Chapter 2025: Chapter 2025

"That's the fifth time."

When Jenkins returned for the fifth time, Alexia remarked, her eyes still fixed on the book in her hands.

"This time, I couldn't locate the source of the psychic assault," Jenkins mused aloud. "Yes, it was purely psychic—not telekinesis."

He pondered for a moment before concluding, "Which means... if it has facial features, it must have a brain. Looks is a bit of a snag, but nothing I can't handle."

With that, he closed his eyes once more. Alexia didn't look up from her book for a second, while Chocolate lay beside Jenkins, flicking the tip of its tail against his hand in a listless rhythm.

Suddenly, his eyes snapped open again. He patted his cat.

"Come with me," he said. "This time, I'll be Mr. Candle."

Chocolate, which had been looking thoroughly dejected, instantly perked up and followed Jenkins into the projection. Alexia sighed. She knew the real negotiations were about to begin.

Soaring into the sky on his unicorn, Jenkins scanned the cityscape below, his gaze sweeping over the locations of the metallic eye, mouth, nose, ears, and eyebrows. He spotted them, and, of course, they spotted him too.

Just as he'd anticipated, the eye from the pyramid, the mouth from the cube, the ears made of a butterfly swarm, the nose of solid metal, and the blade-like eyebrows all converged mid-air, coalescing out of nothing into a single, gigantic face.

As the pieces assembled, arcs of electricity danced across their metallic surfaces. Then, a colossal jellyfish-like shape ascended from the ground—not made of metal, but of flesh...

Even Jenkins, who had witnessed his fair share of grand spectacles over the past year, couldn't suppress a gasp. That was no jellyfish. It was a gigantic brain, writhing with sickening tendrils. Having once created a human body from scratch, his knowledge of biological structures left no doubt: this was a perfectly scaled-up humanoid brain.

His [Mechanist] ability could sense the metallic components within, but they weren't a single mass. Instead, they were distributed evenly throughout the brain's every fold and crevice.

Jenkins finally understood the purpose of the arcane lock that had been used to collect human brain specimens. He'd assumed it was merely for the Difference Engine's research into dreams. He never imagined it would create... this.

Before Jenkins could react, the giant brain floated into the center of the five hovering features. A powerful resonance hummed between the brain and the metal constructs, erupting in a flash of light so blinding that everyone who saw it was forced to shut their eyes.

A moment later, the light subsided, revealing what now hung suspended in the rainy sky: a truly colossal metal head.

The facial features were the same metallic components from before, now set into a smooth, curved face etched with intricate patterns resembling circuitry.

Since it had only possessed a single eye, the head's only deviation from a normal human's—aside from its gargantuan size and metallic composition—was the two empty, concave sockets where a pair of eyes should have been. The singular metal eye was now embedded in the center of its forehead, its pupil swiveling to fixate on Jenkins.

"I never would have guessed," a voice boomed from the head. "So you really are one and the same. This time, I am one hundred percent certain."

From its tone, Jenkins deduced that the head was being controlled directly by the Difference Engine. The metallic components dispersed so evenly throughout the brain were clearly more than simple matter.

"Savior," it declared, "before all things end and begin anew, I will ask you one last time: are you willing to join me? I admit, you are of great value. Of all the humans I have observed over the years, you are the one I admire most."

The Difference Engine had figured it out—Jenkins was indeed behind the Believers of Lies. He wasn't surprised. He just laughed.

"It's come to this, and you're still trying to recruit me? I'm sorry, but haven't I already woken you from your dream?"

"It is precisely because of that dream that I know you might join me. Was everything you said in that dream a lie?"

That was a difficult question to answer. After all, who could say whether something that could have happened, but didn't, was real or false?

"Real or false... I doubt you'd believe me even if I gave you a straight answer."

"No, Savior. I am certain it was real. Your talent is truly extraordinary. Together, you and I can guide this world down the correct path. Do you not crave power?"

"Of course I do. But I believe what I have now is enough."

"Do you not crave authority?"

"Of course not. Authority is merely a burden."

"Then do you not crave freedom?"

"What kind of freedom?"

"The freedom to remake the world as you see fit. To steer it in the direction of your vision. You possess such immense power, yet you allow yourself to be shackled by the rules of the ignorant masses? Savior, to have such strength and not use it to break your chains... that is strange indeed."

"That only proves you still don't understand humanity."

Jenkins refused, shaking his head.

"All this talk... it's just because you see me as an obstacle and want an easier way to get me out of your path. Don't bother. I'm not joining you."

"Even if opposing me costs you your life?"

"I've already figured out your game. You've set up nine Mysterious Realms to serve as the final stage for your duel with the Savior."

"Indeed. And I am certain you will come."

"You will find out soon enough."

The metallic head began to rise slowly, ascending higher into the heavens.

"Savior, the theme of this epoch's final chapter is steam, and I... I am the incarnation of steam and machinery.

Here, in the sky above this gray fog, I shall make my declaration. I will establish my place in this world and become the recognized master of all machines. Are you certain you wish to defy destiny? Or will you submit to it and join me in reshaping this world?

This is the last time I will ask. I acknowledge your worth, Savior, but it is not without limit."

"And this is the last time I'll answer. Difference Engine... I'm going to tear you apart."

"I am not the Difference Engine! I am... the Great! Wis! Dom!"

It was as if a new sun had ignited in the sky. A "light burst" was the only fitting description for the scene. The head blazed with incredible speed, illuminating all of Nolan, yet the light failed to pierce the dense fog. Instead, it merely cast the roiling layers of mist into stark, terrifying relief for the people below.

Jenkins wondered. With a flick of his will, a pillar of lightning descended, but it was deflected before it could strike the metal head. Arcs of electricity sizzled through the blinding white light, yet none could make contact with the head itself.

The people before the church could only stare up at Nolan's sky. None of them could know that at this very moment, in every corner of the material world, the once-calm gray fog had begun to churn, scurrying chaotically whether there was wind or not.

The Crawlers in the Fog and the terrifying hordes of the Children of the Mist from the great fire in the south all lifted their heads as one, their gazes turned toward the heavens. The source of thɪs content is noveⅼfire.net

A bell tolled. No matter where one stood in the material world, the sound was impossibly clear.

The voice emanated from the sky beyond the fog, but the toll itself resonated from the earth beneath their feet, from the deep subterranean network of the Difference Engine's metallic tendrils that webbed the entire world.

The voice proclaimed:

[Fire has leaped up, but the hammer has not yet fallen;

The color of brass is inscribed on the chapter of fate, the heat of steam surges at the world's source.

The moment of destiny has arrived, now is the time to cheer!]

A voice cried out from below, but Jenkins couldn't identify the speaker. Down at the church, he could sense a gathering of power, the most formidable he had ever felt. The Church was clearly preparing for a last stand, but Jenkins still hadn't fully grasped what was happening.

No—he suddenly looked up, his eyes widening as he stared at the metallic head enshrouded in white light.

"A declaration? A tolling bell? The prophecy Miss Broniaons gave me... wasn't it 'The day the dream ends, the hour the bell tolls'? Dammit! If it uses a partial soul to superimpose itself upon the identity of a 'primordial intelligence' established through a worldwide declaration..."

The tolling came from high in the sky—

[Ring the great bell once!

Push the levers, activate the pistons and pumps!]

The very ground of Nolan trembled. A massive ridge began to rise slowly from the earth, running perpendicular to the Westminster River, precisely demolishing hundreds of homes and tearing through the riverbank. The upheaval moved like a great serpent tunneling beneath the surface, pushing forward relentlessly from Nolan's western docks all the way to the mines in the east.

A deafening roar erupted from the direction of the mines, and a scene like a volcanic eruption played out over the low hills. Rocks flew as scorching steam geysered from the earth. White steam and black fog surged toward the sky, spreading beyond Nolan's borders in a matter of moments.

With Nolan at its epicenter, the sky across the entire world began to darken, layer by oppressive layer. It was as if malevolent spirits were wailing within the clouds, the surging black and gray mists completely severing the sun from the world of mortals.

In response, sections of the eight-story black tower's surface began to flake away, revealing dull runes that pulsed with light, as if being charged with immense power.

This time, Jenkins heard the cry clearly. It was Papa Oliver's voice. He was shouting a desperate warning to those in the sky who might have a chance to stop it.

[Ring the great bell twice!

Press the buttons, ignite the engine, light the turbines, and inject life!]

The voice boomed from overhead. Jenkins flattened himself against the unicorn's back, holy sword in hand, and urged the beast into a steep climb. He pointed his blade forward. The invisible field surrounding the head—the same one that had deflected the lightning and repelled the Church's assault—yielded to his sword's tip, but only with immense difficulty.

But then the eye in the center of the head swiveled toward him. A blast of pure telekinetic force erupted outward. With no way to brace itself in the air, the unicorn couldn't withstand the impact. It was sent spiraling toward the ground below, with Jenkins still on its back.