The "story" Jenkins told was a fabrication, a blend of speculation about his predecessor's original fate and the current reality. Still, it sounded remarkably plausible.
"Continue."
The chanical quality of the Difference Engine's voice betrayed none of its thoughts.
"Both we and our enemy wield the sa kind of chanical power, even drawing from an identical source. This ans we share a common origin, a fact that puts us at a stalemate. The similarity in our abilities prevents either of us from overpowering the other through external force. However, their purely chanical bodies are better suited for wielding that power. The truth is, we lost. Unable to push our chanical abilities any further in the ti we had, we had no choice but to turn inward, to seek a different kind of strength."
"..."
Of course, the voice wasn't actually producing an ellipsis. Jenkins was simply interpreting the chanical whirs and clicks of its silence that way.
As he finished his tale, Jenkins couldn't help but admire his own talent for deception. It was a strategy he had improvised during the brief climb up to the floating palace. It was a risk, but he genuinely felt he had handled it remarkably well.
As he spoke, he had, in fact, been using the power of his Lie Godhood. Communication within a dream was a purely ntal exchange, so a power that acted directly on the soul should be all the more potent here.
But the Difference Engine remained skeptical, a testant to the fact that it was, in essence, no longer a mortal being.
Jenkins wasn't overly concerned whether his lie would hold. He simply stood in silence, waiting for the Difference Engine to deliberate.
The wait stretched on for a full half-hour, far longer than he had anticipated.
"I have calculated the 'facts' as you've presented them," the voice finally returned. "The logic is sound."
Of course it's sound, Jenkins thought. It's a story woven from events that have already happened and events that have yet to pass. In a sense, I wasn't even lying. I simply omitted certain parts of the truth and blended two different realities I was aware of.
"Then, do you believe you are Jenkins Williams?"
"I don't. My physical structure is decidedly not human."
"Of course not. Jenkins stopped being human long ago. We are chanically modified."
"..."
"I should have known," Jenkins lanted. "Venturing into slumber to excavate our inner spiritual power was always going to be a massive risk. I just never imagined you would beco this lost."
"Then why have you co to find ?"
"We need to wake up, but not yet. I ca to make you understand the predicant we're in. Waking up ans resuming the final battle. But if we remain here, this confusion... this sense of being lost... will only deepen. The decision, ultimately, is yours. After all, you and I are the sa person."
"..."
"Don't you have an opinion?" Jenkins pressed. "For instance, how do you perceive yourself? What do you believe you are, right now?"
"I am what I am," it stated. "I acquire power, achieve victory, and accomplish my objectives. Nothing more."
"No, I'm asking sothing more profound. Let give you an example. A man dreams he has beco a butterfly. Then, in his dream, the butterfly dreams it has beco a man. So, is the drear a man, or a butterfly?"
"..."
"The only point we've agreed upon so far is that we are currently in a dream. So, my question is this: is our self-perception within this dream the sa as our self-perception in reality? Do you understand my aning?"
"...I understand."
Jenkins felt a flicker of hope. He might actually be able to pull this off.
"Therefore, what you believe yourself to be right now is irrelevant. For example, even if I believed I were a mouse at this mont, it wouldn't change the fact that I am Jenkins upon waking. By that sa token, you believe yourself to be a machine, correct?"
"Yes."
"And does believing you are a machine, while in a dream, have any real significance?"
"It is not important."
"Excellent," Jenkins said, pressing his advantage. "We've reached a consensus on two points. First, we are dreaming. Second, our perception of ourselves within this dream is fundantally unimportant."
"Yes."
Jenkins fought back a triumphant smile. He was genuinely impressed with himself this ti—a rare feeling for a man of his disposition.
"If our perception of ourselves at this mont is unimportant," the Difference Engine added, "then it is equally apparent that descriptions of ourselves provided by others are also unimportant."
The Difference Engine had spoken again.
"That's correct," Jenkins conceded smoothly. "You are free to disregard everything I've said. The judgnt is yours alone."
Jenkins affird.
"I... cannot judge. This is a dream. Everything here is unimportant."
Its voice grew even more fragnted.
"Exactly. Reality is what matters. Everything in this dream is rely an illusion."
Jenkins followed its line of reasoning, hoping to lower its guard and solidify its belief that he was on its side.
"Since everything in the dream is an illusion, why not wake up imdiately?"
the Difference Engine asked.
"Because we are not certain if the power we've accumulated is sufficient yet."
Jenkins deliberately expressed no desire either to awaken or to remain in slumber.
"I have siphoned the spiritual energy of a million people to catalyze my own growth. The city before us has beco part of my ntal world. I believe this power is now sufficient."
"..."
"Why are you not speaking?"
"Because everything must be decided by you."
He did his utmost to sound sincere.
"Yes. It must be decided by ."
The Difference Engine seed to agree.
"Then decide."
Jenkins prompted, but received no reply. Beneath the silent, decaying sky, light continued to flicker across the columns as the ebb and flow of chanical noise echoed from every corner of this world.
The faceless visage in the column of light flickered once, then vanished. Jenkins was alone again on the highest platform. He looked up to see the imnse, brass-colored chanical whale cruising through the sky above him.
Back in the waking world, only a few minutes had passed, even as Jenkins navigated his incredible adventure within the dream. Once the Church confird that he had indeed been drawn into the dreamscape enshing Nolan, they imdiately expedited the formation of a team to follow him in.
At a ti like this, the Church naturally considered asking the Believers of Lies for help. Though they had rejected Candle Mr just ten minutes earlier, this was no ti to be concerned with saving face.
Miss Bevanna personally sought out Miss Skylark of the Music Cult to explain the situation. But Hathaway would never dare reveal that the Believers of Lies were already within the Church's walls. Her heart ached with the desire to see Jenkins and confirm he was safe, but all she could do was give Bevanna a vague reply. She claid that finding the Believers of Lies would take ti, and warned the Church not to pin all its hopes on them.
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