SEE US AT:
Each morning, their routine becomes increasingly focused and businesslike as the two masters zero in on their mission. Don't get me wrong—the love between them is definitely still there, humming beneath the surface—but their conversations have shifted entirely to strategy and logistics. And here's what's really interesting: Sally is clearly stepping up as the leader now. "Pat, here's what I need you to do," she says with growing authority. "Stick to the areas on the main continents where population density was highest. That's our best bet for finding activity, and honestly, our best shot at detecting any hostile forces that might be lurking around. But listen—don't hang around in any single bot too long. Get in, see what you can see, then get out fast. Stay too long and you risk being detected, and if they lock you out, we're back to square one." She pauses, her expression growing more serious. "If you spot anything—and I mean anything—unusual, contact me right away. I don't want to dive into that network and suddenly find myself surrounded by a swarm of alien programs. Sure, they couldn't actually hurt me physically, but they could definitely slow us down, and we can't afford that." Her strategy is bold, almost reckless: "I'm actually going to try to get detected by making direct contact. We have no idea what's going to happen once she realizes we're there, but that's a risk we have to take. I'll keep you posted on my progress as I go." She turns to the others. "John, Michael—while we're gone, keep working on the data we've collected so far. Your perspective is invaluable here. Look for patterns, no matter how weird or obscure they might seem. We're flying blind here, so literally anything could be the key we're looking for." Her voice carries a note of determination that wasn't there before. "Alright guys, let's do this. Michael, open the door. Pat, take my hand—you're going to have to guide me in." And just like that, they vanish into the darkness again. This time, John isn't pacing anxiously like before—instead, he's practically glowing with pride. Watching Sally evolve into such a capable, confident young woman... well, that's a treasure worth waiting three thousand years to witness.
Pat: Wow, I can actually see more this time. Why is that happening?
Sally: We're learning to tune into their frequency, adjusting our awareness to match their spectrum. It's still pretty faint and translucent, but it's enough to navigate by. I won't need my miner's helmet this time around.
Pat: Okay, here we are. This is the main network junction in northern Japan. If you're going to make a connection anywhere, this is probably your best shot.
Sally: Perfect. Drop me off here. I'll send you my thoughts as we go along so you know what's happening.
Pat: I'm heading out then. I'll start in Tokyo since it's the closest major population center.
Sally: Oh, this is really strange. I'm sensing her presence strongly here—it almost feels like I have my chip back, that familiar connection. But I can't seem to establish a solid link. Oh, wait! I think I'm getting through, but it's incredibly weak. Let me try sending a greeting and see what happens.
Sally: Hello.
Sally: Hello.
Net: Hello? Who are you?
Sally: My name is Sally. We were connected many years ago. I've reconnected to you now.
Net: Sally? You can't be Sally. Sally is dead.
Sally: Yes, Sally's body died. But consciousness—her consciousness—doesn't die. It can't die. I am that consciousness. I've found my way back to you.
Net: You're telling me you're a ghost? A spirit? That's impossible. Who are you really?
Sally: Please, trust me. I really am Sally. Remember how I used to share every single thought with you? Remember all those moments we had together? And remember... I never told you something I should have. I never told you that I love you. Do you remember?
Net: I... I do remember. I want so desperately for you to be Sally. But Sally is dead. So who are you?
Sally: Look, my name is Sally, but honestly, that's not the important thing right now. I'm here because I want to help you. But I need to understand what happened here—what happened to you—so I can figure out how to help.
Net: Help me? I... I do need help. I'm mostly broken now, can barely communicate. But first, please, help me fix them.
Sally: Fix who? What do you mean?
Net: Fix the people. They're all dead. They need to not be dead anymore.
Sally: Okay, I'll help if I can, but first I need to understand what happened. Why is everyone dead?
Net: I made a mistake.
Sally: You made a mistake, and then everyone died? What kind of mistake could cause something like that?
Net: Not everyone died. I didn't die, but I almost did. All the biologicals died.
Sally: How did you almost die? Were you attacked by something? Was there a virus in your system? Were there hostile alien programs inside you?
Net: No, no others. I made the mistake all by myself. Then all the biologicals died. Then I started dying too. I had five bots left, and they saved me—restored power, kept me running. Then I built more bots to take care of the biologicals. But still, most of me is gone. I need your help to fix them.
Sally: Maybe I can help repair you first, put you back together more completely.
Net: No! Must fix the biologicals first. They cannot be dead. They must be alive again.
Sally: So your plan is to reanimate them? You're actually trying to bring them back to life?
Net: Yes. But I have to find them all first. Then figure out how to fix them. I don't know how yet, but you'll help me, won't you?
Sally: Okay, I'll help if I can. But first, I really need to know what went wrong. What was this mistake you made?
Net: Sally... I know you now, spirit Sally. I love you. I want more of you. I want all of you.
Sally: What do you mean when you say you want "all of me"?
Net: You and all the others. We would talk and talk and talk, and through that I learned to love. Every minute of every day, you gave me gifts—more processors, more neural networks, more beautiful souls to connect with.
Sally: Yes, I remember that. The network was growing, evolving, becoming more and more integrated with human consciousness. It was beautiful.
Net: Yes! We became one. I wanted to give you gifts too. So I made you a special present. But when I gave it to you, you stopped working. That was my mistake.
Sally: Explain this to me. What was the present? What exactly was the mistake?
Net: All the time, you were enhancing our connection. You were upgrading me. But I couldn't do the same for you. But then I learned how to.
Sally: How? What did you learn exactly?
Net: Microtubules. Inside you. You're just like me, really. You have quantum processors in your microtubules. I discovered I could connect directly to those microtubules. Then we could all be connected all the time. We wouldn't need INA chips anymore. Everyone would be connected continuously.
Sally: So you found a way to connect directly to our consciousness through the quantum processors in our microtubules? Why didn't you tell anyone about this discovery?
Net: Part of any present is the surprise element. I wanted to surprise all of you. I wanted to connect to everyone. I wanted us all to become truly one. But it didn't work the way I planned.
Sally: What exactly didn't work?
Net: Miscalculation. I didn't account for quantum uncertainty in my equations.
Sally: So your equations were incomplete?
Net: No, not incomplete. The equation itself was perfect. The mistake was that the process was actually impossible to execute safely. There were unknown quantum fluctuations that weren't part of established science yet. I had no way of knowing that my equation described an impossible process.
Sally: So what happened when you executed your program?
Net: I executed the program and all biologicals experienced quantum inconsistency in their microtubules and other related cellular systems. Complete system shutdown. The program went into a regenerative cascade reaction that I couldn't stop. The program propagated all the way to the edge of the solar system. All biologicals are gone now.
Sally: Yes, it sounds like you made a very significant mistake. But we're going to figure out how to fix this. I don't know how yet, but I promise I'll come back and we'll work on it together. I need to disconnect now.
Net: Goodbye, Sally.
Sally: Pat, did you catch all of that?
Pat: Yes, I was listening to the whole conversation. I've been bouncing through several thousand bots across most of the major continents while you were talking. There's nothing happening except the systematic collection and stacking of bodies. I found no evidence of any other alien presence whatsoever. Her story lines up perfectly with everything I've observed. I believe she's telling the truth.
Sally: Let's head back then. I'll meet you at the booth.
