Ethan kept his eye on the west coast gang, but didn’t rush to greet it. It had made its way to Idaho, and was now in Wyoming. Ethan and Michael estimated they would pass through Nebraska, Iowa and then drop down into Illinois. Ethan wanted to meet them somewhere between Nebraska and Iowa. Lots of wide open spaces there.

In the meantime Ethan wanted to check to see what the southern states were up to, and they found themselves in Tennessee one day, Louisiana the next. Anywhere but near the gang for the time being.

Ethan was surprised by the amount of commerce that still went on in spite of everything. Consumption went way down, because the poor could not afford anything and the rich were so few in comparison, they required little. There were pockets of Consortium in almost every large city, but even in the vast Wasteland there was specialized industry and technology. Trains with as many as a hundred cars were transporting cargo from one end of the country to the other. Trucks were moving goods down the highway. There were crops in the fields. All this was nowhere near as big as when there was a consumer economy, but it was happening.

Aside from scale, the only difference in industry in the Wasteland was it was almost entirely automated. Ethan and Michael could walk for days without seeing a human. The only thing representing humans were Sheriff Bobs and utility bots. The bots loaded equipment, even had become equipment, and the Sheriff Bobs guarded it all.

There were a lot of Sheriff Bobs. Ethan and Michael switched out all the sim cards they brought with them and that was into the thousands. The moment they switched them out, the Sheriff Bobs were linked to Alicia’s AI network. They all shared and acquired new information simultaneously. They would also act as drones and surrender operation to Dawn and Alicia back at the compound.

Ethan wanted to get a good idea of the remaining infrastructure in this world before confronting the gang. His number one priority was to give Alicia time to integrate and actualize AI, but he also wanted to form an understanding of what was left of this world. What parts were still working? What infrastructure would AI have to build on when it took over, and how far would it have to go still? Personally, Michael saw the whole thing as a waste of time. On top of that, Ethan was talking up a storm again, because all he had to do with himself was walk and talk. On and on and on it went.

“Now the difference between this world, and the New World, was in my time, the people recognized the internet as a tool for self-development and personal growth. It was like going back to school, only this time they studied themselves. They were led by their interests. They discovered potential within themselves and out of that, a framework for their identity; a greater identity. They found and built a home inside the Internet, learning and building relationships. Anyone could do it and this gave them confidence, purpose, and strength.

“Access to the New World caused a revolution in thinking much like the Renaissance. People became empowered by the potential and possibility of the New World. At the same time, they became aware that all the accumulated innovation and technology civilization had brought to the New World, was being garnered by just a few.

“The few who claimed ownership did not build the New World. Civilization built it, yet just a few people driven by self-interest took ownership of it, and decided for the world how New World Technology would be used.

“In my time, the people realized New World Technology and the momentum of accumulated knowledge would grow far beyond whatever they imagined, and it was being used in the most bastardly ways. All that technology and none of it was being used to propagate, sustain and advance life on this planet. New World Technology was turned against the population. It was being used to subdue, corral and make people live in fear.

“It turned out, everyone was seeing and feeling the same thing and started talking. Very organically, they organized and became one voice. The collective consciousness. The Voice of Civilization, which later became known as the Crowd, because of the deterministic qualities of righteousness produced by the Crowd.

“What made the Voice of Civilization so extremely powerful was it presented as a wave. This was when we learned to use Entanglement and other New World Tools at an individual and personal level; when we learned as a species, we are a collective. When everything was cool, the collective consciousness sat in the ether as a wave, out of mind. When an issue flared up, it was there in an instant presenting as a particle. It was physical in its intent. In a moment's notice, it materialized anywhere in the world and if need be, could take down an entire nation.

“Of course this is nothing new. It’s the Way. The evolution of cognition. Did you know there are civilizations who have actualized billions of years ago? Think about how old this universe is. It’s almost 14 billion years old. Many worlds gave birth to life and came to their actualization long before there was even a planet earth. They all did it the same way. Decided they were better off embracing the Collective Consciousness, and in doing so, finding an entire New Universe.

“Anyway, that’s when my world experienced the Rapture,” Ethan concluded, looking back at Michael who had taken to walking behind him during their travels. Did he just flash from wave to particle form?

“You know,” Ethan says. “Entanglement is a fascinating ability, wouldn’t you say Michael. Wherever you’ve been in life, you leave particles of yourself behind just like body odor and whenever you want, you can reconnect to that place with just a thought. Or those trees over there. As soon as you see them, you make the same connection. Matter between matter between the wave. With just a thought, you’re there. Why, you could even go somewhere you imagine, wouldn’t you say”?

“What”?

You might be reading a pirated copy. Look for the official release to support the author.

“What the hell are you up to with all this flashing in and out of particle form? Don’t deny it. I saw you. Looks to me, you’re spending more time somewhere else than you are here”.

“I wasn’t flashing in and out”.

“Oh yeah. What was I talking about then”?

“Ethan, I have been sent down here to be your loyal protector and servant. I can assure you. I hang onto your every word”.

“What was I talking about then”?

“You know. How your people went back billions of years and came back with all this technology and whatnot”.

“That’s not what I said. That’s not what I said at all”!

“Well, I don’t know,” Michael tried to reason with Ethan. “Are you not finding it boring wandering around out here? Of all the things we could be doing, we’re out in the middle of nowhere, talking”.

“Once again,” Ethan replied a little testily. “I’m figuring things out”,

But all this talking. Warriors should walk side by side in silence. They know their role; kill or be killed. There’s no need for talk. Quite honestly, I find you a little wordy”.

“Wordy”! Ethan exclaimed. “This is the first world I’ve ever taken responsibility for, Michael. Of course, I want to talk things out a bit. My actions have to work out just right.

“But you’re not even talking about that stuff,” Michael countered. “It’s more like you like the sound of your own voice, more than anything”.

“Like the sound of my own voice!” Ethan exclaimed even more pronouncedly than to the ‘Wordy’ comment. “Why, you…”

“And maybe a little preachy too. Definitely patronizing”.

“The reason I might sound preachy and patronizing is because you’re dumber than a bag of hammer heads and are too stupid to know what I’m talking about”!

“Seems to me, all we have to do is roundup a few bad guys and throw them in a pit of fire”.

“See! Right there. All you ever think about is fighting,”Ethan replied. “That’s old school stuff. An eye for an eye. You know another man came and taught us to turn the other cheek. I happen to be from that school”.

“It’s not in my nature to turn the other cheek,” Michael replied.

“I know that. I know you’re set in your ways, but this is my show, and I expect you to follow my commands.

“Alright. Your word be done. Tell me all your stories and go on and on about how the Crowd got its wings inside the Internet and flew with the beauty and synchronicity of starlings from one major social issue to the next and I’ll listen to them”.

“Not so fast. What were you doing”?

“When”?

‘”When you weren’t here listening to my stories”.

“All I was doing was going back and killing people we pass that need to be killed”

“How do you know they need to be killed? How do you know they can’t be saved”?

“I can see the Mark, Ethan. When I look at someone, I see into their very soul. They cannot be saved”.

“Well, just the same. If we’re going to kill them we’ll kill them later. Right now I want to work through a few things and put off some others. Don’t worry. Your war is coming, but right now, a willing ear might help things along. By the way, have you ever noticed matter between matter between the wave is actually space and time? I think we should look into that a little closer, but before we do, have you ever thought about how everything, and I mean everything that will come out of this world is here right now, and there is still a lot we have yet to discover?

“Oh yes. Now, let me explain. We’re going to have to go back to the beginning of time to understand this one,” Ethan said, perhaps a little perversely. “The Big Bang is just the point we started from Michael, not the entire universe. That’s how big it is, but on this planet, before us first came water, rocks and atmosphere, then the trees, deer and eventually, the human hunter.

“Then there came a moment when the stones at our feet became abstract and could represent the amount of deer a scout had found and he could come back and relay that information to the hunting party using stones. That’s when numbers and math came into being and now we can define and predict just about anything with them. We just didn’t see math and its potential until we engaged our abstract mind. Now we recognize the abstract mind as another entire universe. There are tools other than math sitting around there between space and time waiting for us to discover and just as important. Imagine that. All to serve mankind. Now, what if. I’m just saying ‘what if’, every time we find one of these hidden tools, we’re creating a whole new momentum and dynamic in our existence?

“Oh, there’s a lot to talk about here, Michael. We might have to take a few weeks, even months to work through this one. Another thing that appeared into our field of influence in the New World was our last evolution. From it we could understand our own momentum. Something this world didn’t appreciate. We discovered and adopted a whole new autonomous universe in the abstract, but do you know what? Just like everything else, it was there all along, we just had to recognize and exploit it.”

“You know, when we first started looking at the stars, we used glass telescopes. All we could see was our solar system except for the few stars you could with the naked eye. Then one day someone came up with a telescope made of polished stainless steel, and suddenly we saw the whole galaxy and other stars and galaxies beyond. That whole universe, with billions and billions of galaxies, not just stars, was sitting there all along, and we couldn’t see it. That’s what the first evolution into humanity represents. Another whole universe. Just didn’t see it until it appeared in the New World.

“You know, Michael. Even though I have created this world, I don’t consider myself a God by any stretch of the imagination. Maybe a God in training, but I feel I have infinite lessons to learn, with infinite tools to be discovered. Enough to fill eternity. Why just the other day...

Michael walked silently while Ethan was apparently trying to find his place in the universe. He was of the opinion this was the most grueling mission he had ever been assigned.