Emma made coffee.
Physical coffee. In physical kitchen. In physical body. Simple ritual performed in simple space. No network interface. No consciousness synthesis. No cosmic restructuring. Just morning. Just caffeine. Just human routine.
River materialized in the doorway. Not physically—her body was elsewhere, interfacing with the meta-network, helping The Architects teach species how to approach Source safely. But her consciousness projected. Present enough to seem embodied. Familiar enough to feel like daughter visiting mother.
"You're not connected," River observed. "You're completely isolated. No network presence. No ghost protocols. No Source contact. Just you. Just individual consciousness. Just human."
