Bryce had time to think. It felt like he hadn’t done it for so long, it was almost as if he had forgotten how.
He never thought he’d feel it, but he was glad his parents were gone. The sadness of their loss sat just under the surface.
Thinking of them having to deal with his “drowning” felt like a wound deep inside — one he could not heal.
The only other significant person in his life up to now was Amber.
The most aptly named person I’ve ever met. Those eyes, that skin, the curls, and her warm, no-nonsense personality.
Amber left him with a clear message - call if you need a friend. He really wished he could call her. She’d cut through the existential loops he was tying himself in…
And I can’t because…? He tried Amber’s blunt tone on for size — and decided he liked it.
Okay, let’s have a look at this. I am… kind of dead? I’m also not dead. I am… existing. Maybe not in the way my brain is used to… but I exist.
He took it slow, aware thinking about his own mortality could trigger a massive panic attack.
Being so wrapped up in myself, I skipped the whole stage of… freaking the fuck out about the… The Harmoniser. The fact we are not alone. There is something bigger out there…
“Okay. I am now — and I say this with the authority of a man who has edited far too many supernatural coming-of-age serials — freaking the… Fuck Out!”
He rode the waves of tingles travelling through him. He knew there was no physical framework for him to be feeling it — yet he was tingling all over regardless.
His diaphragm tightened. His breath came in shallow, almost sigh-like gasps, as if he’d suddenly jumped into icy water.
He had no body. There was no way he could comprehend how he was feeling all of that with such clarity.
He held on to the overwhelm. He didn’t let the panic and terror take hold. It was far too late for that.
Amazement, awe…. He died due to a glitch in his heart function. And a being — an entity, something… something ancient — had been interested enough to intervene.
Amber piped up in his head at the perfect moment: So do you really have anything to be freaking out about?
Surprisingly, he found that he really didn’t.
He felt The Harmoniser’s presence like a slow, enveloping immersion of his consciousness in something vast.
He suddenly felt… embarrassed, about forcing the Harmoniser to conform to his need for the familiar.
If I had a head I would actually, literally, hang it in shame. I can’t believe I called it H…
The Harmoniser assessed Bryce. His progress validated its premise. If it gave Bryce time to adjust to his new reality, he would achieve Echo World compatibility efficiently.
“Bryce, you are composed. I believe that is the correct term?”
“The Harmoniser, yes, it is the correct term, and I am more composed than I’ve been in a while.”
“This is a positive development. It will help you integrate into the Echo World.”
“The Harmoniser, can I ask how I am going to do that?”
“Bryce, you are already asking. That answers the ‘can I’ part. The ‘how’ is a combination of your understanding of the world you are going to join, your willingness to join it, the stasis cradle's medium continuing to support your Neural Matrix and some ‘editorial intervention’ on my part.”
“Thank you, the Harmoniser.”
The Harmoniser detected a small non-conformance in Bryce’s tone compared to their previous exchanges. There was no sudden joviality about the difference between ‘may’ and ‘can’.
“Bryce…?” The Harmoniser rippled the containment pocket slightly.
“Yes, the Harmoniser?”
“Why are you referring to me by my full function? Now I understand incrementally more about human communication patterns, I realise ‘The Harmoniser’ is inefficient. Humans may say ‘It sounds awkward’.
“I should have known you’d pick up on that.” Bryce felt a little like a school-boy caught trying to peek at the teacher’s notes.
“I was… feeling awkward. I’ve realised I’d pushed my expectations on you when I insisted on calling you ‘H’.”
A gentle pulse. Bryce wasn’t sure how to interpret it.
“Bryce, the emotional response is further validation of my premise. You are becoming more aware, more yourself.”
The pulse was there again, feeling strangely comforting. Bryce allowed himself to think it was encouragement… meant for him.
“And Bryce, do not worry about ‘pushing’ me. That is, again, an impossibility. I have no corporeal presence and you are not versed in energy manipulation.”
The medium rippled and Bryce could tell - The Harmoniser… H, was amused. He could not believe his luck. So much so that he was only able to come up with the easiest, cliched sentiment to express himself.
“H, I think you would have liked my friend Amber. She is a little bit similar to you — in a completely human way.”
The small comforting ripple came again.
“Amber. A human who contributed to your emotional stability. I understand the comparison. If her positive actions supported your coherence, then yes — I believe we would have shared a resonant frequency.”
Bryce felt seen. And through this impossible being’s lens, he saw a glimpse of what drew Amber to him in the first place, and what kept her firmly as his friend.
“H… that’s perfect. Amber would have liked that very much. She would have liked you.”
The Harmoniser ran a system diagnostic — it found a rise in harmonics associated with beneficial interaction. Bryce was the variable. It also recognised a shift in its processes: analysing the rise in harmonic response no longer required heightened evaluation.
“Bryce, do you want to learn more about the Echo World?”
“Yes, H, what info do you think is most relevant to me being able to integrate?”
“The rules which differ from the origin world. The Biological Alpha imperative is the primary example.”
“H, when you say ‘Alpha’ does that mean the ‘main character’ is some sort of were-creature? Usually has the ability to turn into a human — whichever animal hybrid, either at full moon, or as a choice with a connection to the full moon…”
“Most commonly a werewolf — so turning into a hybrid human — wolf creature, or a full wolf on a larger scale and retaining at least some of the human psyche while in a changed state?”
The pulse spread through Bryce - he thought he could detect a slight difference in it. Almost as if it ended on a high note (for lack of a better description).
“You are proving my conclusions correct, Bryce. Your knowledge in this field will
serve you well. No, the Alpha is not a were-creature. He is a human with a biological imperative.”
The Harmoniser compiled trope knowledge for easy access. It continued with the explanation.
“In this case it means he belongs to a group of ‘elite’ human specimens, able to command respect by a combination of body language, pheromone profile and will. The traits are inherited genetically.”
“Ah, so the MC is a part of the Omegaverse dynamics. Alpha, Beta, Omega but not shifters… H, would I conform to the alpha imperative once I was integrated?”
“Correction, Bryce. The alpha is not an MC. He is a living human being, as much as you were on Earth, and are now. You are correct about the Omegaverse dynamics, but would not be affected by them.”
Bryce felt told off. He was strangely happy about it. It was another moment of H demonstrating it cared, not just about him, but this alpha… The knowledge felt like a warm glow inside him.
“Sorry, H — The things you are talking about are all a part of my knowledge. I get carried away when I’m excited about something. And this is exciting because it’s familiar and also new. I meant no disrespect.”
“I simply meant to illustrate the alpha is no longer a character existing only in the writing he was conceived in.”
“What’s his name? Or should I wait to find out once I’m there?”
“This is good preparation, Bryce. His name is Cassian Thorne.”
A rough bark of laughter escaped Bryce before he could stop it.
“Gwaff! Ahh, sorry, it’s just… Thorne? Really? Thorne? I could pretend his given name is a male version of Cassiopeia. But, who am I kidding, that’s straight out of the expanded Star Wars universe."
“Cassian Thorne has no need of uprisings, Bryce. He is the Alpha. If it helps, he goes by Case — and he resembles a Redwood far more than your Andor’s Birch.”
“H, that is not…ahhahaha…sorry! It’s not helping…”
The Harmoniser waited, calmly, quietly until Bryce composed himself.
“Are you ready for more, Bryce?”
“I’m so sorry, H, I’m not even sure why that was all so funny. You said I wouldn’t be affected by the Omegaverse dynamics?”
“You are from the Origin World — as such you are immune to the biological imperative and the pheromone profiles.”
“The body language may affect you, however your reaction will be as it would have been on Earth.”
Bryce was relieved by that — he was not looking forward to having his will overridden by a biological imperative.
“You said the world was ‘unfinished’… What do you mean by that?”
“The world was written as Earth with Omegaverse dynamics. Except it’s not actually Earth with all its complexities.”
“It was never going to achieve complete fidelity, of course. The world creator — writer, went into very fine details in certain areas, and left others as basic outlines only.”
“The most fitting description I can give is: the writer created very detailed sections of things they cared about. The main character, several supporting and some locations. The rest is as I said, outlines.”
“Thank you, H. I think I need to ‘power down’ now. I am really starting to look forward to the integration.”
“I am experiencing positive validation based on this interaction, Bryce. Pleasure? I am pleased.”