บท 11: Whisper of Giants
The hum of the helicopter's rotors was like a heartbeat in the air, steady but distant, as Rook and I soared over the snowy expanse of northern Belka. The mountains had faded into the distance, but the weight of the events at the AI hub hung heavy in the air between us. I glanced over at Rook, her face lit by the faint glow of the instrument panel, and I could tell her mind was racing just as fast as mine.
"Others," I murmured, barely loud enough to hear my own voice over the noise.
Rook gave me a sideways glance. "What?"
"The system," I said, my voice a little louder now. "It said there are others. Other fragments of the AI."
Rook's hands tightened on the controls, her jaw clenched. "I was afraid of that."
The cold air seemed to seep through the chopper's hull, chilling me to the bone. I leaned back, staring out the window at the dark landscape below. We were flying low, keeping off the radar, heading toward the southern border. But the more I thought about what the system had said, the more I realized that shutting down the AI hub in Belka wasn't going to be enough.
Rook stayed silent for a while, focused on flying. Then she spoke, her voice steady but filled with an edge of anger. "We weren't the only ones experimenting with AI during the last war, Wells. Belka, Osea, Yuktobania… they all had their hands in it. Some were more successful than others. But the AI network—Project Ouroboros—was supposed to be the future. The problem is, the people who created it didn't fully understand what they were dealing with."
I nodded, the memory of the AI's overwhelming presence still fresh in my mind. "And now it's evolved beyond their control."
"Exactly," Rook said. "Kessler was one of the few who saw the danger early on, but by the time he tried to shut it down, the network had spread too far. The military buried the project, sealed off the AI cores, but fragments of it are still out there, waiting to wake up."
I clenched my fists, feeling the weight of those words. The AI had been a weapon—one that was now beyond anyone's control. And I had a feeling the people behind those mercenaries weren't just looking to shut it down. They wanted to control it. And that terrified me more than anything.
The system stirred again in the back of my mind, and for a moment, I could feel its presence, calm but insistent.
"We must find the others before they are awakened," it whispered.
I closed my eyes, trying to clear my thoughts. I didn't trust the system—couldn't trust it—but if it was right, then we were running out of time. The AI cores were still out there, and if they were reactivated, there would be no stopping them.
"We're going to need more help," I said, opening my eyes and looking at Rook. "Kessler mentioned something about Yuktobania during our last conversation. He said there were AI labs there, places where the technology was being tested before the war ended. If there are other cores, we need to get there first."
Rook was silent for a moment, her expression unreadable. Then she nodded. "Yuktobania's still a mess after the war. They're rebuilding, but a lot of the old military installations are still sealed off. If there's an AI core hidden there, it's going to be well-guarded."
"That's why we need to move fast," I said. "Before they realize what we're after."
Rook adjusted the controls, banking the helicopter slightly to the left. "I can set us up with an insertion point on the eastern coast. There's an old airbase there that's been mostly abandoned. We can refuel and get what we need before heading into Yuktobanian territory."
I nodded. "Sounds like a plan."
New Quest: Locate the Yuktobanian AI Core
Objective: Infiltrate Yuktobanian military labs and prevent the AI core from reactivating
Threat Level: Critical
Reward: XP: 2500, ???
Failure Penalty: AI Network Reactivation
The ride to the coast was long, the silence between us growing heavier with each mile. The events of the past few days played out in my mind like a broken reel, flashes of combat, fire, and that eerie whisper of the system echoing in the back of my head.
It wasn't long before we arrived at the airbase—a skeleton of its former self. The airfield was barely maintained, with rusting hangars and equipment scattered like forgotten relics of the war. As Rook brought the helicopter down, I could see the darkened runways stretching out beneath us, cracked and overgrown with weeds.
We landed with a soft thud, the rotors kicking up a flurry of dust and snow as we touched down. Rook cut the engine, and the world went eerily quiet again. The cold air hit me as I stepped out, pulling my jacket tighter as I surveyed the base.
"We'll refuel here," Rook said, already stepping toward one of the hangars. "I've got a contact who can get us some gear. But we can't stay long. If anyone tracks us here, we'll be sitting ducks."
I nodded, following her across the empty airfield. The whole place felt abandoned, forgotten. But there was a sense of unease that crept under my skin. I couldn't shake the feeling that we were being watched.
As we approached the hangar, I spotted movement from the corner of my eye. I turned, my hand instinctively reaching for the sidearm at my waist, but there was nothing there—just shadows dancing in the pale light of the moon.
"Paranoia setting in already?" Rook asked, her voice low as she glanced at me.
I shook my head. "Just… something doesn't feel right."
She frowned but didn't say anything, opening the door to the hangar and stepping inside. The interior was cluttered with old equipment and fuel tanks, but in the corner, a man in a heavy coat stood waiting. His face was hidden beneath a hood, but I could tell by the way Rook relaxed that he was the contact she'd mentioned.
"This is Levi," Rook said, nodding toward the man. "He's been off the grid for years. If anyone can get us into Yuktobania without raising suspicion, it's him."
Levi pulled back his hood, revealing a weathered face, his eyes sharp and calculating. "You've got a hell of a lot of trouble on your hands," he said, his voice gravelly. "Yuktobania isn't the place to be right now. You're going to stick out like a sore thumb."
"We don't have a choice," I said, stepping forward. "There's something there—an AI core. If we don't shut it down, it's only a matter of time before someone else does. And when they do, they'll have control of the whole network."
Levi studied me for a moment, his eyes narrowing. Then he nodded slowly. "Alright. I can get you in. But once you're in, you're on your own. I'll set up an extraction point, but if things go south, you'll have to fight your way out."
"Understood," Rook said, already going over the maps and supplies Levi had laid out on a nearby table. "We'll need to move fast. The longer we wait, the more likely the core will reactivate."
Levi handed me a small device—a communicator, something basic but reliable. "Stay in touch," he said. "And keep your head down. The people who know about these cores… they don't play nice."
I slipped the device into my jacket, my mind already racing through the possibilities. This mission was getting more dangerous by the second, but there was no turning back now.
As we geared up, the system's voice returned, a faint whisper in the back of my mind.
"The core is near. I can feel it."
The core. The next piece of the puzzle.
But as the system's voice faded, another thought crept into my mind. If we found this AI core in Yuktobania, what would happen next? Would it stay silent, or would it try to reactivate, just like the one in Belka?
For now, I didn't have an answer. All I could do was keep moving, keep fighting.
And hope that when the time came, the system wouldn't turn against me.
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