The discussion with the marshal had been brief. I’d suggested that Finneus take the cavalry to the wall. As much as their sword arms would help, the streets were too narrow for any kind of charge, should the greenskins breach. Sending them out to meet the coming army would be suicide. They were just too valuable to throw away like a certain dippy blonde in a once great show who sent her own mounted warriors out in the darkness to die. Randulf had agreed and my enemy left within the hour. I have to admit, my neck felt a lot safer. The foot commanders were allocated their positions and the order was to hold no matter what. This wasn’t a battle that the garrison could retreat from. Even if they did manage to make it to the secret tunnel, the wargs would hunt them down. That included myself and Sun, though we had a few more tricks up our sleeve than the average soldier. Randulf had asked if anyone had anything to add. None had replied. We were as prepared as we were going to be. Whether it would be enough would be decided by nightfall of the next day.

Although I’d been grafting all day, I was more mentally drained than physically. Though I wasn’t officially in charge of the vast kingdom, the knowledge that in reality, I kind of was, had started to weigh me down. Milton could move his pawns around on the board, but I was the queen, darting here, there, and everywhere trying to tie up threads that would hold the whole thing together. I snorted at the absurdity of a failing business owner being in such a bizarre position.

I finally reached the cells and Scab was waiting for me. The other jailors had joined the caravan, but the filthy warder had remained behind out of duty, which shocked me more than I dared to admit. It was my own prejudices coming into play, nothing more.

“There’s free bar at the tavern, mate,” I told him. “Why don’t you join the others and have a drink? I’ll explain the situation to the prisoners.”

“Yeah? Ok.” He grunted merrily, handing me over all the keys.

I watched him waddle away up the stairs before letting myself into the dungeon passage. “Listen up, you lot!” I called. “I’m going to say this only once and I won’t answer any questions.”

A couple of cells started to erupt with pleading, but I ignored it and carried on.

“The orc army will be here in the morning. I’ve asked the marshal if he would be willing to let you fight when the time comes.”

More cries came and I shut them out too.

“I’ve arranged for a decent meal and jugs of water to be brought down. I’ve also asked him to provide you with feather pillows and straw beds to sleep on. If you want to fight, you’ll be released in the morning. If you don’t, you’ll stay in your cells until after it’s done. I’ve seen what’s coming. My advice, for what it’s worth? Get some rest and get ready to go to war. You don’t want them to find you cowering down here. They eat their captives. Alive or dead.”

I tuned out the hubbub that exploded all around me. After tossing the ring of keys next to Scab’s half eaten meal, I returned to my original cell and conjured my recliner again. With the shouts and screams still in full flow, I coated the entire room in layers of soundproofing, cutting them off. After making sure I had enough space for him, I called out, “Bart?”

“Yes, Mark?” he asked, trying not to crowd me in the tight space. “How are you? It’s been a while.”

“I’m a little tired, to be honest. I’ve been burning the candle at both ends, but you already know that, don’t you?”

“I know that,” he replied, the fake, rheumy eyes trying to convey warmth. “You’ve been performing miracles.”

“I’m going to die again tomorrow, Bart, so here’s what’s going to happen,” I said, preparing to lay out my list of demands.

Before I could carry on, he held up a liver spotted hand and frowned. “What do you mean, again?”

I sat up a little straighter. “What do you mean, what do I mean? That bloody shark-thing tore me up something awful.”

“It did, but you didn’t die. The current washed you to the shore about five minutes before your breathing potion was going to wear off. It might’ve been a different matter if you hadn’t been so buoyant.”

“You’re shitting me?”

“I’m not. You’re still at zero for the number of fatalities you’ve suffered.”

“Holy shit,” I exclaimed, filled with a fresh buzz of energy. Maybe I wasn’t so bad at this after all? “How are the others doing?”

Bart looked away. “Not well. In fact, there has been a complete rethink from the top about the trials.”

“Can you share? I’m all ears.”

“One moment.” My ears popped with his disappearance and swift return. “I can tell you that there is now an option to retire from the worlds. The decision to take a number of people over and above the willing volunteers has led to an unexpected issue.”

I’d only heard the word retire. “So I can quit right now if I want?”

“You can. Many already have after the debacle we’ve encountered. I could’ve told you this a while ago if you’d summoned me earlier.”

“I’ve. Been. Fucking. Busy!” I snapped, growing angrier with each word. My paladin swear jar had already shattered under the weight of coins, which were now toppling from the counter. “You’re realm hopping aliens, for fuck’s sake! You’re telling me you couldn’t just swing by for a cup of tea and a chat?”

“I can only come when called. Those are the rules.”

“You’ve been changing the rules all the way through this thing, but this is the one you can’t possibly mess with? Give me a break.” I huffed. “I want out of this game, Bart. Right now. I quit.”

“Mark, don’t be so hasty,” he begged. “Can I talk to you first? Explain a few things?”

“I’ve been through hell. I’ve had enough. Just get me out.”

“Please? I’ll fetch Honey while you listen?”

“I can just see her when I’m done,” I argued. “Just let me out.”

Bart grew frantic. “If you don’t listen to me, there might not be an Earth tomorrow! Your people are on the brink, and I think that was part of the plan in allowing the retirement of the volunteers from the worlds.”

For the love of god. It was bad enough having the pressure of Kherrash on my shoulders. Now Bart was telling me a few billion more were relying on me. It was too much and I started to laugh. “Yeah, sure. Why not? Get me my dog. And I want a plate of fresh chicken for her too.”

“Done!”

In less than a second, they were back and my deranged laughter gave way to tears of joy. Honey bounded on to my lap, knocking the plate of meat flying, where it smashed on the floor, scattering chicken breast to the four corners. She was a flurry of tongue and wagging tail as she gave me doggy kisses. Bart surreptitiously replaced the meat with a fresh plate and sat it on a small side table he created, making the cell even more cramped. I hugged my dog tight, breathing in her scent. “Have you been a good girl?” I husked, barely able to get the words out. She barked once, and in the confines of the cell it was deafening.

“Enough of this,” Bart grumbled, and we were transported to the safe room of the tutorial dungeon.

I took the opportunity to stretch my legs out and summon a second chair beside me for Honey to perch on. I’ll give her her due, she didn’t dive on the meat, as if she knew it was coming and wanted me to feed it to her. I slipped the first chunk into her mouth and turned to Bart. “Go on then. But hurry up, I want to be out of this godforsaken game as soon as possible.”

“That’s just the thing, Mark. It isn’t a game. These worlds exist.”

I stared at him as if he was touched in the head. “Yeah, right. Goblins and spider queens. Wargs and demons. I may be low on wisdom, but I’m not a complete idiot.”

“I’m serious. The people you’re helping are alive. The lives you save are real people.”

“What? That’s bullshit! How can…” I spluttered, my words all tangled. “I don’t know… how could however many of us who volunteered all be in the same world? I think I’d have noticed if other morons were wandering around, getting themselves killed too.”

“You haven’t been killed yet.”

“You know what I mean,” I replied bluntly.

“Where is it you think we come from, Mark?” he asked as I started playing catch the chicken with Honey.

“I dunno. Another realm you said.”

“Exactly. We can navigate the universes that exist. Have you ever heard of the theory of infinite timelines all existing at the same time?”

“I have. You’re telling me that there are an infinite number of Marks out there?”

“Not infinite, but many.”

“How many?” I asked, unsettled by the thought of hundreds of doppelgangers bumbling around in other existences.

“More than you could count in a lifetime. The more important thing is what takes place within them. Are you familiar with the theory of people making miniscule, seemingly innocuous changes that completely alter the course of history?”

“You mean the butterfly effect. I saw the movie. It was pretty good. It’s like if someone killed Hitler a hundred years ago but even worse shit happened?”

“Yes, that’s pretty much it. The offshoot of the act creates another timeline that goes on its merry way. In some of your timelines, that very thing happened. Hitler was murdered before he rose to power.”

I chuckled. “Good on them. Fucking arsehole.” Bart’s face told me that things weren’t all singing and dancing after the fall of Mr One-Testicle Little-Tache. “Bad?”

“Not good,” he replied, vaguely.

“So you’re telling me all that esoteric theory bollocks about multiverses and all that shit is real”? I scoffed, not really buying it.

“It’s all real. Each of you who volunteered is a butterfly, changing the fate here in Kherrash. The difference is, your ripples are guaranteed to improve their situation.”

“And Cris and the others are here too, but not here?”

“As I said during our first meeting, you inhabit one iteration, your fellow volunteers inhabit others. The idea was that when you are finished, these timelines will go on with peace and prosperity. For however long it lasts, anyway.”

“This is blowing my head apart, mate. Multiverses. Real worlds. What the fuck was the tutorial dungeon all about? Wasn’t that a game?”

“It was and it wasn’t,” he replied.

“What do you mean? You’d better start being straight with me or I’m out of here.”

“The dungeon was a creation…” Bart paused and it dragged on for a few seconds as he stared at me.

“I’m hearing a but coming,” I replied, steeling myself for the inevitable truth.

“But the creatures weren’t. They were taken from their respective worlds, copied, and placed in a multitude of the same two level trial for you to partake in.” Before I could launch the plate of food at him, he continued rapidly, “It was decided to say it was a game to acclimatise you to the violence.”

“So Shinara actually existed? Bommy existed?”

“They still do, on their respective worlds. You fought simulacrums, copies, nothing more.”

“They were still flesh and blood, Bart. They were real.” I closed my eyes and laid my pounding head back. “You condemn us as a violent species worthy of death, then force us to prove our worth by committing acts of violence. Do you have any idea how hypocritical that sounds? You’re supposed to be an advanced race.”

“The act of violence alone isn’t necessarily a bad thing. You’ve committed acts of violence on this world, and by doing so, you’ve helped thousands. If you’d joined the orcs, I might have a different perspective.”

“You guys are messed up in the head.” I groaned. “I’m tired of this. And don’t even get me started on how you can dare to judge us when you kill worlds.”

“One second,” he said, vanishing again. A second later he was back. “I’m allowed to explain a little about the decision.”

“Whoopee-fucking-doo!” I muttered.

Bart started to shuffle around, growing more tense at my attitude. “What if I were to tell you that your species didn’t just wage war against each other? What if I was to tell you that you are on the verge of unlocking space travel. Honest to goodness, galaxy jumping, space travel. And with that knowledge, you spread your hatred across the universe.”

“I’d say you’ve been watching too much Star Trek. Or would Star Wars be a better comparison?” I hummed the tune to Darth Vader’s “Imperial March” and Honey barked at me in annoyance. When Bart didn’t argue back, I opened my eyes and found him staring at me intently. “Are you serious?”

“The path you were on would lead you to genocides the likes of which it’s hard to comprehend,” he replied, absolutely certain in his words.

“So you were going to genocide us to prevent us genociding others?”

“Eight billion against trillions? The calculation is a simple one, Mark.”

Fuck! I knew we were dicks, but even I was shocked at our bloodthirsty future. “So you’re a kind of cosmic doorman? Keeping out the riffraff by nuking their planets before they can kick off properly and glass another punter?”

“You could say that.”

I finished feeding Honey and she hopped across to curl up on my lap. All thirty-five kilos of her. I squawked when her paw caught me in the nuts and wrestled her into a more comfortable position for us both. “You’re angels then? Working for God, fighting against evil?”

“Not at all. It’s more akin to keeping a universal balance, but I can’t say any more. You wouldn’t…”

“Be able to comprehend. Ok, I got it. That still doesn’t tell me why I shouldn’t just run screaming from this place.” That was a lie. Now that I knew Sun, Astrid, and the others were actual people, my mind was already ninety percent made up. If I was being honest with myself, I think I’d always known. Sun’s fury during our first outing had been a sledgehammer to my protective wall of gamer detachment. I just didn’t want to accept it, because that meant if I failed, I was literally killing them.

“When last we spoke, you were suffering from elevated stress levels.”

“Paging Dr Obvious!” I called in the small room, eliciting another gruff rebuke from my canine friend.

“Yes, well. What I was trying to explain earlier is that a certain faction within my vessel has been very clever, but I can see right through them. They petitioned to allow those who were breaking mentally to withdraw. That nearly wiped out participation as soon as the volunteers found out.”

“And I’m the chosen one, right? The last man standing. All of humanity is relying on me? That about it?”

“Not quite. There are one thousand, six hundred and eighteen of you left.”

I narrowed my eyes at him. “Out of how many?”

He looked around as if someone was watching him. Puffing out his skinny chest, I took the gesture to mean he didn’t care. “Six figures,” he answered.

I damn near dropped Honey off of my lap. “There were hundreds of thousands of us in here?” I blurted.

“We needed the numbers. The idea being that the humility you all learned while fighting against the odds in the worlds would trigger a golden age of peace and understanding when you succeeded. You would rise to be leaders, benign and caring. Having experienced such horrors, you would never again want them repeated.”

“For an advanced race, you have shit ideas about people,” I replied.

“Perhaps, but you’re missing the bigger picture. What do you think happens when the number of participants reaches zero?”

I slipped a finger inside my cheek and pulled, creating a popping sound.

“Exactly. Earth becomes so much dust floating through the universe for eternity. I don’t want that to happen. I can see so much more in humanity than the other faction can. They believe that as soon as we pull the plug and allow you to go back to your world, the old hatreds will just return.”

“Bart, they’re probably right.”

He grew angry with me. “I don’t believe that! I’ve been inside your head. You want to help people.”

“Not animal abusers. I want to feed them to my rats.”

“Animal abusers don’t count.”

“Nor do rapists and paedophiles. They get fed to them too.”

“Ok, we’re getting off track here! I’m sorry that I’ve lied to you. I’m sorry that I’ve now put even greater pressure on you. I want humanity to live! Is that such a bad thing?”

“Have you seen our politicians?” I asked.

Bart coughed out a laugh. “Fair point. You may not be surprised to find out not a single leader,” he said, emphasising the word with air quotes, “volunteered. They all cowered away when the time came.”

I held my arms wide in a told you so gesture. “Don’t forget that even if we succeed, those fucknuggets are still in charge. They’ll try and claim the glory. What chance do we have when those pieces of shit still float on the top of our food chain?”

“Not much chance, but I’ll ensure they are flushed. You have my word.”

“Dead?” I blurted.

“Demoted,” Bart added. “I think you may be surprised how quickly they would be deposed anyway. Why would the people be grateful to cowards. They will turn to you, and people like you for guidance.”

“I don’t want power! I’m a gamer who just wanted to have a beeping, coin jingling reminder of the better days.”

“It’s because you don’t want power that you are the perfect candidate for power. Or at least some kind of advisory role.”

“That doesn’t sound too bad,” I admitted. “I can ping an email out here and there.”

Bart noted my slowly relaxing posture and a hopeful expression replaced the brow-furrowed angst. “You’ll stay?”

“I don’t really have much choice, do I?”

“No!” He shook his head fiercely in denial. “I don’t want you to feel obligated. That way lies ruin. You must want to stay, as crazy as those words sound.”

I held up a hand to still his protests. “I do feel obligated, I can’t help that. But I do want to help too. I don’t know where it came from. I’ve always kept out of the way of fighting if I can avoid it. Let’s just say something’s clicked in my head. I have no doubt it may unclick itself in time, but for now you have a volunteer ready, willing, and able.”

Bart moved to the chair opposite me by the fire and slumped down with relief. “Thank you, Mark.”

Honey chuffed in agreement and licked my face. “Don’t be too excited, girl. It means I don’t get to spend as much time with you as I’d have liked.” I choked up as I thought of the lost months and years we might not have. But knowing the stakes, how could I justify my own selfish need to be with my friend when lives were at stake? Billions of lives.

Bart coughed politely. “About that.”

“What?”

He looked around again, and with another firm nod he turned back to me. “You aren’t losing any time with her at all. You’ll return to your bed only minutes after the moment you left it.”

“What?” I gasped.

Before he could answer, the entire scene vanished and I was back in my cell, alone, sat on the cold stone floor.

“Bart?”

Nothing.

“Hey, are you there?”

The only reply was from the prisoners.

I knew what to do to get him back. “What if I wanted to quit?”

An option appeared in my vision. Would you like to leave the world? Yes/No.

Bart was nowhere to be seen. “I’m going to press it!”

I hovered my eyeline over the Yes, a blink away from ending the horror.

“Bart?”

I was still alone. Closing out the screen, I felt a knot of dread form in my gut.

“Bart, are you ok?”

Shit. I’d felt isolated before. After losing my furry friend and my genocidal friend in such dramatic fashion, I felt truly alone. Abandoned. I tried not to think of what Bart was being subjected to for breaking the rules. He’d thought it was worth the sacrifice, at least. His own show of bravery lit a fire under my arse.

“Bart, if you can hear me, I’m going to keep fighting!”

I stood, filled with a new purpose. My time with Honey was assured. The fate of my people wasn’t. I strode from the dungeon, ready for war.