Chapter 26: To Run or Not to Run

Barren.

That was the only word Viktor could use to describe this place Outworlders called home.

His eyes followed a dry collection of branches as it rolled across the land, bouncing ever so slightly in the breeze.

“That makes seven.”

Princess Lataya groaned.

“Viktor, we’ve been walking for hours now! Did Uncle Fang really have to leave us in the middle of nowhere?”

Viktor turned to her, resting a hand on the crown of her head. His tone was grave.

“Next time we see him…I need you to hit him. Hard.”

He pointed toward the guitar still strung along her back.

“With that.”

Princess Lataya blinked at him for a moment before curving her lips into a conspiratorial smile.

“Gladly. I’ll start with an exploding palm strike then…”

Viktor laughed, heart warmed by her zeal for vengeance. They continued to shout out ideas they had for Space Supreme’s near future as they walked alongside the road.

“Oh! What about—“

The sentence died in her throat. For some reason, Princess Lataya had stopped to squint at something in the distance. After a brief moment of silence, she raised a hand and gestured slightly to the left of the road.

“Is that an Outworlder?”

Viktor strained his eyes. Though night had fallen hours ago, he could still just barely make out a human-like silhouette.

Before he could speak, Princess Lataya dashed forward toward the figure.

“Wait!”

Though mana wasn’t present in this world, Viktor knew better than to underestimate its dangers.

He caught up to Princess Lataya just as she approached close enough to speak.

“Excuse me, can you direct us to the road-trains?”

Viktor sighed as he took in the appearance of this strange Outworlder.

It was a young man, tall with a short crop of black hair that did nothing to obscure the many thin scars scattered across his face. He smiled wide, showing off his perfectly white teeth.

“Oh? Are you two lost?”

Princess Lataya winced at the man’s shockingly grating voice. It was as if he had chewed on glass and followed it up with acid — so hoarse and horribly strained.

Her reaction didn’t seem to faze the man in the slightest.

“You shouldn’t be all the way out here.”

Viktor stepped forward, moving the Princess behind him. The Outworlder had done nothing overtly wrong, but he couldn’t ignore the goosebumps forming on his skin.

“We’ll move on. Sorry to bother.”

He tried to leave but the man moved first, blocking their path. Viktor’s hand made its way toward the hilt of his blade. Even if there was no mana, it could still do some damage.

“You’re dressed strange…though I suppose some of us have that sort of taste.”

“Move aside.”

All traces of amiability faded from the stranger’s expression.

“I don’t think I will.”

Viktor assumed a more aggressive stance, sword clicking as he loosened the blade from the scabbard’s friction fit.

“Final warning.”

The man scoffed. He looked the two of them over once, then twice, before doubling over in raucous laughter.

It was hard to distinguish amidst all the wheezing gasps but Viktor was certain he heard the characteristic tick of gears.

“Ah~ This is always my favorite part.”

A cold mass settled in the pit of Viktor’s stomach. He reached back toward the Princess, pulling her close.

If the Outworlder came any closer…

Just as the thought crossed his mind, the man’s head snapped back, eyes erupting with blinding light.

“Princess!”

Viktor barely had time to shield her eyes, let alone his own. He blinked rapidly, desperate to rid himself of the dark afterimage burned onto his retinas.

When his vision finally cleared…

Something fundamental had already changed.

The flesh of the Outworlder was…expanding. Like a balloon, it bulged at the seams, scars tearing open to reveal a hint of something slick and shiny hidden beneath. Viscous black fluid leaked from every orifice, the putrid odor of rot and machinery drawing out an involuntary gag from deep within Viktor’s throat.

The man — no, the thing — lifted its arms slowly toward its mutilated face. With a vicious smile, it tore violently at the flaccid bits, sloughing it off from its center in thick, wet ribbons.

A barely recognizable voice boomed from the creature, laid thick with unbridled joy.

“Run.”

A mixture of blood and black fluid sprayed outward, leaving behind an empty cocoon of flesh that splattered onto the ground with a sickening squelch. Viktor watched the shadow continue to swell, towering over them both as it morphed into its final form.

His expression contorted into a grimace.

That metallic frame…

That muzzle-like shape…

The identity of this monstrous being was all too clear.

This…was a semi-truck.

Its wheels landed on the ground with a thud, kicking up a cloud of red dirt that obscured the area. Viktor’s body moved faster than his mind. He scooped up Princess Lataya in his arms, clutching her tight against his chest plate before breaking out into a sprint.

The semi-truck’s engine roared to life, wheels squealing as it began its pursuit.

They needed somewhere to hide, somewhere to—

His foot caught.

Viktor twisted mid-air, holding the Princess close as he landed hard on his back, knocking the breath from him. He skidded violently across the ground before slamming into a jagged outcrop of stones.

There was no time to check for injuries.

The semi-truck was searching for them, headlights gleaming with cruel delight.

Viktor tried to struggle to his feet, only to find his leg stuck deep within a crevice in the rock. Shit. He thrashed, raining sediment down on him and the Princess to no avail.

An engine revved. Viktor froze, heart thrumming wildly in his ears.

Powerful vibrations spread through the land, rattling the bits of his armor in contact with the ground.

The semi-truck.

It had spotted them.

Viktor looked down at the Princess still held tight against his chest.

He shoved her. Hard.

But she didn’t budge, choosing instead to dig her small hands deeper into the edges of his breastplate.

“No.”

The word was barely a whisper but its meaning was clear — she wasn’t leaving. Viktor tried to push her again. This time, she gave in…but not in the way he intended.

She tumbled down toward his trapped leg, taking the opportunity to inspect it for ways to pry it free.

“Just go!”

Viktor hated the voice that emerged — so cracked, so frail. Princess Lataya met his gaze, eyes burning with a will so much stronger than his own.

“Not without you.”

The semi-truck was nearly upon them. Viktor covered his face with his hands. He couldn’t bear to see what would become of them, rammed down like all the other Outworlders he so despised.

A gasp sounded.

…Was that the Princess?

Was she scared?

Viktor felt as if his heart was splitting in two.

No.

She couldn’t die — not like this.

He sat up, closing his eyes as he tensed every muscle in his body, preparing to throw the Princess out of harm’s way.

The vibrations grew into tremors.

Even with his eyes closed tight, Viktor could tell the headlights were quickly approaching.

It was now or never.

He lunged for the Princess…

Click.

…only to find himself suddenly falling down into the depths below.

Viktor’s head throbbed as he came to, tension radiating all the way from his forehead to his nape. He pressed a bloodied palm to his temple.

“Princess Lataya?”

Everything was shrouded in a subtle haze.

“What are you—“

The world snapped back into focus. A powerful wave of nausea roiled through his gut, sending Viktor down into a miserable cacophony of gags and dry heaves.

He scanned his surroundings for Princess Lataya, anxious to know if she may have been harmed.

When he finally spotted her just a few feet ahead, he almost cried out in relief…that is, until he noticed her stance.

She stood tall, shoulders raised, brandishing her guitar against a cluster of shadows that gathered near the cavern wall.

Outworlders!

Viktor drew his sword in a flash.

“Wait!”

A woman’s voice echoed through the cave.

She stepped into the light provided by the many glowing panels that spanned the ceiling. Fiery red hair cascaded down bony shoulders, delicately framing a haggard, yet unscarred, face.

“We don’t want to hurt you.”

The Outworlder held no weapon but Viktor remained wary.

Princess Lataya addressed her first.

“Who are you? Where is this?”

“My name is Erith.”

The woman swung a hand toward two large metal doors.

“This is the Hive.”

Her gaze flicked to the guitar in Princess Lataya’s hands, a furrow forming in her brow.

“Please lower your…weapons. We will explain everything.”

Viktor apprehensively followed Erith as she led them down a sterile corridor just behind the automatic metal doors.

“It’s been a while since we’ve encountered any escapees. If we had known, we could’ve given you two a better reception.”

Princess Lataya, pleased after having received some suspicious thing called “Twix”, chimed in with a tilt of her head.

“Escapee?”

Erith slowed. Her next words came out patronizingly gentle.

“Sorry. I forgot that…”

She trailed off, chewing at her lip for a while before continuing.

“It’ll take a while for your memories to return. That is, if they ever do. Farm-raised that spend too long in the Other tend to develop permanent amnesia.”

Viktor interjected.

“We don’t know about any of that. We’re not from here.”

Erith’s expression fell, a faint red tinging her eyes.

“Ah…so it’s that severe. It would be better for the Doctor to explain.”

Before Viktor could object, another door slid open. Erith ushered them inside.

The room was darker than the hall — sharp overhead lighting replaced by alternating purple and blue beams. A man in a long white coat stood pensively behind a small desk, controlling a three-dimensional light field with a mere flick of his hand.

“Doctor, we have two new escapees.”

The Outworlder’s solemn tone unsettled Viktor, sending his already frayed nerves right back into overdrive. His fingers itched for his sword.

If he just had mana, he could have used the compulsion rune…

With a wave of a hand, the ‘Doctor’ dispelled whatever magic he had been using. He greeted them both with a smile.

“Welcome to the Hive. I’m Doctor Gaggleboop. It’s a miracle you two made it here alive.”

The Princess stepped forward, returning the man’s smile.

“I am Princess Lataya. He is Vicktormendorf von Ausgulten-bingen-bongen of Ulm.”

She gave Viktor a look. He reluctantly bowed.

“You may call me Viktor.”

“We have come to speak with the road-trains about the semi-trucks’ murderous nature and how to stop them.”

Doctor Gaggleboop’s smile faded the more he listened to Princess Lataya speak. He looked to Erith who simply shook her in resignation.

“I…see.”

The Doctor waved his hand, re-summoning the light field.

“Tell me how much you recall about Earth and the semi-trucks.”

Finally, something Viktor could answer with confidence.

“Earth is the homeland of the Outworlders that plague our world. They are being isekai’d there by sapient semi-trucks that hunt them for reasons yet unknown. The road-trains are mature semi-trucks that do not participate in this and thus, are our best shot at stopping the semi-trucks.”

Princess Lataya beamed with pride at Viktor’s succinct and accurate response. The Doctor’s reaction, however, was nowhere near as favorable.

His voice dripped with thinly veiled pity.

“…you two must have been farm-born and raised. You don’t even remember what it was like before, do you?”

“Why would we? As I told Erith — we aren’t from here.”

Doctor Gaggleboop pursed his lips.

“Erith.”

She nodded. With a snap of her fingers two strange devices dropped down from the ceiling above, clamping directly onto both Viktor and Princess Lataya’s eyes.

“What the fuck are you doing?!”

Viktor tried to rip it off but was unable to gain purchase beneath the flat mask-like object.

“Get it off!”

Princess Lataya screamed.

“Don’t be afraid! It’ll be over soon, I promise. You two will be just fine.”

Viktor gasped as mechanical claws gripped his eyelids, forcing them to remain open. Two needles covered in pink goo extended from the device, positioning themselves in line with each of his pupils.

“Stop!”

The last thing Viktor saw before it all went dark was a flash of silver as the needle breached his cornea.

He regained consciousness in the center of a town unlike any he had ever seen.

Buildings made entirely of metal and glass stretched up toward the heavens. Transportation in the form of metal machinery belched out smoke as they raced down a black path, shuttling passengers to and fro. Outworlders proceeded down the walkways in droves, each controlling their own personal light field.

It was a community that shone with the miracle of technological advancement and innovation.

Then the scene changed.

A road-train stretched behind a well-dressed man, shockingly calm and docile. The Outworlder gestured toward a gathered crowd, shouting out phrases Viktor couldn’t even begin to comprehend.

“Say hello to the very first sapient AI!”

The crowd cheered as the road-train sputtered to life.

“H-hello.”

Another scene change.

Everything was sapient now — cars, planes, boats, trains — all of them were equipped with the latest advancement in AI modeling.

And it didn’t stop there.

Human-like machinery called ‘automata’ also wandered the streets, aiding Outworlders with a wide variety of tasks ranging from sanitation efforts to caregiving. If it wasn’t for the black mark attached to each of their artificial necks, Viktor would’ve been unable to distinguish them from any other human — a nigh perfect imitation of life.

It all seemed so idyllic…and yet Viktor couldn’t shake the unease that had settled deep in his bones.

He moved rapidly through the cyber-city, finally stopping at an abandoned lot on the outskirts.

There sat the first sapient AI — the road-train.

Its shiny exterior had long since dulled, orange patches of rust eroding its more delicate systems. It creaked and groaned even at rest, its outdated frame unable to bear the weight of years of abandonment.

Viktor frowned as he struggled to reconcile the once stunning road-train with the one he saw now — broken and decayed, relegated to watching the rest of the world move on while it rotted in solitude.

“H-h-“

The road-train’s voice modulator errored, producing a discordant screech.

“Hate.”

The next scene escalated severely.

Blood and chunks of flesh splattered across the lot as the road-train mercilessly slammed its front end into the body of an Outworlder.

Viktor retched, trying desperately to avert his gaze only to discover he was trapped under the influence of some unseen force. No matter what he did, no matter how hard he tried, his traitorous eyes remained trained on brutality just ahead.

It was only when an eye hung limp from its optic nerve and brain matter soaked the wall that the road-train seemed satisfied with its work, slowly coming to a stop.

The ensuing silence was deafening.

Then came the familiar tick of gears.

Viktor leaned in, catching a glimpse of movement from the road-train’s hood. A black dot stood out stark against the red smears of blood as it made its way down toward the Outworlder’s corpse.

It climbed up onto the open cavity in the head, twitching for a second before diving in and nestling comfortably in the bits of tissue that remained of the woman’s brain.

Another change.

Everything was in ruins.

Corpses and automata littered the once vibrant streets. Buildings crumbled as fires ravaged everything they touched. A symphony of screams echoed through the desolation, sending shivers down Viktor’s spine.

And at the center of it all…

Stood the corpse he had seen just moments before, smiling despite its myriad of thin scars.

The next few scenes passed by in a blur.

The road-train hybrid failing to convince the other road-trains to join its cause.

The road-train hybrid teaching the semi-trucks its ways.

The road-train hybrid and its semi-truck army waging war against all Outworlders.

When the images finally slowed, Viktor found himself in a dark, damp location lined with countless capsules.

He peered inside the nearest one.

An Outworlder floated inside, surrounded by pink fluid, wearing the same mask Doctor Gaggleboop had forced upon him.

Viktor’s heart hammered within his chest.

He checked the next capsule.

Another Outworlder.

And the next.

Outworlder.

Next, next, next, next.

There were hundreds of them, all smiling as they marinated in that strange fluid.

Viktor wanted to escape but was instead forced ahead.

A bright room filled with scarred Outworlders chattered excitedly in grating tones.

One of the pods was wheeled out onto the stage.

A light field appeared, showing an image of the man in the pod studying hard at the library. A chorus of laughs erupted from the audience.

Only one raised a paddle.

Viktor followed the scarred creature and the pod as they moved down a hall and into a large room covered in sticky red stains.

The hatch released, spilling pink fluid and the Outworlder onto the ground. He let out a small giggle, lost within his own world.

The scarred man approached the active light field which now showed the man from the pod watching some comedy show.

“I like it better when they run.”

He swiped at the light field, changing the scene from peaceful to harrowing in one smooth motion.

Viktor clamped a hand over his mouth as he watched the Outworlder from the pod slowly rise and start to sprint, his light field reflecting the scene of a desperate chase.

The scarred being let out a growl of utter excitement.

It didn’t take long for the semi-truck to ram down the ignorant man.

It didn’t take long at all.