Sim felt light on his feet as he stood in the background in what looked like two other people in this room. They each held a sword and they were surrounded by various weapons of every type lying strewn about the floor. One of the swords caught Sim’s attention as the edge glowed and a faint golden aura emanated from the sword. Sim approached the sword warily, his curiosity getting the best of him.

“Ava?” Sim thought.

A fire had broken out as Heath was there by her side with bird-like arms and the body of a human angrily. An elegant dark brown haired man sat casually leaning back in his chair watching the scene unfold in front of him. A slight smirk was etched into his face as he glanced at the sword, which was currently glowing brightly, then at Ava who was trying to calm Heath down.

“So you figured out my plan eh?” He smirked.

“Ava!” Sim shouted.

“You can’t interact here, Sim,” Helix smiled.

The world around him washed away again. He shook himself free from Helix, who was now floating near the ceiling on the library ladder looking through the books. Sim glared at Helix who gave him a smug expression, crossing his arms in front of his chest, clearly showing he didn’t take Sim seriously. He was always so confident and confident. Always.

They both heard the door open which had Sim and Helix panic for a moment before they saw it was only Heath entering the room. Both their hearts started racing again, which made Helix give Sim an amused look. Sim ignored him. If he had wanted to mess with Helix that much then he would have done it long ago. The man knew Sim was weak. And that pissed Sim off greatly.

“Oh, good Ava isn’t here!” Heath cried.

“What happened?” Sim asked.

He held tightly to a large egg in his hand while he tried not to drop it. It seemed to be burning hot but when he squeezed the egg it released a strong heat that Sim could feel in his hands.

“Helix, I need you to keep this till the time is right!” He demanded.

Sim watched as Helix happily took the egg from Heath's hands. The egg emitted a vibrant glow, casting a warm and comforting light in the room. Sim's curiosity grew, and he couldn't help but wonder what secrets this mysterious egg held.

As Helix cradled the egg delicately, it pulsated with energy, almost as if it had a life of its own. Sim's eyes widened in awe as he felt a wave of heat wash over him, emanating from the egg's surface. It was as if the egg contained a powerful force waiting to be unleashed.

“We will make a spot for the egg…please don’t worry Heath,” Helix smiled.

“Thank you so much! It’s so important and Master Sim you are officially starting training as you can no longer put this off,” Heath scolded.

“I have one request Heath,” Sim smiled.

“What could that be Master Sim?” He thought.

“I am ready to have the rune carved into my flesh,” Sim replied.

Heath and Helix gawked at each other in disbelief. Why would he want that now? Heath opened his mouth to speak but was interrupted by Helix.

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“Master Sim! If you come back to the real world you will still have those words carved into you! Please think about your health!” He scolded.

“I will be stuck or killed and I don’t like either option!” Sim shouted.

Sim grabbed the pen knife on the coffee table carving the rune symbols into his palm while Helix, and even Heath just watched helplessly. Helix didn’t know what to say, and neither did Heath for that matter. They knew he wanted more knowledge than they could provide, but what he was doing wasn’t wise.

“It’s supposed to be a tattoo!” Helix noted.

His hand dripping with blood , Sim finally let go of the knife and looked at his palm. The rune symbols were etched into his skin leaving a red streak. His mind was reeling. How could he carve runes into his palms? How? How could he do anything? He was still learning. What if he got hurt during a battle?

“Did I miss something?” Ava asked.

They all gave her a blank expression as Sim held the palm of his hand up to show her. He was shaking slightly. She took in his trembling figure and noticed his arm was stained in blood. She stared at the runes.

“I can barely see it. How can you see it?” She said quietly.

She took the penknife from Helix, who watched Sim closely as he slowly reached forward

and touched the runes, and immediately recoiled with a scream.

“Stop!” Helix yelled as she threw the knife down.

“If he wants it done then allow me to do it right!” Ava scolded.

They became silent as she continued after picking the knife back up, carefully cutting across Sim’s palm, using delicate movements, making sure it wouldn't cut him too badly. Her eyes were narrowed in concentration, the only sounds filling the room being the sound of the knife scraping against Sim’s skin. Her hand was covered in sweat as she worked on the symbol.

Sim blushed realizing he was allowing this woman to touch his hands without his consent. He turned away and stared at a painting hung on the wall in silence, letting the tension fill the air. He didn't trust himself to say anything. Finally she was finished, and dropped the blade onto the desk beside the book he had been reading earlier.

“You can’t train with this carving until the blood has dried…Heath can you pass the first aid kit first,” Ava asked.

Ava wrapped his wound with clean gauze and bandaged it tightly. Sim’s head was throbbing, his body exhausted as it fought the pain. He could see Helix staring at him intently. Sim sighed and sat down at the table, taking some water in an attempt to dull the pain.

He could feel his veins sting with pain spread throughout his entire body, like he was sitting under a waterfall. He could feel the tingling sensation of his skin healing itself. Finally the pain faded away and he felt his wounds fading away. His hands stopped shaking and the markings on his skin disappeared from his palm. After everything had healed, he sat there in shock.

Standing up he watched as he felt vines climb up his legs as he reached for the warmth of the earth calling out to him from beneath his feet. The grass below him seemed to move as if alive and growing in response to the call. As he stared at his own hand, he suddenly had the urge to reach down and touch the grass. His hand moved toward the grass instinctively.

[Call to nature.]

“Grab him! It’s because I stopped him from his level ten quest!” Ava shouted.

“Master Ava, why did you help him carve that rune?!” Heath yelled.

“His resolve to live no matter what!” Ava smiled.

Sim's sudden trip over a pile of books sent them sprawling onto the ground, Helix slammed his fist into Sim’s stomach to stop him from going any further. He was already weakened from being nearly unconscious and after being knocked over like that. Sim groaned as he tried to get up while Helix stood behind him holding his arm and glaring at Helix who had a satisfied grin on his face.

“Come,” Helix commanded.

“Wh-t…” Sim thought.

“If you bring that needle around me I will fuck you up Heath!” Helix threatened.

Heath looked disappointed as he held the needle between his thumb and forefinger. Helix snatched it out of his hand before walking toward Sim as Heath followed holding the needle in his hand like he meant business.

“He doesn’t need that just needs a good ass kicking!” Helix shouted.

“This is so he wouldn’t kick up hallucinations from the NPC quest!” Heath argued.

“Stop!” Sim yelled.

“Do I need you both in a corner?” Ava snickered.

Heath glared angrily at Helix, but decided to shut his trap and leave the two men alone as they bantered among themselves about how ridiculous Helix was and how foolish it was to act petty on the subject.

“That illusion again?” Sim whispered.

“It will get better with time, but you work on swaying yourself away from it mentally,” She noted.

She was reading a book as she spoke, looking over it occasionally. She placed the book down as she heard them still bickering.

“What if it happens again and no one can snap me out of it?” He asked.

“I expect you will try to fight it,” Ava smirked.

Looking into her eyes he could feel something he hadn’t before; he felt the urge to protect her. Protect everyone. He had never felt this way for anyone before, not even when it came to protecting his family. He had never wanted anyone else to suffer so much. To be so alone in their lives. To feel such pain and loneliness, like he did. He couldn’t imagine what Ava had gone through in her past. She must have been suffering so badly. She must have lost so many people.

“How did you survive this long when the others haven’t?” He questioned.

“Helix, do you have a modern television set?” She requested.

“I do, why?” He thought.