At least, I at least found something to do in this place during down time. Hayato had been drilling the small details about Artifacter games into my head until the afternoon of the following day. Until Night Rules came into effect, I was throwing lead down range, just like I used to all day every day.
I was quite surprised at how realistic the guns in this world were. Every one of them had moving parts, different amounts of trigger slack, and you could make any gun if you knew how to put the parts together.
As I was pulling the trigger on every gun I practiced with, I felt like I was back at home…. At the range in the basement, where my old man would look upon from where I couldn’t see him. Even now when it’s impossible for him to be here, there was a part of me that feared it. That if I miss enough shots now, that he would punish me by starving me ... .by not letting me see my sister for the rest of the day in that dark and damp cell.
As I practiced dodging strikes against the animated training dummies, I started to recall the pain of every single scar I got. The slashes, the burns, the fractures…..
(Learn to kill your emotions. The one who feels, is one who dies)
“I can never escape your voice, can I….Father” I whispered to myself as the words he etched into my brain came up to the surface
At that brief moment, I was trapped in my head, I managed to snap the dummy’s hand in half and leave him floored.
“Ishikawa wasn’t kidding about what you can do…. Man, that dummy had a family, how could you, Yulia-san”
“Really?” I replied to Tatsuo fooling around
“Hey, was trying to lighten the mood. So, ready for your first ever game of PvP?”
I brought up my interface to check the time, and Night Rules were in effect
“About time….Let’s get this over with” I walked past Tatsuo and towards the exit, but he cut me off in the middle
“I commend the enthusiasm ... .but, just a word of advice before you step in there. Try not to lose your shit……I know we haven't had much time to work on your comms but ....”
“I’ll be fine”
“It’s easy to think that…..Right now, you are on a winner’s high after our last raid. But just because you are a crack shot, doesn’t mean your chances of winning are sky high”
Tatsuo backed off all of a sudden “You know what, best experience it rather than saying it….. We’ll be in the stands…. Ishikawa will help you with mistakes, me and Haru-san will work on your comms afterwards….. All I will say, no matter what, stay calm”
“Tatsuo-san, relax…. It’s one win. I can do one win” But for some reason, he didn’t seem convinced by that
“Let’s see if you can back that up. Come on now”
The Arena was just a hop and a step away from the Barracks, and the lines outside trailed quite a bit far back. However, we had a shorter way in since Haru was stationed at the queue, holding a spot for me.
Being the first time in this place, it looked very similar to the front of the Guild, the only difference was the two big doors on either corner of the interior. The words ‘Matchmaker’ and ‘Spectate’ popped up in my view as I looked at them.
My moment of observation, however, was cut short as I felt two hands chopping at my shoulders.
“Extremely calm about this aren’t you?” Hayato concluded based on the lack of any reaction from me
“I don’t get why you guys are making a big deal of this. Noone dies here, and it’s only four others…. I’ve dealt with worse odds”
Hayato and Tatsuo looked at each other and held a second of silence
“Well, they say experience is the best teacher there is…..” Hayato remarked
“I’ll go ahead and save us a couple of seats. You-” Tatsuo looked at me and then back at Hayato “Do what you can do”
Tatsuo left us towards the spectators door, not even trying to hide the fact that he has little to no confidence in me
“Well, I can only give you one piece of advice for now…. Don’t lose your cool”
“I thought you guys were helping me, doesn’t look like you even expect me to win”
“That’s because we don’t….What we expect you is to learn”
“Huh?”
“You’ll find out soon enough, by the way…. You kitted yourself up?”
“Courtesy of Manfred-san and his ridiculously extensive inventory... I think I’m good.”
“Okay, well then…. Good luck. We’ll be watching from the stands, and let's worry about the rest from there”
And right on queue, I saw Haru waving to me from the counter.
“So….later?”
“Show us what you can do” Hayato held his ground until I left his side and joined Haru at the counter.
A few minutes later, I found myself in the matchmaker room….along with four others.
The door closed behind us and everyone of us was seated, until one of the got up
“H…Hey everyone. Ready to bring this one-”
“Can you shut the hell up? I’m sure no-one is interested in hearing you yap”
While the guys to girls count was pretty much the same as my current ragtag group, the atmosphere couldn’t be any different.
“Well… in my experience, teams tend to do better if we get to know each other’s playstyles a bit so maybe-”
The other guy got up from his chair and was inches away from the first one’s face “Let me make this simple for you, shit for brains….. Nobody cares….. We are not here to make friends, we are here to win. So either get in line, or stay out of my way”
He then looked back at me and the other girl
“Same goes for you two”
(Well, aren’t we off to a great start)
“At least, how about our roles?” The first guy wasn’t getting intimidated in the slightest “Best we know what weapons each of us run and which role we’d be playing….…. I play MP5 with dual NRG-8 Pulse Pistols. I can play scout”
While he was more verbal with his plan, none of us felt the same…. The other two started equipment checking which showed us all their kit, but the lack of words meant that we were left to figure it out ourselves.
The most confrontive and hostile of the bunch had an arm mounted device, that kind of looked like a wristband, and it extended into a rectangular shield similar to Tatsuo’s…. he then started checking his gun, which was an Mk14 DMR… he was running it with a horizontal grip and a flip sight which gave me the impression that he prefers to throw down lead while keeping his shield up.
Took me less than a second to figure out what the other girl was running… the classic G36C, but as she pulled the barrel, it turned into a sniper rifle…. A PSG1 to be exact. She then mag checked her secondary which was a no brainer…. A historic 1911…… My guess is that she likes to play back behind the whole team
(Looks like a mostly balanced team)
“Uh, excuse me, Miss” the most talkative of the group called out to me
“Huh?”
“I’m sorry but….could I at least know what role you play?”
(What was it that Hayato told my role was again?)
As I was unsure, I took out my SMG and did a quick check so he could figure it out in case I’m wrong “I think I’m supposed to play mid” and then checked my blade “I could play close as well”
“Okay, great…. Could I count on you to back me up?”
“Uhhh….sure” I shrugged my shoulders along with my reassurance
Just like Hayato, Tatsuo and Haru told me, the room had turned into a different landscape in the meantime.
“Welcome to Vertigo Towers” said the voice in my head
(Vertigo Towers? Does that mean we are playing high up? Best I ask someone)
“Hey you” I call out to the talkative one “Mind giving me a few pointers about this place, first time seeing it”
“A first timer? Great” said the more hostile man
And that is when I felt a tap on my shoulder, it was from the girl “Keep away from the middle, it’s instant death” and she walked past me to the front
(Wait as in, actual death or this kind of death)
The voice that announced our location returned, but this time with the countdown
“5…4….3…2….1….Engage”
Everyone rushed out of the room and I was still putting two and two together…. Guess I’ll figure it out on the fly.
The surrounding was completely indoors, there was enough space to maneuver around, and there was plenty of cover to play around.
(This looks way too small, there has to be catch)
But what concerned me even more, was the fact that I saw neither the others, nor my enemies, but it’s only then I realized what she meant by ‘Avoid the middle’
This place consists of two different buildings, separated by glass walls. Hayato taught me about how these so-called maps have a three-lane format, but this place didn’t have a middle lane….it was just a gap where you could fall to your death.
Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences elsewhere.
Bullets were flying and glass was shattering, and the enemies were on the other building. They opened the glass in specific places, notably next to their spawn and the middle…They didn’t open these up without any plan in mind.
(Okay, so nothing special, learn where each of them are, and exploit their….)
But I didn’t have a chance to think, as I immediately sensed someone behind me
(How did he….?)
One enemy pounced at me, but I managed to react in time. I blind-fired my SMG at him, forcing him to take cover and return fire with his own weapon
(Tekko Kagi for CQC…. I’d be at a disadvantage if he closes the gap on me.)
I stepped back slowly while keeping my gun trained in his direction, and that’s when I suddenly felt a sharp impact followed by a stinging pain on my back. That made me drop my gun but I was able to figure out that I was in the sights of their sniper.
(That knocked out more than half my health bar…Are you kidding me?)
But my clawed assailant used the moment I was distracted to rush me. I had to think fast. I dropped my gun and got my Karambit in hand, and waited for him to deal the first strike. I slid my blade under his claws and followed through with my body as well. I got behind him and held him as a shield against the sniper.
But I felt the impact again, this time to my stomach.
I was forced to let go and fall to my knees, and I saw my body had shattered like a drinking glass….no blood, just white….. I then looked up at my assailant, and he was unscathed
(Can’t be ... .he should’ve got hit by that shot as much as I did. Don’t tell me that you can’t hurt your own team in here)
I couldn’t move and was at the mercy of my attacker, who plunged his claws right into my neck and sending me into a void of darkness
I couldn’t see or hear anything, and I was left with my own thoughts…. The only assurance I had that I was not dead was the timer ticking down in my view that showed me how long I had before I was redeployed, which was 10 seconds by the looks of it
(Okay, lesson learned…. I can’t use others to protect myself. And watch out the guy with the claws)
The timer ran down fast and I was back in the starting room, fully armed and ready. But trouble found me a whole lot faster than I expected.
My plans of an offense were put to a stop as an enemy player possessed both the Artifact and the was uncontested on his run to where I am standing
(What the hell are those other idiots doing anyways?)
I converted my primary, crouched and took aim at the approaching threat, the enemy carrier tried to bob and weave to throw my aim off, but I didn’t fall for that trick….I held my sight’s steady and put one straight through the carrier’s head, shattering his head into a million pieces
I moved in to grab the Artifact but I was just met with a hail of bullets, pushing me back
I was suppressed back in the starting room and had no way to get out
“Seriously, where the hell are my teammates?”
I’m usually not one to rely on others…but it’s different this time. All these guys are fast, way faster than they are outside of here. I don’t even have a second to think before they’ve already acted
It didn’t even take them a minute to reacquire the Artifact and bank it in our base zone, and I still have no plan of attack. But my process of thought was interrupted as I was startled by a tap on my shoulder.
I threw a quick punch on instinct and it recoiled back, shocking my arm in the process. It was the talkative guy on our team.
He didn’t say a word, rather, he was tapping his ear and pointing at me.
“Huh?” I was confused at first, and it’s only when I touched my ear, I noticed the ear piece. I felt for the button on the front side and pushed it
“Miss, you with us?” I was finally able to hear them
“Do you have any idea what the hell you are doing? Thanks for trickling in and getting picked off doing nothing” of course the big guy would start the blame game
But I remembered Hayato’s advice….keep your cool, they’d rather blame everyone else rather than accept that they messed up
“It’s okay, we all make mistakes”
“Mistakes? We literally went into a 4v5 that entire time, and now we are spawn trapped”
“It’s okay, we can fight our way out of this….. We have to”
Unfortunately….we did not
“Match Concluded….Score 17-100. Winner…. Team Red”
(What the hell was that? My team did absolutely nothing…. Even for the my first time, I happened to get more than half the kills we had)
And as I left the matchmaker, Hayato, Tatsuo and Haru were waiting for me
“Welcome to Elo Hell, Yulia-san….. Told you it wasn’t going to be easy”
(I refuse to go down like that…. I am sure that next time would be different)
“I’m going again” But as I was going towards the counter, Hayato cut me off by stepping in my way
“Ah, ah, ah…That’s the indication that you need to stop for the day-”
“Like hell it is…. Damn team I got didn’t do shit. I was literally fending for myself in there…. If I go again, I can’t get anyone worse than those guys, right?”
“Actually-” But Hayato stuck out his hand and interrupted Tatsuo
“I’ll handle this”
Tatsuo held his silence for longer and allowed Hayato to finish
“Yulia-san…. was your team really the reason that you lost that game?”
“I mean, it’s obvious isn’t it? I had more half the kills of our team that game-”
“With what? 9 kills? So tell me….What exactly did each of those 9 kills achieve in that match?”
“Achieve? What?”
“It’s really easy to shift the blame on anyone except yourself, but the truth is Yulia-san, you were the reason that your whole game fell apart”
“Huh? What the hell are you even on about? I thought you were watching the entire-”
“9 kills out of a total of 17…. That’s what you are basing your performance off of, yes?.... But in reality, you only got one kill that whole game. 4 minute mark…You walk out of spawn and you are handed a free kill on a silver platter….You take it which denies the bank opportunity, but you get pressured back into spawn…which effectively trapped you in your own spawn. Kill 2,5 and 8 were on their mid-rangers in a time span of 30 seconds per kill, which gave your enemies ample time to recover and regroup, turning your kills mute…. The rest of them were on their sniper and scout.. which were your tickets to break out of the spawn trap….But your own tunnel vision took away any possible advantage, since you were only thinking on pulling the trigger of your gun on the enemy’s head”
“Then, what do you expect me to do about it?” I frustratedly asked him
“Remember the utility you went in with? You still have them in your inventory, don’t you?”
(It’s only at that moment I remembered)
“I almost doubted your claim that you have actually fought for real… It’s not that you forgot your utility, you were so overconfident that you thought you wouldn’t need them… and when you had no choice but you use them, your ego persuaded you to attempt to clear everyone out just with your superior aim”
“I-”
“One smoke grenade, all that you needed to cut off their sightlines and get your team back on the field. The enemy team didn’t even say a single word, and all you guys were doing was fighting amongst each other”
“That wasn’t my faul-”
“But one person was willing to speak, you had plenty of opportunities to work with him but you decided that you were better”
Hayato stepped closer to me “Ranked is not like fighting out here or anywhere else in this place…. Players have their energy amplified, making them stronger and faster than they usually are.….but that’s no excuse….because so are you.”
“Stop” I whispered on instinct
“You want to know why they always had the upper hand on you? You abandoned your team in the first fight which turned into a 4v5, and then they focused down the biggest threat on your team…. Your sniper.”
“Ishikawa”
“She got 3 kills from the 7 shots she fired, but all of them had purpose. The enemy team saw that, and she got focused down…..They didn’t even consider you a threat”
“Hayato-san!” but it was Haru’s voice that finally got him to stop
Hayato looked at us and read the situation as the whole floor was looking at us
“I might’ve gotten carried away there for a second” and he lets out an awkward chuckle
“The point is….you keep blaming who you get to play with, you are never going to get out of this Elo Hell…. If this is your limit, we might have a bit of a problem going forward”
Hayato put his hands in his jacket pockets and continued
“But some good came out of this, you are learning mechanics and you can only do that by experience…. But here’s the thing about Elo Hell…. It won’t let you through unless it is sure you are worthy of the next rank. And you, Yulia-san…..have a loooong way to go if you want to be on that first wave of Ascension BR’s…nevermind actually getting out of here”
“So, how about we call it a day for now, and work on your skills….You are free to queue up for another game, it’s your choice but… it doesn’t take a pro to say that it’s not going to go any better than your last game.”
While it felt like he was gaslighting me to let it go for today, nothing he said was a lie when I stopped to think about it. I underestimated what I was going up against, and paid the price.
I didn’t care if my ego was battered and bruised, but I was driven by the sole purpose of being on that first Ascension BR…. And turns out I had to be ready to reinvent myself if I was even to have a chance of making that happen.
What followed after, was daily training of a different kind…..The mornings in the barracks had me attending two sessions…First with Hayato
“Normally you could say that getting out of bronze boils down to turning on your monitor when you play….”
Hayato stopped pacing aimlessly and faced me “But it’s a bit different down here for now…. This place has no placement games, meaning everyone is still in Bronze” and then he started walking towards me “Former Silvers, Golds, Platinums, Diamonds, Novas, SuperNovas and maybe even former Immortals”
And then he stopped in front of me with pointing his pen at me “ The only thing holding them back from wiping the floor with you, is most still haven’t adapted to this kind of play….but it won’t long now with the Night Rules keeping everyone in check”
I fell back into practicing with my own weaponry down the range for now, because if I don’t pass this hurdle, I miss my chance at getting my hands on Makoto and Razir… and just the thought of Razir’s name is enough to melt my mental fatigue away
After Hayato, it was Tatsuo’s wisdom I was to be parted with
“The strongest weapon that teams have during a match is not what weapon they have, it’s information. Each role has sees what the others don’t, and the more each other knows about what they are going up against, and what they have to worry about, the better the team performs…and in turn, the better you perform”
And then it was Haru’s
“As much as you wouldn’t think about it, matches can be turned on its head within milliseconds. Which means if you are to communicate, you need to know how to do it clearly, concisely, and as short as possible”
And when the Night Rules come into play, it’s time for me to put everything into practice….if getting decimated over and over counts
“Match Concluded ….Score 71-100….Winner….Team Red”
(Goddamnit, so close)
And the same followed to the next day…first with Hayato;
“Best way to beat getting spawn trapped? Figure out who is responsible for it…. find that one player, and think how to stop him. You don’t have to kill him, you don’t even have to shoot him…. You just have to find a way to make him look away, or better yet…give him something to fear that he can’t see.”
Hayato pointed an empty rifle at me “ When you are being pressured, never face that pressure head on… And enemy who can’t see you, can’t shoot you” and he pulled the trigger, causing an audible click
Followed the downtime I had to train my aim, reflexes and reloads…… and then can Tatsuo’s turn
“First rule of solo queue ... .you think everyone in that arena with you as your equal. Everyone fights for points, and everyone makes decisions based on what they see. The player who drags down a team is always the player who thinks that they are better than others”
And then Haru took over
“Playing alone means that you will never know who would be on your team and who will be on your opposing side. Eventhough you’ll never know them by name, you’ll always know them by their role…. 4 easy callouts to target who you want to ask or relay information to …..Scout, Tank, Mid and Everyone”
And then came the evening
“Match Concluded ….Score 100-88…Winner…Team Blue”
(Finally, making progress)
And the next game
“Match Concluded ….Score 56-100….Winner….Team Red”
…..or not
And the cycle continued…..Morning, starting with Hayato
“If you are getting focused on by multiple enemies, you got two options ... .one, retreat to your team and if not….single them out. Keep moving, always remember to use your utility and try to keep isolating them until you can finish off one of them within 2 seconds”
Hayato got close and held up 2 fingers “2 seconds….it’s really easy to be indulged to keep at it longer, but learn to finish off an attacker by 2 seconds ... .not a single millisecond more. If you can’t finish it by then, then run….You might have infinite respawns, but treat every life with value”
Some me time, and then Tatsuo
“Not everyone gets a crash course from people who know what they are doing, so if someone gets too overbearing….” Tatsuo taps his ear “Feel free to mute them….comms can do more harm than good if you got someone screaming at others on it…. if they don’t want to help, block them out entirely”
And then Haru
“Try to learn the maps you play, and specific landmarks on it. And when you are making callouts, never point….no one except you will see that. First, you say who you want to let know, then say where they are and then whether they are above or below”
Evenings started to become a mixed bag as I was winning as much as I was losing…..but every game, and every death, I started to get the hang of this mode’s ‘mechanics’.
The cycle continued as such for almost two weeks, and even my mental endurance was pushed to the brink. But I kept at it….. there were days I lost two games, which plummeted my RP score even lower. But these guys were going above and beyond for someone who they don’t know anything about.
I can’t even imagine why.
But after countless hours of being coached and getting my literal ass handed to me, I finally found my stride.
“Match Concluded….Score 100-12…Winner….Team Blue”
I watched my RP increase as it stopped me at 982 points
“One more win” I told myself
But eventhough I wanted to end it that day, queue up for that last game, carry this momentum ...my gut instinct told me otherwise.
The thought of queueing up one more time had me contemplating every breath I took, as the possibility of getting my frustration pushed to its limit again if I lose, came into my head.
I decided to not risk it, as the threat of losing the next game and having to claw my way back all over again was enough to keep me hesitating.
A day’s worth of rest later, I found myself back at the Arena….to face the test before my goal. Unlike the first time I was here, I felt myself being short of breath even at the thought of my next game
I’ve spent enough time here to even recognize some of the faces and voices of the people I’ve fought with, and fought against. And the lineup of people today was not looking great
While I was stuck in my head processing who I’m going to be facing and where, an unexpected chop to my shoulders from behind sent a strong chill up my spine and caused me to shriek
“Sounds about right for someone who’s about to face their promotion game. Although, I…never expected that kind of reaction”
I looked around, darting my eyes left to right, and thankfully I wasn’t loud enough to attract too much attention.
“Hayato-san….can you not?” I still could hear the creaking in my voice about that jolt
“Actually that’s a good thing, you are nervous…. Which means you are much more aware this time more than the last….. If it makes you feel any better, promotion games will not get any tougher compared to this. The more layers open, the more player’s will be spread out… filtering the less skilled from the more capable ones.”
“I can’t sit around till then…. I have to be in that first group who breaks into Silver.”
But as I said that, Hayato’s eyes started to twitch slightly….. Anybody else would’ve missed it but, it was as if he was trying to look at me but was trying to force himself away…… he was definitely not telling me something
“You are hiding something”
“Huh?!” His stalled breathing and sudden surprise just confirmed my observation
“I don’t know what you are talking about” he was completely avoiding looking at me now
“What is it?”
“Nothing. It’s nothing”
He wasn’t budging and I had no way at the moment to push him over the edge, so I decided to drop it and focus on the task in front of me
“Yuu-chan! Hayato-san!” A familiar and cheery voice reached us all the way from a distance away as the two missing links showed themselves and hurried towards us
“Giving her a last minute pep talk, Ishikawa?” Tatsuo put his hand around Hayato’s shoulder, forcing Hayato to hunch down due to all the weight put on him
“Not like that will increase her chances….. Now, get off me you big oaf” Hayato frees himself from Tatsuo’s grasp
Never fails to lighten the mood, these two.
“Yuu-chan… You ready to go?”
I couldn’t help but take a second to process my answer “Y…yeah, I’m good”
“Nope, not good enough…. Try again”
Haru flexes her skinny arms “I am ready!.... There, now you try”
“Eh?” I looked around once again and did a double take on whether we really were in public right now….which we most definitely were
“Nope, not going to happen” I turned away from her
“No…way. You are not going in there unless you do exactly as I asked”
(What are you, my mother?)
The eyes of the other players nearby were now on us….Haru definitely had a knack for drawing attention
I slowly faced her and she looked like a little child eagerly awaiting a piece of candy from someone
(Guess I have to swallow my dignity for this one)
I flexed my shaky arms for a second “I….I’m ready”
“Ah haaa… There we go”
I couldn’t even look at anything but the floor anymore, I tried to shoo away my embarrassment…but that was after I noticed those two idiots
“What?” I asked Hayato and Tatsuo, who were clearly enjoying this
“Nothing” both of them said in tandem as they looked away from me and each other
“For crying out…” I returned my gaze to the floor as I didn’t want to even catch a glimpse of the others around me
“And whatever happens, we’ll figure out a way to find the people you are looking for. So-”
“Oi, Haru-san!” Hayato was quick to try to shush her
“Huh? What’s that supposed to mean?”
Hayato’s started to drag his face down looking frustrated and was trying to find the words, but he was only stammering until he finally gave up “Oh damn it”
“Oh dear, did I say something I wasn’t supposed to?”
And I stared down at the gift horse “Ishikawa-san?!”
His face was as if he sat down on a cold wet bench, but he sighed deeply and decided to spill the beans
“I didn’t want to tell you this right now but….Before I came here, I might’ve checked how much time we have left before they announce the first wave of Ascension BRs”
“And?”
“My money’s on today might be the last”
“So if I don’t hit the limit today….”
“Then we won’t qualify for the first wave”
(Now I understood why he was desperate to hide it, as the pressure on me just turned into crushing)
I moved away from everyone, leaving them to face my back as I processed all that
“Look if it makes you feel any better, even if you win it doesn’t guarantee that you’d be in the same BR lobby as the one you are looking for. A BR wave means there are at least 10 other games going on in any of the other cities….. We are all going to end up cross matched anyways”
“That definitely does not make her feel any better about this” remarked Tatsuo
“Yeah, I just noticed that after I said it”
“Boys…..how about we, give her some space.” A brief silence followed “Yuu-chan, you got this…we’ll be rooting for you from the stands”
I sensed them starting to move away from me
“Hayato-san….. Will I win today?”
I didn’t turn around and I didn’t even know if he even heard me
“I don’t know” his voice reached me from behind “One of the core rules about competition. Even in a match where all the odds are in your favor, losing is still more than a possibility”
(That did not help my confidence in the slightest)
“But if you ask me about your chances of winning….. I’d say it’s significantly higher than your first time here. Sure, there might even be a minute chance that you might even be matched against a group of former SuperNovas or Immortals….. but I have hopes you’d pull through”
And even with all the noise in the background, I could clearly pick up the sound of Hayato moving further away from me…..leaving me to face my newest demon alone.
……For all their sakes