Breathing heavily from the experience of being attacked by those insectoid creatures, Han looked around and found himself back in the area with all the weapons. He was in some type of containment unit, seeing the glass casing surrounding him. Looking to his side, he saw his mother and sister. Past his mother and sister, he could see two other people. Just by guessing, Han figured that they were Ruby and Ivy.
"Ahhh!" His mother yelled out, reaching for her head. She seemed to have regained consciousness and remembered how she had died. Touching her head, she realized that she was okay and wasn't in danger. He saw her chest heaving from dealing with such a traumatic experience. Frantically, she began looking around and noticed him. Seeing him okay, tears were coming down her face. Placing a hand on the glass, she tried to talk to him.
"I can't hear you," He said, hoping that she could understand from just the movement of his lips. With his fingers pointing at his ears, Han figured that it would also convey the message to her.
His mother nodded her head and proceeded to wipe away her tears of joy.
Behind his mother, Han could see his sister scrambling in panic after regaining consciousness. Trying to get her attention, Han used a finger to indicate to his mother for her to look behind her.
At first, she looked confused and pointed a finger at her chest. When she saw him shaking his head and raising his finger while still pointing, she turned around and noticed Jennifer. Walking over to the other side, she tried to get Jennifer's attention.
------
Several moments went by and slowly there was a hissing noise as the glass tube rose up. Once it went past his head, he saw his mother and sister running towards him.
"Han! You're okay!" His mother cried out and held him.
Jennifer simply embraced him, crying her eyes out.
"Han!" Ruby and Ivy's voice was heard as they also approached him.
"Happy to see that the two of you are okay," he said to them. Looking at their faces, he could see that they still had a slightly haunted look.
Ivy turned back and pointed out, "Grace and Harmony also made it back."
The two women were hugging one another, happy that they were alive. Grace looked up and saw him looking at her. She raised her arm and waved at him, along with Harmony.
After his mother and sister seemed to grasp that he was okay, they let him go.
"How are we here?" His mother asked. "I remember you shouting out and then the world going black. There was a feeling of intense pain around my neck, and then I'm here."
"Mom...," Jennifer's voice quivered.
His mother looked at Jennifer and then to him, looking for answers.
"You died, mom," he said to her. "Back in the forest, one of those insect creatures came out and killed you."
Jennifer wrapped both her arms around herself. "I still remember those things ripping me apart," her body shivered. Tears were still streaming down her face, her face grimacing in pain.
Ivy and Ruby held one another, also having flashbacks to their deaths.
"How did we come back?" Grace asked while having one of her arms wrapped around Harmony. Harmony still looked mentally scarred by the event.
"I apologize for making all of you go through such an event. It's something all players have to experience in order to be able to handle the simulation." Jade's voice called out.
Looking over to his left, Han saw Jade and the other players standing in the middle of the room.
Steve had a guilty look, saying, "Sorry about not telling you guys, but it's kind of like a right of passage in this place. We've all had to go through it at least once, so we understand how fucked up the process is."
"You guys knew?!" Ivy yelled out at them. "What kind of monsters are you, people?!" Her lips were trembling, likely out of anger and dealing with her memories.
"I can't believe that this game hasn't been made illegal!" Grace also yelled out. She looked back at Harmony, concern written all over her face.
Jinx stepped forward and loudly clapped her hands together. "This is not a game. Being able to handle death is also important to survive." Her voice was emotionless, matching her apathetic gaze at Grace and Ivy.
"Jinx is right. The fact that you guys wanted to train to fight off those creatures, you must have also known what was at stake." Kimberly said. "Those things are powerful with their ability to adapt, meaning that many people who are still alive will die. This simulation helps fulfill two of the major requirements needed to survive in this type of environment."
"What do you mean?" His mother asked.
"Dealing with a helpless situation and understanding the value of living," Jade answered. "Just learning how to use the suit and weapon isn't enough for the situation we're currently in. You need to be able to adapt to various combat scenarios, understanding what's the best route to take so that as many of your team members can survive. Experiencing the terror that comes with death and seeing it, you'll be able to keep a cool head but also know that every life is valuable."
"Yeah. We didn't do this to be assholes, but to get you guys to understand what's at stake." Steve said. He still looked pretty beat up with how they looked, his face indicated how horrible he felt about the issue while still having a severe expression.
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Han got the feeling that Steve was the type of person who was always cheerful and goofed off, but deep down he valued his teammates.
"You guys are right," Han's mother said. "Because of how easy it seemed to fight those monsters, I became complacent and didn't focus on the main task. This caused me to put myself and my children in danger." His mother's hands clenched into tight fists, shaking from her anger towards herself.
Jennifer used her arm to wipe away her tears. "No, mom, we're also to blame for not taking this seriously. I'm the older sibling, so protecting my baby brother is my job. I allowed my emotions to control me, even if it was after seeing you die. What I should have done is prepare for what came after your death and looked after Han."
"It's good that you guys understand the lessons that were handed down to you during the simulation," Jade said. "This place is a precious resource, where we can develop our skills and teamwork so that we don't get ourselves or others killed in the real world."
"I-I-I want to t-try again," Harmony blurted out.
Though she didn't look as determined as his mother and sister, Harmony still looked ready to go back in.
"Good," Jade nodded her head.
------
The smell of food was delightful, as he walked up to one of the machines and checked out the food available. Looking at the screen in front of him, he had a wide range of choices available. There were the typical hot foods, such as hamburgers, ramen, pizza, and steak. Also, there were cold foods, like subs, sandwiches, salads, and cold noodles.
Pressing a finger onto the screen, Han selected ramen and chose pork as the meat flavoring for the soup. Adding in some sides to go in the meal, such as an extra soft-boiled egg and pork belly, he walked over to the area where people were waiting for their orders.
As he was walking over, Han noticed Steve in the waiting area. Steve glanced in his direction and saw Han heading towards him and waved a hand.
"Looks like we had similar ideas," Steve said.
"Yeah. I just needed to walk around and my stomach yelled at me." Han answered. "What did you get?"
"I was thinking of cold noodles, especially after finishing training. I'll probably get steak later tonight." Steve said. "How about you?"
"Pork ramen," Han grinned.
As the two of them stood there waiting, Steve broke the silence. "I'm sorry for what we did. I remember the first time I went through it and I wasn't the same for a while."
Han shook his head. "I understand why you guys had us go through such an event. Though it was several days ago, I still feel myself trying to shake off the experience." He rolled his head like he was trying to get rid of an uncomfortable feeling. "Looking at the others, I think the experience was something that helped give them the motivation to train harder." Motioning with his thumb, he said, "I saw the girls heading towards the gym. They still looked haunted, but there was a determination in their gaze." He looked at Steve.
Steve slightly grinned at learning this information. "They are a lot stronger than I was back then. I don't think I could move onto training so quickly."
"Yeah. I know with my mom, she's someone who has a lot of mental strength. I don't know if I could have gone through the same thing she had to deal with and still be able to smile as she does." He said.
Hearing Han's words, Steve looked like he wanted to ask a question, but decided against it.
"I still can't believe you guys have the level of technology that you guys do," Han chuckled.
"We are definitely fortunate. That simulation has helped me when we get sent on scouting missions. I've had people take shots at me, though those are nothing compared to running into those things." Steve's voice started out cheerful but became severe at the end.
Cocking his head to his side, Han asked, "I thought those things tended to wait for ambush opportunities?"
Steve took a deep breath, saying, "Normally that's true, but occasionally you'll have a pack of those things roaming around the town. I think some of them enjoy chasing after people or breaking into houses."
"Guess that means looking for people we know is out of the question," Han said. He thought about Claire, Hannah, Alex, Lily, and Sam and wondered how they were doing. His thoughts also went to his classmates and teammates.
Steve placed a hand on Han's shoulder, shaking his head. "The fact that you guys were killed so easily means that you guys aren't ready to go out into the world and face those things. Even if all of you were able to kill a few, the act of fighting them would mean those things would get stronger. If you guys even tried to leave, we would be forced to stop you. There's more at stake than just your friends and people in the city." The hand on Han's shoulder slowly squeezed to apply pressure on him.
A vibrating noise was heard along with a green flashing light. Han looked down and noticed that it came from Steve's bracelet.
"Guess my food is up," he laughed and walked over to the wall where there were several doors. He tapped his wrist to the glass panel and a green ring turned on. Steve opened up the door and took out his tray. As he was walking over to the tables, he looked back at Han and smiled.
Han figured that Steve was letting him know that they could talk later if Han had any more questions. He watched as other people walked to the front to grab their food once it was ready. Thinking back to what Steve had told him, about those creatures coming out and hunting people, Han felt relief that they didn't run into any while they went to the mall and inside of the mall. "I wonder how long I'll be able to go without using my abilities," he muttered in a quiet voice.
A girl standing near him looked at him strangely. He noticed her look and gave her an awkward laugh, hoping that she just thought he was crazy for talking to himself.
He felt a buzzing sensation and looked at his bracelet, which was flashing green and a number on it. Going up to the wall filled with doors where people could pick up their foods, he went to the door that was flashing green and matched the number on his bracelet. Opening the door, he breathed in the delicious pork ramen scent. Grabbing the tray, Han headed over to where the tables were located.
Grabbing a seat, he picked up the chopsticks that came on the tray and shoveled the noodles into his mouth. Slurping the noodles up, he said, "This tastes just as awesome as always." He enjoyed the soft-boiled egg and the pork belly. Both were nice and tender while packing a lot of the pork soup flavor.
"I've seen you come here each day and order those noodles every time. Don't you get tired of them?" A man said to him, sitting next to Han.
"I also eat other things on the menu display," Han said defensively.
"I guess I'm not here when you do," the man laughed. "I'm Bill by the way. I've seen you a couple of times and thought I would introduce myself." Bill reached out with a hand.
Han smiled and took the man's offered hand. "It's nice to meet you, Bill. I'm Han; I just arrived here a couple of weeks ago."
"I figured that considering I've been here back when this place was just for players," Bill commented. "Though I wasn't a player and just happened to be here, just like many of the others."
"Are you part of the staff?" Han asked.
Bill shook his head, saying, "I was a friend of one of the players. They were having a tour of the place, open to people visiting the campus. The scouts had looked at various high schools and invited friends of the players and families of the students. Having a party was likely their attempt to make the sport more familiar to those who didn't know about it, and get the parents interested."
"I was wondering why kids were running around in a place that should have only had college kids in it," Han said.
Shrugging his shoulder, Bill said, "It was really fortunate that we were here and the team was practicing on the field. I could only imagine what would have happened if those things had come inside." Bill shuddered at the thought.
"So are you also training?" Han asked.
Bill quickly lifted both of his hands, saying, "No way! My buddy told me what the training is like. I'll leave it to the players who are already trained in fighting against monsters."
Han lifted his bowl, to drink the content of the soup as he listened to Bill.
"I've been told that this place is safe and the food is amazing. I know that they have plenty of people already, so my volunteering wouldn't make much of a difference anyway." Bill continued.
"This is a pretty nice place," Han said, before putting his bowl down. Grinning, Han said, "Well, I need to get going." He picked up his tray and left the table. He didn't want to listen to that man's words any longer.
Going to one of the many tubes in the room, Han opened the cover and dumped the tray and all the contents inside. Those tubes were found all over the place, taking the garbage and sorting the materials, keeping the interior free of waste.
As he walked through the hallway, heading towards the stairs that led to the training floor, Han thought about that man. He understood that not everyone could bring themselves to take care of themselves for various reasons. Back in his old life, he often relied on others to help him. Even his relationships were a likely symptom of his underlying behavior to step back and not get involved in trouble.
When he reached the stair, he made his way to the training floor. He wondered what the others were doing, whether they were already in one of the simulation rooms or the weight training area.
Once again, he was on a floor that didn't have any windows or open spaces. There were only hallways with doors leading into various types of rooms. They had learned that this floor had various types of training setups. You could use the traditional looking weight rooms, the individual to small group simulation rooms that were called dungeon crawling, and the vast simulation rooms meant for teams and helped with competition training.
Heading towards the weight rooms first, Han figured that his group was likely building up their strength. They seemed to be living in the training rooms, trying to improve their reaction time. Each of them still had nightmares, causing them to wake up at night covered in sweat. He would listen as they recounted what they dreamt the night before, helping one another cope with their emotions.
Going up to a door that had a sign reading, "Weight Training Room 1," he tapped his bracelet on the door. It slid open and revealed a room filled with training equipment of various types.
"I figured you guys would still be in here," Han said to everyone.
"Hey, baby. Did you grab some lunch?" His mother asked him, just as she finished a set on the bench press.
"Yeah. I'm going to do some light running while my body digests the food." He said to her. Going to one of the rows of transparent square-shaped machines, he grabbed a headset before opening the door and going inside of it. Closing the door, he placed the speakers over his ears and turned on the device. Around him, the glass like material frosted over and then became black.
"Begin escape training simulation," He said.
"Commencing simulation," a robotic voice said.
Each of the walls began displaying the city that was above them. Instead of the peaceful appearance, he was used to; it instead looked like the world after the zombie-like monsters appeared. Windows were smashed and buildings looked like they had aged a hundred years.
Han began to walk down the street, going past buildings. There was an occasional dead body that was laying out in the open. As he looked around, he heard the sound of glass crunching. Turning his head, Han noticed a person emerge from a door. The person didn't look like a human; the head was oddly shaped with the back of the skull looking as if it split into two long tentacles. Both tentacles were twitching, feeling the edges of the door as the creature walked out. Even more disturbing was the elongated limbs.
"I guess it's time to run." Running down the street, he looked back to see the thing chasing after him. Instead of running as a person would, it ran like an animal. "Definitely looks completely mindless, not like what Steve and the others hint at." He said, as his arms were pumping and his feet were pushing off of the pavement.
As he continued to run, he noticed more of the creatures appearing out of buildings.
In a matter of mins, there was a large mob of the creatures chasing after him. Occasionally, a creature would leap out from a hidden space, making him spin around the enemy and continue to run.
After he began to feel his body loosen up, he said, "I think that's enough of a light warm up. Increase the gravity by three times."
There was an instant pressure being placed on top of him, letting him know that the machine had cranked up the gravity. With him using only a slight amount of his powers, the pressure was enough to cause some of the mindless creatures to grab him. When a hand touched him, Han didn't feel anything but there was a beeping noise to alert him that he had been tagged.
"I guess doing this at three times the Earth's gravity might have been hasty of me. Usually, it takes a little while longer before they manage to tag me." He pressed forward and increased his pace. The added gravity and the limited use of his powers made his muscles start to feel fatigued.
He was spinning back and forth, dodging various attacks, while trying to keep up his pace. Breathing faster, he could feel the sweat dripping down his face. In front of him, the road turned a corner, which he hated the most. As he approached the left turn, Han made sure to pick up his pace so that he wouldn't be cut off. Looking to his left, Han saw many of the creatures that were chasing him along the side of the road be positioned correctly to catch him.
Ducking and then rolling, Han quickly got back on his feet. He pumped his right arm, congratulating himself for passing a spot he would often get caught in. Making sure that he was clear, he then looked forward only to see several zombies coming out of an alleyway and jumping at him.