Pangea Online: The Complete Trilogy

by S. L. Rowland

  I answer this one. “We didn’t really have much of a choice. We were out of weapons due to taking the mech units, so it was just as big of a risk to go back and try to find more. We had to work with what we had.”

  “And it worked out pretty well indeed. You’re not the only ones to encounter that problem. The mechs were designed as a risk-reward scenario. They can get you through some sticky situations, but at the cost of being unarmed on the final stretch. Now, Dean, this was your first tournament. Tell me, what was it like?”

  He sits up straight and brushes the hair from his eyes. “It was amazing. Better than I could have ever imagined. It was a real roller coaster of emotion as we overcame one challenge after another. I can’t wait to see what’s next.”

  “And neither can we. We’ll be announcing the next stage first thing in the morning but before we get to that, let’s dive a little deeper into the first stage. Ninety percent of contestants unlocked the helmet’s automated system, and many of them elected to take the shortest route as you did. When things got tough, you pivoted your plan of attack. Can you speak a little more to how you adapted to each situation?”

  I glance at Dean before answering. “I think we both just followed our instincts. If I learned anything from the last tournament, it’s that there’s more than one way to succeed. And there’s no shame in changing tactics when things aren’t working.”

  “I know this is a sensitive topic for you, but do you feel your upbringing has given you any advantages or disadvantages during the tournament?”

  Dean and I sit in silence. I knew that these questions would come. For some reason, it doesn’t set me off like last time. Maybe because it’s a genuine question and not a story byline.

  Dean clears his throat. “How could it not? Growing up in The Boxes, I never had access to all of Pangea, not until Esil came along. I’ve had to learn in a few weeks what most of these people have been discovering their entire lives. But I don’t want anybody’s pity. The one thing we know better than anyone is how to survive.”

  I wrap my arm around Dean and look straight into the camera. “Yeah, what he said.”

  For the next few minutes, we answer questions about specific instances, going into detail about our thought process and how we survived. All in all, it wasn’t a bad interview. Aside from the one question, there was no talk of The Boxes or my family. Maybe we can actually focus on the tournament going forward.

  When we log out, it’s late, but not late enough to go to bed.

  “What do you say we chill tonight? We can focus hard on the tournament tomorrow once we know the next stage.”

  Dean plops down on the couch. “Sounds good to me.”

  “Excellent. You pick out a movie. I’ll grab the ice cream.”

  Chapter Eighteen

  “Esil. Esil, wake up!” Dean’s excited voice shouts from the doorway.

  I open my eyes and it’s still dark outside.

  “What is it?” I prop myself up, wondering what he could possibly want at this hour.

  “Stage two! Check your messages.”

  I use voice command to turn on the lights and find my tablet on the bedside table. Sure enough, I have a message from the developers.

  Greetings Esil,

  After yesterday’s exciting events, we’re happy to announce that one-hundred and sixty-three teams have made it through to the next round. In three days’ time, you will be embarking on the next stage of the tournament. Without further ado, here are the details regarding stage two:

  Location: Raceworld’s Portal Pass

  Teams: 163

  Positions advancing: 100

  Good luck with your preparations and as always, never stop leveling!

  -Pangea Online Developers

  I sit up in bed. “Portal pass? Is that the racetrack that takes you through different worlds using portals?”

  Dean nods. “Yep, and it’s not a new stage so that means we can go practice!”

  “Right now?” I haven’t even gotten out of bed and he’s ready to hit the ground running.

  “Yeah, come on.” He taps on the doorframe. “We need to get there before everyone else.”

  Welcome to Raceworld. While in an active race, users who are not spectating must be on a mount at all times. More than thirty seconds spent on foot will result in disqualification from any race.

  A wall with dozens of video screens stands before us. On each screen, there is a different type of race. Cars, planes, animals, hoverboards; if you can ride it, there is a race for it. In the middle, there is a slightly bigger screen that reads “Portal Pass.”

  I focus on the image to enter Portal Pass and receive a notification.

  Error: Server full.

  I try again and receive the same message.

  That’s odd. “Dean, are you getting an error notice?”

  He frowns. “Yeah, what the heck?”

  “Looks like we’re late to the party?” a familiar voice calls over my shoulder.

  I turn around to find Talia and her brother Chadwick. They’re both dressed in their tribal garb and carry spears tipped with some dark metal. They wear plain leather clothing with golden jewelry. Chadwick stands a few feet behind Talia wearing a necklace with a large claw that dangles on his chest.

  “Hey! Congrats on making it through. What’s going on here?” I ask her.

  She presses her fingers to her temples and massages. “Clearly, the developers didn’t think this one through. Once stage two was announced, users from all over flooded Portal Pass to race alongside their favorite challengers. There are normally a hundred instances going at once and now all of them are full. Only a handful of actual contestants have been able to get inside.”

  “So what are we supposed to do?” Dean tries to enter Portal Pass again. “We’re the ones who need the practice.”

  Talia shrugs. “I don’t think we have much of a choice. We have to wait for them to sort it out, which I don’t imagine will take too long. Want to go check out another race while we wait?”

  I look over our other options for something similar to Portal Pass. “Might as well. There are a few things I want to discuss with you. How about this one?” I point to Hoverworld. It’s the closest thing to Portal Pass since it uses hovercraft, but it’s far more limited in items and abilities in-game.

  We all enter Hoverworld and are presented with numerous options for mounts. There are single-rider hoverbikes and two-seaters with options for side-by-side or front-and-back layouts. Some are built for top speed, while others have faster acceleration, tankiness, or maneuverability.

  “Take your pick, Dean?” I motion toward all our options.

  He looks them over before stopping in front of a sleek black hovercar. Silver spikes jut out around all four sides, making it a dangerous weapon in its own right without even counting the turret mounted on the back. There’s no roof. One seat faces forward with the steering wheel and another faces the rear to aim the turret.

  “This one has good acceleration and is built like a tank. The top speed isn’t that great, but it’s good for bullying in the early part and can handle corners pretty well.” He climbs in the back seat. “Dibs on the gun!”

  Talia and Chadwick take a long, slender hovercraft. It’s red with a black stripe running down the center and has the highest top speed of any of the options. Both riders face forward, one behind the other, but the back seat has a display for aiming the gun mounted on top of the roof. Unlike our hovercar, this one can aim in all directions.

  Talia climbs inside the front seat. “Want to run a few laps and then we can talk?”

  “Sounds good.” I pull our hovercar up to the starting line.

  30 seconds until next race flashes across my vision. I rev the engine and blue flames shoot from the thrusters as the engine whines. Talia winks at me as she revs her own.

  Something rumbles behind us, so deep and sonorous that I can feel in my chest.

  Two more vehicles have joined the race. One is a s
mall halfling riding a hoverbike and wearing a billowing cloak. The hoverbike doesn’t have a weapon, but two canisters hang from both sides. The second is a truck with two tall smokestacks attached to the bed. A steady stream of smoke billows into the air. A black-bearded dwarf sits in the driver’s seat while a minotaur stands in the bed pointing a turret in our direction.

  A map of the track appears in the top right of my vision, along with a timer, a position counter, and how many laps we’ve completed. This race is set to be three laps.

  I look over my shoulder to Dean. “Looks like we already have a target on us. You ready?”

  Dean smiles as he points his turret at the minotaur. “I was born ready.”

  The timer hits zero and the roar of thrusters and weapons firing fills the air. The halfling zooms past us, cloak whipping as she does. Chadwick tries to blast her with the turret but misses, damaging the energy shield surrounding our own car. He grimaces and raises a hand in apology.

  I fall into second place as Dean and the minotaur exchange fire, the energy beams canceling out one another mid-air.

  The truck and Talia are neck-and-neck when Chadwick sets his aim on the minotaur. The dwarf swerves hard to the right, ramming the massive truck into Talia and Chadwick as we take the first curve. The hit from the truck causes the red hotrod to spin out.

  The halfling on the hoverbike is nowhere to be seen. Dean and the minotaur are locked in a stalemate as they continue to shoot at one another, but neither one is able to land a direct hit.

  Something small and black sits in the middle of the track up ahead. I swerve to the left to avoid it, but the box explodes, sending us screeching against the metal railing of the track. Hairline fractures splinter along the edge of our forcefield as we crash. The truck passes us by as we are forced to slow down. I punch the acceleration as we hit the first open stretch of road. Wind whips against my eyes and a loud roar passes us by as Talia and Chadwick catch up, their car finally hitting top speed.

  “Dude, we’re in last place. Catch up!” Dean yells from behind me.

  Talia is forced to slow down to take the next turn. Our car has much better handling, so I only slow down a fraction, hitting the top of the embankment and accelerating as I maneuver to the bottom as we exit the turn. I pass Talia just as we hit another stretch.

  Up ahead, the halfling swerves from left to right as the minotaur showers the road with energy beams. One catches the hoverbike in the rear, forcing it to spin out. The truck is about to make a break for it when the halfling pulls a mine from her satchel and tosses it in front of the truck. The dwarf slams on the brakes, but it’s too late. The mine explodes, knocking the truck hard into the wall.

  This is our chance. I try to thread the needle between the two downed vehicles. Both are just getting up to speed when someone shouts.

  “Not so fast!”

  The tip of Talia’s car appears in the corner of my vision right before it smashes into us. The shield on their car falters as our spiked exterior dishes back damage. The halfling lets out a yelp as we crash into her. Metal grinds against the exterior wall as the truck takes the opportunity to ram into Talia’s car, pinning us and the hoverbike against the wall.

  Dean grunts as he struggles behind me. “Ugh, I can’t turn the turret to hit anything.”

  Dean fights with the weapon while I try to reverse us out of this situation, but we’re stuck between the other vehicles. The truck backs up and I think we have a shot to escape, but it plows forward, hitting us again. Talia’s shield cracks and smoke flows freely from the thrusters. She smashes her fist to the steering wheel as her engine dies.

  Our position changes from 3/4 to 3/3.

  “Sorry, dude.” Dean turns his turret away from the truck and points it at the halfling.

  The halfling opens her mouth, but the words never come out as Dean opens fire. The positioning changes again to 2/2.

  I try to maneuver us free again, but our spikes are lodged in the downed car and hoverbike, not to mention the truck still pressing us against the railing.

  Our shield collapses and the exterior of the vehicle begins to crumple. The engine whines as I press the gas and attempt to jerk us free.

  Our spikes rip free and I’m able to reverse us out. The truck does the same, but we’re already screwed. I attempt to use our maneuverability to position us so that Dean can aim, but the minotaur has positioning. He shows me a rude gesture and opens fire.

  My vision flashes red and a notification appears in front of me as we’re blown to bits.

  Eliminated!

  I let out a long sigh as the truck drives away. This certainly bodes well for our chances in the tournament.

  After a moment, Dean and I materialize at the starting line. I catch sight of the halfling just before she logs out. Talia and Chadwick sit on the concrete wall to the left of the track.

  I hop onto the wall and take a seat. “I thought we would at least make it through the first lap.”

  Talia frowns. “Yeah, we’re going to have to do better if we want to make it through to the final round. So, what was it you were wanting to talk about?”

  The truck comes blazing around the corner. As it passes by, the minotaur aims the turret in our direction and fires. We all flinch, but the beams pass straight through us. The minotaur tilts his head back and boisterous laughter fades as they zoom away.

  “What a jerk!” Dean raises his fist at our tormentors.

  I return my attention to Talia. “I was thinking it might be a good idea to form an alliance. With over a hundred and sixty teams, we could watch each other’s backs, give us a better shot at making it through.”

  She sits in silence for a while before whispering something in Chadwick’s ear. He nods and then covers his mouth so I can’t see what he is saying. The two carry on with this back and forth before turning to me.

  “We’re in, but we have conditions.” She hops down from the ledge.

  “Okay, let’s hear them.”

  She stands right in front of me. “No one else gets in on our alliance. You’re the only one I trust in this whole competition, and I don’t want to be stabbed in the back by someone I haven’t fought beside in battle.”

  I nod. “Sounds good. What else?”

  “We train together in Portal Pass.” She winks. “We can set up bots to go against us.”

  I look to Dean and he nods his acceptance.

  “I think we can manage that. If we can ever get inside.”

  She extends a hand to help me down. “We better get moving then. Chadwick just checked the forums and everyone has been purged from Portal Pass. Only those in the tournament are allowed to train there for now.”

  We log out just as the hovertruck makes another lap. The main lobby of Raceworld is crowded. Dozens of people stand in front of the entrance to Portal Pass.

  “Oh, come on! Why can’t we get back in?”

  “This is some Grade-A bullshi—”

  “Let’s get out of here. What a waste of time.”

  We press our way through the crowd until we’re able to see the screen.

  “Hey, I know you. You’re that kid from—” Someone grabs me by the shoulder, but before they have time to initiate a conversation, I’m already entering Portal Pass.

  I select a separate instance for us to enter. The system confirms that I’m in the tournament, and then allows me to invite the others. A moment later, they all materialize inside of a showroom.

  Inside of the showroom, dozens of vehicles hover in the air rotating in a circle. The walls of the showroom display various stages, and a long counter shows all the items and abilities each stage has to offer. Next to them, miniature holograms show how they work on a model hovercraft.

  Talia stands in front of one of the location displays, swiping through each stage. “Hey, Esil. Can you give me admin access? I’d like to set up some test courses.”

  Pretty soon, we have a test track created with ten different stages. She randomizes the items and adds
one hundred bots to the race.

  Finally, it’s time to train.

  Chapter Nineteen

  After our fifteenth race of the day, we stop for a break at the finish line. The bots dissipate as they finish the race, leaving Talia, Chadwick, Dean, and myself in a sandy clearing in the middle of a lush jungle.

  Large ropes run along the edge of the sandy track, keeping us from venturing into the jungle. Birds and monkeys play in the trees, filling the air with noise. Somewhere in the distance, a waterfall gives off a low roar.

  “This is crazy.” Chadwick hops out of the rear seat of the bug-shaped car and kicks at the sand. Painted red, the car looks like a ladybug as it hovers a foot off the ground. “We haven’t finished in the top ten once. Can’t you make them go a little easier on us?”

  Talia unbuckles herself and climbs out of the front seat. “You think our opponents are going to go easy on us?”

  He scowls at her. “No, but how many times are we going to get blasted? This isn’t fun.”

  She crosses her arms. “Until we stop getting hit. And it’s not supposed to be fun, we’re training. So that you can get that scholarship you want so badly.”

  I try my best to ease some of the tension. “Hey, at least there’s no elimination on this one, so it doesn’t matter how many times we get knocked down. As long as we finish in the top one hundred, we’ll be through.”

  “I get what he’s saying, though.” Dean joins Talia and Chadwick in the sand. “This is intense. There’s too much to learn in such a short time, and I’m sure the developers will throw some kind of twist on what we’re expecting. But geez, how many times are we going to get hit with an ice beam?”

  Talia shrugs. “I know it’s not easy. But we need to figure out what works. Each elemental projectile has a counter that nullifies it. We just need to get better at using those to our advantage.”

  On paper, this seems like a simple race, but the sheer number of item combinations makes it difficult to formulate any kind of plan until the race starts. Items spawn randomly on the track, so aside from vehicle choice, it’s all about adapting to the situation at hand. So far, we’ve done a pretty poor job.