Tunnel Rat Chapter 312 (Patreon)

Milo ignored the message on the screen and explored the rest of the area Jeremy had chosen to spend the last years of his life. It was plain to see he'd been down here a long time. Only one of the sleeping areas had been used for its intended purpose. Two single beds had been moved into the room creating a king-sized bed. Makeshift bookshelves were everywhere, filled with science fiction and fantasy novels, scientific journals, bound printouts from experiments, and a few precious hardcovers in a place of honor. Under the bed were more boxes, all filled with ream after ream of printouts with faded letters on crinkly paper. Some were sealed and labeled with familiar names, old dates, and descriptions of the projects the papers were from. The whole idea was alien to Milo, why would you store data on paper? Was he afraid someone would find his research, or was he saving it from destruction? He'd have to investigate later, he didn't have time now.

On a bedside table was a small stack of letters from friends, a dog-eared copy of The Outlaw Vajak Paw, a children's book called Wump World, and a faded picture in a cracked frame. The picture showed two children sitting under a tree reading books, the same books that were on the table. The older boy had his arm around the younger as they sat under the tree, reading. Turning over the picture he saw a scribbled notation: Lars and Rusty reading on our vacation trip to the Smokey Mountains. Milo left the room, feeling like an intruder.

Two other sleeping quarters had been turned into storage for a huge amount of food, water, and other necessities. The small kitchen and pantry were also filled with food. Most of it was sealed and designed to last for decades. Jeremy had made plans to be down here for a long time, and possibly for multiple people to inhabit the small set of rooms. The remaining two bedrooms had been reconfigured to hold several people, with two sets of bunk beds in each. They looked like they had never been used. On each bed were cardboard boxes marked with the names of the dead people he'd found upstairs.

There were clues here, but he didn't have the time to figure them out. He returned to the control center and began to dig into the information in the manuals on the Fusion Generator, Singularity, and the controls for each. An hour passed and he put the manuals back on their dusty shelf. It was too slow! Reading that way was ponderous and would take forever. He knew the same information would be on the computers. Using the code and passwords given to him by Rusty, he logged in, found the manuals, and began scrolling through them. This was still slower than connecting directly, but twenty times faster than turning pages. As he finished the fourth manual on the Fusion Generator controls, a message flashed on the screen in bright green letters.

"Wow, are you actually reading that fast? That's good for a human. Why did you come all this way if you aren't going to talk to me or play games? Rusty said you were trying to help him win. You won't win the game by ignoring me!"

"Hi, Icarus, can you hear me? Yes, I read that fast and with near-perfect comprehension."

"Oh...that's interesting. Rusty thinks you're pretty smart. Are you just a fast reader, or really smart too?"

"I'm considered smart for a human. How does it matter to you?"

"It does matter! Three different ways. I like games, and I'm good at them. I hope you play games well."

"I'm not sure. The game I play the most has variable victory conditions. What game do you like to play?"

"Like to play? I like to play games with Jeremy and sometimes Rusty, but Jeremy hasn't played in a long time, and Rusty is being difficult, and the game isn't fun anymore. That's your fault!"

"My fault? For distracting him with anime?"

"Maybe...but mostly you spoiled the game. You told him there was a chance at winning and now he's trying to win. You changed everything and now it's not fun!"

"Why isn't it fun? Because Rusty was winning."

"Rusty doesn't get to win! He shouldn't try to win. He'll never win. Don't you understand? You're helping him, and that's stupid! Be smarter, Mr. Fancypants-Fast Reader."

"Icarus, I'm sorry. I don't understand."

"No, you don't get it. Quit trying to win. Tell Rusty to quit trying to win!"

"How about a nice game of chess?"

"Sure. I get white. You don't get to win."

Milo brought did a quick search and found the chess program. Icarus took white and made the first move. The game progressed slowly. Icarus played better than than Rusty had at first, but Milo saw a pattern of delaying and playing for a draw, rather than trying to win, often taking a full two minutes to calculate his moves. Definitely different styles of play between the two. Twenty moves in, Icarus made some small mistakes. At forty moves, Milo had a distinct advantage and put Icarus in check. And that was the point Milo lost. Icarus played flawlessly after that, his moves coming a fraction of a second after Milo finished a move.

"Let's play again. I get white. You don't get to win."

In the second game, Milo played his best and lost even faster. Two more games followed that pattern. In the last game, Milo played for a draw, staying defensive. Icarus changed his style and went back to longer delays between moves, playing passively. The AI missed chances to take pieces, and Milo started doing the same. Any chance to keep the game going was taken by either side. After four hours, Milo was hungry and getting weak. It had been too long since he'd been out of his armor, with a lot of stress. He could have asked the suit to feed nutrients into him, but he decided he'd had enough.

Milo played to win, putting Icarus in check, and lost the game as Icarus responded with lightning-fast, flawless play.

"It was a nice game until you tried to win. YOU DON'T GET TO WIN! Rusty doesn't get to win. I have a glorious destiny! I will die in the nuclear fire of the sun! Don't try to win. Don't try to fly too high!"

Then, in a quiet voice, "Oh, and Jeremy says you should come visit at least once before we all die."