Gamers 2069 (13)

Kill Or Be Killed

The map, highly complicated. Man, at least Aubrey's here. She's good with maps and directions. To say this out loud to her will wound my ego forever: she's the smartest out of all of us.
Pointing her finger in the direction of the setting sun, she set the way and we followed, winding up in a large temple dedicated to Zeus at the finish. I stepped inside it to see that there were already tons of other kids there. Some of them looked to be about ten while others were eighteen. I guess we don't get any cool avatars in this game yet. Jeez. No wonder it wasn't released to the public yet. A game without an avatar designer is not a game.
Anyways, I glanced up at the steps to the pedestral where a single man stood. He was definitely the oldest out of us all here. With a statue of Zeus towering above him from behind and the cold, stormy look in his eyes, he undoubtedly has the commanding presence of a leader. He even has a sword at his belt and a pouch of silver drachmas in his hands. Mumurs were going around the area about why we were trapped here, the amount of time left, and how we get out. And what happens if we get killed in the game. I mean, it's just game, right?
"Attention," the tall man called out, drawing out focus back up to him. "We're all beta testers here minus a few sneaky players. I'm sure you're all curious on why we're trapped here. I give you one person. The Developer. In fact, I have one thing to say here. It's the survival of the fittest. Kill or be killed. And once you're killed here, be prepared to be killed in reality."
"Why should we trust you?!" A voice rang out from the crowd, causing murmurs of approval.
"I am fully aware I've given no reason to trust me or even listen to me. But it's your choice. Kill or be killed," the man shouted. Huh. He seems obsessed with saying that saying. Kill or be killed? Yeah. I think I'll go with being the killer this time.
"Well, do we believe him or not?" Aubrey hissed into my ear.
"Give me a few moments," I muttered, watching the man's eyes and body language for any hints of him lying. Scanning his entire outfit and frame, there was nothing out of place except for the tear at his ankle in his clothes. I narrowed my eyes as I honed in on that one spot. My eyes flying open, I saw a bloodied bandage low on his ankle. Surprisingly, he chose to wear tennis shoes in this game instead of boots. Now that's a rookie move. If you plan on surviving, you need to dress appropriately and protect the parts of your body that are easy to hold you back if injured.
"We believe him," I said, glancing back at Alek and Aubrey.
"Tomorrow, my party is going to slay a cyclops for reward and EXP. Feel free to join us. We're meeting at dawn back here if you want to come," the man said.
Yeah, I think my earlier analysis of him was wrong. He's now striking me as the kind of person who goes, all men for themselves if it comes down to that. I'm not joining with him.
"Let's go," I said, turning around and starting to walk out. "We'll start hunting tomorrow. Tonight, we find a place to stay and to make sure the two of you can actually use a weapon enough to hold the monster or human off until I can help. I don't trust him. We're not joining his party."
"Why not?" Aubrey asked. She might like gaming a whole lot, but in the end, she'd rather study and work on schoolwork than game. Seriously, am I the only one here who knows how to tell the good people from the bad people?
"He's not trustworthy. He'd leave anyone behind to save his sorry ass. I'm guessing that's how the person died that he used to know," I said, scowling back at the man before walking out of the temple area.
"How do you know someone he knew died?" Aubrey asked. Noob alert.
"He has a picture of someone who looks like him in his jacket pocket that was sticking out. My guess is that was his twin which is how he knows that you'll be killed in reality. Twins have this strange bond, ya know, Aubrey? Plus, his ankle is bloodied and beaten so he was in a fight, and he's the only one who survived," I explained quietly. "Trust me on this. I'm not a school geek, more like a history and gaming geek."
"Definitely, a history geek," Aubrey said. "That's literally the only class you have a 100% in."
I smirked cockily at her. "Maybe. But my GPA's lower than 2."
"You're not dumb. You just don't apply yourself," Alek said. "Also, we should start moving quicker. Some of the kids in there look like they want to pummel us to death."
"Really?" I mused, turning to catch a glimpse at them. I shrugged, my hands in the air. "They're worthless. They couldn't lay a hit on me. They're part of Minnie's group."
"How do you know?" Alek asked, glancing back.
"They're dressed in the same style as he is," I answered casually. "You'd notice if you've been in enough fights with Minnie. They've got the same stupid ass swagger and the same stupid ass faces." I laughed and the other two joined me as we walked through the town, looking around for an Inn or hotel to crash in for the night.
It too us about an hour of random walking around before we finally found one. At least this time it's easy to get in, the NPCs (Non Player Characters) were nice enough.
And then I heard Minnie's annoying voice next door and fell backwards onto the bed cursing and complaining about him until I passed out.