Location: Evergreen Academy Dormitories

Time: 13:33 2/1/08

The lines on Emi Emi’s face were glowing brightly, but the rest of her was in a pathetic state. Her clothes were stained with sweat, and she was having trouble catching her breath. It didn’t look like she’d be able to activate her augmentation again for a while.

Despite the state of her, we never had to leave my dorm room. The fact that her augmentation doesn’t interact with the physical world was incredibly convenient. If I had been training someone like myself we’d have needed to be in an abandoned warehouse or something.

“That’s it? It’s only been 33 minutes.” I purposefully sounded more disappointed than I really was.

All things considered, actively using her augmentation for over thirty minutes was impressive enough. Most augmenteds would have trouble reaching that point, even with training.

But of course, I wasn’t going to let her know that.

“Shut up. I went most of my life avoiding it. Using my augmentation for 33 minutes is pretty good.”

“I suppose our standards are just too different.”

“Exactly.”

“I suppose some people can just accept failure.”

“Yeah, yeah, sure. You think I need to develop a mantra or something?” A novel suggestion that I wasn’t expecting to hear from her.

“It’s not necessary. There’s a reason they’re not very common in the Free Cities. Once you start using a mantra it will become a crutch. You’ll be limiting yourself. It’s best to just learn how to draw energy from the information dimension directly.”

“And what exactly does that mean? I know I need to connect to the information dimension to use my augmentation, but how does it work? Or maybe, why does it work?”

An incredibly basic question, but not a surprising one. Even as a child, Emi Emi’s parents probably explained how to use her augmentation. It seems unlikely though that those people would bother explaining the science behind how it works.

Her lack of knowledge was a result of her upbringing, not any fault of her own.

“You really aren’t that bright, are you?”

But that doesn’t mean I couldn’t have fun with her.

“Since you’ve actually been helping me I’ll let that insult pass for now. But if you're ever on the streets at night, watch your back.”

“Before I answer your question, let me ask you something. Do you believe in ghosts? And I’m not talking about aberrations, I mean classic ghosts.”

“Huh? What’s that got to do with anything?”

“Answering a question with a question? How immature. I hadn’t realized your basic conversation skills were so low. How do you plan on becoming a functioning part of society?”

“You’re the last person I want critiquing my conversational skills! And you’re the one who answered my question with a question.”

“Tch. Can you just answer it already? Ghosts. Yes or no.”

“I don’t see how this is relevant, but no. I don’t believe in ghosts.”

“Good. Neither do I, because ghosts aren’t real. They aren’t real, but they certainly exist. We both know what ghosts are. Even though ghosts aren’t real, the idea of ghosts exist inside our minds. Even though they aren’t real, millions of people are afraid of ghosts, so they must exist.”

“I really don’t understand what you’re trying to say.”

“I’m not surprised. Are you familiar with the teachings of the philosopher Plato?”

“Other than his name? No.”

“I figured.”

“Then why did you even ask?”

“Plato didn’t believe that the material world was the true, fundamental form of the universe. He asserted that the eidos, or idea, was the true form of existence.”

I got up and pointed to the chair I had been using.

“This is a chair, but according to Plato, this is not the true form of a chair. This is merely the shadow of the true chair. The true chair is the pure idea of a chair. Plato believed that the basic concept of ideas were the fundamental truth of the universe, and that they existed on another plane.”

I sat back down and crossed my legs.

“Well, he was right and wrong. Modern science has proven there exists a separate plane for ideas, the information dimension, but it’s not the truth behind the universe. It’s just another dimension of our universe. The dimension where all human thought is given form.”

“Huh? How could something like that exist? How could humans have gone so long without noticing it?”

“What a pointless thing to ask. We can notice it, that’s part of what makes us augmented. We can connect to the information dimension, that’s what makes us special. And for normal humans, well, think about it. Can a line realize it’s part of a square? Can a square realize it’s part of a cube? Can a cube count the seconds it has existed for? Humans are no different. For the most part, it’s impossible to recognize any dimension above your own.”

“Now, to the uneducated,” I paused to make sure she knew I was talking about her. “Using augmentations might seem like a miracle. People would like to think that it is the ability to make something out of nothing, but unfortunately, the universe isn’t that forgiving.”

“This might sound strange coming from a girl that travels through shadows, but the laws of physics are absolute. So, then how do our augmentations work? The answer is through massive amounts of energy. Everything can be overcome if you have enough energy. The problem is, the human body doesn’t have nearly enough. That’s why we siphon it from elsewhere. The information dimension is overflowing with energy.”

“If it’s just a place for human thought, why is it so full of energy?” Emi Emi asked a good question.

“I don’t know.” Unfortunately, it was a question I didn’t have an answer for.

“Oh? Something you don’t know? I feel like I can’t miss the opportunity to make a few jokes at your expense.” Emi Emi jumped at the chance to turn the tables on me.

“Not knowing is excusable. I’m only. . . How old are high school juniors?”

“Usually 16 or 17, why?”

“I’m only a 17 year old girl, obviously there are still things I don’t know.”

“That’s clearly a lie. And why did you pick the older option?” Emi Emi somehow saw through my attempted deception, but even then, I wasn’t going to admit the truth. Letting her know that you could count the number of years I’d been alive on one hand was not an option.

“So basically, we use the information dimension as a power source in order to alter the physical world and circumvent the laws of physics.” I decided to continue avoiding the topic of my age and go back to answering her initial question.

“You really could have just led with that, but I’m guessing you were happy to have an opportunity to make yourself seem smart.”

The door to my dorm room was pushed open before I could respond to Emi Emi’s provocation.

“What are you two doing in my room?” An athletically built girl with an absolutely normal fashion sense spoke from the open doorway.

Before the girl could say anything else, Emi Emi was already throwing her hood over her head and looking toward the floor.

“Welcome home Alli. I was just giving Emi Emi a lecture, but we’re pretty much done. She’ll be coming over a few times a week until she gets the hang of things.” I gave a natural greeting.

“Why?” Alli’s response was normal, given the circumstances.

“Why indeed. A connection of mine from the MID wanted my help to teach her.”

“No, not that. Why are you doing it in my room? Where is all of Miranda’s stuff?”

“Probably in her new room.” I had to put in a lot of work to get her that room on such short notice.

“This is completely abnormal. I just saw her this morning, why would she be moving into a new room?”

“Because I threatened-, because I asked her to move. It only makes sense for me to share a room with my best friend.”

“And who is that?”

“You, of course.” Why would she even ask such a simple question?

“Your friendship is too heavy.” Alli started massaging her temples.

“Um, hey, sorry about becoming an accomplice to Hana’s crimes, but can someone fill me in?”

Even as she spoke Emi Emi never faced Alli directly.

“I feel like everything has been completely self-explanatory.” At least, I didn’t have anything to add that wasn’t already obvious.

“No, it’s been completely abnormal. Who are you? I can’t say I’m too surprised with Hana breaking into my room, but what about you?” Alli moved on to question Emi Emi.

“Ah, I’m, not anyone important. I just needed to talk to Hana about something.”

Emi Emi planned on hiding her name as much as she planned on hiding her face. That wouldn’t do. Besides, Alli wasn’t a person she needed to worry about.

“Her name is Emelia Emin. Emi Emi for short. She spent her life hiding in the slums, so I need to help her learn the basics. About her augmentation, and about social interactions.”

“My augmentation is one thing, but for the sake of my sanity, don’t even pretend that you of all people were teaching me about social interactions.”

“Getting help from a more experienced augmented in her age range? That’s completely normal.” Alli ignored Emi Emi’s input while coming to her own conclusion. “You’re probably worried about how people will react to you because of your family. Given your background, that’s a normal reaction. Okay, Emelia, you might not be so bad.”

Emi Emi didn’t pull her hood down, but she faced in Alli’s general direction.

“Aren’t you worried? About having someone like me around.”

“Slightly, but it’s only normal to be somewhat skeptical of strangers. I’m much more concerned with having an abnormal person like Hana hovering around me.”

“See, Emi Emi. Alli is a good person.” I was glad the two of them were getting along.

“It doesn’t seem like she feels the same way about you.” How simple-minded. Emi Emi still needed more help on learning to read the room.

“You just don’t understand her. Alli is a great girl. That’s why she’s my best friend.”

“I said it before, but your friendship is too heavy. I need a minute. And I need to call Miranda. Nothing ever works out normally when you’re involved, but I still haven’t accepted that you're my roommate. Completely abnormal.”

Alli left while searching through her phone.

“Well, that was uncomfortable. How about next time, we meet somewhere else.” Emi Emi’s voice was completely drained.

“Uncomfortable? What part? It was just three friends hanging out.”

“Three friends?”

“I knew you were slow, but I figured you could at least count.”

“That’s not the part I was unsure about.”

“Oh? Really? I just naturally assumed you would have trouble with that kind of thing.”

“The fact that you honestly believe that is even more insulting.”

“I apologize for being the one who let you know about your inability to keep track of numbers above two.”

“Don’t apologize! What part of this is friendly?” Even when she was completely worn out, Emi Emi managed to always have a comeback ready.

“Who said friends have to be friendly? I’ve been having fun, talking to you. Most people get upset so quickly, but you haven’t left yet.”

“Because I can’t!”

Despite her words Emi Emi’s face was easy to read, even for something like me. She was alone. Anyone who got too close was a risk, so she had to keep her distance. That risk didn’t apply to me. I was a perfect friend.

And what was in it for me? Nothing really. I couldn’t imagine Emi Emi was capable of anything I couldn’t handle on my own. Still, she was a friend. I read it in a book. The people you talk to, the people you spend time with. Those are friends. I didn’t understand it, but that didn’t matter.

What I did understand: That girl, completely starved for companionship, she was missing more of what makes someone human than I was.

“By the way, Emi Emi, once Alli gets back we won’t have any time to talk about official business, so could you give me my review now?”

“Review? Well, if we disregard all the insults and harassment, oh, and the fact that you made me an accessory to your break in, I guess you did a pretty good job. I might not be up to your standards, but I feel like I can use my augmentation a little better.”

“It was that good? So good it made your augmentation better?”

“I mean, yeah, why are you so excited about that?”

“I just can’t believe it. How is that even possible? Am I that good at telling jokes?”

“Huh?

“It’s just amazing how highly you reviewed my attempts at humor.”

“That’s what you wanted a review of?”

“Of course. We agreed that you’d review it, remember?”

“I don’t remember, probably because I never agreed to that.”

“Well, in those types of situations all that matters is if a majority of the people involved agree.”

“There wasn’t even that. I didn’t agree, so you still only have one out of two people agreeing.”

“Two? Oh, wow, your counting is improving. I hadn’t included you in my count. I wasn’t aware that you counted as a person.”

“Then what am I? A dog?”

“A dog? Of course not. You’re more of a cuttlefish.”

“Forget being a mammal, I’m not even a vertebrate!”

I finally lost my composure and let out a quick laugh. Emi Emi was just too perfect. I tried to cover it up, but Emi Emi definitely noticed.

“You know, have I ever mentioned that my first impression of you couldn’t have been more wrong?”

Hmm? What was that supposed to mean? I don’t think you could find a more transparent person than myself.