The Long Road Home

The Party ventured outside of the keep. Though the way they had taken had collapsed moments after entering the boss arena, another wall crumbled open as Kailos finally fell. Out here, things had gotten quiet. Directly ahead of them, they could see a bridge, the one the mayor of Santa Rio so eagerly wished to see opened. As they took in the scenery of a fort long since crumbled and given to decay, the sound of crumbling stonework could be heard behind them. Turing to catch a look, it would appear the keep was on its last legs, now slowly giving way beneath its own weight. However, something caught their eye as one of the walls of the upper floor had suddenly smashed open with something large soaring out of it. With a loud thud, it landed beside them. The object was a massive black and gold chest. Their reward perhaps for defeating the boss. However, before they could even consider opening it, a tiny area of space in the air just above its center began to distort, and moments later, seemingly completely out of nowhere, a figure appeared.

Sitting atop the chest, one leg hanging down while the other propped up their elbow so that they could rest their chin in their hand, was a man in a dark robe and a white and gold mask. The party was silent as they stared at the figure who stared back at them. After a moment, he raised his chin off of his hand and began to deliver a round of applause.

“Haha, bravo Chosen ones, bravo, you’ve done it! You’ve completed your task! And in record time as well. I had honestly expected that to take much longer. You lot really are something aren’t you?” The man praised jovially.

The party just stared, Ember and Lian with a scowl, Maggie with astonishment, and Ruori with a smirk. Seeing this, the man slowly stopped clapping and shrugged.

“What, what’s with the silence? It’s your old pal Rykard! Haven’t you been excited to see me again? Here I thought you would be overflowing with questions, yet here you are, just giving me nasty looks. Except for you Maggie, you’re doing fine.” He noted.

The party looked back and forth to one another but again, said nothing.

“Gosh! This silent treatment. Do you truly detest me so?” Rykard asked.

“Detest you? You dragged us into this world, ripping us away from our families, our lives, and then you sat there, telling us that if we dance to your tune that we might actually get an answer or two for why you brought us here in the first place. After that you watched as we ran around like chickens with our heads cut off, not knowing why we’re here or if we’ll ever be able to go back home, getting a kick out of watching us fight, suffer, and even die for a handful of basic answers. Then when we finally pull off your stupid task, you finally show up and try acting like our friend? Enough of this crap Rykard, tell us why we’re here already, tell us what’s going on, and tell us how to get home!” Ember demanded.

It was Rykard who went silent this time around, his gaze hopping between everyone before he just shrugged. “Oh fine, fine. In truth, it was no decision of mine to test you like this, but I suppose that’s why I could never be in charge either. On the contrary, I’m but a meager figure on a much grander totem pole. My task is that of a guide. I am to monitor you and deliver instructions when appropriate, but even I am subject to my own set of rules. One of those rules for example encompasses what information I may or may not disclose at any given time. When you first became a part of this world, the one thing I could share with you was your need for allies and the task that had been planned for you. Completing this task with such little information, with the promise of nothing but some answers was all part of that. Of course, now that the task is completed and I stand before you once again, you may finally reap that reward.

“I must make it clear first however that there are yet many things I’m not at liberty to disclose, so I do hope that our meeting isn’t too terribly disappointing for anyone. Still, I will answer to the greatest extent of which I am able. One more thing however, if we may, let us limit it to only a single question per chosen.”

Despite his explanation however, Ember seemed no more pleased than before. “What, a friend of ours dies, we beat your mission and we still only get to ask one thing?”

“Ah! You are very lucky I’m not the sort who would count that as your question, but yes. Discipline is an important thing. You should attempt to ask the question that is the most important to you for now, or perhaps a question that could benefit both yourself and your comrades. One question each, that is all I shall allot you.” The masked man stated unequivocally, raising a single finger for emphasis.

Ember sighed. This was not going to be easy, was it? Still, he did as Rykard suggested. He took a moment to search his mind, figure out which of his many questions he found the most pressing. Eventually however, one stood out more prominently than the rest.

“Alright, fine. If that’s the case, then my question is what is going on here? You yank people into a video game world out of nowhere, give them some arbitrary task, and watch from the sidelines as they struggle through it. I want to know what the point of all of this is.” Ember stated, crossing his arms.

“Hmm… A good question, but unfortunately, one that cannot quite answer. Not because I have been restricted from doing so, but because it’s something I simply lack all the answers to myself. You see, you, me, even the Reaper you encountered not so long ago. All of us are but singular pieces of a much grander chessboard, and each of those pieces seems to have their own goals in mind. In the end however, all of those goals revolve around you, the Chosen. There are many eyes on you. Many interested parties that wish to follow your growth and progress for their own undisclosed goals. The best advice I can offer is that you focus on your own goal. Survival. Everything you do in this world, everyone you meet, whether native, outsider, or Chosen like yourselves will impact that goal, so you must act carefully.” Rykard advised as he climbed down from the chest and instead, leaned against it.

Ember just stared at Rykard. It was difficult to tell how he felt about the revelation, but there was at least one major takeaway. His romp through this world would neither be quick, nor easy. The next one to pipe up however would be Ruori. Her left hand casually hung at her side while the right hung with her thumb hooked in her belt.

“So, you say you weren’t the one who brought us here, that there’s some sort of hierarchy that we don’t know about. So then, if it wasn’t you, then who actually brought us here. Who’s actually in charge of what’s going on?” Ruori asked.

Rykard chuckled a bit. “Unfortunately, I’m afraid I’m not allowed to dig into specific details on the matter either, but trust me again when I say there are many moving pieces in this game. There are many prominent and powerful figures all looking to put their thumbs on the scale in some fashion. I suppose you could say they are competing with one another, with you as their resource. I can tell you one thing however, that symbol of the broken sword you possess in your souls. That is the mark of the one who brought you here, and among the many players in this game, there are two others who were also responsible for the existence of the chosen. Each of them is linked to one of the towns you could have begun your journey within. To suggest that those are the only ones that could potentially have an impact on your fates however would certainly be a lie, so you will absolutely need to be wary.” Rykard replied, pantomiming many of the details as he spoke them.

The party looked between one another, an ominous air suddenly washing over them as each began to consider implications that they knew full well they couldn’t begin to fathom. Lian shut her eyes tight and shook her head, doing her best to avoid being distracted from her own question.

“A-alright, well. My question. Rykard, you just mentioned that there were more of us, presumably brought here by something we don’t understand. If that’s the case then, how many Chosen are there exactly?” Lian asked.

“Ah! Very good question! There are, as a matter of fact, thirty of you in total, never more, and never less. Each town should have created ten of them apiece, and each one was given their own task to progress, much like yourselves. They too needed to begin their journeys every bit as lost and alone as you had. I’m proud to say that you were the first to clear yours. Meeting them will likely prove crucial in your goals, but do be careful. With all the forces at play, I would still remain wary of them, just in case.” Rykard explained.

Lian was silent as she pondered these new implications, but still something about what he said to her stuck out fairly prominently in her head. “Wait. You said thirty, right? But, Moze died. Wouldn’t there be twenty nine now?”

Rykard shook his head. “Nope, there must always be thirty chosen. Should one meet their untimely end as dear Moze had, they will be replaced by another random player. Cruel though it may be, those are the rules.”

Lian broke out in a bit of a cold sweat, her mind racing with the idea that careless mistakes on their part and loss of life would also condemn another innocent person to this fate. Still, one person had yet to ask anything. She stood quietly, hesitantly as everyone else asked their questions. Rykard of course took notice of this.

“And you little lady? You look like you have something you wish to ask. Don’t be shy. You won’t know until you ask.” He said softly.

Maggie continued nervously twiddling her thumbs before looking up to Rykard. “Will… will we ever be able to go home?”

Rykard was silent for a moment, looking down to the ground, contemplating the answer himself before returning his gaze to Maggie. “I suppose that will all depend on how everything plays out. You were brought into this world, therefore, a way back out must also exist. You will simply need to look for it in your travels.”

Maggie was quiet once more. She continued to nervously twiddle her thumbs before eventually nodding, a small smile spreading over her face. “O-okay. I’ll try to look for a way out for all of us then.”

“Heh heh, well, I wish you all the best, and with that, we’ve had one question from all of you. If it pleases you, I have done what I’ve come out here to do and I shall take my leave.” He said, sauntering away from the chest. “Oh, but before I go, I should warn you. The road ahead, as you have likely surmised, will not be an easy one. You will find danger beyond anything you’ve ever imagined. You will be awash in plots and schemes you have no knowledge of. However, you will also find wonder, hope, and fulfillment in equal measure. Find people you can trust, whether they be Players, Natives, or fellow Chosen and walk alongside them to the future you build with your own hands. Best of luck to you, and farewell… I’ll be in touch.” He said before seemingly kicking his own feet out from under himself, spreading his arms out, falling backwards, and vanishing into the ground.

With that, the trio was left there, standing in the ruins of that old fort, a massive chest of loot beside them, and a great bridge off in the distance. Looking upwards, the clouds had begun to shift, pillars of light finally breaking through the dark purple sky, illuminating their way forward. At the sight, Ember finally cracked a smile. They had a long road left ahead of them, but at the very least, here he was with Lian, Maggie, and even Ruori. Meanwhile, Clarissa and Thordon remained at the entrance, awaiting their return. Not only that, but somewhere off in this world, his father was likely clumsily swinging a VR controller around to swat at some flower monsters with the sole purpose of joining his little band one day. With a chuckle, he looked out over the horizon.

“Sun’s break’n through. I think today’s gonna be a good one.” He said.