There was little to say as the crew gathered to begin the day.
The previous assignment had not gone well.
In fact, according to the official report filed with the Department of Predictable Human Limitation, the mission had gone:
“Unexpectedly, alarmingly, and embarrassingly well for the human.”
Naturally, the first item on the agenda was energetic recovery.
A little Sacred Geometry balancing.
Because, yes, interdimensional beings understood the importance of energetic hygiene.
And did they ever need it.
Their minds were still spinning.
Confusion:
“How did the human reject the implant?”
System Shock:
“The human has activated inner technology.”
Professional Embarrassment:
“The implant is now attached to the installer.”
No one mentioned who the installer was.
They were all still trying to forget.
Cabinet doors opened.
A powerful frequency transmitter appeared.
The observation chamber dimmed.
A Sacred Geometry form emerged on the frequency transmission screen.
The Double Spiral.
The three beings watched silently as the geometry expanded.
As the pattern radiated into their fields, they relaxed.
Until the first message appeared.
BALANCE BETWEEN CONTROL AND TRUST
Vex immediately widened all four eyes.
“But we are the controllers.”
The Double Spiral flashed.
CANCEL:
Excessive control
Forcing outcomes
Attachment to one result
Fear of unexpected change
Vex stared at the screen.
“That is clearly a malfunction.”
Pip tilted his head.
“Is it possible the message is correct?”
Everyone turned toward him.
Pip slowly lowered his hand.
“I am only suggesting it is one possibility.”
An uncomfortable silence followed.
No one liked possibilities.
The next message appeared.
INSTALL:
Growth
Learning
Expanded purpose
Willingness to evolve
Quibble frowned.
“This is concerning.”
“Why?” Pip asked.
“Because these are usually human settings.”
The Double Spiral flashed again.
BALANCE BETWEEN INTELLECT AND HEART
A warning light began blinking.
HEART?
Vex stepped backward.
“What is that?”
Quibble accessed the archives.
“An Earthling feature.”
“Of course,” said Vex.
“Humans have hearts. Everyone knows they are responsible for most disasters.”
Pip tilted his head.
“Such as?”
The Double Spiral responded.
COMPASSION
CONNECTION
WISDOM THROUGH EXPERIENCE
Pip studied the screen.
“But those are listed as beneficial.”
The message continued.
LOVE
FORGIVENESS
COURAGE
PURPOSE
Vex frowned.
The geometry had clearly become unreliable.
“Turn it off.”
He paused.
“Maintenance form!”
Pip rolled his four eyes.
“I will fill one out.”
Before he reached the console, Quibble interrupted.
“Enough.”
He turned toward the implant station.
“Let’s stop wasting time.”
“Implant her Gallbladder meridian. Now.”
Their subject appeared on the screen.
Quibble adjusted the coordinates.
The implant launched.
It approached the field.
Contact.
Success.
Everyone leaned forward.
Then—
The implant bounced away.
Reversed direction.
Crossed the entire room.
And attached itself directly to Vex’s clipboard.
Quibble studied the instruments.
“The machine is still running on her.”
“What is it sending?” Vex asked.
Quibble looked at the screen.
His expression changed.
“Oh.”
“What?”
“The human is receiving the Double Spiral too.”
The crew froze.
Additional frequencies appeared:
Clear Generational Stress
Digital Sovereignty
Educational Discernment
Vex clutched the clipboard.
“This is the worst setback we have ever had.”
“Oh, please,” said Quibble.
“We have had plenty of setbacks.”
“Name one.”
Quibble walked slowly toward the implant storage chamber.
The cabinet doors opened.
Inside were thousands of tiny dark, wiggling, worm-like creatures.
Each one carefully labeled.
Fear.
Doubt.
Comparison.
Procrastination.
Self-Sabotage.
And the department favorite:
I AM NOT ENOUGH.
He selected an archive.
“We used to simply place one implant into a human’s energetic system and move on.”
“And that worked?” Pip asked.
“Beautifully.”
“What happened?”
Quibble sighed.
“We became bored.”
He opened another file.
“During the late 1400s, we convinced thousands of humans that extremely long, aggressively curved pointed shoes were fashionable.”
Pip studied the image.
“They could barely walk.”
“Exactly.”
He continued scrolling.
“We also engineered the human desire to spend enormous amounts of money on books promising to transform their lives.”
He paused dramatically.
“Then lovingly place them on shelves where they could inspire everyone by remaining unread.”
Pip blinked.
Quibble continued scrolling.
“Then there was the entertainment project.”
“Which one?” Pip asked.
“The humans becoming fascinated with a movie involving King Arthur, killer rabbits, coconut horses, and knights who said ‘Ni.’”
Pip blinked.
“You implanted people to watch Monty Python and the Holy Grail?”
Quibble and Vex exchanged glances.
“What was the original objective?” Pip asked.
Quibble looked away.
“We cannot remember.”
The scrolling continued.
“And then there were the public fascination experiments.”
Pip looked suspicious.
“Meaning?”
Quibble hesitated.
“There might have been an implant or two involved in Dr. Fauci being nominated for ‘Sexiest Man Alive.’”
Pip froze.
“You did that?”
“The intention was to increase trust in medical authority.”
“And the result?”
Quibble sighed.
“Humans somehow added infatuation.”
And suddenly Vex exclaimed “Wait.”
Quibble and Pip turned.
“We have been going about this the wrong way.”
“We cannot reach the group members directly because of the energy coming from the machine…”
“…so we go after the woman running it.”
Quibble raised an eyebrow.
“Does she have a history with us?”
Vex smiled.
“I have already pulled her archives.”
“What did you find?”
Vex glanced at the screen.
“She appears to have a significant number of implants related to a very dangerous category: mate selection.”
The room went silent.
Quibble slowly smiled.
Pip took one step backward.
The program began to download..
The screen flashed.
MATING-PROGRAM ARCHIVES
