"In the world of humanities ancestors, those who stole an apple had their hand sliced away on the spot. Those who connived and spied against their countries were publicly hanged or beheaded. Kings and queens who deceived their subjects were ousted out of power, and likely killed. Yet in humanity's world today, it's suddenly considered barbaric to send the evil to their deaths. Where did you go wrong?"

-Shila Zakharov,

"The Words of the Created."

In the tunnels of Gaia's Landing, it's quite easy to get lost. From one side of the base to the other is tied together by a vast system of tunnels that extend both below, on, and above the ground. As both the capital of the Gaian faction and the home base of the Planetary Governor, it's extremely busy…and if you don't know your way around, you'll find yourself asking for directions several times.

However, there's one place that every Gaian knows, the young and the old. An entire section in the western quadrant is blocked off from any foot traffic whatsoever; no matter how badly they need the extra walkways in the cramped tunnel system. The only thing in the hallway is one doorway...for over a hundred years ago, the section was sealed to hold one woman away from the world for the remainder of her sentence.

It's visible for anyone to see, and most people see it everyday. The adults had all heard stories from their parents about various events in the past…the fall of University Base, the attack on Mandelev College, the sea battle above the underwater base. The new age of children, however, mainly have no idea why there's one empty hallway in the tunnels that would make a great walkway from one tunnel quadrent to another. Their parents, for whatever reason, refuse to retell the stories of old wars and battles. The Gaian's of today's age weren't physically involved, so they aren't emotionally involved.

In front of the room, there's always two guards stationed…unmoving, except to halt someone from jumping the railing and walking down the hall. The Planetary Council and Lady Deirdre herself has issued that the hallway is to remain empty at all times, except when specifically designated by her.

There is a reason the entire world's so anxious to keep the hallway empty. The curse of age affects the vast majority of humanity…most humans have an expectancy of about eighty years to live, even on Planet. However, incredible advances in medicine made it possible for a select few to achieve near-immortality. While the faction leaders remained looking as young as they did when they arrived on Planet, their parents and friends passed away.

Because of that fact, the original seven faction leaders still remained in office to watch over their people. However, the person they were trying to keep confined was also once a faction leader…who also received the gift of not youth as long as her sentence is in effect. The gift is not a blessing, however. Lady Deirdre had promised many times that after her four-hundred and seventy year sentence is finished, Meskha Treibek would be taken off the youth treatments and age normally in a prison cell, until her death.

So, for the past hundred years, Meskha has stayed in that small room in Gaia's Landing. She's attached to a Punishment Sphere, a device that flows electricity through her body on a random cycle, so as never to become used to the pain. Her only tie to the outside world has been cut off over for over ten years now, when an over-zealous guard tried to take advantage of the immobilized girl. The guard was electricuted and the abundance of energy disabled the sphere. Her bindings came loose, and she almost escaped from the room, had it not been for her atrophied muscles. Ever since, her food and water intakes had been distrubted through robotics.

Over the last hundred years, Planet hasn't been particuarly fond of the device. The Peacekeepers, in particular, attempted to enact trade sanctions against the Gaians unless the deactivated the device and moved Meskha to a more humane cell. Miriam's followers boycotted around Gaia's Landing once, shouting "Stop the torture!" Eventually, they were all removed forcibly via Gaian military. The public outcry got so bad that Deirdre signed a petition stating that Meskha would be the last person sentenced to the device.

You mighty wonder why Lady Deirdre would submit to using this device. The reason is that she knew just how smart Meskha was and still is. She knew that even the slightest breach in security would mean the girl escaping and possibly regaining some of the ties she still held from the old world. To allow the girl to escape would be a risk to the entire world, particularly the Earthborn.

In the years before her capture, Meskha had once had a dream: to extinguish Planet of those who were born on Earth. Her reasons were various, but they were enough to induce her to take control of Deirdre's mind and use her to destroy Prokhor Zakharov of the University of Planet. Zakharov entered into sanctuary under Sheng-ji Yang of The Hive, and discovered her plot. She failed and lost control of her faction, but not before attempting to destroy all life on Planet by igniting nerve gas into the air and sea. She was stopped before she could carry out her goal, and was put into solitary confinement within a punishment sphere for four-hundred and seventy years.

So, day by day the Gaian's walked past the hallway, casually glaring down towards the door and the guards, wondering if they could catch a glimpse of the memory and the legend that nearly destroyed not only the University of Planet, but also humanity itself…

ZAKHAROV…

"What do you want?? Who are you!?"

YOU DID THIS TO ME…

"Who? What?"

YOU DID THIS…YOU WILL PAY…

"Whoever you are, you think I'm afraid of you?"

I WILL FIND YOU.

"And then what will you do?"

I WILL KILL YOU.

"Nice greeting. Now are you going to tell me who are?"

JUST WAIT, ZAKHAROV. IT WILL COME.

"Hmm…nice."

YOU WERE LUCKY, LAST TIME. I WON'T LET YOU ESCAPE AGAIN.

"…"

NEXT TIME, YOU'LL DIE WITH YOUR BASES.

"Meskha…?"

YOU MUST DIE WITH THE REST OF THE EARTHBORN.

"No! GET OUT OF MY HEAD!"

SHE'LL DIE TOO. THE FLAWED PRODUCT OF AN EARTHBORN.

"Get OUT!"

SOON, ZAKHAROV. SOON.

He sat up in the bed, gasping. It wasn't the first time that Prokhor Zakharov had that dream, so it wasn't exactly new to him…but it was still just as frightening. It always ended the same way; "Soon, Zakharov. Soon."

The woman next to him had awoken and stroked his arm. "Prokhor…are you okay?"

Zakharov looked at the girl. Shila is an odd case…a hologram he'd created over a hundred years ago that had attained becoming sentient life, an incredible accomplishment…but Zakharov didn't see her as a computer program. He see her as a friend, a companion, and a wife. He nodded slowly.

"She's there, inside my mind. It's been a hundred years…and she's somehow found a way into my head."

The small girl crawled up against him, nuzzling his shoulder. "C'mon, Prokhor…she's still trapped inside that punishment sphere inside of Gaia's Landing. How could she be talking to you through your dreams?"

He ran a finger through her long brown hair. "I don't know…but it's frightening. I just can't be certain."

Shila turned on the light on the bed stand next to her, and then bounded naked across the room towards their desk, grabbing the monitor before running back to Zakharov. "Call Deirdre, then. Since she isn't responding, let's visit her find out what our little prisoner's been up to, if you don't trust her prison cell."

Zakharov put the monitor on the bed stand. "What time is it?" he said outloud.

A computerized voice spoke from speakers on the wall. "Current time – 0405."

Zakharov raised an eyebrow at Shila. She just shrugged. "Maybe we'll wait till sunrise, then."

Zakharov shook his head with a smile and shut off the light, trying to avoid the chill that rushed over him when he closed his eyes.