimly.
“Yepyep, Lives already said it, your hardshell backpack is a lovely gift from us all. While its main purpose will be to carry the brain and some rare materials to Gales, you don’t have to be worried about breaking it. I created the material. To put it simply—throw it, block with it, drown it—it won’t falter. Just don’t lose it. We will try our best to get you to Gales in one piece, but you can’t lose the backpack. Our research on the Cycle shows that it should protect the package and keep it on you even in your unplanned demise. Don’t give me that look, Sky.
Irradiant, don’t lose it. Period. And, if you do, abuse the oddities of the Cycle.”
“Irradiant calls you weirdo, Whisper.” Suns chuckled. “She will learn the concept of the Cycle no matter what. Spears has instructed her on what to do in certain situations. Much to their dismay. The… methods can be quite depressing.”
“I am a weirdo, alright. But a dashing one. Keep your nose up, Irradiant, and stay attentive. Void be with you.”
Suns nodded as they translated Irradiant’s affirmative response back to Whisper, who chuckled soundly at the content. They appreciated the humour and cheerful nature of the group, despite the very serious root cause. The root, which has just answered to their transmission with some quite concerning words.
Worries they would have to address later, once Irradiant has left. Gales required Suns’ full attention, especially in these last Cycles.
At last, Sky took the wheel. But instead of saying a few words, he, to Suns’ surprise, lowered his puppet down to the sitting scug, offering his arms for her to jump into. A notion Irradiant readily took, Suns noticed in delight. They have come a long way since Sky decided to add them to the group to help raise and prepare Irradiant for her crucial mission. Where there was once ignorance and indifference, Suns was now able to see a hint of compassion, a willingness to allow himself to open up to others.
If only you could see this, Sig. Your old co-worker, now showing the aspects you criticised him for. Still… I wonder what exactly happened between you two to not have spoken for hundreds of Major Cycles. You have mentioned something of him having done something unforgivable to you. But I can’t see anything that could have upset you that much; am I missing something here?
Maybe… the time has come? I have opened myself to mend my wounds, as should you, Sig. Who teased me all the time with witty, yet hurtful speeches about my growing cowardice? I will show you, present you, with a regret avoided, and inspire you to undo your feud with Sky as well. We are in this together, abandoned by our parents, forced to make the best out of what we have at hand.
…
You will force me to look at the damage I caused, won’t you? Look at your group, lying in shambles. Moon collapsed, Pebbles rotted away, Wind in self-induced isolation. How are you holding up, Sig, without anyone to bounce off your jokes to? Without your…
Yes, I will contact you, for Void’s sake. I started to heal; I shouldn’t stop. Face my sins, and do my best. For you, Sig, and for you, Gales. And everyone else.
But… today I will focus on her. Irradiant, best of luck!
‘You start to overthink again, Suns. I will be there for you.’ Suns felt Spears’ gentle thoughts deep in their Thought Accelerator and provided their voice with power. ‘ Say your good- oh, too late.’
‘Too late? Hey!? Why am I muted? And when did the video connection stop?’
‘ The moment Sky embraced the hug. Privacy. ’
Suns chuckled to themself. A typical response, after all. Never show yourself when you are at your weakest, a mantra Sky seemingly indoctrinated as well.
‘He will probably unmute us for the send-off. I won’t push.’
It was a weird feeling, which spread in Sky’s chest, growing from an itch to a desire to hold Irradiant close to him, not wanting to let her go.
Gales would probably analyse it as the sprouting parental notions she deemed to be so fascinating as an aspect of ensuring the Vice of Company amid a new family. She would find it amusing to witness him in such an unusual state, despite his otherwise dulled-down personality matrix. Just how strong were his bindings to the small Slugcat truly if his personality would roam unbound? A question, which scaredy even Approaching Sk.
How did you do it, Irradiant? Not even a single Major Cycle has passed since you were considered a living organism in my Breeding Pods. Why do I feel these strange aspects of compassion, rendering me unable to care about your well-being? I don’t care for any other living creature in my Facility, born by my perfected intelligence-boosting Mutagenic Lattice, why you?
Is it because you serve a purpose? The first being in this Superstructure since Mass Ascension, who has a meaning in her existence besides to exist to feed me with data. You were born, because I needed someone to do a specific task, to rescue a friend I learned to hold close to my existence, despite my difficulties to handle her oh-so-familiar personality.
Do I hate this? I… don’t. I don’t necessarily care about anything that is happening, but I can fathom a certain degree of investment in the fates of my friends, as difficult as it can be for me to keep this desire alive. I require the emotions of Far Whisper to feel alongside her, the determination of Seven Red Suns to feel more for Irradiant than I logically can provide.
And yet, some of these emotions stick to me. My wanting to provide my ‘daughter’ with a farewell hug feels… oddly natural. I will allow myself to give in, being interested in the effects of it.
Sky lowered his puppet to Irradiant and unfolded his arms, welcoming her closer. He noticed with interest how the brief confusion of the Slugcat regarding the notion washed away and got replaced with genuine happiness. Moments later, he felt the small bundle of green, silky fur pressed against his robe, the silent sizzling of her acidic skin reacting with the brass bandoliers. He would not be able to embrace her for long, he noticed. But he also noticed the need to rise to wrap his arms around her and show Irradiant just how much he cared.
But the presence of his friends did annoy him. In the moment before wrapping his second arm around the Slugcat, Sky commanded the holographic screens not to transfer sound or video, allowing him a few moments of privacy.
Hugging Irradiant felt reassuring, a confirmation that she was doing well. The purring of the critter calmed his tensed nerves, and the still-present sizzling of the chemical reaction reminded him of the second time limit. Suns and Spear wanted her to be less reactive after her mission concluded.
He now understood why. For him, only his clothes were at risk, but a quick cross-reference with past experiments regarding acids told him everything he needed to know. An organic wouldn’t survive such an oddly nice embrace. He will prepare everything to undo it as well as possible, no matter how long it will take for her to return. She will be able to hug, to visit her mentor without disintegrating them. A wish, a desire, that sprouted and grew past his numbing limiters to be unable to care. A consuming want. A true emotion nurtured by compassion.
How quaint.
Approaching Sky only let Irradiant go mere moments before the damage to his robe grew to be unrepairable. A silent exchange of gazes, her eyes awake and attentive, awaiting his signed words. And Sky began to talk, in the way Irradiant was able to understand.
‘It is time for you to go, Irradiant. I don’t desire to let you go, but your task is critical.
Promise me to return with my friend and in a state where I can still undo my decision.’
‘ You can count on me, Sky… Father! ’ A sly grin of the cheeky Slugcat, a word that did irritate Sky. ‘ I will be back in time. ’
Sky reached out to the space surrounding him and pulled the hardshell backpack out of his orbit, where he kept it prior. He opened the casing and showed Irradiant the straps, meant to go around her arms and over her chest.
‘Lives and Whisper told you everything that is to know about your package. Keep it safe. Also, there is one personal redundancy you should take with you.’
The green Slugcat tilted her head while Sky fastened the form-fitting backpack on her slender body, making sure it didn’t hurt her, or wasn’t able to move in unexpected ways. After he was done, a lime-green pearl was summoned to his palms, his fingers making sure the coarse, acid-proof layer was still intact.
‘I am unsure if you will need this pearl, but I am not ready to take that risk. In the unlikely case that Gales does not know how to process the brain and assemble the staff, I have inscribed a step-by-step blueprint in this pearl. The pearl is coated, and your body won’t dissolve it.
Suns told me from your training sessions, that your kind can store cargo in a fold of your stomach. I appreciate that that anatomical oddity has a purpose after all.’
‘ Swallow it. I understand. I should go now. Don’t die of boredom, father.~ ’
‘Don’t die, period… daughter.’
As Irradiant moved over to the exit of his Heart Chamber, Sky reactivated the feed to his peers, informing them of Irradiant’s immediate departure. After everybody took the word once again, wishing his daughter luck, the green Scug finally left his holiest… leaving him behind emptier than ever. His peers were still around, but the physical emptiness of his heart was more pressing than he was willing to admit.
He already started to miss her.
At least she wouldn’t go alone.
Sky notified the repaired and reinforced Overseer, permanently tainted with Gales’ light-blue energy signature, to keep an eye on Irradiant and guide her to the best of its reconfigured capabilities. He wouldn’t let his daughter go through it alone. That Overseer was oddly excited to return to the island, due to reasons unknown to Sky. The eyes of the gods usually had no desires of their own, but that one did.
His growing weakness started to infect others, Sky noticed in dimmed-down amusement.
