Hollow Twilight - A LitRPG Novel

Chapter 4

Reid did his best to try and peer through the glass of the convenience store. It was only black inside, with nothing he could discern of value. The shape of aisles, of stands most likely containing a variety of items. Maybe fridges against a wall. But really nothing. And those monsters made of darkness would just blend right in to the shadows.

"It's safe?" Maple's voice was filled with as much nervous fear as it was hope. She popped up at Reid's shoulder, trying her best to see over and around him since she was smaller than him. "Tell me it's safe."

"I don't know." Reid sighed, stepping back from the doorway. He shook out his hands a little, trying to keep his tension down. The space around them had returned to its bizarrely quiet state, and Reid's eyes flicked to the edge of his vision, constantly searching for that thing that kept shifting around. "There's nothing I can see."

"Well, why would somebody lie to us?" Maple spun in place, a little flicker from her green eyes as she checked around.

"Why wouldn't they? Maybe this is a game to them, some entertainment."

Maple stamped her foot down, eyes blazing defiantly in Reid's face. This was a look she usually reserved for arguments with Issac. "I choose to believe in people."

Reid stared his friend down, taking in a deep breath before slowly releasing. She barely blinked at him. He knew he had no resistance here. "So, you'll open the door?"

"You open it," Maple replied, her demeanour suddenly shrinking down. Reid held back an eye roll before pushing on the door, finding it swung open with little effort. He squeezed his hands tight and released them a couple of times before stepping through the doorway.

It seemed like time had skipped. There was a part missing from Reid's brain, even though he had been watching the entire time. But now, he was in his room, exactly where he had started. He checked over himself, checked his surroundings; there was nothing changed. This was his space, his normal room he had come home to just minutes earlier. It hardly seemed like time had passed at all really.

Reid blinked a few times. Each time, he expected that alternate world to appear before his eyes, for him to confirm that he was still in that space and nothing had really happened. Because all he knew was that he had been entering that store and then he was just here. He couldn't explain the leap or the gap, there was no flash of light or magical tunnel, that was all he had in his memories. He was confident that was wrong, but his head hurt thinking about it too much.

Eventually, Reid reached down into his pocket, withdrawing his phone so he could check with his friends. His screen was flashing, a red backdrop with black words on top: logged out. He clicked in and was taken back to the title screen of Hollow Twilight. Same colour scheme, same tap to enter sitting waiting for him. And he just stared at that screen, puzzled, his brain frozen in time.

Until it dawned on him.

That was the game. The last thing he had done was log in to Hollow Twilight and start playing. He had completely forgotten once he had opened his eyes to that bizarre world. But Maple would've also started playing around the same time, and she only lived a few houses away. So, just like that, they met up in that world together right away.

Virtual world?

Was it a virtual world? Some sort of VR experience? Without realizing it, had he always been playing the game on his phone? Was it just a really focused game?

But then, his phone was in his pocket when he finished. And he certainly still felt tired, like he had gone for a run or finished gym class. He had felt Maple on his skin when they touched. That had been real, he was certain of that. So where had they been?