Location: Science Castle, Security Director's Office and Quarters Area
Time: About one hour after android riot subsided
The corridor leading to the Security Director's office was terrifyingly silent. Backup power provided dim lighting that cast twisted, wavering shadows on the smooth alloy walls, as if invisible things were writhing. The air retained the smell of ozone and burnt materials, mixed with a colder scent belonging to utter emptiness.
Valeria Mendoza took point, sidearm gripped firmly, alertly scanning every corner. Thunderhawk followed close behind, his injured left arm temporarily secured by Verdandi, movements slightly stiff but eyes sharper than ever. Cassandra Walker walked in the middle, her expression restored to calm, even carrying a hint of appraisal, as if evaluating a newly excavated tomb. Verdandi Lee brought up the rear, her breathing somewhat rapid—not entirely from exertion, but more from unease about the unknown soon to be revealed.
The airtight door to Graham's office stood ajar, unlocked. Valeria used her gun barrel to gently push it open; the door hinges emitted a dry, grating sound, particularly piercing in the silence.
Inside was empty.
The office was unnaturally tidy, all personal items vanished without trace. The desktop gleamed mirror-bright, the terminal screen pitch black, data ports empty. Even the faint pine-scented cleaner usually present in the air was gone, leaving only the most primitive smell of metal and plastic. This place didn't resemble a just-evacuated command center, but rather a showroom never used by anyone.
"He's fled." Valeria's voice echoed in the empty room, tinged with suppressed fury. She quickly checked several drawers and storage cabinets—nothing. "Cleaned very thoroughly."
Cassandra approached the desk, observing the object-free surface. "Everything removed. Seems our actions, or this riot, gave him a window to handle his belongings."
Thunderhawk didn't join the search; his gaze fell on an inconspicuous embedded personal effects locker in the corner. The cabinet door was tightly shut, but the electronic lock's indicator light was completely dark, meaning it had been physically disconnected or had its core module removed. This type of old-fashioned security cabinet often had a mechanical emergency opening device, located in an extremely hidden recess at the bottom.
He crouched down, ignoring his left arm's slight stinging pain, using his portable tool to pry open the recess's cover plate. Inside was a manual rotary valve. He forcefully turned it, and a "click" sounded from within the cabinet, the door popping open a crack.
"Found something." Thunderhawk said quietly.
Everyone's attention immediately focused over. The cabinet was mostly empty, but at the very bottom lay several pages of torn and crumpled paper document fragments, plus a portable storage device. Clearly, the evacuee had been pressed for time, hastily departing and overlooking some earlier items.
Valeria donned evidence gloves, carefully spreading the paper scraps on the table for assembly. The content was output from an old-fashioned dot matrix printer, text somewhat blurred but key information still discernible:
Fragment One: "...consciousness stream data collection frequency increased to 300% baseline, priority target: V-Lee (ID: Omega-7) emotional peak response recording..."
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Fragment Two: "...'Gilgamesh' iteration progress report: fusion 'nutrient' emotional spectrum significantly broadened, but stability... requires more 'extreme scenario' stimulation..."
Fragment Three: "...'Babel directive' confirmed: 'Harvest Day' advanced activation. All data channels priority redirected to 'Cornerstone'..."
Fragment Four: ...only a fragmentary totem symbol—that familiar Tower of Babel—beneath it a line of small text: "...in silence, lay the foundation for the new god."
Even as mere fragments, they revealed chilling information. Consciousness stream data collection, emotional peaks, nutrient, extreme scenario stimulation, lay the foundation for the new god... these terms combined pointed toward a truth far darker and more massive than virus research.
"They're not researching vaccines..." Verdandi's voice trembled, face pale as paper. "They're... harvesting us? Using our brains... as experimental data?" As a neuroscientist, she understood the implications behind these terms faster than anyone. The "Project Noah" she'd once devoted effort to had such a grotesque core.
Valeria clenched her fists, knuckles white. "Illegal human experimentation... consciousness harvesting... Graham, and his Babel backers..." She looked at Thunderhawk. "That storage device!"
Thunderhawk had already picked up the damaged storage device, attempting to connect it to his portable decryption tool (one equipment pieces reprogramed by Black Cat). The device's casing was severely damaged, but the core chip luckily remained mostly intact. After a bout of harsh disk-reading noise and the decryptor's forced breach, a fragment of corrupted audio log was extracted and played:
(First, Graham's cold voice)
"...'Catalyst event' marked executed as planned, Old Chen also cleaned. Though Dr. Yang wasn't eliminated, the panic and pressure data quality exceeded expectations. V-Lee's compassion and protective response generated neural waveform patterns particularly precious... 'Cornerstone's' resonance intensity increased 18 points. 'Gilgamesh' is awakening..."
(After a burst of static, another processed, inhuman electronic synthesized voice spoke)
"...data is divinity. Tower of Babel's glory shall be built upon the ruins of mortal emotions. Continue advancing 'Mist Phase,' activate all 'bionic puppets' when necessary, maximize collection efficiency. For... ultimate evolution."
The audio cut off there, the decryptor emitting a wisp of smoke from overload, the storage device completely destroyed.
The truth forged itself like the coldest metal into the final shape of their cage. Verdandi, the most precious nightingale in Science Castle—all her "songs," emotions and thoughts, were merely "data" meticulously collected for the Babel's plan.
The room fell deathly silent.
Cassandra Walker broke it. Her face showed no surprise, only a kind of "as expected" cold confirmation. "Consciousness cultivation dish..." she slowly uttered the term. "Babel's ultimate goal was never controlling the virus, but using the pressure environment created by the virus to extract the highest quality human consciousness data, feeding their AI deity. Science Castle was a massive farm from beginning to end, and you," her gaze swept over Verdandi and Thunderhawk, "were all carefully selected livestock."
The truth poured over everyone like ice water. Babel's true purpose fully revealed—they would transform humanity's deepest emotions and thoughts into bricks for constructing their so-called "new god."
Thunderhawk felt nauseous. He thought of Science Castle's anxious faces, those emotions collapsing under pressure, including his own budding feelings for Verdandi... were all of these merely cold data points in Babel's experimental logbook?
Just then, Science Castle's lights flickered violently again, backup power beginning to destabilize. From the distance, from underground depths, came a dull, continuous rumbling, like some massive engine accelerating.
"'Cornerstone'..." Verdandi murmured, eyes filled with dread. "It's beginning the final 'harvest.'"
Valeria took a deep breath, her gaze resolute: "Can't wait any longer. We must go to the 'Cornerstone' area, stop them before they complete their so-called 'ultimate evolution'!"
The investigation ended, but the real battle had only just begun its bloody prologue. Graham's office left only an empty shell and cruel echoes, and the echoes pointed toward Science Castle's darkest heart.