Digital Heretic (26 page)

guy on Tygon
; the chance to become a powerful, long-lived individual in the Game. He already knows how real the Game is; he’s beta tested it in all its aspects. By the time they tell him the one small detail, that when he does die inside the Game he won’t be able to return to Tygon, that his soul will have no body to return to, he can barely hear what they are saying. There’s no hesitation in his mind as he gladly shakes Brandon’s hand and accepts the position.”

 
Carl takes a drink from his metal cup, then sits looking at me. After a few moments of silence, it appears he’s finished. “Wow,” I say. “That’s a great story.”

 
“It is,” he nods.

 
“I see what you mean,” I say. “Harry doesn’t look forward to leaving this life, because he knows he has no body to return to and will cease to exist.”

 
“No, little one,” Carl says patiently. “He dreads the thought of going back to that droll, boring, pointless existence. Here in the Game he is so much more; to wake up back in that life on Tygon, that would be hell for him. He’s one of the few lucky ones. A Timeless wins both ways; they live for a long time with special powers in the Game, and they don’t have to return to Tygon when they finally do die.”

 
“But they cease to exist,” I say.

 
“You don’t know that,” he says. “What if they are the only ones allowed to go to a real heaven? Religion here says many souls die and go to hell; perhaps they are talking about Tygon.”

 
I don’t like the sounds of that. “Maybe you’re right,” I say, afraid that he is.

 
We sit silently for a while; he doesn’t appear to be thinking about much. All I can think about is the new possibility he just raised. Just like that, I think I want to live this life for as long as I can.

 
“Thank you for the story,” I say. “It’s a very personal thing to talk about.”

 
“What is?” he asks.

 
“Who you were on Tygon, and how you became a Timeless,” I say.

 
Carl looks confused for a moment, then he chuckles. “Ah, darlin’, That wasn’t
my
story. Didn’t you hear the main character’s name? It was about Harry.”

 
“Oh,” I say. “I assumed it was about you.”

 
“Nope, it was about a Brother named Harry. He told it to me one day, to pass the time.”

 
“Is he an Infernal or Eternal at the moment?” I ask.

 
“At the moment? He’s dead,” Carl says. “Sent him on his way to the next great adventure myself, about 140 years ago.”

 
“Oh.”

 
“Yeah,” Carl says. “Harry’s life on Tygon was paradise compared to mine.”

Chapter 54

 
Danielle Radfield has suddenly disappeared inside the Game. What many thought to be a minor, short term signal loss has turned into a channel of constant static.

 
Trew assures us that she hasn’t perished; authorities confirm that her body is still alive and well on the stasis table, indicating that she’s still alive inside the Game. So where is she? Normal events inside the Game are always witnessed; if she had been in an accident and is now in a coma somewhere, we would see images that players in a coma project. If she was blindfolded or drugged we would witness signals and pictures, though they would be hazy and confused. It appears someone or something has interfered with her signal, not a common occurrence.

 
Some suggest that she was abducted by Infernals and is being held for some terrible purpose, perhaps being tortured and beaten. Another popular theory is that the group responsible for the mass annihilation of the Gamer movement has her.

 
No matter where she is, we hope she is safe and becomes visible to fans across Tygon soon.

 
If you would like to join your local area group forming a vigil for Danielle, they can be found on the infoweb by searching for the term ‘Danielle is gone.’

Lisa Rohansen
- Game Channel

Danielle

 
We’re like cage
d
animals in a zoo. We measure time by the number of feedings we get. I keep track separate from Carl; every few feedings, one of us will check with the other to make certain that we still agree on the count. If we get fed three times a day, which both of us guess, then today is the 25
th
day of our captivity.

 
The cloaked inmate has just dropped our meal off. I grab the tray and bring it back to my bed. A few moments after I start to eat, my senses announce something is different, something subtle, what is it…?

 
I don’t hear the shuffling feet of the inmate walking away.

 
I look up and the cloaked figure stands in front of my cell. I can’t make out the face, but the height suggests it is a man. His bearing is different from the regular food delivery person, more confident and self-aware. Before I can say anything, the hooded figure speaks.

 
“Pretty boring so far, right?” he says.

 
I continue to pick at my food, remaining outwardly calm, but inside I want to rush the bars and grab him by the throat. “Nothing to complain about so far, Jason. Or should I call you Shane?”

 
He chuckles. It isn’t a pleasant sound. “You should call me neither,” he says. “You stole my name; you should call me that.”

 
I smile. “Fallen?” I ask

 
He nods.

 
“I know a man named Edward. When they had a baby boy, they named the child Edward as well. It’s possible for more than one person to have the same name, you know.”

 
“Bad analogy.” He shakes his head. “Here’s a much better one. I knew a man who was a king. Another person in the kingdom decided that he would also be called king. That did not end well for the second person. It’s not possible for a kingdom to have two kings.”

 
“That is a better analogy, I suppose,” I say. “There are many countries in the world where the ruler is called king. They don’t kill each other or demand that all but one renounce the title.”

 
Shane laughs out loud. “That is simply because they lack the might to do so, Danielle,” he says. “Every king in history worth his salt has dreamed of ruling the world.” He leans forward and whispers, “I happen to be mighty enough to be the only Fallen, and my title doesn’t encompass a small area of land; my domain is the entire planet. Has been for thousands of years.”

 
“So you took me because I called myself Fallen?” I ask. “Sounds a bit petty.”

 
“I can be that way sometimes,” he says. “The prerogative of a powerful person.”

 
“We could have cleared this all up if you’d visited sooner,” I say. “By all means, you go ahead and call yourself Fallen.”

 
“Very generous of you; my thanks.” he says.

 
I wave my hand. “Sure, no problem. Now if you’ll just unlock this cage and pop me back home, I’ll bid you goodbye and hope I never see your face again.”

 
“As much as I would like to accommodate that request,” he says, “since I have you here, there are a couple other issues that I would like to address.”

 
“Such as?” I ask.

 
“All in good time, little one,” he says, “all in good time. We’ve accomplished a lot for one visit. I will come back soon to discuss the next issue.”

 
He smiles and waves, then begins to walk slowly towards the shadows. I watch him go, but just before he reaches the area where they disappear, he stops and looks upwards. “Oh, yes,” he turns around. “I almost forgot the other item on my to-do list for today.”

 
He saunters back, stops in the middle of the hall and looks me in the eye. “Carl?” he says. “Step forward into the light, if you would be so kind.”

 
I look over at Carl’s cell and watch as he steps forward, his eyes slightly downcast, his posture non-threatening; not how I’m used to seeing him.

 
“All the way to the bars, Carl,” Shane says. “I know about your eyes. It’s time I got a nice look at them.”

 
Carl sighs and steps up to the bars, raising his eyes to meet Shane’s. Shane steps closer and peers intently into Carl’s eyes.

 
“I knew there would be a price to pay,” Shane says, “when I lifted the Clean Mark from Danielle. I was surprised to find out just how big a price was exacted.” He reaches in and grabs Carl by the chin, gently turning his head from side to side. “I apologize, my old friend,” he says. “I know how much you enjoyed

being an Infernal
. You were one of the few to have only served one side. Considering how long you’ve been around, it’s an impressive record that will be difficult to break.”

 
“Yeah,” Carl says. “It’s too bad the Timeless don’t care about the past. It’s all about today and tomorrow.”

 
“Exactly.” Shane lets his hand drop. “Perhaps you will survive this and come back to the correct side of the struggle.”

 
“One can only hope,” Carl says.

 
“Indeed.” Shane continues to stare at Carl, but he addresses me. “The universe really does have a sense of humour, Danielle. I remove your Clean Mark so I can have Carl kill you; he suddenly becomes an Eternal and is ordered to save you.”

 
“Put the mark back on me,” I say. “Maybe he will change back.”

 
“Perhaps,” he says, “but likely not. Sylvia is a clever adversary; I will have to make my next move very carefully.”

 
He turns on his heels and begins to walk toward the shadows. “I hope you enjoyed the first part of your stay, kids,” he says. “This was the boring but necessary part. The next phase involves pain.

Lots
of pain. Carl can fill you in if you want some advance preparation.” He disappears into the shadows.

 
I look at Carl and see a new emotion in his eyes. It’s an emotion I never thought to see from him.

 
Fear.

Chapter 55

  “Trew, with so many other players to watch inside the Game, why do you think Danielle is the most popular character currently playing?”

 
“I think the answer to that question is very simple, Lisa. Everyone is watching Danielle because they can sense her actions inside the Game will affect all of us outside.”

 
“Do you believe that, Trew?”

 
“Do
you,
Lisa?”

 
“Yes, I truly do.”

Excerpt from morning coffee chat with Trew

Miranda

 
I forgot ho
w
lonely it is, to be alone inside my head.

 
I sip green tea and look out the window. I’ve been safe and sound with Stephanie and Raphael for the past three weeks. We are all scrambling to find Danielle; I was disappointed to arrive and learn that she had been abducted by Shane.

  While
we search, Steph has been helping me try to find out what happened. There’s no point in trying to fully debrief me; I barely remember anything. The plan was for Sparx to record it all and play it back when the mission was complete. The true plan was that Sparx would escape to fully share my suicide mission — a

mission that was a failure from all angles. I’m alive, which was the best case scenario, but we don’t have Shane or even any useful intel on him
, and Sparx is gone.

 
The door knocks softly. “Come in,” I say.

 
The door opens and Stephanie walks in. She looks around and moves to the tea set by the window. There is an extra cup and she begins to make herself some tea. “Morning, Miranda. How are you feeling today?”

 
“Nervous,” I say. “Do you have the latest scan results?”

 
She nods. “I do. Let’s grab a seat and discuss what they report.”

 
We both move to the dainty table and chairs sitting in front of another window. I look at her with concern. “Anything positive to report?” I ask.

 
“Yes,” she says. “The scan detects a presence in you still, a molecular match for Sparx as we know her.”

 
“Where is it located, and how come I can’t sense it when I meditate?” I have always been able to sense Sparx in my body. Closing my eyes and entering an advanced state of focused meditation allows me to

sense where she is and communicate with her. Since I woke up in China I haven’t been able to sense her that way.

  “Right shoulder, the exact spot she was programmed to return to if there were ever any problems and she couldn’t communicate.” I nod with some relief. The idea was for her to return to a spot where we could find and extract her if she ever went inactive and we couldn’t repair her from inside of me.

 
“Are we going to extract her, then? See if we can bring her back online?”

 
“We observed that Sparx is still online,” Steph says. “All diagnostic probes indicate that she is working properly as intended.”

 
“She’s not working properly as intended,” I say. “She won’t respond to me.”

  “That’s
true, but she is definitely communicating with someone
,
and her security systems are also armed. If we try to remove Sparx,”

 
“Then I explode into a spray of fine mist,” I say.

 
“Yeah,” Steph says. “It’s a bit of a problem.”

 
We sit for a few moments and say nothing, sipping our tea as the words sink in.

 
“I should leave, then,” I say.

 
“That’s not a good idea, Miranda,” Steph says.

 
“Staying isn’t a good idea,” I say. “What if Sparx is reporting everything I see, think, hear, and say? Shane will be able to spy on us, which can’t be good. I should leave.”

 
“There are ways to neutralize Sparx’s security systems,” Steph says.

 
I shake my head negatively, “Those methods involve destroying her.”

 
“Look, I know you don’t want her to be wiped out, but what other choice do we have? You have no place to go; Sparx is no longer in our control and a danger to all of us.”

 
“Sparx contains too much knowledge. We can’t afford to lose her,” I say. “There must be a way to get her back. Come on, Steph, you helped me design her. Just because you’ve spent the last 50-plus years on guard duty doesn’t mean your brain turned to mush. Help me think of a way to save Sparx.”

 
Steph sips her tea. Finally she asks me a question. “How big is she?”

“64
quantum bits large.” I say.

 
“64 Qbits, huh? That isn’t very large at all.”

 
I laugh. “Perhaps not for most things, but to get a quantum entanglement of 64 atoms is way beyond the scope of regular people. I think the record out there right now is 14.”

 
“I wish she was only 14. Then perhaps we could pull off what I’m thinking.”

 
“Which is?” I ask.

 
“Teleporting her out of you.”

 
I think about what she’s proposing, then I nod my head. “That just might work. When we teleport her, she might very well reset, which would break the control Shane is exerting on her at the moment. If it doesn’t…”

 
“Then she will explode,” Stephanie says, “but safely outside of your body.”

 
“First problem,” I say, “We don’t have a place that can do it.”

 
“Yes, we do.” Stephanie smiles.

  “Okay
, moving quickly to the second problem. There is no way we will be allowed to try it. That will change the universal laws of physics too much, I don’t think humans are ready for this kind of breakthrough in physics.”

 
“Please,” Stephanie says. “For the past few hundred years they have been on the entirely wrong path. Some brilliant minds got the dialogue started, but in the past fifty years the intelligence pool has gotten

very shallow. They are way overdue to realize their current models are not correct. We will just help push some clever young scientist towards understanding that, which could still take decades.”

  “Okay, fine,” I say. “It’s an option. Any other ideas? Good ones that don’t involve advancing humanity a thousand years forward with one or two days of cheating work?”

 
Stephanie thinks for a few moments, then begins to laugh.

 
“What’s so funny?” I ask.

 
“I forgot about Samantha,” she says.

 
“What about her?” I ask.

 
“She discovered a talent not long ago. She can communicate with technology.”

 
“How well?” I ask.

 
“I’m not sure. Last time we spoke she was able to turn things on and off, initiate movement and simple commands. She was very encouraged by her results; I think she’s been practicing quite a bit.”

 
“Practice is always good,” I smile. “Perhaps you can go talk to her and see what she is able to do.”

 
“Want to come with me?” she asks.

 
“Yes,” I reply. “But it’s not a good idea. If Sparx is active and reporting back to Shane, then I don’t want them to hear any more than necessary. Just go get it done and let me know how it turns out.”

 
“Gotcha,” she says. “Will you still help us look for Danni in the meantime?”

 
“I don’t want to give that bastard anything for free just by watching me in action.”

 
“So you sit up here and drink tea until we can get this under control?”

 
“Exactly,” I say. “I trade one jail for another. So hurry the hell up and get Samantha to help me.”