"Oh yeah. There's still a China, but they took an enormous loss."

"Oh, I hadn't thought to ask. That's good, I think China represents the oldest continuous civilization in human history. It would be a terrible shame to lose that, even on top of the loss of human life."

"It sort of depends on how you count 'continuous civilization', I think."

"It's got some pretty damn important culture regardless, but I suppose so."

"Some culture was lost. A lot of landmarks are unrecognizable. Some of the more regionally concentrated ethnic groups were all but wiped out."

"Yep. I mean, I know some things that aren't military history. It's not that expensive to maintain a decent library for other things. I read fiction sometimes, or stuff about economics or philosophy or whatever strikes my fancy. Especially since Tactical School has basically no games around, while Battle School was brimful."

"Reading's nice. I probably wouldn't have done very well at your games, I have problems caring positively about things that look like they should have minds behind them but don't."

"Well, then you wouldn't have liked the fantasy game, but some of the ones in the room you could play against the other kids if you didn't like the automatic."

"Fair enough. Of course it's moot, since there's literally no chance my dad would have been okay with sending me away to space military academy in the first place."

"Mine weren't thrilled. I had to talk them into it. Regular school was boring."

"Dad...has issues with legal authority. Which considering what the legal authority in Germany decided to do when he was a kid isn't all that surprising. He's also...he loves my sister and I desperately. We're all the family he has. If he really honestly truly knew that sending us into space was the best thing for us, knew it beyond a shadow of a doubt, he'd do it. And it would break his heart."

"We... correspond. We don't have a lot to say to each other at this point though."

"I can imagine." She shivers. "I'm going to chalk that up as a fantastically minor but still extant reason to deal with this whole bug problem as quickly and efficiently as possible. And...keep the Institute open, let's see, how long did it last in your world..." flip flip

Did not long survive the death of its founder. Inspired some similar organizations, most of them not very stable, especially as integration efforts proceeded.

"Well, chalk that up as a fantastically minor but still extant reason to keep the Professor alive. And keep an eye out for baby you and offer her a scholarship."

"September 13, 2155. Forks, Washington. Isabella Marie Swan, daughter of police officer Charlie Swan and future kindergarten teacher Renée Higgenbotham Swan. However, a plurality of my alts were born in 1987, one a few years later, so if you get one closer to the mean rather than one who's just like me the date might be earlier. September 13 is consistent where applicable though, and the name is too except for the one who was born in a postapocaylptic dystopia and the non-Earthling... one was born on Earth but in California instead."

"Conveniently, we actually have deploying-things levels of access to public records. Well, half deploying things and half our genius used to work for the CIA. So don't wait a couple of hundred years to look for baby you to give a scholarship to, understood."

"And she's nearly guaranteed to have a dupe of my power if she's a mutant at all. The alts call it 'mental opacity' and those of us with ways to have powers in the first place get that one."

"Oh, that's interesting. I'd be...surprised if I had an alt who wasn't some kind of telepath, but that's a bit more relevant in day-to-day life."

"My power's indirectly relevant to me every day. ...Buy little me an exoskeleton from Milliways if you can swing it. We're also all really clumsy until something happens to fix that, like magic or turning into a vampire."

"True! Bar, if we have a little Aegis, can I buy her an exoskeleton?"

Yes. While it is military hardware, it is not a weapon per se.

"Awesome."

"And don't call her Aegis. We all pick distinguishing nicknames and she'll be annoyed if she gets here and hers is taken. So far it's Aegis for me and there's Golden, Stella, Juliet, Amariah, Shell Bell, and Angela."