by Alex Mulder
“Well, magic and monsters would certainly make things more interesting,” said Luke. Tess shook her head.
“That’s not what I mean…” She patted the spot next to her, and Luke sat down.
“What do you mean, then?”
Tess was silent for a long moment.
“I can be who I want to be, here,” she whispered. “I don’t have to micromanage myself. I don’t have to hold back all the time, worry about what other people think…”
I thought I was the only one who felt that way…
Tess suddenly stood up and began brushing off her robe.
“Anyway, we should keep going,” she said. “That wood isn’t going to chop itself.”
The Inner Plains around Stark Town were mostly grass and hills. Look thought it made sense, given how focused Yvvaros was on dynamic player interactions.
New players could venture out and fight the low-level monsters near the town and be able to see anything approaching on the horizon with ease. There were no real hiding spots for PKers to camp out in, no traps for new players to fall for.
Further to the east, in the direction that Luke and Tess were headed, the plains gave way to denser foliage. The higher level Msitu Wilds were still mostly empty of players. The first few zones on the border with the Inner Plains and Stark Town were low level, but the challenge increased swiftly the deeper one went in.
Luke was in the lead, and he slowed to a walk as they began to approach the outskirts of the jungle. The area ahead was foreboding, with the trees and canopy forming a ceiling of foliage that was thick enough to block out the sun’s light.
Along with the vegetation was a strange, smoky fog, which Luke assumed came from the volcanic shields and mountains that he could see far off on the horizon.
“Let’s chop what we need and then head back to Dunidan’s Rest,” said Tess. “This area gives me the creeps.”
Luke nodded and pulled out the ax. There were a couple of trees around him, and he walked over to one and took a test swing at its trunk.
TANG OAK: Level 8
“Jeez, let’s hope the creatures in this zone aren’t as high level as the trees,” said Luke. “This isn’t exactly a newbie friendly place.”
He chopped as quickly as he could. The trees would automatically turn into neatly chopped pieces after enough cuts from the ax.
A bit unrealistic, but convenient.
Luke was surprised to find that he was getting experience for cutting them down. He had thought that only fighting and quests gave experience in Yvvaros, but apparently the game was more open ended in how players were rewarded for tasks. After the seventh tree he’d chopped down, two notifications popped up on his screen.
CARPENTRY +1
LEVEL 6 ATTAINED
“I leveled up!” He smiled over at Tess, who looked bored. “Just give me a second to spend my ability points.”
Luke dropped one point each into strength, speed, endurance, agility, and luck. He closed his journal, and noticed another notification.
NEW COMBAT ABILITY: CONJURE SWORD
“Conjure… Sword?”
“Luke!”
Distracted, Luke turned around to look at Tess. She was over by a group of trees that were next up to be cut down. Standing by her was a familiar face.
Arex!
Tess looked as though she’d been frozen in place by surprise and Luke felt much the same way. The Red Mage didn’t say anything. Instead, he just stared at the two of him with his usual stoic expression.
“Arex…” Luke finally managed. “What are you doing here?”
“We’re in the same guild,” Arex spoke slowly, and his explanation left Luke baffled.
“The guild chat,” whispered Tess. “He must have heard us talking.”
Arex nodded. Luke started to move toward them, and the mage took another step closer to Tess.
“She’s right,” he said. “I was listening, and I heard you accept the bounty.”
“Arex, we didn’t-”
“Enough.” The mage’s hand glowed with blue energy. “Drop all of your equipment on the ground, including the guild charter, and then leave.”
Tess opened her mouth to object. Arex pushed his hand against her back and she flinched in surprise.
“I’ll kill her if you don’t play nice,” he said. “And then I’ll kill you, Kato. I’m level 8.”
“Arex, he’s telling the truth!” yelled Tess. “Kato was against taking the bounty from the start.”
Should have I been? Silverstrike was right.
Luke glared at the mage and slowly pulled his sword out of its scabbard.
“Why did you kill the merchant, Arex?” asked Luke. “What’s the point in playing a game just to grief other players?”
“In case you hadn’t noticed, your merchant friend is as crooked as they come.” Arex’s eyes narrowed to a slant. “He was conning new players out of their spawn equipment, stealing their preorder bonuses when he could. He deserved what he got.”
Luke took a slow step forward.
“And besides,” continued Arex. “It’s like you just said. This is just a game. Nobody dies for real in Yvvaros. Here, watch!”
Before Luke could react, Arex had readied an ice spell in his hand. White, blue energy glowed brightly in his palm, and he slammed it into Tess. Her health bar dropped quickly, only a sliver remaining in it when the damage was done.
“Tess!” yelled Luke. “Hold on!”
“Luke, don’t let him-” Her words were cut off as Arex slammed another short range spell against her. She glowed bright blue for the briefest instant, and then her body shattered into tiny shards of ice.
Luke dropped to one knee.
It’s just a game, I know that… but? She’s gone…
“Oh wow, I didn’t realize that I could use Ice Palm for shatter kills, too,” said Arex. “Even if you had a revival potion, you wouldn’t be able to bring her back from that. Unfortunately, it also means that her equipment can’t be looted, either.”
“You bastard…” Luke felt rage take hold of him. He gripped his sword tightly.
“Kato, there is no point in you trying to fight me.” Arex charged up a spell in either hand as he walked forward. “Just give me the guild contract, give me the right to Zone 006, and I’ll let you-”
CONJURE SWORD
Luke’s original sword glowed bright white, creating a magical copy of itself that floated above and to the right of his head. It hung in the air like some kind of medieval drone, waiting for his command to fly forward or shift in front of him in defense. After a moment’s hesitation, Luke threw himself at Arex, swinging his original blade wildly and keeping the conjured sword ready to fly in and block.
“The battle has already been decided.” Arex leaped back faster than Luke could move forward.
He must have invested in Speed more than me.
The Red Mage launched a spell at him, a glowing ball of flame that Luke struggled to dodge in time. It came within inches of his face, not causing any damage, but setting the tree behind him ablaze.
“Whoops,” said Arex. “Bad aim on my part.”
“This is all just a joke to you, isn’t it?” Luke paused and stared at the amused look on Arex’s face.
“Yes.”
He doesn’t care about playing fair. Why should I?
Luke lunged toward Arex, using Pierce Attack 2 to close the distance. The Mage was taken off guard and threw up a magical shield a moment too late. Luke’s sword tore through his robe and into his body.
The blow did less damage than Luke would have liked, but it still left him feeling satisfied.
I don’t think Arex has any healing spells. He can only hold out for so long.
“I guess it’s time for me to stop fooling around.” Arex planted his foot on the ground and began launching icicles at Luke. The first few he was able to dodge with quick footwork, but the air became thick with ice, and one of them struck against his shoulder.
Damn it!
There was no pain, or at least not any simulated by the game. Luke’s chest felt hot, and it was hard for him to focus on anything other than his anger. His health bar was down to half of its maximum length just from that single spell.
“Hah! Now you’re starting to get it.” Arex walked toward him, slowly charging another projectile in his hand. “Give up, Kato. The two of us can start a new guild together, and start taking over. That’s what this game is all about! The strong will dominate, and the weak will submit.”
“Go to hell!” Luke attacked again, this time with both his regular sword and the floating conjured one. Arex put his magical shield up early enough to block the blows, and then pushed it outward, knocking Luke back.
“You’re only at level 6,” said Arex. “I’m just toying with you right now. You must know that.”
He’s right… I won’t be able to take him out with typical tactics.
“Goodbye, Kato,” said Arex. “I’ll make sure that the zone is well cared for once I’ve killed everyone in it and taken it for myself.”
Arex charged up a new spell, a giant fireball that Luke instinctively knew would be enough to finish him off.
Now’s my chance!
CONJURE SWORD
Luke re-summoned the energy blade, this time in a new, more advantageous spot. It was behind Arex, and the mage didn’t notice. Luke charged forward, playing the role of the brave warrior charging head first into certain death as the energy blade cut through the air toward Arex from behind.
The spell left Arex’s hand right as the conjured sword struck him in the back. Luke smiled as he saw the mage going down, and then realized that he was about to join him if Arex’s spell connected.
He ducked low, flattening himself against the ground and taking residual damage as the fireball crashed into the trees behind, erupting into fire. His health bar was down to only a sliver, but Luke was still alive.
“I… did it.” His thoughts shifted as he considered what had just happened.
Tess…
Arex’s fireball set a broad swath of trees on fire. Luke wondered briefly about whether there was a natural, in-game renewal system for destroyed vegetation. He slowly made his way over to Arex’s body and began stripping it of everything of value.
Even though the mage’s eyes stared up at him lifelessly, it was still within the period of time in which a player could be revived. Luke knew that Arex’s spirit avatar was hovering nearby, watching him and very likely cursing him.
“You’re wrong, Arex,” said Luke. “This might just be a game, but the players in it are still people.”
Luke made sure he had everything he Tess and Arex had arrived with before jogging off toward Stark Town, and Kantor. He was heading to the soul bind point.
CHAPTER 14
“Are you being serious right now?”
Silverstrike was looking at Luke with shock. The two of them stood near the rune circle in Stark Town. Luke had just started explaining what had happened while he and Tess were harvesting wood.
“I killed him,” said Luke. “Well, his avatar. It was after…”
After he killed Tess.
“I wasn’t expecting you to just…” Silverstrike looked frustrated, as though he was a little put off by his lack of control over the situation. “He was in our guild. You could have sent me a message, or-”
“He attacked Tess.” Luke looked away from Silverstrike, and then up toward Kantor. “He killed Tess, Silverstrike. I couldn’t just walk away. Besides, it was your idea to take the contract in the first place.”
Silverstrike looked at him blankly.
“I know, it’s just…Jesus, man.” He shook his head and said nothing.
“Yeah. Oh, here.” Luke stepped toward his friend and pulled Arex’s belongings out of his bag. “Give these to the merchant. Be careful when dealing with him. I’m not sure how much of what Arex said we can trust, but supposedly the guy’s a cheat.”
“If the guy’s a cheat, then why did you and Arex end up coming to blows?”
That is an excellent question.
“I don’t know,” said Luke. “The way he plays the game, it’s not like we play.”
Silverstrike nodded though Luke wasn’t sure if he really understood what he was saying.
“You’re okay, though, right?” he asked. “I saw Arex fighting against the worm. He’s not exactly one of the newbs of Stark Town when it comes to controlling his avatar.”
“I’m fine.”
Silverstrike stepped in closer to Luke, glancing over either shoulder before leaning in.
“Look, Luke, I realize that it had to be done. I was ready to do it too, and would have if I’d had to.”
“And?” Luke couldn’t prevent a twinge of anger from creeping into his voice.
“I’m not upset with you, I’m just saying that you have to be careful,” said Silverstrike. “You killed him, but he’s not really ‘gone.' The game doesn’t work like that.”
“I know that!” Luke realized he was yelling and tried to calm himself. “I know…”
“I have your back,” said Silverstrike. “You know that. We just need to make sure we keep in mind the consequences of our actions. We don’t need to make ourselves or our guild a target.”
Luke nodded.
He’s right.
“I think we’re going to have to rename it, by the way,” said Silverstrike. “It’s just me, you, and Tess now.”
Tess…
“I’ll catch up with you later,” said Luke. “Make sure you watch the merchant. And get him to give you more than just the blueprint when you turn in Arex’s stuff.”
Silverstrike smiled.
Stark Town’s transport hub was the rune circle. A group of players was standing around it as Luke approached, and new players would periodically step out of it and run off, in varying degrees of urgency.
The shift after he’d stepped into the circle was instantaneous. The only visual clue of what was happening was a white light that surrounded his body and filled his vision. The transition to Kantor was so quick that Luke felt a little sea sick once he and looked out into the clouds that passed by the floating city.
She should be in or around the Temple of Rygon.
The walk through Kantor brought him back to his first moments in the game and the strange feeling of being a guest in an alien world. There were still plenty of players running around, and Luke could spot the ones that were new and unaccustomed to the immersive nature of Yvvaros.
The sun was bright against the gleaming white walkway. What had surprised him about the city initially, and what continued to surprise him now, was how detailed it was.
There were tiny gardens outside each house. NPC merchants would materialize from the rune circle and guide horse drawn wagons down the road, dropping off deliveries at the various establishments. Even if there’d been no human players, it felt as though Kantor would go on, as alive as any town in the real world.
Tess was standing across from the temple, up against the city’s outermost wall. She was looking out into the sky, and Luke walked over to her slowly, taking up a spot next to her and leaning in.
“Hey…” For a moment, he was unsure of his words. “Uh, are you okay?”
Are you okay? I should be apologizing. It’s my fault she ended up getting attacked, getting killed.
Tess smiled at him. There was something unmistakably mournful about the expression, as though she was only putting it on for his sake.
“I'm all right,” she said. “It’s… the first time I’ve, well, you know… died. In-game, I mean.”
“Of course.” Luke turned so he was leaning with his back against the mid-length wall and looked over to her. “I’m sorry. You shouldn’t have been in the middle of that. It was my fault.”
She shook her head.
“Don’t apologize, it’s fine.”
There was a long silence between them. Luke felt a uncomfortable in a way that caused his conce
rn for her to well up and manifest as a painful lump in his throat.
“Are you sure you’re okay, Tess?” he asked. “Can I do anything for you? Do you need some water?”
Water, right. As though that’s going to do anything for her in a virtual world.
“Really, I’m fine.” She paused for a moment, and then looked at him and blinked a couple of times. “I’m just glad that he didn’t kill you, too. You must be hungry. I got some food before. Here, take some.”
Tess sat down by the wall and pulled a fancifully decorated cake out of her satchel. It looked too big and too delicate to be stored in a bag, but there it was, completely intact.
“I was going to save it for after we got the guild hall setup,” she said. “But I’m starving.”
“You mean your stamina bar is low?”
Tess shrugged her shoulders at him.
“Sure.”
For a minute, the two of them didn’t say much to each other. Tess split the cake into slices, and both she and Luke had several of them, enough to refill their stamina all the way to max.
It felt weird eating the frosting covered cake with bare, dirty hands, but the game didn’t care about that kind of thing. Luke felt a little silly thinking about such a tiny detail, and as the meal went on, it started to seem almost natural.
“It’s a pretty realistic simulation,” said Tess. “I feel like the more time I spend in it, the realer it becomes.”
Luke nodded.
“I know exactly what you mean.”
Tess glanced up at a cloud that was passing a couple of dozen feet up and to the left of them.
“I… Dying like that, so suddenly, it brought back some memories.” Her voice was laden with quiet emotion, and Luke had to lean in to hear her. “I used to suffer from depression, in the real world. I guess I still do, to a certain extent.”
Luke didn’t say anything and waited for her to continue.
“Last year I had… a bit of a breakdown.” She smiled at him again, that same strangely mournful smile. “I tried to hurt myself. I tried… to kill myself.”
Luke reached his hand out to rest it on Tess’s shoulder. She was still looking out at the clouds and didn’t look as though she noticed or cared.