3

But what makes a world real?

Gaspery was lying on his back in the mud, staring up at leaves silhouetted against a darkening sky, and it seemed to him that he’d been there for some time. Night was falling in the forest. Vincent was gone. He sat up, with some effort—his back was stiff; how long had he been lying there unmoving?—and sent a message through his device: I saw it! I saw the file corruption! It’s real, Zoey.

There was no reply. He knew what he’d done, he knew he’d broken the most important rule by saving Olive Llewellyn, but he retained a sliver of hope that the message might save him.