Gamers' Rebellion (20 page)

‘Can’t get rid of me that easily,’ Josie whispered in her ear.

Devon appeared right beside them.

‘Wow!’ He stared around the room – at the people, the ghostly apparitions and the gigantic tank.

Mel released Josie. ‘What are you doing here? How?’

‘We’ve been sent to help you,’ said Josie as three more rebels materialised. ‘We’re here to try and calm these kids down before they destroy the Game.’

Mel nodded. ‘Well, get to it.’

Each of the rebels went to the nearest child, hugged them and explained what was happening. Josie hung back with Mel, her expression a mix of eagerness and dread. ‘Any sign of …’

Mel shook her head sadly. ‘Not yet.’

38: The Rebellion

Zyra, Hope, Galbrath and three other clones marched along a white, featureless corridor. Each of them carried a test-tube filled with clear liquid. Robbie had said that it was the best he could do under the circumstances with limited resources. Zyra also carried a second test-tube, its liquid tinged a murky blue.

They approached a corner and Zyra held up her hand. They slowed down, creeping up to the end as quietly as they could. She led the way around the corner and threw the first of her test-tubes. It hit one of the guards in the chest. As the tube shattered against the armour, the liquid vaporised. The noxious fumes had overcome the guard before he even had a chance to raise his arm.

Hope did not do so well. Her test-tube missed its mark, hitting the second guard in the leg. Galbrath threw his tube as the guard raised his arm and fired. The burst of energy from the power-glove seared past Hope’s ear. Galbrath’s tube shattered on the guard’s arm. He managed to fire off one more burst before sinking to the floor. The energy harmlessly scorched the ceiling.

‘Aim’s a bit off,’ said Zyra. She strode towards the wall between the two guards.

‘I’m still not used to this body,’ complained Hope. ‘It doesn’t move like I used to in the Game.’

‘You’ll get used to it,’ assured Zyra. She unstopped the second test-tube and splashed the blue liquid onto the wall. It fizzled, revealing a door.

Zyra and the clones walked in and a light came on, illuminating a mini-arsenal.

‘So this is a scientific research establishment, is it?’ said Hope, looking around in awe.

‘The Designers have other motives,’ said Zyra, looking around at the rows of shelved weaponry. ‘There,’ she pointed, finding what she was looking for.

She picked up a stubby silver gun. It was light, with a plastic feel and looked more like a toy than a weapon. ‘Come on,’ she said. ‘Let’s get these back to the others.’

‘What about those?’ asked Hope, pointing to some more heavy-duty weaponry on the other side of the room. ‘Or these?’ She indicated a shelf of power gloves.

‘These are the ones Robbie said to get,’ insisted Zyra. ‘Sonic stun guns. Energy weapons are no use. The guards’ armour absorbs energy bursts.’

Hope was obviously not happy with the situation, but grudgingly scooped up an armful of stun guns. The others did the same.

‘What about these?’ Hope stopped by a shelf with some old-fashioned handguns.

‘No good,’ said Zyra. ‘The armour’s also bulletproof.’

Hope waited for Zyra to head off, then snatched up a black pistol. It reminded her of the weapon she used inside the Game. Even if it didn’t work on the guards, she might get the chance to shoot a Designer.

***

Zyra and her Outer clones met with Robbie and two more clones in the corridor outside the birthing chambers. Zyra read their nametags – Vislor and Nyssa. The names meant nothing to her.

‘I’ve left one of the Outers in charge of reviving the rest of the clones,’ said Robbie.

‘That would be the Professor.’ Hope glanced at Galbrath. ‘I knew it would be good to bring a scientist along.’

‘Yes,’ agreed Robbie.

‘So, you’re coming with us?’ asked Hope.

‘Unless you happen to know your way around this facility, you are going to need me,’ said Robbie. ‘Plus I will need to get to another programming portal.’

Robbie explained the Game’s growing crisis to Hope as he led them through the endless white corridors. They did not meet any guards along the way. In fact, they hardly saw anyone at all. The two technicians they did run into retreated quickly at the sight of a group of clones with stun guns marching along the corridor.

‘Okay,’ said Robbie, coming to a stop. ‘We’re in the core research area.’

Zyra raised her stun gun and fired past Robbie’s head. An oncoming guard crumpled to the floor.

‘Good reflexes,’ said Hope, approvingly.

‘Thanks.’ Zyra lowered her weapon.

‘There will be more of them just around the corner,’ said Robbie. ‘And they are bound to have heard that shot.’

Right on cue another guard came running around the corner. Hope shot this one.

‘How long will they be out?’ asked Hope.

‘A couple of hours,’ said Robbie.

‘That’s not very long,’ complained Hope.

‘We don’t need long,’ assured Robbie. ‘We just need to get to Designer Alpha. She controls the guards. Besides, there are not that many of them. This is a research facility. So the only guards are her personal retinue.’

‘Right,’ said Zyra. ‘Let’s go then.’

Stun guns at the ready, they strode around the corner. A barrage of energy bolts made them duck back. There were two guards ahead, standing by the wall at the end of the corridor.

‘That’s the entrance to the main lab,’ said Robbie.

‘And those two are going to be more difficult,’ said Zyra.

A clone pushed past and threw himself out into the open, firing continuously as he shoulder-rolled across the floor and jumped to his feet. The two guards slid to the floor, unconscious. ‘If each shot is worth a couple of hours of downtime, then these guys will be out for days,’ quipped Galbrath, smug grin firmly in place. He flexed his arms. ‘By the way, I love this body. So much more versatile than what I had in the Game.’

‘I can see why you wanted him along,’ Zyra said to Hope.

Robbie placed his hand against the wall. A door slid open and a volley of shots made them scatter. Within seconds they were returning the fire.

One of the Outers was thrown back as a blast of energy hit him in the shoulder. Another crumpled to the floor, clutching her leg. Zyra had no idea who they were. She couldn’t see their names.

They continued firing blindly through the door until there were no more returning shots. Zyra picked herself up from the floor and cautiously approached the doorway. The unconscious body of a guard lay on the floor, surrounded by broken equipment.

‘All clear,’ she called back.

The others followed her in, the two injured Outers supported by their comrades. Within moments of entering, Hope and Galbrath had their stun guns trained on the workstations.

‘Hands up!’ demanded Hope.

Slowly, three people in lab coats rose from behind the desks, arms raised above their heads.

‘So where is Designer Alpha?’ Zyra asked.

‘In her programming portal,’ said Robbie. He pointed to the far wall.

‘Right,’ she said, taking command. ‘Hope. Galbrath. And … the rest of you. Set up a barricade in front of the door in case we get any more guards. Send one of the clones to collect the rest of your group – they should all be downloaded by now. And get the two injured clones up onto the table over there.’

‘They have names,’ said Hope, pointedly. ‘We are not just clones, thank you very much.’

‘I’m sorry,’ said Zyra, rubbing a hand across her brow. ‘We all look the same. And everyone is facing the wrong way for me to read their names.’

‘Yeah,’ said Hope. ‘I think I prefer being me, even if I am getting old.’

‘You,’ Zyra turned to the technicians. ‘Look after the injured … people.’

Everyone set off to do his or her appointed tasks. Robbie led Zyra to the far end of the room and placed his hand on the wall. A door-sized rectangle glowed briefly, but did not open.

‘She’s in lock-down.’

‘So what now?’ growled Zyra.

Robbie smiled. ‘I’m Designer Prime.’ He placed his hand on the wall again. ‘Override security system.’

The door opened up. Robbie and Zyra pushed into the room. It looked identical to the other programming portal. Designer Alpha stood in the centre of the room, the portal controls and displays active around her.

Designer Alpha whipped around, code flying across her display. Her eyes locked onto Zyra. ‘How did you …’ Then she turned her attention to Robbie. ‘You! You’re just a clone, a robot.’

‘No,’ said Robbie, stepping forward. ‘I am a person in my own right. And I am now Designer Prime.’

‘Impossible!’ spat Designer Alpha. ‘Robert is, or was, Designer Prime. And he was irrelevant even before he died.’ She turned her attention back to the floating lines of code in front of her.

‘Close portal,’ said Robbie.

The controls and displays around Designer Alpha winked out of existence.

‘Impossible!’ Her voice was a harsh, strangled whisper. Her eyes were filled with hate. ‘I am the Alpha. I am the one in charge.’

‘Not anymore,’ said Zyra, pointing her stun gun. ‘Over here.’

Designer Alpha reluctantly walked over to Zyra as Robbie took her place in the centre of the room.

‘Activate portal.’

‘Security scan.’

Waves of green light flickered across Robbie’s body.

‘Identity confirmed,’ said the voice. ‘Praise be to Designer Prime.’

‘I’ll have to change that greeting,’ said Robbie, a touch of embarrassment in his voice.

From outside came the sudden sound of energy blasts, and the returning fire of stun guns.

‘I am sending a command to all guards. I will instruct them to report to their barracks.’ Robbie’s hands flew across the controls. ‘Done!’

‘Out!’ Zyra waggled the stun gun towards the doorway.

With pinched lips and no words, Designer Alpha strode out. Zyra followed.

In the main research area, Hope and the Outers were still gathered around the tables and chairs that had been stacked in front of the doorway as a barricade. Zyra brought Designer Alpha over to them.

Designer Alpha’s mouth was agape, her eyes watching the clones. ‘Are … are there downloads in all these clones?’

‘Yep,’ answered Zyra. ‘They’re now as real as me.’

‘But … how? I tried so many times. How could you succeed?’

‘You can relax,’ said Zyra to the Outers, ignoring Designer Alpha. ‘Designer Prime has gained control of the facility. The guards have been called off. It’s all over.’

‘Well, that was a lot easier than I thought it would be,’ piped up Galbrath. ‘Fastest rebellion ever!’

‘No,’ said Robbie, coming out of the programming portal, rubbing a hand over his eyes. ‘It’s not over. This facility may be under control, but the future of the Game environments still hangs in the balance.’

‘Of course.’ Designer Alpha smiled, her eyes dancing with triumph. ‘Where do your allegiances lie – in this world or the digital?’

‘What is she on about?’ asked Zyra.

Robbie sighed, looking from Zyra to the Outers and back again. ‘The Game environments are in no immediate danger because the children have been calmed down. But they have been kidnapped, forced from their own world into the digital. They want to go home. In order to release them, the environments of the Game need to be deconstructed and consolidated. We need to simplify the digital world to what it was in the beginning. And such a simplified world would not be able to sustain true sentience. Without those children, it really would be just a game.’

A silence settled over the people. Then a low chuckle broke the silence. Everyone looked at Designer Alpha.

‘Who will you choose?’ she hissed.

‘Couldn’t you use other people in place of the children?’ asked Hope.

‘Who?’ asked Robbie.

Hope’s eyes narrowed and she turned her attention to Designer Alpha. ‘Her for starters.’

‘And everyone who’s helped her,’ added Galbrath.

‘It won’t work,’ said Robbie. ‘The Game is tuned to the thought patterns of children. Adult brains just won’t do it.’

‘We have to find some way around this,’ insisted Zyra.

‘There’s someone coming,’ shouted one of the Outers, looking beyond the barricade to the corridor. ‘It’s okay,’ she added a moment later. ‘It’s the rest of us.’

The remaining clones containing the downloaded personalities of the Outers entered the room.

Great
, thought Zyra,
more clones I can’t tell apart
.

But while most gathered with the other Outers, one of them made his way straight to Zyra. Without a word, he placed an arm around her throat, and a gun against her head … and it was not a stun gun.

39: Alex