Filed to story: Outplayed Story (Brooklyn & Ethan) Book PDF Free
‘Fair enough. Bravura? What do you think?’
She had not been expecting to be asked for a comment. ‘I … er … I don’t mind either way. I mean, just being here is amazing. Even if we get kicked out after this round, I’ll be happy.’ She caught Blaze’s frown. ‘Of course, I would love it if we won.’
‘Like I said,’ Blaze interrupted. ‘Our chances are as good as anyone else’s.’
Right. He didn’t even look at her when he said it. What happened to ‘it’s just a game’?
Brook produced a smile too, because after all, the world was watching.Ethan took off his headset and pushed his chair away from his console. Phew. That was … difficult. He made a note of their time on the notepad that lived on the shelf at his elbow. He also wrote down the actual time. Nearly eleven o’clock. According to Syren’s rules, everyone started playing at 8 p.m. The streams weren’t broadcast until after the winners were announced. No one knew how well anyone else was doing. The top eight teams would go to the next round. Fifteen minutes after the top eight had gone through, the teams would be notified that the round was over. Those who were still playing could carry on if they wanted to finish the round.
So, if fifteen minutes passed and he wasn’t notified that the round was over, then he could be pretty sure he was in the next one. He pushed his hair off his face. What could he do for fifteen minutes? He had recorded his gameplay, so that he could stitch together some highlights and do some commentary to go on his YouTube channel. It was probably best to wait before he did the commentary. Right now, he was still annoyed with Bravura. She was so very slow.
For Ethan it was a matter of pride that his channel was mostly positive in its outlook. He had to be careful that he didn’t ruin that in a moment of annoyance. He thought back through what he’d said in the interview at the end. He was fairly sure he hadn’t been nasty. Hopefully, his voice hadn’t given away too much.
He closed his eyes and took a couple of deep breaths. Blaze was where he went to get away from his real life. Needing money to buy his company was a Ethan problem. He could not let it affect him as Blaze. For Blaze, this gig had to be just a bit of fun.
He opened his eyes and started making notes about what to say in his recap for his followers. A few minutes later, he was interrupted by a notification on his phone. The contest was over. His gaze flew to the clock. It had been fifteen minutes. Did that mean they were in? Or they’d finished just after the eighth team got through.
A message came through.
Bravura:
Did we make it?
Blaze:
Not sure. We came close, at least.
Another message.
Flick:
Yess! I think I’m in to the next round. We finished a good half hour before the game end. How about you?
Blaze:
Dunno. The game end notification went out about 15 minutes after we finished. So we could be the last ones in, or we could be 9 th by a few seconds. Can’t tell yet. I’m going back in.
He put his headset back on. The game dropped him back into the training environment. The interviewer from before was projected on the sky, announcing the winning teams and their times.
He looked around as Bravura appeared next to him. They nodded to each other and turned back to the presenter.
Phil_the_Vicar and his partner had come first. Not hugely surprising. Phil was Flick’s husband (in real life) and he was a very, very good gamer – and his teammate was a good amateur. There were a few others Ethan recognised, including Flick. The team in seventh place had finished in two hours and forty-three minutes.
Ethan thought of their two hours and forty-six minutes. Three whole minutes. His heart sank. That was too wide a margin.
‘And team number eight … this was very, very close, folks. There is only a difference of thirty seconds between this team and the one after it …’
He glanced at Bravura. She was chewing her lip, eyes fixed on the presentation. She looked like she was going to cry. He felt bad for snapping at her.
‘Before I announce this last team, can I just say how brilliantly everyone played. Yes, even the ones who ended the game by losing a player. We’re very proud of our game and we didn’t want to make it too easy for you, so rest assured, you did a great job. And remember, we will be releasing each new scenario in SyrenQuest as we finish each round. You can still play, even if you’re no longer in the competition.’
Get on with it. Get on with it!
‘So … the final team to go into round two are … Blaze and Bravura, with two hours and forty-six minutes. Congratulations, guys!’
Ethan punched the air. ‘Yes! Come ON!’
Bravura had her hands over her mouth. Her eyes shone.
He put out his hand. ‘Well done, partner.’
They shook hands.
‘I can’t believe it,’ Bravura said, her voice a choked whisper. ‘I’m-‘
He shot her a warning glance and flicked his eyes towards the presenter to remind her that she was being recorded. If she was about to go on about how much of a fan she was, she should at least know that she was on record. Her eyes widened when she got the message. Ethan extracted his hand from her grip.
‘Good job,’ he said, quickly. ‘We did great. We’ll do even better in round two, right?’
‘Er … yes. Onwards and upwards.’
The presenter started talking again and the spotlight moved off them. Ethan was fairly sure all this was being recorded anyway, so he said, ‘I’m going to log off now, Bravura. I’ll catch you later.’
She nodded. He switched his headset off and removed it.
A few seconds later, a message came in on the chat app.
Bravura:
I know I wasn’t the best. I promise I’ll practise my moves between now and the next game.
Hah. She had said the same thing last time he’d spoken to her. Another wave of irritation washed through him. It was a miracle they’d survived the first attack. Why did he have to get the nice-but-rubbish newbie? It wasn’t her fault she was a crap fighter. It was just his rotten luck. Still, they had made it into the second round. Maybe that would be the push she needed.
Blaze: