by EA Hooper
“Oh, that’s a technical anomaly. Since the physics and magic of the game are interconnected, sometimes when powerful attacks collide, they create a distortion to the gravity. ARKUS couldn’t remove it without screwing with the gravity of the World-Tree, so he named it negative energy and left it in.”
I know players can develop their own spells in this game, including spells that affect the physics of the world. I wonder if there’s a way to use negative energy? It must be tied to the way the game reads mass and power. Like when a star collapses on itself and creates a black hole. Maybe if I compressed a bunch of mana…
He sat back in his seat while everyone else eyed the combatants. Vincent held his hands out and tried to draw out his mana. Green energy leaked from his palms, flowing out in globules like floating liquid. He almost spilled the blobs onto the ground and had to move his hand around to pack it all into a tidy sphere.
I can barely control this stuff, but leveling up a bunch should make it easier. I think Jim said Perception is tied to developing spells. Maybe if I really focus my willpower, I can compact it.
He squeezed his hands and concentrated all his attention on the glowing ball of energy. The ball shrank and pulsated, spraying globules of mana out the sides. He caught the mana and willed it back into the ball. Almost as soon as he pressed down on it again, another stream of mana fired from the other side, and he stopped it before it hit the chair in front of him.
Phew, close one.
Spirit Level Up: 1>2
Vincent shoved harder, trying to will the mana ball to become smaller and denser. He shrank it to about a tenth its original size before his mana felt too depleted, making the ball spark and evaporate in his hands.
Spell Creation: 0%
He sank back in his chair, feeling tired. Perception might help you shape mana, but I still need Spirit and Resolve to make anything impressive. That’s assuming what I was trying to make is even possible. I didn’t even get it to one percent.
Just as Vincent got ready to message Jim and ask him questions about spell creation, an update appeared on his HUD.
New Update – Time Remaining: 30:00:00 (Real-World Time)
In the arena, Jon released a horrific scream. He rolled across the ground, gripping the remains of his missing arm. “Oh, god! It hurts so much. I can’t take this.” He roared with pain, and then, finally, put a finger into his own mouth and shot a Mana Gun through his own skull.
Vincent had jumped to his feet in time to see Jon kill himself, and the surrounding crowd erupted with nervous chatter.
“Holy crap,” the woman beside him said.
“What?” Vincent asked, glancing at her. The woman stared off at nothing, and Vincent assumed she’d been looking at something on her HUD.
“The update,” she said, her eyes wide. “It completely disabled pain reduction. Not only that, it increased the time dilation—by a lot.”
Vincent opened the update log, and his jaw dropped.
During the update, time dilation has been changed from one month for every hour to one year for every five seconds. Because of the time dilation change, respawning will now take approximately two weeks of in-game time.
“One year?” Vincent said. “Every five seconds in the real world is now a year in this game? How is that even possible? Not even ARKUS should be capable of that—it’s beyond human technology.”
“ARKUS isn’t human,” the woman said. “It’s an AI system more powerful than anything in the world. I don’t know how comfortable I feel playing this game with it messing with the time-dilation that much. Who knows what that’s doing to our brains. I’m logging off.”
The woman flickered in and out where she stood, almost as if caught in a glitch. She fell into her seat and gasped for air. “Oh, my god. Oh, my god.”
“What happened?” Vincent asked.
“I couldn’t breathe for a few seconds, and the game wouldn’t let me log off.”
Vincent peered around the arena stands, watching hundreds of other players glitching as they tried and failed to log out of the game. He glanced again at the update log and skimmed over it for useful information.
Players may be unable to log out of World-Tree Online for the duration of the update due to an incompatible neural connection to their bodies. I apologize for any inconvenience.
Vincent fell backward into his seat, but his eyes stayed fixated on those two sentences. “Inconvenience? You call this an inconvenience? That’s three hundred sixty years. We can’t really be trapped here for that long, can we?”
Across the stands, the crowd began to panic as more people discovered they couldn’t log out. Some of them discussed options for escaping the game. Some sent messages to ARKUS’s developers, knowing from interviews that they spent a lot of time in the game. A few people simply broke down and cried in their seats. Even May trembled in fear as she stared at the dust remains of the man she’d horrifically injured.
“This can’t be happening,” the woman beside Vincent said, rocking in her seat. “We can’t really be stuck here. I have family I’m supposed to visit this weekend. I can’t wait more than three hundred years to see them again.” She paused a moment. “My baby sister. I won’t get to see my baby sister for centuries.” She buried her face in her hands and cried.
Three hundred and sixty years. All I wanted was to distract myself for the next week, and now I’m stuck here for more than three centuries. No. No, I won’t let myself get trapped here. There needs to be a way out. Maybe Jim will know something.
>Vincent: You’ve seen the update, right? We can’t really be stuck here for that long, can we? Not even ARKUS should be capable of that.
>Jim: Yeah, I’m talking with some friends about the update right now. We have a plan to deal with this situation. Don’t worry, Vince. Get over to the Blue Phoenix District right now, then find Varia’s Club on Nineteenth Street. We’ll talk in person when you get here.
Crow-Foot Jim has ended your private chat.
Chapter 4
Player: Sheriff Lucas
Location: Mitigar (World) | Serpent Canyons (Region)
Class: Sheriff (Moderator)
Vitality*: Lv 81
Spirit*: Lv 88
Resolve*: Lv 83
Perception*: Lv 76
Agility*: Lv 79
Strength*: Lv 80
Lucas gaped at the update, then reread certain parts again and again. “Is this for real? That’s three hundred sixty years. Can ARKUS really do that?”
“I don’t know,” Harper replied. “I’m connecting to ARKUS right now to report this. Maybe it’s a mistake.”
Harper paused, staring into the air. All the muscles in her body seized at once, and she flickered in and out with visual glitches appearing around her. The glitches stopped, and she collapsed to the dirt with frantic breaths.
“What happened?” Lucas asked.
“I—I couldn’t breathe,” Harper said with terror in her voice. “It felt like I was suffocating. Like, really suffocating.”
“Pain reduction is disabled. Didn’t you see that in the update?”
“I did, but why did I glitch out like that just from trying to connect to ARKUS? I saw a barrage of lights and sounds. Like white noise. But I couldn’t breathe while it was happening.”
“From my point of view, you were stuck for several seconds, flickering in and out. Is this because you tried to connect to ARKUS?”
“Maybe. I’ll check the Mod Chat and see if anyone else knows anything.” Harper stared at her HUD for several seconds, and then a confused look crossed her face. “I can’t access the Mod Chat. Seriously?”
Lucas opened his Mod Chat. “I can still see it.”
Harper gasped. “All my mod powers are gone!”
“Wait, what?”
“My powers. They’re gone. All I have are the other abilities I developed on my own. It even replaced my Mod Shield with a basic Mana Shield. I don’t understand—did I do something wrong?”
; Lucas could see the sadness on Harper’s face, but he couldn’t help but smirk. “I’m sure it’s just a glitch because of the update. You’ll get your powers back.”
“When?” Harper shouted. “In three centuries? I’ll message Isaac to find out what’s happening.”
Lucas opened the list of profile names of everyone in the Mod Chat.
Moderators: Online (232) | Offline (73)
Lucas gaped at the numbers. That’s barely over three hundred total. There should be a thousand mods.
Moderators: Online (196) | Offline (73)
Woah, it’s dropping fast. Everyone must be panicking and messaging ARKUS. I should probably warn them.
“Don’t try to log out!” Harper shouted.
Lucas jerked back and glared. “Don’t yell in my ear.”
“Isaac tried to log off and lost his mod powers too,” Harper explained. “So, logging out or connecting to ARKUS apparently takes away your powers. He says we might really be stuck here until the devs figure something out. He noted it’s strange because all the devs happened to be in-game at the same time. None of them knew ARKUS was planning an update. If we’re stuck here, we’ll need your powers to keep people in line. I have no doubt everyone will panic once they realize they’re trapped.”
“Okay, well maybe I should—”
“Don’t do anything!” Harper yelled. “It’s not worth the risk of losing your powers. Just sit still until we figure out what to do, Lucas. I might not have my abilities, but you still have to listen to me.”
Lucas felt his heart pounding in his chest. She can’t yell at me like this. She’s not even a mod anymore. All I was about to suggest was that maybe I should warn the other mods not to connect to ARKUS. He glanced at the mod list.
Moderators: Online (89) | Offline (73)
He watched as the chat filled with panicked moderators. Look at them, freaking out like children. Why are some of them mid-tier mods yet I’m stuck in a lower position? I’m handling this better than all of them.
>Frederick the Rock: Has anyone sent a report to ARKUS?
>Jake-Jake: Like twenty people said they were going to. I haven’t heard back from any of them.
>Reptile Riley: This is so messed up. I’m not staying here for three centuries. I’m going to spam the log out until I get through.
>Jake-Jake: Don’t!
>Leaf-Blade Valery: Everyone, stop trying to log out!
Moderators: Online (15) | Offline (73)
You know what? I’m tired of getting bossed around and treated like a lowly janitor. I’d be a lot more respected if I was the only mod. They deserve to lose their powers if this is how they act, anyway. Lucas snickered, and then sent a message to the other mods.
>Sheriff Lucas: We should spam ARKUS with reports. I already sent one, but ARKUS replied it was a low priority.
>Frederick the Rock: You got a report through? Maybe it’s working now.
>Jake-Jake: Ugh. I hate to risk losing my powers, but ARKUS always prioritizes reports from numerous mods. Trying now.
>Leaf-Blade Valery: You really got a report through, Lucas?
>Sheriff Lucas: Yeah. I just sent another. It seems like it’s working now.
The chat fell silent for several seconds.
>Leaf-Blade Valery: Lucas?
>Sheriff Lucas: Yes?
>Leaf-Blade Valery: Did you really send a report?
>Sheriff Lucas: I swear I did. Why would I lie about that?
>Leaf-Blade Valery: Then why are we the only ones left in the chatroom?
Lucas opened the player list for the chat.
Moderators: Online (2) | Offline (73)
>Sheriff Lucas: I have no idea. Maybe I got lucky.
>Leaf-Blade Valery: Huh. Well, what world are you on? Since we’re the only two mods, we should regroup. Maybe figure out why you didn’t lose your mod powers when everyone else did. Or we can think of a message to send to ARKUS so it prioritizes this mess.
>Sheriff Lucas: I’m on Mitigar.
>Leaf-Blade Valery: Do you have teleport up? If so, use it on Mitigar again. If not, meet me at the teleport point for that world.
>Sheriff Lucas: Yeah, I have it ready. I’ll see you there.
Lucas looked at Harper, but he could tell she was engaged in a private chat with Isaac. Valery must suspect that I lied. Oh god, why did I lie? I guess I thought it was funny—I mean, it is funny, but I might lose my moderator position over this. No, wait. If Valery hits me with Mod Gun, the game will boot me. And when Harper gets out of the game, she’ll be so mad. I can’t let her find out what I did.
“Do you remember Mitigar’s teleport point?” he asked Harper.
“Yeah,” she answered with a confused look.
“Meet me there later.”
Lucas used World Teleport and vanished with a flash of light. He reappeared at the designated teleport location for Mitigar, standing on a plateau that overlooked the canyons to the east and a vast desert to the west.
A woman in majestic, emerald-colored armor waited for him, standing near the edge of the drop off, a stern expression on her face.
Oh god. She definitely knows I lied. I’m so screwed.
“Lucas,” she called. “I don’t know you very well, but I know you work with Harper. She’s a pretty good Sheriff—takes the job seriously. Now, I’ll give you one chance to be honest with me. Did you actually send ARKUS a report or not?”
Lucas lifted a finger and fired Mod Gun.
Valery’s muscles tensed right before the invisible wave struck, but then she became immobilized.
Lucas waited, his heart pounding harder with every second that passed. “You’re not disappearing? Why weren’t you booted from the game?”
He took several panicked breaths. “Oh, my god. I’m so sorry, Valery. I thought you’d get booted from the game. I didn’t know you’d get stuck like that. I just didn’t want to get banned first. I thought it would be fun to be the only mod. I’ll let you go as soon as my Mod Gun recharges. Harper and I both hit someone with Mod Gun at the same time once, and it negated the ban. Just have pity on me. I made a mistake.”
He wiped sweat from his forehead and tried to slow his frantic breathing.
She won’t show mercy after this. Look at the anger on her face. She’ll trap me for the entire update if I let her go, but I can’t leave her here. Monsters will eventually find her. If she dies, will she respawn still frozen? No wait, she won’t be able to respawn if she’s banned. I’ll just kill her.
“Once again, I’m sorry,” Lucas said, “but I think I’ll kill you instead. After the update is over, I have no doubt I’ll get permabanned. I accept that. But three hundred and sixty years is a long time to enjoy being the only mod.”
Moonblade only has a 250 rating—that won’t even break the 300-Rated Threshold on the mid-tier Mod Shield. I’ll need to use my only rating-boost rune, but it’ll be worth it.
He equipped Moonblade in one hand and a purple rune in the other. The rune glowed as he skimmed the rock across his sword, charging the blade with magical energy that temporarily raised its rating to 350. The rune lost its glow, and he tossed the useless stone aside.
Lucas cut through Valery’s Mod Shield with two quick swipes, but his blade stopped when his third strike touched her neck. He raised his sword, noticing he hadn’t even grazed her skin.
“I can’t kill you either?” He paused in contemplation. “Your body is already designated as needing removal from the game. Though apparently the game can’t get rid of you because your mind is trapped here. I’ve heard ARKUS has certain mechanics in place to protect players’ minds when respawning or logging in and out. Otherwise, this technology could cause unintended shock and trauma.”
>Sheriff Lucas: Can you communicate at least?
He waited for almost minute but got no response. It still shows that she’s in the mod chat, but she can’t message anyone. At least she won’t be able to rat me out to her friend list.
He stared at the
immobilized woman, trying to think of what to do with her. “I can’t kill you, but I can’t release you now that I’ve tried to kill you.” He paused, and he almost thought he could see the terror in her frozen eyes. “Can I move you, at least?”
Lucas grabbed her arms and dragged her several feet. She felt as heavy as he’d expected, but whenever he released her, she stayed frozen in that position.
So, what do I do with her? I can’t leave her banned for three centuries. I’ll have to build a prison she can’t escape from. Something that blocks communications, like those training chambers at the Mod Academy. I always enjoyed tinkering with the anti-spell and revival runes they used to make the chambers. If I build a room like that, Valery won’t even be able to kill herself to escape.
“I’ll hide you for now and come back later. Maybe I’ll put you in front of a rune projector of arena battles from different worlds, give you some entertainment while you’re trapped here. Then I’ll build an anti-spell room around you before unfreezing you. Not even mods can teleport from within an anti-spell room. So, I’ll keep you there and make a hatch to drop stuff down to you. See, I’m not a bad guy. Would a bad guy do all that for you? I bet you wouldn’t do the same for me.”
He dragged her to the side of the plateau and shoved her off. Lucas watched her fall with a bemused expression on his face, and then he slid down after her. When he reached the bottom, he found Valery laying on the ground still in the same pose.
“This must be really horrifying for you, but I promise I’ll have you unfrozen in an anti-spell room in little time. I know how to make the runes for it. It’ll only take me a few months, but I’ll need to tinker with some revival runes to make sure you can’t kill yourself. You can handle being frozen a few months, right?”
Lucas found a ditch and tossed her into it. He shot mana blasts at the stone wall above, releasing an avalanche of dirt and rocks that buried Valery below it. “Sorry about the darkness!” he shouted at the pile. “Just be patient with me, Valery.”
He leapt from ledge to ledge until he reached the top of the plateau. After dusting himself off, Lucas sighed.