Fang: A World at War Novel (World at War Online Book 3)

by Mitchell T. Jacobs

  “I'm assuming that we divide up by platoon?” Nora shrugged.

  Danny spoke up. “Speaking of platoons, if we're still going ahead with the plan then my third squad is going to be changing hands. I'm going to slide Ryan into Karen's spot.”

  “That's going to take some time for everyone to get used to,” Selene commented.

  “So do you want to put them in reserve for the time being?” Zach asked him.

  Danny shook his head. “Ryan is plenty capable, and it's not like it's going to be an extreme change. Third squad is good enough adapt. But I think Barghest Company should be the reserve, since they're all new.”

  “Are we sure that we want the inexperienced ones as our backup?” Selene asked.

  “Better than having them up front where they could get into a whole lot of trouble,” Danny pointed out.

  “OK, point taken,” Selene agreed.

  “So Barghest will work as our reserve force,” Zach said. “For the initial mission I'm going to put Alpha Platoon out in front, since you guys have the most tunnel fighting experience. Bravo Platoon will act as needed.”

  “When do we want to start the mission?” Selene asked.

  “When can we get everyone on at the same time is a better question,” Nora interjected.

  That was one of the biggest issues when planning a large scale operation in World at War. Organizing the entire alliance, or even just a company was a massive undertaking. Everyone had to find a time that worked with their schedule, and that was almost impossible.

  Black Wolf Company had stopped trying to get the entire company together under anything but the most important of circumstances. Instead, they tried to get as many players as they could and would reorganize accordingly. So far they had managed to be fairly successful.

  It might not be a major problem anyhow. They didn't need massive forces for a reconnaissance mission in such a tightly restricted area; in fact they might be able to get by with just a squad, but they needed some insurance just in case.

  That gave Zach an idea, though. The original members of Black Wolf Company were on pretty much every day, since they were being paid to take part in a study of the virtual game world. They could easily organize themselves into a single squad to do some recon work when the others weren't available, and they could probably pick up stragglers from some of the other players that were on at the same time.

  “Might not be the most efficient use of resources, but that does sound like a lot of fun,” Nora said after he brought up his thought.

  Danny leaned back in his chair and grinned. “Ah, back to the old days, when it was just eight of us getting our faces melted off by a giant chilus.”

  “No, they got lucky, remember?” Selene pointed out.

  “Yeah, how come I got killed when you were sitting right next to me and didn't even get a scratch?” Danny said to Nora.

  “Well, I'm not the one who decided to carry machine guns all the time,” Nora shrugged.

  “We're taking a flamethrower with us again,” Zach said.

  Selene shot him an amused look. “Right. Why, do you want to deal with another elevator filled with chilus without one?”

  “I'm going to go with no on that one,” he replied.

  Nora was typing up a message in her menu. “OK, I'm going to see what dates and times fit with everyone's schedule. I'll try to compile a list of them all.”

  Zach looked over at Selene and Danny. “Can you guys make sure that we have all the arms and equipment we'll need for the mission?”

  “Sure. What are you going to do?” Selene asked.

  Zach sighed. “I have to get this thing approved by command. Joy.”

  Danny grinned at him. “No time like the present. Have fun and give everyone our loving regards.”

  Zach snorted and stood up. “Yeah, yeah, go count bullets or something.”

  CHAPTER 4

  Lab Rat

  Nora took a drink from her coffee cup. She had been up late last night and wanted to be awake for the interview session today.

  The rest of the group was chatting idly with each other. Danny was talking with Xavier and Javy and Zach and Selene were laughing about something.

  “Tunnel exploration, huh?” Miko asked. “I'm hoping that it goes better than some of the other times.”

  “We've been pretty successful,” Nora said. “We've gotten a lot of schematics that way.”

  “I'm more concerned with not dying,” Miko said.

  “We are a lot better off than we were back then,” Gavin said.

  Nora paused for a moment. “We haven't done a lot of exploration in a while.” Karen's squad had been the last team to explore a bunker.

  “It's not like we really had the time,” Gavin pointed out. “We spent a lot of time gearing up for the attack on the bastion, and then we had to deal with the city.”

  “Plus all the stuff up north,” Miko added.

  “Speaking of up north, how is that holding up?” Nora asked her. Miko had spent time sniping the commanders of smaller companies that were beginning to side with Ragnarok.

  She laughed. “They get our point. They don't like it, but I think we managed to push a lot of them into Ronin's camp, since they can't support Ragnarok but they don't want to support us.”

  “That's good, at least,” Nora agreed.

  “Hey Nora, did you figure out a time that was good for everyone?” Selene asked.

  Nora turned toward her. “Not until the end of the week.”

  “That's a lot of time we're going to be wasting,” Gavin said thoughtfully.

  “Do we want to go with the second option for the time being?” Zach asked.

  “What's the second option?” Miko questioned.

  “The second option is that we form a squad out of everyone here and explore the tunnel,” Zach explained. “We might not be able to cover a ton of ground, but we can at least get started.”

  “Ah, just like the old days,” Gavin said.

  “Preferably without the dying,” Xavier interjected.

  “Why is everyone so fixated on that?” Nora asked.

  “Getting turned into slurry by a giant chilus is no fun,” Miko said. “Just 'cause you never die...”

  Nora laughed. “I'm sure that it will go a lot better this time. We're smarter and better equipped now.”

  By now the rest had joined in on the conversation.

  “Yeah, but the enemies we're facing are a lot stronger. The chilus that we ran into in the metro was huge,” Javy said.

  “Just how big was it?” Selene asked. “It can't be any bigger than the boss we ran into in the overdrive bunker.”

  Javy rubbed the back of his neck. “No, but that thing was a boss. The thing we ran into down there looks like it's a normal enemy, except that its the size of a bus.”

  “So we go in with good equipment and take care of the problem head on,” Gavin said. “We can flame the thing like we did last time. We'll just remember to bring more fuel along.”

  “I have a bad feeling about this,” Miko said.

  “Great, now that we have the movie cliché out of the way all that's left to do is go in and die,” Xavier joked.

  Nora shrugged. “Well, it's probably going to be very trial and error. Hopefully we can figure out things so we can give the others some pointers.”

  “Great, guinea pigs again,” Javy commented lightly.

  “That's where half the fun comes from,” Gavin laughed.

  Nora finished her cup of coffee and stood up to get another. By the time she had finished their interviewer Dr. Unger had arrived.

  “Good morning, everyone,” he greeted them. “This past week has been a very interesting case study for us all, and it's our main focus for today.”

  He took a folder out of his bag and opened it up. Inside were several lists, some pictures and some charts that Nora couldn't quite identify. Dr. Unger took one of the lists and glanced at it.

  “Your capture of the first district inside
Indianapolis is of great interest to us. We were quite impressed by your ability to create a cohesive plan and to carry it out in such a short period of time. How were you able to do it?”

  The others looked at each other. Nora thought to herself, uncertain about what to say. To her what they had done was only natural. The Hydra Alliance had organized itself in order to get the job done.

  Xavier spoke up first. “Coordination was key, as always,” he said. “I think that's what separates the powerful organizations in the game from the weaker ones. We don't necessarily have better players, but we can organize them better.”

  “So you believe that you succeed because you're more cohesive,” Dr. Unger observed.

  “I've seen it too,” Gavin said. “A lot of people around Old Chicago are saying that we succeeded because we have the best tech, but I'm more inclined to believe that it's because we were able to create a plan and stick to it.”

  “I think it has to do with command structure,” Selene added. “The smaller companies can fight, but they're involved in small actions. We're able to do well because our command structure gives all the small actions a sense of purpose.”

  “Is it due to the fact that your command structure works on a different level from that of players on the front lines?” Dr. Unger asked.

  Nora spoke up. “I think it's because of the way our alliance command is structured. We essentially divided everything up into three levels, and I think that might be missing from other groups.”

  Dr. Unger stated the obvious question. “What are those three levels?”

  “The lowest level is tactics. That's where the individual fights happen. Then there's operations, which is the front that the fighting is taking place. Winning small fights doesn't matter if they don't contribute to the overall plan. Then there's strategy, which takes the fronts and aims them toward a certain goal,” Nora summarized.

  “Did you all devise that plan by yourselves?”

  Nora shook her head. “Actually, I came up with the idea when I was reading a book on the Soviet Red Army.”

  “So why pick that particular system?”

  “Because we're utilitarian and it seemed like the best system for us?” Danny offered.

  “Yeah, that sounds just like a philosophy major,” Selene commented.

  Dr. Unger laughed. “True enough, but it seems like a good point. Then again, that begs the question why you believe it's a good system. Why not chose another way of fighting?”

  “I really think it's because it's the most efficient,” Zach said. “But I also think that we're just choosing what works best because we're in a survival situation inside the game. We're kind of frankensteining a new system together, if that makes sense.”

  “You're taking the parts of different systems and fitting them together into something that works for your alliance?”

  “Yeah, that's it,” Zach said.

  “But then why not build a system from the ground up? You're inside a system that has limitless possibilities,” Dr. Unger pointed out.

  “Is that a question about the connection between the real and the virtual world?” Miko asked him. “Like, what are we carrying over from this world into the other one?”

  “Yes. Or, worded differently, how are your ties to a limited world influencing how you act in a world where those limits are removed?”

  “I think it's because we know the system we're using will work,” Nora said.

  “It's metagaming,” Danny explained further. “Like, our command structure didn't exist in the game world. But it did in the outside world, so that's what we drew from. It's not part of the game, but the influence of the outside world is seeping in.”

  “Kind of like knowing where everything is because you have a strategy guide,” Gavin said.

  “Well, I wouldn't go that far,” Zach commented. “It's not like we're cheating or anything.”

  “But the greatest influence on your actions is coming from the outside world?” Dr. Unger asked. “That's definitely of note.”

  “Are you saying that our ties to the outside world are restricting what we're capable of doing inside the game world?” Xavier questioned.

  “Not necessarily,” Dr. Unger explained. “But I do think that your frame of reference is influencing what you gravitate toward, whether that be social structures or other things.”

  “Makes sense,” Danny shrugged.

  It also brought up a whole host of questions, Nora thought to herself.

  “Well, that interview session was certainly interesting,” Zach commented.

  “Definitely,” Nora agreed.

  They had split off from the rest of the group and were having lunch at the Belfast Manor Pub.

  “Do you think what Dr. Unger said is true? That we're restricting ourselves because we're too tied down to this world's way of thinking?”

  “What happened to your thought that the only reason the game has any meaning is because our avatars are tied to our real world selves?” Zach asked her.

  “They're not mutually exclusive,” Nora said, “and I still think that. But maybe we're restricting ourselves because we're thinking in terms of the real world, not the virtual one.”

  “That really hasn't been much of a problem so far,” Zach pointed out.

  “Yeah, but it makes me wonder. Would we be restricted if we were in a radically different world? Like, for instance, if it ran off different physics than the real world.”

  “Like if there was less gravity?”

  “Yeah, that would be one possibility. Or maybe if we were physiologically different. Like, if we had wings attached to our back or something. Would not having them in real life limit how we could use them in the virtual world?”

  “I would think that people could adapt,” Zach said. “You would figure out how to use your new body and then you would function normally. Or, normally for the virtual world, at least.”

  “Wouldn't that mess with your perception of the outside world though?” Nora asked.

  “What do you mean by that?”

  “Like, if you had physical abilities inside the game world that you didn't in the real world, would you end up developing unconscious reactions to them?”

  “Still not sure what you're getting at,” Zach said.

  “OK, for example, sailors developing sea legs because the deck below them is moving. But their balance is slightly off when they go back to dry land until they adapt.”

  “That's your answer, isn't it? People would adapt when they moved from world to world.”

  “Without any problems?” she questioned.

  “OK, there might be some hiccups here and there. I guess that plays into the idea of the real world restricting us. Our minds act as a limiter on us, and that's probably good. It keeps us from trying things we're not capable of doing.”

  “But we're capable of doing them in the virtual world.”

  “Yeah, but the divide still needs to be there. I know that virtual worlds and the real world are supposed to be easily distinguishable from one another, but I just have the feeling that they influence each other more than we might think. Especially since we're the first ones to have true virtual reality.”

  “So we're pioneers? Or maybe Javy's thought is more accurate. Maybe we're just guinea pigs,” Nora said. “Honestly, not knowing what it might do to us is a bit creepy.”

  “Well, we're pretty grounded in the real world. It's not like we've been doing anything weird,” Zach said.

  Nora thought for a moment. “Well...”

  “You don't think so?” he asked.

  She hesitated. “It's not anything major. But I think we're spending a lot of time planning. You, know, strategy, logistics and stuff. Some of it can get really stressful too. Is that normal?”

  “Well, it is our job,” Zach said. “Maybe it's like players on a sports team. Even though they're playing a game there's a lot of stress on them to do well and win. We might be the same.”

  “That's not exactly
an encouraging thought,” Nora said.

  It certainly put things into perspective. One of the reasons Nora had begun playing World at War was because she had enjoyed the thrill of it all. Whether it was the rush of combat, the camaraderie within a company or the mental challenge of problem solving and strategy, World at War had always been a fun world to explore. It was escapist fantasy like no other, capable of transporting someone from a mundane life on the outside to one of action and adventure within.

  But what happened when that sense of wonder disappeared? Did the virtual world have any meaning if it carried many of the same stresses as the outside world? Nora voiced that concern out loud.

  “Well, it is called virtual reality for a reason,” Zach said in response. “It does mimic the real world in some form, no matter what. But I wouldn't worry about it.”

  “How come?”

  “Because it's all still a game. Even if we lose we still have our lives on the outside. And I think we can keep some of the magic of the early days with us. That expedition into the tunnels? That would be insane in the real world, to send all your officers on a mission alone. But it's plenty possible in the virtual world.”

  Nora nodded, absorbing the suggestion. That was probably the key. Even though there was extensive competition within the virtual world it was still just a game. Someone had to win and someone had to lose, but the biggest part of it all was simply being included in that kind of competition. The struggle, and the ability to enjoy that kind of struggle was what made the world come alive. It was what made the world fun.

  “Looking forward to the action?” Zach asked her.

  “Oh yes,” Nora smiled. The sense of wonder was still there.

  CHAPTER 5

  What Lies Beneath

  “Just like old times, huh?” Danny commented.

  Zach nodded and adjusted his gear. He and the others were going to have to carry a lot of it, and he wanted it to be easily accessible in the heat of a fight.

  The original Black Wolf members were assembled at the base in Indianapolis, gathering equipment from the armory and preparing for their journey into the darkness. Tunnel fighting was one of the most difficult missions in World at War, and they were going to be prepared.