Velveteen (10 page)
He looked her up and down, appraising her in her skintight white cotton bodysuit with its thousands of invisible embedded electrodes, and suddenly she felt as naked as if she was wearing nothing at all.
“Yeah, makes sense, I guess. New Operators — ones who pay themselves — usually opt for the entry-level package, not the platinum. Your dad like some kind of politician or something?”
She snorted. If this poor sap knew the truth of who she was and why she needed to get into
The Game
, he’d have gone straight to Arc’s security and had her arrested. What she was planning wasn’t exactly legal. Hell, if she got caught, this time there’d be no clemency. They’d conscript her in a flash, just like they had Micah, and with her luck she’d probably end up scraping shit off sewer pipes.
“Just finish with the setup already,” she growled, feeling her face flush.
The guy chuckled smugly to himself.
“When do I get to see my Player?”
“You can see him right now,” he answered, and he leaned over and tapped the screen. The image with her specs on it folded neatly away and was replaced by an image of the zombie who was to be her avatar in
The Game
.
When Jessie saw his face, her knees finally gave way.
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ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
Cassie’s story might have remained forever untold if not for the many GAMELAND fans who encouraged me to record it. For their unwavering faith in me, I will always remain grateful. I would especially like to thank my colleagues at the DREGS OF SOCIETY writers group for their input on the book and cover design (Charlotte and Bryden, your help really took this to the next level). And an extra-special shout-out goes to Ayla for her reminders not to dehumanize Cassie or turn Ben Nicholas into a monster. I think—
I hope
I managed to avoid doing so.
Once more, my thanks to the devoted staff of Brinestone Press, who helped put this book together and get it out to you.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Saul Tanpepper is a writer of speculative fiction for teens and adults. A former molecular geneticist originally from Upstate New York, he now calls Northern California home.
If you enjoyed
Velveteen
, please check out his other short stories, available individually or in collected works, as well as his GAMELAND titles. All are available in digital and print formats (
check my website
for availability).
More information about the author and his writings may be found at Saul’s:
Other Titles
by Saul Tanpepper
GAMELAND series
8 individual episodes & series omnibus
Print and digital
Infected:
Hacked Files from the GAMELAND Archive
