The Well

Tris bade the last of her adorers farewell and watched them fade into nothing. With an audible sigh, she squeezed her eyes shut and shook her head, then cast a critical gaze around the massive, ornate space she’d created. The dozens of milk-white pillars, all writhing with various aquatic creatures, some leaping from the surface only to submerge once again, vanished with a wave of her hand. Creations like those had once delighted her. Now they were another addition to the list of things she had no choice but to do.

Necessity settled like a leaden pack upon her shoulders. Tris ground her teeth and balled her fists, then breathed in deep and let it out. A moment later, she summoned a three-step dais at the far side of the virtual space with a snap. Atop the dais sat a golden throne.

Tris didn’t quite know why she brought it into existence so far away, requiring her to walk some distance to get there. In the virtual world, exertion and exercise meant nothing. Her physical body was safe, entombed, and cared for in one of the Virt pods in the upper levels of Omega Station. Still, something about the walk focused her mind, and as she sat upon the golden throne, she considered the tasks in front of her.

She needed something new, something different for her adorers. A certain atmosphere, something which evoked the trend in philosophy on Omega. As she pondered, notifications flashed in her periphery, new publications by her fellow adored. Tris swatted them away like annoying insects, and frustrations long held at bay threatened her mood.

“Total silence,” she commanded, and the notifications stopped. That done, she threw the frustrations back into the deep hole they’d come from, slammed the door, and locked it. Nothing could or should threaten her calm. Not now. After years of effort, she was, at last, here in Omega, the spectacular five-ringed space station at the edge of the Gracine Nebula. It was the pinnacle of human culture, society, and achievement. Besides that, Tris had accomplished what few could boast: she had become an adored in less than three virtual years. Perhaps two or three others in the history of Omega had ascended so fast.

She returned to the task at hand and crossed one leg under another as she brought a vast cliff into existence to her right, a mighty waterfall cascading over the edge. With a sneer, she dismissed it, then summoned a forest around her. For some time she went back and forth, testing various surroundings, terrestrial and otherwise.

The most recent publications she’d listened to referenced the dichotomy and hypocrisy of fixed contrast, which she found a meaningless word salad. Of course, just because something made no sense didn’t mean it couldn’t be exploited and used for gain. She knew that better than most.

In time, she settled for a mighty river of lava flowing amid a pristine pine forest in the dead of winter. It seemed to fit well enough with the theme of dichotomy and contrast. At the very least, she could spin some nonsense that her adorers would think profound.

Satisfied, Tris leaped from the throne and checked her virtual world queue. Two hundred and seventeen at the moment, all waiting to fawn on her every word. With a smile, she altered her own image to fit the scene. Now clothed in a long robe which looked woven from threads of pure frost, she waved a hand to admit the first of her adorers.

One by one they came, and Tris greeted each with a mixture of feigned gravitas and genuine pleasure. This was as natural as breathing to Tris, who had done this same dance in many a station and platform, though nothing rivaled Omega in grandeur.

Once the crowd reached a suitable size, she closed off the queue and bade them all follow her to the edge of the molten river. She stood with her back to the steaming orange river and her adorers formed a semicircle around her.

Their quiet whispers hushed at her upraised hand, and she spoke in a voice full of passion and wonder. Tris didn’t pay much attention to the words coming from her mouth. The most important thing, she had found, was talking around a topic, rather than about it. This way, the listeners would make connections she hadn’t thought of and attribute the brilliance to her. It had always worked before, and Omega was no different.

Tris asked a rhetorical question to the fawning crowd, then paused, the breath catching in her throat. Her adorers seemed frozen in place. Their faces showed no life, no movement. She whirled around and swallowed hard at the now motionless molten stream.

Absolute silence enveloped her world.

An error in the Virt, a glitch perhaps. Yet her own avatar seemed unaffected, which hinted otherwise. Virtual world errors were not unheard of, though they affected the entire world in question. A silent dread crept into her heart. Moments later, the dread turned to fright. Tris yelped as a melodious voice broke the silence.

“Well, well, Tris. What an interesting world you have here.”

Tris snapped her head this way and that, but the voice seemed to come from both everywhere and nowhere at once. “Who are you? What is going on?”

At a flicker of motion to her left, she spun and saw the speaker walking at an even pace atop the molten rock toward her. A dress of ever shifting colors hung loose from the woman’s shoulders and seemed to melt into the crimson river beneath. Her skin appeared to shift from hue to hue in accord with light and shadow. The features, though, were unmistakable.

“We need to have a chat, you and I,” said A’Vin, a fellow adored.

“Of course, A’Vin. Is there something wrong?”

“Vin is fine, Tris. No need for formality among us, yes? Now. Is anything wrong, you ask? What do we say about the concept of wrong in Omega?”

Tris parroted what she’d heard thousands of times. “Here in Omega, there is no right and wrong.”

“Well said, Tris. Well said.” Vin walked past and motioned for Tris to follow, which she did. “Untrue, of course, but well said.”

Tris’s mind spun, and she was certain, though she could not feel it, that her heart beat faster in the Virt pod. She’d always assumed there were certain power dynamics here, even in Omega, and had often wondered if Vin wasn’t somewhere near the top. But to hear Vin speak in such a blunt manner left her unmoored. She wanted to say something intelligent, something to impress. Instead, she squeaked out, “Untrue?”

“Oh come now, Tris.” Sparkling laughter cascaded from Vin’s lips. “You know better than that. I’ve watched you for some time now, and you have enormous potential. Where there are humans, there is hierarchy. And where there is hierarchy, a few must rule over the rest.”

Tris walked a step behind Vin as the latter led them around the frozen adorers and through the pristine snow toward the far side of the forest. For some time they continued, weaving between the boles of giant firs, their branches laden with sparkling ice which would never melt, nor ever fall. The silence grew too great for Tris to bear. “We often speak of freedom—”

“Of course. Here in Omega, freedom is king. You may do whatever you want, however you want. As long as you conform to the rules, of course. In Omega, we all have complete freedom. The freedom to obey.”

Tris stopped and her eyes went wide. Through the last few mighty trees, she could just make out the glint of her golden throne. She’d forgotten to erase it before allowing her adorers in. She sped up, hoping to catch Vin and explain herself.

Just as Tris reached Vin, the woman vanished and appeared beside the golden chair, an amused expression playing on her lips. “A quaint affectation, this.”

“I can explain—”

Vin cut her off with a wave, commanding her to silence. “There is no need. I once considered creating such a construct long ago. A mentor of mine pointed out the dangers of doing so, as I am doing now with you. Understand, Tris, that is how I view our potential relationship. As one of mentor and mentee. There need be no hard feelings between us.”

Tris nodded, and Vin continued.

“My mentor explained that there are two prime dangers we must not fall into in a place like this. The first is that we must never believe our own propaganda. This throne here shows me you have done just that.”

“Propaganda?”

“Yes, propaganda.” Vin gave a twisted grin. “As an example, we speak of Omega Station as the very pinnacle of human achievement, the very height of society and culture. I assure you, it is not.”

Tris’s mind ground to a halt. It was some time before she spoke. “Then what is?”

The ever-shifting woman took a seat on the golden chair and spread her hands wide. “I haven’t a clue, because it doesn’t exist yet. You and I might not see it in our lifetimes, extended though they are because of the Virt. Omega exists, not as an end, but as a means. Even now, the other stations, platforms, and even planets look at us with jealousy. What will that jealousy produce?”

Tris was so lost in the maze of her own thoughts, for a moment she didn’t realize the question wasn’t rhetorical. “Imitation?”

“No, not imitation. One does not seek to imitate a rival, do they? No, they seek to surpass their rival. To become greater, more glorious, more powerful. This is the mission of Omega. To give humanity something to surpass, or, if you will, a push in the right direction.”

“A push in what direction?” Tris wasn’t sure she liked the direction this conversation was going.

“Well, as to that, many have their own opinions. I once heard someone say that the end goal is for humanity to grasp its own destiny by attaining true immortality, that we might rule the very stars. But you know what that sounds like to me?”

“Propaganda.”

“See?” Vin folded her hands and settled them in her lap. “I knew you were a quick study. But enough of that. Those we rule must not perceive that we rule. When we believe in our own propaganda, we make mistakes, like setting up golden thrones as if we were barbaric terrestrial kings and queens of ages past.”

Tris wanted to interject that, perhaps, the sentiment against the supposed brutality of former terrestrial kings and queens itself might be mere propaganda, but stayed silent.

“That was the first danger my mentor warned against. The second is connected to it. We must be in complete unity of thought and argument. My truth cannot contradict your truth, or yours mine. If it did, we would then have disputes and fragmentation. Fragmentation may lead to division, which may spoil the illusion of perfect freedom and utopia we have crafted. Do you understand this?”

“Of course.”

“This is why we stress that all our adored must keep up with the publications of their fellows, so no discord arises. Our narrative is like a stream. Branches and smaller streams may emerge from the whole without difficulty. Working against the stream, intentional or not, is an issue that cannot be ignored.”

Tris bit her lip and balled her shaking hands into fists. She hadn’t bothered perusing other publications for a few days, at least. “I admit, I haven’t kept up as I should. I will remedy that as soon as we finish speaking.”

“About that. I’m sure you remember how you gained entrance into the ranks of the adored, yes?”

Tris nodded. In the real world her mouth would be bone dry as a quiet dread clawed its way through her.

“It was well done, by the way. A’Beres was also on his way to building his own little kingdom and needed to be taken down a notch. I appreciate your effort, as it spared me any personal involvement. I prefer a hands-off approach when at all possible. Alas, you have made a similar unwise decision, and unwise decisions have consequences.”

“I … I can make it right. Whatever it was, I can fix it. Please …”

A single raised hand cut her off. Vin rose from the throne and approached. “Understand, I came in person not because I had to, but because I wanted to. Like I said, you have great potential, and a wonderful future ahead of you. Alas, I am not the only one whose voice counts in Omega.”

Tris tried to speak, but nothing came forth, and the panic returned tenfold as she perceived a slow rhythmic beat coming from her chest. By this she understood the command had already been issued, and the various systems of Omega were waking her up from Virtsleep. She was being sent back into the real world. “How long?” Her voice cracked, full of resignation.

“Six months V-time, meaning one full year in the real world. How you choose to use it is up to you, Tris. Though if I were you, I would make sure you are current in all the latest trends and publications. Your access to the Virt, even in the lower rings of Omega, will be restricted, so you will need to watch and read without interaction of any sort. Trust me, I’ve seen longer times levied for smaller infractions, so try to be grateful. Think of it as a one-year vacation of sorts, if it helps. It wouldn’t work for me, but it might work for you.”

The throne dissolved along with the dais, and Tris knew the pristine forest behind her and the molten river were vanishing too. The unfairness of it pressed down upon her, and for a vanishing moment, she wondered if she could conjure tears of sorrow or rage to track down her cheeks.

“Your Virt access will be restored three hundred and fifteen days from when you awake, so try not to lose track of time. Though I doubt that will be a problem. I will see you then, Tris.”

Vin turned and faded into the distance, while Tris tried in vain to sprint after her. But the thudding rhythm increased in both volume and speed, and the very ground under her disappeared. With a scream, she fell into nothing.