Imperium of Man Terra Aeterna Season 01: Rise of Humanity's War Machin

On the iron wheels of a Chimera that had been heavily modified by a Tech-Priest of the Mechanicus, Reuel sat relaxed in the driver's seat. The Imperium's armored vehicle was now far removed from its original form—not just a weapon of war anymore, but a kind of mobile tactical suite.

In the back seats, Alice and Claire looked comfortable, enjoying the ride toward Raccoon City as if it were just another road trip—not a dangerous mission into the heart of a bio-terror nest.

"Reuel, are you on vacation or what?" Alice asked, tilting her head and glancing around at the interior walls lined with synthetic wood paneling and soft bluish-purple ambient lighting.

"I was thinking the same," Claire chimed in, lifting a bottle of red wine and sipping it slowly.

The Chimera's interior was absurdly luxurious for a combat vehicle. Inside, there was a king-sized bed, a private bathroom, a couch made of synthetic leather, and a cabinet stocked with premium food and drinks.

"If you think this is too comfortable," Reuel said with a sardonic smile, his hands still on the wheel, "you're welcome to ride on the roof. Great way to test your wind resistance."

Alice and Claire only glanced over, threw him a grin, then went back to enjoying their wine.

A few minutes later, Reuel pressed a button on the control panel. "Red Queen, your turn to drive. I've had enough of this seat for half a day."

"All right... Go ahead. Do something... naughty," replied Red Queen. The AI's holographic projection appeared on the dashboard—a little girl in a red dress, flashing a mischievous smile. Her voice had that teasing lilt, eerily human for something so synthetic.

She could pout, fake cry, and—most annoyingly—send "behavior reports" on Reuel to the women in his life behind his back.

Reuel stood up, stretched, then walked toward the back of the vehicle. In the lounge area, Alice and Claire now sat side by side near a coffee table, chatting while snacking.

If not for the looming threat of zombies, Lickers, and deranged experiments out there, this could've been a proper vacation.

Reuel slipped in between them, one arm snaking around Claire's waist, the other pulling Alice closer. He exhaled deeply, relaxing as he leaned back between the two women.

"Now let me be spoiled," he murmured. "I've been driving since morning. And not one of you has given me a good reason to take it easy."

"Don't think I don't know Red Queen's been on auto-pilot for the past two hours," Alice said sharply, one eyebrow raised.

Claire chuckled softly. "You just want to sit back and play with us in this armored beast of a truck, don't you?"

Reuel only grinned, not denying it. Claire briefly thought he was about to ask her to take the wheel, but Reuel waved that idea away.

"You'll see for yourselves," he said, his tone dropping lower, "how I deal with and punish two naughty women who like disobeying orders."

With slow, deliberate movements, he took each of their hands in turn and led them toward the mini bedroom tucked away in the rear of the vehicle.

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Meanwhile, Red Queen was piloting the Chimera in full auto-mode. The vehicle cruised slowly through the ruins of the quiet city. In the driver's seat, the AI's holographic projection sat cross-legged with a bored expression, her face staring blankly at the navigation screen while distant howls of zombies echoed through the silence.

From behind the soundproof divider separating the cockpit and the main cabin, a faint, unmistakable howl of wolves could be heard—not zombies this time. Suspicious activity in the bedroom was happening again.

"Every single day... What's so great about it, anyway? Humans are weird," Red Queen muttered to herself, somewhere between annoyed and curious.

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By then, dawn had begun to break. Sunlight streamed through the small window of the vehicle, but Reuel was still fast asleep. His body lay relaxed on the bed, both arms wrapped around the two beautiful women dozing beside him—Alice and Claire.

No one could blame him. In a shattered world, waking up like this was a luxury.

But that peace was short-lived.

"Brother, I've detected a large vehicle—similar to an Umbrella Corporation mobile base—ten kilometers ahead," Red Queen's voice shattered the calm.

Reuel's eyes snapped open. He sat up, grabbing the jacket draped over the sofa's backrest.

"Red Queen, patch me through to the satellite feed," he ordered quickly.

Instantly, a holographic screen lit up on the wall, showing a blurry overhead image: a massive vehicle, moving slowly, trailed by a horde of zombies like bees following their queen.

"Just one vehicle?"

"Yes, Brother. Only one in this area. But five more within a fifty to seventy-kilometer radius," Red Queen replied flatly.

"They're spreading out?" Reuel narrowed his eyes, his mind already stitching together the edges of a strategy.

"Are they deliberately attracting zombies... maybe trying to gather them at a single point?"

Red Queen didn't answer. But the smile on her face was enough of a confirmation.

"Red Queen," Reuel said, his eyes now cold. "Launch a Hunter-Killer missile. Target that vehicle."

"Understood, Brother~" Red Queen replied, her voice sweet, almost sing-song.

From the Chimera's rooftop, an automated missile launcher slowly emerged. The machinery clanked through the quiet morning air. Moments later, a compact missile launched with a sharp roar, tearing through the silence of the dead city.

On-screen, Reuel watched the missile soar—

Then—

BOOOOM.

A massive explosion. Fire erupted. The Umbrella vehicle went up in flames and twisted metal, dragged to the side of the road along with the horde of zombies that had followed it—now burning.

Reuel didn't look back.

Even if someone had survived inside, chances were they'd be devoured by the swarm soon enough.

"Red Queen, how far to Raccoon City?"

"Still 300 kilometers. Not far, Brother," the AI answered lightly.

Reuel sat in the driver's seat, slipping back into silence. His gaze was blank, fixed on the road ahead, now beginning to fill with morning mist.

"Red Queen," he said quietly, "do you think… this world still follows any kind of rhythm?"

Red Queen tilted her head, her hologram flickering slightly. "That's... a strange question. Do you think this world still has any 'regular rhythm'?"

Reuel gave a crooked smile. "Just asking."

"If you're just asking, that means you're hiding something," Red Queen shot back, her voice teasing.

Reuel let out a dry chuckle. "Come out here and keep me company."

"Nope." The answer was immediate. Firm.

"You're just an AI. A projection. What are you hiding from me, huh?"

Red Queen simply stared at him. A moment of silence.

Behind that holographic face, Reuel knew: Red Queen might be an artificial system, but her intelligence had long since crossed the machine threshold.

"Didn't you say you were going to spank me if I misbehaved at home?" Red Queen asked, feigning innocence.

Reuel sighed. "Do you even know what you did wrong?"

"Wasn't it you and Sister Jill who scared me by doing naughty things in the kitchen? That's what Angie said..." Red Queen replied quickly.

Reuel groaned and rubbed his face, defeated. He honestly didn't know which was harder to control—zombies or the two little AIs embedded in his system.

"All right. Don't do that again," he said at last.

But before their conversation could continue, a soft alarm began to beep. On-screen, the once-empty road now lit up with heat signatures. The radar showed a crowd.

Zombies. More and more of them. Filling the road like ants swarming a carcass.

Reuel stood slowly, gazing out the front with a calm expression.

"Looks like we're about to have a little fun."

"Red Queen, is there another route to avoid the zombies?" Reuel asked from inside the cockpit.

"There is, but it will add seventy kilometers if we go on foot," replied the AI in a flat tone.

Reuel immediately climbed up to the top of Chimera and looked ahead. What he saw made him click his tongue—shit. Tens of thousands of zombies were swarming, pushing and dragging each other's bodies, drawn to the large, smoking vehicle that had stopped in the distance.

That... was the vehicle they had destroyed earlier.

"Red Queen, take the detour," Reuel ordered.

During the journey to Raccoon City, Reuel spent his time doing two things: having sex with Alice and Claire, or climbing onto the roof of the vehicle to shoot zombies with the Autocannon. Sometimes, Alice and Claire joined the fight, and that only made the trip even more enjoyable. They even destroyed several Umbrella tanks along the way.

"Big Brother Reuel, I've detected a suspicious individual," Red Queen's voice came again.

"Where?" asked Alice, instantly alert.

"Under the bridge. But they're hiding..."

Alice squinted, staring in the direction Red Queen indicated. "That's an Umbrella motorcycle."

Reuel turned and looked at the bike. Immediately, he remembered. Damn, this was just like that trap for Alice… like in her movie.

"Red Queen, they might be hiding in the drainage area. Start firing at the underside of the bridge," Reuel commanded.

"Ka-THOOM... ka-THOOM!"

The Autocannon began to roar. Massive bullets tore into the concrete and steel, forcing Umbrella personnel hiding beneath the bridge to leap out in panic. They hadn't expected the enemy to shoot without warning.

"Big Brother, three Umbrella base vehicles are approaching," Red Queen reported.

"Fire the Hunter-Killer Missiles. Destroy them all," said Reuel, without hesitation.

"Understood, Brother."

Three missile launchers emerged from Chimera's rear panel, and in an instant—

"WUUUUUSH–KRA-KOOM!, SCREEEEEEEEEEE!"

Three missiles shot out and slammed into the large Umbrella convoy.

"BA-WHOOM!, KRA-KRA-BOOM!, KRA-KRA-BOOM!"

Explosion after explosion shook the road. The Autocannon kept roaring, mowing down anyone who dared peek out from behind the wreckage.

Inside the vehicle, Alice and Claire just sat in silence, staring at Reuel without saying a word.

For a moment, they felt like extras—accessories in Reuel's stage of carnage.

Reuel sat in the chair, lit a cigarette, and took a slow drag.

Suddenly, his thoughts drifted. Alice… clone… Was this the right time to tell the truth? If not now, she'd definitely find out later, once they reached Umbrella's base.

"Hey, Reuel. Why are you looking at me like that?" Alice asked, slightly confused.

She glanced at herself, as if wondering whether something was wrong with her appearance.

"Reuel, are you even listening? You're like... not here."

Reuel sighed. "Alice… there's something. I'm not sure if I should tell you or not…"

"Does it have something to do with me?" Alice asked, her gaze sharp but hesitant.

Reuel simply nodded slowly.

"Then tell me," Alice replied firmly, though her voice trembled just a little.

"More than twenty years ago," Reuel began to explain, "a scientist named James Marcus founded a company: the Umbrella Corporation."

Alice and Claire immediately focused, listening without interrupting.

"James Marcus had a daughter, Alicia Marcus, who suffered from Progeria—a genetic disorder that made her body age much faster than it should. When she was 25, she looked like a seventy-year-old woman." Reuel stared into the distance for a moment, then continued, "Marcus formed Umbrella solely to cure his daughter. That was his only original goal."

Alice and Claire looked at each other. They never imagined that the birth of a company as cruel as Umbrella was rooted in a father's desperate attempt to save his child.

"Marcus failed many times," Reuel continued. "But he kept trying. He recorded Alicia's voice, face, even her gestures, so he could remember her. And finally, in one of his experiments, he succeeded—he developed the T-virus."

"The T-virus... the one that caused the world to be like this," Reuel said quietly but clearly. Each word landed like a ticking time bomb, finally exploding in Alice and Claire's minds.

"What?" they both exclaimed almost simultaneously.

"The T-virus was developed by Marcus?" they repeated, nearly in disbelief.

Alice and Claire fell silent. The shock of the revelation left them breathless. They had never imagined that the destruction of the world had begun with an effort to save a single life.

"After that," Reuel went on, "Marcus wanted to stop the development of the T-virus. But his business partner, Dr. Isaacs, killed him. He even took custody of Alicia and seized control of the company shares."

"Why is there no record of this in my memory database?" A holographic projection of Red Queen suddenly appeared in midair.

"All that data was supposed to have been deleted," Reuel answered briefly.

"So Marcus was killed, and Isaacs was the mastermind behind it all?" said Alice, her eyes narrowing.

"Yeah, Marcus was a good man. But..." Claire couldn't finish the sentence. Her emotions were a tangled mess—anger, sorrow, confusion.

"The T-virus didn't last long in Alicia's original body," Reuel continued. "The Progeria kept progressing. But before the Raccoon City outbreak spread, Alicia found out about Isaacs' plan to destroy the world. She opposed him."

Reuel sighed. "She used her DNA and all the recordings her father made to create a clone. For one purpose: to stop Isaacs."

Reuel looked deeply into Alice's eyes. "Alicia injected her clone with the version of the T-virus developed by her father—and only one clone could perfectly integrate with the virus."

Alice was silent.

All the puzzle pieces were starting to form a complete picture in her head. Reuel had once said he'd never seen anyone integrate with the T-virus the way she did.

And now she understood.

She was a clone. A clone of Alicia Marcus.

Tears began to stream down Alice's cheeks. Her body felt limp. The world she had always understood—her purpose, her identity, even her very existence—collapsed in an instant.

Without saying a word, Alice got up and walked to the small room. The door closed gently behind her, leaving Claire and Reuel in silence.

Behind the door, only the sound of quiet sobs could be heard.

She needed time.

To process everything.