Chapter 176: Until Next Time Crypts.
If audio player doesn't work, press Stop then Play button again
Chapter 176: Until Next Time Crypts.
Aldrich had only ever heard about them on the Net as urban legends.
Supposedly, they were deep pits far underground where uncontrollable threats
were essentially just buried. Threats that just had no way to be dealt with
normally.
Villains that were too unstable and powerful to ever see the light of day
without being a threat to society were cast down into Crypts and just locked up
forever. Alters or Variants that could not die by any conventional means were
also sent down into Crypts to essentially just be sealed away until time
immemorial.
Often times, Crypts were reused again and again, tossing in villains and
variants into the same forsaken pit for them to brutalize each other.
The biggest reason why Crypts were considered urban legend despite their
name and function being mentioned from leaked government documents was
due to the fact that nobody had ever found a Crypt.
"A Crypt? Are they trying to kill me?" said Aldrich.
"No. Not yet at least," said Aarav. "How much do you know about Crypts?"
"The basics," said Aldrich. "The impression I get from them is that they're
death pits where insane villains and unkillable monsters are all piled down
together and locked up in one pit of festering agony."
"Yeah, you would be pretty accurate with that impression," said Aarav. "Just
one thing to note. Most Crypts aren't that big.
Crypts are containment chambers built around underground Null Zones, and
most of the larger Null Zones are in territory too hostile to reliably man.
That means most Crypts are on the smaller end. Not much larger than single
person occupancy, I hear, so you won't have any unsavory bunkmates. I've also
confirmed that the Crypt you're going to is empty.
Granted, there are a few larger Crypts where it truly is a mosh pit straight out
of hell, but that's not where you're going.
You're wanted alive, so you get an empty Crypt.
But you're also perceived as dangerous and unpredictable, so you still end up in
a Crypt."
"That explains why Crypts are so difficult to find," said Aldrich. "Null Zones
should interfere with any way to search for them, tech or Alter power wise.
Building a prison around a Null Zone should make it near untraceable."
"For good reason, too," said Aarav. "With all the nutjobs and crazies and new
age cultists out there, can you imagine if they could track down a Crypt and
free whatever insanity was trapped within? But anyways, you get what I mean
when I say that guests won't be an issue, no?
Even I can't stay on this transport all the way to your Crypt. They don't want
me knowing the coordinates to it
"Hm." Aldrich leaned back against the wall and looked up at the blacklight
ceiling of the Null Box, thinking.
Aarav raised a finger. "But, Mr. Thanatos, I have the power to change that. This
transport will make a stop in Kerala to drop me off, but I have a little bit of
authority there, you see. Just enough to make a very convincing argument for
this transport to transfer you over to an AA department there, one that just so
happens to be quite friendly with me.
Ican't completely free you, but I can arrange to have your containment be a
little more comfortable.
Something akin to a house arrest at a villa, for example — no cuffs needed.
Granted, you will still be under constant surveillance and have no Net access,
but I assume it'll still be much better than-,"
"That's perfect," said Aldrich with a nod as he stopped looking at the ceiling
and stared ahead. "That's absolutely perfect."
"Then you'd prefer house arrest?" said Aarav.
"What? No," said Aldrich. "I meant the Crypt."
"Let me get this straight: you WANT to go to the Crypt?" said Aarav, taken
aback.
"Yes, the Crypt is the perfect spot," said Aldrich. The government, AA, and
Panopticon all probably thought that sending Aldrich down to the Crypt was
the absolute highest form of security they could chain him down with.
A pit where no Alter powers worked and sealed with tons of metal like an iron
sarcophagus. It was a place where they could just throw him in without ever
having to worry about him escaping. They could toss him in there and chit chat
among themselves about what to do with him with peace of mind.
Little did they know, the Crypt was essentially just the perfect gamer's paradise
for Aldrich - a place where nothing could disturb him from leveling up. Aldrich
would never get visitors down in the Crypt, at least not until they unsealed it
and took him out. Nobody could even check up on him because of the tech
disruption.
Aldrich turned to Aarav and spoke resolutely. "Make sure I go to the Crypt. Do
you understand?"
Aarav blinked behind his shades, wondering if Aldrich was a madman that fit
right in a Crypt. He pushed up his shades and shrugged. "Sure, I can do that.
Even if I don't do anything, you'd be going there anyway.
Don't tell me you have a way to get out of the Crypt, Mr. Thanatos?"
"That isn't for you to worry about," said Aldrich.
"Then again, even if you did, it would be prudent for you not to escape
anyway," said Aarav. "They are also experimenting. Trying to see if this
containment will be enough for an Irregular like you. If you choose not to
escape, then you could lull them into a false sense of confidence to use against
them when it really matters.
I know I would do that if I was in your shoes. But anyways, I'll fulfill the rest of
my down payment too: I'll see to it that you'll not only get your hearing, but
you'll also get to it unharmed. One warning, though: it's likely the hearing will
be private and off the records.
I can't do anything to change that. The Tribunal will very likely want to talk to
you about sensitive matters of national and global security, and that
information is probably all classified.
Just in case you were wanting to try and broadcast your hearing to drum up
public support like with that other high profile hearing villain turned hero ,
what was his name again, ah, right, Dracul."
"That's fine," said Aldrich. "Whether it's public or not doesn't matter. All that
matters is getting to the hearing."
Aarav nodded. "Now, it'll be difficult to predict who will be on the Tribunal for
that hearing, so I don't think I can bribe everyone on there-,"
"You won't have to," said Aldrich. "I'll try to convince them on my own."
"..And if your words just aren't quite sweet enough?” said Aarav.
"They will be," said Aldrich.
Aarav shrugged again. "Well, if you have this much confidence in your
speechmaking ability, then who I am I, a reclusive CEO famous for never
making public appearances, to criticize you?
Anyways, even if the Tribunal does condemn you as an uncontrollable element,
I'm still willing to work with you in a more illegal capacity. I don't really care if
you end up as a hero or villain or something else."
Aarav stood up, cracked his knuckles, and walked over to the Null Box's exit.
only have a limited amount of time with you, and that time's almost up.
It was a pleasure to make your acquaintance, Mr. Thanatos. This is just a
hunch, but I have a feeling that this will be the beginning of something quite
grand. Something to make some real change."
Aarav banged on the door as loudly as he could. On the outside, it probably
registered as just faint vibrations, but enough for anyone closely looking to see
and take note of.
The door began to slide open slowly. Aarav turned around to Aldrich with a
final smile and a nod. "Until next time then?"
"Until next time," repeated Aldrich..
Please report us if you find any errors so we can fix it asap!
Chapter 176: Until Next Time Crypts.
Aldrich had only ever heard about them on the Net as urban legends.
Supposedly, they were deep pits far underground where uncontrollable threats
were essentially just buried. Threats that just had no way to be dealt with
normally.
Villains that were too unstable and powerful to ever see the light of day
without being a threat to society were cast down into Crypts and just locked up
forever. Alters or Variants that could not die by any conventional means were
also sent down into Crypts to essentially just be sealed away until time
immemorial.
Often times, Crypts were reused again and again, tossing in villains and
variants into the same forsaken pit for them to brutalize each other.
The biggest reason why Crypts were considered urban legend despite their
name and function being mentioned from leaked government documents was
due to the fact that nobody had ever found a Crypt.
"A Crypt? Are they trying to kill me?" said Aldrich.
"No. Not yet at least," said Aarav. "How much do you know about Crypts?"
"The basics," said Aldrich. "The impression I get from them is that they're
death pits where insane villains and unkillable monsters are all piled down
together and locked up in one pit of festering agony."
"Yeah, you would be pretty accurate with that impression," said Aarav. "Just
one thing to note. Most Crypts aren't that big.
Crypts are containment chambers built around underground Null Zones, and
most of the larger Null Zones are in territory too hostile to reliably man.
That means most Crypts are on the smaller end. Not much larger than single
person occupancy, I hear, so you won't have any unsavory bunkmates. I've also
confirmed that the Crypt you're going to is empty.
Granted, there are a few larger Crypts where it truly is a mosh pit straight out
of hell, but that's not where you're going.
You're wanted alive, so you get an empty Crypt.
But you're also perceived as dangerous and unpredictable, so you still end up in
a Crypt."
"That explains why Crypts are so difficult to find," said Aldrich. "Null Zones
should interfere with any way to search for them, tech or Alter power wise.
Building a prison around a Null Zone should make it near untraceable."
"For good reason, too," said Aarav. "With all the nutjobs and crazies and new
age cultists out there, can you imagine if they could track down a Crypt and
free whatever insanity was trapped within? But anyways, you get what I mean
when I say that guests won't be an issue, no?
Even I can't stay on this transport all the way to your Crypt. They don't want
me knowing the coordinates to it
"Hm." Aldrich leaned back against the wall and looked up at the blacklight
ceiling of the Null Box, thinking.
Aarav raised a finger. "But, Mr. Thanatos, I have the power to change that. This
transport will make a stop in Kerala to drop me off, but I have a little bit of
authority there, you see. Just enough to make a very convincing argument for
this transport to transfer you over to an AA department there, one that just so
happens to be quite friendly with me.
Ican't completely free you, but I can arrange to have your containment be a
little more comfortable.
Something akin to a house arrest at a villa, for example — no cuffs needed.
Granted, you will still be under constant surveillance and have no Net access,
but I assume it'll still be much better than-,"
"That's perfect," said Aldrich with a nod as he stopped looking at the ceiling
and stared ahead. "That's absolutely perfect."
"Then you'd prefer house arrest?" said Aarav.
"What? No," said Aldrich. "I meant the Crypt."
"Let me get this straight: you WANT to go to the Crypt?" said Aarav, taken
aback.
"Yes, the Crypt is the perfect spot," said Aldrich. The government, AA, and
Panopticon all probably thought that sending Aldrich down to the Crypt was
the absolute highest form of security they could chain him down with.
A pit where no Alter powers worked and sealed with tons of metal like an iron
sarcophagus. It was a place where they could just throw him in without ever
having to worry about him escaping. They could toss him in there and chit chat
among themselves about what to do with him with peace of mind.
Little did they know, the Crypt was essentially just the perfect gamer's paradise
for Aldrich - a place where nothing could disturb him from leveling up. Aldrich
would never get visitors down in the Crypt, at least not until they unsealed it
and took him out. Nobody could even check up on him because of the tech
disruption.
Aldrich turned to Aarav and spoke resolutely. "Make sure I go to the Crypt. Do
you understand?"
Aarav blinked behind his shades, wondering if Aldrich was a madman that fit
right in a Crypt. He pushed up his shades and shrugged. "Sure, I can do that.
Even if I don't do anything, you'd be going there anyway.
Don't tell me you have a way to get out of the Crypt, Mr. Thanatos?"
"That isn't for you to worry about," said Aldrich.
"Then again, even if you did, it would be prudent for you not to escape
anyway," said Aarav. "They are also experimenting. Trying to see if this
containment will be enough for an Irregular like you. If you choose not to
escape, then you could lull them into a false sense of confidence to use against
them when it really matters.
I know I would do that if I was in your shoes. But anyways, I'll fulfill the rest of
my down payment too: I'll see to it that you'll not only get your hearing, but
you'll also get to it unharmed. One warning, though: it's likely the hearing will
be private and off the records.
I can't do anything to change that. The Tribunal will very likely want to talk to
you about sensitive matters of national and global security, and that
information is probably all classified.
Just in case you were wanting to try and broadcast your hearing to drum up
public support like with that other high profile hearing villain turned hero ,
what was his name again, ah, right, Dracul."
"That's fine," said Aldrich. "Whether it's public or not doesn't matter. All that
matters is getting to the hearing."
Aarav nodded. "Now, it'll be difficult to predict who will be on the Tribunal for
that hearing, so I don't think I can bribe everyone on there-,"
"You won't have to," said Aldrich. "I'll try to convince them on my own."
"..And if your words just aren't quite sweet enough?” said Aarav.
"They will be," said Aldrich.
Aarav shrugged again. "Well, if you have this much confidence in your
speechmaking ability, then who I am I, a reclusive CEO famous for never
making public appearances, to criticize you?
Anyways, even if the Tribunal does condemn you as an uncontrollable element,
I'm still willing to work with you in a more illegal capacity. I don't really care if
you end up as a hero or villain or something else."
Aarav stood up, cracked his knuckles, and walked over to the Null Box's exit.
only have a limited amount of time with you, and that time's almost up.
It was a pleasure to make your acquaintance, Mr. Thanatos. This is just a
hunch, but I have a feeling that this will be the beginning of something quite
grand. Something to make some real change."
Aarav banged on the door as loudly as he could. On the outside, it probably
registered as just faint vibrations, but enough for anyone closely looking to see
and take note of.
The door began to slide open slowly. Aarav turned around to Aldrich with a
final smile and a nod. "Until next time then?"
"Until next time," repeated Aldrich..
Chapter 176: Until Next Time Crypts.Aldrich had only ever heard about them on the Net as urban legends.Supposedly, they were deep pits far underground where uncontrollable threatswere essentially just buried. Threats that just had no way to be dealt withnormally.Villains that were too unstable and powerful to ever see the light of daywithout being a threat to society were cast down into Crypts and just locked upforever. Alters or Variants that could not die by any conventional means werealso sent down into Crypts to essentially just be sealed away until timeimmemorial.Often times, Crypts were reused again and again, tossing in villains andvariants into the same forsaken pit for them to brutalize each other.The biggest reason why Crypts were considered urban legend despite theirname and function being mentioned from leaked government documents wasdue to the fact that nobody had ever found a Crypt."A Crypt? Are they trying to kill me?" said Aldrich."No. Not yet at least," said Aarav. "How much do you know about Crypts?""The basics," said Aldrich. "The impression I get from them is that they'redeath pits where insane villains and unkillable monsters are all piled downtogether and locked up in one pit of festering agony.""Yeah, you would be pretty accurate with that impression," said Aarav. "Justone thing to note. Most Crypts aren't that big.Crypts are containment chambers built around underground Null Zones, andmost of the larger Null Zones are in territory too hostile to reliably man.That means most Crypts are on the smaller end. Not much larger than singleperson occupancy, I hear, so you won't have any unsavory bunkmates. I've alsoconfirmed that the Crypt you're going to is empty.Granted, there are a few larger Crypts where it truly is a mosh pit straight outof hell, but that's not where you're going.You're wanted alive, so you get an empty Crypt.But you're also perceived as dangerous and unpredictable, so you still end up ina Crypt.""That explains why Crypts are so difficult to find," said Aldrich. "Null Zonesshould interfere with any way to search for them, tech or Alter power wise.Building a prison around a Null Zone should make it near untraceable.""For good reason, too," said Aarav. "With all the nutjobs and crazies and newage cultists out there, can you imagine if they could track down a Crypt andfree whatever insanity was trapped within? But anyways, you get what I meanwhen I say that guests won't be an issue, no?Even I can't stay on this transport all the way to your Crypt. They don't wantme knowing the coordinates to it"Hm." Aldrich leaned back against the wall and looked up at the blacklightceiling of the Null Box, thinking.Aarav raised a finger. "But, Mr. Thanatos, I have the power to change that. Thistransport will make a stop in Kerala to drop me off, but I have a little bit ofauthority there, you see. Just enough to make a very convincing argument forthis transport to transfer you over to an AA department there, one that just sohappens to be quite friendly with me.Ican't completely free you, but I can arrange to have your containment be alittle more comfortable.Something akin to a house arrest at a villa, for example no cuffs needed.Granted, you will still be under constant surveillance and have no Net access,but I assume it'll still be much better than-,""That's perfect," said Aldrich with a nod as he stopped looking at the ceilingand stared ahead. "That's absolutely perfect.""Then you'd prefer house arrest?" said Aarav."What? No," said Aldrich. "I meant the Crypt.""Let me get this straight: you WANT to go to the Crypt?" said Aarav, takenaback."Yes, the Crypt is the perfect spot," said Aldrich. The government, AA, andPanopticon all probably thought that sending Aldrich down to the Crypt wasthe absolute highest form of security they could chain him down with.A pit where no Alter powers worked and sealed with tons of metal like an ironsarcophagus. It was a place where they could just throw him in without everhaving to worry about him escaping. They could toss him in there and chit chatamong themselves about what to do with him with peace of mind.Little did they know, the Crypt was essentially just the perfect gamer's paradisefor Aldrich - a place where nothing could disturb him from leveling up. Aldrichwould never get visitors down in the Crypt, at least not until they unsealed itand took him out. Nobody could even check up on him because of the techdisruption.Aldrich turned to Aarav and spoke resolutely. "Make sure I go to the Crypt. Doyou understand?"Aarav blinked behind his shades, wondering if Aldrich was a madman that fitright in a Crypt. He pushed up his shades and shrugged. "Sure, I can do that.Even if I don't do anything, you'd be going there anyway.Don't tell me you have a way to get out of the Crypt, Mr. Thanatos?""That isn't for you to worry about," said Aldrich."Then again, even if you did, it would be prudent for you not to escapeanyway," said Aarav. "They are also experimenting. Trying to see if thiscontainment will be enough for an Irregular like you. If you choose not toescape, then you could lull them into a false sense of confidence to use againstthem when it really matters.I know I would do that if I was in your shoes. But anyways, I'll fulfill the rest ofmy down payment too: I'll see to it that you'll not only get your hearing, butyou'll also get to it unharmed. One warning, though: it's likely the hearing willbe private and off the records.I can't do anything to change that. The Tribunal will very likely want to talk toyou about sensitive matters of national and global security, and thatinformation is probably all classified.Just in case you were wanting to try and broadcast your hearing to drum uppublic support like with that other high profile hearing villain turned hero ,what was his name again, ah, right, Dracul.""That's fine," said Aldrich. "Whether it's public or not doesn't matter. All thatmatters is getting to the hearing."Aarav nodded. "Now, it'll be difficult to predict who will be on the Tribunal forthat hearing, so I don't think I can bribe everyone on there-,""You won't have to," said Aldrich. "I'll try to convince them on my own.""..And if your words just aren't quite sweet enough? said Aarav."They will be," said Aldrich.Aarav shrugged again. "Well, if you have this much confidence in yourspeechmaking ability, then who I am I, a reclusive CEO famous for nevermaking public appearances, to criticize you?Anyways, even if the Tribunal does condemn you as an uncontrollable element,I'm still willing to work with you in a more illegal capacity. I don't really care ifyou end up as a hero or villain or something else."Aarav stood up, cracked his knuckles, and walked over to the Null Box's exit.only have a limited amount of time with you, and that time's almost up.It was a pleasure to make your acquaintance, Mr. Thanatos. This is just ahunch, but I have a feeling that this will be the beginning of something quitegrand. Something to make some real change."Aarav banged on the door as loudly as he could. On the outside, it probablyregistered as just faint vibrations, but enough for anyone closely looking to seeand take note of.The door began to slide open slowly. Aarav turned around to Aldrich with afinal smile and a nod. "Until next time then?""Until next time," repeated Aldrich..
