Somnia Online

by K. T. Hanna

  Murmur knew for a fact that Telvar designed this dungeon, and she knew he wasn’t the sort of AI to make anything basic, let alone one of the top tier dungeons. What was it they were missing, and why did she feel like missing it was going to wipe the whole raid?

  Storm Entertainment

  Somnia Online Division

  Game Development Offices - Shayla’s Office

  Early Day Thirty

  Laria burst through into Shayla’s office, her face shining brightly with triumph. The smile even reached her tired eyes, giving her a momentary appearance of someone much younger. “We did it!”

  She didn’t yell or shout, but her words were firm and proud in what they’d accomplished. “At least, I think we did.”

  Shayla chuckled, her lack of sleep showing in her dress. Crumpled wasn’t a look the woman usually went with. “Okay, and just what do you think you did? I’ve been putting out fires on a pretty consistent basis. So many rumors, so much mess out there. Luckily, some of those rumors have upped our subscription base, so you know, there you go.”

  Laria let out a short laugh as David closed the door behind him, a cup of coffee in his hand.

  Shayla grimaced. “I wouldn’t drink that if I were you. I made it like six hours ago.”

  David shook his head. “Nope. I wouldn’t drink that either, which is why I’m a few minutes behind her. Made new stuff. You know I love my coffee.”

  Laria put her tablet down and swung herself to sit on Shayla’s desk. Just a little while longer and they could all sleep. Or she hoped they could. This had really worn on her energy reserves. Even given a normal title launch, this one had far outweighed all of those as far as lack of sleep went. Lack of peace of mind. Lack of every bloody thing. She ran a hand through her hair and took a breath.

  “David, being the brilliant man he is—” She grinned at him, and he rolled his eyes as he slurped down hot coffee. “Anyway—he might have had a different perspective from us since I think we were too close to it. So I think we’ve got what we need to be able to make sure the virus gets neutralized.”

  “Don’t keep me in suspense.” Shayla sounded marginally interested, but also sort of hopeless. Like she didn’t believe this could help them, that nothing would. But Laria needed to prove her wrong. So she pulled out the tiny disk she had with her and inserted it in her tablet.

  A projection shot out of it, modeling the game engine and the AIs’ place in it. Shayla’s interest piqued, she took a few steps around it, the furrow in her brow lessening with each step. “So your idea is to have the AIs join in the last battle and just release it?”

  “Well, not entirely. That’s an extreme oversimplification.” Laria sighed. “That’s the final step, and Rav assured me that was how it would work anyway. They’re going to have to help if the shards have come to rest where they think they have. While the raid is going on, their goal is to personally deliver the coding around the entire world. Sort of like anchors within the game world, built into it. They’re the AIs, they can travel where they want, instantaneously. If we think of it that way, it’s easy for them to ensure that the coding gets to where it needs to go.”

  “But won’t this Riasli AI realize what they’re doing?” Shayla asked, pausing again to go over the code.

  Laria bit her lip. “I’m not entirely sure. I mean, she might notice, but I don’t think she’s a match for Rav and the rest. Or at least, I’d like to hope she’s not. She’s a virally infected simple AI version. Assistant AI. So really…I don’t see how she could, though I also can’t rule it out.”

  Shayla nodded, and David spoke up. “Theoretically, it should work. We made a few simulations, but they were a bit slipshod and hastily put together, so even though it tested out, well. I can’t guarantee it. But it’s the only real possibility for a solution that we’ve come up with. So I want to go with it if you’ll let us, Shay.”

  She studied him for a few moments. “You know, for a younger brother, you can be a real know-it-all shit sometimes.”

  “It’s my specialty.” He inclined his head and squeezed Laria’s shoulder. “Looks like we’re good to go, then.”

  Laria beamed. “First things first, let’s go visit the AIs. There are instructions and timing we need to get down for this. Not the least of which involves the finishing of the zone the kids are currently in.”

  “Yeah.” Shayla shook her head as they exited the room, taking the projected holograph and tablet with them. “Not the least at all.”

  “Careful!” shouted Esolan as Devlish almost backed into what appeared to be a jellyfish that had flopped or slithered onto the cobblestone surface. It happened just as they defeated the crocohusks. Defeating all six-odd waves of them had been painful. Fifty-four damned crocodiles on crack.

  Followed by these weird, see-through, apparently jellyfish mobs. Whether they functioned through something else’s mind control or not, or were just in fact there to piss raiders off, Beastial found out the hard way that they were full of electricity. Probably a reason it didn’t go off in the water, because it would fry everything in there, but it definitely gave the beastmaster quite a shock, literally. He was still recovering despite being healed back to full.

  And that’s when they realized they weren’t jellyfish, but some type of octopus, capable of moving in and out of the water. The fact that the majority of their bodies were clear or perhaps morphed to what they were sitting on didn’t help locate them as they fought. Instead, it was easy for the creatures to move silently into a position where the raiders weren’t aware of them until it was too late.

  “Devlish! Watch out!” Esolan yelled out in warning as he managed to catch another one of the creatures on his shield. The way he staggered under the weight made Murmur realize how much larger their opponents were than she’d originally thought.

  Devlish barely avoided the one Esolan warned him about. There weren’t that many of them, but they were scattered all throughout the raid, hiding in plain sight as they blended into armor, weapons, and the stone floor. The best way to get them gone was to blast them with fire or freeze them with ice. The rangers were having a ball firing fire arrows into the creatures, and even Mellow seemed to be having fun with their potions.

  Those who were being accosted by the creatures were another matter entirely.

  “Stop firing at me, you idiot!” Ishwa yelled across the room as Merlin loosed another fire arrow squarely into the one that had attached itself to Ishwa’s robe. “I can freeze it off myself!”

  Merlin just grinned and switched his aim.

  Murmur stepped back, trying not to laugh. Watching the tiny gnome jump around in anger shouldn’t have amused her so much. But she was pretty sure his irritation was mostly for show as he now seemed to be having a great time blasting the creatures off himself and others with an ice bolt.

  There weren’t many of the creatures left anymore, or at least not many she could sense, and the fight began to wind down. She heaved a sigh of relief, not noticing any other immediate threats in their vicinity, which meant they could make their way into the actual dungeon shortly.

  “What do you think now?” Karn stood next to her, and Murmur almost jumped. She’d not expected the young assassin to come and talk to her. The girl’s stealth levels were obviously off the charts.

  “Not much. Finish these off and then into the water we go.” Murmur wondered if she’d said it as unenthusiastically as she felt.

  Karn chuckled. “I hate underwater zones too. Doesn’t everyone?”

  “I think that’s why they make them. Just to piss us off.” Murmur grimaced. Nothing made sense in underwater zones. Spells shouldn’t work, neither should arrows, or even sword or axe damage. The trajectories weren’t even possible given the density of the water…but if she started down that path, she’d go down that burrow of never-ending labyrinths.

  “Have you noticed anything strange about my dad?” Karn asked the question hesitantly, her eyes darting to where Risk stood talking in low v
oices with Masha, Jirald, and a few others Murmur only recognized because she knew they were in the raid.

  For a moment Murmur wasn’t sure what to say. Karn wasn’t laying a trap for her, that was sure, because there was genuine concern in the girl’s countenance, and her emotions were an open book. She worried at her lip and had her arms crossed tightly across her chest. Karn was definitely worried about her father.

  “I don’t know him that well, but he does seem to be a bit shorter tempered now than he was at the start. Could it be lack of sleep?” Murmur knew her own father could be unbearable if he didn’t get at least six hours sleep every night.

  “Maybe?” But the assassin sounded doubtful, and her brow creased with irritation. “He’s just not acting like himself. Usually he’s strict but kind, if firm. His raiders love him, even if he’s blunt and makes some horrible puns. But right now? He’s grumpy and extremely disagreeable. Almost illogically so.”

  “Heh.” Murmur reached down and scratched Snowy’s ears. “Sounds a lot like someone else I know.”

  That’s when it hit her. The description of how he was acting sounded exactly the same as Jirald’s recent behavior. Reckless. Disagreeable. No logic to it at all. It couldn’t be him, could it? He had no magic and no way to pass something of that magnitude on. Surely, he couldn’t be orating with success and just turning people against her and Fable with words?

  “Who?” Karn asked, her eyes bright as she studied Murmur.

  Murmur hesitated. Karn wasn’t a member of her guild; she wasn’t even someone she’d met before this raid was put together. But the girl was Risk’s daughter, and with that came knowledge of the man. If it came down to it, wouldn’t it help for someone to have influence over Risk that didn’t involve her subconsciously emotionally manipulating the man?

  “Well, it sounds exactly like Jirald and how he reacts to Fable and I,” Murmur added softly. “Of course, that’s neither here nor there, since your father isn’t Jirald…”

  Except Karn looked like everything had come together at once, like Murmur had set off fireworks. “No. You’re exactly right, and I’ll figure out what he’s done if it’s the last thing I do.”

  Mur had a flash of thought that struck her as dangerous. “Karn.”

  The assassin stopped as she was about to rejoin her group. “Yes?”

  “Be careful. Jirald…not even he’s being his usual self. It’s like the person I knew times eight. Tread carefully. Let me know if I can help.” Murmur said it softly, hoping against hope that no one could hear her. And when Karn nodded once definitively, the relief that rushed through her took Murmur by surprise.

  Somnia Online

  Ululate - Hidden Corner

  Day Twenty-Nine

  James tested out several of the skills he managed to maintain from the massive list he’d previously had available to him. Self-only cast armoring, shielding that protected him from the minds of the undead. As well as a natural affinity which allowed him a higher resistance to most dark-based magic. Something the system hadn’t completely released for the players in the game world yet.

  He liked having any edge he could muster. Despite his account being a dev one, and him being logged in and thus difficult to boot out because of that, he was acutely aware that his time in the world wasn’t unlimited. Every second was borrowed.

  Sadly, he had been unable to boost his developer skin up to the maximum level, which would have made his journey so much easier. Especially considering he couldn’t seem to retrieve the teleporting specialties that he’d really been counting on. Something in the system wouldn’t let him get past the level forty he’d entered with. Luckily, he’d already been geared up from ages ago when he’d last logged in. While nothing on a par with the equipment the raiding guilds were receiving, it was still decent and served its purpose. For now, at least.

  His staff was the one thing he was happy the system hadn’t managed to take from this character. When first observed, it looked more like a baton, but he could shake it out and have it extend into a fairly formidable-looking double-edged staff. The intricacies of the knot work all along it glowed with a golden phosphorescence. Its power hummed inside his mind as it connected to his headgear, activating the special abilities it still had access to.

  It even hummed its little tune to him, lulling him to look deeper, to go deeper. After all, Somnia could take his mind off everything, couldn’t it? But he shook his head. This wasn’t the time to revert to his former habit of gaming. His career depended on it. He’d promised so much, and the cards were all falling down around him. Taking a breath, he pushed himself upright and pulled up the map as he gripped the staff tight, asserting his will and making sure it stayed in place.

  Now, without his developer teleportation abilities, he had to figure out another way to get across the world and to where Fable and the other guilds were making their mark. The map gave him the only possibility open to him.

  Being short the ability to teleport also meant he had to set out back through the town he’d logged out in for some reason all those moons ago. Why he’d been in Ululate, he couldn’t even remember. As he rounded the corner of the building he’d been sitting behind, he stopped, staring at the fountain. The people around him, mostly players but some NPCs too, just went about their normal business. They didn’t appear to notice anything out of place at all. James frowned and approached cautiously. The luna in the statue in the middle of the fountain had moved. He was sure of it, and he could feel the tremors lightly shaking under his feet.

  Like the fabric of the world and the fountains knew something was coming.

  He chuckled at the grandiose thoughts coming into his mind. Or maybe it was supposed to be a moving water feature. How was he to know? It was also of no concern and had nothing to do with what he needed to accomplish. He pushed on, completely determined to reach his destination sooner than later. All he had to do was locate them and wait for them to exit their current dungeon. Surely, he could corner Wren then…if he could remember her name in the game.

  He smiled to himself. Her name might not stand out to his memory, but her guild was Fable. He knew that because her guild was always called Fable. He’d done enough research once he realized that something was off kilter about Laria’s behavior. Pulling up his interface, he searched for the guild, only to find that the high levels were currently located on the continent of Cenedril which meant he had even further to travel than he’d hoped. Why-oh-why hadn’t he been logged out over there?

  Admittedly, he had been depending on still having his developer abilities. His character hadn’t been well-known, so all dev characters had to have been set up in the parameters he found himself caught in.

  At least he had gold on him, and it was easy enough to get himself a mount and head out that way. There were more ways than instantaneous teleportation to get to Pelagu. He didn’t have the time if he wanted to solve this problem before he had to report to his boss. And probably before the system tracked his exploits.

  Buying a wolf, which admittedly wasn’t the elven mount, got him a few strange looks. He didn’t care, though. He just needed the damned mount so he could get to the city and catch a boat. He groaned as he thought about it, glad the NPCs were alert enough to just take his gold when he told them exactly what he wanted. It could have taken him so much longer if he had to go through a script.

  Mounting up, he made his way to Pelagu, determined to find Wren and force her to tell him what he wanted—no, what he needed to know. He might not have all his dev powers anymore, nor all of the warlock abilities he’d been used to. But he was a warlock, and he did have a few tricks up his sleeve.

  Even as he moved out of the town, he could have sworn that damned statue in the fountain was following him with its eyes. It gave him the heebie-jeebies, and he kicked the wolf into a gallop as soon as he could, just to get away from the creepy damned fountain.

  Storm Entertainment

  Somnia Online Division

  Game Develop
ment Offices - Artificial Intelligence Server Room

  Early Day Thirty

  The whir of the machines calmed Laria. She loved to come in and see them. Or she had before everything fell apart when her daughter managed to get stuck in the damned game. Rav’s machine was brightly lit, its lights blinking so rapidly it was hard to tell they were doing so at all. She watched for a few moments before speaking. Once she spoke, it would break the illusion that things were still normal. That the machines weren’t evolving somehow…and that she still understood everything that had to do with the game she created.

  But she knew the new reality was different. Even Thra and Sui’s servers seemed to be working properly again. It was good to see all three machines operational. Maybe they were all cooperating with one another. Finally.

  “I think we have it.” She couldn’t contain her excitement, and while she knew the AIs were approaching sentience, she wasn’t entirely sure if they’d actually reached it yet. Which would mean they couldn’t fully appreciate how happy she was.

  “You have the anti-virus?” Thra’s question held an edge of hope. Like she didn’t dare believe it might be true.

  “That I do.” Laria paused, knowing she had to be completely honest with them. “Well, I think I do, anyway. We haven’t completely tested it yet, but we did run simulations. And theoretically, it’s working.”

  The systems made a few whirs and clicks, and a couple of squeals, but the three of them stood their ground waiting for the AIs to get back to them. Laria could feel her patience sapping away, but made herself pause. She knew the AIs weren’t being deliberately obtuse, they were just running everything over twice and being methodical.