The Arena

by Drew Seren

  The online searches gave him an idea, he knew David’s last name, maybe, with any luck, Rick had the same last name. Horc checked his game menu and pulled up the help screen. From going there early in his time on Halfworld, he knew there wasn’t much in game, but there was the option to search the net outside the game systems. He only had to jump through a couple of technical hoops to get out of the game system and onto the World Wide Web. He did a search for Rick Remington first in the phone directory, then in various social media. Horc was surprised by how many Rick Remingtons there were. He narrowed his search down to Georgia.

  Horc’s text window beeped.

  Alan, this is Lisa. Mike’s still asleep. What’s going on?

  Horc breathed a sigh of relief as he turned his attention from the internet search to his text. At least something was working.

  Lisa, we need Mike back in the game. We just lost Greensleeves in the first round of combat in the arena. When he died, Rothand claimed him and we can’t get him back in the party.

  He paused and realized that was a fairly long text, then sent it anyway. It was easier than sending multiple texts.

  Not good. Let me log in for him. We need to let him sleep.

  You? Horc started to object, then remembered that Lisa was a gamer herself and helped Mike design his characters. Also, since Mike was still on VR helmet and gloves, she was probably watching most everything through a large screen monitor anyway.

  I’m good with casters. Not great. Prefer sneaks.

  Okay, sure. We need the firepower.

  Good. Mike doesn’t know it, but I gave him a little something to help him sleep.

  Horc groaned, then realized Mike must’ve been a lot more tired than he was letting on. He knew Lisa, and she was very protective of Mike. If she slipped him something to help him sleep, it was probably because he’d been planning on getting back into the game as quickly as possible.

  We’ve got a little while before they’re going to come for our next round. No need to rush.

  I’ll log in shortly. Need to make sure the kids are covered since Mike’s asleep and I’ll be in game.

  See you soon then.

  Horc turned back to his internet search. There were only three Rick Remington’s in Georgia. He asked Google maps to display the location of each one. All he knew was that David and Rick worked out of the Atlanta office, he wasn’t sure where they lived, but figured Atlanta was like Dallas and most other large cities and had lots of suburbs where the people who worked in town might live. One of the Ricks lived in the far southwestern corner of Georgia so Horc didn’t even bother with that one. He looked at the other two. They were both fairly close to downtown Atlanta, but on different sides of the city. To compare the two, he did a search for David Remington. That got him a hit that overlaid with the location or Rick Remington.

  “Keep your fingers crossed, I might have him,” Horc mumbled more to himself than to Tufkakes.

  “Have who?” Tufkakes asked. “Oh, Greensleeves’ husband.”

  “Hopefully.” Horc put the number into his text app.

  Rick, this is Horc. Ah, sorry, Alan Gosling. Trying to reach you about David.

  Horc blinked and looked at Tufkakes. “Okay, send Rick a message, now to see if he gets it. If we don’t get a response in a few minutes, I’ll try some other social network stuff, or another number for a different Rick Remington. If it’s not the right one, they either won’t answer, or will reply something rude.”

  “In my neighborhood rude is more likely,” Tufkakes said. “I wonder if I should get you my info in case something stupid like this happens to me.” Then he shook his head. “Nah, my kids won’t be able to help out, even if they bothered to check their messages. Rick’s more apt to be able to do something about the game.”

  “Right.” Horc leaned against the wall and tried to ignore the straw bits sticking out of the mattress into his legs and butt.

  His text notification beeped. He opened it and it filled his screen.

  Horc, what happened? David’s still online. His pod’s working properly, but I can’t reach him.

  Rick. Glad I made the right choice. Nice something went easy for once in this game. Greensleeves died in our first bout in the arena and when he rezzed, Rothand claimed him as his. I can see him in party but can’t reach him. Just like Steelmaiden and Slasher. Horc hated being the one telling Rick that his husband was in trouble, but he was the only option.

  That’s not good. Right now, the AI is sidestepping us every time we try to make an adjustment. We’re going to have to take it all the way down to reprogram it, but we can’t do that with you and the others stuck in there.

  That didn’t sound like good news. Horc frowned as he replied. What can we do from here?

  I don’t know. I’m going to look over David’s game log, see if I can figure anything out from that, see the exact moment the AI took over. Maybe there’s a clue there we can exploit.

  Okay. A thought hit Horc as he sent the minimal message. Did Rick tell you about the wall around the island and how it was appearing brick by brick?

  No, he didn’t. That’s good and bad. Good in that the AI hasn’t figured out how to just make completed things appear. Bad because it’s learned enough to understand how to make things by constructing the parts and putting them together. I’ll relay this to the developer teams.

  Hope it helps resolve this problem. Horc wasn’t sure anything was going to be able to resolve the problem of the rogue AI.

  System shows you and Tufkakes to still be in the arena. Part of me wants you to be safe, but I also want someone keeping an eye on David.

  Our group motto is “Friends don’t leave friends to die in dungeons” that applies to arenas too. I…ah…we’ll stick by and make sure he can get out.

  Right now, I’m only showing two of you. If you want, I can send more help.

  Horc was tempted to ask him to find another group healer, but decided not to, just yet. Baladara will be back online shortly. We can only have three players in the arena party at one time. If we lose another party member, I’ll let you know.

  Okay. I’ll make sure to keep my text app up and loud, so I don’t miss anything.

  Good. You’re our god-like help, you and Miranda.

  Thanks. Stay safe.

  Horc sighed and then began to relay everything from Rick to Tufkakes. When he was done, he yawned. “Man, I’m tired now.”

  “No worries. I’ll keep watch for you for a little while. Grab a quick nap and I’ll wake you if anything goes wrong and I need to have your mighty bow.” Tufkakes cracked his knuckles and settled on the bed across from Horc.

  With Wolf at his side, Horc didn’t bother trying to lie down on the lumpy, sticky mattress. He just closed his eyes and willed himself to sleep, leaning against the wall. Wolf whined and put his head in Horc’s lap. Having his companion there with him was more relaxing and comforting than the bed itself.

  A soft explosion brought Horc roughly out of his slumber.

  “I don’t understand how he can work these spells with them laid out like this,” Baladara stood in the middle of the room with her hands out and a scowl on her face.

  “Hi, Lisa,” Horc said, stretching, the rubbing his eyes that felt like sandpaper. He could definitely use more than the little bit of sleep he’d gotten.

  “Hi, Alan, or should I say Horc? I’m not as hardcore about gaming as Mike is.” She got a faraway look for a moment. Then she blinked and nodded. “That should be better.” She promptly started a spell, then broke the casting, her hands stopped glowing before it completed. “Definitely better.”

  “He’s not going to be pissed that you played with his settings?” Tufkakes asked with a smirk from the bed across the Horc. It didn’t look like he’d moved while Horc had been asleep.

  “I do it all the time,” Baladara turned in a tight circle. “Okay, I like this skirt, one of the better choices he could’ve made while I wasn’t helping him with his clothing options, but I do
n’t think this blouse does much for me.” She ran her hands over the tight blue corset and white chemise. “Of course, I’m a little surprised he didn’t go with a bikini again. But then, after we had a little discussion about that in a game a few months ago, he’s been on good behavior with his wardrobe.”

  Tufkakes laughed. “Girl, it sounds like you keep him on a tight leash.”

  Baladara shrugged. “Not really. We like to play together from time to time. Right now, Halfworld isn’t set up for spouses since it’s still in beta. When it opens up, I’ll be in here as much as Mike, if we can get folks to watch the kids. With VR, that’s one of our rules, we can both play as long as we’ve got the kids covered. I had to wait for Mike’s sister to get over and lend a hand this afternoon.”

  Horc sighed. He was so lost between the game and the real world he had no idea what time it was out there, or even what day it was. Everything was running together for him and it made him feel totally disconnected.

  “Well, thanks for coming and filling in. With Greensleeves lost for the moment, we need a caster.” Horc slipped off the bed and stretched again. His back hurt from sleeping sitting up, just like it would’ve IRL.

  “Mike’s given me a few hints about how real this place is.” Baladara turned around as if studying their small room. “And I’ve been watching through the monitor but being here is so much more. When this game hits the shelves it’s going to give Total Immersion Systems a major boost.”

  “If they can get the AI under control,” Tufkakes said. “Nobody really wants to be running around in a game where you can get kidnapped by the AI and be unable to log out. Not cool.”

  “Yeah, there is that. I wonder if that’s just for pod users, or if google and glove folks have to worry about that too.” Baladara looked at her hands.

  “Hey, we don’t know for sure. Let’s ask.” Horc brought up his text window and fired off the question to Rick.

  Just thought of something, are all the players being prevented from logging off pod users, or are some of them old school goggles and gloves?

  His reply was almost instant. Haven’t looked at that angle yet. Will check and get back to you. Good question.

  “They don’t know. They’re going to look into it and let us know.” A strange tingle ran down Horc’s spine. He felt like someone was watching him. He turned and couldn’t spot anything out of the ordinary in the room.

  Just then the door opened and Bo’ looked in. “This is yous thirty-minute warning. If yous need food or drink this is yous’ last chance to ask for it.” He paused and stared at Baladara. “Oh, your Elf Mage is back. Not that it’s going to do yous much good.”

  “I think we’re good on the refreshment side of things,” Horc said. “Although I’ll visit the little boys’ room before we head out.”

  “I’ll be back for yous in a few.” Bo’ turned and closed the door.

  “Is Bo’ short for Bowser?” Baladara asked. “Kinda an odd little guy.”

  Horc shrugged. “He’s a Goblin, isn’t that a bit repetitive?”

  “Depends on the game.” Baladara slapped her forehead. “Oh yeah, I forgot Mike said you’re more of a science fiction player than a fantasy player.”

  “I’ve only done a few fantasy games,” Horc said as he walked toward the door. The bathroom was a couple doors down. “Don’t tell Mike, but this one is starting to grow on me. If I could log out it would be great.”

  “They’ve got your pod free of the house and are working on getting you out,” Baladara said. “It’s only a matter of time now.”

  “Yeah, and then we’ve got to get everyone else out too.” Horc opened the door and headed out with Wolf at his heels. “I’ll be right back.”

  Having Lisa filling in driving Baladara was a little odd, but it would give them the firepower they needed to stay alive, he just hoped she was a good enough player to pull it off. She hadn’t started the toon from level one and brought her to the point she was. Although he knew of people buying high-level characters and never bothering to bring them up themselves, he always felt like players who ran a toon from the start had a better feel for what could be done in the game. He hoped Baladara would be able to pull her own weight in the arena and not end up like Greensleeves.

  18

  Again Bo’ led them down the corridor to the arena sands.

  “Remember, don’t die,” Tufkakes said as we walked. “None of us need to wind up like Greensleeves and the others.”

  Horc nodded but didn’t say anything. He definitely didn’t want to end up like the others had; somehow it made the idea of being trapped in the game that much scarier. The presence of Wolf at his side along with Tufkakes and Baladara at his back helped.

  “The boss wants to see how yous guys handle a different type of crowd this time.” Bo’ stepped to the side and waved them into the arena.

  Like before, the sands were empty. In the stands, there were a few more people than before. The big guy was back in his box seat. The others appeared to be players of different levels. They seemed to either be there to see how the arena worked, or just watch the spectacle that was about to unfold below them.

  “This crowd?” Tufkakes pointed up at the seats encircling the arena.

  Bo’ chuckled and stepped back toward the spot where the gate would drop. “Nope, they’re just lucky saps.”

  “Really charming,” Baladara muttered under her breath.

  Like before, the huge iron portcullis dropped once Bo’ was past it.

  “This whole place is charming.” Horc pulled his bow and fitted an arrow, trying to be ready for whoever, or whatever came at them. His heart pounded like when he took an escalated phone call at work and the tech told him the customer was really pissed. There was no way of knowing if the person on the other end of the call would be remotely understanding, or just continue to rant. Waiting for whatever the arena masters were going to throw at them made his heart pound that same way, and he hated it just as much.

  The gate on the opposite theirs rose and there was a lot of shouting, followed by roaring that sounded like an angry beast ready to tear someone’s head off. It wasn’t a sound Horc had ever heard before, but the tone of it reminded him of those angry customers and made him want to find a different line of work. But he couldn’t log out, or even claim to be sick, he had to face whatever was coming his way.

  The first thing to emerge from the tunnel lumbered out like a white bear on two legs, but there was something wrong with it. As it came into the light, it blinked, then tried to turn and go back into the tunnel. It cried out in pain. Its head was more cat-like than bear, but its ears were like a horse or deer. Long scratches marred its coat, exposing swatches of pink hide.

  “Okay, that’s weird,” Baladara said. “I’m betting it’s not natural.”

  “It’s a game,” Tufkakes said, bouncing her knives in her hand. “None of this natural, but it sounds scared, like it doesn’t want to be here.”

  Horc shook his head. “Join the club. None of us want to be here.”

  Two big humanoids with spears thrust their weapons toward the beast. It whimpered and stepped farther out onto the sands.

  Beside it came a huge gray thing on four legs that looked like a draft horse, with a bear’s torso instead of a human’s. It kicked out at the spearmen, but someone behind it cracked a whip. It reared up and screamed.

  “Okay, so we’re supposed to fight this magical menagerie?” Baladara asked. “They don’t look like they’re going to put up much of a fight. But I don’t feel good about attacking them. They’re kinda sad.”

  “I agree,” Tufkakes said with a heavy frown. “This place gets more and more messed up.”

  Horc didn’t like the idea of going after helpless animals, or hybrids, or whatever these things were. They were as much prisoners as Greensleeves and the others. They deserved to be freed, not fought.

  “Why are there only two of them?” Horc asked as the spearmen and whipper turned and ran back to the corrido
r.

  The gate clanged as it dropped into place.

  “There’s something else here,” Baladara said. “Give me a second. I think I saw this spell on one of the other screens.”

  The two-legged foe pounded on the gate for a moment, as the centaur-like beast looked around like it had a little more intelligence. When it spotted the party, it nodded, then folded its knobby equine legs and lowered itself to the sands.

  A chill went through Horc. It was like the thing understood what was happening, but knew they weren’t exactly its enemy.

  Boos and hisses rose from the seats around them. It sounded like the spectators were a little disappointed in the lack of instant combat.

  A strange ripple of something invisible went through the arena. It was like a cool breeze on a hot afternoon.

  “Got it.” Baladara said, then her hands blurred in red as she cast Fireball. It didn’t go off toward the two pitiful creatures who wanted nothing to do with the combat, but off toward something just to their left.

  “Got what?” Tufkakes asked seconds before the Fireball hit something.

  A humanoid appeared and rolled in the sand. He wore leathers reminiscent of the ones Greensleeves had worn when he’d been Human and not a Sand Elf.

  The text over his head said Salamando, Human, Beastmaster, Level 26. He was another player who had either used an invisibility spell to be cloaked, or something else.

  Salamando bowed toward them, then gestured at the two hybrids that strangely didn’t have any text over them. Even when they’d faced familiars or seen other Rangers with companions, the bonded NPCs had had text over them identifying them as something. The Beastmaster’s animals didn’t have that. That alone was as strange as they were.

  “Go for the player,” Tufkakes said.

  Horc liked the sound of that better than attacking the poor disoriented creatures he’d brought with him. But if the Beastmaster had power over them, like his class suggested, why had they been herded into the arena? There was something they were missing, but Horc liked the idea of having a foe he could attack and not worry about hurting. He focused his shot on Salamando and let an arrow fly at the same time Baladara launched another fireball.