THE NECKLACE

In a dimly lit studio-type room, packs of unfinished corn chips and cans of crumpled soda scattered on the floor. The place stank of garbage and remains of cup noodles.

"Aildrin? Open up. It's me, Osho," said by the one outside the door. After a few seconds of no response, the knock continued and intensified.

Aildrin grunted with eyes half-opened. "The key's beneath the rag," he said as loud as he could. He continued to sprawl on his bed despite the mess and odor around him.

The doorknob turned, and Osho entered. He wore a plain white shirt.

"I brought some—oh, god! The smell! It's just getting worse!" Osho said. He immediately covered his nose. He then tiptoed his way through the litter, placed an eco-bag of fruits on the table, and parted the curtains.

The sun was about to reach its zenith when the windows opened. Blinding lights flooded the room.

"Osho! You damnable creature! Can't you see that I'm sleeping?" Aildrin said. He rolled the blanket to cover himself like a vampire afraid of sunlight.

"Dude, get a hold of yourself. It's already late in the morning! And you've got a package waiting for you outside," Osho said. The fresh air relieved him. It dampened the unpleasant smell of the room.

"Package?" Aildrin said. He popped his head out of the blanket to check the opened doorway. Some strands of his unkempt black hair obscured his brown eyes.

"Yup," Osho said. "Aside from me, is there anyone else who knows about this cave? I mean this place?"

There was no answer. Osho did not mind. Talking with the wind became his forte whenever he visited Aildrin. He then tiptoed his way back to the door.

Osho checked the hallway of the apartment for any suspicious movement, but there was none. So he tried dragging the waist-level carton inside the room. But it won't move. "Mind giving me a hand, King Aildrin?"

Aildrin rolled his eyes at Osho. He then stretched his arms before moving out of his bed. He was barefoot and wore a plain black shirt and red boxer shorts.

"Yesterday, my team lost the qualifiers match against Eldric. Goodbye playoffs for us! Damn, he's grown into a monster! Even you might not stand a chance against him anymore," Osho said.

"Oh. Congrats," Aildrin said. He tapped the box with his foot to get a feel of its contents. It was indeed heavy.

"Dude, I said I just lost."

Aildrin crossed his arms. "So what do you want me to say? That I can't wait to play Wargrounds to save your ass? And that I'll lend you a hand in beating the hell out of PEN1 because without me you're nothing? Is that it?"

Osho stared at Aildrin, shocked. He ran out of words.

Aildrin scowled. "What?"

Osho cleared his throat. "PEN1 no longer exists. Eldric changed his in-game name to 666 before joining Wargrounds. You know, part of their team rebranding."

"But Ishna and Uzma! They kept their names, and they're still known as the Twin Furnace! They're on the same guild too." Osho's eyes smiled. Finally, he had slipped a topic about their team after all this time.

"I don't care, okay?" Aildrin said.

Osho nodded. "Okay. Well, today's the second year...of your parents' death. Do you wanna do something? Ramen? Play games?"

"Nope. I want to be left alone," Aildrin said. "You may leave now. I can handle this."

Osho placed his hand on Aildrin's shoulder and tapped it. "My team will start training tomorrow for the coming Third Season. I won't be able to visit you frequently, unlike before. You take care of yourself...captain." Osho forced a smile and tried to suppress the welling tears in his eyes. He then shot a last glance at the miserable situation of Aildrin's room. "You're missing on a lot of things...and your potential—"

"Thank you, Osho. I really appreciate it." Aildrin smiled back. "I'll call you if I need help, okay?"

"Yeah. You do that. I'll be waiting for your call...and return. Now let's get this inside."

After they've successfully placed the box inside Aildrin's room, Osho bid him goodbye and left.

But Osho came running back. "Hey, I almost forgot! Sophia changed her number. If I'm not available, she's willing to be of help to you. Here." He then handed a piece of paper to Aildrin with scribbled digits on it.

"Thanks. You take care," Aildrin said. He then closed the door and turned its lock for good.

"What to do?" Aildrin thought. He left the box on the floor, unopened.

Since the accident happened, the world left Aildrin behind in a rush. He ran out of directions. He tried returning to Battle Arena only to find that they have upgraded it into a virtual game called the World of Wargrounds. And it required a game console called Battle Station.

However, he was tired of starting all over again. He was tired of almost everything. There was something inside him that kept on disturbing his peace. But he doesn't know what it is.

He was aimless. And lost.

Aildrin dragged himself to the table and rummaged through the fruit bag that Osho brought. He picked out an apple and nibbled on it.

And then someone pounded on the door.

"Osho? Not again!" Aildrin just wanted some time for himself. He ignored it.

But the pounding continued. "Mister Allan Granger! Open up, or I'll call the police and have you dragged out this time! You're missing on rent for the third month already!"

"Yikes! I'm coming, Miss Malabar!" Aildrin said.

Aildrin hurried to fix the scatter around his room. He hid the unfinished chips and crumpled cans under his bed. He then combed his hair with his hands and smelled his breath—tolerable so far.

Putting his melancholic thoughts aside, he put on a smile and opened the door.

A teenage girl with a curly purple pigtail stood by his doorway. A lollipop hung between her glistening black lips. She flashed a yellow paper towards Aildrin like it was a policewoman's badge—a notice of eviction.

Aildrin gulped. "Miss Malabar, I promise to pay next month. I'm finally getting a job. Promise!" He squinted his eyes and bowed as low as he could.

Miss Malabar crossed her arms and checked the situation of Aildrin's room. She then noticed the parcel. "What's inside that box?"

"That's none of your business," Aildrin said to himself. He then cleared his throat. "Ah, it's a gift. You know, it's my birthday today!" His neck tensed under the scrutiny of those big blue eyes.

"Really? So you celebrate your birthday twice a year, huh? You're something special, aren't you? You told me that same crap last month! Open it up!"

Aildrin grimaced.

The boy raised his hands in surrender and removed the tapes. He then pried it half-open against the view of Miss Malabar and found a red note attached on the bubble wrap. He quickly crumpled the paper and hid it in the back of his shorts.

"Open it properly!" Miss Malabar demanded. She then moved closer to the box.

Aildrin opened it fully and quickly removed the bubble wrap.

Inside the box was a helmet with a glass visor, a pair of black microfiber gloves with red sensory lines webbing through its surface, and a black metallic rectangular case with wires in different colors that seemed to be a console.

"That's a Battle Station! Who sent you this? This costs a lot!" Miss Malabar harrumphed. "Stop hiding your money from me, Mister Granger!"

"Who sent this?" Aildrin thought. He told himself to read the note as soon as possible. "Ah, it's from my cousin—"

"And what's her name?"

"So-Sophia Granger! Yes, silly Sophia! Why would she send me this? She should have sent me cash instead!" Aildrin said. "I really don't need this Miss Malabar. You can take it! Is this an acceptable payment for my rent?"

"No. It's incomplete. It's useless."

"What do you mean?"

"Check for a necklace 'coz I can't find one."

Aildrin's heart raced at the mention of the necklace. "Is that part of the Battle Station too?"

"That's the most important part of the Battle Station! It saves your brain from information overload of the virtual world!"

"Oh, I see," Aildrin said. The room turned awkward. He faked a laugh and so did Miss Malabar.

"If you're still not out of here before six, I'll call the police," Miss Malabar said.

"No!" Aildrin dropped on his knees and begged. "Miss Malabar, I have nowhere to go!"

"You're not an orphan, aren't you? Return to your parents, Mister Granger. And I don't need that Battle Station of yours because I have my own. I'll see you around in the game if our paths meet again."

Miss Malabar left without mercy, and she closed the door with a bang.

Aildrin bit his fist. He quickly pulled the note from behind and uncrumpled it.

"Your parents' death was not an accident. Meet me in the game, and I'll tell you more about it," said the note.

Aildrin's eyes widened. He pulled on his hair and slumped on the floor.

"No! This can't be! The necklace! That damnable necklace! Where is it?" His intuition told him it was more than a necklace.

Back then, with no one to blame for his parent's death, Aildrin took the burden on himself and cursed the necklace. It was a good thing that he did not throw it out, even if he wanted to do so badly.

Aildrin pulled his cabinet's drawers; the displayed items on the shelves rattled. But it was nowhere to be found. He then scavenged his pile of trash, but it was the same result. It was not there. And finally, after disassembling his bed into a mess, he found the necklace beneath his mattress.

He gripped it with clenched teeth. After a brief hesitation, he wore it around his neck and the memories came rushing. But he willed himself to be brave. He was after something that was bigger than his fears—the truth.

He rushed to pull out the contents of the box and then tinkered on them. After five minutes, the Battle Station illuminated with life. The green and red lights on the gaming helmet kept on blinking, while the power source inside the console hummed.

"Dad. Mom. I'm coming! I'm coming! I'll find the truth! I knew it! There's something wrong on that day!" Aildrin said.

After wearing the gloves, he squirmed and sighed a deep breath. The boy closed his eyes and put on the helmet. Tired of standing, Aildrin sat on the edge of his bed.

[Battle Pass is missing] said a voice from the helmet. It came from a lady; the tune was neither alluring nor cold—just a pleasing one, like those of angels.

"Battle Pass, what's that?" Aildrin said. He removed the helmet and searched for anything suspicious around it. There was none. He then proceeded to the gloves and then back to the necklace.

"It's the most important part of the Battle Station..." Aildrin remembered Miss Malabar's words. He checked the necklace and took it off. He then proceeded to the last part—the console.

Beneath the console was a circular hole, exactly in the shape of his necklace. A Eureka moment came to Aildrin! He inserted the necklace, and it snugged perfectly.

Then the lady from the helmet spoke once more. [Existing user detected.]