《Not Ya Momma's Power Fantasy!》 "I guess it begins," ¡°I know what I say is hard to believe! In my world, we found it hard to believe! We were blind! We were bitter! We thought ourselves beyond saving! Above any outsiders'' help! Alone in an uncaring void! And we were wrong!" The apostle¡¯s boots tap along the court, pacing the front row. She stares down on them through black eyes, with no whites. Her head is full of hair-like tendrils, that whisper as they drift in her wake. Her skin is the green of the sea, and a glow seems to spread through the air around her, motes of energy flickering into brief constellations: afterimages of otherworldly powers kept in check, brightest when one isn¡¯t paying attention. "My people, on my world- like many peoples out there!- needed help! A guiding hand, to prevent us from destroying ourselves! To help us weather the ruination of time! To understand the mysteries of the universe! The purpose of our lives! Our place! Our beginning...¡± She stops, with her hands clasped, head high. ¡°Our end¡­¡± Her ivory robes sway around an armor of pale granite. At her side is a four foot piece of alien metal, hidden by a silver sheath: a strange sight on a college campus, but one everyone is becoming more and more familiar with. Her voice is the crack of dawn, bright and strong. Her smile is sunshine, washing through the crowd. "What the Schema gave us was freedom. It showed us the lessons learned by a thousand civilizations. It brought us the technologies of countless worlds. It made us great! And it took nothing away! We are still ourselves! Unique, and irreplaceable. One people among a powerful collective. A people who have stayed true to themselves throughout eons!" Her eyes shine with something deep and unfathomable. For a moment, she looks light enough on her feet, that she could rise from the court and pass through the ceiling. Even the strip lights above seem brighter. The auditorium fills with heavy silence. Cell phones clatter to the ground, showing darkness, but recording the sound and fury of an outsider who might be an angel, might be their salvation. "I know how difficult it is for nascent civilization to find peace and prosperity! I know how hard it is for you not to collapse and destroy yourselves each and every day! It is not your fault! It is the curse of all sentients to grow before we are ready, and be unprepared for the world we face! But know this, humans! You are not alone! And the universe will not watch you fall!¡± Not a student breathes. Not a member of the faculty blinks. Not a heart beats out of sync. Until the alien finally speaks again. ¡°We. Will. Not. Let. You. Fail!¡± *** The lights of the dorm room are off. Candles burn instead, casting shadows across their faces, and barely enough light to play cards by, but it¡¯s comfortable. Lo-Fi leaks from the speakers. The usual suspects sit in suspended animation. Waiting. ¡°You wanna move?¡± One can imagine the sound of glasses being adjusted, while Arthur stares over his favorite horn rims. ¡°Uh¡­ fold! I was just thinking¡­¡± ¡°Mm?¡± Cards shuffle. Sleaves rustle while they drag across the tabletop. ¡°I was thinking. That apostle.¡± Lola drums her fingers, biting her lips. ¡°The closer this integration thing gets, the more she seems¡­ I don¡¯t know.¡± ¡°Alien?¡± ¡°More than that. Like¡­ transcendent, you know? Supernatural?¡± ¡°Super extra, more like it.¡± Caesar brings his cards up to hide his face, then reaches out to toss a chip on the table. It rolls on its side, the way coins do, in smaller and smaller circles, until it falls and wobbles its way into silence. ¡°Raise- I swear she came a few times up there. Definitely OD¡¯d on the Kool-Aid.¡±This book''s true home is on another platform. Check it out there for the real experience. ¡°You don¡¯t believe?¡± Lola sounds shocked. ¡°Fold.¡± Arthur sighs. ¡°I mean, we can see that she believes. I¡¯ll withhold judgement until the day. When shit goes down, doubts don¡¯t matter.¡± ¡°You¡¯ve gotta be- what about the magic?! The ships?! All the proof we can all see?!¡± ¡°First of all,¡± Caesar tosses in another chip. ¡°Raise. Second, this shit is fucking bullshit!¡± ¡°Dude-¡± ¡°Fuckin¡¯ election¡¯s around the corner; now all of a sudden, some shit¡¯s popped up to drag us way from the polls. Tch!¡± He slams his hand on the table hard enough to make the chips jump. ¡°Mariah! Are you gonna go?!¡± ¡°Easy buddy.¡± Lola pokes his frowning forehead, wiggles her finger like she¡¯s wiping the wrinkles away. Caesar swats the hand, so she reaches over to grab my arm instead. ¡°What do you think? Alien Armageddon or naw?¡± I shrug. Then I hold my cards out for Caesar to see. ¡°Read ¡®em¡­¡± ¡°Fuck!¡± ¡°And weep.¡± *** That night, I lay on twisted sheets. Sweating a little, but too lazy to turn the A/C up, or the fan on. Too lazy to open the window or get something cold to drink. Just¡­ tired. Ever since the news of this otherworldly intervention went from viral to serious, we¡¯ve been sleeping in the same dorm. My old roommate moved back home when the panic came and went. I invited Lola to share my bed, agreed to put up with Caesar and his boyfriend for the time being. It¡¯s hard not to do whatever you can to feel more secure these days. People are talking about aliens and angels. Heaven and hell. Heroes and monsters. Magic and fights to the death. I¡¯ve been¡­ trying to ignore it. But it¡¯s all anyone talks about. It¡¯s all I can do not to run off and bury my head in the ground. Can¡¯t I just study for finals? Can¡¯t I just spite my ex? Eat terrible food? Drink myself to death? Normal shit. Normal problems. Normal life, like it was before¡­ But no. The other day, Caesar asked if he should buy a gun. Arthur got his hands on a tiny little generator somewhere, and I¡¯ve been terrified of an RA walking in to find gas cannisters between the washing machine and the wall ever since. Lola¡¯s tackling this like she¡¯s enrolling all over again: practicing everything from Krav Maga to basket-weaving. The trio even built a doomsday survival kit. Me? I¡¯ve been useless. I guess I brought us together, but¡­ how can they take it so seriously? So calmly? Aren¡¯t they even a little bit scared? Why am I the only one mourning the life I¡¯m living now, worried about what comes tomorrow? The only one awake, while everyone else sleeps like babies¡­ I know I¡¯m kind of a worrier, but nowadays it seems like I¡¯m the only one in the world not caught in this fantasy. If apostles start telling people to kill themselves for integration, I¡¯m pretty sure overpopulation becomes a thing of the past. And isn¡¯t that a terrifying thought? But I can¡¯t sit here staring at the ceiling all night. The alarm clock: 3:26. Even the assholes in the parking lot and the bars around the block are sleeping now. The quiet is making me restless, thinking in pointless circles. I drag myself up, throwing off Lola¡¯s stifling arm and pulling at my sweaty shirt. I open and close the door quietly, then pad across the living room. My soles stick on the kitchen floor: have to wash that soon. I open the freezer, carefully pull ice out, then shut it softly, leaning on the fridge and sliding to the ground. I have a headache now; the chewing doesn¡¯t help. But ice is so good. I¡¯m satisfied, crunching down. It melts in my palm. The quiet hum of the refrigerator calms me. I¡¯m content to close my eyes and imagine myself falling asleep¡­ ¡­ ¡­ I¡¯m jolted awake. The kitchen light is on and bright enough to make me squint. Caesar¡¯s head looms huge as he leans closer, shaking my shoulder. ¡°What?! What?!¡± I push his hand away. To the side, I hear a clinking sound: Lola, chugging a glass of water like she¡¯s dying of thirst. ¡°Wake up!¡± ¡°I¡¯m awake, for Christ sake!¡± I¡¯m lying on my side against the tiles, a shiny slick of water spreading from a lonely chip of melting ice. Caesar shakes me again. ¡°I¡¯m up!¡± I sit up with some struggle, and a long-winded sigh. Still so tired. ¡°What the heck is-¡± ¡°It¡¯s happening.¡± Arthur stands from where he was leaned against the counter, pushing his glasses up. I see blocks of light reflected in the lenses, until he turns his phone to me. He stands there waiting, while the others watch. Even as I rise to my feet, I feel my stomach falling out. Pins and needles race up my legs, goosebumps up my arms. A few unsteady steps and I¡¯m squinting at the bright screen. It¡¯s not a blog post or an article. Not a streamer. It¡¯s national television. The real deal: a whole ass reporter, standing at the edge of a precipitous drop, before some kind of¡­ monolith. One of the nodes we were warned of; looks like it came down in a park in¡­ Detroit. A monumental structure, even standing at the bottom of a crater. It takes me a while to make out the banner scrolling underneath the scene. ¡°Initialization¡­ nearly¡­ 1¡­ %. Almost 1%.¡± ¡°And when it hits one?¡± Lola asks. We all share looks. College students caught in a historic moment no one could have predicted months ago. Waiting for the world to change. Watching it happen while we sweat. I manage to gather enough composure to respond. My voice shakes a little, but it¡¯s much calmer than my heart. ¡°I guess it begins,¡± I say. For better or worse. "Somethings gone horribly wrong." The conversation with dad is short and¡­ as sweet as he can make it. He manages, in the awkward rush, to get in his, ¡°be careful, baby,¡± before hanging up. My other call rings for minutes on end. I had put myself in the back corner of the bedroom, perched on the edge of the nightstand, one finger parting the window¡¯s blinds, pressing the phone to my ear until the blaring noise hurt. The noise in the background makes it too hard to hear otherwise. Over the last hour, the parking lot has become a mess. The dorms seem to have emptied themselves onto the asphalt and concrete, students stuffing cars and trucks with whatever they can fit. Abandoned baggage lies on the paths around the leasing office, atop the bushes separating the sections of the parking lot, or in the street itself. Some people stand in dazed indecision- I see someone sit on a couch another group left, leaning back and lighting a cigarette. Somewhere else, two cars back into each other, then get to honking. A car door slams, and the pushing and yelling starts up. All over the place, people are in each other¡¯s way, butting heads, breaking down in some cases. The excitement of yesterday became apprehension. It¡¯s now that panic starts to set in. When my call doesn¡¯t connect for the fifth or sixth time, I give up. I leave a message: ¡°Mama, um¡­ I hope you¡¯re safe out there. If you¡¯re with grandpa and the others, tell them all I say hi. I¡¯ll be fine here. Me and some friends are heading to a node together. We¡¯re sticking with a big group for now, but I hope I¡¯ll see you all soon. And give me a call when you get the chance. Please. I¡­ really need to talk to you. I- I love you. Bye¡­ talk to you soon- bye bye.¡± I¡¯ve been trying to keep in touch better, since the whole integration thing arose. Since the aliens arrived to herald some kind of mystical apocalypse, a test and a transformation that humanity can¡¯t avoid. Yeah, I¡¯ve been¡­ a little needy, lately. Better to call than to not. My sister answers on the second ring. Her line is full of noise. Her breath comes in a rush. ¡°Mariah?!¡± ¡°Hey, are you okay?¡± ¡°Yes! A lot going on, but we¡¯re holding it down here.¡± There¡¯s a pause on the line, then she comes back, shouting over the noise. ¡°What are you going to do?!¡± ¡°I guess-¡± ¡°Your roommate still with you?!¡± ¡°No, but-¡± ¡°What?!¡± ¡°No! But Lola and Caesar are here!¡± ¡°Good! Stick with them! Don¡¯t let anybody wander off alone!¡± ¡°Are you going to be okay?¡± ¡°Yeah- Hey! Calm down!¡± She shouts at someone in the background. ¡°I¡¯m coming! Sorry, it¡¯s crazy around here. Orders rolling in one after another¡­ Alright! Jeez!¡± ¡°Coumba?¡± ¡°I wish I had longer... listen, if you get the chance, come by the base. I know some people already brought family to stay. And it can¡¯t be worse than waiting on campus. Alright? You promise?¡± ¡°Okay-¡± ¡°Love you, baby! Take care of yourself. I¡¯ll call you soon!¡± The call ends just like that. Not long after, while I figure out who to call next, Lola walks in. ¡°Are you ready?¡± She asks. ¡°We need to go.¡± ***The author''s content has been appropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon. Earlier this morning, around 4:00, we gathered in a crowd around the apostles. There was the woman warrior in granite armor, who seemed to glow under the porch lights of the admin building. There was a man clad in metal, wearing it like a second skin: short and shiny, he looked like the stunt double of a silver surfer porn parody. They both stood before the crowd and told us to gather the necessities, and only the necessities, before preparing to leave at dawn. By that point, there were less than two hours left. Two hours until we would have to leave our lives behind, carrying everything important with us. My crew was done in forty-five minutes. The rest of the time was spent arguing over what extra shit we could fit in the Expedition, repacking duffel bags and backpacks, fighting over what in the fridge should come. I gave them the living room, and shut myself in to make my calls. Now, less than an hour after the aliens gave their orders, we¡¯re pulling away from the building, its grey face still dark, stars still staring down. A caravan already stretches through the little town¡¯s streets, with locals standing on the sidewalks, watching from their windows and doorways and windshields. There are some leaving themselves, caught in the side streets, trying to join the procession. It was on the local news, so even they would¡¯ve heard about the meteor that struck the ground a few hundred miles down the interstate. Everyone saw the almost invisible barrier that rose from the crash site, bending the light just a little. A node, and a safe zone: our destination. So we make our way through the streets. Pretty peaceful at first, riding into the quiet sunrise. Until someone, somewhere starts waving, shouting for us to be careful. Then the same students who were complaining and arguing in the parking lot lean from their windows and stand in their sunroofs, waving their arms from the beds of trucks, blaring horns and cheering for all to hear. It makes the slow drive to the highway feel less like an exodus and more like a parade. After a while, we leave the noise and excitement behind us. The procession makes good time, going around 50 miles an hour, but it¡¯ll still be hours until we reach the place. I¡¯m left idling in the backseat while Arthur drives and Lola works herself up at my side, explaining to Caesar why there won¡¯t be any music. ¡°Can you guys stop arguing?¡± Arthur asks. ¡°For the rest of the day? Please?¡± ¡°Look, I mean¡­ it¡¯s your car. You¡¯re my man. Why is she telling me I can¡¯t turn on the radio? Listen to all these other cars jammin¡¯. Are we supposed to hear something with that in the background? No. So¡­¡± ¡°I get it, but I don¡¯t wanna be listening to some dumb shit when anything happens. It¡¯s only a couple hours.¡± Lola crosses her arms and rests her leg on the armrest between the front seats. ¡°What we should do is talk about what the plan is when we get there.¡± ¡°We fuckin¡¯ go to the node and get our powers.¡± Caesar makes a disgusted face. ¡°I can¡¯t believe that just came outta my mouth. Eugh!¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know guys.¡± I say. ¡°Yeah.¡± Lola points through the windshield, where a field of cars rolls down the lanes ahead of us. I look back to see more stretching behind, no end to the mass in sight. ¡°All these people just get together in one place and things sort themselves out?¡± ¡°We¡­¡± Arthur waves a hand through the air, trying to catch words. ¡°Fight? Grow?¡± ¡°We don¡¯t know what to expect,¡± Lola adds. ¡°Yes,¡± Caesar frowns. ¡°We do.¡± ¡°No, we don¡¯t.¡± I try to slide into the conversation again, and Lola pats me on the shoulder for my support. ¡°Right, Mariah?¡± She says. ¡°I¡¯m the one that didn¡¯t even believe!¡± Caesar points a finger in Lola¡¯s face, which she¡¯s quick to slap away. ¡°I know you know what¡¯s going on, because they already told us!¡± ¡°Guys,¡± I say. ¡°I don¡¯t think everything¡¯s going according to plan.¡± They both turn my way, and even Arthur adjusts the rearview to give me a good long look. ¡°What do you mean?¡± They ask. Well, let me explain¡­ Months ago, when aliens first touched down on Earth, there was all this diplomacy and fanfare. First contact. Revolutionary technology. An intergalactic community suddenly at our fingertips, watching us, talking with us. We weren''t alone out there in the cosmos. We would become part of something greater, than our lives and our world¡­ eventually. The first aliens to arrive started talking about an ancient AI, built to preserve and protect civilizations throughout the universe. "When it comes," they said, "there will be upheaval, but it''s for the best. It will change your world, change your lives and the rules you live by, change the very nature of your existence. We caught the early signs and arrived to help you understand what''s coming..." Or something along those lines. An unimaginably powerful, ancient force coming to rebuild our reality. Check. Problem: somewhere along the line, it became corrupted. By who or what, no one knows. But the Schema itself incorporated protections against this. When it comes to change the world, and its corruption brings chaotic forces and strange mutations, it will help us fight them. When malevolent beings and primordial powers from beyond comprehension try to turn this corruption to their advantage, the Schema will guide us in rooting it out, purging itself through our efforts. Or so it goes. ¡°Some people already shared what it¡¯s like in the nodes,¡± I tell them. ¡°And they¡¯re saying something¡¯s gone horribly wrong.¡± ¡°What do you mean?¡± Lola asks. ¡°I¡­ don¡¯t know. Tutorial¡¯s missing.¡± ¡°Gone? Like- no advice? No help?¡± Lola searches my eyes for an answer. ¡°What the fuck?¡± ¡°All these people come out with warnings.¡± I tell them. ¡°Well spit it out. What do they say?¡± ¡°The corruption¡­¡± I bring my phone back up, and find the article, to make sure I¡¯m getting it right. ¡°It exceeded acceptable limits?¡± ¡°So¡­?¡± ¡°The Earth,¡± I say. ¡°And everyone on it. We¡¯ve all been quarantined.¡± When there¡¯s no comprehension in their eyes, I sigh and shake my head. ¡°We¡¯re not getting any help.¡± Smile and fake it. We arrive at the node before noon. It stands deep in the waters of a man-made lake, casting a rippling shadow towards the shore. Picture perfect, with the wind sweeping across the waters, and the trees rustling on nearly every side of it. I want to study it closer, and see for myself, this symbol of alien force that''s disturbing our lives. But we roll right on past. I settle with craning my neck, watching from the window, waiting for it to show itself as more than just a pillar of stone, more than something of our mundane world, more than a man covered in metal and a woman carrying a sword, claiming to be alien warriors... But I have to wonder to myself, what I expected to see, when all that''s left behind the Expedition is a long line of students and hangers-on, playing follow the leader, flowing blindly down Reservoir Rd, into the national forest beyond. And what did I expect from the node? Magic? Answers? I don''t know... But whatever it was, I didn¡¯t get it. As the procession slows, and we see cars pulling off the road, we still don''t have answers. There are people standing by the roadside. They wave us on, pointing ahead, shouting over and over again: "Keep going!" The line''s backed up with traffic now, slowed to a crawl. I can see people starting to get aggravated, arguing with the ones who''ve come to tell us we have to keep driving, even though they''ve stopped and stretched and taken that one step closer to the finish line. Arthur rolls his window down beside a man in cargo pants and an American flag tank top. "What are we doing?" He asks. "You''ll see! Keep going!" The man responds. And on we go. Stop and go. Stop and go. I listen to the Expedition''s brakes complaining the whole way, tires grinding the gravel and sediment on the road, A/C blowing, Caesar clicking his tongue. Lola¡¯s curled against the window, swiping on her phone. There''s an expression on her face I can¡¯t decipher. "What is it?" I ask. She looks at me for a long time, then down at the screen that''s gone dark. "I saw this article just now." She says. Pauses. "¡­I think we got our first monster sighting." "Monster? What was it?" Arthur''s quick to ask. Then, Caesar shouts: "Will these assholes hurry up?! STOP STOPPING! Holy fuck!" I tap Lola''s leg to get her attention. She unlocks and hands me her phone. The screen shows a red-faced man, frozen mid-step, crossing through what looks like a gas station: there''s a cooler with 99 cent icebags in the background against a dingy wall. It''s a photo taken at a distance, in motion, blurry and low rez. I''m still looking for meaning in it when Lola says: "They caught this thing stumbling around Philly. They said it didn''t have any more skin around its mouth. Just muscle and teeth. Scared the shit out of people, they got to shouting, trying to keep it back. Shots fired- don''t know if they hit. People started running and calling 911. Cops came, and uh... well..." "Out with it. Jesus." Caesar scowls. "Shhh," Arthur snaps in Caesar''s face, provoking the worst glare yet, then adjusts the rearview so he can see us. "What happened?" She sighs and rubs her eyes, before mumbling: "It was standing behind some dumpster..." She clears her throat. "They say it was... tearing... skin off. Just... throwing it on the ground. A couple of cops surrounded it. They shot it about fifty times. Emptied whole clips." She shakes her head again. "Didn''t go down."Unauthorized use: this story is on Amazon without permission from the author. Report any sightings. "Well how''d they get the bastard then?" Caesar''s voice comes out high. He''s leaning back like the answer might jump at him. "They did get it, right?" "Somebody doused it in gas and lit it up." "The cops?" I ask. "Dead. It ate them." "Ate?!" Arthur slams the breaks, and we all lurch. I hear horns blaring behind us. He turns in his seat. "Did you say, ''ate them?''" "Fucking zombies?" Caesar asks. "Not like a zombie." Lola closes her eyes. "It ate them really, really fast. All of them. Boots, body armor, everything. Fucking... inhaled them." Something bangs on the glass, and I flinch. "Keep! Going!" Someone shouts. They stand under the window of the Expedition, pointing down the road ahead. The engine revs and Arthur takes off. "It was eating the guns when somebody tossed a jerrycan in its face." Lola adds. "Are you for real?" Caesar studies her, disbelieving. "Saw the video." She holds up one of her wireless earphones, then offers it to me when she sees the phone in my lap. "No!" I toss the phone back like it''s cursed. "I''m good. I''ll take your word for it." "Hand that over." Caesar snatches it up. "I''m not comforting you if that gives you nightmares." Arthur says. Caesar doesn''t dignify that with a response. He settles in with the phone pressed against the dash. After a second, he asks: "No sound?" "Caesar..." I shift around in my seat, juggling disorganized thoughts. A man-eating monster... Christ. From what Lola said, it wasn''t even a normal creature, wasn''t even living by our rules. Something Other. But wearing clothes. Was that a person before? Transformed? Lost... somehow? For the second time, Lola''s phone is thrown at her. "Hey!" "This is why we have the apostles." Caesar says in a rush. "Them, the node- this is why we''re here, right? So we have shit to fight with. Right?" Lola shrugs, and Caesar turns to the window. I join him in silence, watching the tree trunks slide past. This is why we''re here right? If people don''t start dying, then we''re all just crazies following strangers to the middle of nowhere. *** The Expedition finally stops in a clear-cut acre. People are getting out of their cars, stepping over saplings and stumps, looking worn and wistful, already missing the conveniences of modern life, barely a foot in the wild. There''s a feeling in the clearing, in the still air and soft sounds, under the shade of canopy leaves dripping with dew. The forest is full of misty sunbeams, climbing skyward, peeking through mossy branches of gnarled wood. The smell of rot and new growth comes as pine needles crunch underfoot. The cars are packed in, but there''s a small lane left, where the apostles walk, breaking through a path of headlights and whispers. "Peace!" The warrior woman from the auditorium speaks. She sweeps past in the same granite armor and ivory cloak, holding her hands high in the air. "Please give me a moment of peace!" The clearing doesn''t grow quiet immediately. Conversations linger in the air. She claps her hands. "I know you have questions-" "I heard the president and his staff went to their bunker!" Somebody shouts. "Why they runnin?! Nothin''s even happened yet!" "QUIET!" The metal man''s voice echoes and crashes like a thunderclap. The command cuts the noise in one breathless moment. The rest of what he says rumbles, rustles the leaves and vibrates the air. "We can''t speak on what your government plans. We can''t speculate on their motivations. We don''t know. They are consulting with apostles. We are not those apostles. Different aliens, friend. I''ve never met your president, and now I think it likely I never will-" "Listen," The warrior woman jumps in, putting a hand on her companion''s shoulder. "I''ll tell you what I can. There have been... unexpected complications. The Earth is experiencing unusual levels of corruption. And we are all under quarantine. For those of you who haven''t heard, higher corruption means higher danger. It''s too early to say exactly what we''ll face. Not which monsters or what changes... but, it will not be easy. Do you understand? This is going to be the hardest thing you''ve ever done. For all your lives, you''ve been civilians. Now, you need to become survivors. We will help you, but everyone has to take responsibility! There will be stress and struggle! Our lives will become strict. No more moving through the world however we want; The world is changing. We''ll need to change with it. So be ready to fight. Stay focused. Do not falter... Most importantly!" She links her fingers in front of her face. "Trust in and support each other! Because we are building our sanctuary together! Before it''s too late, we will make this node as secure as we possibly can! This will be a commitment! For us to stand our ground here! To defend our future here! To rise above no matter what the world throws at us! Can you do that?!" There''s a moment of silence, where no one''s really caught on that she wants a response. "Can you fight for yourselves?!" Finally, someone speaks up: "Yes..." "What?!" ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°Well?! You can fight?!¡± "Yes!" The students around me raise their voices. They raise fists in the air. "Are you ready?!" "YES!" The cheer swells and bursts into a wordless declaration. ''Here we are!'' It says. ''No longer fat and lazy and ripe for the taking. We humans will fight back!'' It''s the sound of change. Maybe the sound of a chance. I nod my head and clap along with the rest; feels like the thing to do. But in the back of my mind I wonder, are we really prepared to have to fight for our place in the world? Are we ready to drop down the food chain again? To be endangered by more than ourselves? I clap and put a smile on, but deep down I chide myself. I don''t know what the fuck I''m doing here. Don''t know where I''m going. And I have no idea how I''m gonna fucking make it. Smile and fake it. Just nod and say ''okay!'' until it makes sense. "You guys really want to do this?" We spend a week in Sanctuary. That first week is... hell. It feels like hell. And every minute of it is spent either clearing the forest, building camp, or conditioning. Swimming laps in the reservoir. Running miles along forest paths. Racing through an obstacle course. Burpees, pushups, sit-ups, squats- some assholes set up a rope climb. Fuck them. And then the shooting practice. Having some vet or former cop breathe down my neck while I try to shoot cans off of stumps, describing the same mistake the same way every single time I make it... Hell. I find myself passing out at night, sore and sorry I ever left the dorm, then shivering in the pre-dawn cold when they wake us to stretch and do it all over again. Rinse and repeat. Not once do I see magic. No monsters. No cosmic mysteries. Just a terrible bootcamp. Tired and itchy, covered in bites of all kinds, sweating from my scalp to my soles, hungry and irritable. There''s no rest for the wicked, and apparently, we made a mistake by coming out here. better to fight off the end of days from the comfort of my couch. That''s not even the worst of it. They collect food, water, weapons and first-aid supplies from everyone, to be counted and rationed out. All the work we put in, the money we spent, the effort to build a survival kit- and by we, I mean the trio- wasted on strangers of all things. The others blew their fucking tops. The guy that came to mug us with the stick up his ass had to call for reinforcements. "You''re being difficult," he said at first. "This has to get done and we don''t have all day long." "We paid good money for that shit!" Caesar said. "Are you kidding me?! I''ll give you a foot up the ass and a bottle ¡®a water, but that''s it!" Even Arthur was pissed, which I don''t see often. And usually it''s Caesar that does it, so when Arthur stopped trying to hold Caesar back, and took his glasses off, even the bastard trying to empty our doomsday survival kit like a bandit could tell: shit just got serious. "Calm down! This is just part of the process!" He held up his hands in surrender. "We''re asking everyone for the same things. It¡¯s all fair." We groaned and grumbled. In the end though, we gave up the goods. Most of them, anyway. After this incident, we get another surprise when they tell us we''ll be separated into camps, squads, and teams. About 100 people a camp, 25 a squad and 5 a team. They promise to keep people with those they know as much as possible, but they say each camp will have a specific role, some who will finish building and maintaining the camp, working in construction and organization, others who will manage resource stores and keep track of what we''re running out of, doing logistics and such, then the militia camps. They''ll be training harder than anyone else to defend Sanctuary, in case monsters attack. Even venturing out of the safe zone when necessary. I find it funny that I''ve wound up as a grunt in some kind of post-apocalyptic paramilitary cell. By that I mean I''m flummoxed, baffled, dumbfounded and full of regret. My only saving grace is that I''m not alone. The others are with me. In fact, they''re much more prepared. When I''m lagging behind on group runs, they''re there urging me on. when I''m frustrated by the instructors, ready to throw down my gun, they step in to offer advice. When my arms are shaking from pushups, my legs shaking from high steps, my abs trembling from holding my heels up off the ground, they count my reps and tell me I''m almost there, even when I know I''m not. And every time I start to feel myself falter, I peek at them to see if they''ll give in first. They don''t. And I think that... I would be letting them down, if I just stopped. So I keep going. Lola''s a fitness fanatic, who eats more protein than a bodybuilding world champion. Despite Arthur''s bishounen librarian cosplay, he''s the type to hike and rock climb on his time off. And Caesar''s more stubborn than half the camp combined. I borrow a little of their strength. Maybe more than a little. And I don''t even have to complain. Caesar and Lola do more than enough of that for all four of us. "What the fuck?!" Caesar shouts. He collapses back on a stump, then winces when his ass meets hard wood instead of the couch cushions we''re all accustomed to. "Why are we here?!" "Exactly!" Lola kicks a tree. ¡°I''m out here working my ass off-"Stolen from its rightful place, this narrative is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings. "Slow down there, sister! It''ll take more than this to affect that thang-" "Shut up. This is... just... why can''t we see the node?" "Not our turn." "That''s the point! We''re still out here running laps, while other people chill and cut down trees, like... really?" She puts on a voice: "''Oh look! I''m standing watch! Doot-da-doo~!''" "Rather run than chop trees though." "Ugh..." "What''s the rush?" Arthur asks. "I wanna see it¡­" She whines. "Why don''t we just go then?" "Eh?" "Tonight, when everyone''s asleep, let''s swim out there." "You sure that''s a good idea?" "No?" "Fair..." "Good ''nuff fer me!" Caesar says. "Mariah, you in?" "If I pass out and sink, who''s carrying me?" My statement is met with silence. Nobody meets my eyes. "I''m... not really joking guys..." I watch them all walk back towards camp. ¡°Guys?¡± *** And the night is bright, there''s a cool breeze stirring the leaves, and people are singing around campfires, while we crouch in the tree line by the shore. "You guys really want to do this?" "No. I''m actually gonna turn around and go back." I look at Caesar and Lola as they start to bicker. Arthur watches them affectionately, but I feel there''s something missing from their conversation. "Um..." I point out the silver-skinned man with his arms crossed and his feet in the water, watching the reflection of the moon. "Oh shit!" Lola jumps like I slapped her. "Damn, he''s fuckin''..." "Tch!" Caesar clicks his tongue. ¡°What now?¡± "Go back..." Arthur starts to do just that, taking slow steps deeper into the woods, when the alien calls out without looking: "Come out. I can hear you." His rumbling, echoing voice shocks the shit out of me. I look at Lola and find the whites of her eyes glowing bright in the shadows of the trees. "There''s nothing to fear." He says. I¡¯m ready to bolt anyway, but Caesar steps out. The rest of us follow, like a bunch of college students caught sneaking to see an extraterrestrial artefact without adult supervision. I wonder how bad it seems. For a moment I feel younger, like a little, little kid. But I shake it off. We do have the right to check this thing out. Why are we here if not to find answers? We stop a dozen feet away and wait. Then he beckons us over with his head. "Closer," he says. "You are too cautious by far. There''s little danger here, at the heart of the most powerful shield you''ll ever find." The closer I get, the more I can tell that his metal skin moves just like the real thing. He''s not taller than me, but he''s built like goddamn Hercules. When he moves, I imagine I hear the metal stretched close to breaking. It could even be natural. For all I know, his people are born this way. When he looks at us, I see his eyes are flesh, just like ours. Slitted like a snake''s. He reveals sharp teeth when he speaks: "Hello. What brings you here tonight?" We shuffle our feet. Someone coughs. "Well..." Arthur begins. "I don''t suppose you''re here to see the moon?" The alien sounds amused. He chuckles, then he points over the waters with his chin. "It''s beautiful." I think he means the light in the sky, but my eyes draw towards the tower of stone looming out of the water. We can see two of its faces from here: one cast in moonlight, the other in shadows. One side glowing white, the other nearly pitch-black in contrast. Now... maybe it''s the week I''ve spent digesting things, calming down, maybe it''s the difference between night and day, or because we''re closer than before, but it feels more alien now than it did when I first laid eyes on it. I want to tell him what we really came for, about our curiosity, about the frustration of being refused answers that''ve sat here all along. I want to tell him if there''s any power in that thing, we should be getting it now. Where''s the proof we even need it? What''s the point in being here? But all those words stick in my throat. I swallow them down and feel my mouth dry out, glancing at the side of his metal head. I spend the next minute staring at the node, heart pounding. What if they won''t let us see it? If it''s broken like the reports say? If it says I''m weaker than everyone else? What if it proves I''m helpless? Will you still protect me then? His head shifts. His strange eyes fall on us. He''s so close, I can see the veins in them. The slits expand while I watch, like black holes opening up. "You want to know?" He asks. I nod. "Go find out." After a second''s hesitation, we leap to obey. We''re each halfway through stripping the first piece of clothing when he speaks up: "The water''s cold." We look his way, and he gestures to a shape against the rocks: something pale and hard to make out by moonlight. "Most take the boat." *** We keep our clothes on us while we paddle out, which I''m glad for, because as hot as the days are, the night air is still cold. The closer we get, the more I feel... different. I blink as things seem to come in and out of focus. There''s something wrong with my eyes that I can''t put my finger on, until I see my hand against the wood. The colors are bleeding into each other. I''m¡­ fusing with the boat?! I try to let go the oars, but my body''s moving on its own. Between one pull and the next, I see the head of the canoe stretching out to a horizon, far away and filled with water, ending at a tower that rises into a sky of stars. Lines slip away and everything I see becomes a mess of shapes, until I start to lose track of what''s what. Then the hull bumps against the node. For a second, I sit in silence, listening to the water slapping against the sides of the boat. I take my hands off the oars and stare at my palms, then I look back at the others. "Did you feel that?" I whisper. "Yeah." Arthur says. He shivers. "Goosebumps." "No..." My fingers move while I fumble with my hands and my words. I''m grasping for something I can''t name. "That... thing. Y''know?" I just get blank stares. After a handful of blinks, they look at each other. "What do we do?" Caesar asks. "They say all you gotta do is touch it, right?" Lola holds up a hand. "The stone does the rest?" "Then¡­ Mariah, you going first?" I''m at the front of the boat. I look up. The node stretches far overhead, like a giant. It really is massive. Something like this crashing out of space should¡¯ve demolished this forest. I lean farther back to take it all in. White and black. Moonlight and shadows. "We can all do it together?" Lola suggests. At my nod, they crowd around me, warm bodies in the night, deep breaths at my back. I unclench my fist and reach out with fingers that barely tremble. We each touch the node at the same time. "A sanity mechanic? Were fucked." There''s only darkness. A crushing, all-encompassing darkness. It could be an endless void, or a closed coffin. All I know is that I''m enveloped in it. Suffocating. Too aware of my own breath. "Lola?" I whisper so quietly, quieter even than the heartbeat in my ears. That''s how deafening the silence is. I can feel the quiet seeping into me. "C... Caesar? A-Arthur?" I stick my hand out, to see if I can, and my fingers trail through darkness, invisible, but unfettered. I hold both hands out now, waving them in circles, taking small steps. I''m trying to catch something, trying not to run into anything... or anyone, while I walk blindly, trying not to trip or fall down to who-knows-where. My unsteady steps crunch on something. Gritty, grimy, it grinds under my heel. I stand frozen, heart pounding, breath held. I take another step. Something''s pulling at my feet. Each step kicks through mounds of it. And I feel it, working its way inside my pants leg, my shoes, my socks. Scraping at my skin. ¡°What?¡± I reach down to swat my ankle, then slide my fingers under the band of my sock, feeling the tiny grains work their way under my nails. "What the fuck?!" I stumble away from that spot, lose my footing, fall¡­ Into a pile of tiny little things. They crawl along my arms. "What is this?!" In through the sleeves of my shirt, across my collarbone, and under the band of my bra. I punch into a pile of... whatever it is that''s trying to swallow me. I scrape my knuckles, grab a handful, throw it, throw another, and the last I hold in trembling fingers. It''s in my braids now. It¡¯s all over, from head to toe. Stuck to me, I can''t get it off. I feel a scream building up. I want to cry out, to throw this last handful, when I notice the dim light, shining through my fist. I open my hand. I can see my palm now, barely. And a handful of glowing dust, trickling through the gaps between my fingers. It spills down on my knee and to the ground. There''s more radiance, rising around me, nearly too dark to make out. The littlest puddle of light where I lay. But as I watch, it grows brighter. By the time I stand, I can see my leg up to my calf, in the light of the dust. Glowing footprints surround me. I take a few tentative steps, and look to see that I leave a trail of light. It glows in a rainbow of colors, vibrant, gentle, and soothing. Growing brighter, and blooming, until the luminous patches are pushing out the dark, the light covers the floor, and begins to climb the walls, then vaulted ceiling above. At last, I''m left standing in the center of a prismatic chamber. Shadowless. Full of soft light. I bend to scoop up handfuls of the strange dust. No. Not dust. It''s... "Sand." Gently glowing sand. I carry it high and watch it sprinkle back down. I try to approach the room''s wall, but it seems to get farther away as I do. I try the other way, but I can''t reach the edge. I''m trapped in the middle. So I take off running, kicking through piles of rainbow sand. Unafraid, for some reason. Almost... excited. "I asked for magic..." I slide to a stop and watch the sands of the wall get brighter. I realize then, the chamber of shifting sands is moving to keep me in the center. But why? I look around myself. Down. Up. There''s nothing here but me. "Hello?!" my voice sounds quiet and dull. There isn''t even the slightest echo. All sound that hits the sand is swallowed up. "Guys?! Lola?! I''m here!" I get the urge to wave my hands, to jump and shout, but that would be stupid. How would they see me through a wall of sand? I stand on my tip toes to peer around. There must be something. Anything. "Is anybody..." I cup my hands around my mouth and shout: "Why am I here?! Why did you bring me here?!" I get no response. I take off running again. But this time, I push myself. Faster. I run until the wall in front of me dims. I run through sands that haven¡¯t brightened yet, and I get closer, a few dozen feet away. I push until my whole body is burning, straining. I''m close to ten feet behind the wall. Then less. Close enough to hear it shifting out of the way. And then it''s gone. "Oh fuck!" I dig my heels in, fall and skid towards the opening of an enormous chamber I can only see the beginnings of. My fingers claw at the ground, leaving long trenches. I feel my feet slip off the edge. My legs slide, and I pull at the sand with everything, breaking nails and bruising flesh, trying to swim against gravity. I come to a stop with my waist jutting out. My body tilts with the smallest movement, like I''ll tip over with too deep a breath. For a moment I stop all motion. I listen to the grains trickling away. There¡¯s a muted roar, like a waterfall far below. Don¡¯t slip, I think. Don¡¯t let go. I try to push myself up, but that just slides me back another inch. Already my fingers don''t have enough traction in the sand to hold me. I dig down with my chin and wiggle. I slide again and kick my legs by instinct. I feel the balance turning, body falling backwards. I push up with all my strength and throw a leg over the edge. I plant as much weight as possible, while sand tumbles down below. My body is rocking, on the verge of slipping off, But I''m still there. I roll, every muscle straining, and find myself back on solid ground. I roll a few more times for good measure before getting to my feet. I stumble a few steps away from the edge, then look over the massive chamber. It stretches so wide, so high and so far down, that I can''t make out the details of the walls.If you stumble upon this narrative on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it. I see holes¡­ tunnels all along the surface, growing indistinct in the distance, until they become just more glowing sand. What seems like slabs of the glowing grit break of and tumble down. Luminescent curtains cascade from up top. I brave the edge to see the bottom. Far below, rainbow sands are swirling: a rapids built on a million shades, glowing with every color I''ve ever seen and more, converging at a point in the middle. It would''ve been a deadly fall, to be crushed in the whirlpool at the bottom, and shat out who-knows-where. "Well that was close..." My quiet voice is lost just after it leaves my lips. I spend a second scratching at my scalp, then ask the important question: "What now?" *** I wander endlessly. I don''t know for how long, but more features reveal themselves out of the sands as I go, balustrades stretching down crumbling stairs, balconies above vividly endless falls, bridges shifting over rivers of rushing sand, galleries lined with dwindling columns and variegated walls. These things and more, I see. Floors seem to slip in different directions. Halls twist with rainbow bands. Rooms sink as I enter. Walls part as I pass. There''s no rhyme or reason. It''s as I''m skiing down a slide of sand rushing so fast it''s only a blur that I realize. I can put a name to what this place is. It''s a sandcastle, of course. A chromatic palace. One that grows more elaborate, more defined and ''alive'' as I go. More personal. More... magical. I feel like some part of me is controlling it. I just doesn''t know how yet. Eventually, I stride up a set of circular stairs to stand in a tall chamber with fluted walls. The dome overhead, the wide open space- it feels like some kind of observatory. In the center is a short pedestal, with something on it. As I get closer, I see it''s a book, bound in brass and burgundy leather, with a fractal design, like snowflakes etched across its face. "What is this?" I flip the pages. There''s a note on the inside cover: This Grimoire belongs to Mariah Ajani Diallo, Native Earthling of the early twenty-first century. The book''s contents are separated by thick sheets of leather and inscribed tabs. And they''re the thickest, richest paper I''ve ever held. The sound of them turning is crisp in the silence. The first section I turn to is called Condition. It holds a handful of pages. The first is taken up by a drawing: a female version of the Vitruvian Man. Below it is some text: Sanity: Sane Corruption: 13% "13% corruption? Since when?" I say. And then, "a sanity mechanic? We''re fucked." I shake my head and turn more pages. The next few are obvious just by their names, yet they sill raise questions¡­ Afflictions, Mutations, Curses, Phobias, Manias... All these pages are entirely blank. No pictures. No text. There''s nothing to actually read, but I can''t help believing what I''m seeing right now is important to me. I''m just having a hard time connecting the dots. I flip to the next section. It says: Aspects. A single page, with a short list on it: Resilience: 0% Ingenuity: 0% Insight: 0% Clarity: 0% Obscurity: 0% Influence: 0% Permanence: 0% The next section doesn''t have any pages at all. The tab is called Arts. After that¡­ Paradigms. There are two entries: The Watcher. The Blind. The second one is crossed out. The last section just says Missions. There''s nothing written in it. "What is all this?" I look around the observatory, but all I see is emptiness, empty as the pages of a useless book at the end of a pointless dream quest. My voice seems to fade before it''s even left me. "What does it all mean? What am I looking at?" I trail off. This was the moment. I was supposed to get answers. Instead I''m handed another puzzle with missing pieces. Another fucking mystery. "I''m tired of this! Hello?!" I slam my hand on the book. "Explain! Tell me something!" I''m tempted to heft the tome and toss it through the air, but I start to hear a faint noise. There¡¯s a subtle scratching sound coming from between the bindings. I let go and watch as it flips open on its own. This time, there''s tiny script penned across the vellum, sentences finishing even as I watch: * This Grimoire belongs to Mariah Ajani Diallo, native Earthling of the early twenty-first century. Note: This Grimoire may be bound to an object, allowing interaction with the Sequestrate at any time. Warning: Protect a Bound Grimoire at all costs. Condition Sanity: Sane *This denotes the degree to which otherworldly influences have influenced your mental condition. Corruption: 13% *This denotes the degree to which otherworldly influences have saturated your mind, body and spirit. Hint: Corruption does not necessarily lead to mutation, damnation or insanity. It can be cured, if action is taken soon enough. Afflictions *This denotes some of the ways corruption has altered your sanity. Mutations *This denotes some of the ways corruption has altered your physical form. Curses *This denotes some of the ways corruption has altered your metaphysical being. Phobias *This denotes that which you have a supernatural repulsion for, due to otherworldly influence. Manias *This denotes that which you have a supernatural attraction towards, due to otherworldly influence. Aspects Resilience: 0% *This denotes your ability to resist insanity. Ingenuity: 0% *This denotes your capacity to evoke otherworldly energies. Insight: 0% *This denotes your capacity to analyze and understand otherworldly influences. Clarity: 0% *This denotes your capacity to observe otherworldly influences and entities. It also denotes an ability to detect interstices, which bridge the Earth and other dimensions. Warning: high clarity often abjures one of high obscurity. Obscurity: 0% *This denotes your capacity to avoid detection by otherworldly influences and entities. Warning: high obscurity often abjures one of high clarity. Influence: 0% *This denotes your ability to impact otherworldly influences and entities. Warning: high influence often abjures one of high permanence. Permanence: 0% *This denotes your ability to resist corruption, curses and mutations. It also denotes an ability to resist being drawn into interstices, which bridge the Earth and other dimensions. Warning: high permanence often abjures one of high influence. Arts *You must discover the powers of this world. Paradigms The Watcher: You cannot help what you cannot see. You have chosen to unlock your third eye. You have obtained extreme clarity. You have become completely abjured of obscurity. *Beware. Some visions cannot be unseen. Some doors cannot be unfound. There are Others out there, those who only wait to be spotted, those who hunt for the All-Seeing Eye, ready to pluck out your powerful sight. Beware, Watcher¡­ and be wary. The Blind: You hide very well. But while they cannot see you, you cannot see them. Become invisible to the occult. You have obtained extreme obscurity. You''ve become completely abjured of clarity. *Beware. There are those who are greedy for the Obscuring Skin. Greater entities may still hunt you. They will tear their prize off of you to better hide themselves. *Note: You are incompatible with this paradigm. Missions *You currently have no mission. Note: Missions will arise as your heart seeks success, as you face threats and as you weather changes.