by Dante Doom
“I… I just don’t know,” Sang said. “I don’t know if I made the wrong choice. But now we’re standing here, alive and with more information to defeat Draco because of the decisions that I’ve made. I can’t say that this is ideal, but at least… at least good is coming out of it.”
“So where does that leave us then?” Van asked. “Because… because I don’t know if I can follow you in this anymore. I don’t know if I can follow someone who is willing to sacrifice other people. I know that I made the biggest mistake of my life when I left you behind, Sang. That’s something that I will always carry with me, and it’s something that will define how I make my choices from here on out. Even though it worked out in the end, I never want to do that to anyone again. So how can I follow someone who’s going against what I believe?”
Sang shrugged. “Look… that was the past. I’m not going to tell you that I deeply regret my choices, but I do feel guilty. Whether my actions were a necessity of war or if I was being excessive is something I’m going to have to sort out for myself. But in the meantime, I'll do what I can to make sure I don’t take such drastic actions without consulting you first. I don’t want this to come between us.”
Van looked at Sang. He honestly couldn’t tell whether she was trying to appease him or not. But did it matter? With everything that he had been involved in, how could he walk away from this job? Had she been bluffing, or was she serious? He had no idea. Everything inside of him was frustrated with the situation, but things had just been too intense for him to accurately judge the situation. Maybe she really had been under too much pressure to think straight. Between the drugs, the exhaustion, and the constant threat of death, it was impossible to figure out if Sang had been in her right mind. Then again, had he been in his own right mind?
“You know what, let’s just put this behind us,” Van said. “As long as you don’t go off the rails again, we’re fine. And, uh, you forgive me for leaving you behind, right?”
Sang looked at him with weary eyes and slowly nodded. “Of course, Van. You came back, and that’s all that matters. Sometimes we make poor decisions in the moment. What really matters is how we handle our choices afterwards, right?”
“Right,” Van said. “Now, come on, and let’s get yelled at by the government.”
They walked together in silence until they reached a large red door.
“Alright, now you’re probably used to the theatrics at this point,” Sang warned, “but just know that these guys are going to grill you hard.”
“I know, I know,” Van said as he put his hand against the door. “But at this point, I’ll say whatever it takes for me to get a few days off.”
They entered the room together to find a horde of people waiting for them. They were in all sorts of uniforms—some wore soldiers’ uniforms, others were dressed in suits. Van could see that there were nearly fifty people waiting for them. The room was similar to a courtroom, with seats placed on both sides of the room and a single podium in the center. Across from the podium were five men, sitting patiently at a table. One of them was Frederick, but Van didn’t recognize the rest of them.
“Will Mr. Van Vanyushin please step forward?” asked one of the men who’d been sitting across from the podium. He was wearing what looked like an army uniform. A placard that read Major General Connick was sitting on the table in front of him. No one else had a name placard.
Van slowly walked to the podium as the crowd settled down. Sang went off to the side and sat in a booth with a few other CIA agents who Van had casually encountered in the past.
“Van, please state the nature of your relationship with the CIA,” the major general asked.
“Oh, yes, sir. Uh, I’m an independent contractor, hired to navigate through a computer simulation.”
“And you have been navigating through this game for several months now, correct?” the general asked.
“Yes, sir,” Van replied. He found himself sweating a bit. It felt more like a press conference than a statement.
“Excellent. We have on record the sworn statements of Agent Sang Ngo in regard to the militant activity of a terrorist organization. You were part of the recovery team that acquired this data, is that correct?” The general waved to the right, bringing up a holographic screen of various pieces of the data that Van had fought so hard to recover.
“Uh, yes, sir, I was part of that team.”
“Thank you, Van,” Frederick said. “Now then, there has been discussion of aliens and extraterrestrial activity. However, we have no proof of such a thing. In light of that, this information that you have retrieved contains highly classified information. This information indicates that there is some kind of terrorist plot against both the United States and the rest of the free world. In our reports, Agent Sang mentioned you made contact with one of the terrorist leaders, a man by the name of Lemuel. In your own words, please explain to us what his purpose was.”
Van wrinkled his face as he looked at the large collection of people. They were all leaning forward, ready to listen intently to every single word that he had to say. He took a deep breath and began to share the story.
“Lemuel is part of a radical organization called Draco. They originally designed this game as a means to actively bring them into contact with individuals who they could recruit and radicalize. These radicalized individuals are known as Draco pros. Through threats or bribery, Draco was able to establish a network that has one and only one plan: to bring about destruction to the rest of the planet.”
“Why is that?” Frederick asked.
“They believe that their organization operates on a higher level than the rest of the world. They see the chaos, the anarchy, and the suffering of the planet, and believe they have a solution. They wish to seize political power by leveling all major governments in a concentrated effort.”
“And how have they managed to go undetected for so long?” a man in dark sunglasses who was on the far right of the table asked.
“Well, it would seem that since they operate exclusively within the Dragon Kings of the New World realm, no one would really be privy to that information. They recruit within the game, give orders within the game, and train people inside of the game.”
“The perfect terrorist training camp,” the major general said. “I’ve heard enough. Gentlemen, it would appear that Draco has become a serious thorn in our side. Now, I understand there is some discussion of aliens or whatnot, but I will make my opinion known right now, that I don’t believe a word of it. But what I do believe is that an organization of freedom hating sons of whores have gotten access to highly classified military documents.”
“I concur,” Frederick said. “While the subject of alien invasion or extraterrestrial influence remains to be unproven and a matter of conjecture at this point, it is undeniable that there is some powerful force working against the United States’ interests.”
“Indeed,” said the man in sunglasses. “It would appear that this threat goes beyond national security. Draco must be stopped. For good. Van, how would you recommend stopping them?”
“Well…” Van said as he glanced at Sang. She mouthed the words “I have no idea” to him. He took a deep breath and spoke. “Sirs, if I may, regardless of whether you believe in Draco being extraterrestrial, there is something that we must accept. They are hidden and nearly untouchable in the real world. However, in my recent exploits, Sang and I have discovered that Draco’s leadership structure operates in areas known as Designated Reality Zones within the game. These areas are designed to simulate the real-life experience of physical danger, hunger, and thirst. Several players have died in the real world due to injuries sustained within the DRZ. I know this because I was present.”
“We have heard the reports,” the man in sunglasses said. “There was a rash of 14 play-related deaths in the news. Draco’s PR department hasn’t uttered a peep. Are you claiming that these were linked to these zones?”
“Yes,” Van said. “There is good
news in this. If we can assemble a strong enough task force, we can begin to recruit a military within the game to move into these zones and forcibly shut down Draco from the inside.”
“You’re talking about waging war in a computer game?” the general asked with a laugh.
“Yes, sir, I am. All of this data was located inside of the game. It was physically extracted from Draco’s server points. How much more do you think there is? If Draco has been running this scam for almost twenty years, they must have a lot of information. We’ve tried in vain to find their leaders in the real world, but to no avail. They are hiding extremely well and there’s only one place where I can guarantee you they can be found. Inside of the game.”
The general slowly nodded at that. “So, what then? You want to recruit an army? What’s gonna stop Draco from shutting down their servers and stopping the game entirely?”
Van shrugged. “No idea, but if those servers go down, that means they lose all connection to their agents. We win. If they refuse and we’re able to gain more information, we could potentially find out the physical whereabouts of Draco leadership.”
“Damn, son,” the general said, “you really know your stuff, don’t you?”
“Sir, I’ve been playing this game for a long, long time. It’s the only world I’ve ever known well and, quite frankly, I’m more at home in there than I am out here. If you give us the people, we can build a task force to militarize the population within the game. We can overcome Draco and beat them at their own game. Worst case scenario, Draco nukes the entire system and they can’t communicate anymore.”
“Well said, Van,” Frederick said as he leaned back. “It would appear that Mr. Van’s advice is identical to that of Agent Sang’s. Please note that Sang was under instruction not to tell any of her plan to Van. With these two agents giving us the exact same idea, it is clear that we have a clear sense of direction for our next steps. We must move forward and begin a program to mobilize more players inside of the game. The bigger the army, the more effective we will be against Draco.”
“I’m sorry,” sunglasses man said, “but I’m still having trouble understanding why we need to send more people into a virtual game. Even if Draco is a threat, we should focus on figuring some way to hack into their system.”
“Hacking?” asked the fourth man. He had been sitting silently for the entire duration. He wore a lab coat with a bright red bow tie. “You’ve got to be kidding me. You people have such Hollywood notions of hacking. If we could use some kind of advance cyberwarfare system of cracking Draco, don’t you think we would have by now? The military has been trying to reverse engineer the pods for combat simulations for years, and all attempts have failed. Draco’s system is ironclad. We either go inside the game and break it from the inside out, or we wait until they eventually get their hands on a nuclear launch code and see what happens.”
“See?” the major general offered. “Even the nerds know the truth. Alright, we’re giving this operation the green light. Van, you are hereby commissioned by this taskforce to oversee and lead the recruitment operation. Your mission is going to be to gain as big and as loyal of a force as you can, so that we can press against Draco inside of their own game.”
Van looked over at Sang. “What about Sang?”
“Agent Sang is a fine field agent and an excellent resource, but according to her reports, you were able to effortlessly mobilize a large force, despite the fact that you were, and I’m just repeating her here because I have no idea what the hell it means, several levels lower,” the general said. “This indicates that you are a leader at heart. Sang will be serving alongside you, of course, but in any effective organization, you must always have an executive authority, because anything with two heads is a monster.”
Frederick smiled and spoke up. “Van, you have proven yourself an effective commander. You have carte blanche to handle this however you will. You will have your choice of recruits to go into the game, as well as the resources necessary to motivate players inside of the game financially, should it come to that. This is your operation now, Van.”
The words echoed through Van’s mind. He could barely register what had just been said. They were giving him total control? He was going to be in charge? Two months ago, he had been a nobody, working his way to Draco fame, and now… now he was a key leader in an anti-alien operation? Ideas, images, and plans surged in his mind as he considered everything necessary to win against Draco. He could barely believe it.
“Mr. Van, are you okay?” the man in sunglasses asked. “You haven’t accepted the position.”
“Oh, right. I accept!” Van said. “I accept this charge. I will lead this team against Draco and we will destroy them, once and for all.”
“Excellent, and for their acts of heroism and bravery in the line of duty, we are going to be assigning you Agents Neil and O’Hara as operations managers to assist you in getting set up at the new headquarters,” Frederick said.
Van grimaced at the mention of Neil’s name. “Oh, can I pick someone else?”
Fredrick chuckled, “Ha. No.”
Sang let out a heavy sigh as the door to her hotel slammed behind her. Finally, she was somewhere that wasn’t a government facility. She’d be able to get some rest and collect her thoughts. She had been pushing too hard these last few weeks, and she felt as if she were going to keel over any minute. The conference with the various government branches had been successful—Van had managed to convince the feds to side with his plan and, in the next few weeks, they’d be ready for the final major phase of the operation.
But for now, Sang fell on the hotel bed and let out a long, deep sigh. She couldn’t believe that she’d survived. She had been so close to death so many times that she’d been positive she wouldn’t make it out of that game. And yet, the dust had settled and she was free to relax and enjoy herself.
Of course, despite the fact that she was cleared to get some rest and recuperation, something was still bothering Sang. She couldn’t put her finger on it, but in the back of her mind, she felt a continuous sense of unease. She wasn’t sure what was wrong, but whenever things became still and quiet, she could sense a tension that was still heavy within her, looking for attention.
She tried to sleep, but sleep never came. Instead, she found herself staring at the ceiling, desperately trying to figure out what was wrong. As her mind played through the events of the last few weeks, she realized that she was simply worried about Van. The documentation that she had read came back to her mind.
“He has a high chance of conversion,” it had read. “He can be used for a contingency plan.” What did that mean? Ever since she’d read those words, something had been bothering her, but she couldn’t put her finger on it. She trusted Van implicitly, after all, and she had told Frederick Yuri that Van was the right man for leading the operation within the game. She had seen him fight tooth and nail to save the planet, so why was she feeling so off?
As she tossed and turned, unable to get comfortable and unable to figure out why she felt so worried about Van, the wording of his statement came back into her mind.
“I’ve played this game for a long, long time,” he had said with a big grin. It was a grin that had indicated he was proud of the fact that he had spent most of his life in the game. “It’s the only home I have ever known, and frankly, I’m more comfortable in there than I am out here.” Those words echoed in Sang’s mind. She felt a nervous energy overcome her.
Van did know what the implication of this massive operation was, didn’t he? How could he not have realized? No… that would be impossible, right? Sang thought long and hard on the topic. Did Van realize that the game would be shut down for good when Draco was defeated? Was he ready to give up the only place he had ever called his home?
No one had directly mentioned shutting down the game; instead, they had just been talking about defeating Draco. Would Van have so cheerfully accepted the mission if he had thought out the implications and realized t
hat the game was definitively going to be destroyed?
Sang reached for her phone and took a deep breath. It was a conversation she knew she had to have now instead of later. If Van didn’t understand the full implications of the job he’d taken on, then they would be in some serious trouble when the truth hit him. So, she dialed his number and waited patiently. The phone rang a few times before he picked up.
“Hello?” Van answered.
“Van, it’s me,” Sang said.
“Oh,” came the reply. “I didn’t know you got a new phone.”
“Yeah, I make a point of changing my phone every few weeks,” Sang replied. “Listen, are you busy?”
“I was about to go to sleep for the next five to seven days, but I have a few minutes of time before that,” Van said with a laugh.
“Great, great,” Sang said. “Listen, I’m gonna have to be really upfront and honest with you. I’m worried that you said yes to this new job without really understanding what the endgame looks like.”
“I’m pretty sure the endgame involves destroying Draco and saving humanity. Then, probably getting some kind of sweet paycheck for it. I mean, I’m assuming there’s gonna be a big bonus in store for saving the world, right?”
“Well, that’s the thing, Van. You do realize also, uh… that if... if we destroy Draco, there won’t be a Dragon Kings of the New World to play anymore, right?”
“What are you talking about? Just because we’re destroying Draco doesn’t mean the game is gonna stop. We’re probably going to have to figure out how to switch the servers over to a regular kind of game system, but I’m sure there’s plenty of programmers out there who know what they’re doing,” Van replied.
Sang gritted her teeth. “Van… we have orders to ensure that this game is no longer operational once this mission is over. Even if the game can survive without Draco’s presence, we’re going to have to dismantle the entire thing.”
“What?” Van asked. “That makes no sense! Why in the hell would they order something so ridiculous?”
