1 The Implant
Spikes, hundreds of spikes were falling from the sky. Pulsating, brown fleshy spikes buzzing towards a small shape under them. It was a woman clad in yellow.
The spikes were massive, double the size of the woman. Clear blue eyes painted towards the sky, past the spikes.
Three massive leviathans of writhing flesh and spikes with five bulging eyes hovered high above. A few seconds elapsed, between every barrage of a hundred spikes.
The woman in yellow lifted her hands and her blue eyes glowed. The air around her vibrating from her exertion of power. Her two spread hands and the bald head formed a triangle of lightning.
With a shout, the triangle of lightning grew a hundred meters wide and rushed for the leviathans. The triangle crackled with lightning, striking every spike of flesh inside and shattering them.
The woman looked calmly at the screeching leviathans. The triangle had struck true pincering the leviathans in between, shocking them and rendering them incapable of flight.
As the leviathans were falling, she lifted her hands and the triangle formed into a giant sword of pure lightning. She jumped at the falling leviathans and with one great cleave cut them in half.
One last look at the bald woman with lightning crackling around her and the video ended. A message then read at the end.
'In Eden Dream, you can become like Odelia, a great hero fighting for the evolution of the human race.'
The video feed on the wall ended, a cascade of colors turning into a dull gray. A slight reflection on the wall showed a girl clad in a light blue jumpsuit with red accents.
She put her hand on the wall where the video had played. A twinkle in her viridescent eyes and a wide smile, the last thing in the reflection, before she turned away.
'Today, Today is the day.' The girl thought and walked with light, dance-like steps.
The girl in the jumpsuit entered an elevator tube and floated upwards. She looked at herself while floating and straightened a few wrinkles.
On her chest, there was a name.
Fi.
Fi floated out of the tube, landing softly. She headed for the atrium like her usual routine entailed. The atrium, with the only green space accessible for the ones with little to no income.
She would lay down on the grass and inhale the scent of life absent from elsewhere on the ship.
It was one of the few places available to feel alive, to escape the monotony on the rest of Harmony.
The name had symbolized the work between all powers back on earth, working together for a common goal. The evolution of man.
They had discovered a planet some five hundred years ago, where the impossible wasn't only possible, but commonplace. An unknown form of energy made creatures able to change the world around them in miraculous ways.
It could only be described as magic.
The scientists on earth theorized it was possible for humans to use this energy. The whole world united under this one project to create Harmony, the colony ship able to travel to the planet; Eden.
The estimated travel time was 300 years. The launch was 280 years ago, making Fi capable of setting foot on the planet.
Fi laid down on the grass and stretched her body. She closed her eyes, hoping to catch some shut-eye, before her appointment. Close to drifting asleep, she remembered to set an alarm.
"Harmony, wake me up in forty-five," Fi said and moved a stray hair behind her ear.
"Confirmed, waking up Fi in forty-five minutes" A hollow voice sounded from near her.
She pulled one of her legs up, after the ships AI's confirmation and aimed for the already promised nap.
It didn't take long for Fi to drift into a sleep full of dreams. Dreams of Eden Dream, the game everyone played after turning twelve.
At twelve years of age, everyone got a brain implant, enabling them to visit Eden Dream in their sleep.
The game was based on actual data from planet Eden. The idea is to prepare for the actual planetfall. It had another purpose too, everything on the ship was decided inside of the game.
All resource allocation was behind the doors of Eden Dream. Your living quarters, food, entertainment and even the chance to bear offspring was decided in game.
One thing separated Fi from the masses, she was already eighteen years old and didn't have an implant.
Her brain had a unique composition and it needed to develop for a longer period of time. The implant was an invasive procedure and if everything wasn't in good order, complications would occur.
A soft beep woke Fi up. Forty-five minutes had gone in the blink of an eye. She rubbed her eyes and blinked, focusing her sight.
Back in action, Fi jumped up full of energy again. Her appointment was soon. She would meet up with doctor Ramos, the one in charge of implant procedures.
They had met multiple times during her check-ups. Every year she would go in for extensive tests to see how her brain developed. There were a few instances where others couldn't get their implants at twelve, but at maximum, they had to wait for a year.
She was alone in this. Her family hadn't deemed it necessary to look after her since the system didn't pay for a free upkeep anymore.
Twelve happy years, six in wait. Today the wait was over and she would finally get an implant.
She could make a difference for herself, go swimming in the artificial lake on the ship, or any swimming for that matter.
She hadn't swum since turning twelve. It was too expensive.
Swimming was the thing she missed most, she told herself. She kept repeating in her mind that her parents weren't coming today and not to get her hopes up.
She entered Ramon's workshop. Inside she was greeted with more gray and a message appeared on the wall. She was to follow the arrow to her destination.
A green arrow appeared on the ground showing her the way. She walked along the shown path with all of her muscles tensed. It was so close, she could feel it.
'Eden Dream here I come,' Fi thought as she stepped into doctor Ramon's room.
In the room, a man in his sixties stood. He had hair and beard tinged in gray, the kindest smile known to man and bushy eyebrows. Interacting with Ramon was like meeting the perfect grandpa.
Ramon stood beside the pod-doc and was putting in some parameters when Fi entered. He scratched his beard clad chin and said.
"A second please."
Ramon had a raspy edge to his voice, just enough to sandpaper away your last defenses.
He turned towards Fi and smiled his renowned smile.
"I won't hinder you with any unnecessary talk. Take off your jumpsuit and get in." Ramon said and the pod-doc opened with a hiss.
Fi didn't hesitate and took off her jumpsuit, revealing more of her light brown skin. She tied her few shades darker hair into a knot and stepped for the pod-doc, clad in black underwear.
She slid inside, got a comfortable position and closed the dome after her. A User Interface came alive on top of the dome. It explained the procedure in detail and Fi swiped forward.
A window popped open, asking if she was ready to start the countdown. She held her hand outstretched, grabbed the air under the option for 'Ok' and held it for the required three seconds.
She clenched her hands as hard as she could, steadying herself. It was time, Eden Dream was here.
"You will fall asleep in Ten… Nine… Eight… Seven...Six…" She closed her eyes and drifted asleep at the count of zero.
