Game Breaker

by Cheree Alsop

  “The threat has to be coming from outside of the Edge,” Rage Machine said, joining them. “Nobody could break it down from the inside and stay safe. Why would they?”

  “Who has the most to gain if the Edge goes under?” Breccan asked.

  “The Cranfield Corporation.”

  Breccan spun to find Sneedle behind him. The avatar tipped his blue top hat and repeated, “The Cranfield Corporation has the most to gain because if the Edge is destroyed—”

  “Everyone would work at the Zone instead of hanging out at the Edge,” Black Jack finished. His surprise showed in his glowing green eyes. “Why didn’t I think of that?”

  “You did,” Sneedle replied with a kind smile. “You just needed a nudge in the right direction.”

  “Do you know this guy?” Bullshark asked suspiciously.

  Breccan nodded. “Jorie and I hung out with him yesterday.” He smiled. “How are things going?”

  “Great, now that I don’t have to work the Midlevels,” Sneedle replied with a relieved expression. “Did you know the Edge is actually fun?”

  “It’s about to be a whole lot less fun if we don’t find who’s controlling the Techsecs,” Rage Machine said sullenly. “They’ve got the Hedron on lockdown. Nobody in or out. I can’t even fight.” He gave Breccan a desperate look. “Fighting is what I live for!”

  Breccan put a hand on the huge avatar’s shoulder, which meant nearly standing on his tiptoes to do so. “We’ll find a way to make the Edge safe again, I promise,” he said. “Just stay calm and help the others avoid the Techsecs, and when in doubt, use those muscles to throw the Techsec as far as you can so everyone can escape.”

  “I can do that,” Rage Machine replied with a hint of relief in his voice.

  Breccan turned to the others. “So how do we get to this Cranfield Corporation?”

  The avatars expressions became pensive until Bullshark blurted out, “Take your kid to work day.”

  Everyone stared at him. “What?” Black Jack asked.

  Bullshark crossed his arms in front of his chest. “My mom’s always asking me to go to work with her, and I never have.” He shot Breccan a grin. “Mostly because I’m afraid she’ll make us bring dinner there.” He looked back at the others. “But now that Game Breaker’s mom works with her, we can join them at work tomorrow and see if we can find a lead to the Cranfield Corporation.”

  “That’s a great idea!” Black Jack said, his voice a high squeak as Minx forgot her character’s low tones in her excitement.

  “What was that?” Sneedle asked.

  Everyone looked at Black Jack. The pirate’s eyes widened, and then he burst into laughter. Everyone joined in.

  “It’s settled,” Breccan said when the group in the Luz Café had calmed down enough to take orders. “Bullshark and I will go to the Zone tomorrow and search for a lead. Black Jack is going to take a team through the library in order to find ways to slow the Techsecs down or stop them altogether while Rage Machine’s team protects the rest of the avatars from the Techsecs.”

  “There’s a lot of Techsecs out there,” Rage Machine said.

  Breccan nodded. “You’ll need to recruit the avatars you save. Remember, safety in numbers. If you can get a horde of avatars fighting on your side, no Techsec can take you down.”

  “Got it,” Rage Machine replied firmly.

  The gathered avatars accepted their orders without complaint. Breccan watched them split up into groups to follow the others. Plans were presented and readied for the following night.

  “What about me?”

  Breccan gave Sneedle a searching look. “What kind of skills do you have?”

  Sneedle plucked at the bright green and blue jacket he wore meaningfully. “The three A’s, attire, accoutrement, accessories. Do we need matching uniforms? That can help with camaraderie.”

  “I don’t think there’s time,” Breccan replied. “But I’m sure we can find somewhere for you. Perhaps when we find a way to deal with the Techsecs, your skills might come in useful.”

  “Maybe I can help out at the Zone tomorrow,” Sneedle suggested.

  Bullshark overheard and joined them to say, “It’s going to be dangerous. We might not survive.”

  Breccan had the distinct impression his cousin wasn’t just being dramatic. He wished for both of their sakes that Jonny was.

  “I can take a little danger,” Sneedle said. “I’ve been working in the Up and Ups. Talk about danger!” He put a hand to the orange pocket square in his suitcoat pocket. “Have you ever gotten between a Rathnian avatar and a pearl-embroidered lace cap?” He shook his head. “I barely escaped with my life that day.”

  “I’m glad you did,” Bullshark replied drily, “Because that sounds like the exact same situation.”

  “I know,” Sneedle said. He turned to Breccan. “So where are we going to meet?”

  Breccan hesitated. They wouldn’t have the disguises of their avatars to protect them. Giving Sneedle a meeting place meant letting him in on their true identities. But they could definitely use the help, especially since he had no idea what they were looking for. At this point, the pig Son of Diablo walked on a string might be more help then Breccan felt like he would be.

  He shot Bullshark a quick look. The avatar shrugged, leaving the decision up to Breccan.

  “Fine,” Breccan replied. “We could use another person.”

  “Like you said, strength in numbers,” Sneedle agreed. He tugged on the lace sleeves that poked out of the ends of his jacket to straighten them. “Where should I find you?”

  Breccan held up his hands. “I’ve never been there.”

  They both looked at Bullshark. He shook his head. “I’ve never been there, either. We’ll have to meet on the way in.”

  “What Zone Building do they work in?” Sneedle asked.

  “Building C Twenty-seven,” Bullshark replied.

  Sneedle nodded. “Great. I will meet you there at the turn of the hour.” He looked a bit unsure of himself when he paused and then continued with, “I don’t, um, look like this outside of the Edge.”

  Bullshark grinned, which made the camouflage stripes across his face appear darker. “None of us do.”

  “So how will I find you?”

  Bullshark glanced at Breccan. “We’ll bring something you can recognize us with.”

  “A pink cravat?” Sneedle suggested hopefully.

  Bullshark stared. “I don’t even know what that is, let alone own one.” He thought for a moment. “How about you look for Breccan’s jacket? It has a wolf on the back. You can’t miss it.”

  “Deal,” Sneedle replied. He looked happily at each of them in turn. “I can’t wait to play my part in this adventure!”

  “Me, either,” Breccan reassured him.

  The avatar wandered away and got caught up in the crowd. Breccan watched him for a moment before he turned to his cousin’s avatar. “Hey, thanks.”

  “For what?” Bullshark asked.

  Breccan gestured toward Sneedle. “For not telling him to look for the kid who’s missing an arm.”

  “Oh, that,” Bullshark replied with a nonchalance Breccan could tell was fake. “It never crossed my mind.” He lifted a shoulder. “I see you more in here than out there, anyway. You’re the same both ways, you know.”

  Bullshark walked over to join Black Jack. Breccan watched him with a strange emotion in his chest. “You’re the same both ways, you know,” repeated over and over in his mind. The words meant more than he could say. He couldn’t deny how relieved he had felt when Garrick disappeared and his arm returned before he had to address the crowd. He felt guilty about it and foolish. He really didn’t have an arm. Maybe pretending like they did in the Edge was dangerous because it was all fake.

  Black Jack glanced at him, and then the avatar’s eyes slid past him and widened. He tipped his head at Breccan. Breccan turned to see what had caught the avatar’s attention. The entire world seemed to slow when his gaze fell on the f
orm who watched them from the doorway of the Luz Café.

  “Jorie,” he whispered.

  She straightened as if she had heard him and hurried outside. Breccan ran through the crowd. He spun around a knot of women with monkey tails and barely missed impaling himself on The Greatest Winston’s quills before he made it out the door.

  “Jorie, wait!” he called as soon as he spotted her.

  To his relief, the girl stopped. She turned slowly in the moonlight that lit the food level with a warm glow. Beneath the stars, Jorie’s silver hair danced around her shoulders like cascading water. When she looked up at Breccan, her violet eyes were full of tears.

  Breccan crossed to her. “I was afraid I’d never see you again.”

  “I know,” Jorie replied. The tears broke free and slid down her cheeks. “I should have stayed away, I just couldn’t help it.”

  Breccan reached up a hand. It felt like a bold gesture, but it also felt right to wipe her tears gently away with his thumb. “Please don’t cry,” he said. “I’m so glad you’re here.”

  “You shouldn’t be,” Jorie told him. She lowered her face so he couldn’t see her gaze. “It’s only going to be harder on you when…when…when none of this is possible anymore. You don’t even know who I am.”

  “I do.”

  Jorie looked up at him. “Wh-what do you mean?”

  Breccan kept his voice soft when he said, “A friend of mine is a hack. I was worried about you and everyone kept telling me you were a shell, but I knew that wasn’t true.” She looked away, but didn’t interrupt him, so he went on to say, “And she found your file.” He cleared his throat. “Marae Hendricks’ file.”

  Jorie’s eyes widened at the name. “And?” she asked as if she needed to hear the words aloud and feared them at the same time.

  “And,” Breccan swallowed, then continued with, “I read that Marae had died.”

  Jorie’s shoulders slumped and more tears left her to patter on the cobblestones beneath their feet.

  Breccan said the words that were the hardest. “Jorie, were you murdered?”

  She was silent for so long Breccan worried he had gone too far. He was about to apologize when Jorie lifted her head. The light from her violet eyes was gone, replaced instead by a blank stare. When she spoke, her voice was monotone as if she recited something she read.

  “I’ve got to unplug. They’re coming.”

  “But how do you know they’re coming?”

  “You said my real name! You can’t do that in the Edge. They want what I have!”

  “Don’t go.”

  “I have to.”

  “It’s already too late.”

  “What do you mean?”

  “I’m sorry, Jorie. I really am. They made me do it.”

  “It’s ok. I understand. I have time, I have—”

  Breccan stared at Jorie. Her voice had fallen silent and her face remained expressionless. She looked like the picture of Marjorie the Third Black Jack had shown him on the computer screen, and no longer like the girl he had missed so badly.

  “Jorie?” he asked quietly.

  When she didn’t reply, he set a hand on her shoulder.

  Jorie blinked, then looked up at him. Tears filled her eyes again, but she didn’t let them fall.

  “I’m so sorry, Gabe. I didn’t mean for it to happen.”

  He was grateful that she was back from wherever she had gone. “For what to happen?” he asked softly.

  “I-I didn’t mean to fall in love with you.”

  Breccan stared at her. “You what?”

  His heart thudded hard in his chest. He wanted to touch her face again, to feel the softness of her skin, and the tickle of her hair across the back of his hand, but he didn’t dare.

  Jorie shook her head. “I don’t know why it happened so quickly. I’m a careful person. I just saw you there crying against the wall, and when you looked up at me, something happened to my heart.” She put her hand there. “I haven’t been the same since.”

  “Me, either,” Breccan admitted. His heart stuttered. “But how…?” He let the words drift off.

  “Everything is more powerful in the Edge,” Jorie explained. “Because you plug directly into the brainstem, everything you feel is direct. That’s why you get swept up so quickly in the magic of this place.” She gestured to indicate the level in which they stood. “That’s why food smells so much better than outside of the Edge, the grass appears greener, the water richer, and the sounds fuller. But they also usually warn newbs against Edge emotions. It’s easy to fall in love in a place where inhibitions are taken away and each avatar is perfect in its own created form. Combine that with these flawlessly crafted environments, and anyone could fall in love.”

  Breccan refused to believe the way he felt was a result of some heightened Edge emotion he should have been warned about. “It’s not like that,” he said.

  “I know.” Jorie’s words were soft and she refused to look at him.

  Breccan put a finger gently under her chin and tipped it up so he could look into her eyes. “So what’s wrong?”

  “If none of this is real, I’m less than real, Gabe.” Jorie blinked. “I was murdered while I was plugged in. I shouldn’t even be here.” Her voice quieted when she said, “I don’t even really exist.”

  Breccan couldn’t take the look of pain in her violet gaze. Without stopping to think about what he was doing, he leaned down and put his lips to hers. He felt her surprised gasp, and then she leaned into him, returning the kiss with a force that took his breath away.

  When she finally stepped back, Breccan’s thoughts were spinning in a cloud edged in gold.

  “We shouldn’t have done that,” she said.

  Breccan took Jorie’s hand. “I can’t imagine what you went through; it must have been horrible.” He pulled her closer. “But I don’t want you to think that it in any way makes you less real.”

  She hesitated, then wrapped her arms around him and held him tight. Her felt her hands shake where they touched his back.

  “You are real to me,” he said. “You will always be real to me, and I will do whatever it takes to save the Edge so that you’ll be safe.”

  He felt Jorie sigh before she stepped back. “I’m going to fight, too.”

  He shook his head. “It’s too dangerous.”

  “It’s not,” she replied.

  Breccan watched her closely. “If I die in the Edge, I wake up in a chair in a rundown building. But if you die, where you will end up?” At her lack of answer, he took her hand. “Jorie, promise me you’ll stay out of the fight. I don’t want you to get hurt, or worse.”

  Jorie hesitated, then nodded. “I promise.”

  CHAPTER FOURTEEN

  “I feel weird,” Jonny said.

  Breccan glanced at him. His cousin was tugging on the tie his mom had made him wear.

  “You don’t look weird. You look like my beautiful son,” Aunt Jenny said. She smoothed his hair down and then kissed the top of his head.

  “Gross, Mom!” Jonny protested. “What if someone sees us?”

  “They would know I’m your mother,” she replied with a proud smile.

  Breccan exchanged a glance with his mom. He could tell she was trying not to laugh just as hard as he was. He smiled and she did the same.

  “It does feel weird to be plugged in and not be an avatar,” Breccan admitted. “And I’ve only been to the Edge a few times. I can’t imagine how you must feel.”

  He opened and closed his right hand. At least he tried to. When it didn’t respond, he looked down and realized it wasn’t there. The sleeve of the new white shirt his mother had bought him for just this occasion had flapped eerily empty until he convinced her to let him wear his jacket. If Sneedle didn’t recognize them, it would make everything more complicated. It still felt weird that in the Zone they wore whatever they did when they plugged in.

  “Stop tugging on your tie,” Aunt Jenny scolded.

  “I can’
t help it. It’s choking me,” Jonny protested.

  Breccan’s mom walked closer to him. “I’m excited to show you where we work at night.”

  “I’m looking forward to seeing it,” Breccan replied.

  But he felt more nervous than anything. The Zone looked exactly like he had imagined. Rows upon rows of buildings lined the street with little more than a path between them to reach the door. Each one was marked with a letter and a number. There was nothing else to indicate that they were different in any way. Breccan thought it looked intimidating and boring at the same time.

  Other people, he had a hard time not thinking of them as avatars, walked into the buildings. They greeted each other with familiarity and talked as they went inside as if they were just heading to another day at the office. In truth, that’s exactly what they were doing.

  “So what is it you do again?” he asked his mom.

  “We handle troubleshooting for the Cranfield Company’s major accounting programs.”

  “Isn’t everyone plugged in instead of accounting right now?” Breccan asked.

  His mom smiled at him. “We’re not troubleshooting for people in Holram, we’re doing it for the other side of the world; and when we go to work in the morning, if our accounting department has any problems, they work with people on that side of the world to fix it.”

  Breccan stared at her. “You mean the Cranfield Company is all over the world?”

  “Of course it is, sweetie,” his mom replied with a fond expression.

  Aunt Jenny looked back at them. “Cranfield bought out most of the smaller web-based companies. We work for the most successful business in the world, besides the Edge, of course.” She squeezed Jonny’s shoulder. “But you boys know more about that than we do.”

  Breccan couldn’t hide his confusion. “How is the Edge more successful? Everything there is made up.”

  Aunt Jenny shook her head. “Time is money. You’ve heard that before, I’m sure.”

  Breccan glanced at Jonny. His cousin looked just as confused as he felt. “Yes, but I don’t know how it applies here,” he admitted.

  “Look at it this way,” Aunt Jenny began.

  Breccan’s mother stopped her with a hand on her arm. “Aren’t they a little young?”