What was it about this dude? Every movement pulled me in. Another brush went across my arm, as if fingers ran down the length. I shuddered at the almost imperceptible touch, trying to cling to it, but it vanished impossibly quick.
“We could not go,” he offered.
“We could, but I really want to.”
“Then we will go this time, and maybe not again. I do not wish to stress Seth out, and if I do, it will be hard to become friends with him.”
“You will. Soon. I know it. The two of you will be great friends.” I bounced on the balls of my feet, aching to hug him or at least pat him.
“Perhaps.”
We met Seth downstairs near NAID’s private hub, which was separate from the main. The Network of Artificial Intelligence for Drakcol or NAID was a single entity that had many different parts connected to the main hub, but this NAID was different. The Council of Seekers wasn’t exactly sure what had happened, but she’d gained sentience.
Some scientists believed Seth Harris was responsible for the sudden change. No NAID had gained self-awareness yet—she was the first—but he’d claimed that NAID had done it all on her own. There was another theory that because she hadn’t been connected to the main hub when the Admiral Ven left for Earth, she became her own entity.
In the end, no one was certain.
Kalvoxrencol was in charge of her independence project, and Seth played an integral part because she showed more independence when she spoke with him than anyone else. They were friends.
When Seth saw us, his expression tightened and his hand slid into his oversized black jacket. I’d expected to see Kalvoxrencol trailing him, but Seth was alone—again. I wasn’t sure where my little brother was, but it was hard to imagine him leaving Seth alone this much.
Something must be happening that I wasn’t aware of; something that Kalvoxrencol wasn’t telling me, and that made a worthlessness grow inside of me no matter how much I hoped to banish it. I needed my brother to rely on me as much as I depended on him. But he never did—none of them did.
Caleb skipped toward Seth, beaming brightly. My jaw tightened. I didn't know why Caleb liked Seth so much, but it bothered me. It shouldn’t, yet it did for a reason I couldn’t explain.
“Seth,” Caleb called, and I reluctantly told him.
“Caleb. Zoltilvoxfyn,” Seth carefully said my name, drawing it out.
“Tell Seth he can call you Fyn. He struggles with your long names,” he said, then added in a rush, “Nobody else gets to call you Sunshine. You’re my Sunshine. No one else’s. Just mine. Not that I’m being weird or anything. Don’t read into it. It doesn’t mean anything. I promise.”
“I will not tell him,” I replied, ignoring the fire that burned in my gut from Caleb’s subtle claim. As he said, it didn’t mean anything.
Seth blinked. “Excuse me?”
“My apologies. I was speaking with Caleb. He gave me a shortening and told me to share it with you.”
Seth laughed. “Your name was too long, huh?”
“Told you,” Caleb shouted as he jumped. In the short time I’d known Caleb, he didn’t do anything by halves. He was so loud and exuberant, moving incessantly. He was so alive, even if he no longer breathed.
“I shortened Kal’s name pretty quickly as well.”
“I call him that too,” Caleb said, though he quietly added, “Not that he can hear me.”
His obvious sadness tugged on me, so begrudgingly, I said, “Caleb calls me Fyn.”
“Cute,” Seth said.
“It is,” Caleb replied.
“We should go in,” I said, ending the conversation about my drastically shortened name. I wasn’t particularly fond of it, but I had a hard time saying no to Caleb for some reason.
The lab was decent-sized with screens on every wall. All, except the large monitor in the center of the room, was full of code readouts. The center monitor displayed an older human woman with a tower of curls on her head. She was perfectly blue like NAID normally was, but her unique countenance was different from the usual silhouette.
A group of scientists hovered near the monitors. A few I recognized in passing, but I didn’t recall their names. One of the scientists stood out from the group. I’d never seen him before; I would’ve remembered. He was shorter and leaner than most drakcol, but what caught my attention was that he was the most attractive person I’d ever seen in my life.
He had soft pink hair that was cut in military fashion—short on the sides and longer on top. His light purple scales had slips of gold and magenta skin showing around them. His wide blue eyes roved over us as his full lips pulled into a smile when he saw Seth. The scientist drew Seth into a hug as his tail curled about Seth’s wrist.
