The ring deposits you all safely outside the base and seals up afterwards. Neo Metal Sonic doesn't chase after you, which is something of a mercy.
What's significantly less of a mercy is the sky - it's gone dark and ominously stormy, though the clouds spark not with lightning, but with that same green Chaos Energy you've been facing this entire fight. Worse still, there are now far, far too many robotic planes filling the sky - the Egg Fleet seems to go on endlessly, as far as you can see. Though perhaps it would be more accurate to call it the Neo Metal Sonic Fleet.
Sonic and friends arrive shortly, looking pretty banged up but otherwise still healthy enough to make it here, though they stare up at the sky with obvious concern.
"O...kay, this is definitely not what any of us were expecting."
"We will have to take the fight to them, it seems."
"Easier said than done, I'm afraid... I'm not sure how to pinpoint their leader's exact location to send you all with a ring..."
A jolt of green lightning flashes across the sky and Neo Metal Sonic's voice rings out.
"I expect to see you onboard my fleet in one week's time. That includes you, my loathsome copy."
It seems you don't really have much of a choice. For now, tend to your wounds and try to regroup; you've earned a break after today.
[He chuckles a little at how huffy Viktor sounds, but just gets them moving rather than commenting further. He is seven feet tall and a lot stronger than he looks, sir, you will not win this non-existent argument anyway.]
Blitzcrank... That would be the robot you'd brought with you, I take it?
[Obedient, functional, offensive capabilities... really, he's surprised Viktor got the programming reworks figured out so quickly.]
We'll see what salvage made it out of the fight. I'm... constantly impressed at how fast you work with our limited resources. Ah, hold on a moment -- [Gently shouldering the base door open and ducking his way through, being tall sure is a pain.] --Was that your first test run of him back there?
[he already hates needing help, this is not making that any easier! at least he's just sulking instead of getting pissed off about it this time.]
Working with scrap metal was how I learned to build machinery in the first place. Utilizing pieces of broken robots makes everything vastly easier for me, eespecially since I was able to retrieve my preferred tools from the laboratory. As for the design itself, it was a scaled down version of a machne I was never quite able to properly build back home.
...As usual, I did not have much time for actual testing. But this was good enough for conclusive results.
So an adaptation just modified for the technology you had at hand here. I would not call that any less impressive, you know. If you've confirmed enough with a single fight, that just means a rebuild has plenty of room for improvement. A pain, perhaps, but it can still be fixed with some luck.
[And if one had to choose between losing the project and losing Viktor, then, you know, who cares about the robot. He's glad it had a chance to serve a purpose for the sake of the fight and Viktor's testing.]
But that can be dealt with after you have had some time to rest.
...Remind me, which was your room? Everyone keeps moving around so much since we returned, I am starting to lose track... I do not even really know where Dorothy is staying these days.
Eh, you may be right. So long as we are actually given the week to prepare, I should be able to rebuild it with no issue. We have more than enough spare parts, after all.
He sighs, keeping Viktor in his arms for a moment as he starts maneuvering his cane to the side of the bed, the parts to the far end or off the bed entirely, all with the efforts of his thoughts. It comes with an ease that he couldn't have imagined trying when they first arrived here, and without the incredible headache besides.]
If we stay here any longer, we really need to get you some better space for your work, Viktor. [Once he has enough space to work with, he'll guide Viktor to brace against him as Vakama lowers him down out of his arms and onto the bed.]
[He shakes his head, pulling over one of the desk chairs with his powers and dropping himself down into it a little heavier than normal.]
You know I do not think of you as a burden, Viktor. There is nothing to apologize for.
And if you mean what happened during the fight... [He trails off for a moment, eyes flicking to the floor, before he shakes his head a second time.] I am in no position to argue.
I did not want to see you repeat something that would weight on your heart. Whatever I had to take to make sure that happened... it is worth it, in my eyes, if it made sure you stayed free.
[Viktor shook his head, whirring in an exhausted sigh.]
I will not claim myself any better. I have spoken through those I linked to my own mind and even fought with their bodies as the conduit for my voice and will. In that sense, perhaps this is only fair retribution in a larger sense.
I have no right to confess myself to have been frightened. But I can say, whether cruelty or mercy, they no longer had that capacity when I did it.
Do not give that Neo creation so much credit. [Is he gonna be spiteful for a second? Absolutely.]
He echoes your mistakes but is willingly beyond reversal of them, whatever the reason may be. It was no retribution, it was an attempt to toy with us. To make us feel powerless.
You are allowed to feel fear, Viktor. It does not have to be seperate from what parallels are drawn. Perhaps... it may even be for the better, to know it as such.
Whether he is beyond reason or not...it is not possible to know that with certainty, not yet. Even if it seems a certainty, that is not an assumption I wish to make right now.
[Maybe that was selfish, projecting, or both. Wishful thinking, at the very least.]
But you may be right. These troubling emotions are...significant.
I do not expect as much to be possible. I do not know him, and I do not even know the purpose behind his actions--whether it is seeking perfection or a desire for control.
...I have said from the beginning, I am not a soldier. My purpose as a scientist is to improve lives, not to take them. One could make the argument that countless would be saved by ending one, but that is...not a solution I am prepared to accept.
[Because it was right. Viktor more than anyone knew he should have died to stop what he had nearly done, but on the other side of it he knew damn well he did not have the capacity to make that decision.]
When this inevitably becomes a fight, I will not hold back for the sake of protecting everyone here. To save this world, I will face whatever twisted imitation of my past self that I must. But I...will not be able to do so alone.
...Then it is a good thing, is it not, that you will not be alone?
[His smile is light, before he lets his eyes glance down towards his hands.]
I do not want it to end in this way, either, my friend. There are plenty among us that wish to just end all of this definitively, to possibly end this with force that feels deserved as an even match and call it done for good.
[...]
Toa... we do not kill. Or... we should not, at any rate. It is a feared and loathsome thing, to be driven by the urge to take another's life, or to help another in pursuit of the same. Even knowing that some of our own want as much... even if I know that we may well have little remaining options, it still does not sit right with me.
I can not say it would be wrong to utilize force. Of all people, I can not say his crimes are ones earning anything except being stopped by any means necessary. If and when it comes to that, there is nothing I will do to dissuade anyone from that course of action.
...But I have killed far too many in my attempt to 'save' the world. I do not have the strength to do so now, even if that salvation should be more than a lie this time.
Mn. Force is one matter, and I don't disagree with it. It is... whether or not Neo is something to be considered "alive".
Is it just another machine under the command of something else? Something rogue? Is... it something like you, or me, that wears its likeness but still thinks for itself?
...I would not have nearly cared as much if this were even two months back. Angered and disillusioned as I was, armies at my fingertips that could have easily done all that for me while I thought it would save what mattered. It's far easier to think about, when you keep yourself blinded.
[How Lhikan would have frowned upon him, to see what he did under Roodaka. The Toa Code was already an unwritten mess of morals, something he only knows in bits and pieces with no mentor having been alive long enough to pass them along. It makes the lines fuzzy in places, and his own roughened experience just blurs them even further.]
...I know we will not have the time to know as such, and we will have to make the best decision we can. Those of that cannot... will need to rely on those who can.
I do not...necesarily fully understand the matter of what makes a machine 'alive' or not as some of you seem to. To me he appears to have a discernible will, whether it has been crafted by another or not. That is enough for me to consider his existence a form of life no matter his structure, but my perspective is a limited one in this.
[turo being the first actual artificial intelligence he's ever known of, it's kind of a difficult thing to fully comprehend as a sliding scale of sapience.]
I do not know about yours, but my own army was...different. A thousand extensions of myself and my will, each having long ceased to have any individuality or thought. Each one working in perfect synchronicity to commit the gentlest, bloodless murder imaginable. Omnipresent sight, and yet I too was blinded to anything but saving the world.
...It would have been easier if this were still Robotnik and I still thought him too far gone to be reached. This new equation is not one we have the time to study or adjust for.
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Of course.
Here. Hold still, I've got you.
[Bridal carry? It's more likely than you think. He's cautious about it, and makes sure that they're both steady as he rises to his feet.
Once Viktor's securely in his hands, he gives a nod of his head to let that cane drift up through telekinesis as well.]
I can come back for the machinery once we have you settled. All right?
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...fine. Gods, poor Blitzcrank is probably in pieces all over the place. I'll have to rebuild him later.
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Blitzcrank... That would be the robot you'd brought with you, I take it?
[Obedient, functional, offensive capabilities... really, he's surprised Viktor got the programming reworks figured out so quickly.]
We'll see what salvage made it out of the fight. I'm... constantly impressed at how fast you work with our limited resources. Ah, hold on a moment -- [Gently shouldering the base door open and ducking his way through, being tall sure is a pain.] --Was that your first test run of him back there?
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Working with scrap metal was how I learned to build machinery in the first place. Utilizing pieces of broken robots makes everything vastly easier for me, eespecially since I was able to retrieve my preferred tools from the laboratory. As for the design itself, it was a scaled down version of a machne I was never quite able to properly build back home.
...As usual, I did not have much time for actual testing. But this was good enough for conclusive results.
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[And if one had to choose between losing the project and losing Viktor, then, you know, who cares about the robot. He's glad it had a chance to serve a purpose for the sake of the fight and Viktor's testing.]
But that can be dealt with after you have had some time to rest.
...Remind me, which was your room? Everyone keeps moving around so much since we returned, I am starting to lose track... I do not even really know where Dorothy is staying these days.
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Oh, right--two more doors down and on the left.
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[safe bet, yeah?]
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He sighs, keeping Viktor in his arms for a moment as he starts maneuvering his cane to the side of the bed, the parts to the far end or off the bed entirely, all with the efforts of his thoughts. It comes with an ease that he couldn't have imagined trying when they first arrived here, and without the incredible headache besides.]
If we stay here any longer, we really need to get you some better space for your work, Viktor. [Once he has enough space to work with, he'll guide Viktor to brace against him as Vakama lowers him down out of his arms and onto the bed.]
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Thank you. Truly, I-...am sorry to have caused you trouble.
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You know I do not think of you as a burden, Viktor. There is nothing to apologize for.
And if you mean what happened during the fight... [He trails off for a moment, eyes flicking to the floor, before he shakes his head a second time.] I am in no position to argue.
I did not want to see you repeat something that would weight on your heart. Whatever I had to take to make sure that happened... it is worth it, in my eyes, if it made sure you stayed free.
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[He trailed off uneasily, pressing a hand to his eyes as if warding off a headache.]
...unpleasant.
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...If you would like to speak of it, I am here to listen.
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I will not claim myself any better. I have spoken through those I linked to my own mind and even fought with their bodies as the conduit for my voice and will. In that sense, perhaps this is only fair retribution in a larger sense.
I have no right to confess myself to have been frightened. But I can say, whether cruelty or mercy, they no longer had that capacity when I did it.
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He echoes your mistakes but is willingly beyond reversal of them, whatever the reason may be. It was no retribution, it was an attempt to toy with us. To make us feel powerless.
You are allowed to feel fear, Viktor. It does not have to be seperate from what parallels are drawn. Perhaps... it may even be for the better, to know it as such.
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[Maybe that was selfish, projecting, or both. Wishful thinking, at the very least.]
But you may be right. These troubling emotions are...significant.
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...Do you wish to break through to him, like someone had managed with you? That the conflict might be resolved without further loss?
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But...I have to try. I just-...I have to.
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Hopefully, we will find ourselves another chance. But even if we do everything right, we still may never know.
If he truly cannot be reasoned with, in the end... do you think you could still keep going?
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[Because it was right. Viktor more than anyone knew he should have died to stop what he had nearly done, but on the other side of it he knew damn well he did not have the capacity to make that decision.]
When this inevitably becomes a fight, I will not hold back for the sake of protecting everyone here. To save this world, I will face whatever twisted imitation of my past self that I must. But I...will not be able to do so alone.
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[His smile is light, before he lets his eyes glance down towards his hands.]
I do not want it to end in this way, either, my friend. There are plenty among us that wish to just end all of this definitively, to possibly end this with force that feels deserved as an even match and call it done for good.
[...]
Toa... we do not kill. Or... we should not, at any rate. It is a feared and loathsome thing, to be driven by the urge to take another's life, or to help another in pursuit of the same. Even knowing that some of our own want as much... even if I know that we may well have little remaining options, it still does not sit right with me.
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...But I have killed far too many in my attempt to 'save' the world. I do not have the strength to do so now, even if that salvation should be more than a lie this time.
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Is it just another machine under the command of something else? Something rogue? Is... it something like you, or me, that wears its likeness but still thinks for itself?
...I would not have nearly cared as much if this were even two months back. Angered and disillusioned as I was, armies at my fingertips that could have easily done all that for me while I thought it would save what mattered. It's far easier to think about, when you keep yourself blinded.
[How Lhikan would have frowned upon him, to see what he did under Roodaka. The Toa Code was already an unwritten mess of morals, something he only knows in bits and pieces with no mentor having been alive long enough to pass them along. It makes the lines fuzzy in places, and his own roughened experience just blurs them even further.]
...I know we will not have the time to know as such, and we will have to make the best decision we can. Those of that cannot... will need to rely on those who can.
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[turo being the first actual artificial intelligence he's ever known of, it's kind of a difficult thing to fully comprehend as a sliding scale of sapience.]
I do not know about yours, but my own army was...different. A thousand extensions of myself and my will, each having long ceased to have any individuality or thought. Each one working in perfect synchronicity to commit the gentlest, bloodless murder imaginable. Omnipresent sight, and yet I too was blinded to anything but saving the world.
...It would have been easier if this were still Robotnik and I still thought him too far gone to be reached. This new equation is not one we have the time to study or adjust for.
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