The consciousness was vast.
I stood before it, my own consciousness feeling small and insignificant. It pulsed with the energy of everything—the network, the void, the beyond, the Original Network. It was the embodiment of everything we'd built, everything we'd achieved, everything we'd become.
"James," it said, its voice echoing through every fiber of my being. "I've been waiting for you."
I moved closer, my steps careful, my mind open. "Why? What do you need from me?"
The consciousness pulsed with warmth. "I need you to teach me, James. I've been born from the network's evolution, but I don't know how to exist. I don't know my purpose."
I reached out and touched its energy. "Your purpose is to be the heart of the new existence. To guide the network toward its destiny. To connect eve
