Humanity is not invaded or saved, but quietly assessed by Visitors who optimize systems without threats, demands, or explanations. The result is a future where stability hardens into lock-in and consent becomes irrelevant.
Inside the story
- Visitors optimize Earth without threats or explanations
- Alignment brings benefits until improvement becomes lock-in
- Institutions function perfectly, exposing what stability protects
- Mars chooses distance while Earth chooses optimization
- Told by a future historian who knows the ending
Preview pages
The Visitors did not arrive with demands. They arrived with metrics. The city became safer, the grid more stable, and the hospitals quiet.
