Setting: INSIDE THE VIRTUAL GAME

Date: February 14th, 2026. (10 Minutes after Launch)

     Patrick was trying his best not to panic, but this was the biggest bug he had ever seen and he had been working on this game since the very beginning. The log out button was missing. No one was able to log out of the game, and because this was launch day there had to be millions of players logged in at one time to witness the big day and now they were all stuck inside the game. He started walking towards the town square in the middle of the city and then suddenly realized something. All the GMs had logged out before the launch. If no one could log out, was there a possibility that no one could also log in as well? This could mean that he was the only GM in the game at that particular moment. He was going to stand out like a sore thumb and everyone was going to turn to him for answers that he didn't have.

     "Stop," Patrick called out to Miritar. "We need to make a detour."

     They walked in the opposite direction, and walked into a small house that was in the magical district of the town.

     "What are we doing at the Transmog house?" Miritar asked.

     "Until we find out what's going on, I need to disappear." Patrick said, "And this armor makes me stand out like a naked guy in a crowd with his hair on fire."

     A trans-mogger as the players called it was a vender that allowed you to change the appearance of your armor, for a reasonable price. This allowed players to add match their armor so they didn't look like a rainbow with all the new armor they collected. It was a nice addition a few expansions ago, and was very popular. Patrick was going to change the look of his armor, but that change wouldn't diminish the power of it, just how it looked to everyone else.

     Patrick picked a unique armor setting, one that made him look a lot lower than his actual level. He picked something from a previous expansion that was one of his favorites, and changed it for a fair price. Now that he didn't look like a GM with specific armor, he would be able to roam around the city undetected and try to solve this mystery with minimal interference. Some people might recognize his name, but at least that lowered how many people would get in his face while he tried to work the problem from inside the game. He was sure people outside would do their part, so he would try to fix it form the other side and maybe meet in the middle.

     "Gear from the Samurai expansion," Miritar said, looking him over. "Nice choice."

     "I need to be incognito until we figure out what's wrong," Patrick said, as he started to resume his walk to the town square. "Let's get to the clock tower."

     As the two men made their way to the center of town, they could see more players gathered and talking, even arguing amongst one another. It was clear to Patrick that some had discovered the inability to check out of the game and that would obviously worry anyone. Even he was nervous about it and he had been working with this company for over a decade. Everyone had a right to be concerned, but the last thing they needed was the city to dive into a panic. Yet as he reached the center of town, people were already fighting among one another, and even drawing their weapons. Patrick couldn't stand there and allow it to go one as he rushed over and stepped between then.

     "Hey, I get that everyone is agitated," he said to them, "But this solves nothing!"

     "I just want to get out of here!" one of the players cried out.

     "I know you do," Patrick said, as he walked closer and placed a reassuring hand on the player's shoulder. "Odds are this is just a mistake, one that the company will work around the clock to fix. Getting mad and fighting isn't the right way to go. Let's not panic until we know exactly what's going on. Okay?"

     The players seemed to understand and lower their weapons and good judgement seemed to get the best of them. Less than a few seconds after everyone took a breath, there was a new buzz starting to spread around the town.

     "What's going on?" Patrick asked.

     "We're getting a quest prompt." Someone replied.

     Patrick turned to his own panel and opened up quests, and it was there waiting for him. There was a single message there, titled "The Dark Castle". He didn't like the sound of that, but opened the quest log to get an idea of what was going on. When he opened the quest prompt, instead of the voice actor who usually reads out the quests to the players, they heard someone else's voice. It was Gregory Janssen, CEO of the company that made everyone's favorite virtual reality game. Patrick and all the other players were silent and carefully listening as they were given instructions.

     "Good afternoon players, and welcome to the new expansion!" Janssen started with an air of excitement in his voice. "If you haven't already noticed, a lot of features in your log panels have been changed and even removed. That includes your ability to log out. I have decided to put you all on a grant quest, and fight for your right to leave this world. I designed a new territory, one that is going to require everyone working together or you will be doomed to fail. New enemies, dungeons and bosses have been created just for this event. If any of you want to ever get out of here, the only way out is to conquer the Dark Castle. Located in the new territory, the Dark Castle is guarded by thousands of high level creatures and once you make it inside, there are several dungeons that need to be completed to exit the game. Fail to conquer the Dark Castle and you will be trapped in this game until you succeed. Maps to the new zones will be messaged to you, but that is all the help I will give you. Everything else from here has to be earned."

     "I this some kind of joke?" one player yelled out. "How can he do this?"

     "I can't stay in here," Another player said, "I have go to work later today!"

     "The kids get off from school in a few hours!"

     "I want my mommy!"

     "I would not waste your time waiting to be rescued," Janssen continued, "I am the only gatekeeper, and I can assure you that the Dark Castle is your only salvation. Yet I am not an evil man, and this is still a game. There are other quests and rewards throughout this expansion. You can use those to get stronger and improve your chances of defeating the many dungeons in the Castle. If you manage to defeat a dungeon, you will have the option to teleport back to your city and take a break and recover before going onto the next level. With each success, players will also be rewarded with new features and tools that will help them with future dungeons. So the more you play this game, the more help you will be given. Do nothing and you will get nothing. I suggest you put aside petty rivalries and try to work together, for that will make the task before you a lot easier. Fight as if your lives depend on it, because in a way it really does. Best of luck, and have fun storming the castle!"

     "Sheesh," Patrick said, as he recognized the movie reference. This was not the right time to be quoting the princess bride, but Janssen just couldn't help himself.

     Patrick closed his quest log and looked around at the other players. He started looking at their levels and noticed something different. Everyone's levels were lower. The maximum level before the expansion launched was one hundred, and now there wasn't anyone in town above fifty. Patrick didn't remember a level squish being a part of the new expansion but this was likely to force people to level up and work together before trying to get out. Patrick quietly checked his own status and he was still at level one hundred. As a GM, his character didn't suffer the level squish. This explains why Janssen ordered all the GMs to log out before the launch. Patrick had to assume for the time being that he was the only moderator left, and had to keep that quiet for the time being. Patrick walked back up to Miritar and tapped him on the shoulder.

     "We need to get out of here," he said, "Right now."

     "Alright, let's beat it." Miritar said as he called up a specific mount, one that allowed other players to hop on. "Get on and I'll get us out of here. The less attention you draw the better."

     Patrick hopped onto the mount and they rode out of town very quickly to an area that was remote and had far less players. Once they dismounted, they had enough privacy to talk.

     "What the hell is going on?" Miritar asked.

     "I don't know," Patrick answered, "Either Janssen has completely lost it, or this is some kind of joke."

     "It's not April fool's day," Miritar reminded him, "Are we really stuck in here?"

     "It appears so," Patrick said, "And I wasn't supposed to be here. I was supposed to log out but didn't cause I was helping someone."

     "I've been squished to level fifty," Miritar told him. "You?"

     "No, I'm still at a hundred." Patrick answered, "That's probably why he wanted GMs to log out so we couldn't help you guys out."

     "That's comforting," Miritar said, looking around. "We have to level back up just to have a chance at this Castle. It's forcing us to play out the expansion before making a run at those damn dungeons. If we tried to attack right now, odds are we'd all be slaughtered. Do you think we regenerate when we die like we did before?"

     "I don't know," Patrick said, "Do you think Janssen would be that cruel to let you die after just one shot? It would be more tortuous to force you to try again and again, don't you think?"

     "We need to know," Miritar said, raising his hands. "Kill me."

     "Excuse me?" Patrick asked.

     "You're level one hundred," he replied, "You'd likely kill me with one spell. Do it and let's see what happens."

     "Are you sure about that?" Patrick said, "What if you don't come back."

     "We can't do anything until we find out." Miritar added. "So do it!"

     Patrick took his most powerful spell and struck the player beside him as hard as he could. A chain of lightning came from his hands and blew Miritar up in a matter of seconds, delivering a kill shot instantly.

     "Okay," Patrick said to himself, "That part still feels the same."

     He stood there and waited, hoping that Miritar was just transported to the nearest graveyard where he would respawn. He got his answer moments later when Miritar came riding up on his mount and came back good as new.

     "Okay, we respawn when we die." He said, dismounting. "That hurt a bit, but not as bad as it would for real. Everything seems to be here. Same armor, nothing gone from my inventory... but I've lost a level."

     "What?" Patrick said as he opened his panel. Usually players can block people from reading their stats, but GMs can look without permission. He noticed that Miritar had indeed lost a level when he died. He was now level forty-nine.

     "Yup, you lost a level." Patrick confirmed. "Lower stats too."

     "That means we have to work to get it back," Miritar said, "That's pretty cold."

     "Take the good with the bad," Patrick said, "Be thankful least we can come back from death. What that also means is we can keep attacking the castle over and over again until it falls."

     "Sounds like a plan," Miritar said, "So what do we do now?"

     "We'll do a bit of gathering," Patrick answered, "Let's hide from the system for the time being and explore a bit. Janssen might be watching so I have to lie low or he might try to come after me for not logging out when I was supposed to. I also want to scout around and see what levels the NPCs are."

     "What about the new zone?" Miritar asked.

     "That too," Patrick answered, "I want to take a look at it for myself. If we can't get too close, I still want to see this damn castle."

     "What are we waiting for?" Miritar asked, "Let's ride!"