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Virtual Insanity MMO

Little Black Book for $20,000 Reward

By S. P. BastianPublished 3 years ago 10 min read
2
www.freeimages.com Joshua Melvin

The emergency lights from a police cruiser lit the cul-de-sac. Some neighbors looked out their windows while others stood on their stoops; watching the officer approach a two story house.

"Dispatch, Officer Ferguson reporting on scene at one-one-four Oliver Lane," he stated over the radio. "Requesting immediate backup."

"Dude?” he heard a voice over the radio, “roleplay... really?"

"Why not, Happy?" he muttered with much enthusiasm. "It's super fun and creates an imaginative, realistic atmosphere. You should try it sometime."

"No thanks… and no, it doesn't," Happy replied strong. "Especially when it's me you're speaking to. Makes you sound an idiot. Now remember, get the book and get out. Easy peasy."

"I got it," Ferguson responded with much annoyance, wishing his friend wasn't so uptight.

Ferguson approached the front door, finding it ajar. He unholstered his pistol and grabbed the flashlight from his belt.

"Police department," he announced loud and clear. After a moment of no response from within, he nudged the door with his elbow and entered the premises.

Searching the house, he moved from room to room; shouting over and over, "Police Department! Make yourself known!"

Opening the last door on the left, Ferguson walked into the master bedroom, finding a body lying on the floor face down in a pool of blood. In its lifeless left hand was the little black book. With a smile, he knelt beside the body and took the book. The body then pixelated before vanishing.

A shadow swiftly moved along the walls, catching Ferguson's attention. Anxiety stirred in his veins when he noticed the pale grey, sheer curtains swaying and papers slip off the edge of a nearby desk as though a breeze swept into the room. All the windows were shut.

"I know you're here fowl beast!" he shouted, his gaze following the beam of the flashlight as he scanned the entire room. "Show yourself!"

A large rooster; its feathery body crimson red with bleach white tail feathers, jumped up onto the desk, startling Ferguson. It crowed loudly, then it bobbed its head as it paced about the desk, ripping apart loose pieces of paper with its sharp talons.

"Seriously?" Ferguson muttered in dismay, lowering his weapon and his guard. "So, you're Kyle? The monstrosity everyone's so scared of?" He began laughing as the rooster jerked its head to the side to stare at him with one eye. "I knew this game would be lamer than lame and this just proves it.” Ferguson then spoke to the rooster as though he spoke to his baby sister. "I was expecting to fight something much scarier like a sabertooth tiger, or a fire breathing dragon... But you're so dang cute, aren't you… Yes, yes you are. Such a pretty birdie."

Without warning, the rooster flapped its wings and sprang towards Ferguson, attacking him with his beak and clawing his chest in a frantic frenzy. Ferguson frantically swatted at the bird as he stumbled backwards; crashing through a window. From the sidewalk across the street, Happy watched his friend hit the driveway pavement with a thud.

A second later, Ferguson respawned next to the front door.

Laughter erupted from behind Ferguson. "You just got smoked, didn't you?"

Ferguson turned towards the familiar voice and saw a short man in camouflage, military uniform and black, steel-toed boots walking up the little narrow path leading to the house. In his arms he cradled a semi-automatic rifle. "Happened to me on my first attempt too. Underestimated the little bugger."

"Well Happy Wrangler, I'm glad my death gives you 'such' pleasure."

Happy smiled joyfully and said, "Ohhh, it did." Patting Ferguson's shoulder, "and it was...something spectacularly magical."

"Spectacularly magical, huh..? How'd Kyle kill you? How many attempts did it take you?" Ferguson's voice rose higher and higher with each question.

"That's not important," Happy replied quickly, not wanting to reveal such information. "What is important is getting you past this adjective so we can finally enter Rainbow Ridge and get better gear together."

"How about we party up so you can help me."

"And miss you die repeatedly?"

"I'm new Happy," he yelled. "I'm still learning the controls!"

"Pish posh! Did you at least snag the book? If you did, you can skip killing Kyle. He's an optional adjective anyways unless you're looking to earn the bonus reward and achievement."

Ferguson patted himself down and excitedly said, "I did… I hope." His voice then turned sour, "I think I dropped it."

Suddenly, the sound of a bike bell ding-a-linging filled the air. They both looked and saw a woman rolling towards them, pedaling a girl's bike with a sunflower wicker basket hanging off the front, and red, white, and blue streamers dangling off the ends of the handlebars. Even though she was blonde, her pigtails were the color of sapphire. She wore a tight dark blue tee shirt and denim short shorts.

"Just look at that," Happy said under his breath.

"Somehow, all I picture is a creepy thirty-year-old man at the helm of that avatar,” Ferguson expressed. “Marley Lemondrop," he read out loud, reading the gamer tag hovering above her head like a halo.

"Hey boys," the pigtailed goddess greeted, chewing gum as she spoke. After dismounting the bike, she let it tip over while she grabbed her wooden baseball bat. Biting her lower lip, she walked up to the porch. "There's no better eye candies than men in uniform."

Happy's entire body blinked while he rummaged through his inventory until he held a white rose in his hands. "This is for you."

Ferguson rolled his eyes from the stomach churning display of affection as Marley smiled and genuinely took the rose.

"You-you want to party with us," Happy squealed. "I assume you're here for the little black book too."

"Quite right." She swung the bat like it was a golf club and made a sound with her tongue as though she smacked a golf ball. "My bat and I have an appointment with a rooster's backside. Now...if you boys will excuse me," she murmured, squeezing past the men. Turning around, she walked backwards and entered the house. "Time to teach you boys what it takes to get the job done." After a wink, Marley took off running upstairs.

A moment later, they heard a loud, ear cringing commotion followed by the window above the garage shattering. They both looked out towards the driveway. Marley's bat clunked the pavement as Marley screamed. She then hit the ground with a thud.

A second later, Marley respawned next to Ferguson.

"So...how did it go?" Happy chuckled.

Marley put her elbow on Ferguson's shoulder. Twirling her pigtail with her other hand, she blew a bubble until it popped. She smiled and remarked, "Probably smoother than the child you let hack your hair with dull garden shears."

"Our choices are more limited than yours," Ferguson explained, uncertain if he wanted to stand that close to Marley. "We have like five choices while female avatars have like… twenty."

Marley glanced at Ferguson's hair, then up at his gamer tag. She leaned in and whispered in his ear, "you could try different hairstyles for me, Fergie. I wouldn't mind watching." She turned her head and looked at Happy. "After we take care of business."

"Does that mean you want to party up with us now," Happy asked with a teeth bearing grin, his entire body blinking until he held his rifle.

"Sure thing, Sergeant Slaughter. Send me an invite then let's give Colonel Sanders a reason to be proud of us."

They approached the last door on the left, up on the second floor and huddled around it. Happy signaled to Ferguson with Marley hiding right behind him, using him as a shield. Ferguson tried to comprehend the random hand signals but nothing made sense. Even Marley was lost and confused.

"Huh," Marley hummed.

"I will go in Rambo style," Happy whispered, "while you two grab a book and get the heck out. Kapish?" They both nodded in agreement. "Whatever you do, do not stand by a window or look the pecker in the eye."

"That's easier said than done."

"I know, right," Marley put in. "Hard not to stare at its bulging, yellow eye."

"On my count of three. One… Two…" Happy burst through the door. He began laughing like a psychopath as he fired his rifle, sweeping it around the room, putting holes into the bedding, pillows, furniture, and the far wall.

Hustling, Ferguson and Marley crawled into the room and around the bed. They each grabbed a book then retreated out of the room. Happy then backed out, but before he could shut the door, the rooster jumped on his head and began pecking him.

"Get him off me! Get him off…"

Ferguson fired a single shot, hitting the rooster. The rooster slumped to the floor. It pixelated and then vanished. Ferguson was surprisingly stunned. Being under pressure wasn't his thing and he half expected to stormtrooper the entire ordeal--hitting Happy and everything else but the rooster.

Marley hugged Ferguson tightly and cried, "my hero."

“I am a hero!”

"You did great, but let’s not get carried away," Happy said soundly.

"So...that's it?"

"Yup," Happy replied. "That's all she wrote."

They exited the house and walked towards the police cruiser, Marley walked beside Ferguson with her bike in tow.

"You guys want a lift?" Ferguson asked.

"Nah… I'll meet you at Rainbow Ridge in a bit. Got a thing I gots to do."

Marley mounted her bike. "I want to but I'm out too. I have one more mission to complete so I can turn them all in at once." She sent Ferguson a friend request. "I'll catch you later Fergie." She winked at Ferguson before taking off down the street.

Ferguson hopped into the cruiser, shut the door, and rolled down the window. "I'll see you in a bit?"

"Yeah. Gonna log and get some food. Give me an hour."

"Sounds good. See you later."

Ferguson drove into the city, pulled up to the curb, and got out of the cruiser. He approached two skeptical looking men standing below a streetlight.

"Hello, Wanderer," one of the men said. He wore a baseball cap backwards, a black tee shirt, cyan lowrider shorts which revealed his heart pattern white boxers. "Welcome to Little Piece of Paradise. "My name is Ghost Pepper. My brother here is called Red Pepper."

"Yo...Most just call me Red."

"We are so glad you've come," Ghost Pepper said. "We need your help. A monster…

"Skip dialog," Ferguson blurted out.

If you kill the monster and bring back my…

"Skip dialog," Ferguson blurted out again. He then handed Ghost Pepper the little black book.

Ghost Pepper glanced at the book like it was a lost puppy that finally returned home. "Oh, Wanderer. You've done what no other could accomplish." He flipped through the pages then shut the book. "And you vanquished the incorrigible Kyle the rooster, and retrieved my little black book from its evil clutches. The town and I thank you." Ghost Pepper handed Officer Ferguson twenty-thousand dollars, and said, "As per our agreement." He then handed over a bucket of fried chicken, "And this is a token of my appreciation. If you care to replay this mission please…"

"Skip dialog," Ferguson blurted out.

"The Rainbow road is now open to you. Good luck on your new found ventures," Ghost Pepper stated.

Ferguson turned to Red Pepper. "Open shop!" He rummaged through Red's wares; purchasing a white cat in sunglasses and a police uniform for twenty-thousand dollars. The cat appeared. It rubbed itself against Ferguson's legs and chirped a meow. Together, they hopped into the cruiser and rode towards Rainbow Ridge.

vr
2

About the Creator

S. P. Bastian

I've written on and off for far to long as one does when trying to juggle life. After much thinking since losing my job, and this pandemic keeping me behind closed doors, I've decided to chase my dreams of becoming a successful author.

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