by Paul Bellow
He screamed as my blade hit him.
Your slash DECIMATES the Paladin of Fish for 13 damage.
The Paladin of Fish is dead!
You gain +100 experience points!
You have 1,350 xp
You are now level two Warrior!
You need to find a trainer (preferred) or training manual to reap all the benefits of reaching level two Warrior. Would you like more information on a trainer?
Trainer? I don’t have time for no stinking trainer.
I led the horse back around the circle of wagons. Dozens of burnt knights littered the ground. No one stirred.
Had we killed them all?
Unable to find another victim, I turned the horse and scanned the horizon.
Where was the man in robes?
My heart beat faster as I frantically looked for him.
“Over here, dumb orc,” a weaselly voice said behind me.
I spurred my horse to turn and saw the wizard. The oversized hood still hid most of his features. He looked tough but not tougher than me.
“You’re pretty badass,” I said. “Can you help me?”
The wizard chuckled as he shook his head.
“Why not?” I asked, getting angry.
He said nothing, standing with his hands by his sides.
What a wimp. Time to take this chump out and find Sarah.
I spurred the horse. The wizard stayed in place as I rushed forward. He held up a hand.
The horse stopped in fear, sending me flying over its head and onto the ground.
You take 2 damage from falling off the horse.
You have [9/18] health remaining.
Down to half. That doesn’t sound good.
I sat up, unable to get to my feet.
All the strength had been sucked from my body. Was it another magic spell?
The mage approached, looking down at me.
A game screen came up.
ALERT: PVP Enabled by [PC] Magi Inyontoo
PVP? PC? What does any of this crap mean?
“What do you want?” I asked. “Can you help me? I’m looking for two friends of mine. They should be around here somewhere.”
“I’ll find your friends soon enough,” the man said then laughed like a bad cartoon villain. “Why would I tell you where to find them when I want them for myself?”
“What do you mean you want them?” I asked.
I struggled to stand, but I didn’t have the energy.
“You make a great stupid orc,” the wizard said.
He laughed like a maniac, looming over me.
“Who are you?” I asked. “And why are you messing around? Is that you, Eric?
OOC Penalty
10% experience penalty next encounter.
The man in black pulled back his hood.
“My name is Magi Inyontoo,” he said dramatically. “You killed my father. Prepare to die.”
“What?” I asked.
“You heard me,” he said.
“I did, but you’re not making any sense.”
“Don’t you watch old movies?” he asked.
“Wait...” I said. “You’re not part of the game?”
Magi Inyontoo laughed.
“I’m part of the game alright,” he said.
“Can you tell me where I can find Eric and Sarah?”
“Why would I do that? I told you I’m hunting them. You were much easier to find, and I have a special mission for you.”
“You’re hunting her?” I struggled to my feet. “You better not hurt her.”
Magi Inyontoo snickered then haughtily shook his head.
I flew into a barbarian rage, wanting to kill him.
Skill Activated
You went into a barbarian rage.
“Silly barbarian,” Magi Inyontoo said. “You think that’ll work on me?”
I screamed, rushing toward him while wildly swinging my sword.
He nimbly stepped aside, still laughing at my folly. Anger built up to intolerable levels as I swung at him several times. He moved around like Neo in the Matrix, avoiding me.
Your slash misses [PC] Magi Inyontoo.
Your slash misses [PC] Magi Inyontoo.
“Enough playing around,” he said.
I screamed and ran toward him as he raised his arms.
A bolt of energy shot out of his palms. Still in a barbarian rage, I rushed forward—unconcerned about the consequences.
The golden beam of energy hit me square in the chest.
[PC] Magi Inyontoo’s Golden Bolts EVISCERATE you for 142 damage.
* * *
You are dead.
I fell to the rough, hard ground.
Everything went black.
7
Quest: Join Party is ... Successful?
ERIC
I sat up, staring at the elf and the two four foot creatures with oversized heads. Their constant smiling freaked me out, but I didn’t sense any danger from them.
“Sarah?” I asked as the elf stopped and stared down at me.
OOC Penalty
-10% xp next encounter
“Eric? Is that you?” she asked. “You can’t speak OOC without getting a penalty, but we can talk for five minutes now.”
“Yes, it’s me,” I said. “Where’s Josh?”
She frowned and shrugged.
“I was hoping he was with you,” she said.
The poison in my system caused another flash of pain.
“Stupid rats poisoned me...” I said as I cringed.
“Evan’s healing potion will keep you alive,” she said. “But we need to get to the city to take care of the poison in your system. Can you get back in the cart?”
Like in the real world, I couldn’t move the lower part of my body.
“I’m too weak,” I said. “This sucks so bad. I can’t be paralyzed in the game…”
“Buckle up, buttercup,” Sarah said. “We have to find Josh.”
“Maybe he spawned in Fishguard.” I struggled to stand. “Can I get some help?”
The brownie who’d given me a potion rushed forward and reached out a hairy hand. I grabbed it, surprised at the small creature’s strength.
Once on my feet, I stumbled toward the back of the wagon.
“I can’t believe he kicked you out,” Sarah said. “This whole game is messed up. We should get out of here before my love potion wears off.”
“Huh?” I tilted my head to the side. “Love potion?”
She smiled and said, “don’t worry about it, I used one on the guy driving this wagon. That’s why he’s taking us to the city.”
“That’s great,” I said, attempting a smile.
I hopped up, sitting on the edge of the wagon.
“Let’s go,” Sarah said, waving her hand.
Both brownies climbed aboard, roughly using my shoulder as a hand-hold. I grinned through the pain and said nothing to Sarah’s NPC companions.
She took a seat next to me. Our legs dangled over the edge.
“To the city,” she called over her shoulder.
“Anything for you, my sweet elf princess,” the old man said.
The wagon lurched forward, almost sending me flying off the back.
Sarah put an arm around me, holding tight.
“Does it hurt?” she asked.
“Not as much as it did, but I can’t feel my legs.”
She frowned, then looked away.
“Crippled in the real world and crippled here too,” I muttered.
“Don’t talk like that,” she said, turning to me. “You know I don’t like it when you put yourself down.”
The cart traveled south, bouncing with every small hole or rock in the dirt road.
I took a deep breath.
“Maybe we should quit and see if Josh is waiting for us back in the tower,” she said.
“Are you sure?” I asked. “A little longer won’t hurt us.”
“Where’s the quit button for the game?” she asked
bluntly.
I turned to her and tilted my head.
“Huh? What do you mean?”
“There’s no quit option, Eric.” Her smile faded. “What’s going on? The timer on the OOC window is almost up.”
“I don’t know,” I said. “Let me check. Maybe you missed it.”
“You know I’m not some noob,” she said. “There’s no quitting.”
“I don’t think my hack did it,” I said as I stared at the heads up display.
Had my hack trapped us?
The thought terrified me, but I kept my mouth shut.
“We should try to join our party,” I said to change the subject.
“Now?”
She shook her head. “I’m serious, Eric. We should quit.”
“I don’t know how to quit,” I said. “Sorry.”
“Quit lying,” she said.
“I’m not lying. Something must be wrong. My dad will be home soon, and he’ll get us out of here.” I paused, my heart sinking. “Did I mention the time dilation?”
“No,” she said. “What time dilation?”
“Every minute in the real world could be a day or more in here,” I said.
“Could be?” Her brows furrowed. “Don’t you know?”
“Not exactly,” I said, wanting to tell her the entire truth. “We weren’t supposed to play the game, but I hacked a way for us to get in. That might be why we’re having trouble. Did you get the error message when we started?”
“No,” she said.
I lowered my head, watching the ground pass between my feet.
“Look at me,” she demanded. “What did you do?”
“I’m not sure yet, but I’ll figure it out. We just need to keep playing.”
“For how long?” she asked.
“I’m not sure…”
She turned away, fuming.
“Can we try to join the party?” I asked again.
“Fine,” she said.
I activated the button to join party with her.
You have joined a party with Kali Tracaryn.
* * *
Quest: Join Your Party completed!
* * *
You receive 1,000 xp!
-10% penalty = 900 xp
You need 475 xp for next level.
* * *
Tip: Be careful who you allow into your party. Your decisions will affect your progress through the game. Choose wisely…
“Why did the quest complete?” she asked. “What about Josh? Shouldn’t the quest not complete until he joins?”
Panic swept through my body.
“I’m not sure,” I said.
“Do you think he’s dead?” she asked. “What happens when you die in this game?”
“Careful with the xp penalties,” I said.
“This game is getting on my nerves…”
Her voice drifted off. I put my hand on her shoulder, but she scooted a few inches away.
“We should stop talking out of character as much as possible,” I said.
“Good idea, Eric, but it’s not exactly easy.”
“We have a few minutes to talk out of character,” I said. “We might as well use it to talk about everything.”
“I don’t know what to say, Eric. You’re not my favorite person right now, okay? Leave me alone, and let me think about this…”
Being in the game on my own wouldn’t have been such a big deal, but I didn’t want her trapped against her will.
“Do you believe me?” I asked.
She turned, still furious. I loved her honesty.
“Believe you about what?” she asked.
“That I didn’t purposefully trap us in here.”
“Sure, Eric. I believe you.”
Her tone of voice didn’t convince me.
“We should try to clear this level,” I said, trying to stay positive. “We should be able to get out of here once we beat the beginner level.”
“Are you sure?” Sarah asked. “How do you know?”
“I don’t know for sure, but what else can we do?”
She stared out, looking at the forest in the distance.
“I’ve been thinking about letting a monster kill me,” she said. “Maybe that’s the way to quit.”
“Don’t do that,” I said. “We don’t know what happens.”
The wagon hit a bump, sending me a few inches in the air. I barely stopped myself from falling over the edge and down to the ground.
“Careful,” Sarah yelled to the old man in front.
“Whoa,” he said, stopping the two horses up front.
Sarah twisted around.
“What are you doing?” she asked. “Why did you stop?”
“Gold or no gold, you’ll have to go,” the old man said in a deep voice.
“We had a deal,” Sarah said.
Our driver shook his head with determination.
“Your spell on me wore off a mile ago,” he said. “You two need to get out of the wagon now.”
“Or what?” Sarah asked, lifting her hands.
What powerful spells did she know? I wondered.
“Here’s five more gold,” she said, throwing coins at him. “That’ll more than compensate you for the ride.”
The farmer took a deep breath, his barrel chest rising and falling.
“Fine,” he relented then turned and yelled, “Yah-yah!”
The wagon lurched forward, almost sending Sarah hurtling off the back. I reached over to stop her then grimaced in pain.
“Are you okay?” she asked.
“I’m more worried about Josh than me,” I said. “But the pain is getting worse. Maybe I’ll die and find out what happens.”
“Don’t talk that way,” she said. “We’re almost to the city.”
“I’m sorry about all this...”
My voice trailed off.
“Don’t worry about it now,” she said. “We can talk about it later. If we’re stuck in here, we might as well make the most of it.”
“I don’t want you to think I did this on purpose,” I said. “Are we good?”
“We’re fine,” she said. “I’m just worried about being in this game too long. Everything has been so crazy since we started.”
“Right? This world is amazing, though…”
She smiled.
“Except for the rats, huh?”
I grinned, hoping I’d regain the use of my legs.
“We’re getting closer,” she said. “I can smell the city. I can see where it got its name. Hang in there.”
She put her hand around my waist, instantly calming my nerves.
I closed my eyes, drifting off, unsure if I would wake up or succumb to the poison coursing through my veins.
What kind of evil game were we playing?
I opened my eyes and noticed we’d stopped. Sarah hopped down then reached over to help me out of the wagon. I groaned.
“Hold on a minute,” I said.
Both brownies jumped to the ground. Evan rushed over to Sarah. He hugged her tightly as I sat and fought the pain.
“Thanks for everything,” Evan said. “You’re the best.”
“Are you sure you don’t want to stay with us?” she asked.
“No,” Evan said. “We’ve got houses to clean.”
I scooted off the edge of the wagon, thinking my legs would hold me up. They bucked as soon as my feet hit the ground.
“Are you okay?” Sarah asked, rushing over.
I glanced up as she crouched beside me. The wagon rolled away; the old man cursing brownies, elves, and goblins.
“The poison is getting worse,” I said.
She frowned.
“We’re at a healer in the city,” she said. “Let me go inside and get some help for that poison.”
“Sounds good…” I coughed. “Can I get some water?”
“Get him some water,” Sarah said as she stood.
When nobody answered, she turned around.
“Evan? Ewe
n? Where are you guys?” she asked.
“They’re gone,” I said. “Do you have water?”
“Yeah,” she said. “But that’s so weird. I liked them.”
I coughed as she pulled out a flask of water.
“Here…” She kneeled and lifted it to my mouth. “Take it slow.”
Warm, fresh water hit my lips, tongue, and gums.
“That’s so good,” I said after she pulled it away.
She glanced toward the wood and stone building.
“I’ll be back,” she said. “Give me a minute.”
“Not going anywhere,” I said then smiled.
She stood and walked out of my sight. I took a deep breath. Pain had infiltrated every corner of my body; my legs ached and throbbed.
Seconds ticked by. Minutes felt like hours.
Where is she? What’s taking her so long? Am I dying?
Instead of checking my health again, I closed my eyes, trying to save up my energy. All the horses and people nearby didn’t help.
“They’re out of everything related to poison,” Sarah said.
I opened my eyes, detecting a distinct tone of worry in her voice.
“Figures,” I said. “Guess we’ll find out what happens when we die.”
“Don’t talk like that,” she said then glanced down the street.
“Help me,” I said, struggling to sit up.
“No, hold on,” she said. “Let me think of something. Maybe I can go buy a potion somewhere else or find a healer in a tavern.”
A man dressed in a puffy white shirt over chain mail stepped up and bowed. His thick, full beard gave him a grizzly look.
“Did I hear you say you need a healer?” he asked.
I noticed a fish symbol emblazoned on the front of his shirt.
“Who are you?” Sarah asked.
He rubbed his palms together and smiled.
“I’m Benji Bigelow,” he said. “Faithful servant of the Order of Fish.”
Sweat dripped from his forehead. My gut told me to trust him.
“He’s poisoned and paralyzed,” Sarah said, pointing to me. “Can you help him?”
