There hadn't been a crazier time for all the 'legends' to level up and get to where they needed to be or perhaps get further. They were legends not for being recognized but for one strange entity, their quirks. A lone cursed human protector, a criminal, a rogue Eskimo, a disgraced ex-dictator and a fish who grew legs. To a certain degree, the competition was getting tighter.
Guy's lips thinned holding on to the tablet. The ranking on the tablet said his avatar was in x place. He reckoned that he hadn't been trying hard enough to even make it to the top four.
The walls were covered with relieving animated visuals_that's how much money they spent. He touched the walls and the playthings rippled but were in constant flux. He laid back and slung his hands over his eyes and rolled.
He was not in a state of awareness when his avatar shuffled.
The next day. At the penthouse of the M-tech building, the creative board tensed as he was staring each one of them down, pacing around the fluorescent conference table in the dim boardroom. The expanse was big with tan tiles everywhere and including a ceramic-insulated table with a screen showing devil rays swimming by, laptops and flailed pieces of paper were scattered across it, the creative board were seated, trying to brainstorm clever ideas off the top of their heads.
"So not one of you, not one, can come up with a protocol to kill off an avatar?"
They babbled their excuses and his hand came down hard on the desk and they shot up in terror. Dreading another tantrum from him.
Sebastian grimaced when Brutus raised a hand "May I be of assistance?"
"There are five competitors! Five!" He continued "And yet!" He flipped his finger pacing about in the big office.
"Pardon me," Brutus wiggled a hand and Sebastian sighed closing his eyes.
****
With great relief, Yupik snowboarded through the snow waving his arms in moving in a zig-zag motion down the hill. The monster with glowing yellow eyes roared and tunnelled into the snowbed causing a splash, the hills rumbled and the spray of snow severed in the air and on him, he covered his nose with a mask and slid faster.
The Chihazzin was a siluriform with yellow eyes, in the shape of a catfish but made of snow and a ringed big mouth, it leapt out and dived in the snow like a regular fish just to get to him. Its whiskers detected his mechanical vibrations from under the depth of snow and he rolled backwards at the end of the mountain, he raised the Icethyst and the incoming snowball parted at the blue light splitting to pour on both sides, the aspects poured but were not vast enough to bury him at the centre.
That was the least of his worries. The Chihazzin beast leapt with its mouth open over him and at the sign of light, his eyes flickered as the ice in his hand stretched up to a spear. With force, he threw it directly into its jaws and it waned, he shielded his head at the light shower and sniffed.
[ Time to leave your comfort zone ] Vermelha called.
"Wait_" Before he realized it, the place swivelled and he sat up gazing at the sand, he raised a handful and got up. His eyes narrowed at the blazing sun, once he was upright, he paled at [ Maelstrom ] whose blue eyes flashed, he stood on the snowy side of the border. Polar worlds collided, the hot and cold breeze mingled into an unsavoury wet breeze and he steadied himself in a fighting stance.
"Who are you supposed to be?"
He winced at the hologram in his face showing his feats and scores.
Name: Maelstrom
Level: 49
The red visual spun on the numbers meaning he was at a critical stage of his gaming experience. He was only at level 45 with a yellow streak_This is not a fair fight! He could almost hear Seb's taunting voice.
He swung his battle axe to his fist. The hourglass on his medallion flashed "Time to die," He swung the battle-axe to the side and sped toward him, swinging it across at him. It ripped his parka and Yupik retaliated with a blow to his face, it lodged in the fine nest of his face and the grains hardened. He pulled with his might and shoved it out and blasted a wave of ice at him.
Maelstrom leapt up and cartwheeled with incredible over the wave to the left side drawing the medallion over the sand toward him. Rocks stuck out pushing up on the terrain at full speed till they hit him, he flew into a boulder and he rasped at his throbbing head. Rolling up to send another wave before he made a move.
Maelstrom sidestepped it ambling toward him with a dark stare. He was going to get what he came for one way or another.
[ Retrieve the Icethyst ]
"With pleasure," The jewel chimed with yellow dust and buzzed when he sent a powerful sand vortex at him.
Yupik shuffled to his side and a raised an ice barricade, the sand blasted the walls and he grit his teeth at the dust piling up and his hood and mask wafted in the 'maelstrom', the sand drilled up against the ice until it started to crack from absorbing too much shock. He blasted out in the open again and hid back waiting for a slight sound. His instincts kicked in and he rolled over before Maelstrom chopped him, wedging against the ice and flipped over throwing his mallet, it swivelled and hit the ice. Maelstrom got out before it crumbled, he landed behind the grated ice and swung the axe.
He fell back on the sandy part of the place and suffered a projectile to the chest, he groaned at the chill against his heart and his medallion was frozen too, emitting ice fog. Yupik ran and spun prostrate sending a glaze at him. His hit was short-lived when Maelstrom shoved his hand up resisting the glaze. His eyes bulged when he broke it off and activated the gem.
Ironically, Yupik was frozen within the clutches of time in the powerful wave of his gem and he groaned trying to move every muscle as fast as possible but it was a drag, his dreams against his sanity. He reached for the gem and ripped it out of his clutch. [ Bones ] gasped.
The blue light beamed on him and he came around into the real world, perspiring and staggering into the open, Bones