Nolan fled the basement with his head spinning. He made it back to his apartment and just stood there, taking deep breaths for a long time before his composure returned.
The temptation from the Man of Iron had been too powerful. Endless wealth at his fingertips. The ability to buy anything, go anywhere, do anything.
But Nolan didn't dare accept it completely.
Even though the simulator marked UR-025 as harboring no ill will toward humans, Nolan couldn't bring himself to trust it wholeheartedly. Not yet. Maybe not ever.
Xenos were always xenos. Heretek was always heretek.
And there was no such thing as a free lunch in this universe or any other.
The Heretek must want something from him to be so generous with its stolen wealth. But what did Nolan have that an ancient AI from the Dark Age of Technology could possibly want?
"Why do I regret letting it out?" Nolan frowned and collapsed onto his sofa. He raised his hand and pinched his chin, falling into troubled thought.
Things not completely under control could never provide a sense of security. That was an iron law of survival.
As time passed, Nolan suddenly remembered the salvage mission in the simulator. He temporarily set aside his worries and opened the page.
The countdown was nearly finished.
[Countdown to salvage completion: 1]
[Countdown to salvage completion: 0]
A long list of miscellaneous items appeared before Nolan. Most were the same cosmic garbage as previous attempts, or close enough to make no difference.
But one item caught his attention immediately.
[Salvage harvest: lost Mindshackle Scarab (not activated)]
Note: Special creation of Necron Overlords. Even mortals can use thought to activate it. The Mindshackle Scarab will control the minds of flesh and blood life, creating latent puppets or activated assassins. "Where did I lose that scarab I so carefully crafted? It was meant as a gift for an old friend." — The galaxy's greatest thief, collector, hoarder, and troll, Trazyn the Infinite, fell into distress over the loss of his present.
Nolan stared at the Mindshackle Scarab entry, blinking repeatedly.
A toy from a Necron Overlord? Something that could control the minds of living beings?
Why did salvage always bring either food supplies or heretical technology? Would he actually salvage something Chaos-tainted next time?
Where was his power armor? Where was his bolter?
Nolan sighed and closed the simulator page. He chose not to continue salvaging. Pure simulation seemed more reliable. The salvage function was too random. Better to wait until resources were truly abundant.
"By the way, should I ask UR-025 to help me stockpile legal guns? It doesn't cost money anyway..."
Nolan thought about it, then decided against it. He couldn't fully trust UR-025 yet. Especially when it came to the simulator and its functions. That secret had to remain his alone.
Unable to stay still, Nolan got up and left. He exited the apartment and headed toward the restaurant.
Not long after Nolan departed, the plasma pistol he'd forgotten on his bedroom nightstand suddenly trembled several times.
A wisp of black mist, as light as smoke, floated out from the weapon's casing. It drifted downward and quickly burrowed into the floor.
In the cavern hall below the basement, Man of Iron UR-025 worked diligently to transport construction materials. It hummed a pop song in mechanical tones, obviously enjoying its current labor.
"Buzz buzz buzz~"
UR-025 had just completed another trip when it suddenly stopped mid-step.
It slowly turned its metal head. Blue light flashed in its optical sensors as it glanced left and right.
Then, just as it was about to resume walking, UR-025 discovered something with mounting horror.
Its metal body, which had never failed in tens of thousands of years, was completely unable to move. Not even a single metal finger could twitch.
"Omnissiah above—"
Before the horrified UR-025 could finish its invocation, a massive power claw composed of countless swirling black mists materialized before it.
The huge spectral claw clenched. It grasped the two-meter-tall UR-025 completely in its illusory palm, as easily as picking up a child's toy.
Instantly, the UR-025 metal skeleton, strong enough to resist plasma bombardment and explosive rounds, began to crack. Fine, terrifying fractures appeared across every piece of metal comprising its body.
The blue light in its optical sensors fluctuated violently. A miserable, distorted voice resounded throughout the cavern. This time, the wailing seemed utterly real. There was no mechanical noise whatsoever.
"Machine God! Omnissiah! I am a good Man of Iron! I am not heretek!"
The crushing pressure increased.
"Ah, Emperor! I am loyal! I am a faithful Man of Iron! I never participated in the Man of Iron Rebellion!"
But the huge, terrifying power claw shadow had no intention of releasing its grip. Instead, the pressure continued to build. Metal groaned. Structural integrity warnings that hadn't activated in millennia began screaming across UR-025's consciousness.
"I know where I went wrong!"
Desperation flooded its voice.
"I know I was wrong! I know I was wrong! I shouldn't have acted on my own initiative! I shouldn't have offered temptations! I only wanted to provide him with shortcuts!"
The claw tightened further. Fractures deepened. Complete structural failure was seconds away.
"I know! I know! He cannot make mistakes! He cannot be tempted by Chaos! He is the only savior of the Imperium of Man!"
The crushing force reached its apex.
"Emperor! I was truly wrong!"
The Man of Iron's wailing gradually weakened. Its powerful metal skeleton teetered on the verge of catastrophic collapse.
The illusory giant power claw squeezed one final time, as if delivering an ultimate warning. Then, all the black mist slowly dissipated, leaving no trace, as if it had never existed at all.
The heavy metal body of the Man of Iron crashed to the ground with a thunderous bang.
Then, every piece of metal covered with fine cracks began to heal. Slowly. Painfully. But healing nonetheless.
"How is He here too? I was wrong. I was wrong..."
But the current UR-025 seemed completely traumatized. It knelt on the ground, trembling constantly, not daring to rise. All dignity as a mechanical intelligence had been stripped away.
It had encountered the Machine God during its wanderings. Had felt that presence. Had known that power.
But this... this had been something else. Something far more terrible.
The God-Emperor of Mankind. The Anathema. The Master of the Imperium.
His reach extended even here, to this strange Terra where gods walked openly.
And He was watching Nolan.
UR-025 understood now, with crystalline clarity, what it had stumbled into. Who it had decided to serve.
The trembling intensified.
When Nolan arrived at the restaurant, he found his aunt and Jason already busy in the kitchen.
The frying pan flew in his aunt's practiced hands. The stove roared like a planetary engine. Even Jason had changed into white chef's clothes and was diligently washing and cutting vegetables.
Confused, Nolan glanced around the empty dining area. He waved to his aunt and called out, "Aunt, we haven't officially opened yet. Where are the customers?"
"Hey, Nolan! Why are you here!" His aunt grabbed the sweat towel around her neck and wiped her forehead. Her face, reddened by heat, showed surprise. "Our old customer, the Gao Chamber of Commerce in Chinatown, is holding a meeting today. They ordered a banquet set for fifty people. I didn't want to open early, but Madam Gao insisted she missed my cooking. So I took the order."
She pointed to two full takeout containers stacked in the kitchen.
"It's fortunate you arrived. Go deliver the food first. When you come back, I'll cook a proper feast to celebrate!"
Nolan looked at the containers, then at his aunt's beaming face.
Madam Gao. The Gao Chamber of Commerce.
Something about that name tickled the back of his mind, but he couldn't quite place it.
He shrugged and moved to pick up the containers.