ANEMOIA

Sophia slammed the door and exhaled. She was tired, of waiting and worrying. That night kept up her mind, the way her father smirked while patting her head, took his coat and left for the door. He promised he would be back, only visited the other city for work related issues. He wasn't sure when but he assured he would, no matter how long it took. And Sophia watched him leave, rooted at the center of the room and waited as she ought to. Seconds... Minutes... Hours... Days... Months... Years. It had been twelve years since Mr. Durant opened that door and she deemed them enough. She would make the effort since he failed.

"HELLO MISS DURANT!!" A voice beamed from behind the kitchen counter.

Yes, the only person her father left to keep her sane. A person really? After all those years, it would be wrong to classify him a machine. ISE was a robot, part of Mr. Durant's creations. Sophia only called him that due to the initials embedded on top of his chest and found it rather convenient to say it as one word. As she navigated life, ISE aided her in everything, a literal housekeeper but in the form of a machine. Keeping her safe and ensured to never conceal anything about him.

"What will you be having for this evening?" he asked.

Sophia clutched on her straps. "ISE, I'm leaving."

He looked up from the counter. "And go where miss?"

"I'm going after Dad."

She stormed across entering the corridor and branched to the right. Her father's room.

"I don't think that's a good idea," ISE insisted. "Where will you even begin?"

Sophia dashed to the left side of the room where there was a safe on the floor, she recited the combination and unlocked it. Batches of cash strewn across, she wondered how it was never depleted but she was glad as it was the core source of her livelihood. She placed her bag on the floor and opened it, putting the money.

"I've heard that before you know. I just need to make my way to Newville and everything will work out from there... hopefully."

She made her way to the room across.

"But don't you think he did this for a reason? He is a busy man Sophia."

"Sure, busy enough for twelve years."

Like ISE would understand the concept of time, she shrugged and yanked her closets, placing the clothes in another suitcase.

With everything set, she left the room to find him scampering behind the counter. Very odd for a machine but Sophia grew used to it. She walked to the door.

"Please Miss Durant. You must believe in your father."

She sighed, glancing him. "Why are you so invested in this ISE. Didn't Dad say you should listen to whatever I request of you."

"Of course but not this one. I am only to keep you safe and that is what I shall do."

"Enough ISE. You don't understand how long I've waited. I gave him his time and I can't wait any longer. I miss him, I need to see him."

She reverted to the door, clutching on the knob.

"But Miss Durant, leaving at this time means you disobey his orders. Can you not at least wait until tomorrow morning."

Of course, there was that order, that whatever happens, she wasn't meant to leave the house in a stormy night. No matter how many years passed, she couldn't forget those words. And from it, she contemplated, opening the door meant leaving everything behind. Her entire life. It would hurt but wasn't this what she wanted. She waited for too long, disobeying one order wouldn't harm anyone. It would only dull the memories she shared with everyone. Her eyes twitched as tears rounded in, it would be okay, time would heal her.

She looked at the machine with a determined expression. "I've waited for too long, I'm prepared."

The door opened.

A gust of wind plummeted the side of her face, dust particles marking their territory, she shielded herself immediately but felt her legs debated. Instead of the hard ground, it felt soft as though tufts of sand replaced the floor. What was happening?

She stopped moving, giving way for her eyes, ISE was beside her and a dome surrounded them both. Wiping her face, she pondered why the apartment brought in such a strong wind? Was there a window left open? She looked in front, this wasn't the apartment and neither was it the town. The wind blew to the east carrying dunes that flooded the entire place. The sun overhead didn't make it any comforting. Wait... the sun? Wasn't there a storm and it was at night?

She shook her head and looked behind, the house, it was gone as though it was never there to begin with. Was it blown by the wind? Was that even possible?

She turned to ISE. "What's going on?"

"They... failed."

"What? What are you going on about. Do you know what's going on? Why aren't we at the apartment, what's up with all this wind and being in the middle of a desert? Why is all of this happening?"

ISE turned to her. He tapped his chest twice and a screen emerged below the initials. It turned on and showed a shelf of books and before it was a desk with files and a calendar. On the desk was the man she wanted so earnestly to see. Just as she was about to complain than he began speaking.

"Sophia," he said. "If you’re watching this, it means you went against me and got out. I'm not upset about it, I knew sooner or later you would. On that note don't get angry at ISE, he only did as per my instructions."

He cleared his throat, fingers shaking and eyes closed. Followed by inhaling, he adjusted himself on the seat and opened his eyes. "You must be wondering why you have a robot called ISE right? Or maybe why you have a robot by your side all along. Well, the initials translate to Initiative to Save Earth. By the time of this recording," he turned to the calendar. "It has been three years since I left and one year for the world to survive."

She looked at the engraving. It made sense but what did he mean by the world’s survival. Upward, ISE looked the other way and he didn't want to get involved. The air inside the dome got heavier.

"You are special Sophia, so special. Your mother died after giving birth to you and per the regulations, a scan of the newborn baby was in order. We were all shocked when we discovered you possessed two hearts."

He gazed the desk and sniffled. "At the time, astronauts successfully made contact with alien life and though it was meant to be a memorable experience, they gave us a warning. Calling themselves The Navigators, they predicted our world would die in the next five years due to an effect that poisoned the solar system called 'The Deteriorate'. To prevent this, they bestowed one person with the power of longevity. Exposed to specific conditions, they would save the world. This was per confirmation that the child born had lost the mother after giving birth and was confirmed to have two hearts."

She staggered but retained her stability. Touching her chest, her gaze began to double. It never came to her attention but he wasn't lying, both sides of her chest banged and felt as though her shoulders carried the heaviest weight even though there was nothing. Why did she never notice? She tried to calm down but seeing him wipe his tears made it worse.

"They called me selfish at first but could they blame me? They wanted to train you right away but you were my only child. How could I have the strength to just give you away," he wiped more tears and looked straight at the camera. "The Navigators learned of this and heeded my call, they saw how compassionate I was and they gave me four years to spend time with you. Though my fellow humans despised it, I did my best to give you everything. The Navigators explained it was still okay to do this. The power could only work if you were happy."

Could she even remember such a time? Did it even exist? Her sight worsened, closing them was the only option she could think of. Nothing worked in her favor.

Opening them, she saw him smile once more but it immediately dulled. "Time passed quite fast, and the navigators announced that they did all they could by adding four years, it was time I gave you away. Per the regulations, you were to still live a perfect life for another two years to make the operation successful. That's why you lived in a simulation. And that's why I left you, to never see me again. To ensure your survival, ISE was placed at my stead, you noticed he was a robot but everyone around you saw him as a real human."

His fingers proceeded shaking again. "Everyday we observed you live your life as happily and the results were coming in, continuing like this would ensure the world's survival."

And another smile turned in, but one full with regret. "But my selfishness got the better of me, where I placed the order. You believed I placed it that night but you’re wrong. ISE always revealed additional information to the researchers, those they couldn't catch. So when no one was looking, I grabbed him and issued the order. When it would be the right time, you would come back to the real world but before then, you would only remain in the simulation."

She froze, her hand lost the strength and swung from the chest. ISE did his best to not meet her as Mr. Durant chuckled.

"ISE was able to make it as though I gave you the order that night and he gave me his word he wouldn't tell a soul. When it was later discovered we couldn't reach you, they did everything but nothing worked. So yeah... I must have governed the world's end. Before you ask, The Navigators only spoke from above and they never knew what was going on. They would only come to the planet either after the world was saved or destroyed."

He exhaled. "I don't know when you'll see this. Maybe you would think it's been ten years or so but in actual sense maybe a thousand have passed. Sophia, I might be a monster after hearing all this but the world... it's not worth saving. People are evil and they wanted to do everything they could by using a baby who doesn't even understand how the world works. That's why this had to be done. That's why, you had to live. I'm sorry and I understand however you look at me but I did this, for the sake of a new future. I love you Sophia, much than you can even fathom."

The screen dimmed. Her knees gave up, she grasped the sand, everything was a lie. It explained why it felt like the world favored her. Why she was never tired when others would be after a strenuous exercise. Why when she brought her friends home or the neighbors saw ISE, they deemed him normal. Why there was so much cash in the safe and no matter what she spent on it never ended. She couldn't even feel her bags anymore. All this was a hoax. All her aspirations, achievements, friends and memories, they were nothing. As though she never existed or maybe she wasn't supposed to exist. All for the sake of a world she never got the chance to save.

Tears fell to the ground, what was she meant to do, where was she meant to go. ISE patted her shoulders.

"I'm... sorry Miss Durant," he said.

A disc shaped craft flew above them, it was colossal with a blend of black and silver. It landed meters from them and the doors swung open, beings clad in silver, head to toe, stepped forth. They looked humanoid.

The one in front offered a hand despite the dome before it.

"The bestowed human," it spoke, the voice reverberating like thunder. The English was so impeccable and she believed nobody could ever sound like that. Unless an alien.

"After numerous epochs, we finally found you."

She stood up. "Are you... The navigators?"

It nodded. "Though this world has already perished, there is a way we can save it."

Her eyes sparkled. "How?"

"Well, we can reset everything, but it will only begin from billions of years ago. Meaning no people or if they are, they will revert to their first state before evolution."

She clenched her fist, nothing was easy was it. "Is there another option?"

The alien thought and shook its head. "There isn't. We can only package it, as the rest of those we failed to save and travel to the next world to do our best to save it. This time, we take matters at our own hands, no matter the consequence. And it would mean you would have to join us."

"Do I make the choice?"

It nodded. "Of course, you can even let the world remain as it is and live here... alone."

All her life, minus the four years, wasn't real. And even though she could fix the world by resetting everything, the yearned moments she wanted with him would never happen. On that, he warned that the world was evil and not worth saving. But was that entirely true? Could it change were it to reset?

She gazed the sand, ranking the thoughts and paving a way. She looked at ISE who dared not say a thing but his gaze answered her question. Smiling, she turned to the navigator and nodded.

"I've made my decision."