“Oh my god,” Rina exclaimed as she opened her eyes, finding herself standing in front of a lush grassy area with a breathtakingly beautiful scenery. She had logged in with high expectations, but what she saw surpassed even her wildest imagination.
Rina, driven by curiosity and a desire to test the limits of the virtual experience, began touching herself, searching for any discernible differences from her real body. She even went as far as plucking her own hair, hoping to find some imperfection or irregularity.
“Wow,” she exclaimed, momentarily disregarding the slight pain from plucking her hair. She was captivated by the intricate details present on the strand in her hand.
Her mind raced, attempting to comprehend the immense computing power required to render such a scene with such exquisite detail, blurring the lines between virtual and real to the point of indistinguishability. The sheer level of realism left her astounded and in awe.
[Welcome,] Nova greeted as she suddenly appeared, catching Rina off guard.
“OH MY GOD!” Rina exclaimed in fear upon hearing the voice and witnessing Nova’s sudden appearance.
[Don’t worry, it’s me, Nova,] Nova reassured her, attempting to calm her down with both her words and the glasses Rina was wearing, while she concealed the amusement on her face.
“You scared me, appearing out of nowhere…” Rina began to speak, but her sentence trailed off as her fear subsided, allowing her to finally set her eyes on Nova. She couldn’t help but be captivated by Nova’s beauty, which rivaled her own but in a different way, causing Rina to mutter a quiet “fuck” under her breath.
[Don’t worry, you are beautiful too,] Nova replied, offering a comforting reassurance to Rina, who was still enamored by her.
“Ah, sorry about that,” Rina said, feeling a sense of embarrassment for her earlier behavior. She then added, not backing down, “It has been a while since I saw someone as beautiful as me.”
Nova was slightly taken aback by Rina’s confident statement, as she had grown accustomed to Aron’s humble demeanor over their long time together. Rina’s bold statement, backed by her undeniable beauty, caught Nova by surprise.
“Nice to meet you, by the way,” Rina said, extending her hand for a handshake. “I’ve heard a lot about you from your daughter,” she continued, acknowledging the reputation that preceded Nova.
[Nice to meet you too,] Nova replied, also extending her hand to reciprocate the handshake.
“Let’s start the tour, shall we?” Nova suggested, wanting to start the tour and continued their conversations as they toured the VR.
Nova proceeded to give Rina instructions on how to navigate the virtual reality (VR) environment. Shortly after, they were teleported to various locations that Aron had granted Nova permission to show Rina. However, certain areas and information were kept secret, as there were things that needed to remain undisclosed.
……
Aron, who had been sitting, quickly rose from his seated position as soon as his call with Rina ended. He began walking towards the towering mountain of machine parts, determined to continue the task at hand.
“Nova, how is the robotics research going?” Aron asked with a glimmer of hope, hoping to receive some positive news from her.
[Although some of the technologies are mature, the combination of them is still not fully ready,] Nova answered, providing him with a summary of the current situation in robotics research.
“Okay,” Aron said, acknowledging the information, and chose not to say anything further. He understood that any additional input from him would be futile, as he knew the researchers were always working with unwavering focus and dedication.
Following that, he slowly started combining the pieces one after another before he paused and asked, “When are they going to arrive?”
[They are on their way, sir, and will arrive in fifteen minutes,] Nova reported, providing him with the answer to his question.
“Good, as I need them to expedite the process here,” Aron said as he continued assembling the atomic printer.
Fifteen minutes later, two trucks carrying people arrived, and approximately forty individuals stepped out of them. They promptly formed two straight lines, their gaze fixed straight ahead, awaiting further orders from Aron.
“Good evening,” Aron said, pausing the assembly process and walking towards the assembled group.
“Evening, Sir!” The forty people greeted back in unison, their voices synchronized and filled with respect.
“Good. We are going to be working and not stop until we are done with assembling everything there,” Aron declared, pointing towards the mountain of machine parts behind him. “Understood?!!” he emphasized, expecting a clear affirmation from the group.
“Yes, sir!” they replied in unison, immediately after his question.
“Now, one by one, come to me, pick up your glasses, put them on, and take a seat, and wait for the process to start,” Aron instructed the soldiers, without providing any further explanation.
Without questioning, they obediently began to approach him one by one. As they received their glasses from Aron, they promptly put them on and took their designated seats, following his orders without hesitation.
Nova wasted no time, as soon as the first person took a seat, she immediately began assimilating the knowledge on how to assemble the machine parts in front of them.
Five minutes later, when all forty ARES members had taken their glasses and were sitting down, assimilating the knowledge, Aron asked, “How long is it going to take?”
“Twenty more minutes,” Nova reported.
“Why is it taking so long for them?” Aron asked, expressing surprise at the amount of time it was taking for the ARES members to assimilate the knowledge about assembling a machine. He couldn’t help but compare it to the quick assimilation of knowledge he usually experienced from the system, which often took even less time than what they were currently going through despite being more extensively complicated knowledge.
“Sir, comparing yourself to them is unfair. Although I can’t access the full brainmap of your brain, I’m pretty sure the system is a few billion years ahead in technological advancement, and due to it being directly inside your brain, it makes it easier to assimilate compared to those who are using glasses,” Nova responded.
“Haha, that’s true,” Aron laughed in acknowledgment of her statement. He realized that he had become accustomed to the rapid pace at which everything was being done around him, to the point where twenty minutes of knowledge assimilation seemed relatively long.
Twenty minutes later, the first person who had put on the glasses initially stood up from where he was sitting and promptly returned to the line where they had stood before Aron distributed the glasses. He patiently waited for his fellow soldier to finish going through the same process.
Aron continued to wait for the remaining ARES members to complete their knowledge assimilation before commencing any further actions.
After another five minutes, all the members had finished the assimilation process and immediately joined the standing soldiers, forming a unified group ready for the next phase of their mission.
“Anyone who still doesn’t know what to do?!” Aron asked the soldiers who were now standing.
“No, sir!!!” they replied once again in unison, their disbelief still evident.
“Good, let’s start,” Aron said, and without any delay, the ARES members immediately began moving to their respective locations, guided by the glasses they wore. They swiftly commenced assembling the parts assigned to them, displaying their newfound knowledge and skill acquired through the assimilation process.
…
A week later.
Aron stood at the apex of the massive structure, closely observing the ongoing assembly process.
Nova seamlessly integrated and processed all the data collected through the glasses, swiftly analyzing the intricate details and generating precise instructions.
Using the glasses, Nova transmitted real-time guidance to the crane operator, ensuring accurate movements and seamless coordination.
They were now in the final stages of assembling the LAP (Large Atomic Printer), a colossal structure that stood fifty meters tall above ground and extended twenty meters below ground, with a remarkable width of three hundred meters.
The intricate process of aligning the various components, connecting the intricate wiring, and ensuring the precision of every mechanism was nearing its completion.
The printer’s crucial components, including the computing parts, were located 20 meters underground.
Above ground, within the 50-meter space, there existed nothing more than an open warehouse.
This warehouse served as the loading area for raw materials and as the site for the printing process.
This arrangement enabled the printing of large objects as a single unit, relieving both Aron and others from the burden of having to assemble small parts in order to operate the machine.
“And with that, we are done,” Aron declared with satisfaction as he tightened the last screw in the now fully assembled Large Atomic Printer. The imposing machine stood before them, radiating a striking green color, signifying its readiness for use.
Throughout the construction the sky remained veiled by a persistent brown cloud, a testament to the ongoing construction activities. The machine responsible for excavating the hole for the fusion reactor had not ceased its work, relentlessly continuing its digging operations.