The Meat Tree Read Online Free PDF Page B

our flesh and blood and we created him.

    Inspector of Wrecks
    I think you’re forgetting that this is a computer game.

    Apprentice
    Even in a game, some things are sacred.

    Inspector of Wrecks
    Hark at you! Body of a boar, mind of a woman!

    Apprentice
    But if it’s like last time, Math will turn our animal offspring into a human child. Doesn’t that mean anything to you? I’m sure it’s important. After all, we’re in here not to play but to find out what happened on board this ship. Working out the values of the crew from the VR has got to be part of the job.

    Inspector of Wrecks
    At this point, I’m thinking it’s just a game, with these ridiculous forays into animal nature. We’re not even close to the part of the programme I want to find.

    Apprentice
    But surely this section contains relevant information. The crew was human, so it must signify something that the animal young are turned into boys.

    Inspector of Wrecks
    I think you’re mistaking pseudo-medieval fancifulness for actual data. This is all decorative.

    Apprentice
    But it feels so much more real than it needs to be. Why would they waste resources on something that doesn’t mean anything?
    Take how we feel in here, it’s breathtaking. I’m finding the forest floor so delightful that it’s arousing. The excitement reaches around my bowels, and I shit where I stand, with the thrill of just being here.
    Have you got over your snit at being the sow?

    Inspector of Wrecks
    I’ll ignore that remark. What’s really shocking is how easy it is to revert to being animal.

    Apprentice
    Those early VRs usually made people into more evolved beings than they actually were. This one goes backwards, down the evolutionary scale. It’s actually much more interesting.

    Inspector of Wrecks
    It has its pleasures. Even otter scat tells me a story.

    Apprentice
    Except that our offspring will be turned into a human child, remember. It’s as if we’re beginning to generate a story quite independent of what we’re experiencing now.

    Inspector of Wrecks
    That’s the imagination for you. Look at the detail! I must say, you have a particularly fine set of nape bristles. Quite handsome.

    Apprentice
    Thanks. You don’t look bad yourself, I love the little wiggly tail.

    Inspector of Wrecks
    Here’s a particularly fragrant patch of mud. Care to roll with me?

    Apprentice
    What about our mission? This is too much like fun.

    Inspector of Wrecks
    I don’t see anything else to do but go with the flow at this point. Got any better ideas?

    Apprentice
    What’s that noise?

    Inspector of Wrecks
    I can smell humans. They know where we are.

    Apprentice
    Oh, no, dogs! It’s a hunt!
    Follow me! I know where the underbrush is thick and they can’t follow. That’s the joy of having such short, powerful legs, we can run to the undergrowth and use brambles and nettles as cover.

    Inspector of Wrecks
    We’ve got to survive this, or we’ll never get out of the forest!

    Apprentice
    Don’t worry, humans are no match for wild pigs, especially ones which have human minds. Remember, if all else is lost and you’re cornered, wild boars have been known to charge and attack their pursuers.

    Inspector of Wrecks
    I’ll see you back at the mud patch in half an hour, when we’ve lost the hunters.
    Tally ho!

    *

    Synapse Log 3 Feb 2210, 23:45

    Inspector of Wrecks
    Hychddwn, Hychddwn. Can’t get the name out of my head, or how the little boy went so obediently with Math. He left us without one look backwards. I felt quite hurt, given that… oh well, never mind. After all, it’s just VR, isn’t it?
    Nona’s turned out to have a natural ability in the game. It’s much more old-fashioned than the stuff the kids are playing these days, but she’s got the knack of standing a little aside from what she’s experiencing. I must say I’m beginning