Game Breaker Page 4

  “This is weird,” Breccan said.

  A panel next to the exit door had green words written across it. Name your avatar, the words proclaimed.

  Breccan stared at it as his thoughts raced. He didn’t want to pick something he would regret. His cousin’s avatar name was a clear warning. But the problem was that he didn’t know enough about the Edge to pick something that wouldn’t make him stand out like the new player he was. Did he give his avatar a name that fit the character the way Minx had, or did he choose something like Murphy’s that defined what he hoped to accomplish in the Edge? The problem was that he didn’t know enough about the place to decide either way. Maybe Jonny could help.

  Anxious to leave the strange room and the need to make even more decisions, Breccan crossed quickly to the door and pulled it open. He stepped into the white room beyond and paused. He must have either done the job right this time or botched it completely by the looks on the others’ faces.

  “Hey, cool,” Black Jack said with an approving nod. The avatar walked around Breccan. “Very retro tough with the ripped jeans and the bandana on the arm.” Minx’s avatar pointed at the mask on Breccan’s face. “That may be the sweetest thing I’ve seen all day.”

  “And you’ve seen me, so that’s saying a lot,” Rage Machine told her.

  Black Jack stuck out his tongue at the other avatar.

  Breccan pulled the mask with the skeleton grin down and smiled. “Thanks.”

  “Nice tat,” Bullshark Venom said with a pointed look at Breccan’s right hand. “What’s it mean?”

  Breccan lifted his hand to look at the letters tattooed across the back. “It’s a tribute to my brother,” he said quietly. “G.B. is for Garrick Bryer and K.R. is for Kirik Reservoir, my hometown.” As he looked at it, the tattoo’s color changed from dark blue to dark purple. He definitely felt embarrassed at revealing so much about himself to these strangers, but he didn’t need them to know that. Maybe the mood ink had been a bad idea.

  “It looks like it says Game Breaker,” Murphy pointed out. “Look. GBKR. Game Breaker. That’s cool.”

  A grin stole across Black Jack’s face. “That’s a great callsign. Have you saved a name for your avatar yet?” the pirate asked in Minx’s voice.

  Breccan shook his head. “I couldn’t think of one.”

  “Then that’s it,” Bullshark Venom said with a nod. “Game Breaker. It’s fitting.”

  “Why’s that?” Breccan asked.

  His cousin’s avatar grinned. “Because you’re bound to break this game with your ignorance of the Edge. We might as well give them a warning!”

  Breccan chuckled. “You’re probably right.”

  “Lock it in and let’s get going,” Rage Machine said with Murphy’s whine. “I need to tear someone apart!”

  “That’s gross and violent,” Black Jack pointed out.

  Everyone stared at Minx’s avatar for a moment before they burst out laughing.

  Breccan walked back to the door feeling completely out of the loop but also like a new person. He turned the doorknob with his right hand and stepped inside. At least having a right arm to use again was something he could get used to.

  Following Black Jack’s directions, Breccan put his hand to the reader beside the door.

  “Do you wish to save your avatar?” a monotone voice asked as the words also flashed across the screen.

  “Yes,” Breccan replied.

  “Name your avatar.”

  Breccan couldn’t help cringing when he said, “Game Breaker.”

  “Select a password,” the voice said.

  “Breccan rules the world,” Breccan replied by habit before he could second-guess himself. A pang of sadness filled him. Back when his twin brother was around, the question of who was better had always been a standing mock argument. It had been a ridiculous war between them, and a joke at best. Saying the words without Garrick there to argue with him as he had always done made them sound corny and stupid, but he couldn’t take them back.

  “Avatar saved,” the voice replied. “Welcome to the Edge.”

  Breccan left the room glad that the process was over.

  “It’s about time. Let’s go!” Rage Machine said in a high voice that appeared out of place coming from his hulking form.

  Bullshark hung back as Black Jack and Rage Machine led the way up a plain white hallway to a set of stairs.

  CHAPTER FOUR

  “Don’t worry,” Breccan’s cousin reassured him as they walked after his friends. Other hallways branched into theirs, but nobody else was in sight. They all led to the set of stairs Rage Machine and Black Jack started to climb. “You’ll get the hang of this place. Let’s run through a few basics.” He held up his arm. “These are your stats.”

  “What are stats?” Breccan asked. He stared at the numbers and letters that ran down his arm in glowing blue light.

  “That’s your ECs, your XPs, your level, and your equipped abilities,” Bullshark replied.

  Breccan glanced at him. “ECs are….?”

  “Edge credits for upgrades and entertainment and stuff,” Bullshark replied. “That’s your money, basically. Everyone starts out with fifty ECs. It’s to get you going with a new avatar. It’s not much, but it’ll get you into a few levels until you choose a way to generate more.”

  “I’ll pretend to know what that means,” Breccan said with a hint of uncertainty. “What about XPs?”

  “Experience points,” Bullshark told him. “Anything you do here gives you experience points. It’s different than leveling up in that if you destroy your avatar to create a new one, your XPs go with you. That way some level thousand plus gamer doesn’t scrap his avatar and try to beat the ranks by pretending to be a newb and blasting out the deca levels in order to reach Fifth status.”

  Breccan stared at his cousin. He sounded as though he was speaking a completely different language. “None of that made any sense at all.” He slowed. “Maybe I shouldn’t be here. I don’t exactly fit in with the whole gamer thing anyway.”

  “Hold on.” Bullshark grabbed his arm. “I’m sorry. It’s just been a while since I’ve introduced anyone to this place. I’ll slow down. Give me a chance.”

  Bullshark actually looked apologetic. Breccan wondered if that was just his avatar’s expression or if Jonny really felt bad for throwing him into this chaotic world with only a fake body and a tattoo on an arm that didn’t even belong to him. Breccan fought back the impulse to return to the Ready Room and sighed. “Fine. I’ll try to give it a chance.”

  Bullshark grinned. “Thanks! I’ll go slower, I promise.” He thought for a moment. “I’m going to work my way backwards. I think it’ll be easier.” His avatar didn’t appear sure, but he continued anyway. “Fifth status is what everyone here wants to achieve. That means you’re over level one hundred thousand, or ten to the fifth power, so Fifth status.”

  “What happens if you reach Fifth status?” Breccan asked.

  Bullshark appeared caught off-guard by the question. “Well, you, uh, get to have Fifth status. It’s rare, so everyone wants to reach it.”

  “Do you get anything special for it?” Breccan pressed. He found his cousin’s sputtering hilarious. For a moment, he felt as though he had the upper hand.

  “Everyone knows it,” Bullshark said in a rush that told of how much he dreamed of achieving it for himself. “You get to be on the leaderboard for life, and your avatar is immortalized.”

  “Do you get a castle or a racecar?” Breccan asked while trying to keep a straight face.

  “No!” Bullshark replied with exasperation. “You get Fifth status! You are the top of the top! You—” His eyes narrowed and he looked at Breccan closer. “You’re joking.”

  Breccan grinned. “I want a castle.”

  Bullshark shoved his arm and said, “You’ll be lucky if you get past the deca levels. That’s the tens for you, newb.”

  “Newb because I’m new at this?” Breccan guessed.

  B
ullshark rolled his eyes. “Yes, and I’ll unplug you myself if you don’t shut up and listen.”

  Breccan grinned and followed his cousin who stormed up the stairs where Minx and Murphy had disappeared. “Isn’t unplugging someone who isn’t ready supposed to cause brain damage or something?”

  “It’s called presence disorientation, and it’s what you’d deserve,” Bullshark shot back.

  Breccan couldn’t hide his grin as he jogged after his cousin. The way his avatar responded to every thought amazed him, and he couldn’t stop opening and closing his right hand every few seconds just to remind himself that it was there. The sight of his brother’s initials sobered him a bit as he remembered what events had brought him to his current position. Given the enormity of that situation, what he was doing felt completely stupid. He paused on the stairs and glanced back the way they had come.

  “I’m walking around in a fake body in a fake world,” Breccan muttered to himself. “This is ridiculous.”

  Any doubt he had was forgotten when Bullshark opened the door at the top of the steps. Music, laughter, talking, crying, singing, and a hundred other sounds tumbled down the stairs and enveloped Breccan.

  “Come on, newb. Give it a try,” Bullshark said.

  A hint of Jonny’s impish smile showed in the avatar’s dark eyes. He tipped his head to the side invitingly. With his elvish ears and vest of weapons, the avatar looked like a very strange guide to a new realm.

  “Are you sure about this?” Breccan asked. The sounds from beyond the open door promised an escape from a world that had become too painfully real. He couldn’t deny the pull he felt toward the unknown his cousin offered.

  “I’m absolutely sure,” Bullshark replied. “This is the moment you really get to be anyone.” The avatar’s smile fell slightly and a seriousness Breccan had never heard from his cousin came out of the avatar’s mouth. “Brec, I miss Garrick, too. We all do. I’ve never had a twin brother and I know I can’t understand how close you guys were, or what you’re feeling right now, but I know one thing. If you don’t get an out, you’re going to do something stupid like chase a couple of backpack thieves across a roof and maybe get yourself killed.”

  Breccan stared at him. “You know about that?”

  His cousin nodded. “Yeah. There’s videos of a one-armed teenager jumping into a dumpster.” He lifted a shoulder. “I don’t know any other jackets like yours with a wolf on the back. It had to be you.”

  Breccan fought back a half-smile. “It was the jacket that gave me away, not the one arm?”

  Bullshark chuckled. “Yeah, just the jacket.” He pointed his thumb back at the doorway. “I didn’t tell your mom, so you owe me. Consider this even.”

  Breccan rolled his eyes and followed his cousin up the stairs. “This makes us even?”

  “This and I get all your winnings if you win,” his cousin replied.

  Breccan threw him a confused look. “What winnings? How do I win?”

  “You’ll see,” Bullshark replied with a grin.

  Breccan followed his cousin through the door and stopped short. He couldn’t believe his eyes.

  “Welcome to the Hub, cous,” Bullshark said. He left Breccan to gape at what he saw.

  Breccan couldn’t decide what was more astonishing, the number of avatars walking around, the size of the Hub, or the colors. He had a hard time focusing on the variety of colors he saw from his place near the wall. Holograms, posters, screens, and the people who passed him were made up of so many colors that didn’t even exist in the real world his brain couldn’t come up with names for them.

  Shades of a brilliant orange he had never seen before pulsed from a videoboard that he swore also gave off the scent of citrus. A blue in such a deep shade it made his heart ache glowed from what looked like a moving movie poster across from him, and the light reddish pink of a flower blooming on the floor monitor the other avatars didn’t give a second glance to as they walked across it made his breath catch in his throat. He wondered if there was actually the smell of cherry blossoms in the air or if his mind brought it up because the image he looked at appeared so real.

  “What’s really going to amaze you is when you realize you’re not really seeing or smelling anything at all,” a voice next to him said. “This is all in your mind.”

  Breccan shut his mouth when he realized it had fallen open and looked over to see a girl with long silver hair and purple eyes watching at him.

  “Take care here. The fact that you’re a newb is pretty obvious by the way you’re gawking,” she said.

  There was a slight lilt to her voice that he had never heard before. He wondered if it was real or something she did to stay in character.

  Her eyes darted from his to somewhere further along the Hub. Her violet gaze darkened and she turned back to him to say, “Others will be after those new ECs you have. Don’t let them con you.”

  “You’re not going to con me?” Breccan asked. He swallowed past his tight throat.

  The girl shook her head. “Not today.”

  Breccan watched her walk away until she was lost in the mass of avatars that swarmed the wide hall. The girl’s violet eyes lingered in his thoughts as Breccan turned to get a better look at his surroundings.

  The Hub was made up of rings that were hollow in the middle. From where he stood, he could see at least two hundred avatars wandering around his level alone. A glance up through the glass, curved windows that made up either side of the floor showed more levels than his brain was ready to take in.

  “Coming?” Bullshark called over his shoulder.

  Breccan hurried after his cousin’s avatar. Bullshark led him to an elevator easily big enough to fit fifty people. The doors closed and Breccan watched the floors pass as they moved upward. Each level that was revealed looked more impressive than the last. One was filled to the brim with jungle trees. Through the entwining branches, Breccan caught a glimpse of a thick, rushing river. Two cat-human avatars put a hand on the glass window which apparently triggered the door to let them exit. The humidity of the level flooded the elevator when the doors opened. After they closed again, the scent of forest loam and ripe fruit lingered.

  The elevator slid up to the next level which turned out to be a track covered in dirt and rocks that disappeared into the distance on either side. Nobody put a hand on the glass, so the elevator continued up. Breccan stared down at the track with only a mild curiosity as to what was there. Considering the overwhelming grandeur he had seen up to that point, a regular track wasn’t anything to get excited about. He was about to turn away when a creature appeared at a headlong rush near the far end of the track. Two others turned the corner just behind it. Breccan’s mouth fell open again as the sight of three racing dragons disappeared beneath the floor.

  “Did you see that?” he asked aloud.

  He turned to find that everyone in the elevator was watching him.

  “You’re making a scene,” Bullshark muttered.

  Breccan shut his mouth. He cleared his throat and turned back to the window as if he saw dragons every day. His mind warred with the thought that the Edge wasn’t real, but when he put his right hand in his jacket pocket, the feeling of the soft cotton lining inside said otherwise.

  The next floor slid past and Breccan fought the urge to back away from the window. Spider webs coated everything in sight, but they weren’t the gossamer strings he was used to back home. Instead, these were thick and tangled, running from every point and woven in intricate designs. Within this tapestry he saw human-sized spiders working. Their multiple legs easily wove the strands that glowed with each touch of a claw. On the eight-eyed faces of the avatars was peace and relaxation as though weaving brought something harmonious to those who did it.

  “That floor always gives me the creeps,” a voice said behind Breccan.

  He spun, happy to tear his attention away from the strange level. He then had to fight back the urge to turn back to face the webs.

  The avatar
who had spoken had the head of a horse, a double set of arms, and wore a dress made of sleek yellow material that shimmered when she moved.

  “Tell me about it,” the avatar next to her replied. “Give me a can of poison and I’ll deal with their arachnid problem.” She also had a horse head with a rainbow-colored mane, a tiara, and she was wearing a shirt that said ‘Let’s be neigh-borly’.

  A man with pupil-less black eyes and a strange red glow highlighting his black suit said, “You know the rules, creatures. To each their own.”

  Breccan thought both avatars would lash out at the man; instead, they exchanged a glance. The man watched them expectantly.

  “Yes, Techsec,” the first avatar said.

  “Yes, Techsec,” the second echoed.

  The man blinked his black eyes and the red glow surrounding him diminished. His head turned in a complete circle. When his eyes landed on Breccan, a chill ran down Breccan’s spine. He wondered if the instinctive want to avoid the man’s attention came from himself or was a programmed reaction to elicit compliance toward an obvious rule enforcer. The thought was an uncomfortable one.

  When the Techsec had finished his survey of the elevator, the red glow surrounding him vanished. His eyes locked forward and his attention to anything in the elevator stopped.

  “Techsecs are the Edge’s security,” Bullshark whispered. “You don’t want to get thrown out. First offense, it’s a seven day suspension. Second and it’s another suspension along with getting all of your ECs erased. They tack on a fine you have to work off when you get back. And lately, their enforcement has gotten out of control.” He shook his head and continued in a whisper, “Trust me. It’s easier to stay out of their way.”

  “I’ll keep that in mind,” Breccan replied.

  The first horse avatar’s gaze landed on Breccan. Her eyes slipped to his arm and then back to his face. “Look who we have here, Tiga. It’s a newb with a shiny new set of ECs.” She batted her eyes at Breccan. “You can hang out with us, hot stuff.”