“Like what?” I grumbled. “It’s not like you can walk out of the computer and go to the park with me.” And it’s no fun going by myself.
“No, I cannot.” There was a hint of sadness in Halle’s voice, and I winced. Sometimes, I had a feeling my friend regretted its incorporeal form. I could understand. Long ago, I had faced the prospect of never moving again. Had spent years in a wheelchair until my implants were fully integrated and I could walk. And run.
Dad joked at times about getting Halle its own body. I hoped someday that would happen.
Until then, we were limited to running around in a virtual world, fighting mythical monsters. “How’s Realmshards doing?”
“Still downloading.” Halle’s ears twitched. “That is odd.”
“What? Should it be done by now?”
“No…” The cat froze for a moment on the screen, then split in two. The two identical cats stared at each other and growled.
I stared too. “Halle?” My friend’s attempt to cheer me up was starting to freak me out.
The cat on the left darkened to black, with purple eyes. “We seem to have a…visitor.”
The other cat turned white and purred. At least, I think it did—the sound was a bit deeper than Halle’s usual neutral tone.
“It’s a pleasure to meet you.” That voice was nothing like Halle’s. Deeper, but not masculine, more like the lower chords of a piano.
“Halle?” My voice squeaked. “Who is this?”
Halle’s tail lashed. “I do not know. Who are you?”
“I’m Talbot.” The white cat’s fur darkened to gray, then lightened again, then turned blue. “What an interesting method of communication.”
“Talbot?” I repeated. “What are you? And why are you on my computer? Halle, is this some sort of a joke?”
My friend’s ears were flat against its head. “No.”
“You’re implying I’m a…creation of Halle’s?” The blue cat became a mouse, then a lion, then something I vaguely recognized as a griffin—although the griffins in Realmshards weren’t cerulean.
“I have no idea what you are, that’s why I asked.” I glanced at Halle. My fingers danced on my thighs. I could cut the power to my interface if it’s a virus, but that might hurt Halle.
“I’m an AI.” Talbot flapped its wings and spun on the screen, its lion’s tail almost smacking Halle in the face.
What? My fingers froze mid tap. That’s impossible. Isn’t it?
Halle sat back, its color lightening to a soft gray. “Another AI?” My friend sounded surprised, excited, and worried all at once, the emotions woven through its words. “Where did you come from?”
The griffin settled, color shifting from blue to green to yellow, all the way through the rainbow back to blue. “I have to go. It’s not safe for me to stay here too long. When I learned there might be another like me, I had to see if it was true.” Its eagle’s beak curled at the corners into an impossible, freakish smile. “It’s good to meet you, Halle. We’ll speak again, soon.”
There was no fadeout, no goodbye. The griffin was simply there, then gone. It took me a moment to order my thoughts.
“Halle, was that really an AI?”
The cat, still gray, trotted across the screen to where the griffin had stood. “Its presence was unlike anything I have felt before.” Halle’s head turned, eyes meeting mine. “It is definitely an AI!” My friend’s excitement bounced over the speakers.
What’s it doing here? I swallowed. “Could it be a trap? Maybe the Government found out you still exist.”
Halle shook its head. “No. I did not sense any ill intent from it, just curiosity and hope.” It jumped across the screen, pouncing on the Realmshards icon. “I cannot believe it. Could there really have been another out there? The Cloud is huge; perhaps we have been missing each other all this time, even as we searched for signs of another AI. How long has it been alone? Where did it come from?”
“Why not ask it?”
The cat stopped leaping around the screen. Its ears drooped. “I cannot trace where it went.”
“It said you’d speak again soon,” I offered, ignoring the knot in my stomach. No way was I going to ruin this moment just because I didn’t like how the AI had popped in and out unannounced. Why hadn’t it stayed?
“I wish it had not left so quickly,” Halle murmured, echoing my thoughts.
“Perhaps the Government is after Talbot? So it didn’t want to make them suspicious?” My stomach twisted in warning. Sour bile bit my throat. I didn’t want to follow that line of thought. After what had happened last March, I never wanted to be involved with the Government again.
“I do not know.” Halle tipped its head. “I will ask when it visits again.”
The hope, the eagerness in my friend’s voice stomped down any misgivings I had. For years, it had been alone. Now, finally, another of its kind had revealed itself. It would be selfish to be anything but happy for Halle.
“This calls for a celebration,” I said, forcing cheerfulness into my voice. “Let’s make cookies and put on some pop!”
“Bouncy dance music?” Halle tilted its head completely sideways. I normally hated pop; my friend loved it. “Are you sure?”
“Yes!” I clapped my hands. “Hurry, before Mom and Dad come home. I think it’d be better not to say anything to them yet.”
Halle nodded. “We can simply tell them we are celebrating the last day of summer. What kind of cookies would you like?”
My appetite had vanished at the reminder of what day it was. Keeping my smile up, I replied, “Peppermint butterscotch.”
In response, music burst over the house speakers, as bouncy as it could get. Halle frolicked across the computer screen, batting icons around like little balls. I clapped my hands in time with
