by Adair Hart
Nanobot Emily gasped. “Your rage … I never knew …”
Organic Emily grabbed Nanobot Emily’s hand. She raised her head after a moment, then clenched her jaw and narrowed her eyes.
“You’re so strong … well, I guess by extension, I am too,” said Nanobot Emily. Her eyes glowed as she nodded at Evaran and V. “Let’s do this.”
Evaran exhaled from his nose as he interacted with his ARI. The shielding on the opposite end of the hallway dissipated at the same time V dropped the barrier.
Nanobot Emily rushed forward into the hallway.
The overlord smiled big as he entered the hallway when the shield dropped. “What’s this? A little entertainment.” His smile wound down as Nanobot Emily’s head began to disassemble into a swirling cloud. His eyes widened as he stepped back out and pointed at the rapid disintegration occurring before him. “Guards! Kill that thing!”
The guards opened fire. Nanobot Emily disappeared, and in her place was a loud buzzing cloud of nanobots. The ground under the nanobots rippled forward to the guards. When the first guard was impaled by a spike from the ground, the other guards tried to run. The bodyguards screamed as the cloud ripped through them, impaling them and ripping chunks of their flesh off.
Dr. Snowden felt Organic Emily’s death grip on his right arm.
Evaran waved forward. “We need to go!” He rushed ahead with everyone in tow.
Dr. Snowden surveyed the impaled corpses as he passed them. The overlord had not been spiked. Instead, two giant hands that looked like they had burst from the floor held the lower and upper halves of the separated overlord’s corpse. He wondered if it was his rage that made these nanobots more violent.
After thirty minutes, they reached the landing pad door.
Evaran tapped at his ARI, and the door slid up.
Dr. Snowden noticed the dead guards ringing the Torvatta. The guards had brought in cannons and pointed them at the door, but there was no one alive to man them. He hated the sight of death. The fact that Nanobot Emily decided to change back into the murderous swarm made him nauseous. She gave her life to save theirs, at the expense of the Purifiers. The main rift stone had to be destroyed, and she was the only one who could do it. He understood her reasoning, and in the grand scheme of things, if she had not done what she did, Earth could be attacked again. Maybe she weighed that fact into her logic. He sighed as he continued on.
They rushed into the Torvatta and assembled in the command area.
“V, take us out,” said Evaran.
“Acknowledged.”
The Torvatta’s middle spun around, and then the Torvatta flew off of the landing pad. After a moment, it ascended, broke cloud cover, and proceeded into space.
Dr. Snowden watched the left screen as it showed a view of the planet. An explosion appeared to move impossibly fast across the surface, and after a moment, the planet began to be sucked into where the main rift stone had been.
Evaran tapped at his chair console.
The Torvatta shot out a green beam and formed a portal, but the Torvatta was pulled away from it.
“V, disengage portal, rotate one hundred eighty degrees, fire reverse thrusters, then reestablish the portal.”
“Acknowledged,” said V. His hands flew like a hurricane over the front console.
Dr. Snowden watched as the portal disappeared. When the Torvatta spun around, he could see that they were accelerating toward the planet. Once V fired the reverse thrusters, the Torvatta moved forward at a crawl. It fired a green beam, and when the gold bordered portal with a purple surface appeared, the Torvatta inched toward it.
“Cut the thrusters!” said Evaran.
“Acknowledged.”
The Torvatta burst forward and through the portal.
Dr. Snowden looked around at the assembled nonhumans in the Helian grand chamber. It had been four days since they arrived back on Earth, and this was the inaugural meeting of the new United Nonhuman General Assembly, or UNGA, as Lord Vygon had called it. Every pantheon and nonhuman group with any political clout had a representative here. Dr. Snowden glanced at the empty seat to his left.
Evaran, seated to Dr. Snowden’s right, put a hand on Dr. Snowden’s shoulder. “She will be okay.”
Dr. Snowden sighed. “I know … just … odd to have her back, yet not have her back.” He swiveled his head. “Know what I mean?”
“I do,” said Evaran. “Give it time.”
Dr. Snowden rubbed his temples for a moment, then looked forward. Delia Everoak had taken front stage and stood at a podium, facing out toward the assembled crowd seated in front of her. He had talked with her and Lord Noskov some prior to this assembly, and although he was glad for them, his heart was still heavy. He swallowed hard as he focused on Delia.
“I call to order the first United Nonhuman General Assembly meeting!” said Delia with a booming voice that bounced around the room.
A raucous clapping echoed throughout the room.
“I am Delia Everoak, matriarch of the Ollikrin and first president of this assembly. Our world was under attack by a sinister threat. With the aid of those who shall remain nameless,” said Delia, glancing at Dr. Snowden and Evaran, “the threat has been neutralized. Our world is safe, for now, but we must stand, united, to face any future threat. This assembly will ensure that your voices are heard, your issues are tended to, and, more importantly, that we stand together, as one.”
Another round of cheering and clapping rang out.
“I’ll keep this brief, as there are others here who represent the senior council of this assembly and wish to speak. Getting organized will not be easy, but I have no doubt that we will overcome these obstacles. Over the coming months, we will establish new policies, procedures, and protocols and structure ourselves in a manner that lends itself to efficiency. The Ollikrin Nation is dedicated to supporting this, and we hope everyone here will partake in this new journey together. I would like to introduce Lord Vygon as our next speaker. Thank you.”
Dr. Snowden listened with interest over the next four hours as Lord Vygon, Lord Noskov, Elder Cyrus and Ira, Captain Laban, and various other high-ranking nonhumans spoke. Being a time traveler now, he could not tell anyone what he knew of the future. He understood Lord Vygon’s refusal to disclose any information. Telling the founding members that the only major organized group he knew of that made deals for Earth were the Helians would not help things.
One thing Dr. Snowden was sure of was that Delia Everoak would be a powerful figure, more than she was already, for the foreseeable future. He knew she was long-lived and wondered if she was around in his time period. Lord Noskov’s speech was short, but he made the same vague nod to Dr. Snowden and Evaran. Dr. Snowden chuckled, thinking Lord Noskov, while enjoying the power this would confer, did not like bureaucracy, yet here there he was.
The Helians intrigued Dr. Snowden. Captain Laban had given them an identification device that would allow entry to Atlantis at any point. He also mentioned that it was part of an Evaran protocol that would grant full clearance for any interaction in the future. Dr. Snowden wondered if they would ever use it. He liked Captain Laban. He was tough and blunt in his assessments, but had a kindness about him. Dr. Snowden could not say the same about Ira. If anyone were to disrupt this assembly from reaching its full potential, it would be him. Cyrus had become a strong supporter, and with his and Captain Laban’s support, most Helians were okay with the new arrangement.
After the meeting was over, Lord Vygon met them outside. “Long meeting …”
Dr. Snowden chuckled. “You did well. Everyone did, it’s an exciting time.”
“Maybe … but I suppose you and Evaran are off. Don’t want to leave too big of a footprint in time. Minimize it and all that.”
Evaran extended his arm. “You know me too well.”
“You better believe it,” said Lord Vygon with misted eyes. He grabbed Evaran’s forearm and shook it.
Evaran eyed Lord Vygon. “I suspect so
mething bad happens to me. You seem surprised or sad when you see me come and go.”
Lord Vygon frowned.
“I understand. My rules.”
Lord Vygon exhaled, then faced Dr. Snowden. “We will meet again, except I suspect you will have the advantage of knowing who I am.”
Dr. Snowden extended a hand. “You never know. This time-travel business makes my head spin sometimes.”
Lord Vygon chuckled and shook Dr. Snowden’s hand. “Take care of Emily. What her other self did was nothing short of heroic. I understand why she isn’t here.”
“I will.”
Lord Vygon took a step back and smirked. “You know … I had all mention of any involvement by you, Evaran, and Emily struck from the historical records. However, in order to recognize your contributions, the senior council recorded your interactions as a trio of adventurers, the noble traveler, the great tactician, and the heroic warrior.”
A chill swept across Dr. Snowden as he glanced at Evaran.
Evaran shook his head slightly.
“You sure you can’t stay a bit longer?” asked Lord Vygon.
Evaran raised his eyebrows.
Lord Vygon sighed. “Fine … fine. At least you know you will meet me again in your personal futures.”
Evaran nodded and wheeled around after another forearm shake.
Dr. Snowden shook Lord Vygon’s hand again and followed Evaran.
When they were a few feet away, Lord Vygon cleared his throat. “Oh … before I forget …”
Evaran stopped and turned around.
Lord Vygon exhaled from his mouth, and then shook his head. “Never mind. Good luck on your journeys.”
Evaran studied Lord Vygon for a moment and then headed off to the Torvatta with Dr. Snowden behind him.
After Dr. Snowden and Evaran got back to the Torvatta, Evaran went to the roof while Dr. Snowden met Emily in the conference room.
Dr. Snowden noted that Emily was wearing the same suit she had on when she was found at Central Command. He got his usual burger and fries lunch and sat at the table. Emily sat across from him with an orange drink that she had said was full of vitamins. She had joined him for breakfast, lunch, and dinner over the last few days, but due to the meeting he had just come from, lunch today was a bit later.
“How was the meeting?” asked Emily as she took a sip from her drink.
“It was good. Lot of speaking, but we know what happens in the future.”
Emily nodded. “Yeah … sorry about not coming. I just … don’t really want to be around others right now.”
“I know. Lord Vygon sends his well wishes to you.”
“I said good-bye to him yesterday.”
Dr. Snowden jerked his head back. “You did?”
“Yeah. He joined me in my morning training session after leaving you in the cartography lab. Showed me how to use the blades on his arms. Was pretty cool.”
“Oh … he didn’t mention that.”
Emily smirked. “He said I was the Emily he knew from his past.”
Dr. Snowden swallowed hard.
“You miss her … the other me … the old me,” said Emily.
Dr. Snowden gestured outward. “It was her decision. She wanted to go. I respect it, but it doesn’t mean I like it or understand it. She was you.”
“Yeah,” said Emily as a lump formed in her throat. “I just … need some time to sort all this out. I hope you understand.”
Dr. Snowden’s eyes softened. “Always.”
Emily reached across the table and laid her hand flat on the table.
Dr. Snowden grabbed it and forced a smile. “You’re not too old for an airplane ride.”
Emily chuckled as a tear ran down her cheek. “I learned on that planet … that life is precious. It’s also fragile, and I wasn’t ready for what happened to me. I won’t let that happen again. Ever.”
“It’ll never happen again. I promise.”
“Traveling with Evaran, do you think you could keep that promise?”
Dr. Snowden looked down. “Probably not. Maybe … we should go back home.”
Emily gulped. “This is the only place I feel safe. I’m not ready to leave.”
Dr. Snowden sighed.
Emily got up and walked around the table.
Dr. Snowden stood and hugged her tightly. “I wish this never happened.”
“I know,” said Emily. “But it has. I’ll deal with it.”
“I’m here if you need me.”
Emily’s body shuddered for a moment. “I know.” She stepped back and wiped her eyes, then laughed. “Look at us, crying like babies. Dad would say … well, hell.”
Dr. Snowden chuckled, then nodded. “He would.”
Emily half smiled, then exited the conference room.
Dr. Snowden put a hand on his temple and squinted. A pit had formed in his stomach. The vibrant, bubbly, full-of-life Emily he knew was gone, and in her place was a more serious and guarded version. Nanobot Emily had said she synced up memories, so maybe this change would not be permanent, or he could just be wishing it were not. He decided to visit Evaran on the roof.
Once there, he looked around and realized they were back at the rings of Saturn. Evaran was leaning against the light-blue guardrail on the roof edge. With a sigh, he joined Evaran. “So where, or rather, when are we?”
Evaran glanced at Dr. Snowden. “We are one hour past when we went back in time. It is now 10:00 a.m. on the third of June, two thousand twelve.”
Dr. Snowden shook his head. “If someone had seen us at nine, it would appear to them that we disappeared, then reappeared an hour later, right?”
Evaran nodded. “Correct. How is Emily?”
“She’s okay … I guess,” said Dr. Snowden, glancing at Evaran. “Thought I would never hear myself saying this, but she wants to be alone a lot.”
“Understandable. She went through a life-changing event. It will take her time to sort things out.”
Dr. Snowden nodded. “That’s what she said. I guess I just need to give her space.” His voice wavered. “No need for me to get in her way.”
Evaran scrutinized Dr. Snowden for a moment and then put a hand on his shoulder. “No. She needs you now more than ever, even if she does not realize it. You need to be her anchor.”
“How?”
“Be there for her. If she is training, go watch her. Suggest activities you can do together. Whatever brings her happiness, you need to support it,” said Evaran. He raised a finger. “She has expressed an interest in engineering.”
“What?”
“I suspect it is to understand and build things that she believes will make her safer.”
Dr. Snowden hung his head in his hands. “Go figure.”
“I am helping her learn. You should sit in.”
Dr. Snowden looked at Evaran. “I will.” He cleared his throat. “On another note, I have some questions if you have time.”
“I would not have it any other way,” said Evaran with a smile. “Go ahead.”
“That overlord,” said Dr. Snowden, “what exactly did he do to you?”
Evaran leaned against the guardrail again and looked over the rings. “He took a part of what constitutes me. As a consequence, I am not as physically capable as I was before.”
“Oh,” said Dr. Snowden. “Did he take some of your three-L?”
Evaran shook his head. “No.”
Dr. Snowden narrowed his eyes. “Okay … what did he mean then when he said he could re-form himself, thanks to you?”
Evaran paused for a moment. “Hopefully, you will never need to understand that. What’s important is that he is no longer in this plane.”
Dr. Snowden looked out for a moment. Evaran was keeping these answers close to his chest. He sighed and then faced Evaran. “So the overlord was a Hadryn spawn. Old friend of yours?”
“Not quite,” said Evaran. “The Hadryn are a humanoid race with immense power. They reside in their own plane system, but have som
ehow crossed over into this one, and more specifically, this plane and this universe. I am not sure what has changed.”
“That guy was crazy. If he’s from outside this plane, why does he care about human supremacy?”
Evaran glanced at Dr. Snowden, then looked out. “The Hadryn form, which you know as humanoid, is one they promote. To them, it is a symbol that even evolution bows to their will. It would appear they fixated on the closest match.”
“Lucky us,” said Dr. Snowden with a smirk.
“Indeed. Their true form is more akin to what you would refer to as a titan, just made of a type of energy instead of flesh and blood. However, when they came to this plane, they had to spawn a form, as I have. Plane’s rules.”
Dr. Snowden narrowed his eyes. “The plane has rules?”
Evaran’s eyes twinkled as he cast a sidelong glance at Dr. Snowden.
“Okay … so if this Hadryn race has a different form outside the plane, what’s yours?”
Evaran smiled. “Not something you would recognize.”
“I feel like I’m playing the question lottery,” said Dr. Snowden with a chuckle. “Just trying to wrap my head around all this. One thing that still puzzles me is that the overlord talked about a female Evaran.”
Evaran nodded. “Your curious nature continues to be a defining trait I like about this evolution of humanity. I am unsure who this other Evaran was, but it was not a past or future version of this form. Something to investigate at a later time.” He looked down and swallowed hard. “I sensed that she suffered horribly at the hands of the overlord before dying.”
Dr. Snowden’s eyes widened slightly. The thought of Evaran dying was a foreign concept to him. Evaran was eternal to Dr. Snowden. He knew Evaran could be hurt, but in the short time he had known Evaran, it just seemed unimaginable. “I suppose we couldn’t go back in time and save her.”
Evaran shook his head. “We cannot. It has been established that she dies, and I must respect that. Time is fluid, like a river. However, I try to avoid making ripples unless absolutely necessary.”
