Alice in Virtuality Read Online Free PDF Page A

have arisen, in quadruplicate of course. The cart with the significant orders for the day will be along later."
    He bowed lower, lower still, and for good measure prostrated himself on the floor. It was efficient since he was already down there.
    "Get up!" Martin growled, getting annoyed at the fawning.
    The advisor scrambled up and began to shake again.
    "Stop shaking!" Martin barked. The advisor went rigid.
    Alice giggled. "Go on order him to do something stupid."
    Martin was thinking that might be fun, when there was an unmistakable sound of glass shattering. Crashing through a floor to ceiling window was a mini tornado, debris spinning in its grasp. Papers from the desk took to the air and flew like deranged white birds around the room. The swirling wind stood in the centre of the chamber, conducting the chaos around it. There was a crack like a whip and a single point of white light exploded, dashing everything against the walls with the force.
    "Not another member of the pointy hat brigade," Martin said. Indeed, it was. A white one this time.
    "They like making an entrance don't they," said to Alice. "Go get em tiger."
    He equipped his weapons, but stopped short of charging as he watched the show before him. The mage seemed to phase apart into red, blue and yellow copies. All three pointed staffs and beams of colour shot forth. Martin's shield wouldn't cover him from all angles. He jumped into the air. The beams coalesced beneath him in a ball of burning white plasma. He was dropping into it. Putting the shield under his feet, it was squashed beneath as he landed.
    "Check your belt," said Alice.
    "Oh yes!" he said.
    A spinning disc of blades flew through the air. The heads popped off the magi like champagne corks, one after another. The decapitated statues shook for a moment and then collapsed to the floor like deflated balloons.
    "Nice effect," said Alice.
    "Yeah, but this is a bit tedious. I never even get grazed. And all this paperwork, what's that all about?"
    "Forget the paperwork then, let's just kill things!"
    "Err, I beg and grovel for your attention please your majestic majesterium." The advisor appeared to have recovered his composure, to a servile extent of course.
    "The paperwork is what makes your empire work. Without it there would be chaos." he added, bowing.
    "Yes!" said Alice.
    Martin pondered a moment, he didn't want the game ruined.
    "Your court comes to session in a moment, highest of the high." The advisor sank low and ushered discreetly to the door.
    "Yes. Ok." said Martin.
    Alice tutted.
    The great doors opened to a fanfare of what sounded like a thousand horns at once. There was. Every person occupying the great hall had a candy striped horn to their lips. Martin entered as the cacophony continued. The advisor held up a sign. 'They aren't allowed to stop until you sit' it read. Martin took to his throne.
    In the resulting silence, the advisor pronounced for all to hear, "Let court begin!"
    Everyone began speaking at once. Arguing neighbours began to fight. Flashes of spells went off here and there. Another queue had formed by two guards near Martin. Assuming this was similar to the one he had seen earlier, he got up to put a stop to things. As he did the ground began to shake. The noise of court was replaced by the deafening crunching of the stone floor cracking, opening. The point of a hat appeared in the rift. It continued to reveal itself growing very large. It was followed by the giant mage that was wearing it, climbing out of his self styled entrance. It looked directly at Martin and its face crinkled into a giant evil grin. Martin had had enough.
    "ENOUGH!" he shouted.
    The large jewel on his crown began to glow. There was an all encompassing flash. Everyone was gone.
    "Nice one," said Alice. "I wondered how long you were going put up with all this rubbish."
    "Where are they?" Martin said.
    "You have killed them all. Wiped. Deleted. Terminated."
    He looked around. He and Alice were the only