Prophecy Approved Companion

“This seems to imply that they are not, in fact, Temple constructs,” the original Definitely Bad Guy said. “Although several items which we know to be Temple constructs have survived outside their sphere of influence.”

“Okay, Definitely Good Guy,” the Chosen One said, pointing at Bluey.

“That is not my name,” Bluey replied.

“Bluey, then,” the Chosen One continued.

“That is also not my name, but I will accept it as my new nomenclature if you deem it correct. I do not yet feel I have earned the right to have the word Good in my name.”

The Hero rolled his eyes. “Oh man, it’s super gross to hear you talk like that. Can you dial down the boot licking?”

“It appears that you are having difficulty discerning where I am, and the proper title to address me by,” Reddi said with a sneer. “My name is Definitely Bad Guy, but you may refer to me as Mage Advisor.”

“Too confusing, I’m done,” the Chosen One said. He turned to the original Definitely Bad Guy. “This is your mess, Sparky, whatcha want to do?”

The Mage pulled a tome out of his red and blue robes and flicked through it. He pressed a finger into a page, then examined the two Mages.

“I believe it would be best if we returned to Cobbletown, so I may examine my selves within my Wizard’s Tower. As long as the way is safe, that is.”

The party had interrupted the Evil Emperor’s murder attempt and then left him screaming in the middle of the plaza, after all.

“That should make it clear that these are mere illusions, same as the memories,” Sencha Bard said. “Even the Temple wouldn’t dare to create actual life out of nothing for the sake of a test.”

The Hero looked extremely uneasy.

“Wouldn’t they?” Sexy Screamy Spider Briar asked. “It wouldn’t be at all out of line with what they’ve done before. This seems to be unduly upsetting you, my love.”

“It bodes ill for us if the Devs or their Temples can entirely replicate us at will, and modify our personality to be more subservient,” Sencha Bard said in a passionate undertone. “Especially when we’re so close to ascending to the Devs’ realm. But also, given the dubious fate of the child versions of ourselves, the idea that they were actual beings is monstrous to me.”

“Ah!” Qube said, diverted from this discussion by a sudden realisation. “That reminds me! We’re out of the Temple now. What does everyone think about having the Golden Prophecy still have power over us when we ascend? Also, apparently we aren’t going to be fighting Evil Devs or anything when we go to the Devs’ realm.”

The party collectively looked at the Healer in total astonishment.

“Oh yeah,” the Chosen One was the first one to recover from his surprise at the abrupt topic change. “That was a conversation we were going to have.”

“I assumed you were waiting until we were no longer in a fraught situation within a Temple where anything could happen at any point,” Qube said. “But now that we’re not in any immediate danger I think it would be a good idea for everyone to know what’s going to happen when they ascend so they can account for that in their plans.”

“You guys were planning things?” the Hero asked. Before anyone could respond he raised a hand and shook his head. “I mean, of course you guys were planning things. That makes total sense. I should have thought of that. Ignore me.”

“Nothing has been agreed upon,” Definitely Bad Guy said placatingly.

“We were merely exploring our options,” Sexy Screamy Spider Briar added.

“Please, most worthy Healer, can you elaborate on what you mean by the Golden Prophecy still having power over us when we ascend?” Sencha Bard asked, staring fixedly at Qube.

“Well, according to the Chosen One, some of the Devs want us to be constrained in case we turn Evil when we ascend. They’re suggesting we be controlled by something like the Golden Prophecy while we’re in the Devs’ realm. Also, apparently none of them are actually properly Evil; they’re more Evil as a result of free will, which is why they don’t want us to have it,” Qube explained. “The Chosen One has been saying to them that we shouldn’t be controlled by a Golden Prophecy, and should be free to make mistakes like the Devs can, but he wants to check what we want.”

How easy it was to summarise what had been such a difficult conversation! Not by so much as a flicker did she reveal the turmoil these revelations had caused within her.

Sencha Bard rocked back on his heels and looked at the Chosen One.

“My respect for you continues to grow,” he said.

“Thanks, I think,” the Hero replied uncertainly.

“Naturally I don’t want to be controlled,” Sexy Screamy Spider Briar said.

“I, too, would prefer no external interference with my mental processes,” Definitely Bad Guy said.

Oh. That had been remarkably easy. Qube had thought they would be more interested in there being no Evil Devs, and the whole free will versus Evil debate. The two topics certainly consumed a large amount of her mental process.

“Will we be under increased scrutiny if we refuse to be controlled?” Sencha Bard asked the Chosen One.

Ah. There was the questioning Qube expected.

The Hero screwed up his face a little as he thought.

“Realistically speaking? Probably won’t make much of a difference,” he said. “The people who aren’t gonna trust you guys might feel a tiny bit better if you’re heavily controlled, but given you’re already breaking free of stuff now, they’ll just be looking for when you inevitably break free of whatever they cook up to control you with. The only way they’d be happy is if you’re totally crippled, which kinda defeats the purpose of letting you ascend in the first place. Like, don’t get me wrong, they’re not gonna turn over the keys to — ah, I don’t know what the equivalent would be. Some big spell? Like, world ending?”

“What will they be giving us when we ascend?” Sencha Bard asked.

The Chosen One shrugged. “I dunno,” he said. “I guess they just want to … talk? Study you guys? Not in a painful way, but just so they know what it is that made you special.”

“So they can replicate us?” Sencha Bard asked neutrally. His eyes flicked over to Reddi and Bluey.

The Hero didn’t reply.

“I see,” the Bard said quietly. He bowed to the Chosen One. “I thank you, Chosen One, for your honesty. I’m glad you respected my intelligence enough to not feed me platitudes.”

“To be clear, I don’t know what they’re planning,” the Chosen One said. “But I promise you, I’ll do my best to stop them from just constructing more of you.”

“Why would they even want to construct more of us?” Qube asked. “They would have to do another Grand Working and make a whole new world, or make twins of us.”

“That is why I dearly hope these two are just short-lived spells, or illusions,” Sencha Bard said, nodding at the two new Mages. “Otherwise who knows what the Devs could do with our images.”

“But what would be the point?” Qube asked. She resisted the urge to clutch at her head. “I thought they wanted us because we’re special and unique. Why would they want to make twins of us?”

“Why did they make us in the first place?” Definitely Bad Guy asked. He gave a small shrug. “Presumably we are some kind of experiment, or give them access to power in some way.”

“If that were the case, the Chosen One wouldn’t be able to threaten them into behaving,” Sexy Screamy Spider Briar rebutted. “No, clearly there are rules that they must abide by, which means we’re not just a resource for them to drain or discard. And the way we’ve been passed around means there’s a hierarchy in place, similar to our own various kingdoms.”

“Keep in mind how closely it adheres to a narrative,” Sencha Bard said quietly, maintaining eye contact with the Chosen One. “There are rules, even in a story. Perhaps especially in a story.”

A long silence stretched out.

“Yeah, there’s rules,” the Hero said eventually. “And there’s some [snacks] I genuinely can’t say.” There was another pause, before a slightly feral smile curved his mouth. “But I ain’t gonna stop you lot from figuring things out on your own. I can’t do that either. Cuz that would be interfering with their cognitive growth,” he said in a sing-songy voice. The Hero slowly started walking back to Cobbletown.

The others followed, as was their nature.

“So feel free to say whatever you want,” the Hero continued. “I ain’t gonna stop you.”

“But what will you report?” Sencha Bard asked in his neutral, diplomatic tone. The Hero clicked his tongue.

“Ah, yeah, that,” he said. “Hold on.” He summoned Scaley-Waley, and jumped on the steed. He looked down at the party, and gave them a small smile.

“Time to fast travel,” he said, and lapsed into meditation.

“Clever,” Sencha Bard admiringly as the Hero’s face went slack. Reddi and Bluey fell into a meditative loping jog, while the rest of the party, though physically adopting similar running styles, remained mentally present.

Qube pressed her hands against her temples to try and ease the throbbing of a forming headache.

“The Chosen One said he wouldn’t let them use us for fighting,” she said.

“He wouldn’t necessarily have the ability to stop them,” Sencha Bard replied. “While he is a powerful champion, he’s still constrained within the same fabric that controls us.”

“But why do you think the Devs want to make copies of us? Copies that are more subservient or different?” Qube asked. “The Chosen One said it himself. They want us to ascend because we’re special.”

“At first, I was confused, same as you,” Sencha Bard said. “It was only while discussing this with Definitely Bad Guy that I realised the truth. We, and this realm, fulfil a function. While we may disagree as to the nature of that function, the fact remains that we were created for a reason, and our ascension is not just a reward for our uniqueness, but also an opportunity for them to control us more closely. They want to use us.”

…Sir Ian had wanted Qube to be a companion to powerful people. And if there were multiple powerful people, it would make sense that they would each want their own companion. Their own personal special Qube.

Their own personal worker.

That they’d constructed.

Oh.

Oh.

Qube felt several cogs click into place, opening a door within her own mind that she had firmly kept closed.

“Do you remember Construct Crossroads?” she asked the party, her voice suddenly hoarse. The others nodded. “Slate and Zincy had overcome their Constructor-imposed affinities by falling in love with each other, and stepped outside what he’d planned for them. They were special, because they weren’t doing what they were supposed to do. Because they weren’t doing what they were made to do.”

She swallowed hard. “That’s us,” she said, as light spilled from that door within her mind, and illuminated far too much. “That’s why we’re special. Because we’re nothing more than constructs, acting outside our affinities. And just like how the Constructor wanted to solve the problem of the constructs attacking each other, and how he should have looked to Zincy and Slate for the solution, the Devs want us to ascend so they can see what made us act outside our affinities.”

She took a deep breath, trying to control the now blinding light that burned across her mind.

“We’re nothing more than faulty constructs.”