Digital Heretic (The Game is Life)

by Schott, Terry

  Nadine tapped some commands into her tablet and the screen behind her displayed the current information on Danielle.

  “She’s 46 years old at the moment, and for the past few years she has been hunting for Carl.” Nadine stopped talking and looked patiently at Brandon.

  “What else?” Brandon asked.

  “Nothing else,” Nadine said. “You heard her speech when Raphael told her how Trew died. The girl is true to her word. She’s doing nothing else until she puts that Sever Spike into Carl.”

  “And her ratings? Have they suffered?” he asked.

  “Not at all, likely because there are so many entertaining distractions while she tries to focus on finding Carl.” Nadine brought up another chart titled Distractions and began to list them off. “First, there are her eyes. Fans believe she is suddenly an Eternal, and they are watching closely to see what kind of things she can do because of it.”

  “Okay,” Brandon said.

  “Then there are the millions of people still believing in the movement Danni and Trew formed. She has repeatedly tried to get them to move on and disband, but the Gamers continue to believe in their movement.”

  “What are they doing?” Brandon asked.

  “Looking for a real leader,” Nadine said. “Danielle refuses to lead them, and the major religions of the world have taken notice of their numbers and have banded together to destroy this young faith.”

  “Without a true leader, the movement will fail,” Brandon said. “We’ve seen it happen many times. This one seems to be hanging on longer than most.”

  “That’s because there were over 40 million of them when Trew died. They are numerous, and they are devout. Most of the local leaders have encouraged their groups to go underground. This was what Danielle instructed them to do not long after Trew died, and the majority feel that Danielle will be stepping forward very soon to call them all together and lead them.”

  Brandon nodded. “I think she just might.”

  “What makes you think that?” Lilith asked.

  “Because she wants to find Carl. I’m surprised she hasn’t realized it will be easier to do that by putting millions of loyal followers on the hunt.”

  “Oh, I think she did realize that some time ago,” Lilith said. “I also think she’s afraid Carl will mow through large numbers of people that come after him. She doesn’t want that kind of blood on her hands.”

  “Perhaps,” Brandon said. “But sooner or later she will call them to help. So what plans do we have for helping her move along with her life?”

  “Can we help her find Carl?” Michelle asked.

  “Sure,” Brandon said. “But why would we do that? I could likely help her get funding to build a spaceship to take her to the Sun, but once she got there, she would burn up. It’s the same with helping

  her find Carl. Why assist her in getting killed? I don’t want to see her come out of the Game that way; I don’t think any of us do.”

  “She’s not going to stop hunting for him,” Nadine said. “We all know her well enough to believe that.”

  Brandon chuckled. “We all know her well enough, but all she needs is something more important than finding Carl. Maybe we’ve tried a few things to distract her, but I think we can come up with something that will do it. Let’s all get to work on putting something into place to help steer her on a different path.”

  Brandon looked around the table and everyone nodded in agreement. “Okay, then, is there anything else?”

  “Is she an Eternal, Brandon?” Lilith asked with concern. Everyone at the table knew enough about Eternals to understand some of the problems associated with that being true. Zack had lost his soul; If Danielle was an Eternal, she would lose her body here on Tygon.

  “This stays in this room, do we understand?” Brandon asked.

  Everyone nodded.

  “I know a lot about Eternals, and this is not how they are created. That being said, she does possess many talents that are most often Eternal talents.” Brandon sighed and shook his head. “My best guess is that she isn’t, but one other Eternal was created ‘improperly,’ and this could be a similar situation. I think we will just have to wait and see what this turns into.”

  “What about Zack?” Michelle asked.

  “After Raphael told Danni about the Sever Spike, I had to make it official. Everyone on Tygon knows that Zack is dead and gone. The past couple of days have been very sad for the world; I’ve attended numerous funeral services for Zack.”

  “You never told anyone he is still plugged in, though,” Lilith said.

  “What’s the point?” Brandon asked. “He’s gone.”

  “Then you’re unplugging him from life support?” Michelle asked.

  Brandon nodded sadly. “Tomorrow, when it has been exactly five days since he came out of the Game. That’s when I’ll do it.”

  Chapter 10

  Melissa

  I’vebeen sitting in this coffee shop for the past three hours. It’s taken years to get this close; I hope the wait is over soon. Sam sits across from me, sipping a white hot chocolate with peppermint. He’s looking at me with that half smile of his; I’m not sure if he cares what happens here or not. Sam’s a pretty simple guy — he doesn’t worry about much. I wish I could feel the same. I was never that way, even before I started to float.

  It’s been seven years since I knocked on Sam’s door and showed him what I can do. We’ve spent all that time trying to get close enough to meet Danielle, but it isn’t as easy as I had hoped. Famous people are really tough to meet, and she might not be on TV or in the movies, but Danielle is definitely famous.

  I know I’ve overthought it; my mind gets in the way so often and complicates things. It would have been simple just to find out what building she lives in, float up to her window, and knock on it till she noticed me. But I know for a fact that there are some very bad groups of people in the world, and they would like nothing better than to find a person like me. A couple of groups have actually caught wind of me and are on the hunt; it’s impossible to hide from everyone. So I do my best to stay hidden and out of the way. That was hard at first. It took me a few years to control my ability — it would just kick in at the worst moments, usually with others

  watching. It’s not like you can take all the time you need and practice floating around outside your apartment. Thankfully, most people thought it was just an illusion. Most, but not all.

  I can’t wait any longer. Living day to day, scraping by at odd jobs just to eat and pay for a place to sleep… I need help, and Danielle seems like the most likely person to trust. We’ve seen them coming in here for a few days now; if she comes in today, I’m going to approach her.

  The door opens. Sam is facing it; he looks at whoever comes in, then catches my eye and nods. I raise my eyebrows questioningly. Is it her? He knows what I’m asking and shakes his head slightly, pointing with his chin for me to take a look. I don’t turn around; instead I wait till the person approaches the counter. Then I stand and casually get in line behind her. It’s not Danielle, but this lady is the next best thing. It’s now or never for me. I’m very nervous, afraid I’ll come off like some crazy person. Who knows, maybe I am.

  “Excuse me,” I say. “You’re Stephanie, right?”

  The woman continues to look at the menu board, ignoring me completely.

  “Um… hi there,” I say. This time I lean into her space just a bit, to try and get her attention. That seems to do the trick; her eyes move slowly from the menu and lock onto mine. Wow, those are some strange eyes. Brown with gold flecks… yeah, it’s her, all right.

  “I’m sorry, were you talking to me?” she says. “I thought you were talking to someone named Stephanie.”

  She wants to play games. Okay, I’ve come this far — I’ll play. “Yes, and yes. That’s what I was doing. I guess I must have confused you with another person who looks identical to yourself.” I stick out my hand. “My name’s Melissa, what’s yours?” I know I s
houldn’t use my real name, but this is Danielle’s bodyguard Stephanie; I know it. She might want to lie, but I’m telling her the truth.

  “Nice to meet you. My name’s Christine.” We shake hands and then she turns away, eyes focused on the menu. Sorry, Stephanie. I’m not going to leave you alone that easily.

  “This Stephanie that I confused you for is close friends with a person I need to talk with,” I say.

  “Sounds interesting,” she says over her shoulder. “Good luck finding her.”

  “Yeah, thanks,” I say. I’m not going to back down now that I’m so close. “Listen, Steph, I have to show Danielle something. I know this might sound crazy, but I can do something that is pretty incredible, and I need her help.”

  “I’m sorry, miss, but that’s not my name. You’re starting to worry me a little bit. If you don’t stop I might have to call the police.”

  “You feel free to do that,” I say. “When they get here I’ll have them pull up Internet video of Trew and Danielle at any of a hundred major events. The cops won’t have to look too hard to find you standing off to the side protecting them. Then they might have more questions for you than they do for me.”

  The woman looks at her watch and sighs a small sigh. Then she looks up at me and nods very slightly. “Every once in a while I go to get a coffee, or something even more fancy, and a person tells me I look like this Stephanie. It’s really quite annoying, miss.”

  “Hey, look, I’m really sorry, but I need to talk with her.”

  Stephanie snorts and drops her façade. “That won’t happen,” she says. “Your best course of action is to get out of this line, grab your boyfriend sitting over at that table, leave here, and never enter this coffee shop again. Don’t tell anyone I come in here, don’t tell anyone you were here and saw me or talked to me. Don’t tell anyone anything. How does that sound to you, sweetie?”

  Her eyes aren’t as pleasant as her voice. I can recognize threats, and Stephanie is delivering a very effective one. I look at her for a couple of seconds, then nod and start to get out of line. Before I do,

  I say to her in a very soft voice, “I can fly. Danielle would want to meet me.” Then I walk away.

  I expect her to follow me, to say something, but she doesn’t. She stands calmly in line waiting for her turn to order.

  Sam is beside me as I get to the door and open it. We silently walk out and turn towards our hotel. He can tell from my face that things didn’t go well, but we both know better than to talk out in the open. I’m horribly disappointed; it’s doubtful that I’ll ever be able to get that close to them again, now that they know what I look like. Maybe I should just float up to her window, risk be damned.

  As we turn the corner, a car pulls up and comes to a halt in front of us. The passenger door opens and a muscular man in jeans and a tee shirt gets out and starts to walk towards us. His eyes look just like Stephanie’s. He’s looking right at me, and his expression doesn’t look terribly friendly.

  I stop walking and take a short step backwards, ready to fly if I have to. Yeah, I’ve gotten that quick during my years of practice. “Can I help you, sir?” I ask.

  He smiles charmingly, nodding his head. “Yes, you can get in the car, please. Stephanie said to tell you she is interested in hearing more about you. We would like to have a quick and safe little chat with you. If we like what we hear, then we’ll take you to Danielle. How does that sound?”

  I look quickly at Sam; he shrugs his shoulders. I can tell from his posture that he’s good with running or with going with this guy, my choice. If there was any real danger he wouldn’t be so relaxed about it. His instincts have saved us more than a few times. I nod. “Sounds like it’s worth trying. I’m Melissa; my friend is Sam.”

  The man walks to the car and opens the back door.

  “I’m Raphael. We’re very interested in meeting you as well, Melissa.”

  Chapter 11

  “It is with sadness that Tygon says farewell to a great player of the Game.

  Brandon Strayne, Zack’s Patron, sadly confirmed what we learned through Danielle. Zack didn’t get to celebrate one of the best plays we’ve ever seen, especially the final events that resulted in his achieving Rank One. We’ve learned that Zack’s body is still being kept alive by machines, but his brain is fully absent of any function.

  Today is the fifth day since ending his play, and sources close to Zack’s camp tell us that he will be taken off of life support today.

  From the bottom of our hearts, Tygon thanks you for your efforts, Zack. You will not be forgotten.”

  Lisa Rohansen, Game Channel 42

  “Just press that button, sir,” the doctor said. “All the machines are linked and will turn off at the same time.”

  Brandon looked at the button, then nodded. The doctor stepped back and Brandon gazed down at Zack. He lay peacefully on the bed, breathing at a normal rate. It was difficult for Brandon to believe he wasn’t simply sleeping. But Zack was gone; he’d never made it out of the Game.

  Brandon gently stroked Zack’s hair. This wasn’t how it was supposed to turn out, Brandon thought sadly. Finishing his last play was only the beginning. Brandon stood silently, looking down at

  Zack for a few moments, then straightened his back and turned to face the small group behind him.

  Michelle, Lilith and Angelica stood silently in the room. None of them wanted Brandon to be alone for this.

  “Would anyone like to say anything?” Brandon asked. He met each of their eyes. They shook their heads slightly; everyone had spent a few moments alone with Zack. Goodbyes had already been said.

  “He was a good boy — a good man,” Brandon said. “We all wish things had turned out differently, but the Game is life, and neither one is fair. You can play everything perfectly and still fail. I sincerely hope that your soul finds peace, Zack. We will miss you.”

  Brandon reached towards the button, paused briefly, and pressed it. The sounds of the machines went silent. No one said a word; they watched Zack’s chest rise and fall, waiting for it to stop as the life support systems no longer did his breathing for him.

  The silence became heavy. Zack’s chest continued to determinedly move up and down. Everyone in the room had seen death; they knew it would take a few seconds for his body to quit functioning.

  Moments later, Zack’s chest stopped moving. The doctor stepped forward and quickly untaped the breathing tube from Zack’s mouth. Brandon had given clear instructions earlier; he didn’t want Zack remaining connected to the myriad of wires and tubes. The doctor waited respectfully for a moment, then gripped the tube and pulled it out from Zack’s lungs in one practiced motion.

  As the tube cleared Zack’s mouth, his body took a huge gulp of air, startling everyone in the room. Seconds passed, then Zack began to breathe regularly.

  Brandon looked at the doctor in confusion. The doctor looked back, equally confused. The doctor felt Zack’s wrist and frowned. “There’s a pulse,” he muttered.

  He lifted Zack’s eyelid and flashed a light quickly back and forth across the pupil. “This isn’t possible,” he said quietly.

  “What is it, Doctor?” Brandon asked.

  “He’s breathing, there’s a pulse, and his pupils are reacting. I’m looking at a normally functioning, but unconscious, human here.”

  “You mean he’s…?” Michelle began.

  “Alive.” The voice was raspy and groggy, but it came from Zack. His hand raised slowly to push the doctor’s out of the way. His eyes were open and he was looking at Brandon, weary, but with a half grin on his face. “It appears that way. How did we do, Brandon? Did I finish number one?”

  Chapter 12

  “Miracles happen every day. All that is required to witness them is to look. So often we ignore them or explain them away as nonsense.

  It’s a shame we don’t give them the wonder they deserve.”

  Trew Radfield - Avatar

  “What’sthe matter?” Zack asked. “Y
ou all look as if you’ve seen a ghost.” He sat up on the edge of the bed, looking strong, fit, and ready to get up and go home.

  Brandon looked at the doctor who just shook his head in confusion. The others quickly surrounded the bed, and began to talk excitedly, everyone asking questions at once. Michelle and Lilith were crying; Angelica was speechless.

  After a few minutes, they all stood back and Brandon spoke up. “We feel like we’re looking at a ghost, Zack. What’s the last thing you remember?”

  Zack shook his head. “It’s all still a jumble, but something inside me says that’s normal, right? I definitely remember that this isn’t how I’m supposed to come out of the Game. Usually the room is quiet, all white, and there’s only one friend to greet me. Last time it was Kyle, I think?”

  Brandon looked at Zack quietly, searching for irregularities. His eyes remained locked on the young man as he addressed the doctor. “How soon can we get him out of here, doctor?”

  “Couple of weeks, maybe a bit less,” the doctor said.

  “What?” Zack and Brandon said in unison.

  The doctor swivelled his head between the two of them, not certain who he should address. He finally decided on Brandon and looked at him seriously. “The boy was dead, sir. It’s a miracle he’s even alive, let alone acting normal. I want to run a barrage of tests to make sure he’s all right, then see if we can determine what happened to him in the first place and how he came out of it.”

  Brandon shook his head. “There’s no time for any of that, doctor.” The doctor started to protest, but Brandon raised his hand to stop him. “You’ve got two hours. I’ve got billions of dollars. Run all the tests you can in that time, then make sure he’s fine and release him.”

  The doctor closed his mouth and nodded.

  Brandon looked at the ladies. “You three, I need you to get to the command centre and prepare the team for us. I’ll have Zack there four hours from now. Be ready to bring him up to speed on everything that has happened, is happening, and we think might happen with Danielle. Questions?”