NOVEL NEXT chapter 103
103 – Destination, and Starting Point (End)
– Rumble.
Loud bubbles rose in the chamber.
And they emerged from the body of the owner, who had become a complete wreck.
“…Dad?”
A motionless body began to move.
Slowly, breaking through the waves.
“I-I’m visible, right? That’s right, isn’t it?”
A faint red light flickered from the device covering the eyes.
Though it was thoroughly kept a secret where it was looking, the son could tell.
Though nothing but metal could be seen to call it human, the figure, like a mountain corpse, was undoubtedly looking at himself.
“Tae-hyuk, sir…”
Forcing back tears, the woman who had stood up from her seat crumbled.
It was Matthew, who reached out his hand to help her in her weakened state, but he was blocked.
By none other than Ilia.
“…”
The aged face bowed and then lifted again.
And then, the gaze turned towards her husband.
With a fragile body that seemed like it could collapse at any moment.
“Dad, I’ll stay here. Mom said she couldn’t, but Dad will allow it, right? Right, Dad? I want to live with you. There – “
The liquid in the vial sloshed from side to side.
The child’s eyes also trembled.
“Why? Dad, I, I…!”
[:: This is not the place for you ::]
Through the wall speaker, someone’s voice flowed.
Unlike the mechanical warnings and notifications, it was a voice so matter-of-fact, too emotionless.
Therefore… a single phrase infused with emotion.
[:: Several tens of meters below the surface. No one here at all. Food is restricted for the safety of wires and circuits::]
[:: No human can live properly down here::]
“Dad lives here. Dad… does…”
A man’s dilemma, making himself hesitate even as he speaks,
A man’s crumbling body, a hidden face to the extent that recalling his previous appearance is difficult.
[I’m sorry. But, this is for your future::]
[I, at your age, was thrust into the battlefield with a gun. To survive. To grasp a few coins, I’ll do that with these hands::]
The man’s hands are no more.
Neither are the man’s arms nor legs.
[:: Met Ilia on that battlefield. I still remember when you met your mom. She wasn’t a cheerful ‘woman,’ but::]
Long fingers carefully manipulating the valve.
Observing with eyes the pumps that aid the man’s breathing, a body moving here and there.
[::I wished for you to live a happier life than mine. A lifetime, wandering in search of a place to call home without parents, and ending up in this underground place::]
Floating halfway in the liquid, or sinking… A motionless body.
The device on the eyes, faintly indicating consciousness, captured the image of a boy.
“I, by my father’s side…”
[::You were here for only a day. You’ve already gone through many battlefields, haven’t you?::]
[::Plasma cannons, aerial warships, unmanned drones, war machines with AI::]
[::In a place meant for such things, can you find happiness?::]
The boy remembered the chilling smell that made his nose cringe.
The moment before firing, when his body tingled like static electricity, will never be forgotten.
The smell of human flesh burning.
[::The central network has already made its decision. Either kill all of you or send you out to be watched::]
[::To be watched means to hand over files or information to suspicious individuals::]
[::Yet, even to me and Illyagi, they grant this unreasonable request. To send us out::]
The technology that extends the consciousness of a dying person into a virtual world.
With it, someone’s lifespan is prolonged, while someone else dies alone on the street.
If such technology were to emerge in the world, those who reign from their thrones towering high in the sky will forever accumulate wealth.
That’s why they instructed the artificial intelligence to build such facilities –
And a mercenary became the guinea pig for it.
[::I never truly understood the meaning of having parents. In this era where people are no longer born out of love…::]
[::But still, I am sincerely grateful to be able to have you. To Illyagi::]
– Thud.
A gulp of rough breath escaped into the open air.
A bit of static leaked outside the speaker.
The mechanical eyes staring at the man inside the glass shook.
[:: If you’re like me, you must have forced it. Not wanting to go. Emotions… getting in the way, you know? ::]
[:: But that’s why I’m saying this. Please, leave. ::]
Farewell greetings to those reluctant to depart.
Last thanks given to those clinging to themselves.
[:: Because I cherished you. Because I liked you. Because I truly enjoyed all the time we spent together. And, because those were moments happy enough to be cherished as memories. ::]
[:: I hope you live a little longer. I hope you live a life happier than mine. That would be enough for me. ::]
The man, engraved with a dark ending, intoned with the power of the machine.
Walking the path of happiness, a pair that had stopped in their tracks gazed at their fruition.
[:: Don’t cry. At least, you know that I’m still alive, right? ::]
A mechanically moving hand staggering.
The boy entrusted himself to it.
Wiping away the scratches and dust with tears, wiping them off with his body –
“Squeak, squeak, squeak…”
He jolted his body, swallowing his emotions.
Feeling another hand covering his back.
[:: I hope you understand that I’m telling you to leave because I love you. ::]
[::No one wishes to thrust those they cherish into hell. Especially not your mother::]
The resentful gaze of the woman, tinged with bitterness, turns towards the companion hanging from the ceiling.
The woman with a mechanical body silently accepts it.
As if reliving a moment from ten years ago.
[::We all make choices, but… the outcome of those choices, no one truly knows. Like me, and like your mother::]
[::But when the moment of certain failure comes, always remember, you must make the right decision::]
[::As you are the child of those who failed in it::]
Unfulfilled dreams are passed on.
The weight of a broken life is erased for the child.
[::I hope you can live with a smile. Without worries, if you can accept tomorrow::]
[::The moments you shared briefly with your mother were undoubtedly joyful::]
Hands, now only skeletal without warmth, embrace the child with love.
Patting the hunched back, carefully wiping the messed-up face.
[::Live a better life than mine. Envision a happier future than mine. Success… wealth, honor…? Look up to me::]
The mercenary man developed desires.
In the arena, he sought peace, even though he held a gun, he wished for a place to wash away the blood.
And someone trustworthy to enjoy it together.
To become happy.
[::And, your mother::]
The machine chosen as a companion followed the command.
It brought peace, turning blood together, washing away the weight.
In it, sharing what the man desired, harboring greed.
A very simple desire for having someone who brings happiness.
[::Of course, Illia might be happy now – it’s uncertain, but it might be::]
“…”
There was neither positivity nor negativity.
Dominance or isolation.
Within the vague boundaries, a pair hanging in the balance now truly remained the only ones for each other.
“It’s the limit, Lord Taehyuk.”
[::Well, yeah. Seems like that’s the case – it feels like it::]
“Ah, Dad.”
A man twitching his head subtly, shoulders jerking.
Spitting out a drop of saliva through his blocked mouth, fingers trembling as a sick person.
[::I will always – always, love you::]
Yet, even with the limit squeezing my throat, I embraced a single word in my arms.
Spreading out the hand distorted by pain.
“…Ah, uh, aa…”
Captured solely by the one who captured that scene.
The two, unable to endure sorrow, grabbed and pulled each other’s trembling shoulders towards the door leading to the disinfection room.
“Stabilization in progress. All connections terminated.”
Six hands embraced the orb, and crimson eyes moved devices, reading numerous numbers.
To the departing son, his face did not turn.
“…Dad.”
A thick door to protect from the explosion.
Just as it was about to close, long fingers grasped something, slipping through.
“Juwon, take this.”
A voice seeping through the gap, a wet hand reached out.
And it held.
Slightly faded but still the same… a necklace with an iron heart pendant.
And the black bracelet on the wrist.
“This, Mom -“
A swiftly withdrawn finger.
A vanished gap.
Darkened room.
Within it, a single voice echoed.
[::This necklace was personally gifted to me by Lord Taehyuk::]
[::The most precious item left as proof to one who once doubted Lord Taehyuk’s dedication and love::]
[::Although I wanted to keep it forever – I have realized I already have the proof::]
[::It is you::]
Emotionless words of machines collide with people.
And they found a place in the heart of a young boy.
[::The time spent with Taehyuk is like a lifetime to me. However, I am still immature::]
[::There may have been many difficulties in treating you as a ‘child’::]
[::Taehyuk has always been my priority, and it will be forever::]
[::However, it is nothing but your existence that proves such a relationship::]
A lift heading outward.
The barriers to that place opened one by one.
However, the way back, the path to parents, was completely sealed.
[::As much as Taehyuk wished for your happiness and well-being, I give meaning to you::]
[::Please, live happily::]
[::I hope you remember that you are one of the reasons for my existence::]
Behind the closed door is a machine that generated these words.
A machine that, being loved by a human, embraced only one human.
And in front of it, a machine that directly embraced the crying boy.
[::I wish you good fortune::]
Only one being knows what emotions are contained in that farewell.
Will it be relief, satisfaction, sadness, or perhaps an apology to me…
Such thoughts passed through the mind of the child, moving away from the mother who becomes more of the past as time goes by.
However, one thing is certain.
They both knew, without a doubt, that this would be their last stop, that they wouldn’t go anywhere else from here.
This was the end.
The mercenary once known by the name from Incheon, and the machine that went by the designation CI-125, once a guardian by its side…
They would live in the depths of Central Factory 001.
***
“…”
The boy, the girl, and the man who emerged from a corner of the alley.
All of them, with red-rimmed eyes, faced the now darkened sky.
Even the city lights, brightly illuminating it…
“…Your dad asked me. About you.”
“…”
As a mercenary, he left behind the fact that he once eradicated information as a mother and created a child filled only with his own information.
The woman etched the undeniable truth deep into her heart.
“I helped your dad, Matthew here… sir, who’s with me. Of course, I didn’t do it well.”
Beside the boy, gazing blankly at the tallest skyscraper, stood the woman.
With an appearance almost indistinguishable from the android that stood by the man.
“How long do you think your dad will stay down there?”
In a moist voice, the girl’s hand rose.
And then, it touched her body.
The man’s body, always overshadowed by a machine much stronger than himself.
This time, it seemed to claim the boy’s body as its own.
“Unless there’s something special.”
“I… don’t know. I came here looking for my mom and dad… If you’re saying that’s over now.”
On his calloused hand remained a bracelet and a necklace.
Each one carrying the meaning of love and care.
“Your dad aimed for a residence in the safe zone.
Wanted to retire with a pocket full of hard-earned money.
…Wanted to put an end to the tiresome battlefield.”
Did the man break the chains of captivity, or did he become entangled in another chain called love?
“…I.”
The boy’s gaze couldn’t reach the top of the tower.
The girl’s heart couldn’t fall out of the emotion called love.
And the man, from a foreign land where blood flows, could only watch those two.
“I, probably…”
Another dream was born.
Another desire emerged.
Shackles named happiness were tied around the boy’s ankles.
Just like my father’s.
And, like a machine that loved a father.