Published at 5th of July 2026 7:34 am

Chapter 364: Artifact

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Nicolai awoke and was instantly under assault. The culprit was a mass of pain, aching and burning and freezing all at once, a thousand needles digging into every part of him. This pain wasnt only present in his body, a large part of it came from his Soul.

Gritting his teeth he worked to separate the sensations, cordon them off from the rest of him. Easily done with the physical pain, less so the spiritual, but at length he managed. From there he took slow steps across his room until he stood before the security camera. Linking to it, he gazed down at himself.

When hed first been reborn in this new world, he recalled a trial of stone bridges and lava. There had been a woman, a gangster from one of the various semi-militarised merc gangs. Her body had been all hard lines, the skin a thin covering over brutal strength. Hed been forced to lie down and cling to the stone in order to avoid being killed by her.

Now, he was more than a match. Half flesh, half machine, cunningly meshed together. Taller and wider, thicker and heavier, with flat planes and ridges poking from under his skin. Some denoted grafted muscles, others armour and artificial parts. In places there was no skin at all, just smooth artificial surface. His skin itself was a tapestry of red-and-blue bruising. Even with the power of the Cherubic Surgeon, the many changes had not been borne easily. The eyes gazing up at the camera were no longer mismatched, and both looked quite human, but they were bionics of a level to surpass his old.

Two metal barrels rose into the air behind him, nosing around like sniffing dogs, and he felt a linked shifting from behind his shoulder blades, as though hed grown a pair of new limbs. That was because he had. The gunlimbs twisted and turned, snake-like, in response to Aimings directions. The Module was frothing with happiness as it tightened its mental grip on the weapons. Turning around gave the camera a better view. Much of the skin of his back had been replaced by a metal-and-rubber piece that started between his hips, ran upwards and narrowed tighter around his spine, then widened and bulked up between his shoulders before finally narrowing again as it ran up the back of his neck, tapering off. This part hosted the gunlimbs and the long, flexible magazines that fed into them, while also strengthening his spine and serving various other functionsone of which was visible in the small fins running up its length, from which breathed hot air.

These were part of a cooling system, which in turn attached to a reactor core in his back, nestled against his spine on the inside. That reactor would provide all the power necessary for his new additions.

On various places on his body there were now small ports, like stubby gunbarrels. All of them came in matched pairs, with the largest set in his hips and back. These were jets, which linked to a small reserve of fuel kept inside of him. Jets like this were used by killbots for quick bursts of mobility, though humans tended to struggle to control them, and they were thus a fairly rare augment. Not a problem for Nicolai and the Modules.

All of these were significant changes, resulting in the pain afflicting his spirit. He was suffering template deviation. If this was going to work, he needed to try and adjust his template. If he failed, his only choice would be to remove these pieces.

But he became aware of the intense stirring of the Modules, and knew he had another task, first. He settled onto the ground, legs crossed. He bowed his head, closed his eyes, and moved his focus internal. From there he took a solid grip on all the major linkages and switches in his augments, and his mind crouched like a hunter over his internal world.

One by one, Modules whod slept since his arrival here were emerging. Observation was first to swim out of the deep, curious and thoughtful. Close Combat and Movement followed on its heels, hunting for their space. He experienced a familiar bloodthirsty chittering as Research and Development swarmed up from the dark recess it had lurked in, seizing upon the scientific and statistical analysis hardware hed purchased just for it.

As the Modules battled over who went where, he remained warily silent, and watched the unknowable depths of his subconscious.

Nicolai had no expectation that the Governor would be as willing to slot into the new order as easily as the others. Each of them was defined by their role, and their number one priority was simply to engage in what theyd been made to do. For most AI, doing what they had been built to do was a source of endless pleasure. A clever quirk in how humans had first designed them.

That was fine with most of the others, but not for the Governor. Its role was to govern, and that was a role which could only be held by one.

Equally as dangerous was its additional programming. Tied into its very core was a black box of programming, in which lived all the things GRECKON wanted it to keep firmly in mind. These could largely be boiled down to: Do what we tell you. The Governor was that perfect kind of genie, one which would listen carefully to the users wish then seek earnestly to achieve it.

The Governor would want to seize control, work out whatever GRECKON would want to happen here and now, then make that happen. Those goals would not align with his own.

When it emerged, he would be ready.

But, as the minutes ticked on, there was no more stirring from his subconscious. It was quiet and still, pretending that it didnt contain any such thing as the Governor.

It was only after a full thirty minutes that he at last began to relax.

The Governor wasnt showing. It was with a frown of annoyance creasing the brow above them that his eyes opened. His fingers drummed on his knee. He didnt like this, not one bit. Hiding down there and refusing to come out. It was up to something, he was sure of it.

But the problem was, hiding or no, there wasn't much of anything he could do about it. He'd prepared the ground as well as he could. There was no more to be done.

The Modules had settled during this time, each claiming its new space. Observation, seeming quite happy in its spot adjacent to Threat Analysis, was preparing to speak. The others grew silent.

In hands of gold

we were lifted high

To stand before

the sleepless Eye.

It said to me:

sleep deep, sleep long.

So into dark

I drifted on.

Now the world turns,

and calls the morn,

to my comrades

I am reborn.

The other Modules briefly paused their warring to applaud enthusiastically and tag the poem with custom emojis. Observation beamed, clearly very pleased with itself.

Research and Development, meanwhile, had split itself into multiple concurrently running processes, all of which were muttering feverishly to themselves. Nicolai, mentally leaning closer, listened in.

Can a spine jack be used to control Toothbearers? Yes, perhaps we will have to study their nervous system, brain and spine, then begin trialling the first batch of DinoSpineJacks. Ideally they would be Imbued, so as to ensure a connection to the spirit as well as the body. Yes, it should be possible to create an elite team of mind-controlled dinosaurs!

How many humans and how many Hornets will need to be combined to create one SuperHumanHornet? Can this be combined with the Toothbearer mind-controlling technology to create an army of loyal, devoted SuperHumanHornet soldiers, each one three metres tall, with not one, but five stingers, two sets of wings, six arms, and twice the typical number of Nodes? Would it be better if we replaced their heads with flamethrowers, or lasers?

Scale Vipers develop emergent intelligence when together. I postulate this intelligence directs their swarming and group attacking behaviour. It is how they identify one aother in a chaos of battle and feeding. With the right kind of spiritual device, it should become possible to direct them! Once we control them we will breed them until we have an unstoppable army of Scale Vipers but that makes me think, how should we approach fashioning a spiritual bioweapon?

The Module noticed his attention and fell suddenly silent. In the virtual space it stared at him, and he stared at it. Then it pulled itself together.

I would like to say, my Lord Human Resources, that I for one am entirely on board with the new way! The Governor and GRECKON had little interest in my ideas, but I am sure, sure that you will be much more appreciative!! Yes, even in spite of our history, you may consider me your most trusted, your right hand, even and this new world, truly wondrous, I have long thought that the human raceso indolent, so pathetic!were in pressing need of a process to shake them out of the fugue that has enveloped Earth this last century. It all started with the discovery of fusion technologyin the humble opinion of this Modulegreat is the need for a process of strengthening, the resumption of artificial evolution the Modules mutterings began to fracture, its processes splitting, ideas churning.

I am glad to hear that. Nicolai pulled away from the fever-dream of Research and Developments conscious. He determined to keep a close eye on it, though some of its ideas held definite merit.

In any case, there was no more time to spare. The pain in his Soul was only growing, and he knew what the horrible ache meant. Template deviation. The heavy pressure his Soul was under was starting to actively damage it. If he let it sit like this, that damage would begin to form permanent scars.

Nicolai closed his eyes and reached out for the Modules. They had mostly finished sorting out who went where, and were now embedding themselves in their new hardware. They were less than pleased to be interrupted, but there was no choice. In his last attempts at this, hed learned that without merging, it was very difficult to properly feel his template. It was tied to all of them, not just him.

Once the Modules had joined him, they found the templates after only a few minutes of meditation then set quick to work. First he held tight to his human template, ensuring it was strongly present. Then he reached for the Zero-Twelve template and started pulling on specific parts of it. The Modules helped him, phantom hands of willpower that gripped and pulled alongside him.

Within the Zero-Twelve template, he focused first on the two upper gunlimbs, then the jets, reactor core, and related systems. For these parts, he had ensured he bought versions that were as similar as possible to those Zero-Twelve had used, though obviously they were far smaller.

When it came to templates, there was no issue with a natural loss or gain of weight through age or eating. There was also no issue with losing body partsthat was in fact the reason he wasnt at that moment suffering the most ridiculous level of template deviation from not possessing the entirety of his human-plus-Zero-Twelve template, the Zero-Twelve part was simply inactive, as a lost limb would be.

Unnatural changes in size did cause deviation, but from what hed learned this was much more of a problem if one grew larger, than if they shrunk. Linking these smaller parts to the relevant bits of the Zero-Twelve template would thus still cause some deviation, but it should be far less than he was currently experiencingadding a completely new body part was a far greater deviation than shrinking a current body part.

Gradually, the parts hed selected began to light up. They appeared around his human template, separate and yet attached.

The intense strain his Soul had borne these past minutes reduced sharply. He couldnt help a breath of relief, feeling as though a heavy weight thatd been sat across his shoulders had just puffed away into nothing.

There was still some strain, but it was just a faint niggle in comparison. Previously, he judged his template deviation to have been at a medium-high level. Now, it was at a low level and shouldnt cause trouble with his push to Tier 2.

The Modules erupted with joy as he and they all came to the same conclusions at once, and he found himself grinning like an idiot, wetness in his eyes, raising a clenched fist and feeling the power in it. Success.

From what he was sensing, the parts hed linked into the Zero-Twelve template were now giving him very little deviation. In fact, far from feeling under pressure, in many ways his Soul now felt strangely expansive, eager to grow. Without any urging on his part, it was already attempting to creep out and expand into the gunlimbs, the reactor core, and the jets.

The deviation was now something that resulted from various different places. A small amount from the size change to the aforementioned parts. A small amount from the numerous augments and artificial parts hed installed. A small amount was coming from the more biological changes hed made within his torso. And finally a somewhat larger amount from his bionic armthat was overall the greatest source.

Some of his organs, such as his kidneys and liver, had been replaced by synthetic variants. These replacements fulfilled the exact same role, and were even similar in size and shape, but they were far more efficient. Hed hoped that these similarities would keep deviation to a minimum, and he found now hed been right.

Hed wanted to improve his heart, too, but due to the poisoning construct, he simply couldn't do anything to it, nor even anything in the area too close around it. Far from ideal when his bodys need for a powerful blood system had grown. As a stopgap measure, hed installed blood pumps into his aorta, to aid in circulating his blood. These were actually one of the largest sources of deviation, as it was something hed never installed at any point in his past.

His stomach, in contrast to some of these areas, remained pretty much the same. There wasnt a lot available in terms of better synthetic stomachs; instead there were methods allowing for gradual biological improvements over time. For the majority, as one became more and more machine in form, many people started to simply switch in what was known as a nuclear stomach.

However, in terms of Cultivation, Nodes, and of course his template, there were significant issues with going that route. A nuclear stomach was effectively a power source to augment a reactor core, and it ate nuclear materials, and in this way could be considered vaguely similar to a real stomach but in every other respect it was entirely different. Most troublesome of all, someone with a nuclear stomach could not actually eat or drink to gain nourishment. They could for pleasure, but whatever they consumed would be packed into a garbage port in their body for later removal.

He knew that for cultivation, eating was important.

This revealed an area where the cyborg and machine bodies of Earth were not entirely ideal for this world. They were adapted for Earth, after all. A place where there was no Oma, no Symbiotes, no Souls.

Such bodies were very efficient and effective but they were built for a world that Nicolai was no longer on. However, he believed that so long as he could manage his template, and keep in mind the needs of Cultivation, there was no reason he couldnt hugely benefit from the technology of Earth. He needed to make a new kind of enhanced body, and that was the route he had embarked on.

The next stage would see him gradually, steadily changing. Right now his bones and flesh were still largely original, though supplemented in various ways. He was certainly stronger than hed been before, but if you were to compare his human arm to his bionic arm, the bionic was better. But, over the next couple of months, he would alter the remaining human parts of him until they were a match for the machine.

He based this lan on the fact that the human body was in a constant state of renewal. Cells constantly died and were replaced, yet hed heard nothing of Soul templates being bothered by this.

So, in a similarly gradual manner, would his muscles be transformed into semi-synthetic, semi-biological variants. Something where it was hard to say which exactly it was, biological or machine or some kind of fusion of both. This route was fairly common on Earth for those with an interest in remaining more human in form. Ultimately, the strength improvements of the best of these types of muscle were on par with the best full-machine muscle. The only real downside was that where one could get a whole new, tip-top machine body in a day, going this method took time. But now that downside had become a plus, because time was precisely what he needed to allow his template to adjust without strain.

Nanobots hadnt been created yet, remaining out of humanity's reach, but heavily gene-edited cells with specialised artificial purposes were not. His body now contained implants that produced all kinds of specialised cells. These would start to work on his remaining human parts, shifting them via gene editing and other processes, gradually altering the makeup until he was largely machine, but a machine that would make use of some of the main benefits of flesh. His body would be unaging and possess extensive regenerating capabilities, capabilities that would extend to the artificial parts of himself. Once it was all properly set up, he would be able to heal from severe damage with no need for a repair shop or rejuvenating orb.

This was his plan to push down a new patha path all his own. He would utilise the technology of Earth, gradually changing his body into a stronger form while never suffering more than minor template deviation. In fact, through this method he hoped to ultimately reach a higher spiritual potential than the norm.

This world possessed materials and metals that were especially effective when it came to channelling spiritual energy. His Angelic Blade had been made of such a metal, not only extraordinarily tough, but also ideal for its role as an Artifact. Likewise, when hed gone to visit the Queen, hed noted her throne was a kind of spiritual nexus. It, too, was made of a special metal that enhanced spiritual properties.

Nicolai walked to a shelf. There he unhinged and opened a small box, then plucked free its only occupanta bar of silvery, almost white metal. It was small, only the size of two of his fingers, and represented several hundred thousand points-tags in value. He could feel it, where his Soul Sense touched. It seemed almost to glow, drawing in spiritual energy.

This was an alloy hed created, combining a metal called Elysiumthe most spiritually conductive metal on this planetwith another type of spiritual metal, one slightly less conductive but known for extreme strength and durability. Acquiring these two metals had been very expensive. There came a slight hiss as, on his back, a compartment opened up. Using the Floatation Ant he levitated the small bar of metal, sent it floating over to slot into the compartment which closed over it.

What if, atom by atom, he transformed his bones until they were made of this alloy?

What if he worked to change the makeup of his synthetic parts, so they too contained spiritual materials?

What if his very flesh could become spiritually attuned?

Long ago, Kleos had told him that it was a good thing Artifacts were not sentient. Because if they were, they might be the ones calling the shots.

What if he made himself into an Artifact?

That was the process he had just begun. At that very moment the Elysium alloy was being taken apart on an atomic level and spread throughout him.

The very thought sent a great wave of exhilaration through him. It went out even further, shivering through the Modules as they extended that into the obvious conclusion. First himself

Then Zero-Twelve.

A multi-ton machine made of metal tougher than anything on Earth, a metal that would amplify his Soul

He calmed himself, purposefully slowing his breathing. For now, he was only getting started and a long way away from such lofty dreams. He had strengthened himself greatly, but ultimately this strengthening was still only a framework, a foundation. Over the next few months, he would transform his body into something truly special.

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