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Chapter I
The Avalon terminal was located in an abandoned warehouse once owned by the company Ash Inc. It had once been a prosperous dog food company, but had been converted into a terminal after going out of buisness.
Standing in the lobby of the terminal was a young blonde man, bouncing up an down on his toes surrounded by a crowd of cheering people congregated around a large screen that had been erected in the lobby. The screen was playing highlights from a game just finished, the crowd eating up every image it showed.
The young man had never been to this terminal before. He rarely logged on anywhere aside from his home terminal, but he had heard rumors that the infamous player The Squall logged on here, and he just couldn't help himself.
Zell Dincht considered himself a rather talented gamer. He had been playing Avalon for almost three years now, and in that short amount of time he had managed to work his way up to a level 50 Class A Archbishop, he wasn't as well known as some players, but those who knew him had nothing but respect for him. Any talent he had though was nothing compaired to the skill of The Squall.
The Squall moved with a casual grace that Zell envied, every movement calculated to the smallest degree so that he seemed to use as little movement as possible to execute his tasks. Not an ounce of energy wasted. Zell was in awe.
________ LOG OFF ________
Squall winced as the bright letters flashed in front of his vision and lay still for a few moments waiting for the 'hangover' one always experienced after logging off to dissipate. The lights in the headset he wore blinked off, and he removed the cumbersome helmet from his head. He lay on a beat up leather covered table, in a small room lit only by a green light which flickered on and off every so often.
Despite the chilly air in the room Squall's body was covered with a thin sheen of sweat, he wiped his the moisture from his hands onto his tanktop, the only article of clothing he wore aside from his boxer shorts .
He swung his legs over the side of the table on which he lay, and stood up, wavering for a moment before catching his balance. From a pile on the floor he picked up his clothing, a loose fitting black sweater, and a pair of beat up black jeans. As he pulled the sweater over his head a monitor embedded in the wall behind him flashed on, and he was greeted by the face of Game Master Cid.
"Well done Squall, still as good as ever." GM Cid was a jovial looking man aproximately fifty years of age, always quick with a compliment, or a suggestion.
"Charge me for one clip 7.62 MM and two clips PPK." GM Cid smiled, seemingly unaware of Squall's grim attitude. The color on the screen changed to a light hue of red, and the stats of the game Squall had just played appeared on the monitor.
Enemy Destroyed:
_ Dog Soldier -13
_ T-72M2 Tank -2
_ Heavy Arm Chopper -1
_ Player -1
Points:
_ 308,968
Time:
_ 10:00:00
Items:
SVD 7.65 X 56R X 1 Magazine -30,000
PPK 380 ACP X 2 Magazine -12,000
Game Master Cid's face appeared on the monitor once again. "Two or three more completes and you move to the next level. You'll have a time handicap. You know that don't you?"
Squall ignored the comment, retrieving a cigarette from his bag on the floor, and lighting up.
"I'll take the rest of my points in cash."
"Solo gets more dangerous the further you go. Are you sure you don't want to join another party?" Squall pulled a pair of glasses out of the bag before slinging it over his shoulder, ignoring the Game Master as he left the room. The man was only a computer program after all.
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