Yvvaros: The Digital Frontier (13 page)

On top of that, they had enough food to offset the stamina cost of lifting simulated weight, so it was easy for the three of them to work at a fast pace. Luke noticed how much the project was doing for Tess’s mood. She had a genuine smile on her face and responded to his flirting and teasing as she had before the incident with Arex.

The three of them started with the foundation, which required the blueprints to be set in place. They set the carefully cut stone blocks down into an even layer, and then the building’s frame on top of it. The walls went up quickly. It reminded Luke of constructing blanket and pillow forts as a kid, except more substantial.

The roof was the trickiest part because the wooden planks and clay caulking could only be placed from on top. Luke climbed up using Silverstrike’s back as a stepping stone and set the materials into place as his friends passed them up to him, one by one.

When they had completed the structure, they had the frame of a medium sized, one room building. It was still missing the door and windows, which took a bit of setting up to get into place. Silverstrike went to work connecting the hinges while Luke and Tess slowly installed the windows.

“Steady…” said Luke. Tess was holding one side of the window, and as she went to lower her end, it slipped from her hand.

“Shoot!” She let out a tiny gasp. Luke dove underneath the falling glass pane with lightning speed, catching it on his chest the way someone might catch a falling baby.

“No prob,” said Luke. “You can thank my catlike reflexes.”

Tess grinned at him.

“And you’re so modest, to boot.”

Eventually, all of the windows had been secured. The two of them walked to the front of the building, admiring the oasis they had in their backyard as they went by.

“It’s just about…” Silverstrike worked one final hinge into place as he put the door into its frame. “Done!”

A golden flash of light emanated from the building and an icon appeared in the corner of Luke’s screen.

LEVEL 7 ATTAINED

“Oh, cool,” he said. “I didn’t realize we got experience for building.”

Silverstrike smiled at him and nodded. Luke quickly leveled his character up, figuring that the others were doing the same.

Let’s change things up a bit…

Instead of distributing his five attribute points evenly, he decided to drop three into luck, and the last two into strength.

“Shall we?” He smiled at Tess as he asked the question and she gave him an enthusiastic nod in return.

The guild hall’s interior was, unsurprisingly, entirely empty. Luke walked around, admiring the high ceiling and spacious floor.

We’ll be able to buy furniture, or craft it ourselves, and make this place into whatever we want.

Tess looked as though she was thinking the exact same thing.

“This is amazing,” she whispered. “This… this is a home.”

A home…

An unbidden thought of his father and the stress he had to deal with in the real world flickered into his mind. He pushed it away and shook his head. Silverstrike was staring out the window at the oasis.

“We’ll be able to start farming here,” he said. “Maybe even set up a shop. That will give us easy experience, and we won’t even have to risk fighting monsters.”

“I’m still planning on fighting,” said Luke. “It’s a bit too much fun for me to resist.”

Tess and Silverstrike laughed, and for a moment the three of them just sat together on the floor, enjoying each other’s company and enjoying the game.

“I… have to log off,” said Tess, breaking the silence. “Sorry! It’s been a really long play session.”

“Yeah, we probably should to.” Luke glanced over at Silverstrike. “Same time tomorrow?”

Tess and Silverstrike nodded, and then all three of them logged out.

Luke was back in Ben’s room. It took him a while to adjust after he’d removed his headset, much longer than it ever had before. The fluorescent lights felt strange and artificial against his eyes, and his body was heavy and slow.

It’s only late afternoon, maybe four or five. It was nighttime… in Yvvaros.

“Man, we were playing for a while,” said Ben. “It feels…”

He trailed off, but Luke didn’t need him to finish the sentence.

“Weird. Yeah, I know exactly what you mean.”

Luke slowly stood up, stretching limbs that were on the verge of falling asleep. His mind was groggy, almost tired, but sleep wasn’t what he felt like he needed.

The game had been visceral, full of contrast and color, a stark difference from the drab grays and soft whites that decorated Ben’s room. He expected to see a status bar above Ben’s head when he turned to look at him. He realized with a start that it was scary to not see his own health and stamina meters in the corner of his vision.

“Jeez.” Luke shook his head slightly and stepped toward the door. “I think I need to clear my head.”

He looked over at Ben again and saw that his friend was moving toward his desk.

“What’s that?”

“You want to go get some food?” Luke’s stomach growled as if on cue.

“No, I’m good man,” said Ben. “I’m just going to…”

He was pulling something out of his desk that Luke recognized without the need to see more than its color. His pipe was already packed with a half smoked bowl of weed and ash.

“Oh, come on, man,” said Luke. “Don’t you want to clear your head, after-”

“What does it look like I’m doing?” Ben lit the lighter in his other hand and Luke had to turn away.

“Never mind, I’ll talk to you later.”

Ben already had the pipe to his lips. He didn’t answer.

This is starting to become a problem for him.

Luke made his way downstairs. Emily was in the kitchen, humming a little song as she pulled ingredients out of the fridge.

“Hey Luke,” she said. “How was gaming?”

He shrugged.

Does she really want to know?

“It was good,” he said. “There’s a surprising amount of depth to the game.”

“So I’ve heard…” Emily pulled out a bread knife and began cutting through a long baguette. “I take it my brother is upstairs having some alone time?”

Luke nodded.

“Yeah, he’s uh…” No excuse came to mind, and he avoided Emily’s gaze like a guilty defendant in front of a judge.

“It’s fine. I know.” She smiled at him, a bit of sadness seeping in from behind it. “He’s my brother, but there’s only so much I can do for him. Trust me, it was the same way for me back when the roles were reversed.”

Back when the roles were reversed? Did Emily…?

“Anyway, can I make you a sandwich?” she asked. “They say it's bad luck to eat alone.”

Luke grinned.

“Who says that?”

“They do!” Emily let out a breath of mock exasperation. “The anonymous, intangible they!”

How did she end up with a brother like Ben, anyway?

Luke walked over to the kitchen counter and took a seat on one of the stools. Emily had on her pink apron and moved around the kitchen like a dancer, with no wasted movements.

“So… uh, what are you up to these days, Emily?” Luke tried to sound casual, even though he was dying to pry as much information from her as he could. “You’re taking a year off, right? How’s that going for you?”

Emily was cutting the bread down the center. She looked as though she was thinking for a moment and then flashed her brilliant eyes back up at Luke.

“It’s going well…” Her voice was soft and mournful. “I didn’t decide to, well, it wasn’t by choice that I took a year off.”

Luke suddenly felt as though his question had been out of line. He scratched his head and tried to think of a casual way to apologize, but Emily just smiled pleasantly at him. She reached over and put one of her hands on top of his, sending a wave of electric potential through him.

“It’s okay, you don’t have to feel sorry,” she said. “I’ve just been… sick, for the past few months.”

Luke couldn’t think of anything to say.

“Don’t worry, it’s not contagious,” she said. “I shouldn’t have even brought it up. I just wanted to give you an honest answer, Luke. You deserve to-”

Luke’s phone vibrated in his pocket, interrupting the conversation. He pulled it out slowly and winced as he saw the caller ID.

Dad…

“I’m sorry, Emily, it’s my dad,” he said. “I have to take this.”

“It’s okay.”

Luke walked into the living room before answering.

“Hello?”

“Luke.” His dad’s voice was tense and strung out. “Get your ass home from wherever you are, immediately.”

“Why?” asked Luke. “What’s going on?”

“Nothing is fucking going on, just get back here. Now.”

What the hell am I supposed to say to that?

“Dad, I’m at Ben’s,” said Luke. “If it’s not an emergency, can’t I-”

“I’m not asking you,” said his dad. “I’m telling you.”

The phone beeped, and Luke realized that his dad had hung up on him. He took a deep breath and tried not to let the anger building in his chest spread into the rest of his body.

“Is everything okay?” Emily walked up behind him and placed a soft hand on his shoulder. She had such a kind and caring aura, for a moment Luke wanted to sit on the couch with her and pour his heart out.

I want to do more than just that…

“I… have to go,” said Luke. “I can’t stay for dinner.”

“I can pack you some food to take with you if you want?”

Luke shook his head.

“Thanks, but I should get going,” he said. “If Ben comes out of his room later, tell him to call me.”

Emily nodded.

“Okay Luke,” she said. “It was nice having you over. You’re… always welcome here. You know that, right?”

“Thanks, Emily. I’ll see you later.”

Luke shouldered his bag headed out the door. Being outside gave him a feeling not entirely dissimilar to when he’d stepped out of the game before. The air was warm and the sun was slowly setting on the horizon, lighting up the clouds in brilliant shades of orange and red.

He walked down the street toward his house, again feeling a little unnerved by how different his body felt in real life. He managed to catch and resist the urge to try to pull out his map, something that was a regular part of navigating in Yvvaros.

Luke slowed as he approached his house. His dad’s car was parked outside, and just seeing it there made him tense.

This doesn’t feel like a home, at least not one that’s safe.

He took a deep breath and headed inside through the front door, opening it slowly and gingerly, trying to make as little noise as possible. There was no need for subtlety as Luke discovered from the crashing and yelling coming from within.

His dad was in the living room, or what was left of it. The couch had been thrown over and pictures had been knocked down. Chris Smith was emptying a bookshelf of its contents, hurling each title in a new direction as though he was possessed.

I should just head up to my room. He’s lost it, again.

Luke took a step toward the stairs and his Dad whirled around and charge toward him aggressively.

“You took your time coming back.” His dad’s words were slurred, but the look in his eyes was jittery, unlike what alcohol usually did to him. “Walk around the neighborhood a couple of times first, or something?”

“Dad, I was just-”

His father slammed the book that was in his hand to the ground and went back toward the bookshelf.

“I need money, Luke.” His dad looked desperate, suddenly. “Give me what you have on you right now. I’ll pay you back.”

“Dad, I’m not going to give you my money.”

Chris Smith stepped back toward his son, his chest heaving up and down with every breath.

He’s on something again…

His dad stared at him for a long second and then swung his hand. Luke flinched back, but the blow wasn’t intended for him. Instead, it swept the lamp off the side table next to the couch, which landed on the ground with a high pitched crash as the bulb inside of it broke.

“Your backpack…” he said. “What’s in it?”

Luke took a step back and grabbed onto the shoulder of his bag tightly.

“Dad, you need to chill out,” he said. “Head into your room, try to sleep this off.”

“It’s your headset, isn’t it? You brought it over to Ben’s with you?” His dad chuckled, and then paced the floor.

“It’s no big deal…” said Luke. “You don’t have to-”

“My own son! This is the ultimate irony.” Chris Smith stared out the window and clutched his hands to his head as though he was preparing to pull out his hair. “How much do you play it, Luke?”

I can’t be honest with him, not when he’s in this state.

“Just here and there, dad,” said Luke. “Just for fun.”

“Bullshit!” His father started toward him again, stopping a couple of feet away and extending his finger in accusation. “I can tell when you’re lying.”

He gritted his teeth and then ran a hand through his hair. Luke took a step toward the stairs, but his dad started up again before he could make it any further.

“The game never should have been released,” he said. “I told the rest of the design team as much.”

“Dad…”

“It’s just the beginning, Luke!” He screamed. “It’s the start of something that none of us are going to be able to control. It’s not just a video game, just a fun waste of time. It’s dangerous, both for the people playing it and for society.”

What the hell does that mean?

His father crossed his arms and stared at him with burning eyes. After what felt like an eternity, he turned toward the door.

“I’ll be back later,” said his dad. “Don’t go anywhere.”

Luke stood stock still as his father walked by him and out the front door. His heart was beating in his chest, but it wasn’t from just fear. He was angry at his father and ashamed of him at the same time.

He’ll come back and apologize, and try to act like this never happened. But it did.

He made his way upstairs and collapsed on his bed. It was hard for Luke to relax for a minute, to really let his guard down. He took his phone out of his pocket and saw that he had two new texts, one from Sam, and one from Ben.

I went to your place earlier and you weren’t there. What’s up?

Luke sighed, and decided against responding to Sam’s message. His heart ached at the thought of texting her, of having her text him back when it was so clear that she was still just out of his reach.

I’ll talk to her in school on Monday, figure things out there.

Ben’s text was shorter and more urgent.

Get in-game, now! We have a problem!

Luke winced as he read it. His dad had left, but if he caught him with the headset on again, there would be hell to pay.

This could involve the guild hall. Our guild hall…

Luke moved quickly, setting up his laptop on his desk and plugging in the headset.