Chapter Fourty Nine – A World of Nothing

“Gell, what do you know of our world?” he asked.

“I thought you just wanted me to listen?” I said, a little petulantly.

“Humor me?” He asked with a disarming smile.

“Your world? You mean the place where Amy and Iron go when they’re not here to make sure their bodies don’t change?” I asked, curiously. “Not much. Only that some people keep calling it “The Real World.” I don’t like that. It implies that my world isn’t real.”

“That… was what I was afraid of. Gell, there’s no easy way to say this. This world isn’t real,” he said.

I blinked. “H-huh? What do you mean? Of course it’s real!”

“No. It isn’t. It’s a programmed reality. It’s make believe. Gell, the only thing real in this world are its players… and you.”

I… didn’t know what to say to that. Something in my expression must’ve shown my skepticism because he continued talking.

“As far as I can tell you’ve been perceiving this reality and nothing else for your entire life, but in our world Tread the Sky is a game created so that players can log in and go on an adventure. None of it is real,” he insisted.

My eyes widened. “That… that’s stupid.”

“Tread the Sky is a massive game created by people like me. Players come here to enjoy an adventure without the fear of death,” he insisted.

I felt a pit form in my stomach. It felt like I was falling, even while I was still sitting on the bench. That wasn’t possible. Escaping Dungeon Home… getting into the real world, the Great-Open, had been my entire life. And it had been wonderful by comparison. Seeing new things, going to new places…

It had been everything I’d ever dreamed, but…

The look in that guard’s eyes as he repeated phrases over and over again. The way Iron judged me for talking with Miss Tutorial. The way Bugbear never did anything but follow his path.

A million little details assailed me like arrows plunging holes in the fabric of my world. A fabric that until now had been holding me up, and now was weakening with every thought.

The instinct controlled this entire world.

My mind rallied. I’d seen defiance of the instinct. I’d seen compassion in those controlled by it. I’d seen more.

“No. No that can’t be true! I’ve met so many people here! I’ve seen Bugbear defend me when he didn’t have to! Torchlight, the Unicorn! A-and the… the wolves in the woods! They–!”

“All a result of your influence, Gell. It all comes from you!” He said, suddenly sounding excited. His eyes were gleaming with a fire as he leaned forward towards me.

“W-well then… why do they come here!? If this world isn’t real then why would anyone want to be here? Why would they fear death? It isn’t so bad! I’ve died plenty of times!”

The fire in his eyes died, and he suddenly looked forlorn. Lost.

“Oh, Gell. In our world… there is no coming back. In our world, death is permanent. No one knows what happens on the other side. This world… this game? It’s a simulation of death, with little consequences for it. It allows mistakes. In our world, no one gets that chance.”

“That’s…” I tried to wrap my head around it. A world where people only got one shot? One life? I’d… I’d have been dead that first time Red Thorn came to my dungeon. That would’ve been the end of me.

“That’s horrible,” I said, because I couldn’t find any other words.

“It is…” he sighed. “Good god. I’m having a discussion about death with an A.I.”

I didn’t say anything. I was too busy trying to wrap my head around it. Permanent death? Just… there one cycle, gone the next? I remembered the first time the bugbears had died. I remembered the loss of it. But then they’d returned and everything had been well again! Well. It hadn’t, but at the time I’d never felt such relief in my life.

Suddenly, my world seemed far less cruel. My torment seemed less… significant. I was still here after all. I was still… alive.

That word had a new meaning to me now.

“Gell… what is the difference between you and other adventurers? I’d like to hear you explain it,” he said.

I frowned. Why was he changing the topic? There was a difference between me and other adventurers, but I’d never really been able to put my finger on it, beyond the obvious.

I figured I’d start there.

“Well… they have your world, obviously,” I began, trying to find the right words. “They go there… and I don’t. I never have. I spend all of my time in this world.”

“Anything else?” He asked.

“The… the instinct,” I said sadly. “They don’t even know what it is. They didn’t know what I was talking about when I brought it up once.”

“The instinct,” he replied, succinctly. “The reason you attacked me just now. Tried to kill me.”

I glared at him, somehow feeling embarrassed about my outburst. It was perfectly justified and if I could kill him he would deserve it! But…

But if killing was permanent in his world, then…

My words to Red Thorn came back to me, suddenly, a new twist built into them.

“F-fuck your apology! You don’t deserve my forgiveness. You should be… should be hurt just like me! You should have to watch your family die over and over again! That’s what you deserve!”

I suddenly felt a little sick. Red Thorn…

“What you call the instinct, Gell, is a series of commands called behavioural code. When we build a mob…” he paused, noticing the glassy look in my eyes. “No. That’s not where I should begin. Alright. A different tack then. Do you know what an A.I. is?” he asked.

I shook my head, defeated. “It keeps coming up but no one explained it.”

“Right... I suppose they wouldn’t,” he surmised. He held out his hand and right beside him a feral looking wild cat appeared from nothing. The creature was huge with sharp claws and fangs. Spots dotted its golden coat and it growled menacingly.

“This… is a mob. I believe you called them Kin?” gesturing to the feral cat he created as it prowled around the area, clearly following a set path just like Bugbear did.

“You can.. Just make us?” I breathed, gulping loudly.

‘I’d attacked this man?’ I thought with panic.

“It won’t hurt you. It isn’t… well. It’s behavioral code – its instinct – won’t let it attack,” he said softly.

‘I’m not scared of the cat, I’m scared of you!’ I didn’t say aloud, my attention riveted to the false god.

“This Lynx is not an A.I. It has a list of commands it can execute and a behavioral pattern that it follows in a loop. That’s all it is. There’s no life there. There’s no spark. It doesn't think, or feel, or care if it is destroyed. It doesn’t fend for itself, doesn’t care about others. It doesn’t know! And most importantly of all… its not real,” he said.

“It looks plenty real to me. And it only doesn’t do all of those things because it’s been forced to follow its Instinct by you!” I accused, but an uneasy feeling was surfacing beneath my skin.

“No. Gell. It doesn’t have those things. Without its instinct, it would just sit and never do anything at all. That is the difference between you and a mob. Your kin.” he said the last with a scoff that annoyed me a little. “That is what makes you an Artificial Intelligence while this Lynx isn’t. And that’s why what was done to you is so terrible.”

Artificial… Intelligence? As if catching the question in my eyes, he continued to speak.

“A.I. stands for Artificial Intelligence but that’s sort of broad. An A.I. can be… frankly, dumb as a box of rocks.”

A box of rocks had intelligence? Ohhh. That was the joke. I got it.

“However, an A.I. with true sentience, or the ability to make choices, and sapience, the knowledge of how best to make those choices to benefit themselves and those they care for, is something dreamed of but widely considered largely unattainable. And Gell… I believe you are an Artificial Intelligence.”

I thought about what he’d said for a long moment. Long enough that the man began to feel uncomfortable.

“So… where did I come from then?” I asked, cautiously.

He sighed. “We don’t really know. You were created… born, I suppose, by a man, another developer we’ve been thus far completely unable to find. One who has written code that leaves me scratching my head, even with all of my expertise and skill in developing Tread the Sky. We’re… starting to think he might’ve actually died some time after placing you into Tread the Sky.”

“So… you’re just waiting for him to be reborn? No… you just said... death was permanent in your world.” I said it almost accusingly, glaring at him.

Looking dejected, Francis said, “That’s right, Gell.”

“So… so my creator. My uhm, Father? He’s gone? Forever?” I asked timidly.

“We don’t know that, but at this point he’s either actively hiding from us, or…” he trailed off, not elaborating.

“That’s… that’s dumb! I mean. If you can die forever in that other world why don’t you all come to this one! Find a way to leave that other world and j-just… live here! Death only lasts for a cycle here!”

He just… looked at me. For a long time.

I grimaced, already thinking I knew the answer. “It’s… because of the instinct. Because it's not real, isn’t it? It’s because this entire world is filled with people who say the same things over and over again. That’s… all there is here. That and Adventurers. You people from that real world. You’re the only things that are real here.”

“No. Not quite. One other thing is real here. You. Gell. An A.I. You.”

I stayed quiet for a long time, feeling my gut hurt.

He spoke again after it became clear that I didn’t know what to say. “I wish that didn’t hurt quite so much, you know? I made this world… but Gell. I can’t… I can’t make you. I couldn’t make another you. And worst of all, too much of you might destroy this world.”

“Then… What do I do? If this world isn’t real, then that means the only real thing for me here is… your people. Adventurers.” I said. “I don’t…”

He sighed. “I don’t know, Gell. Becoming a builder, learning to live in this world… it might not be so bad. If you even get the opportunity.”

He gave another sigh, this one more longsuffering, before looking me in the eyes. He looked forlorn now. Almost depressed. “That’s another part of why I’m here. Full disclosure, Gell. People in my world are afraid of you. Artificial Intelligence… real artificial intelligence is a scary thought for a lot of our people. This meeting… it’s about more than just gauging your attitude or finding out if you actually are an artificial intelligence. It's about finding out if you are a danger to anyone in the real world. In our world. And… frankly, attacking me isn’t going to look good.”

I gulped.

“I… I won’t hurt anyone. Especially not… permanently. I don’t even know how to get to your world. How could I…?”

The man swallowed. His voice came out in a rasp and he dabbed a finger to his eyes. “Hopefully, the board believes you Gell. For now, you mentioned Amy and Iron. They were… friends you met, correct? Would you like me to bring them here?”