“Go to sleep,” John exclaimed, throwing his hands up as bits of light illuminated from James’s cell phone. There was nothing he could do and it was twelve o’clock at night…so what if his friend was here? He couldn’t fall asleep so he’d just have to deal with it. Currently, he was playing the game Bejeweled, a game in which you wanted to line up all the jewels in order to get a few points. It was quite simple and addicting, but when they were just demos, it was quite boring. The voice came out, a deep voice that he could tell was generated from computers, making his friend cover his ears and roll over in bed, throwing the pillow over his ears.

James only glanced at him before being thrown back into the world of Bejeweled, which was an overall dull world. The music wasn’t catchy in the slightest, the voice was deep and sounded too much like a computer, plus he could only play it for a minute if he got lucky. He started to switch a few of the jewels around, then closed the phone and threw it over to his desk. It hit the carpet instead, but the boy hardly cared. His black hair fell over his eyes as he fell to the ground. “Whatever you say,” he muttered to John. He blew the hair out of his eyes before trying to let sleep take hold if his body. Maybe it was the caffeine kicking in…or maybe it was that Popsicle he had. Popsicles tended to have strange effects on him and his friends…especially when it was late at night.

After five minutes of silence, James pushed him off the ground and stumbled over to his computer. He touched the mouse and watched the cerulean screen come up. His eyes watered at the bright light, but he never bothered to rub them. John screamed in his pillow, likely throwing a bit of saliva in there while he was at it. “Note to self: I’m not touching that pillow until I see it washed,” James muttered, dragging the mouse over until it hovered over his e-mail. He clicked on it and started to look over the numerous messages he had gotten from both the people in ‘The World’ and the people he knew from school. He sighed.

“I’ll be off in a second…maybe an hour. Just…sorry.” The boy looked back over the chair, giving his friend the usual guilty smile he gave every time this happened. They were good friends, sure, but John seemed ready to throw himself out of the room in order to get some sleep. It was one in the morning…it usually took him until two in the morning, so he might as well just do something! He didn’t yawn as he looked over the latest news on the Internet…it wasn’t that it was exciting or anything, but right now, he just had so much energy that could be used in a different way rather than sitting around rolling in his sleep.

“Whatever,” John said, frowning to himself as he did so. “Dim the light down a little, will you? It’s killing my eyes,” he said. He started to say something more, but rather yawned and turned, leaving the question unsaid. The boy shrugged and toned the light three percent before looking behind him to check if he was asleep. The sound of snoring brought him to the obvious conclusion that he was sleeping. He smiled smugly, almost prepared to grab his video camera in order to take a video of it. The simplest things could make the greatest hits on youtube, couldn’t they? He chuckled.

James looked over at the VR goggles that lay on the desk beside the computer. The wires were tangled about, a mess compared to the tidy desk that he had cleaned this afternoon. Moms were moms and orders were orders, right? He pulled the VR goggles on, despite the tangled cords, and then grabbed the wireless controller that he had bothered to buy the other day. The Inferno event had passed only a few days ago and he was already playing again…what mysteries lay in ‘The World’ at one o’clock in the morning.

The world may never know.



Those who thought Mac Anu was pitch black in the night were deadly wrong about that. Instead, it was a sparkling city compared to the darkness that held the alleyways and beyond. You couldn’t go much farther than the alleyways, as an “invisible” wall prevented them from going any farther than a few certain places. The only thing that people could use to get through the alleyways was the starlight and the faint light that came from the streetlights that hung about. The usual crowds were gone, replaced by those who had a certain liking to the darkness around them. Sometimes, the streets were completely empty, but tonight was a night where they weren’t. He could’ve gone to Carmina Gadelica, where he was bound to see people bustling about due to the fact that it was always so light out, but he felt the need to come to Mac Anu first. It had a certain air that drew him to it.

The Fist Fighter stretched, listening to the cracks of his sides and his knuckles as he squeezed them. Pop, pop! He smiled slyly at how most people in the surrounding area reacted by jumping up briefly from the noise. He knew they would glare and spit, but this was ‘The World’ he was thinking about. This place was full of jerks, full of hackers, and packed to the top with lies. That was the one thing he hated about the Internet: it seemed as if everything was a lie these days. The boy started forward slowly, his steps tentative as he walked down the stairs. It was indeed a starry night, and seeing Mac Anu glitter made a smile form on his face. He walked quickly across the square, his steps fast now that he saw a few people eyeing him. He gripped his cloak, letting his fingers dig into the dark fabric.

He wasn’t sure why he was heading over to the place, a place where no one would be at during the night. He was sure that Zen might be there…maybe, but he guessed not. Everyone needed sleep and he doubted that he was some hacked program that did things automatically. He was more of a commander to him, someone that he had to look up to or else he’d still be wandering the streets. It made his eyes darken, it made a pit fill in his stomach, and the thought of playing just to get levels scared him. He sure didn’t plan on trying to gain a bazillion levels tonight. No, he wanted to relax and maybe talk to someone who had something to talk about…yeah, well, who the heck would that be?

Of course, there was still that chance he could encounter someone he knew, someone that he might recognize or say ‘Hi’ to…maybe even someone that had been in the previous event. There were so many people he knew, yet he never got a chance to really expand his friendship to them. Just mere acquaintances, nothing more… The thought made him lonely inside, that he really didn’t have a good relationship with that many people except for those who he had fought beside for the past month or two. There were so many people out there that had common interests, that had a life full of excitement, and yet he never tried to converse! This was a mother-freaking role playing game, in which it was supposed to be easy to talk to people and make friends. He was a high level player, so why didn’t he go up to someone and just talk to them…or something like that! The thought of approaching a new player and looming over them kind of made him feel guilty about hanging out in Mac Anu, but he merely threw the thought away.

Shenmock was already halfway through the second alleyway now, his grip having loosened to let the cloak billow back a bit as he walked. There was no breeze, but only the wind that passed above and the conversations that ensued behind a few buildings in the alleyways. He turned, coming down the familiar alleyway and stopping a moment, facing the water that moved back and forth, splashing up and sending the salty air towards him. He wished he was at the beach, throwing sand over his legs and getting splashed by the waves. All bad things aside, it was a nice place to be, especially when you had family around…yeah, those were the days…

Sighing, the Fist Fighter moved off down the left alleyway, his fingers sliding across the bricks until it hit something smooth and metal. He let his fingers trail farther before they encountered a knob that stood out two inches. Shenmock pulled it to the right and let it slowly creak open, revealing a candle-lit room. He gently closed it behind him, letting silence creep around the room as he did so. The faintest bit of light reached out from Zen’s room, indicating that he was likely in there. If he was to go in there, he was obviously supposed to be in their little uniform…he knew how Zen was. He hadn’t done it a lot, but he was sure that he’d nag about him not wearing it. If there was a mission to be had, Zen would obviously give it to him to do…of course, it was something. That was good, right?

He opened the door, letting himself into the dark room. A candle flickered to his right, which he promptly grabbed to light the others that surrounded the room. It was hard to figure out where he was, but just so long as he looked around for them with his hands, he’d find one…plus, there was always that easy feature in the controller, right? The Fist Fighter, once all of them were lit, went to where the small hole in the wall was. There were his clothes, shiny and ready for action, yet he wasn’t quite as happy as his clothes were. He was in no hurry at this point. It was so late in the night…there was no hurry for this. Shenmock threw his clothes off to the side and then pulled on the long black jeans. Well, they weren’t jeans, just by the feel of things, but he just liked to call them that. Once those were on, he pulled on the sleeveless shirt before grabbing hold of a few bandages that he tied around his ankles up to almost his knee. Smiling with satisfaction once they were no longer loose and dragging, he pulled on the gloves, then pulled over the silver armor that gleamed in the reflection of the candlelight. Of course, in the dark, it was hardly noticeable. Light or no light…there was a big difference between the two.

With that, he grabbed the mask and so he was off to the room next door to his. He still wasn’t quite sure if he was here, but he doubted that Zen would leave that many candle lights on this late at night. If someone came in, they’d obviously get suspicious about this place…or they’d shrug their shoulders and leave like every idiot would. Yes, there were a lot of idiots in this world…yes indeed. Closing the door behind him, Shenmock walked over, and when he was just about to knock, the voice echoed from inside. It was the voice of Zen, a voice he had heard many times before. It was a calm voice, one that you’d hear from the commander of an army. He could only wander what this guy did in his life outside of the game…

”Come in, my boy,” Zen called. The boy’s fingers traced the width of the door before they wrapped around the knob, his fingers grip tightening until he thought he saw a crack in the middle. With that, Shenmock opened the door, pulling himself into the dark room. He was surprised to find it so dark. The only thing lighting the room was two candles on either side of the candle that made his facial expression look dark to the Fist Fighter. He didn’t have a frown on his face, though, but rather a nice smile that slightly cheered the boy up. He stood there for a moment before Zen gestured over to the stool in front of him, saying, ”Sit, sit.” He seemed to be so grateful for seeing someone he knew coming in, as if his mood had been dark ever since he heard the knock on the door. The Fist Fighter sat and fidgeted, seeing as the stool hardly covered the width needed for him. It was short, but what did he care? It was all they could get at this point.

”So, what brings you here so late at night, my boy?” Zen asked, his smile widening while his eyebrows seemed to make a peculiar motion. He folded his hands, letting his fingers slide across each other and rub against the bare skin. He was in his regular clothes and there was no uniform. His hair was ruffled a bit in the night, but other than that, he looked as regular as he did in daylight.

Shenmock shrugged as if he really wasn’t going to answer the question at all. A second passed before he decided to answer. ”This and that,” he said coolly, ”but it’s more a problem about not being able to sleep very well…but that’s beside the point. I just decided to come around and say hi, maybe find out if there was a mission I needed to accomplish or a person that I needed to talk to.” Zen smiled at him, knowing that he had asked of a mission just so he’d make his mood a tad happier than it was. The Fist Fighter grinned. ”The question is, why are you up?” That indeed was a question that the boy wanted answered, but he didn’t quite know if Zen was willing to give up that…it wasn’t a whole lot, yet you could do a lot of teasing if you figured out someone stayed up on cookies and orange juice…ah, the news and rumors of the Internet.

Zen twiddled his thumbs (yes, he actually twiddled them) and thought for a moment before answering without any sign of embarrassment or any other emotion. His voice didn’t show it either. ”I felt like doing something, since I really wasn’t doing anything while asleep…plus, I wanted to see if Vann decided to slip in a few missions this late at night. Turns out, there’s none, after all…so I’m just hanging out and doing other things while at the computer.” He smiled and leaned back. ”Of course, if you wanted to, I could get up and we could go on an adventure…seeing as there’s nothing I can do just sitting here.” He leaned back, waiting for a reaction from him. The thought of going on an adventure, at first, didn’t sound like quite a good one, but thinking back, he knew that this opportunity didn’t come up every day. He hadn’t gotten the chance to do just a simple dungeon adventure with someone in a while…it was about time he did.

Shenmock clapped his hands together, smiling with satisfaction. ”Sounds good to me. You sure there aren’t any missions?” Zen managed to stick out his tongue before shaking his head. Without another word, the man got up and shooed him away from the room, already grabbing his uniform. The boy wasn’t quite sure why, but he didn’t argue. Rather, he slipped out of the room, his foot sliding in just milliseconds before the door closed behind him. Sighing, the Fist Fighter made his way through the maze of candles to sit on one of the two couches, but once he sat, he already saw the door creaking open to reveal Zen, his uniform on and his expression the happy-go-lucky kind of sort. Yeah, that was what he wanted tonight…yeah.

”We’ll go to the Lambda Server, so be prepared for big monsters, okay, Shen?” He grinned. ”You wouldn’t want Zen having to cover you while fending off every monster, would you?” Shenmock tried to smile back, but it came back into a bit of a twisted smile that said ‘I’m in a so-so mood right now’, and so the man’s smile started to fade a bit. Yes, he was still smiling a tad bit, but not as much as before. The Fist Fighter was tempted to smile back and try to get his mood up and going again, but decided not to. The man would be in a better mood once they got to a field.

Downing their cloaks, the two were off into the alleys, traveling quickly and arriving in the streets of Mac Anu easily. The boy’s hair was its brown color now, but in the night, it was discerned as black to most players that they passed. In the light, it went by its original color, but when they were not traveling across the bridge, it redeemed its dark color in the night. The two didn’t bother to put their hoods on, seeing as it was a pointless action in the night and it would merely attract the attention of players. Once they were upon the Chaos Gate, Zen muttered the words in order to transfer them to the next server. Golden rings enveloped them and so they were off, their characters dematerializing and the last facades of golden disappearing.



The brief trip to Carmina Gadelica had been uneventful except for the fact that they saw a whole group of players bustling about near the Chaos Gate. Now they were in a field, a forest to be exact. Why they were in a field like this was beyond what Shenmock knew, but he knew enough that this might just be one of his longest dungeon quests ever…or was it going to be a brief trip like most had ended up to be? The two didn’t know as they arrived in the field, but rather let themselves be thrown into the world of scenery.

The leaves were olive-like, a darker color than most were. It was in the middle of the night, and in the distance, Shenmock thought he could hear a coyote howling in the distance. The moon, when he looked up, seemed to be ten times bigger than before, as if some sort of event had occurred to make it seem that big. He wondered if there were any monkeys in the forest…yeah, weirdest thing to think about now. What he did notice that was a tad cool was the fact that there were berries hiding themselves behind the russet trees. Some were violet, while others were a lush crimson that seemed to glow in the moonlight. The ground underneath them was smooth, flat grass that almost seemed artificial to the Fist Fighter. He tapped it in his bare feet, letting a tingly feeling run up his character’s ankle until it stopped at his knee. It was a quiet field, yet his mind told him that there were obviously people here; people he didn’t want to encounter.

It was a peculiar feeling to know that he was standing by one of the more experienced fighters that he had met. He stood a few inches taller, too, and held a colossal blade that looked like it could chop the hardest of flesh and bone with a single sweep. His expression was now a little more serious since they had gotten to the field, but his eyebrows were arched just enough to make him still look excited for what was to come, even if his partner was one of the dullest person to ever come into ‘The World’. The man wore the same X-marked tattoo on both arms, which he had almost forgotten about while walking about. He had never bothered to look there in the past month. He ran a finger through his hair, twisting his finger around so the hairs pulled around each other in a knot before releasing them. It was a pointless action, but it was something that he did quite a lot in the real world whenever he was a tad bored with things.

Zen pulled on the end of both of his gloves before pulling on his mask. The boy gave him a questionable look, but knew that the man wouldn’t take precautions, seeing as there could be players lurking about the forest. The boy slipped on his own and so the two set off at a brisk pace through the forest, straying away from the path paved out for them and going through a difficult one. The amount of actions and buttons James was forced to press frustrated him a tad bit, but it was good by the fact that the higher he got, the speedier and more agile he was. Shenmock jumped and grabbed onto a branch, letting his fingers slide down once his back was fully bent and his legs tipped over a bush. He launched himself off in a quick motion, letting his bare feet slide off the thorns that shot up out of the plant.

He hit the ground, only to find that Zen had stopped in his tracks. His hand blocked his path forward and in front of him hovered a golden portal, shimmering in the dark clearing. The man turned his head and tilted it to him as if to ask him what they were going to do. Yet, instead of letting him nod, he started to speak. ”Ready to go?” he muttered. When Shenmock was about to say something like, ‘Uh, weren’t you the one who created the rule of not talking or something?’, but instead, he started to speak. ”It’s fine. Just so long as you don’t recognize the person…and if someone were to discover us, I doubt they’ll realize it’s us until it’s too late.” The Fist Fighter could literally see past the mask and into the face that grinned with satisfaction at him.

He was tempted to throw a retort at him, but thought better of it, seeing as he might find a blade at his throat a little too soon. Instead, he merely nodded in response and pulled out his Yawara. Why he wasn’t using one of his higher weapons was a question to him, but he merely ignored it and slipped out into the clearing, one palm pressing against his side while the other hung. It was his sort of ‘This is boring’ look, but in the more fun sort of way…or something along the lines of that. He wasn’t actually bored, but more anxious to see what sort of monster materialized in front of the pair. He still wondered what level field they were in, but thought better of it and prepared his fists, knowing that Zen wouldn’t play a sorry joke like putting themselves into a high level field full of dark, cruel monsters that could easily bite his head off. He wasn’t that cruel, was he?

Two dog-like monsters materialized in front of them, their snarling faces the first thing that Shenmock noted. They were snarling, ugly, and vicious dogs looking for a bone. Not like he had any and not like it was going to work in bribing them away, but still. Their names, Great Sled Dogs, was entirely different from their appearance, seeing as their element was Vak. Their fur was a darker sort of white while a collar hung loosely around its neck, thorns attached every centimeter in between them. When it growled, saliva squeezed itself out between its teeth while its eyes seemed like a black hole. It dragged a broken sled, torn to pieces with bits of wood hanging out here and there from it. When it flashed its teeth, the boy could only want to shiver at the sight of razor sharp teeth. They were yellow and had a lot of cavities in them, but pain didn’t stop monsters from killing the players, did it?

The two stayed calm as the dogs started to bark at them, saliva flying out and hitting the ground. The two started forward at a surprisingly slow pace, the broken sleds behind them slowing them down, but once they started running, they were coming at quite a pace. ”Stay calm,” Zen said in between his teeth, pulling his blade back and letting it slide off the grass, easily slicing off a few blades. ”These are merely monsters. They will only do one thing, and one thing only: fight until they die. It’s the path most monsters follow, and unless they’re giant bosses in disguise, they’re not going to be smart either. Stay calm.” It was as if he could read his expression, yet in reality, he couldn’t, unless he had put some secret camera inside his mask. To his knowledge, there were no secret cameras, so it was probably just reading how he was posed…or how he thought he was going to move.

”Ap Corv. Ap Raio.” It was quite funny to find their leader using status ailments to aid him in battle, but the fact that he was actually using common sense in a battle like this seemed almost brilliant. Ever since he had started doing missions and getting used to things, he had forgotten what battles with monsters were about, and that was just what Zen was using at this point. Two luminous auras surrounded him, the first being a white one that made his muscles bulge on his sides. The aura faded, only to reveal a golden aura that sent electricity to crackle about his body. His sword seemed to glow with the power as he continued to pull it back, inch by inch as the monster approached. ”Rairaku,” Zen called, letting his sword come forward at the monster. About six inches of the sword – a perfect hit to most players – smashed against the monsters cheek, sending it and its sled spinning out of the way like it was some kind of dummy that was nothing. Zen let his fingers slide across the hilt of the blade before he gripped it tight again.

The tactics for the simple attack were both perfect and powerful. The skill on its own wasn’t quite powerful, but with the status increases – they were actually the ones that would be of the most effect, unsurprisingly enough – he was able to bat it aside with a simple swing of his sword! It was so simplistic and yet so complicated in Shenmock’s mind, and yet the boy knew he could easily do the attack. He gawked at the scene before him, which all had happened in a matter of seconds, like some kind of action film. Now that he had seen the example, it was about time he focused on his own fight. Now, where was that sled dog anyways?

There was a growl to his right as the monster bounded into his vision, teeth ready to chomp into flesh while its claws were as sharp as ever. It had been so fast, so ferocious, that for a moment Shenmock seemed to stay planted still in his spot. Then, the reaction came and he rolled back on his feet, letting the soles of his feet dig into the monster’s chest. Pressing his fingers into the ground with all of his might, he pulled the monster back over his head in a show of speed and power. The Fist Fighter rolled forward and got up, his head turning to face the sled dog. He didn’t dare take any steps back, as he knew that it would activate a spell the instant the two were out of range. Plus, he’d be better off performing physical attacks rather than magical attacks, right?

Seeing as there wasn’t much to do in the brief seconds given to him, he was left to try the same move Zen had just moments before. ”Ap Corv. Ap Torv. Ap Vorv.” Power, accuracy, and defense. The incantations immediately took effect, a white aura coming around him approximately three times, making his hair blow about his head a bit and wind brush up against the sides of his face. Just as the auras faded, the monster charged forward, baring its teeth and barking as the broken sled dragged behind him. The boy took a deep breath, let it out, and prepared his fists for what he thought would be a simple skill, one that hopefully blow him away like Zen’s monster. The boy’s left leg slid around in a semi-circle before his right cleared it and he pulled his fist up, calling two words. ”Blizzard Strike!” Shenmock called, hoarfrost crawling up the sides of his gloved hand. Once it was fully encased, his fist collided with the monster’s nose, making a flash of energy crackle up around them for a moment. The skill proving too much for the monster to handle, the sled dog was sent out of the way like before, its sled dragging behind him and making the distance less satisfactory for him.

There was a small scratch left on his arm from one of its claws, yet he ignored it. For now, he could deal with having a small wound. The monster stood about ten feet away, growling and getting ready to pounce on him. This wasn’t exactly the position he wanted, as charging forward would only get him smashed while if the monster came at him, he’d have a bit of trouble dodging it. If he could dodge it, then he could deal quite a lot of damage, but if he couldn’t, he’d serve as a snack…why did it always seem like monsters were looking for a snack again?

Pulling his nunchuks out and spinning them about between his fingers in an expertise sort of way, he watched as the monster roared and came forward, its sled dragging behind him. It was slow, at first, but then sped up like before, coming in a straight line towards him. A thought occurred to him, as he knew the monster wouldn’t be able to grab him if he moved off to the side. If he had the right timing, its sled might drag it somewhere else, leaving it open for a brief second! The plan, in his mind at least, was a brilliant one, but then again, it was easier thought than done… He stopped his weapons and leaned on his left foot, aiming to move back and slide against the trees root so he didn’t fly too far. The monster came forward, letting out a roar that deafened him for a moment, but still, he was able to execute his move. Sliding across the grass, the Fist Fighter leapt to the side, letting its enormous jaws skim past his toes. Gravity pulled him down, letting him slide across the grass until the roots stopped him from going any further.

The monster made a move to try and turn, but the sled was enough weight that it was thrown off balance. It hit the ground, roaring and flailing as it made a move to get up, only to find that Shenmock’s nunchuks were up in the air, flames bursting forth from them as he came down on the monster. It let out a whine that temporarily caught him off guard, but the Fist Fighter had no reason to stop and attack the monster that had been snarling just seconds before. He let his nunchuks fall upon the monster, making it roar out in pain, blood spluttering out of its mouth to splash across the grass in the moonlight. It wasn’t dead – maybe halfway – but it was still strong. After all, the weapons were more than ten levels below the Fist Fighter, so there wasn’t quite the effect that he was looking for.

Blood squirting up from the wound and splattering his mask with crimson, the monster roared at him. The boy jumped back, giving him and the monster a few feet of space. Sliding across the grass, the boy stood up straight and prepared himself for what was to come. The monster, once again, roared as it came forward, its claws slicing up the blades of grass below it as it came in the direction of the boy. ”Rue Zot,” he muttered, raising a hand. A single pillar of ice – a powerful one at that – shot up from the ground, making the Sled Dog roar out with surprise as it was thrown up into the air by the sudden burst of the pillar. The pillar started to sink back into the ground, leaving the boy to frown and look up to find its whereabouts. There it was, hovering in the air. Then, as if it was a puppet, it turned in the air and pointed itself towards him. The Fist Fighter muttered a curse. He sure hadn’t expected this.

Shenmock slipped his nunchuks away and pulled out his Light Hand Axes. The monster, seeing the projectiles, roared even more as the Fist Fighter thrust two of them up at the monster. The first that came skimmed off his hear, managing to cut some of the skin off, while the other crashed into its stomach, making blood fall over the boy once again. He ignored it, though, and then pulled his Yawara out, preparing to take it down with a skill. Yet it was too late. The monster was falling quickly enough that by the time the boy could so much as throw a punch at it, it’d be upon him. The thought of trying to block the attack never occurred to him, and once again, he was too late to block. The monster roared once more, and then, just as he felt his head was going to get chomped off, there was a noise that shocked him.

A blade came into view, just inches in front of his face, and was gone before he knew it, brought up to collide with the monster’s neck. It let out a terrified roar as the blade cut into his neck and then decapitated it. Its head fell to the ground, its eyes lifeless and its teeth still bared with blood dripping out of it. A bare foot kicked the head away before it disappeared, along with the bloody body. Shenmock was both shocked and excited for having been saved by Zen…yet the fact that he didn’t get to continue the battle made his teeth grit together. To prove himself to Zen was something, but to need help from him was another thing. He didn’t think he’d have consequences for what…wait, who was he kidding? He wasn’t going to get consequences for just missing one attack, was he?

There was a dark silence that followed, and when he looked straight, then left, then right, he found nothing but the dark forest and the animals that moved about in hiding. ”So,” a voice from behind him – obviously Zen’s – stated, ”what shall the consequences be? You did, overall, well, but I found that you could’ve ended that battle at many points in time.” He was aware of the body that stood not a foot behind him, looking, breathing, glaring… Shenmock dared not move and didn’t even dare place a hand on his controller until he thought his hands were perfectly still. ”This is a simple battle. I shouldn’t have to criticize, but you just seem under par with that stuff. I guess that Kai didn’t train you well enough in this…or maybe he just didn’t get to see you enough in this.” His voice was cool, but with more emotion than the Fist Fighter expected to find from the leader of a group that rarely spoke. ”So, what shall the consequences be? There are many I can choose from, but…” He knew the man was grinning as he won power over him. He still dared not move, but rather spoke back.

”Whatever you want, sir,” he stated. He was otherwise motionless, and after those words, his tongue twisted in all sorts of directions that he’d of rather not used unless the situation was much worse than this one. Zen chuckled. The thought of him chuckling was strange to Shenmock, as the situation didn’t quite call for it. Whatever the reason, it wasn’t comforting the Fist Fighter in the slightest bit. He wanted to move, wanted to run, but he couldn’t. He didn’t want to have to go through this…no, he did not.

”Ah, what a privilege you’ve given me,” Zen muttered under his breath, pressing his body closer. Then, without warning, he pulled his blade around so it came to his neck, pressing against the black leather slowly. He started to walk around him until he came in front, leaving the boy to stare at the masked face. ”How about a game?” he questioned with another chuckle. ”Cat and mouse would be fun…yes, of course.” Zen pulled the blade around so it rested on the boy’s shoulder. The man tilted his head to the right, trying to read past his expression. ”Now, here are the rules,” he began, letting the blade press harder against his shoulder. Shenmock fidgeted.

”It’s the same game you played when we first recruited you,” he started. ”Same sort of game, same rules. This time, you won’t be trying to attack us or anything of the sort. Rather, you’ll be the one running away from…me.” Shenmock knew he was grinning now, he knew that he was enjoying every part of this. The Heavy Blade moved forward until his arm was pulled back all the way to hold the hilt. Zen let his mask close in on Shenmock’s, his eyes visible now, dark as ever. ”If you can get to the dungeon without me catching you, you win. If I catch you before the dungeon, you get the satisfaction of letting me play with you.” The man’s eyes didn’t move, but rather resumed the same position. The boy kept a hard glare going, just so the man didn’t gain too much confidence. He stepped away and let his blade slide from his shoulder. ”Do you agree?” he asked. The boy nodded, knowing that if he shook his head, he’d get the treatment here and now. ”Now then…” The words were slow to Shenmock. His heart skipped a beat.

”Go.”

Shenmock --> +Thunder Anklet - +Lightning Bolt - +Plasma Storm - +500 GP