His consciousness wandered, wondering what to do, what would happen … how to continue, maybe find some way to connect to the network, look for the creature with whom I speak. Rest, I thought what I was feeling now was tired, matches the term. He had expended too much energy, and his body was not responding too well.
He silenced the city, and the last thing Ethius felt was the impact through his body.
After accompanying her friends, Noelle took Tom and Drako to their apartment. Tom made Drako revert to his digital form because he wouldn’t fit in because of his size.
Her tutor contacted her when she reached the atmosphere of vyndra, was part of the military exercise in space and asked how she was doing. He didn’t tell her everything but did tell him what happened. Not sure how the situation would progress, his guardian decided to take him directly to the army base.
Noelle stayed with him for a few hours, he took a bath, but his combat suit was challenging to clean here. They talked about training and some exercises I could do. He felt how Tom’s mental state was; he asked him how he thought about everything that happened in that hour. The only thing the boy said was that he was happy that she and all his friends were okay.
As he chatted, Noelle remembered his brother’s situation. He didn’t know how it was related to what happened, considering his personality. He wouldn’t get involved in something like that, but maybe he didn’t know where he called himself.
He also did not know if he was still in the city, but in their meeting, and made clear his intentions and what he wanted to achieve.
Should I keep looking for it, or would it be better to take some time to think through what to do?
Undoubtedly the general situation of vyndra will change after today; the abduction of gifted and creatures through an invasion that no one noticed will cause great turmoil in this solar system.
He did not forget that creature; the army would indeed seek to guard him. He was too powerful and dangerous to let him loose. The little he said indicated how unstable he was.
It was one of the reasons she stayed with Tom for so long. There was a chance that she would look for him.
Finally, Tom’s tutor arrived. After seeing her, the man asked Tom for some time alone to talk to her.
Outside the apartment, Tom took Drako out in his primal form and the little boy.
“What do you think happened to that creature?” Drako asked Tom as he watched him play with the little one.
-Mmm … I don’t know, and he asked me what happened to him. He seemed to be suffering a lot. — He received a notification about the center.- It appears that there will be no classes for a while; well, they will refer us to other schools. I hope they don’t separate us.
With Drako’s knowledge, he knew that there were events that could render a person mentally unstable.
When they were only digital beings, the creatures fought and, in turn, always destroyed the areas where they lived in the simulated world. But this was quickly restored; the same happened with the damage in combat; for them, it was nothing more than statistics and accounting figures. It was the legacy of part of their playful origin that they kept until the singularity changed everything.
Now, with the new existential paradigm, everything was different. A new world would have been for his “species.”
And today, he murdered other living beings.
How did he feel about that? Should he be judged? Did he do good or bad?
Many questions were running through his mind, but he didn’t want to discuss this with Tom. Not now, he felt like he had to think it alone first.
Beside her, Tom wondered much the same. I did not kill directly, as I did not have blunt weapons. His ability to attack with gusts of wind wasn’t powerful enough to do so, but it did create openings for others to do so.
He saw his friends do it, and the other children and teenagers who were at the security station.
It was not the first time he had seen corpses.
He diverted his thought, did not want to sink into those memories. He wondered what his teacher and tutor were talking about, “surely it would be about what happened today,” he muttered.
He felt a bite on his fingers; when he paid attention to the little dragon looking at him, he realized that his hands were shaking.
He could not forget the image of those murdered people or the dead that he saw today; Suddenly, she remembered the smell of blood, and a sensation of acidity ran down her throat, accompanied by sudden dizziness.
He pulled the little boy off his lap as less roughly as he could and went to the side where he began to vomit.
Meanwhile, inside the apartment.
“Are you sure?” Mack asked.
– Yes, I may be looking for Tom’s creature.
– Then it would not be safe to take it to the base; they transferred the creature to the ground a few hours ago, after finding it unconscious. And if it’s as strong as I hear, I’m not sure if they’ll be able to hold it back when I wake up …- he said thoughtfully.
– It may not be necessary to contain him … but I think the ideal would be to deal with him with a creature nearby.
– I’m not sure, but I think they will … sorry, it’s a habit of mine to think of the worst cases
– I get it. Well … what will you do with him then?
– Honestly, I don’t know … I don’t think I can be with him when he comes back, and I don’t know what orders I’ll receive after this.
– …
– How long will you stay in the city?
– I do not know. I think it would be better to wait a while until things calm down a bit.
– Maybe they will send me away after this … – after thinking a bit, he continued.- I am taking care of the child at the request of a friend. This apartment is already in Tom’s name; we make sure he can grow up with all his comforts possible; are financially insured for a few years. As much as possible, I want what I know to stay here, and without a doubt, my work from today will be more moved.
“You want me to take care of him,” Noelle interrupted.
– Is it possible? It would help if you didn’t think that I want to get rid of it. I don’t know what can happen from now on …
“Makes sense,” Noelle thought, but she wasn’t sure. If he accepts, he will have to stay until Tom graduates, and the usual thing would be to do so, in his line of work, it is not unusual to settle in a city and teach. Still, it was not his original plan; he could not forget his brother’s situation … he was not sure what to do.
She calmed her mind and regulated her breathing. She thought about what had happened so far, wondered if she should go after her brother if she had the determination to search for her.
She couldn’t deny her wishes; the good and the bad were subjective. As universal as specific moral ideas may become, the nuances of these vary from person to person.
And she acted on her judgment, but she never tried to instill her ideas in other people. She was looking for her brother to know why she had disappeared, not to bring her back. She had to go her own way.
She was conflicted about why after their meeting, she realized that she never cared to understand him. She took things for granted that she never asked, and because of that “weakness” she had decided to seek strength, a strength that she had achieved …
-Okay… you can count on me. – Noelle said after a long silence.
“Thanks, it’s a relief.” I sigh. – I sincerely believe that the best thing for him is to stay in this city. I change a lot at this time, although … the truth is I did not do anything for that … well, I’ll take it with me today. I imagine you must have things to do.
– Yes … well, I’ll be in touch.
Noelle wanted to ask him about how the child got to Vyndra and this person who entrusted Mack to take care of him, but she held back.
Outside the apartment, she saw that Tom was a little pale with her creatures. I notice that he had vomited on one side; he looked at him for a moment and remembered his childhood. He still didn’t feel that he was what an adult was supposed to do, 16 was the age when humans were considered an adult in Vyndra. However, it could be inferred that this was to bind and indoctrinate the gifted.
-See you later, boy.
-Yes, teacher.- Tom answered
Later, she went with her tutor to the base; on the way, she noticed that the city had not suffered too much. It was different from what happened in the non-humans. The most damaged building was just her school.
I talk a bit with her tutor, she told her about Drako’s evolution, I introduce her to the little boy, and I talk more about what happened at that time. As he spoke, fatigue suddenly attacked him, and at some point, he fell asleep on the vehicle.
