Spheria (21 page)

“Yea that’s a good analogy. I will add this: We barely know anything about how the universe works. In 100 years, people will look back on what we now know like we look back on the ancients. It was only a short time ago we thought the sun orbited the earth. And we had no clue why birds didn’t fall from the sky.”

“We’ve come a long way,” said Min. “I can’t even imagine the world without the Internet.”

“The trap is that at any given point in time, many think we’ve reached the end. That there’s nothing else to discover. But history has shown us that we’ve merely scratched the surface and that anything is possible. Ghosts are possible. Telekinesis is possible. Life after death is possible. We just don’t know and thus can’t dispute anything. The best we can do is to keep looking.”

“Life after death. Then you're not an atheist?”

“Technically, I’m not. I just don’t think we have proof of God, but similarly, we’ll never have proof that there isn’t a God. I guess you'd call me Deist. I believe that a higher power exists, but the nature or intentions of such can never be understood. In other words, I’m hedging my bets.” Max mimed rolling dice.

“Does that mean you'll come to church with me on Sunday?”

“Let me get back to you on that.” Max cracked a smile. “Anyway, if there is a God, we are so minute and insignificant that there is no way any individual matters.”

“Not true. He cares about all His children equally.”

“Maybe so. But I think we’d be like bacteria on the bottom of His shoe, praying that He doesn’t take another step. We’re so small and invisible; He’s not even aware that we exist.”

“Are the creatures in Spheria so tiny they’re invisible?”

“No, but that’s not the same kind of experiment. We did ‘create’ Spheria, true. And I agree we handcrafted much of the land, and even the initial set of beings and their behaviors. But it was in the interest of time. We could’ve created a pure procedural experiment, but we would’ve had to iterate it until we got one that worked. That’d have taken much more time, just like that failed universe theory. We may not have found an interaction that worked. But when you've got infinite time, that’s no longer an issue.”

“Well, maybe the same applies to God. Maybe He didn’t want to make infinite universes until one worked. Maybe he just decided it’d be easier to handcraft things and He did create all this, and us. And He is aware of us and watches us, just like we watch the beings in Spheria.”

“It’s possible. One thing I know for sure, we’ll never know, as long as we’re alive, what the actual answer to that question is.”

Min yawned. Max yawned too as if it were contagious.

“It’s getting late. Want to call it a night?” he asked.

“Yep. Will you drive me home?”

“Sure. Where do you live?”

“Well, I was hoping you'd show me your place.”

#

Meanwhile, in Spheria, a violet bubble was rising. The next Source would trigger a mating season. The Council members took notice and began preparations to implement their plan.

Chapter 24 - Pro Creation

“Being made in the image of God, man was the crown of creation.” - Walter Lang

Max held the door open for Min, and she slipped into his apartment. It was stereotypically minimalist, with beige walls, void of any artwork or decorations. A maroon couch, a coffee table, and a couple of floor lamps surrounded the focal point of the room: an impressive entertainment center complete with several modern video game systems. There was no doubt where Max’s priorities lay.

The rest of the apartment consisted of an open kitchen off the living room, a small bathroom, and a bedroom. Peeking into the latter, Min could see the walls were covered by many filled bookcases. Max’s bed was also made. Odd for a single guy, unless he was either expecting her or was actually that anal.

“What kind of games do you like?” asked Max.

“I’m not very coordinated,” replied Min, “so I usually go for the building kind.”

“So you're a Minecraft fan?”

She chuckled. “Who isn’t?”

“I tried to get my dad to play it,” said Max, “but he said he doesn’t like it because it has no story. He doesn’t get that the point is to build your own story.”

“That’s too bad. Although I wish my dad were cool enough to play
any
video games.”

“Yeah, true. I never thought of it that way. You want something to drink?” he asked.

“Yeah, but I can get it. You have stuff in the fridge?”

“I do. I’ll have a beer. Help yourself to anything in there. I’ll get the game loaded while you’re getting that.”

Min walked over to the fridge, opened it, and was surprised at the healthy selections. She’d expected to see it full of beer, and maybe some soda, but it was quite the opposite. An assortment of juice and iced teas took up the majority of the space. Only a small corner held some micro-brewed beers.

“What kind do you want?” she asked.

“Blue Moon,” he answered. “There are oranges in the drawer.”

“Sure.” She grabbed two of them and garnished each with a slice of orange. She walked to the living room and handed one to Max.

“Thanks,” he said.

 
“Cheers, to video games and beer!” she said, clanking her bottle against his.

“Hear, hear.” He quickly sipped the foam off the top before it overflowed. “So, you want to play survival mode or build mode?”

“Let’s do survival. We can see how well we work as a team.”

“Perfect.”

He handed her a controller, and they started a new game. They were spawned in an Ice Plains biome, which was a crappy place to begin.

“Looks like we have our work cut out for us,” she said.

“Yeah, we need a shelter before nightfall.”

“That goes without saying. Why don’t you find or build a shelter and I’ll begin crafting some supplies?”

“Sounds like a plan!”

#

The meeting chamber had been converted into a secluded breeding room. Never before had a seven-legged Polyan been created. The Council didn’t want any disruptions, knowing how the act of creation would leave the members. Wu∙sa paced, waiting for the others to arrive. He walked to the center of the room and checked on the seven-sided body crystal they’d placed there. It was clear, save for three sensors already attached, one each for seeing, hearing, and speaking.

Ga∙zo, the head five-legged Soldier, watched from the doorway.

Noticing him, Wu∙sa asked, “Is the perimeter secured?”

“Yes, we have a Soldier at each entrance. Nobody but the other Leaders can gain access.”

“Good. Please see to it that it remains that way.”

“I have my best Soldiers on it. You can trust us. We never fail.”

“I know. It’s just my nature to worry.”

“Is that why they left you here?”

Wu∙sa hadn’t made the connection but slumped, knowing it was probably true.
Maybe so
, he thought. “I'm here to ensure things are set up right,” he said. “Can you let me know when the Source turns violet?”

Ga∙zo replied, “As you wish.” After which he left, knowing full well everyone would be able to ‘feel’ when the season started. It was just an excuse to get rid of him.

#

Max moved his avatar toward the nearest mountain and walked along it. It was relatively standard, but at the edge of a frozen lake, he found an indented area, like a wide open cave. “Check this out. What do you think about this?”

Min looked at his side of the screen. “That’ll make a perfect shelter.”

“Agreed.”

He began mining some rock from a nearby hill, then returned to the cave to close it with walls. He left a space to walk through.

“I need a door,” he said.

“I’m on it,” replied Min, who was crafting materials out of wood.

She had cut down the few trees and had managed to build a workbench. On this, she crafted torches, and also was able to create a door. She carried all this over to Max’s location and installed the door in the opening that he’d left. Then their avatars met inside the cave. It grew dark.

She hung up 4 torches and lit them. The hollow filled with light but was cold and barren. The hiss of a creeper could be heard outside.

“This isn't a home!” she exclaimed.

“What do you mean?” he asked.

“We need some rugs, some plants, and some lovely wall hangings or pictures.”

Max looked at her, then he looked around his apartment. “Are you insinuating something here?”

“Only that you could use a woman’s touch. I'd be happy to help.”

“Okay, show me how nicely you can decorate our cave, then maybe, just maybe, I’ll let you decorate my man cave!”
 

“Challenge accepted.” They both chuckled at this, excessively so.

#

One by one the other seven absent Council members arrived. Each carried an elongated orange shard, about the size of a large leg. These they placed on the floor, equidistant around the clear central body crystal. Then they each took a position straddling one.

It was dead quiet in the chamber as if unspoken apprehension filled their minds.

Ki∙sa broke the silence. “I know we’re all anxious over what we are about to do – to bring forth a god to live among us in our Colony.” Ju∙sa, Me∙sa, and Vu∙sa nodded in agreement. The others glanced around, shifting their weight from leg to leg. “We should all feel amazed and empowered by this honor. They’ll tell stories about this day for many generations.”

“If it actually works,” mumbled Co∙sa.

“True. This has never been done. How could we not be worried about it?” asked Pi∙sa.

Ki∙sa countered with, “As far as we
know
, nobody has ever tried to do this before. Only recently have we found some seven-sided body crystals. There is no reason to believe that this wouldn’t work the same way as creating any other Polyan. The number of legs shouldn’t be a factor, assuming we can provide enough initial energy.”

“Except that the result is a god!” Co∙sa took a couple of steps backward. “The world was created by the seven-legged ones, not the other way around. We’re messing with things beyond our authority. This could affect the stability of our world, change things in a way the seed god Ra∙ju never intended.”

Silence once again filled the chamber as they considered Co∙sa’s skepticism.

“Speaking of the gods,” said Pi∙sa, “how are they going to feel about a new addition to their ranks? It could trigger a battle that affects the structure of our world.”

“Listen,” said Wu∙sa, “we agreed to this at the last Council meeting. It was unanimous that we needed someone to look to for guidance, someone who has a connection to the gods. This creation will be the solution. He’ll be one of us, but also a god. A bridge between our two worlds: Spheria and the Qubessence. This will give us insight we’ve never before had. The benefits completely outweigh the risks.”

“Simple for you to say,” said Co∙sa. “You don’t have to take part in the making.”

“I'm ensuring everything goes as planned, not a trivial task.”

Just then Wu∙sa felt a tingling sensation in the core of his body. The others did also, as they began to stir.

Ga∙zo appeared in the doorway. “It is time.”

#

Min proceeded to create some nice beds, right next to each other. She added a window, created four paintings, placed the workbench, and added a furnace. The place was looking quite livable now.

Meanwhile, Max had been crafting some weapons and gave her a bow, and for himself, he made a sword and some armor.

“Did we just stereotype ourselves?” he asked.

“I think so. Even in a virtual world, we play the roles society dictates to us.”

“Hmm,” mused Max. “Next time, I’m going to be the woman.”

“Great, I get to kill things. Just what I’m good at.”

“Okay, maybe not. But I like the place. Feel free to spruce up my apartment if you want.”

“Tomorrow,” said Min. She moved her avatar to the bed and went to sleep. Max followed her and lay down next to her. The screen dimmed.

#

“The Source is violet,” Ga∙zo said.

“Thank you,” replied Wu∙sa, although they already knew it.

Wu∙sa was about to tell everyone to begin, but nature took its course.

The others began to gyrate in slow circles, first clockwise and then counterclockwise. The more they moved, the more glow their cores emitted, filling the room with a soft violet light. They could feel the mounting sensation as if their life force was exceeding its capacity. They
needed
a vessel to deposit the excess.

Each Polyan, when the time felt right, touched the base of its body onto a point of the orange shard below. Their energy flowed into the crystals, making them glow. With the little bit of strength they had left, they each attached these legs to the large body core. Then they collapsed upside down, exhausted. The life force in each leg was drawn into the transparent core, turning it solid with violet color.

The ritual was complete.
But nothing happened.

#

Max paused the game, placed his controller on the coffee table and leaned back on the couch. Min did the same. They watched their avatars lying in bed. Min turned to Max to ask him why he had paused it, but before she could speak, his lips were upon hers. They made out for a while on the couch, giddy and tingling sensations coursing through their bodies.