Stay on the Wing

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Stay on the Wing Page 4

by Michael Atamanov


  Perros Ruthless got some attention as well, though. His unhealthy interest in my big-eared goblin had seriously impeded my gaming for the last few days, so I felt he deserved it. I used particularly chiding expressions describing the intellectual capacity of the assassin, who'd somehow managed to die eleven (!!!) times in the last two not-even-full days. And what was more, from what I was able to piece together, his last three deaths had been due to the defensive systems of the Goons' castle, where Perros had demanded he respawn. From what I'd seen, Mariam Standing_Right_Behind_You [GOONS] had fulfilled her promise despite that, and accepted the star-crossed assassin back into her clan, so I didn't spare her any acrid expressions, either. One might say I was playing with fire by goading such a powerful enemy and perhaps that was true, though I didn't see what difference it could make — the Goons had already declared a two-week-long hunt for me, so I just wanted to get payback by whatever means I had available. And satirizing her like this would lower the reputation of her clan, which seemed a fitting retribution.

  I kept silent about the Midnight Wraith for now, as I remained about my nighttime visit to the Cursed House in general. Naturally, the clip didn't have a single word about building the raft, or our travels down the river—it was for the best to letmy opponents think, that Amra was milling about somewhere near the Cursed House, just as before. So then, my business taken care of, I headed home to sleep it all off, making a stop on my way to buy groceries. I was yawning in exhaustion and it took me real effort to think. Because of that, completely on "autopilot," I got on the electrobus to my old rented apartment in the criminal outskirts of the metropolis, and nearly let it leave. Just imagine how those gangsters would have lit up when they saw me!

  I noticed just in the nick of time though, jumping out of the electrobus and getting onto the proper line. A half hour later, I was already at my destination. When I came inside, Val wasn't playing Boundless and met me in the entryway on her wheelchair. Pointing in surprise at the bag of groceries, she exclaimed:

  "A box of macaroni, frozen cutlets, a bag of potatoes... Tim, it looks like you forgot we don't have a kitchen at our new place. We don't even have a decent microwave here, which is to say nothing of a stove. Last night, I found a café-bar eight floors down, but I felt uncomfortable in there alone — it was all a bunch of guys drinking alcohol and making a racket. Everything is obviously overpriced. The bar and tables are too tall. It was uncomfortable for me in my chair, and I couldn't see a thing..."

  "So, are you hungry?!" I guessed.

  "Well, I did buy some chips and mineral water from a vending machine. I finished the hazelnuts I found in my backpack... But basically, yes. I could stand to eat a square meal," my sister admitted.

  I clapped my palm against my forehead. What a mutton-head I was! While I was out yesterday having a grand old time, my disabled sister was all alone in an unfamiliar apartment with almost no money and no food. And I had the gall to call myself her brother! I immediately transferred Valeria thirty-five credits — half of everything I had left.

  "I also can't figure out where I'm supposed to wash and iron my clothes," Valeria complained. "Plus, I need to buy detergent. And I need some curtains for my room. The sun here reflects off the mirror windows of the skyscraper out the window. It's blinding! I can hardly sleep. And another thing..." Valeria started sobbing for some reason. Little tears were welling up in her eyes. "Tell me, Tim: why is it so easy to live in computer games? In the so called 'real world,' life is just hard, boring and sucky..."

  I didn't answer her strictly philosophical question, just walked up and embraced my little sister warmly, trying to reassure her:

  "Don't you go worrying like that. I'll go buy detergent myself. I'll look for an iron too. I mean, in Boundless Realm, I've got five thousand in bank notes, and another fifteen hundred in coins. I'll turn it into cash as soon as possible. We can buy a microwave and curtains," I promised my sister. "Don't cry, we'll get this place up to snuff, little by little. We'll make it comfy. And for now, let's go down to that cafe and get something to eat."

  Just then, my cellphone started ringing. It showed an unknown number but, when I accepted the call, the peeved voice on the other end was unmistakable. It was Kira:

  "Timothy, were you thinking with your head when you published that last clip?"

  "What’s not to like? The wyvern?" I suggested.

  "Of course, the wyvern! What else? The pissed-off chatter on the Boundless Realm forum is already at such a pitch that the moderators can't delete the repeat threads fast enough. And that’s to say nothing of banning players who lose their temper. Around a hundred new topics are being made every second on your wyvern. It's absolutely impossible to read all of them. And that's just the beginning. By the end of the day, it'll only get worse. Such a stir, in my memory, has only come about once before — when the Boundless Realm developers fundamentally changed the experience-gain algorithm and took stationary NPC dungeons from the game. That was where the top alliances used to quickly level their newbies, so they were understandably upspet."

  I explained to Kira that my hand had been forced, and I had to show the wyvern, because an enemy had seen it. I tried to justify my position — better for me to describe the situation with the flying pet from my point of view than to let someone else do it for me. This way, I could hide a few touchy moments and emphasize others. And also, once again, the clip on raising a wyvern from an egg was for money, which could not possibly hurt in my situation.

  "You know best, Timothy. Though, in your place, I wouldn't enter Boundless Realm right now. Just live without the game for a week or so until the hubbub quiets down. And in the future, try to do everything you can to distance yourself from your character as much as possible — no one can be allowed to associate you with the green goblin. Not your old childhood friends, not your work colleagues and not your neighbors — no one. And that's for your wellbeing and peace of mind."

  It was sensible advice. But I couldn't possibly spend that long out of game — it was my job, and I could quite easily be fired if I missed that much work in a row. Also, Taisha might go any number of places while I was gone. Then, finding my NPC companion in the huge Boundless Realm would be an extremely challenging task. In the end, I thanked the beautiful red-head for her advice, but was not planning to actually follow it in any way. Kira then, convinced that I grasped the gravity of the situation, changed the topic:

  "Timothy, do you still have that card I gave you? Good. I’ve had it reprogrammed. Now, it will let you take the elevator up to floor three hundred thirty-three and open the door to the apartment we were partying in last night. It's already all picked up. Feel free to show up and spend the night whenever you like. In fact, if you’re feeling like it, you could even move in. It would be much easier for you to get to work and — who knows? — maybe I'll drop by for a visit every once and a while. Before we ever met, I'd already paid that whole floor off for a few years in advance, so there’s no need for you to waste the money. And another thing: I took your painting to my house — it really was a fitting and unique gift."

  Kira said goodbye, leaving me in a pensive state with a telephone in hand. I really didn't like depending on anyone, or feeling obligated but, in this case, Kira was offering to help me for nothing, just selflessly. What reason did I have to not take advantage of her offer? It was a big apartment, fully furnished with all kinds of appliances, plus it'd be twice as close to work. And also, my sister and I could always come back here if something in the new place wasn't to our liking, or if my relationship with Kira soured.

  "Tim, you asleep or what?" Val asked, tugging at my sleeve. "Let's go eat! You promised!"

  I lowered my gaze to my sister, she looked tired. I could make out dried tears on her face. She was clearly not doing well here. This cheap hotel was no good for the physically disabled, much less teenagers. The people who lived here were unmarried specialists from the neighboring large office buildings, modestly-living freelancers and young c
ouples without children — at least, that was the contingent of neighbors I’d noticed. That must have been why there were so many bars, pubs and restaurants in the building, but no decent establishments aimed at families with children.

  Choosing my words carefully, I told Valeria:

  "A girl, you don't know her, said we could move into an empty apartment she owns. The conditions there are much better than here — it has a real kitchen, a bedroom, a bathroom with a jacuzzi, a big living room and the view from the windows can be changed like the channel on an old-fashioned TV. What do you say, Val?"

  "In terms of the girl, I can't say anything without seeing her," my little sister said, not missing the chance to quip. "But as for the apartment, it all depends on how much she's asking per month in rent."

  "She’s actually offering it for free, which is what has me so apprehensive," I admitted.

  "Yeah, that does sound a bit weird," my sister agreed, serious beyond her years, tossing me a long careful gaze. "Maybe she just has a crush on you, Tim? It was for her, after all, that you bought a new suit and that super expensive present, right?"

  Well, she guessed it. I didn't deny it, and nodded in confirmation. Valeria smiled:

  "Then let's consider these expenses a kind of rent payment for the apartment. My opinion — we should agree and go live at your friend's. All the more so given that I absolutely hate it in this abominable hotel. And this way, the cutlets and potatoes you bought won’t go to waste!"

  * * *

  I was awoken by the tantalizing aroma of frying potatoes and cutlets. I had to rush and peel my eyes open so I wouldn't choke on my drool.

  "Time to get up lazy-bones! Food's ready, and it'll be time for you to go to work soon," my sister said as she pointed me to a small table near my bed. On it, she was placing my freshly made dinner.

  "We could eat in the kitchen or the living room. Why'd you bring it into the bedroom?" I asked in surprise. In response, Valeria laughed happily:

  "I couldn't help myself. I already ate in the kitchen. Plus, I don't know a single better way to wake you up than the smell of tasty food on the stove!"

  I thanked Val, but didn't eat in bed, first heading to wash up and get myself in order. When I came out of the bathroom, Valeria was extending me a telephone:

  "Someone named Jane called for you. She didn't want to talk to me, but said someone was waiting for you, and that you would know where. After that, she hung up. I hope you at least understand what she wanted to communicate."

  Yes, I understood perfectly. Janewasthe pretty assistant of Mark Tobius, director of special projects for the Boundless Realm Corporation and my direct boss. That meant my boss wanted to see me, which probably had something to do with all the chatter on the game forum after my clip showing the winged mount. My chest was seizing up a bit — being called to meet with the director, as a rule, meant unpleasant things. On the other hand, if my boss really was upset, Jane would have said as much in no uncertain terms.

  "That wouldn't happen to be the same girl whose apartment we’re moving into, would it?" my sister clarified.

  I laughed and answered that Jane was a totally different person who had nothing at all to do with our new place.

  "Good. Because, based on her voice, she really didn't like me. I was even worried she’d had a change of heart on the apartment."

  While I was stuffing my face, my sister told me about the results of the day in-game. As I figured, the search for warg prints had ended fruitlessly, although my friends had checked the surrounding forest very thoroughly and even looked over the opposite bank of the river. They did find something of interest though: a respawn stone in a secluded glade. Valerianna Quickfoot had suggested the ogre and naiad change their respawn points to it, so they wouldn’t end up dozens of kilometers through forest and swamp away from the group, back near the Cursed House.

  After that is when it all started...

  "In the next half hour, I was literally flooded with letters and private messages," my sister complained. "And they weren't even all free, meaning the sender was within a ten-kilometer radius. Some were actually quite expensive. All the messages and letters had one common theme slipping through: they wanted to know where to find a Goblin Herbalist by the name of Amra. Some simply asked politely, some offered money. Some even tried threatening me. Max Sochnier and Shrekson Bastard also complained that they got a huge amount of spam. Then, I closed the game and went on the Boundless Realm forum to figure out the situation. It took me just a couple minutes to grasp the scale of the problem. Tim, there are a huge number of people searching for you, and most of them have the very unkindest intentions. Because you were offline at the time, they tried searching through other players — all the ones you mentioned in your video clips. I advised our friends not to answer such letters under any circumstances and leave the game for a day. I sent our goblin companions away to an inn we discovered, gave Taisha plenty of money and told her and Tamina Fierce's children to stay inside until we came back. Lastly, I told the Gray Pack to hunt deep in the forest, then logged off immediately, because I saw a big boat full of players coming down the river from Stonetown. Fortunately, I saw them before they saw me..."

  "What was that about an inn?" I asked, hoping to clarify part of my sister’s story.

  Val told me passionately about her find:

  "Today, in the process of searching for the wargs, I hit upon a road. It was approximately five kilometers to the west of our camp. By the looks of things, the path was fairly well trod. I rode Pirate four kilometers to the south on it and, at a fork, I found a huge sturdy building, or maybe more like a small fort. A group of kobolds run the place. There must be around fifty of them. They have a copper mine not far from there and, near the inn, they have a copper storehouse with wood coal and ore, as well as a little trade depot. Merchants and travelers can stop at the fort. Staying the night there isn't expensive at all, and the food is more than tolerable. I thought this was the best possible place to hide 'your girly.' I mean, your green-skinned girlfriend is too conspicuous — the players instantly notice her attractive face and alluring curves. So, I decided to just let Taisha sit for day or two among NPCs, not poking her head out."

  I praised my sister for the very proper and reasonable actions in the complicated situation and started getting ready for work. The municipal electrobus took about fifteen minutes to bring me to the Boundless Realm corporation skyscraper. It was seven thirty in the evening, so I was counting on catching the director at work. However, Mark Tobius wasn't in his office, just his assistant Jane, looking bored as she polished her already well-kept nails.

  "So, as promised," I said, handing the director's secretary the chocolate I still owed her. "Where's the big man?"

  "Mark didn't come in today. He called in this morning and said he twisted his ankle. So, the big man is at home resting his leg," Jane answered in a none-too-affable tone, without even looking at me and not stopping her nail-care routine for even one second. "Tim, who was the young girl that answered the phone for you?"

  What? I smiled back happily, because what I was hearing was very unexpected, but completely distinct notes of jealousy came through in Jane's voice. Strange. What was all that about? I didn't think I'd ever shown any interest in my boss’s secretary, not even subtly or vaguely. Also, she was accustomed to expensive gifts, luxurious attire and apartments in the very center of the metropolis, so she was not likely to be looking on me as a perspective beau. I told her about how I lived with my sister. Janey finally tore her gaze from her nails and put the file in her cosmetic bag.

  "Oh, with hazelnuts, just like I asked!" she exclaimed, giving a very positive evaluation to the chocolate bar lying before her. Then, suddenly wanting to return the favor, she offered to make me some coffee.

  "Timothy, I actually called you just for myself. I thought you might appreciate what I have to tell you. Today, I put Mark through to all the head corporate honchos — marketing guys, economists, creative types. At one
point, they were all together on one big conference call, and I involuntarily overheard. It was mostly about you..."

  The girl went silent next to the coffee machine and turned, clearly expecting some kind of confirmation that I was interested in the topic. I then inadvertently noticed how dressed up Jane was. My boss's assistant always looked glamorous but, today, she was dressed in a bright red ultra-short party dress (a few centimeters shorter and it would’ve been inappropriate) with a very deep neckline. She was also wearing a red-coral-bead necklace, a pair of earrings, and gold rings on almost every finger. Finally, the girl's intricate hairstyle had clearly been done especially for this day. Was Jane celebrating something? Maybe it was her birthday? That said, I didn't see any flowers or presents on my colleague's desk.

  "You look nice!" I admitted, and the girl smiled sorrowfully.

  "Thank you for the compliment, Timothy. I had some plans tonight, but they didn't come together. Here's your coffee."

  Jane extended me a glass of burning-hot liquid and, as I took little sips, she continued telling me about what she'd overheard from the leadership:

  "Your video clip caused quite the fuss! A lot of players were very unhappy with the fact that such a valuable mount went to, forgive me for the harsh words, a totally green noob, who barely even knows how to play the game. And that included veterans and even top players, who've devoted years of their lives to Boundless Realm and earned their popularity and authority among the players. There were even a few petitions signed by famous gamers threatening to leave Boundless Realm if the situation isn't rectified."

 

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