“Really? How?”
“There’s some kind of interface system. I dunno, I think the Xevovs told me about this. Or maybe they’re telling me about it right now. To be honest, I have no idea how, but hey, lucky for us, right?”
“Yeah, good to catch a break,” Van replied. He didn’t say much else as Sang hurried through the computer’s files. She searched meticulously for any kind of data, but there was nothing worthwhile to be found.
“I’m not finding anything,” she said. “Oh... crap.”
“What?” Van asked.
“I think… no, no no!” Sang stepped back from the console, knelt down, and looked at one of the ports. Sure enough, there was a small slot where a data stick could connect in. The only problem was that the data stick was missing. “Oh, great. That Lemuel bastard must have stolen all of the pertinent data.”
“How do you know it was him?” Van asked. “Anyone could have moved it, and we can’t just assume Lemuel has it.”
“Let me see,” Sang said as she tapped away at the computer. Security footage of the inside of the ship came up rather quickly. She brought the security footage to an hour ago, to see Lemuel busy walking back and forth, talking to a few humans. They were all listening intently. One of them was Draumed. Sang shivered a little as she remembered ending his life. What a horrible thing she had done. She shook her head, trying to get the images out of her mind. She’d have to worry about that later.
“Go forward! Look!” Van said, pointing at one of the players in the video. “It’s the leader of the Kyrissian forces!”
“You mean Zac?” Sang asked. She watched for a few minutes as the video moved in fast forward. She slowed it down right as Lemuel pulled the data stick out of the console and handed it over to the Kyrissian general.
“Nice! We know who has it!” Van said. “Let’s get moving, quick!”
“I don’t understand,” Sang said. “Why would he give the data stick over to the Kyrissians?”
“Don’t you see?” Van asked. “It’s another test. Lemuel wants to see if we have the strength to retrieve this data stick from a high-ranking player. He’s trying to see how far we’re willing to go.”
“I’m just not getting this,” Sang said as she shook her head. “Why would Draco try to toy with us like this? Why not just get rid of us?”
“They like rules, remember?” Van replied. “So much so, they were willing to build an entire game world that followed a hard set of rules—rules that they rarely ever change. Sure, they tweak an item here or nerf a class there, but the internal logic of this game world has always been rock solid.”
“So, what, they have a rule that says they have to tolerate meddlers?”
“Who knows?” Van answered. “Maybe they’ve been waiting to find a race that’s worthy enough to actually fight back. From the looks of it, they just roll over any planet they show up at. Maybe they’re bored and they enjoy the sport of it.”
“That’s insane, Van,” Sang replied as she shook her head. “These aliens are crazy.”
“Yeah, well, at least they’re crazy in our favor,” Van replied. “Now, let’s get going. The battle is still going on. If we move quickly, we’ll be able to get the drop on Zac and steal the data stick without him noticing.”
“Alright,” Sang said as she bent down to grab one of the spears. “Let’s go find that data stick.”
The two walked out of the ship together, both with weapons in hand. Van was holding a spear and Sang was wielding her bow. The spear would come in handy in case someone tried to rush her. But as the ship hissed, opening widely for them to exit, they both froze in their tracks.
Standing before them were several dozen men, all armed with swords and shields. They wore the banners of the Kyrissian army and they were all laughing and joking amongst each other. Standing in front of the army of soldiers was none other than Zac.
“Long time, no see,” Zac said to Van.
Van shot a look of fear over to Sang. There was a very big chance that these players had no idea they were in a lethal zone. If they were ordered to attack, they’d be running to their deaths without knowing it. Sang swallowed hard. It was one thing to kill people who were trying to murder her, but to kill innocent people who thought it was all some silly video game? That would be too much. This was a trap, and she knew it. The smirk on Zac’s face gave it all away.
“It’s a pleasure to see you both,” Zac said, “although I believe this is the first time you’ve met me in my regular character’s body.”
“Nice to see you,” Van said through gritted teeth.
“You seem stressed out,” Zac said, chuckling. “Relax. We’re just here to talk. It would be a great travesty to come to blows in this area, wouldn’t it?”
“Where’s Kenwar?” Sang asked.
Zac gestured behind him. Kenwar was tied to a tree. At his feet was a ton of kindling. A man with a torch was standing by, grinning. In his hand was a bottle of kerosene.
“It would appear that Draco’s none too fond of Kenwar’s actions. He didn’t do a great job, and is being rewarded as such,” Zac said.
“You bastard!” Van shouted. “Let him go!”
“Oh, I absolutely will let him go,” Zac said, “provided you two do me a favor.”
“What’s that?” Sang asked.
“You can both—” His words were interrupted by a frenzied shout.
“There!” Bidane shouted as she darted out of the woods and pointed. “The ship is right there!”
“There’s nothing here!” Kylian said as he emerged from the woods. A host of about thirty soldiers had followed him.
“Oh crap!” a soldier shouted. “Kyrissians!”
“Orders?” another one screamed as he donned his helmet and lifted his battle axe high.
“Well, this just got a lot more interesting,” Zac mumbled. “I didn’t think that anyone knew we were here.”
“Sang!” Van hissed. “If they get into a fight in this area, people will actually die! We’ve gotta stop them from fighting.”
Sang froze. She realized that she had two choices. She could scream out an order for her friends to attack, and take advantage of the chaos to take Zac down and get the data stick, or she could side with Van and try to organize some kind of retreat. On one hand, innocent people on both sides would die for real, but at the same time, fighting meant that she’d be able to get the information desperately needed to stop this cataclysmic event from happening. Was it worth the cost? Could she willingly sacrifice the few so that the great many could survive? She didn’t know what to say.
Zac held up his hand. “Stay your positions!” he ordered his men. “No one moves until I give the go-ahead.”
“Van!” Kylian shouted from across the way. “What’s the plan? What do we do here?”
“Good question,” Zac said as he spun around to face Van and Sang. “You have a choice, don’t you? It’s an interesting one, too.” He produced the data stick from his pocket and held it up. “I believe you’re looking for this, right? It probably wouldn’t be too hard to wrestle it from me in this zone... I mean, levels don’t mean a thing in this area, do they?”
“Zac, we don’t have to do this,” Van said. “A lot of people are going to get hurt—people who don’t deserve it.”
“I agree with you,” Zac said. “But my hands are tied. It’s really about you two. You have a choice here. You can fight and sacrifice a handful of innocent people, but get your reward, or… or you can retreat. Save your friends. Lose the prize. What will it be?”
Van went to open his mouth, but Sang was faster. “Charge!” she screamed at the top of her lungs as she raised her bow high and fired an arrow at Zac. The arrow narrowly missed him.
Kylian raised his sword high and rushed to fight, his army charging alongside him.
“No!” Van cried. “No! Stop! You’re going to die!”
“Not on my watch!” Capello screamed as he dove into the fray with his axes spinning like windmills. The enemy soldiers advanced forward also, cheerfully laughing as they engaged in the melee.