Okay folks, here's Part 1; There a two small bits of growth in this.
Part 2 with have more, so I hope you at least enjoy the build up.
-High Score-
By: LinkG07
The birds chirp in the tree outside the window of a pale yellow house. The wind was just right so that leaves rustled slightly making a soothing sound. Its seven o'clock am in the morning and the sound of an alarm going off is heard. Buried under pillows and blankets, laid a boy name Marcus Gase. He shuffles around the covers as the piles of fabric flipped and shifted about. As the sound of the blaring alarm finally became too much, a small hand from under the sheets reaches out searching for the loud clock where the annoying sound came from. After a minute of swatting and waving, he finally stops the ear splitting sound by pressing the big snooze button that rested on top of the alarm clock. Marcus moaned and groaned not willing to get up for the new day, wanting to sleep longer. But the sound of a female voice yells from behind his poster clad door.
"Marcus! Get ready for school!" The woman yelled. Judging by the stern tone of voice, it wouldn't be unlikely for the voice to be his mother. Reluctant to even getting out of bed, Marcus finally lifts his head revealing his freckled face and messy brown hair. He gives out a big yawn as his morning breath seeped into the atmosphere of his room and finally unwraps himself from within the blankets.
The bathroom light pops on and the mirror of the medicine cabinet shows the boy's reflection. Fair skin and freckles dotted just over and around his nose. His hair flopped about, drooping down over his forehead which complimented his current state of mind; Lazy. He sluggishly plops the tooth brush in his mouth and scrubs slowly and gently as the foam began to build up inside. After about a minute of brushing, he finally spits the tooth paste out and wipes the around his lips."Another day, another boring time at school." Marcus murmured to himself as he flipped the bangs of his moderately long hair.
Marcus throws on his blue and orange jacket after dressing himself. He shifted the jacket over his black t-shirt, straightening out the letters MG on the back. He buckled his belt that held up his blue shorts and strapped his non-laced shoes giving a sigh as he still had the vision of Middle school in his mind. He had recently turned 15 and it was his senior year as summer vacation just ended to his dismay. Grabbing his backpack and baseball cap, he headed for the stairs walking down step by step and skipping the last two by jumping.
The smell of sizzling bacon fills Marcus' nose as he sniffed the air of his moms delicious cooking. "That sure smells good mom." Marcus complimented as he walks into the kitchen seeing his mother at the stove. "Well look who's finally awake." Marcus' mother turned and smiled at her son tenderly. She was a very beautiful woman; blonde hair reaching down to her lower back, sky blue eyes and a nice figure for being middle aged. Her green tank top matched her white short pants and her white thong sandals as her toes wiggled freely. Stopping her cooking all together, his mother then happily places a small kiss on his cheek.
"Ready for your first day of school?"
"Moooom, don't treat me like I'm in elementary." Marcus felt like he was being babied and backs away, wiping his cheek.
"I can't help that my little man is so cute. I bet you'll get lots of girls too. You're such a sharp looker." She teased as she waved her finger winking at him.
"Mooooooom!"
His mother giggled as she finally goes back to cooking breakfast, flipping the bacon in the pan. The food was finally ready. Grabbing a plate, his mother places what she had fixed on it, handing it to her son. "Eat up!" His mom shouts as Marcus nods with the plate in his hand. "Thanks mom!"
Marcus places his plate on the wooden table in front of him and clicks the black remote next to him turning on the TV. The sounds of sword clashing together are heard from the humming television, which caught Marcus's interest. Taking a fork, Marcus stuffs his face with eggs as he held the plate just under his chin. As he looked on at the action program, he caught by surprise as a large form plops down right next to him. All Marcus saw was a flying behind land right in front of him, causing him to choke a little on his eggs. With a kid like nature, his mother grabs the remote smiling and changes the channel with the click of a button.
"Hey I was watching!"
"Tough! Mega Throwdown is on! The Jackal is wrestling The Mammoth!"
"We can watch wrestling later, now gimme the remote!"
"No!"
"Gimme the remote mom!"
"Nnnno!"
"Mom, this isn't funny!"
"Says you!"
Marcus tried his hardest to get the tiny TV changer away from his mother, but her long arms set a great distance between them. He swiped and strained as his mother held him back with one arm and waved the remote far away. She sticks her tongue out at him as he tried his hardest to get it back from her but; she was surprisingly strong for a woman of her build. His mom finally leaves Marcus landing his face as she leaps up running away with the remote in hand. Marcus scrambles to catch her as she laughed zigging and zagging across their hard wood floor. Marcus finally catches her as he tackles her to the ground, causing his mother give out a gleeful yelp. Behind the couch, they fought over the remote even more with big thuds on the floor. As they appear from behind the couch, his mom is seen with her own son in a headlock. Her arm tightly jointed around his neck, causing him to gasp for air.
"Say iiit!"
"Neveeeer." Marcus' voice was gruff from his wind pipe being threatened by his mother.
"Say it!"
"Okaaaay! You're the grand champion of the world!"
His mom finally lets him go as he gasps for air, as he sprawls himself over the back of the couch. With a swift kick, his mother then knocks him in the behind, sending him flipping over to the surface of the couch. To add insult to injury, she even leaps over with him and sits on top of him while he lied with his face in a pillow. Marcus turns his head to the side as he lost enough air as it is, spitting out lint that slipped into his mouth. "Not funny mom!" Marcus yelled as he struggled to get out from under his mother, but she sat firmly on top of him and kicks her feet up on to the table in front of her, getting into a comfortable position.
"You should have never challenged the grand champion."
"You always do this."
"I know, aren't you having fun? I know I am."
"Mooom, you're acting like a kid!"
"What? Are you saying I'm old?? How rude. Don't talk to your mother that way."
"You know what I mean!"
"So you're saying I have to act how I look? But don't I look like a teenager??
"No... I mean, sorta."
"I rest my case then."
"Mom could you skooch over a bit?"
"Oh sure."
And with that slight move, Marcus gains the upper hand and pushes his mother off of the couch. She gives out her gleeful yelp once again as her butt hits the floor, and just like that, Marcus snatches the remote back from her. Despite swinging to get it back, his mother ends up with nothing as her son then twists her arms and sits on them, not allow her to move. "No fair!" His mother yelled as she tried to get her arms free. With each try ending in failure, she resorts to stick her tongue out at him in annoyance.
"Whose the champion nooow~?" Marcus grinned waving the remote in her face. But his mother just smiles deviously as she cranes her head to the side. "Aren't you late for school?" She murmured. This made Marcus jump in realization as he frantically leaps off of his mother arms and looks at his watch. Not paying attention anymore, his mother took opportunity to snatch the remote back.
"Oh man, school starts in 10 minutes. I gotta go." Marcus panicked as his school was 7 blocks away. His mom then stands to her feet, giving him a big motherly kiss on the cheek.
"Have a good day at school sweetie. I love you."
"Yeah yeah, don't think you can butter me up. When I get back you owe me!"
"Can't a mother kiss her son goodbye? Is that not the "cool" thing this day and age?"
"Fine fine, I love you too."
"That’s my boy."
Marcus bolts for the door as he snatches his bag up. In being in such a rush, Marcus forgets to turn the doorknob and runs face first into the door. This caused his mother to laugh uncontrollably at his goof. Feeling embarrassed, Marcus finally turns the knob and head out the door with it slamming behind him. "He definitely is my kid. What would I do without him?" Marcus' mother sighs and blushes as she remembers times when he was little. How she used to take care of him and they'd spend so much time together. In teasing her son, her true motives are to gain that spark they used to have; bonding like they did in old times, mother and son.
She gently sits down on the couch as she flips through channels on the TV. She clicks the remote over and over with the sound of static shifting channels. She then stops on a certain channel; it showed a girl plastered on a poster on a building. There seemed to be a crowd cheering for some apparent reason. The girl on the poster looked young, maybe a little older than Marcus. Her hair was enormous, colored in a fiery orange to give off the illusion of real fire. Her skin was darkish brown, with light rose eyes, and pointy ears. She wore a dark pink gown that only came to her mid thigh and had oversized rings on her wrists and ankles, even one around her waist with each shining in a different color; red, green, blue, purple and finally orange. Who was this girl and why was there such a big fuss about her Marcus' Mother thought to herself? A reporter walks unto the scene with a large microphone to apparently tell what the big deal was.
---
"Here we are at the promotional of the new hit game series; Juel, and I must say it’s causing quite a buzz. It’s about a young girl whose dream is to achieve ultimate power. But her journey isn't an easy one. She has to go through many worlds and enemies to get to the top. If this sparks your interest then come on down! I'm sure you'll get a kick out of this addictive franchise. I'm picking on up for my little nephew, but slow down there partner, aha-ha, this game isn't in stores till next month. Now then, let’s get to know the adoring fans.
An ocean of fans poured out going from one block to the other as they screamed and leaped for joy in this hyped event. The majority of fans were teens and kids and there were also quite a few adults as well. They all stood in front of a stand with the game case being held by a man in a suit. An Asian American man who seemed proud of the outcome and fandom of this franchise. Cameras flash everywhere and people videotaping from their cam corriders and phones. The cover was just like the giant poster hanging over everyone, showing the girl and the name of the game decorated in front of her.
"Excuse me, little boy. This franchise seems to be a huge promotional success, could you give me you intel on what you think the game will be like?"
"Hi mom, hi dad! I think this game will be filled with action and drama and an endless struggle both on the battle field and within the character herself."
"Thank you, that was very enlightening! How about you young lady? What will you expectations be for this game?"
"Oh it'll be fun! I've seen the trailer like 100 times and I can't wait!"
"And what is the game like? Do you know how it will play?"
"Yup! It’s all about strategy! You'll need to choose the right tactics to beat your opponent! But you could just keep pressing the button over and over."
"Thank you. There you have it folks. This game will be here for all you school going kids in the later fall. Back to you in the station.
---
This made Marcus' mom think; she couldn't put her finger on it, but something like this crossed her mind. She finally realizes and with the snap of her fingers, she reaches for the house phone to the right of her, dialing quickly.
"Honey? You busy...?"
"No no, I'm just sitting around the house..."
"Say, what was the name of that game you offered Marcus if he got a good report card a few months ago...?"
"I knew it! Do you still have it...?"
"Perfect! Thanks dear, love yooou!"
With a beep, she hangs up the phone stretching her whole body out. Her smile grew wider and wider with every inch she stretched out until she finally lets herself go and falls to her side on the couch. She flips her hair away from her eyes as she giggles to herself as she had something up her sleeve which intended her son.
The school bell rings as the school session was finally over. Kids in the hallway talked and mingled, taking full advantage of their freedom from "boring" classes. Marcus closes his locker after taking his bag out and sees another boy waving at him. He was small and wore glasses with black hair. He had light tan skin and seemed to be of Asian ethnicity. Marcus happily meats the button up and jean wearing kid with a hi-five, signifying that they were friends.
"Marcus, my man! What’s up?!"
"Nothing much Rudy. Just hangin'."
"Hey, you hear about the new game coming out next month?"
"You mean Juel? It looked alright."
"Come oooon. I know you're just as excited as I am."
"...Okay, you caught me. It looks totally sick!"
"I know! I can't wait to get my hands on it!"
"Isn't your dad the president of the developing team of that game?"
"Yeppers! And he said he'd give me a copy in advance! I might get the game, next week, maybe even today!"
"Lucky you."
"Jealous much?"
"If I said yes, would you exploit it?"
"Ya damn right I would!"
"Then no."
Both of them laugh as they head to the outside of the school. Both of them talked about the game and everything about it as if they were real experts. They walked out of the school and down the sidewalk chatting until they reach a cross walk with other kids standing there to get across the street. "See ya Marcus, I gotta get going." Rudy said waving to his friend as he walked down the sidewalk with Marcus waving back, who was waiting for the light to change to cross the street. As Rudy disappeared around the corner Marcus crosses the street and treks all the way back to his house. Marcus places the key inside the hole and turns the knob to get inside. "Mom I'm home!" Marcus said as he dropped his bag next to the closet that sat right next to the front door.
His mother then hears her little boy come home and pops out from her room with a lollipop in her mouth. Happy to see him, she scurries at a fast pace over to him and embraces him lovingly. "Welcome home Marcus." Marcus embraces back as his mother plants a kiss on his cheek once again.
"Hi mom."
"How was your first day at school?"
"Boring. Who gives homework on the first day of school? I swear." Marcus complained. His mother giggles at him and scurries back into her room. "Oh Marcus, I have a surprise for you!" His mother yelled from inside her room. Marcus looks confused not knowing what to expect. Could it be a joke? Could it actually be good? Giving into the suspense, he had no choice but to ask "A surprise? What is it?" Another giggle comes out of his mother as she pops her head out of her room and smiles at her son.
"Okay Marcus, I know how you love video games, so I got you a game!"
"A game?"
"Yup!" His mother shuffles from left to right with something hidden behind her back. She stops just a few feet away from Marcus and smiles with anticipation. Her expression is full of excitement and glee, as she couldn't contain herself in keeping what she had hidden behind her a secret any longer. "So what is it?" Marcus said not as excited but interested nonetheless. At the peak of her excitement, she finally reveals what she had hidden; the game case to the game she mentioned.
"Ta-dah!" She yelled as she held out the game in front of him. It took him a while to process what he was looking at, but he finally sees what it was. It was a game called "Math Blaster." which was a computer game for educational purposes. This shocked Marcus and put a look of awe and fright on his face. His expectations were crushed as he got something that he would never be interested in. "Isn't it cool? I thought you'd might like it! It'll teach you math and you'd be able to fight bad guys too!" Marcus was disgusted as the expression didn't leave his face. The only words that left his shocked lips were: "What...?"
"You like?"
"N-N- what??"
"Come on, they said it was the best on the market. They said a lot of kids and teens would play it and it’s not even out yet!"
"But... it’s... what???"
Marcus' mother seemed hurt that Marcus wasn’t excited for the game like she had imagined. "You... don't like it??" She pouted, poking out her bottom lip, giving a glassy look in her eyes. This look always makes fold like paper since he didn't like hurting his mom’s feelings. Quickly reacting before his mother could started crying, he snatches the game away from her and puts on an embarrassed face, examining the game. "N-No, that’s not it, its just, um, you caught me by surprise. Now that I actually look at it more, I think it might actually be pretty fun. Oh boy!" Marcus said trying to cover up for his previous reaction. "Let’s take a look at that awesome dis-"
And that’s when it hit him, right there. Even though the case on the outside said "Math Blaster" with a little green martian man on the front, the inside had something completely different. It was Juel; Marcus was fooled. His expression spoke a thousand words as his mouth gaped open at what he laid eyes upon. As he looked up at his tall mother, he see's her bending down in his face and giving him a loving, satisfied smile. This made Marcus even more embarrassed as he opens his mouth to give a very big and very nervous smile. Placing the game gently on the floor, Marcus leaps into his Mothers arms overcome by excitement, giving out a girlish scream.
"Thank you, thank you, thank you!" Marcus shouted as he held his mother tightly. Laughing, his mother stands up almost lifting him off of the ground, hugging him back. She rubs the top of his head knowing that she made him happy. "You're very welcome dear. You did say I owed you." His mother replied.
"Yeah! But I meant like an hour of TV! But this-? This is ten times better!"
"I just thought I needed to spoil you every once and a while."
"How'd you get this?! This won't be out for a whole month!"
"Your father."
"Dad?"
"Yup, oops. Did I not tell you that he landed a job at the "Miasma" corp. last winter? Oh, I'm sooo sorry."
"Dad works for Sony?!"
"Righto!"
"And just when were you gonna tell me??"
"Never. Cause you would have bugged him twenty four seven for the latest games. And since I told you, you'd better not or you're so grounded."
"Cool!"
"What are you standing here for? Aren't you gonna play it?" Marcus then snatches the game off of the floor and plants a big kiss on his mom’s cheek. "Thanks mom!" he shouts running to the stairs and up the stairs. His mother shakes her head and sticks her sucker back in her mouth, smiling at her son’s excitement.
Marcus kicks his shoes off and throws his jacket over his chair where his computer sat and leaps to his bed with controller in hand. His game system was hooked up and ready to go as the disc was already inside, spinning. The laser wiped the bottom of the disc reading all of the data, with a revving sound, indicating that it was loading. He was 3 steps away from playing one of the greatest games up to date. He took the time to read the manual on how to play first so that he would just jump right in and know how to play. Before he knew it; it had start. Music blaring with electric pop as the logo and title flash onto the screen with a tiny cursor on the screen pointing at the option "Game Start" and two more options below: "Continue" and "Options"
Not hesitating at all, Marcus raised his finger over the X button to trigger the start of the game. But wait, he had to hesitate as he remembers something very important. Marcus quickly grabs the phone and dials quickly and holds it to his ear.
"Dude! You'll never guess what I got! You're gonna freak!" Marcus said supposedly talking to his best friend Rudy. Just as he was about to say a few more words, a ladder suddenly slaps on the rim of his open window and the sound of metal clanking was heard. And who was this person climbing the ladder up into Marcus' room, but Rudy himself, popping his head up with his cell phone in his ear. "Juel?!" Rudy shouted with excitement, surprising him.
"Dude, how'd you know? And how'd you get here so fast??"
"Your mom called me in advance. She's so awesome."
"You're telling me."
"Well what are you waiting for dude? Start it already!" Rudy said struggling to climb inside Marcus' room. Once inside he sits right beside him, shifting his glasses on his face. Marcus proceeded and pressed the button, setting off a ping which was the chime that told you that you had selected something. More options appear before them: "Easy, Normal, Hard, or Warrior" Obviously the difficulty setter and since Marcus liked to start things off ordinary and work his way up, he selects normal. A different ping sounded off this time. A longer one which indicated that the game was about to start. Marcus and Rudy both lean in as the story was about to begin.
---
"Long ago, a civilization lived in peace. Its race was filled with beings of high intelligence, superior strength; advanced in many ways. But their home was threatened and destroyed by an unknown force. The civilians grew cold and bitter, fighting amongst each other and soon... there was war. The race now fought for superiority of what they had left, using their own means of defense against each other. And soon, there were only a few left. Now with only 10 remaining the war still waged as they all vowed that only one would be left. One who would take revenge on their destructors.
---
"Cooooool" The boys said looking at each other as the narration finally ended.
---
"You’re too weak to face me Kaiser!" An innocent sounding female voice shouted through the darkness. Her shout was compliment by subtitles that ran across the screen in a big box. "Me? Weak? Hah! You make me laugh. It is you who are the weak one..." A gruff male voice shouted back. The black screen began to fade as an animation of two characters finally appeared. It was the girl from the cover of the game, standing across from a man in white and gold paladin like armor and a green cape. His skin was the same color as hers and he had point ears as well. His golden eyes stabbed a hole straight through the girls heart like daggers as he stared at her.
"...Jewel."
"Kaiser, you are a fool to challenge me! I am beyond your insignificant level of strength!"
"We'll just see about that! Prepare yourself!"
---
And the game had begun. After the cut scene ended, instructions appeared on the screen flashing. It read "Move the joystick left and right to move" it stated showing a demonstration of Jewel moving back and forth. Following what the screen had said, Marcus moves the black joystick on his controller left to right making Jewel move left and right. Now that the action was fulfilled, new instructions popped on the screen. "Press O to attack" showing Jewel swiping her hands. Extra instruction appeared under it as well: "By Pressing O consecutively, a combo can be performed." As the words ran by the screen, Jewel proceeded to swipe over and over with both hand, ending in a kick; Left, Right, Up, Down, kick was the combination Jewel performed. Marcus easily followed these instructions and the chime from the beginning sounded off as the tutorial finally ended.
The playing was finally coming into effect as the opposing character draws a sword and points it out, readying himself to fight. "Get um, Get um!" Rudy shouted as Marcus tapped away at the buttons fighting Kaiser, controlling Jewel. One hit after another Marcus played like a real pro jumping over and dodging attacks. He even figured out how to block before the tutorial even popped on the screen; and low and behold it did, making Marcus chuckle a little on how late it was. After a final kick, Kaiser drops his sword and starts to glow a peculiar color. A green force field engulfs his whole body shrouding him in shadow.
The final instruction appeared on the screen telling Marcus to quickly press the triangle button. He does so and the resulting animation mystified them both. Jewel waves her hand forward forming the same color field over around it. The field that trapped Kaiser then began to be absorbed into the mini field Jewel had formed. And just like that, after a long stream of energy being transfer from spot to the next, Kaiser was gone; vanished into thin air. As the light faded from Jewels palm the words "Victory" wipe across the screen in stylized letters.
Silence filled Marcus' room as both boys looked at the screen in amazement, not believing how beautiful the animation was. Breaking the silence, both Marcus and Rudy hi-five each other screaming "Awesome!!" And that was only the introduction. Before they could celebrate anymore, another cut scene had begun.
---
"You were too weak Kaiser and now you paid for it with you life!" Jewel said with subtitles closely following. As Jewel stood on screen victories, something began to happen; a change? Jewel waves both hands outward causing energy to surge through and around her body. As the energy swirled around her body, she seemed to gain size. At the start, Kaiser highly out classed her in height as he seemed to be a full grown male, while Jewel was only the size of a tween child. But after the energy faded, that all changed as she was now at least the same size as Marcus if they stood side by side. Going back into her original stance, she flips her fiery hair and laughs.
"With each battle I grow stronger... and with each battle. I am one step closer to revenge."
*Stage 1*
---
Marcus was now at level 1. A vast plain with a running river and greenery that seemed to go on for miles. A waterfall is seen off in the distance running with clear and pure water that even in a virtual world looks inviting to drink. By jamming the joystick to the right, Jewel ran at a quick pace as the greenery and shrubs passed by her and the river ran along with her. Marcus examined the rest of the screen seeing what he had to work with. He spotted a life bar at the top left which were flames waving. Under the life bar were 4 boxes making a miniature cross, like the D-pad. Realizing this, he pressed up on the D pad and it quickly moved the cross down with the top box opening up showing an orb. Was this a special power system? Well apparently none of the other slots had anything in them so that had to be it. On the other side of the top was a timer that seemed to be just like a stop watch increasing by the second. And under that were ten zeros. Since that didn't increase, it’s possible it could be the scoring system.
"Hey look out!" Rudy shouted as he nudges Marcus and points. Marcus then makes Jewel leap back as some sort of creature comes from off screen. The creature seemed to be some sort of green blob that was swinging a ball on a golden chain. It moves pretty slowly but the distance with the mace was moderately far. Thinking fast, Marcus leaps in and strikes it with the O button, quickly defeating it with a jumping kick. The remains of the blob splattered all over the place and quickly disappeared into the floor. Liking the animation, he races forward with Jewel and beats more blobs up all in different shapes and colors. They all used different forms of attacks along with splattering different as well.
"Uh-oh! The mid boss!" Rudy yelled biting his fingers as the mid-boss was a larger form of the blobs. In fact, it was formed when many of the blobs come together. Marcus tried to attack it, but as Jewel swung, the impact caused her to bounce away and land on her behind. There's even a cute little animation of her rubbing her butt from the pain. Helping Jewel to her feet, Marcus knew he was invincible on the lower half, so all he could do was dodge its attacks, but he suffers a blow causing him to lose one of jewels flames on her life bar.
"Go for the head! The top!" Rudy insisted, waving his fists and almost knocking off his own glasses. Marcus agrees and performs a wall kick off the wall behind Jewel. Slamming the O button, Jewel kicks the blob in the head, causing it to flinch uncontrollably and lose a few of the blobs it was formed together with. Marcus now knew his options, so he continued to give it blow after blow, making it shrink smaller and smaller. The final hit was at hand as the blob was now only moderately big. As Marcus jumps Jewel up for the final hit, something stops him, forcing him to pause with Jewel in mid-air and the words "Pause" flashing over and over.
"Marcuuuus! Ruuuudy!" Marcus' mother calls from downstairs.
"What?!"
"Come and get some snacks before I eat um all!"
"Uh-oh" Marcus and Rudy quickly race downstairs, because they both knew that his mother wasn't lying one bit about eating all of the snacks, from past experiences. Leaving the game stationary, nothing else happened. Everything was in a frozen motion, with nothing moving but the flashing pause text. That is, until Jewels eyes began to move on their own.
---
"Are they gone?"
"I-I think so?"
"Phew!" They moved! Without any control or command, both Jewel and the blob boss moved on their own. Jewel drops down from her leaping kick and sits on her behind; waving herself with a fan she takes out of no where. While the blob takes out an oversized lighter and cigarette; igniting the stick and taking a puff.
"Man, I thought they'd never leave. I'm beat."
"You're telling me! I'm the main character! Do you know how much I have to do just for them?! And I don't have any control over it!
"That bites."
"You know it... So how ya doing Max?"
"Oh, here and there. It’s nice that you visited."
"Anytime, I have a job to do and I was just in the neighborhood, that’s all."
"Boy, you sure do have to go through a lot. Ten bosses? Ten bosses? Whatever happened to the good old days where there were only four or six levels and there was like what; four bosses in the whole game! Now what do the kids want? A Twenty-Two hour game with a story that would put even Harry Potter books to shame."
"You're preaching to the choir my friend."
"I swear, pretty soon, there gonna have a game so long, they're gonna have to break it up into like three discs! Or even three separate freakin' games! Three, Jewel, three!"
"Too late... Oh Oh, here they come!" Jewel gets up and tosses the fan away, while the blob quickly takes his last puffs, tossing away the cigarette. They quickly go back to their original positions; just like Marcus left it. But the blob had to get one last puff from the cigarette and bolts back get it. "Max!" Jewel yelled with her teeth gritted. The blob then hops back and freezes back in his original pose, just before Marcus and Rudy could come back.
---
With a press of the start button, the game continued as Jewels flying kick kept going towards the blobs head. But before she could connect, the blob extends a tiny limb out and makes a phone sign, which is the classic request "Call me." Jewel nods and finally finishes the kick. The animation of the blobs death then occurred as his whole body is sent ricocheting off the walls, or screen boundaries, until it finally melts into nothing into the floor. With the mid boss defeated, Marcus could move on through the rest of the level.
The sound of a ringtone went off inside Rudy's pocket, making him put a sad look on his face. As Rudy pulled the phone from his pocket, looking at the screen, he puts it back and gets up from Marcus' bed.
"That was my dad, I gotta go."
"Sorry dude."
"Don't worry about it. I'll get the game soon. Besides I still have many chances to spoil myself coming over here and watching you play!"
"Sweet, so I'll see ya at school?"
"You know it."
"Alright dude, peace" And with a pound of their fists, Rudy was off. Heading back down the ladder he set up. As he reached the grassy floor, he slides the ladder down causing it to fold up until it was a big chunk. And with that, he shoves the ladder into the bushes.
Marcus continued to play the game through the day, beating up more creatures; elves, goblins, harpies and even golems to get through levels. The score racking up and him not losing a single life through any obstacle he came across. Marcus had gotten far in the game until he pauses once again.
A big yawn comes out of Marcus as he places the controller on the floor, stretching his limbs out. From playing for several hours straight, his body felt as stiff as a board. He gets up from his bed and scratches his head under his baseball cap. He slowly leaves the room with the game paused and Jewel stuck in a standing position. The sound of a sink going is heard from outside Marcus' room and scrubbing as well. It seemed as though he was brushing his teeth for the late night. After a gargle and spit, Marcus comes back into the room and sits on the floor.
Lying back, Marcus began to do sit ups. Working out meant that Marcus was ready for bed, and looking at the time, it was about his bed time; 8:31 said the clock. "Twenty-two, twenty-three, twenty-fou-" Marcus went, but he freezes as he feels a tickle in his nose. "Ah-choo!" Marcus when giving a few sniffs and wiping his nose.
"Bless you"
"Thank you" Who said that, was Marcus' instant expression. It seemed to have come from TV screen. As Marcus gazed over at the glowing box he saw something that ultimately shocks him. Up close and personal on the TV screen was Jewel herself smiling. She looks into Marcus' freaked out eyes and waves at him happily.
"AAH!!" Marcus screamed flipping completely over his bed to the small crack between the bed and wall. He was stuck for a brief moment but he finally gets himself free. Before he could look at the TV screen any further, his mom bursts in. "Eeeeeyaaaaaah!!" She screamed swinging what seemed to be a Japanese katana and chopping one of his spare shoes in half. This happened to freak Marcus out even more that the sight of Jewel. With a blank stare of frozen fear, Marcus looked at his mother twitching all over. "Ummm... Got it from China Town. Eheh." His mom, beet red in the face, slowly slips out of the room, trying to hide the sword she used recklessly behind her back.
Marcus gives a big sigh of relief as he then tries to think to himself. Maybe he was just playing too long. Video games can't talk back to you. Well unless it’s a certain brand of game. "Was that your mom?" There it was again! The voice that he heard from before. Marcus slowly looked at the screen and once again sees Jewel smiling at him. "She's very pretty." Jewel said blinking at Marcus innocently. Marcus couldn't believe his eyes or ears. Was jewel really talking to him? Like a real person? Marcus decided to test her to see it was actually true.
"H-hello?"
"Hi!"
"Y-You talked! H-"
"Yeah, I can talk."
"T-To m-me?"
"Well of course, who else would I be talking to?"
"But how??"
"Easy, I just move my lips like this."
"That’s not what I meant. How are you talking to me? You're a video game character."
"So?"
"It doesn't work like that?!"
"How come?"
"Because... eh, because...?" Marcus couldn't bring himself to say what he was about to say. Jewel looked so innocent and carefree. If he told her that she was just a machine; pixels upon pixels of color and programming, it might hurt her feelings. He couldn't do that.
"You're funny. What’s your name?"
"Umm uhh, Marcus!"
"Marcus, that’s an interesting name."
"Oh and Jewel is normal?"
"Oh course. It’s a name of royalty and majesty."
"Haha, yeah right."
"So you're the one who was playing?"
"Yeah!"
"Wow, you haven't even got me killed once. You must be very good..."
"Well, everyone tells me I'm a natural at everything."
"Maybe... you're the one."
"The-one?"
"Yeah! You seemed to have the right stuff! You even got a really high score early in the game!"
"It was nothing really..."
"Set me free!"
"What??"
"Yes! You can set me free!
"Set you free?? What are you talking about??"
"Well, this game... it’s a curse! I'm a prisoner in here! Forced to be played over and over again, until I'm put away on the shelf like an old dusty book!"
"R-really?"
"Yes! Be my prince! Break the curse!"
"H-How??"
"The score! Reach one million and you'll set me free from his digital tomb!"
"One-one million?"
"Heehee, hellooo? Stop repeating me. You can do it! You're only half way there!"
"I... I don't know." Marcus didn't know if he could believe this. Set her free? How could that even be possible? But she is actually talking to him. Maybe it’s a gaming ploy in the system? A new genre that forces players to play the game for a really long time? What is this?? Marcus slaps himself across his face to check if he was dreaming. Jewel was still on the screen staring back into his honey golden eyes with a look of desperation on her face.
"I'll do it!"
"You will?? Great! Myyy Heeero!" Jewel blushes and blows Marcus a kiss which catches him off guard. He blushed with embarrassment while Jewel blushed back flirtatiously. Marcus picked up the controller and grips it. He pears over his shoulder to look at the clock which struck; 9:00. It was his bed time but Marcus had a mission. Pressing start, Jewel flashes back to her original paused spot, as if the conversation never happened. Was it really not a dream? All he knew was that he had to reach one million to set Jewel free from her prison. It was his duty. Playing into the night Marcus continued onward.
A light blares in the dark room as Marcus now was in bed. The TV still was on with the game as well. It was at a resting point in the adventure with a score flashing on the screen. The score flashed: 1,267,799 with Jewel shifting back and forth in her battle stance next to it. It was 12:21; he did it. Jewel could finally be free. Jewel's shifting finally slows as she looks out towards Marcus' room. The dark room where he slept in his bed. But something wasn't right.
"Hm hm hm hmmm" Jewel went as her hair flops down over her eyes. A devious little giggle from the fiery headed girl in the game. "What chump. Myyy heeeero, bleeh!" Jewel mocked her act, laughing. She slowly presses her face up against the screen grinning from ear to ear in excitement. She slowly pushes forward on her end of the screen and the result was the television screen being warped. She pushes further making the screen jet out as if it were soft like rubber. After a moment of pushing, her hand finally breaks the barrier; her hand sticking out of the TV into the real world. Clawing and swiping about the air of Marcus' room, it was actually out.
A foot is placed down Marcus' hard wood floor. Ring around the ankle, Jewel placed another foot down, wiggling her bare toes. She was almost outside, but her butt was still inside the game. She pulled with one final strain and finally gets free with a wobbly pop of the television screen, landing on the floor. Jewel stretch out her limbs and flips her hair as she was into the real world just like she said, becoming free as a bird.
Jewel quietly walks over to the sleeping Marcus and sits on the side of his bed looking at him sleep peacefully. As she looked at him, she began to blush almost in embarrassment. Just by staring at him made her feel uneasy. She strokes her hand across his head and gets off his bed heading towards the window. Not taking her eyes off him, she lifts one leg up and sticks it out, then her other until she is sitting on the window frame. "Ciao, you naive sap." Jewel said blowing a kiss once more at him and finally leaping out of the window on to the grass. The blinds wave as a small gust of wind blows them, giving off an eerie feeling in the air.
Jewel finally got her wish, she was free! She stretches out even more reaching for the sky in triumph and relaxation. That is until a squad car slowly pulls up. Flashing the light on her the sheriff of Marcus' neighborhood caught Jewel on his property. Getting out of the car the sheriff shines his flash light even closer to her face.
"Shouldn't be out this late little missy. You're on private property, I'm gonna have to ask you to leave."
"Hey, you primitive ape! Get that light out of my face this instant!"
"Excuse me? Do you know who you're talking to young lady?"
"A big monkey who is about to be pounded if he doesn't get that damn light out of my face!"
"Threatening an officer; I'm gonna have to place you under arrest, you have the right to remain silent." The officer grabs Jewel by her ringed wrist, tugging her along as he got the handcuffs off of his belt. But Jewel had other plans, taking him by the front of his shirt and effortlessly lifting off the ground. A grown man being power housed by a teenage looking video game character. "And I said; get that damn light out of my face, before I shove it down your throat!" Jewel threatened, grabbing the flash light from him in one hand and holding him up with the other. Gripping the flash light ever so slightly, it crumbles like dry bread in her hand. As the bits of the flash light fell to the grassy floor, the sheriff is filled with fear.
"Who- What are you?"
"That’s not important anymore... cause I'm going to waste you." With a flick of her wrist, Jewel sends the officer flying to the floor, hitting his head on his squad car. Before he could react and look up at the one who tossed him, Jewel did a familiar action. She waves her right hand out, and makes the field appear. In doing so, a field appeared instantly around the sheriff and his car. This was d?j? vu, since Jewel's next action was to absorb them into her very hand; and so she did, making them vanish just like Kaiser. More familiar happenings occurred as the energy flowed through her body. Her hands expanded with a jolt, her legs stretched up, the side of her head revealed an even bigger pointed ear. Her whole body jolted up and out; she had grown once again, thus becoming more powerful. Her expansion didn't affect any facial features or tone of her body; everything stayed the same, except for the fact of her being size foot nothing now. Jewel gives one final flick to her hair and laughs to herself.
"Oh... this is going to be fun."
Conclusion in part 2