Chapter 553

Upon viewing their memories, Jake concluded that it had been several months since he had been pulled into the Dark Void at the Spartan base.

The people who awoke from stasis in this city named it Lastlight, believing it was the only city left standing in this new post-Collapse world. From their memories, Jake learned that there had been nothing particularly special about Lastlight’s history, at least not during the first couple of months after its people had been brought back from stasis. Like every other city, it had simply been a place full of confused survivors trying to make sense of the new reality the System had forced upon them.

During those first two months, several different factions formed throughout Lastlight. That was when the competition between them began. Each faction wanted to rise above the others and establish itself as the city’s dominant force. Each set up its own base, where they worked tirelessly to produce as many weapons, vehicles, and pieces of equipment as possible. Naturally, they needed enormous amounts of resources to achieve that. Establishing such strongholds, maintaining them, and producing equipment, especially vehicles, was extremely expensive in terms of resources. Every new weapon, every armored vehicle, and every defensive structure demanded a constant supply of materials.

And so began the race between the factions to conquer as much of the city’s territory as possible. Every faction wanted to seize territory and claim it as its own turf. Controlling it meant gaining access to resources that the System periodically spawned there, so the more territory a faction controlled, the more resources it gained and the greater its advantage over the others. Those who expanded quickly grew stronger, while those who failed to keep up gradually fell behind.

It wasn’t long before the race for territory turned violent. The factions began fighting one another, filling the desolate, wrecked streets with the constant sounds of gunfire, the thunderous roar of vehicles, and the screams of people consumed by rage and pain as rival groups clashed day after day. Smoke constantly lingered above entire districts where battles had raged, while abandoned streets became littered with destroyed vehicles, spent shell casings, and the bodies of those who had failed to defend their claims. Factions stole small patches of territory from one another, only to lose them again days later in yet another counterattack. Front lines shifted almost daily, and no one managed to maintain a decisive advantage for long.

That was how things continued for a while. Then one faction gained a huge advantage over the rest.

This faction called themselves the Gray Wolves. They were more reckless and more violent than the others. They were willing to do anything to gain an edge over their rivals. While the other factions focused on expanding their territories and strengthening their bases, the Gray Wolves constantly searched for opportunities that could tip the balance of power in their favor.

Eventually, they discovered a dungeon hidden deep beneath the city. It was unlike anything the people of Lastlight had encountered before. The expedition cost them dearly. Many of their members died clearing its countless dangers, but the survivors pressed onward until they reached its end. So they managed to clear the dungeon completely, defeating every monster, and as a result, earning amazing rewards such as legendary weapons, unique abilities, and other rewards that none of the other factions possessed. That single achievement gave them an edge they so desired.

After that, the Gray Wolves came after the other factions with full force. Armed with equipment that far surpassed anything their rivals could produce, they launched one offensive after another, overwhelming anyone who stood in their way. One after another, the factions fell under their relentless onslaught. Bases that had taken months to establish were reduced to ruins, their territories absorbed into the Gray Wolves’ growing domain. With every victory, the Gray Wolves gained even more resources, allowing them to widen the gap between themselves and everyone else.

That was when the surviving factions realized they had no chance against the Gray Wolves if they continued fighting them separately. None of them was strong enough to stop the Gray Wolves alone. They needed to unite against them. So they did.

Together, they defended themselves against the Gray Wolves. Whenever one faction came under attack, the others immediately rushed to its aid, refusing to let another ally fall. The Gray Wolves still held the advantage, but they no longer faced isolated enemies. Every assault they launched was met by defenders from multiple factions, forcing them into long and costly battles instead of easy victories.

Meanwhile, the allied factions did more than simply fight. They pooled their resources, shared technology, improved one another’s equipment, and worked together to develop more powerful weapons, vehicles, and tools. Their combined efforts allowed them to progress much faster than any one faction could have managed on its own. Gradually, the technological gap separating them from the Gray Wolves began to shrink.

Eventually, they advanced beyond what the Gray Wolves possessed. After a long and brutal war that claimed countless lives on both sides, they finally brought the Gray Wolves down. The faction that had once seemed unstoppable was wiped out, bringing an end to the bloodiest conflict Lastlight had yet experienced.

Afterward, the survivors spent some time recovering from the devastating war that had ravaged the city. Entire districts had been left in ruins, countless vehicles had been destroyed, and many of their strongest fighters had perished. Having united against a common enemy, however, they remained united even after defeating it. None of them wished to risk another war like the one they had just survived.

Working together, they not only rebuilt everything that had been destroyed but also continued progressing at an even faster pace. Resources were shared instead of fought over, knowledge flowed freely between the former factions, and the city steadily grew stronger. United, they advanced far beyond what they could ever have achieved had they returned to being separate factions once more.

That was why, when Lastlight advanced into Stage III and the Ravage Contamination arrived, they were ready. By then, their weapons, vehicles, and equipment had become highly advanced, allowing them to meet the Ravage head-on before the bio-plague could spread throughout the city. Unlike the Spartans, the people of Lastlight never had to destroy the nests’ cores or bring down the Titans. The Ravage was crushed before it could fully establish itself, and the city emerged from Stage III victorious.

After dealing with the Ravage, they continued progressing for some time, growing stronger and stronger. With no internal conflicts holding them back and no major threat challenging them, Lastlight entered a period of rapid advancement. Their factories expanded production, new technologies were developed, and increasingly sophisticated weapons and vehicles rolled out of their workshops. It seemed as though they had finally secured a stable future for themselves.

However, despite all the progress they had made, they were completely unprepared for what they encountered next.

Eventually, they began exploring the Aridlands surrounding Lastlight. Their scouts ventured farther and farther from the city in helicopters, mapping the barren wasteland in search of resources, abandoned cities, and anything that might help their continued advancement. During one such expedition, they discovered what appeared to be a massive military installation. Even from a distance, it was obvious that it far surpassed anything they possessed. Its towering walls, defensive structures, and pristine metallic architecture looked extremely dangerous.

The explorers barely had time to observe it before they were detected. The moment they were spotted, several gunships launched from the installation and immediately came after them. The aircraft were unlike anything Lastlight had ever produced, moving with frightening speed as they pursued the retreating scouts. Most of the expedition was wiped out before they could escape. Only a handful managed to return to Lastlight alive, bringing with them alarming reports of the mysterious military base and the terrifying technology it possessed.

For the next couple of days, nothing of note occurred. The survivors began to hope that perhaps the installation had simply been defending its own territory and would not pursue them any further. They couldn’t have been more wrong.

Several days later, the gunships arrived at Lastlight. They were accompanied by numerous dropships that descended upon the city from the skies, deploying wave after wave of terrifying cybernetic soldiers. Each one looked half human and half machine, human flesh seamlessly fused with machinery. Their armored bodies carried devastating weapons, reinforced artificial limbs, and mechanical systems that enhanced both their strength and mobility. Some marched on heavily augmented legs, while others moved with unsettling speed using mechanical appendages unlike anything the people of Lastlight had ever seen.

The Lastlighters came to call them either the half-machines or the Borgs.

Despite everything Lastlight had achieved over the previous months, the Borgs were on an entirely different technological level. Their armor shrugged off weapons that should have pierced it, their firearms possessed overwhelming firepower, and their vehicles completely outclassed anything Lastlight could field. The Lastlighters had no idea who these half-machines were or how they had become so technologically superior. The military installation they had discovered was clearly only one of many bases at the Borgs’ disposal. The enormous invasion force carried by the dropships was simply too large to have originated from a single facility, suggesting the half-machines controlled a far larger network hidden somewhere within the Aridlands and perhaps beyond.

However, the Lastlighters had no time to dwell on such questions. All they could focus on was fighting. But despite their best efforts, they were losing, and losing quickly.

Their weapons could still kill the half-machines, but only with concentrated fire and at a high cost. Entire defensive positions were overrun in a matter of hours. Armored vehicles that had once been considered the pride of Lastlight were reduced to burning wrecks scattered throughout the streets. Every day the Borgs pushed deeper into the city, forcing the defenders to abandon one district after another. The technological gap between the two sides was simply too great.

When Jake reached this part of the memories, he stopped viewing them for a moment. He couldn’t help remembering that Mick himself was half man, half machine. His upper body was human, but below the waist he had mechanical, spider-like legs that carried him with unsettling ease. The resemblance was difficult to ignore.

So he couldn’t help wondering whether Mick had something to do with the Borgs. Could he have been the one leading them? It seemed unlikely, though. After all, Mick didn’t exactly strike him as a warlord bent on conquering the world. If anything, the strange engineer was more interested in tinkering with machines than commanding armies.

Still, the similarities between him and the Borgs were too obvious to dismiss entirely. Whether there was some connection between them or not, Jake couldn’t say.

Pushing those thoughts aside, he resumed viewing the memories.

He learned that the Lastlighters had been rapidly losing the battle for their city and were on the verge of complete defeat. Their defensive lines had collapsed across most of Lastlight, their remaining forces driven back into a handful of isolated strongholds. Every passing day left them with fewer soldiers, fewer vehicles, and fewer supplies. According to the memories, most of the survivors had already accepted that the city’s fall was only a matter of time.

Then something completely unexpected happened. Just before the Borgs could finish off what little remained of the defenders, the half-machines suddenly retreated.

Not only did they withdraw from the battlefield, but they also abandoned Lastlight altogether. Their gunships broke off their attacks, their dropships recalled the cybernetic troops still fighting in the city, and within a remarkably short time, the entire invasion force had disappeared into the skies beyond the Aridlands, leaving behind only ruined streets, burning wreckage, and unanswered questions.

The Lastlighters had no idea why the half-machines had abandoned the city when victory had been within their reach, but they weren’t about to look a gift horse in the mouth. Whatever had forced the Borgs to retreat, it had bought them a second chance. They immediately began reorganizing their battered forces, repairing damaged vehicles, salvaging what equipment they could from the ruins, and fortifying their strongholds. For the first time since the invasion had begun, they finally had a chance to breathe.

Unfortunately, that chance didn’t last long. Before they could fully recover, the city advanced to Stage IV, and the crystallization began.

Unlike Stage III, this time the Lastlighters were completely unprepared for the new challenge the System had thrown at them. After the short but devastating war against the Borgs, they were exhausted, their numbers severely depleted, and much of their equipment lay in ruins. They simply lacked the strength to respond to yet another challenge.

The crystallization spread with terrifying speed. Within only a few days, the phenomenon had completely overrun Lastlight. The survivors were now scattered throughout the city, trapped inside isolated pockets separated by vast formations of green crystal. Entire groups lost contact with one another, unable to reunite no matter how desperately they tried.

Jake had now examined most of their memories. Only about a month of recent events remained. But before he could continue, panicked screams suddenly rose from the street below. He stopped viewing the memories and looked down to see what had caused the commotion.

The survivors were still fighting the crystallized mutants. However, the situation had worsened. Several powerful shamblers had joined the battle, their massive crystal-covered bodies lumbering through the streets with frightening speed.

While Jake himself had little trouble dealing with a shambler earlier, these particular mutants were clearly a major threat to the survivors. Watching the humans scatter away from the towering shamblers, Jake knew they were in serious trouble. Their formation had begun to fall apart as the monsters themselves pushed through their ranks.

He had no desire to help them, however. It wasn’t his responsibility. He’d helped the Spartans before, but only because he had personal reasons for doing so. These people were strangers. He owed them nothing. Surviving in this city was their problem, not his. He had only wanted to learn what had happened here, and now he knew.

From their memories, he’d also learned the location of the Borgs’ military installation that the Lastlighters had stumbled upon. More importantly, he had learned that the installation wasn’t their main stronghold but merely one of many scattered throughout the Aridlands. Somewhere out there lay another, main Borg base.

So since he had learned everything he needed about this city, there was no reason to remain in Lastlight any longer. Now he simply wanted to return to the Leviathan, travel to the Borgs’ secondary base, and investigate it. It was definitely a lead worth pursuing.

As for the humans fighting in the streets below, their problems were their own. They didn’t concern him in the least.

The sounds of gunfire, explosions, and terrified screams continued to echo through the ruined streets below, but Jake remained unmoved. The survivors had been fighting for their lives long before he had arrived, and they would continue doing so after he was gone. Whether they survived or not had nothing to do with him.

He looked away from the raging battle, preparing to leave. And that was when a System notification suddenly popped up before his eyes.

New Mission!

Primary Objective: Help the survivors survive the mutant attack.

Optional Objective: Make sure there are no fatalities among the group.

Reward: +255,350 XP

Extra Reward: Epic Loot Box (for completing the optional objective)

Jake froze, staring at the glowing blue window hovering before his eyes.

What the hell? he thought, staring incredulously at the mysterious message.