Hearing Rinko’s question, Higa turned back to the console:
“…Please take a look at this.”
He quickly typed on the keyboard and magnified the live feed of the activity of the Fluctlight labeled as Kirigaya Kazuto.
Near the center of the irregularly flashing spectrum-colored cloud, a small puff of darkness like a dark nebula was cradled.
“It’s different from the artificial Fluctlights in the Light Cubes; we’re still quite far from a full analysis of human organic Fluctlight structure. But the general mapping has been completed. This black hole, what was originally in here, simply put, is the [Subject] …Self-Image.”
“Subject …An image of the self determined by the self?”
“Yes. All human choice is determined by a Fluctlight Y/N path: [Whether or not I will proceed under these conditions.] By way of example, Rinko-senpai, have you ever ordered a second bowl in a gyudon restaurant?”
“… Of course not.”
“Not even have the slightest thought of ‘I still want to eat’ or ‘I can have one more’?”
“No.”
“That is to say, that was the result of Rinko-senpai’s Self-Image circuit processing. Similarly, virtually no decisions can be made and no movements can be undertaken if they do not pass through this circuit. In Kirito’s situation, the majority of his Fluctlight is unharmed. But, because the vital circuit has lost its function, no matter if it’s processing external input, or outputting voluntary actions, it cannot be done. What he’s capable of now… I’m afraid, are reflexive actions ingrained within his memory. For example, eating, sleeping, and related tasks.”
Rinko bit her lip, as though she were thinking about something. She eventually whispered:
“Then… then now, how is his state of mind?”
“… I’m afraid…”
Higa hesitated, lowered his head, and continued:
“He does not know who he is, or what he wants to do; he cannot say or do anything… That’s likely to be his condition…”
Silence permeated the dark room for the third time.
Part 2
“… Fu…”
The following part of the syllable was completely drowned out by the deafening noise of hardened boots kicking away a sheet of metal.
A member of the assault team, Vassago Casals, seemed unsatisfied with denting the wall two or three times, and forcefully crushed with his foot an empty candy box that a RATH technician had probably left tens of minutes ago, before finally stopping his stream of profanity.
As proof of the Latino blood coursing through his veins, he ran a hand through his long, slightly wavy black hair, moved briskly to the console and seized the collar of the bulletproof jacket of his teammate with one hand.
“Try saying that again, fucker.”
Vassago gripped an exaggeratedly skinny youth, who was as weakly thin as a whip. His golden hair was trimmed very short, and his skin was snowy white as though ill.
This man who wore a pair of rough metal-framed glasses was the only non-combatant in the team. A hacker by the name of Critter, informally employed by the Glowgen Defense Systems Cyber Operation Department [CYOP].
A self-proclaimed internet criminal with an arrest record, with an internet name instead of a real name. But Vassago was the same. Vassago was one of the 72 demons recorded in the «Ars Goetia» [1], also known as the Prince of Hell. There were no parents on Earth who would name their son that. He was also an employee of the CYOP and was not an expert on computers but in combat – of course under Full Dive. Although he was a man with a suspicious record lesser than that of Critter, his VR combat skills were quite outstanding.
In reality —
The twelve members of the «Ocean Turtle» Assault Team, apart from their leader, Gabriel Miller, all had dark pasts, and adopted new identities in exchange for being fed as [Dogs].
As a dog in their midst, Critter expressed no fear whatsoever at being hoisted up by Vassago, replying as he loudly chewed his gum:
“I’ll say it as many times as I want. Listen, this console’s locked as hard as dried shit, and the laptops we brought in aren’t gonna be able to calculate the unlock code until you bastards die of old age. Got it?”
“I ain’t talking ‘bout that, four-eyes! Weren’t you saying that it locked because we moved too goddamn slowly!?”
Vassago shot back loudly. If he tried hard enough, with his wild flair, he was handsome enough to be a successful fashion model, but he was quite frightening when enraged.
“Hey, hey, just telling the truth, man?”
“You were trembling like a leaf during combat, but you sure are one cocky bastard now!”
The other teammates snickered at the two men firing expletives at each other, instead of stopping them. Capturing the right timing, Gabriel snapped his fingers at the two men to attract their attention.
“OK, cut it out, you two. There’s no time to determine who’s responsible. Now we need to think about our next step.”
Then, Vassago suddenly changed to a child-like tone:
“But bro, if I don’t teach him a lesson…”
He wanted to tell him not to say “bro”, but swallowed his words. Vassago called Gabriel this probably because they had both acknowledged each other’s prowess during one-on-one VR training, but no matter how many time he heard this, it felt ill-conceived. To Gabriel, these kinds of ambiguous human relationships only based on emotions, such as friends or partners, were only convoluted synonyms.
Sooner or later, when the technology of extracting and saving souls was his, all human emotion would be able to be categorized under hue or shape through the «cloud of light». As he thought, Gabriel said to the two in an authoritarian tone:
“Listen to me, Vassago, Critter. I’ve been very satisfied with the actions of the team until today, as we have successfully achieved our first goal of taking over the control room.”
Hearing this, Vassago very reluctantly released Critter’s collar and put his hands on his hips.
“But, bro, there’s no meaning in that ‘cause this important console is locked. Our final objective, the Light Cube Cluster or whatever, is on the other side of this metal wall, right?”
“Look, we’re just about to discuss a way to bring this wall down.”
“But, the JSDF men ain’t shrinking away forever, right? If we keep going after them, this big stupid turtle’s escort, the Aegis destroyer will send the pros to attack us, and we’ll be in real trouble ‘cause we have only eleven men and one attachment.”
As expected of a Vice Captain hand-picked by Gabriel, Vassago possessed control of the situation at hand that was not a trait of a simple wild dog. Thinking for a moment, Gabriel shrugged and said:
“… As it seems, our client has some kind of secret deal with the higher-ups of the JSDF. The Aegis destroyer won’t do anything within 24 hours of the attack.”
“…Hoo…”
Critter whistled softly. Behind wind goggle-like glasses, his light gray eyes narrowed.
“So, this operation is more than just a burgl… —No, no. it’s better left unsaid.”
“My thoughts exactly.”
Gabriel lightly smiled and nodded, surveying everyone again.
“Right, let’s confirm the situation. It’s 1447 hours, Japan Standard Time. From infiltration to now, 40 minutes have passed. We are currently in the Main Control Room of the «Ocean Turtle». Although we successfully secured the target facility, we have been unable to detain a «RATH» technician, and the control system here has been locked. The next objective should be securing the Auxiliary Control Room… Brigg, can you cut through the blast door?”
The hulking teammate who was called slowly stepped forward and replied:
“Doesn’t look good. Seems to be the newest synthetic material. Using the portable cutting saw I have, it is completely impossible within 24 hours.”
“The Japanese economy is alive and well. Hans, can you breach the wall with C4??
??
This time, a slim teammate with a very handsome mustache waved his arms freely.
“I say we forget it. On the other side of that wall is the Light Cube Cluster storage, so I cannot guarantee no harm to the goods before blasting this door.”
“Mm.”
Gabriel crossed his arms and thought for a split-second, then continued:
“… Our mission, is to find a particular one from an immense number of Light Cubes and take it along with its connector. We already have the ID information of the Cube. In other words, if we can operate this console, we can effortlessly retrieve the Cube and extract it from the Cluster. According to the plan, we’ve nearly got this in the bag.”
“Goddamn it, it’s all because of that turtle four-eyes, always boasting that ‘my crime is infiltrating the central server of the Pentagon’ or whatever, but can’t open a tiny lock.”
“Ooh, I’m so scared. I’m actually being reprimanded by a gamer who’s only fired a gun made of polygons.”
Staring at Vassago and Critter who were itching to fight, Gabriel intensified his tone.
“Do you all want to go back empty-handed and be ridiculed instead of rewarded?”
“NO!!”
Everyone shouted together.
“Are you all merely laymen who can’t even best an amateur technician?”
“NO!!”
“Then THINK!! Prove that the round objects on top of your necks aren’t filled with oatmeal!”
Semi-automatically putting on the [Unyielding Commander] persona, Gabriel thought by himself in silence.
As the The One who Seeks Souls, Gabriel’s biggest goal was to obtain the first manmade true artificial intelligence «Alice» and take Soul Translation technology for himself. After he obtained those, he planned to use the nerve agent he had secretly brought in to take care of everyone else, and then escape to Australia.
But, having only reached the current stage, the attack that the NSA had consigned him somewhat counted towards Gabriel’s goal. Now, since system commands were blocked through administrator privileges, they must think of another way to take «Alice»’s Light Cube.
«Alice»… «A.L.I.C.E.».
The one who told Gabriel’s client, the NSA, this codename, was a «RATH» insider informant, [Rabbit].
Gabriel did not yet know [Rabbit]’s personal profile. But, with the impulse to betray an organization and disclose information but receive a handsome reward, he likely would not reveal himself in this dangerous situation and take action.
In other words, they could not expect assistance from Rabbit, on the other side of the blast door. They must utilize the information and equipment they have now, and achieve their goal within a short time.
Time — All was time.
Gabriel, who had not known what nervousness and anxiety were since birth, could not help but feel a certain pressure when faced with a slowly approaching time limit of 23 hours.
When the NSA agents had entrusted him with this top secret seizure mission, they had said to Gabriel:
The activities of «RATH» are severely wavering our vested interest in the Japanese military industry. Therefore, the higher-ups of the Japan Self Defense Force will be displeased with the existence of «RATH» — Conversely, there are many powers that we are eager to protect.
«RATH» was mainly comprised of young Self-Defense cadres who did not hold much power in politics. The NSA was very sure of this, and signed a secret treaty with the CIA and some high official (please review) at the embassy. The Aegis destroyer Nagato that protected the «RATH» headquarters, «Ocean Turtle» will take no course of action within 24 hours of the attack, under grounds that [the safety of the hostages is most important].
But, after the period of standby, when considering the upcoming media coverage, the Aegis destroyer would eventually have to act. As soon as heavily armed forces came, outnumbered, outgunned, Gabriel’s strike force team would likely be annihilated.
If the situation really developed into the worst-case scenario, he could still escape back to the submarine, alone. But at the same time, without retrieving the important Light Cube, his great journey to seek the soul would retreat to an irreparable state.
Gabriel had already meticulously planned out his long life after this attack.
First he would take Alice and escape to Australia, concealing the Light Cube and STL technology in a villa in the Sovereign Islands in the Gold Coast. Then he would take a plane back to San Diego and report the failure of the attack to the NSA. After it had all blown over, he would return to Australia, construct an STL machine in the vast basement of his villa, and architect his dream virtual world.
The inhabitants of this world would only include «Alice» and Gabriel at first. But that would be much too lonely. As the goal was to study the soul, he must increase resources.
He would search for a young and energetic soul carrier in Sydney or Cairns, kidnap them, use the STL to extract their soul and dispose of the unwanted shell. There would be a day when he would cross the seas and trek back to his home country — and the country from where Full Dive originated, Japan.
The unique mental stamina of Japanese VR gamers once deeply puzzled Gabriel. Of course, not everyone was like this, but one group of gamers seemed to live there, in the VR game, as though it were real life, carelessly casting around their real-life emotions. Whenever he thought of the sniper girl he had met in Gun Gale Online, he would feel pain that arose from a strong desire.
The reason was likely connected to the [Real Virtual World] that had existed for only two years in that country. According to the developer, these young people experienced a death game with real aspects of life and death. The souls of these [Survivors] possessed a suitability to virtual worlds unlike anyone else.
If it was doable, even if it were just one, he hoped to obtain them — especially the souls of the elite gamers who were termed [Progressors]. Although he didn’t know if that sniper girl was one of them or not, he of course also wished to obtain her soul. The Light Cubes sealed with those souls would exude a shine far more precious than any gem.
An ultimate light that the tycoons of the world would be unable to buy with tens of millions of dollars. He would line them into his secret room, selecting whoever he wanted everyday and loading them into his favorite world, playing with them however he wanted.
What was more beautiful was that the souls extracted from humans and sealed into Light Cubes could be freely copied and stored. Broken ones, twisted ones, all could be easily rewound and ultimately sculpted into Gabriel’s favorite posture. It was like grinding and polishing a rough stone until it shined with a supreme glow.
When he reached that stage, Gabriel’s long journey would recover, for the first time, the boundless joy and happiness from the beginning.
When he was young, under the huge trees of the forest, he saw the beautiful glow of Alicia Clingerman’s soul.
These thoughts flashing in his mind, Gabriel closed his eyes, a slight shiver running down his back.
When he opened his eyes again, he recovered his ice cold mentality.
If he analogized the souls of youths from different countries as red, green, and blue jewels bursting with color, encircling a king’s crown, then the great diamond encased in the center could only be «Alice». Only Alice, with the untouched, unblemished, ultimate soul, would qualify as his own eternal partner. Therefore, he had to think of a way to get her Light Cube, no matter what.