1-Up

by Dean Smith

  He didn’t want to voice these feelings to his friends, as always he pretended to be the hero he wanted to be and hoped it would become a reality and, more than that, he didn’t want to disappoint the people he had grown to love. The world of Venturis was once a black and white world but that was no longer the case, monsters could be kind and villains could be redeemed. Valiant knew this and still he could not think of mercy whilst thinking of Rita. He felt as though he stood on a precipice over a void and he was powerless to stop himself from falling. He didn’t want to darken his soul like Rita had, not after his eyes had been opened to the wonders of the strange world around them but to fight against it was to fight the tide. Impossible, pointless.

  When he finished telling his story, he realised that he had not been introduced to their new allies yet and so; he did his best to bury his dark feelings and put on a brave face as they all made their introductions.

  ‘I’m Fabian Feverlust, normally I’d make things awkward by flirting outrageously with everyone and making them uncomfortable but this doesn’t feel like the time for that.’ Fabian glanced around with a worried heavy gaze. ‘Mordy and Nina weren’t lying. This is.... Terrifying.’ He ended on a simple but truthful note and Valiant had no comforting words for him.

  Next was a scantily clad Amazonian woman who was both intimidating and beautiful to behold.

  ‘I’m the protector of Foreverflora Village, Sabine Jewelgaze. I’ve heard a lot about you, Sir Emberheart, I hope you can live up to expectations.’ She held out her hand, and he took it. She surveyed him with great interest. ‘I hear you have the same power as Rita, Do I need to be worried that you will succumb to corruption as she did?’ Valiant felt naked and transparent under her stern stare, it was like she could see right through him at the growing darkness within him. ‘While I joined this party to save Venturis, I can’t hide the fact that there is something I want from you, as well. Can you use your powers to change me? To allow me the same choices that everyone else has?’ She explained her plight and what it meant to her and Valiant sympathised, he could understand what it mattered to her and how this forced attire affected her.

  ‘My powers are limited, I can only use them in when close to raw code or if Rita uses her power against me but I promise you, I will do what I can to help you... And the people of Goldharbour...’ Valiant’s voice failed him but he recovered quickly. He looked to the last new member of their party, a surly man who looked annoyed by everything. When the man noticed Valiant staring expectantly, he rolled his eyes and sighed.

  ‘I’m Trevor, I make things go boom with magic and I don’t want to be here. I’m only here under the promise you will all leave me alone when it’s all over.’

  Trevor rubbed Valiant up the wrong way, unlike Fabian and Sabine, he didn’t seem like much of a hero and his lack of interest in saving the world was downright offensive to Valiant but he held his tongue. He couldn’t afford to offend Trevor and risk him leaving. If they were going to save the world, they needed all the help they could get.

  After the introductions were complete, conversation shifted to Rita.

  ‘Rita has never understood this world. She has always seen everything as a game, she’s never seen Venturis, or even herself I fear, as real. She didn’t want to be a princess, and she believed she failed at being a hero and so the only path she believed was left for her was that of a villain.’ Valiant felt odd speaking about her like this. He wanted to describe her as an unforgivable villain to be destroyed but he couldn’t bring himself to say those words, even with all the anger and hatred that burned within, he felt as though he needed to tell her story without his feelings muddying what had happened. ‘When we saw her at Vilemire, she seemed obsessed with ‘ending’ the game.’

  ‘Hasn’t it already ended? Aren’t we no longer slaves to its pull?’ Mused Sabine.

  ‘We’re free from its hold in terms of choice but this game can still end and it will end if I defeat the villain, or so Rita believes.’ Valiant continued.

  ‘So what, she wants you to kill her? What then? What happens when the game ends? Do we all die?’ Asked Trevor shortly.

  Valiant didn't respond, he didn't know for sure but he had an idea, and that idea formed the basis of his plan to deal with Rita. In his despair, he had forgotten about the beginnings of a plan he formed in his head whilst travelling back to Goldharbour but now it came back to the forefront of his mind. It all revolved around the new features that the patch had implemented before it failed, and if Valiant’s understanding of what they were was correct, he could safeguard the freedom and the world of Venturis forever.

  ‘I have an idea but it’s difficult to explain.’

  ‘Okay... What do you need us to do then?’ Enquired Nina. ‘What is the next step?’

  ‘We’re going back to Vilemire, we will storm the castle and we’re going to defeat Rita.’

  His response earned dumbfounded looks from his allies and Trevor in particular regarded him like he was a simpleton.

  ‘So, your plan to save the world is to go along with what Rita wants and end the game and potentially us all with it?’ His tone was incredulous and filled with daggers which caused Valiant to wince.

  ‘You need to trust me. If we don’t stop Rita, she will take everyone’s freedom away from them, we’ll all be back doing what we did before we had a choice. If she takes away the freedom of everyone in Venturis, then we’ll lose everything. It sounds like madness, I know but the only way to save this world is to end the game. Trust me on that, I’ve seen the code and I know what must be done.’ His words held weight but everyone still looked unconvinced. Knowing he needed to tell them more, he did his best to explain what he had planned which felt beyond difficult as it involved concepts that were tricky to explain to someone that had never seen the code before but when he was done explaining what he could, his allies looked more assured than they did before.

  ‘That kind of makes sense, weirdly.’ Spoke Mordoom. ‘It would sound like lunacy coming from anyone else but I’d trust you with my life, Val.’ Mordoom beamed at Valiant.

  ‘Same here,’ added Nina and Valiant felt lighter for their understanding but the other party members still found it a tough sell.

  ‘I suppose if Mordy and Nina think it’s a good idea, then I do too. I’m on board.’ Fabian spoke with confidence and that seemed enough to convince the other two to go along with the plan.

  ‘So we know what you intend to do but how will you do it?’ Asked Trevor who still looked at Valiant like he was a dangerous idiot.

  ‘When we went to Vilemire Castle before, Rita forced us to play the game to reach her but this time I know she won’t want us to get close to her unless it’s on her terms. She doesn’t know we’re planning to end the game ourselves and she will fight us believing that we’ve found another solution. When my powers emerged, it threw her completely. Neither of us expected it and I don’t think Rita understands what it could mean. I think she will put up every defence she possesses against us and I need your help to clear a path so I can use the patch to defeat Rita and, hopefully, fix everything.’ Valiant went into further details about their roles in his proposed plan and they acknowledged what he was saying.

  ‘It sounds risky but I don’t think we have any other choice.’ Nina said, her brow furrowed as she considered what was to come.

  ‘It sounds fun,’ shrugged Fabian. Sabine and Trevor were silent mostly but they nodded in acceptance of the plan.

  ‘Like I need to tell you I’m with you, right?’ Mordoom said with a side grin.

  Everyone was in agreement and they prepared to enact the plan as soon as possible but as they went over everything once again and finalised the finer details, Mordoom noticed a problem.

  ‘Wait, aren’t we going to have to go through the same path as before? I don’t think I could fight through the Obsidian Stronghold or be dunked in mud again.’ Mordoom shivered at the memory.

  Valiant shook his head in response.

&nbs
p; ‘We don’t need to repeat the journey. The patch added two new features, one we’re going to use to save everyone and the other we can use to get to Vilemire in an instant. I’m reluctant to use it given that the patch failed at first but needs must. He opened up his menu and showed them the new feature that had appeared there, ‘Fast Travel’.

  ‘We can use that feature to go right to Rita’s doorstep, no more long journeys. We can go straight to any place we’ve been before in an instant.’

  ‘So when are we going?’ Asked Nina.

  ‘Now, if you’re ready,’ answered Valiant. Everyone looked at each other as determination crept onto all their faces, even Trevor’s to an extent.

  ‘You all look ready.’ Valiant said.

  ‘Are you?’ Asked Trevor, as short as ever.

  ‘I think I am.’ It was a lie, he knew the plan, but he still felt conflicted in how to deal with Rita. He wanted to end her, to be rid of her but being with Nina and Mordoom again had tempered his rage. He still felt it and he still wanted to act on it but now he wasn’t sure. He was caught between what he desired and what was right and Rita would not wait for an answer. He would have to decide what to do later as the final battle awaited them in Vilemire.

  The Final Level

  ‘System Change: Raid Battle System Activated!’

  It was the first thing Valiant saw as he and his party appeared outside of Vilemire Castle. He recalled Rita changing it over the last time they met to get him to fight her, and he was glad she did for an army of monsters awaited them on the steps of the castle. A turn based battle with so many enemies would have taken time they did not have but with the raid battle system, they had freedom in their approach and could end battles quickly.

  The air was thick with anticipation and pregnant with a bubbling aggression as both sides surveyed each other, waiting for the other to make the first move, to ignite that spark of anticipation into a roaring flame of battle. Valiant’s eyes were drawn to a castle balcony that overlooked it all and standing upon it was Rita. Her expression was difficult to gauge, she looked tense but as always, there was something more to Rita but the knowledge of what was beyond Valiant and he was too angry to care. Nothing Rita could say could undo what she had done to Goldharbour, to Erica and Jessie. Too much had happened and forgiveness an impossible thing to ask of him. He hated feeling the anger bubbling up within him, he could feel it poison him as it coursed through his veins, changing him into something he didn’t like but he couldn’t stop it. To let go of his anger would be to forgive and every time he tried to see past Rita’s actions, he saw Jessie sleeping without hope of ever waking up, he saw Erica alone and unaware of her own tragic existence. Rita had taken too much, far too much. Before the rage could overtake him and fog his mind, Valiant closed his eyes and breathed, keeping a steady pace until the red faded his vision.

  Behind him, Valiant could hear the almost silent mutterings of Trevor, he turned his head to see Trevor looking at each of their enemies, he seemed to count them.

  ‘Hmm, I think this might be easier than expected.’ Trevor said with a glint of optimism that Valiant didn’t know he was capable of. ‘With these raid rules in place, I should be able to take out most of those monsters, if not all, in one fell swoop.’ Valiant saw Mordoom’s shoulders droop, and he placed a hand on his shoulder for support.

  ‘I know we need to do this but it doesn’t make it easier.’ Mordoom’s words were heavy with both determination and regret. ‘It won’t be any easier if we wait so can we just get it over with?’ Mordoom carried a hint of hostility in his voice but Valiant understood his pain enough not to take it personally. He empathised with Mordoom now he had experienced, to an extent, what he was going through, and dragging out the inevitable would only hurt Mordoom more.

  ‘Let’s get started, stay safe and good luck.’

  Trevor wasted no time in casting his first spell, ‘Armour of the Elder Wizard’ according to the text box that appeared above his head. Trevor was consumed with golden flames that wrapped and formed around him into a long cloak of fire and a winged helm of flames that set upon his head without burning him. He looked imposing and ready to raise hell, a world away from the lazy misanthrope he appeared to be. This spell of his preceded the thundering drums as the sinister Vilemire background music gave way to a rising theme of aggression and war that only grew in intensity as the seconds passed. With the battle begun, red targeting circles appeared on the floor around the heroes that was followed by barrages of arrows that stuck the red areas. It was like the Obsidian stronghold all over again. More red marks appeared, this time they were long thick lines that streaked across the ground that were followed by lightning bolts, fireballs and shards of ice. Some of which Valiant didn’t dodge in time and he grunted in pain as his life bar took a hit, depleting to almost half a bar.

  Things would have been worse had it not been for Mordoom however as he erected a magical barrier that blocked most of the waves of magic that had beset them, giving them a moment’s respite from the onslaught. Although Valiant struggled to hear the fiddle amid all the explosions and soaring music around them, Valiant could see Fabian play it and his life bar filled back up as a result. He nodded in appreciation to Fabian. Valiant wondered what to do, Rita had an army at her disposal and they couldn’t defeat them all. The individual monsters were weak but together it felt like they were unstoppable. Panic set in as Valiant watched Mordoom’s barrier give way to the army’s attack. Valiant didn’t know what to do or how to get them out of this predicament. He felt like he was slipping into hopelessness when Trevor stepped in front of them all and raised his staff to their enemies.

  ‘Go! make use of the opening I’ll give you and get into the castle! Take down that witch before she can do any more harm!’ Another text box appeared above his head this time it contained the words ‘Hypernova’. Not wanting to waste the opportunity he was giving them, Valiant and the rest of his party charged forward. The heroes cut through the vanguard that ran at them. Valiant followed Trevor’s lead and chose his most powerful attack to slice through the enemy and the others did the same. The atmosphere exploded with the power of Mordoom’s spells, Fabian’s storm of arrows and the sight of Sabine spinning through the air with her great sword, laying all before her to waste. As they charged on, a weird rumbling grew louder to the point it was deafening and overhead they saw the sky above the army rend and twist into a golden sphere of fire that descended upon their enemies. Knowing that allied magic and attacks couldn’t harm them, Valiant’s party did not slow their procession through the enemy and they witnessed first hand the destruction that Trevor’s spell caused when the fiery sphere made contact with the ground. Valiant’s vision was overcome with a blinding white light and he could see nothing beyond it but he didn’t stop running, When the light faded a few seconds later, all the monsters had gone and in their place were ashes blowing in the wind. Valiant almost stopped, mouth agape at what he had witnessed but to do so would be to waste the window of opportunity to get into the castle unimpeded and such an opportunity would soon be lost. Valiant couldn’t see Rita from the castle doors but he saw her powers at work as static enveloped the ashes, pulling them together to form a new army of monsters from the old, just like that.

  Trevor didn’t seem too phased by the astonishing feat of resurrection he had just witnessed and instead responded with another Hypernova. Risking one last glance to Trevor to make sure he was okay, Valiant and the rest of the party proceeded into the castle. Valiant didn’t know how many more Hypernovas Trevor had left in him and he didn’t want to find out. They were already on a clock to save the world but now Trevor’s life was at stake, if they wasted too much time, he would fall and they would be forced to deal with both Rita and the full might of her endless army.

  ***

  Valiant’s party crashed through the front doors of the castle and slammed them shut behind them. The last time Valiant was here, the doors lead to a long dark corridor but this time they were gre
eted with a cavernous great hall of ruby encrusted obsidian, Did Rita change the layout? Or was it the last vestiges of the game system itself? Valiant had vague memories of his previous victories over Mordoom back when they all danced to the game’s tune and he could just about remember the castle looking different each time. Perhaps the answer was the combination of both, the game would change the layout every time Valiant returned to the castle and Rita manipulated which layout was chosen to best suit her needs, if that was the case then it would not be easy to progress.

  Before them was a dual staircase that winded upwards to the second floor and at the top of the stairs was another large door which Valiant discovered was locked. On either side of the door, there were two candlesticks attached to the wall with two unlit purple candles atop them. Valiant had learned enough on his travels to understand that they were faced with a puzzle, Mordoom stepped forward and attempted to light the candles with his magic but the wicks would not ignite no matter what he did and traditional flames were no better either. The solution seemed simple, light the candles to unlock the door but, as ever, it was the how they struggled with, not the what.

  Mordoom and Valiant were looking around for a clue while the others kept guard when the castle shook violently, the sounds of another Hypernova could be heard over the soaring battle music playing in the background. Each Hypernova was a reminder they were running out of time to save Trevor and they had even less time before more monsters would be upon them. They could hear them now, their cries and footsteps echoed all around them and through the windows they saw streaks of red that showed that the monsters outside were attacking the castle itself, desperate to get in.