Black smoke swirled through the barrier of demons straight for Daniel and Mira.
Daniel was nervously expecting something monstrous to emerge from the black cloud – but nothing did. Instead, the smoke went right for his chest.
He looked down and saw it batter harmlessly against the silver breastplate.
Suddenly the smoke shot up towards his face, into the gap in the helmet for his eyes.
There was an acrid smell. He felt a strange fuzziness, like trying to fight off sleep after 24 hours awake – but this was far more unpleasant. It was almost like something was trying to get into his mind, an animal scratching insistently at the doorway of his thoughts…
From far away he heard Eric yell, “Why isn’t it working?!”
Warning: Level 50 Spectral Demon attack
Possession taking hold
It was working, though, apparently. Something was happening, no matter how hard he fought it.
His vision dimmed, like someone had dropped sunglasses in front of his eyes. He felt as though he was sitting in a glass booth, able to see what his body was doing, but unable to fully control it. His arms and legs moved without any input from him, acting against his wishes.
And there was a whispering in the back of his head, just under the threshold of hearing – a garbled voice speaking an unintelligible language, insistent and full of hatred.
Possession complete
His right arm rose up and raised his sword in the air as he turned towards Mira.
She was still aiming her bow and arrow at Eric and the menagerie of horrors. She glanced over at Daniel and did a double-take, her eyes widening in alarm.
“Daniel, your eyes – what’s wrong with your eyes?!”
She realized what was going on too late as he swung the sword down.
NO! he screamed inwardly. NO –
He fought his own body with every ounce of his will.
At the last second, he was able to twist the sword and move it off center.
The flat of the blade hit her instead of the razor-sharp edge, so that the swing was a blow instead of a cut. And it struck her shoulder instead of her head.
But it was still powerful, like someone swinging a baseball bat straight down.
She screamed in pain as her collar bone broke and she crumpled to the ground.
NO! Daniel screamed inwardly. NO –
Mira lay on the ground, staring up at him in terror, as Daniel slowly lowered the tip of the sword in front of her face.
Sweat dripped into his black eyes as he fought whatever had invaded his mind.
The tip of the sword quivered – but it continued to hover just inches away from her right eye.
“Good – GOOD!” Eric laughed as he pushed his way through his nightmarish bodyguards.
He walked over and stood above Mira. He gave her a vicious smile, though he winced with pain as he clutched the arrow embedded in his shoulder.
“So – I’m the bad guy who turned on his friends, but it’s okay for you to shoot me with an arrow?” Then he looked at Daniel. “And it’s terrible that I don’t care if some random chodes buy it in a dungeon crawl, but it’s okay for you to turn on me and side with her? Okay – let’s see how you two like it. FINISH HER!”
The sword shook visibly as Daniel’s entire arm trembled, though it stayed right where it was.
“Daniel… please,” Mira said through tears. “Fight it – I know you can fight it – ”
“I said, FINISH HER!” Eric roared.
Daniel gritted his teeth, straining to fight the thing in his mind.
The sword slowly lifted.
“KILL HER NOW!” Eric screamed.
“Daniel, no!”
The sword paused, high in the air –
And then flashed down.
Sideways.
WHAM!
The flat of the blade caught the arrow in Eric’s shoulder, twisting it even more.
“AAAAAAAHHH!” Eric screamed in agony as he stumbled backwards.
Daniel turned his head, his face furious –
His eyes clear and bright.
Possession broken
Black smoke boiled out of his helmet, dissipated in the air –
And that was when he attacked.
Daniel strode forward, striking Eric with the flat of the sword at every step – against his arm, his shoulder, his chest –
Eric screamed with every blow. He stumbled backwards in the grass, dropping the staff and orb.
The line of demons surged forward to protect their master, but Daniel cut them down, turning them back into black smoke.
Finally he held the tip of the sword inches from Eric’s face, the way he had just moments before with Mira.
Except now the blade wasn’t trembling.
“What are you DOING?!” Eric howled in pain.
“You possessed me!” Daniel roared. “You took over my MIND, you asshole!”
“You chose her over ME!”
“SHE DIDN’T PUT A FRICKIN’ DEMON IN MY HEAD!”
Eric winced as he clutched his arm. “Okay… I might have gone overboard with that one…”
“You THINK?!”
“Alright, alright. Now we’re even.”
“Now we’re even?” Daniel asked, incredulous. “You kill half our group, screw with my mind, make me attack Mira – and now we’re EVEN?!”
“I saved you from a dragon,” Eric said coldly. “Hell, I saved your life so you could steal that precious little sword you’re pointing in my face right now.”
Daniel flinched, stung by guilt.
Eric continued. “I got a bunch of power that I wanted to use for both of us, so we could have some kickass adventures together. But you went and sided with a chick, a bunch of losers you’d never hang out with in real life, and some stupid computer program – over me.”
“They didn’t possess me and turn me against my friend!”
“No… you turned against your real friend all on your own,” Eric said bitterly.
“You lied to me from the start!”
“Because I knew you’d freak out. Which you did.”
“I didn’t freak out because you play with monsters, Eric. I freaked out because you are a monster.”
Eric laughed. “That’s a good line – how long did it take you to come up with it?”
“Screw you.”
“Whatever, dude,” Eric scoffed. “I was playing a game. You actually betrayed me.”
Daniel shook his head angrily. “If you actually believe that, you’re a psychopath.”
“No, I’m just looking at the facts,” Eric spat. “So – what’re you gonna do? You gonna kill me?”
“I don’t know what I’m going to do with you.” Daniel turned briefly to look at Mira. “What do you think?”
He didn’t notice Eric moving his lips silently – or the black smoke that boiled from his fingertips directly into the ground.
Mira slowly got to her feet and walked stiffly over to retrieve her bow. “I think we should check him for any healing potions, that’s what I think.”
Daniel turned back to Eric. “That’s a good idea – did you hold anything back when you gave us your cloak?”
“A few.”
“Give them here.”
“Alright.” Eric reached gingerly into one of his shirt pockets. “You’re going to need them in a minute.”
“What?” Daniel asked, confused. “Why?”
“DANIEL, LOOK OUT!” Mira screamed.
There was the sound of something enormous rushing across the grass.
Daniel looked over –
Just in time to see a large, black, scaly tail whipping at him through the air.
WHAM!
Daniel flew through the air, then crashed to the ground.
Blunt force attack!
Armor reduces damage to 2%
-10 hit points
145/155 hit points remaining
The dragon reared silently up in the air, its p
ale belly streaked in blood, its green eyes now completely black.
Eric scrambled up and grabbed his staff, then hobbled over to the monster’s side.
Daniel staggered to his feet, and he and Mira looked at the creature as it gazed impassively down at them.
“So, what’re you going to do?” Daniel shouted angrily. “You going to kill us?”
“No,” Eric said. He pulled a glass vial from his pocket, yanked the arrow out with a scream, and then poured the liquid over the wound. White mist rose up from his skin. Eric flexed his shoulder, then turned back to Mira and Daniel. “No, I’m just going to leave.”
The dragon lowered itself flush to the ground, and Eric clambered up on top of it.
“You guys can ride the bus… I think I’ll fly instead.” Eric smirked. “Have a nice trip home, guys. Hope it’s there when you get back.”
With that, the dragon began to beat the air with its wings. The grass beneath it shivered in the wind, and then the giant creature lifted off into the air.
Mira and Daniel both watched it recede into the distance until it was just a black speck against the clouds.
“…did that just happen?” she asked in shock. “Or did I imagine it?”
“You didn’t imagine it,” Daniel said bitterly.
“What are we going to do?”
Daniel narrowed his eyes. “I don’t know about you, but I know exactly what I’m going to do.”
69
Daniel sat up in bed and pulled off the virtual reality helmet. He was so angry his hands were shaking.
Eric was in the next bed over, peacefully lying on his back with his own helmet covering his face. The computer unit sat on the floor next to his bed, blue lights blinking serenely.
Daniel got up out of bed, walked over to the CPU, and yanked the plug out of the wall.
The blue lights went dark.
Eric’s body suddenly jerked and he sat up straight.
“What the hell?” he shouted, his voice muffled, as he pulled off the helmet.
As soon as it was off, he saw Daniel standing there, plug in his hand.
“Oh,” Eric said, annoyed, and then grew angry. “What are you trying to do, give me a heart attack? Everything just went black – ”
“Get out,” Daniel seethed.
Eric stared at him. “…what?”
“I said get OUT.”
Eric looked at him for a second longer, then burst into nervous laughter. “Are you messing with me?”
“No. I’m not.”
Now came the anger. “You ASSHOLE – I said we were even! I could’ve killed both of you, but I left you alive!”
“Wow, aren’t you the biggest hero ever,” Daniel snarled.
Eric stood up. “At least I didn’t yank somebody out of the game without telling them! You could’ve fried my brain!”
“No I couldn’t have,” Daniel sneered. “They’d never put out a product like that.”
“You don’t know that! You could’ve hurt me – ”
“GET OUT!” Daniel bellowed.
Eric swung from anger back to shock. “Dude – it’s a game. Okay, I went over the top, I admit it – but it’s a game.”
“I don’t care. I want you out of my house.”
“Is this about the possession thing?”
“The possession ‘thing’? Yeah, THAT, and the lies, and the killing – ”
“IT’S A GAME!” Eric shouted. “It’s just a GAME.”
“I don’t care. Get out.”
“What, you’re going to take your ball and go home?” Eric said sarcastically.
“No, I’m going to take my ball and kick you out. Go home.”
It was finally beginning to seep in that Daniel was serious. Eric immediately became apologetic.
“Look – I’m sorry, okay? I was a dick, and I lied to you a couple of times. Let’s just put it all behind us and – ”
“Get out.”
“Come on, man,” Eric pleaded. “Give me another chance. I’ll fly the dragon back, we’ll all go back to Blackstone and put this behind us – ”
“Get out.”
“You can’t do this to me!” Eric said in a panic. “I don’t have a unit back at my house – I can’t afford one!”
“So?”
“So?! So I can’t PLAY!”
Daniel shrugged and said coldly, “It’s just a game.”
Eric stared at him, shocked to have his own words thrown back in his face.
“Fine,” he said, his voice furious. “The little rich boy who gets everything he wants is kicking me out – ”
“Screw you,” Daniel seethed. “That’s not what this is – ”
“He’ll steal swords out of other rich people’s houses, but if I step out of line and do something he doesn’t like, he cuts me off – ”
“You LIED to me! You MESSED WITH MY HEAD!”
“AND YOU CHOSE OTHER PEOPLE OVER ME!” Eric screamed.
There was a knock on the door.
They both froze and looked over as the doorknob rattled.
“Daniel?” a woman’s voice called. “Is everything all right in there?”
Daniel walked over, unlocked the door, and opened it. There stood his mother with a cup of coffee in her hand.
“Yeah, it’s fine,” Daniel said.
“I thought I heard – oh, hello, Eric,” she said, surprised.
“Hi, Mrs. Lauer,” Eric said sullenly.
“You guys playing the new game?” she asked, then took a sip from the cup.
“We were, but he’s just leaving,” Daniel said, then glared back at Eric. “Aren’t you?”
Eric’s eyes shot daggers at his friend. “Yeah. I guess I am.”
He stomped past Daniel into the hallway, then ran down the stairs as fast as he could.
Daniel’s mother looked after Eric in surprise. “Daniel, what’s going on?”
“Nothing,” he said, watching as his friend opened the front door and slammed it behind him. “We just had a disagreement, that’s all… and he lost.”
70
When Daniel returned to the game world, he noticed all the signs that a struggle had occurred.
The grass was still torn and flattened where the dragon had been.
There was next to nothing left of Drogar – only some chain mail and his weapons. The tentacles had devoured everything else before disappearing into black smoke.
Simik’s body lay silent and still in the grass. That was the one thing that disturbed him the most, and he tried not to look at it.
Mira was loading up the few remaining horses. Apparently she had healed in the short time he was gone.
“Your arm’s okay?” he asked.
She turned around, startled.
“Oh, you’re back! It’s weird when you’re logged out – you were just standing there all silent for the last hour. Yeah, my hit points restored gradually, and now it’s fine.” She looked concerned. “Did you do it?”
“Yeah.”
“How’d he take it?”
“Not good.” Daniel shrugged. “Screw him.”
“Daniel…” she said in a gentle voice. “He’s your best friend…”
“Is he?” Daniel asked bitterly.
“You know he is.”
“Then why the hell did he act like that?”
“Eric’s right, you know. No matter how real it feels, it is just a game.” Mira paused. “He just happens to be a complete asshole sometimes when he’s playing it.”
Daniel burst out laughing, and Mira joined him.
“The biggest asshole ever,” Daniel agreed.
“Are you going to let him back in?”
“Not today. Maybe tomorrow after school… if he stops being a dick.”
She sighed. “Well, you sure know how to hit him where it hurts.”
“What’re you talking about?”
“Are you kidding me? He loves this. He’s got so much power here. He gets pushed around at school, his life sucks –
but here, he’s a god. Or at least he was.”
“Until I went and took it away from him,” Daniel said thoughtfully.
“I’m not saying he didn’t deserve it, but… don’t hold it over his head for too long. That’s not cool.”
“Yeah… I guess you’re right…”
“Come on, we better saddle up. We’ve got a long ride back to Blackstone.”
He looked back at Simik’s body. “What do you think we ought to do with him?”
“I was kind of waiting on you to decide. Do you… want to bury him?”
Daniel stood there a long time in silence.
“I know it seems stupid,” he finally said. “I mean, he’s a computer program… but I can’t bear the thought of just letting him lie out here in the open and wolves or something coming along and…”
He trailed off, then looked at her. “Would you mind?”
“No,” she said. “I don’t mind.”
“I can do it myself – ”
“I’ll help,” she said as she pulled a shovel out of one of the horses’ packs.
It took two hours between them, but they dug a shallow grave. The digging was easy, as though the game itself wanted to help them. Once the hole was dug, they lowered Simik into it and covered his body back up.
After a moment of respectful silence, Mira said, “We should probably get going.”
“You want to go back in the mine before we go and get any gold coins or anything?”
“NO. I don’t want to go anywhere near it,” she said vehemently. Then she held up the bow. “This is enough for me. Why, do you want to go back in?”
He looked down at the rectangular patch of soil in the ground, then up at the cave.
And tell other dwarves about the statues we found… tell them they have to come retrieve them… tell them that I said you could help… if you want…
“No, I don’t,” he said quietly. “But I think I might come back again someday.”
“What should we do about the others when they respawn?”
“That’s right,” Daniel realized, and looked around him. “They’ll probably come back here, right?”
“I don’t know. I would think so, but…”
“We should probably log out and wait for them. Once you die, there’s a mandatory one-hour lockout in the real world, right?”
Shattered Lands: A LitRPG Series Page 30