Kwame assumed the impersonal manner of a Game Tech again “Directly linking worlds would be possible but extremely unwise. There would be a danger of the crashing world bringing down the others that were linked to it.”
There was a grim silence after that. I turned to stare round at the bomb site. The Game Techs were the all-powerful ones who created the worlds of Game, but one of them had turned their powers from creation to destruction.
The bombing here had caused the deaths of over eleven thousand people, but we had to worry about other types of attack as well now. A rogue Game Tech could be just as dangerous within Game as outside it. If Hawk’s nightmare visions became reality, and a reign of terror started inside Game, then there would be no way for the player population to escape. It was impossible for fifty billion frozen players to return to the real world.
Chapter Eight
We retreated to our carriage again, and moved on for fifteen minutes before stopping. When I followed Hawk out on to the platform of the new transport stop, I saw we were in the middle of an area of farmland. Hawk didn’t say anything, just stood on the platform, apparently watching an autoplough working in a field.
Nathan and I exchanged baffled glances, and waited in silence. It was several minutes before Hawk spoke.
“Back when the players chose me to be their representative, everyone believed some teenagers were responsible for the bombing. My knowledge of the real world and teenage life was four centuries out of date, so I recruited you two to travel with me as my assistants. Now we know a Game Tech was involved in the bombing, I have to rethink my plans.”
That sounded as if Hawk had decided he didn’t need Nathan and me tagging along on the investigation any longer, and was going to send us back to the body stacks. Bitter disappointment hit me. I knew I should be mentally preparing a speech that would persuade Hawk to help me and Nathan by putting a good comment on our Game records, but I couldn’t think of anything except how much I wanted to stay part of the hunt for the bomber.
“I wondered why the bomber went to all the trouble of fitting a delivery trolley hub instead of just using a controlled droid to plant the bombs,” continued Hawk. “The answer is that the bomber was a Game Tech and would only have access to official Game droids. If one of those was seen near the Avalon server complex, it could give away the fact that a Game Tech was involved in the bombing, so the bomber decided to use a delivery trolley instead.”
Nathan nodded eagerly. “No one pays any attention to ordinary controlled droids, you see them all the time, but every kid notices Unilaw or Game droids.”
“Given how carefully Game Techs are selected for their work,” said Hawk, “it’s hard to believe that more than one of them was involved in the bombing, but we should remember that it’s a possibility. There could obviously be any number of players or teenagers involved as well.”
I forced myself to overcome my disappointment and speak. “If you’re right about the reason for using a delivery trolley to plant the bombs, then there can’t be any players involved in this. A player could just sign up for a real world job to get access to an ordinary controlled droid with no distinctive markings.”
“Point,” acknowledged Hawk. “If there weren’t any players involved, that means the Game Tech must be the one who organized the bombing. A Game Tech might conceivably be influenced by a player that was an old friend or lover, but I can’t imagine how a random teenager could talk a Game Tech into helping them with a bombing.”
“I don’t know how a teenager in the real world could even get in contact with a Game Tech,” said Nathan.
“Romulus and Remus think the bombs were made by someone at least a couple of centuries old,” said Hawk, “so that means our rogue Game Tech must be the one who made them. I can’t see there’d be any problem using a controlled droid to make a bomb.”
I remembered the Unilaw droid that had sat opposite me in a pod, juggling a gun from one hand to the other. “I can see big advantages in using a controlled droid to make a bomb rather than doing it in person. You don’t have to worry so much about making mistakes when you can only blow up a droid rather than yourself.”
“Point,” said Hawk. “So the bombing was organized by our rogue Game Tech. The fact it was a real world attack was probably a deliberate attempt at misdirection. Everyone was supposed to be busily chasing teenagers in the real world, while the Game Tech quietly controlled events from within Game. We’re looking for a Game Tech who has been in Game for at least two or three hundred years and has some knowledge of bombs.”
I wasn’t sure what was happening now. If Hawk was still discussing details about the bomber with Nathan and me, did that mean he wasn’t sending us back to the body stacks after all?
“I think the bomber has to be a high-ranked Game Tech,” said Nathan. “Kwame was upset when he told us that only Game Techs could request the location information for a server complex, but then he talked about the records being expertly deleted from the audit trail. The tone of his voice suggested that was even more worrying, as if someone would need high authority to make changes to an audit trail.”
“You’re right,” said Hawk. “Kwame said that future requests for force field codes will need to be authorized by three gold status Game Techs from different departments. That means the Game Techs daren’t even trust their highest ranked people any longer.”
“A Game Tech being involved in the bombing is terrible news for them,” said Nathan.
“It’s terrible news for everyone,” said Hawk. “Kwame will be making a general announcement to the other Game Techs that one of their own people was involved in the attack. If we’re lucky, the bomber will react by doing as little as possible to try to avoid being caught. If we’re unlucky, there’ll be another attack.”
By now I was convinced that Hawk wasn’t sending Nathan and me away. “You think there could be another bombing despite all the new security precautions?”
“In theory, the server complexes should be safe behind their force fields now,” said Hawk. “It seems unlikely that three unconnected gold status Game Techs would have suddenly been filled with a desire to murder players. My big worry is that the bomber will move on to attack other Game related targets.”
My stomach gave a sudden lurch. “Targets like the body stacks. There are fifty different sites around the world, each holding a billion freezer units, and the kids who work there couldn’t do anything to stop a bomber.”
Hawk winced. “I was thinking of the bomber targeting places that were important to the running of Game, but you’re right. The sheer scale of the body stacks makes them impossible to defend, and a bombing there would have a huge impact on the players. It’s not that destroying bodies in freezer units would harm anyone in Game, their minds would still be safe in the system, but it would hit people hard on a deep emotional level. At least, it would hit me hard. I haven’t used my physical body in four centuries, I’m not even sure where it’s stored now, but I’d hate to think of something bad happening to it.”
He paused to rub his forehead, the movement heightening the illusion that he was here with us in person rather than just controlling a droid. “There could be another real world bombing, but there’s also the possibility that the next attack happens in Game. The bomber doesn’t need to hide the fact they’re a Game Tech any longer. They could set the Behemoth loose to rampage through a crowd of partying Gamers, create a volcano in the middle of a music festival, or send a tidal wave ripping across beaches. The players’ deaths wouldn’t be permanent, but their fear would last for centuries.”
I thought what an experience like that would do to my mother. “We have to catch the bomber before any of these things happen.”
Hawk nodded. “I won’t be able to chase down clues to the bomber’s identity within Game, because Game Techs are always hidden behind the scenes of worlds. The only time players see them is when they call for help with something that isn’t covered by the automated Game commands, and then i
t’s usually a bronze status Game Tech that appears.”
I frowned “Given the situation, the Game Techs should forget the rules and allow you into their areas.”
“I don’t think that’s possible unless they recruit Hawk as a Game Tech,” said Nathan. “The special Game Tech areas don’t connect with player areas at all. It’s like Game Techs live in a whole different dimension of Game.”
“I’ve absolutely no desire to be recruited as a Game Tech,” said Hawk hastily, “and I’m sure that any clues in Game Tech areas would involve incomprehensible technical things. It makes far more sense for me to follow the trail in the real world.”
He turned to Nathan. “I’ll be focusing my efforts in the real world, but the Game investigation team will be sending me reports on their progress. I’ll need you to go through those for me and explain any important points.”
Nathan looked doubtful. “If you want someone to explain technical details, you should ask a Game Tech for help. I don’t know very much, and most of the things that I think I know are self-taught and probably totally wrong.”
“I realize that you’ve limited knowledge,” said Hawk. “I’ll take you to the United Law facility that’s leading their investigation into the bombing. They’ll give you comfortable living quarters and all the facilities you need to do some high-speed learning about the technical side of Game. I’ll arrange for you to have access to all the Game training texts, and put you in contact with several Game Techs who’ll answer your questions.”
“Training texts!” Nathan’s eyes lit up eagerly for a second, but then he shook his head. “Even if I had all those things, a real Game Tech could do far more to help you.”
“I can’t use a Game Tech for this, Nathan, because I don’t know which of them I can trust.” Hawk waved his hands in a despairing gesture. “Our bomber is probably a silver or gold status Game Tech. That means they’re in a position of power. They may have already manipulated their way onto the Game investigation team. Even if they haven’t managed to join it themselves, they could still offer bribes of promotion and choice assignments to other Game Techs who are on the team.”
He paused. “You have to be very careful, Nathan. Always be aware that one of your Game Tech contacts may be helping the bomber, or even be the bomber. When you ask them questions, make sure you ask about lots of different things, so you don’t give away clues about the direction our investigation is going. Always ask at least two of your Game Tech contacts the same question. If the answers differ, then tell me at once. After seeing your room, I know you’ve got incredible attention to detail, and will spot any inconsistencies.”
Nathan hesitated for a moment before speaking. “Why aren’t you asking your friend, Kwame, to do this?”
Hawk groaned. “Kwame grew up centuries ago in a country that insisted on its citizens doing two years of military service. He would never talk to me about what he did during those two years, I got the impression he wanted to forget all about it, but it’s quite possible that he picked up some knowledge of bombs. Kwame then entered Game nearly three and a half centuries ago, and we were friends for a couple of decades before he was recruited as a Game Tech. Now he’s gold status with a high position on the Game investigation team. Logically speaking, that puts him very high on my suspect list.”
I broke in to the conversation. “But Kwame is the one watching your ... consciousness data in Game. Surely that means he’s in an ideal position to delete it.”
“I know,” said Hawk. “The me that thinks and feels in Game is nothing but streams of data in a white box in a server complex. Kwame could delete that data from Game, and there’d be nothing left of me but a frozen body with no one at home.”
I pictured that and winced.
“That idea terrifies me,” said Hawk. “One minute I’m here, the next I’m gone forever. No way to fight back. No chance at all. Perhaps my body could be defrosted, re-educated, and become a person again, but that person wouldn’t be me.”
He had a strange smile on his face now. “My logic tells me that Kwame should be number one on my suspect list, but my emotions say he’s an old friend that I can trust absolutely. I’m betting my life that my emotions are right. Kwame used to defend me in Game battles where death was merely very painful and inconvenient. Now he’s defending me from a very permanent death. If I’m wrong about Kwame, and he attacks me, then at least he’ll give himself away by doing it.”
He pulled a face of self-mockery as he spoke in exaggerated heroic tones. “I will not have been deleted in vain.”
“You should consider leaving Game,” I said. A few days ago, I would have had a fit at the thought of saying that to a Founder Player. I was pretty worried about saying it even now.
Hawk looked startled. “You know, that option hadn’t even occurred to me. I entered the Game over four hundred years ago, and I’ve never left it for a single day. You’re right that I’d be safer back in the real world, but there’s a lot more at stake here than just my safety. I can’t reassure the other players if I’m not in Game. I can’t afford to spend time sleeping and eating. The enemy is way ahead of us already. I need to run faster to catch him, not weigh myself down with chains.”
His manner suddenly changed from pensive to decisive. “Nathan, I’ve explained what I want you to do. Jex, I want you to go with Nathan to the United Law facility. I’ll call you whenever I need to discuss problems.”
“What?” I shook my head urgently. “There’s no point in me going to a United Law facility with Nathan. I’ll be able to help you with problems much better if I’m with you.”
“If you go to the United Law facility with Nathan, you’ll be able to assist him with his research,” said Hawk.
I shook my head again. “Asking me to assist Nathan with research into the technical workings of Game is like ... like asking a bumble bear to tap dance.”
Hawk didn’t even smile at my joke. “Perhaps that’s true, but you’ll be safe at the United Law facility.”
“Safe?” I repeated in confusion. “Why do I need to be kept safe? You’re the one that’s important, not me.”
“I’m in danger, Jex. Recruiting you and Nathan to help me has put you both in danger too. You could get hurt just because you’re near me, or because the bomber thinks that harming you will discourage me from chasing him. There used to be a phrase for this. I think it was ‘collateral damage’.”
“You mean the bomber might attack us just to deter you from ...” I broke off and started a new sentence. “I’m not going to sit around uselessly at a United Law facility. You recruited Nathan and me because your knowledge was out of date and you needed us to explain how things work these days. You still need me to do that.”
Hawk frowned. “I can’t deny it would be very helpful having you with me. I’d never have noticed that delivery trolley hub if you hadn’t pointed it out. I don’t want to drag you into danger though. You have to remember that the bomber has already killed over eleven thousand people and won’t hesitate to kill again.”
“And you have to remember that one of the people the bomber killed was my father,” I said fiercely.
Hawk’s droid hands lifted in a very human gesture of surrender. “I can’t argue with that. If you’re sure you want to take the risk, then you can stay with me on the hunt.”
I took a deep breath and nodded. “I’m very sure.”
Chapter Nine
The carriage was whizzing through a tunnel, heading for the United Law facility. Hawk was busy making a broadcast to the players in Game, so his golden droid sat motionless in one of the seats. Nathan was frantically working on a small, handheld screen.
“This is amazing stuff,” he muttered. “I really need about six screens at once, as well as a proper Game Design console.”
I glanced at the meaningless complexity displayed on his screen. “Is that a Game training text?”
He nodded, his eager eyes still fixed on the gobbledygook. “I just wish I could run the
holo demonstrations.”
“Hawk says you’ll have everything you need at the United Law facility.”
“Yah.” Nathan tore his attention away from the training text, and looked directly at me for the first time in thirty minutes. “I hope you’ll be all right alone with Hawk.”
I glared at him. “Please don’t give me a repeat lecture about not falling for Hawk. It annoyed me last time. If you try it again, I could get really angry.”
“I thought you were really angry last time,” said Nathan.
“I can get far angrier than that. You’d better accept that I make my own decisions, stop worrying about my love life, and concentrate on your own.”
Nathan sighed. “I won’t have a love life until I get recruited as a Game Tech. Perhaps it’s just as well. Everyone says sex in Game is much better than in real life.”
“I’ve never thought of Game Techs having love lives,” I said thoughtfully. “They aren’t allowed to have relationships with players, but I suppose there’s no problem with them having relationships with each other.”
“That is correct.” Nathan mimicked the formal tones of a Game Tech.
“We’re nearly there now,” said Hawk’s voice.
“Gah.” I turned to look at him. The golden droid had returned to being Hawk again, but I didn’t know exactly when or how much of the conversation he’d heard. I exchanged agonized looks with Nathan, and the arms of my seat enfolded me lovingly as the carriage started to decelerate.
“I’ve got the latest information update from Romulus and Remus,” said Hawk. “Sadly all the components in the bombs came from basic devices sold by every vending machine. None of them had any identifying marks to give clues to where they were sold or who bought them.”
“The bomber is much too clever to leave clues in the bombs,” I said bitterly.
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