Digital Heretic (2 page)

Chapter 3

 
“Come on, Sa
m
. Let me in,” I whisper as loudly as I can. If this door doesn’t open soon I don’t know where else to go. I knock a few more times, each time getting just a bit louder. I look quickly to my left and to my right; I don’t think I’m being followed, but there are so many people around. Did anyone see me? Come on, Sam, please answer the door!

 
The hinges on the door squeak as it starts to open. I don’t wait for him, I just push my way in and quickly close the door behind me, leaning on it and panting for breath. “Thank goodness,” I say.

 
“Melissa? What’s wrong? How long have you been knocking on my door?” I open my eyes and look at Sam. His hair is pointing in about five different directions and he’s rubbing his eyes tiredly, his mouth half open in a partial yawn. 

 
“You’re just waking up now, Sam? It’s 1 PM.” I move over to the couch and push the clothes sitting there to the side so I can sit down. I’m shaking.

 
“Uh, yes, I’m just waking up now. I’m a bartender, remember? I just went to sleep.” He looks at his watch. “Okay, I went to sleep eight hours ago, but still I’m tired. What’s got you so upset, anyway? Aren’t you supposed to be at work?”

 
I shake my head. “No, I called in sick today.”

 
“Are you sick?” he asks. He can sense from my tone that something’s not right.

 
“I don’t know. I don’t think so. I don’t know.” I walk over to the door, lock it and then check the peephole to make sure there’s no one outside.

 
I turn back to Sam. He looks concerned.

  “Okay
, listen. I can trust you, right?” I ask.

 
“Of course you can,” he says.

 
“I mean really trust you. Like with my life?”

 
“Yes. Look, Melissa, you need to calm down. You’re really starting to freak me out. Just tell me what’s going on.”

 
I laugh, then quickly cover my mouth. How do I tell him? Where do I start? I don’t really know what’s going on myself. “You remember going to see Trew at that big Gamer gathering? The last time he spoke to us all in town, just before he died?”

 
“Yeah, of course I do. We were lucky to get the seats we did, and the talk he gave was top notch. He talked about the laws of the universe, and how at certain times in history, the laws bend, making room for new possibilities. It was great stuff, that last talk we heard from him.”

 
I nod. “Exactly. Do you remember what he said about… about flight?”

 
Sam laughs. “Yeah, he said that our minds are so powerful that perhaps someday, when enough minds agree such a thing is possible, humans could even learn to fly. I thought he was pushing it a bit there, to be honest. But the man sure did believe in the power of the human mind.”

 
“Yes, he did. Sit down for a second, Sam. And please help me explain this.”

 
He nods and sits down. I stand up and close my eyes. I start to feel the gold, glowing feeling that Trew talks about in his book, letting it spread over my body and envelop me in tingling colour. For a brief second, I feel weightless, like I’m floating. I hear Sam gasp, then swear loudly. I hear a small thud and my body feels heavier than it did a second ago. 

 
I open my eyes to look at Sam. He has both hands over his mouth. His eyes are wide open, looking at me with… well, I don’t know what it is. I raise my eyebrows at him. “Did you see that?” I ask.

 
Keeping his hands locked over his mouth, he nods his head quickly. Then he blurts out, “You…!”

 
I hiss at him, making my hand gesture to quiet down and he quickly puts his hands over his mouth again. “How high?” I ask.

 
He slowly takes his hands away and holds them apart, one about six inches above the other. 

 
“That’s how high I was floating?” I ask. Please let him say I wasn’t. Let him say I’m just imagining it.

 
My heart jumps into my mouth as he slowly nods and whispers, “Yes. That’s how high you were floating.”

 
I walk over and sit down beside him. We sit quietly for a few minutes, then he asks me, “What are we supposed to do?”

 
I shrug my shoulders. “I have no idea, Sam. But I’m scared.”

Chapter 4

 
Many players return from the Game with memories of what it is like to believe in something greater than themselves. Having lived multiple lifetimes, a retired player has lived with faith and seen its benefits countless times.

 
Viewers too old to have had the opportunity to play are immersed in watching dozens or hundreds of their favourite players for decades within the Game. They also are exposed to religions of all types, often on very intimate levels.

 
Billions are starting to believe that if Earth can have a deity, perhaps Tygon might also possess a supreme being that watches over them… hundreds of years of belief in nothing may be challenged almost overnight by blind faith.

 
“I need your help, Sylvia.”

  “
Well, hello to you, too, Brandon. It’s been some time since we spoke last. How are things with you?”

 
Brandon said nothing; he just sat at his desk and clicked his pen.

  “
Oh, come on, Brandon. Not in the mood for happy banter today?”

  “
No, Sylvia, I’m not in the mood today,” Brandon said.

  “
Good,” Sylvia said. “Neither am I. I miss him too, Brandon.”

  “
Can you help him?”

  “
What?” Sylvia sounded confused. “Brandon, I know you’re not thinking clearly, but you set the rules that govern my entire

existence.
Trew’s not in the Game; I can do nothing. Even when he was in the Game, there wasn’t much I could do. I’m sorry, dear. He’s left the Game. If he’s not on Tygon, then he’s gone.”

  “
I was instructed not to unplug him,” Brandon said. “I had hoped those directions came from you.”

  “
Me?” Sylvia said. “Who told you to not to unplug him? Who made you think that it might have been me giving those instructions?”

 
Brandon shook his head. “Never mind who it was. It doesn’t matter.”

  “
Unplug him if you wish. If there’s no brain function, then it’s an empty shell you’ve got lying there.”

 
There was so much Brandon wanted to ask her, but he didn’t, for fear that he would reveal too much information. He wondered if she felt the same way; her silence was as complete as his.

  “Okay,”
Brandon said quietly.

  “I’m
sorry, Brandon. I know we both wanted him to do well. Neither of us benefit from this happening. He was my child in the Game and I feel deep sorrow for his loss. That his spark is gone for good is a true loss for the universe, both mine and yours.”

  “
Thank you,” Brandon said. He waited for Sylvia to end the conversation.

  “
If I may give you some advice?” Sylvia offered.

 
Brandon laughed, but nodded his head. “Sure, Sylvia, why not?”

  “
If someone told you not to unplug him, perhaps let him stay plugged in for a spell?”

 
“I’ll do that. I guess it can’t hurt. Thanks, Sylvia.” 

  “
Sure, hun.”

Chapter 5

 
He opened hi
s
eyes and found himself in a room bathed in purple light. 

 
He was lying on a table, blinking slowly, trying to remember who he was and how he had

gotten here. Details began to come to him, and as they did
, he struggled to sit up.

 
“You won’t be able to sit up,” a voice said from… behind him? It was hard to say for certain. The male voice was soothing and mild, with strength and depth that was reassuring.

 
“Where am I?” the man on the table asked. 

 
“Before I answer that, I have a question,” the voice said. “Who are you
?
”

 
The man searched his mind for the answer. He remembered a woman, a beautiful, smiling woman. And two close friends who were… his protectors? And a family; he remembered loving parents. 

 
He also remembered a crowd. Standing in front of a large crowd of smiling cheering faces.  They had been looking at him as they cheered.

 
“Trew Radfield,” the man on the table answered. 

 
“That is who you were, for a brief time. I am asking who you are right now. Take your time; I’m in no rush for an answer.”

 
The man on the table had a flash of being someone else. An old man with a different wife. Children and grandchildren surrounded

him, all smiling and hugging and laughing. He remembered running a very successful business, then retiring. He remembered a life full of happiness and pain. He recalled surprising his entire family with a paid trip for everyone to Hawaii. That ended badly, he recalled.

  “George Knight. Is that who I am?” the man asked.

 
“You were him also, for a longer time. But still it was brief. Perhaps the time to think is confusing you. As soon as I ask you, just blurt out the answer, without thinking. How does that sound?”

 
The man on the table nodded. 

 
“Good.”  The voice said. “Who are you?”

 
“Zack.”

 
“Excellent,” the voice replied with a tone of approval. 

 
Zack nodded. “Where am I?” he asked the voice once again.

 
“You are here with me, Zack. You died inside the Game. It was a… permanent death.”

 
“Permanent?” Zack asked. 

 
“Yes. They used a horrible weapon on you, one that should have destroyed your very essence, making it impossible for it to travel back to your body on Tygon.”

 
“Should have destroyed my essence, but it didn’t?”

 
The voice chuckled. “No, it didn’t. Thanks to you and Danielle, I was able to bring you here.”

  Zack’s
memories had fully returned, complete with the multiple lifetimes of experience accumulated from his plays in the Game. He no longer felt disoriented. “Are you Sylvia? We spoke often inside the Game during prayer. But you don’t sound, or speak, like her.”

 
“No, I’m not Sylvia. She is a sweet little thing, but the Game is where she dwells. Tygon is where I exist.”

 
“You mean…?”

 
“Yes, Zack. Tygon also has a God. With your help, perhaps we can help your people believe in me. If they can’t… well, it will be very sad.”

 
“Why?” Zack asked. “They seem to get along just fine without any divine presence.”

 
“Yes, they have gotten along fine,” the voice said with concern, “but that will soon change, and you are the only one who can help me.”

 
“How? What can I do?”

  “
I am going to have you stay with me for a short time, and we shall discuss that.”

  “
How long?” Zack asked. 

  “
Not very long. Time passes differently here than it does on Tygon. Then I am going to do my very best to send you back to your body for a while.”

  “You’re
going to
try
to send me back for a while
?
” Trew asked. “It doesn’t appear that you’re too confident you will succeed, and you make it sound like even if you do, I may not be there for very long, anyway.”

  “
What I am attempting hasn’t been done for a very long time. I draw my power from followers. It’s been a long while since I was even awake, let alone active. However, I’m sure I can get you back; have faith.”

  “
I do,” Zack said.

 
“As for how long you will be back on Tygon, hopefully it will be for long enough to get the job done,” the voice said. “You see, Zack, time is running out…”

Chapter 6

 
Fans were excited when we discovered that Eternals do exist inside the Game. Aside from Stephanie, Raphael, and perhaps the two others we saw heal Danielle, it seems impossible to find others. This station has hired an entire team to scour the feeds looking for further evidence that Eternals do exist in the Game, but so far we’ve been unsuccessful. 

 
And thinking about it, what do we really have to go on except one very interesting event and the word of two seemingly normal avatars? Raphael and Stephanie have done nothing noteworthy as far as we’ve been able to see.

 
Perhaps the entire thing is a hoax and the two are nothing more than con artists capitalizing on the new beliefs of the avatars…

 
Game Channel 177 news

 
The zoo is ful
l
.

 
I miss being out and hunting for them, but over the years I’ve found that adding too many subjects can confuse things and cause important information to be overlooked.

 
I open the double doors and enter the lab. A shaft of light shines down on a large desk in the middle, and I move towards it. The rest of the room is dark, but I hear sounds coming from various points along the walls. Some of them are waking up as they sense my presence.

 
I sit down and close my eyes, taking three deep breaths to clear my mind of the outside world. This lab is 13 levels below ground, underneath a legitimate mental hospital, the perfect cover, with layers of built-in safety measures to avoid detection. 

 
My subjects are much more interesting than any of the wretches residing above us. It’s taken me months to find them all, and I’m anxious to get to work.

 
My awareness skips lightly over each individual, and they begin to stir. I sit silently, letting them slowly wake up, then I raise my right hand and make a counterclockwise, circular gesture. 

 
Energy leaves my hand and jumps from cell to cell, sparking a reddish brown light to life. A portion of the light becomes trapped in a clear tube over each bed; the imprisoned lights flit about like fireflies. As the final cell is lit, I open my eyes to examine the occupants. 

 
Thirteen cells surround me in a circle, each containing a bed, toilet, sink, and wooden stool. There is also a table in every cell; most hold piles of notes and books, some are loaded with artwork, and others contain music or instruments. One table holds a state-of-the-art computer, complete with printer and three monitors on the walls. 

 
Each subject stands at their door, eyes vacantly looking through the bars in my direction, hands hanging loosely, rocking slightly from side to side in unison with each other. None of them make a sound; the zoo has been full for only a few days, but they’ve learned what I expect from them.

  “
Good morning, my lovelies,” I say. “I hope you all had a restful night. We will get you breakfast soon. Please go about your business; I’ll be sitting here doing paperwork in case one of you needs me.”

 
The thirteen shuffle away from their doors, turning their backs on me to go about their activities. I can feel their minds driving

them towards their compulsions, like drug addicts struggling to get their
fixes.

 
A short time later I feel attention from one of the cells. Without looking up, I address the occupant. “What is it, Seven? Do you have something for me?” His attention remains silently fixed on me, so I stand up and turn to look at him.

 
Seven is one of my prized treasures, a boy of around fifteen. He’s the youngest in the zoo, and the computer sits on his table. When I meet his eyes, my lips purse in silent irritation. Sometimes he cries wolf and needs to be disciplined. I hope this isn’t one of those times; it would set the whole group back for the day. 

 
Walking over, I notice his hands are making small typing motions. This is an usually an indicator that he’s processing something and not simply trying to fool me. I don’t appreciate being fooled. I summon the glow and touch my pinky finger directly to the centre of his forehead. The energy slowly sinks into his third eye and his breath changes. His eyes quickly focus and he smiles, no longer a confused creature; he’s now looking at me with complete self-awareness. What was a lost creature is now replaced by a complete avatar.

  “
Thanks, boss,” he says. “I think you’re going to be real happy with what I have for you.”

  “
I hope so, Seven,” I say. “Tell me.”

  “
I found out who Three was.” He uses his thumb to point at the cell across from him and to his right.

 
I look at him quietly. It’s not something I’m usually interested in, who these poor wretches were. Seven has done this twice before, and I must admit, discovering the identity of Nine has been very helpful to me. The other identity wasn’t very useful; Six was a nobody, some stockbroker that just couldn’t handle the pressure and snapped. Glad he did snap, though — Six might have been a bad husband and stockbroker, but he’s an amazing quantum physicist in this group.

  “
Why do I care who Three was?” I ask.

 
Seven shrugs. “I don’t know if you do care, boss, but I know the answer. If you don’t want to hear it, then put me back into the haze.”

  “
Careful, Seven. Don’t forget who you are, or who I am.”

 
Seven swallows and nods quickly. “Sure thing, boss. I apologize.”

 
I nod. “Okay, then. Tell me who she was.”

  “
She was just a regular person for most of her life. I couldn’t find very much on her at all. Then she came out of nowhere and started getting a lot of mention in the news. Ever hear of nanotechnology?”

  “
Microscopic robots, yes, go on.”

  “
Turns out she did some pretty amazing stuff in that area, and then suddenly, they just shut her down.”

  “
Any idea why?” I ask.

 
Seven smiles. “I know exactly why. I can’t believe that I was able to piece the info together. Whoever deleted the records and history did a near-perfect job. The idiot that I become is really impressive, boss. It’s magic, how I retrieved this for you.”

  “
Yes, magic is the best way to describe it,” I say. I make a signal, demanding that he speed things up.

  “
Number Three just happens to be Miranda Stewart, boss. And my info is guaranteeing me that she currently has an active, fully functional, intelligent computer the size of a blood cell floating around in her body.”

 
I look over at Three’s cell. She’s sitting at her desk, mechanically working on her artwork with crayons and pastels. Her eyes are vacant. She stirs as she feels my attention, but it’s slight.

  “
But that’s not possible for a human to do,” I say.

  “
Yeah, I know,” Seven says. “Here’s the other kicker. She’s
an Eternal
.
”

 
As fast as lightning I hiss and tap Seven’s forehead again. He returns to his regular state and wanders back towards his

computer. I whip my head around, quickly scanning the subjects for any irregularities. I see nothing
, but I’m suddenly very alert and on edge. How the hell did that word slip out of Seven’s mouth? 

 
I walk over to Three’s cell and watch her intently. She remains in her haze, going about her business.
An Eternal? What am I going to do with this?

 
I walk back to my desk and sit down, placing my hands calmly on the desk.  

 
I’m going to sit here patiently for a half hour, watching Three the entire time. If no one shows up by then, I’ll decide what to do about her.