Massive crystal spires stretched in every direction, and Ethan was standing atop of one of them himself. Jagged and uneven but with fairly flat tops, the towers glowed a multitude of colors. The ground beneath them was obscured by a shifting sea of dense white mist, and so was the sky overhead. The crystals seemed to repel the fog, creating a layer of clear air that was over a hundred feet tall. Of course, all the fog dampened the light, and there was no sign of any sun or stars. As a result, everything was gloomy, like a rainy overcast day, despite all the light from the glowing crystal.
It was an impressive sight, like nothing Ethan had seen before, even in Worldshift. He had no idea which way he was supposed to go, which was fine, since he wasn’t planning on trying to beat the floor right now anyway.
Looking up, Ethan studied the heavy blanket of mist hanging about thirty feet above his head. He flinched as an immense shadow slithered through it before disappearing again. Only the fact that he was in a safe zone prevented him from drawing his weapons. Were there giant monsters lurking in the air overhead? That would certainly make this floor an interesting challenge.
Once he’d relaxed a little, Ethan stopped examining his surroundings. Instead, he brought up his in-game interface and checked his friends list. Lily was still absent from it, and so was Jude and Michael. Only Kyle was still in his party, but he wasn’t online right now.
In the tower, he could only private message people who were in his party, but it didn’t stop him from sending a message to everyone nearby, despite being alone. It also didn’t stop Ethan from yelling the same message at the top of his lungs. “Lily, I know you’re listening! I’m not going to leave unless you come talk to me. I’ll sit here and let the world outside fall to chaos unless you come convince me otherwise.”
That done, Ethan sat down to wait. This was to rest his legs and not because he wanted to get as far from the creepy sky overhead as possible.
Studying his novel surroundings, Ethan didn’t move for half an hour. It was only then when a blue shimmer of light appeared to signify someone’s arrival. As the glow faded, Ethan clearly saw Lily’s white armor, and his heart fluttered with nervous excitement. At last.
Lily removed her helmet and scowled at Ethan. “Fine, Ethan. We will do it your way. I’ll tell you to screw off to your face.”
Ethan grinned happily as he stood to meet her. “Lily, thanks for coming.”
“I had to end this stupidity somehow. Why are you here, Ethan? There’s nothing for you here any longer, and you’re needed in the real world. You are ascended now and could be doing so much good.”
“Everything I want is in here,” he replied with a shrug. He didn’t have many friends anymore, and even his relationship with his uncle was distant. Only one person had managed to help him when he was at his lowest. Only one relationship lifted him up.
“People will die if you don’t do something! How can you not care about that?”
Ethan sighed. “Stop. You didn’t come here to convince me to leave. You want me to stay with you, although you won’t admit it to yourself.”
“Don’t be so stupid. Only a monster would be that selfish. You’re better than that.”
Briefly, a memory of the parents he’d abandoned flashed through Ethan’s thoughts. It was an old trauma, but he’d come to terms with it thanks to his recent struggles. They no longer haunted him, and in the memory, they were holding each other and smiling.
“I’m really not. Society abandoned me a long time ago, and I find it hard to care about it anymore. Sure, I like helping people, but I can’t solve the world’s problems, and I don’t have to. I want to help those closest to me, and you’re the one who needs me the most. I’ve abandoned loved ones before, Lily, and have never forgiven myself for it. I won’t do it again.”
Anger flashed in Lily’s eyes. “I don’t need you, Ethan. Stop thinking about me! I know you’ve read my files. I know you know what happened to me. I’m not a real person anymore. You need to let me go!”
Ethan stepped forward and took one of Lily’s hands. She tried to pull back, but he didn’t let her. “You’re as real as anyone else, Lily. Just because your body died, that doesn’t mean you’re not real. Your mind survived.”
“It means we can’t ever meet in the real,” Lily replied as she looked away. “It means we can never really be together. All our interactions will be just code in a machine somewhere. We can never really even touch. I don’t want a relationship like that, Ethan. I don’t want to string you along. You deserve someone who can stand at your side in the real world and help you be your best self. Someone who can walk beside you as you change the world, and someone who can help you raise a family and build something that lasts. In here, everything is an empty illusion to me. You have a real body that you shouldn’t throw away to join me in this illusion.”
“The knowledge is real. The technology is real,” Ethan replied softly as he looked into her eyes. “The higher we climb in the tower, the more advanced technology we will unlock. The incredibly powerful slave AIs that built this tower are still inventing and designing up there. We will find a way to get you a new body.”
Lily’s eyes shimmered as tears appeared at their edges. “You can’t afford to look forever. You still have a physical body that needs looked after. What if something happens to you in the real?”
Ethan shrugged. “So I will log off routinely to eat and exercise. It will still leave me plenty of time to climb with you. I have a pretty nice hideout I can live in, remember? Also, I’m a badass ascendant. I can deal with any problems in the real that crop up.”
“Why not just let me look alone? I could move faster without you.”
“Because you need me. I know you weren’t even going to look for a way to save yourself until I showed up. Like you said, you don’t consider this as real, which means you don’t consider yourself to be real. Let me hold you together, Lily. Let me be the rock you cling to in the storm. None of us flawed humans can manage life alone.”
The corner of Lily’s lips began to curl upward, although she still seemed sad. “But what if we don’t find it? What if it’s impossible?”
“It’s up there somewhere,” Ethan replied with steely confidence. “You’re the one who told me the tower contains all our dreams. We just keep climbing until we find it. It will be an adventure unlike any other, and when we’re done, we can both go back to the real world together, arm in arm. Building you a new body is easy next to some of the stuff the technology from the tower already does.”
A sob escaped Lily’s lips as she threw herself at Ethan and hugged him tight. He hugged her back, marveling at how right it felt.
“I was just so afraid you’d reject me,” Lily admitted.
“Never,” Ethan replied as he stroked her head. “You’re the most important thing in all the worlds to me, the only thing that is truly real. I love you.”
Ethan had no idea how long he held Lily in his arms, but he never wanted to move. He was complete.
However, he eventually had to remember his surroundings. A shadow passed over him when something huge slid through the mist overhead. His peace disturbed, Ethan sighed and looked around. He was still surrounded by an endless expanse of crystal towers.
“So, do you have any idea which direction we’re supposed to go in?”
Lily laughed giddily, and the happiness in her voice filled Ethan with warmth. He knew without a doubt he’d made the right choice.
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I started writing because I love world building and reading. I started reading at a young age and never ever stopped. My teachers had to confiscate my books. Eventually, all those ideas and characters took root in my brain and I had to start writing, so here we are.
Acknowledgements
The cover art for this book was done by the talented Shane Sandulak.
Worldshift- Virtual Revolution Page 50
