by Drew Cordell
The robot pushed me into a section of the house where a beautiful woman in her thirties approached. “Welcome, Mr. Ashton. Please head into the bathroom at your convenience and have a seat at the barber system before bathing. Once you’re ready, you can change into the clothes I left on the counter while you wait for your new ones. You can leave your old clothes and we’ll take care of them,” she told me.
“Thanks,” I replied as I wheeled myself into the bathroom. The floors were made of the same white stone and steam floated from a huge glass box I assumed was the bath. A mint-like aroma filled the large bathroom, and the door closed behind me after I had passed through. There was a large red leather chair with several robotic arms mounted to the back. The chair was coated in brilliant chrome, and the arms of the chair held various tools for cutting hair. I moved from the wheelchair to the barber chair, and a screen flashed before me with several options—pictures of me with different haircuts. I selected one that was shorter and a lot cleaner than what I had currently, and the robotic arms made quick work of my hair as I remained completely still, admiring the strange tech.
After my hair was done, I took off my clothes and opened the door to the bath. I stepped down on the glass steps carefully and waded into the hot water. It wasn’t exactly the same smell of the mint gum I used to chew in the Slums, but it was close enough to bring back strong memories. Inevitably, the scent brought back thoughts of Mary and the sticks of gum we would share. I then thought of the impossibility of my situation. The Government may have favored me for creating a Paragon Thought, but I had a feeling their goodwill would quickly fade if they learned the true extent of my treason.
I let loose a sigh of relief as I relaxed in the water; it was a luxury beyond anything I had ever known in my life. For the first time since I arrived, I thought of Caeldra, the girl who probably thought I was dead and was lost in an unfamiliar district, apparently betrayed by the Scavenger Guild. If anyone could survive, it was her. I was thankful she had been spared, but I wanted nothing more than to talk to her, to tell her I was all right. She would be dealing with her inner demons and the guilt of believing her actions led to my death. I knew the guilt she felt and wished I could reach out and let her know everything was okay.
Still, there was no way to tell exactly where Mindshift had ended up. We couldn’t allow the Government to get it, but I was powerless to do anything about it. I would have to find some way to get in contact with the Champions, to let them know I had infiltrated the Upper Level of New York and had the opportunity to gather unfathomable information for the Guild.
I submerged my freshly cut hair and scrubbed it. After pulling my head back above water, I slid into one of the underwater seats and relaxed as pressured jets massaged my back. I took the time to think about my situation, about Caeldra and what I would do for the Champions. There were still too many unknowns. I didn’t know if this was a trap, and I didn’t know what, if anything, my new title would permit me to do. Still, being the first of the Champions to ever see the Upper Level, or Olympus as Marwin had called it, was incredible. I had to be strong, now more than ever. I had to do everything in my power to keep my identity a secret and do everything I could to help the people in the Slums, to fight for the truth.
After a few more minutes, I got out of the bath and dried off with a soft white towel. I put on some underclothes made of the softest cloth I had felt in my life and sat back down in my wheelchair. The robot waiting outside wheeled me back to the tailor where my dress clothes were waiting.
“Ah, Baron Ashton. I do like the haircut,” Richard said.
The steward laid the clothes in front of me, a proud look on his face. The fabric had been shaped into a dark gray tunic and a fine pair of pants, trimmed in places with bright orange and featuring a button flap with dark metal buttons.
“All synthetic interior of course! It will regulate your body temperature to keep it just right. Do try them on; I’ll give you some privacy,” he said as he exited with the robot.
I picked up the clothing that was a lot lighter than it appeared and was shocked to see it was Nexweave. If I had a Nanotech module, I would be able to manipulate the cloth and change its appearance to anything I wanted. I realized at least one of the machines in the room was probably responsible for manipulating the cloth into the clothes I was wearing now, and that meant that I would have access to Nanotech. Having Nexweave and Nanotech would help, but I had no idea how to make my own modules and program them to meet my specifications if I needed to escape or go on some sort of espionage mission.
I tried on the fancy clothes, and they fit perfectly. I looked in the mirror and was surprised at how different I looked. The clean haircut and clothes made me look better than I ever had before, but it wasn’t me; everything was so foreign. I slipped on the polished leather shoes, and Richard walked back into the room giving me a smile.
“You look fantastic, Baron Ashton,” he said with a huge grin as he pulled a box from a shelf. “Baron Zaris will want these back eventually, but I’m going to lend you a watch and some cufflinks.”
The watch was mechanical and looked much fancier than the one that had belonged to my father—the one that I no longer had in my possession. The cufflinks looked like they were made of solid gold, something with immeasurable value. Gold was nonexistent in the Slums and anyone who tried to trade it was either trading some sort of modified brass or steel-coated lead that was colored with paint. I had been told it simply didn’t exist anymore and had been wiped out in the Great Flood of 2039—another lie.
“Are these gold?” I asked the steward as he attached them to the cuffs of my shirt.
“Oh yes, fine pieces in fact. You’ll be cautious not to lose them, sir,” he said as he finished.
After dressing, I was taken to a doctor to look at my leg with an advanced scanner. The man wore a white coat like the physicians in the Slums, but all of his equipment was stored in temporary cases that looked like they were built for travel. He nodded as he scanned my swollen leg.
“Well, Mr. Ashton. I’m not going to ask questions about your life in the Slums, but you were very lucky to survive. The doctor who performed this surgery did well with the procedure. I’m going to give you some meds to take over the next week and you’ll be fine,” he said with a smile.
I was given a few pill bottles and a set of instructions, then wheeled to Marwin Zaris’ study. It was a dark colored room with wooden bookshelves stacked high and filled with brightly colored books. It smelled almost exactly like the Guild Hall’s library. His desk was made of smooth, polished wood dark as night, and it had small trinkets positioned neatly in front of the massive holo display that covered most of the surface.
“Ah, Jacob, I barely recognize you!” Marwin exclaimed as he rose from his chair. “I hope you had a pleasant bath.”
“I did, thank you,” I answered politely as the robot wheeled me to the other side of the desk.
“Now, let’s discuss the business at hand – your commencement ceremony and the establishment of your house. Supreme Leader Adrihel will call you in front of the other houses and give you your Writ of Nobility, as well as grant you your property in Olympus. You will simply need to thank him, and then the feast in your honor will begin. After it’s over, you will be taken to your new home to get situated in your new lifestyle. I’ll be happy to help answer any questions you may have that your assigned Steward cannot answer, but Bracken is among the best.”
There were hundreds of questions racing through my mind.
“How will I earn money here?” I asked, aware of the staggering expense owning such an estate must cost.
“You’ll accrue revenue through taxes paid by citizens of the lower levels whose thoughts anchor to your Paragon Thought. The uniqueness of the thought and strength of the bond will determine your earnings, but you should expect to earn a hefty bonus as the Absolute Knowledge system catches up with its computations. Then, you’ll earn at least a few hundred units per day after that
.”
I was blown away. It was so much money. Why would I get paid so much for one thought I couldn’t remember? Marwin smiled at the look on my face.
“Welcome to nobility, young sir.” After I didn’t say anything, he continued. “Once House Ashton is established, you will become the thirteenth house of Olympus. You’ll have time to learn the enlightened rules and mechanics of politics, society, and culture in time as you live amongst us. You can choose to keep working as a Thinker to progress Absolute Knowledge further, learn from the knowledge pool, or anything else you’d like to do, really.”
“Will I be able to return to the Slums?”
“I suppose you could.” He frowned. “You could become an Inquisitor like me. I’m in charge of the law enforcement in the Slums, as well as investigating missing persons of interest such as yourself. I must say you were very hard to track down. If you don’t mind me asking, where did you hide?”
“I ended up in the Undercity and must have triggered some kind of trip mine when I was running,” I said, telling the truth.
“Interesting. Most don’t make it out of that foul sewer system if they end up down there. Anyway, I’m glad to have found you,” he said as he renewed the smile on his face.
“Would it be possible to bring someone from the Slums up to live in my house?”
“Possibly. You see, the system we have in place separates our society into three levels based on genetics and complex algorithms processed by the Omniscience Engine. Those who are unlikely to amount to anything other than basic thought fodder are placed in the Slums, those with some potential are placed in the Mids, and those with the highest potential are placed in Olympus. Sometimes the system gets it wrong, and someone of interest who should be in Olympus lives in the Slums, and we have to take action by relocating that person. The system is damn near perfect, but you are a fraction of a percentage that was missed. You were even considered based on the performance of your father, who was quite intelligent. Tri-annual testing is used to find those who may have been misplaced. Anyway, it’s somewhat of a breach of etiquette to bring just anyone up to Olympus. It can be done in extreme cases, but otherwise, it is quite untraditional and could tarnish the image and reputation of your house.”
“I see,” I said after considering his words.
“I assume you’re talking about that blonde girl you were with, Caeldra?”
“Yes,” I responded, not sure if I truly meant Caeldra or Mary.
If I were only able to get one person out of the Slums, it would be Mary. Like me, she had lost her parents. They died in one of the riots that happened when we were only a few years old. The Enforcers mowed down hundreds of people, and there hadn’t been another riot since then. It was long enough ago that most didn’t think about it regularly, but any stirrings of rebellion in the Slums were quickly dissolved by those who remembered the massacre. Mary’s parents had been caught in the wrong place at the wrong time, and she had grown up with her grandfather until he passed away the same year my parents died. I missed Mary, I missed Caeldra, and it looked like I might not see either one of them ever again. More than anything, I wanted Edgar’s guidance through this situation. I wasn’t prepared.
“Well, I can see what I can do after you’ve been situated for a few weeks. She’s going to need to visit the Collection Parlor again, though. Supreme Leader Adrihel wouldn’t even consider bringing someone up who hasn’t visited a Collection Parlor in years—there are too many unknowns.”
“That makes sense.”
“Anyway, once you take your medication we can head toward House Adrihel for the ceremony. Best to be a little early for such an important occasion,” he said with a warm smile.
I returned his sentiments and pulled out the pill bottles I had stored in my pockets. He walked over and grabbed a highly ornamented crystal bottle with thick engravings, and I saw a bright, brown liquid sloshing inside. He took two glasses from behind the desk and placed them on the table under a black rectangular appliance and pressed a button. The machine dispensed two spheres of ice into the glasses with a sharp clink.
“I figure I’ll be the first to welcome you to Olympus with a glass of bourbon. This bottle was given to me by my father, and it’s over fifty years old,” he said as he poured a tiny amount of the liquor over the ice spheres. “If you don’t like it, I will finish your drink for you and won’t take any offense,” he said as he slid a glass to me. I lifted the glass and Marwin toasted.
“I’m looking forward to getting to know you better, Jake. I’m excited for the future of our two houses,” he said with a wide grin as we clinked the glasses together and drank.
The sour liquor went down with a sharp burn, filling my stomach with fire. I was reminded of my time with Caeldra just yesterday and was amazed at how long ago it felt. I was now quite literally drinking with the enemy of my Guild, an Inquisitor in the flesh, responsible for all the oppression I had sworn to fight.
“To our houses,” I responded after we finished our drinks.
A wave of steady calmness flowed through me.
31 COMMENCEMENT
∆∆∆
After I had taken my pills, I felt as close to normal as I had in days. The pain and weakness in my leg was gone.
“The Omniscience Engine has advanced our medicine capabilities significantly, and we’re able to treat most anything. You’ll need to take it easy for the evening and the next few days as you recover. I checked the records, and it doesn’t appear your surgery took place in any legal establishment,” Marwin said with a frown. “Not that it matters anymore, and nothing will happen to those responsible, but will you tell me where the surgery was performed?” he asked as he drank water from a glass bottle.
I didn’t want to hurt the trust I was hoping to earn, so I decided to come clean … for the most part.
“Well, I fell down some sort of drain and ended up in one of the underground rivers. I was picked up by a fisherman—this was after my accident with the trip mine.” I looked him squarely in his dark brown eyes. “I ended up in River’s Port and managed to trade for some new clothes and my surgery with the money I had on hand, all of my life’s savings to be precise.”
Marwin scratched his thin beard as he considered my story. Apparently he saw no reason to suspect I was lying. What truth I did bend, I had done through layering my mind and convincing myself everything I said was true.
“Well, I’m glad you survived. River’s Port gives us no problems. We have agents there who take care of any treasonous felons who might harm the structure of everything we’ve worked so hard to build. The majority of the citizens there are harmless and, quite honestly, not worth the price of elimination.”
Not wanting to say anything else about the Undercity and potentially give away any of my knowledge, I decided to shift the topic of conversation.
“I’m ready to leave whenever you are,” I said as I enjoyed being able to stand.
“Certainly. Let’s depart to House Adrihel. We wouldn’t want to be late to your own party.”
We walked together through the expansive hallways of House Zaris and exited through a heavy wooden and glass door onto the landing platform. It was dark outside now, and the distant sun cast sullen purple waves toward the darkness. I had no words to describe the beauty of my first sunset. Lights illuminated the stone landing platform, and there was a smaller, sportier looking ship waiting for us with a robot sitting in the pilot’s seat. This ship wasn’t armored like the dropship we had flown in on. The exterior was painted in the gray and brown color scheme of House Zaris, and it had two small thrusters located on two of the short wings that spread from the narrow frame. We climbed in and were seated as the doors closed.
The ship roared to life and lifted from the platform quickly. As we climbed toward the building in the center of Olympus, I could see the different colored lights in all of the houses. Each one was illuminated in their own unique color scheme. House Adrihel was lit in bright white light which reflecte
d against the copper and gold colored exterior of the huge building; it was at least three times the size of House Zaris. Below us I could see the colossal building that must have contained the Absolute Knowledge project and the computers and servers needed to maintain the daunting task of trying to calculate infinity.
We landed on a huge landing platform where two other ships had already docked. Gold and copper robots accomplished various tasks and tended to the vacant vehicles. We were escorted out of the ship by a man wearing a black suit and copper tie. The air was cold against my face, but the Nexweave clothes adapted and kept me warm. Huge guard robots lined the edges of the platform near the doors; they regarded us as politely as robots could.
The entry hall of House Adrihel was even more lavish than Marwin’s home. We passed a tall, thin woman wearing a bright blue dress and extravagant makeup; she was stunning. “Baroness Jex Brae,” Marwin whispered as we passed. The Baroness smiled as she looked at me. I returned the smile and kept up with Marwin’s brisk speed, surprised my leg and body were still functioning so well. One of the servants of the house led us to a heavy wooden door marked Ashton with a gold plaque.
“When your name is called, walk through that door. It’s going to be a few minutes until the ceremony commences, just remember to thank Supreme Leader Adrihel. A simple pleasantry will suffice,” Marwin told me as he headed toward his own door. A servant walked over and handed me a glass of water. I drank from it in slow sips and saw more people were beginning to arrive. They were dressed in clothes similar to mine, but in different colors.
I still wasn’t sure how the whole House system worked, or if I would be considered an equal to the other Barons and Baronesses. The strong polarity of this environment compared with the Slums was mind boggling. The servant returned and took my glass from me. “You’re going to be called soon, sir,” he said as he bowed and walked away.
