"That's not for you to judge, Ruslan! This is an issue of principle: Queen of Sin was a gift from Crown Prince Georg to me. Or, to be more accurate, to us both. It was our flying palace. We spent some fifteen years living in it together! In all those years, Georg accumulated many decorations for our home, gathering all kinds of rarities and masterpieces. It became his favorite hobby. There was so much effort, time and hundreds of millions of credits put into Queen of Sin that no combat starship could come close to its value, not to speak of its comfort level. There were at least seven hundred million credits on the yacht just in sculptures by the great Veron ton Gep! Beyond that, there is also my nearly complete collection of the numbered Sivalla Emeralds, which were trophies from the great war with the Swarm. Those are simply priceless! And you sold all that luxury to Roben for a measly billion! Your brother had you wrapped around his finger, and you didn't even know it!"
My food arrived, and Miya had to take another break. The redheaded beauty took a look at the dishes brought to me and said in surprise:
"What is this, Ruslan? Are you trying to lose weight? Salad, mineral water... Where's the meat and side dish, where’s the grilled fish, and well, booze? Last time, you did not limit yourself.”
"Last time, I had a young, healthy body. But, after Mr. G.I. had a run with it, I was left with a body that hadn’t spent a second dry in six months, judging by the number of empty vodka bottles in my room! My liver is failing, my blood pressure jumps around like I've got hypertension, and my veins are shot to hell. Three times every week, I go to a clinic for drug rehab. That was the price of my first contract with you. That is why I'll be sticking to mineral water, and nothing stronger."
Miya closed her eyes for a few seconds, then shook her head, somewhat exhausted:
"Ruslan, I thought we had agreed on limits to this conversation. I just want you to understand that your life outside of Perimeter Defense is of absolutely no interest to Mr. G.I. right now. During the contract, your body was in a virtual reality capsule. It was well cared for. So, your stories about alcohol abuse and damaged veins are clear fantasies, just like your attempt to project guilt for a fight with your neighbors onto someone else. You have no evidence, and there’s no way you could."
I dug around in my pockets and took out something I'd picked up from home on my way here: a transparent box with a shiny ball inside. I set it down on the table in front of her. Miya took the box, turned it around in her hands with curiosity, and put it back down. I felt that I had her back against a wall of irrefutable evidence.
"Weird... I wonder if this is from Mr. G.I.'s personal stash or those packs of crystals you took from the pirate base on Unatari?"
The Truth Seeker smiled happily in reply:
"Ruslan. That isn't crystals. Don't you think I'd know? It's probably a plastic souvenir. You must have ordered it to remind yourself of Perimeter Defense."
"Hmmm... Let's say that's true. Then tell me, Miya, how did you get my phone number?"
"You've become a really bad guy, Ruslan. So suspicious! I spent some time living in your apartment last winter, remember? Mr. G.I. told you! I simply saw your number printed on a bill and called it to save it in case I needed it."
"That could all be, Miya, and I might even have believed you, but I've changed my number since then. I was sick of receiving threatening phone calls in the middle of the night. I've had it for less than a week. I've only told it to my mother and best friend. And I want to note for the future: when you call someone, make sure you’re actually speaking. Don't just send your thoughts right into a person’s head. It was unsettling to keep hearing your voice after the phone turned off..."
"Ruslan, you're saying some very strange things," she whined, pursing her lips. "Hearing voices in your head, talking on phones that are off... Have you considered getting looked at by a psychiatrist?"
I pushed my plate away decisively and stood up from the table.
"Alright then, Miya. It seems I was mistaken. Constructive dialog between us is impossible. Send my greetings to your boss and, when you do, tell him I never want to see him again. I swear, if I do, I'll give that low-life a punch in the face!"
I turned toward the exit, and made two whole steps before a pair of athletically-built men, who had been talking quietly at the neighboring table, stood up and blocked my path. One of them put my arm behind my back in a professional maneuver and slammed my face down on the table in front of Miya.
"Boss-lady didn't say you could leave!" The brute whispered into my ear.
Everyone around kept eating, as if nothing was happening. A waiter was carrying a tray literally two feet from me but, for some reason, none of the many restaurant visitors were interested in what was happening at our table. It was as if we weren't really there. Maybe if I screamed, I could get someone's attention.
"It won't work, Ruslan. They won't be able to hear you," Miya said with a voice full of inhuman, icy detachment as she watched my futile attempts to break out of the hold. "Not a very good time for you to remind me of my abilities as a Truth Seeker. That reminds me of another thing: I promised to kill you if we ever met in the real world. I do not make such promises lightly. And, as you're not prepared to work with me..."
I noted with complete surprise, that the two brutes that had attacked me looked as alike as two drops of water. Twins? Or...
"Par to nek Tuki-tuka-de-sa! Pori-la-navi!" (Let me go! Obey your Elder Female! At once!)
It was complete instinct, but it turned out to have been the right move. Both of the meat-heads jumped back from me immediately, bowed down on one knee and lowered their heads. How useful it turned out to have been, listening in on my Chameleon bodyguards' conversations. Though I didn't actually know the Ravaash language, I had managed to memorize ten or twenty sentences.
Proud of my small triumph, I gave Miya a whimsical salute and set off to leave the restaurant. Well, tried to at least. After walking a couple steps from the table, I started noticing a growing resistance. Every step was significantly harder than the one that came before it. I had enough strength for six steps, but found I couldn't go even one millimeter further. Alright, I'm not dumb, I get it. I didn't start banging my head on the wall. I turned to the table and sat down opposite Miya.
"I guess that puts the score at one-one," the powerful Truth Seeker cackled raucously. "Alright, Ruslan. Now we can really have a frank conversation."
* * *
Miya was staring at the clock. A look of discontent, and even slight anxiety had crawled out onto her face.
"For some reason, your employer is late... That’s odd. Usually, Georgiy is quite punctual. Alright, we'll try to get on without him. Ruslan, I suggest the following: I promise to answer any three questions you have with complete honesty. Then, after the answers, so as not to waste time, we can discuss the next contract. You tell me your desires point by point, and I will decide whether it would be possible to fulfill them. If any issues remain, we can wait for Mr. G.I. and consult him. Agreed?"
I thought and nodded. This option was perfectly fine by me. Miya then sighed with obvious relief. It seemed she was not at all sure I was going to agree. The red-headed beauty relaxed a bit, and an insanely beautiful woman emerged from behind the mask of this deadly predator. In fact, she was perhaps the most beautiful woman I had ever seen in my life. Only Astra, with her well defined, yet frail elegance could rival this deadly man-eater. I was reminded of a comparison once made by Florianna: "Astra is a snowflake, and Miya is a flame." A very astute observation. Miya suddenly began smiling for no apparent reason. She must have been reading my thoughts.
"It's unusual to see you without a huge belly. What'd you name the baby girl?" I asked, putting forth the first of the three questions allotted to me.
Miya looked at me in surprise, but quickly went back to smiling.
"That was the last question I was expecting you to ask, Ruslan. Though it is nice to hear, I won't hide that. Her name is Deia, Crown Princess Deianna royl Georg ton Mesfelle."
In that Miya's daughter had become a Crown Princess, it wasn't hard to guess that the real Georg had already divorced Marta. I wonder what his ex-wife demanded in return for signing the divorce papers? Should I ask Miya about that? Alright, I shouldn't waste another question on this. I'll figure it out as the game goes on. All the more so given that I had a much more interesting question to ask:
"After leaving Perimeter Defense, I spent a ton of time trying to find information on the game online. I also tried to find even one virtual reality capsule for sale that looked like the one I got out of. It was a wild goose chase, though. And, if I could perhaps understand why a private game for the elite would want secrecy, why would anyone want to keep the virtual reality capsules a secret? Doesn't it make sense that the manufacturers would actually be doing everything in their power to advertise such a product? I honestly got the impression that this technology simply does not exist. Can you tell me about it?"
Miya gave another satisfied smile:
"You've finally started thinking with your head, not letting your emotions rule you. Great question, Ruslan. That's how you should have started this conversation, instead of wallowing in self-pity and complaining about rude neighbors. Everything you suppose is correct, but you have missed one important aspect. You saw a working virtual reality capsule in real life. That was a mass-produced model too, not some experimental prototype. I've given you enough hints. You can figure the rest out on your own. Let’s see if you have a working brain in that head of yours."
Miya sat back deep in the chair with a glass of juice in her hand, and began observing my intellectual strain, clearly not planning to help me or give any more information.
I tried feverishly to imagine how this could possibly be. It was mass-produced but nothing had ever been written about it? Some kind of strict military secret? Maybe for working out different scenarios in a virtual world instead of reality? Maybe for working in locations with high infectious disease rates, or under enemy fire. Or maybe it was to train soldiers to overcome fear of death. After a hundred virtual deaths, they wouldn’t be afraid anymore. Or perhaps it was for selecting the most suitable people for especially unusual missions, like a Mars landing or first contact with extraterrestrial life forms... But that all sounded too outlandish.
"It is the right answer, though" Miya attested, clearly content. "It's good to see that you are not as closed-minded as the vast majority of people. You can think beyond the commonplace. Yes, it is for working out how to use advanced technology still under development. The game Perimeter Defense, and the equipment for it do really exist, though I am not aware of all the goals of this mass-scale experiment. And I also have no idea where former players go to after they get a game-over. Information about Perimeter Defense is not allowed to seep out beyond the laboratory walls. I hope very much that they are simply given new characters, though I cannot say I am sure of that. You have only one question left, Ruslan. Ask it, and we can get to work."
Easy for her to say... I was still in shock after getting an answer to the last question. Miya and Georgiy, it seemed, were participants in a mass-scale many-year experiment for an unknown secretive organization! Well I'll be damned! My thoughts started to get mixed up. The questions that seemed important just a minute earlier, now had utterly no purpose. Perimeter Defense is a future technology development simulator... Well, alright. Though it was hard to believe, it did explain a lot.
"And can I bring my own body into the game?" I wondered.
Miya's eyebrows curved inward in surprise and her lips puckered in dismay.
"A strange question, Ruslan. You have seriously let me down. You already know the answer to it. That would be impossible for a large number of reasons. How can you possibly imagine bringing a physical body into a computer game? It would be impossible to add even a single material object to the virtual world. Just as it would be impossible to remove anything material from Perimeter Defense. Only thoughts, minds, and knowledge. That thing there," she said, pointing at the box, "is nothing more than a Chinese souvenir. A plastic pearl. Georgiy saw it at a stand in the mall and bought it for me, because it really does look like the in-game object. I did give it some embellishments as well, of course. Perimeter Defense is used, among other things, for discovering and training people with latent psionic abilities. After many years of training, I learned to use these skills not only in the virtual world, but outside of it as well."
Despite all my skepticism, I couldn't find any inconsistencies in the Truth Seeker's words. Although... I pointed to the two twins at the neighboring table.
"And who plays the nonhuman races and the Aliens? Why did they understand when I spoke Ravaash?"
Miya shook her head in reproach:
"Ruslan, that's no fair. You've already asked all three questions. Let's try to stay within the rules, as we agreed. I answered your three questions. I'm sure you'll find answers to the rest sooner or later. For now, I need a complete list of contract terms from you. Here's a pencil and a sheet of paper from my notebook. I'll give you a couple of minutes. I need to go figure out why my companion is taking so long."
The red-headed beauty retrieved a miniscule cell phone inlaid with large shiny crystals, maybe even real gemstones, from her small purse and left the noisy room into the stairwell. My gaze was involuntarily drawn to the leather purse she had left behind. There was probably a ton of interesting stuff inside, maybe even some secret inventions that would cast some light on what was going on... But I shook my head, chasing off the criminal thoughts, and took the pencil. So, what do I want?
Miya came back seven minutes later when my list of demands was already practically finished. The woman stood motionless for a few seconds, staring vacantly somewhere past me, then forcefully hurled her phone onto the floor. It broke into a great many pieces, and the precious stones scattered around the floor. You didn't have to be a genius to figure out that she was very upset, and even enraged. I wonder who could have brought the Truth Seeker to such a state of white-hot fury?
"Mr. G.I. won't be coming to the meeting," Miya told me, somewhat coming back to her senses. "It seems that he, at the very last moment, had a change of heart and said that he doesn't want to meet with you personally because he suspects you might not be very happy to see him. What an egotistical narcissist!"
I could have been wrong, but it seemed I saw a deceitful glint in her teary eyes.
"Alright, Ruslan, seeing how Georgiy left me on the hook like this, I don't have any more reason to protect him. Yes, you're right. Georgiy was occupying your body the whole time you were playing Perimeter Defense. Don't act so surprised. One of the reasons the game was made was to improve human-consciousness-transfer technology. It can be done either via special machine, or by strong human psionics like myself and Mr. G.I. If only you knew, Ruslan, how hard it will be for me to carry everything by myself... If only I had the strength... There's no time. We're seriously behind schedule as it is. So, give me the paper. I'll take a look at what you wrote."
Miya practically ripped the piece of paper from my hands and quickly skimmed it.
"As far as the first point, sure, the money will be there. There definitely won't be a problem with that. But this one here is gonna be harder: 'While in my body, no drugs or alcohol.' For now, I can't give you a one-hundred-percent guarantee, but I'll definitely try to think something up. Same for the next point about antisocial behavior. Though... sure. We'll accept them both. I swear by my abilities and the life of my only daughter, that no one will commit antisocial acts or use narcotics while in your body. I hope that will be good enough for you."
I nodded, somewhat shocked at the seriousness of what she had just sworn by. Miya then continued:
"The next points I don't get: 'Freedom to behave however I want in game. Guaranteed safety for all those close to me, etc.' Ruslan, let's put this in more concrete terms. What do you mean by freedom and safety here? And please hurry. Someone might notice that Mr. G.I. is missing from the game soon."
"I don't want to make any reports on my activities in Perimeter Defense. I must have the ability to do what I consider right in a given situation. And I want a guarantee that no characters will suffer at your hands just because they have become important to me."
"Was there someone holding you back last time? And as for my actions... You can't seriously suppose that the third most powerful Truth Seeker has nothing more important to do than track down people close to you, right?" Miya asked, surprised.
"Remember when you paralyzed Florianna? Remember when you lashed out at Princess Astra in the submarine?"
Miya flared up in response:
"Ruslan, your relationship with these characters had no bearing on my actions whatsoever! I simply had no choice but to shut that blabby little airhead up! I did that for both our sakes. If I hadn't, it would have been two days at most before the secret of your being in Mr. G.I.’s body was revealed, and everything ended in complete failure. I would also have seriously suffered. You can't even imagine how meticulous the administrators are about making sure that every Perimeter Defense character has only one player. A couple of misplaced sentences about the real world, and you're done. It's like the player was never even there! As for the second girl, it was just raw calculation. Her pregnancy got in the way of my plans. But you demanded I not touch her, and I agreed..."
"Miya, don't try to squirm out of answering. Your listing off things that already happened does nothing for me. I want a guarantee for the future."
Miya looked me right in the eyes and said, slowly and clearly:
New Contract (Perimeter Defense Book #3) Page 2
