Chapter 47 There's Always Something

"Are you saying... there's a project in B3 that can achieve spatial transfer?" Gore asked.

"That's right." Feng Bujue replied, "If you guys still want to live, I suggest... you come with me to find that thing and leave this base."

"Hmph... what a joke..." Gore sneered, "Just based on your few words, you want us to disobey orders and help you, a D-class personnel, escape?"

"It's just that we encountered an out-of-control 106, we're not scared out of our wits yet," Dan chimed in, "Even if we can't contact the command center for the time being, it doesn't mean anything."

After these two voiced their opinions, the other five team members also expressed their agreement, it seemed... Brother Jue's attempt to turn them had failed.

"I see... then I have nothing more to say." Feng Bujue wasn't flustered either, he stood up and dusted off his clothes, "Do as you please."

"I will, even without you saying so," Gore retorted, then turned his head and said, "Attention, everyone, move forward to the cargo passage."

"Cargo passage?" Feng Bujue questioned, "So there's such a thing?"

"Heh... what did you think..." Gore looked at Brother Jue and smiled, "You think I'd just come to B3 without ensuring a way out? I naturally came in with a backup plan."

"Tch..." Feng Bujue thought to himself, "As expected of nightmare difficulty, these NPCs are not easy to deal with..."

Brother Jue's initial plan was... to trick these people into entering the containment measures of that Anomalous project with him no matter what, then he would just improvise and find some excuse to overturn the "spatial transfer" claim.

But he didn't expect that these guys could still stick to their principles in this kind of situation and wouldn't be fooled...

"Kid, I'm warning you." After the team got back on the road, Gore said to Brother Jue again, "The orders we received didn't say we had to bring back living people, if you try any more tricks..."

"You'll just turn me into a corpse and carry me back, right?" Feng Bujue continued the other party's words, "Alright, I understand..." He was still pretending to be calm, "Since you guys are so stubborn, there's nothing I can do, I can only wish you good luck."

Although he said "wish you good luck", Brother Jue was actually praying that they would encounter something like 106 again soon. Only that kind of real, deadly threat could change the current situation.

Clang clang... clang clang...

Whether it was lucky or unlucky, Brother Jue's wish was quickly fulfilled.

Just as the group was heading towards the cargo passage, a series of bell sounds entered their ears.

This wasn't the crisp sound of a small bell, but a more muffled, heavy tone.

"This is... what's going on..." Gore, who was walking at the front, froze, he muttered to himself, his tone showing unprecedented panic and fear.

"Hey... did you guys see that..." another team member not far from him immediately said.

"Of... of course I saw it..." another person stammered, "What exactly is that thing..."

"It should be ***-513-1," Feng Bujue interjected at this time.

Only Brother Jue's tone was still normal. Unlike the others... who more or less showed a certain degree of fear.

"What the hell is that?" Dan asked loudly.

"Didn't you all see 'him'?" Feng Bujue replied calmly, "It's just that thing."

[Item #: ***-513]

[Object Class: euclid]

[Special Containment Procedures: ***-513 is to be suspended within a 1 cubic meter block of gelatin, which in turn is to be contained within a soundproofed, environmentally controlled containment chamber. The gelatin is to be checked daily for damage or loss of quality. An emergency check of the gelatin is to be made following any earthquake, explosion, or sonic event of Level 2 or higher. Personnel performing this check are to wear earplugs and earmuffs at all times while within 513's containment chamber.

Should any damage to the gelatin occur (tears, rips, shredding, melting, mold, etc.), 513 is to be immediately removed and placed within a new gelatin block by a team of surgically deafened D-class personnel. No other personnel are to enter the containment chamber during this process.

Any sentient beings exposed to 513 are to be monitored at all times by no fewer than two (2) security personnel. Under no circumstances are the subjects to be administered sedatives or allowed to fall unconscious. Any subjects who do fall unconscious are to be terminated immediately.

D-class personnel are to be terminated upon first signs of mental trauma. Other exposed subjects may be terminated at their request.

If possible, attempt to capture ***-513-1 upon visual contact.]

[Description: In its physical form, ***-513 is a heavily corroded cowbell of unremarkable make. Due to the level of corrosion present on the object, no maker's marks or engravings are visible. Attempts to remove the corrosion via chemical or physical means have met with failure.

***-513 was discovered by Agent [DATA EXPUNGED] during re-establishment of Containment Site-Mu following Incident [DATA EXPUNGED]. The clapper was found to be tightly secured to the bell with several layers of duct tape. A fragment of paper was found along with 513 (see Addendum).

Any sounds produced by 513 immediately induce panic in all sentient beings that hear it, regardless of their prior psychological state.

Subjects exposed to this effect report being gripped by the feeling of being watched by an unseen entity and show an elevated heart rate and blood pressure.

Approximately 1 hour after exposure to 513, subjects will begin to catch glimpses of ***-513-1 out of the corner of their eyes, in mirrors, through windows, or during any other activity that could result in a sudden visual change.

Upon being sighted, 513-1 will immediately turn and flee, disappearing from view before it can be clearly seen. Questioning of individuals nearby has revealed that persons not exposed to 513 are unable to see 513-1.

The "peeks" of 513-1 will reoccur every 14-237 minutes. This "stalking" behavior on the part of 513-1 will gradually induce severe sleep deprivation, as the subject is continually awakened during sleep by 513-1's presence. Subjects who are able to fall asleep before 513-1 appears report being physically assaulted by 513-1.

Upon awakening, 513-1 will flee as usual. This sleep deprivation, combined with the psychological stress induced by 513-1's actions, will typically lead to paranoia, aggression, hypervigilance, and depression. All tests to date, with the exception of one (see Addendum), have ended with the suicide of the subject.

Visual descriptions of 513-1 are highly unreliable. Subjects are unable to provide a clear visual description due to exhaustion, degraded psychological state, and the confusing nature of the sightings. However, all interrogations thus far indicate that 513-1 is a gaunt, humanoid figure with abnormally large hands.]

[Addendum: Text from fragment of paper:

you've seen it now he can hear you
you've touched it now he can see you
never ring it or if you hear it he can touch you]

"Cowbell" (A_Cowbell), is the name of this ***.

This is a very terrifying project, although it cannot be said that it has any malice towards humans, the effects it induces are enough to make a horror film series on their own.

Just now, Feng Bujue and the seven security team members around him all heard the bell ringing from the cowbell. Thus, all eight of them were inevitably... affected by the project.

However... for Feng Bujue, who had lost his fear, "panic" did not exist. Although he also saw 513-1, he didn't feel scared at all.

"Don't worry, that thing won't show up again in a short time." Brother Jue said to the security team members in a very relaxed tone, "Let's continue on our way."

"You're talking nonsense!" At this moment, Dan's voice was trembling, "I feel like... he... he's 'watching' me..."

"Yeah... I have that feeling too."

"Me too..."

The other team members also responded one after another.

"'Watching' you, so what?" Feng Bujue said, "Everyone who hears the bell will be watched by him, I can also feel his gaze, but that's not a big deal..." He was definitely talking without experiencing it himself, "513-1 can't cause us any physical harm at all, to put it bluntly... he exists in the 'world of consciousness', as long as we stay awake, then all he can do... is constantly flash in our sight to scare people."

"You kid..." At this time, Gore was the first to calm down, "Why do you know so much about this?" He had felt something was strange when he heard Brother Jue talk about 106's file before, and now he felt even more that something was wrong, "You keep saying that you are a D-class personnel, but you seem to know the Foundation's project information like the back of your hand... No matter what abnormality appears, you can immediately tell which project it is..." He raised his gun, "Speak! Who exactly are you?"

"Heh..." Feng Bujue pretended to be profound again, "Since you don't trust me at all, why ask multiple times? Even if I answered this question, you wouldn't necessarily believe it, would you?"

"Hmph..." Gore snorted and didn't ask any further, because Brother Jue was right.

"Speaking of..." Two seconds later, Feng Bujue spoke again, "Compared to my identity, don't you think... there's another thing that's more worthy of thinking about?"

"Oh? What is it?" Gore answered.

"Don't you guys think it's strange?" Brother Jue's expression sank, "Who rang ***-513?"

As soon as this was said, the seven security personnel collectively froze.

"And the timing of the bell ringing was grasped just right..." Feng Bujue said as he turned his head to look at a fork in the road beside him, the sign at the fork read " ***-513 Containment Chamber", "There is no doubt that... the soundproofing equipment of this containment chamber has been damaged or turned off, and... the cowbell just happened to be rung when we passed by this place... Heh... it feels like a premeditated attack..."

"Ignore it!" Gore ignored Brother Jue's sarcastic words, he stubbornly ordered, "No matter what happened in that containment chamber, it has nothing to do with our mission, continue forward!"

At the same moment, the command center.

"Still unable to obtain the picture?" Director Cosmo asked the staff next to him again.

"No, sir." The staff member replied.

"How's the communication..."

"The other party keeps sending communication requests, but every time we connect, we can only hear a series of noisy sound waves."

"Hmm..." Cosmo heard this and fell into deep thought.

It turned out that since Brother Jue and the seven security team members escaped into B3, all video and audio signals on the entire third underground floor had been interrupted...

Judging from the results of the computer detection, those lines were normal and did not seem to be a mechanical failure. It couldn't be a power supply problem either... because the third underground floor and the command center both had dedicated power generation devices. Even if 106 had destroyed the motor room, it would not have any impact on these two places.

"Director." After a while, Agent Steven, who was standing not far away, saw that Cosmo looked troubled, so he stepped forward in a timely manner to remind him, "Could it be... a certain project caused the monitoring equipment to malfunction?"

Cosmo looked back at him: "Before you spoke, I was thinking... which project has this characteristic."

As the person in charge of this base, Cosmo could basically recite the names, codes, and corresponding characteristics of all the projects in the facility.

"Oh? Do you have a clue? Director," Steven asked.

"Yes." Cosmo replied calmly, "As far as I know, there is no *** in B3 that can do this."

"Uh... this..." Steven seemed not to understand the director's meaning.

After a two-second pause, Cosmo said again: "Then the only possibility left is..." He paused, "It's that Anomalous project that has not yet established data that is playing tricks."

As soon as Steven heard this, his expression changed drastically: "Director, that project is..."

"See for yourself." Cosmo said, picked up a document from the console in front of him, and handed it to Steven.

Steven took the document and stared at it...

[Pending Evaluation Project: Anomalous-01]

[Object Class: ?]

[Special Containment Procedures: Anomalous-01 is to be kept in a 1.5 cubic meter cube alloy container. The container is primarily constructed of [DATA EXPUNGED]. The container is to be kept within a standard 5x5 meter containment unit. The room must be constantly monitored.

Prior to evaluation, personnel below Level 5 are not permitted to communicate or make contact with Anomalous-01, excluding testing personnel. All personnel who communicate with the project must undergo an immediate psychological evaluation after leaving containment. If abnormal speech or behavior occurs, immediate termination is recommended.]

[Description: Anomalous-01 is a humanoid puppet approximately one meter in height, who identifies itself as "Billy". Its physique is similar to that of a human child. It is dressed in a black suit and trousers with a white shirt underneath, and a red bow tie. It wears a pair of red children's shoes and white gloves on its hands.

The proportions of Anomalous-01's head are visibly larger than its body. Black hair "grows" from the back of its head. Its face is like a white mask. The high, protruding cheekbones feature red spiral patterns, and the eye sockets are black, with red irises and black pupils.

Anomalous-01's mouth is painted with red lipstick. Its jaw is capable of vertical movement and is constantly smiling.

Anomalous-01's voice is hoarse, like a voice changer.

Anomalous-01 is not inanimate and is fully aware that it is a "living thing".

X-ray examination revealed that Anomalous-01's structure is no different from that of an ordinary puppet. However, the clothes, hair, shoes, etc. on its body cannot be removed.

It has been proven that conventional weapons have virtually no effect on Anomalous-01. The application to use chemical weapons has not yet been approved.

148 days after the ***-079 disappearance event, Anomalous-01 suddenly appeared in ***-079's former containment measures. Monitoring showed that it emerged from a rift resembling a "space-time fissure".

The MTF squad near the facility immediately mobilized to capture it.

During the capture process, Anomalous-01 put up a very fierce resistance and used powerful abilities, presumed to be telekinesis, to cause [DATA EXPUNGED] to the related facilities.

After being contained, Anomalous-01 has repeatedly attempted to escape and has shown a considerable degree of knowledge about other *** projects. In a total of [DATA EXPUNGED] escape incidents, Anomalous-01 has caused a considerable amount of damage.

In conversations with Dr. [DATA EXPUNGED] and several researchers, Anomalous-01 demonstrated a very high IQ and EQ. It can usually dominate the conversation with a polite attitude and extensive psychological knowledge. Multiple audio recordings show that its favorite sentence is "I want to play a game with you".

The evaluation of Anomalous-01 will undoubtedly take a very long time. This data is still being improved. Considering the special nature of the project, it is recommended to prioritize establishing a "cover archive".]

After reading this material, Steven was covered in cold sweat.

"Director..." He looked at Cosmo, "Are you implying... that this project may have already escaped?"

"Heh... what do you mean 'may have'." Cosmo replied, "I'm sure that Billy 'has already' escaped." He paused, "I also participated in that capture operation a few months ago, and I still remember it vividly... The danger level of that puppet is no less than any keter-class project, it's just that it doesn't have that very obvious hostility towards humans." He muttered to himself, "I personally feel... that Billy is more like a highly intelligent life form from another dimension with some kind of purpose for being here..."