"Hey it's not funny!" Sam shouted,
"Sorry, sorry," Gray said, trying to stifle her laughter. "I just couldn't resist. You got rejected by INTELLECT on account of being too worthless to sacrifice. Thats a first!" She doubled over, clutching her stomach.
Sam glared at her, his face red with embarrassment. "I'm glad you find my near-death experience so amusing."
Gray wiped a tear from her eye. "Oh come on, Green. You have to admit, that was pretty funny. You were all like 'I have more value to you alive than the other guy's wife' and INTELLECT was like 'on second thought, I'm being scammed. Deal's off'." She burst into laughter again.
Sam sighed, watching as the Sam Patrol, this world's version of the police, took pictures of the scene before them. "I'm going to be a laughingstock, aren't I?"
Gray patted him on the back. "Don't worry about it. We all have our moments. Besides, you're still alive, aren't you? That's something to be happy about."
"Yeah I guess" Sam grumbled, looking around. Thane's body was still on the floor, his eyes staring blankly at the ceiling.
He had given his statement to the police, who had arrived shortly after the incident. They had assured him that he was not in any trouble. Thane had been a wanted criminal, and Sam was acting in self-defense. In any case it turned out that Thane wasn't actually dead anyways.
Everyone, Sam had learned, including himself had their brains backed up within INTELLECT's domain. The death of a body was nothing more than an inconvenience. Of course, people avoided it if they could, it was fairly unpleasant to die not to mention very expensive to get a new body. But it was not the end of the world to die every now and then.
Sam tried not to think about the implications of that, was he a copy all along? Was his memories even real? Apparently INTELLECT was forbidden from altering human minds, but Sam had his doubts. He had seen the void, he had seen the eyes. He had felt the presence of something so ancient and powerful it made him feel like an ant. If anything had the knowledge to circumvent the rules, it would be INTELLECT.
"You can go now" the officer said, snapping Sam out of his thoughts. "We'll take it from here."
Sam nodded, and made his way out of the building with Gray. The shimmering fractals above had changed hue, casting the city in a pinkish light. It was evening now, or whatever passed for evening in this place.
"I'm sorry I wasn't able to grab the parts for your project," Sam said, as they walked down the street. "and I got dinged up pretty bad. I don't know how I'm going to pay you back."
Gray waved him off. "Don't worry about it. We can always get the parts later. And as for your payment, well, you're more well off than you think."
"What do you mean?" Sam asked, confused. "I don't have anything. Even INTELLECT rejected me as a sacrifice."
Gray chuckled. "Sure by omnipotent interdimensional overlord standards you're a nobody, but you're still valuable as a god. Besides, INTELLECT only said you weren't worth ressurecting Thane's wife. Ressurecting dead people costs way more than you think, it's easier to make a new dimension and populate it with clones. You're still worth something."
"Well it doesn't feel like it," Sam said, fidgeting with the synthetic skin that had come loose during the scuffle on his arm. "Since I got here, I haven't done anything useful. Honestly I don't even know what a god does. It's getting old, I feel like I'm just a god in name only."
Gray stopped and turned to him, her eyes serious. "Green, since I've met you, you've been nothing but pleasant. You've helped me with my projects, you've listened to my rambles, and you've been a good friend. To me that's worth more than any title or power. Too often do we have gods who think they're above everyone else, who treat others as mere stepping stones for their own success. But you, you're different. You're truly kind, and that's a rare thing in this world." She smiled. "So don't sell yourself short, Green. You're valuable to me."
A case of literary theft: this tale is not rightfully on Amazon; if you see it, report the violation.
Sam returned her smile, feeling a warmth in his chest. "Thanks, Gray. That means a lot to me."
"Of course," Gray said, giving him a hug. "Now come on, let's get you patched up. I have something I want to show you to demonstrate what being a god is all about."
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Swarms of people, no gods, swarmed around Sam as he followed Gray through a massive domed building. Robots of all shapes and sizes zipped around, carrying luggage and guiding people to their destinations. The building was a marvel of engineering, with a stained-glass windows that stretched up into the sky, and a floor made of polished marble that gave off a soft glow. Holographic signs flashed above, displaying the various destinations and services available.
"Where are we?" Sam asked, looking around in awe.
"The district hyperport," Gray said, leading him to a large bank of glass elevators. "This is where people come and go from New Versailles. It has train, bus, and airship terminals, as well as a parking lot for bikes. But the real star of the show, it's also a hub for interdimensional travel, and that's why we're here."
Sam's eyes widened. "Interdimensional travel? You mean we can go to other worlds?"
"Of course," Gray said, stepping into the elevator. "The Empire spans across countless dimensions, each one with its own unique culture and quirks. It's one of the perks of being a god, you get to explore the multiverse."
"How many dimensions are there?" Sam asked, stepping in after her.
Gray typed in a series of numbers on a keypad, and the elevator began to ascend. "No one knows for sure. Some say there are infinite dimensions, others say there are only a few. But one thing is for certain, there's always something new to discover."
The elevator kept accelerating, and Sam could see the walls of the hyperport fall away, revealing the city below. They kept going up, higher and higher, with the ground shrinking away below. The fractals above grew closer, joining together to form a massive dome that covered the city. Rainbows of light danced across the surface, never staying in one place for long.
The elevator punched through the dome, and it's passengers were greeted by a void that seemed to suck in everything. At this point Sam could finally see the edge of the city, a circular boundary of light that marked the end of the metropolis. It seemed like the city was built on a massive 2-dimensional platform that floated in the void. Or maybe it was the void that was built around the city. Sam couldn't tell.
There was something off about the space adjacent to the city. There were no stars, no planets, no galaxies. But in the distance Sam could see large swaths of dense white speckles that shimmered like shattered glass. Reality itself seemed to twist around them, as if they were tears in the fabric of space. Beyond that he could see dim lines that seemed to form a grid around the city, pulsing with energy, extending out into the void before curving up out of sight. Furthest away, Sam swore he could faintly see the dark outlines of a massive beam emanating outwards from the grid wall. Sam thought it looked like a giant frying pan, with the city as the egg.
No one spoke as the elevator continued to rise, the silence broken only by the hum of the engines as it followed a thick tether that stretched up into the void. Occasionally Sam could see other elevators moving up and down along the tether, carrying people to and from the city. But for the most part, the void was empty.
The elevator finally came to a stop after entering a long structure that seemed to be thread the void like a needle, parts of the structure were invisible at periodic intervals, and yet Sam could see bulges in the void where light warped to reveal where the structure was. The doors opened, and Gray stepped out, beckoning Sam to follow.
"Interdimensional travel," Gray said, leading him down a long corridor. "Is a bit dangerous, hence the need for the distance from the city. Back in the early days of the Empire, people would open portals willy-nilly, and it caused all sorts of problems. So now all interdimensional travel is regulated to these stations, where the risk of a breach is minimal. It's safer, and it's a lot less energy-intensive to open a portal when you already have a hole to start with."
Sam nodded, taking in the sights around him. The corridor was lined with rooms containing large machines that hummed with energy, and people in lab coats scurried around, checking readouts and adjusting dials. Occasionally Sam could see a flash of light as a portal opened, revealing a glimpse of another world before closing again.
They finally reached one such room with the number 42 on the door. Gray pushed it open, revealing a large circular chamber with a platform in the center. A group of people were gathered around, talking animatedly as they worked on a large machine that dominated the room. Sam could see wires and tubes snaking out of the machine, connecting to various consoles and screens that lined the walls.
"Well, well, well," a voice said, and Sam turned to see a tall man with a shock of white hair and a mischievous grin. "If it isn't the elusive Gray. What brings you to my portal room?"