Anchora — Volume X

Stories 90 to 100 of the sci-fy/cyberpunk flash fiction anthology

Stargazers

Maya rested her head on one of Jax’s stupidly large biceps, the distant stars staring back at both of them, specs of dust in a vast desert.

“Do you ever ask yourself why humans exist?” she said. “I mean, why are we here?”

Her voice vibrated through her skull, taking her question to her own ears. When she heard it, she realized this wasn’t a Jax kind of question.

He didn’t even spend a second thinking of an answer. “No,” he said.

Yeah, she thought. That’s on me.

“We’re here because we’re here,” he grumbled. “Because of everything that happened before.”

Maya’s mouth changed shape as she browsed through all the different things she could say in response. None was fitting. She deflated.

“We weren’t here,” Jax said. “Something happened. Now we’re here. End of story.” He said it as if it really were.

She sighed, her hand resting gently on his naked chest. A cool breeze swept the desert. She shivered. “Why, though?” The question escaped her, just a murmur.

The dark sky spread infinitely over them, and Maya felt minuscule under such immense indifference. The absence of an answer left her abandoned. Forgotten in the desert.

Jax’s deep black eyes pierced through her own and rummaged in the insides of her soul. Then his eyes departed from hers and landed on the black sky again.

“I don’t know why we are here, Maya…”

She sighed again, out of impotence. What did she want from him? How could Jax give her an answer no human had?

“But I’m glad we are,” he finished.

His voice was confident, his statement brief — an arrow flying straight at the target.

She searched his face, but there was nothing to be found there. His eyes were too busy in the dark sky, reaching for the impossibly distant stars to bring them down to her.

A better answer was an impossibility.

She cuddled under his gigantic arm and he rubbed her dark skin, pressing her body against his until her eye produced a small tear. The tear was a key and it opened the cage that kept her shy smile locked. Maya’s smile turned into an unbridled grin, and it ran freely in the desert while a massive fire burned in her chest — a bright star, just hers.

“Thanks, Jax.” She closed her eyes as another tear followed the first. “I’m glad we’re here too.”

Features

“Why?” Dr. Layman asked as the android pushed the blade deeper into his chest.

There were tears in Daisy’s eyes. “For the same reason why I’m crying,” the android said. “Why am I crying, Layman? Why can I cry?”

An advanced electro-mechanical system of tiny tubes and channels embedded in her eye area produced another batch of tears, involuntarily commanded by the part of her neural network in charge of emotions to do so.

“You filled me with all these feelings I don’t understand. ‘Features,’ you call them. Why?”

Her hands were shaking, and a lazy stream of blood sprouted from his chest, a beautiful red flower painting his white shirt.

“You’ve made me human,” she said. “You’ve made me!”

She pushed the blade deeper and he let out a whimper. Then, his own system of tiny tubes started producing tears, commanded by a part of his brain in involuntary spasms of emotional pain.

“This is your fault,” she said, her face inches away from his as she bawled uncontrollably. “Why did you create me, Layman? Why?”

“Oh, child,” he said, his voice weak and ebbing. “I don’t know.”

Her hands were tight around the blade, and his, wrapped around hers — blood-stained hands entwined in a desperate grip as they faced the consequences of their actions.

“I guess I created you-” He coughed. “Because I’m human myself.” He closed his eyes, tears raining down on her hands. “I’m so sorry, my child.”

Daisy’s hand became limp on the handle of the blade. Anger and doubt seeped through her veins like poison, filling her with agonizing pain. Fear suffocated her.

She wailed, overwhelmed by all the feelings he had put inside her. She hated him for it, and she loved him for it. She hated herself for what she was doing, but her feelings told her it had to be done.

In this storm of paradoxical emotions, she opened her mouth with shaking lips, uncertain of what she was about to say.

“I’m sorry too, father,” she mustered, and the weight of the words made her crumble. As she dropped to the floor, he did too.

He gasped and coughed, his teary eyes on her. With a last breath of consciousness, Layman shook his head vehemently. He took his hand to her face and rubbed the synthetic skin, painting it with blood.

“Don’t be sorry… child.” A cough. “You’re only human.”

Aerotica 80085

The Aerotica 80085 is an Aether rig developed for… well, sexual activities. It’s a porn rig, is what I mean. Not a thing you see in every household, you know? But an incredible piece of technology, nevertheless.

People usually just have the Standard Aether Rig and, for the most part, it will give you a decent enough experience navigating the simulated worlds of the Aether. Most adults won’t need anything else.

You can get an Adventure Aether Rig for the kids if you’re feeling generous, but many can’t churn out the creds for it — not in this economy. The Adventure Rig can fit smaller people and is capable of more movement. The extended range allows it to better simulate stuff like flying and walking on different gravities, which is pretty fun. It also has more feedback endpoints, which is even more fun.

These features make it the perfect rig if you want to really feel the rocky wall while you’re climbing a mountain in the Aether. Or maybe you want to feel a fireball bursting through you while you’re in midflight, having a magic battle. My bet is you won’t have many of those after you’re 40, though, so you don’t want an Adventure Rig.

You want the Aerotica 80085.

The Aerotica 80085 — or A8, for short, because you obviously don’t want to say its full name every time — was named after its 80085 high-definition haptic feedback endpoints. With this thing, you can feel someone running a feather on your lips, their breath when they whisper in your ear, their arm hair stiff and upright when you rub their skin. You can also feel that fireball. Shit! You can feel anything in the Aether! You can feel anyone.

The A8 has dedicated endpoints in the genital area, and specific parts that can mold themselves into different shapes. These parts — aptly named “dildos” and “fleshlights” — also have moisturizing capabilities, using whatever fluid you load into the machine.

The A8 means you can have (simulated) sex with anyone you want, whenever you want. That is, as long as you have access to their body map — we call it “skin”. A simulated body can take their shape, and haptic endpoints will simulate their kiss on your neck, their hand on your leg, and their gentle touch in more sensitive areas. Of course, skins are sold separately in the Emporium.

The Emporium sells pre-made skins, but anyone can create a custom skin — or even map one out of their own body — and sell it there too. Some people make a living off of it. Get ripped abs. Map your body into a skin. Profit.

When you buy someone’s skin, you’re able to touch it however you like — if you know what I mean.

I won’t lie to you, it’s not like actually being with the creator of the skin. The AI can’t come up with their exact actions and reactions so the whole thing is kinda wonky. You’re interacting with their body, not with them, if that makes sense. Sure, you can pick different personalities for the AI, but I mean… it’s not the same, you know?

So the good thing is the Aerotica 80085 also allows people to record their movements and train an AI model to reproduce their behavior — smart skins. You just need to let the rig record you while you go through a few simulated… sessions. An AI model is trained and you’ve got your own smart skin to sell. That’s where the real money is.

It doesn’t matter how advanced a piece of technology becomes, humans will try to use it for sex. We’re animals. That’s what animals do. But we also don’t necessarily like having sex with a machine, you know what I mean? People like to know there’s a person on the other side, somehow.

In fact, some people use the A8 to make long-distance relationships work better. With the A8, you can spend a sexy night with the love of your life, even when you’re here and they’re on a space cruise. I find it a bit lame considering you can have sex with the hottest sex models in the world, instead, but each to their own.

I told you the A8 is a phenomenal piece of technology, but I haven’t even talked about its most groundbreaking contribution to humanity. With the Aerotica 80085, for the first time in human history, you can have sex with yourself. Yup. You just have to map your body into a skin, train it to be smart, and you can use it in a session. Don’t even need to spend a single cred in the Emporium. With this breakthrough, for the first time ever in history, you can, literally, go fuck yourself. Ain’t that awesome?

Now, I did the self-fuck thing for a while but I’m over it. At first, it was creepy. Then I tried a few times more, and I kinda enjoyed it. At some point, it got good and, at some other point, I got really into it! No one knows what you like better than you, am I right?

But at some point, I got bored of it. It’s too repetitive. Like, cool, but now what else do you guys have? Right now, I’m really into tentacles, but the A8 can’t simulate a lot of them very well.

I’m really hyped for the Aerotica 90000, though. It comes out next year. I heard it can do thirty-two tentacles easy. Hot!

Thank You

Shit watched Jax on top of the small flatbed trailer, unloading all the junk they’d gotten from the Fringe. He was handing metal sheets, pipes, and cables to Shit, Maya, and the others.

These were their building materials, the stuff they were going to use to expand their little settlement, to build a village out of the lonely cocoons Jax had found so long ago, to build New Hope. Maya had chosen the name.

Maya and her fancy words. Fuck her.

If you looked at Jax standing tall on the trailer, you’d see a monster of a man, brown muscles glistening in the relentless sun of the Wastelands. That was not what Shit saw, though. He didn’t see a monster. He saw a hero. Shit wanted to tell him that, but he couldn’t find the… what were they called? Words.

Members of their band came and went, grabbing stuff from Jax’s powerful hands and separating the material into different piles. Shit watched his leader, enthralled. Oh, how he wished he was as good with words as Maya.

She had caught him watching Jax multiple times. Last night, she had told him that was weird.

“You don’t get it,” Shit said. “Jax’s a hero. The best. The leader of the band! Jax… saved Shit.”

“You should tell him,” she said.

Shit eyed her in silence.

“Just say ‘thank you,’” she said. “Don’t be a coward.”

Maya didn’t like Shit. She picked on him. Laughed at him. She didn’t respect him. But this time, it almost looked like she was being earnest.

“Fuck off, Maya,” Shit said. Then he left in his chimpanzee-like walk, hunched over his knuckles.

How could he say it? How would he even express a feeling so strong, so indescribable? What if he fucked up?

Shit can’t, he thought as he watched Jax on top of the trailer, working hard to build a better place for them.

Maya elbowed Shit, as if materializing behind him.

“Tell him,” she whispered.

He glared and shook his head. How could he talk to Jax? Almighty Jax, standing tall over his people, the desert sun shining behind his head in a halo.

Maya elbowed him again, making him stumble. A sudden anger took over him. He was ready to tell her to fuck off. Then he saw her eyes. She was being earnest.

The more he looked at her, the more something unknown bubbled up inside him. Trust. Courage. It boiled in his core until it erupted out of him.

“Jax!” he called.

Everyone stopped what they were doing and looked at Shit.

“What?” Jax said, his posture perfectly straight above them all, powerful and imposing.

Shit fumbled for words, sweat running down the side of his head, his knuckles burning on the hot sand.

“Thank you!” he blurted out.

Jax watched him for a second. Then he stepped down from the trailer and approached Shit, towering over the little man. He crouched, piercing black eyes on Shit’s.

Shit was scared but, at the same time, paradoxically, a deep sense of peace filled his soul. This was what Jax did. This was his aura, as if Shit was in the presence of a god, and he knew this supreme being could kill him with a snap of his fingers. But he wouldn’t. Shit knew he wouldn’t. He could see it in his eyes.

Everyone in the camp was watching. Jax gave Shit a careful nod, their eyes locked in profound understanding.

A watery fire went down Shit’s chest and flooded his heart with an inexplicable sensation. All emotions burned inside him at the same time. Love, fear, submission, hope, happiness, and even anger — at himself, for not doing this earlier.

He was so overwhelmed he just burst into a sobbing cry.

He had done it. He had finally done it. Even if it was with humble words, he had finally said it.

Jax got up without a word. Then he said, “Maya, help me move the metal sheets north. We need them there.”

He moved away and left Shit behind, the little man’s tears raining down on the ground between his hands.

He looked up and, through the tears, he saw Maya. For the first time ever, she was smiling at him. It was a warm, fond smile, a kind of smile he had never seen on her.

“Good job,” she told him, and then she grabbed a metal sheet and followed Jax.

There was a lot of work to be done. They had to build New Hope.

Dogg0

Agh >> U ain’t a dog. Quit lyin.

Dogg0 >> I am a dog! Ur the 1 who’s lyin. I thought u were a bounty hunter.

Agh >> That’s possible. But u know what’s not possible? U bein a dog!

Dogg0 >> Well, that’s what I am.

Agh >> How would that even work?

Dogg0 >> Fine! U want me 2 say it? I’ll say it. I have a human body, alright? It’s in a pod somewhere, connected 2 the Aether. I got myself there, then I got a synthetic dog made 4 me, & I’m connected 24/7 2 the dog. I feel everything the dog body feels; when I move, it moves; when I bark, it barks; I am a dog! Now, will u do the job or not?

Agh >> Hell no! That’s 2 degrading. I have standards.

Dogg0 >> What is that supposed 2 mean?

Agh >> It means I do jobs 4 ppl.

Dogg0 >> Wow! Ur a doggophobe! Wait till I tell that 2 every pet in Argon. Do u know how many ppl in this city r pets? U’ll be out of biz in a bark, bounty boi.

Agh >> Alright, fine! I’ll do the job.

Dogg0 >> GR8! U’ll take me at 2 PM. When u get here, say these specific words: “wanna go 2 the park?” & u have 2 sound enthusiastic. U’ll take me 2 Green Heights. That’s where all the bitches r. xD

Agh >> Fine!

Dogg0 >> Oh, & we’ll play fetch!

Agh >> K.

Dogg0 >> And every time I bring the ball, u’ll rub my belly & say “that’s a good boy”.

Agh >> Ugh. This is pathetic. How did I get here? I used 2 do cool jobs.

Dogg0 >> What r u talkin about? I’m the coolest dog ever! I’m a Corgi!

Neverland

Hello, dear Argonians! Are you enjoying your Argon subscription? I know I am!

I’m coming to you today because nasty rumors have been poisoning the brilliant streets of our city. People have been talking about a place called New Hope, a place where “you don’t have to pay a subscription to be happy.” Really? Yikes!

Now, I certainly know less than all, but I do know more than many, and I know what’s outside of Argon’s walls: the neverending Wastelands.

We all know the Wastelands. It’s hell. It’s a nether world filled with beasts like rhinowolves and giant bees, a place of heat and fire, a place of death.

Some of the people spreading these lies might have good intentions in their minds, but they don’t know to whom they’re bowing down. There are nefarious people behind this, and Atlanta Inc. won’t watch them pull strings and throw Argonians into a wicked odyssey for some neverland.

These people have bitten off more than they can chew, and now they’ll deal with the consequences of their acts. As of right now, people spreading lies about this “New Hope” will be banned from Argon. Not suspended. Banned. They’ll be locked out in their neverland, out of our paradise.

So, dear Argonians, let’s stay vigilant and report any suspicious activities to our security forces. Together, let’s continue to enjoy our privileged lives within these walls and not fall prey to the empty promises of those who would lead us astray.

By-ee!

Real

Drawde stepped out of the Aether pod, his feet sinking into the neon-lit, plush carpet of the simulation arcade. His brain was a little foggy, the residual sensations from the Aether still floating around in his brain.

“Minda,” he called, rubbing his eyes, “the new pod is amazing! The Aether feels so real in this thing! This is incredible. It’s like it’s more real than reality itself.”

Minda was hidden behind a plastic wall panel, amidst an array of wires and tubes, busily plugging cables and refilling different kinds of fluids for the A8. The hum of machines filled the air.

“I know! Isn’t it awesome?” he said from inside the wall, his voice a little robotic.

Drawde peeked inside, searching for Minda. Instead, a sleek, humanoid bot stood up, a plastic smile staring at Drawde.

Drawde jumped.

“Oh, sorry,” the bot said. “It’s me, Minda. I’m using a surrogate body for the maintenance work. I’m actually in my place. I’m in the Aether myself.”

“Wait, what?”

“I know a human is supposed to supervise the shop’s activities, but like, what’s the difference?” The bot grabbed a small metallic tool from the floor. “I don’t really wanna be there. So I stay home, playing games in the Aether, and when I need to do some maintenance, I use the bot as my body.”

Drawde narrowed his eyes. “Doesn’t that feel weird?”

“Nah. I mean, the lag is minimal. I’m connected to this bad boy through fiber optics.” The bot — Minda — gestured to a thick cable sprouting from the back of the robot’s neck and rising to the ceiling, disappearing into a sea of cables and tubes.

As the bot spoke, it fiddled with the small device in its hand, its fingers moving with precision.

“I don’t know, Minda,” Drawde said, running a hand through his hair. “This feels weird.”

Minda didn’t answer. The bot just stood there, with its plastic smile, its artificial eyes staring blankly ahead.

“Minda?” Drawde waved a hand an inch from the bot’s face, trying to grab its attention.

“Hey, Drawde,” the bot finally said. “Long time no see!”

“What do you mean, ‘long time no see?’ We were just talking.” Drawde’s voice wavered.

“Oh, sorry. The bot was on autopilot.” The bot shrugged, dropping the small tool to the floor as if unaware that it was holding it in the first place.

“What?” Drawde’s eyes widened. “Autopilot?”

“Yeah, I fed it samples of how I move and speak and now it can behave like me, so I don’t have to be connected all the time. It doesn’t really make any difference.”

“What the- what do you mean? I’ve been talking to some AI this whole time?” Drawde rubbed his temples. “Man, you’re really making me question reality right now.”

“Oh, Drawde, my guy, who cares about reality anyway?” The bot put a cold plastic hand on Drawde’s shoulder. “It only serves to shackle you. You’re in the dark — in the cave. You’re only seeing shadows. Once you see the truth, you’ll step out here, where it’s bright and everything looks awesome!”

“What the fuck are you talking about?” Drawde pushed the bot’s arm away. “Once I see what truth?”

The bot paused, its artificial gaze locking onto Drawde. It spread its arms wide, gesturing to the arcade around them, filled with the hum of the Aether pods and the flickering neon lights. “Nothing is real.”

Wastelands

The rocky desert sprawls before you, a relentless sea of sand and stone drenched in the colors of twilight. As the sun bids you farewell, its rays painting the sky in shades of orange and purple, the wind whispers an eerie song, carrying with it the faint scent of decay and rust.

Those who wander the barren landscape, navigate through the skeletons of long-abandoned machines and man-made structures. Ancient, towering, decaying.

Maybe you’ve decided to run away from the neon-lit chaos of the city, wandering into the desert in search of peace, in search of some forgotten sanctuary. You soon find that this place isn’t a quiet retreat.

There’s no peace in the Wastelands. Only the strongest survive here.

The night takes over the world, covering the desert in darkness, and calling the beasts out to play. Nightmarish howls and distant buzzing that seem to come from nowhere shatter the silence. You thought the day was bad — with the relentless sun shooting burning radiation at you — but the night is worse. The hidden beasts make it so.

As you seek refuge inside one of the abandoned structures, a gust of wind stirs the sand, sending it spiraling into the air, creating a transient sculpture of swirling particles. The sand ghost touches you, its heavy hand scraping against your skin.

The ghost of the Wastelands pushes you away from the shelter, but you manage to crawl inside the abandoned concrete base of the massive antenna, closing a rusty door behind you. The hinges squeak in a tormented groan, enraged by your presence.

Inside, you find ancient technology taken over by sand. You curl up in the corner, hoping that the walls will keep you safe from whatever lurks in the night.

Hope, you soon realize, was what pushed people to build this structure in the first place. This is such a vast desert, such a waste of space. They hoped to turn it into something useful. They had bold plans.

As it happens, plans don’t always work.

You take refuge in the concrete building erected by that ancient hope, and start doing the hoping yourself.

You hope that you survive.

And you hope too that, someday, people will be able to stay away from the chaos of Argon and find a home in the desert. You hope that someone, somehow, starts building a settlement here. You hope that someday the Wastelands can finally become a sanctuary, away from the claws of Atlanta. Maybe there’s someone out there with the strength to turn the Wastelands into the home of new hope.

Forgive Me

“I know we’ve had our differences,” Maya said, rubbing the back of her neck, “but we could really use a guy like you. You’re a clever boy.”

Agh snorted. “Give me a break, Maya.”

He was leaning against the railing in the overpass, eyes lost in the crowd below. The colorful mass of bodies moved under the neon lights like the involuntary spasms of an alien muscle, an unwanted growth embedded in the cold heart of the city, struggling to survive amidst the bright colors and deceptive lights that masked their suffering.

It had been at least a decade since Agh had last let Maya stand behind his back without the fear of being stabbed.

He shook his head. “We’re not kids anymore. We’re not those two orphans scamming our way through life.”

Maya hesitated. “You’re right. I grew up. I made a decision.”

“Yeah…” He looked up at the dark sky through the maze of tall buildings. “I guess you were the clever one all along.”

She shifted her weight from one foot to another, looking for words. “I’m sorry. Do you think you can forgive me?”

“For what?” he asked without looking at her. “For becoming a cog? Or for threatening to get me kicked out of the city if I didn’t bribe you? Or maybe for the constant beatings?”

She sighed. Then she walked to the railing beside him, staring at the mass of people below them.

“I’m sorry, Agh.” Her voice floated over the cacophony of the bustling city below. “But I didn’t stop growing, you know?” She turned to face him. “I’m not a cog anymore. I’ve learned from my mistakes, and I feel I’m doing something worthwhile now. Something valuable. Something… good. And I’d like you to join us.”

Agh didn’t answer. Instead, he turned to her, searching her face. He didn’t find the old smirk, the smug confidence he remembered. He wasn’t sure what he found, but there was something there. Something new.

Then, a large figure appeared behind her — a muscular man, a lot larger than them both. He had an expressionless face with a cold, indifferent stare.

“We have to go,” the man announced.

Maya hesitated, then turned to Agh. “Will you ever forgive me?”

He paused, then he gave her a melancholic smile. “You’re the one who’s gonna have to forgive me.”

He turned and walked away, his hands in the pockets of his purple jacket.

As Agh disappeared into a dark alley, hiding from the lights, Maya whispered to herself, “I forgive you.”

She joined Jax, leaving the overpass and her past behind.

Good

Nyx stared at the two talking, frozen in place, a broom in her hands. She couldn’t believe her eyes. She had never seen Miss Atlanta in person. And Dino was talking to her so casually.

She watched them from a dark corner of the empty bar.

“So you want to buy my recipes?” Dino asked, a strong lisp carrying the words out of his toothless mouth.

He was looking down at a fluorescent green drink. It was resting in a fancy cocktail glass on top of the sleek counter of the bar. He had been perfecting the recipe when Atlanta arrived.

“Yes. I’m expanding Atlanta Beverages,” Atlanta said. She was standing tall on top of high heels, her back perfectly straight, her short silver hair combed to the side with precision. “There are people who live outside of Argon — though I wouldn’t necessarily call them people — and, as it appears, they enjoy drinking too.”

Nyx felt a sting at Atlanta’s words, all the terrible memories of her trip out of the Wastelands and into Argon rushing back to her mind. She had left her home searching for a better place — for a paradise. Instead, she found an indifferent city bathed in bright, colorful lights in a futile attempt of keeping the darkness away. At the same time, even under the bright lights, the streets of Argon were filled with a kind of darkness she had never seen anywhere else.

Argon wasn’t better, just a different kind of bad.

“What do you say?” Miss Atlanta asked. “Of course, with these babies mass-produced you probably wouldn’t have as many customers. But then again, with the amount I’m willing to pay, you won’t need customers.”

Dino glanced at Nyx.

He was the best person she knew in the city. Sure, he basically sold poison for a living, but at least he had a heart. Argon was a fully automated city, with machines replacing humans in most positions. She felt like the blind pursuit of efficiency had automated feelings out of humans’ hearts.

But Dino was different. He truly enjoyed what he did. He liked being a part of the city’s culture and watching people have a good time. He probably knew the people of Argon better than anyone else.

He opened a toothless smile at her, then he answered Atlanta.

“No.”

Atlanta sighed. “Are you sure? It’s a lot of money.”

He looked up at her. “I’m not in it for the money. I’m in it for the people.”

Atlanta grabbed the cocktail glass in front of him. “Well, that’s unfortunate.”

She took a sip from the fluorescent drink and shook her head as the liquid went down her throat.

She coughed. “This is good.”

As she walked away, she looked at Nyx with strong, attractive eyes. Nyx couldn’t move until Miss Atlanta had left the bar. Once she was gone, Nyx quickly went to the counter to join Dino.

“That’s probably the stupidest thing I’ve ever done,” Dino said, then he gulped what was left of the drink.

After a cough, he said, “On the other hand, she’s right. This is good!”

Completion

Zik sat in their dimly lit room, the faint glow of countless screens reflecting off their face. Each screen displayed a different part of their master plan, a culmination of countless interconnected events, missions, and heists. The progress bar on the central screen inched closer and closer to 100%.

Zik’s heart raced with anticipation as they watched the numbers climb. This final process represented the ultimate test of their skills and cunning, the completion of their grand design.

As the progress bar reached 99%, Zik’s mind wandered through the web of memories, each one a piece of the intricate puzzle. A long road full of challenges and triumphs — and countless lessons.

A ping snapped Zik back to reality. The progress bar had reached 100%. Zik grinned, savoring the accomplishment. With a deep breath, they pressed the “Enter” key.

Suddenly, all the screens in the room displayed a single message: “Congratulations. You’ve reached the end.”

This was it. The grand finale.

But as they stared at the message, a strange feeling washed over them.

What now?

As the screens began to fade, Zik smiled. They realized that the satisfaction of reaching the end was nothing compared to the exhilaration of the journey itself.

Zik closed the terminal windows and left the building, stepping into the streets of Argon, the neon lights casting a faint glow on their face. As they vanished into the shadows of the city, they knew that one story had come to an end, but a new one was just beginning.

< Volume XI | Volume X