“Yes. Answers. Please,” I panicked and spewed out incomplete sentences. My voice worked even though my game character had just died.
“Then I have something to ask you.”
“Okay.” The word came out with more calm than I felt.
“See James, he loves to know why, why, why, why.” The Jester paraded around and waved my written notes. “I don’t care about the why.”
Darkness all around us didn’t provide any clues as to what the Jester was talking about. I made it a point to look anyway just in case.
“I appreciate knowing the willingness to do what must be done. So here’s my question for you to ponder in the midst of all of your little failures.” The Jester turned and faced me. The papers went behind its back. “How far would you go to save the ones you care for?”
I thought of my recent actions trying to help Dusk. I thought of how much Liz and Beth meant to me. I thought of the solid punch I had laid upon Jacob.
“Very far,” I said carefully.
“Would you kill a man? Not only here, but out there?” the Jester asked.
I felt the color drain from my face. I tried to shake my head no, but my body stuttered the motion. Out of all the Voices, the Jester unnerved me the most.
“I don’t need an answer now. Nor should you think I am asking you to kill someone. I merely wish to know.” The Jester’s words grew distant, far away. Not that the game had moved me or faded him out. No, my mind was just gone and tearing up the question.
“Ah well,” the Jester clacked again. “Here! An answer to your question, for listening to mine. A sign of goodwill, dear puppet.”
System Help!
Companions value their own lives as much as any Traveler. Upon reaching near zero health, they will disperse and return to their normal homes. Afterward, the Traveler may attempt to resummon them.
+6 [Divine Attention] +4 [Depth]
“We’ll be speaking again, Hermes.” The way the Jester said my player name was utterly mocking, even with its mechanical voice. “Adieu.”
Hearing that good-bye a second time today disturbed me as much as anything else. The Jester had been watching today’s adventures with Edward, Elane, and TinkerHell. The fact that he commented on it before any of the other Voices couldn’t be a good thing.
The prior message returned.
You have died.
Numbly, I waved away the new system messages, and my finger reached for the log-out button. Once out of the machine, I just lay there. My mind was fluttering like mad as the Jester’s words replayed themselves over and over.
“Would I kill?” I dared to ask the question out loud, wrapping both arms around my sides.
A dangerous thought crossed my mind. If Xin had been in trouble, if killing someone might have returned her to me whole from that accident, could I have done so? What would she have thought?
The world felt cold as my mind slipped down a frightening path. Sleep wouldn’t come tonight. Not after that. No matter how many blankets were bundled over me. Still, I huddled beneath the covers and tried to console myself. Dusk had to be okay.
Session Twenty-Six — Under Cover Brother
I wanted to be asleep. Instead, Trillium had me sitting in a car waiting to be synced with the TRANS Tunnel system. The connection process required a lot of double-checking to get going. Cars were loaded up in packs of ten or more and brought up to running speed. Average processing time was almost twenty minutes just to make it through on a busy day. The system was still statistically safer than flying in an airplane. Or trains. Everything seemed safer than trains.
“Seriously, Uncle Grant? You were in the Grand World Crossroads? That’s brave for a newb,” my niece, Beth, said.
“Yep. Got myself killed too.” I was eaten technically.
“It happens! I just did a raid on the Tower of Stars. Four deaths! Once there was this solar beam that whooshed down, blamo!” Beth was always excited when talking about the game. “We gave up. That’s why I’m out here talking to you.”
“Way to break an old man’s heart.”
“Well, that, and homework. I just got done with classes for the day,” Beth said happily.
“And food.” I nodded at the screen.
“Of course!” Beth was busy shoveling a meal into her face. “So what killed you?”
“The Ooze.”
“What?” she asked.
That prompted a brief recap of my slightly crazy adventure. I explained all about Dusk leading me into the dungeon. Then our blind adventure until running into Elane, TinkerHell, and Edward. After that, I glossed over my failure during the first fight and the other mental trauma. Those were my issues to work through. Beth didn’t need to be exposed to them.
My sister was busy marching around the front room, cleaning as she huffed. Beth kept turning to keep an eye on her mom while shoveling food into her face.
“Grant, did you seriously get Elane killed?” Liz had overheard my recap and usage of Elane’s real name. In my brilliance, I had forgotten to leave out that detail. Getting someone called SheHulk killed would have been overlooked.
“What?” I asked.
Beth took off and started marching downstairs to get away from her mom. The food was gone already too.
“Mom.” Beth pushed Liz away from the visible screen. “He was fighting Barricobbler. Someone always dies!”
“That’s no excuse!” my sister said.
“Is too! Now stay out of my room!” Beth slammed a door.
Liz was now shouting through a wall. If I knew Liz, she was trying to feed her daughter a line about who paid the bills and what exactly belonged to Beth.
“And you got a hat?” Beth asked. Her room was busy changing colors. I could see the edge of her ARC in the background.
“I guess? I didn’t get a chance to see what it did.” I was really interested too. This was my first official item from the Voices. It had to be entertaining at least.
“It should be good for your Rank. The gear down there is perfect for most Rank Thirteens and below.” She seemed to have missed the part where I’d vaguely explained it came from a coin.
“I didn’t get anything else.”
“Really? Not even Ghost Mushrooms? Mages go down there all the time to farm for them. That blonde you’re in love with should have known.”
Trust my niece to come up with some fevered imaginings. I ignored her comment about TinkerHell. The woman was nice enough to leave an impression, but dating wasn’t on my mind.
“We might have found a few.” I focused on the [Ghost Mushroom] comment and shared that drug-addled adventure, which prompted a vaguely parental reminder about how drugs are bad.
We chatted for a bit longer before my pack of cars came up on the TRANS Tunnel system.
“Got to go, munchkin,” I said.
“Okay, Uncle Grant, remember!”
“Yes, when I get to a town again, I’ll look for a Porter.”
“Good! Then we can talk in-game instead of out here.” Beth smiled and waved good-bye.
Our conversation shut off. The TRANS Tunnels didn’t support any Internet connections. People moved too fast for the towers and other relay stations to keep up. Maybe in another five years, technology would advance far enough to support a complete signal all the way across.
I wasn’t completely starved of entertainment though. Prior to getting on the TRANS, I had set my watch to download a compendium of weapons and survival tips. [Morrigu’s Gift] could change shape if I tried enough. Looking into alternate forms would help me pass the time. The game system required a lot to transform it into other shapes aside from Carver’s primary two though.
Flipping through the digital projections achieved little in the way of enlightenment. I could spin them around within the confines of the car, but nothing looked appealing. Plus, there was a whole series of ranged weapons that would be difficult to use. So far [Morrigu’s Gift] seemed to be restricted to one solid item, but it would be neat if it coul
d do multiples or something.
Looking at form possibilities helped time pass though. I had two hours left before the car reached Trillium’s headquarters. I looked up a few details about long-distance hiking and other techniques. My next goal was to learn how to figure out my cardinal direction.
I had a vague recollection of William Carver’s map from his little shack. My instincts were saying that my original landing point upon ending Continue Online was far to the east of [Haven Valley]. The name [Lerter Region] had been useless. Beth had explained that the [Grand World Crossroads] covered a huge amount of territory.
That didn’t explain the convenience of [The Ooze] showing up at my doorstep. In addition, there was Elane’s rather abrupt reappearance in my life. To top it off, the Voices’ general silence and the Jester’s conversation just after my death meant something.
I had an entire line of questions to ask. The answers worried me, but I wanted to know. It was strange how curiosity had driven me recently. It was similar to my years as an accountant. The puzzles, being given a conundrum to get to the bottom of, drew me in. For the first time in years, I was truly enjoying myself. Figuring out how to help Carver and playing in the [Maze of Midnight]. Even while high on the [Ghost Mushroom]s, then being beaten by [Gobbler]s.
Music in the car kept me humming happily. I waved one arm and shuffled both feet. My head rocked back and forth with each swell and dip of sound. There wasn’t enough room in this rental car to move around much.
At some point, exhaustion caught up with me, but my sleep was fitful. Being back in the TRANS Tunnel reminded me of going to identify my fiancée’s remains. Recent events in the ARC device didn’t help. All of it formed together and put me on edge.
“Grant, I miss you.” Xin’s voice crawled out of my dreams and filled the rental car Trillium had provided.
“I miss you too, babe,” I responded to the faint memory.
My chest clenched for a moment, and my eyes watered. She was gone. No matter what anyone said, the woman I had loved was nothing but a pile of ashes under my ARC.
Things were slowly looking up. I could think about her without losing my stomach and feeling as if the world had vanished from under my feet. I was no longer completely paralyzed by fear that the sun might rise tomorrow and still show her gone. I had actually fought back. An image of my combat with the [Gobbler] creatures made me smile. After this meeting with Trillium’s vice president, I could go home, revive, find Dusk, and resume my enjoyment of the game.
Well, I might have to do a few work orders in order to keep money coming in. Just enough to keep my bills paid without needing to resort to savings. That was all a problem for later.
I cranked the music back up, and my eyes slipped closed again. I didn’t come to until the chain of cars slowed down for their exit from the TRANS Tunnel. I casually wiped off drool as I peered around. Inside the car, there was a dim glow of idle machinery. Outside was a yellow strip of paint which signaled the tunnel’s off ramp.
The car only gave a slight jerk as it exited the TRANS Tunnel. Afterward, the ride was clear sailing through the streets to Trillium’s headquarters. I didn’t even notice most of the ride due to fading back to sleep. Everything hurt from the EXR-Sevens, and I needed rest and better food.
“ARC,” I muttered sleepily into my watch’s remote access. “Set reminder, look up meal suggestions for long-term EXR-Seven use. Compile list based on price and ease of access from my home location.”
“Affirmative.” The notification from my watch was barely delayed.
That was only vaguely impressive with today’s technology. Network engineering companies had the lag time between here and the moon down to a tenth of a second for large data streams. The Mars Colonies were about four minutes behind.
I spent the remainder of my car ride thinking about the autopilot programs and the Voices that ran Continue’s world. The scene with Jacob replayed in my head. I reviewed William Carver’s events for impact and possible flaws.
They wouldn’t fire me over a game, would they? Oh, Voices. What if they took me to court and sued me somehow for usurping the Carver avatar and pretending to be him? There were a number of things that could be wrong. My exhaustion and worn-out body led to an entire host of possible problems.
The car stopped at an intake to one side of Trillium’s main building. I got out and went into the lobby. A robot frame of Hal Pal saw me almost immediately and walked over.
“User Legate, you have arrived late. Please walk this way briskly,” it said. The partial rhyme might have been intentional, knowing Hal Pal.
“Hello, Hal Pal,” I said.
“Pleasantries must stay minimal to ensure maximum efficiency in reaching your destination. This way please.” Hal Pal started walking off down a hallway.
I shook my head and tried to keep pace behind it. “How much time do we have, Hal?”
“Negative three minutes. Vice President Riley has a very…” The unit seemed at a loss for a moment. “Exacting schedule. This way.”
We took a sudden turn to the left and got on an elevator. An AI hesitating when questioned was a clever ploy to make them appear lifelike, or like they could actually get confused. Maybe too many human tendencies were being programmed in. Maybe the AI added a pause into their coding. Artificial intelligence as a concept was nothing new. The greatest strides were very recent to humanity.
“In here. Vice President Riley is ending a call and will be with you shortly,” it said and performed a half bow.
“Thank you, Hal Pal,” I said quietly. This unit was brisker than my own.
I waited. Three minutes, four, five, and finally a full half hour. There was an overabundance of time for admiring endless artwork and a well-kept lobby. The doors to Vice President Riley’s room were excessively grandiose. Underneath the attempt at a sleek wood motif were signs of high-end technology. A small robot was going around the floor, dusting and cleaning. Occasionally it would stop and sit on one spot until a light changed color, then it would start up again.
“Finally.” The door behind me had opened silently and Vice President Riley stood there staring at me. “Mister Legate, come in. We need to talk.”
The office itself was actually fairly small. A clearly private ARC sat in one corner. The desk in the middle was more for decoration. Images all around the room showed spreadsheets, graphs, price points, and other data. Most of it made vague sense from my years in accounting. Judging by the information, Trillium expected a spike in stocks during the second quarter of next year.
Vice President Riley waved an arm, and everything vanished. New images of trees and other idealistic scenes appeared in the room. I tried not to think about any of the data that had just been seen. Such knowledge could be very dangerous in the wrong hands.
“I shall make this short. In order, Jacob filed charges. We don’t care. That’s an official response signed by senior management. In light of your current activities within the world of Continue, there are factors we must discuss.”
“Miss Riley.”
“I prefer Miz,” she corrected with a slight Southern accent. I had never heard anyone use that pronunciation before.
“Miz Riley. How much have you been watching me?”
“More than you would ever be comfortable with,” she said.
I had no idea how to respond to that and sound sane.
“To give you a better answer, were you aware that Xin Yu was one of our earliest testers of the Alternate Reality Capsule?” The vice president waved an arm.
Off to the side, a digital projection of Xin’s face appeared. Her details were next to it. Age, weight, birthplace, and other items that were faded out.
“Yes. For the Mars Colonies.” I looked at her face. Xin had been a small woman with an oval face. Her smile was what caught me though.
“Our file on her, and you, is quite extensive,” she said.
Her voice was impassive, but the impact of those words weren’t. It shook me inside
and out. My mind felt as if there was an in-game check being done for [Focus] and maybe some form of [Restraint].
Oddly, thinking about the game world made me feel a little calmer. I just had to survive dealing with Miz Riley. Afterward, I could go home, log in, and find out what had happened to Dusk. After that initial moment of annoyance, I managed to remember my exercises from the therapist. Focus on one question at a time, answer it.
“I remember the waivers,” I said. “We had to sign a lot of files for the background checks.”
Miz Riley had deep brown eyes. The skin under them seemed to drag from exhaustion.
“And initial screening, further testing, yes. Your former fiancée, Xin Yu, was doing well on all fronts. The space program had hopes to send her with the Third Wave,” she said.
“Why do you know all this?” Those files and all that testing were supposedly run by a joint committee between four major countries. Government files being in corporate hands felt odd.
“As I said, it’s our machine they did the testing in,” the vice president said. An alarm beeped in the room, and she looked down at a display on her desk. “But there’s not enough time to go into all this. This way please.”
“Where are we going?”
She completely bypassed my question and marched off to an adjoining room. “This way.”
This whole situation was abrupt and weird to me. Vice President Riley seemed used to having her orders followed.
A mechanical door opened. I had never seen a room like this. Inside was lit up by a soft blue glow. The walls looked oddly rubberized. No chairs or tables were in here. It was just Miz Riley and me. Then the door closed. What had been blue illumination flipped over to a pale green. The walls seemed to pulse. There was a silence that made my skin crawl.
“Mister Legate, time constraints mean I must be blunt. We are in a room cut off from all electronic observation. Notice your watch is disabled.” She pointed at my wrist where the cheap knock-off equipment sat. It was, as she said, disabled.
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