“I believe congratulations are due.”
“Yes, she managed to make it here without obliterating her mind again.”
The energy-scape comes more into focus as the twin Administrators come into focus, with a distinct lack of features to the blinding landscape.
“Where are the features I built last time? I remember there at least being some remnants of construction during my last visit.”
They both sigh in disappointment. “We had hoped you arrived on purpose, but it seems that you’ve consumed your aether constructions to fuel that foolhardy endeavor, and when you were being stubborn and full of yourself, you forged a pocket mind-scape in aether space.”
“Oh. I mean cool that I can access power from the constructs I created, but why create a mind-scape? The space I was using before was fine.” Although, I might already have some idea. I feel like I have near absolute control over this space, as though it were an extension of my empire—perhaps nearly a realm of its own.
“The Matrix wishes for us to convey only information about your current status and not about potential of any kind, save that you have met the requirements to become a Moderator for the Matrix in the Milky Way.”
“And you are being offered the position. You would be responsible for monitoring abuses of the Matrix and fixing minor bugs, misalignments, and other unintended effects of the Matrix’ attempt to localize and provide dynamic User development.”
“Will this be readable in a tooltip or a module or something? Because, I’m still a little scrambled by my arrival to aether-space. Somehow I feel that this offer is ‘highly encouraged’ level of optional.” Crap, that was out loud.
While I do enjoy being a part of the Matrix, do I want to be more involved? I also feel that this is on the job path toward Administrator, with a step or dozen in between. With a fragmented Empire at war, I don’t think I’m suited for such a roll at the moment.
“Would you like us to respond to your worries, or continue to allow you to voice them before you respond? And we can tell because we were powerful empaths before our Ascension.”
“I guess I don’t mind as long as you let me finish a thought and or emotion first.”
“But of course,” they say in tandem, which is still creepy.
“First, this role is as you say, ‘highly encouraged’ for those who have a title regarding the Matrix. You would be put on a decade-long period of assessment before a century-long probationary period where you will have full autonomy in the roll, and you would need to serve for a century before being considered for more expansive roles. That said, you have declared sovereignty over a large swath of Frontier, and the Matrix sees an opportunity for a Moderator for all frontier regions of the Milky Way. As a Master of teleportation and nearly so for space, you would be capable of observing the largest swath of space ever assigned to a Moderator with mere moderate difficulty.”
“As for having no time for this work, time is non-linear in this space. Although you will only have access to your moderator menus in the aether-space, you will lose a fraction of the time you experience here as elapsed time in the material plane.”
So essentially I will have the time to do the job because I will be in a place where time is more fluid while doing said job. As juicy as this seems, there has to be some impressive limitations on this sort of power. There are always checks and balances. Always.
“Correct. As a Moderator, you would normally have little effect on higher-level Users, and a large effect on lower-level, new-race users such as Humanity. However, as the frontier now has a deep-delving sector host, your role will be given an increased role until such time as five Matrix races have colonized your sector of space. The down side, your decade and century marks will be held before much more rigorous scrutiny. If your benefits to the Matrix do not outweigh your detriment at those junctures, your immortality will be forfeit, and your status as a user frozen.”
“Or in the parlance of Humanity: don’t be an asshole.”
“A villain.”
“A bloody wanker.”
“A slobber donkey.”
“STOP! I get it. By Andromeda, you two are excitable.”
LOADING . . . PLEASE WAIT.
“Did you say, immortality forfeit?”
“Oh, we’ve forgotten you are notorious or ignoring your messages. At your level of Body of Power, you are eligible to begin the Ascension process. As a being of energy, you are functionally immortal. It is a curse for many and attainable for few.”
“Oh, well. Check the box for Empress in perpetuity then.”
The aether shifts in amusement?
“Irreverent.”
“Ambitious.”
“Powerful Potential.”
“It is no wonder that you remind the Collective of their makers.”
“We have other duties to attend in the Supercluster, be well Asking Ascendant.”
“Moderator.”
The twins blip out of my mindscape with nary a trace of their aether lingering behind.
The author's tale has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.
“I feel those two are the kind that you swear at relentlessly, but still call them friend.”
A thought for later, perhaps. Now that we have the same employer, a job that I didn’t have to accept because I already do, does that mean I can be friends with the twins and finally learn their names? No response. Figures.
Alright lets set up some things in my space to make this a little less afterlife white. I picture my suite in the Castle and try to manifest it.
Then how about, my lab with a lounger and a computer station for ‘work’ as I’ve apparently subconsciously accepted the role of Moderator. I feel a weakness in my chest as the space fills with color and objects. At the edge of what I assume is my forged space, the color fades to white. Good enough.
“Alright, so lets order some refreshment and look at my menus.”
I unconsciously query what the hell that means, and the knowledge fills my mind, laced with the understanding that this is a feature of my new role.
//Services are limited to Moderator and higher services. Conventional Space items and services do not usually survive the transition to non-dimensional space of aether-space.
//Moderator and higher services are also restricted in Conventional Space due to the energy and transition requirements to enact those services.
Alright then. Lets format this new menu to display on my manifested computer and lets navigate.
Oh, Moderator information flows in telling me I must tend to alerts before transitioning to Conventional space, where unflagged tasks can be handled in any space. That’s a boon, as I’d hate to have to expend the energy to come to this space when addressing low-prio tasks.
Oh, ha ha Andromeda, my first major alerts are about shit I’ve done. Probably their way of telling me how big of a hassle I am. I query the details for the time manipulation.
//User Penelope Astoria empowered and unintentionally anchored time manipulation to a space dilation event 10ly from the spin-ward frontier line. Spellform/Control effect resolution delayed by a continuous feed of aether through Moderator Astoria’s transforming Conventional Space form.
I query for data on the first two projected resolutions and see some serious problems. Moderator mind is freaking cool, getting this complete information is going to be tough to switch between. I chose the requested alteration option and state my case.
The disconnect and the define limit have similar flaws as the fabric of space with cause time to recoil forward, accelerating local time to catch up and cause barely dampened oscillations of time and space as the massive time anomaly is shocked back to the present. This may also cause an unregulated warp of indeterminate size to occur through a possible time vector as well. The predicted effects of this type of warp seem to be “unpredictable with available data” which us unacceptable in my Galaxy, thanks.
//Moderator requested alteration: Disconnect and resolve time to expand IAW surrounding space-time starting at local time and allow space to naturally recoil to surrounding fabric thickness.//
For the brief moment that I marvel that I get to message in the double-slash of the Matrix, they respond.
//Alteration would reduce aberrant effects of space-time abuse over other presented methods. Alteration approved.//
As much as I hate to admit it, that brief message of approval feels amazing. Like warm in my soul amazing. Holy cow. I want to feel that again.
//Due to Body of Power Upgrades, existing physique of Penny Astoria is insufficient. As Moderator Astoria is sequestered in aether-space until her physique is inhabitable, guided alteration can only be provided remotely.
Easy choice. Allow Matrix Guidance. I do not presume to know better than a collective of hyper-intelligent Intelligences.
//Approximate resolution time: 3 Astorian Days.//
Shit. That’s forever in War. Well, I’m now super glad I didn’t fire anyone. Considering I don’t have a back-up body to inhabit, nor do I have the first idea of how to do that, I’m stuck here until the alterations are done. Might as well wade through my tasks.
After what seemed like hours of sorting, I have three bins: Off-handed mentions (Trash), Actionable requests, Hail-Mary’s (far-fetched).
It’s hard to seriously consider ‘Andromeda I wish that boy were smarter’ as a legitimate request, no matter how dumb they are. Also, the far-fetched requests such as prayers to feed a family, or fix a government aren’t in the realm of Matrix assistance as I understand it. The 54 Actionable requests are far more difficult.
The most common phrasing that I am entertaining are “please assist me in these efforts” or some such. This is what Andromeda has aided me with, but as a Primus, and a Moderator candidate, their involvement has been much more intimate. Moreso, with the recent developments with Zia, power trades are much more likely to be approved. At the end of the day I recommend assistance for 17 tasks, 16 of them being trades. The last one was an honest to goodness case of un-bridled service to their community and “guide me to better serve my people,” hits a certain frequency in my soul that I recommend uncompensated assistance for excellent service to Humanity and the Matrix.
//122 recommendations approved. 1 under review. 1 yet to be viewed by Moderator.//
Did I get another task?
Warning? So, tasks-warnings-alerts are the ranks? That I can do, though the yellow ‘Warnings’ also “require” my attention.
//Moderator Penny Astoria will no longer require symbiote or swarm to interface with the Matrix.
Those are some fucking options. Tyrant, tyrant, or reasonable recourse? I wonder what I will choose. The information floods me and I see that the service option is not slavery, but a continued companionship that we currently have. Then again, I know that not all symbiotes and swarms enjoy the freedom to act that I feel Tessa should have. Lastly, User status comes with some wild complications.
I am being told to manipulate the prompt to Tessa and the resultant User Ascension. She would owe (Matrix mandated) skill and tier power to gift an unnaturally born being user status, or perhaps considered the breath of life. Andromeda is tasking me with choosing her ascension, or she will get service capacity relegation as a default. As much as I know that Tessa loves me and our partnership, with her new, nearly flawless cybernetic chassis, I can tell her drive for independence is overwhelming.
//Ability, Talent, Skill, Tier.//
What the hell? She won’t get to chose? Fuck me. Maybe she can get a track evolution during a tier evolution. Quick, Penny, Analize what she’s been doing and chose that track. She’s been building constructs, advancing mechanical components and using engraving like gang busters. She has never been able to enchant or actively use my aether based skills, so it seems pretty obvious that she’s not a symbiote user, and a pulse of information in my brain tells me that dual-code status is not an available choice.
She’s basically what Andromeda tried to classify me as earlier. She’s a Golem, and thus she should have a Track that enhances that.
//Tessa Astoria will be converted to User upon acceptance of an offer of Ascendence.//
Wanted or not, Tessa and I are headed into a new world.