Posts: 53
Threads: 60
Joined: Sep 2006
Sophia had managed to let go.
It was actually quite easy, in retrospect. The pulsing of the music, the bright lights and loud music, the blank, uncritical stares from every person who happened to be dancing around her, everything about the club made the prospect of making everything in her life that had brought a tear to her eye woefully insignificant, or at least for those few hours. The healer was grateful to Victoria for showing her how to look at the world through a happier lens, but she had lost track of the girl’s location in the chaos that was dance. She shrugged at the thought, however. She was probably off somewhere, having the time of her life.
After all, she deserved it. They all did.
Just then, of course, was when Gamer decided to invoke a changing in the rounds. It was as if the awkward teenager had installed a device the measured the amount of fun that each player was at, and made painstaking efforts to reduce the entertainment level. It wasn’t like they were in a game or anything, so having fun or being happy were things that Sophia was obviously taking for granted. The portal that had been summoned by her beeping PAGER floated next to her, laughing at her, as her “friends” stood about, still dancing and oblivious to anything that was going on.
With a sigh of resignation, Sophia turned and stepped through the vortex, taking a deep breath as her eyes fluttered amidst the crackling light and swirling colors of the portal as it carried her to her destination. It was fairly pretty, for something that could very well have taken her to a particularly painful death. It was just another strike against the logic used by Gamer—something that was such a significant step forward in technology had been used for personal entertainment. It reminded her of the Roman Coliseum, in a way, only it wasn’t open to the public, just some kid’s dirty little secret.
“Who the hell are you?”
A single question was all that met Sophia when she made it to the other side. A tall, lanky dark skinned boy stood in front of a large wooden gate, glaring at her as she began to take in her surroundings. She was standing in a large courtyard, surrounded by gray slabs of stone that reached as a high as the eye could see. The only discernable differences in the pattern were the wooden gate and the door leading inside the castle behind her.
“Say what you want about Gamer,” Sophia began, “but he has one heck of an imagination.”
“You didn’t answer my question,” the boy pressed the issue.
“Oh, right. I’m Sophia,” she offered a slender hand. “Pleased to meet you.”
But the boy merely scoffed, pushing her hand aside as he brushed past her, though there were very few places that he could have gone. His face had turned a shade of red, his eyes a shade of crazy as he stomped around, muttering profanities to himself. Something was definitely bothering him, and the healer couldn’t really blame him. If he was in an event with her, then that meant that he was stuck there with the rest of the contestants. Despite his rudeness, she couldn’t help but feel sorry for him. After all, she was the one throwing a hissy fit not too long ago.
Dropping her arm, she offered a smile instead. “What’s your name?”
He turned, tears developing in his eyes. “…Lance,” he eventually told her. “Why did he have to pit me against another girl?”
Sophia’s heart sank. She hadn’t even considered that she might have had to fight him. The smile melted off of her face, her features forming a grimace to replace it. The longer she was inside the castle walls, the more likely it seemed that they would be fighting to the death. To add to the likelihood, her PAGER summoned her attention once more with a buzz. Lifting up the device, she gazed into the monitor. Letters scrolled across the screen to form a phrase: “player fight.” She sighed heavily and shook her head, almost throwing the device down, though it remained hanging from her clothing. The healer glanced at Lance, expecting to see the same sort of emotional response. His back was turned towards her as he leaned over and examined the lettering. As he slowly began to comprehend the wording, his shoulders began to convulse.
To her surprise, however, a laugh escaped his lips. “Oh, man. What a relief.”
“…how is ‘player fight’ in any way a relief?” Sophia rolled her eyes.
“Oh, is that what yours says?” the kid grinned at her. “Mine says this.”
He disconnected his PAGER from his belt and lifted it up for Sophia to see. In large letters, the event title was confusing at best: “Hangin’ With Mr. Koopa.”
“…what does that even mean?” the healer raised an eyebrow.
“It’s a play on a television program,” he explained with a smirk. “And since I’ve only ever seen it on BET, I’m sure that it’s a swipe at my race, as well.”
“…oh. Haha, yeah, I get it,” Sophia laughed awkwardly. If only she knew what BET was.
Baller narrowed his eyes in a confused stare. It subsided, however, as he nodded in realization. “Oh, right. Temple. I bet you don’t really watch that much TV.”
Before Sophia could act on the several questions that floated through her mind, the ground began to shake beneath them. The area was filled with a strange music with a low guttural sound, resembling a laugh, piercing through it. Suddenly, a large figure slung himself through the door to the castle, large feet skidding across the rocky floor. As far as entrances went, his was about as big as such things got.
“Who dares enter my kingdom?” the large reptilian roared in front of them, a puff of smoke trailing from his nostrils.
“How do you even answer that question?” Baller laughed. His entire countenance had shifted completely upon his sudden understanding of his situation. Perhaps he knew something that Sophia did not.
Regardless, the healer couldn’t help but sigh. “How can you be so calm? What if this guy is another player?”
“Well, first of all, the dude has some problems if he’s started a kingdom in a game that he’s trapped in,” Lance explained. “And besides, this guy is Bowser. Bowser can’t be real, and even if he is, somehow, he’s a complete dick. He deserves to die.”
“Silence!” Bowser snarled. “I am King Koopa! How dare you call me by my Christian name!?”
“So many things wrong with that,” Sophia rolled her eyes.
“I just can’t believe that Keith actually got a reference right,” Lance blinked. “In any case, let’s crush this guy so we can finish the event.”
“Right you are.”
