Matteo was too tired to react to this new nickname and wondered if it was something Alonzo would use whenever he was asked to do something he disliked. Crouching down besides Boss, Matteo handed over the bag. “I think this belongs to you.”
Boss looked at the bag as though it was a trap. He carefully reached out his hand and grabbed it. “What is the meaning of this?”
“You heard the god, didn’t you?” said Matteo. Boss nodded. “I don’t know what is going to happen to us. Honestly, I have no idea how we are going to get out of this. But I’m not going to stand defenseless as people who are more beasts than humans, and the gods themselves, are using us like toys.”
Standing up, Matteo looked down at the fallen man. “This is not an offer of partnership. I know you have your own plans, and I know all you want to do is live through this. But all we are doing is playing by someone else’s rules. You might think that freedom is preferable over death, but there is no freedom. Not for any of us.”
Without another word, Matteo walked to the apple tree. Plucking as many of the fruits as he could, he held them in the space created by his forearms pressed against his chest. He began to walk toward Kenji and noticed that Alonzo had already fallen in step with him.
Alonzo had a better idea for carrying the apples. He pulled the lower part of his shirt as much as possible at the back, until Matteo heard a tear, and tied a knot. Once done, he then tucked the front into his jeans. Taking one apple at the time, he began to stuff them down the front of his shirt. Pretty soon, he looked like his upper body had developed some rare mutation, causing it to bloat outwards.
“Isn’t that going to be uncomfortable?” asked Kenji.
Alonzo shrugged. “We don’t know when we might come across food next.”
Together, the trio made their journey back to Matteo’s companions. The path seemed to be lit for the trio, and for a moment, it seemed as though someone was helping them. Matteo soon noticed fireflies for as far as the eye could see. He wondered what the other groups were doing at that moment and hoped that Kabaka and Shaury hadn’t faced any attacks.
When the trio came across the stream, Kenji took a moment to sip a little water. He still looked dazed, despite splashing his face a few times. Matteo had no idea what he could say to a thirteen-year-old who realized that he would either be robbed of his freedom by being owned by someone, or through death where everyone back home forgot about him. That was a choice no one should have to face.
Approaching the spot where they had last parted from their teammates, Matteo thought at first that Shaury had fled the scene, perhaps to create a better luck on her own. He wouldn’t have blamed her if she had. His thoughts were proven wrong when the woman appeared from behind a tree, the branch held in her hand.
“You guys were away for a long time,” she said, and noticed Alonzo. “Did you really have the time to make friends? I mean, wasn’t Kabaka’s health the first thing on your mind?”
“You’re welcome,” said Kenji, and his voice continued to increase in volume with each word. “You would think that people would be grateful for getting help, but nope.”
Without saying a word, Kenji walked up to Kabaka and tried pushing him on his back. Seeing his futile efforts, Shaury joined him and together, they got the big man in a supine position.
“No one has been nice to me before,” said Shaury, her voice breaking. “I am just so used to it that I just have a lot of venom and very little acceptance.”
When she turned her head towards Kenji, Matteo could see the guilt in her eyes. “Thank you, Kenji.”
Kenji gave a small smile and, with her help, lifted Kabaka’s head and trickled the elixir into his mouth. Some of the liquid streamed down the side of his face. Kenji had to discard one leaf-cone and use the second, and only when the liquid was half-drained did Kabaka start moving his lips to drink. Within seconds, the big man’s eyes were open and he had finished the second leaf-cone. Kenji offered the third leaf-cone, which Kabaka drained in one breath.
When he was done, Kabaka looked refreshed, as though he hadn’t been blasted twice by Vanquishers. “I am grateful,” he said, and his eyes conveyed a depth of gratitude that made Matteo feel self-aware.
“It was nothing,” was all Matteo could manage to say.
“I am pleased to meet you, friend,” said Kabaka, offering the same radiance he had shown others to Alonzo. “I see you have brought nourishment.”
Alonzo had unloaded all the apples to the ground. He picked the one on top, which hadn’t come into contact with the forest floor, and tossed it to Kabaka, who caught it in his big hands. “We had an encounter with the Agri god.”
Concern flickered through Kabaka’s eyes. “I hope you were all okay.”
“He just wanted to talk,” said Matteo, and ran a hand over his face. “And there are some things you should know.”
After handing out an apple to everyone, Matteo recounted the conversation with Xipe Totec, doing his best to avoid adding any personal feedback. He didn’t want to embellish the truth. It wasn’t his place to try and sway the audience. He simply wanted to present the facts and see where his companions stood on the matter. By the time he was done, everyone in the group had long forgotten about their food. Kabaka looked troubled and Shaury had rested her back against a tree, staring out into space as she bit her lip.
“Even if we were to somehow be free, we aren’t really free, are we?” asked Shaury.
Matteo shook his head.
“We will soon have the Shockers closing in on us,” said Kenji, absent-mindedly biting into his apple.
“Do you know of someplace we can hide, Sir Godlike?” asked Alonzo. Matteo realized that the nickname wasn’t used to indicate displeasure, as he had previously assumed. He wondered if there were more names he would receive.
“Sir Godlike?” asked Shaury, confusion clearly written on her face.
“Don’t ask,” said Kenji. “A really long story.”
“You seem to admire the man,” said Kabaka, talking to Alonzo.
“Of course, the Great One is a man of respect and honor,” came the response.
“The Great One?” asked Shaury, now revealing amusement.
“Still don’t ask,” added Kenji.
Alonzo took everyone’s reactions as an opportunity to express himself. “You all don’t know, but it is Sir Godlike here who will guide us through this terrible time. He will guide us to real freedom, and maybe back to the real world.”
A wave of embarrassment seemed to flood through Matteo as he watched Shaury bite her lower lip to quell the laughter. Kenji rolled his eyes and returned to munching the apple. Only Kabaka offered a smile, as though everything Alonzo had said was entirely normal.
“You seem to admire the man,” said Kabaka.
“Of course. Everyone should,” said Alonzo.
Before Shaury could release her laugh, Matteo decided to change the subject. “We need to find a place to rest. We can’t stay here or we will be caught right out in the open.”
“Not all of us,” said Kenji. “I think the bush life suits you, Kabaka.”
The big man roared in laughter, an infectious sound that brought smiles to everyone in the group. Shaury joined in, but Matteo had the strange feeling that she was laughing not just because of the joke, but also because she could not hold back her reaction to Alonzo.
“We could use the stream,” offered Alonzo. Everyone turned to him, but the man was not paying attention. He was lost in his thoughts. “We passed by a stream on the way, and I noticed how many features the ground had. There are plenty of hiding spots. Water to drink and clean our food. And even if we were to make some noise, the sound of the water might drown it out.”
“That is a good plan,” said Kabaka. “Let’s split the food between us so that we are not overburdened. Besides, I feel as though people should be free enough to run, if the time comes for that.”
“Or fight,” added Shaury.
“I don’t think anyon
e is in a condition to fight.”
Within minutes, the five had already set out for the stream, Kabaka carrying most of the apples in his giant hands.
“Have any of you chosen your skill specialization?” asked Matteo as he brushed aside a hanging branch.
“I haven’t received enough XP to level up,” said Shaury. “Never got the opportunity to.”
“I have,” said Kabaka. “I chose the Gladiator skill. I wanted to pick something that provides the greatest benefit to me.”
Matteo’s memory tingled.
Gladiator skill. Used to increase base defense and damage stats. Provides a bonus health of 500 over the base health stat. Bonus health can be upgraded as the player levels up.
“You’re Rank 3, aren’t you?” asked Matteo.
Kabaka nodded. “I am indeed.”
“What level?”
“Nineteen.”
“So you have a base health of one thousand and fifty. With the Gladiator skill, you get a bonus of five hundred, making it a total of one thousand, five hundred and fifty health points.”
“That is true,” Kabaka confirmed, a hint of pride gracing his voice.
“I believe that for every level gained, your base health increases by fifty points,” said Alonzo, more as an inquiry than as a statement.
“That’s right,” said Shaury, taking a bite out of another apple. “You start off with fifty health points at level one, then hundred at level two, and so on.”
“And when can you claim your skill specialization?” Alonzo asked her.
“At level five. And if you are wondering, the leveling system works almost incrementally. You take the number of points required to reach the previous level and then add fifty to it. It takes fifty points to reach level one. To reach level two—”
“You need a hundred points,” finished Alonzo.
“Exactly,” said Shaury. “By the way, the only reason I trust you is because both Matteo and Kenji seemed to trust you.”
“And the only reason I didn’t attack you while your guard was down was because the Great One was comfortable around you.”
“Oh, you can try.”
“I can do more than try.”
Before the exchange could develop into a full-blown argument, Matteo interrupted. “So we need to either fight multiple enemies to reach level five, or we need to somehow fight a large monster.”
“Well, the problem with that is only one person is going to get all the experience points to level up,” said Kenji. “And that person is the one to strike the monster down. Therefore, we need to fight through a large group of people.”
“Not unless we form a party,” said Matteo.
The suggestion caused a ripple of silence to spread through the group.
“We each get the experience points of the victory. That allows us to level up,” pressed Matteo, knowing that the lack of verbal feedback from the others did not bode well.
“I will gladly go where you lead, Sir Godlike,” said Alonzo.
Matteo was grateful, though he still wasn’t used to the idea of someone attaching a title of reverence to him. Regardless, his main goal wasn’t to get just one person on his side. He waited for the others to respond.
“We need to stick together,” said Kabaka. It seemed like the man had been echoing the same thought since the time Matteo had met him in the cell. The others were not entirely listening, for reasons of their own.
Shaury shook her head. “I can’t. I am not entirely sure that I am ready to trust people again.”
That’s one person down. If Kenji was open to joining a party, then at least the group would be four strong and a single person opting out would not be much of a concern. When he realized where his train of thoughts were leading him, Matteo understood that he was placing the burden of decision on a thirteen-year-old boy. That wasn’t fair. He sighed, realizing that he wasn’t thinking straight under the influence of sleep deprivation.
“Sorry, guys,” said Kenji. “I’m just with you because you seem the smartest to me. I think I might try to escape at the first opportunity that I get.”
There was nothing more to be said. The forest seemed to come alive with the sounds of nightlife. Owls hooted. Crickets chirped. Leaves rustled. Despite the fact that they would eventually find a resting spot, Matteo noticed his teammates looking around the forest warily, trying to discern if one of the shadows they spotted was more than just a still object.
Eventually, the group made it to the stream. The sound of water beating against rocks, vegetation, and even the arrangement of land was somehow soothing to Matteo. He plopped on a nearby rock and dipped his fingers into the stream, allowing the water to run past them.
Kabaka went about collecting leaves and branches nearby. When the others offered to help, he simply declined with a smile and went about his work. Soon, he had created makeshift pillows for everyone.
“Not my best work, I assure you,” he said, looking slightly embarrassed about the results.
“It is marvelous, Great One’s follower,” remarked Alonzo, thumping the bigger man on the back.
Kabaka did not comment on being labeled a follower. He merely smiled and sat down on a rock.
“You know,” said Kenji, “I would like to see you kind of go berserk. Like, rawr.” He waved his hands in the air to indicate a wild animal.
Kabaka smiled wider. “I am not that calm. I do get angry. In fact, I was a very angry young boy.”
“You? Naw,” said Kenji, and then proceeded to blow air through the corner of his mouth, indicating how absurd he found the statement.
For a moment, Kabaka did not respond. He looked up at the wall of trees. At certain spots in the forest roof, beams of moonlight filtered through, like a magical chandelier that was blocked by nature’s decor. Then, his voice echoed, a calm and measured tone touching his words.
“When you are different, the world has a way of constantly showing you that. It is never usually in a nice way. My father was a gentle soul. No matter how people treated him, he only ever showed them love. But I was an angry boy. All I wanted to do was show violence. I dreamed of it. I imagined the many ways people would feel my shame and pain.”
Matteo saw that the man was lost in a memory of long ago. Kabaka did not seem particularly saddened by it, merely regretful, as though there was much he could have done but didn’t.
“When my mother died, I saw my father heartbroken for the first time. Yet he remained gentle with me. He would always show his best for his only son. Eventually, my anger faded away. And when my father died, I decided to keep his kindness alive within me.”
Kabaka turned his gaze toward the others, making eye contact with each person as he spoke his final thought. His gaze finally rested on Matteo with the final word.
“You see, as long as I live, my father will never truly die.”
Sitting down on the forest floor, Kabaka adjusted his leaf-pillow. “My father used to say that a single person creates a shout of defiance, but a group of people create a chorus of change.”
With that, the albino man went to sleep. Somehow, a single sliver of moonlight fell on the ghostly white face, and all Matteo could think of was that if there were angels who went around doing good for people, then they definitely must look like Kabaka.
“Let’s take turns keeping watch,” said Kenji. “I’ll stay awake first.”
No one complained. Before Matteo closed his eyes, he wondered what the new day would bring.
Level 8
In his dream, Matteo was dying.
The jubilant face of Olympus leered at him from above. Fires raged around him, but he could not find their source. It almost seemed as though they had a life of their own. Olympus held the staff above him, its pointed end aimed straight at Matteo’s heart. This was it. All of it was for nothing. Just to delay an inevitable death.
“Matteo,” roared Olympus.
“Matteo.”
When Matteo opened his eyes, he saw Alonzo’s face looki
ng down at him.
“If you like, I can take your shift, as well, Sir Godlike.”
The sleep felt more like a blink of an eye. Matteo could not clearly say whether he felt groggy after waking up from a deep sleep or if his head was swimming because of a lack of good rest. Shaking his head at Alonzo, he pushed himself to a seating position and stretched to get the blood flowing through his body. “It’s all good, Alonzo. Get some sleep.”
Splashing water to his face, Matteo found the small hoard of apples nestled on some leaves. It had probably been Kabaka’s idea. Taking one fruit and washing it in the stream, Matteo made himself comfortable on the forest floor. He didn’t want to sit on top of anything, since that would provide a great view of him to anyone in the vicinity. Instead, he sat in the shadows of a giant rock, doing his best to blend in.
Dawn was maybe an hour or two away, and he hoped that he and the rest would be able to solve their experience points problem come morning. They all needed it.
For a while, all Matteo did was look around the forest, trying not to become alarmed by each and every shadow that his eyes glimpsed. He tried to calm his paranoia by breathing steadily. When that didn’t work, he decided to divert the focus of his brain to another area: information.
The words of Xipe Totec swam through his mind.
I recommend that you choose your skill immediately.
If only it were that easy. Matteo wondered if there was any hidden meaning to the god’s words. The more he thought about it, the more he struggled to see anything of value in the message. Realizing that he would only be bashing his head against a mental wall, he shifted his focus to the skills themselves.
The real Axis Mundi mirrored the game world in many ways. So far, apart from the politics played by the gods behind the scenes, there was no difference in the game features that pertained to player progression. He had seen the health bar system and the experience points. Kabaka had also confirmed to him that he was in a Gladiator class and, judging from the knowledge shared by Shaury the night before, players got to choose their skill specialization at level 5. By that logic, Matteo knew that there were a total of seven skills.
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