by Resa Nelson
She decided to trust her own, as well.
Zuri forced the best smile she could muster. “Tonight, six hours from now, I invite you to experience the first Monster Dash from me and my partner Mae Lin. You might know me for punching sharks. But after tonight, you’ll be known for killing monsters.”
A few dozen bubbles appeared around Milan’s bubble, and each displayed one or more people marked with the VG label.
VainGlorians. They’re all showing up around Milan. They must be her friends. She’s notifying her friends and telling them to watch me!
Gaining confidence, Zuri smiled without having to force it. “Tonight, step into our world.”
As planned, the image of the haunted house she’d created with Benjamin appeared behind her.
“Come inside our haunted house, but beware! You won’t know what kind of monster lurks around every corner.”
Programmed by Benjamin for this moment, Zuri’s Personal Soundtrack played spooky music, underlined by sounds of groaning floorboards and an occasional scream.
More friends popped up in bubbles surrounding Milan, and others showed up in her fan area.
The word is spreading. People are coming to hear what I have to say—and no one is leaving!
Fueled by this initial success, Zuri spoke with excitement. “You have every chance to escape the monsters. Look for doors on the walls around you. Look for hatches on the ceiling above. Look for trap doors beneath your feet.”
The voices in the bubbles buzzed. Faces became animated with anticipation.
“Behind some of these places to hide,” Zuri continued, “you’ll find a design by Mae Lin. Find it, and put it on to use as a weapon to kill the monster chasing you.”
Dozens and then hundreds of bubbles containing VainGlorians filled Zuri’s wall, blocking out the icons behind them. Everyone talked, and the buzz of their chatter became so loud that Zuri had to decrease her own bubble’s volume.
“Best of all,” she said, “when you succeed in killing a monster, the design you wear is yours. Everyone who uses one of Mae Lin’s designs to kill a monster gets to keep that outfit. We’re giving away 100 outfits tonight.”
As planned, a “Join the Monster Dash” button appeared.
Immediately, clicks registered in Zuri’s field of view, gaining the momentum of an avalanche.
More and more bubbles appeared, crowding against the ones already there.
The shout of hundreds of voices became so loud that Zuri said, “I’ll answer every question, but I can’t hear you. Please use the marquee to show your question.”
A ticker scrolled at the bottom of the wall, and Zuri began reading questions out loud and answering them in a calm manner.
Inside, she wanted to jump up and down and yell in victory. Her eyes welled with tears, and she struggled to keep her composure.
It’s finally happening. This is what I wanted. Mae Lin and I invested ten years and dreamed of this kind of success. It’s real.
Zuri saw Milan wearing a wicked grin inside her bubble.
But no matter how much Zuri searched, she saw no sign of Mae Lin.
CHAPTER 19
After answering questions for a few hours, Zuri posted all her answers in a field next to the “Join the Monster Dash” button and disconnected from her site, ready to relax before tonight’s event.
However, the Incoming Connect icon soon filled her space. Hoping it might be Mae Lin, Zuri answered.
Instead of Mae Lin, the image of a cocoon made of brown leaves, dry and brittle, appeared. Rustling sounds filled the air. The cocoon rolled toward Zuri, revealing an opening where she saw the face and upper body of a blue caterpillar, snug inside the cocoon.
Donna.
The sight gave Zuri optimism. “Did you see my announcement?”
“I did,” the caterpillar said. “If you have no interest in remaining in VainGlory, you should have simply told me and saved us all a lot of trouble.”
If Donna had projected her human self instead of a cartoonish caterpillar, Zuri would have crumpled, incapable of speaking. As always, she found it easier to find the courage to speak to a cartoon than a person. Still, Zuri spoke in a voice raspy with shame. “I thought I was doing something good.”
“I know. It’s a rookie mistake. That’s why I’m allowing you to stay, assuming you’re willing to follow instruction.”
Relief overwhelmed Zuri and washed away her shame. “Of course! Tell me what you want, and I’ll do it.”
“Good.” Dozens of slender black arms on the caterpillar’s upper body wriggled and reached out for a nearby green leaf. The arms passed the leaf up toward the insect’s mouth, and the caterpillar took a healthy bite out of the leaf. When it spoke, green juice dribbled down its chin. “Of what value do you think you are to VainGlory?”
“Mae Lin’s designs. She makes beautiful clothes that VainGlorians want to wear.”
“Wrong.” The caterpillar swallowed, oblivious to the green juice dripping across its face. “Your value comes from the information you can gather about your customers when they buy from you.”
Zuri stared at the caterpillar, struggling to understand.
“It isn’t about you,” Donna said. “It’s about what you can do for VainGlory. And what VainGlory wants from you is data about your customers.”
“That makes no sense,” Zuri blurted. “Don’t you already have all the data you need about your own citizens?”
The caterpillar stared at Zuri until the young woman shriveled. “Do you know what a mosaic is?” Donna said.
Zuri thought back to what Milan had told her about mosaics. “Everyone has a mosaic. Everything someone buys or wants or considers is like a tile in a mosaic. Everyone has hundreds of thousands of tiles in their mosaic. That’s why I don’t understand why the city wants more.”
“You always need more,” the caterpillar said. “One person’s tiles create a map of that person. A mosaic tells a story about who that person is. The more we know about who that person is, the better we can predict what products to create. What kinds of things to sell.”
Zuri’s optimism sank. “You never believed in me or Mae Lin. All VainGlory wants is to use us to get more tiles for every mosaic in the city.”
“It’s not as bad as that. Think of it this way. You and Mae Lin are designers, and VainGlorians love clothing. VainGlorians also have basic needs like food and furniture and entertainment. Through your art, the city can learn the best way to make its citizens happy.” Donna’s tone took a serious turn. “There are proven ways to succeed, but you have taken a turn in the wrong direction. I’m here to help you correct it.”
The caterpillar used the leaf it chewed to wipe up the green spittle running down its face and then plastered the leaf against the exterior of the cocoon, covering some of its exposed legs. “You have four hours to improve your Monster Dash before it opens,” Donna continued. “Make no mistake. If you fail to meet the minimum requirement for success, you will be escorted from VainGlory with no option to ever return. Consider this a life-or-death situation.”
The caterpillar and the Incoming Connect icon diminished and sank back into the wall of icons.
“Wait!” Zuri cried out in a panic. “What am I supposed to do?”
A new icon took up the space in front of her. A neon sign reading Neural Network arched above an open doorway.
Assuming it must be the answer to her question, Zuri entered.
A casino sprawled around her, empty of customers but filled with rows of slot machines, and roulette, blackjack, and poker tables. Constant pings, bells, and shuffling sounds buffeted against her ears. The stench of alcohol and sweat permeated the air.
A slim slot machine with blinking red eyes rolled up to Zuri. “Good afternoon, Miss. Please follow me to your training session.”
“Ben?” Zuri said.
The slot machine stopped blinking, appearing to stare at her in consternation. “No, Miss. I am assigned to you for today’s training ses
sion only. If you prefer to refer to me by name, you may call me Isaac. Please. Follow me.” Isaac rolled down one of the aisles flanked by lines of fellow slot machines, each one pinging in recognition as he passed by.
The purple carpet squished beneath her feet when Zuri walked behind him. Isaac zigged and zagged across the casino floor, finally settling on a small area containing only a single chair. Once Zuri entered that area, Isaac summoned up walls to surround it and block out the view of the rest of the casino. He extended his single slot arm toward the chair, gesturing for Zuri to sit down.
She took a cautious seat.
“I understand you have made many mistakes in your creation of a maze that will open soon,” Isaac said in a matter-of-fact tone. “Today, you will learn how to correct those mistakes and keep from making any more like them in the future.”
Frustrated because she didn’t know what to expect, Zuri said, “Everyone makes mistakes.”
Isaac’s red eyes blinked slowly. “Of course. You are human. But recognizing when you’ve done something wrong is more important than recognizing when you’ve done something right. Learning to correct your course is what matters. It’s how you learn and grow.”
Zuri knew that, like Benjamin, Isaac was only a program. But his words made her feel understood. She wished she could embrace him, because he made her feel seen.
“Now,” Isaac said, “let’s begin. Pull my arm.”
Zuri obeyed, reaching to grasp Isaac’s single arm and pulling it down. After being extended toward the ground, his arm creaked back up to his shoulder.
His initial display showed an apple, a slice of pizza, and a brownie. Those images blurred out of sight, replaced by three spinning wheels, side by side. When the wheels stopped, the new display showed two images of the same shoe and a bracelet.
“Well done, Miss!” Isaac said. “You almost won on your first attempt. Try again.”
Although it miffed Zuri that the machine appeared to be wasting precious time, she also felt a tug of excitement at nearly winning.
What if I win? Will that secure my place in VainGlory? Or does Isaac have the power to fix the problems for me? If I win, will I win his help?
Tempted to ask those questions out loud, Zuri bit her lip and moved his single arm again.
This time, two images of a gold bar labeled “100K” and one image of a silver bar labeled “50K” settled into place when the wheels stopped spinning.
“Even better!” Isaac said. “Miss, you have quite the knack for this game.”
Zuri’s misgivings slipped away, replaced by her focus on the slot machine. Mesmerized by what she could win, Zuri no longer needed Isaac’s prompt to pull his arm. The sight of the three items displayed by every pull of the slot machine’s arm drew her in closer.
One diamond bracelet and two squares that read “All Your Problems Solved.”
Two images of the Platinum Tower and one image of a crystal unicorn wearing a necklace made of blue sapphires.
Three images of Mae Lin’s bubble dress!
Zuri jumped to her feet in joy, only to sink back into her chair when the third image slowly turned one more space to reveal a pair of earrings.
“You can stop now,” Isaac said.
“No,” Zuri said, reaching for his arm. “I almost got it.”
Isaac backed away from her. “I said, you can stop now.”
Zuri pursued him. “I don’t want to stop. Didn’t you see how I almost won?”
Isaac eluded her. “This begins our lesson. Please return to your seat.”
The desire to keep playing gnawed at Zuri like hunger. Attempting to quell that hunger, she remembered what Donna had told her.
You have four hours to improve your Monster Dash before it opens.
In that moment, Zuri didn’t care about the Monster Dash. She didn’t care about being in VainGlory or why she’d invested the last ten years of her life in striving to come here. She didn’t care about her business, and she didn’t care about Mae Lin.
She only cared about winning the game.
Make no mistake. If you fail to meet the minimum requirement for success, you will be escorted from VainGlory with no option to ever return. Consider this a life-or-death situation.
Remembering Donna’s warning shocked Zuri out of her fugue. “What?”
Isaac pointed at the chair.
Zuri returned to it.
“Think about how you felt when you were playing my game,” Isaac said.
Zuri couldn’t help but stare at the three images displayed on his chest.
Isaac’s red eyes followed her gaze. With a sweep of his single arm, he erased the three images, leaving the field where they had appeared blank.
Zuri’s heart raced. The sense of disconnect from the game left her flustered and muddled. She looked into Isaac’s eyes, hoping to persuade him. “Just one more?”
“Think about how you feel right now. Close your eyes. Concentrate. Identify your feelings.”
Zuri didn’t want to do anything Isaac suggested. All she wanted was one more try at slots, certain she stood on the verge of winning what she wanted. But she closed her eyes anyway.
Once more, she thought about Donna’s words while taking Isaac’s advice to identify her feelings.
Consider this a life-or-death situation.
Zuri chewed her fingernails, not knowing what else to do with her anxiety. If she failed now, then all the long years of hard work both she and Mae Lin had put in to achieve their place in VainGlory would be for nothing. Zuri thought about all the sacrifices they’d made.
It’s our work that will bring us success. Not a slot machine.
She opened her eyes and looked at Isaac.
“Everything you experienced just now—everything you felt,” Isaac said. “That’s how you need to make your potential customers feel.”
Zuri felt as if she’d just swallowed an ice cube. A terribly cold sensation ran down the back of her throat.
Isaac’s red eyes stopped blinking. “And that’s what you’re here to learn.”
CHAPTER 20
Despite her unease, Zuri became a quick study. For two hours, she followed Isaac’s instruction about how to improve her Monster Dash. During the next two hours, she accepted his assistance in putting those instructions in place.
In the few minutes remaining before the event began, Zuri tried again to contact Mae Lin without luck. Their business icon displayed in Zuri’s Personal Bubble alongside a countdown clock and a marquee sign reading “Monster Dash begins in…”
Zuri fidgeted on her living room sofa.
Mae Lin had held up her end of the bargain by delivering her latest designs for the Monster Dash. But where had she been since their last conversation and why didn’t she answer when Zuri tried to contact her?
Zuri stood and paced the length of her apartment, her wall of icons following her wherever she went, always keeping her in the center of her Personal Bubble.
Remembering one of their recent conversations, Zuri recalled the loss of their friend, Ann, to suicide. Zuri remembered how worn and tired Mae Lin had looked that day. And the way she’d talked about how hard it could be to live in Aspire.
Mae Lin would never commit suicide. Would she?
Zuri shook off that troubling thought. Everyone in Aspire lived on the edge. Most were artists of one type or another. Some were business entrepreneurs. No one had it easy, always struggling to keep their bills to a minimum and pay them on time.
The Monster Dash clock kept ticking down.
A robotic voice piped up to give the countdown. “This event begins in two minutes fifty-nine seconds, fifty-eight, fifty-seven…”
Zuri squeezed in one more attempt to contact Mae Lin, worried at her friend’s continued failure to answer.
Mae Lin is fine. She’s probably busy with something that came up.
But if something came up, why wouldn’t Mae Lin let Zuri know about it? Mae Lin was one of the most responsible people Zuri had eve
r known. Mae Lin always kept Zuri posted about everything that happened, whether business or personal.
This doesn’t make sense. It isn’t like Mae Lin to be out of reach like this.
The robotic countdown continued. “One minute twenty-nine seconds, twenty-eight, twenty-seven…”
Zuri wanted to rush to the outskirts of VainGlory, hop into a drone taxi, and race back to Aspire. She’d check Mae Lin’s apartment and then use a local device to scour her favorite places.
Remembering the day she’d first arrived in VainGlory, Zuri recalled how Donna had told her about the Privacy Wall surrounding the city. What if that wall had decided to block outsiders like Mae Lin? What if it now prevented Zuri’s attempts to contact Mae Lin or her friend’s responses?
“Five, four, three, two, one!”
The sound of a starting pistol startled Zuri out of her worries.
The marquee and the countdown clock burst into a puff of white smoke. The façade of a haunted house with shattered windows, weathered shutters, and overgrown in ivy dominated Zuri’s field of vision, surrounded by the dark of night. The illusion of a full moon and bright stars reflected against the house and the stone path leading to its door.
Hundreds of bubbles filled with VainGlorians exploded into sight and rushed down the path and through the front door.
Zuri scanned the bubbles, hoping to see Mae Lin but sagged in disappointment.
The image displayed before Zuri switched to an overhead blueprint of the layout of the maze, which Benjamin had expanded to multiple levels in anticipation of a large crowd. The blueprint reduced in size and then separated into many blueprints, each showing a different level and the activity on it.
Still concerned, Zuri watched with half-hearted enthusiasm.
“Don’t worry,” Benjamin said, materializing at her side. “We’ll find her.”
For the first time, Zuri noticed the Soundtrack Benjamin had fashioned for the maze, now jam-packed with creaks and groans, sighs and screams, all underscored by disturbing organ music. “Well done, Ben,” she said absent-mindedly.
“I think you have a success on your hands. Try to enjoy it.”
