My character health points bar shows a dip, but it’s not enough to register a percentage worthy of notification. Still, I’m out of breath, and I feel bruised and battered from the fall.
We duck into the shadows in an alley. I dig into my pack for some of the food I took from the Rogue’s Den and tuck into it. I want my health points up if we get hit again and that will help.
The flying carpeteer is examining his carpet while I eat, fawning over it like it’s his child. “Damn,” he says at last. “We’ll have to walk from here.”
“I know the way,” I say. “You don’t have to take me.”
“You know the way, but you haven’t been this way before, he says cryptically. “I’ll go with you.”
I decide not to argue. Can’t hurt to have a little company. We take a few minutes until we’re sure the bombs have stopped detonating and together we head for the Golden Pony inn.
We landed on the outskirts of the district. Near the huge arches marking the entrance to the Elven district, there are misshapen, oddly formed elves begging for aid. Their eyes are too close together and their faces are strangely formed and it’s all I can do not to stare. I flip them a silver or three and we keep walking, but I can’t get them out of my head.
After a while, I ask my companion, “What makes them look like that? I thought everyone was perfect here.”
“Inbreeding,” he says. “It’s a problem. Arcadia’s races can’t cross-breed with anyone but the humans, but access is limited to the elite. Can’t deny the desire to have babies though. Some try anyway, and that’s the result. It’s gotten worse and worse over the years. Now access to humankind is the only real promise of a true lineage. Anyway, here’s the inn you said you wanted.”
“Thanks.” I flip him another coin and go on in. I ask for Catriona at the inn’s prominent bar and am told she isn’t there. I look around. The place seems jovial enough. The barkeep answered in such I way that makes me think he at least knows Catriona, so I take a risk and ask, “When does her shift start?”
“Hour past sundown,” comes his gruff reply.
It’s a while till then, but I decide I’ll wait, and slump a little; I’m feeling woozy. My health bar is flashing red at me. I must have taken auxiliary damage from the bombing.
I order some of the house special, some kind of bread and broth, and beer from the barkeep, and settle in to wait for the mysterious Catriona to make her appearance.
I soak the bread in the broth and take a bite. It is magnificent. It’s not just any bread, but dough that’s been wrapped around roasted meat and cheese, and then fried to delicious crispy perfection. The beer is a perfect accompaniment and I feel absolutely zinging with energy. I pop open my stats window to confirm I’m back to full health. Yup. I definitely don’t want to die in the middle of the city. My loot would be sure to disappear in the interim between me leaving and finding my body again.
I wonder what’s next for me on this Arcadian adventure. Meeting Catriona, clearly, but then what?
I pass the time in pleasant contemplation of the bottom of my cup and a few others after that, and at last a girl who must be Catriona shows up. She looks exactly as I’ve dreamed. Tall, lithe yet curvy, silver hair, luminescent purple eyes, exotic Elven features. She wears a corset that’s as much silver filigree as it is cloth, and a long white skirt. She looks like divinity itself. I can’t believe I’m looking at her, but at the same time it’s all obvious to me now. Of course she’s the one to show up. Who else would it be? I see her exchange words with the barkeep and then she looks my way directly. God, why can’t I meet a girl like this IRL?
All of a sudden I feel exceptionally nervous. Is she really looking at me? I look away before I can find out and get real interested in my beer for a minute. When I look up, she’s gone. One of the serving staff comes to inquire if I need more food or drink. I say yes to both. “Also, did I see Catriona? Where might she have gone?” I see the girl’s hesitation and play out a gold piece on my palm.
“I didn’t say this,” she says, looking askance under her cap, “but check the second bedroom on the right upstairs.”
Just walking here is a rush. I know these wooden staircases; I know how many steps and where to turn. I know where the doors will be, and how rustic everything will look. I poke my head in where the serving girl said to and there she is, my ephemeral beauty, priestess of my fucking heart. Her silver hair glimmers in the moonlight. Candles and the shining purple of her eyes are the only lights in the room. “Catriona,” I say, walking in.
“Goddess of all that’s holy, you’re actually alive?” she exclaims. “Why didn’t you tell me you were alive? I thought the Elven Queen had tortured you to death, that your avatar had been disabled—you’ve been gone for so long.”
At her words I wonder how long, exactly, she thinks I’ve been gone, since I think I’ve never been in this version of Arcadia before, but I can’t keep my gaze off the way her pale face has flushed at this, how tired she seems, the markings on her face blooming a deeper purple with her emotional outburst.
“I guess I survived the torture,” I say, going along with it. I’m enraptured, looking at her here, now, in the flesh. God, she’s gorgeous. Her purple eyes are raking me over. Her silver hair is pulled back in a simple band. Her white dress is belted at the waist with silver filigree and she’s got matching filigreed bracelets on her arms and a necklace at her throat.
And all that I can think as I’m staring at her is that I’m totally confused. Nothing she’s saying makes sense to me. Does she have me mixed up with someone else? Is there another Leeroy Jenkinz running around? I mean, that’s entirely possible. I’ve never actually met her before.
Everything seems muddled in my brain. On the one hand, it could be that there’s an assumed narrative I’m supposed to know about in the quest chain, but that’s not like the Arcadian game developers. They’re really good about stick-and-carroting you through the story in such a way that you understand what’s going on ... usually.
Catriona crosses her arms across her chest and glowers at me. “And you couldn’t get a message to me? Did you even wonder what happened to me?”
“Cat, I dream about you every night,” I say. I feel like both know and don’t know the elven girl standing in front of me. How often do you get to be with the girl of your dreams? I am savoring every moment of this encounter. I mean, I know I’ve dreamed of her IRL. And, if that minty-breathed asshole at VR World is to be trusted, the avatar in front of me has a real life counterpart immersed in Arcadia proper.
I’m lost in my thoughts when she throws herself on me, dancing up close to me, blowing kisses at me. The music is blaring from the inn’s nightly entertainment, below. I join her in the dance for a minute and then have to get serious.
“Hey, Catriona, there’s just one thing I have to tell you about. The thing is, I don’t remember you at all.”
“I’m so glad you’re alive,” Catriona says. “Wait. What?”
This girl is so sexy. My hard-on is straining against my leathers. It is a struggle to focus on anything else in the face of this much gorgeous. “I can’t remember ever meeting you before,” I say. “Only in my dreams.
“What are you talking about?”
I don’t think I can get much clearer, so I repeat myself. “I don’t remember you, I don’t remember anything. I don’t know about anything that’s going on. I need you to tell me.”
Catriona still seems dumbfounded. “What do you mean, you don’t remember? Did you get amnesia? How did you get here?” She’s pacing the room now.
“I just took a vacation, you know, a VR World vacation to Arcadia. And then I got a quest to find you.” I stand still, my hands stretched toward her, placating.
“You’ve lost your mind,” she says, backing off, her eyes wide.
“No,” I say. “I didn’t lose my mind. But I don’t remember any of what you’re talking about. I don’t think we’ve actually met before. Unless Queen Lunacaller someh
ow blocked my memories ...?”
“How would she do that? Leeroy, you don’t remember anything about the portal?”
The portal? “No,” I say. I’m so confused I’m wondering if there’s a glitch in the game.
Catriona stops pacing and takes a few steps toward me. “Where have you been?”
I shrug. “For the last several weeks? Back earth-side, with my girlfriend and the grind of my job.”
Catriona doesn’t take kindly to this. She erupts at me. “You took up with a girl? You have another girl? You’re horrible! Why should I ever trust you? Fickle man. Fucking men! I’m sick of your lies.” I can see her rage meter rising.
“Catriona, wait. It’s nothing serious.” As I say it, I realize it’s true. Molly has been a placeholder girlfriend for me for quite some time now. “How long have I been gone?”
She looks lost in thought and says nothing, so I start talking again. “I don’t have all of my memories, that much is clear from what you’re saying. If it’s me, really, that you recognize. Someone’s been messing with me. Why would I lie to you? Why would I search you out if I didn’t belong here somehow?”
As the words leave my mouth, I know they are true. I feel like I’m home here, with this Elven woman. I hardly know her, but I just feel right with her.
“You’re still working for Queen Lunacaller,” Catriona says.
“Don’t be silly,” I tell her. “I’ve never even met her.” We’re both pacing the room now. “All I know is that I care about you.”
“You’re full of shit. Never even met her. You worked for her! All that comes out of your mouth is lies. I bet you never loved me, Leeroy Jenkinz. You just used me to get inside.” She’s defensive now. I can tell she doesn’t know what to think.
“Inside what? Catriona, c’mon. I just met you. How can I love you?” I say, but inside I’m thinking, Of course I love you. I’m fucking this up. I always fuck this part up.
“You should leave,” she says, her arms crossed defensively.
Yup. I fucked it up. How did we go from lovers to fighters at Mach thirty?
I make one last-ditch effort. “I know I’m supposed to do something. You’re supposed to help me. Please, Cat.”
“I’m not going to fall for this. You’re a plant. An infiltrator. I need you to get out.” Catriona goes to the door and opens it.
She hasn’t ordered me directly, so I keep talking. There’s got to be something I can say that will convince her. “There’s supposed to be something in my head that can topple Queen Lunacaller for good. Listen, she wants what’s in my head. You have to—”
“GET OUT,” Catriona says through gritted teeth.
“—help me remember. They’re probably looking for me right now. Can’t you tell me what’s going on? Catriona, please. People are probably trying to kill me,” I say, thinking of the quest with my name on it.
Catriona draws up her hands and a big ball of magical glowy shit forms between them. “Really?” she says with one eyebrow cocked.
“Fine,” I say, holding up my hands. “I’m leaving. I’ll be at the Bramblebuss Inn if you need me.”
Chapter 20
My friend has repaired his flying carpet and is conveniently lounging on a nearby corner, as if waiting for me. “Looking for a ride?” he asks.
“Sure,” I say. “Back to where we came from.”
We’re about halfway there when I remember the homestone, but oh well; I enjoy the little gnome’s company. He’s chatty about the sights and the store owners, where to buy and who’s a scumbag. As we float through the town square, we hear criers.
“As a result of the recent bombings in the Elven Towne Square, Queen Lunacaller has instituted martial law. Curfew is in effect. Everyone must submit to random searches. No inns are private,” they call out. They’re looking for me, then. They have to be. I mean, they’re looking for the rebels too, but I think they have me branded as one of them. It’s the only thing that makes sense.
Why wasn’t Catriona more helpful? I don’t understand it. Quest chains aren’t supposed to end like that.
The Bramblebuss is a few blocks away from the Rogue’s Den, and the chief reason I decided to stay there is that it has actual rooms in it, with walls. I get a room with a street view and spend some time mesmerized by the people just walking around. It’s a small room, but it does have a bed, a table, a chair, and a dresser. The sheets are clean and starched or wind dried stiff.
I sit and listen to the street sounds and watch the elves and dwarves and gnomes and humans mingle below. I love the bustle of this place, the way there’s always something going on, things for sale, craftsmen practicing their trade.
But this only distracts me for so long and then I get serious. I’ve failed at the one thing I was supposed to do. All of what I’ve been through led up to seeing Catriona and helping her. I did not expect our initial meeting to end up with her showing me out with a death threat. What am I supposed to do next? I feel lost. What’s a gamer without a quest?
Seems like my health points wane now that I’m at level twenty even if I’m not doing anything strenuous or dangerous at all. I dig into my food stores and replenish my hit points as well as my spirit. The leftover meat-packed bread is just as delicious cold as it was hot.
I get some sleep and wake up later when there’s a knock at my door. Did Catriona follow me? I realize she is all that’s on my mind. Has she come to try again? Even as I wonder this, I dismiss it. I go to the door eagerly, and open it.
Strangely enough, it’s Doctor Charles from my first visit to VR World. I blink a few times. Yup, still him.
“Thank god we found you, Trent,” he says. He holds out his hands to me like he’s going to grab my arms, like he’s expecting me to jump him. Like I would let myself get caught in that position. I back away.
“Look,” he says, pushing his way into the cramped room. “There’s a problem with the game and your body isn’t reacting normally. We have to get you out. I’m here as an emergency measure; it’s one of the fail-safes we have in place at VR World. Look, I’ve got this potion you can take, it will relax your mind. You’re experiencing a delusion. There’s a problem with your NPC interface. Take the potion and we’ll be able to get you out.”
His words come out in a rush. He’s talking to me like I’m a crazy person, slowly and loudly. This makes no sense to me. “But ... Catriona is exactly as I specified in the onboarding procedure. She’s real ... I dreamed about her.” Why can’t they just take the mesh interface off my head and yank me out if they’re so concerned?
Suddenly this feels like a test of my resolve. How badly do I want to stay? What will I do to get the next quest?
“Just like you’re dreaming her now,” Doctor Charles assures me. “Look, the immersion is putting immense pressure on your nervous system. We’re risking a stroke or worse here. We need you to follow my instructions so that you don’t die. Trent. You have to listen to me.”
“I don’t know. I don’t understand.” For some reason I don’t trust Doctor Charles.
“If you won’t listen to me, then maybe there’s someone else you’ll listen to.”
Someone comes into the room behind the good doctor. It’s Molly of all people. “Look, Trent, baby,” she says. “I’m here at VR World. They contacted me when things started going wrong. I love you. You know I said I’d never be caught dead in one of these getups, but I’m here now for you. Your gaming addiction has gotten the best of you. Come back to me.”
I shake my head. None of this adds up. “This is bullshit,” I say.
Doctor Charles gives me a smug look. “Do you really think any of this is real? That you’re actually a rogue on a mission of grand importance to all of Arcadia? Come on. This is fantasy. This is the script we wrote for you. But your body is convulsing and your brain won’t let go, so we had to change it. Normally right now you’d be off on a grand adventure with this Catriona, but we flipped the switch on the code to end the quest line. You have t
o return to reality.”
Maybe he’s right. Maybe my body is dying back on earth. “What do I do?”
Doctor Charles shows visible signs of relief; his shoulders drop; his lungs fill with air. “Here, take this potion. It will signal your subconscious to let go of the delusion.” He hands a vial to me.
“But you’re human, right? You’re at VR World, in the flesh? So I can kill you now and it won’t harm you IRL?” I don’t know why I’m saying this. But something inside of me is panicking. I feel a little like Neo in the Matrix. One pill to wake up, one pill to stay in the dream. I kind of want to stay in the dream.
Calm as a cucumber, Doctor Charles smiles and nods. “It won’t matter to me if you kill me, no, but it will matter to you. You’ve never actually killed someone, Trent. Your subconscious won’t be able to grapple with it. You actually know me in real life just as I appear to you now. Your brain won’t be able to handle it. It might keep you from getting back to reality.”
Molly jumps in. “Don’t do it, Trent. You’re better than that.”
Doctor Charles says, “Don’t do it. Drink the potion I gave you. Save yourself.” His eyes narrow as he says this.
Molly says, “Go ahead, babe.” She’s nodding like a freaking bobblehead. I don’t want to go back and this seals it for me.
Chapter 21
I think it’s the “babe” that does it. That, or the shifty looks Doctor Charles is giving me. I wonder if he even has a real degree. I’m not leaving Catriona, though, not now. Not after I’ve just found her. I remember the safety protocols Quinn went over when I signed up for this vacation. If my body is truly in danger, I’ll get an in-game warning message. Something here is off.
In quick succession I shadowslide to the doc’s back, then backstab him with a flurry of my blades. I get a flashing notification that I’ve taken him down by 45% with my surprise attack. It’s nearly a critical hit. I shift tactics and stick my daggers up into his kidneys, and that does it. I get a critical that drives him down to 15% and falling from the poison in the wounds.
Arcadia Unlocked: A LitRPG Novel (Arcadia LitRPG Book 1) Page 13