Ona

Level 8

Loaf pulled me into the game before I could remove the equipment. “I’m leveling up Bromme! The Source Aura is a great in-game resource. Where did you find her?”

“She found you,” I said.

The connection flickered and the screen blurred with a loud static crackle. I pounded the desk in the real world and I was back online, in the tower, sitting across from Onisa in the guest room.

The sound of voices interrupted our conversation. I breathed a sigh of relief. 

Onisa stood up from the chair and glared at the opening in the wall. She appeared to recognize the voices and shouted into the void, “Go away!”

I laughed as she turned to glare at me. “Watch your emotions or the game will log you out.”

Onisa said, “I’m a non-player character.”

I said, “Prove it…share your motions with the group. I think you’re one of the developers.”

Onisa said, “The game is not a therapy session.”

The noise from outside caused both of us to turn and look for signs of the approaching conversation.

The king of the Crystal Breakers entered the room with an attendant using the opening in the guest room wall. “…And the red knight should be in here.”

The Crystal Breakers attendant followed the king into the room. “Hello! We are the last of our kind.”

I said, “What happened to the others?”

Onisa motioned for me to pay respect to the king as she bowed. I did the same, a mirror of her formal gestures.

The king said, “A magic user cleared the mountain caverns of all creatures and features. She was guiding a man who appeared to think he was fighting his way through a series of challenging opponents.”

 I laughed, “And inside the game world, the magic user was simply baiting the monsters and removing them before the fight got too dangerous.” I watched the occasional status update and video replay of his adventure. The magic user is somehow locking me out of the shared connection.

The king said, “The magic user was a lead programmer. I was too, until the game was discontinued.”

I reached out and hugged Onisa and she smiled.

I said, “Are you the avatar of a player or a character in the game?”

“A woman must keep her secrets.”

“Did you recruit me to save the Ona project?”

Onisa shook her head in denial.

The attendant to the king of the said, “The software engineers, programmers, and all support teams have abandoned the project.”

I said, “And who are you?”

The attendant said, “The Memory Keeper of Kiloss.”

I said, “Is the game still active?”

Onisa raised a hand to stop the attendant from speaking. The king of the Crystal Breakers raised an eyebrow, but did not protest her interruption.

I found a chair and sat down, wanting a good story.

Onisa said, “The last memory keeper is the server stack where the game developers updated the code and introduced new features. The power will be shut down to close all outside connections in the wild. He was instructed to run a backup for insurance purposes.”

I said, “I feel like I’m talking to company employees, and not game characters in a fantasy world.”

The king said, “Bromme should hear the secret. The reason the game was not shut down when the company closed development.”

The others nodded in agreement.

The king said, “Ona is real.”

I was confused. “Real?”

The king said, “In my opinion, we can regain control by causing the Source Aura to react with exaggerated human emotions. The sensory input will log her out of the game world.”

The attendant said, “The flower field is simply a detailed recording of the characters and their actions. The restored characters will have the last recorded level.”

I stepped into the conversation with the intention of leading the group. “So we can build an army of advanced characters without the original subscribers logged into the game?”

Onisa said, “Yes, Bromme. I will lead the quest.”

I glared at the red knight in frustration, “I could lead the quest.”

Onisa returned the same look and I started laughing.

Onisa said, “No.”

The group fell silent as the sound of a stampede reached the guest room.

Onisa said, “Ideas?” She looked from the king of the Crystal Keepers to the Memory Keeper of Kiloss.

I said, “Onisa, do you think the Source Aura was gathering the monsters from all the realms?”

The group responded unison with a confident, “Impossible.”

I had the feeling one outside player was in charge of the characters in the room. I considered the possibility and said, “If you want my help, tell me who you are. I’m here for Loaf. He appears to be gathering the big game monsters into one location.”

Onisa said, “Impossible.”

I said, “Loaf is no longer in the caverns.”

The attendant said, “Perhaps you are speaking the truth Bromme. The guest player uses a paired subscriber account. So who is in the caverns? We are the last of our kind.”

I said, “We paid for the shared subscription!”

The opening in the guest room wall was blocked and the group left the tower, making their way to the surface.

Ona walked down the hill to meet us at the tower door.

I said, “Loaf is breaking the game.”

The attendant helped him step over a stack of stones into the open air.

The Crystal Keepers king said, “Stop your friend.”

The small creatures, once the proud inhabitants of the crystal caverns waved goodbye and ran to the edge of the forest. I could see them greeted by a lone forest fairy as the creatures vanished from sight.

Onisa reached out to hold my hand. “Pro gamers have a blind spot, in my experience. Too much confidence in their ability to survive the unknown. I will share the secrets of this world.”

Ona said, “Level 9.”

© J. Bateman

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