Chương 206: Chapter 205 - What the Future Holds

"When Ambition consumes Hope, the first of the Eight Divines will take to the stage. Eight Realms contested, each with its own Lords. Eight Realities collide in fire and rage. The Eighth Transcension is tested, breaking ancient accords. Eight Endings revealed at the turning of an age." Alexander frowned. It was similar to what Maximilian quoted, but not identical.

"It's different from what I heard." Gabriel nodded.

"Anyone who touches upon it has their own interpretation. That is not unusual. What's really strange is how so many precogs hear what boils down to the same message. I don't even receive messages. I see visions and dreams. And yet, I knew the prophecy from the moment I saw fragments of those futures."

"Why do you think that is?" Gabriel looked up at the ceiling and fell silent.

"Talia says—" He grimaced.

"I'm sorry. That's going to keep happening. I really am trying to ground myself in what's real, but…" Alexander shook his head.

"Don't apologize. I understand." He frowned.

"Well, not really, but I get what you mean."

"You usually do." Gabriel smiled.

"I remember from one dream, Talia suggesting someone might have been sending information from the future to the past in an effort to help us." He chuckled.

"Of course, Annie turned around and said, 'If people can do that, why don't they just send Alex back? Are they stupid?'" Alexander laughed.

"That sounds like her."

"Then you told her that sending cohesive and coherent matter back in time would take more energy than exists in the entire universe. Talia agreed. Said that the only viable method would be a message, but that it would be compressed or stretched because of…" He hesitated.

"Science stuff."

"I need a moment," Alexander said.

"I'm trying really hard to move past Annie wanting to shove me into a black hole or squeeze me into an infinitely tiny point of light and shoot me back in time, while also acknowledging the very real possibility that the future might be talking to us." Alexander blew out a breath.

"Okay, you know what? That doesn't even break into the top three of the weird shit I've had to deal with." Gabriel nodded.

"You've been through a lot since you woke up in this world." Alexander raised an eyebrow.

"I really should be surprised that you know that. But if we're going to be friends, I would have told you, so it makes sense." Gabriel smiled. Then it faded.

"I assume you already know that you're the Ambition referenced in the prophecy? And that Hope was your counterpart's aspect?"

"Yes. I suspected. Seemed obvious, really, because the System hinted at it." Alexander exhaled.

"I don't see how I'm going to be the first anything, though." Gabriel shook his head.

"You're not."

"The prophecy says it right in the opening line, though?"

"No. This is something I know for sure. The first of the Divines is Pinnacle. It's always Pinnacle." Gabriel took a breath.

"He's called the Pinnacle of Man for a reason. The moment your existence changed what humanity was capable of, he achieved it. I don't think he's realized it yet, because despite how impressive his power is, he has to uncover his abilities just like the rest of us. With practice or by accident." Alexander sat in silence for a few heartbeats.

"You know, I think I'm actually disappointed."

"You wanted to be first."

"I wanted to be first. That's messed up. We're talking about the world ending, but I wanted to figure out this whole thing first." He sighed.

"Okay, so how does my existence change anything? The only thing special about me is that I come from the Origin reality. But I've got the sneaky suspicion that Doctor Wilhelmina Kruger did it first." Gabriel frowned.

"I'm not familiar with that line of reasoning. Explain?" Alexander smirked.

"Oh, got one over the precog. I'll take it." He leaned back.

"In my original universe, she was the test pilot aboard a starship meant to prove the capabilities of a jump drive. The ship and the doctor disappeared, presumed dead. Over here, in this reality, she not only successfully performed the jump, she supposedly has a twin."

"Then they created the first superhero serum. An unlikely coincidence."

"Exactly." Gabriel turned, his black eyes fixing on Alexander.

"Then it has to be the nature of your existence, not your existence itself. You came into this world meant to offer your soul to strengthen your other self, and instead you used his to reinforce your own. Assuming you're correct, she arrived here in both body and soul." Alexander groaned.

"I already have a headache. Let's change the subject."

"The end of the world?"

"The end of the world."

"I can tell you pieces of what happens, but not why it happens. Because I don't know."

"I'll take anything at this point." Gabriel closed his eyes.

"It begins with the gateways becoming permanent. Then people realize they can control them—""That happened last month." That made the precog hesitate.

"I see. We're experiencing an accelerated variant, then." He sighed.

"With permanent gateways, soon come real invasions, instead of probing attacks. Armies, intending to stay." If you stumble upon this narrative on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it.

"I don't see how that's possible. A Tier 3 might take an intercontinental ballistic missile to the face, some might even survive a nuke, but I've fought cultivators, knights, and cultists. They're not much different from us. Mostly normal people, with only a few really powerful beings. The beasts aren't that impressive and dinosaurs are… dinosaurs."

"Yes, we should be able to push them back at first. Until something goes wrong and technology begins to fail across the planet." Alexander froze.

"What?" Gabriel opened his eyes and glanced at him. Then shrugged.

"I don't know why. Or how people like you fix some of it. I just know it's a precursor to the cataclysm." He closed his eyes again.

"Power plants and generators shut down. Phones and fridges and all other everyday conveniences we take for granted stop working. Planes and hovercars rain from the sky. Then the orbital habitats and space stations. Even a few starships get caught in it. Then people start getting sick, and it just goes on and on." Alexander's mind raced. There was nothing he could imagine capable of doing what Gabriel was describing. Nothing. Not alone, at least.

A high-altitude nuclear detonation was at most capable of causing a continent-wide electromagnetic pulse. It was simple physics. The explosion stripped electrons from air molecules, which interact with the planet's magnetic field, producing the pulse. But the Earth was round. Even a coronal mass ejection would only directly affect the sunlit side of the planet when it occurred. And that was before factoring in just how much of the planet's infrastructure and advanced electronics were already shielded against EMPs.

Gabriel waited, patient. Perhaps aware that Alexander was working through the implications and trying to solve what was essentially a partial equation.

"You said, 'people like me.' Do you mean Technopaths?"

"I don't know. Sure, I think Technopaths keep using tech. Some figure out alternative solutions, too. Like Auggy and his magic. I just know that it doesn't stop the Machine God. Or…" Gabriel hesitated.

"What he offers." Alexander's gaze sharpened.

"And what do I offer, exactly?"

"You will be one of the Divine, Alex," Gabriel said simply.

"You cannot help yourself. Unless someone stops you, of course. And many will try."

"You know how it's done." It wasn't a question. The man's own words said it all.

"Yes. You told me." Alexander breathed in. The malnourished, bedridden, hospital-gowned man sitting before him knew what was perhaps the greatest secret in the world. He ignored the paradoxical explanation of his knowledge. Precognition clearly sucked as far as powers went, but he wasn't going to pass up the opportunity to know.

"How?" One word. Carrying the weight of the world with it.

"I won't tell you." Alexander blinked. Another surprise. There'd been no indication that Gabriel would withhold any information from him. If anything, he'd been completely cooperative.

"Why?"

"Because knowing what it takes to become Divine would prevent you from becoming Divine with near certainty." Alexander frowned.

"That… makes no sense."

"It does if you know what it truly means to be Divine. If I tell you the answer, I close one of two doors. And you are not the sort of man who would ever use the second doorway." Gabriel smiled sadly.

"You will sacrifice so much to stop people like that. And I truly believe the best futures need the Machine God." Alexander clicked his tongue.

"If what you're saying is true, why would I tell you how it's done in the future? There's no way I wouldn't understand that I'd be cutting off your own path."

"Because you're my friend, Alex." The inky darkness of Gabriel's eyes receded. The intense, but normal pupils returned. His shoulders slumped. It was only then that Alexander noticed the film of sweat on the man's forehead. The way his hair stuck to his temples.

"And yes, to your other question. I will join Grimnir in Dubai in two days." Gabriel smiled lopsidedly, clearly tired.

"I will tell the world what I know of the cataclysm. Maybe it will help some." Alexander was quiet for a few moments, then he stood.

"Thank you." He took a deep breath.

"I'm going to let you rest. You've given me a lot to stress about." Gabriel chuckled softly.

"That won't be the last time you tell me that."

"I would hope not." Alexander headed for the door.

"Do you know how hard it is to come up with witty phrases? The best ones need to be reusable."

"Alex." Alexander turned back.

"Hm?"

"If the gateways are already becoming assets, then we have less than four months before the beginning of Phase 2."

Alexander stepped out of the medical room, eyes closed and with a heavy sigh. Though he was polite enough to wait until the door slid shut. Their guest and potential future member did not need to know that he'd left feeling more burdened rather than less after their conversation. The guy probably knew anyway. But it was still the polite thing to do. Just as Talia was being very polite and giving him a moment to compose himself before she asked.

He sensed her standing there, just a few feet away, leaning against the wall.

"Did you get what we needed?" Alexander twisted, stretching his neck, feeling the small pops relieving the stiffness.

"Yes. No. Yes. Maybe."

"That bad, huh?" Alexander groaned.

"I have more questions now than I did going in." He headed for the stairs. Talia fell into step beside him.

"Will he help with the press release?"

"Yes." She nodded.

"Good, then we're as ready as we can be. Maximilian and Khalida are confident AEGIS won't attempt anything publicly, but I think it's best we plan for it anyway. Can I tell them it's your preference?"

"Agreed. And yes." Alexander paused.

"Can you think of anything that would cause technology to fail globally? And spread into space to bring down space stations and habs." Talia was quiet while they climbed the stairs to the ground floor, exiting between the living room and kitchen. Light streamed through the wrap-around, floor-to-ceiling windows which looked out onto the white stone terrace and beyond. The mansion was quiet. Both Annie and Augustus were training relentlessly on the Beastworld.

Gilly was out mapping the waters around the island, identifying suitable locations for underwater security installations.

"Well, I suppose EMPs are the obvious choice. Solar and—""Skip. Already considered all of that." Talia turned and stared at him.

"Did you just skip me?" Alexander headed for the kitchen. He needed a drink, and he knew Augustus had hidden some good stuff in one of the cupboards.

"Thought you had perfect recall."

"I do. Jerk." After a few moments looking through the cupboards, he found a bottle of the old man's whiskey. Poured himself a drink and offered one to Talia.

"You've been spending too much time with Annie. That's her word." She took it. And ignored him.

"I suppose a strong contender would be the Empire of Stars."

"The wizards?" Alexander took a drink.

"Hm." Talia nodded.

"If they could get a strong enough foothold, perhaps they might work some sort of… planet-spanning magic."

"Which means the cultists are another possibility. We've seen their ritual bullshit already." She sipped, a thoughtful look on her face.

"Maybe. Though I'd expect them to target people more than technology." Alexander paused. Gabriel had mentioned people getting sick as well.

"Recall the others. Need to discuss what Gabe told me." He took one last drink, then put the glass down.

"And we have to begin final preparations for Dubai. I'm really looking forward to kicking Santiago and AEGIS in the teeth." Talia grinned.

"I think we all are."