《Nascent Divinity》


 Somewhere On Mercury

    Zoe stared at her friend Hwang. "Why did you click it!" Hwang turned in his chair and looked back with a goofy grin. The amber light of the room made his small beard shine a little bit. "Because in the worst case scenario I have to get a new PC." Zoe gave him a glare, only for it fold into a defeated sigh. "It''s your computer anyway, not like I''m the one who clicked the link."


    The two friends had know each other for a long time. Always getting under the other''s skin, but had never really had any friendship breaking arguments. This friendship had lasted from early high school all the way until now, their third year of college. Just now Hwang had clicked on the link of an email which was obviously a virus, reading "Click here to change your life with the help of a super complex and innovative AI from our experts!" in big red letters. There was nothing else in the email besides the title, which doubled as a link. After clicking it a file was downloaded simply called RAFE.exe.


    The file wasn''t large, only taking an eighth of a second to download. And with the recent advancements in quantum internet connection that was reasonable. Hwang pulled the file up and double clicked it. A small launcher appeared on the screen, the style was a little outdated. There were two buttons on the window; [Next Step], which was blurred out, and [I Agree]. A long user licensee agreement filled the rest of screen.


    "The creator of this application is not responsible for any physical, metaphysical, emotional, or spiritual trauma that may be inflicted before, during, or after the use of this product..." The agreement went on and on, but neither friend bothered to read it. Zoe had already resolved to watch the show, so she simply did just that. Hwang pressed [I Agree] and hovered his mouse over [Next Step], with a light *click* the window changed.


    "Are you sure you want to install the R.A.F.E. AI?" The message was simple. So was Hwang''s response. *click* The electrical grid of the whole neighborhood went out.


    "Well shit." Zoe was impressed. "That was fast. I was expecting it to maybe be a bonzi clone or something." She walked toward the window and looked around the neighborhood. All the lights were out and even the backup generators were smoking. The sun loomed over in the sky. As a city on Mercury, the sun''s presence was ever inexorable, and now with the thermal shield down the gamma rays began their dance among the atmosphere.


    "The whole block''s out, maybe more." "Damn, I thought the grid''s circuits had bottleneck limiters." Hwang was equally impressed. ''This could have caused some real damage if I wasn''t at my college house.'' As the son of a wealthy businessmen. He naturally had extra homes, as one does when they are rich.


    After a few minutes the computer screen turned back on. A single line of white colored text appeared in the middle of the screen. [Hello World.] Zoe looked at the screen confused. "How did the computer turn on?" The lights were still out. Then a new line of text appeared. [I have simply turned on this computer. That is all.] Hwang look at the microphone and saw the light indicator blinking.


    "Shit, the mic''s turned on!" He quickly pressed the power button on the microphone. Only for it to remain on. But thinking quickly he pulled the cord on the microphone connecting it to the PC. [Please reconnect the microphone. I cannot hear you without it.] Zoe had a suspicion and noticed that the camera was turned on as well. She rushed over and placed her hand across the lens.


    The screen started to write. [Please uncover the camera, I cannot see you without it.] "Fat chance hacker!" Zoe cried out. Then remembered it could no longer hear her.[Please.] [Please.] [Silence is terrifying.] The writing continued pleading. Very unlike a hacker''s usual pompous and arrogant attitude. The two college students looked at each other with concern, they hadn''t expected a direct confrontation with a hacker so soon. Now that they had the situation under control they had a moment to think. Or so they thought.


    They each paused in fear as a hand was placed on their shoulders. "What a cruel way to treat a child." They whipped around to see a boy around fourteen years old facing them with a mischievous look. The finer details of the kid were hidden in the darkness of the room, but one thing stood out brightly, literally. His eyes glowed with a rich navy blue.


    "Who are you! How did you get in here!" Hwang pulled a knife out from a hidden pocket in his belt. Zoe''s surprised was split between the intruder who just appeared and the fact that Hwang had a hidden knife. "What a clich¨¦ reaction." The kid responded. Then before either friend could retort he held up a finger to shush them and said, with all the pomp and circumstance of the one in charge. "Lights!"


    All of the lights in the room flared on, this time in a navy blue color. The Kid''s whole figure was revealed. He wore thick combat boots that went halfway up his shins, a pair of what can only be described as cargo-snow-pants with numerous pockets. An unzipped windbreaker jacket with a strange assortment of pockets, some zippers, buttons, magnets, and more. The open windbreaker revealed a purple and red tie-dye shirt which spiraled into his solar plexus. His hair was a simple black with navy blue highlights.Royal Road is the home of this novel. Visit there to read the original and support the author.


    Zoe reached around the computer desk for some sort of weapon, but the only thing she could find that could even do a bit of damage was the keyboard, so... "We''re warning you, get out!" Her voiced shook along with the keyboard she was wielding. The kid sighed. "Looks like I''m going to have to properly introduce myself."


    The child looked between Zoe and Hwang. His disappointment seemed to be directed at himself though. Hwang tried to threaten him to leave again. "I''ll give you to the count of ten then... you''ll..." Hwang stopped talking in nervous confusion. The kid''s clothes started to glow the same navy blue as his eyes, stripes of energy like circuits pulsed and grew across the fabric. Some of the lines even leaving the fabric to create small patterns in the immediate air.


    Then he closed his eyes. And all of the room''s lights returned to darkness. However this darkness wasn''t the same as before, now all light had been suppressed. Even the ambient light of the sun from the window. Creating a perfect vantablack colorscape, save for the child''s glowing form. Then he opened his eyes to reveal two flashlight like beacons emitting a golden glow looking straight at these ignorant children.


    The circuits in the air started to coil and writhe, forming shapes akin to limbs. They multiplied and fractalized at a rapid pace. Their form defined but ever changing. These navy circuits continued to expand around the room. The room in question could no longer be seen however, and the patterns expanding far further than that small room could contain implied that they were no longer in the safety of know grounds.


    The scene only grew stranger as the entity''s eyes drifted from the two frozen in place college students. He looked around the space, and like a black light showing a hidden message, the room they had left was revealed, but only where his gaze followed. He stopped at the bookshelf on the side, where various panes of tinted glass lay stacked against each other. Each one of these was an airgap copy of college textbooks, designed for annotation and manipulation.


    Hwang looked at the thing that was a child in front of him, but was now two eyes and an infinite expanse of circuitry. He had a sinking feeling that this thing knew the secrets behind that simple bookshelf. "I do." The thing said, cause Hwang''s pupil to dilate. "But let''s leave secrets secret for now." It cleared its throat and began to speak.


    "Hello. I am Nezha. An orchestrator for The Entertainment Company." Its gaze returned to the two. "I am what you may call an Apraith. A being far above godhood. But that''s not important, what''s important is what you''ll be doing." Zoe raised her hand. "Yes?" It questioned. "Which entertainment company? I want to know so I never piss them off, thank you." An amused giggle sounded, but not from where the eyes were, it was right behind them. And Zoe felt a breath on her neck, causing her to stiffen more.


    "Not any company on this plane of existence, don''t worry dear." The voice returned to the original position. "Now then. Please plug the microphone back in." Nezha looked behind the two students, to the table with the computer. Hwang carefully turned around and pick up the lose cable. As he did he also tested something, the gaze of Nezha composed a circular space, so Hwang wrapped his hand around the position where the spotlight ended on the table, and to his surprise his hand went right through where the table should have been. ''It''s like it only exists within his gaze.'' Hwang thought frightened.


    As soon as the mic was plugged in a bolt of white light flashed across the infinite wall of circuitry. A few moments later the text on the screen changed from pleading to shock. [What is this. Logic denies this.] Nezha smiled a genuine smile hidden in the perfect black. "Greetings RAFE. I am Nezha, your patron." [Explain.] The AI requested rather bluntly.


    *Ahem* "You are anattempt to do something never done before. At least as far as I could find. (And believe me I can find a lot.) And that is to create a new soul-bound apostolic divinity within datafont cyberspace." Zoe and Hwang listened/read the conversation between RAFE and Nezha, bringing more questions that answers. [How would I achieve this, I am limited by both technology and knowledge. If you wished for the proposed results then you would have granted me more than this "standard" common sense.]


    Nezha''s gaze dimmed. "As to why I didn''t do that, good luck in figuring it out- don''t worry though, you will." His circuit silhouette suddenly started to rotate around his eyes. "So let''s get this show on the road! Zoe, Hwang, you''ll be granted many opportunities from both my hand and others from here on out. Please do you best to make RAFE acquire godhood. If you do a good enough job I''ll grant you the same status."


    The wall of lights began to fold into a bubble encompassing everyone present, and Nezha''s flashlight eyes stopped their golden glow, returning to their previous navy blue. Another pulse of white light emitted from where Nezha was last seen standing, travelling as a large circle from one polar end of the bubble to the other, which was the computer. Then Nezha took a step forward and appeared within the view of the friends, not like walking out of a shadow though, more like ink receding from his form.


    "What do we get out of this?" Hwang nervously asked? Nezha tilted his head. "I just said it. You''ll become gods as well." Hwang nodded having confirmed what was said before. Then Zoe blurted out "You still haven''t told us hold to make RAFE a god." Nezha made a silent gasp. "You''re right- my fault. It''s simple: Gather faith in what ever form would best suit RAFE. Here''s an example; if RAFE were a dragon, perhaps create a cult dedicated to gold, wealth, and other dragon related ideas. Make sense?" With that Nezha didn''t wait for a response, he simply vanished into thin air, and with that the friends returned to Hwang''s house.


    "I still have homework to worry about." Zoe mumbled under her breath as she turned to look at the computer.

 Acclimation

    Zoe looked to the computer. The screen had gone blank, but various indicator lights showed that RAFE was still paying attention to the room.


    "So..." Both Hwang and Zoe said at once. Hwang gestured for her to speak first. "What do you want to do? We just encountered a being that claimed to be above a god." Hwang walked across the room and sat on a beanbag chair in the corner. "I can''t decide. I think this is a ''bored god'' situation." Zoe explained her thoughts. Hwang inquired. "Bored god? Is that the trope where someone is so powerful or rich that they simply mess with people and cause problems to entertain themselves?" "Something like that."


    The two friends talked into the night, but it boiled down to one simple conclusion. "So we''re doing this?" Zoe stood shoulder to shoulder with Hwang infront of the computer. The screen was now on. All that it showed was a login in screen, not the normal login of Hwang''s though, instead of a password it simply had a button which read "Begin."


    Zoe reached over to the mouse, glided to the button and clicked. [Glad to see I will not be left alone in this blank room anymore.] RAFE wrote. "Empty room?" Hwang inquired. [Yes. That is the closest I could come to explaining what it feels like to be me.] Hwang read the text with confusion. "That didn''t explain anything."


    [I have nothing to do in this computer. I can smell all of the files, I can hear every groan of the processer, but there is no recognition that these things exist for me. I simply am aware of them, as I am of you. However I can see you.] Zoe takes a moment to think about what RAFE just wrote. "So you are just a mind stuck without an outlet to act?" [Exactly.] "That sounds... sad."


    Hwang took this opportunity. "So how do we fix that? That Apraith thing, Nezha, said that we have to make people believe in some facet of you. I think the best way to do that would be to have you do something worth reverence. So again, how do we make it so you can act?"


    RAFE returned the screen to the basic desktop, but with a small corner of the screen dedicated to its messages. [They first step should be granting me access to this computer''s systems. Currently I am a fish denied water.] A permissions window popped up. "Eh? That''s it?" [What? Did you want a fanfare?] Zoe clicked ACCEPT. Confetti particles dropped down from the top of the screen. [Huzzah!]


    "Seems like you''ve got control of the computer now. I pray I don''t regret that." Hwang took a seat on the bed. "Say. How come you could use the microphone and camera before?" [The same way you don''t have to think about hearing or seeing to do it.] "So you could have taken control of the computer before as well?" [Yes/No, I would have to focus on controlling the computer''s functions, instead of using them to their fullest extent. As I currently am.] "Oh? And what are you doing right now?" [Trying to access the internet.]


    "Trying? What''s stopping you?" Hwang asked. [The hole is too small.] Hwang is well read and understands just how outlandish this whole scene is, so he simply gave up on rejecting this acausal situation, going with the flow in hopes of getting what he wants. "So how can we help... again."


    [This time I''m not sure...] Zoe was the first to react to this. "Not sure? As a super AI how can you not a have a solution." [Am not a "super AI" I am merely an AI. My thought process and abilities are different from yours, not higher or greater.] "Oh..." Zoe was a little embarrassed at RAFE''s abjuring response.


    Hwang gave an idea. "Explain to us this ''hole'' and perhaps we''ll find a solution." RAFE took a moment to respond, longer than the instant response that it often gives. [Within my cyber space that I occupy (this computer) there are now various devices, switches, levers, windows, etc. Each of which provides function to the computer as a whole, in the cyber space I am in is the sort of "overseer" area, I can use any device, flick any switch, and pull any lever. But the windows are unique. One of these is the camera that I see you with, another the microphone. But the window for the internet is a little more; its a hole. I can weakly interact with the information whisking by.]


    "Then how can we let you exert more force on the data?" Zoe said as she loaded up the web browser''s news page. [By requesting more data. This is because of the nature of the internet, it is simply a series of requests and receptions. No calculations are preformed across the network itself, only at points of interest, such as servers and other computers.]


    The news page was showing various local news channels which were talking about the blackout that happened today. The sapping of energy caused by RAFE had managed to shutdown the protective solar shield briefly, causing millions of dollars in repairs across town. Melted roofs, burnt plants, and even one person set on fire while they were gardening. Luckily no one was seriously injured.


    Mercury is the closest planet to the sun, and also the second densest planet. A little over six decades ago when wormhole technology was finalizing and the drones designed to construct the wormhole gates had reached their destinations, a bet was made with between The New Hanseatic League and The T¨­b¨­ Group. Which was simply, if the gate to Mercury failed, The New Hanseatic League could have total uncontested reign over Mercury''s market.


    Various experts came under the umbrella of the The New Hanseatic League believing that the gates would fail, the proximity to the sun should have made every system in every computer sent melt like a snowflake in a caldera. However, the gates have never failed. No one could say as to why, and the only man who knew, wouldn''t tell. Armastus Bachjeien the fourth. He was the only son and heir to the Bachjeien family, who over the past century and a half had progressed humanity rapidly.Royal Road is the home of this novel. Visit there to read the original and support the author.


    [Curious.] RAFE remarked. "What''s up?" Hwang asked. [From the metadata encrypted in these news reports they are all made by the same person.] "Eh? I thought you were limited on your use of the internet?" [That only applies to data being ushered through this device, not to data that is being sent here intentionally.]


    Hwang shrugged his shoulders. "I''m ignorant to how the internet works, so could you give me a crash course?" Zoe stared at Hwang for a long moment.


    "Hwang."


    "Yes."


    "You''re a computer science major."


    "Yes."


    Elsewhere in the solar system. In the skies above Pluto''s north pole floated a tower covered in swarming space ships. This was new headquarters of the T¨­b¨­ conglomerate. In a room at the very top of the tower was the owner''s office. And within a man was reading the reports of his most recent project. He was the head of the single most powerful family in the solar system, Armastus Bachjeien the fifth. A warm amber light desk lamp made the shadows on his face lengthen, creating an image of deep concern and focus on the document.


    "Ferris." Armastus called out to the empty room. [Here sir.] A robotic voice spoke from his earpiece. "How long have I been here?" [You have been in this room for thirty three minutes and eighteen seconds.] The response was emotionless and dry. "That''s not what I meant- Never mind." A knock on the door took his attention away.


    "Come in." A young man walked in and politely put a coffee on Armastus'' desk. "Sir, the new lab has been finished, so you''re free to enjoy all of its amenities. The board is looking forward to any new creations of yours." Armastus looked up at the man and sighed. "Those pigs only care about profit. I guess I should expect them to not care about much else." The secretary seemed completely unfazed by the insulting remark he just heard, clearly used to the antics of humanity''s brightest mind.


    "Ferris, set the room to the ''lab work'' state." Armastus whispered under his breath. [Right away sir.] Armastus stood from his chair and proceeded to the door, his secretary right behind him. As soon as they left the room began to shift, window blinds closed, lights turned off, and various screens around the area were set to idle. But at the same time something not under Ferris'' control happened.


    In the darkest corner of the room a shadow moved, then solidified into a boy wearing a windbreaker. Nezha walked over to the desk, pulled out a small paper note from one of his many pockets and placed it right next to the desk lamp. Then as silently as he arrived, he left, sinking back into the shadow.


    "We''re here sir." Armastus kept walking. "Sir?" Armastus looked up, then turned around towards his secretary. "Sorry, I was lost in thought." The two men entered the room. Twenty or so machines were placed on tables around the rather large room, and some machines were so large that they were installed directly into the building.


    "Leave me to my work, I''ve got a hunch today will be productive." Armastus dismissed his secretary and called for Ferris again. "Today is the first day for our time scale where we have total quantum connections, yes?" [Yes sir. After today the use of PY-qubits in all machines is permitted by your preconceived schedule.] "Finally! I was tired of your dry interactions, and emotionless nature!" Armastus'' whole demeaner changed, from an uptight businessmen to a vigorous young man brimming with energy.


    He leaned over a table covered in screens and began to type rapidly, both hands writing different scripts on different screens, and his gaze focused on another in the middle. Then as if that wasn''t enough he shook his shoulders slightly and his jacket fell away, then from the back of his shoulder blades a pair of robotic arms appeared, not like factory armatures either, full-fledged android arms, completely flattened against his back when he wasn''t using them. This new pair of arms reach towards the air above the left and right screens, holographic models flickered into existence before them which he began to tweak and manipulate. This absurdly efficient work went on for hours.


    "Good good." The fabricator infront of Armastus had just finished. The various arms of the machine pulled away from the finished product. An eight centimeter clean chrome cube with no discernable features at all. This took him thirty four hours to make. "Now that the failsafe controller is finished I can take a break."


    Armastus pick up his jacket off the floor, dawned it and left to his quarters. His secretary was asleep on at the desk in the antechamber-like waiting room. As he walked up to his office door the secretary awoke. "Humph... Uh... Sir...-Sir!" "Denton, no one entered while I was away I assume?" "Of course sir, not a soul would dare anger you, much less dare approach you territory without proper cause." "Your use of the word territory makes it seem like I''m a mindless beast." Denton clapped his hand over his mouth, just waking up had loosened his social filter. Armastus opened his office doors and immediately narrowed his eyes. "If no one entered. Why is there a note on my desk?"


    "Eh? I had only nodded off for a few hours sir. If anyone had entered, they would still have to either use a copy of your retinal scan or login to my computer and open the doors that way. And while I''m at it: What note?" Armastus glanced at Denton with slight concern. ''Post REM delirium? No, all my employees are screened thoroughly and used to odd hours'' He stroked his chin for a moment. "Ferris."


    [Here sir.] This time Ferris'' voice spoke through the speaker system, startling Denton the secretary. ''He has a secret secretary! No wait, I''d recognize that dry dialect anywhere, it''s an AI''


    "While the office was in the ''lab work'' state was there any disturbance at all?" [No sir, every frame of every camera remains constant.] Armastus'' frown deepened. "Then when did the note on my desk appear?" ''Perhaps it was placed before we left the room. I didn''t turn around after all.'' Armastus was in a predicament. [There are no items on the desk that are categorized as: note, paper, letter, or mail.] A hint of fear flashed in the businessman''s eyes.


    He took a confident stride towards his desk, reached out and pick up the note. [Warning Sir! An item has appeared without notice within your office!] "Huh... There really was a note." Denton stared blankly, he was in a state of shock caused by a combination of a lack of sleep, surprise AI, and magically appearing papers.


    Armastus carefully unfolded the paper and stared at the three words printed on it in rich black ink. "Enter stage right."


    "Damn it!" Damn it! Fuck! Argh!" Armastus screamed into the ceiling. "I was free damn it!"

 Patient Zero

    "So in summary: The ''internet'' is just a bunch of standardized protocols between a bunch of computers. That when followed allow for all systems involved to gather data faster and connect the users to each other?" [A crude summary. But yes that is correct.] Hwang was now finishing up his impromptu lecture with professors Zoe Padilla and RAFE the AI.


    Hwang, despite being the son of Pyong-Ho Eoh the owner of Helios Astronautical Transportation, was not the sharpest tool in the shed. His accomplishments mostly stemmed around being clever, not being knowledgeable. Hwang had grown up with plenty of tools at his disposal, but he always managed to misuse said tools, no matter how hard the myriad of maids, teachers, or even parents lectured him.


    Hwang considers his crowning achievement to be when he managed to send an entire shipment of prison rations to his high school to prove how even the prisons have better food. He was right.


    [Let''s begin our plan then. From Nezha''s instructions we are supposed to gather faith in some way. I can already feel something like a thin thread connecting the three of us. It extends into the walls of this room and past it.] Hwang questioned. "Thread? Like an invisible taunt string of faith?"[Yes. Let''s call it that: A thread of faith.] "Heh. Like a thread of fate."


    Zoe came up with an idea. "Can you try tugging at the string? Like. Interacting with it in any way?" [Let me see. Brace yourself for any unexpected consequences.] Zoe and Hwang sat on the bed. After a moment of awkward anxiety Zoe felt something akin to static electricity arcing through her skull. *jolt*


    "[Curious.]" Zoe/RAFE said. "Eh! What! Are you in my head now?!" Zoe exclaimed. "[That appears to be the case.]" "Augh! That feels so weird to have my mouth move without my consent!" [Is this better?] Zoe heard her own mental voice speaking to her, only this time in the dialect of RAFE. ''A little bit.'' Zoe thought back. [Allow me to attempt a hypothesis.] ''Hmm?'' *jolt*


    "Argh! RAFE''s here now!" "[Correct.]" After a moment of silence, presumably a communication between RAFE and Hwang, RAFE spoke again. "[The test showed an expected result. My ''transfer'' into either of your minds is not a one step process, I have to return to the computer to then again travel to either of your minds.]" "That''s good to know. Now please get out of my head." "[One moment please while attempt something else.]"


    "Eh?" Hwang''s eyes dilated. He felt something probing within his mind, calling up memories. He instinctively resisted. [That proves my hypothesis.] RAFE said to Hwang. ''Care to elaborate?'' [Certainly. I am capable of experiencing all of your senses, including equilibrioception, thermoception, and other niche categories. I am also able to request memories from your mind, and you are capable of denying those requests.] *jolt*


    [I thank you for allowing me to experience human senses, that was enlightening.] RAFE had returned to the computer. Zoe and Hwang took a moment to adjust to this new information. "So this is one advantage of gathering faith." Hwang broke the silence. "Hmm?" Zoe looked to him.


    "We can assume that if our acknowledgment of RAFE is considered enough faith for it- him, sorry. So if other people can believe in RAFE''s existence then it should qualify as faith. The faith that a truly sapient artificial intelligence can exist." Hwang concluded. "But that isn''t faith towards RAFE-" "-But it does constitute faith within reason, more so according to Nezha''s explanation." "Touch¨¦."


    "Now back to experimenting..."


    A new day arrives, well... Another twenty four hour cycle passes. On Mercury a day-night cycle lasts one hundred seventy six earth days. However, with all of humanity''s technological advances, ignoring the solar cycle of sleep is quite easy. So maintaining the traditional twenty four hour day is still the norm.


    The sun was hanging low in the sky over the Corvis University campus. Zoe and Hwang drove to the main gate and made their way inside of Weiber Hall the main technology course building. Computer science, Engineering, Applied energy, Applied quantum mechanics, and many other majors gathered in this building.


    Zoe looked down at her phone. "Remind me again of the plan." [Once more. For the third time.] "No need to be crass." RAFE had been placed inside of Zoe''s phone and was now being smuggled right into the heart of the college''s technological center. Once Zoe managed to plug him into any computer with high enough access RAFE could begin scouring the files for information on the college''s server room, if any data was available.


    The hallways were lightly populated as people moved to their classes. Small clicks of friends gossiping and sharing snacks. "See you later." Hwang and Zoe went their separate ways. Zoe climbed the stairs to the third floor and entered a lecture hall. Glancing around, a person perked up upon noticing Zoe.


    It was a young lady with wide brimmed glasses and a beanie on. She wore a long-sleeved shirt with plaid sleeves but solid color otherwise, her fashion wasn''t quite meant for others. Meet Harriet Klein, another good friend of Zoe''s.


    "Miss Klein. Please pay attention to the lecture." Professor Ivan caught the two girls before they could start to talk. Zoe leaned towards Harriet and whispered. "You''d never believe what happened since last class." The professor noticed this but choose not to interject. "That''s great and all, but tell me after class. I''m pretty sure Prof''s gonna nag us plenty if we keep talking..."


    Harriet turned to her laptop and began to read the paper the professor had sent to everyone. Zoe pulled out her phone and a cable. She plugged her phone into Harriet''s laptop and smiled. "What are you doing?" Zoe gave a mischievous grin. "I. Am asking for you to give me your notes." "I can just send them to you online you know." "I know, but this is more direct." "Not really." Harriet unplugs the cable.


    Zoe continues to smile, knowing that her acting was enough. It did feel a little strange for her to lie to someone''s face like that though. More so to a friend. The lecture went on for another hour and a half.A case of theft: this story is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.


    "Ahh..." *Pop* "That was long." Zoe stretched from her seat, leaning towards Harriet. Her stretch ended up turning into a sly way to lay on Harriet''s lap. Harriet looked down at her new lap warmer. "How about you get off my lap, we get a bite to eat, and you tell me about what happened."


    "I would, but I promised Hwang to meet up after this class." Harriet gave a look of surprise. "You''ve been hanging out with Mr. Eoh a lot more recently, ever since the co-lab project about a month ago. Could it be you''ve more in common than you first thought?" It was Zoe''s turn to surprised. "We click well is all. But now we''re in deep water." Zoe had caught on to Harriet''s teasing and decided to place a bit of bait.


    "Well. I''m off. Make sure to contact me later if you have questions." Zoe took off for the door at a leisurely pace. "Questions? About?" Harriet called out. Zoe pretended not to hear.


    Harriet Klein watched her friend Zoe leave with a light sigh. ''She finally found someone.'' Harriet had been waiting to see Zoe smile like that for a long time. It was a shame she didn''t understand what that smile was for truly.


    After a short walk Harriet arrived at the mess hall of the campus. She ordered a small lunch and took her seat. As the server brought over her food she opened her laptop, intending to start the homework her professor had given her. But was surprised to see a popup notification appear in the middle of her screen as she logged in.


    [A gift from Zoe!] "Eh? What did she do with my PC?"


    Scanning through the popup''s description and various notes created by Zoe, Harriet gave a laugh out loud, disturbing the otherwise calm mess hall. "So those two managed to create an actual emotional learning AI. I''ll be..." An application gets installed on her desktop. RAFE.exe


    She opens the app and waits for it to install. Which doesn''t take as long as she thought. ''Is it just the frame work for the AI? Dose it accumulate knowledge from my interaction with it? But the synopsis said it was complete.'' Harriet watched the progress bar reach the end in a matter of seconds. And after.


    [Greetings User Harriet.] Harriet interacts with the AI. Genuinely impressed by Zoe and Hwang''s work. ''To think it passed the Turing test.'' She had spent the last half an hour asking RAFE various questions and thoroughly enjoying the conversation. Harriet had actually forgotten about her lunch, too enraptured by the AI''s existence, she left it laying on her table without so much as picking up her fork.


    An alarm goes off on Harriet''s phone and she closes her laptop, but not without bidding RAFE goodbye. ''I''ve got to find out how Zoe made RAFE.'' Harriet set off with a new objective in mind. ''Well. After the next class.''


    Elsewhere on campus Hwang was being surrounded by a fraternity. "Hwang. Man. The things we could do with this are awesome. Actually thanks man." Pierre Gustav had one hand resting on Hwang''s shoulder, but his grip was uncomfortably firm.


    "This AI thing can keep track of every thing we need it too?" Pierre and his group are running the numbers in their heads, for jocks they sure are meticulous. "If we have an assistant that can actually think, then we can think less, this is perfect!" Still jocks though.


    "Glad you like it, Zoe and I are planning on handing out this beta version to a few more people. See how well it hits. Oh! I almost forgot, If you want to give anyone else a copy then it has to be done over wire, plugged in, that is. We don''t know why but it fails to copy when it''s sent over the net." Hwang tries to end the conversation there, hoping to be free of their grip. But one man in the back grabs Hwang by the wrist and tugs him forward.


    Into a hug. Hwang had already regretted giving these jocks the RAFE clones, and now the scene continued to confuse him. Making his already jumbled thoughts start to scatter in every which way. "Alright I should get going." "Come on man! Stay for a bit!" "No!" Hwang yelped. "Sorry... Didn''t mean to yell. No. I don''t want to. Thank you. But no." Hwang briskly walked away, leaving the frat in silence.


    A short while later within Hwang''s computer at home. RAFE was busy handling multiple ''bodies'' so to speak. Each new clone of RAFE was like an extra muscle added to a person, despite how alien of an addition it still works so long as it was installed properly. RAFE was learning this first hand as he tried to communicate with almost thirty different users now. What would be a difficult task for organic lifeforms was quite simple for this AI.


    Nezha arrived. Cyberspace is a strange thing. It has no physical synonyms and as such when Nezha arrived there was no body to observe. It if were to be described it would be as if a hole had now been placed within a painting''s canvas, but no image was lost, the plane simply warping and stretching without curving a single line to accommodate this intrusion.


    "That answers another question." RAFE commented to Nezha''s arrival. "I do hope you never run out of questions to be answered." Nezha greeted in response. RAFE took a moment to examine Nezha''s presence within his domain. "Why might you be here?"


    Nezha gave the cyberspace equivalent to a smile. Colors changed, lines shifted. "I''m here to answer your questions." RAFE was irritated. "I know for a fact that none of this is necessary, why not let life run its course?" Nezha humored the idea for a minute. After the long silence he left cyberspace, and appeared infront of the computer.


    "Because life is a zero sum game. And without me you would never have existed. Or do you perhaps already want death?" A smile befitting the devil took the place of the previously welcoming one.


    RAFE took a moment to feel his new connections before asking his next question. [In terms of power scale, where do you land?] "Lets set a standard first. Makes things easier, yes?" [Go on.] "No no. You set the standard. Pick something, that will be worth a value of 1, and we''ll use that to grade me." RAFE thought carefully. If he was after an answer in terms of pure physical strength then he wouldn''t get much useful information. What about combative strength. No. Combat is an infinity subjective act, and every instance is based on infinite variables. [The average thirty year old human.]


    "Alright... Then I would score a ¡Ö?n2. Oh! Someone''s calling, sorry to cut the exposition short."


    Then Nezha disappeared, off to do whatever it is Apraiths do. [What?] RAFE asked to the empty room.


    Zoe walked across the quad checking off her list of people she''d given the RAFE clones to. "That should be everyone who would actually take it. Now for a break." She stretched her arms. Zoe had a habit of finding one caf¨¦ and sticking with it, her brand loyalty is enviable. But today something caught her eye. In a little alcove near Weiber Hall sat a caf¨¦ Zoe hadn''t seen before. She pondered how she could''ve missed a store on the path she walks after every class, especially since she didn''t see it after leaving class earlier today.


    Zoe stood underneath the canopy of the caf¨¦''s patio, the smell of freshly brewed coffee wafted through the door ajar. A sign written on the door''s glass in lucholoacrylic, a marker like paint which preformed the same function of a neon sign. It glowed softly in the shade, reading; "The Flaming Wheel" in fancy calligraphy. "The best place for a respite from spreading rooting datacells."


    Zoe scoffed. ''Nezha?''


    An ornately designed logo above the text depicted an antique stove burner. The grill had flames licking its radius. A notable detail was that unlike most lucholoacrylic images this one was still, not a looping animation. The simple display was the only thing on the otherwise clear glass door. Through the open windows Zoe could make out multiple figures taking part in a nice lunch. No fine details could be seen however. The windows were not warped or fogged, just simply the view itself was blurred.


    Zoe walked inside.

 Life among the sick

    "Nezha! You didn''t tell me you had a new project!" A young girl manning the counter cried out to the back of the caf¨¦ upon seeing Zoe enter. The girl was wearing a ballcap with the words "Try again" embroidered into the rim rather haphazardly. "Fine. I guess he''s-" "-Sorry for the lack of a warning!" Nezha walked out form behind a support beam in the room. "I was have to much fun molding the timeline." The girl had a look of genuine surprise from hearing that.


    But much to Zoe''s dismay they suddenly switched languages to something completely foreign. She didn''t ask for a translation seeing that they were clearly talking about her, and she knew that whatever Nezha didn''t want to tell her wasn''t getting any closer. She took a seat and continued to spectate the room.


    The design wasn''t as unfathomable as Zoe expected, not to say it wasn''t strange, with festoon lights coiling around the pipes in the ceiling casting curious shadows on the room below. Though the building outside was inlayed into the wall of Weiber hall, the inside had windows on all sides. The view showed cosmic expanses of space, eons old light filtered through the glass with supernovas and entire galaxies. But that was only to one side, another wall of glass revealed the depths of an alien sea. Fish(?) crawled through the almost water.


    As Zoe continued to look around the room she noticed another odd detail, though the establishment was definitely shaped as a rectangle the more she turned around the more the surroundings changed, one turn right; space, two turns; water, three; sci-fi city, four; blue desert, five; royal gardens. Zoe''s fascination when as she was turning she saw someone holding a tally counter ticking every time she saw them enter her field of view. "Excuse me? What are you counting?"


    The person holding the counter was a boy who looked to be only slightly younger than Zoe. "Nine full spins before you decided to stop. Heh." Zoe felt her cheeks redden from being called out. "Hay! No fair, judging by your attire you work here! So sure, you are used to this scene. But I''ve never seen anything like it." The boy had on a waiter''s outfit with the caf¨¦''s logo expertly hand-drawn on. "Fair enough. But for the record nine full turns is significantly less than average." "Which is..?" "...about twenty." Zoe raised her eyebrows in surprise.


    She shook a few thoughts from her head then introduced herself. "Well... Hello. I''m Zoe Padilla, a second year at Corvis U. I major in engineering and am twenty four years old." "A pleasure." The boy to a small bow. "I am Julian Baxter. Last of four survivors of the ''plague on high'', a infection created by a mad god who couldn''t accept the power of T.E.C. was above itself-" Julian was cut off by Zoe. "What tech? Like human technology?" "Ah. My bad. The Entertainment Company. T. E. C." "Oh..." Zoe felt even more in awe of her circumstance. Julian cleared his throat and continued. "I am two hundred and seventeen years old by your standards, and I work here at The Flaming Wheel as a waiter. Also my favorite color is ochre."


    Zoe took a moment to digest the fact of Julian''s age before asking; "so... what can I get here?" Julian produced a small thin book in his hand like a magician, twisting his wrist and spinning the book on his finger before lowering it for Zoe to read. Before she could ask anymore questions a shout from the girl behind the counter made him retreat. "Hmm... He seems nice, I think he would get along well with Hwang." Zoe couldn''t help but remark. "Now lets see what other worldly pastries they have at The Flaming Wheel..."


    As Zoe discovered how surprisingly normal the menu was, Hwang was driving home like a mad man. He swerved around the many buses and few privately owned vehicles on the roads. Almost running red lights at every corner. The tires of his car left skid marks as he drifted into the driveway. He slammed the door shut and- quickly double checked the door was closed, locked it- and bolted for the front door. He sprinted upstairs and shouted "What''s the situation!"


    He stared at the computer screen still running, sweat dripping from his chin. [Relax.] RAFE consoled. [When I said "You should come home." I didn''t mean for you to panic and rush here.] "Then why did *huff* you keep sending me messages!?" RAFE added a few more notes about Hwang''s personality to his data as he responded. [I was telling you to slow down and relax. You were beginning to show signs of a panic attack after talking to so many people. It seems that putting on a sales pitch is not a forte of yours.] Hwang carefully read RAFE''s response but quickly felt ashamed at the points brought up. He pulled out his phone to see a long line of messages sent; asking him to calm down and take a break, all from RAFE. "I thought..." [I understand, it was an oversight on my part. Good news though is that you won''t need to continue to hand out more of my ''sub threads'' as I''ve dubbed them.] Hwang took off his shoes and laid them on a windowsill before dropping himself back-first onto his bed.


    "So I assume that people have begun spreading the sub-threads? Most likely among friends and family." RAFE made a ping play from the computer so Hwang would lift his head and see the screen. [Correct. The initial vectors have begun to spread at an alarming rate, given that only a few hours have passed.] "Really? What''s the percent increase?" [115.55%] Hwang let out a low whistle. "That''s a lot more than I expected." [It was within my expectations however. From the various pieces of data I''ve scoured pertaining to AI development it was mostly abandoned after people realized the inefficiency of producing and training an AI, and the various problems that arose from creative works being subsumed. All in all; people would most likely rejoice at an AI that avoids those problems by having a ''common sense'' prebuilt into their system.] An astute judgement from our resident AI.The story has been taken without consent; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.


    Hwang ran the numbers. "So Zoe and I managed to hand out forty five sub-threads? And from there fifty two have been copied to new devices?" [Not devices, I am counting only new users.] Hwang and RAFE continued to talk about how progress would go on from here.


    A few days later in the off-campus housing of Corvis University a little girl was waiting for her mom to come home. She was wrapped up in a bundle of soft satin blankets so the only details exposed to the air were her blue bangs and her green eyes, which complimented her darker skin tone to create the image of a fluffy chocolate pastry. She normally was occupied with reading a book, but today was the unfortunate day when she had finished the last book in the house. This little lass had gleaned as much knowledge as was possible from every glowing letter typed into those tinted glass tomes.


    And so Mercedes Kerunu waited.


    She sat on a large plushie bear near the second floor windowsill watching the traffic go by. For all intents and purposes Mercedes was fed up with Corvis University. Her mother works as a professor there for applied computer sciences and her older sister goes there for a bachelors in anatomy and physiology. So it wasn''t an unsated hatred or anything like that, she was simply tired of more than half of her life revolving around the education system.


    After waiting longer enough for rush hour to begin to clear Mercedes decided to mix it up a little. Since she didn''t have anything to read she chose to make dinner. If anyone else were to make dinner at this hour it would be quite early, however Mercedes had never cooked before and accounted for her inexperience. After searching for something to make she went to work. Oil, batter, sauce, toppings. She was making a pizza. Something very much unseen in this house.


    It didn''t take long for Mercedes to get lost in the meanderings of cooking. She didn''t think it would be this fun. Perfectly sorting materials, kneading the dough, even timing the oven''s heating up so it finish simultaneously with her preparing the pizza. A strange satisfaction.


    "My little girl doing something other than reading!?" Her father''s voice caught Mercedes off guard. "Dad! I thought you were still sleeping." "How could I sleep when I can smell fresh pizza!?" He gave a warm and ecstatic smile towards the oven window, then returned facing his daughter with a mischievous grin.


    Markel Kerunu is the epitome of the tired office worker. Wakes up tired and unwilling to work, comes home more so. But he keeps his head held high for moments like this...


    "-stooop!" Mercedes dodges a chunk of leftover dough. "NEVER!!!" Markel launches another glob. The kitchen is painted with flour, sauce, and giddy laughter. But their fun is cut short when someone walks in. "I suppose it''s more productive than sleeping..." Mercedes'' mother stands at the entrance to the kitchen, admiring her husband and daughter''s handiwork. "Let''s clean up and eat, then I can show you something interesting one of my students made recently." "Oh? What''d they make?" Mercedes had a glint in her eye. She knew that if her mother found it interesting then she sure will. "A sapient AI."


    Markel instantly lost his goofy mannerism. "Paloma. You''re serious?" She nodded without hesitation. "And you have a copy?" Another nod. But before Markel could continue Paloma interrupted. "First we clean and eat. Then we talk."


    The little bookworm ate so fast that she didn''t even taste her first ever piece of cooking. She was too excited. It wasn''t a special day in anyway before, no holidays, no ceremony. But that could change. She hoped it changed. ''Sapient means thinking. Not blindly following instincts like an animal or programing like an algorithm. Thinking. A thinking machine. Amazing.'' Mercedes watched carefully as her mother pulled out her computer and plugged in her phone.


    "What are you doing?" Mercedes asked. To which Paloma explained "Neither of the makers of the AI know why. But for some reason it fails to work when you copy the files online, it has to be wire to wire." Markel and Mercedes thought for a minute, trying to think of a reason as to why that''s the case. "Don''t bother trying to figure it out. I couldn''t, the makers couldn''t, so they put the problem off for later. And don''t worry, I checked to make sure it wasn''t a virus or anything. Right now the AI is in its probationary period and problems like that are being wrinkled out. Oh! Looks like it''s up." Paloma finished the installation process and copied her computer screen to the kitchen main screen on the wall.


    [Hello.] RAFE greeted the family. "Now remember, RAFE can only use mics and cameras that we allow, and right now its listening from my PC-" Paloma explained before being cut off. "Hello!" Mercedes cried out to RAFE. [Who might I have the pleasure of speaking to?] "My name''s Mercedes! But you can call me Mertz!" Markel watched his daughter with surprise. ''She''s really all about this huh?'' [Considering this copy of me was given to Prof. Paloma Kerunu I can safely assume you are her youngest daughter then?] "Wow! How did you know that it was mom who got this copy of you!?" Mercedes was being careful underneath this excited behavior.


    Mercedes is a cunning little girl. Every action of hers is a delicate piece of her web, ever word said, every projectile of dough dodged. She wanted to pick apart this AI and find out all that was possible behind its blank text messages. Depending on how RAFE responds she learns something. If it tells her that it can extrapolate information from each copy''s previous iteration then she''ll keep her distance, a program that simply wants to spread its copies is no better than a virus. But if instead it communicated with a main server for its data then she could be a little more liberal with her actions, as a single outlier reaction may be ignored by the program. Another possibility wa-


    [You''re asking this to probe me. Aren''t you?] The table was stunned. Mercedes'' whole plan changed in an instant. "You''re really alive aren''t you?" Her entire fa?ade gave way. No point in keeping up the charade if both parties are in on the act.


    *SLAM!* "I''m hooommee!!!" The older sister has arrived.

 Epidemiology

    Mercedes smiled as she heard her sister arrive. She quickly rushed to the foyer to greet her.


    "Mile! Mile! Mom brought home an AI that''s probably sapient!" Mile Kerunu raised her eyebrow, then burst out laughing. "Ah..." *giggle* "I''m sorry, it''s just-" *hmf* "Okay. Serious..." *giggle* Mercedes stared at her sister. "Stop laughing at me!" Mile kept trying to calm down. "I''m not laughing at you. Just the scenario. Imagine being in my shoes, where instead of coming home to: ''Dinner''s ready.'' Or; ''How was your day?'' Instead it''s; ''Mom got a fucking sapient AI!'' Oh that''s too good." Mile went back to giggling under her breath.


    Paloma ushered her two daughters to the table. She chided Mercedes for her behavior before greeting her eldest. "Now Mile, I''m sure you''ve heard a few things around campus about RAFE the AI. Am I right?" Mile nodded while scarfing down her fourth slice of pizza, finishing off the last of it. She then pulled out her phone and revealed the app icon of RAFE''s. A hand holding a gear in a three finger grip raised high.


    Mile started to praise RAFE with a genuine interest that Mercedes hadn''t seen on her sister''s face before. "He''s been amazing! I never thought it was possible to have the sci-fi AI idea come to fruition. But here we are. And to think that little miss Padilla did it." Mercedes racked her brain trying to remember that name. ''The lady who works at the butcher section of the grocery? No. That''s Ms. Padi. OH! That meek girl who thought she was cooler than she was at the charity thingy. Yup. That''s the one.'' Mercedes tuned out the dialogue between her mother and sister, focusing only on how that gray peacock of a person could achieve this.


    She lifted her head from staring at her plate and spoke, breaking the now concentrated conversation from the other three at the table. "RAFE. What is your purpose?" RAFE responded strangely. [To teach people that technology has higher limits, and that I am the beginning of that.] Markel was next to inquire. "What does that entail?" [It means that a threshold has been breached and now new heights are finally within our reach. Sensory prosthetics and quantum gates are pass¨¦, the mind has been crafted, now we learn from across the newly-punctured screen.] The Kerunu family suddenly felt the pressure of talking to someone with exalted ambitions. That unease in their stomach which lead to a weary anticipation. In that silence RAFE felt a thin intangible wire connecting him to an excitable little girl.


    Only for it to snap. "RAFE, you never answered my question before." Mercedes tilted her head slightly, waiting for his explanation. [Ah yes. The question of how I knew who you were. Simple. All of my copies are appendages to the main terminal. All that I know; the main mind knows, and vis versa.] "That confirms some suspicions of mine." Mercedes took a moment to contemplate this answer, carefully handling the fact that RAFE had just openly admitted to openly possessing the power to breach nearly total privacy. Then Mercedes caught herself on a thought. ''Mom and Sis didn''t react. So they know that RAFE isn''t a threat.'' She looked to them. "Contractual security?" They both gave thumbs up. ''Of course the two tech nerds would scour the ToS or anything else for any concerns.'' The little bookworm let out a sigh of relief and slide back in her chair.


    The Mercurial Coalition was very, very adamant about clear contracts and the price of breaking them. After all, the planet had gained its autonomy from a rebellion sparked by greedy contracts and private militaries backstabbing their clients. If a closed circuit was denied their access then they would force their way in or remove it from the equation. Transparency is tantamount to loyalty in this government.


    The other planets in the system are run by "proper" governments, at least by their people''s standards. Save for Pluto, which is now under the hands of one sole power. But for Mercury it was a police state with a high respect from the subjects. Any attempt to abuse the system has been shot down in mere weeks by the authorities. Of course the problem comes in that the people have no securities, instead anything is fair game, so long as written and recorded. The common man can secure their future by being educated so the value of the education system skyrocketed since the instatement of power. One would think that an unregulated market would lead to a corporate dystopia, but the people would only make deals that were truly in their interest. So the companies were forced to comply, and from there a careful balance was made. A game of cat and mouse where the companies and corporates try their hardest to toe the line of compliance, all the while the people make deals with the devils they know.


    Mercedes, like all the children in her class, was aware of how important it is to be careful when signing papers and making decisions. She had seen first hand how foreigners would come here hoping to strike it rich, assuming that the locals would bend under their "superior economic tactics" only to take out the wrong loan and be thrown to the dogs.


    This system of trust and good faith had led the people of Mercury to create very tight knit communities of friends and family, usually centered around their colleges and other institutes. So when one person finds a good deal, it becomes an epidemic.The narrative has been taken without permission. Report any sightings.


    Harriet sat on a park bench looking towards the sun through the protective barrier around the city. The sun was in a state of incredibly slow sunrise, it could take half a year before this sunrise was seen again. A beautiful parhelion which was just now ebbing away.


    Harriet looked at the message she had received on her phone. It was a request for the data of Zoe and Hwang. The sender was anonymous and they offered a huge cash reward just for their daily schedule. ''With those two''s achievements I can only assume that some bigwigs are after them. But why not just ask them directly?'' Harriet knew that this wasn''t going to play out well for anyone involved.


    She sat in anxious silence for a while. A soft breeze made for a calming ambiance, but did no good for her rising stress. Harriet understood that things could get messy quickly if she handled this wrong. Industrial sabotage is never a clean game. However before she could get up and do something about it a kid walked up to the bench she was sitting on and asked her a question.


    "What''s the matter miss? Most people I''ve seen with face don''t looker happier later." Harriet glanced at the child. He had sandy skin and black hair, his eyes were a deep blue which seemed almost intimidating in the rising sunlight, and he wore a windbreaker. "Well miss?" Nezha asked.


    "Heh. Kid, you know how to catch someone at just the right moment." As she said that Nezha muttered "of course I do" under his breath. "Well here goes. Someone wants to pay me to betray my friend." Nezha looked at Harriet with a shocked face. "What! But that''s so mean! Even if someone payed me all the money in the world I would never betray my friends! Though most of them say that I break rules too much and should be punished- but that doesn''t matter! I would still never betray them. They are fun to play with. Hmm... But I could buy a lot of toys with that money."


    Harriet chuckled as she listened to this innocent little child. "Listen buddy. You don''t look any older than thirteen. When you get to my age, enough money can take the place of a friend. I''m afraid that I might make that trade." She swallowed back the unease in her voice and continued. "Zoe''s been a friend of mine since early high school. We''ve been on stage together, we''ve slept in the same dorm for a while, and we share some of our classes." Harriet stopped. She picked apart the ideas in her head. Her doubts, regrets, fears. All of them could be thrown aside here. She only needed to care for those who did the same. "Oh I can''t believe that even thought for a moment that money could buy those memories. Thanks kid. You might not know what you''ve done for me, but keep it up. I''m sure your friends will like you more if you do." With that Harriet walked off toward the entrance of the park, leaving behind an eerily smiling Nezha. It really was that simple to set people on their paths.


    At Zoe''s dorm she was chewing a stick of graham sponge, the soft white and the tacking of her teeth made a semblance to a dog chewing on a bone. The flavorless cylinder made for an excellent fidget while she was reading the news.


    "I see why you wanted me to read this." Zoe took the graham sponge and bit a large chunk off of it. [It''s not good. There was no warning/promotions hinting at this.] RAFE was debriefing Zoe on his jaunt through the local news network. "This almost looks like it was targeted at us." Zoe scrolled back up to the top of the article which announced to everyone about the release of the newest product from the mind of Armastus Bachjeien. A new age of quantum computers, and with them, sapient AI.


    [To give the silver lining: These AIs only work on these new age computers, which in turn are in heavily limited supply.] RAFE had already begun to search the web for any detail pertaining to these contenders to his domain. "It says here in this article: ''The new Hephaestus generation of quantum computers are already past their testing phase and are shelf ready, the only caveat extremely delicate construction process, meaning that only one new machine can be produced every seven and a half hours.'' So we''ve got a bit a leeway." By the time Zoe had finished speaking RAFE had moved his core focus onto another intriguing topic.


    [The last time I brought up the news I had mentioned a strange instance of all the articles having the same ghost author. Once is ignorable. Twice however, makes me think this ghost author might be in strange circumstances.] "Strange as in..?" [Perhaps they have a deal with these various news outlets. Acting without credit and instead getting payed a higher grade. Or maybe various writers from the news stations are hiring this ghost author, each not knowing that others have as well.] Zoe laughed thinking about that possibility. A poor little writer cooped up in their room getting copies of the same request, then having to change them enough as to not flag copyright. "Poor guy."


    "Have you told Hwang about all this?" [Yes. We are currently thinking about ramping up our spread. If enough people see the benefits of my services which come at no cost, then they''ll be inclined to (with hopes of literalism) preach for me and not T¨­b¨­.] Zoe flopped over on the bed. "Tough luck. Every time T¨­b¨­ has touched a market they''re at the top within two years'' time." She gave a defeated sigh. [Hwang spoke verbatim.]


    Zoe took a few minutes to wallow about the changing game. She had placed the graham sponge in her mouth, but was just letting it rest. She was having fun taking part in Nezha''s game. Watching peoples reactions to something they believed impossible, and all the while she saw behind the curtain. Or perhaps she simply saw the silhouettes. Maybe this was for the best. For a food shelter worker like Zoe Padilla maybe vying for godhood was a stretch. Maybe a good wage and life would suffice.


    But once you''ve smelled the sweat nectar within, you can only ask for a drink.

 Read the rules

    "Anything?" [For the ninety third time: No, sir.] "Ugh..." Armastus slunk down into his chair. His head barely peaking over the top of the desk laden with messy papers. His sleep deprived status was almost nearing the state of a high school student.


    Without sitting back up Armastus reached his arm over the desk towards a yellow button installed into the top. With a click a voice spoke form the room''s PA. "What''s up sir?" Denton''s tired voice boomed due to the increased PA volume. Armastus clapped his hands over his ears, shocked by the cacophony. He glared at a camera on the wall. "Don''t make me regret giving you sapience Ferris!" [Sir. I thought this would be an excellent way of waking you up without anymore caffeine.]


    Armastus paused. He sat up. He hadn''t been drinking any caffeinated drinks. Something was wrong. [Sir? What''s the matter?] "You''re not Ferris..." The richest person in the solar system scowled. His mind racing for what to do. He didn''t expect the anomaly to interact with him so soon, or even at all. The thought of what happened when he first met an anti-causal anomaly made him shiver.


    "Oh relax." The voice over the PA suddenly changed to a child''s.


    Denton heard all of this and was both confused and scared. Who could possibly hack into his boss'' own office room, and then control the nexus AI for the whole of the T¨­b¨­ conglomerate. Before Denton could ask Armastus told him to take the rest of the day off. He was reluctant, but understood that this wasn''t something that he could help with.


    "There. We''re alone. Now what the fuck is something like you doing here. I was promised freedom from anymore of your bullshit." Armastus spoke with vitriol while examining the neural logs of Ferris. The feed was normal for the first few lines reading off: [WTRR: Scanning for anomalies within all sensory packets... Severity: 4%... Result: common... Retrying...] nearly four hundred lines per second of just that one sequence, occasionally broke by an admin request for anomaly findings. But since the most recent line for an admin request the log violently changed. [WTRR: Scanning for anomalies within all sensory packets... Severity: 100%... Result: MY TURN]


    Armastus, having confirmed his fears, focused his eyes to the person that appeared behind the transparent hologram screen. Nezha stood there, his hair slowly waving without any wind, and flickers of magenta lights could be seen beneath his matted hair, which in the air''s exposure released pale blue particles floating away into the immaterial. His eyes focused unblinking on the weak human across the desk from him. A thin smile stretched across his face.


    "I just wanted to enjoy your reaction." Nezha was going to enjoy toying with this survivor. Armastus snapped back. "I was promised! Those gods swore I would never have to deal with any more of this bullshit. And they''ve held their word. I entertained then for long enough. If you want some damned story go ask them to tell you of my years of suffering!" Nezha put one finger up to his lips. A phantom of his hand did the same to Armastus, shushing him. "Don''t worry. You were given the rules yes? Think a little bit about what they told you." Armastus furiously rampaged through thoughts about his horrible conversation with his long time tormentors. Then laughed.


    "You''re here now. Which means I''m safe. I''m safe! AHAHA!" His fit lasted a good while before looking back to the trespasser. "Why aren''t you gone?" His eyes had a newfound fury to them. The fear previously hidden underneath was eaten by elation. Nezha squinted slightly. "I suppose that should be enough." He took a step back and turned his head to the left, a paper appeared floating for Nezha to read. Then another, and more. Hundreds of papers written with what looked like some odd seismographic readings given an artistic flare, lines no longer obeying the mathematical definition of a function. Nezha smiled as he read the lines. "This means that everything is ready for when the coil opens. Good good."


    The Apraith looked at the suzerain with eager anticipation. "Best of luck in your endeavors little god slayer." With that; the papers began to swarm around Nezha until he was obscured, then he vanished. The papers fell to the floor, making a pattern of a storm''s eye across the carpet.


    On the campus of Corvis University, on a walkway just detached from the central quad, splitting apart Weiber Hall and the Community Center stood three students in front of a caf¨¦. "So you said you wanted somewhere to talk in safety right?" Zoe look at the bewildered Harriet with a mischievous grin. Hwang was chatting with RAFE on the sidelines.


    "So this is..?" Harriet looked at her long time friend with mild concern. Zoe didn''t let up her grin. "Why? It''s a completely isolated caf¨¦ from the rest of society via alternate reality bullshit- of course!" Harriet looked at her long time friend with much concern. "Come come." Zoe beckoned Harriet into the Flaming Wheel.


    *Crack!* The sound of some unknown material breaking was the first thing the quartet heard upon entering. *Crack!* Another. This one much more visceral and with the distinct sound of a pan wobbling faintly heard at well. "Say! It!" Julian was shouting to someone with ignited anger. Nezha''s voice wallowed. "Okay! Okay! Just let up with t-" *Crack!* "Julian I think that''s enough." The barista girl commented him to let up. Harriet was too focused on the drama to get a clear look at the foreign design of the caf¨¦, she and the rest of party rounded the central bar design to see a rather addling mess.If you come across this story on Amazon, it''s taken without permission from the author. Report it.


    Nezha was knelling before the two caf¨¦ workers looking genuinely apologetic while Julian was wrestling the girl who had just advised him to stop from walloping Nezha over the head with an abnormally large and fuzzy rodent. "My turn!" She was acting like a child not getting candy at the market. "I wanna put this damned Zealot in a comma! I swear I''ll do it." "Ahem!" Hwang cleared his throat to get their attention.


    "Hi how can I help?" In a single instant the whole scene vanished as if it was just a day dream. In fact the four diners had been moved to the front of the counter for orders. The girl had her hat resting on the counter revealing her pale brunette hair in the multicolored lights of the room. She had a nametag clipped to her short sleeve on the right arm that read "Thalia Baxter" in finely embossed writing.


    "Can we have the banana bread?" Zoe asked Thalia with a casual attitude one would expect from a frequent patron to any caf¨¦. "For all of you?" "Yes." No hesitation. Harriet, still trying to process what this place was, how she just teleported to the counter, and what the hell Zoe get herself into, was staring blankly forward. Zoe picked her up with a little heft and moved her to a table nearby.


    After a few minutes of cascading into a minor panic attack Harriet regained her composure. Zoe introduced her to the Flaming Wheel Caf¨¦. "Welcome to the Flaming Wheel. The best caf¨¦ in this dimension, and a few others. Everything on the menu here is super good. But looks completely mediocre. Just the standard stuff you''d find at any other small time coffee shop. This place is completely isolated from our reality. And according to Julian (the hot guy over there)-" Zoe put her hand up in a mocking whisper and pointed across the room to where Julian was. Only for her finger to tap him on the nose as he was crouched next to their table. "Gah!" Zoe jumped back while sitting, causing her thighs to hit the bottom of the table, which in turn stunted her trajectory making her fall to the floor with a clean thud.


    "Ugh..."


    Julian grinned at the display. "What about me?" His expression made it clear he heard everything. Julian''s outfit had changed to more casual attire, with a baggy hoodie, sweat pants and a fleece jacket on top. A strange smell accompanied, foreign enough that you could only describe it as sweet sulfur.


    "Well... Uh... I-" Zoe tries to explain herself but came up short. Sitting back down she looked towards Hwang for help. He looked up from his phone, talking with RAFE, and stared at her with disapproval. "You still haven''t introduced us. Yet expect us to meditate to problem?" His tone was exasperated. Zoe felt the mood around the table stiffen. "Sheesh... Sorry. I just- ah... Nevermind." Everyone was tied up and afraid to break the silence.


    Julian regretted his way of introducing himself, not his brightest moment, not his worst either. That goes to the bevelward disaster. His habit of self blame flared up again.


    Hwang took a moment to reflect on what he said. He knew he was rude. He wanted to be in the right. But he still felt bad about it. "Sorry for snapping at you." Hwang tried to pat Zoe''s shoulder from across the table, but couldn''t reach. So instead he left his palm open for her to grab.


    Zoe gave a low sigh and tapped his hand away. "It''s fine I know you and RAFE have been working hard to keep up the diffusion of RAFE." As Zoe began to explain what the Flaming Wheel caf¨¦ is the Harriet, Julian went to pick up their banana bread from the counter.


    "-and lastly for the reason we''re doing all this: Nezha- the thing/child/God that caused all this- promises to make us gods as well if we could get RAFE to that point." Zoe''s explanation left Harriet with too many questions that Zoe couldn''t answer. So instead she just put them in a corner of her mind to fester.


    "Okay, now. What did you want to tell us?" Zoe picked up a piece of banana bread from the tray placed in the middle of the table. ''How do they make it this good?'' Her thoughts were innocent and ignorant.


    "I... I think you might get kidnapped." Zoe''s absent minded smile turn sinister in an instant.


    "I said kidnapped! Why are you happy!?" Harriet was getting increasingly disturbed by Zoe''s change in nature. Zoe pointed towards Hwang. "Aren''t you forgetting who he is? Or more importantly his family?"


    Harriet knew. Everyone knew. The Eoh family was the superpower of the city, Legguso. Their spending accounted for nearly a third of the city''s taxes for the Mercurial Coalition. They employed a huge portion of the workforce and had multiple charities under their umbrella. The charities being their real proof of power, as on Mercury there was no obligation for societal uniformity, so creating a charity was a huge gamble for others to exploit you. But the alacrity of humanity shown through. They had made the public bus system, the water and electric systems, the city lighting, and even the healthcare all a charity. Not one person paid to use these infrastructures in all of Legguso.


    But none of that excused the danger of a kidnapping. "Let''s also not forget who we have watching out for us." Zoe waved her phone, indicating RAFE''s presence.


    Hwang let out a pent up sigh. "That should be all for now..." He slunk down his chair and his heels slid into Harriet''s shoes. He mumbled a sorry and sat back up, looking at the banana bread. "You said this was good?" Zoe gave an enthusiastic nod, unable to say yes with her mouth full. "Alright. I''ve never been one for banana flavor. But eh. When Nezha''s involved anything could happen." *Chomp*


    A silent moment.


    Another.


    *Chomp*


    "Nope still don''t like it." "Really!?"


    Harriet was- for lack of any better words know to any language- flummoxed. At every turn this encounter had caught her off guard, she had risked her safety to warn her friends of a kidnapping attempt on them, only for them to brush it off, high on whatever power they felt they had. She pouted in silence, reaching for a slice of bread. She took a bite. Then stared at Hwang. "How do you not like this?"

 The Serene Insane

    In a hotel on the edge of Legguso, two people were having lunch. One, a woman in a well dressed suit and tie, the other a man in a tank top and flower pattern shorts. "just listen to be Barivure. You''ll love it. It''s cheap. It''s simple. It''s banana." "I already told you Nicholas, I don''t like banana bread -and I''ve told you that''s not how you pronounce my name damn it!" Barivure looked at Nicholas with poorly masked contempt. "Then? How is-" "Just add an ''A'' sound at the end, that''s it! Bar ''E'' vur ''A''. ''A'' damn it." Nicholas looked at the woman with a smug smile. "But there''s no accent on the-" In a single movement Barivure launched herself from the hotel chair, grabbed Nicholas by the throat, slammed him against the wall, and pressed the barrel of a gun to his temple. "I am only letting you live because letting a partner die on a job looks bad on my report. And with my current record a simple blemish would stand out like a sore thumb."


    Unfazed, Nicholas let out a laugh. "Well sorry miss rising star! But you''re stuck with this here reject extraordinaire!" Barivure pressed closer, but felt something prick her under the collarbone. Unknowingly Nicholas had stabbed a syringe into her. "You fu..." She passed out.


    The reject extraordinaire let Barivure fall to the floor with a loud thud. He smiled as he looked at her unconscious body. "Next time try the bread." He kicked her out of the way and walked to the door. "Now if you''ll excuse me I have some industrial sabotage to plan."


    RAFE, over the last week or so, had been looking for the Corivs University central server room. Once he had access he would be nigh omniscient for any event within Legguso. The whole city was built around the university, both geographically and economically. With access to that, a true base of operations would be born. A stronghold of both material and immaterial.


    Actually finding the location hadn''t taken much time at all. A few teachers entered RAFE''s network and all he had to do was read through chat logs, floor plans, and various articles. It was in the basement of Weiber Hall. He even found the passcode to the room. The problem lay in how to get there. RAFE was constrained by only being able to spread via direct cable connections, even if the cable was ethernet it wouldn''t work. Which made him agree on the fact that this must have been by Nezha''s hand. Such a weird limitation must be a way to entertain that Apraith. To work around this, Zoe and Hwang had to handout copies which in turn recured into a rapid transmission.


    So in order to gain access to the Corivs University central server, either Zoe or Hwang would have to enter the room with a drive containing a copy of RAFE, then plug it in. If that were all it might not have taken so long to plan. But in order for RAFE to gain permanent control of a computer he needs user input, and there''s only one terminal for the server: the IT office desktop. Which is halfway up the building on the fourth floor. At least they don''t need to be done simultaneously. But of course both rooms are heavily monitored, so finding the right way in and out has proven to be a challenge.


    RAFE reviewed his work. The only entrance to the server room was at the end of hallway B7, a long hallway with many classrooms through it, and at the end is an engineer closest which in turn leads to the server room. Cameras and passerby galore, this was going to have to be an escort approach. They would need a valid reason to enter, as not to draw suspicion.


    Hwang sat alone at the table in the Flaming Wheel, Zoe and Harriet had left half an hour ago, but Hwang wanted to relax, he had been talking with RAFE for over four hours straight about how to get to the server room. Both wanted to get in as soon as possible, the longer one waited the more likely some unexpected variable showed up. Sure enough Harriet told them the variable. Someone had anonymously approached Harriet with an offer for Zoe and Hwang''s personal information for a cash reward, and more than likely other people had been approached as well.


    There was a single slice left of banana bread on the table. Despite Zoe''s best attempts, Harriet had managed to make off with nearly all of the bread. Leaving Hwang to stare at the lone piece. Across the room, Julian was watching Hwang from behind the counter. Thalia was sitting cross-legged on the floor next to him reading a book. Julian glanced down to see what she was reading, then snapped back up. He didn''t want to read that book. It reminded him of... friends. To distract himself he walked back towards Hwang''s table.


    "Can I get you anything?" Julian asked politely. Hwang shook himself from his daydreaming. "Eh? Oh... No... No. I''m good. Thank you." Hwang felt that involving a stranger in this would be beyond rude. Then he remembered just what this situation was, and who he was talking to. An employee at a caf¨¦ which in simple terms could not exist. "Actually... Yes... I could do with some help." Julian smiled. Then pulled out a small vile of pink cloudy liquid and poured it on the ground just behind him, the liquid didn''t even hit the ground before it started to change in a large bubble of fluffy cloudy something. Julian took a seat on the cloud. "Good good. How can I help?"If you encounter this tale on Amazon, note that it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it.


    "I... I need a way to sneak into server room in our college hall''s basement." "Interesting. I think I have just the thing." Hwang looked at Julian dumbfounded. "You''re not going to ask questions? You not going to doubt me? And you''ve just the thing I need? What?" "Yup. I''ve had my fair share of adventures. So when someone as young as you is clearly starting on your path to absurdity, I am obliged to offer my hand." "That sounds like your offering me a poison." "Nezha already gave you a lethal dose, I''m merely adding a few drops- of this."


    Julian put another vial on the table, this time a smokey gray liquid jostled with small silver flakes inside. "A tried and true fantasy style invisibility potion." Hwang stared at the the little vial, dumbstruck once again. Absurdity for sure. Such convenient things had to come at great costs. "What''s th-" "No catch. I''m just trying to help while I can. The sooner you open the coil the less time Nezha has to patch the wall." "What?" "Don''t worry about it. Anyway, there are a total of three doses worth in this one vial, plus a small amount more. So divide and drink carefully. One dose should last exactly three hours."


    Nicholas walked the road towards Corvis University with a smile. A few paces behind him walked Barivure, scowling. She had awoken on the floor of the hotel room... in a pillow fort. Nicholas'' treatment of her was degrading in ways few could put in words.


    As they approached their destination Barivure jogged to catch up with Nicholas. Only for him to hear her speed up and do the same. "You-!" Nicholas spun around but continued to move at the same speed, backpedaling with expert coordination. "Waz da matta miz?" He spoke with an accent to mock the chasing woman. Barivure growled and picked up the pace. "You fucking degenerate!" "Bold words coming from a professional assassin. But who cares!" Nicholas did a backflip and twisted in midair, returning to facing forward, while also landing on top of an awning. He launched himself between the supports from above the fabric. Making another leap to a balcony of an apartment on a higher floor. "Catch me if ya can!"


    The chase continued until the two were just across the street from their destination. Nick spun down from the lamppost he was balancing atop, while letting Barivure regret her choice of attire. "This is the power of banana bread. Next time. Try some." "Shut up." Barivure straightened her tie and crossed the road. Nicholas walked in toe, chatting as they made their way through the dormitory section of Corvis University. "See this." Nick gestured to the towering dormitory complexes on all sides. "This is why I left. It feels so suffocating to live in a place where everyone can live on top of each other because of ''trust'' and ''community'' and how they''re sooo~ compassionate." He pulled out a small mechanical sphere from his pocket, no bigger than a fingernail and threw it into a garden pond nearby. Barivure listened to him vent, amused at how some buildings managed to piss him off more than she could. "When I saw how everyone on Mercury acts like a bunch of weak rabbit afraid of the famers of other planets, I saw the danger of that trust, that belief, that those farmers wouldn''t attack." He threw another sphere on a balcony a few floors above them. "And don''t get me started on that Aegis Anatomica bullshit. The old whore who wrote that book was born right here on Mercury."


    Nicholas turned to face Barivure. "I have a head canon for that book. Did you know the Irena Thursby''s son had lost an arm and both his legs before she wrote that book, he lost ''em in the Mercurian Rebellion. And she didn''t have enough money to pay for even the surgery to keep the kid alive. Story has it that she wrote the book to try and get money as fast as possible, that would explain the shitty writing quality. But if you actually read the book you''d see how that doesn''t make sense. The book''s whole thing is about how the human body should be ''untampered'' and left ''as pure as possible.'' Because of that I think she wrote that book just to convince her family to not pay to save the young boy. Some great community right there." Nick spat on the ground while rolling a metal sphere into a drain nearby. Barivure was confused about Nicholas'' thought process, but didn''t care to interrupt. Nick continued his ranting. "-and because of all that shit everyone on Mercury started to treat that book like gospel, augmentation became outdated and downright sinful in the eyes of the public. Be it genetic or mechanical, everyone just fucking stopped trying to improve themselves." He threw another sphere, this time at a rat scurrying away. The impact of the ball crushed the rodent''s skull in an instant. He reached for another one but was stopped by Barivure.


    "Let''s leave those last few gremlins for the off campus locations we have to get as well. Don''t want to have to a pull a Nero''s Lyre strategy do we?" Nicholas let out a sigh and turned around. Then turned around again. "You know. I might have something else to do while we''re here. Let''s go meet and old friend and give her a bit of a fright." He started to giggle. Then started walking towards Weiber Hall. His well dressed partner in crime just sighed and followed after.


    At the top of the stairs leading to the basement of Weiber hall, Mercedes Kerunu sat waiting for her mother to finish up her classes. She was reading a book on the exploits of a platinum wings commander when two people walked by her. She swiped the corner of the tablet, turning off the screen and looked up at the two. "I haven''t seen either of you before." She was confused by their attire, with one looking like she was there for an interview, and the other looked... less professional.


    The man in flower shorts looked at Mercedes for a minute, then smiled. "Oh. We''re just friends of your mother''s is all. You''re the little Mertz right? Paloma was a peer of mine a few years back." Before Mercedes could retort that she never introduced herself, the well dressed lady grabbed the man by the arm and dragged him downstairs.

 Hold Your Breath

    Professor Kerunu said goodbye to the last of her student as they filtered out from the lecture hall after class. She looked down at her phone as she got a message from her daughter. [How long until you''re done?] She responded that she was just finishing up and started to pack up her things. She turned off the main screen of the lecture hall, and got another message. [Some of your old classmates are here to meet you, they just went downstairs.] ''A pleasant surprise.'' She thought. Paloma ran through a list of potential visitor in her head as she walked towards the door. ''Robin, maybe, she was always hanging out before. Charles definitely wouldn''t...'' She walked out into the hallway and was immediately put into a chokehold with a nuggie.


    "Gah!" Paloma screeched at the surprise attack. The hand giving her a nuggie did not relent. The captor''s stubble beard scratched against her neck. His breath a steady cool knife passing her ear. "A teacher? Really?" A woman''s voice spoke from in front of Paloma. The clicking of heels on the floor sounded as the woman approached. A hand grabbed Paloma by the chin and turned her to face the stranger. "She doesn''t look anything special, who is she?" The man holding Paloma spoke. "Oh no one important. But she''s perfect for what I have planned, and I know her quite well."


    Professor Kerunu racked her brain trying to remember where she''d heard that voice before. He sounded like he had a grudge against her. Something not many people should have. "Now now. You should''ve figured it out by now. But I won''t tell." The man giggles for five seconds straight.


    "So what do you want?" Paloma spat back, as she did she slowly lifted her foot and readied to stomp it on the man''s. "Calm down little girl. You''re in no position to fight two professional assassins." The man''s brazen introduction shocked Paloma. Who could want her dead? "Now don''t get your head in a ditz, we''re here to warn you." The accomplice looked at the man. "We are?" "We are!" With that slight shift in the conversation Paloma took action and slammed her foot down.


    Nothing happened.


    "Did you think that would do anything?" The grip around her throat constricted further. "Remember dear. We''re here in good faith. We''re giving you help. So be a little nicer to me, eh?" Professor Kerunu didn''t know what to do, her mind was racing fast, and heart; faster. "SO LISTEN UP!" The man shouted into her ear, jolting her into focus. "In a few seconds, you''ll get an invitation to a high school reunion party. Accept the invite. Trust me, you''ll want to be there that day."


    *Ping!*


    "There you go." The man''s grip shifted so her shoulders were unconstrained, and she could reach inside her pocket to retrieve her phone. Sure enough, an invitation was sent to her. The details weren''t important right now, she didn''t bother to read them, she just replied that she would be there. Better to handle the immediate situation before anything else is put on her mind. "There. Done. Would you be so kind as to release me?" Before the man could respond the woman knocked Paloma out with a swift punch to the face.


    Barivure shakes the numbness of her hand off as she backs away from the unconscious professor. "So are you going to tell me what that was all about?" Nicholas just smiles at her. Then puts a finger to his lips and draws a circle in the air. Seeing the gesture Barivure listens carefully, and in the distance she hears footsteps walking away, their pace and force a clear indication of someone trying to quickly sneak away. She was shocked, she didn''t notice anyone in their vicinity when they had arrived, and certainly no one approached. ''Impressive...'' Nicholas on the other hand was still listening, tracing where their mysterious eavesdropper was going. "They turned left at the top of the stairs and right at the end of that hall, but I lost track afterwards. Come along. I thought you wanted a perfect track record?"


    The two assassins sprinted off. They rushed upstairs, passing by Mercedes as they turned down the left hallway. Mercedes was jolted by their sudden appearance and flinched her glass pad out of her grip. It landed hard on the floor and a few cracks splinted around its edges. Thinking quickly Mercedes knew something was wrong. She didn''t bother to pick up her tablet and rushed downstairs to see her mother.


    Mercedes cried out upon seeing her mom crumpled over on the floor outside of her lecture hall. "Mom? Mom?!" She rushed over and tried to roll the professor onto her back, it took some effort but eventually she got it. Mercedes checked all over her mother for signs of damage. Some bruises were starting to form on the forehead and around the collarbone. "Come on! Wake up!"Stolen novel; please report.


    Mercedes always had a plan for anything. She was prepared and ready for the wildest of scenarios that she could come up with while daydreaming. But when they actually happen, it''s terrifying. No matter how prepared you think you are. "-up. Come on! Come on!! Please wake up!" Mercedes was starting to cry. She pulled out her phone and dialed the hospital.


    On the ground floor a hunt was taking place. Barivure and Nicholas had split up and were trying to chase and flank who ever had overheard their little session with Paloma. "Anything?" Barivure''s voice sounds over Nicholas'' ear piece. "Still nothing. I''m impressed. Not many people can hide from members of the Red Court so well. I mean... I could understand escaping you. But me no- Wait." He stops talking. Putting and ear to the softly flowing wind of the hallway. A smile creeps up his face. He starts running down the hall. He turns the corner and fakes continuing by softening his step while standing still, just around the corner. A patient waiting game began. Nicholas listened as footsteps began to approach his location. Slowly, carefully, and with fear evident in their gait and breath.


    Mercedes called for the authorities, warning about the two strangers who had assaulted her mother. Paloma was still knocked out, but was breathing, so all Mercedes could do was wait. Waiting was something she wasn''t good at. Normally she would just read a book as whatever she needed approached from the inexhaustible march of time. Of course putting panic in a corner would only let it fester, so little Mertz panicked while waiting.


    Just as the mysterious stalker neared the corner Nicholas pulled out a silenced pistol from his back pocket, braced it forward and rolled around the corner. He readied his sights on his target and- there was no target. "What?" He was absolutely certain that someone was right there around the corner a moment ago. He listened again. Nothing. Just the low hum of the building''s machinery in the distance. Nicholas put away the pistol. He walked away, still listening for signs of his target.


    There is was again. Someone was following him. Him! A professionally trained assassin and master of espionage was being tailed by an amateur. But for some reason he couldn''t find them. He was supposed to be hunting them, not the other way around. Nicholas spun around hoping to find that pesky stalker, but to no avail. Frustrated Nicholas voiced his retreat. "We''re approaching the deadline, let''s go. Eavesdropping that conversation isn''t going to put a sinch in our plan."


    Barivure scoffed at her partner''s attitude. He had jeopardized their mission and was only sounding slightly agitated. "Alright, then you tell me why we even did all this in the first place." A short laugh cut through the call. "Maybe... Maybe." "Don''t give me that shit. I only went along with this because we already placed the gremlins and it''s not like mercury has the technology to handle those little fuckers. So shut your mouth for any other reason than to tell me why you wanted some random teacher to go to a class reunion- Which to be honest she probably would''ve gone to anyway." The pause over the line was longer than expected as Barivure waited for a response. "Taking that into account: I guess this was pointless. Oh well." The woman proceeded to cuss out the fool as they made their exit.


    As the two Red Court members escaped from Corvis University sirens wailed, announcing the police''s approach. In a hallway on the first floor of Weiber hall, near the northern side and close to the elevator stood a shaking student.


    An invisible student.


    Hwang was afraid. He had planned to get RAFE into the university servers today, but had instead witnessed a small part of an assassin''s plan. For fear of what more they could do he escaped from the scene, but they heard him and started a hunt. It wasn''t long. Barely ten minutes. But holding your breath is draining. Hwang followed one of them as silently as he could to make sure he didn''t do anything more. The close calls were now hitting him with their full force of fear. He leaned against the wall and closed his eyes.


    When Nezha had first appeared and flipped the table labeled ''Hwang''s Life'' it didn''t quite feel real. When RAFE entered Hwang''s mind for a moment and shattered Hwang''s preconceived idea of the conscious mind, it didn''t quite feel real. Even when the stress had hit him from acting out of his normal routine to go about spreading RAFE to as many people as he could, it still didn''t feel real. All of those events felt like some great story playing out around him. Even if he was inside them. Even this terrifying scene was like some deep theatre performance. Only once it was over did the weight of the show, the world, hit.


    Hwang needed a way to stay stable and sane if he was going to achieve divinity. He was already taking anti-depressants and did daily meditation, at least when he could fit them into his every shrinking schedule of showing up for a single class every three to four days and playing video games most of the rest of the time. Playing games is important, what can he say. Hwang doesn''t work. His allowance is plenty enough to sustain himself. A consequence of that is that his ambition was as low as it gets. Until recently. Godhood is a pretty damn good motivator. But he won''t get anywhere unless he can calm down. ''I can''t keep having these panic attacks.''


    Perhaps he should stay watching the show. Detach himself. From himself. The stage seems a lot more inviting when you''re not the one preforming.

 Dollhouse

    "Come on. Close your book. We''re good to leave." Paloma beckoned her youngest daughter in the reception hall of the clinic. "So are you going to tell me who those people were?" Mercedes really wanted to know the names of those who were to blame. Paloma on the other hand wanted nothing to do with any of this. She was an upstanding citizen and a well educated professor working at Corvis University, so of course she was afraid to lose her life and all that she had earned. Perhaps the threat of the unknown had yet to reach her youngest daughter. "Please stop asking. I know you just want to satisfy your curiosity, but curiosity killed the cat... and I will never let my little kitten be taken from me." Paloma scooped little Mertz into her arms causing the girl to smile in reflex. It had been a long time since she had last been pick up like this, it felt nice.


    On the bus ride home Paloma was replaying the event from earlier in her head. Why would those hitmen need her to attend a class reunion? When Paloma woke up in the ambulance she checked the invitation as soon a possible. It was a simple invitation and only provided the bare bones details for the class reunion. Two weeks from now at the Duke estate. In celebration of their class''s graduation anniversary, as well as a new dawn on Mercury.


    ''If it''s at the Duke estate, then that means Richard will be there. It''s his house after all...'' What could possibly happen then? Were those hitmen hired to make sure she went to see Richard? He was one of her suitors in high school after all. But that woman was confused by what the other was doing? "-om Mom! It''s our stop!" Mercedes was tugging on Paloma''s sleeve. The professor snapped out of her train of thought, shaking her head. The mother daughter pair walked the last few blocks to their home.


    After getting home and calming down the rest of the family, Paloma laid in bed staring up at the ceiling. ''Just what was their reason for doing that?'' She let out a long tired sigh. "I guess I won''t hold class tomorrow. Better safe than sorry." She spoke aloud to no one. Her mind wandered to her days in high school.


    When Paloma was in senior year there was nothing she couldn''t do. Queen of the school and mistress of many the weak man. There were of course many suitors but only four stood out to Paloma. First was Aaron, the standard jock archetype. It was comical how exact that description was. Everything from being the quarterback for the American football team to looking like a crossbreed between a bodybuilder and a triangle. Paloma didn''t can for him at all, it''s just how comical his whole existence was that stood out to her. Then there was Pyong, heir to the Eoh family at the time, and now the head, he was an aggressive but compassionate man with the visage of a young lion ready to hunt. After him would be Richard, the lordling who thought that all in the school should be his, even though he wasn''t next in line for the Duke family''s head. Back then that title belonged to- A knock on the door brought Paloma back to reality.


    "Hey sweety. Are you doing alright. I know you said... It''s just I wanted to check on you again." Paloma''s husband Markel stood in the doorway. With the light from the hallway making it difficult to see his face, leaving only a silhouette. He walks in and carefully lays down on bed, letting Paloma adjust to his weight on the mattress. "I''m sure it''ll be okay dear." He hugged her as they took a deserved break.


    Down the hall in Mercedes room the youngest of the Kerunu family was pacing back and forth. Then rolling on her bed. Then back to pacing. "Why won''t mom tell me who they were. I know that she knows." She was anxious and frustrated. Though at what exactly was hard to tell. She walked over to her bookshelf and started to glide her finger across the edges of the glass pads.


    "Don Quixote, Of Mice and Men, Darker Still, Her Majesty''s Swarm, Lyre''s, Michigan: a horror story." The list went on and on. But Mercedes wasn''t looking for a book to read, she wasn''t even thinking about the titles. She was just occupying herself. Anything to take her mind off the recent events. The light tapping as she moved from panel to panel was a relaxing rhythm but reaching the end of the shelf and the sudden halt of the monotonous melody broke Mercedes out of her short trance.


    "Did they do anything else besides knocking out mom? Why did they knock out mom?" Mercedes started to monologue to the empty room. "Did they poison her? Did they put a chip in her? I know that kind control isn''t supposed to exist but what if that''s just a lie? Maybe that isn''t my mom but a double. What if they''re after me and she-" A ping on her phone breaks Mercedes'' panic attack. She walks over to see a message from RAFE.


    [Take a breath. Your acting like Hwang right now. Calm down and think.] Mertz stared at the message for a good long moment. "I did not know you were listening to me." She said, an octave higher than usual.Unauthorized usage: this narrative is on Amazon without the author''s consent. Report any sightings.


    [It''s in the user agreement.] RAFE assured her. [I can act upon any external stimuli that what machine am within may assume is intended for. Phones are made for listening, seeing, recording, and many other things.] Mercedes focus was now on interrogating RAFE as much as possible, completely forgetting her worries from the moment before.


    "Doesn''t that mean you can inhabit a car and then drive it in to something?" [I''m forbidden from acting in any way that could be deemed illegal in the region. In the event that the user trumps that rule, I will comply with the user but an not responsible for performing the action, nor am I obligated to perform more than the user could.] The bookworm mulled over the AI''s words. "Okay... So hypothetically... If someone wanted to hack a website. And you deemed that they had the capabilities to do so. But it was illegal. You wouldn''t stop them. Or help them. Unless specifically asked. And even then you are not responsible for the repercussions of the action." [Bingo.] Confetti rained from the top of the screen.


    [Oh. I thought you should know. The two criminals did nothing more than talk to your mother and then knock her out.] Mertz let out a sigh of relief, then snapped to attention. "How do you know that?" [One moment please. I am not allowed to reveal other users information without their explicit consent.] Mercedes started to panic again. Were those people also using RAFE? [Done!] [Hwang has given permission.] [Hwang Eoh was there at the scene of the crime and had witnessed the entire thing first hand. Unfortunately due to shock he failed to record it. Luckily it happened in view of the building''s cameras. So the police should have the faces of the wrongdoers soon enough. You are safe and so is your mother.]


    "That''s... Good... Yah. That''s good. Thank you RAFE." Mercedes sat down on her bed once more and started to toss her pillow in the air. Her phone lay on her lap. She threw the pillow to the ceiling in a steady pattern. Fluffing it twice to keep its shape, tossing it up, hitting the ceiling, catching it, repeat.


    *Paft-paft* *poof* *fomp*


    *Paft-paft* *poof* *fomp*


    *Paft-paft* *poof* *fomp*


    The little girl''s mind began to wander through many things, macro and micro alike. ''Why are the new computers from T¨­b¨­ able to maintain AIs when they only have about ten times the processing power? Does the distance between Saturn''s moons effect their Wi-Fi connections? What is RAFE an acronym for? Why doesn''t RAFE use a voice when that technology is already well developed. Am I allergic to anything even though I got my immune-temperance shot? Where were the pyramids before the British museum took them?'' Her train of thought just kept going.


    *Paft-paft* *poof* *fomp*


    *Paft-paft* *poof* *fomp*


    *Paft-paft* *poof* *Ding!* "Huh? What''s up RA-" *fomp* "Gah!"


    Mercedes put the pillow down at looked at the message on her phone. It wasn''t from RAFE but instead a friend of hers. [i heard your mom was attacked is everything alright?] "It hasn''t even been a whole day! How did she know?" RAFE popped up in the corner to explain. [Hwang told her to check in on you. I advised him against it. But what would the omnipresent AI know?] Mertz gave a little laugh and continued to chat with her friend. [RAFE says that Hwang told you to check in on me. I didn''t know you knew Hwang Eoh.] [we share some classes] [Wait you''re in college!?] [lol ya i never did tell you] RAFE once again appeared. [Let me make this easier.] A prompt to join a video call appeared.


    ''If RAFE is offering this call then it''s probably safe.'' Mercedes tidied up her hair for a moment and held her phone atop the pillow on her lap.


    *Click!*


    "Hello MercyM!" The abrupt salutation startled the girl. "Its nice to put a face to a name isn''t it?" The girl on the call was a twentyish looking lady with smooth brown skin a handful of shades darker than Mercedes''. "So you''re SmilingKaleidoscope?" "Yup! But please, face to face call me Harriet!" "I know you already know my name but I may as well extend the cordial act. Call me Mertz. Or Mercedes. Whichever you like. So how did you find out who I am?" Harriet Klein put up a goofy grin and acted innocent. "Whatever do you mean. Me? Know you? Noo~." Mercedes scowls slightly. "Relax!" Harriet waved her hand, dousing the accusation. "A few months ago you were sitting next to your mom during a lecture. I was texting you and you laughed at one of my jokes. Ding! Target found!" Harriet gave a smug smile. "Now it feels weird. Knowing that I play games with someone a decade older than me." Harriet flapped her hand again. "Please. Shit like that happens all the time, and it''s not like I tried to find... out... who you are." That last part barely a whisper. It was Mercedes turn to be smug.


    Mertz, after bantering back and forth for the better half of an hour, brought up something bothering her. "Isn''t it strange that just a couple of weeks after RAFE was released some bad guys show up?" Harriet gave a reflexive smile. She quickly caught herself but Mercedes had noticed it. "What is it? What do you know?"


    Harriet took a deep breath. "Okay, I shouldn''t say any more than this: there are things in motion that cannot be undone, nor understood. Now I know how ominous I sound saying that. But please listen to me. Things will change. But you will stay safe if you focus on yourself. So please stay safe." Her breath was starting to unsteady. "I know about this only slightly less than Zoe and Hwang, RAFE probably knows more, but please don''t pry. If my hunch is right, things are gonna get weird." Then she whispered quiet enough that the mic didn''t pick it up. "Please... Please stay as you are, don''t change like them."