Never Game Over

A feeling of drowsiness washes over me, urging me to close my eyes and fall asleep. In the middle of my slumber, a soft whisper calls my name. “Eric, why did you leave me?” the familiar voice jolts me awake. My eyes scanned the bus and saw her, Vika, sitting at the seat on the opposite side. Her golden hair glistened under the daylight.

It’s impossible, she can’t be here. I rubbed my eyes, convincing myself that this is still a dream. When I opened them again, a woman with gray hair was sitting in her place. My bus stop glides into view and I get off the bus, feeling bewildered.

I blend in with the pedestrians in the usual Monday rush. The confusion from the strange encounter on the bus lingers in my mind. I was waiting for the pedestrian signal to cross the street when I saw Vika smiling from across the street. How could she be here? She’s a video game character. A virtual avatar, she can’t be real so why am I seeing her? Am I hallucinating? The light turned green and my feet instantly walked toward her direction. I didn't even notice it; as if my mind was lured in her direction. “Vika!” I call out but she walks into the distance.

I stopped in my tracks when my ringtone blasted from inside my pocket. My mother’s name flashed on the screen. A few seconds of hesitation passed until I chose to answer it and jogged behind Vika’s trail.

“Mom?”

“Eric, please make sure that you make it on time to school. This is your last chance to take your final exams and if you don’t, you will fail your major subjects. I hope you’re not thinking of re-installing that stupid video game. Because of it, you just ignored your studies.”

A bucket of discomfort and dread poured over me. I was supposed to go to school today even though I hated it. The guilt of missing it doesn’t overwhelm me because I have lost all common sense within me. Another lie escaped from my mouth; one that will break my mother’s heart. “Yes mom, I’m on my way. Bye.”

Vika careened around skyscrapers and street posts. I raced after her until we reached a deserted alley. “Come with me Eric, let us unite in eternity” she said before disappearing into a mystic portal.

Out of frustration, I cursed at myself.

What am I doing? Am I insane for pining for a video game?

“I can see that something is troubling your mind, you’ve felt lost in this world. You have a powerful desire driving you mad but you’re torn between two worlds, Eric.”

A dark figure clad in a long black coat said. He’s here again, the Decoder.

“You can deny your desires Eric, but you can never escape from them. It will haunt you.”

“No, you’re wrong. I can get over this. I can be better.”

“Really? If you can’t even pass your classes and meet your parents’ expectations, then how could you be better? Hm?”

I sighed in defeat. I tried to convince myself that I can quit and change for the better but I’m languishing.

“The Eldritch Trials. You want to win it right? I’ll make you an offer again.” He reaches into his coat and grabs two pills in his hands.

“Some of us just don’t belong to the physical dimension, Eric. We would be better off somewhere else, in a virtual dimension, perhaps. You could be one of those people.”

“Here’s what you will do. If you take the blue pill, you can end the maddening desire brewing inside of you and move forward with your life without the game. If you take the red pill, you will go to a gateway into the Alterlands, in The Eldritch Trials, where you can stay with Vika for as long as you want. You want to see her right? Pick one, it’s that simple.”

I made my choice.

I hurried on my way home and locked the door to my room in isolation. I don’t know how I can explain myself to mom when she arrives later, but I don’t have much time. I need to open the game.

Upon opening the computer screen, the cursor pulses, and I point it to the download icon. A tab appears informing me that the game, The Eldritch Trials will begin downloading. Another tab appears and asks one last question.

“The Eldritch Trials will start downloading in a minute. It will be the second time you download this game. Are you sure you want to proceed?”

Of course, I am.

I regret listening to my mother’s wishes to uninstall the game. She doesn’t understand and she doesn’t need to. The Eldritch Trials is not just a game, to me, it is the only thing in this world that I’m good at. It is my second home. The only place that celebrates my victories and accepts me for who I am; and a home that I share with Vika, the only woman who ever loved me. Whenever we are together, we become unstoppable. I move the cursor and click on ‘Yes.’ From now on, there is no turning back. I took the red pill out and swallowed it into my mouth.

After finishing the download, a blinding green light emanates from the screen. A series of codes flash over the screen rapidly. The furniture in the room blurs and fades into oblivion. A cacophony of light erupts and the walls of the room disintegrate into tiny shards. Electric currents emerge from the screen and wrap around me. It pulls me down the abyss, melting away as the black hole engulfs me.

I am reborn in an alternate dimension. I find myself in the ruins of a city in the middle of the wasteland. The ground is scorched and obsidian clouds roll by the ashen sky. My spirits lift up at the sight of a familiar ship. It cascaded from the sky and landed in front of me. I marveled at seeing Vika in the flesh.

“Welcome back, Eric, the Shadow Knight. I am Vika, the Captain of the Seventh Battalion. Welcome to The Alter Lands. My troops and I are searching for brave warriors to battle in The Eldritch Trials. Azatoth and his spawns of monsters destroyed our world when chaos crumbled humanity and we must save the human race from extinction. Would you like to join us and become the champion of The Eldritch Trials who will bring peace to The Alter Lands?” She held out her hand, anticipating my response.

I held her hand and replied affirmatively, “Yes, I would gladly fight Azatoth and his army of evil. I want to join your team.”

My mother’s reprimanding voice echoes from afar and the banging noise on the door amplifies with every second but I ignore her.

Right now, there’s no place I’d rather be. The game is never over.

—

written by Mary Rascel Mayol

illustrated by Frichzy Anito

layout by Valerie Arnne Arevalo