同章对照

• Ruins of Sarajevo, Bosnia-Herzegovina; October 2014.

Constructed inside a valley surrounded by five mountains, Sarajevo had once been a beautiful place. A perfect mix of small, pastoral houses and tall modern buildings, the city had housed events such as the 1984 Winter Olympic Games, survived the Yugoslavian wars, and thrived in the aftermath.

But that was long ago.

Today, Sarajevo was a vision of hell. A steel graveyard ruled by a madman, its skies dark even during the brightest days.

Only decaying ruins remained of the old city, consumed by a noxious purple cloud. The other buildings were factories, weapon-development facilities, turrets, and fearsome towers of black steel. The tallest structure was Mechron’s fortress located in Sarajevo’s center, an infinity symbol-shaped fusion between a military base and a particle accelerator. Finally, pylons on the valley’s mountains projected a red forcefield around the city, one powerful enough to shrug off NATO’s ICBMs.

This miasma covering the city was a bioplague created to kill humans, leaving only machines unharmed. Robots prowled the streets, from futuristic automated tanks to humanoid, two-meters tall cyclops, while flying drones occupied the skies. Some of these machines were cyborgs, half-rotten corpses partly reanimated with tech when Mechron ran out of rare ore. The machine army stood there, organized into defensive formations, waiting for the battle to start without wasting any ounce of energy. Even the river Miljacka which once crossed the city had been dried up.

When he looked at this tragedy from the heavens above, Leonard Hargraves could only feel sadness. The Genome Wars had started here nine years ago; and one way or another, they would end today.

Even long after he caused the end of the world, Mechron remained a mystery. Pythia pieced together that he was a survivor of the Bosnian genocide and the Siege of Sarajevo in the mid-nineties, an electric engineer by trade. His first act upon gaining his Elixir had been a terrorist attack against the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia for its perceived softness on war criminals, before escalating to waging war on Serbia. Things quickly erupted into a European conflict, and then finally a nuclear exchange.

Mechron had spent the entirety of the Genome Wars bunkering in Sarajevo, letting his machines and Genome allies fight for him. The Anti-Mechron Front had slowly destroyed his major bases and killed his lieutenants over the last six years, and today, they finally gathered enough heroes to end the conflict once and for all.

“We’re ready?” Leo spoke.

“Yes.” The voice of Alice Martel, alias Pythia, answered through telepathy. “Shining Knight and Nidhogg’s groups are in position.”

While he was proud to fight alongside the Shining Knight, Nidhogg’s involvement left a sour taste in Leo’s mouth. Though he kept to his territory and didn’t cause troubles unless provoked, that man was a villain, plain and simple. His followers had taken over a large part of Denmark and allowed their Geniuses to run some questionable medical experiments there.

Unfortunately, the Anti-Mechron Front couldn’t take Sarajevo without assistance, and the war had called for moral compromises. Nidhogg was willing to help when so many wouldn’t, even crossing half a continent to offer support. While he acted out of self-preservation, this Green Genome understood Mechron was an existential threat to all of mankind, and that he had to be stopped at all costs.

So while they might end up enemies one day, Leo would cut him some slack and they would part ways amicably.

The living sun gave one last glance at the iron city from his current high altitude before flying back to base at the speed of a fighter-jet. Leonard’s human body had been transmuted into a living star, a mass of solar plasma only held together by a heart core and his own gravitational forces. Though he didn’t age in his sun form, the Genome usually returned to his human self while not on missions, as he felt less like himself the longer he stayed transformed. His thoughts changed from human to that of a star, wishing to burn bright and illuminate the cosmos. It was a constant mental effort for Leo to contain his radiance and avoid burning everything around him. Sometimes, he felt like he lived in a world of matchboxes.

Today would be a rare opportunity to go all-out. Maybe his last one.

In total, more than five hundred Genomes had gathered in three camps around Sarajevo. Normal humans couldn’t survive Mechron’s bio-plague, nor stand against his machines, and so did not apply.

Leonard flew over the camp, where everyone was gearing up for war. The plague doctor Stitch finished inoculating the soldiers with additional protections against bio-plagues; the Cossack had put on his white, knight-themed power armor, a cannon mounted on his right shoulder and a forcefield shield on the other; Kresnik and Kudlak, the werewolf siblings, had transformed into giant humanoid wolves the size of polar bears, one white, the other black. A Violet summoned warbeasts from alien planets to serve as shock troops, while Orange Genomes transformed into beings of metal and stone.

Alice was networking people near the camp’s center, with Sidekick standing nearby to boost her power. A beautiful blonde woman with blue eyes, Alice was a powerful seer with the ability to create telepathic links between people upon touching them; those she ‘networked’ worked intuitively together like a hive mind, much like Mechron’s robot army formed a superorganism spread through countless bodies.

Besides increasing teamwork, Pythia’s power could also be used for precognitive purposes; the more people she networked with, the more she could anticipate the future. In many ways, she had been the driving force behind this alliance. Today’s battle would be the culmination of her chess match with Mechron, and the heroes would be her pieces.

Sidekick, meanwhile, was an average-looking youth with brown hair and amber eyes. He belonged to Shining Knight’s group, being a White enhancing the power of other Genomes so long as they remained within ten meters of his person. The trio would soon be rejoined by Calculator, a Genius with the ability to calculate probabilities to the point of precognition.

Pythia, Calculator, and many other Blue Genomes had debated the plan of attack; from nuking Sarajevo to a guerilla battle, everything had been considered. Leo didn’t know what made them decide on a conventional invasion, besides mentions of a ‘dead hand system,’ but he trusted their judgment.

Some, like Pythia, were members of Leo’s Carnival. Others were hero warbands or vigilantes like the Cossack, who answered the call to war. Dynamis hadn’t sent anyone, though they did provide equipment.

They were too busy dealing with Augustus in Italy.

The mere thought of his nemesis infuriated Leonard, reminding him of that dreadful day he returned to the Costa farm, only to find all its inhabitants murdered. He had sworn to bring their killer to justice, and once Mechron was dealt with, he would do exactly that.

The living sun—though he disliked that nickname—landed near Alice, toning down his body heat to prevent her from catching fire. “Leonard,” she said with a warm smile. Unlike the Genomes making up the army, she dressed casually. “Ready?”

“Like the day I was born.” Even before the apocalypse, Leonard had been a full-time firefighter in the London Fire Brigade; quite ironic considering his main power. He liked to think he still put out fires threatening the innocents, even if some could shoot lightning from their eyes. “How much time do we have?”

“Enough for one last speech, if you’re up for it.”

She tried humor, but Leonard didn’t hide his concern for his old ally. “You’re sure you want to do this?” he asked her. “You have never networked so many people at once, even with help from Sidekick.”

“We can’t out-think a combat AI without the use of powers,” Pythia replied. “Mechron’s armies are so effective because they fight as one. They have us outnumbered more than one thousand to one; even if we have superpowers on our side, we need all advantages possible.”

“I’m just saying the risks are great.” She often suffered from dangerous headaches when she directed a large group, and never one this big. “Unlike me, you still have a husband and son at home.”

“It’s precisely for them that I’m willing to risk everything.”

Leonard couldn’t argue with that.

As if on cue, the various fighters gathered around them. Most were veterans of a dozen battles, others were new recruits. Leonard noticed a few of his other teammates among them. The teleporter Ace, a freckled young woman with long auburn hair, dressed like a rogue with high boots, a red coat, and feathered hat; and Mr. Wave, a creature of pure energy wavelengths held together in a fancy purple suit.

Every set of eyes was on Leo.

“I’m not one for speeches,” the Red Genome declared. Shining Knight and Nidhogg were probably speaking with their troops, miles away. “So I will be short and to the point. This is it. This is the final battle. Mechron is exhausted. His facilities, those which we could locate, have been destroyed. His last Genome lieutenant, Asmodeus, has been slain. He’s low on troops, low on weapons, low on options. This is his last stand, and he knows it. The news should be a relief, for all of us have lost something to this madman. Family. Friends. Home. But as they say, a cornered rat—”

“Will bite a cat,” Ace mused, a few people chuckling among the audience. “We know, you say that all the time.”

“But this time, the rat may very well kill the cat,” Leo rolled with the metaphor.

At Pythia’s behest, a light-manipulating Genome projected the image of two massive war machines behind Leonard. Enormous satellites equipped with solar sails and enormous laser cannons.

“These are the Kujata and the Bahamut, orbital satellites with the power to devastate entire countries,” Leonard explained. “Mechron’s previous orbital weapons remained in low Earth orbit, where they could be destroyed. The new ones, though, will fly deep into space, and even I won’t be able to reach them. In a few hours, maybe minutes, Mechron will attempt to launch them and wipe us all out.”

Whispers spread through the crowd, as the grim reality of the situation settled among them.

“I know some of you, myself included, were a bit apprehensive with the help we enlisted to wage this war. But this is not a battle between nations, or between heroes and villains. This is a battle between life and death. And more than ever, this is a battle against time. Our goals are twofold: to destroy these satellites before they can be activated, and to defeat Mechron once and for all. Over the past few months, we have methodically cut off his escape routes. Today, we fight to the death.”

“Good,” Cossack said, his tone dangerous. “Mechron’s death.”

“Yes,” Leonard agreed. “Mechron surrendered his humanity long ago. He desires to destroy all that makes us human; to replace our hearts with metal, and our souls with technology. He is a despot who believes men should be his slaves because he only sees the worst in us. But he is wrong.”

The living sun raised his hand, the satellites beyond him collapsing in a flash of bright light.

“Humans are not slaves!” he shouted. “Mechron chose to see the worst, but we chose to see the best! That humans are capable of compassion! Of art and kindness! Of greatness! And together, we shall end this decade-long nightmare once and for all! Today, we take back our planet!”

His declaration was met with a cacophony of shouts and war cries.

Immediately afterward, Leonard flew across the skies, followed by dozens of flyers. The Cossack’s armor activated the powerful propellers in its back; a chrome humanoid flew by his will alone. The ground forces moved towards the shield aboard assault vehicles or carried by teleporters.

“Now, the moment of truth.” Leonard flew above the clouds, facing the shield. He built up the energy inside his core, preparing to go supernova.

And then, he set the world ablaze.

His heart core unleashed a focused ray of light that burnt the skies. The ionized laser hit the crimson forcefield and the mountain supporting one of the pylons, melting the stone. The forcefield undulated like water as it took the blast, an unstoppable force facing an immovable object.

And then… one of them gave up.

The forcefield around Sarajevo shorted out, and Leo’s beam vaporized the pylon supporting it. The blast continued its course towards the city, setting an entire street ablaze in a cataclysmic detonation.

The shield collapsed all around the city, and Mechron’s army woke up.

Spherical drones instantly spread across the skies like a bug swarm, opening fire on the heroes with lasers. Holes opened all over the metal towers, revealing hundreds of beam turrets, while the robots and vehicles on the ground opened with an artillery bombardment.

Leo’s flying allies moved to intercept the drone swarm, while the fire Genome recovered from his effort. While he could draw on an enormous power reserve, it needed time to replenish itself.

With the shield down, the other groups moved to action. A flash of green light illuminated the darkness to the east, Nidhogg undergoing his transformation. The Green Genome metamorphosed into a colossal, kilometers long serpent with human skulls for scales; the monster slithered towards the city, his venom melting stone while his own forces followed. Purple blinking lights popped up all over Sarajevo, as Ace teleported small groups across the city.

Explosions shook Sarajevo to the west, the Shining Knight having entered the city. While no heavy hitter, the charismatic leader of men led her troops personally in battle, her heavy green armor shrugging lasers while she cut robots with her bright energy sword. Her contingent was by far the largest, providing almost half of the Genomes participating; most were the defenders of a democratic state rising from Germany’s ashes, the New Republic of Bavaria.

Mechron had destroyed their home once, and now they would see justice done.

Having recovered, Leo flew into the city, followed by the Cossack and some caped fellow. Their allies had cleared a path ahead, engaging the drone swarms, but faced heavy resistance. The towers unleashed hundreds of lasers in all directions, cutting Genomes and buildings alike, while artillery bombardments from the defensive turrets destroyed almost every ruined building still standing.

And of course, Mr. Wave couldn’t help but brag. The show-off had moved in the middle of a robot-crowded street, hands raised. “Can you feel fear, robots?” The robots had opened fire midspeech, but lasers and bullets harmlessly phased through the Red Genome. “Because Mr. Wave feeds on tears!”

Mr. Wave vanished, his wavelength body turning into a deadly laser moving at lightspeed. Before Leo knew it, his teammate had carved a path through the robots, cutting the machines in half merely by moving through them. Meanwhile, the werewolf siblings were busy tearing apart a tank with their bare claws, leading a pack of monsters.

The caped fellow charged at one of the metal towers and brought it down by going through it. The other flyers spread to support the ground forces, while Leonard and Cossack moved towards Mechron’s fortress.

The enormous base’s walls opened, waves of jetpack-powered robots flying towards them armed with heavy rifles. They immediately fired a volley of black projectiles at the duo, forcing them to spread out. Though they moved slowly, the robots’ bullets powered through any matter, absorbing anything close to them.

Gravity rifles. Leonard had faced a few in previous engagements, and one had almost torn his core apart. He suspected Mechron had specifically designed the weapon to kill energy-based Genomes like him.

Leonard retaliated with plasma beams, while the Cossack hit the machines with his shoulder-cannon. Both sides aimed with deadly accuracy and moved around with grace; the machines dodged with inhuman dexterity and reflexes, while the Genomes had speed on their side.

Guided by Pythia’s network, Leonard entered some kind of trance, his body moving on its own. It was as if a primal instinct had taken over, shutting down his conscious mind and leaving only a battle program. He became no different than the machines he fought.

No, Leo realized. He was different from these machines. Pythia’s network let each individual keep their free-will, yet allowed people from different backgrounds and who had nothing in common, to cooperate for a common cause. Their army was united in its diversity, while Mechron’s machines were mindless copies; soulless slaves to a despot who considered free will as a disease, rather than something to be cherished.

And at some point, Pythia’s network began to outperform Mechron’s robotic hive mind. Leonard hit one robot, then two, then three. The numbers kept climbing, but the Genome’s view had been reduced to blasts, black bullets, and burning metal.

Fifty, seventy…

“When will they learn?” the Cossack asked, bombarding drones with his shoulder-cannon. Leo assisted him with plasma blasts, the two wingmates coordinating their assault with perfect synchronization; Pythia’s network even allowed them to hear each other over the explosions, as astonishing as it sounded.

And yet, in spite of their impressive resistance, more robots kept coming.

There was something terrifying in fighting these machines. Humans and animals could feel fear, fleeing lost battles, often hesitating before attacking, or attempted to communicate. But not Mechron’s robots. They felt no remorse, didn’t make a sound and never retreated.

Leo fought an unrelenting tide of steel that just wanted him dead.

Still, the battle seemed to be going well for them. The Shining Knight’s troops held the line on the western side, while Nidhogg had reached the city, toppling buildings and crushing a laser tower under his sheer weight. The corpses of Mechron’s undead cyborgs were absorbed by the giant reptile on contact, regenerating his biomass lost to the enemies’ energy weaponry.

Once transformed, Nidhogg was almost unstoppable. A juggernaut fueled by death. His troops followed in his wake, Genomes modified with cybernetic or biological implants; like remoras supporting a larger shark, they mostly stuck to defending their leader from smaller drones threatening to swarm him.

The plan was to have the reptilian titan destroy the defensive towers and then breach Mechron’s fortress with his acid spit, though the rogue Genius might have a trick up his sleeve.

As it turned out, he had two.

The Red Genome noticed movement near Mechron’s fortress, holes opening inside the two circles making up the base’s infinity shape. Two enormous rockets the size of skyscrapers emerged from the ground, flying towards the heavens at incredible speed.

The Kujata and the Bahamut had been launched.

Leo immediately raced after them, unleashing a plasma beam at the Kujata. A force-field around the rocket negated his attack, and though it briefly shorted out, the two orbital weapons continued their ascent.

“If they get too far...” Leonard couldn’t finish his sentence, blasting a path through the flying robots. They weren’t even fighting to win, but to delay.

“If,” the Cossack replied with laconic wit, flying after the Kujata at full speed. The g-force involved would have crushed any normal pilot, but the vigilante powered through, catching up to the satellite. He was a man who believed in actions over words.

Leonard pursued the Bahamut, intending to crash into it and bypass its force-field, when a roar echoed from behind him.

The Red Genome turned around, as a monster emerged from the fortress.

The creature looked like some kind of biomechanical European dragon. The ten meters tall reptile had wings similar to solar sails, its red scales mixed with black machinery covering the chest, the head, and the claws. Its yellow, reptilian eyes glared at the Red Genome, betraying a hint of intellect.

What the hell was that, a biomechanical war machine? Leonard didn’t have time to fight it, or the Bahamut may escape Earth’s orbit.

As if to answer his thoughts, the dragon pointed at Leonard with both its hands, the claws shining with crimson energy.

A crushing force took over the living sun and forced him down. Much to his surprise, Leonard ended up crashing towards the ground, an invisible hand dragging him away from the Bahamut.

Though he was more skilled with plasma and fire, Leonard could manipulate his own gravity. While he mostly used it to fly, he had learned a few other tricks. Manipulating his gravity-field, he managed to collapse the effect bringing him down, returning to the fight.

“What was that?” Leonard asked out loud, pursuing the dragon. “A gravity well?”

“Gravity-control,” Pythia said as the dragon roared back. “It’s a Red.”

Leonard thought he had misheard for a moment. “What? But only humans—”

“Until now.”

Mechron’s power covered multi-agent systems, from artificial intelligences to nanotech constructs. His MO was to create AI dedicated to the creation of new technologies, allowing him to make breakthroughs in specialties outside his own. Mechron was the most dangerous kind of Genius; the one who could make more.

But to think he had uncovered the secret of Elixirs…

The rogue Genius couldn’t be allowed to escape. No matter what.

Gathering up plasma in his core, Leonard fired a deadly beam at the creature. Though it moved at supersonic speed, the monster couldn’t outspeed light.

But as it turned out, it didn’t need to. Instead, it turned its own gravity crush ability on empty air, creating a miniature black hole the size of a fist. The phenomenon absorbed the dragon into itself before disappearing, the ion beam hitting nothing but air.

Damn, did it use gravity to create a wormhole or something?

Whatever the case, it had fulfilled its mission in delaying Leonard. The Cossack had somehow managed to bring down the Kujata, the satellite’s wreckage crashing on Sarajevo’s streets, but the Bahamut had become a faint light point in the skies.

“Shit!”

“Seventy-three percent chance that the Bahamut opens fire on Sarajevo once online, according to Calculator,” Pythia warned. “Increasing by one point every ten minutes.”

Had Mechron grown desperate enough to fire at his own base?

It wasn’t about winning anymore.

Leonard turned towards the heavens, ready to pursue the satellite even into the dark reaches of space if needed when Pythia’s voice interrupted him. “No, don’t. Hit the fortress and reach Mechron. Kill him before he pulls the switch. The odds are better.”

“But the satellite will—”

“Something worse is coming.”

Leonard froze. “What do you mean?”

“If his fortress isn’t annihilated soon, Mechron will somehow kill everyone in Sarajevo,” Pythia said, her composure breaking into genuine fear. “Destroy the bunker at all costs.”

“What’s waiting for me inside?”

“I don’t know.” Her words turned haunting. “I only see black. It’s all black.”

Leo braced himself for battle and flew at mach-speed through the fortress’ metal walls.

Mechron was waiting, deep down.

• 波斯尼亚和黑塞哥维那，萨拉热窝废墟；2014年10月。

萨拉热窝建在一片由五座山环抱的谷地之中，曾是个美丽的地方。田园风情的小屋与高大的现代建筑在这里完美交融。这座城市承办过1984年冬季奥运会等盛事，挺过了南斯拉夫战争，并在战后重获繁荣。

但那都是很久以前的事了。

如今的萨拉热窝宛如地狱。一座由疯子统治的钢铁坟场，即使在阳光最灿烂的日子里，上空也一片昏暗。

旧城只剩下腐朽的废墟，被有毒的紫色云雾吞没。其余建筑则是工厂、武器研发设施、炮塔，以及森然耸立的黑钢高塔。最高的建筑坐落在萨拉热窝市中心，那是梅克隆的堡垒：一座呈无穷大符号形状、将军事基地与粒子加速器融为一体的建筑。谷地周围的山上还立着一根根塔柱，投射出包围整座城市的红色力场，强大到足以硬扛北约的洲际弹道导弹。

笼罩城市的瘴气是一种专门用来杀死人类的生物瘟疫，只有机器才能安然无恙。从充满未来感的自动坦克，到两米高的人形独眼机器人，各类机械在街上巡行，无人机则占据着天空。其中一些机器是半机械改造体——梅克隆耗尽稀有矿石后，便用技术将半腐烂的尸体部分复活。机械大军排成防御阵形，静静等待战斗开始，不浪费一丝能量。就连曾经穿城而过的米利亚茨卡河也已干涸。

伦纳德·哈格雷夫斯从高空俯瞰这场悲剧，心中只有悲哀。九年前，基因者战争在这里爆发；而今天，无论以何种方式，它都将结束。

哪怕距离他一手引发世界末日已经过去了很久，梅克隆仍是个谜。皮提亚将零散的线索拼凑起来，查出他原本是一名电气工程师，在九十年代中期的波斯尼亚种族灭绝与萨拉热窝围城战中幸存了下来。获得灵药后，他做的第一件事，就是对前南斯拉夫问题国际刑事法庭发动恐怖袭击，因为他认为法庭对战犯过于宽纵。此后，他更进一步，向塞尔维亚开战。事态迅速升级为波及欧洲的冲突，最终演变成了核打击的相互报复。

整个基因者战争期间，梅克隆一直龟缩在萨拉热窝，让机器和基因者盟友替他作战。过去六年里，反梅克隆阵线逐步摧毁了他的主要基地，杀死了他的得力干将。而今天，他们终于集结了足够多的英雄，要一劳永逸地终结这场冲突。

“都准备好了吗？”利奥开口问道。

“好了。”爱丽丝·马特尔，代号皮提亚，通过心灵感应传来回答。“光辉骑士和尼德霍格的队伍都已就位。”

能与光辉骑士并肩作战，利奥深感自豪，可尼德霍格的加入却让他心里很不是滋味。那人虽然守着自己的地盘，没人招惹就不会生事，但毫无疑问，他就是个恶棍。他的追随者占据了丹麦大片领土，还允许手下的天才在那里开展一些很成问题的医学实验。

遗憾的是，没有外援，反梅克隆阵线就攻不下萨拉热窝，而战争迫使他们在道德上作出妥协。那么多人不肯出力，尼德霍格却愿意帮忙，甚至横跨半个大陆赶来支援。尽管他的动机是自保，这名绿系基因者还是明白：梅克隆威胁着全人类的存亡，必须不惜一切代价阻止他。

所以，即使他们将来可能成为敌人，利奥眼下也愿意网开一面，事后与他好聚好散。

活体太阳从高空最后看了一眼这座钢铁之城，随后以战斗机般的速度飞回营地。伦纳德的人类身躯已转化为一颗活生生的恒星，一团仅靠心核与自身引力维系的太阳等离子体。虽然太阳形态下的他不会衰老，但只要不出任务，他通常都会变回人类，因为变身维持得越久，他就越觉得自己不像自己。他的思维会从人类转向恒星，渴望熊熊燃烧，照亮宇宙。利奥必须时刻集中精神，才能收敛自身的光辉，不把周围的一切烧光。有时，他觉得自己就生活在一个由火柴盒组成的世界里。

今天，他将得到一次难得的全力出手机会。也许是最后一次。

总计五百多名基因者集结在萨拉热窝周围的三处营地。普通人既无法在梅克隆的生物瘟疫中存活，也无力对抗他的机器，因此不在参战之列。

伦纳德飞过营地上空，所有人都在整装备战。瘟疫医生斯蒂奇刚为战士们完成接种，增添了一层抵御生物瘟疫的防护；哥萨克已经穿上白色的骑士式动力装甲，右肩架着一门炮，另一侧则是力场护盾；克雷斯尼克和库德拉克这对狼人手足，已变成体型堪比北极熊的巨型人形狼，一白一黑。一名紫系基因者从外星球召来战兽，充当突击部队，橙系基因者们则化作金属与岩石构成的存在。

爱丽丝正在营地中央附近将众人接入网络，跟班站在一旁增强她的能力。她是个金发碧眼的美丽女人，也是一位强大的先知，能够通过触碰，在人与人之间建立心灵链接。那些被她“联网”的人凭直觉就能协同合作，宛如共享一个蜂巢意识，正如梅克隆的机器人大军，透过无数躯体组成了一个超级有机体。

除了增进团队协作，皮提亚的能力也能用于预知：接入网络的人越多，她就越能预见未来。从许多方面来说，正是她推动了这个联盟的建立。今天的战斗将是她与梅克隆这盘棋局的最终决战，英雄们则是她的棋子。

至于跟班，则是个相貌平平的年轻人，有着棕色头发和琥珀色眼睛。他隶属光辉骑士的队伍，是一名白系基因者，只要其他基因者留在他周围十米之内，他就能增强他们的能力。计算师也将很快回来与他们三人会合；那是一名能将概率计算推至预知境界的天才。

皮提亚、计算师和许多其他蓝系基因者已经反复商议过进攻计划；从对萨拉热窝实施核打击到打游击战，所有方案都考虑过。除了听他们提起过一个“死手系统”，利奥并不知道是什么让他们最终决定发动常规进攻，但他相信他们的判断。

参战者中，有些人和皮提亚一样，是利奥的嘉年华成员。另一些则来自英雄战团，或是像哥萨克那样响应征召的义警。迪纳米斯没有派人来，不过确实提供了装备。

他们正忙着在意大利对付奥古斯都，抽不开身。

只要一想到这个死敌，伦纳德就怒不可遏，想起那个可怕的日子：他回到科斯塔农场，却发现那里的所有人都已遭到杀害。他曾发誓要将凶手绳之以法，等解决了梅克隆，他就会去兑现这个誓言。

活体太阳——尽管他并不喜欢这个绰号——降落在爱丽丝附近，压低体温，免得把她点着。“伦纳德。”她露出温暖的微笑。与军队中的其他基因者不同，她穿着一身便装。“准备好了吗？”

“跟出生那天一样，准备得妥妥的。”末日到来之前，伦纳德是伦敦消防队的一名全职消防员，考虑到他如今的主要能力，实在很有讽刺意味。他愿意相信，自己依然在扑灭威胁无辜者的烈火，只不过其中有些烈火能从眼睛里放出闪电。“我们还有多少时间？”

“够你做最后一次演说，要是你愿意的话。”

她试着开个玩笑，但伦纳德没有掩饰自己对这位老战友的担忧。“你确定要这么做？”他问她，“就算有跟班帮忙，你也从没同时把这么多人接入网络。”

“不用能力，我们就不可能在谋略上胜过战斗人工智能。”皮提亚答道，“梅克隆的军队之所以如此高效，就是因为它们在像一个整体那样战斗。它们的兵力超过我们的一千倍；就算我们有超能力，也必须争取一切能争取的优势。”

“我只是说，风险很大。”指挥大批人员时，她经常出现凶险的头痛症状，而她从未指挥过如此庞大的队伍。“你不像我，家里还有丈夫和儿子。”

“正是为了他们，我才愿意赌上一切。”

伦纳德无法反驳。

仿佛收到了信号，战士们纷纷聚拢过来。大多数是身经十余场战斗的老兵，也有些是新招募的成员。伦纳德在人群中看到了另外几位队友。传送者王牌是个长着雀斑、留着赤褐色长发的年轻女人，一身盗贼装束，穿着高筒靴和红外套，戴着插有羽毛的帽子；还有波动先生，那是一个由纯粹能量波构成的生物，靠着一身华丽的紫色西装维系形体。

所有目光都落在了利奥身上。

“我不擅长演说。”这名红系基因者开口道。几英里外，光辉骑士和尼德霍格大概也正在向各自的部队讲话。“所以我就长话短说，直奔主题。时候到了。这是最后一战。梅克隆已经筋疲力尽。他的设施，至少我们能找到的，都已被摧毁。他手下最后一名基因者干将，阿斯莫德，也已伏诛。他的兵力、武器和退路都所剩无几。这是他最后的抵抗，他自己也知道。对我们来说，这消息本该令人宽慰，因为我们每个人都曾因这个疯子失去过什么。家人。朋友。家园。但俗话说，被逼入绝境的耗子——”

“也会咬猫。”王牌悠悠接道，听众中有几个人笑了起来。“我们知道，你成天都在说。”

“可这一次，耗子很可能会把猫咬死。”利奥顺着这个比喻说了下去。

在皮提亚的授意下，一名操纵光线的基因者在伦纳德身后投射出两台巨型战争机器的影像。那是两颗庞大的卫星，配有太阳帆和巨型激光炮。

“这是库加塔号和巴哈姆特号，两颗足以摧毁整个国家的轨道卫星。”伦纳德解释道，“梅克隆以前的轨道武器都停留在近地轨道，我们还有办法摧毁。但新的这两颗会飞入深空，连我也够不到。再过几个小时，也许几分钟，梅克隆就会尝试发射它们，把我们全部消灭。”

人群中响起窃窃私语，众人渐渐意识到局势有多严峻。

“我知道，有些人，包括我自己，对于我们为这场战争请来的帮手有些疑虑。但这不是国与国之间的战争，也不是英雄与恶棍之间的战争。这是一场生与死的战争。更是一场前所未有的与时间的竞赛。我们的目标有两个：在这两颗卫星启动前摧毁它们，以及彻底击败梅克隆。过去几个月里，我们有条不紊地切断了他的逃生路线。今天，我们不死不休。”

“很好。”哥萨克说，语气里透着杀气，“直到梅克隆死为止。”

“没错。”伦纳德赞同道，“梅克隆早就舍弃了人性。他想摧毁我们之所以为人的一切；用金属替代我们的心，用技术替代我们的灵魂。他是个暴君，认为人类就该做他的奴隶，因为他只看得见我们最坏的一面。但他错了。”

活体太阳抬起手，身后的卫星在一道强光中崩塌。

“人类不是奴隶！”他高声喊道，“梅克隆选择只看最坏的一面，而我们选择看最好的一面！人类懂得怜悯！懂得艺术与善良！能够成就伟大！只要同心协力，我们就能彻底终结这场长达十年的噩梦！今天，我们要夺回自己的星球！”

回应他的，是此起彼伏的呐喊与战吼。

紧接着，伦纳德划过长空，数十名飞行者紧随其后。哥萨克的装甲启动了背部的强力推进器；一个铬金属人形生物仅凭意念便飞了起来。地面部队则乘坐突击载具，或由传送者带着，向护盾进发。

“现在，见真章的时候到了。”伦纳德飞到云层之上，面对护盾。他将能量汇聚在心核之中，准备引发超新星爆发。

然后，他点燃了世界。

他的心核释放出一道聚焦光束，灼烧长空。离子化激光击中了猩红色的力场，以及承载其中一根塔柱的山体，将岩石熔化。力场承受着轰击，如水面般起伏不定——不可阻挡之力，撞上了不可撼动之物。

然后……其中一方撑不住了。

包围萨拉热窝的力场短路失效，利奥的光束将支撑它的塔柱瞬间汽化。轰击继续向城市推进，在一场天灾般的大爆炸中将整条街道化为火海。

环绕全城的护盾崩溃了，梅克隆的大军随之苏醒。

球形无人机顷刻间如虫群般布满天空，向英雄们射出激光。金属高塔上处处敞开孔洞，露出数以百计的光束炮塔，地面的机器人与载具则以一轮炮击拉开战幕。

利奥的飞行盟友前去拦截无人机群，这位操纵火焰的基因者则趁机恢复刚才的消耗。虽然他能够调用极其庞大的能量储备，但储备的补充需要时间。

护盾一消失，其他队伍也开始行动。东方一道绿光闪过，照亮了昏暗的天色，那是尼德霍格开始变身了。这名绿系基因者化作一条绵延数千米的巨蛇，以人类头骨为鳞。怪物向城市蜿蜒爬去，毒液熔化了沿途的岩石，他的部队紧随其后。紫色光点在萨拉热窝各处闪烁，那是王牌正将一支支小队传送到城中。

西边的爆炸震撼着萨拉热窝，光辉骑士已经杀入城内。她虽然不是那种能以一己之力左右战局的强者，却是一位魅力非凡的领袖，亲自率部投入战斗，厚重的绿色装甲挡下激光，明亮的能量剑将机器人斩开。她的队伍规模最大，贡献了参战基因者的近半数；其中大多数人都来自德国废墟上崛起的民主国家——巴伐利亚新共和国，是那个国家的守护者。

梅克隆曾经摧毁了他们的家园，如今，他们要让正义得到伸张。

恢复过来后，利奥飞入城内，哥萨克和某个披着斗篷的家伙跟在身后。他们的盟友已在前方杀出一条路，正与无人机群交战，却遭遇了强烈抵抗。高塔向四面八方射出数以百计的激光，切开基因者，也切开建筑；防御炮塔的炮火则将废墟中几乎所有还屹立着的建筑轰塌。

当然，波动先生还是忍不住要吹嘘一番。这个爱显摆的家伙来到一条挤满机器人的街道中央，双手高举。“机器人，你们懂得恐惧吗？”他话还没说完，机器人就已开火，但激光和子弹径直穿过这名红系基因者，没造成半点伤害。“因为波动先生以眼泪为食！”

波动先生消失了，他由波构成的身体化为一道以光速飞驰的致命激光。还没等利奥反应过来，队友就已在机器人中间切出一条通路，仅仅是穿过它们的身躯，就将一台台机器一分为二。与此同时，狼人手足率领着一群怪物，正忙着用利爪撕碎一辆坦克。

那个披斗篷的家伙冲向一座金属高塔，直接穿塔而过，将其撞塌。其他飞行者分散开来支援地面部队，伦纳德和哥萨克则向梅克隆的堡垒飞去。

庞大基地的墙壁敞开，一波波配备喷气背包的机器人手持重型步枪，朝两人飞来。它们立即齐射出一轮黑色弹丸，迫使两人分头闪避。机器人的子弹虽然飞得慢，却能贯穿任何物质，吞噬一切靠近的东西。

重力步枪。伦纳德在此前的交战中碰到过几支，有一支差点撕碎了他的心核。他怀疑梅克隆专门设计了这种武器，用来杀死他这样的能量型基因者。

伦纳德用等离子光束还击，哥萨克则以肩炮轰击那些机器。双方的射击都精准致命，移动灵活优雅；机器凭借非人的敏捷与反应闪避，基因者们则占据着速度上的优势。

在皮提亚网络的引导下，伦纳德进入了某种恍惚状态，身体自行运转。仿佛有一种原始本能接管了他，关闭了清醒的意识，只留下一套战斗程序。他变得与自己正在对抗的机器毫无分别。

不，利奥意识到。他与这些机器确实不同。皮提亚的网络让每个人都保有自由意志，却又能让背景不同、毫无共同之处的人为了同一个目标通力合作。他们的军队虽各不相同，却团结一致；梅克隆的机器则是毫无思想的复制品，是一个暴君手下没有灵魂的奴隶。在那个暴君眼里，自由意志是一种疾病，而非值得珍惜的东西。

不知从何时起，皮提亚的网络开始胜过梅克隆的机械蜂巢意识。伦纳德击中一个机器人，两个，三个。数字不断攀升，而这名基因者的视野中已只剩轰击、黑色子弹和燃烧的金属。

五十，七十……

“它们什么时候才能学乖？”哥萨克一边用肩炮轰击无人机，一边问道。利奥用等离子轰击助阵，这对空中搭档完美同步，协力进攻；说来不可思议，皮提亚的网络甚至能让他们透过爆炸声听清彼此的话。

然而，尽管两人抵抗得如此出色，还是有更多机器人不断涌来。

与这些机器战斗，有一种令人胆寒的感觉。人类和动物会恐惧，会在败局已定时逃跑，会在进攻前犹豫，也会尝试交流。但梅克隆的机器人不会。它们毫无悔意，不发一声，永不退却。

利奥面对的是一股永不停息的钢铁洪流，而它只想让他死。

尽管如此，战局似乎仍对他们有利。光辉骑士的部队守住了西侧战线，尼德霍格也已抵达城区，撞倒建筑，单凭庞大的体重就压垮了一座激光塔。梅克隆那些亡灵半机械人的尸体一碰到巨蛇，就被吸入他的身体，补充敌人能量武器造成的生物质损失。

尼德霍格一旦变身，就几乎势不可挡——一头以死亡为燃料的战争巨兽。他的部队跟在身后，那些基因者都接受过机械或生物植入物的改造；如同为大鲨鱼护航的䲟鱼，他们主要负责保护首领，挡住那些试图蜂拥而至的小型无人机。

按照计划，这头爬行巨兽将摧毁防御高塔，再喷吐酸液攻破梅克隆的堡垒，不过那个为祸一方的天才或许还藏着一手。

结果证明，他藏着两手。

这名红系基因者注意到了梅克隆堡垒附近的动静。组成基地无穷大形状的两个环内，地面敞开了洞口。两枚摩天大楼般庞大的火箭从地下升起，以惊人的速度飞向天空。

库加塔号和巴哈姆特号已经发射。

利奥立即追了上去，朝库加塔号射出一道等离子光束。火箭周围的力场挡住了攻击，虽然短暂失效了一瞬，两件轨道武器仍在继续攀升。

“如果让它们飞得太远……”伦纳德没能把话说完，便朝飞行机器人开火，轰出一条通路。它们甚至不是在争取胜利，只是在拖延时间。

“只是如果。”哥萨克简短地接了一句，带着几分机锋，全速追向库加塔号。这种加速产生的过载足以碾死任何普通飞行员，但这位义警硬撑了下来，追上了卫星。他是个相信行动胜于言语的人。

伦纳德追向巴哈姆特号，准备直接撞上去，穿过它的力场，就在这时，背后传来一声咆哮。

这名红系基因者转过身，看见一头怪物从堡垒中冲出。

那生物看起来像某种生物机械化的欧洲龙。这只十米高的爬行动物长着太阳帆般的翅膀，胸膛、头部和利爪上覆盖着黑色机械部件，与红色鳞片交错相杂。它用黄色的爬行动物眼睛瞪着这名红系基因者，目光中透出一丝智慧。

那到底是什么鬼东西，生物机械战争机器？伦纳德没时间跟它交手，否则巴哈姆特号就可能逃出地球轨道。

仿佛是在回应他的念头，巨龙抬起双手对准伦纳德，利爪上闪耀着猩红的能量。

一股碾压性的力量攫住活体太阳，将他向下压去。伦纳德猝不及防，竟直坠地面，一只无形的手正拖着他远离巴哈姆特号。

虽然更擅长操纵等离子体和火焰，伦纳德也能控制自身的引力。他大多只用这种能力飞行，但也学会了几招别的。他操控自己的引力场，终于瓦解了那股将他向下拖拽的力量，重新投入战斗。

“刚才那是什么？”伦纳德大声问道，追向巨龙，“引力井？”

“引力控制。”巨龙咆哮回应的同时，皮提亚开口道。“它是个红系基因者。”

伦纳德一时间以为自己听错了。“什么？可只有人类才能——”

“那是以前。”

梅克隆的能力涵盖了多智能体系统，从人工智能到纳米技术造物。他的一贯做法，是创造专门研发新技术的人工智能，从而在自身专长之外的领域取得突破。梅克隆是最危险的那种天才——能造出更多天才的天才。

可谁能想到，他居然破解了灵药的秘密……

绝不能让这个为祸一方的天才逃走。无论如何都不能。

伦纳德将等离子体聚于心核，朝那生物射出一道致命光束。怪物虽然能以超音速移动，却不可能快过光。

但事实证明，它根本不需要。它转而将引力碾压能力施向空处，制造出一个拳头大小的微型黑洞。黑洞将巨龙吸入其中，随后消失，离子光束只击中了空气。

该死，它是用引力造了个虫洞还是什么？

无论如何，它已经完成了拖延伦纳德的任务。哥萨克不知用了什么办法，成功击落了库加塔号，卫星残骸坠向萨拉热窝的街道，但巴哈姆特号已经变成天空中一个微弱的光点。

“妈的！”

“根据计算师的推算，巴哈姆特号一旦上线，有百分之七十三的概率向萨拉热窝开火。”皮提亚警告道。“每十分钟还会增加一个百分点。”

梅克隆已经绝望到要向自己的基地开火了吗？

他已经不在乎输赢了。

伦纳德转向天空，准备追赶那颗卫星，必要时就算追入黑暗的深空也在所不惜，皮提亚的声音却打断了他。“不，别去。攻击堡垒，找到梅克隆。在他按下开关前杀了他。这样胜算更高。”

“可那颗卫星会——”

“更糟糕的事要来了。”

伦纳德僵住了。“什么意思？”

“如果不尽快摧毁堡垒，梅克隆就会用某种方法杀死萨拉热窝的所有人。”皮提亚说，她的镇定土崩瓦解，流露出真切的恐惧。“不惜一切代价摧毁地堡。”

“里面有什么在等着我？”

“我不知道。”她的话变得令人不寒而栗。“我只能看见黑暗。全是黑暗。”

利奥做好战斗准备，以音速撞穿了堡垒的金属墙壁。

在深处，梅克隆正等着他。