Chapter 1 - Dawn of the Gamers

The bell rang at around 7:30. Immediately a swarm of students began to run to their classes. It was an average day at Apex High School. The sun was shining and kept the courtyard air warm as students hurried in and out of the building. It was mid-spring and the trees and bushes were in full bloom, their leaves colored a fresh green. The wooden benches had been cleaned of food and debris, usually from lunch, and were painted a fresh amber brown color. It seemed like the school was in tip-top shape at this time of year. Also in tip-top shape was one student who was unlike the others.

His name was Frederick. He was about 5'8, which seemed average for a sixteen-year-old boy, with short brown hair and deep green eyes. He wore dark blue jeans with a belt, a plain white T-shirt, and a grayish-black jacket over it. On his left wrist was a black digital watch. Frederick was very anonymous to those around him. He wasn't fond of attention and preferred to be left alone. But that didn't mean he had no friends. In fact, he had a group of four friends he liked to hang out with. Frederick knew them since middle school, and the group stayed with each other now to high school.

The first of the group was David. He was a tall kid of about six foot with long brown hair and bad acne. Some said he looked like Chris Pratt but others couldn't see the resemblance. He was the strongest of the five although he didn't like to show off his biceps. David most often laughed the hardest of them and was known to even fall on the floor, literally rolling on the floor laughing. He was quiet around other people but showed his true self when he was with his friends.

Next in the group was Nick. He was around Frederick's height and had long blonde hair and a pointed nose. He had a very unique voice and sounded younger than he looked. Nick was considered the funniest of the group, and also the most annoying. He had the habit of laughing face-down on the table sometimes. Nick was quiet in class but it didn't take much for him to get started up. Other physical characteristics of Nick would be his very thin stature and awkward poses.

The fourth of the group was Jarrod. He was the shortest of the group and also the one with the hottest temper. All it took was one little insult and Jarod would either get angry or fire back another insult, or both. He had this thin line of mustache hair above his lip that he never shaved. The others called it pussy hair and that he needed to shave it because he looked like a pedophile. But he was persistent and wouldn't do it. Other than those flaws Jarod was pretty lax at times and enjoyed a good joke.

The last of the group was Roger. He was the quietest of the group. Roger occasionally laughed at the common joke but otherwise said nothing. Nobody knew what was reason for his silence. Some said he had anxiety, or depression. They weren't sure why he was a part of Frederick's group. Some suggested Frederick felt sorry for him and wanted him to have friends. But besides being quiet he did help the others with homework and classwork. So he wasn't totally useless.

Today the group headed into Biology class. They took their seats and waited for the teacher to arrive. After a few moments a really large and rotund man stepped into the room. He was dressed in a polo shirt and khaki pants. He had a crew cut and a fat face. In one hand were a stack of papers and in the other was a can of Pepsi. It was the teacher. They called him Mr. Howe.

It was known that Mr. Howe didn't like Frederick's group. Frederick didn't take Biology too seriously and liked to fool around in class. And his group was always behind what he did. So over the year Howe has been trying to get them in trouble of some sort, but nothing seemed to work. So the year has been going by without any real conflict between Frederick's group and Howe.

The day started off pretty normal. Howe taught his lesson and at the end handed out the homework. Frederick and the gang were being pretty incognito. Not much talking or fooling around today. Howe began to suspect they were on to him. Howe had something planned for them. A surprise they would get to witness after class. He had been working on it since Frederick and company first entered his class. Now he just needed test subjects to see whether it would work or not.

After class everyone piled up out of the room. Frederick and his group of friends were the last ones to leave. But before they could walk out the door Howe stepped in front of them.

"I need to speak with you for a moment," Howe said, closing the door slowly. The five guys looked at him confused. Then they walked over to his desk and waited. Howe walked towards them and sat down at his desk. He folded his hands and began to speak.

"So it comes to my attention that you guys have been causing trouble lately," Howe said. Frederick gave him a confused look. The others stood there wondering what he meant by that.

"I don't think so," Frederick said. "We've been doing our best lately. I don't know what you've been noticing, but it isn't us." Howe sighed, leaning back in his chair. Nick looked a bit nervous and so did Roger, obviously. Instead of saying anything Howe opened the top drawer of his desk. He took something out and then closed it. In his hands now was a black Xbox 360 controller. Frederick and the gang looked even more confused now.

"So you're a gamer," David said. He shrugged. "Doesn't surprise me."

"Not a gamer," Howe said. "I'm actually a designer." He waved the remote around in his hand.

"Oh really," Frederick said. "What games did you design?"

"That," Howard spoke. "Is what you're just about to witness. I'm creating a new video game, and you all are going to be the players!" Howe suddenly rose from his chair abruptly. The chair went flying back into the wall. Frederick and the gang backed away in sudden fear.

"What the hell are you talking about?" Frederick asked, getting ready to leave the room. Roger cowered behind a bookcase. David rolled up his sleeves, expecting a fight. Nick and Jarrod were trying to make sense of what was going on. Howe pushed the middle button on the remote. Suddenly the room began to quake. Frederick stumbled and tried to keep his balance. In the back of the room the walls began to crack and tear apart. What was forming at the back of the room appeared to be a black hole. It started to suck in all the chairs and tables in the room. The bookcase gave away and flew into the hole, along with Roger. Nick and Jarrod were sucked in next. David tried running to the door but was swept off his feet and sucked in. Frederick was the last to go, fighting as hard as he could against the current but to no avail. He was lifted off his feet and tumbled into the darkness.