Kapitel 8: 08 Virtual to Reality

Zoe dropped her fork onto the empty plate with a satisfied sigh, leaning back in her chair as the last taste of syrup clung to her tongue.

Her pancakes had been everything she needed—fluffy, warm, and most importantly, in her control.

The chaos of the morning had finally died down, and with Mira gone and her stomach full, she was ready to settle into some serious gaming.

She shuffled over to her gaming rig, flopping into her plush chair with all the grace of someone who had no intention of moving for the next few hours.

A few quick clicks brought her back to the Creature Craze Online login screen, and her eyes lit up as she saw the familiar loading bar inch across the screen.

Finally, the server maintenance was over.

Zoeshon stretched her legs out, grinning as she clicked into the game and was immediately greeted by her Horizon Panther waiting in her inventory.

It was time to level him up.

She had been planning this raid for days, and now that everything was back on track, there was nothing standing between her and some much-needed creature grinding.

Or so she thought.

Just as she was about to queue up for the raid, the glowing brackets flashed in the corner of her vision.

[The Shard has grown stronger. Your presence is required.]

Zoeshon glanced at the message, barely registering it before brushing it aside with a flick of her wrist. "Yeah, yeah. You said that last time."

She clicked into her Panther's stats, eyeing his unallocated skill points.

She'd been meaning to buff his speed and attack, and if this raid went well, she could hit the next level cap by the end of the day.

PvP tournaments were coming up soon, and she needed her team in top shape.

The brackets flashed again, more insistent this time.

[The Shard is destabilizing. Immediate action is required.]

Zoeshon's brow furrowed slightly as she reached for the cold soda tucked in her Snack Vault.

The Vault opened with a faint shimmer of light, and she pulled the can out, the condensation cool against her palm.

She popped the top with a satisfying hiss and took a long swig, letting the cold bubbles fizzle against her throat.

The Loom wasn't about to ruin her gaming session.

Not today.

She dropped the can back into the Vault and sealed it shut, leaning forward with renewed focus.

Her game had finally loaded into the raid zone, and her raid group was already waiting for her in the chat, the messages rolling in fast.

"Zoeshon, you coming? We need DPS," one of her guildmates pinged.

Another message popped up, this time from the guild leader: "Zoeshon, if we're gonna win this raid, we need you on the frontlines with that panther. Let's go!"

Zoeshon grinned, tapping a few quick replies. "Be there in 30 secs. Hold tight."

But before she could dive in, the brackets flared up again, this time taking up more space in her vision.

[The Shard is expanding. Immediate action required.]

She rolled her eyes. 'Can't you take a hint?' she thought, her fingers flying across the keyboard as she prepped her Panther for battle.

The brackets shifted again, almost as if they were reacting to her indifference.

The Loom was clearly trying harder to get her attention.

[The Shard's corruption is spreading. Monsters will breach your neighborhood if left unchecked.]

Zoeshon snorted. "Yeah, I'll deal with it later," she muttered, hitting the ready button for the raid.

Her raid party entered the zone, and the chaos of the game world engulfed her.

Monsters spawned left and right, epic spells flew across the battlefield, and Zoeshon's Horizon Panther pounced with deadly precision.

She was in her element, laser-focused as her fingers danced across the keyboard, coordinating with her team to mow through the waves of enemies, but things weren't going according to plan.

Zoeshon squinted at the screen, already regretting queueing up with this group.

It was the third wipe, and they hadn't even reached the mid-boss yet.

"Why do I do this to myself?" she muttered, dodging another poorly-timed AoE. In-game chaos mirrored the growing irritation gnawing at her, both pulling her further from the normalcy she craved.

Meanwhile, the Loom's messages continued to pulse in the corner of her vision, growing more urgent with each passing second.

[Warning: The Shard is reaching critical mass. Catastrophic events are imminent.]

Zoeshon barely glanced at the warning. A monster lunged at her Panther, and she clicked frantically, spamming attack commands. "Get 'em, boy," she murmured, smirking as her Panther slashed the creature in two.

Another ping from her guild leader: "Zoeshon, you're killing it. Panther MVP!"

She grinned, leaning back in her chair. This was what she needed. Not some real-world monster-shard nonsense. She was making progress, leveling up her creatures, getting the gear she needed for PvP. Life was good again.

The brackets blinked in her peripheral vision, now practically flashing red.

[Final warning: The Shard will breach containment. Evacuate civilians immediately.]

Zoeshon took another sip of her soda, completely unbothered. "Sure thing. I'll get to it… later."

She leaned forward, eyes glued to her monitor, ready to dive deeper into the raid. The Loom would just have to wait.

By the time they reached the final boss, Zoeshon's fingers were a blur on the keyboard, her focus razor-sharp. But even as she dodged and landed hit after hit, her mind wandered back to the real world.

Something was off.

Her magic hummed beneath her skin, reacting to the chaos on the screen like it wanted to burst out.

She glanced around at her teammates, all clustered around her panther, everyone attacking the boss.

Zoeshon mentally stepped back, taking in a deep, calming breath and her magic faded.

The raid was reaching its climax.

Zoeshon's Horizon Panther leapt through the battlefield, claws tearing through enemies while spells erupted around her.

Her focus was razor sharp, her fingers flying across the keyboard in perfect sync with her guildmates.

They were unstoppable.

Suddenly, the platform beneath them cracked, sending two teammates plummeting to their deaths as the boss unleashed a second wave of fire.

"Great," Zoeshon muttered, eyes darting between the rapidly shrinking safe zone and the boss's glowing health bar. 'One more wipe and I'm out.'

But she didn't quit—not yet.

Not when they were this close.

She shifted her panther a little closer to the middle.

Meanwhile, the brackets continued flashing in her peripheral vision, more frantic now, nearly vibrating with urgency.

[Critical alert: The Shard is destabilizing. Fatal breach imminent.]

Her magic flared again, tingling beneath her skin as the final boss powered up, the control taken away from all players as it did its preparation for its final attacks.

Zoeshon bit her lip, fingers tapping furiously, trying to block out the growing sense that something was wrong—really wrong.

In the game, she could control everything, down to the last spell.

In the real world?

Not so much.

Zoeshon swallowed hard, focusing on the game as the boss unleashed a furious attack.

She commanded her Panther to unleash a finishing combo on the raid boss, watching with satisfaction as her creature dealt a massive final blow, sending the boss monster crashing to the ground in defeat.

Her headset buzzed with congratulations from her guildmates.

"Zoeshon, that was amazing!"

"Horizon Panther FTW!"

"Carried the raid, Zoeshon!"

She grinned, leaning back in her chair. Victory tasted just as sweet as her pancakes had earlier, and she basked in the praise for a moment, reveling in the digital carnage she'd just helped create.

But the Loom wasn't done. Not even close.

The glowing brackets in the corner of her vision flared brighter, and a new message appeared:

[Powerful ability unlocked: Area of Effect – Obliteration. Wipe out all enemies within 50 yards. Target lower-level monsters will be eradicated instantly.]

Zoeshon's fingers hovered over her keyboard for a moment, considering the offer.

Obliteration?

That did sound kind of cool. But then again, so did the fact that she had just finished her raid.

Her Panther was leveling up nicely, and she had new loot to sift through.

Her guild was hyped, and she wasn't about to let the Loom drag her back into reality.

"Yeah, still not happening," she muttered under her breath, brushing the message aside like an annoying pop-up ad.

The Loom didn't take the hint.

[Level jump unlocked: You will instantly level up, and your spells will increase in power accordingly.]

Zoeshon sighed dramatically. Now the Loom was really trying. A level jump sounded tempting—if it had anything to do with her Panther's level, maybe she'd reconsider. But as far as real-life levels went? Hard pass.

Her guildmates were still pinging her with congratulations and post-raid banter. She clicked into the chat and typed out a quick response.

"Thanks, guys. Panther for the win. Let's crush it again tomorrow!"

Zoe leaned back, exhaustion pulling at her.

Finally.

She reached for her snack vault when her phone buzzed.

Mira's text flashed on the screen: [We've got monsters down here now.]

Zoe groaned, the real-world threat sinking in.

There was no break between this life and that one anymore.

She said her goodbyes, logged off, and stretched her arms high above her head, feeling the satisfying crack of her back.

Finally, she allowed herself to glance up at the glowing message still floating persistently in the air.

"You tried to interrupt my raid for this?" she asked, one eyebrow raised as she scanned the Loom's frantic offers.

A tiny part of her was impressed that it had thrown so much at her in such a short time.

She couldn't deny it was desperate.

But before she could swipe the message away again, a loud crash echoed from the street below.

Zoe blinked, her eyes narrowing as she stood up and wandered over to the window.

Peeking through the blinds, she immediately noticed the chaos unfolding outside.

Monsters—real, live, ugly-as-sin monsters—were rampaging through her neighborhood.

They tore up the sidewalks, knocked over mailboxes, and sent pedestrians screaming in every direction.

And right in the middle of it all was one particularly large, hulking beast, with thick, scaly skin and glowing red eyes.

Zoe's eyes widened as she watched it swing its massive tail, sending a parked car flying down near the river to slam around a tree.

Her car.

Dusty.

The Pymouth Duster, the one she'd meticulously kept in perfect condition under the hood despite its beat-up exterior.

The car that had survived years of driving without so much as a dent because of her clever decision to leave the outside a little rough-looking.

Her pride and joy.

Her sleeper beast.

Sure, Dusty wasn't the fastest car on the block, but it had heart.

And snacks.

Zoe knew every secret hiding spot in that car, from the emergency donut stash in the glove box to the backup soda cans tucked under the seat.

"Hey!" Zoe's voice went from lazy to furious in an instant.

She yanked open the blinds, glaring down at the scene below as the monster snarled and lumbered closer to her damaged car.

She ripped the window open and leaned out to shake her fist at the chaos far below. "That's my car!"

The creature bared its teeth and let out a deep growl, clearly unimpressed with her outrage. I

t turned its glowing eyes on Dusty again, raising its clawed hand for another swing.

Zoe heartbeat throbbed in her ears as the edges of her vision turned red.

Not because of the Shard, not because of the Loom's pestering, but because her beloved car was getting wrecked by some overgrown mutant lizard.

She let out a long, frustrated sigh, grabbing her keys and heading for the door.

"Fine," she muttered, rolling her eyes. "I'll kick its butt, but only because Dusty got hurt."

As she stormed out of the apartment, the brackets flashed again in her peripheral vision, this time seeming almost… relieved.

[Area of Effect – Obliteration spell unlocked.]

"Yeah, yeah, I got it the first time," Zoe snapped as she headed for the elevator, her hand already crackling with energy. "Let's get this over with."

With an annoyed sigh, she equipped her gear in the elevator. 'Hullo Banana Disaster." She swung her staff, limbering up for the task.

Zoe crossed the lobby and stepped outside, a heavy fog seemed to hang in the air like when the 250 Todd apartments came down in 2024 but without the dust.

In the distance, she saw them—monsters, their shapes barely visible in the shadows. Her hand instinctively hovered over her chest as her magic reacted.

The raid was over, but the real fight was just beginning

AUTORENGEDANKEN
Zanden

Hey everyone!

Chapter 8, "Virtual to Reality," was a ride! This one’s all about the adrenaline rush of the raid and how quickly things can go from digital chaos to real-world stakes for Zoe. I wanted to keep you in the thick of the action, with Zoe barely having time to catch her breath before dealing with whatever trouble's brewing in real life.

The gaming raid was so much fun to write—I really wanted you to feel that combination of exhilaration, frustration, and teamwork that comes with those big boss fights. But at the same time, Zoe’s not just dealing with in-game bosses. There’s this constant reminder for her that what’s happening outside of the game isn’t just something she can log off from. The two worlds are colliding, and her magic, which is supposed to stay under wraps, keeps reminding her that she’s got responsibilities that are way bigger than an in-game leaderboard.

One of my favorite parts of this chapter was how Zoe's magic started to react to her emotions while she was gaming. Even in the comfort of her apartment, behind her screen, she can’t fully escape what’s going on. It’s a reminder that magic doesn’t play by her rules—something she’s going to have to face sooner rather than later.

I hope you enjoyed the mix of action and humor in this one. Let me know if you think Zoe should handle things differently, or if you liked how she balanced saving the raid while keeping Dusty safe. Your feedback always gives me new ideas (and new ways to throw challenges at Zoe!).

Thanks for sticking with Zoe’s journey—more to come soon!

--Zanden