Chapter 4 -- The Creeping Shadow

62 A.E. March 28, Spire - BioResearch Lab,Evening

I watched the tendril while guiding it, feeling as it reached outward and connected with the hub that would run the Expert System. It booted without a problem, and a primitive intelligence made itself known. It saw me, observed its own surroundings, evaluated the situation, and then set its sights on the Expert System's core.

The hub spoke to me, not with words, but with some low-level protocol. Responding to it felt instinctual, like idly working with a rubik's cube.

Manual cooling check... End to end tests... Logic, emotive, and ethical sampling...

In a way, it was as if part of my mind had been hijacked, and my consciousness was playing catch-up with the process. Then, it clicked. The hub switched to green, all pre-check procedures were done, and a large cylindrical entry port opened up.

I lifted the Expert System's core, aligned it with the hub, and pushed until it clicked into place. The port sealed itself once more, and I could hear a mechanical churn as the cylinder was integrated with the hub.

[Expert System - Class 3 Identified - Name: Mada (ES3-TQ5830)]

[Wake-Up procedure initiated - Estimated Time: 10 minutes]

My tendril disconnected from the machine, and I drew a deep breath as my surroundings came into focus once more. There was something of a stiffness in my back, and I stretched my neck with a yawn.

A rustle caught my attention, and I looked behind me. Red was sitting next to my backpack and had hooked its tail into the zipper. Eyes growing wide, Red stared back as if caught barehanded.

I smiled back and let my fangs show, "What'cha doing there, Red?"

Red eased off the backpack, then whispered, "Food?"

I reached out, pulled the backpack into my lap, and opened it up, "Hazel?"

Hazel called out from across the room, "Yes?"

"Expert System is booting up, do you have time?" I asked, peering into the backpack.

"You didn't leave me much choice exactly, but I've done my part. The Expert System will do the heavy lifting when it's up and running," Hazel answered as her footsteps grew closer.

The only thing left is the chocolate bar I saved...

Hazel stepped into view moments later, and Red turned around to look in wonder.

I pulled out the chocolate bar and motioned to Hazel, "Can Red eat this?"

Hazel huffed, but nodded, "I wouldn't feed it to a wild one, but his digestive system has been altered so that he's capable of eating anything a human could."

Red's ears wiggled as he looked back at me, stared at the chocolate bar, and licked his chops.

I opened the chocolate bar, put it between my fangs and bit off a third with a loud crunch. It crackled into pieces, and I held out one of the bigger ones. Red eagerly caught it, lifted his head, and seemed to almost suckle on the piece.

As I looked up, I could see Hazel peering at me with a certain... glare.

"You're angry with me," I whispered, and tipped my head.

A subtle sigh followed, "No, not with you."

I tipped my head as I observed her, "With the System then?"

"The System," She whispered, then looked to me, "Life has not been simple here, and your arrival was very much needed, but there was an inherent freedom in it, one that can be bitter to leave behind."

I blinked, then found myself frowning a little, "Was there a simulation going on?"

Hazel blinked, hand idly stroking the counter as she seemed to ponder her answer, "... Yes?"

I squinted at her, "One that had run for two days already?"

She leaned over the counter and focused on Red as she spoke, "... Maybe?"

It made me smirk, as I let my shoulders sink, and took my own bite of the chocolate, "Tell me about Red, will you?"

Hazel smiled back at me and reached out her hand, "For a piece of chocolate, I will..."

I split the chocolate bar once more and held it out, "Deal."

"Thank you..." Hazel whispered as she took it. "Now, where to start... Red belongs to a species most of us refer to as reptines. Mostly because they remind us of a mix between canines and reptiles."

I nodded, "Makes sense."

"Here's the interesting thing: they're not native to this planet, but you'll find them all over the continent," Hazel said.

I perked my brow, "That can only mean two things... Either it's a species created by Maxwell, or it belongs to the ones who built the first ring."

Hazel chuckled, "Wrong, actually. We've made numerous digs throughout the area, and the fossils we've found suggested that reptines have only existed on this planet for about two millennia, give or take a few hundred years. Dig any deeper, and there's no trace of them."

"And there's no possibility that Maxwell is involved?" I asked.

Hazel shook her head, "Maxwell is about 800 years old, so unless he has a time machine, or he's somehow a lot older than we know, then the answer is no."

Red eyed me for another piece, and I handed it over, "So... One alien species built the ring a very long time ago, then some other species visited a few thousand years ago, or maybe crashed on this planet, and their pets survived?"

Hazel stifled a chuckle and covered her short muzzle, "They do make good pets if you rear them from a young age, but we think they were far more than that."

"Hmm?" I murmured and looked at her.

Hazel motioned with her hands as she spoke, "The genetics of a reptine are far too orderly to have developed naturally, and there are a number of 'switches' in their minds, as well as restrictions. Not to mention their wide-ranging adaptability."

"Switches?" I asked.

Hazel reached out and patted Red's head, "Set the right parameters, be it smell or physical ones, and these creatures will become nightmarish hunters. There are switches for intelligence as well, ranging from making them simple animals to being able to bark orders at each other."

"I couldn't help but notice that Red can talk?" I asked.

Hazel nodded, "He can, but not for the reason you think. Feel along his neck, and you'll realize."

Red looked at me in wonder for a moment, but then tipped his head forward. I reached out, felt along the thick mane running along the back, and felt a bulge along the base of the neck. As if there was a hard implant hiding underneath.

"Reptines have a hole in the back of their skull. It leads directly to the brain's executive system. We believe that reptines were designed to be fitted with implants to better control them, and we recreated one such implant, albeit with a different purpose," Hazel said.

"Some kind of uplift?" I wondered.

Hazel nodded, "Boosting his intelligence is the long-term goal, yes. But Red is more of a long-term study, and the implant is equipped with a simple Expert System to help give him a voice."

I let go and watched as Red lifted his gaze to me, "He's not sapient, in other words."

Hazel shook her head, "They're certainly sentient, but they're also artificially restricted by their genetics to prevent sapience."

Red stared at my chocolate, and I broke off another piece as I handed it over, "So, whoever made them wanted them to be intelligent enough to follow orders, but not to a point where they could truly think for themselves."

"Exactly," Hazel said.

"Are they usually this gentle?" I asked.

"They're very... adaptive, and Red has learned that a gentle demeanor brings more success than the alternative. They also bond closely to what they consider their family, which would be me and the others who work here," Hazel said.

"You mentioned adaptability?" I asked.

Hazel smiled, "In just a generation or two, they can activate enough epigenetic changes to considerable change their appearance. Fur or scales... Claw changes to make them excellent climbers... Even on this planet, you'll find a great deal of variation among them."

I nodded to her, "Is this a big lab?"

Hazel tipped her head a little, "One of the bigger ones. Usually there are about 20-30 people at the facility, but it's evening now, so I suspect most of them went into the city to relax." Hazel moved her hand to point at the medical pods with floating hybrids, "We mostly work on the more interesting wildlife of this planet, but lately we've been applying the immortality treatment to old colonists."

"Ah, I see..."

"Red, look here," Hazel said.

Red perked up, turned his head, and looked at Hazel.

Hazel tipped her head and whispered, "Can you turn blue for a moment?"

Red made something akin to a grumble, but closed his eyes. Moments later, his fur tensed up as if bristling, and a wave of blue washed over him. Even his eyes had turned a shade of azure as he opened his eyes once more.

Smiling, I reached out with my hands to stroke his neck, "You're certainly a spectacular creature..."

Red nodded slowly as the color started fading, and returned to a vibrant red hue.

Hazel spoke up, "If the reptines end up becoming a part of Sophos, they'll most likely lose that ability."

I looked to her in wonder, "Hmm? Now I have even more questions."

Hazel chuckled to herself, "While color-shifting has its use, the drawback is that the fur is quite flammable and weak, something which wouldn't be tolerated. As for joining Sophos, well... we found ways to remove the sapience limiter a long time ago, and now we're working on a neural conditioning program to successfully uplift them."

I tipped my head, "Intriguing, but why do something like that? If I might ask..."

Hazel perked her brow as if the question was odd, "When the last of the humans go the way of the dodo, hybrids and Expert System will be the only known sapient species around. It'd be lonely and if we are in the privileged situation of being able to elevate another species, then why shouldn't we?"

"The same question in reverse is an equally good one," I said.

Hazel leaned onto her hand and hummed as she observed me, "You're not wrong, of course. But I think that we need to continue pushing the boundaries. By observing biology on this planet, we've already learned how to improve ourselves, to make us more adaptable to a variety of environments. By learning how minds work, be they natural or artificial, we'll not only get a better grasp of consciousness itself, but we might also learn to see ourselves in a different light."

"And what if the reptines disagree with our decision to uplift them?" I asked.

Hazel shrugged, "Then we shall respect their decision and reverse the process, but given our results so far, that doesn't seem to be the case."

"How so?" I wondered.

Hazel motioned to Red, "Reptines have a wondrous sense of curiosity, and they're not afraid of using tools either. They grasp at sapience and clutch to it when they get it... only to be robbed of it in the end..."

"... Meaning?" I whispered.

Red raised his paw to point at my chocolate, "More."

Hazel leaned forward and poked his back, "What do we say, Red?"

Red glanced back, rolled his eyes, and focused on me once more, "More... please."

I bit off a small piece, and handed it over. Red started munching on it while Hazel observed me in silence for a moment.

"... All progress requires sacrifice," Hazel said.

"The uplifting process has some issues, in other words?" I asked.

Hazel reached up and rubbed her temple, "Functionally, their minds work roughly the same as ours. But the architecture is clearly different, and it has been difficult to maintain long-term stability. Last one that died lasted for three years."

"And what did they think by the time they died?" I asked.

Hazel eyed me, "She begged me to keep going. To let others of her kind experience what it was like to look up at the skies and grasp the world in ways that only sapience allows. I know that some people will disagree with what we're doing, especially now that the rest of you are coming here."

"I feel that I don't know enough about it to give an earnest opinion," I said.

Hazel made a slow nod, "Understandable, and wise..."

"So, are reptines the only ones, or are there more... what should we call it-"

Hazel interrupted me, "We call them exo-species, and so far we've found one more."

"Oh?" I whispered.

Hazel grew an intimidating smile, "We call them the green horrors..."

I couldn't help but frown, "The... green horrors?"

Hazel made a slow nod, "Cave-dwelling parasitic creatures... Shoot an infected host, and you end up contaminating the whole area with microscopic eggs. Get too close and they'll try to sneak in a bite that will infest you... Fortunately, they cling to their hives, and are mostly active at night."

My muzzle dropped open, "... I had hoped I'd seen the last of monsters back on Earth."

Hazel chuckled, "We're immune to them, and they're much less of a threat these days."

"How so?" I wondered.

Hazel reached up and scratched her brow, "Bio-weapons. The very first thing the original colonists did was to engineer a virus that would spread throughout an entire hive and kill them off. We've got aerial drones dropping spores across much of the continent. If even a single one of them gets infected, it'll bring it back to the hive and spread the disease to the rest. That said, don't even consider seeking shelter in a cave... it's a lousy idea."

"They're that dangerous, even to us?" I asked.

Hazel tipped her head, "Technically they haven't managed to kill one of us yet, but a whole swarm of them did overpower a wolf that got too close. They dragged him into their hive, stripped the flesh off his bones, but couldn't find a way to crack his skull open. We killed what remained of the hive, found the skull, and fortunately his brain was intact enough that we could restore his body..."

I grimaced in return, "... Did you say 'what remained of the hive'?"

Hazel huffed, "He put up quite a fight, but most of them died from eating his flesh, and a bunch more died from eating the corpses of their own kin."

"We're that toxic?" I wondered.

"Our blood and flesh is a quick death for most carbon-based life forms..."

"Ah," I whispered.

Hazel gave me a curious glance, "The memories of his encounter with the green horrors are available in the databanks, in case you want to have a look?"

"No, thank you," I said.

"Anyway," Hazel said and motioned with her hand, "the green horrors were a threat that could not be tolerated, and their intelligence is like that of insects, so it was easy to argue for their extermination. Conversely, reptines are useful and intelligent... while the wild ones can be an annoyance, it's still immoral to kill them."

"I take it we've found no trace of the visitors who introduced these exo-species?" I asked.

Hazel shook her head, "Nothing so far. We were hoping that a surface scan would reveal a crashed ship somewhere, but it has either been buried too deeply by the passage of time, or there is no crashed ship at all."

"This research you're doing--uplifting the reptines--could I see it?" I wondered.

A smile grew on her lips, "Interested, are you? Your profile did note that you're a Dualist... Two minds caught in one body."

I shook my head, "Not any longer; my other half ran off."

Her eyes widened, "... Excuse me?"

I sighed, "Maxwell extracted my other half and gave him a body of his own. He decided to go with Maxwell and he's... somewhere else now."

Hazel stared at me, "Huh... I had no clue that was possible."

"So, as I said, I'm not a Dualist any longer..."

"It wasn't your other half's presence which made you a Dualist, you know? But this isn't my area of expertise, so I shouldn't talk about it," Hazel said.

The lights in the room suddenly shut off, and flickered back to life a moment later. Red and Hazel looked up in wonder, and a male voice could be heard from the ceiling.

"Expert System online... Hello there, I'm Mada."

I spoke up, "Hi Mada, nice to meet you."

"A pleasure... You're Vilkas, that's Hazel, and... Oh my, there are a lot of interesting projects being worked on around here," Mada said.

Hazel rose, "How are the systems looking, Mada?"

"Systems are switching away from Stand-Alone status... An uplink to the Archives has been established. Maintenance is overdue... in several areas, and there is a surprising amount of debris in the corridors. It would also seem that you... live here at the lab, Hazel?" Mada asked.

Hazel shrugged, "I prefer to live close to where I work."

"Hmm, I see... Unconventional but tolerable given the circumstances. May I suggest we start by cleaning this place up?" Mada asked.

Hazel winced, then glanced at the hub, "... I take it you couldn't find any unused droids in storage, Mada?"

"I did not, and even if I did, they wouldn't be used to clean up your mess," Mada answered.

Hazel clasped her hands, "You're certainly an impertinent Expert System, aren't you?"

"Chaotic, aren't you?" Mada retorted.

Hazel looked back at me, "... Athena did this on purpose, didn't she? She set me up with one of the dickish ones... or do I have you to thank for that?"

I raised my hands, "I had nothing to do with it, I swear... That said, this place is a mess."

Hazel sighed, and her shoulders slouched, "This place has been overdue for a good cleanup. Mada, did you say the Archives were functioning?"

"Partially... The Archives are syncing with all available data, and backups from Earth are being integrated as we speak," Mada answered.

Hazel smiled a little, "Ah, wonderful." She then looked back to me, "I imagine that all of our research will be available to you soon... That said, I have something that might be of use to you."

"Oh?" I wondered.

She faced me, and stepped closer, "I imagine that Red's scent doesn't make sense at the moment?"

I nodded to her, "It's a mishmash of nonsense."

"Hmm," Hazel hummed, and held out her hand to me, "Then let me share how to interpret it."

I reached up my hand, but stopped short of grabbing her own, "... You've done this before, right?"

"I have..." she said, then caught my hand, "ever since the immortality treatment it's been a breeze to link with others, and the telepathy is a curious boon as well."

It only took moments for a link to start forming between us. A shudder shook my senses as we were connected, and the state of her mind opened up to me.

She was tired, exhausted even. Long nights, long days. A hopping blend of thoughts that ranged from guilt to a burning desire of doing even more work. My chest swelled as I drew a deep breath and realized that she was intentionally letting me peer into her mind. Her eyes widened a little, and I found it difficult to pinpoint what thoughts that were leaking from my own mind.

I forced myself to focus and pulled our attention to the topic of scents.

Hazel huffed, and I could feel another flicker of her thoughts. She was curious about me, my experiences as a Dualist, the horrors of Earth, and my encounter with Maxwell.

'Careful,' I thought.

Hazel rolled her eyes, 'Fine...'

A flurry of sensations filled my mind. Scents that tingled in my nose, giant datasets regarding the chemical structures that had evolved on this planet, and information about the exo-species.

My nose wiggled, and I clenched my eyes shut.

Moments later, it was done, and I let go of her hand. The connection was severed in an instant, and my nose burned as if I'd coughed up a bit of soda.

"Give it a moment... Your olfactory bulbs need time to adjust," Hazel whispered.

As I sat there, it felt as if my mind was still catching up to the flurry of thoughts we had shared. One of those thoughts burned with an intensity I couldn't shake.

Hazel had her 253'rd birthday just a month ago. Others had celebrated it, but she'd hated it with a passion. The immortality offered by Maxwell had provided an escape, and it had reignited a burning flame within her... At the same time, the years leading up to the treatment was a hellscape of watching dwindling numbers on a screen, a literal clock ticking down to an end where being executed was a mercy.

I opened my eyes once more, and looked up. There was tension in the air for a moment, as if she realized what kind of memory she had let slip, and now felt vulnerable because of it.

She forced a smile and motioned to Red, "What do you smell now?"

I looked to Red, leaned in a little, and sniffed the air as he gave me a confused stare. This time I could smell his species, the markers denoting him as a reptine. More than that, he was a sexually mature male.

"Do you consider yourself a reptine, or as something else?" I asked and tipped my head.

Red blinked, "Red is not a truly uplifted reptine, I am an Expert System bonded to a reptine. What Red cannot understand intellectually, I handle in his stead... and relay a simplified version to his senses."

"Ah," I whispered, "and is Red happy?"

Red tipped his head, "Red has a family now, a pack if you will, and that makes him happy."

Hazel reached down, patted Red's head, then caught my gaze, "Reptines are drawn to us, and it has caused problems over the decades."

I looked to her, "Why?"

Hazel tipped her head, "There are millions of reptines on this continent alone, and they're quite eager to be adopted. It's something which has complicated expeditions, because it can be quite unpleasant when packs of reptines are fighting each other for the mere chance of interacting with us."

"Strange, is it something instinctual that causes it?" I wondered.

Hazel shrugged, "Part of it has something to do with the pheromones we naturally release. Neutralizing the pheromones slow down the reaction, but they seem neurologically wired to latch onto something in our... nature."

I looked to Red, "Do you have some insight?"

"It's still considered a hypothesis, but some believe the reptines mistake hybrids for their makers," Red answered.

I nodded, "Which in turn lends credibility to the idea that reptines are some sort of pets."

Hazel let out something of an amused huff, "More like natural born hunters with excellent camouflage."

I huffed back, then eased myself up onto two legs, "Interesting, though..."

Hazel rose, "Are you leaving?"

I nodded, and stifled something of a yawn, "I am... It's getting late and I still have to find a transport for tomorrow."

"Ah, where are you heading?" Hazel wondered.

"The Burrow," I said.

"Hmm," Hazel hummed and stepped back, "Well then, thank you for your help with Mada... and do give me a call if you find something interesting on your travels."

I reached down to give Red a quick scratch by the cheek, then nodded to Hazel, "Will do."

62 A.E. March 28, Spire - Vehicle Bay,Night

A bell chimed as I pushed the door open. An upwards glance revealed that whoever managed this place had attached an actual bell to the door. I ignored it, and stepped into what looked like a small, dimly lit office. For a moment I stood there, waiting to see if someone would show up.

It smelled like your average vehicle shop. Electronics, lubricant, and tires. The scents of people were present but fading... giving it an abandoned feel.

"Hello?" I asked out loud.

There was a desk to the right with a computer sitting next to a coffee machine. To the left was what looked like an old sofa and a table. In front of me was another door, most likely leading into the actual vehicle bay.

I walked across the room, grabbed the door handle, and eased it down, 'Athena?'

Her presence settled on my shoulder as I peered into the vehicle bay, and heard the thumping noise of something heavy walking about.

'Yes, Vilkas?' Athena wondered.

'I'm at the vehicle bay, and there's something moving in the area,' I thought.

'A service droid is registered to the facility. It's most likely operating in stand-alone mode. Do link me to it if you can,' Athena said.

'Roger that,' I felt along the wall of the vehicle bay, found a switch, and flicked it.

Lights along the ceiling turned on in an instant, revealing numerous heavy-duty vehicles, earth-movers, snowplows, some kind of mobile drilling platform, and a bunch of wrecks that looked like they were being dismantled.

Standing to my right was a droid that appeared to have been patched up for decades. Parts of its chassis was rusty, while the rest had gotten a rough pitch-black paint job. It was busy loading what looked like liquid canisters onto a truck, and didn't seem to have noticed me as it set down another canister with a thump.

"Excuse me?" I said, and approached.

The droid stopped moving, and something within it clicked with a whirr as it turned to look at me.

"How may I be of assistance?" the droid asked with a monotone voice.

I stopped outside reaching distance and motioned to it, "There's supposed to be an old rover around here?"

Rather than a regular visor, the droid's head looked like a toaster with a variety of optics. Several of them whirred as they focused on me, "Yes, there was a recent inquiry regarding it. Unfortunately, I can't let anyone take it without consulting the manager."

I approached the droid, "Athena has assumed control of all work priorities... Why haven't you linked with her yet?"

"Stand alone mode cannot be exited with only one verification source," the droid answered.

I held out my hand to it, "Would I suffice as an additional source?"

"You would..." the droid answered as its rusted hulk began moving once more. It bared its palm, and a slot withdrew to reveal a silvery interface. I grabbed it's hand, making sure to squeeze my palm against the interface. It tingled as a link was formed, and I could feel the buzz of electronic chitter-chatter.

A number of security protocols were run as it polled me for information, then did the same to the network that filled the city. After a few moments, I could feel as something within the droid settled.

"... This unit is now fully networked and new priorities have been assigned," the droid said, then let go of my hand.

I nodded to the droid, "Good."

Suddenly, the droid turned sideways, and started walking behind the truck. I followed, somewhat confused, and watched as the droid lifted one arm to point, "The buggy is there."

I moved to the side, and was able to see where the droid was pointing.

It appeared to be an improvised though interesting design, much of the frame seemed made of simple piping, and the 'door' was of a rather triangular shape. A simple knock on the window revealed it to be made of simple plexiglass.

"I will perform maintenance, attach a box trailer and fill it with the necessary cargo... it should take about eight hours to finalize," The droid said.

Looks lightweight...

I reached down, grabbed the buggy's frame, and pulled as I lifted one end of the rover.

Very lightweight... Though cool in its own way...

I eased it down, and looked to the droid, "What kind of engine does it have?"

"Electrical engine with a multi-fuel backup generator. The batteries should last for a day's drive," the droid answered.

I glanced at the ceiling as I reached out with my mind, 'Athena?'

Her presence touched me and I could sense that she was amused, 'Are you worried about the fuel?'

'Yes,' I thought and stifled a smirk.

'Hmm,' Athena mused, 'There should be no need to worry as you'll be able to recharge by the homesteads, and the Zephyr will be able to out as well... As it is, the Expert Systems and other supplies will take up most storage space.'

'Good, good. That said, is it safe transporting Expert Systems like this?'

'The core of an Expert System is even hardier than the skull of a hybrid. In other words, there is no need to worry about such things,' Athena added.

'Very well, I guess I'll sleep in the office for the night,' I thought.

'You're free to do so... But it's worth to mention that there's an inn at the nearby settlement,' Athena said.

The droid was already getting to work as I stepped back, and set my sights on the office, 'Sofa will be fine...'

'As you wish.'

62 A.E. March 29, Spire - Vehicle Bay,Morning

Fresh coffee...

I opened my eyes, saw the world on its side and what looked like a deer sitting in front of me.

"Morning," the deer said with a masculine voice, then sipped idly from a cup of coffee.

I eased myself into a sitting position on the sofa while deer held up his other hand, presenting another cup of steaming hot black. It made me smile a little as I gently took the cup and brought it to my nose. A strong scent wafted from it, vibrant in a way the fake stuff barely managed.

"Real coffee?" I asked, met the deer's gaze, and took a subtle sip.

The deer tipped his head with a nod, "Grown from an actual plant, if that's what you mean, but it doesn't have much likeness to the original plant."

I took another sip, "That's real enough for me... I'm guessing you work here?"

Once more, the deer nodded, "The name's Jan, and it's only part-time, when the farm doesn't need me."

"Ah, I see... I'm Vilkas," I said, and looked to the side as I glimpsed out the window. The morning sun was rising over the distant forest, and I could feel its subtle heat radiate against my fur.

Jan motioned to me with his cup and smirked a little, "I noticed that someone rescheduled my droid... and requisitioned the buggy as well."

I reached up with an awkward smile and pulled my claws through my mane, "Athena's reshuffling a lot of things right now."

Jan drew a deep breath, "Ah, so that's what is going on... I knew it was coming, I just didn't expect the world to change overnight."

"Sorry about that," I whispered.

Jan sighed, "It was unavoidable, and no one was using the buggy anyway... This way it gets to go on one final trip rather than recycling it on my own. Try to stick to the road though--it's old, and you don't want your ass scraping pavement."

I perked my brow, "That's a... particular statement?"

Jan stifled a chuckle as he waved his hand, "Happened once, early in the days. Simple plywood is fine for a feline using it to deliver fresh bread, but the moment a bear got in there... Anyway, we hardened the frame with bigger batteries and some steel plating after that, so..."

I smirked back at him, "I'll stick to the road."

"So, what'cha planning to do in the Burrow?" Jan asked, reached into his pocket, and fished out a phone.

I couldn't help but eye the phone, "... Not keen on using your neural interface?"

Jan motioned at me with the phone, "This is fancy enough for me. I've always liked working with my hands, keeping things simple. Not that I'm a luddite or something--you adapt to the circumstances, but when the choice presents itself, I'll do it like this."

I took another sip, "A valid worldview."

Jan huffed as he scrolled through the phone, then met my gaze, "Anyway... Do you think you can carry a load of coffee beans for me? My usual transport was suddenly and mysteriously sidelined by someone."

"Maybe, I guess it depends on how much the droid loaded onto the buggy," I said.

Jan rose up, "Let's take a look then..."

I followed in his wake as we made our way into the garage, then stopped in front of the buggy. A trailer had been attached to the back of it, which in turn had been loaded with Expert System cores held in place with cargo belts.

"Expert Systems..." Jan hummed as he circled and peered into the buggy's front.

I followed, and saw a giant stack of ration packs resting on the passenger seat.

Jan pointed at the stack as he threw me a glance, "Ya planning on eating that?"

I chuckled, "To be honest, I'm not even sure how long the drive is going to be, or whether it's possible to find food on the road."

Jan's brow dipped as he seemed to ponder, then stepped closer, "The woods are full of breadfruit, and something almost, but not quite entirely unlike rabbits."

"Pardon?" I wondered.

"Never mind, but safe to say, a wolf like you would have no problem filling your belly... So if we empty the seat and make some other adjustments, the beans will fit right in," Jan said with a smirk.

I huffed, "If you say so, but why are you so desperate for this delivery?"

Jan motioned with his hands, "We may not have money around here, but favors are a currency of its own. If you deliver my beans to the Burrow and a few homesteads along the way, you'll get quite an excuse to use their hospitality."

"Hmm," I murmured and stroked my chin, "and what kind of favors do you get from this?"

Jan squinted as he smiled, "Why, nothing but the joy of keeping people happy... Seriously though, this kind of stuff always finds a way to even itself out."

I crossed my arms, "Sure, but I can't guarantee how quickly I'll be able to deliver it. I'm supposed to stop at numerous factories along the way."

Jan shrugged, "It doesn't matter if it takes a few weeks," he then patted his pocket, "besides, it's either this or let the beans sit in storage."

I nodded, "And how far is it to the Burrow?"

"With 10 hours of driving a day, at regular road speeds, it ought to take you around four days."

I chuckled, "Oh, that's quite a drive..."

Jan smirked at me, "The Burrow is quite special... you'll see why when you get there. That said, one would wish that Maxwell had built a second space elevator."

I nodded, "I'll get the rations out of the way, you'll fetch the beans?"

Jan nodded as he walked toward the office.

* * *

The seat was a tad small but bearable as I settled into it. Sitting on the passenger side were several sacks of coffee beans, enough that the scent of them seemed to simmer in the air. A loud churning noise followed as the shutters opened, and sunlight filled the vehicle bay. I squinted, noticed that someone had installed a makeshift sun visor in the ceiling, and angled it down.

Jan smiled as he leaned in by the window, "Rainstorms can be quite sudden this time of the year, so don't let the beans get wet. Also, I'd keep everything tied up and secure... When the reptines can't get our attention, they loot what they can out of some strange instinct,"

"Thanks for the tip," I said.

I then reached over to the control panel, flicked the main power switch, and watched as the console lit to life. There were two pedals, a steering wheel, and what looked like a note on the display.

[Warning: This vehicle is only equipped for assisted driving - Virtual World usage is prohibited]

"... You do have a driver's license, right?" Jan asked.

I smiled back at him, "I do..."

It's just been a while since I last did it...

Jan stepped back with a nod, "Best of luck."

With my hands on the steering wheel, I gently pushed the accelerator and rolled out of the vehicle bay. There were no signs to speak of, but it was still easy to orient oneself, given that there was only one big road leading out of the city.

I guess we're off then...

62 A.E. March 29, Spire - Main Road,Midday

I could see it in the rear mirror. A gargantuan mining truck slowly gaining on me. The road was wide enough that there were four lanes, but the truck looked like big enough to take up at least half of it. Rather than fight for space I looked in front, and saw what looked like a rest stop on a distant hill.

With the accelerator to the floor, I raced ahead to keep up my lead, then slowed down as I moved onto the empty rest stop. Once at a complete stop, I looked back and saw the truck rumbling closer with a giant cloud of dust being swept up in its wake.

With barely seconds to spare, I zipped up the plastic sheet for the window and watched.

The ground started to rumble, and the towering truck moved past with a roaring wind. A plume of white dust filled the outside, and for a moment, it looked as if I had been plunged into a desert storm.

Seconds later, it was over. The plume passed, everything settled, and little more than a distant rumble could be heard as the truck continued onward. My back was starting on me, so I opened the door, and eased my legs out. The scent of dust was still fresh in the air as I rose, raised my arms, and stretched as I let loose a groan.

The hill provided an excellent view, and the city was a distant marker by now, even if the Spire remained plainly in sight as it reached up into the blue sky. It was a marvelous sight on its own, but it was the contrast which made it so striking.

High technology and utter wilderness combined into one view. It made me wonder how long it would remain like this, and if one looked closely, you could already see Sophos' influence spreading outward.

Small factories peppered the distant landscape, and there was a dotted line of large towers that served some unknown purpose. Then there was the road itself: dark gray plasteel that cut a swathe in the earth.

I walked toward the edge of the road, stepped onto what one might call the sidewalk, and stopped where the natural vegetation took over. The trees along the road had been cut long ago, now there were sprouts--eagerly soaking up the sun--dotting the wild grasses.

One small step...

I stepped onto the wild grass, heard it rustle, and kept walking. It didn't take long before I was standing next to the towering trees, and looked up toward the canopy. It had bark, grew similar to an Earth tree, and had plenty of leaves. I reached out to feel it, then leaned in to smell its bark.

Nothing was exactly the same. The scents were off, the structure of the bark had a fuzzy texture to it, the leaves were thicker than expected, and they didn't let much light through.

Still, apart from the subtle differences, this was basically a new Earth. At least, so far...

Something crackled in the woods--perhaps an old twig being snapped, and it made my ears perks. I froze, glanced toward my left, and observed the woods.

At first, I couldn't see anything, but my was attention drawn toward what looked like an old log. It felt like some instinct--either natural or implanted--that wanted my focus. I squinted as I focused on the log, and saw an odd pattern near the ground.

It took a moment to realize that, crouched on the ground, next to the log, were a pair of observant eyes. Once I caught onto those, I could see the outline of the creature itself. It was subtle and blended into the surroundings as if wearing a green camouflage suit.

I eased away from the tree, stared into its eyes, and peeled my lips back as I bared my teeth.

The eyes widened.

A reptine?

I jumped as if about to rush after it, and the creature near exploded into action. Suddenly, it was bolting off, sending dirt and wild grass flying as its paws dug into the ground. It fled into the distance like a blur...

As I watched, several more of them became visible in the distance. All camouflaged, darting off to follow the one which had been brave enough to watch me up close.

It made me chuckle, and I felt something akin to... excitement. Based on what Hazel had said, it'd be unethical to hunt such intelligent creatures. Still, I found myself eager to learn more about them.

A new noise made my ears fold back, a shrieking atmospheric noise, and a low reverberating rumble that was growing in strength. Something big on the move, and I walked up the nearby hill, peering out at the valley.

At first it was distant, a vessel of some sort descending from the atmosphere. It was coming in at tremendous speeds, and its front had an eerily reddish glow as if it was desperately trying to slow itself down.

As the vessel grew in size and maintained its trajectory, it seemed less like a looming disaster, and something planned instead. I turned my head as I followed it with my gaze, catching it while speeding past.

It looked like a retrofitted evacuation ship. Its hull plating looked fresh, some kind of large sensor dome adorned its top, and there were a dozen atmospheric thrusters firing at full blast to keep its descent steady.

A split second later it had passed, disappearing down the valley. I turned and started walking back to the buggy.

'Athena, what did I just witness?' I wondered, reaching out to her.

Her presence felt amused, as if she knew exactly what I meant, 'Remember how I told you that the planet needed an immune system?'

I marched up to the buggy, 'Of course.'

'This is one of the first retrofitted ships that will settle across the planet and begin the process of distributing protective spores. Etemenanki was a centralized system for protecting Sophos on Earth; here we will use a more robust, decentralized control system.'

'Designed by whom?' I wondered.

'It is mildly annoying to admit, but Etemenanki must have known, not only of her own impending doom, but the fate that awaited us. She designed this new generation of environmental control units, and she did it in ways to ensure that her more "chaotic" nature did not taint it, leaving us very little to complain about. It is a solution presented to us on a silver platter, one far too tantalizing to ignore given the circumstances.'

'I thought the evacuation ships weren't rated for atmospheric entry?' I wondered, and opened the buggy's door.

'Not with people onboard, no... But with enough thrusters bolted on and a hardened belly, they are capable of a relatively soft landing.'

I eased into the buggy, shut the door, and flicked everything on, 'Does the ring function as a shipyard as well?'

'For retrofits and small-scale construction... A proper shipyard is yet to be established, and the focus until now has been on the Array, Stellar Forge, and a variety of refineries,' Athena answered.

I looked at the buggy's control panel, and noticed that I'd already used a fair bit of the battery, 'I'm eager to ask more questions, but right now I'm wondering how to plug the Zephyr into the buggy.'

'One moment...' Athena answered, then continued shortly thereafter, 'There should be a small hatch to the right of your legs. You'll find a general-purpose interface there...'

I reached down, found the hatch, opened it up, and felt the socket. A tendril flowed from my side, slithered along the edges, and found the socket.

The tendril began to reshape itself to fit the socket, 'Socket has been found...'

Athena continued, 'I'm sending you a firmware update for the buggy. It will adapt its electronics to better handle your power feed... Keep it at around a kilowatt though, more than that and you'll risk burning out the systems.'

The tendril connected, and I could feel the primitive systems of the buggy. I shut my eyes as I focused, and let my desires translate into action. Another security handshake took place, Athena's firmware upgrade was applied, and the buggy rebooted in short order.

As it awakened once more, new capabilities presented themselves to me. I drew a deep breath as I shunted power through the interface, and a tingle in my spine grew. A gentle chirp could be heard, and I opened my eyes to see that the buggy's batteries were now charging.

'Batteries are now charging, thank you...' I thought.

'You're welcome. Anything else?' Athena wondered.

'I'm shunting a kilowatt of electrical energy from my own body. How does that affect me?'

'A kilowatt while at rest presents no real problem. Over time, and during duress, it would impose certain restrictions on your physical performance and fitness. The drain is also small enough to avoid activating the power reserves within the eternite itself, meaning there's no risk of you exploding either,' Athena said, sounding almost amused by the end.

'Well, that's a relief...' I switched the motor on, glanced back to make sure it was clear, and accelerated onto the road, 'Would you care to continue our lesson from earlier? How jumpfield technology works?'

'Yes... We discussed the two technologies which enabled Sophos' resource and technological dominance on Earth... apart from the use of Expert Systems, that is.'

I nodded to myself, 'Superconductors and thermoconductors, the latter of which was related to jumpfield technology, though we didn't know it at the time.'

'Indeed, and now we have access to eternite, the latter of which excels at manipulating jumpfields,' Athena added.

'So how does that work? What makes it tick? What is it?' I wondered.

'Do you know the concept of how shape rules everything?' Athena wondered.

'Kind of, not really,' I pondered.

'Well, it does... Within biology the shape of a protein is critical to its function. Within physics the shape of molecules determines everything from transparency to useful functions like converting photons to electrons. Shape--it turns out--is also vital to create and manipulate jumpfields. Eternite just happens to be the perfect interface for this.'

'So, what is a jumpfield?' I wondered.

'We know very little of it, but so far we suspect that it is another dimensional layer, either adjacent, or woven into the fabric of our three-dimensional universe,' Athena said.

'I'd nod and say yes, but you kinda lost me there,' I thought.

'I could explain using mathematics, but it would take a while, and it's still theoretical... What we do know is that neither dimension likes to intersect with one another,' Athena said.

'I'll skip the mathematics and ask what you mean with the last part?' I wondered.

'The act of piercing the dimensions is a violent and short-lived event. Until recently, we didn't even have clocks specific enough that we could even measure such an event; thus any jumpspace travel appeared to be truly instantaneous.'

'The jump didn't feel instantaneous to me,' I thought.

'I have heard the same thing from others who have been implanted with eternite in some shape or form. Hallucinations and momentary confusion seem to be common symptoms if one is neurally linked to the material while undergoing a jump... So far, we believe it's a result of the radiation reacting with the eternite, which in turn causes some kind of jitter across the brain,' Athena said.

'I see,' I thought.

'The jump itself is near instantaneous, but there's quite a threshold leading up to it, one with very useful phenomena, such as being able to sample spatial coordinates,' Athena said.

'Like the scanners up at the ring?' I wondered.

'Exactly, and the gravity plating as well... They actually manipulate low-level jumpfields, nowhere near what's needed to bridge dimensions though,' Athena answered.

'Does that mean the gravity plating creates some amount of radiation as well?' I wondered.

'It does... All usage of jumpfield technology generates radiation and electromagnetic interference. Gravity is one of the things which determines the ratio. In deep space, about 0.01% of the energy would be converted into radiation. On this planet it would be close to 100%.'

'Oh... That certainly explains why one can't use it down here,' I thought.

'It does. Now, do you think that gravity plating contains eternite?' Athena asked.

'Given how you asked the question, I'd say no...' I answered.

'Correct. Gravity plating manipulates jumpspace fields to our benefit, but it doesn't create them.'

'So what does?' I wondered.

'The jumpspace core, often found in the center of a ship, but that is a discussion for another time.'

'I see, though... How do thermoconductors work in that case? We used them on Earth, and they supposedly use this technology?' I thought.

'There seems to be a very weak jumpfield that suffuses the galaxy, and our thermoconductors tapped into it. While this generated some radiation, it wasn't much of a problem given how subtly we used it... We couldn't explain the phenomena using traditional models, thus we summed it up as a mystery for the future.'

'Let me guess, thermoconductors were a gift bestowed to us by Maxwell?' I wondered.

'It was... Now we know better, and technologies such as gravity plating require field strengths that are much stronger,' Athena added.

'Could I generate fields like this using the Zephyr, if I was in space, that is?' I wondered.

'You could, but you'd irradiate yourself in the process,' Athena added.

'Got it...'

'The macroscopic shape of eternite is easy to manipulate, and it's always fluctuating a little. Bending it to create a sharp blade is easy and predictable--but shaping it on a molecular scale, finding the right shapes to create and manipulate jumpspace fields, that's a lot more complicated,' Athena added.

'So, it's not a set shape?' I wondered.

'No,' Athena answered, 'Think of it like trying to form the key to an ever-changing lock.'

'I see,' I thought.

'The circumstances to the lock are always changing, many of them unknown to us, while others work in ways we don't understand yet. To make matters worse, if you try to open the lock with the wrong key, it could lead to a swift disaster.'

'Such as?' I wondered.

'Such as being plunged into the heart of a sun, turned into debris scattered across the solar system... The list goes on,' Athena answered.

'Right. Do we know why the evacuation ships ended up being scattered yet?' I wondered.

'There is an appealing theory being debated as we speak,' Athena said.

'And, what's it about?' I wondered.

'Radiation is but one harmful effect of a jump. We don't understand why yet, but it seems that spacetime needs some time to recover after a jump. In other words, the more ships that jump into the same area, the more distorted it becomes. Based on information left behind by Maxwell, there was never a problem with a few ships jumping on a daily basis, but something started to go very wrong when it was being done thousands of times a day... Precision suffered, energy demands skyrocketed. We were on the last ship to make it through, and the scopes on the ring lit up like fireworks as Maxwell forced our ship through.'

'He didn't know?' I wondered.

'We aren't sure... Perhaps he did know but had little choice?' Athena seemed to ponder.

'What do you mean?'

'We haven't talked about it yet, but there are limitations on how and where we can jump with this technology. Based on our current readings, it is now impossible to return to Earth's solar system.'

'We don't know why?' I wondered.

'Not yet. But something big has happened, and it has left the area distorted to a degree where it would be suicide to attempt a jump. That is... if we had the technology to make such a long jump to begin with,' Athena answered.

I sighed to myself as I focused on the road ahead of myself, 'More mysteries...'

62 A.E. March 29, Brickworks,Evening

The sun was starting to set as the road split to reveal the first of Athena's destinations. The forest had been cleared, and large mounds had been dug to reveal rich clay. A steady stream of excavators were busy scooping it up, before bringing it to a factory's side entrance. Sitting next to the road were tall stacks of processed clay, bricks, roof tiling and much more.

I took one of the smaller roads, leading to what looked like a small parking lot. With the buggy parked, I hopped out and walked toward the trailer.

'Athena?' I thought while undoing the straps that held the Expert System cores in place.

Her presence descended on me as I heard her voice, 'I see that you've arrived at the brickworks.'

I opened the trailer, started looking through the stacked cores, and found that the one I needed had been placed at the very top, 'I have, and it seems the Expert Systems have been stacked according to my travel itinerary as well.'

'Naturally,' Athena answered.

I grabbed the core, eased it onto the ground, and shut it once more, 'The factory seems to be working already. So what am I doing here exactly? Bringing it into the fold?'

'That is one purpose, yes... But the management software currently operating the factory can only be described as lacking. The slightest disturbance, ranging from a curious Reptine, to an unexpected find in the shale can bring the entire operation to a halt,' Athena answered.

I grabbed the Expert System from the ground and started walking, 'And since it's out of the way, each disturbance can take days to fix?'

'Exactly, and the work is too monotonous to demand a hybrid to function as an overseer, thus this duty falls to a low-level Expert System,' Athena thought.

I stepped up to the entrance, grabbed the door handle, and promptly found it locked.

'Front door seems locked...' I thought.

'A low-tech solution to keep reptines out,' Athena said simply.

I let my tool-tendril slip out, and watched as it slid into the lock. It took a few moments of fiddling, but the lock clicked open with ease.

'Wouldn't a droid be able to do this?' I wondered, and opened the door.

'Hmm?' Athena murmured, 'Could it be that you're still not familiar with the safeguard protocols?'

I stepped through, closed the door and locked it once more, 'School mostly focused on ethics and morals when it came to the relationship between AIs and organics, less so about how AIs interact with one another.'

'True...' Athena whispered while I looked around.

It appeared as if I had stepped into some kind of control room. Screens covered the walls, some of which showed a variety of statistics, while others showed live camera feeds. Through them, I could see large kilns that glowed red, hundreds of transport belts, and large baths that were processing the clay in some manner.

The floor was made of metal grating, and upon peering down, I could see bundles of wire that all led in the same direction. I followed it with my gaze, and saw a large processing cluster placed in the room's corner. Located by the bottom of it was a large socket made for an Expert System.

I walked closer and eased myself down in front of it, 'You were saying?'

Athena spoke, 'Simpler robots are hardwired to stay away from areas like this, and any droids equipped with an ethics/morality module cannot enter for other reasons. Thus, if an Expert System was to go haywire, the idea is to slow them down long enough for others to intervene.'

'Makes sense in a way, doesn't make sense in another. Why are we hybrids so special?' I wondered.

'It's not that you're special; it's simply that hybrids and Expert Systems work as two paradigms that keep tabs on each other. Just like it would be insanity to let a hybrid perform surgery on another hybrid without AI supervision, it is equally insane to let an AI modify itself or another of its kin without hybrid oversight.'

'With all the exceptions that follow,' I thought and touched the processing cluster. A shudder through my arm as the system linked with me.

'There are exceptions as you say, but Expert Systems do require special consideration due to our destructive potential. Hybrids might be able to create chaos locally, but a well-connected Expert System could easily cause the same on a planetary scale,' Athena added.

The installation procedure began, and I shut my eyes to focus, 'Anything new on your end?'

'The Political Sphere is online. Do visit when you have an opportunity,' Athena answered.

'All right,' I thought, and could hear as the large socket opened.

'Vilkas?' Athena wondered.

I opened my eyes, lifted the core, and it into place, 'Yes?'

'I was reviewing some footage from earlier. Apparently, there are anomalous materials packed into your buggy,' Athena stated.

I smirked to myself, 'You mean the sacks of coffee beans that Jan gave me?'

'Ah, so that's what it is... This explains a few things,' Athena answered.

'I did agree to deliver them for personal benefit, which in turn raises quite a few questions,' I thought.

'It does, but for now it's irrelevant,' Athena answered.

I couldn't help but perk my brow, 'Is it?'

'These people spent the last 60 years building the infrastructure we now make use of. They settled on a loose economic system based on barter and favors. We're not in a position to phase it out yet, and if a few luxury goods can help soothe the sweeping changes that are in progress, then that's well worth the price. That said, at some point it will become... risky to engage in such transactions within my presence.'

'Understood, but is it that simple though? Soon enough there will be masses of people that will grow tired of 3D-printed protein chunks. Hoarding of any kind of luxury goods will be less than popular at that point,' I thought.

'Your worries are understandable, but for now we'll have to deal with the situations as they arise. But do learn what you can from the homesteads that you visit... I'll be eager to hear your impressions,' Athena answered.

'Roger that,' I thought.

62 A.E. March 29, Main Road,Night

One factory taken care of...

The temperature had dropped to near freezing, and the sun had settled beyond the horizon. It was especially dark without any lamp posts on the road, and the buggy's meager lights left something to be desired. Every so often, one could see the glinting reflections of creatures within the forest.

The batteries were slowly draining as well, and it turned out that even when driving economically, a single kilowatt wouldn't make do.

One of the farmsteads is close by, maybe they have a charger and a bed to offer?

Twenty minutes passed, and the woods to the right of the road seemed to clear up. Soon after, I caught sight of lights in the distance. A big house, dotted by buildings that reminded me of a farm, accompanied by what looked like a large inflatable dome.

Something flickered reflection along the side of the road, and it made me slow down as I gave it a wide berth. As I slowed the buggy to a near halt, I looked over to see what it was. Someone had placed a set of orange flags in the nearby ditch. While subtle, there was unnerving tint in the air, something akin to blood.

Curious, but not curious enough for me to investigate in the middle of the night...

I pushed the accelerator, picked up the pace, and turned onto the dirt road leading to the homestead.

While the house's lower half reminded me of an old countryside home, there was also a large illuminated dome that emerged from the roof. Almost as if a giant insect had descended and crashed into the house.

It didn't take long before I pulled up alongside the odd house and parked. As I reached for the buggy's door handle, I caught sight of something that approached. It came from around the corner of the house, tiptoeing closer in the dim lights.

That's a big reptine, leaning more to the reptilian side, but with hints of brown fur...

I observed it in silence as it stopped outside of reaching distance of the buggy, plopped its rear down, and stared at me from its grassy spot.

Seems friendly enough... Could this be their pet?

I flicked the buggy off, disconnected my tendril from the charging port, and opened the door. A chilly breeze washed over me as I stepped out, closed the door, and looked at the reptine.

It remained sitting, staring at me in wonder. I stepped closer, crouched a little, and offered my hand to it. It leaned out in a rather canine manner and sniffed cautiously, as I did the same.

This one's female...

"I'm guessing you can't talk?" I asked, and gently scratched the side of its muzzle.

The reptine blinked in wonder, then leaned onto my hand, squeezing its eyes shut as if basking in my attention. I eased back as I let go, rounded the buggy, and fetched a sack of coffee beans. As I pulled it out and shut the door, the reptine was next to me once more. It sniffed along the sack, promptly grimaced, and leaned back.

It made me chuckle as I faced the house and started walking. The reptine followed as I stepped up to the door, and gave the door a couple of hard knocks. My ears perked as I heard the telltale noise of paws approaching.

Moments later, the door opened, and I found myself staring at a rather rare hybrid. The scent wafting outward was male, and he looked like a rather small raccoon, barely bigger than a human.

The raccoon looked up at me, eyes wide, "Yes?"

I held up the sack, "I have a coffee bean delivery from Jan."

"Oh..." the raccoon murmured, and glanced at the reptine who had stepped up beside me, "Um, I'll take it, I guess..."

I looked at him in wonder, "You guess?"

"Yeah," the raccoon whispered as he reached out and grabbed the bag, "I don't live here, just staying for a while..."

"Oh, I see..." I answered, as he set the bag down while I stepped back.

"Thank you," the raccoon said with a simple smile, then eased the door shut.

So much for an overnight stay, I guess...

I couldn't help but feel a bit baffled as I turned around. While pondering what to do next, the brown reptine emerged from the corner once more. This time it's tail was holding what looked like a charger, while the rest of the cable was dragging in the dirt. It approached the buggy, and I raised my hand out of worry as I was interrupted by another noise.

Coming from the left--emerging from what looked like a small shed--was a surprised looking collie, that spoke up with a feminine voice, "Hello there!"

"Evening, or night... I guess," I said as she approached.

"Are you a friend of Dylan, or..." she said while stepping up to me, eyes wide in wonder.

I'm guessing that Dylan is the raccoon?

I motioned to the door, "Ah, no... I was just dropping off a delivery of beans from Jan. Are you the owner?"

The collie nodded and motioned to her chest, "Name's Alice... Got anywhere to stay for the night?"

"I do not, but..." I whispered, and noticed that the reptine was opening the buggy's charging port.

"Then you're welcome to stay with us, um?" Alice said, then glanced over at the buggy.

"Vilkas... Should I be concerned about that?" I asked and pointed at the reptine.

Alice waved her hand, and inched closer as she idly caught my arm, "Don't worry, she'll make sure your buggy's charged in the morning."

"Ah," I whispered as she turned me around, and nudged me to the door.

She opened the door, walked me in and walked me, "Hungry, Vilkas?"

"That I am," I said, and shut the door behind us.

"I made pie earlier, you'll love it, and... you're new around here, aren't you?" Alice asked as she let go of me.

I chuckled, "How did you know?"

"Just a feeling," Alice whispered, then turned around.

Dylan was observing in silence next to the stairs, and Alice raised one hand as she jabbed a finger in his direction, "You're lucky I heard the noise from outside, or I'd have sent you out to track Vilkas down to make up for your lack of manners..."

A shiver ran through the small raccoon as he inched back, "... I'm a guest here, I wasn't exactly in a position to-"

Alice looked to the staircase as she interrupted him and called out, "Ben, dear! Delivery!"

Dylan grew silent, while Alice sauntered off. A creaking noise soon followed, and another hybrid--one looking like a shaggy sheepdog, descended from upstairs.

"Delivery?" the sheepdog asked with a masculine voice, then glanced at the big sack sitting beside the staircase. "Ah, Jan's coffee..."

He looked to me he descended, then motioned to the hallway, "You can use the room at the end of the hall, next to Dylan's room. Feel free to make full use of the bathroom as well, but do be patient with the warm water..."

"Ah, thank you... Um, you don't seem to be strangers to this kind of thing?" I asked.

Ben motioned in the direction that Alice had walked, "We aren't."

"Ah," I said and walked alongside Ben as he spoke, "I imagine that more dedicated facilities will pop up along the road now that you're all arriving, but up until now we've relied on one another. In fact, it wasn't until recently that we were connected to the main power grid."

I nodded to him and walked, "I see, and thank you for the hospitality... It's appreciated."

We ended up in a rather cozy--if old-fashioned--kitchen. Alice was busy carving out a piece of pie, and looked to me as we entered, "So, what actually brings you out here? I'm assuming you're not Jan's delivery boy?"

"I'm on my way to the Burrow, and I'm installing Expert Systems along the way," I said.

While rustic looking, the open refrigerator and the sink made it clear they still had the basics of modern life.

"Ah," Alice whispered as she grabbed the pie and put it back in the refrigerator. Moments later, she grabbed the plate she'd prepared, opened a small door on the shelf, and revealed a microwave.

I looked to Alice, "Would you mind a few questions?"

"Not at all," Alice said as she eased the plate inside, "Dylan was quite cautious as well, now I'm starting to wonder whether we're the ones who have changed, or if all of you went uppity..."

I chuckled back, "The concept of casually entering someone's home is rather odd to me."

"Our circumstances forced a different kind of hospitality," Alice answered as she tapped a few buttons, then shut the microwave.

I pointed, "You've hidden your electronics well."

Ben walked past me and let out something of a bemused huff, "The factories produce the things we cannot, and we're expected to fill in the blanks. Be it all manner of doors, housings, and so on...Proper wood was a scarcity on Earth, but here it's one of the most abundant materials around."

"Ah, and what about the reptine outside?" I said and motioned to the exit.

Ben continued, "That's Brown. She and her pack guard the farm."

"From what?" I wondered.

Ben leaned onto the nearby counter, "Other... less well-behaved reptines. They also alert us in case a bugbear were to make its way here."

I perked my brow, "A bugbear?"

Alice chuckled to herself as she opened the microwave and pulled out the plate, "You really are new around here... Here, give it a taste, and let me know what you think."

I grabbed the plate and fork as she offered it, and sniffed at the pie. It had a nice crusty layer, and the inside was layered with meat soaked in juices. The scent was rich with black pepper and basil as I scooped up a piece and started chewing.

I tipped my head to her, "This is the best thing I've had since arriving in the solar system. Reminds me of beef..."

The raccoon from earlier walked inside, and Alice turned to look at him, "Do you want a midnight snack as well, Dylan?"

"Yes, please..." he whispered, and approached.

I motioned to the plate, "Given the topic, I'm guessing this is made from 'bugbear'?"

"It is," Alice said as she reached for another plate.

Ben stepped up to me, "You seem familiar with reptines, Vilkas? I assume you know they're not indigenous to this planet?"

"I do," I said with a nod, and took another bite.

Ben motioned with his hand, "Bugbears however, are native to the planet, and up until our arrival, they were the apex predator. They're like gargantuan bears--quite intelligent, but..."

Dylan interrupted, "Solitary and cruel, no social structure at all... They literally try to eat their own offspring after birth, and it's only the most agile that manage to survive."

I perked my brow, "... Seems like an evolutionary dead end."

Dylan tipped his head, "If the goal is to create a civilization, yes."

I looked over at Ben, "Given what I'm eating, are bugbears a common problem around here?"

Ben shook his head, "The defensive perimeter separating Sophos territory from the rest of the continent hasn't been breached in months now, and there's a shoot-on-sight rule regarding bugbears. Which is where the meat comes from... We travel to the perimeter, find a fresh kill, and drag it back. There's a butchery further east in fact, you can't miss it."

"Hmm," I murmured, "So why do they try to cross the perimeter? Not smart enough to realize the danger?"

Ben shook his head, "Oh, they're intelligent enough to realize the danger... The simple answer is that they're starving."

Alice handed Dylan a plate, and then turned to look at me, "The defensive perimeter made our territory a lot safer, but it also invited a lot of prey species to resettle here... That, in turn, upset the natural balance, and bugbears now find themselves driven here by sheer hunger."

Ben sighed as he crossed his arms, "Without any natural enemies in the region, the reptines are having a population boom as well. We discretely neuter those we can, but we desperately need a larger-scale plan to deal with the problem."

I motioned to the exit once more, "I noticed orange flags on the ditch outside--does that have anything to do with this?"

Alice perked up as if disturbed, and Ben let out a deep sigh, "Ah, that..."

Dylan continued, "Dead human... Reptines were eating it this morning."

I perked my brow, "A human, out here?"

Alice spoke up, "We actually don't know how the poor sod got here... We drove off the reptines, alerted the Spire, and a shuttle picked up the corpse this afternoon."

Dylan rolled his eyes, "What was left of it..."

My gut tightened in unease, "The... reptines in question?"

The room grew silent, and Ben looked at me, "... Brown would never hurt a hybrid, and from what we've seen so far, reptines are cautious around humans, probably because of their similarity to us hybrids."

"So..." I whispered.

Alice continued, "We won't know for sure until one of the labs have had a go at the corpse, but we think it's a case of natural death, followed by the reptines doing what comes naturally to them."

"Natural death?" I wondered.

Ben shook his head, "Not the first one either... Apparently, some of the humans you brought from Earth don't realize that their allergies to the natural vegetation can be quite fatal."

Dylan nodded, "It didn't look like there had been a struggle, so... Guy walks along the road, allergies turn into outright anaphylaxis, and he drops dead by the ditch..."

"I see," I whispered and grabbed another bite, "... Would you say that there's a risk the reptines, wild or not, might start looking at humans as prey?"

Ben drew a deep breath and his expression wavered, "... I would say that there's a considerable risk of that, at least when it comes to the wild ones. We've actually got a cat as well, and neither Brown or the rest of her pack has ever laid a paw on it. In fact, they corral the damn thing so that it can't leave the farm and get eaten by a wild one."

"Cute," I whispered with a nod, "That reminds me, I didn't actually ask what this farm grows?"

"We run trials for plants that are being adapted to the environment on this new world of ours," Alice said and clasped her hands, "Theories and prediction models are good, but reality still catches us by surprise sometimes."

Ben motioned to the ceiling, "Did you see the dome on the way in?"

I smiled to him, "It was quite difficult to miss."

Ben stifled a chuckle, "Latest thing we've got going is a prototype for the nanite swarm that will become this planet's immune system. While far from cutting edge, it's the first real use of nanite tech outside a secured lab that anyone has dared experiment with before we got access to proper Expert Systems."

"Hmm, I saw one of the modified evacuation ships earlier today... Are we being hasty?" I asked.

This time, Alice motioned to the ceiling, "If anything we should have done this a lot sooner. Ben will give you a tour if you're interested..."

I looked to Ben, who nodded in turn.

It made me smirk while I scooped up the last of the pie, "I wouldn't mind a tour..."

62 A.E. March 29, Homestead - Dome,Night

It was a simple airlock, if it could even be considered that, rather than an inflated greenhouse. Ben walked ahead, motioned to raised garden beds that featured a myriad of plants and hanging lights.

Connected to each bed were bundles of wiring and piping, much of which reached into the floor and disappeared elsewhere. Looming at the far end of the greenhouse was a set of processing clusters and large screens filled with information.

Standing in the center of the room--rather haphazardly placed on a small table--was a small obsidian obelisk. Wires connected to the base of it, and it reminded me of the same thing I'd seen on the evacuation ship's sensor array.

Ben turned around to face me and held his arms wide as he smirked a little, making the gray fluff of his 'mustache' perk up, "Can you sense it?"

The air was warm, humid, and mixed with the scents of rich soil. But there was something else as well, hiding in the background. A subtle presence in the back of my mind, as if I was sensing something from Earth that I'd been never been aware of before. As I focused on the sensation, it seemed to emanate from the garden beds, humming from within the soil itself.

I moved closer to one of the beds, one with blue flowers that looked like some sort of mix between an orchid and a puffy dandelion. As I peered closer, staring at the dark soil, I could see some kind of growth. It riddled the soil like a whitish if somewhat fuzzy web, like mold, yet different.

Mycelium... Spore structures...

Ben inched closer while I raised my hand, reached in, and let my hand hover above the soil. There was a distinct presence coming from the mycelium, telepathic but subtle.

"The trees on Earth weren't actual trees, they were more like nodes in Etemenanki's spore shield... Is this the same thing in a smaller scale?" I asked.

Ben nodded slowly, "It is... The intent isn't to replace the ecology on this planet, but to coexist with it. To monitor, learn, and shield it from the horrors that might have been brought from Earth by mistake."

I touched the soil, letting my pads rest on the fine threads of mycelium. A connection formed, subtler than usual, passive in a way. While weird, I could feel the network of growths, the damp soil, and how it spread throughout the bed.

"They're like a network, with larger nodes interlinked with long-running fibers..." I said and looked to the side, realizing that I could now sense the other beds as well, "... and they talk to one another, across the beds."

"A global monitoring system..." Ben said and motioned to the small obelisk, "the evacuation ships and obelisks like this will act as relay and control systems."

"Sounds powerful, but dangerous..." I said.

Ben nodded, "The control towers emit a signal that lets the mycelium grow. Without it, growth will stop, and it'll eventually die. Long term, we'll be able to use it for more creative purposes."

I let go of the dirt, "Such as?"

"Need a forest cleared? Just set the parameters, wait for a while, and you'll have a lake of liquid cellulose ready to be harvested. Need to purge an invasive species, same thing... This kind of control was impossible on Earth because of the plague, but here..." Ben hid his hands as he mused.

I squinted at him, "I literally helped Athena get up and running yesterday, how quickly did all of this happen?"

Ben tipped his head a little as he pointed at the bed, "Technology-wise, the nanite stack has about 500 years of work, and we've known about this particular implementation since the evacuation started... a few months back? The control system itself is derived from Etemenanki... But it wasn't until Athena started working that the bio-nanite designer fully unlocked and we could actually print it."

I looked to the bed once more, "... So you seeded the beds with mycelium yesterday?"

"Aye," Ben answered simply, "Rapid growth is a must if we're to inoculate the entire planet."

"True..." I whispered.

Ben let out a soft sigh, "We have little choice in the matter. If the plague got unleashed and had a chance to spread, we'd be lucky if we 'only' had to nuke half the planet. Even more nightmarish is if it settled deep in the ocean, where we'd have a hard time monitoring it."

"And how does the mycelium solve that?" I wondered.

"In the ocean, they'll be like phytoplankton, coexisting as a defensive layer... at least in the depths reachable by sunlight," Ben answered.

"Mhmm," I murmured, and looked to the beds, "Your other plants seem to be doing fine, but do we know how much the wildlife will be affected?"

"A difficult question," Ben whispered as he circled a growth bed, eyeing the flowers, "The spores will be fatal to the Green Horrors, but that's by design... If you know what they-"

I interrupted him, "I know what they are, though I haven't seen or met one."

Ben dipped his head to me, "Hopefully it'll stay that way as well... Apart from killing Green Horrors, the mycelium is meant to be rather inert. We fed some to a reptine and a screecher, while none of them liked the taste--given the bitter chemicals in the mycelium--neither experienced any harm."

"A screecher?" I wondered.

Ben motioned with his hands, "Think of it like a rabbit with a nasty temper and a very distinct shriek if threatened... While tasty, they're pests that like to chew on cables."

"Ah, but as far as I know, this planet hasn't exactly been mapped? What about the unknowns..."

Ben sighed as he reached up to brush his ear, "True, we've mostly stayed on this continent, within the valley, and there's even much of that we haven't explored... Mostly because we've been preparing for you lot. Then there's the overeager reptines, bugbears, and other horrors to make things difficult."

"Some might argue we're doing irreparable damage, but the Green Horrors aren't even native..."

"Nor are the reptines, and they seem to cover the planet," Ben said with a chuckle, "but to answer your question. There are no guarantees in this world or any other, we can only do the best we can."

As I stood there, I found myself tired. In a way, it felt like a relief that it'd be easy to fall asleep.

I looked to Ben, "Thank you for the tour, but I think I'll head to bed."

Ben motioned to me with one hand, "You go right ahead, I'll turn the lights off and join Alice afterwards."

62 A.E. March 29, Farmstead,Night

With my hand on the door, a sudden voice spoke up.

"Yo..."

I looked to my left, down the hallway, and saw Dylan standing by his door, "Hmm?"

He seemed to hesitate for a moment, then walked up to me, "Sorry about throwing you out earlier. I was... out of my element, you know?"

I turned to face him and nodded, "Trust me, I get it. New world, different circumstances, and it's difficult to hand out hospitality when you're not the one in charge."

Dylan chuckled as he reached up to scratch his temple, "Yeah, you can say that again... It's been quite a shift since I arrived a week ago."

"So, what are you doing out here exactly?" I wondered.

"Ah, well..." Dylan glanced back at the hallway, "You've seen the small obelisk upstairs, right?"

I perked my brow, "Yes?"

Dylan nodded, "You'll be seeing a lot more of them along the road, big ones. I'm one of the technicians working on the closest one. It's a bit of a ride, but after a week of sleeping in the cold and eating rations..."

"A bit of warm pie and a soft bed works wonders," I said, and chuckled as I pushed my door open.

The room was simple but filled with the same old-fashioned style as the rest of the house. Oiled planks as walls, a sturdy wooden bed, drapes that looked woven by hand.

"So, what's your impression of this 'immune system'?" I wondered.

Dylan leaned in close as he sneaked a look into my room, "It's impressive tech. Back on Earth, we were limited to using it in sealed domes, and even then you had to be nervous with the plague around. It'll make our automated factories seem primitive..."

I gave him a skeptical glance, "The more advanced a nanite is, the more error-prone it becomes."

Dylan smirked back, "An engineering problem..." His smile then faded, and he motioned to my room, "Mind if we talk in private for a moment?"

"No problem," I said, stepping inside.

Dylan followed, closed the door, then turned to face me. As he focused on me, a telepathic presence grew, and I felt his consciousness knocking the door. I accepted the link, and heard his voice.

'Are you really here to deliver beans, or are you investigating on Athena's behalf?' he asked.

I perked my brow, 'Neither. I'm here to fix a few factories along the way, but... do go on?'

Dylan eyed me, 'But you were... or are with the Defense Force, right?'

Of course, he's looked me up...

I tipped my head, 'Until I get actual word that the Defense Force is dissolved, I still consider myself part of it. Now, what troubles you?'

'... The dead human.' Dylan said over the link. 'How did he get all the way out here? Only to drop dead in a ditch, outside a farmstead like this? It's pretty strange, isn't it?'

'It certainly is curious, though I'd wait for that lab analysis before pointing fingers,' I thought.

'Right...' Dylan whispered.

'Do you suspect foul play or something?' I wondered.

Dylan motioned to the door, 'Do I suspect they murdered a human and dropped him in a ditch to be eaten? No...'

'Then what exactly?' I wondered.

Dylan reached up to rub his temple, 'I don't know, do you... t_rust_ the first settlers?'

I squinted at him, 'The first settlers?'

Dylan sighed, 'I know that there's an implicit trust between hybrids, and I'm not one to suggest that there's an 'us' or 'them'. But there are distinct factions on this planet and parts of the past that no one will discuss.'

'Such as?' I asked.

Dylan opened his muzzle, and hesitated for a moment, '... I'm out of bounds, it'd be better to wait for the-'

I raised my hand and motioned at him, 'Relax... I didn't mean to sound as if I doubted you. I'm curious to hear, even if I won't lean one way or the other.'

Dylan drew a deep breath, 'Humans were a necessary evil back on Earth... The war made things tense, of course, but our feelings were tempered because our children were human by definition. But out here, the first settlers have spent decades without humans, and I think their feelings have hardened as a result.'

'You suspect someone may have ignored the human's cry for help?'

Dylan shrugged, 'There are plenty of scenarios regarding what could have happened, but... would Alice and Ben have wandered out in the middle of the night to assist a human in need? I honestly don't know, and that scares me.'

'You weren't here the night that the human showed up?' I asked.

Dylan shook his head, 'I wasn't...'

'... Ignoring a cry for help is not a crime,' I thought.

Dylan crossed his arms, 'I am aware, but...'

'What?' I wondered.

'I am not some human lover, and I think their time on the stage has passed... But if hybrids are capable of ignoring a plea for help--even worse than that, if we're willing to lie about, or cover it up as a group--then we don't exactly deserve the stage either, do we?'

I nodded, 'It's a valid concern... I'll do what I can to look into it.'

Dylan made a slow nod and stepped back to the door again, 'That's all I wanted...'

I raised my hand in a simple gesture, and spoke this time, "Good night, Dylan."

He opened the door while flashing me a quick smile, "Good night..."