What’s Underneath a Human’s Helmet: What Comes After the End? (3/?) WiP and Cut Content (Patreon)

“I think if given enough time, you’ll start to see them in a different light, Archer.” Alana began. “The barrier is there, I don’t disagree with you on that front. But there’s a spark in each and every one of them. There’s an undeniable ember of potential burning in all of their hearts. An ember that I intend on nurturing for as long as I can.” There was yet another pause on Alana’s part as she seemed more intent on expanding on her unorthodox perspective.

But not before the Guardian interjected once more. “Heh. I mean, you sure can dream sis. But I’ve seen the aliens at their lowest, their most depraved, and their most bizarrest. You got roving bands of pirates roleplaying like it’s the seven seas but in space. You got slavers who seem hellbent on acting like their little institutions can hold up for any longer than a millennium or two. You got Empires that follow in their predcessar’s footsteps to a t, acting like this time they’ll get it right. You’ve got rival nations and polities all vying for control of a small swath of space, at each other’s throats, ready to strike without any semblance of remorse. You have secret military projects whose express purpose is just creating more of these mentally scarred supersoldiers that are just so easily dispatched by a single carefully targeted nanite swarm or any number of technological implements I have on hand.” The Guardian began rummaging through his utility belt, as if to prove a point. “We got a nanite swarm here, a gravity manipulator over here, a few targeting nanites for close-in space-to-ground support, some singularity bombs… oh, a lob-and-forget gravitic mine, can’t forget those…” The Guardian rattled on and on as he eventually got back on track. “We’ve yet to see another alien civilization walk our path, Alana. They just seem so caught up on the present that they lose sight of the future. They hurt each other so much… and they seem intent on continuing that trend.” That last bit seemed to touch on something within the male human. The hitch in his voice, the momentary displacement of his expression from one that was decidedly neutral to one that was unquestionably distressed, if only for a few seconds, all of it hinted at something greater

“You know your point is quite moot, brother?”

“Oh yeah? Why’s that?”

“Because you don’t really need to use any of those implements to dispatch with an alien super soldier. You already have your localized gravitic-effect projectors. Wouldn’t it be easier to just lock them in an LGEP box until they wear themselves out?”

“Yeah, I guess that’s one way of doing it.” The Guardian shrugged as Alana took a few steps closer towards him, nudging him on the shoulder.

“You sure you’re alright? Is there something you want to talk about?”

“I… I lost her, sis. I… I got too hasty, I got too involved, I acted like a fool, I didn’t know how much time had passed and now…” The Guardian’s voice petered out to nothing. His faceplate refused to budge, refused to emote anything as a small series of shudders were all that was perceptible from an outsider’s perspective.

To Alana however, it was clear what was going on, and so she stepped in, approaching just short of a few inches away from the taller human as she hugged him tight. Her helmeted head resting in the nook of his shoulder, as a single hand went to pat him softly on the back.

“It’s okay, Archer. It’s okay.” She spoke softly, knowing that he could still hear her despite having turned down his own vocoder. “These things happen. It’s… difficult to come to grips with it. But these things do happen. And that’s just how things are sometimes, brother. That’s just how things are.”

She held this hug for as long as she could, as the music in the background gently shifted into silence, and the room’s lighting shifted to a soft, warm orange.

“It’s alright… I’m here. I’m here. And I’m not going anywhere.” She reiterated softly, gently, until eventually the harsh heaving from underneath the layers of metal, composites, and carbon seemed to slow, reaching a steadier, albeit still frantic pace.

It was only then that the Guardian’s voice was once more audible, albeit this time toned down, and far less energetic than prior. “Why… why do they live such short lives, Alana?”

“Because they’re not human, Archer. That’s part of what being human is about, carrying on the stories, the legacies, the memories of those that can’t. And because you’re human, you still have a duty to her. To make sure her memory lives on, through you. So it’s your job to keep on living, and to continue embodying the values she saw in you.” The smaller human spoke with a confident vigor, one that had hitched up in tone if only for a few moments as the emotions of the scene eventually got to her too. But she remained calm, stalwart, and strong. She had to.