Sigma/Star

Chapter 105: Bickering/Laughter

Ur'wrath shifted past Bahari and Jahari alike, moving in between them without ever touching them. None of them communicated or made a motion to indicate where they would go; they were linked to one another through the mind. Ur'wrath walked independently from them all, one of the few who was aware of his own existence, who possessed a consciousness and could make decisions. Normally it was only Jahari who were granted such liberation, but Ur'wrath was unique. His missions were more specialized and required his skillset and power. No ordinary Jahari would have been able to handle most tasks he was given.

Which was what made his latest failure hurt even more. With what little thought he had, he replayed his fight with the android known as Syn over and over. It had been his hubris that had lost him the fight, an overconfidence that had allowed the cyborg to escape, or else he could have crushed it easily. He had always been given but one task, and that was to kill the Enigma Soldiers, and at his first meeting with them, one had run and the other had fought with him before fleeing. There was nothing but failure in his brain and nothing but the sting of disappointed was attached to those memories.

The massive monster had travelled to the north, had ventured towards the battlefield that was meant to be their first victory, their first slaughter in years. Their initial expedition had been cut short by the Enigma Soldiers, and Ur'wrath had had his opportunity. Now the first full incursion had faltered for the same reason, and Ur'wrath had been there for a chance at redemption.

And then he had received the call, his brain triggering and heeding the wishes of his masters. They wanted him to return, they wanted him back in the confines of the Hollow, down in the deepest, most complex portions of their world. Ur'wrath could hardly feel emotions, but he understood anger and frustration. He could never be angry at the mind, because the mind knew everything, but he could be angry at himself. It seemed it had been an appropriate time to retreat as well, as the Enigma Soldier's had arrived shortly after and revealed their purpose with their strange interference weapon.

"You have come, child." Words from the mind came through Ur'wrath's brain. To an average human, their head would explode upon being touched by the psionic link and Ur'wrath felt blessed each time he was spoken to. He entered into the Grand Chamber, immediately offering up praise and bowing onto one knee to avert his gaze from that of his masters. All of the Jahari could be considered to be in this one space, the entire mental capacity housed between four beings.

Ur'wrath had never laid eyes upon his creators, upon the gods who controlled the entire Jahari race, and he could not fathom what they looked like. He always stared at the soil at his feet when they spoke to him, their voices collecting as one in his brain. It could never be known which one was ever speaking at any given moment, or if they all spoke simultaneously. Some days they argued among each other, and at other times they were strong in their convictions, united in each decision. "I heed the call of my masters," Ur'wrath answered, his voice echoing around the otherwise silent room.

"We always have grand plans, child, plans for you here in this room, and an idea that you may one day join us." Ur'wrath trembled slightly, a faint glimmer of nervousness and emotion brushing through his body. It was gone almost instantly though, his body not designed to feel extensively. "Much of our plans rest on the destruction of the metal ones. What the humans have created threatens us, and we have needed you to end that threat."

"Masters, I understand, and I will not-"

"Humans make promises and have hopes, child, but the Jahari do not. The mind exists as one being, and thinks and acts as one being. It is with this great power that we make nothing more than decisions and we carry them out."

"Let him speak, let him prove his thoughts to us."

"His thoughts are not relevant to larger choices."