Virtual Reality

I was back in Flivion. Don’t ask me why because I would probably not be able to give you a reasonable answer. Although I couldn’t open up my stats menu I could toggle in-game options like the music that was busily blaring into my ears. I shut it down so that I could only hear sound effects.

People looked at me strangely as I passed them in the street. I was walking aimlessly in a large square that sold various items I was, as yet, too poor to afford. I drooled over a phial of agility booster and was glared at by a shopkeeper when I picked up a small elfin crown. I sighed as I walked away. I had to level up and quickly; so that I could go on quests and earn some money.

Gah! What was I thinking?! I couldn’t continue on like this; this game was never meant to be mine anyway. I should...Maybe just a bit longer…

“Hey!” someone called.

I whipped around only to come face to face with a pink haired scantily dressed human girl.

“Pink Rabbit?” I asked hesitantly for her hair was now in pigtails instead of hanging loose. A robed mage appeared at her shoulder, his hair still a rippling sheet of black. “Quintis?”

“Star right?” Pink Rabbit asked clapping her hands once like a child. “So, what’re you doing in this part of town?”

I laughed uncomfortably. “I… just walking around actually. I’m finding it hard to level up and I have no weapons to fight with nor do I have the money to buy one with.”

“I can help you with that! Oh? So you’re planning to play with this character? What about your friend? Were they angry?” she babbled on excitedly as if we’d known each other for years.
Is her behaviour normal? I sneaked a glance at Quintis but he stood silently at Pink Rabbit’s side, surveying the people around him. “She hasn’t found out yet. A…friend of mine is organising a new headset for her while I sneak around in the game feeling guilty.”

She smiled and grabbed my hand. “Well, now you can have fun right? Let’s sort out the weapon problem and I’ll set you on the path of levelling up.” Too surprised to protest I let her drag me along towards one of the many stalls in the area with Quintis trailing behind.

“Strange though, that you don’t even have a simple dagger; every first timer gets at least a small weapon and a pouch of coins,” she told me over her shoulder.

I shrugged. “Must be this glitch of a form I chose.”

“Hmm…Yes, it must be. You’ll have to go to admin about it, let them give you another shot at choosing a species type; many people have already done so.” She spun around and with her hands on her hips looked me over. “I wonder…Ok, here’s the deal. I help you out and you join my team alright?”

“Your team?” I looked behind me at Quintis who was making tiny balls of fire appear in the centre of his palm, looking utterly bored.

Pink Rabbit pouted. “Quintis is my brother and he’s just here to protect me. I get the say in who joins us or not.” How old are you in real life? I wanted to ask.

I grimaced, not because I didn’t want to join them but because reality struck. “But you guys look like midlevel players already! Why would you want me? I’m just going to drag you down.”

She tapped her nose with her index finger. “Trust me; I know this game inside out and if I say you’ll benefit our team, I mean it.”

My eyebrows rose but I let her buy me a small silver dagger and hand me a few bronze coins which I dropped into my inventory bag that was strapped to my belt. Then without further ado, Quintis and I followed her to just beyond the town, into a field similar to the one I had been attacked in yesterday. I looked around myself nervously wondering when I would be pounced upon.

“Quintis will take over from here, seeing as he’s the fighting type,” Pink Rabbit said smilingly and sat down under a tree to watch us.

“Open up your Menu page,” Quintis instructed me standing with his arms folded in front of me.

Puzzled I did as he bid. “Menu?” A rolled parchment popped up like before and unrolled. Again the list of things like, Profile, Status, Map, Inventory, Contacts, etc. appeared in a neat calligraphy. “I’ve opened it,” I told Quintis, wondering what he was planning.

“Open up your Status,” he said monotonously. “And tell me what you see.”

“But…” I bit my lip and opened it with a touch of my finger on the word. A new page opened, displaying a bar of green. “It’s just my health. I know I haven’t been in the game long, but shouldn’t my skill level, attack, strength, agility, and stuff like that be here?”

“It should be but keep in mind your species type and its associated glitches, although this is better than I hoped for. Now go back and open up your profile.”

It wouldn’t open and I told him so with an edge to my voice. Was he trying to mock me? Then he told me to open up everything else and I watched with mixed feelings as everything responded to my touch except Profile.

“Now attack that,” he said suddenly pointing at an advancing gremlin creature. When I hesitated he shouted, “Attack!”

“Ah!” I exclaimed as the thing launched its small but ferocious body at me. I swiped with my new dagger and it only jumped back to attack again, scarcely wounded. I swiped blindly with my eyes half closed and when I opened them the creature was lying on the ground, immobile.

“Okay, now we’ll…What are you doing?!” Quintis asked as I turned around, my mouth a bloody mess. I dropped the creature back down to the ground and Quintis watched, horrified as it slowly dissolved into grey dust that was carried away by the wind. “Creatures vanish…They don’t…dissolve…” he muttered.

“Sorry,” I mumbled, embarrassed wiping my mouth with the edge of my sleeve. “It’s the only way I know how to kill the little buggers.

He paled. “You…consumed its life force.”

“It seems so,” I said watching as my health went up again. “I guess this is another reason why people aren’t choosing Nightwalkers anymore.”

Quintis approached me with a strange look in his eyes. “Amazing. You’ll never have to buy health potions, have to rest, or have yourself taken in to the healing centre.”

Surprised that he wasn’t sickened I blurted out, “But I don’t level up although I…” I jumped up into the air. “I’m always a bit stronger and faster afterwards.”

“Hmmm…I think you absorb not only their health but a portion of their strength and other abilities.”

I grimaced. “It’s still not a pleasant way to get stronger.”

“I don’t think you’ll have to resort to…eating all of your opponents, especially as stronger ones will resist and throw you off. You’ll have to learn to fight them, and then suck their life force when they’re weakened.”

The thought still disgusted me but was stuck with this form. “Sounds like a good plan to me,” I grinned at him. “But this dagger feels strange…”

“You’ll get used to it. Seeing how you fight however, I think you’re a far range fighter, as you can’t get too close to your enemies to engage them in close combat seeing as you’re so weak.”

“Thanks…” I muttered.

Quintis looked around him, deep in thought. “You’ll have to immobilise your enemies from a fair distance before you can go in for the kill. Keep the dagger for if you get ambushed, but in the meantime you’ll need a far range weapon, like bow and arrows, a crossbow, or a spear. You get many types within the game and rarer types that have special abilities.” He pointed to something behind me. "But since these can only be defeated in close combat…get ready!”

I cried out as a gremlin appeared out of nowhere and took me down with it. “Blerk!”



“I think’s it’s time we stopped. You’ve done enough for today Star,” Quintis said giving a small wave for his yawning sister who sleepily waved back. I wiped the blood from my dagger onto the grass at my feet and followed them dazedly as we started to make our way back.

It was much later that day, at least in the game. A too gaudy sunset illuminated the sun for a few hours before total night descended on the world of Quest Seeker and we were forced to leave the practicing for today and head back to the city.

I had never seen the game in it’s night state and although it was quite dark a huge full moon cast a soft glow onto the earth below just enough to read the board the wooden board on the outskirts of Flivion: ‘Welcome to Flivion! Beginner’s town.’

I started to feel queasy, not because I was disgusted because of all the blood shed today (even though it had been virtual) because I was, but it felt like I had eaten something I hadn’t meant to have. Then a piercing headache shot through my mind like an electric shock and I sank to my knees.

As if from far off I heard them call my name and arms supported me. And then something, something that carried over the pain, over all thoughts, whispered in the depths of my mind, “At last.”

And just before I passed out one single thought ran through my mind, ‘I’m scared.’