Facing Fear | ✓ ONC 2023 Honorable Mention

4 | Duo

"Pop quiz time, kiddo." Ronin slammed the butt of his walking stick into the ground. Even though he'd shown her how to stash the rifle, he still carried a sword in a scabbard at his side. "What's the number one rule in Facing Fear?"

Mori eyed her boots, then the distant skyline. Not too far away, a giant wall broke the vast ocean of green. The stone barrier stretched as far as she could see in either direction and disappeared into the clouds above. "How am I supposed to ace a quiz I didn't study for?"

Ronin sighed. "Didn't the devs teach you anything?"

Skye had taught her rules, but Mori doubted Ronin was asking for those. She scratched at the hard spot on her neck, where the chip had embedded itself under her skin.

Don't talk about being able to reset FEAR with the other players.

Don't talk about the cube or ring or take them out of your inventory until you need them.

You must place the cube on the creators pedestal at the center of the game to reset it.

Considering the wording of the rules, Mori couldn't tell Ronin about them even if he asked. She dug back in her mind to over eight years ago. "Don't shoot your friends," she answered.

Ronin's lip twitched as if he were holding back a smile. "Not bad, but no. First rule is to control your mental state. Why do you think you were attacked upon entry?"

"Welcoming committee, I think you said." Mori thought for a moment longer, aware of Ronin's keen brown eyes watching her. "Actually...when I was trying to find a weapon, I might've thought about how bad it would be to get attacked right then."

"Bingo." Ronin nodded. "Stray thoughts like that will get you killed. Your fears manifest here. Now, when you first summoned the wolves, instinct kicked in and your first shot landed true. But then your mind became your enemy again and dropped your strength."

That makes sense. Mori pulled her rifle from her inventory with a single thought, but before it fell into her grip, she let it hang in the air and sent it back to storage. In her SniperX days, players always said there were three things that made a pro player: skill, game sense, and their mental. She'd had all three then, she could learn all three here. No obstacles would block the way except the ones she created herself.

She fixed her eyes on Ronin, with his stern expression. Identify. Only his gamer tag appeared in glowing blue lettering. "Why are you helping me? Frankly you don't seem the type." A chilling thought brushed up against her consciousness with ghostly fingers. "What happened to the other Fearless?"

Ronin pushed her aside and swept his hand through a misty blue figure, dispelling the particles. "What did I just say about stray thoughts?" he snapped at her. He regained control with frightening speed, settling back into a stoic vigilance. "The other Fearless very much lived up to their title. They didn't want to talk and the most I could get out of them was their real world time before they entered, not always specific or even in the same timezone. You're the only one who hasn't run off as soon as I looked the other way."

Mori tilted her head. "And you're helping me because?"

For a moment, a glimmer of childish curiosity shone in Ronin's eyes. Maybe he wasn't as old as she'd been guessing. "You Fearless know something important. You didn't deny it when I said the devs neglected to train you. All the Fearless come in with varying degrees of game knowledge, but they all have high-level equipment and some purpose driving them. Anyways—" Ronin headed for the wall. "We'd best get to the next ring before nightfall. The monsters like to come out when it gets dark."