I finger the hem of my midnight blue choir robe.

Aileen looks at me like I'm wounded. But I'm fine. I've been fine for the past hour. We've checked into one of the apartments—a high-rise owned by Olivia Park. The place is decked out with rogue equipment, and sleek and minimalistic furniture matching Olivia's personality. I behold a stunning view of Kap City, the buildings making an uneven landscape that borders the wilderness of Gloria. The leaders of Mysteriously gather in the kitchen, mixing virtual fizzy drinks.

"Are you okay?" Aileen asks, after a long silence.

I bite the inside of my cheek. "I'm fine. It's not like Ken actually wounded me."

She sighs, taking the seat next to me on the navy blue couch. "I know that. But he wanted to shame you and beat you in front of all those people. I already hate everyone in Dragoon."

"It's fine," I say. "I'm the one who accepted the duel. I have to accept my defeat, even if the whole battle lasted only a few seconds."

Aileen doesn't look convinced. "You can take a break from the game if you want."

My ears burn with embarrassment. Did my loss really look that bad? "I'm not taking a break. It's not even dinner time yet."

Aileen sighs. "Whatever you say. But if it was me, I'd log off and take a rest."

I don't have time to respond. Nathan and the others return with Italian sodas, handing them out with smiles that have forgotten about my recent defeat.

I drink and try to forget the sensation of the dagger digging into my chest. Everyone's a bit kinder to me, even Cody. I spend the rest of the afternoon watching as the sun paints the sky pink and purple. The skies turn dark, and the lights of the city glow bright. It feels like we've stumbled upon a constellation on Earth.

"We'll regroup tomorrow," Nathan says. "We'll begin hunting for a boss. Josiah and Aileen are still a bit low-leveled, but we'll steal more experience as we move along. How does that sound?"

I down the last of my soda, the coolness and sugar making my tongue feel alive. "Sounds great."

The other members log out. Soon it's only me and Nathan.

My emotions start rushing out, unreserved. "I'm so sorry about earlier. I know you and Dragoon have a history. And I made the whole guild look bad."

Nathan's kind eyes flicker toward me. "Don't even worry about it. I'm just glad you're okay. Sometimes people get hurt in real life from the shock of losing a duel. You seem to be holding up."

I force a smile. "Thank you. And thanks for an amazing day. I love my new equipment."

He reaches out and brushes some hair out of my eyes. "My pleasure. Let me know if there's anything else you need."

I want to stay here, asking him a thousand questions. There's so much I want to know about Nathan Lum. Instead, I whisper instructions to my VRS, logging me out from the world of Starlia. I enter my bedroom, my eyes adjusting to the duller color palette. It feels like I've gone from paradise into purgatory. I'll never get used to the drastic change from Starlia to the real world.

I sit on my bed until my mom calls me out for dinner.

Even she can sense that something's wrong. "Something happened at school?"

I grimace. I don't know why, but I decide to recount the whole story of today. Starting from entering Kap City, to being challenged by Ken, to losing in front of all those people. Suddenly, it feels like the weight of disappointment weighs down my chest. I feel a pressure behind my eyes. Could I really end up crying just because of a lost duel?

My mother always knows how to comfort me. She stands up and comes by my side, hugging me even when I feel like I deserve to be alone. She whispers affirmations into my ear, telling me that I'm brave for entering the unknown world of a game.

When she returns to her seat, I spill even more. I recount the trip to LA and mention the possibility of finding the secret code for a weathering machine.

Mom leans in, all ears. She doesn't doubt me, always wielding optimism. "That sounds like an amazing quest to embark on. If you really do end up finding the fragments, I'm sure you'll unlock a secret that the world needs. Josiah, if anyone can do it, it's you."

I don't know what I did to deserve my mom and her belief in me. It often feels like I'm mediocre, and my loss earlier was proving that to me. Here, it feels like I can become someone remarkable. I know that one's mother is often your biggest supporter. I'm incredibly blessed to have one that not only supports me but empowers me.

I go to bed dreaming of the fragments. The blue gem spins in my memory, enchanting me to come find it.

*

"Kap City is home to one of the most fearsome bosses in the Gloria continent." Nathan's words ring throughout Olivia's apartment.

I exchange a furtive glance with Aileen. "One of the most fearsome?" I squeak out.

The leaders of Mysteriously are already filing out of the apartment. Cody isn't amused. "Relax," he says. "We'll do most of the dirty work."

We descend in the elevator and come out to the early afternoon. Nathan leads with a quick pace. We pass other apartment buildings and factories, eventually transferring to the dingier parts of the city. Rubbish crowds the alleys, and it smells faintly of urine and moldy food. It's hardly populated, and we only pass a player every few hundred feet.

Nathan turns into an alley as if he knows every crook and cranny of Kap City by heart. We step over trash bags and I let out a very unmanly scream after avoiding a fat rat. Nathan turns around with a toothy grin, and Cody rolls his eyes.

"One of the most fearsome bosses in Gloria... lives in a side alley?" Aileen sounds a mixture of doubtful and afraid.

Nathan stops outside the entrance of a sewer. "Yup. Not exactly in the alley, but close enough."

"Don't tell me we have to go inside a sewer," I say.

"That's where he lives," Nathan says. "We don't have a choice. Anyway, jump down and brace yourself for the fall."

Mags and Olivia go down, then Cody and Nathan. Aileen and I stare at each other until one of us cracks. "Okay," Aileen says. She jumps down first, screeching as she falls.

I stare at the open sewer, wondering whether I'll regret playing Starlia and joining Mysteriously. Dying in the stinky shadows doesn't sound very appealing. No matter, I hold my breath and jump down. It's a long fall, and my knees buckle when I hit the damp floor. I can barely see, but soon my eyes adjust to the darkness. I find my team already heading down the sewer.

"Watch out for the thieves," Nathan says.

Thieves? Then one of them seems to materialize from the shadows, wearing a ski mask and dressed in all black. He holds a dagger, charging toward Olivia who takes up the front. Olivia dodges the attack and buries her dagger into the thief's chest. He screams out and disappears into dust.

I gulp. Sensing my fear, Cody takes up the rear. "Just stay in front of me and stay alive," he says, like it's very simple not to be impaled by a thief.

Several more thieves appear along the way. Mags shoots them down, and Nathan finishes them off by firing his bolts. I can't get over how human our enemies are. If they took off their masks, I wonder if I'd recognize them as sentient beings. Aileen shivers as we move along, and I would comfort her if I wasn't so afraid myself.

"Eagle." Mags extends a hand toward the darkness.

A shining, silver eagle materializes on Mags' hand, shooting forth into the darkness of the sewer. We pause for a few seconds. Then the eagle returns with a sharp call. It disappears upon reaching its owner.

"The burglar should be up ahead," Mags says. She must've read something on her interface.

The sewer opens up into a lair. Several openings let in light from above, illuminating the damp brick walls and floor. It smells horrible. Like dead fish mixed with mold. The space makes a perfect circle, with multiple exits shooting out like the legs of a spider.

A large, muscular man stands in the middle of the lair. He towers over us, twice the size of the thieves we faced. He takes off his ski mask, revealing tan skin and handsome features—a sharp nose and a cut jaw. Several knives glint in his utility belt. He smiles at us as we enter.

"Welcome." It's the first time I'm witnessing a boss who can speak. It's unsettling.

Burglar. Level 70. HP: 100%

Happy January everyone! I have a question for all of you. If you were to start a guild in Starlia, what would you name it? 

In MapleStory, I used to be in a guild called Ping Pong. Then I transferred to a guild called Convicts. If I were to name one now... I'm not sure! Maybe something like "Iridescence"? There are so many options!