Bone Diggers - Chapter Thirty Nine

Loading... Chapter Thirty Nine

After two weeks of endless arguing over the recap episodes, Daniel's story was about to hit the internet. It also marked Owen's first night of live streaming. An unnerving task, as if his past life would be on display. Everything would be out in public, every personal moment, every stupid thing that was said. He was a bone digger, for fuck's sake. He needed privacy to expose secrets, but now his own game experiences were out there for everyone else to judge.

Tonight fnVR was hosting a party, mostly for press, to introduce Owen and Andreah as their newest sponsored players. So much hype and money was put into this warm welcome. A far warmer welcome than begrudgingly signing contracts.

Owen felt like making a run for it until he spotted Neal and Charlie. Their presence anchored him, and at times gave the appearance that he was socializing.

"I got completely rekted this morning while playing," Neal said, "by a dude I don't even remember starting problems with. He sure was pissed at me, though."

"That is why we stick to the tenets," Charlie chuckled, trying not to be too amused with another Neal death story. "Killing rashly is practically asking for it to come back around."

Their conversations were short lived, since Owen couldn't go long without being interrupted by other party goers. Then there was the press.

Oh god, the press. He had evaded them for so long when first getting two NPCs. And if he stayed close enough to the office he could duck in and continue avoiding them. That is, until they started camping outside.

The only person he hadn't caught sight of was Andreah. Curiosity mixed with an acceptance of his fate resulted in him touring around the room. Thankfully, a popular player in the area, SniperV, showed up and shifted everyone's attention. Owen had been curious of the man behind the avatar, who drew attention towards himself like a neon light in a crowd of moths. His volume, style, and attitude all suggested a star. Or more that he was going to ride his privilege up to the top, and everyone else seemed vaguely okay with as long as he was entertaining. Within fifteen minutes, Owen heard the origin story about the username three times. It wasn't even a good story. He'd been a sniper and the fifth member on a professional FPS clan back in the day. Yet everyone seemed to love it.

Owen separated himself from the crowd as much as he could. Even if it meant walking over to the dreaded gaming area. Here only Carmen buzzed around as she finished setting everything up. This spot wasn't much better. He could see both the party goers and a media line with other sponsored celebrities whose interviews were being streamed.

He was still wandering around the room, hoping to get lost more than anything else, when he noticed someone that looked like Andreah. If anyone had been fighting for his attention, he would have missed the woman in a long shimmery black and gold dress with a low cut back. It was by far the fanciest thing he'd seen Andreah in. Even her hair was styled to a new extreme, emphasized by the fact she had shaved one side of her head.

Every day he was looking at a different version of her. His heart ached for the bike messenger in reflector yellow.

Andreah was tucked away with a beer in hand, talking to a girl he recognized as Abigail. Her name was easy to remember since his secrets had been meant for her. Owen approached slowly, like he was a crasher to his own party.

Andreah turned to look at him with a huge, bright smile. "Hey! How's it going?"

It was a change from their new usual of 'exes who were both too stubborn to quit their jobs.' But to be expected in this setting, really. They couldn't appear dysfunctional on day one. "It's uh, pretty okay. How about you?" Owen looked over at Abigail, who offered a softer smile, and gave her a nod hello. "It's nice to see you again."

Andreah lifted her drink up, sloshing what was left of it around in the bottle. "It's good so far."

He glanced at Abigail again, taking a breath to gauge the moment before proceeding. "I've been meaning to talk about something. Do you have a second?"

Abigail cleared her throat, giving her friend a look to make sure it was okay. "I'll get us some more drinks."

"Thanks, Abby," Andreah said, before looking at Owen. "What's up?"

"Um, I know we haven't really talked about anything of real importance in like weeks." Owen ran his hand through his hair, certainly messing up the carefully sculpted shape they wanted for photos. "Sometimes I feel like I was pushed into this, that I have no privacy anymore, but then I remember you tried to protect that at the end. And I guess, I just wanted you to know that I meant to thank you."

She gave him a small nod before taking an abrupt chug of her drink. "I get it." She considered leaving it at that at first, but she decided to go on. "Look, we don't need to repair things. You don't have to learn to bear my existence. And you don't have to thank me for being a decent person when I end up being one. Because I don't need the validation."

She lifted the bottle again to her lips, so Owen figured he had a chance to speak. "I never meant to—"

"I was more than okay with how things ended. You don't need to treat me any differently just because we're stuck working together now." Her eyes hadn't moved from his the entire time. "I don't have the time or energy to focus on more than our work, so let's just focus on that. Not trying to be friends again."

"Right." Funny, how quick and easy the word came, when it wasn't right at all.

"How are my two stars?" Chris called from steps away as he walked over. He didn't wait to for an answer, or even to take a second to notice the awkwardness that was ready to smother the whole area. "We're ready to do the interviews, please come with me."

Andreah abandoned her drink on the table she was leaning against, and was the first to follow after Chris. Owen lagged, needing a moment to recover. No one seemed to notice as they reached the staged-off area. Andreah paused, then turned to Abby to ask how she looked. Or at least that's what he gathered as she messed with her hair and tugged on her dress.

He got lost in the bursts of gold on the long dress, fireworks of glitter pulling his attention away from the person who putting a mic on him. Carmen patted him on the shoulder once finished. "Alright, all set. Do you need anything?"

"Uh, water. Please?"

She nodded and swiftly grabbed a nearby bottle, handing it off. He took a few sips before turning to look for his own friends. He spotted Charlie and Neal off behind the imaginary 'employees only' line. They must have seen him head towards the stage. His fingers rose to mess with his tie, wishing they let him keep his jacket so he had somewhere to put his hands besides the pockets of his slacks.

Andreah fell into place next to him as they waited for the previous interview to end. Despite their proximity, the two virtually looked through each other. When called to go on stage, Owen and Andreah stepped off at the same time, nearly bumping into each other. He ended up letting her take point.

"I'd like to welcome Alexander Owen and Andreah Bourne, the players behind Daniel and Amilia." The speaker, Noah, was instantly recognizable to anyone who watched gaming events. He never streamed, instead opted to make his own news channel that garnered a ton of attention from the community. If there was a conference that had to do with MMO or PC gaming, he was there as an honored guest. Made sense, since the guy had the charisma of a used car salesman that you couldn't help but trust.

Noah came over to their side of the stage and offered a hand to Andreah, assisting her with the walk over to the seats as Owen helped himself. There was another woman on stage. She had bright pink hair, but Owen didn't know her despite what seemed like a clue. Maybe a blogger?

Andreah gave the camera a wave and winning smile as the clapping and cheers erupted from the crowd. It was a loud reminder that Owen needed to wear a smile as well.

"So, hello! How have you been enjoying the night so far?" Noah asked.

Andreah gave a glance over to Owen, offering the chance to respond first. He'd rather let her, but since everyone was waiting, he spoke. "It's really been something else. Everyone is so excited to see the story."

"Oh, we definitely are," the woman a few seats down chimed in. Owen took a second to glance at the playback monitors and saw her name was Zoey. "We'll jump right into the questions, since right after we're done you'll be playing Age of Shadows for us. The biggest thing about you is that you have two companions. So many people try to get one, and even that doesn't always work out. How did you manage it?"

"It was kind of dumb luck. No one even knew you could have two. Amilia just sort of fell into my lap, and I was lucky enough that she decided to stick around."

"Man, I wish you didn't make it sound so easy," Noah said, with a breathless laugh. "Why did you end up keeping it such a huge secret? You could have had, like, ten sponsorships by now."

Owen fidgeted; maybe for a little too long, since Andreah ended up answering for him. "Lance and Amilia are two very important characters to Daniel, and Owen. He didn't want to make the game something more than the experience."

"Spoken like a true roleplayer," Noah commented. "I hear we won't be seeing Amilia tonight. You're the player behind Amilia though, correct?"

"In part," Andreah said. "Amilia is a special case. All non-player characters are pre-programmed to, well, act human. She existed before me, but I definitely took a shine to her. And now Amilia is mapped to me like any other player character would be."

"Funny how that happened," Owen added, grinning the brightest he had since coming on the stage. Andreah laughed like it was an inside joke.

Zoey leaned forward, clearly knowing she missed something, and looked over to Noah in case he understood. "What do you mean?"

"Hmm?" Owen turned to look at her as innocent as an angel might. "Nothing. I love your hair by the way. My friend has the same color. It looks just as stunning on you."

"Oh." Zoey's blush added a bit more pink to her face and a hand reached up to her hair. "Thank you."

"Alright, lady killer, next question," Noah said, "Roleplaying has never been as big as competitive matches on Age of Shadows, how do you feel about taking it mainstream?"

"It's pretty exciting. There's so much story everyone at fnVR puts into the game and it's a shame so many people pass over it," Andreah fawned.

"I used to think roleplaying was a dirty word to some gamers. It'd be nice to not have to hear another 'one v. one me bro' for a while," Owen joked. It was unlike him to make those kinds of comments, but he slowly felt himself slipping into the shoes he needed to fill.

"So Amilia is special, but what about other players? Could they ever get NPCs that become tailored to them?" Zoey asked.

"Lance, for example," Noah quickly added. The name caught Owen's attention, and he glanced over to Carmen who flipped through her clipboard as if that was not agreed upon.

"There are no plans to make that a feature," Andreah said without losing a beat.

"Alright, last question before we let you play, and show us what we've all been waiting for," Zoey said, determined to get the last one in. "What is it like collaborating together on such an expansive story?"

Andreah simply turned to Owen, waiting for him to answer. It was like she wanted to test if there were any more smart comments he might still have in him. And he stared back as if daring her, too.

"It's a hell of a ride," he said to Andreah, before looking back at the reporters and checking if that answer was acceptable. Andreah smiled as she moved her hand to gently pat his back. All of it was one giant show, but the touch was too far. Owen ground down his complaint between his teeth. There was no room to complain right now.

"Thank you so much for your time. Now we'll take a short break as Owen gets ready, but stay tuned for an exclusive sneak peek of the Treaty of London. Sure to change things up for every player."

Andreah waved again, and Owen forced a smile before the red light on the cameras switch off. She was up first as Owen watched the monitors for a moment longer until they switched to a logo of Age of Shadows.

"It's so nice to meet both of you." The smile Andreah plastered on for the two reporters was too big.

"Do you have Twitter, or anything else I can add you on? I'd definitely love to stay in contact, if that's okay," Zoey said.

"Oh, yeah. I'll give you whatever you'd like," Andreah said. "And definitely follow back."

Owen watched their exchange with disdain until he realized Carmen was trying to get his attention. He held his hands up, feeling like he should help her take off the mic, but she did it so fast all he could do was stand still. "Thanks," he mumbled.

Once he stepped off the stage, he was free of obligations. At least for three minutes or so. He found Charlie leaning against a patch of wall. Neal wasn't in sight, but Owen assumed he was trying to meet new people. There wasn't much room, but what Charlie had, they shared.

"This is your big night, and frankly it's fucking awesome in here," Charlie said, but Owen didn't see it. He glanced around the room, to all the sponsored gear they brought in, then to multiple stations they set up in what had been a shared study only days before. The people were electric and the tech was alive. It really was something. "So, why do you look like someone ran over your pet."

"I don't."

Charlie raised a brow, and Owen instantly shut up. Since his friend wasn't going to give him room to lie, he might as well go with the truth.

"I don't think I am the person they think I am. Or the person I need to be to pull this off. I can't just pull on whatever mask I need so people only see what they want. I only have one mask. It's Daniel. I don't think he's the straight white hero they are looking for."

Charlie tilted their head, and swayed to look over at the fnVR executives. "Would that be a problem?"

"I have no clue." He and Charlie had been standing close, close enough to talk to each other in hushed voices that wouldn't carry in a room so filled with noise.

"Hmm." Charlie squished up their face as if trying to figure the answer out by simply miming their curiosity. "Lance, right?"

"What?"

"Daniel loves Lance, right?"

Owen glanced around like he was being watched, then remembered he actually was, and tried to casually look ahead again. "Did Neal tell you that?"

Charlie rolled their eyes. They made no rush to finish before speaking. "I'm asexual, not blind."

"What?" Owen shook his head. Blurting disbelief in such a distasteful way was starting to sound rude. "I didn't know that."

"Should you have?"

Owen was so dumbfounded that he couldn't even manage to get a syllable out. Charlie laughed. "My point is, it doesn't matter. If you want you can tell everyone you can. If you aren't comfortable telling people, you don't have to. Visibility is important, but so are you. Being open about it is one of the few choices you have in the matter."

"What would you do?"

Charlie put their drink down, and raised both their hands up to give the bird. "Screw heteronormativity, is what I always say."

"I've never heard you say that," Owen laughed.

"Oh," Charlie grinned, and picked up their drink again. They looked a little disappointed it was empty, but that was the only thing not going for them tonight. "That's because I normally assume straight people are around."

"Yeah, show me your O-face!" SniperV yelled loud enough from a group of arena fighters that both Owen and Charlie looked over. That group was clearly only here because it was the place to be tonight.

"Like that guy." Charlie whistled their disappointment. "Embarrassing."

Owen laughed again, and Charlie swung their free arm over Owen's shoulder. "You got nothing to be embarrassed about. Least of all anyone's sexuality," Charlie said. "Now go knock them dead."

"Thanks." After talking to Andreah, he felt a little stupid for saying the word again to anyone.

"What are friends for? Oh!" Charlie suddenly pulled their arm back, and dug out their phone. "Emily wanted me to record a first-hand account of everything since she had to stay home with the baby."

"Why didn't she get Neal to do it?"

Charlie held their phone out and looked at Owen through it. "She thought he'd be too distracted. Now say hi."

"Love you, Em," he said, and blew a kiss.

For a second, Owen had forgotten there was any other camera besides Charlie's. But the flashes of much larger cameras and shouts from reporters asking who he was talking to made quick work to remind him.

"See, nothing to worry about," Charlie said, having to raise their voice now to be heard. "The camera loves you."

"Owen, are you ready?" Carmen was suddenly at his elbow, all too ready and eager to usher him over to play. He nodded, and found even newer headgear waiting for him. The most notable difference was the visor wasn't tinted. Likely a marketing effect to make him more personable.

Everything in his life and the game had been different lately, but at least this headgear booted the same way. First in the hand, then stretching out in his fingers. Lights outlining London appeared on top of the real world until it was all fully rendered within seconds.

***

Meeting the King was by far the loftiest thing a thief without noble blood could ever expect. Daniel stared at the guards that protected the Somerset House with Lance and Chloe at his side. This day had massive importance, not only for him, but for several countries. Treaties would be signed today.

Everyone was a little nervous. There was a current in the air. Within the last year, Britain crowned a new King, and everyone wondered how well he could handle it. No one said so, of course.

The trio walked around the building at a safe distance, trying to find the best way in. One entrance had a single guard posted, and looked like their best opportunity. "How do you want to go about this?" Daniel asked, and glanced over to Lance.

"Leave it to me, boys." Chloe grinned, and strolled up to the man protecting the door. "Hello," she said in English. The guard blinked wordlessly at her, and she did a small curtsy. She leaned in like she had a secret. Her eyes flickered to the building behind them, and flush of red rose on his cheeks.

The boys were too far away to hear everything, but when Chloe and the guard went inside they turned to look at each other. "What did she tell him?"

Lance looked equally as surprised. "I don't think I want to know."

Not more than a minute later, Chloe popped back up by the doorway and waved them in. The boys sprinted in, not wanting to be caught by anyone else. Once inside, the guard was notably absent.

"What happened to him?" Daniel asked.

"Oh, I locked him in the closet," she said simply, before glancing down the hall. "I think we should go that way." She ran now to the nearest corner and paused to peek around it. Lance grinned, and took a step to follow, but Daniel tugged on his arm to hold him back.

"You are going to get her killed."

"What?" Lance asked. "Did you miss how helpful she just was?"

"Send her away."

"No." His brows knitted together, oblivious to the problem. "What do you want me to do, ship her back home?"

"Yes, actually."

Lance sighed. He looked away to see if Chloe was still waiting for them, and feared she wouldn't wait long enough for him to say what he needed to. "It's fine. You can't live life like everyone is going to die or betray you."

The color drained out of Daniel's face.

"I'm sorry, but it's true," Lance said. "Come on, amant, if you can't trust yourself, trust me." Lance gave him a careful look as he slowly stepped away and headed towards Chloe.

Daniel swore his ears were ringing, but he couldn't stand around and be shocked. If he wanted everything to go smoothly he had to carry on. He had to trust Lance, and despite trusting him the most, it still was hard to do. After cursing under his breath, he followed.

Despite his having no direct or indirect control over Chloe, she listened to his orders quite well. The only time she disobeyed was to hide when needed. They blended in with various guests, and Chloe stayed close, keeping an ear open.

"The King should be coming this way soon," a noblewoman said, looking to impress the others of equal status around. Daniel signaled for Lance to break off so they could check it out. The only slight hiccup was Chloe's second of confusion before she took a quick double step to follow. Days ago, that would have annoyed Daniel. Now it only made him smile. Despite his best efforts, Chloe was growing on him.

Since their duty wasn't to harm the King once he was in line of sight, they kept a respectable distance. They held back, claiming a bench for themselves. A man caught Daniel's attention as he nervously glanced back every few steps.

"I think we have an intruder," Daniel said.

When the King turned a corner, the man broke rank completely. They had to act fast. Daniel's eyes darted around trying to think of the best way, which seemed up and over a tall wall of an enclosed garden. "I'll go up, you go around," Daniel ordered, and was up and over in the time it took to give the command.

The intruder they had been following pulled out a dagger and took careful steps to sneak up on the King. Lance was almost in position to interrupt, but Daniel jumped down in-between the would-be killer and royal.

King James stumbled back, filled with panic as a bunch of foreigners seemed to appear from thin air and started to spill blood just as fast. Daniel's hands were covered in it as he stepped away from a man he just killed.

"We are here to help," Lance said, and brought his hands up to try to defuse the situation. But the words weren't understood.

Chloe rushed in last. She needed to catch her breath, but didn't have the time. "Your highness, these are the men sent from Spain. To protect you and this treaty." Her English was certainly something he could understand. "They mean you no harm."

The King's personal guards rushed in far too late to be of use. Chloe let out a small nervous sound as the guards pointed their swords at the lot of them.

"At ease," the King said, taking a good look at the trio that saved his life seconds before he knew it was in danger. He gave a curt nod towards the man on the ground. "You are unusual delegates, but thank you. It seems our countries still may come to an agreement after all."