Destiny on the Front – by Editor Jen
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Summary: Fauna, an amateur hacker, meets a boy caught within the confines of a video game but can't remember how he got there. The pair teams up with a retired game designer, and the three of them go on a quest to save their friend.
Disclaimer: Star Wars Battlefront belongs to LucusArts. "PlayStation" is a registered trademark of Sony Computer Entertainment Inc. LucasArts is a registered trademark of Lucasfilm Ltd. This story, however, belongs to me, and this sniper won't tolerate fellow gamers stealing my work.
Author's Note: Hello! Okay, I know the prologue was painfully short, but it's supposed to be. If I give you too much information, you'll know the whole story, and then you'll tell ./hack that I'm copying them. Which I'm not. Battlefront still rocks!
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Chapter 1 – Logging InShe woke up with a start. In the split second between dreams and reality, let out a sob as she felt the sudden pain. It spread like molten heat through her veins and she shuddered, sweat soaking the sheets. She pushed herself into a sitting position, sucking in deep breaths. Her eyes blinked in the darkness blindly.
'What kind of a dream was that?'
"Fawn!" her mother cried as she pushed open the door to her daughter's room. The light from the hallway poured in and the Fawn's eyes squeezed shut in response. Her room was neat and slightly empty, with the exception of a television next to the closet and a large desk in the corner. Stacked on the desk were two computers and other various pieces of hardware. The moon cascaded in through the large bay window and illuminated a single file folder, crammed with notes and simply titled 'Rein.'
Fawn's mother, hastily dressed in a cotton robe that touched the ground, knelt by her daughter's bedside and placed a hand on the girl's forehead.
"Honey, you're burning up! You must have a fever." Fawn shivered, despite the stuffy air, and nodded in agreement, the remnants of her dream slipping away. She glanced at her homemade clock. It was amazing what one could do with an old VCR. The contraption was showing 5 am. Her mom followed her gaze. "Definitely no school for you, young lady."
Her mother slid open the window and began to change the soaked bedding as Fawn padded her way to the bathroom. After splashing a bit of cool water on her flushed face, she regarded herself in the mirror. She was a pretty girl of 17, slim and delicate, with creamy light skin. Long brown hair fell down her back and framed her features. She had a small mouth and bright honey-colored eyes. Clad in an oversized t-shirt, she looked quite a bit younger than her age. 'It's my brother's old shirt,' her mind added, almost as an afterthought.
With a sad smile, Fawn made her way back to the bedroom. Her mother had just finished slipping on a new pillow case and handed Fawn the thermometer.
"Mom, I'm not sick! I just-"
The girl's plea was cut of with a firm look. She sighed and took her temperature. Her mom had become so over-protective since her brother passed away. The thermometer beeped, and showed that Fawn had no fever. At the girl's indignant look, the woman shook her head.
"Even if school is in two hours, I don't think you should be up and running about so soon after such a night. Stay home and rest." There was no room for argument in her voice, so Fawn gave in and climbed into bed. Her mom smiled and kissed her forehead, before turning to leave. The door closed behind her with a soft click.
After twenty minutes of tossing and turning, Fawn gave into her restlessness and threw the covers off. Quietly, so as not to wake her mother, she crossed the room to her television and punched the 'power' button. With a sneaky smile, she switched on her Playstation 2 and the system buzzed to life, loading her favorite game, Star Wars Battlefront. In a swift motion, Fauna swept her hair up into a ponytail and slipped on the headset.
With a good grip on the controller and one last glance toward the door, the player, Fauna, logged in.
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As a Rebel Marksman, Fauna crouched on the roof of a building near the Warehouse. Mos Eisley's terrain was dull and the map was somewhat complicated and mazelike. She had specifically joined the server with the most people playing, but the battle had already progressed quite a bit. With only the Cantina and the Warehouse in their possession, the Rebels were losing; which wasn't surprising, since the Empire's Dark Troopers had a huge advantage in Tatooine's busiest city.
A Stormtrooper wandered into her sight, and she took him out with two rapid sniper shots. She grinned and hit the reload button. Turning her character toward the direction of the market, she noticed a Dark Trooper flying in her direction. She fired.
It took all four loaded shots this time, but she was pleased to see her name flash on the screen, declaring her kill. It was always challenging to hit someone who abused their jet pack, but she usually pulled through.
After eight more kills, Fauna was beginning to get bored with her position. Why did everyone who was logged in this early in the morning seem to be intoxicated? She was about to find another server when she heard a sudden cry in the headset. Fauna checked her map. The Cantina's Command Post was flashing from green to white, meaning an enemy was trying to take it.
The sniper checked to make sure her rifle was loaded and jumped off from her perch. She winced as she hit the sandy ground and lost a sliver of health. As she pushed her character toward the Cantina, she tried to filter through the laughing and cursing she heard from her fellow Rebels. Someone from her team had to still be at the Command Post, since it wasn't neutral yet.
"I'm heading to the Cantina," she said into the microphone, her voiced hushed. For a while there was no reply; all the players seemed surprised to hear a girl's voice. Then she heard a soft whimper.
"Please, not again! Help me!" It sounded like a boy's voice. A truly terrified boy.
'Some people really get into this game,' Fauna thought as she stepped through the base's southeast door. A puzzled AI Stormtrooper was standing by the bar's edge. Before it could react, Fauna shut him down with a quick shot to the head. The Command Post was saved. She looked around.
A Rebel Pilot stood up from his hiding place behind the counter. He seemed to be twitching, almost trembling. He glanced warily around the Cantina.
"I saved you," Fauna said with a smug smile.
"Umm… T-thank you." The place was quiet for a moment, with the exception of the chatter of a few other players and the random spawning of an AI. The sniper stared at the pilot, who seemed glued to his spot.
"Are you okay?" she asked. There were always the weirdest people online. The pilot seemed to tremble more.
"I don't want to d-die again. Please. It hurts."
Fauna had been playing Battlefront since the month it was released into stores. Actually, she had downloaded an illegal demo before she decided to buy the game. She still had that disk stuffed into one her desk drawers. But hearing something like this was a first.
"What?" She fired a quick two shots at the northwest door, downing a human player who had tried to barge in. The pilot crouched behind the counter again, just so his head peeked out.
"What are you talking about?" she repeated. There was no response from the boy.
Fauna looked at his username. 'Evan.' She would get this Evan to answer her; she hated being ignored. With a couple more shots to hold the enemy off, she mashed the button to mute her microphone.
"Rein," she said, turning to her computer. It whirled to life.
"Yes, User Fawn," an automated voice replied.
"Connect to the Ps2."
"Yes, Fawn."
"Mute all."
"Done."
"Un-mute E-V-A-N."
"Yes, User Fawn."
"Thank you, Rein."
"You're welcome, Fawn."
Without the dumb chatter in her ears, Fauna was able to concentrate. The pilot was still hunkered down in front of her, trembling. A quick check of the map showed that the Cantina was now the only Rebel Command Post left, and it was beginning to get crowded.
"Follow me," she said sharply. Evan paused for a moment, but then did as she said. Fauna led him to the one booth of the Cantina where the chairs and table had been knocked over. She jumped behind the furniture and crouched. When she pressed forward, her character disappeared into the wall.
The pilot, after a few clumsy attempts, finally managed to follow, and the two of them were alone inside a dull rectangular space about the width of the Cantina itself.
"How did we-" he began. Fauna laughed.
"I know a couple secrets about this game. Amazing what you can find on the Internet, if you know where to look." She moved a step closer to him. "Now what were you talking about? Is this game to scary for you?"
"I'm not a little boy! I'm 16!" he retorted.
"Then what were you talking about?"
Evan's player twitched. "You won't believe this…"
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Author's Note: Okay, that's it for chapter one. Please keep in mind; I haven't really edited this yet, so I'm sure there are spelling and grammar issues. Hope you liked it. If you haven't played Battlefront, this all might be a bit confusing for you! Haha! Oh, and yes, that Cantina secret is real. But you probably know that already. See ya next chapter!