Check on Colby first

You hesitate, but you keep your cool.

“Um,” you say, smiling apologetically at Athena. “Can I have a minute? It’s my friend from today. I want to make sure that we’re cool.”

Athena looks surprised, but her gaze lingers on you long enough to make you wish that you had a bigger towel.

“Of course,” she says with a warm smile and a twinkle in her eye. She does a little mock bow and starts to back out of the room.

“I’ll come to you,” you say quickly. “And don’t worry, I won’t take forever. I’m sorry. I know you’re tired,” you add, the words coming out fast.

Athena laughs. “It’s OK, Meri. You’re fine,” she says, closing the door.

You stare at it for a second. You can’t believe you just did that. Yet at the same time, it’s a completely normal thing to do. CCL doesn’t see itself as royalty. Athena doesn’t see herself as a goddess. You are the one projecting those ideas onto these people.

Athena’s a person, just like you. Well, she’s a bit more easygoing than you are.

You turn back to your computer, but catch yourself before you automatically roll onto your belly like you normally would to use the laptop on the bed. You can’t do that in a wet towel. Feeling very CCLish, you pull it off and toss it on the floor. Naked, you get comfy and put on your headset, leaving your webcam off. Not that anyone could see anything anyway; your face is in the way.

You join the channel.

“Hey, Colby,” you bark the second you join.

There’s a noise like a slight exhalation of breath. “Oh my god,” she mutters.

“Surprised?” you ask, smiling and kicking your feet idly.

“A bit, yeah.”

“You missed out on the most hardcore CCL party ever. We finished the con, got in the car, and came back to the house.”

“Really? That’s it?”

You’re as surprised as she is. All day, you figured they’d want to party after the con. Well, there’s a lesson in this about assumptions.

“That’s it,” you chirp. “You playing DBD?” You could get a round of survivor in before you go to meet Athena. Right? Sure.

“Am I? Shit! No wonder my frame rate is so bad,” Colby grumbles.

“What are you really playing?” you ask, laughing. She’s done this before.

“Fucking Tarkov. I was killing it. I was getting stuff and getting out, but now that I have to get this one fucking gold watch or whatever I can’t get out. It’s like a literal curse,” she snarls. “I take good gear and get fucked. I take no gear and get fucked. Swear to god. Grrr. This fucking watch.”

You cackle. “That game only exists to make people mad.” You could never get the hang of it, but Colby’s obsessed.

“I can fucking do this, Meri. It’s a watch. Not the fucking Mona Lisa. I have the key. It’s fine.”

It’s not fine. She’s tilted. Without help, she’ll never get anything done tonight. It’s late. She’ll stay up, trying and trying, driving herself to destitution in the game, and tomorrow she’ll be pissy and exhausted. It’s time to be the cool friend. Two guns are better than one. Maybe you can give her the support she needs to complete this quest.

“Just breathe,” you tell her. “Don’t go in yet. I’m coming. We’ll go together. Should we try at night? Might not be as much heat.”

“Ew, no. And get murdered by cultists?”

“Wait, what map are we going to?”

“Customs.”

“Are there even cultists there?”

“I don’t know. And I don’t want to know,” she snaps. “I don’t do night. Too scary.”

“This game is always scary. That’s why I don’t play it anymore,” you mutter, clicking around your Character screen. OK. You’ll need to pack a bag for Colby. “Don’t bring anything. Just your key. I’ll drop you a backpack.”

You’ll both need good rifles. One of you will need to have a shotgun, and the other will need a sniper rifle or DMR. That will give you a fighting chance if you’re caught in the open or if you get pushed into a building. As a duo, that’s the only way to approach it. If you were on your own, you might try something like an M14 with a hybrid sight for this, but with two people you can carry four long guns. Armor, helmets… you try to remember the things that matter. Surgical kit, water, morphine, tourniquets… there’s a reason you never play this game anymore. It's a lot of work.

You have a nicely kitted-out M4 and an AK-105. That’ll work. A Saiga shotgun will work at close range, but the only sniper rifle you have is an old-timey Mosin.

“Watch over us, Jude Law,” you say as you settle on the kit and queue with Colby. This raid will decimate your resources. You’re bringing pretty much your best stuff. It’s all riding on this one.

Colby typically plays sniper, and you are more aggressive when you play CoD and stuff.

But Colby’s tilted and this is not CoD.

Keep the sniper?

Or give it to Colby?