章節 18: There’s Another Gargoyle? Sweet!
Chapter 18 - There's Another Gargoyle? Sweet!
Following the soldiers and scientists through a winding corridor, Carn observed his surroundings. Looking up, metal pipes and ventilation ducts lined the tall ceiling, which he estimated to be about eight or nine feet high.
The walls looked suspicious. At a glance, the metal walls seemed sturdy enough, but the array of lenses and glasses on the top layer of the metal walls resembled a certain laser hallway in a zombie movie.
While walking Carn had a feeling that the ECD could deploy a laser formation to cut down any hostile entity roaming in this hallway. He wondered if this was necessary to contain whatever was secured in this area.
They soon reached an intersection and passed a massive shutter door, labeled "SECTION A." However, the lead team turned away from it, leaving its contents a mystery.
After a 20-minute trekking through the maze-like corridors and multiple security checkpoints, they arrived at another shutter door labeled "SECTION D."
The giant door ascended, allowing the team to get through. The lead scientist and soldiers urged Carn to hurry.
"Move."
Sensing the urgency, Carn quickly slipped through the gap while the shutter was still ascending. The others followed. But when the last person crossed the boundary, the vertical gate fell and slammed shut.
Carn couldn't help but look back. He asked the lead scientist, "Is that necessary?"
The scientist only shrugged, offering a brief response. "Safety protocol. Don't ask too many questions. You'll get answers if you pass the final examinations."
"…Oh. Cool."
Carn looked ahead and discovered himself in a large intersection. Four more tunnels were ahead of him, and a suspicious elevator at the center of the room stood out.
The lead scientist swiped his card on the elevator's scanner while the soldiers raised their guns, keeping a wary eye on the surrounding tunnels as if something could randomly emerge at any moment.
*DING*
The elevator opened, and the lead scientist entered. He gestured for Carn to follow him.
"Come with me. The rest of you, you are dismissed."
The soldiers nodded and quickly returned to the giant gate. One of them scanned his eyes on a console and swiped his card. He then pressed a complex password code on the device, and the shutter door began ascending once more.
Carn secretly observed their action with his mind map, memorizing the movements of the soldier's fingers even though he couldn't identify the alphabet or number on the touchscreen console.
Upon entering the elevator, the men already crawled under the opening gate. Carn sighed as he couldn't remember all the passwords, and he prayed that he wouldn't need them any time soon.
The elevator brought Carn down as he had predicted. He stood and waited in the enclosed chamber, wondering when this examination would end. He glanced at the right panel of the elevator and discovered that it only featured one button.
*DING*
The elevator reached its destination. The lead scientist stepped outside.
Carn followed closely and looked ahead. Then, he was surprised.
In front of him was a giant lecture hall. Over a hundred people in orange clothes sat still on red chairs, staring at the statue at the end of the classroom in silence as if they were meditating.
Deep inside, a gray statue of a female priestess faced the crowd. It depicted a lady standing straight with her hands folded in front of her naval. Looking from afar, the statue seemed normal. But as the lead scientist walked into the lecture hall, the statue's eyes brightened, staring at him and Carn.
Carn raised an eyebrow, amused. He recognized the thing.
'Isn't that a gargoyle inquisitor from my world? What is it doing here?'
Unlike Carn, who was created personally by the demon lord, these gargoyle inquisitors were movable statues, born from the corpses of priestesses or saints who had been murdered through unjust causes or evil schemes.
The holy power and vengeful spirits within them merged, transforming their bodies into a dense mineral form. Upon resurrection, they followed the will of their vengeful spirits, seeking retribution against those who committed grave sins.
Both criminals and adventurers with questionable pasts feared them, for their gaze could instantly turn any evildoer within sight to stone. Only those with a pure heart and untainted soul could approach and ultimately free their spirits.
Their vision was sharper than Carn's, allowing them to see through a person's past deeds. Even if a criminal had been punished and pardoned, they remained susceptible to the petrifying glare.
Catching a glimpse of a fellow gargoyle made Carn feel nostalgic. He wished he could transform into a gargoyle and greet her. Unfortunately, too many eyes were on him.
The lead scientist ignored the glare and walked toward an empty chair at the back. He sat on it and gestured to Carn, "Take a seat. This is your last examination."
Carn picked a seat and looked back and forth between the inquisitor and the hazmat guy, "What are we doing here?"
The scientist explained and chuckled, seemingly proud of this entity, "In our facility, we contain over ten thousand monsters, anomalies, entities, artifacts, and questionable objects from another dimension. This one here has the power to petrify any criminal in her line of sight. She belongs in the VOLATILE category, if you're critical about it."
Carn smirked, finding these people and this place similar to the SCP myths. He could also guess the purpose of this examination.
"Aye. So you guys are testing me if I have secretly committed crimes or something similar?"
"Yes. Stay here with me for 24 hours. That's all."
"You, too? Why are you here?"
The scientist laughed, "Well, it's an obligatory examination. All ECD employees have to sit here for a day, get our faces on this place's CCTV cameras, and clean up this place. It's my turn today, so here I am."
Carn returned his gaze to the hundred people on the red chairs. Upon looking closely, he discovered that they had already been petrified, but they retained their skin color. He touched one of them, and they instantly crumbled into dust.
He asked the scientist, "How many people have you brought here so far? Why are there so many failed examinees?"
"Most of them are death row prisoners that we brought in yesterday. Don't worry about them."
"…"
Looking at the condition of this place, Carn could roughly guess what this scientist's job was. He stood up and offered him a hand.
"Do you have a broom or a vacuum cleaner? I'll help."
"Thanks. Let me take a nap for a few minutes. I've been working for 30 hours straight without sleeping a wink."
"…My condolence."
"By the way, I'm Caesar. Looking forward to working with you, kid."
Carn laughed and shook hands with Caesar, "Yes, sir."
They completely ignored the gargoyle inquisitor as they had nothing to fear. For Caesar, he was an honest worker. As for Carn, another gargoyle's ability had no effect on him.
Looking at the inquisitor, Carn wondered if he should greet her. But before Carn could come up with a conversation with it, the gargoyle in question was already in front of him. She stared straight into his eyes while her lips moved.
Carn heard her telepathic voice in his mind.
"Lord Pebble. Is that really you? I thought you were dead!"
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RESEARCH LOG
Item Designation: ECD-6677 "The Stone Judge"
Object Class: Volatile
Assigned Research Team: Dr. Caesar [Redacted], Lead Investigator
Research Site: [Redacted]
Summary:
The Stone Judge, ECD-6677, is a sentient mineral-based entity resembling a stone statue of a female priestess in humanoid form. Containment protocols were initiated following the [Redacted] team's return from [Redacted], where the entity displayed proximity-based petrification abilities as a self-defense measure.
The entity's mineral composition includes 77% superconducting minerals and calcium. When damaged, ECD-6677 demonstrates self-restoration and preservation capabilities, initiating an immediate petrification effect within a 100-meter radius on all living beings.
ECD-6677 specifically targets individuals it identifies as "evil" with its petrification effect, paralyzing or permanently immobilizing them upon entry into its range of vision. Aside from the specified targets, it can interact as though it is a human.
Sample Analysis:
A sample designated ECD-6677-A was extracted from the entity, revealing high levels of radiation capable of [Redacted]. Due to the severe risk of a containment breach, all samples and experiments were terminated.
Behavioral Observations:
ECD-6677 is capable of movement and verbal communication in the presence of religious personnel. It exhibits amicable behavior when engaged in conversation about [Redacted]. After an intensive negotiation process, ECD executives (Gen. [Redacted]) authorized a dedicated enclosed space for ECD-6677 to continue its [Redacted] activities.
Special Requests:
ECD-6677 has requested a weekly provision of [Redacted] in exchange for [Redacted]. No further experimentation is authorized with this entity at this time.
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