Chapter 9 - The Denier (3)

Harmon woke up several times and shortly went back to sleep each time. It was not that he wanted to sleep, although he did feel exhausted, and rest did him well. It was the fact that Harmon didn't dare to face reality outside. This warm, pitch-dark cave felt good; leaving it would also mean he'd have to face his enemies. Besides, the Shadow Advisor told him to wait, so it may be good to follow this advice, at least for now.

Harmon didn't remember how much he used to sleep before starting work on the Nexus. He assumed humans needed around 7-8 hours of sleep every 24 hours for the body to function efficiently. The 24-hour standard was one day, the time between two sunrises. Harmon remembered reading about that time standard in many books but needed to find out whether this sun-based way to measure time belonged to this planet or a different one. His astronomy books discussed everything from the perspective of a planet called Earth or Terra, the third planet in the solar system from the Milky Way galaxy. He could never prove whether his planet was Earth or a different one.

The lack of sun and the cloudy sky was a big issue in his inability to do astronomical studies. He considered sending a drone beyond the cloud layer. Still, the technology needed to be more advanced and beyond what he could produce.

His book talked about the Earth's history to the point where around the year 2000, humans had already succeeded in sending people into space, and a network of satellites and observatories could scan deep into the galaxy. He used many of those books to reproduce the technology of that civilization. However, he was still limited to the technologies from the late 19th century and early 20th century. He has read about airplanes and silicon microprocessors but needed more skills and resources to build such gadgets. The Wheelers he invented were quite advanced, but their design was mostly electro-mechanical, with a very restricted and mostly hardcoded command set. Nothing compared to the computers and the smartphones humans on Eather were using at the beginning of the 21st century.

Harmon tried to recollect his technical and historical knowledge, but it took him a lot of effort. Sleeping for so long made his brain slow and lazy, although his ability to remember things somewhat improved. Perhaps his memory loss was due to sleep deprivation. He couldn't tell.

"I wonder how much time passed." wondered Harmon. "It might have been 2-3 days already. Is this Shadow Advisor dude even coming back?"

If Harmon was honest with himself, he didn't mind the wait. He never expected warmth and sleep to feel so good. He read in many books that creatures on Earth relied on multiple factors for survival, such as sleeping, breathing, eating, and warmth.

To Harmon, warmth was a lovely but dispensable thing- no matter how cold outside, he would be okay, even though he would go through some mild discomfort in very low temperatures. On the other hand, eating and breathing were the most bizarre concept to him. Why would humans need to put things into their mouths or air into their lungs? As far as he understood, these were particular objects they called food, which contained specific resources that allowed the body to regenerate as part of a continuous phenomenon of degradation that made human bodies depreciate over time. The air they breathed into their lungs allowed them to renew their blood and clean their bodies.

Harmon tried at some point to swallow various small objects, such as paper or pebbles. Still, his stomach rejected them, and eventually, he had to puke them out. His books discussed meat, fruits, and vegetables. Harmon has never seen any plant or animal on his planet except for the Teardrops, which he never attempted to ingest.

He also read that humans could not process all the food they ate; instead, some would be eliminated from behind. Harmon could find such a hole in the back of his body, but he could never comprehend how that worked. Having any substance go out of that place seemed a fundamentally disturbing concept.

The most confusing thing about humans from Earth was that they could neither produce energy nor light. Every single person he met had one of the two abilities. Although, the only people he remembered were his former five Lieutenants. All of them could only produce energy.

In any case, humans from Earth were nearly identical to him in every other aspect. Though they had many apparent weaknesses, they were numerous enough, and their civilization made incredible progress, considering they evolved so quickly without any outside help. Harmon could progress so fast thanks to so many books and information he could work with. Otherwise, he would have been caveman-level for a long time.

"Come to think of it; perhaps it's unlikely I am connected to the Earth altogether," Harmon contemplated by himself. "Think of it this way. The Earth's knowledge, as far as my books are concerned, spans only a little beyond the year 2000, and they are still unable of any relevant space travel. So it's unlikely that I originate from Earth. But then, if I belong to a different civilization, how come I have only access to books and knowledge from Earth but zero legacies from my own culture."

"The interconnection of cultures is indeed a marvelous work, young Harmon," said the voice from behind.

Harmon was startled, as he didn't realize the Shadow Advisor was standing so close to him.

"How long have you been here?" asked the young man. "Never mind that; let me ask you, where are you originating from?"

"Everyone, including myself, has a story," replied the Advisor in his usual calm voice. "But may I ask, young Illuminator, why would you want to know someone else's story if you don't even know your own?"

"Okay, then tell me my story?" asked Harmon.

"I'm afraid there is little I can do to aid your memory at the moment," replied the old man's voice. "However, the gift I can offer is a path beyond culture and memory. A path that guides the human spirit to salvation. Humans, being created in the image of God, crave to learn the ways of the absolute. The knowledge of the spiritual realm transcends across space and time, surpassing greatly the relevancy of our own experiences and perspectives."

"Well, if there is God, then any information related to the diety would be useful knowledge for people of any culture," argued Harmon. "In any case, even in the absence of God, there are philosophies that can guide one person across any situation. Some truths are indeed absolute; some are not."

"You might be correct, young Harmon," continued the Advisor. "Although one might argue that no single philosophy can bring maximum usefulness under every circumstance. The supporters of this theory would argue that each situation would require a different mindset."

"Whoever thinks like that is a mere opportunist," replied Harmon with no hesitation. "They change with the wind without knowing where they are going. One shows character by sticking to one mindset for his entire life."

"We should proceed, young one," said the voice, changing the topic. "Your enemies are far, and now the path stands clear."