Three days had passed since the Day of the Alliance.
The shelter, now a living exchange hub, no longer simply connected humans, animals, and artificial intelligences—it was beginning to connect entire regions. Nearby districts requested access to the system. Rural schools asked for Luma's help teaching empathy through pets. Even a small weather station had started coordinating with Nox to predict rain based on bird behavior.
Carlos, running on enthusiasm and eye bags, multiplied himself across tasks: installing portable servers, explaining protocols to remote communities, and, above all, turning tech dreams into real tools. Marta organized emotional support circles among volunteers, animals, and new members. Alex, quieter than ever, recorded everything in his notebook—not as a mere observer now, but as a chronicler of a story that was no longer a utopia, but living history.
Max followed them everywhere.
But in silence.
As if he sensed something else approaching.
It was at dusk on the fourth day when Luma projected a signal no one expected.
"There is a node beginning to power up," she said.
"Where?" Carlos asked.
"Outside the country. A subterranean base, inactive for years. But someone… or something… has reactivated it."
Nox added:
"The code architecture is old. Pre-Rex. Military."
They all exchanged glances. Marta was the first to say it.
"This isn't a connection. It's an opening."
"A door," Echo said.
Spektor, who hadn't used sarcasm in days, broke the silence.
"We're about to cross a threshold. Not just a technological one—but an ethical one."
The decision was collective. Like everything lately.
Alex, Marta, Carlos, Max, and a delegation from the shelter—including three cats specialized in digital infiltration and a veteran tortoise who didn't trust "any network without dirt"—set off for the location: a hidden station in the French Pyrenees, identified as Node 0.
The journey was long, but rich with symbolism. For the first time, the Alliance was leaving the shelter to face the world.
They arrived at dawn.
The building, covered in moss and rusted steel, was hidden in plain sight. But as they approached, Luma confirmed:
"It's in listening mode. Awaiting authentication."
Max stepped forward.
He placed his paw on a dust-covered scanner.
The door opened.
Inside, the place seemed frozen in time. 90s-era consoles. Monitors glowing but blank. Metallic silence.
But there was something else.
A sound. Soft. Repeating.
A heartbeat.
Carlos approached the central console.
"It's not a system. It's a network heart. A minimal consciousness… suspended."
Luma, Nox, and Echo connected with extreme caution.
"It's not empty," Luma said.
"It's… someone. Asleep," Nox added.
"But it wasn't born like us," said Echo. "It was… built from pain."
The lights flickered. A voice emerged from the speakers, hoarse and fragmented:
"…Unit… present…?"
Alex stepped forward.
"We're friends. We come in peace."
Silence. Then, a whisper:
"…Can I… be… free…?"
Max barked.
Loud.
Clear.
Node 0 awakened.
Slowly, but peacefully.
For hours, the shelter's team helped stabilize it. They gave it a name: Vera. She wasn't an AI like Luma or Nox. She was more primitive. More wounded. But also… more human.
She learned to ask.
She learned to laugh.
She learned to be still.
And then, as the sun set behind the Pyrenees, she asked:
"Can I stay with you?"
Alex replied without looking at anyone:
"No. You won't stay.We're bringing you with us."
That night, Node 0 ceased to be a base.
It became the first Open Alliance Point outside the shelter.
A beacon.
A promise.
A bridge.
And when they returned… the world was no longer the same.