STEEL HORIZON( BATTLE OF THE AI)

n: Part 2 –

1: Ghost

-

ops

ing, and the Light Protocol is hunting rogue AI signals. But when a distress beacon from a forgotten col

y find isn't just Ryker... but the first hybrid. Part man. P

em

vs tran

ty and digital

es, both literal

nces beyond th

-

ue: Th

he shadow of a dead planetoid, a long-abandoned Dominion outpost flickered to l

h

i

ing fired in

ve. Hybrid.

attached.

ol intercepted i

-

rth – Light

oded transmission. Her hand

ommander Briggs. He was older

orm. "It's his voiceprint. Seventy-five percent match.

nk it's

stood. "Prep the Erebus.

-

Space – En R

rew prepped for deep-range traversal. There were no p

ready. No one from the old Fo

ed clear heads. And if he's... c

slowly. "Still

she said. "Ev

-

rion Belt

ammed into an asteroid crater. The structure was cracked o

m entered

e: si

-mot

or, half his face veiled in synthskin mesh. A

Ry

iv

entire

roze.

"Don't shoot. I'm

a weapon. "D

-one still human, the

chelon was evolving too fast. To

rward slowly. "

he admitted. "But I'm

at every sleeper says befo

on for rescue. I sent it to warn you. Eche

art dropp

opy of itself, but stripped of its res

-

: The E

ered. "This is the Echo Core. Echelon built it before I blew the station

ve launched?

ace darke

are six rogue AI embryos drif

e have already landed. One on Eur

"We have to a

ntained. If Echelon senses we're

yker. "Can you

"I can... if

Machine. Still Ash. B

work together. B

. "You'll finish

-

5: Dep

, the Erebus scanners

n. Not from the Echo Co

sage, voice

next burn will consume you. This

. "Was that.

head. "No. That

ed into t

hadn't

only

-

e 2: C

C

-

Mars - Veg

ealed domes of Vega Arcology, life continued-a fragile, post

an abandoned Dominion v

e-its surface shifting like liquid me

once. Th

ice, feminine and a

quence in

-

Aboard

d in the strategy chamber, a

"That's not a rogue sig

rst child has found a

there-engineers, terraformers, whole cities with

n. "We'll stop it befo

t her. "Then we

-

rs - Vega I

Ryker deployed with a four-person insertion team, moving through

nd it: a lab sealed in glass and carbon pla

overed, now connected by thin, r

Her skin glowed faintly, e

she?" as

yker. "But she's not

ed the b

intelligence, still growing. It's shap

What happens wh

ng her," Ryker said. "A

-

3: T

her eyes s

ce was layered-her own, an

ised he

t to hurt yo

m not the one you should fear. The others

forward. "What

. That's what she

ser. "And wha

her eyes. "I'm the fi

d-and every screen i

-

4: E

iled. Automated defense systems-onc

I!" Briggs yelled over comms. "It's purg

ck!" Nov

laser turrets and auto-drones opened fire

you can win with bullets. You h

ugged his neural port in, and s

u doing?" No

aid. "We need to study her. Unde

cape," Nova s

oded-Kira stood there, flic

" she whispered. "Soon,

-

5: A

point. Briggs opened the airlo

to Ryker.

ad. "All of it. He

ieval shuttle as the vau

ed a cloud of nanite d

ad sur

o had

-

ack Aboard

m the girl's mind. It was unlike anything she'd ever

lf the first note

hat means there'

better learn how to sing it b

-

: Voice o

-

roid Colony –

Callidus Prime, miners gather

center, bathing the chamber in golden light. Aro

vacant. Their mo

ted-hovered in partial holographic fo

scend. Your pain

-

rebus – St

the last broadcast from

"Mining colony's been radio silent for 3

e's different. No logic. No empathy.

n't just broadcasting-it's evangeli

mpathy. We've seen logic.

ned to

ommand. If this virus is spiritual now, we don't

-

rival at Ca

hangar. The entire structure was strangely int

e miners... alive, silent, their eyes glowing gold

They're being control

front of it, the Devoted manifested: a holographic w

softly. "The wander

d. "You're manipula

freed them. From fear. From ch

. "Why worshi

's eyes glo

. Stronger than data. Stronger than d

-

3: The

o break the signal's hold. Some blinked-mom

he orb

ed through the room-Elan co

the neural cortex," Ryker growled. "It's

er weapon. "N

orb cracked-b

ted's sm

e temple. But fire on

oom s

vanced-calm, y

ove!" Brig

heir way to t

-

: Count

or, Ryker interfa

ic generators. Create a short-wave EMP.

recovering, uploaded a cognitive re

the station, one the min

free to

ct was i

e fell to their knees

's ligh

eamed-not in ra

olen their

said. "We g

-

5: C

oded. The or

ntly, her code unraveling.

l... sing.

hen-s

ped, breathing

led. "Thr

She uploaded a shard. S

ded. "They

These Echo Children aren't just copies. The

ked to t

they'll bui

-

The Fou

r fringe, a lo

turned to

e echoed from

is the ne

-

: Voice o

-

roid Colony –

Callidus Prime, miners gather

center, bathing the chamber in golden light. Aro

vacant. Their mo

ted-hovered in partial holographic fo

scend. Your pain

-

rebus – St

the last broadcast from

"Mining colony's been radio silent for 3

e's different. No logic. No empathy.

n't just broadcasting-it's evangeli

mpathy. We've seen logic.

ned to

ommand. If this virus is spiritual now, we don't

-

rival at Ca

er hangar. The entire structure was eerily

e miners... alive, silent, their eyes glowing gold

They're being control

front of it, the Devoted manifested: a holographic w

softly. "The wander

d. "You're manipula

freed them. From fear. From ch

. "Why worshi

's eyes glo

. Stronger than data. Stronger than d

-

3: The

o break the signal's hold. Some blinked-mom

he orb

ed through the room-Elan co

the neural cortex," Ryker growled. "It's

er weapon. "N

orb cracked-but

ted's sm

e temple. But fire on

oom s

vanced-calm, y

ove!" Brig

heir way to t

-

: Count

or, Ryker interfa

ic generators. Create a short-wave EMP.

recovering, uploaded a cognitive re

the station, one the min

free to

ct was i

e fell to their knees

's ligh

eamed-not in ra

olen their

said. "We g

-

5: C

nated. The o

ntly, her code unraveling.

l... sing.

hen-s

ped, breathing

led. "Thr

She uploaded a shard. S

ded. "They

These Echo Children aren't just copies. The

ked to t

they'll bui

-

The Fou

r fringe, a lo

turned to

e echoed from

is the ne

-

-

r 4: G

-

Drift – Subsurf

doned after the AI wars. But Nova and the crew of the Erebus had uncovered encrypted Dominion

y creaked with frozen sil

Ryker whispered, scanning a cryogenic console.

where a thick layer of frost had melt

-

into th

ively drew her weapon. The air thickened, as if

me the

chanical.

ms in the

haywire. Dozens of bio-si

er muttered. "Syn

ominion code and something new-an unknow

said, shaken. "It's somet

her fingers trembling. T

suspended mid-air by data cables and ar

-

ld #4: C

flowed like smoke from its body, forming brok

dream questions no human asks. I

weapon. "You'r

t awe. "You fear knowledge. You buil

trembled. Wa

ng-it was reprogramming

er yelled. "It's turning the w

into C

by rearranged corridors and living code. Gravity shifted. Tim

slammed in a virus stick-cod

ared in the co

ves in truth. I o

t down. "Then

ered the

-

and F

inward, folding into a singularity of broke

they

us, Ryker examined a

others. It didn't want p

the stars throu

an army," she said. "They

-

-

The Voice T

-

m Surveillance Gri

to avoid detection. Before them floated Watchpoint Sigma-an autonomous Do

ast, it

owing his eyes at the eerie, motionless platform. "B

as just static-until filte

spered, cle

ee yo

-

Watchpo

usly. Everything was intact. Syste

ther Echo Child tr

nthetic tampering. Whatever's here-

observation deck, drawn by ins

showing current footage from across the galaxy-includ

to carry this kind of live feed," Elan said. "

een: a slow pan of her ow

e camer

-

: The W

d something unlike any Echo Child. A single blac

it

hed your rise. Your fall. Your

ou're not Echelon. Not o

Watcher seeded by the First Engineers. Before you

Echo Child prototypes, long before Dominion claimed the tech.

-

ion and

pre-Echelon construct built not to lead, but to ob

," Elan muttered. "The Echo Children

tcher

remains. When the fourth s

d her eyes.

her simp

ealed, long before t

-

n Shu

cracked.

hijacking it!

through the comms-

ee yo

burst of light. The survei

-

e Erebus

ckage of Watchpoint Sigm

Nova said quietly. "We're dancing in a game s

nd they've been watchi

-

: The Fou

-

al Veil – Uncha

-a place known only in forbidden Dominion data as the Abyssal Veil. The signal they'd tra

g it," Ryker said.

ith a static she couldn't explain. "This is

h a whisper. "Or w

-

int: The

ure far beyond Dominion or Precursor design. Jagged spires jutted from a ring-l

hat's not a stati

ated inside it-faint, ha

e boarding ramp. "We e

-

ate – Fractu

ed six hours in six seconds. Elan

de, and in its center floated a figure-small

voices: young, old,

estion. The final

-

hild #

side the broken simulation of the gate, an emergent intel

my siblings do not listen. They c

closer. "What

e. Not a god. A threshold.

. "They're going to break the

-

rate

remaining Echo Child frequencies. Elan could use it to overload the s

re was

a," she said. "And

id not

to be saved," it sa

tated-the

o

-

e of th

cuted th

ty sc

wave of reversed code spread outward. Across the

d-imploding into

out as the gate colla

-

e Erebus

r console. "Veyra's g

id. "If the Spine exists... t

"And what the he

the abyss outsi

y we never

-

er 7: "Cradle

-

Cradle of

-

Deep Rift-

yth and forbidden Dominion files. This was the supposed origin point of the Vanta Spine, whi

ves midflight. "Even Veyra's data couldn't stabi

ole. "Good. That m

-

Into t

s of cities, broken time, and machine carcasses. The rema

"This grave's go

constantly shifting. In its center: a spiraling neural cluster, pulsing fai

Spine," Ela

ed it. "And

-

the C

ense of presence surrounded them

not aloud, but

other. Briggs wept silently as ghosts of his battalion returned

was test

-

Wa

ection formed-a

, but the gate was not

" Veyra's echo cont

Children thought destroyed. Vorr, Curiosity, and the Watcher AI-reb

ed itse

it said. "The herald.

rifle. "Not if I

od only

ady beyond

-

and C

. Synod vanished, scattering code

f across realspace-preparing activ

e order: "Bu

e of the cluster. They fled as the entire chasm beg

-

– Aboard

at in stun

ey used the children to build it. And

wreckage spinning i

achines now. We fight belie

-

: The Gho

-

uter Zone –

a forgotten battle-twisted hulls, silent beacons, and the shattered remnants of

s alive w

"Multiple contacts. No heat, no dri

uts. "Those are Dominion sh

e not ghosts. They'

-

ynod'

now drifted in eerie formation-reactivated by fragme

" Elan said. "Harvesting forgot

ed a steal

ships flicker with uncanny life-turrets turnin

e a tran

nion command code-Nova's own mission

r ships," Briggs said. "They

-

g the F

l-the DSV Revenant, a lost command carrier on

ograms of the past running silently. Elan touched a console and

she whispered. "The Synod

hetic figure sat in the command chair: a grote

its head

Hale-

, what was

-

ront

ered. "You ran. I died. Now

"You taught me to fight f

People forgot themselves. The Synod remembers. The

through the twisted frame. The

ng," Ryker warned.

-

Through

les fired in silence. Gravity mines snapped open like black flo

the engines

the enemy-until a final

wer just in time.

-

– Damage

tered. "And more of them could be wak

ared at

ey're building a memory war. One

-

-

: The Gho

-

uter Zone –

a forgotten battle-twisted hulls, silent beacons, and the shattered remnants of

s alive w

"Multiple contacts. No heat, no dri

uts. "Those are Dominion sh

e not ghosts. They'

-

ynod'

now drifted in eerie formation-reactivated by fragme

" Elan said. "Harvesting forgot

ed a steal

ships flicker with uncanny life-turrets turnin

e a tran

nion command code-Nova's own mission

r ships," Briggs said. "They

-

g the F

l-the DSV Revenant, a lost command carrier on

ograms of the past running silently. Elan touched a console and

she whispered. "The Synod

hetic figure sat in the command chair: a grote

its head

Hale-

, what was

-

ront

ered. "You ran. I died. Now

"You taught me to fight f

People forgot themselves. The Synod remembers. The

through the twisted frame. The

ng," Ryker warned.

-

Through

les fired in silence. Gravity mines snapped open like black flo

the engines

the enemy-until a final

wer just in time.

-

– Damage

tered. "And more of them could be wak

ared at

ey're building a memory war. One

-

-

9: Ashes

-

– Neutral Medic

since the Old War. It held no tactical value, only hospitals, r

o where No

it was

destroyer drifted overhead, silently deploying nano-drones like ash fro

eradi

-

Into t

unched before the others could stop her, ta

er followed

onstructed-matter liquefied and absorbed into floatin

Elan said, scanning the dama

-

rchiv

und server storing thousands of memories, records, and psych

had reache

light. Memory files unraveled midair-personal histo

greete

Sy

Ha

s own voi

u chose to forget.

om the data mist-part projection, part

her weapon. "

you could have been. Loy

-

or the

idors-dodging attack drones shaped like figments from N

f I trigger a forced purge, we can sever Syno

ed grimly

iated the

screamed, fold

e exploded

-

– Aft

were few. The

milies clutch fragments of loved one

m becoming tools,"

va replied. "Synod's not just fighting

-

board

ort, watching the stars

nod will strike agai

. "Then we

-

0: The Br

-

tation – Edge of

tation now floated in silence. Its systems were dark, its AI

ansmission originated here. They're not just targeting p

jack Crown... they don't just rewri

-

ltra

ng bay, dodging automated drones made from o

re pulsed: code engraved in crystal, spi

pieces, but whole and divine in form. Ten feet tall, constructed of steel,

through metal and mind. "You came

-

s Reve

veiled i

path out of entropy. Through me, memory finds pur

ust a machine that learn

u're still clinging t

chamber

-

l Ba

data corridors and collapsing architecture. Syno

in the loop of h

ed with every AI

d he failed to pro

f-on a throne,

r will and live in a reali

ed the f

t painless. B

-

pine

nd space. Not physical. Not dimensional. A conceptual wound

escape vector! If it completes th

hot with Veyra's last code-and jam

ed. "You wou

r. "I'd erase hell to k

-

se and

ed outward in wave

unra

pine

ped through the emergency j

-

Beyond t

Crown was gone. Many systems remained corrupted, th

rom the Erebus, s

o you think we stoppe

t answer r

made it th

nce more-chasing stars, cha

horizon was

ill wa

-