GREETINGS FANFICTION DOT NET! I am a returning writer who had to abandon my post among your honored ranks - SHH! (I'm in disguise)
Anywho, this is my new story IRL! This is a story that will be jumping between the real world and the realm of the inter-webs, specifically video games. It'll be fairly obvious when the change occurs (*HINT* one universe has swords, magic, and teleportation). I feel like this should go without saying but this is both AU, and likely more than a little OOC for a number of characters. In this story I intend to explore a bit of the phenomenon that occurs when you give someone the anonymity of a computer screen to hide behind - a lot of people are a lot different in video games than they are in person.
Now for those of you who are NOT gamers, I will be putting an index at the bottom of every chapter that explains some of the gamer lingo that will inevitably permeate this story. Hopefully this will help everyone who reads this to enjoy it on the same level, with as little confusion as possible. Be sure to pay attention to it if you don't know something! Each item will only be listed once! After it is defined, it will not show up in the index in later chapters! And in a likely futile effort to prevent offending anyone, for the purpose of the index, I will be treating it as though none of you have any clue about video games whatsoever.
I DO NOT OWN ANY PART OF NARUTO
Please enjoy!
(P.S. Please review!)
The monster was on its last legs – the giant sand spirit was already crumbling at the edges as it reared back for yet another wave of attacks. There were only three people left alive in the party, the other two sitting in limbo as they waited out the final act of the fight. A female avatar rushed forwards, swinging her shield up in front of her to blunt the rush of sand that flew at her, drawing aggression away from the other two players as they flanked and attacked. The attack let up long enough for all three to push in at once and deliver a killing blow – landing one of the players a bonus.
"That sucked." Huffed a female voice. "I had to switch my spec halfway through the fight."
"Oh, is that why you were a shit healer?" sneered one of the dead party members as the system displayed the victory cutscene.
"This is why girls shouldn't play video games." Chimed another.
"I don't want to hear shit from the asshat who wanted me to pocket heal them while they tried to one-v-one a boss monster." Snapped the first voice. "The tank was at half health and you -"
"Go back to the kitchen." Interjected another voice.
"E-excuse me?" the girl sputtered. "The fuck did you just say to me?"
"Pretty sure I didn't stutter." The voice responded.
"- Sera, just mute them or something until it lets us out of the que." Sighed another male voice. "I'm not in the mood to listen to you argue with strangers again."
"Shut up Tannis." Sera grunted, even as the loud clacking of keys filled the voice chat. "Re-ported, biyach."
"I really don't know why you let them rile you up like that." Tannis sighed. "It's never worth it."
"Like you're any better," she scoffed. "You behave like the king of fucking salt half the time, so you have no room to talk."
The alert went up on the screen displaying that the instance was ending, offering another que, and the female avatar – a heavily geared cleric with bright pink hair – declined it. The sound of a teleporter went off, and the environment dissolved from a dessert into a bustling city street. Two of the members from the party materialized side by side in the midst of the crowd. One was the harassed cleric, the other was a fighter dressed in black with a large two-handed broadsword.
"Remind me why I let you drag me into randomized dungeon ques?" Tannis grumbled, scrolling through the loot acquired from the previous battle. "All that ever happens is that you end up in fights with people."
"Can it." Growled Sera. "Did you get anything good from that final drop?"
"A lesser magic sword and a wind scythe." He said. "Nothing I can use – I'll probably just put it up for auction."
"Fair." His companion allowed absently as she adjusted settings in the menu in front of her – her armor suddenly changing from plate to light mail, and her shield and warhammer being replaced with a stylized quarterstaff. As the new weapon settled into her hand, she turned to grin at her friend. "Hey, I know we're cutting out after this, but would you be available to head up to the northern region tomorrow after school? They added a new questline in the last patch that's supposed to set things up for the storyline in the new expansion next month."
"Can't" he said, his mic sound fluttering for a moment as he made a sound like he was stretching. "Moving tomorrow."
"Oh shit, right I remember you telling me about that." Sera said, her voice indicating a frown. "I still think that's fucked – you having to move in the middle of a semester."
"Not like my opinion would matter much to his majesty." Grunted her friend.
"Dude, your family sucks."
"Tell me something I don't already know." He snorted. "I'll be out for a few days. I'll send you an IM when I get my computer set up."
"Cool." She affirmed. "I'll see if I'll be able to pencil you in when that happens."
"Goodnight Seraphina." He said, seconds before his avatar vanished.
On the other side of a computer screen, a girl with petal pink hair and vibrant eyes of emerald green was chuckling, a smirk on her face even as she logged out of the system and shut down the computer. Taking off her headset she stood from her desk chair with a stretch and a yawn before pulling the lamp chain and settling herself into the bed a few feet behind her.
INDEX - organized in order of appearance
IRL - In Real Life, this is a term usually used by players to indicate that they are talking about something that is occurring outside of the game they are currently playing. (Ex. "In game, I play as a muscly fighter with blue hair, but IRL, I'm just a skinny little brunette.")
Party - A group or team of players, usually five or fewer. A group made of of multiple parties is called a Raid.
Avatar - The character controlled by a player
Aggression - In games, aggression is essentially the amount of attention a player generates. It determines who/what a monster is most likely to attack.
Spec/Specialization - Many games have different types of rolls or jobs that a player may be classed as. Within these classes may be a subclass or specialization that a player may or may not be able to switch between
Healer - The player responsible for keeping the rest of their party from dying. Usually there is one healer per party.
Cutscene - A cinematic scene or forced dialogue within the game that is most often triggered by an accomplishment or victory.
Pocket-Heal/Pocket-Healer - A healer that focuses exclusively on another player instead of their entire party.
Boss/Boss Monster - The final creature defeated at the end of a dungeon or quest.
Tank - A player that is responsible for holding monsters' attention. Usually wears the heaviest armor in the party and has the highest amount of health/life points. Usually there is one tank per party.
Que - A que is a sort of sign-up system that is provided to players to pre-construct a party with enough balanced members to enter a scenario/instance.
Reported/Reporting - Some players will behave negatively or use abusive language that interrupts/impacts/offends other players, most every game has a system to report these players for reprimand. (In this case, the players in Seraphina's party were heckling her for being a female player and unfairly blaming her for what went wrong)
Salt/Being Salty - Behaving bitterly towards something or someone.
Cleric - A versatile class capable both in combat and in using Divine Magic. They make excellent healers, though they can fill other rolls to a lesser extent if the need arises.
Fighter - A class that deals primarily in close range/melee combat, primarily filling the roll of DPS
DPS - Otherwise known as 'Damage Per Second'. Typically they deal more damage over a shorter period of time than a tank would in order to make up for having lighter armor and/or health
Questline - A chain of tasks that usually progress as a story.
Patch - A patch is a small update to a system.
Expansion - Rather than end the game and release a sequel, many games will simply add a massive update that is known as an 'expansion'. These updates will usually come with new areas/maps to explore, new quests, new dungeons, etc. These large updates are typically announced months if not a whole year in advance of their release.
IM - Instant Message