ZERO (Complete)

Chapter Forty-Two

Maxim tried to sleep, but was up all night. Rising from his bed, he went to the bathroom to get some water. He opened the window to create a draft and get some fresh air. That's when he noticed the bars on the windows — an odd thing to have for a place that was described as peaceful and having practically no crime.

Maxim looked out the window from his third storey suite and stared down at the sleeping city. In the background the giant wall dominated the skyline. He returned to bed, but his eyes remained open. Something about this place just wasn't sitting right with him. With no electronics, he couldn't tell what time it was, but based on the positioning of the moon, he assumed it was sometime past 1:00 a.m.

As he laid in his single bed, staring up at the ceiling with his eyes wide-open, he heard a whistling sound, which wasn't out of place given their surroundings. They were amongst a dense forest populated with a rich variety of creatures. At first he didn't think anything of it, but then the noise persisted.

Getting up once again, Maxim dragged his feet to the bathroom to close the window. That's when he saw a cloaked figure standing beneath his room in the glow of the moonlight. Their eyes met and Maxim was captivated by what was in his hand. He couldn't quite see what it was, but could definitely hear it. The distinct buzz from the micro drone was nearly inaudible unless one was really listening for it.

Puzzled and intrigued, Maxim watched on as the drone left the man's hand and raised up three storeys and entered through a tiny slit of his bathroom window. Maxim took several steps back, unsure what to expect as he watched the drone land on the cold tiled floor. It lay stationary for a moment and Maxim kept his distance as a precaution. He wanted to look out the window to see if the figure was still standing there, but to do so would require him to step over the drone, which he didn't want to do.

Just then, a light shot out from the tiny device and projected a hologram of the cloaked figure. The man removed his hood and revealed his face. The weathered face of an old man with a grey beard stared at him for a moment before he spoke. Maxim wasn't sure what to make of this whole experience, but watched on with curiosity.

"Hello, my name is Ethan... Ethan Thanos, you may know me as the creator of the Ethos project."

Maxim was dumbfounded, he knew exactly who Ethan Thanos was. The man was a legend and needed no introduction. No one had heard from him in nearly two decades and until this moment, he was presumed dead. Maxim was more than excited to be having a conversation with the man responsible for creating the first fully autonomous artificial intelligence.

"I know exactly who you are," Maxim spoke in a hushed tone. "What are you doing here? Where have you been?"

"I've been around," Ethan said, brushing off the question. "I have a message for you."

"For me?" Maxim said. "How do you know even know who I am?"

"I don't know you personally, but I know many things about you... from your data that is. You are not here by accident."

"I'm assuming you're about to clear up the confusion I'm feeling right now."

"A short while ago, some people you've come into contact with have been taken against their wills and placed on a bus."

"How did you... are you working with The Shadow?"

"The Shadow didn't put those people on the bus... I did."

The look of confusion grew as Maxim couldn't believe what he was hearing.

"You put those people on the bus? Why did you do that?"

"It's a long story, which I'd rather not get into right now."

"No, we have time, tell me everything you know."