Carina dumped her M1911’s magazine on the suit worn on a mannequin.
The gunshot echoed inside the room like thunderclap and had nowhere to escape. Ezra only covered his ears as he looked at Carina massacring the suit.
The slide kept sliding back and ejecting the bullet casings out of the firing chamber, leaving smoke.
All the .45 cal bullets struck into the suit. Each warhead tore through the fabric, tearing pieces of cloth out. However, the bullets were still visible from outside.
Carina walked to the suit and undressed it from the mannequin, showing the mannequin's body to Ezra. Completely unscratched.
“Zero penetration.”
She ripped apart the outer layer of the blazer and showed the internal armor damaged with the bullets to him.
“Non-newtonian fluid is a game changer, man.”
Carina ripped the Kevlar off, as some kind of liquid spilled out of the cloth. While looking at Ezra, she whispered.
“Rest assured, pistols and knives won't kill you. But it'll surely hurt.”
“Still…I wouldn't risk it.”
Ezra looked at his new suit, squeezing it to make sure his suit had the armor, as Carina continued explaining.
“Oh, you have to. That's how you'll grow. After all, this is the newest suit we invented. After all these years, we've always been losing to those assholes.”
Ezra just stared at her until she finished her words, then watched her dispose of the damaged suit.
“Alright, time for gun training.”
Carina pulled a Glock 19 Gen5 out of her pocket, then walked to the floor behind a window that faced the forest.
She opened the window, aiming the pistol into the sky, as her left hand was busy reloading the gun with tracer rounds.
As everything was ready, she pulled the trigger, firing the first round.
The sound of gunshot echoed everywhere in the sky.
From a distance, a muzzle flash was sparking the darkening sky, then a red tracer ammunition came out and flew into the air.
As she fired about 6 rounds, she immediately switched the firing mode to full automatic, spraying red tracer bullets into the dark forest behind the school, emptying the magazine and throwing it outside.
“Remember what I taught you?”
Carina asked him while reloading the magazine with a new one and setting the firing mode to SAFE.
“Don't bend your fingers, but push it back.”
Ezra only nodded, then received the gun from Carina's hands.
There were only the two of them inside the soundproof room, the afternoon sunlight illuminated into the room.
Ezra caressed the body of his gun. The handle had tilted square patterns, and it was somehow prickly to touch.
Ezra aimed his pistol out of the window, as Carina moved aside.
Steady, he released the safety then pulled the trigger. A muzzle flash sparked in the dark, blinding his eyes for a while, as the slide blew backwards then returned to its original position.
Then a green tracer flew out of the barrel, falling into the forest, illuminating the trees for a while before dying.
After he saw the first round falling into the trees, he immediately lifted his arms and looked into the iron sight, adjusting for a while, then fired 5 bullets.
The tracers flew in a line without much spread, before falling into the forest and dying.
Then he switched into full automatic, spraying the rest of the magazine into the forest.
As all the bullets were gone, the slide remained open and the casing fell to the floor, bouncing a few times.
“I didn't expect the recoil to be so light.”
Ezra was impressed by how easy the pistol was to control.
“That's one of the guns with the least recoil force. Though the problem is that your hands are still not steady while firing.”
Carina commented.
“I suggest you stay in semi-automatic settings unless it's necessary to spray all over the place.”
“I see.”
Ezra deployed the safety and reloaded the magazine, then placed his gun under his blazer.
This story originates from a different website. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.
After several seconds of a silent period between them, Carina walked to the window facing a sports field and leaned against the window frame, inhaling the air and slowly releasing it.
Down there, there were a lot of students of PE class running circling the field.
Ezra looked at her hair fluttering with the wind that blew into the room.
“This school is very big…”
He mumbled, not expecting Carina to answer him.
“Yeah. It can house up to 40000 students at once. 8 apartment sized dormitories for boarding students and 4 subway stations.”
“Subway station in a high school?”
“Well, it's afterlife. Though we can't enter it, it's like when you try to enter a building and there's a barrier that somehow stops you.”
“So we're in a game?!”
“Not really. I can't really tell. The point is, we're supposed to experience things we didn't experience when we were still alive. That's about it.”
“That's cool, though I haven't ridden a train yet.”
“Poor thing, I'd say.”
“Thanks, I guess.”
“I don't know what built this school though. Though in real life I've never seen a high school with a very complete facil—”
“Hey, aren't we talking too loud up here?”
“Don't worry. They won't hear us from there. After all, we're not planning a war here.”
“That's all you want to ask?”
“Nah.”
Ezra answered quickly, pointing to the large field with countless people doing sports.
“Who are those guys?”
“Right now people are busy with PE clubs.”
Carina explained, as 6 people raced each other in a straight line until the finish.
“You guys don't do it?”
“Of course not. Our goal here is not for that. Besides, joining in one wouldn't end well for us anyways.”
“Like?”
“We humans will probably reincarnate into something we don't want. That's one of the probabilities.
Dunno though, a few past members had disappeared without a trace and I believe that's the cause.”
The sun began setting behind the airfield sized sports field.
From a different angle, a few more fields were revealed, placed beside each other, separated by a staircase.
The one nearest to the building they were in were a sprinting track and a long jump pit respectively.
The further ones after the stairs were a basketball court and a volleyball court.
“Does that mean they're not humans too?”
“Yeah. They're human mobs.”
“Mobs?”
“You've never played games before? They're computer controlled mobile characters. Something like Artificial intelligence but way more intelligent.”
“Not like that—wait you still haven't answered my question, is this world a game?”
“It's just a reference word.”
In the lobby gate, those human mobs interacted with each other while sitting on the stairs.
“Are they different from the guys we used last night?”
Ezra asked her.
“Yes. The real mobs are versatile, while the mobs we made have limited features—because we didn't have the knowledge to code the entire thing into them.”
Carina answered.
“Damn…”
Some were walking back to the dorm, some were heading to the subway station, some were running to meet friends, and some walked alone with a Walkman.
“Will they keep doing the same thing over and over again each hour and return the same answer to you?”
“Go try it for yourself. Since you're new here I doubt you'll notice the difference between us.”
“You mean they actually converse with the flow?”
“Just go and slap a girl in her ass.”
Carina answered, as Ezra's face became shocked.
“She'll either report you to the student council, crush your balls, or take you to her bed the following night.”
“Holy shit, they're well made.”
Ezra hesitantly commented.
“The teachers too?”
“Yep.”
Carina answered.
“Quick note though, mobs don't age, just like all of us. Any questions?”
The PE coach blew his whistle as he yelled at a student impatiently, giving gestures to tell the student to sprint over again.
The room basked in the warm glow of the late afternoon sunlight, but the conversation between Carina and Ezra carried a chill of intrigue.
Carina leaned casually against the window, her dark silhouette outlined against the golden horizon. Ezra stood nearby, the weight of her words pulling at his thoughts as he toyed with the edges of his blazer.
"Um, yeah."
Ezra began hesitantly.
"Who’s this Architect you keep bringing up? You’ve mentioned him, like, a dozen times, but you never really explain."
Carina tilted her head slightly, her expression darkening.
"It's a ‘her’. She's...affiliated with God, I think. Maybe the one who built this entire place. You know, A World Where We Can Relax for a Bit Before Reincarnating Again."
She let out a sharp laugh.
"Yeah, right. I'd love to put a bullet through her skull for that lie.”
"But is she actually…a god?"
Ezra’s tone dripped with skepticism.
"Like, death-proof? Won’t take damage even if we drop, say, a tactical nuke on her head?"
"Not quite. She takes damage, sure. But her health pool’s in the thousands, and before you even get to her, you’d have to break her shield. That alone would need, oh, maybe twenty magazines from an M82. And if you’re thinking tanks, forget it. She’s faster than our turrets can track. You’d just end up with a smoking pile of metal where your tank used to be."
Ezra crossed his arms, his expression darkening.
"I haven’t seen her yet, so I can’t really strategize, but…this sounds bad."
"Strategy isn’t your strong suit anyway."
Carina quipped, flashing him a smirk.
"That’s why I’m after something better—the Obsidian Compass."
"The what-now?"
Her smirk widened.
"The compass that leads you to the XML world. You know, the realm where you can rewrite the rules of this place. Imagine making bullets bounce off you like you’re wrapped in plot armor."
Ezra’s eyes narrowed.
"Hold up. XML World? Why didn’t you mention this earlier?"
"Because if I had, you’d probably have dipped. And guess what? You can’t quit now~”
Carina shot him a sly side-eye and smirks.
"Gee, thanks. That’s manipulative and reassuring."
He deadpanned.
"You’re welcome."
Carina shrugged, her voice light but her eyes sharp.
Ezra groaned, rubbing his temples.
"Fine, fine. What’s the plan then?"
"You remember those bastards who fired an RPG at us last week?"
“Absolutely. My ears are still ringing."
"They’re after the compass too. If it falls into their hands, we’re toast. Dead for real this time. No respawns."
Ezra leaned against the wall, his brow furrowed.
"So when are we grabbing this thing?"
Carina crossed her arms, her gaze flicking toward the fading light outside the window.
"Here's the catch: it's currently sitting about 23,000 feet underground.”
“Uh-huh. And you found it, how, exactly?”
"It’s complicated. The Compass doesn’t stay put. It despawns and respawns based on seasons and magnetic waves or some nerdy stuff like that. I’ve been here long enough to memorize its spawn points. My team already rigged the area with traps and bombs, plus a gravity and some magnetic sensors to catch its signal. It’s a one-shot deal—happens every 23 lunar years if I'm not mistaken."
Ezra blinked.
"That…that’s a lot of info. My brain’s full now, thanks."
"Focus."
Carina snapped.
"We’re dropping a bomb on their base tonight to clear the way. And no, we didn’t code the bomb—it’s good old-fashioned mechanical, courtesy of Dika."
The distant shouts of PE students echoed faintly, oblivious to the high-stakes conversation happening above them.
"One last thing."
Ezra ventured cautiously.
"This Architect…why does she even come here? What’s her beef?"
"Who knows? She’s unpredictable. Shows up after sunset sometimes, and she’s…weird. Like a final boss that never explains their evil plan. But she’s neutral—usually. Unless you piss her off."
Ezra frowned.
"Is she coming tonight?"
Carina glanced at him, a mischievous glint in her eye.
"Nope, all safe. We'll use this chance to load the gravity bomb into the plane."
"Gravity bomb?”
Ezra asked, incredulous.
“What is this? You code that too?"
Carina smiled a little.
"Nope. Dika built it old-school. No code involved—just pure mechanical genius."
Ezra sighed, the weight of their bizarre reality settling in his chest.
"Wild."
Carina smirked, the wind catching her hair as she turned back to the window.
"Welcome to the afterlife, newbie."
Ezra sighed, his shoulders sagging as he leaned against the frame beside Carina.
“I still have one more question.”
He said, his gaze fixed on the floor.
Carina shifted, taking a cautious step back. Her eyes narrowed slightly, scanning him for intent. “What is it?”
Ezra straightened, meeting her eyes. “That computer God… what’s that guy even doing underground?”
A faint smirk tugged at Carina’s lips.
“Oh, you mean that pile of CRT monitors that talks? Yeah.”
“Did he ever say something… or do something to you?”
Carina’s smirk faltered. Her gaze flicked to the side, distant for a moment, before she shrugged.
“We talked. The rest… I forgot it.”
Ezra frowned.
“What did that AI say to you?”
“Nothing much. More or less the same flat-toned nonsense he told you, I bet.”
She paused, then continued.
“By the way, did you notice the knife on one of his screens when you were in there?”
Ezra answered.
“Yeah… I think I remember it. Looked out of place.”
Carina crossed her arms, her smirk returning.
“That’s my knife. Somehow got it into that realm when I died.”
Her eyes sparkled mischievously as she leaned closer.
“I’d love to retrieve it, but…I’m on a ten-year no-death streak. It’s my biggest flex whenever someone tries to bring me down.”
She burst into laughter, the sound sharp and alive, breaking the tension. Ezra stared at her, slack-jawed.
“Holy shit…”
“Welcome to hell, kid. Everything’s just a bargain, or it exists because the rules of reality got lazy. Lucky for us, we ended up in this sort of realm. Could’ve been worse.”
Carina wiped a tear from the corner of her eye.
“I see…”
Carina clapped her hands together suddenly, the sound echoing through the room.
“That’s it! Study session over!”
Before Ezra could reply, she spun on her heel and slammed the window shut, the loud bang shaking the frame.