Chapter 1
Let's Play A Game
Two Years Later
My name's Tracy McArth. All my life I've been teased, bullied, and ridiculed. About 6 years ago, I started keeping track of all their actions in a diary on my I Phone. Everything I noticed about the people who wronged me. I know it's weird, but it kept me sane.
In this world I have no friends, Once upon a time I had a friend here but she was killed in a car accident 6 years ago, but there's another world alongside this one. In that world I do have friends, three of them. Deus Ex Machina, Muru Muru 27, and Riunosuke Toki.
Once I told my parents, about the other world, but, they thought I was crazy, for actually believing the other world existed. They took me to see a psychologist. Since then, I haven't mentioned, or told anyone else about other the world, that exists alongside ours.
This is about what my diary looks like, but with only one example entries. Entries can be made from every minute, to every 10 minutes. in other words, the number of entries can vary between 96, and 9600, per day.
July 21st
7:38: Ann, Billy, and Ken arrived 5 minutes late to first period.
8:10: Ann scored 67 on the pop quiz.
8:10: Billy scored 72.
8:11: Ken scored a 98.
9:25: Ann and Billy went to their next class.
9:27: Ken and Frank met by the locker and got into a fight.
9:31: Frank won with a left hook.
9:35: Ken missed class.
9:36: Frank aced the homework.
10:50: Frank ate lunch with Shiori.
11:13: Shiori cornered me in the hall and grabbed me by my shirt collar.
11:21: Shiori hung me 3 inches off the ground in the girls locker room.
1:48: Shiori returned from gym and used me as a punching bag.
1:57: Shiori left for home.
"Tracy are you okay?"
"I'm fine Terry. It's not like she hasn't done this sort of thing before."
She helped me down. I don't know why, since we first met, Terry has helped me out of situations like this one , but then she ignores me the rest of the time. It's probably just pity.
I walked home from school at 2:15 PM, and arrived home at 2:28 PM.
"Hey bro.. Do ya wanna play a video game."
"No thanks Lanie, I'm busy."
My sister Lanie is obsessed with trying to beat me at video games. Like that'll happen.
Around four o'clock, I headed upstairs, went in my room, crawled under my desk, and opened the door to Veld, the other world.
"Ah, Tracy, nice to see you boy."
"**sigh**Hey Deus, Murmur 27."
"Are you board?"
"No, just tired of this world, and it's bullies."
Murmur 27 laughed.
"Well you won't have to worry about that much longer."
"What if I told you, that you could change all that?"
"A worthless human be'n like me. how?"
"What determines worth is actions, actions my boy. Just win a little game, that alone should suffice to prove yours."
"What exactly happens, if I win."
"You succeed me, as god of time, and space."
"What are the rules?"
"It's simple. I just give your diary an upgrade. The last one standing, in 90 days, wins."
"Sound's fun, I'm in."
I was suddenly standing on one of twelve pedestals. Ten unrecognizable human figures, were standing on other pedestals, leaving one of the pedestals unoccupied. Above us, in the center, Deus was floating, in the capsule from which he controlled space-time.
"We have found our eleventh, and twelfth player, our roster is complete."
The final pillar glowed, and a twelfth figure appeared.
"Now that the players are decided, the game has begin. Try out the new upgrade all of your diaries now posses. I have a feeling, I'll be explaining this game, in a bit more detail to each of you over the next few days, until then, good bye, and good luck. Oh, a word of warning. Should your diaries fall to ruin, your lives will be forfeit. That is the risk attached to a gift from divinity."
"What do ya mean, our lives are..."
But he had already sent us back to our world.
"**groan** Why do I get myself into these sort of thi'ns"
It was already 5:38PM. I ran downstairs to make dinner. My mom should be home from work by 6:20PM. In case you're wondering, I'm the chef of the household. Mom's cooking could be used as a biological weapon, and my little sister was still learning, a novice at best.
Mom arrived home around the expected time.
"Great tim'n, dinner is almost ready. By the time you're settled, and seated at the table, it should be done."
"Where's your sister?"
"Ah, Lanie? I think she's still in her room, wait'n for dinner. When I'm done, I'll check on her."
When I finished preparing dinner, mom was sitting at the table. I set the table, and went upstairs, I knocked on my sisters door and entered. She was on her computer, playing some sort of Dating Sim.
"Ah, hey Sis, never took ya for that type of gamer, but to each their own."
"What the hell Bro, Knock first."
She started to get mad.
"I just came up to tell ya, I finished sear'n the steak."
Immediately her mood changed, again. She started spinning back, and fourth, in her desk chair.
"Really." She said, barely able to contain her excitement. "What else is with it"
"Sautéed apples and onions, with a side of rice."
At this point she was drooling from her eyes, and unable to contain herself anymore, she ran downstairs. Taking advantage of the opening, I took a mental note of the name of the Dating Sim, she was playing. Then at dinner.
"Mom, did ya know that Lanie plays Dating Sims?"
"Is that so?"
"Yeah, I saw her playing one called xxxxxxx xxxxxxxxxxxx."
"Yeah, doesn't surprise me."
"Shouldn't ya be worried about her. She's a little girl, you're her mother for peat-sake."
"I'd be more surprised if you started playing Dating Sims."
"BURN."
My sister chimed in.
"Just how would it be more surprise'n if I played them. I'm in high school, she's in elementary school."
"Girls mature faster than boys."
"What kind of logic is that."
"Sis eight, Bro five. Ya better catch up soon. Remember the one who gets twice as many points as the other wins"
And just like that he lost this battle, but nonetheless, he did not give up on the war.
After dinner, my sister did the dishes, we all watched a little TV, then everyone said goodnight, and went to their perspective rooms. I stayed up a little longer, pondering the conversation at the cathedral, then fell asleep.
I normally wake up around 5:00 AM, to make mom her breakfast, and lunch-box before work, so when I came downstairs, she was sitting at the table. I cracked some eggs over a frying-pan, and made eggs, sunny side up, with sausage, and toast, then sat down.
"So, mom, how'd work go yesterday."
"Eh? Strange time to ask that question, seeing that it was yesterday. Ah, Okayy, I guess. How was your day at school?"
"Strange, ask'n that now, why didn'tchya ask at dinner last night?"
"Because I already Know the answer. 'Terrible.' Right?"
"**sigh**" simultaneously. "**sigh**"
My dad was rich, but due to family politics, my mom and dad couldn't get married, and my dad wasn't allowed to assist us financially, so my mom worked three part time jobs in order to make ends meat.
"So, do you know how your sister is doing."
"Why don't ya ask her that."
"You know she won't answer. She wouldn't tell me, she'd just change the subject."
"Ya just gotta try harder."
"pfft. Tell me something I don't know."
"Well she complains that her eggs yokes aren't liquid inside."
"If she got up at the same time as us, they would be."
"I wish."
"Like that'll happen."
After we were done eating, I put the leftovers in the fridge for Lanie, and made everybody's lunches. Mom left for work, there was an hour left till school, so I watched the news for a bit. There was a forest fire in California, and a hurricane by Florida.
I wasn't so sure of the authenticity of my diary, So I was skeptical when one of the local bullies name popped up with a location along my normal school rout. The time-stamp was a half hour from now, so assuming the diary worked, I'd see him enroute.
The school I go to was built in the center of seven rural neighborhoods, which is why about 10 % of it's population, live within walking distance. I mean they have buses, but they don't take anybody inside the 2.5 mile radius, unless medically necessary. My family lived within one mile of the school, so I always walked. On average, it took about 20 minutes to reach the front gate.
My sister was still asleep, she would probably stay that way for another half hour, because elementary school classes started an hour later, and my sister liked to leave everything to the last minute. I set out, leaving my sister's lunch, and a note, on the table.
On my way to school, I was almost all the way there, when from behind me came a voice.
"Out'a my way, Rat Face."
He came from behind, and pushed me out of the way. I looked at my diary, it had said he would do those things a minute in advance. On top of that, a new entry said, he'd insult, and push the guy in front of me out of his way. seconds later he did, saying "Move, Bat Brain.".
He couldn't come up with more cleaver insults than that?
During my morning classes, I used the diary to avoid bullying. Steering clear of bullies in the hall, accidentally dropping my eraser, and picking it up before a piece of paper, a spit-wad, or some other unidentified flying object could hit me. On the way out of the lunchroom, I saw Shiori in the hallway. My diary didn't say anything about her bullying me, so I decided to ignore her, and hopefully not provoke a reaction.
"Hey Tracy, you seem a little relaxed."
"That's because, I can tell ya don't mean any harm to me, this time."
"You're right, I didn't."
My phone made the same strange sound that it made one of the times when I took the long way around to the locker room to avoid a bully, and the entry changed. It said Shiori was going to use her left hook.
"But I changed my mind."
She used her left hook. I jumped to the right and back. The diary said her right hook would be next when she attacked I jumped left then back. we repeated and my back was against the locker I expected a left hook but my diary said her next attack was a right hook so when the punch came I dove left at the last second. Shiori's hand hit the locker. It was then I realized my mistake, I assumed she was taking things seriously. She was mad you could see it in her eyes. With one swift yet graceful movement she spun around and simultaneously grabbed my arm while roundhouse-kicking me in the gut, knocking me to the ground. She sat on my chest.
"You've gotten confident, all of a sudden, but don't forget, my father is a master martial artist, and my Sensei."
"Well if that's the case, I probably won't see ya around the school anymore."
"Aww why's that, can't stand it any more, requested a transfer."
"No, I've just found a way to get around school, without get'n near ya."
"Oh, a challenge. There's no way you'll leave school this evening, before getting hit by me."
"We'll see about that."
My other classes went off without a hitch. I avoided the hallways that Shiori took. I knew her location at most times, because her, and the five other people who treated me worst, were the ones with the most entries. As long as they were within 350 meters of me, I knew their or (anyone else who meant harm to me)'s location.
Distance plays a factor in the detail of the entry. From 350 meters, only discerning location, to 1 meter, small details, like when a target of the diary blinks. This inverse relationship means, the greater the distance from a target, the less detail is provided.
Proximity is what determines how far into the future the entries view. This means, the greater the distance, the further the foresight.
Most of this tested was in the three hours following the incident with Shiori. The rest was discovered during the next few days.
At the end of an afternoon without difficulties, my diary confirmed my suspicions. Shiori was waiting in ambush at the front door. I'd have to use another exit to leave the building.
"That's fine, I can avoid her now, thanks to my diary."
Shiori must've had her boyfriend guard the side door. It was also noted, that a friend of his was guarding the back. If I tried to leave that way, I'd be caught for sure.
"Guess I'll have to use the fire escape."
It looked like Shiori had also gotten three of her flunkies to block the second, third, and fourth floor, fire exits.
"What the hell is this."
The Art-room exit had just been taken. The only exit left, was the track and field exit, and someone was already heading there, in order to cut me off. I had to reach it, before they did.
"Damn it. Why'd I think I could piss off Shiori without consequence."
I ran as fast as I could, and barely made it out without being seen. I started to make my way across the field to the gate. I thought I was home free, but just before I reached the gate, my diary made that sound, someone ran in front of me, blocked my escape, and said.
"Whatch'ya do'n this far out, I don't normally see you come through here."
"Just avoid'n some bullies."
"Avoiding some bullies, eh, this particular exit's the farthest out of your way. Don't you think that's overdo'n it a bit?"
"They were block'n all the other exits."
"How'd ya know they were blocking all the other exits?"
"I... um... just knew."
"I thought I recognized your voice at the cathedral, but now with that panic in it, I'm sure I did, 11Th."
"D-Do I know ya?"
"You don't remember me. My name's Eddy Rolend, from third year PE, Junior high school."
"No."
"That's alright, I'll just get it over with, and eliminate ya from the game."
He called me 11Th, and brought up the game, that means he must have a diary.
He took out a knife. My phone made another strange sound, and the words Dead End appeared.
"I'm 12Th, and I think becoming a god, sounds fun."
At this distance, I didn't have time to run. He'd easily cut me open, before I could even turn around. Nothing to do, but use my diary to predict, and survive his attacks.
1:29:18 12Th stabs me in the side.
I prepared for his attack, his diary made the same strange noise as mine, when it rewrites itself. Mine changed a second later.
1:29:33 12Th slashes my throat.
I prepared to jump back, his diary rewrote itself again, mine too.
1:29:51 12Th grabs my arm and guts me.
I prepared to kick him. Our diaries changed again. It continued like that, for about 15 minutes.
1:43 12Th destroys my diary DEAD END.
He lunged for my diary, I didn't have time to dodge. The blue button on my I-Phone that had appeared yesterday started to blink. With nothing to lose, I pressed it. His phone made that odd noise, then a shield projected from my arm, and my battery dropped by 13%.
It blocked his attack, and forced him backward. An explosion on the track field sent me flying backward. If it weren't for my shield, I'd be dead. Two people were standing on the roof of the gym shed, one of them was reloading an RPG launcher. Both of us ran for our lives.
"Fight's over for now, but we will finish this some other time."
"Why me?"
They launched another rocket, my shield protected us, but wore off afterward. Before the smoke cleared and they could reload, we escaped out of sight.
As soon as my diary told me that I was safe I left the school grounds and headed home. I arrived late at 3:22.
"YOU'RE LATE BRO, did something happen at school again?"
"Yeah, just anotha bully."
"**sigh** One of these days you should fight back."
"You're right. Sorry your bro is such a wimp."
"Well it's alright, you can't help it, but there is one way you can make it up to me."
"And what would that be?"
"Let's play a few rounds of the new fighting game I bought for my 3DS, it has download play."
"Sure I guess I'll take you up on that offer today."
I ran upstairs and grabbed my 3DS from me room then we sat down at the kitchen table and started playing.
Meanwhile in an abandoned warehouse in California two people face each other down.
