by Dante Steel
Finally, after throwing her spear a dozen times, Olivia was fuming.
“I’m going to quit this entire game,” she muttered through clenched teeth.
“Why would you do that?” Gary asked, shocked and disappointed. “You can’t do that!”
“I can,” she said stubbornly.
“Why? Because of a stupid harpy? Here, look. There’s a ton of rocks here. We can try throwing—”
“That harpy doesn’t want to die. We’ll throw the rocks, and it will just move out of the way.”
“Yes, well…” Gary rubbed his chin. “At least with the harpy up there, we have time to figure it out.”
“Yeah, well, you can,” Olivia said, lifting her chin.
“Don’t you dare quit,” he said, raising his voice.
“Why can’t I?” she demanded. “It’s just a game.”
“Don’t you want to be super?”
“You can’t be—”
“You can be super without a superpower,” he assured her.
“You don’t get it,” she snapped. “It’s not about having or not having a superpower.”
“You’re right. It isn’t, and it is just a game…” He swallowed hard. “But we’re having fun, right? Doesn’t that count for something.”
She shook her head frantically, and he realized that her face was tinged a little green.
“Are you feeling okay?” he asked, worried.
Olivia squeezed her eyes shut.
Hmm. Olivia seemed to be making a point of not looking up at the harpy.
“Do heights scare you?” he asked.
“Don’t be ridiculous,” she said. “We aren’t up high.”
“No, but the harpy is,” he said.
“Yeah, so? We can’t reach it. We’re stuck.”
“Maybe not.”
Gary walked over to the cave-in and tried to move away some of the rocks. They were so heavy, though, that he couldn’t even budge some of them.
“Sorry. I’m too weak.” He threw up his hands. “I’m definitely not super at all.”
“You’re fine.” Olivia blew out her breath. “You really don’t have a superpower?” she asked suddenly.
“Nope. You know I don’t.” He stared at her curiously.
Olivia grimaced and toed the ground with her boot, guilt written all over her delicate features.
“Do you have something you want to tell me?” he asked.
“No,” she said quickly.
“You sure? Look, I get it. Just about everyone I’ve talked to has issues with their powers, and I think that powers will get stronger over time, but I legit don’t have one.”
“And you think I lied,” she said coolly.
He shrugged. “I don’t know. I don’t care if you did. I’m sure you would have a reason for it if you did.”
Olivia blinked a few times. “Fine. All right. Yeah, I lied. I-I can fly.”
“You can—” he started, excited.
“I’m terrified of heights,” she blurted. “I couldn’t even go on slides at a playground when I was a kid. It’s bad. I’ll never be able to get in a plane. It’s just not happening.”
“Hey, it’s okay.”
She gaped at him. “You aren’t upset that I lied to you?”
“You hate your superpower. You would rather have none. I would gladly switch with you if I could. How am I to judge you, Olivia?”
Her eyes filled with tears. “You aren’t like other guys.”
“Why? Because I’m nice,” he said bitterly. “Nice guys finish last.”
“Shh.” She laid a finger on his lips. “Sometimes finishing last isn’t the worst thing in the world.” Olivia winked and reached up to pat his cheek.
The tender moment was ruined by the harpy shrieking at them.
“Ugh. What do you want to bet that if we kill that last one, a way out of here will open up?” she asked.
“I betcha you’re right.” He rubbed his chin. “Fresh out of ideas, though.”
Olivia eyed him. “None at all?” she asked sarcastically.
“I think you’re a strong, powerful woman who can do anything she sets her mind to. We can come up with another way to kill the harpy outside of you flying. You’re intelligent, probably smarter than I am.”
She grinned. “Nice guys can flirt, huh? Who knew?”
“I’m not trying to flirt,” he protested. “I’m telling you the truth.”
“You think… You think I should try?”
“Only if you want to. I won’t push you.”
“We can’t stay here forever.”
“No.”
“And if we log off and then come back, we’ll be right back here, stuck again.”
“Yes.”
“So, where does that leave me?”
“We can come up with—”
But Olivia was already taking flight, hovering about an inch above the ground. Her eyes were tightly squeezed, and she slowly rose higher and higher into the air.
The harpy fluffed her feathers and soared straight for Olivia, shrieking wildly.
Olivia opened her eyes, dipped several feet, opened her mouth, and promptly vomited…
…right on Gary. Disgusting.
The harpy descended on Olivia, who grabbed the harpy's wing. The two fell down slightly, and Olivia managed to bend the wing back unnaturally. A snap sounded, and Olivia released the enemy and landed on the ground with a breathy oof!
“Are you okay?” Gary asked, but he didn’t have time to help her to her feet. The harpy was falling too because of her damaged wing.
He brought up his short sword and swung so hard, with all of his power, and he cleaved off the harpy’s head.
Oh, yeah, adding to strength really was making him stronger.
Gary glanced over his shoulder. Olivia still looked green, but she was standing now.
Just then, the ground rumbled beneath their feet like a mini earthquake. Straight ahead of them, rocks fell to the side, revealing an opening for them to leave.
“Better be something good,” Olivia said, “considering that damn harpy didn’t give us anything.”
She took a step and then paused.
“I… puked…”
“I’ll wash up,” he said. “Any chance you know where a stream is?”
“There’s always the water hole,” she said sheepishly.
“I don’t want to be the one to poison it,” he joked, and she laughed.
“I’m sorry.”
“What for? You flew and helped take down the harpy. You’re a hero.”
“You’re one of the good ones.” She grinned at him.
“That mean I get a kiss?” he asked hopefully.
“Not while you’re covered in puke.”
“Fair enough.”
They exited the high-ceiling cave for a small room with a ton of treasure chests. Inside was all kinds of gear. Some of it was for less defensive points than his current attire, but he could always sell it. Even better, there was a long sword, one he might be able to handle with one hand, so he could keep the short sword too.
“Not a bad haul,” Olivia said. “I’ll sell stuff tomorrow. I’m off. It’s getting late. Take care, Gary, and wash up, okay? I really am sorry. I can’t believe the game let me do that.”
“You didn’t puke in real life, did you?”
“No. Gagged, yes. Dry heaved some. I just can’t do heights.”
He shook his head. “You can’t do them well.”
“See? So sweet.” She patted his cheek and disappeared.
What did Gary bet that girls never called Jorge sweet? And Jorge banged so many. Gary couldn’t help but think that channeling Jorge might be the way to go. Then again, wouldn't he rather the women like him for who he was? Wait, women? All of them? He couldn't get that dream about Elena out of his head. He wanted to kiss Nicoletta again, and Olivia had been willing to fly to help them out despite her fears. That proved he had some kind of effect on her.
Yeah, an
effect that earned him her puke. He needed to get clean and stat. Then he could find a place to sleep. Which one might he dream about tonight? Or maybe all three…
Chapter Thirteen
Gary made the long, lonely trek back to town. He was tired and disgusted. With the late hour and dark skies, Gary couldn't find any source of water to wash up. More than anything, he wanted a hot shower—or maybe a cold one. Gary needed food, and he wished he could have an orange soda. By his estimation, he had been in the game for about twenty-four hours now. Crazy. When was he going to wake up?
He slept despite his empty stomach, ate in the morning, sold some stuff, and found a new quest that wasn’t overly thrilling. Still, he completed the quest and trained some more. Thankfully, he did find some water, and he cleaned himself up the best he could.
He even used his short sword to shave, after thoroughly washing it first, of course. If this was a dream, it was the longest one he had ever been in, and he wasn’t about to risk getting an infection. That might or might not be possible in the game, but it wasn’t worth it. No surprise, he cut himself while shaving, but he felt kinda manly for using a blade like this to shave.
Sometimes, he played alone. Others, he’d tag along with a group, but he only ever talked with the three ladies. He enjoyed their companionship, and whenever they had to leave him, he felt alone and disappointed. As much as he hated feeling that way, he couldn’t help it. Being here was frightening. The game had been fun when he could leave, but it felt more like a prison.
By the time he had been in the game for about seventy-two hours straight, he was now level nineteen. Maybe he wasn’t that good at the game yet because he couldn’t figure out the mainline story quests. Regardless, he was stronger, and the training could only help him.
Every night, he slept in the barn. He retired there now and was just closing his eyes when a voice in his head said, “Do you plan on playing forever?”
Gary sat up and glanced around wildly. Some straw that must've gotten stuck in his hair because it fell down onto his arm, and he brushed it off.
“Who said that?” he asked, but no one was there outside of some sleeping animals.
“You’ve been playing for days, buddy. Don’t you think you should log off and sleep?”
“Who the hell are you?” Gary jumped to his feet. “Why are you stalking me?”
“I’m not stalking you. Calm down. I’m one of the developers.”
“Developers?”
“Of the game.” The guy sighed. “My name is Haru. Haru Sato.”
“Yeah, well, I’m not—”
“You’re Gary Johnson.”
“Stalker,” he muttered.
"I'm not. I'm just keeping an eye on the players, the gameplay, all of it. There are always bugs with games like these, and I noticed you've been playing for such a long time straight. Some people do play for enormous hours, but, seriously, man, I'm just looking out for you. Your family, your friends, your job? Remember all of that?"
"My life, my choice," Gary growled angrily. "Leave me alone."
“So you basically plan on playing the game forever?”
Gary shook his head and lay back down on the hay. He couldn’t help laughing. He had to be going crazy, imagining this voice. What was next? One of the girls getting stuck in the game too so they could get all hot and heavy? Now that would be a dream come true.
“I didn’t mean to upset you,” Haru said.
“Then leave me alone.”
“It’s just…”
“Just that I don’t care what you think. Come on, man. Let me sleep. If I even do sleep in this crazy dream.”
“Dream?” Haru asked, sounding confused.
“Yeah. This is some powerful, long-ass dream. It has to be. Otherwise…”
“Otherwise what?” Haru asked sharply.
Gary sighed and sat back up. He had no idea how he could hear the voice of a supposed game developer considering he wasn’t wearing a headset.
“Otherwise this is all real, and I’m in the game.”
“What do you mean in the game? You mean playing the game.”
“Nope. In the game. My body. Myself. I’m in the game. This isn’t an avatar.”
“What are you talking about? Are you drunk or high?” Haru demanded.
“Neither, man. Go ahead. If you’re a developer, maybe you can see my avatar. See the differences between it and me. This is my real face.”
“Gary, allow me to assure you that it’s impossible for you to actually be in the game. Don’t worry. This isn’t a dream, though, but with you being awake for so many hours straight—”
“If you’ve been watching me, then you should know I’ve been sleeping in the game,” Gary said dryly. “I haven’t been up for three days straight. Trust me. I’m not that much of a gamer.”
“What would even make you think you’re in the game?” Haru asked.
“Well, I mean, I’ve started to feel pain.”
“The jolts. I can explain those—”
“No. Actual pain and soreness. My arms jar from attacking the creatures. I’ve gotten bruised and maybe even scarred. Oh, and the smells.”
“You can smell? Good. We were hoping the visual components would be strong and powerful enough to induce memories and trick the mind into thinking the players are smelling—”
“But a jolt isn’t the same as experiencing pain,” Gary pointed out. “And that jolt is nothing compared to a lightning strike, let me tell you.”
“A lightning strike?” Was that a hint of panic in Haru’s voice?
“Yes. I was struck by lightning while playing. When I came to, I was in the game.”
“You’re certain you were struck by lightning?” Haru asked. “Have you been to the hospital? Checked out by EMTs at the very least?”
“How can I when I was transported into the game?”
“Okay, Gary. I can just look this up, but I’ll ask for permission first. I would like to send EMTs over to your house to check on you. If you really were struck by lightning… I’m worried about you.”
“Sure, fine, whatever. Look up my info, but you aren’t gonna find my body,” Gary said.
As he said this, Gary realized something.
He believed. He had accepted that he was now in the game. It was still a terrifying thought, but acknowledging this as fact instead of speculation made him feel more in control somehow.
“I’m sure we will. We’ll figure this out, Gary. Is it all right if I call you Gary? Or would you prefer I call you Mr. Johnson?”
“Gary. Ugh. I’m not old enough to be called Mr. Johnson.”
"All right. I'll stay here with you. I've called for some EMTs to go to your address, and another member of the developer team is going over too. He lives in Philadelphia too so it won't take him long to get to your place."
“I’m pretty sure I left my door unlocked,” Gary said. “I never locked it after my friend left. It was my birthday when it happened. Happy birthday to me, right?”
“Happy belated birthday,” Haru said, sounding distracted. “Okay, Chet should be there in a minute or two. We’ll get you the best care we can, Gary.”
“Need the care here in the game, Haru,” Gary said. He sat up and crossed his arms.
"Yes, yes." Haru said nothing for a moment and then muttered a curse.
“What is it?” Gary asked.
Despite his accepting that he was in the game, hope had blossomed in Gary’s chest. He didn’t want to be stuck in the game. He wanted all of this to be in his head. He wanted to be able to do something else aside from fighting, from the loneliness, from the feeling of being a tool for liking three women and wanting them all, maybe even at the same time.
“Chet and the EMTs are in your apartment,” Haru said, his voice shaking. “You’re right. The door was unlocked. The window was broken. The console looks fried, the TV is on the frizz, the headset on the ground is smoking slightly…”
“And my body is missing, isn’t it
?” Gary asked. When Haru said nothing, Gary shouted, “My body is missing isn’t it?”
“Yes, Gary, your body is gone.”
Chapter Fourteen
Gary swallowed hard. His ears were ringing, and his stomach felt nauseous. He covered his mouth so he wouldn’t throw up.
It was one thing to think and maybe start to believe that he was actually in the game. It was another to realize that he definitely was in the game.
“You have to get me out,” Gary said.
He jumped to his feet and began to pace, running his fingers through his hair and yanking on the ends, half-ready to rip some strands out.
“Listen to me,” Haru said, his voice firmer than before although also slightly shaken, “we’re going to find your body.”
“You can’t? Don’t you see? What more proof do you need? I’m here. I’m stuck in the game. Let me out!”
“We’re going to ask your neighbors if they heard anything, saw anything. Maybe you were already taken to the hospital—”
“—or transported to the game because of the electricity coursing through my body while playing your damn game!”
“Mr. Johnson, please. Try to remain calm.”
“I told you to call me Gary!”
“Fine. Gary, take a few deep breaths.”
“If I’m just an avatar, a few deep breaths shouldn’t have any effect on me! Think about it, you moron, if I were at the hospital, I wouldn’t have a headset on. I wouldn’t have access to a console. I wouldn’t fucking be playing this shitty ass game!”
“It’s not a shitty ass game,” Haru said mildly.
“Yeah, well, I’m stuck in this game, and I don’t even have a superpower!”
“Wait. You don’t?” Haru muttered another curse. “I thought we fixed that glitch!”
“Yeah, well, distinctly not a superhero and that was before I even got zapped in here.”
“You aren’t—”
“Yeah, okay. You can keep denying it all you want, but I actually am in the game, so why don’t you and your other little developer friends get together and figure out a way to get me out of here, m’kay?”
