The Grind

by Dante Doom

“The King’s men have bullets, trust me,” Timon said as he dropped his sword. “We surrender!” he called out.

  “What?” Savannah hissed. The men drew closer, their rifles still trained on the two of them. “Are we really giving up?”

  “I would rather escape from prison than be shot here,” Timon said. “Besides, worst case scenario, we only need to bide our time until the mob arrives. In fact, being imprisoned has upped our chances of survival, right?”

  “If you say so…” Savannah said as she slowly raised her hands above her head.

  The guards were quick to throw shackles around the pair and drag them towards the courthouse of the palace. There was a nervous energy in the air, as some of the soldiers looked at one another with concern on their faces. Savannah could hear a few of them whispering in the back. She couldn’t make out their words, but she knew that they were worried about the Grind being restarted. She wondered if they realized that they were no longer compelled to serve the King as Knights.

  The Royal Palace was far more opulent than she had ever dreamed. It was a spiraling cathedral with stained glass windows. In the center of the arch was the label: Highest Court of Verre.

  “I always wanted to come here,” Savannah whispered to Timon, “but I never guessed that I would be in chains.” She fidgeted with the shackles. Her hands were cuffed in the front and there was a little bit of room to move her arms, but they were also chained around her waist, making it harder to move her arms fully forward.

  “Every time my father made me come here, it felt like I was being dragged in chains,” Timon mumbled. “The good news is that I know this place pretty well. No one cares when you’re ten years old and exploring the building. There are a lot of nooks and crannies that we can navigate through in a pinch.”

  Two heavily armed guards dressed in armor covered with shiny steel plates escorted them forward, pulling the doors to the cathedral open and revealing a long red carpet. Savannah felt her heart flutter as she saw the brilliantly lit interior of the court. The King’s throne sat at the top of a dais at the far end, and twenty cushions were arranged in single rows down each side of the room. A few men and women, all significantly older than herself and dressed in only the finest of silken clothes, were sitting on the cushions. Savannah counted eight people, with more starting to trickle in.

  As both she and Timon were dragged to the center of the room, Savannah could see Leopold sitting atop the throne. He looked very different from his avatar. While in the game he was a slender man with muscles and a youthfulness that abounded, this Leopold was as thin as a wire, with a white scraggly beard and no muscles in sight. If it hadn’t been for the gold crown balanced precariously on his head, she would have thought him a beggar from the streets.

  “Kneel!” Leopold shouted as the guards forced both Timon and Savannah to their knees.

  “Okay, my mistake,” Timon whispered to Savannah. “I think they’re going to execute us immediately.”

  “Seriously?” Savannah hissed.

  “Well, maybe. Uh… but I’m letting you know right now, so it’s not a surprise later,” Timon replied.

  Savannah felt her heart begin to jackhammer at the thought of being shot in front of the court that she had once so desperately tried to become a part of. It would be the ultimate irony, she knew, dying in the very place that she had dreamt of seeing ever since she’d been a child. Still, there had to be some way that she could get out of this alive.

  “Why is the laRange boy in chains?” a robust woman sitting on a cushion shouted. “This isn’t fitting for a nobleman’s son!”

  “Silence until the court is in session,” Leopold yelled.

  More nobles were coming in—one by one until all forty cushions were filled. Elanor herself was sitting on one of the cushions farthest from the King. Her expression was weary, and she avoided eye contact with Savannah. Instead, she merely stared at the floor and waited.

  “By the powers of old and new,” Leopold said as he stood to his feet and held his golden scepter up high, “I bring this court to session. Does the High Court recognize me as King?”

  “The High Court recognizes and legitimizes,” a man with a thick pad of paper said as he stood and bowed towards the King.

  “I called this emergency session to bring forth charges of treason against these two,” Leopold said as he gestured wildly towards Timon and Savannah. “Timon laRange and Savannah deForge have illegally altered the Grind and, in the process, reset the entire system, destroying all progress.”

  There was a gasp from the audience.

  “Therefore,” Leopold continued, “it is my recommendation that we execute these two in a public manner. Their alterations of the Grind were made to trick the peasantry into uprising against us. This must be quelled quickly before further… uh, before blood is shed.”

  “Execution?” a stout man shouted from his position, tapping his cane on the floor in front of him. He was still seated, but Savannah could see a hot rage cross his face. He looked similar to Timon. “My son has done no wrong! And if he has, you better damn well have proof of it!”

  “Oh, thank God,” Timon said with a sigh of relief. “I can never quite tell which direction my father is leaning. Half of me figured that he’d have me executed for not being a Noble yet.”

  “Calm yourself,” a slender noblewoman with short, curly hair said. “No one is exempt from the law, but Pedro laRange speaks truth when demanding evidence. How can you prove this?”

  Leopold gestured to someone standing off to the side and a small monitor was wheeled out on a cart and brought into the center of the room. “This device was designed to monitor the interior of the Grind. Does the court recognize the legitimacy of this device?”

  Savannah looked at it with interest as the man with the pad of paper stood to his feet and walked over to the machine. She’d had no idea something like that existed, and watched as he placed his hands all over it, inspecting it for a few minutes before nodding. “The court recognizes there has been no tampering with this device.”

  “Watch,” Leopold said as he placed his hands on the scepter and leaned forward. The video of Kireen began to play. There was dead silence across the room, except for the voice of the woman explaining how the Grind worked.

  “I recognize that woman,” a nobleman said. “She was an Aspect who vexed me to no end in the Grind on my first journey.”

  “Let it finish!” Pedro snapped, transfixed to the screen.

  The video continued playing until, finally, Kireen finished her speech and looped back to her first few words. The monitor cut off after that.

  “These two tampered with the Grind, intimating that it was illegitimate. They used an Aspect somehow and, in the process, have stirred up the peasantry,” Leopold declared, glaring at them.

  “That seems like an overly complicated plan,” a thin, wispy woman with almost pinkish skin said. “Why would they do that, and how would they know how? There’s nothing to be gained from it.”

  “Let me sum up what is happening right now,” Leopold said as he took a few steps down the stairs, and then seemed to pause for effect while he waited for all the Nobles to look at him. “The peasantry has just been told that all of their beliefs are total lies. The anarchists and the ne’er-do-wells see this as an opportunity to rouse the masses to violence. My reports are telling me that bands of peasants are grouping in each village, heatedly discussing what to do. It’s only a matter of time before they will storm the wall.”

  There was a gasp and a murmur amongst the Nobles as they leaned toward each other, talking in loud whispers. Savannah looked up at Elanor to see that she was still staring at the ground, motionless. This wasn’t going well, at all.

  Pointing at Timon and Savannah, he continued. “These two modified the Grind to play this message because they are anarchists who would see this entire city burn!” Leopold shouted. “That girl, Savannah, is a filthy Grinder. Look how quickly she ensnared a Noble, someone with an education.
With her ambition and his mind, they were able to create a plan to break down the second wall and seize control of the capital. They would take all that we have and string our corpses up in the streets!” Leopold ended on a scream as cries were heard amongst the Nobles.

  “Enough!” Pedro thundered as he struggled to stand to his feet. He leaned against his cane and shook his head furiously. “I will not have you levy charges against my boy!”

  “Bah, your son is a tool,” Leopold said. “Easily seduced by that charlatan. Look at him, the way he even leans close to her. Your boy has fallen prey to her charms and wiles.”

  “I—” Timon went to speak, but one of the guards hit him on the back with his rifle.

  “You will speak when it is your turn,” the guard growled.

  “Remember and respect the rules, son,” Pedro said. “I didn’t raise you to speak out of turn like that.”

  Timon gritted his teeth and glared at his father, but said nothing.

  “Your son has fallen into the wrong company and made his own decision,” Leopold said, his voice cold. “We must act quickly. Do you forget that we rely on the peasantry? I have no doubt that we can defend ourselves from them, but should we kill even ten percent of them, our crops will suffer.”

  There was another murmur from the nobles.

  “Are you kidding me?” Savannah hissed before looking over her shoulder to make sure the guard hadn’t heard her. Timon elbowed her, warning her to be quiet as he glared, so Savannah bit her lip and hoped she didn’t draw blood.

  “The only option is to execute these two outside of the second wall, for all to see. Then we will send out all of our forces together, in a combined effort to suppress talk of revolution,” Leopold said. “That is the only way to prevent bloodshed!”

  “I will not allow my son to die at your hands!” Pedro replied.

  “What is the life of your son against the life of my entire family?” the wispy woman shouted as she leapt up. “I have sixteen daughters to watch out for. Should the peasantry rebel, they will undoubtedly suffer.”

  “Our combined forces will not be able to repel an attack from the entire population!” another Noble shouted.

  There was a wave of agreement with his words as all of the Nobles nodded at the sentiment.

  “I say we simply throw all of our alcohol over the walls. The rabble will drink it down in minutes. Any revolution can be crushed with cheap whiskey,” suggested another Noble who’d had yet to speak.

  Savannah grunted, but didn’t say anything. Were these Nobles so disconnected from reality that they were seriously making these suggestions? They were no better than Wild Cards, and at least some of those Wild Cards behaved far more honorably than this lot.

  “Why would they settle for the milk when they can have the whole cow?” Leopold asked. “These peasants will lust after all that we have. We can repel them.”

  There was a continued influx of shouting and discussion amongst the Nobles about what to do then, but Savannah realized that, at a certain point, everyone was simply repeating their talking points. Only Pedro spoke in favor of not executing Timon. No one stood up for her, however. It was disgusting, watching the Nobles fight amongst each other over how best to protect their own way of life from the peasants. Any arguments made in favor of preventing bloodshed were purely concerned with the economics of the peasants’ deaths. Rage slowly welled up in her stomach. She couldn’t believe she’d wanted to become a Noble. What had she been thinking?

  “Enough!” the man with the paper shouted. “We have reached the point where no new arguments are being made. Let the accused speak.”

  “Very well,” Leopold said. “The accused may plead their case. Savannah, please speak.”

  All eyes were on Savannah now, and she had no idea what to say. Of course, she didn’t want to be executed, but she had become so disgusted by these people’s words and concerns that she felt like chewing them all out. It wouldn’t help in this situation at all, but it would make her feel better. Think, Savannah, she told herself.

  “See? The waif doesn’t even know how to use words!” a woman whispered to her husband. They both chuckled at that, and Savannah felt even more fire rise up in her stomach. She slowly rose to her feet.

  “You all sit here, talking about saving yourselves from the peasantry, but it’s the peasantry who needs to be saved from you and this would-be King.”

  There was a grumble amongst the crowd and Timon hissed her name.

  “My name is Savannah deForge and I’m not much of a person in your eyes because I was born outside of the second wall, and have lived my life as a Grinder, meagerly earning a living so that my family can eat and pay your ridiculous taxes as imposed by the Barons.” She wasn’t in the mood to make nice, and she found herself glaring at the Nobles in turn, some of whom actually looked uncomfortable at her remarks.

  Taking a breath, she stabbed a finger at Leopold. “You have no reason to believe any of my words, but I wonder why the hell anyone here would believe him?” Turning, she eyed Pedro. “While I’m sure that many of you have accessed the Grind illegally, using a Grinder to help you or your children, like Timon, achieve the rank of Noble, I find it insulting that you sit here condemning me for earning a living while you were simply seeking a shortcut.” Savannah fought the smirk on her face as Pedro’s face colored and he turned away. “But what you have done is nothing compared to the atrocities this man has committed in the Grind. Forcing people to do his bidding, throwing them out of the game when they displeased him, and even killing some… for real.”

  There was a collective cry of surprise from the Nobles as Leopold shouted, “You have no proof!”

  Turning to the notekeeper, Savannah asked him, “Is it possible to review a character’s footage, as it has occurred in the game?”

  Before he could answer, Leopold screamed out, “Don’t answer that! I am not the one on trial!”

  “Well, perhaps you should be,” Elanor spoke up. The Nobles began whispering amongst themselves as everyone turned to see Elanor rise from her seat to walk over to stand next to Savannah.

  Leopold’s voice rose as he waved his hand at Elanor. “That woman should be up on trial, too!” he screamed. “She tried to kill me.”

  As everyone gasped, Elanor crossed her arms and glared up at him. “I would have succeeded, too, if you hadn’t illegally accessed code in the Grind to turn yourself into an Aspect.”

  At another collective gasp, Leopold began to sputter, but Elanor held up her hand to silence him. “Oh, save it, Leopold. Everyone here knows that you’ve been illegally Grinding to keep your status as King; it’s quite possibly the worst kept secret in all of Verre.” Waving her hand to shoo him back, she took a step forward. “You’ve had too much time to talk. I assert my right to speak. Sit down, Leo. It’s time we set a few things straight.”

  “As the rules state,” the notekeeper said, “the King would do well to allow his detractors to speak.”

  With a grumble, Leopold backed up the steps and sat down on the throne. At the same time, Timon had risen from where he’d sat and joined Savannah, awkwardly wrapping an arm around her waist with the shackles still on. She didn’t bother to hide her smirk when she heard Timon’s father make a small choking noise, and she bumped her head against Timon’s shoulder.

  Elanor turned to see them standing together, and Savannah saw the look of amusement on her face as she took a couple steps away from them before raising her arm to gesture to them. “Yes, Savannah has reset the Grind. Frankly, my own goal was to amass enough points to become Queen, and then I was going to shut it down entirely.” Elanor ignored the murmurings from the Nobles and kept speaking. “I had hoped that Savannah had similar interests, but it seems that there are those who have a much stronger influence on her… and she did the right thing by restarting the Grind.”

  Savannah looked at her in surprise as Timon squeezed her waist.

  “Elanor admits to colluding with them!” Leopold screamed.
“Guards, seize her!”

  “You will do no such thing!” Pedro shouted. “Let her speak.”

  Everyone looked shocked, with the exception of Elanor, as Leopold slunk back onto the throne, glowering.

  “I think we should allow Savannah to speak,” Elanor commented, turning to look at her and nodding in encouragement.

  After only a slight hesitation, Savannah stepped away from Timon and addressed the Nobles. “Look, I get that you’re scared. I’d be willing to bet that most of you didn’t know that the Grind was actually intended to be a place of knowledge, and not a means to determine hierarchy in the real world. It was meant to be fun and educational, not life-threatening. Leopold has been accessing the game illegally in order to build up enough points so that he can access maintenance areas of the game and change his scores. He was destroying the Grind from the inside out, all so that he could become supreme ruler for life. So, yes, I did reset the Grind—because we all deserve not only to survive, but to thrive, and that’s possible with access to the knowledge encased in the Grind.”

  “Says the peasant!” Leopold shouted. “Of course you would expect better, but what about those of us who already have everything we could possibly want?” He looked around, expecting the Nobles to agree, but while there were low rumblings, none of the Nobles looked at him.

  “I vote for a call of no confidence!” Elanor called out.

  “I second it!” Pedro shouted.

  “What? You can’t do this!” Leopold screamed. “I am the King! I demand you cease this insanity immediately!”

  The Nobles weren’t listening as they rose to their feet and Elanor returned to her cushion. Timon grabbed Savannah by the waist and tugged her backwards. “What are they doing?” she whispered to him.

  “They’re calling for a vote to oust Leo. I’d only ever read about this—I didn’t know anyone would actually ever try it,” Timon whispered back.

  Savannah watched, fascinated as the Nobles stood in two neat lines as the King perched on the edge of the throne. His eyes were wild as he looked down in horror.