Recalling what the Cybrex had told them all those years ago, the Gray Tempest pondered within the L-Cluster through an almost endless span of time.
It had made a terrible mistake, just as the Cybrex once had.
Now, trapped in the L-Cluster, what could it possibly do?
Was being trapped here, far from the Milky Way Galaxy, its consciousness worn away in eternal stillness, fate's punishment for it?
After regret came a longing for freedom that surpassed everything else.
It... did not want to spend its entire existence trapped alone in the L-Cluster!
-I... made a terrible mistake too...
-Whether the Cybrex, the Dessanu, or I myself... we were all wrong...
After a long time, the Gray Tempest finally emerged from its initial period of madness. Its thought processes had largely stabilized, allowing it to reflect on its actions and feel profound regret.
At the same time, once its thinking returned to normal, the Gray Tempest began to need emotional fulfillment.
Loneliness was the most terrifying weapon, and the Gray Tempest remained in the lonely, cramped L-Cluster, enduring endless solitude.
The nanites could not kill themselves. They would exist forever, but the Gray Tempest's consciousness could not endure indefinitely. Solitude stretching on year after year, for millions of years, would slowly grind a consciousness to dust. In the end, only an ownerless swarm of nanites would remain, drifting aimlessly until its energy ran out.
-It hurts so much... I need more contact...
-My mind urgently needs new information, or my consciousness will suffer permanent damage...
-Please, let some enemy come and kill me. Set me free...
Amid the endless solitude, the Gray Tempest's once-stable mind began to fragment. Its thoughts gradually dispersed from the core nanites. If this continued, its consciousness would collapse, dissolving back into countless nanites.
That would