“So, this is the place they all come to forget,” mumbled Matere, standing atop a hill as he glanced across a wide depression. “The famous Dusk Quadrant.”

Wide, grassy plains sunk to a deep valley. In the center stood an arching gateway. Above the valley, in stair-step fashion, wide panels hovered, casting progressively darker shadows the closer they came to the gateway. In the distance, countless Slipshot Silos littered the horizon.

From the portal, small dots of people that looked like insects emerged and entered, a regular, spare flow. A distant pop was followed by a deep rumble.

Matere turned towards Betel, who gazed upon the portal with cool, gray eyes.

“Shall we go check it out?”

Betel shook her head. “What if the Slaves notice us? These are dangerous times for us, you know.”

“They won’t because they can’t,” said Matere. “Once they’re inside, they’re shut off from the Tenddrome. That’s the reason they go there in the first place. So, they won’t know that we aren’t Nodes within their system. We’ll just be just two bodies among many.”

Betel scoffed. “You hope. They still have their eyes. They can see that we’re different, Matere. It doesn’t matter if they’re shut off from the Tenddrome or not.”

“It matters a great deal. Most of them will be, how shall I say it, under the influence. Once they step inside that door, they won’t have a care in the world. That’s the whole point of the Dusk Quadrant, according to the original spec. It was designed so that they could let loose, so to speak.”

“It’s hard to imagine that designed creatures need to let loose,” grumbled Betel.

Matere paused. “The original Engineers designed them in their likeness. So, it shouldn’t be a mystery. One need only look in the mirror, Betel.”

“And suddenly the great Matere Songgaard has grown so high and mighty,” said Betel, a mocking tone in her voice.

Matere sighed. “We’ll just wait until there’s a clearing so we can sneak in while no one on the outside can see us.”

“Specs change, Matere. You should know this by now. The Slaves and the Tenddrome are not the same as they were when the original Engineers implemented them. Systems have evolved. They’re bigger and more intelligent now. If we go in there, we’ll be getting into something that we know very little about.”

Matere paused. “Well, what else then? We have to try to understand what’s going on here. And the way things are headed, it could be the end of Griddish if we don’t do anything. This could be the Slaves’ one weak point.”

Betel sighed deeply. “And once we’re inside?” she said.

Matere sighed. “We’ll see.”

Betel shook her head. “That’s what I was afraid of.”