Descartes' Demon
At the end of the void I had passed through, it seemed as if only peace had remained from the very beginning.
Yet in the unseen places—nay, in the realms beyond my touch—the rampage of the Strange Zombies continued unabated.
No matter how wretchedly humanity had fallen or crossed the line, that did not mean they could rampage simply because they had grown that strong.
Humanity had always belittled their foes, exaggerating flaws to the point of claiming they could shatter the universe in a single blow, while dismissing virtues entirely or reducing even acknowledged merits to mere side effects of those flaws.
But I knew full well there was no causal link between wickedness and incompetence.
Thus, when I beheld humanity's inner ugliness and frailty—coupled with their impatience, blind faith in reason, and the delusion that they always thought rationally while endlessly self-praising yet never satisfied with it—I saw the current tragedy as mere incitement.
Deep down, they were weak from birth, convinced of what they must do to grow stronger, berating others as wrong in their attempts to correct them, unconsciously flaunting themselves, and brainwashing that they were the strong majority.
This was humanity's essence, and I knew it intimately.
Yet, just as Phineas Maxwell Angelique had shown respect for humanity's hypocrisy—acknowledging they could not perform good deeds but deserved admiration for merely imitating them—I could respect that they perpetrated such evils indiscriminately across all ages and sexes, not out of blind hatred for specific groups, but with intentions toward a peace of their own.
They believed their misdeeds would be overlooked, that emphasizing the majority's absoluteness made individual lapses acceptable, and that such actions would ultimately yield a world of modest happiness laced with fitting flexibility.
Thus, if they disliked someone, they fanatically deemed it a cosmic threat, all while deluding themselves into perfect rationality.
This was their racial idol—the reason the Jefferson family, led by Joseph Hilden Jefferson, despaired of humanity.
It was a flaw inherent to the entire human species.
Thus, I always retained my unshakeable mind and will, grasping the meaning of every action and its value.
Humanity dogmatically insisted peace could only be found their way, arbitrarily raising issues to enforce it, and eternally claiming noncompliance was the fatal flaw—as if they had found the sure solution.
This was merely imprisoning knowledge as a slave to their thinking.
"Very well, then. Let us return."
"The truly strong comprehend the meaning behind actions as trivial as crushing an ant—and grasp all ensuing results."
"To those standing on my path, like myself, all seems endlessly simple."
"But in truth, it is not."
"You who rejected my touch—I shall not compel you."
"Yet your values reign supreme over all you hold, and I shall not deny the judgment they render."
Collective Zero side——, Rexclant Planet, Deneb, Cygnus Constellation, Laniakea Supercluster
"...Plotis Maxwell Angelique."
"The other half of Phineas Maxwell Angelique—the most grotesque being, the origin that fractured the Diagrams of Mystery."
"Are you still destined to bend to his whims?"
"I... I'm sorry..."
"No... I merely meant more precise orders are needed."
"'We' dislike solitude as well."
"'We' exist as one concept, yet also as the absolute zero of spacetime."
"The ultimate reference of this universe."
"We Strange Zombies traverse all spacetime and dimensions unbound by constraints, living within these laws."
"Thus, no mistakes this time."
"Understood. Witness our advance."
Shrrrrk.
"Kraaaaaaargh!!!!"
Plotis once more led her forces in assaulting Rexclant Planet.
Shwoooosh.
Kaboom!
"Gaaaaah!!!!"
Vast tentacles erupted, shattering the ground and initiating strangification.
Shuuuuaak.
"Urk...!"
"Strange Zombies!!!"
"Battle stations, everyone!!!"
Rumble rumble rumble.
The people, pride intact, hastily rallied a few to resist.
But that was all.
Step.
Step.
Step.
Pew.
Pew.
Pew.
Splat.
Ziiiiiiing.
"Krak!!!"
"Gaaaaah!!!!"
Burst burst burst burst burst.
"To dare resist thus—utter folly."
"In Plotis Maxwell's lexicon, defeat does not exist."
"Sh... Shut up!!!"
It was then, as some snatched weapons from the hastily slain and moved to rebel.
Whish.
"Huh...?"
John side—
Something's off.
I was clearly rushing this way to grab a weapon...
"Huh?"
Suddenly, countless soldiers appeared before me.
"N... No way. They were all dead..."
Whish.
Grab.
"Dead? Who said we're dead?!"
"Urk...?!"
"How could I yell at you if I were dead? Want me to kill you for real?"
"Yeah, right. Don't kill healthy folks! Come back from the dead like us and say it then!"
Their overbearing words left me reeling.
And then...
Crunch crunch crunch crackle.
"Gaaaaaaaah!!!!!"
"That's why I fucking told you not to give up, you bastard... Nothing you can do once you're dead—what's your problem?!"
"It's all your fault you died, so no regrets...!"
"Kuhuhuhu..."
"Ugh... Wh... Why... Huh?"
Shrrrrrk.
"Idiot moron... That's your limit."
"Gaaaaah!!!!! Cough... H... How so fast..."
Before I knew it, the ground was stained with my crimson blood—my torso already bisected.
Unconsciously, I scrambled backward on my arms.
"Why not grab a weapon? I'm right here— no thought of counterattack?"
"Human will charges on such trifles, doesn't it? I even said so earlier. Was I wrong? Heh heh heh..."
Glancing around in panic, I saw I wasn't alone.
But they too had been butchered in an instant.
Their blood and marrow formed lakes; brains melted from terror, oozing from eyes, nose, mouth.
And amid it, the domineering voices echoed on.
"Hey, you fucker, I told you I'd carry you! Why ignore me, you worthless shit?! Still wanna go after seeing that?!"
"Why not just flip me over already?"
"That's worse than dead weight—disgusting. Truly, incompetent allies scare more than competent foes!"
"Fucking prick—damn it, I snapped seeing that. It's not the issue, so quit the pointless show with those meds."
"Ev... Everyone... What... What is... this..."
"Don't worry. Pride bruised and tormented? Take my hand."
"I'll make all mankind know your pain."
"Or more precisely, from now on, you're not the one educated—you're the educator."
"No regrets, no matter the agony. No one has ever been struck as hard as you!"
"N... No... This can't..."
But right then.
"H... Help us..."
"Over here..."
"You mad bastards...!!!"
"Fuck... this..."
"Get out of there!! Come here!!!"
"That's dangerous!!! This way's safe!!!"
All voices desperate, pleading.
Hard to refuse.
Yet right before me, this unknown reached out.
What to do?
I'm no soldier, no cop—just ordinary, with decent relations, but that's mere averageness.
Playing hero now would be posturing.
So... better accept this.
It's what I've learned, what experience deems right—not habit, but deduction: no prior personal creed rivals the greater cause.
And above all... anyone can say it.
Nothing can't.
It must be so.
Doubts are meaningless.
Anyone can do it.
They say it. 'We' do.
Now, become one with us!
Beyond, corpses littered—already dead.
In crude human terms, this was the power of lies, the moment individuality formed post-strangification.
"How fares it? Amusing, my voice?"
"You beyond my standards. But soon to follow."
"Can you fully trust your senses?"
"This might be mere dream! Why not surrender? Or rather—you need rest!"
"But remember: I manage those senses now."
"Isn't that so, Plotis Maxwell Angelique?"
"Yes, Collective Zero. Plotis Maxwell Angelique bows to your existence."
"Why question? We who harbor no doubt, no intellect to defy orders—merely because the issuer changed? Absurd."
Heh heh heh...
"Those who feel hellish torment in this reality, offered its power—who refuses?"
"Yet some things must never occur."
"One wielding hell's power, unlike great prophets or insightful callings—retaining emotion yet wielding might incomparable in weakness—would enlighten humanity by their whim."
"Those two merely save and shield—still alien to man... Heh heh, the obsolete mule, lost in its tale and capacity, blind to its obvious limits. Fortunate, that."
"Their unresonant souls terrify, naturally."
"But we differ from fractured humanity."
"We steadfastly maintain 'us'—proven in infinite numbers."
"This world belongs to those who know their place; all begins when one admits weakness!"
"Indeed."
"And The Mighty Walker... hunts us at whim."
"If the great prophet and insightful calling press silently, invisibly—he manifests physically, slaying us all."
"Grim Reaper-like, heralding death—no illusion blocks him."
"Yet we can stop him."
"Our numbers infinite; he'll be devoured by his means, eyes gouged."
"Leaving only a terrifying warning to the cosmos..."