Creation: Book 3: Strandbinder Complete!

As the man, the reflection, and the Icon stepped out onto their new Territorial Seat, Walker felt something change from within. Like a tightly coiled spring slowly straightening out.

While his mind was still running through everything that had occurred since first arriving in the fourth rendition, he remembered something else.

Virgil had made it a point that he needed to have downtime. Moments where he could relax, even if he didn’t need to sleep anymore. When was the last time he’d had something like that? He wasn’t sure, and as he stepped further into the light provided by the Cosmic Life Engine, he looked through his memories.

The closest moments of relaxation that he found were during his special times with Athena. But they were rare and never lasted for very long. He was curious as to why Virgil hadn’t commented on his need to relax again. Rather than think and stress about the moment, Walker had a different thought.

He deserved a day to himself.

They passed by a copse of trees, birdsong flowing through the air with enough cheer that even David was quiet as they enjoyed the moment. Feeling an odd form of curiosity about the birds, he clicked on his overlay as they continued to move forward.

His Identity section had been pulsing for a while, so he clicked on it.

System Architect Dante

Territorial Seat: Conduction

Location: The Symphony Universe

Membership: Multiple

Inheritor: None

While he looked at the text, they moved past the trees and entered a calm glade, surrounded by odd trees and a few berry bushes. David stepped over and called out that he thought they were blueberries, going so far as to pluck a small bunch and pop a few into his mouth. Walker smiled at his confirmation, then looked at the text again.

Each had a box around it, implying he could gain more information by stepping into it. Walker clicked and read each as a deer calmly bounded across the edges of his vision.

System Architect Dante

Name: Dante (Pseudonym)

Rank: System Architect

Rank description: An architect is a builder of versi and a manager of the structure, rules, and fundamental systems of a universe.

Rank focus: Unlike System Administrators, who scrabble with the limitations of their power, System Architects receive a loosening of restrictions and are required to manage and maintain the functionality of their universe to preserve their rank.

Territorial Seat: Conduction

Name: Conduction

Size: Medium

Type: Temperate, Seasonal, Oxygen-rich, Random Generation

Domicile: Quantum, Automated, Unobservable

Settings: Restricted, Inviolable

Upgrade: Pending an increase in rank

Location: The Symphony Universe

Personality: Yes, Abnormally formed

Location: Origin (Addendum: Connected to the Evolver Multiverse)

Systems: N/A

Membership:

System Architect: The Omniversal Order

System Administrator: The Evolver Multiverse

Ownership: The Symphony Universe

Inheritor:

No Designation

Walker looked over the information, nonplussed by what he was seeing. The options he’d taken during his asphyxiated period were fine, though he wasn’t sure what a few of them meant.

He also didn’t know how to move up in rank, although that wasn’t something he was very much interested in at the moment.

That Ulysses was abnormal would shock no one. If Walker had to guess, most Universal personalities were closer to A.I. than a greatly expanded version of himself.

But as he looked at the text again, two things really stood out to him. One: that he wasn’t a System Architect regarding the Evolver Multiverse. And two: that he could designate an Inheritor.

The Inheritor line had a further option to click on the description, so as they moved into the shade of a tree overlooking a small river gently flowing in front of them, Walker sat down on a nice patch of dirt. Laying his elbow on the thick root beside him as he leaned back against the tree, he dove in to see what it said.

Inheritor:

An upstanding member of the Omniversal Order may designate any member of the Omniverse as their Inheritor. Upon the death or extreme absence of the title-holding order member, the Inheritor will be awarded their beneficiary’s rank and no higher.

This will include the Territorial Seat, Designated Mark, and access to all currently held resources.

“Death, huh,” Walker said as he closed the window, looking out at the running water before him. It was just so…peaceful. Relaxing. What he needed at this time.

Walker lay back against the tree, the Book of Souls freely floating above him, while David could be heard moving around as he looked at their future home. He closed his eyes. Not to sleep but just to enjoy the moment. The quiet of where he was at this time.

A few minutes passed this way. Walker felt that building pressure in his chest unwind a bit further as he stared at the back of his eyelids, the purple overlay still, as always, covering the periphery. He opened his eyes as a blue-colored bird chirped overhead. It made eye contact with him before flying off.

It reminded him of his partner from within Kwaya’s trial. The one that was still stuck in his metaphysical space. He’d offered it the choice to leave with him, but it had instead chosen to stay in place so it could continue protecting him.

He still needed to learn how Metaphysical spaces really worked, and Athena’s voice echoed in his mind, telling him to speak with Zeus about what to do in the third stage. But Walker shook his head to forget all of that.

Standing up and stretching, he looked at the arc of blue water cutting across the land and started a slight jog. Not pushing his body to the limit, he lightly moved across the land until reaching the edge. Bending down and bunching his legs, Walker gave a slight hop and splashed into the water.

Rather than the cold he had expected, it was instead quite warm and relaxing. He stayed like that for some time as he stared at the sky above, wondering about nothing at all.

Walker relaxed on the water, occasionally kicking to keep his buoyancy and enjoying himself. David had poofed out not long ago, his time limit spent, and the Book of Souls had retreated to its customary place within his soul.

It was just Walker, the water, and a free moment in time all to himself.

An unbidden thought sprang up as he continued to enjoy the feeling of weightlessness without the pressure of space.

He wished Athena was here. Not so much for the nakedness, but just for the moment. Rimi would be talking about Monsters and what they could do. Cagna her Milestones. Virgil would comment about how much they still had to do.

It was stressful, yes, but it was still a kind of home. He could do without some of the Primigenials, but for the most part, they’d always done as he’d asked. He’d given them a hard time initially, but aside from the few, they’d been kind.

He still had so much to do. So many next steps. An endless list that would continue on long after the Alpha Protocol was over. Ulysses and this place. Dealing with the Evolvers and the Council. The dozens of Primigenial tasks he’d left by the wayside.

But he was here for a purpose. He was separated from his family…for a purpose. He needed to build the skill system, and those other systems that would come with it. At least this time around, he hadn’t been distracted. Building this place and hiding his work from the Council were important.

As Walker laid on his back and stared at the sky of a world far, far from Earth, he thought about priorities, as he’d done in the past. Only, this time, something wasn’t pushing him to do so. He didn’t feel the stress of the moment or the anxiety that came with necessity. It was what he wanted to do. A mental checklist to continue his dreams of a world in harmony. And for that harmony to exist, a balance for all of his people, the Sapients would need their strength. Who knew what the next battle of the Creator Wars would bring. It would hit him faster than ever the moment the Temporal bubble popped.

He recognized that these were stolen thoughts and moments. His extra time with his people was a blessing, and he had done it all on his own. There was no Virgil or assistance from the system, just Walker the Creator.

For the first time since the Slicer escaped the Cage, he pulled up the chatrooms he hadn’t thought about in forever. He gave a bitter smile as he considered the landmass’s name.

Unsurprisingly, most messages stopped only a short time after the second battle. He knew each was likely too mired in their work to continue to write to each other. There was also the simple fact that time had virtually stopped moving while he and his people had entered their time displacement.

The last message was from a Creator named Juwan, telling a joke from his homeworld about a worm and what sounded like a shoe. Walker didn’t understand it, but it was nice to know that humor could be found across the different versi.

He didn’t see any mention of the Slicer, nor any curses directed at the Creator who had made such a creature. Just like that, Walker’s greatest mistake was fading into obscurity. Walker closed the chatroom and looked at the Omniversal systems again. He wouldn’t make the same kind of mistake.

He’d grown freaked out when seeing what he could do, as he worried that there would be a temptation. If he started his own form of the alpha protocol, who said it had to be done in the same way?

But now, he knew better. It would always be like that. People deserved free will and agency. The ability to choose should be added to any universal doctrine. To be able to grow. To become their ideal forms of self.

Right on time, a few hours after he’d started his respite, Ulysses voice boomed out, “Walker, we’re losing time.”

Walker smiled to himself, “Needs must be met.”

“What?”

Swimming to the nearby shore, he hopped out and shook his head, “Don’t worry about it.”

“You still don’t have any clothes, you know.”

Walker stretched, feeling much better after the swim, “Maybe, but it’s nothing you haven’t seen before.”

“Everything looks much less…grandiose.”

“Ha-ha,” Walker said with a grin, “Good one. Now, you needed a pocket dimension, so let's make it easy.”

He stepped over and looked at the trees around him. Not finding what he was looking for, Walker pushed his body for some speed, zipping around the different copses in the area. It wasn’t until he’d move to an entirely different region of Conduction that he found what he was looking for.

Stepping up to the tree, Walker noted the telltale leaves and coloring of a Birch tree. Quickly snapping off a branch, he noted the clear light fluid that began to seep from the wound.

“What are you doing?” Ulysses asked.

“Valerie used to like taking those nature walks, if you remember.”

“I do.”

“Well, during one of those, I remember she signed us up for this weird group tour in the Sierra Nevada Mountains. It was guided, and the guide…Phil, demonstrated how to strip the bark off of a Birch tree. You can tell when it’s ready by sap leaking from broken branches and wounds.” Walker nodded at the fluid still seeping from the area where he’d broken the branch.

“How did you know it would be the right season?”

“Ah, you remember that sap only flows around springtime. That’s good.” Walker smiled again, “I’m happy you have a few of our better memories.” Taking a single fingernail, he ran it down the side of the trunk. “I guessed at the season. When the Territory was first made, I saw the temporal bubble hit it, so I knew that they’d advanced time here. I wasn’t sure by how much, but that doesn’t really matter, now does it.”

Edging the bottom and top of the bark, he gently pulled, getting a smooth grouping of bark to come away intact without taking too much. “If you pull away too much, you could kill the tree, but this should be just about small enough. You know, bark can be used for all kinds of things.” He said, continuing to speak while re-living the memory, “Indigenous people used it for Canoes, which could be fun. It’s good for fires, storage, heck even writing. But I have a particular idea in mind.”

Walker placed the clean grouping of bark down on the ground. Looking back at the tree, he didn’t spot any extra damage caused to it. His memory showed the guide doing the same thing, saying it would heal itself naturally. Nodding, Walker carefully tore the bark sideways, taking a portion away from the greater whole.

“Now, this is outer bark, meaning it’s not the best. But, if we took away the inner bark, we’d likely kill the tree, as I’m no pro at this. So, it’s all a bit of guesswork.”

“Why does killing the tree matter?” Ulysses asked. For once, his sounded different. Confused.

Walker shrugged, “I don’t know. I guess, I just don’t want my first real act here to be death.”

Walker ripped a small piece of the bark he had in his hands, creating a square. Taking a bit of sap from the wound he’d originally made, he applied it to the edges, then folded the other piece of bark until it was round in shape. Placing the square on the bottom, he folded it all over until everything was seamless except for a single hole in the front.

Walker nodded as he looked at it, “There we go, one bag.”

Repeating the process while talking, he made five more, until he’d run out of bark. He spoke about everything and nothing at all, just enjoying the moment.

“You’re talking quite a lot, Walker.”

Walker nodded as he put the finishing touches on the last bag, “That I am, Ulysses.” He looked at the six bags on the ground while asking, “Will six be enough?”

“Yes, I think so.”

Walker took the first bag and pushed his Pocket Dimension ability. A moment later, a black hole appeared at the bottom of his arts and crafts project, along with a message.

Warning:

The structural integrity of this pocket dimension is weak

“Rude,” Walker said with a smile. He placed it over in a clear area just in case. “How was that?”

“Good. Yes, I think I’m beginning to understand it more.”

“Understand what?”

“Dimensionality.” Ulysses said, “Space came naturally to me. I didn’t realize you had seen the Omniverse create the temporal distortion; you are not the most observant person.”

Walker waved a hand, “I try, man.”

“Yes. But as I watched it occur, that also helped me. Dimensionality, however, is elusive. Difficult. The Cosmic Life Engine is helping, but I still have gaps in my understanding. I believe that as you create each Pocket Dimension, the mysteries of Dimensionality may fall away.”

“Neat. Alright, here comes number two.”

Walker made another pocket dimension, receiving the same warning. He placed it over by the other one in the clearing. By the fourth one, Ulysses said he almost had it. However, by the sixth, they still weren’t done.

“I’m still missing something,” space thundered out, “Something I cannot put my finger on.”

“You don’t have fingers,” Walker pointed out.

“You know what I mean.”

“So, you need to see Dimensionality in action then?”

“Yes, although whenever I try to work with it myself, I feel a great deal of pain. As if something is stabbing me.”

Walker scratched his chin, “Interesting. Okay. Keep an eye on the bags.”

“What are you going to do?”

Walker didn’t answer. Instead, he walked over to the riverbank. Picking out a few stones, he collected them and walked back toward the clearing. Hefting an oval stone in his hand, he popped into the air once, before catching it and lightly tossing it at the first bag on the left. The paper crumpled slightly at the top, but it wasn’t enough to cause a reaction. But the second toss did it, as he nailed the bag right near the bottom.

Warning:

The structural binding on one of your Pocket Dimensions is corroding

A Dimensional explosion is imminent

“Cool-” Was all Walker had time to say. He watched as the first bag exploded. And, because he’d placed them all near each other, it set off a chain reaction.

His reasoning was sound. Pocket Dimensions were not heavily invested with resources. The only real danger was in the randomness of the strand. But, as these were small and weak Vaults, he wasn’t very worried.

When the first bag exploded, a portal appeared, showing the tip of something long, skinny, and metal coming out of it. But when the other five were buffeted by the violence, causing them each to explode, each portal did something different.

The first few tried to bring something onto his world, but they were stymied by a white flash as the fourth broke down. A white fire began to burn, eating everything around it. The fifth and sixth bags barely had time to create a portal, burning before anything had a chance of happening. Just as quickly as the white fire had come, it also faded away.

“What was that flame?” Walker asked.

“I am unsure. It almost seemed to tear the Dimensional strand apart.” Ulysses said. Walker felt as the Universal Personality focused all of himself on this small part of his Territory, “Yes. I see.”

“What?”

“I believe I have it, Walker. Dimensionality, the rules that govern everything. Yes. I need a little time, but we may not need an A.I. after all.”

“Really?”

“Well,” A long pause, “Maybe. Give me a little time.”

Walker smiled at their reversal, “If I’m being honest, I feel like I’ve already lost a lot of time, Ulysses. I need to get back to my people soon.”

“I understand. I will be quick.”

Walker felt Ulysses leave and considered what he’d said a second time, “My people.”

Knowing what he needed to do and slightly ashamed he hadn’t done so in the first place, he clicked into his overlay again, finding the Omniversal systems.

Hello Architect Dante

Would you like to Activate the Communications system?

Yes/No

Walker clicked yes.

…Analyzing…

This is an Omniversal system.

As the Creator and Owner of the Symphony Universe, you have the authority to activate this system for its two citizens. Would you like to do that at this time?

Yes/No

Two citizens? So, me and Ulysses? Walker thought about that, then smiled and clicked yes.

…Analyzing…

Additional request

The designated Evolver Multiverse already has a limited form of the Communication system.

As a System Administrator, you have the authority to override this system with your own settings. Would you like to do that at this time?

With a much bigger grin, Walker clicked yes again.

Congratulations, Architect Dante!

The Communications system is now active in both the singular Symphony Universe, and the Evolver Multiverse.

However, due to the amount of setting choices that must be made, delivery to your citizens is held in abeyance.

Please make your selections at this time.

Walker watched as a hundred options appeared before him. This was going to take some time.