Bob Rife in the style of Mikhail Vrubel, as interpreted by DALL-E in February 2025.

  Chapter 11: Reflected in you

  Mikla metropolitan area, Confluence dimension

  Year 42 of the Confluence Republic (local time)

  After sending his report up the Diviner hierarchy, Bob just watched things and waited. The fascist hysteria in Erd seemed to be growing every day while the Erd author was busy editing and polishing the first two chapters.

  Then, one morning, Bob woke up to the report that the Erd author had written a third chapter. Bob read the short thing in a flash, feeling more and more dizzy and soon breaking into a sweat. The chapter was about him.

  He had many questions. Why him? He was just a simulations supervisor. What was the relation between his story and the two previous chapters? Where was this going? Would there be more chapters about Bob Rife? Would the chaos and confusion in his mind as he thought about this be the subject of a future chapter?

  When this book was released to the public, Bob would become extraordinarily famous. Everybody in the whole Confluence would read this. Everybody would know about his most intimate thoughts and feelings about – what exactly? Life in Erd? Would anything and everything he thought about show up in the book?

  His mind wanted to imagine where the story was going so he could try to think and say and do something noble and worthwhile in these moments, so he would look good to people reading this. Maybe if he could identify those moments that would be described in the book, he could try to control himself at least in those moments and thereby get through this without coming across like a complete idiot.

  On some slightly deeper level of consciousness, he understood that this project was hopeless. There was no way he could control this, and any attempt to do so would be self-defeating. One way or another the world would know him for what he truly is, and there was no way he could turn himself into something other than himself in order to present to the world as a reasonably decent person. Bob Rife was stuck with being Bob Rife.

  He wondered if it was an accident that this chapter arrived on the very day that he had a meeting with the government people who had taken responsibility for the Erd situation, getting involved on the basis of the report he had written. It felt like something other than an accident.

  Bob checked himself for surveillance magics, wrapped himself up in a cancellation shield, and tried to imagine how the Erd author – meaning whoever was informing that author – might be able to read his mind. There was nothing affecting him – nothing he could find, anyway – and he had no idea what else could be going on. He conveyed to his office at the headquarters, talked to the people who were watching the Erd author – they had already been informed that the whole thing was classified and they could tell no one – and prepared himself for the meeting in the Tower in the afternoon.

  ---

  Salome Einstein: Welcome. We are happy you found the time to talk with us at this busy time. Especially today, I imagine.

  Bob Rife: Thank you. I am honored to be here with the three of you. Today was rather stressful, as you can probably imagine. Indeed, you may be the only people in the world who have experienced something like this.

  Salome Einstein: We went through something similar – especially Yutten and Olz here – although our experience was maybe a bit easier in some ways. We got to read our stories long after they had happened – this must be much weirder for you, especially if you show up in future chapters.

  Did you know this story is from Royal Road? Read the official version for free and support the author.

  Bob Rife: I am a bit overwhelmed, to tell the truth. The people working under my supervision have already started speaking to me like I’m some kind of superstar. And when I first read the thing, I spent a while being rather self-conscious, feeling that everything I might do would be visible to the whole world.

  Salome Einstein: We understand the difficulties this must be causing. Are you confident that your people will be able to keep this information confidential? We don’t want this to break just yet.

  Bob Rife: Well, it’s a new experience for everyone. But they know what’s at stake, and they know that any breach in confidentiality will be traced back to them. I will talk to them, obviously, but I can’t guarantee anything. If you need to make sure, I think you should talk to them. In the old days, I suppose we had Protectors for this kind of thing – I don’t know what the relevant government agency is called these days, but I suppose they should get involved.

  Olz Hap: Today we have a section called Special Circumstances. The three of us are the board members of that section. Maybe we can visit your headquarters when we have finished this talk. How many people know about the development?

  Bob Rife: Seventeen, in all. All the people with global access to the simulation space have been watching the Erd author. And these are ordinary people, you know, not secret agents or anything.

  Olz Hap: We will just have to do our best. Anyway, I understand your discomfort about having your private secrets published for all the world to see. One thing that maybe helps is that I don’t think whoever is feeding the Erd author has any wish to make you look bad. The last book included some things about me and Yutten, especially, that were not strictly relevant to the story, but I guess that was just to flesh us out as characters so the reader would get an understanding of who we are. Maybe the same thing will happen in this book. You’re looking pretty good so far, I think, but if you have colorful secrets, maybe they won’t stay secret, you know.

  Bob Rife: I’m not an especially interesting person, just a simulations nerd basically.

  Yutten Turse: Another thing that maybe helps is that you’re not alone, of course. We have already talked to the people in the other chapters. So, you have someone to share this with when we release it.

  Bob Rife: That’s good, I suppose. Do these other people know they’re in the book?

  Yutten Turse: Not yet. Do you think we should tell them?

  Bob Rife: Huh, I don’t know. I suppose if you know, you can get your act together to some extent, but it’s also a burden to know that the things you do will be studied by billions.

  Yutten Turse: Might affect how you act, maybe wear you down.

  Bob Rife: I’m feeling that, yeah. Um, you think it’s the High Renegade who is behind this? I looked for surveillance magic but found nothing.

  Yutten Turse: That’s the main hypothesis, but we don’t know. Haven’t heard from him in 42 years, don’t even know if he’s still alive. But yes, someone like him might have the subtlety to observe you without being observed in return. We looked for surveillance on the others and found nothing.

  Bob Rife: Maybe he’s back in the Chamber of Visions, seeing things that should be impossible to see.

  Yutten Turse: Who knows.

  Salome Einstein: Well, where do we go from here? I suppose we don’t just lean back and wait to see what the next chapters say.

  Bob Rife: One thing we have not talked about is the growing instability in Erd. Maybe it doesn’t seem very important to you that this simulation space is going through a strange moment, but it’s a major focus in the chapter, right? So, presumably it’s important for the book.

  Salome Einstein: That’s a good point. I suppose it could be possible that the Erd author is talking about this development just as a way to introduce you as a character, but most likely, the instability in Erd will be important somehow.

  Olz Hap: And it’s probably important to the author, don’t you think? It’s the only world he knows, and it seems to be entering a dangerous moment.

  Salome Einstein: Yeah. There are so many aspects to this weird thing that it’s hard to be aware of them all. You still don’t have any idea what is causing it all?

  Bob Rife: No signs of outside interference. Although, you know, there are no signs that we are being observed right now, either.

  Salome Einstein: You’re right. This conversation will be a future chapter in the book, won’t it? Unless it takes off in an even weirder direction.

  Yutten Turse: Strange days have found us. If you – wait –

  A priority notification alerted each of the four simultaneously. The Erd author had started writing something more – not another chapter, but something he called an interlude. They watched as he finished it.

  Olz Hap: What the fuck.

  Yutten Turse: Who is talking? And to whom?

  Salome Einstein: This is outside interference. Has to be. Bob?

  Bob Rife: Uh, yes. I think so. I have no idea how they did that.

  Salome Einstein: What is the story about?

  Bob Rife: It’s one of the more troublesome developments in Erd. Real horror story. An evil empire attacking a neighbor and committing all kinds of atrocities.

  Olz Hap: Can we trace the interference?

  Bob Rife: I hope so. I’ll get people to work on it immediately.

  Olz Hap: Do it. Bob, I hope you understand that you’re working for us now. There’s no other way.

  Bob Rife: Um. Ok, yeah. Fine. Happy it’s not on my shoulders, to tell the truth.

  Olz Hap: Let’s all go to your headquarters and try to keep this under control. And trace that thing.

  Bob Rife observing himself in the style of Félicien Rops, as interpreted by DALL-E in February 2025.