Redmaw: I am at the third door

Primrose: Excellent! The Red Potions will be helpful in the future. The next game on your schedule will be a pretty quick one. I hope you like reading, dragons, and aren't afraid of the dark....

Redmaw: I am not afraid of the dark

Primrose: All right, you should buy an Elixir and then as many Red Potions as you can carry. How many empty inventory slots do you have? You'll want to count the twelve blank squares in the bottom right corner.

Redmaw: they are all full

Primrose: Really? Are any of them chests?

Redmaw: i thought they were footlockers or lockboxes

Primrose: They're called “chests”. Just plain chests. If we're going to be a team, then we'll need to call things the same, or misunderstandings will happen. Each one should have 27 slots of storage inside?

Redmaw: i want a team i will call them chests

Redmaw: yes each chest has 27 slots when i think about what is in inside of them the chests

Primrose: Great! Then do you have room for 79 of them? 79 available storage slots inside the chests?

Redmaw: I do!

Primrose: Then you should purchase 79 Red Potions and 1 Elixir. That'll leave you with 1,100,040 gold coins.

I wanted to become a chosen one selected by a team almost as much as I wanted magic. The day had finally arrived when a selector mentioned their team to someone like me. This was such a great day. It was also the first time that I entered a store on my own. I was really excited until I noticed that the shop only had tools of violence displayed. Shiny swords, both long and short, shields made of copper, and dull armor were all showcased on the shelves. Everything was metal and even the floors and walls had a metallic sheen to them. Some of the stones were the color of copper, while the others looked like bronze. It was a very heavy atmosphere. A burly, bald man with a beard stood behind the counter. I gulped in nervousness as I stepped towards him, but then halted. He had a disappointed look on his face. One I was very familiar with. The blank stare, the raised eyebrows, and the slightly pursed lips. I had never even met this man before. I could not have disappointed him already. The King, he must have known about my disrespect towards the King. The other people had either wished me luck or made suggestions to me, but somehow he knew.

Redmaw: i do not think the shopkeeper wants my business

Primrose: ?? Faction can't be an issue there. What's the problem?

Redmaw: the man is disappointed in me i must have upset him somehow

Primrose: What did he say?

Redmaw: i did not want to disturb him he looks like he does not want me here

Primrose: Seriously...put on your big boy pants and go talk to IT. IT's just an npc. IT doesn't have emotions. IT can't be disappointed, annoyed, upset, or angry. IT doesn't even think. IT's just a fake person. Please, pretty please, with sugar on top, go buy the stuff from the NPC. Your ride is already waiting for you outside and I'm paying him by the minute. A “REAL” person, a player, is waiting on you. Please hurry.

A player waited for me outside, but Father always told me not to talk to strangers. No, that was not something Father said. Mother always told me. No, that was not something Mother said either. I lifted up both of my gloved hands and smacked myself in the face a few times. My mind got all jumbled up when I got nervous. Primrose relied on me to get this done, and he knew everything about video games. I could not fail him. There was no reason that the shopkeeper's appearance got me so worked up anyway. He was not Father. The shopkeeper was not even a person, he was just a fake. One foot moved forward, followed by another. I needed to get this done. Even if it was difficult to face the shopkeeper, I needed to finish this. My hands shook a little as I slowly approached him, the npc, I reminded myself. A few more feet, just a few more. At least my feet did not make noises as they slowly slid forward over the smooth stone floor.

Tool Shopkeeper says, 'Hello. I sell tools. What would you like?'

Redmaw: I DID IT!

Primrose: Good. Quickly sit down and camp out. The player outside has already been waiting too long.

Redmaw: i have not bought the elixir or the red potions yet though

Primrose: WHA? That was like 10 minu.....okay. No problem. That must have been quite the difficulty for you to overcome. Congratulations on conquering whatever it was. Just buy 1 Elixir and 10 Red Potions. Okay? Please hurry.

I almost questioned Primrose about the change, but decided against it. He had told me to hurry up more than once, but I took up too much time. It was no wonder that Father and Mother...No, there was no time for that. I quickly purchased one Elixir at a cost of 320 gold. Just like when I talked with the king, though, there were lines of dialogue and a whole lot of eye blinks that slowed down the purchases. It was no wonder that Primrose decreased the size of the order. I really messed up, big time. The Red Potions cost 160 gold coins each and had to be purchased one at at time. With more blinks and messages that had to be read in between. After the eleven items were bought, at a cost of 1920 gold coins, I sat down and pretended to camp. Someday, when I had practiced enough, and I was stronger and smarter, I would finally be able to camp for real.

Tool Shopkeeper says, 'Thank you for shopping.'

Achmed says, in an unknown tongue, 'tahiaati alkafire'

Achmed says, in an unknown tongue, 'Ya Ibn el Sharmouta'

Achmed says, in an unknown tongue, 'El'an Abook'

Another costumed man awaited me in the unfamiliar living room. There was tan fabric wrapped around his head and face, with only the area around his eyes revealed. His hazel eyes glared at me intensely, and his eyebrows were furrowed in anger. I lowered my eyes and checked out the rest of his costume, to avoid his stare. He wore a loose fitted t-shirt with sleeves that ended just below his elbows. It was a purplish-brown color that I had never seen before, and a shirt style that I had not recognized. There was a thick black vest worn over it with several large pockets on the front. One of the pockets held a flashlight, and I think another held a walkie-talkie, but the contents of the other large pockets were unknown to me. It was obvious what the machine gun underneath his arm, and the sword that hung from his waist, were used for. This man, this player, looked very out of place in the living room we both stood in. He looked dressed for war.

I tried to look around the room to better understand the situation, but the man lifted up his left hand and beckoned me forward. He still looked furious, but the shopkeeper also acted differently than his looks suggested. Neither of them were Father and I needed to stop being so intimidated by appearances. Primrose said that he could help me become strong. If I just followed his schedule, and practiced a lot, strength and wisdom would come to me. My foot hesitated to move towards the man at first, and my right hand shook, but I shut my eyes and pushed myself forward. Nothing would change if I continued along the same path as before. The mower and the weed wacker, the washer and the dryer, the broom and the vacuum cleaner, the mop and bucket, the sponges and the dishes, and duster and the dustpan, the mail, and the garbage. The huge list of chores that never ended. A property that was far too large for just Father and myself, entirely maintained by me alone. All of that replaced with the unknown future that Primrose offered. A new schedule needed to be learned. One filled with magic! I finally reached the man and also put forth my left hand and shook his. He looked at my gloved hand angrily, but grasped it with his dark brown hand regardless.

Achmed invites you to join a group.

To join the group, click on the “FOLLOW” option, or “DECLINE” to cancel.

Two windows popped up in front of me. The usual window, but also a new one that I had never seen before. It was small and rectangular, more tall than wide, and offered me two different choices. The option to Follow or to Decline. I agreed to follow. Not because the man in front of me glared at me, or because he squeezed my left hand so hard, but because I had already decided to follow the new schedule. It was such a new experience for me and I was really excited to learn magic. Once the group invitation was accepted, the two options from before were replaced with Invite and Disband. Though, the Invite box was grayed out for some reason. The name Achmed appeared at the top of the box with three lines underneath his name. A red one, a blue one, and another of yellow.

You notify Achmed that you agree to join the group.

You have joined the group.

I did it! I joined a group with other people, well, another person. Even if it was a group and not a team, it was still a collection of like-minded individuals that worked and played together. Someone had finally chosen me as a member. The amount of excitement that I felt almost overwhelmed me. I needed to calm down, so I closed my eyes and counted backwards from 10. Achmed yanked his hand away from me half way through the countdown, which startled me, so I started over from the number 10 again. When I opened my eyes again, Achmed was gone and I was in another unfamiliar room. A basement this time. There were pipes and wires embedded in the insulation above my head. A washer and dryer were in the corner, along with a large black tank. It probably held oil for the furnace. My eyes followed the cement wall towards the right, where a staircase led upstairs. There was not any light on the stairwell, so the upstairs door must have been closed. I continued to spin in a circle to the right and that was when I saw the orange hole. It had been behind me, and had also damaged another desk. As well as two walls, the cement floor, and a door into another room. The blob of orange did not spin or move. It just sat there motionless.

Redmaw: I can not find achmed and there is an orange circle here

Primrose: I did say he was just your ride and you've made it to your destination. That circle you see is actually a portal into a video game. You shouldn't tell people what colors the portals are either. Information can be dangerous, so please keep the colors to yourself. Actually, it would be best if you kept everything about the portals I show you a secret. I'm trusting you with my secrets.

Redmaw: I am good with secrets!

Primrose: Good. Now, please enter the portal quickly. Do it at a bit of a run if you're nervous.

It was just a colored circle. I had already entered some of them already. Even if it was not willingly, I had still entered. It was just like a doorway to another room and I have never been afraid of doors. Doors did not yell, scream, hit, or give me disappointed or angry looks. I walked up to the orange hole and pressed my hand against it. It felt solid, like glass, and was around ten feet tall. Rather, ten feet in diameter would probably be more accurate. The cement underneath the portal acted like a bowl that cupped the large orange circle. Cement was a really tough substance. I was amazed that the portal managed to destroy it somehow. Primrose said that I should hurry, he has been in such a rush lately. I was supposed to run at this hard object to enter a game. Father always said that I could not run inside the house. My hand already rested against the surface of the circle, so I decided to give it a little push. Nothing happened. If only I had watched Mrs. Kelly to see how she entered into the portal. Primrose said that I should run, but if I did, then I would have to go against Father. I took a moment to collect myself and then backed up a few steps. Then backed up a few more steps. Primrose was right again, I was nervous. I shut my eyes tightly, and before I wasted anymore time, I charged ahead as fast as I could.

What would you like as an alias?

What a strange place this was. Everything was pitch black, except for the letters that appeared. When my eyes were closed, there was absolute darkness. With my eyes open, it was still absolute darkness, except for the dimly lit letters. The letters were not bright enough to light up anything else nearby. I tried to move my body, but nothing worked. Not my arms, hands, legs, or even my head. I could not move at all. This was supposed to be a video game, but I could not see anything other than words. With an utter lack of options, I talked with the letters that floated in front of me.

Redmaw says, 'Redmaw'

Redmaw?

Yes, Redmaw was the alias that was assigned to me. Though Primrose said that I would be able to change my name later, perhaps this was what he meant. I really had no idea what it should be changed into though. It was a difficult thing to name yourself. A problem that I had never had before, nor thought I would ever have. Redmaw was as good an alias as any, I suppose.

With a name like “Redmaw”, no one is going to believe it.

As you remember your childhood, you remember...

(K)illing A Lot Of Woodland Creatures

(D)abbling in The Mystical Forces

(L)ying, Cheating, And Stealing From The Blind

Pick one. (K,D,L)

I could hardly believe that it was my alias either, but it was what it was. Luckily, the next choice was very simple. I had never killed anything at all, nor had I ever taken anything from others without permission. While I was not sure if magic was the same as The Mystical Forces, it probably was, so I opted for that. It was definitely better than the other two options.

Redmaw says, 'i guess that i might have dabbled in the mystical forces, though i was not smart enough or good enough to cast real magic

You have always wanted to explain the unexplainable. To understand the powerful forces that rule the earth. To tame the beast that overseas all things. Of course, having the power to burn someone by making a gesture wouldn't hurt.

You are in high spirits today.

You wake up early, strap your Stick to your back, and head out to the Town Square, seeking adventure, fame, and honor.

Many green words flashed by quickly before they finally stilled. It was a list of words that reminded me of the inventory window I looked at previously, but different. It showed me as level 5 with 488 Hitpoints. The 1,111,080 gold coins that were in my possession were also listed there, but I did not recognize anything else shown. 53 Experience, 20 Forest Fights, 1 Player Fights Left, 114 Attack Strength, and 0's for Charm, Defensive Strength, and Gems. The Armour and Weapon sections were both left blank.

The Daily Happenings....

A group of children did not return from a nature walk today.

Georgeypoo has been killed by Bran The Warrior!

“I must not be as studly as I thought,” Georgeypoo concedes.

The Town Square, that was mentioned before, showed up next. However, it was also just lines of words in green and purple colors. Everything else was still pitch black and movement was still impossible for me. If this was a video game, then I did not understand it at all. It was completely different from the other three places that I had visited. There were EIGHTEEN choices in the town square. I could visit the Forest, armor shop, weapon shop, the bank, mailbox, inn, healers hut, or many other places. There was even a Conjugality List option, but I was not interested in visiting whatever that entailed.

Primrose: Your finally inside! What do you think? Pretty dark in there?

Redmaw: everything is black except for the green writing and purple letters sometimes

Primrose: Yeah, old style games were like that. Back before graphics cards and stuff. Anyway, You should head to the bank first and deposit all of the gold except for 33,500 coins. After that, head to the Armour shop and the Weapon shop. Then you can enter the Forest and finally get some experience.