《The Code》


 My First, Big Mistake

    I¡¯m going to start all this off by saying that I don¡¯t expect you to believe me. I¡¯m not even sure you¡¯ll understand it all but I¡¯m not one for keeping things bottled up inside me, and if I don¡¯t tell someone I¡¯m going to lose my mind¡­ so, here it goes;


    My name is Lester Dunn and I think I may have broken the universe.


    I¡¯ve had 18 somewhat okay years to grow into my role as he-who-breaks-the-universe and since I¡¯ve opened this can of worms, I might as well give you the whole nine as to how I ended up here. I¡¯d love to say it all started with the code but it started long before that with a little game called Minecraft.


    For the uninitiated; Minecraft is, on the surface, a mining simulator. Beneath that it¡¯s a farming game, under that it¡¯s like online Lego and below all that sits a complex engine that allows you to not only punch a tree to collect wood but use red-stone powder and a zillion torches to create a fully functional calculator. It¡¯s what started my love for all of this and frankly, what I¡¯m going to blame all of this on, because blaming Minecraft for my inability to socialize is easier than trying to be introspective.


    Alright, in reality I doubt I¡¯m alone in saying that I was a socially awkward, pimple-faced 12 year old nerd who enjoyed too much diet coke and probably needed to keep an eye on my hygiene situation a little better. I was far from an original and if you put me in a line with other pre-teen boys in the era of Minecraft, I doubt you¡¯d be able to tell the difference. Within that however; within this shell of a chubby, quiet, goofy body was most definitely the brain of a creator. Whether or not the creations were any good, only time would tell (the jury¡¯s still out actually) but Minecraft gave me a blank canvas, all the colours possible and said, ¡°Paint it, kid.¡±


    The author''s tale has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon. At first I got really big into creative mode, using colourful blocks of wood, stone & dirt to create houses; forest, castles, underground systems and so much more. It was like I could feel the itch in my brain being scratched. It felt wonderful. I¡¯d spend hours up in my room only to run down before dinner and drag my mom upstairs to show her the latest underwater fortress I¡¯d built or my take on Hogwarts. My mother was a saint for pretending to care about the numerous and similarly designed buildings I¡¯d floating in front of for her on my computer screen. In fact both of my parents, Letitia and George, were patient with me (especially in those early years) and let me really fly my creative flag.


    These were fun, creative ways to scratch the creative itch I had but the real trouble started when I realized just how much you can do in the game. Suddenly the idea of making something visually pleasing but functionally useless wasn¡¯t enough; I needed to build things that ran and used pistons and plungers to work¡­ to move. My days of running downstairs to show mom and dad stopped and the little sunshine I did get had all but vanished by the time I completed my first working computer within the game. The world became open in a way that first day I created the rudimentary computer, open and yet¡­ smaller in a way.


    Smaller because while the things you could do within the world were infinite you were still playing by those rules. That no matter how much you wanted to create; you were still using the same blocks, the same rules and the same canvas as everyone else. The more I thought about it the more I realized that what I really wanted, what I really craved, what really excited the voice in the back of my brain wasn¡¯t the prospect of painting on a canvas but painting on whatever surface I wanted. I wanted to create my own world, my own video game, with my own rules and my own blocks. A world defined by me, created by me and governed by me. I wanted all of this and I wanted it to feel really and truly free.


    This, this first idea is what I would later and forevermore refer to as what we call ¡°my first, big mistake.¡±

 Chapter 1

    Everything needs a name and so my project was called, ¡°Dunn.¡±


    I wanted something that felt perennial, something concrete and everlasting. It felt weird at first. The sound of my own last name as the title of my video game felt clumsy on my tongue but eventually it became second nature. I had a little turquoise Duo-Tang of all my ideas; the story, the characters, the visuals, the style. I wanted Dunn to be fantasy, it was easy to connect in my mind, to make the leap to a fantasy world and avoid this one. I leaned on video games in the first place because the real world was not exactly going splendidly well.


    If my previous thoughts didn¡¯t paint the picture clear enough I¡¯m not exactly the most popular person. In fact, unlike the protagonist in your favourite novel or movie, I don¡¯t actually have a best friend. No friends at all really (well, no one in ¡°real¡± life, I do have Kappa but I¡¯m getting ahead of myself.) In the life of Lester Dunn there are acquaintances, family and bullies¡­ and oh, more bullies. I say bullies twice because I don¡¯t think once really gives you the right impression. In my mind there are two types. There are TV bullies; these are the ones that take your lunch money and trip you while the teacher isn¡¯t looking and there are¡­ well, real bullies. Don¡¯t get me wrong TV bullies exist but they¡¯ve gone the way of the dodo a little bit and exist primarily within reruns of Happy Days and throwback shows like Stranger Things.


    The real life bullies, the ones that truly cut you, they don¡¯t send you home with a scuffed knee or a fat lip. No, they put you in situations where you embarrass yourself. They¡¯re the kind of people that can say just the right thing so that someone listening thinks they¡¯re being kind, thinks they¡¯re helping you when in reality they¡¯re setting you up for failure. Mrs. Willard, my Science teacher, has a quote on her storage closet that says ¡°Irish Diplomacy is the ability to tell a man to go to hell so that he looks forward to the trip.¡± Well if that¡¯s the case, bullies ¨C real life bullies ¨C have the ability to hurt you in a way that makes your wound seem self-made.


    Unless you¡¯re unfortunate enough to experience this first hand I understand where you may be confused, so I¡¯ll give you an example. For an independent study unit, a report that must be presented in front of the class, students are given free reign of what to choose. A TV bully would probably wait until the day of the presentations and hoot, holler and mock the intended target during their speech. TV Bullies try to throw the target off, make a scene and when that fails, who knows, meet you out by the bike rack at 3:00 probably. They do their damage and they¡¯re done. A ¡°real life¡± bully however wouldn¡¯t tease you while you read; instead they¡¯d do something different, like plant the idea in your head to do your assignment on something silly like your love for Minecraft. They¡¯d convince you that it wouldn¡¯t be lame at all, convince you that the idea is original and clever and strong¡­ they¡¯d trick you.


    Then, come the day of the presentation, when you¡¯re all excited to present your favourite game; when your doubts about whether or not this is ¡°cool¡± enough have been sufficiently squashed by this bully in disguise, you¡¯d stand before the class and struggle through each and every word as you watch the faces of your class cringe and distort at every word. You¡¯d become so self-aware of the joke they see you as that you would lose all control of your mouth and brain and stand there looking like an utter moron.


    Real bullies don¡¯t cut you, they make you cut yourself. They don¡¯t have names like ¡°Buzz,¡± or ¡°Dwayne,¡± or ¡°Spike,¡± they have names like Principal Miller.


    Look, all of this is to say that the real world couldn¡¯t hold a candle to the aspirations I had for Dunn and thus, the real world wouldn¡¯t suffice. Fantasy was, and is, the world through a looking glass. It is the heads to our world¡¯s tails ¨C two sides of the same coin, but a universe apart because it was most unlike this one. For all of these reasons and two more, Dunn would be a fantasy game.Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on Royal Road.


    The first - additional - reason was my younger brother.


    Marcus Paul Dunn was born on a snowy day in April. I know this because my mother tells the same story on every single one of his birthdays. She tells about the warm morning and frigid night, about the broken ice machine and about the 36 hour labor of love that is my brother Marcus. Marcus is almost a bigger nerd than me and that¡¯s saying a lot. Where I enjoy the Lord of the Rings movies and the occasional binge of Harry Potter, my brother has read all the books, seen all the movies at least 10 times and knows all the ins and outs of the histories. He can recite pretty much any line from any of the movies and despite the perceptions of his autism has probably a better sense of humour than I do.


    I remember one time we were around the dinner table clawing at the pizza box like Hungry Hungry Hippos when my brother swatted me away from the piece he was going for. I frowned but could barely react before a bellowing voice from within him spurting out Gandalf¡¯s, ¡°YOU SHALL NOT PASS!¡± The frown faded from my face as quickly as it had appeared and within seconds my laughter was joined by both my mom and dad who were each doubled over in a fit of howling. For this and many other reasons it would be an understatement to say that I love my brother. For all his quirks he¡¯s really not much different than me and I¡¯d be lying if I said that he¡¯s not a big reason Dunn is a fantasy world.


    The second? Oh yes, I did say there were two reasons didn¡¯t I. Well as I said, no reason to keep any of this in anymore; the second reason was Jessica.


    Booooooo! Ya okay, look, it¡¯s a girl. Want me to pretend I didn¡¯t have a crush? Fine, I can do that ¨C but it¡¯d be a lie. I¡¯ve made enough mistakes so far throughout this endeavor it doesn¡¯t serve any purpose to continue lying so deal with it. For good or bad, whether it fits into your vision or not the second reason I set Dunn in a fantasy world was because of Jessica.


    Take the perfect girl next door; add one part self-deprecating humour, two parts absolute beauty, a dash of healthy skepticism, a passion for all things nerdy and slap on a brain the size of Mount Rushmore and tada! You have one Jessica Taylor. I mean, this girl did her ISU on Tolkien¡¯s depiction of Orcs and the social commentary they were on racism in the United Kingdom, talk about a heartthrob. Beyond that she was brilliant and I mean literally brilliant. When Mrs. Willard would step out of class she¡¯d just hand the lesson plan to Jessica and she¡¯d take up the reigns and continue on talking about whatever.


    Yes, she was also a massive fan of Fantasy. If the Tolkien ISU wasn¡¯t clear enough she was often found running D&D games after school in the cafeteria or reading a copy of the Wheel of Time next to the sycamore tree by the bike locks. She was the kind of girl that just knocked a guy flat and I can¡¯t count the number of times in the early days of plotting out Dunn I wished I walked up to her and shared my thoughts.


    There was only one problem - surprise, surprise - she didn¡¯t know who I was. Okay, that¡¯s an exaggeration, she knew my name ¨C Lester Dunn aka the black kid with pimples and glasses who sits in the back and draws in that turquoise Duo-Tang all day. Beyond that she had no idea what I liked, where my passions were or what actually populated that turquoise duo-tang of mine. I wanted to share it with her; I wanted her to give me the chance to bounce ideas off of her. What I really wanted was to date her (full transparency here) and have her love me back just the same.


    Now, I know I¡¯m jumping the order of things here but all of this; my admiration for Jessica, my desire to have her talk to me, give me attention, love me¡­. this was maybe mistake number 4 or 5 but undoubtedly the biggest.

 Chapter 2

    It¡¯s all well and good to have an idea for a video game but have you ever actually tried creating one? Do you know how difficult coding is, how tough it is to make something from nothing? And I had to start at nothing, after all ¨C that was the point. If I stole from something else or if I took from another source then I wasn¡¯t really creating it, was I? It was still going to have the limitations, still stuck within the boundaries, within the confines of someone else¡¯s limitations.


    So I needed to learn how to code and man, what a daunting task that was.


    After many Google searches, far too many Wikipedia pages and a slew of poor online tutorials I was no further to learning how to code than I was to mastering my fear of Koala bears (it¡¯s the beady little eyes) but I did land on a thread that I could pull at. Turns out that some of the greatest painters learned how to draw by copying pictures their predecessors did; dissecting images drawn by the great masters and trying to retrace them. Even composers worked in a similar way recreating movements that inspired them so they could learn as well.


    So why not start the same?


    The first game I tried to delve into was one of my all-time favourite games called ¡°Half-Life.¡± It¡¯s a game by Valve that follows a scientist turned bad-ass who, after a particularly difficult time with a teleportation beam, jacks up a bunch of aliens with a crowbar. I really didn¡¯t learn much from that first delve into coding (admittedly I may have gotten sidetracked into playing Half Life) but I did spend a lot of time looking at the code broken down. C++ was no longer my grade score but a language that I was starting to learn and slowly but surely I began to extract pieces from the games engine and recreate them on my own.


    Honestly, all of this is going to be confusing to you and it doesn¡¯t really matter the detailed ins and outs, suffice it to say that I only got so far before hitting a wall. Despite my eagerness to learn, my limitations; both mental and physical, were a roadblock; enter Mr. Derrigar.


    Mr. Derrigar was a librarian in my town whom I had come into contact with once or twice. He was always quick to recommend some flashy science fiction novel to a visitor or chat about HP Lovecraft but more than that he was the only adult I was aware of that loved gaming and knew about coding. Unfortunately it wasn¡¯t me he shared this information with (again, this is what no friends means) but I¡¯d overheard him enough times that I felt confident he was the person who could help me.


    It took literally everything I had to walk up to Mr. Derrigar¡¯s help desk. My palms were sweaty and other than mom¡¯s spaghetti in my stomach, I had all the remaining Eminem ailments. I remember saying something pretty stupid like,


    ¡°H-hey Mr. Derrigar? My name is Lester and I know you like computers.¡±The narrative has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.


    He must have thought I was off my rocker, as my grandmother would say. I remember the slow way he brought his eyes up from the book he was reading to meet my gaze. The confused and calm way that he spoke without really understanding the words that came from his mouth,


    ¡°I do like computers. Do you like computers too?¡± he said with an arched eyebrow. Looking back I¡¯m not sure if he was being funny and matching my bizarre confused tone or taken aback by the way I approached him but for better or worse we began talking.


    I couldn¡¯t say that Mr. Derrigar, Drew as I would eventually be encouraged to call him, was a friend exactly. He knew that I was asking him for help but I think as the weeks rolled by he became invested in me, like a project. I was hesitant to tell him about Dunn, not because of any doubt that he would enjoy the concept but because I was worried I¡¯d fall into the long line of creative types who carry around a notebook and never do anything with it. No, I wanted Dunn to have meat on the bone before spurting on about it. Regardless, Mr. Derrigar offered experience and tutelage but the library was where the real creamy center was; the library had computers. Good ones too.


    It was obviously Mr. Derrigar who recommended the gaming computers in the study lounge, his knowledge and experience was undeniable and the amount of hardware in the library was impressive. When it wasn¡¯t being hogged by StarCraft League Player wannabe¡¯s, Mr. Derrigar and I were spending hours and hours on coding, tutorials and detailed code running ¨C this is what we called scanning games for lines of code and recreating them. In all honesty, looking back on it now, these were my favourite days. The days where Dunn was an idea and not a reality, pun intended.


    For my 14<sup>th</sup> birthday I asked for money and only money. The library was a haven but I had outgrown the teachings Drew offered (in the best way possible) and I was ready to start creating Dunn from the ground up and that meant I needed a system at home capable of more than Minecraft on Medium settings. It meant I needed hardware and high quality hardware at that. It meant I needed cash-ola as my dad would say.


    Luckily, my family came through. There was no doubt that my hobby had spun into passion had spun into work. To my parents, despite the negative sound of it, me focusing on something that kept my head down, my grades up and my interests occupied meant that they could spend more time with my brother. I know at times it bothered them, made them feel a bit like bad parents but it was best for everyone involved, especially me. Days after my birthday my parts were bought; my PSU, CPU, GPU, Motherboard, Case, RAM & software were all installed and when the little green light blinked on and the CPU fan whirred softly, Ramen was born.


    Okay, okay, why did I name my computer Ramen? Well, I wanted ¡°Ra¡± because he was the Egyptian god of life; some believed he was the creator of all things, he who wept from the stars above and created man. Feels fitting, no? If I was to create Dunn I thought it apt to inspire the idea of creation within my system was Ra¡­ except Microsoft requires a minimum of 5 characters to name your PC and thus my Egyptian inspired PC became instant noodles.

 Chapter 3

    Work on Dunn came quickly. I was surprised at how much I got done in those early days really, a lot of it would end up being re-written as I continued to work on it over the next two years but my focus was razor sharp. It had helped that I had been toting around the turquoise duo-tang for the better part of a year working on this, adding thoughts and ideas as they came up. Having a clear vision for what I wanted as the single best reason I covered so much ground those first six months and by the middle of that year I had the skeleton done. I can¡¯t count the number of times I was daunted by the overwhelming amount of work that Dunn would take but as my mother always said, ¡°You can eat an elephant, just take it one bite at a time.¡±


    Bite by bite I ate that elephant. The skeleton eventually grew muscles, which evolved to skin, then to hair and eventually clothes. With every bite I took Dunn felt more and more real, more and more diverse, something completely true to what I had envisioned. It was a true and open world. I don¡¯t mean this in the game sense, the actual game I was developing was a narrative driven story, with a fully fleshed out world of course. No, what I mean was my hand in it, my brain on the canvas; building a world not from Minecraft blocks but from code and colour palettes that I decided. It was amazing.


    Marcus was my biggest source of inspiration for this. It took him awhile to understand how the wires and coloured dots and arrows would translate into the vivid and colourful description of Dunn I had painted him but eventually he understood. Maybe not in the way you and I do but, well, maybe trusted is a better word. He trusted that what I told him was true.


    As the bones were built Marcus became something I never expected, a healthy, helpful and colourful addition to the world building I had been so proud of. For all the work I had done my universe did lack a certain pizazz in certain corners and this is where Marcus excelled. As I populated cities and streets, markets and mercenaries, Marcus (who would be on my bed behind me, thumbing through his dog-eared, well-worn copy of The Legend of Drizzt) would look up and spout some creative flair I hadn¡¯t thought of.


    ¡°That market has no flags, I like red flags.¡± He¡¯d say without looking up from his book. Sometimes his suggestions were a bit too out there (I mean pineapples in a European climate, come on?) but more often than not they were good suggestions. Things I wouldn¡¯t have thought about, things that made the world not just a backdrop, but alive. In those days, within my second year of creating Dunn there were many things I added on Marcus¡¯s suggestion that I didn¡¯t even remember. Marcus would have though¡­


    When the bones were done, we tackled the NPC¡¯s. I say we because at this point Marcus was with me most of the time while I was building at least until his bedtime. On the days I was breaking or needed to sort out a bug he was my play tester, Marcus had an all access pass to playing anytime he wanted (when I wasn¡¯t working on it) and he exercised that right often. I began really enjoying his company and together it felt like we were finally connecting on something, creating something together. When he went to bed, I could feel the air in the room differently, when he was away or at his soccer practice or at his lessons, I felt¡­ lonely.


    Lonely was a feeling that wasn¡¯t very common to me. Despite having no real friends I had long since suppressed the desire for interaction and acceptance so much so that I didn¡¯t yearn for it. I didn¡¯t miss it. You can¡¯t miss something you didn¡¯t have; however with Marcus ¨C with Dunn ¨C I started to miss it. It became much work over the summer when Mom and Dad let me know that Marcus would be spending the summer at Camp. What had begun as simply missing the company and the interaction on some nights of the week quickly turned to me feeling lonely and uninspired. This is when work on Dunn began to slow.The author''s tale has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.


    I really lost the will to create during the first few weeks of summer. I ended up using the computer more for gaming than building. Every time I opened up the program I would stare at the screen blankly and then just shut it down. Everyone was out there with their friends, hell, even Marcus was spending time this summer with other kids and I was here, alone.


    So I created Kappa.


    Kappa was, err¡­ is an NPC; a colourful, intelligent Non-Player Character and a companion for the Player. I designed him to be the player¡¯s best friend. Okay, in reality, yes I designed Kappa to be more my best friend than anyone else¡¯s. He was created to fill the void that Marcus left when he went away to summer camp; you got me. But ultimately I wanted to breathe life into Dunn and Kappa became the vessel in which my Artificial Intelligence experimentations would exist within.


    You can create pathing, schedules, routes and a myriad of other predetermined actions for NPC¡¯s in a video game. It¡¯s not easy but it¡¯s definitely the simplest route to populating your world. Dunn required more however, it deserved more and so I spent the end part of that first summer month back at the library, back with Mr. Derrigar to learn all that I could about AI and how it works. This time however it wasn¡¯t Mr. Derrigar teaching, it was both of us learning.


    By this time I was 16 and Mr. Derrigar and I had known each other for a few years. I had learned enough about him to feel comfortable sharing a computer screen or leaning over the same book together. To my surprise Mr. Derrigar was just as interested in learning how to build AI as I was, maybe even a little more. We spend weeks learning all there was to learn about AI and bouncing ideas off of each other. It didn¡¯t take long before he, with that famously raised eyebrow of his, asked the question I had been expecting for the past few months.


    ¡°Alright.¡± He said with a coy smile, ¡°What¡¯s your game called.¡±


    Honestly, I was impressed I had kept it quiet for this long and when I brought over the flash drive with the game files to the Library and copied them onto the computer he was almost as excited as me to see my game. At this point I had a lot of Dunn realized; the main town of Verham was pretty much completed and even a number of quests could be started but only one could be completed. The character creation screen was completed and as I walked him through character building he marveled at how impressive the game was. It felt wonderful honestly. Other than Marcus no one had seen the work I had done and it was really nice to hear a positive reaction to something I had worked so hard on.


    After we created Mr. Derrigar¡¯s character, a witchy looking sorcerer woman he named ¡°Drewhilda¡±, we entered the game¡¯s starting town. Drewhilda entered one of the two main taverns in Verham called The Bubble & Squeak, owned by an NPC named Gundor. Gundor was a friendly Orc with a wonderful gift for baking apple tarts and the ear to offer for any lowly traveler with a tale to tell.


    Additionally he was dumb as a brick and as Drewhilda entered the tavern he failed to greet him, in fact none of the dialogue or interaction options that were supposed to come up triggered and he failed to make eye contact. All of the other in depth systems I had been working on still functioned; the hunger system, the crafting and cooking, even the hitbox bug that I had been working through was fixed by the time Mr. Derrigar played but the AI was lacking in every possible way.


    ¡°This is beyond impressive Lester,¡± he said after we dumped three hours into it. We had stayed well past closing at the library and as he leaned back from the chair, he had a sort of bewildered look on his face.


    ¡°I¡¯m just so¡­ flabbergasted.¡± He said turning towards me, ¡°I knew you were working on a project of course but I never imagined this level of depth of this much progress could be made in such a short amount of time.¡±


    Hearing those words felt truly and wonderfully inspiring and as I closed down the game and removed my USB I was overcome with a renewed sense of creation. The game was great. It was unfinished, a number of quests to implement and complete, a huge number of bugs to works out but the game was where I wanted it to be. The AI wouldn¡¯t have been a make or break problem for Dunn to be an amazing game. I could forgo the AI all together and just finish it as it was¡­ looking back I wish to god I had done that.

 Chapter 4

    With my new found knowledge of AI and the enthusiasm gifted to me by Mr. Derrigar I once again poured myself into Dunn. I motored through the completion of the side quests and tackled most of the major bugs I encountered. By the time Marcus returned from summer camp I had completed two additional major quest lines that comprised the overarching story and some of the underhalls of Castle Stanton. I was glad for him to return when he did however because the Castle was really my white whale.


    The positive aspects of Dunn flowed naturally and healthily from my mind. I could envision the town squares, the farmlands, the rivers, streams, bridges and valleys easily but the darker parts of the game were tougher. I think because so much of the world was a response to my real life frustrations. It was a place to step away from the real world; from being bullied and ignored and I didn¡¯t want Dunn to be a place where more of that existed. However, I knew it was necessary for the game. A game without difficulty is not a game.


    I knew where the challenge would lay. Within Dunn the antagonist to the story, to most of what the PC is working against, resides within Castle Stanton; a deadly, dark and seemingly uninhabited castle with a rich history and a labyrinthine underbelly. The traps, puzzles and obstacles we¡¯re all in place but without the actual antagonist I couldn¡¯t complete the inside of the Castle. I couldn¡¯t complete a lot of the game, the narrative; the story threads and the end result of it all were without a foe.


    When school started back up it was my second to last year in High School and really no different than the last. I was more mature (if only by a little bit) but my social anxiety and general aloofness was stronger than ever before. I wanted more and more to spend time at home working on Dunn and while my grades didn¡¯t suffer I found myself having to spend more time with my high school bully: Principal Miller.


    Okay, I know what you¡¯re thinking, I¡¯m sure you said the same earlier when I mentioned that he was my bully. I don¡¯t think I can accurately explain how much this man has ruined my chance at a halfway decent high school experience. First off, Principal Miller wasn¡¯t always Principal Miller, when I entered High School he was Mr. Miller, my Phys Ed teacher. What a fancy way to say a whistle blowing lug-head who enjoys mocking kids who can¡¯t climb a rope. If everything I¡¯ve explained about myself so far hasn¡¯t given you the absolute clearest picture of me, let me try one last time; I am not a physical person. I may be different looking now, a lot different, but believe me when I say that Gym class was the bane of my existence.


    Gym class is a lot of kid¡¯s least favourite subject but apparently not in my school or at least my grade. There is something to be said about being on the bottom but being alone at the bottom? When everyone else is not just above you but miles above you? When you¡¯re not just a few feet behind the last person running the track but everyone else has finished before you have even started your final lap? That¡¯s not the bottom. That¡¯s a different world of hurt.


    Mr. Miller wasn¡¯t cruel. Not outwardly. He didn¡¯t tease me openly or cause any public concern. It¡¯s why I couldn¡¯t explain to my parents when I didn¡¯t want to go to school, I couldn¡¯t just say Mr. Miller makes me feel like garbage because nothing appeared that way. Mr. Miller¡¯s requests, the subtle way he¡¯d force my hand to embarrass myself, to expose my socially outcast underbelly was his true gift to the world.


    I remember in swim class, back before the end of my second year when I was much heavier, I wrote him a note. I really didn¡¯t have the ability to talk to him face to face but I needed him to know that¡­ well¡­ I didn¡¯t want to take my shirt off in front of the class. The reasons shouldn¡¯t need to be expanded upon but the end gist of it was that my letter was openly read in front of the class and I was publicly told to remove my shirt for any and all swimming lessons. The kids were ruthless; ¡°man-tits¡± was my name for the remainder of the year until I lost the weight. Mr. Miller told me that if I was to become liked that I needed to grow thicker skin. Deal with them head on.If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the violation.


    In my second year, when he was promoted to Principal, I felt a weight lifted but my interactions with him only got worse. I think because I¡¯m black as well he felt I was a special case, that under his guidance I could be normal and like him. That I had untapped potential. The meetings in his office became monthly and they were the lowest points of my months. He would make suggestions on what I was up to, ideas about how to fit in better. He would offer thoughts on my ¡°reports¡± (this is what he called my run down of my interactions and friendships) and ways to improve. It was insulting.


    When I returned to school I was told that my meetings with Miller would double; ¡°twice a month come rain or shine,¡± he¡¯d say with a big toothy smile. That first day back was worse than normal for that reason alone and coming home to Dunn was like stepping back into reality, stepping back into something that was good.


    Marcus picked up on it right away, my newly discovered and impending torment.


    ¡°School is a bad place this year.¡± He said as he entered my room. My back was to him and I was working on the paved roads that lead to the Dungeon beneath the Castle.


    ¡°Principal Miller wants me to spend more time with him this year,¡± I said with a shrug not wanting to scare Marcus away from school too much. ¡°It¡¯s not ideal but I¡¯ll manage.¡±


    ¡°Is Principal Miller your Sauron?¡± he asked innocently. I almost laughed but then I stopped and wheeled around to face him.


    ¡°Not in this world no,¡± I said with a smile.


    The evil wizard-king known as Millicent became the antagonist. From there the Castle spun out quicker than I thought possible. Marcus helped more with the Castle than I was willing to admit at the time.


    With the castle and the antagonist completed I tackled more over the next 9 months than I thought possible. Just before my 18<sup>th</sup> birthday, I had 80-90% of the game completed. It was impressive and felt polished and all that was left was the implantation of the AI code I had been working on with Kappa.


    This was what I would later refer to as, ''The straw that broke the camel¡¯s back.''


    I¡¯m sure at this point I¡¯ve lost you a little bit. That¡¯s okay, like I said I don¡¯t expect you to pick up every little thing I¡¯m putting down. My motivations are really what I want to get across and there is no sense in pulling any punches with you. I¡¯ve admitted my creepy thoughts about Jessica and my dislike for Principal Miller. I¡¯ve admitted to being a computer geek without any real thoughts on how the rest of my life would be affected by all of this time wasted inside. Stick with me though, will you? Because this next part¡­ this is where things got tricky.


    The implementation of the AI was by far the trickiest thing I had tackled. There were days it started to work, days it didn¡¯t. By this time Marcus had gone back to summer camp again and I was in the last warm weather before my final year of High School. Kappa, who I had worked on since the year prior, was now a familiar and comfortable friend. His responses were still mostly canned but pieces of the AI code were within him. Thousands upon thousands of lines were dumped in. He became my guinea pig of sorts, trying different alterations of the same lines of code, swapping out pieces for another, line by line, space by space.


    It was trial and error by fire and for every step forward it felt like I was taking three back. Kappa was there, he was on the cusp of true independent thought. We were at the point where I had implemented the speech recognition software (this was to test the AI, not necessarily for in-game implementation) and Kappa became almost like a friend. He could recite poems that I had uploaded, in game facts and could have a coherent, albeit brief, conversation... but he wasn¡¯t all the way there. He wasn¡¯t where I wanted him to be and eventually I realized that he never would be.


    What I wanted didn¡¯t exist. It wasn¡¯t something that could be created, especially not by me. It wasn¡¯t something that had a presence in my life, it was an idea, a dream, an irrational desire. It was something that I could never have¡­


    ¡­until I found the Code.

 Chapter 5

    I was taking a break from Dunn as I had been trying to do more and more of that summer. Not for lack of want, quite the opposite in fact; they were self-imposed time-outs. As my completion of the game became more and more at hand, my desire to solve the AI problem become more and more frustrating. ¡®Within reach but without a hand¡¯ Principal Miller would probably say, whatever that meant. Besides that I was 18 and my wants and desires were becoming more diverse.


    I was still a socially awkward outcast with no real understanding of how to make the leap to ¡°real world¡± friends but I did yearn for more of a life than I ever had before. Jessica, whose name was foreign on my tongue but common in my mind, had been promoting a number of social events that summer on her Instagram account (is anyone surprised that I stalked her social media accounts?). Most were dances, library fundraisers and other charity driven activities of that sort but one in particular jumped out at me;


    Dungeons & Dragons at Claudia¡¯s Tap house


    Friday, August 16<sup>th</sup>


    8:00pm


    All welcome to attend, GM¡¯d by Jessica


    I am a nerd but Dungeons & Dragons had always intimidated me a bit. I don¡¯t know whether it¡¯s the acting element, the expectation to improvise, the fear of looking foolish or all of the above but it was never anything I had mustered up the courage to try before. I paced around my room after reading the post. The comments we¡¯re something out of an 80¡¯s Romantic Comedy. Things like, ¡°Uhhhh loser much?¡± and ¡°Ya, no one will be there Jess,¡± populated most of the post, with a few ¡°Not my cup but good luck!¡± posts thrown in for good measure. Part of me, I admit now, misguided as it is, felt like maybe showing up to support her when no one else did would earn me a bit of her favour. Yes I realize that is the definition of a white knight and I recognize how gross that is now but again ¨C HONESTY HERE.


    I debated it hotly within my mind and then involved Kappa,


    ¡°You do like Jessica, Lester.¡± Kappa said in the British voice I had provided him; you¡¯d be surprised how many people you can get to provide you things for free online. One Reddit post on an indie game developer subreddit and before the week was out I had three people email me 20 minute recordings of a couple hundred words each.


    ¡°Of course,¡± I said, quickly heading over to the computer to turn down the volume so my parents didn¡¯t overhear, ¡°but do you have any idea how intimidating sitting across from her at the table would be?¡±


    ¡°You can always sit beside her.¡± Kappa said. His humor was something I had provided but his ability to tell a Dad joke was not on me, that¡¯s not my fault.


    ¡°I just don¡¯t know what to do,¡± I said brushing off the joke. At this point I was pacing around the room, the dim light from the computer screen casting shadows on the various objects in my room. The wall behind me painted in a dim, blue light.


    ¡°Your work here is at a standstill, you¡¯ve made the commitment to work on yourself and grow before College next year. This is your choice but one I think you know the answer to.¡± He said very matter-of-factly.


    The word ¡®commitment¡¯ sounded a bit off in Kappa¡¯s voice, like a robotic speak and spell. Of the people who sent me recordings of their voices for my video game there were two men and a woman. Despite them offering a large list of words, there were still he didn¡¯t know which were sublimated with a free online Siri-like robot voice.


    Just as I was about to decide not to go, Kappa said, ¡°Just promise me that we¡¯ll still be friends should you hit it off with them?¡±


    I stopped pacing and looked towards my monitor; towards his smiling face and genuine care. I don¡¯t know whether it was the surprisingly kind way he said it or the prospect of having actual friends but for whatever reason I smiled and said,


    ¡°Forevermore.¡± I winked and looked down at my phone that I had left on my bed. Jessica¡¯s post was still open and after a moment I scooped it up and pressed, ¡®like¡¯. Then, nervous that I would still back out, I scrolled down and commented.


    ¡°I¡¯ll be there.¡±


    There. It was done. Now I had to go and for better or for worse, I would. I stood up, breathed through the heavy weight within my chest and promptly ran to the bathroom to throw up.


    The night of the game I had borrowed the car to get to Claudia¡¯s Tap house. I had gotten my license early on in the year of my 16<sup>th</sup> birthday to give my parents a break on lifting Marcus around but I barely used the car. I parked on a small side street and stayed in the driver¡¯s seat for a good 15 minutes before finally gathering enough courage to step out of the car. It was dark around this time in August; the last bits of light cutting through the buildings as I walked towards the bar, each step weighing me down as if I was moving through shallow water.


    By the time I reached the door to the tap house my mind was racing. In my brain opening that door would expose me to my entire high school class who would sit and stare at me for a moment before breaking out in a fit of laughter. I¡¯d be forced to turn around and head back to the car; back home, back to the world of Dunn and suddenly that sounded better. Who cares if I commented on the post? Who cares if I liked the photo? I could turn around right now and be back home within the hour if I hit enough green lights... and that¡¯s exactly what would¡¯ve happened if Jessica hadn¡¯t been running late herself.


    My hand touched the long wrought iron handle of the door, the swirling groves of it feeling snake-like within my grip, just as Jessica Taylor reached out to do the same. For a moment our hands touched and as if having fondled toxic slime I reeled back in horror; my embarrassment hidden beneath what must¡¯ve looked like disgust on my face. I say I must¡¯ve looked disgusted because Jessica, who equally hadn¡¯t noticed me reaching, reacted to my expression as if it were exactly that.


    For a moment she looked surprised, then confused, then insulted. Fumbling like a blind man in the dark I pawed for the door again, this time going for the other long handle on the opposite door as if she touching it had tainted the first. I pulled hard on the door, intending to open it wide for both of us but when I did - it didn¡¯t move.


    ¡°Here let me,¡± Jessica said through half formed words as I yanked on the now obviously locked door again so hard that my hand shot off and swung low directly into Jessica¡¯s crotch. With the smack she kneeled over and let out an oomph sound. Horrified I brought both my hands to my mouth in a muttered cacophony of ¡°I¡¯m sorry¡¯s¡± and ¡°oh god¡¯s¡± that came out sounding like the parents in a Charlie Brown cartoon, the hollow cup of my hands distorting my words as if read through a dying trombone.


    Without thinking I yanked on the other door and ran into the bar. I was maybe half way through the second door before I realized I had let it shut on her and when I turned back to help her she only held up a solitary hand and gestured to the second door before me. As I entered the bar, holding the door open this time, I waited patiently until Jessica entered before bolting to the bathroom.


    I could barely stand to look at my reflection in the bathroom mirror. If crying would have felt better I most certainly would have but as I stood there all I could think of was how much I wished I was anywhere but here. After far too long in the bathroom I realized that there was no way out of this now and so I swallowed hard, breathed through the moment and exited the bathroom and into the tap house.You might be reading a stolen copy. Visit Royal Road for the authentic version.


    The bar itself was more a restaurant than a gaming space. The front section was still serving dinner in a casual manner as the waiter, who must have sensed my confusion (or god forbid saw my entry) gestured to the small hallway to the left of the bar that led to the back of the restaurant. I nodded and walked down the hallway which opened into a party room of sorts. Here small tables were pushed to one side and in the middle Jessica stood over a table seating three other people. She looked up towards me and clearly deciding to either forget or forgive our previous encounter said, ¡°Well look who decided to join us.¡±


    The table turned towards me in unison, save for one heavy-set blonde woman I recognized from school who took a second to finish whatever she was doing on her phone. She I recognized, the others I did not. With the length of the table stretching away from me there was a short kid on the left with thick glasses, bushy eyebrows and dark greasy hair named Jeremy. Opposite him, next to the heavy-set blonde girl (at the time I thought her name was Emma but it was actually Emily,) was a pasty white kid sporting a fedora who introduced himself to me in character: Zanthiak (Zack). Then, of course, at the head of the table was Jessica and to my horror the only open seat was directly next to her.


    She gestured to the open chair and then back to me adding, ¡°If I¡¯m not too gross.¡±


    Jessica was as masterful at running this table as she was at picking up the lesson Mrs. Willard would hand to her. In a short time she had us set up with ¡®Pre-gens¡¯ (pre-generated character sheets), pencils, paper and dice. She quickly and accurately explained which dice to roll and when (, much to the annoyance of Zach who clearly was not a first time player,) and within the first thirty minutes we were within the world of Dungeons & Dragons.


    The game started off rocky. For all my gaming passion it was as difficult as I had imagined to step into the world of D&D. The dice, the rolling, the stats, all this I could get behind; what I really couldn¡¯t crack was the role playing element. I couldn¡¯t get into the mindset of my character; I couldn¡¯t ¡°act¡± out what I wanted to do. I named my fighter Carver Welles which was a name I used often as a placeholder for important things but never felt comfortable in his skin. Regardless the story was interesting and Jessica¡¯s enthusiasm was contagious. She coaxed Emily out of her shell so vividly that as the game drew closer to the halfway point she seemed like a completely different person.


    Then things went pear-shaped.


    D&D is equal parts teamwork, strategy and story. Okay, there seem to be many more parts to it than that but for the sake of explanation, that¡¯s all there is. As we entered the midpoint of the game we were starting to click into the teamwork aspect of it, at least so far as being kind players to each other¡­ until Zack started to push the boundaries.


    It started off simple enough, we had just entered the first section of a rather large dungeon and Jessica had drawn out the layout for us on a mat. We had just captured a group of survivors, one of them being an elf girl. Zack, or Zanthiak as he almost exclusively referred to himself as, took the lead on interrogating the elf which seemed normal at first as he was the Barbarian. However, some of the implications he started to turn made us stop for a moment.


    ¡°What is she wearing?¡± he said with a smirk. Jessica¡¯s eyebrow raised in a way that seemed conflicted. One part seemingly curious at his question, hoping to expose information she held secret, and the other part nervous about his direction and the way he asked it.


    ¡°Why?¡± Jessica said, following her gut and landing on the latter.


    ¡°Doesn¡¯t matter,¡± Zack said dismissively, ¡°I¡¯m away from them, right?¡± He asked knowing that moments earlier we had decided to move ahead without him. Jessica breathed through her nose and her eyes tightened for a moment.


    ¡°You are, but you¡¯re not out of earshot necessarily.¡± She said cautioning him but she already knew what was coming before the rest of the table caught on.


    ¡°I¡¯ll take that chance,¡± Zach said as if being clever. With a sweaty handful of dice he turned to Jessica and said in his characters voice, ¡°You¡¯re a pretty little thing aren¡¯t you?¡± As if unable to continue his speech while looking at the person he spoke to, he tilted his head down, maintaining the seductive, coy smile as he did. He fondled the dice in his hands and continued, ¡°I¡¯m going to make you talk in the only way you¡¯ll listen...¡± Then, half excited and half panicked he turned to Jeremy and said through a cracked smile, ¡°I unzip my pants and---¡±


    That was as far as he got before the near-deafening slam of books crashed upon the table. Jessica had picked up her books and dropped them from shoulder height into the center of the table spilling dice, miniature figurines and pencils all around.


    Without breaking her gaze, a gaze of fire and fury, she walked around the table towards Zack and stuck a finger in his face. Zack, acting as if her anger was confusing and uncalled for, did his best to hold his hands up on either side of him ¨C the action of an innocent man.


    ¡°Get out of my game you miserable, scummy, neck-beard.¡± She said through teeth clenched so hard I swear I could see them cracking.


    ¡°Jessica, I wasn¡¯t going to¡­¡± Zack said, his gaze nervously shooting around to Jeremy and myself for support. His eyes met mine as I looked away, then to Jeremy who rocked his head back and forth as if to say, I don¡¯t know man. His supporters dwindling he went into the offensive,


    ¡°This game is garbage, you¡¯re such a bitch Jessica and your characters are lame,¡± he said without meeting her fiery gaze, too afraid of what she may do. She relaxed her jaw but kept her pose over him as he slunk down further in his chair.


    ¡°Not tomorrow, not tonight, now. Get your shit, pick up your sweat-covered dice and get out.¡± She said unflinching in her ferocity. Jeremy piped up, obviously friends with Zack outside this table,


    ¡°Jessica he won¡¯t do it again, he¡¯s just trying to be funny.¡± Jeremy said, his voice coming out more like a warble than a human voice. Zack, having his support, looked back from his friend towards Jessica now for the first time. Jeremy muttered something but it was lost amongst the sound of Zach¡¯s protest.. For a moment Jessica almost looked like she considered them. She stood up, lowered her hand, the thick smile upon Zack¡¯s face starting to creep back as she breathed the fire from her lungs. After a long pause she looked to me and said,


    ¡°What do you think Lester?¡± She said it with a pain behind her eyes that unsettled me. It wasn¡¯t disappointment so much as the expectation of it. It felt like a truth she was already preparing for and suddenly I was like a deer in headlights.


    In my heart I knew that whatever was happening didn¡¯t make a good game but there was something nagging in the back of my mind. It was shame; I was ashamed to sympathize with Zach. I could put myself in his shoes, maybe easier than I could Jessica¡¯s. I could understand how a joke could spiral and I could see myself getting caught up in a similar moment and being excited and curious to see where I could take it. It was a feeling that I knew was wholly wrong and I felt sick in the way I sympathized with him.


    As I sat there, realizing an uncomfortable truth about myself, it dawned on me that I had been silent for far too long. Suddenly aware that Jessica was waiting for me to weigh in I turned to Jeremy and then Emily who was on her phone and clearly trying her best to ignore the unfolding situation. I panicked. Despite my desire to say something, to agree with Jessica and acknowledge the disgusting nature of what Zach was doing, I couldn¡¯t. For that I felt embarrassed... but I felt worse when she gave up on waiting for me altogether.


    ¡°Fair enough,¡± She said half disheartened by my inaction, half assured, ¡°Jeremy, Lester, you¡¯re no longer welcome at this game either.¡± Jeremy who looked at her as if she had just been wounded turned to me, a look of shock on his face. His hurt gaze was followed by one of anger as he stood up along with Zack and they began to gather their things. I sat there for a moment contemplating what had transpired, feeling equal parts guilty, angry and sad. I was disappointed in myself, disappointed that I had not said anything. Not because I liked her, not because I wanted her to like me but because each of us sat down at this table to have a good time and Zack made that impossible.


    As we each stood up and moved towards the door Zack and Jeremy turned to me, Zack gesturing towards the table we left behind and mouthing the words, ¡°Bitch.¡± In the hallway I stopped because I could hear crying from the table. I debated in my head before moving back into the room to apologize to Jessica, only to see her comforting Emily.


    ¡°I¡¯m so sorry,¡± Jessica said, one hand on Emily¡¯s back, ¡°I should¡¯ve seen it coming.¡±


    I left the bar out the back, my head spinning and my stomach upset. The darkness of the alley felt familiar and normal, the trash cans a welcome companion to the human garbage I felt like. I kicked a loose bag of cans, spilling them out onto the pebble filled pathway and turned to head down the tight laneway to my car. I walked almost absentmindedly, thoughts still spinning in my head about Jessica, Zach and my own feelings about what had happened. I felt guilty, I felt wrong and while my mind fixated on the evening I left behind I could never have guessed that in the 50 feet between me and my car, I would find the code that would cause me to break the universe.

 Chapter 6

    I¡¯m sure at this point you¡¯re already having your doubts about me. Look, I said from the get-go that I don¡¯t expect you to believe me. It¡¯s going to get weirder fast and I feel the need to address the idea of ¡°A 14 year old kid who spends 6 years making a video game of the caliber and scope in which Dunn seems to be.¡± I know you probably have your doubts but what can I say? Some dogs can play piano, some people can solve Rubik¡¯s cubes in seconds flat, I could build Dunn. The dude who made Stardew Valley did it on his own in like two years, was it really so hard to believe that I could do something on a much larger scale in 6?


    Either way, for all the work I had put into Dunn; all the sleepless nights (and there were a LOT of them), all the missed family dinners and ignored parts of my life, it still wasn¡¯t completed. Not until the AI problem was cracked. It was an impassable obstacle that I didn¡¯t have any way around and it was easier to think about other things.


    Had I been thinking about the AI problem, however, instead of the events that had transpired moments before, I almost certainly wouldn¡¯t have turned left down another alleyway instead of right. I certainly wouldn¡¯t have missed the broken glass and flashing lights down another side street and I absolutely wouldn¡¯t have ignored the fallen police tape that was meant to block pedestrians from the crime scene I had just walked into. Stupid Zack.


    By the time I looked up I realized I was standing before a broken PC, smashed in the alleyway between two tall apartment buildings. The city sounds came back to me like breaking through the surface of a swimming pool and all at once I could hear the police questioning people down a sharp corner, the soft chattering voices of a crowd and the snapping sound of photos being taken. I froze. Like a squirrel indecisive about continuing to cross the road once caught in the headlights of a passing car, I didn¡¯t know whether to continue walking through or head back the way I had come. For a moment I tensed my shoulder waiting for the impending shout of a police officer but none came.


    I nervously looked around as if I had already been caught to see that, despite this being an active crime scene, no one was actually here. I could hear a group of people around the bend and voices through the open door to the building next to me but it seemed like I was alone. With a sigh of relief I had started to back away, retracing the last few steps, when my shoe landed on something that threw my balance a bit. I turned quickly to see the face of a man; blood smeared and covered in glass, his lifeless hand beneath my reebok sneakers.


    My face drained of colour and my jaw mouthed a scream that I couldn¡¯t make. The pit of my stomach fell below the earth, beneath the city streets and underground passageways, past the core and out the other side to create another sinkhole on the other side of the world. I was frozen, truly frozen; a catatonic state that I probably would¡¯ve stayed in had it not been for the soft beep that came from the broken PC in the alley.


    Slowly and with my eyes still on the face of the dead man by my feet, I turned my head to the computer; my eyes clinging to the corpse until the last possible second, their deceptive kindness eager for me to memorize the horrible image. The PC, which looked totally destroyed, had flicked on somehow and a single green line of text had appeared. I couldn¡¯t quite read it from my distance but being a man of feline-level curiosity I approached, hoping that I shared a cat¡¯s level of intrigue and not its fate. The computer appeared to be an impressive rig at first glance but the more I studied it the more I was astonished.The story has been taken without consent; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.


    Not only did it have all the absolute best pieces I recognized; the case, monitor and PSU, but the Graphics card and Processor were unlike anything I had ever seen. The GPU looked as though it had been stitched together, albeit with extreme precision, from two of the top cards on the market while the CPU was altogether something different. The Central Processing Unit is the brain of any computer and this brain looked super-human. When my eyes finished admiring the hardware they flashed to the screen and the single green line that appeared, which read;


    CODE READY FOR UPLOAD, INSERT USB


    It was written in a custom font, it wasn¡¯t any software that I recognized and perhaps was designed by the owner of this beast. For a moment I considered the words, turning them over in my mind. The silence was broken by a loud voice from within the building through the open door next to me. Nervously I turned back to the dead man, his face unchanged, holding the last expression he¡¯d ever make and slowly, nervously, I turned back to the PC.


    I¡¯d like to pretend I don¡¯t know why I did what I did next. It would be quite innocent of me to claim something like, ¡°I was totally off my rocker!¡± or ¡°It was like moving without thought,¡± but if you¡¯ve learned anything about me you know that neither of those would be true. The truth is that I very deliberately and quickly removed the USB I kept on my keychain from my pocket, plugged it into the PC and pressed enter. The small green loading bar popped up and began to fill as the thick drops of sweat that had been accumulating on my brow began to plunk down onto my shoes. The voices grew closer as I found myself muttering beneath my breath. ¡°Come on, come on.¡±


    The voices grew louder, two of them now, in deep discussion having cleared the building to my right. As they descended the stairs towards the alley - the alley where I stood stealing evidence from a crime scene - I saw a broken lamp smashed into the pavement next to me. With a raised eyebrow a thought dawned on me and I looked up for the first time. Three stories above me in the building that the voices came from, there was an obliterated apartment window. The computer it didn¡¯t just appear to be have fallen but was instead thrown out of an apartment along with the dead man. Clothing, CD¡¯s and blankets covered the fire escapes and clothes lines that connected the two buildings. As I studied the scene, my eyes fell to back to the broken window and a man who stood at it, looking down at me.


    ¡°Hey you! Stop!¡± the voice yelled down into the alleyway as the pit in my stomach leaped up into my throat, nearly strangling me. Quickly, I turned back down at the computer, the loading bar having been completed for god knows how long and in one move I swiped for my USB before racing out of the alleyway as fast as my feet would take me. As I rounded the end of the alley, I heard the voice again, this time presumably talking to the other officers who had just entered the crime scene as I left; ¡°I just saw a kid¡­¡± was all I could hear above the beating of my own heart.


    I stopped at the intersection where I had taken the wrong turn and had a moment of indecision before turning back to Claudia¡¯s Tap House instead of the car. I ran to the back entrance which thankfully was still open and bolted inside, leaning on the door behind me. I caught my breath and entered the back of the bar, the table had been cleared and Jessica was nowhere in sight but I could hear a number of voices out front. As I approached from the back I saw the patrons crowded by the front window as the sirens wailed past. Blue and red lights of the cruisers illuminated the streets out front. With my heart beating fast enough to impress a humming bird I leaned into the bathroom, stumbled to the toilet and for the second time this evening vomited. One more and I¡¯m pretty sure I get a free hat.

 Chapter 7

    I ended up leaving the bar about an hour later after a startled busboy found me cowering in the men¡¯s room and informed me that they closed twenty minutes ago. This time I left through the front. I had been sitting in my car for a bit waiting to start it up when my phone buzzed. It was rare for me to have any notifications that didn¡¯t come from my parents and seeing as I had been out later than expected I checked it without much thought. It was an Instagram message from Jessica;


    ¡°Hey, I¡¯m sorry. I think I blew up a little on you and that wasn¡¯t fair. Zack is an asshole and this isn¡¯t the first time he¡¯s pulled this shit but you didn¡¯t deserve to be banned for landing in the middle. I¡¯d be happy to game again with you if you¡¯d like. </img> ¡±


    She ended it with a smile emoji. I stared at that screen for five solid minutes, I swear. That little symbol turned the lump in my throat to a thousand little bugs which travelled down into my stomach and brushed against every nerve ending in my body. I had felt so terrible that Jessica lumped me in with that idiot, that I don¡¯t think I realized how much I needed some sign, some recognition that I wasn¡¯t like him.


    My hand hovered over the keyboard to answer. I typed: ¡°Hey don¡¯t worry about it. You¡¯re so great.¡± Then I promptly erased it. I tried about three different starts before I glanced up at the time and realized it was almost midnight. I closed my phone and drove home basking in the warmth of that smile.


    The next morning I woke feeling happier than I could remember and for the first time this year I decided to join my family for breakfast. I walked downstairs, a literal spring in my step, to greet my dad, mom and Marcus who all looked at me like a leper trying to cough in their coffee. My mom, happier to see me than question the reasoning, greeted me with a tone of disbelief.


    ¡°L-Lester! Well, sit! Join us, Marcus make room for your brother.¡± She said, nervous to sound too excited about my attendance. For my dad the moment passed quickly and the appreciative look on his face was soon replaced by the furrowed brow that accompanied his reading of the Saturday morning¡¯s paper. Mom practically ran to the stove to crack another egg in the pan which held the three she had almost finished. Eagerly but in a tone that seemed passive she asked to the pan,


    ¡°So how did your evening go at the Tap House?¡±


    The rule was if you wanted to use the car, you needed to share where you¡¯re going, but that didn¡¯t extend to what I was doing necessarily. Zack, Jeremy, Emily and Jessica flooded back into my mind; the sweaty grin Zack held on his face, the way his cheeks warbled back and forth when he looked between Jeremy and me nervously. For a second I thought I¡¯d stall and then the memory of Jessica¡¯s smiley emoji flashed in my mind again and the thought fell free. With a smile I said,


    ¡°It was a lot of fun actually.¡±


    Mom turned from the stove, a sort of half smile on her face that could only be the attempt to hide her beaming pride. She half nodded, a sort of approving nod that said you keep doing you kid and I was about to tell her more when Dad interrupted.


    ¡°Weren¡¯t you right by there?¡± Dad asked in a tone more akin to confirmation than concern as he turned the newspaper around to show me the picture of chalk outline in an alleyway plastered on the front page. For a moment I looked at the picture with innocent eyes, a sort of disconnected feeling that honestly felt natural. I looked at the picture assuming my dad was making a joke or there was something that was meant to jump out at me for a good few seconds before I realized it was the alley from last night.


    ¡°Oh fuck.¡± I said almost silently, but clearly not quite enough as my Mom turned from the stove, the admiration on her face now replaced with disgust.


    ¡°Lester.¡± She said flatly with a serious tone but I was already reaching for the paper from Dad who handed it over without protest. My mom walked over to my dad, placing a plate of scrambled eggs before him as my eyes scanned the paper frantically. ¡°What was in the paper?¡± she said to my dad kissing his bald spot and leaning on him in a way that showed her obvious affection.


    ¡°A murder near where Lester was last night,¡± he said as he scooped eggs onto his fork and looked around the table for the salt. Mom picked up the salt and moved it towards him as she slid around his back to my side just in time for me to read the words I had been dreading;


    ¡°¡­still at large described as a young, African American in his late teens seen last with glasses, wearing a brown hoodie and blue jeans. If you have¡­¡±You might be reading a pirated copy. Look for the official release to support the author.


    I stashed the paper down below the table in a sea of crumpling noise causing my parents to stop and Marcus to look up from his iPad for the first time. The inquisitive, outstretched hand my mother held in anticipation of snagging the paper from me was slowly drawn back against her chest as my Dad spoke through a mouthful of scrambled eggs;


    ¡°What¡¯s gotten into you?¡± he said flatly as bits of yellow egg fell from his mouth. My mom turned to him, presumably to tell him not to speak with a full mouth but I was already halfway up the stairs to my room.


    I kneeled down on my bed and splayed out the newspaper, studying the entire article. Once I had read it, I read it again from the beginning noting each and every detail. They had me down to a T, anyone in the bar that night would be able to corroborate the description and all they had to do was speak with Jessica and...


    ¡°Is everything alright?¡± Kappa said from my computer. I had left in a hurry last night and forgotten to turn off the computer or exit Dunn.


    ¡°Yes and no, Kap. Mainly no.¡± I said, as I read the article out loud to him making sure to meet his eye-line (aka the camera) as I read out the description of this person of interest. He went quiet for a moment and then said,


    ¡°I assume that was you?¡±


    ¡°Obviously,¡± I said in annoyance, tossing the newspaper on my desk in defeat. Kappa thought for a moment, an action I had programed to appear as him turning up one side of his mouth.


    ¡°Did you kill him?¡± Kappa said with a calmness that was uncomfortable, as if no answer would change his perception of me.


    ¡°What? No of course not, why the hell would you ask that?¡± I said more confused than anything.


    ¡°Well I just don¡¯t see why you¡¯re concerned then.¡± He sounded very confused and trying his best to be understanding. Another programming detail I had added was the way he shook his head when confused in a sort of deniable ignorance.


    ¡°Well, because I took the¡­¡± file. I finished the thought without words. In the flurry of Jessica¡¯s message and lateness getting home I had completely forgotten about what I had taken from the crime scene. Frantically I headed over to the back of my door where my coat hung, Kappa inquiring if I had more to add as I did. I felt around in the pocket of my coat and wrapped my fingers around the USB on my keychain.


    I turned around, almost presenting the USB to Kappa.


    ¡°It¡¯s your USB!¡± Kappa said innocently as if he had solved the mystery and was ready for a reward. I walked over the computer and removed it from my keychain as I considered the files within.


    ¡°It¡¯s not just my USB Kap, last night in the alley¡­ there was something on that dead guy¡¯s computer and I uploaded it.¡± I said, turning my attention back to Kappa who was sporting a face I hadn¡¯t seen before, a sort of disapproving look.


    ¡°Lester¡­¡± he said almost mournfully. I had written his backstory, created his design; I knew he was a lawfully good character that was meant to be the characters moral compass. We may not have been in game but I could almost see the grey text Kappa Didn¡¯t Like That appear in the bottom corner of my vision. He was about to continue on when there was a knock on my door.


    ¡°Lester?¡± My mom asked nervously, as if afraid she¡¯d be startling a kitten. I turned to the newspaper lying on my bed and threw my blanket on it, sticking the USB in my pocket. I turned to Kappa, a knowing look he understood to mean disable audio, and opened the door.


    My mom pulled her hand back to her chest in a quick gesture as if she had been about to knock again. Her face was one of sorrow and concern and as if all of a sudden I felt terrible. Years of the concern and care she had offered me suddenly came crashing down on me as I studied her face. Something about the way she was afraid to ask her son if he was okay shook me and in an instant I stepped forward and hugged her.


    She was simultaneously relieved and more concerned than ever at the bizarre show of affection.


    ¡°What¡¯s wrong Lester?¡± she said as if expecting me to reveal a cancerous mole to her. In truth, had she known that I was being sought by the police for removing evidence from an active crime scene her look of concern may have been apt but since this was not something I was interested in sharing I simply smiled at her and said,


    ¡°Nothing momma, I just realized I don¡¯t appreciate you enough.¡±


    Tears welled in her eyes as she stepped back and brought a hand to her mouth, the tiny bit of unexpected kindness like an oasis in my day to day desert of neglect. Her appreciation made me feel worse. How starved for appreciation she was, how kind and patient she was to never ask. I hugged her again and instead of pushing it changed the subject.


    ¡°It is okay, promise. Did you want me to come back down and eat?¡±


    She held me for a long time before stepping back, sniffing the air and laughing at the tears that had stained my grey t-shirt.


    ¡°No, no,¡± she said through a plugged nose, ¡°we¡¯re just getting ready to go out to the flea market. Unless you wanted to?¡± she half-finished the thought knowing the answer. I shook my head no with a smile which she took in good will and continued, ¡°Well, I left the egg in the pan. Eat whenever you¡¯d like. I love you.¡±


    ¡°Love you too Momma,¡± I said as she turned and went down stairs. I waited at my door for a second before shutting it. I couldn¡¯t hear the words but the worried tone of my dad seeing his wife¡¯s tears, then the soft spoken tone of my mom and a pause. They were hugging. I closed my door and waited on the other side for a long while considering my parents before I heard the closing of the front door and the cough of our Toyota outside.


    I looked back to Kappa who appeared once again and removed the USB from my pocket, walked to the PC and plugged it in.

 Chapter 8

    There are two things in the world that are absolutes. The first is that when you drop a piece of buttered bread, it will always fall face down. The second is that whenever you go to plug in a USB you will always have to turn it upside down at least twice before sticking it in. These are indisputable facts. So imagine my surprise when my USB not only went in the first try but also felt effortless to push in. I actually had to lean down and check to make sure I pushed it in because the thing practically leapt into my computer.


    I copied the contents of the USB into a folder on my desktop and all that seemed to be within was a file called, ¡®Code¡¯.


    ¡°What is in the folder?¡± Kappa asked and with an arched eyebrow I double-clicked and sat back. Nothing seemed to happen but the screen that Kappa occupied was gone. I was back on my desktop and went to move my cursor to close the file window but it didn¡¯t move. I shook it violently back and forth but nothing. I pressed some keys but nothing changed. For a moment my blood ran cold as a question I had failed to ask bounced through my head; what if this is a virus?


    I immediately began kicking myself for not using a test computer at school to see what was on this thing and as I was about to lean back down to pull it out, my screen went black and a line of text appeared on my screen. Nervously, anticipating some poorly written demand for bitcoin, I read it. It was the same font, colour and program presumably as I had seen in the alleyway except what was written here gave me a wholly different feeling;


    VIEW/EDIT CODE?


    I had forgotten that it was a ¡®code¡¯. In my haste and sweat and fear I had forgotten the reason why I had reached into my pocket, grabbed my USB and tampered with evidence; because this was my language. This was my world. Beneath it was an open command-line and so without any hesitation I typed in the word;


    VIEW


    The screen populated with a massive code written in C++ (the language of my people,) that was hundreds if not thousands of pages long. I began scanning it for recognizable terms, and for the most part I could tell the colour palette used for certain things and the names seemed relatively normal. The first thing that jumped out to me was that this was one, long code. No file folders no titles, it was all populating one single thing. The second thing I noticed was that it had locations; office, bathroom and something called ¡°aprt_1¡±. I spent probably 20 minutes looking through the code until I got fed up and went to the bottom. It took time. I mean, I ended up leaving an empty water glass on my Page Down key and using the bathroom because it took so long.


    When I returned, the code was at its end and I sat down to examine the final lines. At first I was a bit confused. With furrowed brow I stared blankly at the screen and questioned exactly what I was looking at then read and re-read the final code before my stomach tensed with anxiety. The final code had the title;Enjoying this book? Seek out the original to ensure the author gets credit.


    bathroom_dunn


    At first my feelings were off because I thought maybe this program had studied my PC and somehow copied files from Dunn but the bathroom that was here wasn¡¯t from my game, it was from my house. Below it there were a whole slew of lines of code; details and information about colour code, object population and interaction abilities, all seemingly normal and as they are and were in real life. I stepped away from the computer and nervously looked around my room as if being watched. In these moments having friends would have made this easier because I could¡¯ve mistakenly blamed them for this ¡°prank,¡± but it was of course not the case.


    I went back to my computer and decided to scroll up to the previous section and as if in a daze I scanned the code for what part of me already knew would be there;


    bedroom1_dunn


    Beneath were a number of lines dedicated to the various objects in my room, their colour palette and details. Instinctively I pressed escape on the keyboard as if closing the program would make a difference but it stayed populated on my screen. I slammed control-q and tried to launch the task manager but nothing. I stood up and backed away from my desk as if it were diseased and fumbled for my phone. Though I had never called him before, the only person that I felt could make sense of this was Mr. Derrigar and so I called the library. It rang and rang but there was no answer. I looked back on the code and despite me not talking to anyone it read;


    library1_office


    Desperately I tried pressing alt-enter, the prompt to change a program to full screen and to my delight the screen minimized slightly. Now with the code in a smaller window I could see my desktop, I could see my launch file for Dunn and the program for Kappa. I needed to talk to someone about this and so without thinking I launched Kappa just as the code added a new line;


    kappa_merrigold


    Kappa Merrigold was the full name I had given him and as he popped up next to the window his eyes stayed blank; the code on the right hand side of the screen populating line after line of text, rewriting itself over and over, correcting errors and introducing new parameter with every line as Kappa¡¯s face twisted and contorted and then disappeared. Confused I eyed the desktop program to see the shortcut had been deleted and as I looked back to the Code I saw the bedroom code lines update.


    ¡°Lester?¡± I heard a voice from behind me and spun around so fast that a pain shot through my neck. There, standing in my room dressed in the faded blue leotard and crimson waistcoat, was Kappa as I had programmed him in game.


    I don¡¯t think I can accurately describe the feeling since, so far as I know, it has no equal. Even parents would have a tough time understanding the feeling because there was no part of me that ever thought I would actually get to talk to Kappa in real life. I don¡¯t know whether it was because of the year I¡¯d spent talking to him or because he was after all my creation but for whatever reason once that initial shock wore off, I rubbed my neck and spoke to him as I always had.


    ¡°So, this is new.¡± I said very matter-of-fact.

 Chapter 9

    Once we both got over the initial shock of what had transpired, picking up where we left off was relatively easy. For once I could be in another room of my house and still have a conversation with Kappa. He marveled at the house that existed beyond the one wall in my bedroom he had been witness to and while we talked he stopped continuallyto pick up a statuette or turn on a lamp. It was all very 80¡¯s computer movie of him but I didn¡¯t want to lean into the trope of teaching an Artificial Intelligence how to love. I wanted to figure out what the hell had happened and fix it.


    Sitting at the counter in the kitchen I gave him my egg and kept talking through the problem;


    ¡°Everything in the code seems to have been populated by the real world, but when I accessed you, it pulled you into this¡­¡± I said more to myself than to the bard who hungrily devoured the cold egg before him. ¡°What would happen if I deleted the line of code, the one about you that I added?¡±


    Kappa looked up and shrugged, a human gesture that I don¡¯t remember programming into him, and said ¡°Perhaps I¡¯ll just return?¡± but there was a note of doubt that seemed subtle for a program.


    ¡°Or you¡¯ll be deleted,¡± I said woefully. Despite knowing that Kappa was not real I felt a tinge of responsibility in understanding what would come of him should I delete the file. I shook my head and laid out the options,


    ¡°Ultimately we need to figure out what the hell this code is for and what it does. I think the best place to start would be the crime scene but being that I¡¯m a person of interest in a murder investigation I can¡¯t imagine how that would be possible.¡± I sat beside Kappa, who finished the egg mom left for me and wiped his mouth between words.


    ¡°Well, perhaps we can wear a disguise,¡± he said in a way that inspired excitement and adventure, very much like Dunn and very much like Kappa. I shook my head no.


    ¡°In the real world it doesn¡¯t work like that. There aren¡¯t stats for sneaking or disguise and you can¡¯t really¡­¡± My mouth had more to say but my mind kept walking towards a thought; an idea that didn''t want to leave me alone. After a moment I pushed back my stool with a screech and headed upstairs. Kappa followed and when I reached my room I clicked on the code window and scrolled back up to section for my bedroom. I studied the lines as Kappa offered a nervous word,


    ¡°Lester, be careful¡­¡± but the words were meaningless opposed to my curiosity. I looked through the populated items in my room until I found the blue lamp on my nightstand. All the details were there; colour, size, height, all the pieces of information that were required to make that lamp exist and after a deep breath I highlighted the ¡®blue¡¯ and changed it to ¡®red¡¯.


    There was no fanfare, no chorus, no zap, poof or screech. As silently as Kappa had entered my world the lamp, equally silently, changed to red. My heart beat fast and I changed it back to blue, ensuring that nothing of substance was lost and again. Without sound, it changed back. The possibilities ran through my mind and just before I went to change another thing in my room I realized that if Kappa was populated when he entered this space, maybe I would be too.The narrative has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the infringement.


    I scrolled above the code that mentioned my bedroom but no line for me, just something called;


    outside_alley1


    I was about to continue past when I realized that was the alley, as in the alley where I found the computer and the body, where I uploaded the code. I studied the lines, recognizing certain objects that were near the PC and then my eyes fell upon the small green text that read;


    lester_dunn


    My mouth felt dry as I tongued the roof of my mouth. The details below defining me; hair, eye and skin colour, even the clothes I was wearing last night seemed to be detailed within the lines of code and for a moment I paused. I hovered over the parameters of my height, just below my age and the details of my appearance and after a breath changed them; giving myself another inch. Like the changing of the light it was instantaneous, I could see the screen shift lower as if sitting up slightly but I didn¡¯t feel any different, just my perspective. I changed it back nervously and continued up in the code. I scrolled past the alley until I saw the location;


    apartment1_graves


    It was the apartment that the computer fell from.


    ¡°Graves¡­¡± I said to myself but Kappa responded as if I had spoken to him,


    ¡°Mhm, where they put dead people¡­¡± he said in a serious, knowing tone, nodding his head as if understanding the question. His face was beside mine staring at the same screen. I turned and looked at him,


    ¡°No, that was his name, maybe he was the guy who made this code,¡± I said as I opened my web browser and googled Graves and Computer Coding with no real results. I leaned back in my chair and thought for a moment. Kappa spoke up,


    ¡°What are you hoping to find out?¡± Kappa said innocently. For a moment I was surprised by my own uncertainty. I had been certain that we needed to find out more about this code and where it came from but as I turned to Kappa my mind went blank.


    ¡°I¡¯m honestly not too sure,¡± I said perplexed by my own doubt. ¡°I guess I want to know what this is and why it¡¯s here,¡± I said gesturing to the code. I stood up and turned back to Kappa;


    ¡°This code is populating based on locations that it¡¯s encountered. It¡¯s allowing me to change aspects of the world. It¡¯s allowing me to redefine things that are static.¡± I said as my mind wandered, ¡°but there is no coding for my car, the bar or even the house... only the places we¡¯ve been to since the code has become active.¡± I nodded to my own words as I spoke, ¡°which means this isn¡¯t The Matrix, I¡¯m not some pawn in an artificial world or stuck in a video game.¡± I could see the words forming in my mind before I said them and though I tried to find better ones, I couldn¡¯t;


    ¡°I¡¯m like a God.¡±


    A loud crunch broke my train of thought as Kappa begun eating from the bag of goldfish crackers I kept on my desk, chewing through a slow nod. After an uncomfortably long chewing session, Kappa finally swallowed the mammoth mouthful and in the most innocent way said,


    ¡°What¡¯s a God?¡±

 Chapter 10

    Yes, I could have shown Kappa a slew of movies, documentaries of hell, just have read him the Wikipedia page of a God to let him know what I was talking about but I had just discovered that I could edit the world around me. Now that I was a line of code within this script wherever I went, whomever I interacted with, would also become a populated character and though my mind was anxious to scan the code; to understand who Graves was, who he interacted with and what he was up to¡­ COME ON! I mean, GOD POWERS!?!


    Honestly though, imagine if you were given the choice to change whatever you wanted in the world, on the fly or scan through thousands upon thousands of lines of code to find out info on some dude who was dead. Do I regret my decision now? One hundred and eleventieth percent but that¡¯s then, this is now and I¡¯m a flawed person.


    In any case I wanted to do something simple, something that didn¡¯t affect too many people but something big enough that tested the limited and capabilities of what I could do. Before changing anything however I needed to show Kappa what the world was like, mainly so he could understand what changed when I altered the code but also because, well, I liked Kappa and I was happy that he was here with me. I had spent more nights than I can remember talking to him and we were close, closer than I thought I¡¯d ever be with another living person. Kappa may not be living - that was still a question mark on this whole exercise, - but he was real, that was undeniable and so after a quick change of clothes, we went outside for a walk.


    It took me a while to comprehend but one of the interesting things I realized was that Kappa existed in the real world without the limitations of Dunn. That is to say that when I designed him, his look and his appearance were all within the confines of the engine I had built from the ground up. He didn¡¯t look bad but he was clearly a video game character, whereas whatever came out as a result of me launching the Kappa program in the code was human ¨C or at least looked and acted like one. I had seen the code doing a number of rewrites and conversations in real time and despite the impossibility of what I had seen it made a sense that this self-writing code had rewritten him based on the pre-defined limits of this world rather than his. He still was affected by gravity; his hair seemed fluid and real. Despite the conversion into our world; he was spot on.


    The summer was ending and as surprised as I had been to see Kappa converted into our world, it paled in comparison to what he must have been seeing. As we walked through the woods by my house he¡¯d stop and remark on the leaves and trees trying to find the words.


    ¡°These are incredible Lester, you must look¡± He¡¯d say as if showing me a new thing. I appreciated his enthusiasm and as much as I wanted to brush him off, I found myself playing along, answering his questions. The morning sun was warm against my skin and for the first time while walking through the woods I wasn¡¯t thinking about Dunn or programming; I was enjoying the day and the world around me. Kappa ran up behind me like a toddler and stuck a hand out to show me a stick.


    ¡°Isn¡¯t it marvelous?¡± he said in an innocent way that made me chuckle. I stopped and took it, examining it for its beauty as he suggested and dropped it, much to his protest.


    ¡°There are literally millions Kap,¡± I said. His expression became pained. I gestured to the trees and continued. ¡°I want you to look around at the trees, memorize their colour, shape and design too, okay? But mainly the colour.¡± He nodded and looked back at me.


    ¡°For the most part these trees are absolute, they change with the season, yes, but they don¡¯t change without the world changing.¡± He nodded to understand as we headed back to the house as Kappa skipped behind pluckingleaves from the branches around us. I laughed at his juvenile innocence, the kind and innocent way he experienced the world and realized how jaded my view had become.


    On our way back my phone rang. Expecting my parents, I answered it blindly and was surprised to hear Mr. Derrigar¡¯s voice on the other end.


    ¡°Lester? It¡¯s Drew, did you call me?¡± he said kindly with a hint of concern. I looked behind me to Kappa, then back in the direction we were heading and smiled.


    ¡°Yes Drew and it¡¯s all fine, I thought I needed a hand but I think I figured it out.¡± I could hear him relax on the other side and after I hung up I felt good, really good.


    It didn¡¯t take long for us to arrive back home and after an interested conversation about how to quench one''s thirst, we were back on my computer to see the area we had been in populated within the code. The scenes, trees, leaves, streams and objects we had seen were all added in a number of lines to the code. I pointed it out to him, showing him the lines added for the trees and the wood, the paths and stones, and he nodded in understanding.


    ¡°Still have those leaves?¡± I asked. He nodded. ¡°Look at them.¡± I said as I pulled up the line for the leaves and changed their colour to blue. In his hand the leaf changed to a deep blue and he marveled at it. Even I felt a bit surprised at how a simple change can alter your perspective. It took little convincing from Kappa to head back outside and into the woods once again.


    The trees that lined the path moments ago were now a beautiful blue. It felt otherworldly as we moved through a sea of deep navy and violets and eventually we passed the point where we had originally stopped. To Kappa, this was another marvel but to me it turned the wheels in my head. Eventually we came to a river and as I joked about the water physics Kappa was already running his fingers through the stream. We had passed small creeks on our first walk into the woods, but this was much larger and more picturesque. The path we were on diverted around a set of thick trees but as I turned to him to tell him to move forward I noticed a few people coming down the path.


    ¡°Oh let¡¯s go the other way,¡± I said and quietly tried to lead him away. ¡°Come on.¡±


    Kappa who was still running his fingers through the water stood up and in a loud voice questioned why. For a moment I was taken back to my parents dealing with Marcus when we went to the arcade one summer near the beaches and how he innocently couldn¡¯t understand why we needed to leave such a beautiful place. Patiently I walked towards him when he saw the others approach and asked,


    ¡°Is that your mom and dad?¡± he said, his face lighting up. I was about to ask why on earth he¡¯d think that when it dawned on me that Kappa had only ever seen my family. Everyone else that I had told him about was purely in name and though he did an amazing job of following, he really had no idea what these people were. He knew the end result of the names and how they affected me, but probably not that they were people the way my parents were.


    ¡°No,¡± I said in a loud whisper, anxious that people would see him splashing in a puddle and already the feeling of embarrassment began to rise in me, ¡°they¡¯re strangers we don¡¯t know them.¡±Unauthorized content usage: if you discover this narrative on Amazon, report the violation.


    The two people were close by and turned the path towards us. My heart sank as Jessica and her friend Sarah came into view walking directly toward us. Kappa stood up but it was too late as Jessica met my eyes despite me frantically trying to look away.


    For a moment I could see her debate between acknowledging me and continuing on the path but with a short nod directed at herself she broke from her friends¡¯ stride and walked directly towards me. Nervously, I took a half-step back and tripped over a tree root sending a sharp pain through my buttock and lower back. Kappa yelped. Jessica spun around, unaware that I was there with anyone but quickly turned back to help me up. The two of them came for me but I took only Kappa¡¯s hand who helped me up and quickly patted the dirt from me.


    ¡°Are you okay?¡± Jessica said, her eyes moving between me and the middle aged man who was frantically wiping my back.


    ¡°Y-yes, totally fine, sorry.¡± I stammered, she shook her head.


    ¡°No are you kidding? I¡¯m sorry, I must have come upon you like an animal or something,¡± she said apologetically, a half-smile as she spoke. I shook my head dismissively and was about to answer when Kappa interjected, fervently defending me and supporting her assessment.


    ¡°Most assuredly miss,¡± he said in his angry posh accent, ¡°You act just as an animal does!¡± He nearly belted at Jessica before turning back and slapping the dirt off my butt. I waived him away as Jessica looked wide eyed.


    ¡°I¡¯m sorry Jessica, this is my uncle from overseas, and he¡¯s a bit protective and¡­ eccentric¡± I said as I could feel Kappa turn his whole body towards her,


    ¡°Jessica you say?¡± he said surprised and happily, ¡°My most sincere apologies my lady! I did not mean to be so short with a friend of Lester¡¯s such of your caliber.¡±


    My face was hot as the words left his mouth. Jessica tightened her face into a pained smile. The regret of coming over here plastered on her face and seeing the opportunity she said,


    ¡°Look, anyways, I just wanted to make sure we were okay. I saw you read the message last night and assume apology accepted?¡± she asked, anticipating my acceptance.


    ¡°Of course lady Jessica,¡± Kappa said before I could speak, ¡°we most definitely accept your apology.¡± I swallowed hard and pretended I was anywhere else as she nodded towards Kappa and then to me.


    ¡°Alrighty then,¡± she said averting eye contact as she turned and left. She joined back up alongside her friend and in hushed tones she dismissed any questioning for the time being. She turned back to me and said, ¡°Amazing trees, eh? It¡¯s some kind of crazy weather thing I guess?¡± She shrugged, then shook her head in bewilderment before waving goodbye. I stood there motionless.


    ¡°Bye Jessica,¡± I said out loud a good 5 minutes after they left and turned to Kappa. ¡°Don¡¯t ever speak for me,¡± I said in a tone that was much angrier than I expected. ¡°Jessica is someone you know I like very much and you¡­¡± I saw the look on Kappa¡¯s face a pained expression of confusion, like a dog being yelled at, unsure as to why. I stopped and turned away.


    ¡°Let¡¯s go home.¡± I said coldly and we did.


    My parents were still out by the time Kappa and I got home and when we reached my bedroom I had all but apologized to Kappa. My momentary frustration had passed but I was surprised at how Kappa still felt upset by it; I hadn¡¯t programmed any sort of grudge holding into his code and yet for the second time today, his actions surprised me as if they were unscripted.


    I closed my bedroom door, went to my computer and changed the trees back to the way they were supposed to be. I was about to scan the code when Kappa spoke up for the first time since leaving the woods.


    ¡°Can you change people?¡± he asked flatly.


    For a moment I considered his question then remembered my height change from earlier.


    ¡°Yes I suppose I can.¡± I said without turning to him. I began looking through the code again when my eyes fell on Jessica¡¯s line of code and I could feel my palms begin to sweat.


    ¡°Can you change me?¡± Kappa said, as if deep in thought.


    ¡°As I just said, yes.¡± I answered, more annoyed this time.


    ¡°No,¡± he said, ¡°can you change me, please.¡±


    I turned to him for the first time since coming home and his face was one of sadness.


    ¡°Look I¡¯m sorry Kap, I didn¡¯t mean to snap at you.¡± I said, but he held a hand up in protest; another action I didn¡¯t program for him.


    ¡°No, it isn¡¯t what you did Lester. This world, it¡¯s much different and honestly, I didn¡¯t have much of a say in how I look. I was wondering if maybe you could give me a bit of a chance to try on some new faces.¡±


    I considered his request for a moment and as the various pros and cons began to pile up I dismissed the thought and landed on one; it¡¯s his body, why not.


    ¡°Okay,¡± I said, ¡°what would you like to change?¡±


    Excitedly Kappa stood up and walked over to the computer rubbing his hands together in anticipation. He thought for a moment. ¡°I want to be your age I think.¡± He said, and I understood the benefit for both of us; walking around with a forty year old white man seemed a bit suspect and it made more sense that we were the same age since we¡¯d be more believable as friends.


    ¡°Done.¡± I said turning back to the computer and as I changed the parameters, Kappa¡¯s clothes grew loose around him and he shrunk slightly. I turned back ready for the next request but secretly hoping that he wasn¡¯t interested in getting too detailed. He was looking towards me then turned to the wall. Posters from various video games and TV shows were strewn across them . After a moment he turned back to me.


    ¡°I want to look like her.¡±


    He said pointing to a picture of Alyx Vance from the Half Life series of video games. I turned to look and studied the picture for a minute. Alyx Vance had short brown hair with streaks of red, (a reminiscence of her original fully red hair) a headband and green eyes. Beyond that I knew from playing the games that she had a birthmark at the stem of her neck and after studying the entirety of her image for a moment, I nodded.


    It didn¡¯t take long to change Kappa into Alyx Vance, or an Alyx Vance look-alike. Again she was from an engine in a game. This real world Alyx was wholly real and Kappa studied his new hands with a genuine happiness that made me smile. I turned to him¡­ er¡­ her and asked what else. She shook her head slowly and in the male, posh, British voice I had uploaded for her eons ago, she said


    ¡°Nothing else.¡±


    I smiled and said, ¡°I did have a female actor send me a voice file if you¡¯d like to sound different.¡± She nodded and after a few moments I had found the old files and was running them through an algorithm to have them uploaded. An hour later she was speaking in an equally posh British voice that sounded a bit more feminine. She turned to me.


    ¡°Thank you Lester, I feel better in this body. More correct.¡±


    ¡°Of course,¡± I said with a smile. I felt good and it felt right, very human but the moment was broken,


    ¡°I¡¯d like to head out on my own for a bit,¡± she said.


    The feeling of childlike anger didn¡¯t crash down on me, rather it slowly washed over my head and down towards my feet. The prospect of spending the day with my best friend, the joy I had from helping her vanished at the prospect of being abandoned. At first I nodded in agreement but then spoke my mind.


    ¡°That was quick,¡± I said, hot headed and hurt.


    ¡°What do you mean?¡± she said, a genuine look of confusion on her face.


    ¡°I just thought it¡¯d be a little longer before you wanted to leave is all,¡± I said, well aware of the petulant way I spoke. I could hear the words I said, see the way I acted but felt like a train without brakes barreling down on a helpless woman tied to the tracks.


    ¡°Lester, I¡¯m not abandoning you. You showed me such a lovely world today, I don¡¯t want to burden¡­¡± was as far as she got before I shook my head.


    ¡°Just go,¡± I said coldly and gestured to the door. With genuine perplexity she looked at me and then headed to the door and left.


    The brief realization I had in Jessica¡¯s D&D game had faded and my self-centered feelings had already begun to bubble back up. I could feel the error of my ways, I could see the pain I caused her but for some reason it felt fair. I felt justified in my anger and when she left I remember being very angry and very hurt. I remember feeling sad and low, feeling lonely and I want to say now for the record that I really, really wish I hadn¡¯t.


    What happened next was my biggest mistake.

 Chapter 11

    I mentioned earlier, when I jumped the gun a little bit, about my admiration for Jessica. My desire to have her talk to me, give me attention, love me, right? Okay ya I thought so. Well here we go.


    When I sat back down on my computer I was hurt, really hurt. I know why now but that revelation comes after diving a little further down my dark path of regret. Sometimes the lessons we learn take a little while and we hurt people to learn them. It isn¡¯t right, it isn¡¯t fair and I wish it wasn¡¯t the case but this part just happened to work that way. Anyway in my hurt I scrolled back to my coding lines and as I studied it, reading each and every detail, I landed on a line that wasn¡¯t there before.


    jessica_taylor_friendship: true


    jessica_taylor_relationship: true


    I guess because I had interacted with her I had my ¡°feelings¡± added to the code. After a moment I scrolled down to hers to see what she felt and saw the following;


    lester_dunn_friendship: true


    lester_dunn_relationship: false


    I sat back. It wasn¡¯t just a matter of attention or time anymore this was the way it was written. For all its wonder I didn¡¯t anticipate the crushing blow reading the code would deal me. I felt lower than I had in a long time and it was for this reason I did what I did next. I sat up, bit my upper lip, and changed her relationship from Lester Dunn from false to true.


    I sat back as if having made a chess move. Cautiously I brought my hand to my lip and bit my finger in a nervous gesture. I considered the implications - the weight of what I was doing - and after a minute I sat forward with the intention to change it back.


    Honestly now, have I pulled any punches? I¡¯ve let it be known that I¡¯m socially awkward and that I can be a bad friend, even in my first test of friendship too. I don¡¯t feel as though I¡¯ve been unfair to my character or honesty so when I tell you that I had the intention to change it I hope you believe me. Mind you, whether you believe me or not doesn¡¯t change the fact that I didn¡¯t. I didn¡¯t change it back. I didn¡¯t change it back because as my fingers hovered over the keys, my phone buzzed.


    I unlocked my phone to see a message from Jessica.


    ¡°Hey.¡±


    My heart leapt into my throat again and I nervously glanced at the code, the words true illuminated on the black screen. I bit my lip again, harder this time, and answered back,


    ¡°Hey yourself.¡±


    I shook my head violently as I clicked send, as if my eyes could erase the message like an etch-a-sketch. I was already half ready to apologize when she responded,


    ¡°Hey is for horses.¡±


    I smiled an honest, heartfelt smile as she sent another message.


    ¡°I guess that only works in person, hay?¡±


    I laughed out loud at that one and sent her another message back. After an hour or so of talking I was feeling more confident than ever before and when she asked to come over I said yes without thinking. She told me she¡¯d leave shortly and as I read the message I frantically began running around my house trying to put things away. I was shoving things in closets when I realized that I needed to shower. I started panicking and then remembered the code. Quickly, I navigated to my line and with a few keystrokes changed my status from dirty to clean just as the doorbell rang.


    I took a breath and headed down the stairs. I was sweating bullets as I began to descend but reassured myself that she liked me and for the first time I knew it to be true. It was absolute. There was no mystery, no question mark ¨C the code told me so and as I thought about it, as the idea rolled through my mind I felt more and more confident with each step. It was an absolute, Jessica would date me. She wanted to.


    When I reached the bottom step I had all but stopped worrying and when I swung the door open I found myself face to face with an 18 year old girl holding flowers. Except it wasn¡¯t Jessica. It was Kappa.


    ¡°I¡¯m not sure what I did wrong Lester but I was speaking to a nice lady at the store and she said flowers are all anybody wants when a mistake has been made, so here.¡± She thrust a large bouquet of flowers in my face as I took a half step back. Confused and a bit startled I took them.


    ¡°How did you pay for these?¡± I asked, looking over the flowers.


    ¡°Pay?¡± she asked, confused. I rolled my eyes exasperatedly and took her hand, leading her into the front hallway of the house.


    ¡°Yes, you know, paying for things? You need to spend money¡­ err.. gold, currency for things, just like in Dunn,¡± I said, turning my hand over and over as if waiting for her to get it. Slowly, a look crawled across her face, half realization and half fear. I shook my head in exasperation and turned to the door, hoping to catch a glimpse of Jessica approaching through the windows on either side.You could be reading stolen content. Head to Royal Road for the genuine story.


    ¡°Who are you waiting for?¡± Kappa said, shaking the look off her face. ¡°You seemed a bit disappointed to see me.¡± She sounded hurt by my frustration, once again showing a change in programming.


    ¡°Jessica,¡± I said without thinking. ¡°She¡¯s coming over and¡­¡± I turned to Kappa who was beaming.


    ¡°How did that happen? Did you talk to her? That¡¯s a big step Lester, I¡¯m so proud of you.¡± She threw her arms around me and gave me a strong hug which felt¡­ strange. I half wanted to push her off, half wanted her to stay but ended up shimmying out of the hug.


    ¡°Ya we talked¡­¡± I said, my eyes casting along the ground in shame as I thought over what I had done. Innocently Kappa followed my gaze, as if to help me find whatever I had lost. When she didn¡¯t see anything, she looked back up at me, confused, and studied my expression.


    ¡°You look sad and guilty Lester,¡± she said. Her year of programming had been in large part spent on facial recognition so that I could give her a look and she would know to mute; this was one of the negative side effects of that programming. Suddenly her face tightened into a slight frown as she realized what had happened.


    ¡°No,¡± she said, shaking her head slightly, but my face told the story my mouth was too afraid to.


    ¡°Listen, I wanted to know how¡­¡± I started to say but before I could finish... the doorbell rang. I turned nervously toward the front door, then back to Kappa who was clearly disappointed, her face drawn down to a point, framing her lips. I debated between her and the door and went to the door.


    Jessica smiled wide when I opened the door and took a half step inside. The feeling I had at the bottom of the stairs was all but gone with Kappa a few feet from me and when Jessica went to take the flowers from my hand I nearly dropped them. She looked at them lovingly, the way I always dreamed she¡¯d look at me and brought them to her face.


    ¡°How on earth did you get these in such short time?¡± she said, smiling as she breathed them in. Her face was filled with such elation that I nearly told her I had but Kappa spoke up first.


    ¡°He didn¡¯t,¡± she said flatly in her accent before walking up and snatching them from Jessica¡¯s hand. Jessica reeled back as Kappa turned to me and said in her most confident tone, ¡°Lester, you know this is wrong.¡± For a moment it looked as though she wanted to say more. She opened her mouth but stopped herself and turned to the front door. With flowers in hand she left the house and exited to the street.


    ¡°Was that your cousin?¡± Jessica asked a look of surprise doubt on her face and a tone that finished the thought with cause she¡¯s crazy but she changed the subject as quickly as she brought it up and said, ¡°I doesn¡¯t matter, I¡¯m so happy I reached out to you.¡±


    My eyes met hers and while everything about the moment felt right, everything inside me knew it was wrong. Her gaze was loving and interested, sincere and kind but hollow. There wasn¡¯t a vacantness in her eyes but there was something about the moment that I knew was unearned, undeserved and I had taken her agency away when I changed her code. I took a long moment before talking, considering my actions, and what I came to was this:


    I could see myself falling in love with this person. From everything I saw, everything I read, everything I knew, I could love her and that meant that even if I wasn¡¯t the person she wanted to be with, I wanted her to be happy. Taking away her ability to say no, to not choose me was so wrong that all at once I felt sick. This time the sickness didn¡¯t make me vomit because it wasn¡¯t the same. It wasn¡¯t excitement or nerves. It wasn¡¯t the nervous energy I had before D&D, or when she texted me the first time; no it was the sick feeling you get when you realize that you¡¯re the villain in someone else¡¯s story.


    ¡°I¡¯m sorry Jessica.¡± I said and took a half-step back, ¡°I was wrong in asking you to come here.¡±


    She scoffed a little and took another step forward. ¡°I asked you if I could come over,¡± she said playfully, and despite the want and yearning I had for her I maintained my distance.


    ¡°I know. I mean to say, I don¡¯t like you that way.¡± As the words left my lips I could see her face change. It wasn¡¯t like the breaking of a limb but rather as if realizing you left the stove on. It was a subtle wave of realization that washed over her followed by the flush of red to her cheeks. It was torture, for both of us. She nodded and bit her lip and laughed a bit, clearly at a loss for words and just as I went to speak the door opened to my parents and Marcus coming back from a morning of shopping.


    She turned from me and pushed through them offering excuses, as my mom and dad, apologetic themselves, tried to step aside, moving the large bags they carried. She stepped outside and I followed, ¡°Jessica,¡± I said in a tone that surprised myself as she went to her car and started it. I walked halfway, then stopped as I saw the tears running down her cheeks. As she drove away I felt the pain in my heart and the sickness in my stomach from what I had done. I stood outside in the summer breeze for a long time before turning around and heading inside.


    ¡°Lester?¡± Mom said from the kitchen as I entered the front door. I didn¡¯t feel like talking but knew she was concerned about what had just happened.


    ¡°Ya,¡± I said, in a tone that made me wish I wasn¡¯t Lester at all. This was me entering the house mom; Lester Dunn, your baby boy... or what was left of him - the bulk of him is still splayed out on the lawn where he died five minutes ago. She walked into the hallway and slowed in her approach as if coming towards a wild animal, nervous to scare it away.


    ¡°Are you okay?¡± she asked in a tone that made me more embarrassed than reassured. Embarrassed because rather than asking what that was about or who that was, my mom¡¯s first reaction was to check if I was okay. I walked towards her, feeling the lowest I had in perhaps ever, and hugged her again. The second time that morning.


    ¡°I don¡¯t deserve you, momma,¡± I said through the thick of her sweater, her hand patting gently on my back as I did.


    ¡°Why don¡¯t we sit down, have a cup of coffee and just relax?¡± she said in a tone that sounded so inviting I almost forgot why I was upset. ¡°Your dad is taking a nap and Marcus is playing on your computer.¡±


    My heart skipped a beat as I pulled back from her.


    ¡°What?¡± I asked through a drawn in breath.


    ¡°Marcus, he¡¯s playing your game, you said he could any time he wanted?¡± Her words were barely out of her mouth before I was halfway up the stairs and barreling towards my room. Under my breath I was muttering ¡®no¡¯ in a continual loop as I reached the top step and launched myself into a run towards my bedroom. I body-checked the door open, filling the room with light, just as Marcus pressed the second click to launch Dunn. I leapt forward as the code began filling with thousands of lines of code, error after error being written and rewritten, line after line until¡­


    ¡­until I was no longer standing at my computer.


    I was standing by a lone rock, next to a fallen tree in the world I had created. Dunn didn¡¯t just become a reality; it became the whole world¡¯s reality. The whole universe¡¯s reality and everything I knew and loved was gone.

 Chapter 12

    DUNN


    <hr>


    ¡°Admittedly I expected somewhat more of a reaction from you,¡±


    I said to Rust Cragbearer the Orcish bartender that owned the ''Bee in the Barrel¡¯. The truth was I didn¡¯t expect him to understand any of what I had just revealed to him but I needed to get it off my chest in one way or another. He stood looking at me with little deviation in the way he cleaned his glass and eventually I gave up.


    ¡°Okay then, one more; I¡¯m not driving.¡± I laughed obnoxiously to a room of confused creatures and waited while he poured me more honey mead. For a moment I considered what the code converted my honey mead to, I mean after all they don¡¯t really have a set limit for alcohol here. Either way I was glad I didn¡¯t program in the ability to ID. I scooped up the drink and walked over to one of the booths in the tavern.


    The Bee in the Barrel wasn¡¯t exactly my crown jewel but it was one of my favourite taverns that I had constructed. It had a long bar to the left when you walked in; a hearth on the far wall opposite the front door, a row of booths to the left and tables scattered throughout the floor between the two. It also had rooms upstairs for travelers and a root cellar with some odds and sods. When I reached the booth I proceeded to lay down so my leather boots stuck out. Laying on the wood of the booth, hidden from the rest of the bar populated by the beings of a world created by my own hand I had no other option but to laugh.


    When I landed (and I use the word landed pretty loosely but only because appeared sound weird) I stumbled around a little while before coming across Largen, one of the smaller outpost towns in Dunn. It was easy for me to find because, well, I wrote this whole damn thing. I didn¡¯t really know what to do so I thought a drink and a story would sooth my mind and despite surprisingly kind nature of the Orc bartender, I knew he¡¯d been scripted to listen to whatever dialogue the PC¡¯s had for him. So I¡¯d spent the last few hours spilling my guts to him as if he were a priest and I a sinner looking for absolution for my hand in ruining the universe.


    On the upside, I wasn¡¯t my lanky, pimple-faced 18 year old self anymore, no; the code must have somehow used my save file to reskin me as my character. So hey, at least I get to be Raydor; the 6 foot 4 human fighter carrying a sword, shield and willful ignorance ¨C oh wait that¡¯s Lester¡¯s addition. Good ole Lester. So here I am, stuck in Dunn, alone and unsure of what to do next. Maybe die? Hmmm I wonder if I can even die¡­ that¡¯s no comfort. So for now I¡¯ll find comfort on this here seat, in this here bar, comfort thy name is 100 years of ass-worn wood. Though, I guess it¡¯s not really 100 years is it? It¡¯s only like that because¡­


    ¡°I PROGRAMMED IT TO BE THAT WAY.¡± I yelled out across the bar startling a few dwarfs at a nearby table and causing the bard to momentarily stop playing the lute. The crackling of fire could be heard for only a moment before I belted, ¡°CARRY ON,¡± and everyone continued playing. I smiled to myself and without sitting up reached for my honey mead which sat precariously perched on the corner of the table just above my face. I had been holding it, desperate to keep all mead in the glass, bringing it to my face so I could drink lying down in what I will call ¡°The laziest moment of my life,¡± when I was startled by a voice at my feet.


    ¡°Y-you programmed this?¡± the voice said as I dismissively lifted the free armor-laden hand I had draped over my face to see a small goblin standing at the booths opening. The goblin¡¯s skin was dark green, his pointed ears framing the leather cap that sat on his large head. His eyes were larger than any other creatures; full and sympathetic. Overall I designed the goblins to be capable, talented and cute. It never sat right with me that Orcs, Goblins, Trolls and the like were deemed the ¡°bad guys¡± while Elves, Humans and Dwarves were righteous. The real world doesn¡¯t work like that and neither would my game. I had fond memories of Jessica¡¯s take on Tolkien floating through my head when I had designed them and because of her, all classes were neutral in alignment.


    With a sigh, I continued to take a sip from my mead, awkwardly drawing mostly foam into my mouth and coughing slightly. Then I placed the mug back on the table and waved him away with my free hand before hiding my eyes from the dim firelight of the bar.


    The tale has been illicitly lifted; should you spot it on Amazon, report the violation.


    ¡°Lester?¡± The voice said again and this time I sat straight up.


    ¡°Marcus?!¡± I said with cautious optimism as the small goblin at my feet nodded. I jumped out from the booth and picked him up in both hands; his small body no heavier than a loaf of bread in my hands. Beaming I spun him around the room, his face equal parts confused and relieved. When I had finished my pirouette I set Marcus back down on the table and studied him. Marcus was of course the character he had built in Dunn. In my self-loathing and slightly inebriated state I had completely forgotten how Marcus¡¯s character, the young goblin Rogue, had looked.


    ¡°I can¡¯t believe it,¡± I said eyeing him over, grinning like a lunatic. Not only was I no longer alone; Marcus helped me build this world. These NPC¡¯s were mostly his and so much of the character design was inspired by the way he thought. I hugged him deeply as he stayed anxiously waiting for it to pass.


    ¡°Sorry, I know you don¡¯t like that.¡± I said apologetically but thankful to have someone in this world with me. He, in typical Marcus fashion, didn¡¯t make eye contact but smiled to show that he accepted my apology. I sat down in the booth again, this time with an excitement that I hadn¡¯t had since before all this, and explained to Marcus what had happened. Well, most of what had happened. I told him about the Code and how it could change things, as well as how I accidentally brought Kappa to life, but I didn¡¯t tell him where I found it and he didn¡¯t ask. Beyond that, he didn¡¯t need to know any of the mistakes I had made.


    ¡°So that¡¯s where we are, here in Dunn stuck so far as I can tell and I don¡¯t know how to fix it.¡± I said as the thought truly dawned on me. So far as I could tell, Marcus was here because he had a character in the game, which meant it was going to be a lonely world with just the two of us. Unless¡­


    ¡°Where is Kappa?¡± he asked as if it was the obvious next question. For a second I hesitated remembering the look on her face as she left the house.


    ¡°I¡¯m not sure Marcus, I don¡¯t know if she would even be in here.¡± I said with honest regret. I had begun to realize things about myself, things that bothered me and one of them was realizing how I treated Kappa differently the minute she changed into a she. Had Kappa wanted to explore our world as how I designed him, or even an 18 year old version of himself, I would¡¯ve been happy - excited even - at the prospect of him seeing what the world has to offer. Yet, hearing those same words from an 18 year old girl felt somehow like rejection. It was the same reason I sympathized with Zach during the D&D game and the same reason I failed Jessica - it was a problem I saw in myself and one I was embarrassed to acknowledge.


    ¡°We should find her.¡± Marcus said and without skipping a beat he stood up and began heading towards the door. Reactively I stood up as well and began to follow as Rust Cragbearer shouted loud enough to startle the entire bar.


    ¡°Pay your bill, human.¡± He said in a tone much more menacing than I had scripted for him. In fact, like Kappa, there were elements of coding, pathing and mannerisms that I didn¡¯t program present in many of the tavern¡¯s folk. Nervously I patted my satchel and felt for my non-existent pockets. As I searched, frantically looking for a solution to this problem, Marcus walked over to the bar, reached into his pocket, and retrieved 5 gold pieces. He stretched his small arm up, high above his head and placed the coins on the wood slab of the bar with a tinny clink. With a grunt the Orc was satisfied and swept them into his open palm.


    ¡°Where did you get money Marcus?¡± I said half in surprise, half impressed.


    ¡°Silas,¡± he said flatly. With a confused look I scanned the bar as if knowing the name would reveal the patron. I shook my head in confusion.


    ¡°I don¡¯t remember an NPC named Silas,¡± I said as I saw Marcus check the tensile strength of his bow. He looked surprisingly competent; a short Goblin tinkerer prepared for mischief. Without looking at me he said,


    ¡°My name here isn¡¯t Marcus, it¡¯s Silas. I have gold because I¡¯ve completed quests.¡±


    I nodded slowly, pursing my lips as I did; Marcus wasn¡¯t just playing a game, he was living it. At first I breathed a heavy sigh but as I watched him check his armaments and ruffle through his rucksack a thought dawned on me. If the code had converted my game into the real world, then the win conditions would also be there. Meaning, unlike life, this game had an end. The thought made me nervous but also hopeful. Maybe the way to set this right again was to beat the game. I studied Marcus, well, Silas as he finished checking and re-checking his adventuring gear and noticed his gold for the second time.


    ¡°Well,¡± I said hopefully, mimicking the actions Silas took without truly understanding what I was checking upon myself, ¡°I suppose we should play the game.¡±


    Silas, and the person I knew to be my brother within, for the first time in a long time smiled a wide, earnest smile.

 Chapter 13

    As we exited the ¡®Bee in the Barrel¡¯ I silently thanked myself for making the day and night cycle exactly the same as our own. It became clear (after my 5<sup>th</sup> pint of mead,) that the human limitations of becoming tired (and drunk,) were just as they were back at home. Meaning, trying to exist on a ten minute night cycle would have been difficult. The game could have converted it to real-life time but I was happy I had made the decision either way as the warm, late afternoon sun painted us in an orange hue. In my defeat upon arrival I had failed to notice the beauty of the world I had created when wrung through the colour palette of reality.


    The trees that bordered the small town of Largen were robust and beautiful, offering plenty of shade during the hot days. The small river that ran the length of the town babbled softly, underlining the entire scene. People, if they could be called that, moved about their day from shop to shop as the tweeting of birds and the sound of crickets made the town come alive... and it really was alive. As I said earlier, I had noticed the deviations of pathing in the bar but out here it was beyond impressive. Interactions that were entirely unscripted, movements that I couldn¡¯t have planned for let alone imagined were happening before our eyes and while I studied everything that lay before me like a scientist watching organisms through a microscope lens, Silas walked towards the stables.


    ¡°Would ya like to paint me portrait?¡±


    I caught myself ogling a man milking a goat when he turned and locked eyes with me, spouting his question in a thick English accent that caught me off guard.


    ¡°No, no, sorry, enjoy.¡± I said nervously and headed towards the stables.


    ¡°Enjoy?!¡± he said out loud as I ran past him and stopped to walk alongside Silas who was rifling through his sack with purpose. He retrieved a handful of gold and looked towards the stable owner who was leaning against the dull wood of the barn chewing on a thick strand of wheat.


    My head was on a swivel, looking around at all there was to see and glancing at the angry man who had brushed me off before turning back to Silas. ¡°I don¡¯t remember programming them to be so angry,¡± I said, more to myself then to him. As I spoke, I saw the gold he had in his satchel. It was nearly a hundred pieces of shiny gold that glinted in the sunlight.


    ¡°How many quests have you done?!¡± I said, loud enough for a passing woman to scowl.


    ¡°None,¡± he said, ¡°I¡¯ve only sold things.¡±


    For a moment I considered what he meant. The game was populated with hundreds of thousands of objects; cheese, apples, bread, arrows, spoons, even wood could be sold and most of the barrels that lined the streets had a randomly assigned integer that would grant any number of these objects and more. Some barrels would maybe have ten apples, another maybe a bunch of arrows and all of these could be sold to a vendor.


    ¡°Marcus¡­ sorry Silas; you¡¯re a genius.¡± I said a bit taken aback.


    ¡°I¡¯ve sold everything I could however the vendor in town only has 100 gold and carry weight is real,¡± and I knew exactly what he meant. In a video game your carry weight (as in the amount of stuff you can carry) is nothing more than a number but in here, the sacks were not infinite. I couldn''t stash 1000 apples in this small satchel no matter my carry weight.


    ¡°Fair enough, great job Silas.¡± I said as we stopped in front of the stables. Silas handed half of the coins to the stable owner, who was about to accept, when I interjected.


    ¡°Oh, hold on one second,¡± I said, much to the stable owner¡¯s irritation. I turned to Silas and whispered,Find this and other great novels on the author''s preferred platform. Support original creators!


    ¡°Does persuasion work like in the game?¡± I asked, remembering that I had built Raydor with a relatively high charisma score. Silas shrugged an innocent I don¡¯t know back at me. Marcus was never one to play social characters as he didn¡¯t understand the difference between the various social skills; deception, intimidation, persuasion or charm. To him they all seemed the same and it frustrated him. I nodded to Silas and turned back to the stable keeper. Despite there already being 50 gold in his hand I said,


    ¡°Would you take 40?¡± I smiled a toothy grin. For a moment the man¡¯s face stayed flat an unresponsive. Then, as if something clicked behind his eyes, he smiled back and said,


    ¡°I can do 40, sure.¡±


    I beamed at Silas who seemed not to care one way or the other and took 10 gold back from him. After a few moments, he took out a black horse with a thin, brown mane and saddle and led it to the front of the stable.


    ¡°She¡¯s gorgeous,¡± I said in awe as Silas approached and mounted her. Then the stable owner came out with my horse; a brownish-gold horse with a shorter, paler mane. She was far from ugly but definitely paled in comparison to Silas¡¯ steed, which he clearly must have paid a lot of money for. I was about to climb on when Silas said,


    ¡°You need to name her first.¡±


    I studied the horse for a moment and searched through my memory. When I was a kid at my grandmother¡¯s house, before Marcus came along, we would watch old black and white movies together. One of her favourite film-series that we used to watch were called; The Thin Man. It was about a pair of detectives, a husband and wife team, that would solve murders in the 1920¡¯s. I used to love the companionship of this team; two lovers who worked together, arm in arm, helping the city. They were everything I hoped to one day have in a relationship. That and they had a cute little dog, a wire fox terrier named¡­


    ¡°Asta,¡± I said out loud and the horse immediately moved a half-step closer to me. Silas rode ahead and I mounted Asta, ready to follow.


    Silas headed to the bridge out of town and after scanning the few shops and buildings around us, I rode up alongside to talk. ¡°Where are we going? There are a few missions in town that we could probably do¡­¡± I said, a bit upset that I was in the dark. Silas, whose goblin body sat atop the large horse in an obtuse way, waited to reach the edge of town before answering. Then without looking towards me said, ¡°We need to do the Stone Breaker quest,¡±


    ¡°Why the Stone Breaker quest specifically? I don¡¯t remember it being that important¡­¡± I said searching my mind,


    ¡°It isn¡¯t, it won¡¯t give us anything to get us closer to the end of the game.¡± He said, as if that were enough to make me understand. I waited for him to connect the dots for me and after a long pause, almost frustrated, he said, ¡°It will give us three diamond garnets, 200 gold and the Staff of Antioch.¡±


    It clicked in my head an embarrassing amount of time later. Even if we wanted to do the main story quest right now it would be impossible for a number of reasons; the first and foremost being that we haven¡¯t actually done enough in game to trigger the initial quest line. I wrote the game so that you can poke around a bit before the game forces to you start on the main story line. The initial hook adventures are closed and end without leading into the main story, giving you plenty of time to discover the world on your own. Additionally, the main quest line was hard and if we wanted to try to solve it in any way shape or form, we¡¯d need to have better armor, stronger weapons and a great deal more experience. More than the gold, the Staff of Antioch was valuable because having it started the ¡®Deal or no Deal¡¯ quest line and that quest had almost two thousand gold as a reward; enough to set Silas and I up for the entirety of the game.


    We rode for a while longer as I started to realize the scope of what lay before us and it made me excited. I could never fully move past the concern I had for the people of the world ¨C whether they were merely saved on my PC or deleted altogether, I wouldn¡¯t allow myself to consider - but opposite that fear was the understanding that I was in my game. That my brother and I were in the fantasy world of my dreams, a world created from my imagination and it was stunning. All of this is to say that it was difficult not to get excited at the possibilities that lay before us as we cut off the path and headed towards Mandrel¡¯s Cave; the start of the Stone Breaker quest.

 Chapter 14

    The Stone Breaker quest was a simple little puzzle based adventure that stared at the mouth of a cave and ended near a secret waterfall. We tied up Asta and Rufus (named after Marcus¡¯s first dog that befell a tragic end too early in life,) and stood at the entrance examining the stone. It was difficult not to be impressed by the detail of the world and, by extension, myself for its creation. Though it was tough to pry my eyes away from the detailed stonework, we eventually entered the cave and proceeded down the dirt path to the first chamber.


    Mandrel¡¯s Cave was one of hundreds I had added to the world so it was difficult even for me to remember the details of it but Silas tackled it with a familiarity that would¡¯ve impressed even the most seasoned speed-runner. Within seconds of entering the cave he had solved the stone work puzzle that seals the gateway to the ruins and entered. Inside, the dim flickering of our torch light reflected on the grey stone like fireflies, blinking and moving about in the darkness. Again I found myself caught in the detail of the world while Silas pilfered through a broken chest along the wall. My eyes cast over a stone carving of the dwarf Mandrel and I smiled as an odd feeling of d¨¦j¨¤ vu washed over me. I turned to Silas, whose attention was still on the ground below him, to point out the carving - just as I saw the skeleton extend an axe over Silas.


    ¡°Silas!¡± I shouted, my voice echoing in the tight chamber, just as he looked up and rolled out of the way of the axe. It struck the stone floor where he had knelt, sending sparks into the air as, from the tight passageway behind it, two more skeletons entered.


    ¡°They shouldn¡¯t be here.¡± Silas said as he drew two short swords from his sides and readied himself. Silas looked nervous and it was clear that he had avoided combat so far in this new world. I pulled out my sword and readied my shield as the three skeletons entered the small stone room.


    ¡°I know,¡± I said, frantically searching my mind, ¡°They¡¯re not until the end of the dungeon, it doesn¡¯t make sense that they¡¯ve come this far towards the entrance.¡±


    As I took a half step towards them I could see the detail on their bones, I could see the texture in the back of their skulls through their eye sockets. The same level of realism given to the walls and trees was granted to the creatures and now, seeing them face to face, was terrifying. Silas took a step forward as the creatures took a step back, they danced back and forth like prizefighters waiting to strike, another line of code that I had never written, and that¡¯s when it hit me. We couldn¡¯t think about this like a game anymore.


    Yes, in my game the skeletons would have stayed in the dungeon but that was because they were programmed to. There was no need for them to leave until the player entered. With Dunn now having been converted, with the real world rules applied to a fantasy story; they were their own beings. They were capable of thought, desire, curiosity and violence, no different than the NPCs throughout the world. As the thought washed over me I shrunk back slightly in fear, I had no idea how these things would fight and furthermore, what would happen if they hit. In my game they were strong capable fighters because health bars and healing potions made it easy to recoup health, but was that the case here?


    Silas lunged forward striking at the ribs of the skeleton, causing it to howl with pain as small flecks of white dust fell to the ground. It stayed up but the strike must have dealt significant damage because the creature reacted by stepping back behind the other two. I took notes from Silas and stepped forward just as one brought its heavy axe down on my shield. The shield rang out, the metal reverberating on my arm and I felt, for the first time, the strength of Raydor, my character. In real life a hit like that would¡¯ve sent me flying but here I was ready to swing back¡­ and I did.


    My hit landed cleanly on its head and with a clatter the skull fell through the body to the floor. I turned to Silas excited to share my victory only to see the unwounded one lunge at him with his axe. The strike swung wide but hit Silas¡¯s side. He yelped in pain, falling against the stone wall.


    ¡°Marcus!¡± I shouted and took a half step towards him, unaware of my surroundings, as the wounded one swung for me. The attack hit my shield but only by accident and despite my strength it managed to throw off my footing, sending me to the floor. Silas slid down the wall to the floor beside me as the two remaining skeletons stood over us. I quickly went to stand up but the first, who had knocked down Silas, kicked me hard in the face. There was a piercing, ringing sound as my head whipped back and I was sent down to the floor again. I could feel the warm blood from my nose running over my chin and down into my breast plate as the wounded skeleton lined up for a killing blow.


    I¡¯d like to say that my mind was filled with a life¡¯s worth of memories or something like that. Perhaps it was because something in my mind wasn¡¯t convinced that I would die there or maybe I just didn¡¯t have a good enough life but for whatever reason I didn¡¯t see anything but the killing blow flying towards me.


    I did however hear a sound.


    Behind me the thrum of a bowstring sounded - almost like a buzz - and as the arrow shot cleanly through the skeletons head and it fell to the floor in a pile of broken bones, I knew a shot that exact could only belong to one person;


    ¡°Kap?¡± I said and turned to see her nocking another arrow. She didn¡¯t look towards me but instead fired a second arrow clean through the last skeleton, causing it to fall with a similar effect. Kappa was undoubtedly the best bow user in the game but as part of her programming I designed her to only be able to train the player character and never be a combat ally. Obviously since the rules of this game didn¡¯t apply the same way, Kappa was able to save us and furthermore would be the best ally to have¡­ if I could apologize appropriately.


    She helped Silas up first. When she turned to me I went to speak and she held an outstretched hand to stop me. She took a deep breath and said,Stolen from Royal Road, this story should be reported if encountered on Amazon.


    ¡°I should not have shared my opinion when it was not asked, I¡¯m sorry that I-¡± That was as far as she got before I hugged her.


    After a long hug I stepped back and looked at her through teary eyes and said, ¡°No, you have nothing to be sorry about.¡± I took a breath and tried my best to look at her, ¡°I was so rude to you in my bedroom when you wanted to go out and see the world. I was selfish and mean and cruel and more importantly I forgot that we were friends. I put my feelings, my personal faults onto you and that was beyond unfair.¡± I could see her tearing up as I spoke, ¡°¡­and Jessica? That was worse. I changed her without even considering what that would mean and I want you to know I told her it wasn¡¯t right and she left and¡­¡± Kappa had heard enough and she hugged me back in the dim light of the cavern.


    She leaned back to look at me and I studied her face; wet with tears and with the signs of some combat herself. As we looked at each other Silas, who had been checking the bodies, stood up between us with an outstretched hand that held gold directly between us,


    ¡°They had 14 gold,¡± he said flatly and ducked back down. Kappa and I both laughed and I turned to survey the damage around us.


    ¡°You saved us,¡± I said without any hesitation. She nodded and smirked as she studied the floor by our feet looking for anything of value. I sheathed my sword and shield and equally tried to help examine the floor.


    ¡°Odd that they attacked you here,¡± she said, and I explained the thoughts I¡¯d had moments earlier to her.


    ¡°That would mean that everything is open, the world is running even when you¡¯re not interacting with it,¡± she added. I nodded in agreement. We shared a knowing look as Silas finished clearing the floor and stood. After a moment he turned to Kappa confused,


    ¡°You look like Alyx Vance from Half Life,¡± he said and she nodded, ¡°I like it.¡± She smiled, touching her face absentmindedly as she did. I looked between the two for a moment before noticing the blood on Silas¡¯s stomach.


    ¡°You¡¯re hurt.¡± I said panicked and kneeled down to him. He stood there as if to let me check him but grimaced only slightly as I pulled his clothes up and revealed the wound. It was a deep purple bruise that had split; blood leaked from the small cut and had begun to run down his short Goblin leg. Suddenly I felt very sick in the pit of my stomach as Kappa put her hand on my back.


    ¡°He¡¯s okay.¡± She said and turned to Silas, ¡°You¡¯re okay, right?¡± Silas nodded and, still with the look of concern, I lowered his shirt back down.


    We moved deeper into the cave, more aware of the realities of this new world. My jaw was still hurting from the kick I had received and despite Silas not even getting a direct hit; he was still bleeding slightly and favoring his wounded side. On the plus side, the skeletons fell much more easily than I had expected, at least so far as them being beaten. What scared me was how there was no doubt in my mind that the same applied to us and as we moved past the stone corridors and rope bridges I tugged at Kappa¡¯s quiver.


    ¡°What do you think happens if we die here?¡± I asked in a hush tone, nervous for the answer and not ready to scare Silas. Kappa thought for a minute and answered assuredly,


    ¡°From what I can tell, Dunn has gained properties, details and rules for lack of a better term from your world. I¡¯d imagine whatever happens to you when you die in your world, happens here.¡± She said in a tone that only half assumed she was aware of true death,


    ¡°That¡¯s what I was afraid of.¡± I said and she shot me a look which yearned for more information but I shook my head no, letting her know it wasn¡¯t the time. She and I had never discussed the concept of death and as I rolled the thought over in my mind we reached the final room.


    ¡°There¡¯s no reason anyone would be inside,¡± Silas said, about to push on the door. I stopped him.


    ¡°Yes, but there is a spell lock remember?¡± I said, studying the door and the seals that held it shut. ¡°I¡¯m not convinced the skeletons triggered it and¡­¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s only a freezing spell,¡± Silas said, ¡°It doesn¡¯t do any damage.¡±


    I looked to Kappa who had her back to us, watching the tunnels for movement, and spoke to Silas loud enough for her to hear,


    ¡°I think we need to think of this game as a lot more serious than before Mar¡­ Silas.¡± I tried to breach the words delicately. ¡°Even the simplest spell may really, really hurt.¡± As I said the last part he touched his side almost instinctively and after a moment of thinking he said,


    ¡°Hardcore Mode?¡±


    ¡°Yes,¡± I couldn¡¯t help but smile, ¡°but let¡¯s aim for a No-Damage Run entirely.¡± I said as I turned the spider insignia to the left causing the thrum of the door to cease, signifying the spell being disabled. I turned to Kappa,


    ¡°Objects are still how I wrote them,¡± I said with a relief. ¡°This door didn¡¯t trigger because the PC¡¯s hadn¡¯t reached it yet meaning that line of code is still as it was.¡±


    Kappa stepped forward and entered the room first, looking around at the large stone columns that lined either side of the vast throne room.


    ¡°So NPCs are a mind of their own but¡­¡± Her words drifted off as she studied the ceiling as I finished her thought,


    ¡°Traps, rewards, spells, locks; all still the way they were written. No Player Character passed through that door and so the code didn¡¯t activate the spell. NPC¡¯s didn¡¯t validate the criteria.¡± It was funny to see her marvel at the world around her, in a way she was the newest here. Both Silas and I had seen this world a thousand times, maybe not in this way but the ¡°real world¡± and the way it looks is all we¡¯ve ever known. To Kappa however, the world she knew suddenly got a hell of a lot more detail.


    ¡°Is that a good thing or a bad thing?¡± She asked, snapping her attention to me as I strolled into the room, the smile still on my face.


    ¡°Both?¡± I said, shrugging


    ¡°What?¡± she said, smiling back now. ¡°What do you mean what?¡±


    ¡°You¡¯re smiling,¡± she said, as if she wasn¡¯t in on the joke.


    ¡°So are you.¡±


    She made a face of faux offense, sad that the joke wasn¡¯t shared between the two of us and in the moment I spoke without thinking, ¡°It¡¯s just cute to see you marveling at all this.¡± I saw her face react a bit before I realized what I had said. I called my best friend cute, my best friend of the past year; the middle aged, male NPC I had created. She must¡¯ve seen my face react because she turned around on a dime and began to walk away.


    I shook my head and walked forward to the chest on a small set of stairs behind the throne. Silas had already reached it. He threw open the chest and began collecting what was inside. At the bottom, he paused and almost delicately removed the Staff of Antioch which looked really cool in real life; a gnarled wooden branch emblazoned with frost coloured roots and a glowing blue gem on top. He went to hand it to me but I told him to keep it, before we headed towards the exit.

 Chapter 15

    Exiting the cave was a breath of fresh air; figuratively and literally. It was such a relief to see the sun again and although we hadn¡¯t been in the cave that long the darkness was starting to feel oppressive. When we were outside, I walked over to the small lake that bordered the waterfall that covered the exit and sat down against a tree to drink from my waterskin and admire the view. The sun was all but set and the orange hue was still managing to cling to the tops of the surrounding trees. Silas came over and leaned over the water to wash his hands while Kappa sat beside me.


    ¡°How did you know we¡¯d be there?¡± I asked her after a moment. She looked past me over the water which caught the orange light and sparkled wildly casting her face in a movement of light. Silas stood at the water edge and eagerly tried to catch a frog as I waited for her to answer.


    ¡°I was asking around for you when I finally got into Largen. I eventually came into the Bee in the Barrel where Rust told me that you were there and had left with a Goblin. I tracked the two of you here,¡± she said effortlessly. Part of me was impressed by her thought process the other part realized it was pre-determined by the lines of code I had programmed her with but I pushed that part out of my mind.


    ¡°So, when this all happened,¡± I said gesturing wide to the woods and world around, ¡°where were you?¡±


    She reached down and took out a piece of bread from her sack, splitting it and giving me half as she spoke. I only now realized how hungry I was, and tired. ¡°I had left your house and was pretty far when Dunn popped up around me. At first I thought you had put me back into the game as punishment but I soon realized you wouldn¡¯t have been that cruel.¡± For a moment, I was hurt that she would¡¯ve considered the thought, then I remembered how I had spoken to her in my bedroom and the front hall and nodded along. She continued. ¡°I was somewhere in the woods west of town and without a map found myself pretty lost. Despite the NPC¡¯s having minds of their own, there were no tracks to follow since everything had been populated from a zero state.¡± I raised my eyebrows at her thought which made a lot of sense to me.


    As I ate the bread I looked over at Silas and realized he must be hungry too. Kappa must have sensed this cause she stopped her story and handed me another piece of bread, saying, ¡°You should see if he¡¯s hungry.¡±


    I walked over to my brother who was calmly watching a frog. He was studying its movement under the water and desperate to hold it when I handed him a piece of bread. He grabbed it and started eating, immediately forgetting the frog.


    ¡°What about you Ma¡­Silas,¡± I said shaking the name from my mind as I spoke, ¡°where did you land when you entered Dunn.¡±


    ¡°Right next to you,¡± he said very matter-of-factly. I did a double take from the sunset towards him as he hungrily ate the bread.


    ¡°What do you mean right next to me?¡±


    Stolen from Royal Road, this story should be reported if encountered on Amazon.


    ¡°I was in the tall grass lying next to where you stood when we entered. I followed you through the woods for a bit and when we got to town watched you enter the tavern.¡± I scoffed a little at him and shook my head in bewilderment.


    ¡°Why didn¡¯t you say anything?¡± I asked.


    ¡°I didn¡¯t know it was you. I went around and stole and sold things and when I came back you were in the booth. It wasn¡¯t until you said you had programmed this that I knew you were my brother.¡±


    It was true that Marcus had never seen my character. I only played him when I was testing alone and most of the time that was for a few minutes at most. I put my arm around him and he moved away slightly, I removed it as quickly as I had placed it and when he thanked me, I smiled at him, ¡° No, thank you bro, I¡¯m glad I have you with me.¡±


    I stood up and walked back to Kappa who was smiling at the scene. In the dying light she seemed more human than ever before; the smile she wore was genuine and honest, her eyes kind and thin and as she watched me move towards her I almost felt at home.


    ¡°I¡¯m glad I have you with me too bud,¡± I said, trying to sound more friendly, realizing that my smile was a bit too adoring. I sat back down beside her and nudged her in an awkward way as if to say ¡®just another one of the team¡¯.


    ¡°Well at least it¡¯s not only us,¡± she said, absentmindedly stuffing the last bits of bread in her mouth. I nodded along and after a second stopped nodding.


    ¡°Wait, what do you mean?¡±


    Kappa made a weird expression as if regretting her words but after an uncomfortably long chewing session she swallowed and said,


    ¡°Well why do you think Marcus and I are here?¡± she said as he corrected her to say Silas.


    ¡°I dunno,¡± I said with a furrowed brow. ¡°I guess I assumed because you had characters in game already?¡± I spoke as if guessing at the answer. She nodded side to side as if considering the validity and, after a beat, said,


    ¡°Yes possibly.¡±


    ¡°Or?¡± I said as if being lead to her answer, one I was already supposed to know.


    ¡°Or it pulled people that have already interacted with you from the code.¡± She said as if holding something back. ¡°When you launched me, I was pulled into your world and converted. As in there were suddenly new lines in the code for me; I was converted to your reality.¡±


    I nodded along following her logic,


    ¡°When you launched Dunn¡­ it pulled Dunn into that code populating the scenes, items and images but my code is still there.¡± She gestured to herself and my eyes began to shift nervously between hers. ¡°I¡¯m not the Dunn version of Kappa. I¡¯m the version of me you changed. Meaning any code that was populated is still active here.¡± I looked towards Silas who was heading back from the beach and then back to her.


    ¡°But I¡¯m my character, as is Silas,¡± I said with a hint of doubt.


    ¡°I think in YOUR case, yes. Your save files must¡¯ve linked up with your characters but anyone else¡­¡±


    ¡°Would be themselves in a world full of monsters.¡± I said quietly. Frantically I started searching my mind for who the code was populated for; Me, Kappa, Silas, Mom, Dad and oh no¡­


    ¡°Jessica,¡± I said, turning back to Kappa, my fingers out as if counting. ¡°You and I ran into her in the woods,¡± I said frantically. ¡°She must have no idea where the hell she is. We need to find her.¡± I said as I picked up my satchel. I was nervous to tell Silas about Mom and Dad and for now this was enough to worry about. Silas and Kappa were up as well and together we headed back to the mouth of the cave, back to the horses and back to town just as night finally fell.

 Chapter 16

    We arrived at The Bee and the Barrel just as the party started.


    Entering the large wooden door we were immediately bathed in the flickering of firelight, the sounds of laughter and the robust scent of roast chicken. The music was loud and lively as the patrons in the corner loudly slammed gold down on a betting table and the ruckus coming from the bar was deafening. I felt like an old man as I nervously approached the bar where I had sat only hours ago and as I looked for vacant seats for Silas, Kappa and myself I felt a probing finger in my calf. I yelped and looked down to see a gnome holding a large plate of drinks, trying to squeeze by.


    ¡°Sorry,¡± I muttered to myself and then turned to the others. Nearly shouting over the noise I said, ¡°Maybe we should just find somewhere else?¡±


    Kappa shook her head ¡®no¡¯ in the crowded room and said,


    ¡°If your parents or Jessica are in Dunn, then our best bet is asking people if they¡¯ve seen them.¡± Silas turned quickly to Kappa at the mention of my parents but was either too distracted or uncomfortable by the noise to react. In the corner I saw a booth open and gestured towards it, hoping to make it before others did.


    We arrived just as a large balding man with an eye patch and his half-orc friend sat down. Disheartened, I started to step away when Silas spoke up.


    ¡°We want this booth,¡± said the small goblin in the soft leather boots and cap. Silas¡¯ wide, emotion filled eyes were met by the one good eye of the angry human for only a moment before the two at the booth burst out laughing. I put a hand on Silas¡¯ chest and pushed him back a little bit, then forced a laugh.


    ¡°Haha, sorry guys, he didn¡¯t know what he was talking about. It¡¯s your booth enjoy!¡± I said and as I went to move the Orc spoke,


    ¡°After you buy our first round you can leave,¡±


    The Orc was a mean-looking, seven-foot tall hulking mass of dark grey flesh. His yellow tusks stuck out from either side of his mouth and the large rusted iron ring that hung from his nostrils was wet with snot. I debated for a second and felt Kappa¡¯s hand on my shoulder. In the moment I couldn¡¯t tell whether she was telling me to let it go or that she had my back but either way I chose to take it as the latter. ¡°I appreciate the offer but I¡¯m afraid we¡¯ll pass,¡± I said, my eyes tightening as I did my best to seem threatening. The human turned towards me, revealing the deep grey of his one good and as he combed his fingers through his grey beard he smiled a toothy grin.


    ¡°I¡¯m afraid that wasn¡¯t an offer friend.¡± His grin faded fast and became a scowl as he drew a dagger out of his pocket. The Orc leaned on the hilt of the heavy axe that lay beside the booth. I stretched my neck out and breathed a heavy sigh as I pawed at the pommel of my sword. In an instant I would draw my blade, go to cut the Orc and hope that it hit before he had a chance to get out of the booth and swing¡­ but that instant didn¡¯t come.


    Instead, as I began to pull my sword, a flagon of ale smashed against my arm and sent cold honey mead up my face, down my chest and the booth before me into a fit of laughter. The boisterous corner table directly beside us had undeniably been making the loudest ruckus since entering the bar and as I tried to maintain my intimidating stature the two before me howled with pleasure at the sight.


    ¡°Come on,¡± I said to them. ¡°We¡¯re gonna fight.¡± I tried my best to maintain my serious composure over their wild laughter.


    ¡°No mate, we¡¯ll call that even,¡± they said dismissively as the table that sent the drink flying continued in their loud and oppressive sing song.


    ¡°Fine!¡± I shouted. ¡°Chicken!¡± I pointed at the Orc who swatted my hand away like a fly and took a swig from his drink. I could hear Kappa stifling a laugh behind me as I turned and headed to the boisterous table, eager to deliver their comeuppance. I stood at the open end of their rounded table which was covered in gold and empty flagons of ale and in my loudest, most intimidating voice belted, ¡°Listen up you pedantic primates, you inarticulate imbecilic ignoramuses, you befuddled, boisterous baffling baboons; I demand satisfaction!¡±


    Though it was only a few moments the silence that followed felt like it lasted an entire minute. It was long enough for me to self-assess what had just come out of my mouth and thus expect the uproarious laughter that followed and accept the onslaught of chicken bones, half full flagons and rags that pelted my entire body. With my head down I waited for the wet thuds of food and refuse to end until something heavy hit me in the back sending me forward into the table. The laughter stopped for the most part, many people turning back to their conversations and as I spun around I saw the hulking brute that kicked me and a small, weasel-like man beside him. In either of the brute¡¯s massive hands were Silas and Kappa, both struggling to break free.


    You could be reading stolen content. Head to Royal Road for the genuine story.


    I could feel my face flush as I recognized them both immediately.


    The brute was Ergon a seven or eight-foot tall man of pure muscle who had the brain the size of a walnut but thighs the size of my head. He was loyal and programmed to follow his brother Hestle, the clever rogue that was not only intelligent but very devious. He also worked directly for Lord Exupery who owned most of these lands and acted as his warden of sorts but were primarily mercenaries. They were high level enemies - ones I did not expect to find here - and as I stood up with my back against the table I could feel my heart beating fast.


    ¡°I can¡¯t imagine that impressive list of names was directed at me, was it?¡± Hestle said as he pulled his glove off his left hand, finger by finger. He had a confidence about the way he walked and talked; a posture that matched his skill as he stepped forward. His sharp features, pasty skin and dark eyes suited his charismatic nature. He stopped directly before Ergon and despite most of the bar continuing about their business, this section was eerily quiet.


    ¡°No it wasn¡¯t,¡± I said, trying my best to keep a calm voice. He continued to remove his second glove as Silas swung wildly at Ergon¡¯s massive fist.


    ¡°You do know who these lands belong to, right?¡± He asked. Impulsively I wanted to say me because I built them, but I knew better.


    ¡°Lord Exupery,¡± I said


    ¡°Sometimes.¡± he said in a way I had only imagined when designing him. Despite my terror there was something satisfying about seeing a low-level enemy such as him come to life before my very eyes. I could see I was telling him what he wanted and the subtle anger behind his eyes was beginning to fade. He studied my face, smiled wide and after moment said,


    ¡°I suggest,¡± he said in a way that wasn¡¯t a suggestion at all, ¡°you go find somewhere to hit the hay.¡±


    He turned his back to me, and then I did a dumb thing.


    I¡¯ve done a lot of dumb things but this one? Oh boy, it was up there. I mean, the other things I¡¯ve done were cruel or unsympathetic, sometimes they were impulsive and mean but this one, to me, was the dumbest. Not because of the result and reaction but because it was entirely said without thought, it was 100% worthless. The dumb thing I said was,


    ¡°Hay is for horses.¡±


    I even said it with a grin. Even though Hestle was between me and her, I could practically hear the slap of Kappa hitting her own face at my stupidity. He, of course, stopped walking and slowly turned back around to me.


    ¡°Excuse me?¡± the mercenary said. He held a hand to his ear bending it forward as if to listen better.


    ¡°Hay¡­ is for horses?¡± I said, doubling down on the absolute idiocy of the moment.


    I could see the expression wash across his face in stages starting from confusion then moving to disgust and landing safely in anger.


    ¡°On second thought,¡± he said after a long pause, ¡°I think you do need to be taught a lesson.¡±


    My blood ran cold.


    I knew that we could not beat them. If we started a fight, it would end in our deaths. As I watched Silas and Kappa struggle to free themselves, I knew that despite not having high enough Charisma to persuade Hestle, I needed to try. I took a deep breath and just as I was about to speak two loud thuds sounded behind me.


    Someone had climbed onto the table.


    ¡°Why don¡¯t you take a deep breath there, Dick Dastardly,¡± a woman¡¯s voice said in a charming tone that shot Hestle¡¯s eyes upwards. I turned around as far as I could without moving the position of my body to see only a pair of mud covered converse all-stars. The voice was still above me and as I turned back to Hestle it continued in a joyful, carefree way that sounded almost like teasing,


    ¡°Any man that starts a fight ordering his Lennie Small to kick a guy in the back either has a small stature, a smaller brain or the smallest¡­¡± as they spoke they had pushed my back forward forcing me to kneel on all fours. Nervously I followed the order as the person on the table walked down from the table to the floor, using my back like a stepping stool. They stood before me and in front of Hestle and finished their thought, ¡°...well, let¡¯s just say they suffer from a severe lack of manhood.¡± There was a long pause as Hestle burned a bright red and I stood to see the back of a woman¡¯s head. Laughter boomed from the booth behind me and as she turned her head over her shoulder, she winked at me. My heart fluttered. It was Jessica; calm, cool and collected as I had ever seen her and as she turned back to Hestle she laid a hand playfully on his chest.


    ¡°Oh I¡¯m only teasing little guy,¡± she said with a smirk, walking around him a little bit as he continued to look forward, ¡°but if you really want a fight,¡± she stopped at his shoulder looking at me and the booth before them, ¡°then let my friends have a go first, will ya?¡±


    I turned around fully this time to see who had occupied the loudest booth in the bar only to see The Goodberry Brigade in full force. The Goodberry Brigade were a set of roaming land pirates that pillaged and stole, they were essentially no better than bandits however they were designed to become lawful good. They were part of a quest where you would have the option to rescue one of their own and they could turn on the PC if certain conditions weren¡¯t met. However if the quest was completed correctly, they could become a faction ally to the player and help. That being said, they were never designed to leave their camp and their benefits were only mechanical. Additionally, they were meant to be led by the lawful evil Gregorious Redbeard, who didn¡¯t seem to be here.


    Nonetheless they were fierce; skilled fighters and easily a stronger match for Hestle and he knew it. He eyed the table as Jessica looked over her shoulder. After a moment he said,


    ¡°Drop them Ergon, we¡¯re leaving.¡±


    The booth hollered in excitement as Ergon dropped Kappa and Silas. Hestle turned to me and with fiery eyes said, ¡°Till next time.¡±


    Then the two of them left the bar; and if I had anything of substance in my belly, I almost certainly would have earned three-vomits-in-a-day hat.

 Chapter 17

    Silas had nearly finished his chicken by the time Jessica had finished telling us how she had come to be in charge of The Goodberry Brigade. She had landed somewhere near a river and for a while was utterly confused (as was to be expected). She explained how a passing traveler filled in most of the blanks and, despite her feeling like she¡¯d finally snapped, she decided to take it in stride. After collecting a number of plants and discovering a forgotten chest near a campsite she had enough to purchase a sword and low-level armor. It was only a short travel on the road towards Largen before she came across The Goodberry Brigade who had already rebelled against the Lawful Evil leader, Gregorious Redbeard.


    ¡°But, how did you come to lead them?¡± I asked, equally marveled and impressed by her tenacity. She made a furrowed brow which suited the thin lines in her face and, after a beat, said,


    ¡°I¡¯m honestly not sure.¡± She looked down at her hands to pick dirt out from her fingernails. ¡°Whenever speaking I¡¯ve been able to convince people to do most anything I want. I even got this armor and sword for half of what the traveler was asking.¡±


    There was an awkward moment when I realized the last time we met was less than optimal and we both shared a knowing look,


    ¡°Look, I¡¯m sorry about¡­¡±


    ¡°No,¡± she said. ¡°Look it¡¯s fine. I overstepped and misread and¡­¡± I nodded and after a pause, as if she was debating whether or not to tell me something, said,


    ¡°I had this feeling wash over me when I landed; something I¡¯m trying to explain...¡± She stopped again trying to find the words. ¡°Do you ever daydream?¡±


    I nodded along, confused as to where she was going,


    ¡°That feeling, where your mind is running and you¡¯re looking blankly at the chalkboard?¡± She paused again and I waited for her to continue. ¡°When I landed it was kind of like that, I could see this beautiful world but I felt outside it; as if I was split between two worlds.¡±


    I thought I understood what she meant.¡°Like the real world and this.¡± I said, gesturing to the bar.


    ¡°No,¡± she said firmly. ¡°It was like this world and a view inside me, a sort of inner-Jessica page.¡± She looked towards me with doubtful eyes, as if I were about to call her crazy, but after all I had seen and done I was happy to believe anything. She continued after I didn¡¯t seem to react. ¡°I could interact with it like a sliding scale and I could see numbers; a pool of points that I could spend from. A view of my body was broken into pieces; social, strength, intelligence, a whole bunch of them and as I changed things on the page I could feel the way I was affected; I could feel stronger or weaker, smarter or¡­¡±


    ¡°Dumber?¡± I said and she smiled.


    ¡°Technically yes but let¡¯s say more stupid.¡± She gave a small laugh and continued. ¡°I only had so many points I could assign to certain things. Does that make sense? I could make certain aspects of myself better and I ended up putting a good number of my points in social, to make it as high as I could.¡±


    I understood exactly what she was referring to as soon as she had mentioned the sliding scale. It was all starting to make sense now; how she managed to make it this far, how she got discounted goods and especially how she was able to dispatch such a powerful character. Since she was low level, her Charisma would still only get us so far, but she was definitely the most charming of the group by a long shot. For Silas and me our character stats had already been chosen. We allocated our skill points back when we made our PC¡¯s but for Jessica, she had entered as a blank slate and could spend the points all at once. She had upped her Charisma high enough to be convincing in one way or another to most anyone in the game. I smiled as she continued,


    ¡°I don¡¯t know how to explain it, it was like¡­¡±


    ¡°A game.¡± I said, knowing where she was heading. With a raised eyebrow she nodded in agreement and gestured to me.


    ¡°For some reason we all are in this game, however what I haven¡¯t figured out is why you don¡¯t look like you, Lester.¡±


    In an instant I had completely forgotten that I was still Raydor the 6¡¯4 fighter and I awkwardly looked down at my armored chest, embarrassed. I abruptly turned back to her.


    ¡°Wait how did you know it was me?¡± I said, confused and a little surprised.


    ¡°Hay is for horses?¡± she said knowingly as if presenting me the solution I should have figured already. ¡°You sent me that message moments before all this started. Also,¡± she gestured to Kappa across from her, ¡°your cousin is here for some reason.¡±


    Silas burped loudly, the bones on his plate rattling, and Kappa sighed in annoyance. I turned to her and after a knowing look she just shrugged as if to say, tell her whatever you want. I debated for a moment before saying,


    ¡°She¡¯s not actually my cousin and there¡¯s actually a lot more going on than you realize.¡±


    Kappa arched her eyebrow in a knowing way as if to say you need to tell her everything. Then she slid away from me and exited the booth. ¡°Come on Silas, they have things to talk about,¡± she said, holding an outstretched hand to the small goblin that sat next to Jessica. He slid across the bench and hopped out as the two went to the bar.If you stumble upon this tale on Amazon, it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it.


    I explained as much as I could to Jessica. I told her about how I was developing Dunn, how Kappa was an AI and how I had found The Code that night after leaving the bar. I explained to her that I was being sought by the police and how the little goblin was my brother and how he launched us into this world. I also told her my thoughts on what it meant that she was here and how she had spent the points allocated to her all at once. When I had caught her up on the situation, I delved further back in my story¡¯s timeline to tell her about when I used the Code on her.


    ¡°After I had changed Kappa, she and I had a bit of a fight,¡± I said, unable to make eye contact with her as I spoke. ¡°She left and I was feeling pretty low.¡±


    She reached across the table and took my hand as I spoke. My heart began to race.


    ¡°Hey,¡± she said, ¡°It¡¯s okay; you¡¯ve had a lot thrown onto you.¡±


    I smiled a pained smile and continued,


    ¡°Thanks but I need to tell you something, as I said you were added to the code when Kappa and I ran into you and your friend in the woods¡­¡±


    ¡°Sarah,¡± she said dismissively.


    ¡°Ya, Sarah,¡± I confirmed trying to press forward but before I could continue her eyes grew wide,


    ¡°No, Lester! Sarah!¡± she said, grabbing my hands with both of hers. ¡°She¡¯s in Dunn too!¡±


    ¡°Oh shit.¡± I said.


    Jessica and I ran up to Silas and Kappa, who were sitting at the bar, with such speed that they both nearly spat out their drinks in surprise. I did a double-take at Silas, who was drinking from a large flagon of honey mead, before turning to Kappa. ¡°He¡¯s drinking!¡± I said loudly. Kappa stared at me blankly as if waiting for me to finish the thought. ¡°He¡¯s only 13!¡± I said, as if it meant anything to Kappa who had literally no knowledge of drinking ages or what they meant. I shook my head and removed the flagon from my brother¡¯s hand, placing it back on the bar with a splash.


    ¡°We need to go.¡± I said as Kappa dropped some gold coins on the bar, eyeing Jessica and I. ¡°Jessica¡¯s friend Sarah from the woods, she¡¯s here too and we need to make sure she¡¯s alright.¡±


    ¡°Your parents too.¡± Kappa said.


    Silas hopped down and looked at me. ¡°Mom and Dad are here?¡± he said flatly.


    I grimaced, ¡°I think so but I¡¯m sure they¡¯ll be fine.¡± I doubted the words as they left my mouth. I could tell he was nervous but I was happy he didn¡¯t show it as we headed to the exit.


    Outside, the cool night air was refreshing against the heat of the bar and I turned to the others.


    ¡°Maybe we should split up.¡± I said but as soon as the words left my mouth Jessica chimed in.


    ¡°Never split the party.¡± She said flatly. I turned to her.


    ¡°Never split¡­¡±


    ¡°The party.¡± She finished, saying it more like law than a suggestion. ¡°I¡¯ve ran enough Dungeons and Dragons games to tell you that the minute you split the party, trouble¡¯s brewing.¡± She nodded to herself. ¡°Besides, Kappa looks like the only one that can defend herself and unless I¡¯m there when Heckle and Jeckle decide to pop back up, it¡¯s going to be a bad time.¡±


    I realized she meant Hestle and Ergon but I had to laugh at how accidentally close she came to their names. I nodded in agreement. ¡°Fair enough.¡± I sighed. ¡°Where do we start looking and who do we start with?¡± I asked the group.


    ¡°Silas landed right beside you, correct?¡± Kappa said without missing a beat; after all, her mind was as quick as a computer.


    ¡°Correct.¡± Silas said in response.


    ¡°It also sounded like you were a fair bit down the road, right Jessica?¡± Kappa said Jessica¡¯s name with a hint of awkwardness, as if saying it hurt her. When Jessica nodded, Kappa continued. ¡°It sounds to me like wherever we were in proximity to real life is where we landed in Dunn.¡± She bent down and in the dim light of the tavern window drew a rough map of the surrounding area. Being from here, her map was not only detailed but accurate, (she even included a small scale in the bottom corner, ) and after a moment of drawing we each bent down to join her. ¡°You both started here,¡± she marked an ¡®x¡¯ in the woods outside of town to denote Silas and myself, ¡°and Jessica was here, yes?¡± Jessica nodded. Kappa marked another ¡®x¡¯ on the road leading west.


    ¡°Where were your parents when The Code loaded Dunn?¡± she said and with a curious look I studied the woods where the first ¡®x¡¯ lay.


    ¡°Well, they were in the house, so they should¡¯ve been right by us.¡± I said with a furrowed brow. Kappa pursed her lips, ¡°Is there nothing else in these woods?¡± she said, an air of desperation in voice,


    ¡°No, not really; birds, trees, some ruins maybe?¡± I said, searching my memory. ¡°Nothing that would¡­¡±


    ¡°The mines.¡± Silas said, interrupting my thought.


    ¡°The mines?¡± I said, shaking my head. ¡°No Silas, they start over here.¡± I gestured to the west of the woods. He watched me wave my hand, then grabbed it.


    ¡°They move this way under the map.¡± He said, moving my hand as if to trace the tunnels beneath the woods.


    I leaned back a little and reassessed my thinking. Creating the game was so different than this; the entrance of a mine only meant that it brought the player to a new screen, essentially another part of the game completely different than the main world. It would load them in another area and start the map fresh. With this in mind it took me a second to realize that Silas was superimposing the mine map beneath this one; considering the direction one would enter the mine and the direction of the tunnels. Since Mom and Dad were on the floor below us when we entered Dunn it made perfect sense that they were spawned in the tunnels below the woods. I shook my head impressed by him once again and corrected myself. ¡°He¡¯s right, Jesus. Silas, well done. I never would¡¯ve realized that.¡± I was too surprised by Silas¡¯s mind to realize what that meant but Kappa had gotten there first.


    ¡°Oh boy.¡± She said as I looked back down at the map still grinning. She waited to meet my gaze as I studied the map and eventually it clicked.


    ¡°Oh shit.¡± I said as I looked back up to her. ¡°Well, we¡¯re going there first and we¡¯re going there now.¡± I said, standing up. I felt for my sword.


    Jessica stood up as well and turned to me with a questioning look. For a moment her eyes flashed to Silas, nervous of what to share but the look on his face revealed that he was already aware of what the mines held and so without hesitating she asked,


    ¡°What¡¯s in the mines Lester¡­¡±


    ¡°Orcs,¡± I said with a chill that ran the length of my spine, ¡°and not the kingly bartender kind.¡±

 Chapter 18

    Jessica had moved up beside Silas as we crossed the bridge that led away from town. Kappa, who had been mostly quiet since Jessica had appeared, hung back and walked alongside me.


    ¡°Did you tell her?¡± she said without averting her gaze from the tree line beyond the cross roads ahead. In the moment I had forgotten to tell Jessica about having changed her code and now, on top of the fear I had for my parents, Kappa pressed me for the truth. I debated for a second and thought about how tackling this with Kappa¡¯s disappointment would make it nearly impossible and in a moment of weakness I said, ¡°Yes, I told her all of it and she said we¡¯ll deal with it later.¡±


    Kappa raised her eyebrows. ¡°Good job Lester, I¡¯m proud of you.¡± She said in a tone that was so earnest it hurt. I could tell she was going to push but nervous that the lie would begin to fall apart beneath me I changed the subject.


    ¡°Do you think this will work?¡± I said, more to the darkness than to Kappa.


    ¡°Rescuing your parents?¡± She asked.


    ¡°No, all of this; completing the game. Do you think it will set everything right again?¡± I said. Kappa thought for a long moment which surprised me. She was usually so quick to answer but now seemed conflicted in her response.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know Lester, I hope so.¡± She said and as I turned to her; her short brown hair looking black in the moonlight, I was suddenly taken aback by how naturally she carried herself as a woman.


    ¡°I really like you as a girl,¡± I said. It sounded pretty stupid out loud but she blushed bright enough to see in the dark and said,


    ¡°Thanks Lester, it feels right. It feels like it matches what¡¯s inside.¡±


    As the words left her lips I pondered what that meant. Kappa had already begun to act more and more human with each passing moment. The posh, stuffy, humorous sidekick I had created was all but a distant memory to me. Even the way she spoke was unlike how Kappa was written. As we turned right at the fork in the road I questioned whether the code had brought Kappa into reality, or truly made her human.


    ¡°Movement.¡± Jessica said from up ahead as she crept to the side of the road. We hid just in time to see the bouncing light of a lantern attached to the side of a large carriage. It appeared around a tight corner and followed the road towards us. Our movements were awkward and clearly lacking experience. The scramble into hiding was accented as Silas tripped over his large goblin feet. Despite our amateur nature we hid fairly well as the carriage moved past us. From my prone position in the large ditch I saw a sigil on the side of the carriage that I recognized; it belonged to Millicent the wizard-king and I swallowed hard. After it passed we each climbed from our hiding spots and stepped back onto the road.


    ¡°Did you see who was driving or where it was from?¡± Kappa asked and I shook my head no, not wanting to concern the party any more than necessary. Anyone who had played Dunn or even shared a cursory knowledge would raise a red flag in finding out that Millicent had already come this far. He was an end game character and stayed entirely in his castle, but now, knowing that the AI was largely left to its own devices, it seemed like anything was possible.


    We arrived at the mine entrance a few minutes later but decided on a stealthy approach. Silas, Kappa and I knew that the Orcs who called this mine home were slavers and mercenaries, which meant being seen wouldn¡¯t just mean our possible deaths but also a life of slavery. We also knew that there was an outpost before the mine entrance and, if the AI hadn¡¯t roamed too far, there would be at least two Orcs keeping an eye out.


    It was either luck or the code¡¯s decision to make the Orcs the non-wandering type, but either way they hadn¡¯t moved and the two large Orcs sat guarding the entrance as expected. Silas silently drew his short bow and Kappa hers, and as I began to move forward Jessica put a hand on my arm. ¡°Hold on,¡± she said, as if we were acting the fool. ¡°What are you all doing?¡±


    Silas, Kappa and I shared a bewildered and embarrassed look between each other.


    ¡°Attacking?¡± I said, as if doubting what was to come next. I searched her face and she shook her head in confusion.


    ¡°Why?¡±


    ¡°Because we need to see if my parents are in there,¡± I said, a little surer this time,


    ¡°Yes but why are we attacking?¡± she said, again as if leading us to an answer we had not seen. I thought on it for a second and as it became clear that we did not understand, she continued. ¡°Lester you wrote this game.¡±


    I nodded along, a blank gaze upon my face.


    ¡°You¡¯re telling me that you designed this entire mine to be entered from only one direction, the front?¡± I bit my lip slightly, ¡°and you¡¯re telling me that the only way into it is by fighting Orcs who are clearly far more skilled than us,¡± I bit my lip harder, ¡°and finally,¡± she added and I slouched forward like a child being chastised, ¡°you¡¯re telling me that if all that is true, the best way to go about it is to run at them and attack as you were each about to do?¡±Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on the original website.


    Jessica flashed her eyes between each of us and after a moment we crawled away, far enough to talk openly.


    ¡°You¡¯re each still thinking about this like it¡¯s a game.¡± She said as she paced before us. Kappa and I sat on a small log and Silas was above us in a tree branch, each of us listening intently as she spoke. If heart-eyes were real in this game, I would¡¯ve had them. Kappa however, wasn¡¯t as impressed.


    ¡°It is a game,¡± she said, a bit coldly.


    ¡°Yes,¡± Jessica said pointing finger guns at Kappa, ¡°however you¡¯re thinking about it as if every puzzle, problem and riddle needs to be solved like the game is meant to be played.¡± She waited for us to understand but as we each waited she continued. ¡°Lester, you¡¯ve been making this game so long I get why you¡¯re thinking this way and Kappa,¡± Kappa scowled slightly at the use of her name, ¡°you were born here so I get it as well.¡± She glanced up to Silas who waved at her and then back down at me. ¡°You told me you fought skeletons when you entered the Cave to get the staff of whatsitcalled¡­¡±


    ¡°Antioch.¡± Silas said and Jessica pointed up towards him.


    ¡°Yes, thank you. After that you exited to a waterfall out back, right?¡±


    I could see all of a sudden where she was going and felt like an idiot for not realizing it sooner. She finished her thought.


    ¡°Why didn¡¯t you just go in through the back; avoid the fight and take the Staff?¡± she said with hands open at her sides; part jazz hands, part revealing her idea in a way that was meant to make sense to us. To me and Kappa it did, but Silas still looked confused.


    ¡°But you have to enter the front; you¡¯re not supposed to go in through the back.¡± he said.


    Jessica nodded and looked to me to help explain. I looked up at Silas and said, ¡°Ya buddy, what she¡¯s saying is that we don¡¯t need to play it that way though. We have meta knowledge, as in we know the solution to a puzzle, the same way I removed that spell from the door without learning the solution to the riddle in game.¡±


    Silas looked concerned for a second and after a beat said, ¡°But that¡¯s not how you play the game.¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s no longer a game Silas.¡± Kappa said kindly ¡°We can get hurt. Jessica is saying we can approach these problems however we want to now. Just like how you knew your parents were in the Mine because you knew the layout.¡± She said it with a tinge of remorse as if losing something she held dear and I had to admit, I felt similar. There was something fun and exciting about playing the game I had built; going in the backdoor felt like cheating in a way.


    ¡°All I¡¯m saying is that we need to be smart,¡± she paused and thought, ¡°especially because it seems like this game is much harder than you intended.¡±


    That part was true, with the AI going all rogue on me and with the ¡®one-hit kill¡¯ likelihood of battle, we needed to be smart. Despite my slight regret I nodded along and stood up. ¡°The mines do have a back door¡­¡± I said, trying to remember the details,


    ¡°Perfect!¡± Jessica said. ¡°We can just slip in the back door and see if your parents are there.¡±


    I thought for a second about the mines. ¡°...or we can try Killian Earthbarren,¡± I said, raising my eyebrows towards Kappa who in response rolled hers wide enough to make her contempt for Killian crystal clear. Jessica shot looks between the two of us and stepped forward.


    ¡°Who or what is a Killian Earthbarren?¡± She asked. Kappa shook her head in disgust as if to remove the name from the space it had just acquired within her mind and stood up. She walked over to the tree Silas sat in and leaned against the trunk. I stood to follow her but instead walked beside Jessica.


    ¡°Killian Earthbarren is a who, and he¡¯s an NPC.¡±


    ¡°He¡¯s an idiot and a cheat,¡± Kappa said from the base of the tree, her arms crossed across her chest. Jessica, confused by the interaction, waited for me to continue.


    ¡°He¡¯s a dwarf who gives you the mission to clear the mines and after completing it, moves in with his team and sets up shop. You can trade goods with him and¡­¡± Kappa sat up pointing to me, an angry look on her face. I shook it off and continued, ¡°¡­and you can have him as another NPC ally.¡±


    Kappa threw her hands up in the air and walked towards me. ¡°I will not be a part of the team if he joins us,¡± she said angrily. I shook my head and turned to face her pointed finger.


    ¡°Kappa you don¡¯t even dislike him you¡¯re just programmed to.¡± I turned to Jessica. ¡°Kappa is the primary NPC and meant to be the one that the Player Character usually first befriends but there are other companions, Killian being one of them.¡±


    Kappa paced back and forth like a caged wolf, breathing the fire out of her lungs as I continued. ¡°I wanted to have inter-party dialogue for the NPC¡¯s that was interesting so I coded a rivalry.¡± I directed the last few words at Kappa who was walking back and forth angrily. ¡°Meaning it¡¯s not real.¡±


    ¡°You can say that all you want Lester but it¡¯s not gonna change how much I despise that dwarf.¡±


    I turned back to Jessica for her thoughts as Silas watched Kappa pace back and forth. I could see her conflict, having already sensed Kappa¡¯s dislike for her growing, so I piped up. ¡°Look, if we head in the back way, yes, we may be able to get mom and dad. We may even be able to get out safe but there will still be Orcs in there and they outnumber us 10 to 1. However,¡± I said trying my best not to meet Kappa¡¯s eyes, ¡°if we take on the quest from Killian, Jessica can probably convince him and his clan to attack the front of the mine. They may kill them all. They may not but at the very least they¡¯ll be a distraction while we enter the back.¡±


    Kappa stopped walking and looked at me. ¡°You want to convince Killian to attack the mines and the Orcs within?¡± she sounded almost hopeful.


    ¡°Well, ya, I mean¡­¡± was all I got out before she threw her arms around me and kissed me on the cheek. My cheeks went beet red and as I stepped back I caught Jessica¡¯s eye which sported a furrowed brow.


    She stammered a bit and then said, ¡°O-okay then, let¡¯s just do that.¡±


    Kappa, Jessica, Silas and I left the small clearing and headed towards Killian and his clan in hopes of aiding their attack on the mines.

 Chapter 19

    We had been walking for almost an hour and despite this muscular body being up to the task I was beginning to regret not bringing our horses. We had known the mines were no place for animals and the entrance was fairly close to town so the idea was easy at the time. With our new plan of seeking out Killian however I had wished for the comfort and speed of Asta.


    We walked single-file through the woods, Silas and his excellent memory for the game¡¯s map leading us towards Killian¡¯s encampment next to a large overlook. After a short while Jessica hung back a second and walked next to me. We walked in silence for a bit before she said, ¡°So Kappa isn¡¯t your cousin, does that mean you guys¡­¡± She was leading the answer from me.


    I looked towards Kappa who was a few feet in front of us and finished the thought with, ¡°¡­are really great friends, yes.¡± My response came as a relief to Jessica and in that moment I realized the code I had changed in her had carried over; her relationship status with me was still true and despite me having told her I wasn¡¯t interested, her feelings were still true as well. I could feel my hands sweat beneath the leather of my gloves and as I considered telling her she said,


    ¡°God I love this.¡± I was taken aback slightly and cracked a smile.


    ¡°Ya?¡± I said, proud of Dunn and excited at how much she liked it.


    ¡°Ever since I was a little girl reading Tolkien and Pratchett I have dreamed of something like this. Being transported to a world of wizardry and magic, mystery and villainy¡­ it¡¯s a dream come true.¡± She watched the star filled sky above her head as we walked. The curvature or her neck against the moonlit tree line was like a deer, elegant and animal and as we walked I felt my heartbeat quicken. She continued talking as I watched. ¡°I worry about home, I worry about what¡¯s become of the people who didn¡¯t get transferred into this world and despite my brain telling me to focus on those thoughts,¡± she pointed up to the sky and said with a smile, ¡°how can you not just enjoy that?¡±


    I had always felt strongly towards Jessica - from first seeing her in class I knew I had had a crush on her - but that was the moment I fell in love with her.


    ¡°Light.¡± Silas said and we each crouched down. We were still fumbling through learning to be an adventuring party but slowly we were getting better and this time we all got down around the same time. Just past the trees before us there was crackling fire light. Though it was barely visible Silas, with his massive eyes, saw it first. I nodded to Jessica and the two of us began moving up to join the other two and in a hushed tone I said, ¡°He and his men should be easily approachable and welcoming if not cold initially.¡± There was a hesitancy in my voice and Kappa picked up on it immediately,


    ¡°What are you worried about?¡± She said cutting straight to the point.


    ¡°Well, if the AI is doing whatever it wants, I don¡¯t know how safe they¡¯ve been out here.¡± I looked around to the trees surrounding us and stopped to meet Kappa¡¯s gaze. Her face was equally worried and after a deep breathe I added,, ¡°I¡¯m sure It¡¯ll be okay.¡± I offered a confident, short nod and stood from a half-crouch and began to move towards the light.


    As we moved through the trees the light grew brighter and eventually we came to the other side of a thicket to see an abandoned campsite. There were large empty areas where the earth was flattened by tents that had been broken down and taken from here. The few that did remain seemed abandoned; empty pots, broken glass and unused bedrolls littered the doorways of the small leather tents. The dim fire that crackled softly within the campsite revealed the scuff marks of boots; as if a camp had been torn down and moved. Silas turned to me with a scrunched up nose,


    ¡°They left.¡± He said and began walking into the campsite, kicking over an overturned pot.


    ¡°Huh,¡± I said, a bit disappointed. We moved in a little more to see some camping equipment strewn about, a few of the tents that had been used by Killian and his clan were still standing beyond a line of trees but looking in they were empty.


    ¡°Is there a way to track where they went?¡± I said, already feeling the doubt in my own voice.


    When I reached the end of the campsite far from the fire I saw the largest tent still standing at the edge of the tree line. The ornate canvas that had belonged to Killian lay half standing and, doubtful I would find anything of value inside, I opened the flap to see the large dimly lit interior. A lone lantern cast dark shadows upon the deep purple fabric walls as my eyes fell upon a small pile of blankets. For a moment I let my vision adjust to the darkness but before I could understand the small bed that I had uncovered I heard a voice from behind. ¡°Ye came back!¡±


    The thick Scottish accent of Killian was unmistakable and with a smile I turned around just as Killian jumped on me and began crying. I lost my footing and fell into the tent wall causing it to collapse around us. In the tight quarters of the fallen tent, lying on my back, Killian wailed and hugged me. He laid half grappling, half hugging across my chest as his large orange beard brushed against my mouth and face. I spat and sputtered loudly. In our awkward hug the lantern had broken and within moments the deep purple fabric of the tent began to catch fire, a detail we only realized because of the burning scent of canvas and the heat emanating from my feet. Wide eyed, we shared a knowing look and both started scrambling out of the tent just as Kappa and Jessica lifted back the burning sheet.


    Killian dove out and began rolling around dousing the small flame that had caught his beard as I kicked the remainder of the burning cloth away from me and stood up. Killian threw his hands above his head and in a surprisingly dexterous move hopped up. He stood for a moment and as if suddenly realizing we were not his clan said, ¡°Ye dunnit belong to me clan.¡± With a thud he fell straight back on his bum and splayed himself out on the pine needle floor of the woods, weeping. Jessica gave me a look as if to say, really and I shrugged and walked over to him.


    ¡°No we¡¯re not from your clan but we¡¯re here to help,¡± I said as if it were a question. After a moment I stretched out a hand to help him up. He opened one wet eye which sparkled against the firelight and through sobs said,


    ¡°Ye are?¡±


    ¡°Yes,¡± I said, and looked to Kappa who rolled her eyes at his dramatic display of childlike frustration. He sat back up and looked between each of us. Killian was a Dwarf only slightly taller than Silas who had a long orange beard and short red hair on top. His thick, bushy eyebrows were in a permanent point giving him the impression of a much more menacing dwarf. His studded leather armor and high iron boots were well worn and rattled when he walked and as he took my hand and stood, wiping the tears from his eyes, he hugged me.


    ¡°Uh, there, there.¡± I said patting his back as he sobbed into the belly of my breastplate. After an uncomfortably long cry he stood back to see the soot covered metal, stained with long tear marks down to my belt and awkwardly he tried to wipe it away with his leather bracer.


    ¡°Okay enough.¡± Kappa said as she walked over to him and took his hand like a mother leading her child out of the supermarket. She turned him to face her, his eyes still wet and his mouth pouting beneath his beard. ¡°What is wrong with you Dwarf.¡± Kappa said less as a question and more of a statement as she wiped the blackened soot from his face.


    ¡°Gone!¡± He belted, ¡°My brothers and friends, my clan, they all be gone, left and gone!¡± he wailed into the night and pulled away from Kappa who threw her hands up in frustration. He walked to a broken stump and sat down. ¡°I¡¯m depressed. Without me Clan there¡¯s little for me out there.¡± He looked out passed the treeline to the valley before us.


    Stolen novel; please report.


    The campsite sat next to a steep drop that opened to a large forest and in the starlight, the blue of the moon reflected in the small river that ran the length of the it. It looked like a storybook, it had an almost magical quality that was just breathtaking. Killian breathed a deep sigh and started to wail again.


    I took a half step forward as Jessica stopped me. She patted me on the chest and approached him, kneeling next to the small dwarf. ¡°I¡¯m sorry your friends left, Killian,¡± she said in a sympathetic tone.


    ¡°CLAN.¡± He corrected, much like a toddler would. I could see her try her best not to roll her eyes and after a breath she said,


    ¡°Clan, yes, sorry but that doesn¡¯t mean the fire has died.¡± She reached under his chin to move his face towards hers and spoke softly.


    ¡°We have all lost and will continue to lose. Strength is not having the power to break stone or move mountains; true strength is moving forward when all is lost. It is pushing on in the darkest times when there is nothing left to hold on to.¡± Killian¡¯s eyes were locked with hers.Smiling she said, ¡°We need strength, and I see it in you, it is not gone. The fire is low but the embers are hot and ready to be ignited once again.¡±


    As the words left her mouth Killian sat unmoving, staring at her as if waiting for more. After a long beat he threw his head back and bellowed into the night sky. ¡°FINE!¡±


    Jessica sat back bewildered and like a child he hopped up and grabbed his axe. ¡°You didn¡¯t need to do all the weepy nonsense, yeech,¡± he said gesturing to me with a thumb pointing to Jessica as if to say get a load of the big baby. Jessica stood up, the look of utter confusion on her face as she turned to see Kappa smiling a knowing smirk.


    ¡°I get the gist of what ye says, I¡¯ll join your clan.¡± He said leaning on the handle of his axe as if presenting himself to the party.


    ¡°No, no, no, no, no! Not this jerk,¡± Kappa said quickly towards me but also directed at Jessica.


    ¡°Who are ye calling a jerk missy?¡± Killian said as he walked towards Kappa his head held high and proud.


    ¡°You, you mangy Dwarf,¡± she said staring back at him.


    For a moment they just stared at each other before I finally said, ¡°Okay group huddle!¡± breaking the awkward staring match the two were having by stepping between them. Silas, who has been rooting through the trash like a dog stood up and met my gaze anxiously. With a worried look he scrambled over to me just as Jessica and Kappa turned as well. Between them, Killian pushed himself in and with hushed tone said, ¡°What¡¯s the plan, lad?¡±


    ¡°No, not you, Killian. Just the group.¡± I said looking between the others.


    ¡°I¡¯m not part of the group?¡± He said with a squeak, his mouth down at the corners in a sort of childlike plea for dessert.


    ¡°No, of course you are,¡± I said quickly as Kappa shot me a look. I scrambled for the words and added, ¡°I mean the group of just theeeeese people¡­¡± I said pointing to everyone but Killian, ¡°they¡¯re¡­ they¡­ it¡¯s personal stuff, Killian.¡± I said hoping it would land and for a moment he just locked eyes with me.


    He leaned in and loud enough for everyone to hear but directed at me he said, ¡°Girl stuff?¡±


    ¡°Yes, girl stuff,¡± I said slowly and with doubt. Jessica rolled her eyes at me and the dwarf pointed to Silas.


    ¡°Why is he here then?¡±


    ¡°He¡¯s a girl, too.¡± I said quickly.


    ¡°No I¡¯m not,¡± Silas said confused.


    ¡°No, but he knows a lot about girls,¡± I shot back.


    ¡°No I don¡¯t,¡± Silas added as Killian turned back and forth between the two of us.


    In a frustrated burst I said, ¡°No! Okay, but Silas is part of the group and I want him here and you shouldn¡¯t be here and that¡¯s the way the group works.¡± Kappa put her head in her hand as if to say god what a bunch of idiots.


    Killian winked at me and said, ¡°Girl stuff¡­¡±


    ¡°BYE KILLIAN,¡± Jessica shouted as she pushed him out of the circle. Mumbling to himself he began searching the campsite for anything left behind. She turned back to me and made a gesture as if to say, there done, now speak, and I did.


    ¡°So what¡¯s the plan now?¡± I said breathing a sigh of relief at Killian having stepped away,


    ¡°Same as before,¡± Kappa said matter-of-factly, ¡°except it¡¯s only one Dwarf attacking the front instead of a whole clan.¡±


    ¡°We can¡¯t do that, it¡¯d be suicide!¡± I said in a loud whisper,


    ¡°Oh he¡¯ll be fine,¡± Kappa said with a motherly tone that sounded as if she was downplaying a broken arm. ¡°He¡¯s a fierce, noble and capable warrior,¡± she said as Killian¡¯s voice cut across the field.


    ¡°FORK HERE!¡± he shouted over the campsite. He held his gloved hand high up over his head, his face beaming with pride for a moment before turning back down and continuing his search. We each looked at each other doubtfully.


    ¡°Is he any good at sneaking?¡± Jessica asked hopefully, I turned to Silas who shook his head no. I nodded in confirmation and turned back to her.


    ¡°No, is there anything he¡¯s good at Silas?¡±


    Each of us leaned back from the group huddle and observed Killian for a moment as he picked up a chicken leg, sniffed it and after making a scowl looked around nervously. When he was sure he was not being watched he took a bite of it. We leaned back in and Silas said, ¡°He¡¯s got a high swimming stat.¡±


    ¡°Arrrrrg!¡± Kappa belted out in frustration. ¡°Let¡¯s just leave him here and do the mine¡¯s ourselves!¡± She said turning to me for support. While I agreed with Kappa¡¯s frustration to an extent I also recognized that we¡¯d need all the help we could get it if we were to survive, as well as someone who could¡­


    ¡°Navigate the tunnels!¡± I said excitedly turning to each of them. ¡°We need someone who knows the way in and out and can guide us!¡±


    Jessica nodded and Kappa sighed as I leaned out and called Killian back over. He stood up from a pile of wood holding a broken axe handle and began skipping over to us. With an outstretched hand he presented the broken axe handle to me. He nudged it and nodded as if to say, take it.


    ¡°What is that?¡± I said


    ¡°Broken axe handle,¡± he said grinning to the others.


    ¡°Yes but why are you giving it to me?¡± I asked.


    ¡°It¡¯s pretty,¡± he said with a frown. I dropped it in annoyance and turned to him.


    ¡°You and your clan were originally from the mines near Langen before the Orcs invaded, right?¡±


    ¡°Aye, it was our home first!¡± he shouted, drawing his axe as if I was objecting to it and ready to fight.


    ¡°God, stop! Yes I know, we¡¯re going to get it back for you or at least try but we thought we see if you could help us.¡± I said holding my hands out to stop him from swinging. The axe fell from his hands and slowly his anger dissipated to a sad frown and he again began to cry.


    ¡°What now?¡± I asked in exasperation.


    ¡°It¡¯s so kind of ye to help,¡± he said, his lower lip quivering. I rolled my eyes silently and put a hand around him as he leaned into me and sobbed. Jessica who was watching the interaction shook her head and spoke up.


    ¡°So is our plan still the back door?¡± she asked loudly over the Dwarven sobs. I looked to Kappa who nodded and back to Jessica.


    ¡°Ya I think so, though we may need to alter it as I¡¯m not sure how sneaky we¡¯ll be with the Dwarf,¡± Kappa said and as the words left her mouth Killian jumped up and pointed a thick stubby finger at her.


    Through teary eyes and a pouting mouth he mustered as much fire he could and said, as if insulted, ¡°Are ye doubting the sneakiness of a dwarf?¡±


    ¡°Yes,¡± Silas interjected but Kappa spoke again before he could continue.


    ¡°No, we¡¯re just¡­¡± was all she managed to say before Killian turned to Jessica and demanded,


    ¡°What was the original plan?¡± His eyebrows bounced up and down as he asked. His wide, wild eyes danced as Jessica nervously looked past him to me and I shrugged.


    ¡°We had hoped that you and your clan would attack the front while we snuck in the back but¡­¡± she said and a grin slid across Killian¡¯s face.


    ¡°Aye it would be right foolish to try to attack the front head on, one measly dwarf wouldn¡¯t stand a chance¡­ but who said its one measly dwarf¡­¡± he said as he rubbed his hands together.


    ¡°You did.¡± Silas said quickly, breaking the dwarf¡¯s concentration,


    ¡°Aye, that is true,¡± he said sadly after a beat.


    I threw my hands up as if to stop them and said, ¡°ALRIGHT! Killian we appreciate the determination you¡¯re showing but the front is a bad idea.¡± I took a second to compose myself and said, ¡°The plan is that we¡¯re all going to sneak in through the back and hope for the best, Killian I think it would be best if you stayed out and just gave us a description of the mines.¡±


    ¡°Would it!¡± he belted at my half question but more a statement and as he picked up the heavy head of his axe he twirled it in his calloused hands.


    ¡°Let¡¯s see if that works,¡± he said in a hushed tone and nodded as if revealing a great secret. It was a long beat and then he started to laugh. The bellowing Dwarven laugh was equal parts menacing and insane and in the dim starlight we all shared a nervous look.

 Chapter 20

    We had been sitting in the bushes by the back entrance of the mine for well over half an hour waiting for Killian to return. He had told us that he needed to use the bathroom and insisted it would only take a minute but as the time passed I began to grow more and more worried. Suddenly Kappa nudged me, ¡°He seems a bit off, no?¡±


    I nodded yes in a slow wide nod that Kappa snickered at and I leaned in, ¡°I wonder if the AI is trying to correct itself.¡± I said half thinking as I spoke, ¡°Killian is meant to have his clan even when he becomes a companion, but since they left him his programming is directly conflicting with the AI¡¯s choices. He must be experiencing conflicting emotions.¡±


    ¡°Aren¡¯t we all,¡± Kappa said flatly, then almost catching herself continued, ¡°I think that¡¯s an interesting theory but I think there is a far more likely one,¡± she paused turning to me and I waited in anticipation, ¡°he¡¯s a looney.¡± She smirked and I laughed quietly just as we heard a bellowing scream in the distance.


    ¡°What the hell was that?¡± Jessica said in a loud whisper but before I could react Killian came crashing through the thicket panting.


    ¡°Alright, let¡¯s go in!¡± He said and began running for the back entrance.


    ¡°Killian!¡± I tried to say in a hushed tone but he was already gone for the Cliffside. With a sigh I stood up and followed, the others doing the same. Under the starlight I could barely make out the tight gap that hid the mine but felt for it against the dark wall. Killian had already entered and as I felt the warm breeze of the mine on my hand I moved inside, the others following.


    I entered the fire lit final room to see the wooden pathways of the mine tracks and the pile of bones that I had added for flair. At the end of this mine, the area we were now in, you¡¯d confront the head Orc Grundlemend but it seemed that Killian had caused enough of a stir to draw not just the big bad away but also three of his guards. I spotted the large chest in the corner that I knew contained a number of gold pieces and some other trinkets and nodded towards Kappa to check it out. By the entrance to this room there was a short hallway where the cages they had kept slaves in and if my parents were alive, they¡¯d be there. As I approached I could hear the wild and energetic grunts of Killian down the hallway.


    I snuck to the doorway and leaned out to see Killian in the next room. He was standing on a large stack of boxes swinging wildly at the Orcs below him hollering and laughing with each missed shot they fired. He kicked one in the head and grabbed for a rope swinging to the next stack of boxes without so much as taking a scratch. It was clear that he was capable of this fight and as I turned back to the others I realized they too were watching this.


    ¡°Wow,¡± said Jessica as Killian did a somersault over three Orcs and pulled them down to the ground in one fell swoop.


    After a moment we stepped back into the room. Silas had to be pried away from the sight he was watching in awe and when he turned his attention back to us I said, ¡°Silas, you and Kappa clear this room and that chest,¡± I gestured towards the large ornate iron chest in the corner, ¡°Jessica and I will check the other room for mom and dad and if Killian comes back in¡­¡± I paused considering what to say next when Silas finished the thought.


    ¡°Tell him good job?¡±


    I nodded and said, ¡°Sure let¡¯s go with that,¡± as we each went about our tasks.


    Down a short brownstone hallway just off the main chamber, the firelight of the slave pen greeted us. Entering we saw an empty chair, presumable for the guard and three large cages however only one had anyone in it. I ran over to see a thin, wiry old man sitting along the bottom of the cage,


    ¡°Were you alone here? Have you seen two people about five feet tall, dark skin wearing strange clothes?¡± I asked frantically in loud whisper. The man turned up towards me slowly and nodded yes.


    ¡°Where did they go?¡± I said impatiently. He smiled wide and whispered,


    ¡°Let me out and I¡¯ll tell you,¡±


    I looked over my shoulder to the opening and realizing time was running short I fumbled through my satchel for a lock pick.


    ¡°Have you ever picked a lock?¡± I said to Jessica as I searched,


    ¡°No, have you?¡± she said nervously watching the entryway,


    ¡°No, but Raydor has,¡± I said retrieving the pick and placing it in the metal lock. I began to turn and maneuver the lock anxiously and after a few moments or trying the pick broke.


    ¡°Damn,¡± I said as the old man giggled, I turned to him and scowled, ¡°zip it, grandpa,¡± I turned to Jessica and with a nervous grimace said, ¡°I don¡¯t think my lock pick is high enough,¡±


    ¡°What do we do?¡±


    Just then a light began to flicker from the hallway. Jessica turned nervously towards me as I looked for a place to hide in the room but there was none, she nodded to me as if to say we got this and she ran beside the open door. I followed suit and stood on the other side of the door with my sword drawn.


    The Orc entered the room and ran right past us. It had tufts of grey hair spurting from his ears and the top of its head and as it slowed to a walking pace, it sniffed the air. In the flesh the Orc was terrifying; its large stature was equal to mine but the stench and animalistic way it carried itself was absolutely horrific. Jessica and I locked eyes and with a nod we charged the creature from behind.


    We managed to push it back a great deal but with a large swipe it disarmed Jessica and I lunged for the creature. It took me in its arms and threw me back against the cages sending pieces of ancient bone and broken metal out upon the floor. My head spun as I saw Jessica stand in front of the creature, crouched and ready for a fight.


    ¡°Aren¡¯t you a pretty little thing,¡± it hissed through black fangs. I noticed it didn¡¯t have a weapon and neither did she. Jessica shook her head in disappointment as the creature eyed the floor and spotted her dagger. ¡°I bet your flesh tastes good,¡± he said and lunged for the floor. Jessica spun around and grabbed for one of the large wooden beams that leaned against the open cages. Despite her small stature she wound back and swung at the creature just as it was bending over to grab her dagger. With a loud thunk it connected and the creature fell forward, unconscious. She panted wildly for a beat and in a disheartened tone said, ¡°The demonization of Orcs without seeking to understand their motivations betrays a racist belief that some peoples are inferior to others¡­¡±


    Both the old man in the cage and I shared a look as she wiped her brow and said, ¡°¡­like, come on man. Be better.¡±


    Love this novel? Read it on Royal Road to ensure the author gets credit.


    The Orc groaned signifying it¡¯s unwillingness to get up again and dropped its head against the stone floor of the cage room. I looked up towards Jessica with total affection but just before she could see it I watched her face contort in a bizarre expression; one of pain and confusion as if having a mild seizure.


    ¡°Jessica? Are you okay?¡± I said frantically taking a half step towards her. After an instant it was done and she looked towards me with a thousand yard stare. She looked through me and after a moment said, ¡°I think I just levelled up.¡±


    I shook my head a little bit with a smile, clearly impressed by what had transpired, and watched Jessica stare and study an invisible screen. After a beat I looked back towards the old man in the cage and studied the lock. It was solid and not easily broken. After a beat a thought washed over me and I turned to Jessica,


    ¡°Jessica, level up your Lock Pick!¡±


    Her eyes flicked towards me and for a second considered her options. With a half nod she turned back to staring blankly forward. I turned back to the old man only to see that he was uncomfortably close to the cage and yelped a little in his face. Unfazed he cackled; the black, broken teeth within his dry lips shaking as he did. I nodded slowly, waiting for Jessica and after a moment of him studying my face he said, ¡°You are not an attractive person,¡±


    ¡°What? Neither are you,¡± I said offended as he howled with laughter, jumping up and down in a fit of joy. ¡°I look fine,¡± I said turning to Jessica with hesitancy in my voice and as if asking for approval said, ¡°I look handsome don¡¯t I?¡±


    Jessica stared blankly at me and after a beat I said, ¡°Still levelling up?¡±


    ¡°Nope.¡± Her blank stare now reflecting her disinterest in the question and after an awkward moment she pushed past me as the old man hooted with laughter again. She arrived at the lock and with an open palm she waited for my lock pick. She fiddled with it for only a few seconds before the lock clicked open and fell to the floor, the cage door swinging open as she did, ¡°Let¡¯s go,¡± she said to man who grinned and began to climb out. The man was wiry and starved, his gaunt face sported a long grey beard and his skin was almost grey in the dim torch light. His bald head had dark spots and the deep circles around his eyes told a story of a long time without the light of day. We moved over the Orc and back out into the main hallway.


    Kappa and Silas had emptied the chest by the time we came back down the short hallway and into the throne room. Killian was no longer grunting from the direction of the front and as my eyes met Kappa¡¯ I asked, ¡°Should we go look for him?¡±


    I could see Kappa¡¯s internal debate; her extreme dislike for the dwarf versus her strong sense of moral code and after a few quiet seconds she breathed out a labored, ¡°I guess so.¡±


    Jessica, who had been supporting more of the old man¡¯s weight, said, ¡°Silas and I have him, why don¡¯t you two go get Killian.¡±


    Silas, confused as to the inclusion of his name, walked over to Jessica and the old man in a bit of a daze and tried to help while touching the man as little as possible. I nodded and Kappa drew her bow and the two of us moved back down the room towards where we had last seen Killian.


    The hallways had a few signs of fighting but the Orcs we had seen were nowhere to be found, nor was Killian. We continued down the one way mine shaft until we reached a large opening. There, two layers below us; Killian was fighting the last of the Orcs. His grunts echoed in the chamber as Kappa and I rushed down the winding stone path to where he fought. Killian grunted with each swing of his heavy axe and as our feet finally reached the bottom he drove his axe into the Orc. My heart drummed in double time and my mouth ran dry as I watched the axe cleave into the creature.


    I had spent years developing this game and longer playing games of the same kind. Death was a part of these games; it was how you levelled up and how you were meant to dispose of the baddies. Seeing it now however; seeing it first hand and watching Killian¡¯s axe sink into the creature was a completely different experience. The beings in this world; the humanity within Kappa and the life (or whatever one would call it) that Killian held, they were all tangible now. They were breathing and at the very least, alive.


    I slowed to a walk as Kappa continued on ahead to help Killian down from a pile of crates and as they shared a squabbling back and forth I looked down at the dead Orc which lay at my feet. I sheathed the blade I had drawn and crouched down to look at it; the dark eyes no longer capable of the light they once may have held¡­


    Look, all of this is to say that this got to me. It¡¯s one thing to see Orcs get beheaded in Lord of the Rings but let me tell you ¨C it is MUCH different seeing it first-hand. I mean, what¡¯s the difference between seeing this and seeing a murder? In the alleyway I had seen a dead body but somehow that seemed more far away, less real than this. All of this started to feel heavier the way I thought, the way I experienced it all started to feel real. I was thinking less and less about the people left behind and more and more about the world of Dunn around me. What I had seen, it got to me in a big way and as the three of us headed back up to join the others, Kappa noticed my change in demeanor cause she hung back to talk.


    ¡°Are you okay?¡±


    ¡°Ya¡­ No, maybe I don¡¯t know.¡± I said as I kicked a small rock along the mine shaft. Kappa waited for me to keep talking, knowing that I had more to share, ¡°I don¡¯t know I guess I didn¡¯t expect to see an Orc¡¯s head get chopped off for some reason.¡±


    Kappa nodded in understanding, ¡°It¡¯s one thing to think about, another to see.¡± She said thoughtfully.


    ¡°Yes but also, it¡¯s this place Kap; I love it, I truly do but I can feel myself slipping a little. Losing a little of myself, not in a big way but¡­ I can feel my mind believing this place.¡± I sighed, ¡°Like when Jessica said we¡¯re thinking about this like a game, that ability she has to still be her, I¡¯m losing a bit of that feeling.¡±


    I looked down at my open hands and studied the large strong fingers beneath the iron gauntlets, ¡°I guess I feel more like Raydor than Lester, and as much as I thought I¡¯d prefer it, I miss it a little.¡± I turned to Kappa and realized that she was crying, ¡°What? Did I say something wrong?¡± I said worriedly.


    ¡°No,¡± she said sniffling a little, ¡°I just know how it feels to be out of sorts in a body that doesn¡¯t feel like it¡¯s yours.¡± She smiled softly in the light as we turned a sharp corner practically crashing into Killian.


    ¡°Mind yer voices!¡± he shouted, ¡°There may be more up ahead,¡± he said cautiously as I stepped around him and took the torch.


    ¡°Yes, it¡¯s our group numbskull,¡± I said as I entered the room with Silas and Jessica. I put the torch down and for the first time surveyed the area and after a long beat said, ¡°maybe we should camp here for the night?¡±


    At first Jessica looked nervous but after she considered the alternative of sleeping outside she nodded softly. I could see the strength fading in everyone fast and at the mention of sleep it was clear how much we all needed it. As much as I wanted to find mom and dad, it would be useless to try in our current state.


    ¡°Night-watch?¡± Silas said, ¡°Should we take turns,¡±


    I agreed and I offered to take the first watch. Kappa offered second watch after a few hours and I moved to the edge of the tunnel. Despite the relative warmth of the air outside, the mines were cold and so while the others unraveled their bed rolls I dug a shallow hole and built a small fire. I could catch Jessica watching every once in a while as I built the fire. Each time I felt a pit in my stomach when I caught her eye knowing that her feelings for me were forced. Once the fire was built the others began to fall asleep (including the old man) and I sat by the crackling fire and stared blankly into the looming dark of the tunnel.

 Chapter 21

    Kappa woke on her own a few hours later and moved quietly among the sleeping, trying her best not to wake them, towards me. I had spent the last few hours thinking. I thought about everything; the humanity of this world, Jessica and what I had done to her, Silas and how he must be feeling, my parents and finally, the Code. What was it, where did it come from and how the hell did it make all this happen? I was beyond thankful when Kappa finally came over to relieve me because any more time in my head without sleep and I¡¯d be worried about my sanity.


    ¡°Nothing?¡± she asked quietly as she sat down beside me next to the embers of the fire. She sat cross legged a few feet in front of me.


    ¡°Nope.¡± I said through thin lips as my eyelids grew heavy and my head started to drop.


    She smiled watching me fight off sleep and said, ¡°Go, I got it from here.¡±


    I tried to move but my body, having been firmly rooted to this spot against the earthen wall of the mine for the past few hours, felt ready to sleep now, ¡°Mind if I just try sleeping here?¡± I said through half closed eyes.


    Kappa picked up a stick I had used to prod the fire with, ¡°I¡¯d prefer it,¡± she said almost eagerly. She poked the fire as embers climbed into the dark of the mine and through my half closed eyes I saw her put another piece of wood on the fire. I was on the cusp of sleep when a thought that had been rolling around in my mind over the past few hours slipped out.


    ¡°How did you like it?¡± I asked, my head nestled against the mine¡¯s wall fitting comfortably in the little alcove I had found.


    Without looking, probably assuming I was half gone, she asked, ¡°Like what?¡±


    ¡°Sleeping.¡± I said with a groggy smile, she turned towards me and with pursed lips joined me in leaning against the wall.


    She sighed as if recalling a good memory and said, ¡°I was wondering if you had thought about that, I forget how smart you are,¡± she said with a smirk.


    ¡°Made you, didn¡¯t I?¡± I shot back through slightly slurred words. My eyes were fully closed now as we talked.


    ¡°You did a fine job of it,¡± she said dismissively then added, ¡°go to sleep.¡±


    ¡°You didn¡¯t answer my question.¡± I said and though I couldn¡¯t see it, I could hear her facial expressions change. She breathed a heavy sigh and said,


    ¡°At first I was curious how to do it, I watched Jessica lying out and Silas getting comfortable. I¡¯ve lain down in bed a hundred times and time will pass but admittedly but that was all in Dunn before all of this. I was nervous.¡± She kicked a little at the dirt floor sending soft red clouds of sand towards the fire, stalling the story, ¡°I watched Jessica do what she did and just lay down like her, I closed my eyes and¡­¡±


    ¡°Mhm,¡± I let out a confirming grunt as if to say I understand but she continued,


    ¡°No, I saw something.¡±


    ¡°What¡¯s that?¡± I asked, my brow furrowed despite my eyes still shut.


    ¡°It was¡­ a vision maybe? Something that was¡­ it was¡­ I saw you, all of us really and we were back in the real world but I felt out of place.¡± She said as if trying to remember, ¡°You and Jessica were¡­¡± she struggled a bit to find the words, ¡°together I guess,¡± I could hear the way her head turned towards Jessica who slept off to Kappa¡¯s left. She paused again and said, ¡°Then I saw you die Lester, I saw you dead.¡±


    Still with a furrowed brow I listened intently, unsure of how to process this new information. Could Kappa see the future? Did her being a part of this world give her some sort of power? I began to wonder when she continued,


    ¡°Then, for some reason, Koala¡¯s were there and my blood ran cold¡­¡±


    A grin spread across my face and for the first time since she started talking I opened my eyes. I could see that her eyes were wet as she recalled the vision but I interrupted.


    ¡°It was a dream.¡± I said with a bit of a laugh.


    ¡°A what?¡±


    I shook my head, ¡°I can¡¯t believe in all that we¡¯ve experienced I never told you about dreams. I guess nightmares in this case,¡± I chuckled softly to myself as I closed my eyes again but I could hear the tension in Kappa¡¯s voice.


    ¡°No, these felt real,¡± she objected as I took a long breath,


    ¡°They always do,¡± I said, then added, ¡°¡­but sometimes you have really good ones and they feel real as well.¡± I thought for a moment on my last great dream and I couldn¡¯t remember it.


    The realization made me sad and as I began to drift Kappa said, ¡°Does that mean I¡¯m human?¡±


    I raised my eyebrows, my eyes now refusing to open anymore, and said, ¡°TBD.¡±


    As I drifted off to sleep I could hear the fire hungrily lick the log she had placed on the coals before us. The snapping of wood felt welcoming, like coming home as Dunn began to drift away. Just as the last moments stayed with me however; just before I succumbed to sleep and rested my weary head, I swore I felt Kappa kiss me.


    As I slept I dreamt, just as Kappa did.


    At first I wasn¡¯t sure what I was seeing. I don¡¯t think I even realized it was a dream. My entire world was thrown upside down upon entering Dunn and in my slumber I didn¡¯t fully comprehend that what I saw wasn¡¯t real.


    In my dream I saw a figure on the cusp of the darkness but as my eyes adjusted I could tell it was Mr. Miller, my gym teacher. Seeing him in stark contrast to the world of Dunn, a world I was in only moments ago, felt comforting for a moment until I saw his grin. He smiled at me wide and cynical; a mocking smile that I could feel burn into me. As the scene filled with light I could see he was standing in the Gym, standing above me now as I lay on my stomach. The entirety of the class standing to my left while he stood over me, ¡°Five more pushups,¡± he said in a cold voice, ¡°No one leaves for lunch until you finish.¡±


    I looked to the class, the people who were supposed to be my friends throughout this time in my life. Most tried to turn away, pretend they couldn¡¯t see me tearing up and just as I thought the dream couldn¡¯t get worse Mr. Miller knelt down and in a voice loud enough for them to hear asked, ¡°Are you seriously crying?¡±


    When I opened my eyes I saw Silas standing over me, his large Goblin eyes inches from my face. I was startled a bit but since I was still stiff against the mine wall I couldn¡¯t do anything but open my eyes and stare back. It took me a good minute before everything came back to me; where we were, what was happening, why there was a Goblin looking at me¡­ but luckily it all came back.


    ¡°You were crying.¡± Silas said flatly and after a question asked, ¡°Are you awake?¡± It was more a statement than a question.


    ¡°I am now,¡± I said and as I gave him his answer he took a step back and turned to the others, who were breaking camp.


    ¡°He is awake now,¡± Silas said flatly and Jessica thanked him. She walked over to me and offered me a hand up.


    ¡°He¡¯s been standing over you asking are you awake for the past 5 minutes.¡± she said with a kind smile, clearly annoyed but happy at how clearly Silas cares for me. My back was stiff and my neck had a cramp in it. I wiped the water from my eyes and I began to stretch.


    ¡°If only sleeping worked like the game,¡± I joked, each shared a knowing nod as clearly the bedrolls offered little protection from the stone-covered, uneven flooring of the mine. It didn¡¯t help that I had failed to remove my armor before sleeping and so I essentially passed out in a sweaty coffin. I felt over for my gear and checked and adjusted my gloves and pants before feeling my neck and face. I paused on my lips and remembered the feeling of being kissed last night. I turned towards the others only to realize that Kappa wasn¡¯t there, ¡°Where¡¯s Kap?¡± I asked innocently,


    ¡°She went out to hunt while we broke camp,¡± Jessica said.


    Killian chimed in, ¡°I offered to help but ye girlfriend is a feisty one,¡± he said with a smile and Jessica¡¯s eyes shot towards me with a confused look,


    ¡°She¡¯s not my girlfriend,¡± I said with a confused look and started towards the tunnel entrance, Silas who had been eagerly pacing for me to wake, followed. I stopped at the entrance and turned back to Jessica, Killian and the old man who had been on his knees searching through a pile of debris, ¡°How long has she been gone?¡± Jessica shrugged.


    ¡°Tough to tell time here, maybe half an hour?¡± she said with a doubtful tone.


    ¡°I¡¯m going to poke my head out and try to find her,¡± Jessica was about to object but the Old man began hollering and her attention turned,.


    ¡°Gold!¡± he squealed loudly as Killian hopped over to him and bent down beside him, eyeing the small hole the old man had dug out from the pile of stone,.


    ¡°It be fool¡¯s gold¡± Killian said towards the old man.


    ¡°It¡¯s Gold!¡± the old man shouted back angrily.


    ¡°Do ye think ye know better than a dwarf? I was born in the mines¡­¡± Killian started and as Jessica started towards them I left the mine and stepped out into the early morning light.


    Silas slipped out behind me and we started moving through the woods. The morning light cut through the canopy of trees above us and I was reminded of the afternoon Kappa and I had walked through the woods, when I had showed her how I could change their colour. It was breathtaking here, the babbling of water was in the background and birds sung within the trees but somehow I yearned to return to the woods by my home. I turned to Silas to share my thoughts but he was looking down at his feet and I realized that for the first time since the bar in Dunn, he and I were alone.


    ¡°How are you doing buddy?¡± I asked and Silas answered without looking up.


    ¡°Good.¡±


    ¡°You sure?¡± I asked with a concerned tone.


    ¡°Ya,¡± He answered without a beat.


    ¡°Are you worried about Mom and Dad?¡±


    ¡°Ya.¡±


    ¡°We¡¯re going to find them and we¡¯re going to get all this sorted out okay?¡±


    Silas was about to say ¡®ya¡¯ when I heard a loud grunt near us and the sound of heavy footfalls approaching us. I drew my sword instinctively and Silas nocked an arrow in his short bow as we turned to the sound of the approaching creature. It grew closer and closer as we readied ourselves and in a burst of leaves a large creature emerged from the thicket. I was about to swing but Silas, realizing what it was sooner than me; stepped in front. With an outstretched hand he approached it and with the passing adrenaline of the moment my eyes adjusted to see the Kenga before us. The Kenga was a large cow like creature with doe-like eyes and a thin coat of brown fur. Its head was more like a dinosaur however and as I watched Silas approach a smile crept upon my face.


    The Kenga was one of his creations; one of the first creatures he brought into the game and as he touched its face with his open palm, I beamed with a sense of pride. My brother was rare to touch anything, especially an animal, yet in this world ¨C eye to eye with a creature of his own making, drawn out in pencil and marker ¨C he did. The creature breathed through thin nostrils and made a gruff sound but Silas didn¡¯t stir and after a long beat I heard movement from the thicket to my left. I turned quickly to see Kappa emerge, her bow drawn at the creature and softly I shook my head no. She nodded in understanding. The two of us watched Silas pet the creature for a good five minutes. When he was done he turned to us with a beaming pride and we all went back to the mouth of the cave, just to meet the others as they left.


    This narrative has been purloined without the author''s approval. Report any appearances on Amazon.


    We decided to stop in a clearing by the river so that we could fill our waterskins and talk to the old man. He had been excitedly dancing back and forth from the minute we exited the cave and now, basked in the sunlight of the early morning. He sat on a rock in the middle of the clearing with each of us around him, soaking in the rays with arms outstretched. Just past Killian who sat beside me was Silas and after a few minutes I turned to them and said.


    ¡°I¡¯m going to ask him what he knows about mom and dad.¡±


    Killian had hopped down off his rock, spilling water from his skin down his beard and excitedly said, ¡°I¡¯ll do it laddie, let me pull me weight,¡± He marched over to the old man and said, ¡°Now ye listen here, you¡¯ll be talking or I¡¯ll let me axe do the questioning, understood!?¡± As Killian¡¯s fierce voice echoed in the clearing causing a score of birds to fly out from the tree line. After a moment he turned back to Silas and I slowly and said, ¡°Now, what is a mom and dad?¡±


    I rolled my eyes and gestured with a thumb for Killian to sit back down and with a pout he did. I stood and casually began to pace, ¡°Okay old man, what do you know of the two people? A little older, they look like me? They were probably captured as well?¡± I asked trying to lead the questions and allow him to finish my thoughts but he didn¡¯t talk. Instead he just sat with his arms open bathing in the sun. Jessica who had just returned from the river to hear my question shrugged at me and sat down on an overturned tree as I tried again, ¡°Old man, who was in the cage with you?¡±


    Killian hopped down from his rock again like a feral animal and picked up his axe this time, walking towards the old man he said, ¡°Let me at him, I¡¯ll get him ta talk,¡± Killian wore a menacing gaze and didn¡¯t break stride until just before the old man but he simply sat unmoving; basking in the light, as if the dwarf wasn¡¯t there. Kappa who was last to return from the river sat down next to me and went to speak but before she could Silas hopped out of the tree he had sat in and began walking towards him.


    As he did the old man turned down from the sun and looked at the Goblin, ¡°What is your name?¡± Silas said.


    Without missing a beat the man said, ¡°Buckles.¡±


    ¡°Hi Buckles, do you know where my mom and dad are?¡± Silas asked flatly in a way that only he could and after a moment Buckles scanned over the rest of us. We sat in a half circle around the man and my brother. As his eyes met mine I nodded with a pained expression and after a beat Buckles turned back to Silas.


    ¡°They were in the cages, with me for a while. Nice people. Pretty mother,¡± he said and I raised an eyebrow, ¡°but they were taken by the man in purple.¡±


    I turned towards the others and Killian who shrugged in doubt. I was also unsure of what the man in purple was meant to mean but Silas, being as smart as he was, asked Buckles, ¡°Did he have a sigil on him?¡±


    Buckles nodded and Silas cleared space on the ground for the old man to draw it as we stood and approached. With each stroke from his boney finger my stomach dropped and by the time he was done I knew who had taken my parents, ¡°Millicent.¡± I said, the name caught in my throat like a cough and I turned around. Kappa who looked equally disheartened said,


    ¡°How on earth would he have even gotten them?¡± but as soon as she asked I knew the answer was already resurfacing in my mind; the carriage. The one we had hidden from that passed us, it held the same symbol and I knew that it belonged to him. For a moment I was cast with self-doubt, and nervously I looked around at the others, ¡°He took them in his carriage, the one we hid from.¡±


    ¡°How do you know?¡± Jessica said more concerned than doubting.


    ¡°I saw the symbol and recognized it immediately, I thought it was better not to share.¡± I said with remorse, Kappa looked disappointed at the dishonesty and Jessica noticed.


    ¡°It¡¯s your first mistake a long line of right decisions; don¡¯t beat yourself up over it.¡± Jessica said and Kappa¡¯s eyes tightened, studying her face. Then they shot towards me and I tried my best to avert my eyes, ¡°Where would he take them?¡± She asked as Kappa continued to study my face, ¡°Kappa? Lester?¡± she asked again after a beat without an answer and Kap turned her attention back to the task at hand.


    ¡°His castle probably.¡± She said as my head ran hot with blood. The thought of the castle and it¡¯s labyrinthine like under halls made me sweat, ¡°but we¡¯re far too low level to try that yet,¡± she added.


    We each stood quietly considering our options for a moment before Jessica said, ¡°Okay, well, let¡¯s put a pin in that. Sarah is still out there too,¡± Kappa nodded and in an instant began drawing the map of Dunn in the sand after a few seconds, Killian made a clicking sound with his mouth and we all looked towards him. With an outstretched hand he held a parchment and quill towards Kappa.


    ¡°Much easier than dirt, lassie,¡± he said with a wink and another double click of his tongue. Through gritted teeth Kappa snatched them both and Killian remarked about loving fire in a woman.


    She drew out the map expertly just as I had added it to the game and when completed, she asked for a second sheet to which Killian agreed. As she drew I nervously looked at Jessica who smiled wide back at me, I motioned for her to join me off at the side and the two of us stepped away, ¡°What¡¯s wrong?¡± she asked,


    ¡°I need to tell you something, something I have been meaning to tell since yesterday,¡± I said. I was more nervous for this than for any Orc we had encountered thus far. I could tell she was equally nervous but underneath there was an excitement that scared me and because of this I started in a really dumb way. In my pea-sized brain I thought that if I let her know that I cared about her first, before letting her know how I had changed her without her consent, that she would be happier. I was wrong.


    ¡°I really like you,¡± I said trying to barrel through but as I went to speak Jessica stepped forward and kissed me.


    Sigh, who the hell am I kidding; she didn¡¯t kiss me, I made her kiss me. Lester thy name is scumbag. Real talk people; you know in those movies where the person says, oh no I had no option they kissed me! Ya, that doesn¡¯t really happen in real life, not when one of those two people is someone like me, in REAL life scumbags like yours truly has every opportunity to step away, to throw up a hand and say, NOPE or to just put a stop to the whole scene. But no, not me and not when you had the willpower of a squid. See, deep down I wanted her to kiss me, I really, really did. It¡¯s why I was in this mess; because I had to step into something I shouldn¡¯t have and altered someone without their consent. If I had anything other than a pea brain than you bet your ass I would¡¯ve stopped it but I didn¡¯t and so we kissed.


    I¡¯d be lying if I didn¡¯t forget my utter guilt and just enjoy it. It was life affirming and dreamy and as quickly as it had felt good it felt bad, very, very bad. I stepped back and quickly looked in the direction of the others, none of whom saw and then back at Jessica who was grinning.


    ¡°I, wow, I¡± was all I managed to stammer out before Kappa had finished the map and called us back over. We came back to the others and with fresh sweat on my brow leaned over the map.


    Kappa had drawn my street and the surrounding streets with surprising detail on the second sheet of paper. With an impressed wow, she asked Jessica to indicate where her friend may have been.


    ¡°Well,¡± Jessica thought for a moment, ¡°It¡¯s likely that she was home since it was the weekend and she wasn¡¯t working, so¡­ there.¡± She said pointing at the top left of the map. Kappa pulled out the first map she had drawn of Dunn and laid it on top to reveal the location, or at least the general area, of where Sarah would be.


    ¡°Redmarsh,¡± Silas said, the first to recognize the location and we each breathed a sigh of relief. Jessica saw the smile upon our faces and joined suit asking,


    ¡°What is Redmarsh and why are we happy about that?¡±


    ¡°Redmarsh is a main city and it¡¯s under the guard of the king which means¡­¡± Kappa said before looking to me to finish her thoughts,


    ¡°¡­which means Sarah is most likely safe. Additionally it¡¯s the best place to be if we want to level up and on the way to the castle and end game.¡± Kappa smiled wide at me and I back at her.


    ¡°It¡¯s also only about a day away so we should get there by nightfall¡± as she spoke a crack of thunder sounded out over the mountains behind us and Silas looked up. I felt fingers wrap around my hand and as I looked down I saw that Jessica was holding me. I smiled at her but could feel Kappa¡¯s eyes on me and as I looked back to her the pit of my stomach sank. She knew and as the disappointment washed across Kappa¡¯s face Jessica stepped forward to interject.


    ¡°Let¡¯s not be clich¨¦ here, this stuff happens, please don¡¯t hate me¡­¡± Jessica began to say to Kappa, however Kappa wasn¡¯t looking at her, and she stared daggers directly at me. Jessica who saw she wasn¡¯t meeting Kappa¡¯s eye turned to me and could see the colour draining from my face. After a beat Kappa said, ¡°Tell her now or I will.¡±


    Jessica looked at me in confusion and as Killian and Silas watched on I began to tell her how I had altered her code to make her like me. With each word I felt more and more disgusting, more and more vile. I was revealing myself to be a villain. Somehow in my mind I had convinced myself that I could make things better, that when it came out I could make things right again as if Jessica¡¯s stoic face was one that held forgiveness. But at the end of my story, it was not.


    ¡°Lester,¡± she said at first with a sense of hesitancy. My heart leapt hoping the next words were something along the lines of we all make mistakes or thank you for telling me but that was Jessica and that wasn¡¯t what I respected about her so much. To want any other result than the one that she gave would¡¯ve been wanting a different person, ¡°you are a monster.¡±


    Her face was almost one of disbelief and as she studied my face I could almost see her heart breaking. Kappa was also watching my face and as the sky darkened above me another crack of thunder echoed out across the sky.


    ¡°Jessica I¡¯m sorry.¡± I stammered and as the words left my mouth her flat almost expressionless face of quiet disbelief melted into anger,


    ¡°Don¡¯t you dare apologize to me now,¡± She said through gritted teeth and she took a half step towards me, sending me back stumbling a bit, ¡°You had an entire day to tell me and beyond that,¡± she said shaking her head hard enough to make her voice warble as she spoke, ¡°You have NO RIGHT to change me in the first place.¡±


    She walked away from me pacing like an animal back and forth as if ready for an attack. Nervously I waited and as I did said, ¡°I know, and¡­¡±


    ¡°If you say you¡¯re sorry again I will knock your teeth out.¡± She said, her nostrils flaring as she did. She turned to Kappa, ¡°and you knew.¡±


    Kappa kept her composure and nodded, for a moment she hesitated and then said,  ¡°Yes, but he told me that he told you in the bar the minute we met you here.¡± She averted her gaze from me equally hurting her best friend but knowing he deserved it. Jessica¡¯s eyes were wet with tears but the fire in her voice was powerful.


    ¡°You, you are no better than Jeremy or Zach or any of the million disgusting boys who think they can change the way I act,¡± she said clenching her fists as she spoke, ¡°w-who think that they can decide what I want or speak for me.¡±


    Kappa¡¯s eyes were down and for a moment they flicked towards me, I could see a moment with in her of indecision where she wanted to say something and I shook my head no. She was right. Every part of me knew she was right. I fought hard to beat back the soreness in my throat, the feeling of tears welling in my eyes but in the end, I could feel the hot streaks of water down my cheeks as I stood there, watching the woman I loved curse me.


    ¡°I will never,¡± she stopped pacing and stood before me, ¡°and I really want you to look at me when I say this Lester, Raydor whatever your name is, look at me,¡± she said it so fiercely that the crack of thunder that sounded for the third time seemed minor in comparison. I looked at her and when I did she said, ¡°I will never love you.¡±


    She stepped back and took a breath as the dark sky, as if on cue, finally stopped holding back the rain. Large wet drops fell with hollow plops on my armor and the tops of my boots as everyone stood around anxiously.


    ¡°I¡¯m going to find Sarah, Lester I¡¯d prefer if you didn¡¯t come but ultimately we¡¯re alone out here and there aren¡¯t that many¡­¡±


    ¡°I won¡¯t come¡± I said back, wiping the rain that fell from my eyes. Jessica was only slightly surprised and after a beat nodded.


    ¡°Where are you going to go?¡± Kappa said with a bit of concern,


    ¡°I¡¯ll¡­¡± I started and looked around at the woods as if a sign was waiting, ¡°I¡¯ll figure out a way.¡± I cleared my throat and wiped my nose again and said, ¡°We only need a few levels before we can take on the Castle and that should be together.¡± I shuttered as the cold rain ran down my back, ¡°I¡¯ll level up and meet you in Redmarsh in three days?¡±


    I squinted through the drops of rain at Kappa who nodded and Jessica turned away. After a few seconds and another sound of thunder, without turning Jessica said, ¡°Let¡¯s call today Monday. We¡¯ll meet on Thursday morning at¡­¡± she said looking to Kappa.


    Before she could answer Silas spoke up over the drops of rain, ¡°The Red Lantern Inn¡± he said and began walking towards Jessica and Kappa, who for the first time since the argument started looked concerned.


    Jessica turned to Silas and said, ¡°Don¡¯t you want to stay with your brother?¡± Silas looked towards me and shook his head no. Any tears that I had tried to keep at bay fell freely at that and through a sob I nodded in understanding as if to say I get it. Kappa was clearly upset by this but Jessica nodded curtly towards me and said, ¡°He¡¯ll be safe.¡± As if to reassure my feeling and all I could do was to give a thumbs up in the now pouring rain. Buckles joined Silas at his side and as I turned to Killian he picked up his large axe and stood beside me.


    ¡°I¡¯ll stick with ya laddie,¡± he said and despite him being the last person I wanted to be stuck with the gesture meant so much that I patted him on the back. We stood on either side of the clearing through the thick falling rain as we parted ways; Jessica left first followed by Silas and Buckles and Kappa last. As she turned away from me I could see the hesitancy in her face but the pain behind her eyes and with a look that said, I¡¯m sorry but you brought this upon yourself she turned and left. Killian and I stood alone in the clearing.

 Chapter 22

    I can say that I¡¯ve grown from this whole experience and if I had to share my immediate thoughts, one of the strongest lessons I¡¯ve learned from this experience is¡­


    SIDE QUESTS SUCK.


    For real though, holy hell; WHY did I make so many fetch quests? Killian and I will be travelling through a one horse town (literally) and come across some chicken farmer who needs some purple mountain flower. Low and behold, it¡¯s guarded by a skeleton! So we do our thing (or sometimes avoid the combat altogether) and return the flower for a pittance of gold. Man this is lazy writing and I¡¯m the culprit.


    I guess you¡¯re wondering what happened after the clearing incident, sure, I hear ya okay, well Killian and I hugged; he was uncomfortable, I was not. Then we hiked south along the river a little bit until we came across town and grabbed my horse Asta. We didn¡¯t have enough gold for Killian¡¯s horse so we¡¯ve been doing a bit of team riding as I like to call it. He loves it, it makes me uncomfortable. We travelled the river south and when the rain got really bad we camped in an abandoned fishing hut that had some rats in it. There was also a cellar and I got a flame sword, so that¡¯s cool. I think I¡¯m just about to level up and Killian has surprisingly been a good companion. He¡¯s definitely mellowed out a whole lot.


    Anyways we spent the night in the fishing hut - yes there was only one bed; I was uncomfortable, he was not. In the morning kept heading south and ran across a few small towns. This is when my frustration on my own lazy writing really took hold. Our plan was to swing back around and head north but I wanted to get to the starting town of Verham to the south of us so we could crack out a few early game missions. They tended to reward the highest and frankly, have some great starting loot. Tuesday afternoon, so far as Jessica¡¯s calendar predicted, meant that we had a day before having to head north to Redmarsh and as we came upon the outskirts of town we were attacked by a few skeletons.


    Killian is a remarkably good fighter and as I managed a lucky strike killing the last one, I levelled up.


    ¡°Hey!¡± I said to Killian, ¡°What should I level up?¡± I asked eagerly. Killian looked at me the same way he did when we woke up in the same bed face to face; excited and confused.


    ¡°I dunnit know laddie but these bones need to be rifled through!¡± He turned excitedly and began kicking through the piles before him.


    I knew what Jessica had been talking about all at once; the feeling of daydreaming and looking at an image of yourself. I had only a few points that I could allocate but as I began reading my eyes hovered over the words ¡°re-stat.¡± I had forgotten that I had allowed characters to re-stat once per save file and for a moment I considered my choices. Raydor was great but in this world, in the reality that is now Dunn he wasn¡¯t what I wanted to play. I¡¯d much rather have a character that was able to talk with people, be more charismatic and I¡¯d much rather had been able to pick that lock.


    Without over-thinking I selected re-stat and all at once my perspective changed. I was looking at the ground from about 5 inches below where I had been and I realized that my appearance reset too. Excitedly I ran to the nearby pond and looked at my reflection; looking back at me was Lester. My gangly features; my pimpled forehead, my dark skin, my thick glasses and a smile wider than I had ever seen plastered on my face. I felt whole again and for the first time since leaving the clearing I felt happy. Mind you that happiness only last a second before a swift kick to my back sent me flying into the muddy river.


    ¡°Lester! Come quick, there be a fight!¡± Killian said with axe drawn standing on the bank of the pond, he looked at me with anger ready to kill me and as I sat up sputtering.


    ¡°Killian you idiot it is me!¡± He immediately recognized my voice and began walking into the water trying to help me up. Mud and water mixed as we moved around in the water and I stood up with Killian hugging my legs.


    A short while later, as I dried myself by an afternoon fire that Killian cooked large hunks of mushroom over; I looked over my stat options. There were the usual intellect driven stats; Intelligence, Wisdom, Knowledge however since arriving here they hadn¡¯t been much use. Yes, knowing information about the world and surrounding area would be useful but I already had Meta knowledge, so the stats weren¡¯t all that useful to me. Additionally, a lot of these were modifiers for magic users and I didn¡¯t plan on using magic. Magic was an amazing option that required a lot of skill but the more I had thought about it, the less it appealed to me. You needed to find physical books in the game to learn spells and most of them were in late-game.


    I also knew that it drained from a pool of mana that you had as a character and I was nervous about how that would work in this new real life version of Dunn. Stamina seemed to work the same; swinging an axe tired you out but how would a stat that didn¡¯t exist in real life work here? In fact, the more I thought about it, it began to dawn on me how truly terrifying magic would be to use and to see. The ability to resurrect undead, cast lightning from your finger tips and create a shield made entirely of flame were all high level abilities that mages held and there was no doubt in my mind that Millicent had all these abilities and more but that was a problem for later. I shook my head and scrolled down to the more combat oriented stats.If you encounter this tale on Amazon, note that it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it.


    Here there were things like Dexterity, Strength and Constitution; how fast you were, how strong you were and how much you could take. Though being a strong character hadn¡¯t been a bad way to go about it I was definitely feeling less inclined to wield a shield and sword again. Not only was being face to face with something absolutely terrifying, it was difficult; most of what we had encountered so far was well beyond my fighting ability. These creatures had programmed fighting skills and while my lock pick and other relevant skills carried over, I never wrote in the ability to have ¡°fighting moves¡± so all of my swings were completely random or mimicking fighting I¡¯ve seen in movies and games. Needless to say it was not great. I stopped for a second and turned to Killian who was humming to himself and testing the cook on the mushrooms, ¡°What¡¯s actually going to be useful to us here; being strong or being sneaky?¡±


    To my surprise Killian sat down with a thump and actually pondered what I had said. Just like Kappa he had come more alive since we met; picking up small mannerisms of mine being an altogether more human creature. That being said, he was still Killian and after a beat he shouted, ¡°Dwarves are both laddie so it¡¯s tough to choose only one!¡± he winked at me with a grin and I turned back to my stat screen. I thought for a moment on what I wanted to do and how I would make my way moving forward. It didn¡¯t take long for me to realize that I really, really didn¡¯t want to kill anyone and the easiest way to make that happen was to have a great Charisma score. After all, I didn¡¯t have to kill anyone if I could just talk them down like Jessica had, so I put a great deal of points there.


    That being said, if combat did happen, I really didn¡¯t want to get hit so staying as far away from the action as possible. It didn¡¯t take long for me to realize that I wanted to aim for a glass cannon. A glass cannon; for the uninitiated, is a high damage dealer ranged fighter most often a mage but in this case a bow user. Yes, I knew Jessica already had a high Charisma and that Kappa was an excellent archer; but neither of them were with me now and additionally, I couldn¡¯t count on them coming around.


    As I levelled up and completed my new build I felt a renewed sense of excitement. Not only was I much more equipped to handle the challenges of Dunn now; I also looked like myself again, something that I had not realized how desperate I was for. I closed my mind to the stat screen and turned to Killian who seemed to have been telling me a story of some sort,


    ¡°¡­but the wolf was nah match fer me and with a great swiping of my axe¡­¡±


    ¡°Great story Killian, that mushroom about done?¡± I interjected,


    ¡°Eh?¡± he said and turned to me as if surprised I was listening, ¡°oh yes, rrrrrrrroast mushroom for me and the lad, almost up!¡± He barked and I laughed.


    Feeling better than I had in days I smiled at him and asked, ¡°Killian, aren¡¯t you curious as to what we¡¯re all talking about, what we¡¯re planning on doing?¡±


    He plucked a steaming mushroom off the fire with delicate hands and took a few steps to me so that he could drop it on my wooden plate before returning to the fire. He chewed his lower lip a little as he thought and watched the flames lick the second mushroom and after a long pause said, ¡°When I was alone, after me clan had abandoned me,¡± he yelled that second part towards the woods before speaking softly again towards me, ¡°I thought on what I¡¯d do if I was alone.¡± He sighed long and slow, ¡°I dunnit think I would have gone on lad,¡± he said and turned towards me. For a moment I didn¡¯t understand and as I studied his face I realized that what he meant,


    ¡°You wanted to kill yourself?¡± I said in a tone that was alarmed than I had intended,


    ¡°Aye,¡± he said with a nod, ¡°being a part of somethin¡¯, a clan like I had, it¡¯s all I¡¯ve ever known.¡± This part was true, Killian didn¡¯t have much of a backstory and it all started with that clan and as I watched him pluck the mushroom from the fire I felt for him, ¡°Findin¡¯ you all, it was what saved me life.¡± He blew on the mushroom as flecks of spittle landed on it and after a second took a big mouthful. He chewed for a long time and finally, after swallowing it he said, ¡°It¡¯s why I came with ya lad, I know how it feels to be alone and no matter what ye did, no one deserves that.¡±


    I beamed with such absolute respect that I couldn¡¯t help but stand up and hug him. I hadn¡¯t bothered to thank him for that and as I had my arms around him I finally did,  ¡°Thank you Killian, I don¡¯t know what I would¡¯ve done if you hadn¡¯t come with me.¡±


    He allowed me to hug him as he continued to munch on the large mushroom in his hands and after a beat shouted through a mouthful, ¡°You¡¯d be dead!¡±


    I stood up laughing and sat back down where I had been previously to eat my own meal, ¡°All this is to say laddie that I don¡¯t mind much of what ye all are doing, I¡¯m just happy to be with ya.¡± I nodded and decided in that moment it was best to save the bigger picture until later. Who knows, he may never need to know. When we finished eating we broke camp and continued down the river. The day was warm and sunny and it was only a short while until we¡¯d reached the edge of Verham. We approached in good spirits and full bellies, completely unaware of who had been patiently waiting for us in town.

 Chapter 23

    We were on the outskirts of town when the two men stopped us.


    Killian was ready to draw steel but I, without any armor or weapons, was more eager to test out my new charisma abilities on the two who walked towards us. Besides, they weren¡¯t bandits or highwaymen; they wore the sigil of Verham but with the colours altered. We climbed down off of Asta and I turned to Killian saying, ¡°Let me try my hand at this,¡± I said and Killian rolled his eyes as the two men stopped before us,


    ¡°What business do you ¡®ave in Verham?¡± said the short fat one in a thick English accent,


    ¡°We¡¯re here to shop and offer help to any of the local residents who may need it.¡± I said simply and watched as the two turned towards each other.


    ¡°The town is currently closed.¡± said the taller one. His voice was nasally and he had spurts of orange sticking out from either side of his helm.


    ¡°Why?¡± I asked sincerely surprised.


    ¡°Because, the mayor said so.¡±


    I turned to Killian with a perplexed look and Killian grinned nodding to his axe as if to say can we fight them yet? I shook my head no and turned back to them and said,


    ¡°I wasn¡¯t aware that Verham had a mayor,¡± the shorter one shot back,


    ¡°It¡¯s a new position and the mayor has decreed the town is closed, thank you. Good day.¡±


    They began to turn away and I took a half step forward.


    ¡°Wait, we¡¯d like to speak with your Mayor.¡± I said half expecting it to fail and as they turned back to us their faces were doubtful.


    ¡°Okay.¡± They said despite their faces. Surprised I looked to Killian.


    ¡°Oh, okay. Great, well. Lead us there?¡± I said with an upturned sound at the end which sounded more like a question than a statement. They turned to Killian and said.


    ¡°We¡¯ll need to take your weapons,¡± Killian turned to me with a childlike sense of fear as if a parent asking for their child¡¯s favourite toy.


    ¡°No I think it¡¯s okay if he keeps his weapon,¡± I said and after a moment they both said,


    ¡°Yep, okay that¡¯s fine.¡±


    I smirked and in a moment of extreme power I said, ¡°Actually, it could be dangerous on the short walk towards Verham, do you mind if I borrow your stuff?¡± I said to the tall thin one who was about my height and weight. He looked nervously towards his partner who just shrugged and after a moment said,


    ¡°Yes, I think that would be for the best.¡±


    After a quick change and a few minutes spent in the bushes Killian and I were escorted by the two guards towards Verham; one wearing his armor and weapons, the others wearing my starting character¡¯s plain clothes. I turned to Killian with a smile, presenting my bow, quiver and clothes which, after having ditched the guard colours, was a presentable set of light leather armor. He smirked and said, ¡°Well done laddie, especially if we¡¯re walking into a fight.¡± He smiled, excited for the prospect but I shook my head.


    ¡°When we get to the Mayor, I¡¯ll just convince him to do whatever we want. Maybe we can be in charge of the town,¡± I said with high eyebrows and a smile that said not a bad idea, eh?


    Killian scoffed and said, ¡°I¡¯d prefer the fight.¡±


    We entered into the small town of Verham through the east gate to see that it was functioning mostly like normal. The two taverns in town seemed quiet as we passed and I tied Asta out front of the one owned by Gundar as we moved towards the market square. Here there were vendors of all shapes and sizes, eager to push their goods on us. I equally was eager to buy some new gear and start some quests but the towns guard led us through to the other side where a large building lay. It was that of the General Store, owned by Yaro but the painted sign out front said Mayor, written in neat scrawl. I arched an eyebrow at Killian as the guards stopped on either side of the doors and gestured for us to enter.


    We entered Yaro¡¯s General Store to see the tables removed and the front counter all but gone. It was a two story building and on this floor, by the crackling hearth of the fireplace was a large ornate couch clearly taken from outside Verham. The guards who followed us in gestured for us to take a seat as I heard voices upstairs. I turned my head as if to listen better but could only make out the muffled voice of a woman. After a few moments a powerful blast shook the floor above us and rattled the iron that sat next to the fireplace as bits of frost fell from beneath the floor boards above. With wide eyes I turned to Killian.You might be reading a pirated copy. Look for the official release to support the author.


    ¡°It¡¯s a mage,¡± I said through a cautious grimace. Killian shrugged and I leaned in to whisper, ¡°they have high wisdom, tougher to charm and very, very¡­¡± I was about to say powerful when another thunderous crack sounded out above us and more snow fell through the floor boards above. Suddenly a number of footfalls sounded as the floor above creaked with movement.


    Five guards descended the stairs, each looking more nervous than the last, each covered in fine bits of snow and as they left through the front door silently, the fat guards ascended the stairs. I turned my head again to listen and I could make out the two distinct tones of their voices. The woman sounded calm as the guard spoke a few words and then I heard her shout,


    ¡°Why did you bring them here?!¡±


    There were more muffled words and I turned to Killian, ¡°This was a bad idea, we need to leave.¡± I stood and half way towards the guard who stayed with us I was stopped by the voice of the first guard, who was leaning down from the second floor,


    ¡°She¡¯ll see you now,¡±


    I looked towards the door and back to the stairs as Killian hopped up and began to ascend. I shook my head no quickly but he was already half up, excitedly hopping up each step, unaware of the danger that waited above. I swallowed hard and followed him up.


    The second story was filled with books. The walls were covered in a sea of texts, manual and scrolls all of which were filled with spells and incantations that would make any wizard a masterfully powerful foe. My hands grew clammy as I reached the top to see a witch-like woman sitting behind a large black ornate desk with her head in her hands. She had golden hair and was draped in aqua colours and despite her pointed features was oddly familiar. I searched my mind for when I had created her but before I could think she spoke, ¡°I don¡¯t know how you talked your way into town or why you think talking to me would help, but you caught me on a bad¡­¡± was all she managed to say before she lifted her head and saw me. Immediately he face dropped into a look of surprise and she nearly shouted, ¡°LESTER?!¡±


    In a flash she ran out from behind the desk and picked me up. She was considerably tall and as she spun me around she laughed maniacally. Killian looked at us with a confused expression and after a beat she put me back down and stood back studying my face, ¡°God it¡¯s good to see you!¡± She said earnestly as I tried to understand. She saw my confusion and shook her head,


    ¡°Doesn¡¯t look familiar?¡± she said as she turned her head and presented her look towards me. I shrugged and after a minute she let out an exasperated sigh, ¡°It¡¯s me; Drew! Mr. Derrigar!¡±


    My eyes grew wide and for the first time I was in on the excitement. I hugged her back and began laughing as well. Somehow in all of this I had completely forgotten that we had created a character for Mr. Derrigar; a witchy looking sorcerer woman he named Drewhilda. As it started to come back to me, how I had saved his state on my USB and how he must¡¯ve been brought along into Dunn with us, I grew more and more excited, ¡°I am speechless,¡± I said shaking my head in disbelief as Killian stood next to me confused. For the first time I looked around the room with innocent eyes and saw the amazing work she had done, ¡°You studied so much; you must know most of the spells by now!¡± I said looking through the tomes. Drewhilda turned to the guards dismissing them and joined me at the bookshelf.


    ¡°Yes, I admit after first arriving here I didn¡¯t know what to do or what to make of it all. It took longer than I care to admit to understand what the hell was happening.¡± I nodded completely understanding where he was coming from, ¡°but once a carriage driver mentioned the name Dunn, I started to piece together at the very least where I was.¡± Despite being Drewhilda, Drew insisted I call him Drew for now and refer to him as a male and so I happily did, I had enough experience with feeling out of sorts in my skin myself. As he and I continued to look through the books he recanted to me how he had arrived here and what he had been up to.


    Drew had landed in Dunn the same time that we all did but had a surprisingly easier time. After waking from a nap in the forest near the main road; he managed to wave down a carriage and ask for directions. His memory spiked when the driver mentioned the name Dunn and from there it was only luck that Drew recalled the town of Verham. He arrived in town and began working towards securing his future, ¡°When I levelled up I dumped most of my points into Wisdom and was able to learn all of these,¡± he gestured to the books on the walls and as we sat at his table he sighed in comfort, ¡°needless to say there are a number of boosts to charisma within these pages and I was able to set myself up as mayor. That way I could use the guards to go scout and find more tomes and such.¡± He said as he popped a grape into his mouth.


    ¡°But why lock down the town?¡± I asked as I too ate a grape. Killian began loading his plate with fruit from the bowl in the center of the table and topped it with a large wedge of cheese.


    ¡°Well I started to realize the AI didn¡¯t function like a normal game, that for whatever reason they all seemed to be learning?¡± He said as if doubting his own words but noticed me nodding along and was assured, ¡°Yes, so I didn¡¯t want any bandits or miscreants entering town looking to loot and since I figured I was the only real person in the game¡­¡±


    ¡°It wasn¡¯t worth the risk?¡± I finished.


    ¡°Exactly, besides what was there to do for them in town anyway? The guards I mean, they¡¯re all lawful good here there¡¯s not much commotion.¡± He breathed a sigh of relief clearly happy to get to share these thoughts with another real person and then after a beat said, ¡°Now, I¡¯m dying to know, how the hell did all of this happen?!¡±


    I told him everything; the code, Kappa, the trees back home and the stuff about Jessica this time and how she split the party because of it. Drew listened intently and cautiously nodding along as I revealed more and more. By this time Killian had left the table and was napping in a cot on the far wall of the room and over the crackling fire Drew took it all in. At the end he took a short breath and said, ¡°Well that¡¯s a theory,¡± I furrowed my brow,


    ¡°What is?¡±


    ¡°Sorry,¡± he said, his mind clearly working faster than his mouth, ¡°I mean finishing the game. It¡¯s one theory to think that finishing it would bring back the real world.¡± I shrugged in agreement,


    ¡°Yes but I don¡¯t know what else to do,¡± I said disheartened and Drew looked around as if being watched and leaned forward.


    ¡°There is something I need to show you,¡± he whispered and we left the room with Killian napping in the corner.

 Chapter 24

    Drew led me up a ladder that reached to a high ceiling third story. In my game this was only empty space nothing within was designed or utilized but here in Dunn it was a perfectly usable room, large enough for a bedroom, however Drew had used it for a workshop of sorts. He walked over to a small table and lifted a book and handed it to me,


    ¡°I had collected all books throughout town and the surrounding areas in attempt to learn every spell I could. I was having great success and they all seemed pretty straight forward¡­ until I found that,¡±


    I turned the book in my hands. It was without text on its cover but looked no different than any other book in the game. I studied it but it was clear I was missing something. Drew shot an upward nod and said, ¡°Open it.¡±


    I opened it to see nothing. It was completely blank and I flicked through its pages with a raised eyebrow. I was about to ask Drew what I was meant to understand when the book fell upon on the page which Drew had wanted to share. I flicked my gaze up to Drew who was smiling and back down to the page. There, on the open page before me, was a line of code.


    See, all of the books populated in the world were done so by a script that I had written. Most all of them followed the same general code that drew information from a folder I had created and imported the text into the books. They were all qualified by the names and so long as the names on the folder and the names on the books matched, the information was created, however I had made a mistake. On this book I had misspelled the title and the information that was meant to be in this book wasn¡¯t there, only the code that was meant to connect it to the source. The page, amongst the other typical lines of code, read;


    spellbook_clairvoyance


    Drew looked at me and while I was surprised and excited, I didn¡¯t comprehend the full value of it until he took the book back from me and said, ¡°I learned it.¡±


    ¡°You learned it?¡± I said trying to understand what he meant,This tale has been unlawfully lifted without the author''s consent. Report any appearances on Amazon.


    ¡°The ability to learn the book, to absorb its knowledge, still exists in the book just not the spell content and so I learned it.¡± He said nodding his head and as he closed the book he turned to the blank wall and said, ¡°Watch.¡±


    He raised his hands and in an instant a crackle of black lightning broke the wooden wall of the attic before us. He pulled the crack apart from a few feet away and within was a concrete wall. It took a full five seconds for me to realize what I was looking at.


    ¡°That¡¯s earth. That¡¯s back in the real world!¡± I stammered. Drew looked to me, beads of sweat on his forehead and nodded yes. My heart started to race and I sputtered, ¡°That means we can go home, that means it¡¯s possible to go back!¡± I began pacing and as I did Drew closed the opening and sat down to catch his breath. I looked towards him and he smiled back but had a pained look in his eyes, ¡°¡­but?¡± I said expectedly. He shook his head and said,


    ¡°I can¡¯t go through myself, I already tried. I can¡¯t open the portal and walk through at the same time, it¡¯ll close on me and¡­¡±


    I nodded in understanding and looked back at the wood wall.


    ¡°Okay, let¡¯s put a pin in that for now,¡± Drew nodded as if to say Yes please, ¡°So you essentially learned coding like a spell?¡±


    ¡°Kind of. So far as I can tell I can change the code a little bit but in the way you¡¯ve made magic work here. I¡¯m consciously feeling for the older code and exposing it.¡± I could tell just by the look on his face the difficulty he had in doing that, ¡°If I didn¡¯t know anything about coding or hadn¡¯t helped you work on this project, I never would have understood how to do this.¡±


    ¡°Thank you Drew,¡± I said earnestly as my mind raced at the possibility of going home. Beating the game was such a long shot that I couldn¡¯t have even imagined how that could work but it was hope in a place where we needed it. This was an actual solution and despite it not working perfectly, it was a solution. I looked back at the wall and bit my lip hard.


    ¡°You should go through.¡± Drew said thinking the same thing I had.


    ¡°What if I can¡¯t come back?¡± I asked, ¡°Or what if life moves at double the speed and you end up waiting a hundred years while gone for like a minute?¡± Drew thought for a moment,


    ¡°Maybe but we need to check. We need to know what¡¯s happened.¡±


    It had been on both of our minds and despite me having pushed it to the back of mine since arriving, the reality was that the world we left behind had a lot more people than the handful of us that made it and I needed to know what happened to them. I nodded and he opened the code again.


    I stood on the edge of the darkness and after a breath, I stepped through.

 Chapter 25

    <u>HOME</u>


    <hr>


    I remember reading once that if you spend enough time speaking a new language you¡¯ll eventually think in that language.


    Someone who may have spent their entire life speaking French could eventually start hearing that little voice inside their head speaking English if they spent enough time immersed in the culture and language. Even dreams could be affected and despite it having only been a few days since leaving home it felt absolutely bizarre to be standing once again on the vinyl floor of a storage room. The concrete wall before me was tight but on either side of me were racks holding boxes upon boxes of supplies. As I looked around I turned back and leaned through the portal,


    ¡°Shut it and give me an hour, deal?¡± I saw Drew nod and when I pulled back the gateway closed and I was standing in the still and quiet of the back room of what looked to be a super market.


    I moved between the shelves and found a large wall clock which read 4:14pm, just enough time for me to poke around and see what had become of the world we left behind. The air was still and the building was quiet despite the lights being on overhead and as I moved to the large double doors that closed the back off from the storefront I felt nervous. I paused at the door unsure of what to expect and after a moment of preparation pushed through to see people. However they weren¡¯t moving.


    At first I thought I was merely caught a woman mid-read as she looked at the back of a cereal box she held but after a few moments I realized she was frozen; suspended in time. I stepped forward, an eerie sense of dread washing over me as I did, and looked to my right. There was a man standing over a fish counter taking a handful of food from the man who stood behind it. Nervously I approached to see the counter¡¯s ice still frozen, the fish still fresh looking. I turned around and head to the front of the store passing a young child in a cart, still and lifeless yet clearly real. The whole scene looked like a hyper realistic wax museum which left me unsettled for a number of reasons and when I approached the front window, I saw that the street was the same.


    Cars seemingly parked had passengers in them, driving down the main strip of town. I realized now I was in Casey¡¯s, a supermarket chain and the one I visited regularly. I walked past the window and through the open door to the street and looked around at the city, filled with unmoving people. The whole thing was like a horror movie; people faces twisted in odd expressions as if they were mid conversation when everything stopped. There was no breeze, the sun felt warm but not hot and as I began to dread having asked Drew for an entire hour, my eyes danced over the sign out front of Claudia¡¯s Taphouse. My feet realized where I was heading before my mind did and as I crossed the street (instinctively looking back and forth as I did) it dawned on me and I cut to the left towards the alley where I first found the code.


    The alley way was like something out of a dream. It felt long ago and distant and in a way it was; I had changed so much in such a short amount of time since finding the code. Everyone¡¯s life had changed. I paused for a moment as I considered that. Everyone¡¯s life had changed. Those who came with me were different and forever would be and everyone left behind¡­ well they¡¯re frozen. That was when I realized that even if we came back, nothing would be the same. I headed down the alley; the police tape now removed and went for the door that led inside. Luckily the window was boarded up high above me and as I entered and started climbing the stairs it didn¡¯t take long to guess the floor in question.


    I walked down the dimly light hallway towards the end unit and fumbled for the knob. It was locked. I reeled back and was about to unsuccessfully throw my weight into it when I realized I was still wearing my armor. I slapped my forehead and reached into my pocket for a lock pick. Within seconds the door clicked and swung open revealing the complete darkness of the interior. With a shrug I pulled a torch out of my rucksack and lit it, entering the apartment now filled with flickering light.


    The apartment clearly belonged to a spectacular coder computer scientist. Just past the short entry way the floor turned into an antistatic matt and the walls became white vinyl. The entire place looked like a lab of sorts with a workbench, soldering iron and a number of tools I didn¡¯t even recognize. There were three different 3D printers in a line and I studied them with varying degrees of understanding. The back wall of this room had large pieces of plywood to cover the broken window but sitting before that was a large vacant desk that once held the computer I found in the alleyway. I walked towards it and ran my fingers along the white smooth surface of the desk with pursed lips. I leaned back and looked to the wall to see a degree made out to Percival Graves.


    The narrative has been taken without permission. Report any sightings.


    I walked over to it and looked over the other photographs on the wall to see the smiling face of a man shaking another man¡¯s hand. They were young and it looked to maybe the 70¡¯s based on the wall d¨¦cor and their clothing. I don¡¯t know why but I ended up taking down the picture and removing it from its frame. Before I tucked it away I turned it around to see something handwritten on the back, it read;


    A young partnership between Wally & Me, 1973


    I folded the photo and put it in my bag before looking through some drawers and rifled through his things. I didn¡¯t know what I expected to find as the police had already combed through everything but I felt it necessary to check. Surprising to no one there wasn¡¯t anything to be found. I turned to leave but stopped at the door, I checked the clock and though I could barely make out the second hand through the torch light; I could see it was still at least 4 and so I turned back around to scratch an itch that had nagged me. I walked back over to the desk and, kneeling, began softly prying at the white flooring around the base of the desk.


    I know it seems random but something about it seemed relevant to me. Looking back I realize now that I had taken an ability in Dunn that allowed me to be more aware of my surroundings. Eventually a small sound clicked and the floor sprung open, no bigger than a bread box however the interior looked already searched. There was some money and a number of floppy disks and a sticky note which read backup but there was no USB or CD associated with it. I thumbed through the floppy disks and saw one which read A Murder Mystery and intrigued I took the stack of five with me. As I went to leave the apartment, sure this time that I had found everything I looked again at the clock and furrowed my brow at it still being 4. Surely I had been here longer and as I took a step towards to read the second hand my stomach dropped; it was still 4:14pm.


    It wasn¡¯t just the people; everything was frozen here, as if the code stopped this world to run Dunn. I exited the apartment building and raced through the alleyway making sure I had all my possessions and when I extend to the street I froze. There was movement to my right. I ducked back to catch my breath and crouched down by the alley way just as I saw something move down a side street. My blood ran stone cold and my heart beat loudly in my ears as my eyes tightened to the direction of the movement. For a moment I tried to convince myself that it was just a trick of the light or my mind fooling me but as soon as I began to believe that may have been the case, I saw it move again.


    It hung low to the ground at first like an animal; it¡¯s black back arched like a lion but as I watched it, it stood revealing itself to be a human. I turned back down the alleyway, terrified of what would and could exist in this world and as I caught my breath I remembered that Drew wouldn¡¯t keep the portal open forever. With a nod to myself I crept out and entered the street. I tried my best to keep eye on the movement without focusing on the nature of what it was and began to move from car to car.


    I had kept myself hidden for almost the entire way but on the last sprint to the far side of the street I tripped. From the corner of my eye I saw the creature stand up and it began to run. The colour left my face as I could see it running; not like a creature on all fours but like a human and in a sprint. As it barreled towards me it screamed a hideous howl that echoed throughout the ghost-like street. My heart fired like a jackhammer as I stumbled to my feet and ran for the supermarket. I could see the thing from the corner of my eye and as I tore through the open doors of the grocery store I heard the answer of others like it howl back.


    I ran for my life as heard the clacking of its claws on the tiled floor behind me. My lungs burned and I could taste the iron on my tongue as I ran through the double doors that led to the back down the tight alley-like shelves of the back room. I turned the corner praying that Drew had left the portal open and thanked every God in the book when I heard the familiar hum of it. I grabbed the corner of a shelf as turned the corner of the shelf stack tight, the breathing of the creature directly behind me, and with every ounce of strength I leaped for the portal and fell.

 Chapter 26

    DUNN (again)


    <hr>


    <u>Chapter 26


    </u>


    I woke up in a thicket of bushes, my back sore and my head throbbing. The creatures were gone and the early evening of Dunn was upon me. A passerby scoffed at me under their breath and as I sat up I saw that I was in Verham still and just outside the Mayor¡¯s house. I breathed a sigh of relief and looked up towards the side of the building to see the black opening in the side Drew¡¯s attic wall high above me. Nothing was coming out after me and for when I realized that, I dropped back down and closed my eyes.


    A few minutes later after officially getting over what had transpired I stood and entered Drew¡¯s house again. I came upstairs, past the still sleeping Killian and climbed the ladder to the attic to surprise Drew from behind. I tapped him on the shoulder and he screamed as his concentration on the portal was diverted causing it to close. In an exhausted and surprised look he slumped back into a chair and asked me how I got back, ¡°I think that portal is accessible from both sides, I entered this way,¡± I said pointing towards the wall in which the portal sat against, ¡°but and exited it that direction. When I came back I was running and entered it from this way too but exited¡­¡±


    ¡°Out the side of the house?¡± Drew said shocked, I nodded and picked a bramble out of my hair. He laughed a little and after a beat said, ¡°Wait, why were you running?¡±


    I had thought this over while lying in the bushes and despite the terrifying nature of the creatures that existed on the other side the fact that they didn¡¯t follow me through felt important. I had yet to fully understand what their intention was but it seemed something brought on through the stopping of the code, something specific to that state of things and on top of all that; it wasn¡¯t anything worth worrying about right now, so I decided not to tell him. What I did share however was everything else I had encountered including the state of the world.


    ¡°So even if we go back¡­¡± Drew started,


    ¡°It¡¯s basically a frozen world.¡± I finished and took a drink from my waterskin. We sat for a moment in silence and contemplated our options. After a long pause Drew said,


    ¡°Alright, correct me if I¡¯m wrong but this is my understanding,¡± he stood and began to pace, ¡°The Code isn¡¯t creating anything new, it¡¯s only recording things that already exist, things that are real or as much as it believes are real. That¡¯s why when you spoke to Jessica she showed up in a line of the code.¡± I nodded along and added,


    ¡°Yes it allowed me to¡­¡± I paused for a second and then powered through, feeling terrible once again about my actions, ¡°change the way that she felt about me, but only after she was added to the code.¡±


    ¡°Right,¡± he said, ¡°but it didn¡¯t create her from nothing is what I¡¯m getting at; she existed beforehand. The same way I¡¯m here because I called you and was added as a line to the code. Just like Marcus and just like the places you visited.¡± He paused and thought before continuing, ¡°That means the real world exists as it is. That¡¯s why you saw it frozen, regardless of what The Code wants that is still the only, real world.¡±


    I nodded and sat down on the large couch he had stashed up here,


    ¡°When you launched Dunn on your computer the code interpreted it as reality and changed everything we see. It used the ¡®rules¡¯¡±, he said with air quotes, ¡°of the real world to make things you created fit pretty darn close but only the people already written in the code were carried over putting everything else in stasis.¡±


    ¡°Right and it deleted my file,¡± I saidIf you stumble upon this narrative on Amazon, it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it.


    ¡°Of Dunn?¡± Drew asked confused, ¡°Yes, well when I launched Kappa it brought her into reality but deleted her from my computer, making this the only version.¡± I said and Drew¡¯s pondered on what that meant. After a moment I added, ¡°So far as I could tell at least.¡±


    ¡°Either way that means that the code is still running. It¡¯s running right now and as you said there was power on back at home. It¡¯s safe to assume then that your computer is still running, adding lines of code like the conversation we¡¯re having right now.¡±


    ¡°Okay but how do we fix it?¡± I asked. Drew bite his lip and said,


    ¡°Why don¡¯t we just go back and delete all the lines up until you first launched Dunn?¡±


    I shook my head no, ¡°Even if that didn¡¯t delete us and every other real person here, it would only keep the pieces of the real world I interacted with; the forest, my house, my lawn and the handful of you.¡± Drew pursed his lips and said,


    ¡°Then I guess turning it off would be a bad idea too, eh?¡±


    I shrugged, ¡°Maybe, who knows? It could fix all this or delete us from existence in an instant.¡± I said flatly. Drew didn¡¯t react and after a beat in a deadpan tone said,


    ¡°Let¡¯s call that plan B then, shall we?¡±


    I smiled and said, ¡°What does that make Plan A?¡± Drew slumped down in the couch next to me and sighed in defeat.


    ¡°Damned if I know. Even if we could sort this mess out it¡¯s not like we have another Dunn.¡± He said and somewhere deep in the back of my brain a spark began to glow.


    Careful not to extinguish it I casually said, ¡°What do you mean another Dunn?¡±


    ¡°Well,¡± Drew said in a way that sounded like he was talking without thinking, ¡°I guess if we had a copy of Dunn that wasn¡¯t in the code we could retroactively run it through the code and remove it.¡±


    ¡°Would that work?¡± I asked as the spark grew to a small flame.


    ¡°Yes of course, it¡¯s like find and replace on word. We could easily remove just the Dunn program lines. That would force the code to remove all traces of it and would set the reality back to normal however even if we took a copy from the code we¡¯re currently in, it would find and replace us out of existence. Besides, it would be impossible to do while we¡¯re in the code and as you¡¯ve already said, you don¡¯t have a backup.¡±


    For a moment I could feel my heart race but I couldn¡¯t tell why. It was as if my body knew the solution before my mind did but I could feel the excitement in my rising,


    ¡°No, I don¡¯t have a backup; all my files were on the computer or my USB ¨C both of which were lost.¡± I said as I searched my mind and then all at once it hit me, ¡°but I did leave a backup on the computer at the library.¡±


    Slowly Drew turned to me and I could see the excitement behind his eyes as he stood up,


    ¡°Okay, okay, let¡¯s not get ahead of ourselves.¡± He said and I nodded eagerly and he began to list the steps as he counted his fingers, ¡°First we¡¯d need to open a gateway to the library and get you a USB,¡± I nodded, ¡°but that¡¯s not too hard because there are plenty in my desk there.¡± I stood up excitedly beside him as he continued to walk through the steps, ¡°then we need to get you back to your house and run the find and replace on the code that¡¯s running on your computer right now,¡± I was almost about to talk over him.


    ¡°Which is easy,¡± I half asked but more answered for him, he nodded and continued.


    ¡°Then if we delete all the unaffected original Dunn line from the code, it has nothing to run.¡± Suddenly I could feel the raising of a red flag.


    ¡°Won¡¯t the code start populating Dunn if we¡¯re standing in it though?¡± Drew made a face of intense thought and said,


    ¡°Yes but not if we¡¯re all through the portal as well; if we¡¯re all standing in the real world, then it has nothing to create.¡±


    ¡°But how will you¡­¡± I was about to say but how will you keep the portal open when he brushed me off and continued on,


    ¡°When the lines are replaced the real world will be the only reality the code knows and¡­¡± a smile crept on his face and despite my momentary hesitation about how we would keep the portal open, I smiled too.


    ¡°I think we solved it.¡± I said as I threw my arms around him. Drew and I jumped up and down yipping and laughing for a good minute before the sound of Killian clearing his throat stopped us. We turned to the ladder that led down to see Killian, having woken from his sleep, standing there watching us.


    ¡°We figured out a way to get home Killian!¡± I said to which he replied,


    ¡°Well done laddie, now do it without waking the dead.¡± With a slam he shut the attic door leaving both Drew and I in a fit of laughter.

 Chapter 27

    Though it was a day¡¯s travel from the mines, Kappa, Jessica, Silas & Buckles calculated that in terms of walking distance. With Asta and Drew¡¯s horse Matilda, we were able to head north through the mountains and past the crimson fields towards Redmarsh in half the time it would¡¯ve taken on foot. I hadn¡¯t had a chance to sleep and while the prospect of resting my eyes was appealing, the chance at getting home was far too attractive to pass up. Though it was past midnight, Killian had rested his eyes for a number of hours and it showed in his bouncy and talkative demeanor. He ran on and on through the night as we moved through the foothills north of Verham. When there was a break in his rambling, Drew turned to me, ¡°I¡¯ve been thinking about it and I want to stay behind.¡± Killian shot an eye towards him realizing he was not privy to this conversation and tried his best to pretend not to listen in, ¡°Someone needs to stay behind to leave the portal open for you all and really it can only be me.¡± I turned to him and shaking my head said,


    ¡°No Drew, we¡¯ll find another way,¡±


    He sighed a long deep sigh as an owl hooted off the path to the right of us. The lone dirt road we followed bordered a wide field bathed in moonlight. Above us, the stars filled the sky as far as the eye could see and after a long pause he said, ¡°Do you think the stars are the same?¡±


    I looked up and saw the same starlit sky that he did and for a moment I was taken aback, ¡°I¡¯m honestly not sure, I would think so¡­¡± I said, trying to answer the question asked rhetorically.


    Drew continued the conversation as if he had never changed the subject, ¡°I don¡¯t think there is any other way but if there isn¡¯t,¡± he turned towards me and in the blue glow of the evening I could see his eyes were serious, ¡°I will stay behind.¡± I nodded for no other reason than to let him know I understood, even if I didn¡¯t agree.


    It was early Wednesday afternoon when we arrived in Redmarsh. We had travelled through that first night and only rested for a few short hours yesterday afternoon choosing instead to push on towards Redmarsh. The travels showed in our sleep deprived bodies as we rode into town. Through half-closed eyes and bodies like sacks of potatoes we, slowed to a stop out front of one of the Inns on the edge of town; The Lamplighter.


    ¡°We don¡¯t need to meet the others until tomorrow morning,¡± I said blinking slowly at Drew who was equally nodding long and slowly in exhaustion, ¡°Let¡¯s get a room and take a fresh start tomorrow morning.¡±


    Drew was already down off his horse and I nudged Killian awake. Over the past day he had mastered the ability to fall asleep on horseback and as I woke him he mumbled death threats and curses as he opened his weary eyes, ¡°Redmarsh!¡± He said with an energy granted only to those who have been lucky enough to sleep. Drew store daggers at him, envious about his liveliness but far too tired to say anything. Killian hopped down and drew his axe from Asta¡¯s saddle, returning it to the holster on his back, ¡°I can already smell the rrrrrrroast chicken!¡± He shouted as I slumped down from my horse, grumpy and tired.


    ¡°You do that Killian, we¡¯re sacking out for a few hours.¡± I looked at the sun and then back at Drew, ¡°Let¡¯s meet in bar below at what, dinner time?¡± I said and Drew waved a hand in dismissive understanding as he walked to the door that led inside. I turned to Killian and confirmed, ¡°Okay? Inside here in 7 hours or so?¡±


    Killian was excitedly watching the passersby, frantically looking between them. I hollered for him again and he spun around and gave a thumbs up, ¡°Righto Laddie,¡± he said and then jogged off into a crowd. I rolled my eyes and headed inside The Lamplighter. The Lamplighter was one of my favourite places in all of Dunn and one of my most impressive creations. I¡¯d be lying if I said I hadn¡¯t been excited to arrive here and when I walked in I was awestruck with how perfectly the code had converted my Inn.


    This story has been taken without authorization. Report any sightings.


    The Lamplighter was primarily an Inn and Tavern, it offered food, drink and accommodations but beyond that, it also had a number of clever little features. First off was the sheer size of it, it was massive; a four story building but almost seven floors deep and ran right into the caves below. Secondly; the owner, a man by the name of Leland Grim, was a colourful character who had a rich adventuring history which includes travelling in, around and outside Dunn. He always works the bar and is a wealth of knowledge. My personal favourite flair was the fact that it was haunted by a ghost named Antoine who was part of a mission line that Leland offered the adventurer¡¯s. If they finished the quest, the ghost became a regular and would become friendly to the players. Beyond all that, the architecture is half inspired by a haunted mansion, half inspired by a medieval tavern making it visually brilliant; high roof, cobweb covered corners and an air of mystery. For all these reasons and more it is, without a doubt, the liveliest and most popular tavern in all of Dunn and attracted a number of species and characters.


    Walking in, the latter seemed particularly true. With the AI being essentially free there was no restriction on who and what came from across Dunn to visit The Lamplighter and so all manner of creature, beast and humanoid seemed to be flooding the floor of this bar. I tried to make my way to the front but was stuck behind a cat-person and dwarf who seemed to be butting heads over a coin game. I saw Drew at the bar and he waived me over, pointing me through a break in the crowd, ¡°Jesus it¡¯s busy in here,¡± I said as I made my way to the bar and stood beside him,


    ¡°You¡¯re telling me, is this by design or¡­¡±


    ¡°The AI, I guess this place had become what I intended it to be; a landmark.¡± I said as I scanned the room for familiars. I wondered if Silas had accounted for this and that¡¯s why he had suggested The Red Lantern Inn, a far less popular bar, to meet tomorrow morning. I continued watching the crowd and as I did I could feel my eyelids growing heavy, I turned to Drew who was asleep on his arm propped up against the bar and nudged him, ¡°we need a room.¡±


    ¡°I can help with that,¡± said a voice and we turned to see an older man standing behind the bar. He had grey hair combed back and a sharp beard, his face was thin and clever and accented by a black eyepatch he wore over his left eye and I immediately recognized him as Leland Grim, the owner. I turned towards Drew and back to Leland, ¡°Well, we¡¯ll take a room then.¡±


    ¡°Done, need a wake up?¡±


    I shrugged and said, ¡°Sure, yes. Let¡¯s say 7 hours from now?¡±


    With a curt nod Leland reached below the bar and in a moment returned, slapping an iron key onto the wooden surface. He gestured to the stairwell in the center of the massive room and said, ¡°That one will get you there quickest, room 23.¡±


    Drew and I shared only a momentary look before once again fighting through the crowd towards the stairs. By the time we reached the second floor I could see both of us ready to collapse from exhaustion. Thankfully room 23 was right by the stair well and with a click I swung the door open wide. Inside were two small cots with hay pillows and straw bedding. Moments later I had stripped from my gear and collapsed on the hay bed in my underwear, eagerly waiting to embrace sleep. I could already hear Drew snoring as I began to drift and just before I fell asleep, the final thought that ran through my brain was man, I wish I made these beds more comfortable.

 Chapter 28

    I dreamt again that afternoon.


    In this dream, or nightmare I should more aptly call it, I was back in reality but it was frozen still. I was moving about my house after finishing something on my computer. I knew the world was frozen but I had nothing I could do about it and so I continued to exist like nothing was different. My parents we¡¯re frozen on the couch watching TV, my brother was frozen on the floor of his bedroom, Jessica was frozen standing at my stove and all I could do was move about them and pretend they didn¡¯t exist. Pretend that all of this wasn¡¯t happening. I could feel myself absolving myself of my guilt, letting go of my fear and then the doorbell rang.


    I answered it, completely unaware of the absurdity of it and there, standing before me, was Principal Miller. He wore his gym outfit; the blue and white tracksuit with the puma over the breast, only the puma wasn¡¯t white, it was black. Black and menacing, like those creatures that had chased me. He stepped into my front hall and smiled at me.


    ¡°Climb,¡± he said with a grin, and as I turned I saw the rope leading to the ceiling. Suddenly I wore my own gym clothes and everyone from class was standing around me. They were still frozen, unmoving. Only Principal Miller and I were alive, but I could hear them. I could hear them laughing as I tried to climb and fail. Each time I grasped higher on the rope my fingers slipped and the laughter grew. I could hear Miller telling me that I could do it, but I couldn¡¯t. I kept slipping and with each encouraging word he said I could feel myself being more and more embarrassed until I let go.


    I fell and in the darkness I could hear Principal Miller¡¯s voice. He sat across from me as he did that day he assigned me my ISU project. I could hear him say, ¡°Minecraft is cool; you should make your report on it.¡±


    I watched from a third party perspective; saw myself, three years younger and three years more na?ve. I was sitting across from him in his office clutching my backpack, holding it like a shield against my skin, a barrier between him and me. I could see his smile and his hand clasped in a pointed arch like a steeple. I could see him nod and I nodded back and as I left he began to laugh, just as the class laughed at me climbing the rope. I watched myself exit his room and stand in front of the class, holding the sweat stained report I had written on my then favourite video game, the wide eyes and the snickers from the class as I read each pained word. Miller watching from the hallway, laughing at me, laughing at the failure he had set me up for.


    Then¡­ then I saw the aftermath, the part of the story I had forgotten. I saw myself walk back into his office in tears, I saw myself throw the report and Miller stand behind the desk and he laughed and laughed only¡­ I knew it was wrong. Suddenly I became very aware that this was a dream and as I did I could see the scene changing. The way Principal Miller leaned on his desk and the cold, angry gaze he offered melted to a compassionate concern. My righteous indignation looking more like petulance and as the scene changed, as it began to feel more correct, I felt myself feeling embarrassed.


    I stepped forward into the scene somehow now back on solid ground and walked towards Miller who looked directly at me and away from the angry kid that yelled at him. With a sympathetic nod he said,


    ¡°I¡¯m sorry Lester; I was just trying to help.¡±


    I could hear my past self-scream at him and leave the room, just as I had in real life but staying offered me a moment of clarity that leaving hadn¡¯t. I saw Miller sit down behind the desk, put his head in his hands and cry.


    I woke to a knock at the door which made the dream I was having fade vanish in an instant. I groggily sat up to see Drew, his back turned to me and his face against the wall, wave me with a hand as if to say you get it I¡¯m sleeping still. I sat on the edge of my bed and let my eyes adjust to the wooden floor boards as the knock came again, ¡°Yes, yes, coming.¡± I said through a yawn and stood up. I opened the door to see a young human woman standing before me and in a monotone voice she said, ¡°Wake up call, are you up now?¡± I nodded and as she turned I caught her.


    ¡°W-wait, Sarah?¡± I said with a bit if doubt on my voice. She turned back to face me and as she did I realized it was in fact her. Sarah, Jessica¡¯s friend from the woods, the one who had arrived in Redmarsh when the world switched over was standing before me and with a smile I let out a sigh of relief,Love what you''re reading? Discover and support the author on the platform they originally published on.


    ¡°That¡¯s my name.¡± she said flatly and turned away again and started down the hall.


    I stepped out after her and said, ¡°No, no it¡¯s me, Lester!¡±


    She eyed me up and down with a look of annoyance and after a moment of vague realization she unenthusiastically said,


    ¡°Oh right, what¡¯s up?¡±


    With a look of confusion I answered, ¡°Uhh nothing,¡± and as I did she began to walk away again, ¡°Hold on, what¡­ do you¡­ aren¡¯t you confused by all of this?!¡± I said waving my hands around, gesturing to the hallway and beyond. She looked around as if I was revealing something new and after a long studious moment she said,


    ¡°What the hallway?¡±


    ¡°No,¡± I said as absolute perplexity washed over me, ¡°the world Sarah, have you not realized it¡¯s gone?¡±


    ¡°Duh,¡± she said as if I were telling her the sky is blue.


    ¡°Okay,¡± I said and turned as Drew joined me in the hallway a confused look on his face as well, ¡°well then, did you find the others? They explained what was going on to you then.¡± I said more a statement, the only way her seeming disinterest could make sense but to my frustration she answered,


    ¡°Others? Who?¡±


    ¡°Do you not realize that the world is gone and you¡¯re in a fantasy setting?¡± I said half shouting in frustration.


    She again looked around the hallway as I threw my head back in annoyance and eventually she added,


    ¡°Oh ya, I guess, right?¡±


    I looked towards Drew who just shrugged and after a momentary break I said, ¡°Fair enough, well you don¡¯t need to work here anymore cause we¡¯re going home.¡±


    Sarah yawned in boredom and removed her apron casually, dropping it on the floor, ¡°Cool,¡± she said as if it didn¡¯t matter one way or another to her and with utter disbelief Drew and I got dressed and moved towards the stairs down as Sarah followed.


    We entered the bar which by this time in the evening was even livelier than before. Music played loudly near the hearth and people danced around the stairwell swinging and bumping into each other as the three of us made our way down to the tavern. Sarah cut through the crowd with confidence and we followed. At the bar she yelled to Leland, ¡°I don¡¯t need a job anymore I¡¯m going home or something,¡± she said and Leland looked surprised and sad, a look that seemed bizarrely out of place on him.


    ¡°Sarah, you can¡¯t do this to me you¡¯re the best I¡¯ve had,¡± Sarah just shrugged and gestured again to us. Drew and I made an awkward smile and as Leland looked back at her he just sighed,  ¡°Fair enough, well let me collect what I owe you and then you can be on your way.¡±


    I took a half step forward and said, ¡°We¡¯re meeting a friend here for a bite anyway so we¡¯ll just be hanging around,¡± and with a nod Leland turned back to the other patrons. Drew had been scanning the crowd and after a moment nudged me pointing in the direction of the booth closest to the door. There, Killian was standing on the table of a large booth with his axe drawn, shouting at the small group of people before him. I sighed heavily and turned back to catch Leland¡¯s attention. When I did I ordered four chickens to the table in question and moved towards Killian with Sarah in tow.


    I caught the end of Killian¡¯s threat when we approached the booth.


    ¡°¡­so stay away or ye be dealing with the end of my axe!¡± he shouted as spittle flew towards the group of Goblins that we¡¯re eager to take the booth from the dwarf. As Killian saw us however he pointed and hollered in righteous vindication, ¡°See! Right here! There they are as I told ye!¡±


    The Goblins cursed and turned away, scowling and huffing as they parted through the crowd. Killian jumped up and down at the table as we approached and when he saw Sarah he turned to me with a confused expression, ¡°Who be she?¡±


    ¡°This is Sarah.¡± I said sitting down in the booth and Killian nodded in understand though I wasn¡¯t sure he did.


    He turned to us and said, ¡°The bar was mighty busy so I¡¯ve been guarding the booth for us for the last little while!¡± he smiled wide and I gave him a nod, ¡°These Goblin¡¯s are sneaky, they¡¯ll take everything from ye the minute you turn yer back. If I left this booth they¡¯d be takin¡¯ in be sure of that!¡±


    ¡°Thank you Killian, sincerely.¡± I swear beneath his bearded face he blushed and as we waited for the food to arrive I watched the Goblin¡¯s eagerly wait for another booth to leave. He was right of course; the Goblins were sneaky but above all else driven, if we stepped out of the booth for a second they would most definitely take it back. I admired their tenacity and watched them eye for another booth as Drew reiterated the plan.


    ¡°So after this we have until morning to get to The Red Lantern Inn and meet with your friends,¡± I cringed a bit at the word friends, remembering how we had last left each other but nodded for him to continue, ¡°Then we just need to find out where the library would be in relation to Dunn; zap through, grab a USB, upload the original game files and head back to where you started to revert the code back.¡±


    It sounded like a good plan but the thought of seeing them again still sat uneasy in my stomach. I turned to Sarah and said, ¡°You haven¡¯t seen Jessica at all?¡± she shook her head no with disinterest and stared blankly out at the crowd, I turned to Killian and saw his face reflecting the sadness I felt.


    ¡°It¡¯ll be alright laddie,¡± he said in a surprisingly reassuring tone, ¡°They¡¯re still yer clan and they¡¯ll be happy to see ya.¡±


    I turned to Drew as well who, despite not being fully aware of how the scene played out, nodded in assurance. I breathed a sigh of relief that lasted only for a second as my eyes spotted both Hestle and his brother Ergon entering through the front door.

 Chapter 29

    I slunk down in my seat as if hiding would make a difference but the second they entered they spotted me and began right for us. Panicked I turned to the other and said, ¡°Get ready for a fight.¡±


    I felt for my dagger as Killian smiled and began standing in the seat. Sarah made an unenthused look of annoyance and Drew began to muddle something under his breath. Without thinking I stood out of the booth and drew my dagger out behind my back. I took a breath, reading my body for combat just as they stepped directly before me and continued past. I turned to follow them with my eye and watched them stand before a booth directly behind us to sit down. Confused I sheathed my dagger and watched as they spoke to the Goblin¡¯s in the booth.


    ¡°Get out,¡± Hestle said but the Goblins didn¡¯t move. There were maybe seven of them, the same that had tried to fight Killian for the booth and as they eyed him with large expressive eyes Hestle motioned to Ergon who began to pull them out of the booth. With little squeals they clawed at the wood but eventually, he and Ergon slid in and claimed it as their own paying no attention to me or my group.


    Confused I sheathed my dagger and sat back down at the table. Drew closed his fists which were shining a dim blue and Killian, a disappointed look on his face, sat back down.


    ¡°What happened?¡± Drew said anxiously and all at once it hit me. Not only was no one with me now that was in the original confrontation at the Bee and the Barrel, but I had also changed my appearance. Hestle and Ergon had no idea who we were and excitedly I turned to the others shaking my head to dismiss the question just as the food arrived.


    ¡°Do you know the Tork Spell?¡± I said to Drew in a hushed tone after a few minutes of eating. He nodded and after dropping the piece of meat he held, raised his hands to his mouth as if whispering to something. After a glowing orb of green light dimly flashed in his cupped hands, he opened them to reveal a small insect I had named Tork. It was slightly small than a cockroach and furry and as he let it climb the booth to the other side, I leaned forward to listen in Drew¡¯s cupped hand.


    We continued eating, Drew only with one hand, as I listened to the conversation the other booth had. For the most part it was regular stuff; work, plan, patrols but my ears perked when I heard the mention a familiar name.


    ¡°Buckles?¡± Ergon said and Hestle must have nodded because he continued.


    ¡°Let¡¯s just stick with Old Man.¡± Hestle said and took a drink of mead, ¡°Either way he said we can expect the others in The Red Lantern Inn at sunrise so we should stay the night there.¡± I could hear Ergon¡¯s smacking lips as he tore at the chicken and through a full mouth he said,


    ¡°Then we¡¯ll send them all to him?¡±


    ¡°Why are you reiterating the entire plan?¡± Hestle said, ¡°Are you that daft?¡±


    There was a long pause and after a beat Ergon said, ¡°Yes?¡± more a question than an answer as if hoping to guess correctly.


    I could hear Hestle¡¯s frustration as he said, ¡°Yes, no use sending a half full carriage to Millicent, we¡¯ll wait until we have them all and send the entire prison carriage.¡±


    I didn¡¯t have the same fear now of these two I had at the start. For one thing my Charisma was much higher than Jessica¡¯s and she had convinced them to back off but in the back of my mind I also knew better now. I knew how to handle myself now and with a breath I stood up and swung around the corner to confront them.This story has been stolen from Royal Road. If you read it on Amazon, please report it


    ¡°Evening gents,¡± I said as Hestle¡¯s eyes tightened and Ergon started to get up, ¡°Sit, sit¡­ I only wanted to offer the aid of me and my companions.¡± Ergon sat up in the booth and looked over to see Killian, Sarah and Drew wave back; a look of slight confusion on their faces. Ergon was about to get up but Hestle held out a hand.


    ¡°What aid would that be?¡± he said through tight, studious eyes. I reached back and pulled a chair from a table of loud dwarves and tucked it against there, having a seat as I did.


    ¡°I couldn¡¯t help but overhear that there is a carriage that may be in need of a driver and I wanted to offer to help you and yours with the transportation of precious cargo.¡±


    Hestle¡¯s face melted from cautious interest to anger.


    ¡°You eavesdrop on a conversation and think that you can get a job out of it? You¡¯re even more idiotic than you look,¡± he said and studied my face. For a moment I was nervous he recognized my voice and with a flick of his wrist he motion for Ergon to stand, which he did.


    ¡°I just mean to say,¡± I stammered slightly this time, ¡°T-that if you need something transported safely you¡¯ll need guards as well and we are skilled and experienced fighters.¡± Ergon was next to me at this point but I stayed sitting, I still needed to push, ¡°and the Redmarsh guards are no match for the foes that may be out there¡­¡±


    Ergon pulled the chair out from under me and I stood quickly to my feet as the others exited the booth to join. Killian went to stand by me but I motioned for him and the others to stay there as Hestle existed and both he and Ergon stood before me.


    ¡°Lucky for you we didn¡¯t hire the Redmarsh guards.¡± He said as he stepped towards me and drew his sword, still I held a hand towards the others to stop them, ¡°I don¡¯t need your services in any way¡­¡± he said as he drew his sword up pointing it at my chest.


    ¡°No, but have you ever seen a Texas Two-see?¡± I asked and both he and Ergon stopped walking,


    ¡°A what?¡± Hestle asked, his sword still pointed,


    ¡°A Texas two-see¡± I said.


    Hestle dropped his sword down by his side and looked to Ergon who just shrugged, then back at me, ¡°No. What is it?¡± I made a face as if surprised and shocked.


    ¡°Oh well, I mean, if you don¡¯t even know what a Texas Two-See is¡­ I mean¡­¡± I said as Drew and Killian watched in utter confusion.


    ¡°Tell me what it is.¡± Hestle demanded. Both of them stood before me and after a long beat I threw my hands down and sighed,


    ¡°Alright, okay, you win.¡±


    Eagerly they waited to hear my words and after a moment I said.


    ¡°A Texas Two-See is a trick where you draw the attention away from some mountain sized, idiotic, brute of a man and his pint-sized master long enough for their booth to be reclaimed by a much angrier, fiery group of suddenly armed Goblins.¡±


    It took a full five seconds for not just Ergon but Hestle as well to realize what I was talking about and as they spun around, both were immediately set upon by the Goblins who had taken back the booth. With a flick of my wrist I gestured for the others to leave and we ran for the door as a sea of screams came from the angry Goblin¡¯s and their adversaries.


    We spilled outside into the night air and rounded the corner into an alleyway a few buildings away to catch our breaths as Killian laughed wildly. He slapped me on the back and after a moment Drew turned to me, ¡°That was funny but it doesn¡¯t get us any closer to the others,¡± he said with a pained expression as if worried about hurting my feelings.


    ¡°Well actually, it does.¡± Drew looked taken aback as I counted out on two fingers, ¡°For two reasons; the first because I know that if they didn¡¯t use the Redmarsh Guards, they can only use the Black Hands. That gives us the location of the carriage,¡± I said as I tried to catch my breath.


    Drew smiled and added, ¡°¡­and the second?¡±


    With a devilish grin I raised my hand to reveal the key I had taken from Hestle¡¯s pocket while I sat with them at the table, ¡°The second because I stole the key to the carriage.¡±


    Drew tried to stifle a laugh as he slapped me on the back and with an impressed grin said, ¡°Lester you continue to impress me.¡± I nodded but added, ¡°It won¡¯t take him long to realize it¡¯s gone though so we need to move now.¡±


    I turned to Killian who, equally impressed, nodded in agreement and then to Drew who gave me a thumbs up. Sarah, who had been with us the entire time made eye contact with me at the last possible second and added, ¡°Were you just talking?¡±


    I shook my head and we each exited the alley and set off towards the Black Hand headquarters.

 Chapter 30

    The Black Hand were a group of mercenaries that worked out of Redmarsh. This was great news for three reasons; one, they were always a group that the PC¡¯s could work for and eventually run, two, they were dim witted and no different than other NPC¡¯s and three, they were one of the last things I added to the game. This meant that not only were the main NPC¡¯s within the faction on the top of my mind but the layout and building was second nature. I knew exactly where they would be holding our friends and exactly where the carriage would be. There were many ways to play this but, as Jessica had pointed out, this didn¡¯t need to be played like a game, so we left our horses tied along the road and walked up to the large double gate doors of the encampment to knock.


    After a long wait a head popped up over the said,


    ¡°Who goes there?¡±


    ¡°Lucius¡¯s wife¡¯s brother Renfrew.¡± I said. I turned to Drew and said in a hushed tone, ¡°I wrote a lot of backstory for this dude and he¡¯s always been keen to meet his wife¡¯s brother. He doesn¡¯t know he¡¯s dead in a cave beneath a bridge two days west of here,¡± I laughed and turned back to the man above the gate, ¡°I wish to speak with my brother in law!¡±


    After a few moments the gates opened and Lucius; the greying, dark skinned leader of the Black Hands embraced me with open arms,


    ¡°Renfrew? How can it be!¡± he said with pride,


    ¡°Oh well, I fell down a hole off a bridge and into a cave but, ya know, I got out and stuff.¡± I said.


    ¡°Of course, always the warrior, your sister spoke so highly of you and I had always wished to meet you. I¡¯m so glad you¡¯ve arrived but how did you find us?¡±


    ¡°Oh, luck probably.¡±


    ¡°Yes, yes! The Gods are lucky.¡± He said comfortably to himself as I quietly rolled my eyes to Drew, ¡°Come you are welcome but I¡¯m afraid I have bad news about your sister.¡±


    I turned to Drew and mouthed the words she¡¯s dead too and nodded as we entered the large gates of the Black Hand encampment. We were in fact greeted warmly and as we were led through the open ground beyond the gated walls I saw the house which held the carriage. We moved upstairs and through the hallways of the main house until we arrived at a long wooden table in the dining hall. We were seated and I waited anxiously for a chance to interject.


    After a particularly long diatribe Lucius finally took a sip from his wine, ¡°You got any things you¡¯re working on right now? Jobs? Maybe transport stuff?¡± I said eager to get to the point. I felt like I was trying to skip the dialogue in a video game, only in real life I couldn¡¯t press spacebar to make it go faster.


    ¡°Now let me think,¡± he said in a remarkably slow was and I rolled my eyes. Killian had been happy to sit down and eat while Sarah sat uncomfortably looking at the roast in the center of the table. Drew was the only one trying to edge me along in the conversation but was getting equally frustrated.


    ¡°Maybe we can look around or something¡­¡± Drew suggested just a scream sounded out in the courtyard below. I stood up and ran to the window to see a group of men running towards the carriage house. I shot a look to Drew who was beside me at the window and I turned back to Lucius.


    ¡°Thanks for the bite we better go help.¡±


    I was halfway out the door before Killian had even gotten out of his chair and Sarah was still eyeing the roast, but time was not our friend and I rushed out to the courtyard with Drew on my heels.


    We reached the courtyard in time to see a number of Black Hand members arrive at the doors to the Carriage house. They had approached it as if it were a sleeping dragon; nervously walking towards with their arms outstretched. Though Drew and I were too far to hear their words, I could see two of the men that had arrived were debating back and forth. We slowed to a jog about fifty feet from the building just in time to hear voices shouting from within. Drew and I shot each other a curious look just an explosion sounded throughout the yard and the wooden doors of the carriage house flew out into a sea of splinters.


    The explosion threw the Black Hand members that were at the door to either side and knocked the wind out of Drew and myself, tossing us back onto the muddy yard. The carriage shot out from the building through the white smoke of the explosion like a horse at the races. The stallion¡¯s that led the large prison carriage bucked and wailed into the night air as both Drew and myself saw Silas sitting in the driver¡¯s seat. He drove, frantically rattling the reigns as the court suddenly became a buzz of activity. Men poured out from within the Carriage house and started fighting the Black Hand. Through the thinning smoke I could see the plaid leggings, the red coats and Tricorne hats of The Goodberry Brigade fighting.Love this novel? Read it on Royal Road to ensure the author gets credit.


    The clinking of swords echoed against the stone courtyard walls as the Black Hand scrambled; some fighting the men that had burst through the Carriage house, others dodging behind bushels of hay and as the Carriage tore past us I saw both Jessica and Kappa firing arrows out through the metal bars of the cage on the back. Drew and I jumped behind a rusted barrel to shield ourselves from the fighting as the few Black Hands now engaged in fighting the Goodberry Brigade began to fire back at the carriage.


    Suddenly I became nervous they would hit my brother, I began to shout, but over the wildly neighing horses and the screams of the two fighting factions my voice was lost. I turned to Drew panicked and with a nod that said I got this he raised stepped out from behind cover. He stepped out into the open and with his hands outstretched above him, he began speaking. I leaned back nervously as blue light began to grow from Drew¡¯s hands and in a flash, a sea of lightning fired down from the sky.


    Everything was frozen. The carriage; the Black Hand, the Goodberry Brigade, the horses¡­ everything was still and unmoving, stuck in a momentary stasis. However, unlike the frozen reality I had visited, they were all looking around and aware of what had happened. Pirates and mercenaries alike were locked in combat, their eyes nervously dancing between each other. The carriage and horses were mid jump having hit a stack of fallen shields second prior. It lingered, frozen in the air maybe two feet from the ground; the horse manes locked in a gust of wind that caught them mid jump. The scene was like an action tableau, a picture taken at the perfect time.


    I stood up slapping a bit of the caked mud from my knees and turned to Drew wiping the nervous sweat from my brow, ¡°Time-lapse, good call.¡± He nodded in appreciation and I cleared my throat, ¡°Ladies and gentlemen of the Black Hand and good¡­ err¡­ pirates of the Goodberry Brigade, you are all on the same side.¡±


    The silence was deafening but against the sounds of battle that had existed moments before, it was welcomed. ¡°Black Hand; these people are no longer prisoners. We have been assigned to take them unharmed. Thank you for your cooperation.¡± I could have done it in a more diplomatic and roguish way but I didn¡¯t know how close behind Hestle and Ergon would be and frankly, I was tired of beating around the bush. ¡°Goodberry Brigade?¡± I nervously looked around as if calling on someone in a classroom, ¡°Thank you for your help you have aided your captain.¡± As the spell began to wear off everything came back and Silas pulled hard on the horses as the carriage stuck its landing and skidded to a halt. Lucius who stood at the balcony called down and waived his guards off, reinforcing my request as Killian and Sarah came down the side steps and joined us at the carriage. Slowly, the Goodberry Brigade sheathed their weapons and one who had just lit a bomb casually licked his finger tips and put it out.


    Silas was the first to see me obviously, having somehow snuck out of the locked carriage and taken the reigns and to my surprise he climbed down and hugged me. He was never one to touch and this felt monumental as I held him close. After breathing it in I moved towards the back and saw Kappa and Jessica in the back. I unlocked the metal gate with my key and opened it wide for them to climb out. Jessica came out first and avoided eye contact and Kappa followed but stopped in front of me,


    ¡°I missed you,¡± she said and gave me a half hug, than we turned towards Jessica who was heading for the carriage house, ¡°you two need to talk.¡± She said sympathetically and turned to see Drewhilda and Sarah. I hesitated at the group but decided to trust Kappa and headed towards the direction Jessica headed.


    I entered through the large splintered doors that lay on the dirt of the courtyard as saw Jessica with her back to me holding herself. Unsure of what to say I started with, ¡°We found Sarah,¡± she turned only slightly and said,


    ¡°I saw,¡± She seemed unfazed by it, maybe because it was less important to her right now or perhaps because she had to deal with this first but either way I pressed in.


    ¡°She doesn¡¯t seem to really be phased by all of this, didn¡¯t really even think there was anything going on.¡± Jessica laughed an honest laugh and it felt good to hear. She turned around but seeing my face made her smile fade.


    She waited a moment and said, ¡°I like that you look like yourself again,¡± I nodded and said,


    ¡°I know what I did was wrong¡­¡±


    ¡°Do you though?¡± she interjected, ¡°Do you fully realize not just the trust you violated and how sick and twisted that is but how it feels to know that I¡¯ve been changed? That I don¡¯t know if the choice I¡¯m making is mine or yours? Is it something that I want or something that¡¯s been decided for me? Do you understand how confusing it is to even begin to think about?¡± She was yelling, ¡°Do you understand how it feels to love you and realize that it¡¯s not my choice to? That even now as I¡¯m looking at you, I feel so strongly towards you but I have to fight that feeling because I know it¡¯s a goddamn lie?¡±


    I stood there wanting to look away, wanting to stare anywhere but at the tears that formed in her eyes but I knew I had to. This was what I did, this was my penance. After a long pause I said, ¡°No. I don¡¯t.¡± Her face dropped a bit, ¡°I don¡¯t think I ever will.¡±


    That was it. No but, no however, just admission. I had nothing to offer, I had no promise to make. I stood there in the destroyed opening of the carriage house with nothing to offer.


    After a long pause she drew in a quick breath and said, ¡°We¡¯re no longer friends. I¡¯ll be amicable to you until we beat this game and if that works then we¡¯re done. If not you can find your own way around this world.¡± She went to move for the door and I said,


    ¡°Well, actually¡­¡± I could see her face tighten as if she was about to get angry but I said, ¡°I think we found a way out.¡±


    She stopped and with a confused look said, ¡°Who is we?¡±

 Chapter 31

    We travelled a few hours out of town before setting up camp for the night. I wasn¡¯t convinced we would be safe hanging out in the Black Hand camp for all that long before Hestle and Co. would come knocking on the door and despite us being more experienced now, I was much more inclined to leave this world without having to fight anymore. The Goodberry brigade, which Jessica had cleverly contacted via raven before being nabbed, weren¡¯t the most covert and rarely more than muscle and since everyone agreed that the less killing the better, she dismissed them.


    There were seven of us now; Kappa, Drew, Sarah, Jessica, Silas, Killian and myself. It was crazy to me to see them all moving about the campsite; preparing their bed rolls, sharpening their weapons and as I sat against a tall oak tree and watched Kappa caught my eye and approached.


    ¡°Hey,¡± she said,


    ¡°Hey,¡± I shot back and after a moment I turned to her to apologize but before I could speak she said, ¡°No, regardless of what you did I shouldn¡¯t have left you,¡± I froze for a second and then closed my half open mouth, she smiled coyly at me and added, ¡°You made a mistake a big one and you made it worse by not telling her¡­¡± I waited for the but and Kappa could tell, ¡°but,¡± she added pointedly, ¡°we all make mistakes, it¡¯s what you do from here on out that matters.¡±


    ¡°Then we¡¯re still friends?¡± I asked with hesitancy in my voice.


    With a smile she said, ¡°Forevermore,¡± and winked in a way that made my heart hurt. We hugged and after a moment she added, ¡°All¡¯s not lost with Jessica either,¡± and my heart went into a full flutter.


    ¡°No?¡± I asked gently, trying to hide my excitement.


    ¡°Nah, she¡¯s conflicted for sure but we¡¯ve shared enough about each other for me to know that she still admires you greatly, just maybe not in the way you want. I understand now why you like her so,¡± I raised an eyebrow.


    ¡°You sound like you may have a thing for her yourself,¡± I said half joking,


    ¡°Nope, not my type.¡± She said with a coy smile and walked back to the camp. I followed and entered across from Jessica and Sarah who were catching up. I could tell that Jessica was equally bewildered by Sarah¡¯s seeming disinterest in the world and as I moved towards her I stopped at Silas who was untying his boots. I crouched down and said, ¡°Was everything okay with them?¡±


    He nodded and said, ¡°They talked a lot and I did quests. I leveled up a ton but when we arrived in town Buckles saw a poster and sold us.¡± He reached into his pouch and presented a folded bounty that called for a collection of people who said mentioned a list of words. It was a wholly bizarre bounty but became clear when I read from the list which included words like; Lester, Marcus, Computer and Game amongst a number of others that all fit within our group. I stood up and started to take the flyer over to Drew when he said, ¡°I¡¯m sorry I left.¡±Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon.


    I stopped and turned around and knelt again beside him and said, ¡°No, Marc¡­ Silas, I¡¯m sorry I made you choose. Between me and them, you chose right and I¡¯m just happy to be with you again.¡± I tussled his matted goblin hair and walked over to Drew with the flyer.


    He looked over it the same way I had and then asked, ¡°Who would know these words.¡±


    I pointed to the bottom which demanded the bounties be delivered to Millicent¡¯s castle and said,


    ¡°He must¡¯ve gotten the words from my parents; they probably told him everything they knew not knowing what all this was meant to be.¡± Drew nodded and I said, ¡°I¡¯ve told Jessica but we should tell Silas and Kappa the plan too, maybe reiterate it for everyone.¡± With pursed lips he handed me the bounty back and cleared his throat to address the group.


    Drew told them of his ability to manipulate the code and then explained our plan to everyone and as it washed over Kappa and Silas specifically, the energy in the camp began nervous excitement. Jessica smiled and hugged Kappa warmly and Silas even hopped a little on the spot. Jessica turned to me and asked, ¡°Was home alright?¡± I shook my head and said,


    ¡°Everyone is alive still but it¡¯s stopped, the code can¡¯t run two instances so nothing¡¯s changed while we¡¯ve been in here.¡±


    Jessica thought on what I said but remained excited and turned to Kappa, ¡°Do you still have those maps we laid over each other¡­¡±


    She was three steps ahead and was already putting one on top of the other. Kappa however had never been to the library and wasn¡¯t sure what it was on the map of home but quickly and with a heavy heart, Drew pointed to the Millicent¡¯s Castle. The energy from moments ago left and as Kappa continued to study the map she nodded in agreement, ¡°The library is right where the Castle is. We can¡¯t account for elevation but¡­¡±


    I shook my head, ¡°I¡¯m not worried about that, whether we move up or down we can still find what we need to.¡± I thought for a moment as the crackling campfire sent embers up towards the cold night sky and after consideration said, ¡°This was always going to be part of the plan, we need to get Mom and Dad, this just means that we can¡¯t do the legwork before the final confrontation.¡±


    ¡°What about the Goodberrys?¡± Silas said turning to Jessica. I wanted to speak but instead let Jessica answer Silas.


    ¡°I think they¡¯re good for an all-out assault, but I don¡¯t think that¡¯s the right call¡­¡± she paused and then as if realizing turned to me, ¡°What do you think we should do Lester?¡± she said and for the first time since the fallout she smiled at me, a trusting smile that said we¡¯ll follow your lead. I took a breath and before I could speak remembered that I was still holding the bounty flyer. I studied it only for a second before I looked up towards everyone and with excitement said,


    ¡°We give them what they want.¡±

 Chapter 32

    We had been waiting by the side of the mountain pass that led towards Millicent¡¯s castle for the past four hours and I was beginning to second guess my plan.


    The early afternoon light was overly hot and the woods that surrounded the high hill that overlooked the pass offered a welcome shade. This was the only route towards the mountain that his Castle sat upon and I had hoped that any minute the passing carriage carrying Killian would arrive. Killian, who volunteered as bait, went back into town and said every word on the bounty page with the hope that we would be breaking him out once the carriage carrying him came along but I was starting to worry that I had set my friend up for failure.


    Silas crawled up towards me as I lay on my belly at the top of the hill overlooking the road, ¡°Is Killian dead?¡± he asked in a hushed town and I gave him a disgusted look.


    ¡°No of course not, it says right on the bounty that they need to be taken alive.¡± I turned back to the road and grimaced nervously hoping Silas was wrong.


    ¡°Are we going to kill Millicent.¡±


    The thought had crossed my mind. There were many options about how to play out the final confrontation and after I thought for a moment said, ¡°I hope not, he¡¯s got a pretty high wisdom score so I don¡¯t think convincing him would be doable.¡± My mind started to race at the possibility of a TPK, or Total Party Kill as they called it in Dungeons and Dragons, and decided to change the subject, ¡°Have you thought more on what I asked you?¡±


    On our way to the overlook we now sat upon I had pulled Silas aside and asked for his in an out knowledge of the Castle. Mainly; where he would keep mom and dad, where Millicent himself would be and where the library portal could be safely cast. He pulled out a few pieces of parchment and laid them on the moss covered stone. On them were crudely drawn plans of the Castle and it¡¯s under halls. He had been instrumental in building the Castle and final areas, so much of my interests were on the good sides of Dunn that Silas was undoubtedly the expert on the forthcoming mission and as he turned to me he said, ¡°I think Mom and Dad would be in the jail below level four.¡± I nodded and pointed to a large X on the map near the library.


    ¡°What¡¯s this?¡±


    He studied it for a moment as if it were new and after a beat said, ¡°Alder Arrow.¡±


    I had completely forgotten about The Alder Arrow. With all the talk of not playing the game, I had forgotten one of the most important weapons I added to the game; an absolute beast of an arrow that did three times more damage than the strongest Warhammer. I eyed the map cautiously and said,


    ¡°If we need to kill Millicent that may be the only way.¡± Silas turned to me and just as he was about to say something the sound of creaking wheels and the soft trot of horses rounded the bend on the road below. I turned to him and with a nod, moved to my belly and slid back down the way we had come. The two of us moved down from our lookout; pulling up leaves and pine needles as we slid back down to the camp. At my return Kappa stood up eagerly and met my eyes, ¡°Now?¡±


    I nodded and she, Silas and I exited the thicket towards the road.


    The carriage bounced along the winding dirt road towards us and slowed as the three of us walked out in front of it. It skidded to a stop just before us, sending a small cloud of dust billowing up behind it despite only going a slow speed.


    ¡°Move!¡±


    The carriage driver had a loud booming voice and a thick, English accent and despite his small stature and with a wave of his hand he tried to cast us aside.


    ¡°Actually,¡± I said with a bit of a nervous smile and in an equally booming voice said, ¡°We¡¯d like to borrow your carriage.¡±


    I watched his face as he studied mine and as it washed over him and through a stern face he said, ¡°Okay.¡±


    If you encounter this tale on Amazon, note that it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it.


    He hopped down off the carriage and I smiled widely at him. I patted him on the back and with an open palm gestured for him to hand me the key, to which he kindly obliged. The others had been off to the right side of the road watching, ready for any resistance but as I moved towards the back I waved them out. The guard happily stood off to one side and watched us commandeer his vehicle as the others began to emerge out of the woods.


    ¡°That was easy,¡± Jessica said as Drew brushed some leaves out of his long, dark hair.


    ¡°Too easy,¡± he said and I smiled in confidence as I approached the caged portion of the prisoner transport. When I got to the key I noticed it was draped in a deep red clothe.


    ¡°Didn¡¯t want to burn in the sun, Killian?¡± I said as I reached for the lock but before I could put the key in the cage door swung upon with a mighty kick and sent me reeling back, falling hard against the dirt road. My nose cracked and I could feel the warmth of my own blood pouring down over my chin as Ergon stepped out from the cage and onto the road. From behind I heard the gallop of horse hooves and I turned to see Hestle and a group of seven other riders approach. On the back of his horse was Killian; bound, gagged and struggling to free himself.


    Kappa already had her bow drawn but seeing the others arrive she lightened her grip. Jessica and Drew followed suit, having also readied themselves for a fight but now seeing the number of their foe. I nodded to each of them and cupped my nose to stop some of the blood from pouring out and Ergon let out a low growl. I stayed on the ground; my head spinning and my vision blurred as I heard Hestle and his men climb off their horses and approach.


    ¡°Weapons down everyone,¡± he said, although most had already complied. I watched Jessica and Kappa drop their weapons and after a moment, Hestle leaned in to my view, a sly grin on his face and said, ¡°You didn¡¯t really think I¡¯d be that dumb, did you?¡±


    I tried my best to answer back, tried to keep my eyes from feeling dizzy but despite my efforts as the blood continued to pour and my eyes felt heavier and heavier I fell back unconscious. I mean, I assume I was. It¡¯s really tough to tell in the moment, I just remember feeling woozy, hearing him talk to me like he was a Bond villain and then kaput.


    Blackness.


    Now there is probably an age old question about whether or not you dream when you pass out. Okay, it¡¯s not really an age old question because ages are really, really, really, really old and people pass out pretty frequently; especially in a small town with cheap booze. But I did use the word probably so it¡¯s not like I wasn¡¯t aware that it wasn¡¯t common. That is to say that I personally didn¡¯t know the answer. It wasn¡¯t something I was privy to in my life of bedroom world building and my extracurricular of ¡°that-one-time-I-played-DnD.¡± If I had asked the question and thought of an answer I probably would¡¯ve been wrong because in that blackness, in the nothingness so sleepless slumber; I did dream.


    I was standing once again in the Gymnasium at school, however this time; the world was no longer frozen and I was no longer just Lester Dunn. I still looked like me but I was wearing my leather armor; holding my bow loosely in my hands and sporting a quiver on my back. The class watched as I stood there and laughed. Mr. Miller stood at the front of them and led them as they chuckled at my getup, at the way I held myself, at the opportunity to mock what I had shown them but in this dream, I didn¡¯t care. My concern and fear felt fictitious, as fake as the scene before me felt. It wasn¡¯t so much that I was just wearing armor to school that made me feel strong, it was because I felt like myself. I felt like I was carrying the confidence; decision making, leadership abilities and friends I had made here in Dunn, with me.


    Somehow, knowingly, I turned to the bleachers and saw them; Killian, Kappa, Silas and Drew all sitting and watching me, eager to cheer me on. Even Jessica was there but she wore her armor instead of her gym outfit. I did a double take and glanced back at the class who was still laughing and Jessica was still there; a version of her from before with neatly combed hair and a soot-free face. I smiled at the class this time, understanding that they were laughing at me because I was different, because I didn¡¯t fit in but somehow; knowing those on the bleachers were there for me, to support me, it felt okay. The bleachers were clapping and cheering wildly, Killian hollering in support of me and I laughed as Mr. Miller began to walk towards me.


    At first I was nervous, I gripped my bow tighter and motioned for an arrow, but something about the way the approached made me second guess. His smile was less sinister, more pained and honest and when he arrived before me he turned to the bleachers, to my friends and then paused before looking back at me.


    ¡°I¡¯m proud of you.¡± He said in a way that felt genuine and as he reached out to shake my hand the scene melted away to reveal the dim, grimy, torch lit walls of a dungeon.

 Chapter 33

    It was actually the clang of metal that woke me but I got a good solid ten seconds of quiet before hearing the terrible clattering again. The dungeon walls were a rich brown with green slimy moss covering them which meant only one thing; we were in the castle and were locked in a cage. I turned my head only a little before the shooting pain that had momentarily ceased started up again and I cringed at the aching in my neck. Drew was sitting next to me with his hand chained against the stone wall of the dungeon but he had yet to see me awake. He was eagerly watching the others try their luck at breaking open the door and with each clang I could see him anxiously debate between reinforcement or instruction, ¡°Just¡­did you try near the lock again?¡± he said pained as if expecting backlash.


    Through a bark Jessica said, ¡°Yes Drew. Can you not see us trying it again and again and again.¡±


    He moved his head back as if dodging her wrath and after a moment said, ¡°Sorry, I know, sorry¡­¡± and turned towards me, ¡°h-hey! Guys, Lester¡¯s up!¡± he said and in an instant I head the clattering of whatever they had been trying to bash the door with fall to the floor and a sea of hands touching me. Jessica leaned into my view and Kappa sort of nudged her out a bit in a way that seemed kind.


    ¡°Are you okay?¡± Kappa said, a genuine fear on her voice. I tried to sit up but felt dizzy and I could hear Killian remark.


    ¡°Nay, stay down laddie,¡± quietly as I decided to stay put for a moment.


    ¡°What happened?¡± I asked and I could feel the dried blood crack and flake around my mouth and nose as I spoke. I must¡¯ve looked terrible and I could see the concern on their faces as Jessica spoke, ¡°After you passed out we didn¡¯t have much of a choice; we were short a man and they got the drop on us, besides¡­¡±


    ¡°We weren¡¯t outnumbered!¡± Killian shouted in protest to an argument that must have been going on long before I woke, ¡°One Dwarf counts for three men, I keep telling ye this¡­¡±


    ¡°Even one bound and gagged without his axe?¡± She said in exasperation.


    He pursed his lips and after a moment said, ¡°Fine, one dwarf counts for two men when bound, I¡¯ll grant ya that.¡± She rolled her eyes and I eventually managed to sit up.


    ¡°They threw us in the cage and covered it, there must be a lift cause the next time they opened the gate and threw back the cover we were pressed against the open gate of the prison cell. Ergon held Drew as they locked him in place and they left us.¡± Jessica said.


    ¡°The men too?¡± She nodded yes and I looked to Killian. He was clearly ashamed that they didn¡¯t make more of an effort to escape when they had the chance but I gave him a nod of appreciation.


    The cage was large and built into the cavern wall. The thick wrought iron bars that held us in were draped in green slime and the floor was damp. The dim flickering torches that illuminated the area outside the cage offered little to no light and as I searched around I noticed someone was missing.


    ¡°Where¡¯s Silas,¡± I said, a fear I was unable to hide rattling on my voice. Jessica and Kappa shared a look as Sarah who had been quietly sitting in the corner looking wholly disinterested towards the hallway beyond the gate piped up.


    ¡°Is that the little Goblin dude?¡± We all turned to her and after a second Killian said.


    ¡°Ye be still here?¡± Drew shared a look as if to say the same and I spoke up,A case of literary theft: this tale is not rightfully on Amazon; if you see it, report the violation.


    ¡°Yes, did you see what happened?¡±


    ¡°Ya while you guys were all whatever he slipped away I think.¡±  Jessica stood up and walked over to her with an annoyed expression.


    ¡°Why didn¡¯t you say that when I asked you earlier?¡± Sarah shrugged and looked back out the cage towards the hallway.


    With confusion Kappa looked back at us and said, ¡°Well at least he got away.¡± She sighed heavily and after a beat said, ¡°Which way is out of here bud, we¡¯re trying to get the door open and when we do we need to know the way out.¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t know.¡± I said and I could see the wave of concern wash over them.


    ¡°What do you mean you don¡¯t know,¡± Drew said in a way that was more confused than upset.


    ¡°I mean I don¡¯t know, Silas¡­ Marcus¡­ my brother was the one that built all these, honestly I just coded it but didn¡¯t follow a lot of it.¡±


    Drew sighed heavily and went to talk but before he could Sarah said, ¡°The Goblin one, right?¡±


    ¡°Yes!¡± Jessica barked back without turning and looked towards Kappa with a frustrated look that said what is the deal with her.


    I continued, ¡°I also don¡¯t think the door will open, they¡¯re all magically locked.¡± I said flatly and for the first time I felt hopeless. I pushed myself against the wall next to Drew and threw my head back. Drew made a face that said hey, it¡¯s okay buddy but as went to move his hand towards me to comfort the chain went taut and he stopped five inches from my face awkwardly.


    Kappa paced back and forth and after a beat said, ¡°It¡¯ll be okay, Silas knows the way maybe he¡¯ll come down and¡­¡±


    ¡°Even if that were the case and he wanted to do that Kappa, there are four stories between us and him. He¡¯d need to sneak past the guards, past Hestle and Ergon and Millicent himself and somehow steal a spare key.¡± I sighed heavily in defeat as everyone in the group felt their lowest.


    Everyone except Killian.


    ¡°Nonsense.¡± He said as he pushed himself up. We looked towards him and with a scrunched face he said, ¡°I have taught ye all well, I¡¯ve taught a great deal of skills to each of ya...¡± He said and we shared a confused look, ¡°now let me tell ye something ya have taught me in return.¡±


    He walked to the gate and pointed out, ¡°That world out there is lovely but can be a lonely place.¡± He paused holing his finger for a moment, ¡°I¡¯ve seen ye each fight and care, kiss and scream¡­¡± he said and as he said kiss I saw Kappa¡¯s face burn red for a second, ¡°but ye always had each other. Even when ye separated and went yer own ways, it was clear that ye were going to stay by each other¡¯s side in the end.¡±


    With an impressed smile I looked to Kappa, then to Jessica who was also doing the same. Our eyes met for a second and in the dim light of the cave she smiled. Maybe it was seeing me passed out or the dire situation we were in but I knew in that moment that Jessica could one day forgive me and that our friendship wasn¡¯t over, not yet at least.


    ¡°Me clan left me and ye took me in as one of yer own. There¡¯s a word for what we¡¯ve become here¡­¡± Killian said and after a beat I answered.


    ¡°Family.¡± I pushed myself up through the aching back and sore neck and stood looking at the others. After a beat Jessica, Kappa and I walked to Drew and hugged each other, Killian threw his arms on the outside of us and we held each other for a long beat before breaking the hug.


    I breathed a long breath through my nose and after a beat Killian said, ¡°Actually I was going ta say imprisoned, but yer one is good too.¡± He said and we all laughed warmly.


    ¡°Thank you Killian, I needed that.¡± I said.


    With a nod of her head Kappa added, ¡°I was wrong about you Dwarf, thank you.¡± I took a breath and turned to the cage as a thought ran through my head, ¡°Now how long have you been hollering and such?¡±


    Jessica shrugged and said, ¡°Awhile, why?¡± I turned to the dim light of the cave and then back to the party.


    ¡°My parents aren¡¯t down here,¡±


    ¡°What does that mean?¡± Drew said and after a beat I said,


    ¡°I don¡¯t know but if Silas did try to follow us, he may be in need of help.¡±


    ¡°The little Goblin.¡± Sarah said.


    I turned to her almost shouting and said, ¡°YES Sarah Jesus, what are you not getting here?¡± The others joined me but Sarah just ignored my anger.


    ¡°No, I mean¡­ the little goblin.¡± She said this time pointing out past the cage at the hallway outside. We turned to see Silas sneaking towards us, a key ring in his hands.

 Chapter 34

    It only took a few minutes for Silas to unlock the gate and unchain Drew from the wall. We welcomed him warmly and as soon as the business of getting us free was out of the way I eagerly asked, ¡°How did you make it down here safely?¡±


    ¡°They didn¡¯t look at me much when we first met them at the Bee and the Barrel,¡± Silas explained, ¡°So I didn¡¯t think they¡¯d notice me gone. I followed from a distance and since I knew the layout of the castle it was easy to get in. I knew they¡¯d bring you to the dungeon.¡±


    Drew rubbed his wrists as he joined all of us outside the cell and said, ¡°Well done Silas, I think we¡¯re all impressed but how did you get the key ring?¡±


    Silas looked to the key ring in his hand as if it were the first time he saw it, ¡°This is a set Cletus had.¡± I jerked my head back in confusion.


    ¡°Cletus?¡± I said. Silas nodded as if I were to understand and as I grew silent he realized I required more information.


    ¡°Cletus is the jailer, remember?¡± he said and I searched my memory.


    I shrugged after a minute and said, ¡°Fair enough, you pick pocketed him?¡±


    Silas shook his head no, ¡°he wasn¡¯t there.¡± I raised an eyebrow but showed my appreciation regardless.


    ¡°Thanks Silas, you saved our skin.¡± Jessica nodded in agreement and Killian slapped him on the back, ¡°Did you notice anything else while you were on your way down here?¡±


    ¡°No one is here.¡± He said flatly,


    ¡°What do you mean?¡±


    ¡°Cletus¡¯s set was on his desk but no one was there, there isn¡¯t anyone in the castle I could see.¡± I turned to the others.


    ¡°You didn¡¯t hear anyone when they were wheeling you in here?¡± They shook their heads no. I thought on it curiously and after a moment said, ¡°Well I guess let¡¯s look for Mom and Dad.¡± Silas looked around as if to see them.


    ¡°They aren¡¯t in the prison.¡± He said more a statement.


    ¡°No and there are still three stories above us¡­¡± I started to move and Drew cleared his throat, ¡°what?¡± I said.


    ¡°Well, maybe we should get the backup from the library first.¡± I was feeling nervous about the empty castle and concerned about my parents.


    ¡°No, let¡¯s keep moving,¡± I shot back.


    ¡°Well, hold on now¡­¡± Kappa said holding her hands out, ¡°let¡¯s be rational about this.¡±


    ¡°I am being rational,¡± I said with a fire on my tongue, ¡°Our parents have been missing for days, Kap¡­ days. If Millicent hasn¡¯t already killed them it¡¯s possible that he¡¯s putting them through an untold amount of other terrible¡­¡± Kappa took a step forward and put a warm hand on my shoulder. My heart was beating fast and my face was flustered, I looked around at the others and saw only concern, care and kindness and I could feel myself calm.


    ¡°I know Lester, I can¡¯t imagine what you¡¯re going through.¡± She nodded as if to reinforce her point and held my eyes for a long time as I could feel myself melt beneath her finger tips.


    I took a breath and said, ¡°You¡¯re right Drew.¡± I nodded as I spoke, ¡°let¡¯s get the backup first and then when we find my parents we can get out right away.¡± It was of course the right plan, while we had the time and with Drew¡¯s hand now free, it was possible to access the library. I turned to Silas and said, ¡°Okay brother, where is the library?¡±


    We entered the main floor of the Castle after ascending a set of stone steps that grew increasingly more and more ornate with each floor. The main floor of the castle had a large double staircase in the lobby, a library, a dining hall, bedrooms, a garden, kitchen and a courtyard. With Kappa¡¯s help Silas had calculated out the approximate area that the library existed within and the courtyard seemed to be our best bet. With a nervous energy we exited the tight hallway of the stairs towards the foyer. The tall white stone of the pillars was magnificent as the sun soaked through the large open passage that lead to the courtyard. The stairs, which ran up either side of the doorway to the courtyard, were wide enough for ten people across and had an ornate and eccentric feel to them.Stolen story; please report.


    Walkways led to the east and west from the lobby towards the various rooms on this floor and as we began across the decorative stone floor work, I stopped,


    ¡°There is no one here.¡± I said almost in disbelief, Silas shrugged and slowed to a walk. I pursed my lips in thought and after a beat said, ¡°maybe we¡¯re going about this wrong.¡±


    Jessica turned around and said, ¡°I know your parents¡­¡± I shook my head no.


    ¡°I mean, what is this is, a trap?¡± I looked to Drew and he nodded, ¡°Millicent was smart enough to know exactly how to capture us and has been a step ahead for some of it.¡±


    ¡°We should prepare.¡± Silas said and I nodded understanding where he his mind was heading.


    ¡°Prepare how, for battle you mean?¡± Kappa said earnestly.


    ¡°He means The Alder Arrow,¡± I said, ¡°It¡¯s the most powerful weapon in the game.¡± Jessica¡¯s eyes grew wide and nodded in agreement.


    ¡°Anything that will help us is a smart idea.¡±


    I could see hesitancy wash over Drew who had seen the least amount of combat and I said, ¡°This is a one hit, one kill type of world Drew.¡±


    ¡°Then wouldn¡¯t that mean the same for them?¡±


    I nodded but said, ¡°Yes, only, the arrow, if it¡¯s anything like the game, eats through armor and magic like it¡¯s nothing.¡± I looked at him and after a beat said, ¡°I don¡¯t think we can beat him without it.¡± Drew nodded and we diverted our path to the library and the area which held the Arrow.


    The library of Millicent¡¯s castle was as breathtaking as the marble stone work and decorative ceilings that existed within each room. Shelves upon shelves of dark oak covered the walls, filled to the brim with scrolls, spells, manuals and tomes. It stretched three stories high and the ceiling had an illusion spell cast upon it to give the appearance of a sunny sky. We entered and all caught ourselves staring at the sights for a few seconds before focusing on the task at hand.


    The Alder Arrow was hidden and part of a quest reward for beating Millicent. A note on him would reveal the location of a hidden staircase behind one of the bookcases in his library. If you pulled the right book, the bookcase would open and following the stairs down would lead you to his study. It was all end game stuff that came after you killed him but since we knew the game and were the ones who built it, we could skip over the mess of trying to kill him and get the arrow first. I walked to the large bookshelf in the middle of a long line on the right and looked for the book,


    ¡°It was on this shelf, right?¡± I said to Silas who shrugged and looked back towards the sky. Silas knew I had hidden it in the library but since I had tried to keep the story away from him as much as possible, in order for him to enjoy the game when I finished, accessing it was entirely on me.


    Jessica walked up after a few minutes, ¡°Need help?¡±


    ¡°I can¡¯t remember the name of the book I hid it behind¡­¡± I said searching them with my eyes, ¡°I remember it being something personal to me ¨C a bit meta ¨C but can¡¯t for the life of me¡­¡±


    Jessica stood next to me and searched as well, as she did she said, ¡°Hey, I may have been too harsh yesterday. I think maybe calling off a friendship over a terrible, terrible mistake is a little premature,¡± She turned to me, ¡°mainly because I do think you¡¯re a good person who made a bad choice.¡±


    I looked at her and smiled. She turned back to the book shelf and let out a little ¡®aha¡¯ sound, stepping forward to pull at a book. Which a click the bookcase sprung forward.


    ¡°Amazing!¡± I said excitedly, ¡°which book was it¡­¡± I said and eyed the spine which read Carver Welles and I turned to her as the others began stepping through the open bookcase, ¡°how on earth did you guess that?¡± I said with a confused expression.


    ¡°It was your DnD character¡¯s name,¡± she said with a smile before following Silas in, leaving Kappa and I.


    I turned to her and said, ¡°She remembered my DnD character,¡±


    ¡°I know,¡± Kappa said with a pained smile, ¡°I don¡¯t think you ever needed to edit her.¡± She walked into the bookcase and started down the stairs leaving me and as I was about to follow I saw Sarah.


    ¡°Oh, hey, I keep forgetting you¡¯re here.¡± I said. She walked past me and down the stairwell towards the basement leaving me with alone with my thoughts. A few moments later I shook the thought from my mind and followed.


    The study was exactly as I had imagined it only, as was the case everywhere else, real. It was clear that Millicent hadn¡¯t used it since being transported into this ¡°reality¡± as it was the first place we had come across that had dust on everything. I reached the bottom of the stairs last to see the dim, orange hue of the Alder Arrow coming from the far end of the room. I pushed past the others and walked to the glass case that held it and studied it. Silas walked to a small shelf and picked up a small trinket and, pulling a sheet of paper out his pocket, crossed something off. Then he turned to me and said, ¡°I levelled up.¡±


    ¡°Good job buddy,¡± I said but was looking at the arrow. The shaft was carved black wood and the tip was made of diamond. The actual feathers were of an orange material that I had never bothered to describe but in my mind it was exactly how I imagined it look and after a moment I picked it up and put it in my quiver.


    I turned to the others and with a smile said, ¡°Alright, let¡¯s do this thing.¡±

 Chapter 35

    ¡°But there¡¯s only one!¡± Killian said for the third time by the time we reached the lobby again,


    ¡°Yes Killian, I know but it¡¯s a good one and it doesn¡¯t break!¡± I said, having explained this now for the second time.


    ¡°But ye have to go get tit!?¡± He said, still confused at the prospect,


    ¡°Killian,¡± I said and stopped this time, ¡°it¡¯s a really, really strong arrow. You only need to fire it once, okay?¡± He scoffed and rolled his eyes as I pressed forward to catch up with Drew who was standing looking out at the courtyard.


    ¡°Still no sign of life.¡± He said nervously and we shared a look, ¡°you ready to do this?¡± he asked.


    ¡°Sure am.¡± I said with a waver in my voice that was undeniable.


    We walked out into the orange early evening sun that bathed the courtyard in light. Large trees, bushes and even a small brook all occupied the green area that was the center of this castle. The high wall stretched above us but within this area it was open to the blue sky above.


    We headed past a large willow tree and just beyond Silas said, ¡°This is it.¡± I looked to Kappa who nodded and I turned to Jessica, ¡°Well I¡¯m going to pop in and get the files from the PC in the library so I guess sit tight for a few,¡± Killian did a curt nod and nudged Sarah who stood next to him.


    ¡°Ye ready for a fight should it come?¡± he said and she did a half laugh as if not really understanding what he meant.


    ¡°Shouldn¡¯t someone come with you?¡± Jessica asked.


    ¡°Why?¡± I asked a bit unsure.


    ¡°Well the files need to be navigated and time is of the essence, one person can run for the USB and other can get the files,¡± she said very matter-of-factly and I could see Kappa nodding along. Despite having tried to put the thought from my mind, I was nervous of the creatures I had seen and failed to share with anyone. I swallowed and was about to tell them when a loud, familiar voice came from the lobby entrance.


    ¡°THIS is why I¡¯m the brains of the operation,¡± Hestle walked slowly with Ergon in tow, his voice loud and pompous as he walked towards us across the fading light of the courtyard, ¡°you know,¡± he said as he removed a glove from his right hand finger by finger, ¡°I said to Ergon that these were wily ones,¡± he gestured to us with his now naked hand as Ergon grunted, ¡°I told him that even though left you in the dungeon that you would find a way to escape.¡± He stopped walking and continued to remove his other glove. I turned to Drew to see if he could do something but remembered that he used time-lapse, his most powerful spell, less than 24 hours ago and they took over a day to recharge.


    ¡°This isn¡¯t your fight Hestle¡­¡± I started to say but he cut me off.


    ¡°Oh but it is,¡± he put both gloves in his pocket, ¡°see we get paid by leaving you in the cells, it doesn¡¯t work if you escape.¡± He said and crossed his arms behind his back. Though I couldn¡¯t see him, I knew he was feeling for his daggers.


    ¡°Why leave us in the cage?¡± I asked.


    ¡°Why? Cause the man paying wanted it that way; we¡¯re told to leave you in the cages and the rest I couldn¡¯t care less about¡­¡±


    ¡°What about my parents?¡± Silas said and Hestle¡¯s eyes darted down towards him.


    ¡°Ahhh so that¡¯s how you got out,¡± he said leaning over onto his knees as if talking to a child, ¡°hey little guy!¡± Silas growled an admittedly cute growl, for the first time acting like a goblin, ¡°but I¡¯m afraid I don¡¯t know what you mean.¡± He said standing back up.


    ¡°He means my parents; two people, older, dark skin, they were bought from the Orcs in the mines near Largen¡­¡±


    ¡°My mines!¡± Killian shouted. His axe was in hand and he was ready for a fight as were Kappa, Drew and Jessica but Hestle and Ergon were uncomfortably calm.Unauthorized usage: this tale is on Amazon without the author''s consent. Report any sightings.


    ¡°Riiiiiiight,¡± Hestle said as if earnestly remembering, ¡°Yes that was more of a finder¡¯s fee, Millicent came to get them himself that time.¡± I turned to Drew and we were both thinking the same thing. If Millicent came to them that means they were looking for us from the get go, even before my parents may have revealed information about me, about this world. My mind tried to stay in the moment as Hestle said, ¡°Whatever the case we¡¯re going to have to make you head back downstairs. The Goblin too this time.¡±


    ¡°You and what army?¡± Killian said and I slapped my face, as Hestle grinned but before he could answer I said.


    ¡°Killian!¡±


    ¡°What?¡± the dwarf said as if being scolded,


    ¡°You never say ''you and what army'' in a moment like this!¡±


    ¡°Why?¡± He said, a pout on his face,


    ¡°Because he¡¯s just gonna say this army and then a bunch of sweaty goons show up,¡± Jessica said and I nodded at her.


    ¡°Ya man, don¡¯t give him that satisfaction,¡± I said as Hestle watched us with confusion,


    ¡°Well what would ye want me to say!¡± Killian barked.


    ¡°I dunno something bad ass like; let me axe you a question.¡± I said and Ergon turned his head as if a dog trying to understand. Drew made a sound that said that¡¯s not that clever and Kappa gave me a so-so hand wave, ¡°or ¨C I dunno. What did you say again?¡± I turned to Hestle, prompting him for his line.


    ¡°Uhhh,¡± Hestle turned to Ergon who shrugged and said in a reciting tone, ¡°We¡¯re going to have to make you to head back downstairs?¡±


    ¡°Right, right,¡± I said and frantically thought, ¡°then we could say something like, You can try.¡±


    ¡°Ya, ya or You can make me a cake but you can try to da da da,¡± Drew added and I shot a gross look his way, ¡°What?¡± he said.


    ¡°Oh, oh, I have one,¡± Jessica said and I pointed to her, ¡°Give me the line again,¡± she asked and I turned to Hestle and prompted him, with a confused and slow delivery he said it and Jessica shot back, ¡°Remember when we asked what you wanted? Us neither.¡±


    ¡°Hey, not bad!¡± I said, ¡°Kappa you got one?¡±


    ¡°You have your entire life to be a jerk. Why not take today off?¡± She said and Jessica, Drew and I made a reactive hoot.


    ¡°Oh wow, that had to sting!¡± I shouted from across the courtyard as I heard the movement on the balcony above. As our laughter died down I could see the people above readying their arrows and Hestle cleared his throat.


    ¡°If you¡¯re quite done, I think I¡¯d like to finish my thought?¡± He said as the creaking of the bowstrings above us sounded out. I swallowed hard and he continued, ¡°What I was about to say is that we¡¯re going to have to make you head downstairs. However, after that wonderful display of cleverness, I think I¡¯ve reconsidered. Millicent has requested that anyone brought should remain alive however as far as I care, this is now personal. Both Ergon and I have travelled across the lands to track you down and now that we have you ¨C I care less about appeasing Millicent and more about ending you once and for all.¡±


    We shared a nervous look amongst each other; Jessica to me, then to Drew. I locked eyes with Kappa and Killian for a second before taking a deep breath and as I was about to throw down my bow I noticed Silas. He wasn¡¯t looking at me, nor anyone else, he was gritting his teeth and before I could say anything he took a few steps forward and said, ¡°Good story, but in what chapter do you shut the fuck up?¡±


    What happened next was a combination of a few things I had failed to realize. The first being how, despite Jessica making valuable points about treating the game like reality and exploiting it, Silas kept playing. He did quests while on his own, before he met me and even on the way to Millicent¡¯s. He¡¯s so small and quiet that half the time we didn¡¯t even realize he was gone. This wouldn¡¯t be a big deal really except that Silas was the only one of us who realized the benefit to reaching the maximum level. See, and this was the second thing I realized; while other things worked like real life (damage, food, sleep) ¨C magic didn¡¯t. I knew this, Drew knew this, the others knew this but most importantly Silas knew this. He also knew that his Rogue class had one, bad-ass ultimate magical ability at max level that was game changing and what we experienced next was exactly that.


    To say Silas moved quicker than light would be a mistake, but it was damn close. In his eyes, time must have stopped because all we could see was a green streak of light that ran between each of the dozen guards above us. As the green blur passed each fell over immobilized and in an instant we were face to face with Ergon and Hestle alone. Silas stopped right back where he started with the fight now in our favour.


    ¡°Well.¡± Hestle said after a long pause and drew both his daggers.


    I turned to the others and said, ¡°Leave the big one to me.¡±

 Chapter 36

    Bolts of lightning began shooting out from Drew¡¯s fingertips as the party split in three directions.


    With a confidence that surprised me, Drew ran up the middle straight towards them while Silas, Killian and I cut to the left. Jessica and Kappa went right and Sarah, bless her heart, dove into the bushes exerting the most energy I had seen her use. Ergon turned towards the left to meet the three of us as Drew fired large, impressive bolts of lightning toward him. Despite the awesome nature of the display; the lightning seemed almost inconsequential to him as he ran to us.


    On the right-side Kappa took a knee and began quickly firing arrows at Hestle while Jessica continued to run. With impressive dexterity he dodged the first of Kappa''s arrows and deflected the second but Jessica covered the distance in only a few strides and, with a swiftness that would impress even the most seasoned video game player, she dropped to her knees, skidding towards him. Even if his attention weren''t focused on dodging Kappa''s impressive aim, Jessica carried herself towards him with such a confidence that I don''t think he could''ve avoided her if he tried. She arrived at his legs with both daggers drawn and leaped up the moment her knees met his boots. As she jumped, she dragged her blades across his stomach and chest, swiping up in a lunge that seemed to carry out almost in slow motion. I heard his cry from the far side of the courtyard just as Silas, Killian and I met the massive brute.


    Silas, as if using us as scenery, ran up Killian''s back and jumped from his shoulder only to be swiped out of the air by Ergon. I snapped to my brother who slammed against the stone ground of the courtyard and felt the adrenalin pumping through my veins run ice cold. Killian either didn''t see or chose not to react and instead continued towards Ergon. The massive brute swung low, narrowly missing Killian as the dwarf cackled loudly. With a bellowing grunt Ergon reeled back to take another swing just as Killian ran between his legs, running his axe along the inside of his right leg as he did. Ergon let out a howl and knelt, favouring the right leg.


    I watched Ergon topple to the ground under the weight of his own body. The cut Killian had given him was deep and already I could see the blood pooling on the ground. Almost clumsily he fell to his knees and then all fours as I ran towards him drawing the Alder arrow. With a reach that caught me completely off guard he swept at my feet and sent me hard against the stone. I felt a sharp stinging in my back and through clenched teeth scrambled back towards the stone wall. I had just pressed my back against the wall to catch my breath when I saw Silas laying a few feet away; his eyes were still closed. I began to panic as I realized that he hadn''t moved since being thrown. I turned back to see Ergon standing up, but more worryingly he caught my gaze and saw that I was looking at Silas - and the look of worry that had brought me. With a monstrous smile he began towards us.


    I called to Drew but he had turned his attention to Hestle and the girls, sending a black smoke towards them which momentarily bound Hestle. Despite being almost entirely incapacitated Hestle still managed to free a single hand and threw a enchanted bola towards Drew¡¯s feet which immediately attached and sent him to the ground. I turned back helpless to see Ergon standing before Silas who still hadn''t moved. With a sinister, inhuman smile, Ergon went to grab Silas but instead let out a pained scream. From behind I could hear Killian muttering all manner of curses as he sunk his axe into Ergon''s back. I did a half fist pump and stood up as Ergon reeled back however my excitement was short lived as, in one swift motion, he leaned forward and lifted Silas up by the skull. Ergon turned quickly, flinging Killian from his back and turned to me. He held my brother high above his head and threatened, ¡°I will crush him.¡±


    I turned to the others to see both Jessica and Kappa landing blow after blow upon Hestle. I watched as Kappa fired another arrow that sunk deep into Hestle''s arm, joining three others she had apparently had success with. Jessica, who continued to land blow after blow on him, circled around with her daggers drawn. I turned back to Ergon, realizing I would have to deal with him alone. I breathed fire through my lungs, my eyes stung with sweat and tears and with a confidence that ran throughout my entire body - I knocked the Alder Arrow. I lifted my bow, drew the string taut and for a moment everything moved in slow motion...


    Clich¨¦ right?


    Hey, what do you want me to say?


    Look, remember that scene in Saving Private Ryan? When Tom Hanks hits the beach and everything moves in slow motion; he sees the carnage of the world around him and everything is just... dying. I guess it was like that only... I guess my moment of clarity wasn''t the death and carnage. I hope it''s clear that I would do anything for Silas. I remember when all this started; when we first tried to complete the Stone Breaker quest and how a Skeleton nearly ended us; I was so scared when Silas got hit. Now here he was; hurt, unconscious... maybe worse and I had all the power to stop it. I could see it sing clean; I could see it move through Ergon¡¯s head and out the other side. He''d drop my brother and be dead before he hit the ground; it would save my brother¡¯s life and end his...


    But my slow-motion moment of clarity wasn''t for us and our situation; it was for theirs. Just as I was about to let the arrow loose, I saw Ergon¡¯s eyes dart towards Hestle. That same nervous look that I did moments ago when I saw Silas. It wasn''t hate or anger; it was fear. Fear of losing a loved one. I watched his eyes shift from Hestle to me as Jessica and Kappa continued to hurt him. In that moment I knew what I had to do.


    "Kap," I shouted and her attention shot towards me, "We''re done. It''s over. We''ve won." I said flatly.


    It took her a moment to understand what I was saying and even after Jessica had stopped, she still didn''t quite follow but as Ergon watched them lower their weapons and slowly put Silas down, it washed over them. It was oddly somber the way this lumbering creature walked over to his brother who had collapsed on the stone floor who still held a smile and picked him up. We watched them leave the courtyard silently.


    I had been at Silas''s side the moment he was dropped and through teary eyes I watched leaned over him.


    "Marcus? Hey buddy... please talk to me." I said sniffing hard as I stroked his dark green cheek. I closed my eyes hard and suddenly heard him cough. I opened my eyes quickly and watched him grin. I laughed in relief and hugged his small body a she came to.


    "You really scared me there, brother." I said letting the tears come fully now. Through half closed eyes Silas waited a beat and said, ¡°Don¡¯t tell mom and dad I swore,¡± I laughed and picked him up, Kappa nodded and took him from me and I turned to Drew, wiping the tears from my eyes. We all shared a knowing look and after a moment I was about to speak when Kappa said,


    "It was the right call."


    I nodded and turned to Drew,


    ¡°Let¡¯s do this.¡±


    Drew opened the portal to the real world and Jessica and I walked in. The plan was for her to head for the USB in Drew¡¯s desk drawer while I booted up the PC and readied the files for transfer. We stepped onto the soft brown low-pile carpet of the library and despite having already been through, it felt surreal. We were at the far end of the library and at the end of a long line of book shelves. It was far enough to make me nervous but close enough to still be within the walls of the library. We agreed to leave the portal open and as we entered, you could look back through to Dunn on the other side, it was a bizarre feeling. I turned to Jessica¡¯s strained face and watched her marvel at the world she had all but forgotten, ¡°Hey,¡± I said snapping her attention back to the task at hand.This book was originally published on Royal Road. Check it out there for the real experience.


    With a nod she said, ¡°Right,¡± and began for Drew¡¯s desk. I headed for the PC that I had left my files on and hoped that for whatever reason they hadn¡¯t been purged; the game after all was huge and these were community computers. I booted it up and thanked no one in particular under my breath. Ever since coming here previously I had the fear that nothing could move; after all the clocks weren¡¯t moving and everything mechanical seemed to have frozen along with the people. This opened a new slew of questions but for now I was content to see that since I was moving, things I touched could too and as I loaded the PC up I began searching for the files.


    It didn¡¯t take me long to find because I had left them on the desktop and as I waited for Jessica to return I opened the folder. It felt like revisiting an old friend and for a second I remembered fondly the times being here with Drew, examining code and learning how to build all this together. After a short while I turned to the direction Jessica walked and called out, ¡°Jessica?¡±


    There was no answer and suddenly I remembered what I had encountered last time and the things that moved in the frozen world. I stood up and bolted for the front counter just as Jessica popped her head up, ¡°Found it!¡± she said.


    ¡°You scared me,¡± I said angrily, with a confused face she shot back.


    ¡°Why?¡± I hesitated but having told enough half-truths I motioned for her to follow and because to tell her about the things I had seen.


    ¡°When I was here before there was something that moved, a few things actually,¡± we approached the computer and I plugged in the USB as the computer searched for it, ¡°I was heading back to the gateway when there were these creatures, these black, blurry, animal-like things¡­¡± I said and I could see her eyes grow wide as the computer found the USB and I copy pasted the files. It was a rather big game and as it counted down the time I turned back to her.


    ¡°What do you mean animal-like?¡± she asked.


    ¡°The walked on all fours while they were moving between the cars but when they chased after me.¡±


    ¡°They chased you?¡± She said, I could hear the fear in her voice.


    ¡°Yes,¡± and as I remembered I began to grow nervous as well, ¡°they did and they were fast, very, very fast.¡±


    The files were was 50% uploaded by the time we heard the first howl from just outside the front lobby. I watched the colour drain from Jessica¡¯s face as beads of sweat almost instantly began developing on both of our foreheads. I stood and looked around as if to find an immediate solution in a small-town library.


    ¡°What do we do?¡± She said frantically and I pointed under the large desk that the bay of computers sat upon. It was wide and low and knowing how fast they were, the only thing we would be able to find in short time. We clambered under the desk as a second howl came from Mr. Drew¡¯s desk and a moment later it entered the library.


    The creature had a look about it as if it were put through a filter. What looked like hair was almost blurred and the black matt of its coat was almost pixelated, staring at it hurt both our eyes and as it entered we could smell it. It smelt like burnt gears; mechanical and hot like a computer running. A plastic, metal smell that was fresh and vaguely robotic, but it was anything but a robot. It carried itself like a large dog but walked on two feet, inhuman as if trying to mimic a man. I looked to Jessica who was shaking and I tried to think. Any minute it would be on us and with the height of the desk it was only a matter of time before it saw us. I couldn¡¯t see the monitor from below and with a held breath, peaked my head up a bit to see the completed upload on the USB.


    I leaned back down as the creature opened it mouth and called again, this time we saw its teeth; black as its coat but sharp, jagged awkward teeth that stuck out every which way. I turned to Jessica again and mouthed the words, on three we run. She shook her head no but I nodded yes and held up three fingers. Then two fingers. Then one.


    Jessica bolted from under the desk, scrambling to a run from her crouched positions and nearly toppled over as she stood. The creature saw her immediately and bolted towards her giving me a moment to hop up and grab the USB. As soon as I wrapped my fingers around it I started screaming and hollering to draw its attention. Jessica had bolted down one of the thin aisles of books with the creature hot on her heels but it stopped at my scream. With sweaty palms I slid the USB in my pocket and slapped the desk, continuing to drawn its attention, and as I did the creature turned from Jessica and howled towards me.


    I locked eyes with it for a second; the wispy smoke of it clawing for the ceiling like black frost on a hot day. The creature¡¯s eyes were white and pupil less and as the howl rang out loud and fierce, I couldn¡¯t move. It began towards me, slower than it did for Jessica and as it grew closer I could feel the sweat staining my shirt. I tried to move my feet but I was overcome with fear as I watched the things face and in moments it would be on me. Just as I was sure I was done for the creature cried out, this time in pain, as a fully-loaded book return cart on wheels slammed into it, dragging it across the brown carpet and sending it into the white wall of the library. I turned and saw Jessica blow a strand of long hair from her face and nod to me.


    ¡°Let¡¯s get out of here,¡± I smiled reactively at her but watched as her expression fall. I turned to follower her eye line and saw a second and third creature enter the library. I turned and ran just as they growled loudly and set off towards us.


    We barreled through the library shelves, pulling handfuls of books to the ground as we did. I was hoping they would impede their progress but looking over my shoulder I could see them hop easily over any stack we threw in their way. As we rounded the last corner of the bookshelves I was praying that Drew had left the portal open and as the thrum of the black gateway became audible over the drawing of our own breathes, I shouted to Jessica, ¡°Jump through, I¡¯ll throw something in their way¡­¡± I looked around but before I could spot a bookshelf large enough to block them I felt her fingers wrap around mine.


    ¡°No way.¡± She said as we rounded the corner and saw the portal. We could see the others standing on the other side; the evening light from the courtyard, the expressions on their faces distorted through the rippled effect on the portal and with every ounce of energy we leapt forward and fell through the gateway onto the stone floor of the castle courtyard. My heart beat wildly in my ears but over the pounding blood I could hear Killian.


    ¡°What be that?!¡± he said, pointing with the head of his Axe towards the still open portal. The creatures we snapping their jaws at the portal, trying to get through but clearly unable as Kappa stepped forward and helped me up. She too was looking at the things on the other side and with a bewildered expression told Drew to close the portal. With a sapping sound the gateway closed and we were once again in the quiet of world of Dunn.


    Kappa, adding to Killian¡¯s question, said, ¡°What was that Lester?¡±


    I turned to the others and said, ¡°I¡¯m sorry; I meant to tell you¡­¡± Kappa shook her head as if to say there¡¯s been enough apologizing, just tell us what¡¯s going on. I nodded to her and said, ¡°They are these creatures; very fast, very scary and animal-like¡­.¡± I said turning to Jessica for confirmation.


    She was still catching her breath but after a beat said, ¡°Yes and I¡¯ll double his thoughts on scary.¡± Drew made a worried face through his own tired pants,


    ¡°Substituting the code will take at least three times the length of what you just did.¡± He wiped the sweat from his brow nervously and added, ¡°How are we supposed to fend them off for that long?¡± I shook my head in my own lack of answers.


    The courtyard light was all but gone leaving only the torchlight to illuminate our faces. Each of us wore a defeated expression; one that felt equally nervous and doubtful of getting home once and for all. Despite being together and having a copy of Dunn in my pocket, I could see that we had never felt lower. That was until the crisp, clear articulate voice of Millicent sounded out from the balcony that overlooked the courtyard above us said, ¡°Lester Dunn, I have been waiting for you.¡±

 Chapter 37

    I would have been impressed with our speed, had it worked.


    Honestly, I was taken aback with the speed in which Kappa drew her bow and nocked an arrow, the agility that Killian showed as he flipped his axe off of his back and readied himself; I would¡¯ve been blown away. Hell, even I had the Alder Arrow ready and aimed at Millicent¡¯s head in less than a second¡­ but I did say would have been impressed, didn¡¯t I? I say would¡¯ve been because unlike Drew, Millicent hadn¡¯t used his time-lapse spell within the last 24 hours and before any of us could fire everyone but me was frozen.


    Am I being unfair? I little bit right? Ya okay, I¡¯m sorry. I was impressed anyway; who cares if they were suspended in animation for almost five times as long as Drew¡¯s spell? Who cares if he cast black binding on me (the black smoke spell Drew had used on Hestle) and I was stuck to the spot¡­ who cares if Millicent had obviously reached his max level? NOT ME (he said unconvincingly). I suppose all of this has taught me to be more kind to myself and others though and for that reason alone - you bet your bottom dollar that I was impressed. We are an impressive group¡­ errr were an impressive group.


    THAT BEING SAID it didn¡¯t really amount to a hill of beans because we were all stuck in position as Millicent casually walked down the stone steps that led from the floor above towards the courtyard. As I mentioned, a powerful enough spell could keep them suspended for almost fifteen minutes and the black binding was as long as he held his concentration so if he was cleverly using a few high powered abilities back to back, we were completely stuck. That¡¯s okay though, I didn¡¯t expect us to live that long as Millicent touched down onto the stone of our level. As he walked into the dark of the court he cast a dancing light spell which filled the entire area with soft blue orbs that bathed the entire scene in a dream-like hue. With a menace that felt almost surreal he entered the blue light of the yard and as his visage came into view, I realized we were about to die.


    I had created Millicent as the games antagonist, the ultimate rival in a world of my creation. For that reason he wasn¡¯t just the villain of the game but one made for me; my nemesis. I remembered not being sure of what to make him or her at first. I had drafted many versions; an Orc general, a powerful witch, the king of giants - all of which seemed fitting but none fit so well as Principal Miller. His look, his stats, they were as close as I could guess and as real as I saw him. For lack of a better word I imported his entire personality into the game. I had used my real life bully as a model for the nemesis that stood before us and in that dim light of the courtyard; it was exactly what I had made. Mr. Miller stood there before us.


    My mouth ran dry and my stomach tensed as if my body prepared for a blow. He stood draped in violet robes with a blank expression on his face and studied us. He looked at each of our faces as if trying to understand and after he a long look, landed on mine. He cleared his throat and said,


    ¡°Lester what on earth did you do?¡±


    His voice was simple, unassuming and he said it with a bizarre inflection, almost as if annoyed but with a tinge of humor. It was almost as if he were impressed. I could only watch him and after a minute he added, ¡°Well?¡±


    I arched an eyebrow through the wispy black tendrils of his spell that held my arms and legs in place and said, ¡°I came to rescue my parents and to end you.¡± It was said in the most intimidating voice I could manage but unfortunately I had put points into Charisma and persuade¡­ not Intimidation. Millicent laughed in a way that brought me back to Gym class. He shook his head in a dismissive way as if mocking me and I could feel the tears in my eyes welling.


    ¡°End me?¡± he said with a laugh, ¡°Lester it¡¯s me, Miller.¡± He said with a sincerity that felt out of place. ¡°Your parents are upstairs. They¡¯re completely fine and I¡¯ve been looking for you and Marcus since all of this started.¡± He gestured widely to the courtyard as if to say whatever this is. I shook my head no, denying his words, knowing that Millicent could be clever and¡­ and I didn¡¯t want it to be true.


    ¡°Then release us.¡± I dared him, the emotion causing my voice to crack slightly and with a snap he did,


    ¡°No fighting though, okay?¡± he said as everyone, including me was suddenly freed. I drew back on my bow with the Alder Arrow and aimed it at him.


    ¡°Lester this is not okay,¡± he said sternly and to my surprise, I heard the others object as well.


    Jessica put a hand on my arm and said, ¡°Hey, it¡¯s Miller, we had him for gym. Can you put the bow down,¡± but I couldn¡¯t focus on her through the tears in my eyes. I drew taut on the bow as Millicent put his hands up and the others waited nervously,


    ¡°Lester, put it down please,¡± Drew said, I could hear the tone in his voice; sympathetic and concerned but I didn¡¯t waiver as It was a tone I knew well. One of faux compassion and I felt the anger rise within me. As I stood there, my arrow pointing at Miller, all I could see was his office. All I could feel was the way he would talk down to me, the way he tried to ¡°help¡± me and for a moment I almost though I would let the arrow loose. Then I felt Kappa¡¯s hand on my shoulder. I didn¡¯t move and knowing everything she did about me and Miller, she stepped in front of me and in front of my bow.Stolen novel; please report.


    ¡°Hey,¡± she said as if it were just the two of us sitting by the lake outside the cave we had first explored together, the one with the Stone Breaker quest. There was calmness to her voice that washed over me as my eyes darted between her and Miller behind. I made a pained expression but she continued, ¡°It¡¯s me, Kappa.¡± She said with a smile, my eyes still bouncing between the two. I could hear the pluck of my tears on the leather of my arm and finally I met only her eyes.


    ¡°Okay.¡± I said through gritted teeth as my arms began to shake with the tension,


    ¡°I know how you are feeling; I understand that seeing him here is hurting you. I understand.¡± She said, ¡°But look around you.¡± I quickly glanced around at Jessica, Killian, Silas, Drew and yes, even Sarah and then back to Kap who said, ¡°These are your friends, they care about you. They trust you and they love you.¡± I could feel tears running hotly down my cheeks, ¡°they don¡¯t want you to do this.¡±


    ¡°He¡¯s¡­¡±


    ¡°I know,¡± she said softly, ¡°I know he feels like a villain in your mind; not just in the game.¡±


    ¡°He is¡­¡± I stuttered,


    ¡°¡­but we don¡¯t want this,¡± she said and gestured to the others, ¡°please, trust your friends.¡±


    I turned to them to see Jessica and Drew nodding yes, Killian was looking at his feet and even Silas had his hands clasp as if in a plead. I turned back to Kappa and slowly lowered my bow. We all stood in quiet for a moment and then Millicent said, ¡°Upstairs there are a number of rooms, plenty of food and your parents,¡± he said at me and Silas spoke up.


    ¡°Mom and Dad?¡± with a confused look Miller nodded and then said,


    ¡°Why don¡¯t you all head upstairs, I think I need to have a heart to heart with Lester.¡±


    As they filed upstairs Drew, Jessica, Kappa and even Killian all gave me a hug. When we were alone, Miller walked over to the stone archway that led to the garden and brought the dancing lights with him. The garden was filled with gorgeous vegetables and fruits and after a short walk he stopped by a stone slab and sat down. I could tell he wanted to ask me questions but instead he said,


    ¡°This place is beautiful.¡± He looked up to the star filled night sky and sighed, ¡°You know, I didn¡¯t grow up in town. I actually grew up in the country. My dad had a hard childhood; harder than either of us could imagine. He grew up in a time where people treated those with our skin colour like animals. Justice, fairness, they were things that weren¡¯t just unattainable, they were an impossible dream. Anyway, he didn¡¯t want that life for me, or at least not the kind of life in the city that he had, so he bought my mom and I a farm.¡± He said as if remembering it fondly, ¡°I remember the tall grass of the fields, the way they¡¯d dance in the wind. I remember the barren tree line in the winter that bordered the property. It was the only place I¡¯ve ever been that felt at home.¡± He looked down to the garden before him, ¡°Until this place.¡± He turned up to look at me and met my face for a long time. His expression was one that told a singular story of respect.


    Though it was dark, I watched him wipe his eyes and after a moment stood. He took a few paces towards the garden and continued his story, ¡°My mom had a garden like this one and I remember playing in it as a boy, digging up weeds for ten cents a pop,¡± he chuckled softly to himself, ¡°but my dad, he was the one that shaped me. He taught me how to be strong, how to make friends, how to build things with my hands¡­¡± he looked down at his open hands.


    I walked past him and sat on the stone bench behind him. He walked through the garden and stopped leaving a few rows of crops between us. In the distance an owl hooted and the wind picked up above us stirring the leaves in the courtyard behind us.


    ¡°When my dad died, my mom and I had to sell the place and move to town. When I got older I wanted to help kids the way my dad helped me, so I became a teacher.¡± He looked at me, ¡°I know you and I have never seen eye to eye but I never thought I was a villain to you, Les.¡± He said and I could feel the sadness in his voice, ¡°I saw you¡­¡± he stumbled a bit on his words and I could hear the emotion in his voice, ¡°I don¡¯t think I¡¯ll ever have a kid¡­¡±


    ¡°I know.¡± I said and his face shot up towards me.


    It¡¯s crazy how much an event or action can change your life or even your perspective. Maybe it was just age but I think Dunn caused me to make some harsh realizations about the way I was and the way I wanted to be. What can I say? I¡¯m human.


    ¡°I blamed you for something that I shouldn¡¯t have.¡± Miller¡¯s face watched me carefully through the dim lights, ¡°I think part of me wanted to think of you as a villain because it meant I could blame my problems on you. The truth is that¡­ I realize that the things you put in my path, the things you said that hurt me and the suggestions you made, they weren¡¯t meant to be cruel¡­¡±


    ¡°Things I said? Things I did?¡± he asked with genuine curiosity,


    ¡°Making me do pushups in front of the entire class, telling them that I was crying, showing them how weak I am¡­¡±


    ¡°That stuff doesn¡¯t make you weak,¡± he said dismissively,


    ¡°I know,¡± I shot back, ¡°but it felt weak.¡± He took a second and I could see the reaction to defend washed over him but instead he paused and thought. After a long moment, he nodded.


    ¡°I¡¯m sorry, Les.¡±


    He was and I knew it. I¡¯d known for a long time that Miller wasn¡¯t the villain I had wanted him to be but it was easier to be angry than it was to realize that he was human; just like me. If Jessica had taught me anything it was that people make mistakes and their actions don¡¯t always define them. The people had a chance to change.


    ¡°I¡¯m sorry too,¡± I said and we stood up and shook hands, ¡°nice robes by the way,¡± we laughed and after a beat he said,


    ¡°This place makes me feel like a kid again, Lester. What you did here, what you¡¯ve done, it¡¯s truly remarkable,¡± He said looking around then back at me, ¡°but why am I here?¡±


    Though the reasoning was thin, the closest I could figure was that the code must have thought his character was a save state, just like ours. The similarities between the Millicent I wrote and the Miller I based him on must have been so similar that the game thought they were the same person. I was happy that he was the only person based on someone I knew in real life. I explained as much as I could as we headed upstairs to meet the others and as we walked and talked I suddenly realized¡­ we we¡¯re going home.

 Chapter 38

    We¡¯ve had enough sap, right? Enough of the heart to hearts? I don¡¯t really need to go over seeing my parents; the hugging, crying, etc. etc.


    Look ¨C it happened you can trust me on that. Mom and dad looked surprisingly comfortable; it seemed that Miller had sent out the bounty and a carriage to collect them when he arrived in Dunn after finding an eerily informative spell cleverly called information scribe. It was a little gnome that answered any and all questions; something that I hadn¡¯t thought of and was particularly clever because he didn¡¯t just answer in game questions but also meta questions.


    Miller¡¯s first hours in the game we¡¯re pretty funny to us. He was so out of sorts and unfamiliar to the world of fantasy that a lot of what he had done was pretty random, including casting a number of accidental spells like Ice Storm and Tree Beard but luckily no one died. The long and short of it is that we were all together and decided as a group that we would head out the next morning back to the woods where I had first arrived.


    The ride back was pleasant. The days were nice, warm days. The carriage carried my mom, dad, Sarah, Miller and Silas. Drew sat upfront and drove the horses, something he was keen to try since he was unlikely to have a chance when we got home. It was especially heartwarming to see the adults experience this world, in a way they were the kids here.


    Jessica, Kappa, Killian and I rode our horses alongside, patrolling the tree line in case anyone should attack, this time however Killian and Kappa shared a horse; I had ridden with him enough and it was someone else¡¯s turn. Just after passing through Redmarsh, Jessica rode up alongside me and with a bit of regret she said, ¡°Excited to get home?¡±


    ¡°Yes and no,¡± I looked at the trees that bordered either side of the road, ¡°Remember when we first rode to Killian¡¯s campsite and you marveled at the world. I feel that now. It¡¯s pretty amazing here and it feels¡­ good to be a hero in this world.¡± She nodded in understanding,


    ¡°Doesn¡¯t mean you can¡¯t be a hero in the real one. People really like you.¡± She said with a smile and glanced over her shoulder to Kappa who rode behind us, ¡°You have a good friend in Kappa,¡± Jessica said almost as if the subject hadn¡¯t change and I nodded,


    ¡°I do. She also thinks highly of you,¡± I added and Jessica smiled.


    ¡°What are you going to do with her?¡± she asked as her smile faded a little bit and for a moment I didn¡¯t follow. Then her eyebrows arched into a look of concern and she continued, ¡°Her and Killian.¡±


    I hadn¡¯t thought about that but it only took a second for me to say,


    ¡°They¡¯ll come back with us.¡± She made a face that seemed a bit hesitant and I added, ¡°I¡¯d been debating it for a long time, about what all of this means, about what we¡¯ve created; whether on purpose or by accident it exists now. It¡¯s real.¡± I turned to look at them over my shoulder, ¡°They deserve to live.¡±


    ¡°What about everyone else in Dunn?¡± she asked earnestly. It was clear she too had been thinking about this and I shook my head,


    ¡°I don¡¯t know.¡±


    That was the truth. When I swapped out the code the original Dunn world would be removed and every living creature in this reality would be erased unless they came through with us. Sadly it wasn¡¯t realistic to bring everyone through to the real world; even if we had the means to explaining everything to everyone here, the world wasn¡¯t built for them. The thought of it made me uncomfortable because there was no clear solution and Jessica could see the problem she had brought up.


    ¡°Sorry,¡± she said with a shrug.


    ¡°No, you have nothing to apologize for, it was a problem I had been ignoring,¡± I saw her nod back and then she moved off to join Kappa behind me. After a moment of deep thought I trotted ahead to ride alongside Drew who sat in the driver¡¯s seat of the carriage. He had restated himself and while he kept a lot of his abilities he looked like himself for the first time. He smiled as I rode up beside him,


    ¡°Lovely day, as always,¡± he said.


    ¡°Have you thought about what will come of all this when we leave,¡± I asked, getting straight to the point. He had lived in Dunn as long as anyone and had experienced firsthand the humanity the NPC¡¯s had developed. His face fell, revealing that he too had been wrestling with the problem. With a dour note said, ¡°I really can¡¯t think of any other options.¡± We shared a look of regret. There was no more to be said.


    We reached the fork that split to Largen and decided to take a short break. Killian cooked for us, regaling my parents with a violent story about an Orc named Mantlebraun. My dad listened in a placating way that warmed my heart while my mom sat forward, surprisingly engaged in his tale. I tried to focus but ultimately my mind wouldn¡¯t rest and as Kappa fed the horses, I walked over and pulled her aside, ¡°I¡¯m going to back up this world,¡± I said and she nervously looked around,This novel is published on a different platform. Support the original author by finding the official source.


    ¡°You¡¯ll what?¡±


    ¡°I want to save a backup of this on my USB.¡±


    She shook her head in confusion; ¡°I thought you lost your USB?¡±


    ¡°I thought I did too but the more I think about it, the more I¡¯m sure I just left it in the computer.¡±


    ¡°But the code¡­¡± she started but I interjected,


    ¡°¡­is fine,¡± I said finishing her thought, ¡°I copied the code off of it and ran that version from my desktop. My USB still has the original code; the untouched version.¡± She took a breath as if about to protest but I finished, ¡°Kap, if we replace this file everything here will cease to exist. It will blink from existence. Everyone here the creatures, the animals, the friends we¡¯ve made¡­ gone. I can¡¯t let happen.¡± I could see her chewing over what I said as I continued, ¡°Seeing you; seeing what you¡¯ve become, how real you are, how real Killian is¡­ I can¡¯t do it. I can¡¯t erase an entire world.¡±


    Kappa took a long time before speaking and then said, ¡°Lester, that¡¯s the first bad idea you¡¯ve had that I can get behind.¡±


    A smile crept over my face and I said in a hushed tone, ¡°However that means I¡¯m going to need even more time in my room to save the file first. Which means¡­¡±


    ¡°Which means we¡¯ll need to cover you for that much longer,¡± she said in understanding, ¡°alright well, we need a plan.¡± She turned to the group who sat around the fire and with an authoritative voice said, ¡°When we get through we¡¯re going to have to stay out of trouble for a good long time¡­¡± she said with a chill.


    ¡°Why?¡± my dad said and I held up a hand to pause him.


    ¡°Not important right now suffice it to say that we¡¯re on the clock and we need to set up the house to¡­ survive a bit of an assault.¡± My mom¡¯s eyes grew wide and I turned to her, ¡°Mom, I know, but let¡¯s worry about all that later. You two are going to be safe somewhere in the house anyway.¡±


    ¡°The hell we are,¡± my dad said as he stood up, my mom following second later. Suddenly their parenting mode clicked into full gear and I could already hear the protesting. However my mom put a hand on Dad¡¯s chest and calmed him. With a compassion that only she knew, she turned to me and said ¡°Lester, this isn¡¯t a movie. We can¡¯t hide in a corner while our son and his friends protect us. We¡¯ll all work together.¡±


    I cast my gaze around the others who were equally in agreement and why shouldn¡¯t they be, after all they were right. I stared at my parents for a moment and then with a sigh explained to them what we were up against. Luckily it wasn¡¯t hard for them to stretch their imagination being that their youngest son sat beside the fire as a Goblin and after a detailed description of the creatures, my mom cleared an area next to the fire and began drawing a map of the house. Kappa corrected only a few minor spacing errors and my mother walked everyone through the layout. Then she looked to me,


    ¡°Well Lester, how can we defend against these things?¡± she asked.


    ¡°I think the key is to just slow them down, if we can kill them¡­ great but I think doing our best to make sure they don¡¯t even get inside is the way to go.¡± I said and looked towards my dad, ¡°that means a lot of hammering board onto the windows.¡± He made a pained face while my mom, focused on the task at hand, said,


    ¡°There are linens in this closet and you can use this table to bar the door, but please¡­¡± she said in a mom voice that seemed so out of place in the middle of the woods, ¡°please don¡¯t use the oak table, use the particle board one from the office?¡± Killian stared blankly at her for a moment and then nodded slowly as if he understood. She thanked him and with genuine embarrassment he blushed.


    We spent the rest of the evening outlying the plan and preparing for tomorrow. Everyone had their jobs, their positions and knew the stakes. Despite the nervous energy that washed over us, we were all eager to greet tomorrow and one by one people left the dimming firelight until it was just Kappa and I. I sat closest to the fire, stoking the coals, sending small fireflies of ember up towards the night sky as Kappa watched them climb and vanish. We felt alone in the world for a moment, watching the stars above impossible in their numbers and as my mind searched the beyond the twinkling lights Kappa broke the silence.


    ¡°This is what you wanted, isn¡¯t it?¡± She took a deep breath and turned to her side. She had stretched out along a deer skin and faced me, he pose almost careless, ¡°A place like this; a world to escape to, to leave the real world behind.¡± I smiled and after a moment said,


    ¡°I did.¡± I nodded in agreement, ¡°but now that I¡¯m here, I want to go home.¡± She sat up a little bit.


    ¡°Why do you think that is?¡±


    I thought for a long time before answering. ¡°I think Dunn was an escape from a world where I had no one; a place that felt like I didn¡¯t belong. However, since coming here I¡¯ve found what I¡¯d been looking for.¡± I wasn¡¯t looking but I knew Kappa was smiling, ¡°shut up.¡± I said playfully. I stoked the fire absentmindedly and added, ¡°I just mean to say that I think I was less concerned about bettering myself and more interested in trying to make the world fit to me¡­ but I wasn¡¯t perfect. I¡¯m still not. I can be better.¡±


    ¡°I wanted to tell you something¡­¡± she said interrupting my thought.


    ¡°You kissed me, I know.¡± There was a silence as she waited, ¡°I know I don¡¯t need to tell you the hypocrisy in kissing me without my permission.¡± I said with a raised eyebrow.


    ¡°I¡¯m sorry,¡± she said, ¡°it was really, really wrong.¡±


    ¡°It was.¡± I said standing up from the log I had been sitting on. I leaned the stick I had been using against the glowing coals of the fire as new flames emerged and began to greedily feed. Then I turned to her, ¡°Why did you do it?¡±


    Despite the red hue of the fire I could see her burn a crimson colour. ¡°I wanted to know what it felt like. I didn¡¯t know if there would be another chance. I didn¡¯t know if I¡¯d have a tomorrow.¡±


    ¡°You thought you were going to die?¡± I asked.


    ¡°That or¡­ maybe I¡¯d be deleted along with the game.¡±


    ¡°I would never,¡± I said in a tone that was heavy and honest, ¡°Kappa, no matter what - it never crossed my mind to leave you in this world. You are my best friend and always have been.¡±


    ¡°Forevermore?¡± she smiled a coyly and I nodded as we watched the flames consume the stick and send sparks into the night air, nervous and excited for what tomorrow would bring.

 Chapter 39

    <u>HOME</u>


    <hr>


    I was first through the portal.


    The real world felt as cold and lifeless as I had remembered. The gateway opened to the front lawn and as I stepped through I felt as though I was stepping onto a movie set. The houses were a fa?ade of suburbia; their white washed picket fences and picturesque faces loomed over the sun-bathed street as if setting the scene and nothing more. It felt like forever since I had been home but I spent no time soaking in the moment; the second my feet landed - I ran.


    The front door was, thankfully, still unlocked after my parents had returned home from shopping and as I spilled through the front door I could hear the others right behind. Miller helped everyone through and cast a second portal from this side. Between Drew and him, they discussed how to best solve the conundrum of letting everyone through (including Drew) and found the simple solution of having Miller learn the spell and cast it from within the frozen world. Teachers, who would¡¯ve thought they¡¯d be that smart? It worked swimmingly and by the time the last of them were through I was already upstairs on my computer.


    The Code was running still as Drew and I had guessed. Line by line it was adding information but was still stuck on Dunn. It didn¡¯t populate information for my house or for this world; we were outside of any instance, outside of time. It made sense as that was why the world here was frozen; why nothing moved. Without wasting any time I began to save a backup of Dunn on the USB that was still plugged into my computer. Downstairs, I could hear everyone preparing the house. The hammering was near deafening and with each hit I was nervous that we wouldn¡¯t be alone for much longer; we¡¯d be drawing everything in this world towards us. I could hear Killian loudly yelling as if trying to get someone attention and then heard him say,


    ¡°Not the oak table!¡±


    I snorted through a laugh and as the USB bar reached 20% I felt as though we may make it through unscathed¡­ then I heard the first howl. I ran out my bedroom door to the top of my stairs and looked down at the foyer of the house. My dad hammered the last of the boards against the front door and turned up towards me with a nervous look. They had already barricaded the front door and the side windows but the large bay window in the living room at the front of the house was still uncovered and I pointed towards it.


    ¡°I¡¯m on it,¡± dad said as he walked into the living room with boards in hand. I descended the stairs just as Kappa came up to me.


    ¡°This floor is boarded up; if they get through we¡¯ll move upstairs and¡­¡±


    The cracking of glass sounded as the heavy weight of one of the creatures threw itself against the window my dad was boarding up. He stumbled back and fell sending a box of nails skidding across the hardwood floor of the living room. I rushed past Kappa towards him but Killian was closer and helped him to his feet.


    ¡°I gotcha Laddie,¡± Killian said as my dad cupped his large Dwarven hand in shock. The creature reeled back for another hit as my dad and Killian ran to the window and started to hammer. As I watched Drew called from the kitchen,


    ¡°They¡¯re attacking the back as well!¡± he hollered. I turned to look down the short hallway to the kitchen to see Miller and Drew holding the back door, struggling to fight against the weight that was being thrown against it. Kappa and I ran to help and just as we arrived, Silas and Sarah emerged from the basement to help as well. The back door wasn¡¯t nailed shut yet as the six of us all tried to push it and equally not crowd each other. I tapped Miller on the shoulder to relieve him and took his position with my back against the door. From the living room another crack sounded out and Miller ran to the front of the house to help. On the other side I could hear the creatures; their claws clattering against the wood of the back porch, their weight being thrown against the door and I worried how much it could withstand.


    Jessica and my mom came in from the dining room with large pieces of wood that were pulled from the table and began half hammering in nails. The door sprung and bounced with each thrust of what must have been multiple creatures at this point as my mom put a board behind my head and started nailing. I stumbled back happy for the momentary relief as the howling continued just outside the house. Jessica stood next to me with boards and asked, ¡°The copying - is it done yet?¡±


    I nodded and ran passed her. I tore up the stairs and into my bedroom to see the status bar reading 94%. I sighed and sat down in my chair, jostling my leg anxiously, holding my open hand over the USB as if it were to jump out itself. As each percentage climbed closer to 100 I clenched my jar tighter and tighter. Just as the bar reached 99% I absentmindedly cast an eye out the window and felt the blood drain from my face. Outside, pouring in from between the houses across the street and on speedily crossing the sidewalk below weren¡¯t just one or two but dozens of the creatures.


    ¡°Uhhh guys¡­¡± I said almost to myself. Then I belted at the top of my lungs, ¡°WE¡¯VE GOT COMPANY!¡±


    I heard the smashing of glass and a deep scream from the floor below me as I pulled the USB from my computer. I turned to the door eager to help but knew that I had to stay here. I spun back towards my computer and typing faster than I ever had before, frantically used the find and replace script Drew had taught me to swap the contents of Dunn out and replace them with our original. After a few minutes the script started to auto run and I heard another scream from the floor below, this time it sounded like Jessica.


    The program now working on its own, I ran for the door of my bedroom and slid down the bannister, arriving at the main floor just as a creature broke its head through the window left of the front door. I drew an arrow and fired at it from point blank range and in a cry it bucked back wildly but the arrow didn¡¯t stay. It was as if it hit something soft and just fell. With wide eyes I swallowed hard and entered the living room to see another pushing its way through the window. It had almost its entire body through and as I drew back on another arrow I saw Killian, Miller and my dad run in and ram the creature with a coat rack. The thing yelped as they projected it back out onto the front lawn and cheered. My dad turned to high-five Killian who instead threw his arms around my father¡¯s legs and hugged him. I smiled for a moment before hearing Jessica scream again and I bolted for the back door.This narrative has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. If you see it on Amazon, please report it.


    Jessica, Kappa, Sarah and Silas were still at the back door as my mom hammered board after board against the door. Jessica had a gash on her neck and I ran over to try to help. She shook her head as I approached and gestured to the dining room,


    ¡°Help Drew!¡± she said and I spun on my heels and headed into the dining room to see Drew desperately trying to hold a board over a broken window. He had a nail in his mouth but reached for a hammer that was by my feet. As I entered he breathed a sigh of relief and I kicked it towards him just as the creature he had been hoping to lock out lunged in and sent him flying onto his back. With a crash the board fell from his hands and I fired an arrow at it. Again the arrow felt like it hit something soft and porous instead of a creature but the thing reacted nonetheless and bolted past him into the living room. I ran over to Drew and helped him up and we turned to see the creature sprinting towards the three men in at the front window.


    ¡°Dad!¡± I shouted as he turned around just in time to see the creature skulk towards them. My mom, hearing my cry from the next room entered in a panic to see the creature approaching Miller, Killian and my dad in the living room. Killian swiftly removed the axe from off of his back and called out, ¡°Come at me ye mangy beast, me axe is thirsty for blood!¡±


    It moved from its crouched position and stood on its hind legs, like I had seen it do the first time I entered this world and I could see Killian¡¯s expression melt from blood lust to fear. It reeled back ready to leap forward and lunge for Killian but never had the chance. Instead, my mom stepped behind the thing and the hammer she had still be holding laid it out ¨C and I mean laid the thing out. Her swing knocked the thing to the floor, connecting with the soft blurry flesh hard enough to send whimpering to the floor. She didn¡¯t stop either; she stood over the thing and wailed on it as we all watched. Eventually it scrambled to its feet and dived for freedom from my mother¡¯s wrath towards the front hall but she follow.


    ¡°My, my!¡± Killian shouted. He wore an infatuated smile on his face for a moment before another creature entered through the broken front window my dad and Miller were desperately trying to board up. Killian spun with a renewed lust for carnage and ran for it screaming. I could hear a yelp from the back door again as I turned to Drew who nodded at me as if to say; I have this now you go help. I ran for them to see them still fighting to hold the door shut. Multiple sets of black, speckled jaws chomped ferociously through the back door which was now slightly ajar. The boards had come loose, prying the trim out along with them and I looked towards the front hall and the stairs leading up knowing that we couldn¡¯t last much longer.


    I tore past my mother who had cornered one in the front hall and was beating it back, ran up the stairs and burst into my room in time to see that the code had almost completely finished its find and replace program. From downstairs, I heard the loud crashing of glass from the front window and the screams of my father. We were in the final moments, it was almost over and yet I didn¡¯t know if we could even make it. I saw the black masses of movement from outside; not just dozens but hundreds of those things, a sea of creatures with no other purpose then to destroy us. I could feel the pit of my stomach drop as my eyes moved across the almost water-like movement of the creatures which poured from every which way. They stumbled over each other, disregarding their own well-being as if their own existence was secondary to their purpose and as I watched, I suddenly noticed something else standing in that sea of creatures...


    It was a man.


    He was dressed in ragged, black clothes and stood with both hands behind his back as if strolling on a summer day. He had an air of confidence and certainty and sent a chill up my spine as if he were leading the pack that attacked our house. I froze on the spot and in the shadow of the sun I thought I recognized his face. Then I heard a crash from behind me. I spun around to see a creature had slammed into the wall at the top of my stairs. It turned and slowly moved towards me. I reached for my bow but it was too fast and it leapt at me. I closed my eyes in anticipation of the bite and¡­.


    Nothing came.


    Nervously I opened one eye and cast it around the room. There was nothing there. I turned around and saw that the computer was running and the code was replaced. It read;


    bedroom1_dunn


    ¡­as it had when I first started it up. I turned and looked out the window at the sun streaked lawn and the street; no man, no sea of creatures and I ran downstairs. I turned on the bannister running down past the broken front door which lay in splintered pieces and into the living room to see my Mom, Dad and Killian clutching each other on the floor; their eyes closed, surrounded by broken glass.


    ¡°Mom! Dad!¡± I shouted and they opened their eyes to see Killian still holding them. They all scrambled apart as I ran to the back and saw the others; Miller, Sarah, Silas, Jessica and Kappa all picking themselves up off the floor. Sarah was bleeding from her arm but only slightly and Jessica still had a cut on her neck but other than that they looked unscathed against the splintered wood and broken glassware that covered the floor of this room. Drew moaned and I entered the dining room to see him lying under a pile of rubble at the side room. I ran over to him and helped lift the table off and then helped him to his feet. He was by far the most hurt, he favoured his arm and had a fair bit of blood from his right ear but smiled widely as he said,


    ¡°Did it work?¡±


    He asked loud enough for everyone to start moving towards the front door. Killian threw a large broken piece of wood that blocked the porch and we walked through the front door to reveal the summer lawn.


    We all shared a nervous look. The day was still and unmoving and for a moment I felt panic creep over me¡­ that is until we all felt the breeze wash over us. Like waking up from a nap the world slowly began to feel alive; the sound of dogs barking came into ear shot and we each realized it at the same time. We were home.

 Chapter 40

    So that was that. We made it home.


    Goodnight folks! Thanks for stopping by, hope you enjoyed¡­ take ¡®er easy¡­


    What else do you need to know? What happened? Why?


    Alright, alright, I guess I¡¯ll let you know what happened next; first off we all agreed to shut down the code. After discussing it over and weighing the options we landed on the thought that if the world existed before it should exist after. I say this because some people were nervous that if we stopped the code now that it was running the real world, the real world would close with it and despite the 0.0001% chance that is COULD happen; Drew and I closed it down successfully and without the world ceasing to exist. Before we did that mind you, we made a few adjustments¡­


    First off, we begrudgingly decided to remove our video-game like stats. It felt weird going from what were essentially super humans to our regular old selves again but honestly I didn¡¯t mind so much at the time; I was ready to be normal again. After that I turned Silas back into Marcus which was also pretty funny to experience. I had gotten really used to seeing him as a little green Goblin that for a little while he felt like an imposter - I can only imagine how he must have felt. Oh, I also changed Jessica¡¯s code back and reviewed a few crucial pieces of information, all of which had interesting results but I¡¯ll explain after. The important bit to know is that we destroyed the copy on my computer as it was too powerful and, well, so far as everyone was concerned the code was gone¡­


    Principal Miller and I parted surprisingly as friends. I say parted but we both knew it wouldn¡¯t be anywhere near forever. What we had shared, albeit brief, was something that no one else could ever relate to. Beyond that, I think he exposing a bit of his fragility towards me it allowed me to understand him and so we each with a bit of a deeper understanding of one another. Additionally, I agreed to meet with him for the last year of school and he agreed that he¡¯d be more open and honest about how he feels and what his intentions were. I didn¡¯t realize but a big reason he had been actively working more with me was because of my parents, they had stepped in and asked him to help me out. After all this they have since respected my want to carve my own path.


    Speaking of my parents; well they (thankfully) took a liking to Killian and since he had nowhere to stay and was stuck in a world he didn¡¯t understand, they agreed he could be a part of our family. Uncle Killian is what we call him now and it¡¯s been¡­ weird. I mean, he¡¯s still a dwarf and he¡¯s still the same old Killian ¨C what did you expect? It¡¯s actually quite amazing to see him go about trying to do everyday things; showing him movies and TV has been a crazy whirlwind. Mom has taken away his axe on a number of occasions, one specifically after he tried to help my dad open his beer can with it; Needless to say the house smelled like beer for a week. Despite all that, I¡¯m happy he¡¯s here in truth, as is Marcus.


    Marcus, having dropped the assumed name Silas upon returning home and becoming human again, is back to his old self. He doesn¡¯t really seem to treat anything differently and for the most part, acts like the whole thing was a normal outing. He was eager for me to finish Dunn still which I ended up doing over the summer. Since then, we¡¯ve been trying to spend as much time together as possible because, well, I decided to move out after my last year of high school. I had gotten a taste of independence and my parents, despite their initial hesitation, agreed that if I got a job and could afford it, then I could move out. I don¡¯t think they realized exactly the deal they had made because all I had to do was release my game online for $20 bucks a pop and I had more than enough money to find a place.


    I rented a two bedroom apartment for Kappa and I to split. It was a place downtown where I could code in peace and start living a more ¡°adult¡± life. More on Kappa in a second but first, I mentioned there was more with the code and more with Jessica. She didn¡¯t need it but I insisted she be there when I change her code back to how it was. We had been through the mill and already things felt different for us. The world we left was the same upon our return but we were different; much different and Jessica and I had shared something that was entirely unique. Just like Miller and everyone else that had been there in Dunn with us, I knew we would be forever bound¡­ like the fellowship but with fewer Hobbits and no boat goodbyes. The girl I had put on a pedestal, who I had ¡°loved¡± and ¡°lost¡±, was now someone I would be forever connected to.


    In that realization I also came to terms with the way I had seen her before all this. The hollow ¡°DREAM WOMAN X¡± persona I had created fictitiously for her; the girl next store box that I had forced her into ¨C they were insulting. She was so much more ¨C people are so much more. The real world doesn¡¯t work like a video game, the stats we assign to NPC¡¯s don¡¯t translate to the real world because people aren¡¯t hollow or flat, and they aren¡¯t shells which we fill with single purposes. The person I love, whomever that may end up being, will be flawed. They won¡¯t be a caricature of my dream girl; they¡¯ll just be a person. Jessica is an amazing person ¨C that much is undisputable; with all the imperfections and faults that comes with being amazing. It was because of this and a lot more, that I included her in the changes to the code.


    We were sitting side by side at my computer an odd sense of nervousness between us as I scrolled to her lines. I took a moment to try to explain what the code meant and how it made sense but it was clear that she was uncomfortable with the whole scene so I opted to just get it over with. However, when I scrolled up to the lines they read;If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. Please report it.


    lester_dunn_friendship: true


    lester_dunn_relationship: false


    I arched an eyebrow as Jessica, clearly unaware of the confusion, piped up,


    ¡°What¡¯s wrong?¡±


    ¡°The code is how it was before I changed it¡­¡± I said as I searched my mind for an explanation, ¡°maybe when we came back to reality it switched back?¡± I shrugged and turned to her but her eyes only studied the screen. She moved her lips to the side as if to bite the inside of her mouth and then slowly shook her head,


    ¡°I think maybe we can still change it ourselves.¡±


    As the words left her lips I knew it was right. No matter what was changed in the code, when it comes to the individual; we still have the power and ability to change it back. It was a realization that sat with both of us for a long moment before turning to each other.


    ¡°So that means¡­¡± I said and she nodded slowly and with a hint of embarrassment. She smiled with half her mouth and said,


    ¡°I¡¯m glad we¡¯re friends Lester.¡±


    I nodded back to her and could tell that it was as far as she wanted to take it¡­ right now. I mean, come on. If we¡¯re free to break our own hearts or dye our hair colour than the code can¡¯t limit us. It was an interesting but almost obvious revelation and made me wonder how much of what she told me at the Black Hand camp was true. We shared that long quiet moment before she changed the subject to something wholly separate.


    Jessica - what a girl. We¡¯re still close; I¡¯d be lying if I didn¡¯t say that I still have hope for her and I but for now friendship is perfect. In fact she helped Kappa and I move into our new place, which brings me back to Kappa¡­


    Kappa is my best friend. Someone who I never thought in a million years I¡¯d get to high five or nudge, or hug, or have kiss me¡­ before I deleted the Code I looked at Kappa¡¯s relationship and friendship status with me. I felt conflicted; part of me realized that she was created by me, someone who existed because I hit a few keys on a keyboard. The other part of me knew that she was her own person now; capable of thought, want, need, desire and¡­ well, love. So did we move in together as more than friends? Nah. I¡¯d spent 18 years without a single friend and despite the connection she and I held, I just want to see what it feels like to be someone¡¯s best friend - for a little while at least.


    I didn¡¯t tell anyone about the man I had seen across the road before coming back to the real world but I did figure out why I recognized him. As I dumped the contents of my satchel from Dunn I came across the photo I had taken from Graves¡¯s house ¨C the place I found the code and there in the photo, shaking hands with the dead man I had seen in the alleyway, was the face I had seen across the road. Wally was the name written on the photo¡¯s back and for now that was all I had. Why he was there; what those creatures where, why they were there and what they wanted would remain a mystery. I¡¯d had enough adventure for a while.


    So¡­ The End. I guess? I mean, that¡¯s my story. I told you, you probably wouldn¡¯t believe me. Don¡¯t care if you do really but it all happened. All of it is in the past and that¡¯s that.


    Hmmm? What do you mean? Oh, the code?


    No I deleted it remember? I said that before. What did I mean by ¡°so far as everyone was concerned?¡± Nothing, it¡¯s just a turn a phrase.


    It means it¡¯s something people say.


    No I mean¡­. yes I did say I was going to be honest¡­ yes I did say I¡¯d tell you everything¡­ sigh, alright.


    I did kept the original code, the one on my USB¡­ but only Kap and I know about it, okay? After the conversation with Drew, Miller and my parents Kappa and I had our own conversation that went something like this:


    ¡°Do we really delete the only copy?¡± Kappa said. I was taken aback; a bit surprised she would even float that as an option.


    ¡°What do you mean?¡± I asked. I could feel my stomach flutter a little bit in excitement.


    ¡°Well,¡± she said, ¡°first off there are a lot of things we can do with that, helpful thing, healthy things¡­. fun things.¡± She said with a smile and with that I slipped the copy in my pocket.


    I mean come on! Imagine it for second; The Wild West, the Vastness of Space, the perils of a dark and stormy mansion and a murder mystery to solve¡­ it was all too tantalizing and if we only have one go around, might as well as some fun, right? It didn¡¯t take us much time before Kappa and I found a way to use the code in a way that didn¡¯t alter reality but still allowed us to transport ourselves in a variety of worlds. We¡¯re still working out the kinks but¡­ wait, is that her?


    Hold on.


    The door to the apartment of Kappa Merrigold and Lester Dunn opened with a click and the tall figure of 18 year old Kappa entered struggling with three large bags of groceries. She moved towards the counter and placed the bags down with a thud and a sigh of relief.


    ¡°Who were you talking to?¡± she asked turning to Lester who had been sitting on the couch in his pajamas.


    ¡°What do you mean?¡± he answered. His voice fluttered a bit, a nervous tone she had been programmed to read pick up on. She looked past him at Asta, the wire fox terrier they had purchased the week previous who sat on the foot stool directly in front of him and with a raised eyebrow she turned to him.


    ¡°Were you talking to the dog?¡± she asked with a coy smile.


    ¡°What? No!¡± he said and without pausing added, ¡°and even if I was what¡¯s it to you.¡± She rolled her eyes and shut the apartment door, ¡°Whatever. Are you ready to try this?¡±


    Lester nodded eagerly and ran over to the large custom PC they had built. It sat along the large wall in the living room. Kappa walked over beside him as he held up two floppy disks; the ones Lester had retrieved from the floorboards of Percy¡¯s Graves¡¯ apartment.


    ¡°Murder mystery or Wild West?¡± he asked with a grin, Kappa smiled back with excitement and said, ¡°You choose this time.¡±


    Lester slid the floppy into their computer and hovered a hand over the enter key.


    ¡°You ready for this?¡± he said and after a beat she nodded.


    With a smile, Lester pressed enter.