“We must, indeed, all hang together or, most assuredly, we shall all hang separately.”

Benjamin Franklin, United States Founding Father (1706 – 1790)

The two goblins lay on the rocky shore, their bellies full. Passed out from devouring a pair of beavers, their snores were so loud they could be heard on the other side of the small, pristine lake. The remains of their prey were spread haphazardly around them, the ground of their camp spackled with blood.

Milly and Xavier had watched them for the last ten minutes, hidden in the grass that wafted in the gentle breeze. Wisps of dark clouds had started to build, but the rain had yet to fall.

The goblins had torn apart their prey with a malicious fury, delighting in the critters’ panicked squeaks. They swung their prey by their tails before bashing their heads in against a stone, cackling as they played their sadistic game.

Milly had kept her eyes fixed on the ducks in the lake and tried not to focus on the beavers’ plight. Xavier’s eyes, on the other hand, never strayed from the green-skinned monsters, waiting for an opening to strike.

As the final bite was devoured, the goblins collapsed into a satisfied daze and started to snore.

“It’s time. You know your target?” Xavier whispered quietly, slowly lifting himself off his stomach. He raised a spear in one hand, his rusty sword clutched in the other.

“Yes, the one on the left,” Milly whispered back. She took a deep breath, wishing her heart would slow. “Be careful.”

“You too,” he said as he stepped out of the tall grass and eased his way towards his target.

She headed the opposite way, wincing with the sound of each footstep.

Maybe I should’ve put my points into agility. I feel like an elephant next to Xavier’s careful footsteps. How the hell is he staying so quiet?

A stick snapped under her foot, and she froze, eyes fixed on the goblins. Xavier glared over at her in frustration.

One of the goblins snorted, coughed up a half-digested beaver leg, and resumed snoring, oblivious to the two players. She tried not to gag as she watched the leg slide down the goblin’s chest, leaving behind a trail of green digestive juices.

“That’s so gross,” Xavier mouthed silently as he raised his spear. He signaled to Milly when they were close enough.

Milly readied her throw. Her arms were shaking, yet, surprisingly, there was a seed of confidence within her—planted after her last fight.

I killed one of these things all by myself. You can do this, Milly.

She nodded over to Xavier.

“Now!” he shouted, hurling his spear and closing the distance with sword in hand.

At Xavier’s signal, she threw her spear as well. As it flew, she quickly opened her inventory and drew out her war hammer. It felt lighter in her hands than it had before—the result of her enhanced strength. Not only could she easily lift it, but she could control its momentum far better than before.

Unfortunately, her newfound strength had another effect. She watched as her spear sailed over the goblin and plopped into the lake, having failed to adjust for her newfound strength.

“Shit,” she cursed in frustration as her target began to stir.

“Eh…what?” the goblin mumbled sleepily, its hands groping for the club at its side.

The goblin opened its eyes just in time to see Milly’s hammer plunging towards it. Her blow smashed its skull, obliterating the top half of its head and spraying fragments of bone, hair, and flesh onto her jeans and hoodie.

She turned towards Xavier, trying not to throw up.

“Xavier, I-I got mine. Do you need any…,” she called, and stopped short as she saw Xavier’s spear embedded in his target’s belly and his sword in its neck. Foul-smelling blood quickly soaked into the soil beneath it and filled the clearing with its putrid odor.

Milly made the mistake of glimpsing down at the twitching corpse beneath her and lost the fight against her nausea. She ran towards the lake, reaching it just in time to heave what little remained in her stomach into the crystal-clear waters.

“Ugh…I’ll never get used to this,” she complained, as she spit out the last of the vomit and rinsed her mouth. “And why do they have to smell so bad?”

Xavier, unaffected by the stench, pulled his sword from the goblin’s neck, its legs twitching from its death spasms.

The battle screen appeared in front of her, announcing their victory. A separate one appeared for Xavier.

———————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————

Congratulations! You have defeated two Goblin Scouts.

That’s, like, twice as difficult as the last one. Or it would have been, if they’d hadn’t been sleeping. It doesn’t take a great warrior to ambush sleeping enemies, you know. But…I guess it is still worth something. Here. Enjoy!

You have been awarded 10 experience points.

Items Received: Soiled Goblin Loincloth x 2

Gold: 10

“How come I only got ten experience points?” Milly complained, ignoring the message’s flavor text. “I got ten experience for killing the last one too, and we killed two this time.”

“The game must split experience amongst all players in the party,” he answered, as he zoomed in on the swordsman skills subcategory. “So the larger your party, the less experience and rewards you receive.”

He paused his talent selection, his mind whirling with the implications. “So adventuring in small parties will be more efficient. And adventuring solo…even more so.”

“Yeah, and one misstep, like—ahem—a rock to the forehead, and no one would be there to save you.”

“Right…right…” he muttered.

Milly grabbed a nearby stick and, very reluctantly, opened her inventory. Her eyes fell to a certain underwear-shaped icon, and she reached towards it with the stick.

“But with the right combination of skills, there are builds that can do very well on their own,” he continued, thinking aloud as he locked in his first talent. He gritted his teeth as the second of pain hit him, the knowledge downloaded into his head.

“But it’s dangerous to go alone!” she interrupted, holding her nose as she passed the loincloth to Xavier. “Take this.”

Xavier burst out laughing.

“What? What’d I say?” she asked, confused.

He chuckled as he snatched the loincloth and threw it into his inventory. “It’s a gamer joke. You wouldn’t understand.”

He opened his player screen and spent his two attribute points. He grunted in pain again and collapsed as his knees gave way. He was about to scream out, until the pain abruptly disappeared.

“Are you okay?” Milly asked, remembering her own level up. “It feels like a kick in the teeth, doesn’t it?”

“Yeah, that’s…not necessary. Fucking gods,” he groaned.

He arched his back and vaulted to his feet, his eyes sparkling with delight. A gigantic grin spread across his face.

“Holy shit, this is amazing,” he exclaimed, as he dashed to the riverbed and grabbed a handful of stones. After juggling them, he let each fall one-by-one and, with a quick strike of his foot, sent them skipping across the water. “Did you see that? I’ve never been able to do that before!”

“I saw. That was impressive, Xavier. What did you increase?” she asked curiously.

“I picked…” he started to answer, but he abruptly paused. He was looking suspiciously at Milly, as if she were a stranger.

Or a potential rival.

“What’s wrong?”

“It’s just…look, there is an advantage to keeping your strengths and weaknesses a secret from your competitors and your enemies. The fewer people who know my abilities, the better my odds of survival. My enemies can’t counter what they don’t know.”

You can’t be serious. I just showed you my stats when we stopped at the creek! You conveniently didn’t mention that earlier, did you?

“You are not my enemy, Xavier,” Milly reminded him. "And all of us—all our coworkers—are supposed to be on the same team."

“What if that changes? You never know what may happen in a game like this, right?”

“It’s…it’s not a game, Xavier,” she said gloomily, suddenly feeling very alone. “And I thought…I thought we were friends. Friends wouldn’t turn on each other, no matter what.”

Just when I think we’re growing closer, he pulls away.

Milly wandered away from the man—away from the bodies of the goblins—and followed the footprints in the mud to the now-empty beaver dam, its roof cracked open like an egg. She slumped down onto a nearby boulder and stared out at the lake as she felt the darkness of her depression return for the first time since she’d arrived in this world.

Why did I let myself feel hope? I’m alone. I’ve always been alone. This world isn’t going to change that. Life has never given me anything except disappointment and pain. Why would this place be any different?

The world grew quiet, and the first drops of rain began to fall. Milly didn’t move, letting the rain wash the goblin filth from her clothing. She watched the raindrops plop on the lake, each drop’s ripple colliding with another, weakening each other before they were snuffed out.

She heard the crunch of footsteps behind her, but she didn’t turn around.

“I could have been another goblin,” Xavier said softly as he sat in the dirt next to her. “You can’t let your guard down.”

“Why not? You’d have one less competitor, wouldn’t you?” Milly grumbled, keeping her eyes fixed on the lake. “The easiest way to keep a secret is to be alone, right?”

He didn’t answer. He picked up a flat stone and skipped it along the water, disrupting the ripples on the lake.

“Two points into agility,” he finally said, his voice strained as if he had to force the information past his lips. “And a talent in basic swordsman techniques. I feel like I could compete against gymnasts and win a fencing competition right now.”

He held out his rusty blade, the rain bouncing off its surface.

“I’m going to need a better weapon. This one isn’t properly balanced. I could tell the moment I took that talent. And now it irks me so much.”

“It’s better than a hammer. You know I'm not strong. Why’d you give me such a heavy weapon?” she mumbled, pulling her arms into her hoodie to hug her knees. She flicked the fabric and sent a stubborn piece of goblin skull into the grass. “Ugh...I feel gross right now.”

“No showers at the Castle, either. We’re doomed to a life of filth and grime.”

“I was already living that life,” she sighed. “Well, maybe ‘living’ isn’t the right word.”

They sat in silence for a while and let the rain wash over them. Milly felt the darkness in her mind recede, and she took a deep, calming breath.

Xavier is all over the place—secretive, then friends, then back to competitive gamer. But at least he’s trying.

“Thank you for telling me,” she said eventually, as the rain began to thin.

“Just…don’t go telling anyone else,” Xavier said cautiously. “And don’t tell anyone your stats and talents either. People change when they gain power. Remember when Edna was promoted?”

“She’s tormented poor Kenji and Amir ever since,” she recalled. The thought of Edna with magical powers made her shudder. “You might be right about staying ahead of everyone else. Especially our managers.”

“Music to my ears,” Xavier said happily, jumping to his feet. “Shall we? We can probably grind some more goblins before we have to head back.”

Milly sighed and cracked her shoulders. “Not how I planned to spend my afternoon.”

She stuck her hand out, feeling the rain. “Didn’t you choose the prairies because it was supposed to be dry?”

“I mean, it’s not like I can predict the weather, Milly.”

She opened her Talent Web, and the navigational assistant zoomed to ‘Predict Weather.’

“Smart ass,” he grumbled.

Milly laughed, pleased with herself, as they followed another winding animal trail through the prairie.

“Xavier,” she asked solemnly, picturing the people within its glass walls. “What do you think will happen next?”

“In the God Contest?”

Milly nodded.

He stared at the Castle, and Milly saw a shiver run up his spine.

“Something big, Milly,” he said, his knuckles white as he gripped his sword. “Something very big. And if we aren’t ready for it, we’re all completely fucked.”

The Non-Canonical Aftermath:

"Link!" yells Old Man from his cave. "You must survive the God Contest and bring peace to Hyrule. But it’s dangerous to go alone! Here, take this."

Link receives 'Sword'.

Link receives 'Soiled Goblin Loincloth'.

"Oh, come on!" complains Goblin 42.