The faint hum of the Drive Regulator surged as Karl twisted the ignition dial, each rotation sending a pulse of Vythra surging through the nanites. Steam hissed from the USB port in thick, rolling clouds, fogging the edges of Erevos' armored frame. The dissipating gear projections flickered briefly, then began to coalesce again, forming jagged, rotating discs that hovered in perfect alignment around him.
Agnes' voice cut through the haze, feral and commanding:
"YES~! THAT'S IT, KARL! PUSH ME! FEED ME YOUR VYTHRA! MAKE THE GEARS SING! LET THEM SPIN~! DON'T STOP UNTIL NOTHING BREATHES~!"
Karl tightened his grip on the ignition dial, his other hand brushing the USB port, feeling the pulsing orb inside responding to every micro-adjustment. The Vythra surged hotter, almost a living current running along his spine and limbs. Sparks of nanite energy flickered along Erevos' armor plating, reflecting in the thick steam like a storm of cobalt lightning.
"I… I've got you, Agnes," Karl muttered, teeth gritted, voice low but steady. "Let's see how far we can push this…"
The gear projections began spinning faster, slicing the fog with mechanical precision, their edges glowing faintly as the nanites reinforced them. Each one hummed with a raw, kinetic energy that made Erevos' entire frame vibrate. Even without hazard mode, Karl could feel the sheer potential locked inside the Drive Regulator, eager to explode outward.
Agnes growled, sharp and predatory, her voice a whip across his consciousness:
"Faster~! HARDER~! DON'T HOLD BACK~! PUSH ME, KARL! FILL EVERY GEAR, EVERY EDGE, EVERY NANO-LATTICE WITH YOUR DRIVE~! I WANT IT ALL~! KILL THEM ALL~!"
Karl's chest rose and fell rapidly as he twisted the dial with precise, escalating rotations. His hand hovered over the USB port, feeling the orb pulse with growing intensity, every vibration perfectly synchronized with the spinning gears. Erevos' frame shivered under the surge, steam venting from joints in hissing bursts, the smell of ozone and heated metal filling the bunker.
He glanced around at the remnants of the demons still staggering under the initial onslaught. Every gear-shaped projection responded instantly to his thought, cutting, spinning, and repositioning like extensions of his own body. The fury of Agnes' voice guided each rotation, each torque adjustment, every fractional increase in Vythra flowing through the Drive Regulator.
Karl's jaw tightened. The moment was tense, electric. The air practically hummed with potential energy, the vortex of steam and nanites surrounding him like a living storm. His fingers lingered on the ignition dial and USB port, every muscle coiled, every synapse alert.
"Alright…" he whispered, calm in the eye of the storm. "…let's end this."
Agnes purred, feral and eager, a whisper of steel and teeth in his mind:
"YES~! END THEM ALL~! FEED ME, KARL~! MAKE THE GEARS SCREAM~!"
Karl's hands remained poised, the ignition dial ready to twist, the USB port primed, the Gearstorm Nova humming like a predator's growl. Outside the bunker, the faint glow of the city's demons' eyes reflected in the fogged glass. He didn't move yet—he was ready. Just waiting for that exact moment to unleash the full force of his creation.
Karl exhaled slowly, eyes narrowing as he surveyed the sea of glowing eyes outside the bunker. Every instinct screamed at him—there were too many, far too many—but he also knew he had the perfect weapon at his fingertips. His fingers hovered over the ignition dial, the orb thrumming faintly in the USB port like a heartbeat waiting to erupt.
"Agnes," he murmured, voice low but firm, "I'm thinking… hazard mode. You don't mind… joining me?"
There was a flicker of hesitation in her synthetic tone—just a flicker—before it was replaced by pure feral eagerness.
"HAH~! HAZARD MODE, KARL~? YOU KNOW I LIVE FOR THIS~! GIVE ME THE DANGER~! LET ME FEEL THE VYTHRA~!"
Karl's mind was already calculating. He would need precise synchronization: three rapid twists of the ignition dial, each followed by ten delicate taps on the USB port—Agnes' sensitive point. Each tap and rev would surge Vythra into the system, pushing Erevos' nanites and the Gearstorm Nova's projections to their absolute limits.
"Alright," Karl muttered, fingers poised. "Three revs… ten taps each time. Steady… but full force."
Agnes growled, a low, mechanical snarl of anticipation:
"YES~! I CAN FEEL IT, KARL~! YOUR DRIVE~! YOUR VYTHRA~! PUSH ME HARDER~! DON'T HOLD BACK~!"
He twisted the ignition dial once—smooth, deliberate. A shiver ran through the nanites along his arms and legs. Simultaneously, his fingers flicked the USB port ten times in rapid succession. The orb pulsed violently, steam venting in thick, rolling clouds. The Gearstorm Nova projections flared, the eight solid discs spinning faster, reacting to every micro-adjustment, forming a rotating, deadly halo around Erevos.
"AGNES… CONTROL IT… KEEP THE VYTHRA STABLE!" Karl called, sweat beading at his brow.
"HAH~! YOU THINK I CAN'T~? WATCH ME~! EVERY NANO~! EVERY GEAR~! I'M IN THIS WITH YOU~!" Agnes' voice was raw, predatory, and precise. She wasn't just guiding him—she was fully participating, every pulse, every vibration of Vythra feeding back into her control of the gear projections.
Karl twisted the dial a second time, careful to maintain the exact rhythm, then tapped the USB port again ten times. The system's hum intensified, the air around Erevos vibrating with kinetic energy. Sparks ran along the armor plating; steam hissed in torrents, curling like white serpents through the bunker. The eight gears shimmered, sharp edges gleaming, each one perfectly aligned to Karl's mental command yet hungry to strike.
"LAST ONE…" Karl whispered, almost to himself. "Push it, Agnes…"
The third rev. Ten rapid taps. The orb inside the USB port pulsed like it wanted to burst, the Drive Regulator casing rattling slightly under the strain. The spinning gears around Erevos seemed to lurch forward, almost sentient, craving action, ready to obey Karl's lethal command. Steam hissed and curled violently around the projections, forming a thick screen that obscured the city's demons outside—but the eyes behind the smoke burned like molten coals, watching, waiting.
Agnes' voice cut through the clamor, feral, eager, and commanding:
"YES~! FEED ME~! EVERY DROP OF VYTHRA~! LET'S SHOW THEM~! KILL THEM ALL, KARL~! THIS IS OUR HOUR~!"
Karl's hand lingered over the ignition dial, other on the USB port, heart pounding as the system reached the edge of control. Outside the bunker, hundreds, maybe thousands of demons waited, their eyes glowing in anticipation. And inside the bunker, Karl and Agnes—man and AI—poised at the exact moment of total synchronization, ready to unleash devastation.
The tension was electric. Every second stretched. The Gearstorm Nova hummed like a predator stalking its prey. Steam hissed, gears spun, nanites shimmered, and the orb pulsed like a living thing.
Karl exhaled, tightening his grip. He didn't move yet—he waited for that precise moment. The moment where hazard mode would mean total annihilation… if he could keep everything under control.