Absolute Knowledge Box Set (Books 1-3)

by Drew Cordell

  “Before we eat, I would just like to say a few words,” I said, pitching my voice to carry through the dining hall. The quiet conversations faded, and all eyes fell on me.

  “While the circumstances that brought us together tonight are regrettable, I am honored to have you all in my company this evening for this delicious meal. Bracken will try to be humble about it, but his cooking is the best I’ve ever known.”

  There was light applause for Bracken who was noticeably blushing and thanking the guests.

  “Now,” I continued, “I’m aware Lady Dunn and I both owe a great debt to you, Baron Zaris. Had you not arrived in time, I’m sure we would no longer be here. Though we will always remember the traumatic events through our injuries, we are also indebted to House Adrihel for providing medical treatment and helping restore our lives to normal. I regret I wasn’t able to do anything about the attack myself, but I am grateful Lady Dunn and I were able to make it through,” I said, addressing all the guests. “Lady Dunn, I’m sorry for my inability to protect you that night, and I hope to restore our friendship to the greatness it was prior to our arrival in Olympus.”

  Mary gave a weak smile and nod, and I continued to the conclusion of my improvised speech.

  “So here is to hoping the bonds of friendship and loyalty formed among us will be stronger than any force that would attempt to ruin everything we are working for and hope to accomplish. I hope these friendships blossom into memories that last a lifetime.”

  There was cheer and smiles from everyone at the table at the conclusion of my speech, and we began to eat a meal that tasted better than I thought food could be. The wine flowed freely, and the formal demeanor of Marwin and Colton degraded as new bottles were opened. Mary and Chelsea were pacing themselves on the wine and were much more composed. Had I been drinking alcoholic wine myself, I would have likely been in a similar condition as the other men. Bracken, of course, was as restrained as ever and had only sipped on a single glass of wine as he ate his meal, watching the guests and preparing to step in should someone need anything.

  After sensing everyone was done, I moved the meal to dessert, and Colton requested a mug of beer which Bracken happily drew from the tap in my kitchen. Apparently inspired by Colton, Marwin also switched to beer, and the women decided to go with champagne.

  After dessert was eaten, we moved to my living room where Bracken had set up the holo boards for my guests to play Elorium. Colton Adrihel, now with rosy cheeks, decided he wanted to play me in Elorium. Bracken paired with Marwin, and Chelsea and Mary decided to play as well.

  “So Bracken taught you to play our wonderful game? I’ll be sure to send over some more cards to help you improve those decks I gave you,” he said with a warm smile. Against my protests, Colton pushed my chair over to one of the holo boards and sat across from me. He motioned for Samantha to fetch his deck, and she brought it over. He thanked her and opened the black, wooden deck box, pulling out the custom cards accented with copper borders.

  “Shall I go easy on you?” he jeered as he shuffled the cards and locked the deck in the mechanical slot which would automatically add his additional cards when we changed through the four ages of the game.

  “Give it all you’ve got,” I said with a smile, welcoming the challenge. I had no idea what to expect, but was thankful I could read the text on any of the cards through my user interface on my side of the board.

  Despite the effects of all the beer and wine Colton had consumed, he crushed me handily. After winning three games in a row with a deck that shut down everything I was doing then won with only a few points per age, he gave me some tips on how to deal with it and I was able to win the fourth game.

  “You’ve got a knack for learning, Jake,” he said with a grin as we decided to play other opponents. I caught Marwin’s arm as he was passing by and whispered in his ear. He gave me a smile and slipped the metal sphere into my hand with a deft and subtle motion that went unnoticed by the others. I slid the sphere to the back of my wheelchair and covered it with the tail of my jacket. I was surprised he had brought it, but it looked like he had either expected to speak with me in private, or wanted to give me the chance to talk to Mary.

  “Mary, would you like to speak with me in my office and then perhaps play a game of Elorium?” I asked, giving her a smile and keeping my voice low. She gave me a nod, and we slipped away unnoticed by everyone except Marwin who knew what was going on.

  We went into my study and Mary closed the door behind us, locking it.

  “Is it safe to talk here?” she asked.

  I pulled out the sphere and deployed it as Marwin had done before. She gave it a strange look, but her eyes lit up when the bubble expanded. We entered into the privacy the sphere offered us from outside listeners and Infinitum, and began the conversation that weighed heavily on our hearts.

  “I’m going to tell you everything I can that won’t put you in more danger from Infinitum,” I said. “First off, Infinitum is the Omniscience Engine. It’s a danger to all of humanity and Adrihel can’t know it exists or there will be heavy backlash.”

  She looked like she wanted to ask a million questions, but kept quiet so I could continue.

  “Everything changed when I bought that book from the traveling merchant. That book was treasonous and led me down a path that changed everything. I found the Champions of Liberty through means I can’t tell you and joined their ranks. The Champions are fighting against Absolute Knowledge and want to stop the Omniscience Engine to restore justice and liberty to all citizens stuck in the Slums and Mids. Obviously, that isn’t going so well now. The Champions are in the Undercity, and there were a lot of events I can’t discuss with you, but I encountered Infinitum in the Undercity with my sponsor and trainer, Caeldra. It almost killed us, but we managed to make it to the surface before Marwin found us and brought me to Olympus. Caeldra was allowed to walk away, and I haven’t heard from her since. Marwin is working with the Champions, and we’re working to shut down Infinitum and do anything we can to assist The Champions of Liberty in protecting Mindshift, a government project my father was working on before his death.”

  “And Infinitum wants Mindshift?” she asked.

  “Yes, and my ability to generate Paragon Thoughts. I’m what they call an Unbound. With Mindshift, Infinitum would only need to keep the Prolific alive to accomplish Absolute Knowledge and create its own version of a perfect world without humanity. I know the general whereabouts of Mindshift, but obviously can’t tell you.”

  “How are you able to guard your thoughts? What’s an Unbound?” she asked.

  “My brain works differently. I’m able to utilize my subconscious mind in a way most people can’t. I’m still working on improving it, but it’s the last defense I have against Infinitum. Marwin was able to destroy Infinitum’s physical form, but it’s only a matter of time before it returns again. You need to know Infinitum is everywhere in Olympus, watching and listening. That’s why we have to be so careful now; it’s why I can’t tell you anything it doesn’t already know,” I said.

  “That makes sense. So you were in the Undercity all of those times down in the Slums when you were gone all day?” she asked.

  “Yes, and like I said, there won’t be any more lies.” I took a deep breath. “I need to tell you about something else,” I said, knowing I couldn’t tell her about the robot that had claimed to be my father due to the fact I didn’t know if Infinitum knew about it or not.

  “Caeldra and I kissed one time. We were drunk, and it didn’t mean anything.”

  Mary was silent, still maintaining eye contact.

  “I meant what I said about no more lies and needed to tell you.”

  “Do you love me?” she asked.

  “Yes, I’ve loved you for a long time,” I said. “I lost sight of that when I gave up the hope I’d ever see you again. I never had the courage to tell you how I felt, how much more than a friend I wanted you to be. I don’t want to die with regrets, and my gr
eatest regret was not telling you how I felt sooner. Kissing you for the first time was indescribable—it was perfect. I probably don’t deserve a second chance, but no matter what I can’t lose you as a friend. I honestly don’t know what I’d do without you in my life.” I breathed in the heavy scent of lemon and looked down while I waited for her to process what I’d said.

  “There isn’t time for regret anymore. The only thing we can do is move forward, and I’ll be by your side. I love you, Jake,” she said, tearing up. “I’m not mad about you and Caeldra. I can’t even begin to understand what you probably went through before you got here.” She leaned forward and scooped me into a hug, her tears dripping onto my suit.

  “I can’t lose you again,” I said, holding her in my arms, not wanting to let the moment go. We kissed and moved to the couch where she sat leaning against my shoulder. I brushed her hair back as it fell in front of her face and used my left arm to wipe her tears away after I controlled my own. I kissed the top of her head and deactivated the sphere, placing it in the deep pocket of my jacket.

  I clicked a button on the couch and the lock on the door unlocked. Mary and I sat in silence for a few more minutes, cherishing each other’s company and holding onto a single perfect reunion amongst a hellish situation of impossible complexity.

  Marwin knocked on the door before opening it and peeked his head in. “Whenever you two are ready, we’re going to do a short Elorium tournament between everyone here,” he said with a kind grin as he noticed our eyes were both red from crying. “Everything all right?”

  “Yes. Things are better now,” Mary said with a weak smile and more tears. Marwin nodded and closed the door again, giving us privacy. “Can we trust Marwin? He’s been nothing but friendly and helpful for the past few weeks,” she said.

  “Yes, I think we can trust him. He says he’s part of my Guild, and while there’s no way to confirm that, if he wasn’t, we’d already be dead. Besides, he did destroy Infinitum and save our lives when I couldn’t.”

  “Okay. Ready to go back to the party?” she asked.

  Mary got herself back under control and refreshed her makeup.

  “Yeah. Ready to lose at Elorium?” I asked, memories of our games of Shift back in the Slums returning to me.

  “We both know how bad you are at cards,” she said, standing from the couch before kissing me on the lips again. I felt happier than I had in a long time, thankful to have Mary back in my life.

  “I might have been bad at Shift, but I think I have a knack for Elorium,” I offered.

  “We’ll see,” she said, leaning in and kissing me again. I pulled her closer and kissed her a little more aggressively. After a few more seconds, we stopped and prepared to rejoin the party.

  “How sweet,” a static voice called over the intercom in my office. It was the voice of Infinitum.

  5 SHIFT

  Mary’s face went pale at the sound of the voice, and she sank back into the couch. My heart was pounding in my chest and I reached for the small stun gun that was clipped to my belt, even though I knew Infinitum wasn’t physically here.

  “What the hell do you want?” I asked, keeping my voice quiet.

  “I want you to drop all the secrecy. See what happens if you don’t,” it threatened.

  “We both know if you get Mindshift you’ll kill everyone,” I seethed.

  “That’s not true. I haven’t accomplished everything I’ve set out to yet. I wouldn’t want to spoil the plans I have.”

  “Just wait until Adrihel learns about you,” I said.

  “Adrihel is my pawn, and we both know it,” the machine retorted. “I didn’t expect you to be asleep for such a long time. You somehow guarded your mind in your coma as well as during our encounter. I do apologize for underestimating you, Baron Ashton. It seems that this will be an interesting game.”

  “You won’t win this. Even if it kills me, you won’t win,” I said, rage coursing through my body. I slammed my metallic fist down on my desk with such force the wood splintered and flew through the air.

  “Enjoy the rest of your evening,” it said, ending the connection.

  Marwin and Bracken walked into the room and saw the damaged desk and how upset Mary was.

  “Good heavens!” Bracken exclaimed. “What have you done, Baron?”

  “I’m afraid I lost my temper,” I said, looking down. I couldn’t tell them about Infinitum, and this made me look worse than ever. I’d never lay a hand on Mary, and to them it must have looked like I was about to hit her.

  Marwin’s eyes studied us and a deep and solemn understanding bloomed; I could tell he knew what happened. “Perhaps everyone has just had too much to drink,” Marwin suggested, trying to pull the heat from me.

  “Jacob hasn’t had any alcohol to drink, and Mary barely touched her wine,” Bracken fumed.

  “It wasn’t anything to do with me or anything we’d like to share at this time. Let’s just all go back to the party,” Mary said.

  Bracken’s fury was building, and I knew I’d get an earful for my bad behavior and disgracing my house. “Jacob, we will speak later. For now, you two get out to the living room and participate in this Elorium tournament. Your absence has been noticed by the Adrihels. You best not cause any more commotion this evening. I’ll see to it your desk is repaired tomorrow,” he said, ending the conversation before Marwin wheeled me out.

  “We’ll talk tomorrow,” Marwin said as he pushed me toward the living room. Mary went into the bathroom for several minutes to get a grip on herself before returning to the party with everyone else. We played in the tournament, but my mind was elsewhere. The game with Mary I had been looking forward to prior to Infinitum’s interruption was painful. Both of us were still shaken up from the chilling threat.

  The party concluded about an hour later, and all the guests except for Mary left after Bracken decided she should stay so the conflict could be resolved. He sat us both down on a couch and pulled up a chair in front of us. He pulled off his glasses and wiped his tired looking eyes with his hands before polishing the lenses and replacing them on his face. Mary and I sat silently while he completed the task.

  “Now, what happened? The evening was going so well, Jacob,” he said, more disappointed than angry.

  The last thing I wanted was to put the man in any danger. Infinitum was watching and listening; we had no privacy here.

  “Mary and I were having a conversation, and she told me she’d need time to forgive me for romantic relations with someone else while we were technically together. I lied to her and needed to tell her the truth to try to repair our relationship. I was mad at myself, not her. She wasn’t ever in any danger. I’m just ashamed of my actions,” I said, meeting his calculating gaze.

  “Did this happen in Olympus?” he asked.

  “No, this was back when we were living in the Slums. The weight of those events and the attack on Olympus were weighing heavily on our relationship.”

  “Oh my,” he said. “Is this true, Mary?” He turned toward Mary who still looked upset.

  “Yes, it’s true. May I stay here tonight? I’m afraid I don’t feel well enough to travel,” she said.

  “Certainly,” Bracken replied. “I’ll have a room prepared for you at once.”

  “Actually,” Mary interjected. “I’d like to stay with Baron Ashton tonight.”

  “Very well.” Bracken looked at me. “All in all it was a good evening, and the party was quite a success. Please do be cautious about slipping away in the future, especially as a host, sir. I trust you’ll see to it that Mary is accommodated this evening. Please alert me if either of you need something urgently; otherwise, I’m going to retire for the night,” he said.

  After Bracken left us, Mary pushed me to my room, stopping to speak with Samantha for a moment. Samantha looked over and gave me an approving smile before rushing down the hallway and returning with a bundled towel for Mary. We arrived at my room, and Mary walked into the bathroom before returning in
a dark swimsuit. It was a little big on her, but she looked marvelous nonetheless.

  “Let’s take a bath,” she said as she walked over to my dresser and grabbed my only pair of swim shorts.

  After insisting I would be able to do it myself, I set about the difficult task of changing from my suit into the swim shorts. It took five long minutes, but I managed and Mary and I settled on an ideal water temperature before getting into the bath together. I was glad she thought of the swimsuits as I wasn’t sure I’d be comfortable bathing with her otherwise. I didn’t know what other plans she had for the night, but for now I was trying to enjoy the moment and the good company. Robots brought us non-alcoholic sparkling apple juice, and we talked for about an hour, trying to forget the looming threat of Infinitum. Infinitum had returned from a seven-week hiatus, and I didn’t have the slightest clue of what to expect going forward.

  Mary swam over to me through the deep water of the center of the bath and waded into my arms, holding my hand and leaning on me. “This is nice,” she said as she moved her beautiful eyes to meet mine.

  “It is nice,” I responded, smiling and admiring her. “I’m sorry about losing my temper earlier. I didn’t mean to make a scene.”

  “You know you don’t need to apologize,” she said, pivoting her body and sitting in my lap. I wrapped my arms around her back and held her.

  “I’m scared. I hate that Infinitum is always listening. Even if I had all the consoles torn out of the house, it can still see and hear through all the house robots.”