I remember this.
It was SimSense's annual Christmas party at their corporate headquarters, and festivities were in full swing in their office's main hall. White-jacketed waiters mingled with the crowd while they served wine, beers and appetizers - for those who wanted a stronger kick, the open bar (and its four ruthless efficient robot bartenders) had several open seats. Drones flew around dispensing party favors, their rotors softly humming in their wake. Sober-kaf pills were passed around like candies, while several condom dispensers could be seen discreetly parked at the side entrances. The sound of the season's carols in various languages could be heard in the air, the songs adding to the melange of languages spoken on the floor. Cass and Brian were busy entertaining Johnson and his friends from CustCare, although she shot him a knowing wink a few minutes ago before picking up her beers. Don't fraternize with your subordinates, no matter how hot they look. Damn it, Cass. Thankfully, he spotted his boss slowly making his way through the crowd, trailed by a Russian-looking guy who seemed somewhat bewildered by events around him. "'Sup boss K?"
"Hey, ******." The scene froze in his mind.
My name. He said my name. Why can't I remember it?!
The memory resumed. His hand was shaken - K's grip was firm and warm, almost fatherly. "Listen, it's Kolya's first time here." He turned and nodded to the Russian with a small smile. "Show him around, eh? Have to talk with Tanagawa-san and the others in a bit." K shrugged. "The usual stuff."
"Got it boss." He smiled and shook Kolya's hand. It seemed so small, compared to K's. "Hey, I'm ******, Senior Ops Lead for Game Support. Welcome to our humble HQ in Neosca - first time, I take it?"
Kolya turned to him, and he was suddenly reminded of a startled bird that he had seen in his youth. "Da, da. Ah. I am Kolya Kuznetsov." Make that a startled bird with glasses that looked lost in a crowd. Tall, gangly, with the fashion sense of someone who vastly preferred to avoid formal events of any kind. To his credit, one could only see the Marky Mouse cartoon character peeking from his tie if they looked really closely. "Product Development Lead."
Grinning, he gently led them to a small space near the bar, away from all the people. "Ah, so you're the guy who works on Omnium's modules! Great stuff, that. Bartender." A snap of his fingers, and the nearby bot turned its camera towards them. "Vodka for me and my friend. Yes?"
Kolya practically nodded in relief. "Da, vodka." He seated himself on the white leather seats, sighing at the luxurious comfort as the noise from the crowd faded away. "Ah, sound cancellers?"
"Yup - you know the management types, only the best. Here's to Christmas!" They toasted with a clink of glasses, the vodka burning smoothly down their throats. "So, how are you finding the main office?"
"Ah, well, it is big." A platter of appetizers was laid before them, and they paused to grab a few bites. "Mmm, smoked salmon! Ah, was lucky this year - I was free, wife didn't complain ... plus the free ticket and hotel, didn't hurt."
They laughed at that as the bot refilled their drinks. "Yeah, ain't that the truth! When the brass feel generous..." He let a conspiratorial smile cross his face. "So, Kolya, tell me about Omnium. I mean..." he gestured expansively. "I know it's looking over our shoulders all the time, but that's about it."
"Ah, my pride and joy ... next to my wife and daughter! But, yes, it is work of art. For me." Kolya looked around before moving closer to explain. "So, Omnium is arbirator, yes? Over three submodules: Panopticon, Grimm, and Ketch. Panopticon is observer and analyst, Ketch is security and defense, Grimm is storyteller. Keep things interesting, da? Now, Panopticon, it gathers everything. Crowds, logins, chat ... everything. If there is hacker attempt, modify files from sim pod, hands info to Ketch. Ketch kicks them. Adapts." His beaming grin spoke volumes. "Then sends evidence to legal, for lawsuit, cease-and-desist. If things are boring, hands it to Grimm. Grimm changes things, makes it fun for players - maybe, suddenly auction house is empty, people little richer, raise prices on some things, put bounties on players. Encourage temporary PvP. Maybe suddenly, one boss is two boss. Or boss suddenly flies, breathes fire."
"And it's always learning?" Kolya nodded and sipped his drink. "So, why have us? I mean, if they're there..."
"Well, Omnium is computer. Computer, only as smart as ... ones and zeros, da?" He heard his name and turned towards the stage in the center of the hall. In the distance, K was leading the way for Tanagawa and his translator as they made their way across the floor.
"And humans, more than ones and zeros."
---
Why can't I remember?
---
He remembered space - how it was a cold, harsh mistress. How it was unforgiving. How it was final.
I don't remember this.
He remembered how to fight in zero-grav. Tuck in the knees, trigger the micro-booster, push off against hard surfaces. Watch your movement. Check your angles. It was easy to make a mistake, to slip away into the cold black.
I don't remember this.
He remembered how it felt to gently, carefully land on the side of the heavy cruiser. To lock his feet on its solid walls, knowing that only a few inches of high-strength endurasteel kept a thousand souls alive just below him. In theory. That those souls, if they were present, would die in the next five hours. In fact.
What is this?
He lay a hand against the hull and let the sensors on his fingers pick up any data from within.
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I don't remember that.
But I remember that.
It can't be true. I was a Game Master! Not some cyborg killer in deep space!
But it was. Strangely, oddly, it was.
---
No.
The ship was not as full of organic life-forms as they had originally thought - what Charon had found was far, far worse. The Dendraz had stashed the ship full of their victims and maddened creations, turning it into an abbatoir that was part sensor station, part meat larder. There was no rhyme nor reason to their rearrangement of the ship's corridors, with body parts of several species stashed here and there within claw-reach. It was a sight that would have made mortal men retch several times over. The plaintive screams of those unfortunate enough to still be alive as he passed them by would stay with his dreams for years to come. At last, however, he had managed to clear his way to the bridge, his star-pistol's barrel red-hot from having belched superheated flame against his enemies.
Nodding to himself, he pulled a crusher charge from his backpack and opened its primary panel.
Their forms briefly shimmered before vanishing into nothingness. Had there been any witnesses, they would have seen the crusher charge pop open, its pinprick black hole quickly swallowing the ship - and everything left in it - into a momentary void.
---
The mood inside the sitting room was somber as Queen Liare sipped tea with Matriarch Cerr. It was easy to mistake them as twins - with their slender, ageless bodies and silver hair, telling them apart would be quite the challenge.
Fortunately for those up to the task, Cerr had eschewed finery, preferring a ghost-white riding dress in her haste to reach the citadel, while Liare had conceded to the necessity of elaborate garment and jewelry. Outside, warriors sworn to Liare's crown awaited her command - with a single gesture, they could ravage the countryside and bathe it in blood without hesitation. But unbeknownst to them, their quarry was made of nightmarish stuff that their swords could not cut.
"So. Your device has foretold you of a disaster." Cerr carefully laid her wooden cup onto the table, her voice softened by her advanced years. Time had taken its toll on her mastery of the spoken word - once an orator whose words swayed both kingdoms and villains alike, Cerr was now relegated to the role of diplomat and shadowy advisor to those that they still counted as friends.
Liare nodded. Most of the evening had been spent confirming her nightmares with her oneiromancers - for all their attempts to twist the strands of fate into a more agreeable stance, the omens had one reply: disaster. "A direct approach seems to be very unwise."
Silence reigned, crushing the very air that they breathed with each moment that ticked away. Cerr gazed at the sheathed blade on her lap, and Liare could only speculate at what her thoughts were. The Matriarch was the sole surviving heroine from the Twelve Za'ra, warriors who had searched the land for the long-forgotten weapons of mass destruction left behind by their Silirissian masters. It took many generations - and more deaths than she cared to count - before the Za'ra had finally crushed the last half-metal monstrosity they had found. While their crusade had made the world safer for the orruz and the other races who inhabited the known world, it had also taken its toll on them. Perhaps, she mused, an unorthodox approach is required.
"All our fate-threads showed disaster should we meet this new threat with a bared blade - this, we know. Perhaps a different path, then, is necessary."
Cerr looked up at her, gray-flecked eyes hard as nails. "And what do you suggest?"
She took a breath to steady herself. Was I planning this, or has fate forced my hand? "I shall rekindle my life-flame and bind this creature's heart. The Silrissian warriors are - were - mortal constructs, after all. Surely they had mortal desires as well."
"You are dicing on an unwalked road." Cerr's eyes turned distant, and she turned to gaze once again on the sword. "Yet, I fear that you are right. Perhaps we must turn to Yrne instead and beseech that She smile upon our bones."
A cold wind suddenly blew in from the open windows, and for a moment the chill seemed to cut into their very bones despite the magics that kept it warm no matter what season it was. As the servants scurried to close the windows, Liare turned to meet Cerr's eyes - the heavens, it seemed, had sent them their sign.
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Author's note: this chapter, and all subsequent chapters - will be a bit slower in arriving due to real-life schedules. Nevertheless, I hope that you enjoy the work and spread the word! Your support is always appreciated!
Let me know what you think of the story thus far!