Page 6 of 3013: SAVIOR
“So you say. What happens if the program adapts and decides to invade the other islands?” Zack argued. “Didn’t we watch a vid where that actually happened?”
“All of the active locations have their own protective barriers surrounding them courtesy of the Dragon Warriors that helped terraform the islands. So, if anything bad happens, it will be contained to a single location. But I’m not going to lie…these scenarios are dangerous, no matter how many safeguards we put in place. This level of integrating real, holo, and virtual hasn’t been done before, which means we will have to adapt as we go. But that’s why this particular island is age-restricted. People will also have to agree to additional terms before they are allowed in.”
“Considering all of the death and destruction on this island, that’s probably wise.”
“So, do you want to start the program? There are more techs and staff members running around here testing the various levels, so we’ll be interacting with real people while we play.”
“How can you tell who is real and who is holo?”
“If we did things right, you won’t be able to tell until the holo images disappear. We want the world to be completely immersive and interactive, so tell me if something feels off or doesn’t seem authentic.”
They spent the next few minutes debating over the game scenario they wanted to start with. They also scanned what the other players were doing, but before they could select their own superpowers, a voice interrupted them.
“Alpha Nico, there is an urgent issue that requires your attention.”
Zack glanced around to see who had joined them, but he quickly realized that the artificial intelligence system that ran the planetoid was speaking to them through the hidden speaker system. Evo was essentially the most advanced supercomputer in existence, but when it came to the Artanes, the system acted like a terrifying AI mother hen watching over its brood.
“What is it, Evo?” Nico frowned as he glanced up at the sky. “And why aren’t you connecting to me through our nanotech link?”
“Something is interfering with the nanotech links in this sector of the planetoid.”
“Do you know what is causing the disruption?”
“Unknown at this time, but I suspect it could be unforeseen effects of the Xenon magic merging with the technology on an island within this sector. The more pressing issue is the creature currently trying to eat the power cell closest to your location. You need to hurry if you are going to stop it before it reaches the cell. I’ll also notify the other teams on-site and send them to—”
“Don’t!” Nico exclaimed before he started to run. “Keep them away from this area. ZK, get back to the transport center and go back to the main island.”
“To hell with that. I’m not leaving you to deal with this alone.” Zack’s bionic leg allowed him to keep up with his friend, but pain still surged through his thigh as he pushed himself to the limit. “Can’t you turn the power cell off remotely?”
“Not exactly. The power cells are a mixture of tech and magic that run everything here on the surface, so there is an extensive process to shut one down. I’m not even sure a creature can actually damage it, but if one of the cells were to explode, it would be bad. Like really, really fucking bad.”
“You said there is a protective barrier around the island, right?”
“There is, but there are several power cells located on smaller islands surrounding the entire city which means they are all located within this barrier. If one of them explodes, the other islands will be safe but we’ll be fucked.”
“Evo, can you target the creature using the satellite defense system?”
“Negative, Alpha Nico. The creature’s body temperature was the same as the water, but now that it’s on land, it is identical to the power source. If we target it, we might end up blowing up the power cell by mistake.”
“Of course, it can change its body temp, because that makes perfect fucking sense,” Nico growled. “Why can’t any of this shit be easy?”
“What I’d like to know is why didn’t you add creature attack to your list of possible disaster scenarios?” Zack bitched.
“Honestly, we only discovered there were native creatures here on the planetoid a few weeks ago,” Nico admitted.
They’d just reached the shoreline when they heard a loud roar and they got their first glimpse of what looked like a giant prehistoric spiked raptor on the small island a few miles off the coast. Sparks flickered and flashed where the creature was biting and clawing at the thick electrical fence that protected the island. The power cell itself looked like a glowing sculpture of purple light coils sitting on top of a wide metal base in the center of the small island. Once the creature made its way through the fence, there would be no stopping it from reaching the power source.
“What the serious fuck?” Zack huffed out in disbelief. “You built your amusement park on a planetoid with freaking dinosaurs? Did you not learn anything from the old vids we’ve watched?”
“We thought they were restricted to the water!”
“Well, apparently not,” Zack pointed out dryly. “How do we stop that thing before it blows us up?”
“We could take one of the boats and—”
“Fuck, no.” Getting closer to that thing sounded like a really bad idea. “We need to stay the fuck away from that thing. Do you have any real weapons available?”
“We stash laser rifles in the patrol boats.”