Afterlife Dream

"The counselors and psychiatrists hoped to instill some kind of calm disposition in our hearts by forcing us to get into the habit.

We were forced to control our emotions.

We were forced to endure.

To not talk back.

To not give in to the other players' aggression.

You know what, Antares?

It did not work at all.

In the end, they got a bunch of angry teenagers who piled up a bunch of negative emotions in their hearts. Unable to vent in any way, they were like walking volcanoes, ready to erupt at the slightest provocation."

"I too was like that.

Maybe it was a mistake to allow us all to play together on one server, or maybe it was for better supervision.

I don't know. To make it worse, some of us were more serious about the game than the others.

They saw the game as another life they wanted to excel in.

They were ambitious, they wanted to make it big.

If not in the actual life then in virtual life. There was no other choice anyhow."

"I was not that kind of person. I knew I sucked at the game so I never tried to improve. I just played because it was part of the therapy, not because I wanted to.

Now, naturally, we did not go around telling others our character names or anything, but people did find out eventually.

I got into a row with a few boys who approached me discreetly to threaten me a few times.

They called me names, shoved me around, and told me not to become a burden.

You see, Antares, I also had to suppress my anger. Having these boys scolding and threatening me because I failed with the game did not sit right with me."

"The next time they approached me again, we ended up exchanging punches. I believe I was the one who threw the first punch too.

When I came to myself again, I was already standing in that character creation barn."

Wolfhound took a deep breath and exhaled, sending a puff of white mist into the cold air.

"I was quite resentful when I first joined the game. I felt that it was a punishment, a retribution. I knew that I would suck in this game because I played it before. I am simply bad at this kind of thing.

I forced myself to go from level to level, in hope of just joining the first raid I can join and then get the hell out of the game."

"I knew that I could never compete with the others or join the best squad out there and get enough Life Points to make the best out of my next life. Not all of us are that talented, Antares."

"Anyway, as you probably still remember, I had another anger issue and ended up stabbing DragonTalon after that one Dai City Party Quest.

I would not go as far as saying that his nagging was too much for my taste, but you know that he liked to complain. The more he complained, the more unstable I became. I was nervous, I made a lot of mistakes.

He got mad at me, and I...

I did not mean to do that, but I did it again.

I lost it."

I still remember the day it happened. Wolfhound kneeling on the ground, begging for mercy from the onlookers who all demanded him to pay for the life he took with his own life.

Kitty was the only person who bravely defended Wolfhound. She stood against the many fellow players who then ended up attacking them both before Wolfhound bolted out of the scene and Kitty ran after him.

"I wanted to commit suicide."

...

That explained why he went up the highest floor of the construction site.

"But then Kitty stopped me, saying all kinds of things. Of course, later on we found out that any kind of death - in or outside town, by monsters or players - will result in being resurrected in a safe place anyway."

I nodded. "Kitty is a kind soul."

"The best," Wolfhound agreed with me. "But she's not the only one. You and DragonTalon as well. DragonTalon is particularly kind."

"He apologized to you, I heard. Big of him."

"Yes, but that's not all. Do you remember the players who scorned me back then?"

I shook my head. I didn't remember anymore.

"I later found out that he lied about not being accepted in other party quests. A lot of players sympathized with him, wanting to exile me completely, letting me rot in the game with no way out as a punishment. They wanted them to be their beacon of justice, their leader in punishing the black sheep.

He refused.

He criticized them heavily, saying that they should be ashamed of themselves, and then refusing to party up with them anymore.

It was thanks to him that others slowly stopped hating me."

"Look, Antares, how many people would do that for others?

Not many, I tell you. Most people would choose to side with the majority, and the majority usually choose to channel their own negative emotions into hating criminals.

I did not deserve his apology.

If not because of DragonTalon, I... I don't know what I would have done."

I snickered.

"Be a mafia gangster in Afterlife Dream? Dai City totally looks like a mafia city."

Wolfhound chuckled.

"Hahaha, maybe. But what I have right now, is all thanks to you guys. You made it happen for me."

I put an arm around Wolfhound's shoulder.

"Don't mention it. That's what friends are for."

"Now that I hear he's gone, I..."

Wolfhound squeezed his fingers.

"I still can't believe it."

"He is not gone, per se. He is still in the game. He will be back."

Wolfhound looked at me, his gaze full of hope.

"Really?"

"Yes! He will be back and we will come to play in your farmhouse again."

A tiny smile formed on Wolfhound's lips. "Yeah. He will be back. When he's back, I have a pair of Angel Wings for him."

I stared at Wolfhound.

"You have a full pair of Angel Wings?"

"To be exact, I have the amount of Angel Feathers that are required to make a pair of Angel Wings. I have been saving little by little, buying all feathers that I could find when I heard that he wanted those wings."

A huge grin appeared on my face.

"He would be so happy to get them. DragonTalon has been complaining about not having Angel Wings."

Wolfhound laughed. "I heard."

"But are you sure? Those feathers cost a fortune. HinoKun is looking to make two sets of Angel Wings. You could sell those feathers for a lot, A LOT of money."

Wolfhound shook his head with a smile. "I will give all the Angel Feathers in Afterlife Dream if only he can come back."

"He will be back," I said. "And when he's back... the first thing he will do is to collect the Angel Feathers from you."

"I'd like that," Wolfhound said sincerely.

The little chat was apparently all that we both needed to get back to sleep.

I fell asleep as soon as my head hit the pillow, but I was constantly plagued by weird dreams.

I dreamed about all those players who disappeared from the game.

BlackPuma said to me, "I did what I had to do as your guild leader and also the number one player in Afterlife Dream to go challenge the Dimensional Master. And then I disappeared and you are all still playing."

Suzuran, MaiseyChi, and Rankichi were floating inside the sea of lava. They looked like broken dolls. Only their accusatory eyes and their voices spoke about the resentment in their hearts.

"Help us... Why are you all not helping us... We were swallowed by the lava... Come and get us..."

Three players who I never even met screamed from another side. They were being trapped inside the Queen Spider's cocoon.

"Help! Help us! Save us! We don't want to be here!"

"Antares, you trapped us! If not for you asking for help to investigate the Summer Rainforest, we would not even be here!!"

Lastly, there was DragonTalon who was fighting alone against a horde of ghost soldiers. He shouted out a lot of skills, sending fire attacks at the soldiers to no avail.

They did not even flinch, let alone retreat.

DragonTalon was slowly getting overwhelmed, surrounded by enemies that attacked from all directions.

Until suddenly, the Dimensional Master in form of a masked tall figure that was cloaked in a robe the color of the night.

He pulled DragonTalon out of the mess by his neck. My friend struggled with all his might, thrashing and kicking for his life while trying to peel the steel fingers one by one away from his neck.

And then he broke like a three-dimensional mirror. Tiny splinters shot in all directions. DragonTalon was no more.

I woke up with a start, my whole body drenched in cold sweat.