Uncanny Valley

"*$*+~''$%/**'"

Jack jerked his body around and stared at what had appeared behind him. Covered in purple fog was a humanoid creature staring right at him. Jack had lost balance and supported his body with one knee and one hand on the ground. He looked closely at the creature and did not move. The creature seemed non-aggressive and did not seem interested in fighting compared to his previous encounters. But Jack was ready for combat and had already decided how to take it out. Jack kept staring at the humanoid and slowly got up. He was standing about three meters away from it, and he thought that he would be able to melt its head before it could even react. But Jack was uncertain. So far, the abilities of the humanoids differed greatly. Some seemed stronger and more intelligent than others, and the one in front of him gave Jack an eerie impression.

"*$*+%/~''$+*+*%/'" the creature said.

"Is it speaking?" Jack said to the assistant.

"Yes. I have been computing a language framework since it was first spoken. It seems to be a version of an ancient language that was thought to have disappeared from this planet about 10,000 years ago. I have no record of this language in terms of its pronunciation, but I have data of written examples. I am currently developing a translation model using the data available to me, including research and scientific hypotheses regarding the pronunciation. If you can keep speaking for two more minutes, then I will be able to translate to some degree."

Jack looked at the humanoid for a moment. Then he waved his hands on both sides of his head to signal that he did not understand what the creature was saying. "It works on Earth, so why not here?" Jack said as he was fully strengthening his body to prepare for a fight. After the experience with the humanoid that could use telekinesis, he had been working on making his skin even harder as part of his normal meditation sessions.

"*$*+/~''$+*%+*/''$*+''$+*+/~''$+*" the creature said.

Jack, still trying to stall for time, pointed his finger at his chest and said, "Jack!" as if talking to a deaf person. Then he pointed at the creature and asked, "You?" Jack always glanced at the outside to make sure that the other humanoid or the legion of creatures were not making a move.

The humanoid looked confused or maybe indifferent. It had raised its head further and moved its chin up as if it was looking at the ceiling, but its eyes were still focusing on Jack.

"Got it," the assistant said. "It previously said something like: 'Hiding,' then 'One of us gone,' and lastly 'You not from here.' You should be able to speak to it now; I have added the new language and it will automatically switch if you focus on the creature."

"I understand you," Jack said.

Upon hearing the familiar words, the creature lowered its head again, its eyes still laser-focused on Jack. It had no facial expressions or emotions that could be read. Its body language was non-existent. Jack asked himself if he could detect how the humanoid felt or if this was just his imagination as he was looking at its dark skin that reminded him of those black avocados.

"You are not like us," the humanoid said.

"What are you doing here?" Jack asked, trying to take control of the conversation. He was not sure where this was going, but he did not get the impression that the creature was willing to speak for long.

The creature observed Jack for a moment, then answered, "Order."

Jack looked confused as he asked the assistant, "What does order mean?"

"It comes from the letter that means 'Structure' or 'System.' It likely refers to some type of social, religious, or natural hierarchy. I do not know the exact meaning," the assistant answered.

"What order?" Jack asked.

"All order," the creature answered as it stood still and looked at Jack sharply. It then continued, "From where."

"My home is far away. I came here as a visitor," Jack answered. "Why do you attack humans?"

"We do not," the creature answered.

"But you have killed humans," Jack said with a confused face, still occasionally glancing to the outside.

"Humans die," the creature said.

Jack felt like he was talking to a psychopath. All it wants is order, and it does not attack humans, but they die. "Where do you come from?" he asked.

"Always here," the creature answered.

"How do you control the creatures?" Jack kept asking.

"Creatures follow order," the creature answered.

"What is order?" Jack asked.

"Everything," the creature said as it started to slowly rise up and levitate in the air. Jack stared at it with a startled expression, and he felt like this conversation was over. All he would need to do is find a moment to disappear through a portal. He had closed the portal that he sent the vehicle through the moment the humanoid had appeared to secure his group's location. But now he must find an opening.

The creature's eyes started to shine ever so slightly, and Jack suddenly felt his legs getting very cold. His legs started feeling so numb that he almost felt like they were not attached to his body. Jack jumped up with all his power and crashed his hardened body straight through the ceiling of the building. He landed in an office on the second floor and rolled his body underneath a desk. As he was rolling, he created a window portal and rolled right through it. He landed on the ground about one kilometer away from the garage and got up immediately. He observed the humanoid from a distance and saw it scanning the second floor of the building. The other humanoid was still with the creatures outside and did not react to the commotion at all. Jack used another portal to jump to a distance of almost three kilometers to make sure that the creature could not find him. Jack then kept observing the other creature, which returned from the second floor and rejoined the creatures outside. They seemed to be indifferent to what just occurred, and the humanoid went back to seemingly guarding the garage.

Jack felt slightly relieved but also frightened. He sat on the ground and checked his legs. "Is all okay?"

"Yes, your legs have suddenly begun to cool at a rapid pace. It was equivalent to being submerged in liquid nitrogen. I am postulating that the creature has some type of advanced cooling ability. A normal human would have died instantly," the assistant said.

"This world is too dangerous. I seem to already be way stronger than most of the humans here, but these abilities really change the game. No matter how strong you are, one ability can kill you. Assistant, I need some type of detection ability. If that thing had attacked me instead of speaking, I could be dead right now," Jack said as he rested his elbows on his knees in deep contemplation.

Jack returned to the group and saw that everything was as he had left it. He removed the portal in front of the cave and looked at the car. It had rolled a few more meters, but it had stopped near the portal it came out of. Jack decided to say that he found the car by chance when he was looking to hunt for some food at night. It was not believable, but Jack preferred this over revealing his abilities and origin. The assistant had helped him to jailbreak the car so that it does not require any further keys to operate. Jack then spent the remaining hours of the night learning a new detection ability. Since it was closely related to the spatial abilities, the assistant did not have any objections. This ability allowed Jack to sense any moving objects within a certain radius based on the ubiquitous occurrence of Sym energy. It was exactly what he needed to feel more safe. Only after he had learned this ability would he realize how reckless he had been in his time on this planet.

The next morning, Jack sat outside the cave as the group was slowly waking up. Lance and his wife Gina came out first, followed by their children, Tim and Laura. Jack had mostly spoken with Lance during the last few days but had not spent much time with the rest of the family. The children also rarely spoke, likely due to the exhaustion of the trip, but they often just sat near him and looked at him. Then the remainder of the group returned, and he could see that Luz, who had regained his leg, was able to walk if he made sure not to put too much weight on the new leg.

"You let us all sleep again," Morena said as she rubbed her eyes and yawned.

"Yeah, I couldn't sleep anyway," Jack said as he sat on a rock with his hands resting on his legs.

"You are too kind," Ark said as he passed Jack while patting his shoulder. Ark went behind a rock to take a leak, but then quickly returned with a shocked and confused face. "There's a car!"

Morena looked at her brother with a skeptical expression and walked quickly behind the rock. She returned and with an almost indifferent face looked at Jack, saying, "Is that you again?"

"Oh, I found it while I was—" Jack attempted to answer.

"Going jogging? Or shopping?" Morena interrupted him with an almost angry smile.

"Well, who wants breakfast?" Jack asked while he revealed some packaged food items and showed them to the two teenagers.

Morena rolled her eyes and went back to the cave while Ark was standing at the same spot in confusion, unsure if he should check out the car or take a leak.

"Do you have the key?" Morena said.

"It's broken, it works without a key," Jack answered as he distributed some candy and bread to the children as well as sliding some to Morena as a bribe.

"Of course," Morena said as she grabbed the food packages and ate them with delight.

"It's better this way. The garage does not seem safe with what we saw earlier," Jack said as he looked at the ground, slightly fatigued from his nightly experiences.

"Thank you," Morena said, giving Jack a long look. Then she got up and joined her brother, who had taken the fastest leak of his life and was now sitting in the car and confirming that it really is the perfect ride for their upcoming trip to Gosi City. Ark had been filled with anxiety the entire trip, but he had not been this relieved since his journey started. When Jack healed his brother Luz's leg, Ark had been relieved, but he knew that their survival was still not guaranteed. If they had not been able to secure a vehicle, then their journey could have been a complete disaster due to a lack of food and water. Jack really was a shining light in this dark chapter of their lives.

Jack still sat in front of the cave and secretly observed the creatures through a window portal. The humanoids were slowly walking around the garage, while the creatures were standing still as if they were being forced into position by an invisible hand.

"What do you think these humanoid creatures are?" Jack asked the assistant.

"I have no data on them. At first I assumed they were humans that have mutated further, but its visual appearance and even its way of speaking… and thinking seemed distinctly non-human. I think they are either a new species that has developed recently or a very old one that has been missed for unknown reasons," the assistant said.

Jack got up and slowly walked toward the car while he was thinking deeply about the assistant's words. "An old species," Jack mumbled.

"What's an old species?" Laura said, slowly walking up behind Jack.

"Oh, nothing," Jack said, giving the girl a smile. "Are you ready for the trip?"

"Yes, everyone is already sitting in the car and waiting for you. You sit in the back since you were too late to call dibs. Tim sits in the front next to Ark who will be driving," Laura said with a sheepish smile.

"That's perfect, then I can get some rest as well," Jack said as he tapped his hand on Laura's shoulder and walked toward the car where the rest of the group were waiting. Sitting in the back would be ideal to screen the environment with his window portals. He will also have a lot of time to practice his detection ability and further increase its reach since visual screening is difficult and it is easy to miss important things. Detection is much more accurate and allows one to see everything rather than only what is brought into a visual focus.

Jack and Laura arrived in the car, which had eight seats, all in simple two-seat pairings like a long car. The two took their seats in the back and leaned back as Ark started the vehicle and let it slowly roll down the hill toward the city of Gosi. After a few minutes of driving on four wheels, Ark activated the levitation function, and the car slowly started to rise up and stabilize. It was the smoothest driving experience Jack had ever experienced with no bumps or noise. It made no sound whatsoever, rendering an electric car loud and noisy compared to this. This is how it must feel to ride on clouds, Jack thought as he closed his eyes and focused on detecting the environment. His current detection radius seemed small with approximately 300 meters in all directions. He was able to sense anything that moved, from rodents that were running around and even the smallest movements of ant-like insects that were walking over the ground. Further below, he could follow groundwater streams and create a full 3D image of his environment.

It would now be less than three hours until they would arrive in Gosi City. The levitating vehicle can easily reach speeds of up to 140 kilometers per hour even in this difficult terrain, which makes it the perfect transport option. Jack picked it because he just wanted to ride a flying car, but it turned out to be ideal. As he was further accumulating Sym energy and practiced his detection ability, he could hear Morena using the car's built-in communication device. She used it to contact their merchants' office in Gosi City and announce that they are all well and on their way. Jack could hear the great relief in the other person's voice since they must have been worried that they might have lost their important executives. At first, they were going over important decisions that needed to be made regarding their company, namely partnerships that were put on hold, meetings that had to be rescheduled, budgeting decisions, and other topics. Then Ark's wife suddenly entered the line, and Jack could hear the joy and tears in her voice. She must have been worried and had evacuated to Gosi City as they had lost contact with Ark and the rest.

After a long reconciliation time, the first person went back on the line and kept talking about the business as well as the situation in Gosi City. It had been attacked just like Jalk City, but with a comparatively smaller force of creatures. The city is currently on lockdown and has tightened its security measures. The military was guarding the city borders and was checking everyone for their documents and ID. Apparently, a human-like creature had infiltrated the city a week earlier and caused tremendous damage within the city. The attack has killed at least 100 citizens.

When Jack heard the news, he slowly opened his eyes, as he sensed the glares of Ark and Morena through the rearview mirror.