by Dante Doom
Van nodded at the guard and opened the door to see Neil and O'Hara sitting at a table, eating ice cream.
"There he is!" Neil said. "The man of the hour! I heard you led your team to real victory in that virtual puzzle thing!"
"It was a group effort," Van replied as he sat down across from the two. They were both scooping Neapolitan out of a large cardboard container. There were quite a few bowls in the center of the table, and Van reached for one, only to be slapped away by O'Hara.
"That's for the staff only," O'Hara said.
"I'm technically staff here," Van said. "In fact, I'm running this whole thing."
"That is true," Neil said. "This might be the painkillers talking, but we should let the guy have a bowl."
"Okay, now I definitely know those are the painkillers talking," Van said as he reached out to grab a bowl again. "But I'll take advantage of you while you're not lucid."
O'Hara reluctantly put a few scoops of ice cream into Van's bowl and threw a plastic spoon over to him. He still had no idea why these two didn't seem to like him, but he was so used to it at this point that he no longer bothered to try and figure it out.
"So what's the deal with this mole?" Van asked.
"Ah yes," Neil said. "What is the deal, indeed? Here's the problem, Van… so, it appears that Draco was somehow able to get a few people in the operations room to agree to treason so that they could secure a spot for themselves in the new world order."
"Sang told me about that," Van replied.
"Yeah, and now we're in an interesting situation because we have the power to screw with Draco's communication lines," O'Hara said. "One of the spies, Kenza, is being super-cooperative. That means we can leak information through her."
"And you think we can still trust her?"
"Treason can carry the death penalty," Neil said, "so she's got plenty of incentive to do what we want."
"Well, once we can locate where this feast is, we're going to need to convince Draco that the Iron Dragons are moving elsewhere," Van said.
"We managed to get the location of a few Designated Reality Zones," O'Hara said. "Maybe we can tell Draco that the Iron Dragons are moving into one of those areas."
"But we're going to need to actually send a few people in that direction for it to be believable," Van said. "Draco might assume we're hiding our numbers, but if they don't see anyone at all going there, they might not believe us."
"Good thinking," Neil said as he leaned forward and placed his hands on his head. "Maybe… maybe we can lie about your identities, too. Draco's been scrambling to find you guys. The tournament was organized to draw your characters in, but they panicked once they realized you were incognito."
"Still can't locate us?" Van asked. "I can't believe how well this is working."
"They got lazy," O'Hara said. "They assumed that their spies were perfectly hidden in plain sight here. Now we've got the upper hand. At least until midnight."
"Yeah," Van said.
"Do you mind excusing me and Van?" Neil abruptly asked. "We gotta have a heart-to-heart here."
O'Hara chuckled. "Sure thing."
Van sighed deeply as O'Hara got up and left the staff room. He knew there was going to be a torrent of threats and probably violence directed at him if Neil wanted to talk to him alone. Why couldn't they be nicer to him?
"So, how you feeling about the whole end of the world thing?" Neil asked as he continued to eat his ice cream.
"Oh, I'm feeling good about it; I think we can win this one," Van said. "We're going to be in—"
"Not what I was talking about," Neil replied. His head was down and he wasn't making eye contact with Van. "I meant about the end of your world."
"Oh…" Van answered. "You're talking about the game being deactivated."
"Yeah," Neil said. "I know you've been in that thing for most of your life, and Sang said you're pretty stressed out about the whole thing. I just wanted to check in and make sure you're okay."
"Neil, I don't care what kind of medication your own – I know for a fact that you don't care about me," Van said.
"Oh, I care about you alright," Neil said. "I care about you finishing the mission. I care about you to the extent that you've done a job so far and thus don't deserve to be wailed on over and over again. Cut me some slack, man. I've come a long way from where we started."
Van shrugged. That was true. "I guess you're right," Van said. "Truthfully, I’m so freaked out about the fact that I'm going to lose the only thing I've ever cared about. I'm incredibly freaked out that everything I have ever known and loved is going to vanish tonight."
"I get ya," Neil said. "It's crazy how your life can change in a single moment."
Van raised an eyebrow as he watched Neil lean back in his chair and stare upwards for a moment. "Everything changes," Neil continued, "but you're just desperate to have it all back. There's a moment in loss, Van… there's a moment where you'll realize that you would do anything to get it back. But… you usually can't." Neil lowered his head and made eye contact with Van. "But in your case, you can keep the thing you're going to lose."
"How?" Van asked.
Neil shook his head. "You know how. You can screw up the mission, betray us, sell us out and let Draco obliterate the world. Then you can stay in your game forever."
"I'd never do that," Van said. "No matter how much I want to stay in the game, I'd never sell out the human race."
Neil chuckled. "You say that now, but you aren't at the precipice yet. It's really easy to tell everyone that you're going to jump off the high diving board, and you can even tell yourself that you'll do it as you climb the ladder, but…" he paused and narrowed his eyes, "when you're looking down, it's an entirely different story. It takes strength to make the jump. Real strength."
Van shivered a little. "You don't think I’m strong enough, do you?"
Neil nodded. "I really don't think you have it in you to betray everything that you once held so dear in exchange for this." He waved his hand around to illustrate the real world. "You're really going to go from a world where you're a powerful warrior to a land where you tire out when taking the stairs?"
Van shrugged. "It's not like I can just turn my back on everyone here. And it's not like I'm some kind of psychopath who wants to see the world burn, either."
"That's the interesting thing about cowardice," Neil said. "It never comes from a place of hatred. It doesn't come from a place of malice or any desire to harm others. It comes from a desire to put yourself first. So you don't really tell yourself that you're screwing over everyone else. No, in that moment, Van, you're going to tell yourself that it's all going to be okay. You won't even be thinking about the rest of the world. You'll just be thinking of yourself."
"Why are you bothering to warn me about this at all?" Van asked. "So you can threaten me? Tell me to do what's right or you'll kill me?"
Neil shrugged. "Maybe I just want to give you a heads-up as to what you're going to be facing out there. Sang seems so dead-set that you're going to be a shining paragon of justice, so much so that she's not even willing to warn you about the powerful temptation in your path. Me? I'm far less hopeful about humans in general."
"So that's it then? No violence? No yelling? Just a friendly warning?" Van asked.
"Eh, I don't have it in me right now," Neil said. "It's fun to boss people around and watch them cower before you. It's an easy way to get people to do what you want them to do in the moment. But… it doesn't work in the long term. You've been in this long enough to know that you can totally get away with screwing us all over. There's nothing I can do. Sang doesn't even have the guts to kill you if you start to go down that road. So you've got to realize you have all of the power here. You've got to make the decision well in advance. You're a smart guy, Van. You can figure out some way to sabotage us. Hell, maybe you already are and we have no way of knowing it."
"I don't understand you at all," Van said. "Why tell me all of this?"
; "Because, damn it," Neil shouted, "you’ve got to know your position before you can make a decision! If you suddenly realize that you can get away with treason in the field, then we're all screwed. I'd rather you know that you hold all of the cards in your hand right now, rather than risk you figuring it out minutes before you defeat that Dragon Emperor. Only when you have all of the information can you truly make the right decision."
"That's pretty philosophical, coming from a CIA goon," Van said.
Neil shrugged the comment off. "I just want to win this thing. And I'll do whatever it takes to win. That's why they put me and O'Hara on this job, you know. Yeah, we're mean, violent, and startlingly savage, but guess what? We get results."
Van shrugged, but said nothing.
"Here's the thing," Neil said as he lowered his voice. "You have a choice in front of you. But you need to know that it's going to take real strength if you're going to do the right thing. You better prepare now. Because it will take everything that you have not to screw this up."
Van narrowed his eyes. "I don't care what you believe about me. I don't care what you or O'Hara think I'm capable of, but you should know this right now: I'd never betray us."
"And I’m saying that I think you're lying to yourself and to me," Neil replied. "Now… Eat up. We've got a war to win in less than three hours."
"The clock is ticking," Sang said as she began to walk toward the Iron Dragon's camp. When they had logged back in, they'd discovered that they were back at the fairgrounds where they had first entered the tournament. The entire area had been abandoned since then, however, and the tents themselves had even vanished. The only thing that remained was the trash from all of the players who had been camping out there in the hopes of becoming a Draco pro. Kylian and Sahara were walking alongside Van as they waited for their ride.
"Yeah," Van said as he looked toward the sky. "I really hope Jet gets here soon."
Sang nodded. She checked her map and started to do some math in her head. The plan was relatively simple. All they had to do was inform Jet of the feast's location and then head to the Feast Hall. Reaching the hall would barely take any time at all, for it was located in the heart of a castle named Castle Eliorn. Eliorn was 10 miles away and was heavily fortified. With everyone being granted a position as a Draco pro, though, they'd all been given rings that would allow them to teleport to the hall.
"There!" Sahara said, pointing to the sky. Jet was in the distance, flapping his massive wings all the harder as he got closer to them.
"Great!" Van said. "Get ready to teleport."
Jet swooped down low and landed on the ground. Bidane was holding onto his neck.
"Well, I'm glad to see you guys!" Bidane said as she climbed down from the dragon. "What's the plan?"
"We've managed to leak to Draco that the Iron Dragons are moving toward a DRZ," Van said. "We're hoping they fall for it and move in that direction. But you'll need to send a small force out there."
"We've got enough illusionists and decoy players to make it look like the army is moving out there," Bidane said. "And I'm guessing you know where the feast is going to be?"
Van nodded. "Yeah, we do. It's in Castle Eliorn, about 10 miles from here. But it's heavily fortified. I’m talking like, they have insanely high walls and an NPC army that's there at all times."
"So what are you thinking?" Bidane asked. "I doubt we'd have a chance of getting in there if the place is that impenetrable."
"Well, according to Sang, we should be able to screw with the teleportation device's settings," Van replied.
Bidane raised an eyebrow. "Really? How so?"
Sang smiled at Bidane. "It's simple; we can just change the area of effect with a tiny little tweak. We'll change it from affecting 1 person to the entire army, and pop in there when the time is right."
"That's more like it!" Bidane said. "So I'm guessing I’m taking you with me?"
Sang nodded. "We don't have a lot of time. I'll be going with you and the rest of the team will be moving into the castle so they can figure out a strategy for when you arrive."
"Now, it's going to be cutting it close, but you guys have to wait for my signal before you teleport in," Van said. "We're going to try and make sure that things are set up enough so that you are able to get in and attack the Emperor without him having enough time to react."
"And what do we do if you're cut off for some reason? What if they jam your communications?" Bidane asked.
"I'm running a timer," Sang said. "When it hits zero, even if we don't hear from Van, we're going in there."
Bidane nodded. "Alright, if you say so."
"Are you ready, Jet?" Van asked.
Jet looked at Van and slowly nodded. "I am prepared to see the end of this struggle," Jet said. "My race has been waiting a long time for Draco to receive their just rewards."
"Good," Van said. His heart was beginning to pound again. "This is it, people! We've got less than three hours before the world goes kaboom! It's now or never!"
"Let's do this," Fredlin said.
"For Kylian!" Sahara replied.
"I heard the news from Capello," Bidane said as she shook her head. "Poor guy. Draco's gonna pay for that."
"They're gonna pay for all of it," Van said as he adjusted his ring. "I'll see you guys soon." And with that, he activated the ring and allowed it to transport him to the feast.
The teleportation effects made a cool schwoom noise around him and, the next thing Van knew, he was standing in front of a large red door. He glanced to the right and left of him to see that Fredlin and Sahara had teleported alongside of him, as well.
The red door had big words emblazed on it. Welcome, Professionals! it said. There was an ornate, golden handle just waiting to be twisted.
"Alright, team, remember, we're trying to survey this place, but we need to blend in," Van said.
"Got it," Fredlin said.
"You bet!" Sahara replied.
Van took a deep breath and twisted the knob, causing the bright red door to swing open. A parade of laughter, music, and smells assaulted them as they entered the large banquet hall. There were hundreds of tables where players were sitting and feasting merrily. The stained glass windows high above everyone allowed for colorful light to shine down upon the party. There was a large band of NPC musicians playing in the background, and dozens of waiters were walking by with all kinds of foods on their trays. At the opposite end of the hall was a large throne where a red dragon sat. This dragon was nearly three times the size of any of the other dragons Van had seen. He wore a large crown adorned with diamonds and sapphires atop his head.
"That's gotta be the Emperor," Fredlin whispered.
"Gee, you think?" Van replied as they walked further into the banquet. As they were examining the area, a scaly humanoid approached them. It was a lizardman who looked identical to the Draco individual that Van and Sang had faced off against before. Van stiffened as it walked up to him.
"Greetings, greetings," it said as it clasped its hands together. "Draco welcomes you to this festival. You are the tournament winners, correct? There is another one here already, but where is the fifth?"
"She'll be on her way," Fredlin said. "Just had to take care of some stuff first."
"Of course," the thing chuckled. Its large, yellow eyes blinked a few times as it looked at Van. "You are a fortunate bunch. The world changes in but three hours. Your courage has saved you. Take a moment to feast and enjoy yourselves. There will be a lot of work to do when we reshape the image of the world, so enjoy this time while you still can."
Van nodded at the creature as it walked off to greet some more players who had just arrived.
"I'm counting a lot of people here," Fredlin said with a whisper. "Nearly 2,000. If the Iron Dragons show up now, they'll get the crap kicked out of them without the dragons having to lift a finger."
"Yeah…" Van replied as he eyed the gigantic dragon that was overseeing the entire event. It didn't seem to notice him.
<
br /> "We've got to get rid of all these players," Sahara said. "Any ideas, Van?"
Van shrugged. "I have no idea. Just fan out and poke around. We've got an hour before I need to give the signal. Maybe we can find some kind of weakness before then."
"Yeah, like some kind of lever we can pull that will make everyone log out," Fredlin said. "I'll look, but I doubt we can figure some kind of solution that doesn't involve violence."
The three split up as they all went about investigating the area. More players were trickling in by the minute, and most of them seemed to be in good spirits. They were laughing and clapping for each other, telling tales and talking about their excitement for the new world that was to come.
Yet, as Van surveyed the area, he noticed that there were also a great many who didn't seem to be in a good mood at all. They were sitting in silence, eating their food and not looking up at anyone else. Perhaps they would be an ally in the struggle that was to come. But there were far too many people for Van to be able to approach them and have any sort of a long chat. Even one conversation might take far too long.
"Excuse me?" said an alien as it approached Van. He tried to relax, but couldn't help but stiffen at the sight of the creature.
"Uh, yes?" Van asked.
"The Great Emperor himself has requested that you meet with him," the thing said. Van grimaced. That wasn't good at all. Van had a sinking feeling that the dragon knew who he was, and he wasn’t sure why, but his gut told him he was caught. With a heavy sigh, Van began to walk toward the throne of the gargantuan dragon.
"Hahaha, there he is, at last!" the dragon boomed as Van approached. "After all of this time, I am finally able to meet the Great Van."
"I'm not sure what you're talking about," Van lied. "My IRL name is Byorn."
"You cannot fool me in here," the Emperor said as it leaned its massive head down to face Van. Its gigantic yellow eye was staring at him with intensity. "This place is the heart of our computer systems. All of our processors are running at full capacity in this small area and our sorters have finally found out who you are. I am impressed that you were able to infiltrate this place without getting caught. We've been searching for you and Sang for quite some time."
