“This is...this is awesome!” Gary said, his voice brimming with childlike enthusiasm.

“Most definitely,” said a voice behind Gary.

Gary heel-pivoted to find Dom. Dom was dressed in a plain gray t-shirt, and simple khaki slacks. When Gary focused on Dom, he saw his username: ElDominator.

Gary looked down to see that he was dressed in the same clothing. He had been so excited about the castle that he didn’t even notice what he was wearing!

After a few minutes of fumbling around the user interface, Gary found an equipment button and opened it. He examined all his equipped gear, which was just the T-shirt and shorts.

Gray T-Shirt:

Defense + 1

Impress your friends with the completely generic piece of clothing.

Simple Khaki shorts

Defense + 1

These exist so you don’t start the game in your underwear.

Gary chuckled at the description of the second item. It looked like the game developers had a dry, if somewhat forced, sense of humor.

Other players, dressed in similar garb, were popping up all over the courtyard. Some headed straight out toward the nearby wilderness, probably looking for monsters. Gary watched a few players wander toward thatched roofs and shambling cobblestone of the castle village.

Unlike some games where most of the players were noble, broad-chested humans or sleek, graceful elves: everybody just looks normal. Most of the players were young, but every now and then an old man or woman would hobble on by. Children flocked amongst the older players, zipping in and out of the crowd. One little boy bumped into a peasant carrying a large sack of grain. The peasant grunted in disapproval, but continued on his way, unphased.

Next moment, Cedric appeared in a little pop. Cedric laughed when he looked at Dom and Gary. “Wow, you guys look the exact same as in real life…. Crazy,” he said. Cedric had chosen the name: Badg3rKnight.

Gary just started to think about the tutorial when the automated voice started talking again, “In ForeverQuest, there is no tutorial. Your adventure begins right away. However, if you are confused, you may ask me for advice.”

“Great! Thanks Brittany!” Gary said with a smile.

Dom gave Gary an odd look. “Yo, Gary, who are you talking to?”

“The robot lady,” Gary said quickly. “You know, the AI.”

Dom moaned. “Oh, sweet. Yours is named Brittney? Mine’s named Alice, and she has a weird british accent.” Dom then pauses. “Oh, whoops, sorry Alice, I didn’t know you could hear me.” He looked horrified. “No, seriously, I think your accent is great, I was just messin’ around.”

Cedric nodded. “Yeah, I got a Jerry.”

Dom flipped his hair. “What? Really? You got a dude?”

Cedric shrugged. “Yup. He’s cool though.”

Gary continued to watch as players flocked out of the castle in swarms. “Hey guys, do you think we should follow those guys? Maybe we can find some monsters. By the way, what RL stats did you guys get. Do you know how that works with in-game stats? I’m kind of confused.”

At the word confused, Brittney springs into action, “You’re RL stats will be balanced with your in game stats. Just ask and either will be displayed. Here, I will show you.”

A table popped up in Gary’s vision.

Your Stats

RL

GAME

Actual

Strength

26

1

13.5

Intelligence

42

1

21.5

Dexterity

60

1

30.5

Charisma

33

1

17

Endurance

54

1

27.5

Total Level

43

1

22

“Oh…Neat.” Gary said. “I figured it out. We have Real Life, or RL stats, that are balanced right next to our in-game stats.”

“Totally.” Dom says, “Alice just filled me in.”

“Really?” said Cedric. “Jerry is a bit off topic. He’s talking about different types of birds in ForeverQuest. No, Jerry, I don’t know what a Ice Pigeon is, and to be completely honest, I don’t really care--”

“Hey guys, what are your stats? I got 26 strength, and I’m a bit miffed.”

Dom started, “Err, how do I show you my table?”

Gary shrugs. “I dunno. Try asking Alice?”

Dom asked Alice. After a few moments in silence, he sends me his table.

ElDomintor’s Stats

RL

GAME

Actual

Strength

19

1

10

Intelligence

65

1

33

Dexterity

32

1

16.5

Charisma

58

1

29.5

Endurance

25

1

13

Total Level

40

1

20.5

Dom sends the table to Cedric as well.

Gary carefully reads the stats. “Wow. 65 Intelligence? That’s impressive Dom.” Although Gary didn’t say anything, he was personally relieved that Dom’s strength was even lower than his.

Cedric scratches his head. “This game must be broken, because last time I checked you had a C+ average.”

Dominick playfully shoved Cedric, though Cedric hardly budged. “Silly Cedric. If school wasn’t so lame, than maybe I would actually try.”

“What about you, Cedric?” Gary asked. “Could I see your stats?”

Cedric struggled to get the instruction from Jerry. “No, Jerry, I don’t play baseball. Look, could you just show me how to send a stats table? Please?” A few moments later, Cedric sent us the tables.

Bad3rKnight’s Stats

RL

GAME

Average

Strength

58

1

29

Intelligence

39

1

20

Dexterity

33

1

17

Charisma

41

1

21

Endurance

28

1

15

Total Levels

40

1

20

“What do all these stats really mean, though?” asked Gary.

“Beats me,” said Cedric, his eyes following a swarm of players who just ran out of the courtyard.

Brittney started, “Would you like me to explain exactly how the stats work?”

Gary was about to say yes, when Dom howled. “Come on already! Let’s go fight some monsters!” Cedric showcased his best boxing moves.

A grin crept across Gary face. “You can explain later, Brittney.”

The three teens ran outside the field, their excitement evident in every step. Most of the field was open grass, but an occasional maple or pine tree would populate the landscape. In the distance, the trees thickened into an ominous looking forest. As Gary sprinted into the plain, gold lettering appeared in his vision: Verdant Plains.

“Verdant Plains?” Cedric asked.

“It’s probably what this region is called, duh,” Dom said sarcastically.

“I knew that, I was just, you know, checking,” Cedric said, unamused.

“How about we attack that slug over there!” Gary was pointing at nearby slug-like monster.

The creature was acid green and about three feet long, as tall as a large dog. Its whole body was coated in thick, pasty slime that stuck to the ground like glue.

There was a health bar over the monster's head, along with a nametag, so the boys knew they were facing a: Level 12 Giant Slug.

Gary was first to comment. “So, uhh, we just kick it or something? I’m not sure how to fight in this game.”

Cedric picked up a stick and twirled it like a sword. “Maybe we should bang it with sticks?”

Gary leaned down to pick up a stick. As soon as he did, he received a notification.

You got an item: Light Stick!

Damage Bonus + 1

Type: Blunt

Weight: Light

Speed: Fast

Damage calculated: 0.8 X Strength

“Woah. Did you guys also get that notification?”

Cedric nodded. “Yup. Guess this bad boy has plus 1 attack. I suppose it's better than nothing!”

“Interesting how they calculate the damage….” Gary said, lost in thought.

Dom grabbed a stick and charged at the slug. “Die, foul creature!” he yells as he slapped the thing with his stick. A red number “1.8” appeared above the monster.

The blow glanced off the slimy body, and the slug pivoted, quicker than a slug should be able to move, and faced the three boys. Steam poured out of its nose-holes.

Dom quivered. “Woah, it looks pretty angry.” The slug glared at Dom with bloodshot eyes.

“Great Dom, you just totally pissed him off.” Cedric added sarcastically.

“Did not!” yelled Dom.

“Yeah, I’m pretty sure you did,” agreed Dom.

Suddenly, the slug leaped at Dom and latched on, sticking. Dom started running, but the slug doesn’t fall off.

“Bro! Get it off of me! Get it off!”

Numbers were ticking above Dom’s head as the snail sucked on him like a slimy vampire, 1.2, 0.8, 1.3…..

Cedric slammed the slug with a well placed blow, and the creature flopped off of Dom.

Next moment, Gary stabbed at the slug, his stick sliding into the slimy body. Gary noticed a slight drop in the health bar, which was now around 60%. He saw a red number on top of the slug, 2.

Dom then kicked the slug in the torso, the blow again slipping off the slime, a red 1.2 flashing over the slimy beast. “Stupid thing,” Dom huffs. “It’s hard to hit.”

The slug then lashed out with its tail, slicing Dom across the cheek, a 3 appearing above Dom’s head.

“Ow!” Dom cried as he takes a few steps back. “That actually hurt!”

Gary slapped the slug again with his stick, while Cedric stomped on the slug’s tail. The creature cried in anguish, and disintegrated into a few bronze coins.

Gary received the following notification.

Strength exp gained: 7.

Loot: 9 Bronze coins.

You discovered a new skill: Blunt Weapons! Real World Level: 2.

“Hey, guys! Did you just get the blunt weapons skill?”

“Yeah, I got it,” said Dom. “Nice.”

“Great!” howled Cedric. “My Real World skill is already 16!”

That surprised Gary. “Really?” he said. “Mines only level 2.”

Dom patted Gary on the back. “Same here.”

They split the loot evenly. Once Gary figured out how to open his inventory, the solid bronze coins disappeared from his hands, going into the slot.

“Good job guys,” Gary said. “We did it!”

Dom rubbed his cheek where the slug had slapped him. “Dude… This game rocks!”

There was a glow in Cedric’s eyes. “Wow. The combat feels great, doesn’t it? Did you see the way our blows slid right off the slug’s body, like it was actually real? This is...incredible!”

Dom stopped rubbing his cheek. “Yeah, I mean, it hurts, but…. Agreed, this is totally sweet.”

Meanwhile, Gary was watching other players fight a level 16 Goblin Welp. The players dodged blows in real time, and struck the goblin with sloppy attacks. It did not appear as the players were in some sort of virtual combat, rather, it looked like a real life fight.

All over the field, players were swarming, most engaged in some kind of combat, some just exploring the terrain. In general, the players still had sticks as weapons, and little to no armour, but Gary saw a few with flimsy metal swords.

As Gary watched more players run out the castle courtyard, he couldn't help thinking, how many players until it gets too full?

Suddenly, he heard Britney's voice. “There are no servers in ForeverQuest. Instead, each city in the game is linked to your real life location. Lomberg is the starting zone for all the players within Montgomery county. It will act as your home city. If you are good to your city, it will grow and prosper. Otherwise, it will fall into shambles. Lomberg is also susceptible to raiders. At any moment, it can become captured, and then you will become members of another district.”

Dom raised an eyebrow. “Lame! I don’t want to see anybody from school, or get captured! Gah, total buzzkill.”

Cedric shrugged. “Don’t worry, Dom. Nobody will bother us. Actually, I think this mechanic is awesome! Imagine us defending the city from rivals! Wouldn’t that be sweet?”

“Yeah, it might be pretty cool,” admitted Dom.

Gary hoped that he would never find Tommy in game, but other than that, the location based servers didn’t bother him. He actually thought they sounded pretty cool. He could imagine his small town, Lomberg, going to war with surrounding cities. Gary raised his fists with a smile. “Alrighty then. Want to go beat up some more monsters?”