Simulation Game

by E M G Wixley

  The shoreline retreated as they sped away in the direction of Scotland. They all squeezed into the cabin of the substantial boat. Felicity listened to her breathing and stones pelting the roof and watched Jonah steering. Intermittently he attentively glanced around at the group with a constrained sadness. Elley deep in thought swayed slightly as she paced up and down the deck and despite not having a phone appeared to be in private communion with someone. Irvin had his head bowed and was getting frustrated with his device and its inability to work smoothly. Behind his mask, Dante’s eyes were cloudy and red. He slouched under the weight of the tanks and his remorse.

  Intrusive thoughts shot into Felicity’s mind as she silently questioned what she’d witnessed. The evidence was glaring, Jonah was changed, and she already knew Elley was some kind of imposter. She wondered why the sudden appearance of her boyfriend's new abilities hadn’t previously registered in her mind. It was both disconcerting and worrying.

  Jonah twisted around and looked directly at her with an earnest expression on his face. “Dante, could you take over for a moment,” he said. Dante steadied himself as he made his way to the front. He was obliged to stand because of the bulkiness of his equipment.

  Jonah slid next to Felicity. “I owe you an explanation. All that Irvin told us on his arrival is true. As incredible as it sounds.” Felicity raised her eyes and saw her Viking had a strange, sad smile on his red lips. Felicity tried to squeak a response. “You can take that out of your mouth to speak,” Jonah said and smiled more broadly.

  “I find it hard to believe. The diversity of nature is too incredible. Who could possibly design something so intricate?” she said in a scratchy voice. “This world is all true to me.”

  Jonah pressed her leg in a gentle, reassuring manner. “How you see things is different from how others may see them. There are fundamentals placed in the programme. It’s hard to explain and doesn’t matter as this is still our reality.”

  “You’ve changed too - since you were taken. What did they do to you?”

  Jonah explained what had happened to himself and Elley leaving out the added complexity of alien bacteria. Felicity listened transfixed allowing his words to burrow into her conscious mind. When he’d finished, she put the mask back on and sat in silent thought, occasionally glancing over at her sister, wondering. If her family and loved ones had all gone mad, then she’d have to stick by them because that was all she had left.

  “I can’t work out much from this phone, but things aren’t good,” Irvin said, pulling off his mask. “I will need to find Holly – she’s not safe. I’m going to make my way to Cornwall.”

  “You can’t,” Felicity said. “It’s too dangerous and at the other end of the country.”

  “Our only way of escape is at the facility,” Jonah added. “Every second counts. You wouldn’t reach her in time.”

  “I’m fed up with being treated like a wayward child,” Irvin snapped. “Everyone tries to tell me what to do, but when I follow their advice, it makes everything worse. You expect me to abandon her and let her die.”

  “What’s the point of you both dying,” Jonah barked. “For most of the population, the future has been cancelled. There is no going back. This is destruction by design.”

  Dread rose in Felicity as she sensed her brother’s struggle. He’d only just learnt of one tragedy and was desperate to prevent another. She was scared his determination would cause him to leave.

  Irvin moved to tears, turned away and gazed into the gloom. Felicity remembering her time in the suicide wood wanted to comfort him, but she knew he would push her away.

  The boat forced its way through the thick skin of the sea and the day continued in repetitive tedium with everyone locked in a wretched silence. There was no life and nobody else travelling. Night came, and they were consumed by thicker darkness. They waited for dawn, but it didn’t appear. All they could see was the black sun hanging in the grey.

  The tide swept them almost to shore before they saw the shapes of cliffs emerging from the fog.

  “Now to steal a car,” Jonah announced. “We can rest once we arrive.”

  Information had only been delivered in fragments, and Felicity wondered what kind of reception they would receive and why Jonah and Elley were both so sure this mysterious place was where they would find help.

  Going Home

  Chapter Thirty-one

  The searchlights were upon them as they approached the facility and the huge metal doors. There was a hiss and buzzing as the barrier slid apart and they stepped from the dust storm into the light. The sound rang around the entrance hall as the doors slammed together cutting off the outside world. Panic caused Felicity’s heart to race. She was turning her back on humankind and abandoning all she’d ever known to fate.

  A man approached with his arm outstretched. He rushed straight up to Jonah followed by a group of about a hundred others, roughly split between men and women. All were dressed in the same lightweight navy overalls.

  “Glad you made it Jonah,” he said shaking his hand vigorously and making eye-contact as though they were old friends. “All the other volunteers are here. All on the same journey. You’re the only one who didn’t actively choose unlimited time and abilities far beyond humans.”

  “It’s good to meet you at last, Craig,” Jonah said. “As I explained I have brought some friends with me.”

  “You’re all welcome, and you can take off your masks,” Craig said with a boyish grin. “We have plenty of oxygen and an extravagant abundance of food, clothing and everything needed to support all kinds of life. We’re completely insulated from nature’s fury.”

  The crowd moved forward, rallying around Jonah and hailing him like a returned hero. Felicity stood rigid in the welcoming din. Behind her fixed smile and polite greetings, she was lonely and trying to hide her pain.

  “Follow me, and we’ll show you around the place,” Craig chirped. “You can ask questions as we go.” The group divided and went back to their own matters leaving the newcomers to explore. As they moved deeper underground, going from room to room, Felicity glanced desperately up at the many TV screens displaying the events unfurling on the surface. Masked rescue workers and ordinary survivors were helping to search and dig. Bodies were being pulled from the dirt and rubble, then being carried away to be placed in line in the dust. She saw a terrible and tangible outpouring of grief from around the world, in places which had not yet succumbed. Children choking lying on make-shift beds with sad, bewildered faces as adults washed dirt from their eyes and gave them limited oxygen.

  “Shouldn’t we go back out and help?” Felicity uttered. Craig who’d been happily chatting to Jonah stopped and turned in her direction. Dante grabbed her arm in an attempt to stop her from speaking her mind. She shrugged him off. “With all your resources, there must be something we can do to prevent all this suffering.”

  “These are terrible and unfortunate circumstances which have brought you to this sanctuary, but there’s little difference we could make to humans. Besides the cyborgs will help them – you know like your sister Elley,” Craig said shooting the silent woman a knowing look. “If you go back out there, this is what you would have to fight.” He pointed to a screen.

  Felicity saw an image of the Earth being torn apart a profusely bleeding wound, spitting poison into the atmosphere. Another picture appeared of a mountainside exploding. A pyroclastic flow spewed from its mouth, ice, glass and rock spat in all directions.

  “London is flooded due to melted ice and planes are grounded,” Craig continued as he strolled on. “It’s not our role to manage chaos on this scale. Allow me to show you what we can do.” He stood still in front of a facial recognition camera. “Besides we’re running out of time here. If we don’t act fast, the external tragedy will envelop us here, and it will be too late for any of us.”

  “Hey, sis, if you want you can come with me when I leave,” Irvin whispered. “Although I’m hoping I’ll have enough time
to return with Holly. If not, we can be a part of building a new world.”

  They entered a viewing room which overlooked a large hanger. Lying horizontally on a high wheeled platform was a massive cigar-shaped structure. The length of its body was a framework of tubes able to accommodate a person walking within. Around the middle was a wheel. At one end was a spherical construction with windows, lights, poles and other gadgetry none of which Felicity recognised. At the other end where she expected to see rocket boosters, there was nothing identifiable. The object was made of highly reflective shimmering metal which appeared to thin to form any useful function.

  “It looks flimsy,” Felicity muttered as she marvelled at the machine.

  “That material is a gift from the Gods, nothing like anything on Earth. In a meteor strike, it wouldn’t make so much as a dent. It is also incredibly light.”

  “What kind of fuel does it use?” Irvin asked.

  “Our enemy is weight. Your previous methods of launching into space aren’t suitable. We carry very little fuel as you know it. In spacecraft is driven by laser and the suns energy. The sails are extended from the central wheel – every aspect of the ship is designed to harness the natural power already existing in the galaxy. Knowledge of the environment is the key to space travel.”

  “It’s no good for us,” Irvin stated glancing at Felicity and Dante. “We wouldn’t survive the journey.”

  “It’s true our planet is light-years away and beyond many human life-spans, but we have methods of addressing this issue. You won’t arrive as an old man,” Craig laughed. “We must take action and return home, and we would like to take some unaltered humans with us to keep the species alive.”

  Felicity lay stiffly next to Jonah unable to sleep as she replayed the events from when they’d first met. She couldn’t kiss him, touch or speak to him and she was too numb to cry.

  “What’s wrong,” Jonah whispered.

  “Children are dying out there,” she retorted. “None of your kind are invested in humans. Craig made me feel degraded. If we were to go to another planet we would be in the minority and considered inferior,” she blurted as the tears were released. “No one will give a damn about us humans.”

  “I’m as much human as you,” Jonah said. “I have all the same memories that I’ve always had. Time has not healed my sorrow that my father, mother and sister are no longer here. Love and passion will forever burn in my heart for you.”

  “I love you too, but there are also things which separate us.”

  “And a chance for new things to grow,” Jonah interceded. “It’s hard for me to let go of the life we once lived and the kind of future we dreamed about.

  “Why don’t you want to do the right thing and help the victims?”

  “Our world has changed irrevocably, and there’s so much you don’t understand. Why can’t you just trust me?” Jonah shouted and turned onto his side. “Go if you want to – I won’t stop you.”

  Felicity lay in the silence brooding over Jonah’s words. Many moments past and she regretted losing her composure. She snapped out of her mood and sat up. She looked down at her Vikings long hair, shoulder and arm. The freckles and hairs were all as they had been. He was human in every detail of his flesh. She leaned over more until his face came into view. Her strong man was silently weeping. Spontaneously, she kissed his cheek. “I’m sorry,” she said. “We’re all slaves to fate now. Humans are mostly corrupt and destructive creatures anyway.”

  Jonah twisted around, and their eyes met. He had a haunted expression on his face. “Are we still a team?”

  In the silence, they drifted into each other's arms.

  The Operation

  Chapter Thirty-two

  Dante sat opposite the doctor shivering and listening to people rushing along outside the door towards the hall for an induction on their roles on board the spaceship. Beneath his feet, the shaking was more intense, and the rumbling grew louder by the day.

  “I suppose they’ve all passed the medical,” Dante said nodding his head towards the door.

  “I have the results of your scan,” the doctor explained looking at him attentively. “You know it isn’t good news. Your affliction is serious – perhaps a few months – a year if you’re lucky. The problem is we have insufficient capacity to take anyone not functioning.”

  Dante made no reply. With all the drama he’d managed to shield himself from the truth, hiding behind his work and the immediate needs of others. When the pain in his abdomen intruded into his life, he took a pill to ease the pain. Now the silence was broken, and his illness exposed it became real. At least if he were left to die nobody would find out the hidden truth about the monsters in the machine and their control over the world. In all the mayhem Irvin would soon forget, it would fade into his memory and just be a part of the millions of games he’d played. Without access to the Game Controllers, the others would also lose interest. The countdown may even stop.

  “I’m sorry Dante, but the reason we’re taking purebred humans is, so they have a chance to evolve in a real-world situation and not in a simulation.”

  A quivering chill ran through Dante. “How do you know about the simulation?”

  “We have alien DNA and shared historical memory. Our non-human ancestors have had previous experiences of the Gamers. They’re merciless beings. They gamble over the fates of others, like a cockfight, driving people towards unnatural barbarities. Twisting their souls and distorting the meaning of love and devotion.”

  Dante realised his jaw had dropped and he’d been holding his breath. He gasped the air and snapped it shut. He grappled for a few moments with the news that both his secrets were out. “What will I tell my children? They’ve been through so much.”

  “You might not need to tell them anything,” the doctor said leaning forwards and looking directly at Dante. “Your knowledge and experience of computer deep-learning is irreplaceable and indispensable. Why don’t you join us?” He rested back in his swivel chair, running his fingers against each other under his chin as he waited for a response. “This is a chance to end the dreadful fate of humans, and they depend on us to deliver them a new life.”

  The nobler part of Dante told him to take death, but the human side was curious and wanted to embrace the future.

  “Our one rule is that you have to be willing to make the change.”

  “Surely there’s not enough time for such a drastic transformation,” Dante said hoping the answer would be taken out of his control.

  “We could start straight away with an injection of the bacterium. Your appearance will remain the same, down to the finest details. There have been huge advancements in three D printing, and the basic cyborg bodies made by your previous boss were on an industrial scale. It would take about two weeks, and we’re not leaving until the others arrive and have been trained.”

  Dante’s eyes darted away from the man’s intense expression. He looked into his lap and imagined the growth inside him like an octopus its tentacles reaching into every cavity.

  “The choice is yours, but it must be made now.”

  “I feel like I’m betraying something, but I don’t want my family to suffer from my demise. They will need me.” He looked up and met the doctor's gaze. “I agree. I will join you,” he said with resignation.

  “Good we’ll all move forward together.” The doctor reached his hand over the table, Dante grasped it and shook.

  A fly buzzed around Dante’s nose. He kept trying to swipe it away. He was not sure if he was awake or asleep. Looking around he saw machines and tubes which were attached to him preventing movement. There was something substantial and stabbing on his head. The environment made him uneasy, so he clenched his lids tight hoping to escape his miserable state.

  An echoey voice he didn’t recognise entered his head. “The weak human soul was a fertile climate for us to exploit.” This was followed by gurgling laughter. He heard more buzzing and on opening his eyes saw a swarm of flies had fil
led up every space in the tiny room. They climbed up the walls and landed on every surface spreading their diseases. The stench was a mixture of rotting meat and a rubbish dump. He was paralysed, only partially propped up in bed and unable to make any defence.

  Shadowy phantoms surfaced from the floor. He saw a forever extending room, dark with machines and thick wires. The crowd mingled, blurred and blended together forming one sizeable indistinct beast. The being reclined on an adjustable chair with leavers and wheels attached. It was also connected to processors and surrounded by vast holographic screens. Long arms and fingers continually moved as he swivelled around in all directions. His body was encased in thick black armour, and Dante thought he saw metal horns protruding from his enormous head. The odour of this devil was suffocating and unbearably vile.

  The creature turned to face Dante, and his manic grin revealed silver blades for teeth. Dante wanted to stare it in the eyes, stand his ground but it was too terrible, so he looked down. ‘Am I dreaming or is this some confused memory? I must be very ill – perhaps an infection.’ Dante considered still unable to raise his head.

  “It’s all part of the Game,” the voice said as if to answer his question. The twisted horns pointed in Dante’s direction. “Your religious are in their churches praying to be saved, but we have the power to destroy and ravish your Earth.”

  “Please keep playing,” Dante pleaded and glanced up at the creature’s ugly machine manufactured angular face made of the same dark material as his body. “Nobody knows the truth.”

  “You know the truth,” the voice boomed. “You chose to be in the simulation but wanted to forget, to believe it was real while playing. You wanted challenging entertainment which you could design and alter as you played. The object of the Game is for the player to find a way out. If you realise, you’re in a programme, it will defeat the purpose of trying to beat the Game and discover the exit. You created everything that has happened within your sphere, and other players have done the same.”