Chapter 50: Harmony and Dissonance

Hugh expected things to become awkward once they hung up, but Frankie immediately turned and threw his arms around his neck.

"You were wonderful," Frankie exclaimed, squeezing the life out of him for a moment before pulling back to look at Hugh from an arm's length away. "Seriously. I was thinking you'd spend twenty minutes giving them a few pointers and answer a few questions, but you just spent three hours telling them absolutely everything! I was going through my Book along with you and I couldn't find a single thing you skipped over."

"Not quite everything," Hugh temporized. "I saved a few things for myself, but they're your people, Doc. If I'm going to do right by you, then I need to do right by them, too. Yeah? Besides, it's one thing to say people can easily return to their regularly scheduled lives after they log in, but it's another to leave them without a road map. That's like dropping kids off on a street corner and telling them to find their own way home. I'd help anyone in that situation if I could."

"And you did, when a naked stranger came running into your life," Frankie said with a self-depreciating laugh.

"What can I say? I'm a sucker for hot guys wearing mud." Hugh expected to get hit for that and he did—Frankie punched his shoulder in mock indignation, Dex smacked the back of his head, and Justin kicked the side of his boot. "Hey! I'm just being honest!"

"Do you have any plans right now?" Frankie asked to change the subject. "Your throat has to be hurting after talking so long. We could go to the Food Court for an early lunch?"

"If you don't mind waiting a few minutes, that'd be good. I need to check my email first to see if my buyers have messaged back."

"Would it be okay if I didn't come?" Dex interjected. "I should check in with the Navigators' Union and turn in a report."

"Oh, me, too!" Justin added. "We should go together if they don't mind doing without us for about an hour."

"Navigators' Union?" Hugh repeated. "Was that in the Book?"

Dex shook his head as if Hugh had said something juvenile. "No, it's not something that will affect your gameplay. The Navigators' Union exists because it's been foreseen many players will abandon their Navigators as soon as they reach Nexus and settle in. It's a place unwanted Navigators can go to be reassigned to public works tasks and to fill in gaps in services where players are lacking. They'll want to know both you and Doctor Jones have accepted us and found roles we can fill in your lives."

"If you hadn't come back for me, I'd have gone there in a few days to see where I was needed," Justin told Frankie. "It's not what I would have preferred, but the Union would have taken care of me until you accepted me. If you never did, that would have been okay, too. Navigators are never without purpose."

"I'm glad the system doesn't just unmake you if your players don't want you," Frankie said. "That would seem wrong somehow."

Justin snorted and shook his head, much like Dex had. "If the city has no use for us, we do go into cryogenic sleep and our system resources are reallocated by the Navigator Core for use elsewhere, but we're not erased. No, don't look so disturbed, Frankie. Being linked to the Core means we're kept up to date on what's going on throughout Thrive, so we can reenter society without missing a step if our player suddenly shows up for us. It's not painful or traumatic for us. I don't think I'd even get emotional if it happened to me. It simply is."

"The Union does serve another function, although we don't usually tell players about it up front unless they ask," Dex admitted in a cautious tone. "If we deem our player a potential threat to public safety in Nexus, we can go there to report them before they actually commit any crimes. Of course, we can't do anything else since any action would be superseding human authority, but it'll be on record if the player ever did commit a crime. I'm only telling you this because your Empathy stat is so high. I don't want you to feel I intentionally lied to you by omission."

"I appreciate that," Hugh said. "I have no problem with you reporting in as often as you feel the need. Will you be able to find me again when you're done?"

"I have an internal compass that always points straight to you," he replied. "Finding you shouldn't be a problem."

"One, no—two more questions. What happens if I die here in Nexus and what do you want to eat if it's available?"

"You'll respawn in the last place you saved. Since it was a hotel, you'll wake up in their recovery room. And I'm fine with whatever you get. I'm not picky."

"What the hell?" Frankie spluttered. "What kind of questions were those?"

Hugh raised an eyebrow at him. "Ones I thought I should know? I'm not planning on dying, but it makes sense to ask so I know what to expect if I get hit by a car or something stupid. And it's only polite to ask his preferences. Isn't it?"

"Yes, but that was a very blasé way of asking a serious question. 'What happens if I die and what do you want to eat?' Seriously? Those two questions should not be asked together in the same sentence."

Hugh laughed. "Sorry, Doc. Dex told me I'm a little weird in how I'm able to keep it in my head this is a game. I guess I didn't really think how it'd sound to someone who... uh... doesn't."

"Hugh's Magic affinity is very high," Dex bragged to Justin.

"Hmm, I don't know Frankie very well yet, but I'm thinking he's leaning toward Tech," the other Navigator replied. "Then again, he might be fifty-fifty on Tech and Magic. I'll have to wait a little longer to know for sure. He might surprise us all and be a total Neutral."

Frankie put his hands on his hips and glared at Hugh. "Do you know what they're talking about?"

"Why am I the one in trouble?" Hugh asked, throwing his hands up in surrender. "But yes, I know. The game has three routes through it—Magic, Tech, and Neutral. The Magic or Explorer's route are for guys like me who have no issue seeing this as a game and treating it like one. Tech or Builder's route are for guys who know it's a game, but need it to follow real world rules and make sense. Neutral is for civilians who don't want to admit they're in a game at all."

"Basic, but comprehensive summary," Justin praised with a bob of his head. "You're going to have fun with that one, Dex."

Frankie slowly relaxed as his expression grew thoughtful. "You didn't mention this to the Group. Is that one of the things you held back?"

"Do they need to know? I don't see how it'll affect their choices and they won't really know what role they fit into until they're here and interacting with the system. They might set their hearts on having a magical experience when they really need Tech to be happy. Me? I have no problem remembering this is a game because the fact we're in a game is what makes it Magic for me. I really didn't mean to upset you, Doc. I guess my question was really sudden."

"No, I was just startled by it," he replied apologetically. He reached out, nervously fiddling with the edge of Hugh's cloak, then smoothing it over his shoulder. "I think Justin is right—I almost did forget this was a game. I'm not in denial, but it's difficult when everything feels so real. Even when I'm using my Book, I think a part of me is just treating it like a computer tablet. I'm not thinking of it as a system menu. Death—I hadn't even thought about the concept. Not really. I guess it's something you're already expecting to face?"

"We'll leave you two to talk," Dex interjected as he ushered Justin out of the room.

Hugh waited until they were gone to reply, "Yeah. Dying is part of gaming. You screw up, die, respawn, and try again. I wouldn't be able to do it in the real world, but in here? I'm not scared when I know death isn't permanent and the penalty isn't heavy. I think that's why I've been feeling a lot more confident lately. I never would have had the guts to talk to a guy like you in the real world. I would have been too terrified of making a mistake and embarrassing myself. In here... I dunno. I'm me, but I'm not. It's like I'm playing the avatar of the person I wish I could be."

"Well, it might be too early for me to judge, but I do like what I've seen so far of your avatar."

"Thanks, Doc. I like yours, too." Determined not to show how hard it was to say such words, Hugh got up and busied himself at the computer terminal.