Jet marveled at how real the in-game simulation felt. She had full use of her legs! The unfinished plane had no in-game conveniences. It was a staging area that was intended to be used for testing new features. She had access to it because she was an elite play tester. A troubling thought invaded her mind.

How is Nigel going to meet me there if he isn’t a developer or a play tester? He is a hacker, and I taught him well.

She stepped out of the portal nearest the empty zone. She couldn’t teleport in the zone, but she could cast a recall spell to get her out of there quickly if needed. A broken stone path led down to a vast plane that stretched into what seemed like an infinity. She checked her inventory and removed a scroll with a picture of an elegant carpet with several swirling patterns. She put the scroll on the barren ground and placed a rock on it so it wouldn’t blow away.

“In-Por-Ot-Vet,” Jet said as she raised her staff.

The gem embedded into the tip of the staff glowed with a blue radiance. A jolt of energy coursed through her. A purple swirling pattern formed over the scroll. A carpet about the size of a Persian rug materialized before her.

A magic carpet, cool!

The flight spell she activated could summon several vehicles for a limited time. In previous play sessions, she had summoned brooms, wagons, and even birds. But this was the first carpet. A sudden sideways motion almost caused her to fall as she stepped onto the carpet. She raised her staff and channeled energy into the carpet. After a jolt of motion, it propelled deep into the unfinished plane. Soon, the smooth hard pack turned rocky and was laden with debris. A wailing sound emanated throughout the zone. The rocks ahead of her cracked and opened like coconuts. Enormous serpents about the size of cars writhed, and several slithered in her direction.

“Yikes!” Jet yelped.

The carpet barely hovered above the ground, and try as she might, she couldn’t get it to lift more than a few feet from the ground. She channeled additional mana into her flight spell. The more she added, the faster the carpet became. She turned the carpet to the right. The serpents changed course. A hissing sound surrounded her. She snuck a quick glance in the sound’s direction, and a two-headed serpent with a massive body slithered on the rocky surface as if born from it. Crushing sounds enveloped her. It was like the entire zone amplified the sound in her direction. She looked in horror as the snake-thing was crushing the rocks and even the boulders as it steamrolled through.

If you spot this tale on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.

I need to go faster.

Jet’s mana was at forty percent and rapidly lowering. She was almost at the rendezvous location, and there was nothing here. Her distance meter showed thirty meters to the destination.

System Message: Mana critically low, please conserve by channeling less into the current spell.

Mana reserves were at eight percent, and she had twenty meters to go. She checked her inventory and downed a flask of multi-regeneration. Her mana, stamina, and health were instantly boosted by twenty-five percent. A crackling noise rolled through the zone. The ground surrounding Jet’s location opened, and many of the serpents fell into the hole below. Loud shattering noises and fluid shot out of the hole. Moments later, a serpent’s head slithered out and then collapsed with a forked tongue hanging out of its mouth. A rumbling and shaking came from below her feet. A stone shot through the rapidly diminishing rock that the moat had not already taken.

What the hell is happening? This is not a feature in the game.

A sliding door opened from the rock, and a masked figure in a black robe stood before her.

“Kneel, swine,” the masked man said.

“Who in the hell are you supposed to be?”

“I’m Lord Aldoor, and I’m ruler over all space and dominion.”

Jet invoked her personal barrier. The man laughed.

“Your puny devices won’t help you, mortal.”

The man extended his arms, and bolts of lightning shot from his hands. Jet was pulled to it like a bug was drawn to a zapper. She tried getting away from it, but the harder she tried, the more ensnared she became. Two men dressed in simple robes that matched the terrain emerged from behind Lord Aldoor and grabbed her arms.

“Get off,” Jet yelled.

Her arms strained as they tied her hands. The more she wriggled, the more pain shot up her arms.

“Don’t resist, child. It will only cause more pain,” Lord Aldoor said.

Her vision blacked out as one of the men covered her head with a black cloth.