Bab 40: Fortress of Solitude

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Over the next several days, Ivan and the Red Devil journeyed to the South Pole daily, returning to the manor at night. They maintained this routine, covering an expansive search grid.

Each day passed, similar to the one before, until the seventeenth day when Ivan's enhanced mental abilities detected something extraordinary. It was a glacial cliff, its crest blanketed in ice and snow, with an astonishing, pristine clarity extending down without a single snowflake adorning its surface.

With his mental powers, Ivan delved deeper, eventually uncovering a colossal spaceship more than ten meters beneath the ice, adorned with the distinctive, enormous S-shaped emblem on its door.

Excitement surged through Ivan as he shouted, "Azazel, come quickly!"

The Red Devil, resting in the nearby tent, rushed out upon hearing the call. Anxious, he inquired, "Dr. Ivan, what's happening?"

Ivan gestured for him to stay calm and relayed the good news, "We've found our target, at nine o'clock, ten kilometers away. Quickly stow the brainwave intensifier, and let's go."

The Red Devil, relieved to see the end of their monotonous task in the frozen wilderness, gathered their equipment and vanished through a spatial wormhole. Then, he grasped Ivan, and in an instant, they arrived at their destination.

Standing beneath the stunning glacial cliff, they marveled at the captivating spectacle, embracing the awe-inspiring beauty of nature.

Ivan approached the ice wall, pressing his hand against it, and activated his energy absorption capability. Cold energy, a form of energy, flowed into him, prompting the glacier to melt rapidly. A translucent curtain of water flowed in all directions, except when it neared Ivan and the Red Devil. At this point, Ivan's mental powers came into play, directing the flow and containment of the water.

In under ten minutes, the ice within a 100-meter radius melted away, unveiling a peculiar alien spacecraft.

Even Ivan, who had mentally prepared himself, was astonished by the immense spaceship. The unprepared Red Devil gaped at the sight, lost for words.

Inspecting the surface of the craft, Ivan extended his hand to touch it and accessed the metal's molecular structure. Although this metal was advanced for Earth's current technology, it wasn't beyond the planet's capacity to produce in the future.

Ivan circled the spaceship, ultimately reaching its door. Observing the colossal S-shaped symbol, Ivan felt a wave of excitement and nostalgia. Superman had been a childhood idol, and Ivan had even skipped school to read Superman comics. Yet now, he stood before the spaceship of his hero.

However, Ivan swiftly refocused his thoughts on the task at hand, recalling its importance.

The Red Devil, recovering from his shock, followed Ivan closely. As a bodyguard, he couldn't allow Ivan to face any potential danger. They entered the spaceship, and he formed a spatial barrier around them.

Inside the craft, there were no extraneous adornments. Rooms lined both sides of the passage, each neat and orderly. Ivan checked a few, finding them filled with space food, and supplies that had deteriorated over time.

Proceeding down the passage, they arrived at the main control room. It was a spacious chamber linked to several passageways branching out in various directions. At its center lay a sleek, semicircular apparatus with enigmatic holes and a massive chair beside it.

While Ivan's attention was captured by the central device, a sudden noise erupted. Ivan pivoted to find an oval-shaped mechanical creation flying toward them, extending two tentacle-like appendages in their direction.

The mechanical entity bore an uncanny resemblance to a creature from a movie, the one that had initially harmed the heroine before being defeated by Superman.

Ivan and the Red Devil remained composed, allowing the tentacles to approach. The Red Devil maintained a distance of a meter using his spatial barrier and immobilized the mechanical entity.

Ivan recognized it as part of the spacecraft's defensive program and realized that the spaceship had detected their intrusion. If there were a self-destruct mechanism, it could pose a problem.

Without hesitation, Ivan made his way to the semicircular instrument at the room's center, seated himself, and cut a small wound on his palm, allowing his blood to flow into the strange orifice.

Ivan reclined in the chair, closing his eyes as he lay still. His mind extended, guiding his blood to break through cell barriers and establish direct contact with the spacecraft's control program at the nucleus of the cell. He commenced the process of seizing control of the spaceship.

Drawing inspiration from the he movie "Lucy," Ivan recognized the potential of utilizing his cells and the spacecraft's control program to create a new artificial intelligence (AI) program. With the assistance of the Fortress of Solitude spacecraft's control program, he set about building this novel AI program.

This unique AI program was constructed with Ivan's cells, granting him full control over it. The AI program was intimately connected with Ivan, akin to an extension of himself. Irrespective of their physical separation, Ivan could maintain a connection, effectively granting him an external brain. He would no longer need to overclock his brain each time he faced challenges, thereby accelerating the development of his mental capacities.

As Ivan took action, the spaceship's systems stirred to life. Indicator lights danced frenetically, illuminating the interior space. The shape of the central device transformed Ivan's influence, morphing into a screen resembling a computer display. A whirlwind of codes scrolled rapidly across the screen, too fast for the Red Devil's eyes to discern. Consequently, he turned his gaze away, maintaining a vigilant stance.

The intensifying brightness of the screen corresponded to the increasing activity of Ivan's brainwaves. The codes coalesced into a coherent pattern after more than an hour, gradually fading from the screen. Ivan reopened his eyes, contemplating the screen, and declared, "From this day forward, your name shall be the Red Queen."

To the astonishment of the Red Devil, a clear, girl's voice resounded, affirming, "Yes, Master. I am the Red Queen. Thank you for naming me, my creator."

A beam of light materialized on the ceiling of the main control room, swiftly taking the form of a ten-year-old girl clad in red.

"She... she can talk! She possesses life" the Red Devil exclaimed in astonishment.

Ivan rolled his eyes at his companion, retorting, "It's not that strange. Speaking is normal for her. Nevertheless, keep in mind that she's not a true life form but rather a rudimentary form of artificial intelligence."

While Ivan had grown accustomed to the idea of artificial intelligence thanks to his exposure to advanced technology from later generations, the Red Devil's Earth-based technological knowledge was still limited. In his view, Ivan's artificial intelligence program was a marvel, akin to divine creation.

Unperturbed by the Red Devil's wonderment, Ivan turned his attention to the Red Queen and directed, "Red Queen, no need to address me as 'Master.' Call me Dr. Ivan. You have full control of the spaceship now. Provide me with information about this vessel."

"As you wish, Dr. Ivan. This spacecraft is a Fortress of Solitude an exploration vessel, measuring 30 meters in length and 18 meters in width. It houses complete internal facilities and landed on Earth over 10,000 years ago. It features living areas, control facilities, material storage areas, gene cultivation spaces..."

As the Red Queen relayed the spacecraft's details, Ivan couldn't help but marvel at the sheer power of Fortress of Solitude technology. A craft as advanced as this was constructed thousands of years ago.

Ivan's mind, however, couldn't help but revisit the storyline from the movies. According to those narratives, Krypton had been annihilated due to the over-exploitation of their planet. But Ivan's inquisitive nature kicked in. How could a technologically advanced civilization like Krypton fail to detect the impending crisis on their planet? Why hadn't they taken steps to establish colony planets? If their home planet's destruction was imminent, could they not have made preparations to save their people?

Ivan realized that the issue was far more complex than the movies depicted. The truth was likely buried deep within Krypton's history, a mystery that Ivan couldn't untangle at this moment. Nevertheless, he intended to explore it further in due course.

"...Based on the information gathered from the spacecraft's control program, the vessel was struck by a meteorite during its Earth exploration mission. Only one of the fifteen crew members survived."

As the Red Queen's explanation concluded, she paused, awaiting further instructions from Ivan.