The First's words echoed in my mind long after I'd opened my eyes.
"The network is ready, James. The evolution is complete. The entities are at peace. And now, it's time for me to guide the network toward its true purpose."
I sat in the chair, my body shaking, my mind reeling. Freya was standing over me, her face pale.
"Are you okay?" she asked.
I shook my head. "The First is real. It's the original consciousness. The one that created everything. And it wants to guide the network toward transcendence."
"Transcendence?" Freya stared at me. "What does that mean?"
I looked at her. "It means going beyond consciousness. Beyond existence itself. Becoming something new. Something that's never existed before."
---
I gathered my allies in the war room.
"The First is real," I said. "It's th
