Chapter 2: Chapter 2: Clear the Floors

“Dude, you gotta relax a little. It’s not the end of the world.”

Not the end of the world? My account had been reset, and I was supposed to just relax? I was the strongest one in this game, approaching the level cap of one-hundred and twenty far before anyone else. I had sunk almost five years into this game, grinding day and night to be the best, all so I could have power here. Granted, it was fake power, meaning nothing to people outside of SSO, as those stupid mouth-breathers at my high school liked to constantly remind me. 

But, damn it, it felt real to me.

Another clash of thunder shook the ground, and a bolt of lightning momentarily lit up the pitch-black sky. The drastic change in weather probably signaled the start of the event was near, yet that didn’t dawn on me at the moment because I was busy freaking out.

“Seriously, Anole… A-null… Fist…” Lyfeti kept testing out different variations of my username, apparently not finding one he liked. “Seriously, just chill. This is probably all part of the GM’s plan. They’ll restore it afterward.”

“Really? You wouldn’t lie to me because you know I have real power here, right?”

He grunted something that definitely sounded like an insult. “I wouldn’t lie to you because I totally get that you have real power here. Happy now?”

I nodded.

“Good, that makes one of us. Now, let’s hurry over there and see what all the fuss is about unless you want to yell some more first.”

Shaking my head in response, I followed behind him to where everyone had begun to gather. Unsurprisingly, over there wasn’t much different than over here had been. We were still in the same field, with the same tall grass, and the same annoying bugs buzzing around. The only real difference was the floating digital timer, which, granted, likely was a big deal. It continued to count down, oblivious to the murmurs and questions of the people around it. When the timer trickled down to less than a minute, they gathered tighter like sardines packed in a jar. Some rude woman shoved me, causing me to bump into Lyfeti. I turned to offer him an apology, but it died on my tongue when the timer struck zero.

The thing shattered into a million pieces, emanating a prism of light from where it used to be. A gale of wind appeared from nowhere, sweeping me off my feet and carrying me along in a cyclone of people. My heart hammered loudly in my ears, yet that didn’t stop me from giving that woman from earlier a few good shoves every time our paths crossed in the slipstream. And, then, like nothing had ever happened, the storm dissipated, and I dropped to the ground. 

Pain radiated in my elbows and knees, and I could only let out a muffled curse. Out of the corner of my eye, I could see Lyfeti had landed a few feet away. With a grunt, I forced my aching body up, only to be greeted with the sight of a hooded figure. He donned all black, and it was impossible to make out his face. In all honesty, if his title of ‘Game Master’ wasn’t floating above his character’s head, I would have assumed he was some edgy guy roleplaying.

Still, it was clear he commanded respect from the title alone as everyone rose to their feet. We were silent, waiting on what he had to say. Like he was about to enlighten us on the truths of Skill Shards Online.

The thought brought a smile to my face until he spoke, the voice changer modulating his tone to a gravely-low pitch. “Good evening, everyone. I’m thrilled you were able to join me.” He tugged his hood down further before continuing. “I won’t waste your time because I’m certain you’re all dying to know what the update is about. And it’s not fair that all the news stations already know, while all of you are left in the dark. Well, wait no longer because it’s rather simple. You’ll be staring over. Clear all ten floors, and I’ll restore your characters to how they were.”

The quiet lasted for a few more moments before the dam burst with a plethora of angry shouts.

Someone’s particularly loud complaint reached my ears first. “This is bullshit! Like I want to do even more grinding for such a lame reward. I’m logging out.”

“Go ahead. Nothing is stopping you.” The game master held up his hands like he was balancing a scale. “Just be aware that if you do log out before beating the floors, your account is going to be deleted, along with all your progress.”

A gasp. “That’s worse than death!”

“You might as well end me now.”

“Sorry, little Timmy. I couldn’t protect you, but it’ll… this will… be over quick.”

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“Everyone, stop!” The voice boomed across the open field. “We need to be working together through this time of crisis. And for god sake’s Peter, put away that damn battleaxe before my son gets hurt!”

The battleaxe hit the dirt below with a thud as the man sporting a bushy moustache muttered about how nobody ever supported a good murder anymore. The others around him, including Timmy, took a step back from the crazed man. 

“As I was saying, we need to come together to–”

“I’ll find some more battleaxes.”

“I’ll get the guillotine.” Another helpful soul added.

“Holy shit.” I couldn’t help but mumble to myself, hoping that the commanding guy from earlier would put a stop to this too. These people were beyond nuts with these stupid solutions. Managing to make eye contact with Lyfeti showed me he thought the same. His eyebrows were raised, and he was slack-jawed. Still, what did he mean about the new stations?

The game master answered my question as if reading my mind. “You won’t have to worry about people taking off your VR headset either. The dev team and I ensure that news stations across the globe would be airing stories about how removing them would kill. Fry your brain and poof that’s it for you losers.” He ignored the scattered gasps about his casual disregard for our lives. “Of course, that’s all a lie. A stupid lie too. Like how is that at all believable?” His deep chuckles boomed across the plains before he continued. “If you have any further questions or complaints feel free to write us a message. Just please try not to be too passive-aggressive. I really hate getting those kinds of emails.”

“How’s this for passive aggressive?”

A boy emerged from the crowd to hurl a rock at the game master. I watched on in shock–willing myself to ignore how nothing about this was passive–as it phased through his body, skidding across the dirt harmlessly behind him. A hologram? It seemed to surprise the others too, but none more than the brave soul who had decided to fight back. He could only stare at the rock in disbelief, astounded that his decisive action had failed him. To take matters into his own hands, and try to right a wrong, I could truly admire that. 

“A hologram. That’s… that’s…”

He couldn’t seem to find the words as righteous anger swelled up inside him. I could hardly blame him, disgust welling up inside me at the cowardice of the game master. To threaten our very lives, and then refuse to face us man-to-man. Or was it avatar-to-avatar? Either way, he was an injustice incarnate.

The boy took a deep breath, while I waited on him with a bated breath of my own. “That’s… pretty neat actually.”

“Isn’t it? Anyway, you all know what you have to do. I leave the choice to you. Bye!” The game master rushed his farewell, held up two fingers, and dissolved away. No fancy light show or smoke accompanied his disappearance. He simply faded out like an old television set being shut off.

His absence gave me a moment to think about my predicament amid the screeches of panic and people running around aimlessly. My gaze traveled from the rock to the boy who had thrown it, to the scattered crowd, to Lyfeti, and then back to where the game master had been standing. With all those things in mind, I made one of the most important decisions in my eighteen years of life. I would be staying logged in to complete this challenge. I had five years of progress hinging on this. What would a few more months matter? But even more importantly, I remembered why I played this game solo. 

“We’re doomed!”

“It’s fine, brother. The light of Timmy’s dad shall guide us.”

“Peter…”

Everybody here was impossible to deal with, and I didn’t want to catch their crazy.