“Sure, this situation is frightening. But I don’t have time to be scared.”
EV’s words echoed around Sam’s head, so Sam decided to get out of there while he could still hear them. Any excess noise now, and her determination and the confidence it gave him might just vanish. Sam put his pack back on and left the shelter without saying another word.
Three days had passed.
Sam had been worried about the rugged terrain and fickle mountain weather, but apart from that, it had been smooth sailing. Now he had connected all three shelters, all that was left for him to do was to reconstruct the waystation near the tar belt. EV had sent him a message while he had been walking.
She informed him that she had managed to restore several research reports into past mass extinctions. One report caught Sam’s eye. It was data that suggested that extinct species other than ammonites and mammoths had been found with umbilical cord-like protrusions extending out of their bodies, including specimens of dinosaurs and trilobites. EV also mentioned the claims that these extinct animals were EEs themselves.
A little while after Sam received EV’s message, he got a call from Heartman too, just as he was getting close to where the waystation was going to be.
<Sam! Do you read? You’re about to hit the tar belt. Luckily, there doesn’t seem to have been much damage to the equipment, thanks to you. Now all you need to do is take a look at the installation point for us. Anyway, listen. We have less time than I thought we would.>
Time before his heart gives out again, or time before extinction comes for us?
<I mentioned this before, but the site we have chosen was an original candidate for the waystation we lost to the tar belt.>
Sam remembered. They had planned to use this site but had ended up abandoning it.
<There were some concerns about safety. This time, we’re going to repair it and try operating it as a knot. There are some places in this world where it is easy to connect to the Beach. These are places and objects of worship and holy grounds and the like. People often refer to these places as power spots. You could even say that megaliths, like the Pyramids and Stonehenge, are traces of where mankind attempted to make contact with the Beach. Now, Beaches may vary from person to person, but there are some places in particular that many people find themselves drawn to, and the Beach is inextricably connected to religious and spiritual things. In other words, those places can be used as knots on the Chiral Network. However, there is also a danger of getting too close to the Beach. Bridges I took note of that and originally built the waystation somewhere else. That was the one that got swallowed up by the tar. But under the current circumstances, we now have no other option but to use the foundations of the original abandoned site. Luckily, the basic systems are still intact. Anyway, once you arrive, I want you to do something for me—check the status of your BB. It shouldn’t be difficult. Just see if it’s reacting to anything. It could laugh, cry, or even show fear. As long it shows some kind of reaction, it means that where you are is an access point to the Beach… Very perceptive, Sam! You just thought of the Knot Cities, didn’t you?>
He hadn’t. But Heartman kept on talking. Sam heard the <Five minutes to cardiac arrest> countdown begin in the background.
<The Knot Cities are built in places where the timefall doesn’t fall. Theoretically, they’re the places that are farthest away from the Beach. So why do we use those cities as large-scale communications bases? That’s right, Sam! Places where many people gather are just like holy places and places of worship. Where there are as many Beaches as people. But at the same time, the cities are secular, with no single unifying belief system. To solve this contradiction, Bridges I prepared a special system. It’s top secret. Even I don’t know much about it. In fact, I wasn’t even briefed on it. I first heard about it from Deadman. He said he discovered it while he was investigating the BB experiments.>
<Two minutes to cardiac arrest> a robotic voice warned.
<Listen, Sam! I’m having this conversation with you through an old radio. It isn’t being relayed back to HQ. It seems like HQ are hiding something about the BBs, about your Lou. It’s highly likely that it’s linked to the origins of the Chiral Network and the reconstruction of the UCA. Deadman was extremely scared that Die-Hardman was going to find out about our investigation.>
<One minute to cardiac arrest.>
<Anyway, if we don’t get the network up and running then we’ll never get anywhere. Trust me. Put your faith in this scholar of the Beach!>
The codec went silent and Heartman’s three-minute death commenced.
TAR BELT SHORE
So, this is what the apocalypse looks like.
Sam was stood in a world that would usher in mankind’s end. Or perhaps it was just the world’s physical end. A sea of tar extended so far out westward that Sam had trouble believing that Edge Knot City lay beyond it all.
The shore was littered with masses of toppled jagged rocks and there wasn’t a single sign of life to be found. No creeping moss. No microbes that inhabited the sandy soil. The sun was so thickly blocked out by the chiral clouds that covered the sky that Sam had no idea where it was. But it didn’t feel like night. It wasn’t even dark. A dim light filled the world. In Sam’s mind, this was a world where nothing new began and nothing new was ever born.
A cross fit for a giant lay upon this shore of demise. It was made of a rough black iron. It was the apparatus of crucifixion.
But who was here to receive their punishment and atone for their sins? The crucifix lay forgotten on a shore where there was only sin and punishment, and no sign of sinner nor savior. It dawned on Sam that this was the abandoned Chiral Network knot. To him, it felt neither sublime nor ominous. The only distinct feeling he had toward it was the feeling that he didn’t want to get any closer to it. Before he knew it, tears were spilling down his face. Sam didn’t even need to check for Lou’s reaction. He could feel this proximity to the Beach, throughout his entire body. It felt different to when he was in BT territory. Sam had never imagined that such a barren place could exist. Did it have something to do with the abrupt increased activity of the tar? Sam asked himself, looking out over the tar belt that stretched out beyond the crucifix.
If there was a perfect place for a communications knot, this would be it. Sam knew that much. Lou was getting worked up. Unless it was Sam’s own uneasiness infecting the BB.
When Sam went to activate the Q-pid receptor, the power supply apparatus rose first, followed by the terminal itself. Sam unloaded the hefty cargo from his back and set it down according to the terminal’s instructions. The units connected to the cross one by one and were stored inside. That was when Sam finally realized that the crucifix itself was the communications equipment. He followed the instructions in the message, which prompted him to activate the knot and help up his six metal shards.
An odor filled Sam’s nostrils. His vision warped and he felt like he was floating. Tears flowed from the corners of his eyes. Now this area was covered by the Chiral Network. The problem now was what came afterward. Sam sighed in front of the tar belt. How the hell am I supposed to make it to Edge Knot City?