Rait had one peculiarity: when he was told something extraordinary, something that could deliver a shock—he would freeze for a few moments. Not in a literal sense, though; it was as if the processes in his head froze, reality disconnected for this brief time—while he could still continue functioning, as though an automatic mode had been activated. For a split second, emptiness formed in his head, and something piercingly fell downward.

  In such cases, his emotional intelligence often failed him. However, this wasn't entirely bad: the information, once absorbed by the brain, didn't immediately reach his feelings—sometimes it could take about a week or even several. This gave Rait a peculiar advantage: nothing disrupted his ability to think at the moment of receiving news.

  Gil had the same peculiarity. So no, his world didn't shatter into fragments that pierced his soul with enough force to provoke aggression. He simply had a task to solve: it consisted of preserving his own life. The situation was complicated by the fact that thinking about anything required considerable effort—and his strength desperately sought to leave his body completely.

  The situation seemed hopeless. It would cost Kael nothing to kill him without leaving any damage and say that, unfortunately, Gil died on the way back. He wasn't entirely certain of the deputy's acting skills, but no one could do anything about the fact, and evidence would be impossible to find.

  However, Gil had worked with Kael for a long time. The former couldn't help but suspect the latter's excessive ambitions hiding behind calculated indifferent calm and pragmatism. But he didn't live by ambitions alone, and therefore Gil had reason to suppose that he wouldn’t be killed just like that, silently. And this meant that the best way out of this situation would be to make it so Kael couldn't say everything right now.

  However, Gil didn't need to think—circumstances decided everything for him. He lost consciousness; the sensation was as if he'd fallen from a great height. Finally, the desired emptiness and complete absence of any connection with the external world.

  But he didn't remain in oblivion for long. The dimmed lighting struck his eyes with a bright flash; it was as if an electrical discharge passed through his body.

  "Well damn... Could've been more careful, bastard."

  Treacherous weakness still bound his body, but at least he could speak and think.

  "No, you won't get away that easily," Kael said.

  "What are you trying to achieve?" Gil asked sharply and coldly. "They'll kill you for this; use your head."

  "No, you'll kindly shut up. I'll be doing the talking here," Kael said.

  "I'm listening," Gil answered in a tired voice, fighting the desire to turn toward the wall.

  No, this was simply mockery. Barely suppressing the impulse to hurt that brazenly self-satisfied face—his condition didn't allow it anyway—Kael took a deep breath, exhaled, and said:

  "So, I'll begin by saying that I hate you."

  "I'm aware; so what? Is that a reason to kill me?.."

  At this, Kael nearly exploded. Taking out a pistol (with a silencer), he shot at the luminous panel located directly above the bunk; Gil barely managed to cover his eyes with his hand from the fragments.

  "I've only just started. Don't interrupt me."

  Gil nodded and closed his eyes.

  "He's not planning to sleep, right?.."

  "I am in no way beneath you," Kael articulated, swallowing his apprehension.

  As if reading his thoughts, Gil nodded slightly.

  "My personality and life are in no way less valuable than yours. If not more, of course," he smirked. "It's just a stupid coincidence that you became head of the Organization. But I'll fix that."

  "Kael, are you capable of defeating an army alone—even if not a full one?"

  All he could do was click his tongue irritably through his teeth.

  "So it's not a coincidence," Gil continued, not letting his opponent get a word in. "Enough beating around the bush."

  No. It was impossible to conduct a dialogue with this man. Even now, when he was in an unfavorable position. Kael simply wanted to throw himself out the window.

  "I feel like I'm being interrogated," he forced out. "I can cut short your pathetic life at any moment. Consider that I'm already head of the Organization, and you're just a half-dead nothing. So shut up and listen!!!" He very much wanted to scream the last phrase, but since screaming was undesirable, he practically hissed it.

  "But you still haven't said anything intelligible to me."

  At this, Kael couldn't restrain himself. Suddenly Gil found it difficult to breathe, and he couldn't take his next breath. Generally speaking, this couldn't cause any damage if brief, but it could frighten quite well.

  Probably half a minute passed before he could breathe again. Having replenished the lack of air, he somehow fell silent and froze in concentration.

  "So then," Kael said with a smile. "I recall you once told me about divine attention. And you know, you yourself are the best example of what happens to a person in the absence of this attention. I'm not talking about our activities now; I'm talking specifically about you."

  Nervously, Kael began pacing back and forth, cracking his fingers.

  "Your way of attracting attention is strange, but understandable. Of course, it's offensive when they've abandoned you to who knows where and, whatever you do, they stubbornly ignore you. But, you know..."

  He sat down on the bed again, looking Gil in the face.

  "Sooner or later comes a moment when you understand that it's enough. I wish that this moment would come for you someday too. But then again... Perhaps in your next life. Wish me luck in my new position."

  "Good luck, Kael."

  The next moment, the deputy head of the Organization was already lying on the floor with his arms painfully twisted behind his back, and all his attempts to free himself—as well as to attack—were futile.

  "Well, well, what an ego you have," Gil continued. "You're so sure that I won't kill you after this, but will simply demote you. How naive."

  He sat on the bed, placing his feet on the back of Kael lying on the floor.

  "Strange. You seem smart, but so short-sighted. Haven't you watched movies where the main mistake of all villains is their unwillingness to kill the protagonist quickly, without preamble?"

  "But how?!" Kael wheezed through the pain. "You were lying there half-dead!.."

  He genuinely couldn't understand. With all his strategic thinking, he wouldn't have even thought to allow such a possibility. Gil himself, truthfully, was surprised.

  "Well, while you were chattering there, I found a way to transfer your powers to myself. Yes, just like that, without your knowledge. Never did this before and didn't know it was possible. Thank you, Kael.”

  The First Zone never launched its nuclear missiles. The exact reason couldn't be determined; most likely, they hoped for luck until the very last moment, and then all their equipment was simply disabled. Or perhaps some deep human instinct kicked in after all.

  Gil needed about a week for complete recovery. Approximately the same amount of time to identify Kael's accomplices. They could be counted on one hand; Gil was surprised there were any at all. No, he knew that many must have fiercely disliked him. But Kael's idea was so absurd; he himself should have understood this and not dragged other people into it. Although he really did seem to intend to become head of the Organization... The human soul is inscrutable.

  However, the accomplices were even more interesting.

  The light panel in one of the bunker rooms constantly flickered, which could drive someone mad if they stayed there for a long time. This idiotic psychological technique—when a person is left alone in unpleasant surroundings so they can contemplate their deeds—was truly idiotic. That's what Kael thought, spending his post-betrayal leisure time in this wretched room.

  When Gil finally entered, Kael nearly rolled his eyes. And looking at that ear-to-ear smile, he wanted to punch him in the face.

  "Don't worry, I just wanted to say a couple of words," said the visitor, who was amused by Kael's reaction. "The main surprise awaits you ahead."

  "Could you just kill me?" Kael asked meaningfully.

  "Why didn't you do it yourself? You had so much time!"

  "Are you mocking me? I have no weapon, and any attempt to do it differently—though I can hardly imagine how—would be stopped."

  "You can tell right away—not human," Gil laughed. "Humans are good at finding a way out when pressed. I've always been amazed by this adaptability to external conditions... But that's not what this is about now. Here's what I wanted to ask: Kael, are you aware that you intended to do unnecessary work?"

  "I already understood it was unnecessary," Kael looked at Gil meaningfully and angrily.

  "No, you don't understand me. It was unnecessary from the start. After all, I planned to do it for you—just a bit later."

  "Come on..."

  "Yes, imagine that. You could have actually figured it out—especially since I also told you about my main goal. In addition to this—do you think there's a place for psychopaths like me in the new world?" He let out a chuckle.

  "No, I don't think so," Kael smirked in response; though truthfully, what he'd heard slightly stunned him.

  "Well, there you go. You decided I was that much stupider than you; that's not good somehow... Now seriously. What the hell made you think you could violate your duty? Who did you think you were to believe you had that right? We're all cogs in a mechanism: our task is sacred, and you wanted to cast doubt on the success of its fulfillment. You wanted to disrupt the course, and this was fraught with consequences. Now the consequences will catch up only with you," Gil smiled. "I wanted people in the new world to remember this era like a nightmare. A logical, just world without unjustified violence—and then without it at all; there will definitely be no place for people like me there... But it seemed to me that with proper development, you could live there. However, since you've stepped onto this path—well, okay. I accept this fact. Let's go."

  After these words, he silently walked to the door; Kael followed him just as silently.

  At the exit, Gil gestured with his hand for the temporary guards to leave. Slightly surprised, they dispersed, gifting Kael with contemptuous, uncomprehending glances.

  It must be said that Gil's plan became clear to Kael immediately as soon as he entered one of the bunker rooms where they were actually heading. The former let his deputy go ahead, carefully closing the door.

  Kael's face took on the appearance of polished white marble. Gil casually gestured for the unnecessary people to leave the room, leaving only an even row of several people standing by the wall.

  "Listen, this is too much. I'm the one who dragged them into this; they can't be considered traitors."

  "Kael, you surprise me," Gil made an exaggeratedly disappointed face and spread his hands. "Actually," he paced back and forth, "I thought for a long time about exactly how to kill them. And then I realized the solution was obvious."

  Having said this, he pulled a pistol from under his jacket.

  "This is disgusting," Kael exhaled.

  "Like your action," Gil cut coldly.

  Taking brief aim, he released several bullets into the person on the far left. Jerking, he collapsed to the floor breathless.

  "Kael, be so kind as not to look away. Otherwise I'll have to make it so that at least their screams attract your attention."

  He raised his eyes, focusing his gaze on the dark spreading stains on the wall.

  "You're a hypocrite. You said you valued everyone's life."

  "I said—the lives of needed people. And if you recall my words about a sense of hierarchy, everything will fall into place, and you'll lose the desire to ask unnecessary questions."

  The next person in line apparently wasn't ready to die. Before the bullets flew into him, he established protection. A hopeless, desperate gesture.

  Irritation flashed in Gil's gaze. Less than a second passed before something crunched, and that person threw their head back, hitting it against the wall, unable even to scream properly. Immediately a bullet ended his suffering.

  Gil shot almost everyone, glancing at Kael after each one; he obediently watched, and it seemed that with each killing his gaze became more and more glassy.

  When the last person remained, Gil's hand was slightly tired from the tension. While he was flexing his wrist, the condemned one cautiously said:

  "Excuse me, may I ask a question?"

  "Of course," Gil raised an eyebrow without even looking in his direction.

  "Could you not kill me?"

  Gil snorted and asked:

  "On what grounds?"

  "I sincerely repent of what I've done and, as I can reasonably assume, will be useful in the future."

  Even Kael nearly dropped his jaw in surprise. Gil spun the pistol in his hand, thought, and approached the person closely. He looked into his eyes for several seconds, then slowly stepped away and said:

  "Well, okay, go. Just now, I'll tell the guards, otherwise you'll die after all."

  "Thank you," the person bowed his head.

  Passing by the stunned Kael, he paused slightly and said:

  "Your shoelace on your left boot is untied. Tie it, or you'll fall and break your nose."

  "Th-thanks..."

  Kael looked at his feet—indeed; mechanically he crouched down and began tying his shoelaces to Gil's stifled laughter.

  "Damn, I hope he hasn’t gone nuts," said the latter when that person left. "And I hope it's not some code phrase of yours; though it doesn't seem like it, and killing me is practically impossible—you've already figured that out."

  "What a circus..." Kael said absently.

  "This isn't a circus, this is tragicomedy," Gil answered. "But now there will be tragedy, or drama [1]. Just let me finish laughing... He ruined everything for me..."

  Having calmed down and taken several deep breaths in and out, Gil stood opposite his deputy and addressed him:

  "So, only you remain. What should I do with you? You know that I do either what I want or what I consider my duty. And which of the two options should I choose?"

  "I would prefer that you, following duty, kill me humanely."

  "An ordinary human death for someone who imagined himself a superman? Ooh, how boring."

  "Why ask then?.."

  "To test your self-criticism."

  "Good, I hope you're satisfied with the result. However, I see you take pleasure in mocking me."

  "No, I'm just preparing you psychologically, since I'm going to finish you off morally. However, as I already said: whether it's tragedy or drama—it's up to you to decide."

  "What else now," Kael thought, feeling himself go cold.

  "As I understood from your words then," Gil began, watching with interest the embarrassment on his interlocutor's face, "you suffer from being supposedly undervalued. You can't come to terms with the fact that despite your outstanding abilities, you're not first. And then—what bad luck!—it turns out that toward the person you've worked for so long, you feel some dog-like attachment and can't do anything about it. But that's not all—this person seems to completely not care about you. And then it starts to seem to you that you're deliberately not noticed from the height of their capabilities; whatever you do, you're devalued, and they don't miss an opportunity to mock you. And the situation keeps getting worse, and now this person becomes the center of the Universe for you—figuratively speaking—so strongly do you hate them. No, you can't live with this creature on the same planet. It's you who will restore justice, ridding the world and yourself of this aberration—after waiting, however, for it to win the war against another aberration of this planet; well, yes, that's just a trifle..."

  The tale has been illicitly lifted; should you spot it on Amazon, report the violation.

  "Enough."

  "Am I wrong?"

  "You're right, but enough. Can I go and shoot myself in the head?"

  "Are you trying to attract attention again or are you serious now?"

  "I'm completely serious about wanting to go shoot myself."

  "Okay, but first listen—I've only just begun; that was a preface, so to speak."

  Kael couldn't find the strength to respond.

  "What if you now understand how worthless your aspirations were and at the same time how natural?"

  "You're stalling."

  "Yes, you're right. I've never had to tell this to anyone. I'm half ordinary human, Kael."

  Such dead silence hung in the practically empty room that the hum of one of the light panels that needed repair hit the ears.

  "Excuse me, what?.." a weakening voice broke the silence, echoing lightly off the walls.

  "I have split personality disorder, and my second personality is an ordinary human, moreover a failure: I don't remember anymore how many suicide attempts he's had that I had to intervene in so he wouldn't actually accidentally die. Actually, this is the main reason why there won't be a place for me in the new world."

  Kael put his hands to his face and slowly sank to the floor.

  "No, it's not true," he said in a half-whisper.

  "No, it's true," Gil answered.

  "No!!!" Kael screamed, unable to bear any voice but his own in that moment.

  Then he abruptly jumped up and began forcefully shaking Gil by the shoulders; this was accompanied by semi-hysterical wailing.

  "How is this even possible?! You're the head of the Organization, you're the strongest of our people, this can't be!!!"

  Then he simply lowered his head and howled; and the next second he finally let go, rushing to the door.

  "Are you going to shoot yourself?" Gil asked.

  Kael was already holding the handle. Then he lowered his head again, unable to bear what he'd heard.

  "Do you even understand that you destroyed my world... My ideals, my life, everything, everything..." he was sobbing openly now.

  "I understand. I warned you I was going to finish you off morally."

  "And you succeeded! I won't work for human scum anymore!!!"

  He ran out. Gil felt very, very sorry for him; probably this was the strongest empathy ever experienced.

  "A tragedy after all... Well, it’s nothing, this will end soon."

  He crouched down, looking at the wall.

  After about 15-20 minutes, quiet, defeated footsteps were heard outside the door. Soon Kael re-entered the room with the look of a beaten dog.

  "You here for the pistol?" Gil inquired. "Here, take it."

  Kael was slightly embarrassed: he hadn't even noticed that he didn't have the weapon on him.

  "No," he answered. "I just thought..."

  He paused. It was difficult for him to speak.

  "... that all this time I was working precisely for that personality that is not an ordinary human. I don't know that other one. I only know you. And you—entirely and completely—are one of us, and the strongest representative at the moment. You... You're two different people... Right?"

  Searching, somehow childishly naive eyes looked at Gil.

  "Probably," Gil shrugged.

  Catching the inhuman despair in Kael's eyes immediately, Gil hastily said:

  "Yes, definitely different."

  He instantly calmed down; his gaze became firmly indifferent again.

  "In that case..."

  He hesitated. He looked at the walls, the floor, bit his lips and cracked his fingers.

  "I don't know what you're going to do with me next. I'm ready for anything. But first I would like to offer my sincere apologies for this action. Gil, forgive me," the end of the phrase was pronounced more quietly.

  Then, without raising his voice, he added:

  "When I went out, I understood that... No, nothing. That's all," with great difficulty he looked into his interlocutor's eyes.

  Gil didn't answer. He approached and firmly embraced the person who already considered himself dead but was still his deputy.

  ***

  Rait's despair was beyond words. His fists clenched in helpless frustration and he wanted to cry—the feeling that he was losing precious time didn't leave him for a second; it tormented him, and Rait didn't even understand why. Who did he think he was, wanting to join these demigods. But how could he not think about it when their activity seemed to be the only thing in this world that had meaning, since it ended meaninglessness. How could he not think about it when the mere thought of soaring to that piercing height took his breath away. How could he not think about it if their idea had become the only thing that captured Rait's consciousness, becoming his guidepost, and what could become the meaning of life. But could it?..

  And finally, how could he not think about joining the Organization when somewhere deep inside, ever since childhood, Rait felt some strange right to do justice.

  He wasn't thinking about anything anymore, typing queries with the phrase "join the organization"; and it was foolish to think about such trifles on the threshold of death. However, this also yielded nothing.

  However, Rait was upset prematurely—his attempts did have a certain effect after all. When he once again left the house, intending to crawl to school, a car was already waiting for him at the exit; and that they were waiting specifically for him became clear from the sudden loss of consciousness due to the use of a stun gun.

  Yes, it was somewhat strange that despite the government having long ago surrendered to the Organization, someone was still twitching. This somewhat resembled the last efforts of the First Zone—desperately hopeless in their recklessness and meaninglessness. Both were possible exclusively due to the fact that there weren't that many Organization people: they held the main control, but it was hardly possible to monitor all the details, and not always necessary.

  Rait came to lying on a hard floor. Oh no, it wasn't the floor—he was sitting close to the wall. When spatial orientation began to gradually return, he felt that his hands were fastened with handcuffs behind his back.

  At first he didn't understand. And when he understood, his vision darkened from the realization. No, they wouldn't stand on ceremony with him. And this whole thing probably didn't have any practical purpose. The terrifying feeling of complete defenselessness before senseless human cruelty, which so often woke Rait at night and didn't leave him, dulled, during the day, now arose in all the glory of its reality. Exactly what he had feared all his life, what made him want to disappear and never appear, would inevitably overtake him now—he would die a painful death, defenseless before some people for whom empathy was unheard of. It became cold, very cold.

  And he couldn't fully believe it. This couldn't happen to him. He was too weak, this was too much; if only someone could help—a kind of deus ex machina [2]; and it didn't matter how anymore—at least find a blade somewhere or a rope. But fat chance. He couldn't even free himself from the handcuffs, which were also attached to the wall.

  After a few seconds, he regretted opening his eyes and stirring. Obviously, this was noticed, because fast confident footsteps were heard in the corridor, which, though not very loud, seemed to press something into the floor each time—some aggression was felt. Rait's heart was ready to break through his ribcage, and he was almost certain that when they came in here, he would simply suffocate—it had become so difficult to breathe.

  The footsteps became audible very close. They hesitated slightly at the entrance, and finally the door flew open—with some unnatural noise and somehow abruptly. A person entered the cell and, catching Rait's gaze, nodded almost imperceptibly.

  No, Rait didn't suffocate; he now didn't even know what to think. He remembered very well that sudden meeting at night in the forest. And, truthfully, over time he began to perceive it as some kind of hallucination. Even now that same person was approaching Rait, and he was trying to understand whether this seemed real to him or not.

  Kael stopped about a meter from Rait and said:

  "I think you're simply mocking me."

  This was said without any emotions, but not hostilely. Overall, the voice was quite pleasant and even somehow calming.

  A moment—and the handcuffs clinked as they hit the floor. Rait cautiously stood up, not stopping staring directly into Kael's eyes, which was completely, absolutely uncharacteristic of him.

  "Who are you?" he asked, although he could clearly see that before him was the deputy head of the Organization in person.

  Only now did Rait's brain make the connection between that person in the forest and the one he saw now. From excitement, it was difficult to think.

  Kael nearly rolled his eyes. He took Rait by the elbow and said:

  "Let's go. I'm here to help you."

  Hearing this phrase, Rait silently nodded and readily followed his mysterious rescuer. He could only be amazed at the sight of people in uniform lying on the floor, apparently dead.

  When they got in the car, Kael said briefly:

  "I'm sorry, but you won't be able to return home. Otherwise they'll take you again."

  "I don't really want to anyway..."

  The answer, though somewhat puzzling to Kael, generally reassured him.

  "At least this one is compliant."

  "You'll go to my place for now, we'll see from there. I won't harm you—it's not in my interest, so you understand. Do you know who I am?"

  "Why am I even asking..."

  "Of course; but why you need me, I can't even imagine. Sorry, can I quickly ask a question while we haven't gone far? Will I never return home again?"

  "No, sometime, of course, you'll be able to go back for your things."

  "Can I ask another question?"

  "Well."

  "I have a dog at home, it will die of hunger if I don't take it, please understand..."

  Rait simply had no choice. He couldn't leave the dog there, he had only recently become its owner, his conscience wouldn't let him live peacefully until the end of his days.

  "I have no choice: Gil will skin me and make a rug out of it in which he'll wrap the dog if it dies."

  "Fine, we're going to your place," Kael cut off. "Enter the address."

  When the car took the right direction, Rait asked (without hope, however, that this would clarify the situation):

  "Won't you tell me what's happening?"

  Kael had absolutely no mood to chat.

  "I said I won't harm you. I'm doing all this by order of the head of the Organization, so you can ask him."

  "Lord, make him stop asking questions."

  "The head of the Organization?! Will I see the head of the Organization???"

  "What kind of reaction is this..."

  "No, you won't see him today. And why do you need him?"

  "And why do you need me?"

  "Please, leave me alone," Kael would have grabbed his head if he could. "You'll find out everything yourself soon, I swear."

  Rait felt as if something had stung him. All this could be happening only in a dream; but it was happening in reality. Having thought and decided that perhaps he shouldn't anger the deputy, Rait fell silent. Surprisingly, he had never felt calmer and more protected in his life.

  After some time, Rait was already sipping tea in Kael's kitchen, watching the dog eat food directly from the bag. The surprisingly clean apartment with dark walls and floor was striking with an abundance of snow-white statues sharply contrasting with the general background—about half a person's height, executed in a style somewhat similar to classicism; probably this impression was created by clothing in the form of large pieces of fabric thrown over and tied in all sorts of ways. True, the facial features were quite sharp, and the bodies were thin; finally, all the people were sexless.

  Rait immediately noted with excitement that they were very similar to the people he had invented, but didn't dare say so. He walked through the corridor and rooms as if through a gallery, thereby embarrassing Kael, who was already ready to climb the walls from the fact that a stranger was in his apartment.

  The dog behaved surprisingly calmly—probably the unfamiliar environment confused it. It sniffed the sculptures, and suddenly placed its front paws on one's shoulders and licked its face.

  "Kael, stop!!!" Rait hissed, looking back apprehensively.

  No, no luck. The deputy head of the organization had just come out of the room for some reason and was now looking at him puzzled and displeased, slightly squinting his eyes.

  "I'm sorry, please," Rait said quickly. "He didn't spoil anything; if necessary, I'll wipe it."

  "What's this dog's name?" he squinted even more, and a laser beam nearly shot from his eyes.

  "Oh, his name is Kael. In my opinion, it suits him very well," Rait smiled and ruffled the dog's fur.

  Kael didn't answer. He abruptly turned around and disappeared into the room he had come from, obviously forgetting why he had come out.

  ***

  "Kael, tell me, what are those statues at your home?" Gil looked slyly into his eyes.

  "Oh, that. Well, I've been interested in sculpture for a long time—they were made to order, I tried one myself, used the previous ones as a model."

  "But they're all almost identical and executed in the same style. Why?"

  Kael didn't quite understand why Gil needed this information.

  "I just like this style—I, you could say, invented it myself."

  "Are you sure?"

  "I see you have something to say."

  "Yes, and it's fundamentally important. Please pay attention."

  Gil took out an electronic medium, and glares from the appeared hologram fell on the dark, polished floor surface. It depicted a certain planet resembling their own in color scheme.

  "This is the work of my second personality," Gil warned. "Don't pay attention to the imperfections."

  The planet consisted overwhelmingly of water; the hologram slowly rotated around its own axis, and it was visible that from one large continent, several small ones extended in a circle, connected to the main one by relatively thin strips of land of different lengths.

  Gil changed the picture. A typical landscape opened to Kael's view: sky, somehow more saturated blue; mirror-smooth surface of a mountain crater lake surrounded by the cliffs of the peak of the mountain on which it was located; other mountains in the background, resembling extinct volcanoes. Gil showed several more landscapes with mountain lakes and meadows—by one of the bodies of water sat a completely white animal resembling either a lynx or a puma, with large wings.

  Then urban landscapes began. There were literally a couple of them—complex architecture didn't allow for many. Tall buildings of sharp forms—mainly with triangular or rhombic elements; many of them connected by levitating "paths," and some of these paths simply "wrap around" the building. And whiteness that strikes the eye.

  "Well, now the most interesting part," Gil smiled.

  Obviously, this was a fragment of some square. A fountain in the middle of which rose a snow-white sculpture as if taken from Kael's house; a water spiral "wrapped around" it. He showed another hologram depicting another sculpture of the same style; though it was unfinished.

  "You want to say you think the same way?" Gil asked.

  "This is an interesting coincidence..." Kael said slowly, not yet figuring out how to correlate this.

  "And, actually..."

  Gil showed the last hologram depicting an inhabitant of this world. As it turned out, the sculptures hardly distorted the features—except that the edges on them were much sharper: a tall person without any signs of gender, with long and thin—relative to standard—limbs, with thin and sharp facial features, relatively large eyes, and finally—with completely white skin and the same color long straight hair.

  "Interesting fantasy," Kael said confusedly.

  "To be honest, I roughly had this in mind when I talked about paradise," Gil said. "Perhaps the main feature is the absence of violence due to the absence in living beings of the urge toward violence, which largely depends on the environment and biological features. As a consequence, the main purpose of life is not survival, as here, but development: by development I mean approaching the higher, and the main method is creative activity. Although, I think, in such a place it's a sin to engage only in creative activity," Gil smirked. "I mean, there even life as an ordinary observer will be filled with meaning."

  Kael didn't say that it was strange for him to hear such admiring words from Gil about the absence of violence. However, he seemed to have somehow called himself a "psychopath"...

  "But in our world, I think, we can't do without aggression," Kael said with a sad smirk. "Take at least the same hostile environment and the same biological features. And the ability to control energy..."

  "But the latter can quite well be used for peaceful purposes."

  "Getting objects from high shelves?" he snorted, being older and therefore taller than Gil.

  "Medicine, construction, spiritual sphere, competitions, managing natural phenomena, restoring destruction. Or did you think that only certain people can create using abilities? Kael, even I can."

  "That is, you want to say that just like, let's say, you wiped the remnants of the First Zone's army off the face of the planet, you can also erect a building?"

  "Of course, I can't just like that off the bat. But I also trained for a long time to direct energy toward destruction, actually, that's all I developed, like all of you. Necessity required this. But in the new world there will be no such necessity. Only infinite development, higher and higher..."

  "But what about hierarchy?" Kael interrupted.

  Gil grimaced, and then articulated:

  "You know, Kael, it seems to me that adequate people feel it perfectly, and there's no point in violating it. Considering also that no one will have any psychological traumas inflicted by ordinary people. Yes, there will be conflicts, there will be disagreements, but there won't be this senseless cruelty, like the kind that especially prevailed in the Third Zone. Thank God, we're not animals."

  "That's true," Kael smiled. "In general, your words sound very reasonable."

  "So," Gil continued. "Higher and higher, up to that point of development when a person can be created artificially, and then..."

  "And then you want them to create those white-haired beauties?"

  "Stop interrupting me, I'm not dead yet and I'm still your boss. No, those white-haired beauties belong in another world; but this doesn't mean that here we can't create someone like superhumans. And then ordinary ones—well, that is, like us—won't be needed at all, only the super will remain. In my opinion, this can quite be considered the highest goal..."

  "'...let the superhuman be the meaning of the earth!'" [3]

  "I thought of this myself!!! You can clearly see obvious discrepancies."

  "Yes, I see. It just immediately came to mind.”

  When they were already home, Kael asked:

  "You described the new world so well. Don't you yourself want to live in it even a little bit?"

  Gil looked at him devastatingly.

  "You've already forgotten about Rait? Well, it's nothing, you'll remember again soon. Oh, yes, that's what the second one calls himself."

  "Self-esteem is nothing compared to yours."

  "But it seemed to me that Rait is quite a pleasant person," Kael said.

  "Is that why you didn't really talk to him and tried to avoid him?" Gil asked, smirking slyly.

  Then, looking at his interlocutor's widened eyes, he added:

  "Yes, I know what's happening with him, but he, naturally, doesn't know what's happening with me. I'm the dominant personality; and he's just some kind of mistake of nature..."

  "Well, as you wish," Kael sighed, not knowing what else to add.

  There really was nothing to say: there was reason in Gil's words, and very vexing reason.

  "Wait, so you're aware of what he named the dog..."

  "Probably because I've always liked your name," Gil laughed. "And he and I have similar interests. Honestly, Kael: beautiful sound—nothing more."

  [1] Tragedy, as a rule, has an unhappy ending; the circumstances in which the characters find themselves are exceptional, much happens by the will of fate. In the ending of dramatic works, however, the conflict is most often resolved; the situation is closer to reality, much depends directly on the character's will.

  [2] 'god from the machine' (Latin) — a device in ancient tragedy, when a god would suddenly appear on stage and save the heroes from a hopeless situation; this was accomplished with the help of special mechanisms.

  [3] Friedrich Nietzsche 'Thus Spoke Zarathustra'; the phrase is not an allusion and is partly taken out of context.