//------------------------------// // Chapter XXV // Story: What I Am // by Knight Breeze //------------------------------// Chapter XXV Detective Callister stepped out of the McDonald's, a coffee and bag held in one hand, while his phone was in the other. He frowned slightly as he perused his news feed—nothing there but speculation and panic over what had happened over the last few weeks. Despite Agent Vale’s warning, the police station had not been attacked. In fact, ever since the abduction, people had been reporting all sorts of nonsense, but no actual, verifiable alien activity. At least, none that was being reported to the public. Callister sighed at the lack of information, and briefly wondered how Valerie was holding up. He hadn’t heard from her since the incident, but he trusted that she had been put into witness protection, simply because he hadn’t heard anything to the contrary. He was worried though. Not just about Valerie, but about everyone. The human race was in uncharted waters now. At any point they could be crushed by an alien armada bent on turning them all into slaves, snack-packs or just flat out exterminating them. Well, all of that could’ve happened before the abduction, but now we know that it could, and probably is, going to happen, Callister thought as he skimmed through another alleged alien sighting, before sighing to himself and pocketing his phone. I guess it’s really true what they say: Ignorance is bliss… Some of the other officers guessed that maybe it was only a one time thing. In fact, many people were either saying that, or that the whole thing was just a hoax; that this was nothing more than people messing around, or that the government was trying something sinister. But that’s what you get when you have a planet of seven billion crazies who thought up until now that they were alone in the universe, Callister thought as he began popping french fries into his mouth. Some are going to deny it, some are going to start stockpiling arms, while others are going to go straight to the loony bin, telling everyone that the world is coming to an end. Callister stopped for a minute as he stared up at the sky. At the moment, it was midday, which meant that the cloudy, overcast skies of Portland were nothing but a white wall. A white wall that seemed vaguely sinister, now that the detective knew that it could be hiding an alien armada bent on total global destruction. With a sigh of frustration, Callister opened his burger and chowed down, letting his feet take him onto the familiar route back to the police station. It wasn’t that far, and Callister was confident enough that he could do it blindfolded, provided that there was no one out that day. There was, so he still had to use his eyes somewhat as he navigated the way back to his workplace. He got a few friendly smiles, and some worried frowns, but for the most part everyone was going about their days as if nothing happened. Maybe that’s how it should be… Callister thought as he paused at the police station door. His eyes swept the busy streets one more time, his thoughts a tangled mess. Jill’s gone, so things are never going to be the same, but maybe that’s all there is to it. A weird occurrence, then everyone getting on with their lives. A few years later, this place will be a tourist trap, and everyone will have all but forgotten that a forensic scientist used to work here. That her friends and family are still looking to the skies, hoping that she’ll come home. After a few decades, it’ll have become an urban legend, and the world will keep on turning, like it all never mattered to begin with… Callister shook his head before pushing the door to the police station open. As much as the idea stung, he had the distinct feeling that this was all he was ever going to know about the matter. That he, and Jill for that matter, were nothing more than commas and periods in the march of history. That the world was never going to find out what happened to Jill Spivak, and that as riled up as everyone was, that was all that was going to come about from this whole incident. Well, if that’s all there is to it, then here’s to you, Jill. No one here’s going to forget about you. I’ll make sure of it... Callister thought as he drank deeply from his cup. Feeling strangely at peace, Callister made his way to the offices. He still had several cases to finish, and a few leads to follow. As much as he’d like to drop everything and search for his missing friend and colleague, there really wasn’t anything he could do. Life had to go on. He was so lost in thought that he nearly ran into Lieutenant Jefferson, who for some strange reason was standing right behind the door of the offices. “Hey, lieutenant, watch where you’re standing. You could… get…” Callister’s reprimand died in his throat when he realized what the lieutenant, as well as the rest of the police station, were all staring at. In the far ceiling corner of the police department’s main offices was a small TV. The sound was usually muted, but at the moment someone had turned up the volume to max, the reason for this being all too clear. On the screen was something that was distinctly not human. It had four eyes, a stub of a nose that was slitted, and when it opened its mouth, Callister could see that its teeth were far sharper than anything he knew that could talk. Its skin, or rather its scales, were a dull grey color, which only served to drive home just how alien the monster was. “Well, crap…” Callister said, right before throwing his empty coffee cup into a nearby trash can with considerable force. * * * It was as if the Earth itself stood still. All the television channels were broadcasting it. Every internet query had been replaced with a video of the same creature, and above every major city of the world there could be seen a small metallic object, projecting the same image and message for all to hear, in nearly every language spoken by man. Some would later find that the message did not come through on devices on closed networks, but this was a minor discovery, one whose importance was quickly forgotten in the wake of what was happening the world over. “Attention, people of Earth! By now, your radar and telescopes will have found a number of our ships in orbit around your planet, the sheer number and size of these vessels probably causing a great deal of stress and fear among your kind. Many of you are most likely rushing for your weapons, while others are gripping your families in fear of the unknown. Even as this recording is playing, your armed forces are mobilizing, while your nuclear weapons are being put on standby, your whole world covered in fear at what could only be an alien invasion,” the creature said, its face strangely sorrowful for something so alien. “Let me be the first to assure you that we have not come seeking your destruction: We have no need of the resources of your planet, it is against our highest laws to own slaves, and we do not need your planet for anything. Rest well this night, knowing that you and your families have not attracted the ire of The Holy Armada.” It was as if a weight had been lifted from the entire world. Many wept openly, while others could do nothing but hug those closest to them. Others watched with skepticism, however, certain that this couldn’t be all there was to it. Those people were proven right with the alien’s next words. “That is not to say that we come in peace, however. War is coming to your home, whether you want it or not. We have not come to conquer, but to warn and protect you from the impending disaster. Ready your weapons, gird up your armor, and prepare your people, for war is at your doorstep,” the creature said, crushing any hope it had planted with only a few words. “We will be convening with your leaders in a day’s time, to plan and prepare for the coming darkness. At precisely eleven-thirty, Eastern Standard Time tomorrow morning, High Priest Yovakior and his aides will arrive at the headquarters of the United Nations in New York to plan a proper defense. We suggest you hurry and prepare. Send your best and your brightest, for we are unsure of the timetable of our enemy. That is all.” And just like that, the message ended. Cable and satellite television resumed as if nothing had happened, the servers of the internet began returning their proper information, while the things hovering above every major city all disappeared in a flash of light, as if they had never been there in the first place. The riots that followed in some places told a different story entirely. * * * “As expected, High Priest, several riots and protests have already broken out. Our cousins were clearly unprepared for our arrival," Archmage Veltori said, his disdain bleeding into his voice. "Really... what kind of hysterical mind does it take to riot at the first sign of trouble?" “I imagine the kind that was quite comfortable with their position in life... but... protests? What could they possibly be protesting?” Yovakior asked with morbid curiosity. “Their governments did not invite us, so what exactly do they expect to come from that?" “I honestly could not say. I do not speak any of their languages well enough to give you a reason, but regardless, the signs are there. Quite literally, in some cases, oddly enough. It matches all the details we have in our database on how this people throw protests, but what they intend to accomplish is something I can only guess," the archmage said, sounding both impressed and incredulous. “I will have a few of my apprentices to work on it. In the meantime, I suggest we go ahead with the battle plan and begin mining the system.” “Agreed. Begin preparations at once, and get me-” Yovakior began, but stopped as his communications expert began speaking rapidly to someone on the other line, drawing the high priest’s attention. “Yes… yes, I’ll tell him. No, we already broadcasted the message. Yes, I know that is going to be a problem. Please, just wait, I’ll convey it all.” Lilith turned from her console, her face a mask of worry. “High Priest? We may have a problem…” “What is it?” Yovakior asked, somewhat amused. “I highly doubt it is worse than the trouble that is coming. Unless, of course, you are telling me that the Krin Empire remnants are already here.” “No, nothing like that, sir. However, it will still complicate things immensely." Lilith took a deep breath, before turning back to her console and pressing a few keys. "The Tempest on the Horizon came back into being near the planet Mars as expected and began extraction procedures of our outpost on the moon. However, while they were there, they found that it had sustained significant damages consistent with Krin plasma weapons. Computer Yavaar survived, but it seems like he took some… unorthodox measures in lieu of a chain of command.” “How unorthodox?" “...I’ll send you the long version to your terminal. Just know that, from what I’ve been able to gather, he hasn’t done anything illegal.” That immediately sent up some red flags for the High Priest. “I have the distinct impression that whatever it is that Yavaar has done would have given him the death sentence without that qualifier.” Lilith winced a little, before pressing a single button and sending the rest of the report to the High Priest’s tablet. “It is. At this moment, The Tempest on the Horizon is playing host to a group of human rescue workers. Yavaar had apparently enlisted them to help dig himself out as part of a multi-step plan in readying the planet for any Krin incursion.” The silence on the bridge was deafening. “...Are you telling me that our cousins are already aware of our existence?” “That could explain some of the protests. They probably believe we are overstepping our authority or something similar," Veltori pointed out helpfully. Yovakior closed his eyes for a few seconds, before shaking his head, as if trying to shake out the thoughts lurking within. “I don’t think we want to jump to conclusions just yet. Tell The Tempest on the Horizon to extract Computer Yavaar as quickly as possible; I want his storage vessel installed into a personal assistant before the end of the day. As for the human workers, have them transferred to this ship. We’ll work out what we need to do from there after I’ve spoken with their leader.” “Right away, sir!” Lilith said with a slight bow. “Kelaran, I’ll leave preparations of the battlefield to you for now,” Yovakior said to his second voice, holding up his tablet as an explanation. “I’ll be reviewing Yavaar’s report and revising my speech for this... United Nations of theirs. We’ll need it done before the day is out, to allow our translators time to prepare it. Ingred?” “Yes, High Priest?” the computer chimed. “Let me know the second the humans are on board the ship. I want their people well taken care of, and their leader brought to me with an interpreter as soon as possible.” “Yes, High Priest.” Without another word, High Priest Yovakior, Aram of the Holy Armada, and Leader of the Earth Expedition, left the bridge, confident in his people’s ability to defend the system for the short time he was gone. * * * Twilight Sparkle stared at the diagram, not quite sure how the entirety of Equusian history could have missed this simple concept. The actual mechanisms were insanely complicated, but the idea of ‘machines only understanding two things’ was so simple that she couldn’t believe that nopony had realized it before. The idea itself could revolutionize golemmancy even without the human’s input. The whole idea behind golemancy was an attempt to make the inanimate mimic the animate, to force that which had no life of its own to take on the semblance of the living. Human computers weren’t anything of the sort. They were, quite simply, the descendant of the simplest, most basic of arithmetic tools: The abacus. Everything it actually did, at the most basic of basic of levels, was math. Base two math, to be precise. At first, Twilight was somewhat confused how this could be of any use; base two was very limiting, and could only express so much. It was when Alex had pointed out that a single ant wasn’t capable of much, either, that Twilight finally started understanding just how powerful this technology was. With this newfound perspective, Twilight had begun to reexamine every single one of the human’s designs. She still didn’t understand half of it, but she now knew why it had to be so complex. She also knew that, even with the human’s help, there was just too much work to be done to ever get this design ready before Equus was attacked. “Alex, tell me, just how were you intending on getting this all done? This… compiler would take years to complete, especially when it’s only you working on it!” “I’ve got a few ideas…” Alex said, before turning and looking around the lab. “It comes down to a couple of things, actually, but it all starts with that cat I repurposed. I had someone send it down, but I’m not-” “It’s right here, my friend,” Razorback said, holding up the box that had been delivered earlier that day. “I’ve been looking through the modifications, and I must say, it is truly an impressive feat that it functions at all.” “Thanks for that,” Alex said, before taking the box from the minotaur. “We should get to work on this, to see if we can’t prove any of my ideas right. If I’m wrong, though, we still have a few options. And hey, maybe we could have some combination of my ideas work in tandem!” “You still haven’t told us what any of these ideas are, though,” Princess Celestia said, before taking a couple of steps back as the human swept past her to an empty workbench. The human didn’t seem to hear her, as he proceeded to dump the whole affair out on the counter, before he began looking around for something. “Lets see… screwdriver or… ah, this looks like it’ll do the trick!” “Alex, could you please just-” Twilight said, before jumping slightly as the human pried off the side panel on the cat and began pulling out the plates that he had made. “What are you doing!?” Razorback said, moving forward to stop the human. “I’m… um, I don’t know your word for it. Humans call it cannibalism. I’m taking something, and using it for something else,” the human said, before he pulled out the other plates. “I need these to test my idea, if we’re going to be doing this at all within the next week.” “But what is your idea?” Celestia asked, taking the plates from the human with her magic, forcing him to slow down for a few seconds. Alex took a deep, cleansing breath, before letting it out in an explosive huff. “How are the remnants of my friends able to control this thing?” he asked, pointing towards the cat. “...Because of these plates?” Celestia asked somewhat blankly as she held up the things that Alex had created. Alex shook his head, then began talking really fast, using words in his own language in place of those that clearly did not exist in the Equestrian tongue. “Those only have the hardware. The components that actually do the thinking. I’ve looked through my notes, and when I was busy going all glowy, I didn’t write a single line of code. There’s nothing there to act as a compiler, no operating system, not a single program.” Celestia looked at them carefully. “I’m not sure what you mean…” “Princess, I’ve looked through Alex’s notes, and from what he’s managed to explain, the physical form of these computers is only a piece of the puzzle. It’s a large piece, but it’s still useless without any of the other pieces,” Twilight said as she trotted forward, levitating some of the documents. “Without any actual instructions, they’re about as useful as the omniscope without the golem interface.” “And what I mean, is that I didn’t write any instructions,” Alex said as he pulled a number of metallic rods from his pocket. “These don’t have a single line of code. Nothing to act as a compiler, and nothing to translate the thoughts of my friend’s remains into movement for the golem. The only thing I made was the boards themselves.” Celestia stared at the human thoughtfully. “But… earlier, when I talked to Doctor Burner, he told me that you altered the original instructions for the golem. If that’s not the case, then how…?” “Your sister said that anything with a soul also has a magical field, with the reverse being true. What about something that only has a part of a soul? What happens then?” “It would still have a field, but it would be wildly unstable. It would slowly break down, before disintegrating entirely, as the soul shards passed through the veil,” Celestia said, almost automatically. “Honestly, it’s only because of your own field that they lasted this long…” Alex looked down at the shards, a thoughtful look on his face. “Well, since the field’s still there, just unstable, couldn’t these guys do some magic themselves? Couldn’t they act as the operating system, compiler, and programs?” “It is a possibility, but anything they do would be far more erratic than what you're proposing,” Razorback said, before taking a couple of steps forward. “We of the Isle of Minos have had a longstanding tradition when it comes to ghosts, that their essences need to be dispersed before we try anything with golemmancy, as they can disrupt some of the more delicate and refined processes. Whatever they produce, however, is quite random, and is not nearly as alive as the shards you hold in your hand.” “Well, what if they had a little help?” Alex asked as he looked to all the assembled faces, as if seeking validation. “I may not look like it, but I’m actually quite the expert when it comes to my craft. You said they were relying on me to stay in this world. Well, what if they were doing more than that? What if they were tapping into my knowledge and experiences, to help me with this kind of stuff?” The assembled ponies, griffons and one minotaur, all paused at that, all of them lost in thought. “To my knowledge, nothing like this has happened before…” Celestia said after some time. “Ugh.” “This is an unexplored field of magic, but there is a reason for it,” Twilight said, before taking one of the rods from Alex’s hand. “She’s right. Shards are too dangerous for us to directly interfere with, mainly because of how they’re sliding into the veil,” Razorback said, before taking another rod from the human and giving it a once over. “There have been a few cases of people trying to commune with these remnants, or with the people beyond the veil. They’ve either gone completely insane, and committed suicide, or they’ve succumbed themselves, and have been siphoned away with the very souls they’re trying to talk to. You, as far as I can remember, are a unique case.” “At least, I’m a unique case as far as we know,” Alex said, before taking back the golem cores and the plates. “There may be alien races out there that have already cracked the secrets of this veil. Besides, it’s not like we have time to argue about all of this. Even if we went back to Earth today, and I brought back a host of programmers, I don’t think we’d have what we need finished in time.” The assembled people all looked nervously at one another, before Celestia gave a single nod towards the human. “Fine. Do whatever experiment you were planning. As for the rest of you, ready the omniscope. We may have it ready earlier than we anticipated. However, I would have one more word with you in private, Alex.” The human looked a little surprised, but put down the things he was carrying to follow Celestia out of the room. Twilight briefly wondered what they were talking about, before shaking herself to get back to work. * * * “So, what did you want to talk about?” I asked as soon as I shut the door. “Alex… before you were taken by Queen Titania, my sister and I were speaking with the alien delegates... Mainly, the snake one spoke, and we listened. I have the impression that she is quite powerful, as the bug did not speak the entire time. Her name was… Ack-e-teth,” Celestia said, chewing on the unfamiliar and alien word. It sounded oddly Egyptian, though I knew it was probably just a coincidence. “And she had something she wanted me to ask you. I don't trust her, so don't feel like you're being pressured into doing what she wants." I took a deep breath, before letting it out. “It’ll probably be okay, whatever it is.” Celestia looked a little shocked at this, but I continued before she was able to interject. "I’m sorry that I haven’t been able to tell you much of what I know… I found out a lot about both of their people when I was looking in the bug’s computer. While I wouldn’t exactly trust either of them, I do know that the Quzin... the snakes, have had the opportunity to take over your world a hundred times over, and have done nothing. You can rest easy knowing they’re not your enemies.” “What do you mean?” Celestia asked, her eyes filled with a mixture of curiosity and dread. “Apparently there is this huge swath of… what is the word for the place beyond your world?” I asked, my lexicon coming up with blanks. “Kashuta? It means everything above the sky, and past the moon and sun.” “Ah… space… Yes, there is a huge swath of space that the snakes claim, protect and patrol. Your world happens to fall into that space,” I told her as I ignored the Krin text scrolling at the bottom corner of my vision. Celestia looked like she had just heard something that she had already suspected. “You mean they claim ownership of our world already?” “No, no… um…” I thought for a second, trying to figure out the right word. It wasn’t coming, so I decided to improvise. “It's like if you had a child, and you had something you want to give him, but you know he’s not old enough for it yet. That’s what they claim. They recognize this world, everything on it, as well as the surrounding area, as yours. However-” “They do not feel we are ready for the responsibility…” Celestia said, letting out a humorless chuckle. “Then the feeling I was getting that she was talking to a child-” “Was completely accurate. She views us both as children, and she’s treating us as such.” We were both quiet for some time after that. The thought of being treated like a child by an alien snake creature, while somewhat funny, was still a bit galling. I could only imagine that Celestia was thinking along the same lines, though it was probably more so for her, considering her age. “Ahem… well, what was it that she wanted you to ask me?” I asked, bringing us back to the original reason she had pulled me away from the others. “...She wants to look inside your mind,” Celestia said, her voice leaving no doubt on how she felt about the matter. “She says it’s because you might remember something, something that would help them find where these ‘traitors’ are hiding. That you might have heard or seen something that you wouldn’t have recognized as a clue...” The white pony in front of me trailed off, but I didn’t need her to finish what she was saying. I understood completely what this 'Ack-e-teth' wanted from me. I also knew that they could probably do things to my head that no one would know about until too late. But on the other hand… if these snakes are shooting straight with us… then it would mean catching those who are ultimately responsible… I thought as I silently agonized over the decision before me. Celestia obviously could sense my discomfort, and set a hoof on my shoulder, trying to steady me. “Don’t worry. You don’t have to if-” “No… no, this is important…” I muttered, interrupting her. She looked at me closely, her brows furrowed in concentration. “You really don’t have to do this. You don’t even have to decide now. They’re not here, after all. In fact, put this out of your mind, and concentrate on what’s in front of you. We’ll decide this later.” Celestia let her hoof fall back to the floor and turned to leave. “I still have much to do today, and the aliens said they’d come tomorrow. For now, work on the Omniscope. You can give me your decision in the morning.” She then opened the door to the little side room we were using and left me to my thoughts. A dangerous action to be sure, but I sort of needed to be alone right then. After all, I had a difficult decision to make.