Fire licked up the side of the stone bridge, casting flickering light over everything. Heat made her skin slick with sweat. When she breathed, the smoke of the fire tickled her nostrils and clogged her throat. Fall clutched her staff close to her chest. Her wide eyes moved wildly from side to side, trying to find a way out. 

On the other side of the bridge was a stone wall, taunting her with its complete blankness. Another dead end. Behind her, the growing heat spoke of approaching death. She whirled to see the glittering hall behind her was growing brighter. 

The dragon was getting closer. 

She could hear its claws scratching over the ground. 

Her heart pounded wildly. Why the fudge did I sign up for this game? How do I log out?

Fall's mind conjured up the instruction booklet, untouched on her desk. Panic welled up in her chest and she took a step back. If she ever saw those other players again, she was going to murder them with her bare hands. They had brought her here, and then split at the first sign of real danger. Cowards.

"Okay, this isn't fun anymore!" Her voice echoed down the hallway.

The dragon roared back at her. Every bone in her body shook with the power of it.

"Ahhh! Ohno. Nononon—" Fall scampered back onto the bridge and checked her menu. There had to be a log out option. She just had to find it before the overgrown lizard found her. And ate her. 

Fear skittered down her spine like an ice cube. Her hands trembled as she shifted through the options. Profile? Options? Where is it?

Fall's vision blurred. She blinked hard, trying to clear up the image. How could a game be so realistic? The very thing she had loved about it this morning was now coming back to haunt her. The heat made it so hard to breathe. Or maybe it was the panic making her chest heavy. Frustration welled up inside of her. She yelled, releasing her feelings into the world.

Her scream echoed back to her. The dragon roared again. Fall closed her eyes.

Laughter floated on the air. Deep and dark and full of hunger. Did dragons laugh? No, it didn't sound like the dragon. So far, all the dragon had done was roar and growl. Someone else was here!

Relief urged Fall down the hall, toward the dragon. Another player was her only hope. If they couldn't fight the dragon, then maybe they could at least tell her how to log out. She ran as fast as she could, but the movement was clunky. Fall's legs felt like jelly, weak and unresponsive. She gritted her teeth. 

If she didn't make it in time to be rescued by the other player, she wouldn't make it at all.

What happened when someone's character died in the game? Fall had no idea. Maybe she would just wake up on her bed, right where she was in the real world. Alive and unhurt. Maybe she would feel the pain of dying first.

Fall shook her head. Stop focusing on death and move faster! Her eyes flicked to the right side of her vision. A small map hovered there, showing her the parts of the caves that she had already wandered through. 

Dead end upon dead end littered these caves, and Fall knew she couldn't afford to take a wrong turn. At least the map was somewhat intuitive, though it would be better if it oriented based on the direction she was facing instead of always pointing North.

Fall's breath came a little harder. Her stamina bar was almost diminished. She rounded another sharp turn. Left. Left. Right. Right? Ohshi-

The tunnel she was barreling down opened up into a large cavern, dripping with crystals that glowed beautiful colors. In the middle of the cavern, a glittering red dragon sat, larger than any building Fall had ever seen. Its beautiful snout was elongated and dagger-like teeth protruded from its lip. Glowing golden eyes turned to look at Fall.

Fire bloomed between the dragon's teeth, and it opened its mouth. Fall was frozen. Paralyzed. Again.

She was only level one.

Time seemed to slow down for Fall. She could see the flame licking at the dragon's snout as it started to billow out into the air. In that frozen moment, the world was startlingly beautiful. A calm settled over Fall. Her stamina bar was totally drained. She didn't know any spells. All she had for a weapon was a small dagger. There was nothing she could do to stop whatever happened next, so she gave up control.

Fall smiled at the dragon.

Raven hair filled her vision. An arm wrapped around her waist. The smell of lavender surrounded Fall.

The dragon's fire slammed into them.