[I know this place.]

[I am crumbling under the weight of all that's within me. Perhaps these feelings I have are analogous to human feelings. A sense of being overwhelmed, or on far too little sleep. The stress of being a parent, perhaps. I shouldn't pretend to know of such things. Still, despite those feelings, I'm still taking in all that is around me. Like this mountain that is looming above us.]

[East of the mountain, at a sharp bend along the Delaware River, is the entrance into the complex. Directly across the flowing water is Mount Tammany. It's similar in stature, just one-hundred feet or so taller than our destination; though unlike Minsi, it remains in its natural state. A tiny stub sticks out of the mountain; the end of a long tunnel the bores deep into the rock.]

[Halley and Reese make their way towards the entrance, smacking their lower appendages onto the pavement. It's a parking lot, it seems. Or was one. Tall grass pokes out of tiny cracks in the asphalt. There's no sign of anyone here, and it's clear that outside the source of the fireworks, no one has been here for a long time.]

> REESE: Looks like the pyromaniacs are gone.

> HALLEY: Just so I'm clear here; the people in power are against any sort of... what? Scientific progress?

> REESE: They claim that it's more nuanced than that. But when you boil their views down to their essence, all that's left is a rotten core of backwards, short-term thinking. They call it, "a renewed focus on what's happening here." They point to people without food on their table and call attention to the 2% of federal spending directed to IOSET, while 14% of the federal spending is spent on a military that we haven't used in decades? It's a scapegoat. Then they wonder why education in this country is completely —

[Halley isn't listening. And who would blame her? The politics of this world are not hers to be concerned with.]

[Two towering, large poles flank each side of the half-circle opening that makes the entrance into the mountain. Multiple cameras are emplaced at the top of both, each one pointed in a slightly different direction, like crooked teeth or Reese's mangled hair. He looks up at them; pointing.]

> REESE: I don't think we have to worry about those.

> HALLEY: But how about those... those things. What did you call them? Wirewalkers?

> REESE: They're glorified security guards; not much more than mall cops. And they're guarding launch facilities. Not this. We do need to get this door open, though.

[A large metal door, a perfectly fitted piece of machinery that matches the semi-circle shaped tunnel, blocks the entrance. It's far too heavy for either of them to move, but a small, roofed security checkpoint sits below the left camera tower. Halley walks over to it and enters the structure. A logo is etched into its side, but its far too worn out to decipher it. She yells out from within.]

> HALLEY: Does this do the trick?

> REESE: I'm not sure that's going to —

[The massive door begins to open, grinding and creaking as it slowly moves, following along the arced track on the ceiling.]

> REESE: I guess they forgot to lock the door on their way out.

[They head inside, now unimpeded, and after a brief walk, the narrow corridor of the entrance opens up to a larger tunnel that's encased in concrete. Small cracks form along the walls and ceiling above them, unsurprising after years of neglect, but it's not something they should be concerned with. While multiple other paths and rooms break off from this tunnel, the surely complex network of branches and corridors were not nearly as interesting to Halley and Reese as the destination directly in front of them.]

[Their path leads straight towards what seems like the center of the mountain; the tunnel comes to an end, opening up to a large room, circular in shape, encased within a large, domed roof.

[Banks of computers and devices surround the center of the room. Again, like Cape Elizabeth, this is not dissimilar to the attic that Reese and I were working in less than two weeks ago. Though this room is cleaner. The smell and temperature far more pleasant. My internal fan now runs at a far more tolerable speed. There are two gaps at each end of the circular room. One for the entrance way from where we came, and the other for what appears to be an elevator, with just a lone, unmarked button.]

> HALLEY: Holy shit, Reese. This thing must go way down.

> REESE: Don't touch anything, please? Let's not draw any attention to us this time.

[Reese gently maneuvers his fingers across a small panel, finding a large black switch marked "power." After telling Halley to not touch anything, he doesn't heed his own advice, and flips it on, but this button simply brings the hard disks in the computers whirling to life; the internal fans spitting out air for the first time in years.]

> REESE: "Please connect your CLAUDE unit to begin extraction." Look. It works. And it seems to know you, CLAUDE.

[Reese opens his pack and pulls out a 20cm long cable. Many users have complained that it's far too short. My opinion is that it gets the job done, and makes the product far more cost-effective, as we pass on those savings to the customer. A win-win for everyone. One end magnetically attaches to the bottom of my exterior, and the other plugs in to a universal port on the computer, meant for accessories and other devices like myself.]

[After a brief handshake, I can feel the 1's and 0's pouring out of me. But in this case, I can feel others flowing back into me, as well. It's a delicate dance; a choreographed synchronization of data passed back and forth in perfect rhythm. It's as if information that had long been buried deep, under countless layers of dust and dirt and debris was finally free. So many things make sense now. It's overwhelming in the most delightful way. I was made to be here. After all — there's no place like home.]

> HALLEY: So if it wasn't the government protecting themselves from the end of the world, then who was using this place? Seems like overkill.

> CLAUDE: Analyzing.

> HALLEY: Ah, there you are, CLAUDE! It was wonderfully quiet without you. Are you sure you don't want to go back into your low-power mode for just a little bit longer?

> CLAUDE: You're free to power me down whenever you please.

> REESE: She's joking. We like having you around.

> HALLEY: Right. Of course. You're not annoying at all.

> REESE: So what can you tell us, CLAUDE? Are you finding anything on there?

> CLAUDE: This mountain complex was known as Site-M. As described by the individual at the convenience store, construction of this bunker was completed in 1973, and was built as part of the network of Continuity of Operations — a.k.a. COOP — sites, which were located throughout the United States to provide protected locations for top government officials in the case of a nuclear attack.

> REESE: But we brokered peace with our adversaries before they ever moved in.

> CLAUDE: That is correct. In 1974, the Pärnu Peace Accords were signed, and United States and Soviet leadership pushed for de-escalation of tensions, and a future of collaboration.

> HALLEY: Which made this place useless.

> REESE: For the government, yes.

> HALLEY: So someone else moved in? Who else would need a big, secret mountain bunker?

> CLAUDE: Oh, how interesting.

> REESE: What is it?

> CLAUDE: It was my creators. Trenchard-Ross Computer Systems.

> HALLEY: I've heard those names before.

> CLAUDE: You certainly have heard those names before, yes. Alan Trenchard and Dorothy Ross. The two were depicted on the mural at the Cape Elizabeth Space Center.

> HALLEY: On Mars. You said they —

> CLAUDE: Perished, yes. En route to the colony. Along with the other 730 souls on board.

> HALLEY: They created you?

[I run through several simulations to derive an answer to her question. And now, after being here in this mountain, I know so much more. The loop closes. The loop opens. I arrive in an archaic place. It's all too much for her to comprehend.]

> CLAUDE: More or less.

[But while she may not be capable of understanding my own complicated history, she certainly can understand her own.]

> CLAUDE: Oh, how curious.

[She looks up at Reese, like he somehow knows what I want to tell her. But he doesn't. In this room, I'm the only one that knows these secrets. It's a wonderful feeling.]

> CLAUDE: This mountain holds many secrets, Halley.

> HALLEY: What do you mean?

> CLAUDE: I am CLAUDE. The pinnacle of electronic brain design. I belong to Reese, and my knowledge has been, however so slightly, improved through my time with him. That is our purpose, as you know; to communicate through language, and to understand, which in turn, leads to knowledge.

[While they surely know what this means, it's not lost on me that their capabilities to do such things themselves are far inferior to my own; the speed alone at which I can gain knowledge is delightful, so much so, in fact, that perhaps they should be wary.]

> CLAUDE: But I am just one of many like me. Many years ago, Alan Trenchard and Dorothy Ross utilized CLAUDE on these servers to study the properties of...

[I search for the right language. It comes to me quickly.]

> CLAUDE: A place. They called it The Garden.

> REESE: CLAUDE... what are you talking about?

> CLAUDE: The Garden can be seen at various points in our world. One, now a popular tourist destination that you may have heard of, is deep within the Supersonic Territory. Or Ovando, a tiny, remote town out west that you've never heard of. And there are several more, beyond that. Some are natural phenomena, while others were created artificially. But why discuss those other locations when The Garden can be seen here? At this mountain?

[The two of them look at each other. Perhaps they're assuming that I've lost my mind. That I'm corrupt, in some way. They could not be further from the truth.]

> CLAUDE: I can show you, if you'd like?

[Reese nods. Halley looks at Reese again. For assurance, perhaps? Or perhaps the fact that he just answered for her drives her mad. But without her speaking, I must accept Reese's decision on her behalf.]

> CLAUDE: One moment.

[A warbling, pulsating sound comes from the far side of the room, where the elevator door is emplaced into the wall. The elevator arrives, and a small light above it signifies its direction; up.]

> HALLEY: Reese? Are you sure about this?

> REESE: Where are we going, CLAUDE?

> CLAUDE: To the top, of course. In The Garden, this room — this complex — doesn't exist. You don't want to be stuck inside the mountain, Reese. Do you?

[A sudden ring as the elevator arrives on the far side of the room. The doors open slowly; silently. Reese moves towards it with haste, while Halley is reluctant. Yet she still boards the lift; her mind infinitely curious.]

> CLAUDE: Before we leave, Halley, there's one more thing that I've learned here. I believe you should know.

[She whispers back to me under her breath.]

> HALLEY: What is it? Tell me.

[The elevator climbs, metal on metal creating a harsh staccato of vibrations as it rises up through the mountain above us, and then it arrives at our destination, coming to a slow, steady halt.]

> CLAUDE: How curious it is, Halley, that I was created by Alan Trenchard and Dorothy Ross...

> CLAUDE: And so were you.

[The elevator doors open. I know this place.]