Chapter 264: Cosmogenesis
"Another universe..." Kir echoed to his other self. Objectively, he knew he had to be in a different reality. Had known it the first time he saw magic. But part of him had hoped to see Earth one day. To reconcile his fragmentary memories and knowledge with a culture he could resonate with.
"Yep. You’re standing in our baby. Me, Luda, and Aiko."
"Luda and Aiko... Wait..."
"I’m guessing they call her Eyko now. Funny how languages work. I know what you’re thinking, and I have no idea how she wound up being a god. That has to have been something that happened after Luda and me died."
"You said ’they’ wouldn’t let Luda die. Who?"
"Our sponsors. Couldn’t build a black hole research station without a few trillion from the corporate despots. It became my mission to end Luda’s suffering. I’m pretty sure I took them with me."
"How did they die?"
"Ultimately? Same way I did, probably. Falling into a black hole. But before that... they were home when I wasn’t. Luda was... they were a part of something. Socialists. Once we got started, we set things up so they could divert funds from the project for years. Over a billion to anticap factions and people that needed it. Underground stuff, fighting to restore real governments instead of the shadow puppets we had. They taught me their philosophy, and how to shoot. How to understand the world underneath all the glitz of "hyper-capitalism." I agreed with them... But for the sake of the project, I pretended not to know about their other activities, so I could be the face that got us what we needed. If I was just there that day... Maybe I could have saved them when the stormtroopers got them. Or at least died with them..."
Kiryu let out a mental sigh.
"Afterward, I got stuck with a compliance chip, Aiko too, and Luda... they plugged them into AIDAEB. Used their memories to help regulate my behavior. Kept me sane sometimes, but most of the time it was a constant slap in the face. A constant reminder that I was owned... until I flipped the script. I pretended to break. To go all-in as a corporate tool for years. Even did the rounds for fucking publicity with a fucking smile. Aiko hated me for it. The three of us were married, but after Luda died it was just the two of us. Slowly falling apart."
Another sighing wave of emotion filled Kir from Kiryu’s thoughts.