"You know, I think I figured you all out," McKenna stated, standing up from her chair behind the heavy oak desk. The Office she was occupying was a grand thing, with soft green walls, impressionist paintings hung up along it, and gentle yet short pale carpet lined the floor. She gently pushed the chair into the desk and picked up her War Gaff from the desktop, and she looked at the group before her.

All three of them were elves, like McKenna herself, and all of them wore variations of the same basic outfit. A dark cloth covering most of their bodies, hints of armor peeking through, weapons drawn, and a silver guild emblem clasping their robes closed. Over the last several days, McKenna had come to recognize the blank silver medallions as the Void Children's symbol and had been paying attention for them.

Especially since they had been hounding her every day for the past few days trying to bribe, threaten, coerce, placate, barter, and even buy the Void Edict necklace from her. She adamantly refused, and they just outright started to attack her yesterday. To their complete detriment, of course.

One of the two men in the room scowled at her in open hostility, "How the fuck did you get in here?" he frowned, pointing his loaded Crossbow at her face.

Today, McKenna had been busy. She had some skill in stealth and subterfuge in real-life, but here she did not. Sure, she had the skills to accomplish both, but that meant little if she didn't feel like using that approach. So, instead of sneaking, McKenna walked in through the hidden front entrance of their little Safe House.

"Please," she said, polite as she could be, "I was revealing something profound. Now, like I said, I think I figured you all out. Your name has a lot of layers to it. Now, the first and most obvious is the fact that you love the Void and worship it. Thus, much like any good god-like place, you decided to have it adopt you." McKenna said sweetly.

"Is she crazy?" the other man said, lowering the battle-ax that had been at the ready second earlier. "I've heard the woman with the artifact was kind of, you know, loopy."

The third person, an atypical blonde elf, kept her Rapier aimed at the intruder but slapped the chatty man's chest. "Shhhhh, quiet. I want to see where she's going with this."

"But I think there is more to you guys than one would initially think. For example, you guys are obviously not children in body, being full adults, so I think it could be that you are trying to remain young at heart. Admirable, really. But when I think that the Void part of the name is a reference to the empty space between your ears, it kind of removes that," she continued, monologuing her statement.

"Ouch," the woman said, wincing at the insult.

"Now, we could take it the other way. Young in mind could make you either simple in mind or stupid, while the Void in your heart makes you intolerant, hateful, and jealous. Which would explain why you all started to come after me in the first place," McKenna said, smiling at the three. "You know, I think that third one is probably right. So, to answer your question, how did I get in here. Well, it was rather simple. I followed you three here, ironically, entered the hidden layer, and walked right in. I only had to kill three of you."

"Wait, what?!" the Crossbowman said, waving his weapon towards her menacingly.

McKenna smiled, "oh, yeah. I had to kill three of your people to get in here. There was the front Guard; he put up quite the fight. BTW, he definitely deserves a raise. Then I killed one of your researchers and grabbed his toy, which will be fun to field test; I'll have you know. Then, there's Leonardo over here," she said, gesturing to the body that she had been avoiding stepping on. "You should know, I think he needs a little less MJ in his life. If you know what I mean."

McKenna took a moment to pantomime, lighting up something in her hand and taking a considerable drag on it before releasing a contented sigh. "The drop from that high was killer," McKenna laughed, loving her joke.

"Awww, screw this," the first man said, re-aiming his Crossbow towards McKenna's head. "Punch Shot!" he announced, a heavy red glow covering the bolt.

As he announced his attack, McKenna triggered her Divine Aura (Conflict) skill.

Divine Aura (Conflict) is toggled. You are entering a conflict with a group of Outworlders with superior levels and numbers. Your Strength, Dexterity, and Intellect Attributes all gain a small bonus.

Grinning even wider, McKenna twisted around to avoid the blood-red shaft, the bolt impacting and detonating into the wall as it buried deeper than physics would typically allow. She then raised the sharp end of the polearm she was holding and lifted it towards the three players. With a flow of Mana, she announced, "Holy Flash!"

The spike glowed a radiate white light that expanded and grew in intensity over a second. An audible whump echoed through the room as the light flashed and abated, leaving the only person unaffected being McKenna. Who immediately capitalized on their altered situation.

She swung the hooked end of her War Gaff around and pulled the Crossbow out of its owner's hand before he reimagined his senses. She took the weapon from her War Gaff's hook and threw it at the Rapier woman, her weapon not being a good match-up for her own. The Crossbow connected with her chin, and McKenna kicked out at the desk between her and them.

McKenna had little care for fighting with guile or finesse, so she tended to put her attributes into Strength, Speed, Build, and Intellect for spells. Her last level up, which had been with the Nightmare Violinist Boss, she had decided to put all of her Attributes into her already not insignificant strength.

With that addition, the desk, which was laden with tools and paper, flew back several feet and knocked all three back several feet. The heavy bulk of the dark wood desk tumbling once before landing on top of the disarmed Crossbowman.

He cried out in surprise while the axeman's weapon glowed and emitted amber sparks while he swung at the desk in their way. McKenna wasn't sure what to expect when she engaged these three, but now she was a little worried. The ability that the man was using was an ordinary skill for warrior types. While many types of it existed, they all boiled down to one description. Channeling MP into their weapon to inflict extra damage.

"Of course, you had to use fire, didn't you?" McKenna groaned while she used another spell. She felt the magic flow around her, pervading her skin and pulsing out like a barrier when she spoke, "Lesser Fire Ward."

You have cast the spell, 'Lesser Fire Ward,' and have gained 20% fire resistance.

With what meager protection she could set up in place, McKenna watched as the man swung a third time and fourth time. The blade hacked into the heavy desk, splintering it into two large pieces and many smaller ones.

The man sprinted at her, ax swinging sideways towards her while she turned to try and deflect it off her Steel War Gaff.

*Ring* *Ring* *Ring*

The sudden and startling ring echoed around her without an obvious source. Flinching, she was forced to take the attack in a less than excellent way, only catching the ax's handle just below the blade. McKenna growled as the edge met her shoulder, pushing down into her as the robed warrior pressured the ax into her.

You have been attacked by Axe-wielding Player for 34 damage. You now have 414 out of 448 points of health remaining. The weapon is still inside your body is inflicting ongoing burn damage, dealing an extra point of damage for every second still embedded in you.

*Ring* *Ring* *Ring*

"Fuck!" she screamed as she pushed against the man holding her. "Fine, Screw it!" she announced, activating her Enrage Skill.

You are Enraged for the next minute. All physical Attributes gain a +5 bonus, Mental Resistance is increased by 90%, and you are numb to pain for the duration.

The same hellish red tint that always filtered her vision when she used this Skill appeared in all its inhibition-free grace. With the pain gone to a simple tingling feeling, McKenna pushed harder against the man working to keep her down, raising her arms to pull the ax from her shoulder.

With a twist and a spin, she forced the weapon from the man's hands and allowed it to clatter to the floor. Continuing her spin, she thrust the spike end of her weapon into the man's chest. With a defiant yell, she pulled the weapon free and stabbing him again before kicking him away and triggering her weapon's enchantment. Enrage was a powerful skill, but it's one main drawback was that it tired her out far faster than any of her other powers.

Greenlight streamed out of the hooked polearm as she felt a flood of relief to her muscles as she dropped it. Creating a finger gun and leveling it to her eyes, McKenna fired a Coy Bullet at the man. As he staggered back and the other two worked past the wrecked table to get to her, she dropped low to grab the dropped ax. It was a heavy tool, which made it perfect for her goal.

While Enraged, McKenna swung the ax at its original owner and felt the blade dig into the man's shoulder. Screaming, she pulled on the handle, dragging him off balance with brute force and freeing the weapon from his body. Before he could correct himself, McKenna struck out one more time at his neck, decapitating him.

*Ring* *Ring* *Ring*

McKenna growled as the other two, finally past the desk, came at her. The man without his Crossbow, now wielding a short sword, charged with the woman. Both blades swung, and McKenna reacted with the reflexes of someone who had made such choices before. She chose the lesser of the two weapons and stepped towards the short sword to move away from the flashing rapier.

You have been attacked by Short Sword Wielding Player for 21 damage. You now have 383 out of 448 points of health remaining.

Her reasoning was that the woman using the Rapier had been using it from the beginning, while the other man hadn't. In reality, she had no idea if this was true but hoped it was better than getting stabbed by the Rapier.

"You know," she grumbled, stepping back and away from her opponents. With the space to breathe, she continued. "I was hoping to avoid doing this since it felt rather dickish to wave it in your faces. But, you know what, I'm actually fine with this." She told them while pulling out the Void Edict necklace from her robes.

Since obtaining the item, she'd discovered that the amulet had a submenu attached to it. This submenu had two different sections neatly arranged within it. The first was a scaling list showing what was needed to level up the item. McKenna had no idea what a Splinter of Chaos was, but it sounded fantastic and sinister.

The second section was a list of abilities that the Void Edict could unlock. The first ability was simply titled 'Onyx Defenses' and was already unlocked. After that, a list of powers could not even be read and one available option. It was either due to her lack of prerequisite skills or abilities. Still, the rest of the item's capabilities were unknown to her. The one unlockable ability that was available, however, was pretty cool either way.

Lesser Bane Edict - The Void is a place known to have a distaste for everything else in the universe. Some people even believe that this and all realities originally came from the Void before creation stole the space. Thus, the Void opposes everything in its way to take back what is it's own.

This Edict symbolizes the Void's power to be stronger than everything else, but only for a limited time. When you announce this Edict, the weapon you are wielding gets charged with a weak bane power rooted in the Void that shifts with whatever it comes in contact with.

!Warning! Mortals and mortal weaponry cannot contain this energy without consequences. Weapon's charged with this power will fade away when the duration is complete. When used by a mortal more than once every 72 hours, there will be feedback that will drain your Maximum HP and MP for an undetermined amount of time.

Mana Cost: 200. Effect Duration: 30 seconds.

Showing the amulet, she announced the ability, ax in hand. "Lesser Bane Edict!"

The ax in her hand splintered up the shaft until the Axe head, where another crack appeared. This damage, however, had a whistling of air rushing into a vacuum, an effect that did not make wielding it any harder. A solid white glow suffused the ax head's edge, but the light didn't give off a pleasant feeling light like holy powers. This gave the impression of empty spaces being lit without success.

"Alright, okay," McKenna said, releasing the amulet to retake the weapon in both hands. "Come at me."

The short sword man struck out first, his blade swinging out in a small and quick arc that McKenna managed to meet with her Axe Blade and grinned at the prompt she received.

Lesser Bane Edict changed weapon's bane to Steel Bane. The weapon now deals Rusting damage.

The effect was immediate; the short sword was pulled away after the exchange, and McKenna noticed the rust that had formed where their weapons met. It crept along for a moment longer even after they stopped touching, and she switched priority to the Rapier woman, who was pouring a bottle of poison over her weapon's blade.

"Oh, good thinking. Let's find out if it helps," McKenna grinned, thinking over what she wanted to do here. The Rapier was built for quick thrusts and light slashes, the polar opposite of the ax she was holding. Between the two weapons, she would have put money on the Rapier winning in a straight-up fight. Which is why she was going to be tricky.

Spinning around, McKenna gathered up momentum and threw the Lesser Bane-charged ax at the woman. It made two quick rotations in the air before the head impacting her Rapier, the thin metal blade unable to hold back the ax. It continued on, only to sink its head into her chest, just above the right breast.

Lesser Bane Edict changed weapon's bane to Elf Bane. The weapon now deals Genetic Damage against Elves.

The woman was knocked off her feet and to the floor on her back; the blood that oozed from the wound came out paler than it should be.

Having enough Mana for one last Coy Bullet, she fired the Fem Fatale spell at the woman on the floor, hoping to speed her demise. In all honesty, it looked rather painful as she twitched on the floor from the heavy ax buried into her ribs. She tried to pull it out but moaned as it resisted and did no more than stick to her bones.

McKenna was facing the third person, the Crossbowman who'd been the most aggressive member of the trio and watched the color drain from his face. She bent down to pick up the War Gaff that she'd dropped and breathed a little harder as Enrage ended.

The Player swallowed as he dropped his short sword and withdrew a small, square cube, cut like a sizeable six-sided die. He threw it down on the ground and watched as it landed and rolled to a stop at her feet, the number six facing up.

"Yes," he crowed, panic evident in his tone. "Take this, you Bitch!"

The die detonated into a cloud of chalky mist that made seeing two feet past her face near impossible. She coughed at the unknown gas entering her lungs, getting enough oxygen to not choke but not enough to breathe properly. As a few seconds passed, the gas changed to a greenish-white and smelled horribly pungent like bleach.

You have breathed in Alchemical Hydrofluoric Gas. You will now take continuous Acid damage every second until you are clear from the area of effect and you are purged of the toxin. You have taken 11 points of Acid damage. You now have 372 out of 448 points of health remaining. You have taken 11 points of Acid damage. You now have 361 out of 448 points of health remaining.

"Hmmm, no bad," McKenna said, her voice suddenly scratchy and raw with the poison affecting her body. She activated the enchantment on her War Gaff, giving her a little more stamina to think more clearly before she stumbled forward and almost blindly towards the wall. She remembered the room's layout and hoped to be free from the area of effect of the poison before it killed her.

Ten seconds had passed when she found the wall, and another sixteen before she had exited the room and had just passed the edge of the poison cloud.

You have taken 11 points of Acid damage. You now have 74 out of 448 points of health remaining.

She quickly spoke the words, "Cleanse Poison," as soon as she could wheeze it out. Then quickly added, "Weak Crawling Heal," to start regenerating her lost health. Everywhere hurt; it was worse than any time she'd been shot or beaten over her time in the Marines or even in-game thus far. It felt like every inch of her had been rubbed raw with sandpaper, and her insides didn't feel any better. Every breath was a labor of work and stubbornness as she kept breathing.

Slowly, as the seconds ticked on, her body started to feel a little better by the second.

*Ring* *Ring* *Ring*

"Fuck," McKenna spat as she reached for her belt and found the phone that was synced with her phone out-of-game. Much like the one Colin had before he became trapped here. She opened the flip phone perpetually attached to her belt as long as her phone was synced to receive calls in-game.

The name said unknown caller but said New Mexico on the identification. She answered it angrily, growling, "what?"

"Are you McKenna Drummond? Colin's Wife?" the caller asked. It was male; that much was evident with the baritone, though the voice was accented. Native American, maybe. She calmed herself a little at the mention of her husband, the thought sending some of her troubled thoughts away for a fleeting moment.

"I am," she answered, stepping away from the room still filled with the Alchemical Gas. It was considered uncouth to attack a Player when they were on the phone with the outside, but most Players were dicks in some way, McKenna included. "Who is this?"

"My name is Clayton Holt, and I've recently met your husband in Rosengard, he asked me to pass along a message, but I will admit, I'm not sure why he asked me to tell you this." McKenna could hear the hesitation in his voice when he spoke.

"And, what did he say?" McKenna asked, unsure what to think. This was either someone passing along a message from not-Colin, or Colin found someone he actually trusted to message her for him. Both seemed unlikely, Colin wasn't easily trusting, and if not-Colin had gotten out, he would not be messaging her.

The man let out a sigh, "he asked me to tell you, and I am quoting this, so I apologize in advance. I can't believe I'm stuck in Rosengard; please do not hurt me when we meet again. I promise I am doing my best to get out of here to get back home to you, you beautiful psychopath."

McKenna was silent for a long moment. Long enough that the man on the other end of the line said her name to make sure the line hadn't been cut off for some reason. When she spoke, her voice was low and measured, determined in a way that wasn't there before. "Where is he?"

"In Rosengard Worldwide," he stated bluntly. "I know it's hard to believe that he's stuck in a game, but he says so, and I believe him. He's-"

"No, wherein Rosengard is he?" McKenna interrupted, practically giddy with excitement. That was him; those words sounded like something he'd say.

"Did you get the notice a few days ago about BriarThorn being attacked?" he asked, waited a moment, then continued. "Well, he's there right now. We are dealing with some stuff later and-"

McKenna hung up the call, unable to wait around for him to finish, and she turned to the room now clearing from the gas. Her health was still nowhere near full, but now she knew where to go to find Colin, and she would not wait any longer. While her health was still lower than she'd like, the brief conversation gave her enough Mana to lean into the room, aim, and fire a few Coy Bullets at the man cringing in the corner.

It wasn't surprising that he survived the gas; most people were immune to their own powers. A few attacks later, McKenna looked over his still body and walked away.

Her smile stretched ear to ear as she jogged out of the hideout, only stopping to take a small bag of Copper Currency that she neglected to take earlier. Once outside, she withdrew a small Homeward Runestone and tossed it to the ground. The magic of the broken item swirling around her and teleporting her to her respawn point.

Once there, McKenna ran out of the church and ran to a location that she hadn't needed yet.

The Tele-transit station was a thing to behold. Compared to the rest of the buildings in Redwood City, this one was constructed of stone bricks, mortar, and wood from the trees, of course. While she knew that the building was old, one of the other shops nearby had mentioned it, it didn't look like it. The stone was scrubbed clean, no plant life crawled up it, and the banners proclaiming the building were washed. It was a rather square building, but the block exterior did not detract from the structure's uniqueness in this city.

She ran in and was surprised to only find a small line of people going to the teleport registration desk and no one going to information. McKenna hurried over to that desk where a young male Elfin, well, he looked no older than twenty to twenty-one, stood and waited patiently. She asked her questions and got quick and efficient answers.

City-to-city teleporting was a thing, but it only worked within a certain distance without being way too expensive, both in Mana and in Copper. He explained that these facilities used rituals, structural enchanting, and dimension magic in harmony to teleport people. The results were phenomenal, being able to send people almost anywhere within one thousand and fifty-three miles without a hitch.

Out of curiosity, McKenna asked if they could teleport her to BriarThorn, and he immediately blanched. "No, Not only due to the warzone conditions there right now, but because it's out of our range."

"What about the next nearest city you can teleport me to?" McKenna asked.

"That would be… The City of Walnut," he stated. "It will be about Two Copper Plates to teleport you that far. Just so you know," he said, wincing at the price. That amount of money was enough to get a house built here in the city.

"Thank you," she said hurriedly, leaving a Copper Coin on the desk before hurrying to the line.

An hour later, McKenna had paid for her trip and was in the Teleportation Chamber. She was warned that this would take a minute to charge up the Mana needed to go all the way over there and just be patient. Internally, McKenna understood but could not help herself from tapping her foot impatiently.

Since she found out when Colin was, a fog that had been over her mind had ascended somewhat to allow her to see more clearly. She knew what the root cause of this was and why she attacked that Void Children's safehouse. It was Colin; he was her safe space, she could be herself around him, but it was like he made it really easy to suppress the violent part of herself when around him. Which was weird, considering that their jobs were how they met.

She had no idea what the psychology of her condition was, and she knew she would never just go on a murder spree to kill for fun. But with Colin being gone for so long, that itch to fight and to kill was returning. She needed to find him before it came entirely back with a vengeance, or she might actually kill him just for catharsis.

Well, at least this was just a game, and he'd come back just fine.

When they told her the room was ready, the octagonal room lit up with a weirdly shimmering grey light that highlighted a magical circle. The ritual circle was so intricate that she knew a few anime that would be impressed by just the art of it. There was a sensation of movement, like right when a plane takes off and your stomach moves, and then there was nothing but thought for several seconds.

As that stretched on, McKenna felt a tingle move all over her body as she moved again and made a silent cry to the game world she was in.

"I'm coming," she said, reappearing in another room much like the one she was in moments ago.