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The Glorious Gamer Guild

An unexpected adventure

By Beth ReederPublished 3 years ago 10 min read
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“Alexis, get a load of that guy,” Becky snorted as she passed.”

“I shouldn’t be looking anywhere but where I’m going… Here’s your order, miss.”

Woah, she’s right this time, that man is definetly something to look at! He’s almost dressed like a character from a game I’ve played, hard to tell which from here though. I wish he was in my section, I never get the interesting ones. Is he writing in a notebook? Now I’m really curious, this isn’t the kind of breakfast spot people bring books into.

“Miss!”

“Yes, sir? Sorry about that, what can I do for you?”

“I need another fork, I dropped mine.”

“Absolutely sir, I’ll be right back with that.”

Oof, I hope I get a chance to take another look at gamer boy after this.

“Here’s your fork!”

“Thanks!”

“No problem! Anything else for you?”

“Nope!”

“Hey, can I get topped off, please?”

“Sure thing!- How about y’all, need anything else?”

“We’re good now, thanks.”

“Great!”

Dang, just my luck, I don’t see that guy anymore, but his table’s not cleared yet, maybe he’s just in the bathroom. I don’t think anyone will miss me if I just step away for a quick second… Well he’s definitely left, there’s a tip. Wait, is that… It is, he forgot his book! Oh no! Maybe I should grab it before somebody else does. I’ll grab the tip too, it looks like Becky’s got her hands full at the moment. I’ll leave this up front, he might come back for it. It looks mostly unused though, and this black leather is really nice. If he doesn’t come back for it, I may take it...

“Hey, Becky, I grabbed your tip for you.”

“Oh, thanks! From that weird guy?”

“Yeah, he left his book too, did you happen to catch his name.”

“Um, no, He didn’t say much. Oh my gosh, this is a $20 tip- he only got coffee!”

“That’s crazy! Good for you, girl! Oh, also, do you want the book if he doesn’t come back?”

“No girl, you can have it, black suits you better!”

As always, I’m not sure if she’s trying to say something polite or rude, but I’ll take either as long as I’m getting the book. We’ve still got 3 hours till closing though, so we’ll see...

“Hey, Tim, is that book still up here?”

“Your creepy black one, yeah.”

“Not sure I agree with that adjective but thanks!”

Can’t wait to open you in the car.

Alright, let’s see, there’s got to be some way to find your owner. I’m not seeing any sort of standard ‘This book belongs to:’. Normally, I wouldn’t look through someone’s personal belongings, but maybe there’s a name somewhere…

Greetings Alexis,

OMG, is this addressed to me!?

I’m sorry we aren’t going to get the chance to speak, but I hope this finds you.

Wait, did he leave this For ME?

I would like to invite you to participate in a quest. This notebook will be your guide. Just so you know, you aren’t the only one getting an invitation, so there is some competition- and a time limit. You have until sundown to follow all of the instructions.

What the heck? This is crazy; how did he know my name! This is how people get killed… But, also… Is this really creepy enough to end in murder? The man was dressed like a video game character, not a clown. I’ve always wanted a crazy adventure- here it is! Maybe, if I’m smart about it, I can avoid any real danger. I could text C and let her know what’s going on- share my location with her until I’m done. If it takes me somewhere too sketchy, I can just stop participating. Let’s just have a look at the first clue...

First, you must journey to the place where the most primitive gamers go before starting a new adventure.

Hm. Well, that could be a lot of places, couldn’t it? I go to the bathroom ‘before starting a new adventure,’ could that be it? Oh no, was I supposed to check the bathroom!? They’ve already locked up for the day, I won’t be able to get back in until tomorrow! If I had just looked through it when I picked it up- I guess I’m just not the type to have a grand adventure. I’ll just go home and play online like usu- PRIMITIVE!! Omg, how could I have overlooked that! The Adventure Cave! Of course! If you’re an old-school gamer, you would have to go to a game store before you could start a new adventure! Wow, right over my head, jeez. Okay, well that’s not too far from here, and it’s a public place, so it shouldn’t be too dangerous...

The Adventure Cave

Alright, I’ve made it into the cave, what now? This hint doesn’t really say much, does it? Maybe I could ask someone- wait is that the man!? Oh, no, it’s a cutout, but that’s the exact outfit that guy had on! And it looks like he’s holding a scroll! I hope they don’t mind if I borrow it for a hot second. Careful, don’t want to ruin the fun for the others. Alright, the second clue, here we go...

If you would like to be able to read the rest of the pages, you’ll need a special prescription.

… What?

If - you - would - like - to - be - able - to - read - the - rest - of - the - pages, - you’ll - need - a - special - prescription.

Like from a doctor? I don’t have the time, nor insurance, for that- loll. Okay, be serious for a minute. Obviously, not from a doctor- that would be insane. They don’t seem to want this to be hard, these clues seem fairly easy. Maybe it’s just where prescriptions are, like a drug store or pharmacy? Looks like there’s a mom-and-pop just down the street, couldn’t hurt to try there…

Taylor’s Drug Store

I guess the best place to look for a prescription that would help me see would be the glasses rack… Wow, that’s a lot of glasses, not really sure how I’m supposed to- It’s got to be these, they have colored lenses! Just going to slip these on- Woah, that’s weird, let’s see if it works...

Time to find the toon that matches the tune.

Toons and tunes- must be Spinal Vinyl! I love that place! Better go pay for these first though. I wonder how much they are- hope I’ve got enough on me...

“Did you find everything okay today?”

“Yes, thank you, I was just wondering how much these costs?”

“No problem, I’ll just scan them for you real quick. Huh, well, that’s odd. There’s no tag on them, and I don’t think I’ve ever seen these in here, someone must have left them back there. I guess they're yours then!”

“Oh, wow, really?”

I really hope these were meant for me, but I better leave some compensation just in case.

“Could I leave like $20, in case their owner comes back for them or something?”

“I mean, yeah, I guess you could.”

“Okay, good, I’d feel so bad if they actually meant something to someone.”

Although, I doubt they could be meant for anyone other than me, seeing as they let you see magic ink. Now, let’s go check out some vinyl...

Spinal Vinyl

Wow, I love this place, it’s so cool in here! No, don’t get distracted. There’s almost too much stuff in here- considering you don’t know what you’re trying to find yet. Stay super focussed. Ultimately, it seems I need to find a cartoon, so where are those? Looks like there’s some over there- and there- and up there- so like basically everywhere. Dang, this is going to be tricky. What could the tune be then? There’s so much vinyl in here, it could be any- I know those drums!

‘What’s new Scooby-Doo? We’re coming after you! You’re gonna solve that mystery’

I freaking love this song! I don’t think I’ve ever heard it just playing like that befo- Scooby-Doo’s the toon!! Alright, he’s over there! Hmm, a couple of different options here- but that one has a note!

Take me to the clerk.

Simple enough! Thanks for helping me solve my mystery Scoobs, lol.

“Hi, um, here’s this...”

*Nods and hands back a chestplate*

“Wow, cool, thank you!”

*Nods and waves*

“Alrighty, well, goodbye- and thanks, again!”

Well, that was a bit odd, but this is cool! It even matches the glasses! I’m going to put it on! Oh, there’s another note!

Now it’s time for some heavy reading.

Good thing I always carry my library card!

The Library

I wonder how I’m going to find the right book, maybe I could ask a clerk- the last one was obviously in on this, there’s probably someone in here too.

“Excuse me.”

“Yes?”

“Could you help me find something heavy to read?”

“There’s a book about boulders on my cart over there.”

“That is very helpful, thank you so much!”

“You’re very welcome.”

A book on boulders, how witty. Some of these are dogeared! I’m not seeing anything highlighted- but the page number is underlined! Several of them are! If I write them all down in order... I get…

361489868127

Oh, coordinates! That would make it!

36.1489° N 86.8127° W

Looks like it’s sending me to... the park!

The Park

I feel like I’m here too early, the sun won’t be setting for at least an hour, I wonder if I’ve missed something. I should flip through this again just in case. I read that, did that & that. Oh boy, I didn’t do this:

Before reaching the final destination of this journey, you’ll need to swing over to the gold bridge and do the troll king a small favor.

P.S. His curfew is 8p.

Don’t stress, I’ve got some time. Alright, that probably means I should head over to the playground- because what’s more troll-like than children, lol jk. Oof, I hope they don’t call the cops on me, I promise I’m not crazy, I’m just trying to have a grand adventure. Maybe they’ll think I’m just a big kid, I am wearing a toy. That bridge between those towers looks like it was yellow, I bet that’s the ‘gold’ bridge. I’m guessing that makes the kid wearing a towel as a cape the ‘Troll King’- or maybe he can point me in the right direction.

“Hey, I like your cape!”

*Spins around*

“Thanks! I like your chestplate!”

“Thanks! It’s new!”

“I know!”

“Well, then you must be the Troll King!”

“I am! And I’m going to send you on a mission to vanquish my enemy!”

“Oh, wow, really?”

“Uh-huh! Here, take this sword.”

At least it’s plastic.

“Thank you! Now, what do I do?”

“See that guy over there between those trees- fight him.”

“You got it, boss, thanks!”

That is a grown man. He’s the one that left the book!

“Greetings, Alexis! Glad to see you’ve made it to the final task! All you’ve got to do now is slay me. Don’t worry, I won’t be taking it easy on you.”

Well, that’s intimidating.

“Do I shake your hand before we begin, or?”

“Sure! Now, we start!”

Block! Block! Stap- jump back! Block! Block! Swing! Lunge- swipe!

“Nicely done!”

“Thanks, just lucky.”

“Nonsense, you should be proud of yourself! Especially since you’re the only one to finish the quest! Nobody else asked April for help.”

“April’s the librarian?”

“Yes! A guild member works at each place you went.”

“Guild member?”

“Yep, The Glorious Gamer Guild. We’re a group of gamers that practice for/play in tournaments together- we split the winnings. We’d like to ask you to join- if you’d-”

“Absolutely!”

“Great! Oh, and we were prepared to give each of you $4,000- so you could update your gaming equipment- I guess it’s all yours now. To the victor goes the spoils!”

gaming
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About the Creator

Beth Reeder

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