Chapter 8

Chapter 8

The licking of a soft warm tongue woke her up and she was confused until she saw Midnight face only inches from hers. When he saw that she was awake, he barked his puppy bark and wagged his puppy tail; she couldn’t help but smile.

“Good morning,” she said and gave him a scratch behind the ears. His tail-wagging increased and she couldn’t help but giggle with excitement. “Okay boy, lets get this day going or we will never get to level 5 and be able to do some fun stuff.”

“Woof, woof,” Midnight responded, ready to do whatever she needed.

Antoinette got out of bed and hit the bathroom. A short time later she stepped out of the shower and dried off. She wondered if there would be a shop that she could buy swag for her apartment, or what other rooms she might be able to unlock. There didn’t seem to be a need to eat, but having a kitchen would be nice. Her mother always said that the heart of any home was the kitchen.

When she exited the bathroom Midnight was sitting on the bed waiting. He gave her a playful bark and watched while she got dressed. Watching him reminded her that she found Dog Treats yesterday. It was time to find out their use.

“Come one boy,” she said. She picked up her haul from yesterday and walked into the next room. When Midnight walked on to the glowing circle she panicked and quickly pulled him off. There was no need for him to get ported to somewhere in the city.

She set him down, “Sit!” To her surprise he sat, but that didn’t keep his tail from wagging. Satisfied that he wasn’t going to wander, she signed into the terminal and tapped the identify option and the message appeared:

Place new object on the circle to identify.

She set the Dog Treats in the circle and the screen changed:

Dog Treats: Used to train pets.

Next, she tried the Soda. The screen changed again:

Soda: Increases Accuracy for limited time

Finally, she set the Blueprint on the circle and the screen flashed:

Sniper Rifle of Carnage: +2 Damage, +1 Accuracy – Lvl 4

She smiled and ruffled Midnight’s head at the good news. Maybe the weapon didn’t have a cool single name, but anything with the word carnage in it had to be good. The only thing she wasn’t sure of, was if she had to Lvl 4 to use it or make it; or both. She added it to her list of things to ask Ravioli the next time they talked.

Antoinette collected the items and carried them into her room and lined them up on the floor in a row. She thought how it would be nice to have a proper shelf or any other furniture in her apartment, but the only way that was going to happen was for her to explore more of the city.

As she passed Midnight, she gave a whistle and he fell into step beside her. He kept his position all the way as they descended the elevator and eventually exited the Safe House. Her only Quests were killing zombies and collecting material, so the first order of business was to visit Wally.

She entered the shop and he was cleaning the same weapon he was always cleaning. They exchanged pleasantries and then she logged in to the terminal. She was surprised to see three more quests on the screen:

House Money – Hit the jackpot on the Wheel of Fortune machine

Sewer Cleansing – Eradicate the sewers of Zombies

Go for a Ride – Discover the city’s Transit system

She was filled with excitement at the variety of Quests to perform and she thought they should all be pretty easy. Maybe she could clean the sewers on her way to the casino and then catch a ride home. The only hitch was she didn’t know where the casino was and if the city’s transit system was a subway, bus line, taxi service, Uber or some other type. For all she knew, there might be a zombie rickshaw that you just hung some taste zombie treat on a fishing pole and the stupid zombie kept running to grab it.

The thought made her laugh and Midnight barked to join in on the fun. Antoinette turned to Wally, but he didn’t even lift his head to see what she was laughing at; hopefully other shop keepers were more interactive. Maybe Wally was plenty interactive, but she had to be the one that initiated all the conversations.

“Hey Wally, how do I get to the nearest casino?” she asked.

“You need to take the bus,” he said without looking up from his work.

“How much is that going to cost me?” She asked. Thinking about credits reminded her that she was going to have to buy more ammo before leaving Wallys.

“It’s free with a bus pass,” he said.

“Great, but where do I get a bus pass?” she asked. Antoinette was getting a bit frustrated with Wally’s back and forth and not getting a clear answer.

“You have to be level 3 to get a bus pass,” he said.

She swore that he had a smile on his face, even though his head was still down looking at the same fucking gun he was cleaning every time she stopped in his shop. So, if she needed a bus pass to get to the casino, and she needed to be level 3 to get a bus pass, the only course of action was in the sewers.

As she left Wally’s shop, the sewers made her thing of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, which only reminded her of Ravioli. She felt like she was in an uncomfortable relationship. She desperately wanted him to call her, but she also wasn’t sure if she should call him. What if it went days before he called her again? He was the only person she met, and she didn’t want to lose touch. She decided that after she found the sewers, she would give him a call.

“Come on Midnight,” she called as she left the shop. “It’s time to go hunting for baddies.” Midnight barked in excitement and followed her out.

The sun was high in the sky, yet it provided no warmth. The thought of not being able to drink up the heat of a warm summer day was depressing; she would have to get her heat from Ravioli once she was higher level. That thought filled her with a warmth that brought a smile to her lips and a lightness to her step.

She led the way down the street in the opposite direction of where she rescued Midnight. Normally quests weren’t clustered together, and she hadn’t been down this street yet. Antoinette slung the shotgun over her shoulder and hefted the bat in her hands.

Midnight’s excited barking turned into a puppy growl and she looked down to see what was going on. The hair on his back was standing up and he was ready to fight. She followed his line of sight and saw several zombies emerge from a nearby alleyway.

“Stay!” she said sternly. She even pointed a finger at Midnight to emphasize her command.

Midnight’s growling got louder as the zombie’s spotted them and started running. Antoinette counted five coming towards them and ran to meet the first one. Just as it was going to grab her, she sidestepped, like dodging a charging bull, and swung to his it in the back of the head. The zombie’s momentum carried it forward, but she could see that half of its skull was crushed.

She turned and could see that two were going to reach her at about the same time. She moved quickly to her right and the zombies altered their path, putting one behind the other. She took several more steps, slowing her pace to let them close the distance. When they were only steps behind, she stopped and want to a knee, swinging the bat hard at the lead zombie’s knees.

The tale has been illicitly lifted; should you spot it on Amazon, report the violation.

Bones cracked and as it toppled to the pavement she rolled out of the way. The following zombie tripped on landed on top of the lead one. Before either could get back to their feet, she was there crushing skulls; two more zombies gone.

While she waited for the trailing two zombies to come in range, she thought about how stupid they were. They must have watched as she already dispatched three of their crew with efficiency, but still they came. There wasn’t a zombie general barking orders at them to get the sexy woman in the Lara Croft outfit. They should have seen her baseball bat covered in the gore of their buddies, but they were not deterred. Maybe it was the reason zombies were always on the lookout for human brains?

Midnight barked encouragement as Antoinette met their charge and jumped as the lead zombie was within range. She used the chest of the zombie as a launching point and propelled herself towards the second zombie; knocking the first zombie to the ground.

She screamed in defiance and raised the bat over her head; everything suddenly felt like she was moving in slow motion. She gripped the bat with two hands, and as her body approached her target, she swung down with all her strength, lifting her legs with the effort.

Her bat struck the zombie and exploded its skull. The force of her strike drove the bat down between the shoulders, crumpling it like a rag doll. She landed in a crouch and turned to the last one, who had regained its feet. She sprung like a cat and kicked it in the chest. As it staggered backwards, she spun in a circle, using the momentum as she decapitated the zombie with another swing.

Enraged

“Let’s go get some more baddies Midnight!” She yelled and started to run down the street. Midnight ran to catch up while barking his encouragement.

It didn’t take long for Antoinette to encounter more zombies. She swung her bat with efficiency against the bumbling shuffling zombies that ran at her from alleyways and abandoned buildings.

Bloodlust

Her skin glowed red and she felt a surge of energy. She continued down the street, taking on all zombies looking for brains. Zombie after zombie fell to Antoinette and her swinging bat of doom, and as the last one fell, her screen flashed:

Level Up!

She hadn’t even been paying attention to her experience gauge, focusing on the task at hand and making sure none got close enough to Midnight to cause him any harm. She looked to see him sitting only feet away from her wagging his tail. He appeared to be in good health, and she reminded herself again about calling Ravioli to get information on pets.

The last thing she wanted was to put him in danger, but if he was just for moral support and couldn’t get attacked, then she would be free to progress without worry. Although, she did have the treats that were meant to train him with.

Happy that Midnight was okay, she looked around to see she had made it quite far down the street. She could barely see her base in the distance. There were no more zombies in the area, and she started to weigh the pros and cons of what to do next.

Midnight’s barking got her attention; it wasn’t a bark of warning and he wasn’t growling. When she looked to see what he was wanted she saw he was trying to move several zombies that had piled up.

“What’s under there boy?” She asked. She stepped over to Midnight and dragged off the first zombie. As she slid it off, she could see they were hiding something glowing softly. Her mind tried to play back her fight to remember is one of the zombies was carrying something magical or enhanced that was making it shine.

She pulled off another body and could see part of a sewer cover glowing. As quickly as she could, she cleared off the cover and felt a rush of excitement, she had found the sewers.

“Midnight,” she turned and scratched him behind the ears. “You’re amazing!”

His tail wagged even faster and he leaned his head into her fingers. He could sense her excitement and banked encouragement. She wasn’t sure that she would be able to move the cover, but with little effort she was able to pull it off, revealing a dimly lit shaft with an iron ladder leading down.

Her initial thought was about how she was going to get Midnight down the ladder with her. She didn’t want to slip and fall to her death, but she didn’t want to leave him up here to come back up to find him a corpse on the pavement. She could take him back to her apartment and lock him in, but he also noticed the entrance to the sewer that she would have missed; having him along might prove very useful. She needed more information.

Antoinette sat down with her feet dangling into the sewer opening. She set her bat down next to her and got ready for the call. After several deep breaths, she tapped the face of the watch and the face showed her only contact: Ravioli. She tapped on his name and listened as ringing could be heard.

“Ravioli,” he said.

“Hi Ravioli,” she said. “Sorry to bother you, but I have a couple of questions if you have the time.”

“Who is this?” he asked.

What the fuck? She wasn’t sure if he really wasn’t sure who was calling. Maybe he took calls from all the noon women that spawned, grooming them for some dark end. Maybe his guild was all women that created a very large harem for the guild master. She imagined the application process that culminated when players turned level 10 and were subjected to his handsome body for a night of initiation. She wasn’t to be appalled and angered at the thought, but a night with Ravioli might be worth all of that.

“I’m just kidding,” he said. “What can I do for you Antoinette?”

She realized that he filled the silence of her thoughts, and hearing her name on the tip of his tongue was better than the best cup of hot chocolate on a chilly winter night.

“You’re not as funny as you think you are,” she said.

“There you are wrong,” he answered with a hearty laugh. “I’m the funniest person I know!”

He was handsome, confident, powerful, sexy and funny; what a confident fucker. She smiled at his comment and refrained from the easy retort of ‘funny looking’, because she needed answers.

“Guess what?” she asked.

“You have a date with Casey Jones?” he asked in response.

“Do you have his number?” she asked. “I bet his has strong hands with all the work he does with the hockey stick.”

“Or from masturbating,” Ravioli answered.

“He has to use two hands to masturbate?” she asked. “I really need his number if you have it!” She put as much excitement into her voice as she could, even though she knew Ravioli wouldn’t take the bait.

“Is this why you called me?” he asked. “In that case, we might as well talk about the Nick character in the movie Bachelor Party.”

“What does a character from a movie I’ve never heard have anything to do with Casey Jones?” she asked.

“It has to do with two hands and …, never mind,” he said. “If you really want to know, you can remind me again when we are together.”

“Alright, because I’m confused,” she said. “But since you guessed incorrectly, I’ll just tell you. I have a pet.”

“You have a pussy cat?” he asked. “I already told you I can’t pet your pussy until you are level 10.”

Antoinette felt the blood rushing to her face in embarrassment. Her body started to get warm thinking about his hands on her, because he certainly wasn’t talking about any fucking cat.

“I know you can’t wait to get your hands on my pretty kitty,” she purred. “Before anything like that happens, I need some information first.”

“What color is your kitty, or is it one of those hairless varieties?” he asked.

She was surprised at how smooth he was the banter that included a high level of sexual innuendo. She wasn’t going to let him bully her in every conversation.

“I think hairless cats are kind of ugly and prefer the short haired variety,” she said.

“I would agree,” he said. “The long-haired variety tends to get hair everywhere.”

“Now that we agree on that, the reason I called is that I have a pet dog. I got him from a quest and have some questions about owing a pet.”

“As much as I would like to continue talking about your kitty, I have somewhere to be soon. What questions about your dog can I answer?” he asked.

“First off, his name is Midnight,” she began. “So, can Midnight take damage? Can he join in a fight? What are the dog treats for that I found? What kind of things can I train him to do? Does he always follow me or will he wander off on his own?”

“You need a training facility to do anything. Until you train him, he can’t be damaged or fight on your behalf. He will follow you all the time, and if he gets caught behind a locked door and you exit the area, he will port to your side,” Ravioli answered.

After several seconds of silence, Ravioli continued. “Once you get the training facility, you can train him to join you in battle and a bunch of other cool things, BUT, if you decide to train him, he can also die. Some people keep their pet as companions only, and never train them up to ensure that they don’t get killed.”

“Do you have a pet?” Antoinette asked.

Several seconds passed before he answered.

“I no longer have a pet since Tony died several raids ago,” he said with his voice ending in a whisper.

“I’m so sorry to hear that,” she said. “What kind of animal was he?” She hoped that talking about it would help the healing process that was still far from being complete.

“He was a tiger,” Ravioli said.

Her mind filled with numerous responses to that revelation. His pet was Tony the tiger? This was either the greatest troll ever, or he had seriously named a pet tiger Tony.

“And before you say it, yes, he was great,” Ravioli answered her unasked question.

Part of her wanted him to say it like the cartoon tiger pitch-man for Frosted Flakes, but then decided that would be in poor taste. Or would it be? She remembered the famous Leroy Jenkins death from World of Warcraft fame. His actions ganked the entire party, yet people still reminisced his heroics. He might have died a glorious death, but at least he got chicken.

“How do I get a training facility?” Antoinette asked.

She waited several seconds and then repeated her question. After several more questions, she looked down at the face of her watch and Ravioli’s name was dim. The call had ended without her knowing it. Damn.

“Okay, boy,” Antoinette said to Midnight. “I guess until I find out how to get a training facility, you get to tag along with no danger of getting hurt. But first we need to stop back at my apartment to level up. I feel that we are going to need all the help we can get before heading down into the sewers.”

“Woof!”