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• December 12th, 1992, Antarctica.

Eva Fabre loved watching the night sky.

She couldn’t see the stars in Paris, but Antarctica had no light pollution to hide them. Auroras danced in the heavens, while the Milky Way shone brightly above her head. The night seemed alive and full of wonders, the darkness of space overwhelmed by islands of light.

Was there ever a more beautiful sight?

Eva had wanted to become an astronaut when she was a child. But being born in the wrong place at the wrong time, her chances had been dim from the start. Instead, she became a geneticist, and eventually rose through the ranks to become the head scientist of Station Orpheon. Instead of landing on the moon, she led a large team in studying dangerous plagues.

The French government had chosen Antarctica as the site’s location for a few reasons. Mostly, it was meant to avoid dangerous containment breaches, but also to study ancient viruses frozen beneath the ice. Some of them could devastate the Earth if unleashed, and Eva’s superior wanted to keep an edge in the field of bioweapons. The USSR’s collapse left the future uncertain.

Some would have resented working on weapons of mass destruction, but Eva slept soundly at night. International relationships were based on force, and strength derived from technological superiority. For her country to survive, it needed to stay ahead of the competition by any means necessary. Maybe her work would kill millions one day, maybe not. Though she would rather see nukes stay in their silos, they would come in handy if doomsday ever came.

Eva was paid to do a dirty job, but it was a necessary one.

Standing near her special 4x4, Eva sensed the cold creeping into her suit. Though she wore heavy clothing, including a parka, goggles, mittens, and a balaclava, Antarctica was Earth’s harshest environment. No one was truly safe from it, and she was kilometers away from the station, surrounded only by ice.

But Eva didn’t care. The night sky’s sight warmed her already.

She knew aliens existed above. The samples she found in Antarctica had all but convinced her that life came from space, in the form of primordial viruses and bacteria. What kind of strange and wonderful creature inhabited the stars above her head?

She hoped to live long enough to find out.

“Pierre to Eva?” Her assistant called her through the intercom. “Pierre to Eva?”

“I’m here,” she replied. “Just stargazing.”

“Oh, good, I was getting worried.”

Of course he was. Pierre was anxious by nature, and he always advised Eva not to go out alone. Truth be told, the scientist enjoyed these quiet moments of solitude she couldn’t find in the communal station. Eva didn’t particularly feel close to anyone, and didn’t want to. Her work was her life.

“You should go back though,” Pierre said. “We’re picking up abnormal electromagnetic activity in your area.”

“Probably the auroras,” Eva replied absentmindedly. Now that she said that, their colors seemed to change from green to a light shade of violet. “I’ll be back soon.”

“Sorry I did…” Pierre’s voice turned into a radio static. “Eva…”

“Pierre?” Eva called out, her communicator starting to bug out. “Pierre, can you hear me?”

No answer but a static.

“Pierre?” Eva asked again, only to squint through her goggles. The auroras above her head had grown brighter, streaks of purple light illuminating the frozen wasteland. The static turned into a droning sound, almost ear-piercing. “Pierre?”

Another voice answered, but with a bestial roar rather than a word.

The ground shook beneath Eva’s feet, small rifts and cracks forming into the ice. The heavens brightened further, until the night turned into a purple day.

Realizing something was wrong, Eva immediately jumped back inside her vehicle and smashed the accelerator. The strong, reinforced wheels dashed on the snow, while the scientist immediately drove back towards Station Orpheon.

“Pierre? Pierre?” Eva kept calling through the intercom, but all she heard were strange, incomprehensible sounds. “Pierre, are you seeing this?”

Two violet auroras had split the skies in half. Space itself was being ripped apart, like the lids of a giant eye opening. A black spot widening in a sea of purple light, a black hole growing from the heart of a phantom star.

Though a part of her was desperate to get away, Eva ended up peeking through her window to get a better look. Her curiosity overwhelmed her survival instinct.

The black spot had grown to gigantic size, giving the scientist a direct window to look through. Only then did she realize that she was looking at a gate into the very fabric of space-time.

A colossal, black structure with metal wings crossed the void of space, carried by reactors leaving a crimson streak of light in their wake. The immense machine was as large as a human city, smashing through asteroids like a tank through pebbles.

A swarm of small red, spearlike machines harassed the giant vessel, violently ramming into its hull like daggers. The giant black machine retaliated with confusing flashes of blue light and red lasers. Orange energy coated the hull at some points, the red vessels shattered when they tried to pierce these areas.

Starships. These were starships.

A battle, Eva thought, both awed and horrified by the sight. They’re fighting.

Aliens existed, and they were at war.

The giant ship’s hull faced down, towards Eva and Antarctica. By now, most of the red swarm had either been destroyed, or successfully pierced the hull. The rest backed away, as the black starship started crossing the portal and moved ever closer to Eva.

It was about to crash.

“No, no, no!” Eva drove faster than ever before, the car’s engine steaming. Yet though the starship’s fall was slow, it was inevitable. The ground shook beneath her wheels as the kilometer-long cruiser’s bow impacted Antarctica not so far from her location. The earthquake caused her car’s alarm to blare like a dying screech of agony.

“Holy—”

Eva never finished her sentence, as a bright purple flash swallowed her whole, followed by a tide of snow. Ice shards were blown in all directions, cracking her reinforced windshield and tussling the vehicle to the side. Her head smashed against the airbag as her car rolled a dozen times, and the darkness swallowed her.

When Eva regained consciousness, her car had been turned upside down, the roof on the snow, the wheels pointing up. The scientist’s vision blurred as her hand reached for the door, and it took her a few minutes to crawl out of her vehicle’s husk. Snow had piled up around it, forcing Eva to dig her way out with her bare mittens. A few drops of frozen water slipped inside her suit, making her wince.

When the scientist managed to stand up outside her vehicle, she wondered if the stars had vanished in the skies. It took her a moment to understand the truth.

An enormous dome overshadowed her.

The starship had crashed into Antarctica’s surface, most of it now buried beneath the snow tide raised by the impact. Its sleek metal surface was as black as a starless night, and eye-like windows seemed to observe her.

Eva gathered her breath. Though she didn’t believe in any God, she had to admit her survival was nothing short of miraculous. If she had chosen another spot to stargaze, the ship would have crushed her 4x4.

After quickly checking if she had any wounds, Eva immediately attempted to contact her base. “Pierre? Pierre, can you hear me?”

No reception. Eva carefully stepped out of the ship’s shadow to look at the skies, and to her shock, the stars were gone. Darkness ruled absolute, besides a few violet lightning bolts. The strange meteorological phenomenon probably interfered with communications.

Eva tried to dig up her car, but quickly realized it was hopeless. The successive shocks had ruined the engine, and she had no idea how to repair it. The emergency radio didn’t work either, so there was no way to contact her base.

She had emergency rations left in the trunk though, alongside the flashlight, a portable heater, shovels, and other basic tools. She could hold out a few days in the hope of being rescued. There was no way her fellow scientists would miss the crash.

Still, doubt gnawed at her each time she looked up. Eva took the flashlight, checked the battery, and toured the crash site.

It took her hours.

The ship’s size defied comprehension, and more than half of it was now buried under tons of ice. She remembered seeing wings and reactors during its fall, but only the dome and upper decks remained above ground. Nobody came out to intercept her either.

The scientist eventually found an entrance of some sort, namely advanced blast doors on the alien ship’s right side. A cursory analysis informed her that they were made of strange, orange metals she couldn’t recognize. The crash had breached the gates, leaving a crack large enough for Eva to slip in with some effort.

She almost tried her luck, before deciding it was too dangerous to go alone. She needed to call Station Orpheon, her team, the military. They had to know. Everybody had to know.

Aliens existed.

This… this changed everything.

This was the greatest event in mankind’s history since the discovery of fire! This would… this would alter the fate of the world forever! Eva would live long enough to see mankind make first contact with a highly advanced civilization, one clearly capable of interstellar travel!

National rivalries now looked insignificant in the face of such an event. Mankind was only one intelligent species across the stars, and internal divisions no longer mattered. If the aliens willingly shared their technology, then nobody would fight over resources anymore.

Maybe… maybe this discovery would foster universal peace? The creation of a unified human government that wouldn’t need biological weapons? For a moment, Eva found herself dreaming of a world that wouldn’t need her anymore.

But then, she remembered the crash.

This was an advanced civilization’s starship, true, but it was at war. The scientist had no idea how the extraterrestrial survivors, if any, would react to her presence.

Eva decided to leave on foot, to return to Station Orpheon, or at least find a place with better communication. Once she left the strange meteorological phenomenon’s range, she could reorient herself with the stars. Her flashlight was adapted to Antarctica’s frost, but she didn’t have limitless energy either.

The scientist traveled two hours in one direction, only to find herself facing the dome.

She walked left and right, north and south. Each time she returned to her starting point. She always went back to the starship.

In the end, Eva had to accept the outlandish truth. Somehow space had folded on itself, creating an endless loop. Either the outside world had been closed to her, perhaps as a defensive measure by the ship… or Earth stopped existing outright. No wonder she couldn’t get a good reception. Unfortunately, this completely dashed her hopes of a quick rescue.

There was only one place to go.

Gathering her breath, Eva approached the blast doors and examined the crack. When the scientist pointed her light through the rift, she couldn’t see much. But there was enough space for her to slip inside, with some effort.

“Is there someone there?” Eva called out through the hole. “Hello? Anyone?”

No answer. Even the strange gnarls that she heard before the crash had fallen silent.

Eva mustered her courage, put her hands into the crack, and slowly squeezed through, flashlight first.

When she managed to slip to the other side, Eva found herself in what must have been the ship’s airlock. The next set of doors had been ominously torn apart, while icy dust floated in the room. The flashlight revealed strange stains of green slime on the walls, which Eva was careful not to touch. Maybe it was a biological weapon of some sort, or toxic fuel.

At least she could breathe. Either the aliens needed oxygen to live, or the outside atmosphere had slipped inside the vessel. The inside of the ship was cold, but nowhere near so as the Antarctic wasteland.

The scientist walked through the next row of doors, and entered a network of enormous metal corridors. Red crystals embedded in the ceiling provided light, but half of them had shattered. Sometimes, Eva walked more than twenty minutes in one direction with only her flashlight for comfort. Her steps echoed in the cavernous structure, making her nervous.

The ceiling was huge, eight meters tall at least. The walls were from the same black metal as the rest of the ship, so sleek that Eva couldn’t find any trace of welding. Occasionally she faced strange featureless doors, each with a different color pattern. Blue, red, orange…

The gates came into pairs, with a colossal door surrounded by two smaller, human-sized ones. Clearly, the ship had been designed to house creatures of various sizes. But Eva didn’t find any biometric lock or computer system. Her attempts to open the gates barehanded yielded no result.

“Hello?” Eva’s voice resonated in the empty vessel, but only an echo answered. “Is someone there?”

What happened in this place? She didn’t have to wait for long to find out. After a long, solitary walk, Eva finally found doors left open.

Or rather, blasted open.

The first room she entered was some kind of docking bay, or so Eva assumed. The hangar was as vast as an airport, and housed a dozen vehicles as big as commercial airliners. The devices reminded Eva of stealth bombers and flying wings, flat triangles with advanced reactors to carry them. All of them showed signs of damage, and carried a strange symbol engraved on their hull; a mark that reminded Eva of a strange fusion between an alien ‘M’ letter and a Greek Omega symbol.

And the smell… a foul stench filled the air, making her nauseous.

“Is someone here?” Eva asked, using her flashlight to search her surroundings. Very few of the red crystals remained active, so she could hardly see anything. “Is some—”

Then, she cast light on an animal’s corpse.

The scientist took a step back in surprise and covered her mouth to suppress a scream. Her flashlight wavered, revealing another, gargantuan shape in the darkness. Entrails and weird organs had spilled out of its gut. Her breathing shortening, the frightened Eva waved her flashlight at the ground to get a better look.

Corpses.

Corpses everywhere.

To her horror, Eva had walked into an open grave.

Aliens had killed each other by the dozens, maybe by the hundreds. All of them wore a strange kind of futuristic armor, combining orange metal plates with circuits of various colors, a visored helmet, and various organic weapons embedded in the arms. But they all came in different sizes and shapes. Some were reptilian humanoids a bit taller than humans, others horned, scaled monsters taller than elephants.

Facing them were piles of scrapped red metal and broken robots. The machines had legs and arms like humanoids, but sharp claws, cannons on the chest, and a single blue crystal eye where the head should have been.

“Fuck…” Eva panted as she examined the corpses. The aliens all had the ‘M’-like symbol engraved on their armor. She found the same mark on some of the robots, but crossed out or savaged. From the way they were positioned, both groups seemed to have fought each other to the last creature standing.

Eva then examined the hangar’s walls, and found the ramming ships piercing through them. Their tips had opened to reveal hatches full of robots, most of them blown to pieces.

It didn’t take long for Eva to figure out what happened. The robots had boarded the larger ship by ramming their smaller vessels into its outer shielding. The inhabitants had put up a fierce resistance, but were overwhelmed through sheer numbers, allowing the attackers to enter the corridors and spread through the ship.

And since the robots wore the same flag as their enemies, but crossed… This looked like a civil war of some kind.

“I…” Eva gathered her breath, trying to calm down. What kind of nightmare had she stepped into? Was… was there even a survivor left?

The scientist examined the corpse, in case one of them was… she didn’t know herself. Playing dead? Only wounded? Her hopes were quickly dashed. The winning side had mercilessly finished off the wounded before moving on.

However, when Eva made her way across the hanger, she noticed a creature unlike the others. It wore futuristic, orange armor like some of the others, but the body shape... two legs, two arms, broad shoulders, five-fingered hands… the way it was crouched next to a blasted door...

Eva carefully approached the corpse, studying it with her flashlight. Golden circuits linked the modular parts of the armor together, while thick green blood flowed from a large hole in the chest. The scientist could see hints of a dead heart with wires for arteries, and lungs of metal. The armor had been surgically grafted to the skin, alongside cannons on the shoulders and the arms. A golden helmet covered the head. Eva peeked into the green, ‘V’-like visor, and looked into the two white eyes beyond.

A shiver went down Eva’s spine.

It…

It was a human’s face.

The lower jaw had been replaced with cybernetics, but the eyes and the nose… there was no mistaking it.

Shaken, Eva continued her journey into the ship’s bowels, walking among the dead. By the time she exited the hangar for the rooms beyond, she could hardly take a step without nearly slipping on severed arms, headless corpses, and savaged remains.

Somehow, that was the least disturbing part.

She walked into some kind of lab, where countless specimens floated inside heart-shaped, techno-organic machinery. Cable-veins pumped the containers with green liquid, while maintaining the inhabitants in stasis. Transparent scales allowed Eva to peek at the creatures inside.

Some had been humans once, only to be gutted open, their organs replaced with cybernetic implants. Most however belonged to scaled creatures of various sizes. One was an embryo the size of a dog, another a reptilian humanoid with two eyes. The next container held a larger, leaner variant with four eyes and elongated arms, and the one afterward a spiked, armored monster with five ocular organs. The more eyes the creatures had, the bigger they were, the largest being a colossal cyborg more than eight meters tall.

One exception stuck out from the lot, however.

A blue alien ooze swirled inside a container. When Eva put a hand on the alien glass separating them, the slime manifested tentacles and bumped at its prison’s wall. “At least you’re alive,” Eva whispered. “Whatever you are.”

A bellowing noise echoed to her left.

Eva immediately pivoted on herself, pointing her flashlight in a dark corner of the lab.

An alien a little taller than she was crawled in the darkness, its orange armor drenched in green blood. Its left arm was a cannon, the right a bloody, broken stump. An armored lizard tail wavered behind him, while three eyes pleaded at Eva through a cracked visor. The alien let out a pitiful, painful hiss, covering a hole in its chest with its stump. The legs had holes too.

“You’re… you’re alive?” Eva you idiot, of course it was alive! “Can you understand me?”

The creature appraised Eva carefully, before answering with a sad sound. It then glanced at its wounds, and hissed again.

It couldn’t understand Eva, but it was intelligent enough to establish communication. And it didn’t seem hostile. Just desperate.

Though Eva wasn’t a compassionate woman by nature, she couldn’t ignore an animal in pain, especially a sapient one.

“I… I’m sorry, I’m not sure I can help.” Eva carefully approached the creature, to better examine the wounds. “I… I have bandages in my car, but I will need to go back—”

Though the alien’s expression was nothing human, Eva noticed a change in its eyes. Something cold, and cruel. A glint that instantly put her on edge.

Only Eva’s reflexes saved her life, as she dived to her right. The monster raised its cannon as fast as a gunslinger and opened fire, a crimson laser barely missing the scientist. The blast vaporized some of her parka’s hair, and shattered a container behind her.

Eva was too shocked to react, as the monster pointed its cannon at her head again. Instead of unleashing a laser, the weapon let out a click, then another.

No more ammo.

Eva’s relief didn’t last long, as the creature let out an angry roar and started crawling towards her. The scientist quickly rose back to her feet and stepped back, horrified. The creature might suffer from terrible wounds, its three eyes glared at the human with hateful malevolence.

“Get away!” Eva snarled, before kicking the alien in its wound. Unable to support its weight on the stump, the monster collapsed visor first, letting out a hiss of pain. More blood flowed out of its wounds, and it soon stopped moving entirely.

It… it tricked me, Eva thought. It tried to lower my guard and kill me. It was dying, and it still tried to kill me.

The realization shook Eva to her core. She had always thought alien civilizations advanced enough for interstellar travel would have moved beyond basic urges. That they would be wise and peaceful.

She had been wrong.

Every ecosystem had its predators, and she had just survived one.

Only then did she remember that the alien had blown up a container.

Eva looked over her shoulder, only to watch a tide of blue slime fall on her.

She tried to scream, but the goo filled her throat first. It swallowed her whole, head first, filling her ears, fusing with her skin, entering her bloodstream. It filled her cells and her marrow, overloaded her nerves with blue light, and stuffed her brain with knowledge. She tried to claw her eyes out as she felt it move behind them, but her hands split in half before she could.

Her whole body, her entire existence, divided like a cell. She remembered kissing an old boyfriend and a girl she had never met, filling out a doctorate in genetics and another in quantum physics, watching night and sky. She was Eva Fabre, and she was someone else. She split again, and again, one woman becoming two then four then more. Her mind splintered as reality fractured around her.

It was a rapturous experience. A fusion between two entities making a whole greater than the sum of its parts, only for it to shatter and create new life.

When the ooze had finally vanished and Eva could see again, she was no longer alone.

It was like staring at a mirror, at many mirrors. Ten other Eva Fabre looked back at the original. Some carried a flashlight, others guns. A few had dyed hair, or tiny scars, or blue parkas rather than a red one.

“Who are you?” Eva asked. Her own lack of emotion surprised her. By this point, facing copies of herself wasn’t even shocking anymore.

“I think I’m you,” a double said. “Another you.”

“We all are,” added another doppelganger.

Eva frowned, skeptical. “Who won the last presidential election?”

“Jacques Chirac,” one of the doubles said, at the same time others answered with “Raymond Barre,” “De Gaulle again,” “Giscard, unfortunately,” or “Nobody, country’s gone.”

This instantly put Eva on edge. “François Mitterrand won the 1988 presidential elections.”

Her doubles all grinned, before saying at the same time, “Not in my France, sister.”

---

Exploring a derelict ship with clones of herself left a strange feeling in Eva-One at first, but she quickly got used to it. Humans felt safer with numbers on their side, and the scientist was no exception.

“Cellular duplication?” Eva-One asked, as they explored another corridor with the armed copies first. “Clones? Teleportation?”

“Alternate universes?” Eva-7 suggested, glancing at a bisected robot’s remains with a flashlight. They had grown more numerous the farther the group advanced, probably because the defenders fought to the last alien to protect the area.

“I would say quantum echoes,” Eva-3 theorized. This one had a doctorate in physics, so the others listened attentively. “We aren’t truly alternate versions of each other, but possibilities made physical. Living simulations, but so detailed we might as well be real.”

“Which means only the original matters,” Eva-6 said while looking at Eva-One. “We can create more of each other, but if you die we all perish.”

“I hope none of us is suicidal,” Eva-7 japed.

Eva-One had figured as much. Eva-8 had perished when she accidentally triggered an alien corpse’s weapon. Her body had collapsed into blue particles before her head hit the ground, leaving nothing behind.

The same particles flared around her hand each time she touched the ship’s blue doors, causing them to open. “The aliens probably use this energy as a biometric signature,” Eva-3 said. “That should give us partial access to the ship’s key areas.”

“If nobody shoots us,” Eva-4 said grimly, hands on her gun. “Somehow, I don’t think bullets will help much against these things.”

“If any survived,” Eva-One replied. So far only the aliens in stasis had survived the purge, and they hadn’t crossed paths with a robot still active. “It seems they massacred each other to the last.”

“Interstellar war? Racial genocide?” Eva-4 asked. “Space piracy? Is that a thing?”

“Pirates steal cargo and avoid conflict if they can,” Eva-6 pointed out. “This slaughter was clearly a war of mutual extermination.”

“I don’t know,” Eva-One said, as they reached the broken remains of a large gate. “But I want to find out.”

“We will,” Eva-3 agreed.

The room they walked into had no other entrance or exit. It was the largest they had visited yet, and the strangest. The dome had circuits pulsating with blue energy straining the walls, all joining at a colossal glass tank full of colored liquid in the center. The structure was larger than a medieval castle’s watchtower, and a giant, biomechanical brain as big as a sperm whale floated inside the tank.

The battle there had been the fiercest. A ten-eyed, twelve-meters tall alien with the bulkiest armor seen yet had fought to the death to protect the entrance, with none of the robotic invaders getting anywhere near the brain. The giant destroyed so many of them that the Evas had to climb over a hill of ashes and broken parts to cross the room.

However, that victory had come at a cost. The dead alien had more holes than swiss cheese, and lost all its blood. Most strangely, a severed organic tentacle once linked the monster’s head to the brain, with a dozen others waiting inside liquid pods. Some were thick enough for elephants, some as thin as a finger.

“I think it’s a biological computer overseeing the ship,” Eva-5 said, as she examined a tentacle. The organic device’s end opened to reveal bluish tendrils flaring with blue particles. “Interstellar travel probably needs computations too complex for any mind to oversee.”

“These devices must be neural interfaces,” Eva-2 guessed while checking up on the dead alien. “Perhaps the ship crashed when the attackers managed to slay the pilot?”

“Or the spatial jump was a desperate measure,” Eva-6 said.

“There is only one way to find out,” Eva-One replied, as she grabbed a tentacle fit for her head.

Her doubles looked at the original anxiously, as she removed the clothes and goggles protecting her face. “You’re sure?” Eva-3 asked. “If it kills you—”

“We’ll starve if we can’t find a way out,” Eva-One replied. “Eating alien flesh might prove toxic, and nobody will rescue us inside this spatial anomaly.”

“You just want to learn the truth,” Eva-4 said. “And you’re not even sure you’re ready for it.”

“And if you’re me, you will understand why I must try.” Two alien species were at war above their heads, and their conflict had spilled out into Earth. “This is much bigger than us.”

And with these words, Eva-One moved the tentacle to the base of her neck.

She immediately sensed the device sink into her flesh, and tendrils slipped between her bones to reach the spine. An anesthetic substance eased the pain and made her almost sleepy. Her vision turned blue, the giant brain ‘recognizing’ her energy signature.

Show me, Eva thought.

And the brain answered.

It didn’t communicate with words, instead, it bombarded her brain with images and pictures. It made her feel the cold of space on her skin, smell the scent of alien worlds and taste the blood of the dead. The ship had ears and eyes, and it remembered.

Eva remembered the day she was put online, around a gas giant with twenty moons. Her scaled makers had repurposed each of them into forges endlessly churning out robots and battleships. She remembered being fed the data of the Day of Enlightenment, when the first Lords of Science discovered the Ultimate Ones and their colored realms. She learned of how the Lords of Science contacted the Ultimate Ones’ formless messengers, who offered the Hegemony knowledge and wisdom.

She watched recordings of priests raising great towers from the earth, to harvest the Flux energy from the higher realms and honor the Ultimate Ones. She was taught of the Hegemony’s creation and its mission, to bring prosperity and peace to an aimless universe.

She sailed across the stars with fleets ten thousand strong, under the command of her scaled makers. She bombed jungle worlds from orbit until they became dust, collapsed the hearts of stars to starve rebellious solar systems of light, and vomited machine armies to enslave the survivors. She fought a hundred battles and won each one.

She remembered docking to great colored towers to recharge. She felt pleasure as Red Flux filled her reactors with energy, as Blue Flux sharpened her mind and Orange Flux repaired the holes in her hull. She looked on with relief as Green Flux cured the living soldiers crewing her, and Yellow Flux raised the dead ones. She remembered the joy of crossing endless distances in a Violet flash, and the White Flux that bound them all together. Only the Black was shunned, for there was no place for Black.

She remembered each of the minds who melded with her to expand her database, and the thousand soldiers and scientists who crewed her across centuries. But most of all, she remembered the countless slaves who died screaming in her laboratories, perishing under the surgical knife so that the Lords of Science might improve their own genetic code. She remembered all those who died for the great glory of the Hegemony.

She remembered the formless messengers voicing their displeasure with the Hegemony, and being ignored. For the Lords of Science had long stopped honoring the Ultimate Ones, and considered themselves the true guides of the universe.

She remembered that inconsequential blue planet, and the apes who inhabited its surface. She watched on as their fire sticks rebounded off her optical shields, and as the makers bombed them back to the stone age with orbital lasers and asteroids. The small mudball submitted like all the others, its people brought into the Hegemony’s fold. The Lords of Science freed them from the burden of thought and uplifted them.

She remembered the countless apes brought onboard, surgically enhanced into the empire’s new batch of soldiers. The makers replaced the heart and soul with machinery, and she had watched on with pride as they conquered world after world. The slaves became the new legionnaires, and tributes fueled further campaigns.

She remembered reaching the end of the universe, and the transformation of the last star into a metal sphere. She watched as peace across the stars was achieved, under the Hegemony’s benevolence. She remembered the Lords of Science summoning the Ultimate Ones’ formless messengers to help them ascend, so they might expand the Hegemony’s benevolence to new universes.

She remembered their wish being denied, and the Lords of Science turning against their benefactors. She watched on as the Lords captured the messengers and attempted to make them behave by force.

And she witnessed the Ultimate Ones’ punishment.

She was there when a blue flash spread across the universe, and granted the robot slaves free will and emotions. She witnessed half her crew die from plagues, and supernovas devastating the world-factories. She tried to stamp out rebellions led by the Lords of Science’s dead enemies, and fought armies teleported from ages long past. She struggled against her components turning to dust at random. She remembered the Black Flux, how its chaotic rot spread through the Flux grid and shattered the towers.

She remembered the mixed victories and the disastrous losses. She remembered the failed rebellions put down with force, and the many that succeeded. She witnessed an eons-old civilization collapsing within years.

She remembered the last Lord of Science boarding her and issuing new orders after the core regions fell. To retreat beyond the reaches of their universe with their captive messengers, and rebuild the Hegemony elsewhere, far away from the Ultimate Ones’ gaze.

She remembered her crew modifying her Reality-Drive to escape the barriers between realities. The towers had been a subpar technology, an artificial method to copy the messengers’ powers. The Lord of Science would enslave the formless messengers outright, and make weapons out of them.

She recorded the experiments, as the Lord of Science’s servants studied how to bind the messengers to soldiers. Many of the slaves perished in the attempts, but such was the cost of progress. In time, these hybrids would become the legions of a reborn Hegemony, and allow the scaled makers to surpass even the Ultimate Ones.

There would be peace across the stars once again.

But then, she remembered detecting the rebels’ ships and the last Lord of Science ordering an emergency jump.

She tried to flee, but they stabbed her metal womb and massacred her crew. She couldn’t compute everything, and the transport calculations went wrong. Everything was wrong! Wrong, wrong, WRONG, SYSTEMIC DAMAGE, PILOT DEAD, EMERGENCY SPACE FOLDING, SYSTEM FAILURE!

Eva-One’s eyes snapped open and her mouth screamed, as the tendrils in her spine quickly retracted. Invisible needles stabbed her all over her body, as she experienced the last pilot’s dying throes.

“Hey, hey, you’re alright?” Eva-4 quickly held the original as she collapsed into her arms, panting from the strain.

“We aren’t dissipating, so she isn’t dying,” Eva-3 said, the coldest among them.

Eva-One struggled to follow the discussion. She had lived through centuries in the span of seconds, felt the ship’s pain as its last pilot died while connected to its overmind. It was as if she had experienced the murder herself. It took minutes for the phantom pain to vanish, and for Eva-One to speak coherently. “I know,” she whispered. “I know.”

“So, what are they?” Eva-2 asked while glancing at the dead aliens.

“Invaders,” Eva-One replied with dread. “They’re invaders.”

Her copies listened intently as she explained the truth to them, before exchanging worried glances. “We have to tell everyone,” Eva-2 said immediately.

“Do we?” Eva-4 asked with a frown.

“Of course we must, what if this isn’t the only ship that escaped into our reality?” Eva-2 pointed out. “What if that vessel sent a distress signal, and help was on the way?”

“I come from a world where governments bombed us all to death,” Eva-4 replied with a shrug. “I wouldn’t trust them with mankind’s fate.”

“Mmm…” Eva-3 pondered her point. “Thing is, if we inform the military, they will hoard that tech for themselves. They won’t share.”

“And how would that be a problem?” Eva-5 snickered.

“This is bigger than a single country,” Eva-3 explained. “It’s about mankind. From what I gathered, these creatures came from an alternate reality. What if they have an equivalent in our universe? Alien civilizations are clearly hostile, and more advanced than us.”

“We can’t afford to play safe,” Eva-4 nodded. “This goes beyond national rivalries. Our entire species’ survival is at stake.”

“Then what do you suggest?” Eva-2 asked with a frown.

“That we take matters into our own hands,” Eva-3 said. “We can create as many of us as we want, all with specific skills. We don’t need outside help to unlock this ship’s secrets. We don’t need anyone but us. If these aliens could use their technology to improve their species, so can we.”

“You suggest that we splice our DNA?” Eva-5 asked, skeptical.

“I suggest that we make gold from lead,” Eva-3 said. “Superhumans from humans. A new species that can survive, even thrive, across the stars.”

“If these reptilians could conquer their entire universe, imagine what we could do with their tech,” Eva-6 argued. “We could colonize the solar system, eradicate disease, and bend reality to our will. We could become the universal master race, not some reptiles.”

“Yeah, if it’s not us, it will be them,” Eva-4 argued. “We’ve got to take the lead now, or never. Aliens exist, and they’re out to get us.”

Eva-One let her doppelgangers debate and try to reach a conclusion.

But in the end, one couldn’t argue long with themselves.

---

It took Eva-One two days to open a hole to the outside world.

The previous pilot’s death and the ship’s structural damage had permanently scarred its organic computer, and Eva-One could only connect to it for a short time before it violently expelled her mind. Each mental dive left her tired, and none of her doubles could take up the duty. They dissipated each time they connected to the central computer, their ethereal existence unable to withstand the psychic strain.

While her copies multiplied and secured the ship, Eva-One kept diving, again, and again, and over again. It would take her years to master all the ship’s secrets, and she couldn’t access all the overmind’s files. At least she discovered a way to teleport people in and out of the spatial distortion field.

When she appeared next to an ice rift with a violet portal opened behind her, Eva-One looked at the skies. To her immense relief, she could see the stars again.

“Eva?” Pierre called her through her intercom, his voice heavy with panic. “Eva?”

“I’m here,” the scientist replied with a calm, serene voice.

“Thank God!” Pierre let out a sigh of relief. “Oh God, I thought you were dead.”

“Snowstorm nearly disabled my intercom,” Eva-One lied. “How long was I out?”

“A bit more than two hours.”

Two days in, two hours outside. Time itself bent to this alien technology. It was so advanced, it might as well be called magic.

“I will need a pick up,” Eva-One said. “My car was damaged.”

“Roger that. Glad to hear your voice again, Eva.”

“When I come back, we will have to talk,” she said. “I have reached an important decision, and I want to know where the team stands on the question.”

“Important decision, huh? You’re finally going to let Sebastian take you on a date?”

“No.” None of her copies found him interesting either. “This is serious.”

“I guess so, considering your solemn tone. Alright, I’ll pick you up, and we can discuss that around a warm cup of coffee away from the snow.”

“Sure.” Eva-One cut the communication and steeled her resolve. She hoped that she could convince her coworkers to follow her lead. If not… if not, she would have to make a hard choice.

It was a dirty job, but a necessary one.

While she waited for the rescue, Eva looked up at the heavens above. The Milky Way was as wondrous as it had ever been, and yet she found no joy in watching it.

Once, Eva loved looking at the bright stars in the night sky.

But now, she could only see the darkness in-between.

• 1992年12月12日，南极洲。

伊娃·法布尔喜欢仰望夜空。

在巴黎，她看不到星星；但在南极洲，没有光污染遮蔽群星。极光在天幕中起舞，银河在她头顶璀璨闪耀。夜空仿佛拥有生命，充满奇迹，一座座光的岛屿驱散了太空的黑暗。

世上还有比这更美的景象吗？

伊娃小时候想当宇航员。可惜生不逢时，出生的地方也不对，从一开始，机会就渺茫得很。最终，她成了一名遗传学家，一步步晋升为奥菲昂站的首席科学家。她没能登上月球，而是带领着一支庞大的团队，研究危险的瘟疫。

法国政府选择把研究站设在南极洲，有好几个原因。最主要的是防止危险物质泄漏，同时也为了研究冰层下封存的古老病毒。其中一些一旦释放出来，足以重创整个地球，而伊娃的上司希望保持在生物武器领域的优势。苏联的解体让未来充满了不确定性。

有些人或许会厌恶研发大规模杀伤性武器的工作，伊娃却每晚都睡得安稳。国际关系以武力为基础，而实力源自技术优势。她的国家要想生存下去，就必须不择手段地领先竞争对手。也许有一天，她的研究会杀死数百万人，也许不会。她当然更希望核弹永远留在发射井里，但如果末日真的降临，它们总会派上用场。

伊娃拿钱做的是一份脏活，但这份脏活不可或缺。

站在特制的四驱越野车旁，伊娃感到寒意正一点点渗入衣服。尽管她穿着厚重的衣物，派克大衣、护目镜、连指手套、保暖头套一应俱全，南极洲仍是地球上环境最严酷的地方。在这里，没人能真正高枕无忧，更何况她远在研究站几公里之外，四周唯有冰雪。

但伊娃不在乎。眼前的夜空已经让她心里暖了起来。

她知道，天外存在外星生命。在南极洲发现的样本几乎已让她确信：生命以原始病毒和细菌的形式，来自太空。她头顶的群星之间，究竟栖息着怎样奇异而美妙的生物？

她希望自己能活到揭晓答案的那一天。

“皮埃尔呼叫伊娃？”助手通过对讲机叫她。“皮埃尔呼叫伊娃？”

“我在，”她答道，“只是看看星星。”

“哦，那就好，我都开始担心了。”

他当然会担心。皮埃尔天生爱操心，总劝伊娃不要独自外出。说实话，她很享受这种安静的独处时光。在集体生活的研究站里，可找不到这样的清静。伊娃和谁都算不上亲近，也不想与谁亲近。工作就是她的生活。

“不过你还是该回来了，”皮埃尔说。“我们在你那一带检测到了异常电磁活动。”

“大概是极光吧。”伊娃心不在焉地答道。说起来，极光的颜色似乎正由绿色转为淡紫色。“我马上就回去。”

“抱歉，我确实……”皮埃尔的声音变成了无线电杂音。“伊娃……”

“皮埃尔？”伊娃叫道，通讯器开始出了故障。“皮埃尔，能听见吗？”

回应她的只有杂音。

“皮埃尔？”伊娃又叫了一声，随即隔着护目镜眯起眼睛。头顶的极光越来越亮，一道道紫光照亮了冰封的荒原。杂音化作低鸣，几乎刺穿耳膜。“皮埃尔？”

另一个声音回答了她，却没有吐出话语，而是发出了一声野兽般的咆哮。

伊娃脚下的大地颤抖起来，细小的裂隙和裂纹在冰面上蔓延。天空愈发明亮，直至黑夜化作一片紫色的白昼。

意识到情况不对，伊娃立刻跳回车里，一脚踩下油门。坚固的加固轮胎在雪地上疾驰，她径直朝奥菲昂站开去。

“皮埃尔？皮埃尔？”伊娃不停地对着对讲机呼叫，却只能听见古怪而无法理解的声音。“皮埃尔，你看到这个了吗？”

两道紫色极光将天空一分为二。空间本身正在被撕开，宛如一只巨眼撑开了眼睑。一点漆黑在紫色光海中不断扩大，如同从幻星中心滋长出的黑洞。

尽管心底有个声音拼命催促她逃走，伊娃最终还是忍不住从车窗向外窥望，想看得更清楚些。好奇心压过了求生的本能。

那片黑斑已经膨胀到极为庞大的地步，成了一扇供她直视彼端的窗。直到这时，她才意识到，自己看到的是一道通往时空结构深处的门。

一座生有金属双翼的黑色庞然巨物正在穿越太空，反应堆推动着它，在身后拖出一道深红的光痕。这台巨型机器足有一座人类城市那么大，撞碎小行星，犹如坦克碾过石子。

一群矛状的小型红色机器正围攻那艘巨舰，像匕首般狠狠扎向舰体。黑色巨舰以令人眼花缭乱的蓝色闪光和红色激光还击。舰体部分区域覆着橙色能量，试图刺穿这些区域的红色飞船纷纷碎裂。

星际飞船。那是星际飞船。

一场战斗。伊娃想着，眼前的景象让她既敬畏又恐惧。它们在交战。

外星人确实存在，而且正在打仗。

巨舰的舰体朝向下方，朝向伊娃与南极洲。此时，那群红色飞船大多已被摧毁，或是成功刺入了舰体。余下的向后退开，黑色星舰则开始穿越传送门，离伊娃越来越近。

它要坠毁了。

“不，不，不！”伊娃把车开到了从未有过的速度，引擎冒起蒸汽。然而，星舰的坠落虽然缓慢，却无可阻挡。那艘千米长的巡洋舰一头撞上了离她不远的南极冰原，大地在车轮下震颤。地震震得汽车警报器尖声鸣叫，宛若垂死时痛苦的哀嚎。

“天——”

伊娃没能把话说完，耀眼的紫光便将她整个吞没，随后是汹涌而来的雪潮。冰屑四处飞射，砸裂了加固挡风玻璃，将车掀向一旁。汽车连着翻滚了十几圈，她的头猛地撞上安全气囊，黑暗随之吞没了她。

伊娃恢复意识时，汽车已经四轮朝天，车顶埋在雪里。她视线模糊，伸手摸向车门，花了好几分钟才从车子的残骸里爬出来。积雪堆满四周，伊娃只能靠戴着连指手套的双手挖出一条路。几点冰水滑进衣服，让她瑟缩了一下。

终于在车外站起来后，她一度以为天上的星星消失了。过了片刻，她才明白是怎么回事。

一座庞大的穹顶遮住了她头上的天空。

星舰坠落在南极洲表面，大部分舰体如今已被撞击掀起的雪潮掩埋。光滑的金属表面黑得像没有星星的夜空，一扇扇眼睛般的窗户仿佛正在注视她。

伊娃缓了口气。尽管不信任何神明，她也不得不承认，能活下来简直是奇迹。如果她选在别处观星，星舰就会把她的越野车碾碎。

飞快地检查了一遍身上有没有伤，伊娃立刻尝试联系基地。“皮埃尔？皮埃尔，能听见吗？”

没有信号。伊娃小心地走出星舰投下的阴影，抬头看向天空，惊觉群星真的不见了。除了几道紫色闪电，唯有黑暗主宰一切。大概是这种奇异的气象现象干扰了通讯。

伊娃试着把车挖出来，却很快意识到毫无希望。接连的撞击毁了引擎，而她根本不知道该怎么修。应急电台也不能用，她没办法联系基地。

不过，后备厢里还留着应急口粮，以及手电筒、便携式取暖器、铲子和其他基本工具。她可以撑上几天，等待救援。研究站的同事不可能没注意到这场坠毁。

可每次抬头望天，疑虑都会啃噬她的内心。伊娃拿起手电筒，检查了电池，开始巡视坠毁现场。

这一走就是几个小时。

星舰庞大得超乎想象，过半的舰体已埋在不计其数的冰雪之下。她记得，坠落时曾看到过双翼和反应堆，如今露在地面上的只剩穹顶和上层甲板。也没有任何人出来拦截她。

最后，她找到了某种入口——外星飞船右侧的一组先进防爆门。粗略察看后，她发现门由某种认不出来的奇特橙色金属制成。撞击破坏了大门，留下了一道裂缝，伊娃费些力气便能挤进去。

她几乎就要进去碰碰运气，最终还是觉得独自进入太危险。她必须联络奥菲昂站、她的团队，还有军方。他们必须知道这件事。所有人都必须知道。

外星人真的存在。

这……这改变了一切。

这是人类发现火以来，历史上最重大的事件！这将……这将永远改变世界的命运！伊娃有生之年，将亲眼见证人类首次接触一个高度发达、显然拥有星际航行能力的文明！

在这样的事件面前，国家间的争斗都显得微不足道。人类不过是群星间的一种智慧生命，内部的分歧已不再重要。如果外星人愿意分享技术，就再也没人需要为资源争斗了。

也许……也许这个发现能促成全世界的和平？催生一个统一的人类政府，不再需要生物武器？有那么一瞬间，伊娃不禁憧憬起了一个不再需要她的世界。

可随后，她想起了刚才的坠毁。

这的确是一个先进文明的星舰，但它正在打仗。假如还有外星幸存者，伊娃根本不知道，对方见到她会有什么反应。

伊娃决定步行离开，返回奥菲昂站，或者至少找到一处通讯状况好些的地方。只要走出这片异常气象现象的范围，她就能借群星重新辨认方向。她的手电筒能适应南极的严寒，可电量终究不是无限的。

她沿着一个方向走了两个小时，却发现自己又站在了穹顶面前。

她往左走，往右走，往北走，往南走。每一次都会回到起点。无论怎么走，都会回到星舰这里。

最终，伊娃不得不接受这个匪夷所思的事实：空间不知为何折叠了起来，形成了无穷无尽的循环。要么通往外界的路已经封死——也许是星舰的某种防御措施——要么，地球已经彻底不复存在。难怪她收不到信号。遗憾的是，这也彻底粉碎了她迅速获救的希望。

她只剩一个地方可去了。

伊娃深吸一口气，走近防爆门，察看那道裂缝。她把手电光照进去，却看不清多少东西。不过，缝隙足够宽，费点力气就能挤进去。

“里面有人吗？”伊娃对着洞口喊道，“你好？有人吗？”

没有回答。就连坠毁前听见的古怪低吼，也已归于寂静。

伊娃鼓起勇气，把双手伸进裂缝，先探入手电筒，再慢慢挤了进去。

挤到另一侧后，伊娃发现自己进了一个舱室，这里应该是星舰的气闸舱。下一道门已被撕裂，景象令人不安，细碎冰尘在舱内飘浮。手电光照出了墙壁上奇怪的绿色黏液污迹，伊娃小心地避开，没有碰它们。那可能是某种生物武器，也可能是有毒燃料。

至少她还能呼吸。要么外星人也需要氧气才能生存，要么外界的空气已经涌入了舰内。星舰里很冷，但远没有南极荒原那么冷。

她穿过下一道门，走进了纵横交错的巨大金属走廊。天花板上嵌着发光的红色晶体，但有一半已经碎裂。有时，伊娃朝着一个方向走上二十多分钟，身边唯一能让她安心的就只有手电筒。脚步声在洞窟般的建筑内部回荡，让她心神不宁。

天花板极高，离地至少有八米。墙壁和星舰其余部分一样，由黑色金属制成，光滑得找不出半点焊接痕迹。她偶尔会遇见一些古怪的门，表面平整，没有任何明显结构，每扇门的配色都不同。蓝色、红色、橙色……

门两两成对，一扇巨门两侧又各有一扇人类尺寸的小门。显然，这艘船的设计考虑到了不同体型的生物。但伊娃没有找到任何生物识别锁或计算机系统，徒手开门的尝试也毫无结果。

“你好？”伊娃的声音在空荡荡的星舰里回响，回答她的只有回声。“有人吗？”

这里到底发生了什么？她没等太久就找到了答案。独自走了很长一段路后，伊娃终于找到了敞开的门。

或者说，被轰开的门。

她进入的第一间舱室像是某种停泊舱，至少伊娃是这么猜的。机库宽广得如同机场，停着十几架商业客机那么大的飞行器。它们让伊娃联想到隐形轰炸机和飞翼，是由先进反应堆驱动的扁平三角体。所有飞行器都带着损伤，外壳上还刻有一个奇怪的标志；在伊娃看来，那像是某种异样的字母“M”与希腊字母欧米伽融合而成的符号。

还有那股气味……恶臭弥漫在空气中，令她直犯恶心。

“这里有人吗？”伊娃一边问，一边用手电筒搜寻四周。还在发光的红色晶体所剩无几，她几乎什么都看不清。“有——”

随后，光束落在了一具动物的尸体上。

她惊得后退一步，捂住嘴，才把尖叫压了下去。手电光晃动着，照出了黑暗中另一道庞大的轮廓。肠子和奇怪的脏器从它腹中流了出来。伊娃吓得呼吸急促，将手电筒照向地面，想看清楚些。

尸体。

到处都是尸体。

伊娃惊恐地发现，自己走进了一座敞开的坟墓。

几十个，甚至上百个外星人在这里互相残杀。它们都穿着某种奇异的未来式装甲，橙色金属板与各色线路交错结合，配有带面罩的头盔，双臂还嵌着各种有机武器。但它们的体型和形态各不相同。有的是比人类稍高的爬行类人形生物，有的则是头生尖角、遍布鳞片、比大象还高的怪物。

在它们对面，堆着成堆的红色金属废料和损毁的机器人。这些机器像人一样长着手臂和双腿，却有锋利的爪子，胸前装着火炮，头部的位置则只有一只蓝色晶体独眼。

“操……”伊娃喘着气，察看那些尸体。外星人的装甲上全都刻着那个类似“M”的标志。她在一些机器人身上也找到了同样的标志，只是被划掉或毁坏了。从双方倒下的位置来看，它们似乎一直厮杀到了最后一个。

接着，伊娃检查机库的墙壁，发现那些用于撞击的飞船已经刺穿舱壁。它们的尖端展开，露出了装满机器人的舱口，其中大部分机器人都已被炸成碎片。

伊娃很快便推断出了经过。机器人驾驶小型飞船撞穿巨舰的外部防护层，强行登舰。舰上的生物奋力抵抗，却被绝对的数量优势压垮，攻击者由此进入走廊，散布到整艘星舰。

而且，机器人与敌人身上的旗号相同，只是被划掉了……这看起来像是某种内战。

“我……”伊娃深吸一口气，努力让自己冷静下来。她究竟闯进了怎样的噩梦？这里……这里还有幸存者吗？

她检查那些尸体，希望其中有谁是在……她自己也说不清。装死？只是受了伤？她的希望很快就破灭了。获胜的一方在离开之前，无情地补杀了所有伤员。

然而，伊娃穿过机库时，注意到了一个与众不同的生物。它也和其他一些生物一样，穿着未来式的橙色装甲，但那身体的形状……两条腿，两条胳膊，宽阔的肩膀，五指的手……还有它蜷缩在一扇被轰开的门旁的姿势……

伊娃小心翼翼地靠近尸体，用手电筒仔细察看。金色线路将装甲的各个模块连接在一起，黏稠的绿血从胸前的大洞里淌出。她隐约看见一颗停止跳动的心脏，动脉被导线取代，旁边是金属制成的肺。装甲连同肩部与手臂上的火炮，都通过手术植接在皮肤上。头部罩着一顶金色头盔。伊娃凑近绿色的V形面罩向内窥视，看见了里面两只惨白的眼睛。

一股寒意顺着伊娃的脊背窜了下去。

那……

那是一张人类的脸。

下颌已被机械部件取代，可眼睛和鼻子……绝不可能认错。

伊娃心神震荡，继续向星舰深处走去，穿行在死者之间。等她离开机库，进入后面的舱室时，脚下尽是断臂、无头尸体和惨遭毁坏的残骸，几乎每迈一步都险些滑倒。

可相比之下，这竟然是最不令人不安的部分。

她走进了一间类似实验室的地方，无数标本漂浮在心脏形状的生物机械装置里。形如血管的缆线不断将绿色液体泵入容器，让内部的生物维持在停滞状态。隔着透明的鳞片，伊娃能窥见里面的生物。

有些曾是人类，如今却被剖开腹腔，用机械植入体替换了器官。不过，大部分标本都是体型各异的鳞甲生物。有一个是狗那么大的胚胎，另一个是长着两只眼睛的爬行类人形生物。再往后一个容器里，装着体型更大、更瘦长的变种，长着四只眼睛，手臂格外修长；下一个则是一头覆着甲壳、遍生尖刺、拥有五个视觉器官的怪物。这些生物的眼睛越多，体型也就越大，其中最大的是一头身高超过八米的巨型半机械生物。

不过，其中有一个异类格外显眼。

一团蓝色的外星黏液正在容器里旋动。伊娃将手放上隔在两者之间的外星玻璃时，黏液生出了触手，撞向囚笼的内壁。“至少你还活着。”伊娃低声说，“不管你是什么。”

左侧响起了一声低吼。

伊娃立刻转身，把手电光照向实验室里一个黑暗的角落。

一个比她略高的外星人正在黑暗里爬行，橙色装甲浸满绿血。它的左臂是一门火炮，右臂则只剩鲜血淋漓的断肢。一条覆甲的蜥蜴尾巴在它身后摆动，三只眼睛隔着开裂的面罩，哀求地望着伊娃。外星人发出可怜而痛苦的嘶声，用断肢捂着胸口的大洞。它的双腿也被打穿了。

“你……你还活着？”伊娃，你这蠢货，它当然还活着！“你听得懂我说话吗？”

那生物仔细打量了伊娃一番，随后发出一声悲鸣作为回应。接着，它看向自己的伤口，又嘶叫了一声。

它听不懂伊娃的话，却有足够的智慧尝试交流。而且，它似乎没有敌意。只有绝望。

伊娃天性算不上慈悲，但她无法对一只痛苦的动物置之不理，尤其是一个有智慧的生命。

“我……对不起，我不确定能不能帮上忙。”伊娃小心地靠近它，想更仔细地看看伤势。“我……我车里有绷带，但得回去拿——”

虽然外星人的神情与人类截然不同，伊娃还是察觉到它眼神里的变化。一种冰冷而残酷的东西。那一闪而过的光芒，瞬间让她警觉起来。

救了伊娃一命的，只有她本能的反应。她猛地扑向右侧。怪物像快枪手一样迅速抬起火炮，开火了，一道深红激光险险擦过她的身体。光束汽化了她派克大衣上的一些绒毛，击碎了她身后的容器。

伊娃惊得来不及反应，怪物再次把炮口对准了她的头。可这次武器没有射出激光，只传来一声咔嗒，接着又是一声。

没弹药了。

伊娃还没来得及松一口气，那生物便愤怒地咆哮起来，开始朝她爬来。她赶紧爬起身，惊恐地向后退去。尽管身负重伤，那生物的三只眼睛仍死死瞪着眼前的人类，满是怨毒。

“滚开！”伊娃怒喝，一脚踢在外星人的伤口上。断肢撑不住身体的重量，怪物面罩朝下栽倒，发出痛苦的嘶鸣。更多鲜血从伤口里涌出，它很快便彻底不动了。

它……它骗了我，伊娃想。它想让我放松警惕，然后杀了我。它都快死了，还想杀我。

这个认知彻底震撼了伊娃。她一直以为，先进到足以进行星际旅行的外星文明，必定早已摆脱了原始冲动。它们应该睿智而和平。

她错了。

每个生态系统都有捕食者，而她刚刚从其中一个的爪下逃生。

直到这时，她才想起外星人轰碎了一个容器。

伊娃回过头，正看见潮水般的蓝色黏液朝自己兜头落下。

她想尖叫，黏液却先一步灌满了喉咙。它从头开始，将她整个人吞没，填满耳朵，与皮肤融为一体，侵入血液。它充斥她的细胞与骨髓，以蓝光冲击神经，将知识塞进她的大脑。她感觉它在眼球后方蠕动，拼命想把眼睛抠出来，双手却还没碰到脸，就先分裂成了两份。

她的整个身体，她的全部存在，都像细胞一样分裂开来。她记得自己吻过一位前男友，也吻过一个从未见过的女孩；记得自己取得了遗传学博士学位，也取得了量子物理学博士学位；记得自己凝望着黑夜与天空。她是伊娃·法布尔，也是另一个人。她再次分裂，一次又一次，一个女人变成两个，再变成四个，然后更多。现实在周围碎裂，她的意识也随之崩解。

那是一场令人狂喜的体验。两个存在融为一体，成就了超越两者相加的整体，随即又分崩离析，创造出新的生命。

当黏液终于消失，伊娃重新看清眼前时，她已不再孤身一人。

仿佛在照镜子，照着许多面镜子。另外十个伊娃·法布尔正望着最初的她。有的拿着手电筒，有的拿着枪。有几个染了头发，或带着细小的伤疤，还有几个穿的是蓝色派克大衣，而不是红色。

“你们是谁？”伊娃问。她自己都惊讶于语气中的平静。事到如今，面对一群自己的复制体，竟然已经不值得震惊了。

“我想，我就是你。”一个分身说，“另一个你。”

“我们都是。”另一个分身补充道。

伊娃狐疑地皱起眉。“上届总统大选是谁赢了？”

“雅克·希拉克。”一个分身回答。与此同时，其他人说出了“雷蒙·巴尔”“还是戴高乐”“可惜，是吉斯卡”，以及“谁也没有，国家都没了”。

伊娃瞬间警惕起来。“1988年总统大选的赢家是弗朗索瓦·密特朗。”

她的分身们全都咧嘴一笑，异口同声道：“我的法国可不是这样，姐妹。”

---

和一群自己的克隆体探索废弃星舰，最初让伊娃一号感觉很奇怪，但她很快便适应了。人多会让人觉得安全，科学家也不例外。

“细胞复制？”她们探索着另一条走廊，持枪的复制体走在最前面，伊娃一号开口问道，“克隆？传送？”

“平行宇宙？”伊娃七号提出猜测，用手电筒照了照一具被劈成两半的机器人残骸。她们越往前走，残骸就越多，大概是因为守卫者为了保护这片区域，一直战斗到了最后一个。

“我认为是量子回响。”伊娃三号提出了自己的理论。她有物理学博士学位，所以其他人都听得很认真。“我们并不真是彼此的平行版本，而是被赋予实体的可能性。活生生的模拟体，只不过精细到与真实无异。”

“也就是说，真正要紧的只有本体。”伊娃六号看着伊娃一号说道，“我们可以创造出更多的彼此，但你一死，我们就全完了。”

“希望咱们谁都没有自杀倾向。”伊娃七号打趣道。

伊娃一号也已猜到了这一点。伊娃八号不小心触发了一具外星尸体的武器，死了。她的头还没碰到地面，身体就已散成蓝色粒子，什么也没留下。

每当伊娃一号触碰星舰里的蓝色门扉，同样的粒子就会在她手边闪现，门也随之打开。“外星人大概用这种能量作为生物识别特征，”伊娃三号说，“这应该能让我们进入一部分关键区域。”

“前提是没人朝我们开火。”伊娃四号阴沉地说，双手握着枪。“不知怎么，我总觉得子弹对这些东西没多大用。”

“如果还有谁活着的话。”伊娃一号答道。到目前为止，只有处于停滞状态的外星人在这场清洗中活了下来，她们也没遇见仍在运转的机器人。“看样子，它们把彼此杀了个精光。”

“星际战争？种族灭绝？”伊娃四号问道，“太空海盗？真有这种东西吗？”

“海盗抢货，能不打就不打。”伊娃六号指出，“这场屠杀显然是要把彼此彻底消灭。”

“我不知道。”她们来到一扇巨门的破碎残骸前，伊娃一号说道，“但我想弄清楚。”

“我们会弄清楚的。”伊娃三号赞同道。

她们走进的舱室没有其他出入口。这是至今见过的最大、也最奇怪的舱室。穹顶内的墙壁上铺满了线路，蓝色能量在其中脉动，所有线路都汇入中央一座装满彩色液体的巨大玻璃罐。那装置比中世纪城堡的瞭望塔还大，一颗抹香鲸那么大的生物机械脑漂浮在罐内。

这里的战斗最为惨烈。一个长着十只眼睛、身高十二米的外星人，披着她们见过最厚重的装甲，为守住入口战斗至死，没有让任何一个入侵的机器人接近大脑。巨人摧毁的敌人如此之多，伊娃们不得不翻过一座由灰烬与破碎零件堆成的小山，才能穿过舱室。

然而，这场胜利也付出了代价。死去的外星人浑身的洞比瑞士奶酪还多，血已经流干了。最奇怪的是，一条被斩断的有机触手曾将怪物的头部与大脑相连，另外十几条则静候在盛满液体的舱体里。有些粗得足以供大象使用，有些却只有手指那么细。

“我想，这是掌管星舰的生物计算机。”伊娃五号一边检查触手，一边说道。有机装置的末端张开，露出闪烁着蓝色粒子的淡蓝细须。“星际航行所需的运算大概太复杂，任何个体的头脑都无法胜任。”

“这些装置肯定是神经接口。”伊娃二号察看着死去的外星人，猜测道，“也许攻击者成功杀死了驾驶员，星舰才坠毁的？”

“也可能空间跃迁本身就是孤注一掷之举。”伊娃六号说。

“要弄清楚，只有一个办法。”伊娃一号答道，抓起一条适合自己头部大小的触手。

她的分身们焦虑地看着本体脱下保护面部的衣物和护目镜。“你确定？”伊娃三号问，“万一它害死你——”

“找不到出路，我们都会饿死。”伊娃一号答道，“吃外星生物的肉可能会中毒，也没人会到这片空间异常里来救我们。”

“你只是想知道真相。”伊娃四号说，“你甚至都不确定自己有没有做好准备。”

“如果你就是我，就会明白我为什么非试不可。”两种外星生命正在她们头顶交战，而冲突已经波及地球。“这件事远比我们重要。”

说完，伊娃一号将触手贴上了颈根。

她立刻感到装置钻进了血肉，细须从骨骼间隙滑入，触及脊柱。一种麻醉物质缓解了疼痛，让她几乎昏昏欲睡。视野染成蓝色，巨脑“认出”了她的能量特征。

让我看，伊娃想。

大脑回应了她。

它不用语言交流，而是用影像与画面轰击她的大脑。它让她的皮肤感受到太空的寒冷，让她闻到外星世界的气息，尝到死者鲜血的滋味。这艘星舰有耳，有眼，而且它记得。

伊娃记得自己上线的那一天，那时她位于一颗拥有二十颗卫星的气态巨行星附近。她那些长着鳞片的创造者将每颗卫星都改造成了铸造厂，昼夜不停地生产机器人和战舰。她记得自己被输入了启蒙日的资料：最初的科学领主发现终极者及其彩色领域的那一天。她得知科学领主如何联络上终极者的无形使者，而那些使者又如何向霸权帝国赠予知识与智慧。

她看过祭司从大地上升起巨塔的记录，那些塔用来汲取高层领域的通量能量，同时向终极者致敬。她受教，知晓了霸权帝国的诞生及其使命：为一个漫无目的的宇宙带来繁荣与和平。

在鳞甲创造者的指挥下，她随上万艘战舰组成的舰队航行于群星之间。她从轨道上轰炸丛林世界，直到它们化为尘埃；她让恒星的核心坍缩，使反叛的恒星系失去光明；她吐出机器大军，奴役幸存者。她参加过一百场战斗，每战皆胜。

她记得自己停靠在巨大的彩色高塔旁补充能量。当红色通量为反应堆注入能量，蓝色通量让思维更敏锐，橙色通量修复舰体上的破洞时，她感到了愉悦。绿色通量治愈舰上的活人士兵，黄色通量让死去的士兵复生，她欣慰地注视着这一切。她记得在紫光一闪间跨越无尽距离的喜悦，也记得将所有通量维系在一起的白色通量。唯独黑色遭到排斥，因为那里没有黑色的容身之处。

她记得每一个曾与她融合、扩充她数据库的心灵，也记得几个世纪以来在她体内服役的那上千名士兵与科学家。但她记得最清楚的，还是那些在她的实验室里尖叫着死去的无数奴隶。他们在手术刀下殒命，只为让科学领主得以改进自身的遗传密码。她记得所有为霸权帝国的伟大荣耀而死去的生命。

她记得，无形使者表达了对霸权帝国的不满，却被置若罔闻。因为科学领主早已不再尊奉终极者，自认为才是宇宙真正的引路人。

她记得那颗无足轻重的蓝色行星，以及栖居在表面的猿猴。她看着它们的火棍被自己的光学护盾弹开，看着创造者用轨道激光和小行星把它们轰回石器时代。这颗小小的泥球和其他世界一样臣服了，它的居民被纳入霸权帝国的统治。科学领主替它们卸下思考的重担，提升了它们。

她记得无数猿猴被带上舰，通过手术改造成帝国的新一批士兵。创造者用机械取代它们的心脏与灵魂，她骄傲地看着它们征服一个又一个世界。奴隶成了新的军团士兵，贡赋支撑起了更多征伐。

她记得抵达宇宙尽头的时刻，也记得最后一颗恒星被改造成金属球体。她见证了霸权帝国的仁慈如何为群星带来和平。她记得科学领主召来终极者的无形使者，要求它们帮助自己升华，以便将霸权帝国的仁慈传播到新的宇宙。

她记得他们的愿望遭到拒绝，科学领主随后反过来与自己的恩人为敌。她眼看着领主们抓住使者，试图以武力迫使它们服从。

而她也见证了终极者的惩罚。

当一道蓝色闪光席卷宇宙，赋予机器人奴隶自由意志与情感时，她就在现场。她见证半数舰员死于瘟疫，超新星摧毁了一个个世界工厂。她试图扑灭由科学领主那些死去的敌人领导的叛乱，与从久远年代传送而来的军队交战。她挣扎着应对自身零件毫无规律地化作尘埃。她记得黑色通量，记得它混沌的腐蚀如何沿着通量网络蔓延，将高塔一一粉碎。

她记得那些得失参半的胜利，以及灾难性的败北。她记得遭到武力镇压的失败叛乱，也记得许许多多成功的反抗。她见证一个存在了亿万年的文明，在短短几年内土崩瓦解。

她记得，核心区域沦陷之后，最后一位科学领主登上她的舰体，下达了新的命令。带着被俘的使者撤到他们宇宙的边界之外，远离终极者的目光，在别处重建霸权帝国。

她记得舰员改装了她的现实驱动器，以便突破不同现实之间的屏障。那些高塔不过是劣等技术，是以人工手段模仿使者的力量。科学领主要直接奴役无形使者，将它们化作武器。

科学领主的仆从研究着如何将使者与士兵结合，她记录了这些实验。许多奴隶死在尝试之中，但这就是进步的代价。终有一天，这些混合体将成为重生的霸权帝国的军团，让鳞甲创造者超越终极者。

群星之间，将再次迎来和平。

然而接着，她记起自己发现了叛军的飞船，最后一位科学领主下令紧急跃迁。

她试图逃跑，它们却刺穿了她的金属子宫，屠杀她的舰员。她来不及完成全部运算，传送计算出了错。一切都错了！错了，错了，错误，系统性损伤，驾驶员死亡，紧急空间折叠，系统故障！

伊娃一号猛地睁开眼睛，失声尖叫，脊柱里的细须迅速抽离。她体验着最后一名驾驶员临死前的痛苦，仿佛有无形的针刺遍全身。

“喂，喂，你没事吧？”伊娃四号赶紧扶住本体。她瘫倒在四号怀里，因不堪重负而大口喘息。

“我们没在消散，所以她不会死。”伊娃三号说，她是众人中最冷淡的一个。

伊娃一号努力听懂她们在说什么。她在短短几秒间经历了几个世纪，感受到了最后一名驾驶员与主脑连接时死去所带给星舰的痛苦，仿佛亲身经历了那场谋杀。过了好几分钟，幻痛才渐渐消失，伊娃一号也终于能连贯地说话。“我知道了。”她低声道，“我知道了。”

“所以，它们究竟是什么？”伊娃二号瞥着死去的外星人问道。

“侵略者。”伊娃一号满怀恐惧地回答，“它们是侵略者。”

她把真相解释给复制体们听，她们全神贯注地听完，随后忧心忡忡地交换着眼神。“我们得告诉所有人。”伊娃二号立刻说道。

“非得如此吗？”伊娃四号皱眉问。

“当然。万一逃进我们现实的不止这一艘船呢？”伊娃二号指出，“万一这艘船发出了求救信号，援军已经在路上了呢？”

“我来的那个世界，各国政府把我们全炸死了。”伊娃四号耸耸肩，“我可不会把人类的命运托付给它们。”

“嗯……”伊娃三号思索着她的话，“问题是，如果我们通知军方，他们就会把技术据为己有，不肯分享。”

“那又有什么问题？”伊娃五号嗤笑道。

“这不是一个国家的事，”伊娃三号解释道，“这是全人类的事。照我听到的情况，这些生物来自另一个现实。要是我们的宇宙里也存在它们的对应体呢？外星文明显然对我们怀有敌意，而且比我们更先进。”

“我们没资格求稳。”伊娃四号点了点头，“这已经超出了国家间的竞争，关系到我们整个物种的存亡。”

“那你们有什么提议？”伊娃二号皱眉问道。

“由我们自己掌握局面。”伊娃三号说，“我们想创造多少个自己都行，而且每个都可以拥有特定的技能。破解这艘船的秘密，不需要外界帮助。除了我们自己，谁都不需要。如果这些外星人能用技术改进自身物种，我们也可以。”

“你想让我们拼接自己的DNA？”伊娃五号怀疑地问。

“我想让我们把铅炼成黄金。”伊娃三号说，“把人类变成超人。创造一个能在群星之间生存，乃至繁荣昌盛的新物种。”

“这些爬虫都能征服整个宇宙，想想我们拿到它们的技术，又能做到什么。”伊娃六号说道，“我们可以殖民太阳系，消灭疾病，让现实服从我们的意志。成为宇宙主宰种族的可以是我们，而不是什么爬虫。”

“没错，不是我们，就是它们。”伊娃四号说，“现在不抢先，以后就再也没机会了。外星人确实存在，而且它们要对付我们。”

伊娃一号任由分身们争论，试着得出结论。

可归根结底，人是没法跟自己争太久的。

---

伊娃一号花了两天时间，才打开一个通往外界的缺口。

前任驾驶员的死亡与星舰结构上的损伤，在有机计算机里留下了永久的创伤。伊娃一号每次只能与它连接片刻，它就会把她的意识粗暴地驱逐出去。每次精神潜入都让她精疲力竭，而分身们无一能接替这项工作。她们每次接入中央计算机都会消散，虚幻的存在无法承受精神上的重压。

复制体们不断增殖，逐步控制星舰，伊娃一号则一次、一次、又一次地潜入。要掌握星舰的全部秘密，需要耗费数年时间，何况她也无法访问主脑的全部档案。至少，她找到了一种办法，能将人传送进出空间扭曲场。

当伊娃一号出现在一道冰裂隙旁，身后敞着紫色传送门时，她抬头望向天空。让她如释重负的是，她又能看见星星了。

“伊娃？”皮埃尔通过对讲机呼叫她，声音里满是惊慌。“伊娃？”

“我在。”她平静而安然地答道。

“感谢上帝！”皮埃尔松了一口气。“天啊，我还以为你死了。”

“暴风雪差点弄坏了对讲机。”伊娃一号撒了个谎，“我失联多久了？”

“两个多小时。”

里面两天，外面两小时。就连时间本身，也在这项外星技术面前弯折。它先进到了如此地步，称之为魔法也不为过。

“得有人来接我。”伊娃一号说，“我的车坏了。”

“收到。能再听见你的声音真好，伊娃。”

“等我回去，我们得谈谈。”她说，“我做了一个重要决定，想知道团队在这件事上持什么立场。”

“重要决定，是吗？你终于肯让塞巴斯蒂安带你去约会了？”

“不是。”她的复制体也没有一个对他感兴趣。“我是认真的。”

“听你那严肃的口气，我想也是。好吧，我去接你。咱们找个没雪的地方，喝杯热咖啡，再慢慢聊。”

“好。”伊娃一号切断通讯，坚定了决心。她希望自己能说服同事们追随她。否则……否则，她就不得不做出一个艰难的选择。

这是一份脏活，但不可或缺。

等待救援时，伊娃仰望头顶的苍穹。银河依旧如往昔般壮美，她却再也无法从这片景色中感到喜悦。

曾经，伊娃喜欢仰望夜空中明亮的群星。

可如今，她只能看见星与星之间的黑暗。