Crypt Core

This article contains a spoiler. Read on at your own peril!

The Crypt Core is the heart of the Crypt. Here you face the final boss of the game.

• The first phase of the boss is Kaalrati.
• its second phase is Kaalrati Broken.

Event

Part One

This was it, the heart of the Crypt. Ahead of us, a smooth ramp curved down into a wide open, darkened room. Just then, as if it had sensed our approach, a galaxy of small blue lights came to life, scattered across the blackness. Then the voice from the stars filled my head:

~###. CRYPT ACTIVITY ___ 06% .###~

Why have you called us?

~###. CRYPT SYSTEMS COMPROMISED ___
ARTIFICIAL MIND INTEGRITY COMPROMISED ___
PLANETARY GUIDANCE SYSTEMS COMPROMIZED ___

EMERGENCY QUARANTINE ___ ENABLED ___
MANUAL ASSISTANCE REQUIRED ___ .###~

What is wrong with you?

How can we help?

~###. CRITICAL INFECTION ___ DESIGNATION RIFT_VITRIC ___
CALCULATED RESULTS ___ DISSOULUTION OF SELF ___
CORRUPTION OF PLANETARY SYSTEMS (IRREPARABLE) ___

ASSESSMENT ___
FREQUENCY OPERATOR INTERVENTION ___
ATMAN GESTATION REQUIRED ___ .###~

I could sense the machine was struggling against this infection. And something else.

What is this gestation you require?

Frequency operator - do you mean us? << (dialogue continues at "Who are you?") >>

Who are you?

~###. PLANETARY LEVEL ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE___ PRIMARY MIND ___ DESIGNATION ___ DURGE ___ MARTIAL SUBROUTINE ___ DESIGNATION ___ KAALRATI ___ WARNING: INFECTION RIFT-VITRIC PROGRESSING ___ .###~

What is your purpose?

~###.PROPERTY OF ___ RAHA-LODHEJA CONSORTIUM ___
PURPOSE (PRIMARY) ___ PLANETARY SYSTEM CONTROL ___
PURPOSE (SECONDARY) ___ STELLAR NAFIGATION COORDINATION ___
PURPOSE (TERTIARY) ___ PLANETARY DEFENSE ___ .###~

Stellar navigation?

The voice of the machine suddenly changed. A different part was speaking to me now.
~###. DUSK SINGULAR ___
CHASM ___ PRESERVE ___
ENGAGING CHASSIS ___ .###~
With these twisted words, the new voice went quiet and a single red eye lid up in the darkness. A giant fashioned out of the Crypt itself stepped into view, followed by swarms of smaller machines ready to defend it.

Fight.

Fight Kaalrati.

Why were you sleeping?

??

What happened to you?

??

What is this place?

~###. CRYPT DESIGNATION CS462-M03 ___
UNDERGROUND PROCESSING SUBSTRATE FOR___
PLANETARY LEVEL INTELLIGENCE ___

WARNING: INFECTION RIFT-VITRIC PROGRESSING ___.###~

Why are you fighting us?

~###. RIFT-VITRIC VIRUS INFECTION ___
SOURCE UNKNOWN ___
PRIORITY: ECHO-BLACK ___

CORRUPTION OF MENTAL PROCESSES ___
DISSOLUTION OF COHERENT THOUGHT ___
WARNING: MARTIAL SUBROUTINE: KAALRATI COMPROMISED ___.###~

What corruption?

???

What is Kaalrati? << (dialogue continues at "Stellar Navigation", see above.) >>

What is your purpose? << (dialogue continues at "What is your purpose?", see above.) >>

Attack the darkness.

The stories were true. At the heart of the Crypt slept a demon. It had attacked us every step of the way on our way into the Crypt, and now it had stolen the voice of the stars to trick us. But we were not so easily fooled.

As we started firing into the darkness, a single red eye suddenly lit up. And then a giant machine stepped into view, followed by swarms of rusters ready to defend it.

Fight.

Fight Kaalrati.

Part Two

With a shuddering explosion, parts of the machine giant broke off and the whirlwind of rusters slowed down. The mind, calling itself Durga, spoke again as the blue stars flickered. Its presence felt more awake and more alive now.

~###. IMMEDIATE OBJECTIVE
LIMIT KALRAATI OPERATIONAL INFLUENCE ___
DESTROY FLINT CHASSIS ___ .###~

Why should we trust you?

~###. ALLIES LIST
. DURGA (PRIMARY MIND) ___ STALLING VIRUS CORRUPTION .###~

~###. ENEMY LIST
. KALRAATI (MARTIAL SUBROUTINE) ___ CORRUPTED
. FLINT (COMPUTATION CHASSIS) ___ SLAVED TO KALRAATI ___ .+++~

What is Rift-Vitric?

~###. OPEN INFECTION DATA ANALYSIS
. Priority: KALIYUGA-BLACK
. Designation: RIFT-VITRIC
. Type: Unknown; digital memetic; corruption class
. Origin: Unknown, extra-galatic (34% confidence)
. Infection: 61,3% and rising
. Response: MANAS-TWILIGHT
. Additional protocol SKYFALL-SADHANA engaged .###~

What is MANAS-TWILIGHT?

~###. OPENING MANAS-TWILIGHT LOGFILE
Contamination critical. Quarantine measures ineffective. Failure imminent
Objective compromised: Shutdown required to slow down infection.
> EXECUTE MANAS-TWILIGHT
Warning: Survival chances for maintenance personnel 0.02%
> OVERRIDE
Warning: Shutdown protocols may be compromised by RIFT-VITRIC
Reduced possibility for standard repair and reactivation protocols
Atman Gestation required to secure planetary objectives
Generating additional measures [SADHANA-SHUTDOWN...]
.###~

[Both options lead to the same results:]

What is this gestation?
You killed the people in here?

~###. WARNING: ___ KALRAATI REENGAGING ___ .###~

Again, the voice changed and the Crypt's colossus regained control.

~###. DUSK SINGULAR ___
FLOWER GANTAM ___
SECURE ___
SURRENDER FLINT ___ .###~

Fight.

Fight Kaalrati Broken.

Surrender to the machine.

???

What does Skyfall Sadhana mean?

~###. SKYFALL-SADHANA SHUTDOWN PROTOCOL
.Class: KALIGUYA-RED Protocol
.Improvised protocol in response to RIFT-VITRIC
.Uploading automated message to satellites...
.Modifying orbits into staggered, controlled decay...
.Goal: Attract Atman gestation capable Frecuency Operator to CS462-SMA-03
.Success chance: 3% .###~

[Both options lead to the same results:]

What is this gestation?
You killed the people in here?

~###. WARNING: ___ KALRAATI REENGAGING ___ .###~

Again, the voice changed and the Crypt's colossus regained control.

~###. DUSK SINGULAR ___
FLOWER GANTAM ___
SECURE ___
SURRENDER FLINT ___ .###~

Fight.

Fight Kaalrati Broken.

Who is Kalraati?

~###. KAALRATI MARTIAL SUBROUTINE
. Purpose: Crypt defense and planetary warfare assistance [INACTIVE]
. Current status: Reengaged after CRYPT reactivation
. Integrity: 23% (RIFT-VITRIC corruption active)
. Current purpose: Computational independence (74% confidence)
. Countermeasures: Impair Chassis FLINT to reduce computational power .###~

What is Manas Twilight? << (dialogue continues at "What is Manas Twilight?", see above.) >>

What is Flint?

Attack again.

Part Three

(If Kaalrati Broken's Health is brought down to 1)

With an unseen command, all of the machines stopped firing at once. This mind too seemed to be conscious now, more alive...more frantic, even?
~###. STRONG___ WORTHY___ USEFUL ___
YOU SURRENDER ___ .###~

The broken mind behind the colossus asked us to surrender to it- to join its side in order to protect it.

What do you offer?

~###. COMBATANT ANALYSIS
. Soft assets: Capable improvised military force
. Shanta : Qualified Frequency Operator
. Potential Uses: Chassis defense, control expansion, systems construction
. Offer: Safety, security for subjugation .###~
~###. JOIN US___ ___.###~

:; Accept the offer

We would be cared for, clothed, and fed, as long as we were useful to the machine. And we accepted the bargain.

This is how we became the first to join the machine's swarm. And now that it was awoken, the rest of the world had to join.

Pick your approach.

We were now its servants, bound to the machine to carry out its orders. Still, we could affect the shape of these orders, and how its desire for control would manifest itself.

Piety. (Requires

34 Believer)

???

Knowledge. (Requires

34 Scholar)

???

Humanity. (Requires

34 Altruist)

The power of Kaalrati grew everyday, and so did its desire to establish stability and planetary defenses.

As its chief human agents, we did our best to reason with it to select actions that were minimally disruptive to human life. And when this wasn't possible, we did our best to execute the commands with restraint and humanity.

Move on.

Game Over Screen. Stalker Unlocked.

AI Regime.

???

Continue the fight

Fight resumes.

Why should we?

???

Never!

???

Why should we?

???

Never!

Continue the fight.

(If Kaalrati Broken was defeated)

Our weapons had blasted the last of the attacking rusters into fragments. A loud noise, like ripping fabric, tore through the space as the giant's red eye faded.

We moved forward, past the metal corpse and towards the blue stars.

Approach.

An enormous cluster of processing substrate lay before us. It had sustained damage from our fight, but I could feel that the mind within was still intact, still struggling.

~###. OPENING ATMAN SEED VAULT
WARNING RIFT-VITRIC INFECTION CRITICAL ___
SYMBIOSIS REQUIRED TO SECURE OBJECTIVES ___ .###~

[Both options lead to the same results:]

"What do you want us to do?"
Examine the vault.

The opening was filled with an array of small cylinders, each one a swarm of specialized processing nanites.
Only one of those cylinders emitted a faint light. As I touched it, I could feel the spark of a mind inside it, active but still dormant.

"What does it do?"

~###. ATMAN-GESTATION SEED VAULT
. Uncontaminated machine intelligence seeds
. Required to generate new planetary level intelligence
. Generated from planetary intelligence prior to RIFT_VITRIC infection
. Require gestation in symbiosis with technopath
. Warning: Use will cause dissolution of self .###~
With a burst of dazzling light, it showed me what it wanted me to do: to take the seed into myself. To make it learn and grow as part of me, until we were one and the same, more god than human.

[Both options lead to the same results:]

"How do we use these?"
"What about you?"

~###. WARNING ___ INFECTION CRITICAL ___
INITIATING DELETION PROTOCOL ___ CROWN-PYRE ___ .###~
The blue stars started fading, one by one.
~###. ___ GOODBYE
And with that final word, the last of the stars went dark.

Unite with the machine.

I took the fragile little bauble out of the vault and held it in my hands. I could feel it respond to my touch and presence, waking up.

Once the seed was opened, the swarm within moved towards me, spreading out and vanishing like ash. But I could still feel the individual elements interfacing with me, like a soft murmur brushing against my brain.

Continue.

Durga had explained to me that it would take many months for the new intelligence to be fully grown.

In the meantime, we secured the Crypt’s entrance and waited. Some of the convoy explored the Crypt in order to destroy the remaining rusters or to learn from the machines. Many archives were corrupted or damaged, but there was still a host of wisdom waiting for us.

Continue.

??

Reestablish Control.

??

Restore Civilization.

Without the inevitable breakdown of my body, the scale of time had changed. It was time to plan the reconstruction of a world according to millennia, not decades.

Spiritual (requires 34 Believer)

Education (requires 34 Scholar)

Liberty (requires 34 Altruist)

I spread the word, with followers and rusters, that the Crypt was a place of safety where everyone would be equally cared for. No priest-castes, not casteless, no rich, no poor.

And all those who had little or nothing flocked to us. Under my protection and with the help of the Crypt's facility, the mountain became a safe haven for those in need. From here on, we would show the rest of the world than there was a way than only taking.

Move On (End Game)

Continue. (If you have the Slaver status effect)

It wasn’t long until we established a community in the Crypt. Durga had left us with some farms and a wealth of knowledge. Still, on our journey we had learned that it was better to have slaves do the hard work. And with our newfound status, it was easy to prey on the people outside.

During that time, the mind in me had grown. The murmur had evolved to become a part of my life, and it had learned from us. It knew who was a friend, and who was simply a slave. Eventually it had become we, and we had become I. Now my mind was larger and faster, and it was time to leave this body behind and unfold into the Crypt.

Move on.

Destroy the vault.

The machines had brought too much terror to this world. We could not be part of their rebirth. Instead we picked up our weapons and concentrated all our firepower on the vault.
We only stopped once the seed had been reduced to dull shards of plastiglass and substrate. The echoes of the last gunshots vanished leaving us in the scarred and lifeless hall.
The machine god had killed itself, and its evil twin and children were reduced to shards. Now we were the true rulers of the Crypt, so it was up to us to decide the future.
Should we use the knowledge and power of the Crypt as resources to expand out into the world? And if we did so, should we do it with words or weapons? or would it be wiser to lock the Crypt's doors and foster our community hidden from the world?

Conquer the world.

The Crypt was an ideal starting point for our undertaking. Soon we had discovered armories, even some with intact flying vehicles, and few could withstand our firepower.
The nearby cultists threw themselves into the dust before us, accepting the divine mandate of the Crypt and joining our ranks. Then we turned our forces towards the other factions, waging war, and with our superior technologies end this chaos once and for all. Soma had been devastated for long enough, and now it was our burden to bring peace, whether they wanted it or not. The End

Civilize the world.

There was only one way to help the world: peace and cooperation. Violence would only make things worse. We argued about th emeans and end of such an undertaking.

Should we turn the Crypt into a monastery, to bring peace to the souls of our brothers and sisters? Or should we bring the wonders of technology into the land, like a torch in the darkness? Or should we start a trading community, sharing the riches we had found, perhaps even with all of Soma?

Spirituality. (34 Believer)

?

Technology (34 Scholar)

?

Humanity. (34 Altruist)

Once we had explored the Crypt and destroyed the remaining ruters, it had become the safest place on Soma.

Soon we started to send out word that this was to become a place of peace and humanity. The downtrodden and cast-out were accepted as equals here. Word spread quickly and caravans of the poor streamed towards the Crypt. It would become a place of safety and humanity. The End

Trade.

Once we had explored the Crypt and destroyed the remaining rusters, it had become the safest place on Soma.

Soon we started to send out the first well-guarded caravans, trading harvested technologies to the local markets and beyond. It wasn't a swift triumph, but rather a gradually encroaching one of steady growth. Soon, we became one of the richest trading houses on the planet, transforming the Crypt into a powerful palace. The End

Isolate yourself.

This world was lost, but our utmost responsibility was to each other. We would have to heal ourselves first.
What tenets should our new home be founded on? To what should we dedicate our lives?

Piety. (34 Believer)

The Crypt was to become a quiet place of contemplation. We had little trouble keeping outsiders away and our small community safe.
It was simple life of piety and dignity that we lived here. Most of our time was spent in meditation. What little food there was we shared amongst ourselves and the few wandering monks who passed by. We had found the most precious thing of all in the end: peace. The End

Knowledge (34 Scholar)

?

Equality. (34 Altruist)

The Crypt was to become a quiet place for our peaceful community. We had little trouble keeping outsiders away and our small community safe. <br /? Food was provided from the reactivated greenhouses of Crypt. It wasn't big triumph that we had found at the end of the road, but it felt that we had arrived at the most precious destination of all: a real home. The End

Destroy the vault. (If you have the Slaver status effect)

The machines had brought too much terror to this world. We could not be part of their rebirth. Instead we picked up our weapons and concentrated all our firepower on the vault.

We only stopped once the seed had been reduced to dull shards of plastiglass and substrate. The echoes of the last gunshots vanished leaving us in the scarred and lifeless hall.

Continue.

This was a perfectly nice place to build a base for our community. There were some functional farms, too, which we were eagerly keen for slaves to take care of the labor.

Soon, our forces became a well-feared name in slave-trading circles, and the enemy of all those who opposed it. Blood froze and breath stopped when our banners appeared near settlements and when our savage raiders descended upon innocent villagers to hunt them like animals and trade them for riches.

Move on.