by Paul Bellow
Several golden bolts of energy fired out of his hands, hitting Morgan in the chest. He screamed but continued running toward poor Harvey.
“Help me!” the healer screamed as he scrambled backwards.
I sighed then ran toward them at full speed. When I reached the fight, I swung my two-handed sword with all my might. The blow landed a direct hit on Morgan.
Your slash INJURES [PC] Morgan for 14 damage.
The fighter turned his attention to me as Harvey rushed over to heal Thero. I stared at the other player, the death screams around us getting louder.
Heavy, thick smoke filled the air from the numerous fires that were burning out of control. My eyes stung, but I kept them open, sword raised high.
[PC] Morgan’s slash INJURES you for 14 damage.
[PC] Morgan’s slash WOUNDS you for 17 damage.
You have [42/73] health remaining.
“A little help!” I shouted then attacked again.
Morgan deftly dodged to the right before striking again.
[PC] Morgan’s slash HITS you for 9 damage.
[PC] Morgan’s slash INJURES you for 12 damage.
You have [21/73] health remaining.
I felt my strength sapped from me as I struggled to keep my sword up. Thero yelled then slammed his body into Morgan, knocking them both to the ground.
While they wrestled around, I stumbled backward a few steps. Monky came up behind me and put her hand on my shoulder. A cool sensation spread through me.
You feel better!
You have [73/73] health remaining.
“Thanks,” I said then turned, surveying the damage we had caused.
Almost all the buildings had caught fire. Dozens of bodies littered the ground. Children cried in the distance. I saw a few women wailing in agony.
What kind of twisted game is this?
“Incoming!” Monky yelled.
Three arrows buried themselves in my right bicep.
An arrow HITS you for 9 damage.
An arrow GRAZES you for 6 damage.
An arrow HITS you for 8 damage.
You have [50/73] health remaining.
Rizzo, standing nearby, turned toward the source of the arrows. He raised his hands and cast a spell. A burst of flaming lava discs screamed through the air.
They hit an overturned cart, which caught fire. As a few archers ran out from behind it, Sylvar shot two of them dead with his arrows. The third got away.
I turned my attention back to Morgan. Both Harvey and Thero were still battling him. The rest of the action had died down around the village.
“You guys will pay for this!” Morgan screamed.
Thero stuck his sword through the fighter’s neck then laughed as the man fell to the dusty ground. I frowned as a game notification popped up.
Combat is Over!
You get 9,000 xp divided by six party members.
You get 1,500 xp.
You have 7,000 xp.
Level Up!
Welcome to level 4 barbarian!
You need 3,000 xp for level 5 barbarian.
You have slaughtered an entire village of innocents.
This is an evil act.
You lose 40 alignment points.
Your alignment is -35. (Breaking Bad)
I lowered my sword, not feeling victorious for picking on a single player and simple villagers. Monky walked over and stood beside me.
“That’s the way we do it,” Sylvar shouted, grinning.
“Not hard to kill a single person,” I muttered.
The elven ranger stormed over.
“We killed a lot of others, too,” he said.
“A lot of helpless villagers,” Monky pointed out.
“Bah,” Sylvar said then wandered away.
I glanced down at Monky. “Thanks for backing me up,” I said.
She nodded. “Maybe we should leave the others.”
I grinned, liking the sound of her idea.
“Maybe,” I said. “Soon.”
Rizzo walked over.
“Why aren’t you two celebrating?” he asked. “We’re going to party here for the night before walking back to Esterhollow tomorrow.”
“Some of us believe a balanced neutral alignment is the best,” Monky said. “This...today...what happened here...It was an evil act.”
“Your point?” Harvey asked as he walked up to us.
“Bunch of pansies,” Sylvar snorted from a safe distance.
“Morgan didn’t even have decent equipment for us to loot,” Thero said.
What had these other players done in the real world? The thought frightened me a bit because they were still more powerful than me in the game.
“Everyone, back to the trees,” Rizzo said. “We’ll have one helluva campfire tonight.”
I followed the others back out of the hamlet. We set up a makeshift camp as the buildings continued burning, sending ash and sparks into the air.
Monky took a seat on a log next to me. I wanted to put my arm around her for comfort, but she was a man to the others in our group, and they would see this as a sign of weakness, so I didn’t.
“Great battle tonight, boys,” Rizzo said. He lifted an open bottle of wine and exclaimed, “To being powerful in a world gone mad…”
After his toast, he took a long swig from the bottle.
Like Monky, I abstained from the happy juice. While I knew the short-term benefits of getting drunk, I had also learned the negative side effects of drinking too much.
“Have a drink,” Sylvar said, holding out a bottle.
I shook my head. “Not tonight.”
After slaughtering dozens of innocent people, I felt the desire for a drink, which is why I passed it up. That and I didn’t trust the others if I passed out.
“We’re the boring ones,” Monky said.
I nodded while keeping my eyes on the others.
The fires burned out as the night passed.
“You should get some sleep,” Monky said. “I’ll take the first watch.”
“Are you sure?” I asked.
She nodded.
“Thanks,” I said. “This is weighing on me, and I’m not sure why.”
“While it’s simulated violence, the Tower of Gates is showing you that mass slaughter is rarely the best solution for a problem,” she said. “Don’t let it bother you too much.”
I found a smooth spot on the ground and lay down on my back. As I stared at the stars overhead, I emptied my mind of all thoughts except for Sarah. Was she okay?
The question haunted me more than the destruction I had just witnessed.
7
Controlling My Emotions
Josh
The next morning, I woke with a headache. I sat up and saw the others standing in a circle and talking away from the camp. After standing and stretching, I walked over to them.
As I approached, I noticed they had cast another spell to make sure I didn’t hear them. They kept talking, ignoring me, as I shouted. Maybe they can’t hear me either?
Hands at my sides, I stared straight ahead and mentally counted to control my rage. Everything inside me wanted to go nuts, but I continued taking deep breaths.
Rizzo waved his hand, stopping the bubble of silence around them.
“Look,” Sylvar said, pointing. “The barbarian’s about to rage.”
“I’ll put him down if he does,” Thero said then burped.
“Knock it off,” Rizzo said. “We need to get back to Esterhollow.”
The others laughed then walked back to the campsite. Monky stayed behind, frowning.
“What’s wrong?” I asked, hoping she would give it to me straight.
“You should leave,” she said.
“Why?” I asked.
Her frown deepened. “It’s complicated,” she said.
“But I’m in their group. Won’t they be able to find me?”
She nodded and said, “Eventually, but it will buy you some time.”
“Will you come with me?” I asked.
She turned away, looking back at the others.
“I shouldn’t,” she said. “There are things you don’t know about me.”
“But there are also a lot of things I know about you.”
I put my hand on her shoulder. As she pulled away, I looked up and saw Sylvar staring at us.
“What’s he want?” I muttered.
“I think he suspects I’m not a male player,” she said. “You don’t understand how rough it can be in here for a female prisoner. It can be...horrible.”
My thoughts immediately turned to Sarah. Was she okay? If Eric hadn’t protected her, I would make it my mission in the game to ensure he died multiple times.
“Come with me,” I said. “We’ll convince them to let us leave the party.”
I walked over to the others, hoping she followed me.
“Get ready to leave,” Sylvar said as I got closer. “You’re carrying a lot of stuff.”
“We’re not going,” I said.
The elf’s eyes widened. “What did you say?” he asked.
“You heard me.” I glanced over at Monky then back to him. “We’re both leaving the party.”
“Hold on a minute,” Rizzo said as he walked over.
“We’re leaving,” Monky said. “Don’t try to stop us.”
“Magi Inyontoo will be upset with both of you,” Rizzo said.
“Do you think I care?” I asked, tired of holding in my emotions.
“All I care about is killing that Sarah chick,” Sylvar said.
I screamed and charged toward the ranger in anger. Thero stepped in and punched me in the jaw.
His iron gauntlet hurt like hell. The force knocked me down to the ground. I rubbed the side of my thick half-orc face, wondering if I should try to stand or trip up his legs somehow.
“Knock it off,” Monky said.
She placed her palms together as if praying.
“Don’t do anything hasty,” Rizzo said.
I stood, noticing Harvey lurking behind us.
He backed up as I drew my two-handed sword.
“Nobody needs to die today,” Monky said. “This is easy.”
Rizzo sighed then said, “Fine. We’ll let you out of the party.”
“Hey,” Sylvar began, turning toward the wizard in red robes.
“Shut up!” Rizzo snapped. “Quit complaining.”
I kept my sword up, not trusting them. “Do it,” I said. “Let us out.”
You have left the party.
You are no longer in a group.
“Time to go,” Monky said.
We backed away from the others then took off on foot heading southwest.
A little walking won’t be so bad. Maybe Monky will open up a bit more about her past.
“Probably not,” she said then grinned.
I stopped and looked down at her, my brow furrowed.
“Come on,” she said. “I’ll explain while we’re walking.”
As we left the others behind, I slowed my pace to match hers. We made it to a well-worn dirt path leading through the grasslands.
“I’m not who I told you I was,” she said.
“You’re not a woman in the real world?” I asked, confused.
“Quiet!” she hissed. “They might be following us.”
“Sorry,” I said, whispering. “You’re not a woman, then?”
“I’m female in the real-world, yes, but I’m not a low-level monk.”
A thousand questions spread like wildfire through my mind as synapses lit up.
“What are you?” I asked. “And will you group with me?”
“I can’t,” she said. “I’m too high level.”
“Huh?” I stopped.
She grabbed my arm to drag me along.
“You’re very strong,” I noted.
“I’m a high-level psionicist,” she said. “You’re one of the new players, right? One of the ones without a prisoner number?”
I nodded and muttered, “Yeah. Why?”
“A lot of players are interested in you three, but not many of us travel to the first four levels of the game anymore,” she said, still walking. “It’s just too dangerous.”
“What do you mean?”
She sighed.
“It’s complicated, but over the years, we found a way to keep the gamemaster AI confined to the first four zones. Magi Inyontoo helped us, but he turned on us because he wanted to control everything himself.”
“Sounds like him,” I said. “So crazy.”
“You don’t understand how insane,” she said. “We’ve locked him in the first four zones along with the gamemaster AI. Most of the players inhabit the upper levels of the game. I’m part of the COPS Guild. Yes, it’s cheesy, but we’re basically a police force for the realms outside the control of the gamemaster AI.”
I frowned, trying to sort things out in my head. “This is a lot to take in,” I said.
“Come on,” she said. “You’re not as dumb as you look.”
I glanced at her and frowned.
“Just joking around,” she said. “This game is a marvelous place once you escape the first four levels. We don’t let just anyone through. There’s a magic item that will activate the Warp Zone, but others have found a way in.”
“Where’s that item?” I asked, thinking it might be important.
“It’s an amulet that spawns inside the roguelike we built,” she said. “Only a few of us have them. We’re trying to trap the gamemaster AI inside the game within a game we built. That’ll give us the rest of the memory and storage used for the first four zones of the game. Our empire will grow. If we’re stuck in here, we might as well make the best of it, right?”
“Yeah,” I said, nodding as the information washed over me.
“Are you a prisoner?” she asked.
I shook my head and said, “No, my girlfriend’s friend hacked us into what we thought was a game. I didn’t even want to play the stupid game.”
“Ah,” she said. “That explains why Magi Inyontoo is so interested in you. We’ve been watching all three of you closely since you came into the game. I think you’re important.”
“Do you know where Sarah is right now?” I asked.
Monky nodded.
“Unfortunately, because of your time penalty, you’re on a different timeline. They must have crazy computing power behind this game,” she said. “We’re working on a way to get you back on track, but it’s been tough. The Tower of Gates can be confusing sometimes. Since we rescued you, things are going to be complicated.”
“You’re telling me,” I said as I continued walking beside her.
Every once in a while, we passed a patch of trees, but I saw grasslands for as far as my eyes could see. We both kept to our own thoughts as the miles added up.
* * * * *
A few hours into our journey, I grabbed Monky’s arm and pulled her along as I darted behind a nearby tree. Thick green moss ran up the trunk.
“What’s wrong?” she asked.
“Someone’s been following us,” I said in a hushed tone. “They’re good at hiding.”
I peered around the tree trunk but didn’t see anybody on the path.
“Where’d he go?” I muttered.
“Prepare to die!”
I spun around and saw a young boy holding a sword unsteadily with both hands. The tattered remains of his burned clothes hung to his gaunt body.
“Why did you destroy my village?” he yelled.
“Calm down,” I said gently. “Lower the sword.”
“Never!” He darted forward, weapon raised.
I dodged to the left, and Monky raised her hands.
The boy froze in his tracks, screaming bloody murder.
“It’s okay,” I said. “We’re not going to hurt you.”
“You killed my entire village!” he shouted. “Why should I trust you?”
“He has a point,” Monky said.
&nbs
p; I took a deep breath.
“How long can you hold him that way?” I asked.
“Forever,” she replied. “I don’t recommend it, though.”
“Very funny,” I said, liking her attitude.
The boy’s anger quickly turned to a softer, more honest emotion. He lowered his head as tears streamed down his cheeks.
In that moment, I connected with him.
Even if he was nothing more than a computer-controlled character, I wasn’t a savage. He deserved to live out his destiny in the game-world.
“Destroying that village is still weighing on me,” I said, turning to Monky. “Why didn’t you stop them?”
She frowned then motioned me over.
“I couldn’t blow my cover,” she whispered as I reached her.
“We still could’ve done something to stop their blood lust.”
“Maybe,” she said. “We did leave their party. I should’ve stayed with them, but I know you’re new to the game, and you’re important. Magi Inyontoo will kill you for disobeying him.”
“We need to do more,” I insisted.
“Like what?”
“Kill them,” I said. “Clear up this level.”
She pursed her lips together.
“Can you let me move again?” the boy whimpered. “I won’t hurt you.”
Monky looked up at me. When I nodded, she waved her hand.
“Thank you,” the boy said, hanging his head. “I’ll go now.”
“Wait,” I said. “Don’t you want revenge?”
The boy looked up, a gleam of hope in his eyes.
“What do you mean?” he asked.
“I’m not sure how I’ll do it yet, but I’m going to stop those fools from killing anyone ever again,” I said. “At least not as their current characters.”
The boy cocked his head to the side and said, “I didn’t understand that last part.”
“Don’t worry about my magic tongue.” I smiled, forgetting not everyone could hear my OOC chatter. “Do you know of any settlements around here? We need a place to stay tonight.”
The young boy frowned.
