Jim's PoV

Jim was looking down at the equipment he 'borrowed' from 3D tech. It was only another couple days till the deadline for the project. It was Saturday afternoon and the deadline for the team was the end of Monday. He had risked a lot to get to this point.

He had stolen a piece of equipment that was probably worth around a million dollars. If he got caught with it, not only would he go to jail for a long time, his reputation would be ruined. He potentially would never be able to work in the industry again. But he thought the risk at the time was worth it. But is the risk worth it now?

When he had first stolen the equipment he had ideas of creating his game world and then playing around a bit. The potential sense of a true adventure was worth the risk. He could play around with it for a bit and then return the equipment. At the time he thought if he got into too much trouble he could leverage his knowledge for a deal.

But that changed with the revelation of what he had truly created. It would only be a couple more days till the auditors came in and realized a couple things were missing. He wasn't going to tell a soul how to recreate what he did. The potential for evil could not be overstated.

Even if the law recognized digital beings as real, there would always be places that didn't care about the law. Jim vowed that he would never reveal the secret of how he had created the living world of FF3.

Maybe he should play the long game? There was no doubt in his mind that he would eventually become a very wealthy man. He had gambled big so that he would not have to turn his goodies back in.

If he just wiped all of the data from everything, they would have no clue what he was working on. His secrets would be safe. He would still have access to the world he created and his plethora of items. But his options would dwindle from limitless possibilities to only hundreds of possibilities.

But is that really what he should focus on? His personal gain and wealth? At first that was really the main point. He wanted to play with his newfound knowledge, the consequences could be pushed off till later. Jim wanted an adventure.

He was fired and he was the only one that had the knowledge to unlock the potential of the helmet. At first he thought the potential only reached to simulating anything, yet even that scope turned out too narrow. Hefting the helmet in his hands he muttered to himself "The power to rule and enslave billions or even trillions is in my hands."

It was too much power. Too much power for anyone. It was the all-powerful CTRL-C, CTRL-V. The power to copy and paste an infinite number of times. The thought of losing the helmet almost made him physically ill. It was the item that made him special.

Even without it he would still have access to the world of FF3. That world alone had so much potential to offer Earth with just its alchemy. But to compare them would be silly. How can you compare anything to an item with limitless potential?

The helmet was like a monkey's paw. It had the potential to grant any wish, but at what cost? The monkey's paw was the original item that warned 'be careful what you wish for.'

Jim wished for a life-like recreation of his favorite childhood game. He got his wish and so much more. Knowing that he needed to return the helmet brought him to a crossroads. Calculations flitted through his mind as he looked at his equipment.

"Maybe just one more world? No people. No animals. Just a massive warehouse… a Warehouse World!"

If he returned his stolen equipment and helmet without using his cheat ability to try to copy it, there was no guarantee he would ever get his hands on one again. The company could finally get a clue that the research was priceless. Someone else could bid on acquiring the research knowing it's true value.

He knew eventually someone would follow his footsteps if he waited too long. If he tried to play the long game, there was a good chance Pandora's box would be fully opened instead of just cracked.

Decision made, he felt the obsession pulling over him. No mistakes. No errors. Just lots and lots of 3D Tech's finest equipment. Well, maybe some Elixirs and Greater Sources too. Some? Nah, thousands? Millions? Why not? Same effort, just a bit more copy, pasta.

Finding the blueprint of a warehouse online he began editing the stock it had. He would still need files describing the helmets with accessories and probably harder, the FF3 Elixirs and Greater Sources.

Within a few minutes he had his barebones representation of what he wanted his Warehouse World to be. Then he went a little nuts with copy and paste. Around 99 times later he felt satisfied. Genius at work baby!

***

Davis' PoV

Things were getting tense in town. The Merchant Circle had arrived to trade like normal, but they started asking a lot of questions about the now deceased Potion Maker. Due to Scarlet's story he knew what was going on, but he could tell the group was not happy. King's End was not a large town and the caravan that they brought had many guards. It seemed like they brought many more than normal.

Since there was no central authority, banditry was a fact of life outside settlements. This meant that goods needed to be protected. The caravan from the Merchant Circle only came four times a year and it was normally a cause for celebration. But it was not business as usual. Something seemed off even before they learned about the misdeeds of the alleged Merchant Circle girl.

Someone had seen a woman leave as the Potion Maker's house was on fire. It didn't take long for the tale of the woman from the Merchant Circle who arrived a few days earlier began to circulate.

It made the rest of the guard nervous. To them it looked like an outsider had attacked a local and had gotten away with it. The Potion Maker was not a popular figure by the common people, but he had a lot of influence.

And those people were starting to ask the Merchant Circle some very pointed questions. Those questions were only turned back on them when it was vehemently denied that she was a part of their group. Townspeople accused the Merchant Circle of killing their local Potion Maker to try to increase their profits. The two groups were almost at each other's throats.

After that Scarlet's room at the inn had been scoured through. The seal of the Merchant Circle along with the invitation for a meeting with the Potion Maker were found in her room. It was very damning evidence in favor of the townspeople. If Davis didn't know better, he would have also believed the townspeople's accusations.

So instead of the lively trading as had been in the past, the merchants huddled up in a defensive position just outside arrow range of the city walls. They were demanding to question the people that had seen the woman last, while the city council refused and demanded compensation for what their member had done.

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It was almost nightfall and Davis was patrolling behind the wall. Not the sturdiest of fortifications but they had done well in the past. The wall was wooden and about the height of three men and the top of the wall was wide enough for two men to pass each other.

There were small ramps on the inside of the fortifications that allowed guards to quickly reinforce different parts of the wall. King's End sat in a valley and this wall blocked the main road that led north where Jacksburg was. As he was making the rounds he saw Maria run towards him with a familiar pup trailing after her.

Davis scolded her "It's almost dark girl. You should be at home with your mother."

Maria mumbled looking towards her feet saying "All she does is cry. I don't want to go home."

Davis sighed and bent down to pick up the girl. She was getting taller but she was still thin as a pole. He whispered in her ear "Maybe you should help her so she doesn't cry? Hmm?"

Maria nodded.

"She has been through a lot in these past few days. It was really hard on her."

Maria said angrily "I think I've been through worse. I cried but I didn't cry that much."

Rubbing her head he said "You are strong. A lot stronger than your mother. She needs your strength right now."

Maria mumbled noncommittally.

There was a creaking and Davis looked up. For some reason the gate was being opened. Then he saw the black garbed figures on top and bodies scattered below. Oh no.

Hissing he said "Go home now! Now girl! GO!"

Setting her down and giving her a push he yelled at the top of his lungs "ENEMY AT THE GATE!! TO ARMS! TO ARMS!"

***

Maria's PoV

Maria only ran a couple feet away and then stopped. She could hear the cry of "To arms!" being chorused up and down the line of the wall.

Uncle Davis was in trouble. When she was in trouble Jim was there to help her. She and Princess would be there to help Uncle Davis.

Putting a hand on Princesses' back a white glow enveloped the wolf. She whispered into the wolf's ear "Take the front. I will look after Uncle."

The wolf nodded. Before the wolf left, she let out a piercing howl. Maria could hear the faint echo of her other friend in the distance.

***

Davis' PoV

He heard a curdling howl behind him but he paid it no mind. The enemy needed to be stopped at the gate, it needed to stay closed. Rushing up to the gate he cut down two men that were trying to pull the gate open. Putting his shoulder into the wall, he pushed till he heard the click of the locking mechanism.

Then figures that were on top of the wall started jumping down and rushing towards him. Davis stopped and readied himself for the attack, but to his surprise a wolf lunged on the back of one man. The beast crushed his throat from behind in one bite. Princess? No time to think. Another attacker came.

As he finished that one, more invaders were standing on the wall after scaling it. Glancing back to the wolf, he found a second dead body below her and she was in the process of cornering a third. Davis ran over to give her some help. With both of them attacking they made quick work of the man.

Davis was a little nervous as he looked at the wolf. It was the same dog that he had seen for this past week, even if she had been getting bigger. Her muzzle was stained with human blood. But like Maria said, they were smart. Cautiously he asked "Ready for more?"

The wolf nodded and the pair found more attackers to take care of. Then even more came. Almost overwhelmed by numbers, they fought with their backs to the inner side of the wall. There were too many, he couldn't get to the gate to stop them.

Not long after that, he was flanked by yet another wolf who made a path of corpses to get to them. Guards followed the path the wolf made and they rallied around him. They were able to push towards the gate before it was fully opened.

The fight was quick and brutal, but they managed to close the gate again. But to their horror he could hear screams from the next gate calling "To arms! Gate Breached! To arms! To arms!"

Glancing at his wolf companions they both showed their bloodied teeth. There was more killing to do. As he was moving to the next position he saw a little girl hunched over a guardsman that had taken a stab to the belly. Putting her hand to the wound a white glow appeared around her hands. The man coughed and then stood up looking in astonishment at his wound that was now gone.

What? Was that Maria? She was a healer? Stopping briefly he looked at the girl and she put her hands on him. His fatigue was washed away. Davis asked "Maria? You are a healer? Why didn't you say anything?"

Angry, she said "It's useless. It couldn't even save my puppy. The puppy my dad got me. It only helps normal stuff and it does nothing to Death's Touch."

Arching an eyebrow he said "Normal stuff like a sword to the belly?"

She blushed and said "You know what I mean uncle!"

Laughing he did indeed. The Potion Maker had sold healing drafts as well. They were still expensive, but not nearly as much as it cost for the one that cured that damned disease. The town even paid for most members of the guard to carry one or two healing drafts. Davis had never used them before so he nearly forgot about them.

Finally he said "You should go home, it's not safe."

Maria shook her head and said "I can save them uncle."

She pointed down to a few guardsmen that were on the ground.

Maria said "Go ahead. I'll be fine."

He wanted to argue with her, but he had a job to do.

***

Maria's PoV

Maria knew danger was all around her but she didn't feel worried. She knew it was weird, but she couldn't help the feeling of… safety? No, that wasn't it. But it was something close. She knew there was danger, but there was something different about it.

She got used to being alone, in the dark and only relying on herself. Scared. Never safe, always scared, but she controlled it. If she didn't, she probably wouldn't be alive right now.

But she was surrounded by people who she knew. Uncle Davis and Princess were not too far away. And she knew she could help. Her healing spell was a big reason why she was able to survive in the caves, but she felt like her power betrayed her when it failed to save something she really cared about. This time her power could make a difference.

As the minutes passed new guardsmen ran from town and came to the wall. The wounded were dragged back and she went to them one after another. One by one she healed them till she was exhausted. She was scared, but she was not alone anymore.

***

Jim's PoV

About a day later he had his own private shopping network, the Warehouse World was ready. He checked it over for the fifth time and wondered if this was really a good idea. But then he thought of this technology being taken over by the damn corporate bean counters.

His mind went back to the stories about monkey's paws. Was this a good idea? Shrugging he hit the install button, what's the worst that can happen? He went through the program over and over and he would be the only person in the world. No extra digital people.

Losing his memories for a couple days would be worth the risk. Once he was done looting, he could always delete the world to lessen the potential damage it could cause. This time loading was a lot quicker, it only took around five minutes to install his Warehouse World.

Jim logged into his Warehouse World and cheered! Another success! Isle one was helmet land. Jim started grabbing them and putting them into his FF3 world's inventory. Interestingly, the generic helmets in the game seemed to stack with the 3D Tech helmets. Watching the number carefully as he put another 3D Tech helmet into his inventory, the helmet counter changed.

Helmet x 105

Jim pulled one from back out of his inventory only to be met with the generic piece of garbage helmet in the game. Barely any armor rating and zero special characteristics. He guessed his insistence on calling the item a helmet was at the root of the problem. Annoyingly, since they were both classified as the same name, removing one from his inventory resulted in a dice throw.

It was a problem for later Jim to figure out. Really it was a five minute fix, he could just toss out all the garbage helmets. He continued to do some shopping when a few minutes later he heard a loud metallic screech.

Jim looked up in horror to find that the metal that was above him was twisting and turning. Oh no. He didn't reengineer the specs for the infrastructure, but still made it taller! Why did he stack some of the 99 warehouse copies on top of each other? Stupid. So stupid.

Jim could only watch in horror as the pile of metal and concrete fell down on him. There was pain, and then there was nothing.

Jim wolk up and felt weird. The last thing he remembered was talking to that John dude, and then nothing. Jim got out his phone and was confused when he saw it was late Sunday. Why was he missing a day?