Lights flickered all around the laboratory. Exposed wiring emitted sparks while holographic displays blinked on and off. It was the result of Visette’s handiwork but it wasn't due to some outburst but of an attempt to reverse engineer the watch given to by the Minerva AI.

The fine intricacies within the small device required a soft touch and it just so happened that Visette’s psionic manipulation allowed her extreme precision. Infusing her own pupils with energy allowed her to magnify her vision in order to get a better view.

The watch was outfitted with GPS tracking that would allow Minerva to track it. Her goal was to do the opposite and use the watch to find any broadcast signals from any active laboratories.

She pushed psionic energy into the circuitry of the disassembled watch and moments later, the interface buzzed to life. Several glitches and warning appeared on screen, but soon disappeared, replaced by a value of 2500 kilometers as well as an indicator pointing in a northeastern direction.

A rare smile appeared on Visette’s face as she sealed the components back together. The main functions of the watch were no longer accessible due to the forceful “reprogramming,” but those potential benefits were minuscule in comparison to finding a functional Minerva lab.

Vis fastened the watch to her wrist before surveying the laboratory for any further use. She couldn’t destroy it as it was built to withstand much more power than she could exert. However, she could seal it so that no one would be able to easily enter.

As she left, the door slammed shut. The inner workings of the door began tangled and twisted as Visette lay her palms on its surface.

Without sparing a second glance, she left the place where she took her first steps into the world.

…

It was late into the night and yet Visette hadn’t arrived at the city. However, thousands of its citizens were packed and ready to depart with most gathered at its town hall. The place where Fox was usually cooped up.

As expected with a sudden call for an evacuation, there was a slow-growing discontent that was only amplified. Groans and sighs of thinly veiled and poorly hidden frustration as well as the cries of children. The journey ahead would be a hard one and the previous years of peace didn’t help much.

If Fox told everyone that he decided to follow the path of a girl who could move things with her mind, a riot would break out. Even if he had proven himself a worthy leader, his decision to hedge all of his bets on Visette was irrational at best.

“Hawk,” Fox called out to his closest confidant. His eyes read the mood that threatened to snowball into direct aggression if not soothed.

“She’ll be here.” Hawk was confident, he remained calm even as others did not.

“And once she is–” Fox started but stopped short after meeting Hawk’s unperturbed gaze.

“Don’t worry your head so much, I guarantee it’ll be the most shocking thing you’ve ever seen.” With a calm smile, Hawk double-checked his equipment.

Not so far away, a large clock situated in the garden of the city hall began to ring out. Underneath is sonorous echoes, the demand for an explanation grew. There were obviously those who needed proof of danger before panicking and at that moment, their presence seemed to become noticeable.

“Fox! What’s the deal here? Is this some sort of joke?” A man asked with a slick smile, one that was worn by someone who plotted and schemed.

Hawk’s eyes narrowed, he thought about shooting down the naysayers but it probably would go over well with those who agreed with him.

“I promise, it’ll only be a little longer,” said Fox in his attempt to appease the crowd.

“My children need to sleep!”

“You said that already!”

“Just let us go already!”

“Shut up!” Bear roared, slamming down a very large and intimidating gun.

Those who began shouting lost their momentum and looked toward their ringleader. The opportunist sent a pensive stare toward Fox’s muscle-bound subordinate and sucked his teeth.

Just as Hawk was about to interfere, his eyes shot upward. “Right on time.”

He chuckled, nudging Fox’s shoulder as he did.

“What in Anton’s name…” Fox’s mouth went agape.

A dark silhouette descended from the sky. The eerie shine in her pupils and her pure white hair was something out of a dream.

It didn’t take long for those in front of the hall to take notice and with silent astonishment, the crowd parted, making way for Visette. Awe and fear reigned in their previous doubts, no one dared to speak in the presence of the mysterious girl.

Visette softly landed before approaching Hawk with unhurried steps.

“Well, I doubt Anton himself would have been able to make a better entrance.” Hawk laughed joyfully as he extended his hand.

Visette shook hands with the man she deemed ‘odd’ and then turned to the apparent leader of the city.

“Oh, uh– Fox this is Visette Thales. Visette, this is Fox, aptly named for his keen mind and craftiness,” Hawk introduced the two.

“Y-You… uh…” Fox stuttered for something to say.

It wasn’t just him either, those who had never seen Vis were caught off guard by her appearance. The peak of scientific perfection came in the form of gene editing, making her almost universally appealing to the eye. Coupled with her being a touch more human, there was unmistakable charm and allure emitted from her presence. The fact that she literally came down from the sky helped too.

“When do we leave?” Visette asked.

“Didn’t I tell you it would be the greatest thing you ever saw?” Hawk smirked.

…

The trailblazers of the convoy were Visette, Fox, Hawk, Kitty, Bear, Rabid, Rodent.

Sitting inside of a military issue truck, Visette accepted questions from Fox who was stumped. His natural desire to learn overtook him as he tried to make sense of Vis’ abilities.

“So… you mean to tell me you can move anything with your thoughts?”

“That is a… overly simplified explanation, but I suppose it isn’t completely incorrect,” Visette replied. She glanced at her watch every so often, clearly finding it to be far more important.

The main principle of her psionic power relied on creating energy fields and manipulating the matter within them as well as the fields themselves.

Of course, that was hard to explain to the occupants of a world where the concept of telekinetic movement didn’t exist.

“Hey, how about we ask other questions? Don’t you want to hear something else, Visette?” Kitty interjected.

“Since when did you two become friends?” Rodent remarked snarkily.

“If you save another word I’m gonna break your nose,” Kitty snapped back.

Putting on an expression as if he was wronged, Rodent retreated with his hands up in surrender.

“Ah, what about Minerva?” Hawk spoke, clearly interested in the organization that created the wonder before him.

“The only important piece of information surrounding Minerva is their technology. As long as I can recover it, there is a chance to fight against the Corrupted,” Visette said, emphasizing the importance of the matter.

“Do they have guns?” Bear asked, checking the sights on his large machine gun.

His question brought strange looks, but he continued as if he didn’t notice.

“Manure-ver– or whatever you call ‘em– Do they have any guns?”

“I severely doubt it,” Visette responded with a look that showed she wasn’t amused.

“I’m sorry, did you really just ask that?” Kitty looked dumbstruck. “Those people made her and you’re wondering about guns? Isn’t that too simple?”

“Dunno, can’t beat the basics,” Bear shrugged.

“Alright, that’s enough,” Hawk waved his hands, feeling a headache coming on.

“Yes, Hawk is right. We’ve had enough excitement, at this point, it would be better to get some rest. I’m sure we can all agree?”

“Hmmh,” Rabid grunted.

No one knew if she was agreeing or refusing, but they took it to be the latter and soon they closed their eyes. All except for Visette who instead chose to open up Anton’s journal and began to read as a way to occupy her mind. She easily found the patterns within his writing and unraveled the true meaning behind it.