Chapter 12: Decision
Cyrus was in his room, flipping through a series of possible purchases in the store. He could purchase quite a few things. When he left the Star Wars universe, he had not used even half the points he had earned.
He had really gone above and beyond what he originally intended to do. But when it said make a significant change to the galaxy, he decided to change everything he could.
He hadn't really understood how the system worked before, and now he understood that it was a little different from his expectations. His actions were overkill, but a part of him, maybe the fan part couldn't imagine doing everything he did.
At the same time, he couldn't imagine being that involved in every world he went to or it would take him forever to make progress.
As he looked down the list, he started considering what would be beneficial for him. Right now, his Mom, Duncan, and he were about to go and attack this group called the Harvest. There had been quite a few of them the other night; twelve attacked Duncan. That begged the question: was that all there was to them, or could there be an even greater number?
When they tracked down these Immortals, would they find themselves overwhelmed by sheer numbers, or would they have a fighting chance? Cyrus decided there was no need to take chances and wanted to prepare his new family for any possible outcome.
As a Jedi, he sensed a great deal of danger involved in this undertaking. He wasn't entirely sure why, as he, Duncan, and Amanda had discussed that these Immortals didn't seem particularly strong. The oldest one he had experienced the Quickening for was only about two hundred years old; the others seemed to be about one hundred years old or younger.
Still, it could be that whoever dispatched them thought that sheer numbers would be enough, and it almost had been. Duncan, who had lived for well over four hundred years, was nearly beheaded thanks to their hit-and-run tactics.
Cyrus needed to protect them and help them move through their opponents easily. He couldn't go around giving them all lightsabers; that would stand out too much. As he reflected on it, if not for the need to expedite the situation, he probably wouldn't have pulled out his lightsaber at that time. But at the same time, maybe it would make sense. He certainly had enough crystals. Making two lightsabers wouldn't really set him back very much, and once you've made one, you can make another and another.
The Jedi way was actually to make one lightsaber for yourself at the end of training or as you needed replacements. However, some Jedi would make more than one, and even though Amanda and Duncan were not Jedi, they had very fast reflexes. Like Jedi, they could move fast, and in some ways they had quasi–Force powers, lacking only the precognitive abilities of true Force users. Well, they also lacked telekinetic and telepathic powers.
He finally decided to ask for their opinions. Amanda sat on the couch, looking at a magazine and drinking some wine, while Duncan was on the phone with someone. He was also clicking around on a computer, looking at a map. Cyrus approached his mother.
"Mother, if you had a choice between a lightsaber and some kind of very sharp, very durable sword, which would you choose?"
Amanda looked at him. "Well, I would choose the lightsaber. I saw you make short work of those people the other night."
"But I can make you a very sharp sword that could do the very same thing, but be much less flashy."
Amanda laughed. "Well, you know me. Flashy is what I'm all about."
"Okay," Cyrus said simply.
"I just got off the phone with Joe. He says this Harvest is a collection of weaker Immortals hunting stronger Immortals. It's not clear who founded it, but there are a lot of them. The numbers aren't exactly clear, but I do have a location. We can scout out the situation. Their base is in Europe," Duncan said.
"Perfect," Cyrus said. "I need to go back to the house. I have some things there that I need."
"Duncan, let me ask you a question now. If you had the choice between a lightsaber like I used the other night or a very powerful sword, very sharp, made of exotic materials, which would you prefer?" he asked.
"I would probably go for the sword," Duncan said.
Amanda looked at her son in surprise. "You never said anything about exotic materials."
"What do you mean by exotic?" she asked.
Cyrus paused for a moment. "Well, materials you could probably never find in this world. Metals and alloys that can cut through just about anything. That sort of thing."
Amanda frowned and thought. "Well, now I'm not sure. They both sound really good. Can I have one of each?" she asked.
"Sure. Tell me what kind of sword you want."
"Something light but strong. I've tried longswords before, but they always make me feel off balance."
"The lightsaber weighs almost nothing, so that won't be a problem for you. As for the sword, let me think about that, and I'll come up with some options. Maybe something like a rapier?"
"For women?" Duncan chimed in.
"I prefer katanas," Duncan added. "I've got a really good katana right now, but if you can make something better, that would be great."
"Yeah, no problem," Cyrus said. "There are some other things I can make, but we've got to get back to the house. All my equipment is there."
"You can make swords and these lightsabers, and it's at my house?" Amanda asked.
"Well, it's my house as well, and you haven't been there for five years, Mother; a lot has changed", he responded cheekily.
"All right," Duncan said. "I'll book us flights to London, and we'll go from there to Amanda's. When you're done fabricating, I should have a clear idea of what we're dealing with."
"Great," Cyrus said. "Just let me know when we're leaving."
Cyrus stood up and went back to his room, closed the door, and opened the screen once more. He examined his list of options in the store and started selecting things he could use. He selected a wide range of items—not just from the Star Wars universe, but from other universes as well. He decided that for some things, especially technology, it might be more efficient to purchase them directly rather than going to particular universes just for a couple of useful pieces of tech.
He made his order, but didn't place it yet; it made more sense to buy it and unload it in the basement.
He had been considering for a little while where he wanted to go next, which universe. He needed to upgrade his strength and strengthen his Force powers; that was his first goal. This contest was going to be unpredictable. He didn't know what to expect. There would be other people with systems who would also be preparing right now, and what they would choose and how they would grow, he had no idea. He could face anything from a supreme power to endless armies, maybe both.
He was aware of one movie world he could go to to increase his precognitive abilities: the world of Next. Although it had a very limited ability to foresee the future, it was extremely powerful within a narrow context.
It would be useful in a contest where mistakes could happen. Being able to see into the future while fighting could be the difference between having a head and not having a head. It also seemed like, based on the movie, he could grow stronger over time.
He looked into what he would need to do to acquire the ability, but the system came back with something he was not expecting.
Cyrus was shocked. The whole point of going on this spree of worlds was to increase the strength of his body, not just gather a bunch of technology. Why was this a problem? He had gotten Force powers with no issue.
He typed into the chat: Why am I not able to utilise this power when I was able to adapt Force abilities previously?
The response was immediate.
He was stunned. What he had thought would be a surefire way of surviving difficult battles had now become the very thing that cut off his ability to progress. The inability to grow stronger was practically a death sentence.
He went back to the computer. What can I do? Is there a way to change this status? I would like my immortality, but I need to be able to progress, change my body, and upgrade it.
The system responded just as quickly.
"The Prize," Cyrus said to himself, laughing at the absurdity of the situation. The Highlander universe was notorious for the fact that the Immortal Game seemed to have no end. Immortals weren't decreasing; they seemed to be increasing, with new Immortals being born all the time. The Harvest was one example of that; Immortals, less than a hundred years old. He himself was another example: twenty-five years old and now an Immortal.
What does this mean? He wondered.
Then he had a brilliant idea.
System, if I win the Game in the original Highlander movie universe, will that be sufficient to allow me to unlock my body and retain my immortality?
Of course, there was one problem.
To win the Game, he would need to kill Connor MacLeod.
Connor was the winner.
System, if I kill Connor MacLeod, even though I'm from a different Highlander universe, will it still work? I don't want to switch universes or change my home base.
Now there was the moral dilemma. Killing Connor MacLeod would be like killing Duncan's brother.
System, does Duncan MacLeod exist in the original Highlander movie universe?
That helped, but only a little. Wouldn't he still feel guilty killing another version of Connor MacLeod? And yet, what choice did he have? This was his ticket, his way to preserve his life and survive the upcoming contest. Outfitting himself entirely with technology probably wouldn't be enough.
He closed the system once more.
Cyrus entered the living room again and found Duncan and Amanda talking quietly. He gently interrupted them.
"Duncan, may I ask you a question of morality and ethics?"
Duncan, who had transformed himself from an ignorant savage into a Renaissance man over centuries of life, was always interested in philosophical discussion, especially from a young man Amanda claimed she had raised to be like Duncan.
"Sure. What's your question?"
"If the Gathering were to happen tomorrow and it came down to you and Amanda, would you take her head?" he asked.
Amanda looked at Duncan. Duncan looked at Amanda.
"No," he said without hesitating. He looked back at Cyrus, waiting for him to continue.
"But the Gathering, there can be only one. There can't be two forever," Cyrus replied.
"Then I would let her take my head," Duncan said.
"Okay," Cyrus said. "Let's change it. You and Amanda aside, let's say Joe was an Immortal. Would you kill Joe and take his head?"
Duncan laughed. "No, I wouldn't take Joe's head."
"You'd be willing to lose your head to Joe?" Cyrus asked.
"Well, I don't know if willing is the right word," Duncan said. "But I do know this: at some point, somebody will have to take somebody's head. It really comes down to who's more tired of living, and who isn't."
"What does that mean?" Cyrus asked.
"Well, my cousin Connor MacLeod faced a very difficult opponent years ago. Connor was like an older brother to me. He taught me the Game. He taught me to fight. We were close for hundreds of years. Then Jacob Kell appeared. Every time Connor found happiness, Kell destroyed it. He was vindictive, evil. In the final confrontation, neither Connor nor I had the strength to stop him alone. One of us had to take the other's head."
"I wasn't willing to take Connor's head, even though he begged me to. He said he was tired of living. I refused. Then he forced me into a situation where I had no choice. I took his head. Then I killed Jacob Kell."
"I don't see how that helps me," Cyrus said.
"What I'm telling you is this: sometimes, even if your answer is no, life is unpredictable. People are unpredictable. I didn't want to take Connor's head, but I was forced to."
"I still don't get it," Cyrus said.
Amanda snapped, "Cyrus—"
"It's okay," Duncan said. "I understand what he's asking."
He continued, "Connor was tired of living, and if no one made the sacrifice, we would both have died. Was I really free to say no? I didn't want to die. Connor did. So I took his head, and then Kell's."
"This still doesn't help me," Cyrus said.
"What exactly is the problem?" Duncan asked.
"Let's say, hypothetically, I could cheat the Game. I could go to a world where only two Immortals are left: the Kurgan and Connor. I know Connor wins in that universe."
"He did win," Duncan said.
"Yes, but I mean the universe where they're the only two left. I could wait for Connor to kill the Kurgan, then I would take Connor's head. The Game ends. Should I do that?"
Amanda raised an eyebrow. "That's oddly specific."
"It really is," Duncan agreed.
"But it's my question," Cyrus said. "Would I be wrong to take Connor's head? Or should I hope the Kurgan kills him? Or stay out of it entirely?"
"I don't know," Duncan said. "What would you do?"
"I don't know," Cyrus admitted. "I want to keep my head. Is the whole point of the Game that when you have the chance to win, you take it?"
"That's a way to play it," Duncan said. "But not the only way."
"Then how would you play it?"
Duncan paused. "You already sound like you have your answer."
"But is it the right one?" Cyrus asked. "Would I be evil for doing this?"
Duncan thought. "I don't have a good answer. It's your call."
"The reason," Cyrus said quietly, "is that if I don't, I'm just waiting to die another way."
Amanda spoke up. "Then you have no choice."
Duncan nodded. "I don't like it, but she's right."
Cyrus exhaled, feeling a weight lift from his shoulders.
"This is just hypothetical, right?" Amanda asked.
Cyrus hesitated. Then he told them the truth.
"I have this opportunity. If I don't take it, I'll be stuck at the strength I have now. I'm facing something in the future that's stronger than an Immortal who wins the Game. I can't win here. There are too many Immortals, and I would have to kill you both. I won't do that."
"You mean you're in another Game?" Amanda asked.
"Yes. That's where my powers come from. I've already been to another world. The technology, the lightsabers—I didn't invent them. I'm not that gifted. This is bigger than the Immortal Game."
"So you're playing on a higher level," Duncan said.
"Yeah."
"And if you don't win?" Duncan asked.
"There can be only one."