Virtual Reality ✔

Too Slow for the Game

The scene changed before our eyes and we were in what looked like a run down part of town. Empty and lifeless grey buildings surrounded us. The place needed major renovation, the windows were broken and I safely guess that they had no electricity either.

"Find the antidote but be sure not to touch it directly!" said a man urgently. I noted that it must have been the narrator, and this was our first task.

We all quickly started to look around. The man hadn't told us where to look (which would have been helpful) so we all started in the abandoned buildings near us. There weren't that many, so we looked in groups. Duncan and I started on the left while Amberline and Victoria went right. Parker hadn't decided to run after us until we were already searching the building. Part of me was glad he chose to look with us. I felt like Victoria wouldn't have been an easy person to work with. Not long after parting I realized that in this particular competition I couldn't hear Amberline and Victoria. I noted that they either weren't talking or the people in charge cut us off from those who weren't near to us.

Parker and I started looking at the second floor because Duncan insisted that he'd search the first one. I started lifting up dusty tarps and under one there was a couch. I put the tarp in the bag the people in charge had gifted us. I started patting the dusty sofa for anything useful, "Where do you think the antidote is hidden?" I asked, genuinely curious.

It took a moment for him to reply. I saw that he had chosen a broken down book shelf. "The better question is what does it look like," Parker mused. He deemed the shelf useless then moved to a dresser.

"That is a good question," I commented, lifting a cushion off of the couch before concluding that it wasn't there either. It would help if we at least knew the size of what we were looking for. "They didn't give us much information this time, did they?"

Before he had the chance to reply, we heard grunts downstairs and the firing of a weapon. Both Parker and I rushed downstairs to see a wave of zombies nearing Duncan. We quickly got our weapons and started helping him out.

"The first floor is clear," said Duncan. "I think they want us looking in buildings, because it's not here."

"Amberline and Victoria are covering the buildings still, I guess we could search outside," agreed Parker. They both looked at me, as if I had held the answer. It felt like if I said I didn't want to look outside, we wouldn't. I couldn't believe that they'd trust my decision like that after our last competition.

"I guess. I wouldn't want to be trapped by the zombies." They nodded and we were then off to search the outsides. It was all dusty and it was scorching hot. I was desperate for air conditioning and a bottle of water, but tried not to let that disrupt our search.

We searched for a good five minutes, going further and further, hoping we were on the right side. We occasionally asked each other questions, mostly regarding the other teams. We often had run ins with the zombies, which severely slowed us down.

"Found it!" Exclaimed Duncan. Joy welled within me as Parker and I rushed to him. All I could think of was how nice it would be in the lobby... comfortable and normal.

"Don't touch it," warned Parker. I was glad he was here because I wouldn't have remembered that tiny detail, and from the looks of it, Duncan hadn't either.

"How are we supposed to get it then?" Duncan asked. He stared at the orb as if just looking at it alone would give him the answers. Fitting the theme tonight, the orb was a light green. It wasn't anything like the others I'd learned about.

"Oh!" I said, remembering what I had pocketed earlier. They looked at me with a great curiosity as I took off my backpack. As I pulled out the tarp I asked, "would this work?"