Free Interlude- Brandon by Terry Schott Page A

to start introducing them to the VR environment within the next few weeks. We are still working with the winners of your contest, is that correct?”
    “Yes,” the General confirmed. “The top ranked Gamers from each age group will enter the program first.”
    “Only the top ranked? I was hopeful that the five-year-old would be part of the first group.”
    “Oh, he will be.”
    “Really?” Thorn asked.
    “The lad is skilled,” the General said. “Against the ten and eleven year olds he leads in the individual rankings, and the group he formed is at the top of the team rankings.”
    “Interesting.”
    “Very,” the General said. “The kid’s a natural competitor and leader. I guess I shouldn’t be surprised, considering who his parents are… or were.”
    “Who were they?”
    The General paused, then shrugged his shoulders and told him.
    Thorn’s eyes widened in surprise and he sat forward in his seat. “Are you serious? Does the boy know? Isn’t there an uncle who should be raising him?”
    The General chuckled. “It was the uncle who gave him to us, and the boy doesn’t know, nor will he ever.”
    Thorn nodded, “Of course, General, I understand. It was a terrible accident that claimed his parents. Some rumours claim that they were killed deliberately… I forget who ended up buying their company and acquiring the assets and technologies?”
    The General’s cold gaze matched the tone that crept into his voice. “Sensational rumours and lies are all that surround their untimely deaths, Mr. Thorn. Life isn’t fair and sometimes terrible tragedies occur, which was what happened in their case. ”
    Thorn returned the General’s gaze with a good natured smile. Both men knew the truth. Strayne Industries had been acquired quickly and cheaply by Infinite Solutions Division not long after the premature deaths of the young husband and wife. It was a surprising development, yet no news stations had reported on the story.
    “Sometimes we have plans for life, but life has different plans for us,” Thorn said.
    “I don’t understand,” the General said.
    “I mean life’s not fair, General, although no one ever claimed that it was. Most of us think life owes us something, but the truth is that it’s fragile and can end any time, which I understand better than most. I appreciate your confidence, and you can rest assured that no one will hear a breath of the boy’s true identity from me.”
    The General smiled and nodded. “I knew that would be the case, Mr. Thorn.”
    As the two men continued their conversation regarding the timetables and logistics of the project, Thorn made a mental note to himself. He would be taking a very keen interest in young Brandon Strayne.

 
    Chapter 19
    Brandon opened his eyes and realized he was inside the dream again. Black rats erupted from the stone floor and he wasted no time catching them in his invisible grip. He held them securely in the air until he sensed the familiar golden tingling to his right. The bathroom wall faded to reveal the gold-tinged forest with the giant sloth hanging from a branch of his tree.
    “Good work,” the sloth said. “Crush them and come to my tree.”
    Brandon crushed the squeaking rats and let them drop to the ground. He walked towards the sloth, lifting his foot slightly to step over the lip of the bathroom floor.
    “I’m pleased to see that your skills are improving,” the sloth said. “Did you capture the feeling and practice summoning it when you left last time?”
    “Yes, I did,” Brandon said. “A couple of times I think stuff actually moved. I made a pencil shake, and I’m pretty sure I knocked a book off of Tony’s desk.”
    “Is that so?” the sloth asked. “You are ready for the next step, then.”
    A dark brown owl flew towards the sloth’s tree and landed on the ground beside them. It stood a few inches taller than Brandon and its eyes were a deep gold colour.
    “This is Owl,” the sloth said. “She will