The Virtual Realm
Page 8
“Roger that.”
~~~~~
Three hours had passed, and Dusk had retreated within his mind, escaping this virtual world in favor of a world of his own creation. He couldn’t stop thinking about that woman. This would bother him for days. Just when Dusk had given up hope of this tedium ever ending, the impossible finally became possible.
“Well, I guess this will do for now,” Stacy muttered, showing not even a sliver of satisfaction, but instead what could be described as resignation.
“Wait, you... finally found something?” The bored Phantom gasped as life was once again restored to his weary eyes, his consciousness returning from its reclusive hibernation.
“You don’t have to sound so surprised, Drake. I looked through most of the outfits, but this is the best one I could find,” she explained as she held up a navy blue shirt combined with a matching skirt. The clothes seemed more than stylish enough in Dusk’s opinion. What did it matter? The important point was that she finally found something she was willing to wear; best not to make any negative comments on it.
Just smile and nod so we can move along, Dusk demanded of himself inwardly.
“Yeah, it looks good. It’s just... you took forever, Stacy.”
“What are you talking about? Three hours is forever? Quit being such a baby, Drake. I take at least twice this long sometimes when shopping in the real world.”
Dusk shivered as if he had just been shocked with a taser gun; a possible eight hour shopping trip with Stacy someday in the future? He shuddered at the thought.
Suddenly, Stacy blurted out a question that had nothing to do with what they were talking about. There was no flow from their previous topic into her current question. This was how Stacy worked most of the time. It was as though her memory was a surface wiped clean by a soapy cloth.
“You ever think… maybe staying here wouldn’t be so bad? If this wasn’t a prank?” Stacy inquired.
The surprise loomed prominently on Dusk’s visage. In fact he didn’t know what to say. He simply stood motionless, staring at Stacy, speechless as she giggled.
“I’m kidding, chill out, hehe. You should’ve seen the look on your face though!”
Dusk’s features twisted into a scowl. Up to now, Stacy was the one person he had never been able to get a full read on. How could he? Her mind was in a multitude of different places at once. If her mind was a puzzle, it would be an unsolvable one—as a few of the pieces would be missing, probably hiding on another planet.
“Nice joke, Stacy.”
“I thought it was. Totally worth it to see your reaction.”
Try as he might, he couldn’t peel the grin off his face. Typical Stacy, he thought, always light-hearted about everything. Still, he occasionally actually seriously thought this himself; that this world was fun and staying in it might not be so bad. As soon as those thoughts entered his mind, he pushed them out the door. Those were dangerous thoughts to be had.
Dusk simply stared at the scenery ahead of him for a moment, at the other players and NPCs. The crisp autumn air whispered around them, nudging their bodies in a chilly caress. The city—once plagued with terror, was now bustling with activity. Even so, some of the players still remained in the unrelenting grip of despair. It’s time for the next step, he decided. Time to message Frost. He brought up his friends list. There were two buttons next to Frost’s name. One was a chat bubble, which he would click to text Frost. The other was a phone, which he could click if he wanted to call him. He decided calling Frost would be quicker. He clicked the phone symbol and waited.
Three rings before it was replaced with Frost’s usual energetic voice.
“Hey, Dusk, what’s up man?”
“Not much. I was wondering if you wanted to level up some more with Stacy and me today.”
“Yeah, sure thing! Killing mobs as a tank is starting to take longer as I level up.”
“Yeah, I did notice you are a level ahead of us now. How far in are you?”
“About 25%.”
“Okay, can you meet us at the Gate of Stone?”
“I’ll need a few minutes, but sure. I can meet you guys there.”
“Good, see you in a few minutes then.”
“See ya.”
Having finished his call with the jubilant Knight, he turned to his fresh Cleric, his eyes sparking with resolve. The initial shock of this world had faded into the background; he was now focused on plowing ahead to the end goal.
“Ready to try your new gear?”
“You bet I am!”
Dusk smiled briefly. Truth be told, the hours they spent on shopping had taken its toll on him. It was too much estrogen for his taste. He needed something to re-tip the balance. The testosterone charged hunger to destroy something was coursing through his veins violently. He moved his body about in a fidgety fashion, unable to sit still. He looked forward to meeting Frost again, but why? He usually didn’t care about talking to other people, but this was a different world. People here had similar interests to his own, and they shared a common goal. To finish this game so they can get back to the real world. Though this world and the real world differed in a lot of ways, there was one thing they held in common—death.
Ten minutes later, after a carriage ride and a slight walk, Dusk gazed upon a familiar face: that of a spiky blue haired Knight who seemed to possess boundless energy. Almost as if to prove that point, Frost was running in place while waiting for them, barely able to contain himself. The lure of the hunt had consumed Frost as well. Dusk called out to him sardonically.
“Hey, Frost, you bastard, you went and gained a level without us.”
Frost spun around to see Dusk waving his arm, beckoning him over. He strolled towards the duo, his eyes wandering to Stacy, who had her hands planted at her hips, her sapphire eyes staring him down as if he were one of the monsters.
“Yeah, I’m the only one who’s allowed to pass you guys in levels,” she complained.
“Hey, you snooze you lose, guys!”
Dusk snickered as he punched Frost lightly in the arm. “You think you’re clever huh, let’s go.”
At their current level, they needed a new place to kill monsters. Typically in MMOs, players venture throughout the world as they level. This is because various places throughout the world have different levels of monsters. Eventually, certain monsters become too weak for the level a player currently possesses, granting reduced experience points, or no experience at all. For this reason, players who are leveling have to constantly search for monsters that are around their level, or they would never reach level 50. However, if a player were to fight a monster that was too many levels above them, they would lose the battle—or die. Normally players can learn from those mistakes and avoid that type of monster until they level up more. This, however, was different. In this game there was only one life. There couldn’t be any miscalculations or they would be fatal. Luckily, the level of each monster was visible in this game.
The trio of explorers wandered around for about thirty minutes, searching for a new place to cut through monstrous flesh. What they found was a thick rainforest. So thick in fact, the sunlight could scarcely be seen through the treetop canopy. Occasionally slivers of sunlight would peek through the trees and dance upon the group—nature’s version of hide and go seek. The distinct scent of fresh dew and exotic fruits meshed into a fragrant aroma for the senses that would bring any perfume to shame. The various fauna joined together in a primal chorus, almost as if welcoming the adventurers to their domain. Among the creatures were birds with elongated beaks and beady eyes—their bodies painted the color of seaweed. Plants that looked like Venus flytraps, except large enough to consume a man. Then there were the snakes... oh, there were snakes, and plenty of them. Each snake sported red and black spots, each boasting a size similar to the famous Anaconda.
Realizing he had to push aside the grim tidings of terror, his will forced his body to press on. There was no more time for fear. This was the j
ungle, and only the strong would survive. In the real world, if he wanted to avoid an Anaconda, he had the choice to do so. There would be no reason at all for him to even be close to such a creature. But here, in War of the Elements, these horrific creatures stood in the way of him and the real world. If he couldn’t conquer his fear of menial foes such as these, how could he ever hope to escape this world alive? Not only him—there were millions of other players who were snatched away from their lives in the blink of an eye by this digital incarceration. There was no way he could count on others to deliver this entire world to a happy ending. No, if there was one thing he learned, it was that he could only rely on himself. Dusk hacked his way through monster after monster. He let his limitless motivation fuel his earthly vessel.
I won’t let a virtual world beat me, no way in hell. I’ll find the ones responsible for trapping us here, and after I make them pay, I’ll beat this game. I don’t mind if I was trapped in this world. But trapping millions of other players who didn’t choose this? I won’t let them get away with it. I’ll free everyone from this hell!
Dusk vowed to himself, finding his inner strength.
These were the very thoughts that drove him to endlessly push on in the face of terror. The first day, he had been afraid, petrified even. He had wondered how Frost was completely unaffected by their new grim reality, but he was beginning to gain an understanding of the self-proclaimed hero.
After two hours of fighting through mobs, the group had developed a rhythm, like a well-oiled machine. Their synergy with one another in battle was gradually increasing. Frost pointed to their next target: a large snake splotched in a collage of night-born darkness and passionate fire, coiled to about seven feet long. Dusk slinked slowly behind the target in
Eventually, as they leveled up, they would gain a plethora of new moves, and the battles would become quite a bit more complex. These were amateur skirmishes compared to the real struggles that had yet to begin. For now, they had roughly three to four abilities they could use per person. This was the battle strategy they would use on almost every monster during these low levels, and it worked well. The snake’s head flopped to the ground in defeat. The group simply nodded at one another and continued on. They did not need words to convey their desires to one another in this moment. They had settled into a routine.
Just as they began to relax, dense layers of storm clouds congealed overhead. Autumn’s footfalls had chilled the air in its wayward path. Stacy crossed her arms tightly, trying to warm herself up.
A shiver escaped her, forming into vapor.
“Cold... why did it become so cold just now?”
As if nature itself was answering her question, a bolt of lightning flashed in the sky, accompanied by a thunderous roar—a grim omen that would foretell their fate.
Dusk saw it in the distance—a frightening creature coiled upon itself. Luckily for them, it was currently unaware of their presence.
“Stop!” he cried out in caution.
“What is it? Why did you stop us?” Stacy complained.
“Look in front of you, do you see that snake?”
Frost put his mind back in order as he came to an epiphany. This jade green snake was different from the rest. Everything about this serpent screamed danger—from its colossal size, to the unique jade color that covered the creature in a fine coating of poison. An ominous pressure clamped down on his neck, stifling him.
“Yeah, I get it.”
Stacy was scratching her head, still mystified by the whole thing.
“Get what? It’s just a snake; we must’ve killed about fifty of those by now, if not more than a hundred.”
“Listen, Stacy... that snake in front of us is unique to this area. What level were all the snakes that we killed?”
Stacy put her finger under her chin, like she was trying to solve the answer to a mere test that her college professor would give her. The true threat of this reptilian monstrosity was still lost to her.
“Um... level 12-14 I guess.”
“Yeah, that’s right, now what does the level on that snake in front of us say?”
“Level...20,” Stacy mouthed slowly as she finally realized the peril of their plight. “Wait, what should we do then?”
“We need to run, before it detects us and attacks, or we may have a very difficult battle on our hands. I don’t want to chance dying in this game so...”
Before he could finish that sentence, the eater of men turned around and looked straight at the trio. It hissed, seeing its prey before its very eyes.
Dusk started backing away, lead-footed and petrified. “Shit, shit, shit, shit! We need to run.”
The snake charged towards him, but Frost instantly jumped in front, blocking the snake’s attack with his shield. He grunted, bearing the considerable brunt of force from the blow of this colossal serpent.
“Dusk, Stacy, you guys run. I’ll distract this thing long enough for you guys to get away!”
“What? No, fuck that! You’ll die if you do that. I’m not leaving you for dead. Run away with us!”
“No way! There’s no guarantee that we won’t all die if we all try to run away from this guy. At least this way you guys can get away.”
“You stubborn bastard! Why do you always have to play the hero? I’m not leaving you here to die! I guess we have no choice but to fight with you.”
Frost’s anger grew. “What? But, Dusk!”
“Shut up! I’m not gonna let you sacrifice yourself here like some martyr. I’d never be able to live with myself knowing I ran away with my tail between my legs while someone else died for me.”
Stacy chimed in after throwing a heal on her armored protector.
“That’s right! I wouldn’t be able to live with myself either if I let this happen. There’s no way I’ll abandon my friends like that, sorry, Frost.”
Frost heaved out exasperated breaths, but didn’t say another word in protest; he knew he wouldn’t be able to change their minds.
“You guys better not die.”
All of their attention shifted to the giant snake before them. There couldn’t be a mistake here; the slightest lapse in judgment could mean their death. Dusk attempted to calm himself down, pushing all fear aside; he needed to expel his mind of any unnecessary thought.
“Okay, guys don’t panic. Focus completely on this fight, but don’t panic if it’s the last thing you do.”
Dusk quickly bolted to the snake’s back, unleashing a salvo of rear attacks, tearing through the scales slightly. He caught a quick glimpse of the snake’s tail recoiling, readying to swipe him into oblivion.
“Shit!” he cursed as he instantly dove to the side. The serpent started lashing its tail in a wide arc directly behind itself. Dusk managed to get most of his body out of the way, but his right foot was caught by the rapid strike of the tail. The powerful swipe shattered his anklebone. Pain—so much pain shooti
ng up his foot, all the way to his knee.
“Shit! Stacy, I need a heal!”
A golden ball of light quickly dispersed on Dusk’s body, instantly mending his fractured foot.
It seems I can’t use any attacks from behind on this snake, I’ll just have to hit it from the side.
Several white flashes of light glimmered on the colossal serpent as the shaken Phantom continued to deliver repeated lacerations from the side. Meanwhile Frost’s body would periodically glow gold from receiving heals as he took thrash after vicious thrash against his chain link armor.
At half health the snake started spitting corrosive acid directly out of its mouth. Luckily, since Dusk was on the side of the snake—it didn’t hit him—and Stacy was far enough back that she was out of range. Frost wasn’t so lucky. He was at half HP and falling fast. This poison was strong. It had invaded his body, violating him—threatening to turn his heart into a biohazard. No matter how much Stacy tried to save him, the venom neutralized all her attempts at restoration.
Despite Dusk telling the group not to panic, horror was starting to seep into his bones. The only thing the phantom could see was an ocean of snakes, threatening to swallow him whole like a rat.
“Uhhhh, Stacy help!” Frost pleaded as the fear mounted within him. “Why is my health still going down?”
“I’m trying, I’m trying! I’m healing you over and over, it’s not helping!”
Dusk howled in fear. “Damn it Stacy, don’t you have a spell that can remove poison?!”
She frantically sorted through her abilities like a crazy woman. “Uhhhh, let’s see:
“Who cares? Hurry up and do it!”
“