I won. I can’t believe it. I’m not strong or even good at fighting. It must be because I was fighting a teenager, or because I’m a vampire. I wonder how old I actually am? Who cares right now, I won.
“Winner,” the announcer called with gusto. I could see in my display my winnings were immediately added to my previously empty account. $1000 RM. Not too shabby. “Aker will face off against the winner of the next match, BriantheBrain versus ButtTycoon6969. Everyone place your bets.”
I exited the ring and made my way to the bleachers. My head was still buzzing and my vision was blurry, but I noticed my health bar returned to 100%. I slumped into an open seat and tried to catch my breath when I heard a familiar voice beside me. It was the large orange-haired chap from the bar. He was still holding a large beer mug.
“Nice fight, Aker, didn’t think you had it in you.”
“Thanks. I can’t believe I won. I probably didn’t deserve to. What was your name, by the way?” I asked, and held out my hand to shake his.
“You can call me Jon. My IGN is stupid.”
“What is it?”
Jon gave me a stern look as he firmly shook my hand. I didn’t ask him about it again.
“You should watch this match closely. You’ll be facing one of these two later. You can learn their tricks and tendencies. Use that to your advantage when you face them.”
“Okay. Thank you for the advice. Let me know if you notice anything in particular. I really don’t know what to watch for yet.”
The announcer started the match, and the two started to go at it. These fighters had more experience than Ramsay52 and me. It definitely showed. Instead of running straight at one another they took their time, only making a move when they thought they had the tactical advantage.
ButtTycoon landed a hard kick to BriantheBrain’s ribs. Brian tried to bounce back, but ButtTycoon landed a direct punch to Brian’s face. But he wasn’t going to give up despite the blood gushing from his nose and mouth. He rolled away from ButtTycoon. ButtTycoon sprinted to reach him, then kicked him hard in the back. His foot made a sickening thud when it met its target. BriantheBrain lay defeated. With his last ounce of strength he raised his arm, tapped the mat, and the match was over.
“Next match begins in fifteen minutes,” the announcer called.
“Watch out for his feet, and good luck,” Jon said and gave me a smirk.
“Thanks, I’ll need it,” I said. I was scared.
I made my way wearily to the ring once more and pulled myself up. I started stretching and trying to think of ways to use ButtTycoon’s propensity to kick to my advantage. It seemed a difficult task, but I had to try. ButtTycoon reentered the ring. His face was stone cold and framed by sweaty blond hair barely kept in check by a white sweatband. He truly wanted this. I tried to take on some of his stoic focus. I’ve got to figure out a way to dodge his kicks. I envisioned myself parrying perfectly, and striking him hard when he was overextended. I started breathing rapidly, trying to amp myself up and get in the zone. In the blink of an eye it was time for me to fight again. All right, time to see what I’m really made of.
“Fighters, ready…Fight!” the announcer said once again.
Nerves were getting the best of me. I hesitated any time I wanted to strike. I was stuck in my own head. I’m not good enough. ButtTycoon had none of the overzealous behavior that Ramsay52 had displayed. No insults. No cheap shots. He took each step with purpose, like a tiger about to pounce. I waited for the moment he tried to kick me, cautiously planning my reaction.
The moment came suddenly. His foot left the ground, and I began the dodge I’d prepared in my mind, jumping to the right. I threw a punch toward his exposed collarbone, but he dodged. I missed my target by less than an inch. He grabbed my extended arm and flung me onto the mat. No, I have to get up. Fear was coursing through my veins. I tried to roll away, but ButtTycoon was already kicking me in the side. My health bar was brought down to 60%. I couldn’t breathe.
Smack. He kicked me again, this time in my back. My health bar wouldn’t leave the screen and now it was flashing red, displaying only 45%. I tried to sweep his planted foot. He grabbed my leg and locked me into a hold. He tightened the hold, and my health was draining at 5% per second. Try as I might, I wasn’t strong enough. The pain was too much to bear. I screamed out in frustration as my health reached 10%, and I tapped out. Damn.
ButtTycoon released me and I lay flat on the ring.
“Good match,” I said to him as I struggled to my feet. He was nowhere to be seen, already somewhere else, probably preparing for his next match. I left the ring and the stadium. It felt like I was in a bad dream. My head, back, and ribs hurt, but my health bar was returned to 100%. At least I got $1,000 RM. I took my time walking back to Veruka’s base, feeling utterly defeated. I slunk in through the front door, wondering where everyone was this time. No one was around.
“Get in your coffin, dummy,” Veruka’s catty voice hissed. I looked around. A gleaming golden coffin on one of the pews lining the church’s main room popped open, revealing Veruka. “Right there, it’s bedtime.” She pointed to a rather plain coffin next to hers. “Quick.”
I paced over to it and lay down inside. My coffin was made of wood and lined with red velvet. Surprisingly comfortable. Sleep immediately overcame me. It was a deep, dreamless sleep and seemed to only last a moment.
I awoke the next night and was eager to continue trying to raise my level. “Hey, I won a thousand RM, you can have it,” I said as I spotted Veruka. Instantly my account was drained to zero as Veruka accepted my offer.
“Thanks, rook. You’re not useless after all. I didn’t think you would win anything,” she said and started styling her hair.
“Congratulations, and welcome to Level 3! Complete three more missions to reach Level 4,” a message read.
I closed my eyes to view my stats. I put a point into regeneration, bringing it up to a whopping 2.
“I just put a point into regeneration. That should help me, right? But what does that do exactly?” I asked.
“Each point in regeneration gives you one percent of your total health back per hour. Okay, you need another mission, I suppose? I don’t have time to make up anything good right now, so go drink someone’s blood. I’ll come up with more elaborate missions later on,” She said. I frowned.
“Weren’t you going to give me something for getting you some money?”
“Oh yeah, here you go,” she said sweetly, then winked and blew me a kiss.
“Great,” I said and rolled my eyes. It hardly seems like Veruka is trying to help me. I feel like I’m merely her plaything. Although she’s fun, I don’t know if I can really trust her yet. She killed me, after all. At least I can go see Maria again to get some blood, so this should be an easy mission. I started to run toward Maria’s house. I might as well start racking up some more miles. A few minutes later I arrived at her door and knocked a few times. No one was home.
I decided to wait for her. But I grew bored with this a moment later and started doing laps around her home, slowly working my way up in miles. I was just hitting mile thirteen when I noticed a slightly off-balance Maria making her way down the road. I jogged over to her, my vampiric body cool despite the many miles I had just run.
“Aren’t you a sight for sore eyes? Looking good,” she called, slightly slurring each of her words.
“You’re drunk, aren’t you? Got some fresh blood for me?” I asked and smiled at the sight of my friend.
“I’m as drunk as you are sober, but I’ve got plenty of blood for you,” she retorted. She put a hand on my shoulder for balance. “What a fun night. I had so much wine. I’m glad there are no hangovers in Reel Life Online. Help me get in my door?” She flung her keys toward me.
I fumbled with them for a moment, trying one, then the next. Finally, I found the right key to open the door. She ran in and flopped down on the couch. I sat on the arm of the sofa by her feet.
“Get me some water.
I need to sober up,” she said sleepily. “How have you been?”
“I’m okay, got beat up at Minnetonka Fight Night though. I hardly had any health left,” I said and handed Maria a large cup of ice-cold water.
“Oh, dang. You fight? I wouldn’t have guessed.”
“I don’t fight well.” I laughed and shook my head. “I did win one match. The kid I beat made fun of my mother, so I had to win.” Maria brought her knees to her chest, and I slumped into the newly open spot on the couch. The soft cushions put me into a deeply relaxed state. She downed the glass of water quickly and was looking more alert now.
“Come and get it,” she said, and moved her hair to the side. Her tan skin had completely healed where I had bitten her last. I pierced her neck with my fangs and drank deep. When her health bar hit 90%, I stopped. Maria looked drained, but happy. “Want to stay and watch some movies?” I grinned at her suggestion.
“Of course. What should we watch?”
“You find something good, and I’ll go get some popcorn in the meantime,” she said, got up and made her way into the kitchen. I started flicking through options and idly wondered if it was weird to be watching a movie with someone in a video game.
Boom. The kitchen door was flung open. Three sullen vampires stood in the doorway; one even had a foot-high green mohawk that protruded even higher than the doorframe.
“Oh, do you guys know Aker? Come on in,” I heard Maria say sweetly.
Suddenly I heard glass shattering on the floor, so I turned around to see what was going on. The three vampires were pinning Maria down, sucking blood from her neck, arm, and leg. She tried to squirm free, but they were too strong.
“Hey guys, uh, please let her go. I just drank her blood so she’s already low on health,” I said, getting to my feet, fear flooding through my body. I need to do something.
“Try to stop us, loser,” one said, then continued to drain my friend.
I ran and threw one off of her. The other two looked up from their feast, their eyes red and crazed. All three looked stronger than me and I had a sinking feeling low in my stomach.
“Get out of here, leave her alone!” I shouted as I punched one on the side of his face. His health bar went down 5%. They got up, leaving Maria just for a moment. Each of them had a star tattooed on their cheek. Maria moaned in pain and rolled around on the ground. The shortest of the three vampires grabbed my neck and pinned me to the wall, despite my best efforts.
“You are going to regret that, noob. You’re too weak to stop us. We’re trying to complete a mission and you’re interfering,” he said and started punching me in the stomach repeatedly. Each punch knocked the air from my lungs and took 10% of my total life. I was becoming weaker and weaker. Soon I was curled up on the ground in the fetal position. My health bar was flashing red. 1%. My vision went black. I was done.
I awoke the next night with my health at 25%. I got up feeling like I’d been hit with a tree. Maria’s body lay on the floor of the kitchen. She was white as a ghost and completely lifeless. I ran to her side to see if she had a pulse. Nothing. I felt tears begin to well up from within me. They killed my friend. They have to pay. I can’t continue to be this weak. I need to get stronger. I failed Maria. I knelt next to her body and wept for an hour, completely lost in misery. Finally, I got up. I went outside, dug a deep hole, and buried her body. Next, I found the largest rock I could carry and placed it on the dirt to mark her grave. I made my way back to my coffin in the abandoned church, closed it, and slept until the next night.
I awoke with 49% health. I need to level up regeneration again soon. Then I won’t have to drink blood to regenerate health. I got out of my coffin with a strong sense of purpose. I need to level up until I can exact my revenge on those who deleted my friend. Veruka was just awakening as well.
“Veruka, give me some more missions. I need to get a lot stronger,” I said with darkness in my words. I winced as I walked toward her.
“Whoa there, darling. You haven’t even completed your last mission, and I can only assign three missions a day. What’s the rush?” she asked as she strolled over to me and stroked my arm. Even her light touch felt like sandpaper to me in my weakened state. I shrugged away from her, determined to stay focused and bitter.
“I did. I completed the mission and drank Maria’s blood, but then three vampires broke into her house. They killed her. Drained her blood until she was dead. I need to be able to stop people from doing bad things here. There should be laws in this world. I want to be the protector of the people. It seems unfair having vampires in a game with normal, human players.” A mission complete message flashed at the top of my vision. Apparently Veruka needed to know I finished the mission in order for me to get credit.
“Your friend died? Sorry love, that’s the game. Do you know who killed her?”
“A group of vampires,” I said and thought for a moment about what I could remember about their appearances. “They each had a star tattooed on their face. One had a huge green mohawk. Do you know them? Why would they do that?” Recognition dawned on her perfect features.
“The pesky Starboys. They’re the biggest vampire guild in these parts. They wouldn’t let me join their group, so I started my own. One day, when we’re strong enough, we will defeat the Starboys once and for all. They probably killed her as part of a mission so some of the Starboys could level up. Quests can be dark in nature. It’s up to the player to decide which quests to complete.” I was confused. I’d assumed Veruka’s vampire guild was formidable, much like her. We weren’t the largest vampire guild?
“Are we the only two players in the VampGods guild?”
“There are two more, although you haven’t met them yet. They’re working together right now to complete an important mission. If they’re successful, we may just gain the upper hand against the Starboys.”
“Is there any way I can help them?”
“Not exactly. However, I’ll give you a few missions that should help quell your rage against the Starboys,” Veruka said and laughed evilly. “Okay, the first part of the mission is for you to collect 2 five-gallon containers of gasoline. Next get 2 hundred-foot-long fuses. Then meet back here.”
“Map, take me to the nearest hardware store,” I said hopefully. As my personal map appeared in front of me, a route was formed. Less than three miles, not too far. I started silently running down the road, ghostly and fast.
I came to a stop outside the door of a large hardware store. The parking lot was deserted, but that didn’t really surprise me. I’m sure not many people want to do manual labor in virtual reality. The doors slid open automatically. It was eerie in the store. Iridescent light filled the expansive building. Butlers, like I had seen at the other shop, paced this way and that with boredom. Shovels, hammers, wheelbarrows, and other equipment lined the many aisles of the store. I walked over to the nearest butler.
“Hey, so are you all robots, or…?” I asked the man. He turned his nose up at me and offered a warm, knowing smile. Then he began laughing hysterically. He laughed and laughed, spittle flying from his mouth periodically as he did. Finally he controlled himself.
“We are shopkeepers, not robots. It is all of us that allow the businesses of Reel Life Online to function twenty-four seven. We utilize the most advanced virtual assistant software on the market. As such, we are decidedly not robots. Can I help you find something?” he asked and started clicking his tongue disapprovingly.
I listed the supplies I needed and he worked with a few other butlers to get me out the door as quickly as possible. A flurry of butlers were running down aisles and yelling to one another. Their coattails flapped behind them as they hurried around the store.
Finally, I had my supplies, as well as a flamethrower one of the butlers had convinced me to buy.
“All right, my good sir, that comes to a grand total of seven hundred and seventy-nine RM.” I gave him a sheepish grin.
“Funny thing—about that, I actually don’t hav
e any money. I just gave all that I had to my guild leader, so can I put it on credit or something?”
“No sir, I’m afraid the goods must stay here until you pay for them.”
I mulled over my options for a few moments. I had all of the things I needed in my hands. I’m going to make a break for it. I can outrun these old robots. I started to inch toward the door, all the while smiling at the butlers. Most of them were back to milling about the store.
The one I had been talking to stiffened, and stood stone still. His eyes were locked on me like he knew my secret plan. I boldly held eye contact with him. Finally, I was at the door. I was starting to get nervous as the doors slid open. I stepped out and started running back to the abandoned cathedral, as fast as my legs could muster. The moment my foot hit the ground outside the store, red lights began flashing in a spotlight around me, and the butlers sprang into action. Their legs and arms were a blur as they gave chase.
Well, this was a mistake. I ran awkwardly while holding all the equipment. I ditched the cumbersome goods a moment later as the gas was starting to spill everywhere. I could hear the butlers close behind me. I glanced back over my shoulder. Oh god. I slowed only slightly while I looked back, but that was all the edge the nearest butler needed to capture me. He dove and tackled me to the ground.
A second later three other butlers arrived. They started kicking me and saying, “You have stolen from Reel Life Online, feel our mighty wrath.”
My health quickly fell to 1% and I blacked out. I awoke in a hospital bed with my health fully restored. Those butlers don’t mess around. I let out a long sigh and looked for a doctor or nurse. No one was around, and I felt fine, so I got up and left the building. I made my way back to the VampGods’ base with the help of my map. When I walked into the main room of the cathedral, Veruka had all the robed men lined up and was working her way down the line, licking each one of them on the nose. Maybe this is a bad time. She looked up from whatever she was doing and glanced at me with obvious irritation.
“Why don’t you have any of the supplies I told you to get? And what has taken you so long?”
VampQuest Page 3