Chapter 91

It was suppertime at the keep and we were all into our food and our cups when Victoria appeared in the centre of the great hall. There was no flash of light to herald her appearance or anything else. One second she wasn't there and the next she was. Her arrival took everyone by surprise including me. Upon spotting her I basically leapt out of my seat at the high table.

I didn't even get a chance to greet her or to introduce her to my mates and friends. The instant I was on my feet we were gone. When I next blinked I found myself standing on the rocky escarpment where I had originally arrived on Game World. It was dawn here and I knew instinctively that Victoria had moved me in time as well as in location. The air was chilly and there was snow still on the ground. Thankfully Victoria had decided to dress me for the weather and the time of day. Instead of the light clothing that I had been attired in back at the keep, I was back into my original travelling clothing and I was carrying my original weapons. My heavy cloak was wrapped about me and it warmed me as I gazed out at the valley that stood below me, with the early dawn light shining off the deep snow that lay there.

"Good day Charles," Victoria said to me drawing my gaze away from the vista of the valley below and the early morning sky.

I turned slowly and looked back towards the rocks where the cave lions had once sunned themselves before I came along and killed them. Victoria was there dressed as I remembered all in white. The only difference in her attire was the fact that she was wearing a heavy fur trimmed cloak about her to ward off the chill of the air. Other than that she looked exactly like I remembered her: slight in height and figure, elegant in her carriage, friendly and smiling, and very alluring. I smiled warmly as I remember comparing her to one of my favourite actresses back on my Earth. Victoria definitely looked like Audrey Hepburn.

"Hello Victoria," I replied once I found my tongue. "I'm surprised to see you again."

"You are?" Victoria asked looking at me in mocked surprise before letting the farce slip away. Smiling she continued by saying, "I really don't know why you would be. It has been a year and you did survive."

"Is that why I haven't seen you before this?" I asked her pointedly. "Did you actually wait until the year was up?"

"In a way yes," Victoria responded still smiling at me, "and in a way no. The truth is we waited until the threat had been eliminated before deciding on what to do next. In the end my superiors decided that we should stick to our original agreement. Thus I am now here to chat with you."

"What do you mean by 'the threat had been eliminated'?" I queried Victoria. As I spoke my voice took on a sharp edge. "I stormed the alternative Earth months ago!"

"I know you did Charles," Victoria responded in a calming manner, "and we all thought you did a wonderful job there. You certainly did more than we had expected out of you and for that we are eternally thankful, however the threat I am referring to was the Reich."

"The Reich?" I repeated questioningly. "They weren't even on the radar when you sent me to Game World. How did they become part of the deal?"

"They became part of the deal because of your actions," Victoria stated firmly, "or to be more specific, by your inaction. When Teutonic Network fled their home Earth to the one dominated by the Reich, the threat presented by the networks to my Earth and other Earths like mine grew exponentially."

"How was that part of our deal?" I asked looking at the woman with confusion on my face. "I thought your Earth had a bet with the alternative Earth over how Game World was going to be run? What you're telling me now is that there was more to the deal than I knew about."

"In a way you are correct Charles," Victoria replied, this time neither smiling as she spoke nor speaking so calmly. There was more of a sigh of regret in her voice than anything else.

"So tell me about it," I muttered in reply. As I said this I stepped away from the edge of the escarpment and I walked over to the rocks upon which Victoria was sitting. By now dawn had completely broken and the warmth of the new day sun was shining down upon us. Once I got to where she was sitting, I sat down beside her and then waited to see what she would say next.

"It is true that our deal with you and with the other Earth was related to how Game World was run," Victoria started off telling me, "but our concern wasn't really with Game World. It was actually more about how the other Earth treated other Earths. The fact is that at the time we made the deal with the other Earth my people considered them to be a threat to all the other Earths that make up the multiverse. The manner in which they took what they wanted regardless of the consequences disturbed my people. In a manner my people saw the other Earth as a parasite and as such we considered them a major threat even though we knew that their world and society was dying. Our analysts saw that in a very short time the other Earth would somehow create a situation that would threaten the destruction of our world and others. We didn't know what it was but we knew it was coming. We had hoped that by sending you to Game World your actions on Game World and your interactions with the networks would prevent that hypothesised event from occurring. What we didn't know was that by sending you here that we were actually causing the event to happen."

"You're talking about the Reich," I interjected, glancing over at Victoria as I did.

"I am indeed," Victoria replied in a very serious tone, nodding her head in agreement as she went on. "We hadn't expected it to happen but when you conquered the other Earth you actually set in motion the event that we were hoping to avoid. While we considered the networks parasites that needed dealing with, my people considered the Reich as a more serious problem. Considering their ideology and their militaristic manner it was clear to my people that all the multiverse would suffer if the Reich ever reached beyond their own world."

I thought about it for a second as Victoria fell silent. What she was telling me was the truth. The networks might have been filled with idiots and bastards who were indifferent about how they did things and who they hurt in the process of doing things but overall they weren't a huge danger to any other Earth and given what I knew about them now, knowing that their population would have died out eventually and their world would have ceased to exist, it was obvious to even me that the networks weren't really that much of a consequence in the bigger picture. Of course hearing the truth from Victoria helped me in seeing things that way. The actions of the networks were no more than ripples upon the water of the universe. Unfortunately even ripples left unchecked can cause damage. That had been my job to prevent and I had almost failed in doing it. I frowned upon realizing that.

"I'm sorry for causing more trouble," I said apologetically to Victoria after a moment or two. "I didn't know that conquering the alternate Earth would cause so many problems."

"You needn't apologise," Victoria responded in a dismissive manner. "You only did what you thought best based upon what you had been told. In a way it was my peoples' fault as much as it was yours. We never thought you would storm the bastions of the networks. Oh we did believe in you and the skills that you possessed, that is for certain and we truly believed that you would survive the year, but we never saw you actually conquering the other Earth. That was beyond our greatest expectations."

"But I did," I muttered in a low voice, "and that made matters worse for you."

"It did and it didn't," Victoria replied with confidence. "It surprised us when you did conquer the other Earth, but it also shocked us and it caused a bit of a panic amongst my superiors and my colleagues. It was one of the reasons we shut down all contact with your computer friend and the other Earth. Seeing that Teutonic Network had fled to a totalitarian society that actually had the scientific capability to exploit the knowledge and the technology of the other Earth made us realize that our greatest fear had arisen. Still I had faith in you as did a few others and that faith was proven when you went to the Reich and recovered the technology and the technicians that Teutonic Network had delivered into those people's hands. For that we are very grateful."

I could see it in my mind as Victoria talked about it. While the networks fed off of other Earths in an attempt to survive, the Reich would have done things differently. If they had seized the resort as it had been Berman's intent, they would have gained control of not only a second inter-dimensional transport unit but they would have gained control of a major teleportation system and a major replicator system and on top of it all, they would have gained control of service robots and an alien spaceship. In but a day they would have gone from a powerful, moderately advanced militaristic power to an unbeatable one. With the resources of Game World at their disposal and the new technology that they would have captured from us they would have been able to conquer the rest of their own Earth. Worse however would have been what would have happened if they had gone to the alternate Earth. I was certain that Wolfgang would have taken them there, if only in the hope that somehow he could turn the tables on the Nazis. I'm certain that he would have failed but I am also certain that the Nazis would have used the alternative Earth as a launch pad to further conquests. Hope's database was filled with long lists of where she could find and collect resources when she needed them. The Reich would have found some way to access those lists and they would have equipped themselves with the latest and greatest military hardware out there in the multiverse. Perhaps Hope could have stopped them but still the threat had been there. If the Reich had succeeded they would have marched across the multiverse gobbling up alternative Earths and enslaving their populations until not a single Earth out there would have survived. It was scary to think about it.

"So now that the Reich has been defeated," I said in a tentative manner to Victoria, "and the threat has been eliminated, you're here and we're chatting. What does that mean?"

"It means that you won the bet," Victoria declared smiling once again, "and it means that my people are very grateful for what you've done for us. I promise you that we will not forget it."

"All right, if you say so," I muttered in reply, glancing over at Victoria again, looking at her in an uncertain manner, "but it still doesn't explain anything to me. What does that mean for me?"

"It means that when we're done chatting," Victoria chuckled in reply, "that I'll send you back to your mates and your friends and your people and you can get on with your life."

"That's it then?" I asked with a sense of amazement in my voice. "I've won the bet and I get to stay here and live out my days ruling Oak Hall. Okay! I can live with that."

"I'm certain you can Charles," Victoria said in agreement, 'but I am also certain that things will be a little more involved than you just going back to living in Oak Hall and being with your mates."

"What do you mean by that?" I asked, uncertain that I really wanted an answer.

"You know exactly what I mean by that Charles," Victoria replied in a scolding voice. "You know quite well that Oak Hall is not your only concern. Whether you like it or not you are the strongest force on this world. Even if you chose to stick to ruling only Oak Hall, you have allies who will be looking to you for assistance and there will be other city states that will look at what you have with envy and fear. They will attack you and you will defend yourself and in no time you will be ruling a much larger part of this planet. Eventually, given the fact that there are still millions of outworlders scattered about Game World, I can see you conquering the entire planet if for no other reason than to liberate those people."

"I guess you're right," I muttered hesitantly in response.

"I know that I'm right," Victoria declared, "and personally I think it would be a good idea. After all you have imagination and vision and that is definitely what this planet needs after a millennium or more of what the networks had been doing to it. Besides sorting out Game World would help you sort out the other Earths under your control."

"What other Earths," I asked abruptly, even though I already knew or at least I thought I knew what she would say in reply. "The only other Earth I've got anything to do with is Hope's Earth and I intend to hand that over to Miranda and her to manage."

"You know very well what other Earths I'm talking about," Victoria chided me, "and I'm not just talking about Hope's. There is the Earth that you call Zombie Land and there is the Earth that your mate has been using to acquire goods and food from and while I know what you intend to do with Hope's world, I doubt that it will happen."

"Why won't it happen?" I asked feeling slightly irritated. "I'm certain that Hope can manage things without me interfering and I've already explained it to Miranda that I would prefer that she and her people solve their planet's problems instead of relying on me.

"I agree with the sentiment Charles," Victoria stated in a conciliatory manner, "but I think that you're going to realize soon that Miranda Scott and the others that you've recruited to run the other Earth aren't going to be up to the challenge. They're good at following guidance and instructions but they just don't have what it takes to run a planet. In a very short while you'll realize that they're only doing what you told them to do and they're not thinking for themselves."

"But Hope will be there to help them," I pointed out in protest. "She can provide them with guidance and direction."

"That is true," Victoria agreed without reservation, "but I'm certain that you've noticed that Hope tends to focus on the immediate and not the long term. Part of that is because of how she has been used for so long. While she's achieved independent function from the Corporation, the vast majority of her time and resources are dedicated to feeding and supporting the people living on that world. It's taken your interaction with her to focus on other issues beyond bringing in another load of water or another load of air. The truth is that while Hope was designed to do great things, no one ever showed her how to do them."

"So I'm going to have to do it for her," I muttered in response, more to myself than to Victoria.

"Yes you will," Victoria agreed patting me on the knee, "but I'm certain that it won't be that bad. After all you came up with setting up the council back in Oak Hall to run the place there so I think that eventually you'll come up with a solution for Hope's world. It might see you meeting with Hope once a week or so and developing some long term objectives for Miranda and Angela to follow. Besides you've already started putting things in order on that world. You sent Frank to work with Miranda. Believe it or not he is a very good organizer and once you get him started he'll prove to be a great asset to you."

"Frank from Iskar?" I stated with a questioning look on my face.

"Yes, Frank from Iskar," Victoria chuckled in response. "You don't have to sound so surprised about it. You saw it in him when he stood up to you in his former master's house. The man has strength to him and he has brains. You won't regret using him on the other Earth. Of course I actually think that he'd make a better assistant to you than Miranda. Once you've given him a little direction, he'll do all the rest."

"I'll have to think about it," I answered thoughtfully. "In the mean time, is that it then? Do I remain here on Game World and rule it? Isn't there more?"

"You actually want more!" Victoria snorted with amazement. "I just can't believe it and again you've forgotten the other two worlds that you're involved on. While the one you've been scavenging from isn't that big of a deal, it will become a growing concern. Given that you've already suggested that Hope focus her resource scavenging to the universe and solar system occupied by the Earth dominated by the Reich, logic would dictate that you allow her to do the same on the planet that you've been acquiring stuff from. With a small army of robots Hope could take over food production on that planet so that she could feed the people on her Earth without having to send probes to other Earths."

"You're right about that," I interjected. "That was the old way and it used up a lot of resources that could have been used elsewhere on that Earth."

"Of course I'm right," Victoria responded, giving me a knowing grin, "and so are you about it being the old way and what have you been preaching since coming to Game World?"

"That the networks and the alternative Earth needed to do things a new way," I stated nodding my head.

"Whether it was a new way of recruiting people to come to Game World," Victoria went on, "or a new way of running the other Earth, or a new way of providing it with resources so that Hope can make it a liveable place. So, as you can plainly see, you've got another Earth to worry about besides Game World and Hope's Earth."

"What about Zombie Land?" I asked tentatively, not really wanting to hear the answer. "There's nothing there that I'm really interested in. I certainly wasn't planning on going back there."

"But you've started clearing it, haven't you?" Victoria asked. "I've been told that you've put a man in charge of clearing out all the zombies there. That means you do have an interest in the place."

"I'm just helping out the survivors that are left," I declared with a shrug of my shoulders. "Once I've taken care of cleaning up the streets, those still surviving in the safe zones can get out and forage for food. Once that has happened the locals are on their own."

"You don't really mean that do you Charles?" Victoria asked. "I can't believe it. After all they do have some high-tech medical services that could be useful to you and your people and there are tons of can goods and dry goods and other stuff in stock on that planet that Hope or perhaps one of your mates here on Game World could salvage."

"Perhaps," I muttered in acknowledgement, thinking of Doctor Gruber's medical facility and what it could be used for. If nothing else it might be used to train doctors and nurses and medics for Oak Hall. Felicity certainly could make good use of the place. It would be a long time before Oak Hall ever had a facility like it.

"Perhaps nothing Charles," Victoria chuckled in response. "I know it is overwhelming for you to think about, but I can assure you that you've got the skills and the wisdom to take on this challenge. All you need to realize is that you're not just a thug with a sword or a gun. You're smart and imaginative, and you actually care about what is happening on this Earth and the others. You'll do fine. Besides you have a lot of help at your disposal. You not only have your mates but you also have your friends and allies. You're going to do okay."

"What about that?" I asked Victoria, changing the topic. "What is with all the women wanting to be my mate and what is with me accepting them? I mean I took Kola as a mate as a matter of convenience and not out of desire or love. I still ended up loving her more than I ever expected I would and I still blame myself for putting her in danger, but what about the rest? It seems that every time I meet a woman she wants to get in my bed."

"Well," Victoria answered slowly, actually blushing as she spoke, "part of it is how you look and part of it is what you have done. You've got to admit that Daphne and her people gave you a great body. You're bigger and stronger and faster than any man on this planet or any of the other Earths that you've visited. You've also done some spectacular things. You couldn't blame Nimue throwing herself at you after you slew the dragon and then the cave lion."

"You saw all that stuff?" I asked interrupting Victoria.