Chapter Three

  The cursor blinked, waiting for her reply. The message box was titled Lord Falker. For that reason alone, Alex put her fingers back on the keyboard and typed a response.

  [Xandr] Love to. How about Global Thermonuclear War?

  She couldn't figure out why, but she was nervous waiting for the response.

  [Lord Falker] Nice work on the AoD

  Alex frowned. This must be one of her online friends who knew her love of War Games messing with her.

  [Xandr] Haha. Who is this? Checko? AgentBlue?

  [Lord Falker] I'm the one who put up the bounty. Take a moment and check the achievement forums.

  Alex quickly alt-tabbed out and confirmed what Lord Falker had said. She wasn't sure how she'd missed the War Games reference before, but his name was buried on the lead sheet.

  [Xandr] Not nice enough. I lost. :(

  [Lord Falker] I saw you DC. Unlucky. You were going to win.

  A chill went down her spine. She typed in her next question, but hesitated before hitting the enter key.

  [Xandr] I still get $$?

  [Lord Falker] Sorry, no. Bounty still up.

  [Xandr] ...

  [Lord Falker] Not here to taunt. Here to offer a better opportunity. Real reason for bounty.

  [Xandr] Haha. Is this some sort of The Last Starfighter thing?

  [Lord Falker] Yes, actually, it is. I'm looking for top gaming talent.

  Alex crossed her arms and squinted at the screen. Have I gone mad? She cracked her knuckles and responded.

  [Xandr] To defend the Frontier against the Xur and the Ko-Dan Armada?

  [Lord Falker] In a way, yes. I'm offering a chance to play the hardest game in the world. One with rewards far beyond what can normally be expected.

  There was a part of her that wanted to unplug the computer. It felt too good to be true. Your Princess is in another castle, or something like that.

  [Xandr] BS. There's no hardest game in the world with rewards better than the bounty I just lost. Who is this? Really?

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  [Lord Falker] Gamemakers Online

  Alex sat tall and checked over her shoulder.

  [Xander] Gamemakers Online? I don't understand. As in the Hundred Halls?

  [Lord Falker] The very one.

  Her excitement drained out of her like a balloon gradually losing air. Her staccato response was punctuated with a hard enter.

  [Xandr] My Merlin scores suck

  When no response came right away, Alex was sure he'd disconnected. Whoever was on the other side was probably messing with her.

  [Lord Falker] But high enough to qualify. The Trials don't require excessive amounts of magical ability. They're more to test the student's problem-solving creativity, which you have an abundance of.

  [Xandr] I couldn't even get to Invictus to test if I wanted to. We don't own a car, we're broke, and to be honest, I still don't believe this is real.

  Alex sat against her chair, crossed her arms, and considered logging out.

  [Lord Falker] Check your mail.

  At that moment, her email account dinged. She found an email indicating that money had been sent to her online account. The sender had a Hundred Halls email address. She knew it could be spoofed, but why send money for a joke? When she checked the amount, it wasn't much, enough to get her to the city by bus...or take her mom out for her birthday.

  [Lord Falker] Take it or leave it. If you decide to come to the Halls, then I have no doubt that you'd pass the Trials. If not, good luck, Xandr.

  The window closed, indicating that her benefactor had logged out of the chat program.

  Alex switched over to her online account and stared at the money she'd just received. It wasn't a lot, but more importantly, it represented a chance at a new life. She peeked into the living room to see her mom sitting on the ratty loveseat, a pile of yarn in her lap as she tried to untangle the mess that had formed. Halfway through the untangling, she broke into a coughing fit.

  If she stayed in Kentucky, she'd have to get a job being a waitress or something else that would be a complete waste of her talents. But if she left, her mom would be all alone. While they hadn't gotten along since her dad died, she hadn't stopped loving her.

  But...

  The Hundred Halls.

  Gamemakers.

  Lord Falker had said it'd be a chance to play the hardest game in the world.

  Alex grabbed her favorite walking stick. When she had her hand on the screen door, her mom looked up from her knitting.

  "Aren't you fixing dinner tonight?"

  A vicious barb formed on her lips, but Alex swallowed it back. The thought of leaving brought a sheen of empathy to her mood.

  "I'll be back later, Mom. I need to take a walk, do some thinking," she said.

  "Oh, good. So you're considering selling your gaming gear," said her mom while her hands worked the needles, adding a chest-deep cough at the end. "I'll take tonight's turn at dinner if you need more time to think about it."

  Rather than correct her mother, she pushed through the screen door while shaking her head. As it slammed behind her, Alex squeezed her hands into fists. Her mother could be so infuriating!

  She was lucky she wasn't a rash person, or she would have told her she was leaving for the Halls out of spite. But Alex liked to make her decisions with a spreadsheet, working out all the pros and cons before making her choice.

  Her online friend AgentBlue always made fun of her about the spreadsheets, saying that it meant she was afraid, but that wasn't the way she saw it. Alex liked to consider all the options before settling on her path, but once she'd made that decision, she'd throw herself into it, even if it meant throwing herself off a metaphorical cliff.

  Which was why she wanted to take the time to think about the Hundred Halls and her mom. As mad as she was, she knew in her gut that she didn't want to hurt her. Each other was all they had left.

  Alex headed into the woods, taking the trail that wound up to Preacher's Lookout. A layer of clouds blocked the sun, which kept it from being completely miserable, but the gnats were out in full force. Every dozen steps or so she had to slap the back of her neck, wiping away the sweat and bug guts.

  Weighing the options took her complete concentration and she'd been making the journey up to the point for so many years that her feet knew every root and hole along the way, so she didn't notice the mountain lion until it let loose a growl.