As swiftly as the flash of light appeared, it faded, replaced by a shimmering dome of energy that encased the party in a protective barrier. Fayne burst through the glowing shield, nearly colliding with the group huddled inside. Her voice was sharp and commanding as she yelled, “Grab onto me! We’re leaving!”

The urgency in her tone snapped them out of their shock, and they complied without hesitation. Fayne crushed a small crystal in her hand, unleashing a brilliant flash that enveloped them in a pillar of radiant light. In an instant, they vanished, leaving the Vescarids alone in the aftermath of the battle.

The beam of light reappeared miles away, descending in the heart of Ashvale, a modest village bustling with activity. A few curious villagers paused to watch the group materialize, before returning to their daily routines, while the adventurers struggled to catch their breath, attempting to make sense of what had just happened.

“You stupid idiot, didn’t you read my message” Fayne shouted at Ranger, smacking him upside the head.

“Yeow” he howled before turning to face her, “Oh my god, it’s you! You made it! You saved our asses Fayne!” his pain replaced with joy to see his friend again, especially given what had just happened.

Fayne’s voice trembled with anger and frustration. “I told you to stay away from that hive! You’re not ready. None of us are. Not even this entire village is prepared to take on that kind of threat!” Her words faltered, heavy with fear. She had sworn she wouldn’t return to this world, but she couldn’t stand by, not after what had already happened to Ryan. Not again.

There were, what, ten? Maybe twelve of those things? Our big guy here took down two by himself. And now that you’re with us, we’ve got this!” He attempted a grin, raising his hand for a celebratory high-five. “Besides, that AOE heal of yours? Damn woman, I gotta give you props” He raised his hand in the air for a high-five but slowly lowered it upon noticing the shift in Fayne’s expression.

Fayne ground her teeth, clenched her jaw, and balled her fist, everything about her looked like she was about to go nuclear. It was enough that before Ranger realized it, his comrades had shifted away from him and he found himself facing her alone. Suddenly the thought of fighting those bugs wasn’t so bad compared to whatever was in store here.

With no level of fury beyond what she was feeling right now, she let go of what she could and her rage began to give way to sorrow. Before long, Fayne had fallen into Ranger’s chest and began weeping. The culmination of what felt like a week of trauma all spilling forth into the arrogant fool of a man.

“Hey, so…” the tank awkwardly interrupted, “We’re going to head to the tavern for a bit and go over the fight. You two are welcome if you’d like.” Clearly uncomfortable, he began to shift toward the tavern. “Oh, um, thank you very much miss, we really appreciate what you did for us,” his blush couldn’t be seen due to his reptilian features, but he felt every bit of it. The sorceress gave a polite smile to Fayne and patted the tank’s back as they all gave the two their privacy.

Ryan sat there with his friend until the sun fell below the horizon. He was unsure how to proceed but knew that being there was the most important thing Fiona. At some point, he was certain she had fallen asleep, and part of him wanted to sleep as well, but he enjoyed the proximity with Fiona, part of him always wanted them to be closer, but they lived so far apart, and he couldn’t stop teasing her in was that he felt went too far more times than not. Ryan sat peacefully, enjoying her embrace, brushing his hands through her hair, and comforting her wordlessly.

“Ryan” she muttered, her voice hoarse and petite form still trembling. “We need to quit this game” she trailed off, clearly exhausted from the experience they had endured.

Deciding to let go of his bravado, he opened up to Fayne, “I know…” Ryan paused, trying to assemble his thoughts, “It’s just…” he had so much trouble articulating his thoughts, this shouldn’t have been such a chore. He knew what he wanted to say, but he felt guilty in saying it. “I don’t have anything to go to. This game was my chance to hit it big, I was going to stream my experience and make some money. I just feel like I’m making a difference in here, as short as my time has been, while in the real world, I’m a nobody.” Shame laced his words as he let them spill unabashedly.

Fayne wasn’t sure how to respond, she understood how he felt, she too had little going on in the real world. Though she had little going on in Transcendence either, she only followed Ryan to maintain their friendship. He was her tether to the real world, and though he lived thousands of miles away, she dreaded the moment they grew apart. All of the nonsense she dealt with could be pushed aside when she followed him blindly into new virtual experiences. She could be who she wanted to be, she didn’t have to fear everything… And yet, in this nightmare, she did exactly that. This haven had become a hell, and though she wanted desperately to leave it, she wanted more to keep strong the bond they had formed.

“I know what you are going to say” he stated bluntly before being interrupted.

“You don’t get it, do you? This thing, the hive that monster created, it’s not just some dungeon full of loot. You missed out on an entire day out there, I know it sounds ridiculous, but you were gone for over 24 hours, you need to log out and get some water” she pleaded, everything pouring out at once.

“Okay, okay, I’ll log out shortly. I know I’m a piece of shit sometimes, but I do appreciate everything you do for me. I know you just want what’s best for me. I’ll take a rest, I’ll get some food and water, it will be okay Fiona… Just… Let’s talk about this tomorrow, alright? Promise me we will talk about this tomorrow” Ranger laid out everything to the best of his abilities. He was willing to compromise, and it’s true, he felt like he had been in-game forever, so taking a break wouldn’t be the end of the world. “But if it’s not as bad as you think, would you please train with me? I’m going to need you by my side… If things aren’t as bad as you say” he compromised. His grip reflexively tightened around her shoulder as he pulled her close.

Fayne didn’t know where to go from here, but getting him out of the game was all she wanted. He needed to recover, even if he didn’t know it. She needed him to see what she saw, and if she had to take a step back and let him discover it, that was a small price to pay. “Okay Ryan, just please log out and we will talk in 10 hours, does that sound good?” she tread carefully on this subject, knowing he would barely want to spend 6 hours away from Transcendence.

“Let me grab a bite to eat and I’ll message you in six” he responded with disappointing predictability.

You could be reading stolen content. Head to Royal Road for the genuine story.

“Just message me before you go into the game, that’s all I ask. I’ll be waiting to hear from you.” she grasped his hand tightly as she responded. “Please Ryan, let me know before you enter the capsule again and I’ll be right there with you if needed,” her pleas were genuine to the point that Ryan really had no reason to decline.

Begrudgingly he accepted and kissed her on the forehead before logging out. The feeling should have felt sweet, maybe even romantic, it should have sparked a fire in her heart, but somehow, the kiss felt like a goodbye. She navigated to her logout menu and disengaged from the game shortly after Ranger did.

Fayne returned to the physical world at 2 pm sharp. So little time had passed, and yet emotionally she felt like a trainwreck.

Fayne sat still for a moment as her body reoriented, adjusting to the physical realm. The transition felt jarring, the cool air shocked her senses after logging out in the warm spring evening of the virtual world.

Her eyes fluttered open, blinking against the sudden brightness of her bedroom. The quiet buzz of the game’s interface faded, replaced by the soft sound of her breathing. She ran a hand through her hair, the weight of the past few hours pressing down on her.

2:00 PM, just like the system said.

She knew that more than a couple hours had passed in the game, but the realization that less than an hour had passed in the real world shocked her system. Fayne’s heart raced in her chest, a knot of tension forming in her stomach as she struggled to regain a sense of time and space.

She reached for her phone beside the capsule, unlocking it with a few swift taps. She scrolled through her notifications, but most of them were trivial, though not so many as before due to the limited time that had passed—updates, messages from distant friends, and promotional spam. But there, near the top, was a message from the developers. Her pulse quickened. This was it.

She opened it and read.

“We’ve noted some unusual behavior in the game recently. Rest assured, it’s being monitored. Please continue with your play as usual. If you encounter further anomalies, make sure to report them through the in-game system. Stay safe and happy gaming!”

Fayne’s jaw tightened. Her fingers hovered over the screen, her grip tightening until the edges of her tablet threatened to crack. “Unusual behavior?” she scoffed, “Rest assured?” did they really have no idea what was going on?

Her mind raced back to the horrors she’d just experienced. The hive. The Vescarids. The overwhelming feeling of being watched. And Ranger—Ryan—who had just been gone for over 24 hours, missing from reality as if the game had swallowed him whole. How could they be so dismissive? This wasn’t just some glitch; something was wrong.

Fayne felt the familiar rage building inside her, the frustration that had been simmering since her conversation with Ryan now boiling over. She needed answers. But instead, they were telling her to “keep playing” as though nothing had changed.

“Dammit, I’m not some pawn in their game,” she spat.

Her fingers flew across the screen as she typed, each word dripping with anger as she shot back a message detailing exactly how irritated she was. She outlined the fact that she had been held captive for six days. Not one, not two, but six days inside their game. She went on to vent about her friend who was missing the entire time, only to spawn with no knowledge of how much time had passed nor what had happened. She went wild, fingers nearly burning holes in her phone as she responded.

She hesitated for a moment after hitting send, her fingers trembling slightly as the message disappeared into the void. She knew it was risky—challenging the developers could mean consequences, but right now, she didn’t care. She had to do something. If no one else was going to stand up, she would.

Fayne sat back against the wall of the capsule, breathing heavily. Her mind raced through the possibilities. It felt like the game was starting to take on a life of its own, changing the rules as it saw fit. She shook her head, pushing those thoughts aside for now. She needed to focus, and there was no time to waste.

Half a coffee and half a scone was doing nothing for her. She went out and got a bite to eat and get some fresh air. The fact that she had to jump back into the game was rough on her, she was hoping for a few more hours before that had to happen. She believed that Ryan would keep his word, but even so she would check her phone every fifteen minutes, struggling to take her mind off of everything. After eating she took the long way home, walking down a scenic path through a nearby park. It was relaxing at first, but the trees reminded her of the forest, and when she passed over a line of ants carrying a bounty of food, it made her sick to her stomach. She returned home a couple hours after she left and stored her leftovers in the fridge before taking her familiar place on the couch.

A notification pinged, she had received a message. This one from Ryan.

Her breath caught as she opened it. She scanned his words, her heart rate picking up once more.

RangerDanger 4:09 PM: “Fayne, I think you were right. I just checked the clock, and I’ve been gone as long as you said. How did this happen? The time’s all messed up. I’m gonna message the devs, but I need to take a break first. I’ll rest and eat for as long as I can, then I’ll be back in. But this isn’t over. I’ve got some bad news from my old crew. The sorceress got captured. They need us to go after her. We’ve got to move fast. I’ll message you as soon as I wake.”

She read the message again, more carefully this time. At first there was irritation that it took him this long to finally log out, but the urgency in Ryan’s words wasn’t lost on her. The sorceress was... captured?

Something was wrong. Something big. She felt a tightness in her chest as her mind whirled with new questions.

But before she could respond, another message came through. It was the developers again.

“We are currently investigating the situation. Thank you for your patience. Please be assured that all issues are being handled in accordance with our protocols. Continue playing as usual.”

Fayne had been known to curse a time or two, most times occurring in these past couple days, but now from the comfort of her own apartment she shouted at the top of her lungs, “Another fucking autoreply? People are going missing and you send me a fucking autoreply?!” the words were therapeutic in a way, but in the end, she really didn’t feel much better.

She had to stop herself from replying immediately. Her fingers hovered over the screen again, but she hesitated. As much as she wanted to lash out, she had to stay focused. With a quick response to Ryan she retired to her bed. She wasn't physically tired, but her mind wasn't built to handle all of this stress and the easiest response was to shit down.

“Ryan, I’m coming with you. We need to get to the sorceress, and we need to move fast. But don’t think I’m dropping this. Something isn’t right, and I’m going to find out what it is. Once we get our rest, let’s put an end to this bullshit” and with that, her message was sent.

She exhaled deeply, sinking into the bed. As much as she wanted to keep fighting against the system, she couldn’t ignore the mental fatigue this virtual world exerted on her. She knew that god forbid she was to be trapped in that hellscape for another week, she would need to be rested as much as absolutely possible.

Only a few hours had passed, and based on how she had felt when she first returned to the real world, Ryan was likely to be asleep for another 8 hours. With little time to waste, Fayne figured she should work on her skills. If they were going to save the sorceress, they would need a healer. There wasn’t much time, but with 8 hours to spare, that gave her two full days in the game to develop her abilities before her friend logged back in. She wasn’t sure how she would get the xp needed, but she had to be in the game to make the most of her time, so making her way to the capsule, she prepared her body.

Fayne took a deep breath, straightened her back, and reached for the headset. She plugged it into the console, the familiar interface flashing before her eyes. The soft chime of the system logging her in filled the room, but this time, she didn’t feel the same rush of excitement she used to. The game no longer felt like an escape; it felt like a prison.

System Message: “Welcome, Fayne. You have successfully logged in.”