I nod in agreement and keep a close eye on our distance to the troll. Finally, I see it lumber past a small glowing tombstone with my character name hovering above it.

  “There you are, Reece!” Gilly announces, pointing ahead. Then she turns back around to give me a sly grin. “Although, I’m going to miss my eye candy.”

  “Wait till it’s your turn,” I retort, but I blush a little harder under her lingering gaze.

  We wait for the troll to be well and out of sight before I rush forward to collect the gear from my tombstone. The contents come zipping up my HUD in a big wall of spam.

  You collect a pair of Initiate Miner’s Overalls from your corpse.

  You collect an Initiate Miner’s Helm from your corpse.

  You collect a Rusted Iron Ring from your corpse.

  You collect an Iron Mining Pick from your corpse.

  You collect a stack of Sneaking Potion(10) from your corpse.

  You collect a stack of Sneaking Potion(10) from your corpse.

  You collect a Chunk of Silver Ore from your corpse.

  You collect a Chunk of Silver Ore from your corpse.

  You collect a Chunk of Silver Ore from your corpse.

  You collect a Chunk of HQ Silver Ore from your corpse.

  You collect a Scroll of Shadow Copy from your corpse.

  You collect a Copper Coin from your corpse.

  I immediately equip everything and feel far less vulnerable, the equipment appearing like magic over my torso and legs as I put them on.

  I initiate a trade with Gilly to give her a stack of the Sneaking Potions.

  She puts up 500 credits in exchange for the trade.

  I’m about to tell her it’s too much, considering what I paid for the potions, but the thought of the rent being due next week keeps my mouth shut, though I do feel like a bit of a heel as I hit the trade confirmation button.

  “Cool,” she says with her gorgeous smile. “Let’s take one of these so we don’t have to make two corpse retrievals.”

  We do so, and a small buff icon appears on my HUD, indicating I’m under the effect of the potion. I’m in no hurry to run up to a troll to test it out, though.

  “Where to now, Reece?” Gilly asks.

  It’s always a little weird to hear someone call me by my character name out loud. Although, in truth, I respond to it as easily as my real name. Sometimes, I have to admit that I wish it was my real name. “Definitely not around here, with that troll roaming the tunnel. And the buff will wear off as soon as we start mining. We should try to find someplace that’s relatively far away from these things.”

  “Okay. Give me a sec.” Gilly’s eyes glaze over, and I know she’s multitasking on her rig, bringing up another window to do some research.

  That’s another great thing about Gilly. She loves learning about the game, and knows just where to find the info for it. I, on the other hand, have no stomach for weeding through the millions of online posts and vids about almost any game aspect you can think of.

  A couple minutes later, Gilly unfreezes.

  “Okay, I got us a map,” she says as she suddenly reanimates. “There’s a big chamber at the bottom of the mines that has a bunch of these trolls hanging around in the center. But there are like twenty nodes all around the edge of the chamber that we can mine without agro-ing them.”

  Good ole Gilly, the best girl scout ever.

  “Sweet!” I say. I feel that familiar thrill of anticipation rising. “Let’s get to it!”

  Gilly grins at me with that killer smile again and gives me a wink. “After you, partner.”

  Chapter 4: The Journey Down

  The Silvertooth Mines are a lot more complex than I thought they’d be, and by the time we hit the third switchback—the one that leads further into the depths of the mines—I’m doubly glad that Gilly bought a map. On the plus side, the potions I supplied work great. But it was still a bit unnerving to walk past the giant trolls, thinking that, at any moment, they would let out a roar and smash us to a pulp. We rebuff a couple of times, just to make sure the sneaking effect doesn’t wear off at the wrong moment. Every time I take the potion, I try not to think about the fact I’m blowing a whole day’s worth of food on each one.

  We don’t need to use torches thanks to our mining helms, but the extra light source is nice, just to brighten the area a bit more. Even without them, the mine is never in true darkness. It has a fair bit of ambient lighting, with lanterns set every thirty feet or so. It’s still a game, after all. What sense would it make if you couldn’t see the awesome details put into the area’s architecture? Unless it’s a horror game. Then pitch blackness would make total sense.

  I’m glad we’re not playing one of those.

  Horror and I don’t mix.

  We hit the bottom of the mines and, just as Gilly said, we enter into a huge cavern that looks more like a football stadium than a cave. Not that I’ve ever been to a real football stadium, but I learned about them through the mandatory education feeds you have to take up to the age of sixteen. I’m glad I passed those classes; my school days are now over. I can focus all my time on making money now.

  I count about a dozen trolls milling about the wide expanse. Every so often, they grumble or growl to one another. Gilly and I skirt around the edge of the cavern until we’re about halfway.

  I hit my Prospect ability and whammo . . . Pay dirt!

  A cluster of eight or nine nodes light up right along the edge of the cavern, just a few feet from us, and Gilly and I practically run to them.

  “This is awesome!” Gilly says as she slams her pickaxe into a node. “We’re the only one’s here, too! We could mine here for hours!”

  I engage a node and get a big hunk of experience for a successful first hit. “The XP is great, too! I think I’ll level up after just a couple of nodes.”

  We share a couple more “woohoo”s, and then set to hard mining.

  I play it safe at the beginning, holding back on Gambler’s Boon just to ensure I get enough ore to pay for the potions and my game time. I’m into my fifth node when I hear a massive ding and a burst of light explodes all around me.

  Congratulations! You have gained a Level!

  You are now Level 7.

  You have gained 1 attribute point.

  “Gratz!” Gilly shouts to me. “You’ll be catching up to me soon.”

  I give her a laugh as I check my stats and ponder where to place the attribute point.

  Strength: 6

  Determines melee damage and requirements for heavy armor.

  Dexterity: 3

  Determines melee accuracy, critical hit chance, and activation speed of ranged weapons.

  Agility: -10

  Determines dodge ability, attack speed, and requirements for light armor.

  Intelligence: 6

  Determines spell cast speed, technique points, and potency for Elemental Magic.

  Mind: 8

  Determines magical defense, technique points, and potency for Celestial Magic.

  Vitality: 8

  Determines stamina, HP, and regeneration speed.

  Strength is always a good bet, as it will lower the amount of hits I need to clear a mining node. Then again, some extra Mind or Intelligence would be useful for more TP, so I can use more abilities before I have to rest up. My Vitality seems high enough for now, but then again, stamina and HP are always useful.

  I can’t make up my mind, so I decide to save it and get back to mining. I’m gaining XP so fast in here that I’ll probably level up again before we leave. And next level will probably have a double attribute point bonus, giving me three to spend in total.

  I have two and a half stacks of ore so far, and decide to start going for Gambler’s Boon to get some HQ drops. Who knows? Maybe I’ll even get another treasure chest. Hopefully with something good in it this time.

  My first attempt earns me a bust, but my second and third attempts both earn me extra ore drops, plus a HQ.

  “Good going over there,” Gilly says. “Get anything good?”

  “Some High Qualities.”

  “Awesome.”

  “Yeah, I should be able to clear the rent from this run alone.”

  “Nice!”

  I stop to admire Gilly as she hammers into the rock face. She’s developed a really good rhythm, alternating between the nodes in her area and activating her abilities in between. Her arms are pumped and glisten with a light sweat. So does her forehead, which she wipes every so often with the back of her hand. Her brows are furrowed with determination, which actually makes her go from cute to sexy in my books. She catches me staring and smiles.

  “Hey, how’s your mom doing?” she asks.

  The question takes me completely off guard, since I’m nowhere near thinking along those lines. But her question is genuine, and isn’t meant to deflect my thoughts. She’s the only player I’ve ever told about my mother’s condition, and her asking is just another example of how great a person Gilly is.

  “She seemed pretty good this morning,” I say. “No coughing fits like last week. I guess the new medication is working.”

  “Good news.”

  “Yeah . . .” Good news. My thoughts and words trail off as I recall my last trip to the specialist with my mom. It wasn’t an actual trip, mind you. The doctor examined her through her rig, and I had come along for moral support.

  “The good news is that the cancer hasn’t spread beyond the lungs yet,” the doctor’s avatar had said. He was a slim black guy in his thirties, wearing a white overcoat and a stethoscope that looked like a prop. “But it is stage four. A transplant is what we’re looking at now.”

  My mom gripped my hand from the chair next to me; the same thing we’d done in real life. My mom is young, just over 40. In here, she looks her age—beautiful, dark haired, with vivid blue eyes the same as mine. But in the real world, she looks much older. Much closer to death.

  “How long?” she’d asked.

  The doctor paused. “You’ll need an operation within six months.”

  She’d started to cry then, and I’d held her hand tighter.

  The doctor soldiered on with the information, whether from professionalism or apathy, I couldn’t tell. But I gave him the benefit of the doubt. “The fastest, most complete option would be nano-surgical reconstruction. There would be no chance of the cancer returning or spreading after that. But it’s also the most expensive.”

  “How much?” I asked.

  “Around three million credits.”

  My heart nearly stopped at hearing the price.

  “What else?” my mom asked through a sob. “What are my other options?”

  “A cloned lung would take longer to grow, but it’s about half the cost. No chance of rejection, however the risk that the cancer would return is still there.”

  “What about prosthetics?” she’d asked.

  “Around five hundred thousand, but there’s a high rate of rejection.”

  “How high?”

  “50/50. A little worse, even.”

  That didn’t sound like very good odds for that much money.

  “Anything cheaper?” I asked.

  “Organ donation,” he’d said. “Around fifty thousand. But the list is very long, and even if you could get one in time, the rejection rates are high, though not as bad as the prosthetic.”

  That visit was over a month ago now, and I still haven’t managed to save up anything. The reality of it opens a deep hole in my stomach, and I feel like vomiting. I can feel tears forming in my eyes. How am I going to do this? How am I going to save enough money in only a few months’ time?

  “Reece, are you okay?” Gilly says, suddenly standing next to me with her hand on my shoulder.

  I wipe away a stray tear and smile. “Yup. I’m good.”

  It’s a total lie, and she knows it. But she’s cool enough not to press it further.

  Still, there’s deep concern in her big green eyes, and I have half a mind to tell her everything. But I dare not dump anymore of my burdens on her. She knows my mom is sick, but I haven’t told her about my last visit yet. She still thinks I mine just to pay the rent and my mom’s medicine bills. Most days, I fool myself into thinking that, too.

  But the truth is, I have to make a lot more money than that.

  A heck of a lot more.

  And fast.

  Chapter 5: Noobs

  Gilly and I get back to mining. My resolve is doubled now that I’m reminded why I’m down here. I use Gambler’s Boon without reservation. I’m not going to make 500 grand in a couple of months by playing it safe. I need to risk it big to win big.

  I’m so into mining ore that I barely notice when I ding another level. And then another. I hardly even notice that Gilly is having a conversation with me, that I only occasionally acknowledge with an “uh huh,” or an “oh yeah?”

  Only when a powerful yell resounds throughout the cavern do I stop and look up from my grind. “What the heck was that?”

  Both Gilly and I turn about, just in time to see a group of players pouring into the cavern. The player who yelled is still yelling; releasing a powerful war cry as she charges ahead of the pack.

  And she’s the most stunning woman I have ever seen.

  She dwarfs the other players surging behind her, and is three quarters the height of the twelve-foot-tall mountain troll she slams into with her marvelously ornate white shield.

  The huge beast grunts, winded from the blow, and from the bar above its head, I see it’s lost over half its HP. The woman finishes off the rest of the bar with a quick swipe from a glowing white blade that looks as big as I am.

  The giant woman activates another ability with a second powerful war cry, and this time, all the trolls in the room react to it, bellowing as they charge at her. I half expect her to run, but she stands her ground. I swear I see a grin part her ruby-stained lips as her charcoal-gray eyes gleam under a set of dark brows. Her jaw is wide and strong, framed by a head of platinum blonde hair.

  To say that she’s beautiful is an understatement. But she’s much more than that. She’s powerful, intimidating. If presence were an attribute, she’d have over 100, easy. I almost feel sorry for the trolls as they slam into her like a wall of gray flesh.

  Half of them are instantly stunned by a flash of white light that comes from her sword as she raises it high above her head. She yells and slams into the trolls, keeping their attention as the rest of her party catches up to her. When they do, she cries out in booming voice that sounds like it belongs to a goddess.

  “Hit them now, Thanus!”

  Far behind her, I can hear one of the mages begin to chant. A half second later, the air above the trolls’ heads opens up in a massive dark void. Bolts of lightning shoot from it like rain. The accompanying thunder is deafening as it reverberates in my chest. The dozen or so mountain trolls take more damage than I’ve ever seen in my life. They fall to the ground as their Health bars deplete to zero in less than a second.

  “Wow . . .” Gilly says next to me, looking stunned. “That was cool.”

  I can’t help but agree.

  As the corpses of the fallen trolls begin to disappear, the giant woman strides from within them, headed toward us! I still can’t get over how tall she is. At first, I think she’s elven, but she’s not slender like an elf, more buff like an amazon. And her ears are normal like a human’s, not pointed.

  I check her character to see who and what she is.

  Name: Val Helena

  Sex: Female

  Race: Half-giant

  Class: Paladin

  Level: 85

  Guild: Ragnarok

  Holy crap! A max-level character!

  Her full-plate armor gleams like it’s made from ivory, trimmed in gold with a royal blue underlay. Her shield is embossed with a massive gold cross, and her sword—which, up close, looks like a longsword built for her proportions—is built like a two-handed claymore.

  I take a quick peek at her armor set.

  Royal Holy Knight’s Circlet: +20 Valor +30 TP

  Royal Holy Knight’s Breastplate: +850 HP +30 VIT +30 STR +30 Valor

  Royal Holy Knight’s Gauntlets: +350 HP +20 STR +20 MND

  Royal Holy Knight’s Greaves: +850 HP +10 STR +10 AGL

  Royal Holy Knight’s Boots: +350 HP +20 VIT

  Royal Holy Knight’s Shield: +100 Valor +100 TP

  Royal Holy Knight’s Sword: +30 STR +30 MND +30 Valor

  My mouth literally hangs open. I’ve never seen such amazing gear, and on such an amazing-looking character. The combination is enough to make my mind froth with a wicked combination of adulation and envy.

  Val Helena towers over Gilly and I as she comes to a stop before us. I have to crane my neck to see her gorgeous face. She has to be at least a couple feet taller than me!

  She rests a gauntlet-clad hand on her hip and lets out an exasperated sigh. “What are a couple of noobs like you doing down here?”

  Her voice sounds amazing to me, even with the insult. It’s deep and sultry, like a hot teacher, or someone’s hot mom. She looks older like that, too. Not cute, like Gilly, but intimidating. A mature woman who knows what she wants and isn’t afraid to demand it. My heart pounds, and I can’t tell if it’s from excitement, my libido, or just plain fear.

  “Hey!” She snaps her fingers in my face. “Can you hear me down there? I said, what are you doing here?”

  “We’re mining. What’s it look like?” Gilly snaps back, unfazed. “And what’s it to you?”

  “Mining, huh?” A male warrior in red-plated Samurai armor sidles up next to Val Helena. He’s got a dark, full beard, and a top knot that reaches to Val Helena’s chest plate. “I’m betting they’re spies.”

  Spies?

  Gilly and I share a look of confusion, and I send her an in-party message that the newcomers can’t see: What are they talking about?

 

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