Collide Gamer

Chapter 12 – The Roof

A group of the assailants had fled upstairs. They were mangled corpses now. One sleeve was always torn. Three streaks always ran across the torso. One was a sign of where the Wall Shadow had grabbed its victim, the other where its thin, wire-like arms had crushed the life out of them. Pools of blood filled the hallway. The group advanced through them without a care. Only Rave leapt over them in her flip flops. John had tried at first but after he had failed once it no longer mattered.

The Wall Shadow had enjoyed the hunt with either terrifying calculation or instinct. Each of its victims lay exactly three of John’s steps away from each other. The Gamer beheld all of that with calm curiosity.

He knew that was unnatural. There was a question on his mind: ‘Was this how the Wall Shadow chose to display them, or was this just the distance they managed to cross between attacks?’ From that question stemmed another one: ‘Why is that the question on my mind? Shouldn’t I feel disgust or pity? Even for people who tried to kidnap me? They are human, after all.’

Yet all there was, was an uncaring, brooding calm that filled that emotional dullness. Adrenaline pumped in his veins. His heart beat hard and steady. Was this part of the Gamer powers or was this part of him? Was this bad? Would he prefer being a sobbing mess in the corner? Wasn’t this the intelligent way to react? Should he question an objective advantage?

John and Moira were at the centre of their advancing group. Rave was at the front, Travolta in the back. Like that, they made their way up the flight of stairs. The Wall Shadow was either still cleaning up the stragglers or it was waiting for an opportunity.

Rave kicked open the locked door. It didn’t give much resistance, breaking out of the hinges and falling over. Sunlight flooded in, then they stepped into the sunlight. An immediate sense of relief filled John. Now there was only a wall under their feet. A lot easier to cover all attack angles this way.

 “What now?” Moira asked.

“Ya asking me, Moi-Moi?” Rave threw a questioning glance at Travolta.

“We need to find the Wall Shadow and kill it before it finally finds an opportunity to pick one of us off,” The shaven man said. “ Any suggestions?” The three remained silent.

John cleared his throat. “I might have an idea.” He said, “But I have no idea if it will work.”

Rave pinched him in the right cheek. It hurt. “Ah, what the fuck, Ja-?” he started and stopped when the girl slammed a hand on his mouth.

“How do ya know my name?” she whispered and threw a glance at Moira. The redhead was intently listening. “Ya better be real careful about what ya say next.”

“You best be careful about the threats you make,” Moira warned.

“Or what?” Travolta growled. Fists were clenched and the shaft of a hammer clutched. The words hung in the air, while Rave slowly took her hand off the Gamer’s mouth.

“I see your name floating above your head!” John answered in truth.

“Interesting, so the ability isn’t limited to what they want displayed,” Moira stated. “Here I thought I would have to bring Lorelei to school to find our troublemaker. ‘Ja’ – now what might the rest of your name be?”

“Nice going, jackass,” Rave hissed at him, like an angry cat. “Tell her my real name and I’ll rip your-” The rest was left to John’s imagination, as Rave and John were suddenly yanked back by Travolta.

Four arms closed around where they just stood. Disappointed, the Wall Shadow clicked with its mandibles. It was standing upright, revealing the rest of its body. Its head with the four arms just underneath extended into a centipede-esque tail. It connected all the way to the shadow of a ventilation shaft. Quickly, it retreated.

‘Wall Shadow… truly literal… there’s less shadows out here, so it’s got limited attack opportunities.’ He glanced at Rave. She was still close, but together with his panic went the immediate enticement with her presence. All that mattered right now was a plan that got him out of there. After that he could consider what happened. ‘She has light powers… if we can cut the shadow at the right moment….’

Achievement Unlocked: Know Thy Enemy

You figured out the weakness of an enemy.

INT +1

The Achievement only served to confirm his train of thought. He grabbed Rave by the shoulder. “What ya doing, Johnny Walker?” she growled, still mad at him.

“I need you to use your light ability when the Wall Shadow next comes out,” he said. “Can you fire something like a limited flashbang?” If her answer was no, he’d have to check with Moira instead.

 “Why? We are in the midday sun… Oh, oh I get it…” Rave blinked. “Duh, it’s literally in the name, how can anybody not get it? Imma play ball with ya. Good thinking.”

John smiled drily. “As you said, I got it after thinking for a second. It’s not like I can just do anything with this power you know?”

Rave raised an eyebrow, “Eh, no monsterpedia or something?”

That was actually worth a try. “Open Monsterpedia,” John said. Nothing happened. Rave looked in anticipation, again he shook his head.

“Useless damn power.” She eyed the shadows with a smile. So far the monster hadn’t shown itself again.

“My powers are game-themed, but I don’t think everything I do translates to game mechanics. Like, I don’t think I can just say ‘create party’ and invite Rave.”

Party Invite has been sent. Party name is Party (Default).

‘Well, damn, because I needed to look anymore clueless,’ John thought while Rave stared at a window that had suddenly popped up between them.

“Would ya look at that, there’s an interface.” She laughed and pressed yes. “Ya really got one interesting ability. We’ll talk about that more later though.” The wink she gave him made him inclined to agree. “How ya planning on luring the monster out? We’ve been looking mighty vulnerable for a lil’ bit.”

John tried his best at a confident smirk. He failed. The facial muscles just refused to curve all the way into a joyful expression. “That’s the easy part… just trust me on this.“ Before Rave could respond, he stepped away and raised his voice. “Moira, so about her name.”

The Warden had been watching the two of them whispering with curiosity but had honoured their privacy. Now that she was being addressed directly, that changed. “Yes?”

“Why do you want it so desperately?” John asked and nonchalantly stepped in the direction of the ventilation shaft. He tried not to think about it. His eyes were entirely on Moira.

The Warden rolled her shoulder. “Collide has been a source of minor troubles for months and the Order would prefer to know where to find its members, should their misdemeanours ever become violations of the Lady’s designs. She and her companions are nothing but trou-“

Moira stopped and raised her hammer. Before she could do anything, a bright light exploded behind John. A shrill screech froze the marrow in his bones, He jumped to the side. Not that he could have escaped the arms had they been coming for him.

When he stared at the ventilation shaft, he found the Wall Shadow squirming and thrashing like a fish out of water. Its elongated body ended in a stump, the rest of it getting ejected from the shadow the monster had anchored itself in. The flashbang had been even more effective than John would have thought.

The Wall Shadow tried to prop itself up with two of its arms. They were strong, but clearly not built for the task. Its tail flopping about uselessly, the monster tried to fend off the three fighters that immediately descended on it. Hammer smashes, fists engulfed in lights, and sheer brutal swings pelted the crippled creature. Its speed wasn’t nearly as impressive when it had to balance on two arms.

John just stood back, while the more experienced fighters beat the monster to a pulp. Eventually it was all broken chitin and exposed, purple flesh. It twitched one more time, then the life left its eight eyes.

+1542 EXP

Level Up!

Level Up!

You may now leave the Illusion Barrier.

John looked at the windows with disbelief and relief. Two levels, when he had done basically nothing. Did he have Rave accepting the party invite to thank for that or was this another tutorial gift?

“Just in time, the break is almost over,” Moira stated and glanced at the two members of Collide. “I will acknowledge your deeds today and simply remind you to fall in line. Springfield will be safer if the Order eliminates the Bloodfallen and its subsidiaries.”

“We ain’t anyone’s subsidiaries, Moi-Moi,” Rave shot back.

Moira just shot her an annoyed glance. It wandered on to John. “Tell me her name now. It will go a long way in proving that you’ll be an asset to the Order of the Golden Rose.”

“A-asset?” John stammered and furrowed his eyebrows. The monster was dead and the calm was receding. Not in a way that triggered a panic attack, thankfully, but his stammer was back. He almost would have preferred the panic attack.

“Certainly, now that you are part of the Abyss you will require protection. The Order is the strongest faction in town. Once our full forces arrive from Britain, we’ll be the only faction in town.” Moira stared at Travolta. “Something that ought to be remembered.”

“Okay, but have ya considered that you’re no fun, Moi-Moi?” Rave asked. “I call dibs on the guy, he’s interesting.”

“Your bad influence will steer him from the righteous path.”

“Exactly! That sounds great!”

“Can you stop bickering? The Latebloomer is old enough to make his own decisions,” Travolta growled. All eyes suddenly laid on John and waited for him to speak up.

He, however, remained silent. The decision before him felt momentous. A split in his path that defined the rest of his run – except there was no reloading on this one.

“Seems like you will need to think about this for a bit.” Moira said, in a calm and understanding tone. “I will be waiting after school at the gate.”

Rave got right up to him again and this time there was no monster to distract him from the fact that a gorgeous girl his age was so close he could feel her body heat. “I’ll be waiting right here.” she purred into his ear. Freedom and adventure lay in that tone; danger and an uncertain future. “Come back to the roof after school if ya wanna join the fun club.”

Travolta just nodded and pulled a couple of glass vials from his cargo pants. He stomped over the Wall Shadow’s corpse and filled them with its gooey fluids. “I’ll think about it,” John pressed out, his throat dry. Moira nodded and left the Illusion Barrier. The pair stayed. John raised his hand and was out himself. A window hovered in front of him.

New Quest: Pick a Side.

Join the Golden Rose

Join Collide

Or

Deny them both

Reward: 200 EXP.

Accept?

‘Where do I go from here?’ he thought.