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Gelda didn’t get to play Cosmo Dome right away.
Not realising how much time had passed delving into the captivating game, she went for a quick bathroom break and found that the party had quietened down. Feeling awful for abandoning her host duties, she made up for it with belated attention to remaining guests. Most congregated in the kitchen with Raquin and Barlo.
‘This has been the best rebirthday party ever, Grandma!’ Barlo declared when he saw her. With a tight hug he asked, ‘Have you been enjoying yourself?’
‘So much.’ Gelda beamed and told him about the game.
‘It sounds like a blast!’
‘It is! I haven’t even started playing yet, but already it’s like nothing I’ve ever experienced. It’s quite challenging, too.’
Barlo gave a confused frown. ‘Have you just been playing in demo mode then?’
Gelda shook her head. ‘Not even. There was an initiation issue, but your friend Shellany has been helping.’
‘Who?’
‘The woman with the green streak in her hair?’
Barlo thought for a moment. ‘Oh, her. I assumed she was one of your friends.’
‘No. That’s odd. Oh, well. I’m sure there’s a reasonable explanation,’ Gelda replied, though she couldn’t think of one. Now she was even more curious about the mysterious yet helpful guest.
‘Someone’s plus one probably. Anyway, I want to see this new Marvellus game of yours!’ Barlo gushed and promised to join her soon.
Before returning to the game, Gelda retreated to her room to lie down for a moment. Having a house full of lively people was a refreshing change but exhausting. These past few centuries, it was rare for her to have anyone over at all. When she did, it was only three or four friends. From lethargy more than choice, she spent most days other than Bingo on Tuesday mornings alone with Finkle and the entertainment feed for company. Most evenings she was in bed by nine, except for Friday when she went to a movie or played cards with friends.
On the bed, Finkle slept. His eyes narrowly opened when she stroked his head. ‘My sweet boy,’ she soothed and snuggled up next to him. Purrs soothed.
Eyes closed, tight muscles eased, she drifted into a light doze while the muffled sounds of the remaining guests downstairs added a distant comfort. Ten minutes of rest would revive her for another few hours. She found herself smiling. Hosting a large party wasn’t too bad. Everyone was having a good time, even her. These days, that was indeed a rare thing.
Leaving the cat to his haven away from boisterous elixir-infused humans, she headed back downstairs. In the lounge room, an animated spectacle that filled the air above the lounge table and splayed onto the rear wall took her breath away. Demo Mode flashed in semi-transparent lettering overtop scenes that looped through enticing snippets of gameplay. Gelda imagined herself zooming through dark space observing in close proximity the strange objects in all shapes and sizes as they moved and changed. What a wonder! She grew increasingly excited to know more, especially when a close-up of an enchanting planet showed simple organisms evolving into complex sophisticated species.
An overlay, translucent enough to see through, appeared in the air before her. On it was a coin meter making clinking sounds. When full, it burst and more life exploded. She wondered what was going on. The demo mode does a fine job of luring a player in, she decided.
Her attention leaving the spectacle, Gelda stepped into the room to find the remaining guests huddled around the lounge table watching another game that had begun in her absence. Elixir decanters were piled up on the other end of the table from the Cosmo Dome setup forming the rough shape of a pyramid without a top.
From the sofa where she sat with Hazzy, Fansy slurred, ‘Who drank all the decanters?’ while groping the air next to a cooler stacked full of them.
‘Not me. I’m still quite sedate, actually,’ Hazzy said, then tripped over the cooler while reaching around the table to a lower spot on the pyramid. She somehow managed to position a decanter perfectly.
The small crowd cheered.
‘What are you all doing?’ Gelda wondered with a giggle as she leaned against her armchair where Bryll was sitting.
‘Tawawa, Gelda!’ said Hazzy upon noticing her. ‘We’re playing elixamid! Get it?’
‘On account of the shape of the decanters and the structure,’ Odgio mansplained with a slur.
‘Bets are on whether they’ll make it through the drinking to put the last decanter on top, or if the elixir effects will bring it crashing down,’ said Shellany who sat in one of two dining chairs opposite the sofa someone had brought in while Gelda was resting. While her wry smile revealed she was amused by the game, her attention kept drifting to the virtual display.
From the other dining chair, Odgio chuckled. ‘It could go either way.’
For the moment, Gelda brushed aside curiosity about the identity of her mysterious guest and watched the game.
Bryll grinned while attempting to position a decanter on top of Hazzy’s. He missed the table altogether and fell into a fit of laughter. With only a row or two left, and with a somewhat steady hand, Odgio went next.
‘Careful,’ warned Fansy sloshing elixir about.
‘Hey!’ Hazzy wiped her damp cheek.
‘Keep still!’ said Bryll, managing to place another decanter on the towering structure.
‘Let’s finish so we can watch Gelda play Cosmo Dome!’ Hazzy suggested.
Turns came and went; somehow the increased pace warranted better moves. With only one decanter left to go, they argued over who would take the turn.
‘What about Gelda?’ Shellany suggested to unanimous agreement.
Gelda examined the structure, noted its weak points, then very carefully positioned the final decanter on top. It wobbled, lingered steadily for a brief moment, and looked like it would stay – until Fansy jumped up with premature excitement. Her knee caught the edge of the table sending the structure crashing.
‘No!’ everyone cried out as decanters tumbled across the wobbling table and onto the floor.
Shellany’s reaction was immediate and effective. One hand steadied the table, while the other stopped the Cosmo Dome controller from sliding off it.
‘Good save.’ Gelda exhaled in relief and wondered once again about the mysterious guest’s reasons for being here. She’s probably someone’s plus one like Barlo said. She decided not to worry. Without Shellany’s help, the game would still be unactive and thought of as broken.
‘I rate that a success!’ said Hazzy and high-fived anyone who cared to smack her raised hand.
‘What happened?’ Fansy wondered and they all laughed.
After they cleaned up, Gelda got settled in her armchair and rearranged the gaming equipment back on the table.
‘Cosmo Dome time!’ Hazzy clapped her hands.
Everyone’s attention went to the looping demo-mode gameplay in the air around them. When Gelda pressed the diamond button on the controller, the demo disappeared. Complemented by a pleasant melody, the Cosmo Dome branding lifted from the bottom right of the display and tumbled to the centre, then exploded leaving behind dark space with a flashing, illuminated blue diamond. Shining resplendently in white light within was the word, Begin.
‘Before you begin, I’d recommend you switch Help on,’ Shellany advised.
‘I definitely need it,’ Gelda murmured and pressed a finger to the icon hovering above the potted plant. The overlay appeared again. This time it held a query: Enable Help? Yes, No. In smaller type below was Help is an intrinsic component the Cosmo Dome System (CDS).
Pressing Yes triggered soft music then a pleasant voice from the controller speaker. ‘Tawawa! I am Help, your game assistant. What shall I call you?’ When Gelda said her name, Help replied with, ‘I am delighted to make your acquaintance, Gelda. Let’s begin. To qualify to play Cosmo Dome, first you must submit your DNA. The Cosmo Dome system enhances your DNA to foster maximum diversity. In the Universe model, it is transformed further to carry out the complex functions needed for thorough evolution. Please press a finger to the button on the powerstation.’
Shellany pointed out an inconspicuous spiral-shaped button on the front of the powerstation below the preservation chamber. It turned red when Gelda pressed it, flashed white a few times, and then turned a steady green. ‘DNA approved’ appeared with a brief uplifting sound then vanished.
‘Congratulations! You’re in,’ Shellany said with a gentle smile.
Help explained what everything was for and pointed out features. Since Shellany had already told Gelda most of it, she instead took a moment to admire the setup. Everything looked so old and yet somehow advanced. ‘I’ve never seen anything like it,’ she murmured.
Help zoomed in on dials, gauges, screens, and buttons, then a second overlay with a query appeared: Enable Training Mode? Yes. No.
‘I definitely need training.’ Gelda looked to Shellany for confirmation. ‘Don’t I?’
Shellany looked up from her aide with a slightly concerned expression that disappeared quickly. ‘What? Oh, yes. Definitely.’
Gelda briefly wondered what had taken Shellany’s attention then took her own back to the game. Gentle rhythms started when she pressed Yes then the black backdrop shrank to a pinpoint and vanished. It was replaced by an environment that appeared similar to a scene in the demo mode Gelda had watched in autoplay earlier, except more abstract. The overlay read For Training Purposes Only.
‘You are now viewing a simplified simulated model of the Universe biosphere,’ Help explained
Gelda plugged in one of the two remaining power connectors to remotely connect the steering wheel to the preservation chamber. A steady blue energy current stretched between them.
Pulling the hovering steering wheel down to her lap in both hands, she became familiar with the colour-coded speed settings arranged in a ring on the control pad. Pressing the up and down buttons under her thumbs, she traversed the simulated cosmic scenery of the training arena, crawling in red then creeping in orange towards virtual galaxies. Soft rousing music steered her onwards. She cruised in yellow, coasted in green, then raced in blue. White pin lights on either side defined a travel lane, and coordinates appeared on an overly revealing that the lights were also speed and navigation indicators. The faster she went, the more lights appeared.
‘Look at you go!’ Bryll encouraged.
‘This is fun!’
Help completed training mode by demonstrating the various overlays that showed information on levels, quests, rewards, boosts, and bonuses.
With the training done, dark space re-emerged with the flashing diamond that now read Play.
On the controller, Shellany pressed buttons and turned dials. ‘Now for the fun part. You’re going to love constructing your Universe,’ she enthused.
‘No doubt, but it will have to wait until tomorrow,’ Gelda replied with a yawn and a stretch.
‘You’re going to bed? No!’ Hazzy protested.
‘It’s been a long day.’
‘You sure?’ said Shellany. ‘The construction stage doesn’t take that long.’
‘How long?’
Shellany thought about it. ‘About three hours.’
‘Three hours!’ Gelda exclaimed.
‘That’s just an estimate.’
‘It only took me an hour to finish construction on my Thalverse,’ said Bryll.
‘You’re closely guided, and you can even automate some of it, which will speed things up.’
‘I appreciate your enthusiasm, really, but I’m not sure I can concentrate much longer.’ She stifled a groan of exhaustion.
‘Listen, my dearest friend.’ Hazzy donned a firm tone. ‘It’s Barlo’s last rebirthday, and we are all here right now. There’s a good chance you will never, ever again get the chance to play a game with such an awesome cheer squad.’
‘She has a point,’ Odgio said with a cheesy grin.
Gelda laughed. ‘Never, ever?’ she teased.
‘What about you just play the first level?’ Shellany suggested. ‘Design only takes about half an hour at the most. You’ll earn your Universe Designer badge and qualify as Novice Cultivator.’
‘Novice Cultivator!’ Hazzy shook his head in wonder.
‘Sounds... farmy.’ Odgio laughed.
‘Design, then sleep!’ Bryll suggested.
Fansy had fallen asleep and snored in agreement, making everyone laugh.
Lacking energy to further protest, all Gelda could muster was a slow breath in and a long breath out while blearily smiling at friends intent on seeing her play. It was three hours past her usual bedtime, and while sleep called loudly, something else called louder. Pushing through her lethargy wasn’t an option, so instead she ignored it. This was a special evening. Hosting Barlo’s rebirthday brought much-needed joy to her home. Keeping the fun going a while longer was worth the added weariness in a tomorrow that only offered quietness and naps regardless of how many hours of rest she got.
Sleep could wait.
‘Okay, I’ll play!’
Shellany sighed with what Gelda thought was relief, and she wondered if there was another reason for her being here.
‘Is there a problem? You seem tense.’
Shellany let out a breath. ‘I’m just really keen to see your Universe built. Construction is when a biosphere is most vulnerable, and yours has been prematurely activated, so it’s a relief to know it will be secure. Well, if you decide to finish the stage...’ Her eyes widened in expectation.
‘Let’s just see how things go, shall we?’ said Gelda.