by Dante Steel
Finally, he spied the gate and had to walk a little to the east to find the opening. Guards stood on either side, and they ignored him as he strolled through.
“Past a large boulder,” he muttered to himself as he hesitated a few paces beyond the gate. He was surveying the field when someone plowed into him.
Gary jerked to the side.
“Sorry,” he muttered even though the guy should have been able to see him standing there.
"Watch where you're going," the guy snapped. He had beady eyes in a huge head. The guy was built like an ox, and Gary wondered if that was related to his power, or if he had just enhanced his body as much physically as the game would allow.
“Will do,” Gary said. He gulped. No way did he want to get entangled with this guy. Not here or in the real world. The guy was the type to pick a fight just for the hell of it.
The guy sniffed, his large nostrils flaring, and he stalked away.
Gary exhaled. Yeah, he would just start walking and look around later.
Soon, Gary had walked what had to be the equivalent of a mile. He hadn’t seen any boulders. Honestly, he hadn’t seen much of anything. Shouldn’t a game have some kind of silly, easy to pluck off baddies to gain some quick experience points right off the bat?
As if he conjured them from his thoughts, sudden music played in Gary’s head, and he turned to see a bat fly toward him. A bat? Seriously? Didn’t they live in caves? There wasn’t a cave anywhere around here, no mountain either.
Gary ducked as the bat dove at him. He whirled around as the bat took a turn and came back at him again. Why did Gary have to be weaponless? For that matter, why couldn’t he have a power?
For lack of a better option, Gary reached down and grabbed the most massive rock he could find. He thought about throwing it, but the bat was already in his face. Without thinking, Gary tried to slam the boulder onto the bat's head, but the bat bit his wrist.
Gary felt a jolt. It wasn’t painful, but somehow, the game had jolted him to show that he had been hit. A red number flashed in the lower left corner. His hit points.
At least he hadn’t dropped the rock, but the bat had flown away some, hovering in place.
Although he hadn’t played any sports growing up outside of track, Gary wound up, aimed, and threw the rock like he would a baseball.
And missed.
The bat let out a shriek and flew toward him again.
Gary tried to go to the right, but the bat readjusted, and Gary feigned left, but the bat flew straight toward him, undeterred. The rest of the rocks were far too small.
Crap.
Just then, a young woman rushed over behind the bat, jumped, and slammed a stick onto the bat’s head.
The bat fell to the ground and disappeared.
+5 experience points flashed over Gary, while +10 experience points appeared over the woman.
She straightened with a smirk. Tight tan pants hugged her curvy legs. She wore a matching tan buttoned-down shirt with a brown vest. Her cocky smile lit up her face. A few strands of brown hair had wormed their way free from her braid, and her eyes sparkled green, so amazingly lifelike.
“Wow,” Gary said before shaking his head and trying again. “Thank you.”
“I’m sure you didn’t need my help.” She swung her head to the side, and her braid fell back from over her shoulder. “I hope you don’t mind my taking the experience points.”
“No. Ah, no, not at all. Nice stick.”
The woman grinned. “Have to make do, yeah? Don’t have enough saved up yet for a real weapon.” Her smile fell, and she kicked the spot where the bat had disappeared. “No rupas. How disappointing.”
“I don’t think bats carry many around.”
She laughed. “Maybe not. I’m Olivia.”
“Gary.”
After Elena’s reaction, Gary hesitated before holding out his hand. Olivia shook it immediately.
“What’s your superpower?” she asked.
Gary grimaced and hung his head. “I don’t have one,” he admitted.
He peeked up, and her shock had him wincing. Everyone was going to think him incredibly weak.
“What about you?” he asked, desperate to change the subject.
“I don’t have one either.”
Chapter Five
Gary gaped at her. “Seriously?”
Olivia shrugged and glanced away. “Yeah. It’s not something I normally tell others. It’s why I’m trying to gain as much experience points as possible. I just… It’s not right, you know?”
“I do know.” He swallowed and stepped toward her. “Do you think—”
“I’m sorry. I have to get going. It’s super late, and I have classes in the morning.”
“Classes?”
“I’m a college student. Studying psychology.”
“Oh, yeah?” Which meant she could be anywhere from eighteen to twenty-two.
“I’ll be done in a month. Completely done. Get my degree and everything.”
“Ah, yeah? Do you have a job lined up?”
“No. I’ve been trying, but most places don’t want to wait a month to hire someone. The positions need to be filled now.”
“Well, maybe one of those positions still won’t be filled by the time you graduate.”
“Yes, but all of the other college new grads will be vying for that position.”
“So, go. Don’t get swept up in this game. You don’t even have a power. Study. Get a job. Be amazing.”
Olivia laughed. “You don’t even know me.”
“Is my pep talk skill that lacking?”
She grinned and touched his arm. “It’s not bad at all.”
Gary smiled down at her. She was maybe five feet two, which made her six inches shorter than he was. Why hadn’t he made his avatar taller than his actual height?
“In fact,” Olivia said, “you’re kinda sweet.” And she lifted onto her toes and kissed his cheek. “I can play tomorrow a little. Same time?”
“Yes,” Gary said, dazed.
And Olivia disappeared just as Elena had the day before.
Still out of it, Gary logged off. Once he removed his headset, he touched his cheek. He couldn’t really feel her kiss, but he wished he could’ve.
This game was starting to seriously mess with his mind.
The next day, Jorge still hadn’t shown up for work. Gary rushed home after work, grumbling about having to pay for the bus again, and immediately logged on. He did not want to be late for Olivia.
Only the brunette wasn’t there.
Whistling, rocking back and forth on his heels, keeping his eyes peeled for any bats, Gary waited and waited. Eventually, he had to come to terms. She wasn’t just late. She wasn’t coming.
Feeling a little sorry for himself, Gary began to look around for a thick branch or rocks, anything to use as a weapon. He finally spotted one and rushed over to pick it up. Too bad he didn’t have a knife to chisel the end, but it was better than nothing.
“Got yourself a weapon, huh?”
Startled, he whipped around to see Elena. She was grinning, and she waved.
“Ready to head to the watering hole?” she asked.
“Why not?” He smiled. “Try to keep up, though,” he said, “if you want any experience points.”
She laughed. “Oh, yeah? You all big and bad now that you have a puny stick?”
“It’s not puny. A stick can be very effective. I doubt many bad guys would like this shoved up their—”
“Hey, now.” Elena winked.
He shrugged. “You can’t tell me they would.”
“Still.” She covered her ears. “No cursing.”
“Seriously?”
She laughed and sped up. “If you don’t hurry, you’re the one who won’t get any experiences points.”
In the game, Gary was fast. Maybe not as quick as he would like, but he caught up to her swiftly enough.
“Do you know where the boulder is?” he asked.
Elena pointed to the northeast. Sure enough, there was a large boulder and beyond stood a tree on a hill.
“Wanna race?” Gary asked.
“Oh, someone thinks he’s the Flash.”
“I might not be the fastest man alive, but I’m faster than you are.”
“Faster at losing maybe.”
Gary crouched into position. “Ready? On three.”
“Three,” Elena said, and she sprinted ahead.
“Hey!” he protested.
He exploded after her. Her head start was somehow decent, and they ended up reaching the base of the hill at the same time. The best part of all? His legs felt great, and he wasn't breathing heavy. Would the game always be like that? Stamina wasn't one of the places to plug points into. For Gary, this was absolutely amazing.
"Let's go see what poisoned the waterhole," Elena said.
“Ladies first.”
“Aw, is that a fancy way of saying you’re a coward?”
“You’re dreaming.”
“Oh, yes, because of your big… stick.”
He narrowed his eyes. “Are you trying to say I’m compensating for something?”
Her lips twitched. “You said it, not me,” she said innocently.
Gary groaned. “Fine. Let’s go at the same time.”
Elena nodded and motioned for him to move to the right. Together, they climbed the hill, and immediately, a ton of baby dragons descended on them. Although the little, winged guys were cute, they had huge teeth. Seriously, the fangs were nearly the size of their heads.
His teammate was grabbing one and trying to rip off wings. Impressive. Another slapped Gary in the head with a wing, and he stopped watching her and started to fight. He swung his branch like a baseball bat and hit a few of the dragons, but there were so many of them.
One flew right at Gary, mouth opened wide, and Gary shoved the stick into the maw. What did the dragon do? Not die. Oh, no. It bit the branch, chewing up his weapon.
Well, shit.
Gary backed away, glancing all around. The sun glittered, reflecting from something shiny. He rushed over and picked up a sword. The blade was rusty, but it was better than nothing, and he returned to the fight.
By now, they had killed enough baby winged bastards that they could advance up the hill and spy the waterhole.
Which was guarded by an enormous dragon that thankfully had its back to them.
“What the hell?” Gary whispered. “Isn’t this a beginner’s quest? Why is there a massive boss already?”
Elena cracked her metal fingers and grinned. “Come on, now. Where’s your sense of adventure?”
“I think I left it behind at the bottom of the hill.”
She rolled her eyes. “Gent first.”
“Nope.”
“Age before beauty.”
“How old are you?” he asked.
“You’re never supposed to ask a woman that.”
“You’re the one assuming I’m older.”
“Fine. I’m twenty-four.”
"Ha. We're the same age!" Gary said triumphantly. "Well, for a few more days."
“Oh, birthday boy needs to get himself a dragon skin.”
“You know, I’m starting to think you’re the coward.”
“No,” she breathed.
“Yeah, that’s right. You’re the—”
“Gary, watch out!”
The dragon must’ve heard their talking because it was stalking on the ground toward them.
Gary glanced around. Elena had disappeared.
“Seriously?” he muttered as he lifted the rusty sword.
All he had to do was hack at the baby dragons, and he gained experience points. As he tried to wield it against the dragon, he knew this was like bringing a knife to a gun fight. Still, he slashed down with the sword. The moment the weapon connected with the dragon’s snout, the blade shattered.
“Shit,” Gary said.
He backed away and tripped over a tree root, which was a blessing in disguise as a blast of fire blew above him.
The baby dragons hadn’t had fire. Damn, he so wasn’t ready for any of this!
Gary scrambled backward until he bumped into the tree. Should he climb it? But then the dragon might fly, and the thought of that massive beast in the sky frightened him.
A sudden movement caught Gary's eyes. Elena. She was behind the dragon, and she jumped onto its back.
“You go, girl!” he called as she leaned forward and gripped its thick neck, trying to strangle it.
But they both should've realized that wouldn't work. The throat was too broad, Elena's fingers not long enough. The dragon roared and bucked, and Elena went flying.
Gary watched her soar through the air, shifted far to the left, and basically almost kinda somewhat caught her. She pushed him aside, grabbed his elbow in an almost too-tight grip, and rushed him away.
Once they were a reasonable distance from the furious beast, they stopped and looked back. The dragon was flying back to the waterhole. Evidently, it couldn't go far from its perch.
“Want to try again tomorrow?” Elena asked.
“Yes,” Gary said, although he had no weapon again. How could he possibly tackle that monstrosity without one?
“Not that dragon,” she said. “We need to train.”
“Train?”
“It’ll be boring and tedious, but it’s necessary. That guy sure better give us something good. A dragon right off the bat. Are you kidding me?”
“We’ll train and get better gear,” Gary said, trying to sound knowledgeable.
“Exactly. See you tomorrow, Gar.”
“Don’t try to fly again unless I’m there to catch you,” he said lightly.
She laughed and then disappeared.
Grinning, Gary logged off. Wow, had a lot of time passed. He quickly made dinner and passed out in his bed, which was just a mattress. The frame had broken, and the landlord was supposed to get him a new one soon.
Suddenly, Gary was back in the game. Elena was tied to a wall in a dungeon, and Gary was wielding a massive two-handed long sword. Skeletons were rushing him, and he hacked through their bones as if they were butter. Once Gary defeated the henchman, a skeleton wearing a crown strolled over, but he didn't back down. He slashed through the spine, and the enemy collapsed. The head hopped around, and he squashed it beneath his heel.
“You did it!” Elena said, sounding breathless.
Feeling like a superhero, Gary stomped on the bones to reach her. With his sword, he cut her free. She tumbled into his arms, but he wasn’t holding his sword anymore, just her.
Elena stared up at him, her eyes half-closed. She looked so stunning and felt so very real in his arms that he was kissing her before he even knew what he was doing.
Just then, the scene around them shifted, and they were in a room at an inn. Elena stumbled backward, falling onto the bed, yanking on his shirt to have him collapse on top of her. She squirmed beneath him, and he grew so hard that he had to have her. She had to feel his desire, and her grin told him she not only did notice, but she also approved.
In fact, she took his hand and placed it beneath her shirt. She wasn’t wearing a bra, and Gary kissed her lips, her neck, lifted her shirt and trailed more kisses down.
“Your reward for rescuing me,” she whispered as she pushed him away and stripped off her pants.
Gary felt he had died and gone to heaven.
Chapter Six
Gary woke the next morning with a severe case of morning wood that he had to take care of before he could go to work. No Jorge yet again but Gary didn't even care. He just wanted to get back to Superheroes Online, back to Elena.
He showed up at the spot they had run to, and he glanced around.
Elena wasn’t there, but a familiar brunette was heading straight toward him.
Olivia.
“Where were you?” she demanded, hands on hip.
“I came and waited, but you never showed,” Gary said. “Where were you?”
“You weren’t there,” she huffed.
“I’m sorry?” It came out more of a question rather than a statement.
Olivia narrowed her eyes. “If this is just a game to you,” she started.
Well, it is a game… He kept the thought to himself.
“Gar!”
He twisted around to see Elena. She was smiling widely. Her hair bounced as she walked over and stood next to Olivia. The two women glanced at each other, and Gary gulped.
“Elena,” he said with a nod.
Olivia pursed her full lips. “Found a new friend, huh?”
“We met our first day,” Elena said coolly.
Gary clapped his hands and rubbed them. “Who’s ready to train?” he asked hopefully.
Elena nodded, the move crisp and robotic.
Olivia sighed. “I guess,” she said, sounding bored.
"Over there." Elena jerked her chin over Gary's shoulder, farther away from the waterhole. "I saw some rats."
Giant rats, as it turned out. Gary found a few large rocks, but the rats were crazy fast, and he couldn’t bash any in the head before they had already retreated after nipping at his toes. They were starting to wear holes in his boots.
Elena, though, essentially just played whack a mole or, rather, whack a rat. Her experience kept rising, and she soon gained another level. She rushed away and stood still. He had to assume she was playing with her new points. His experience was going up slowly, carryover points from being in their group but not because he had made any kills.
As for Olivia, she still had her stick. Hers had a sharp end, and she speared rat after rat until she had ten dead ones on her weapon. With a smirk at Elena, Olivia walked away and yanked the rats off the stick. Gary shook his head as she tossed them in Elena’s general direction as if trying to hit her.
When Elena whacked another rat, some coins jumped out of the body, and she snatched them up. The third one Olivia killed had a cap appearing. She placed it on her head and turned to Gary.
