The Creatures That We Are

Chapter 531: Garbage Collector

The merchant providing camel renting service was a middle aged man named Amo. He had an average build with pronounced facial features, his skin tanned and reddened from the element and his bushy beard thick and hard. He was dressed in a flax long robe with white headdress on his head, and he was friendly to them.

He had four adult camels for renting, just enough for seven people.

Gray Bear, being a big guy, rode alone and took the lead, while War Tiger and Dr. Jia, Gao Yang and Qing Ling, and Nine Frost and Lithe Snake each shared a camel.

Amo pulled on the rope tying all four camels together at the very front, heading toward the triangular towers. Some had a triangular base, and others a square base. There were also a few with other polygonal-shaped bases. And the sides were mostly triangles and trapezoids, tapering into a pointy top.

The towers were all built with large stone blocks, reaching as high as forty floors by modern standards with the center of gravity resting near the base. The higher parts of the towers used less materials to effectively defend against natural disasters. It was said that even a small knife would have a hard time inserting through the gap, which showed the wisdom of the ancient Ni people.

Most of the triangular towers were tombs for the rulers and nobles of the ancient Ni Nation, and their bodies were processed into mummies.

The rulers back then believed themselves to be mortal sons of the supreme god, and the state of preservation of their bodies would determine whether they could return to their Father.

Listening to Amo pontificate about the history and legends of the ancient nation, Gao Yang couldn’t help but wonder if he would feel like the world was turned upside down if he knew that all that was fabricated by the Heavenly Way, and that the world would only last a hundred years in total.

Qing Ling was riding in front of Gao Yang, her back pressed against his chest. The bumpy ride made the strands of hair under her headdress fly up and tickle Gao Yang’s nose every once in a while, the faint fragrance pleasant.

Leading the way, Amo started talking about the unofficial history of the pharaohs and queens.

Disinterested, Qing Ling leaned forward and tugged at the reins to stop the camel’s mindless advance. It lifted its long neck.

She touched its furry head with her left hand.

The camel harrumphed in an adorable way.

Satisfied, Qing Ling relaxed the reins and patted the camel on the neck. It lowered its head slowly before continuing to travel forth.

Gao Yang chuckled and asked quietly, “Little Qing Ling?”

Little Qing Ling’s silence was an answer in itself. She looked over her shoulder at Gao Yang. “It’s so obedient.”

“Yeah, they’re gentle animals.”

Little Qing Ling took out her phone and handed it to Gao Yang. “Let’s take a selfie with the camel. It has to be in the picture!”

Gao Yang was a little exasperated, but at the same time, it was typical tourist behavior. He took the phone and tilted his body to the side, raising the phone and aiming the camera at his back. “Look at the camera.”

Little Qing Ling turned around and made a peace sign at the camera, beaming carefreely.

Click. The picture captured half of Gao Yang’s face, Qing Ling’s entire face and half of her body, and the back of the camel’s head, as well as the distant desert and triangular towers.

“Dr. Jia!”

Now that there were no other tourists around, Gray Bear could no longer take it. He shouted in their native tongue, “What the fuck are monsters?!”

Amo, leading the way, didn’t react at all. It seemed that he didn’t understand the language, and even if he did, he would most likely be a mere wanderer.

Dr. Jia was taking pictures with his phone, having long forgotten about the conversation.

He casually said, “Battlefields.”

“Shit.” Gray Bear slapped his own face. “He lost his mind again.”

Dr. Jia put away his phone and said seriously, “I’m wide awake. You’re just not smart enough.”

Gray Bear didn’t lose his temper. “Say that again. What are monsters?”

“Battlefields,” Dr. Jia repeated.

“Damn, I’m not smart enough either,” Nine Frost said self-deprecatingly.

“I mean it literally. Monsters are battlefields, territories. Get it?”

Gao Yang chewed on the response. He seemed to have gotten what Dr. Jia meant, but couldn’t immediately put it into words clearly.

It didn’t take long for him to come up with a more accurate analogy though. “The chessboard. Monsters are the chessboard!”

“Yes, that’s a good analogy!” Dr. Jia gave him a thumbs-up. “In that vein, the Heavenly Way and the Mist are the chess players, and we humans—mainly the awakeners—are the chess pieces, while the monsters are the chessboard.”

“Oh, I think I get it.” Gray Bear said in realization, but then he quickly frowned. “Wait! No, no, no. Shouldn’t monsters be chess pieces too?”

“No, monsters are the chessboard.” War Tiger smiled. He had understood as well.

“My unproven guess is that monsters are a byproduct of the clash between the Mist and the Heavenly Way.” Dr. Jia glanced at Amo, their guide. “Have you played a game called Garbage Collector 4[1]?”

They exchanged a glance. None of them had played the game.

“Hm, think of it this way: the Heavenly Way and the Mist are two powerful nations, and they waged wars and dropped nuclear bombs on the world, resulting in global nuclear contamination. Monsters are the embodiment of the resulting environmental damage.”

“We awakeners are the scouting teams of the Heavenly Way, picking up trash to fight for survival in the hostile environment of nuclear contamination.”

“I’ll say it again,” Dr. Jia repeated for emphasis. “Monsters aren’t our enemies, but a representation of the irreversible environmental damage. It is inevitable for awakeners to be contaminated and hurt in our fight to survive in the hostile world.”

“That’s why I said that monsters aren’t enemies, but the battlefield. The unawakened ones among humans are the reserve force hiding in underground bunkers, while the awakeners—the scouting teams—are responsible for picking up trash above ground to collect resources. In the process, we get contaminated by radiation, and to fight radiation, the Heavenly Way assigns us with equipment randomly, which are the Talents.”

“We can’t call radiation our enemies since our real enemy is the one casting the nuclear bomb, the Mist. The radiation is merely a product of the war. The monsters are the radiation, the territory and the chessboard. We are the chess pieces sent by the Heavenly Way, but both the Heavenly Way and the Mist are now moving us as chess pieces.”

Dr. Jia sighed. “I’m tired. I can’t make it clearer.”

Realization dawned on Gao Yang. The hypothesis was similar to his guesses in concept.

The nature of humans and monsters, and the divine nature.

Combined with the analogy, couldn’t it be said that the fight between divine natures had resulted in the uncontrolled surge in monsters’ nature? And the remaining human nature was struggling in the marsh of monsters’ nature...

Gao Yang’s thoughts were entangled. He stopped himself from getting overly philosophical.

“Fuck, I feel confused.” Gray Bear frowned. “But I also feel like I’ve understood something.”

The others were in the same boat.

“If that is the case, what are the two major nations, the Heavenly Way and the Mist, doing right now?” Little Qing Ling had been listening intently. She had to brief her sister later to make sure she didn’t become a hindrance, or her sister wouldn’t let her take over again.

“It’s obvious. They are still fighting.”

“For what?” asked Lithe Snake.

“For territory, for resources, for authority, or just for the hell of it. Who knows?” Dr. Jia spread his hands. “Anyhow, the fact that our areas of activity have been shrinking means that the Heavenly Way is losing to the Mist, and we’ll face doom sooner or later.”

“Didn’t you conclude that the world only has a hundred-year lifespan? I think it’ll cease to exist then, wholly devoured by the Mist. Don’t ask me what the Mist is though. I’m a genius, but not God.”

Gray Bear said in irritation, “You! Would you not say something so terrifying in such a casual tone?”

“Firstly, it’s just my guess,” Dr. Jia said. “Secondly, if the Mist wins, it wins. Whatever happens, we’re all parts of the vast universe. We’ll continue to live in a different form. Join them if you can’t beat them. There’s no shame in that. Widen your perspective.”

“Nonsense!” Gray Bear huffed, but he couldn’t find a comeback to that.

“Ha.” War Tiger lit a cigarette. “Such philosophical debate is too abstract. I’m a layman who only cares about the present.”

“Yeah, yeah!” Gray Bear gave War Tiger a thumbs-up for putting his thoughts into words. “That’s what having perspective really looks like!”

1. A reference to Fallout 4. It’s a meme among players that you’re basically just picking up trash to advance the game. ☜