"Master Abel," Eli said quietly. "What do we do?"
Abel opened his mouth to answer, but he was lost for words.
Because for the first time in his life
He had no idea.
---------------------------------
Abel dropped into one of the chairs in the room, as his mind raced.
The messenger had called himself an emissary of the God of Games. Claimed Earth had been drawn into some kind of game stream. And the moment he'd finished speaking, all their technology died, exactly as he'd promised.
Which meant it wasn't a bluff.
"Master Abel?"
Eli's voice pulled him back to the present.
Abel exhaled slowly, forcing himself to focus.
"Right. Well, if he said he'd be back…" Abel said, settling deeper into the seat. "We just have to wait."
He jolted up again, brushing off his jeans.
"But first, let's secure the mansion."
_____________
The mansion was Victorian architecture at its finest, tall curved windows with tapering tops, vaulted ceilings, classic woodwork that had survived longer than the century it was built in. It was the only tangible gift his parents had left him. That, and some money in a bank account he could no longer access.
Most of their assets and properties had been stolen, snatched up by relatives the moment his parents died in that car crash. Abel had been seven. Helpless, and the vultures had circled fast.
The plan had always been to go after them when he turned twenty. Reclaim what was his and make them all answer for what they'd taken.
But that plan was dead now.
At eighteen, Abel had more pressing concerns.
He and Eli moved through the mansion methodically, locking the doors, bracing the windows, arming themselves with whatever they could find, kitchen knives, a baseball bat, and an old hunting rifle Eli had kept in storage.
The activity was a marathon, because the mansion was huge, sprawling across multiple floors and wings, and every room needed to be checked. Every entry point needed to be secured.
And through it all, they could hear it.
Faint echoes of chaos from beyond the mansion grounds.
Explosions, screams, the distant roar of things crashing and collapsing.
Whatever was happening outside wasn't good.
They were still catching their breath when it sounded.
DING
A notification appeared.
Afloat and glowing right in front of Abel's face.
[THE GOD OF GAMES INVITES YOU TO HIS BROADCAST]
Abel took a glance at Eli.
The older man nodded, staring at the same notification.
They both tapped it.
______
The floating screen expanded.
And there he was again.
The same iron-masked figure, throne. And that calm, almost cheerful posture was ever present.
"WELCOME BACK, EARTHLINGS. I EXPECTED THAT BY NOW, YOU'D ALL HAVE BEGUN TO UNDERSTAND THE SEVERITY OF YOUR SITUATION."
His tone was light and conversational.
"BUT IT SEEMS A LOT OF YOU ARE STILL YET TO INTERACT WITH THE GAME."
He tilted his head.
"NOTE THAT THE COUNTDOWN HAS ALREADY BEGUN. AND THE LEAST ACTIVE AMONG YOU ARE ALREADY RECORDED."
The words struck Abel like ice water. It was clear, they had no choice, and the government had no answers.
"AND TO MAKE YOU EARTHLINGS UNDERSTAND, WE'LL BE ELIMINATING THE LAST HUNDRED THOUSAND OF YOU. MAYBE THAT'LL SHAKE THINGS UP A BIT."
A second screen materialized behind the masked figure, switching across thousands of individuals in real time.
Their details flashed onscreen, names, ages, locations, occupations. And their current activities.
And then it happened.
Pop.
Their heads exploded.
One after another, the death was Instantaneous, grotesque. The screen moved faster, cycling through dozens per second, and with each cycle.
Pop. Pop. Pop. Pop.
Blood sprayed as their bodies collapsed. The screams were silent, but the aftermath was clear.
Abel averted his eyes, his stomach churning.
But the sound continued in the background. The wet, sickening rhythm of mass execution.
"NOW," the figure spoke again, still seated calmly as the carnage unfolded behind him. "I'D ADVISE YOU TO BEGIN CREATING YOUR PROFILES. OR IT MIGHT BE YOUR HEAD GETTING POPPED NEXT."
He leaned forward slightly.
"AFTER CREATING YOUR PROFILE, INTERACT WITH THE GAME. GET STRONG AS FAST AS YOU CAN. AND BE READY TO FACE THE FIRST PENANCE."
"AND AS AN EXTRA MOTIVATION FOR SOME OF YOU, WHOEVER COMPLETES THE GAME FIRST BE REWARDED WITH ONE WISH BEING GRANTED, YOU COULD BECOME ANYTHING, OR BRING BACK ANYONE YOU'VE LOST, QUITE FRANKLY YOU COULD BRING BACK EVERYBODY..."
"OR RULE THE WORLD, SO IF I WERE YOU, I'LL MAKE SURE I FINISHED THE GAME, FIRST"
He leaned back.
"GOOD LUCK."
The screen darkened.
And a countdown timer bloomed in its place.
[19D:22H:53M:26S]
Abel gritted his teeth.
The wish granting was crazy, it could be a hoax, but if it was true, and the wrong person finished the game first, there was no telling what would happen.
And then, the familiar words...
The First Penance.
The words stuck in his mind like a splinter.
His thoughts immediately raced back to the images he'd seen on the news, the massive cuboidal structures descending from the sky, covered in unique scripts and symbols.
The same structures he'd seen in ALLGoDS: Ragnarok.
He opened the World Chat.
The messages were flooding in faster than ever.
[Tanksurfer: IT'S ALLGODS]
[User_94837: ALLGODS: RAGNAROK??? HOW???]
[User_2847193: I ALWAYS KNEW THERE WAS SOMETHING OFF ABOUT THAT GAME]
[User_5739201: COME TO THINK OF IT, HOW CAN A GAME PERFECTLY REPLICATE A WHOLE PLANET]
[User_8473621: OH LORD I COMMIT MY LIFE INTO YOUR HANDS]
[Jk_bazoom: SHUT THE FUCK UP]
The chat was all chaos, panic, denial, and yet, prayer.
Abel closed it, turning to Eli.
"It's confirmed," he said quietly. "We're in ALLGoDs."
Eli's expression didn't change, but his grey eyebrows arched slightly .
Over the years, Eli had watched Abel play that game. Not because he enjoyed games himself, but because he considered it dutiful, the last form of support he could give Abel in his quest for completion.
And now that game had become their reality.
Abel's thoughts were all over the place.
The notifications he'd received when he entered the Council of the All-Gods. The congratulations message when he died. The special edition that had started downloading onto his system.
Was this the special edition?
The notification had also said the eyes of the Almighty were upon him.
And this messenger was talking about them being on a stream.
Could it be… the game was being streamed by extraterrestrials, and Gods?
And maybe the same Gods were presented as final bosses in the game?
What kind of twisted logic was that?
But the only way to find out was to complete the game.
He'd almost done it virtually.
Now he had to do it for real.
His resolve began to solidify.
If it was ALLGoDs, then there was no better player than him. And no better support than Eli.
Together, they could do this.
And just then...
A blue wave of energy rippled through the mansion.
It moved like a pulse, scanning every wall, every door, and every piece of furniture. Abel felt it pass through him as well.
DING
A new notification appeared.
[SELECT 'ENTER' TO CREATE YOUR PROFILE]
Abel stared at the glowing prompt floating in front of him.
He glanced at Eli.
The older man met his gaze, then gave a single firm nod.
Abel took a breath.
And they both pressed ENTER.