Once we saw the city, our small group cheered and grumbled in equal measure. Shazam rode at the head of the pack. Dusk looked unperturbed. His body happily bounced up and down on my shoulder. I stared at him, then at the city far away. It looked a lot different than I remembered. None of the old landmarks were showing. Even the former Parthenon-style building that had overlooked [Haven Valley] was missing.
We traveled straight down into the valley and toward the pillar of light. Shazam and her guild parted with us at the wall. People logged off, and autopilots started cleaning up gear or working on the buildings. Xin, the [Mechanoid]s, and I waited in line along with thousands of other people.
The town itself had been reduced to an ever-growing wall with very little privacy. Tents littered the area, along with some bits of livestock being used to feed those who stayed behind. Players were scrambling to take out what few monsters appeared almost regularly. They were being controlled and slowed their rate of occurrence.
I knew why, as did anyone who watched my feed. They weren’t appearing in town as much anymore because they had all started spawning at the edge of the destroyed planet. They focused solely upon tearing down the edges instead of bursting through the seams.
“Thank you for saving us, and don’t take this the wrong way, but I’m glad you’re going,” I said to the [Mechanoid]s as we neared the line’s end. “You two deserve to be somewhere safe.”
“Are you sure you do not require additional assistance, Unit Hermes?” Jeeves asked me. “Death of a shell poses little threat.”
I stared at my friend. He looked almost normal amid a sea of players from all the different games. Lots of people were in the process of checking out, and the line moved a lot quicker since the release of Mother’s form. Yates, despite his gibberish, had been right.
“If you stay here, there’re no second chances or returning to the home world.” I turned away from my friend’s iron-pyrite colors and stared upward. The beam went on. “But through there, you’ll be safe. Over there are the Shores of Ohm, the rest of your people, and much more.”
By all the Voices, I would do my damnedest to ensure their safety. Only one ARC needed to remain active until the end, and I needed to make sure none of those [World Eater]s made it through. I had no idea what process allowed me, as a human, to fight a program that deleted data. But if that was the solution, then so be it.
“Will you be joining us?” Jeeves asked.
My head shook slowly. “Sorry, Old Souls like me have a different journey ahead.”
Xin stood nearby with a tired look. Her mind was elsewhere, directing the ghost of King Nero and her white skeleton army remotely against various attackers. I envied her ability to control monsters from a distance, but I was grateful it allowed her to stay safe.
“I do not understand.” Jeeves’s metallic eyebrows touched together and the golden color flared briefly. “Your partner is an Old Soul, and she can cross over.”
“She’s unique. There are only two people like her in all of these realities,” I said while giving my wife a sideways hug.
She gave an absent smile.
Other players nearby gave us weird looks upon overhearing the conversation. The group in front of me had two Travelers, one of which stared at me with wrinkled eyebrows. I didn’t let their confused gawking throw me off.
Our spot in line came up next, and the moment of separation was upon us. Jeeves had been my friend, first as a part of Hal Pal’s consortium, then as a fellow player in space. We had saved each other’s virtual lives more than once. He had even been the best man in my wedding. I had very few real friends anymore, which made the parting harder.
“It’s been a pleasure, Jeeves,” I said.
“Thank you for everything, Unit Hermes,” it responded.
“Farewell then, Unit Hermes. Until we meet again.” Treasure waved at us, then led Jeeves off.
They walked through the brick double-doored passageway to the [Save Yourself] location. Two guards on either side closed the doors. I blinked a few times but managed to keep my head up.
We stood there as the beam pulsed rapidly. Four minutes later, a set of colors spiraled upward swiftly. Gold mixed with silver for Treasure; iron and gold represented Jeeves. There were other colors representing the two Travelers who had checked out of their virtual lives as well.
“Next!” Wyl bellowed while waving dismissively at me.
He was one of the few city guards who remained behind. Many had left with their families. NPCs were growing increasingly scarce despite an ongoing stream of refugees. The line moved around us as a trio of players stepped in next.
“What now, babe?” I asked my wife. “Are you ready to go?”
Her eyes lost their glazed look, then found focus. She smiled and brushed back a strand of her hair. The faint expression on her face stole my breath.
“Not without you,” she said, then yawned. Her head shook. “We’re married now; you don’t get to escape.”
I gave a wounded chuckle. That statement hurt. We weren’t going together, and I wasn’t about to let her stay behind to suffer whatever fate awaited the AIs who didn’t make it. [World Eater]s would likely find her and rip my wife’s body apart.
The mental image made me sick. I swallowed as the taste of salt grew. My third use of the [NPC Conspiracy] should protect Xin no matter what happened. In the end, that was what mattered.
“I ain’t going. The geezer wouldn’t want me to,” a young voice cracked behind me.
Recognition made me turn around.
“Hey, Phil, Mylia. How are you two doing?” I smiled and waved at the thin woman and young man.
She wore a faded apron and a blue scarf around her head. Near her feet was a gaggle of children all clamoring for her attention.
“See!” Phil jumped on my presence immediately. He had grown a few inches again and showed signs of a faint beard trying to form. “Hermes would agree with me! We can’t leave her behind.”
Phil’s urgent tone worried me. There were a ton of children around, but the number looked wrong. A few might be missing. I scanned the nearby city. Most of the buildings had been knocked down or been repurposed.
“Is this everyone?” I asked while looking around. A few children were missing.
“Everyone who’s left,” Mylia said.
“I’m going to look for her!”
“Come back here!” Mylia’s voice kicked up a notch, and the other children around her cringed.
Most were younger than Phil, but a few were older. They tried to help by preventing toddlers from chasing after Phil’s fleeing form.
“What are you doing here?”
“Trying, again, to get them to safety.” The orphanage mother lifted one of her handkerchiefs from her apron pocket and pressed at beads of sweat. “Here we’ve been next to the only port in a storm, and these littles refuse to go.”
“We don’t want to go. It’s scary. No one ever comes back,” a young one said.
Other children joined in protest. Even the older kids cast worried glances around.
“It’s safer, but maybe I can help you out.” My face broke into a smile. We had some time before the world ended, and I wanted to feel happy about something. “How about a treat and story before you go? One I don’t think you’ve heard before!”
“We’ve heard all the stories,” one of the older children proclaimed. “Mister Carver told us alllll of them.”
“I know you’ve heard a lot.”
I started naming the tales from my time as Carver. Their heads bobbed while Mylia stared at me. Her expression grew increasingly confused as the conversation went on. We stood there obstructing the line while the youngsters looked hopeful. People started going around us. The orphans were eager to hear something new. Maybe they missed the routine. How long had it been since William Carver stopped coming by to tell his tales?
“Then I think I know a new one,” I said.
“What is it, mister?” a child asked.
“A tale of a brave old warrior, an army of monsters, and his friends’ secret plans to save the world.”
“Like the monsters coming for us?” another child sputtered nervously.
“Just like them.” I nodded seriously. “What do you think, Miss Jacobs? Can I tell them a good story?”
I had their attention. Xin pulled out the treats. She had a ton, and I suspected she used cupcakes to bribe Dusk into liking her more. My story flubbed by as I tried to boil down my recent adventures into a story worthy of children. I didn’t use names, but instead called the creators the Great Hero, Magic Smith, and Wise Man. The names were a bit spur of the moment, but Mylia’s gaggle of children didn’t care.
In my version, the three divined [Arcadia]’s future. They saw a looming darkness that would eat away at the world and took steps to save the land they loved so dearly. They crafted and sneaked around the globe, planting down secret spells of [Lithium] and great artifacts that would give them the strength to open a new path to freedom.
When I told the tale, they didn’t die. I didn’t explain to them Carver’s last stand or M. Shell’s body burned out upon a throne. The image of Yates screaming as light enveloped him was too much for children, at least in my mind. I told the tale of how each one completed their tasks, and at the end, their bodies faded away into the stars as they transformed into something more than human.
“And as they passed”—I tried to conclude my tale as Carver might have—“they made sure that everyone else had a way to safety, somewhere the monsters couldn’t get them.”
“Like the portal,” a tired-looking girl said. She had to be twelve with huge bags under her eyes. “That’s what you’re saying, right? That Mister Carver made this for us?”
“He did. He and his friends. And I know another secret.”
“What?”
“I’ve met a kind Voice who will help you on the other side. Do you know Maud? A tall, stern-looking woman?”
“We’ve seen her statue,” a child said.
Others mumbled and gave varying descriptions that all sounded like the Voice I had met. Most notable were her attitude and cloven feet.
“Well, I’ve met her, and she’s been learning to become a good dancer. I’ll bet she’ll dance with anyone who asks.” I poked at one of the young ones and tried to smile.
Luckily, the child responded with a delighted giggle.
That put smiles on their faces—some anyway. Others looked doubtful. Some were lost in thought. I tried not to get sucked into my own thoughts from before. How old would our child have been? I looked at Xin and frowned briefly. My wife kept her face flat, then blinked once and tried not to look sad.
“Thank you, Mister Hermes. That was a very good story,” the orphan caretaker said. She looked more worn than the last time I’d seen her.
“You’re welcome, Mylia.” I looked at the crowd of children. I remembered a small army of children in her building, and now there were only ten. More than one person had gone missing. [World Eater]s might have gotten some.
The children were all rubbing their eyes. My story must have been extremely boring. The evening wasn’t that close yet.
“You should get going and escape while it’s still peaceful.”
“I intend to stay and fight,” she said. “But first, I’d better get them through before they change their minds. Then I’ll have to ask some Travelers if they can help me find the other littles.”
I nodded as Mylia pushed past me and started herding off the crowd. She walked away slowly. My eyes followed after her, and I wondered if the real William Carver would have approved of being turned into a story. Xin held my hand while leaning toward me.
“Get going!” I whispered to one of the stragglers.
The small child giggled, then toddled off after the group.
A few hours later, I stood alone at a high vantage point. The isolation helped me sort my thoughts. Plus, from up here, I could try to find out where Phil had gone. Xin walked around the town, clearly exhausted but still trying to help build barricades and fight off monsters. She kept an eye out for him too.
Travelers and Locals were arriving in droves. The beam of light flashed steadily every four minutes as a group of people vanished with [Save Yourself]. Once again, the idea of picking up Xin and throwing her into the room crossed my mind. It would hurt her, but that felt like an increasingly small price to play.
The stars northward of the crumbling moon were gone. The absence of a virtual world loomed. There were no feelings of being watched or amusement like in the room of trials. Only emptiness existed over there. It crept ever closer.
“The sky is falling,” I muttered. “The sky is falling.”
Dusk chirped once next to me. The two of us stood in a giant tower set up by the [Valhalla Knights] and many other players. It spiraled into the air twenty stories and served as a lookout. [Haven Valley] lay below. Giant walls had been torn down and rebuilt dozens of times in the last few months of game time.
“This is the end, isn’t it?” I asked without expecting a response.
Dusk chirped a long low note that wavered on its end.
My wife was below, arguing with Travelers who kept crowding each other. Many were trying to execute [Save Yourself], but doing so pushed Locals out of line. I watched her for a moment, ready to leap down and remove them myself. My almost-pure golden [Morrigu’s Gift] twisted under my hand.
Xin’s death had been a nightmare that haunted every aspect of my life for years. Waking up each weekend in an empty bed had been chased by a flurry of emotions. Stillness usually was the first impulse. Part of me dared hope that if I held myself aloft from the reality, I could slip back into the real world where Xin had never been in a train accident. Following that were body quakes that could have been anger, rage, or denial.
Seeing that twinkling beam of light and the crumbling world in the distance felt like every waking nightmare of my life coming together in a haunting recreation of past hells. The theme had changed to a fantasy world with video game boxes, but death approached. Having lost her once, I vowed never to let that happen again.
But I needed space to think as well. Years of crushing solitude had formed a pattern where being alone helped me formulate a plan. At the very least, I had time to break down in private where no one needed to suffer from my insecurities.
“Uncle Grant?” Beth’s light tone came from the stairs behind me.
I peered over my shoulder in her direction. Beth sat in her leather clothes with that sharp thin sword tucked under her belt. Once again, I felt she showed far too much skin, but the young woman wasn’t ten anymore. My gaze went back toward the horizon and crumbling moon.
“Are you going to save yourself? Everyone else is rushing to do so.” She walked closer to the edge and peered over. Beth’s hand brushed back strands of her hair. Her thin arms were far more tanned here than they were in real life.
“Yes,” I lied. “Once I’ve done everything I can. Hopefully, it will be enough to keep all of them safe.”
My fingers traced through various windows. I searched for a solution that didn’t exist. No items inside my pack were labeled [World Fixer] or [Mother Resurrection Tool]. The stupid [Altered Matrix] key that Awesome Jr. had handed back was worthless. A quarter million people were dialed into my channel now, but their attentions wouldn’t mean anything in the end. It was simply another number to pop away.
“You’ve been really brave.” Beth’s words distracted me.
“Oh?”
“To me, this is a fun place, but it’s still a game. You know? Its action and excitement. Death doesn’t bother me at all, but you…” Beth looked down at the crowd, searching for someone. “You’re really in love with her and not backing down one bit. Only you could take an action-adventure game and turn it into a romantic story. It’s awesome.”
My niece laughed. I chuckled, then nodded. Today felt somber, but at least those important to me were still around to talk to. What
would happen after this event closed? Would we all wake up and stumble around, unsure of why the virtual reality dream had come to an end?
I stared over the edge with her. The height didn’t bother me like it might have. Hitting bottom was only a matter of jumping off and giving up. I didn’t intend to give up.
“You’ve got a good head on your shoulders, and more bravery in your pinkie than I could ever hope to measure up to. I was scared out of my mind when you first let me ride along. If you hadn’t been so enthusiastic when first showing me this game, I might never have played.”
“Yeah?” Beth asked.
“Yeah.” I didn’t know if my words would help her or not. My abilities as a parent were terrible. Given my own father’s influence, maybe all I could do was try not to be him. Years of therapy, sponsors, and attending meetings led me to believe we were all kind of screwed up anyway.
Below us, a few figures were waving their arms with exaggerated sweeping motions. I waved back with a far more restrained motion.
Awesome Jr. cupped both hands to his mouth then shouted up at us. “Come on! If it’s the end of the world, we’re going to have a party! All you can eat! And you’ll never get fat!”
Beth waved back, then leapt over the edge. [Lithium] words flowed from her lips and twisted into gibberish. I watched her glide down slowly, then touch the ground while laughing in excitement. Her arms went up in a victory pose. My own [Blink] down was much calmer.
Evening arrived while the city bustled into position. Street vendors opened and proceeded to cook up everything in the stockpiles. Travelers and Locals alike stood shoulder to shoulder, getting a dance floor ready. Others reassembled boards to put up a stage, which turned out be useless as a superhero simply summoned up an earthen dais.
By nightfall, the entire city was lit up. A mixed grouping of players from all the games celebrated next to each other. Superheroes wearing ugly capes mingled with mages in witches’ hats. Warriors strapped to the teeth with weapons were dancing with green-skinned female aliens.
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