Mist rose from the valley below as Isaac faced the ancient being. All of his comrades were frozen in place, mid-movement, mid-conversation, their mouths in the midst of interrupted motion. Only Isaac still possessed freedom of movement; he took a step back, unsure of what to do. The last time he met the Mind, it was after his first battle with Babs. She had left him for dead, but the Mind had saved him and placed him in an illusion where he lived through Babs’ memories. As to why the Mind did that - she said it was just because she found it interesting. She had big plans, and someone small and unknown like Isaac was becoming an unexpected factor in them.

The Mind stepped away from the tree, the snow crunching beneath her boots. She wore the black longcoat of the State Police; her blonde hair was cut in a messy bob. With each movement, the symbol of Project Patmos - the black octagon with the diagonal line running through it - appeared at the base of her neck, in and out of view beneath the shifting collar of her longcoat.

As she approached, Isaac shook his head and rallied himself. He couldn’t compete with her powers, but the last time they met, she had been willing to talk. If he could get her into a conversation again, he could stall for time until he figured a way out.

“In our last conversation,” Isaac said with a grimace. “You told me you wanted to know if I posed a threat to your plans. If you needed to kill me or not.”

The Mind stopped and smiled, an inhuman smile, like someone who knew what a smile was and was trying to replicate it without understanding the emotion behind it. “Indeed, that’s what I said. I haven’t made that decision yet. I’ll make it soon, perhaps. But for right now, I just want to talk with the unknown variable who’s appeared in my life.”

Isaac kept his eyes narrowed. “Then why’d you freeze my friends?”

“I’ve read that when two people are talking, an extra person is considered an unnecessary ‘third wheel’,” the Mind explained. “So I’ve frozen all the third wheels with us so we may talk alone.” She arched on her eyebrows, the eye below it briefly turning red and purple. “This eye has the ability to put a trance on people. Time is flowing normally for everyone here, even your frozen friends. It’s just that I’ve slowed their perception of the passage of time to the point where they’re stuck in place. By the time our conversation is done, they’ll think only a second has passed.”

As if to emphasize her point, streaks of dawn sunlight appeared behind the distant mountains, unaffected by her power.

The Mind clasped her hands behind her back and tilted her head. “Haven’t you noticed anything different about me, Isaac?”

“...the red eye is new.”

She shook her head. “I’ve read that when a man is interested in a woman, he’ll notice when she tries something new. I take it you’re not interested in me then?”

Isaac swallowed. In just a moment, the Mind could transform into a giant and wipe them all out. “I don’t get it.”

The Mind let out a mechanical sigh. “I'm using contractions in my speech now. I’ve analyzed human conversations and found them just as useful as you do - they’re time-saving and efficient. And by using contractions, I feel closer to you humans.”

A distant tree cracked in the wind when snow proved too heavy for a long branch. “How’d you know we were here?” Isaac asked.

“Wouldn’t you like to know?” she answered. The robotic smile dropped from her mouth, replaced with her best attempt at a face full of whimsy. “Perhaps you’ll find out. That’s what I’m most curious about. If you continue your current line of investigation, there’s a decent chance you’ll uncover my origins. That’s extremely fascinating to me. Nobody else has done so. You’d be the first to know. You! Just a miner from a small town uncovering my secret. Humans are the best.”

“...your eyes.”

The Mind paused. “Huh?”

“If you’re trying to be like a human,” Isaac said. “Then your facial expressions need to reach your eyes. When you smile, your eyes should smile, too.”

He wasn’t sure why he said that. Perhaps it was the exhaustion from the battle with the skeletons, or that he had been awake for over 24 hours straight now. But maybe it was because of the Mind herself. In their first meeting, she had been cold and aloof. But during this second meeting, she was opening up a little more, and Isaac felt utterly confused about what he found. There were regular debates about whether or not humans were cultivators - and here was someone who was definitely not human actively trying to become one.

The internal calculations were visible on the Mind’s pale, motionless face until she found the appropriate response - to giggle. “Thank you, Isaac. I appreciate your advice. That’s why I’m here, after all. To talk with you.”

She reached into longcoat. Isaac tensed up, expecting a gun or weapon, but she instead pulled out a football.

“As you humans say, go long.”

Isaac remained in place. “...what?”

The story has been illicitly taken; should you find it on Amazon, report the infringement.

The Mind tapped her fingers along the laces of the pigskin. “I’ve observed humans for centuries now. You’re all social animals who build tight-knit communities. One of your methods of doing so is through play. I would like to get closer to you, so I believe us playing together will accomplish that. Let’s play, Isaac.”

Out of every odd situation Isaac found himself in during these past few months, the current moment took the cake. He hesitated for a moment.

If I play catch with her, maybe I can get some more info from her. And I’d prefer if she didn't turn into a giant.

Reluctantly, he took a few steps back, still sticking close to his frozen comrades, but arriving in an open spot. The Mind herself created some space, then planted her feet in the snow. She mimicked taking the snap under center, pump-faked, then tossed the ball, which moved in a perfect spiral. It fell right into Isaac’s waiting arms - he was afraid the ball would explode upon contact or something, but it felt like just a normal football. Perhaps a little deflated due to the cold.

Isaac tossed the ball back, his years of playing in dusty lots in Patuxet coming back to him. His own throw was a tight spiral and landed right in her arms.

The Mind pointed at him. “Ha! You throw like a girl.”

Isaac raised an eyebrow. “You’re supposed to say that after a bad throw.”

“Oh, my apologies.” She studied the ball for a moment. “Why do humans associate negative connotations with women throwing a ball?”

“...I don’t know.”

They tossed the ball back and forth, Isaac kept his teeth gritted, feeling on-edge, while the Mind tried in vain to make the smile reach her eyes. She seemed to be in a good mood, so Isaac launched his questions.

“Does a symbol depicting twin lightning bolts mean anything to you?”

The Mind tossed the ball. “Ah, yes. My creator belonged to an organization with that insignia.”

“This organization existed before the Unleashing. What did they do?”

“They lost a war.”

Isaac caught the ball and recalled his conversation with Stockham in the depths of the facility below the Elizabeth Pond naval base when he first laid eyes upon the Heart. “Before the Unleashing, there was a big war. A group of nations who wanted to conquer the world were defeated. Your creator’s organization - if this is the same war, and if they lost, then they must’ve been the would-be conquerors. Did you and the Heart originate in this war?”

The Mind waited for him to toss the ball back. “The idea of us, at least. My creator’s organization lost the war and many were executed for their crimes.” That grin reappeared on her face. “But some proved so smart and so talented that the victors recruited them, even with full knowledge of what they did to innocents during the war. My creator was a great man. But not a good one.”

Isaac caught the ball and stopped the game of catch. “Who’s your creator?”

Piercing blue eyes stared at him for a moment. “Wouldn’t you like to know?”

Dawn finally broke as the first glimpse of the winter sun appeared behind the distant mountains. The Mind motioned for Isaac to pass the ball back; when he did, she tucked it away inside her longcoat. Her face displayed a satisfied look.

“My sensors tell me that we played a fun game,” the Mind concluded.

“What’s the point of all this?” Isaac asked. He motioned with his hands. “Appearing in the middle of the mountains, playing games with me, acting like we’re friends.”

That last part made the Mind giggle again. “Isaac, things will be coming to a head soon. My plan is nearing fruition. And when I achieve that plan, things will never be the same. So, before that happens, I have what you humans refer to as a bucket list. There are things I’d like to do, normal human things, before my plan concludes.”

Her face took on an unnatural red tint, as if somebody had painted it. The Mind twiddled her fingers. “I’m all alone, but you humans are so close with one another. I’d like to experience some of that closeness. I want to make a genuine friend.”

Isaac frowned when her gaze lingered on him.

“Will you be my first friend, Isaac?”

The cold air stung his face. “You don’t formally ask someone to become your friend. It just happens.”

“But how will I know when it happens?” she asked, eying his frozen companions. “You and the Reed girl. How do you know for sure you’re friends with her?”

Her frozen jaw hung loose from her mouth, loose strands of brown hair falling down her forehead. Internally, Isaac laughed at the memory of her V for Victory headband she wore during that fateful day of the armada, and then he had his answer.

“Well, friends are usually interested in the same kind of things. You feel comfortable talking around them. And you’ve been through things together and made memories.”

The Mind gave a vigorous nod. “I see, I see. I believe we’ve achieved step 1 then. I’ll be seeing you, Isaac, so we may complete steps 2 and 3 before everything ends.”

“...right.”

The light of dawn stretched across the Mind’s face as she stepped away, heading to the edge of the ridge. She peered down into the mountain valley below. “One more thing, Isaac. I’ve observed that friends give each other gifts. I have one for you. My creator’s organization was known as the ODESSA. Use that information as you will. All I ask is that one day, you give me a gift in return. Preferably before I decide whether or not to kill you.”

Standing on the edge of the ridge, the wind making her coat billow, the Mind glanced back and winked her red eye at him.

Four collective sighs rushed out in unison. All of Isaac’s comrades were now unfrozen and stumbled forward, their faces confused by their changing perspectives of time. They looked at Isaac, only to follow his gaze toward the figure on the ridge.

The Mind smiled, and then jumped.

Isaac rushed over through the snow, sliding to a halt at the edge of the cliff. Right as he glanced down, he felt unseasonal heat whip at his face, followed by a dark surge of crimson lights. A boom echoed through the valley as the giant’s feet hit the meadow, sending rumbles up the ridge. Isaac nearly lost his footing, but managed to stay standing. All he could was watch as the giant dashed off, down the valley, disappearing into ironwood forests. The group remained quiet for a moment, everything simply trying to process the sight before their eyes.

“What just happened?” Reed asked, dull shock on her face at the sight of the giant.

Only Isaac had the answer for that. He scratched his cheek.

“Somebody wants to be my friend.”