Glitch Boxset

by Victor Deckard

  Lifting my arm, I looked at the crystal and opened the Warlock skill tree. Sure enough, the Jammer and Teleportation skills, which I’d unlocked after leveling up to 8, were no longer available. Also, the level of the Telekinesis had been downgraded from 3 to 2. Dangit!

  However, I wasn’t mad at the PKs. Rather I was angry with myself. I shouldn’t have waged a war against the two PKs. Still, after going over the recent battle in my mind, I realized I hadn’t been that bad at it. Quite the opposite in fact. Although in the end I was beaten, I managed to put up a good fight. Croc was barely alive by the end of our battle. It took them a lot of time and considerable effort to defeat me. Also, they used up tons of rifle cartridges and explosive rounds, trying to take me down. So I wasn’t an easy target, all right.

  If anything, the last thought boosted my mood. Pleased with myself, I put my hands on the glass door in front of me and was about to push it open when I saw two familiar guys waltz into the building. I recognized them as soon as I saw their skull-designed balaclavas. Once inside, they without hesitation turned around toward the Resurrection Pod I was in and started for it in a casual and relaxed manner. It was obvious that they knew where exactly the pod was located.

  Unfreakingbelievable. How the heck had they known where I was going to be reborn? And how come they’d managed to come over here so fast?

  Guessed I’d been killed not far from where the Resurrection Pod was. And the PKs seemed to have completely explored the city, what with their familiarity with pods’ whereabouts.

  So I got stuck in here. If I climbed out, the PKs would instantly jump at me. On the other hand, the twosome couldn’t get me too. As told in one of the tips, I’d received while in the Training location, no player could open the door of a Resurrection Pod when someone was inside it. Seemed to be this way since the two PKs made no attempt to pull open the door. They just stood before the pod, staring at me from behind the skull balaclavas.

  I had the level 7 biker leather getup on. Judging from the way the twosome were looking at me, they found it surprising that after having revived I had such an excellent armor on, which was obviously way better than the threads I’d worn some time before. As for the PKs, prior to entering the building, they’d patched themselves up and were now ready to engage me again.

  The twosome continued to stand in front of the pod, eyeing me. Looked like I’d really pissed them off since they’d hurried over here to pick a fight with me again. If I got whacked once more, I’d revive in this exact pod and the PKs would surely be waiting for me again nearby. I seemed to have gotten myself in a bit of a jam here. I shouldn’t have messed with these jerks. Darn it.

  I recalled the story Crayne told me this morning. Bigman had been killing him over and over again until Crayne teamed up with his friends to get Bigman’s ass whooped. I was about to share Crayne’s past experience. Except that I had no friends in the game. How would I extricate myself from this bind? How to get rid of the twosome?

  The PKs were still standing still. For how long were they going to wait for me to get out? Didn’t they have more pleasing things to entertain themselves with?

  I wondered when night would fall. If these guys weren’t complete idiots, they wouldn’t linger around for long. They’d soon have to hole up in some fortified place unless they wanted to get overwhelmed by a swarm of night monsters.

  What about me? Should I spend tomorrow night in the Resurrection Pod? As told in one tip, usual mobs couldn’t open the door of a Resurrection Pod when the player was inside. But what about the night monsters? Were they able to pull it off? I had no way of knowing the answer to the question.

  Besides, what if all the Resurrection Pods got opened at night? My fears weren’t groundless. Crayne had told me that the developers were doing their best to prevent players from playing for days on end. Thus, it was possible that all the pods might cease working at night. Sure, I might get it all wrong, but I wasn’t keen on taking any chances anyway. So I had to get out of the Resurrection Pod before night fell. But how to deal with the twosome?

  I wondered if I should jerk the door open, thrust the PKs with the Surge, freeze them up with the Stasis, and then race for the entrance door while they were immobilized.

  A sound brought me back to the moment. It was a voice. Croc said something to his partner. Yet I couldn’t quite make out his words. Frozen nodded in reply. Then they both turned around and headed for the entrance door. After the twosome reached it, Frozen turned his head and looked at me for a moment. He then went through the door after Croc who’d already split the building.

  The two PKs were out of sight but not out of mind. I wondered what they were up to. I wasn’t stupid enough to buy a show of their leaving me alone. They might station an ambush near the building in the street.

  As minutes tediously ticked by, I reflected on what I should do. Although no sound reached me from the street, the PKs were waiting for me outside, for sure. There was no doubt about it. I wondered where exactly they could be. Getting as close to the transparent door as possible, I looked out. All the windows of the building faced the street, yet I saw no sign of the PK hanging around outside. Maybe they decided to leave me be for real? Nah, I wasn’t going to buy it.

  After waiting a few minutes more, I decided to take action. Before climbing out of the Resurrection Pod, I checked on my gear to make sure everything was all right. I had the biker leather outfit on, which was good. I also held the pistol Screamer in my hand, but I only had fifteen bullets left, which wasn’t good. Fifteen bullets certainly weren’t going to be enough to defeat the two PKs. Which meant I’d better avoid engaging them.

  I began pushing the door open slowly. Nothing happened. Nobody jumped at me out of nowhere. I stepped quietly from the pod and pricked up my ears. No sound was in my hearing. Where were the PKs? Had they walked away or hidden themselves outside? I decided to err on the side of caution and watch out for any dangers.

  There was only one way out of the building, which the PKs had gone through. I made it over to it, drew in a long breath, and exited the building.

  Chapter five

  As soon as I got into the street, I saw a dead carcass of my previous avatar, lying in the middle of the road. It was no farther than fifteen or so yards away from the building I’d just left. No wonder the PKs had gotten to the Resurrection Pod so fast.

  I walked up to my previous body and looked it over. My bag with pistol cartridges was missing, yet all the clothes and resources had gone untouched. How come? Perhaps the PKs had neglected the loot on purpose, in hopes that I would become a sitting duck while retrieving my stuff.

  I didn’t take the bait. I had a gut feeling that the twosome was somewhere nearby. Taking a step away from the body, I looked around. At this exact moment the PKs, who had hidden themselves inside the nearby building, showed up at two windows and simultaneously discharged their grenade launchers.

  The Shield I’d employed half a second before took the double explosion and got destroyed.

  The PKs burst out of the building and pointed their assault rifles at me. The crack of gunfire filled the air. Activating the Acceleration, I took off at such a surprisingly high speed that I managed to get out of the line of fire before any bullet could hit me. As I ran away weaving my way from side to side, I realized I could actually dodge bullets while the Acceleration was active.

  The PK kept firing on me in a futile attempt to slay me. I was starting to feel as though I were invincible. Yet two bullets brushed against my torso lightly. Guess even with the Acceleration on, it wasn’t so easy to go unhurt under such a vicious ceaseless barrage. However, the injuries were too superficial to bother me. They didn’t even bleed.

  I should’ve run away while I had a chance to do so. However, I must’ve gotten a few screws loose since I changed my mind and wanted to get even with them now. My hatred of the two PKs, who had already iced me twice, got the best of me. Against my better judgment, I was eager to fight back. S
o I turned around and dashed back toward the twosome.

  Given their doing a double-take, they were amazed to see me returning instead of running away. They even ceased firing. Yet after a second, the PKs started to shoot again. The Acceleration was still active so I successfully avoided being hit. I wish I could treat my injuries with the Biokinesis, but this psi-power couldn’t be employed when another one was active.

  I had no idea as to how I was going to deal with two PKs, having only fifteen bullets at my disposal. I had only a basic sketch of a plan. If I’d had any common sense left I would’ve turned around and run away. But I was overcome by pure rage, which made me unable to think clearly.

  Running around the two players and dodging their bullets, I cast a glance at my HUD.

  > Mana: 575/800

  It wasn’t all that much. Although I had a vague strategy in my mind, I had to work out the details. That it wasn’t my first encounter with other players certainly helped. I was starting getting the hang of my class, Warlock, and learning its strengths and weaknesses. Finally, I had my plan worked out.

  The PKs kept unleashing devastating gunfire. I couldn’t fight both of them at once, so one of the PKs had to be neutralized for some time. I employed the Disarming to yank at the Frozen’s rifle and hurl it aside. The player had barely started for it when I used the Telekinesis to push his gun even farther down the street. Frozen shot daggers at me before racing after his weapon. I set a vortex trap beside his assault rifle and shifted my full attention toward Croc, who was swapping mags at the moment.

  After a second, I heard a wild shout full of anger and frustration. There was no need for me to look back to learn that Frozen had gotten himself into the trap and that it had him lifted off the ground and whirled around in a vortex of dark energy. He definitely hated me even more now. I felt likewise. Our hatred went both ways.

  Croc inserted the fresh mag into the well and took aim. Before he could get off a shot, I used the Stasis to immobilize him. Holding the pistol with both my hands, I dumped the whole mag into the silvery dome. Sure, all the bullets slowed down to a crawl once they got into the Stasis, but they would increase their velocity when the Stasis expired. I’d aimed for Croc’s head this time so I’d be extremely amazed if he survived it.

  With both PKs being under control, I got to treat my wounds. After restoring my HP with the Biokinesis, I glanced at my HUD.

  > Mana: 85/800

  I had few mana points left. Also, I had no bullets left. Not that it bothered me much. Supposing my bullets aimed for Croc’s head killed him, I had to deal only with Frozen. Eighty-five mana points could be just enough for that.

  The effect of the vortex trap wore off and Frozen plopped to the ground. His head must’ve spun, for he didn’t bother to get to his feet. Instead he crawled on his stomach toward his assault rifle. Watching him, I holstered the pistol Screamer and prepared myself for action.

  Frozen came around, more or less. Retrieving his weapon, he staggered to his feet and looked around. Once he saw me standing still not far away, the player whipped his rifle up and discharged the grenade launcher.

  This was what I was waiting for. Staring at the grenade darting through the air toward me, I utilized the Telekinesis. I wasn’t sure if I’d be able to pull it off. However, despite my doubts, I actually managed to grab the grenade out of the air and lob it in the opposite direction.

  I couldn’t see the expression on Frozen’s face due to the balaclava concealing it. Still, it was obvious that he got dumbfounded by the sight of the grenade making the U-turn in the air and dashing back toward him. He even got petrified for a moment. Then he realized he had to haul ass. But it was too late.

  The explosion threw him up in the air, his arms and legs flailing. Then he dropped to the ground. He definitely got injured. As he was slowly recovering, I looked at my HUD once more.

  > Mana: 65/800

  Grabbing the grenade and sending it flying backward had taken two seconds and cost me twenty mana points. All things being equal, I had enough mana to bat three more grenades.

  I caught a glimpse of movement from the corner of my eye and spun around. The Stasis was over. All the bullets, which had been soaring in the air a moment ago, took off and dashed toward Croc. Yet not all of them hit him in the face. Many darted past his head without even grazing it. The low Accuracy attribute of my pistol was to blame. However, those bullets that actually caught the player in his head bounced off it, seemingly dealing little damage to the player.

  Finally, I had it figured out. After taking a closer look, I realized that the things I’d initially taken for balaclavas were actually helmets. They were pretty tough-looking. Nevertheless, one round had managed to punch through Croc’s helmet. I could even make out a small hole in it. Blood trickled from the hole. Yet Croc was still on his feet. I had no way of knowing whether he’d received a severe wound or not.

  Bringing his weapon up, he fired a shot. Seemed like he missed what had happened to Frozen a minute before. I snatched the grenade and sent it flying backward. Croc failed to leap aside in time. The shock wave threw him to the ground. I glanced at my UI.

  > Mana: 45/800

  Suddenly, some sort of a spider-sense tipped me off about a nearby threat. Looking around, I saw a grenade speeding through the air my way, which had been gotten off by Frozen. I should’ve grabbed that one too, yet the grenade was too close and I dashed for safety instead, out of pure instinct. I didn’t get far. The explosion packed quite a punch. Sharp pain shot through my body and everything went dark.

  I was out cold for about a second. Then the darkness before my eyes dissipated and I found myself lying flat on my back. I’d managed to survive the explosion, yet my HP was almost nada. Both the PKs had me in their iron sights. When Croc saw me stir, he immediately discharged his grenade launcher. After half a second Frozen followed suit.

  Everything swam before my eyes in a haze of pain I suffered. In spite of that, I was able to catch the first grenade with the Telekinesis and send it back toward Croc. I didn’t get a chance to find out whether he was killed in the following explosion or not since I’d already turned my head in the opposite direction to grab the second grenade dashing through the air toward me. No such luck this time around.

  Another explosion booming and pain surging through my body. The bright flash of the explosion was very last thing that I saw before the darkness took me. After regaining my sight, I found myself in the same Resurrection Pod I’d revived before. Figures. I’d died not far away from where I had the last time.

  I was in no hurry to climb out. The PKs certainly knew where exactly I’d revived and soon would show up. True to form, they arrived in no time flat. Well, one of them, Croc, arrived, anyway. Frozen didn’t turn up yet.

  I looked at my HUD. I’d manage to maintain level 7, yet the experience bar was nearly empty. My level would drop to 6 if I got offed one more time. Moreover, I had either no armor or weapon now.

  Anger started to rise inside me. My hands balled into the fists. I looked at the crystal to check on the list of my resources. It was empty. The only thing I still possessed was money. About ten thousand bucks.

  Lowering my hand, I looked at Croc. He had his rifle pointed at the pod as he stood still by the entrance door, not daring to come any closer. It almost looked as if he were afraid of me.

  Frozen finally showed up. He waltzed through the doorway and came to a stop by his pal’s side. Shooting a penetrating look at him, I cursed under my breath in a fit of intense anger. Frozen had my biker leather outfit on! I realized that it was changing into my biker getup that had taken him so long to get in the building.

  The players were standing at the entrance door and aiming at me. I got what they were planning on doing. The PKs waited for me to get out of the pod to discharge their grenade launchers on me. They stood beside the entrance door so that they could instantly burst out of the building if I batted their grenades back at them.


  I was really pissed off. I couldn’t stand those two guys who had already murdered me so many times. I wished I could get even with them. But what could I do? I had no armor, no weapons, no stimulators, no jack-squat.

  Lifting my hand, I looked at the crystal and switched to the map. It didn’t take me long to find an icon representing a vending machine. Unfortunately, it wasn’t too close to me, yet it wasn’t too far away from me either. If I got lucky, I’d get over there without encountering any enemies. But first things first –– how to get away from the two PK?

  However mad at them I was, I was well aware that it was downright stupid to engage them now. I had to get fully prepared before fighting them again. I needed good armor, some weapon, and lots of stimulators along with vigors for restoring my health and mana points respectively.

  As I turned over the details of my getaway plan in my mind, I observed the twosome. They kept on standing still at the entrance door, keeping their assault rifle aimed at the Resurrection Pod. They sure were eager to croak me again. Seemed like they were going to hunt me down constantly. They were intent on killing me as many times as possible.

  Guessed I’d really pissed them off. They wouldn’t leave me alone on their own, for sure. Which meant I had to figure out the way to deal with them. Still, I first had to find armor and a good weapon.

  Finally, I had my plan thought out and was ready to split the Resurrection Pod. I took one more look at the two PKs. They didn’t move a bit the whole time as though they had been turned into stone statues.

  After taking a deep breath, I jerked the door open.