Trapped in a Game Pt. 02

We emerged from our hiding place, stretching our apparently sore limbs a bit and I marveled again at the incredible attention to detail in the game design.

"Now for the boring part," Serra announced as we stood above the collapsed ruins. "Ready to start digging?" she asked, with an expression of fake enthusiasm.

Thankfully my slice through stone skill made short work of some of the large chunks of stone, and Serra had a spell prepared called 'feather weight,' but it still took the better part of the evening for us to work our way into the Lich's room.

The phylactery, which Ren had unwittingly activated, was lying in pile near the center of the room, where the lich was nowhere to be found.

I sighed, as Serra examined it.

One touch and the lich would be resurrected again.

"Protection from evil," Serra muttered, wrapping herself in a faint white light, then "greater seal."

She reached out tentatively to the shimmering necklace, then with a touch, the glow turned from white to light blue.

"Wow- could you have done that before it came out, or-?" I asked, curiously, but she shook her head.

"I was looking for a way to draw it out, but those goblins you all cleared out from here wouldn't touch it either."

She picked up the necklace, and it shimmered briefly before magically disappearing into her backpack.

"Mission accomplished," she muttered triumphantly. "Now, let's see if there's anything else worth a damn in here."

I quickly gathered up the valuables strewn about the room in the form of gold, precious stones and jewelry while Serra retrieved the Lich's scepter and searched around his throne.

"Score!" Serra suddenly exclaimed with excitement, and I looked over to see her holding up a pendant hanging from a necklace, which seemed to be radiating a kind of dark aura.

"Magic item?" I asked, and Serra nodded. Her hand glowed green and she muttered: "Identify," momentarily illuminating the necklace with a dim white light.

"Whoa," she muttered, "This is motherfucking perfect!"

"What?" I asked, and she tossed the necklace my way, to my surprise.

"Tempest-only item, Joshie! And a really useful one; Eye of the void."

***

Although the sun had long set by the time we were out of the ruins, Serra insisted that we make some distance between us and the ruins, but to my surprise she took us to the north; further from the town where we'd set out from.

The lands were strange to me, but I more importantly as I moved away from all of the places that had become familiar to me, I felt a disconcerting feeling of trepidation; as if I was being taken further away from Kelly as well.

"What did Kelly say to you?" I asked.

Serra was sitting on the opposite side of our tent, taking stock of everything we'd gotten from the ruins.

"Huh?"

"Uh. Auriel- my sister I mean," I asked, and she laughed.

"Kelly, huh. Nice name..."

But as she pondered the question she studied me seriously now.

"You two are pretty close, huh?"

I rubbed the back of my head as I nodded nervously.

"She just said to take care of you," she muttered absently, before going back to her work.

She seemed to be a little distracted though, and I was about to press the issue when:

*Bzz!

I twitched a little as the notification that I was receiving a call came up, and Serra glanced at me, a kind of worried look suddenly appearing on her face.

"Message?" she asked.

Her tone seemed concerned even though she appeared to be still busy at work on our stuff.

"Call," I replied, but before I could step out of the tent she stopped me.

"Not safe- talk here, or not at all."

I sighed, then tapped the answer button under the notification that read 'receiving call from dumb bitch.'

"Hey..." I answered, feeling self-conscious about the way Serra was glancing at me out of the corner of her eye.

"Jesus, Josh- do you have any idea how many fucking times I called?" Tracey muttered angrily.

"Huh? I didn't get a call until now..."

Now that I thought about it, neither Kelly nor me had received a call except when we were in safe zones, which I guess did make sense given all the dangers involved.

"Whatever, look- can you do something about your mom? I can't sign over to her as your medical guardian, and she doesn't seem to get it."

"Uh- sure, sorry about that," I muttered.

"You should be- I keep getting calls and shit, why the fuck did you even have me listed as your medical guardian?"

"I didn't do it on purpose- I just never got a chance to change it since you left."

"Never got a chance? Seriously?"

She sighed exasperatedly, and I rubbed my temples.

"You never think about how the shit you do affects anyone, do you?"

"Look Trace- it just slipped my mind, alright? I'll fix it as soon as I can."

"Great, and while you're off playing a fucking video game all day I get to have calls about your 'status' and all kinds of crap."

I sighed.

"Really, I'm so sorry you have to be reminded that I'm alive. That must be a real pain."

I glanced at Serra who was coming over to me now.

"Joshie- I need you right now," she muttered in an exaggeratedly girly tone.

"Wha-? Who the fuck is that? Kelly?" she spat, and I shot Serra a thankful smile.

"No, that's not Kelly. I- uh, I gotta go Trace. Bye."

"What? Josh, what the-"

*Beep!

I dismissed the 'call ended' message, then returned my attention to Serra.

"So... who was that?" Serra asked, her tone teasing and playful.

"The ex-wife," I replied, and she began to circle me, curiously.

"So I tell you that I need you in a deliberately sexy tone and her first assumption is that you were with... Kelly?" she asked, practically glowing now with excitement.

"She has- issues."

"Oh, I'm sure she does," Serra countered teasingly. "Is that the secret to getting you all hot and bothered, Josh?"

She drew in on me, and I tripped over, falling onto my butt.

"Oh Joshie- your little sister needs you." she moaned, climbing onto me.

"Ugh- stop that," I muttered, doing my best to show no reaction to her teasing.

"Please, big brother? Look how hot you've made your little sis," she continued, and I rolled my eyes, as she burst out laughing.

"It's not funny," I muttered, and she rolled away, still chuckling away with glee.

She relaxed onto her back, and as she calmed down a bit she looked over at me with a huge smile.

"You did good today," she muttered, and I blushed at the surprisingly genuine praise, but her gaze on me lingered just a bit, and she licked her lips before adding:

"Josh? I'm in the mood to celebrate a little..." she muttered softly, and I noticed a subtle tone of urgency in her voice.

She's serious this time, I thought, and I gulped.

"You know I can't..."

"Yeah yeah- but what can you do?"

I bit my lip nervously as she looked up at me.

"Kissing? Maybe some light petting?"

I shook my head, and she sighed.

"Fine- rub my feet then," she muttered blithely, waving her feet at me expectantly.

I sighed, then reached for the foot to her delight.

"Mmh," she moaned, "not sex but that feels damn good."

I smiled absently at the compliment, and Serra gave a satisfied sigh.

"Wow- you've gotta be annoying as fucking hell- or one ugly SOB for your wife to walk out on this," she teased, and I shot her a look of feigned indifference.

"What's the matter- boyfriend doesn't give you any foot rubs?" I asked, and she shook her head.

"No boyfriend."

"Really? That's so surprising," I responded sarcastically, and she gave me a little kick for my effort.

"Ha ha ha, getting snarky now, are we? I think I can work with that."

Her hands began exploring her body suggestively and I shot her a disapproving glance.

"What? You won't at least watch?" she asked and I resumed the foot rub as soon as she settled back down with a disappointed sigh.

"You really love this mystery girl don't you? Tell me about her," she muttered, and I studied her dubiously.

"What do you mean?"

"I dunno... what do you like about her?"

I sighed, pausing the foot rub to Serra's annoyance, as I considered her request.

"She's... pretty. Smart. Kind and thoughtful," I muttered softly as I resumed Serra's foot massage, and she hummed contentedly in response.

"Uh-huh, what else?"

"She's been looking out for me for as long as I can remember- since before I knew that was she was doing, even."

"Ever since your mom gave birth to her?" Serra asked with a teasing smirk, and I pushed her feet away in retaliation.

"Oh come on, I'm just teasing," she complained, resting her feet expectantly on my lap again. "It is Kelly though, isn't it?" she asked, more seriously now, and I studied the question with trepidation before giving a little nod.

She studied me a bit more before pressing:

"So- why her?"

I shrugged.

"I don't think you decide these things. Sometimes, someone just makes you feel a certain way, and if you're just lucky that it ends up being mutual."

"I'll say," she mumbled, with a little frown. "I'm kinda jealous," she added playfully, and I stared at her dubiously.

"What? I'm serious. My boobs might be this big in real life, but I'm kind of a geek. You know- skinny, pale skin, greasy hair. Not that I'm ugly or anything- but hey, guys think all gamer girls are just models and sluts who pose semi-nude with some kind of controller in their hands. Those girls probably don't even know how to turn the things on much less use them! Real gamer girls don't look like that- but that doesn't stop people from expecting you to..."

"You're a kickass gamer though," I noticed.

"Doesn't matter to most. Once most people know you're a girl they kind of expect the slut with a controller thing. I mean, I objectively believe that I am pretty hot... but, apparently that makes no difference, because I can't even get you out of your pants with this smokin' hot bod."

Her tone was teasing, but I noticed for the first time a kind of loneliness behind her words, and I sighed.

She did save my life and agree to take me in, I thought.

I took a deep breath, then spoke:

"Fine- I'll watch."

She looked up at me disbelievingly, before her face broke into a huge smile.

"Seriously?" she asked, doubtfully, and I nodded.

"While continuing my foot rub?" she asked, with a wink, and I rolled my eyes in a show of exasperation, before nodding, and she wasted no time in stripping herself of her skimpy nightie, and removing her bra.

She studied me intently as her sizeable breasts sprung free of their confines, and she wasted no time in massaging them while shooting me a seductive look.

"Mnh. That foot rub is making me feel all kinds of tingly," she moaned, as she massaged her right breast with one hand while the other explored the rest of her curvaceous body.

She paused for a second to interact with her character interface, and the linen wraps about her hips suddenly disappeared in ball of light, instantly replaced by a skimpy pair of silky looking panties.

"Seriously?" I asked, and she just giggled.

"What? Some of the merchants carry lingerie. Can't a girl want to look sexy?" she replied with a sexy shrug, and I merely shook my head, trying my best not to get too distracted by the half-naked vixen pleasuring herself in front of me.

"Hey- you said you'd watch. It's not as hot if you're trying to look away," she scolded me with a pout, so I reluctantly re-fixed my gaze on her eyes, and she moaned appreciatively, rubbing her panty covered crotch sensuously and deliberately while keeping locked on my stare.

She lifted her hips off the ground for a moment to pull them down, leaving them at her knees:

"Could you- please?" she asked seductively, and I paused my now distracted foot rub to remove the thin piece of cloth from her legs.

Serra rested a leg on my shoulder, and spread her legs a little, giving me an open view of the way her fingers were now massaging the soft folds of her pussy, and a steady stream of moans were coming from her mouth as she continued to tweak at her nipples.

"Would you play with these?" she asked, following my glance at her chest, and I shook my head.

"Nothing but the feet for you, sorry," I muttered, and she whined discontentedly while continuing to masturbate.

I continued to rub her feet, my hands now moving to from her ankles to the soft swells of her calves, before moving back to the soles of her feet.

"Mmh, that's better than nothing I guess," she moaned.

As she worked her hands between her legs with increasing intensity, I studied the leg which rested against me, and I suddenly found myself distractedly admiring the wonderful texture of her smooth skin.

The honey-like shade of the tan skin looked positively delectable, and as I massaged the soft, smooth skin sensually, a peculiar impulse took me, and I raised her foot to my face as I rubbed at the soles and planted a subtle kiss on her instep.

I was sure it would have gone unnoticed, but Serra's reaction was immediate and intense:

"Mmh! Oh Josh- Do that again!" she pleaded, and I continued to rub her foot sensually as I placed another little kiss on the surface.

I placed a few more little pecks before planting a much fuller, deliberate kiss on her feet, and her toes curled in my hands and her feet went tense in response.

"Oh! Mnh, unhhhhh!" she moaned loudly, in a final orgasmic cry.

I could see her juices squirting onto her hands as they furiously rubbed at her mound making a distinct sloshing sound, and she squirmed as the orgasm sent pleasurable shivers up her spine, and throughout her body.

She relaxed, then giggled a little as I gave her one final little peck on the foot.

"That was- unexpected... but good," she muttered with a satisfied sigh.

She wriggled back into her clothes, changing from the sexy underwear into her more typical wrap styled coverings, before pulling me down and onto her.

"Can I return the favor?" she asked with a wink, and I shook my head.

Although the whole experience had me slightly worked up, I had resolved to put my own desires on hold until I was reunited with Kelly.

She studied me for a bit, before shuffling onto her side and pulling me quite affectionately about her.

She snuggled herself up to me, and as I adjusted my hand under her head she nuzzled into my arm tenderly. But as I gazed at her, my eyes were drawn to the place where Serra had been wounded in the fight with the Lich.

I withdrew a hand from around Serra, and she grumbled in response, quieting down as I traced the spot where she'd been hurt.

"You took a serious hit for me today," I muttered softly, and she was quiet.

I put my hand back around her and pulled her tightly into a warm embrace, and she sighed contentedly.

"I promised her I would take care of you," she whispered, almost to herself, and I held her tightly in appreciation as we both drifted off to sleep.

***

Over the next few days we travelled to a larger city called Valhalla, where Serra had arranged a meeting with a rare item dealer.

Evidently, options to instantly travel from notable safe zones, like the starter towns and large cities were built into the game, but these features like many others were disabled in the survival setting that the perpetrator of our virtual imprisonment had activated.

The trip, however turned out to be pretty interesting; I managed to see some glimpses into the spectacular design that had gone into building the world of Mythic Lands, and we came across a few small camps of bandits and other small enemies along the way, giving me some vital combat practice.

According to Serra, there were more or less safe passages between the starting towns and the larger cities in each of the Seven Kingdoms, but there were a lot of unique places of interest scattered across the continent which were dangerous to access but where some really interesting things could be found.

When we got to Valhalla, I was shocked to find a bustling town inhabited and run not by the games' artificial characters, or NPCs, but by real players, many of whom had given up adventuring in favor of some of the less dangerous avenues of gameplay.

For the most part, the initial crowding around the starter towns had faded; now, only those who were either too scared or altogether incapable of playing under the circumstances remained there, but these players were living in the virtual equivalent of poverty. They lived in basic accommodations, and survived on basic meals and rations, but even these players were now a minority.

Even those who weren't hardcore gamers had by now begun to play a little, to stave off boredom if nothing else.

The result of this was a distinct low tier of players who played quite modestly, focusing almost entirely on the non-combat aspects of the game like trading, crafting professions, and production skills.

As I walked through the town with Serra, I couldn't help but marvel at the spectacle of this entirely virtual civilization springing to life before me.

We secured accommodations at a pretty nice place (a little to my excitement, as I'd not slept in anything but a tent since the game had begun), and headed to a local inn where we were to meet with her contact.

"So- what've you got for me?" the man asked excitedly, obviously familiar with Serra's handiwork.

"A phylactery," she muttered proudly, and the man's eyes went wide with shock.

"Bullshit- not even you could make me believe that. No solo player can kill a lich," he muttered with a disbelieving grin, but his grin immediately vanished as Serra called out the item from her inventory, and placed it down on the table with a confident smirk!

"Didn't you hear? I'm not playing solo anymore," she muttered, as she nodded in my direction.

"What? Even if he's as good as you, you couldn't kill a lich."

He looked to me for some clarification, and I looked away in an attempt to deflect interrogation.

"Only one Lich has been killed so far, and it took a twelve player party- and three of them died in that fight," he muttered incredulously.

"Hey, you know me- I don't spill my secrets. So can you get me a price, or what?"

He studied it a bit, then nodded.

"Give me until this evening," he muttered, and Serra nodded happily.

As we headed out of the inn, Serra met up with another player who handed her a note in exchange for some gold.

"What's that?" I asked warily, and she smiled at me playfully in response:

"Info," she muttered with a secretive smile.

***

Over the next few days, Serra paid for me to learn a bunch of new spells and outlined a fighting strategy for us, built around the use of my new magic item; Eye of the Void.

It was a pendent which allowed me to see through darkness of any kind, which gave Serra the idea for me to learn the shade spell; a ritual spell which would cloak me in an area of magical darkness.

Although it would blind the enemies directly around me, it also meant that Serra wouldn't be able to see, so it required a little work on our synergy spell and some practice to perfect its use.

Serra was also keen on acquiring a magic item to assist me with my stealth skills.

Her chameleon cloak was pretty good for camouflage, but sharing through synergy wasn't always practical, so she was after something that would help me out in this regard.

As we waited around for word on the magic item she was after Serra suggested that we tackle a nearby colony of Orcs.

It would keep us close enough to Valhalla until Serra could arrange the deals for the new items and gear, and allow us a practice ground to work on our combat effectiveness.

On our first day, I was absolutely shocked by how much more effective a fighting team we had become; we took out about fifteen camps, with not so much as an incident to complain of, although I did take my first real hit; a spear from an orc thrust wildly through my cloak of darkness, and I was unable to get out of the way as it stuck me on my thigh.