Punishment

by Guerin Zand

  “What’s that?” Milly asked.

  I started to speak and my team all joined in unison. “She’s a fucking vegan!”

  Milly broke down uncontrollably. She remembered how much I ragged on her and all vegans every chance I got. She knew, to me at least, my daughter’s choice to be a vegan was probably a bitter betrayal.

  My refill arrived, and I was starting to like this new liquor. I was going to need to spend some quality time with a fresh bottle someday. “Julie, do you have something to say to my team?”

  “Yes, I do. First off, I’d like to thank all of you personally for all your hard work back on Earth. Especially for keeping Guerin from screwing it all up royally.” She got some laughs from that last little bit. “Tomorrow, the entire Council would like to thank you as well. I’ll send for you tomorrow afternoon. I need to nail down the time exactly, but when I do, I’ll send you a notice.”

  “I wouldn’t eat beforehand, Steve,” I remarked. “And you should ask them for a brain while you’re there. Katie, I think they can even give you a heart.”

  Katie gave me one of her looks. If she was closer she would have hit me, hard. “Real funny, asshole.”

  The rest of the guests look puzzled, so Milly explained to them the Wizard of Oz. This included an explanation of the reference to Julie as the Wicked Witch of the West. She had watched the movie with me on her visit to Earth, and she knew it was my favorite as a child.

  “Nancy, would you and Sid mind taking Maria and the team out for a game of tag one day?”

  “Sure, Guerin. Will you be joining us?”

  “No. They’ll probably have more fun without me there.”

  “That’s no shit!” Katie was still upset with my last remark.

  I took that as my cue to move this party on. “Sly, I assume you have a kitchen pass for tonight?”

  “Just what do you have in mind, Guerin?” It was Stella who asked.

  “I just thought we’d see what kind of damage we could do to that minibar. I know I could use a few more drinks.”

  I stood up and looked to my guests who remained seated. “You’re not going to make me drink alone, are you?”

  Sly and Bart were the first to get up. I left the dining area for the bar with my two drinking buddies. I ordered another Two Virgins, Sly had a Gluark, and Bart went with the Pappy’s. Slowly the rest of the guests made their way out to join us.

  Nancy came over to talk to me. She hugged me and I put an arm around her. “I’ve missed you, Guerin.”

  “I missed you, Nancy. Your parents could have brought you to Earth for a visit you know?”

  “Our schedules never allowed it. When they were home we would be with them, but when they went to Earth, Sid and I had other commitments. I do plan on visiting Earth though.”

  “Yes. She is working with the committee now and she’ll be involved in future work there.” Stella joined us. I don’t think she liked the way I was looking at her daughter.

  “That’s great. What else have you been doing with yourself?”

  “Well, we’ve been pretty busy with The Rebellion.”

  “Oh, how’s that going?”

  “Not like you think, Guerin.”

  “What do you mean, Stella?”

  “The Rebellion is a game.”

  “A game?”

  “Yes,” Nancy started to explain. “When you left, Sid and I thought we could come up with a little game to recruit young people for the revolution like we talked about. It is sort of what people on Earth call an MMORPG. It started small as just something we decided to do for fun, but now there are billions playing it.”

  “Billions?”

  “Yes. The premise started with the Red Empress, Julie, having the rebellion’s leader, you, chained and tortured.”

  “That sounds familiar, Nancy.” The crowd laughed. I was there, and I didn’t see the humor in it.

  “Exactly. It’s based on real events, with a little embellishment to make it more interesting. People sign up as characters. They can be real characters or fictional characters. Sid and I play as ourselves, some people have chosen your team members as characters. Julie plays herself.”

  “It really is so much fun, Guerin.”

  “I’m sure it is, Julie.”

  “There is even a monetary system that is associated with the game,” Bart added. “Players earn credits, and with more credits, the character gets more power in the game. People trade credits for everything, so it has become almost an unofficial currency in the Collective. We can make bets with it or trade them for services. It’s really a big deal, this game.”

  “Well, it sounds like you did good, Nancy. Who plays my character?”

  “Nobody knows? The players can keep their identities anonymous and whoever chose you has decided not to say who they are.”

  “Hmm. A mystery then.”

  “Yes, Guerin. One that a lot of players are trying to solve. We sometimes have gatherings when we get updates from Earth. There is an intricate system designed to realign reality and the game at those times. Credits can be lost based on how much the game’s character differs from reality. Playing a real character can earn extra credits but getting it wrong can also result in large losses.”

  “So how is my character doing?”

  “That’s what makes your player so mysterious. They haven’t missed very much. It turns out your character and the Red Empress are the two credit leaders currently. Some people think you may actually be playing as your character. Are you?”

  “No. This is the first I’ve heard of this game.” Nancy gave me a suspicious look. I just shrugged my shoulders.

  Milly had joined the crowd talking about this game. “Nancy is not telling you half of it, Guerin. People, especially the younger crowd, will often dress up as their characters in real life. The two started an entire movement among the Collective.”

  “So your revolution has started, Guerin.”

  “It sounds like it, Stella.” I gave Nancy a stern look. “I thought I told you two to not start the revolution without me.”

  “Sorry. It just happened. The game exploded, and it got so big Sid and I couldn’t keep up with it. We had to design an AI to control the game and the computational power required was so large it’s now distributed across the Collective. We make use of spare cycles on every machine connected to the stream.” The stream is their word for their internet, sort of.

  “Can we play?”

  “Yes, Steve.”

  “But what if someone is already playing our character in the game?”

  “We had the rules committee…”

  “You have a rules committee, Nancy?”

  “We have to, Guerin. There were a lot of disputes and it wasn’t fair if Sid and I made all the decisions. So, as I was saying, the rule committee decided that everybody had the right to their character. If someone else was playing that character, then they should have known the real person would want to play and relinquished the character before the real person joined. They can create a new character and transfer their credits at any time. If they don’t relinquish the character before the real person enters the game, then all the current character’s credits belong to the new player.”

  “Damn, Nancy. How can you have billions playing? It sounds like you only have a small number of main characters to choose from?”

  “People can play themselves, so the number of characters is unlimited essentially. Although the main premise was based on you and Julie, there are a lot of stories all happening at the same time. Some players have chosen to be part of the rebellion, some loyal to the Empress, and others can be neutral or anything in between. It’s a mixture of fantasy and reality. The importance of a character influences their score. Interacting directly with you or Julie can move a character into the spotlight. Maybe for a short time, maybe more long-term.”

  “You mean people may try to meet me just to up their creds?”

  “Yep.”

  “That sounds fucked u
p if you’ll pardon my French.”

  “They can’t bother you. They need a legitimate reason to become involved. Even if they’re not directly involved, they can earn a ton of credits, which as we said is currency, so there are other benefits to playing. We’re having a gathering in four nights. The rules committee and a lot of players will meet at the twin’s bar then. You and your team need to come. I promise it will be fun. The crowd will be all the top players on the ship, while simultaneously gatherings will happen at other spots on this ship and throughout the Collective.”

  “I’ll think about it. Do you guys have any time left for real work?” They all laughed.

  “Yes. Please, Guerin. You must come. You’ll really like the What Would Guerin Do part of the gathering.”

  “I’m not sure I want to know about that, but I’ll be there if it means that much to you.”

  “Thank you.” Nancy hugged me again and gave me a peck on the lips. Nancy giggled and ran off.

  Stella gave me a look. You know that motherly look you get from some girls’ mothers. “You best not be thinking about my sweet little daughter like you do other women, Mr. Zand.”

  The Mr. Zand part was meant to tell me she was serious. “I don’t know what you’re talking about, Stella.” I was still the master of playing dumb.

  “You don’t want to play with me again, Guerin. If you sully my little angel, it will be game on once again. This time I won’t be playing.”

  “Don’t worry, Stella. With all the other women onboard this ship in need of a good sullying, I probably won’t have time to get to Nancy.”

  My face met the top of the bar after Stella gave the back of my head a good whack.

  “Owww!”

  There was laughter all around. Katie was laughing louder than most.

  “See that you don’t, Mr. Zand.” Stella walked off to talk with Julie.

  We all had a few more drinks and I tried to avoid Stella for the rest of the night. She made sure to throw me a menacing glance whenever I even looked her way. The gathering slowly dispersed as people said their goodbyes. The twins volunteered to take my team back to their residences, but Jackie said she’d do it. Jackie wasn’t going to take any chances seeing Steve’s expression when he thought the twins would be taking him home. Instead, the twins went back to check on the staff and help with the cleanup. I told them they didn’t have to do that, but they ignored me.

  It was just me and Milly left at the bar. I went back and fixed us both a final drink. The feelings I had being with Milly were more than a bit confusing, and I couldn’t think of anything to say. Finally, Milly broke the silence.

  “You do know that Nancy has a crush on you, Guerin? She has ever since she was a little girl. That’s why Stella is so worried about you being around her.”

  “Do you know how insulting you both are being about this?”

  “We don’t mean to be.”

  “But you are, none the less. Just how many space babes have I sullied since my abduction?”

  Milly gave me a blank look.

  “Exactly. None that I can think of either. Why would the two of you think I would ever do anything to hurt Nancy?”

  “We don’t think you’d hurt her on purpose. It’s just your reputation.”

  “What reputation? I flirt. Big deal. I think I know how to handle a young woman with a crush on me. Maybe you should ask your cousin about that.”

  The twins returned from the kitchen. “Is there anything else you need, Guerin?”

  I smiled and shook my head. It seemed those two enjoyed teasing me like that. “No, Seca. You two should go home and get some sleep. Thanks for all your help. I owe you.”

  “Yes, you do.” Prima gave me that seductive look that could make any man melt. “Goodnight, Guerin. Goodnight, Milly.” The two walked out towards the front door and left. Thanks to their interruption Milly and I dropped the discussion about Nancy.

  “Milly, why has your father been so cold towards me lately?”

  “I didn’t know he was.”

  “Ever since I went back to Earth we have become more distant. I was surprised he even came tonight. He never hung out with us socially when we would invite the crew down, or when we were on the shuttle. When the crisis happened, I had to fight with him over just about everything I wanted to do. When we first met, I thought we got along, but now it’s like he doesn’t even want to be in the same room as me.”

  “I don’t think it’s personal, Guerin.”

  “I do. I know I didn’t handle some of the conflicts with him as well as I could. Maybe I was a bit insulting, but that was after our relationship had already soured.”

  “I’m sure he was just worried about what you would do. He has a responsibility to this project as well. There are a lot of things you still don’t know.”

  “That’s because no one will tell me anything. I’ve had enough of that.”

  She had no response, so she did what she always did. She changed the subject. “You must be very proud of Maria. She’s a very beautiful young lady and you seem very close.”

  “She’s always been a daddy’s girl and a tomboy. That’s probably Katie’s doing. Those two spent a lot of time together as Maria grew up and I’d say they’re probably each other’s best friend. Everything I enjoyed, playing guitar, swimming, skydiving, riding motorcycles, you name it, and we did it together. She and Anna had a special relationship as well though. They enjoyed conspiring together against me whenever they had the chance.” I usually avoided talking about Anna since I never really got over her death. I know people say it takes time, but that’s a lie. It would never get better.

  Milly could see my mood change suddenly. “I’m sorry about what happened, Guerin.”

  “I wish people would stop saying that. It doesn’t do any good, and I’m not sure exactly what it means. How can you be sorry? Was it your fault?” I was just getting more upset. Talking about this was not helping. Why couldn’t people understand that and just not say anything?

  Milly reached out and put her hand over mine. I jerked my hand away.

  “Have things gotten so bad between us, Guerin, that you can’t even stand touching me?”

  “Yes, but it’s not like you make it sound. I can’t, I mean, I put this all away a long time ago. I had to for Anna. I married her, and she deserved better than a husband who was stuck in the past. I’m sorry if you feel I betrayed you but…”

  “I don’t think you betrayed me. I was happy for you. You may not understand that, but I wanted you to be happy. From what I heard, you were. I know things have changed between us, but I’d hoped we would still be friends.”

  “You still have a knack for dropping those cliché bombs. We can’t be friends. We can work together, but that’s it. Anything more and we’re just going to end up hurting each other again. Can’t you understand that? I don’t hate you Milly, and I’m not mad at you. The fact that you can’t understand how I feel should tell you something.” I wasn’t trying to be mean, but I know that is how it came across.

  “Maybe I do understand how you feel, Guerin. You weren’t the only one that got hurt. If you want to keep our relationship strictly business, then fine. I won’t bother you again. Thanks for the dinner and drinks.” She finished her drink and walked away.

  I called out to her as she was about to exit the residence. “Milly?” She didn’t even turn around. She just left. I guess I didn’t handle that too well. I’m sure Stella would hear what an asshole I was and one of our little chats was in my future.

  Chapter 27

  Another Day in Paradise

  I spent the rest of the night drinking. Something about living with aliens just made me need to drink excessively. I’m not sure what time I crawled to my bed, but I must only have gotten a few hours of sleep when Maria came to wake me up.

  “Are you going to sleep the whole day?”

  “What time is it?”

  “It’s about 7:30. I’m getting ready for my breakfast with Julie. I
thought I’d bring you some coffee and check up on you. How long did you stay up drinking?”

  “I don’t know. It’s not a big deal.”

  “It’s not a big deal? My father stays up all night getting shit faced, for the first time I can ever remember, and it’s not a big deal?”

  “Is it your day to be my mother, Maria?”

  “No. I’m your daughter, and I don’t like seeing you this way. Just stay in bed if that’s what you want. I’m going to go wait for my ride.”

  “Have fun.” I rolled back over and covered my head with a pillow. Sleeping the whole day away sounded like a plan.

  It was about 9:00 AM when the twins came barging in.

  “Get up, Guerin.” I don’t know which one of them said that since my head was still buried in the pillow. Opening my eyes would have been a chore.

  “Get up!”

  “Why?”

  “Because we brought you breakfast. Now get up.” Seca was sitting on the edge of the bed and she started to poke me.

  “Ok!” I sat up. “Is this better?”

  “Yes. Now drink this.” Seca handed me a detox beverage. I pushed it away. “Drink it or I’ll make you drink it.” That didn’t sound like the Seca I knew.

  “No. That stuff tastes like crap.”

  “Quit being such a baby. Your daughter was right. You are a bit grumpy this morning.” She pushed the drink in my face. I finally took it from her and drank it down.

  Prima looked at the cold cup of coffee on the nightstand and picked it up. “I’ll go get you a fresh cup of coffee.”

  I laid back down on my bed and rolled to my side clutching my pillow. Seca grabbed my arm and started yanking on it. “It’s time to get out of bed, Guerin.”

  “No. It’s nice and warm. It’s a good bed. I want to spend more time getting to know it better.”

  Seca yanked harder. “Get up and out of bed or I’ll call Prima and we’ll drag you out of bed.”

  I yanked my arm free and hugged my pillow. “I don’t want to.”

  “PRIMA!”