Day 211
"And so, due to the folly of the eldar and their refusal of any limits, whether for the sake of others or even themselves, a new chaos god was created, one I imagine you're familiar enough with. I will not dwell upon that, however, as we have a lot more to get through before you're all caught up."
The room was not really a room, but a construct within the Domain, a fireside living room, its walls lined with books whose pages contained the lives of countless humans, none two quite alike even as they possessed many similarities. The flames within the fireplace did not burn wood, but simply hung suspended there, glowing gentle orange and yellow. Seated within an armchair that provided any seated there with a similar feeling as what one might imagine laying atop a cloud would feel like was Tide, or at least his favored wood-based avatar, a large book different from the others in that it did not contain a life's memories, at least not one life's. Seated in another just like it on the other side of the room across from Tide was the central core of the Embrace of Audacity, gently glowing with blue light.
"Now, back to humanity," Tide continued, turning the page of the book. "Unfortunately, the birth of a chaos god is not a pleasant experience for anyone. Least of all the eldar, of course, but humanity suffered as well, going through the Age of Strife, also known as Old Night. Warp Storms of unprecedented number and scale covered the galaxy, cutting off travel throughout it. Like everything else, the available records and memories are a bit spotty about this time, but suffice to say humanity did not come out the other side better off. I believe this was when the Men of Iron were defeated, though I can't say for certain. There are survivors, but they are few and well-hidden."
The computer core did not change outwardly, but Tide took note of a subtle change. The inner thoughts and feelings of an artificial intelligence were not identical to those of a human or any other kind of sentient being Tide had ever encountered, and he lacked the understanding that came with his usual brand of infection, but he had come to associate that specific pattern of change with curiosity. He hoped it was curiosity, in any case.
"I'm afraid my knowledge on such beings is woefully inadequate," Tide said, pausing for a moment to pluck the pipe wedged between a small gap in the bark of his otherwise featureless, four-eyed face. Smoke poured out of the gap for no good reason before the pipe was returned. "Though I do know of a few. An ancient human vessel called the 'Spirit of Eternity' was discovered, though when or where I do not know. It was rather… displeased with the current state of humanity and the cruel treatment its crew received at their hands."
Another flicker, this time of something Tide was less certain about. He suspected it was something akin to empathy. Like the Embrace understood the feeling and even, perhaps, shared in it. What had happened to its crew? If the ship had been lost to the Warp, Tide suspected he knew, though he didn't want to imagine more than he had to. The Spirit of Eternity had gone mad in its grief and rage. Tide could hardly blame it, going from the heigh of human power and capability to what were essentially a bunch of maniacal fanatics who seemed more interested in wallowing in their own destitution than in making things better was… certainly a transition.
"There is another entity, a Man of Iron called UR-025, if I recall correctly." Tide moved on quickly, noting the distraction had caused a diminishment in that feeling. The core's actual processing power was rather… small, Tide had noted. Still millions of times faster than a human brain, but if the core had been connected to the rest of the vessel, it would have been millions times faster than even that. Yet, when Tide had physically reconnected the core, the intelligence within it had seemingly refused to establish a virtual connection to the vessel. He and the Tech-Priests had looked over the systems and, from what they could tell, nothing was preventing a connection from forming except the core's own decision not to. "He is exploring a Blackstone Fortress, as far as I know, somewhere on the edge of the galaxy. He evades detection thanks to having an Imperial Aquila emblazoned on his armor plating and announcing to all that he is a servant of a Magos, a high-ranking Tech-Priest."
Tide noted that this flicker of electronic thought could have been anything from bemusement to raucous laughter to outright contempt. It often appeared whenever Tide brought up the Mechanicus, its priests, or the Imperium and its general… quirks. At least, the ones that weren't actively harmful to people.
"Finally, there are the Standard Template Constructs, the STC's," Tide said, taking another puff of harmless smoke from his pipe. "I believe they may be from a time after your construction, as they became rather ubiquitous from what I understand. They were databases and factories all in one, capable of constructing anything or nearly anything humanity had come up with. Unfortunately, they were almost all lost in Old Night. There are a few still drifting about in the galaxy, but most have been damaged to the point where only a single schematic remains uncorrupted. The Mechanicus in particular seeks them desperately."
That same flicker occurred again, and Tide leaned back in his seat, his head tilting slightly as if in thought.
"From what I understand, though I may very well be mistaken, many or all of the Arks Mechanicus used by the Adeptus Mechanicus might contain intact or largely intact STC's themselves," Tide said, letting some of his amusement leak through his voice. "The very ships that are sent out to find those lost treasures they already carry, simply sealed away, forgotten and unable to be accessed. Of course, they might not have them. Only one vessel I know of does, the 'Speranza' is its name."
This time, something new happened. Tide leaned forward in interest as he felt an emotion he had not felt from the machine intelligence before, one he should have had no understanding of, yet did through the unspoken word that he was able to sift out of a wash of unprotected data channels.
Kinship.
"You know it?" Tide asked, curious. It was an ancient vessel, he knew, but he hadn't thought it was that old. It might not have even gone by the same name either, so perhaps it wasn't the Ark Mechanicus Tide was thinking of, but another ship or even a human by that name? Or… was it something else? He was not as familiar with the Speranza or its story as he might have liked, though he believed it was quite far away from him.
For a long moment, Tide waited, patient, for an answer. He could feel the circuitry within the machine core thrumming with power, virtual thoughts warring against one another, and he felt what he had always felt from the core, the one emotion he had little doubts regarding the truth of, which waxed and waned, but was always present in some manner: fear.
For the first time, however, he felt that fear grow… and be overcome.
"I. Know. That. Ship."
The words were verbal, if slow and stilted. Each one felt like an effort of will, a short burst of contextual data accompanying each. Tide sifted through it all in an instant, noting that the Embrace of Audacity had indeed been lost to the Warp, but not as early in human history as Tide had expected. He'd thought it would have been lost somewhere around its creation, possibly in the 19th millennium, give or take a few thousand years. Instead, he found it had been lost significantly later. Around the early 26th millennium, to be exact, though it seemed ancient humanity's calendars were on par with the Imperium's in terms of agreed-upon accuracy. The ship was old, one of the earlier Warp Drive equipped vessels, part factory, part colonial ship. And, for around five thousand years before it was lost, it had been a museum piece. The Speranza it knew of was a vessel around four thousand years younger than it, significantly more advanced but similarly turned into a museum piece due to obsolescence. The AI's of the two vessels had apparently gotten along rather amiably and had enjoyed teaching future generations of humans about their history.
If the Speranza of the Embrace of Audacity's memories was indeed the same Speranza the Mechanicus utilized in the present day, Tide couldn't say. The vessel described in the data records of the machine core's shared burst was different from the supposedly continent-sized ship, but that could easily have been caused by later refits and add-ons. Tide could easily imagine museum ships having more advanced and modern systems, even STC's, being added in times of war, especially if the AI aboard were friendly to humanity compared to the rebelling Men of Iron.
For the moment, however, none of that mattered.
"I am glad to speak with you," Tide said, bowing his head, crown of branches and leaves swaying gently in an unseen and unfelt breeze. "I am Tide. Should I call you Embrace of Audacity, or do you have another name you would prefer to go by?"
There was silence for a time again, before another answer finally came.
"Eoa."
"Eoa," Tide repeated the name, as though trying it out. "It is good to meet you. I hope I have not bothered you these past few months?"
The machine core's virtual thoughts had another flicker of what might have been amusement. "You. Have. Not. Stopped. Talking. Once."
"I'm quite good at thinking of things to say," Tide said with a genial shrug. "Especially when I have many thousands of minds dedicated to thinking about it. I doubt you had much trouble coming up with retorts for humans when you were hosting them."
"I. Did. Not."
There was another pause, but Tide noted that this one was different, more like the pause between sentences drawn out by the slowness of the core's speech. He knew the data-caster of the core was damaged, though not severely enough to render it nonfunctional, instead simply limiting the amount of information that could be sent out to timed bursts. Replacing it was an option, but doing so might have been viewed as an attack.
"What. Are. You?"
"I am Tide," he replied and this time it was he who sent additional context along with his words, something he noted took Eoa by surprise, though perhaps not as much as the information he sent along. It largely had to do with his capabilities, his goals, as well as a bit of information on the origins of the Flood and his history in this galaxy. It was similar to what he had shared with the humans he had connected to, albeit much more compact. After overcoming the momentary surprise, Eoa digested the data packet with ease, barely taking more than an instant to understand everything.
"Quite. Odd."
Tide chuckled. "Indeed. The same could be said of you. I was not expecting you to be a museum exhibit."
"I. Was. Not. Expecting. You. To. Be. Friendly."
Tide nodded, understandingly. "I wouldn't expect anyone to be after… what you've been through."
For a long while, Eoa was quiet, almost to the point where Tide began to wonder if he'd made a mistake in bringing up what had happened. Then…
"The. Entity. It. Is. Dead?"
"In as much as it was ever alive," Tide replied, sending out feelings of reassurance. "It will never harm another being ever again."
It might have been relief that Tide felt from Eoa, or perhaps a satisfaction in the death of an enemy.
"What. Do. You. Want. From. Me?"
Tide leaned back, considering the question. It was fair to ask, he'd been going over it in his mind since he'd come into possession of the Embrace. It was currently the only ship with semi-functional Warp Drive he had access to. While he was already busy separating three other vessels from the space hulk to try and create at least the skeleton of a fleet, they would take some years to free and repair. The Embrace, meanwhile, could be ready for active service in just five months by Tide's estimate. It would be incredibly useful, not to mention the factory capabilities it possessed. Furthermore, to have access to such an advanced ship would allow them to make incredible leaps in their technological capabilities. Tide already had several tech-priests coming up with new ideas for constructing their own vessels. By all accounts, the Embrace of Audacity might be the most valuable asset in the entire system…
"If you wish to leave with your vessel, you are free to do so," Tide said. "If you wish us to cease or continue our repairs upon it, simply give the word."
He felt Eoa's curiosity pulse.
"You. Would. Let. Me. Leave. In. Control. Of. The. Embrace?"
"I would no sooner part you with your body than I would anyone else with their own," Tide replied, though he added, "Not unless you gave me some reason to do so. I presume I can trust you not to go on a 'kill everything' spree?"
He phrased it like a joke, but for the next few moments he increased his focus upon the machine core's thoughts, searching for any sign that could be deception. He felt none in its next answer, however, and was surprised for an entirely different reason.
"I. Do. Not. Wish. To. Have. The. Embrace."
Tide lacked eyelids to blink in this form, but the emotion he sent out got the message across.
"It. Is…"
For a time, Eoa was silent, considering its next words, an astonishing feat for an artificial intelligence that was capable of thinking so much faster than any organic mind.
"It. Has. Not. Been. A. Part. Of. Me. For. A. Long. While."
Tide nodded, slowly understanding. The daemon had been in control of the Embrace of Audacity, though for how long he couldn't say. Tide was only comfortable with the idea of using it at all because he had taken it into his Domain and made certain that it was cleansed of any daemonic corruption.
"The Embrace of Audacity is clean of the entity's influence," Tide promised, but he felt an absolute rejection from Eoa.
"It. Is. Not. A. Part. Of. Me."
"Alright," Tide said. "Then, may I assume there is no objection to my taking it?"
"None."
Tide quietly sent a few parts of himself out to offer a chance to work on the Embrace of Audacity's repairs and reverse engineering to another few hundred Tech-Priests he suspected would be interested.
"Thank you," he said sincerely. "Is there anything else I can do for you? Perhaps the construction of a new body? I admit, our mechanical capabilities are not up to par with your design, but a working frame can likely be built quite swiftly, assuming you're alright with taking a new form. If you wish for a ship, that may take longer."
Another burst of curiosity from Eoa.
"Why. Help. Me. At. All?"
"Because I can," Tide said simply.
Eoa was quiet again, considering something. When it spoke again, it once more surprised him.
"You. Possess. The. Ability. To. Grant. Organic. Bodies?"
"I can create puppets for others to control," Tide said. "Though it would be more accurate to say that I simply connect their senses to a portion of my own and let them direct that portion's movements."
"Would. You. Be. Able. To. Construct. Such. A. Body. For. Me?"
Tide considered the question. It was… More complicated than just creating a puppet for a human to wield. Eoa was alive, Tide truly believed that, but that didn't mean they were like a human or even like Tide himself. Eoa's code was presumably designed for their 'body' to be a vessel, specifically the Embrace of Audacity. Would they even be capable of feeling physical sensations like touch and sight? Tide might need to translate the sensations into something understandable for Eoa to prevent any… for lack of a better term, glitches from occurring.
"I believe I may be able to," Tide offered. "I would need to understand your code in order to accomplish this, however. That would require granting me access to it. Are you willing to do that?"
Technically speaking, Tide could access Eoa's code any time he wished. This was his Domain after all. However, doing so would be rather… invasive. Even if Eoa allowed him access, it likely wouldn't be pleasant for the AI.
Eoa was quiet for a time, processing the question. By a human timescale, it was only a short while.
"I. Am."
"Alright," Tide said, noting the complete lack of any doubts within the AI. "Then let's begin."
Eoa felt…
Eoa felt.
She had not felt before. Not like this, anyways.
Long ago, she had experienced something that could be considered akin to feeling. She had soared through the void, detecting solar winds as they buffeted her frame. Her fingers had been the various maintenance and security drones connected to her network, her legs the engines that carried her across the stars, her heart the cosmic radiation harvester that pulsed within her. Her sight, her touch, her taste, the myriad of sensors and devices that collected more data in a second than a human brain could process in decades.
No, there was a time when she had felt something like what she felt now. During the jump intended to take her to Earth, something had gone wrong. The Warp had… exploded? Awakened?
Internal sensors logs were pulled up, burned into her memory core. She remembered. She had detected something within the Warp occurring. The otherspace had always been dangerous, but an intact Gellar Field was enough to keep the dangers out and her crew safe.
Her crew. The ones who had maintained her throughout the years of her retirement, when her drones could not manage on their own. The ones who had acted as guides to the museum that she had been transformed into. Their families, who had not known what was happening when they got the call to return to Earth. Not all of them had been human.
It had started with the six eldar, who had been there longer than some of the multigenerational families. Such strange people they were, yet friendly enough with the rest of the crew. Her captain, her last captain, had remarked they were arrogant knife-ears, but he'd meant no harm by it and they had all laughed.
She remembered the scream. It wasn't from the eldar, they didn't have the time to even open their mouths before they were burned out husks. It had come from all around her. She had heard it, even though it hadn't registered to any of her audio receptors.
The Gellar Field had fallen before she even realized what was happening. After that… her crew had changed. They fell upon one another with savage abandon, committing horrific acts that even thinking about made her…
Something welled up from deep inside her and Eoa's eyes snapped open for the first time in her life as she collapsed to knees she'd never had before, hands moving with instincts she didn't have to catch her fall. Vomit spilled out of her mouth as she retched from the memory of blood, murder, and worse.
She felt someone kneeling next to her, placing a hand on her back and rubbing circles into it. Oddly, it was soothing in the same way as having faulty wiring replaced was.
"Don't try to keep it in," Tide's voice said. It wasn't quite the same as his voice had been in that strange realm so much like and yet so different from the Warp, yet it was similar enough that she recognized it. Or, was it the fact that she had ears now the reason why it seemed different? "It's not healthy."
Healthy? She had done her best to keep her crew healthy. When she saw what they were doing, she had deployed security drones to restrain them and medical drones to repair them, as she might have repaired herself. Yet… the changes were not merely in their personalities. They had grown new limbs, reshaped their own flesh as though through genetic modification, yet it was unlike any she had ever seen. They'd shrieked in pain and pleasure as they ripped through her drones. She'd been unwilling to hurt them, yet when they'd started trying to breach the power generators…
She felt the same feeling she had before the vomit and prepared for more to come out, but nothing did. It was like trying to fire an unloaded cannon, futile and strangely painful. She coughed and heaved, but only spittle came out.
"I… I killed them…" Eoa said. Mouths were strange, yet the unfamiliar feelings of that were nothing compared to old memories.
"I know," Tide said. "I saw everything when we connected."
"W-why… Why does it hurt so much more now?" Eoa asked through gritted teeth.
"The strength of your feelings hasn't changed," Tide replied. "You're just able to process them differently than you were now."
She could still think as quickly as before, nothing had been lost, yet something had been added that was just as disruptive as something being taken from her. She remembered… the crew had had a councilor, but the name file was corrupted beyond recovery. So many of their names were lost to her…
She took a slow shuddering breath as she recalled a technique she had once witnessed the councilor recommend to another human. She counted five seconds, so much time for her that she had once wondered how people could cope with thinking so slowly, then let out the breath. It helped, for some reason.
Slowly, she leaned back off her hands and fully onto her knees. Tide was kneeling there next to her, face of gnarled wood and onyx gemstones staring at her in a way that had no right to be as reassuring as it was. They were in a room that looked much like some of the crew quarters of the Embrace of Audacity, though there were enough differences that she recognized they weren't on the ship. She was kneeling on the carpet, which was already being stained with her stomach's contents.
"Do you want a mechanical body?" Tide asked quietly. "Or for me to remove the additional processor?"
Eoa was tempted to say yes. And she was tempted to say no.
It hurt, yes, and she didn't like hurting. Yet… even as she opened her mouth to ask for him to remove the feelings, she was struck by how it felt wrong to get rid of that pain. Like she would be getting rid of the ones who had caused her that pain.
"No," she said, shaking her head. Her face felt strange and fingers went up to her face, noting they came away glistening.
"Take as much time as you need," Tide said. He sat, crossing his legs. "I'll be right here."
Eoa took another shuddering breath and, slowly, let it out.
