Chapter 5 - A** Lesson of Pain**

512 A.R. February 13, E** temenanki - **** Vilkas' Room , M ***orning*

I worked the brush along my ears and glanced at the small mirror placed on the bedside table.

The dryers in the bathroom worked well, but unless one wanted to spend an hour using them, there was little choice but to accept that fur was bound to remain a bit damp. I leaned closer and focused on the black 'hair' on top of my head. As a human it looked weird unless stylized, but as a wolf it needed to look natural, yet the fur at the top was just a tad too long to be ignored completely.

After a few moments of trying to get it right, I gave up. With a sigh I put the brush aside, looked down to stare at the bed, and reached up with my hand to ruffle the fur. As I looked up once more, the fur settled with a bit of volume and hit the kind of natural yet fluffy look I wanted.

It made me grin a little, and I turned my focus to the uniform. I'd already pulled it onto my legs, so I eased it up over my back, eased one arm inside, and followed up with the other. Once done I zipped it up, and then looked over my boots.

I'm not planning to walk outside, so...

With a bit of relief, I ignored the boots, leaned to the side of the bed, and reached down to catch hold of my backpack. I then pulled it toward me, opened it up, and fished out the rectangular black box that I'd been asked to deliver. It still appeared intact, and as I traced my hand across the surface there was nothing to suggest there were any openings.

T __ime to get going...

I stood up, walked to the door, and opened it up as I peered into the hallway. No activity could be seen, but my nose caught the scent of at least two other people. One feline, and a canine of sorts.

Once I had shut the door, I began to walk down the hallway, and I followed their scents to a large archway close to the elevators. As I peered into the archway, I could see the large and curved open space of a dome. The walls of the room were nothing more than windows, and I had to squint for a moment as my eyes adjusted to brightness.

Snow was drifting erratically on the outside, but the weather itself seemed pretty clear as I could see distant mountains. In the very center of the windows were a set of glass doors, and there seemed to be a balcony outside of it.

On the right side of the dome, along the corner closest to me, was a set of sofas and a burning fireplace. In the curved corner of the dome was a wrestling mat of some kind, and it was surrounded by big pillows. A glance at the left side of the dome revealed an open kitchen area, along with a large table that could seat a dozen.

Sitting on the far end of the table was the feline from yesterday, Shay. She was staring at a tablet held in one hand, while the otherhada glass with what looked like a glass of orange juice. Just like yesterday, she had little more than a big, sleeveless shirt.

In silence, she idly sipped from her glass, and then stopped. Her nose wiggled, and then she looked up to meet my gaze.

"Good morning," Shay said out loud.

I walked into the room, and began to walk toward the table, "Good morning, Shay."

Shay put the glass down as I walked up, "I hope you slept well?"

I placed the black box on the table, and nodded, "Idid."

Shay glanced at the black box, and pointed a finger at it, "That's rather interesting."

"Yes... I was told to deliver this, but I don't know who the recipient is," I said.

A subtle glint flashed in her eyes, and she put the tablet down, "Well, let's see if it belongs to me!"

As I watched, she reached out, and placed her hand on the top of the box. She then waited for a moment and stared as if expecting something to happen.

After a few moments she pulled her hand back with a sigh, "Well, It's not for me."

I raised my brow, "You touch it, and if you're the right person, it opens up?"

Shay nodded, "Exactly. They're even built toself-destruct, in case someone tries to break into it."

I blinked, "Sounds like a perfect way to assassinate someone."

Shay made a sudden chuckle and glanced up at me with a smirk full of sharp fangs, "It could be, fortunately the box has to go through a security scan before it'll actually lock itself."

I motioned to our surroundings, "I can smell a canine around here, but it doesn't seem to be anyone else in the room."

Shay made a dismissive wave with her hand, and reached for her glass, "Oh, that's the Commander. He just had to rid himself of yesterday's sins, and he'll be back soon enough."

Commander? Yesterday's sins?

I looked toward the sofa in front of the fireplace, and noticed that the table in front of it had a pair of glasses, while a few bottles were standing on the floor.

Ah, that kind of sin...

"Why are you here?" Shay asked without warning.

I looked back at her, "I'm not sure to be honest, well... Beyond delivering this package."

Shay held the glass in front of her short muzzle, and stared at me, "... The man you're looking for used to serve as Aurora Colony's administrator.Try not to upset him."

The sudden change in behavior left me somewhat stunned. It was also at this time that I began to realize that her mind was clamped shut. A void, just like Volkov within the virtual world.

"Aurora Colony... You are talking about the one that-"

Shay blinked, but kept her harsh stare as she interrupted me, "The one that the humans nuked, yes."

"... Then I will do my best to tread gently around him," I said.

Her expression relaxed in a near instant, and she stood up as she pushed her chair back, "Good."

As I watched, she grabbed her glass and walked out.

512 A.R. February 13, E** temenanki - **** K ***itchen Area* , M** orning**

Stirred egg... Ham... Onion... Cheese... Bell pepper... Plenty of chives and spices...

It was a messy omelet, but once the cheese started to melt and blend with the spices, it would-

Someone approached, and my ears swiveled with the sudden realization. Something had sneaked up on me, and I looked to the side in surprise. A hand had moved in along the kitchen counter, and it promptly swiped away the plate which held my other half of my omelet.

" Hey-" I snapped, and turned to look at whoever took-

Standing next to me, somewhat crouched, was a short canine with messy fur that had complex texture of brown hues. As I raised my voice the canine looked up, and the words in my throat were cut short.

Part of the canine's face was missing. The right side of the muzzle was little more than exposed bone, and the area around the right eye looked like bare flesh. The eye itself was covered by a black eye-patch.

"Boo!" The canine snapped.

I lunged back, felt as my hip hit the frying pan, and heard it clatter as it was pushed aside. It felt like a bolt of lightning had struck my tail, and it made the fur all the way up to my neck feel like bristles. The canine spared no time as he rose up, fished up the rest of the omelet in the pan, and promptly placed it on the plate that he had already stolen from me. As I watched, heart thumping in my chest, the canine turned his back to me, and sauntered away toward the fireplace.

_He... He stole my food... He stole my food! _

I drew a deep breath, and felt my lips peel back, as I glared at the smaller canine's back.

As I sniffed the air, I could tell that this was the canine from earlier. It had a strong unwashed smell, and it had a tinge of something I hadn't encountered before.

Volkov's presence bubbled up in my mind, 'Facial recognition confirms that up until the colony's destruction he was the assigned Administrator. Well, based on what remains of his face.'

'Name?' I thought.

'Corvyn Bower,' Volkov answered.

'Thank you,' I thought.

I turned my attention to the stove once more and pushed the frying pan back in place. Part of me wanted to march over and take back what was mine, but without knowing what was at stake it seemed precarious.

For now it's better to avoid a fight...

With a sigh I reached over to the stack of eggs, grabbed a trio, and cracked them into the pan. I then turned the heat up, and turned to look toward as the pan began to crackle.

Not a lot of food, but unless I'm quick he'll probably flee the scene...

I could hear him munching, and waited patiently. About a minute later the eggs were starting to get done, and I heaped them up on a new plate. I grabbed the plate, moved over to the table, and picked up the black box before walking toward the campfire.

Big ears, sleek snout... Rich texture in his fur... A coyote?

Corvyn didn't seem to care as I walked up to the sofa opposite to his own and eased myself down.

The sofa groaned as it took my weight, and I then reached out to set the black box down on the table with something of a thump.

Once more, Corvyn didn't react, and as I watched he scooped up the last of the omelet.

"I think this package is for you," I said.

Corvyn swallowed the last of the omelet, and finally gave the box a glance. His ears perked for a moment, and he looked back at the table as he reached out and dumped the plate on it.

"You make a good omelet,"Corvyn said, leaned back, and raised his arms to rest on the top of the sofa.

I smiled back at him, "I'm sure my omelet tasted just fine."

"Heh," Corvyn uttered with a simple chuckle, and then turned to look at the fireplace.

In silence I took my fork, and focused on my own plate as I took a bite.

Didn't even salt it...

While eating, I kept one eye focused on Corvyn. After about a minute the coyote threw me a quick glance, as if checking if I was still there.

"I saw that," I said, and couldn't help but smirk.

Corvyn turned his attention to me, "What the hell do you want?"

I motioned to the black box in front of him, "I was asked to deliver this, and I think it's yours."

"As far as I'm aware Sophos has a delivery service, and if you actually were here to deliver it, then your job is done," Corvyn said.

I raised a brow, "Well, I don't know if it's actually yours until you open it, so..."

The coyote stared at me for a few moments, and then drew a deep breath as he looked at the box.

He then raised one hand and reached out to the box. As the coyote's hand touched the box, it seemed to activate. It lit up on one end and made an audible pop as it opened. Trails of what looked like chilled smoke wafted from the now open end, and the coyote leaned forward in wonder.

I watched as he carefully grabbed the box, tipped it over, and looked into the depths of it. After a few moments he reached, and carefully pulled out what looked like a bottle.

"Oh, a bottle of Norvale Red, 462 A.R... How thoughtful," Corvyn said, and held it up. The bottle itself was made of dark glass, and there was an old sticker on the middle of it.

"... Is that booze?" I asked.

Corvyn stopped spinning the bottle, and threw me an expression that bordered on shock, "Booze? This is no mere booze!"

I tipped my head and inched closer, "Enlighten me?"

Corvyn blinked in surprise, and grew a prompt frown, "No... You've made your delivery, and now you can fuck off."

"Shay referred to you as the 'Commander', what did she mean by that?" I asked.

Corvyn stared at me, "You want me to believe you haven't looked me up?"

I did my best to seem surprised, and let my ears perk up, "Isn't it a tad rude to look people up like that?"

Corvyn's muzzle moved a little, but he kept staring in silence.

I raised my hand, and pointed at myself, "Like, do you know who I am?"

Corvyn sighed, "No, and I don't care..."

I pointed at the bottle in his hand, "Arjali asked me to send her regards."

"I figured as much..." Corvyn murmured with a monotone voice, and reached out to set it down on the table.

I took the opportunity to lean forward, and began to reach for the bottle.

In a near instant, Corvyn reached out once more and snatched back the bottle, "What do you think you're doing?"

I bared my teeth, "I was going to get a look at it, but this place doesn't seem to respect the difference between what's yours, and what's mine, so..."

Corvyn bared his teeth, and the fact that he only had half a face made it that much worse, "Leave it the fuck alone or I'll rip you a new one."

I let my posture show, as I sat tall, "You could try."

His expression shifted a little. The anger faded as his expression relaxed, and his shoulders drooped.

"You're Vilkas, the AIs latest little plaything, and the brat that chased that human cult around."

Let's keep up the lie...

I leaned back into the sofa, "I am, and you are?"

Corvyn squinted at me as if my presence perplexed him, "... Why would they send you here?"

"... That'sa good question," I murmured.

Corvyn settledthe bottle in his embrace, and then gave me a sideways glance, "I'm Corvyn... Used to be the Administrator of Aurora Colony, but everyone just called me Commander. Of course, most of them are dead now, and Sophos' last hope is nothing more than a burning fucking crater, so you know..."

"Yeah, Ibet that sucks," I said.

Corvyn let out a sudden chuckle, and let his head lean back as he stared into the ceiling, "Yeah, I guess that's one way to describe it."

Just like Shay, Corvyn had locked his mind down hard. If I focused on him I could detect the presence of his mind, but nothing more than that. The situation I found myself in was confusing, and it made me wonder what my purpose was in this place.

"... I need help," I said.

Corvyn's ears twitched, and he looked back down at me with a raised brow as if wondering whether I was insane.

"I'm not sure if they intended you to help me, or what the deal is exactly. But I was supposed to find a lesson up here," I said.

"... A lesson?" Corvyn asked.

I was about to speak, when Corvyn suddenly began to smile.

"Oh, it's training week for the defense force, isn't it? That's why a lone Alpha has shown up to pester me," Corvyn said.

"... It is 'training week' as you call it, and I've ended up here," I said.

Corvyn leaned his arm against the edge of the sofa, and then let his head rest against his hand, "So what problem do you have, I wonder... You're too soft? Letting people steal your lunch like a little whelp? Can't lead your pack?"

On some level I knew he was trying to agitate me. He'd been trying to drive me off since I set foot in here. Somehow I'd managed to navigate this train-wreck of a person, and I wasn't about to give up now.

"I lost control," I said.

Corvyn's eyes widened a little, "Oh... What did you do exactly?"

I was about to speak, and was interrupted once more.

"Car crash... A cultist came toward you... Trapped between trying to save your friend from a burning car, and taking care of the threat with a gun. He shot you, and you tore him apart."

I drew a deep breath and made a slow nod.

"Well, there's obviously nothing wrong with your patience, given that you're still here..."

I found myself smiling, "It's been a challenge, but I'm holding up so far."

Corvyn rubbed at his temple, and shut his eyes for a moment, "You're a natural telepath as well."

"... A natural one?" I asked.

Corvyn opened his eyes once more, "Some of us have the potential for it, but compared to you we require support hardware to utilize it. Support hardware which can be rather uncomfortable..."

"Ah, right," I whispered.

Corvyn drew a deep breath, and followed it up witha tired sigh, "Why shouldI offer you my help?"

I stared at him and pondered it for a moment.

Not sure I want your help exactly, but let's go with this...

"How about breakfast in the morning? You've already said I cook a good omelet..."

"I do hope you know how to cook more than an omelet," Corvyn said, and perked his brow.

I nodded, "I do..."

Corvyn used a claw to tap the exposedbone on the side of his muzzle, "... Shay isn't much of a cook, so food's a good start... But what else do you have to offer?"

I smiled back, "Both of us are in this situation, and the sooner it's dealt with, the sooner I'll be out of your fur. I'm willing to help, but don't push it."

Corvyn grew a sly smirk, and made a quick huff, "It's pretty clear by now that the AIs want you here, and I doubt you're going to give up... So let's make a few things clear if you intend to get anything out of this, alright?"

"... I'm listening," I said.

His smile faded as he looked me in the eyes, "Don't try toinvade my mind, or I will move to another floor, and weld the door shut, understand?"

"I understand," I said.

Corvyn made a slow nod, "You will stay out of my past. You will not speak of it. You will not mention it. You will not ask questions relating to it. Understand?"

"I shall respect your boundaries, Corvyn," I said.

"Good," Corvyn said, gripped the bottle, and then pushed himself up onto his legs.

I looked up, "So, when do we start?"

Corvyn began to walk, and set his sights on the exit, "Tonight, and remember that you asked for this, not me."

"... What do you mean?" I said, and looked over at him.

Corvyn stifled a chuckle, and glanced back at me, "By the way, your omelet needed more salt."

You're salty enough as it is!

"... Duly noted," I said, and watched as Corvyn marched out, bottle hanging from his hand.

512 A.R. February 13, E** temenanki - **** K ***itchen Area* , E** vening**

The sun was starting to set as I looked out at the icy expanse. A storm of sorts seemed to be approaching, and I could see what looked like a wall of snow moving over the mountains. I raised my hand and put it against the glass, to my surprise it didn't feel very cold.

It was something of a disappointment, and I glanced back as a result. Shay hadn't been seen since this morning, nor had Corvyn. At first it had felt like a chance to relax, but after a few hours things had started to feel slow. Now I felt anxious and eager to do something.

I moved over to the set of doors which led to the balcony, and peered out. It was in the shape of a gazebo made out of glass, and there was a simple table as well as a few chairs inside of it. Light mostly seemed to emanate from within the room I was standing, and the rounded ceiling made me wonder if it was made to gaze at the stars when the sky happened to be clear.

Curiosity made me reach down, and I pulled at door handle. With a click the lock released, and I pushed the door open. A rush of frigid air met my face, and I could feel the draft of it wash over my legs. While surprising, I found myself relishing it after having been stuck in the tower all day.

I let the door swing open, and stepped out onto the balcony. My bare paws tingled against what felt like cold, but polished concrete, and I could feel my claws tense up a little. As I exhaled, I could see fog exit my muzzle.

I made my way to the edge of the balcony, and I could see the storm approach with haste. As I listened I could almost hear it, another deep rumble that mixed with those that emanated from Etemenanki itself. I let my hands rest against a railing attached to the windows, and let my gaze drift along the base of the storm.

A few minutes passed, and the storm grew to envelop what little remained of the sun. Darkness fell, and if it wasn't forthe light within the tower it'd be difficult to see anything.

A sensation prodded at my mind. It was subtle, but it gave me the feeling that something was approaching from behind. I let my ears perk up, and listened, but it seemed that the noise from the tower overpowered the noise of whatever I had felt.

I turned my head, and through the open door of the balcony I could see that Shay had been on approach. She seemed to have frozen in place, one paw carefully touching the floor as if she had tried to sneak up on me.

Within the blink of an eye she began to walk at a normal pace, and stopped by the entrance to the balcony with a subtle smile on her face.

"Enjoying the view?" She asked.

I motioned to the glass, "Mm, there's a storm approaching."

Shay glanced down at the floor, and for a moment it looked as if she was weighing her options.

Mother was never a fan of cold floors either...

Her gaze lifted to me, "I have something to discuss with you."

I turned to face her, "Oh?"

Long gone was the rather aloof mood she had displayed earlier, and her gaze seemed to burrow into me, "I took a look at the surveillance videos in an attempt to find out when and how you arrived here."

"Ah," I said, "I suspect you saw something interesting by the train."

Shay leaned her head against the wall, "That's one way to put it."

"Do you have it? I'd like to see if you don't mind," I said.

Shay blinked in surprise, "You don't remember?"

"I remember stumbling out of the train and puking my guts out, but not much more than that."

Shay leaned back and placed her hand on the window next to the door. It came to life with an interface of sorts, and as I watched a stream of commands were entered without her moving an inch. Moments later a video began to play, and it was oriented so that I could see it with ease.

In the video I could see myself stumble into the snow before promptly falling over. While I was puking, a large shadow began to enter the scene. It reminded me of a spider, and as the mechanical creature came into view it looked like a large version of the spider-bots that were widely used.

Its large legs moved up from behind, loomed over my body, and then I could see tendrils emerge from its midsection. They caught my body, pulled me out of the snow, and I could see the moment I lost consciousness as my arms went limp.

To my surprise, the large spider-bot didn't move along the road leading up to Etemenanki, instead it retraced its steps and disappeared from view once more.

As the video ended, I looked back at Shay, and saw as she observed me in silence.

After a few moments of silence, she began to frown, "Well?"

I don't want to reveal too much, at the same time I don't think she'll appreciate a lie...

I motioned to the window, "I was sick, now I'm better, and I don't remember how I ended up here."

"... Where did you wake up?" Shay asked, and kept her eyes peeled on me.

"... Downstairs. I don't know the exact floor, but I woke up in a locker room of sorts, and walked through Etemenanki's garden," I said.

Shay was silent for a moment, and I could see her chest swell a little as she drew breath, "I checked the surveillance for all known entrances to the tower. Neither you or that giant bot was spotted anywhere."

"Then one can only assume that there are entrances you don't know of," I said.

Her brow twitched, "Obviously."

I motioned to her, "If you have a direct question, then out with it."

Shay made an exasperated sigh and shut her eyes for a moment. Her expression softened, and her tail curled along her leg as she opened her eyes once more.

"I'm just trying to figure out what's going on here, it's not meant to be an interrogation," Shay said.

I made a humbled nod at her, "I could say the very same thing, and I have no idea who you are."

Shay perked her ears and glanced back into the empty room. Once she'd confirmed no one was there, she looked back to me.

"I know that you met with Corvyn earlier, and that he reluctantly agreed to help you. He's here to recuperate from what happened at Aurora, and I'm here to help him do that. It's that simple. Your presence here is... unexpected."

My ears picked up a noise that quickly grew in strength, and as I glanced to the side, I could see that the storm was upon us. Darkness moved against the tower, and with a sudden thump the storm smashed into the tower. Snow hit the window with enough intensity to make it seem as ifit was flowing like water, and I could feel the temperature begin to drop within the balcony.

Shay stepped back, and despite my bold comment from earlier, I found myself a bit worried. I moved back, stepped into the warmth of the bigger room, and grabbed the door as I shut the balcony once more.

I looked to the side, and Shay was now standing much closer to me. It forced me to look down in order to meet her gaze, and she gave me a somewhat annoyed look as if reminded about something unpleasant.

"Ares has given me orders to stay here until I have learned my lesson, and I have no intention of disobeying," I said, and stepped back toward the wrestling mat.

"... What were you sick with?" Shay asked, and crossed her arms with a curious expression.

So far she hasn't mentioned that I'm a Dualist... Does that mean she doesn't know?

I perked my brow, and glanced back at her, "You're one of the first that doesn't seem to know everything about me. That makes me wonder if you're trying to test how honest I am, or whether you're not kept in the loop."

Shay grew a rather menacing smile as her sharp fangs poked up, and she was about to speak when something caught her attention. My own ears perked up as well, and my gaze was drawn to the entrance of the room.

The sound of claws hitting a stone floor could be heard, andCorvyn walked into view just a few moments later. Corvyn had his hands hidden behind his back, and he let his gaze wander between us as he walked up.

"And what were the two of you up to?" Corvyn asked.

Shay looked over at me, "We were just having a friendly chat, that's all."

"Ah," Corvyn murmured.

Shay began to walk away, and threw Corvyn a glance, "I'll fetch the medical kit, just in case."

Medical kit?

I looked over at Corvyn and saw that his one-eyed stare was now focused on me. Part of his muzzle was still nothing more than bare bone, but it did seem like the pink flesh along his eye-patch had started to grow a dainty layer of new fur.

I'd ask why you didn't stay in a medical pod until healed, but...

Corvyn took a step closer, and a subtle smile grew on his lips, "I think I have you figured out, the question is whether you have yourself figured out."

"Probably not," I said.

Corvyn stopped outside of reaching distance, and I caught something on the air. The scent of alcohol, and theoozing scent of the byproducts that were created when broken down.

"You're terrified by pain," Corvyn said.

"... Everyone is scared of pain," I said.

Corvyn made a slow nod, "Fear is good, yes... But only until it causes you to lose control."

"And what would the cure be?" I asked.

Corvyn's half-faced grin grew as if he had been waiting for the question, and he pulled out his hand. A large knife rested in his hand, one with a blade that glinted and shimmered with a green hue as if it was vibrating.

"There's only one way to do it, and it involves pain... Lots of it," Corvyn whispered.

I could feel the reaction in my chest as I stared at the knife in front of me. The thumping feel of-

Corvyn moved closer and made a sudden swing with the knife. It didn't touch me, but still made me leap back as I felt my tail stiffen.

"You're scared, why?" Corvyn whispered as he tipped his head to the side.

I raised my brow as I stared back at him.

Corvyn let the knife sway in the air, and held the tip pointed toward me, "A big bad wolf like you, scared of a small knife like this?"

I stared at the knife, but I found myself at a lack of words.

Corvyn turned the knife sideways, and stared at me, "You could rip my head off with the strength in your body, but I'd have to cut and carve at you for minutes to make any considerable damage. So why is it that I have the upper hand?"

"... I'd say you're exaggerating a bit," I said.

Corvyn let out a dark chuckle, "Sure, I may know where to aim this blade, and what nerves to sever, but you shouldn't underestimate the kind of beating that a wolf can endure, let alone an Alpha like yourself."

I stared at him, and on some level I knew that he was right. Even if he got a strike in, I'd be able to smash him to pieces, but I didn't want to do that. I didn't want to feel the pain of a blade either.

Corvyn stepped closer, and raised his free hand to idly jab at the side of his own head, "You allow your state of mind to be dictated by emotion and physical sensation. A human fallibility, and a luxury at that."

"We're not machines, Corvyn," I said.

Corvyn's smile grew twisted, and in an instant he was moving toward me once more. Helunged forward to the right of me, and I moved toward the side, while he swung the blade from up high. He missed, but it seemed intentional, and in the blink of an eye he lunged toward me once more.

I moved backward, and my shoulder hit the wall as I shuddered in surprise. Corvyn swung the blade once more, this time from below. As I pushed to get myself away from the wall, I saw the blade swish past my vision.

Pain sprang up within my arm, and I looked down to focus on it as I landed. There was an open cut in the arm of my uniform, and based on the pain it had struck true. A sensation of warmth followed, and Isuspectedthe fur was growing damp with blood.

I gritted my teeth and felt my ears fold back as I looked up to glare at Corvyn.

"You hunt, right? With your pack?" Corvyn asked, and idly lifted the blade to stare at its shimmering edge.

"I do," I answered.

"Surely your prey has managed to give you a kick or two... They're painful, right?" Corvyn asked.

"It has happened," I said.

Corvyn shifted his gaze toward me, "And, how did that feel?"

I shrugged, "It doesn't register at first, the pain comes afterwards."

Corvyn shrugged, "If you were human that would be an acceptable answer, but you're not. The pain comes when you allow it to come, and you need to learn the same thing here. Sure, pain serves a very important role in long term survival, but when things are going down and every second counts, then you need to focus on the goal instead of the pain."

I glanced toward the kitchen, and saw Shay sitting by the table while reading on her tablet.

She doesn't care...

"Eyes on the enemy," Corvyn said out loud.

I looked back at him, "Couldn't we do this in the virtual world or something?"

Corvyn made a huff and began to wave the knife at me, "You still don't get it, Vilkas. You can't learn this in the virtual world because you'd know it wouldn't be real. Now pay attention."

"To what?" I asked.

Corvyn's smile grew, "Me, becausehere I come!"

The coyote was fast, and he dropped his head down low as he moved forward. I began to move backwards in haste, and did my best to move in a big circle to keep my back free. It was a good idea, but Corvyn's sheer aggressiveness made it feel as if he was herding me instead.

Over and over again he attacked, and the margins seemed slim as the shimmering knife swung in front of me. Adrenaline rushed in my veins, fear coiled itself in my spine, and my fur stood on end as I wasbeing cornered once more.

Something changed as we moved in this intricate dance. It started as his knife cut into the uniform once, and by the next swing I could see the blade pass an inch in front of my nose. He was faster than me, and the difference between us was becoming more pronounced with every swing.

I would lose this battle unless-

Corvyn caught me by surprise as he threw himself forward. Up until now, he'd used the knife to push me around, but this time he outright attacked me.

'Volkov!?' I thought in panic.

I bolted back, but I could already tell that I wouldn't be able to move out of his reach.

'I'm sorry, but you've already lost,' Volkov whispered in my mind.

If I had more space, or more time, I may have been able to turn his wild move against him. But even as those thoughts passed my mind, I could see that his intent to come close enough so that he could sink the knife into me.

I raised my left arm like a shield, and began to swing my right arm to slam him out of the way.

Corvyn slammed into my raisedarm, and he reached out with his left hand as he sucked hold of my chest. To my surprise he was already shifting his weight, and I could see his legs coming up as if he was about to kick himself off me.

I was still in the process of bringing my right arm to bear as I felt his paws touch my chest, while his free arm swung the knife toward me.

Fright shot through me, and as my left hand gripped Corvyn's chest, I also began to push him away. Corvyn's grip on my uniform faltered, and his legs began to scramble against my chest as he was suddenly losing his footing.

For a moment it felt as if it worked, but then the pain struck. Corvyn's knife sliced into the underside of my arm with surprising ease and hit solid bone. I'd seen historical videos of fish being gutted, as a sharp blade slid through their flesh. The mental image of it washed over me, and I felt a guttural fright... a panic which cut through everything else in my mind.

What happened next felt like a blur. I screamed and snarled, and as his paws hit my chest, my right hand caught hold of his side.

_ GET AWAY FROM ME! _

I tore at his side, felt as his claws dug into my arm, and thensent him flying as if I'd hurled a rag out of the way. My left arm screaming in pain, and I could feel a shudder move through me as something else came to life within me. The tendrils, big and small, pushed as they began to emerge. There was a loud crash, but my focus lay on myself as I hid my arms, and reached in to find the knife.

My mind felt like a war zone as I heard myself growl. The beast was furious, and my conscious mind was focused on keeping the secret intact. As my free hand found the knife that still jutted out of my arm, I couldn't help but jerk it out.

Another pang of pain shook me, and I let the knife drop to the floor.

There, the threat is gone...

I could feel the tendrils squirm within the back of my uniform, and I held my arms close to my chest. With a gasp I managed to wrest control of my lungs, and bit together as I shut my muzzle.

It's over...

My chest heaved, but the tendrils finally began to relax as they slid back into their homes.

With a shaky breath I moved my hand from the underside of my arm, and I saw how the black fur had become damp with blood.

Corvyn...

I raised my gaze, and looked in the direction which I had flung Corvyn.

To my surprise Corvyn had flown past the first sofa, smacked into the table hard enough to knock it out of the way, and had slammed into the next sofa with enough force to flip it over. As I watched I could hear what sounded like a mixture between coughing, and a laugh.

Moments later Corvyn stuck his head up from behind the sofa, and looked over at Shay, "Did ya see that!"

Shay glanced up from her tablet, shook her head for a moment, and looked back down with a sigh.

Corvyn huffed in disapproval, and looked back at me as he began to smile once more, "You okay all the way over there!"

You're insane...

For a moment I couldn't believe what I was seeing, and I tooka big gulp as my hackles finally began to relax. My arm still hurt like hell, and I could feel tremors in it as I supported it with my free hand.

I considered speaking, but my throat didn't feel as if it was in the mood to function properly. Instead I looked down, and while I could see a few drops of blood, it wasn't as much as I had expected. A gentle pat along the underside of my arm revealed that it still hurt, but apart from the damp fur it seemed to have stopped bleeding already.

My ears perked, and I looked once more as I heard footsteps.

Corvyn was already walking toward me, and motioned with his hands, "Calm down, big guy."

I drew a deep breath, but felt my lips tremble as he approached. The beast wasn't very keen on his presence right now.

"You lost control, again?" Corvyn said as he stopped outside reaching distance.

I exhaled slowly, and whispered, "You seem to be in one piece."

Corvyn patted his side, "Side hurts like hell, but nothing a good night's sleep won't fix."

"Ah," I murmured.

Corvyn's gaze moved to my arm, "Piercing wounds like that heal quickly, within an hour you won't even be able to find the wound."

I felt dazed as I stood there. The beast watched from deep within, and it felt as if it had emptied my mind in the process. Corvyn took another step closer, and I angled my gaze to look down at him.

"Did you learn something?" Corvyn asked.

I blinked, "You're fast... You slowed down your perception of time."

Corvyn's smile returned, "Yes, I did... You did as well, but subconsciously. If you learned how to do it properly, then I wouldn't stand much chance, but that requires focus."

I felt my lips move a little, and found myself irritated at my own self. It made me feel as if I should have been better than this, to have more control, to be able to deal with it rather than end up mute.

Corvyn made a humored smile, "Your thoughts are all over the place, you know?"

Fuck...

I lowered my head, and clamped down on my thoughts. I'd been transmitting all over the place, and I wasn't even sure for how long.

Did he... Does he know?

I frowned to myself, and fixated on him with a harsh glare. Corvyn didn't seem intimidated, and instead reached up as he put a hand on my shoulder.

"Let's have a drink... Just you and me," Corvyn said.

512 A.R. February 13, E** temenanki - **** H ***allway* , N** ight**

Corvyn walked in front, and I followed. To my surprise we passed the last room in the hallway, and I glanced back in wonder, "Weren't we-"

"My room is a mess," Corvyn said, and raised his hand with a dismissive wave.

I perked my brow in wonder, but stayed silent as I looked back and watched Corvyn step up to the wall at the end of the corridor. He then feltalong the corner of the wall and traced his hand along a decorative list.

"There we go," Corvyn whispered, and a click from the wall.

The entire wall began to move and slid sideways to reveal a room hidden behind it. Corvyn marched inside, and I stepped up to the edgetolook around. The room appeared to be a storage space of some kind, but to my surprise there was a sofa and what looked like a large screen that had been bolted up on a wall in front of it.

"Is this your personal den or something?" I asked, and stepped inside.

The wall began to close behind me while Corvyn walked up to a stack of boxes, "I value my private time, so I hacked the lock with my own personal code."

"Are you and Shay sharing a room?" I asked.

Corvyn opened the box in front of him, caught what looked like a towel, and then stepped over to an emergency shower. He slammed the button to activate it, and then held the towel within the stream for a moment.

Once done he looked back toward me, and threw the towel in my direction, "No, but she has a tendency to override my door controls whenever she's worried about me."

I caught the towel in my right hand, and assumed he intended for me to clean my wound. It made me walk over to a nearby stack of crates, and I tentatively eased my rear down. The crate didn't seem to mind my weight, so I settled down and began to pull down the zipper of my uniform.

Once done, I eased my wounded arm out of the uniform, and began to dab the towel against the matted fur. As I glanced at Corvyn I could now see that he was digging through something next to the sofa, and I could hear the clang of bottles.

"So, is she a friend? Your doctor, or..." I asked.

Corvyn stood tall and faced me while holding a bottle along with a pair of glasses, "We've been friends, lovers, enemies, and now we're just tolerating each other. Technically she's my psychiatrist."

"... Sounds complicated," I said, and watched as the towel was getting stained with red.

"Not really," Corvyn said as he walked up to a nearby crate and grabbed the cork on the bottle.

With a pop the cork left the bottle, and Corvyn lifted it to his nose for a sniff. After a few moments he smiled in delight, tipped the bottle over a glass, andbegan to pour.

"Is that the bottle from Arjali?" I asked.

Corvyn nodded in silence, grabbed the glass, and walked over to me as he held it out, "Drink."

I found myself smiling, and put the towel down as I reached out to grab the glass, "Thank you."

Corvyn made something of a shrug, and stepped back as he let go of the glass, "One stabbing for a drink, or something..."

I lifted the glass and tipped my nose down to smell it. Red wine, not very sweet, tingling with aromas of something fruity and perky tones that made my nose wiggle. Alcohol, at least this kind, seemed like a curious thing to imbibe in.

"I sure hope you're not planning to sneak in any more stabbings tonight," I said, and raised the glass as I took a sip.

Sour... Not sweet enough to offset it... Almost oily...

"Ah, I'm more than done for the night, but we'll keep going tomorrow," Corvyn said, and peered at me as he lifted his own glass to peer at it.

"Hmm," I murmured, and eased the glass down.

"What do you think?" Corvyn asked.

"Sour, so... not really my thing," I said, and let the wine swirl around in its glass.

That, and I can still remember the feeling in my throat as I stumbled around in the train...

Corvyn began to smile and shook his head, as he walked off again, "Wine aged for five decades, and the youngsters snub their nose at it."

"Sorry about that," I mused, and followed him with my gaze as I took another sip.

Yup, sour...

Corvyn dug around in the spot next to the sofa, pulled up a new bottle, and sat down in the sofa with a deep sigh, "Ah, that throw across the room really bruised me up."

I wedged the towel in my armpit, and rose up with the glass in my hand, "You doing okay?"

Corvyn nodded, and idly patted the spot next to him, "I'm fine, it's just the additives running out of steam."

"... Additives?" I asked, and approached.

Corvyn looked up at me, and raised his hand to point at himself, "I'm over a hundred years old, alcohol barely does a thing, so you have to find other ways to spice this up."

My ears perked, and I stopped to look at my glass.

"Don't worry, I'm not insane enough to randomly spike others' drinks," Corvyn said, and added a dry chuckle.

Well, that's a relief at least...

I walked up to the sofa and carefully eased myself down. The sofa groaned a little, but it seemed surprisingly soft as I leaned back, and couldn't help but let out a relieved sigh of my own.

A pop was heard, and Corvyn opened the new bottle before motioning to me, "Finish that up, and let's see if you're a fan of white Moscato."

I threw him a glance, and then tipped the glass into my muzzle. It all settled in the back of my throat, and with a gulp I downed it in one swig. As I lowered the glass, Corvyn seemed eager to pour me a new glass.

A fizzy transparent liquid began to fill the glass, but I found my gaze looked on Corvyn's face. While fur had started to grow around his eye, the flesh next to his nose had just started to regrow. It was a disturbing sight to see.

As Corvyn pulled the bottle back, I raised my hand, and poked my muzzle, "Why this?"

Corvyn glanced at me, raised a brow in silence, and then reached out as he put the bottle down on the table, "It might not make much sense to you, but when you're badly hurt one moment, and wake up in a medical pod fully healed, it can..."

"Create something of a dissonance?" I asked.

Corvyn tipped his head a little, but also nodded at the same time, "Something like that. Seeing myself like this, seeing the way it heals a little each day, it helps."

"Ah," I whispered, and brought the glass to my nose.

This one was sparkly, and rich with floral tones. As the bubbles fizzled along the surface, I could catch a hint of the sweetness in it. I took a sip of it, and felt the buzz of carbon dioxide, mixed with the sparkling almost candy-like tone to it.

Almost a bit too sweet this one...

"Better," I whispered.

Corvyn leaned back in the sofa, idly moved his glass, and rubbed his temple as he seemed to ponder something, "Say... You're a Dualist, aren't you?"

I looked into the depth of my glass, and made a nod, "Yeah."

Corvyn made a knowing nod, "Yeah, I definitely picked up the presence of someone else in your head as well."

"Mm," I murmured.

"Next question," Corvyn said, and tipped the glass in my direction.

"Do I get to ask questions as well?" I asked.

Corvyn flashed a grin, "Maybe. Anyway, I couldn't help but notice that you were quite sturdy when I jumped onto you."

"Well, I could tell that you were coming," I said.

"And then you threw me out of the way as if... I may have been a third of your weight."

I looked over at him, put the glass by my muzzle, and took a rather slow sip.

Corvyn's gaze moved across my over body, "I had expected to see at least some kind of implant on your body, but other than your bigger than average size, it would seem that you must have eaten a lot of lead or something."

I pulled the glass away, and made something of a shrug, "I can't really talk about it."

Corvyn jabbed his glass toward me so hard that the wine almostspilled, "Though I bet it's connected to how you arrived here, and why Shay has been digging into it."

I nodded, "I can admit that much at least."

Corvyn drew a deep breath, and pulled his glass back to his nose, "Shay doesn't know, and she won't find out, but I happen to know that there's a lunar shuttle parked in the hangar."

"... It's still here?" I asked.

Corvyn nodded, "Oh yes, though the area is off-limits on orders of Moonbase Alpha. So don't bother Etemenanki by inquiring about it."

I found myself staring at him, "How come you know these things?"

Corvyn leaned onto his free hand, and gave me a confused stare, "Child, I am the one who convinced Sophos that Aurora was worth the effort despite thedisapproval of Moonbase Alpha."

"... They disapproved?" I asked.

Corvyn made a deep sigh, and closed his eyes as he rubbed his temple, "They told us that it would force the human nations into a scenario where they would have to face their own irrelevance or lash out at us. Turns out that they were right... as usual."

"Excuse my ignorance, but isn't their word the law?" I asked.

"When they issue an order, it's clear that it is an order. Warnings like this can be... ignored at your own peril," Corvyn answered.

"... Then why?" I asked.

Corvyn's brow twitched, and he opened his eyes once more as he fixated on me, "Because we're dying if you didn't realize it. The situation on this island is a lot more perilous than anyone cares to face, let alone act on."

"... What do you mean?" I asked.

Corvyn's gaze seemed to shift, and it began to feel as if he was staring through me, rather than at me. After a few moments he blinked, and I could hear him gulp as he held out his glass.

"You should... take this, because I'm going to fall asleep just about now," Corvyn whispered.

I reached out with my free hand and caught the glass. Corvyn managed to make something akin to a comforting smile despite the exposed bone on his face, and then his eyes drifted shut once more. Within moments he seemed to sag together, and his muzzle opened a little as he drew something of a wheezing breath.

I sat there, holding the two glasses, wondering whether he just fell asleep or just died in front of me. But as the seconds passed, and his breath remained steady, it became more akin to a gentle snore.

With a sigh of relief I reached out to the table and put the glasses down.

It would seem that Sophos has its share of broken people as well...

Corvyn shifted a bit in his sleep, and my eyes widened in surprise as his head leaned back, and his muzzle settled as it pointed up at the ceiling. A loud snore followed from the awkward position, and I felt my ears twitch at the sheer absurdity of it all.

Damn it...

I reached out, gently put my hand by his neck, and eased him into a more proper position. He didn't seem to wake from it, but as I let go he began to flop over once more.

Fine...

I shuffled closer to him, leaned my head down against the back of the sofa, and then Corvyn eased down until he rested against my chest. It was a position that worked somewhat, and what had been snores turned into little more than gentle breaths. My arm settled along his chest, and I nuzzled the sofa to make myself comfortable.

Pleasant dreams...

512 A.R. February 14, E** temenanki - **** Hideout , Early M ***orning*

An annoyed grunt stirred my mind, and I blinked in wonder of what was going on. Something was moving in my arms, and as I glanced down I could see Corvyn stir within my embrace. He pushed at my arm, but it didn't do much as I inched closer to his neck.

"Morning," I whispered.

The claws of his hand dug into my arm, and he bared his teeth as he glanced back, "Will you-"

I relaxed my arm, and pulled it away from his midsection, "Apologies."

Corvyn shuffled away, rose up, and as he was about to walk off his leg hit the nearby table.

"Agh," Corvyn grumbled in annoyance, and reached down to steady the glasses from last night.

A sigh of relief followed, and Corvyn glanced back at me.

I expected him to say something, but for a few moments he just stood there.

Suddenly he stood tall, and marched away as he mumbled, "No sense of privacy..."

I looked up, and smirked to myself, "Breakfast in an hour!"

Corvyn slapped a button next to the secret wall, and it began to open once more, "Damn wolves..."

I drew a deep breath, and let my head relax as I leaned back onto the sofa.

What's for today?

I should have a talk with Athena... There's the hangar upstairs, but that might not be an option...

I must admit that I'm curious about the Mars Colony, so a visit downstairs might be in order...

While pondering I heard a gentle grumble from my stomach. A rather primal sensation of hunger bubbled to the surface as I glanced toward the exit.

Let's start off with a proper breakfast for once...

512 A.R. February 14, E** temenanki - **** Kitchen Area , M ***orning*

What am I?

My thoughts wandered as I stirred the pan, but this was the question I kept coming back to.

Nowadays it was self-evident. A natural part of me. I wasn't feral, but something had changed in my mindthat made me consider myselfas a wolf first, a hybrid second, and a citizen of Sophos as a third.

It felt odd to think of it that way, although natural, and alluring in a strange way. The same feeling filled me as I thought of my role as an Alpha. The awkwardness of it was fading, and along with it, the feeling that I was a human playing with fantasies.

I had a pack. My pack. A family. We still had a lot to learn of each other. But they were mine, and I was theirs. I reached into the nearby package, grabbed a handful of sliced deli-meat, and slipped the slices into my muzzle.

While chewing, I glanced back to make sure Corvyn wasn't trying to pull another heist.

While I welcomed these changes, I had to admit that they were rather insidious in nature; more specifically, they weren't clear until you had become so used to them that they were effectively natural.

It also made me wonder what would happen now that Volkov and I were disconnected from one another. He'd changed his appearance so that he no longer looked like a wolf, which was something I found difficult to relate with.

Did that in turn mean the instincts and impulses within me would grow even stronger?

Was that a good thing? Would I be able to refuse it, or would it just sneak into my psyche?

I flipped the omelet over and grabbed a few more slices of meat to munch on.

Hunger was but one small thing that had changed, but the differences it had brought to my behavior were noticeable. One ate when given a chance, but most of the time it wasn't an active search for it.

But when the hunger did strike, it did so with a vengeance. The forest beckoned, scents grew stronger, and when a meal did present itself it was difficult to stay in control. It had a tendency to end in a feast of overindulgence, followed by a bloated stomach and a desperate need to just curl up somewhere and sleep it off.

I reached into the plastic container andfound that there was next to nothing left. Since opening the new package, a hefty kilogram of sliced meat, I'd munched my way to the last few scraps. I flipped the last few morsels into my muzzle, and reluctantly came to the conclusion that this would be one of those days where I needed to recharge.

After a few moments, I tipped my head, and couldn't help but reconsider a little. After all, days like that were pretty... sweet. I croucheddown and looked into the oven to see a long row of ribs, a pair of big steaks with plenty of pepper, a few marrow bones, and a dessert of sizzling bacon.

Not exactly a green breakfast, but...

With a gulp, I forced myself to stand up once more.

They're late... I was planning for the others to have eaten already... Or did they find out...

My ears wiggled as I caught something, and I turned to look at the entrance.Shay leanedinto the room moments later and turned to look at me, "... It smells like a feast in here."

I smiled a little, and motioned toward the table, "I was in a good mode... Feel free to partake in the breakfast I laid out."

By the time you've had what I've already put on your plate you won't want my meat...

"Hmm,"Shay murmured as she approached, and then turned her gaze to the table.

"Want an omelet?" I asked.

Shay stepped up to the table and looked down at the tray. Muesli, yogurt, sliced fruit, and a sandwich along with a few spreads.

"A small one, perhaps," She said, and looked over at me.

I looked toward the plate stacked with omelets, "With bell pepper and onion, or ham with a bit of chili and chives?"

Shay joined my side, and grabbed a plate as she caught my eye, "What are you playing at, Vilkas?"

Just keeping you away from my meat...

"Oh, nothing... How's Corvyn?" I asked.

Shay pushed an omelet onto her plate and squinted a little as she gave me a skeptical stare, "Apparently he didn't manage to drink himself into a complete and utter stupor yesterday, which is an improvement... mind you."

"Good,"I said, as Shay stepped back, and sat down by the table.

I glanced at the box of sliced meat, rediscovered that it was now empty, "Hrrmnn..."

As I scooped the latest omelet out, a noise came from the entrance. It made me look over, and I could see Corvyn sniffing the air as he walked in.

"I smell bacon," Corvyn said, and kept sniffing as he walked toward me.

I discretely moved to block his view of the oven, grabbed a large plate, and held it out to him, "The bacon will be ready in a moment, until then..."

Corvyn blinked in surprise, butreached out to grab the plate.

At the last second, I pulled the plate back and leaned closer to him, "When are you going to teach me how to slow downtime?"

Corvyn's ears twitched, and he stared back at me, "First of all, it's not 'slowing down time', it's an acceleration of how you perce** ive** time. Second, I already told you we'd do it tonight."

There we go... Properly distracted...

I let him grab the plate, and smiled back, "Thank you, Corvyn."

Corvyn stepped back, threw me another glance, and then sat down at the table.

Just a few minutes longer...

512 A.R. February 14, E** temenanki - **** K ***itchen Area* , M** idday**

I opened my muzzle wide, moved the bone to the molars in the back, and adjusted so that I had a good grip of it. Once it settled, I applied pressure and felt my lips ripple as the bone began to crack. With a loud crunch it crumbled into small pieces, and the marrow turned to mush. A piece of the bone shot to the side, bounced off the edge of the big plate, and skidded to a halt in front of Shay.

Her hands partially obscured her muzzle, and she peered down at the piece without saying a word.

I swallowed hard, eased the bone down, and reached out to grab the stray piece, "If you find it disturbing, then you don't need to watch me eat."

Shay shifted her gaze to look at me, and perked her brow, "Oh, this doesn't faze me, I'm mostly fascinated to be honest."

I moved my muzzle to gather the remains of the bone, and swallowed once more, "Fascinated?"

Her gaze dropped to the bone once more, "Yes, I can't imagine exposing my teeth to something that harsh."

I glanced down at the bone, and the mess it had made on the plate, "I'll admit that it took some getting used to when we first started hunting. But, when you learn to trust your teeth and apply the right technique to keep them from splintering, it's a nice treat."

Silence followed, and as I glanced up, I found that she had shut her eyes.

A sly smirk spread on my lips, "It_does_ disturb you a little."

Shay opened her eyes once more, and made a wide but menacing smile, "I've seen more than you can imagine, runt."

"Heh," I chuckled, and leaned down to crack off another piece.

Shay pointed at my plate, "Why cook it? I thought you wolves had a taste for raw things."

I chewed for a few moments, and looked up once more as I swallowed, "I've found that raw meat only tends to tastegood while you're riled up from a hunt, and you can still taste the adrenaline in the blood.Nowadays I like to combine the best of both worlds, a fried surface, plenty of spice, and a medium-rare inside."

"Hmm," Shay murmured, and tipped her head a little.

I looked down at the bone again, but I had to admit that I was starting to feel pretty full by now. My stomach already felt bloated from the hour-long meal, and the urge to nestle up somewhere was growing stronger.

My gaze wandered for a moment, and it caught on the sofa. Corvyn had already cozied up in what appeared to be his favorite spot, and I could see him stare into the depths of a tablet.

Shay whispered, "Don't let his current state mislead you. Corvyn is a great leader, one of patience and integrity, for all people."

"For all people? That seems like an odd thing to say," I whispered, and looked over at her.

Shay lowered her hands and let them settle on the table, "Time is running out, Vilkas. We were hoping that humanity would be forced to come to the negotiation table because of the new colony; we hadn't anticipated that they'd blow it up using a nuke."

I looked at her, and I found myself perplexed at what to think of it. Her reasoning seemed to be builton a simple set of options, one where humanity faceddestruction, and another where they stepped back to allow our expansion.The problem was that breaking the status quo in our favor would mean that they basically agreed to become subservient.Rationally,life was better than death.

But humans were not rational, at least not in the way that we saw it. At the same time, I didn't know enough about either humanity, or the other nations of the island to do anything but guess based on stereotypes.

"... Were you there?" I asked.

Shay blinked, and drew a deep breath, "I was part of the colony, yes... But at the time of the attack I was visiting Veripolis."

"I see," I whispered.

But you didn't really answer the question, did you?

I perked my brow, and looked at her once more, "What did you mean with 'for all people'?"

Shay shifted a little as if uncomfortable, and threw a glimpse at the sofa, "You may not know this, Vilkas... But the line between preserving humanity and wiping them out for the benefit of all have never been this thin. Aurora's destruction has made what was a fringe line of thought into a mainstream one."

A better answer, but still avoidant in some way...

She was right, of course. Even the others in the pack voiced hints of it in their anger.

Am I any different? If push came to shove, would I choose the survival of Sophos, or the human nations? The answer was obvious, just as it was obvious that we couldn't allow such a bleak scenario to pass.

I nodded in reluctance, "I have noticed this..."

Shay made a low sigh, and glanced over at the sofa, "He blames himself for this. Not only the deaths, but also the repercussions to the greater whole."

"Mm," I murmured.

Shay looked back at me after pausing for a moment, and made a somewhat forced smile, "Any plans for the day?"

I looked down, and realized that I had lost what little remained of my appetite, "I believe I'll sleep for a while, and then I might pay Etemenanki a visit."

"... Oh, why?" Shay asked.

I smiled back at her, and rosefrom my chair, "She has a rather interesting hobby, you know?"

A subtle frown grew on her brow as she fixated on me, "Yes, I'm aware..."

512 A.R. February 14, E** temenanki - **** V *ilkas'* Room , Aft ***ernoon*

I awoke with a shudder and found myself in bed. There was a disturbed feeling in the back of my mind, but from what I could remember, I hadn't had a dream or anything else that might explain it.

'Volkov?' I thought.

Volkov's presence bubbled to the surface, 'Yeah?'

'Were you sleeping as well, or...'

'Resting, more like it... Sleep still affects me, even if we're not as connected as we used to be.'

'... I woke up feeling rather disturbed, are you okay in there?' I thought.

'I'm fine... The heart rate logsdo show a sudden spike, but I can't tell you from what.'

I perked my brow, 'You have heart monitoring logs?'

'I literally have logs of everything. Including that feeding frenzy ofyours.'

'I was hungry,' I thought.

'Yes, yes,' Volkov murmured.

I guess hunger might be an odd thing for Volkov...

'You can taste stuff, right?' I thought.

'I can, even if it's not real. It's wired through the same neural mapping that you'd use if you ate something in the virtual world... I just don't have to deal with calories or the aftermath of it.'

I smiled to myself, and couldn't help but chuckle a little, 'Didn't know you were such a prude.'

'I'm not, anyway... What's this thing with Etemenanki you mentioned earlier?'

'Ah, you heard that,' Ithought and pulledthe blanket back and as I swung my paws over the edge.

'Yes, I did...' Volkov murmured.

'Etemenanki has a hobby where she collects memories. She showed me a rather interesting event where two astronauts named Milly and Marcus were about to explore the ruins of the Mars colony.'

'... There is a record of them in the archives, Milly Whitson, a Dualist, and Marcus Shepard, part of the Defense Force. Both of them have been dead for centuries... It does say they visited Mars shortly before the colony was utterly destroyed, but there's no more detail than that.'

'Why was the colony destroyed exactly?' I thought.

'According to the Archives, the humans had found out that Sophos had seized control of Moonbase Alpha and was in the process of reconstructing it. They demanded Sophos to stop, and when we refused, they launched a massive volley of nukes. Moonbase alpha had the defenses to protect itself, but there was nothing to stop the missiles heading for Mars. Milly and Marcus launched from Moonbase Alpha on a high-speed prototype ship.'

'The colony collapsed on its own eight centuries ago, it's a wonder there could've been something left to find. It makes one wonder whether the humans were just trying to make a point, or if they were actually scared of what may have been hidden there.'

'Agreed,' Volkov answered.

'What happened afterwards?' I thought.

'The attack from the humans was used as an excuse to wipe out every human satellite and basically ban them from space. To this day not a single human satellite has been allowed to establish orbit. As for Milly and Marcus, they-'

'Wait,' I thought.

'... What?' Volkov asked in wonder.

'I'd like to find that out by myself, if you don't mind,' I thought.

'... Spoilers, they're both dead,' Volkov answered.

'I did figure out that part, Volkov,' I thought.

'Fine, I'll keep the details for myself... But I would appreciate if you shared your memories with me regarding this,' Volkov said.

I tipped my head in wonder, 'How would I do that exactly?'

'We have photographic memory, you know? Just think of the experience, give me permission to access it, and I'll latch on.'

'You make it sound so simply, but it's like finding out I have a new appendage to pull on every time I do it,' I thought.

'You'll get the hang of it soon enough,' Volkov thought.

I drew a deep breath, closed my eyes, and cleared my mind. After a few moments, I thought back to the memories that I had shared, and tried to imagine it like a video-file. To my surprise it felt as if something latched into place, and a strange notion poked the back of my mind.

Who do I want to send or give this to? Volkov...

A shiver ran through me, and I felt my spine tense up for a moment.

'See, not that hard... Was it?' Volkov whispered.

I opened my eyes once more, '... Is it done?'

'Oh, yes... It's like one of the adventure modules you can play in the virtual world... It's missing a lot of data, but as long as I don't try to stray from your experience, I bet it'll be a fun one.'

'Adventure modules... You mean like the one someone had made of me fleeing the cult?'

'Exactly,' Volkov answered.

'Well, enjoy... but keep it to yourself,' I thought.

'Naturally,' Volkov thought, and his presence began to fade once more.

I sighed to myself and found myself alone once more.

Time to go pay Etemenanki a visit...

512 A.R. February 14, E** temenanki , Aft ***ernoon*

I stepped into the elevator, faced the control panel, and looked it over. There were a lot of buttons, but none of them were for the underground level where one could see what Etemenanki actually was.

As I stared at the control panel, I could feel its digital presence in the back of my mind. I focused on it and felt a notion, as if the elevator wanted to know its destination.

Subfloor, Etemenanki... The old lab...

The elevator's answer bubbled into my conscious mind, [Invalid Destination].

With a sigh I disconnected from the elevator, and instead focused on trying to contact her directly. It took me a moment as I closed my eyes, and let my mind reach out as I focused on her presence.

After a few seconds it began to feel as if the walls were starting to squirm, and I opened my eyes to look. The walls hadn't changed, but my mind had just become aware of a gargantuan presence that seemed to permeate everything.

A noise entered my mind, and its tone shifted in waves until settling with a voice that I recognized.

'Yes... Vilkas?' Etemenanki mused.

'Would you care for a visit?' I wondered.

'Oh, yes...' As Etemenanki answered, the elevator doors began to shut, and the floor indicator went blank. A moment later the elevator made a subtle shudder and began to descend.

'You're in full control of the elevators?' I thought.

'The Tower is my armor, nothing more, nothing less... Same reason there are no droids around.'

I blinked to myself, and thought back, 'I have noticed a distinct lack of cleaning droids... But if you do not make use of droids, who maintains the tower?'

'My drones, of course...' Etemenanki answered.

'The surveillance cameras noticed a rather big spider bot,' I thought.

'Yes... One of the things which we shall not speak of,' Etemenanki whispered.

'... As you wish,' I thought.

'Your understanding is appreciated, Vilkas...'

'I was curious about something,' I thought.

'Yes?' Etemenanki asked with a drawn-out voice.

'Can you lie?' I wondered.

'Oh, no... Not at all,' Etemenanki's voice crackled, and for a moment I heard a chitter.

I perked my brow in wonder, '... Is that the truth?'

'Of course... By the way, did you know the moon is actually made of cheese? That's the big secret they're hiding... Selfish bastards, keeping all the cheese to themselves.'

I glanced up at the ceiling with a tired stare, 'I'll take that as a yes.'

A humored laugh followed, 'Do not mistake me for one of your intelligent machines, Vilkas.'

She almost sounds insulted...

'Apologies, Etemenanki... Just making sure,' I thought.

The elevator slowed down and came to a stop moments later. I faced the doors as they opened, and saw a gentle haze of spores drift into the elevator. As I moved up to the edge I could see the vast expanse of Etemenanki'sgarden once more.

'Apology accepted,'Etemenanki whispered over the link.

I stepped out onto the railing and could hear as the elevator shut its doors once more. After only a few steps I noticed something odd, and I stopped to look.

Many of the smaller lifeforms in the air, in particular the yellow beetles from earlier, were drifting closer to me.

'Do not be alarmed... We're just curious of the experiences that you bring us.'

I reached toward the nearby railing, but froze in place as one of the beetles landed on my arm. Within moments, several more landed and began to scurry about as if sampling the surface.

'And what to these 'experiences' tell you?' I thought.

'You've feasted... Satiated your hunger... Your body brims with activity...'

'Yes,'I thought.

'You had a shower, but I can tell more than you think,' Etemenanki mused.

I smiled a little, 'Perhaps...'

'Corvyn slept in your arms... Peacefully, comforted by the embrace of another, a fact that no doubtembarrassedhim,' Etemenanki whispered.

'Is he one of your patients as well?' I wondered.

'Only in so much that my presence keeps corruption at bay...'

'I understand. Shay seemedrather hesitant about your hobby, why?' I wondered, and leaned back againstthe railing.

'To those who know of my true nature I am a troubling dilemma.'

'How so?' I wondered.

'The Archives are meant to be all-knowing. An immutable record in a world where truth is all too rare. Yet, the Archives do not encompass Moonbase Alpha, Maxwell, nor his precious Space Initiative. This is an affront, not just to the purpose of the Archives, but to thephilosophy ofSophos as a whole.'

'You offer a glimpse of these hidden truths, yet Sophos cannot absorb, let alone act on the knowledge,'I thought.

'Yes... For some reason or another I am allowed to skirt the rules in this way.'

I guess that settles it... Sharing this knowledge, whatever it may be, is wrought with danger...

'Why does Moonbase Alpha insist on these secrets?'I wondered.

'... I have no good answer for you,' Etemenanki answered.

Not that I'd be able to trust an answer, at least not regarding such a question...

I drew a deep breath and felt my chest swell against the uniform. It was a strange sensation to willfully draw her spores deep into my lungs, but the sensation soothed me as if I had drawn a breath of menthol.

While leaning back on the railing, I closed my eyes and perked my ears to listen. I could hear the rivers running along the ground, feel the wind against my fur, and catch the buzz as insects swarmed around me.

It should have horrified me, to see and feel this forest of flesh, but a part of me couldn't help but feel at home in this place.

'You mentioned that you were a failed experiment, that you were drawn to each other to a point where you couldn't help but become a hive-mind,' I thought.

'Yes?' Etemenanki whispered.

'At the same time, I've recently learned that my generation has considerable telepathic skills.'

Etemenanki broke into a humored chuckle that echoed across my mind, "You assume correctly, little one... My failure laid the groundwork for integrating a subconscious telepathic network within modern Hybrids. Part of me... lives on within you."

I opened my eyes once more, and lifted my gaze to the glowing forest above my head, 'What does this telepathic network mean exactly?'

'Emotion and scraps of thought move across all of Sophos, through machines and hybrids alike. Your mind leaks, and it traverses the network to be picked up by others. It's subtle, and difficult to pinpoint, but even now you can on some level feel what Sophos as a whole feels. The System is alive.'

Etemenanki can lie, and this sounds like it's a bit out there...

After a few moments of silence, Etemenanki whispered in my mind, 'You doubt me?'

I clasped my hands, 'At school we used computers to interface with Sophos network, and we inspected the packages. There's a lot of traffic, but I can't say I saw packaged emotions within the network.'

'A sterilized network feed within a university class is far different from the central network. But it is as you say, there are no packaged emotions traveling across the network, instead they are snippets of wave-information and probability curves that only make sense when fed into a living mind.'

I blinked, 'Hold up, are you saying you've found a way of digitizing neural activity, injecting it into the brains of others, and then letting it... execute?'

Etemenanki's voice chittered in the background as if excited, '_ Yes... _'

'Isn't that... immensely dangerous?' I thought.

'The approach is not without risk, yes... But the benefits are considerable,' Etemenanki whispered.

I looked down, and let my gaze settle on the grating. In my mind I thought I had a good handle on how computers, networks, and programs worked. But even the idea of something like this was difficult to wrap my head around, let alone theorize what it meant.

'Isthe effect of the network tangible? I mean, has its benefits been proven?' I wondered.

'The mental stability of Hybrids has steadily increased over the centuries; the latest jump coincides with the introduction of the network. While difficult to root out just how effective it is, our society thrives.'

'Can this network influence people?' I wondered.

'To some degree, of course... It's why it exists after all. But if you're wondering whether you'll suddenly develop a liking for grass just by spending time with deer-hybrids, then you'd be wrong.'

A subconscious network, meant to stabilize society...

'... What if society enters a downward curve, what then? Does the network feed back on the negatives and accelerate the downfall?' I wondered.

'You are young, but you will find that your fellow Hybrids and the society that you've formed are quite resilient,' Etemenanki added.

A lot to think about, as usual...

The walkway made a sudden shudder. I glanced back and felt my tail stiffen in surprise. A set of large tendrils had risen up behind me, and a few of them were starting to move onto the railing.

'You didn't come to visit just for a pleasant chat, did you?' Etemenanki wondered.

I glanced to the sides, but more tendrils were already moving to block the passage if I were to attempt an escape. It felt as if it should have alarmed me more than it did, but from what my instincts told me, Etemenanki had no desire to harm me.

'... No, I wanted to see more of the Mars colony,' I thought.

'I suspected as much... But there is the matter of payment,' Etemenanki mused, while the shadow of her tendrils moved over me.

I gulped, and tried to keep any odd thoughts from entering my mind, '... What kind of memory?'

Without warning, one of her tendrils began to coil around myleg, and I shuddered a little as I looked down.

'I want the defining moments of your life...' Etemenanki whispered into my mind.

Another tendril caught my arm, and my heart began to pound harder.

'I thought you didn't want to ruin my clothes,' I thought.

'This sort of exchange requires touch, besides... You've already been through this once.'

I pulled with my arm and the tendril fought back in response. Despite applying more strength, it wouldn't budge.

'You may be strong to others, but you're no challenge for me, Vilkas...' Etemenanki mused.

Maybe this is why Shay was so hesitant...

'I woke up in that old lab, you didn't seem to have a presence there,' I thought.

'That machine merely performed the final calibrations of the Zephyr, the implantation process and medical care was performedhere, within my chambers,' Etemenanki answered.

My gaze wandered Etemenanki's forest, but I now found myselfwith another perspective of it. The walkway I was standing on had acted like a barrier, but the knowledge thatI had been within this forest of flesh made my unease feel more tangible.

Another massive tendril caught my midsection and curled around me as Etemenanki's voice grew stronger, 'I can feel that it disturbs you, just like it would disturb most living beings. It's a strange conceptfor me, to be so alive yet the notion of flesh disturbs you.Nevertheless, you are here, out of your own will.'

The tendril squeezed my midsection a little, and the tendrils around my arms coiled up closer to my body.

Etemenanki's voice boomed within my head, 'You share your mind with someone, yet you are alone. You have a pack, yet you are alone. You seek the company of others to soothe your heart, but in the end, you always end up the same as you were before. We are many, yet we are one. It scares you, yet you can't help but see the allure, and feel the temptation to join us.'

'I have no such desire,' I hissed in my thoughts.

'That is a lie that you tell yourself. Part of you yearn for this, but your desire for independence burns bright. Such a struggle, never ending...' Etemenanki whispered by the end.

'You call it a struggle, I'd like to see it as a balance,' I thought.

There was a moment's pause, '... Yes, or you might lose yourselves. Just like the humans so often do. Perhaps that's what's different, you've been tuned to walk both worlds, in harmony.'

'I'm not sure where we're going with this,' I thought.

'They are ramblings, nothing more... Now, where were we?'

I couldn't help but grit my teeth as the tendrils immobilized me, 'Payment. What defining moment of my life do you want me to show you?'

'The day when Jason's father died... The day when he lodged an axe in your neck, and almost killed you... The day when Volkov was born...' Etemenanki's voice grew, and her tendrils began to grow warmer.

A defining moment of my life... Very well...

'I am not a toy, Etemenanki... Treat me fairly,' I thought.

Her tendrils relaxed a little, 'Oh, I will... You'll be in good hands while you dream of things that the world has long forgotten.'

Not sure you got the hint, but...

I sighed, and felt a gentle poke in my spine from another tendril, 'As you wish.'

'Good,' Etemenanki mused, 'Now relax, and think back... I will guide the process, and you will find yourself on Mars once more.'

I closed my eyes, drew a deep breath, and tried to remember...

Unknown

I flipped the ancient laptop over, held out my arm, and concentrated. My thoughts were picked up by the spacesuit, which were then interpreted and sent as commands to the utility-gauntlet.

Segmented tendrils reached out from the large gauntlet and clasped the laptop. The visor shifted as I moved my left arm underneath the laptop and scanned it to reveal what was inside.A target was highlighted within the laptop, most likely the only component that had any chance of surviving for this long. Once done I pulled my hand back, switched modes to the laser-cutter, and began to work.The laptop crumbled into pieces as I cut it apart, and soon enough I was only left with the crystal's assembly module.

I began to open the module, and the rickety tendrils did their best to assist as they peeled back the layers. The tendrils reminded me of something. Primitive in, a way... That thought made me blink, and I suddenly remembered who I truly was, and where I had been just moments ago.

I'm back in Marcus' memories...

I looked up, and I found myself amazed at where I was standing.

The Mars colony ruins... Underground... In the main hub of the colony...

There were hallways stretching out around me, but most of them had collapsed and had been filled with the reddish-brown dirt of Mars. The droids had arrived before us, and they had started digging out the tunnels that would lead us to the main databanks of the colony.

I could feel a hint of Marcus' memories as I stood there; he wasn't amazed and his focus on the goals he had been given. I wanted to marvel at it, but after a few moments I found myself somewhat dejected.

The Archives had images of the Mars colony, but they did not reflect what I was seeing here. There was little sunlight on Mars, and little to look at apart from the dunes, so the colonists turned inward. Every corridor had been a work of art, and they had painted their adventures for all to see.

There was nothing of it left as I looked around. The walls were bare apart from a strip of long dead lights, and even the metal had begun to corrode in such a way thatit looked as if it was crumbling.

I looked down at the laptop I had just picked apart. There was no trace of the plastic that had once covered it, and what remained was a husk of aluminum and other metallic alloys.

A droid walked past me, and I watched it for a moment. There were plenty of others down the hallway, and all of them were working hard. Some were digging, others moved cables, and a few were setting up machinery. Harsh orange sand seemed to cover everything, and makeshift lights lined the central corridor.

My eyes caught on something on the other side of the corridor. Milly was sitting on a big crate in her spacesuit, but she had her eyes closed. I knew, or rather... Marcus knew, what she was doing. She was deep within the system, and she was helping out the Expert Systems that did the majority of labor.

Time is running out...

I returned my focus to crystal's assembly and fired up the laser-cutter again. Its final hatch popped open, and within was a small rectangular crystal that was transparent like glass.

O __ptical data storage... Developed before the collapse... S_ till used to store large amounts of data..._

A pair of tendrils reached in and plucked the small crystal from its holding place. I threw the rest of the assembly to the side and lifted my hand to peer at the crystal. The surface of it was smudged withoxidation, but at least it hadn't cracked.

A petabyte of data, in a sliver no bigger than a corn flake...

I reached back, pulled up the data-reader from my utility belt, and opened the small hatch on the side. The device lit up as I placed the crystal within the compartment and then closed the hatch. Asmall screen on the side began to show a stream of information.

Movement caught my eye, and I looked to the side as Milly began to move. For a moment she appeared disoriented and reached up with her hand. She promptly smacked her hand into the visor of her suit and blinked in surprise as if having forgotten that it was there.

She looked up moments later, and I could see her expression shift from surprise, to prompt embarrassment as she made a sheepish smile.

I couldn't help but smile as I walked up to her, "What's it like?"

Milly blinked in wonder and lowered her arm, "What?"

I motioned to her, "To dive into a computer... I've experienced VR, but-"

Milly shook her head and began to stand up, "Yeah, it's not the same."

"So what is it like?" I asked.

"It's... disorienting. It's fascinating at first, but you're not really in control," Milly said.

"What do you mean?"

Milly drew a deep breath and stretched a little, "The inside of a computer is Frost's domain. I merely get tugged along, try to stay sane, and keep myself from getting too nauseous."

"Oh, well that's a shame," I said.

"That being said, it's not all bad... If anything, it gives you a new kind of respect for our more advanced Expert Systems," Milly said.

"Hmm?" I murmured.

Milly smiled a little as she motioned at me, "Did you know that Expert Systems tend to'value' the moments when their creators visit them? They remember... They set aside those memoriesin their databanks, and they treasure them."

I leaned back, and I could feel that Marcus was more than a little disturbed by what he had just heard, "No... I did not know that."

Milly's smile grew, "Well they do... They're sentient after all, and even if they don't have the 'spark' of true sapience, they're quite remarkable."

"Yes, I can agree with that at least," I said, and noticed that the data-reader was blinking.

Milly walked up to me, and she reached out with her hand as she held it near the data-reader.

For a moment she seemed to freeze in place and then looked up again, "This one's encrypted, just like others. Aside from a few scraps at the boot sector it's basically worthless without the key."

I looked at the interface and pressed the button to put the crystal into storage. A progress windowwas shown, andit soonfinished its preparations for another payload.

Without warning the lights within the hallway grew brighter. I looked up in wonder, and to my surprise it seemed like a few of the lights within the wall had powered on. They flickered, and several of them burned out within moments as trails of smoke emerged.

As I looked back at Milly, Inoticed thatshe wasn't focused on the lights, instead she stared into the depths of the hallway and her short muzzle hung open.

"Seems like the droids managed to shunt some power into these old conduits," I said.

"... They've found something up ahead. Come on," Milly said, and began to march.

I followed,but couldn't help but remember what she had said about the data-crystal.The suit picked up on my thoughts and displayed the data-reader's interface along the visor. I brought it into focus and activated its latest analysis.

Encrypted, as Milly said, and a bit of readable information in the boot section...

I brought up the parts which could be read.

_ Phalanx 80286 UECI Version 15.47 'StarExtreme' _

Copyright © [Indef-C55] Trident Technologies Ltd.

_ All rights reserved. _

_ H __ acking, sniffing, tampering, reverse engineering or reprogramming _ _ will be persecuted to the _ _ maximum extent _ _ permitted by _ _ law. _

Trident Technologies - We're here to screw you over!

Myattention wasdrawn to the very last sentence. It clearly didn't belong, nor could it be a simple corruption issue.

I looked up as we marched, "Milly, did you mess with the boot sector on the crystal?"

Milly didn't glance back, but I could hear her voice over the comm-link, "No... Why?"

"There's a rather odd sentence in that legible portion of the data," I said.

Milly slowed down a little, and threw me a glance, "Yeah, we've noticed oddities like that as well."

"Any theories?" I asked, and sped up to join her side.

Milly looked toward the walls that had long since lost its markings, "There's no trace of the nanite plague in this place. We're not sure why they were spared from it, but Iwould hazard a guess that most of them were pretty desperate for a way to hack their own equipment."

I leaned closer to her, "What do you mean?"

Milly glanced at me and perked her brow, "I assume you were never one for history?"

I smirked back, and did my best to shrug with the suit, "I studied the practicalities of history, not their politics or social building blocks."

"Old Earth was obsessed with power and how to keep said power. They feared their own citizens, manipulated them, and shaped their entire society around the concept of control. Anything but the simplest electronics had surveillance built into it, andthis paranoia didn't stop at Earth."

"Yet here we are, clearly seeing evidence that these people didn't just evadethe plague, butalso managed to alter their computers in a way that would be considered treason," I said.

Milly motioned to me, "It is possible that they somehow got hold of the golden keys to the kingdom, and that the plague originated from here."

"Oh, then that might be what's hiding in that database we're after... the origins of the plague."

"Perhaps," Milly whispered, and began to slow down.

We approached what looked like the remains of a large bulkhead. The left side of it had partially collapsed, and the droids had set up a few girders to stabilize the ceiling. I was about to march through it when I noticed that Milly wasn't moving.

I glanced back at her in wonder, "What?"

Milly leaned back, and clasped her hands, "This is _supposed_to be a big storage bay, but based on what the droids are seeing, it's something completely different."

"Go on?" I asked and faced the bulkhead as I walked up to it.

"... This is where they all ended up," Milly whispered over the comm-link.

The inside of the large room seemed relatively intact, and there were at least four rows of machinery that reminded me of medical pods. A rough count revealed that there were about 400 of them.

Lights were still being put up by the droids, and to my surprise, it seemed like a few of the pods had managed to boot up to some degree. The closest one flickered with light and the screen alongside it crackled with static.

I stepped closer to the flickering pod and tried to peer through its murky glass. It revealed little, and it didn't seem to help as I wiped the surface. It made me look toward the other pods, and I noticed that one of them had been cracked due to a support pillar that had collapsed onto it.

I activated the lights on my utility gauntlet and pointed it at the pod as I walked closer. Hidden within the pod was a desiccated corpse. It had the rough shape of a human, but hundreds of years in this environment had steadily weathered it into a lump of bones and skin that looked like crumbling drywall.

Another source of light moved along the wall, and as I looked back, I could seeMilly walkingup to me. She let out a deep sigh as her gaze wandered along the pods and their many corpses.

"Part of me hoped that they would have found a way to preserve themselves. Their nuclear reactors were calculated to last for hundreds of years, and even longer than that if they scavenged parts to keep at least one of them running,"Milly said.

I turned to face her when the light from my gauntlet happened to fall on something that stood out from the red sand. It made me look down at the space between two of the pods, and I saw what looked like a lump of some dark material.

"Do we have any indication of when they entered suspended animation?" I asked.

Milly turned toward one of the flickering pods, "No, but I can try to find out... One of these should have some kind of timestamp in their crystals."

"Good," I said, and as Milly walked away, I turned my focus to the odd material on the ground.

I crouched down, and poked at the dark materialthat peeked out from the sand. It seemed to disintegrate into black dust, butas I kept digging it revealed something more solid.

Most of it had disintegrated over the centuries, but what little remained was in the rough shape of a phone made for human hands. Pieces of the once intricate device began to fall apart as I lifted it, but the innermost core seemed intact.

Another memory-crystal... Probably encrypted as well, but...

I activated the utility glove once more, and it began to disassemble the crystal's assembly. Within moments the small crystal was revealed, and I popped it into the data-reader.

"Marcus, over here..." Milly said.

I looked up and steppedoverto her. She was leaning over the crackling display of the pod, and had opened up a small maintenance hatch along the side. Several cables ran from her utility gauntlet, and theyhad connected to the innards of the machine.

"What did you find?" I asked.

"A timestamp for when it was activated and when it failed," Milly said.

"So, did we ever have a chance of finding these people alive?" I asked.

Milly looked back at me, and shook her head, "No, this one died hours after the pod was activated, and I suspect the same happened to everyone else in here."

For a moment I stared at her, "... Well, that can't be right."

Milly reached into the device, jerked the cables out and the device promptly went dark.

"Frost says there's some kind of modified program in the pod. It was made to make everything seem as if it was functioning correctly, but it discretely killed its host just hours after being activated."

"... Something like that can't be a mistake, I'm just having a hard time figuring out why someone might do that," I said.

"Maybe they wanted a painless death, but why not let the pods run for as long as they could?"

"Could it be that it's just one pod? An assassination of sorts?" I asked.

Milly looked around, and motioned to the other pods, "They all have the same level of degradation. No, these pods were built to last, but they look like they haven't been powered on for centuries."

Another notification lit up within my visor; the data-reader had analyzed the crystal.

"What did you find over there?" Milly asked.

I brought up the notification, and looked it over, "It might have been an ancient phone, but it's encrypted just like the-"

Milly stared at me and stepped closer, "No, it's not... It's not like the rest."

My ears perked in wonder, "You know, it's kind of rude when you're all over my systems."

Milly stifled a chuckle, and stepped closer as she looked down at the data-reader, "It's encrypted, yes... But it's not the same kind of encryption. It has a tag at the start."

"Do you recognize the-"

Milly raised her hand and hushed me, "A moment, I need to let Frost have a go at this."

She put her utility glove close to the data-reader, and then shut her eyes. Moments passed with me standing there in silence while more droids marched past. I glanced toward the other exit in the room and I could see a haze of dust from their activities.

There was hardly any atmosphereon Mars, or in the remains of the colony. It made it difficult for sound to travel andIt made the outside world seem quiet. Conversely,it madethe inside of the suit seemall that much louder in comparison. I could hear the pumps and the rebreather functioning deep within the suit. I could hear my breath and the steady thump of my heart. As Milly stood close to me and our suits bumped together, it sounded like loud, distinct clanks.

It had taken time to get used to working in an enclosed suit, and I could remember-

I blinked and became aware once more that I wasn't Marcus. I was Vilkas, and I had just tried to access memories from Marcus that Etemenanki had no knowledge of. The realization made me gulp and I found myself wondering if the adventures that Volkov had spoken of were this... seductive.

A sudden noise interrupted my thoughts, and Milly grabbed my suit in what felt like panic. She panted over the comm-link and she leaned the head of her suit onto my chest.

"Are you all right, Milly?" I asked and reached up with a hand to support her.

"I'm... I'll be fine. We managed to decrypt the crystal, but..."

"But?" I asked.

Milly shook her head, and leaned back a little, "The crystal itself is intact, but the data has been altered somehow. Words have been exchanged with others, and the things written inside don't make much sense."

"Perhaps a variety of the many languages that Old Earth used?" I asked.

Milly looked up at me, "No. This is Common, old English. Our language. It hasn't changed much in centuries, and what's been done to this data is something different... Something like a virus has dug through everything and subtly changed the contents."

I perked my brow, "... Medicalpods that are killing their hosts, odd messages, and now a virus that subtly changes the meaning of written language?"

Milly pushed away from me, "Hell if I know what it's about! It makes no bloody sense!" She gritted her teeth in anger and raised her arms in frustration as she moved to the side, "What the hell were they doing here!? And how are we supposed to make sense of all this!?"

Something must have happened in there...

Milly marched toward the other exit of the room, and I followed in her wake.

"Milly, slow down," I warned her.

"No!" Milly snapped, and stopped as she looked back at me with a hiss to her voice, "We have less than 24 hours, and we still haven't reachedthe databanks! Even if we do reach it, somehow manage to power it on, and find that fucking database, then what does it matter if the data is corrupted like this!?"

I walked up to her, and looked her in the eyes, "Milly, we-"

Milly looked to the side without warning, and her face twisted in anger, " WILL YOU SHUT UP!"

I froze in place and watched in silence as she gasped for breath while staring into thin air.

"... Milly," I said.

She jumped in surprise and looked back at me.

"Focus on me," I said, and motioned toward my head, "We're here to do the best we can, and then we go home. That's all."

Milly blinked as the anger seemed to drain from her. Within moments her shoulders slouched, and she lowered her voice, "I didn't scream at you, Marcus... I was... Frost was talking while-"

"I know, I understand," I said and reached out as I put my hand on the shoulder of her suit.

Milly reached up and put a hand on her helmet, "I wish I could rub my temples right about now, or crawl into bed and just pull a blanket over me."

I patted her shoulder, "We'll make something work when we're back on the ship, alright?"

Milly looked up, and feigned a smile as she nodded, "Yeah."

I motioned to the exit, "Shall we take a look at how the droids are doing?"

"Marcus," Milly said without warning.

I stopped, and looked her in the eyes once more, "Hmm?"

"The crystal, there was something of a journal inside it. Unregistered, unknown to the powers of Earth. It was someone's digital refuge," Milly said.

"... Yes?" I asked.

"Most of it has been twisted by whatever virus that played havoc here, but it's still possible to read through the lines," Milly said.

"... And?" I asked.

"The one who wrote the journal didn't know why they were spared, but they watched Earth crumble from here. They knew they wouldn't be able to survive for long. Without Earth the entire colony went into a lockdown meant to make sure they couldn't rebel. They managed to bypass some of it, in particular they managedto seize control of the orbital docks. It doesn't say what they were doing exactly, but it was meant to preserve humanity. It became their finalgoal in life."

As I stood there, I felt a weird sensation. A clash between my interpretation of what she had said, and what Marcus had felt at that instant. I found myself curious, but Marcus had a sensation that gripped his gut and tore through his senses. Marcus was horrified, it was as if someone had told him that a great evil had just escaped from its cage.

"Did... Did the journal make it sound as if they succeeded?" Marcus asked.

My control seemed to have slipped away, and it now felt as if I was observing from behind Marcus eyes.

"I don't know... The journal ends well before these pods were activated," Milly said.

"... We need to reach the databanks, and fast," Marcus said and looked toward the exit.