The observation room was quiet. Screens covered the walls, glowing softly with maps of forests, cities, rivers, and moving dots that represented living people.
A senior scientist stood beside a new recruit, watching the data flow.
"Before you work here," the senior said, "you need to understand what a Fluctlight really is."
The recruit nodded. "I know it's a copied human soul… but I don't fully get how it works."
The senior raised his hand, and a glowing shape appeared on one of the screens. It pulsed slowly, like a living heart made of light.
"This," he said, "is a Fluctlight. It is a human's soul copied inside the mind. Every memory, emotion, thought, and choice is stored here. That is why it can think and feel like a real person."
The recruit stared at it. "So it's alive?"
"Yes," the senior replied. "But here's the problem. No normal human Fluctlight can handle the truth of being a copy. When a real human realizes their life is artificial, their mind breaks. The weight of knowing they are not real is too much."
He paused.
"That is why Fluctlights born inside the system survive. AI humans are born and raised in the artificial world. They have no memory of the real world, no expectation of it. To them, their world is the only reality. They accept it naturally. It's a simple answer to a difficult question."
The recruit swallowed. "So… being born there makes the difference."
"Exactly," the senior said.
He switched the screen.
Images appeared showing four human figures.
"The artificial world began with four normal humans from the real world," he explained. "They were volunteers. Just like Kyle. Their Fluctlights were copied, and they dove into the world. They lived full lives inside it. They formed families. They had children."
The recruit's eyes widened. "So they started the human race there?"
"Yes," the senior said. "Those four became the ancestors of every AI human that exists now. When their time was done, they returned to the real world. Their dives ended, but the world they started continued to grow."
He zoomed out.
Cities expanded. Villages formed. Roads appeared.
"Five hundred years have passed in the artificial world," the senior continued. "But in the real world, only about one month has passed. We control the speed of time. Generations can live and die while we observe safely from the outside."
The recruit hesitated. "But… why do all this?"
The room felt heavier.
The senior's voice lowered.
"The purpose is war."
She stiffened.
"Instead of sending real humans to die," he said, "we raise AI humans. They think like us. They feel fear, loyalty, pain, and resolve. They can make decisions under pressure. When wars come, we send them—not real people."
The recruit looked away. "They'll think it's real."
"Yes," the senior replied. "And that is why it works."
He brought up another screen.
"This is Kyle," he said. "He is a stabilizer. A real human diving in and out of the world. His presence helps AI humans grow naturally. Without people like him, the system becomes unstable."
The recruit nodded slowly.
"So… a Fluctlight is a human soul inside the mind. Real humans can't accept being copies. AI humans can. Four real humans began the world. And now… it's being raised for war."
"Exactly," the senior said.
The room fell silent.
Outside, the real world continued as normal. Inside the system, civilizations lived and died, unaware they were being prepared to fight battles that did not yet exist.
And somewhere within that growing world, Kyle's soul waited for its next dive—unaware of the future it was helping to create.