2175 C.E.

XX: Minutes to Midnight

The Thoughts of Yong An-Hong: Translated by Alexandra Yuan: Copyright 2205, Centauri University Press: Hanson Harbor, Nova

08/02/2175

As my Interlink remains deactivated, I begin to notice a change in the world around me. As I sit writing idly in the Presidential Palace, I look out the window at Beijing below me, and it is as if the city I knew has changed. Where have the colors gone? The city used to shine like a gallery of the purest gemstones. It was a city that caught light like a spiderweb catches dew. Now it seems tired, rusted, unkept. It's like it hasn't been cared for in months, maybe years. Streaks of white and brown paint the windows; maybe they haven't been cleaned up in years. There are supposed to be custodial staff charged with maintaining this palace; I have wandered the grounds, but I see none, not even custodial drones. I know the Palace pays for them yearly; if they are not brought to fruition, where does the money go?

For decades I have lived on Earth, in China and India, mostly, but always with the Interlink. How much have I not seen? What parts of my life have been shaded by illusion and deception? A dead President, an ancient city worn by disrepair, false money and false faces? Is this the world I have always inhabited? Has the world always been altered and manipulated by my Interlink?

This is the world that I have so vigorously supported and so tirelessly worked to bring to everybody on the planet. I think now I am seeing it for the first time from the outside. I wonder how deep the corruption runs? Was the President complacent in all of this? I can't be sure, and I probably will never know.

Shen Wei-Fun seems to have brought all of this about. Why, I cannot tell. Perhaps for nothing more than personal power. The question that faces me now is what to do about it. It may be that I have already been discovered, and if that is the case, extreme caution will be required. The danger may become too great for me to stay here. But I must stand against Shen's coup. The future of Earth may be at stake.

Personal Communication (Declassified 01/22/2200): From Vice President Yong An-Hong: To Admiral Nobuyuki Ito: 08/02/2175: Translated by Alexandra Yuan

Admiral Ito, please disable your Interlink before reading.

In speaking to the President according to your request, I uncovered a disturbing truth. President Yan An-Sing is dead. He has been dead for several weeks; I cannot say for how long. The person you have spoken to and who you have seen in public is an illusion fabricated by Interlink virtual feed modifications and genetic replicants. I have investigated Gattaca Tech, they have produced genetic decoy clones to fill in for his absences in public. I suspect that a conspiracy engineered in part by Shen Wei-Fun of Ambience Corp. is responsible for this. I have very few allies; however, I trust your discretion in this matter, and hope you will respond in a way that befits an Admiral of the Terran Fleet and a loyal protector of the Terran Hegemony. Please do not tell any but your most trusted friends and colleagues of this.

Yong An-Hong, Vice President of the Terran Hegemony

Text Conversation: From Adrian Aucaman: To Gemma Aucaman: 08/02/2175

Wed. 9:15 PM

Adrian: Mom, you guys need to get down here right away.

Adrian: I've got more or less full control over the ship. We can get out of here at any time.

Gemma: As soon as we can. We're a bit busy though.