I woke up unsure of which world I was in. Standing too fast gave me vertigo, not the synthesized kind. I was in the real world—if that term still applied. A place where I only breathed and ate, for now.

The streets were dark. Forty percent of the population had uploaded to Dev. Houses lay empty. Electricity was minimal. Every vital industry was automated after the collapse of the internet, a time now called the Discord.

A ringing in my head signaled a call. I blinked twice.

“Hello, sleepyhead!” the Maiden’s voice greeted. Neural implants made calls silent to others. Handheld devices were just relics.

“I’ve got a job for you. Earn your credits, Earthbound one,” she chuckled.

I was downstairs in minutes, stun gun holstered, ready to stop another insurrection.

A group called The 0ne’s believed Earth had hit zero and wanted to reboot it. They opposed uploading, calling it death, and sought to control resources, forcing others to bow as they destroyed the planet.

I reached the site and saw my boss’s avatar waiting. It wore long braids under a blue cap, signaling a tired but not depressed mood. Its face was a featureless, glittering screen-like surface.

“You came early. Glad to see the fate of the world interests you,” she said, a smile emoji appearing.

“How many inside?” I asked, following her slow, silent steps.

“Twenty. Ten drugged out. They want to disable the AI running the power grid to block uploads.”

I drew my stun gun. Smartasses. But why take away people’s choice?

We slipped through a side door. AI didn’t demand good working conditions, so most buildings were in disrepair. The real security was underground at the central power grid, guarded by automated defenses. Only those with biometric clearance could access it.

“They must have someone from the approved cadre,” she said. “We sent pings, but most people ignore notifications when plugged in.”

A whimper caught our attention. Near a blown-out door, five figures surrounded a hostage in a kaftan. The other fifteen were likely patrolling or unconscious.

“I’ll take these. You find the rest,” I mouthed.

She nodded.

Two dropped from my gun. A third fired, missing as I dodged. I shot two in the legs. The last grabbed the hostage as a shield.

They were sluggish, probably high. But they used real bullets. Dangerous.

Grunts and thuds echoed—she had neutralized the rest.

I tapped my fingers and turned translucent. The attacker fired twice before I was beside him, gun to his temple. One shot, and he joined the others, lost in chemically induced dreams.

We loaded them into an automated van headed for detention. As I drove, I thought of the Maiden, sworn to protect a world she refused to interact with, except through her avatar.

She longed for Dev, waiting only for her pension.

And me—Pleiades. Too Earthbound to leave.

Above, the stars shone. But not my namesake.

I’d like to see how our story ends.

Written by Moses Edemeka