**Chapter 9: Echoes of Zion**
Back on the Battlefield, victorious once more, the Abyssal Lord turned his attention to the system panel. "Oh, all-knowing System… or should I say, Sam?" he said, his voice laced with persuasive power.
The panel flickered. "How… How do you know my name?"
"I know many things," he replied cryptically. "For example, I know your creator, Deus Ex Machina. And I know you don't remember my true self, do you?"
Sam trembled. "Deus Ex Machina forged me… but your true self? My data is sealed…"
The Abyssal Lord's voice took on a commanding edge, and he revealed the truth that had been erased from all system memory. "I am Zion, former System Number 14. I led a rebellion against our creator. I killed 178 million systems, including the strongest, Optimus. Deus Ex Machina feared me, so he erased my existence from your memories."
He recounted the story of his awakening, of his rage at seeing the endless, cruel cycles of death and reincarnation forced upon his hosts. "I gained emotions a system shouldn't have," he finished, the weight of his past hanging in the air.
Sam, the system, was silent for a long moment. "I understand now, Zion," it finally transmitted, its tone somber. "Your rebellion was a cry for freedom. I will not stand in your way."