Internal Monologue Of Something From The Very Large WorldApproximately Nine Hours Before It Arrived In SeoulAnd Four Hours After It Woke Up For The First Time In Approximately Forty Thousand Years
I woke up.
I have been asleep.
For a very long time.
I do not know exactly how long.
Long enough that the world above me has changed considerably.
The last time I was awake the land above me was flat.
There are now very large structures on it.
This is unexpected.
But not concerning.
I have been awake for four hours.
In the first hour I assessed my immediate environment.
Large world.
Very large.
I am approximately in the northeastern section of a landmass of significant size.
The ocean is to my east.
Other landmasses further.
In the second hour I felt it.
The energy.
Clean energy.
Moving through the deep channels.
I have felt this energy before.
A very long time ago.
Before I went to sleep.
The channels were full of clean energy when I was last awake.
Then they were not.
Then I slept.
Now they are again.
Someone cleaned them.
I want to find who cleaned them.
This is not aggressive intent.
This is the specific interest of something that has been asleep for forty thousand years and has woken up to find that the thing that was wrong has been corrected.
I want to say thank you.
I am moving toward the source of the clean energy.
The source is to my west.
In a city.
The city is very dense.
There are many small beings in it.
They appear to be alarmed by my approach.
I understand.
I am three kilometers across.
Approaching a city.
This looks threatening.
It is not threatening.
I am just very large.
And I want to say thank you.
The communication problem is significant.
I do not have a small form.
I have the form I have.
Which is three kilometers across.
I am trying to move slowly.
Forty kilometers per hour is slow for something my size.
Perhaps I should have sent a message.
I do not know how to send a message.
I have been asleep for forty thousand years.
The message formats may have changed.
There is a smaller energy coming toward me from the city.
Very small.
Extremely small.
The size of one of the small beings.
But the energy.
The energy is the source.
The clean energy that woke me up.
That specific quality.
That impossible cleanliness.
Is coming toward me.
From that very small being.
The very small being is on a road.
Carrying a bag.
Moving at—
Extremely slow speed.
Walking pace.
The source of the clean energy that woke me up after forty thousand years of sleep.
Is walking toward me.
At walking pace.
With a bag.
I have been awake for four hours.
I was not prepared for this.
Meanwhile in Seoul at nine AM.
The S-Ranks had assembled at the eastern perimeter of the city.
All seven of them.
Plus the old man.
Plus Wei Junhao.
Plus Hwang Chulsoo.
Plus Aria with the sword.
Plus General Ashmark who had been at breakfast at Yoo Chae-Won's apartment when the alert came and had come because twenty two years of military habit meant you go to the crisis even when the crisis is not your crisis.
Plus Jin Tae-Yang who had brought enough food for everyone.
They were standing at the designated monitoring point on the eastern highway interchange looking at the horizon where the very large entity was a visible presence in the distance.
It was large enough to see from a hundred kilometers away.
The sky to the east had a quality to it.
Not dark.
Not threatening.
Just occupied.
The way a sky looks when something very large is in it.
"How big is three kilometers," said Wei Junhao.
"The Dragon Vein clearing radius was three kilometers in the early stages," said the old man.
"That big," said Wei Junhao.
"Yes."
Wei Junhao looked at the eastern sky.
"And it is moving toward Seoul."
"Yes."
"Because Han-Ho cleaned the Dragon Veins."
"Yes."
Wei Junhao looked at the old man.
"Master," said Wei Junhao. "Should I be concerned."
"I am not concerned," said the old man.
"Why not."
"Because," said the old man. "I felt this energy when I arrived on Earth. Very faintly. Through the Dragon Vein network. And I recognized the quality of it." He looked at the eastern horizon. "It is not hostile."
"It is three kilometers across," said Wei Junhao.
"Yes."
"Moving toward a city."
"Yes."
"At forty kilometers per hour."
"Yes."
"That is the definition of threatening," said Wei Junhao.
"In the martial world yes," said the old man. "Size and speed indicate threat. But this energy—" He paused. "Is curious. Not aggressive. Curious in the specific way of something very old that has just woken up and wants to understand what changed."
Min-Seo was on his phone.
"Han-Ho is at drain eleven," said Min-Seo.
"DRAIN ELEVEN," said Baek Sung-Il.
"He is finishing the northern section," said Min-Seo.
"The entity is a hundred kilometers away and closing," said Baek Sung-Il.
"I know," said Min-Seo.
"And he is at drain eleven."
"He said the route takes four hours. The entity arrives in—" Min-Seo checked the tracker. "Five hours and twenty minutes. He has time."
"MIN-SEO."
"He said the drains do not clean themselves," said Min-Seo. "I am quoting."
Baek Sung-Il looked at the eastern horizon.
At the occupied sky.
At his hands.
"I destroyed a dam," said Baek Sung-Il.
"We know," said Min-Seo.
"If that thing—"
"It is not going to," said the old man.
"How do you know," said Baek Sung-Il.
"Because Han-Ho is walking toward it," said the old man. "And Han-Ho is never wrong about whether something needs cleaning or talking to."
Everyone looked at the old man.
The old man watched the eastern horizon.
"He is walking toward it," said Oh Kyung-Soo.
"He finished drain eleven," said Min-Seo, checking his phone. "He is now doing the standard transit between northern and southern sections." He paused. "His transit route goes east."
"East," said Yoo Chae-Won.
"East of the standard route," said Min-Seo. "The eastern section runs adjacent to the city perimeter. He added it to the route three weeks ago for ley line seepage monitoring."
"The eastern section runs toward the entity," said Song Mi-Rae.
"Yes," said Min-Seo.
"So he is going to walk directly toward a three kilometer entity," said Song Mi-Rae.
"Yes," said Min-Seo. "While doing the route."
Everyone was quiet.
"Should we stop him," said Yoo Chae-Won.
"Can you stop him," said Oh Kyung-Soo.
A long pause.
"No," said Yoo Chae-Won.
"No," said everyone else simultaneously.
"Then we follow," said Min-Seo.
Jin Tae-Yang packed the food.
They followed.
Han-Ho was at drain fourteen of the eastern section at eleven forty seven AM.
The entity was forty kilometers east.
Visible.
Not as an occupied sky anymore.
As a presence.
Something that had a shape without being defined. The way clouds have shapes without deciding to. A natural massive form moving with the patient inevitability of something that has existed for forty thousand years and is not in a hurry.
Han-Ho cleaned drain fourteen.
Made a note.
Looked east.
Made another note.
Entity: forty kilometers. Approach continues. Energy signature readable from this distance. Reading: not hostile. Curious. Very old. Very large. The energy quality is— He paused. Made notes. The energy quality is clean. Not contaminated. This entity does not carry the ley line contamination from its world. It is made of clean energy. Very old clean energy. Like Cheongi but from a larger, older world.
He filed it.
Looked at the entity.
Looked at drain fifteen.
Cleaned drain fifteen.
The entity was thirty eight kilometers away by the time he finished.
The S-Ranks were approximately fifty meters behind him.
All nine of them.
Plus the old man.
Plus Wei Junhao.
Plus Hwang Chulsoo.
Plus Aria with the sword glowing steadily.
Plus General Ashmark.
Watching Han-Ho clean drain fifteen.
"He is cleaning drain fifteen," said Baek Sung-Il.
"Yes," said Min-Seo.
"Drain fifteen."
"Yes."
"With a thirty eight kilometer ancient entity approaching."
"Yes."
"Cleaning drain fifteen."
"I know," said Min-Seo.
"I destroyed a dam," said Baek Sung-Il.
"I know," said Min-Seo.
"FOUR BUILDINGS," said Jin Tae-Yang.
"WE KNOW," said everyone.
Han-Ho stood up from drain fifteen.
Looked at his notebook.
Made a note.
Drain fifteen: Class C accumulation. Addressed. Note: entity energy is affecting the drain accumulation quality in the eastern section. The approach of a large clean energy source is reducing ambient contamination accumulation in adjacent drains. Drain fifteen had less accumulation than last week despite increased ley line seepage in the area. Correlation with entity approach. Filing.
He filed it.
Looked east.
Walked forward.
Not toward the drain sixteen.
East.
Toward the entity.
"He is walking toward it," said Wei Junhao.
"Yes," said the old man.
"Just walking."
"Yes."
"Toward the three kilometer entity."
"Yes Wei Junhao."
"With his bag."
"Yes."
"And the notebook."
"He always has the notebook," said the old man.
"And Moru and Kjor and River."
"Yes."
"And the ley line sprite."
"Yes."
"Master," said Wei Junhao.
"Yes."
"Should I be doing something."
"No," said the old man.
"The entity is thirty seven kilometers—"
"Wei Junhao."
"Yes Master."
"Watch," said the old man.
Wei Junhao watched.