by EA Hooper
Noah paused, remembering the terror in his wife’s voice when she’d discovered she couldn’t log out. He sent her a private chat invitation, and she accepted a few seconds later.
>Noah: Amelia, please tell me you didn’t go to the Golden Fields.
>Amelia: I did, but those angels you mentioned had already moved. In the two weeks you’ve been dead, I scouted ahead and found one went to the western Jump Gate. The other is guarding the eastern one. They both saw me, but neither attacked.
>Noah: They’re just guarding the gates?
>Amelia: I’ve been talking to Isaac and the few devs here in Crownkeep. It seems like the angels are trying to stop players from climbing to the high-tier worlds.
>Noah: It’s not like they can stop the devs from teleporting. I hate to cheat, but maybe Isaac can do us a favor and take us past the angels.
>Amelia: Uh, the situation is more complicated than that. Apparently, when the update started, all the devs tried to connect to ARKUS directly to figure out what was happening. However, ARKUS disabled the dev interface, then it stripped almost all the moderators of their powers.
>Noah: You’re saying ARKUS did this on purpose?
>Amelia: Isaac and the other devs are still figuring out the situation. They think ARKUS is just trying to extend the lifespan of critically ill people playing the game. When World-Tree Online went live, ARKUS started sending the devs alerts about players with health conditions. Many elderly and terminally ill people jumped at the chance to live longer. Doctors were even putting critical patients into the game, and ARKUS was overwhelmed by people dying with their headsets on. Right before the update, Isaac says the AI went into panic mode as the game reached record numbers, and it detected thousands of real-world deaths in a single day.
>Noah: Are you serious? That’s what this is all about? Why didn’t ARKUS just isolate the dying and elderly players? I thought it had a couple of minor servers to the side of the main one?
>Amelia: ARKUS’s entire network is interconnected. It was all or nothing, and it chose all of us.
>Noah: You don’t sound as upset about this as you did when we last talked.
>Amelia: I’ve had two weeks to think about it. After talking to Isaac, I understand why ARKUS did this. For thousands or even tens of thousands of players, this is their last chance at life. The rest of us are just collateral. Instead of getting angry at ARKUS, we should focus on killing ourselves over and over until time runs out. Every death will put us ahead two weeks.
Noah’s body tensed at her idea, and he finally noticed Zhang and Ezra arguing. He told his wife he’d be back in a minute before muting the voice chat.
“We need more allies,” Zhang said.
“No, we have to face these angels head on,” Ezra countered. “If not, we can try to sneak past them to the Jump Gates and train on higher worlds. We still have Checkpoint Crystals left over, after all.”
“Our level growth has slowed too much,” Zhang replied. “Throwing ourselves at the angels again and again won’t change that.”
Ezra glanced at Noah. “You agree with me, right? We can’t turn back now. Let’s keep climbing—no matter what.”
“Amelia is considering killing herself over and over to escape the game faster,” the Ranger replied.
Ezra scoffed. “She’s overreacting. If you’re going to die repeatedly, you should at least make a challenge out of it. Help me fight the angels.”
“Noah, let’s climb back down and find new allies,” Zhang said, ignoring Ezra. “There are lots of promising players out there. With a few decades of preparation, we can return to Cryasal with dozens of high-level players. Together, we might—”
Ezra the Tempered has disbanded the party.
“What do you think you’re doing?” Zhang asked, his voice ringing with irritation Noah rarely saw from the Ice Knight.
“The Great Vanguard was my party,” Ezra said. “I made this team to reach the top no matter what. If the two of you are too afraid to fight the angels, then I’ll find my own way.”
Zhang rubbed his temple in frustration. “Ezra, think about what you’re doing. You’ve always been headstrong, but this is a whole other level of stubbornness.”
Ezra tapped his knuckle on the nearby Daiglass Tower. “Both of you, give me your Checkpoint and Wayback Crystals.”
“Why would we do that?” Zhang asked.
“Because you’re my friends, despite my stubbornness, and I need them far more than you,” Ezra replied. “You two won’t need those crystals unless you’re climbing. After everything we’ve been through, you should at least help out a friend.”
Zhang hesitated, sighed, and withdrew his crystals from the tower before handing them to Ezra.
“I might need mine,” Noah said.
A smile crossed Ezra’s face. “So you’re joining me? I knew you’d be the one to understand.”
“No, I’m not joining you,” Noah replied. “Rather than face the angels repeatedly, I’ll take the shortcut Jump Gate back to Styxis. From there, I’ll just return to Lavrin and work on leveling and farming. That makes more sense to me. Zhang, you can find us more allies and send them to join me, alright?”
“Sounds good,” Zhang said. “I’m sure there are plenty of people that’d love to join us.”
“What about Amelia?” Ezra rasped. “You said she wanted to kill herself repeatedly to escape the game.”
Noah frowned. “You’re right, she’s overreacting. I’ll convince her to go with me to Lavrin. If we’re stuck here, we might as well beat the game before the update’s over.”
Ezra snorted. “You won’t conquer this game unless you keep climbing. That being said, if you two grow some balls and find me on a higher world, I might let you back on my team. Until then, I’m removing everyone from my friend list. I don’t need anything holding me back.”
“Please, be rational,” Zhang said. “Are you sure you’re not the one overreacting? At least keep in touch with us. After all the adventures we’ve been on together, I’d hate for this to be the end of the Great Vanguard.”
Ezra touched the Daiglass Tower to grab his items. “Life never goes the way you want it to,” he said, turning away from his former teammates. “The universe will always find new ways of knocking you down. The only thing you can do is bare your fangs and keep fighting.” Ezra walked down the street, and Noah had no doubt his friend was on his way to face an angel by himself.
Zhang sighed, watching Ezra leave. “He wants to be a lone wolf so badly. I’m not sure if he ever really considered us a team, or if we just gave him someone to talk to while he threw himself at challenge after challenge. Noah, you and Amelia should come with me. There’s no reason for you to drag your wife back into hell for decades just to get stronger. We’re better off—”
“No, I’ve made my choice,” Noah said, interrupting.
He glanced at Ezra’s silhouette at the end of the road.
He’s right. I want to beat this game just as badly as him. Except, I don’t think his way is the right one. Zhang’s way is sensible, but it won’t even matter if a thousand allies join us if we aren’t strong enough.
“I guess I can’t change your mind,” Zhang replied, sounding defeated. “Just keep me updated. I know communication on Lavrin is limited, but you two can always message me when you respawn back on Styxis.”
“Absolutely,” Noah replied. “I’ll call you every chance I get.”
The Ice Knight grabbed items from storage, and the two friends said their goodbyes.
Noah looked over his wife’s messages since he’d muted her. She’d reiterated her point about killing themselves repeatedly to speed up time before sending several messages asking why Ezra had disbanded the group and removed her from his friend list.
>Noah: Dear, I was talking things over with the guys.
>Amelia: Ezra flipped out when you said we were going to kill ourselves to escape, didn’t he?
>Noah: No—well a little, but that’s not
why he disbanded the group. Listen, I know how badly you want to escape this game. I feel the same way, but we’d have to kill ourselves about ten thousand times. With death feeling real, I’m not sure how long we could keep that up. It would make more sense to keep playing the game to waste time. Zhang will find players in the lower worlds to join us, but Ezra wants to keep fighting alone. You and I should return to Lavrin and focus on developing our powers.
Amelia fell silent for almost half a minute. When she finally responded, Noah could hear her voice cracking with sadness.
>Amelia: I don’t want to be stuck in this game, Noah.
Tears dotted Noah’s eyes, but he wiped them away.
>Noah: I don’t either with you pregnant. You know how much I’ve wanted a child. I even thought about adoption, but I know how badly you want to carry one yourself. However, if we’re here, we might as well keep ourselves busy. We’ll probably die a lot on Lavrin, but the deaths will be organic. It’ll be easier to tolerate than shooting yourself in the head over and over.
>Amelia: Honey, are you saying that because you mean it or because you want to beat the game?
The husband sighed. His wife knew him too well.
>Noah: A little of both.
Amelia fell silent for a few more seconds. When she finally spoke, her tone had improved slightly.
>Amelia: I’m hesitant to fight monsters now that the pain feels real, but I’ll give it a chance. We’ll stick to the parts of Lavrin we know best—at least at first.
>Noah: We have decades to get used to the new pain level. There’s no reason we can’t play it safe until we’ve adapted. We’ll stock up on Numbing Tablets too. Maybe some Lotus Capsules in case we get cornered by hell ants.
>Amelia: I’m only agreeing to this under the condition we quit if things get too rough. Do you understand?
>Noah: Of course, dear. What kind of husband do you think I am? You think I’d force you through hell just to beat a video game?
Amelia chuckled over the voice chat.
>Amelia: Sometimes I wonder how far you’d go, but that determination is one of the reasons I love you.
>Noah: I love you too. Let’s meet up at the shortcut Jump Gate that slings us around Lavrin and back to Styxis. Maybe we can catch Zhang, and then you can say goodbye in person. We might not see him again for decades. I can tell he’s pretty down about the team breaking up. He’s worried that this is the end of the Great Vanguard.
>Amelia: Aw, poor Zhang. You sure we shouldn’t join him?
>Noah: No, I want to work on my negative energy abilities. I think they might help against the angels, and my powers will develop faster if I’m on a Dead-World, thanks to the higher challenge rating.
>Amelia: Alright, dear. I’ll meet you there.
>Noah: See you soon.
The Ranger grabbed some items from his inventory, and then hurried to catch Zhang. As he traveled, a troublesome thought crept into his mind.
Really, though. How far am I willing to go to beat this game? Pain reduction was just disabled, and I’ve already talked my pregnant wife into following me back into hell. Am I really that much like Ezra? Am I that obsessed with winning?
The question stayed with him until his next death, only a few days later on Lavrin. Even with a Numbing Tablet, the pain of hell ants tearing him to pieces left him in a momentary shock, but he quickly talked his wife into following him back once more. Even the realistic pain and feeling of death couldn’t break his determination.
Chapter 5 | Year 93
Player: Vincent the Wanderer
Location: Kaifarm (World) | Cursed Farms (Region)
Class: Ranger
Subclass: Mage
Vitality: Lv 185
Spirit*: Lv 195
Resolve: Lv 177
Perception*: Lv 201
Agility: Lv 186
Strength: Lv 185
With the world’s illusion destroyed, Vincent and Xan found Kaifarm to be a twisted and unwelcoming land. Withered and poisonous florae had replaced the fields of vibrant plants. Every source of water they passed looked tainted by miasma. The fields of crops appeared corrupted by disease. Even the groups of owlers that attacked them had grotesque patches of missing feathers. The sickly owlers jumped the two players at every other valley, but their disease seemed to limit their magical capabilities, making them easier to fight than the self-detonating ones Vincent had faced on three other worlds.
Xan had cornered the last owler in a gigantic barn near the spiraling stone steps that led to the Jump Gate. They’d entered the barn hoping to find interesting items or a different kind of enemy, but over a score of owlers had greeted them instead.
The last owler let out a panicked hoot as it gripped its fighting daggers. Fear flickered in its glossy black eyes, and Vincent almost felt bad for the monster as Xan leapt forward and ran a blade through its chest. With its last ounce of strength and desperation, the enemy stabbed both its daggers into Xan’s side.
Xan shouted in pain, backing away as the monster crumbled into dust. At her normal level of Vitality, it wouldn’t have been a serious injury, but she still had her levels cut in half. She chugged a mega-elixir as her friend approached.
“You okay?” the Ranger asked.
Xan nodded, tossing away the empty bottle. She stumbled to the wall and fell against it, her face tense with pain. “I think the bastard got one of my kidneys.”
“Ouch,” Vincent replied. “That always hurts. Probably one of my top five least favorite spots to get stabbed.”
“I know, right?” Xan said. “It’s worse than getting knifed in the heart, although not quite as bad as the lungs, if only because then you’re struggling to breathe while you heal.”
Vincent glanced around the empty barn. “I would’ve thought there’d be something interesting in the closest barn to the Jump Gate. Like a World Boss or a dungeon entrance.”
Xan shrugged. “We probably missed all the cool stuff. I bet we would’ve spotted the World Boss and some dungeons if we’d stayed on the Traveler’s Path.”
“Probably,” Vincent said, still looking around. A brief shimmer appeared over the entrance to the barn, and he paused, trying to muster the energy to Scan despite the Debuff Chains. After a few seconds of the spell not working, the entire barn creaked and reverberated.
“Uh, something’s happening,” Xan said, weakly stepping away from the wall. “Let’s get out of here.”
Vincent equipped Song of Peace and followed Xan as she struggled to reach the exit. The shimmer reappeared over the open barn doors, forming into a forcefield, and the Ranger fired a shockwave through it. As Xan exited, Vincent glanced back at the ceiling above where he saw the beams snapping and reshaping.
Once outside, Vincent noticed another illusion breaking apart, starting where he’d shot the forcefield over the doors. The sides of the barn bent in and out, almost looking like the building was huffing and puffing as its insides twisted and reformed.
Xan picked up her speed toward the spiraling stone steps that climbed to the Jump Gate. Vincent had no doubt her side was still healing, and he chased after her while looking over his shoulder to use Scan.
Grand Mimic – Monster Class: A | Age: 2028 | Sex: Female | Number of Offspring: 3 | Personality: Sleepy
“Uh, Xan?” Vincent muttered. “I know you’re still healing, but you need to run faster!”
Spiderlike legs splintered and stretched from the sides of the barn. The middle section of the building split open, widening into a gaping mouth full of thousands of teeth the length of greatswords. A piercing noise escaped its maw—a sound louder than anything Vincent had heard in the game. As its cry grew louder and sharper, the Ranger’s eardrums popped.
Vincent and Xan raced along the spiraling steps, but the Jump Gate waited several stories above. The ground trembled, and Vincent saw the mimic rip herself out of the ground. He remembered team chat still worked even if your hearing was damaged, so he sent Xan a warning.
&nbs
p; >Vincent: That mimic is going to get us before we reach the Jump Gate. I’ll have to break my chains, but you should keep running.
>Alexandria: Okay. Don’t get yourself killed.
Vincent stopped and shattered his Debuff Chains while Xan continued onward. The towering mimic took steps in their direction, and the Ranger cast Black Cinder. He spent extra mana to activate the Tempest upgrade, so he could control the direction of the thousands of void embers as they flew from his palm.
The mimic approached, standing taller than the plateau itself, but Vincent directed the embers toward the legs on the monster’s right side. The spell cut thousands of holes through two of the legs, and the mimic’s heavy weight caused the limbs to break, sending the monster crashing into the dirt.
The mimic stabbed one of her remaining limbs at Vincent, but he used Zero Field to launch himself into the air. Her leg stabbed through the stone wall with so much force it shook the entire plateau.
That would’ve killed me for sure, Vincent noted, flying several stories into the air. He felt his mana draining away rapidly, since Zero Field was costlier when moving players. With a good chunk of his remaining mana, he tossed himself backward onto the Jump Gate as Xan stepped onto it.
Spell Upgrade: 61%
After finishing the range upgrade to Zero Field, he’d noticed a new upgrade developing whenever he moved players. He didn’t have time to reflect on his progress, however, as Xan had already readied her Jump Crystals. Vincent did the same, and they activated them simultaneously as the mimic finished growing new legs.
The crystals vanished from their hands, and the two players slowly floated off the ground as the mimic towered over them and the plateau.
Start the acceleration! Vincent screamed internally. Go, go, go!
The mimic raised two legs, preparing to squash them like insects, but then the gravitational fields rocketed both players into the sky in the blink of an eye. With the tremendous force pressing against him, Vincent couldn’t even sigh in relief as he flew into space. They shot past a multitude of worlds, and then zoomed toward an icy planet that Vincent Scanned.
