There was a smell in the air.

It was the first surprise that came into Sora’s mind. As he awoke, the information flooded through his brain receptors. First the smell, a smell of piercing disinfectant, flowers, cotton, and his own body. A machine beeped next to him, which sounded like a heart monitor.

But that wasn’t it. Another came a sweet sound of a girl’s voice that Sora hardly recognized. “Sora?”

He opened his eyes. Liquid clouded his vision like he was stepping through a shower. They must be tears leaking from his pupils. Indeed, it has been a while since he opened his eyes in reality.

As his blurry vision cleared, a cute face loomed over him. She has orange hair, which smelled like coconut shampoos, and blue eyes that sparkled in the sunlight.

Sora’s mind slowly recognized her. “Amy?”

The girl smiled with tears in her eyes. Then she crawled over his bed and hugged him hard. “Oh, my god! I thought I lost you!”

Sora hugged her back, although his arms felt like rubber. He couldn’t remember how long it had been since he hugged another human being. But he was glad he was back inside his living body, back in the real world.

*****

Later, Sora sat in a wheelchair, facing the large window inside the hospital lounge. He could see the city through the window, but that wasn't on his mind.

While the Lich Queen trapped him inside the game, a lot has been going on in the outside world. When the VR sets detected the players falling into comas, many ambulances picked them up and left them at hospitals to put them on life support. Amy found him unconscious in his apartment when he never received her calls. Thanks to her, his body was preserved.

Two thousand players had lost their lives. Some rescuers couldn't find their bodies, and the game assets killed most of them.

The company couldn't figure out why SCO trapped the players. They couldn't access it or communicate with the players. All they could do was rescue as many players as possible to put them on life support. Some speculated cyber terrorized had hacked the game to hold the players hostage. Others thought the game received a major glitch that trapped the players by mistake.

The players were trapped for one entire week until they could finally log out to recover. To Sora, it felt like he was in there for months.

Now that all the players were freed, the question Sora wanted an answer to was, what would happen to Sword and Claw Online now?

This narrative has been purloined without the author's approval. Report any appearances on Amazon.

“Hey.” Amy approached him and sat on a chair next to him. “Your parents are on their way to see you. How are you feeling?”

Sora held up his right arm and wiggled his fingers. “I’m getting better now. My body is now returning to normal.”

Amy frowned. “I am so sorry for offering you to play. If I knew what was going to happen, I wouldn't-”

"It's alright." Sora lowered his arm down. "None of us knew, but I survived."

"Wow, you really needed to tell me your whole adventure. Was it a virus?"

Sora grimaced. "I think we should wait until my family arrives. They will want to hear my story too."

"I think the whole world wants to hear your story."

Sora smiled at the window. "I bet they do."

He imagined standing behind a microphone at a press, explaining how he got body switched and defeated the Lich Queen. Maybe his face would be on magazine covers, television, and documentaries. How outstanding, but it might be too much for him. He still needed to recover. "So what is going to happen to SCO?"

Amy pursed her lips. "The company closed the game down for diagnosis. They are going to investigate it as much as possible."

Sora’s eyes widened. "Will they allow the players to return after they check on it?"

Amy shrugged. "Maybe. That is all I know, but I don't think anyone would want to play it again. It did kill many people."

Sora’s heart sunk.

If the company erases the game, everything inside will cease to exist. Maxor, Nancy, Garan, and even his rare equipment will be gone. But there was nothing he could do about it. He could only pray the company will give the game a chance to stay open. "I hope they won't shut it down."

Amy sighed. "Me too….. Anyway, what are your plans after your recovery?"

Sora smiled at the window. "I'm going to enjoy the real world for a while. If Sword and Claw Online open, I will be ready for it."

Amy grinned. "Cool. If it doesn't come back, there is another game like it."

Sora turned toward her. "What game is it?"

Amy handed him a flyer. It has an image of a tropical island between two sailing ships, fighting each other. A golden title over the picture said, "Skulls and Crossbones. Where plundering is the way of life."

"It is a pirate anthropomorphic game, like Sword and Claw," Amy explained. "You can build your own ship, crew, and fight other players while finding treasure. I heard it got good ratings."

Sora smiled and handed the flyer back to Amy. “Thank you, but I think I will take a break for a while.”

“Okay, but if you ever feel like playing it, let me know. I will keep in touch.”

That warmed Sora’s heart. He was glad he still has a future with Amy.

After a long awkward pause, Amy got up. “Well….. I will catch you later. I gotta go back to work, but I will see you again when your parents arrive.”

“Cool,” Sora nodded.

Amy sneered her lips until she quickly kissed his forehead. Then she hustled away, leaving Sora’s cheeks warm.

I’m going to marry that girl. Hehehehehe. Sora continued to stare at the window, enjoying the new silence surrounding him. After all, the silence was pleasant for recovering patients so they could meditate for a while.

Whatever the future held for him, it would never stop him from being a gamer.