Back to the Realm

Joe opened his eyes to find Britley's head looming over him.

"Aaahh! You gave me a shock there!" Joe shouted.

"Shhh! Don't shout, or else they'll find out." She said.

Joe got up to look at his surroundings. The museum was gone, and they were on the beach instead.

"Who will find out what? And what are we doing here?" Joe asked.

"I'll tell you everything, just come with me for the moment." Britley replied.

"Did Ryce come with you?"

"We are going to where she is."

Britley looked up at the sky at closed her eyes.

"Hold my hand tightly." She told Joe softly

He did what she said. He gave her a confused look.

She held out her hand towards the sky. Joe took a look up and to his amazement, the stars were beginning to fall. No, they were floating!

The view was beautiful. Twinkling all around him were the stars, and time seemed to slow down as they moved upwards.

They approached a blue, bright light as they continued to float. He felt a hot sensation burning through his body. He looked at Britley who was sparkling with energy.

It was uncontrollable. He thought he would die of the heat disseminating through his body.

They reached the surface and found themselves at the Cafe.

"How's this possible?" Joe was surprised.

Ryce was looking down, thinking hard. Nick was pacing up and down. When he saw them, he gave a sigh of relief.

Ryce looked up and ran straight at Joe, making him fall to the ground.

"Joe, where were you? We were so worried about you!"

"Ummm ... yeah, though I'm not the one to be blamed, haha. It's the game." Joe said.

Britley was drained out. She slumped to the ground. Ryce ran to her aid and took her inside, while Nick gave Joe a hand. Joe got up and dusted his shirt.

"Who are you, by the way?"

Nick smiled.

"I'm their guide. Name's Nick."

"Nice to meet you, sir."

"Same here. What simulation were you in?"

"It was an old museum where specimens were coming at me, to kill me." Joe shuddered at the memory.

"The museum at the Training Phase? Now that's unusual." Nick tilted his head as he pondered on the question.

"How did you manage to get out without taking your deck of cards?"

"I requested a couple of them."

Nick's eyes widened.

"That means-"

He quickly went to Joe's room and took a look at the deck. Two cards were missing.

"That's something now." Nick looked surprised.

Joe was confused at Nick's reaction. But he had something more inportant to talk about.

"Britley said 'they'll' find out. Who are 'they'?"

Nick pursed his lips as he got up.

"Well, I'm not really allowed to say this, but I'll give you a vague idea. They're the leaders, the creators of the game, the people who've entrapped us up here. I escaped the game by becoming a guide, and so did Britley by becoming a healer. Ryce became an accomplice too. Those who strive to win and don't end up giving their life."

Joe's eyes lowered down to the ground. He somehow knew it wasn't going to be easy to win.

"What about the winners?"

"There have been no winners after 'The First.' No one has been able to pass the final level." Nick replied.

"What do you mean?" Joe asked.

"Take a seat as I serve you some cookies and tea. I'll tell you all about it."

Nick went inside the kitchen to prepare tea while Joe sat beside the windowsill, thinking about what was going to happen next.