A piece of the sun danced on the dirt-steeped branch. The neon of the crackling light rivalled the darkness of the young Earth's horizon.

The homo erectus, named after a specific grunt, was astonished at the sight. A new magic system.

She could transmute raw boar meat to a cooked meal. She could cast something closer to true sight in the night. This magic would unlock things she could not even imagine, like metallurgy and setting tribes with unsightly mates aflame.

With caution she approached it, her hand ahead of her ready to grab it.

Maybe she could imagine setting those camps on fire. No more ugly babies.

Her fear of the unknown made her slow, but she was in range to grab the branch that held the next step for humankind.

A deep hum played, then a ripple of binary and hexadecimal characters danced behind the branch.

Ace, Eve, and Isabella, afterschool child icons of the streaming plexussite Visionplexus, have arrived for their new adventure and Eve was already not looking forward to it.

"No, that's my fire," Eve squeaked, one hand holding onto a teddy bear with a VR headset, and the other hand grabbing the lit branch. "Invent showers first before touching it. Ew. Disguisting."

A BIG SATAN UNDER YOUR PINKY TOE

The show where the three children ride on S.A.T.A.N. in a perfect simulation of the universe to explore the deepest questions historians have about human history. Like, what if instead of Abraham Lincoln being assassinated, Eve instead gave the assassin John Wilkes Booth a painful wedgie? What if cocaine was always used in every soda? What if humanity had only one type of apocalypse during the 21st century instead of all of them at the same time?

O humanity! These children could provide answers for the most pressing questions, but these children only cared about one pressing question:

How could they doom the human race even further?

"Shut up narrator," Eve said on the earthplexus hologram screen, a laugh track following her words. "Only losers care about that stuff. You're nothing like me."

The show played inside the home Joaquim was observing earlier. The most unique aspect about the show was that it once started as a Dungeons and Dragons campaign podcast that went off the rails. The original campaign was already animated, but now its content was made by the viewers. Whether it was a party with their own dungeon master tuning their own minds to virtualtops to enter the universe, or someone in No Man's Land using a chatbot to write a new story, the algorithm would sort, delete, and organize thousands of stories into a single epic 8 episode season. It was a global phenomenon.

However, as of a few days ago, the show was getting backlash. With the alternative history plotlines the show had, it was criticised for fostering a far right audience. Everyone in 1 platoon and 1 platoon fans did call the show their own.

2 platoon was spread across the taiga platform, the speaker drones playing Don't Stop Me Now by Queen.

"Gabe," Joaquim said. He glanced at the snow crevice he made from kicking Farouq. "Sergeant Hunter is close by and I know what you truly want. Let's pass this test. Together."

Gabe's face was flat, but it was not flat from a neutral mood. Joaquim knew his brother was also dealing with an inner battle.

"I'm sorry about earlier, if I didn't commit to trying to ki-"

"Ameen would have used the same ability to make us fall asleep, making it easy to dispose of us," Joaquim said. "He's keeping us awake so you can prove yourself to Ameen."

Gabe nodded.

"Has he thought of only using it on me?" Joaquim asked, pointing at himself. "He could still test you that way."

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"You're smarter than me bro," Gabe said. That was the first time he called Joaquim that and it made him blush an amount he never knew he was capable of. He was so happy to hear it that he had to turn his face away.

He glanced back at Gabe, expecting to explain to him why he was quiet up until this point, but it was not necessary. His determined stare said that he knew exactly why saying the word was so significant to Joaquim.

With how unbelievably tense and fast the past few days have been, they let the silence of their renewed brotherhood hang in the air. For a moment they did not care that the musical chair song was still going.

"I never doubted you," Joaquim said.

"Me neither," Gabe said.

"And how you talked about smart I am, it must mean I already know the answer to my question," Joaquim said. "And I did not figure it out until now, but Ameen placed a condition on the ability didn't he? In the dream, I saw everyone that will or have fought for him. Everyone that would have an angel seed."

"Therefore it's everyone or no one," Gabe said.

Some Anagami abilities, and even abilities in the mythical Nirvana form, either required training and/or conditions. Trying to figure out the conditions on one's own was suicide in some cases. Jaunters, for example, who did not use AI to calibrate their arrival could teleport somewhere where the Earth already orbitted, or they would travel at a different speed than the Earth and splatter into blood, flesh, and bone. Most jaunters were more afraid of hackers than other supersoldiers.

It was safer in general to train with Infamogen's InfluxGPT and wait for months or even years for it to tell a supersoldier what ability they can use and what the conditions were.

"Sergeant Hunter is in the forest with a chair," Joaquim said.

"A sergeant. That's going to be hard," Gabe said. "You know it's Shard right?"

Joaquim gulped. He should have known most of 2 platoons members would be famous. Shard earned her name when she killed one of Byza's high capos.

"It's best you go up against her with what I found out about you," Joaquim said. "By the way, is the reason you're keeping secrets from me due to one of Ameen's abilities? Would revealing anything put you in danger?"

Gabe nodded.

"Even anything about mom and dad?" Joaquin asked.

Gabe nodded again.

"I realized something," a distant deep voice said.

She stood on top of a large rock. She was way past six feet tall and of indigenous descent. Her hair was pulled back and she managed to look even more intimidating than Iker. Her broad shoulders and frame showed off how physically strong she was, her Kaya form would be a mistake to ignore. What was even scarier was her Anagami powers the brothers were familiar with.

"With all the bets happening, I would win so many r0cbytes if I made sure you two did not make it," Sergeant Hunter said.

The song played at least twice. The first round was coming to an end soon.

"Y'all are placing bets on us?" Joaquim asked.

"It's a 2 platoon tradition," Sergeant Hunter said.

"Don't bother with her," Lucia said, walking behind Joaquim and Gabe.

"Lucia!" Joaquim shouted. "Wait, I'm guessing I should ask you for permission before petting you?"

"It's a good habit to have, but who am I kidding?" Lucia said. "I love free massages. It's terrible that you humans have to pay for it."

"You're going to help these guys?" Sergeant Hunter asked with a frown. "Do you feel bad for them because Colonel Felix also failed you and you had to climb up to 2 platoon?"

"I wasn't going to do anything until you decided you would," Lucia said. "You got that from earlier right Sergeant? The part where I'm changing my bet to them passing?"

"You bitch. You bet against us?" Gabe asked, clasping his mouth. Lucia and Joaquim gasped in unison while Sergean Hunter laughed.

"Cancelled," Sergeant Hunter sang. "Do you regret switching your bet? I don't care what anyone else in 2 platoon says, you are not allowed to change it back. You're gonna have to help that specieist pass."

"I'm really truly sorry!" Gabe cried. He collapsed on the snow and bowed his head. "Please forgive me. I'll never say it again."

"I was about to say that I got chairs for you two," Lucia said. "Cadet Gabriel Wami, now you owe me two favors."

"Yes ma'am!" Gabe cried. "I'll make it up to you. I promise."

"Now get the fuck up before you fail, Mr. 'I'll be the #1 strongest supersoldier alive.' Looking stupid on the floor. Getting your uniform wet," Lucia commanded.

Gabe threw himself up while Sergeant Hunter laughed the whole time.

"I was about to fight, but now I just feel bad," Sergeant Hunter said. "Bye losers. I got a chair to put my fat ass on."

"Okay, get ready to teleport," Lucia said.

"What how?" Gabe asked.

"My mind is linked with Corporal Woo and Sergeant Uzi," Lucia said.

Corporal Woo appeared, grabbing them all and teleporting somewhere else.

Joaquim looked around. He saw sky all around him and steep falls in all directions. Corporal Woo teleported them to the top of the taiga platform's artificial mountain. He glanced behind him to find a stack of metal chairs with plates on the seats.

"Don't just stare at it," Corporal Woo said while grabbing the top chair. "Grab one."

Gabe, Lucia, and Joaquim crashed into each other while running to it, but eventually they were able to organize themselves. Joaquim set a chair for Lucia while Corporal Woo took a seat.

As soon as the brothers laid their chairs on the top of the mountain and sat on it, the music stopped.

Rooooooouuund over! Iker announced, clearly having the time of his life.

"Uh hi," a voice stuttered.

Joaquim glanced behind him to see an arak sitting on a levitating chair.

Sergeant Uzi.

/p>