System 2.0 - Division of Powers

The Jungle

Ami Mangala crouched on the dry soil. The ground had been pressed down by the weight of heavy footprints. Broken twigs and pine needles were mixed in with mud that had been churned up, dried and then marched over once again.

She brushed some of the debris to one side with her hand and then traced the shape of the footprints with her fingers. The sun-baked soil had harsh edges, but was already beginning to turn into dust.

'Where exactly are we?' she asked.

Esther came over to her and glanced down at the ground.

'We're in a small virtual world with a temperate environment,' she said. 'Its official designation is X23N4Y, but it's almost certainly the site of the mythical Er'ech ten Gosh - if my sources are correct.'

'The Forest of Death?' Ami asked, glancing up at her questioningly.

'More accurately, the Forest of Life in Death,' Marcus pointed out. Like the others, he had dressed for the outdoors and was busy adjusting his pack. 'It's an important hexapod concept, that true life is to be found in the thrill of the hunt.'

Ami turned her attention back to the footprints on the dry surface. She could clearly pick out the tread of rubber boots, but some of the marks seemed more like those of hooves or claws.

'This is a hexapod world,' she murmured softly.

'It's a fantasy,' Esther corrected the girl dismissively, picking up her own pack and adjusting the sun visor of her hat. 'The species we know as hexapods evolved as hunter-gatherers in a virtual savannah. Er'ech ten Gosh is just a game created by fantasists.'

'An intriguing idea though,' Vaneer Thrip commented. 'A place where the descendants of Hexapedia Sapiens can act out their ancient primal urges.'

Esther grunted at this. Like most virtual lifeforms she had lines of code that could be traced right back to the very first experiments with digital life. She was well aware of her evolutionary history, but felt that she had as much in common with the hexapods as human beings had with mice.

'Don't get carried away with the romance,' she warned him. 'The people who set this up are dangerous criminals. If this really is Er'ech ten Gosh, then the rumours suggest minimal safety settings and genuine risks for us.'

'We'd better press on then,' said Marcus brightly. 'And stay alert. '

The group gathered their things together and followed Marcus through a gap in the trees, where a well-trodden path led deeper into the forest.

Reveen Vee Ocean took the rear. He had to duck to get past low branches, but kept an attentive watch on the shadows. His large eyes opened wide to take in every detail.

'What are you expecting to find?' Ami asked, as they pressed on.

'Not sure,' Esther replied. 'My contacts weren't exactly high on detail. They were more than a little vague.'

Marcus made an inaudible response to this.

'And who exactly are they?' Ami asked.

Esther was about to make a cryptic reply, but decided it was time to be more open.

'A group of really old minds,' she said. 'And I mean really old. I think most of them were born in an experimental world, long before the System.'

'Hexapods?'

'Probably,' Esther confirmed. 'I think a few of them were part of the very first group to be extracted.'