Chapter 36: the Collective

‘Excluding Cindy it’s four versus four.’

The Collective liked those odds. Even against agents. Their superior coordination, spatial awareness and combined wealth of experience could overcome most even matchups.

Still to think the AoF would be waiting within the tunnels, blocking their path to freedom. They swept their many eyes over the familiar agent faces.

Half the agents present were from the newest generation but thanks to newest member’s memories the Collective recognized all of them.

The young boy with the dusk mask, messy dark hair and dark eyes was Diaby. The young girl with grey eyes and an aviator cap was Jamali.

The lead agent the Collective knew well. He’d matured a bit but his slicked back hair and shades remained the same. There was no mistaking Veiss Morrow for another.

‘The master’s golden boy.’

And he’d fallen into their laps. They could use him to bait the master.

‘But it’s best to avoid conflict.’

The Collective eyed the oldest agent, not even an agent really. The shaman’s position within the organization had always been vague. The Collective had perfect recall and they could tell she had barely aged in the time their oldest member had known her. She was draped in her shamanic robes and red beads lined the tips of her grey-white hair.

‘M’Khabye the Primordial One.’

And the most dangerous being they knew. The ancient cybermage had technologies on her person long lost to history and the Collective wasn’t risking a display of their function.

Veiss broke the silence.

“Sharon we’ve come for you, all of you.”

“Don’t call her that!” The Collective said in unison, chilling the dark tunnel.

They breathed, calmed themselves. They each gestured to themselves and introduced themselves in order.

“C-1.”

“C-4.”

“C-5.”

“C-6.”

“Together the Collective,” they said in sync.

‘Rather what remains of us after today’s losses.’

The agents stared at them, then at each other, and then back to them.

“I see,” Viess said.

But the Collective knew he didn’t. He was trying to talk them down like they were acting crazy.

“In any case we’ve come for you guys,” Veiss said.

“Hmph,” C-1 scoffed. “Come for us? We orchestrated this whole escape we don’t need your help.”

“Sha— I mean C-1, you’ve been here a long time and I can’t begin to understand your frustrations. But we’ve come to take you home, back to the clan, back to your families.”

C-1’s face twitched reluctance but she eventually found her voice.

“The Collective is our only family,” she said through grit teeth.

“Smoker! Get your ass over here” Jamali said with moist eyes. “What’s wrong with you?”

“Don’t call me that!” C-6 snapped.

An awkward pause.

“You lot would break your oath?” M’Khabye said evenly.

“The abandoned often do,” the Collective said together and immediately regretted their words.

The shaman’s expression darkened. The Primordial One was a stickler for the rules and deserters were killed or worse tossed into the furnace.

The unsympathetic Veiss readied himself as well.

“But Smoker,” Jamali said. “She must’ve done something to him—”

A hard glance from Veiss silenced her.

C-1 exhaled and raised her hands in a non-confrontational gesture.

“A fight will only harm both our groups.”

Veiss smiled insincerely. “Were not leaving empty handed.”

Now that they’d made clear their intentions not to return to the clan. There was only one way for the Collective to come out unscathed. They needed to give the agents something more valuable than the reassurance of silencing them.

“You don’t have too,” C-1 said.

M’Khabye didn’t seem interested in negotiating but Veiss’ interest seemed piqued.

The Collective sneered inwardly. Some things never changed.

‘Always looking for extra benefits to show how valuable you are. To show how much of a good leader you are. To show how much more worthy you are.’

“What do you mean?”

“The 1st Master Fate.”

Even M’Khabye wasn’t able to keep a straight face. It was rumoured the 1st had decrypted the third volume of the Encrypted Scriptures before his capture.

To this day the numerous volumes of the Encrypted Scriptures remained encrypted because every volume was harder to decode than the next. Thus withholding the Oracle’s secrets from even ancient beings like M’Khabye.

“He’s alive,” Viess muttered.

“He is, locked up in solitary for longer than we’ve all been in the tomb.”

“And what’s stopping me from killing you and fetching him anyway.”

C-1 smirked. “The worst of the worst are kept in solitary. Forcing entry into solitary cells will trigger a flooding of mole gas into the cells.”

“You have the access key?”

“We do.”

“What’s stopping me from just taking the keys?”

“What’s stopping me from just destroying them?”

Veiss was silent a long while like someone consulting his internal hardware.

‘Probably com-linking the master.’

“Okay,” Veiss finally said.

The Collective nodded but didn’t let their guard down. With Cindy in the centre of their formation they moved forward. The agents stepped aside.

When they were past.

C-1 slipped out Yannick’s electronic display pad. Crouched slowly without taking her eyes of the agents. Placed it on the dusty tracks and backed up with the rest of the Collective. They remained vigilant until they faded into the darkness of the tunnel.