Alma 77 A Message For Them

They built their devices to probe the universe's secrets and used their findings in practical applications to improve the quality their lives.

Ma had explained to Reed that much of the technology that currently supported Mulia had human fingerprints in some capacity. Whether it was the jury-rigged Altar system, the hovercraft tech in every vehicle, or the Universal Compendium — they all had origins as human-made concepts.

This was a version of humanity that followed their natural, inborn curiosity about the world around them unlike humanity from his original world.

His world had been ruled by religion and was enforced through tradition and the political machinations of those who reigned supreme. Magic, for all its wonder was but a means of oppression in his world and served only to further the means of the few who knew how to harness it. The word of false gods was supreme and those who defied their will would eventually be silenced...

It seemed Ma had an answer for everything and an endless amount of stories about her life. Whether it be on her homeworld or on Mulia — she had no shortage of tales about the many things she had experienced.

Hours had passed before Reed had even realized it. He learned much from Ma's stories but... he had not yet asked the most important question.

Reed really wanted to ask Ma but he couldn't find the courage to say it. Despite everything she had told him about her life, she had not told him about how she ended up…

But how can I ask the question in a respectful way…?

"Hey, Ma, what exactly is the Nexus? How is this place so… realistic despite being an information network?" said Reed in an attempt to side-step asking the question directly.

"Information Network?" Ma scoffed when heard that and said, "It's so much more than just an information network, son. It's the soul of this whole empire."

She pointed outside towards the trees and said, "The Nexus is this entire forest, my boy, and every single tree you see out there is a highly sophisticated archival construct designed to preserve the most important memories of all Avunians."

An enormous memory bank? But why? For sentimental reasons? Or for some other kind of reason…?

"That's incredible," said Reed. "But I don't understand — why are they so intent on preserving their memories?"

Ma sighed and said, "So their descendants do not forget them and so they can pass on their wisdom onto the next generation. These are the standard responses you'd receive from an Avunian if you were an outsider, but I know the truth about this place and its true purpose…"

Reed stroked his chin and said, "They have another reason for saving their memories?"

"It's a far-fetched dream, really. I'd go as far as to call it childish, but I can understand the feelings behind it. This Nexus is recording information, compressing it for archival, and uploading it onto a special device," said Ma.

She flicked her hand and a small hologram of a miniature coffin appeared in front of Reed. It was smaller version of the kind he had ridden during his final exam, but looked much more advanced than the standard model.

"They want to send a record of their existence back to their homeworld. To that end, they've created this special coffin to travel through the space-time back to their world the moment they all disappeared. That is what the Avunians want to accomplish," said Ma.

"They want to send a final message across space and time to their loved ones… in the past. To let them know that they are all right and that they miss and still remember them… thousands of years in the future."

That's heartwarming and a bit crazy when I think about it. Sending a time capsule back in time isn't really normal at all. Aren't you supposed to bury them for future generations?

He understood the idea and felt it was certainly a touching act of love. In a way, he envied the way the Avunians cherished the concept of familial love.

But there was something morbid about people who were considered dead or gone sending their memories back for the living. Reed felt like it was better that those poor souls in past be left alone to grieve without knowing the truth.

Was it better to know how and why your loved one died, especially given where they were? What they were up against?

Would it not better for a grieving family member to think that their loved ones had gone to heaven or the afterlife instead? Let them form their own comforting endings for their lost ones than learn the real truth…

That their families had been sent to hell.

That at the edge of universe, there was no escape from those outside who had intruded upon heaven itself.

Reed shook his head and said, "Why haven't they sent it out, then? What's keeping them from sending their message-in-bottle back home?"

The tiny hologram of the coffin dissembled and a tiny piece — a metallic sphere — expanded in front of him in response.

"This is the coffin's Anima drive, the source of power that'll power it through its mission. It's based on an old, Ancient Mulian super-cruiser that was used to traverse the universe during its heydays, but that's beside the point. The problem is that it needs a lot of Anima," said Ma.

"We can gather the amount of Anima given enough time but once it reaches a certain density, it becomes uncontrollable — highly unstable and dangerous beyond use. Nothing we have, be it machine or man has been able to control and stabilize the Anima drive once it reaches the needed density to work. Even the Lion King couldn't do it; the skill and power required to do it is likely beyond our reach…" said another voice.

Reed turned around and saw Velvund behind him, leisurely reading a book.

I didn't sense…?! How….? I mean, I know who gramps is but still…

He shuddered when he thought about how he'd been unable to even feel his presence in the slightest.

"How… long have you been there, gramps? Have you always been there?"

Velvund scratched his chin and said, "Around the time Emma started talking about the Great Barrier War, I think? I lost track sometime around there..." and waved the book in his hands with a smile.

"Don't you have another high council meeting to attend, Vel'?"

"I'm an old, frail man these days — I'm sure that I can take a day off or two and get away with it, right? The high council will survive if I miss a meeting."

He put down his book and said, "I couldn't miss the boy's first time in the Nexus, but I didn't think that you'd get to him first though, at least not in the way you did… but it's about time, so I'll be taking him back."

Velvund grabbed one of Reed's shoulders and said, "Time to head back, son," and then the world went black for an instant.

Pulsing light and sound blasted back into existence and reality slammed back into Reed's senses like a shockwave. The rebound of returning back felt awful and resulted in a pounding headache and ringing ears that stunned him for a minute.

"Agh, what the hell…? M-My head… Feels like a hangover, but worse..."

"Boy! Are you all right?! I thought I was going to have to sever the connection," said Lacrima and started healing and inspecting Reed for any abnormalities.

A spatial tear opened and Velvund stepped out. He reached out, supported Reed and said, "Whoa there, my boy. Give it a minute, okay? Your senses are readjusting, getting used to taking in external stimuli so take it slow for a little bit."

Reed groaned and said, "Is it always like this when you leave the Nexus?"

"No, your mind will eventually get used to it and the side-effects will become… less pronounced. Don't worry, everyone feels the same way when the first disconnect. For now though, why don't we move somewhere nicer so you can relax?"

Reed nodded slowly and then the pair vanished into the void. When the came out of it, they walked out into a very familiar place.

It was Ma's house. The same house he'd visited in the Nexus, but this time in reality. It was the same little wooden house, but the scenery was different. It was next to a small lake near an unknown forest.

"H-Hey, gramps isn't this…?"

"This is the real thing, my boy. This is where I and Emma called home after the Unification Era, far away from the misery of civilization…"

Chapter end