Feyland: The Bright Court

Chapter Seven

“There you go.” Roy’s grin was firmly back in place. “Don’t worry, I’ll take care of you. All you have to do is follow me around. Here - take the newest system. The interface is easier to use.”

Didn’t she know it.

Throat dry as sand, she slid into the chair. When Roy stepped forward, like he was going to help her with the helmet, she hurriedly pulled it on, then donned the gloves. Her hands throbbed with the memory of searing fire.

“Ready,” she said.

Though she wasn’t, not at all. She wished, with a yearning that made her bones ache, that Tam was with her. But there was no scenario she could imagine where Roy invited “the Exie” over for a gaming session. It was up to her.

Through the dark glass of the visor-screen, she saw Roy settle into the system to her right - the second prototype. He geared up, then looked over at her.

“At the main screen, choose the F icon from the menu.” His voice came, crystal-clear, through her helmet’s speakers. “And prepare to be amazed.”

The F icon glowed, softly golden, like it was made of flame. It took only the slightest flex of her finger to select it. The menu faded out, replaced with the blinking words she’d seen a hundred times:

Feyland: A VirtuMax Production

Alpha 1.5.0486

The visor-screen went dark. Faint, mysterious music began playing. Light slowly etched across her vision, a delicate tracery like webs or tree branches.

WELCOME TO FEYLAND

The words unfurled across the screen. The letters glowed a rich gold that deepened to crimson. Flames flickered along the sides, then the words faded to grey, as though they had burned down to ash. The music twisted, and the dim letters suddenly whirled up into a flurry of dark-edged leaves. Behind them… she squinted. Was that a pair of eyes, gleaming from the shadows? She’d never seen that before.

Then the screen cleared, showing the familiar character-creator interface.

“Now make your avatar,” Roy said. “Spellweaver would be a good choice for you.”

Well, yeah. It was what she played all the time in-game, but she wanted to do what she could to disguise herself. Maybe, by using Roy’s system, she’d get a layer of protection from the creatures of Feyland, if his game in fact led to the Dark Realm.

And if it didn’t? She still didn’t want Roy to know how familiar she was with Feyland - at least not until she knew more. Choosing an untried class would help with that.

“What type of character are you?” she asked.

No way did she want to inadvertently pick the same kind as Roy. For one thing, having him tell her exactly how to play would be insufferable.

“Mercenary. Best warrior in the game. Whatever class you choose, I’ll protect you.”

He wasn’t a Knight, then. She should have guessed. Knight was what Tam played - and it fit him well, no matter what he thought of himself.

The same way Mercenary fit Roy. Someone interested only in their own gain. She’d never met a more self-centered person than Roy Lassiter.

All right - time for a decision. She scanned the character classes, paying more attention to the hybrids listed at the bottom. KITSUNE. That looked promising. And potentially a way to hide her identity in-game. Lifting her index finger, she highlighted the choice.