The Barbarian Encampment, Virford Mountain

Two men were tasting the virtual liquor in a local tavern.

“So she kicked your ass,” Robert Walker burst into laughter.

“N-No! Well, sort of…” James’ face reddened. “Would you stop laughing, uncle Rob...”

“I can’t help it, ha-ha. What is wrong with Virford Mountain, one girl made you look like fools.” He was laughing with tears. “Just check this video,” Robert shared a virtual window.

The Great Escape from Virford Mountain and Empress’ first interview by Chika...

“My God, she was helped by that African girl.” James guessed right the role of the exotic beauty. “So she’s a vlogger?”

“Chika Yoruba! A Vlogger, a copywriter and a gamer,” Robert confirmed. “This video has been trending these days,” Rob added with a smile.

"I've never heard of her…"

"Me neither. And Empress happens to be a small gaming streamer. Well, they both grew in popularity these days. But you already know that." Robert grinned.

James watched the whole thing. In the video, his faction was made to look even more pathetic.

“A single amazon against an entire faction...” James’ was repeating some words with chest pain. “That’s bullshit!”

“Sounds magnificent to me,” Sofia chuckled. She had came together with a young boy.

“M-Miss Sofia,” Robert was no longer laughing, he coughed nervously. “I-I am a dedicated fan of yours... I-I was in Paris,” Robert gasped for air before continuing, “when you won Worlds!”

“And you must be Robert,” the mature lady said and smiled gently.

“A-At your service, madam!” Robert made a clumsy attempt to kiss her hand, but Sofia thought that’s unnecessary. They shook hands instead.

Robert and his TPK guild were part of Basel Republic. He had decided to make a trip to see his friend James, or that’s what he stated. They had some bad memories after James’ drunk scandal at TPK tavern, it was a chance to wash it all in alcohol. But James knew that Robert’s a diehard fan of Sofia Romero, and his entire visit was an excuse to meet her. Naturally, James invited her to the meeting as well.

“Empress,” Sofia pronounced with pride, “name with powerful vibes, a female leader to be feared of.” She winked at James.

“Sofia, not you as well…” James groaned.

“MISS Sofia,” Robert was not satisfied by that casual way of speaking, then turned his head towards her, “complete lack of respect, miss, today's youngsters are mannerless!”

James Rodriguez celebrated his 40th birthday not long ago. He was also a divorced father. Calling him a youngster was rather unfamiliar in the past decade.

Nonetheless, Robert was simply winning points in front of his crush, so James could only facepalm and play along.

“Miss Sofia,” James corrected himself.

“Oh my,” Sofia exclaimed. “I see that the positive influence of your friend works splendidly on you, James.”

“I’m trying my hardest to school this child for the past 25 years, miss!” Robert bragged.

“The video is a blast, Empress is amazing,” an actual child’s voice ringed, it was Archi. “Here, uncle James, this is when she slips through the crowd!”

James was watching through his fingers.

“Exactly,” Sofia was playing with a glass of red wine, “while our faction members are killing and looting each other.”

“She was not alone!” James defended his faction, and mainly himself as a participant. “Look at this part,” he rewound the video and pointed at the virtual screen. “See, not only the vlogger girl but two other men are acting to sabotage the hunt! And wait to see the late arrivals, they created the escape route,” shortly after James pointed at Brian, Carlos, Pavel, and Josh.

“Even so, our faction couldn’t handle a couple of people,” Archi had a smug face. “How many players we have around, half a million or something?”

James was holding his head in both hands, ignoring his surroundings.

“Let’s not tease James forever,” Sofia said. “But to declare war to Virford Mountain, just what is this Petven clan?”

“The speculations are that it is a mysterious clan of mages, the seventh clan!” Archi replied.

“I thought there were only six clans ruling the faction?” Robert was confused.

“We all thought that way, dear Robert,” Sofia replied. “At the Barbarian encampment, no NPC is aware of that clan's existence. Of course, it’s not like we can ask the highest rank NPCs either.”

“I see,” Robert realized, “your average NPCs aren’t conscious of Petven's existence.”

“Indeed,” Sofia took a sip from the wine glass, “they could also be afraid to talk, we can’t know for sure.”

“But what if that girl is the single member of the seventh clan?” Robert was curious. “She came along with some kid, and barely escaped with the help of several people. Where are the other clan members?”

“Well, that’s the million-dollar question, isn’t it?” Sofia replied.

ERATHA KINGDOM

“I am not even a fucking member,” Anissa was fuming, “I am just an apprentice.”

Shir’tana was sitting in the corner, like a boy who accepted the blame after a childish prank.

“The important thing is you have escaped alive from Virford Mountain…” Brian said.

"On the good side, you are a hot topic, Ani." Josh noted.

"A blessing in disguise," Carlos agreed, "although streaming could become problematic from now on."

"Impossible honestly," she sighed.

"Our main concern is to deal with stream snipers," Brian warned.

"The exposure is huge," Pavel added, "you should capitalize on it."

"There are too many people who want me dead right now," Anissa complained.

"True, in fact, in several online forums your assassination turned into a competition with actual price and everything," Carlos chuckled.

"WHAT?" She doubted his words.

"Err, you might want to check this," Josh shared online search results.

Brave New World - Empress' assassination price.

Anissa read several titles in astonishment.

Pavel whistled, "five grand, eh?"

"Wealthy people are paying for entertainment," Carlos said indifferently, "the price should rise the longer you live."

"Motherfuckers…"

"Even with solid time delay streaming would be extremely risky…" Josh expressed concern while reading the comments of online bounty hunters.

"You can consider releasing a video content," Carlos suggested, "why not working with that Nigerian girl again?"

"She edited the escape rather well," Brian agreed.

"It’s alternative to streaming I suppose,” Anissa showed interest. She was used to make a living by gaming. “I should take advantage of my current fame."

“Any future videos should be edited wisely," Carlos warned, "we are still not fully aware of your class progress."

"I know…" Anissa thought the same. "Huh?" She stared at a system message.

"What's up?"

Anissa shared the message to them.

"Invitation to meet an official?" Brian was surprised.

"It should be a meeting with an important NPC," Carlos said.

"24 hours before guards are assigned to bring you in?" Pavel raised an eyebrow at a line of the message.

"I already lost my PK status after I completed quests for the local church." Anissa was convinced notoriety was not an issue.

"Why do you have to be so negative," Josh was excited, "what if your class status unlocked so-"

"It sounds like an ultimatum. The earlier you meet that NPC, the better, " Carlos interrupted Josh. It was rare for him to act impatiently.

"I have nothing better to do anyway." In the past week, she was cautious of her surroundings. She had done quests for the church of Eratha. Particularly, quests connected to exterminating monsters tagged as servants of the dark. Those quests provided a slight experience boost. It was important to keep the power level in order to survive.

“Time to meet the NPC official Dominic.” She said before leaving.

30 minutes later she came back in a rather gloomy mood. At that time only Pavel was around. Still, the technology allowed players to share information with the outside world through standard devices.

“You don’t look excited,” Pavel noticed.

“Give me a moment,” Anissa sat down and lifted her legs on another chair.

She then enabled the sound for the group chat so her speech could be heard by the rest. The conversation was set to recording, so there was no need for the boys to stay put. Everyone would learn the information eventually.

“There’s not much to say really,” Anissa sighed, “I got exiled.”

“Eh,” Pavel was dumbfounded, “what do you mean by that?”.

“I am factionless,” she shared her status.

Starting point: Eratha Kingdom

Current Faction: None

“The official said that Eratha Kingdom must stay neutral to the conflict between Petven and Virford Mountain.” She continued. “I am persona non grata for the faction.”

“What the…” Pavel was speechless.

“I could cancel my class quest, but really, fuck that option. Also, I can’t stay in Eratha,” Anissa was checking her inventory, “or else I risk to get attacked by the local guards. I have 48 hours to leave.”

“Ma head’s mince...” Josh’s Scottish accent kicked from an outside device.

“What’s the plan then,” Pavel was concerned, “should we all leave the Kingdom?”

“Of course not. At least not until forced, or have a better option.” Anissa said. “The importance of the factions is still unclear. So far we’ve seen specific quests and events that are given to faction members. They can be helpful in ways to grow in Brave New World.”

“Anissa,” it was Brian, “I will have a couple more days to play consistently.” The 32 years old American, Brian Steiner had been involved with the family business soon after he graduated from Thomas Jefferson High School for Science and Technology. Around that time his father suffered a heart attack, and somewhere along the way, his father passed away.

“Same,” Carlos added. Carlos Rocha was the same age and also an American citizen. He graduated in the same elite high school as Brian. Unlike him though, he later continued his education at New York University.

Brian and Carlos kept in touch after their graduation. They chatted about the most recent news related to information technology and VR development. At some point, they played together The Forsaken Masters, and both of them were grinding gear and discussing builds. However, they never had enough time to spare on playing. Instead, they were hooked by that elite player known as Empress. Her builds were unique and powerful; back then she was steadily climbing the ladder in the still active ARPG game.

The three of them got to know each other in-game. Eventually, Anissa started streaming The Forsaken Masters, and the boys had someone close to achieve their gaming dreams for them.

“I might have a bit extra time in comparison to Brian and Carlos, but I assume I would still be underleveled to assist you properly, Ani.” Josh was not optimistic either. Josh Wood was 28 years old, from Scotland. He was an honest and kind person. Josh was too shy to befriend Anissa even in-game. He followed The Forsaken Masters closely and was one of the first people to support Anissa when she got into streaming. He was presumably less wealthy than the rest, even so, his contribution to the stream was consistently hitting the donation cap set by Anissa.

“Guys, I don’t want to turn into a burden for you. Your support has kept me in the game for years by now!” Anissa’s tone felt soft.

“I don’t plan to stay in Eratha without you,” Pavel was determined, “but you would still need more comrades!”

Pavel was the more mysterious of Anissa’s top supporters. Based on his own statements: He was 24 years old, he was from Russia, and he was, Pavel loved that idiom, “filthy rich”. Pavel would often hit on Anissa but remain respectful. Also, he would often have an argument with Josh, yet stay polite towards Brian and Carlos. He was never bothered by IRL responsibilities.

“I fully support the comrades part,” Brian was already in Brave New World when said that, “also, you should stay silent about your faction status.”

“That’s my idea as well. The longer it stays secret that I got exiled, the better.” Anissa continued. “About the comrades part… you know me, I don’t put my trust in someone lightly. I will stay low and focus on my class progression, anything else I would treat as a bonus.”

“But what about the other factions?” Carlos was curious.

“From what the official Dominic had told me, the nobles of Eratha Kingdom insisted to cut the ties with me and send me away. I shouldn’t have issues with other factions, as- ”

“As long as you don’t become a member?” Brian finished her sentence.

“Exactly,” Anissa confirmed. “I assume a faction membership at this point will turn similarly to what happened with Eratha.”

“Or you would have to prove your high worth to a faction, so you can receive their unconditional support?” Carlos spoke his mind.

“Or that, but there are no guarantees, it’s only an assumption.” She replied. “And objectively speaking, right now, I am not strong enough to impress anyone. I am miss nobody.”

A short silence followed and it let them analyze the full picture.

“On top of that pile of shit, I have some good news. Right after I lost my faction status, a new class-related quest popped up, and it’s about a memory fragment; at this stage, any information about Petven is of great importance to me.”

“So we are about to participate in one of our final adventures together?” Brian had a warm smile.

“Mhmm… led by our beloved, factionless Empress,” Carlos joked.

"Ouch," Anissa pretended her heart got stabbed, "one day I will build my own Empire."

“Hey, I am not planning to go anywhere, gentlemen,” Pavel said.

“We will help you get that fragment, Ani!” Josh assured her. “In the next couple of days, we will be like nomads on an everyday adventure.”

Anissa’s chest felt warm, moments like those were rare for an orphan. She had still no idea when that happened, but she was surrounded by great friends.

‘Playing games turned that way, eh?’ Her face under the headset blushed, that reaction was gradually transferred to Brave New World.

“Huh, someone’s face is-”

“Shut it, Pavel!” She stepped forward and spread her arms towards the boys.

Shortly after, they all stood next to her.

‘This virtual hug... feels so real… Not like I… hugged much in my life…’ She felt teary all of sudden and had to battle the desire to cry.

“Wha-,” something bumped into her leg and she turned her head.

“I will help too, sister!” Shir’tana hugged her leg.

“We will help each other, little brother, our adventure is mutual after all,” she patted his head. At that time, nobody noticed that she had secretly wiped a tear of joy from her face.