The loss of control of the Nanomachine Swarm 65 years ago…
The war had been raging on for so long that it was almost impossible to explain what it was all about. It was also impossible to understand who the first provoker of the war was. But, there was at least some consensus among the people that the Nanomachine Swarm, which went berserk, was absolutely the deadliest cause.
The Nanomachine Swarm in the Northern Hemisphere had eroded the protective walls, instantly annihilating three nearby cities. The area that the Nanomachine Swarm ravaged remained a dead zone until now. As the soil and environment changed, no plants could grow. There were highly toxic chemicals and remnants of the Nanomachine Swarm in the water. Less than half of the adventurers who ventured into that area of death came back alive.
But the incredible thing was although the Nanomachine Swarm had melted everything around them, one place survived; that was the Northern Ring Tower in the middle of the Nano sea. No one could explain this phenomenon. That was where Nolan was going.
No one in his or her right mind would want to go there. The land that the Nanomachine Swarm destroyed had become a wasteland, worthless. Except for a few powerful forces with particular interest for the pre-war technology, few ventured to the ruins in the north. The biggest problem in getting to the ruins was lack of guidance. Very few people could go to the ruins and come back alive; Nolan was one of them. Such guides were expensive to hire. Most of the time there was a high offer but no taker. Not everyone was keen to trade life for money.
Nolan told them about the offer White River Consortium made. The mercenaries were tempted, but the chances of dying were even more daunting. Nolan also knew this. So she made it a voluntary mission and let her men decide whether for themselves. Ulyanov was the first to offer himself. Others were merely whispering among themselves. “I’ll go with you.”
Hao Ren had the information about the Northern Ring Tower. He knew the stories of Ulyanov and the place; this man was the sole survivor of the accident sixty-five years ago. Perhaps he still had some unfinished business there.
Hao Ren stepped forward after Ulyanov. “Count me in too.”
Nolan looked at Hao Ren in surprise. “You?”
“I’m also interested in the Northern Ring Tower,” Hao Ren smiled. “You’re short of manpower, aren’t you?”
“But you are not a mercenary,” Nolan pulled her brows together. “I thought you’re not interested in becoming a mercenary?”
Hao Ren brushed it off. “I don’t like being controlled. This time I will merely work as a partner. What do you say? I can take care of myself, and I will not become a liability. Maybe you should treat me as one more luggage…”
Nolan probably had never met someone so daredevil. There was even a surprised look at her emotionless face. “You sound like it’s a walk in the park. Do you know where Northern Ring Tower is?”
Hao Ren nodded. “Yeah. I know I’m dicing with death, but I’m not afraid. When things turn ugly, you just run, don’t wait for me. Do we have a deal? Or you want me to give you a black-and-white guarantee that I will not hold you responsible for my death and things like that?”
Nolan eyeballed Hao Ren, sizing him up. Then, there was a sense of enlightenment on her face. “Oh, I figure; you’re looking forward to death, aren’t you?”
Hao Ren: “…”
Hao Ren thought he would convince Nolan to let him tag along. But it seemed that the misunderstanding had also deepened.
Ulyanov patted him on the shoulder. “Hey, you’re a good man. But you don’t have to waste your lives this way. You still have a long way ahead, life is—”
Hao Ren snapped, “Why do you still think that I’m mad? I want to help, can’t I?”
He then kept nagging Nolan for quite a while until she finally gave in. She let him become her ‘outsourced personnel’. But Hao Ren still kept nagging, but only in his mind, for earlier refusal to take him in despite him giving a too-good-to-be-true offer.
But Nolan felt more bizarre than Hao Ren did; among the many daredevils she had met, this one was a rare type. Love blinds; the pain of losing the loved one caused him looking for a death wish. She had no choice but to help him fulfill his desires.
But Hao Ren could not read her mind. Had he learned what Nolan was thinking, he would have gotten furious.
Seeing that her other men were still hesitating, Nolan waved her hand and dismissed them. “Go back and think about it. Carl, give me a list before nightfall. I will decide on the list before noon tomorrow, and we depart in the afternoon.”
As the mercenaries dispersed, Hao Ren and Ulyanov walked back to the barracks. Perhaps they were soon to become brothers in arms; Ulyanov began to have more trust in Hao Ren. He patted Hao Ren’s shoulder and said, “You still have time. Go back and think about whether you want to waste your life. Nolan will not say anything even if you quit tomorrow.”
“You sound like I’d certainly die,” said Hao Ren, forcing a smile as he looked at Ulyanov through his shiny visor. “I know you think that I want to end my life because my wife has died… I cannot explain it now. But don’t worry; I value my life more than anyone else does. I want to find out something I’m concerned about in the Northern Ring Tower. As dangerous as it is I’m sure I will make it back in one piece.”
“Before I met Nolan, I had gone into that place once while I was still the head of a small mercenary organization,” Ulyanov paused and then continued. “Most of our men died before we could make it to the border. Don’t underestimate that place; the ruins devoured many people each year.”
Hao Ren looked at Ulyanov. “If so, why do you still want to go?”
He had asked this question before, but Ulyanov did not answer him at that time. Now that the two were about to embark on the dangerous journey together, so Ulyanov confided, “As I said, sixty-five years ago, I was a researcher working near a Nanomachine Swarm.”
Hao Ren nodded and waited for Ulyanov to continue.
“My wife was the operator of Master Computers,” Ulyanov said slowly. “When the swarm got out of control, Northern Ring Tower automatically sealed itself off. All the staff were unable to get out. But the Nanomachines didn’t invade the ring tower either. So they survived.”
Hao Ren was wide-eyed. “Oh, you mean you want to…”
“Find her personal effects… or body,” Ulyanov shook his head. “They must be there.”
Then, Ulyanov left without looking back, leaving Hao Ren bewildered.
The voice of the MDT sounded in his mind. “He is the real man as opposed to you. He probably lives to wait for this moment.”
Hao Ren did not feel like to bicker. He just returned to his room in silence.
As soon as he opened the door, he heard a grizzly mysterious female voice inside. “Hey, partner, welcome back.”
Hao Ren was shocked. A blonde was leaning at the corner, sitting up not far in front of him.
The young girl, stained with blood, looked pale. Although half of her body was paralyzed, she still tried to balance herself and sit up.
Next to her was Khiton’s laptop. She was struggling with the keyboard as she could only move one of her hands.
She looked miserable and pitiful. If not for Hao Ren knew ‘she’ was a brick, he would have sympathy overflown.
The blonde tilted her head slightly as if she wants to look up at Hao Ren, but soon she gave up. “I’m sorry, the drivers seem a little buggy, and I still couldn’t lift my head.”
Hao Ren quickly closed the door behind him for fear that someone might discover the girl faking her death. He came up before the MDT. “Can you speak?”
“A little,” said the MDT. Its voice was strange and intermittent, sounding like a child who had just learned to speak. “The body is tough to control, and I fell several times while trying to get up. But I did learn how to crawl.”
She struggled to climb up the bed next to her as only one of her arms, and one of her legs were moveable. “Let me examine your body.” Hao Ren held her.
The girl screamed. “How can you do that to your PDA?”
“Damn it—I need to figure out how you’ve got it working!”