More Than Expected

The world is made up of winners and losers, according to some. Personally, I found life was nothing more than a series of losses and gains, victories and defeats, and the struggle to tip the odds favorably for yourself. And the only way to know the odds, is to set them yourself or explore them.

So after a very rough and harrowing high school experience I graduated to the different yet equally rough and harrowing adult life. It wasn’t a big promotion but my heart swelled at the promise of exploration. So I did just that.

“We have a no-discrimination policy but I’m afraid you still can’t pass the physical examination. At least not unaltered.”

Hiring managers often shut the door on my attempts to do physical labor with reasons like that. Legally, they were well within their rights but as a regular human I simply couldn’t compete with bestial stamina or the endurance of a literal rock.

“Your scores are excellent but your time was lacking. We don’t just need good results, we need fast results.”

Even menial desk work and support was barred from me on the account of my human hands and legs being limited in speed. Spider-type Numans with extra limbs had little competition from humans like myself. I simply couldn’t outproduce them.

Field after field I applied for and came up short. When backed between a corner and a hard place a gambler always tends to bet it all on one last hand.

That was how I won big at the Casino Camelot. Using my last dollar to shake the house down. It was an exhilarating experience to win so much money so quickly. Until a giant bear’s paw patted my shoulder.

“Mr. Phoenix sends his congratulations on your streak of good luck. He’d like to speak to you about a private offer.”

The grizzly bear Numan clearly worked security for the casino and he looked every bit as intimidating as a real bear in a three piece suit. While my immediate fight or flight response was heavily leaning on flight I logically knew it wasn’t an option. Even if there weren’t at least a dozen other guards ready to seize me, I wasn’t going to outrun a half bear.

“I’m guessing this isn’t an optional conversation…?”

The guard’s toothy smile in response was all that needed to clear up that question.

Sweat dripped down my back as the bear guard walked me from the casino floor to a set of stairs behind an office. The stairs wrapped around into a short hallway with one door at the end. He gestured for me to continue walking while he stood at the top of the stairs and spoke into an earpiece.

As I reached the door I wiped the sweat accumulated on my brow and noticed the small emblem of a phoenix on the door. I had guessed the owner, Arthur Phoenix, liked bird-style designs and was some type of avian Numan. I was mostly right.

“Welcome, Hiko. Good to see you made it up here so quickly. I like a man that’s lucky and decisive.”

Arthur Phoenix, the ‘man’ that stood in front of me at that moment, was like no other Numan I’d seen. Brilliant crimson and gold feathers shimmered over his lithe form like fantastic robes. Swirling pools of fire dwelled in his eyes as he held me in his appraising gaze. Great wings sprouted from his back and razor talons extended from his fingertips.

The entire office was also covered in phoenix symbols, statues, and trinkets. Gold and red bled together in gaudy lights and created a sprinkle of majesty within the room. Even down to large burning bird embroidered on the carpet.

Arthur Phoenix truly lived up to his last name.

“...Um. It’s hot.”

Which was not my best response but it was factual, even if a bit obvious.

“Yes, part of being a phoenix Numan. I tone down my fiery nature the best I can but it is hard to limit greatness.”

A predatory grin marked Arthur’s face and I swallowed my spit as I pulled desperately at my collar to fan myself. The heat was getting me just as much as the sight in front of me. Arthur Phoenix was somehow part mythology creature. A miracle of miracles.

“I didn’t know they sold a myth creating alterations for Numans now.”

“They don’t. And before you ask the obvious question of ‘How?’ I’d like you to tell me how much money you walked into my casino with tonight?”

“...Um. About 800 dollars?”

“And you’re currently at about 312,000 right? Most men aren’t lucky or skilled enough to multiply their initial betting amount by hundreds of times over.”

“I didn’t cheat if that’s what you’re suggesting.”

“No, if I suspected cheating we’d be having a very different conversation.”

Arthur went over to a large golden liquor cabinet and began pouring himself a drink.

“Is Scotch fine? I hope it is because I don’t plan to drink anything less and I don’t like to drink alone when making a deal.”

“A deal?”

My curiosity was piqued as he handed over the drink. Not just at the deal but also at the fact the alcohol hadn’t burst into flames yet.

“Yes. You came in with virtually nothing, gambled like it was for your survival, won enough to buy a house and kept going for more! That is clearly a man that truly believes in luck.”

“I do. I believe luck can change fate.”

“As do I. That’s why I saw in you a kindred spirit. I saw in you what I was before I became the Arthur Phoenix in front of you. Now, I’ll answer how I did it. I went directly to the tree of Yggdrasil and ate a fruit from it. Fruit directly from the tree is different. It’s a true miracle.”

It sounded hard to believe but there were always rumors about the fruit of Yggdrasil being special even compared to the products made by studying it. Over the years I’d heard tales of people supposedly eating it and obtaining impossible fusions of being half-deity or cursed with becoming half-dead.

But in front of me was proof of those rumors making me a deal.

“What’s the deal you’re offering me? And more importantly what is it that you want from me, Mr. Phoenix?”

“Straight to the heart of it then! I want you to forget about leaving here with your winnings. I want you to take a chance, the biggest chance of your life, and go to Yggdrasil then come back and work for me.”

It was a ludicrous proposal by any stretch of the imagination. I’d won hundreds of thousands of dollars. Even if they refused to let me play anymore I had more than enough money if I left.

But then I’d still be me. I’d still be an unhireable human in a Numan’s world. The only way I’d change was if it felt like I could really win a million-to-one odd chance. And this was that chance to chase that sensation.

“I’ll do it.”

Arthur smiled, satisfied with the answer.

“Lucky and decisive. I like that.”

*****

When I told Rebecca what I planned to do she immediately said it sounded like me and wished me luck. She was training for her dream to participate in the Arasaka Numan Triathlon and seemed happy that I was finally taking a long shot at my own dream.

Getting to Yggdrasil was basically two big aerial trips: first to China by airplane then the base of a giant mountain by helicopter. The entire time I was anxious about this leap I was taking.

What happens if I fail to get a piece of fruit? Returning home as a regular human wasn’t part of the deal.

Even if the governments allow me to scale the mountain, what if I anger the tree? The last time humans angered Yggdrasil we spent a decade rebuilding.

What if I’m just a failure, even luck? Luck can change fate but not always for the better.

Maybe this was all too much. It was overwhelming. Maybe I should just stop.

“...Who am I kidding? I’d never stop.”

We landed in what looked like a military facility that was part of a defensive ring.These were the coalition government forces that guarded the base of the mountain. A few of the soldiers there were taking bets as I passed through. Part of me wanted to ask what were my odds and place some money. The smart part of me knew better.

Packed to the brim with camping supplies and desperate willpower I scaled the mountain towards Yggdrasil. It was a long trek up the side filled with a number of typical and non-typical perils.

First were the sheer cliffs that seemed impossible to scale. I lost my footing several times but managed to avoid falling to my death. I only lost some of my precious supplies.

Giant golden apes that towered over humans like something out of kaiju film causally climbed the mountain near me. Their great steps threatened to squish me like an incest if failed to avoid them. Unfortunately their passing also altered the path I was taking and made it impassable. The detour took an additional day.

By the time I’d climbed near the mountain top I was short on supplies, breath, and mental strength. My pulse pounded in my head and my blood screamed into my ears. Every step felt like miles and I required rest after only a few of them.

Until suddenly I wasn’t able to stand up again. My legs had finally quit the fight and the rest of my body would follow.

“Damn. I got pretty close.”

I craned my head skyward and saw the branches of Yggdrasil expanded out over me. If height wasn’t an issue I’d have achieved my goal. The fruit was in the branches miles above me.

“Or maybe…I’m lucky.”

Beneath the branches of the Yggdrasil tree was rich and probably supernaturally fertile soil. My hands dug into the dirt with my limited strength. Flesh peeled from my fingertips.

I shoved dirt till I bleed. Until I cried. Until I found my single possibility for greatness in the earth beneath me.

I found one piece of fruit from the Yggdrasil tree. It had fallen from the branches and ended up buried in dirt all by chance. A chance was all I needed. A shot to win something that felt like a real prize.

“So plain looking.”

I was pretty sure talking to myself was a bad sign but in truth the fruit did look unremarkable. The fruit appeared as common as an apple or a pear and not as nearly alien or majestic as books and illustrations made them out to be.Yet within that fruit was an entire universe of possibilities.

I thought briefly of the possibility of being turned into something like a half-turd human and sighed. It was either greatness or death either way at this point. So I said “Please don’t be shit.” as took one bite into infinity and left humanity behind.

Light and Dark.

Hot and Cold.

Day and Night.

Left and Right.

Reality and Fiction.

Truth and Lies.

I saw the universe unfold before me and realized how small I was in it. Yet also how important I was in it too. I was at the center of the universe and everything swirled around me. Creation itself was laid out like pages in a story and the words described my adventure.

It described my awakening. I became a half of something greater. No… I realized I was wholly something less than the beings that gazed over my existence.

Out of all the possibilities of what to become, I became half fictional. In a world of fiction. Like multiplying two negatives, a lie on a lie became the truth. I was still fiction but I was aware.

I was so much more aware.

My eyes pierced beyond the fictional world into the void-space between letters and words that crafted my thoughts. I knew that nothing was left to chance. Every possibility was fate and the author was the fate weaver.

But I wondered about those that read my fate. I was a gambler destined to become greater than my story. Was it interesting? Noteworthy? Boring? Pedantic? Shallow? Hollow?

My story was fiction either way. However, dear reader, I have one question for you. It is the only point of this universe of mine. This story of a dreaming gambler.

“Would you risk it all to be greater than you are?”

Half World - End