“Oh,” I growl, “I’ve got it in me alright. My hand moves to flip open the glass shield. At the same time, Tess darts forward and strikes out with her claws towards my hand. The glass is open, and Tess is there, her claws come down upon me like a meat cleaver, and I’m almost at the button but she’s here and argh ARGH my hand is cut sliced gone and there’s blood and . . . everything . . . slows . . . down.

I watch in slow motion as Tess severs the rest of my left hand, her claws burying themselves in the front of the control panel on the follow through. I watch as my fingers aren’t there to push the button, and I watch as the hand falls, like a snowflake through the air, landing serenely, precisely on top of the red button. Click. I win. And everything moves back to real time.

The terminal initiates a loud beeping sound and the screen flashes the words “NUCLEAR LAUNCH INITIATED” over and over. Sirens scream throughout the building. Tess rips her claws out of the console and turns on me, snarling. Cradling my broken and bleeding arm, I slump against the control panel, relieved. Momentarily, I forget the pain and Tess and everything that I am about to destroy and feel only the deepest sense of calm. I did it.

The moment doesn’t last long. “You!” Tess screams, unable to decide whether to run or to kill me or to stand there looking confused. Instead, she opts for yelling at me some more. “You come in here and ruin everything we have worked so hard to accomplish! The Awakening was for the betterment of all Mankind, you fool! We were going to free people from the confines of the meat, give them the gateway to the new reality! And you think you can . . . argh!” She pounds her fist into the metal wall, denting it slightly.

I can’t help myself. I just start laughing. The Awakening has been prevented, the corrupt and insane rulers of the world will be destroyed and I finally get a chance to rest. Seems like a pretty good trade, all things considered.

Tess looks up at the ceiling, true fear in her eyes for the first time. “It’s here,” she says, and I can almost imagine seeing a tear welling in her eye. Way to go, Jack. Way to not fuck up, for once.

A second later, the ground begins to shake, and then everything is white light.

End.