We successfully land at the designated location on the exterior of the train and locate Rail Heterozygote, a highly corrupted and mutated Hetero-Core that has fallen to Earth's surface. It is attached to the outer carriage and actively corrupting the train. We attempt to take it down, but our attacks hardly inflict any damage. We do not have sufficient firepower to sustain the fight on the roof of the carriage.
Two Constructs are already on scene. They identify themselves as Changyu and Sophia, both operating under the Akdilek Commercial Alliance. They recognize us as the Babylonia party they were expecting.
The Rail Heterozygote continues to move forward, the sandstorm disrupts our visibility, and the number of Corrupted is increasing, hindering our pursuit. Lucia suggests adjusting to operate inside the train carriage to intercept the target.
We breach the glass cupola ceiling and drop into the carriage below. The interior is not what I expected. A spacious, double-deck luxury carriage with paintings lining the walls, and the staircases between floors are finished in high-quality wood. The occupants are aristocrats, and from the look of it, they are still maintaining a comfortable standard of living on a train built to outrun disaster.
A tall man silences the crowd with a single line. He introduces himself as Aston. Beside him stands a graceful young woman in a white veil covering her face: Jamilah, leader of the Akdilek Commercial Alliance. Aston extends a formal welcome to Asslam, the Eternal Engine. The floor shakes continuously under the train's speed, but he does not react.
Aston observes that Babylonia deployed us without briefing us on the terms. He explains his intel confirms a huge battle between Babylonia and the space station not long ago. During that engagement, "something important" belonging to the station fell onto this train. Lucia confirms it is the Hetero-Core and requests ACA cooperation to destroy it.
Aristocrat's Carriage (Jamilah & Aston)
Aston declines the request and states that the ACA will not destroy it and will not permit us to do so without a formal agreement in place, emphasizing that it is their most valuable asset. The ACA's demand is straightforward: they require permission for the Asslam population to settle in Babylonia. He asks whether I have the authority to accept the terms.
I do not. I am not in a position to authorize mass civilian transit to Babylonia unilaterally. I connect to the Babylonia Command Center to inform them about the deal and to send a representative to negotiate with Akdilek.
[Timestamp: +5m]
Before a contact chain can be established, another aristocrat, Ashlar, states that Babylonia would never agree and proposes completing the handoff with the Ascendants instead. Jamilah disagrees that the prior agreement was to wait for Babylonia's response before escalating. Ashlar tries to dismiss the princess, but Aston intervenes and instructs him to show some respect to Princess Jamilah. Ashlar acknowledges it without conceding. Lee asks whether the ACA is formally aligned with the Ascendants.
Aston clarifies that there are no permanent alliances in commerce. While negotiations have stalled, the train is still on course toward the Ascendant meeting point. If Babylonia can provide a confirmed answer quickly, the handoff to the Ascendant territory may not be necessary. Aston prefers Babylonia, while Ashlar favors the Ascendants. Ashlar's reasoning is that conversion to the Ascendants would allow for freedom of movement that no other faction can currently provide.
An alarm activates. The rear commoner carriages are reporting an active Corrupted incursion.
The aristocrats in the room break formation and move toward the front carriages. Aston moves to withdraw Jamilah. He instructs Changyu to stay with the princess in case the aristocrats riot.
We do not have time to wait for the negotiation to resume. Lee and Lucia move to contain the Corrupted forward. Liv and Sophia route to the rear carriages to provide medical support.
Sophia handles the civilians directly, moving through the passage ahead of us and persuading groups to relocate to the aristocrats' carriage before the Corrupted reach them. The mechanoids are attacking each other; the uncorrupted mechanoids are defending against the corrupted ones.
[Timestamp: +15m]
Lucia confirms that Corrupted has been eliminated and that all trapped personnel have been evacuated safely. Sophia thanks us. Lee asks Sophia whether the ACA is using this chaos to accomplish something specific.
Sophia provides the context. The civilians in Asslam came from across the world. Some are workers. Some, including Changyu, were sold onto the train. The aristocrats have occupied the Eternal Engine since its launch and have always viewed the commoners with contempt. The commoner carriages were sacrificed to the Corrupted without hesitation. Ashlar represents the aristocratic bloc. Their long-term plan has always been to undergo Ascendant conversion, so they can break away from shared resources with the civilian population and gain unrestricted freedom of movement.
Lee: If becoming an Ascendant is so simple, Roland would have done it long ago.
Sophia states this is why Jamilah proposed the safer path: trading the Hetero-Core for the right to settle in Babylonia. She clarifies that Aston is not the actual leader of ACA. He is operating as a proxy, maintaining the appearance of aristocratic authority so that Jamilah can act without direct exposure to the factional conflict.
Addendum A: In the aristocrat's carriage, the evacuated civilians followed the passage that Jamilah ordered opened. The Corrupted that followed them into the carriage adds pressure. Ashlar confronts her over this directly. Aston acknowledges Jamilah overstepped in optics, but notes that sending the civilians back out at this point would only allow more Corrupted in. The situation is contained. Ashlar does not accept the reasoning, but cannot argue the logic.
Aston assigns Changyu a squad of mechanic guards and directs him to the train's exterior to clear the remaining Corrupted. Ashlar presses again on the Babylonia deadline, and the Ascendant meeting point is approaching. Aston holds his position and asks Ashlar for his patience.
The channel from Changyu opens. He calls Sophia back and requests backup—the transmission cuts. We clear the way and move to the train roof using the ladder in the carriage.
En route to the roof, Lee detects a new mutation in the Corrupted ahead. The pattern closely matches the hatching process of an arthropod ootheca. This corrupted variant is the Hetero Explore Unit produced in an infected train carriage. We engage and neutralize these.
Hetero Explore Unit is a mass-produced robot originally serving as a train exploration module. Its rotund frame can be launched from train cannons to survey distant terrain. The body rotates 360 degrees, allowing engagement at any angle. Equipped with different weapons, it was used for terraforming and defensive operations.
Following the infection, the unit subsequently underwent enhancement with new mobility features.
[Timestamp: +10m]
Sophia is protecting Changyu
Lucia orders Sophia to retreat with Changyu, as his condition is dire and requires emergency maintenance. Sophia takes Changyu back through the carriage passage while we hold the line.
The Rail Heterozygote reappears. The Corrupted are converging on the platform again. The engagement on the roof is not sustainable. Lucia and Lee are knocked clear of the train's surface during the fight. We disengage and fall back.
We intercept Sophia in the passageway. Changyu has lost consciousness due to damage to his circulation system module, which is leaking vital fluids. Sophia retrieves replacement parts from the train's maintenance machines in the corridor. Liv establishes a direct M.I.N.D. connection to monitor for any deviations. The field repair is completed, and Changyu's condition is now stable. We fall back to the aristocratic carriage below.
[Timestamp: +10m]
Aston greets us again, pointing out that our presence has made the carriage unsafe, as the Corrupted never reached this far before we arrived. The carriage is now crowded. Jamilah's order has let in commoners from the evacuated sections. Aristocrats and commoners are packed into the same space, and the tension between them is immediate.
Arguments break across the carriage. Aristocrats demand that the commoners be removed. Commoners push back. Amid the chaos, a woman in tattered clothing emerges from the crowd and rushes toward the rear door. She tears it open and scrambles back toward the Corrupted carriages. The crowd quickly moves to close the door behind her. Then her scream echo from the other side of the carriage, then followed by silence. She is gone. Liv is unable to reach her in time, but it is not her fault. The situation is dire.
Jamilah steps forward and addresses the room, stating that she has no intention of abandoning anyone on this train. If Babylonia accepts the deal, the aristocrats will relocate there and continue their existing lifestyle, while the commoners inherit the Eternal Engine and all the wealth the aristocrats cannot carry with them. Both groups get what they want, under a single condition. If Babylonia declines, the train will proceed to the Ascendant handoff point as the aristocrats have demanded.
Ashlar recognizes the concession Jamilah has already made to the aristocrats' position. He does not object.
We hold our position and wait for Lucia and Lee to return.
