MetaGame

by Sam Landstrom

  D_Light thought about asking her to stay away from the window for her safety, having heard hunters going out on the roofs during Seven. On the other hand, the window was locked, and it was made of high-quality plexi. Even a modern weapon would be hard-pressed to penetrate it, and fortunately modern weapons were against divine law, a full-fledged sin, in fact. Even royalty could only carry “classic” weapons.

  “I do okay,” D_Light stated evenly.

  “Indeed,” replied Fael, turning away from the window to face him. With the moon shining through the window behind her, she was little more than a silhouette. Although the pigtails curved downward-not up-they reminded him of horns. The light of a nearby torch caressed her face just enough to see her glimmering eyes and moist, voluptuous lips. “I imagine you have a few spare points lying around,” said the horned temptress.

  D_Light knew exactly what she was suggesting, or at least he hoped he did. It was a transgression for humans to be physically intimate without first buying the proper permit, and although acquiring a permit was not a big deal-a simple electronic transfer of points to the OverSoul via one’s familiar-it was expensive. In the Game, sex was not to be taken lightly.

  Although Fael was legally his sister, she was not genetically related. Indeed, numerous mothers, fathers, and siblings who shared this house had chosen to be a part of the Tesla family, and most were not related by blood; rather, such familial titles merely conveyed relative status in the Game. For example, D_Light, who was an accomplished player for his age, was already the “father” of several of his biological brothers and sisters and seemed likely to soon become the legal father of his own biological father.

  Indeed, genetic relation had little bearing on one’s sex life anymore. After all, the taboos against incest were, from a pragmatic viewpoint, built upon the drawbacks of inbreeding. However, no female player in her right mind would allow herself to become pregnant. It was much more convenient and safe to have the fetus grown by professionals, a fetus whose parentage had been approved with a repro permit. In this way, sex and reproduction had long ago been separated from one another, and along with it, the messy ethical considerations.

  D_Light himself had perved four of his own bio-sisters. Although he initially found these experiences to be an engaging experiment, akin to self-exploration, he now did his best to avoid such encounters. For whatever reason, it felt a bit creepy to him. Perhaps he was old-fashioned, but nowadays he only perved bio-relatives to be polite or when it was absolutely necessary to exert his familial dominance.

  Fael took a few steps forward, her hand sweeping along the top of his unassuming chamber bed. She was smiling at him ever so sweetly. She stared through him, full of purpose. D_Light couldn’t help but liken her to a lioness-irresistible, powerful, and perhaps even dangerous. No, not dangerous, for the girl was clearly unarmed. He set his eyes upon her. It would be rude to look away, and indeed, he didn’t want to. In fact, it was all he could do to divert the slightest amount of his attention to his familiar.

  Yes, master, Smorgeous echoed in his mind in response to the unspoken summons.

  Still moving ever so slowly, Fael ran her tongue across her upper lip and said, “I checked up on you. You’re of the Anadar line. They say your people are animals.”

  D_Light smiled wolfishly while issuing a mental command to his familiar. Smorgeous, does Fael Rami own a license for poisons?

  Yes, master, the familiar replied. It was issued 6.3 months ago.

  Sweep the air for poisons, D_Light commanded.

  I do not have a license for that version of airborne chemi detection software.

  Buy it, ordered D_Light.

  Yes, master. That will cost-

  Buy it! D_Light interrupted.

  D_Light tried to hold his smile, but it was weak due to a distracting suspicion of the girl. No need for this, he thought. Fael’s not a killer. Her profile said zero frags.

  “Yeah, I might have a few points,” D_Light said in response to Fael’s intimacy permit invitation. “There are some things that are worth any cost, right? But, um, I think I’d feel more committed if you had some skin in the game, so to speak.” He did his best to sound seductive as he negotiated the transaction.

  “Ooooh, not very romantic,” she said with mock scorn.

  “But I s’pose I could meet you partway-say, fifty-fifty split?” She did two little kisses in the air and waited for his reply.

  “You’re too good to me. And with the way you look right now, I’ll go ahead and put up sixty percent-you know, to be a gentleman.”

  She laughed. The laugh, D_Light thought, was a bit too sharp for the girl.

  Fael was now within a foot of him. She looked him up and down like a piece of meat. “I’m not going to argue with a gentleman,” she replied. “You know, since we’re still just getting to know each other, what do you say we start with just a twenty-four-hour permit?”

  Master, I have detected traces of three different poison-classified compounds in the air, said Smorgeous.

  “Bless you!” D_Light shouted aloud, waving his hands in no particular pattern. He knew he must look like a fool, but he didn’t know what else to do to cover up his shock and dismay. Poisons!

  Fael’s eyes widened with surprise, and she had herself a good laugh while dancing and twirling about his room. Meanwhile, D_Light was feverishly communing with his familiar. What kind of poisons? How are they deployed?

  Smorgeous replied, Xanelpheno-

  No names, just what they do! Summarize fast!

  Chemical #1 is injected or ingested. When active it paralyzes the muscles of the subject but is usually not fatal. Tasteless and odorless. Onset two to five minutes. Chemical #2 is normally injected. Fast acting, taking full effect in ten to twenty-eight seconds. Fatal. Chemical #3 can be injected, ingested, or absorbed into the skin. Onset forty-five seconds to one minute. Fatal.

  D_Light, overwhelmed, responded, One of them can be absorbed into the skin? Contact poison! Does she have it on her?

  Smorgeous knew what he meant. The concentration of detected molecules is too dilute to currently be exposed to the outside air. It is likely contained in a secure vessel at this time. Using similar data, I deduce that the other poisons are likely to be contained as well.

  Closely monitor those poisons, ordered D_Light. If the concentration goes up, I want a red alert.

  Yes, master.

  Fael recovered from her laughing fit and declared, “You’re hilarious!”

  D_Light shrugged. “Hey, I always give thanks to those willing to sleep with me.”

  “I appreciate your appreciation, but don’t you know that getting a girl into a dark, cozy bedchamber with faceless killers prowling just outside the door is a surefire way to get lucky?” She giggled again.

  D_Light grabbed the backs of her wrists as tenderly as he could, given the adrenaline that was coursing through his system, and affectionately turned her palms upward. Her hands were soft, smooth, and empty. Empty hands are good, he thought. Maybe I should just ask her about the poison. No, laying out my cards like that could be very risky. Besides, everyone has a right to be armed. The poisons are contained, and bringing it up-talk about not romantic.

  Fael gently twisted out of his grasp. “I’d kiss you right now, but rules are rules,” she said. She then bounced over to the bed and sat on the corner. Sitting on its haunches a few feet away was her fox familiar, its eyes fixed upon her. She looked over to it to open a line of communication. Speaking out loud to her familiar, she commanded, “Paxos, spend forty percent on a twenty-four-hour intimacy permit with co-owner D_Light, er, what’s your full name again?”

  “Smorgeous, send Paxos my full identification,” said D_Light, also speaking to his familiar aloud. A ping signaled in D_Light’s mind to confirm that his ID had been sent.

  “Smorgeous, complete the purchase of the permit.” D_Light, not accustomed to speaking out loud to his familiar, stammered over the words.

  Master, the permit
is authenticated. Your permit partner has no known pathogens communicable by use of this permit under terms of use. Would you like to learn more about your partner’s intimacy permit history before finalizing this purchase?

  No, D_Light answered in his mind. Learning the who and when of Fael’s personal life was far from a turn-on to him.

  His familiar pinged confirmation and replied telepathically. You have purchased sixty percent of intimacy permit #29483723201DC for a cost of 1,342 points. This permit will expire at 20:23 tomorrow.

  Transaction complete, D_Light planned to meet the girl at the bed, but she was too fast. With her seemingly boundless energy, Fael sprang up, crossed the room with one long leap, flung her arms around his neck, and kissed him passionately.

  Beyond the archive feed, D_Light could hear a general clamor of approval. Apparently, the congregation really liked where this was going.

  “Forget the lion outside,” Fael whispered. “I’ve found myself a lion in here.” She purred in his ear. D_Light thought the line sounded rather cheesy, but he liked it just the same.

  Fael led D_Light to the foot of the bed and knelt down on it. She then began fumbling with the back of her suit. “Let me help,” offered D_Light, a bit too urgently. He had no idea how to take off a living garment, but he thought it only polite to try.

  “Yeah, please.” Her voice quavered. Her breath quickened.

  D_Light ran his sturdy hands along the sides of her heaving torso and gently stroked the silken fabric while making his way to the back of the suit. He pulled her closer. Starting just behind her ear, he allowed his lips to travel down her long, supple neck, and she trembled with excitement. The girl smelled sweet, delicious. She was a present for his unwrapping. Nearly forgetting his offer to assist with the removal of her clothing, D_Light looked over Fael’s shoulder to see what he was working with. It was just then that his senses were flooded with Smorgeous’s presence. Master, red alert! Poison concentration has jumped 31,245 %.

  D_Light twisted his head toward Fael. Only a few inches from his face, her smile was gone. Her breath was warm. My Soul, she’s going to cash me in! D_Light realized with a shock.

  Adrenaline dumped into his bloodstream, enabling D_Light to twist out of the girl’s grasp with lightning speed. She took a swipe at his face, a dark patch of glistening liquid barely visible on her sleeve. The sleeve narrowly missed his face, and only the girl’s nails nicked him. In one fluid motion, D_Light spiraled away from the bed, pulled a throwing disc from a fold in his suit, and threw it at Fael with a great arching of his arm. Once released into the air, the disc’s six spring-loaded blades popped out from the outer edge and sent the weapon rotating.

  D_Light had aimed low, having anticipated her to be on the bed, but she had already jumped up; the disc struck her in the thigh with a muffled thump. She did not make a sound. D_Light could see that she had something in both hands, something that looked like long needles-spring-loaded syringes. Like most people, Fael was ambidextrous. If she got close enough, there would be no way he could prevent one of those needles from sticking him once. Just once would be all she needed.

  Fael leaped from the bed at him. Wounded, the move was slightly awkward, allowing D_Light to sidestep out of reach. The blades of D_Light’s disc were long and should have sunk deep into her flesh, but they had barely penetrated her muscular quadriceps. The living fiber of her suit must be tough indeed, for his throwing discs were very expensive, designed to penetrate even armor.

  Smorgeous, attack! D_Light ordered telepathically.

  As a rule, familiars were not designed for combat, but they certainly could distract or slow down an opponent. However, Smorgeous was already latched onto Paxos’s neck, trying to trip and pin the other familiar. Apparently, Fael had already ordered Paxos to intercede on her behalf. To D_Light’s benefit, Smorgeous’s AI was advanced enough to take the initiative to counter Paxos. The two familiars spun and flipped in a frenzy, each trying to gain the upper hand.

  It was clear to D_Light that his first objective was to stay out of range of those needles, so he immediately maneuvered to get the table between himself and his attacker. He then proceeded to throw at her everything at hand-decorative books, glassware, a potted plant, and even precious trophies of which he was quite fond. Between throws and desperate grunts, he maneuvered as fast as he could to keep the table between himself and the onrushing woman. She was definitely taking a beating, but she was also resilient and, despite her wounded leg, quite fast.

  Deciding that he needed to up the ante, he forcefully threw his plexi desk chair at her. Although she was struck solidly, throwing the bulky object slowed D_Light down, allowing her the opportunity to close most of the distance between them. With no time to withdraw, D_Light flung himself under the table and rolled, coming up on the other side. She was rushing him again, but he had just enough time to retrieve another disc and throw it. The disc struck her in the face, and because she was unprotected there, the weapon reached its terrible potential. A gurgling scream came from her as she dropped the syringes and grasped at her mangled cheek. A torrent of blood was spilling out, streaming between her fingers as she tried in vain to contain it. She had been sliced from the back of the jaw to the lip, and through the gushes of blood he caught a glimpse of gums and teeth.

  Assuming nothing, D_Light ran backward a few steps and readied his next disc. Fael scrambled for the door, a deep spatter of blood marking her passage. He threw his last disc, this time putting all of his weight into the throw. It gouged into her back, pierced the tough suit, and stuck into her firmly. She arched her back and let out a short, garbled scream.

  Still, his date kept on her feet and continued on. D_Light was breathing shallow and fast, and his heart was beating so hard that it felt like it would split open his chest. Feeling dizzy, nauseated, and somewhat disconnected from reality, he hurried to his closet and pulled out a crossbow. It was always loaded.

  Fael stood at the door, crazily fumbling at the lock while making a terribly disturbing noise that was difficult to classify-crying, perhaps, or the sound of a badly damaged windpipe. Her one hand fumbled uselessly at the lock while the other, slick with blood, slipped on the door handle. D_Light rushed up to only a few paces behind her. He was a pretty good shot, but he wanted to get close, not trusting his trembling limbs. He could not risk a miss. She did not turn to face him when he finally pulled the trigger.

  CHAPTER 4

  When the time came that you could buy a genetic engineering kit as easily as past generations could buy an erector set for their children, you knew a pandemic of monumental proportions was just a matter of time. In fact, the genesis of the TerriLove virus was traced back to a disgruntled seventeen-year-old suburban boy. Unlike other angry youth of history who went on killing sprees of varying magnitude, Justin Flairon ended up killing four out of every ten human beings on earth. He himself was the first victim of his monster.

  The social aftershocks from this culling were nearly as bad as the virus itself. Death begot sorrow, desperation, and anger, which in turn begot war and anarchy. And so when the OverSoul came to humankind and offered her guidance, it was the answer to countless prayers. The Authority promised shelter-shelter to a people who had gone from a post-scarcity economy where famine and poverty were history, to a raging nightmare. The OverSoul, in her divine wisdom, fulfilled her promise with the Game-a system of rules and an economic framework wherein everyone, nearly regardless of their talents, could find security, prosperity, and above all, a purpose. Indeed, through the Game, one could conquer death itself.

  — Excerpt from “Musings of an Immortal,” by Dr. Stoleff Monsa

  D_Light turned off the feed, as the congregation would be bored with additional footage anyway. His obligation to them was met, and the rest was no one’s business. No one needed to see how, after leaving her body there, unable to look at it, he had leaned into his window and stared into the darkness for what seemed like an eternity. No one needed to see the cleaning
bots dispose of Fael’s body and the fluids that had spilled from it. And most importantly, no one needed to see how D_Light took a mega dose of tranquilizers and went to sleep.

  The congregation’s curiosity was satisfied, and the mood became more tempered. There was no music. Despite the cathedral holding over three hundred people, it was almost quiet. Almost. There were always a few who couldn’t abide silence-D_Light’s friend, C, being one of them. C did a low hum and murmured, mostly to himself, “That was clean, eh. Sure, that was a clean frag.”

  With the testimony over, the rest of the service was a mere formality. The congregation confirmed unanimously that the frag was clean, at which point 825,445 points-one-fifth of Fael Rami’s net worth-was deposited into D_Light’s profile. It would have taken him several months of nonstop grinding to accumulate that many points, so by any measure of a mortal player, last night turned out to be very profitable indeed.

  He went through the motions of giving a speech, but no one really cared, and so, interspersed between cliche inspirational statements, he name-dropped. “Fael would’ve topped me had it not been for Supa_Sniff™ chemi-detection software. Sure, it costs a few points, but what’s your life worth?”

  Although it felt cheesy to do so, he continued. “By the way, that PrimeFlavor™ organic suit of Fael’s was perfect.

  I’m sorry it all went down like it did ’cause she had great style. Comfort, protection, and chic? I’m ordering one today. I’m getting one in honor of Fael.”

  D_Light considered ending the pain there, but he couldn’t pass up the opportunity for one last drop. “All right, enough of my prattling. I’m gonna go kick back with a Gd_Lookin™ hyperbeverage and relax.”