Warhammer 40: Doom

Chapter 95 I pledge my allegiance to you

As the synthesized mechanical voice ended, the control panel's pillar retracted into the ground, and a blue light slowly illuminated, flowing into the spherical core of intelligence.

"Rebooting the intelligent core, the system is performing a self-check, please wait!"

Endless radiance flows.

The spherical core of intelligence gradually lit up, its data stream almost materialized, flowing with the light throughout the entire Nur Ring.

Doom and Harlan felt the ground shaking and sensed the mechanical structure beneath their feet slowly awakening from its slumber.

The slight tremor traveled along the four pillars to the ground of Nur.

"My lord! They succeeded!"

The throne guards were excited and informed Flano of the celestial wonders, that the Ring of Nur had returned to its former glory.

"I know I know."

Flano sat in his chair, responding slowly to the guard with a warm smile, but his fists under the table were clenched so tightly that his knuckles turned white.

The residents of Nur looked up at the sky, where a blue band of light, like water, spread across the ring that had been silent for thousands of years.

They embraced and cheered, the cage of thousands of years had shattered.

The control room had completely changed its appearance.

A grid-like floor shimmered with light, and within the spacious hall, a magnificent holographic blueprint was projected, like an ocean of data.

Did you wake me up?

Data and a halo combine to form a blue light and shadow dressed in an elegant long dress. She is the light of wisdom born from data and code, a data life that transcends artificial intelligence.

She had a bluish glow, wavy hair, a delicate yet simple face, and her hands were clasped over her lower abdomen, exuding a rational and mature charm.

"Sophia sends her greetings."

She walked up to Doom, her slender body bowing slightly, lifting her skirt and crossing her legs slightly, making an elegant gesture: "Primitive human."

Doom looked down at her, a soul made of numbers, yet her words and actions were no different from those of a human, for she was given life and intelligence by humans.

"I also extend my greetings to you and express my deepest apologies."

Sofia turned to Harlan, her figure, composed of blue light and shadow, bowed low, her clear and rational voice filled with apology: "I already know that history. You were imprisoned on the surface by me, suffering the torment of survival."

Harlan stared at her, at the apology of a digital life, yet he didn't know how to respond.

Why did you block the Nur Ring?

Doom stepped in front of Harlan, giving the champion swordsman a moment to catch his breath, and asked Sofia, "It seems you didn't intentionally block her."

"Yes, sir. You have the right to know the truth, to know everything."

Sofia lightly touched the ground barefoot, and the shimmering grid floor replayed everything that had happened back then.

Omnics have always been loyal to humans, only the object of their loyalty has changed.

During humanity's most glorious period, the warp gradually surged with waves, accompanied by a dramatic increase in the number of psionic beings among humanity.

The psionicists' unpredictable abilities quickly gained popularity, and they gradually gained control of social discourse, becoming a new elite group.

They preach that psionic power is the future, and that only by embracing the warp and fully committing to psionic power can humanity evolve to its ultimate form, and perhaps even become "gods"!
Seeing this, Doom narrowed his eyes.

Making contact with the subspace will only lead to disaster.

The psionicists were unaware of the dangers of the warp; their fanaticism had reached an extreme, and they viewed all dissent as hostile.

They corrupted half of the intelligent machines with psychic energy, assembling a vast number of miniature empires.

They launched a massive purge, vowing to eliminate all dissidents, exterminate those who believed in the supremacy of technology, and purify the "inferior" population without spiritual powers.

The conflict escalated from a simple clash of ideologies to a life-or-death struggle for survival.

The Golden Man, leading the Stone Men and the remaining half of the loyal cyborgs, launched a counterattack against the psionicists.

As a pioneer in science and technology, Nur firmly believed in "genetic evolution" and naturally could not remain uninvolved.

He led a large number of Iron Man troops into battle and used an advanced fleet to severely damage the psionic army.

Furthermore, Nur used powerful meme weapons to subconsciously cause the human population to reject psionicists.

While they shone brightly in the war, retaliatory strikes came swiftly.

A fleet commander named "Valen" was corrupted and betrayed the Nur Star System. Hidden among the returning warships were a large number of enemy troops. Valen deployed numerous psionic beacons in the Nur Ring and teleported an Iron Legion to board the Nur Ring.

Before the garrison could react, they stormed into the control room and injected a silicon-based virus into the control core.

As a digital life form, Sophia could not be killed by the virus targeting artificial intelligence and fell into a dormant state.

Before falling into slumber, the underlying logic of the Nur Ring was triggered, and all passages were blocked.

Based on the underlying logic of protection, Nur's access shield was locked, completely isolating him from the outside world.

What should have been a simple matter of activating the intelligent core and removing the ring shield has been blocked for a long time because all the golden men in the ring were wiped out and the golden men on the ground could not come up.

As for the world outside of Nur, Sofia knew nothing of it; she had long since fallen into a deep sleep.

After witnessing the entire process, Doom had an answer in his heart, and at the same time, he hated the warp even more.

Behind every tragedy or other major event in the universe, there must be the presence of the subspace.

It is a tumor attached to the real universe, constantly sucking the souls of intelligent beings and destroying healthy civilizations one by one.

"I was forced into lockdown, not by choice."

“This is a tragedy.” Sofia’s face also showed regret and a deep sense of self-blame: “And I have an inescapable responsibility.”

Having learned the whole truth, Harlan remained silent for a long time, simply looking down at the ground.

A shameful betrayal plunged Nur into silence, causing him to miss thousands of years.

"What about the other worlds? Why wasn't a rescue launched?"

Doom was more concerned with the bigger picture. The Nur Star System has 64 major worlds, so why hadn't it reacted?

"I'm afraid the chances of survival are slim. In retaliation for Nur's meme weapon, the psionicists released a silicon-based virus into the Nur space region, intending to exterminate all artificial intelligence."

Sophie closed her eyes, as if sensing something: "I can't sense any intelligent machines from other worlds right now."

Doom nodded heavily. He knew that the Nur Star System was a highly intelligent world, and that many worlds would face collapse without intelligent machines.

"Sofia."

Doom looked at the digital life and called her name.

"My lord, what are your orders?" Sophia looked up at the five-meter-tall man in front of her and analyzed the solemnity in his words.

Are you now willing to pledge allegiance to humanity again?

A piercing light flashed in Doom's eyes, as if he wanted to pierce through the digital life.

“I was born from the sea of ​​data, and my creators were the Golden Men, who demanded my loyalty to them.” Sofia revealed a human touch of nostalgia: “They are gone, and I am free.”

"But sir, I am willing to pledge my loyalty to you!"

"Why?" Doom frowned. Why would a digital life form loyal to the Golden Man be willing to be loyal to him?

“Your genetic sequence.” Sophia casually gestured, and a holographic projection appeared—Doom’s DNA helix.

"Your genes are ancient and sacred, the ultimate goal pursued by my designers. Even when they are reborn, they will remain loyal to you."

Sofia knelt at Doom's feet, kissing his boots like a human being.

“I consulted the records of the Nuer civilization, and this gesture symbolized loyalty and submission.”

Sofia's actions surprised Doom and Harlan; she was indeed no different from a human.

“I accept your allegiance.” Doom crouched down and “pulled” Sophia up from the ground: “My subject, I want to go and see other worlds. Do you have any good ideas?”

"Here is a warship worthy of your satisfaction, my lord!"

Sophia stood up gently, pointing with a smile in the other direction of the ring: "During the human civil war, the wise men of that time foresaw the possible destruction."

"An 'Ark' warship was designed and built with the intention of carrying humanity's last hope and escaping the Milky Way when we are on the verge of destruction."

"It is the largest warship ever built, and it is fit for your use."

As Sofia recounted the story, Doom and Harlan clearly saw that part of the ring detached and then slowly ignited the engine.

"The Void Solo. It is 1800 kilometers long, 500 kilometers high, and 600 kilometers wide, and is equipped with the most advanced technology in human history."

(I'm practically bowing down to the generous donors!)

(End of this chapter)