~JST POV~

After we found out that we actually killed a princess rather than a queen we decided to log out. We weren't in a safe zone and there were still Canopy Gorillas outside so we had to take some precautionary measures. In the throne room we found a spot in a corner, cut into the wall of branches, huddled inside and threw an illusion over us. Using all of his mana Jones assured us that it would last a few days just about half a day in real time.

I removed my equipment which was just my trusty Sandstone Shield which Cobb had renewed after it fell apart and the Royal Geckan Water Scimitar which I picked off the dead body of the Royal Water Geckan I maimed.

It was a cool sword but I still felt that the name was too long, four words is pushing it. Besides being cool it actually felt cool to the touch as well, it had a bloodthirsty feel without the viciousness. In fact if I knew any better it just seemed thirsty. It was a royal blue shade, I had no available means to identify the sword but it was definitely sharp. There was an endless layer of water droplets on the blade despite how many times I flicked them off. The handle had a curved guard and was wrapped in some type of gray material akin to leather. Despite being wet my grip was surprisingly solid. In my hand I knew this blade could be deadly. It might have been my imagination, I could've sworn the blade just got wetter almost as if it was salivating.

Royal Geckan Water Scimitar (Rare)

Wielded by Royal Geckans this sword is the Water variant of the Royal Geckan Scimitar. These sword are found only on the hilt of a Royal Water Geckan specializing in combat.

Effects:

Damage: 40-52

Water Damage: 20-32

Durability: 37/39

It was weaker in terms of normal damage but the added Water Damage makes this weapon stronger than the constructs Cobb had made me before. Of course this had a durability rather than a time limit. Actually the fact that Cobb's magic weapons were made strictly of sand using Earth Magic said a lot of his magic, his weapons were on par with a Rare sword. Since I haven't looked at the forums I can't be certain where that lies in terms of rarity or strength, everything we've witnessed has been skewed since we started smack dab in the middle of the Uncharted.

"See ya guys on the flip side." I said. I was leaning against a particular branch that fit against my torso perfectly.

"Adios." My spider brother said. He was simply lying on a pile of leaves.

The green one was already limp.

Log out initializing...

One moment I was watching the blue screen and the next was complete darkness. Technically I haven't moved in about twenty four hours but my body was perfectly fine comfortable. Thing is, with the NIMF or Non-concussive Instant Memory Foam your body never gets uncomfortable. I awaited the removal of mehanical sensors and brainwave detectors gently floating in the breathable metallic liquid I was submerged in. Once the equipment retracted into their respective pockets against the interior of the Varas Capsule the liquid surrounding me receded until it was only me and the foam. Gravity returned when the liquid left and my body pressed harder against the foam. After years playing in the virtual world ridding the liquid from your lungs becomes second nature. New players often have trouble getting accustomed to it but I learned early, one long cough and you were done. The lid of the capsule opened and I was admitted from darkness and into the glory of interior lighting. Pneumatic hissing could be heard from my sides.

"Damn." Cobaj said sitting up. "Now that's a game."

"Yup." Nojas replied getting out, Cobaj followed suit.

I got out as well. It was strange knowing these two were the ones always beside me. In different worlds these two have saved my life and I have saved theirs. In other worlds they were my worst enemies. We've spent more than our own lifetime in game but we rarely ever team up.

"It's only been two days out here since launch." Cobaj was heading to the kitchen. "A five to one ratio is cool and all when you're actually playing but once you get out it feels like you're missing so much." 

"Well that's the trade off. In total, since we missed the first day, the game has had ten days to develop." I followed.

"The usual please." Nojas walked in from behind me.

"Coming up." Cobaj replied.

Cobaj got two steaks that had already thawed in the sink and threw them on a pan. He then turned around.

"I don't know about you guys but i'm having a lot of fun." He said.

"Same, same. We haven't even been to a town or anything. The Great Tree didn't even count as a dungeon or anything it's just open world." I recalled.

"So I have a question then." My now fully clothed brother said.

"What is it?" Nojas was getting tomatoes, lettuce and other greenery out of the fridge.

He tossed me a knife, it landed with the handle in my palm. We took a big cutting board, placed it on our granite kitchen island and cut up the tomatoes, cucumber, red onion and more in a few moments. Blade work translated to real life after all. We sweeped everything into a bowl and Nojas tossed it.

"Let's eat first." Cobaj was naturally talented with fire, magic or otherwise, so the man could cook a mean steak. 

When we were done cooking the food we sat ourselves down and swapped plates, steak for me and Nojas and salad for Cobaj. Food tastes better when it's cooked for you. It didn't take us long to devour everything we were in the capsules for a day and despite the nano bots providing sustenance we haven't actually eaten anything in all that time.

"What is it then?" I asked curious.

"Are we sticking to our normal rules or are we gonna team up?" His face was serious.

"This game is definitely different." Nojas commented.

"You don't want to compete?" I asked puzzled. I assumed that after this challenge quest we were going our seperate ways.

"If this game is as big as I think it is, I don't want to be fighting against my brothers the whole time." Cobaj replied. "Besides it's been a few games since we played on the same side." He grinned. I smiled myself, it was true.

"If it's anything like Contavia Online we might seriously mess stuff up." Nojas had his elbows on the table. "Just a warning. You know what happens when we team." 

After our battle in Contavia Online the world had to go through major updates, players causing such a big change was unprecedented. We created our own faction and took over Contavia. I checked in a few months ago and the developers were forced to keep the Kingdoms of Brozo in the game, my log in was announced world wide as the ruler of one of the kingdoms had returned. Instantly I logged off. It was too entwined with the story to be removed, we basically uprooted all the developers work creating their own virtual kingdoms by destroying them with our own. The worst part from their prospective was when the three rulers of the kingdom decided to leave and never log in again. We got bored.

"Relax. This game is big, I can feel it." Cobaj continued. " That begs the question. Are we sticking to our rules and staying off the forums?"

"I don't mind checking the forums if we're not against each other. It's only been ten days in game so i'm not expecting anything." I shrugged.

"Turn on the TV." I said walking into the game room. It was Cobaj's turn to do the dishes.

Nojas picked up the remote from the table, turned it on and flipped to VRN, Virtual Reality News. 

"Hello and welcome to VRN. Today i'm here in Twoen reporting live!" A blonde elf was broadcasting straight from game. She, unlike us, had equipment. She was clad in leather and animal skins, her bow was slung across her back and despite her dress it seemed very professional. 

Contracts for in-game coverage and publicity were always sought after, specific licenses were needed to record game content. VRN always got one in every game since it was the biggest news organization that covered Virtual Reality. It was no surprise to find them in Twoen. In fact we've actually been interviewed in other big games, so we were actually familiar with the elf on the screen. Of course she had no idea some of the big game shakers she's interviewed were the same three brothers.

This story originates from Royal Road. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.

Jane is in what seems to a be a desert city. The houses seemed to be of hardened sand and the paved walkways were sandstone. In the distance a gate outside of the city revealed only rolling dunes. Tall figures could be seen walking between them. Despite the dry scenery, fountains were found in the center of the plaza she was in. They spewed bright blue water in endless amounts. 

"I am in the city of Tote right by the deserts of Ari. The largest starting city and most racially tolerant of all choices. Of course you all know who i'm meeting today and that's why I chose Tote, it has the best security of all the known cities. Even now you can see the patrols!" Jane gestured to a human patrol armed in steel.

By this time Cobaj had come back from the kitchen.

"Hey it's Jane." He said sitting down. "This should be interesting."

"If you're tuning in just now it's almost time for Hendrick to arrive. That's right folks! The first player to reach level fifteen and recieve his class in a record ten days! Amazing!" Jane was ecstatic. She actually had a deep love for VR gaming and it was something all three of us could understand.

We all shared a glance. Only fifteen?

"As you know." She continued calming herself. "Even with the level curve reduced. For those of you unaware, the time to reach level ten during beta took about two months. Since launch the leveling was judged to be too slow and reduced, making it easier to level up. At this new rate level thirty in two months is the expected." She explained.

Oh I had forgot that our experience was bit different. Still we were about level thirty so we were way ahead of the curve. However now it doesn't seem as skewed as it was. If reaching level ten took two months and we were playing on that leveling curve then our levels would need a lot of explaining to do. Our challenge start shot us way ahead,.

"That's right that means that Hendrick has somehow managed to progress a month's worth of leveling in only ten days!" We're at two months worth of progress in only five. "He should be arriving soon." Jane was now actively looking around.

"Hello." A voice sounded from off camera. It wasn't quiet but the mic didn't pick it up very well.

"Hendrick! Welcome, welcome." Jane gestured and the player walked in front of the camera.

"Hello my name is Hendrick. If you follow my stream you should already know me." He introduced himself. His voice was rugged like a rusty tool decaying from disuse.

He was covered in white garb. The white material rested upon his body in a way that suggested some type of armor below. His head was covered from the sun, but his face was clearly visible. Simply put he seemed like someone who was easily taken advantage of, his eyes had an innocent gaze, it didn't help that they were blue. His face was clean shaven, slightly tan and glistening from sweat. Sand was in his hair from what I could see, only visible because of his black hair, suggesting that he had just been in a fight. Despite the innocent look anyone with enough experience could tell you this man knew his business.

"I wonder what his class is." Nojas was leaning forward, arms on his elbows and chin on his hands. He seemed uncharacteristically interested.

"Questions please." He got straight to business.

"Okay. First, how did you get level fifteen so fast?" Jane asked genuinely curious. If I knew Jane she was dying to know.

"I caught the attention of an important somebody." He adjusted his hood and in his shifting robes I could make out a curious outline. A shield?

"Did you catch that?" Cobaj asked.

"A tank then?" I kept my eyes on the TV.

"No, i'm not looking at him, the houses look." Sure enough there were flashes of sunlight, barely visible in the already bright setting.

"I was waiting for you to notice. I hope his class is a tank cause that's morse code." Nojas hadn't moved from his postion. His eyes were glued to the screen.

I never bothered to learn Morse Code. They did though. I just learned the signaling code that Cobaj devised for just us three. It covered a wider range of communication than just flashes of light or sound. Of course we use that too but in a game setting so many ways of communication become viable. This method of communicating since it was unique to us helped us greatly. We've had years to develop it. It could be the way I lead an opponent around in a duel, a subtle gesture in conversation or simply a random phrase where it would normally be overlooked.

"What's it say I missed the beginning." Cobb was squinting at the TV now.

"Target spotted." Nojas smiled.

"What's your class Hendrick? And how specific can they get? What fields do they cover and how is yours decided? At this point all we know is that we gain them at level fifteen from beta testers but how is that decided?" When Jane finally stopped he answered.

"I could tell you the process but that would ruin the surprise. It's reliant on you just playing up to level fifteen without any influence. If I were to tell you then you might get a class you aren't suited for." It was true thinking about it. 

"So you won't tell the viewers anything?" Jane slumped.

"I'll tell you that they get very specific, even my viewers didn't get to see the process, I shut my stream off for it and recorded it for later in case people want to witness how I got my class once it becomes public knowledge. I will tell you on thing though." He said.

"What is it?" Jane beamed. I chuckled. I knew how easy it was to lead her on.

"They can get very specific but my class is very simple." He paused and cocked his head to the side a bit.

"Well?" She was practically begging. "What's it called?"

"Protector." He said. 

In the same moment he swung his shield arm and shattered three crossbow bolts mid air. His momentum didn't go to waste as he circled around Jane to protect her. The angle of the camera shifted to first person. We were witnessing the attack live from Jane's perspective. 

It was a bad angle and nothing could be seen when enshrouded with white robes. At the same time the emotional suspense and constant battering against Hendrick gave a different appeal. Hendrick was smiling, his innocent gaze turned into one of a gentle protector.

"I have a platinum stream license by the way." He smiled down to her.

"W-what?" We couldn't see her face but she was in shock.

"Sorry, you know what that means, I have jurisdiction here. Tune in to my stream to see what happens next." He shot a smile at the camera before it winked out.

His grin was comical and got a chuckle from all three of us, he didn't seem the joking type but in the face of big profits sides of us come out that we don't think exist. We did exactly what he suggested and found his stream.

"God that was some good media. The guy knows his rights." Cobaj praised. "He must've stolen millions of viewers just from being on VRN."

Now the combat was from Hendrick's perspective. He was hunched over an elf girl. When the attackers realized their crossbow bolts weren't working they advanced on foot. Their target wasn't clear to the viewers, it could either Hendrick or the girl and that same question was shown in the way Hendrick's head shifted. I could almost read his thoughts. He was indecisive of his method of protection, leading the enemies away to follow him. Or standing his ground and risk having Jane in harms way for no good reason. 

In the end he chose to stay, it was what I would have done as well. The first method was too risky. 

As they neared he reached into his robes and pulled out another shield, he had a small shield on each arm. I wondered on how he handles combat, it was surprisingly straight forward. The guy could take a hit, he took full swings on his chest and knocked them down with his shields. Sure it wasn't flashy but it was efficient and earned my respect. I would have done something more appropriate for the viewers but I guess he's hoping they'll forgive him and know he's not taking any risks when it comes to saving Jane. That in itself shows his character.

Jane hid behind the man the whole time so even when the battle was done their actual target wasn't clear. As the adrenaline wore off Hendrick tended to Jane. We stopped watching shortly after.

"Seems like a nice guy, I like how he didn't try anything and instead just did his best to protect Jane." I complimented.

"That's because you have a thing for Jane." Nojas poked me, grinning. "You know you do." The fucker poked me some more.

"Fuck the fuck off bro." I shifted slightly. "Want to go sparring?"

"Not when you're like that." Cobaj called over his shoulder breaking us up. He had moved to his computer and was browsing the Twoen forums. "Channel 985, World of Twoen." He told us, swiveling to face the TV. 

A message popped up asking us if we wanted to buy the channel to which I responded yes. It was a multi-channel meaning it covered different categories within the subject that we could tune in to, this one being Twoen. Among the options presented were world lore, dungeons, player disputes, new discoveries, items, quest and npc interaction. 

I chose player disputes. Of course they were covering Hendrick, apparently the players who attacked them were indeed after Jane and were sent by another news organization. 

"What do you guys want to look at?" I asked them while the TV droned on.

"NPC interaction." Cobaj rolled his chair closer to the TV.

There was no reporter this time but just a voice following a video.

"In the deserts of Ari the hulking figures walking among the dunes are often ignored. Many believe them to be monsters. One player among many decided to meet them and see for himself. His name is Chris and what he found was amazing." 

The camera cut to an interview angle of who I assumed was Chris sitting in a bar. There was a drink in his hands and he looking into the camera.

"It was incredible! A whole race of people twenty meters tall! And I talked to one! Me!" He was wide-eyed. "His name was Got and he was huge. His people are know as the Tyou. I asked him why I see them walking around in the sandstorms that plague Ari, Got told me he lives there! It's insane!"

The screen shifted to someone standing on the edge of what I recognized was Tote. In the distance a raging sandstorm approached, faint outlines walked undisturbed through the storm.

"Have you seen those sandstorms? Impossible. He told me a few things about his people, when he finally noticed me that is. I skimmed over that part didn't I?" He slowed down.

Now it was the first person view of Chris. He was yelling upwards, running full sprint to keep up with the Tyou's stride. 

"Hello! Hello!" He took a swig of water from a waterskin at his side and continued. "Hello! Hello!" After long minutes there was lull in the wind, silence for only a moment and his voice was heard.

The figure paused and looked around before spotting Chris. He paused and I could feel the fear from Chris.

"It was incredible! Huge! Got didn't even realize some was yelling for ten minutes! The wind muffled a lot of sound but still!" He laughed.

It cut back to the first person of Chris.

"Yes?" A deep rumbling voice rolled through Chris.

Back to the bar.

"Can you imagine my face when Got actually replied? That moment will be ingrained in my memory forever!" He slammed his drink down.

The desert came back and Chris paused for a long moment.

"Can we talk!" He adjusted his satchel and took out his notebook.

"What shall we talk about, little one?" With that Got sat down against the dune sending sand in all directions.

After that Got told Chris about his people and his life, how he used to live in the Light Freeze and how he has family there waiting for him. His story was amazing and eventually the shifting between Chris at the bar and Chris at the desert stopped. Eventually the viewer was just there. They were sitting right there beside Chris and Got listening to a man tell his story. 

"How old are you? I mean if that's okay." Chris asked.

"I am old even among my own people. It is why I walk." Got responded. 

By this time, through Chris' questioning, the cultural importance of walking to the Tyou becomes clear. It's something he didn't completely share but we got the sense walking was of great cultural significance.

"Did you have fun? Living your life that way? Walking your life I mean." Chris asked innocently. Got tended to use the word walk rather than live.

I don't think Chris had the tact to realize it but he was talking to a very old Tyou. One on the verge of dying. It was obvious to the viewer he was a dying Tyou but also clear that Got didn't really care too much. In fact it seemed he enjoyed the questions. To me he seemed so much like a grandfather.

"Fun?" Got blinked and a tear rolled down his face. "I had much fun walking my life, much fun." His rumbling voice broke at the end.

"Good." Chris left it at that. 

And he just sat with him. Not everyone can walk forever after all.

With that the program ended.