Irrelevant Jack

by Prax Venter

  She looked down at her clothing. “Oh, this was purchased from the Tradesmen when Blackmoor still had one. Decorative items like these don’t come from the Tower.”

  “Ah, got it. We still have a long way to go before this Town is back to being normal, huh?”

  “Yes, but the farm is huge. That reminds me- those bird things. They aren’t from where I think they are… are they?”

  Jack didn’t pull any punches. Not with her.

  “Oh yes, they are part of my collected monsters from the Tower. Keep your eye out for some beefy cows tomorrow, eh?” he said, nudging her side with his elbow.

  She let out a surprised giggle and then regained her composure as if she remembered she was supposed to be mad at him. It only made her look devastatingly cute.

  “Jack! If anyone finds out Townsfolk are eating monsters from the Tower-”

  “I know, I know,” he interrupted her. “I had all of this out with Alt in my head. He assures me that they are edible.”

  “You two are really causing a mess in this Town, and I haven’t really decided if it’s a good thing or not.”

  “Oh, come on. You know you love climbing the Tower together with us.”

  “Yes…” she said with a far-off look in her eyes, then she turned back to him suddenly.

  “Can I assume you don’t know about Artifacts?”

  “Uh, no- I mean yes. You can assume that.”

  “Thought so,” she said. “Floor 10 is when they have a chance to start dropping from monsters and hidden in chests, but I’m bringing it up because we might start seeing them early.”

  “What do they do- these Artifacts?”

  “They don’t do anything. They are objects, like art or statues. Trinkets really. They have much more value than normal drops. The higher we climb, the better the rewards.”

  “I’ve been wondering about that,” he said. “Helmets drop on 35, right?”

  “That’s right.”

  “What about rings and amulets? I still have a lot of slots to fill.”

  “Rings begin to drop on Floor 50 and amulets on 65.”

  There was so much to look forward to in the Tower: Artifacts, helmets at 35, and their skills would both jump to tier 2 and unlock new skills once they hit Floor 25. Jack couldn’t wait.

  Lex pushed forward on the bed and looked like she was preparing to leave. He really didn’t want her to go yet, so he asked the first question that came to him.

  “Why did you stop at Floor 24?”

  Lex froze halfway off the bed and then slumped back down, staring at her feet. Jack wondered if he pissed her off again, but they seemed to be past that point in their relationship. She knew that Jack cared for her and just wanted to know more about her. He remained silent as the pointed-eared Hero gathered her thoughts. When she finally spoke again, it was with a soft voice and with her gaze still locked on the floor.

  “When I was 16, I went into the Tower with my mother; my father’s best friend, a mage called Thymus; and a boy my age, Mica. He was an arrogant hothead, and my teenage self thought she was in love with him. Mica… he opened…”

  She faltered, and Jack saw a tear spill out over her eyelid and splatter off her boot. He reached over and squeezed her hand gently, but stayed quiet. Lex swallowed and continued speaking toward the floor. “We had just engaged the Floor 24 Boss and instead of attacking, Mica dashed over to a chest he spotted along one of the tall bookshelves. I know he did it because he wanted first pick on any leather items it contained, but instead, he set off a wandering monster trap… until the chest is closed, such a trap will continue to spawn enemies. Mica and Thymus were cut off- forced to retreat as the horrible creatures poured out, and I was left to fight the Boss with my mother… She wore cloth armor. She could only heal, and I was distracted... I couldn’t pull it off her in time.”

  Lex turned her tear-filled eyes back to his before she continued, and he saw agony there. “My mother was cut down in front of me and I ran. When I appeared outside of the Tower on Exit, I was alone. No one else survived because Mica recklessly rushed in and risked everything. My father was never the same after that, and… And that’s a whole other story.

  “The Town was already on a steep decline and losing three Heroes in one day… I didn’t go back into the Tower for a long time. Too long. And by the time I did, there weren’t enough other Heroes to help me make it up that high.”

  Lex brought her other hand over and clasped his between them.

  “It’s why I was so mad at you- before. I thought you were going to turn out just like Mica, a dangerously reckless fool. I am so glad I was wrong. These last few days with you… they’ve been nice, Jack.”

  “Thank you for telling me, and I really enjoy being with you too,” he said.

  Part of him wanted to pull her to him and hold her forever, but the mood just wasn’t right for that. He needed to take it slow with Lex. Rushing things at any point could be disastrous. Instead, Jack was just there for her and remained content holding hands for a while as they gazed into each other’s eyes.

  Eventually, Lex nodded and stood as she let out a shuddering breath. He could tell she felt a little better talking through all that with someone.

  She moved over to the door handle and said, “Good night, Jack. See you in the morning.”

  “Night, Lex. I wish you nothing but the sweetest of dreams.”

  She gave him a purely beautiful smile and then shut the door behind her.

  “Finally,” Alt said in his mind. “We have some things to discuss. For instance, you know you’ll eventually die too, right?”

  Jack’s eyebrows came down hard. “Uh…yeah, I suppose. I try not to think about it too much. No respawns then?”

  “No,” Alt answered quickly. “Hopefully, when you go, it will be from old age, many years from now, but I need you to be aware that’s what happens in this world.”

  “That’s what happened in my world anyway. Did people not die in your future-world of spaceships and weirdly named fast-food places?”

  “This is serious, Jack, but yes, people died in my universe. Just not beings of pure energy, like you are now. This virtual universe had to follow rules or the dimension-eating entity-”

  “We need to come up with a better name for it,” Jack interrupted him.

  The electronic voice in his mind sighed. “Okay, what do you want to call the multi-dimensional being beyond all comprehension that devours whole universes?”

  “Weren’t your people studying it before? You had to have something shorter- wait, the people here call it the Corruption. Let’s go with that.”

  “Fine,” Alt said. “Now be quiet and listen to me; with more resources, I can access more system logs, and I discovered something very troubling.”

  Jack sat back on the bed. Alt had his attention.

  “The Corruption needed to be tricked into thinking this virtual universe was real enough to keep most of its focus here instead of the physical world outside. If it’s distracted, I can scrub all its influence in the ship with my nanites. Then the foreign entity will only exist here- in this virtual universe.

  The Corruption needs a challenge though, or it won’t focus enough on the trap that is Subroutine Sana. When the thirteen crewmembers volunteered to enter the simulation and fight back, they knew that they had a time limit before the system aged their digital bodies and they expired from natural causes. They knew there was nothing I could do to prevent that. It is part of the universe’s rules. Not to mention the fact that I was so weak from the fight with the Corruption, it was all I could do to keep its physical attacks away from my core.

  “I spawned the thirteen crewmembers in thirteen separate Towns. With actual Players helping to guide the NPC Townsfolk, I assumed that they would be better off covering more ground. The logs show that all of them were successful and became kings and queens of their domain. There are many more than thirteen Towers in this simulation, but their success pushed the Corruption back and even o
pened interconnections between their regions. They were winning the war and the Corruption was barely paying attention to the real word.

  “Eventually, the original crewmembers all died of natural causes, except one. Velintanna. My models predict that if she had done what was expected, the NPC Towns would have had the advantage and the momentum established by the Players to carry this virtual battleground through to ultimate victory, long ago.

  “Instead, Velintanna, motivated by her fear of death, sought out the Corruption and let it convert her.”

  Jack held up his hand, but no one was in the room to see it.

  “Wait. It didn’t kill her?”

  “No. That’s not what the Corruption does. Everything it consumes becomes a part of it. Jack, this… thing is way beyond understanding. From what we learned before the unfortunate events that brought this mess to your universe, it simultaneously exists in many others. It spans an unknown number of dimensions, converting resources into tools that help to spread itself further. And when it got hold of a Player in this universe, everything went downhill, quickly.

  “Her personal system logs become… garbled at this point. I know she isn’t really herself anymore but now serves as a relatively powerful agent for the enemy. This was the point where the battle turned, and she began to help the Corruption convert Towns and Towers to its side.”

  Jack was still confused. “She’s still alive after thousands of years? Doesn’t that break the rules?”

  “Well, alive is not really the way I’d describe what she is now. Her pattern has been corrupted, and she is no longer a Hero- more like an Anti-Hero, and there are no rules in this universe preventing it. On the contrary, the collection of gaming systems that maintain this world are not helping either side, just simulating an entertaining universe. The Corruption is technically a Player too, and it has no problems with taking every advantage it can find.”

  Jack laid back in his bed and considered everything Alt had said.

  “You know what, Alt? You tell some horrible bedtime stories.”

  “The upside is that I learned that I can get away with being a bit more pro-active outside the Tower because of this shift in balance. The farm upgrade was an example of that newly discovered freedom. Inside the Tower, it’s pure chaos, and I have more leeway there. Out in the overworld, I still need to be mostly careful.”

  “Speaking of the farm, those crazy cyclops birds laid indestructible eggs in the Tower. I can’t wait until Demi breaks her cookware trying to crack one open.”

  “The domesticated version of the monster appears to be more… domesticated. I’m sure she’ll be fine.”

  Jack smiled and closed his eyes. He tried to imagine what it would be like to give himself up to the corruption. It didn’t sound pleasant.

  “So now what, Alt?” he said, his eyes still closed. “Now that we know this Valentine lady is out there, what do we do about it.”

  “It’s Velintanna, and we need to find her and bring her Hit Points to zero. Only then will we be able to safely convert other Towns and Towers back to our side without her getting in the way and possibly acting behind us and undoing our work. Obviously, we need to fix Blackmoor Cove before anything else.”

  “Obviously,” Jack repeated. “Is there anything else I need to know?”

  “Loads, but nothing you need to know this instant.”

  Jack stretched out his jaw with a huge yawn. It had been a long day.

  “Thanks for the history lesson, Alt, but now I am going to try and get some shut-eye so we can continue to save all the universes tomorrow.”

  “Sweet dreams, Jack.”

  “Yeah, thanks.”

  - 26 -

  Alt spoke in his mind to wake him up, and it always seemed sooner than it should be.

  “Damn it, Alt. Is your internal clock broken or something?”

  “I am the clock, Jack.”

  He rolled out of bed, crossed through the empty common room of the inn and pushed open the door. The morning was unusually cold and dreary, and Jack wanted nothing more than to crawl back under the covers. He was having a particularly pleasant dream, and it would be fantastic if he could pick back up where he left off.

  Jack flinched when Alt’s electronic voice spoke in his mind, scattering his thoughts as he trudged down the dirt path to the Wall.

  “Continuing your training with her father is the best way to make that dream a reality.”

  “Ugh, you watch my dreams too?” Jack realized that if he ever did get close to Lex, Alt would always be there- watching. Not to mention the permanent leather sheath literally coming between them.

  “I can feel your revulsion, Jack. I promise you I don’t want to make this existence difficult or unpleasant. I was trying to be helpful.”

  “Can’t you get out of my head and give me some damn privacy for once?”

  There was a pause. “I’ll be honest. No, not right now. I can be quieter if that’s what you’d like.”

  Jack felt a twinge of hurt coming from his sword belt. He looked down and patted the leather scabbard as he walked.

  “Well, thanks for being honest. Just… try not to get into the personal stuff. You know, like my dreams for example. And please don’t offer me advice about my love life- unless I ask for it.

  “Understood.”

  When Jack arrived at the Wall, he saw the giant horned man walking up to meet him.

  “Ryea says you restored the farm and made her a farmer,” Kron said with dire seriousness. Jack had a split second to decide whether to take credit or play dumb. He chose to play dumb.

  “How could I do something like that?”

  Kron bore into him with his steely eyes in response, and as the hanging silence drew uncomfortable, Harrak walked up to join them.

  “You constantly break the rules, Jack,” Lex’s father said, his huge arms crossed under his long gray beard. “You make people suspicious… make us watchful.”

  Jack crossed his own arms and held his eyes on Kron, then Harrak- making sure he had their attention.

  “Kron, you once told me that we were cool as long as I helped the Town. And Harrak, you saw me dispatch the demon spawn last night and fight alongside your daughter when one of the guards deserted his post to earn some extra crab money. Maybe you both should be watching your own men and let me follow my destiny.”

  The two grizzled warriors exchanged glances before a lopsided smile appeared on Kron’s face.

  “Cool,” he repeated in his deep, gravelly voice. “I like that, Jack.” He nodded his horned head. “You and I are cool.”

  The Guardian turned and walked back to his standard position by the gate that served as the entrance to Blackmoor Cove.

  Yet Lex’s father continued to scrutinize Jack, and it made him angry.

  “Look, I know you have your own personal demons to deal with, and you can be suspicious all you want. As long as you don’t get in my way, I don’t really care. Now, are you going to continue to train me or was coming out here this morning a waste of time?”

  Jack practically heard Harrak grinding his teeth.

  “In the Sparring Yard. Now,” was all the old man said.

  The bygone Hero did not go easy on Jack and they both beat each other down to 1 HP, over and over. He knew it was another exercise in cathartic release, but Jack chose to make today’s lesson about composure. He took a few powerful hits to his shield from the enraged old hero before he unequipped it for more practice with only his blade. With Lex designed to take the hits, and now Alt’s new ability to become different monsters, he felt the need to start moving away from the shield to see if he could specialize in doing more damage.

  After his intense training by the Wall, Jack met Lex for a quick crab salad breakfast before heading into the Tower.

  Floor 1’s layout consisted of narrow corridors made of glass, over a black linoleum tile ground, and they could see everything through the transparent walls. The wandering monsters were headless kangaroos hopping
in set patterns among the hallways, and an emerald cube awaited them in the Boss chamber.

  They argued for a little while about the first form Jack would force the hovering spaceship to take. Alt wanted to be the Bile King, and Lex wanted to see how powerful the eyebeam sun was from the previous day, but Jack told them there were plenty of “easy floors” above them to try everything, and since it was his ability, he made an executive decision. With a grin, Jack picked the Cat Head Boss.

  He chose that monster for a few reasons. First, the Boss was huge when they first encountered it, and Jack was curious what would happen when he transformed the tiny spaceship to something so big in a Floor where the walls were so close. Also, it was just so weird, and he wanted to show Lex.

  A flash of light consumed Alt before the toy spaceship was replaced by a beach ball-sized version of the Cat Head Boss.

  Jack crossed his arms. “Well, that answers that.”

  “Interesting,” the floating cat head said using Alt’s voice while his big green eyes scanned the surroundings.

  “I don’t know if I want to laugh or scream,” Lex said.

  Jack let out a small chuckle. “I’ve never seen you have facial expressions, Alt. Say something else.”

  The hovering, orange cat head turned to face him. “I’m curious about its combat abilities,” the cat said with his stubby mouth, his eyes squinting a little. “I have a wide area fear attack at my disposal, and I can launch energy projectiles out of my eyes, it appears. Not a lot of damage or defense, however.”

  Jack reached his hand out slowly to his artificial friend. Alt’s huge cat eyes tracked his movements, but the giant furry head held still while Jack stroked his whiskers with the back of his knuckles.

  “Who’s a good kitty?” Jack asked in a deep, patronizing voice.

  Alt’s large eyes turned to Lex for support.

  The blonde Hero folded her arms under her chest. “Shall I leave you two alone and clear the Floor myself?”

  Jack shot her a smile and then pointed down the glass corridor that led into the transparent maze.