"Yo kiddo"

"..."

"Hey"

Luke carefully opened his eyes and was greeted by the sight of a human-sized blue frog holding his laughter while sitting on what seemed to be a throne. He saw himself back in the paradise-like place he was in the last time he met Icefrog. Looking at himself, he realized that his clothes wear clean with no holes or tears and no blood in sight. He couldn't spot any wounds on himself and he couldn't help but stare at Icefrog.

Luke: "..."

"Did the creeps' mauling turn you dumb or something?" said Icefrog as he snickered.

"Why the hell do I keep seeing you almost every time I think I died? This time my body was in a wreck, so does this mean I actually survived that?" Luke incredulously asked, skeptical of how he managed to live.

"Of course you survived. Why? you prefer dying?" Icefrog teased.

"I think I still prefer living, thank you very much" Luke replied as he rolled his eyes "But seriously though, how the hell did I survive all that? When I wake up, will I look the same as right now?" he couldn't help but ask.

"Basically the same, I guess? Of course, besides your clothes, your Reactive Armor can't possibly restore your clothes too" Icefrog replied as he bit on an apple he pulled out of nowhere.

Luke's jaws gaped in astonishment and asked, "So, Reactive Armor can restore my body even if I lose my limbs?"

"It definitely can, just make sure that you don't receive a fatal attack at once like getting your head cut off, other than such fatal attacks, you can basically survive almost anything. Just that you'll feel all the pain, and let me tell you, the process of regrowing lost limbs is not comfortable at all." Icefrog nonchalantly replied.

Luke couldn't help but feel a chill down his spine as he unconcsciously touched his neck, imagining it getting sliced.

"So, why am I in here again? Do I get another reward?!" Luke asked excitedly and forgot the fact that he almost died.

"No way. I'm not that generous. Can't I just want to talk to you? You're unconscious anyway, so you might as well spend your time here. Here, take this apple" said Icefrog who tossed his half-eaten apple at Luke.

Luke caught the apple with a disgusted expression seeing the drool all around it.

He was about to curse at Icefrog that he didn't want to talk with him but once he thought about it deeper, it's actually great for him to be here and get some information from Icefrog!

Throwing the apple aside, he smiled brightly and said, "I'll take you up on that offer then! You mind if I ask you some questions about the 'patch'?"

Icefrog stared at Luke for a moment, suspicious of how he suddenly got excited but nonetheless agreed. "As long as It's something I'll tell everyone else then, sure, I won't mind"

Thrilled at how Icefrog agreed, Luke immediately started his barrage of questions. "Great! So, since you brought the abilities, items and creeps from the game, Is there a way for us in the future to fight 5v5 like in DotA?"

Icefrog relaxed at Luke's question and replied, "I was about to post about it in my blog tonight, but anyway; yes, everyone can find matches and fight each other 5v5 just like in DotA starting tonight"

Luke's jaws dropped in amazement and he looked like a child in an amusement park. "That's so sick! How would it work then?"

Icefrog contemplated it for a while and answered, "There are two ways for your people to fight through DotA, the first one is where you can fight anyone from around the world sort of like the pub matches in Dota. The second one on the other hand is sort of like an Olympic LAN tournament style where each country can choose 5 players to represent them and these players can visit other countries and challenge them. You probably don't know this yet but I made life-sized dota map replicas in each country, that's where the LAN matches would be held in."

Luke was puzzled and couldn't help but ask, "Why is it Olympic style though? The best professional DotA 2 teams are composed of players of different nationalities"

Icefrog chuckled at Luke's question and answered, "You have no idea how much man can improve because of pride. Sure, people might still improve themselves if it wouldn't be olympic style, but because it is, they'd want to try harder for the recognition of their people and to show the other nations that the people of their nation are stronger. Those popstars, sports stars and movie stars should step aside, DotA stars are going to take over. And this way, there would be a ranking of strength among all nations. Instead of large-scale wars where millions of innocents are killed, the governments would focus on producing experts in DotA to show their power, isn't it a great idea? Kukukuku"

Luke was flabbergasted at Icefrog's words, he couldn't help but agree to it! After these DotA stars would pop up one after another, the average people would then realize the potential they all have and as long as they work hard enough, they'll gain recognition for it! Perhaps in the future, everyone in the world would have abilities! He felt a chill down his spine, realizing how Icefrog could easily manipulate people to easily accept the changes on Earth.

But, he also felt thankful of Icefrog. Clearly, Icefrog was trying to make sure that everyone's strength would vastly improve before those from other worlds would invade the planet.

Luke went silent for a moment then asked his next question, "But, how would these matches work? will we fight through something like virtual reality?"

Icefrog perked up with his question as his eyes lit up. "Great question! you're almost there! It is indeed like virtual reality, but I'll be using your souls instead. I believe you know that once you think in your mind about upgrading your abilities, the window for it would appear, right?"

Luke nodded and said, "Yeah, so you're saying I just have to think that I want to find a match then a window for it would appear?"

"Bingo! And just like in Dota 2, players would be grouped up with those of similar strength, or ranking." said Icefrog.

Luke then suddenly remembered a post he seen online a few days before and asked, "I remember that there was supposed to be a new ranking system in DotA. Can you explain that, first?"

Icefrog seemed to be enjoying the conversation as he got excited and said, "Sure! There's a Medal System now, the medals being Herald, Guardian, Crusader, Archon, Legend, Ancient and Divine. Note that that was in increasing order, the weakest being the Heralds and Divine the strongest. And each medal has 6 Divisions which are: Divine, Divine 1, Divine 2, Divine 3, Divine 4 and Divine 5. Of course, there would also be leaderboards for each medal to make sure that everyone knows how strong they are compared to the rest of the world."

Luke stared in awe at how Icefrog always made sure that everyone would know strong they are, inspiring them to work harder and couldn't help but compliment him, "Wow, you did a great job"

Icefrog was pleased as he had a cocky experssion, "Of course, I'm not a God for nothing"

Luke couldn't help but laugh at how Icefrog acted like a child who just got praised. "Anyway, back to how we'll fight using our souls. How would that work?"

"I made it so that you'll be using your souls not just because it would be safer but because it would also be of great benefit to you. Once you're able to find a match, your soul would basically leave your body and gets sent to another dimension I prepared, so make sure that your body would be safe before you find a match, It won't be my fault if your body gets attacked while you're in the middle of the match. In that dimension, you'll basically feel as if you were physically there so you'll still experience the pain when you get attacked. What I meant when I said that it's also beneficial for you is that your soul would also get stronger the more you fight in matches, especially if you win, this would improve both your mind and body" Icefrog explained.

"Amazing, so we can start finding matches tonight?" Luke asked and didn't forget to praise Icefrog.

Icefrog still had the same cocky expression but the corners of his mouth clearly rose in a small smile. "Yes, I'll be posting on my blog tonight. You know, DotA's blog"

Luke immediately got excited but remembering his two abilities, he couldn't help but ask, "Hey, I don't think there would be anyone with 4 abilities yet, do you mean we'll have to fight with what abilities we have for now?"

"Of course, it's not my fault that you only have two abilities. That's already your advantage since most people don't even have an ability, and for those who did manage to obtain them, they only have 1. You sure are ungrateful, hmph." Icefrog replied as he contemptuously stared at Luke.

"Geez, I'm just asking. I'm already thankful that my abilities saved my life, no need to be such a grouch" Luke couldn't help but refute. "Which reminds me, can I obtain more than 4 abilities?"

Icefrog had an unconcerned look on his face as he continued devouring the fruits he pulled out of nowhere, not bothering with Luke's question as if telling him that he already told him enough information.

Luke couldn't help but curse inwardly at Icefrog but realizing that he already gave him a headstart with the information he gave him, he then grudgingly thanked him in his mind.

"Hey, give me some food too. Ones that you didn't take a bite of, please" Luke asked, getting hungry seeing how Icefrog was feasting by himself.

Icefrog granted his request and gave him food he wanted but the whole time they were eating, he didn't answer any of Luke's questions anymore and after some time, Luke's vision went bright as if a flashbang blew up in front of him.

***

Roy was currently in a medical tent back in the army's HQ getting his wounds treated. He was guilty of how Luke sacrificed himself for everyone so after he heard how the creeps were about to reach the civilians, he didn't think twice to defend the people and make sure that Luke's sacrifice wouldn't be for nothing.

He heard someone flap the tent's entrance open as he raised his head to see who it was and saw that it was Sunny.

"Brother!" Sunny shouted as she immediately ran towards him in worry and you could see the anxiousness on her face.

"Don't worry about me, these are just some superficial wounds; these will heal eventually" said Roy to ease Sunny of her worries.

Sunny nodded but suddenly asked, "Where's Luke?" as she looked around the tent but was still unable to see him.

Roy immediately went silent as he stared at the ground making Sunny frown when a thought passed on her mind and she said, "Oh! Is it because of his ability? So he doesn't have to get treated right? Hahaha. I was worried for nothing. He's just around here, right?"

But, she was once again answered by Roy's silence and this time you can see her eyes turn a bit watery as she was obviously getting anxious.

"He's right around here right? Tell me, brother!" Sunny begged as tears can be seen on her delicate face.

Roy couldn't help but get a bit teary eyed seeing his sister as he wiped his tears with his hands and said, "I'm sorry, he couldn't come back with us"

Sunny had a look of horror on her face as tears kept falling yet she didn't make a sound when she asked, "Please tell me he simply went home with his brother"

Roy shook his head as he bit his lips. "No Sun, he... he's dead" he said as he choked on the last two words.

Sunny had a look of despair on her face as she stood up, tears continually falling as her lips were quivering. "Liar! He told me he had to eat more of my cooking! He still has to help me obtain an ability! I won't believe it until I see his body myself!" She shouted as she ran out of the tent.

Roy shook his head and felt heartbroken seeing Sunny's reaction, the other patients and nurses in the tent on the other hand were silent ever since Sunny entered the tent.

"Excuse me, is Roy Roxas in here? The press is waiting for him" A soldier who just arrived asked.

***

"Fuck" Luke immediately cursed as soon as he regained his consciousness and groaned.

He sat on the ground and checked his body and couldn't help but amazed seeing how he was completely healed up even though Icefrog already told him that it would be the case. "Holy shit, Reactive Armor is so overpowered"

He stood up but as soon as he did so he plopped down to the ground as he lost his strength on his legs. "My legs are in static" he couldn't help but wryly smile remembering the awkward position of his body when he fell unconscious a few hours ago.

The army actually patrolled around the area but simply passed by where he was because he entered someone's property. When he decided to take a last stand against the creeps he realized that the road was a bad place to do it thus he decided to find a place narrow enough that the creeps wouldn't be able to easily surround him.

But of course with the creeps already in front of him, he still had to fight his way before he managed to find the appropriate place and he was so wounded in the process and the bloody road and mangled flesh was all the soldiers saw in the area, making them believe that Luke already died.

It was already evening by the time Luke regained his unconscious and he was greeted by the dark neighborhood lacking of the usual noise of people.

A few minutes later, he eventually managed to stand by himself as he picked up his hammer beside him. Seeing his tattered clothes, he bashed the door of the house open as he silently said sorry to the owner.

The owner was obviously quite well off with how luxurious everything inside the house was. Entering the bedroom, he opened the closet and saw that it was the walk-in kind. Filled with clothes, he saw that they were all branded and he couldn't help but want to grab everything.

His own closet is filled with clothes that his brothers didn't want to wear anymore. It's not that he couldn't afford buying clothes but rather he didn't want to spend his money on clothes instead of food or other things like electronics or decoration for his small apartment. He figured that he didn't leave the house much anyway, so he might as well not spend much on clothes.

He ended up choosing a navy blue blazer with a white shirt for his top and dark jeans for his bottom along with brown leather shoes. He saw celebrities wearing such clothes so he thought that he'd try it out since he decided that he won't be fighting anymore for today so it would be alright to wear them.

Looking at himself in the mirror he couldn't help but think how nice he looked. "I could get used to this" he couldn't help but blurt out as he laughed at himself.

Before he'd go back and meet up with the army, he decided to go and check the situation in the hospital.

After a half-hour walk, he reached the crossroad before the hospital and saw that he couldn't see any creep from where he was standing. He carefully inched closer and after reaching the corner, he took a peek and saw there also weren't any creeps in front of the hospital!

"What the hell happened here?" he couldn't help but ask as he saw the devastated area filled with the familiar metallic smell of blood. "I definitely did not cause any of these" he mumbled as he stared at his hammer which obviously did not create such bloodshed.

"The altar's also gone, is this related to why the creeps are gone?" he mumbled to himself as he approached the hospital.

Carefully checking his surroundings in case there are any creeps nearby, he reached the entrance of the hospital and noticed that it was locked and saw a snoring security guard inside.

After knocking on the door a few times, the security guard, Joshua, was roused from his sleep as he quickly stood up in attention and opened the door.

"Hehe. Sorry about that. It's been a long day, you see" said Joshua who embarrassedly scratched his cheeks.

"It's okay, I understand" said Luke as he smiled at the silly guard. "But what exactly happened out here? Where are the creeps?"

"Creeps?" Joshua puzzledly asked as he tilted his head when his eyes lit up in understanding "Ah yes! There were young men on the news around your age who called the monsters 'creeps'. Anyway, the monsters who were here are all dead now. Soldiers killed them all but what was amazing was the man accompanying the soldiers! He had superpowers like those in movies and comics! You should have seen it! That man made it snow here! Hahaha! All my life i wished that I could go outside the country to know what snow felt like, then it turned out I would actually experience it here in the Philippines! Hahaha!"

Luke smiled as he thought, 'looks like Roy managed to show off eh?'.

"That does sound amazing, do you know where he is right now?" He asked.

Joshua shrugged and said, "I don't know, last time I saw him was when he was interviewed on the news. Oh! I forgot to mention, that man is actually Senator Roxas' son! So maybe he went back to Manila? I don't really know"

"Oh" was all Luke could reply as he was just too terribly shocked at the moment. 'What the fuck?! He's a senator's son?! I knew he had some background but i didn't think he had such a deep one! Shit! I hit on a senator's daughter!' He cursed inwardly.

Shaking his mind off the Roxas siblings for the moment, he asked Joshua, "Do you perhaps know a nurse here named Lyndon Rivera?"

"Oh you're also looking for him? The Roxas kid was also looking for him when he came here. Last time I saw him was when he left with the Roxas kid's men, so he's probably safe if you're wondering" Said Joshua.

Luke then thanked Joshua and left the hospital still in shock of the revelation of Roy and Sunny's identity. Since there were no cars in the area, he had no choice but to walk towards the army's HQ as he wondered how he should treat his new friends the next time he sees them.