He who guardeth the bridgeth.

“Well that’s a laugh,” Red snorted once John had finished explaining the story of Little Red Riding Hood in detail. “They fudged the details pretty bad.”

“Yeah, I was beginning to get that sense,” John agreed.

The two had returned to the path John had originally followed chatting amiably all the while, trading information back and forth about their respective worlds. John found himself having a good time, and before he knew it, they were nearly out of the forest.

“You’re gonna love this,” Red smiled knowingly, as John’s eyes adjusted to the glare of unfiltered light after spending such a long time in the dimly lit forest.

The forest path opened up onto a natural lookout, and John couldn’t help but stare wide-eyed at the view before him. They overlooked the crater of what must be a giant supervolcano, long dormant and now claimed by vegetation. At the centre of the crater, the land caved into a giant sinkhole, which was likely the main shaft of the volcano. Despite the frighteningly large size of the hole, John couldn’t even make out the bottom. If Gaia had bothered to submit this for game of the year, she’d won on the stunning view alone. It was absolutely surreal, and nothing on Earth could compare.

John cast his eyes upwards. ‘You’re my new favourite developer, Gaia.’

Achievement Unlocked: You’re welcome!
Now praise me more!
+2 Charisma
Photo Mode

Photo Mode Unlocked!
The Gamer may take photos with his eyes, which are then saved to a personal gallery accessed through the character menu. Saved images may be downloaded onto a HDD. You wouldn’t do anything untoward with this, would you?

Of course, John immediately took advantage of the new mode by snapping the amazing scenic picture.

“Knew you’d love it,” Red beamed, reading the expression on John’s face. “Everyone reacts that way the first time they see it. You can see pretty much everything from here. Like over there,” the girl pointed over to his left. Not far away, John could see a small town on the slope of the crater, nestled between the forest and a mix of open pastures and tidy orchards. “That’s my hometown, Green Orchard,” Red explained, before pointing to a location to their right. “And that bridge over there is where we’re heading.”

The bridge in question wasn’t remarkably big, just a patchy wooden thing. It could just be seen over the tree line, spanning a river that cascaded into the Depths.

John nodded and followed Red down a path to the right. “So are there any enemies we should be concerned about?” John asked in the name of conversation.

“Hmm, nothing that’s too much of an issue. There are boars and some wolves… but they tend to keep clear of town. Myself and a few others routinely purge the other critters that crawl out of the Depths. Mostly they’re just Harpies and Kumi.”

“Kumi?” John wondered.

“Basically a big lizard.”

“I see.”

It wasn’t much longer before they had arrived at the bridge. John was even more sceptical about crossing it now that he was up close. The bridge had evidently been worn down after many a duel fought on it, and it had broken off in several places. John had no desire to fall into the river only to be swept right into the giant sinkhole by the current.

“Sooo… anything you can tell me about this Black Knight?” John asked, as they skeptically looked across wooden bridge.

“Well… I wouldn’t recommend fightin’ him,” Red began. “He’s tough as balls, and none who’ve challenged him lived to tell the tale.”

“Do I have any other options?”

“Hmm, I’ve heard he’ll let you pass if you do him a favour.”

“Like what?”

“Well last time someone tried to pass, the Knight asked for a shrubbery. But his whims change with the wind, so I can’t rightly say; the lad’s a bit barmy, really,” Red laughed. “I mean, look at him standing on that rickety old bridge all day. I don’t think he even takes lunch breaks.”

John let out a small chuckle at that. “Alright then, thanks for your help,”

“Hold up. You haven’t paid me yet!” she huffed.

“Oh, right,” John acknowledged as he fished the forty bucks out of his inventory.

They appeared in his hand as ten dollar bills, which he promptly handed to the girl.

“What the bloody hell am I supposed to do with this? Wipe my bum?” Red exclaimed, trying her very best to sound serious and not burst into a fit of laughter.

“That’s forty bucks you’re holding,” John said firmly. “You wanted money from Earth, that’s it.”

“You better not be tryin’ to pull one over me,” Red eyed him cheekily.

John’s face pulled into an expression of mock horror, “I would never!”

“Sure thing, buddy,” Red winked. “Well, I’ll be watching from here; I fancy my head and wanna keep it firmly on my shoulders,” she quipped, poking her tongue out at him. “Good luck!”

John gave her an uneasy smile before turning his attention to the guardian of the bridge. The Black Knight stood stoically at, what John imagined was, the exact centre of the bridge with the tip of his blade resting on the woodwork and both hands gripping the hilt. He was an imposing figure, to be sure, with his resolute pose and midnight black armour. Before John got any closer, he cast Observe to try and get an inkling of who he’d be up against.

Great, there was no way of knowing what the Black Knight’s level was, and John wasn’t going to gamble on an unknown by fighting the guy. Parley it was then.

“Um… hello! Nice weather we’re having today,” John hit the ground running with a classic among conversation starters.

The Knight didn’t deign to respond. Nor did he even grace John with a glance.

“Hello?” John greeted again.

Stoic silence.

John waved his arm in front of the Knight’s great helm.

No reaction.

Stepping closer, John tentatively reached out a hand to poke the Knight in the breastplate.

Still not a peep.

“I guess I’ll just go around then,” John mumbled, taking a step to the Knight’s left.

“None shall pass!” The Knight’s sudden exclamation made John jump several feet backwards.

“What?”

“None shall pass!” the muffled voice of the Knight declared for a second time.

Looking at the Observe window, John supposed he should have seen that one coming.

“But I must cross this bridge,” John insisted.

“Then you shall die,” the Knight readjusted his grip on the sword, following his proclamation, and began to draw it from the bridge.

“Woah, woah, woah!” John stepped back further, holding up his hands. “Can’t we negotiate? You know, work out some sort of deal? Do you want anything? A shrubbery perhaps?”

The Black Knight paused to think for a moment. “I would like… hmm… a pie.”

“A pie?” John asked.

“A pie,” the Knight confirmed. “BUT, not just any pie; I want a freshly baked APPLE pie… with assorted berries on top... oh! and a side of ice cream!”

“Are you sure? It’s pretty warm out here in the sun,” John questioned.

In response, the Knight began to threateningly pick up his sword again.

“Alright, alright,” John quickly relented. “Apple pie. Freshly baked. Berries. Ice cream. Got it.”

John did a quick 180 and began to hurry back towards the river bank where Red was still waiting.

“Things must’ve gone well,” Red observed. “You still have your head on tight.”

New Quest: The Fetch Quest
Go get the pie like a good little pupper.
0/1 Apple Pie collected
Bonus Objective:
Also bring some fresh berries and ice cream.
0/1 side of fresh berries
0/1 side of ice cream
Rewards:
+200 xp
Pats
Bonus Rewards:
+150 xp

John stared daggers at the window. ‘That favourite developer status is crumbling fast,’ he thought irritably.

Almost as soon as the thought came in the quest blurred for a moment, and John noticed the rewards had changed once it had cleared.

Rewards:
+200 xp
Pats
Bonus Rewards:
+150 xp
More Pats

‘Fetch quests… I guess you just can’t escape them,’ he relented with a heavy sighed. XP and pats weren’t the worst quest rewards, he supposed, though Gaia seemed to be really cheaping out with the quest rewards of late.

“Or maybe he did loosen a screw or two,” Red giggled when she noticed him staring into blank space.

“Huh?” John blinked as he closed the quest window. “Oh, right… well, anyway... Do you know where we can get a freshly baked apple pie?” John moved on, eager to get this over with as soon as possible.

Red’s face broke into a wide smile. “An apple pie you say? I may know just the people to pop in on.”