It is unfiltered, untainted imagination. The world is a resplendent vision of fairyland. The creatures of the forest, and the inhabitants of a thousand strange and wonderous kingdoms dance, play, and go on fun adventures.

Jack and his companions lived in a big city, called Berserba. First there was Rabb, the thief with a heart of gold. They befriended Marcius, the fallen knight on a quest for redemption. And finally, Ullo the escaped circus bear.

On Z street there was an alleyway. Behind several tattered boxes a hole had been knocked out of the wall. This makeshift doorway led to a void under a building, a place that had been neglected and left unused. Jack cleaned it up, turned it into a nice place.

The group went on endless adventures. They freed the bubble lands from the terrible muck men. They solved the puzzle of the black pyramid, taking its treasure and giving it to the poor. They raced airships around the floating mountains of Talluck.

One day, a wizard entered their hidden base. He was friendly, the wise and powerful man sought their help.

They journeyed to Cazik, climbing its formidable mountains. The party explored the ruins of the lizardmens’ fallen nation. They navigated a horrifying forest of black leafed larch trees, braving the frozen winds and elder things.

The wizard betrayed them, killing Marcius. It was all a trick, a fool’s errand, the quest was a lie. It was on the shores of the ancient lake where Jack would avenge his noble friend.

The group returned to the Z street place. After much soul searching, they agreed to keep going.

Jack’s next quest was to rescue a princess.

He scaled the castle wall, squeezed through the bars, and found a dead guard. The young adventurer followed a trail of defeated foes, until he found her. She was feisty, aggressive, ill tempered. Instead of a dress, she wore ornate armor. A short sword sat on each hip. She didn’t need rescuing, she had already escaped on her own. But she did begrudgingly express her appreciation for the help he would have provided.

Together, they would found a new regime. The empire reigned supreme, always expanding, always conquering new lands. Its uniforms and armor were inspiring, its weapons were sharp and sturdy. A grand armada ruled the seas, its armies dominated the land. The imperial flag flew proudly over countless kingdoms.

The capital city was built from nothing, the emperor planned it out, building by building, all on his own. Banners hung proudly from mighty walls; flags flew majestically from the tops of colossal towers. There was a circus track for chariot races. If this didn’t keep the populous busy, the colosseum would. The metropolis was centered around a fortified palace.

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As the empire grew the conquests became more violent. The troops became more bloodthirsty, the generals more heartless. Chivalry and honor became things of the past. Anyone that stood in their way was destroyed.

And then they found it, the fortress city of Parasi. Built on an island, waves struck the buttressed walls of the ancient city. The defenses were impressive, it would be the greatest challenge yet.

A battle fleet and a full army were brought in to lay siege to the place, but the residents didn’t seem to care. They sent no arrows toward the attackers, no guards appeared on the ramparts, no warriors sallied out to do battle with the invaders.

They approached cautiously, fearing an ambush. The front gate had been left wide open. The first troops entered, moans of passion greeted their ears, their eyes saw writhing bodies. This had to be some kind of trick. The city was quickly captured, the empire’s leaders entered, and met with the ruling council.

“Please, put down your weapons,” they urged, “Why waste your life doing violent deeds, when you could spend your days having fun?” a good question, the answer is that violence is also fun but it is a moot point because you can do both.

The emperor was enchanted by the city’s hedonistic philosophy. For the next few years Parasi would become the unofficial second capital of the empire. But no matter how many times he visited the city, he would always return to her, his empress, the shield maiden.

Things went on like that for a long time. Battle after battle was fought, nation after nation was rebuilt in the emperor’s image.

The empire fell, overthrown and replaced by an alliance of five kingdoms. The deposed emperor was determined to retake his lost realm. He returned to that secret hideout on Z street. From there he led a revolt.

The struggle was long, the rebellion would have to tear each kingdom down piece by piece, each king toppled one by one. They ambushed the enemy’s troops on the roadways of an ancient civilization and in the thick jungles of a far-off land. They would attack and fade away before the enemy could overpower them.

The five each had their own armies and navies, but the threat was greater than that. The kings were in league with otherworldly forces; they had a powerful enforcer at their beck and call.

This enforcer used his supernatural powers to hunt Jack and his friends. No matter what they tried they were unable to kill their foe, they could only flee. It seemed hopeless, but they discovered that the enforcer could be tricked. He could be distracted; he could be duped into attacking the forces of the five.

They won, they defeated the kingdoms, freed the people. But no empire or republic was created to take their place. Jack and his friends went on no new adventures.

The hiding spot on Z street was cleared out. The armories and barracks were replaced with sand tables and charts, each of them breaking down some aspect of the megacorporations and the government. It was here that the simulation ended.

It always seemed to come back to this city, this particular street, that one little hiding spot. I bring up my IC, instructing the navigation program to search the city for this general layout.

Zachariah street, just south of Deep Eiluna. It is a place where Untouchables are known to live, it is entirely possible that Mason grew up there. He must have gone to that hiding spot a lot, it must have meant a lot to him. It would be the perfect location for a base of operations. This has to be it, it just has to.

I leave the simulation. Sitting there in the dim light I struggle to collect my thoughts.

The door flies open, it is Sylvia, she looks worried, “You need to come quick!”