Right Foot

***

It was almost noon when I finally woke up, after staying up all night following Rei’s life. Dom was taking longer than expected to return, and Alba was still completely absorbed in her work.

From my current perspective, with the judgment of a 21st-century human, Alba was standing in the room and looked like someone with a psychiatric disorder. She was moving both hands in the air, deeply focused as she stared into nothing. She was probably using the Eterno connection to the network, but to me it still felt strange.

“Alba, sorry to interrupt, but Dom hasn’t come back yet… does he usually take this long?” I asked, breaking her focus.

Without pausing her interaction with the void, she replied, “Dom’s with Chefe. They told me they’re in the final stages of preparing your attire so you can leave here. Most likely, Luna noticed an empty hand nearby and kept him busy.”

“Oh… so that’s it.”

“Are you bored?” she asked.

“A little.”

“Do you want to connect with me? Maybe you’ll be able to see what I’m doing here and feel less bored.”

Through my phone’s Linkedia, I connected to Alba’s network, and now I could access two networks simultaneously. If I could enter theirs, could they also connect to mine and see its contents?

“Alba, can you see what’s on my Linkedia? Can you access it too?”

“Let me check… No, it’s blocked. Only you can access it. I’ve never seen anything like this before,” she replied.

This made me even more suspicious. How could they trust me so easily? Alba didn’t seem too concerned and simply went back to her work. From what I could gather through my phone, she seemed to be configuring and adjusting some parameters of the suit they were making for me.

She seemed to be assisting remotely and tried to explain:

“Can you see this? This will be your new outfit. I’m configuring some of its cybersecurity features to prevent the central team, or anyone else, from intervening or accessing your suit.”

I almost laughed, but managed to hold it back.

My new outfit looked like medieval armor. How was I supposed to walk around unnoticed in that? There was no way.

“Alba, how am I supposed to walk in this? It looks kind of heavy…” I asked, though that wasn’t my main concern.

“We’ve already calculated your weight and body proportions. You’ll be able to move just fine. The outfit needs to be this robust to protect you from the fog’s toxins and to thermally insulate you, preventing others from realizing you’re human.”

“Wow… you really thought of everything.”

It had been almost three days since I arrived here. Creating an outfit from scratch and nearly finishing it in that time frame was pretty impressive.

“Won’t this outfit look strange to people on the streets, Alba?” Rei asked the question I had been holding back out of politeness.

I had no right to complain or make suggestions here.

She smiled and said, “This is the least strange outfit you’ll see on the streets.”

What could possibly be stranger than medieval armor?

“Get ready, Inertia! You’ll be able to go out this afternoon. They’re just finishing up and will bring it here soon.”

“That’s great!”

I couldn’t stand being confined any longer. If only I had access to the 2025 network, maybe I wouldn’t feel so bored here. The entertainment of 6025 still felt strange to me. I only had access to what Nowy produced, which seemed like a cheap imitation of the entertainment from my own time, only a weirder version of it.

I took the opportunity to browse through Alba’s Linkedia and ended up discovering some details about Nowy’s defense systems.

Alba was part of the civil defense team, responsible for providing aid and maintaining security within the community and in some of the border areas. She was allowed to carry only a limited range of weapons for attack and defense, those authorized for lower-ranked officers — her taser being one of them.

Above the civil defense stood the soldiers, the backbone of state security against invasions, who also supported urban operations with greater firepower.

Outside Nowy and its borders, the land was lawless, with no security or protection systems in place. Defense was personal and depended on how much a person invested in body-integrated materials and equipment. I say “person,” but I’m not even sure androids count as people. Well… I don’t know a better word, so I’ll stick with it, even if it doesn’t quite fit.

Alba didn’t seem to have anything fused into her body. Her personal defense relied on civil defense equipment and on her very existence as a Daughter.

“So, there’s no surveillance in other regions, right? There’s no risk of them finding me?” I asked.

“The chances are low. Luna put a lot of effort into creating this suit. But even if they do find you, they can’t force you to do anything against your will or abduct you without your consent. There would be too many eyewitnesses and recordings… Still, it’s important to stay alert and not stray from us.”

“Okay…”

I was happy to finally be leaving, but also scared of what might be waiting for me outside.

While I waited, I had lunch. Today’s menu was baked potatoes with salt, an apple, and a banana. Alba had brought me what I think works like a mini fridge — a device that creates an internal vacuum, isolating food and preserving it by preventing microbial growth, or at least that’s how she explained it.

The food was indeed very well-preserved. I had to space out my meals to make it last until the seeds we had planted started bearing fruit. Getting them hadn’t been easy, and I felt it was too risky to go searching for more again.

Meanwhile, I learned more about the world as it is now, and none of it was something a person from the 21st century could have ever predicted. Cars still existed, but anyone could build their own wings and fly. The possibilities for new modes of transportation seemed endless. The only real barriers were money and the difficulty of acquiring such abilities.

At last, the news I’d been waiting for arrived: everything was ready, and they were on their way.

It didn’t take long before the doorbell rang. Alba opened the door, and Luna was the first to step inside, followed closely by Dom, who was carrying my new outfit.

“Inertia! It’s ready! Let’s test it out!” Luna sounded excited but also completely drained, with dark circles under her eyes, her hair tied back in a messy ponytail, and an overall dazed look.

Dom walked past us and set the outfit down on the floor.

“Hi,” he muttered, keeping his eyes down.

He looked a little embarrassed. He wasn’t angry or upset about what had happened between us.

“Come on, try it on! Try it!” Luna urged.

The outfit looked just as I had seen earlier with Alba, similar to medieval female armor but made of a different material, a mix of bluish and black tones. Despite its bulk, it was surprisingly flexible.

I started putting it on right there in the living room, since it didn’t require removing my current clothes. Everything seemed to fit perfectly. Alba helped me adjust the pieces, and finally, I put on the helmet.

The outfit covered my entire body, and despite its appearance, it was incredibly lightweight.

“Great! It’s perfect for you! Now we need to test it outside,” Luna said eagerly.

“What about detecting my body? Did it work? Can they still pick up any heat radiation from me?” I asked.

“I see nothing, not even with the sensor. Visibly, you’re one of us now,” Dom said.

“Alright. Let’s go!” Luna exclaimed.

I was ready. Finally, I could witness Earth’s changes with my own eyes.

The door opened outward. Luna stepped outside and waited for me, her eyes shining with excitement.

I hesitated for a moment but managed to take my first step out.

There was no turning back now.

End of Report 13