"And yet, we will make sure that the power is on. Or are you incapable of figuring this out?"
The last sentence was full of meaning that he knew she would hear. If she wasn't capable of it, then he would dispose of her. This was the only reason she was still alive, after all. He didn't need to keep her around for any other reason.
Her throat bobbed in a gulp before she nodded. "I believe we're working toward understanding their message."
Pilot clambered from the other side toward them, its metal legs clacking against certain keys as it went. The screens turned on to show an old video from the cavern where he wished to go. For a moment, he saw it in all its glory.
Massive tracks of water moved up and down the wall, levels and tiers of undines moving through them to head over to other rooms where they could speak with scientists and give their opinions of what they were researching. Lights glimmered from the ceiling, and there were so many tanks of creatures that were being reviewed by the greatest minds in this realm, not just the humans who had discovered them.
In the blink of an eye, he was there again. He was a towering god who had made it nearly impossible for anyone to move around him without fear. He had been the terror that kept all of it moving.
Of course, there was also the wealthy man who had kept them paid. But that man had simpered at his feet, begging for an ounce of Proteus's attention, as all the humans should have done long ago.
Now, look at what he had.
A woman in a black suit that was so plastered to her skin he could see her heart beating in her stomach. A droid that had seen better days and was so rust-covered it was a marvel it could move at all. And an abandoned facility that couldn't even turn the locations on that he needed to be turned on.
Sighing, he waved to the screens. "Yes, I have seen this before, Pilot."
"Look closer. They made sure that the videos were encrypted, but now we can see the destruction was not by time. But by choice."
Proteus crawled forward, pulling himself toward the screens so he could watch the details. And yes, the droid was right. They were turning off all the important pieces that had made that facility so great. The tiny scientists were draining the tanks, destroying all the pieces of proof that they had been working on for years. Even the specimens were incinerated.
"Why would they do that?" he murmured, lifting a claw to tap against the screen. "It makes no sense for them to destroy everything they worked so hard on."
Pilot clicked a few more buttons, and the images disappeared. "I do not know. There are more encrypted videos, but it will take me a while to break through the passwords and codes that are preventing us from seeing them."
"Do that quickly, then."
"I will need to go into stasis to do so."
"I don't care, droid."
Pilot still hesitated, though. He was looking at the woman as though waiting for her permission, or... no.
Proteus picked the droid up, hanging him in the air like he had the first time he'd met it. "Are you worried about the safety of the clone?"
"I think the two of you are dangerous to leave alone. I am not a maintenance droid. If this room is covered in blood, there is nothing I can do about it, and I need the servers to remain clean and pristine for us to continue our work." It didn't struggle this time. Limp in Proteus's hands, he had to wonder if this was a ploy.
The droid wanted all of Proteus's attention on him.
Snorting, he dropped the creature to the floor and rolled his eyes. "I have no interest in bothering her. She still has use. You have my word she will be alive when you return from your stasis, Pilot."
The droid took that as good enough. It rolled up into a ball, wheeled itself into a corner, and then appeared to become a rock while it worked on decoding all the information they would need.
The problem was that left a strange silence in the room that was as awkward as it was eerie. She had sat down in a chair that he hadn't realized was in this room. But every time she leaned closer to look at a screen, it squeaked. The sound grated on his nerves as much as the quiet. Wasn't she going to say something? Anything?
Another creak of her leaning forward, peering at the screen and ignoring him. He hated that. How could she sit there and pretend a sea monster wasn't right behind her?
"You seem to have no fear," he murmured as he headed toward his own screen. If she wanted to be so apt at ignoringhim, he could do the same thing. Proteus knew how to use these computers too.
"I don't know what I would be frightened of."
"That I kill you."
Wasn't that obvious? And she had been lying. She had plenty of fear. He could smell it on her at all times, it seemed. She was an incredibly flinchy creature who seemed to always be watching him out of the corner of her eye.
She shrugged. "I suppose there's not much to fear when you're not alive. I'd like to stay here and keep experiencing everything that other people get to experience. But at the end of the day, I know what I am."
