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‏Chapter 6‏

  Sparky pulled the nearly new PlayStation 11 out of the dumpster and grinned. He flipped it over and understood what happened to it. Someone had kicked or thrown the device, and the solder connections inside the plug had broken. It was an easy fix and a quick sale online. This was going to be a more comfortable week than most. He popped the console into his backpack and slung it over his shoulder.

  As he walked toward his camp, where he kept his soldering iron, he thought about his life. He had chosen the homeless lifestyle. There were innumerable downsides, but the upsides were significant for a non-druggie like him. Camping daily, scrounging for what you can, taking the government's checks, and spending time with his buddies. If he hadn't just turned fifty with all of the aches and pains that came with aging after a rough life, he would be happy for things to stay the same.

  "Hey Sparks, how's it hanging." Justin ran a bit to catch up with Sparky and matched his pace. He groaned under his breath. Justin was not his favorite person.

  "Man, when are you going to try my stuff? I have been offering you a free hit for years, and I am beginning to believe you don't like me, dude." Justin was one of those people who could be intimidating while seeming not to be.

  Sparky smiled at the drug dealer and kept walking.

  Justin put out a hand and stopped him. "Hey, man. These are my streets, and you live in my backyard, but you don't pay any rent. My customers pay rent when they buy, but you never buy, so what am I supposed to do with you?"

  Justin had stopped Sparky at the opening of a dark alley. It was not the best position to be in. When he had lived in a home before his foster parents kicked him out on his 18th birthday, he had played a little football. He was tall and thin but also whipcord strong. He could run faster than most of the other players, so they made him a wide receiver.

  He juked as if he would continue in the same direction Justin and he had been walking but spun and sprinted away. His knees hurt a little, but life on the streets kept him strong.

  Sparky could hear Justin running behind him, puffing out phrases like "You little..." and "I'm gonna..." But as he ran, the drug dealer fell further behind. Sparky took a left through a small park, a right into an alley, and a jump to clear a four-foot fence. As he lifted off, he realized again that he was fifty and not fifteen anymore, and his foot slammed hard into the top of the fence. Adding to his dismay, his backpack slipped off his shoulder and cracked into a pole. He heard a crunch from inside.

  He dusted himself off and continued running. Once out of sight behind some garbage cans, he listened but couldn't detect any pursuit. With trepidation, he pulled the small console out of his pack and groaned. The case was cracked open, and inside, he could see the circuit board of the PlayStation was snapped in two, which was a total waste. He broke, just like the electronic device. The conflict with Justin likely meant another move, and he was getting too old for that.

  He began the short trek back to his campsite. As he approached, he noticed a column of smoke rising, and as he came around the last corner, he saw what he had feared. Justin or one of his goons had torched his camp. His soldering iron, his food stash, his extra clothes, his tent, and his sleeping bag were all either burned or stolen.

  He felt that tug again. The preacher man always encouraged him to put his trust in Jesus, but he wasn't ready just yet. Objections flooded his mind: "I need freedom to live my own life." "I don't want to give up my sin just yet." "If I was a Christian what would my friends think." But all of it felt hollow now, empty and silly.

  He began walking toward downtown, taking alleys where possible. Stopping in a quiet place between two trashcans he put his head in his hands and sobbed. He didn't want to give up his life, he didn't want to but it felt like the change was creeping up on him. What had the preacher called it? The hounds of heaven? He could hear them baying in the distance and they were coming closer.

  After a while he dusted himself off, convinced that he was past the spell he had just experienced, but then his heart melted just enough to consider the possibility. As he did, he saw glory. He couldn't explain it, he didn't see anything with his eyes, but he could see Jesus high and lifted up, sitting on a throne. The preacher had always told him to just trust in Jesus, but Sparky had never really met this Jesus. How could he trust someone he had never met.

  Sparky quickly ducked his head but the vision would not go away, the Glory pressed in on him, and something changed within Sparky. He believed. He knew that Jesus hadn't just died on the cross but that He had died to save Sparky. This Man who exuded glory had died to save him. Sparky wept for joy and relief.

  "What do I do now?" Sparky asked. The feeling he was experiencing was strange. He was not afraid, and he was not angry, but he found himself trusting in Jesus. But the answer was clear, so he turned and began his hike to the Mission. He had been pushed out of every area of town, and he was actually surprised Justin allowed him to stay on his turf as long as he had. So what next? Modesto? Maybe Lodi? Would word about the homeless guy who didn't do drugs follow him, or could he slide by for a while? A new location meant making new friends and leaving old ones behind. There wasn't a good option. As he came around the corner near the Gospel Mission, he picked up his pace until he was inside the administration building.

  "Hey Sparky, how can I help you?" said the volunteer behind the desk.

  "Hey Susan, is Ray available?"

  "Let me see." She picked up her phone and dialed a few numbers. "You free? Sparky is asking to see you." She listened for a bit and hung up. "Yeah, go on back."

  Sparky walked back to Ray's office, knocked once on the door, and let himself in, plopping into a well-worn chair.

  The Hispanic man at the desk had tattoos peeking out from under his short-sleeved shirt. Ray had served 27 years on a murder charge and had spent most of his time as a saved man. When he got out, he went to the local community college and earned his counseling certificate, and the Mission hired him the day he graduated. Guys like him, who had street cred and a proven faith, were rare and valuable to homeless missions. "What's going on Sparky?"

  "I have good news and terrible news." Sparky smiled at his counselor and then recounted what had happened to him over the last hour.

  Ray listened to what Sparky said, and a small tear slid down his cheek when he described being saved. But Ray stayed quiet and paid attention to the whole story.

  When Sparky was done, Ray stood up, walked around the desk, pulled him out of his chair, and gave him a bear hug. "I have been waiting a long time for this day, brother! A long time." He shook with emotion for a moment, and then they came apart. "This stuff with Justin is disturbing, however. Guys like you used to get a pass back in the day, but now they treat homelessness like a business."

  Ray rounded the desk again and sat down. "Okay, I have been hearing about something for a while and thought you might want to consider it. You play games on those consoles you fix sometimes, right?"

  Sparky nodded.

  Ray went on to describe Fantasy Mainline. "They have been asking us to suggest people for the first phase. We would hate to lose you, but I am assured once God has ahold of a man, He will never let go, so I have no fear for your soul.

  "The idea is that it is safer for society and cheaper for the government to house the homeless in a facility where they care for your body than to keep you guys out here. But you need to understand that this is a lifetime thing. If you sign on, you will enter the game and never come out. The game is a whole world you can explore. Apparently it looks and feels like real life."

  Thoughts erupted in Sparky's mind. He loved playing VR games, but this was next level. If this were something he could try and decline later, he would already be signing on the dotted line but never being able to come back out; that was extreme.

  He considered his condition. He was over fifty, and the winters had been getting colder and the ground harder. On the flip side, the thought of sleeping outside again but with a younger and healthier body was amazing. "Okay." He said, and that was that.

  Sparky stayed inside the mission for the next two days, but when the bus came to take the first load down to the Fantasy Mainline center, he was the last one on and the first off. Once he made a decision, that was it. In for a penny, in for a pound.

  Waking up in the game had been strange, but when he heard he was going to be an elf and could throw lightning around as an air mage, his choice was simple. A Sparky-Elf throwing lightning was a perfect fit, and it felt like a God thing to him.

  When he gave the cute foot-tall elven maiden named Edie the go-ahead, he found himself in a dome of light. "Fifteen seconds to entry, the threat level is two."

  "Is two bad?" Sparky queried.

  "Nope, one is safe, and two just means some baddies are somewhere in the zone where you will be entering," Edie replied.

  Sparky waited out the seconds, and when the dome faded, he was in a new world--in the middle of a forest.

  "So, Edie," He said, amazed by the beauty around him, "Which way from here?"

  "Normally, players are dropped near their race's city in the starter area, but since the Elves don't have one, you start out in the woods. You can explore the forest, or I can point you in the general direction of another race's towns."

  "What are the other races?"

  "Well, we have the Humans, the Dwarves, and," Edie shuddered, "The Orcs."

  "Orcs are clearly out. Dwarves are often a bit less friendly to us woodland creatures. Let's head toward the Humans."

  Sparky began wondering in the direction Edie pointed him, smelling the fragrant flowers and enjoying the easy breeze that made gentle noises in the treetops and brushed against his skin.

  After a while, what looked like a normal human village to him appeared as he crested a hill. Most villagers were gathered east of town, but he felt a pressure he didn't like, so he avoided going that way.

  

  Okay, town, but it still looked like a village to him.

  An old-looking woman in the distance was wringing her hands, so Sparky walked over to her. "Can I help you, ma'am?"

  The woman looked at him with pleading eyes, "Two goblins have stolen my kitty, and I'm afraid they mean her harm." Will you please save Mr. Socks? They took her right over there." The lady pointed at a dense copse of trees.

  "Absolutely!" Sparky responded. He had salvaged several older consoles and spent many hours playing games like this. This was a quest, and quests helped you level.

  

  I'm going to use Lightning Bolt soon! He thought to himself, way cool.

  "Hey, Edie, remind me how to activate this stuff again."

  "You just think about what you want to do. Simple as that." She responded.

  Sparky thought about sneaking, and his footfalls were lighter.

  

  At the same time, a green bar at the top right of his HUD became visible and began to drop quickly. He stopped sneaking, and the green bar stopped dropping.

  As he drew near the tightly spaced group of trees, Sparky turned Sneak on again and stepped into the shade. Once his eyes adjusted to the darker environment, he could see three goblins. One was holding a rather cute-looking cat while the other two prepared a small fire.

  If you spot this story on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.

  He flipped off Sneak as he waited a few moments. He pointed his finger at one of the little humanoids but delayed.

  One of the two goblins slipped a little on the muddy ground, and his partner grabbed him to help stabilize him. Lightning Bolt and a crackle of white electricity jumped from Sparky's finger to the goblin. But, just as Sparky hoped, direct contact provided an easy pathway for the electric attack to move from one goblin to the other.

  "Conductivity! Sparky knows his electricity." He said as the two enemies fell. Notifications appeared in his HUD.

  

  

  The third goblin dropped the cat and charged at him.

  "Trying to charge me, ha, I'm going to charge you!" Sparky yelled as he zapped the last one with another lightning bolt.

  

  

  He spent the next ten minutes hunting the kitty. Frustrated, he sat down. He noticed something climbing a tree, but it turned out to be a large rat, so he fried it.

  

  

  

  Sparky's body was filled with light and pleasure. Oof, so that was what his buddies experienced when they took a hit of heroin. He had never tried it himself, but wow, that felt amazing!

  He thought about his Lightning Bolt spell, and a small window popped up:

  

  One enemy, ha! Thought Sparky, Conductivity rules!

  Sparky had not missed the notification that said he got a new ability. Rubbing his hands together, he selected it.

  [You may choose one of the following abilities.]

  [1. Learn Cantrip - This allows the mage to learn and cast cantrips.]

  Meh, cantrip... He thought dismissively.

  [2. Forked Lightning--Allows the mage to split his lightning attack up to 19 times, reducing the total damage done by the spell by 5% for each split. The remaining damage is divided among all enemies.]

  He pictured himself killing 19 squirrels at one time and smiled.

  [3. Shock Dodge - A successful dodge leaves a ball of lightning in the place where the mage was.]

  Sparky thought this would be a fun surprise to leave behind and would look cool as well, but he shuddered at the thought of being that close to an attacker to need this.

  [4. Electrified Strike - The mage can electrify their staff to deliver physical and electrical damage on a successful strike.]

  Again, it's way too close for comfort. If he was near enough to strike others, they were near enough to strike him. There was only one choice here.

  [Congratulations, you have learned the ability Forked Lightning.]

  Sparky tried to focus back on his task at hand. "Hey Edie, how can I get some meat from the rat? And what is all this about assigning attribute points?"

  "If you walk over near the rat and think Loot, you will be able to take whatever it dropped, likely some meat. On the attribute points, you can shift the ones around for each level. You have seven that you can move now. When you are ready, you can let the system know you are done, and then you will have five more. You can put them where you like."

  Sparky thought, "System, I'm done." Now, he had five more points to assign. He stuck one in Constitution because he did not want to die, one in Dexterity since it allowed him to sneak, and he guessed to dodge as well, and three into Intelligence because, well, lightning bolt.

  He walked over to the rat he killed, thinking Loot. A window popped up, showing what he assumed must be his inventory, which was on the left and the rat's on the right. He moved the meat that dropped over to his side. Next, he looted the goblins and found 12 coppers and three Goblin iron short swords, which he also took.

  "Okay," he thought out loud, "where is the kitty?"

  He walked to where the goblin dropped the cat and summoned the piece of meat into his hand. "Here, kitty, kitty." He crooned. Bright eyes peeked out from under a bush. Mr. Socks crept toward him with slow, careful steps. But as he continued to call and offer the meat, it became increasingly comfortable with him. Soon, Mr. Socks nestled in his arms, munching on pieces of rat.

  When they reached the old lady, she reached out for her rescued cat, and when she received it, she looked relieved. "Thank you so much, Sparky. I was so worried they were going to eat Mr. Socks! Follow me. I'll see that you receive your reward."

  "At your service, ma'am," Sparky said as he followed her into town.

  She led him into an unassuming thatch roofed shop on the near end of the main street. Once inside, he looked around and found what appeared to him like test tubes, beakers, and even larger containers of liquids of all colors sitting on wooden shelves. "Are you an alchemist?" He asked.

  "No, but my husband is." She said, hollering, "Jaonos!"

  A thin, tall, aged man walked out of what Sparky guessed was a workshop and stood behind a beautifully carved oak counter. Wiping his hands on a clean rag he said. "Hi darling, Let me guess... You were outside walking Mr. Socks when two goblins sprinted up and stole him. Soon after, this fine adventurer came up and offered to help retrieve the cat. You said you would give him some copper and a class-appropriate item if he returned the cat safely."

  She nodded sheepishly.

  "We are going to go broke if you keep doing this."

  She grinned shyly, "I know, but I feel so compelled. And with all of these adventurers around, there is no shortage of business."

  He groaned, took out a pouch, and gave Sparky five coppers. Next, he rummaged behind the counter for a bit, then exclaimed. "Well, where did you come from?" He stood up, holding a floppy hat, and tossed it to Sparky.

  As he caught it, Sparky got a message.

  

  He put it on and felt both quicker and stronger. "Thank you." He said. "Can I learn to do what you do?"

  "Well, if you want to dedicate your life to the craft, you could become my apprentice."

  Sparky shook his head.

  "There is a strong divide between those who want a profession and those who want to adventure. I'm guessing you want to explore the world."

  Sparky nodded. "You sell potions that restore health, stamina, and mana, right?"

  "Correct, but you are likely not wealthy enough to afford them yet."

  "Thought so," Sparky said as he turned and walked out of the shop with a wave goodbye.

  The town was filling up bit by bit with adventurers, and there was an increasing buzz of excitement. Looking around, He found what he was seeking and headed down the street until he arrived at the smithy. Inside, he met a player named Dorian, who grumbled as he bought the swords he had acquired for next to nothing. He asked for directions and then crossed the road to the building the smith had indicated.

  The inn was two stories tall in the German style with the wooden beams exposed between the daub and wattle exterior. Upon entering, he ordered a drink, sat down, took a long sip of a nutty-flavored ale, and sighed. This was going to be awesome.

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