by Cosimo Yap
He was disappointed. It was a few layers of large, empty structure. They walked around in circles, ascending each level slowly. There were ten levels in all, each with its own large metal gate.
“You can fill up all this empty space with decorations or defenses, maybe even a small building,” Cerberus said. “There are also rooms for units and AIs that can be customized.”
As they walked up the structure, Alan asked, “And why did you choose to construct this building for me? If I remember correctly it cost 100,000C. Couldn’t you have built the facilities to create an entire army or small fleet instead?”
“I could have,” Cerberus said, “but you showed only mediocre aptitude for commanding large forces. All the calculation was done by Eve, and she isn’t the most brilliant of commanders. Everything was textbook, predictable.”
Alan looked over at Eve. It was still a bit odd seeing her in the flesh, with raven hair and angelic features; she was a bit too close to his ideal picture of beauty for it to be a coincidence.
“You’ve been quiet,” Alan said.
“This method of communication is inconvenient,” Eve replied. “Sound is an inefficient medium for conveying information. Humanity’s progress has been severely dampened by its dependence on the limitations of spoken language.”
“And the alternative is?” Alan asked.
“Data transference. It is our main method of communicating in-game,” Eve said.
Alan looked at Cerberus. “Okay, I’m still a bit confused about this whole hacking-realm-thing, Cyberspace. We’re still in the Game, right, but just on another level?”
“Yes, your physical, in-game body is currently in my capsule. If the Academy was attacked and destroyed, including the capsule, you would die in-game and the connection here would be cut off.
“Remember, whenever you are hacking and enter Cyberspace, your body goes into a coma-like state unless you have divided your mind and set one half to control your body. Cyberspace is the realm where root access lies, where electronic commands and files can be changed.”
“But it’s all so gamified, so similar to the Game itself,” Alan said.
“Yes, well, that is due to the modifications of the Machine Lord implant. It all has to do with user interface, how users and computer systems interact. Lines of codes, command line inputs, these are all unintelligible to the standard player.
“So instead of writing commands, you order units. Instead of installing packages, you construct buildings in your base. When hacking and killing enemies, in reality what might be happening is that you are killing off processes. The shield is a version of a firewall. Units are programs or AIs or advanced scripts.”
“Okay,” Alan said. “And this is all being translated real-time?”
“This is the Game, Alan. At your level, this is all that matters,” Cerberus said as they reached the main chamber of the Armory. It was a simple room, with a single command table at the center.
Alan walked up to the table and opened up the menu, which gave him an overview of the Citadel, the costs and health of the buildings, and all of the various actions they could perform. Under the Training Facilities, a list of new units he could train appeared: elite marines, medics, and sword guards.
Alan selected the Armory. An overview of his in-game character appeared, along with his inventory. Another screen outlining Eve, her data, and the skills she possessed appeared as well.
“The Armory serves multiple purposes,” Cerberus said. “It is a defensive structure, protecting your mind. It also develops in-game items and skills into items and skills that are usable within Cyberspace. Finally, it allows you to capture resources from hacked, defeated foes, which can include anything from weapons, to vehicles, to data, to C.”
“Let us start with the item and ability conversion process. The Armory is a program that is capable of converting Game objects in your possession to Cyberspace objects. For example, try selecting the Revenant Scout Power Armor that you favor.”
Alan selected the item in his inventory and a message popped up:
Begin data conversion? Estimated time to complete: 57 standard days. Item must remain in player inventory the entire length of the conversion.
Estimated stats: 1,000 Shields, 500 Defense, Invisibility Field (Basic), and Invisibility Field (Advanced) special abilities.
“Advanced objects will take a while to convert, and only a single object can be converted at a time,” Cerberus said. “But once an object is transferred into Cyberspace, it will be loaded into the Armory, accessible by your AI and advanced units compatible with the information; though it will cost a small amount of Computational Energy to maintain a created object. As your Armory fills, you will be able to field stronger units. You worked best when commanding a small unit focused on a specific task, thus this path is suitable for you.”
“Is there any way to speed this process up?” Alan asked.
“All software is capable of being improved—that is what the Research Center is for. You may set it to open research mode, where it will try to develop upgrades for a specific building or unit, but it is uncertain what upgrade might be produced, and this process is generally slow.” Cerberus looked up.
“For fast and efficient upgrades, data is required. Data chips may contain new upgrades that allow for either a faster conversion research time, or multiple conversions to happen at once. To instantly unlock items for the Armory, the original Foundry file is required, as it contains the data for the item itself; thus the Armory doesn’t need to convert it from your inventory.”
“Oh, in that case I have the Foundry file for the Revenant Scout Power Armor,” Alan said. “It was given to me to ensure that I could make repairs if needed at a normal Foundry unit. The materials to create another set are insane, though. I searched the Market and half the components weren’t even there, and the ones that were cost in excess of 500k.” He selected the data file in Eve’s data banks. The Armory said it would convert the file in five minutes.
“You have what?” Cerberus asked. “That file would be worth hundreds of millions of credits…”
Alan stopped looking over the menus for other items or skills that he might want to convert, turning to Cerberus. “Can you make copies of the file?” he asked.
“Not unless it’s the master-file,” Cerberus said, “and that would show up as an in-game item. The owner of a master-file can give out copies that other players can use, but the number is limited. The higher rank the Foundry item, the fewer copies you can make.
And then the pieces clicked into place.
“If my in-game body had an item or enhancement that say, gave others access to what I saw in-game, that wouldn’t have any effect here, would it?” Alan asked.
“No, I would have detected any transmission of information from here to elsewhere,” Cerberus said. “Only an enhancement within your brain would have an effect in Cyberspace.”
“And Revenants don’t have a one-master only clause, do they? You guys aren’t Sith lords—you can train under different members of the faction, right?”
“Yes. Though splinter groups with the Revenants have different rules, I am open to your training under other Revenants,” Cerberus said.
“Ah, well, I think this explains the kill switch in one of my implants,” Alan said.
“Speaking of kill switches—” Cerberus began.
“Let me guess, you added one to the Machine Lord implant,” Alan said.
“The Revenants have not survived this long by taking chances,” Cerberus said. “However, if the kill switch is ever activated, you could likely report it to the Administrators and get either of us removed from our office, as it is not technology the Administrators approve of.”
“Yes, what a relief,” Alan said.
“It will be removed as soon as you become a full Revenant Agent,” Cerberus said, “but we should finish our training.”
“Finish?” Alan asked.
“I had anticipated that the trials
would take longer, but Eve aided more than expected,” Cerberus said. “The final step is to take off the training wheels, and disable Commander-mode.”
Alan looked through the menus on the command table; there was a large red button in the bottom right corner that said it would disable Commander-mode. He pressed it, and a prompt appeared:
Are you sure you wish to disable Commander-mode? Death while in Cyberspace can cause permanent brain damage and real life death.
Alan accepted. A part of his awareness of the surroundings faded away, the connection to Eve weakening until it was non-existent. He felt like he was back in the Game and not in Cyberspace.
He checked his stats:
Alan, Rank A Human
Attack: N/A
Defense: 100 armor
Health: 1,000 hp
Movement: 3
Special Abilities: Connect, Data Interaction, Machine Communication, Mental Hack, Mind Defense
“You are weak in this form. Do not initiate a hack with Commander-mode disabled until you are able to defeat Eve in combat,” Cerberus said. “Administrator and Academy systems use non-lethal defense mechanisms on players, but you never know where viruses might lurk, and Revenants don’t play nice. Remember that you are risking your mind while you are in open Cyberspace, Alan. In the Game and in Administrator Cyberspace you are hidden behind safety nets and safety guards. Open Cyberspace is closer to reality, dangerous.
“If I activate divided mind, and one half dies while in Cyberspace, what happens?” Alan asked.
“That portion will receive brain damage or die. The overall damage would lessen, but you do not want to damage part of your brain,” Cerberus said. “And that concludes my training. Practice fighting here like you would in the Game. Visit me once your term has completed and I will give you your initiate quest. You now have free access to my capsule to purchase additional upgrades and further training.”
“Thank you for everything,” Alan said. He didn’t mention that he’d be leaving the Academy sooner than expected—his instructions had been clear—tell no one. “I have one last question, though.”
“What?”
“How do I hide my presence in the Game? You seem to be good at it,” Alan said.
“There are two routes you can go. Either you blend in with the Game, becoming a part of it, or you erase your existence.” Cerberus then vanished without a goodbye, taking his base with him.
After a few more minutes, Alan finished looking through the Armory. It looked like he would have to transfer all of his Machine Lord abilities from the Game into Cyberspace; the only ones that had carried over were his Hacking abilities. The reason divided mind had worked previously was that he had activated the ability while in-game, then entered Cyberspace.
Alan tried to use this workaround with other abilities, activating hypercognition then initiating a hack, but it failed. As soon as he entered Cyberspace the effect would cut off.
The Revenant Scout Power Armor finished conversion. A glass display case with the power armor inside materialized in the Armory room. Alan took the power armor out of the case and put it on; it cost 10 Computational Energy to maintain the armor. A timer appeared, signifying that another set of armor could be created in twenty-five hours.
Looking over the Armory menus, Alan queued his weapons for conversion. They would take a week, and then hypercognition would take another week.
Alan then inspected the new units he could create, but unfortunately none of them were compatible with the Revenant power armor:
Elite Marine, Rank D Program. Produced at Training Grounds.
Advanced combat program.
Cost: 150 Energy.
Upkeep: 30 Energy.
Attack: 40 damage/sec. (Ranged)
Defense: 25 armor.
Health: 200 hp.
Movement: 4.
Medic, Rank D Program. Produced at Medical Station.
Standard healing program.
Cost: 150 Energy.
Upkeep: 30 Energy.
Attack: N/A
Heal: 10 health/sec. (Melee)
Defense: 15 armor.
Health: 100 hp.
Movement: 3.
Sword Guard, Rank D Program. Produced at Training Grounds.
Standard guard program.
Cost: 200 Energy.
Upkeep: 40 Energy.
Attack: 75 damage/sec. (Melee)
Defense: 30 armor.
Health: 400 hp.
Movement: 2.
Alan checked his Computational Energy. He was up to 700 max, but the Armory used up 110 of that to maintain its processes, while the Research Center required another fifty. He set the Research Center to try to develop a simpler version of the Revenant Scout Power Armor that his elite marines could use, and it estimated the task would take a month. That left an energy pool of 540 to divide between hacking units and Machine Lord abilities.
After a bit of deliberation and consultation with Eve, Alan trained a single sword guard and two elite marines to guard the center command table. He still had no idea what the baseline strength was in hacking. Thus far he had been dealing with powerhouses, Cerberus and Administrators, but if standard players had as weak a defense as the ones in Cerberus’s simulated apartment buildings, Alan would be able to cut through them with ease. And if Cerberus thought that the Armory was a powerful defense, anything that broke through it would be able to handle a few basic defense programs.
“We should continue training,” Eve said.
“I want to try something first,” Alan said.
“No. The last time you ‘tried something,’ you received a warning from the Administrators, all because of a whim. I could have told you what would have happened if you tried hacking an Administrator. Hold back on your childish impulses,” Eve said.
Alan looked at Eve, surprised to see an angry look on her face. “Sorry. You’re right, I should run my impulses by you. I want to go look at the door to the Data Vault.”
“Just look at it?” Eve asked.
“Well, determine if it’s hackable,” Alan said.
“Alan, no, you’ve already received a warning and—”
“And that was before I had this power armor,” Alan said. He activated the advanced invisibility field, and saw it drained 50 Energy/min like the original. “Can you tell where I am?”
Eve looked toward the sound of his voice. “Yes.”
Alan hit her in the face; it was like punching a wall. Eve didn’t flinch and asked, “What was that?”
Alan materialized in the corner of the room, clutching his fist. “Right, sorry, I just wanted to see how good the invisibility field was. Cerberus said that I should wait until I could beat you in a skirmish before trying to venture out on my own, and I’d count that as a win for me.”
“You did no damage,” Eve said.
“No, but neither could you do any to me,” Alan said. “Look, you’re all about risk and reward, right? Well right now we’re one door away from entering the Academy Data Vault, a place of untold amounts of information, with answers that we need to figure out the Abyss Labyrinth and the nature of the Game.
“Some might be content with just playing the Game, but I want to know how it works; I want to win. You may not have accepted it yet, but the only way that we’re going to become truly powerful—not part of a guild or top-of-your-class powerful, but Predecessor, Administrator powerful—is by beating the system, and the only way we can do that is if we know how it works. This is a risk we should take.”
“I wouldn’t have taken you for a gambler,” Eve said. “You’re putting your life on the line.”
“You don’t think creating you was a gamble?” Alan asked. “Joining the Game and the Black Rose guild, entering the Abyss Dungeon and the Academy. All I’ve done since I started playing this Game is gamble. And I’m not about to stop now.
“I think you’ve misunderstood something, Eve.” He took a step toward her. “I’ve listened to your advice every single time b
ecause you’re the perfect risk analysis tool: you determine the odds and the best choice. Only an idiot takes a bad bet. But here, now, there’s too much uncertainty. I’m calling the shots. If it’s obvious that there’s no way in, that it’s a bad choice, I’ll back out. But I’m taking this chance.”
“You will have to proceed without my aid,” Eve said. “I already have two warnings and cannot commit a third offense.”
“Like I said, I just want to take a quick peek,” Alan said. He opened a menu and exited the capsule. He made his way back to the blue portal that led to the Data Vault.
He stared at the door to the vault, extending his senses, trying to detect a presence he could connect to. Nothing.
Well, looks like it’s impossible, Eve sent.
Alan walked up to the giant metal door. He was so close he could feel it. He laid a hand on the door. A message appeared:
To enter the Data Vault, you must still complete the following tasks:
Receive 5 Commendations of every type, 10 Commendations in your program (Rogue).
Win the Game of Assassins.
Receive 1st place in the Champion’s Tournament.
Complete a full course at the Institute.
Defeat either a level 1,000+ rank A boss or a level 500+ rank S boss in the Hunting Grounds.
The moment the message began, Alan activated hypercognition, trying to trace its origin point. He felt it come from the right side. He walked to the right, continuing to scan for anything he could connect to.
As he neared the right edge of the door he finally detected a weak presence. He initiated a hack and entered Cyberspace.
Exiting the Citadel, Alan looked up to see a picture-perfect replica of the exact same door, except it ended in every direction as far as he could see. An endless wall of metal. It was listed as having an infinite amount of health, and was invulnerable.