It's mid-afternoon when the next big earthquake hits. It lacks the extreme violence of the first one but makes up for it in duration. The kittens who had been riding on the skid behind the tractor are now trying to crawl into my coat.

“Uuu, I feel like I just got off a carnival ride.” I groan.

“Me too. My stomach feels like.....” Dan stops as the sky dims.

A large shadow has crossed the sky blocking out all the light. A few seconds later the shadow continues on its way returning the dim light to the dark grey sky.

“Did we just have a near miss with another planet?” I ask.

“What? Is that what you think just happened?” Dan’s eye remain trained on the sky.

"We just experienced a shift of momentum, maybe even influenced by a secondary gravity field. The planet rang like a bell. The entire sky was darkened. I would bet something much larger than the moon just passed by. That is if we still have a moon."

"I wish I could argue with you. What is going on is scary enough without you pouring gas on the fire." Dan doesn't seem to be joking.

“Don’t blame me for our whole solar system going to hell.”

Dan’s next comment is heavy with sarcasm. “Well as long as it’s just our solar system then that’s not so bad.”

I don’t give Dan a break. “It’s not. Magic seems to exist, advanced electronics don’t. The fundamental forces still work. Just some of the finer constants that operate at the quantum level must have shifted just a little. The shifts have to be small or we would be dead. Even small shifts would mess up integrated circuits. If any of the fundamental forces were changed not only would we be dead but the structure of everything would change. Not only are we not in Kansas anymore we don’t seem to be in the same universe.”

“I was trying to be sarcastic. Maybe magic has made it so that the change in fundamental forces doesn’t matter.”

"Solids, liquids, gasses, and plasmas all behave like what we expect. Gravity, momentum, Newton's laws, and thermodynamics all seem to be operating as we expect. Light casts shadows and reflects off broken mirrors. It is diffracted into different colors by broken shards of glass. The relationship between magnetic fields and electric fields is mostly the same or the magnetos in our bikes wouldn't work. Magic is the new player in the game and the background is shifted just enough to add one more form of energy."

“Figured it all out have you.” Again with Dan’s sarcasm.

"No. Just a wild-ass guess based on what we know so far." I sigh.

"Well, that makes me feel a whole lot better. Start looking for a place to stay the night. One half of the sky is defiantly lighter than the other." I guess Dan is feeling the pressure as well. The sky growing dark just then shook him up quite a bit.

Perhaps it was the last earthquake or just that the local houses had never survived the first week but the next five mailboxes were just flags for wreckage. After we maneuvered around an overturned semi and trailer. The road came to a major intersection allowing an uninterrupted view west due to the initial slope. I called a brief halt and pulled out the binoculars. The viewing distance isn't great but the binoculars make what I am seeing undeniable.

As I pass the binoculars to Dan I ask. “What would you expect to see looking west?”

"Some rolling hills and then the Puget Sound. Not a purple, grey, and green forest."

"Me too. In a few miles, we should get a view off toward the Burlington Mt. Vernon area. I have to admit I am getting a bit worried about what I might see."

“What happens if it is nowhere in sight?” Dan asks.

"The long-term goal is the same. Find or help to create a community with good farmland. The soil around here is choked with heavy rocks and gravel."

A half a mile down the road we come to our first major obstacle. A section of road that should be proceeding straight is taking a gradual bend to the left. This is marked with splits in the earth three to twelve feet across becoming more pronounced and catastrophic as they proceed right into the distance.

With a groan, Dan says, "I guess we should be grateful there is any road left at all."

“You have a plan?”

“Make a bridge that we can drag crack to crack?”

“I like it. Where do we spend the night tonight?” I ask.

“There is a delivery truck on its side with smiling boxes over there.”

"Let's get started on the bridge first how are we going to build it?"

“Logs lashed together with power lines.”

“I’ll get my chainsaw. I will let you play with the hacksaw.” I smile thinking I pulled the easier task. Dan then extracted his bolt cutters and returned my smile.

I am dragging the third cedar log out of the forest when the kittens let me know that something is coming. At first, I am unsure of just what it is I am seeing coming up the road.

Binoculars in hand I call out. "Dan, we have some very interesting company on the way here." I pass the binoculars over to Dan.

“What am I looking at?”

"Near as I can tell some sort of ox-like creatures pulling a couple of wagons. At least four people riding mystery beasts next to the wagons. Though I am not sure all the people are humans."

“What were you able to see.”

“Could be gear that they are wearing. But, I think that I am seeing large ears located closer to the top of the head and the occasional flash of a tail.”

“I wonder if they’ll be friendly.”

“We’ll find out in about five minutes.”

I have a cat toy made from the feathers of the monstrosities I have killed dangling from the end of my fishing pole. My kittens may be super smart for cats but they are still kittens and love to chase, pounce, and leap at this toy. Why now of all times to play with the kittens? Just how threatening is someone who is playing with kittens? Attacking a stranger for no reason while he playing with kittens or puppies is just wrong on so many levels. Besides, from the silhouettes I spotted on the lead wagon there are women in the coming group. I just hope that they have not already encountered some jerks who have fouled their opinion of our society.

"James, what are you doing?" James mumbles out of the side of his mouth.

"Showcasing some cut adorable little fuzz balls. And, don't worry about what you say to me. There isn't a snowball's chance in hell that we will be able to talk to them."

“Why the show?”

"To appear less threatening. There are several women in their group. This is an emotional power play."

“I hope your idea works.”

As the wagons come to a stop I disappoint the kittens by putting the toy under the tarp on my wagon. I smile and wave. The driver on the first wagon smiles and makes a friendly-looking hand gesture. Most of the group seems more reserved but I can see several smiles. While I am unsure where to take the non conversation from here Dan takes up the slack. He points to the road ahead then to the two power poles and log sections I have gathered. Then points to the darkening sky and makes eating motions.

Turns out there are three conveyances. In the front and rear are large covered wagons. In the middle is a proper carriage painted with black lacquer, trimmed and decorated with gold paint. The ox-like creatures seem more closely related to the feathered monstrosities than to cows. The six creatures that are being used like horses are covered in large scales. They have a lighter frame and a shorter broad face. Large flat teeth suggest they are herbivores. Panting heavily they seem close to exhaustion. They are adapting poorly to the change in gravity. There are around twenty people in the other group. The majority appear to be fully human. Eight have a definite feline appearance. Everyone is bundled up against the cold. Still visible, the ears, eyes, tails, and teeth are clearly deviations from the human norm. The final person of note fits the image of an elf. Slightly smaller than a human, pointed ears, beautiful features, and a bow strapped across the back.

The elf(?) is busy discussing the situation with a woman carrying an ornate staff. They keep looking in my direction. The kittens I wonder? Two of the riders are discussing the situation with the occupants of the carriage. The three women from the first wagon are coming to investigate. This I am sure is the power of the kittens.

As the three get closer they point to the kittens and pantomime petting the cats. I nod my head. I hope nodding the head means the same thing. I smile and mimic the petting motion.

=Rascal, Cheeter, be brave and let them touch you. They will not hurt you.=

The driver is human the other two have feline traits. These two move slow and gentle as their hands get close to the kittens.

=Boss they are big cats. Smell good.=

=Yes, smell much better than boss=

=You two OK getting picked up?=

=OK=

=No=

I point to Rascal and make a scooping motion. I touch my head and make petting motions then point to Cheeter. One woman is rewarded, the other punished as Cheeter hisses the claws come out as he struggles for freedom.

=Sorry Cheeter she didn’t pay attention to what I showed her.=

=Boss must give treat=

=In a little while=

=It hurts= On his way back to me Cheeter has lost his balance and is rolling on the dirt.

I notice the lady with the staff is pointing it in this direction. The elf next to her looks none too happy and is saying something to her. The sneer on her face needs no translation.

“HEY, KNOCK IT OFF.” I lift the AK to the firing position and chamber a round.

She flat ignores me. The elf is backing off he seems to know bad things are about to happen.

=Boss, please help me=

That does it. I bat the safety off. I have already fired several rounds out of the AK to get a nice tight targeting dot. The dot at this range is less than an inch and a half. The fancy crystal globe at the end of the staff is twice that.

BOOM

The crystal shatters with an amplified force when struck by the round. I feel a shock wave from the exploding crystal. Nothing physical, but I feel some kind of ethereal wave slams into/through me. The staff lady is now flat on her back still as a stone. The elf is on his butt shaking his head. Everyone else has confused upset expressions on their face. From the wide eyes they now have, they must have assumed that Dan and I had simple weapons at best. That illusion has been shattered.

"Every large group has at least one ass hole and one idiot." Dan is also shaking his head to clear the confusion brought by the blast. "Now we just need to watch out for the idiot."

The door to the carriage pops open and a girl in her late mid to teens stomps out. She starts yelling, weapons are being drawn. All it will take is one drawn bow and this little get-together will turn into a bloodbath. Fortunately, the elf starts talking and the tempers on that side start to calm. The staff lady is checked and seems to be breathing. Not sure if that is a plus or a minus. Guess I'm glad I didn't kill her, even if she had it coming. Weapons are sheathed and or lowered. The trust we had built is shot to hell.

Dinner tonight will be freeze-dried vegetable soup with grilled monstrosity bits for flavor. It actually smells quite good, doesn't taste too bad either. There are more than a few jealous glances our way. I would bet they are running low on rations. I doubt they had planned for the end of the world any better than we had. This looks like an opportunity to rebuild some trust.

"Dan, how many cans of soup do we have?"

"Over twenty that doesn't include the buckets of freeze-dried stuff we have. Want to share a couple of cans with our other-worldly visitors?"

The magic of can openers and instant soup are a big hit with our neighbors. The staff lady now minus the staff is forced to make what I assume is an apology. I go through the motions of accepting it. No one can understand a word the other side is saying but things are back on track for friendly relations.

Dinner clean-up is finished and the daylight is fading fast. Dan gets up and starts heading for our neighbors camp.

“What’s up?”

“See that can with the sticks in it? My bet is they are picking guard duty. I will try to volunteer.”

“Good Idea. I’ll join you.”

At first, we were refused. A bit of discussion among our new friends and we were added to those already chosen. The young cat woman who was able to pick up Rascal wanted me to join her on watch. I am sure she is more interested in my cat than me. I have always been a disaster with languages. I have zero talent for foreign languages. Even the mechanics and spelling of English are a challenge for me. However, I am hoping that whatever is happening with the communications module in my head will kick in and give me a boost in learning a foreign language.

We throw up a pair of backpacking tents close to where the other group has pitched some real tents. It hasn't rained in a while but who can tell when it will with the sky so grey. Once asleep the vivid dreams continue. A bizarre cross between doing work improving city infrastructure and circuit design. At some point in the night, I am aware that Dan has gotten up. Just before I am awakened I have a dream where I am stationed at the focal point of a curved wall doing sound checks and making adjustments to the frequency response of a sound system.

“Uuuh, my turn.”

I bundle up and crawl out of the tent. The kittens follow me. One with bold confidence the other is now my shadow since I represent safety. I have explained that the bad lady was punished so he is safe, but he is still a kitten, a creature of instinct.

The Air has a distinct bite from the chill. The temperature has been slowly dropping. The heat from the sun has been absent for over a week now. On the other hand, the heat has been trapped under the same blanket that blocks the sunlight from reaching the surface. The cold will squeeze the last of the moisture out of the sky. Without the sun will we see rain again anytime soon? How long till drinkable water becomes a problem?

The camp is dimly lit and the night offers no light at all to the surrounding countryside. This is not so much of a night watch as it is a night listen. My plans for trying to learn all I can about the other group's language are over before they even start. I did get her name though, Kysal. She is disappointed that Rascal is more interested in fighting with Cheeter than being petted.

At some point, the dim silhouettes of broken trees began to show. Morning was coming. With faint light came faint noises beyond the restless sleep of the camp. They are a ways off but coming closer. I pull out the binoculars for a closer look. It takes a while but I eventually spot the source of the noise and recognize what it is, raccoons. Figures, rats, coyotes, and raccoons will survive anything.

I feel a nudge. I help her with the binoculars. A small spark accompanies the trade-off. Now that she has tried the binoculars, she is having fun looking at everything she can with them. The backs of her hands had a thin light coat of soft fine fur. The fingernails may have been thicker and narrower than average but not at all claw-like. When our hands meet on the return of the binoculars there is a large long-lasting spark. One that should hurt, but it doesn't.

Did she notice? She is looking at her hand as I am doing the same. Our eyes meet. After a few seconds, I smile shrug my shoulders, and slightly shake my head. She also smiles and tilts her head to one side. Can't really say we are friends but it looks like we both want to get along. We will be spending the better part of the coming day working together to bridge the gaps in the road. So, maybe I can make some progress on the language then.

"They can do some amazing things with magic." Dan's watch partner was a magic user who wanted to show off a little after yesterday's magic show went bad. "He could create fire, pull water from the air or ground even move small objects around at a distance."

"Well, I'm glad it can be used for more than torturing small animals."

"These people are quick. He collected the brass. I doubt he really understands the process but if we could talk to these people were can definitely trade knowledge. The chainsaw, tractor, and our bikes are going to blow their minds. Their tech is a thousand years old."

“Other than magic you mean.”

“Yea. But, we have so much to trade for that.”

"Our best tech just took a seventy-year hit. There are no machine shops, chemical production facilities, or factories of any kind. Thousand year old tech looks pretty good to me right now."

"True. But, we still know how our tech works and that has value."

"In ten years sure, tomorrow not so much."

“Well aren’t you a ray of sunshine.”

“Actually that is also starting to worry me.” I look skyward.

Working to build a reusable bridge and slowly move people and our things from section to section of intact road was an ideal environment to build language skills. Building a second bridge for a short stretch where there was no room to store wagons and animals boosted it even further. By the end of the day, I was able to pull words from context. The ash between our starting point to the finish of the fractured section of the road was littered with stick figure drawings. Two miles of language lessons which would vanish in the next rainfall or snowfall. The weather is definitely getting cold.

Krysal, her friend Miyaki, and the magic-user with who Dan has stood watch, Kayvan, were also trying to learn English. I wish them luck. English is the great bastard of languages. It has a massive vocabulary, hundreds of rules, with exceptions to every one. It's what you get with multiple base languages and gathering words from multiple other languages. Needless to say, I am doing much better at learning their language. And, as I hoped, whatever is happening inside my head these days seems to have done the heavy lifting for me.

Dinner time is approaching when Krysal approaches me. “Binoclers.”

"Binoculars," I repeat back as I remove them from my backpack.

Up the hill on the east side of the road through a gap in the fallen trees a large, horned, horse-like creature can be seen. It and others like it move in and out of visibility through the gaps in the trees.

Soon, Krysal and five other cat people are discussing whether or not they will be able to hunt them. With all the downed trees stealthy movement through the forest is quite a challenge. I think I picked up the word for kill and tercut is what they are calling those animals. So in their language, I ask.

“Want me to kill one?”

“So simple for you?”

“Yes.”

I go back for my AR-10. It would be better if I had sighted in one of my hunting rifles with my targeting dot but too late now. At a little over six hundred feet, it's a bit of a long shot with open sights. With my enhanced vision and targeting dot, I hope that I can take down one of the tercuts. I will be a bit embarrassed if I just end up spooking the herd.

I go a short way into the forest to get a better view and brace myself over a fallen tree. They seem to be herd animals so the slightly shorter ones in the middle will be my target. There has been little to no wind now for several days all I need is a vertical correction. It seems my target dot is not yet ready for long shots. I squeeze off a round. All of the heard jumps at the sound except one which staggers then drops. This sends the rest of the herd off in a panic.

“Let us get dinner.” My sentences are a bit simple but not bad for my first day.

Six of us head out into the woods to collect the tercut while one of the cats heads back to explain that dinner will need to be a bit late. Since it is a fresh kill boiling it soft is the best option.

The tercut is gutted drained skinned then sectioned up for us to pack down the hill. Everyone is aware that I am trying to gain as much of their language as I can. A game is going on to see who can feed me the most new words.

"So, what is the @@@ of your ****?" The cat-like girl Krysal asks.

“What are @@@ and ****?”

“@@@ fine list, shape, direction of. **** A life assistance gift from your God.”

Not sure of @@@. I will interpret **** as blessing.

“I have no blessing from God that I know of. Before you ask why, my people are unsure if any God exists. Any notable actions of Gods are from very very very old stories.”

"Who warned your people of the worlds coming together?"

“No one. I am sure most everyone I ever knew is now dead.”

This statement freezes most of the cats in their tracks.

Krysal chokes out the next words. “How do you keep going?”

"First, I don't think about it. I fill my thoughts with surviving one more day. I have lost my mother, whose life became very empty after the passing of my father, that hurts the worst. I have hope that my brother could have survived. My job was my life but I left my place of work a week before everything was knocked down. I have no other family I am close to. Finally, what are my choices? I'm not ready to roll over and die."

“A hunter like you does not have a wife?”

“I am sure you see it by now. Your world and mine are very different.”

“If you have no blessing how can you use the magic that killed the tercut.”

“I used no magic.”

Hear too the cats all stopped for a second.

“There was no magic in my world before. Now that our worlds have merged, there is magic. Can I learn magic?”

“The things you use are not magic?” This is the senior cat in charge Seksai.

“That is right.”

“So cat people could use them.” Not sure who this cat is.

“I could show you how, and after many times you could get good with them.”

"Not magic that is better than magic. A race not blessed can have greater power than the blessed." A smaller cat named Mezni.

What can of worms have I just opened.

“James you are fine. This will be a time of great change. The Gods have said so. They must rest after saving two worlds. They will do little more than give blessings and offer the occasional oracle for guidance.” Seksai is using a calm voice, unlike the now excited cats surrounding me.

He continues, "You asked about magic. Our people are born stronger more agile than simple humans. We are more healthy live longer and heal more quickly. This is our blessing. Other races receive their blessing as they come of age. You are human but have yet to receive a blessing. If you are introduced to magic before your blessing you may be given the ability to use magic by your blessing."

“So how do I get introduced to magic?”

“The best person would have been Awseeka but I don’t think she would help you now. Kayvan might, I think he likes you two.”

"You took her down and blew up her staff. Shamed her in the eyes of the Duke's daughter. I am sure that made Kayvan smile."

"That made everyone smile, except Awseeka...he he he."

"My little cat Cheeter wasn't too happy."

“About that. What is your connection to those two little animals? You say you have no magic but those two are almost like familiars to you.”

“I guess I need to start at the beginning of the collapse.” I am forced to stop my abridged story several times then they just go silent.

“What no questions about the wooly apes?”

“How are you still drawing in noosha?”

"Is noosha the white mist that comes off of things I have killed?"

"Yes. Without a blessing, your body should quickly saturate and stop drawing in the noosha."

“May he has created something like a blessing through those dreams of his.”

“A blessing not given by the Gods? That could mean..”

We are nearly to camp. The cats have all frozen in place with no sign of moving forward.

“James. You and Dan must never speak of your special abilities to anyone for any reason.”

“Ok. What is the problem?”

"Our God blessed us with great abilities at birth. Because of that, the other Gods forced the condition on us that we could never receive the greater blessing of any God at our coming of age. So, while we lose few children and enjoy long and healthy lives our abilities are less than those of the other races as they develop the powers given to them in their blessing. However, if it becomes possible to pass your blessing on to us we will be able to compete with the other races in terms of ability. Such news will not be welcomed by many humans. You may be human but if they see you as someone who could balance out the difference in abilities between cat people and the other races you will end up dead."

“There is no reason to believe that I will ever be able to do such a thing.”

“A blessing not given by the Gods. The deal that our god made with the other gods is such that while we can never receive a blessing from the gods we are allowed to create our own. Such a blessing will require great knowledge and mental diligence. Something the plain humans keep watch over us to ensure we are never able to complete. That such a blessing exists will cause great fear for some. You can think of how some priests might use that to gain some power among their followers?”

“Yes that does sound like something bad could happen to me that way.”

“Good. Let us try to get Kayvan to introduce you to magic.”

Dinner was thinly sliced meat boiled with some dried fruit. I took a small taste and added half a cup of chili powder the result was quite good. After dinner, Kayvan went through a series of exercises to have me feel the force of magic moving through my body.

I have a brief conversation with the duke's daughter after dinner she is quite pleased with the progress I have made in learning their language. Later she spends a significant length of time talking to Krysal.

I explain my situation concerning blessings to Dan. No more superpower comments. Not even as a joke. None of the other group can come close to my language mastery but all it will take is one comment that they do understand to put me in the spotlight. After that, any slip up I make could turn me into a target. My connection to the kittens is already suspect.

Before I can even get to sleep a menu comes up. Select priorities. Human enhancement, language processing, magic analysis. Given the earlier conversation, this is a no-brainer. Magic analysis first priority. After all, it could have a huge impact on human enhancement. Language processing number two. If I wake up tomorrow fluent with the right accent the cats out of the bag. If I drag it out for several days it will seem only somewhat unbelievable. The last thing I need is to have some ability pop up that puts everyone's eyes on me.

Since I was on guard duty last night I am exempt tonight. This night's dreams are the absolute craziest. I am sitting in front of half a dozen computer screens cross-referencing game systems, qi, cultivation, ritual magic, isekai novels, manga, fantasy novels, and Hollywood. I awaken at the line "the sorcerer's standby, plasma balls" and a distinct smell of ozone in the air. The light is dim and fortunately, no one seems to be focused in this direction.

So, safe bet that something has changed. Interface open. There are a few changes and they are interesting. Dan has been such a blabbermouth up till now. Can I tell him? I guess I will wait and see. The cats seem more trustable in this regard. They are looking forward to the possibility that they could somehow clone my system for themselves. At this point, I don't see how it could be done. The information to create the system should be far less resource intensive than the system itself. I wonder how I could inspire my system to create a colony module. Perhaps if I started to design such a project my subconscious could pick up on it. Like I have the time or even a notebook to write on. Still, if it is possible I want to do it. If I can get my system to spread like wildfire to the cats and survivors of my world who aren't interested in following foreign Gods then crushing me becomes symbolic at best. I doubt that what is going on with me holds a candle to a god's blessing but I will also bet there are a lot fewer strings attached. And, from the perspective of the cat people, it's better than nothing.

My interface has shown the results of my prioritizations. The communications module has placed translation as a secondary priority listed as on-demand. Two modules are dedicated to magic one listed as research the other as application under the applications are listed electric discharge magnetic pulse and plasma bolt. My available resources have dropped to seven percent. There is one additional module now running that makes me a little nervous. It is listed as only a study, but human upgrade?

I would say I am getting sick of pancakes but it beats the heck out of what our new friends are eating. The cheese they are using is quite pungent. I am supplementing my diet with some vitamins we found in the vault. Natural vitamin D is now in short supply given the lack of sunshine.

The drill of hauling goods and supplies then bringing animals across with wagons is now a practiced art. In short order, the last two road breaches are crossed. We have agreed to travel together. They will have an agrarian society so may be far more able to adapt to this situation than our modern society. They also have a device that points to the temple of the Gods so finding their city will not be a problem. It has only a slight deflection from our present direction of travel. There is evidence that a pair of dirt bikes have come this far before turning around.

Krysal has been assigned by the duke's daughter to learn as much as she can about me and my world. She understands that I am equally curious. Turns out she is the daughter of the town mayor from the cat town they are coming from. Since the cats have no blessing they do not have some of the strings that come with the blessings. Once blessed you are compelled to follow the commands from the clergy of the God you are blessed by. You are also compelled to follow the commands of the nobility you are under. The compulsion is not absolute but resistance is unpleasant. Perhaps an acknowledgment by the Gods that far too often people in authority abuse that authority. Since the cats feel no compulsion to follow the commands of any noble it is required that the children of those who hold positions of authority in cat society have one of their children serve in the house of the local lord. Since Krysal is unmarried she is trading positions with her brother who has been serving for the past five years.

The Gods of this world gave their believers fair warning of the tragedy to come. The God warnings were severe. People went to great lengths to shore up their buildings. In the town that Krysal came from it was quite inadequate. Wood walls split, thatched roofs collapsed and barrier walls tumbled. The cat people being stronger and more durable than most humans had few fatalities. Being winter few of the damp thatch roofs caught fire. Those that did, the fire was easy to contain. The party was set to leave on the same day everything fell. The town was being rebuilt as the wagons and carriage departed.

The ducal city of Penacray is their destination. The castle is built of stone as are many mansions and the Temple of the Gods. The wealthier section of the city is built with a mix of brick and stone. It isn’t until you reach the poorest sections of town that you end up with thin wood shingle roofs. The people we are traveling with believe that the buildings will have been adequately supported with magic. I choose not to voice my belief that we are traveling to a pile of stone and gravel.

Their journey has already been longer than expected. And, since the mild deflection from our direction of travel from the temple pointer is only slowly changing. I would guess that we have several more days of slow travel to go before we need to leave this road. We are being forced to stop more and more often to move vehicles off the road. With this in mind, Dan and I recommend looting collapsed houses for food. There are more and more houses to chose from. Dan and I have substantial amounts of freeze-dried food with us but with the sky showing no signs of clearing that is a resource we want to hold on to.

Dan and I tend to ride a ways ahead. This makes it easier on the animals they are using to pull the wagons. They are a bit spooked by the engine noise of the bike and tractor. There is a group of nine houses all fairly close to each other that has caught our interest. They are a short way up on a side street from the main road. It appears that this area too was examined briefly by some bike riders.

A large crew makes looting quick and easy. Locate kitchen, create a path into the kitchen, brace the remains of the roof extract, remaining edibles. A significant cash of canned goods was extracted from the first house. Dried goods stored in paper bags or cardboard are usually discovered by rodents and ruined. Once we showed our new friends how to use a can opener they were quite excited. By the third house, we had a significant cash of foodstuffs. The fourth house still had about one quarter of the roof still standing. It was there we met the next survivor.

“GO AWAY!”

“Ok.”

Dan and I head back to the rest of the group. I briefly explain the situation and we agree to move on to the next house.

A minute later there is a voice behind us. “That’s it? You are really just going away?”

Dan glances back. “Of course.”

“You aren’t going to try to hurt me or take my stuff?”

"Why should we? There are all kinds of things buried in ruined houses. My moral code didn't change just because the world went to hell."

“I’m Laura. Can I come with you?”

“Can you shoot?”

“No.”

Dan looks at me. All I can do is shrug my shoulders.

"How have you survived?" Dan makes that question more of a statement of mystery. "Anyways get whatever you want to take with you gathered. We are going to gather whatever is still edible from around here then move on."

House number six has a standing carport. Under it is an aluminum fishing boat. There are dents where the trailer rollers impacted the bottom of the boat but unlike how a fiberglass boat would be the hull is intact. We may not be able to make the inboard motor run but the little trawling motor should work. Everything that was on the skid behind the tractor was moved to the boat.

By the eighth house, daylight was running short and we set up camp. The otherworlders are treated to spaghetti and meat sauce. Hardly a gourmet meal but at the end of a hard day of work, everyone was satisfied. The big hit was the canned beer. No one thought it was particularly good, but that it had an easy opening top and was alcoholic made it very popular. I stuck with soda pop. Canisia the duke's daughter was also required to. For me, it is a matter of hangovers. I hate them and I get them from the slightest amount of intoxication. For Canisia it is a matter of being a noble who is only fifteen years old. Since I am stone-cold sober I get first watch. Tonight the level of intoxication determined the order of watch. The elf was also a light drinker. As it turns out his reasons are similar to my own. This gave me my first chance to talk to him.

A mid-life crisis for an elf can last a hundred years. This is a period in their lives where they often go out into the world and do odd things. Odd for an elf anyways. In L'halis's case, this involves offering his services as a tutor for human nobility. I manage to convince him to tutor me in how to use a bow. After getting the shooting form down he let me loose a few shots. The first went wild. The second hit the old tree stump we were using as a target. By the third, I had a target dot. So the last two arrows I fired landed right next to each other in the discolored section of bark that I was aiming at.

"Thank you L'halis. You are an excellent teacher."

“What are you?”

“What do you mean?” His question brings a block of ice into my guts. I don’t think he means me any harm. He is struggling to understand why I seem so gifted.

"You have no blessing. In the blink of an eye, you can respond to an attack on your familiar that is not a familiar. You do so not by attacking the person but by ending her ability to continue the attack. Within a single day with neither magic nor a guide you can speak a language you have never heard before. At a distance most people could barely recognize a target you bring down a kill with a single shot. With less than fifteen minutes of instruction and three shots from a bow, you have mastered it. All the cat people are fascinated by you. The little duchess is fascinated by you. You can see in light that I am struggling with. You may not have noticed but even your traveling companion recognizes you as something special. I am five hundred and seventy-three years old. In my eyes, you are a unique existence. What are you?"

"I don't know. In my world, there were no blessings, no magic, no noosha. Everything in my world has changed. I have changed too. It all started when the noosha entered me. Dreams feeding on my memories started building advanced machines in my mind." No way to lie my way around what I can do with this guy. I have been too lax about exposing my abilities before my conversation with the cat people.

“What kind of machine would be built in your mind?”

“Fantastically complicated and involved calculating machines.”

"I have seen gear-driven calculating machines. They are slow and clumsy. What kind of calculating machine would do you any good inside your mind?"

“The kind of calculating machine you are thinking of is, was ancient history for my people. Our calculating machines operated on logic rather than counting gear teeth. They were driven by electricity.”

“What is electricity?”

"Where to start." I pull out a comb put it to use then tug a loose thread from a pocket. The thread jumps to the charged comb. I begin the discussion about atoms and fundamental forces. I try to keep it slow and simple but I know that glazed eye look. My brother gives me this look when I try to explain to him what I do at work. There is no way I am going to be able to start explaining about electronics much less microcircuits. My voice fades out as it is clear that I have left his understanding in the dust.

“Your people, how sure are you that your old world worked by these rules?”

"Very sure. And, for the most part, this world also works like that."

“How can you be so sure?”

"These, what we called natural laws, are fundamental to the functioning of everything. If these laws were changed then my body would no longer work. I would be dead. I experienced no break in my conscious experience when everything changed. I am fairly certain that this is my original body and it is still very much alive. Our most advanced devices worked at the very edge of what our technology made possible. Make the smallest change in how things interact or perhaps all that is needed is the addition of magic and the complicated devices that were driven by electricity will fail."

“Were you a scholar?”

“How many years devoted to education would be required to fit your definition of a scholar?”

“Eight”
"In our nation, we start educating our children at five years of age. Many continue till the age of twenty-two. Some pursue a single field even further. I chose one of the more challenging fields of study and finished at twenty-two."

"The perspective and approach of elves are quite different but there is so little time available for humans. Truly you are a scholar. Will many of your people develop as you have?"

"Most of those who might have worked or lived in areas where the survival rate will be near zero. However, I am sure there are others like me out there. I am sure there will even be some who have a better system developing within them than I do. There may be other paths of development from other fields of study. I must ask a favor of you about that."

“You wish for me to remain silent about your growth.”

“Yes. Perhaps more the reason for my growth. I am beginning to wonder how well I will be able to hide it. Did you set this whole conversation and our being on watch together up?”

“I did. The cat people are not the only ones with keen hearing. I will keep your secret in exchange you will teach me the form of logic that you use.”

He creates a small light in the palm of his hand and I use the damp ash as a blackboard. Once he was able to understand the idea of base two for a counting system, logic gates came fairly easy. I had just introduced clocked flip flops and their ability to remember a state when our watch shift ended.

We wake our replacements and I head for bed. For a change, my dreams were quite tame. I expect that is because the resource reserves were so low. The pieces of the puzzle are coming into place but I still do not have much control over the changes I am undergoing.