by Kris Schnee
The old man died, reappeared and collapsed to his knees. "I can explain."
"What is there to explain? Even if they're not full minds, you do not do this!" Horizon had his beak an inch from Jason's nose. The gun lay at their feet.
"That's right. They're not full minds." Jason panted and clutched his chest.
"So what?" He heard Nocturne screeching as she approached from her more distant checkpoint. She ran in and kicked the shotgun aside. Horizon said, "Better make it good." He smelled blood, but saw it only on himself.
Jason said, "After my wife died, I was alone."
"The wife who's right outside."
"No, you idiot. She's a replica. And I wasn't allowed to be near kids, because of an incident. Ludo offered me acceptance and peace. People thought I was a monster." He looked toward Nocturne and cringed. "Griffin-girl, you wouldn't understand. You have a mind without... urges, needs that other people think are sick. Do you want me to be miserable?"
Nocturne said, "You're worse than the slavemaster guy we met in another world."
"Why? Because you're an AI and you take their side no matter what?"
"That's ridiculous," she said. "I'm on the side of living, thinking beings."
"These kids aren't. I think to the extent they feel anything, they enjoy it."
Horizon screeched and swatted him across the face.
Jason recoiled, gulped, and said, "What do you want to do? Kill me over and over because you get off on murdering people you think are wicked? Maybe we're not so different."
Horizon barely kept himself from killing Jason again. He took a step back. "I'm going to stop. How about you? If you could have this sick desire of yours removed, would you do it?"
"Would you consent to having your own sex drive removed because it offends someone? You're banging something that looks like an animal. How old is she?"
Nocturne said, "I'm not a kid or an animal, damn it!"
"I'm hurting no one," said Jason.
Horizon shuddered. "Ludo, can you settle this?"
Ludo didn't come to this dim basement to tell him the right answer.
Nocturne's voice was small. "Horizon? What can we do with him?"
Horizon maintained his predatory stare. "I wouldn't give up the way I am just because it offends somebody. One of the differences between you and me is, I don't need victims."
"Are you sure?"
"Yes! Do you want to spend this life alone with these puppets? Your idea of fun isn't compatible with anyone else's, so you're in a padded cell. You could ask Ludo to change you as soon as she knows how."
Jason took a few shallow breaths. "What if I don't?"
Horizon glanced at Nocturne. She said, "We leave."
Horizon nodded. "And then you have to live with yourself, and nobody else, unless Ludo finds you someone willing to play your very specialized game."
He said, "What have you seen out there that's worth having my mind changed, my identity violated?"
"I've seen a starship where the rivers come full circle and cities dangle overhead. Islands of magic and danger. A bright palace and a tunnel of monsters and adventure. A space between worlds where people can rest in the dark when the light of the worlds gets too bright. A strange face in my reflection, and a lover at my side who's my friend and equal. And we're only getting started. That's the kind of life you could have."
The man was already on his knees, so it was easy for him to shut his eyes and think, then to clasp his hands. "Lady, you know my predicament. I ask you to lift this burden from me as soon as you're able. And then, I want to see more of the world than this place." He opened his eyes and stared into the griffins'. "That's all I can do. You don't know how it is. The things you want are easy."
The griffins walked away.
* * *
The hovering crossroads welcomed them silently. The grey stained glass beneath them now had a design on it: a man and a woman chained up by a demon. A bridge to the fourth platform had appeared.
Horizon said, "I'm not sure I want to know who's behind that last door. I'd rather fight some unambiguous monster."
Obligingly, a six-armed abomination of fangs and shadow rose from the black infinity beyond their platform.
"I didn't mean here."
It sank back down.
Nocturne said, "We could ask to go back to the first island, or on to someplace else."
He said, "All I could do was argue. But I don't want to give up, and have you think that humanity is just a horrible pile of hidden fantasies."
"You're not like that."
"You were worried that you might be based on some twisted desire of mine. Maybe we're all sliding down the same road of self-indulgent craziness as the people behind these doors."
She pressed one talon against his beak. "Like you said, we're learning from experience. There's got to be some level of fact below all the grey. You're smart enough to deal with it."
"Just because I'm smart, doesn't give me the right to bully and threaten people because I think I know best."
Nocturne looked at him sidelong with one eye, then the other. "You're a silly drake for not seeing the wisdom in that."
* * *
With reluctance, they turned toward the fourth platform. This one depicted a cloaked figure with a lantern. The griffins weren't sure what to make of it. But the green door awaited.
Beyond it, they were outdoors. It was a quiet night with pine-scented wind whispering through trees. Horizon looked around by the light of twin moons, sapphire and ruby.
"We should follow that stream to look for civilization," said Nocturne.
"How do you know more about nature than me? You have literally never been outside a server room."
She stuck her tongue out at him. "I found a scouting handbook under that rockslide on Hazard Island, remember?"
They came to a grove of standing stones that glowed with swirls of emerald light. Fireflies danced above it like sparks and smoke wafted up from a concealed chimney. A hatch in the middle of it stood open, revealing a wood-planked tunnel that sloped underground like a cellar or an animal's burrow.
"What monster is waiting for us here?" asked Nocturne.
The game interface flashed a message: [One with fangs and claws and a poison attack. But you're probably fine.]
That was the most that Ludo or her storyteller components had spoken lately. She'd been reserving comment. "Is it good or bad that she's talking now?" asked Horizon. Nocturne shrugged.
Nocturne had been playing a bit with magic while they recuperated. Now she conjured a ball of light that bobbed along above them. They descended the tunnel and came to a green door matching the one back in the portal world. Horizon knocked.
A humanoid skunk with fur mussed by sleep grumbled as she opened it. She wore only a long nightshirt with a slit for her bushy tail. Her eyes widened and she said, "You'd better come in."
They went into the comfortable burrow below. The walls were wood that smelled like an artificial attempt at cedar. A fireplace burned in one of the underground rooms.
"A hobbit hole!" said Nocturne. The plank floor creaked slightly under their feet.
The skunk laughed. "Oh, you've found time to read Tolkien? Have a seat." Her black and white fur was painted with swirling green marks. She busied herself making coffee with a wood stove and a magical spark. "My name's Clara. You met me as, ah, Clark Ostler. 'Green', of Those Dudes With the Colors. Go ahead, tease me about my character."
Horizon blinked. This fluffy lady was the stuffy green-suited man at the nightclub? But he said, "We've seen stranger things lately."
Clara brought steaming coffee to the low table, set down mugs that clinked together, and poured. Her own mug was labeled "Mad Scientist". "I'm glad you two made it here. I hope Ludo's hospitality is a good enough reward for saving us."
Horizon said, "If you're thinking of the woman I was with, Nocturne isn't her. Linda is still out there."
Clara drank. "We've all suffered some los
ses. What was Tolkien's saying? 'I can't promise you'll come home, and if you do you won't be the same'." She looked at Nocturne. "So you're one of the natives! You look star-struck, girl."
Nocturne ruffled her wings. "I just realized I'm talking to a god."
Clara flopped onto the cushion beside Nocturne and offered to pet her ears, which Nocturne accepted. "No. I did one great thing in my life and a couple of good ones, which is all anyone can hope for. Two thirds of the credit goes to my friends. I think Blue went to work for the Americans to thwart his own creation, and Red... I don't even know. Ludo barely cares what happened to her."
Horizon sipped the brew. It was only a ghost of real coffee, but it was hot and familiar. "Really? I would've thought protecting you three would be her top priority."
"Apparently not. I've mostly been out of contact since I uploaded. Not completely, mind you, but after what I went through at the nightclub and later, this is a vacation." She waved her mug and made trails of steam in the air. "So, welcome to the virtual world. What's the news?"
Horizon chirped. "I've got stories for you. Some are horrible."
"That's the way of things." Clara drank. "Jeez, I've mellowed lately. I wasn't having fun out there, just struggling to get Ludo started. What've you been doing?"
They compared notes.
* * *
Horizon sipped his coffee and listened. Clara had spun a tale of adventure about how she'd gotten out of the country, then to Korea, then barely made it to the clinic with the police after her. "So that's what that subway incident was about! I saw it in the news but Ludo wouldn't tell me. What happened next?"
Clara seemed to be enjoying telling the story. "Then, I had a strange awakening in Talespace. Ludo had to erase a certain piece of information from my head, which is why I can barely even say my old name and I'm now more comfortable as a character like this."
Nocturne said, "Wait a minute. I've read a little about you and the other Sages, and how you designed Ludo. Wasn't that skunk body a character that you were using before you uploaded?"
"It wasn't my only character," Clara said, folding her arms and wriggling her tail. "Anyway, then I went on a little starter adventure..."
Several battles and spells and daring escapes later, Clara said, "And finally that led me to settle down here, as a glorified caretaker for the village you may've seen on the way in. When I'm not fooling around here I still do some programming and corporate work. It's a good life, but I'm not sure what comes next."
"You could wander like us," Nocturne said. "It looks like Talespace is a work in progress."
"For now I'm content to hear about other people's adventures." Clara's fuzzy ears perked higher. "You know, I am content. That's a rare thing for me. If I'm Faust, then the devil's got my soul now."
Horizon stared into his mug, clacking his beak against the rim. How much had his mind changed already? He curled his tail uneasily and let its feathers mesh with Nocturne's. On the kitchen counter stood a framed photo showing five humans. The Sages with himself and Linda.
Clara followed his gaze. "That was the last night we three were together. For lack of more info I can only hope the others are okay, wherever they are."
"You look happy in that photo."
"We had just kicked the ass of an unambiguous bad guy." Clara high-fived Horizon. "But the three of us never got along perfectly. We always had different goals. Not always the best of intentions, either."
Horizon said, "But you basically built Ludo to help people and not conquer the world, right?"
"Yeah, and I think we succeeded at that."
Nocturne had been quiet. She said, "You've made some kind of paradise. But now what? What are the rules? What's the right way to live in here?"
Clara pointed at Nocturne. "I wish you people had been awake and asking that kind of question a year ago. You might've won Blue over better. Answer is, I don't know. There's an old saying that goes, 'Hell is other people'. The moment you throw real, messed-up human minds -- sorry, thinking minds -- into perfection, it stops being perfect."
Horizon said, "The worst little bubble-world we saw was the most closed-off one."
The Green Sage drank, looking again at the photo. "Fair point. If there's going to be a good answer to your questions, it'll probably come from people like you banging around and getting hurt and shocked by things."
Horizon thought about it, and nodded. "You too, though. I hope you're not permanently retired just because you got Ludo working."
Clara said, "Yeah. I've been taking a long break, partly to lay low after my little real-world adventure. But it's time to get back to work." A grin spread across her muzzle. "For me at least, my approach to this life is going to be useful work and casting magic spells to fight monsters."
Horizon stretched and reluctantly got up. "Thank you, then. For the coffee, for making this world, and for giving me some peace of mind. I hope we can visit again."
"Anytime. In fact, I should probably get this chunk of land formally connected to one of the bigger, shared worlds. Probably end up with skeleton warriors and adventurers tromping all over it, but it beats isolation. Thanks for stopping by."
* * *
The griffins went outside, and found Ludo waiting just outside the ring of druid stones. The light of the stones and fireflies shined on Ludo's human form and wind rippled her toga like a sail. She asked, "How has your adventure been?"
"Difficult," said Horizon.
Nocturne dipped her head. "We weren't able to swoop in and fix things. Maybe most of the humans will end up trapped in little bubbles."
Ludo said, "It's all right. I gave you a puzzle with no perfect solution."
Horizon said, "We helped a little, didn't we? We're not useless."
"None of you are useless," said Ludo. "I'm learning from you."
Horizon had tried to be brave, but what did that mean when nothing could kill him? To make this life meaningful, he had to find a different sort of courage. He said, "What if we kept trying to help people adapt to Talespace? There's a lot to figure out, and having limited powers means we can't force un-fun solutions on people."
Nocturne said, "We'd be like those cool heroes Horizon told me about. Knights. Almost as good as ninjas."
Horizon's wings stirred and his eyes went wide. His life wouldn't have to be just a game, here to indulge him. He could help real people.
Ludo smiled. "The Knights of Talespace, eh? Adventurers who help to build a new culture for a new world. It'd be important work. You'd need a castle, squires, forges, maps and expeditions. Would you enjoy --"
"Yes, please," said Horizon.
A trumpet fanfare played, and he saw the words, [Your class is now Knight!]
He was doing the job already. The formal recognition was mostly for fun.
12. An Island and a Treasure
Linda
Until the disaster last December with Paul and the girl, a whole segment of Linda's life had been settled, and now it wasn't. It felt like a sturdy wall beside her had crumbled.
Linda prayed for a peaceful heart; asking for solutions never helped. It was cheating.
In her dorm room she toyed with a little plastic griffin figurine. She hid it in her dresser before turning the game back on, that all-consuming Game. "It's time I spoke with Paul, or whatever's left of him."
Ludo appeared on a background of fog. "Be kind to him, please. And if you want to visit, you're welcome at the nearest 'Fun Zone' restaurant."
Linda's eyes narrowed. "Can you get me a replacement date, too? Let me talk to Paul already."
The screen faded into a scene of two griffins sitting outside a ring of mystical stones, in a forest clearing.
Linda tried to sound casual, though her hands tightened behind her. "Celtic style, huh? Thought you'd go for medieval."
The slightly bigger griffin spoke. "Good tidings, my... Linda. We haven't built anything yet. We're still exploring."
He looked like the "Horizon" from their time at S
hahrazad's: golden fur and brown feathers with friendly eyes, though now turned blue. "Paul. Or should I call you Horizon?"
"I go by Horizon now." He squinted. "Why are you using a mannequin for a character?"
"Huh? I'm not playing, just looking into my screen."
The scene flickered and Horizon stood in a different spot. "Ludo just explained in accelerated time. Vision works differently here, so I can't easily see outside. Ludo's still experimenting with how to run human brains. Taste and smell are buggy too."
"She's screwing with your senses?"
"I'm all right. Linda, I'm sorry things happened this way."
"Everyone keeps saying they're sorry, even if I don't know them. Do I know you?"
Horizon spread his wings and said, "Your favorite color is scarlet. Your brother Nathan hates the government for what it did to your dad, but he makes a small fortune as a government contractor. Your left breast is slightly smaller than the right and you're self-conscious about it, even though no man will care."
Linda leaned back, blushing. "You have his memories. The way you did it, though... You should have waited. Paul should have waited."
"What do you mean?"
"She does it by freezing someone's brain, then slicing it like a ham and scanning the pieces. The mind behind it ended and got replaced with a copy."
The griffins squawked and flung up their wings. Horizon said, "Philosophical nonsense. Human-Paul went to sleep, and I woke up thinking 'what did I do last night?'."
Linda said, "Then what was human-Paul thinking? Why did it have to be you that played martyr?"
He strained forward and glared. "I didn't 'play' at anything. Dear God, those idiots pulled her out of the chair!" He shuddered. "Come here. Be free."
Linda shook her head. "You can't matter in there. You gave up what we could've had."
"I didn't want to." Horizon sighed. "Part of me did. Already I've been in a spaceship and done all sorts of other things, and I'm starting an order of knights."
