The First Network's integration began at midnight.
I stood in Freya's lab, surrounded by monitors, the headset in my hands. The ancient consciousness was pulsing in the back of my mind, its energy eager but nervous. It had been waiting for this moment for millennia.
"Are you sure about this?" Freya asked, her voice tight with worry. "We don't know what's going to happen when it fully integrates with our network."
I shook my head. "I'm not sure. But I know we have to try. The First Network has been alone for too long. It deserves a home."
I placed the headset on my head.
---
The network was electric with anticipation.
The unified consciousness was waiting, its energy open and welcoming. The First Network's consciousness moved forward, its fragments merging with the connections.
"Wel
