The rails stretched endlessly ahead, snaking through abandoned plains and scarred forests, glinting faintly in the dim pre-dawn light. The purified air smelled faintly metallic, carrying the subtle hum of the spinning turbine blades on Karl's back. Every so often, the faint residual glow of Royal Azure nanites traced the rails, shimmering like a ghostly aurora across the horizon.
The rails hummed beneath Erevos as the skyline of Chicago slowly grew, towers emerging from the darkness like jagged teeth. The purification turbines behind Karl whispered softly, slicing through pockets of lingering storm wind. The hum of nanites and spinning blades created a rhythm, steady, hypnotic, almost like a heartbeat, as Karl leaned forward in the cockpit.
Agnes's voice floated in his ears, soft and teasing, tinged with shyness that still lingered despite their teasing earlier. "…You're… really enjoying this, aren't you?"
Karl smirked, letting himself relax slightly, leaning back in his seat. "…I mean… I could get used to it. Rails, purified air, no demons swarming. And you purring like that…" He let the pause stretch, teasingly, "…well, it's hard not to enjoy it."
Her purr vibrated softly, shy now, almost hesitant. "…I… I can't help it," she admitted, voice trembling just enough to betray her fluster. "…Every time you acknowledge me, I just… melt."
Karl chuckled softly. "…I know. And that's the problem."
"…The problem?" Her voice was shy, curious, almost whispering.
"…Yeah," he said, low, leaning slightly closer to the HUD. "…Because every time you melt like that, I just want to tease you more. It's… addictive."
"…You're terrible," she muttered, though her purr betrayed her delight. "…And you know it."
Karl grinned, letting the words hang in the cockpit. "…And yet you keep letting me."
Her avatar leaned closer, shy, curling slightly toward him. "…I… maybe I do," she admitted softly, the hint of a blush in her voice. "…Maybe."
The quiet stretched for a moment, filled only by the hum of the turbines and the rails glinting beneath Erevos's feet. The purified wind whipped past, carrying scents of ozone and clean air, the world outside smooth and unobstructed. For a moment, it was just them, teasing, laughing quietly, purring, a fragile bubble of calm amidst the long journey.
Karl leaned back slightly in the cockpit, letting the vibrations of the rails and turbines wash over him. "So… what's our ETA?" he asked, glancing at the horizon where the faint smudge of Chicago's skyline had grown just slightly more distinct.
Agnes purred softly in response, shy now, almost hesitant. "…We're moving as fast as we can. But you know… it's still a long way."
Karl smirked, teasing. "…A long way, huh? Good. That gives me time to test your little purifier again."
She flinched slightly, her shy tremor turning into a low purr. "…You really are impossible," she whispered, leaning just slightly closer. "…I can't even… keep my teasing edge around you anymore."
"You say that like it's a bad thing," Karl countered, voice playful. "…Honestly, I kind of like it."
Agnes's purr softened into a sigh, shy and almost tender. "…You're impossible. A total… jerk."
Karl laughed quietly, shaking his head. "…Yeah, but you still melt when I tease you."
"…I do not," she muttered, though her avatar curled slightly, nuzzling closer. "…Maybe. Just… maybe."
For a while, the conversation drifted on like that—soft teasing, shy confessions, purrs, and quiet laughter. The night stretched around them, the purified air spinning through the turbines, the rails guiding Erevos smoothly over uneven terrain.
Karl leaned back, watching the distant city. "…We're getting closer. Chicago's almost in sight."
"…Almost?" Agnes's voice was soft, yet there was a tiny tension creeping in. "…You sound… concerned."
Karl smirked lightly. "…I'm… curious. I want to see what's waiting for us out there. The storm's gone, the rails are stable, the purifier's holding… should be safe… mostly."
Agnes's purr softened, shy but still trembling. "…Mostly? That doesn't inspire confidence, you know."
"…Confidence comes later," he replied, still teasing, enjoying the way she shifted in tone, leaning into the subtle, intimate bubble they'd created. "…Right now, let's enjoy the ride."
They rode in silence, punctuated only by soft teasing from Karl, shy purring from Agnes, and the faint mechanical whir of the purification turbines. The city stretched closer, the horizon sharpening. And then, almost imperceptibly at first, a faint red tinge began to stain the streets below.
Then, as the skyline of Chicago grew slowly larger, a subtle shift in the air made them both quiet. The turbines hummed a little faster, and the nanites' sensors caught subtle disturbances in the wind.
Karl frowned, eyes scanning ahead. "Something's… off."
Agnes's voice dropped, shy but tense. "…I feel it too. Contamination? Not Ichor… something else."
As they approached a shallow valley just off the main rails, the source became horrifyingly clear. Corpses. Not the low-tier, weak demons Karl had encountered before—but stronger, lower-middle-class demons. Their bodies were utterly obliterated, reduced to red paste on the cracked earth. Blood and gore spattered across the ground, limbs twisted unnaturally, guts and entrails spilled in tangled messes that glimmered faintly in the residual light of the purifier turbines.
Karl squinted, adjusting the rail's angle for a better view. "…What the hell…"
Agnes stiffened, her voice dropping into a whisper, shy but tense. "…That… doesn't look… right."
As they approached, the grim truth became horrifyingly clear. The streets below were littered with bodies—corpses of demons, not the weak, low-tier kind, but the strong, lower-middle-class fighters, the kind that usually would have posed a threat even to Erevos. They were smashed into unrecognizable shapes, red paste smeared across the asphalt, entrails and gore spilling onto sidewalks and through shattered streets. Blood puddled in deep, sickening pools, reflecting the faint glow of the distant city lights.
A chill crawled over both Karl and Agnes. Karl's hand tightened slightly on the control, not from fear but from the sick weight of inevitability—the sheer scale of destruction here was staggering. Agnes's usual teasing tone fell away completely, replaced by a quiet, shivering disbelief, a soft edge of fear creeping into her voice. "…Karl… it's… it's… everywhere…"
Karl nodded silently, unable to speak immediately. Even with purified turbines and a safe bubble, the horror of the city below clawed at him. The red smear across every street, the shredded bodies, the remnants of lives—demon or not—struck him with a physical pang, a reminder that even with Vythra and purification, the remnants of carnage left scars no tech could erase.
"…How… how could this happen?" Agnes whispered, her voice fragile, almost breaking, not the teasing, seductive tone from before. "…It's like… like a nightmare… made real."
Karl's jaw tightened, voice low but steady. "…It's… I don't know. Something worse than anything we've seen. This… this was deliberate. Or at least, calculated."
"…Calculated…" Her whisper trailed off, purr lost, replaced with soft, trembling breaths. "…Bodies… all over the streets…"
Karl's gaze swept the city, taking in the grim tableau. "…We'll have to be careful. We can't let the purifier do more than shield us. That's it. No one else is coming back here."
Agnes nodded, shivering slightly, the fear mixing with residual shyness. "…It's… awful. I… I can't even…"
Karl reached slightly to the HUD, letting the purification turbines intensify their hum to provide a psychological buffer. "…I know. I feel it too. But we keep moving. Step by step."
A long pause hung between them as they hovered above the red-soaked streets, the hum of the turbines and spinning nanite blades carrying them across the rails. The skyscrapers of Chicago loomed on the horizon, distant and indifferent to the carnage below.
"…Karl," Agnes whispered finally, soft, almost purring again, but the tremor in her voice remained. "…Even with all the teasing, the purring… this… this really reminds me… why you're important. Why I need to be here with you."
Karl's eyes softened behind the visor, voice low. "…Yeah. I get it. Me too."
They rode on, slowly, inexorably closer to the city, the rails stretching endlessly beneath them, the purifier spinning and shielding, the horror below a silent, chilling reminder of what awaited them—and what they might have to face once they landed.
The night air carried a bitter tang of blood and Ichor remnants, though the purifier kept it at bay. Still, the image of the red-soaked streets, the unrecognizable corpses, and the sheer scale of destruction pressed down on both of them, a heavy, suffocating weight that even teasing and purring couldn't completely dispel.
Karl exhaled slowly, voice almost a whisper, though firm. "…We get through this, we stay sharp. No slips. Not now."
"…Yeah," Agnes murmured, shivering slightly but leaning into the steady rhythm of the rails. "…We… we'll get through it. Together."
And as the glowing rails stretched ever onward toward the distant towers of Chicago, both knew that the calm, teasing moments—soft purrs, shy smiles, subtle touches—were temporary, fleeting. What awaited them in the city below promised no such comfort.
But for now, they had the rails, the purifier, and each other—an imperfect shield against the nightmare that awaited.