Chapter 011

  Decision Made

  Ms. Harmon's raspy voice still echoed in Ethan’s ears. The old woman had barked at them to get the job done instead of just standing around talking.

  In his opinion, she was just the right combination of snarky, and her comments didn’t bother him. He wasn’t sure how Jason felt, but he had a feeling the brash guy felt somewhat similar.

  Jason talked a lot, but Ethan was learning enough from him to make that worth any headache. He was also cool with the possibility of splitting a measly one hundred experience with the other player if he was interested, and if that was what happened when players finished missions together.

  "Well, you heard the lady," Ethan said with a shrug. "If you want to help, I could use it, but you don’t have to. I want to get it done before she really gives me a talking to."

  Jason chuckled, already inspecting the wood crate with the new glass panel in it. "Yeah, I wouldn't want to piss off the old battle-axe, either. Sure! I’ll help!”

  Ethan moved the screwdriver from his miscellaneous slot and put it into his right hand. The stat box still indicated he couldn't use it to fight with but still didn’t display anything useful. A thought occurred to him that being able to read stats might be a talent.

  He shrugged that away for different times, and wondered if he could even use the screwdriver for this job. It was the only tool he had that seemed even remotely appropriate, and the only one he’d brought in any case.

  Holding it, he wedged the tip of the flathead screwdriver under the window's wooden molding and gave it a firm tap with the heel of his hand. The molding popped away from the frame and answered his question.

  "Huh, would you look at that," he mused at his own efficiency. The jagged shards of glass still stuck in the frame but half the job was done. "Guess they don't make 'em like they used to."

  "Nah, man," Jason said, shaking his head. "This is just how the game works. Makes these low-level missions nice and simple for us players."

  The guy was right, he contemplated. This wasn’t a construction simulator. It didn’t need that type of detail.

  As he carefully removed each shard and set it in a small pile on the ground, he realized how clean they came loose. No struggling, no cutting his hands on the sharp edges. Just nice, tidy removal.

  When the frame was finally clear, Jason handed him the brand new pane of glass that Mr. Gallagher had dropped off earlier.

  He lifted it into the empty space and was surprised by how perfect it fit. There was not a hint of resistance or need for adjustment.

  A few taps with the screwdriver had the molding secured once more, the glass gleaming proud in its fresh setting.

  "There we go," he said with a satisfied nod. "Good as new."

  In the real world, it wouldn't have been so simple. There would be caulk or putty, specialized tools, and precise measurements, plus the fear of accidentally breaking the new glass. Then he would have had to repaint around the glass.

  But this was a game, after all. Why make things overly complicated when a few simple mechanics could get the job done?

  Ms. Harmon chose that moment to shuffle over, peering out through the new pane with a critical eye. She grunted noncommittally, then turned and headed back inside without a word.

  Jason let out a bark of laughter. "Well, I think that's about as ringing an endorsement as we're gonna get from her. What do you think, not bad for our first job together, huh?"

  He received a notification for having completed this part of the mission.

  Mission Progress: Regular Mr. Handyman - You performed one part of a larger mission for Thomas Gallagher.

  +100 XP

  You have 1,600 XP total

  You need 600 more XP to reach level 2

  Regular Mr. Handyman

  Your work for Thomas Gallagher is always incomplete. Things need repair over the course of their lifetime, regardless of why. You were hired by Mr. Gallagher to fix things, and for some reason you slacked off for a full week. It's time to catch up. With Ms. Harmon’s window fixed, now it’s time to fix those porch steps at Dead Ned’s place. Get on it!

  Current Progress: 25%

  Jason had been talking the whole time Ethan read his updates.

  “So like I said, not bad, huh bro?”

  "Not bad at all," he agreed with a grin, putting his screwdriver back in the miscellaneous inventory. "I like this woman."

  Jason snorted in amusement, giving him a sarcastic answer. "Yeah, no kidding. I've run into my fair share of charming NPCs as well. At least she cuts to the chase. I hate it when characters do too much talking."

  Ethan smirked. "Me too, buddy. Me too."

  After that it was oddly quiet for a minute, so he glanced at his screens while Jason wasn’t talking.

  All the other small missions had given him one hundred experience, so he had no reason to believe the system had split the reward.

  “Jason,” he asked, “did you get any experience from that?”

  “No,” he shook his head. “I’m not part of your mission. I’m pretty sure we can’t share missions until we're both level two. That’s when the social screen unlocks. I got that one a little bit ago, but you don’t yet, right?"

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  "Nope."

  The other player nodded. "It lets you form parties and send private postage. I can share my mission with someone, but it won’t let me share it with you.”

  “Makes sense,” he answered, already wanting the ability.

  It was the first time he had information about an unlock before actually receiving it, other than knowing about the restrictions on fighting until reaching level three.

  Jason had been good company, and full of good information, but Ethan was growing tired of listening. The other player, while overly sociable and talkative, didn’t strike him as being as fake as Stalvek or Mia. The guy wasn’t constantly trying to be the central focus for invisible cameras.

  That alone went a long way towards Ethan liking him, but he didn’t want to waste any more time than necessary just standing around. The job was done, and he had more experience to earn and higher levels to achieve.

  Jason was probably exaggerating with his stories, but the man was otherwise behaving as he normally did. That was the overall impression Ethan felt.

  He decided to just get blunt with the guy. “What’s your goal in the game?”

  Without any hesitation, Jason said, “bro I’m just excited to be here, but I’m thinking kinda like you are. I want to kill a bunch of bad NPCs. As long as they deserve to die, I don’t care if they're vampires or gangsters.”

  He smiled, happy with Jason's answer. If they did end up working together at some point in the future, they could talk details then. For the time being, he believed the guy, and he believed he had a good path forward together if he said yes.

  Based on everything the player had shared so far, Ethan formed his opinion. Jason was quick to act without thinking a situation through. He clearly had the talents of a rogue or an assassin, but had refused to align himself at the start for some unexplained ethical reason.

  Ethan hadn’t taken the time to figure out what all he could do as an Associate rank in The Green Fists, but there was no doubt in his mind he couldn’t recruit others yet. A thought did occur to him, though. Maybe he could get Jason McArthur recruited.

  “Question for you,” he asked.

  The other player smirked, waiting for it. “Yeah, bro! Ask anything!”

  “Want to join The Green Fists?”

  Jason snapped his head back and shook it vigorously. “Not really. Had my chance with The Cortez Family. Told them no already, so why would I join a different one?”

  Ethan smiled. “It’s only temporary.”

  “Temporary until what?”

  “Until we’re strong enough and smart enough to make our own path. If we don’t have protection at level three, we’re as good as dead in a game like this. As far as I can tell there’s only three factions to pick from right now, and out of those, The Green Fists are the only ones that have some kind of rule about not doing business with vampires.”

  Jason thought about it for a while. Ethan gave him all the time he needed, though he was hoping it wouldn’t drag out more than a few minutes. After a while the other player seemed to come up with a conclusion of his own.

  “You really don’t like vampires, do you?”

  Ethan said. “Too glittery and perfect and wrong on so many levels.”

  “Oh! Bro! I get it!” the other player said. “So you’re like a twilight hater, huh?”

  He laughed and shook his head. “Maybe a little bit, but it’s more real than that. They’re like ticks, don’t you agree? They only exist because they take the lives of others."

  “Yeah…” Jason agreed, nodding. “Yeah, you’re right. They’re like annoying ticks that need to be killed. And you want to do the killing part?”

  He smiled at the other player. “I want us to do the killing part. But we have to get stronger first, and that means surviving. Which means you joining The Green Fists."

  “It sounds alright I guess. How do I join though? You can recruit me?”

  Ethan shook his head. “I can’t.”

  “Then how?”

  Before he could answer, the now familiar, crotchety old voice piped up from her apartment doorway.

  "You take your lazy ass down to one of the big shots in The Green Fists and you ask, dummy!"

  They both turned to look. Ms. Harmon stood there, arms crossed, fixing them with a stern look. They hadn't realized the NPC had been listening in the whole time.

  Jason recovered first, giving the old woman a disarming grin. "Well now, Ms. Harmon, no need to be like that. We're just a couple guys trying to learn our way around this place."

  She snorted derisively. "Is that what you're calling it? 'Cause from where I'm standing, it looks like you're just flapping your gums without a lick of sense between you. Talking about killing fangs and such, and you don't even know how to fight yet!"

  Ouch, Ethan thought, wincing in mock pain. He decided to try a more diplomatic approach. "Actually, ma'am, we're just discussing the best way to stay alive until we can protect ourselves. You've lived here a while, what do you think about the three outfits fighting for control? Which one would you pick?"

  For a moment, her weathered features softened, but then she steeled herself and frowned again. "You could say that, son. I've lived here my whole life. Even used to be in a gang myself, before all these cheap imitations took over."

  "Which one?" Ethan asked, feeling impressed.

  "Never you mind," she said quickly. "You wouldn't know it. Long since dead. Some of the people are still around, sure enough, but they're pale shadows of what they once were."

  He glanced at Jason, who shrugged. The other player appeared to be just as intrigued as he was even though he didn't speak up about it.

  "What happened? If you don't mind me asking."

  Ms. Harmon was quiet for a long moment, her gaze distant as she stared out across the yard. When she spoke again, her voice was heavy with something like regret.

  "The Green Fists happened, that's what. Muscled their way in when I was young. That's about all there is to it. They lie, cheat, and steal, and you can't trust them one damn bit."

  He leaned in closer as Ms. Harmon continued, her words carrying a weight that came from hard-earned experience.

  "See, back then we tried to keep things civilized. We worked with each other. But when push came to shove, all that bureaucracy didn't amount to much. A loaded gun pointed at you is a lot more convincing in a moment of panic than honoring the spoken word."

  He frowned, mulling over her words. "So... you just got wiped out? Seems like a damn shame, and The Greenies are responsible?"

  "Yep. It is a shame," Ms. Harmon agreed. "But that's just how it went. When you live by the gun you usually die by it too. I swore on my life to never lift a finger, or a barrel, against The Green Fists, and they let me live. There's that, at least. I'm true to my word. They've left me alone, but who knows if they'll continue doing that. Things are changing rapidly around here, and they ain't getting any better, but at least they're the only ones not doing business with fangs."

  He nodded, having learned the old woman had some personal experience to back up her vicious tongue. A thought occurred to him then. If there were still remnants of the old gangs lingering, maybe he could meet some them and they could provide more insight, or even an opportunity.

  He asked, “where would somebody go to try and learn more about the older ways of running a mobster outfit?"

  Ms. Harmon fixed him with a level stare. "Oh, you want me to just tell you where to find the most reclusive, well-hidden mobsters of old that don't want to be found?"

  He blinked and then smirked, understanding her point well enough. "Had to try, huh?"

  She shrugged, giving them a weary gesture. "Survive a little while, then come back and talk to me."

  "But..." Jason tried but failed to change her mind, apparently hoping for more just like he had. "Isn't there a way to, I don't know... just kill all the bad ones?"

  Ms. Harmon laughed. "Yeah, by surviving, and playing by the rules until you can do something about it just like your friend here said."

  Jason accepted her answer quickly and looked defeated. “Man, that sucks. Why us good guys always gotta play by the rules?”

  She laughed again. “No one said you were good guys. Couple of lazy kids is all I see!”

  The old woman winked at Ethan, cracked a grin, and then slammed her front door shut. The act left both of them standing awkwardly on her front porch.

  He shrugged and turned to him. "Well, I guess that's the plan, then. Are you in this with me?"

  Jason shook his head. "But she just told us The Green Fists couldn't be trusted…"

  "Yeah," Ethan answered. "So basically, nothing has changed. We already knew that, right?"

  The other player contemplated his point. Ethan knew his own logic made perfect sense. The Green Fists were the largest and strongest outfit in Grimsborough Heights. If he and Jason were going to survive the first few levels of unrestricted combat, this was their chance.

  Sure, the gang itself couldn't be trusted long-term, and the organization was responsible for the entire district having fallen apart, but at the same time it appeared to be the best of three options.

  He knew almost nothing about The Cortez Family and even less about The Borrells, but multiple sources had told him all he needed to know. If he joined either one of the other two factions, he would have restrictions in place when it came to fighting blood suckers.

  Ethan wanted to kill vampires. He'd made his mind up, and he wanted Jason to join him.

  "Yeah, bro," the other player answered, "I think I will join. It sounds like fun. But who do I need to talk to in order to get recruited?"