Zach thought about it for a moment. “I think it might have an opposite effect, actually,” he finally said. “Everyone I talked to thought it was a tough loss, but they also thought it was a good battle. For them it was fun, and I'd have to agree with that.”
“I'd agree with that as well,” Xavier said.
“Me too,” Danny said. “It was a challenge. Winning is great and all, but sometimes you just need to test yourself, you know?”
“I think that proves that even though it feels so real, we all still realize it's a game,” Nora said. “Games get really boring when they're easy.”
“But then again, players don't like dying,” Dr. Unger said. “How much frustration are they really willing to take?”
“I think that's part of the appeal of it all,” Danny said. “If death in the game is just a slap on the wrist then you'll be willing to take insane risks. I wouldn't even call them risks, actually, if there's no penalty. The way it is now we have the freedom to do things we wouldn't dare in the real world, but there's a gambling element to them as well.”
Zach nodded. “I think that's what makes the world come alive. It's a form of escapism and gambling rolled into a single package. We bet the time we spend in the game every time we fight, and if we lose then we have to spend more time making it up.”
Dr. Unger nodded. “That would lead to the observation that several types of disorders could develop from this. Addiction, for example.”
“Wouldn't that be most likely to happen to people who are already predisposed to addictions?” Miko said.
“That's definitely possible,” Dr. Unger said. “There's other things that people may believe the virtual world is capable of influencing. Levels of aggression, for instance.”
“Isn't that going back to the old played-out argument that video games make people violent?” Gavin asked. “Hasn't that line of thought been debunked?”
“In general yes, though there are always fringe elements. There is some concern that a virtual reality game could be substantially different from regular video game, though. The extra level of reality makes people concerned that they could be far more influential on a psychological level.”
“That... that really doesn't make sense,” Danny said. “If that's true, then shouldn't the fact that I played football mean I'm more likely to randomly tackle someone on the street?”
Selene tried to stifle a laugh. “Now that I'd like to see.”
Danny continued. “I think normal people can tell the difference between different situations. Like, tackling is permitted in a football because it happens within the confines of a game. Certain rules have to be followed, and the tackling stays within the scope of the game and doesn't go outside. That's what I think is happening with virtual world stuff. People understand that the things they do are confined to the game world.”
“To take that analogy further, why aren't soldiers separated out from normal society?” Xavier pointed out. “If the conditioning that video games put out is so harmful, then why aren't people who are actually trained for killing allowed to be around normal people?”
“A good point,” Dr. Unger said. “And I think that's a good perspective to have on the issue. Now, let's move on...”
“So, what did everyone think about that conversation?” Danny asked as they were eating lunch. They had decided to get Japanese today.
“The one about the virtual world influencing our brains?” Miko asked.
“Yeah, that one.”
“Well, I think we already knew about that somewhat,” Nora said. “I mean, look at how much Miko, Gavin and Zach improved in our basketball games. Most of that was their reflexes getting better.”
“That's true. They're still terrible shots. Especially Gavin and Zach,” Javy laughed.
“Wow, you're brutal,” Zach said in jest. He was well aware of his limitations on the court.
“That's where it's changing us neurologically. But is it changing us psychologically?” Danny asked. “My first inclination would be to say no, but something in the back of my mind says it still could be possible, since the filter between the game world and and the virtual world is gone.”
“We've been playing at lot, and we seem to be just fine,” Javy said.
Zach thought about the question. Like Danny, he was on the fence about it. To him Javy's point was correct; they had probably spent the most time in the game world out of anyone, and they were suffering no ill effects. But then again, they were all well-adjusted people with lives outside of the game world. While World at War was a wondrous thing, it wasn't the only thing. There were other things to be enjoyed in the real world.
But a person who had completely immersed themselves in the game world could be molded psychologically by the situations happening around them. That was where the worries should be focused.
It was like the situations that he and Nora discussed. To her, the virtual world only had meaning once people were a part of it. As she put it, they gave the game a soul. Zach had agreed with that, but had taken it a step further. To him, people didn't exist in the game world; their avatars did. No matter how realistic it felt, the thing inside the game was an avatar, not their true self. It was simply a projection of the person on the outside into the game world, and that was where their soul was channeled through, so to speak.
But there might be the danger of being swallowed by one's avatar. If it became the focus of the person on the outside then it was possible they would concentrate on it to the exclusion of all else. If that happened, then the avatar in the game world was no more than an NPC. It would have lost its link to the outside world and would have no soul.
At least that's what he thought. It might become a problem in the future, but that was an issue for medical professionals to deal with. Right now his role was to provide data for observation, nothing more.
Zach looked down at the message on his phone from Yusuf. Come find me at the Forge, it read. Zach grabbed his neuro-helmet off the shelf and put it on. He sat down in his chair, pulled down the visor and activated the device.
Black Wolf headquarters was abuzz with activity, since they were still reorganizing after the battle yesterday. In light of what the Valkyries were capable of he wanted to make sure that his troops were prepared to fight. Selene's southern platoons were equipping themselves before they headed back down to do the reconnaissance work they were originally slated for.
Nora materialized beside him. “Did you get the message from Yusuf as well?” she asked.
“Yeah. I was going to head over there now.”
They passed by Selene and her officers who were going over something. Danny and his group were rooting through the armory, looking to replace the weapons they had lost in the fight yesterday. At least they had plenty of them to spare thanks to Hephaestus.
The streets of the bastion were busy as well. Mules and ATVs rumbled down the main routes while troops on foot went about their business. He had heard that the main forces were planning on launching a raid on Fort Odin to further distract Ragnarok. He hoped that they were taking the proper precautions. Zach had warned them about their encounter with the Valkyries, but he wasn't sure if they would show up, or how effective they would be against Hydra's more heavily armed troops. All the same, it was uncanny how one unit could force them to alter strategy.
“Still thinking about yesterday?” Nora asked from beside him.
“Yeah,” he admitted.
“Keep in mind that as much as they're forcing us to switch strategies, we're doing the same to them,” she said. “We should keep up the raids. They're using their most elite unit to fight us, which means that they're not being used against anyone else. That might give Ronin or our main forces the time to strengthen themselves.”
“That's actually really good strategy,” Zach said. “You seem to be picking up more and more as we go.”
“Still not totally confident in my ability to run a full battle if I have to,” Nora said. “I know what to do an
d how to do it, but I'm still not sold on my ability to get the job done right now. I'll just have to hope that Anna doesn't get herself killed.”
“I think you're fine at it, to be honest,” Zach said.
“Remember the battle for this place? You put Liz in command when you went up to the front lines.”
Zach frowned. “Did you feel slighted by that? I'm sorry for doing that if you were.”
Nora shook her head. “No, I think you made the right decision. But part of me didn't want to get passed over again, and that made me want to learn more so I can be better.”
“Is that why you have such a weird reading list?” Zach asked. He had seen several books on military history at her apartment. “Great, I accidentally gave my girlfriend a complex by passing over her for command in a video game.”
“That does sound pretty ridiculous,” Nora laughed. “Well, between my complex and you being terrified of the Valkyries we make a wonderful couple.”
“I'm not terrified of them,” Zach said.
“Then I don't have a complex either.”
“You do have that one bit of leadership down,” Zach said.
“What's that?”
“You're very encouraging.”
She smiled. “Good to hear.”
As usual, the area in front of Hephaestus Forge was busy with vehicles and personnel carrying materials and finished products to and from the factory. Zach sent a message to Yusuf and then went inside. Nora was right behind him.
His alert buzzed. Head to the prototype wing, the message read. Zach and Nora made their way through the massive factory, trying to stay out of the way. They passed by smelting furnaces, ammo presses churning out bullets of every size and assembly lines for small arms. Over in one of the vehicle assembly bays he could see a helicopter being built. It was probably meant to replace the one they had lost yesterday.
Zach and Nora reached the door to the prototype wing and stepped inside. It was much calmer that the organized chaos of the main factory floor. Out there it was industry; in here they were more focused on analysis and invention. Yusuf was standing over by a workbench. He motioned them over.
“Did you get it decoded?” Zach asked. He could read most schematics due to his class, but this one was far too high of a level. Only engineers specialized in crafting had the skills to decipher it, and Zach had built his character as a generalist, good at all aspects of an engineer but proficient at none.
“Yeah, and it's pretty interesting,” Yusuf said, motioning them forward. “Just look at it.”
U-1 Sparrow, the schematic read. It detailed plans for a twin engine airplane. From the look of things it had room for two crew plus some space in the back.
“So we're going to be the first ones with an actual air force?” Zach asked.
“I've heard rumors that several companies are nearing the end of a quest line that gives them a schematic for aircraft,” Yusuf told him. “But even if that's true these designs are a cut above them anyhow.”
“Hmm. There's no antiaircraft defenses in Indianapolis. At least, no one fired on them when they tested it,” Nora said. “Could we equip one of these with cameras and do reconnaissance with it?”
“Probably, but where are you getting the camera from?”
“We could always buy photo equipment from the vendors in Old Chicago,” Zach suggested.
“That's yet another expense. I'm not sure how long we can keep it up,” Yusuf said. “Did you look at the power requirements?”
“No. What's the damage.”
“Four per engine.”
Zach frowned. “Then we're not going to be able to operate very many of these things. Maybe one or two.”
“I think the helicopters can do what we need,” Nora said. “If I'm allowed to be greedy, I want one or two of these for the south equipped with photo reconnaissance equipment. That's probably going to be the most efficient way to map the entire city.”
“It's going to take some time to get them up and running,” Yusuf said. “We can build them here, but we have nowhere to launch them from. We have the airbase to the east, but that means we'll have to disassemble them and take them there by land. Plus, we need to have trained pilots to fly them, and there's bound to be accidents while people learn.”
“We've got to have some real world pilots,” Nora said. “The learning curve is going to be much less steep for them.”
“I actually think that's far more likely than getting people who know how to fly helicopters, since a lot of people fly for fun,” Zach said.
“Well, we'll have to ask around then,” Nora said.
“Could we equip this as an attack aircraft?” Zach asked.
Yusuf shrugged. “Sure we could, but the heaviest weapons we have right now are machine guns. That's not going to be very effective against ground targets. Not any more than the choppers, at the very least.”
“Maybe we should make plans for an attack craft and then wait to see what else we can dig up?” Nora suggested. “If we can't find anything outside the city, at least we have Jackal doing the quests in Old Chicago.”
Yusuf grimaced. “We're starting to strain our production capabilities to the limit. There's only so much ore we can mine and refine in a day, and a majority of that has to go to bullets.”
Zach nodded, thinking. That was going to be a problem. Hydra's power base was built on their superior technology and industrial capabilities. If they started to lose that edge then they were in serious trouble. This was the worst possible time for it to happen as well. They were going to have a hard time splitting their forces between the north and the south.
“Can we make another production line?” Nora asked.
“That's definitely possible, but we need people to run it and materials to build with,” Yusuf said. “I'm also concerned that we're running through fusion batteries so fast. We need them to power the assembly lines and furnaces, and you guys need them in the field. I'm not sure how many more vehicles and lines we can add before we're over our practical limit.”
“There has to be some way to recharge them,” Zach said.
“Well, there is,” Yusuf told him. “Problem is, it's really expensive. It's cheaper if you bring a certain ore along, but I've never even seen it.”
“That probably means it's in the middle of nowhere,” Zach said.
“Most likely surrounded by dangerous monsters and such,” Nora said. “Otherwise this would be way too simple.”
Zach sighed. “So we're going to have to go back to basics. We rely on small units and our troops on the ground over our technology. Our infantry is what's going to win us battles.”
“That's how we got so far,” Nora said. “I don't see how that's so bad. We wanted a challenge, right?”
Yusuf grinned. “It'll be interesting, all right.”
Zach smiled as well. They were right. Even though it was going to be tough, it was going to be a lot of fun as well. And that was what was really important.
CHAPTER 12
Melee
One enemy fell before her blade. Then another. Then another. She drew her pistol and fired off a pair of shots at another out of reach.
Five. Six. Seven. Eight.
But then she was thrown down onto the hard deck of the battledome. A message flashed up on her HUD. Objective Failed.
“Maybe you should turn down the difficulty level?” Miko suggested from the sidelines where she was observing.
Selene stood up and shook her head. “I'm going to beat this no matter what,” she said insistently. “Simulation, start.”
Ten enemies armed for combat in close quarters materialized. Selene kept her knife out and charged at them.
Their failure against the Valkyries had rankled. She knew that it wasn't rational. Hydra had built themselves around the firepower they could bring to the battlefield. Whether it was recoilless rifles, armored vehicles or air support, they could lay down a devastating amount of hurt on the enemy. It was natural that they were fa
r less proficient at close combat.
She disabled the first enemy with a slash across the ribs followed by a stab to the neck. One.
It stood to reason that the Valkyries were so proficient at it because of Hydra. They were using close combat as a way to negate their firepower advantage. And while Black Wolf might have been slaughtered in the last battle, that was because they had been caught off guard. If they were faced with a more even fight then they could probably carry the day.
Two more enemies loomed in front. One came in with a downward stab. Selene sidestepped and slashed her enemy across the throat. Two. Without skipping a beat she pushed aside the falling body and made a lunging stab into the next enemy's ribs. Three.
That sentiment didn't sit well with her. Nothing about this game was balanced or fair, which was why it appealed to her. Valor and reliance on one strategy could only carry them so far. In World at War, victory went to the smartest, the most adaptable, the most prepared. They had to be ready to confront any situation that they might be faced with. Hoping to fight in optimal conditions wasn't going to give them victory. They had to evolve or perish.
Selene drew her pistol and shot a pair of enemies that were too far away for her to reach. Five. Six.
Part of this was personal for her. People had seen her achievements and thought she was incredible, but in truth they stemmed from something else. Whether it was academics, sports or anything else, her success came from one source. Deep down, more than anything else, Selene hated losing.
She sensed someone coming from behind. That wasn't going to work this time. Selene stepped to the right, then pivoted and stabbed in one fluid motion. She caught her enemy square in the chest. Seven.
Selene brought up her pistol to fire again. But something hit her in the back and she fell to the floor again. Objective Failed. She slapped the floor in frustration.
Howl: A World at War Novel Page 13
