And just like that, we are back to square one: Arturo pointing a gun at my face again. On the one hand, I’ve got my gun with me this time, so I feel a little better about my situation. On the other hand, there’s no ammo, and I haven’t loaded it when I should have.

While I’m once again staring down the barrel of a psychopath’s gun, Maria speaks up:

“Is that a Port Drive ?”

Port Drive? What the hell is that?

Arturo takes a deep breath before addressing his fellow Admin:

“Yes. Yes, it is. But how in the hell was he able to see it? It should look just like an ordinary pendant to any of the other programs.”

“Must be the corruption . . . , ” Maria responds back.

While she seems to have Arturo’s attention, I slowly move one step back to the cabinet to search for shotgun ammo. I’m done being in this guy’s crosshairs, figuratively and literally. Time to take the initiative.

I scavenge through the pile of ammo boxes as quietly as possible, and I can’t help but notice the conversation between Maria and Arturo is getting more intense. I feel like I’ve mentioned this before, but I’ve got to admire someone willing to argue with a guy holding an assault rifle, though maybe that comes from me knowing that she doesn’t come from these parts. The adjustment from peace to constant danger would trip anybody up.

Just when I find a box of shotgun ammo, I hear Arturo yell a loud:

“Hey!”

It almost makes my heart burst out of my chest. Considering everything else that happened last night and this morning, maybe I’m getting a bit soft.

When I turn around to see Arturo, all he asks me is:

“So did you see the light in the drawer?”

Still trying to recover from the surprise, I just reply with a sheepish:

“Y-ya.”

He then turns to Maria, his left hand rising to his face in frustration, and says to her:

“Shit! And just when I thought things couldn’t get any worse . . .”

“Anybody mind telling me what the hell is going on?” I ask in a frustrated and exhausted tone.

This whole night and morning have been long, and at this point, I’m done dealing with all the secrecy and bullshit. Maria, possibly sensing my growing irritation, walks up to me and points at my shotgun.

“Within your shotgun resides a Port Drive, a tool forbidden by the system, which allows for travel between servers,” Maria explains in a monotonous, almost-robotic voice.

“Forbidden? Why? And why the hell does he have one?” I ask, pointing at Arturo.

“For your first question, it is forbidden by the system for anyone to travel between servers. Server-to-server travel is not allowed so as to maintain verisimilitude between ‘worlds,’” she further explains.

Her instruction-video-like explanation and seemingly forced use of big words like 'verisimilitude', give me the creeps. I say 'seemingly' because I barely know her, but it’s weird to see a normal-looking teenager suddenly sounding like an instructional robot.

“As to your second question,” Maria continues, “that is something I’d like to ask about myself.”

She then turns around and gives Arturo a piercing glare.

Arturo, sweating and looking panicked, says:

You could be reading stolen content. Head to the original site for the genuine story.

“I-I don’t need to explain this to you. Besides, you traveled here from a top-tier server. What’s your excuse, huh?”

Wow, what is even going on here? Calm, and in control Arturo the Artist is being put on the defensive by a teenage girl with barely any experience holding a gun.

“I was given proper authorization to travel outside of my server. The circumstances were . . . dire,” she confirms.

“And the same shit is happening here as we speak. Who knows when I need to get out of dodge?” Arturo says, trying desperately to justify why he has a forbidden artifact.

Though part of me has to wonder if he really believes what he’s saying. Why would a guy who gets so broken up about his men dying and turning on him just up and leave them high and dry?

“After all,” Arturo continues, “the corruption has gotten so bad that even this guy can see a Port Drive! On that note, why the hell did you give him that much information about the system? Even if you got proper authorization to leave your server, that could get the Rabbits on your ass for sure!”

Rabbits? What is the deal with these terms?

Before Maria can answer his question, the conversation comes to an abrupt stop when we hear knocking at the door that echoes throughout the entire room. Even though I know who it could have been, I hear a familiar, overly cheerful voice that pretty much confirms my suspicions.

“Mathis, my old pal. Have you been having fun? How has my gift been treating you?”

Before I can give him an answer, Arturo just blurts out:

“Gomer! What the hell happened to him?!”

“Dead, I’m afraid,” Atsushi confirms. “Even with his eyes opened to the truth, he was loyal to the end. How does it feel to have so much blood on your hands?”

Atsushi’s words clearly bother Arturo as all he can do in response is look down and clench his fists hard like he’s trying to crush a rock with his hands.

“Like you’re one to talk!” I respond back, seeing as I’m the only one in the room that appears to be able to speak at the moment.

“Huh, well, you have a point. But in my defense, not only was I helping a friend, but I never gave him an illusion of freedom. In fact, his death was the freest that guard had ever been. He made a choice, and he suffered the consequences. Funny that.” Atsushi explains, trying to justify his actions. He talks like some great liberator, yet he justifies senseless murder.

“You don’t have a damn clue about what you’re talking about, kid!” Arturo finally speaks up, his head still staring down at the floor and his fists balled up tight.

“Oh, one of the jailers speaks. Mind if I come in? It’s rude to leave a guest waiting.”

Just as Atsushi finishes voicing his request, the door flies straight across the room, passing between the weapon shelves, and slamming violently into the wall where the windows should have been. As the three of us look at the door embedded into the wall, footsteps reverberate throughout the room. He’s coming.

It’s been a minute, and Atsushi is still making his way into the room like he thinks he’s a slasher in a horror movie. Which server did Maria and Atsushi come from anyway? From their uniforms, I assume it’s a 'Japanese school' world, modeled after romantic-comedy anime and manga. Still, these two won’t fit into any of the ones I’ve seen or read. Both seem way too cold for a genre that’s usually so lightheart—

Son of a bitch! Why the hell does my mind seem to wander at the worst possible times? Does my curiosity mean more than my life?

Before I go back down that headache-inducing path, Arturo looks at Maria and me and then asks us:

“Think we can take him?”

Maria, trying her damnedest not to show a shred of emotion, answers with a simple:

“No.”

“Come on! There’re two Admins in the room!” Arturo barks back.

Arturo then points at me before continuing:

“And even ‘Mr. Media Hunter’ over there seems like he can hold his own in a scrap.”

“Atsush—A-Crash is not something that should be underestimated, Mr. Santana. To do so would doom this server to a fate similar to mine,” Maria grimly tells Arturo.

“A-Crash?”

Maria then confirms, “The true designation of the being you call Atsushi.”

“Even I could have told you that by the designs. Get your damn head in the game.” Arturo yells at me

“Fine! Do either of you have a plan?” I ask, about as annoyed as Arturo.

“Well, we can use the other two doors,” Arturo suggests.

"What doors-!?"

Before I can finish my question, Arturo claps his hands, and two doors fade into existence on the walls furthest to the left and right, replacing the guns that were lining them. I guess that answers the question about the point of the other two doors.

“Right or left?” Maria asks.

“You left, us right,” Arturo clarifies.

“Do we even kn—”

Atsushi finally comes into view, interrupting me.

Arturo then orders, “We need to go! Now!”

Just like that, we all make a break for our respective doors. As Maria moves to her door, she slips something into my coat pocket. When Arturo opens the door, white light pours out, with no sign of what is on the other side.

With a psychotic superpowered teenager on our heels, Arturo and I make a break through the door into a hallway of white light, not knowing what awaits us.

Man, what the hell is even going on right now?

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