THE MOMENT
"Lady Monday has arrived, your Highness," the guard bowed before the teenage King. A pale young woman in a white suit with short rainbow hair stood behind the guard and next to a teenage girl with golden-blonde double-plaited braids.
"Thanks, guard," the king sat up straighter on his throne and dismissed the guard with a casual wave. "Thanks for stopping by again, Monday," he smiled at the teen who was likely a year or two older than him. "Who's your friend? Merchant trainee?" he asked with a light chuckle. Monday was a merchant that visited every month to help keep the demon below the castle happy.
"No, Crystal's a druid," Monday replied. "A very curious druid," she added. "It's easier to have her join me instead of getting Whispers every ten minutes," she turned to Crystal and grinned to let her know she meant it as a joke.
"Oh, nice to meet you," the King nodded at Crystal then turned his attention back to Monday. "So, whatcha got for my demon this month?" he asked.
"You have a demon?" Crystal asked. But, she didn't give him time to answer, or he took too long to answer in her opinion. She turned to Monday. "He has a demon?"
"Yeah," Monday nodded forward to get Crystal's attention on the boy King again.
"You're new to the AlterNet, aren't you?" The King asked Crystal. But, much like her, he did not give Crystal time to answer. "This a PvP server. All the Kings get demons, they're kind of like Guardians for the Kingdom," he explained. "When we go to war, it's demon vs. demon."
"Oh wow...," Crystal was impressed. She'd had plenty of experience in the AlterNet already; but, it still felt like every time she visited a new Earth there was something else to learn about how it worked. She'd seen plenty of one on one duels, and she was on a roller derby team practicing for a big match. But, she still hadn't imagined the scale and scope that the players on this server were using to game.
"I'll go for the armor trinket this month," the King told Monday. She nodded and slid her red leather rucksack off her shoulder. She knelt with the bag and reached into it. After a moment, she pulled a small wooden buckler out of it and handed it to the guard.
"That's not a lot of armor...," Crystal mused. She meant to keep it to herself; but, she underestimated her volume.
"It's not literal armor, idiot," the King laughed. "It's just a power-up, all the Kings playing get to purchase one once a month."
"My friend is not an idiot," Monday said firmly. Her eyes were locked on the King and he quickly nodded with an apology.
"Sorry, you're not an idiot," he said. "I spoke without thinking," he said.
"Thank you," Monday nodded at him.
"Apology accepted," Crystal gave the king a friendly smile to show there were no hard feelings. There weren't any when he made the comment, she knew better than to take it personally. But, it made her feel good that Monday stood up for her regardless.
"Any other business? Castle improvements? Personnel?" Monday asked.
"It was a slow month," the king sighed with slumped shoulders. He shook his head, "It took everything I had just to buy the armor."
"Oh?" Monday asked the question as she flicked her wrist upward. Crystal and the King could see Monday's Slate hovering in front of her. No one else in the throne room could see the glass pane floating in the air as Monday touched and swiped at it. "Oh wow, you're on the bottom of the leaderboard...," she said.
"Yeah, thanks for rubbing it in...," the King gave a nervous chuckle. "No, it's good," she said. "You get a 'Last Place' discount, I'll upgrade your Walls and Infantry for free," she said. "Well, not 'free' but what you paid already covers it with your discount."
"Really?!" The King hopped up. "You're the best! Thanks, Monday!"
"No problem, just do your best to stay in the game," she said. She also dropped a black Traverse card on the floor and stepped onto the portal it created. Crystal joined her on it and they began to sink into the floor.
"I will!" the King waved at Monday as they disappeared. After dipping below the portal, Crystal noticed they were in a white room that she did not recognize. The walls, ceiling, and floor all glowed with soft white light. All surfaces were smooth with no doors or windows.
"Where are we?" Crystal asked.
"That was my last stop for the day," Monday said. "So, now you and I can talk," she said. Crystal knew that meant she could ask questions now and she couldn't hold back any longer. Monday invited her to tag along on her business with the promise that she would answer some questions eventually. Crystal held her tongue until then.
"HOW CAN SOMEONE SO NICE WORK FOR MS. SHARP!???" she asked as she stared into Monday's rainbow eyes.
"What's wrong with Ms. Sharp?" Monday asked. "And, what makes you think I'm nice?"
"You ARE!" Crystal felt obligated to make that clear first. She knew Monday respected Ms. Sharp and didn't want to badmouth her straight away. "You just made up a 'last place' discount on the spot," Crystal grinned. "That's not a real thing, but you gave him a chance."
"That's not being nice, that's business," Monday shook her head. "He was on the verge of losing. If he drops out, I lose a customer. It was cheaper to lose a little profit this time and keep his business."
"You still didn't have to...," Crystal argued. "And, you stood up for me!"
"Did I?" Monday smirked. "It was just a free opportunity for some intimidation. A scared customer is a loyal customer," she said. "Along with the bonuses I tossed in, he'll always choose me as his merchant going forward."
"Whatever," Crystal made a deliberate effort to roll her eyes in front of Monday. She knew there was a nice person inside no matter how Monday tried to mask it. "Ms. Sharp kidnapped my friends!" she added. It was the most neutral statement she could make. "She's doing who knows what to them and no one else seems to care!"
"That's probably because we're not all imagining the worst like you," Monday said. "The connection between Spider and Ms. Sharp is widely known," she added. "It's no secret that she has Alis and Surge."
"Then why isn't anyone doing anything???" Crystal asked. "I need to participate in a derby match to 'win' the freedom of my friends?? What is that??" she asked. Crystal didn't have anyone else she could vent her frustrations to. She was growing closer to Keys; but, she didn't feel comfortable opening up to him like this just yet. Something about Monday put her at ease.
"Did you ever think that they were taken for their own good?" Monday asked.
"Yeah, because being a prisoner does wonders for a person," Crystal commented. Monday grinned and shook her head.
"If you assume Ms. Sharp's only goal was to imprison them, then sure, I can see why you'd get worried," Monday nodded. "But, she's actually trying to save them," she added.
"Save them? From what??" Crystal asked. Monday stared back into her eyes with a solemn expression.
"The end of the universe."