Intel noticed an irregularity off the boundaries of the Russian taiga. Multiple animal migration and biodiversity shifts all pointed towards some funny business happening within. "Go in, survey, and get out" were my orders. We couldn't afford to be caught within enemy territory, not when tensions were such that a single spark could burst the whole world into spectacular, nuclear-powered flames. 

Trampled bushes and bruised trees littered the forest floor. Shoddily covered footprints led to and from makeshift camps and assembly points. Clearly, there was something more here than just forest. As we progressed through the biome more and more anomalies popped up. Landmarks weren't where they're supposed to be, non-native trees looked hastily transplanted, and metal scraps discarded around. 

"Sir?"

I turned around.

"Isn't this supposed to be a mountain?"

He held his altimeter up. It read 400 m, more than 300 m under where them map said we should have been. Fabric and armor rustled as the others checked to find theirs to read the same. I looked from them to my compass and back again. My navigation skills were top of the cohort, and every other metric I had pointed towards us being on track.

"Push on."

Dark tendrils snaked around the edges of our vision as the evening sun gave way to night. The chattering of nature dimmed, leaving only the pounding of my heart and musings on how on earth all this upheaval was hidden. Natural trees were all but gone now and thick, likely deliberately obstructive trunks and vines stood menacingly. We cut and sliced our way through and fought and fought and fought and...

My axe ripped through the last near solid barrier of leaves and a blinding ray of light shot through. Sixteen gloved hands shot to their helmets as their eyes scrambled to adjust to the new illumination. 

I think I was the first to recover. Primal curiosity overwrote all my training as I teased the whole open with my hands and craned my neck through. 

In the place of the magnificent mountain peak laid a flat plane of craggy, dead ground. The wall we had broken through extended around the plateau and reached up up beyond the heavens. Vertically upwards was pitch black, like a sort of cover had been thrown around the entire area to prevent the moonlight from corrupting the pure orange light which coated the area. 

Floating inexplicably in the center was the source of the light. A circle of who's features could not be made out shot light brighter than that of the sun in every direction. The tinted shields over my eyes did nothing to protect me from the lasers penetrating through my retinas into my head and out the other side. 

From my knees on which I had somehow gotten, I broke eye contact with the light. Behind the circular branded imprint i made out the magnificent arms of metal which framed the "sun". Geometrical, resplendent planes seemed to explode outwards in every direction. Together the static pieces seemed to weave, converging at a point on the ground.

At the point, under the shadows of his magnificent wings stood the figure of a man. There the structure stood, still and unmoving. The phanthom echoes of knees hitting the ground were the only sounds which interrupted the resin of silence. Hearts stood still, bodies frozen. 

The black blob at the centre of my vision bubbled away, and as I stared at him I found him staring back.

The Ornithopter

A re-score of the song "Loneliness" from epic mountain.

Loneliness (In wonderland)

Machine | HarmonAI Challenge

Going to start uploading to soundcloud again because someone on my discord server told me to... 

(If you haven't joined the discord yet whatre u doing ):< link is in bio)

MOVEALITTLEFASTER

Wrote this after reading when breath becomes air. Was a good book.

Despite Death

cromch

The Artificer

Trigonigophobia

Made in 24 hours for All Nighter Vol. 9

Started as a shoegaze project, moved into electronic. Bits of folky inspirations, like the melody of "time" by john lucas in the chorus and the violins. 

Cover art by @chocographix on artstation and twitter.

DELUSION

I NEVER KNOW WHAT YOURE THINKING

Maybe coming back to soundcloud?

https://maok.us/discord

Maokus

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