The Soul Keeper

"Years ago, when Deep Dive was still a new technology, there were many dangers associated with it. While most rumours were false, a couple of them had the potential to become reality." Vincent caught some of my hair blowing towards him. "Usually, in a normal game, your hair doesn't move like this. You can't feel the wind as much as we do here. Nothing is so... real. You can never confuse the virtual world with the real one."

He suddenly pulled my hair. I flinched – that really stung!

"You don't 'feel' pain, like you just did. You just know that if the game were real, you'd feel pain. It's to protect the players." He let the few strands of plucked hair get carried away in the slight breeze. "Because, if you actually feel the pain, your mind can't process it as anything else than what it felt like. As in, if I cut off your hand, you'd probably go through everything a normal person in the real world would." He sighed. It was clear to me that he had trouble explaining what he was thinking.

"So," I hesitantly spoke. "Whatever happens here feels real, because we can't tell that this is all virtual." I carefully asked. He nodded. "That's dangerous. It could cause trauma, permanent psychological damage." I hesitantly said. I had seen what a severe wound could do to a person, even going back to a healthy body might not fix that emotional and psychological damage.

"That's not all." Vincent said. "What happens if we die?"

I froze. I had no idea what death felt like. No one had. If you died, you just died. That was the end of it. What would the mind do if it experienced death?

"No way." I suddenly said. "Erik's dad would never allow him to play this if it actually posed an actual risk to him. Or you guys!" He knew Erik's friends for years, probably. And who would let their own son play something as dangerous as this without so much as a warning?

Vincent nodded. "I think so too. But I think something went wrong." He summoned his interface. "What are the chances of the logout button disappearing in only this game? The only game in existence that could possibly cause permanent damage to the players?" He shook his head. "That's too coincidental if you ask me."

I pondered a moment. It really was too coincidental. "So, does that mean you don't think he will somehow get everyone out?"

He nodded. "I don't think it's a matter of just a fixing a bug. My gut's telling me something else in going on. Erik's dad will surely want to get his son out of here, but it's not as simple as unplugging the PORTAL. That'd probably cause permanent brain damage." He took his head in his hands. "Truth is, I don't know what we can do from here either. We're just stuck!"

I stepped back. I was feeling a little sick. My head was spinning. My back touched another tree and my legs gave out. Sinking onto the moist grass, I hugged my legs. "How long do you think we'll be stuck here?" I asked with a catch in my voice.

He shrugged and shook his head. "Sorry, Kai. We dragged you into this." He also sat down. "I never thought something like this could happen. I never thought-"

"It's not your fault." I hesitated. "Aside from the logout button, isn't there a way to... leave?"

He chuckled. "You could finish the game, I guess?" He shook his head. "But that's impossible. Games like these are designed to be beaten by thousands of players all working together. We only have two thousand and most of them wouldn't risk their lives for this."

His words hang in the air as I let silence fall. Beating the game meant defeating the demons, restoring the divine pillars, and killing the Demon Lord. Were we capable of that?

"Let's go back." Vincent suddenly said as he got back up on his feet. "Please don't tell this to the others. I only told you cause you seemed to be aware of it to some extent." His voice was filled with guilt.

I nodded and rose to my feet as well. "Don't worry and thanks, Vincent." I forced a smile. I appreciated him telling me this. We walked back to the group having breakfast.

"Hey guys!" Erik greeted us with a faint smile. "Morning walk?"

"Yeah." Vincent said with a yawn. "I'm hungry, is there anything left?"

"Sure," Alina pointed at the food laid on a piece of cloth. "Knock yourselves out." She seemed well rested. Samantha on the other hand had dark circles under her eyes.

"What's the plan, Erik?" I asked as I grabbed some dried meat. It wasn't the most delicious thing, but it was the most nutritious. If this world was made to be as real as possible, then it made sense to look after ourselves accordingly as well.

"We should get a few quests and work on them." He said with a shrug. "No point in just wasting time sitting here."

I nodded, as did Vincent. When our eyes met, a faint smile appeared on his lips, even if only for a moment. "In that case, let me check the quests." I said and got up. "Where do I look?"

Erik chuckled. "Touch the crystal. It'll probably give you a couple of quests."

"Hey Erik," Alina started talking about some dream she had. I didn't pay attention to her and approached the crystal instead. My heart was beating fast as I reached out. As soon as my fingertips touched the smooth, warm surface of the crystal, a panel popped up before me.

'New Quests Available: 3'

I hadn't expected this would work. With a smile, I read the rest of the text. 'Secure Supplies for The Torchlight Woods Camp.', 'Destroy the Monster's Lair' and 'Map the Immediate Surroundings' Were the available quests. I accepted all of them, then returned to the campfire.

"Three quests?" Erik asked me. I nodded and explained them all. "In that case, let's split up."

I immediately shook my head. "Why? It's safer to travel as a big group." I didn't want to see anyone here get hurt because of something as simple as this. But of course, my suggestion was promptly ignored.

"Securing supplies means food and water." Samantha mumbled. "Some firewood too. I can do that."

"Great." Erik grinned. "In that case, Alina, you should help Samantha as well. The rest of us will go take care of the monster nest." He got up and equipped his sword and shield. I hesitantly asked. "What about the map thing?" 𝙛𝓻𝓮𝓮𝙬𝓮𝒃𝓷𝓸𝒗𝓮𝓵.𝒄𝓸𝓶

Erik pondered for a moment. "I wasn't planning on doing it since the reward is so little. I mean, just fifty experience points for a whole lot of walking is garbage. You can do it after we're done with the lair if you want though. I'm just not going to bother with it."

I nodded. "I'll do just that." I still disliked the idea of splitting up, but at least this way I'd be the only one really in danger.

"Kai," Samantha called my name as we prepared to head out. I approached her, curious as to what she wanted to say. "Why do you want to go out alone like that?" She stared at me with questioning eyes.

"I'm curious." I said with a shrug. "Besides, I'll be fine. I know how to defend myself, remember?" I forced a grin, but she saw right through me.

"Stop lying to me. I heard you last night. You were petrified when that demon showed up." She sighed. "You're no match for such a high-level enemy yet. Promise me you won't try something stupid and get yourself killed." Her voice was low. She was clearly not as carefree as Alina.

"You were awake?" I asked in shock. I had forgotten to tell the others about it, mainly because eof our conversation with Vincent.

"Of course I was, you idiot. How am I supposed sleep when we're stuck in here?" She sighed. "Just... Promise you'll be careful, ok?"

"Don't worry. I'll be fine." I smiled. "Take care of Alina."

She nodded too.

"Alright, let's go team!" Erik shouted. We headed off into the shadows of the forest, towards the lair of the creatures that attacked us. I took a deep breath as I grasped the wooden staff. I could do this. I could keep them alive.