Shin bolted out of bed as he saw the sun rise, his lack of sleep evident in his sunken eyes . He had been requested for a talk this morning by the strange man “Jakob” and judging by how the sun was already peeking into his room, through a thinner part of the forest that surrounded them, he was late. He clumsily dressed in his dirty shirt and tattered trousers that demonstrated just how far down the social ladder he was. sadly, to him they were the finest clothes he owned. He had received them as a gift from his uncle and was seemingly incapable of seeing fault in them. The ale soaked wooden floor creaked as he slipped out of the inn actively avoiding a few drunkards that had fallen asleep in the tavern below the guest rooms. Once outside the fresh air rejuvenated him carrying the scent of woodland from the forest, unlike the air in the tavern that had reeked of alcohol, sweat and regret. Shin jogged to the stable’s where he had stowed his cart and horses. He breathed a sigh of relief, the old man wasn’t here yet either. Shin wasted no time feeding and brushing his horses which he had affectionately named Jass and Wren. He didn’t own them yet but he had promised himself that he would buy them when he could. Their trim bodies told of how they were overworked and underfed.

Jass enjoyed the brushing and constantly nudged Shin whenever he wasn’t properly fulfilling his function as her brushing servant. Shin chuckled as he stroked her to signify the end of the brushing session. She had glossy brown fur and was large for a cart horse with a sparkle of intellect in her eyes. That Shin could only preserve due to his high animal handling skill. The other horse, Wren, was happily strutting around showing off his beautiful and freshly brushed coal black coat. Shin was rarely as happy as he was when it was just him and the horses. “You seem to be enjoying yourself” Jakob said chuckling at Shin’s contented smile. Shin jumped to attention “Sorry sir, I was unsure of when you would arrive” Shin explained almost mechanically. “No need for such formality my boy, the others expect a level of professionalism when you guide us. I know that people are just that, people, nothing more and nothing less, so if you would be willing, I would like to talk to you as a person and not as a customer” Jakob said with his wry smile.

“Are you sure that’s alright sir?” shin asked, shifting awkwardly, a clear hint of nervousness in his body language. “Of course, I can’t stand forced formality and quite frankly may have to relieve you from this job if you keep disengaging from my guests.” Jakob said in a clear attempt to pressure Shin into being more forthcoming with his personality. Shin had a higher than average Intelligence but his Charisma couldn’t withstand Jakobs pressure. “I can’t lose this job, too much is riding on this” Shin thought clinically. “Sure” Shin said compliantly with a tinge of surrender in his tone. “Great!” Jakob concluded with his dramatic flair. “So lad, how long have you been doing this?” Jakob continued clearly excited to be talking to Shin. Jakob took a seat on a stool next to the one Jakob was using as he brushed the horses. Shin joined him after placing his own stool at a comfortable distance. Shin’s voice took on a more youthful air as he responded “I started last week, my boss was supposed to be handling long trips like this. He said he was busy and I should handle it, despite never teaching me anything so far. Luckily, my uncle is a merchant and showed me the ropes before he had to travel again ”. Jakob’s eyes settled back into their crescent moon smile that was so comforting to Shin.

Jakob and Shin grew more comfortable with each other throughout their conversation exchanging jokes about their observations of the other passengers and experiences with customers. Shin came to understand Jakob was some kind of artificer who created tools and magics for customers. Past that foundational understanding Shin was at his limit of comprehension. Jakob, in turn, was enjoying talking to a person of the world he had a hand in creating. The boy clearly was still holding back but Jakob expected no less from a type of being that passed every test they could throw at it to prove it individuality, these NPCS were no chinese box or advanced algorithm but rather beings capable of thought created by the AI that ran this world. What that said about humans and free will, Jakob didn’t care.

In Jakobs opinion the only differences between them and Jakob was their home world and the limits set upon their growth by the AI. In his mind the people in the real world had no real fate or destiny whereas these people did. Some were set to become kings and dragon slayers through their personality and the opportunities afforded to them. The AI was using both nurture and Nature to manipulate them into their role as NPCS that willingly filled their function to create greater enjoyment for the millions of players that would eventually fill this world. The thought of the impact that would have on people like this kind cart driver worried Jakob.

Jakob felt guilty for his involvement in the process but had seen first hand how amazing this world was for those that had conditions such as locked in syndrome and quadriplegia. There were 4 such individuals that had lives here. These 4 were known as the Alpha testers. Jakob was even able to taste and smell in this world after he had lost both senses due to an accident in a lab when he was younger. “What made you want a tour of the kingdom?” Shin asked, disrupting the thoughtful Jakob. “Well, the people with me want to see your kingdom. If they like it they will help me make a lot of people happier, a lot of our people are suffering and need somewhere to go” Jakob said somberly.

Shin had understood after talking with this man that he meant him no harm and took a risk. “Are these people from what you call the ‘real world’ ?” Shin asked, having hardened his resolve to understand these people, however, the response was not a rejection as he had expected. “Yes, I thought you may have overheard that. We call it the ‘real world’ but we honestly have no clue what it is, just good guesses based on what we see and test. The people in your world will know about it soon enough so don’t worry about it. In my opinion this is also a ‘real world’ just a different one from ours.” Jakob responded calmly in an almost philosophical way.

The look of disbelief and distrust on Shin's face must have been obvious to the old man because he quickly continued “I won’t hurt you, you have my word. You may think me crazy but I have a lot riding on this and really hope you will help me. You just need to do the tour as planned. I promise. On occasion you may see some strange things and all I ask is that you stick to the schedule and humor my guests when they ask stupid questions. I will handle everything else”. Shin looked into the man’s eyes, he had discovered that animal handling treated Humans as animals long ago and you could tell their feelings by looking into their eyes just as he would with a horse. In the old man's eyes all Shin could feel was a bottomless well of gentle kindness, laced with sadness. “Fine, I have one final question. Why are your people so eager to come to our world, is some sort of evil chasing you, Do you plan to harm our kingdom?” Shin directed his question, paying close attention to Jakobs eyes.

Jakob took a while to think, running his thumbs through the horse comb in contemplation. “We are running, I just hope this will allow us to stop” he began before going into a contemplation again, his eyes betrayed a sense of guilt along with a strong hope that almost suffused his very being. Just as Jakob opened his mouth to give an answer Shin stopped him “Nevermind, you are clearly doing the right thing and after seeing your eyes, I don’t think you are a bad person” Shin stood up and offered his hand to Jakob. Jakob grabbed and shook it. In the future Shin would regret that hand shake with every fiber of his being.