Sigma's head was pounding. He could feel his heartbeat pushing the blood through his skull, moving it all around his brain...except that had never happened before. Sigma didn't have a heart as far as he knew, didn't have blood that could flow like that. This feel did not belong in this body; it came from the one he had once owned. But where was it coming from.
The world pulled itself out of a dense fog, slowly clearing and rippling around Sigma as it swirled together. He was beginning to make out Christian, and then Syn next to him, and then a large mass, possibly the foot of the Archangel. The computer components within Sigma's eye were completely missing. No longer could he hear the tiny whirls of his iris as it shifted to focus, nor could he see different data displays flashing across his vision. Where had his computer gone?
It was only then that Sigma even realized he was lying on the ground, having collapsed earlier when Christian had pressed the button on his strange device. Sigma had been unable to analyze it, couldn't recognize it, and his mechanical mind has refused to probe into it deeper, almost like it had been intentionally blocked. The android picked himself up from the ground slowly, his balance shaky and his limbs quivering. That had never happened before either. Normally he would have automated components throughout his body taking over to keep him stabilized at all times. What was going on?
"So simple, so efficient," Christian laughed. "These are the ways you could have never thought up. Only a few years ago, you would have never believed the Jahari existed. It was only I who convinced the Kaiser to seek them out."
"And we should have left them as a myth," Marian retorted, gradually backing away from the Emperor. The nearby Bahari and Jahari had ceased fighting and begun a steady march towards Christian. Some were immediately cut down by the Enian and Artisan soldiers, while others were left alone from the confusion. More burst up from the gaping holes in the earth, crawling out to go and greet their new master and to obey the new commands.
"But then we wouldn't have this wonderful army at our fingertips, would we?" Christian smirked, the first few Jahari shambling up around him, their twisted, hulking forms dwarfing his meager body. "You're too narrow-minded Marian. If you could see like me, could see the whole picture at once, you would have joined me a long time ago, when I had first offered you an opportunity. I remember a Marian who had laughed in my face, who told me that the Jahari were an old maid's tale, that the Kaiser would never believe such nonsense. It seems we all get a little desperate in times of war, when we will do anything to win and hold on to power for just a few more seconds. Now I get to hold on to power forever."
Sigma clutched at his head, trying to stem the pulse that continued to travel through him, dulling his senses. He was beginning to notice the Jahari watching him, like they were attracted to him. Some eyed Syn intently, clustering near him and staring, while the rest looked towards Sigma. Massive Bahari were arriving now, smaller than the Archangel but still enormous when compared to the tiny figures on the ground. Sigma knew he could kill them all if he had to he just...but Christian had shut down his weapons, and was preventing him from harming Christian at all. Was this why he had no more computer processes?
"So you're insane then Christian?" Marian was beginning to call his warship around, issuing orders to his men to fall back while trying to stall Christian through the public broadcast. He was already able to detect the strange signal coming from the two androids through the Archangel, and was piecing together what was happening through the new behaviours of the Jahari.
Sigma's head swivelled between Christian and Marian, trying to keep up with their conversation. He felt so sluggish, so slow, and it was unnatural to him. He was used to being ultra-responsive, incredibly fast and always in control. There was a collision in his head between his memories, those of his human body, and those of his robotic one. They didn't mesh at all, creating confusion in his brain as he tried to process how he felt with what he knew he was. This was how a normal human would feel, this was what it was like to have flesh and blood and...he didn't like it?
"This is not insanity Marian. You don't know what this is do you? What the world has now is insanity, but it is contained insanity. You all fight every day, you rush into war, and you unleash these terrible weapons on each other. You even commissioned me to build these androids." Christian paused to point at Syn and Sigma. "That is insanity, real insanity, but it is within your understanding. It is a paradoxical madness that you trust and comprehend...or at least, you like to think you comprehend it. But at the end of the day, do you really know why you fight, why you go to war, or what the world is like without violence? No, you can never know that, and you never will. But I will give that to you. I will give that to all of you. I will strip the world of your existence, will end all of your lives with my army and I will rebuild. There will be no more war, no more death or destruction, no more commerce or politics. There will be only me and the Jahari, those who exist only to obey and to understand commands. They cannot fight amongst themselves, they cannot destroy their own race like we can. They are perfection."
"It's going to be rather boring all on your own, don't you think?" Marian's warship was stalled trying to get past one of the worms that floated through the air, seeking out new prey. He had dropped into the warzone from outside the area where most of the Jahari creatures had been prowling, but now he was in the centre of it all and demanding an extraction. It wasn't going to be easy.
Sigma took a wobbly step towards Christian. All of his computer systems seemed to be gone, seemed to be turned off now so that some other function could run. Whatever it was, it was pounding in Sigma's head, and he could at least assume that it came from Christian's machine. He could also figure out, from what Christian was saying and where the Jahari were looking, that Sigma had been turned into some sort of broadcast device, attracting the Jahari and overriding the hive mind. But if all of Sigma's systems were off, that meant the limiter on his actions that Christian had put in place was gone, and he was able to hurt the Emperor once more. He didn't seem to have access to his energy beams, but his metallic body would certainly have enough strength to overpower Christian. It was more than likely he could just fall on the man and it would crush him eventually. At this point, that seemed like the thing Sigma was most likely to do, as he was barely able to walk.
"It will be a utopia Marian. It will be paradise on Earth. Imagine a world without slaughter, without war, without crime or violence or pain."
"There will be a slaughter though, according to your plan."
"Just one, and then it's all over. Consider it a sort of medical treatment, a needle if you will. It hurts at first, but then it's all fixed. You just need to get a single shot before it's all over."
"And an exiled race of mutants running on biotechnology is the cure?"
"No, I am the cure, Marian, they are simply the needle." Christian motioned towards Marian, and the Jahari turned their heads in unison towards the Archangel. "Don't worry, this will only hurt for a moment." The Bahari turned to square up against the Goliath, analyzing it and looking for a weakness, waiting for any additional input from the Emperor. Marian could see past them, see to the assumed edge of Christian's control, where Bahari still fought with battlesuits, unaffected by the sphere of influence projected by Sigma and Syn. Still, if the two androids were separated, they would have no difficulty in covering most of the battlefield and controlling almost every single Bahari nearby. And then once the link was severed, the two could move on to find more Jahari until the entire race could be mobilized on a whim from Christian.
Marian leaped back, his massive chi wings beating forwards, sending out a gust of wind towards the approaching Bahari, buffeting them back only slightly. They were able to ignore the pressure on their wills that would normally be exerted on a human when Marian projected his chi like that. It seemed he would have to fight them with nothing more than his fists, and he wasn't sure he could if they all jumped him at once.
Sigma drew closer to Christian, stumbling a bit and falling to one knee, pausing a minute to regain his balance. His vision was still shaky, leaving copies of everything he looked at floating around the original source. Sometimes he knew he was staring at Christian and other times he wasn't sure if it was the real thing. It wasn't helping with his control over his body either that he couldn't figure out who was what or what was what or whether up was down. Things were constantly spinning, and he was only urged forwards by the mantra he repeated in his head: I must get to him. Over and over he replayed it, with each step he took, and it kept him from simply falling onto his face.
The Archangel was suddenly swarming with Bahari, different monsters lunging at the machine, trying to take a piece off of it. They showed no fear, no hesitation in duelling with a superior officer. Jahari could not distinguish rank and cared very little for the reputation of whomever they fought against. There was only the enemy and killing the enemy and that was all they understood. They knew of different ways to fight, of how to defeat the opponent, but their minds did not process any information beyond that. They did not have the ability to fear nor the choice to run, and so Marian was left with no option but to fight.
The Brigadier General twisted to dodge a lance-like appendage, striking back by smashing his elbow into the monster's chest. The creature did not pause though, lashing out once more and scraping the side of the Goliath, taking a chunk out of its armour. Marian's fingers wrapped around a blade as he imagined it, projecting his desires through his battlesuit to form them with his chi. He knew he was on a limited reserve and was still recovering from the fight with the black chi, but he was certain he had enough left to fend off the Jahari, especially if he got some assistance from nearby soldiers.
The Blue Blur flashed through the air, and a massive shuriken sliced a Bahari in two before spinning back to its master. "I have received your order sir," Raul said, his voice shaking a bit, "and I will protect you with my life."
"You're a good soldier, but I believe I ordered a retreat from the area." Marian shook his head, only slightly surprised at the brash behaviour of youth.
"And I am doing that sir, by helping you retreat. I will protect you."
"No soldier, you need to leave immediately, and that is an or-"
"No." Raul appeared on Marian's viewscreen, his face set with a grim look of determination, but Marian could see the loss that hovered in the young man's eyes. He had been saddened by the death of his comrade, and Marian could recognize it instantly. Failure to protect one person leads to stupid decisions to protect others, Marian thought. "I will protect you sir."
Sigma was so close, so painfully close, that he could almost smell Christian. He wasn't sure if he really would be able to if he got close enough, unsure of whether or not he had human sense once again, but he knew it wouldn't be long now before he got to the man. The android was on his knees, slowly crawling forwards like a dog, his balance almost completely lost to him as the pulsating feeling in his head grew worse and worse. Every movement that drew him towards Christian only amplified his suffering, and portions of his mind had begun to shout at him, demanding he turn around and run as far as he could to escape the terrible pain coursing through his brain.
The cyborg grabbed Christian's foot, then his leg, ready to haul himself up to bring down the Emperor. He was shocked that there was no resistance, that he wasn't being shooed away or beaten. There was no attempt at escape from Christian; there was barely any movement at all. Sigma titled his head back to gaze up at Christian to try and figure out why the man had not noticed the robot at his feet.
A drop of blood fell onto Sigma's forehead, slowly trickling down his face and sliding down his cheek before falling off his chin. Sigma wrinkled his forehead in confusion as his vision danced in front of his eyes. Another drop hit his face, this time splashing on his nose, and Sigma began to make out a hand protruding from Christian's chest, and something red held between the fingers of the hand. It was a white hand, armoured, and coated in blood, with fingers that ended in claws. It took Sigma a moment to process what was happening before looking back and seeing Syn hovering just behind the Emperor.
"This is boring," Syn announced, pulling his hand back through Christian's body, letting it drop to the ground at his feet and sprawl out next to Sigma, who was still clutching at the foot.
"W...why Syn," Christian gasped, blood bubbling up between his lips as he spoke. "H-how?"
"Willpower can overcome anything, master," Syn giggled, emphasizing the final word in a mocking tone. "You think your machine can keep me down like that, but I can fight through it. And I don't think you're very entertaining. A world of total control, of no more violence or war or any wonderful things? No, that's boring, so very very boring. That won't entertain me at all. I thought we were going to bring the world chaos, and I like what I see right now." Syn stopped to wave at the Bahari all around him. "But you, you are kind of...well you're no fun. Why take the killing out of the world? I like the killing, I like the entertainment, the games. I like the face people make right before they die, the cries they make as you skin them alive, the begging and the pleading they will do with you to try and spare themselves. I love it! That's what I live for Christian."
Syn stretched out his arms a bit before licking some of the blood from them. "All this talk of cures and needles, it creeps me out. I don't like hospitals or doctors or any of those things. Do you know why?" Syn landed on the ground and bent down, leaning his face over Christian's. "It's because I'm a disease." The android snatched the machine out of the Emperor's dying grip, and crushed it in his hand in an instant. "I am the disease that will spread to every corner of this world."
A/N: The disease begins to spread. The Emperor's plans fall to pieces in an instant as Syn takes control, with plans to send the world into a slaughter. Do Marian and Sigma have power left to stop him or will the android's dream world come to life?