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Chapters (56)
  1. Front Cover
  2. Title Page
  3. Copyright
  4. Contents
  5. Part One
  6. 1
  7. 2
  8. 3
  9. 4
  10. 5
  11. 6
  12. 7
  13. 8
  14. 9
  15. 10
  16. 11
  17. 12
  18. Part Two
  19. 13
  20. 14
  21. 15
  22. 16
  23. 17
  24. 18
  25. 19
  26. 20
  27. Part Three
  28. 21
  29. 22
  30. 23
  31. 24
  32. 25
  33. 26
  34. Part Four
  35. 27
  36. 28
  37. 29
  38. 30
  39. 31
  40. 32
  41. 33
  42. 34
  43. 35
  44. Part Five
  45. 36
  46. 37
  47. 38
  48. 39
  49. 40
  50. 41
  51. 42
  52. 43
  53. Epilogue
  54. Acknowledgments
  55. About the Author
  56. Back Cover

As it turns out, the morning passes as a blur. Even though just yesterday I was this strange and exciting anomaly everyone was talking about, today nobody seems to care.

Yesterday’s news.

One thing Profectus and St. Agnes students have in common: their ability to find new gossip to talk about.

Today at lunch, everyone is buzzing about the announcement from Moncha Corp that they’re going to drop a highly anticipated new baku: a gecko. It’s a level three, so it’s out of most people’s budget. But that doesn’t stop them from dreaming.

Apart from a few rich kids, most St. Agnes students have either a level one or two baku—meaning they will be subject to the update. I look around at my fellow students interacting with their bakus and friends in the cafeteria.

The group in the corner playing games with a pack of cards projected by their respective insect bakus.

The kids teaching their butterfly bakus to copy elaborate new hairstyles from the latest celebrities.

The group with dormouse bakus like Linus, designing elaborate mazes for them to run through and filming it for the most views.

They all have dreams and ambitions of their own.

Ambitions that shouldn’t be updated away in the name of an illusion of happiness.

The gecko news is also big because Moncha Corp normally only reveals new bakus at their annual convention, held two days after Christmas. Monica is the real Santa Claus for all of us tech geeks.

So if they were bringing out a new baku early, that could only mean one thing: something even bigger and better is being prepped for Christmas. The school forums are awash with bloggers and students alike speculating about what it could possibly be.

But all I can sense is dread. What if it’s the update? It eats away at the pit of my stomach. Plus, if Eric gives the speech, it will be the final nail in Monica’s coffin. He will become the new CEO in the public’s eyes, the face of Moncha Corp. I scroll through the tech sites, reading one opinion piece after another about how Monica’s absence is a sign she just doesn’t care about the company anymore. Some are wondering if she’s sick or somehow incapacitated, but almost all state it’s only a matter of time before the impressive Eric Smith takes the reins.