Thirty minutes later

Jet did her best to fall asleep after April’s visit, but it was no use. Her mind was wound up, and she didn’t think she would be able to sleep.

Maybe I should log back into the Colossal Machine and resume my quest?

Jet didn’t want to continue her adventures without Nigel and April, but that old man who called her the redeemer was so damned compelling. It didn’t take long to convince herself. She unpacked her portable VR interface for the Colossal Machine. It wasn’t as immersive as the full setup she had at the loft, but she wanted to get her mind off recent events. Moments later she was transported back to the Garden of Light.

Jet found herself outside a set of massive double doors made of bronze. Jet always enjoyed how much detail the developers of the Colossal Machine put into the game world. She had read somewhere the artists and level designers weren’t allowed to mass produce any of the game details. Virtually everything was handcrafted. Just as she was contemplating her next move, the double doors opened inward. She was bathed in the bright light emanating from a golden luminescence called the Sphere of Fate. The old man had guided her to this level—which Nigel had compared to the Hanging Gardens—for a reason, and she wanted to find out.

“It’s good to make your acquaintance, JetaGirl,” the old man said.

How does he know about my in-game handle? Jet wondered. I didn’t tell him, and the game’s AI constructs usually have to be told.

“It’s good to meet you, meister,” she said.

“Come. The council wishes to palaver.”

Jet followed the old man through the massive chamber. There were a number of columns made from brilliant alabaster so bright Jet couldn’t look directly upon them for very long. The floors appeared to be made of polished marble. In the center of the room, an enormous golden ball emitted the brightest luminescence she’d ever seen in the game.

“The council’s chambers are just beyond the great seal,” the old man said, pointing onward.

“Are you coming?” she asked.

“What the council has to say is for you to hear, not I. Remember, once you pass the seal you may not return.”

“Why? If I can’t come back, then where will I end up?”

“Such details are not for a simple guide such as me.”

Jet took one last glance at the magnificent room before her. Then she examined the great seal the old man was referring to. She didn’t see it at first, due to the bright ball mere feet behind her. As she gazed upon the golden pattern, she realized the seal was a series of four inverted triangles.

The seal is a magical barrier, it’s another test of the Magi.

The spaces near the intersection of the points had circles with some kind of runic inscription Jet realized the runes were familiar.

It’s a spell ward. Those runes are the incantation. I must learn its significance.

As Jet traversed across the great seal, she realized she was shivering. Her teeth rattled together, reminding her of that frozen coyote in those old cartoons. The feeling passed as soon as she passed the seal. She turned to wave at the old man, but she only saw a curtain of light behind her.

I guess there is only one way to go now.

A short passageway led her to a gigantic, cavernous room with no apparent exit. A wooden crate just large enough to admit one person was in the center of the cavern.

This looks out of place.

“I bet this is a test,” Jet said to the empty room.

She heard a slight echo as she spoke. The walls were as smooth as the marble she had stepped on earlier. She touched it, and to her surprise the surface was coarse. Then her eyes were drawn to the center of the box. Then examined a triangular-looking device made of metal with two holes. Surrounding it was a silver plate about the size of a gigantic serving platter. Upon further examination, Jet realized two wooden dowels running through its center held the crate in place.

This looks familiar, the silver platter is a compass!

The platter around the triangle-shaped device resembled a compass, but instead of the usual directions she was used to, she saw five textured slices engraved onto the platter connected to a point in the middle.

I bet I can travel to the council in this contraption.

Jet examined the slices. She recognized the symbols on each slice. A series of pillars and a giant eye represented the Timemaker’s Terrace. She recognized a series of rivers with a gnarled hand pointing to the water as the symbol for the Garden of Light. The slice that represented Darkow was as black as pitch. The stony slice she knew as Strombach. A ruddy, reddish slice with slimy-looking creatures carved into it she knew all too well as the Kingdom of the Mad Queen. In the center, where the tip of each slice merged, was known as the Nexus Circle.

This book was originally published on Royal Road. Check it out there for the real experience.

How do I activate this thing?

She touched the Nexus Circle. The device vibrated. She thought she could hear a low humming sound. The center of the triangular device opened, and the dowels retracted. A black rectangular box raised with four prongs on top of it. It looked like a ring missing its diamond.

I wonder if I need to activate this thing, just like the keys to a car?

The crystal attached to the end of her staff glowed. She examined it for a moment as it became brighter. She removed it from her staff, then placed it in the four-pronged clasp. Nothing happened at first. Then the cavern shook, and the top of the crate opened. It was like a giant opened a box and found her inside it. She saw several stalactites fall into the opened crate. Other rocks and debris peppered the box from above. The sound was deafening. A small chair-like bench raised from the floor. She sat in it without thinking. Then the vehicle jolted, like she had just shifted a car into the wrong gear. Moments later there was a snapping sound, then darkness.

“In-Por-Ot-Bem,” Jet said, the crate illuminated.

After a few moments and a little more tinkering around, she realized the slices could be controlled. When she touched the Darkow slice, the crate seemed to change directions. Jet did not know for sure, but she surmised it was traveling toward Darkow. She pressed the Garden of Light slice, and was jolted in the opposite direction.

Now where am I going?

She thought about it for several seconds as the device powered down.

She touched the crystal, and the device turned on again. From the glow of her light spell, Jet noticed there was a blank gray area in the center, that bound all slices together. It had no symbols or anything carved on it. When she pressed that slice, the device roared into motion. After a few moments, the crate stopped, and an image of a box with a beam of light shining on it appeared.

What the hell is this?

When she did nothing for several seconds, instead of the device turning itself off, the sides of the crate opened, revealing a starry darkness. The next sensation was most unusual; a pulling force. It was like she was being sucked out of the crate by a giant vacuum cleaner.

What the hell?

Then a menu overlay appeared:

<<>>

System Message: Solve the equation

What is your answer?

You have two clues available.

<<>>

A shaft of light shining on a three-dimensional cube appeared to be floating in space. She brought up her menu overlay, then hovered a virtual hand over a green button labeled “clue.” When she pressed it, the following message appeared:

<<>>

System Message: It is the world’s most famous equation.

What is your answer?

You have one clue available.

<<>>

I hate math! Does it have something to do with light?

She examined the light shining on the floating cube. After giving the problem some thought, she typed the following into the box provided:

E=hv

Nothing seemed to happen.

That is the equation for photon light. Why didn’t it work?

Moments later, two giant fists appeared and seemed to be heading in her direction. They didn’t seem to have an arm attached, but they were massive. She barely avoided getting pulverized.

Time for a new hint, Jet thought as she selected the “clue” button again.

A portrait of Albert Einstein appeared, floating in midair. Then it all came to her. She typed in E = mc2 into the game interface. Then the crate jolted into action. Jet grasped onto the nearest object: the compass. She had no frame of reference, but she anticipated the crate was going much faster than it had when she first entered. The sides of the crate evaporated. She gasped upon an expanse of stars.

The crate seems to be able to fly through time and space—I didn’t know this was a part of the game.

Moments later, rays of light shot across the starry field. As the stars faded, the beams of sunlight replaced them. The crate picked up speed as it shot through the void and into the light beyond.

Sometime later, Jet awoke on an engraving in the floor. Further examination revealed the engraving was a mirror image of the seal she saw before the encounter with the crate. Jet noticed the runic language was backward.

The seal is the same, but different. It’s like I’m looking at it in the mirror.

She took a moment to get a frame of reference, pulling up the in-game map. She appeared to be in the middle of a void. Nothing was visible, but yet she appeared to be standing in the middle of an enormous library. Around her, arched staircases led to an upper mezzanine area she couldn’t see. She heard voices coming from above. They sounded almost musical.

Sounds like a debate, or an opera.

Jet ascended one of the enormous staircases. As she climbed, the distance was misleading; what appeared to be thirty feet was like three thousand in this realm. After a considerable amount of climbing, she made it to the level above the seal. Jet looked toward the area where she’d started her ascent; the seal the old man had warmed her about was engraved on the floor. It looked more magnificent from her current vantage point.

Is it glowing?

The voices were getting louder. She couldn’t make out the words, but she followed their captivating and melodic song. Jet traveled deeper into what she thought was the inner sanctum; she didn’t know what else to call it. The hallway narrowed, then opened up into a chasm lined with every book imaginable. She became dizzy as she tried to find the bottom of the crazy bibliotheca. The voices were louder here.

I can’t understand what they are saying.

Jet couldn’t find a way down into the chasm of books, but she caught a glimpse of a reflection. She strode toward the reflection. She maintained a laser focus on whatever was causing the light to reflect. Moments later, the old man appeared from nowhere.

“Congratulations, JetaGirl, you have passed the final test,” the old man said.

Where did he come from?

“A test of what?”

“Faith. Now come, the council awaits.”

The old man appeared to be walking on empty space ahead of her. Then she looked down; she hadn’t noticed she was no longer standing on the ledge, but rather seemed to be floating—no, gliding—over a chasm. She decided to walk normally, as the last thing she needed was to fall to her death then have to restart the level—or worse, lose in-game progression.

“This way,” the old man urged.

Jet followed the old man into a vast chamber. Many rows of seats were arranged in a semicircle. Nine figures sat around a gigantic chair.

“Soon you will be judged. I’m here to answer questions you may have. But choose wisely, as you only get two,” the old man said.

“Why am I being judged?” she asked.

“You are the only player who hath made it past the puzzle of the ancients and onto the encounter with the dungeon master. You are worthy of being elevated to the position of Grand Magi.”

Jet’s heart was beating so fast that she had a tough time forming another question.

“How many Grand Magis are there?”

“If you succeed, you will be the only Grand Magi alive.”

The old man let Jet take in the splendor of the judging chamber.

“Now I must leave you.”

“Wait—you never told me your name!”

“My name is Icarius, and I’m the dungeon master.”