Chapter 807 – The Mirrored Stalemate.

To Emperor Arascus, this report shall be brief for there is little to mention. Lattice #1, codenamed Salvation in Grey, has completed a synchronized movement test. The computer system holds and is able to manage the entire structure simultaneously, the breaking point has been set to one island moving roughly three metres out of position, although the islands are able to maintain relative position to within half a metre. A maximum safe operating speed of two miles an hour has been set to allow the system to keep up. Realistically, we estimate it could move at five times that pace with finer tuning.

Likewise, all the electrical tests have been passed, although the system is simple enough that we expected them to. All the surrounding islands will drain power from the centre, on which the modular nuclear reactor sits. Whereas not as long lasting, solar arrays could also be used to power the islands, past the Kormon Line (100 kilometres) above, efficiency skyrockets, to use the turn of phrase.

Most importantly, the space test has been a success. A report has been attached of the event, as well as the entire radio transcript between Million Man Command and the islands, although those are only if you wish to sate your curiosity.

Salvation in Grey can serve as a firing point for Arcadia’s Hierarchical Communion Null Beam (HCNB). A report has already been sent off to Goddess Helenna, and to Internal Affairs.

Million Man Command reports of upcoming bottlenecks, listed from most to least pressing: Nuclear Reactors will bottleneck at lattice #31, steel parts for the bridge networks at lattice #38, aluminium at lattice #41, structural pre-fabs at #44, carbon-fibre at #52, and floating islands at lattice #62.

Nevertheless, construction on Lattices #2 through #25, inclusive, has been started.

- Report from Million Man Command about the success of Salvation in Grey’s test spaceflight.

Fortia materialized her spear in her hand. Fortia materialized her spear in her hand. Fortia took a step forward, and Fortia took a step forward. Fortia pointed a spear at herself, and Fortia pointed a spear at herself. “You are not me.” Fortia said.

“I am not you.” Fortia replied. Fer took a step away from the base, so did Iniri.

“I’m not getting on.” Fer said. “Not yet at least.”

“Two is bad enough.” Maisara, the real Maisara by Fortia’s side, and not the Maisara in the centre of the base, said. “Why does mine not talk?” She pointed the Maisara in silver across from her, and the Maisara in silver pointed back at her.

Fer chuckled. “There’s an easy answer to that.” She said. “If she’s you, and she’s got a job, then why would she ask questions?”

Maisara thought about the explanation for a few seconds as Fortia wiped the smile off her face. Stupid as it was, it was so in character for the Goddess of Order that she couldn’t believe it. Maisara nodded to herself, the other Maisara did not nod. “Fair enough.” Even she fucking agreed with it! Fortia spun her spear again, so did the other Fortia. The movements were mirrored, but they were not the same.

Both Fortia’s pointed their spears at each other. “What are you guarding?” The real Fortia shouted at her own copy. The words echoed around the still chamber. But she knew herself, and she would reply to a question like that.

“You.” The other Fortia said and the first just stared at her. What a fucking perfect answer. Just the best, it was the sort of genius that she struggled to think of a counterargument.

“I am here though.” Fortia said.

“So you are.”

“Can you leave here?” Fortia asked. This question did not get an answer and Fortia tried to think of how she would answer it herself. Well, she wouldn’t, that was the fucking issue. If she could, then maybe she had a mission to accomplish. And if she could not, then that would only give Fortia the escape route. At this point, Fortia had to stay here to counter herself. What a genius trap. “You’re not going to answer that, are you?”

“Would you?” The faux-Fortia replied. The worst was that the look was purely identical, there was no glow of evil energies. The woman even had the same clothes. The same skirt, the same boots, the same spear. Even the eyes were mirrors, Fortia was copied down to the fucking expressions.

“No.”

“Then why would I?”

“You’re a bitch.” Fortia said to herself and the other Fortia smiled at her.

“Takes one to know one.” From behind, Fer chuckled. And Fortia just stared at her false copy. Every now and then, she would get a glance of the birdcage with that eagle inside, and she would feel the wind come, and the wind was in sync to the animals breathing.

“What is that?” Fortia pointed her spear straight ahead. “That bird in the cage?” The other Fortia did not turn, or look, she just mirrored the motion and then shook her head. No words, so it was important then. “If you give it up, then we will leave.”

“But you won’t leave.” The other Fortia said. “Because I am here.” Fortia stared at herself, good thing she was not Kassandora because Kassandora did not make mistakes, and Kassandora was content to sit in silence unlike her. Whatever that was important, and Fortia should not leave? Why? Her mind went to the obvious solution, because she would come back with reinforcements. With Allasaria or Olephia or Irinika, any of them, even Elassa and Anassa, to just destroy this disk.

“Are you not going to ask anything Mai?” It was just to buy time as Fortia arranged her thoughts into place. A plan had to made.

“What exactly am I supposed to ask?” Maisara said.

“Nothing.” The other Maisara replied and the first shrugged.

“Exactly.” Of course.

“What is that thing Maisara?” Fortia shouted to the false version of her friend.

“I will not tell you.” The other Maisara replied and Fortia sighed. Fantastic. Maisara did not lie, so the mirror Maisara would also not be doing any lying.

“We will leave you then.”

“But you won’t.” The other Fortia said. Why did Fortia step onto here? Couldn’t it have been Iniri? Or someone who followed plans to the letter and not to the spirit of?

“Stop me.” Fortia twisted her spear hand and made the shaft horizontal. If this was going to be a mirror image, then it would do as she acted. Fighting herself? It was not a case of impossibility, how would Fortia even fight herself? There had to be a trick to it. Two Goddesses of Peace stared at each other. Stalemate. Stalemates had to be broken.

Fortia dropped her own spear.

The other Fortia twisted with all the speed that Fortia possessed as the real Peace’s eyes went wide and her spear dematerialized. The mirrored copy flicked the spear upside down, twisted her arm up, and then threw it at the original. The sonic boom came as Fortia twisted, but she knew that the short was going for her core, straight through the spine. To kill immediately, and because the shoulders gave too much flexibility in leeway for a dodge.

Fer appeared in front of Fortia, twisting her claw not to catch put to intercept and knock away. Fer’s sheer mass and energy merely changed the spear’s trajectory as the original rematerialized her copy. She moved to throw as the sound of metal crashing into stone somewhere behind her reverberated through the room. And she would have thrown it, had the room not suddenly shrunk and expanded once again. The darkness closed in, then slithered back out in the space of a heartbeat.

And suddenly, there was another Goddess of Beasthood. Looking equally as angry as the original, her eyes bloodshot red, her claw extended, it was even cracked in the same place. And Fortia pushed the shock away, that was a call far too close to real death. She would have killed herself, and she “That was idiotic.” Fer said, looking at herself. “Idiotic Fortia. Now there’s three of us.”

“Well I know it’s not me.” Fortia said. “For certain now.” Both Fers twisted their ears and adopted a curious posture, hands on hips, a slight lean forward, a constant tension in their muscles. Both bared their teeth, both stopped, both giggled at themselves as if they were little girls discovering what a mirror was.

“Fine.” Fer took a step forward. So did the other. Fortia held her spear in her hand, keeping the two Beasthood’s in the corner of her eye. If they were to fight… Even more idiotic, there was no tell in the first place, how would they know which Fer was the real one once they became a blur of tooth and claw and hair? Fer stopped a dozen paces from herself, so did the other. “Come closer.” Fer said.

“You come closer.”

“But I won’t though.”

“Are you scared?” One Fer asked, the fake one.

“Of course I am.” The other Fer replied. “I know you are too.”

“Well I suppose we can smell it on each other.” The fake Fer replied and Fortia bit the inside of her cheek. Those two got along absolutely brilliantly, didn’t they? “Why won’t you bite?”

“Take a step forward then.” The real Fer said and the copy chuckled.

“But I won’t be react in time then, will I?” Was Fer just going to herself? Straight up.

“You’re not me though.” Fer said. “I can smell that on you too.”

“Of course you can.” The other Fer said. “We are not each other, and we are each other. Terrible, isn’t it? The bear meets a bear.”

“Then the bears decide to walk away, don’t they?”

“But you know of my den now, don’t you?” The fake Fer said. “Let’s not pretend that.

“Is that the cub?”

“I would not call it a cub, but yes, let us treat it is one.”

“Interesting.” Fer said.

“Intriguing, you could say.”

“Helenna would love it.” Fer said and the other Fer stared without replying. “Come on, that was funny enough.” She continued. “Helenna or Malam, wouldn’t they?”

“I assume they would.” The fake Fer said, Fortia had no clue what Of Beasthood was planning, but a grin was starting to form on her face.

“I hate that she’s so smart.” Fortia shouted to herself, just to see the reaction.

“It is annoying.” The other Fortia agreed. Well, so she could be amicable.

“Have you clocked it?” Fer asked.

“I assume you have.” The other Fer said.

“I wasn’t talking to you.” Fer said. “Forti, you?”

“No.”

“Same physically, different in here.” Fer tapped her own head, the other Fer growled. Fortia was utterly baffled, how?. “I can prove it.”

“Go on then.” Fortia said. Fer stopped retreating and pointed to herself.

“You know what that eagle is, don’t you?” The other Fer raised an eyebrow.

“Would you believe me if I say I did not?” She asked.

“No.” Fer said. “Because I know how I lie, and do you know what smells of lavender and morning dew?”

“Satisfaction.” The other Fer said. “And I reek of it, don’t I?”

“Damn right you do.” The real Fer shouted. “So you know what I do not know.” Fortia’s eyes went wide as she saw the puzzle pieces coming together. So they were linked, but they weren’t perfect copies internally and yet Fer still dug deeper. “So I must know things you do not. Who is Helenna?” The shout came across the room and no one said a word. Everyone knew who the Goddess of Love was, but the real Fer stared at herself with a victorious look as the other said nothing. “Go on, me, say it.”

“A friend.”

“We both that’s true.” Fer said. “But we both that’s a dodge, isn’t it? Who is Malam?” The other Fer stared at herself.

“Someone closer than a friend?”

“You can smell it on me, can’t you?” Fer said. “Sweet honey, lovely, isn’t it? What’s the title though?” The fake Fer smiled and shook her head.

“We are fast, aren’t we?”

“Very, I sometimes get terrified of how smart I am.” The real Fer said with all the delicate satisfaction of a predator picking apart prey. “But answer the question, not-me, who is Iniri?” The other Fer just shrugged.

“You know that I don’t know.”

“So where is Iniri?” The other Fer kept her gaze fixed on the real version of herself.

“That’s a cheap trick to make me turn around.” She said.

“No.” The real Fer said, then spun on foot. “I would not attack my own back because I know how fast I am. You don’t know where Iniri is.” She turned then, properly, and took a step towards Fortia. “They are bound to here.” Just the worst. Why was this woman so fast? Why could Fortia have not worked it out? “Thus, they are of the stone.” Fer stopped by Fortia. “Maisara, come closer.” The Goddess of Order moved closer to the pair as they formed a tighter trio.

“What are we doing now?” Maisara asked.

“We’re doing nothing but guarding, as they are.” Fer said, her arms loose as her claws extended. She cast one arm to the stone. “What do you when you come across a terrible trio of bears you don’t want to fight?” Fer asked, and then answered her own question. “You wait for them to sleep and then you set fire to the den.” She lifted one arm, finger extended, all the way to the ceiling, and then brought it down to the ground. “INIRI! BREAK THIS ROCK!”

That got the other’s attention. The three copies moved forward. Fortia saw herself, and Fortia knew she was coming to kill.