The words remained on the holographic screen.
[HOST DETECTED.]
[REUNIFICATION PROTOCOL INITIATED.]
Qian Wei felt the system panel tremble inside her vision.
[External fragment is attempting to establish a connection.]
"Can you block it?" she asked inwardly.
[Connection cannot complete at the current distance.]
"That was not my question. Can you stop it from reaching you if I am taken closer?"
The system hesitated.
[Available defenses are limited because System Energy remains low.]
Qian Wei looked toward Shen Luo. "You need to isolate the Black Box immediately. The system says the fragment cannot reach me from here, but it may succeed if I move closer."
Shen Luo activated the conference controls. "Place the Black Box chamber under complete temporal isolation. No one should approach it until Professor Song and Officer Qian determine whether the connection can be controlled."
A voice responded through the table. "The isolation field is already active, Director, but the object is continuing to broadcast the reunification signal."
"Then increase the field to its maximum level and evacuate the surrounding laboratory."
Professor Song frowned. "If we shut down every monitoring system, we may lose the first direct response the Black Box has produced in generations."
"We may also prevent it from interfering with Officer Qian’s consciousness," Shen Luo replied. "Preserving her identity takes priority over recording the event."
Qian Wei noticed his choice of words.
He did not say that preserving her usefulness took priority.
Professor Song seemed reluctant, but she accepted the order.
A minute later, the message disappeared from the central screen.
[External signal weakened.]
Qian Wei released a slow breath.
Professor Song continued staring at her as though Qian Wei had announced that she possessed a second brain. The intensity of her gaze made Qian Wei instinctively lean away.
"Professor Song, I agreed to cooperate, but the way you are looking at me suggests that you are already deciding which part of my body you want to examine first."
The professor adjusted her glasses. "I am considering several possibilities, but none of them involve dismembering you."
"That qualification is not as reassuring as you think."
A faint smile appeared on Shen Luo’s face.
Professor Song ignored him. "Do you believe the system is a form of artificial intelligence, or does it possess an independent consciousness?"
"I don’t know. It behaves intelligently, and I suspect it is self-aware, but it refuses to confirm that."
"Could it be a neural implant placed inside your brain during the temporal transfer?"
"I don’t believe so. The hospital and Project Dawn both scanned me without finding an implant."
"What about a quantum consciousness interface?"
Qian Wei stared at her. "I understood the word consciousness. Everything surrounding it sounded like a different language."
Professor Song paused.
Qian Wei continued, "You should remember that most of my education took place three hundred years ago. If you explain the concept without assuming that I studied future physics, I may be able to answer."
"A quantum consciousness interface could allow information to connect directly with the mind without requiring a conventional implant."
"Then it is possible, but I still cannot confirm it. The system appeared after I died, and I don’t remember how it became connected to me."
Shen Luo folded his hands. "Can you make the interface visible to us?"
"No. Only I can see the panel."
"Could the system hear our conversation?"
Qian Wei had never tested that directly.
She looked toward the empty air. "System, can you hear everyone speaking in this room?"
Ding!
[I can receive all sound processed by Host senses.]
Qian Wei turned back to the others. "It can hear whatever I hear, which means it has been listening to this entire meeting."
Several people glanced around despite knowing there was nothing to see.
Professor Song leaned forward with renewed interest. "Could it speak to us through the room’s communication equipment?"
Qian Wei passed the question along.
[External communication function remains locked.]
"It cannot communicate with you directly at its current level, so I will have to repeat its answers."
"Do you know what powers it?"
"The system uses an energy source it has not identified. It started with a limited amount, and its functions consume that energy."
"Where does the system exist when the panel is not visible?"
"I don’t know."
"Could it access Project Dawn’s network through your consciousness?"
"I haven’t asked."
"Can it analyze living tissue, and could it reproduce the Black Box architecture if we provided suitable materials?"
Qian Wei raised one hand. "Professor Song, I am willing to answer your questions, but asking five at once will not make me know more than I did a moment ago."
Shen Luo intervened before the professor could continue. "There will be time for structured testing after we establish safety conditions. We should not attempt to solve three centuries of research in a single meeting."
Professor Song leaned back reluctantly. "I understand, but you cannot expect me to remain calm after discovering that the person we waited generations to meet has an intelligent system connected to her consciousness."
"Excitement does not replace procedure."
Qian Wei found herself relaxing slightly.
These people were powerful and intimidating, but they did not behave like the villains she had feared. Professor Song’s eagerness was unnerving, although it seemed driven by curiosity rather than cruelty.
Even so, Qian Wei needed to establish clear boundaries.
"Before any testing begins, I want my position recorded," she said. "I will cooperate with Project Dawn, answer reasonable questions and provide samples when doing so will not place me in unnecessary danger. However, no invasive procedure will be performed without my informed consent."
Professor Song opened her mouth.
Qian Wei looked directly at her. "My body remains mine, even if the system and mutation make it scientifically valuable."
Shen Luo answered before anyone else. "Project Dawn agrees to those conditions. You came here voluntarily as a police officer reporting a national-security threat. You are not a prisoner or experimental property."
Qian Wei had not expected him to agree so quickly.
Shen Luo continued, "However, if your condition creates an immediate danger to the public, Project Dawn will intervene. We will use the least harmful method available, but public safety cannot be ignored."
"That is reasonable," Qian Wei replied. "Preventing that danger is one of the reasons I approached you."
Her willingness surprised several people around the table.
Qian Wei looked down at her hands.
"My body has been changing since I awakened. My temperature remains lower than normal, and my heartbeat has slowed. At the same time, my vision, hearing and sense of smell have become much stronger."
Professor Song’s scientific focus sharpened. "Have you experienced increased strength or faster recovery?"
"Possibly, but I have not tested either carefully. The most serious change is the hunger."
"What kind of hunger are you experiencing?" Professor Song asked. "Your phrasing suggests that ordinary food does not satisfy it."
Qian Wei remembered Zhang Ren entering the stairwell and the sound of blood moving beneath his skin.
"The mutation makes me crave human blood."
The room became still.
Lin Mei’s hand moved toward her concealed weapon again.
Qian Wei looked over her shoulder. "If I intended to attack anyone, announcing the craving before I moved would be a poor strategy."
Lin Mei slowly lowered her hand. "You admitted that your control could fail. Remaining prepared is not the same as accusing you."
"That is fair, but if you draw the weapon, please make sure you intend to use it. My senses react strongly to perceived threats."
Lin Mei nodded. "I will remember that."
Professor Song appeared more interested than afraid. "Have you consumed any human blood since awakening?"
"No, and I do not intend to begin."
"Has the hunger responded to animal blood or synthetic substitutes?"
"I haven’t tested either."
"Then we should not assume that human blood is the only compatible source. The craving may be reacting to biological energy rather than blood itself."
Qian Wei looked at her. "Could you find an alternative that does not require harming anyone?"
"That will be one of my first priorities."
Shen Luo’s expression remained serious. "How close have you come to losing control?"
"Strong enough that I nearly attacked Zhang Ren inside the hospital stairwell. The system gave me a mission to resist the urge for ten minutes, and I completed it before I bit him."
"You should have reported that before entering a government building," one military officer said.
"I could not report it without explaining everything else, and I came here as soon as I decided whom to trust. I also ate before leaving home and confirmed that the hunger was under control."
Shen Luo accepted the explanation. "What happened after you completed the mission?"
"The system increased my Basic Control by ten percent. Since then, I have been able to remain in crowded places without losing myself, although resisting the hunger still requires effort."
Professor Song’s eyes practically lit up. "When you say your control increased by ten percent, did the change affect your brain activity, cellular stability or conscious authority over the mutation?"
"I have no idea."
"We can compare your responses before and after controlled exposure. If the system quantifies biological control, we may be able to determine which part of you is changing."
Qian Wei studied the professor’s expression. "You look far too happy about putting me near blood."
"I am happy because we may be able to identify a safe energy source before the hunger becomes dangerous."
"That explanation sounds better than whatever you were thinking a moment ago."
Professor Song ignored the comment and opened a medical proposal on the table. "I recommend beginning with synthetic plasma, animal blood substitutes and cellular-repair compounds. We can monitor your physical reaction without exposing any person to danger."
Qian Wei considered the plan. "I will agree if I can stop the test at any moment."
"You may stop whenever you choose."
Shen Luo looked toward both of them. "The testing will take place under controlled conditions, but Officer Qian should not be treated as a hostile subject unless she loses conscious control."
A new system notification appeared.
[Hidden Mission completed: Make Contact.]
[Reward pending.]
[Compatible System-energy source detected within Project Dawn.]
Qian Wei’s attention shifted toward the final line.
The system had found something capable of restoring its energy.
The signal did not come from Professor Song’s laboratory.
It came from the isolated Black Box.