Epilogue
Keygoire was stood waiting at the landing pad, he was at the
top of the massive three-hundred-and-nineteen story building that was set into
the side of the mountain. He was within the ancient city of Biblio, holding a
metal tablet within his hands. Technology had changed more in the last two-hundred-and-twelve
years than the entirety of his previous four-thousand years. The device he now
held would have seemed alien to him only a couple of centuries ago. That was
saying nothing of the steel and glass megatower that he was now waiting at the
top of. This newest addition to the ancient city was so vastly beyond what was
once possible on Honosreach. After the crash of UAV-Abyss, he had been able to
work together with the engineers of Biblio to integrate the technological
marvels found within the craft with the magical runes they were more familiar
with.
The first thing that had happened was that Theo’s physical infrastructure had
been very carefully transferred to Biblio. This had been achieved with the help
of the AI himself and of course Haley Ellison. After all they were the two most
familiar with the technology. Then Theo had taken up permanent residence within
the massive city. The AI helped the engineers understand how the circuit boards
that made up his brain worked, how to build them, combine them, and maintain
them. Then the engineers showed Theo how the arcane runes worked. The AI’s
understanding of these magical runes was astonishing. Both Theo and the
engineers quickly started to modify and upgrade his circuitry, combining runes
and circuitry. Before long Theo had a physical body that was still able to disappear
and reappear at will. This ability was limited to within Biblio, where his rune
engraved projectors were located, but it was still an impressive ability.
After this, the first expansion to Biblio had begun. Before long the megatower
had been built, it leant against the massive mountain that had once concealed
the secretive city. Things were different now. While the older sections of the
city, including the vaults, and arcane libraries, were still off limits to the
public, the newer sections of the city were some of the busiest places in all
Honosreach. This was because of the intergalactic teleportation port that now
connected their world to the rest of the galactic community. While non-human
life had never been rare on Honosreach, the explosion of new species passing
through Biblio was quite something else. Keygoire often found himself engrossed
in conversation with creatures that possessed bodies and cultures so alien to
him that he couldn’t help but learn all they were willing to share. The old world-weary
smugness had slowly eroded into a further of passionate learning. For the first
time in thousands of years, Keygoire felt young again.
At this present moment, however, he was waiting on an old friend. Theo appeared
next to the wizard.
“Ship in bound, they should be here any moment.” The AI’s voice betrayed their
excitement, despite their formal choice of words.
“Thank you Theo.” The AI nodded in return.
Then the ship, beautifully white with its golden trim descended from the
heavens above, smoothly and cleanly touching down in front of the wizard and
the AI. The canopy lifted itself, revealing Samual White. The pilot removed the
wire connection from their neuro-feed and climbed out of the ship. Where once
there had been a young enby, now stood a union of mortal and machine. Their
body was almost entirely cybernetic, except for their brain and nervous system,
which remained mostly organic. Despite this drastic change, outwardly they
didn’t look all that different from their old self, besides the faint
separation between plates along their limbs and torso, where compartments could
be opened and closed at will. Small laser engraved runes ran along seams along
their cybernetic limbs that helped maintain and further augment them. The
largest visual change to their biology became obvious when they turned around. A
section of their head, behind their face, revealed an exposed metallic plate
that featured a myriad of ports, plugs, wires, and runes that all connected
directly to their brain. These connections allowed for external processing
power, memory storage and the ability to connect with other devices, such as
their ship.
All in all, the biggest difference that Keygoire noticed between the Samual
White that stood in front of him now, and the timid pilot he had first met
two-hundred-and-twelve years ago was their attire. They were no longer wearing
the Alliance Navy’s uniform, now they were adorned with religious robes. Samual
White had risen to be the head of the Church of Solas on Ociea Prime. Sam bowed
towards Keygoire and Theo.
“I’ve missed you both. I hope you’ve been well.” The once quiet and timid voice
of the pilot had been replaced with a modulator that sounded much more
confident.
“We have. Thank you for coming such a long way to pay your respects, Sam.”
Theo’s kind voice hadn’t changed at all over the long years.
“The captain, Harley, deserves a visit in person. There was no way I’d miss the
anniversary of her passing. While she has left this realm of existence, my lady
assures me that Harley’s story continues with Selencia, Goddess of knowledge
and understanding. Just as Sir Reginald continues to serve his lady Solas.”
“That is good to hear Sam. Shall we continue?” Theo led the three surviving members
of that ancient adventure into the megacity of Biblio, to the grave and
memorial of captain Harley Ellison, and the rest of the UAV-Abyss’ crew.
The city of Biblio, as well as the world of Honosreach, and the entire known
universe had been forever changed by the clashing of circuits and Sorcery!
© Robyn Timmons, 2025
