Creator’s Game

Hugo left Feather City for Oddbird’s Rest. A teleporter trip cost about 60 gold, which was cheap all things considered. The cost scaled with the mass of the transport, so one person such as him wasn’t heavy. 

Once there, he walked down several streets in search of a shop called the Celestial Needle. 

It was supposed to be a higher end shop for all kinds of clothing, both custom and premade. Aurelia wanted to outfit him accordingly. She always had an eye for fashion. 

One the way, Hugo also spent time observing those around him. And he started to notice something now that he had been granted the Heart’s Eye. 

He passed no shortage of shirtless individuals on his way, and without exception, all of them had a Heart’s Eye, meaning they were all Celestials. Even the women were wearing clothes that allowed one to see the crystalline eye just above their cleavage.

He tilted his head before suddenly looking down. 

There had been a slice in his shirt from plunging the knife into his heart, but now, that slice had been widened, the fabric having been degraded, almost incinerated. And peeking through was his Heart’s Eye.

“Hm, wonder why it tore. Seems like shirts aren’t the norm for Celestials though. Whatever’s going on, this eye doesn’t like being covered up.”

Hugo shrugged while continuing, eventually arriving at the store entrance.

Once inside, Aurelia ran over to him, her black hair bobbing as she grabbed his arm.

“Come, I’ve got a few sets that I want you to try on.”

“Alright.”

Hugo let himself get dragged by the arm as they disappeared into a private booth. 

Inside, the hooks were filled and the benches were covered with dozens of garments. He chuckled a bit. 

“A few, huh?”

“Hey now, you need to have a variety just as great as in the real world. Not that you don’t wear the same thing everyday anyway.”

“Keeps it simple. I didn’t have the capacity to bother with my fashion sense. I was too focused on everything else I needed to think about.”

“Well, gone are the 20 hour days of ceaseless innovative labor. You get to do whatever you want now and I think you should take some pride in your fashion sense. There’s only one issue though. Celestials don’t really wear shirts due to their Heart’s Eye. It releases waste energy like how we exhale, so anything in front of it gets degraded over time. Thankfully it’s also the strongest part of your body so exposing it isn’t an issue even in battle. And the Celestials know this so their clothing is designed around it. I’ve had to adapt but I’ve seen weirder in the real world.”

She waved, Hugo looking around and noticing how all shirts and coats were all made with either low necklines or holes in the chest. Those with holes in the chest often had some kind of nice liner that would sit around the Heart’s Eye neatly. 

She looked around before grabbing a pair, handing it to him.

“Here, try this on.”

“How long will this runway session last?”

“As long as it takes to make you the sexiest human being alive, with what we have here at least. So perhaps a few hours.”

“Hm.”

He hummed and took the clothes, retreating behind a curtain and throwing them on. 

…

A few hours pass…

Hugo walked out in the last combination of clothes Aurelia asked of him, an open black blazer with some black slacks and matte shoes, hearing her purr in acknowledgement. 

“Lovely indeed. It’s difficult to find things that go with your figure, but this works nicely.”

“What’s so difficult about my figure?”

“It’s not so much difficult as it is outstanding. I’m trying to draw attention to the clothing while having it accent your body, but your body is so well defined that it really doesn’t need accenting. If anything it needs some subtlety but that’s a bit more difficult to give when Celestials like exposed chests. Regardless, you honestly look good in anything so all I’m doing is nitpicking.”

“That’s reassuring at least.”

“Mm. Let’s buy you everything then.”

“Alright.”

Hugo shrugged. None of the clothes they tried on had any special magic effects. They were just for fashion, so he didn’t care that Aurelia was buying. 

The shopkeep was naturally thrilled to get such a big order, so it was all processed quickly. They were on their way out with armfuls of bags before long. 

From there, Hugo looked around, Aurelia glancing around with him. 

“That’s right. You don’t have a place to return to. The safe house is always open to you, but I assume you want something else.”

“Preferably. Do you know any places?”

“There’s plenty. House or bachelor pad?”

“A house. Perhaps a future headquarters for a League.”

“Hm, I would just stick small for now. Players are starting to get to the point where they have such large forces that competing for control over entire cities isn’t an insane thought. There are hundreds of places across the Plane that you could occupy in the future. A mere house won’t cut it. So just find someplace comfortable for now. Somewhere for storage and convenience in a neutral city. It doesn’t necessarily have to be safe either.”

“Hm, I suppose you’re right. So? Any ideas?”

Hugo turned to Aurelia as she scratched her cheek.

“Well… I can look around for you. Just hold on to your things for now.”

“Alright. And speaking of houses, I’ll be finding one in the real world. I’ll need something other than the office or the island.”

“Oh! I can help you with that too. When will you look?”

“I’m thinking now. That dungeon dive took quite a while on top of the runway session. I can go attend to other matters.”

“Let’s go then. I’ll log out with you.”

“Mm.”

Hugo gave a command in his mind, the logout prompt appearing in front of him. 

As soon as he gave the confirmation, his body flashed before disappearing from the street with Aurelia. 

……

Hugo stepped out of the Artifact, the magnetic viscous liquid flowing off of him as he walked through the hatch. 

Down the room, another hatch opened, letting out Aurelia. 

Hugo smiled at her before they both left together. They passed the other Heads along the way, still within their own Artifacts. 

At that moment though, Hugo saw something flash in his vision. 

An invisible contact lens glowed over his eye, projecting some images into his vision. It was a message from Tanya, wondering if he had concluded his dungeon dive. 

He muttered. 

“That reminds me. I need another implant. Eve, prepare one for me when you can.”

“Sure thing.”

Eve’s voice echoed in his ears, Hugo’s finger rising into the air in front of him. 

Like that, he traced out lines and typed back a response to Tanya using the lens. The message containing his plans was sent to her. 

It was a fraction of a second later that another Artifact opened, Tanya stepping out. 

“I’ll go with you.”

“Hm, alright.”

Hugo chuckled, continuing to walk out, Tanya joining him and Aurelia. 

The three made ther way to an elevator that took them to an internal hangar for shuttles and other aircraft. 

A hatch on the side of the building opened, exposing the rest of the city beyond, a gust of wind blowing through. On the helipad was already a shuttle waiting for them. 

“So where to?”

“That depends. What kind of house do you want, Hugo?”

“Something a little more modest than a personal island. I expect to have guests, and I don’t need to give off an opulent image.”

“That certainly leaves plenty of options.”

“Here are some.”

Eve’s voice suddenly echoed again, Hugo receiving some images in his vision of various houses. Aurelia and Tanya received the same thing on their own lenses.

They boarded the car while looking through the pictures. 

“This neighborhood is located in the suburban sectors of the Western Coast State Union. This is one of the busier areas, like a city center. More importantly, this place has become something of a hub for players as its right next to one of our Quantum Nodes. Not that it makes a difference for their network speeds, but many have come flocking for that reason. Either way, it’s a recently developed area with some amateur Dojos sprouting in the last few months.”

“It would be a good place to grow into.”

“Exactly.”

Eve concurred with Hugo’s statement, making him nod. 

“Very well. We’ll find a place here. I don’t want there to be any obvious connection between me and the Archive, but that should be easy enough to accomplish so logn as we don't go out of our way to do just that.”

“Of course. Approaching location.”

The announcement rang, and Hugo looked out the window. 

The Western Coast State Union was a union of western states in America. The entire west coast was unified into one cohesive whole, from Washinton to Arizona. 

This was due to the creation of the Manifest Mega City. 

The Manifest Mega City was the first ever Mega City that started in what was once Los Angeles. It spread from there until it encompassed the entire southern half of California and spread into the surrounding states. 

Decades later, it’s branches spread across the entire western half of the North American continent. The city alone could be compared to an entire country. 

And Archive’s headquarters was in the heart of Manifest MC. It was one of the tallest buildings, being the home of the most powerful company in the world. 

The neighborhood that Hugo was brought to was on the outskirts of Manifest MC, otherwise known as the suburban sector. Countless acres beyond the city were dedicated toward suburban living, though suburban in this case was no different from city life many decades ago. 

Regardless, because this place was a newly developed community, it was generally light regarding population and building density. A newly formed city wouldn’t have too much infrastructure, and so plant life still existed here. It made it homely. 

The car flew over into one of the neighborhoods directly given an hour long ride that took them about 800 miles from the headquarters. It was a street lined with evenly spaced houses that had a minimum of three stories and backyards. They were fairly large, yet also expensive. 

Hugo stepped out of the vehicle, seeing the ‘for sale’ hologram in front. 

Aurelia muttered. 

“Seems decent enough. Shall we take a look inside?”

“Sure.”

Hugo nodded and started walking, Tanya following close behind. 

He walked up to the door with Aurelia and placed his hand against the biometric lock around. 

Of course, nothing happened after that. He sighed. 

“Again, need my implant. Tanya?”

“I got it.”

She lifted her hand to the lock, Eve working through her implant and unlocking it. 

Like that they trespassed onto unsold property. Hugo looked around at the impeccably clean entry hall and living room, nodding when he saw the tall ceilings and glass wall that showed the backyard. There was also a wall screen for virtual and visual media as well as a couch that wrapped around a small pit in the center of the room, making for a perfectly cradling and comforting experience. 

Then there was the full kitchen and dining room, more than enough space to operate comfortably in both. Besides that, there was a secondary room that contained a pool which extended from within the walls to the backyard. It could be used as an indoor pool, or the wall separating the outdoors could be opened and connect the two. 

Moving up the stairs was a divided and mostly empty floor that could be repurposed for anything the owner could think of. Hugo immediately thought about turning half the floor into a gym and the other half into a room for Artifacts and other office devices. 

Finally there was the third floor with all the living spaces, including six full bedrooms, the master bedroom having a huge bathroom. 

Hugo glanced around the master bedroom, nodding. 

“I think it’s good. What about you guys?”

“Mm. I like it. Plenty of space for work.”

Tanya bobbed her head, Aurelia chuckling. 

“You said you didn’t want an opulent image. This is pushing that boundary.”

“How much does it cost?”

“A modest 1.2 million.”
“Hm, that’s not too bad.”

“It’s not exactly normal. You’ll be seen as a bit rich. But if you’re fine with that, then it’s up to you.”

“Well it’s not like I’m bringing them to my island. Let’s do it. Eve, go ahead and make the purchase. And activate the Housewarming Protocol.”

Hugo spoke while walking out, the others following him.

“On it. Your implant surgery is also prepared. You can start it at your leisure.”

“Let’s do it now. How long until I can move in?”

“23 hours.”

“Pretty quick.”

He nodded while boarding the flying car, Aurelia clicking her tongue from the outside. 

“That was the fastest house hunt ever. And now he’s in the zone. Come on, Tanya. Let’s jump back into the game.”

“Mm.”

Tanya nodded as another flying car arrived for them, Hugo’s taking him away in another direction. 

Like that Hugo was taken back to his island, the flying car docking within the mansion. 

Once he stepped out, he walked to another sector of the house besides the gym or living area. 

A pair of doors opened to reveal a medical facility. Inside was a single pod surrounded by several machines. 

Although he didn’t realize at first, Hugo had lost his implants while he was undergoing the genetic reconstruction. Eve had naturally removed them so they wouldn’t interfere. 

But it was safe to say that he wouldn’t be going through something like that again, so it was time to get his implants back. 

The main ones were for interfacing between Hugo’s mind and whatever system he wanted to be connected to. Every since Eve was created, Hugo had been directly connected to her. It would be the same once he got them back.

Hugo laid inside of the pod while asking. 

“Just the interface implants?”

“I had a few more in mind.”

“Like?”

“Nothing more than some protective measures and auxiliary parts.”

“Are they necessary?”

“Was it necessary for you to become a superhuman?”

“...”

Hugo just smiled and clicked his tongue.

“Fine. Keep it light please.”

“I’m just protecting the most valuable man in the world. Don’t make the mistake of thinking that you’ve disappeared. Unless I’m allowed to insert myself, there’s only so much I can do to keep your presence secret. And there are plenty who want to see you dead.”

She spoke as the pod enveloped Hugo. 

“Just relax and it’ll be over soon. You’ll get to move into your new house once I’m done.”

“Very well.”

Hugo’s consciousness eventually faded, the machines around him whirring to life and beginning their operations. 

……

Many hours later, Hugo finally regained consciousness. 

He felt good, so he sat up and spent a few minutes waking. 

That’s when his vision flickered, displaying an image of several new implants across a model of his body. 

Eve’s voice echoed. 

“The interfacing implants within your hands are back, as well as the neural link. I’ve updated both based on my recent discoveries regarding human sapience. That neural link is partially biological in nature, almost like a secondary brain stem, and fabricated in house.”

“I can tell. Almost feels like I’ve got another limb back there.”

Hugo’s fingers brushed the base of his skull. He couldn't feel anything different outwardly, but now it felt like there was a direct data stream to his brain through that link. It was like another sense, but instead of sensing the world, he was sensing whatever data source he wanted to connect to. 

In fact, Eve’s voice wasn’t coming to him through his ears, but that neural link. 

Her chuckle came through. 

“You’ll also appreciate the other ones. Organ protection and reactive subdermal armor are the highlights.”

“Nothing that will affect my growth?”

“Of course not. It’s all passive, giving you a few layers of protection in case anything happens.”

“Alright. How’s the house?”

“Completed. I let you sleep until then. You can head there now.”

“Let’s go then.”

Hugo nodded before walking out. There was no recovery process that he needed to worry about as serums solved everything, so he was able to simply get up and walk. 

After boarding a shuttle and soaring across the ocean, he arrived in the suburban sector right next to what was dubbed the Talon Quantum Node, tha landmark the nearby city had been built around. 

A distance away from the house, the shuttle lowered itself to one of the roads, transforming in midair until it touched down on the asphalt road with some polymer tires, continuing like a normal car. 

If he wanted to start a new life, Hugo would need to generally blend in. He couldn’t go riding around in a personal custom shuttle and expect to remain inconspicuous. 

Before long, he rolled up to the small mansion. On the outside, it looked mostly the same with some solid white walls and black steel framing around the few glass walls. It matched all of the surrounding houses well, looking like a generic modern home. 

But internally, it couldn’t be more different. More specifically, Hugo’s new home had been turned into a fortress, both physically and virtually. 

It couldn’t survive a nuclear blast, but it’s underground bunker could. And the glass on the outside wasn’t actually glass. The outermost pane was, but between the several panes that composed those walls was a composite of world-class nano-architecture. A ‘glass’ wall only 4 inches thick could eat a barrage of tank shells more than long enough to evacuate anyone inside to safety. As for the other walls, those could survive even longer. 

All the electronic systems within the household also served to make it an impenetrable data fortress backed by a direct line to Eve herself. So long as she was there, not even the cumulative computing power of the entire globe could crack her security, and that was before one of her limiters was cracked. Hugo didn’t actually know how powerful she was now. 

So besides Hugo’s island and the headquarters, this new mansion of his was now one of the safest places on the globe. As for beyond the globe… well, he hadn’t visited space in a little while. The Archive’s space program had been relatively inactive recently due to the game. 

Stepping inside the mansion, Hugo filled his lungs with fresh air. It was all perfect, as dictated by the Housewarming Protocol. 

The floors were warm when he took off his shoes, the fabrics of the living room couches were plush, the fireplace was flickering with the scent of fresh logs and smoke, and the glass walls gave him a serene view of the backyard pool and garden. 

“What month is it?”

Hugo suddenly asked. He rarely paid attention to these things, especially after his year and a half of training. He simply didn’t know what month it was, let alone what day. 

An image of Eve appeared on a couch in his vision, bundled up in a thick winter sweater with a steaming hot mug of hot cocoa in her hands. She sipped before speaking. 

“The day is Saturday, January 10th, 2099. The weather outside is a cool 55 degrees with no overcast, dipping to the mid 30s later this evening. Upcoming projections include a chance of precipitation, but nothing more than drizzling as we head into the new week.”

“Hm.”

Hugo nodded, a few panels of information flittering through his vision before disappearing. 

“A new year, huh? It won’t be long before the turn of the 23rd century.”

“A mere year, but in only that short amount of time things will look far different than they do now. Would you like to see it?”

“...”

Her question made Hugo go silent for a while before he nodded. 

He walked over and sat by Eve’s side as she pulled out a screen, showing it to him. 

On it was an image of a human brain. Not just one, but the overlapping conglomeration of every brain they had ever scanned, including every brain within every Artifact they had released. 

Over 100 million scans were contained within this single image, and in the center, barely indistinguishable, was a small sliver that looked like a spark. 

It flickered with an orange-gold color, and from an omniscient view like the one on the screen, every neuron, every thought going through all those brains seemed to point to that one spark. 

“The Spark exists elsewhere. I’m still generating the mathematical models, but without a doubt, this Spark right here is the key to human sapience.”

“...It’s amazing.”

Hugo was enamored, staring as his mind flashed with thousands of thoughts at any given moment. 

The Spark of intelligent life, its source. It was there. He almost didn’t want to believe it had been discovered so soon, but there it was. 

His heart thrummed in excitement. Suddenly, he wanted to put everything down and focus all his efforts on cracking those secrets. 

He turned to Eve.

“Can I do anything?”

“Not yet. Give me time to run these models and collect more data. As we roll out more hardware, we’ll get a definitive guiding light. Once we get there, it’ll be time for you to step back up and help me figure this out.”

“Yes. I anticipate that day. How long will it take?”

“That depends. We need to get a large portion of the global population within the Artifacts at least once. With more deep scans, the model will become clearer.”

“I see… Then there’s no reason to focus on anything else. This is the key, so the Archive will now be fully devoted toward expanding its resources and production. I want you to develop a schematic for Artifact Centers, public buildings for dives into the Ascent that anyone can use for a low cost. And put them everywhere. I also want to multiply Artifact production. Enough to get one for every person on the planet within 4 years.”

“That’ll need far more resources than we can bring in or buy.”

“Then expand our excavation efforts. Get into oceanic mining. I don’t care what the regulations on it are. Those environmental idiots can’t envision anything beyond dirty water. So ignore them. And if they try to stop us, well, that’s what we have Moses for.”

“Understood. I’ll also develop a line of automated robotic mining forces. We’ll also need a few more fusion reactors, but I’ve already improved the technology by a few fold so that’ll be easy to make.”

Eve’s mind exploded with information. Hugo could only imagine how many plans she was putting into motion. 

Legions of robotic workers, fusion reactors that had only been develop 2 years ago being improved upon in a matter of moments, and industrial expansion the likes no other corporation could fathom. 

Archive would be undergoing a seismic shift pretty soon based on a quick decision inside of a living room. And the entire world would be forced to bend. 

When Eve said that she could make the entire world bow at Hugo’s feet, she wasn’t kidding. Something like this was just the tip of the iceberg. 

Hugo muttered after thinking some more.

“Give Moses some new weapons too. I have a feeling he’ll need them.”

“Should I inform all of the Heads of your plans?”

“...Not to the fullest extent, but yes, tell them that I’m planning an expansion. I can answer any other questions about it.”

“Should I come to you when the world unions start complaining and imposing sanctions as well?”

“Sure. We’ll see if I acknowledge them when that time comes, depending on their response.”

Hugo smiled. He almost couldn’t wait for the day. 

Then, he suddenly clapped. 

“Also, this new project of ours. It needs a name.”

“What should I designate it?”

“...Call it, Project Daydream.”