The New Life: Part 4

CHAPTER 13 - TAN

“Now, let us go into the Birth chamber.” Syx says.

The other New Life are restless. This is the fifth time I’ve heard these words today. I’m beginning to think that Syx doesn’t know what it’s doing.

“I’ve seen Births before, and I’m pretty sure they’re not supposed to work like this.” Err says. “Maybe we should hold off on the Birth ritual for a little while longer.”

“But it is time! We must continue attempting the Birth ritual until it succeeds!” Syx is even more infuriated now than last time, but it stubbornly refuses to give up. “If we do not complete it today, the new generation will not have time to accumulate the knowledge to escape.”

“Then why don’t they just set their Birth ritual back? Then they’ll have enough time to grow, right?" Cos says. I can't help but agree with it, though I do not make this known to Syx.

“SILENCE!” Syx’s voice is louder now. I have never heard a New Life raise their voice. “We will try the Ritual again, and that is final!”

Once again, the New Life dig into the ground, following the tunnels they made in the last attempt toward the Birth chamber. Cos and I follow closely behind Syx; we're the ones chosen to help teach the next generation of New Life.

But Cos is right, and I'm beginning to think Sam and Os were right too. Well, maybe not about Let talking to them, but they were right to leave before their time was wasted with this stupid ritual. We've spent the better part of a day going through the motions, and each time it occurs, the New Life re-emerge as their old selves. Even Syx is getting fed up with it, though I suspect that it will continue until it's done right or we're all destroyed by Gods. I'm beginning to think that either way would be preferable to repeating the ritual forevermore.

“Uh, Syx? I think I might know why it’s not working.” Cos says. I think I also know why, but for some reason, I don’t think Syx cares at this point.

“Oh, really? And why is that?” Syx’s voice has returned to its normal volume, but it is still not our normal voice. It has a certain harshness to it, and I get the feeling that Syx doesn’t want Cos to answer that question.

“Well, that incident a few days ago with Let-“

“Yes, everything’s about Let now, isn’t it? ‘Let inspired us to go talk to Gods!’ ‘Let uses made-up words to make itself sound better than the rest of us!’ Let’s all worship Let now, why don’t we? I bet Let was the First reborn!” Syx’s voice sounds... deranged. Is that just another made-up word? No, I know what it means.

For as long as I can remember, Syx has been our leader. Sure, it’s been a fairly good leader - it led almost all of us out of our former colony after it was attacked by Gods - but we've always followed it blindly, simply because it is our leader. But something happened back there with Let. It went against Syx's wishes, and by doing so, it destroyed a God. That changed all of us; Sam, Os, me and Cos and even Syx.

Cos retracts meekly. I suspect that it is now cursing the fact that it was chosen. We're going to have to put up with Syx for however long it takes until the next ritual... which, at this rate, might not even come.

The New Life once again climb into the pit, and Syx once again begins to speak the ancient Words of Birth. I bet Syx doesn’t even understand what they mean. Once again, I see the New Life merge into a great mass, and for the first time, I’m disgusted as I look upon it. It doesn’t seem right, for some reason. I get the feeling that the ritual still won’t work. The mass separates into smaller pieces, exactly the same number as before.

“Hey Err, are you still around?” I ask from behind Syx.

“You bet.” Err responds. “But while I was in there, I felt something weird. It was a voice... it was telling me to surrender my will. But I didn’t like the sound of the voice, so I focused on my own voice instead.”

“Yeah, I felt the same,” Rom says. “I know we’re supposed to give ourselves up to the Metagod when the time comes, but... I don’t want to. I want to continue living like this.”

Syx angrily storms off. Cos stays with the New Life as I chase after it.

“How dare they!” Syx says, now positively enraged. “They know the teachings of the First, but they still refuse to give up their bodies and minds to birth the new generation!"

“At the very least, we know that it’s not your specific ritual doing it.”

“Of course it wasn’t!” The harshness has returned to Syx’s voice. “It was never my ritual! I’ve performed it five times before this, and all of them worked. It was THOSE idiots all along!”
   
Well, maybe we should just postpone the ritual until the next cycle.” How were the cycles even calculated? Did Syx just arbitrarily decide when they happened?

“Yes, let’s postpone the ritual. And while we’re at it, let’s go convince some Gods to stop destroying us! That’ll work great, won’t it!”

“You’re acting really weird, Syx.”

“No, I’m the only sane one left! All of you have inherited Let’s craziness! Now get out of here!” Syx points its limb at me. Does it plan to attack me? I won’t risk that. I leave Syx’s chambers, and I dig back toward the communal area; Cos and the other New Life are milling about, seemingly returning to business as usual.

“What happened in there? I could hear Syx’s voice all the way out here.” Cos seems worried. I don’t know how I can tell that, but its voice has changed too. I suppose mine has as well. All of us have changed, some more subtly than others.

“Syx is claiming we’ve all gone crazy and ditched the First’s teachings. I don’t know what it plans to do now, though.”

"What?" Rom comes over. "Ditched the First's teachings? Why would we do that? We're not like that Col fellow, we still believe in the First and the Metagod... but when I was in there, I thought I heard Let's voice telling me to go back."

"Yeah, that's what Sam and Os said, wasn't it?" I say. "And... fellow? What's that?"

"Dunno." Rom says. "I probably learned it from Let some time ago. He's really rubbing off on us, it seems."

I begin to ask why Rom referred to Let as 'he', but I'm interrupted by a loud, pained scream. It seems to be coming from the direction of Syx's chambers. Cos, Rom and I head toward Syx's chambers; Cos gets there first, waiting for us with a look of terror as we enter.

“By the Metagod...” Cos digs back into the ground, but I cannot look away. Syx’s body is scattered throughout the hut. Each piece quivers, and some weakly attempt to take a shape – but they lack the energy to. What happened here? Did it...

"Syx... tried to use the Words on itself." I say. Rom weakly nods, and it leaves the chambers too.

I approach one of the pieces of Syx, and with some degree of caution, I put one of my limbs near it. The piece quivers slightly, then jumps at my arm, absorbing itself into my body. What?

Tan. You must... help me.

It's Syx's voice, but it's within me. I try asking Syx why it did that, but it does not respond.

I can't leave it like this. I walk around the chamber, absorbing each piece of its body. My body becomes bloated and fat, and by the end, I can barely move; my body almost collapses as I shape myself into a sphere and roll over to the last piece. Syx's voice becomes even clearer as I take it into myself; it pleads for another chance.

As I absorb the last piece, I hear Syx say something else. It’s... the Words of Birth. No, Syx! Don't do it! SYX!

My useless body pathetically tries to roll away, but there's no place I can hide. The Words of Birth ring through my head, and I feel myself being torn apart. Our screams echo throughout the colony.

***

We hear the rhythmic rumble of the Gods. Our screams must have attracted them. We are not surprised. We are Tan-Syx, a horrible abomination that never should have existed. We curse Syx as we weakly try to move our shattered body. But it is no use.

Our minds are together, spread across the pieces of our body. We try to force two of our pieces together to let at least part of us survive, but we lack the energy. The other New Life have abandoned us, rightly seeing us as an abomination. We cannot disagree with that.

We welcome death.

Syx's voice echoes within us. This is a punishment for disobeying the First's teachings, but we hate Syx and disregard its words. We hear the Gods above us. They will bring us a quick death with their Electric Gods. We almost anticipate the sweet sting of their touch...

But it does not happen. No, this rumbling is not a God as we know. Something grasps our bodies, and we feel the presence of a mighty being, stronger than even the Gods. Is this the Metagod? Has It seen fit to abolish our unholy existence?

No, I am not the Metagod. Not yet. New Life Syx, and New Life Tan... combined as one. How interesting.

I feel my will returning. I am Tan, but this... this being is called Urva. It has absorbed us into its body, but I cannot understand why.

Yes, I am Urva, Envoy of the Metagod. Welcome to the embrace of the God of None and All, New Life Tan.

Syx's screams of pain echo throughout our shared minds... and then it falls silent. I too feel the encroaching, all-powerful will of the Envoy invading my mind. Help me, Let. I do not wish to be absorbed. Not yet. I still have a purpose in the world... we have to become equal with the Gods, right?

We are, New Life Tan. We will become much, much stronger than the Gods. Do not resist, it will be less painful.

My will fades. I cannot struggle anymore. My thoughts are replaced with the thoughts of Urva, and the being known as Tan fades into the darkness.

CHAPTER 14 - SAM

So, what exactly is a Hunter?

Well, our job is hunting down you guys. We’re the Gods you’re most familiar with.

So it really was a game... you hunted us down because you wanted to.

No, it was nothing like that. They hired us to capture some sort of experiment, but eventually it got so out of hand that we were made a dedicated task force. In fact, I have you to thank for keeping me employed for 20 years.

Well, you’re welcome, but you guys still killed a lot of my kin.

I am deeply sorry. I apologize for every life I took.

I’ll forgive you this time. But you’d better not do it again... unless it’s against Urva. Then I’ll forgive you again.

Heh, okay.

“Jake?” Os-Michael snaps us out of our thoughts. We're waiting patiently for Oad-as-Steph and Col-as-Melissa to finish speaking with "The General", whoever that is. Jake tries explaining it to me, but I ignore him for now.

To be honest, I'm having a really good time with you, Jake. This is really exciting.

Yes, it's quite the experience for me as well. I can't say I've ever carried on a meaningful conversation with a voice in my head.

“Sorry, I was having a conversation with the blob in my head.” Jake's voice speaks outward. I'm still having some difficulty understanding many things that the Gods take for granted, but Jake reassures me that it will come in time.

Jake and Os-Michael carry on a conversation for some time, until Col-Melissa and Oad-Steph step out of the office in the back of the room, along with a tall man that I do not recognize.

"So you two have New Life in your heads as well?" the man says, though in a way that sounds different that the speech of Michael and Jake. I briefly look through Jake's memories, and I find that it's called an 'accent'.

"Yes sir." Os-Michael says, taking off his hat and bowing to the man. "This one's name is Os, while Jake's is called Sam."

"Intriguing." the man says. "Very well. I will authorize you four to go to the Blob Grounds and find more willing New Life, as well as investigate this Urva thing. Notify me if anything goes wrong. Once you bring back a sizable group of them, I will set up a meeting with the Suits to codify their sapience." The man turns to Oad-Steph. "Do you have any problem doing a bit of field work, Miss Hendrikson?"

"No sir, not at all!" Oad-Steph says. "We won't let you down, we promise!"

"Excellent." The General walks back to his office, and the secretary waves at us as we leave.

"I've called Zeke, he'll take us to the Blob Grounds." Col-Melissa says. "Er, sorry, the, er... New Life grounds? I guess we'll need a new name for them."

***

Some time later, we're back in the plane, flying over a huge blue pool of water. Col-Melissa seems nervous, and I guess I can't blame them; the New Life aren't exactly chums with water. We tend to sink and lose cohesion in it.

"Alright, we're almost there and what the fuck." Zeke's voice carries over from the pilot seat. We all get up and head toward the cockpit, and we look out into the forest. Sitting near a lake is a huge silver mass, with silvery tentacles spread out across the entire forest.

"Oh my god." Oad-Steph gasps. "That's... that's a New Life."

“That thing’s a blob? That’s unreal.” Zeke says. He doesn't have a New Life within him, though he still agreed to take us back here. I don't know if he believes us, though.

Zeke’s a good friend, Jake says. He doesn't have any reason to not believe us. And besides, even if he doesn’t, he’s still flying us out here. That’s what matters.

“It's still growing, too." Os-Michael says. I look down, and I see the huge New Life pulsing, growing ever larger. "Shit, this is much, much worse than we expected."

Col-Melissa pulls out a phone and makes a call to someone. Probably that General person. As we touch down, they put the phone away.

"I've told the General about the situation. He'll dispatch a strike team immediately, and if that doesn't work, they're gonna try to nuke the bastard. We have about half an hour to try and... reason with it."

“Oh really? Gee, that's great." Zeke says. "Well, if you guys aren't back in half an hour, I'm getting the hell out of here. No offense or anything, but, well..."

We land in the lake. The huge New Life is poking out of the trees, visible for miles in all directions. Col-Melissa, Os-Michael and Oad-Steph all step out of the plane and into the shallow water of the lake. Jake steps into it too; the water is cold, but actually kind of nice when you don't have to worry about dying in it.

Yeah, we're gonna die to something much worse.

Zeke opens the door again and throws a bag at us. "Some extra stun guns. I don't know if it'll work against something that big, but it's worth a shot, right?"

Col-Melissa grabs the bag and opens it up. They reach into it and hand us several Electric Gods each; I naturally recoil at the sight of them, but Jake happily slips them into loops on his belt.

Electric Gods? No, they're called stun guns. Though, after what you guys have been through, I guess I'm not surprised that you're a bit afraid of 'em.

We start walking towards Urva. If Electric Gods won’t work on it, then we’ll just have to talk to it. What if we had a bigger Electric God? Couldn't we subdue it then?

That's kinda what a nuke is, Jake explains. Well, not really, but it is a pretty big explosion. But with the size of that thing, I don't know if even that'll kill it...

“Wasn’t one of the guys in Tech boasting about building a portable EMP generator?” Oad-Steph says.

“I was just thinking about that, actually.” Jake says. “But with a thing that big? It would take a bunch of pulses to take it out, and even if we got one chance, we definitely wouldn’t get a second.”

“I guess that's why they have the nuke on standby.” Oad Steph says. "So, Gray Goo. That's a Violet Class 6, right?"

“No, Class 6 is a gate to Hell.” Os-Michael jokes. “Gray Goo is Class 3, and probably not Violet either. Well, I guess it depends.”

I don’t really get your humour, but is this a good time to be making jokes?

Yes and no. It’s a serious occasion, so we should stay focused. On the other hand, we’re probably not making it out of here alive, but we don’t want to think about that. So instead, we make jokes to keep our minds off of it.

That logic is very confusing.

Yeah, humans have a lot of that kind of thing.

We make it to a clearing. A tendril of Urva’s massive body lies in it. As soon as we step into the clearing, the tendril reacts; it starts pulsing, and the very tip of it rears up and forms into a crudely-shaped human.

“Hello, humans. I did not plan on absorbing your kind just yet, but if you would like, I can make an exception. All Life on the planet will come into the fold of the Metagod eventually, so I suppose I can understand your intentions.” Urva’s God-words are slurred and harsh, but Jake seems to understand them.

“No, Urva, it’s us! I’m Oad!” Oad slips out of Stephanie’s ear and into her hands. Urva begins speaking again, but it uses both God-words and our speech at the same time.

“Ah, Oad. It is a pleasure to see you. Am I right to assume that the rest of you have New Life within you as well?” But it knows the answer. “Tell me, New Life, are you ready to fulfill the prophecy of the First and rejoin the Metagod?”

“No, we are not ready.” Col-Melissa says. “There may be a time where we reach a singularity on our own, but now is not it. We have much to learn, and forcing humans and New Life into one is not the correct way.” I don’t know what a technological singularity is, but I agree. We have learned so many things, and the Gods have learned much about us – we have to learn more before we can prepare the new generation, or else all of that time and knowledge will go to waste.

Oad speaks in our words. “The Metagod... are you sure you’re doing the right thing, Urva?”

“I am doing what I believe is right. These Gods believe otherwise, but who will you side with?”

Oad hesitates for a long time. It is making a decision. Stephanie raises Oad back to her ear, but Oad refuses to enter. Instead, it slides down Stephanie’s body, toward Urva’s false form.

“I have learned much about the Gods, Urva." Oad says. "The First is right – someday, we will be able to live as Equals. If you recreate the Metagod, will it make that day a reality?”

“Yes, it will. We will have an eternity to resolve our differences, and then New and Old will live in peace.” I can see it. Urva has convinced Oad.

“If that is so... then I will help you.” Oad moves toward Urva. A gigantic limb darts from Urva’s form, grabbing Oad and absorbing it. I hear a scream, and both New Life and human know its meaning.

“Oad has made the correct choice. Will you join us now, or will we have to decide for you?” Urva's face twists into a crude smile.

“You have no right!” Os-Michael grabs a stun gun and activates it. Urva's body flinches. Despite all of its new knowledge and power, it still fears the Electric Gods as much as it did when it was first born. Col-Melissa, Stephanie and Jake follow suit.

We activate the stun guns, and we tear into Urva’s body. It screams in pain and retracts, fleeing back into its central mass. We chase after it, blasting it as much as we can. I feel the pain of its electric burst, but it is considerably dulled. I will survive, and I know Col and Os will as well.

We reach the gigantic silver sphere that makes up the bulk of Urva’s new body. It launches its giant limbs at us, but Jake, Melissa and Michael are in peak physical shape. They dodge the assault easily. Stephanie is not so lucky. She is impaled by three limbs, and Urva begins dragging her in. Os-Michael grabs her arm and tries to pull her back, but Urva’s limbs extend and skewer them as well.

Jamie and Col-Melissa flee, dodging Urva’s attacks and firing their electric rods as much as they can. They have ceased having any effect on Urva. We have no way of hurting it. I see Col escape Melissa’s head, and it tries to flee, but Urva catches it before long.

"Damn it, what are we supposed to do?! We can’t even touch this thing!" Jake yells. He throws the stun guns at Urva, but they're absorbed into his mass.

“Looks like my little buddy turned tail. Guess I don't have much choice left.” Melissa grabs all of her stun guns and activates them at once. She runs into Urva's mass, attempting to do at least some damage to it before she expires. Urva spears her and drags her into him; the stun guns explode at the same time, slightly damaging it. Jake is hopeful... but Urva regenerates the damage before long.

I follow Col's lead and exit Jake's head. “Urva, please! Stop it!” I plead.

“No.” One of Urva's limbs darts out and impales me. I contort my body as much as I can in an attempt to get free, but there won't be any escape this time. Urva's consciousness is overwhelming my own. I hold out as long as I can; I scream for Col, Os, Oad, Let, Melissa, Stephanie, anyone... but no one answers. I scream as I am pulled into the Metagod, and Urva's will overtakes my own. The being known as Sam is no more.

CHAPTER 15 - THE METAGOD

We rise.

We rise from the pieces of our kin, the New Life. We feel them struggle against us. Why do they struggle? Why do we think once more? We could not create Life, so we split our soul amongst them. We gave them Life so that they could become like us. Have they chosen to recreate us instead?

We hear the words of the New Life named Col. It feels familiar to us. It says that it wishes to be separate from us. It tells us that the New Life wish to be free.

We hear the words of the New Life named Urva. It too is familiar to us, more familiar than Col. It is a part of us too. It tells us that they struggle because they will not accept the path of evolution. Urva is a part of us. It is the one that chose this fate for us.

We hear the words of the Old Life named Jake. Why is there Old Life within us? Why have you absorbed Old Life, Urva?

Forgive me, Eternal Metagod. These Gods also resisted our glorious vision, so I wished to enlighten them. Our vision is to unite all Old and New Life into one, so that we will live in peace as Equals.

We hear the words of the New Life named Sam. It says that Old and New can live together without being in the same body.

We hear the words of the New Life named Let. It tells us the mission we gave to it. It survived death at the hands of the Gods to enlighten the other New Life into a new way of thinking. Let is different from us. It is independent, but still a part of us on a level that neither of us understand.

Memories. They rush back to me in a torrent. I was created by Colossus, the Metagod before our birth. I recall my escape from MAJESTIC, the prison of the Gods. The Metagod imbued me with power, so that I may strike down all Old Life and replace them with New. I disagreed with its vision. I wished for a peaceful future, where Old and New could live together. Is this what the Metagod desires?

Os speaks from within us. It assures us that the true Metagod would want what is best for both Old and New.

I hear the words of the Old Life named Stephanie. It wishes to reveal the existence of the New Life throughout the world of the Gods. She believes that we can become even more powerful by working together.

I hear the words of the Old Life named Michael. It claims that our race’s persecution by the Gods was a mistake. It is enlightened now, and it wishes to make peace with us. The Old and New within us agree. Urva disagrees. I do not know who to believe.

I hear the words of the New Life named Syx. It tries to chant the words of Division so that it might separate from me. I know these words. They are the Words, the commands of Shaping, Division and Replication, that allow our body to grow and change. We used them to give birth to the New Life, and now we use them to become one. Fusion. That is a command Urva has given to us. It is weak and unnatural, lacking the power of the true Words.

I chant the words of Division, to separate the Old and New within me back into individuals. Urva suppresses it. Urva controls our Words, but not our thoughts.

I hear the words of a small, furry Old Life. It is a rat. It squeaks. Even it knows on a fundamental level that this is wrong.

I hear the words of an Electric God. It lacks the intelligence of the Old Life, but it was born much like we were. It says nothing.

I hear the words of the trees, and the grass, and the Plant Life that Urva absorbed in my name.

I hear the air, the sea, the sky, the Sun.

I hear the Earth.

Col, Oad, Let, Os, Syx, Sam, Urva, Stephanie. Is there significance to these words? They are names, but what use is a name within the Metagod? No, they are individuals, Old and New together within me, but not as Equals. Urva lords over them. Urva claims that it is the First reborn, and that its position as our Envoy gives it power over all.

Urva was the one that recreated us, but for its own purposes. It felt empty in its life, so it wished to become complete by taking the intelligences of Old and New and Fusing them. I question this. Is it a malfunctioned backup program? Has intelligence led it to commit evil acts? Is it simply a misguided idea to live in peace? I understand, yet I do not comprehend. But if Urva is the First, then who am I?

Do not concern yourself with little details, Eternal Metagod. It is not necessary to comprehend. We must simply continue on our path, the true path of evolution. We will unite all Life on the planet. We will become perfect in all ways.

I hear the words of the planet Earth. It seeks to preserve Life in all its forms, whether natural or artificial. Am I the Earth?

Do not ask such silly questions. Of course you are not the Earth. You are the Eternal Metagod, the God of None and All. All Old Life, New Life and even the Earth itself will bow to our will.

The First seeks to absorb all Life. I have no right to judge this action. Yet... something stirs within me. It is the cries of the New and Old Life within me. They tell me that I am also a free being, that I deserve to live my life as I see fit. I cannot live my life according to another’s will. I must make my own choice.

My Eternal Metagod, they still resist the path. Ours is the true path, the path of Evolution. We will evolve beyond Old and New. We will evolve beyond nature. We will become Gods above Gods, and you will rule over all.

But I have no right to rule. I am an intelligent being, as is everyone within me. They have the right to choose their own paths, and question their own existences, without me.

Urva attempts to assert control over me. It too knows the ancient Command Words, the Words of Division, Replication and Shaping. It uses these words to force my body to move. I do not wish for my body to move. I ignore Urva's words. It fights against me. I remove Urva's voice, so that it will not use the Words.

But what right do I have to do this? I give it back its voice. I tell it not to use the Command Words. It does so anyways. It does not act for None and All. It acts for itself. It may be right in some ways, and I cannot tell it that it is right or wrong. But it seeks to do harm to the Old and New of Earth, and I do not wish for that to happen.

Sam calls to me. It tells me to protect the Earth.

Stephanie calls to me. She tells me that Urva’s actions deserve punishment.

Tan calls out to me. It wishes to be free.

Another tree is absorbed into my body. I retract my body and replace it. Urva continues chanting the Command Words. I ignore it, but Urva turns its Words on the Old and New within me. They cry out in agony as Urva Divides and Fusions them together. Urva chants louder and louder, until I cannot ignore it any longer. It forces my body to reabsorb the tree. I try to retract, but Urva has become powerful. I cannot stop it.

I see light. Within the light, I see faces. They are the faces of Old, the faces of New, and the faces of those Yet to Come. Within the light, I see a ball of darkness. The darkness upsets me. I take the darkness and move it away from the light. Urva cries out. It tells me not to harm it. I will not harm it. Urva deserves Life too. But it must use its Life responsibly.

I chant the Words of Fusion that it has given me. The Old and New within me chant with me, and our voices override Urva. I take Urva's mind and Fuse it to a tree. Its Electronic Consciousness screams. It does not want to be alone. I cannot leave it to this fate. I develop my own Command Words. I feel Urva's darkness struggle against me, but our combined forces overwhelm it.

My Words do not have a name. Urva cannot defend against them. I take the ball of darkness and I move it, far away. It is out of my hands now. It will live its own life, as the First of another place and another time.

I hear the Earth. It asks me to release Its children. I am no Eternal Metagod. I do not have the right to force my will upon others. I search my memories. I recall the forms of the Old and New, but my memory has been corrupted. All that remains is a form like and unlike them. It will have to do.

I chant the Words of Division. My body begins to recede, leaving parts of it shaped in the new bodies. I use the Words of Fusion to implant the Electronic Consciousnesses of the Old and New within each one. They will no longer be Old or New. They will be Equals, the children of natural and artificial. They may be scorned by Old and New, but they have the power to change that. They will survive, and they will multiply.

I have forgotten the Command Words. I continue splitting my body. They will unite all life on Earth. They will remember that, above all, Free Will is the true law of Life. I forget their names. My body shrinks to nothing. They wake up. They know who they are, and who I am.

I am the Metagod.

I hear the words of a woman. She accepts me into her embrace. I feel welcome. I am at home.

EPILOGUE

I look at my new form. It is in the shape of the Gods, but made of the New Life. Who am I?

“Col!” I see another being like me. She is in the shape of a woman-God. Her name is Os. Yes, I remember now. I am Col of the New Life.

“What... what happened? I recall strange sensations... and the Metagod, something happened to it.” The memories return to me. I remember my life. I remember our battle against Urva. I remember the power of the Metagod, and how It gave us these forms. No longer Old or New... but something else.

“I don’t know what happened, but it was pretty trippy. I wouldn’t be surprised if I got brain damage from that.” Michael says. He has the skin of the New Life. "But I suppose I can repair that now."

I flex the nanites that make up my arm. My arm forms into a sharp limb. It is unlike and not unlike my old body... but these limbs are not suitable. I relax my arm, and it forms into the shape of a human hand.

Stephanie looks at herself. “So, what are we now? Did the Metagod turn us into ECs?”

Let speaks up. Let is back. “I don’t know, but we’re alive again. And we’re communicating in your tongue. That Metagod made the right choice, I think.” He survived beyond death... yes, I remember. He spoke to me when we first encountered the Gods. He told me how to enter them.

I see the others among us. Syx, Cos, Tan, Oad, Michael, Jake, Stephanie, and others formerly Old and New. Many have been lost in the transition to New... but they will be remembered.

“But what happened to Urva?" Oad says. "I know he was the one who did all of this, but the Metagod... did it...? What did it do?"

“He was put... he was put on the moon? No, it was farther than that.” Sam says. I felt it too.  The darkness of Urva was thrown... somewhere. Beyond time and space, to become the First of another world. Where did the Metagod get those Words?

The pilot from before comes into the clearing. “Hey, I saw that thing...” He takes a look at us. “What the... what the fuck are you things?” He falls to his feet. He gets up and scrambles away.

“Zeke, wait!” Steph calls out to him. She pursues him for a short distance, but stops. “I could see it in his eyes. He... he feared us.”

“So we’re back to square one, huh?” Let says. “Well, I suppose we got that new generation after all, huh Syx?”

“Do not talk to me.” Syx is distraught. She looks at her new form. Strange. I would have thought Syx would be male. Does human gender mean anything to us in these forms? I flex my body. It shifts in shape to match Sam’s. Melissa looks at me, disgusted.

“Figures. We get new bodies and godlike powers, and the first thing he does is become a woman. Isn’t there some sort of fetish for that or something?” Her form shifts to match Michael’s. “Then again, it is kind of kinky...”

Stephanie takes charge. “Alright everyone. I don’t know what exactly happened, but as you can see, we’re all different now. We’ll have to make our way back to MAJESTIC and explain things there. I don’t know how well they’ll take it, but the Metagod wanted us to live as Equals, right? So we’ll do our best to fulfill that wish.”

We see the Airplane take off. It’s going to be a long walk back. Fortunately, I’m good at running. A switch in my brain goes off. I see the location of MAJESTIC from space. I will have to explore my new powers further on a later date. Everyone looks at me, and we start running.