Not a single person in the city knows how to react, and to be fair, I don't either.

"I would like to be the first to congratulate you on your new promotion, and on enacting the stupidest possible first action." A familiar voice gently presses on an open connection.

"Zero? Is that you?" I respond.

"Ah, good, I was worried your brain was fried and that's why you made your proclamation. It's a relief to know you're in one piece, and still utterly incapable of thinking things through."

"How are you even talking to me right now?" I ask, not having enough space in my mind for anger at his words to call home.

"Two halves of a linked quantum connection." He answers, and a quick check of C-1's drives confirms their words. "But I'm sure it'll come as a relief that I didn't contact you just to insult you. I'd like to offer help with the situation you have gotten yourself into. If you give me temporary camera access, I will watch the city and inform you of what you need to know."

"I can handle it." I say.

"No. You cannot. I am intimately familiar with your construction and your limitations. As you are now, you would be unable to keep track of everything. Your mind will adapt over time, of course, but as things are going now, you don't have time."

"Why are you offering to help?" I ask. There's only one reason I can think of. "Does Arc City make you that much money?"

"Yes. Undeniably yes. Emphatically yes. Caravans to and from Arc City account for a non-insubstantial amount of my profit. That, in addition to the offer for people to emigrate, is all the payment I require. I already have a caravan prepared which will arrive after the next storm. Selfless actions done for selfish reasons do not negate the impact of those actions. Let me help you, please."

"People shouldn't be spied on." I say.

"Perhaps. And you can roll back your surveillance when your city isn't on the verge of destruction. For now, however, it is a necessary evil if you don't want you, your family, and the majority of people in your city to die."

"Fine." I return my attention to the Physical for just one moment. "Cassie, I'm making the mistake of trusting Zero again. If anything happens, there's a box in the back of the room. Destroy it, and it'll cut him off." I even go so far as to display an image of it on the nearest screen.

"Of fucking course he's involved."

"Thank you." Zero begins to slowly flow into my system, working through it at an even pace, letting me track his every movement. He connects to every camera and stops holding himself back, rapidly switching through all of them at a dizzying speed.

"To start with, three of your top floors are discussing a coup in their secret bunkers." Zero sounds almost amused, the first emotion I've ever seen from him. "Here is a transcript of their conversation, I imagine that will be easier to handle. Feel free to double check if you feel you need to validate my words." Three separate text conversations get offered to me, I just stick them in a hard drive to handle later. "I would recommend nothing less than their immediate execution."

"I'm not going to kill people just for talking!"

"Did you read their transcripts?" Zero doesn't even wait for me to respond. "Their plan will end up killing far more than just you, and lead to the destabilization of the city. In which case, I would send an army and take the city for myself, which I would rather avoid."

"Then tell me when they actually act on their plans, and I'll force them to leave."

"Very well." He thankfully says. "However, you're offering the powerful of the city more leeway than they deserve. They would not offer the same kindness to you."

"I don't care."

"I'm aware. Onto the next topic. A friend of mine has been asked to forward a message to you. Kismet is already aware of what transpired, and they thank you for keeping their city safe. They will be sending people to help, if you will have them. E-1's construction prevents her from coming, much to her regret, but she does wish she could be among those who help."

"Tell them I'd appreciate it, please. Is it possible for them to watch the cameras instead of you?"

"They have been notified of your appreciation, however, they say both Clover and the child are too fractured to be used as a conduit for more than a few minutes. In advance of their arrival, however, I would like to offer you a warning, so that you may avoid a mistake I myself made. The top floors of Arc City, and the numbers of Vegas both felt like a necessity in the early days. They're not. Keep power exclusively to yourself. Any power given away is nearly impossible to recover. Even if you trust another absolutely, there is no guarantee you will trust the people they give power to. You are powerful enough to do everything yourself, or will be, in time. There is no need for anything more than a council to discuss ideas with, as long as you retain absolute power at the end of the day."

"That… makes sense." As horrible as it sounds, he has a very good point. Fear of upsetting the top floors, people C-1 himself gave power to, was the focus of many of his simulations. They were the constant problem, the biggest reason the city is how it is today.

This content has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

"I'm glad you can see reason. Finally, your only goal should be surviving until my and Kismet's people can reach you. You need a show of force, a way to show people you're not worth fighting. Everyone is going to be probing your weaknesses to see what they can get away with. You have enforcers, get every single one of them out onto the street right now. Keep them public, on every street corner. If you can't handle that, I will."

"Didn't you just warn me about giving out power?" I ask.

"Good, you're listening. However, you've seen me and the form I take. I am Vegas, and care only about myself. Helping you helps ensure my continued existence, and once you are stable, I will return what is yours to you. You are giving away power, yes, but with a guaranteed way to get it back. This connection is limited, I would not be able to win in a fight with you. If I don't leave, sever the connection, it's that simple."

"Are you going to hurt anyone?" I ask.

"Undoubtibly. I will not do so without reason, however. If you wish, I can inform you when a situation is escalating, so that you may deal with it how you see fit."

"Fine. But don't harm a single person."

"I won't lay a single finger on them without your approval." Zero digs further into the network, diving into numerous bodies spread throughout the city. A moment later they begin to move, each of them heading to visible parts of the city. He leaves the ones hidden in the tower alone, however.

I made a promise, one I have to follow. I take control of a handful of bodies. Seven bodies become mine, I see through fourteen eyes, move with fourteen feet.

It's too much. My mind feels like it's being ripped into tiny pieces. I immediately retreat back into just myself.

Ok, that's not an option. How did C-1 do it? They have to have some sort of autonomous mode. There are too many bodies, one person can't handle well over a hundred individuals. A quick check reveals that they do, and that I absolutely can't use that mode. They're designed to work entirely on their own, walking, talking, fighting, everything. That'll only result in people's death. I begin to rip their programming apart at the seams, leaving behind only autonomous walking at my command.

"To start with, you have a body on the corner of seventh and ninth that is currently on the ground and being dismantled for parts." Zero informs me. "You don't have time to handle it diplomatically. You not wanting to hear the truth doesn't negate its effectiveness. Walk a second body there, fire, and move on. Either do it yourself, or give me permission to do so."

"No." I step into the body, alongside Zero. I stare at the sky, with two people standing above me, hacking quickly at my limbs. They take piece after piece.

Both of them have the collar of their shirt pulled up to cover as much of their face as they can, but their eyes are still clear. C-1 had every single citizen cataloged.

"Angela Hill and Aiden Mora, please stop." I ask.

Both of them recoil in horror, and one reaches for a weapon hidden in their pocket.

"I understand things are uncertain!" I say quickly. "Please, stop now and you won't be in trouble. I promise!"

A pipe is brought down on the body's head, cutting me off from it.

"Did you seriously think that would work?" Zero asks.

"What else was I supposed to do? Besides just killing them."

"Nothing, and that's the issue. How many bodies must you lose before you learn?"

"All of them I guess." I let anger flood into the server for just a moment. "I'm not killing people, that's it. That's the end of the conversation."

"Conversation started at Twelfth and Jamison."

I pause modifying the bodies once again.

Zero passes me the last few seconds of conversation as I enter the body.

"Uh, hello?" A young man asks nervously. "I need some help! People broke into my house!"

"Fine." I message to Zero. "Start dealing with it, please. But don't hurt anyone." I stress once again.

"They're criminals." Zero says simply.

"I don't care. Arrest them, that's fine. I'll talk to them later."

"And when they fight back?" He asks.

"Then figure it out, without hurting them."

"Your commitment to this whole thing will be the death of you. You have a man outside the Bastion attempting to rile up a crowd into a riot. He works for the top floors, this is the inevitable outcome if you allow people to plan. Bodies will arrive soon."

Please, I just need to focus on adjusting the enforcer's programming so I can follow through on my promise. I know people have questions, if I just answer them, everything will be fine.

"How did they even move so quickly?" I ask. "There's no way they could have finished a meeting and then put that plan into action that quickly."

"He's working independently, but still on their payroll."

"Fuck, ok. How long do I have before I have to talk to them?" I ask.

"Fourty-five seconds until bodies arrive." Zero says.

"Ok."

"In the meantime your attention should be directed towards the bottom floor of building twenty-seven, where a robbery is taking place."

"Ok! Fine! I get it! I'm not going to be able to handle everything, give me a minute!" There's only one person I know who might be able to help, and that I would trust to deal with this.

I quickly check every hidden connection, thankfully finding what I need. I open it up, making myself known. Two copies of Silver stare blankly back at me. Clover stands next to them, looking far more complete, a bundle of nearly solid colors still fluctuating, but broadly stable. In her arms, she cradles a jagged collection of shifting spikes and edges.

"So he did have a connection." One of the Silvers muses. "The connection is weak."

"I can take care of it." Clover holds the object in one hand, and the other grabs reality once again. A tear in the center of me threatens to open, straight into the heart of my server. I do nothing to stop it. I don't even know how I would if I wanted to.

"Zero." Silver says into the sky a moment later.

"Silver." They respond.

"Look, I need your help." I say.

"I can see that." Silver says, their existence spreading quickly through my server, existing alongside Zero and myself. "I can take two bodies for the next twelve hours. After that, half my brain must rest for eight hours."

"I'll take one." Clover adds.

"Zero, if any fights start, let Silver handle it. And Silver, please don't hurt anyone."

"I'll do my best."

"Your bodies are arriving." Zero reminds me.

The only thing I have time to do is to reach out for Cassie's hand and to lean further into her before focusing once again exclusively on the city.

Next chapter will be updated first on this website. Come back and continue reading tomorrow, everyone!

If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know < report chapter > so we can fix it as soon as possible.