Your comms ring at this moment. The incoming call displays no name, only a jumble of code.
No name?
It can't be...
Lucia glances in your direction. Given the recent Hetero-Creature activity on the surface, the two of you share the same suspicion about who's calling.
This direct intrusion is a communication method Luna's group often uses.
You answer the comms, and Alpha's face appears on the screen, alongside a white-haired man.
Vergil?!
So this must be Vergil, the one Dante mentioned earlier. But why is he with Alpha?
Hey, Vergil, what the hell's your deal with those Hetero-Creatures?
You can smell it too, can't you? That reek of demons all over them.
Dante's face tightens with agitation, his words laced with anger.
Don't tell me you're behind this mess again?!
You bastard!
Fool.
I haven't the slightest idea what you're referring to.
I only arrived here hours ago.
Their argument escalates so quickly that neither Alpha nor you have a chance to get a word exchanged.
But clearly, Alpha didn't see this coming either.
I know...
It's... the Mirror Demon.
Dante and Vergil's argument abruptly stops as all eyes turn to the timid little girl huddled in the corner.
Alpha pulls her into the center.
She's why I contacted you.
Alpha points at the little girl.
We just saved her from Hetero-Creatures.
While they were trying to capture her.
Whoever's behind all this, she's clearly the key.
I'll let Lyca tell you the rest herself.
With that, Alpha steps aside.
Lyca's clothes cling to her, dirt-streaked and rumpled, bearing the grime of days without washing. A faint tremor runs through her, and her eyes, wide and shadowed, betray the toll of life on the run.
I...
Every glance thrown her way seems to press down on her. Her voice wavers, stumbling over words.
It's okay, Lyca. We're Gray Raven from Babylonia.
And Alpha here beside you is really strong. She'll keep you safe.
Alpha glances at Liv, saying nothing.
It's all right now.
Just take your time. Breathe deeply with me.
After a moment, Liv's gentle reassurance steadies Lyca's nerves, and she begins her story.
I'm Lyca. My father is Thomas Hell.
You glance up at Lee, but he only shakes his head. It seems the name means nothing to him.
Those Hetero-Creatures that look like bats were all made by the Mirror Demon using the Red Tide.
The Mirror Demon took over my dad's body and built a tower. It calls it... the Babel Tower.
That tower is full of monsters. Dad helped me escape and gave me a recording.
And he told me to find people from Babylonia.
Of course.
Oh... But I don't have a device to play it...
Let me do it.
Alpha takes the memory card from Lyca's hand, slots it into her terminal, and transmits the video over.
You tap the file, and the recording flickers to life, playing in sync across both screens.
The video footage is shrouded in darkness, the filming location barely illuminated by sparse light sources.
A gaunt man stands at the center of the frame, surrounded by computers and analytical equipment. The screens cast an eerie red glow, their reflections bleeding into the shadowy outlines of what seems to be ancient stone structures behind him.
Green and red lights weave across the man's face, deepening the hollows of his sunken eye sockets, veiling his exhausted gaze.
Wearily, he drags a hand over his eyes before fixing the camera with a hollow stare.
I'm Thomas Hell, and this is my confession.
I was a member of the Science Council...
But given how things have turned out... the Science Council was right to expel me...
I studied time and space in the past. Once, I even dreamed of creating a spatial jump device that would allow humanity to outrun the speed of light itself.
But the universe is too vast... and we are too slow.
During the Golden Age, we ventured into outer space, but even Dawn-III could barely scrape one percent of lightspeed.
Too slow... far too slow...
But all in all, that was just a wish I had in the past.
It all started with my obsession... After my wife died from her illness, I poured everything into my research, and time became my focus.
I wanted to bring her back.
Medical advancements don't wait for the dead.
With today's medical technology, her genetic disease would've been curable.
...
I tried every possible approach... until I found a shard of the Hetero Tower.
I was certain it was the key, but I failed.
The Hetero Tower's shard did help me open a spacetime passage...
But something else came with it.
Demons...
Demons are real, and one is inside me. It's still weak for now, so I can sometimes wrest back control of my body.
But it's only a matter of time before it consumes me entirely.
It's already harnessed some of the Punishing Virus' power and created the Babel Tower with it.
Thomas inputs a set of coordinates, storing them in the video.
This is the location of the Babel Tower.
As the video reaches this point, coordinates appear on the terminal.
Finally... if anyone from Babylonia sees this, please...
I beg you... protect my daughter...
The video cuts off here.
