by Alex Mulder
“I don’t mean to drag you down with my baggage, I just thought you should know.” Tess turned to look at him and Luke saw that she was blushing. “You must think I’m crazy.”
Luke shook his head.
“No,” he said. “I don’t. I think you’re Tess. I think you’re my friend, and…”
I think she has some of the most beautiful eyes I’ve ever seen, even if they’re computer rendered. Even if they aren’t really hers in the physical world.
Luke leaned in and kissed her. He felt an overwhelming sensation rush through his body, not from the outside, but from within. The lack of real contact didn’t stop the gesture from being powerful. In fact, it only seemed to amplify the symbolism and meaning.
“Luke…” whispered Tess. “Thank you.”
A gaggle of new players ran by them, laughing and chatting with each other in game speak.
They haven’t gotten to the point we’re at yet. They don’t see this ‘game’ for what it is.
“Come on,” said Luke. “Let’s head back down and meet up with Silverstrike. We need to have a guild meeting.”
Ten minutes later, the two of them were standing on the outskirts of Stark Town. Luke switched over to the guild chat and gave it a real sustained try for the first time. It made it easy for Silverstrike to find them, and when he showed up, he was grinning from ear to ear.
“I got the blueprints!” he announced. “And there’s more! I managed to haggle some extra iron ore out of the merchant.”
“That’s great… I think?” Luke scratched his head, and Silverstrike gave him an exasperated look.
“Iron ore is one of the other crafting materials we need in bulk to put the guild hall together,” he said. “We can use it to make nails, doorknobs, hinges, all of that sort of thing. Along with some glass for the windows, clay, and wood, we should be all set.”
Tess nodded.
“So all we need now is glass?”
“That and some more wood.”
Luke smiled at his friends.
At least one good thing came out of this mess.
“Alright then,” he said. “Let’s get moving. I’ll go get the rest of the wood.”
“Uh… maybe we should talk about the guild, first.” Tess’s voice was only a little louder than a whisper. “About the name, I mean.”
“Oh yeah,” said Luke. “We can’t exactly be KSTA now, can we?”
Silverstrike thought for a moment and then raised his hand.
“The Consulate.”
Luke looked at him blankly.
“Oh come on!” said Silverstrike. “It’s out of Roman history, just like your avatar’s name. Though I don’t think your namesake was ever actually a part of it.”
“The Consulate,” repeated Tess. “I like it.”
Luke pulled the guild charter out of his bag.
This, along with the zone that goes with it, was what Arex nearly killed me for.
“Alright, I’m going to make the change, but… one other thing.” Luke scratched out ‘KSTA’ and replaced it with ‘The Consulate’ in the document. “I think we should store it somewhere safe, somewhere that’s not accessible to other players. It’s one of the few things, other than equipment, that can be looted upon death.”
“There isn’t anywhere like that in Yvvaros,” said Silverstrike. “The only banks and storage facilities in-game are inside of guild halls. We can put it in there once we’ve finished with ours.”
Luke thought for a moment about what his friend was saying.
“But what’s to stop somebody from attacking our guild hall while we’re all logged out?”
The question was a scary one and it made all the hard work they were going through to set up the zone feel like it was in jeopardy.
“You get an automatic bounty for violating the laws of Kantor,” said Silverstrike. “And hopefully, our guild will be big enough by then for us to always have someone online. Guild halls are easy to defend even with just a few people if you set up the defenses correctly.”
He’s… really thought this through.
“Alright,” said Luke. “Well, I guess we should get to it, then.”
This time, all three of them split up. Silverstrike took up the role of the blacksmith, taking the iron ore to the nearest smithing station to turn it into what they needed. Tess took a bit of money from each of them and went off to barter for glass.
Luke headed back in search of wood. This time he went to the evergreen forests that served as a transition from the grasslands of the Inner Plains into the cold northern tundra of the Blue Void.
There weren’t many players up that way, Luke soon realized. Compared to the rest of the continent, the northern reaches had thus far been ignored by the player base. It was as challenging of an area as the Msitu Wilds, and not as traversable as the Sarchia Desert or the areas closer to Stark Town.
The only other players Luke saw were, like him, chopping down trees and working their carpentry skills. The trees themselves varied in size, with some of them being high enough to make the thought of cutting them down seem a little outlandish. He tested his ax against a more modest specimen.
EVERGREEN TREE: Level 7
His ax could handle that, and soon enough, Luke had chopped it down, along with several others just like it. The work left him feeling almost like his avatar was breaking out into a sweat.
That’s not something coded into the game…
After taking one last look around, he turned toward the desert, leaving the tranquility of the northern region. He cut through the chaos of Stark Town toward the southern desert and Dunidan’s Rest. It took him a while, and when he arrived, he found that Tess and Silverstrike were already waiting for him.
“It’s time for us to start building,” said Luke. “Let’s do this!”
Construction in Yvvaros was much simpler than construction projects in the real world. The different construction components still needed to be placed into position, but once they were close enough, they would lock in like magnetic Lego pieces.
On top of that, they had enough food to offset the stamina cost of lifting simulated weight, so it was easy for the three of them to work at a fast pace. Luke noticed how much the project was doing for Tess’s mood. She had a genuine smile on her face and responded to his flirting and teasing as she had before the incident with Arex.
The three of them started with the foundation, which required the blueprints to be set in place. They set the carefully cut stone blocks down into an even layer, and then the building’s frame on top of it. The walls went up quickly. It reminded Luke of constructing blanket and pillow forts as a kid, except more substantial.
The roof was the trickiest part because the wooden planks and clay caulking could only be placed from on top. Luke climbed up using Silverstrike’s back as a stepping stone and set the materials into place as his friends passed them up to him, one by one.
When they had completed the structure, they had the frame of a medium sized, one room building. It was still missing the door and windows, which took a bit of setting up to get into place. Silverstrike went to work connecting the hinges while Luke and Tess slowly installed the windows.
“Steady…” said Luke. Tess was holding one side of the window, and as she went to lower her end, it slipped from her hand.
“Shoot!” She let out a tiny gasp. Luke dove underneath the falling glass pane with lightning speed, catching it on his chest the way someone might catch a falling baby.
“No prob,” said Luke. “You can thank my catlike reflexes.”
Tess grinned at him.
“And you’re so modest, to boot.”
Eventually, all of the windows had been secured. The two of them walked to the front of the building, admiring the oasis they had in their backyard as they went by.
“It’s just about…” Silverstrike worked one final hinge into place as he put the door into its frame. “Done!”
A golden flash of light emanated from the
building and an icon appeared in the corner of Luke’s screen.
LEVEL 7 ATTAINED
“Oh, cool,” he said. “I didn’t realize we got experience for building.”
Silverstrike smiled at him and nodded. Luke quickly leveled his character up, figuring that the others were doing the same.
Let’s change things up a bit…
Instead of distributing his five attribute points evenly, he decided to drop three into luck, and the last two into strength.
“Shall we?” He smiled at Tess as he asked the question and she gave him an enthusiastic nod in return.
The guild hall’s interior was, unsurprisingly, entirely empty. Luke walked around, admiring the high ceiling and spacious floor.
We’ll be able to buy furniture, or craft it ourselves, and make this place into whatever we want.
Tess looked as though she was thinking the exact same thing.
“This is amazing,” she whispered. “This… this is a home.”
A home…
An unbidden thought of his father and the stress he had to deal with in the real world flickered into his mind. He pushed it away and shook his head. Silverstrike was staring out the window at the oasis.
“We’ll be able to start farming here,” he said. “Maybe even set up a shop. That will give us easy experience, and we won’t even have to risk fighting monsters.”
“I’m still planning on fighting,” said Luke. “It’s a bit too much fun for me to resist.”
Tess and Silverstrike laughed, and for a moment the three of them just sat together on the floor, enjoying each other’s company and enjoying the game.
“I… have to log off,” said Tess, breaking the silence. “Sorry! It’s been a really long play session.”
“Yeah, we probably should to.” Luke glanced over at Silverstrike. “Same time tomorrow?”
Tess and Silverstrike nodded, and then all three of them logged out.
CHAPTER 15
Luke was back in Ben’s room. It took him a while to adjust after he’d removed his headset, much longer than it ever had before. The fluorescent lights felt strange and artificial against his eyes, and his body was heavy and slow.
It’s only late afternoon, maybe four or five. It was nighttime… in Yvvaros.
“Man, we were playing for a while,” said Ben. “It feels…”
He trailed off, but Luke didn’t need him to finish the sentence.
“Weird. Yeah, I know exactly what you mean.”
Luke slowly stood up, stretching limbs that were on the verge of falling asleep. His mind was groggy, almost tired, but sleep wasn’t what he felt like he needed.
The game had been visceral, full of contrast and color, a stark difference from the drab grays and soft whites that decorated Ben’s room. He expected to see a status bar above Ben’s head when he turned to look at him. He realized with a start that it was scary to not see his own health and stamina meters in the corner of his vision.
“Jeez.” Luke shook his head slightly and stepped toward the door. “I think I need to clear my head.”
He looked over at Ben again and saw that his friend was moving toward his desk.
“What’s that?”
“You want to go get some food?” Luke’s stomach growled as if on cue.
“No, I’m good man,” said Ben. “I’m just going to…”
He was pulling something out of his desk that Luke recognized without the need to see more than its color. His pipe was already packed with a half smoked bowl of weed and ash.
“Oh, come on, man,” said Luke. “Don’t you want to clear your head, after-”
“What does it look like I’m doing?” Ben lit the lighter in his other hand and Luke had to turn away.
“Never mind, I’ll talk to you later.”
Ben already had the pipe to his lips. He didn’t answer.
This is starting to become a problem for him.
Luke made his way downstairs. Emily was in the kitchen, humming a little song as she pulled ingredients out of the fridge.
“Hey Luke,” she said. “How was gaming?”
He shrugged.
Does she really want to know?
“It was good,” he said. “There’s a surprising amount of depth to the game.”
“So I’ve heard…” Emily pulled out a bread knife and began cutting through a long baguette. “I take it my brother is upstairs having some alone time?”
Luke nodded.
“Yeah, he’s uh…” No excuse came to mind, and he avoided Emily’s gaze like a guilty defendant in front of a judge.
“It’s fine. I know.” She smiled at him, a bit of sadness seeping in from behind it. “He’s my brother, but there’s only so much I can do for him. Trust me, it was the same way for me back when the roles were reversed.”
Back when the roles were reversed? Did Emily…?
“Anyway, can I make you a sandwich?” she asked. “They say it's bad luck to eat alone.”
Luke grinned.
“Who says that?”
“They do!” Emily let out a breath of mock exasperation. “The anonymous, intangible they!”
How did she end up with a brother like Ben, anyway?
Luke walked over to the kitchen counter and took a seat on one of the stools. Emily had on her pink apron and moved around the kitchen like a dancer, with no wasted movements.
“So… uh, what are you up to these days, Emily?” Luke tried to sound casual, even though he was dying to pry as much information from her as he could. “You’re taking a year off, right? How’s that going for you?”
Emily was cutting the bread down the center. She looked as though she was thinking for a moment and then flashed her brilliant eyes back up at Luke.
“It’s going well…” Her voice was soft and mournful. “I didn’t decide to, well, it wasn’t by choice that I took a year off.”
Luke suddenly felt as though his question had been out of line. He scratched his head and tried to think of a casual way to apologize, but Emily just smiled pleasantly at him. She reached over and put one of her hands on top of his, sending a wave of electric potential through him.
“It’s okay, you don’t have to feel sorry,” she said. “I’ve just been… sick, for the past few months.”
Luke couldn’t think of anything to say.
“Don’t worry, it’s not contagious,” she said. “I shouldn’t have even brought it up. I just wanted to give you an honest answer, Luke. You deserve to-”
Luke’s phone vibrated in his pocket, interrupting the conversation. He pulled it out slowly and winced as he saw the caller ID.
Dad…
“I’m sorry, Emily, it’s my dad,” he said. “I have to take this.”
“It’s okay.”
Luke walked into the living room before answering.
“Hello?”
“Luke.” His dad’s voice was tense and strung out. “Get your ass home from wherever you are, immediately.”
“Why?” asked Luke. “What’s going on?”
“Nothing is fucking going on, just get back here. Now.”
What the hell am I supposed to say to that?
“Dad, I’m at Ben’s,” said Luke. “If it’s not an emergency, can’t I-”
“I’m not asking you,” said his dad. “I’m telling you.”
The phone beeped, and Luke realized that his dad had hung up on him. He took a deep breath and tried not to let the anger building in his chest spread into the rest of his body.
“Is everything okay?” Emily walked up behind him and placed a soft hand on his shoulder. She had such a kind and caring aura, for a moment Luke wanted to sit on the couch with her and pour his heart out.
I want to do more than just that…
“I… have to go,” said Luke. “I can’t stay for dinner.”
“I can pack you some food to take with you if you want?”
Luke shook his head.
“Thanks, but I should get going,” he
said. “If Ben comes out of his room later, tell him to call me.”
Emily nodded.
“Okay Luke,” she said. “It was nice having you over. You’re… always welcome here. You know that, right?”
“Thanks, Emily. I’ll see you later.”
Luke shouldered his bag headed out the door. Being outside gave him a feeling not entirely dissimilar to when he’d stepped out of the game before. The air was warm and the sun was slowly setting on the horizon, lighting up the clouds in brilliant shades of orange and red.
He walked down the street toward his house, again feeling a little unnerved by how different his body felt in real life. He managed to catch and resist the urge to try to pull out his map, something that was a regular part of navigating in Yvvaros.
Luke slowed as he approached his house. His dad’s car was parked outside, and just seeing it there made him tense.
This doesn’t feel like a home, at least not one that’s safe.
He took a deep breath and headed inside through the front door, opening it slowly and gingerly, trying to make as little noise as possible. There was no need for subtlety as Luke discovered from the crashing and yelling coming from within.
His dad was in the living room, or what was left of it. The couch had been thrown over and pictures had been knocked down. Chris Smith was emptying a bookshelf of its contents, hurling each title in a new direction as though he was possessed.
I should just head up to my room. He’s lost it, again.
Luke took a step toward the stairs and his Dad whirled around and charge toward him aggressively.
“You took your time coming back.” His dad’s words were slurred, but the look in his eyes was jittery, unlike what alcohol usually did to him. “Walk around the neighborhood a couple of times first, or something?”
“Dad, I was just-”
His father slammed the book that was in his hand to the ground and went back toward the bookshelf.
“I need money, Luke.” His dad looked desperate, suddenly. “Give me what you have on you right now. I’ll pay you back.”
“Dad, I’m not going to give you my money.”
Chris Smith stepped back toward his son, his chest heaving up and down with every breath.
