25. Collette: Unholy communion

Stumbling through the long grass something was calling out. Looking back the rusting ships and warehouses disappeared in the distance as I struggled to peer through the foggy visor generated by heavy breathing due to a mixture of exhaustion and terror. The answers were laid out over the hills I knew it. I could feel it. The answers to the singularity. How it began. What it was doing and what was going to happen. Looking at my hand the contents unknown it would show me that as well. I’d experience at least a moment of understanding in losing myself.

Pressing on not quite sure what I was doing in the middle of the wastes by myself approaching the ever dangerous ten kilometer exclusion zone border I noted the lack of mutants and took a defensive stance to scan my surroundings. Looking around the forest was teeming with life. All of it deadly and completely aware of my presence but they went about their business passively. Standing in their territory evoked no reaction when these creatures should have been at my throat already.

Continuing to march lowering my weapon my mind scrambled with possibilities as to why I was left intact regardless of my careless advance towards the focal point. Turning round to every crunch emitted by various creatures I spun around seeing hundreds of eyes gazing over me. Some were once human ranging from the fallen whose bladed arms rested relaxed against themselves to an abomination whose massive muscle mass bulged and flexed irregularly as it stood still. More creatures looked over compiling of common animals with simple mutations to others I’d never catalogued before.

Trembling accepting the end tripping on a root and finding my back against a tree the creatures made no move in response. Holding my breath waiting for the end to eventually gasp for air as nothing came. Finding a pen and paper I documented the unknown creatures among the group as well as the anomaly in their behaviour.

Had I stumbled into a tear that broke the bond between them and this place? Was that linked to their aggression? Maybe this place was where I was being drawn to. I had no idea what was causing the effect until I looked up above to see a man in a spine chilling uniform and ethereal tattered cape sitting calmly on a branch watching me.

Going for the gun bounding forward from the tree onto my back the sights zeroed on him in an instant. Holding my breath again not to compromise my aim the collective cultist continued to watch relaxed regardless of me lining my sights with his head. Jumping down from the tree the gun followed him down as he landed without any disruption to his form and began walking towards me. Kicking the ground I propelled myself back trying to squeeze the trigger as my body refused to comply.

My arm. My arm refused. It denied every impulse to trigger a reaction in my muscles. With a cry of frustration and quickly swapping my hands between the grip and trigger my other arm felt more agreeable. Raising the gun again pointing it up baring my teeth I saw the cultist offering his hand. Holding the gun up my mind raced with the possibilities of what this could mean before he tore away the veil of mystery as he spoke in a grainy decaying voice under the gasmask which wide eyes could be seen through the lens.

“[We mean no harm. We only wish to help those seeking the singularity.]”

Finding no deceit in his voice I tossed over what help from the collectives point of view actually meant. Every fibre in my body screamed to take the shot but the academic possibilities were enormous. No one knew the collective even communicated to pioneers outside of the cult. Not just the academic possibilities but the answers to the mystery of this place. The answers rested with him I could feel it. This hell could all be over soon and he would be the one to end it. The ways this place ravaged my mind wouldn’t be in vain. I could finally understand. It wouldn’t all be for nothing.

With my once defiant arm I reached up and took his hand. Gently bringing me to my feet the creatures dissipated throughout the forest once more returning to their business or duties rather. The collective were connected to the mutations. He must be apart of the network. The organs. He must have the organs. I could kill him. A shot to the back of the head and his body would be mine to decipher I could know for sure but I would lose the answers he carried as well. I absolutely distrusted him but here he was leading me by the hand slowly through the forest.

Looking around the trees became more and more warped by tears and mutations which he navigated without issue or care. Theories that kept me up for more than a year came together just by being in the presence of this man as the creatures avoided him. It all made sense now as to why the collective survived for so long, why the creatures fought with such aggression and even rare unison. It was in control of them but what was the it? I was so close but it still evaded me. Hesitating turning posible answers over in my head brought him to spin around and take both my hands while peering into my soul.

“[All will be obvious soon child. You are no different to the other seekers and like the many before you your reward is within grasp in assimilation.]”

Turning again and slowly walking the cape gently blew in the wind while he tenderly pulled me forward as I choked out questions.

“[What are you going to do to me?]”

“[Enlighten you, assimilate you.]”

“[What does that mean exactly? Assimilate me into what?]”

“[You will share the knowledge of all who have crossed over the event horizon. You will be given the right to enter ouroboros.]”

“[Who are you?]”

“[We are collective. We have no name, though the first called it Entity.]”

“[What are you then?]”

Taking a moment he walked forward with a scorched building visible through the trees in a clearing over a hill. Gazing into the sky above he seemed to search his memory or more accurately the memory of everything that made up the collective. Looking down once more he turned while still walking forward speaking in the same monotone grating voice.

“[Singularity. Consciousness. Two sides of the same coin.]”

Confused I tried to push for more information. We continued on reaching the doors of the scorched building which the man threw open displaying an altar of violence and sacrifice throughout the building. Bodies were strewn over the floor in various states and the tiles were painted with a thick coat of congealing blood. With a scream I tried to break his grip. I was a fool. He didn’t have the answers. This place was simply trying to stop my investigation. Kicking the man saw no effect as he grasped both my arms but simply held them raising one arm in particular.

“[You chose to come here. The answers are indoors. The massacre was necessary. The souls offer a channel as they flow through the infinite horizon. The answers lay indoors seeker.]”

Shaking my arm once more he released his grip to let me stand a few meters away from him. He was letting me escape why wasn’t I running. Fear was replaced by curiosity. I was curious. Why was I curious. The answer was to run over the hills and back to the ships if only to lose my mind at least then it would still be mine. I walked forward. Why was I walking forward? My mind screamed at my body to flee but it pushed on as that curiosity became overwhelming.

I felt it. Echoing over the walls. I couldn’t hear it but I knew it was calling. The abyss went deeper than anything theoretically possible and it’s depths held incomprehensible darkness. Walking into another room I saw Tarasov’s body lined with wounds. Turning away from the body the man placed his arm around my shoulder and sat me next to a counter placing my arm on top of it. Taking off his gasmask revealed a skeletal structure with only remnants of muscle fibres running over his face in wild fashion.

“[It’s almost over seeker. You will know everything over eternity. Let me see your arm.]”

Rolling up the rubber sleeve my arm appeared as normal as ever which the man produced no reaction to. It’s contents were still such a mystery and it remained the final one to be revealed. Regardless of what happened now I had to know if I was apart of this place. Pulling out an intimidating knife he spoke one last time before preparing for the dissection.

“[We will determine your connection. You must recognize it yourself. If so you will become a vessel of us. You will spread the knowledge as we have. The flesh is weak, we are eternal.]”

Unafraid I saw the knife twirl in the darkness. Running his other skeletal hand over my arm he tried to find some point to begin for some time questioning whether I was appropriate for this form of assimilation or not. Feeling control return to my body as he questioned my suitability I saw a canister fly through the door and clang on the ground. Instinctively shutting my eyes tight a massive crash echoed through the room accompanied by a brilliant emittance of light visible even through closed eyes.

Ears ringing looking back to the door retracting my arm saw Valentine with his revolver braced and Benedict behind him with battle rifle swinging round to the cultist. Irregular muzzle flashes lit up the room as round after round tore through the ethereal man bounding through the room trying to dodge the fire until he fell splashing into the blood I was picking myself out of. Grabbed by my shoulder I looked up blinking to see Valentine screaming something inches away from my face. Still stunned I couldn’t make out his words as he shook me. Eyes refocusing as well hearing quickly returning he screamed at me again.

“[Get up! Get up!]”

Chaotic screams filled the complex as Benedict fired down the corridor they came through. Shaking the stress from my body and reaching for my P90 regardless of how shaken I was mentally Benedict turned into cover as Valentine finished setting a breach charge on the wall.

“[Motherfuckers are swarming blow it now!]”

Clicking the detonator the breach charge gave us entry to another room to escape through as the collective roared from behind. Running through the complex a cultist rounded the corner without a weapon sprinting towards us. Quickly dispatched by Valentine the rounds from the compact revolver tore through his body leaving him crawling towards us rasping.

“(The vessels! They have the vessels! Brothers sisters the vessels!)”

Ignoring their cries and breaching another room the hoard closed in behind as another group sprinted towards us from the front. Unloading the magazine saw another five bodies join the corpses on the ground as more screams came through. Reaching another room gunfire began to erupt from the cultists as we vaulted a counter. Cornered Benedict barred his teeth with a grim look as he loaded his rifle once more with no obvious exit.

“[Valentine! How many more explosions have you got?]”

“[Last one.]”

Benedict sighed and fired back at the cultists preparing to breach. Firing at the opposite corner of the door Benedict fired at Valentine quickly set the charge. Hitting the detonator again the explosion rang out behind us. Quickly looking back while reloading with Benedict we saw a massive fissure in the solid concrete. The destruction impressive but not enough to offer an escape.

“[Fuck…]” Aggressively cocking the gun Benedict turned out once more to fire on another group of unarmed cultists charging.

“[Nice knowing you guys.]”

Holding off the hoard Valentine took his rifle and began slamming it against the concrete dislodging a few chunks at a time. The vent crashed down from above as a body flailed to the floor being riddled with bullets. Ripping out another magazine throwing it rather than putting it back in the webbing to save time I loaded another magazine firing relentlessly trying to thin the hoard just enough to give us a chance.

Another magazine burned through and the barrel smoking I patted my chest rig for another magazine finding only two left. Loading the second last one I turned out as Benedict ran out of ammunition to see a shaft of light shine over the counter from behind.

“[It’s clear! Move!]”

Letting Benedict leave first I emptied the magazine before entering the fractured crevice the explosion caused. Sliding in sideways shuffling through as quickly as I could the light became brighter and brighter as I put distance in between me and the singularity. My mind became more liberated with every step returning to the outside world. Ready to take in the sweet embrace of sunlight a hand clutched my suit, then two, then three.

“(The vessel cannot escape bring it back bring it BACK BRING IT BACK!)” Desperately clutching the exterior wall outside the crevice I cried out to the other two as my grip failed.

“[Benedict! Valentine! They’ve got me!]”

Dashing to me grasping my arms just as my grip faltered they pulled with all their strength threatening to pull my arms from their sockets as the collective slowly dragged me back into the depths. My body disappearing into the darkness Valentine and Benedict propped their feet against the wall putting in even more effort.

Kicking furiously as more hands tried to take hold dislodging one I flew out of the hole landing on top of both Benedict and Valentine. Quickly getting to our feet a mess of arms flailed out of the hole as the collective crammed in trapping themselves wailing horrifically watching my escape.

Without wasting a moment we ran back towards the cemetery ships only stopping for a moment to catch our breath. Looking up at the other two their eyes burned furiously with my actions as mine filled with sorrow. No words were needed. I succumbed to the madness of this place and it almost cost us all our lives.

The experience was unforgettable though. Somehow I knew no matter whether I was dead or alive that knowledge would always be with me. The pieces all stuck together now and the mystery of this place was on the fringe of being uncovered. Looking at my arm reinforced all that was left to do was discern whether I was a part of it.