36 Gentle 06

The woman entered the court from the holding cell, her hands bound in front of her. She babbled like a baby, the nearly empty courtroom echoing her attempts at coherent English.

The case was a clear cut one. A life of child-abuse, leading to the ultimate snapping of a psyche. She received a verdict of criminally insane, her sentence was 24/7 life support in the Virtual World without access to MultiPlayer. She had no family to fight for anything better, and no prosecutor to pressure any worse. As the court saw it, she could live out her days in the comfort of the Meta Device.

The only thing that remained was SinglePlayer and her friends list. With SinglePlayer guiding a long recovery program, Myles was eventually able to front and invite their best friend Pat to a PrivatePlayer instance.

Lucia woke up in a child-sized bed, her legs already over the edge as she sat up. Where she was, she hadn’t the foggiest clue. But it looked like it was in the Virtual World, as she was able to summon clothes at just a mere thought.

The map she was in was a child’s delight, the cute themes and plentiful play-things around each corner. She walked among the unfamiliar space, wondering how long her alters have been here. Apparently they haven’t been told to put anything away, the toys left in the middle of tea parties, weddings, and occasional civil wars.

She went outside, looking at a stray canoe in the pond. There slept Pat, the friend that Myles spoke so highly of. She took a long, cautious breath. It was time to finally meet them for herself. She had been in dire straits the last time she saw them, unable to escape the guilt of what she did. She was calmer now, talking to the AI while her alters took over.

She stepped onto the calm water, willing it to hold up her weight. She knew this was the Virtual World, a place she found comfort in, a place she was able to escape to. It looked like her account hadn't logged out in more than a year. Time passes quickly when the alters take the reins. She must have gotten access to life support. A quick check of her end date returns a thrilling result. No end date. This was the rest of her life. She finally feels a sense of peace, but it has been an uphill battle.

Her footsteps rock the canoe gently, Pat stirring awake. They look up at her, surprised to see an adult avatar.

“I recognize that face… Lucia?” She’s the only alter that uses such an up-to-date Virtual Real scan. It’s more weathered, betrays her true age, and has a look of knowing far more than any of the others.

“Hey Pat. I wanted to thank you, I sincerely thank you for taking care of my system and alters.” Her knowledge of her condition has grown since her long talk with the AI. The AI has unending patience, able to talk with all of her alters whenever they feel the need to speak, even if they aren’t fronting. It knows the system better than Pat or anyone else ever could, watching and responding to everything that happens in the system’s mind.

Pat was almost too stunned to talk to her, but felt the love and appreciation from the rare and incredibly kind smile. They stood up, forgetting the tipsy canoe and ending up in the water. Lucia laughs and pulls him out with a hand, willing that he could also walk on water.

They give her a soggy hug, tears forming at the edge of his eyes, “I’m so glad to see you. You look incredible. I mean, your smile…” They stutter, unable to find the words to describe the change they’ve hoped to see for so long.