It was a quiet day in the RED team's 2fort base. BLU had been wiped out the day before, and RED was sitting in the intel room, twiddling their thumbs. The antics started when Scout finally succeeded in prying open the intelligence briefcase from BLU's base.
"Hah! I am freakin' aMAZing! Wouldja look at that!" Everyone turned to look as the lock clicked open, but Spy. He could have done that in half the time. Scout scrambled to lift the lid before anyone else got too close, and hunched over the briefcase. "Huh?" He came up a second later with a stack of books. "What the crud's this? Books? BOOKS? That's what I just spent an hour bustin' my fingernails for? BOOKS?" Scout dropped them with a thunk on the desk and sat in the corner, mumbling all the while. Engineer pulled his chair over to the desk and took a look.
" 'Dungeons 'n' dragons', eh? Hmm… I reckon I've heard of this. But why would BLU have a game stashed in their intel?" He flipped through the book on the top, pictures of knights and wizards and monsters flitting by.
"A game, hm? Who knew books'd be good for something? We're all bored; let's give it a go, huh?" Scout said, his usual energy returning to him. The intel also contained 9 character sheets: one for each mercenary in BLU team. Since they had the same members as RED, everyone piled around, taking the sheet that matched them. Suddenly, the TV in the next room flickered on. A familiar face greeted the team.
The administrator, in her usual garb of a red and blue suit, frowned down at the team. She had spoken to them yesterday offering her congratulations on the victory. Now, though she always looked disappointed and angry, you could tell she was in less of a good mood. That was saying something.
"I suppose I should warn you what your idiocy will lead you to if you're not careful. Those aren't ordinary game books. There's something… Wrong with them. That's why BLU had them hidden away. I would watch myself if I were you. Don't, whatever you do, begin playing. That includes rolling the dice in the briefcase. If you do, there will be harsh consequences," she warned, gravely.
Sure enough, 9 blue sets of dice lay in glass boxes, carefully organized under a bit of lint and clutter. Each die had its own little compartment. The TV flickered off, but nobody was watching it anymore. Everyone's eyes were fixed on the boxes of dice.
"Do we play?" Asked Heavy, breaking an all-too-long silence.
"You heard the woman. Consequences. And what do we know about the admin's consequences?" Sniper asked. He didn't have to finish; everyone in the room shuddered as if struck by a sudden chill, knowing what he meant.
"Well, I say we do it anyways. What can she do for playing a game? It can't be too bad." Soldier reasoned. Sure enough, Scout and Demoman picked up a box each, followed by soldier. Medic held his hand up in warning, but it was too late. Scout took out a large, 20 sided die and spun it around on the desk. Sweat dripped off Medic's forehead as the die spun. Heavy snarled, shoving Scout to the ground, hitting the die with a meaty fist, stopping it and denting the desk.
A deep fog began to fill the room. The number one facing up from the die glowed green, and somehow thunder rumbled inside, even though it was a clear, cloudless sunny day outside. Wind began whipping the air, and the team covered their head with their hands. The character sheets blew around in the wind violently. Each one slapped their new owner in the forehead, sticking to their face. Suddenly, the team vanished into thin air.
"Oh, one last thing –" The TV flickered on again, showing the nervous face of the Administrator. "Oh no… Ohh…" She moaned as she saw the empty room. The books sat in a stack, black and charred.