The Game of Luck

by Catherine Cerveny

  A week later, I paid attention to the outside world again, then wished I hadn’t.

  Protests had ratcheted up in intensity to the point where Alexei wouldn’t let me go into the office—not physically, at least. When the firebombings failed in Brazil, the rioters turned their attention to the Mars headquarters. There they had more success when they managed to set off a few explosions in an overlooked scrambler unit. No one was hurt and property damage was minimal, but their lucky hit shut down the building before One Gov hooahs could make arrests. So if I was determined to go back to work, it would be to an environment Alexei could control. I’d have to commute with him to Soyuz Park and work via the CN-net. I could see his point, but still argued on principle. If I caved to everything, he’d think he was right all the time, and no sane wife would let her husband believe that line of bullshit.

  As for the increase in protesting, it stemmed from One Gov’s decision to withhold the truth on how serious and dangerous the reboot had been. Despite their shady best efforts, an unknown source had leaked the juicy details to the CN-net media outlets. Now the entire tri-system knew One Gov had lied to the people it was supposed to serve. Outrage and fear swept through the tri-system like wildfire. Loved ones wanted answers for deaths they’d assumed were from natural causes. Some even wanted blood. Someone’s head needed to be offered up on a platter, with Secretary Arkell being the primary candidate. Next, the Under-Secretary. I was scared and the cards were…nebulous, the way they could be sometimes.

  When I tried running them after the news broke, I couldn’t get a solid feel for things. The Falling Tower and the Devil were there, but those were obvious cards and lacked subtlety. It was like me dipping a finger in a glass of water, decreeing it wet, and expecting a round of applause for my brilliant insight. Things were in flux. No course of action had been decided on yet as all the players kept changing their minds. I didn’t even know all the players yet either, so I couldn’t focus on one single person and get a read on what they planned to do. I also couldn’t let Felipe take the fall. But I sure as shit didn’t want the blame shifted to Alexei either, regardless of what Arkell and Tanith planned. It made finding the real culprit behind the reboot all the more imperative.

  Alexei applied himself to the task with a single-mindedness that might have been frightening if I wasn’t so invested in the outcome. Someone had tried to kidnap his wife, and Secretary Arkell was actively looking for ways to blame the reboot on the Consortium. He wasn’t going to sit on his hands and do nothing. Still, the upcoming Ursa 3 launch needed his attention too. Even with the radiation shielding issue solved, it was only one aspect of many.

  “It’s time we tell Felipe what we know,” I said on the ride to Alexei’s office at Soyuz Park, my first sol back. Feodor sat between us, having settled after running around the bench seats and looking out the windows for the first fifteen minutes. “He could point us in the direction of a proper lead.”

  “Or he could have me arrested regardless of the evidence,” Alexei said with a grim smile. I knew he got a perverse kick out of pitting himself against One Gov. “Let me finish my investigation first. Then, we’ll approach Felipe with what we have and go from there. I don’t want to put him in a position where we’re without options, so I need to be careful about our next steps.”

  “But who knows how much time we have or what the next scandal will be? I just wasted a week trying to pass One Gov’s mental wellness tests. Brody would tell me if he found something, but I don’t want him getting into trouble over this. I also don’t want to deal with some manufactured evidence because One Gov wants a scapegoat. And I don’t want anyone else in my family grabbed off the street and used as research material either.”

  “Talk to your coworker—the one with the Venus connections,” Alexei advised.

  I shot him a look. “You haven’t investigated Caleb yet?”

  “It’s on the list.”

  “But you’re always on top of these things.” I couldn’t have sounded more surprised if I tried.

  “I’ve been busy,” he admitted, looking—dare I say it—sheepish. Perhaps even a little defensive. “I thought my wife was leaving me and the Consortium’s largest project was headed for disaster. It’s possible I may have been distracted by life.”

  Alexei Petriv—bogged down by life. “Perfectly understandable.” I rubbed a comforting hand over his arm, followed by some dutiful wifely pats. “But since that’s all behind us, don’t let it happen again. This operation has no room for slackers.”

  He looked amused as I sipped my coffee from the travel canister. “I’m going to enjoy us working in the same building.”

  “Don’t get used to it. As soon as we get to the bottom of this, we’ll be on opposite sides again—Consortium versus One Gov like it’s been for the last five hundred years.”

  “We’ll see” was all he said as he laced his fingers through mine and brought my hand to his lips for a kiss.

  I was given an office adjoining Alexei’s. In it were a few chairs, a work table large enough to allow for numerous Tarot card readings, several data pads if I needed to make notes, and a kick-ass reclining chair to use when I surfed the CN-net. In the distance, I could see the Baikonur launch pad through my window. The scaffolding looked complete, waiting silently for the pieces of the Ursa 3 module to be assembled. I understood that would happen over the next few sols, and I couldn’t help but feel both excitement and trepidation. I set myself a reminder to run my cards regarding its outcome.

  The first human settlement on Callisto was a big deal. It was the first step to getting humanity past the massive gas giant of Jupiter, and it put us in a position to move out of the solar system and beyond. While I didn’t know Alexei’s ultimate goal, I knew his plans were the opposite of whatever the Consortium’s agenda had been under Konstantin Belikov. Belikov had been all about turning inward—robot bodies, controlling thought output, consolidating Consortium power through the CN-net, extending the life span of a select few. He hadn’t cared about Mars, the mines, if people on Venus had better lives, or if the Consortium and One Gov could coexist. Alexei did. I’d made him care. It was nice to think I’d brought the god down from his lofty perch to walk among the mortals—or so I told myself in private, with no one able to know my own thoughts but me.

  When I logged in to the CN-net, it seemed like I had a dozen different meetings rammed into my agenda. I checked in with Felipe and told him where I’d be for the next couple of sols. He seemed distracted and begged off quickly due to endless meeting conflicts. Understandable, but the way he cast me off left me with an uneasy feeling.

  I pinged Brody next. The conversation wasn’t encouraging.

  “I’m supposed to be the best at this, but whoever sniped the queenmind was a pro. I’m not getting anything and the higher-ups are pissed,” he complained.

  “No one’s that good. Maybe it was an insider,” I suggested.

  “That’s what I’m thinking too. I’ve put together a list of candidates and am combing through the names, but investigating one of One Gov’s own makes everyone suspicious, especially when I’m the new guy. I can only push so far. If word leaks this was an inside job, firebombing a few office buildings is going to seem like a fun sol at work in comparison.”

  “Do you have a way to work around it?”

  “No, and I have a feeling I’m going to be pulled off this project soon. I’m not giving them the answers they want. With enough time, they’ll make up a story of their own, and we both know which way they’re leaning.”

  “I know. Alexei knows it too. Tanith and Arkell want me to distance myself from him, but I didn’t mention that part to him. He’s annoyed enough with One Gov as it is; I don’t want to give him something else to worry about.”

  “They’re pressuring Vieira too. In the meetings, he’s been supporting the Consortium, which Arkell hates. I don’t like the vibe I’m getting. I have this sense that shit’s going down and we need to be ready. For what, I don�
��t know. If you haven’t run your cards on it yet, I’d advise you to get on it.”

  “I am but they’re being an uncooperative pain in the ass. I have so many loose ends, I don’t know where to focus.”

  “We know it’s all tied together—the drone surge, what’s happening to your family, building a case against the Consortium. I’m glad you and Lotus are okay, but you need to be careful. Don’t give whoever’s after you an opening like that again. Shit is coming for us—you, Alexei, Felipe, hell, even me—and we need to be prepared.” He paused and when he spoke next, his tone sounded contemplative, as if he’d thought of something he’d never considered before. “You ever feel like you’re just a piece in a huge game and everyone is trying to use you so they can get ahead? I feel like that now.”

  I laughed, knowing it sounded bitter. “Welcome to my world. I feel like that every day. At least I know I’m a pawn and have a good idea who’s trying to scoop me up. Well, usually I do. This time, not so much. The players aren’t as obvious.”

  “Whoever they are, we need to find them.”

  “We always do.”

  “Doesn’t mean it’s easy or quick. Take care, kiddo. Try to lie low. That’s what I plan on doing.”

  We left it at that. I made a mental note to run the cards on Felipe. If trouble was on its way, I needed to warn him. He might not want to know what his future held, but I was done taking chances. His hands-off attitude would be his undoing. I was going to protect my family and it didn’t matter what side of the family tree they came from.

  First, though, Caleb Dekker.

  A look at his CN-net posted agenda showed him between meetings—the perfect time to hit him up. Good, because I needed to find out about my father and the sooner I dealt with the moss under that stone, the closer I might be to unraveling everything.

  Caleb answered on the first ping. “Felicia, glad you’re okay. I can’t believe those protesters had the balls to try something like that. What did they think they’d accomplish by going after you?”

  Huh, so that was the story going around—protesters had tried to attack me. Whatever worked, I guess.

  “No idea. The MPLE are still trying to come up with a motive and line up some suspects. I’m not sure how high a flakey party girl ranks on their priority list.” Time to hurry this along. “Listen, do you have a second? I wanted to see if your offer to check out the Venus Athenaeum still stands.”

  “Of course. I double-checked and I still have Librarian AI privileges. You sound like you want to go right now.”

  “Well, if you have the time, that would be great.”

  There was a moment of silence, making me wonder if we’d been disconnected. Then he came back with, “Can you meet me at nexus-node 231 in about ten minutes? That’s the Venus interchange, so we’ll be in the Venus-managed realms. We can meet there, then access the Athenaeum.”

  “Perfect. Sounds like a date. Thanks, Caleb.”

  “No problem. We’re on the same team, remember? And isn’t Vieira always trying to push teambuilding on us?”

  I laughed. “You’re right. If we don’t watch out, he’ll have us doing trust falls and personal-development ropes courses, and I am so not down with that. See you in ten minutes.”

  I’d just settled into my awesome kick-ass recliner to launch my avatar onto the CN-net when my c-tex bracelet shimmered and vibrated on my wrist. That meant family, which always got priority. I tapped one of the jewels to release the shim. Text only, from Grandmother. When I read it, my breath caught.

  “I dreamed of a baby. I don’t know who it belongs to, but I was thinking of you before the dream and thought you should know.”

  That was the entire message, but it was enough. Grandmother’s dream. My Tarot card reading. A baby was coming, but was it mine, or did it belong to someone else? Gods, never in my life had I wished the cards be more to the point!

  I reached for the closest deck of cards and cut them in half. Ten of Cups—real love, success, true companionship, and fulfillment. The perfection of human love and a happy family. Well, great. That was all well and good, but who was having the fucking baby? Thanks for the runaround, luck gene.

  Problem for later, I decided. Right now, time to find out what happened to dear old Dad.

  * * *

  Nexus-node 231 might have belonged in Venus space, but it was a standard CN-net public access point on a generic realm. Gray walls. Gray tile floors. Circular gray jump pads. Colorful e-ads scrolling along the walls that looped constantly as they tried to sync with the avatar personal profiles of anyone who walked by. Do you like skiing? Here are even more places you can ski, and so forth. I’d been sucked in like a newborn baby the first time I’d experienced them, positive I needed all the junk they peddled. Then again, everything about the CN-net had dazzled me in the beginning. Now I knew to ignore them.

  Outside the gray building housing the nexus-node, it was hot. I was in a downtown core that could have been anywhere, on any world. Around me were buildings—stores, restaurants, entertainment venues, and so forth. Other avatars bustled past, some outrageously dressed, others not.

  The sun on my skin warmed me. I paused, drinking in the sensation of a digital sun warming my digital skin. It felt…real. I’d never experienced heat in the CN-net before. Was this thanks to Karol’s implant upgrades? What else would I be able to experience? Maybe Alexei would get his wish about CN-net sex after all.

  I found Caleb leaning against a column and watching the street with its assortment of passersby. One hand was tucked in a pocket, the other brushed sandy brown hair out of his eyes, tousled by a manufactured e-breeze. He wore a dark blue nondescript suit—the same one his avatar wore to all staff meetings just as I wore my burgundy skirt and jacket. He looked relaxed, and I got the sense he was the sort who knew how to be patient and let things play out to his advantage. Not a bad way to be when you were a cog in the giant wheel of One Gov. I’d experienced that cog feeling on several occasions, though it helped having Felipe bulldoze a path for me.

  I stopped beside him. “Hope you weren’t waiting long.”

  “No. You made good time,” he congratulated me. Then he nodded his head down the street, gesturing to a building a block away. It was a five-story redbrick building set back from the street. In front was a sprawling staircase of at least a hundred steps that led up to an elaborate front door framed by two white marble lions. “That’s it.”

  “I’m all for aesthetics, but don’t the steps seem pointless considering our avatars don’t get any cardio benefit from climbing? Plus we’re only allotted so much time in the CN-net. Walking seems like a waste.”

  He laughed. “I never thought about it, but I see your point. The designers decided to style the storage repository after an Old World library back on Earth. After all, every life contains a story.”

  “That’s pretty. I like it. But are we going to find anything worthwhile? I can’t imagine my father left much of a digital footprint.”

  “You won’t know until you look. Besides, you might be surprised at what the Eye project captured. I booked ahead and used my connections to locate your father’s digitized memory. We can cross-reference that data to see who he might have come into contact with. Even if his citizenship chip is offline, this might help determine where he is or who he last spoke with. Maybe it will give you another place to look for answers.”

  We made our way down the block, climbed the million steps to the top, and entered the Athenaeum. Inside, the atmosphere was quiet and hushed. It smelled dusty—wow, I could smell—and faintly of mold. I wondered why anyone would want to smell dust or mold on the CN-net, then decided it went in keeping with the overall theme. I didn’t see other avatars, but noted the high arched ceilings, massive windows that reached up to those arches, several rows of long tables with multiple chairs and desk reading lamps, and stack upon stack of books. There were four floors of books, with iron spiral staircases between each floor.

  “Wow,” I said in a soft
voice; the atmosphere demanded that I keep my voice hushed and reverent. “Why so many books?”

  “Each one is someone’s life story, waiting to be read,” Caleb reminded me in the same hushed tone.

  “And I can just pick one off the shelf at random? Doesn’t that seem invasive? Why would someone want their life recorded like that?”

  “Because it’s a way for people to preserve themselves. We can’t live forever. At least, not yet. But maybe someday, should that option become a possibility, we can construct a thought-seed from these digital memories and give these people new life,” Caleb said. The image made me shiver, and not in a good way. Thought-seed? Would they be real people or just reanimated memories? Before I could question further, he gestured me on ahead. “The Librarian AI is waiting. Looks like he has the file we’re looking for.”

  The Librarian AI’s appearance was in keeping with the rest of the building with its books and mold and Old World theme—an elderly gentleman in a tweed jacket with corduroy patches on the elbows. He stood behind a desk cluttered with various books waiting to be shelved.

  “Good morning, Mr. Dekker and Ms. Sevigny. Here is the Eye data you requested. If you follow me, I’ve reserved one of the viewing rooms for you. It’s just down here on your left.”

  The Librarian gestured to a hallway in between the shelves overflowing with books. Then he picked up a file that looked surprisingly like a book—royal blue cover with gold lettering—and carried it in front of him. I caught a glimpse of the title, and saw my father’s name etched on the front. There was a series of numbers on the binding, but otherwise, that was it. Caleb and I followed the Librarian to the viewing room—a small windowless little cubbyhole containing a desk, chair, and a vid-feed display.