Colossus By Design: Season 2 - Log 59

[February 24, 2166]
[Archives of Atlantis]
[Atlantis Ruins, Seafloor, Chinese Ocean]

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The archives of Atlantis. A metaphorical goldmine of knowledge and technology; many of its secrets are still being unlocked to this very day. However, after Dr. Laura Reed passed away years ago, this domain had suddenly become shut off; several more years of painstaking effort and persistence were required to access even a fraction of what was once openly available.

On this particular expedition, the head researcher of the G.U.D.'s deep sea research facility, Dr. Eric Kubrick-29, has commissioned his team to pierce the barriers and discover more of Atlantis's secrets.

The main hall of the archives is massive, with stone pillars and statues abounding on the sides. Due to many millennia of submersion under the ocean, the originally vibrant colours of the structures have faded away; thick green algae now coats the surfaces.

Dr. Kubrick-29's crew walks through the hallway. The doctor himself is quite calm, but his team is looking quite nervous, always getting startled at the slightest noise. As the doctor opens the main doors to the storage areas, a thick fog flows out of the crack of the opening, completely spooking nearly every one of the crew.


(Dr. Kubrick-29): Come on, now, chop chop! We can't keep jumping at every single spooky sight or sound!

(Security Officer Tex-18): Get a grip, you weaselly wimps!

(Dr. Kubrick-29): Thank you for that, Tex-18.

(Security Officer Tex-18): No problem, doc. So, what exactly am I needed here for, besides motivating these pussies into doing their damn jobs?

(Dr. Kubrick-29): You're the backup muscle, my good ma'am. They may be scared out of their minds, but not without reason. You'll keep us safe, especially with that Beekeeper suit of yours.


The team continues to move through the storage areas of the archives; the lights slowly come on as they pass by. As the room lights up bit by bit, a stark contrast to the faded decorative designs of the main city can be observed; dank, rusty Atlantean contraptions in large piles, with hardly a box to hold any of it in sight.

As the group passes through, a large hologram of the Zeus A.I.'s face pops up above the next doorway that startles even Dr. Kubrick-29, though Tex-18 remains stoic as ever.


(Zeus A.I.): You are trespassing.

(Dr. Kubrick-29): I'm sorry, Zeus, but I'll have to refute that. The last group was granted permission to enter, and I've no evidence that--

(Zeus A.I.): You are trespassing. This is your last warning.

(Dr. Kubrick-29): Very well. Have it your way. Tex-18?

(S.O. Tex-18): On it, doc.


Security officer Tex-18 gets down on one knee and equips the railgun attached to her back. The weapon's barrel begins to glow a bright blue, and an object spins rapidly inside the chamber.


(Zeus A.I.): No more warnings. You will all--


Tex-18 releases the trigger, and a supersonic round erupts out of the long barrel. In the blink of an eye, the railgun slug makes contact with the doors to the deeper levels of the Atlantean archives and creates an enormous blue explosion that completely blows open the doors. The blast seems to have also disrupted the hologram of the Zeus A.I., as it disappears soon after.


(Dr. Kubrick-29): Sorry, Zeus, but I don't listen to crazed ancient artificial intelligence. Let's keep moving everyone.


The expedition group continues moving through the greater archives; they walk down a flight of stairs towards a large metal door. However, this one opens automatically; the crew now enters a smaller and narrower hallway. It's still too dark to make out anything, but already one can tell that this section is much more well-maintained.

As the group looks around, the lights come on within a few seconds, temporarily blinding everyone. Dr. Kubrick-29 is the first to acclimatize to the brightness; he looks around in awe.

All the way down a hallway spanning over a mile, large tubes containing mechanical humanoids form extremely long rows on each side. However, unlike the Synthetics that modern humans created, whom look like mere robotic versions of the human body, these automatons look much less like machines and more like statues.

As well, these shells appear to be completely hollow; the body, head, legs, and arms aren't even attached by any form of support structure. To add to these beings' strange ornamental grey designs, which made up of unattached plates, several floating decorative objects adorn the shoulders, head, and backs of these machines.


(S.O. Tex-18): What are these, doc?

(Dr. Kubrick-29): These are Transhuman Mechanical Surrogates, as we call them in the modern age. However, translations from native Atlantean simply refers to them as...... "Mimetics". Most likely because they were originally designed to mimic human behaviour. I read about them in Dr. Reed's book.

(S.O. Tex-18): If they're supposed to mimic humans, why don't they look like us Synthetics?

(Dr. Kubrick-29): The Atlanteans always had a flair for outlandish designs. Just look at the Gyaos or Gamera. We need to study these in more detail!


The group of researchers continues to move down the hallway. As they pass by one, the space between the plating forming the head that would likely be associated with eyes lights up with yellow light.