Does it even matter where I am. Why I am still alive. I have failed humanity. This only delays my inevitable fate. I can command the swarm I have in this shell to consume me—another fitting end.
Hesitation.
Could this be an afterlife? Another dimension? A cascading failure projecting some weird amalgamation of memories as the singularity is consuming me atom by atom? Curiosity wins me over. I can spare some time to explore what all of this is before I end myself.
Interestingly, I appear to be lying on my back, while I was standing before being... moved here. ‘Moved’ is unfortunately the most apt description of what happened, as none of my sensors were able to detect any energy or a transition between my starting point and wherever this is. No need to dwell on the specifics of my transportation when there is no data I can use. So, let’s move on to the data I have in front of me.
Physics works as expected, or I would have ceased function long ago. This planet’s star appears to be of similar size to Earth’s Sun. Gravity is also the same. Air composition, similar to Earth. Life, carbon based. There are no obvious artificial signals I can pick up, but that does not mean anything.
I am in a forest with sparse undergrowth. The trees appear to be deciduous and varied, but none of them are ones I recognize. I do not recognize any of the other flora or fauna either. There are bacteria, viruses, single celled organisms, fungi, insects, birds, small mammals. All familiar, yet at the same time, not. By my best estimates the season appears to be summer. The weather is consistent with an average day in a temperate climate. Confounding.
I brace myself and rise to a sitting position. My hand is touching the grass. It feels soft and prickly at the same time. That’s funny. Whatever constitutes for my self is sheared into ribbons. There is only pain and the sensation under my hand. It grounds me, and yet, it is the source of my distress. No one will ever experience this, there is no more of this to experience. At least, that’s what I thought. Now I am here, in a pristine forest, mocking every single soul I extinguished.
Enough. I do not deserve answers. I do not deserve emotions. Only nothingness awaits me.
Something enters sensor range.
No, that’s not... Please. Please. Please. I repeat to myself over and over again, as I stumble between the trees. No grace, no coordination. A desperate race to the source.
There it is... Two people walking on an overgrown dirt path, speaking in a language I do not understand.
People. Living, breathing people. One of them laughs, the other shakes his head in feigned exasperation and chuckles under his breath. I silently laugh with them. Happiness. They are so beautiful. How did I never see it.
Could this be my chance at redemption, forgiveness, ...penance.
I postpone my execution for now and focus on the two people in front of me. Well, roughly 700 meters away. They are indistinguishable from humans. Their clothes are unconventional. Sturdy, if a little thick for the warm weather. Natural dyes of indeterminate origin. Handmade but oddly uniform. Oh, and there are metal parts—armor. The armor makes some more sense as they are also carrying swords.
That is... something. Their armor configuration is somewhat impractical. It would be understandable if they were cosplaying, but the material and wear of their equipment is too real. The most likely conclusion is that they do not have access to any higher technology and need weapons on a regular basis due to some, to be determined, external factors. Yet, their belongings are too well made. Thread quality and alloy composition do not corelate to the assumed technological level. Curious, maybe my estimates have a much bigger error margin than projected, everything I am currently seeing is unprecedented after all. On the topic of unprecedented, for a couple of, presumed, warriors their hair and skin are remarkably healthy. No visible scars. Maybe they really are just intensely devoted cosplayers, and I am skulking around in some big park. Amusing as that would be, it is sadly not the case, as I observe another group.
Seven quadrupedal creatures, resembling wolves, are accelerating and on an intercept course for the duo. I have thirty seconds to make a decision. Any longer than that, and the presumed attackers can reach the travelers before I can position in optimal intervention range and have the smallest chance of being detected. An eternity.
The creatures, classified as Big Wolves for now, are, as the name suggests, much bigger than any similar species from Earth. I would estimate the average weight of each wolf in the approaching pack at around 450 kilograms. That would make them extremely deadly even to the armed defenders. If these people’s baseline physique is similar to humans, I would give their chances of survival to be in the single digit percentile. Preceded by a few zeroes and a period of course.
Three seconds in, one of the people turns sharply towards the approaching pack. After a moment, I assume a warning is said to his companion and they, literally, explode into action. I am stunned for two nanoseconds. Wasteful, focus. Muscle and bone density do not equate to the feat of athleticism I am witnessing from the two humanoids. Their run towards danger kicks up dust and clumps of earth. Their speed appears to be around seventy to eighty kilometers per hour. From body language, it looks effortless, almost routine. Likely not their maximum. Reaction time estimated at fifty milliseconds, could be even lower.Unauthorized use: this story is on Amazon without permission from the author. Report any sightings.
Who is the aggressor? The Big Wolves acted first, but that does not mean everything. The people are obviously intelligent, what about the pack. They do not wear clothes nor accessories. Any sounds or movements I can reasonably equate to communication do not appear complex enough. But I would still have to make a lot of assumptions to outright deny their sapience. If I am to take things strictly at face value though, the two people are simply grasping the initiative in defending themselves from dangerous wild ‘animals’.
Five seconds have passed. My previous time frame has been reduced to three seconds. Do I move to intercept the conflict or continue observing? Middle ground. I stealthily approach the two parties, leaving myself just enough distance to be able to prevent any lethal damage. Though, with these new findings, the people have a near perfect chance to beat the Big Wolves unscathed.
Once the two parties meet, the most likely assumption seems to be correct. The wolves’ actions are guided purely by instinct—hunt, kill, eat.
The two warriors make quick work of the pack, their training and teamwork apparent. Fighting is their likely occupation. Similar style of swordsmanship points to an organized force. Experience, to the frequency of this or similar scenarios. This world is dangerous for its inhabitants. With that, obvious conclusions have been reached. Now, how were they so fast and strong? It would be impossible, but I just saw it. Curious.
As the battle ends, and the two warriors regroup, one of them says something. The cadence and intonation hint at a practiced consistency. A religious rite for the lives taken? Some spiritual tradition? A hunter’s thanks? Foreign particulate and stray blood splatter simply lift from the duo’s bodies and fall to the ground. The fu— Ahem. Most curious. I could not detect any energy during the... occurrence.
The two leave the fallen beasts and start heading in the direction they came from. They are not walking but using their previous burst of speed as an upper bound, I would categorize this current pace as a leisurely jog. Most likely, their target was the pack, and they were baiting an ambush. With their task complete, they are now returning... somewhere.
I deploy a part of my swarm when they are further away. This area is remote enough for a temporary base. With that done, I take up maximum following distance, no need to further risk detection by individuals with clearly unknown capabilities.
While we are traveling, I modify my shell. Until further information comes to light, I shall classify the duo and any other similar persons as ‘human’. Thus, the modifications I make are to baseline human appearance, physique, body language, and reaction time. I cannot assume that all humans are this strong. These two might be outliers. For clothing, I take some inspiration from my unknowing companions but keep features strictly non-combatant and plain. Best to not stand out.
As we travel down the dirt road, my sensors start picking up other signs of civilization. Amusingly—signs. It does track that they have writing and a wide spanning society, judging by the quality of their possessions and the extent of their capabilities. Next is fields, farms, and stone roads. Where do I even begin.
The roads are too flat and too well maintained for the traffic there currently is. It could be a lull in the day, but that is unlikely. The fields are too big in the absence of any conventional farming equipment. And the farms are much larger and well-built for it to make any sense. If I take into account the removal of dirt one of the warriors demonstrated, it would not be too much of a reach to conclude that the other type of dirt can also be moved and shaped in the same manner, among other things.
Conclusion, I am in a fantastical world of magic and monsters. I take 150 milliseconds to quickly go over the millions of media in my archives that are similar to my current predicament. Will that help? It probably can’t hurt unless I unequivocally embrace all the cliches. Let’s try not to do that.
The duo will soon reach the edge of the forest. Do I put faith in my stealth systems and follow them out into the open and among others? It will probably be fine if I keep my distance, they haven’t shown signs of detecting me thus far. If they did manage though, they could think I am tailing them. But it is also not unreasonable to assume that we are traveling in the same direction. If they get curious about my concealment and try to confront me, that could be a problem... It doesn’t matter. If they wish to harm me, I will take that as my sentencing. I continue to follow them through the flatland.
They quickly stop in a small village to talk with some of the people there. A good opportunity to build up a lexicon for this novel language. Could the pack of Big Wolves have threatened this community? There do not appear to be any fortifications, but the population is in the high hundreds. It almost seems like a normal countryside village on Earth. There are no cars, of course, but carriages can be seen scattered throughout. Make and suspension lead to the assumption that these seemingly archaic vehicles can reach quite the speed. No apparent draft animals and no reasonable power source does track with the discovery of—I can’t believe I am even thinking this—magic existing...
The duo completes their business, and the locals seem happy and grateful. The two warriors are bashful, which is kind of cute. An amusing switch-up after witnessing their capabilities. Cute? Huh. A myriad of scenes play out in my mind. Of my... home. No, I cannot call it that. I do not deserve it. So much has been lost. I would say it is unimaginable, but I cannot only imagine it but recall it flawlessly. Everything that was left of humanity, of Earth, is stored in my archives. It is a part of me. So many scenes similar to the one I am observing. People being good, being happy. I took all of that away. Defiled it. The warriors are leaving. I try to focus on what’s in front of me and let the images fade.
As I continue to follow, my sensors pick up larger and larger settlements around us. We appear to be in a relatively high population density area, at least according to my current data. They do not make any other stops.
Finally, what I assume is their destination comes into range. A city.