"...and those who have tasted the electron arrow and the blades knew what was upon them...the slayer of Swarm and Apocrea alike. To each their own, King."

*blink* Aeternum Leverage successful. Mission complete.

"And with that said, Cradle is finally clear of the threat."

He puts the Rolling Thunderbow on his back and draws the Thunderhead, following KV-103.

"I wonder what's gonna happen now..."

I watched the shower of light fly over us, before backing away at the Adjutant's order. With the news that the Neofactorem was now out of commission after it completed its salvo.

"We've repelled the Swarm and the Apocrea from the Neofactorem. At last, our prophecy is fulfilled." I said, holstering my weapons. Yet, I could feel that this wasn't over by any means...

. . .

I recognized that this was an avatar of the Sleeper who had helped us defend the village earlier. I wasn't sure what to ask them first. Remembering that email I had receieved, I checked my inbox and discovered someone had sent me another email during the battle, and who sent it caught me by surprise.

{Subject: Miss ya!
To: LV-909 "Ignem"
From: LV-907 "Locus"
Sent: 4 minutes ago
Body: "Howdy. Thought I had expired, right?

Woke up somewhere else. Think the local nature sprites said it was the Firestorm Citadel, or whatever was left of the kingdom of Almire. I think I was more worried with where you and the others were! While I was trying to figure out why my connection settings were broken, I found my way outta there with the help of some other Machinauts and got to the Refuge they set up.

When I got there I saw Tenebris and Tempus (phew!) and they told me you were off on the front lines, then we just got the word that ya just showed off the darkness we were created to fight. On that note, congrats! I'm just a little disappointed I didn't get to join ya for the party. How was it?

Hopefully see you soon
- Locus"}

{Of all the places she could've ended up, why Almire? At the very least, I have closure. The squad is safe.}

(And I know I missed the final battle, sorry. Doctorspacebar kept me updated on Steam. Anyway, I quickly wrapped up a hanging plot thread before the endgame exposition hits, and I will probably have a bit of a lengthy afterword about my own experience with the roleplay when it's all said and done. On that note...)
_
Intermission (2020)

Me: "So, you've been silent for a while. Why?"

Ignem: "I never thought to speak until I processed the thoughts I wanted to say to Zallinock. Then we had to defend the Neofactorem."

Me: "But didn't that lead to his death?"

Ignem: "It was...regrettable. Had you been around, would you have commanded me to stand down?"

Me: "Probably? But anyway, onto the questions about things you missed, now that we're kind of at the end of the game."

Me: "At one point, someone asked what you'll do after the conflict is over. What would you do?"

Ignem: "Peace is not only earned, it must be kept. And what's to say the Apocrea and the Swarm will be the last threats facing Cradle? Someone must be there if the peace is broken again. I predict I will be in active service for a very, very long time."

Me: "What do you want to ask the Sleeper?"

Ignem: "I'm not sure. It feels like I have closure to almost everything, and what I feel I don't have any answers on is something I don't know..."

Back to your regularly[citation needed] scheduled Machinauts.

"I don't have much to say... " KV-103 said, "But, great sleeper, is it possible to permanently destroy the swarm or Apocrea? We dealt them a great blow today, but I doubt it is the last we would see of them. Maybe not in my lifetime, but I would rather not kick this can down the road if at all possible."

Since Matikclocker had no exact questions to give to the Sleeper (because he didn't really have any that would be relevant in line with what KV-103 and LV-909 said), he kept silent for a moment, spending the time analyzing the Mission Outcome logs...

Mission Outcome:

Major damage dealt to Swarm forces.
Major damage dealt to Apocrean forces.
High Engineer Zallinock has passed away.
Sleeper Fragment survived.
No serious losses incurred.
Mission Accomplished.

Most Valued Possession: Winter Fury (Entire Upgrade Line Finished)
Fated Shot: Rolling Thunderbow: Final Arrow (Assisted in Apocrean & Swarm destruction)
CRS Construction Requests: Approximately 5 to 7 requests
Final Loadout Assessment: Hailstorm Ranger (Unique Variants/Weapon styles, Loadout classification)
All data saved.

"It's been a long time since I've last heard the words "Mission accomplished", especially from someone who isn't from the Matik Co. leader. This feeling, it's really refreshing...and I do believe--"

And thus, he has received a message sent at an unknown time, from an ambigious location. From someone no one might've remembered - Matik himself.

"Hey, is that thing working?"
...
"Look, I'm fairly sure this doesn't reach you, but if it does, I decided to retire and uh, what's it called...disband Matik Co? Disband, most likely left it in hands of other people. I just want to pursue a better career...of a freelancer. So, if you could proceed to extractio--" *beep*

"I'm not returning there. My place is with the Advance Force. King, Ignem, Adjutant, everyone...it's been an honor fighting alongside all of you. And despite my rather foreign roots, I'm willing to give you my all. I'll go help with your war against the minor Swarm & Apocrea nests - this place has a lot to discover, so for me, there's no point in leaving. I mean, we're just getting started, so why stop here?"

Sheathing the Thunderhead, he stands for a moment in one place, possibly examining the Winter Fury with its safety mode enabled. It has come a long road, from being a weapon used first in Mardrux's offices all the way to one of legendary weapons - true dedication at its finest.

"Those who have tasted the arrow and blade...the Swarm and Apocrea, will know what awaits them. Sooner or later, one way or the other."

* * * * *MACHINAUT EPILOGUE* * * * *
Matikclocker M-OVC-2002 has decided to denounce any and all relations with Matik Co, pledging himself to the cause as part of the Advance Force. He tried to overhaul the CRS Factory to serve both its intended function and as a research & exploration facility (now renamed from 'Clocker Respawn System' to 'Over Clocker Institute' (aka OCI)), on the way modifying some of his own firmware to add extensive analysis functions over time and to remove any linkage with his former manufacturer (except his iconic Overclocking system). He occassionally joins up with the Advance Force for minor missions, to relive the old times as well.

Rumors say his serial number of 'M-OVC-2002 Battle Robot' no longer suits him, some entities claiming with such advancements made, he should be known as 'the eight Clocker prototype', or 'Matikclocker M-OCI-2020 Advance Ranger Robot'.

He might've been known as a pseudo-Machinaut straight from foreign hands, but he himself feels like he's one with the team, like a full-form Machinaut.

Matik Co. staff was planning to give him the nickname of 'The Hailstorm' as per his loadout that is based around Shock and Freeze, but have pulled back after Clocker's sudden denouncement. Whether the term 'Stormclocker' fits him better than 'Matikclocker' is up for interpretation, however, he himself identifies as Matikclocker, but can let others name him differently if they desire so.

((Didn't expect me to get rid of Matik Co like that, right? Overall, when I looked back at myself during Chapter 2, I asked myself, what was I even doing at all. The idea of Matikclocker, his Overclocking and Respawn mechanics were quite farfetched now that I look at it, especially when at some point I revealed him to be an Isoran-built robot from a Matik Co blueprint. All of it, the entire concept was really bizarre to say the least - something half the structural integrity of a normal Machinaut that can enter Plus and X modes with sufficient drive tuning and processor speed raising, alongside an option to return to battle without the need for a revive? Yeah. The ending was a way to show that I have changed from my hot headed ways to a calm one - a huge advancement for someone who had a meltdown over a full shock right before charge completion in a fight against Mardrux, and that despite foreign roots, he's ready to give his all and devote himself to the cause. Still, it's been a wild ride, straight to the end. I just want to thank DSB for making this RP enjoyable and probably one of the main reasons I kept lurking around in the forums, and for dedication with his work - nearly 6 years since it all started. Now that we've ultimately reached the wrap-up, I wonder what are we all gonna do from now on.

Personally, I'm willing to read the last few additional bits of the epilogue, and then probably return to my usual everyday business - Discord, games and chill. I'll miss this roleplay very much and I hope there could be like, a special spinoff of sorts, perhaps loosely related to Spiral Knights, but with the same iconic loadout everyone has - from the blades like Durandal, Eviscerator, Thunderhead and Argilo's Arbiter, to the guns, like Winter Fury or Northstar Tempest, or even the Gravitime bomb.

Either way, I'm honestly surprised by how much have we went through through these years, and I'm kinda sad that a majority of users who have inactive Machinauts well...went inactive. Maybe they'll see how the story has concluded - which makes me wonder, what happened to the inactive Machinauts prior to the closing of the story. And with that being said, I guess this is it. I'll miss Machinauts. If anything, I have a Steam, a Discord, so I'm always available to talk at any time if you want my username or anything. Once again, thanks for making Machinauts what it is today.))

((Will have next segment ready tomorrow. See you tomorrow.))

((Dang! Something came up that took up my time (don't worry, it's not coronavirus). Well, wouldn't be Machinauts without excessive delays, would it?

I'll see you all tomorrow.))

((And once again going to have to delay, because of unexpected schedule conflicts. See you tomorrow.))

--

SPIRAL ORDER CORE TERMINAL BASE

--

"Geo Knight Patra reporting for duty."

"You're the one that fought in that Almire village, right?" A Spiral Vanguard says, "It's a good thing you showed up. Omicron Squad needs the support."

"I'll gladly provide it." Patra looks toward the Core. "In there... the monsters that drove Arkus mad are hiding somewhere in there, aren't they."

"We can't be sure which Swarm abomination it was that drove Arkus into madness. It might've been the Voice of Upheaval that was killed in the Battle of Aeternum..."

"Maybe it was..."

"Either way," the Vanguard says, "We must avenge the lost."

"Of course... and we must make sure Cradle weathers this storm. Let's look at the point defenses here first..."

--

"Champion Pholy, this is the eighteenth match you've fought to defend your title." A Gremlin interviewer says, "Have you got anything to say to all these challengers?"

"Oh yeah! You know, I'm one of the guys that fought the Swarm and lived. So all you guys, you want to be the guy that beat a guy that fought the Swarm and lived. And you know what I say about that?" Pholy gives a thumbs up to the camera. "Right on! I didn't fight the Swarm alone, and when you're fighting the Swarm, you need backup! You beat me, and we know we've got two guys that can fight the Swarm when we know where to sock 'em!"

"You're hoping to lose?"

"I'm hoping to lose, yeah. But, challengers!" Pholy raises his hands in the air. "You can bet your bank I'm not trying to lose! If I go in there and start jobbing, it doesn't help anybody get tough enough to fight the Swarm, right? I'm not goin' easy on anybody, so you don't either! OH, YEAH!"

--

"Have we got an accord?"

"We have a cease-fire. For now." Feron says, "But it won't be flawlessly enforced. The less Swarm presence that we find, the more difficult it will be to keep skirmishes from breaking out."

Kora nods. "We'll need to focus on that, then. And we'll need to document everything we can. Some members of HQ are getting crazy ideas in their heads."

"Who'd have thought we'd live long enough to see this?" Feron says, "The Morai are still out there, and I doubt they've stopped thinking they're invincible. If they arrive, we can't expect them to understand the threat the Swarm poses... We will need to be ready to fight back against them."

"Yep. I've made contact with some of the Thaargan deserters that say they can provide us with some intel on the Morai. We're taking them with a grain of salt, since they're ex-pirates and all..."

"Hmm." Feron nods. "I suppose the Morai wouldn't get along with pirates any more than we used to. Frankly, given the choice, I'd say the pirates would be more reliable. We should acquire the pirates' intel, but we should be careful about it. I will accompany the agents personally, if that's all right."

"That will be fine. I let the deserters know there would be guards. Their leader at least seems to have some sense." Kora says, "Now, let's talk about what Delta Squad found..."

((Shoot! Something came up today, too. See you tomorrow!))

--

TORCHBELLOW-SIDE, DEPTH 1 MACHINAUT STASIS VAULT

--

"Yeah, that was all of 'em." IS-22B 'Toby' nods. "Ain't no reason to wait around in here anymore."

"Perhaps the plots here can go to the Machinauts that rested in them. Some of us could make good use of them. A fair few Gremlin survivors might also find use for those that have no Machinaut to claim them." MZT-017 'Atoner' looks at the place where his corrupted vault once was. "I could use my old vault, myself."

"Not a bad idea, Tone. Reckon I'll run that by the Mayor..."

--

THE REFUGE

--

"That datalog Wrecch left behind has already given us some leads."

IS-M44 'Adjutant' looks over a report by one of the Machinauts running the Lab. "Hmmm. Looks like a few almost got away with it... Councilor Kaan was secretly a member? Who'd have thought?"

"Kaan? The one that sold out to the Apocrea?" The Lab Machinaut asks, "You think they're connected to the Apocrea? Or the Swarm?"

"Who knows?" Adjutant sighs. "It's hard to find a reliable way into Apocrean territory for longer than a few weeks. And he Swarm's trails have gone quiet on this side... it looks like their main operations are near the Great Colony and Haven."

"The Isorans and the Great Colony Gremlins... both have lost good soldiers to the Swarm. Maybe they're going to fight back against them?"

"We'll see. For now, we should follow these leads. Some of the Axo are still involved in some shady business..." Adjutant says, "But this time, they're not getting away with it."

--

"Hi! How's Number Three?"

Tovin looks down from the top of Orion III. "Huh? Oh, hey, you're the one who made this, right?"

"Yep." Nalki says, "Number Two is still in Dragonspire right now."

"Well, Number Three's all ready to go." Tovin grins. "The Devilites hit him pretty hard, but it's nothing we can't fix, right?"

"All right! Good job, guys!" Nalki walks up to the gigantic Gunhound and blithely pats it on the head. "Good boy, Orion! Ooh, look at the time, I gotta go."

Nalki trots off, presumably late for a class. One of Tovin's Mender team says, "Man, she made this?"

"Building things is getting a lot more popular since the Advance Force's clash with the Swarm." Tovin shrugs. "Guess that's more stuff for us to fix. All right, back to work!"

--

???

--

The Guardian of the legendary items watches the events unfold.

“The new legends were forged, but the war is far from over. The prophecy is over with, and who knows what may follow that? Even now, the warring powers that were undone hide and lick their wounds. A fierce blow has been struck, but adversity will come again, with the next Apocrean scheme and the next Swarm plot.”

The Guardian speaks. “You must remember, you who forged new legends… learn from those around you, and from those who have come and gone before you. Do not lose hope, and always seek truth. That is my instruction to you.”

“You sure talk a lot, Guardian.” The Stranger that appeared in the final Test says, “Who is it you’re talking to right now, anyway? They can't hear what you're saying. Sometimes, you confuse me.”

“Ah, yes. You are the final tester, right?” The guardian says, “Your vision, which you showed to the Advance Force in that test… Tell me what you think of it.”

“It was inspired by the past. But, maybe it’ll be the future. Imagine it! A peaceful Cradle, for once, where no one has to worry about getting offed by a stray Greaver. That Moorcroft conductor would be happy to have the R&R, that’s for sure.” The Stranger says, “Only problem is, I’m not sure if those Constructs are enough to pull it off. They weren’t perfect, you know. Nobody is. Not even us.”

“True. But…” The Guardian looks off into the distance. “Perhaps there is hope that your vision may come to pass after all.”

--

((I'll put together some statistics from this campaign; these will likely be the final update.))

((Spent the entire day moving stuff around. Compiling all the stats will take a while longer. I'll keep you posted.

EDIT - 3/30: Another day of moving stuff around after work. Progress should speed up tomorrow.))

((I was very busy today, so I won't have much time to work on the stats tonight.

EDIT: And tonight, too. These stats are probably gonna be a while.

As for what is canon to Machinauts, I'm deciding to take the following approach:

-Anything part of Spiral Knights canon is official Machinauts canon, except where necessary for the premise and lore of Machinauts. (I'm not sure if the exception is necessary, but you never know what the next update may bring.)

-Anything I posted as part of the game is official Machinauts canon. This includes everyone's Machinauts, as well as all backstory content (excepting any contradictions with previously established canon, where it exists).

-Anything that is not official Machinauts canon is still canon in at least one alternate universe, unless it is part of some kind of illegal content (such as libel or plagiarism), is meant as any form of attack against a real-life person, or is part of a spat between two or more users of an internet message board. Yes, this means Inceptron is canon somewhere, and at some point I'm betting someone's going to have to fight him for the fate of the multiverse.

-Even official canon, like most if not all fiction, is open to interpretation.))

((Stats update: I'm now about midway through Chapter 2.))

(It's time. Afterword post later, this is already pretty long.)

I couldn't help but wave goodbye to the Sleeper avatar that visited us. I felt as though I had the answers to everything I wanted to know, however. I was reminded of Locus's email. It crossed my mind I haven't seen what was essentially my family for a while.

{Perhaps I should pay the squad a visit back at the Refuge...}

So I chose to do that after informing the Adjutant of my intentions. Returning to the Refuge, I tried to keep a low profile as I felt more like just meeting the other LV units at the moment instead of partaking in the celebrations. I met my fellow Machinauts outside what used to be Dr. Argilo's house and laboratory. I knew there wouldn't have been much of it left after who knows how long, but I felt as though I wasn't prepared for the shock that came with it. The foundation was all that was really left intact - much of the structure had either been destroyed or crumbled away with time. Yet there was something nostalgic in the air...

"Welcome back, Ignem!" Locus cheerfully said. "How was it out there?"

"A mess. I'm fortunate I made it back in one piece. I just think it's a shame we never got to fight the Swarm together as designed, but sometimes things just don't go to plan." I said, to which Tenebris nodded and agreed.

"Ignem and her squad ended up having to save me." Tenebris said, calling back to our time when we defended the Almirian village from attack and took a detour to rescue him. "Felt kinda embarassing now that I think back on it, but I'm glad I made it out anyway!"

"Indeed. I was almost destroyed by the Swarm, but I survived. Felt like it was by a thread, though..." Tempus said, sharing his own experience.

"Makes both me and Ignem feel lucky. I escaped from what was like the gates of hell with the help of other Machinauts, while Ignem formed up with a squad of her own." Locus shared. I nodded.

"And together, we finally fulfilled the prophecy. That said, we didn't quite destroy the Swarm, nor the Apocrea." I said, adding the caveat we hadn't quite destroyed the darkness yet...

"At the least, you dealt a devastating blow to both of them, giving us time to prepare." Tempus said. "It does make me wonder when and where they will appear next."

"That's something I don't think any of us can calculate." I replied. "It's why I've decided I'll keep going. We ran into a fragment of the Sleeper who told us that the day we could destroy both was not at hand. That day...I don't know when it'll be. All I know is that I'll be going back to active duty soon, probably on standby for a while given the uncertainty about when they'll strike again."

"No matter what, we still have to fight. Cradle's survival depends on it." I said.

"Them's fighting words." Locus said.

And with those words, I departed. As I walked away, I overheard the others talking although they eventually got out of range for me to hear.

"I feel as though I'm not needed anymore. That's alright...there's always another path for me to take." Tenebris said. "I'll probably be retiring from the forces."

"Fair enough. I feel the same way, too." Tempus said. "Maybe I'll apply my knowledge and experience in training others for that possible day."

"Sounds like a plan." Tenebris said. "It does make me wonder what Locus is gonna do, although maybe..."

It made me think as well, especially as I went out of range before he could guess. Tenebris is retiring and Tempus is planning on becoming an instructor. What would Locus do?

I turned my attention back to the note I had received all the way back when I awoke. It became a keepsake of mine, something to keep for the ages, a memento from my long gone creator.
{Greetings. This is a pre-recorded message.

LV-909, the time has come. A dark force threatens the planet, and if left unchecked, may cause massive devastation on an unforeseen scale. Your mission is simple: find and destroy the dark force.

However, accomplishing it is anything but simple. Cradle is a dangerous planet, and peril could await you at any moment. Fortunately, you are not alone in your task. Several other Machinauts have been assigned the same mission. Seek them out if you must.

Good luck.}

Upon further listening, I heard what sounded like a coded message in the background. It sounded like someone was counting numbers in the background. I stringed them together and recognized it was pointing to a file in my filesystem I didn't know even existed. Upon opening it...

"I had a feeling this would not be heard by you until after you vanquished the darkness that befouls our planet." Dr. Argilo's pre-recorded message played. "Truth be told, I felt pessimistic it could be defeated at all. But I knew that was no reason to despair. There was always the possibility you could do it, and if you're listening to this, I have the suspicion you've already won. It is my regret we never got to meet at all, only heard by me. Yet it shows my resolve to try and finish what I started, to fling this light into the future, was not in vain."

I paused the recording and stopped walking for a second. In a way, it felt a bit sad. I was never really woken up and tested to see if I was functional before he was killed. I resumed and kept going.

"I can only hope you were not alone when the final blow was made, but that is remote. Together, you and the generation of Machinauts our clan created have corrected the Sleeper's greatest mistake and changed the future, possibly for the far better. Thank you." His final message concluded.

Well, I did you proud. But this fight's not over. Not by a long shot.

I went over and began to reflect everything afterwards. What a long and wild journey...from being awoken by Nalki & Nautilus and then shutting down a berserk Machinaut, to liberating the Refuge, to nearly getting killed by an all too real video game, to defending the Refuge against more rogue Machinauts and the Thargaan, to discovering Kaan's treason, to vanquishing the Apocrea that sought to subvert the Dracolisks, to defending the Almirian Village, to the trials we undertook to obtain the legendary weapons, to discovering the truth about Zallinock, and then finally the last battles we took to both stop him, and the Neofactorem that could've resulted in an apocalypse if we hadn't defended it from the Swarm and Apocrea.

And after all this, it still feels like I've just begun my work!

After again informing the Adjutant of my intents, I reached an elevator that would take me to the surface. I wasn't quite sure where I was going, but I knew I would get my orders soon enough. I was just about to input the request to ascend when I heard a voice.

"Waaaaaaait!" Locus shouted, running after me.

"Coming along too?" I asked. She boarded, and we started our ascent.

"Yeah. I thought 'bout it for a bit, and I felt like I missed out big time." Locus said. "But I don't feel like gettin hung up on that."

"Indeed. Best to think about what the future holds now." I replied. "And I feel...anxious about it."

"How so? What's troublin' you?"

"The Sleeper mentioned it might be a long time before we can finally destroy it for good. Our attempt destroyed their commanders and sent them packing, but what if they come back with more?" I mused.

"I've got your back." Locus said. "If and when they come knockin' again, we'll finish them for good."

Rays of sunlight beamed in as we arrived at the surface. The sun was rising on another day, a new beginning.

"We can do it together. Ready?"

"Yeah. I'm with you, partner. Let's go."

I nodded, and we headed off into the sunrise together.

THE END

(If only I could've done more with the LV series. And didn't try to develop character near the very end of the roleplay.)

Just thought to put this final piece of art here. Goodbye SK treasure vault subforum, it has been fun.

Y'all kept this up for 6 years and completed the whole thing??? O-o

I'm floored Doc, simply shook

I decided to randomly check the forums and it's kinda bittersweet to see your dedication pay off! Remember when I said at the beginning that you'd need to have all this planned out and you said you did? HAH you DID alright!

I'm honestly curious as to what other projects you have in your future; it takes a very special determination to keeping a project going for so long with so much dedication

Major congrats!!