End of an Era (Project Chrysalis Book 2) by John Gold (popular books to read .TXT) 📕

other characters. Look, they’re waiting for us. We don’t know how strong the undead in there are, so we might need their help. We should try to coordinate things.”

“Okay, let’s talk with them.”

The guys really are waiting, frozen and with their eyes on us.

“We’ll be back in a day. We need to rest and get ready.”

They simply nod and log out of the game.

“Fem, I’m logging out, I’ll be back in twenty hours to discuss the plan. We need to figure out how to beat whatever’s out there.”

I really need to rest. I’ve been almost fifty hours in the game, and I’m going to have my capsule switched off soon.

There’s a med capsule in the new orphanage, and that’s where I spend all my time. Strength requires sacrifice. My streams of consciousness overload my brain, wearing down on my nerve cells. But there’s no way I can recover completely. How could I stop thinking? Instead, I have to use my personal med capsule constantly, since it’s what keeps my health where it should be. It’s weird… I’m dying and am in complete realization of the fact, but I’m not afraid. I just want to see my parents. There’s nothing I care about in the real world.

Two hundred thousand credits are pulled from my anonymous account every month to cover the orphanage’s budget. If I die, it will be okay for another year and a half. That may not be long, but it’ll still mean a little respite for the other kids living here.

***

“Fiji, you’re finally out of that game. What took you so long?” A woman dressed comfortably was sitting in a chair next to the personal med capsule.

“Mom, it’s okay, I’m fine. There weren’t any attacks, there’s no bleeding, and my head doesn’t hurt. The numbers are all where they should be. And my psyche…” The girl smiled. “It’s fine.”

The mother noticed the hesitation and averted eyes.

“Well, what happened? Another ambush, people trying to get your armor?”

“Nope. There was another really interesting candidate for the trial though, and he exceeded all my expectations. I still can’t completely figure him out. You know, I’m really having to try hard, mom!” The girl lifted an index finger. “It’s a strain talking with another player, and not because he’s an idiot but because he’s smarter than me. He was shooting meteors at Level 1, and at the end, he was figuring out how to kill a Level 500 raid boss…by himself

! He used blood magic and rituals, and I’m sure he could pull out some necromancy if he had to.”

The mother listened to the girl carefully with a smile on her face. It had been a long time since Fiji had been this excited to talk about the game. The whole thing brought up some painful memories for her, and the girl noticed.

“Mom, it’s okay. Nothing happened. I’m fine, and I might have found myself a really good companion. He even got my armor going. Tomorrow, we have the final part of the trial for the Hunters. Mom, don’t cry, it’s okay. Everything’s all right.”

Her mother was crying near the med capsule. Of the four kids in their family, only the youngest had been born with such a weak body.

“I’m sorry, baby girl. I just feel so bad that it happened this way.” She started crying even harder.

Only their daughter had been born with the body of a normal person, and it wasn’t able to keep up with her abilities.

***

When I logged back into the game nineteen hours later, Fem was already waiting.

“You decided to show up early, too?”

“And why are you here already?”

“I figured you’d do the same thing. Okay, so what’s our plan?”

“Simple: we boost our health to ten million and beat away at the raid bosses with everything we’ve got. We might have problems with the guards, but the killers could help with that. If they come after me, your job will be to hold them off. I need about three minutes to completely restore myself. If the boss dies, I’ll get involved. You’re our insurance.”

There’s no point waiting for the killers. One of them is already here, invisible, and he can tell the others. We don’t need them.

“Hey, buddy, we’re going to get to work in three hours. If you want, you can join us. We’re going to be getting ready in the meantime.” If they’re in a group, he’ll let the others know.

The administrator sends us back onto the field of battle. We can see the raid bosses from a few kilometers off, and there are undead wandering around, too. Ah, those could really be put to good use! I make a mental note to do just that.

This time, we decide to dig in on a small, rocky plateau next to a gully. We can take on two raid bosses at once from there. Then, we find enough victims to boost our health to ten million, which unlocks a new skill for Fiji.

“Whoa, my armor lets me use dissection, a blood knight technique that doubles the damage your attacks do.”

Her armor is covered in blood flooding through pulsing veins. Even her sword is rippling. What a sight! All it needs is an eye and a mouth on it. Hey, that’s an idea. I decide to experiment later.

The killers are all nearby, invisible and not doing much yet.

“Please don’t come anywhere near me. If I think you pose a threat, I won’t hesitate to kill you immediately.”

The only answer is silence. They’re quite the characters, and I have to wonder if they’re always quiet like this.

Fem quickly picks up on what’s going on and comes to stand close to me just in case they attack.

First, we kill the iridium spy. We have plenty of health, so there’s room to experiment.

“Death