Virtual Reality: Dark Days

Revelation

Shamar's cell phone rang on his way back to the apartment. He saw that it was coming from Tabitha. It was odd that she got back to him so fast. She would usually get back to him a lot later on, but this time, she moved fast. Maybe she learned something interesting. Or maybe it wasn't anything at all. Either way, the suspense was killing Shamar.

"Hello?" Shamar answered.

"Lee, that kid Alex Huang. He's got ties with Callahan." Shamar stopped in his tracks. Alex could have been killed because of his carelessness. He had no idea that a man as powerful as Callahan could be so cruel. Shamar could see a sinister plot happening here. A plot to kill someone like Alex made no sense to him at the moment. It terrified him to know that he had come so close to something like this.

"Like what?" Shamar asked.

"Apparently he worked for Callahan as an Engineer." Tabitha told Shamar, who didn't understand. Why would Jason try to kill his own engineer? Was there something deeper going on here than he possibly realized? To think, Alex survived something that others could not.

"Thanks Tabby, I gotta go!" Shamar rushed back to his apartment. He moved faster than he ever had. There was more to this story. Speaking with Alex could possibly unlock something within him. A lost memory. It was not certain whether it would work, but Shamar had to try. This could possibly lead them to the mystery of why Alex is being targeted by a major gaming company's creator.

Shamar entered the game and busted into the living room where he found Alex laid out on his coach. Was he dead? Did someone track him here? Shamar rushed over to see that he wasn't asleep, just relaxing. This gave Shamar much relief. He not only got the confirmation that no one tracked Alex back here, but no one knew where he was, for now.

"What's up?" Alex felt calm and Shamar was feeling the exact opposite. He was scared, to state the obvious. But Shamar began to find himself growing in anger. This child was just relaxing during a time of great stress.

"Kid, you used to work for Jason Callahan as an engineer." Shamar waited to see if that would trigger something within Alex but nothing changed. Alex just shrugged his shoulders. It was weird. Like someone telling another person some random piece of information. The information did nothing to Alex.

"Don't remember," Alex said with a shrug.

"Are you kidding me?!" Shamar bent down in front of him trying to see if he could break into his memory just by triggering him. "So you mean to tell me that you have no recollection of these people chasing you. Possibly even people you used to work with. Your friends."

Alex really didn't have a single clue about where he worked outside the game. Learning that the game wasn't even the real world didn't even send a clue into his mind about his life at home. But it did puzzle him. What exactly does it mean that he worked for the man that nearly put an end to his life twice? How on Earth did Shamar come by this information? Was it possible that he'd been missing for so long that the authorities were looking into his disappearance? This couldn't have been false information. It was true, that much Alex knew for sure. Why else would Shamar lie to him? He worked for a killer. A killer that, for some unknown reason, wanted him dead. It still didn't make sense to Alex, no matter how much he thought about it. Did he do something wrong? What made him such a threat? Could it have been because he was too smart? Or was it because Alex began catching onto what Jason was really using the Real Life Engine for... wait... did he just remember something?

"The Real Life Engine." Alex began to remember bits and pieces. "He was using it for evil."

Shamar couldn't believe this was actually working. Alex was beginning to remember his past. If he could possibly remember why he was targeted, they could learn more about the killer.

"What sort of evil?" Shamar pushed. He hoped that this would go further into his mind. Shamar didn't want to stop there. There had to have been more of a reason for Jason's urge to have his employee killed.

"Killing?" Shamar asked. "He was killing people with this engine. By allowing other players to have it, he could handle his dirty deeds within the game and not have to worry about suffering the consequences."

Alex remembered. He remembered more. Jason hired him because he was fresh out of college with a Computer Science Degree, but no one would hire him. He was going flat broke until Jason tracked him down and hired him to replicate the engine so that it could become accessible to other players. But one day, something changed. Jason no longer wanted Alex for some reason. That reason started to fade from Alex's memory. He felt it slip away until he suddenly couldn't think of it anymore. The reason was gone.

"They're after me because I know the truth." Alex realized that much was true. He had a big connection to Jason.

"No one is going to lay a finger on you." Shamar said confidently. "I've got help. We're going to bring Callahan and his industry down."

Shamar became confident in Tabitha's work. Whatever Jason had planned, Tabitha and the other detectives would put a stop to it. He believed in her skills that much. He knew once this information about the engine was given to her, there would be no way Jason could get out of that. He'd be questioned about his role in creating an engine that could kill people within a video game.

Tabitha sat in front of Jason with the photo of Alex Huang and his file. She watched his face, waiting for him to make a mistake and reveal the truth without saying a word. Jason scratched his head. He seemed confused as to why the police were finally searching for a colleague of his that went missing long ago. This wasn't what Tabitha wanted. She wanted to catch him but he was either being honest or keeping secrets.

"I haven't seen him in weeks." Jason shrugged his shoulders. It was true. The last time he had seen Alex was over coffee weeks ago.

"I'm sure you must know by now that one of your employees was found dead in his room hooked up to your game." Tabitha said, waiting to get another reaction out of Jason.

"Yes," Jason almost forgot about Branden's death. "Branden. I'm aware. It's really sad that you think bringing up my dead and missing employees to me is such a great way to get information from me. I placed a missing persons report in for Alex. Me and my team have been investigating what happened to Branden. This whole meeting is pretty useless if you ask me."

Jason thought this was all amusing. This cop was really trying to get a reaction out of him. Jason spent a lot of time preparing his facial reactions to good and bad situations. With situations like this coming up in the past, he slowly grew into a person that could never be caught by his emotions.

"You should know that we visited Alex Huang's home." Tabitha pressed on. "He can't come out of that game for some reason. Any reason why?"

"Outsiders can't just log a player off," Jason said with a shrug. "The player is the only one capable of doing so. My hands are tied. Alex has to come out of that game but for some reason he won't."

"Or maybe he can't." Tabitha said this, knowing Jason would see it as some sort of message. He did. Jason heard her words and quickly sat up to ask her a question.

"Are you suggesting something?" Jason fell right into Tabitha's trap. He was beginning to feel threatened by her. Jason had tried very hard to keep his emotions out of this but Tabitha was pushing it.

"No, not at all, Mr. Callahan." Tabitha said with a grin growing on her face. "But if Alex Huang comes out of that game soon and tells us something we don't like, we'll be forced to do an investigation into your game."

Jason was furious. The detective really pushed him to his limit on this one. He knew she was right. Alex couldn't stay in the game for long. Eventually, he'd like to get out and come back to the real world. If news gets out that a player gets trapped in the game, it could mean bad things for his company. Stocks would dip. People wouldn't want to play a game where they could possibly get stuck and never return to their lives. But that wasn't the case for Alex. For the time being, Jason put his trust in those that were currently seeking out Alex. Alex was being hunted and if he were to come out, it would mean the end for him.

"Well, luckily he won't do that." Jason said, relaxing himself with his thoughts. "I'm sure he's enjoying himself at my game."

"I sure hope so, Mr. Callahan," Tabitha said as she rose to her feet. "I've got an officer on the inside searching for Huang now. We'll find the truth."

Tabitha lied. The only person close enough to fit this description was Shamar. But she wasn't sure how much information Shamar would be able to get for her. As she turned to leave, Jason stopped her. He couldn't let the detective leave with those final words. She was in danger now. Getting involved with an affair revolving around Jason was something no one should know about. If they did, they'd likely not be alive to this day.

"Are you sure you want to get involved in this?" Jason asked her, trying his best not to reveal anything. "This game ain't for cops. It's for hardcore gamers. You could end up finding yourself struggling."

Tabitha turned to face him. She wasn't worried, at least by a bit. Whatever Jason planned to throw at her, it wouldn't be enough to put her down. Lots of people have tried to intimidate her but she never truly let it get to her. Tabitha had set her mind on something. Whatever she was after, she was going to make sure she got to the bottom of it.

"Don't worry, Mr Callahan," Tabitha continued to the door. "We only send in the best. See you soon."

Jason watched the door close as she left and laid himself back in the chair. He couldn't believe another person of the law decided to get in the way of his plans. This was all because of Alex. All of this wouldn't even have happened if Alex had just gone along with it. Jason shook those thoughts off. That was all in the past now. His mind was only on Alex and Tabitha. Soon, even thinking of Tabitha and Alex got to him. His mind was in a fractured state. It was fueling the flame he had of wanting to end Alex's life. The police are getting involved now. Jason couldn't let Alex stay alive any longer. He had to end this quickly. There was something about this detective that he didn't like. The way her mind worked. It was almost terrifying to see how quickly she came to her conclusions. If given enough resources, she'd find Alex. The investigation would grow into the company and soon lead straight to Jason. Jason and all those that tried so hard to avoid the law would eventually be arrested. The company would soon fall from grace. There would be nothing to save them. Jason would become a lowly commoner again and that was something he wasn't going to let happen. He was going to make sure Alex got what he deserved and anyone else that got in his way would receive the same treatment. No one gets away with what he did. He wanted Alex to remember the pain he caused him. Jason knew it would be a pain he'd never forget. He slapped the picture off his desk and began to call someone in his contacts named Tobias. If there was anyone that could help him during this situation, it would be Tobias. Tobias had helped Jason get out of a lot of close calls. This was the time for this ruthless killer to shine. And shine, Tobias would. For eventually, all those that intended to stop Jason from his own future would suffer the wrath of Tobias Dunn...