Nascent (The Stork Tower Book 1)

by Tony Corden

  Sure enough, crashing from the bushes came a huge black bear, several arrows were sticking from its side, and there was blood all over its snout. It saw the man, roared in fury, and started to chase after him.

  Black Bear (Level 24) 2100/2600HP 2350EP

  Without thinking Leah used the Webspinner ring to trip the bear, she moved closer and smacked it on the snout with the Morningstar. She was moving close to finish it off when it snapped the web, rose and turned to face her, swiping at her with its claws. The claws smacked Merdiven out of her hands and pushed her off balance. She turned the fall into a tumble and ducked into the trees, the bear hot on her trail. She ran twisting behind trees, taking quick shots with mana spikes and the Webspinner until both were empty. In desperation, she tapped her hands while running and then leapt into a tree and quickly scampered up out of reach of the bear. The bear rose to full height and clawed at the tree. His paws stopping several meters from her perch. The bear began pushing against the tree and to Leah’s horror, she felt the tree move. Neither ring had recharged, and she only had her knives, she’d dropped the staff. The bear pushed again, and the tree swayed even more. Soon the bear was rocking the tree which began to creak.

  Leah looked frantically through the backpack and grabbed the rope. She quickly tied a slip knot, and the next time the bear came close, she dropped the noose over his head. Leah tried pulling it tight, but the bear almost pulled her out of the tree. She let it have some slack then wrapped the rope a few times around the tree and tied it off. She grabbed Jason’s sword and the next time the bear crashed into the tree she dropped it point down straight at the bear’s neck. The sword only travelled three meters but it penetrated several hand widths into the bear's shoulder before falling to the ground, this upset the bear whose HP was down to 1400. Hitting the tree again, the bear went berserk. The tree started to lean over and didn’t right itself. Leah knew the next collision was going to be the last for the tree. As the bear hit the tree, Leah dropped onto its back and raked two long furrows down the length of its back with a knife in each hand.

  As she reached the ground, the bear reared up in pain and anger causing Leah to stumble as she landed. She fell onto her back and looked up to see the bear turn toward her. She saw the sword lying there and in desperation raised it at an angle as the bear dropped toward her. The bear never hit the sword for the rope around its neck went taut and dragged the bear to the ground. Before it could right itself, Leah stood and raised the sword above her head, she swung and hit the bear across the neck. It still had 200 HP, Leah knew she had nothing left, her stamina was almost gone, and she'd used her Ki with the sword. Suddenly another sword came down hard on the bear’s neck. It was finished. Wisp stood there, holding her sword and trembling.

  After they had both stopped shaking, Leah offered the bear to Wisp for harvesting, but Wisp refused, saying it was all Leah’s and it was simply payback for the previous day. After harvesting the skin, meat and claws they made their way back to the trail.

  It was another two hours of walking before the forest ended. From the edge of the forest, they could see the town of Carson’s Loop in the distance. It was easily twenty times larger than First Bridge and was situated in a large meander of the river. It was early afternoon when the two walked into town where they changed their resurrection location to Carson’s Loop. Amy had given them directions to an Inn, and it wasn’t long before Wisp and Leah were settled into a room at The Thirsty Lion. Leah paid five silver for the week, bed only, and was preparing to log out. She explained to Wisp that she had things to do in the real-world which would probably take at least one if not two days real-time. While waiting, Wisp was going to look for some quests or MOBs around Carson’s Loop and work on becoming more natural in her play style. Leah lay down and logged out.

  Leah had been three real hours in the Pod so after dropping everything for Gèng to organise she lay on the sofa and logged out. It was five in the morning real-time. She wanted to see her parents, and it was Sunday; her mother would be upset if Leah didn’t get to Church, which started at ten. She had time for one more virtual immersion but decided to get visit home before visiting the Academia World and enrolling in a school.

  She got dressed, made sure she had access to her knives and headed home. Because it was early, nobody was around, and she was able to travel quickly. Climbing the stairs to her family apartment overwhelmed her with the sense of returning to what was important. For the first time since she had begun this journey at age six, Leah doubted she needed anything beyond what she already had, here. This was home. Her mother was making breakfast, her father humming away in the bathroom, probably shaving. It was good just to talk and do everyday things. She told them everything that had happened, well almost everything; she left out some of the more graphic images as neither of her parents would appreciate knowing she had driven a knife in someone’s eye socket.

  After breakfast, she cleaned the chicken coop and did all her usual chores in the gardens. Leah and her mum discussed the option of her staying for a week and what that would mean. They scrounged around and found enough bits and pieces of cutlery and crockery, pots and pans, to make do for a week. Leah went to the markets to find fresh food, rice and meat for the week. She made sure she returned home in time to go to church with her mother and brother. Leah enjoyed the atmosphere of church, especially the singing. She typically faded during the moralising sermons; instead, she usually read the pew Bible. If only the preacher would stay on topic, she might listen longer. Seeing the way people talked with her mother was another big bonus of church, it was one of the only places where Jin was truly accepted.

  After church, Leah ate lunch with the family. She packed as much of the week’s supplies into her backpack as possible and wrapped the rest in an old blanket she tied and slung over her shoulders. She told everyone her plan to be back the following weekend, but privately she wasn’t sure she would make it more than a couple of days before needing to see her family again. By two o’clock she was back in the Pod facility and ready to start her schooling. This was what she had worked toward. Almost everything she had done in the previous nine years was for this, to find answers, to know, to be whatever she wanted to be. There was only so much you could read in books and learn on the web. She craved meeting people, talking with people who understood why things happened. She loved her parents, they were vital to her, but she needed more.

  Once Leah was back on her sofa, she had Gèng open the virtual terminal, and after some research, she then went shopping. She had Gèng open a portal to ‘Walworld’, one of the cheaper shopping worlds and bought some new clothes to wear for when she entered Academia. She had decided to keep Atherleah, the half-elf, separate as much as she could from her schooling. She bought jeans, a modest top, a tweed newsboy hat, and a pair of basic runners. The purchases set her back over 50 Virtual Credits but that included rights to change colour and size parameters, so she thought it a great deal. She'd decided against buying a wig and bought the hat as a compromise. Once dressed in her new clothes Leah headed for the new portal doorway that Gèng had made. It was labelled ‘Academia’.

  Leah appeared in the reception area of a small office, on the counter in front of her was a sign which read “ADMISSIONS”. The lady in front of her smiled and asked, “How may I help you today Atherleah?”

  “I was hoping to discuss my options for enrolment.”

  The admissions officer looked at Leah and said, “I have your information here, I see you are a Negative Tax student from the Australian Republic. They provide three years of education in any of their community schools free of charge. Your grades are truly exceptional, and you are eligible for any courses at those colleges, and if you want, I'll send you the information now. You may stay here in this office and decide, or feel free to wander around any of the campuses to help with your decision. I am free to show you around any of them, at any time.”

  “Thank you! I was wondering if I was eligible for any other colleges besides
those?”

  Gèng interrupted, “You asked me to let you know when you requested anything on the Government proscribed list, well you have just done so. As a negative-tax student, that question is not allowed. Do, you wish me to report the infraction?”

  “No!” Leah sub-vocalised.

  The admissions officer paused then said, “Let me see. Your grades also make you eligible for many other exceptional schools; however, your subsidy would not cover those schools, and you would need to pay some tuition.”

  “Could you please send me a list of the other schools I'm eligible for and their fees?”

  Gèng again interrupted, “That request is also on the Government proscribed list for negative-tax students. Do, you wish me to report the infraction?”

  Again Leah sub-vocalised, “No! Assume ‘no’ for all infractions, but keep me informed.”

  The admissions officer looked up and said, “Now this is interesting, I've sent your information to our general admissions centre, instead of only the Australian Community Colleges, and have received numerous replies already from various schools who would be interested in having you study with them. Several schools are prepared to offer partial scholarships based on your grades. Let me send you the list of schools, I'll update it as I receive more information.”

  Leah sat down and began to look through the information. Her list of schools to attend had suddenly jumped from the seven Australian Community Colleges to over 3,000 possible International schools, Colleges and universities. She quickly added some filters to reduce the number and then highlighted some of the major options including Cambridge, Oxford, MIT, Harvard, ETH Zurich, Stanford, Melbourne, Tsinghua, Tokyo, and Princeton. Suddenly the University of Melbourne option went red, then disappeared. Leah looked up at the Admissions Officer only to find her frozen. The room she was in faded and replaced by a different room; this one had two rather severe and self-important looking people in it.

  One of them, a young man in a pressed suit said, “Please excuse us for interrupting your admissions Ms Carroll, but I'm afraid there has been an error. My name is Peter Rush, one of the non-AI admissions officers here in Academia, with me is a Mr Alistar Tubbs from the Australian Federal Bureau of Education. It seems your grades were inadvertently sent to all schools in Academia. Thankfully, Mr Tubbs immediately contacted us so that we might inform you, before you applied elsewhere, that the Australian Federal Bureau of Education is providing resources only if you study in one of their community colleges. We have decided to make this clear, as soon as possible, so that you don’t get your hopes up.”

  She said, “Excuse me, sir, I do appreciate the information, but I’m confused as to how you have access to my application. Bringing me here without my consent is considered an invasion of my privacy.”

  “Well, young lady,” Mr Tubbs interjected, “there’s no need for that attitude, we just want to help. I'm from the Australian Federal Bureau of Education, and we just want to make sure you are being taken care of. We d0n’t want you to get your hopes up unduly. Now, do you understand the conditions of your assistance.”

  “Yes, sir, I understand. Thank you!” as Leah stared at the man she sub-vocalised to Gèng, “Log me out.”

  “I am unable to comply; the log-out option has been closed.”

  She spoke to both men, “Why can’t I log out?”

  Again it was Mr Tubbs who answered “It is a temporary measure until this is all sorted out. Now, why don’t you have a look at those schools which are available to you and choose one now, then we can all go home.”

  “Gèng, can you contact Virtual Security?”

  “If I had been installed on the PAI chip I do not think I would be able to, but yes I think I can. Please wait.”

  Leah said aloud, “I think I need a little more time to visit the schools before I make my final decision. I thought I had until the end of the week to decide.”

  “I have now established a connection with a Security Controller AI and am being advised. It says to keep them talking while they isolate the server this on which this temporary virtual space has been created .”

  “Well, yes you did, however with this mix-up, I would like you to decide now. If you can’t, then it is in my power to have you removed from the list of those eligible for assistance. I don’t think you would like that, so hurry up and decide.” Mr Tubbs said.

  “Can you advise me?”

  “I advise you to choose one of those schools, and it makes no difference to me which one. Please hurry.”

  He then turned to the younger man and said, “I don't know how this happened, and I don't really care. You fix this, keep her here until she’s decided! I have a meeting to get back to. We’ll revisit this tomorrow and find out what went wrong. Goodbye!” He tried to log out but found he couldn't.

  A uniformed man suddenly appeared in the room and said, “Hello, I am Security Controller 11-5. Mr Peter Rush and Mr Alistair Tubbs, you have been reported as holding Ms Atherleah Carroll here, in this virtual-space, against her will. This has been investigated, and you are both formally charged and have been presumptively convicted of virtual kidnapping. All your access to any virtual-reality outside of your personal worlds is hereby cancelled. Your accounts are frozen until a formal hearing is convened. Arrest warrants have been issued in your real life locale. I advise you to acquire legal representation immediately. This private world-space and its associated server are currently being cloned and will be either destroyed or confiscated. Further investigations regarding this crime are ongoing and may result in further charges.”

  Both men disappeared. The controller then turned to Leah.

  “Ms Carroll, I apologise for your distress, this is supposedly not possible. I formally request access to your virtual history and your Pod history to determine how this has happened?”

  “Do I need legal representation?”

  “If you wish, though I do not believe it necessary, I will make no changes nor share anything concerning you without your consent.”

  “Ok then, Gèng please give him everything he wants.”

  The controller obviously had access to plenty of processing power as he said almost without a pause, “Ms Carroll, further to my investigation, I would like to analyse your implant and your AI?”

  “Please call me Leah and I agree you may analyse the implant, as to the AI that is up to Gèng, it’s its choice?”

  “Thank you. Be aware AI 628B44CE81 has agreed.” This time the silence lasted several seconds.

  “Leah, may I have your permission to transfer this investigation to a Safety Oversight AI as the configuration of your implant is outside known parameters?”

  “Is there any danger to me with the current configuration?”

  “That is unknown without further study.”

  “Will the Safety Oversight AI also keep it confidential?”

  “That is unknown. It depends on their programming. One of my prime directives is to ensure privacy; their’s is safety.”

  “Then no! If they can ensure my privacy, I will agree; otherwise, it is our secret.”

  “Leah, I believe it is in your best interest to have a Safety Oversight AI investigate. May I have permission to seek a promise of privacy, otherwise permission to communicate information generally and without specific reference to you?”

  “Ok, under those conditions I accept.”

  “May I help you in any other way before I transfer you back to admissions?”

  “Yes, can they do this again?”

  “No! I don’t believe so. I have updated your AI with all current high-level security protocols and have adapted them to counter the specific attack you suffered. Please contact me if you have any concerns.”

  “How were they able to kidnap me?”

  “I’m sorry, but those details have been suppressed by the court.”

  “Thank you. That’s all. I’d like to go back to admissions now.”

  Immediately Leah found herself back in the Admissions Off
ice. She needed to log out and think this through, but first, she asked one question.

  “Excuse me,” she asked the admissions officer, “is it possible to enrol in more than one school at a time?”

  “Certainly, though many schools have set benchmarks for grades if dual enrolments are to be permitted.”

  Leah thanked the admissions officer and logged out.

  Sitting on her sofa, she replayed the incident in her mind and reviewed the documents and provisions relating to the Bureau of Educations offer of access. She could find nothing that stipulated she needed to attend a community college but was sufficiently scared of losing the POD access to agree to attend them.

  Gèng interrupted her thoughts, “Leah, you have a communication from the Federal Bureau of Education, an email.”

  Opening the email, she found the following:

  To: Citizen Atherleah Carroll FQC3465278 [AI 628B44CE81]

  From: Australian Federal Bureau of Education Legal Department

  Regarding: Tertiary Admissions (Reference Number: TE132124-71)

  Citizen Carroll,

  Regarding your recent experience with Mr Alistair Tubbs who previously worked for the Australian Federal Bureau of Education in admissions. Please note the following:

  1. Mr Tubbs’ actions were not authorised in any way by this Bureau.

  2. Mr Tubbs’ exceeded his authority and has been dismissed by the Bureau.

  3. The Bureau offers you a sincere apology for any distress that you may have suffered. Unfortunately, no material benefit can be given as this might jeopardise ongoing investigations.

  4. Any reference to this incident in any forum or media may lead to prosecution if it is found to be detrimental to the Australian Federal Bureau of Education or Australian Government in any way. In light of this, we strongly suggest that you take no further action over this event.

  5. A report has been made to the appropriate Australian AI regulatory authorities to determine how Mr Tubbs was able to interact negatively with your AI. This report has also been forwarded to the Chief AI Installer for the Greater Brisbane Hospital.