《Into the Game》 Chapter 1 Welcome to the Beta! The year is 2040; technology has reached the point where a computer processor is as fast as the human brain. To celebrate this milestone the gaming industry has developed an interface that can put a player into a virtual world, known as the Chair. The Chair is actually a pod of nanotech infused water that the user is submerged in. Once inside the user is put into a coma and the interface will connect the user to the virtual world, while at the same time, fusing with their system, providing nutrients, filtering waste, and stimulating muscles electrically to prevent atrophy. It¡¯s expensive and not designed for home use, but the prospect of thousands of ¡°Game Houses¡± popping up all over the world is very lucrative. As with any game, the manufacturers must go through a beta phase before it can be released to the general population. The new system had to be tested to see how the strain would affect the brain and the body. While millions of gamers pleaded for the opportunity to participate, it was deemed too risky by most governments. A compromise was reached where death row inmates, who had been in jail before the beta was announced, would be allowed to volunteer. In exchange, if they survived, they would have their death sentences converted to life sentences. The first wave claimed seventy-seven percent of the user¡¯s lives. There was a problem with dying in the game. Similar to how when you die in your dream, your body shuts down, the user¡¯s bodies believed that when they died in one of the games, they had died in real life. The chair was called a new form of execution. Thousands picketed the facilities, but there were just as many who screamed for a second chance. With generations of gamers in jail, there was no shortage of able volunteers. The tale has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation. The second phase of beta testing started, with barely a patch in place. A user¡¯s death was exaggerated, prolonged just a few extra seconds. The developers hoped that this would allow them enough time to have a resurrect feature, but the human minds didn¡¯t accept the save. It was a partial success, so far only forty-two percent perished during that phase. The masses went crazy. Some rejoiced about how real it was and others appalled at the willingness of gamers to inflict personal pain. The developers promised that they had it figured out. They were working on a patch that the human brain would accept. The third round of beta testing is supposed to happen in a month. This is where I come in. My name is Katherine Bates. I live in downtown Memphis with my little brother, Billy. Our parents died when I was 18, forcing me to skip college to take care of my twelve year old brother. It¡¯s been two years and the bad tips and extra shifts I get from waitressing are barely paying the bills. I had barely gamed before, but with the extra responsibility, I hadn¡¯t touched a video game in that time. I shouldn¡¯t know anything about the Chair. Except I have to. My brother and his friends broke into what was supposed to be an empty testing facility just a few blocks from our apartment. While they were goofing around, Billy fell into one of the empty containers. Once a pilot was inside, the Chair kicked on. This wouldn¡¯t be so bad, except the third wave of testing had started earlier than what the public was being told. Because of security concerns, during the beta an individual chair can¡¯t be turned off. The Chair holds its user until the end of the beta in a month. In exchange for agreeing to keep quiet about the early testing, the developers are letting me enter the Game. All I have to do is find my brother and protect him for one month. Did I mention I¡¯m not a gamer? Chapter 2 My hand hurt. I had been signing papers for the better part of the morning. My lawyer had already looked over the documents and had marked what felt like a few hundred places where I needed to sign. The room they had put me in was dank and poorly lit. I hated that I was wasting time, but they refused to let me anywhere near the pod room until I had signed all the paperwork. I tried not to think about what might happen to my brother in the time we had already wasted. The more I thought about it, the more I wanted to cry. I could allow myself to cry when I was alone and couldn¡¯t sleep, but now in a room where a bunch of lawyers were waiting for me to finish signing papers, I couldn¡¯t cry. I needed to look like I knew what I was doing. I looked up at the lawyers and smiled, then turned back to the papers. I was only halfway through. I wished there was just some way I could have just waved my hand and been done with it. Two hours later I finished and was taken to the next room. I sat in a chair and had technicians attach a bunch of sensors to my body and head. It was so they could test how my body would handle the strain of being in the Chair. I¡¯m not sure why it would have mattered, I still would¡¯ve gone in even if they told me that it would probably kill me. Billy was my responsibility and all that was left of our family, so I was going to make sure he came out okay. The techs finished their tests and left me in the room while they talked about what they found. I stared up at the buzzing lights and tried not to get mad. It was almost five o¡¯clock. I wondered how much longer they were going to make me wait. This tale has been unlawfully obtained from Royal Road. If you discover it on Amazon, kindly report it. I read more on the pods. They were two inch glass tubes that were eight feet in diameter. The liquid that the tubes are filled with are infused with nanotechnology that allows the technicians to monitor vital signs. The liquid is very similar to amniotic fluid, allowing the subjects to breathe it without it suffocating them. Drowning in the fluid didn¡¯t scare me. It was the nanotech. Once submerged, the nanites would turn on and plug the user into the interface. Brain waves were instantaneously transmitted to the system servers. It wasn¡¯t the nanites that I had a problem with. It was how they worked. Once a nanite was turned on, it would serve its function. It could not be reprogrammed. I hoped that one of the billions of microscopic machines didn¡¯t go crazy while I was under and decided to start tearing apart my brain or some other part of my body. More technicians came in and out of the room, but they didn¡¯t talk to me. They just wrote down some numbers or drew more blood. I had lost track of how many times they¡¯d taken a blood sample since I¡¯d walked into the facility. The guard outside my door didn¡¯t help ease my nerves any. I knew they had increased security after the break-in. They had wanted the place to appear empty so the public wouldn¡¯t catch on that the test was live, but it seemed like they were taking more security precautions. It was after six thirty before a balding man in a suit walked into the room carrying a file. He was short, probably just over five feet tall, almost as big around as he was tall. His black hair was starting to turn gray and his eyes were dark brown. If he had been taller, he would¡¯ve looked a lot like my grandfather. He put the file down. His brow was sweating and he had the serious face my grandfather would wear just before he gave bad news. ¡°Miss Bates.¡± His voice was high, with a nasally pitch. ¡°We need to talk.¡± Chapter 3 I hated hearing that phrase. I tried not to flinch and smiled at him. "Yes, mister-?¡± ¡°Oh.¡± He shuffled the papers so he could stick out his hand. "Labelle. Jean Labelle.¡± I shook his hand, ignoring the weak grip and sweaty palm. I wiped my hand on the side of the chair as soon as he turned back to his papers. ¡°It says here that you want to enter the game as a late tester.¡± He looked at me over the paper. "Why?¡± ¡°I need to find my brother.¡± I wanted to scream. They were wasting my time. ¡°I see that.¡± He put down the paper. "What do you think you can do?¡± ¡°Make sure he stays alive until you shut it off in a month.¡± I leaned forward. "Your Chair has killed almost half of its users.¡± A tear started to creep into my eyes. "I can¡¯t let it kill him.¡± He winced. "Our system is not a method of execution. It is the next step in human evolution.¡± ¡°It kills people. A lot of people.¡± ¡°Accidents.¡± He shuffled the papers. "No one has died in a few days.¡± ¡°But they can.¡± When he didn¡¯t answer me I leaned forward and pulled down the paper so he had to look at me. "My brother can die in there.¡± Unauthorized use of content: if you find this story on Amazon, report the violation. Mister Labelle just looked at me. ¡°I won¡¯t let him go alone.¡± I shook my head. "I¡¯m all he has.¡± ¡°What about you?¡± He turned the file around and dropped it in my lap. "What if he lost you?¡± ¡°He won¡¯t.¡± I promised He pointed at the file. "Your results came back.¡± ¡°I see.¡± I scanned the first page. "It says that I¡¯m healthy and would be a good candidate.¡± He flipped the page over and pointed at the second page. The candidate is emotionally unstable and not well versed in the concepts of the game. While physically capable, she is not likely to progress far into the game. The likelihood of her survival is minimal. I looked up at him. "They don¡¯t think I¡¯ll make it?¡± When he didn¡¯t say anything I threw the file on the floor. "THAT¡¯S MY BROTHER!¡± He held up his hands. "I know.¡± He got up and took a step back. "We will still let you go in, but you have to understand.¡± I glared at him. "Understand what?¡± He sighed. "The game is full of criminals. Not just any criminals either. Every one of them was on death row. The game was designed to test the limits a human brain could be pushed.¡± My heart started beating faster. "So?¡± ¡°Everything in the game is as real as we could make it, especially the violence. If your brother has gotten far into the game¡­¡± His voice trailed off ¡°What are you saying?¡± I demanded. "Are you saying that you turned my brother into a killer?¡± Mister Labelle held his hands up. "No. Nothing like that.¡± He nibbled on his bottom lip. "But there is a level of violence that you will have to accept, because that is what you will have to do to progress through the levels. Are you prepared to do that?¡± My hand was shaking, so I grabbed the arm of the chair. I thought it would just be some game. Just some cartoon that I could run through until I found Billy and then we¡¯d sit on a rock somewhere and wait for the month to end. It wasn¡¯t supposed to be real, none of this was, but that didn¡¯t change what I wanted. It only made it more urgent that I go in. ¡°I¡¯m doing it.¡± Chapter 4 It felt like a walk of shame. It didn¡¯t help that I was wearing a skin tight, nude colored bodysuit. They told me that out of all the clothes they had, that it was the best combination of modest and functional that they had. Walking past all of the tubes in the room, I could tell that they had sampled everything. There were players in bodysuits like mine, some had on underwear, others were fully clothed, and one was naked. Most of the other subjects were male. It made sense. Few death row inmates were female and of those, the majority of volunteers had been male. It also meant that studying my brother and me was better than any candy to these nerds. I swear I saw one of the technicians lick his lips as I walked by. I couldn¡¯t tell if it was because he was excited to have a non-killer in the Chair or if this was the closest he had been to a girl, or both. I stopped in front of Billy¡¯s tube. He was floating in the yellow liquid. He looked so peaceful, like he had fallen asleep. His arms were out and every so often he would twitch. I thought about pounding on the glass to let him know I was there, but I had been specifically instructed against that. The noise wouldn¡¯t reach him, but it would mess with the readings. ¡°I¡¯m coming.¡± I whispered as I touched the cold glass. The technicians led me up skeletal metal stairs to the ring around the tops of all the tubes. There were ten tubes in this room, but only seven had people in them. With so many volunteers, it was strange that there would be so many open positions. Reading on Amazon or a pirate site? This novel is from Royal Road. Support the author by reading it there. I tapped the closest tech on the shoulder. "What happened to all the people?¡± He blushed as he turned to me. "I, Um, what people?¡± ¡°The ones that were in there.¡± ¡°Oh, they died.¡± He smiled widely as if he was thrilled I was talking to him. My face must have shown a little more of the horror I wanted it to, because he started talking fast. ¡°Not that you are going to die. I think you look great. I mean, you¡¯re going to do great.¡± He blushed and turned away ¡°Please forgive my young associates; they can be a little hyper.¡± Mister Labelle walked up the stairs ¡°It¡¯s okay.¡± It was cute that the technician had gotten embarrassed Mister Labelle motioned at the tube in front of us. "The tube next to your brother. Not that it will make any difference once you are in the game, but I thought you might appreciate it.¡± ¡°I do.¡± I looked down at the yellow water ¡°It¡¯s fresh.¡± Mister Labelle promised ¡°What?¡± ¡°The water. It¡¯s new.¡± ¡°Oh.¡± I touched the tip of my toe to it. It was warm, not cold like the glass. It was like water, I had been expecting something sticky, but it actually felt like I had just stuck my toe into an indoor pool. ¡°We¡¯re ready.¡± The nervous technician looked at the older man. Mister Labelle put his hand on my shoulder. "For what it¡¯s worth, good luck.¡± I smiled, pinched my nose and jumped in. I hit the bottom and bounced up a little. I heard the lid sliding in place above me. It wasn¡¯t until my lungs started burning that I realized I was going to have to breathe, except I couldn¡¯t. I kept my hand over my mouth and pinched harder, but I couldn¡¯t stop from breathing in. I choked and gagged on the water as it filled my lungs. The last thing I remembered was drowning before I lost consciousness. Chapter 5 I woke up in a field. I patted myself down. Instead of the bodysuit, I was wearing a skimpy leather bra and short skirt. There was a short sword and a brown sack lying next to me. I got up and dusted myself off. It made me feel even more uncomfortable than the body suit had. I clicked my heels together; despite the lack of clothing I was wearing very sturdy leather boots. I picked up the sword and threw the sack over my shoulder. There wasn¡¯t anyone around. Not even a house or people I could talk to. The information on the game hadn¡¯t been very thorough. The map had shown some villages and a large castle, but the game was designed so that the landscape could change based on how the players interacted with it. A village could be burned to the ground; a new one could be built. If the players as a whole made bad decisions, then it was possible that the Ogres or Elves could even be running one of the larger towns. I just stood in the field for a moment and took in how real it felt. I knew I needed to find the closest town, but I was in awe of how real it was. The sun was warm on my cheeks; the grass was soft and barely wet as I ran my fingers through it. Even my stomach was rumbling. It was like I was really here, physically inside the game. I headed towards the sun. If the game followed the same timeline as the real world, then it should be setting soon. I remembered a creek that flowed along the western side of the starting zone. There was a village to the north of that. I hoped I could make it there before it got too dark. Walking through the woods I began to hate my outfit. It seemed every low branch and sticker bush was only too eager to scratch my almost bare legs and midriff. After the first dozen scratches I realized that my legs were actually getting scratched. Thin red lines were being left behind by the bushes and they weren¡¯t fading. I hoped it was just cosmetic and wasn¡¯t hurting my health points, it would be embarrassing to do damage to myself while walking around. If you discover this narrative on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the violation. I slowed down to avoid scratching myself up much worse. Somewhere along the way I stepped in something that I must have been allergic to, because once I reached the creek my arm started itching. I wasn¡¯t aware that I had any allergies in the real world; it was strange to have my right arm itching. I splashed water over my arm which made it feel a little better. I sat down on the bank and stared at my reflection. It looked exactly the same as when I had looked in the mirror this morning. The realistic concepts in the game were impressive. I could understand why Billy would¡¯ve wanted to check it out. I bent down at the creek and drank from the cool water. The walking had made me very thirsty. It surprised me that they had thought to add a thirst element to the game. I would¡¯ve thought that the developers would¡¯ve just wanted to have a regular shoot-em up game. My stomach rumbled again, reminding me that it wasn¡¯t just thirst I could feel. I looked around for something that I could eat. On the other bank was a bush filled with purple berries. I walked through ankle deep water to the other side. I wondered if the berries might be poisoned, but I was hungry. I pulled one off and popped it in my mouth. It was sweet and juicy. Better than any blackberry I had ever tried before. I grabbed a handful and stuffed them in my mouth. I started filling my sack with them. I didn¡¯t know how much longer I was going to be walking, but it would be a good idea to take food with me. There was a rustle in the bushes to my left. I pulled them back to see a baby bear hiding under the blackberries. It was so cute, I just wanted to grab it and squeeze it. It started crying when I moved towards it. I held out a handful of berries. "It¡¯s okay.¡± Chapter 6 It wasn¡¯t okay. The momma bear heard her cub crying and she wasn¡¯t happy. A six foot tall brown bear burst out of the trees and roared. I started backing up away from the cub. It hadn¡¯t occurred to me that there might be a mother around. I forgot that this was supposed to be as real as possible. I pulled out my sword and began waving it in front of me. The bear dropped down on all fours and ran at me. I slung the sack over my shoulder like a backpack and ran. The good news was that there wasn¡¯t as much brush on the creek bank. The bad news was that the bear was still faster than me. It hit me from behind and knocked me over. I rolled into the creek. The bear swatted at me with its paws. Its claws tore into my skin, leaving shallow gashes on my left shoulder and stomach. I slashed at it with the sword. Somehow I managed to pop it on the nose with the flat of the blade. The bear snarled and backed up. I scooted backwards through the creek, keeping the sword pointed at the bear. I kept looking for a health bar, but there wasn¡¯t one. I hoped it was an internal thing, because this bear was trying to eat me. The bear started to move towards me again, and I swung the sword furiously. It stopped moving and stood up. The roar it let out shook my whole body and may have taken control of my bladder from me. If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. Please report it. I tightened the grip on my sword and screamed back. It was all I could think to do. I screamed as loud and as long as I could force my lungs. The bear dropped down and growled at me. I took another lungful of air and screamed again. This time the bear turned and ran back to the bushes where its cub was hiding. I dropped my sword and looked at my cuts. The bear had gotten me good twice, once on the left shoulder and across the stomach. I splashed them with water to get the dirt out. One thing I had never been squeamish about was blood. It may have helped that Billy was always getting himself scraped up. The cuts weren¡¯t very deep, but they did sting. Without any bandages, I couldn¡¯t do anything more than wash out the wounds. I needed to get to that village as soon as I could. I stood up and checked my pack. During the fight, I had sat on the berries, now there was nothing but mush in the bottom of my sack. I flipped the sack inside out and washed it out. My next meal was gone, but I wasn¡¯t going back to the blackberry bushes. I had eaten enough to last me for a little while. I started walking up the creek bank, keeping an eye out for any other animals. It was a peaceful walk. The sunset got me to stop my trek. Back home, I hadn¡¯t been able to sit and enjoy the beauty of the sun disappearing behind the trees. The colors were vibrant. The reds, yellows, and oranges mixed over the perfect canvas. It was breathtaking. I sat on a rock and watched the sun go down. I knew I needed to move forward, but this was the first time I had actually just sat and enjoyed something since my parents had died. I hoped that somewhere, Billy was looking up at the same sky. At the same two moons. Once it was dark, I got up. A perk of two moons meant that there was plenty of light to see by. My legs were burning and my shoulders ached, but I kept moving. I had taken a break. Now it was time to find my brother. Chapter 7 The village was asleep. I wouldn¡¯t call it a village. There were three little log cabins and one house made out of bricks. A notice board was in the middle of the four buildings, but there weren¡¯t any notices. The whole village was surrounded by crude log fence that was only three rungs high. I didn¡¯t even have to strain to step over it. I sat in the square and thought about what to do next. I could try to wake people up, but if this was supposed to be as real as possible, then the townsfolk wouldn¡¯t enjoy getting woken up. I walked up to each building. There log buildings were marked supplies, information, and inn. The brick house had a big sign that read ¡°Chief¡±. I tried the door on inn, but it was locked. I sat down net to the door. I was tired. I had been up since early that morning and had walked all day. Plus there was the bear attack. I leaned against the logs and closed my eyes. I would just sleep for a little bit. I woke up when the door opened. The sun was back up, so I blinked as my eyes adjusted to the light. I looked up at a stocky, black haired, dark skinned man. He was clothed in leather, with a rather large backpack. There was a dagger on his belt and an unstrung bow sticking out of the back pack. His kind, blue eyes looked me over as I scrambled to my feet. ¡°Did you sleep out here last night?¡± He jerked his thumb at the door. "You do know they are open twenty-four seven.¡± The narrative has been illicitly obtained; should you discover it on Amazon, report the violation. I brushed the dirt off of me. I couldn¡¯t look him in the face, it was too embarrassing. ¡°No.¡± He grabbed my shoulder and turned me so he could look at my cuts better. His grip was firm, but his touch was gentle as he ran his fingers over the wounds. ¡°What happened to you?¡± ¡°Bear.¡± I risked a glance at his face. The look he was wearing was one of genuine concern. ¡°You messed with a bear?¡± He poked the sack over my shoulder. "Without any supplies?¡± ¡°I didn¡¯t know it was there.¡± I admitted ¡°You didn¡¯t...¡± His voice trailed off. "You¡¯re new.¡± I nodded. ¡°Wonders never cease.¡± He shook his head. "Did you break in like that group from a couple weeks ago?¡± ¡°Break in?¡± I looked him in the eyes as I registered the rest of what he said. "A group came in a couple weeks ago? Do you know anything about a boy coming in yesterday?¡± ¡°It was a small group.¡± He looked up at the clouds. "Four or five I think. I heard about it from some hunters a couple days ago. Nothing about a lone boy though.¡± I sighed. "The boy I¡¯m looking for would¡¯ve got here two days ago.¡± He smiled. "So you are looking for Billy.¡± ¡°Yes. Wait, how do you know my brother?¡± He laughed. "They must not have told you. Time flows faster in here than out in the real world. Almost twenty times as fast.¡± He opened the door to the inn. "Let¡¯s get you cleaned up and I can tell you what I know.¡± I nodded numbly as I stepped towards the door. Billy had been here for almost three weeks. There were eighty five different zones. He could be anywhere by now. That wasn¡¯t the worst part. I had thought that I was only going to have to survive for a month. With the faster time flow, we were going to have to survive for almost two years. Chapter 8 His name was Michael. He didn¡¯t tell me his last name. It may have had something to do with not wanting me to know who he was. The other players were in here because they had been on death row. Whoever he was, he had done something that had warranted a death sentence. I sat down at the only table in the one room cabin. There was a pair of bunk beds on either wall. A fire roared under a large black pot. The short, round inn keeper sat next to it, stirring occasionally. Michael dropped his backpack on the floor and pulled out some bandages. I flinched as he rubbed salve on my cuts. It wasn¡¯t that he was rough. His touch was very gentle, but the salve was cold. ¡°Do you do this a lot?¡± I asked ¡°Bandage women who try to take out a bear?¡± He chuckled as he wrapped the bandage around my stomach. I forced a smile to stay off my face. "You¡¯ve really been here for eight years?¡± He got up and sat down across from me. "Yep.¡± ¡°Do you get tired of it?¡± He put the bandages back in his backpack. "In the beginning, sure.¡± He smiled. "But there is literally everything you would ever need here. You just have to know where to find it.¡± ¡°Could you find my brother?¡± Did you know this story is from Royal Road? Read the official version for free and support the author. Michael leaned back in his chair. "Do you want to hire me?¡± ¡°I, uh, um.¡± My brain started thinking faster than my mouth. It was going so fast I couldn¡¯t even hear what it was thinking. ¡°It¡¯s okay.¡± He winked. "I wouldn¡¯t want to leave you at the mercy of another bear.¡± ¡°That¡¯s not what I was asking!¡± I crossed my arms. "I just want to know how I would find Billy.¡± ¡°The youngest player in the game was twenty one.¡± He shook his hand. "Well, twenty nine now. Anyway, that means that your brother is the youngest player right now. Add in that he is one of the newest players and that should make him easy to find.¡± ¡°How?¡± ¡°People talk.¡± He grinned. "They love to tell stories, especially the new stories. Your brother is creating some interesting stories. That will give us a trail right to him.¡± ¡°Us? I haven¡¯t asked you to go with me.¡± I really wanted him to go with me, but I didn¡¯t like how he just assumed that I was going to want him to go with me. ¡°You need me.¡± He flashed that stupid smile again ¡°I do not.¡± ¡°Okay.¡± He leaned back. "Which way is your brother?¡± I thought for a moment. I had no idea where to go. The starting zone was supposed to give me supplies and a world map. I had only studied the area just around where I would start. ¡°I don¡¯t know.¡± I admitted He smiled. "See? You need me.¡± ¡°What do you want?¡± I demanded. "Because this.¡± I gestured between us. "Isn¡¯t going to happen.¡± ¡°Whoa!¡± He held up his hands. "Where did that come from?¡± I just eyed him. It was difficult to act mad, but I think I conveyed the message. ¡°Look,¡± He started drawing circles in the air with his finger. "If your brother is as successful as the stories say, then he¡¯ll have more than enough to pay for my services.¡± It seemed reasonable. I stuck out my hand. "Deal.¡± Chapter 9 I wanted to kill him. After we shook on our deal, he ordered us coffee. I found it strange that the inn keeper had a small pot of coffee hanging next to the stew, but it was warm and energizing. I had thought that we would leave after that, but we hadn¡¯t. While I was enjoying my coffee, Michael left me to go run some errands. It had been two hours and he hadn¡¯t come back. I got tired of him wasting time, so I got up and left. The scene outside had changed a little. Instead of a deserted town, there were two guards walking around just inside the fence. They were wearing the same leather armor as Michael, except theirs had a blue circle on the chest, and instead of the dagger on his belt, they had swords. The Captain sat in front of his house, but I was the only actual person outside. I walked up to the closest guard. "Have you seen Michael?¡± ¡°Welcome to the Bear Outpost!¡± The guard was too happy; it made it obvious he was a computer program. "What can I help you with?¡± ¡°Have you seen a man?¡± I asked The guard pointed into the woods. "He left a few hours ago.¡± ¡°Did he say when he was coming back?¡± The guard shrugged. This tale has been unlawfully obtained from Royal Road. If you discover it on Amazon, kindly report it. I walked away. There was no point in trying to find Michael. He had a head start and knew the terrain. I walked past the Captain¡¯s hut on my way out. . The Captain was still lounging in front of his house. He waved at me. "Good morning traveler!¡± I stopped. "Good morning.¡± ¡°Is there something I could help you with?¡± he asked ¡°Do you have a map?¡± His belly jiggled as he laughed. When he saw I wasn¡¯t laughing with him, he stopped laughing. ¡°You lost your map?¡± I shook my head. "I never got one.¡± ¡°Every adventurer received a map in the beginning.¡± ¡°I¡¯m new.¡± I admitted The Captain just stared at me. I wondered how the computer would process the new information. Each computer character was supposed to have its own personality, but I wondered how it would deal with a problem with the routine. He reached behind his chair and pulled out a paper the size of a postcard. He handed it to me. "I have an extra map I can let you have.¡± ¡°Thank you.¡± I took the map. "There is one more thing.¡± ¡°I will do what I can.¡± I unfolded the map. It was bigger than the table I had sat at a few hours ago. It was a good map, full color with all the towns, caves, dungeons, and special places labeled. ¡°I¡¯m looking for a young player named Billy.¡± I looked at the Chief. "Do you know where he is?¡± The Captain pointed at a camp five zones away. "That player registered that he cleared this Ogre camp two days ago.¡± ¡°Thank you.¡± My heart sank. I had hoped that Billy would be safe, though I should¡¯ve known better. I marked the camp and folded the map. At least I knew where I needed to go. I got up and walked out of the camp. It was going to take a while, but I would find my brother. Chapter 10 I took the road. It was the easiest path to follow. Plus it gave me time to think. I had thought that Michael would make a good travel companion, but he had just disappeared. I wondered why. I knew he was a criminal, but it had to be more than that. My lack of a travel companion wasn¡¯t my biggest concern. The Captain had said that Billy registered a cleared Ogre camp. I wasn¡¯t sure what that meant, but it sounded very dangerous. Michael¡¯s comment about Billy¡¯s accomplishments left me even more concerned. My brother was smart, but he was surrounded by criminals. I worried about what they might be teaching him. I picked up my pace. I felt a lot better now that I had gotten a little sleep and my cuts were bandaged. My stomach was complaining, but it would be okay. The coffee had taken the edge off. It wasn¡¯t the first meal I¡¯d skipped while caring for my brother. I didn¡¯t think it would be the last either. After an hour of walking I decided to stop for a moment to rest. I leaned against a tree and looked around. It amazed me how beautiful they had made this place. The trees were all green, wildflowers were scattered in with the underbrush, giving color where one wouldn¡¯t expect to find it. I closed my eyes and listened to the sounds. Birds were singing overhead. The rustle of leaves as they danced in the branches added the background music. Crickets were chirping along. Even a mosquito was buzzing in my ear. I slapped him, but only because he couldn¡¯t harmonize with the others. Even the smells were vibrant. Cedar, Pine, and a hint of wild cherry filled the air. My stomach growled again, reminding me of skipped breakfast and that some wild cherries would be much appreciated. You might be reading a stolen copy. Visit Royal Road for the authentic version. I got up and left the path, allowing my nose to lead me to the cherry tree. It didn¡¯t take long for me to find it. There were animal trails leading to it. I think it was deer by the shape of the hoof prints I found, but I couldn¡¯t be certain. It could¡¯ve been a cow or a horse, but deer made more sense. I took out my sword and looked around before I walked up to the cherry tree. I didn¡¯t want a repeat of the bear incident, but there were no large animals around. I scared something little into the bushes, but it was probably just a rabbit. The cherries were perfectly ripe and very juicy. I had eaten wild cherries almost ten years ago on a family hike. Those had been sweet, but they didn¡¯t have much meat on them. These were more like regular cherries that you would buy in the store. As I spit seeds into the bushes, I didn¡¯t care if it was wrong. I was hungry and this was perfect. I took out the map and spread it out under the tree. In addition to the detail it also put a star where I was. It made it very easy to tell where I needed to go next. I was about halfway to the border of the next zone. The Ogre camp was five zones over. That meant I would have to cross four zones just to pick up where my brother had been last. I measured the distance with my hand and did some math in my head. I had walked about a fingernail length in an hour. I still had over a hand length to go, and that was a straight shot. It would take longer to walk the winding roads. If I walked straight through, it would take me at least two days. I folded up the map. I wasn¡¯t going to get discouraged. I knew where I was going next, that was what I was going to focus on. I filled the bottom of my sack with cherries and slung it over my shoulder. It would be enough to last me for at least a day. I should be able to find more wild fruit before I ran out. Reenergized, I headed back to the path. I was determined to get half way before I stopped to sleep. Chapter 11 The guards wouldn¡¯t let me through. I had made it to the border in under an hour. A feat I was proud of myself for accomplishing, but the stupid border guards wouldn¡¯t let me through. ¡°Why can¡¯t I pass?¡± I demanded The two guards were wearing blue tunics over shiny steel armor. Each was armed with a sword on their hip and a lance in their hands. A loaded crossbow was propped against the hut behind either of them. ¡°You do not have the proper credentials.¡± The guards said at the same time. They even had the same voice. ¡°How do I get the proper credentials?¡± I demanded The guards just stared at me. I wanted to scream. I had to get into the next zone, but I didn¡¯t know how. I could turn around and go ask the Chief back at the outpost, but that would add at least four more hours to my trip. I didn¡¯t want to waste that much time. I stepped forward and both lances were pointed at my neck. ¡°Player, you do not have the proper credentials to enter the next zone. Please acquire the proper credentials before attempting to cross the border.¡± The story has been illicitly taken; should you find it on Amazon, report the infringement. ¡°AH!¡± I screamed at them as I turned away. I looked around. The huts had two large rocks on the outside and the trees after that. Behind the outposts, the zone was nothing but grass. It wouldn¡¯t be difficult to find the road again once I was on the other side. I headed into the trees. Once I was out of sight of the guard post, I angled towards the net zone. If I couldn¡¯t cross at the road, I would just go around. The border was easy to spot. It was where the trees ended and the grass started. I took off at a slow jog. It was the best I could do with all the down branches and vines. I was excited. I was about to start the next leg of my journey. I reached the last tree, but a low branch swung into my path. The knots of the tree swirled into a face. ¡°Player, you do not have the proper credentials to enter the next zone. Please acquire the proper credentials before attempting to cross the border.¡± The tree¡¯s voice was low and deep. ¡°AH!¡± I screamed at the tree. It wasn¡¯t fair. I didn¡¯t know what the proper credentials were. I thought about attacking the tree, but the branch was a lot thicker than my sword could cut in one swipe and I was pretty sure that it had more branches than I could cut. Add in that there was a tree bigger than I could wrap my arms around every five feet at the border and I was pretty sure, I would have to take on an army of trees to get across. I turned back to the road. I hated to give up, but without knowing what the proper credentials were, there was no way across. I was going to have to go back to the outpost. Once I go to the road I started running. I wasn¡¯t going to waste four hours to figure out how to cross the border. I would run the whole way, do whatever it was that I had to do and get back in less than four hours. I took my sword sheath off of my hip and gripped it in my hand so I could run faster. Having the sword in my hand let me feel like I was charging towards something. I picked up my pace. I wasn¡¯t going to let this slow me down. Chapter 12 I got back to the cherry tree in half an hour. Actually, it was the place where I had stopped and went to look for the cherry tree. My legs burned, but I was determined to get back as fast as I could. It helped to tell myself that the pain I was feeling was really hurting, it was just like a dream. My body was safe back in the real world. I wouldn¡¯t have stopped if I hadn¡¯t seen Michael. He was running up the path as fast as he could. For a tracker, he wasn¡¯t paying much attention. I stepped into the woods and watched him run by. I thought about letting him just keep running, but I was mad that he had deserted me. I stepped out from behind the tree. ¡°Hey!¡± I yelled. "Where are you going?¡± Michael skidded to a stop and turned around. He put his hands on his knees as he tried to catch his breath. ¡°I found you.¡± He wheezed between gasps ¡°Found me?¡± I demanded. "You left me!¡± ¡°No I didn¡¯t.¡± He dropped his backpack in between us. He knelt down and opened it up. "I was getting supplies.¡± He pulled out a leather outfit like the one he was wearing and tossed it to me. He opened a flask of water and took a long drink. He was still breathing heavy, but at least he had stopped wheezing. I looked at the leather outfit. It wasn¡¯t anything fancy, but it would offer a lot more protection than the bikini top and skirt I was currently wearing. ¡°You got this for me?¡± I asked This content has been misappropriated from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere. ¡°No.¡± He sat down. "I got it so we wouldn¡¯t have to stop every few hours to bandage you up.¡± ¡°Hey! I¡¯ve been on my own for almost three hours and I haven¡¯t needed anyone to bandage me up yet.¡± ¡°But you didn¡¯t get past the border.¡± He shuffled around in his pack. ¡°No,¡± I admitted. "The guards said that I didn¡¯t have the proper credentials.¡± ¡°You don¡¯t.¡± He pulled out a small knife and put it on his belt ¡°How do I get these proper credentials?¡± I made quotation marks with my fingers ¡°You have to kill a wild boar.¡± He pointed at the clothes. "You need to get changed.¡± ¡°A wild boar?¡± I juggled the clothes. "Why?¡± Michael began stuffing stuff back into his backpack. "Each zone is more dangerous. For example, a bear is the worst thing that you¡¯ll run into in this zone. That is something that is easily avoidable. A wild boar is a common target and one that is fairly easy to take out.¡± ¡°Really? They¡¯re ¡®easy¡¯ to take out.¡± Michael strung his bow. "They don¡¯t hunt in packs in this zone. Compared to the big cats that we¡¯ll face in the next zone, a wild boar will be easy.¡± ¡°Cats?¡± I thought about Mister Fuzzy, my calico cat back home. He was the perfect cuddle buddy after work. "What kind of cats?¡± ¡°Mainly cougars, but I¡¯ve heard that there are lions, tigers, even some Sabertooth too.¡± I took the clothes and headed for the trees. "Is that all?¡± ¡°Bandits are always a problem in any zone, but they are programed to leave a player alone if they drop their weapons.¡± Michael¡¯s voice was too close to be back on the road I turned around; he was leaning against a tree. "What are doing?¡± He grinned and turned back to the road. "You can¡¯t blame me for trying to sneak a peek.¡± I watched him leave. Once I was sure he was out of sight, I quickly changed. It was a good reminder that he might be helping me, but he was not a knight. Chapter 13 The new clothes fit perfectly. The game didn¡¯t care what your body size was; it would contort any outfit to the player. I walked back onto the road to find Michael waiting patiently by his backpack. It would seem that one rebuke was all it took to have him back off. I dropped my old outfit into my bag and threw it over my shoulder. "Where do we find a wild boar?¡± Michael shrugged. "They roam around the woods.¡± ¡°Can you track one?¡± I asked ¡°Don¡¯t need to.¡± He shouldered his backpack; ¡°We just need to walk away from the path a ways. One will find us.¡± I headed into the woods. It didn¡¯t take long until I heard a growl. I turned around to talk to Michael, but he raised his hand to quiet me. I didn¡¯t have time to argue. The wild boar rushed out of the underbrush. I had been expecting a pig, something pink and cute. The thing that was charging at me was a brown mass of tusks and anger. I reached for my sword, but I wasn¡¯t fast enough. Michael grabbed the back of my collar and yanked me away from the snapping teeth. This novel''s true home is a different platform. Support the author by finding it there. I got my sword out and turned to face the next attack. The wild boar turned and charged. I stepped out of the way of its tusks. I had been ready for this attack. This time I slashed with my sword. The edge of my sword connected with the wild boar¡¯s shoulder. It squealed as it turned for another strike. An arrow hit it in the rump, staggering its charge. ¡°Finish it!¡± Michael yelled from behind another drawn arrow. I swung my sword and stabbed it in the behind the shoulder. The wild boar let out one grunt before it collapsed. Michael walked up and offered me a dagger hilt first. ¡°What?¡± I demanded ¡°You have to harvest it.¡± I pushed the dagger away. "I¡¯m not doing that.¡± ¡°You would waste supplies?¡± ¡°You do it.¡± I pulled my sword out of the wild boar. I tore off a leaf and wiped the blood off the blade before sheathing it. ¡°You need to learn to do this.¡± Michael said I took the dagger and bent over the carcass. As I did, light blue lines appeared on the fur. I stepped back. ¡°What was that?¡± ¡°The system has a built in aid program. It helps with targeting and harvesting on the lower tiers, to teach you how to do stuff.¡± Michael explained. I scooted forward and cut along the lines. It didn¡¯t take long before I had skinned the wild boar and started cutting chunks of meat off. I heard a fire crackling behind me. ¡°What are you doing?¡± Michael took the meat from me and placed it over the fire. "We have to cook it now so it won¡¯t spoil.¡± I backed away as he finished the butchering. At least we would have something besides cherries to eat. Chapter 14 It didn¡¯t take long to cook the meat. Michael rolled up the wild boar skin and placed it in a pocket on the side of his backpack. We would sell it once we got to an actual town. We got back on the road and made our way to the border. This time the guards waved us through. ¡°How did they know?¡± I asked Michael once we were on the other side ¡°Know what?¡± ¡°That I killed a wild boar?¡± ¡°The game keeps up with everything.¡± Michael kicked a rock off the path. "Every computer character is tied into the system. Everything you do is recorded and added to your stats.¡± ¡°We have stats?¡± ¡°Yes, but not like what you¡¯re thinking.¡± Michael took off his backpack and dug around for a moment. He pulled out a small book. ¡°In most games like this you would have health, magic, strength, agility, and defense. Those type of stats.¡± He opened the book. "In this game you don¡¯t have any of those stats. There is nothing that you can ¡®level up¡¯.¡± He pointed at the first page. "Instead we have statistics. More like feats really. The game records what you¡¯ve done. What you¡¯ve killed and how many, where you¡¯ve gone, interaction you¡¯ve had with the computer characters. It even records interactions with the other players.¡± A case of literary theft: this tale is not rightfully on Amazon; if you see it, report the violation. I skimmed the first page of his book. It was mainly deer kills and not many. For being in the game for over eight years, he only had twelve deer kills, and eight wild boar kills. ¡°You haven¡¯t done much.¡± He flinched. "I¡¯ve been enjoying my time out of a cell.¡± ¡°Fair enough.¡± I looked around the tall grass. "Should I be worried about the cats?¡± He put the book back in his backpack and shouldered it. "Cat attacks on the road are rare.¡± He bounced the bow in his hands. "But it never hurts to be careful.¡± I nodded and we started down the road. We walked in silence for a few minutes before curiosity got the better of me. ¡°How do you plan on finding my brother?¡± Michael didn¡¯t bother to turn around. "Each place we go through will be able to tell us his latest feat. All we have to do is keep heading in that direction.¡± I reached for my map. "What¡¯s the next town?¡± ¡°We aren¡¯t going to a town.¡± ¡°What?¡± I dropped the map. "Why not?¡± ¡°Because you can¡¯t go to the next zone.¡± Michael stopped. This time he turned around. "We have to get you the credentials to get into the next zone.¡± ¡°What do I have to kill this time?¡± I put the map back in my pocket. "A lion?¡± ¡°Nope.¡± He grinned, and then he turned and started walking down the road. I jogged after him and waited for him to elaborate, but he didn¡¯t. I grabbed his arm. "What do I have to kill?¡± He turned around. "Why do you think you have to kill something?¡± ¡°I. Um.¡± I stammered. "Because I had to kill something to get across the last border.¡± ¡°This game isn¡¯t just about killing.¡± He motioned around. "There is beauty to it.¡± ¡°Fine.¡± I stomped my foot. "What do I have to do?¡± ¡°Raid an elephant grave.¡± Chapter 15 Graveyards freaked me out. I had only been to human ones. Even those I tried to avoid. In the two years since our parents had died I had gone to visit their grave only once. Some people get comfort from talking to a headstone. It had just made me sad. ¡°An elephant graveyard?¡± I repeated ¡°Yep.¡± Michael¡¯s smile was too big. ¡°Why?¡± He shrugged. "Stealth? Courage? The developers are twisted? I don¡¯t know.¡± ¡°Is that all I have to do?¡± He shook his head. "You have to go to the graveyard, find a skull and pull out a tooth. Once you have the tooth, we take it to Trumpit and you give it to the shaman.¡± ¡°That¡¯s all?¡± I asked ¡°The gist.¡± ¡°What¡¯s the catch?¡± ¡°The graveyard is full of vultures and hyenas. Not to mention goblins use the skulls as houses.¡± The story has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation. ¡°Goblins?¡± I asked He held his hand hip high. "About this tall, green. Nasty disposition. They ride the hyenas. It¡¯s kind of cool.¡± ¡°Great, so we have to fight our way through a camp full of goblins and hyenas to pull an elephant tooth.¡± ¡°You forgot the buzzards.¡± ¡°What about them?¡± I asked. "They¡¯re just birds.¡± ¡°They don¡¯t like it when people touch their food.¡± ¡°They¡¯ll attack me?¡± ¡°Don¡¯t worry.¡± He gave me that rogue grin he wore too much. "I¡¯ll shoot them before they get close.¡± ¡°My hero.¡± I mocked He did a fake bow. "As you wish my lady.¡± I laughed. I didn¡¯t want to, but it was funny. I bit the inside of my cheeks to keep the smile off of my face. For a moment I had forgotten about the dangers in the game. I had forgotten about Billy. The smile vanished. "Where is the graveyard?¡± ¡°So serious.¡± Michael grinned ¡°Look, my brother is out there playing a game that could get him killed. I don¡¯t have time to goof around. I need to go to the graveyard, get the tooth, and get to the next zone.¡± Michael held up his hands. "Okay.¡± He pointed to his right. "That way.¡± I pulled out my sword and stepped into the grass. I came up to my hips and was so thick; I could have stepped on a snake and never known it. I tried not to think about snakes. Instead, I focused on my brother. I would have liked to believe he was scared and alone, but I knew he wasn¡¯t scared. Nothing scared him. He ran into dangerous situations like the one we were in right now without a thought about safety. That was why he needed me. He needed someone to keep him from getting in over his head. I held onto that thought as I pushed my way through the grass. Chapter 16 We made it to the elephant graveyard without getting attacked. The graveyard was huge. The skeletons of dozens of elephants littered the bare ground. I walked through rib cages. It made me feel small against the husks of such large creatures. ¡°How did they die?¡± I asked. "A raid?¡± ¡°It¡¯s always been here.¡± Michael replied. "I think it¡¯s just something the developers put in the game.¡± I touched the bones. They were cold even though it was in the nineties. I looked at the setting sun. "Should we be out here?¡± ¡°We can make it to Trumpit before it gets too late.¡± Michael said ¡°That¡¯s not what I¡¯m worried about.¡± I looked around Michael raised his eyebrow. "What?¡± ¡°We¡¯re in a graveyard.¡± I prompted. "At night?¡± ¡°You mean ghosts?¡± I nodded. ¡°Ghosts are a zone four enemy.¡± Michael glanced around. "This is zone two.¡± Love this novel? Read it on Royal Road to ensure the author gets credit. ¡°So no ghosts?¡± ¡°No ghosts.¡± Michael said A hyena howled deeper in the graveyard. ¡°Goblins on the other hand¡­¡± Michael¡¯s voice drifted off. He strung an arrow and took off in the direction of the howls. I ran after him. "Why are we running towards the noise?¡± I whispered ¡°Hyenas mean Goblins.¡± ¡°I know!¡± I raised my voice a little. "We should avoid the goblins!¡± ¡°Goblins live in the skulls.¡± Michael held up a finger to quiet me I followed him to the next mound. We leaned against it and peeked over it. There were three elephant skulls around a large bonfire. A pig was roasting over the fire. The smell of pork got my stomach to growl. We hadn¡¯t stopped for dinner yet. I had forgotten that I was hungry. I tried not to think about food as I looked over the rest of the camp. On the other side of the fire was a cloaked figure fighting against the goblins. The figure was slashing at the goblins with a black dagger. A red gem in the hilt glowed every time it ended a life. I started to move forward, but Michael grabbed my arm. ¡°What are you doing?¡± He demanded ¡°We have to help her.¡± ¡°She¡¯s taking on the entire goblin camp!¡± Michael exclaimed ¡°That¡¯s why we have to help her!¡± I pulled out of his grip and ran over the mound. There were at least a dozen goblins and more hyenas. I hesitated for a moment at the edge of the fire light. I was about to rush into a dangerous situation to help someone I didn¡¯t know. An arrow zinged over my shoulder. Michael had just shot a hyena that was running at me. ¡°Kat!¡± He yelled. "Move!¡± I tightened the grip on my sword and ran towards the cloaked stranger. I hoped this wasn¡¯t a bad idea. Chapter 17 I hated buzzards. I made it a few steps before the first one hit me. It just clipped my shoulder, but it was the same shoulder that the bear got. I dropped into a roll. More buzzards dove at me, screaming for the intruder to leave. I waved my sword in the air. It only served to drive them back, not to scare them off. A buzzard dropped to my right, an arrow through its chest. The others screamed at me, but I wasn¡¯t the one who had shot it. I kept waving my sword as more buzzards dropped. After a couple more hit the ground, the birds took to the air. I scrambled to my feet and charged towards the camp. The cloaked figure was down on one knee. Hyenas were circling for the last charge. There were half as many enemies, but it was going to be too many for the cloaked person to hold off when they all charged. The goblins were on the outer ring. I stabbed the one closest to me through the chest. It gurgled and fell forward, pulling my sword out of my hands. The rest of the group turned to me, evil smiles on their faces. The hyenas laughed as they ran towards their new toy. I gave the sword one more tug. It didn¡¯t budge, so I left it. I ran towards the bonfire. I grabbed a stick out of the fire and turned my back to it. Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences elsewhere. The first hyena lunged at me before I had turned around. I swiped it with the burning stick, knocking it to my left. It whined as it got up and joined two more that were coming at me from either side. ¡°AH!¡± I screamed as I waved the stick. It didn¡¯t stop them from charging, but it made me feel a little better. A hyena covered in red smashed into one of my attackers. The two rolled out of sight, vanishing into shadows and snarls. I turned my attention to the last two hyenas. They were still moving towards me. I hit the first one, but the second got under my stick and latched on to my left leg. I hit it on the head with my stick, but it refused to let go. The one I had hit came back and grabbed the stick. It shook its head and ripped the stick from my hands. The one with a hold on my leg pulled, knocking me onto my back. I tried reaching for another stick, but it dragged me away from the fire. I grabbed handfuls of dirt and threw them in the face of the second Hyena. It snorted, but I just made it madder. It jumped on my chest and went for my neck. I tried to grab its neck, but it was thrashing so much that all I could do was shove my wrists at its jaw. There was a scream and the one on my leg let go. I pulled my feet into my stomach and kicked out. Instead of kicking it away from me, I flipped it over my head. I rolled onto my stomach and pushed myself up. The hyena was already running at me. I looked around for something I could use as a weapon, but there was nothing close to me except dirt. I dug my fingers into the ground and charged. I hit the hyena low. Its teeth snapped behind my head as I carried it towards the bonfire. I pushed it off of me and dropped it into the flames. It screamed as it tried to flip over and get out. I grabbed a stick and hit it over the head. Buzzards were just irritating. I hated hyenas. Chapter 18 I wasn¡¯t finished. The hyena that had been gnawing on my leg was nowhere to be seen. Neither was the pair of hyenas that I had seen roll into the shadows. I took my stick and limped back to where the cloaked figure had been fighting. I could hear goblins whooping. I walked past an elephant skull hut. Behind it the cloaked figure was brandishing its dagger at two goblins. I stepped out from behind the hut and angled for the closest goblin. The light from my makeshift torch gave away my attack. The goblins turned to look at the new attacker. Each had a long sharp stick. I knew there was no way I was going to be able to hold them both off. An arrow zipped through the eye of the one to my right. It fell backwards. The last goblin yelled and ran at me. It made it two steps before falling on its face, with the cloaked figure¡¯s dagger protruding out of its back. I dropped my torch and leaned against the skull. The cloaked figure limped forward and pulled their dagger out of the goblin. The red gem in the hilt shone brightly as they sheathed it. The figure dropped back their hood. A beautiful oriental woman looked at me. The fire light danced in her brown eyes and reflected off of her black hair. She dropped down to look at my leg. You might be reading a pirated copy. Look for the official release to support the author. ¡°Hi.¡± I said. It hurt to have someone touch the bite. She just nodded Michael slid next to me. "Kat! Are you okay?¡± He looked at other woman. "Hel-lo.¡± ¡°I¡¯m fine.¡± I fumed. "Just scratched up.¡± ¡°Good.¡± Michael didn¡¯t take his eyes off the woman. "Are you okay?¡± The woman pushed him away. "I¡¯m going to heal your wounds.¡± She pulled my feet out from under me. I landed hard on my rear. She shrugged off her cloak. I gasped. I didn¡¯t want to, but it happened. Coated up the woman¡¯s arms were circular tattoos the size of a quarter. They were about an inch apart, but they covered her arm from her wrist all the way up to her shoulders. There were different colors; red, yellow, white, blue, green, silver, and black, though most were black. ¡°You¡¯re a mage.¡± Michael said in awe She ignored him and wrapped her right hand around the wound on my leg and touched the white tattoo. Her arm glowed white and I felt her hand get warmer. The light drained out of her arm, into my leg. When she took away her hand, my leg was fine. There wasn¡¯t a mark on it. ¡°Thank you.¡± A stammered The woman nodded. When she took her fingers off of her arm I noticed that the tattoo was gone. She picked up her cloak and started walking towards the huts. ¡°I¡¯m Kat.¡± I scrambled to my feet. ¡°He¡¯s Michael.¡± She stopped. For a moment I thought she was going to ignore me, but she turned around. "Mei.¡± ¡°What are you doing out here?¡± I asked She took out her dagger and stabbed it into the skull. "Harvesting power.¡± Michael stepped in front of me. "She¡¯s not a mage.¡± He drew his bow and aimed at her. "She¡¯s a necromancer.¡± Chapter 19 I tried to push down Michael¡¯s arm. It didn¡¯t budge. ¡°What¡¯s a necromancer?¡± I asked ¡°A dark mage that uses the power of the dead.¡± Michael kept his bow trained on her. "Most are PKs.¡± ¡°PKs?¡± I was pretty sure that he wasn¡¯t talking about the PK that I knew. ¡°Player Killers.¡± Mei answered. "Most players are easier to kill than the higher tiered monsters that give the same strength of souls.¡± ¡°Walk away.¡± Michael ordered Mei pulled out her dagger. Unlike when she had pulled it out of the goblins, the hilt didn¡¯t stop glowing. ¡°If I was going to kill you, I would have done it before I healed your friend.¡± ¡°She¡¯s not going to hurt us.¡± I pushed on Michael¡¯s arm again. This time the bow dropped a little. ¡°You can¡¯t trust her.¡± Michael lowered his bow. ¡°I think I can.¡± I tried to walk around him, but he stepped into my path. ¡°Michael.¡± I glared at him. "Go get my sword. It¡¯s stuck in a goblin back there somewhere.¡± If you stumble upon this narrative on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it. Michael cast one more glare at Mei. He turned and headed off to get my sword. ¡°Sorry about him¡± I apologized. "He¡¯s a little protective.¡± ¡°He¡¯s possessive.¡± Mei turned to the next hut ¡°No.¡± I was confused. I couldn¡¯t think why Michael would be possessive, or why he would need to be possessive right now. ¡°He¡¯s just worried about me.¡± ¡°It¡¯s your life.¡± Mei jammed her dagger into the next hut. ¡°What are you doing?¡± I asked ¡°The graveyard collects the power of all the monsters that are killed. The power is stored in these skulls.¡± ¡°You¡¯re harvesting the power?¡± Mei nodded. "It¡¯s easier than being a PK.¡± ¡°About that...¡± I took an involuntary step back ¡°I don¡¯t kill players.¡± Mei stated. "Not unless I have to.¡± ¡°Oh.¡± I kicked the dirt waiting for her to elaborate. ¡°What are you doing here?¡± ¡°I need a tooth so I can so to the next zone.¡± I said ¡°You haven¡¯t done that yet?¡± ¡°I¡¯m new. Just got here yesterday.¡± I said ¡°They don¡¯t put new players in the game.¡± Mei stated. "It throws off their numbers.¡± ¡°They had to.¡± I sat down net to the fire. It was starting to get cold. "My brother fell into one of their tanks. He¡¯s trapped in here, so they let me come in to protect him until the game is over.¡± ¡°You¡¯re Billy¡¯s sister?¡± ¡°You know Billy?¡± I asked ¡°I was on a raid with him last week.¡± She pulled the dagger out. "He¡¯s a good kid.¡± ¡°Do you know where he is? How is he doing? Is he making it okay?¡± The questions started pouring out Mei laughed. She reached into the hut and pulled out a tooth the size of a brick. She tossed it to me. "Let¡¯s talk.¡± Chapter 20 Mei reminded me of my mother. It may have been that she was in her early forties, or maybe it was how she talked about my brother in such a caring way, but I instantly felt at home. Mei didn¡¯t know much. Billy had organized the raid and had met with everyone there. After the raid he had took his cut and left. There wasn¡¯t much more she could tell me. The scary part was that this was before the raid on the Ogre camp. I didn¡¯t know how Billy was moving so fast, but he had made a name for putting together raids, then moving on to the next zone. Mei told me that some of the other players were concerned that Billy was going to scoop up all the resources at the lower levels. Also given his age, he was a target for PKs who wanted the loot that he had acquired. It made me worry more. I wanted to get to him as fast as I could. He didn¡¯t need to be alone with all the dangers that he was running through. Michael showed up with my sword and my bag. I had forgotten that I had dropped it when I had run to help Mei. ¡°Thank you.¡± I said when he dropped my stuff net to me. He eyed Mei. "Did she behave?¡± Stolen story; please report. Mei grinned. "Just for you.¡± Michael grunted. He took out his dagger and started skinning the hyenas. ¡°Do you have to do that?¡± I asked ¡°We¡¯re going to need more supplies.¡± He answered. "Which means we need something to trade.¡± ¡°You could go on a raid.¡± Mei offered ¡°No.¡± Michael said. "It¡¯s too dangerous.¡± ¡°For you?¡± Mei flashed a wicked grin ¡°No, for her!¡± He pointed at me. "She hasn¡¯t even been playing for two days. She can¡¯t go on a raid! Do you even remember how many people died in the first raid?¡± ¡°Four hundred seven.¡± Mei answered without hesitating. "I was there. I helped bury the bodies.¡± Michael¡¯s next comment died on his lips. "Oh.¡± ¡°Where were you when the raid was going on?¡± She demanded. "Off playing hunter in the woods alone? Where were you when people were dying?¡± Michael didn¡¯t say anything. He just hung his head. I turned to Mei. "What happened?¡± ¡°There are raids where a group of players will attack a bandit camp, pirate ship, spider nest, or even a dragon horde¡± She glared at Michael. "There are also raids where the monsters attack the cities.¡± Michael poked the fire. "Two weeks into the game, most of us were still at the starting town. Some had moved on to this zone, but no one had gone any further. The system decided that too many people weren¡¯t playing. To encourage us to move on, a bunch of dragons hit the town.¡± ¡°Over five thousand players.¡± Mei spat. "Only fifty six tried to fight the dragons while the rest ran. Michael got up and walked away. I watched him go. I thought about going after him, but I stayed. He wanted some alone time. That¡¯s what I was going to give him Chapter 21 We spent the night in the graveyard. I didn¡¯t want to, but Mei assured me that it was safe. Add in that Michael hadn¡¯t come back. I didn¡¯t have much choice but to stay in the graveyard overnight. I woke up to bright light. The sun was already up. I glanced at my watch, except I wasn¡¯t wearing one. I wasn¡¯t wearing one. I had taken it off before I got in a pod. It was one thing I missed. I stretched and stood up. The camp was empty. There was no sign of Michael or Mei, physically at least. Michael¡¯s backpack was still on the ground. I looked around. I needed to get moving, but I didn¡¯t want to leave without him. I opened up my bag and started eating cherries. I could¡¯ve eaten on the road, but I wanted to give Michael some more time to show up. ¡°Heads up.¡± I turned and caught a water bottle. I nodded my thanks to Mei. ¡°Why are you still here?¡± Mei sat down net to the ashes of the bonfire. "You want to find your brother?¡± I nodded. A case of literary theft: this tale is not rightfully on Amazon; if you see it, report the violation. ¡°You¡¯re going to need a group to get through the higher zones.¡± She took a book out of her backpack. ¡°Are you offering?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°Why?¡± I spit out a cherry pit. "Why help me?¡± ¡°You¡¯re willing to risk your life to protect your brother.¡± She flipped through the book. "I can relate to that.¡± I wanted to ask, but the pain on her face told me it wasn¡¯t the time. "Thank you.¡± I pointed at the book. "What are you doing?¡± She found the page she was looking for. "Spells are applied to the skin as tattoos. Once the tattoo sets it can be triggered by pressing on it.¡± She held up her palms. Each had a six sided star on her palm with a swirly X shaped rune in the middle. ¡°How do you put on the tattoos?¡± She laid her arm on the book and folded the page over it. She pulled a pen out of the spine of the book and traced the outline of the rune. It glowed while she traced the rune on the page. She pulled her arm out and showed it to me. ¡°It¡¯s that easy?¡± I asked Mei replaced the pen and closed the book. "I¡¯ve had eight years to practice. It won¡¯t be that simple for you.¡± ¡°You don¡¯t want to mess with her kind of magic.¡± Michael said I turned around. "You¡¯re back!¡± He walked over to his backpack. "I told you I was going to help you find your brother. I meant it.¡± ¡°Even if she joins us?¡± I pointed at Mei. Michael glared at her. "We¡¯re going to need her.¡± He admitted. "The roads in the higher zones can¡¯t be traveled safely alone.¡± I looked at Mei. "Are you still in?¡± She nodded. ¡°Great!¡± I got up and slung my bag over my shoulder. "Let¡¯s get moving.¡± Chapter 22 We made it to Trumpit in four hours. Compared to the outpost, Trumpit was huge. Instead of a rail fence, there was an actual seven foot tall wooden wall. Guard towers rested above the gate and were positioned every twenty feet. We walked through the open gate without getting stopped by the guards out front. The village was full of people. There were more houses than I could count. Some were brick, others were log. There were two story and single story houses. Computer characters and players roamed the dirt streets. Some of the characters tried to talk to us, but my escorts waved them away. Peddlers were the worst traders to deal with. They bought low and sold high. Some might have interesting or rare items, but we didn¡¯t have the excess coins to buy anything rare anyway. Coins weren¡¯t exactly the right term. Each player had their money stored at the bank. The coins were accessed by swiping their thumb on a scanner. Coins could still be found in camps or monster dens, but they were deposited in the nearest bank, or traded at the closest store as soon as possible. It was the only way to keep money safe from bandits or player thieves. Michael left to go trade the furs and meat for other supplies. Mei led me to the shaman¡¯s house. Unlike the other houses, the Shaman¡¯s house was more of a castle. There were four guard towers on each of the corners of the yard. A metal fence ran between the towers. The house itself was a three story brick tower. Stolen content warning: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences. I walked up to the gate. "I¡¯m here to see the shaman.¡± I waved the elephant tooth. The guards pulled the gate open. Two soldiers in shiny armor with blue tunics flanked us. They moved behind us as the guards at the front door stopped us. ¡°Relinquish your weapons.¡± The guards held out their hands I reached for my sword. I heard the soldiers behind us draw theirs. ¡°Slowly.¡± The guard said. I slowly took out my sword and handed over to the guards. They pointed at my bag. I slid it off my shoulders and passed it over. ¡°Yours too.¡± The guards turned to Mei. She looked at me. Her hood was still up and her cloak was wrapped around her. She backed up. "You don¡¯t need me.¡± ¡°What?¡± I demanded. "What am I supposed to do?¡± ¡°The guards can direct you.¡± Mei held out her hands. "I¡¯ll hold your stuff.¡± The guards looked at me. ¡°It¡¯s okay.¡± They passed my sword and bag over to Mei. She turned and walked through the gates. I watched her leave. Without my sword or one of my friends, I felt naked. I flinched as the doors to the house opened. The guards motioned for me to enter. I stepped into the lion¡¯s den. It wasn¡¯t a bad description. Animal heads littered the walls of the entryway. Torches provided the only light in the hall. I had seen windows, but they had been further away from the main hall. The doors creaked as they closed. I turned around. "Wait! Where¡¯s the shaman?¡± Silence was the only thing I heard from the guards. The doors slammed shut. I was alone in a trophy room. Chapter 23 Mounted heads are creepy. With the flickering torchlight I was excepting them to break into song at any moment. I walked across the room to the large metal doors. They were out of place in a room with cedar panels. The rafters were just pine logs. They shouldn¡¯t have been visible since there were two floors above it, but they were housing various stuffed birds and small mammals. This didn¡¯t look like a shaman lived here. It looked like a hunting lodge. I grabbed the cold handles and pushed the doors open. It looked like the room I had just left, minus the stuffed animals. On my right were stairs going to the next floor. To my left was another trophy room. In front of me was actual sunlight. In a place that looked like a cave, it was a welcome sight. I walked into the room. It had only been a few moments since I had been outside, but already I missed it. I closed my eyes and let it wash over my face. ¡°Bright isn¡¯t it?¡± A squeaky voice said behind me. I turned around to face a mouse of a man. Literally, he had a huge mouse head over his face. I didn¡¯t know where mice got that big in the real world and I really didn¡¯t want to know where there existed here. He was short, probably only five feet tall. Also thin, he wasn¡¯t wearing just a headdress, it was an entire cloak. He flipped off the cloak to reveal his bony figure. I could¡¯ve counted every rib on his pale skin. This narrative has been purloined without the author''s approval. Report any appearances on Amazon. All he was wearing was a yellow pair of shorts. The stitching was horrible; it looked like he had made them himself out of a tunic. The bone necklace clattered as he bounced in front of me. I couldn¡¯t make out any of the teeth or bones, but there were a lot and they came from a lot of different animals. I clutched the elephant tooth tighter. I may not have a weapon, but this thing was the size of a brick. Considering his size, I could knock him out if he did anything weird. ¡°It¡¯s not too bad.¡± I answered The Shaman started digging through the piles of skins any bones that littered the room. The place was a mess. I was surprised anyone lived here, even more surprised that he ran the town. ¡°Don¡¯t like the bright.¡± He whined. Furs fell over the windows, blocking the light. I blinked as my eyes adjusted to the lack of light. I jumped when I felt a light tug on my hair. I spun around and raised the tooth. The Shaman had a lock of my hair and was sniffing it. ¡°Cherries.¡± He grinned at me. ¡°That¡¯s it!¡± I yelled. "I have the tooth, now give me the credentials so I can go to the next zone.¡± He stuck out his lower lip. "No.¡± ¡°No?¡± I repeated. I watched as he bounced through the skins. He dropped my hair into what looked like a human skull. ¡°You aren¡¯t a computer character.¡± He froze. "Yes I am.¡± ¡°No.¡± I shook my head. "The computer characters have a lag when you say something they don¡¯t expect.¡± I slammed the tooth on a table to my right. "You don¡¯t.¡± He turned around. A huge grin covered his face. "You caught me.¡± His voice was much deeper now. I swallowed. That might not have been such a good thing. Chapter 24 I thought about running. I knew there were at least eight guards outside, probably a lot more than that in the house. Even with a weapon I didn¡¯t stand a chance and that was if they were all computer characters. If the Shaman could be a player, then so could the guards. ¡°You aren¡¯t the first person to see through this charade.¡± He reached under a pelt and pulled out a black dagger. Unlike the one Mei had, this one was curved and didn¡¯t have a gem in the hilt. ¡°What happened to the others?¡± I picked the tooth up. I glanced around the room. In front of the door was probably the best place to make my stand if he came at me. I found myself wishing for Mei or Michael right now. ¡°I killed them.¡± He poked the tip of the dagger with his finger. "What¡¯s the point of hiding if people know who you are?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t want trouble.¡± I held up my hands. "I just want to get the credentials so I can go to the next zone.¡± ¡°You just want to go to the next zone.¡± He mocked. "You should have got your credentials years ago when the joke of a shaman still ran this town.¡± ¡°I couldn¡¯t.¡± ¡°Too scared?¡± He laughed. It was a deep creepy laugh. My heart started beating in my ears. The hairs on the back of my neck stood up. I started to explain, but he crossed the room. At first I was scared. This man was a PK. He was going to kill me to keep his secret. That¡¯s when I got mad. He was a mouse, not a man. He thought that he could stop me from protecting my brother? I wasn¡¯t going to let that happen. The genuine version of this novel can be found on another site. Support the author by reading it there. I threw the tooth at him. His eyes got big. I could tell he thought I was going to be an easy mark. He thought I was just a defenseless girl that was scared of the bad man. I wasn¡¯t scared. Not of him. He was definitely creepy, but he wasn¡¯t scary. My brother being alone in this game was scary. The tooth hit him in the chest. He fell on his back, choking and gagging. I jumped on top of him, pressing my knees on his upper arms. Wrestling with Billy had taught me a few things. I grabbed the dagger and pressed it against his neck. There were some other things that I was willing to learn. ¡°The credentials. Where are they?¡± He eyed the blade. His eyes moved to the skull that he had dropped my hair into. I stepped on his crotch as I got up. He howled in pain and curled into a ball. I kept the dagger pointed at him as I moved over to the skull. Inside were a dozen green coins. Each had an elephant tooth on the front and a wishbone on the back. I took one out. "What do I do with it?¡± ¡°You witch!¡± He wheezed I kicked him in the ribs. "How does it work?¡± ¡°Put it in the back page of your stats book.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t have one.¡± I said ¡°Everyone has a..." His voice trailed off. "You¡¯re new.¡± I nodded. "They let me come in to find my brother.¡± His eyes lit up. He rolled over on his knees. "The new kid is your brother?¡± I nodded. "Do you know where he is?¡± ¡°I know how I¡¯m going to find him.¡± He grinned as he hit a button under the table next to him. Four guards rushed into the room. They pulled out their swords and blocked off the way I had come in. ¡°What are you doing?¡± I demanded ¡°Your brother stole something of mine.¡± He pushed himself up. "I¡¯m going to send him a message.¡± I back up to the window. I waved the dagger at the soldiers. ¡°Kill her.¡± The fake shaman ordered. Chapter 25 I was outnumbered. Making a stand didn¡¯t even cross my mind. I had one thought and that was running. I hit the window as hard as I could. The shade took the edge off of most of the glass, but I still got some scratches. The backyard housed a big pool. And two guard towers. I ran around the edge of the pool. With any luck I could get to the fence before the guards got out of the towers. I was still in a zone that was too low for computer characters to carry bows. All I had to do was outrun them. An arrow caught me in my left shoulder. I screamed and hit the ground. These weren¡¯t computer characters, they were players. The fake shaman hadn¡¯t just replaced the ruler of the town; he had replaced the guards with players as well. The guards ran over and grabbed me. I tried to fight, but they were big and I was wounded. All I could do was thrash. ¡°That won¡¯t help.¡± The shaman stepped onto the lawn. He walked up to me and picked up his dagger. "I believe this is mine.¡± ¡°Please,¡± I begged. "My brother needs me.¡± ¡°My brother needs me.¡¯ He mocked. "Your brother isn¡¯t supposed to be here. He doesn¡¯t know the rules!¡± Did you know this story is from Royal Road? Read the official version for free and support the author. ¡°What did he do?¡± I asked. "I¡¯ll fix it!¡± ¡°You?¡± He pointed the dagger at me. "You¡¯ll fix it?¡± The guards laughed with their boss. ¡°Your brother didn¡¯t just take something from me.¡± The shaman spouted. "He disrespected me. You can¡¯t fix that.¡± ¡°How?¡± I asked. He slapped me. I fought back tears. I still had an arrow in my arm. That hurt a lot more than the slap had. It was more of the shock factor. ¡°Please,¡± I begged ¡°You really want to know?¡± He demanded I nodded. ¡°Fine.¡± He grabbed a chair and pulled it over in front of me. "Your brother came into town three weeks ago. He¡¯d only been playing for a few days, but he had the game down to a science. He was seeing things that a lot of the veterans didn¡¯t know. When he came to see me, he saw right through my fake shaman bit. Except unlike you, he didn¡¯t call me on it.¡± He gritted his teeth. "He got me to show him all over the house, even the treasure room.¡± I knew where this was going. "He robbed you.¡± He hit me again. This time it was so hard that the men holding me grunted as they braced against my moving body. ¡°He led a raid on my house!¡± He yelled. "Your brother ousted me as a player! Told everyone I was Mouse!¡± I tried to stop, but the laugh came out anyway. "You¡¯re Mouse?¡± He glared at me. "It¡¯s a nickname.¡± I pursed my lips together to keep from laughing again. It stopped the laugh, but didn¡¯t stop the slap. ¡°You think that¡¯s funny?¡± He drew back the knife. "Is this funny?¡± Chapter 26 I screamed for all I was worth. I couldn¡¯t move. The men holding me were too strong. I was on my knees. There was nothing else I could do. ¡°Scream.¡± Mouse grinned. "No one is going to come for you.¡± The iron fence groaned as it fell down. Mei walked over the fence, her cowl was still up. ¡°Let her go.¡± ¡°Who do you think you are?¡± Mouse demanded. ¡°They¡¯re PKs!¡± I shouted. "He¡¯s not the Shaman!¡± ¡°Kill them!¡± Mouse yelled Mei shoved both of her hands up her sleeves. There was a thud and the ground settled just an inch. The guards looked at each other. They didn¡¯t know what she had done. Mouse slashed sideways with the dagger. He had barely moved when there was another thud and everyone in the yard except Mei hit the ground. I would¡¯ve been happy, except I landed on my back. The arrow pushed through my shoulder and pulled another scream out of me. Mei ran up to the closest guard. She stabbed him in the throat. With her left hand she smacked the gem in the hilt of her dagger. The gem flashed red and the color drained into the guard. This story originates from Royal Road. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there. The red hued guard picked up his sword and charged at the closest guard. The regular guard wasn¡¯t fast enough and lost an arm before he lost his head. Mei bent down next to me. "We have to leave.¡± I winced as she helped me to my feet. The other guards were starting to get up. Her zombie was moving fast and had their attention, but it wasn¡¯t going to last very long. ¡°Forget that thing!¡± Mouse yelled from the pool. Somehow he had landed in it. "Kill the witch and it¡¯ll die!¡± Mei let go of me to touch her right arm. She traced a line of fire behind us. The flames shot seven feet in the air and ate three arrows. I managed to make it to the fallen gate before she caught up to me. ¡°That¡¯ll hold them off.¡± She nodded down the street. "We have to get out of the city.¡± ¡°Why?¡± I was able to get up to a jog. The arrow was still in my shoulder, but I knew we¡¯d get caught if we stopped to remove it. ¡°The only way that he could¡¯ve replaced the Shaman was if he killed all the town guards.¡± ¡°All of them?¡± I looked at the four guards beside the gate. Mei let go of me and ran ahead. She pulled up her sleeves. Over half of her runes were gone. Mostly the black ones were missing, but there were no brown or red ones. She traced her fingers over the black runes that were left. The guards glowed in a black aura. They dropped their weapons and fell to their knees. Their screams of agony sent a wave of cold down my nerves. I ran out the gate behind Mei. "What did you do to them?¡± ¡°Fear spell.¡± She answered. "I made them see their greatest fear.¡± ¡°That¡¯s¡­¡± My voice trailed off, ¡°Necessary.¡± Mei said. "I didn¡¯t have time to kill them all.¡± For some reason that comforted me and made me really appreciate that she was on my side. Chapter 27 We didn¡¯t stop running for an hour. I dropped into the grass. There wasn¡¯t much to hide behind. The entire area was one big field. The good news was that we would be able to see any troops coming until it got dark. The bad news was that they would know where we were until we got out of the zone. Mei walked over and grabbed the arrow. She broke off the head and pulled it out. I wanted to scream, but I was too tired. I hurt too much. ¡°What happened?¡± Mei asked as she started healing my shoulder ¡°He was creepy.¡± I said. "Too creepy for a computer character.¡± ¡°So?¡± ¡°I called him on it.¡± I winced as the flesh knitted back together. "And I may have mentioned my brother.¡± ¡°He knew Billy?¡± ¡°Sort of.¡± I closed my eyes, Mei stood up and dusted herself off. "How well is sort of?¡± I opened my left eye. "He may have led a raid to clean out Mouse¡¯s treasure room?¡± ¡°Your brother stole from a PK?¡± She shook her head. "Does he have a death wish?¡± Support creative writers by reading their stories on Royal Road, not stolen versions. ¡°I don¡¯t know.¡± I closed my eye. "It¡¯s not like him.¡± ¡°Not like him?¡± Mei threw my bag next to me. "He snuck into a prison so he could play a game full of criminals. What else has he done?¡± I opened my eyes and sat up. "He¡¯s always been¡­¡± I thought for a moment. "Adventurous, but he knows where the line is. He doesn¡¯t steal.¡± ¡°This whole game is built around stealing.¡± Mei sighed. "Think about it. You get a group together to attack a monster and take his treasure? Sounds like stealing to me.¡± ¡°But that¡¯s the game. It¡¯s what you¡¯re supposed to do.¡± I crossed my arms. "He wouldn¡¯t steal from a person.¡± ¡°What if he thought that person was a monster?¡± She nodded her head towards Trumpit. "Like Mouse?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know.¡± I grabbed a handful of grass. "UH! I just need to find him before he gets into any more trouble.¡± ¡°What about you?¡± Mei asked ¡°What about me?¡± ¡°That man was about to kill you.¡± She said. "If I hadn¡¯t been walking around the fence, then he would have.¡± She stared at me. "Who is going to make sure you stay out of trouble?¡± I didn¡¯t have an answer for her. I had been running so fast to try to catch up to Billy; I hadn¡¯t bothered to think about how dangerous it was for me. I decided to change the subject. "How is Michael going to find us?¡± ¡°Party members are displayed on the map.¡± She answered. "He¡¯ll know where we are.¡± She turned towards Trumpit. Guards were starting to leave the gates and head in our direction. ¡°Did you get the coin?¡± I dug into my pocket and pulled it out. "Yeah, but it won¡¯t work unless I put it in my stat book.¡± ¡°It¡¯ll work.¡± Mei promised. She pointed through the grass. "Let¡¯s go.¡± We started running. "What about Michael?¡± ¡°We¡¯ll wait for him in the next town.¡± The shouts behind us got me to run faster. I hoped Michael made it out okay. Chapter 28 We ran into one cat before we reached the border. Mei killed it without stopping. One slice of her dagger was all it was to put it down. We didn¡¯t stop running until we reached the border. I flashed the coin at the border guards and they waved us through. This zone was mountains. Mei guided us to a cave off the path. She touched her gold rune and her arm started glowing. We walked into the cave, the light of her arm illuminating our path. We walked until the cave forked. We went on the right path. Mei stopped just passed the split. She touched one of her purple runes and traced the opening with her hand. Once she let go of the rune the opening vanished behind a rock wall. ¡°What did you do?¡± I asked ¡°Illusion spell.¡± She knelt down and took a rock out. She rubbed it between her hands until it started glowing. ¡°What are you doing?¡± Mei shrugged off her cloak. "I just used almost all of my magic.¡± She showed me her arms. There were seven runes left. ¡°I have to reapply it.¡± I sat down next to her. "Should I get some?¡± The sound of her teeth grinding escaped her clenched jaw. This story is posted elsewhere by the author. Help them out by reading the authentic version. ¡°For emergencies?¡± I said ¡°Spell books are coded to an individual person.¡± She bounced her book in her hand. "It wouldn¡¯t work even if I thought you could handle it.¡± I wanted to be insulted, but Mei was exhausted. She had been casting spells for almost eight years. If it took that much out of her, then it would do worse to me. ¡°What do you need me to do?¡± Mei opened her book in front of her. "Sit over there and be quiet.¡± I moved away from her and sat down. I took the last of the cherries out of my bag. They were bruised, but I was hungry, so they tasted great. Mei tossed me a bottle of water. "Get out your map and look for Michael.¡± I took a long drink from the bottle. The water was just as good as it had been earlier. I wondered where she got it. I hadn¡¯t seen her fill any containers all day. I supposed it was possible that she carried a lot of water on her. Her backpack was very full; there could be almost anything in it. I spread the map out in front of me. Just like Mei had said, our three names were listed on it. I breathed out a sigh of relief, Michael was out of Trumpit. It looked like he had almost made it to the border. ¡°Michael¡¯s on his way!¡± I announced. ¡°Shhh!¡± Mei said in a harsh whisper. "That spell doesn¡¯t block sounds.¡± ¡°Oh.¡± I looked back at the map. There was nothing else for me to do. I watched Michael walk towards the border. I knew he was walking because of how slowly his name was moving. He had reached the border, but he wasn¡¯t crossing over. ¡°Did Michael have a coin?¡± Mei sighed. "Yes, he got his coin a long time ago.¡± There was something else she knew about that, but I didn¡¯t think it was the right time to press her. I got to my feet. "I¡¯m going to take a walk.¡± Mei waved me out. I took the map and left the cave. I had a bad feeling and I wanted to check it out with my own eyes. Chapter 29 Michael wasn¡¯t alone. There were a dozen players with him, including Mouse. The good news was that he wasn¡¯t with them willingly; the bad news was that he didn¡¯t look good. Michael¡¯s right eye was swollen shut. His lip was split in three places. His arms were bound behind him and I couldn¡¯t count the bruises, because his dark skin hid the all but the deepest purple ones. I wanted to help him, but I realized I had bigger problems when Mouse turned towards me. ¡°She¡¯s over there!¡± He pointed at the rock I was hiding behind. "Get her!¡± Half the men ran at me. I was only a hundred feet away from them, but I was up thirty feet. It would take them a little while to get to me. I turned and ran. With a map that could track me, there was nowhere I could hide. I stopped. There were too many of them, eventually I would get tired or they would catch me. I needed to rescue Michael and get the map away from Mouse. I ran back up the path to where I had been hiding. The rock I had been hiding behind was too big to push, and too far from the ledge, but there were smaller rocks I could pick up. I grabbed a rock the size of a softball and threw it at the closest guy I could see. I aimed for his head, but I got him in the upper arm. He swore as he fell. The narrative has been illicitly obtained; should you discover it on Amazon, report the violation. I dodged an arrow and hid behind the rock again. I threw a few more rocks over my shoulder. I didn¡¯t know if they connected or not, but I hoped it would slow them down. I thought about where I was going to go next. I couldn¡¯t go back to the cave. They might be able to back tack how I left, but if I ran back there, then they could physically follow me. I couldn¡¯t stay where I was. The archers would shoot me if I ran in front of the rock to throw anymore rocks at the climbers. I ducked down and ran up the path. I didn¡¯t know where to go. There were rocks everywhere, they peaked all over the place, and some were almost two hundred feet up. They had the main path blocked off. I was trapped around all of the rocks; it was just a matter of time until they caught me. I headed towards the closest peak to where they had set up camp. Most of the rocks were loose, it made climbing interesting. I had to tug on my hand holds before I put any weight on it, otherwise I would take a tumble. I kept the peak between Michael and me. I wanted to stay hidden as long as possible. I hoped for night. It was late in the afternoon, but there were still a few hours until the sun would be gone. I heard shouts below me. The men had finished their climb. They stood at the base of where I was climbing. I flattened against the rocks and looked down at them. One of them had a bow and I had nowhere to run. I grabbed every rock I could reach, trying to find any that were loose. I was only halfway to the top, but it wouldn¡¯t hide me against an arrow. I found a loose rock and pulled it out. I waited for a cascade of rocks to bury them in an avalanche. A handful of pebbles fell. The men laughed at men as the archer took aim. I started throwing rocks at him. They weren¡¯t very big and weren¡¯t going to do any real damage, but it was keeping his bow down. I started thinking. It wasn¡¯t going to be long until I ran out of rocks. I needed a plan. Chapter 30 Rescue wasn¡¯t coming. Michael was bound on the other side of the peak and Mei was busy replacing her runes. If I was going to get out alive I was going to have to do it on my own. I looked around. There had to be something I could use to fight off the PKs. There weren¡¯t any rocks I could grab that would start an avalanche. Actually, I was holding the last free rock. I spied a couple caves that I hadn¡¯t seen before. Most of them looked normal, but there was larger than the rest. There were large claw marks on the outside. I didn¡¯t know what kind of monster lived in there, but I hoped it was home. It was the only chance I had to get rid of these PKs. I pushed off the rock and slid down. I threw the rock at the archer. It bounced off his shoulder, but that gave me a few extra seconds before he could raise his bow again. The cave was behind the players and up the path. I grabbed a handful of rocks and threw them at the players as I hit the ground. They staggered back as I ran past them. ¡°Grab her!¡± One of them yelled I was glad that they were trying to grab me instead of hack me, but I knew what would happen once they caught me. Mouse wanted me dead. It probably wouldn¡¯t be quick or painless either. I ran as fast as I could. One of the players grabbed me just outside the mouth of the cave. We rolled into the cave. This book was originally published on Royal Road. Check it out there for the real experience. I punched him in the throat and kneed him in the crotch. He groaned and let go of me. I turned and ran deeper into the cave. I didn¡¯t get very far before I couldn¡¯t see anymore. I moved to the wall and moved deeper by touch. There was a low growl from deeper in the cave. I pressed my back up against the wall. I hoped it wasn¡¯t a bear. I didn¡¯t want to tangle with another one of those. The other players caught up to the mouth of the cave. Torches were lit and they began arguing about who was going to chase me into the cave. I kept moving down the wall until I could barely see the light. I kept both hands on the cold walls and shuffled my feet, so I didn¡¯t step off a cliff or into a hole. My foot hit something solid. I tried to step over it, but it was too big. I ran my hands over it. It was warm and smooth, too smooth, like it had been polished. The rock split at my knee. Red light rolled out, followed by a growl. I took a step back. A yellow orb came to life a little ways further down the cave. A black slit in the middle focused on me. The red light got brighter and the growl shook the whole cave. I turned around and ran. Three players tried to block my path, but the light behind me got brighter. They dropped their torches and moved out of my way. I pushed past them. I heard one scream before the cave shook again. The players tried to catch up to me, but neither of the remaining ones was fast enough. I heard another one scream just before it died. The players at the mouth of the cave caught me. I strained against the two large men that held my arms. ¡°There¡¯s a monster in there!¡± I screamed. "We have to get out of here!¡± ¡°There are no monsters here.¡± The archer laughed The third player ran out of the cave. He was panting hard, but he gulped for a deep breath. "DRAGON!¡± Chapter 31 The players ran. I ran behind them. I knew they were going to kill me as soon as they were safe, but the dragon had killed two of the players already. I might be able to use them as a shield to get Michael free. The dragon burst out of the cave in a spray of fire and rocks. It was fifty feet long, with the tail being fifteen feet of that. It was a brown dragon, I had read something about the color of the dragon gave it a special ability, but I couldn¡¯t remember what they were. As it flapped its big wings and rose into the air, it reminded me of a flying semi-truck. ¡°RUN! DRAGON!¡± The archer screamed as we approached the camp. The other players turned to run. ¡°You aren¡¯t going anywhere!¡± Mouse screamed. "We can take a dragon!¡± The players didn¡¯t listen, they ran. I pulled out my sword and ran to Michael. I cut the ropes on his wrists and grabbed his backpack. ¡°Where are you going?¡± Mouse¡¯s voice squeaked ¡°It¡¯s just one dragon!¡± I ripped the map out of his hands. I kept my sword pointed at him. ¡°You won¡¯t get away with this.¡± He glared at me. Unauthorized content usage: if you discover this narrative on Amazon, report the violation. Screams came from up the road. The roar of the dragon followed. ¡°You have a bigger problem.¡± I backed up to Michael. Mouse looked up the road. He turned back to me. "This isn¡¯t over.¡± I watched him leave. Instead of running towards his men, he took off up the side. I didn¡¯t sheath my sword until I couldn¡¯t see him anymore. I helped Michael to his feet. "Are you okay?¡± He tried to speak, but he only whimpered. ¡°I¡¯ll get you out of here.¡± I said The Dragon roared again. I helped him shuffle. "Hopefully before he finishes with them.¡± Michael nodded. We moved slowly up the path. I stopped a few times to make sure we weren¡¯t being followed. Michael couldn¡¯t put any weight on his left foot, so it was more like we hopped the whole way. We made it to the cave and walked through the illusion. Mei jumped to her feet and helped me lay Michael down. ¡°What happened?¡± She asked ¡°They caught him.¡± I dropped his backpack net to mine. "They used his map to track us.¡± Mei opened her spell book and flipped to a white rune. She started tracing it onto her left arm. ¡°You rescued him?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± I bobbed my head. "Actually, I woke up a dragon. It ran them off.¡± ¡°A dragon?¡± Mei stopped what she was doing and looked up at me. "Really?¡± ¡°Yep.¡± ¡°What color?¡± She turned back to her runes. ¡°Brown.¡± ¡°Impressive.¡± I watched her work. I finally felt like I had done something right. Chapter 32 We left as soon as Michael could walk. The PKs would know where Mei and I had hidden. If they managed to deal with the dragon, we would be next. Mei was wiped out. The strain of using as much magic as she had in one day was exhausting. Michael was doing a lot better. I could tell he was tired even if his cuts and bruises were healed. It was dark out when we left the cave. We got back to the road and started towards the next town. There was no sign of the dragon or the PKs. We hurried as much as we could, but it was still a two hour jog to Mount Terra. The city was built into a mountain. The wall circled the base of the mountain. A trail wound up the mountain with stores and houses filling the caves that dotted the sides. The guards moved to block us as we approached the gates. ¡°What is your business here?¡± One of the guards asked ¡°We need an inn for the night.¡± I answered ¡°Why are you out this late?¡± The other guard asked ¡°There is a dragon near the border.¡± Mei said. "It attacked our camp.¡± The guards eyed us for a few seconds. They stepped out of our way and waved us to enter the city. The narrative has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident. ¡°You told them about the dragon?¡± I asked ¡°Dragons are the scariest creatures in the game. Even the guards will respect a player running from one.¡± Mei answered I nodded. I could understand that. ¡°We need to find the inn.¡± Michael sat down in the middle of the street. I looked around. There weren¡¯t any of the caves that had an inn sign in front. "Do either of you know where the inn is?¡± Both of them shook their heads. ¡°Have either of you been here before?¡± I asked ¡°I was here last week.¡± Mei said. "But I¡¯ve not needed to sleep in an inn in years.¡± I looked at Michael. ¡°I just stopped in to sell some stuff.¡± He shrugged. "It was four years ago.¡± I turned back up the road and jogged to the gate. ¡°Excuse me!¡± I called to the guards They turned to face me. ¡°Can you tell me where the inn is?¡± I asked The guards looked at each other. ¡°Fourth cave up the road.¡± The first one said ¡°Thank you.¡± I ran back to my companions. I motioned them to follow me. I led them to the inn. We walked in. Once inside, you couldn¡¯t tell that it was a cave. The walls were covered in wood paneling. A fire crackled in the fireplace, two empty tables were in front of a small bar that the innkeeper was leaning on. A hallway behind the bar led to the rooms in the back. ¡°Three rooms.¡± Mei said as she walked up to the bar. ¡°We only have two.¡± The inn keeper picked up a mug and started wiping it out. She glanced back at me. "We¡¯ll take it.¡± She swiped her thumb on the pad on the bar. She turned around. "Let¡¯s get some sleep.¡± Chapter 33 I didn¡¯t sleep much. Mei and I shared a room, but there was only one bed. She fell asleep as soon as she hit the bed. I sat on the floor and thought. It was a small room, just a bed and a dresser, but there was plenty of room in the middle to sleep. I found it interesting that there was a light switch for the torches in the corners. I turned out the lights and sat in the darkness. I had a lot to think about. I had been so focused on catching up with Billy that I hadn¡¯t bothered to make sure that I was still alive to reach him. I needed to get better gear and training so I could survive the higher tiered zones. I didn¡¯t even know what kind of gear I would need at the higher zones. I needed information. I decided I would do some research when I woke up. I closed my eyes and laid my head on my rolled up pack. Sleep came in waves. I would drift off, but thoughts of my brother fighting against the dragon from the cave filled my dreams. I woke up and wiped the sweat off my face. It was still early, but my heart was beating so fast. I knew I wasn¡¯t going back to sleep. Mei was snoring. I moved away from the noise and felt for the door in the dark. I slipped out of the room. I wasn¡¯t going to sleep anymore. I might as well do some research. The innkeeper was still the only one at the bar. I looked out the windows. It was still dark outside. If you encounter this tale on Amazon, note that it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it. ¡°Do you need something ma¡¯am?¡± He asked I sat down at the bar. "Information.¡± He sat down across from me. "What would you like to know?¡± ¡°I need to go to the higher zones.¡± I pulled out my map. "What would be some places I should go first?¡± ¡°You want to know where to farm?¡± He asked ¡°If I need to.¡± I said. "But I¡¯m more interested in what I need in the upper zones.¡± He looked at my armor. "You¡¯re a sword fighter?¡± I nodded ¡°In light armor?¡± He asked ¡°Should I wear something else?¡± ¡°You need to be able to take a beating.¡± He raised an eyebrow. "You should have read that in your stat book.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t have a stat book.¡± I said. "How do I get one?¡± He reached under the bar and pulled one out. He passed it over to me. "If you ever lose your stat book, any vendor can replace it.¡± ¡°Thank you.¡± I turned the book around and looked at it. It had a leather cover with my name written on the front in swirly gold font. ¡°¡±Is there anything else?¡± He asked ¡°Are there any raids going on?¡± I asked ¡°In this zone?¡± He shook his head. "All the troll caves are kept pretty cleared out. Very few raiders stick around.¡± I thought for a moment. "What if I knew about a target?¡± I fingered the cover. "How would I let people know?¡± He pointed at the board by the door. ¡°That board is linked to every other one in the game.¡± He looked me over. "It has to be a real target to be put on.¡± I scooted off the stool. "I¡¯ve got a real target.¡± ¡°Really?¡± He asked. "What?¡± I grinned as I opened the menu on the board. "A dragon.¡± Chapter 34 Mei wasn¡¯t happy. I had spent the rest of the morning reading the back part of the stat book. It had the different enemies and which zones they were in. It broke down armor and weapons. Every spell in the game was listed including where to find them and how they could be used. It even had a section on how to get the credentials to go to the next zones. When Mei had got Up I had told her about creating the post to hunt the dragon. ¡°Are you crazy?¡± Mei demanded ¡°No.¡± ¡°Dragons are endgame monsters! You don¡¯t just make a post for one.¡± ¡°I¡¯ve been reading up on them.¡± I flipped my book around so she could see it. "Most dragons are difficult to kill because they take to the air. Arrows won¡¯t pierce their scales and they can breathe fire on the attackers from above.¡± ¡°I know this.¡± Mei pushed the book back to me. "I¡¯ve fought them before.¡± ¡°This one is in its lair.¡± I grabbed my map and pointed to where the cave was. "It can¡¯t get fly while it¡¯s underground.¡± ¡°No, it just eats you.¡± Mei shook her head. "You can¡¯t kill the dragon by hacking at its head. You have to hit it under its scales.¡± ¡°I know.¡± I pinched my fingers to zoom in. It was another cool thing about the maps. ¡°These caves aren¡¯t really caves.¡± I pointed at the different cave mouths around the same hill. ¡°They¡¯re really tunnels under the peaks.¡± Unauthorized tale usage: if you spot this story on Amazon, report the violation. ¡°You want to do what? Attack it from multiple sides?¡± I nodded. "If someone can keep its attention, then the rest of the group can get to it from another angle. With it trapped underground, we can take it out easily.¡± Michael stumbled into the room. He yawned loudly. "Take what out?¡± ¡°A dragon.¡± Mei leaned back in her chair and crossed her arms ¡°A what?¡± Michael rubbed his eyes ¡°A dragon.¡± Mei repeated Michael flashed me his best smile. "You¡¯re joking right?¡± I shook my head. ¡°Are you kidding?¡± He seemed a lot more awake now. "It takes fifty people to take down a dragon! How do you expect us to do it?¡± ¡°I¡¯ve got a plan.¡± I started ¡°With a lot of flaws.¡± Mei leaned forward. "Which one of us is going to hold the dragon¡¯s attention. Also how do you know which tunnel will connect to the one that the dragon is in?¡± I flipped my book to the last page. "I made a list.¡± Mei started reading the list. "Small iron shield, fireproof and illuminate spells? A spell book? Cleanse spell? Paralysis spell? I told you, you can¡¯t handle the strain of casting spells.¡± ¡°I know.¡± I nodded. "I read up on it. I have to build up my tolerance to be able to cast multiple spells, especially in a fight.¡± ¡°You want me to cast them?¡± Mei shook her head. "I only have the illuminate and paralyze spells.¡± ¡°No, I¡¯m going to enchant our gear.¡± I smiled ¡°It takes a very steady hand to enchant gear,¡± Michael said. "You aren¡¯t just tracing a spell from a page onto your arm. You have to pick the rune up stroke by stroke and put it on the weapon or armor. One mistake and you have to start over.¡± ¡°I know.¡± I took a deep breath. "But I was going to major in art before I dropped when my parents died.¡± Michael glanced over at Mei. The silence hung in the air until it became unbearably uncomfortable. ¡°Why a dragon?¡± Mei asked. "What happened to finding your brother?¡± ¡°You said Billy is always joining the toughest raids.¡± I bit my lip. "Do you think he¡¯d try to take on a dragon?¡± Chapter 35 We had a lot of gathering to do. We decided to split up. The cleanse spell was in a spider nest closer to the border of the beach zone. Mei went after that. Man sized spiders wouldn¡¯t give her many problems and it would give her a chance to charge up her dagger. The fireproof spell was in a temple in the snow zone up north. Michael went after that. I was concerned that he was going to have trouble with the temple guardians. According to the book it was full of Yetis. Michael showed me in his stat book where he had taken out a dozen Yetis before. It made me feel a little better, but still uneasy. He was holding back on just how good he was. I wondered what else he was hiding. With my other two party members off on their quests, it left me with gathering the supplies to buy a shield and a spell book. While I was out looking for ore in the mountains, I would also be looking for more tunnels that led to the dragon. Mei bought me a pickaxe before she left. It was heavy, but it was the best thing to use to farm in this zone. She also paid for the room at the inn for three days. That was all they would need to get their items and get back. I walked the roads around the Mount Terra. Most of the players had moved on to higher zones, or prettier ones. I didn¡¯t blame them. Most of the ore deposits were copper, there weren¡¯t any gems and everything else was rocks. It wasn¡¯t a place that I would want to spend most of my time. The first place that I checked was the cave that the dragon had come out of. I didn¡¯t bother going very far into the cave. I didn¡¯t have to. The low growl of the dragon sleeping echoed up to the mouth of the cave. This story originates from a different website. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there. I did find the PKs that the dragon had killed. Their ¡®friends¡¯ hadn¡¯t bothered to pick up their bodies. None of the scavenger animals had found them yet. I knelt down net to the archer. His head was missing, but the rest of him was intact. I wondered if he was one of the lucky ones. Only a few of the players had been able to wake up before their body died in the real world. I took his quiver and the eleven arrows it held and put them in my bag. Michael could use the arrows, and the quiver we could sell. I thought about taking his armor, but the thought of undressing a dead man turned my stomach. I patted him down. None of the PKs had brought any bags, just their weapons. There weren¡¯t any gold or other items. They had prepared to kill a newbie, they must not have thought I¡¯d put up much of a fight. I got two swords, a dagger, and a big axe. The axe wouldn¡¯t fit in my bag, so I carried it over my shoulder. I found the archer¡¯s bow up the trail. The dragon had snapped it in half. I took the draw string and walked around the base of the hill. It took me a few hours, but I marked all the openings that I could find. It would have gone faster if I hadn¡¯t been carrying all the weapons and if I hadn¡¯t stopped every time I thought I saw a copper deposit. It was helpful that the game would outline where to hit the veins to break off the copper ore. The downside was that I was really bad at telling what was copper and what wasn¡¯t. It got to the point where I wouldn¡¯t take the pickaxe out unless the blue light outlined the rock. With my map marked up and the bottom of my pack lined with chunks of copper ore, I trudged back to Mount Terra. I had hoped that I could find a shield with the bodies, but I hadn¡¯t really expected it. PKs didn¡¯t need defensive weapons. They focused more on all out attacks. Now I just had to sell what I¡¯d collected and buy the last of what we would need. Chapter 36 Vendors are crooks. The town blacksmith was a big Irish man. Greasy red braids draped over each shoulder. He was wearing a smudged white apron over his bare chest and black pants. I supposed the black pants made it easier to hide the soot. He was also a computer character. I could tell by the way he moved, and lots of repetitive motions and pointless stoking the fire of the forge. I pointed at the round gray shield hanging on the wall. "That is not worth all of this!¡± ¡°The shield is two hundred.¡± He pointed at my items. "A hundred for the ore, twenty for each of the blades, forty for the axe.¡± ¡°That shield has been used!¡± I pointed at a dent. "And not gently!¡± ¡°That¡¯s why it¡¯s only two hundred.¡± He said. "A new one is five hundred.¡± I picked up the ore. ¡°You don¡¯t want it?¡± He asked ¡°I do want it.¡± I put the blades back in my bag. "But I won¡¯t trade all of my items for it.¡± He shrugged. "Your loss.¡± I left the blacksmith and headed back to the inn. It was just past noon. If I went back out, I could probably get enough copper ore to buy the shield with what I had, but I wasn¡¯t going to lug all of this around. I waved at the bar keep as I walked back to my room. The one good thing about the game was that rooms could only be accessed by the people staying in them. Not even party members could walk in unless they were invited. If you encounter this narrative on Amazon, note that it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it. I dropped the weapons on the floor and dumped the ore next to it. I knew that they would still be there when I got back. I locked the door when I left the room. On a hunch I stopped at the bar. ¡°Where can I buy a spell book?¡± The bar keep put down the mug he was cleaning. "There¡¯s a mage school up the road.¡± ¡°Do you know how much they charge?¡± ¡°There are some quests you can do.¡± He said. "You¡¯d have to join up with them though.¡± ¡°Join up with them?¡± I asked. "You mean join their group?¡± ¡°Their guild.¡± He said. "You didn¡¯t read about guilds?¡± I shook my head. He picked up another mug and started wiping it out. "It¡¯s in your book.¡± I sat down at one of the tables. I had yet to see any patrons come through the inn, except my group. I wondered how much traffic he actually got and why he was always cleaning the mugs. I flipped to the section about Guilds. Guilds existed to make progressing in a certain type of play style easier for the players. For instance the Mage Guild would help new players that wanted to cast spells. By doing a series of gathering quests and proving an aptitude for casting spells, I could earn certain spells from the Mage Guild without having to buy or hunt them down. There were drawbacks. In the schools of magic there were a lot of Guilds. Each of these could be at war with any of the other Guilds at any time. If I joined the Mage Guild and it started fighting with the Necromancer Guild, then I wouldn¡¯t be able to be in a group with Mei. Though it would only count if she was in the Necromancer Guild. I wasn¡¯t sure if she was or not, I¡¯d have to ask her when she got back. Leaving a Guild wasn¡¯t as easy as just walking away. Every Guild item would be destroyed when you left the Guild. If I wanted to join back up with the Guild at a later time, I would have to pay a fine and the items that I had gotten before, I would have to earn all over again. I waved a thank you to the bar keep and left. I didn¡¯t plan on joining the Mage Guild, but it was worth checking out. Chapter 37 This was the lightning branch. The two large yellow stones in front of the door that arched when I got close was my first clue. The second was the big yellow sign over the door that read Mage Guild ¨C Lightning Specialty. I walked through the swinging wooden doors. It reminded me of the old westerns that I used to watch with my father. I pictured myself walking into a salon out west, complete with the loud cowboys and piano. There was no piano inside, or cowboys, but there were a lot of yellow stones on the ceiling that lit up the room. Glass cases lined the walls. Each case housed a different item, but every one of them had a yellow hue. I was drawn to a case to my left. Inside was a sword like the one I had on my hip. That wasn¡¯t true. The sword in the case was much better than the one I carried. Silver runes ran up the blade, casting a yellow hue out of the edges. It crackled with power, so much that it shocked me when I touched the case. The hilt was even better, black runes were scored into the leather. It looked like it weighed less than the one I had. All of that wasn¡¯t the best part either. The best part was the yellow stone in the base of the hilt. What I was looking at was a soul blade like the one that Mei carried. ¡°You like?¡± A young Hispanic man walked up to me. He was wearing a blue robe to cover his arms, but he had the hood back. I looked down at him. He had kind brown eyes. I instantly knew that he was a player and not a character. ¡°It¡¯s very nice.¡± I said. "But I didn¡¯t come here to buy.¡±Stolen from its original source, this story is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings. ¡°It doesn¡¯t hurt to look.¡± He waved at the character behind the counter. A tall figure in a purple robe walked over to us. Even with his hood up and his arms covered I could tell that this person had power. ¡°This young lady.¡± He paused. "What¡¯s your name?¡± ¡°Kat.¡± I said ¡°Hi Kat.¡± He held out his hand. "I¡¯m Jonnie.¡± I shook his hand. Before I could say anything he turned back to the mage in purple. "Anyway. Kat.¡± He winked at me. "Would like to look at Fulgur Sectis.¡± ¡°Oh no,¡± I held up my hands. "I¡¯m good.¡± The Mage unlocked the case and took out the sword. He offered it to me hilt first. ¡°Really.¡± I waved my hands. "I¡¯m good.¡± ¡°Come on.¡± Jonnie smiled. "It doesn¡¯t cost anything to look.¡± I sighed and took the sword. I had been expecting it to weigh a little less than mine, but it felt like I was holding a feather. I twisted the sword in the air in front of me. I could move it as fast as I could twist my wrist. I felt like I could swing it for hours and never get tired. With each swing it buzzed. It was like I had a personal bee following the sword as I cut the air. ¡°You should try the power.¡± Jonnie pointed at the hilt The mage took the sword from my hand. "Not indoors.¡± Jonnie shrugged. "I tried.¡± The mage replaced the sword in the case. "Twenty thousand.¡± I felt my eyes bulge. "Twenty thousand gold? For a sword?¡± ¡°Not just a sword.¡± Jonnie held up a finger. "Fulgur Sectis.¡± I shook my head. "Thanks, but I didn¡¯t come here for a sword.¡± The mage nodded and went back behind the counter. ¡°What did you come here for?¡± Jonnie asked. "I could help you find it.¡± ¡°I just need a spell book.¡± I said. Chapter 38 He had been expecting something bigger. ¡°A spell book?¡± Jonnie wrinkled his nose. "You do know that Mages don¡¯t carry swords.¡± ¡°I know.¡± I said. "I don¡¯t want it to cast the spells. I want it for enchanting.¡± ¡°Enchanting? Ha!¡± He laughed. "You do know that¡¯s like the hardest profession in the game?¡± ¡°Then I¡¯ll have to practice.¡± I said. "Can you help me get a spell book or not?¡± He looked me over. I got the feeling he was checking me out more than sizing me up. I crossed my arms in front of me. ¡°You wouldn¡¯t be interested in joining the Guild would you?¡± He asked I shook my head. ¡°Lots of free stuff.¡± He smiled. "Including a bed in every town where they have a branch.¡± ¡°I¡¯d rather not pick a side if I don¡¯t have to.¡± I replied ¡°That¡¯s cool.¡± He turned to the shop keeper. "Hey Merlin! Do you have any work you need done?¡± ¡°His name is Merlin?¡± I asked ¡°Nah,¡± Jonnie grinned. "It¡¯s something really long, old, and complicated, so I call him Merlin.¡± ¡°Oh.¡± ¡°Mer-lin.¡± Jonnie sang. "We¡¯ve got an outsider that wants to work for a book. Whatcha got?¡±Stolen from its rightful author, this tale is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings. The character in the purple robes turned towards me. "You want work?¡± I nodded. "I just need a spell book. I can get my own spells.¡± He opened up the book on the counter. He flipped through a few pages. Once he found what he was looking for he turned the book around so I could read the page. ¡°Shock rocks.¡± He pointed at the yellow stones on the page. They were the same rocks that were all over the store. ¡°I need forty two of them. Bring them back and I¡¯ll give you a spell book.¡± ¡°Can you tell me where to find the shock rocks?¡± I asked ¡°I know!¡± Jonnie looked at the shop keeper. "I can go with her.¡± ¡°Is that acceptable?¡± Merlin asked I looked at Jonnie. If he could help me, then I wasn¡¯t going to refuse. I just wondered what he was going to want for it. ¡°It¡¯s fine.¡± I said ¡°Awesome!¡± Jonnie clapped his hands together. "So what I¡¯m thinking is that we go grab something to eat, maybe a few drinks, maybe a catch a few Zs.¡± He smiled. "Rest is important before a quest.¡± ¡°I need that book as soon as possible.¡± I said. "We leave now.¡± ¡°Okay.¡± He gave me a half grin. "That¡¯s cool.¡± ¡°Do you need to grab something?¡± I asked ¡°No ma''am.¡± He patted his arms. "I keep everything I need right here.¡± ¡°Uh-huh.¡± I said. "Let¡¯s go.¡± Jonnie walked out of the store. "So do you have like a boyfriend or something?¡± I stopped. "Jonnie.¡± He smiled at me. "Yes.¡± I gestured between us. "Not going to happen.¡± ¡°Oh.¡± He frowned. "Are you like into girls? Cause if you are that¡¯s cool. I could be your wingman.¡± ¡°No. I¡¯m into guys¡± I sighed. "Look I just want to get this quest over with.¡± ¡°It¡¯s all good.¡± He started walking toward the gate. He looked at me over his shoulder. "After we¡¯re done we can grab a few drinks and whatever, cause you know what they say.¡± I knew I was going to regret it, but I asked anyway. "No, what?¡± I felt his grin. "What happens in the game, stays in the game.¡± Chapter 39 I wanted to kill him. I wondered what it would be like to be a PK. That got me thinking about if it would be considered murder. Most of the players that died in the game also died in real life. That meant by killing someone here, I would also be killing them in the real world. I didn¡¯t know how closely the developers could watch monitor the game. I decided it would be better not to chance it. Jonnie hadn¡¯t shut up the entire trip. It was like he could still talk whether he was breathing in or out. His stories were wild and extravagant. I wondered how much of it was just storytelling and how much he had actually done. I was leaning towards mostly the former. The shock rocks were at the top of the peaks. During storms lightning would strike the tops of the peaks and charge the stones. These charged stones could be melted down in a forge and converted into electric based material. Most of the rock would be destroyed, the forty two chucks I was after would be enough to make half a dagger blade. Climbing up the peaks wasn¡¯t too difficult for me. Jonnie on the other hand, wasn¡¯t cut out for climbing. The hem of his robe kept getting caught on everything. He constantly had to shake out his sleeves to grab the next hold. I found myself spending more time waiting for him to catch up than I was spending on actually climbing. ¡°Can¡¯t you just take that thing off?¡± I asked while I waited for him to catch up yet again. ¡°I¡¯ll need some music if you want me to strip for you.¡± He winked at meStolen content alert: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences. ¡°Uh!¡± I picked up a rock and thought about throwing it at him. I set it back down. "You¡¯re slowing me down!¡± He pulled himself up next to me. We were only halfway up the peak. The sun was already starting to go down. We might have enough daylight left to make it to the top, but we were going to have to make the trek back to town in the dark. ¡°You¡¯ve got a point.¡¯ He wheezed. He grabbed the front of his robe and pulled it off. I had been expecting his arms to be covered in runes. Every rune on his body was blue, but that wasn¡¯t what shocked me. It was the tattoos on the back of his shoulders and the scars that crisscrossed his body. ¡°Sexy huh?¡± He wadded up his robe and threw it at me. "Put that in your bag.¡± I stuffed the robe into my bag. "Those tats?¡± ¡°They¡¯re runes.¡± He ran his fingers over the runes. "I¡¯m an Ice Mage.¡± ¡°No that¡¯s not...¡± I started. "Wait, you¡¯re an Ice Mage?¡± ¡°That¡¯s what I said.¡± ¡°At a lightning branch?¡± ¡°Mount Terra is out of the way.¡± He shrugged. "I wanted some alone time.¡± I eyed him. Jonnie wasn¡¯t a loner. He was someone that wanted to be in the middle of things. "You¡¯re running.¡± ¡°I didn¡¯t say¡­¡± His voice trailed off. "Look, can we just enjoy the day?¡± ¡°I didn¡¯t mean to pry.¡± I stood up. "How much further up?¡± He looked up. "All the way.¡± The look in his eyes told me that he wanted to talk, but that it was painful for him to talk about. He had a story to tell, but right now wasn¡¯t the time. I could wait until he was ready to tell it. I touched him on the shoulder. "¡±Let¡¯s see how fast you can climb now.¡± He grinned. "I¡¯m going to beat you to the top!¡± I smiled as I watched him climb. I hoped he would. Chapter 40 I made it to the top first. Jonnie made a valiant effort, but he was still slow at climbing. He did make it just after I did, which I had to give him credit for. Losing the robe had made him faster. The sun was setting behind the mountains. Jonnie sat down on the edge of the cliff. ¡°Come here. You¡¯ve got to see this.¡± He waved me over I picked up a shock rock. "I¡¯ve seen sunsets.¡± ¡°Not like this.¡± He held out his hand. "Trust me.¡± I put the shock rock in my pack. "I don¡¯t have time to sit around and watch a fake sunset. I have to get these things picked up.¡± ¡°Tell you what.¡± Jonnie scooted over. "You watch the sunset with me and I carry the bag back.¡± I looked at the shock rocks. They were the size of a baseball. A few of them wouldn¡¯t be bad, but forty two of them were going to be heavy. ¡°Fine.¡± I dropped the bag and sat down next to him. ¡°I promise you, you¡¯ve never seen anything like this.¡± He draped his left arm over my shoulders.This text was taken from Royal Road. Help the author by reading the original version there. I pinched his thumb and pulled his hand off of me. "No.¡± ¡°I didn¡¯t mean nothing.¡± He pulled his arm back. "I was just trying to uh, enhance the experience.¡± ¡°The experience is fine like it is.¡± I said ¡°You say that now.¡± Jonnie gestured at the reds and oranges that were painting the sky. "Just wait.¡± The reds started splitting into purples. Clouds began reflecting the colors. The further the sun sank the more colors covered the sky. It was like watching rainbows jump from cloud to cloud and mountain top. It wasn¡¯t long before the rainbows pulled apart like threads. The threads began crossing across each other. It was like watching the largest light show I had ever seen. We sat for over an hour. He was right; it was the best sunset I had ever seen. When the last of the lights vanished, he turned to me. ¡°Was I right?¡± He grinned. "Have you ever seen anything like that?¡± I got up and brushed the dust off my pants. "It was okay.¡± ¡°Okay?¡± He raised his eyebrows. "Just okay? Are you crazy?¡± ¡°It was¡­¡± My voice trailed off ¡°The coolest, most bestest thing you¡¯ve ever seen?¡± He prompted I picked up a shock rock and put it in the bag. It had been the prettiest sunset I had ever seen, but I didn¡¯t want to tell him that. ¡°It was worth it.¡± I admitted ¡°See?¡± He bounced over to me and punched me in the arm. "I told you it would be worth it!¡± I stepped away from him. ¡°Have you ever heard of personal space?¡± He pounded his bare chest. "Yo, I love everybody.¡± ¡°You¡¯re a lover, not a fighter?¡± I snickered ¡°You better believe it.¡± He grinned I tossed him the bag. He caught it. "What¡¯s this for?¡± ¡°You¡¯re carrying the bag, lover.¡± I winked at him. Chapter 41 It took us an hour to finish. The part I hadn¡¯t thought of was how we were going to get down. We were over a hundred feet above the ground. There wasn¡¯t a trail down. If we were climbing down, then we could¡¯ve just crawled down the same way that we came up. The problem was that there was no way to hang onto the bag of shock rocks and climb down. Jonnie sat down on the edge of the peak. He tucked the bag into his lap. "You wanna see something cool?¡± ¡°Sure.¡± I looked over at him. ¡°Not over there.¡± He waved me closer. "You have to be closer.¡± I moved behind him. "What do you want to show me?¡± He held out his right hand and touched one of the runes on his arm. Ice shot out of hand. It started making an ice slide in front of him. ¡°See you at the bottom!¡± He pushed off. As he slid down, he kept extending the slide. About a third of the way from the ground he swapped hands. He landed on the ground in a few seconds. ¡°Come on!¡± He waved at me from the ground. "It¡¯s fun!¡± I sat down at the top of the slide. I couldn¡¯t remember the last time I had been on a slide. I pushed off and slid down. The ice was cold and slick. Mixed with the cool breeze in my face, it felt almost like I was in a winter adventure. I tried not to smile as I hit the ground, but the laugh bubbled out of me. It was fun.Enjoying this book? Seek out the original to ensure the author gets credit. ¡°There it is!¡± Jonnie grinned. "I knew you could have some fun.¡± I smiled. "That was fun.¡± He pointed at the top. "You wanna do it again?¡± He patted his arms. "I¡¯ve still got enough magic for another run.¡± I thought about saying yes. It had been forever since I had actually had fun, but we needed to get the shock rocks back to Merlin. ¡°Not right now.¡± I shook my head. "We need to get back.¡± ¡°And there¡¯s the business first chick.¡± Jonnie slung the bag over his shoulder. "It¡¯s cool. Anytime you want another ride, just let me know.¡± I grinned and started off up the road. Jonnie jogged to catch up to me. "So what do you need the spell book for anyways?¡± ¡°I told you.¡± I said. "Enchanting.¡± ¡°I know that.¡± He smiled. "But enchanting is tough. It takes a special kind of artist to do it.¡± He moved in front of me. "What do you need enchanted?¡± ¡°Just some gear.¡± I tried not to let it show that I was impressed he was walking backwards, though I was silently hoping I could angle him into backing in to something. ¡°You don¡¯t pick up enchanting so you can enchant ¡®just some gear¡¯.¡± He stopped. "What¡¯s the rush?¡± ¡°A dragon.¡± I said ¡°What?¡± He dropped the bag. "You¡¯re going to take out a dragon?¡± I nodded. ¡°You know that there have only been like a dozen of those things killed in the last eight years.¡± He rubbed his chin. "Do you have a death wish?¡± I thought about explaining how I hoped to lure my brother into the fight, but the last time I had mentioned my brother, it hadn¡¯t gone well. I decided to try a different tactic. ¡°Follow me.¡± Chapter 42 I took him to the dragon¡¯s cave. ¡°In there is a brown dragon.¡± I pointed into the cave. ¡°Are you sure?¡± Jonnie dropped the bag and stuck his head in the mouth of the cave. "How far back is he?¡± ¡°Far enough.¡± I said. ¡°Trust me, I checked this morning. He¡¯s still in there.¡± ¡°Are you sure it isn¡¯t a wyvern?¡± He asked. "They look kinda the same.¡± I led him to where the bodies were. Buzzards were picking at the corpses. I gripped my sword. ¡°Whoa!¡± Jonnie grabbed my hand. "Don¡¯t mess with their food and they won¡¯t mess with you.¡± I let go of my sword. "I hate buzzards.¡± ¡°Most people do.¡± Jonnie grinned. "They¡¯re the annoying creature in this game.¡± I backed away and let him get close. The buzzards screamed at him, but they didn¡¯t leave their meal. Jonnie stopped when he had seen enough and walked back to me. "That wasn¡¯t a wyvern.¡± He admitted. ¡°How can you tell?¡± I asked ¡°Wyverns have beaks.¡± He leaned up against a rock. "It would¡¯ve crushed the head before it pulled it off.¡± He winced. "A lot messier.¡± I felt my stomach roll. I really didn¡¯t want to talk about the differences between how dragons and wyverns killed.The narrative has been illicitly obtained; should you discover it on Amazon, report the violation. Jonnie must have noticed my discomfort. "So why are you so set on killing this dragon?¡± I shrugged. "It should be easy.¡± He laughed. "Girl, dragons are never easy.¡± He grinned. "They¡¯re harder than calculus.¡± I chuckled. I never knew what he was going to say. "I¡¯ve got a plan.¡± ¡°You¡¯ve got a plan?¡± He crossed his arms. "To take out a dragon alone?¡± ¡°I have a party.¡± ¡°Really?¡± He scoffed. "You found a bunch of people as crazy as you?¡± ¡°Yes I did.¡± I smiled. "They think my plan is a good one.¡± ¡°So where are they?¡± He looked around. "Cause it looks like you¡¯re the only one here.¡± ¡°They¡¯re getting the last of what we need.¡± He nodded. "Okay. Tell you what. You explain to me about this plan. If it¡¯s a good as you say, then I¡¯m in.¡± ¡°Who said I asked you to join?¡± I asked ¡°Baby I¡¯m an Ice Mage.¡± He flashed a smile. "We¡¯re like the dragon¡¯s natural predators.¡± ¡°You¡¯ve killed a dragon?¡± ¡°No,¡± He bobbed his head. "But that¡¯s only because I¡¯ve never been around when there was a raid to take one down.¡± He clapped his hands and rubbed them together. "So let¡¯s hear this plan.¡± I took out my sword and drew a rough sketch of the mound. ¡°The dragon is in the middle of the tunnels.¡± I drew a stick figure. "I go in and keep its attention while¡­¡± I drew two other stick figures on a different tunnel. "The rest of my party goes up behind it and stabs it in the belly.¡± ¡°Just a few flaws.¡± Jonnie pointed at my stick figure. "The dragon is either going to roast you or eat you.¡± ¡°I take a shield and enchant it with fireproof.¡± I said ¡°What about its petrifying breath?¡± ¡°Cleanse runes on the armor.¡± I countered ¡°What if it tries to run you over?¡± ¡°Paralysis weapons to slow it down. Hit it enough and we can take it down without any more fighting.¡± I smiled. "Anything else?¡± ¡°Just one other thing.¡± He stood up. "What if it gets out?¡± I winked at him. "We have our Ice Mage freeze its wings and drop it.¡± He smiled. "In that case, count me in!¡± Chapter 43 The trip back to town was uneventful. Jonnie kept talking about what he was going to spend his part of the rewards on. I blocked most of it out. I was pretty sure that an indoor snow globe didn¡¯t exist, but we were living in a game. Anything could happen. We walked into the Mage Guild and Jonnie dropped the bag on the counter. One good thing about character stores was that they were always open. Merlin counted the rocks and dropped them behind the counter. Once we were done, he dropped a spell book in the bag. ¡°Thank you.¡± I said as I picked up my bag. I pulled Jonnie¡¯s robe out of the bottom and tossed it to him. "Put some clothes on.¡± He slipped into the robe. "What spells did you get?¡± I flipped open the spell book. There ten pages in the book. The first one had an electric spell, the second one had a light spell, and the third one had a healing spell. All were low level and would have been easy to cast. ¡°Not much.¡± I showed him the spells. "How do you get more pages?¡± ¡°They get added automatically.¡± He looked over the spells. "You want some better ones?¡± I eyed him. "For what?¡± ¡°Whoa!¡± He grinned. "Not everything is some master plot to screw you.¡± I glared at him. "What do you want?¡± ¡°I¡¯m curious if you can actually enchant like you say you can.¡± He pulled out a dagger. "Tell you what. I¡¯ll give you my Ice path spell. You enchant it on this dagger. If the enchantment sticks, then I¡¯ll let you have any five of my spells that you want.¡±Unauthorized use: this story is on Amazon without permission from the author. Report any sightings. ¡°Five spells just to enchant a dagger?¡± I asked ¡°Six actually,¡± He handed me the dagger. "You get the Ice Slide either way.¡± I set the dagger down. "Deal.¡± He opened his book to the Ice Slide rune and passed it to me. I took the pen out of the spine of my spell book. I laid the rune under one of my blank pages and started copying. It was really easy. The rune was blue, but it was so dark, it begged me to copy it to the blank page. I finished in less than a minute. Jonnie took his spell book back and admired my work. "You¡¯re a natural at this.¡± I let a smile cross my face, but I bit it off quick. I didn¡¯t want his praise to distract me. I set the dagger down on the page opposite the rune. I had read up on how to enchant something, but I hadn¡¯t actually done it yet. The pressure of what would happen if I messed up got my hands to shake a little. Jonnie took both of my hands in his. He brought them up, so I¡¯d look him in the eyes. "You¡¯ll do fine.¡± He grinned. "You got this.¡± I let out a long breath and pulled my hands away. I was good at drawing. This would be easy. I brushed the tip of the pen over the outside of the rune. After I did, the blue part vanished, leaving only a grey outline where it had been deep blue. I moved over to the dagger and made the same stroke I had just made. The blue edge of the rune started on the base of the blade. I kept taking the circle away until I had transferred the circle completely over to the dagger. I set the pen down and stretched my fingers. The strain of being perfect was helping them cramp, though it probably had a lot to do with how tight I was gripping the pen. I picked the pen back up and started on the inner rune. The outside was the easy part. It was just the area that the rune rested in. The inside was the part that actually held the power. I moved slower with the actual rune, making sure that I got every stroke right. When I was finished I set the pen down. The rune in my spell book was completely gray. The one on the dagger shone a soft blue. I handed it to Jonnie. "What do you think?¡± He grinned. "Let¡¯s try it out.¡± Chapter 44 ¡°Not inside!¡± Merlin shouted I fully expected him to try it anyway. There was a glint in his eyes that told me he wanted to. I put my hand on his arm. "You heard him. Outside.¡± Jonnie pouted his lip, but he turned and walked out of the building. I collected my things and followed him outside. Jonnie had already walked into the middle of the street. He looked over at me to make sure I was watching. Once he knew that he had my attention, he plunged the dagger into the ground. I had been expecting it would do ice damage somehow, though I wasn¡¯t sure how it could since there were no hit points. Instead of the blade doing something, it was the ground. A sheet of ice spread out in a circle, covering the road five feet out in every direction. ¡°It works!¡± Jonnie pulled the dagger out. The ice stayed on the ground. He slipped as he walked over to me. I put my hands on my hips. "You doubted me?¡± ¡°Nah.¡± He smiled. "I just didn¡¯t think it would work that well.¡± ¡°It worked too well?¡± I asked He tapped on the rune on the blade. It had gone to gray just like the one in my spell book.Unauthorized duplication: this narrative has been taken without consent. Report sightings. ¡°This is a more powerful version of the same spell.¡± He put his hand on the ground. "Watch.¡± He touched one of the same runes on his arm. The ice shot out of his palm and covered the ground in a circle three feet out from his hand. ¡°See?¡± He got up. "You¡¯ve got mad skills.¡± I nodded. "So I get those spells?¡± He pulled his spell book out. "Any five you want.¡± He flipped through it. "This is my strongest ice spell.¡± I read the description. It would release a blast of hail in the direction that the hand was pointing. I assumed that if it was put on a weapon, it would release the hail in the direction the blade was pointing. I copied the spell. It had some very complicated runes inside the circle, but basically I was just shading in. It didn¡¯t take me long to copy. Almost all of his spells were ice based. I could understand why he called himself the Ice Mage. I copied an Ice wall spell and an Icicle spell. For my last two I picked a beginner fire spell and a beginner water spell. As I finished copying the water spell, I realized I had seen the rune before. Mei had it carved into the bottles she kept in her backpack. It let her carry around empty bottles. When she wanted something to drink, she could trigger the rune and she would always have plenty of water. ¡°What now?¡± Jonnie asked ¡°We wait for the rest of my group to get back.¡± I gathered up my stuff ¡°So you wanna grab that drink now?¡± Jonnie grinned I looked up at the sky. It was late. I was tired. "Not going to happen.¡± I started up the road. "I¡¯ll come get you when we¡¯re ready!¡± I called over my shoulder ¡°Don¡¯t do me like that!¡± Jonnie whined. "I gots plenty more stuff I can teach you.¡± ¡°Goodnight!¡± I yelled I made it to the inn without him following me. I knew that he¡¯d be pestering me in the morning, but I didn¡¯t plan on leaving my room. He wouldn¡¯t be able to get in, so I wouldn¡¯t have to deal with him until I was ready. That was a tomorrow problem. Right now, I just wanted to sleep. Chapter 45 I slept well for the first time since I got in the game. I stretched and jumped out of bed. I felt refreshed and ready to try out my hand at enchanting. I grabbed the dagger from the floor and set it on the bed. I had enchanted a dagger with the Ice Slide spell before, and I was sure I could do it again. I flipped my spell book to the Ice Slide spell. It had returned to its normal blue hue. Like the enchantments, all I had to do was wait for a few hours and the spell would recharge and I could use it to enchant another item. I copied the spell over to the dagger. This time I was faster. I held the dagger up to the light and examined the rune. I was perfect. I set the dagger down and picked up one of the swords. I turned to the fire spell. I transferred it over to the sword. The second sword got the electric spell. I kept any enchantments off of my sword. I wasn¡¯t sure how many enchantments it could hold and I needed the paralysis enchantment on it. I thought about what to put on the axe. I was a bigger weapon, so it felt like it needed a bigger enchantment. I turned to the Hail Storm spell. It was the biggest spell I had, so I might as well use it. The axe was double-bladed, with each head larger than my hand. I thought about where to put the rune. It would make sense to put it on the shaft, so that it could be triggered while fighting, but with the spell, I didn¡¯t know if it would go off out the blades, or down the shaft. I decided the safest thing to do was to put it on one of the heads. That way, it could be triggered out the blade when it connected with something.Stolen content alert: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences. I quickly transferred the circle over, but after one glance at the rune, I knew it wasn¡¯t going to be as easy as the others. This one had lots of curves and swirls. It was going to be difficult to match every stroke perfectly. It took me almost an hour, but I finished. I held the axe up and examined my handiwork. I didn¡¯t know what a bad rune looked like. All I had to go on was that the runes in my spell book were depleted and that the ones on the weapons looked like the ones from the book. I gathered up the weapons and copper ore. I had an idea what I wanted to do with them now. I left the room. As I predicted, Jonnie was waiting for me at the bar. ¡°You ready to have that drink with me?¡± He asked I was about to reply when Mei walked in. I smiled sweetly at him. "Mei! I¡¯d like you to meet my friend Jonnie.¡± Jonnie turned around to look at the new person in the room. Before he could say anything, his skin turned gray. His mouth clamped shut and he almost fell out of his chair. ¡°Aren¡¯t you going to say hello?¡± I asked Mei glared at him. "Mage.¡± ¡°You know what.¡± Jonnie slid off his stool. "I¡¯m uh, going to go wait back at the Guild.¡± I waved to him as he left. ¡°Who is that?¡± Mei didn¡¯t bother to try to hide her disgust ¡°Just a friend.¡± I answered. Mei raised an eyebrow. ¡°Okay, he¡¯s the guy who helped me get a spell book. Now I kind of owe him, so I¡¯m letting him go on the dragon hunt.¡± Mei shook her head. "Mage are glass. He¡¯ll break the first time it looks at him.¡± ¡°Then we won¡¯t have to worry about him long,¡± I shifted my bag to my other shoulder. "Did you get it?¡± Mei nodded. ¡°Good. Give me a few minutes to sell these and I¡¯ll be back and start enchanting the items.¡± Mei turned towards the room. I could tell she was tired. I hoped she wouldn¡¯t fall asleep before I got back. I really didn¡¯t want to see what she was like when she got woke up. Chapter 46 The blacksmith gave me more for the items. The swords went up to two hundred each, while the dagger jumped to three hundred. The axe jumped up to a thousand. I was quite proud of my enchanting skills. I bought a new shield for five hundred and traded the ore for four copper rings. With my new supplies in hand and plenty of extra money, I headed back to the room. Mei was waiting for me. Her spell book on her lap and had she was on the page for the cleanse spell. ¡°Do you know how to do a reactionary spell?¡± Mei asked ¡°What¡¯s that?¡± I had read up on enchanting, but I hadn¡¯t done much research on the spells themselves. ¡°It¡¯s where the rune is transferred without the seal around it. The spell will trigger the first time it is able to be used.¡± She explained. "The reaction spell isn¡¯t as potent, but it will be used automatically, which can be more useful.¡± I instantly saw how that could be useful. I dropped the rings on the bed. "I can put the cleanse spell on these.¡± Mei nodded and passed me her book. I transferred the cleanse spell. As well as the paralysis spell. Once I was done, I started transferring the runes over to the rings.Stolen from its original source, this story is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings. I realized how much harder it was within a few seconds. Without the circle around it, the rune twisted on the ring. I had to time my strokes just right to add little pieces onto the rune. It took a lot longer, but I finished it. I turned around to show Mei, but she was asleep. I wondered if she had gone the entire time without resting. I turned back to the book. None of my other runes had recharged yet, so I flipped to the paralysis page. I touched the pen to the outer circle, but I lifted it up. A triggered spell was more potent, but all I wanted was a blade that could paralyze. I moved the pen to the rune. I wasn¡¯t going to make this a triggered affect. The paralysis rune was more complicated than the cleanse rune, but not as complicated as the Hail Storm one. It wasn¡¯t long before I learned the rhythm of the runes movements on the blade. Once I had that down, it was easy to finish copying it over. I held up my sword and watched as the rune spread out over the blade. A faint yellow cover the blade and buzzed with power. I resisted the urge to swing it. I didn¡¯t want the buzzing to wake up Mei. The Cleanse rune wasn¡¯t charged back yet, so I took out my map to check on Michael. He was on his way back to Mount Terra. Judging by how far away he was I could tell that I had at least an hour left before he arrived. I left the room and sat at the bar. I wondered if my plan would work. I hoped that my brother had seen the raid and would join up. I checked the board to see if anyone had shown any interest. There were a few comments about rushing to our deaths, but nothing positive. It looked like it would just be the four of us. I waiting at the bar until Michael came in. He handed me the page the spell was on, paid the inn keeper, and headed for the other room. I felt the rings in my pocket. I had another spell, now I could enchant another item. I was curious to see if the rings could hold two enchantments. I cast a glance at the doors to the rooms. They had done enough, now it was my turn. Chapter 47 It took all day to enchant the items. The rings held the two enchantments. How well, I couldn¡¯t know unless we tested them, and we weren¡¯t testing them until we went after the dragon. I put the Ice Wall spell on the shield. I didn¡¯t make it a reactionary rune. I didn¡¯t know when it might go off. Instead, I put the rune next to the leather straps on the back. It was far enough away from my hand that I wouldn¡¯t accidentally activate it, but close enough that I could trigger it if I needed to. I didn¡¯t like the idea of fighting the dragon at night, so I put on the board that we were going after it the next afternoon. I went and found Jonnie at the Mage¡¯s guild and gave him the news. Once that was done, I went back to the room and curled up on the floor. Mei was still asleep, so I rolled up my bag and used it as a pillow. It didn¡¯t take me long to drift off. I dreamed about fighting the dragon. We started out fighting it like planned, but it didn¡¯t stay in the tunnels very long. It ran over me, out into the open area. I watched as it killed my entire party, then it turned its teeth on me. I felt the fire from its mouth just before it sank its teeth into my shoulders. I sat up, my eyes wide open. My heart was beating so fast, I could hear it in my ears. ¡°Nightmare?¡± Mei asked from the bedThis tale has been unlawfully obtained from Royal Road. If you discover it on Amazon, kindly report it. ¡°How did you know?¡± I asked ¡°I¡¯ve been around enough young people to recognize the signs.¡± I hear d the bed squeak as she got up. She flipped on the lights and sat down on the edge of the bed. She patted the place beside her. I got off the floor and sat next to her. She started rubbing my back. ¡°You want to talk about it?¡± She asked At first I wanted to say no, but there was something maternal about her. Something I couldn¡¯t refuse. ¡°I dreamed about fighting the dragon today.¡± I admitted ¡°You dreamed it killed us.¡± She stated. ¡°Yeah.¡± ¡°This is a good plan.¡± Mei said. "It¡¯s also a great opportunity to try to get your brother to come down to one of the lower zones.¡± ¡°But what if we die?¡± I asked Mei took a deep breath. "Not everyone who dies in the game dies in real life. There were a few who made it in the alpha test.¡± I leaned my head on her shoulder. "I just want everyone to be safe.¡± ¡°Nothing in this world or the other one is safe. Danger is all over the place. You can¡¯t let fear of getting hurt stop you from doing something.¡± She bent over so she could look at me. "It¡¯s a good plan. It will work.¡± ¡°I hope so.¡± I said. "I still haven¡¯t mapped out the tunnels. We don¡¯t know if we can even attack it from multiple sides.¡± ¡°There¡¯s nothing you can do about it right now.¡± Mei said. "Don¡¯t worry about what might happen tomorrow.¡± ¡°I¡¯ll try.¡± I said Mei got up. "Try to get some sleep.¡± ¡°Where are you going?¡± I asked ¡°You worry about sleep.¡± Mei said. "Let me worry about what I¡¯m doing.¡± I nodded and curled up on the bed. It didn¡¯t take long for me to drift off again. The sleep wasn¡¯t very good, but at least there were no more dreams of dragons. Chapter 48 Mei had fixed the tomorrow problem. There were three other tunnels that led up to the one that the dragon was sleeping in. It wouldn¡¯t matter which one they took, jut that they were able to make it to the dragon from the back side. We headed out to the tunnels early. I had wanted to wait in case anyone else had shown up, but Mei had been right. We were the only ones crazy enough to go after a dragon. Jonnie didn¡¯t want to be around the necromancer, so he had stayed with me while Michael and Mei went around behind the dragon. Everyone had their fireproof and cleanse ring. While they would protect us from its teeth, it would protect us from its breath. Jonnie and I waited until the sun touched the highest peak in the horizon and headed into the cave. It was the only way we could tell time. I hoped we didn¡¯t move to fast or too slow. The perfect opportunity would be for us to arrive at the same time. Jonnie cast an illuminate spell to light up the way. I was glad to have him along, until we got to where we could see the dragon. It was curled up in the middle of the tunnel. I was actually surprised that it fit. I was taking up almost all the space in the tunnel. I kept my shield up and walked up to the dragon. With any luck would be able to walk right up and slit its throat. We wouldn¡¯t have to worry about fighting it. I got close to it and realized I wouldn¡¯t be able to slit its throat. It was resting its chin on both of its front arms. Unless it moved I couldn¡¯t stab it. I thought about poking it with my sword, but I would need to get under its scales to do any damage. Plus, it wasn¡¯t my job to do damage. It was my job to hold its attention while Mei and Michael found a weak spot to exploit. If you encounter this narrative on Amazon, note that it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it. I thought about how I wanted to wake it up. While I was thinking, it rolled its head towards me. I heard Jonnie bite his knuckles. I hoped he wouldn¡¯t squeal. I was too close to its jaws. One wrong move and I¡¯d be dragon food. I hefted my sword and plunged it in the dragons left eye. The dragon thrashed its head, ripping the sword out of my hands and flinging it up the tunnel. It reared back its head and breathed a blast of fire. I danced back and held up my shield. Most of the fire reflected off of that and cut into the tunnel walls. A little bit got around the shield. The red part of my ring flashed as it kept the heat off of me. I grinned. My enchantments were working. The dragon roared. In the confined space, it sounded like a cannon going off. It was too loud to ignore. I pressed both of my hands against my ears until the echoes were gone. My ear rang and my vision blurred as I tried to focus on the dragon. ¡°HEY!¡± I screamed. "UGLY!¡± It turned away from Michael and Mei. It hopped twice, and tried to head butt me. I took the full force of the blow on the shield. It knocked me on my rear. Jonnie was running up the tunnel. As a caster, he couldn¡¯t throw spells over my shoulder. It was too risky that he¡¯d hit me. I¡¯d instructed him that if things started going badly, he needed to run for open ground where he could throw spells without worrying about hurting one of us. Things were going badly. I tried to get up to my feet, but the dragon was coming for another charge. I couldn¡¯t take it jumping on me. It would squash me like a bug. I triggered the Ice Wall enchantment. A wall of ice, two feet thick filled the tunnel in front of me. It should¡¯ve held the dragon back, but it didn¡¯t. The dragon hit the wall and it shattered, sending chucks of ice in every direction. I clutched the shield on top of me as the dragon ran over me towards the exit. Chapter 49 It felt like I had been stepped on by an elephant. I remembered the dragon running over me. I remembered Mei grabbing me. Both of those memories were fuzzy. After that is when things got clearer. The white runes on Mei¡¯s arms were gone. She had used all of her healing spells to fix me. I didn¡¯t want to think about had badly I had been beaten up. It was like my nightmare the night before was coming true. ¡°Are you okay?¡± Mei asked. When I didn¡¯t answer right away she shook me. "Are you okay?¡± I nodded. I was still in shock. It had been a good plan, but it hadn¡¯t worked. Billy hadn¡¯t shown up. The dragon was out in the open. We didn¡¯t have any more healing spells. It was my nightmare come to life. ¡°Is she going to be okay?¡± Michael asked ¡°She¡¯ll be fine.¡¯ Mei pointed towards the exit. "Help the Mage.¡± Michael gave me one glance before he ran towards the exit. Mei slapped me. ¡°Ow!¡± I exclaimed. "What¡¯s that for!¡± ¡°You let your nightmare come true!¡± She chided. "You were so focused on what could go wrong. It was all you could see, so that¡¯s what happened.¡± This book''s true home is on another platform. Check it out there for the real experience. ¡°It¡¯s too big.¡± I said. "Too strong. I don¡¯t know how to beat it.¡± ¡°Too bad.¡± Mei walked over and grabbed my sword. She brought it back to me. "We followed you into this death trap because you had a good plan. You can still come up with a plan to get us all out of here alive.¡± I took the sword and stood up. We still had magic. There was plenty I could do with that. I started thinking about the spells that they had. ¡°I¡¯ve got an idea.¡± I ran towards the exit. Outside the fight wasn¡¯t going well. Michael was running low on arrows and the dragon kept blasting them with fire. My enchantments might be better than average, but the fireproof enchantment wasn¡¯t going to hold for long against that continuous of an assault. I pointed to my left. "Mei move over there and hit it with a fireball.¡± ¡°Fire doesn¡¯t affect dragons.¡± Mei said ¡°I know.¡± I looked at her. "Do you trust me?¡± Mei ran to my left and shot a fireball at the dragon. It turned and blasted a breath of fire at her. The fire washed over her, but her enchantment held. I ran over to Jonnie. With the dragon moving to its right to track Mei, its left side was to us. The side I had blinded. ¡°Can you freeze its wing?¡± I asked ¡°Baby, I can freeze any part of if you want.¡± Jonnie smiled ¡°Then stop talking about it and do it.¡± I ordered Jonnie stood up from behind the rock. He let loose a hail storm that clung to the dragon¡¯s left wing. It staggered in the air once, and fell to the ground. ¡°It will just melt the ice.¡± Michael said from behind the rock. ¡°I know,¡± I popped up. It was already working on thawing its wing. ¡°Jonnie Keep that wing frozen!¡± ¡°You got it!¡± Jonnie yelled I turned to Michael. "Aim for the eye!¡± He nodded and stood up. While they were shooting at it, I ran straight at its face. One way or another I was going to end this. Chapter 50 Mei saw what I was doing. I crossed the distance between myself and the dragon. By the time it noticed me, I was too close for it to do anything. It snapped at me, but that just moved my target closer. I plunged my sword into the other eye. This time I didn¡¯t let go when it thrashed. It picked me up into the air and tossed me from side to side, but I didn¡¯t let go. While I was being tossed around like a rag doll, it had its neck completely exposed. Mei came in behind me and jabbed her dagger under a scale. The dragon let out one last roar and slung its head hard to the right. The sword slipped free and I flew through the air. I had the good sense to drop the sword before I hit the ground, but I still landed on a rock and slid a good way. I tried to get up, but my legs were both turned at bad angles. I didn¡¯t know how far I had gone, but I did know that we were out of healing spells. Even if someone found me, they wouldn¡¯t be able to heal me. I laid on the rock and tried to blink the blood out of my eyes. I couldn¡¯t move my arms either. It was a positive thing that I could feel how much they hurt, but that wouldn¡¯t matter. Reading on this site? This novel is published elsewhere. Support the author by seeking out the original. I heard scratching nearby. I couldn¡¯t turn my head, but I already knew what it was. Buzzards. ¡°I¡¯m not dead yet.¡± I coughed. The buzzards screeched at me. It was as if they were trying to hurry me on. One brave buzzard hopped over to me and pecked at my forehead. ¡°Shoo.¡± I screamed. "Get out of here!¡± ¡°GAW!¡± It screamed back at me. There was more scratching and the buzzards took off. I wondered what could be worse than a buzzard. ¡°Who¡¯s there?¡± I called I couldn¡¯t see anything out there. The moon was close to full, so I could see okay, but there was nothing in front of me. My vision started clouding over. I thought I saw a cloaked figure walk up to me. ¡°Don¡¯t worry.¡± He whispered in my ear. "I¡¯m here.¡± I felt a cool liquid being poured into my lips. I choked on it. Breathing hurt. I didn¡¯t know who this was, or even if they were trying to help me or poison me. I tried spitting it out, but the world started spinning. More liquid was poured into my mouth, I swallowed most of it. The shadowy figure got up and started walking away. "You¡¯re going to be fine.¡± Darkness came to me, but before it did, I thought I recognized the voice. I didn¡¯t know if I was hallucinating or not, but the voice sounded just like Billy. Epilogue I woke up in the bed at the inn. Michael and Jonnie had found me and carried me back to Mount Terra. Jonnie had used most of his healing potions to fix me up. I¡¯m sure I¡¯ll have to pay him back for those later, but for now I¡¯m just glad to be alive. The group made a couple trips to the dragon carcass. It took them that many just to carve it up and get all the parts. We were the richest players in that zone and our names got added to the list of dragon slayers. Mei made me wait at the inn until they had taken care of everything. My brush with death had worried them all, but she took it the hardest. She felt responsible because of her pep talk. I appreciated the concern, but I just wanted to get up. No one else saw the mystery man from that night. Michael thought I must have been hallucinating, but I knew it was Billy. I didn¡¯t know why he had chosen to watch us fight the dragon. Or why he didn¡¯t show himself to me, but now I knew he was close. I sat at the bar, while the guys did the last of the bartering. The scales had been sold outright and the leather had been traded for dragon leather armor. Most of the bones had been sold, but a few were crafted into a new bow for Michael and daggers for Mei and Jonnie. Unauthorized usage: this narrative is on Amazon without the author''s consent. Report any sightings. I knew something was up when they walked in with a wrapped box the size of one of the tables. ¡°We got you something.¡± Jonnie smiled as he handed me the box I ripped the paper off. "What is it? ¡°We couldn¡¯t find your sword.¡± Mei said ¡°And your shield¡­¡± Michael made crumpling motions with his hands. I took the lid off. Inside was a brown, dragon scale shield. I picked it up. Despite its larger size, it was lighter than the iron shield that I had carried to fight the dragon. ¡°You guys.¡± I grabbed Jonnie and Michael in a big hug. "You shouldn¡¯t have.¡± ¡°There¡¯s more.¡± Mei prompted I set down the shield and dug through the paper in the box. Under a lot of paper was a yellow bladed sword. I choked as I lifted it out of the box. ¡°You got me Fulgur Sectis?¡± I felt tears in my eyes. "You didn¡¯t have to do that!¡± ¡°We had some extra money from selling all the dragon stuff and considering how you almost died.¡± Jonnie shrugged. "It¡¯s a cool sword, right?¡± I gave him another hug. ¡°What now?¡± Mei asked I looked at everyone. They were looking to me for direction. "The mission is the same. We find Billy.¡± Jonnie raised his glass. "Let¡¯s find Billy!¡± He downed his drink. "Wait. Who¡¯s Billy?¡± Book 2 - Chapter 1 I hated leaving the room. The lobby was full of players who had come to see the infamous group that had downed a Dragon. At first, I thought it was a good thing. The more people we talked to, the faster we would find Billy. That wasn¡¯t the case. The first night, Mei caught a thief trying to break into our room. I didn¡¯t see what she did to him, but I heard his screams. The next day, Michael had his pocket picked. After that, we started traveling in pairs and left most of what was left of our money with the Mage Guild. None of the admirers had any useful information about Billy. Some had done a mission or two with him, but no one knew where he was or how to contact him. It took a week for my injuries to completely heal from the dragon fight. I spent most of that time looking through the info book. There was a lot of things about the game that I wished I had known before coming into the game. The door creaked as it opened. I reached under my pillow for the yellow sword hiding there. Fulgar Sectis was enchanted to deliver a blast of electricity when the rune on the hilt was squeezed. If someone else was breaking into the room, they were going to be shocked by what they found on the other side of the door. This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road. If you spot it on Amazon, please report it. A friendly smile greeted me instead of prying eyes. Michael gently slid his dark fingers down the back of the blade. ¡°Let¡¯s point that somewhere safer.¡± I fought a blush as I replaced the sword under my pillow. ¡°I¡¯ll be happy when we can get away from this madness.¡± Michael sat down on the bed. ¡°Johnnie thinks he may have a lead. One of his cousins might know something.¡± ¡°Really?¡± I sat up. ¡°I thought he already asked his cousin.¡± ¡°This is a different one.¡± Michael sighed. ¡°I¡¯m also not sure they¡¯re actually related.¡± I laughed.Johnnie called almost everyone a family title of some sort. It wouldn¡¯t surprise me if he wasn¡¯t related to any of the people he called cousin. ¡°That reminds me." I picked up my info book and flipped to the back. Written in small print amongst all of the other disclaimers read: ¡°In the event of a catastrophic system failure, the Game Masters may choose to terminate the game in the interest of player safety.¡± ¡°Do you know anything about the Game Masters?¡± Michael shrugged. ¡°A group of programmers came into the game to help with live updates.¡± ¡°Do you know where they are?¡± I asked, ¡°Because if we find them, then we could get them to shut the game down early!¡± Michael started to answer, but the door flying open stole the words from his mouth. Johnnie pushed his back against the door, sweat dripping down his face. ¡°We gotta go!¡± Book 2 - Chapter 2 It was the day I¡¯d hoped wouldn¡¯t come. Johnnie wiped the fear off of his face with the back of his arm. His legs were trembling as he looked us over. ¡°We have to go!¡± he urged Michael jumped off of the bed. ¡°What¡¯s going on?¡± ¡°A shaman walked into the lobby with a bunch of muscle!¡± Johnnie took a deep breath. ¡°Mei is fighting them right now!¡± My brother had crossed a powerful shaman a while ago. Safe rooms had been broken into, items had been stolen, and now the shaman was out for blood. Since no one could find Billy, the shaman had tried to go through me. We had run from him before, but with all of the fanfare from our dragon hunt, every player in the game knew where we were. Michael grabbed the doorknob, but Johnnie refused to be budged. ¡°I have to help her.¡± Michael¡¯s words were filled with the memories of when he had been their prisoner. ¡°Move!¡± You could be reading stolen content. Head to Royal Road for the genuine story. Johnnie shook his head. ¡°Mei said to get you two clear.¡± He nodded at Mei¡¯s bag. ¡°If you want to help her, grab that.¡± It didn¡¯t take long for us to pack what we owned. We hadn¡¯t planned on living here for long, so we hadn¡¯t bought much more than the basics. The guys had everything they owned on them. Once Michael had Mei¡¯s bag, Johnnie opened the door. The sounds of the fight in the lobby rang loudly in our ears as we entered the hall Michael turned towards the noise, but Johnnie grabbed his collar. ¡°Not that way.¡± I looked at the other end of the hall. It was a dead end. ¡°There¡¯s nowhere else to go.¡± Michael shrugged off the other man¡¯s hand. ¡°Trust me.¡± Johnnie winked. A glass-shattering scream of pain was followed by the gurgle of death. Michael took another step the wrong way. Johnnie started to object again, but I beat him to it. ¡°Mei is doing this so we can get away.¡± I looked up into his big brown eyes. ¡°She can handle herself.¡± Michael stared at me for a second, and then he nodded. ¡°Where do we go?¡± I asked Johnnie, who was acting more excited than scared. Johnnie basically bounced to the end of the hall. Once there, he grabbed his necklace and pressed the pendant against the wall. The guild crest glowed for a second before the wall melted away. ¡°Welcome to our escape route.¡± Johnnie said as he made a little bow. Book 2 - Chapter 3 The passage went into Mount Terra. It made sense when I thought about it. The shops and houses were all built into the spiral mountain. It was natural that there would be passageways through the mountain. ¡°Is it safe?¡± I asked. If the passage was well known, then I¡¯d rather take my chances in the lobby instead of the tight restrictions of the tunnels. ¡°Girl,¡± Johnnie grinned, ¡°these tunnels are members only.¡± He motioned for us to enter, ¡°And their guests.¡± ¡°Guests?¡± Michael asked. ¡°Yes, guests.¡± Johnnie replied. ¡°Look, Old Man Merlin has to give you permission to use these.¡± He raised his eyebrows. ¡°How many other mages have you seen around?¡± He had a point. Mount Terra didn¡¯t attract many players. The easy resources to gather had been collected long ago. The scenery was dangerous; lightning storms plagued the mountain range. It wasn¡¯t even on the way to another zone. There was almost no reason to be here. That was why we had first come to the mountain. It was a good hiding place. One that we ruined with our dragon hunt. The genuine version of this novel can be found on another site. Support the author by reading it there. I ducked into the tunnel, ¡°Sounds good to me.¡± Michael followed behind me, but with his bow drawn. I wasn¡¯t sure what he planned to use it on. The passageway wasn¡¯t big enough for two people to walk. If he shot from behind me, he¡¯d probably hit me in the back. Johnnie waved his glowing pendant over the opening. The wall rematerialized, masking our escape route. Without the light from the hall, our only illumination came from the mage¡¯s pendant. He squeezed past us to the front and held the pendant up to light our way. The shadows danced out of our way as we walked. I didn¡¯t know I fit was my imagination or an enchantment. I decided I really didn¡¯t want to know the answer. We walked for a few minutes before Johnnie found our exit. I didn¡¯t see anything special about the wall, but if you had asked me, I would¡¯ve sworn we had been walking in circles. The wall melted under the light of his pendant, revealing the magic shop where the Mage¡¯s Guild was housed. Merlin was sitting behind the counter in front of us, puffing on his pipe. He didn¡¯t stir as we walked around him into the shop. Johnnie lifted his pendant to close the passage, but it rematerialized with a snap of Merlin¡¯s fingers. Johnnie gave a short bow, ¡°It¡¯s been fun Merlin, but we¡¯ve got to jet.¡± He urged us towards the door, ¡°I¡¯ll see you around.¡± Merlin grunted. It wasn¡¯t much, but it was his way of saying bye. The sky outside was clear. It felt good to be outside again, but there wasn¡¯t time for sightseeing. The noise of fighting rang from the base of the mountain. ¡°Now what?¡± I asked. Johnnie flashed me a grin. ¡°We slide.¡± Book 2 - Chapter 4 ¡°We what?¡± I asked. ¡°Slide.¡± Johnnie sighed, ¡°Watch.¡± He walked over to the edge of the road. Mount Terra had roads that spiraled up it to the peak. Each level was smaller than the one below it, but there was over a ten-foot drop if you jumped off the side of the road to a lower level. ¡°We can¡¯t jump that,¡± Michael pointed out. ¡°It¡¯s too far.¡± "Oh, ye of little faith.¡± Johnnie rolled up his sleeves. Bright blue runes littered his arms, outlined by the tattoos that danced around his body. I had meant to ask him the stories behind his ink, but the right time had never presented itself. Johnnie touched one of the runes on his right arm. A cold blue glow covered his right hand as he bent down and touched the edge of the road. Ice grew where he touched, racing down to the ground. In a few minutes, there was a steep ice slide down to the next level. ¡°Cool.¡± It was all I could think to say. If you encounter this story on Amazon, note that it''s taken without permission from the author. Report it. Johnnie snickered, ¡°It is, isn¡¯t it?¡± Michael shook his head and slid down the slide. I followed with Johnnie bringing up the rear. I looked at the slide. ¡°What do we do about that?¡± Johnnie shrugged, ¡°It¡¯ll melt.¡± ¡°But won¡¯t they figure out how we escaped?¡± ¡°Girl, by the time they find this, we¡¯ll be long gone.¡± Johnnie grinned, ¡°I guarantee it.¡± ¡°Over here!¡± A man down the road yelled, ¡°They¡¯re over here!¡± ¡°That didn¡¯t take long.¡± Michael readied his bow. ¡°Shut up¡­¡± Johnnie grumbled, pulling out a blue wand, ¡°It¡¯s not my fault.¡± I drew my yellow sword as a group of five men ran up the road. I waited for the fear to bite like it had the last few times I¡¯d been chased by Mouse¡¯s men, but it was barely a whisper. Five thugs didn¡¯t scare me much when I had Michael and Johnnie standing with me. Three thugs. Michael shot one of the lead ones in the throat. Johnnie¡¯s wand didn¡¯t fire as fast, but at closer range, he had scored a lucky hit. The slowed man hadn¡¯t been able to melee. ¡°Hey!¡± Johnnie grinned at us. ¡°Don¡¯t die!¡± he whooped as he charged his opponent. Michael blocked the one on the left and pivoted so the outer thugs had their backs to the middle one. I gripped the hilt of my sword tight. ¡°Let¡¯s do this!¡± I screamed.