The Game (5 page)

  “But not all of us,” Alex said with pain in her voice.

  Lilith closed her eyes. “No. Not all of you,” she agreed. “Some of the Gamers I sponsor climb high; they gain the attention of the world. They become superstars.” She opened her eyes and rested them sadly on Alex. “Sometimes they spend all of their credits on plays. Sometimes, they fail out of the Game.”

  “And then you just cut your losses and abandon them?” Alex asked with sharp scorn in her voice. After her last play Lilith hadn’t even agreed to see her. She had simply had a servant hand Alex a ticket that arranged for transportation to this school. All of the pain, suffering, and torment she had experienced this past year was because Lilith had put her here, and she couldn’t help but be angry at her old Patron for that.

  Lilith’s eyes grew glassy. “My dear girl, I did the best I could for you. If we are going to have any chance moving forward it’s important for you to believe that.”

  Lilith held out her hand and one of her security guards produced a pair of video glasses. She held the glasses in her hands and stared sadly at Alex, looking as if she wanted to say something, but no words came out. Finally she held out the video glasses to Alex, who took them.

  “When your avatar died in childbirth, I pulled in every favour that I’ve ever banked in the past 20 years to get you into the very best institution available to you. I had almost no time to get the deal done, since you went from hero to zero in just a few minutes, so unfortunately I couldn’t see you when you called on me. I did it, by the way. Got you into the very best institution available.”

  Alex laughed out loud, the tears coming freely now. “Oh, my god, you must be kidding me! This place is
horrible
, Lilith! I wouldn’t send
anyone
to be here. There’s no
way
this can be the best school!”

  Lilith nodded. “I’m going out of this office. Watch the video. It’s video from what goes on at most of the average and below average government-run schools.” She stood sadly and her guards walked to the door, one opening it, the other behind her. “It’s a ten minute video. I’ll be back in fifteen. If you still believe that I abandoned you after you watch it, I’ll leave you alone — forever.”

  The door closed. Alex calmly put on the glasses and began to play the video. Two minutes in she began to cry. Five minutes in she paused the video, went to the Toad’s garbage can, and vomited. Eight minutes into the video she screamed in rage and threw the glasses against the wall, tears streaming down her face at what she had just seen, at the atrocity that government schools had become. The door opened and Lilith walked in with worry on her face. Alex ran to her and gripped her in a fierce hug, sobbing and thanking her for saving her life. Lilith sobbed as she apologized for not being able to do more.

  When the tears had slowed down, they broke the hug. Lilith wiped her eyes. “Well, someone out there must like you, kiddo. I have some remarkable news. You’ve been invited to go back into the Game!”

  Alex stood there, speechless.

Chapter 9

  Brandon Strayne sat in the back of his private transport, watching the daily feeds of the Game as he drove to meet Zack. Today was the Angelica interview, and the entire world would be watching. Brandon was pleased; experts predicted the largest audience in years would tune in to this broadcast. Although money no longer mattered to him, some of his partners would certainly appreciate the profits generated from today's event.

  His phone buzzed and, as he answered it, Brandon heard a complex series of beeps and clicks indicating that the call was heavily encrypted to protect the privacy of the speakers. Recognizing the unique pattern immediately, Brandon sighed and raised the privacy glass between him and the driver.

  “Hello, sir.” Brandon said respectfully.

  “So formal, boy. By now you should be able to greet your father more warmly.” The voice on the other end was deep and rich, full of strength and power.

  “I’m busy, Father, and so are you. What do you need to say?”

  “Is he on board? Will Zack do as you assured me he would?”

  Brandon closed his eyes and pinched the bridge of his nose. “He will do his best. You know better than anyone how the Game works. There are no guarantees once he goes in.”

  “I know that,” the old man snapped impatiently. “I didn’t ask for a guarantee. Has he spent the credits, and are we on track?”

  Brandon paused. “Yes.”

  “The others are all in place?”

  “Perfectly.”

  “You’re almost out of time, son. You know that as well as I do.”

  Brandon knew this better than anyone, but he didn’t dare admit it to his father. “It’s under control.”

  “Thirty years go by fast, Brandon. You’ve done better than I could have hoped for, son.”

Brandon ignored his father’s compliment. He had learned that unpleasant things often followed a compliment from his Dad.

  “What does the girl being allowed to play again mean?”

  “I’m sure it has no meaning, sir. She did nothing when she played before. Her invitation is just random hype as part of the anniversary celebration.”

  There was a long pause on the other end of the line. Finally his father spoke. “Something in my gut tells me she’s a concern, boy. Keep an eye on her.”

  With a distinct click, the phone call was ended.

Chapter 10

  The studio lights were bright and hot. Thick makeup plastered to Zack’s face made it difficult to make facial expressions and, underneath the caked on mess, he could feel a thin sheet of sweat slowly sliding down his skin. Two weeks of very little sleep, whirlwind press tours, interviews, fan packed parties every night, team planning to decide what power ups to buy for his last play, and a host of other activities had left Zack exhausted and drained. He desperately needed rest, and he meant to have it.

  Right after this interview.

  When she walked in, every head in the room turned to catch a glimpse of her. Despite the makeup, Zack smiled, his exhaustion disappearing magically. He was meeting a legend!

  “Hi, Zack. I’m Angelica. I hear you’re interested in joining my club.”

  Zack could only grin and nod silently as he gripped hands with the Gaming superstar. Being in the same room with her, touching her, it was like a dream. Her parents must have had special knowledge of the future when they named her; she looked exactly like an angel. Straight, golden blonde hair hung like spun silk halfway down her body. Her ice blue eyes were penetrating, yet playful, as if she knew a joke that was obvious to her but no one else. It was a common physical trait of experienced Gamers, young eyes glowing with centuries of gained knowledge and wisdom, but Angelica’s eyes were distinct! Her 5 foot 6 inch, athletic frame was everything you would expect of a 22-year-old model and celebrity. If Zack was a star, then Angelica was a goddess.

  “Shall we grab a seat and see if we can’t help you get your voice back before the world tunes in?” she asked, her perfect smile both playful and warm.

  Zack cleared his throat, still grinning. The wise old man inside who had lived many lifetimes laughed at him, but the kid that he still was puffed out his chest and spoke in his deepest, manliest tone. “It’s amazing to be sitting with you, Angelica. You’re here to interview me but I think the world would prefer it if I interviewed you.”

  Angelica touched her hair thoughtfully, looking past him and focusing on something in the distance. Zack turned around to see what she was looking at, but he found only the darkness of the set behind him. When he looked back Angelica had once again trained those beautiful eyes and that smile directly on him. He smiled back.

  “How long until we go on the air?” Zack asked.

  Angelica surprised him by laughing out loud. “Oh, I do miss being so young and innocent. We won’t go live, silly. It would be too dangerous if one of us said something inappropriate. They’ve been recording us since we came into the studio, just in case something spontaneous happens that they can put on the air. Rest assured, though, we will be on a time delay. There’s no going live on the air tonight.”

  She leaned forward, waving him to come closer, which he was happy to do. “I’m going to kill you so Brandon doesn’t have another pet win the Games,” she whispered calmly.

  Zack jerked backwards quickly in alarm, but her quick laughter told him that she was just joking.

  “Angelica,” a voice said over the loudspeaker, “Cut the garbage. Do the interview without making more work for us.”

  Angelica looked skywards, her smile transforming into a serious scowl, and she saluted smartly. “Yes,
sir
. Just making sure you were paying attention.” Her eyes locked on Zack’s and her playful grin returned. “All right, buddy boy. Let’s get this interview over with. I’ve got important things to do.”

  “Like what?” Zack asked. “What have you been up to since you retired from the Game?”

  “Zack.” This time he recognized the voice as Brandon’s, and he didn’t sound pleased. “We went over this. No questions for Angelica. Come on, you two. Let’s do this thing properly.”

  Zack saluted the air, Angelica smirked.

  Angelica didn’t waste any time. She looked at her list of questions and got straight to it. “So tell me, Zack, what’s your strategy? Are you going to go for the top spot and risk everything you’ve accumulated all these years of playing? Or are you going play safe so that you can retire with your considerable fortune intact?”

  Smiling confidently, Zack shifted back and forth in his chair and answered the question. “You’re just going to have to join the rest of the world to see the answer to that question, Angelica.”

  “Well that’s just the stupidest answer I’ve
ever
heard,” Angelica muttered under her breath, quickly flipping through the sheets in her hand. “Not really your fault, though, old fella, the questions are all horrible.” Before Zack could respond, she fired the pile of questions across the room into the darkness beyond the camera lights. She stood up and loudly moved her chair closer to his, then sat back down, her knee touching his. He liked this girl. She might be crazy, but he definitely liked her!

  “Okay, look,” she said. “I know what questions you can answer. I know what the world wants to know. I mean, four years ago I sat in your seat and did this same damn interview myself.” She turned to face the camera and smiled seductively. “My interviewer was nowhere near as beautiful as Zack’s is, though.”

  Turning back to Zack, Angelica continued. “Let’s get some answers so you and I can leave, and these nice folks at home can get back to their miserable lives. You game, big boy?”

  “Sure,” Zack nodded.

  “For those of you playing at home, if he answers quickly then he’s likely telling the truth. If he hesitates or stammers, then it’s one big lie you’re hearing. Okay, then. You going in as a man or woman?”

  “Well, I thought long and hard about that decision befo…”

  “Nope,” Angelica held up her hand, cutting him off. “Don’t care about the thought long and hard part. We all assume that. You’re going for the number one spot, for crying out loud!”

  “Hey, don’t put words into my mouth,” Zack protested. “I never said if I was or…”

  “Or if you weren’t. Right. We heard that awesome answer too. There have only been two questions, Zack. Even the guy that gets his mother to tune in for him because he can’t work the viewer can keep up so far.” She looked at the camera and smirked. “Boy, or girl?”

  “Boy,” Zack said, rolling his eyes.

  “What part of the world are you playing in?”

  “Well, that’s part of the fun of the Game. You can start in one area and quickly end up in another. Three lives ago I…”

  “Zack.” She interrupted him again. “I turned 22 about three months ago. I swear if I turn 23 while still sitting in this interview with you, I’m gonna do some bad things to a lot of people.”

  Zack laughed. This woman was funny. He could almost hear the audience laughing in their homes. “I’m playing in a developed technological part of the world.”

  “Thank you. See how easy it is if you just focus on the actual answer to my questions?” Zack nodded solemnly.

  “Personality type?” she asked.

  “Outgoing, leadership aptitude.”

  “Which doesn’t mean leader, necessarily.” Angelica commented. Zack looked at her blankly, saying nothing.

  “Did you purchase a relationship package?”

  “Yes.”

  “Lifespan upgrade?”

  Zack smiled. “Have you
played
the game? Without a lifespan upgrade you die around age 20.”

  “Okay, I accept your challenge, Zack. Let me ask this question a better way. Are you going to likely live past the age of 20 in the Game during this play?”

  “Yes. I bought the lifespan upgrade.”

  Angelica rolled her eyes.

  “How will your play affect the Game? Barely at all, which is a level 1, or closer to celebrity status which is a level 10?”

  Zack was surprised by the question. This one wasn’t on the approved list. He answered anyway; they could edit it out if they didn’t like it. “I have no idea. I think all of us want to affect the Game world at a level 10 when we go in. It doesn’t seem to matter how many credits you spend for that outcome, though. There have been young students who become Game celebrities with no apparent effort, while other rich and experienced gamers end up wasting their play as a level 1 or 2 nobody.”

  “Yes, that’s all true.” Angelica nodded as if she was bored. “So for those who like to place bets on the Game, if your answer to this question was to come true for this play… what level would you achieve?”

  “11,” Zack answered immediately.

  “Boo!” Angelica said. “That’s the worst answer, Zack! Do you know how many times I’ve asked this question of players and their answer is
always
11?”

  Zack leaned forward, making sure to touch her knee with his. “I don’t think you’ve ever asked another player that question and gotten the answer 11.”

  Her eyes twinkled. “You’re right. I’ve never asked that question before.”