The stage for the next Faction War was more grand than any of the others. To get there, Merrick had to leave the City of Als Atbor and wander out to the same Field Zone that he had recently rode through to get to the Dark Forest Zone. However, this time there was a grand stage being constructed.
The grand stage looked like one complete area from a distance, but as Merrick walked closer he could tell that it was actually composed of nearly a dozen small sites that were bookended by two large sites. Most of the construction had been completed already and the fog that hung over the sites were only to keep the Adventurers from scoping the field before the Faction War started.
The large sites were castles, the smaller sites were forts, and the goal was to protect your castle while capturing forts. On paper, the Faction War seemed to favor the Curious Glades' opponent: the largest Faction in Dungeons Below. Merrick believed in his Faction's ability though, especially after seeing how hard all of the members trained during the last few sessions.
Since he had not grown much on his own while his focus was on the other spellcasters, some of them closed the gap between their skill level. While Merrick was lost in thought about how the Faction would perform, a dark figure appeared ahead of him. It was a warhorse and it towered over the path that he walked in such a way that Merrick thought it was riderless for a second.
Then when he saw the rider, Merrick had a momentary panic thinking that it was a boss-level random encounter in the Field Zone. In a full set of Knight's Armor, with a heavy lance laid across their lap, the rider looked like the kind of foe that Merrick would normally relish defeating: the kind that dropped named items. However, when the rider swung down to the path, Merrick recognized the armor.
The rider might still drop a named item or two, but that was not due to their nature as a monster, but as their position within Mouseion. The War Officiant from the last Faction War now blocked Merrick's path forward. He bit his tongue and held back a comment about the company getting in his way once again. Instead, he waited for his visitor to speak.
There was no pleasantries. "The Curious Glades have been found guilty of Player Killing and Looting rival factions outside the confines of the Faction War system. Despite the notification from your own Faction Leader and the guidance of Mouseion representatives, this action has continued."
Merrick frowned, he immediately thought of a certain rogue that had been missing from several training sessions.
"Despite the fact that you were not personally involved, the decision was made that this be brought to your attention as the Vice-Leader of your Faction while the Leader prepares for the Faction War Commencement."
Merrick finally spoke up, "Is there proof that it was a member of the Curious Glades? I was the victim of an attempted PK when I was traveling through the Dark Forest Zone."
"Mouseion is aware of the attack against you and that does not change the events." The War Officiant clarified, "During the last attack, one of the victims was able to capture the face of their attacker in a mirror's reflection in a snapshot. Whether you yourself were attacked by the same PK or not, the Curious Glades are directly implicated in the string of attacks. Most notably, every member of Hades Collective was a victim of both Player Killing and extreme Looting since the war between your Factions ended."
After a few moments, when it was clear that Merrick had nothing to add, the War Officiant continued. "At this time, Mouseion is treating this as a separate incident to the attack on the Curious Glade's Faction Office. A Faction Levy is going to be applied. As Vice-Leader, you have the option to accept the Levy individually or allow it to be placed on the Faction as a whole."
Merrick let out a deep sigh. Regardless of the answer to his question, he knew he had to accept it by himself. "What is the Levy?"
"One Faction Leader can be banned from the entire game for one week or all Faction Leaders are banned from the current Faction War."
Merrick whistled and kicked at the dirt, "Mouseion really knows how to kick, don't they?"
The War Officiant nodded.
"We just created four new positions in Leadership… If I let this go to the Faction, Thom will take the ban himself."
The War Officiant nodded slowly, "That is why someone inside of Mouseion sent this directly to you, instead of allowing it to go to the Faction Leader first."
"So Thom does not know?"
The War Officiant shook her head.
"He's the strategist. They cannot lose him." Merrick took a deep breath, "I'll take the ban."
The War Officiant gestured to the side and a system menu popped up between them. Merrick quickly scrolled through the rules of the ban. He would not be allowed access to the game Dungeons Below, the messages boards, or the forum. As he reached the bottom, he placed his thumb against the signature box to mark it.
"Can I send a-"
Before he could finish asking about sending word to the Faction, Merrick's screen went blank. The game world closed around him. It reminded him of when Alex had kicked him from the game.
Back in reality, Merrick pulled the headset from his eyes and set it down on the mat next to him. There was nothing he could do to give them a heads up about his absence. He did send a text message to Thom but that would not get read until after the War was over.
Instead of mulling over it, Merrick shifted gears completely. As soon as the Faction War had ended, he was going to meet with his boss at the Old Library. Now that he was booted from the game, he had nothing else to do but trust the spellcasters that he trained and move on with his day.