The Reality Engine Ch. 08

"Yeah," Eric said. "Star Wars metaphors provide for a common language with which we can discuss things that we don't really understand. It's a helpful short-hand."

"Life is pretty good," Lady Buckley said. "Are we sure it wouldn't be wise to leave well enough alone? if we don't really know what we're talking about, how can we say, off-hand, whether what's happening to Scott is the right thing or the wrong thing?"

"We might not know exactly what bringing symbiotic balance means," Eric replied. "The phrase itself would seem to indicate two lifeforms, or two societies, living together for mutual advantage, which would appear to be a good thing. However, we do know what some of the steps involved are, and we know that to bring balance, the first step is to develop the sight."

"I am not completely clear on what the sight is," Mr. Heningway said. "I know it involves having visions of the past, present, and future, but I'm not sure what else there is to it."

"It's a function of what the core of the LAVCM does," Dr. Karlov said. "The core bends reality itself, inside a very local geographic and temporal bubble, to open a pathway to bring about the end goal of symbiotic balance. That's why it's called the reality engine. It makes seeming coincidence into design."

"How local a bubble exactly?" Lady Buckley asked.

"In the geographic dimension, a few miles in every direction, centered around the core and Water Buffalo Hall. In the temporal dimension, a few days into the future, at most, and a few weeks into the past, at most," Dr. Karlov said. "Seeing the past is easier than seeing the future. The past is fixed, but the future is always in motion, and is subject to change by random quantum probability."

"It should also be noted," Eric said. "That the geographic dimension isn't a perfect circle, rather, it's shaped like a cone, with a smaller area to the east, west, and south, and an elongated area to the north."

"That's interesting," Crissy said. "I hadn't read that in my reports. Is that a recent discovery you've made?"

"Yes, we first suspected the area was not a perfect circle only six months ago," Dr. Karlov said. "It wasn't until two months ago that we nailed down why the surface area of the bubble is so elongated to the north: Mooslyvania. Something about that land is drawing the core's reality distortion field to itself, like a magnet."

"It makes sense," Eric said. "Rocket fuel grows on bushes there. Mooslyvania has never been normal."

"True," Lady Buckley said. "I heard a rumor many decades ago, when I was a young girl, that a pair of moon men lived in Mooslyvania, and that they had a weapon called a scrooch gun."

"You've lived here the longest of any of us, so you would be the expert on all the local legends," Eric said. "What became of the moon men?"

"They went back to the moon, and naturally, the government covered up their existence," Lady Buckley said.

"I've lived here for a bit over 25 years, ever since I became a professor at Frostbite Falls University," Dr. Karlov said. "This is the first time I've heard that story. Out of curiosity, what is a scrooch gun, and what does it do?"

"It's a kind of stun gun, from what I gathered," Lady Buckley said. "It renders the target immobile for a short amount of time. When I was a teenager, I met several people who swore to me that they had been scrooched by moon men."

"That last sentence sounded far dirtier than I'm sure you meant it to be," Crissy said, as everyone in the room laughed.

"Leaving that aside for a moment," Mr. Heningway said. "How does the reality engine create the sight?"

"That is not completely clear," Dr. Karlov said. "My theory is that the core's capacity to alter reality within the bubble is fairly weak, and that large changes can only be made by an assistant interacting with the core for a long time. The core and my assistant form a partnership, the core provides power, and my assistant provides direction. From this, the sight is a natural consequence once my assistant has enough control over the core's power to have some say over the direction at a conscious level."

"So, every one of your previous assistants have had some degree of control over the reality altering power at an unconscious level?" Lady Buckley asked.

"Why do you think over 60% of the overall student body, and over 80% of the students who live in the dorms, at both Frostbite Falls University and Wassamatta U, are shapely, attractive, fertile young women?" Dr. Karlov asked, with a laugh. "Each of my assistants has been a young, lonely, unlucky in love, heterosexual man. Over all that time, the reality engine realigned the makeup of the student body at both Universities to conform to the subconscious desires of my assistants."

"Each assistant subconsciously rewriting a small amount of reality is why we keep so many dorms at the University for our use, and why we never put a new assistant in a dorm that was used by any of the previous few assistants," Eric said. "We want each new data point to be as controlled an experiment as possible. Each assistant's interaction with the reality engine will create small changes in the area most prominently on that assistant's mind, which is to say, their immediate living area. We didn't want to put Scott in the dorm that Trevor had occupied on the fourth floor of Death Valley Dotty Hall because we wanted Scott to get a fresh start, not to walk into Trevor's version of reality."

"Since you brought it up, why has the experiment gone so differently for Trevor and Scott?" Mr. Heningway asked. "My son called me last night, and was absolutely distraught. He spent a good 20 minutes going over how unfair the entire thing was, which is far longer than I have ever known him to protest an injustice."

With that, Doja Heningway re-counted what had happened between Adol and Scott at the Buckley estate the day before.

"Yes, I remember it too," Lady Buckley said. "I had no idea your son asked two girls to get naked for Scott immediately thereafter in the upstairs sofa room under this very roof."

"It was my son's decided opinion that there is something rotten with the world when men like Trevor get lucky with no effort at all, and men like Scott can't get pussy to save their lives. My son's words, those, not mine," Mr. Heningway said.

"Your son wasn't the only one," Dr. Karlov said. "Right before I left to come here, Lory Cartwright came to see me in my office, and complained of the same thing: why does Trevor get lucky, and Scott doesn't? Remember the key point, the core provides the assistant with power, and the assistant provides the core's power with direction. The core is not alive, and it doesn't think, it relies on the assistant for that. Therefore, in the immortal words of a much wiser man than I could ever hope to be, this means your focus determines your reality.

"Anytime people are given power, or money, or fame, those things don't change people, they make people more of what they already were. The reality engine made Trevor into more of what he already was, he chose the quick and easy path. He did not use the power to seek knowledge or wisdom, he used the power to get women and to enjoy himself, with no regard for anything higher than that. Now that he's in California, and he doesn't have that power anymore, how do you think he's doing? Scott used the power to seek knowledge and understanding. I have to consistently remind him to not overwork himself. What Scott is pursuing takes time, dedication, and hard work. It relies on delaying gratification, and it relies on a man being in control of his own impulses. Trevor's path requires only indulgence."

"What the fuck does that mean?" Crissy asked. "We're consigning Scott to perpetual blue balls? If I know one thing about men, it's that they need to get laid. If Scott gets rejected forever, it will eventually harm him. I know Eric wants to be aggressive with how we proceed, but the bottom line is, a guy can only take so much before a breaking point is reached. Understanding, and knowledge achieved through dedication and hard work are great, but there needs to be moments of indulgence too."

"Also, what especially bothered my son," Mr. Heningway said. "Is that the two girls he asked to show Scott some appreciation were Elizabeth Paulsen and Jessica Merced."

"Lory mentioned that too," Dr. Karlov said, rubbing his chin. "She mentioned that Elizabeth and Jessica were as easy as women got, and that Scott absolutely should have gotten lucky with them. I have to say that I agree with her. I do not know why Scott was rejected by these two young ladies. Your son's plan was foolproof, as far as I can tell, and I do not believe their rejection of Scott had anything to do with this experiment. Something else is afoot on that score, and I can make inquiries to try to determine what."

"We should examine that, with all possible speed," Crissy said. "If it turns out that Elizabeth and Jessica said no for a good reason, it would be extremely helpful to tell Scott what that reason was."

"So, the question is, why does advancing to higher levels with the experiment seem to prevent a young man from experiencing romantic success while he struggles to advance?" Lady Buckley asked.

"The level increasing also disrupts the relationship between the core's power and the assistant's direction, and creates a kind of negative feedback loop. It requires an increased amount of understanding to restore the connection, and to restore the positive feedback loop. No new knowledge can be gained without overcoming obstacles," Dr. Karlov said. "We don't know for certain because Scott is the first assistant who has ever passed level 2, but we think that the higher one climbs, and the more obstacles that are overcome, the more able an assistant will be to control the direction of the core's power at will. If even the power to do this in a very limited way can create trouble, imagine what happens when it's not so limited. That's why the obstacles exist, to make sure this power goes to the right person."

"That's all well and good, but there is so much about the reality engine that we don't understand," Crissy said. "We didn't create the leveling system, we only use it. I see what you're saying about positive and negative feedback loops causing positive and negative real life experiences, however, the question I have is, are we sure that by advancing levels the assistant will always gain knowledge that makes them the right person to be trusted with great power? I maintain my position, it can't all be purity and light, there must be some indulgence, otherwise, you're consigning a man to becoming a monk."

"You know my views," Eric said. "We desperately need to understand this power, and as quickly as possible. That means we need someone who can wield this power in an advanced way. So many in this world are suffering who could be helped by its application."

"Yeah, I hear you there," Crissy said. "Eric, you've always been amongst the most altruistic people I've ever met. Seeing people suffering bothers you in a way it doesn't bother most of us. The fact that you're also amongst the smartest people I've ever met means you have a great deal of confidence in your ability to help, and to solve the problems plaguing the world. However, you have to learn patience, and I know how hard that is for you. If you don't slow down, you could wind up overburdening Scott, and you might create the very thing you so desperately want to avoid."

"Just as your former master once did," Dr. Karlov said. "You've doubtless heard him tell the tale many times, he was young, arrogant, and too sure of himself. He unleashed one of the greatest evils this world has ever known, and he's had to live with that burden, every day, for the last 55 years. Don't let that be you, my friend. Slow the experiment down. If it takes Scott a little while longer, than it takes him a little while longer. It will be okay."

"Isn't it going to be okay either way?" Eric asked. "I mean, he's with Pepper right now, and he's getting laid, right? Isn't that a win?"

Lady Buckley and Mr. Heningway exchanged a look. They were the two new additions to this motley crew. They had both come on board to provide funding five years before, when the experiments had begun. Dr. Karlov, Eric, and Crissy had known each other for over a decade, and had spent many years together preparing for the reality engine experiment before it had officially begun. As such, these three had become more like family than friends. Lady Buckley and Mr. Heningway were playing catch up, and still had gaps in their knowledge of the program.

"Probably he is," Dr. Karlov said. "While we don't know that for sure, I agree with what you said earlier: the evidence he has the sight is pretty damn conclusive. However, to pass level 4, when not one out of 51 previous assistants has ever passed level 2, and when only 6 previous assistants even made it as far as level 2? We're in uncharted water here, and the risks are monumental, since we have no idea what difficulties will occur. It could be just as Crissy said, at higher levels, the knowledge gained might not be how to best use great power responsibly. If that is the case, we need to decide what to do. I'm not asking you to pull back completely, I'm just asking you to let Scott start at level 3 tomorrow. Let's not leap before we have a good, long look."

"What happen if, at higher levels, the size of the bubble begins to expand?" Crissy asked. "That's something that could happen, and which we are completely unprepared to deal with. We're only speculating that increases in levels will lead to increases in the assistant's trustworthiness to wield that power. Maybe, at higher levels, it just leads to more power, period, in the form of an ever expanding bubble. We don't know, and we can't afford to get this wrong. It's the right decision, Eric. I know how you feel, but you have to be patient."

Eric closed his eyes, and he nodded yes to the request.

Three hours later, at a large mansion 45 miles east of Frostbite Falls, Doja Heningway walked into a special room of his home that only he knew of. He locked the door securely behind him, to make sure his wife and children would not walk in on him unexpectedly. The room had a large, circular rug in the center, and its most prominent feature was an enormous flat screen monitor mounted on the wall opposite the door. Mr. Heningway used this room to conduct his most sensitive business discussions over a secure communications link. He strode to the center of the room, and fell to one knee. The view screen activated, and the face of a middle-aged man, with silver hair, showed prominently on it.

"Rise, my friend," the silver haired man said, as Mr. Heningway stood up. "What have you to report to me?"

Mr. Heningway told the silver haired man everything that had been discussed at Buckley manor that evening. About Scott, about the reality engine, about the sight, all of it.

"You have done well," the silver haired man said.

"I am gratified that you are pleased, master," Mr. Heningway said. "I owe you all that I have in life. Being a faithful correspondent is literally the least I could do to pay you back for all you have given me."

"I suppose it is," the silver haired man said. "Eric is trying to push things forward far more quickly than I thought he would. If this young man you told me of, Scott, has developed the sight, then that is a serious complication to our plans."

"Yes, master," Mr. Heningway said. "What do you wish to do about it?"

"One thing I want to make absolutely clear to you," the silver haired man said. "No matter how this plays out, and no matter what turns fate takes, you must not get in Eric's way, regardless of how much you desire to. Your job is to observe, and report your findings to me. I want that understood."

"As you wish, master," Mr. Heningway said.

"As for what we do, for now, nothing. It would be premature to change anything before we have confirmation that Scott has developed the sight. If he has, we shall have to accelerate our plans," the silver haired man said. "Contact me again once you have confirmed that Scott has the sight."

"As you wish, master," Mr. Heningway said, with a confused expression on his face.

"Is something the matter?" the silver haired man asked.

"I know it is not my place to question you, master," Mr. Heningway said.

"No, it is not," the silver haired man said. "Let's hear it anyway."

"Eric is young and naive," Mr. Heningway said. "He's a good man, through and through, but stewarding such a monumental enterprise requires a more experienced set of hands. I am confused as to why you do not simply cut him out of the picture."

"He is also one of the 3 most gifted individuals I have ever met in my life," the silver haired man said. "His youth and naivety will be cured with the passage of time."

"His immense talent is undeniable," Mr. Heningway said. "He could destroy us."

"If he could be turned, he would be a powerful ally," the silver haired man said.

"Of course he would, and you need have no fear, master," Mr. Heningway said. "Regardless of my personal feelings, I will follow your command in all things."

"See that you do, for your own sake and the sake of your family," the silver haired man said. "Contact me again when you know whether Scott has the sight. Good night, my friend."

"Good night, master," Mr. Heningway said, as the view screen went black.

End of chapter 8.