"Come on, chief!" encouraged XX04, passing by me.
I was standing at the classroom's door, hesitating to step in. A dozen of my brothers were already there, sitting at their desks with their headscreens on. XX04 jumped to his usual spot and joined the others in the simulated environment.
"Let's start with a fight!" he said, slumped on his chair. "I want to test if my new manliness boosted my combat skills!"
"On my way to kick your butt," I said without putting any heart.
I took hold of my headscreen and stared at it for a long time. KS12 had already informed us that once a woman obtains her circle bio-marker, she can't enter the simulation as a player again. And this change was going to happen to me in just two days. That might be my last opportunity to spend time where I'm most comfortable.
When the digital world materialized around me, XX04 was waiting in the arena. Everyone else was gathered around, ready to spectate the upcoming fight. I hurried and took my virtual sword from its sheath on my back. I was so familiar with handling that sword that it felt like an integral part of my body. With its hilt in hand, it felt like I just recovered a missing limb, and I couldn't wait to put it to good use!
"Best-of-five?" XX04 asked.
Given my stats, it had been an eternity since someone last volunteered to fight me. Getting to fight at least three rounds against XX04 was a treat I couldn't refuse. "Fine by me," I said, entering the ring.
As expected, XX04 didn't waste a second and rushed at me at full speed. Parrying his hit, I sidestepped and slid my blade to his guard, ending with a quick and clean slice through his thorax. Carried over by his momentum, XX04 finished his charge past me. I turned around, and the bright red line I left on his avatar confirmed I virtually split him in half with that move.
"I wasn't ready!" protested XX04.
"Yet you attacked."
He lunged at me again, and I could tell he was already getting mad. After blocking a few calculated hits, I tested him and swung a more powerful strike. XX04's blade stopped mine, but not enough to prevent his left arm from getting a concerning wound tainted in red.
XX04 pushed me away and responded by chaining fast attacks, entering a trance. I smiled at that welcome challenge, during which he managed to land a minor scratch on my thigh.
"Ha! Didn't see that coming?" he shouted.
XX04 didn't finish his sentence that I had already dashed forward and shoved my entire sword through his chest, from guts to shoulder blade.
"Didn't see that coming?" I asked him back, proud of my move.
XX04 took it much slower for the third round. His confidence was weakened for sure. He was now weighing each hit way more carefully. That had always been when he was fighting at his best: with his ego in check and his swings deliberate. I decided not to be too aggressive: that might be the last sword fight of my life, so why not make it last a little longer? Why not even lose once for a guaranteed extra round?
In a defensive stance, I kept resisting XX04's assaults. I found opportunities to strike his arm or knee but chose not to take them. I was calm, in total control, and enjoying the moment. I didn't want it to end.
"Come on! Finish him!" complained some of my brothers, noticing I was dragging on the fight.
Reluctantly, I launched a few strikes left and right, then landed a magistral quick spin, sending my blade right through XX04's throat. In the real world, I would have cut his head right off. Here, only a red scar lingered under his head, marking the end of our battle.
XX04 dropped his sword, which vanished before touching the ground. He walked to me and gave me a friendly hug. I could tell he was pissed, be he was smiling at my performance as well.
"Looks like it's not all about the dick," XX04 said. Technically, he lost to a woman, which made his statement even more relevant. But like the rest of the squadron, he didn't know yet. "Good job, chief! But I did you a favor by offering a best of five. You could have let me win at least once!"
"Sorry, bro," I said, "but I needed the confidence boost. Thanks!"
"Who's fighting One next?" asked XX04 to the spectating crowd.
"No, thanks," I said before letting anyone answer. "I think I'll head out for a bit. I want to kill some bugs."
"Sure! Let's hunt some bugs together, then!" said XX04.
"I'd like to go alone," I insisted.
"Are you sure you're alright?" asked XX04. "That doesn't sound like you."
In the blink of an eye, I dodged XX04's questions and went out, standing at the edge of the defense perimeter, the desolate wastes in front of me. I could hear mission control's AI giving instructions as usual, but I didn't pay attention. I would have muted it if I could. Today, I had other plans.
I didn't run to the ice dome. Instead, I strolled, looking at the sky, touching the rocks, and feeling the snow. Despite the cold, I opened my visor and let it bite my nose and cheeks. I never realized how realistic the simulation was, always taking it for granted. I stared at my avatar's thick legs, arms, and hands. It made me sad to know that I would never grow that strong, that I would never set foot out there, and that I would never be there for my brothers. They could have used my help, but the General decided otherwise. Fucking asshole.
I took the next hour to study the oasis, patiently touching or inspecting everything I could. Once inside, I immediately climbed on sour shrooms.
"Sour shrooms are unsteady. Request going down," repeated mission control for the fifth time as a chunk detached under my foot and nearly made me fall. I didn't care how inadvisable it was, though. I didn't care about killing bugs, dying, or the score either. Today, I was just exploring the jungle. And I was doing it my way.
I finally found a comfortable spot up high on a massive mushroom's cap and lay there. I turned my headlights off and undressed to my avatar's underwear. The air wasn't suffocatingly warm up there; being nude felt comfortable. I witnessed the shroom's bioluminescence loom up as my eyes acclimated to the darkness. Damn, it was so beautiful! I wished I could have stayed there forever, maybe with XX30 or XX02 by my side. And there, I sobbed, mourning that life I would never get.
Something touched my cheek and stopped a tear. It felt too real to come from the environment, so I immediately removed my headscreen.
XX30 was there in the classroom with me. All our brothers around us were still sitting inanimate at their desks, absorbed by the simulation. I could tell by XX30's face she understood what was going on. It didn't take long for her to kneel and hug me. In her arms, the need to cry vanished. I put my headscreen down, convinced it was the last time I would use it, and followed XX30 to get something to eat.
I hope XX01's brothers wont turn out to be a bunch of idiots after they learn what will happen.
I don't think this work will ever be finished, but according to the logic of what is happening, they should swing on the swings in relation to the status of the main character, and then take his side and beat up the general. Or a crisis will happen, and they will have to save themselves)