Valentina woke without a start, not like someone emerging from a nightmare nor like someone returning abruptly to consciousness, but as if the world had arranged itself first to receive her before she opened her eyes, the air entering her lungs gently, the surface beneath her body supporting her firmly without pressing her, and the immediate sensation of nearby presences that did not need to be seen to be recognized. When her eyelids lifted, the light did not force her to squint, there was no confusion or disorientation, only clarity, and the first thing she saw was Virka leaning toward her, close enough that her presence could not be mistaken for distance, her posture firm, contained, without losing the control that defined each of her gestures even in that moment.

On the other side was Sebastián, equally close, his body steady, without unnecessary movements, his gaze fixed and deep, watching her without overflowing but without looking away at any moment; above her, balanced with precision, Narka in his reduced form held his weight without bothering her, his golden eyes attentive, without blinking or intervening yet, but registering everything. Further back, maintaining the structure of the space without invading the center of the moment, Selena remained seated with her back straight, her posture controlled and her breathing measured, her attention completely directed toward Valentina, and at her side, occupying the space in a different way, with a more relaxed but no less aware presence, Helena was seated with her legs extended, dark glasses covering her gaze, a light blue open-collar shirt that did not seek to impose itself, comfortable but defined pants, a black and gold cane resting at her side as if it were not an accessory but a natural part of her figure, and sandals that did not break the coherence of her appearance. None spoke in that first instant, none needed to.

Valentina did not ask where she was nor did she try to get up abruptly, she showed no disorientation or fear, because what she saw did not feel unfamiliar to her, and before any doubt could form she spoke with a naturalness that did not correspond to someone who had just gone through a process that had put her own soul at risk. —The little rabbit kept its promise—. She did not raise her voice nor seek to dramatize the phrase, she did not present it as something extraordinary, but as a simple statement, evident to her, and that single sentence altered the weight of the environment without breaking it, not provoking an immediate reaction in words, but a shift within those who heard it.

Virka was the first to move, not with lack of control but with precision, leaning toward Valentina to wrap her arms around her in a firm and real embrace, holding her with the right intensity, without crushing or suffocating her, and Valentina responded without hesitation, hugging her with the same confidence, without breaking into tears or trembling, but with the serenity of someone who knows she is in the right place. There was no verbal exchange between them, because the gesture was enough, and in that contact there was no fragility nor trace of the girl who had once feared losing everything, her body did not react like someone who had just been saved, but like someone who was no longer broken.

Without breaking that flow, Valentina separated just enough to turn toward Sebastián, and before her movement was completed, Narka descended from her head with a brief and silent jump, landing on the grass with the stability that characterized him, freeing the space without claiming attention. Valentina approached Sebastián with the same confidence with which she had hugged Virka, without asking permission or measuring the action, leaning against his leg and settling there naturally, her body relaxing without losing coherence or strength, as if that point were a logical extension of herself.

Sebastián did not push her away nor hold her excessively, but his gaze lowered toward her for a moment longer than usual before rising again, registering the weight of that gesture without needing to verbalize it; Virka remained close, without invading but without moving away, her presence firm, protective without becoming possessive; Selena did not intervene, her posture did not change, but her breathing adjusted slightly, a minimal sign that the phrase about the rabbit had not gone unnoticed; Helena, for her part, tilted her head slightly behind her dark glasses, observing without speaking, as if analyzing something that went beyond the simple awakening.

Valentina did not show urgency to explain what she had said nor to answer questions that had not yet been asked, she did not seek to justify her phrase nor to prove anything, she simply remained there, calm and present, her gaze clear, her body healthy, without trace of the instability that had marked her previous state, and within the circle formed by those who surrounded her, the silence was not empty nor uncomfortable, but a shared recognition that something had changed, not only in her, but in the direction that all of them would have to face from that moment on.

Valentina remained leaning on Sebastián’s leg as if that place had always been reserved for her, her breathing calm, her body settled without rigidity, while the silence around was not tension but contained rest, and Sebastián, without altering the balance of the moment, began to stroke her hair with slow and steady movements, his fingers gently running through the mix of dark brown and white that now defined her new appearance without turning it into a topic or a surprise, accepting it as a natural part of who was there. The gesture was not brief nor impulsive, it extended for quite a while, as if that steady rhythm helped to fix the reality of the present.

Finally he spoke in a low and firm tone, without unnecessary dramatism. —We are calm now—, he said without stopping the movement of his hand. —All of us—. His gaze did not move away from the front. —I am not going to ask you anything about the rabbit... nor about how it helped you—. There was no reproach nor forced curiosity in his voice, only a decision made. —But I do have to ask you something—. He made a minimal pause, not theatrical, but reflective. —Do you want to keep studying... or would you prefer to travel with your uncle Narka, with your mom... and with me?—. He did not point to himself when saying it nor mark possession, he simply included his presence as a natural part of the option.

Valentina did not respond immediately. She remained for a moment longer leaning, thinking without exaggerating the gesture, without frowning nor dramatizing the choice, simply evaluating clearly what she wanted, and in the end she lifted her gaze slightly toward him, a clean smile forming on her face, not childish nor exaggerated, but luminous and certain. —I want to keep studying—, she answered without hesitation. —I want to learn more things... meet friends... spend time with you all—. Her eyes shone a little more as she added naturally: —And I also want to be with Óscar. He is now part of the family—. She did not say it with solemnity, but with simple conviction, as if it were something evident.

Virka did not take long to respond, her voice direct and without embellishment, faithful to her nature. —If that is what you desire, so it will be—. She did not add more nor impose conditions, she simply accepted the choice as final. Narka, from the grass where he stood in his reduced form, lifted his head slightly before speaking with his grave and steady tone. —Then that will be the decision—. There was no judgment in his words, only recognition of the chosen balance. Sebastián continued stroking Valentina’s hair while nodding slightly and added with serenity: —Then we will continue studying together—. It did not sound like a solemn promise, but like a natural continuity.

Helena stood up at that moment with an elegance that did not seek to impose itself, leaning on her black and gold cane without depending on it, and walked toward the center of the family circle with measured steps that did not break the intimacy, but neither avoided it. As she stopped in front of them, she spoke with a clear and controlled voice. —In that case, on Wednesday you will resume classes as normal—. It was not a suggestion, but an organized announcement. —Everything is already arranged—.

Selena stood up behind Helena, her posture straight as always, and added firmly: —The logistics are secured. There will be no interruptions—. There was no emotion in her tone, but neither unnecessary coldness, only efficiency.

Helena did not look back when she crossed the threshold of the mansion, not because she ignored what was left behind, but because she had already measured it, understood it, and filed it in the exact place where it should remain; her step did not stop nor accelerate as she descended the steps that connected the garden with the exterior ground, the black and gold cane touching the ground with a constant cadence that did not serve as support, but as rhythm, as if it marked the time of a scene that no longer belonged to the intimate moment they were leaving behind. Selena walked one step behind and slightly to the left, aligned without need of correction, her posture straight, her breathing measured, her gaze fixed forward without dispersion, registering every detail of the environment without turning it into distraction, and when both reached the silver van, the movement that followed was not coordinated by words, but by habit.

Selena opened the driver’s door with a clean gesture, without brusqueness, and settled into the seat with immediate precision, adjusting distance, height and angle of the backrest in a single continuous flow, as if her body already knew the exact configuration before touching it; her hands rested on the steering wheel for a brief instant, enough to establish control, while her right foot found the pedal without probing. Helena, for her part, walked around the front of the vehicle with the same composure with which she had left the mansion, opened the passenger door and sat down without letting her weight fall, placing the cane at her side in a way that did not invade space but neither hid it, as if it were a structural part of the interior, and when she closed the door, the sound was not dry nor violent, but contained and precise.

The engine responded without resistance when Selena turned the key, a low and steady sound, without unnecessary vibration, and without exchanging words or glances, the van began to move, first reversing with millimetric control until aligning with the exit of the ground, and then advancing with a smooth transition toward the main path that connected with the exterior road. The mansion was left behind without farewell, its walls gradually disappearing from the field of view without either of them showing any intention of observing it one last time, and the environment began to transform into a continuous flow of landscape that did not demand emotional attention, only registration.

The merging onto the highway occurred without interruption, as if the traffic recognized the trajectory of the vehicle and adapted to it; Selena adjusted the speed without abrupt movements, integrating into the flow naturally, and it was at that point, when the van stabilized its advance within the lane, that the two vehicles appeared, one moving ahead from the left and the other positioning itself behind, both with a combination of white and black that did not seek to hide nor to stand out, but to establish presence. There were no visible signals of communication, but the formation closed with precision, the distance between the three vehicles remaining constant, as if they shared the same control system.

Helena did not react to the appearance of the escort, she did not turn her head nor modify her posture, she simply rested her arm on the armrest while her cane remained in place, motionless, and her dark glasses hid any movement of her gaze, although her attention was not dispersed; Selena, for her part, registered the formation in a single instant, adjusting only slightly the pressure on the accelerator to synchronize the speed without the need for perceptible changes, maintaining absolute control of the vehicle without invading the dynamics of the convoy.

Time advanced without cuts or jumps in perception, in a continuous progression where the daylight began to lose intensity without disappearing immediately, the sky gradually transforming into a transition of tones that did not mark an exact point, but a slow drift toward dusk. The highway extended as a stable line, the sound of the engine constant, the movement of the other vehicles dissolving into the periphery while the escort remained firm, without altering its position.

When finally the first lights of the city began to appear in the distance, they did not do so as an outburst, but as a progressive accumulation of points organizing into recognizable structures, and the transition from the highway to the urban roads occurred without rupture, with signals changing, the vehicular flow adjusting, and Selena adapting the driving with the same precision with which she had begun the journey. The streets narrowed, the artificial lights took dominance of the environment, and the night finished settling without dramatism, covering the space with a stability that did not alter the control of the scene.

It was at that moment, when the rhythm of the journey stabilized within the city, that Helena broke the silence, her voice emerging without rising nor imposing itself, but clear enough to occupy the necessary space. —Selena... each time that crack in her mind that is Sebastián expands—. It was not a light observation nor a superficial concern, but a measured statement, built from accumulated observation rather than from assumption.

Selena did not need to turn her head nor modify her expression to respond, her eyes remained forward, her hands firm on the wheel, and her voice came out with the same stability she had maintained throughout the entire journey. —Yes—, she said without adding emotional inflection. —It is as you say—. There was a minimal pause, not to think of the answer, but to structure it with precision. —But that does not imply that he is heading toward a point that is not allowed—.

Helena let out a low and brief laugh, not mocking but not neutral either, a reaction that did not break her posture nor alter the position of her body. —That is what a person from society expects—, she responded without hurrying, maintaining the controlled tone. Then, without changing the direction of her face, she added with a slight variation in cadence, barely perceptible but enough to mark a difference. —But as someone who desires your happiness... if that event is what brings it to you, I do not care about the protocols nor the laws of that same society—.

The silence that followed was not uncomfortable nor tense, but a transitional space that Selena did not allow to expand more than necessary. —It is better not to think about that kind of things—, she finally responded, without harshness, but with a firmness that closed the line of thought without the need to confront it. —Especially when we are going to begin the experiments with the remains of the robots—. She did not say it as a distraction, but as a logical redirection toward what she considered a priority.

The van continued its advance through the city streets without altering its speed or its trajectory, the escort vehicles maintaining their position without deviating, and inside the vehicle the dialogue left no visible residue, but it did not disappear either, remaining suspended at a point that did not need to be resolved immediately, like a line drawn that had not yet reached its conclusion, but had already defined its direction.

Helena did not respond immediately to Selena’s words, not because she ignored them nor because she needed time to understand them, but because she had already done so in the same instant in which they were spoken, and in that silent recognition her mind did not seek to refute nor soften the idea, but to reorganize it within a broader structure, where the personal ceased to be a priority in the face of what was necessary. Her previous laugh left no residue in her expression, her lips returned to a neutral line while the cane remained motionless at her side, and behind the dark glasses her attention did not disperse, but descended toward a more concrete point: power, preparation, response.

The city continued moving around her, lights reflecting on the windshield without interfering with Selena’s driving, vehicles crossing in opposite directions without altering the trajectory of the van nor the formation of the escorts, and in that constant flow Helena allowed the previous topic to dissolve without the need to close it, because at that moment it was not what had to be resolved. What mattered was not the crack nor its future direction, but that which was already present, what moved without being seen, taking form at the margins of the known.

—Then... —she finally said, her voice taking the space again without rising—. How powerful are those robots?

The question was not impulsive nor loaded with superficial curiosity, but precise, directed to the point where information could transform into utility, and Selena did not respond immediately, not because of doubt, but because the answer could not be built from the absolute. Her eyes remained forward, her driving did not vary, but her mind went through the available data with ordered speed before issuing a conclusion.

—I cannot make an exact analysis—, she responded clearly, without embellishment—. I did not see them directly.

There was no discomfort in admitting it nor any attempt to fill the gap with assumptions, but the pause that followed was not one of absence, but of transition toward what could be sustained.

—But... —she continued, maintaining a steady tone—, according to the information from Narka, who was the one who faced them...

She did not finish the sentence immediately, not out of dramatism, but because precision required structure.

—At least, those models have a destructive capacity comparable to maximum-level natural disasters—.

There was no change in her expression when saying it, but the way she expressed it did not seek to exaggerate nor minimize, but to place the idea within a comprehensible frame. Helena did not react externally, but her mind did not stop at the word “disaster,” but at what it implied in real terms: impact, scope, irreversibility.

—To put it in more concrete terms—, Selena added without altering the rhythm of her voice—, the level of energy release that they can reach... would be comparable to that of strategic-scale weaponry—.

She did not mention figures nor detail magnitudes, but the image formed with sufficient clarity. Helena did not need numbers to understand it; her mind had already constructed an approximate reference, an equivalence that did not remain in the abstract, but descended toward something tangible: detonations capable of erasing entire structures, shockwaves that did not distinguish between target and environment, enough energy to reconfigure space in an instant.

Helena remained in silence for a few more seconds, not because of emotional impact, but measuring the implication of that scale within the current context, and although the astonishment did not manifest in her posture nor in her voice, it existed, brief and contained, immediately absorbed by her way of thinking. If that was the capacity of those machines, then the threat did not reside only in their existence, but in their possibility of repetition.

—And even so... —she finally said, resuming the line with the same calm—, Narka was able to face them—.

It was not an admiring statement, but a point of analysis, a piece within a larger equation, and she turned her face slightly, enough to mark that her attention was now directed toward Selena, although her glasses hid the exact movement of her eyes.

—Then, how strong is he?— 𝕗𝐫𝐞𝕖𝕨𝐞𝗯𝚗𝕠𝘃𝐞𝚕.𝐜𝗼𝚖

Selena did not respond immediately this time, but not due to lack of an answer, but because what Helena asked could not be resolved within a conventional scale. Her hands did not move from the wheel, her posture did not change, and when she spoke, her answer did not seek to adorn itself.

—Outside the human scale—, she said simply. She did not add a dramatic pause nor seek to reinforce the phrase with unnecessary emphasis. —Up to a point... that cannot be understood from normal parameters—. There was no arrogance nor admiration in her tone, only a direct statement. She did not try to translate it into figures nor comparisons, because she knew that any attempt would only reduce something that did not function under that type of measurement. —What matters—, she added after a moment—, is that he is on our side—.

Helena let out a slight nod, almost imperceptible, enough to close the line of analysis without extending it more than necessary. —Yes—, she responded—. It is the best—. There were no more words on the subject, not because it was exhausted, but because it had reached the exact point where continuing to delve deeper did not add immediate value. Helena’s mind had already reconfigured her priorities, shifting any personal reflection to a secondary plane, and in its place the direction was clear: preparation, adaptation, increase of capacity.

The city continued unfolding in front of them, but no longer as a simple transit environment, but as a more defined structure, where the lights did not only illuminate, but delimited spaces of control, zones where the flow became more regulated and intentional. The escort vehicles did not break their formation at any moment, and when the van turned toward a wider avenue, the environment began to change more evidently.

The buildings ceased to be simple urban structures to become broader constructions and cleaner in their design, where glass dominated the surfaces, reflecting the city’s light as if they did not fully belong to it. They were not dense skyscrapers nor saturated blocks, but open spaces, with measured separation, as if each building claimed its own territory without imposing itself over the others.

Selena slightly reduced the speed, not out of indecision, but out of adjustment, aligning the van with a specific entrance that was not visibly marked for anyone who did not know where to look, and the escort vehicles reorganized without the need for visible communication, one moving ahead to open the way, the other closing the rear.

In front of them, a glass structure rose with a contained presence, without excessive height but with an architectural clarity that left no doubt about its function: it was not a place of transit, but of restricted access. The doors were not open, but neither were they closed in appearance, as if they responded to something more than a visible mechanism.

The van did not stop before reaching them.

The access opened at the exact moment the vehicle reached the necessary distance, the glass panels moving with a silent and precise motion, without delay, and Selena did not reduce the speed more than necessary, maintaining control while the van crossed the threshold. The escort vehicles followed behind without breaking formation, and at the instant when the three were inside, the doors closed with the same precision with which they had opened, isolating the interior from the rest of the city without generating noise nor announcing it.

Inside, the movement continued, but the environment was no longer the same, and in that change, without the need for words, both knew that the next step would no longer be preparation, but execution.

The interior did not present itself as a simple continuation of the exterior, but as a controlled transition toward a space where each element had been designed to fulfill a specific function, without excess or decoration that would distract from its purpose. The van and the two escort vehicles advanced a few more meters after crossing the threshold before stopping on a metallic platform integrated into the floor, its surface without visible joints, as if it had been molded in a single piece to avoid any irregularity that could interfere with its operation.

The movement stopped simultaneously in the three vehicles, not by coincidence, but by implicit synchronization, and for an instant the space remained in silence, a technical and contained silence, where nothing was inactive even though nothing moved. Then, without prior audible warning, a series of lines of light began to travel across the surface of the platform from the edges toward the center, moving with geometric precision, tracing patterns that did not seek to be visually understood, but to be executed with exactness.

The beams were not intense nor invasive, but they passed through the vehicles without encountering resistance, moving from the base to the upper part in an ordered sequence that left no area unregistered. There were no interferences nor repetition of the process, and when the last line of light faded, the system did not emit any mechanical sound that indicated transition, only a brief pause that was not waiting, but verification.

Then the voice manifested. It did not come from a specific point, it had no direction nor volume that stood out over the environment, but it was completely clear and defined, without human nuances that suggested emotion.

—Personnel confirmation—.

The pause that followed was minimal, enough to validate what had already been processed.

—Proceeding to descent to development and research level—.

There was no echo nor repetition, and at the instant the last word dissolved into the space, the platform responded.

The descent was not abrupt nor perceptible at first, there was no vibration nor sound that announced the movement, only a slight modification in pressure that, for any untrained observer, could have gone unnoticed. However, the environment began to transform slowly, the walls of the upper level rising in the field of view as the platform descended with absolute stability.

The trajectory was not short. The meters that separated the surface from the lower level were not compressed into a rapid fall, but into a sustained descent, where the depth revealed itself progressively, as if the place did not seek to hide its extension, but to establish it clearly. The light changed during that process, passing from the exterior illumination filtered through the glass to a more controlled and uniform internal system, where each source was positioned to eliminate unnecessary shadows without generating excess brightness.

When the platform finally stopped, the environment that was revealed had nothing improvised about it. The underground space extended widely, its surfaces covered by metallic materials of opaque tones, deep grays and darker variations that absorbed light instead of reflecting it, giving the place a sense of solidity that did not depend on visible thickness, but on composition. There were no ornamental structures nor elements that sought to impose themselves visually; everything was aligned with a logic of resistance, containment, and functionality.

The walls presented no cracks nor visible joints, the corners were softened to avoid unnecessary accumulations, and the lighting system did not hang nor protrude, it was integrated into the surfaces, projecting a stable white light, without flickers nor variations that could alter the perception of the space.

It was at that moment, barely seconds after the descent was completed, that human movement began to integrate into the scene. Doors that were not marked as such opened in a synchronized manner at different points of the perimeter, and from them the personnel emerged, not in disorder nor crowding, but in organized flows, each group with a clear function from the first step they took. They wore clean laboratory coats, without unnecessary folds, and over them, in some cases, white coveralls fitted to the body that did not limit movement, but optimized it.

There were no loud orders nor visible coordination, but each individual knew exactly where to go. Some approached directly to the van, others to the escort vehicles, and the extraction process began without delay. The hatches were opened with tools that did not generate excessive noise, the mechanisms released without resistance, and the remains of the robots began to be removed piece by piece, not as objects without value, but as material that had to be preserved in its current state for subsequent analysis.

There was no haste, but neither slowness.

Each movement was measured, each action executed with precision, and at no moment was the workflow interrupted by doubts or visible corrections. The larger pieces were secured first, stabilized before being moved, while the smaller fragments were collected with equal attention, avoiding any loss of information that might be contained in them.

The escort vehicles were subjected to a parallel review, non-invasive but exhaustive, ensuring that they did not transport anything that had not been foreseen, and when that process concluded, the space stabilized again, not in absolute silence, but in a controlled activity that did not need to rise to be effective.

Inside the van, Helena did not move immediately. She observed without fully turning her body, registering every detail not from curiosity, but from evaluation, measuring not only what was being done, but how it was being done, and when she considered that there was no additional information to obtain from that position, she opened the door with the same control with which she had entered.

Her feet touched the metallic surface without producing unnecessary sound, the cane descending beside her in a continuous movement that did not seek support, but continuity, and Selena exited from her side almost at the same time, closing the door behind her without brusqueness, her gaze briefly moving across the environment before fixing on the point toward which they had to head.

There was no exchange of words between them. It was not necessary. Both began to advance toward the interior of the installation without stopping, their steps aligned with the rhythm of the place, integrating into its functioning without interfering with it, while behind them the extraction process continued, constant and precise, without deviating from its objective.

And in that movement, what they had brought with them ceased to be a recent event to become material for study.

_____________________________________________

END OF Chapter 89

The path continues...

New Chapters are revealed every

Sunday, and also between Wednesday or Thursday,

when the will of the tale so decides.

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