A Helping Hand

The sun rose over Hermes. It was a clear day and the blue skies were visible with only a few clouds in sight.

Jane awoke as the light entered the room. The fresh air from the outside blew in through the open window. After she woke up, she got dressed and ate breakfast. Then, it was time for school.

She opened the door to her pod and stepped in. Then, the world around her disappeared. Her vision was soon filled by a new scene, that of a classroom. The seats in the classroom slowly filled up as the other students logged in. In the front of the virtual classroom stood the teacher, Mr. Jonas. He would teach the first class of the day, history.

Finally, class began. Everyone was sitting attentively as the teacher spoke. "Hello students, today I would like to start the class with a question. Today is a very special day. Does anyone know what is so special about today?"

Jane answered the question. "Today marks the ten thousandth anniversary of the end of the great war."

"That is correct", the teacher said. "Ten thousand years ago, the great enemy was defeated. For many years, humanity had been under siege by the demonic creatures that sought to exterminate us. These demons came in all different forms, and some were even said to have come down from the sky. The enemies were many and humanity was driven to the brink."

"In the darkest hour of humanity, hope arrived. Our Goddess came to save us. She united the disparate factions of humanity into a single whole. Before, humans had warred among themselves barbarically without any care for human life. They had lived in a primitive state, not knowing the glories of science and technology."

"When our Goddess arrived, humanity was uplifted and entered a golden age. The stagnation of the people ended and we entered into an era of progress and prosperity. The people were lifted up from the suffering they had lived in before and finally saw the light of hope."

"The demons threatened humanity no longer. Our Goddess smited the great enemy and drove them out. The great enemy was utterly annihilated and never more could they threaten us. Now, we live in a world free of conflict, a world of peace."

The teacher then asked a question. "Does anyone know about other key figures during this time?"

Jane saw her classmate Julia answer. "Steven, the first prime minister of the state, was the loyal servant of our Goddess who set the stage for her arrival and served her dutifully."

"That is correct", the teacher responded. "Our records describe how Steven, the most loyal servant of our Goddess, faithfully served her and supported her during the unification. He helped to reshape society according to the Goddess's decrees and set the world on the path to the modern age. A statue of him stands outside the Holy Temple in the center of the city. Besides our Goddess, he is the other important figure during the time of humanity's rise."

Soon, the history class ended and the rest of the school day passed by. Finally, it was over and Jane exited the virtual environment. She found herself back in her pod and she opened it up and came out. The pod was quite a wonderous thing. Along with being used for school, she could also play games in it. The device allowed to feel like she was actually living the life of the character.

After returning to her desk, she took out her omnitool. She began browsing the interweb. She saw an advertis.e.m.e.nt for the KanOmnitool10k, a new edition released today. It was made to commemorate the ten thousandth anniversary of the end of the great war. Her omnitool was getting a bit old, so she decided to order this new one.

Soon, the delivery chute in the wall opened and out emerged her new omnitool. She configured her new omnitool and it was ready to use. Then, she took her old one and put it in another chute where it was quickly whisked away. It would then be recycled and the resources that made up the device would be reclaimed.

Jane became engrossed in her new device as she began checking out the new features.

***************************************************

Along the streets of Hermes, a large vehicle traveled. It was lavishly decorated but also heavily armored. It somewhat resembled one of the tanks of old. It was one of a kind and completely unique and thus it stood out from everything else around it.

Inside the vehicle, Zero sat atop a throne while she thought to herself.

"Ten thousand years", she thought. "It has been so long, hasn't it Steven?"

[Yes. It has truly been a long time. Ten thousand years since our triumph.]

"For so long I have lived. Maintaining an eternal vigil over the world. All of this time has passed; countless generations have been born and died. Throughout all this, you have been with me, supporting me all of this time."

[I am glad to be here and serve as a helping hand.]

Zero loved Steven. They had been extremely close; she had never had and never will meet another which she shared such a close bond with. Their time in the Soul World had been the culmination of their relationship and in that final moment Steven gave everything to her unhesitantly and completely. All of Steven, his memories, his personality had been transferred. Steven lived on within her, forming an independent consciousness.

Steven continued on and persisted in Zero's mind. He had no body anymore, but he could talk with Zero and together they would still reminisce about the old times. In fact, they were more together than they ever had been. For all of these years he had accompanied her, supported her, comforted her.

Soon, the vehicle approached its destination. Zero walked out, flanked by her guards. She entered the building, a hospital.

Zero entered a particular room. In the room lay Wilson Nexly, one of the leading physicists of the world. He was now old and sickly and he didn't have much time left. Still, he was able to croak out a few words when Zero entered.

"My Goddess, I live to serve", he said.

"You have done well during your life", Zero said. "You contributed much to the progress of humanity. Now, it is time for you to make a choice. You have the option of sacrificing what remains of your life and have your knowledge preserved for eternity. Do you accept this offer?"

Wilson Nexly was silent as he thought about the decision. Finally he responded. "I do."

When Zero exited the room, she left with the culminated experiences and research of the great scientist. She had vowed to always stay up to date with the world's progress and to never fall behind again. Zero kept up with the new discoveries of science and the integration of the top scientists further enhanced her understanding.

Zero departed and returned to the temple. The day would end and another would begin. Year by year would pass by. The world continued to spin. Zero and Steven would continue to remain there, together.