23 SURPRISE, SURPRISE

"So ... Do you want me to hunt you down in this maze?" Glax looked up at Medon with incredulity. They were in front of the entrance to a cargo hangar carved into the shore hillside, and Medon's entourage followed the conversation with interest. In front of them, several weapons on a table.

Just at a glance he knew they were all spring-loaded snapshot guns, ranging from caliber 4.5mm to 8mm. Strange and elaborate models of pistols and carbines made Glax imagine how those people got to this technology. And yet, the Stygians preferred spears and swords.

Except, of course, for fervent dissidents who lamented the regression from the steam era to what they lived today.

"It won't be just you and me, Neo. But we can get to know each other better, don't you think? In the heat of combat. Isn't it as they say? You truly know a man when you fight alongside him. Or against him. What will he do? How will he act?"

'Blablaba. You son of a bitch. You just want to intimidate me. ' Glax grinned,

"All right. What are the rules?"

"We will be six. Each will have 8 projectiles with them. And those vests with small flasks on the chest and back. Three balls hit and you're out. Whoever rings the bell that is hanging in the middle of the 'maze' first wins." Medon pointed to the padded vest, with 5 round flasks with a green liquid inside tied to it. They were no bigger than a tennis ball.

"Hm, got it. It looks like fun." They certainly liked to ring bells around here, he thought.

"It will be more fun when we bet something, right?" Medon barely contained his smile.

'Ah, of course. That's when he tries to take advantage of the arrogant hick,' Glax realized. "What is the minimum bet?"

"Aw, Neo. I thought you were a principled man, and that you lived boldly as I do. Don't let me down."

Glax scratched his head. "We're going to bet the powder keg against its value," he suggested.

"Wow! Yes, why not?!" Medon exclaimed, artificially excited.

"Can I choose my weapon first?" Glax asked casually, and Medon nodded, looking relaxed and amused.

Glax wanted to get closer to evaluate them better. And he already guessed that Medon would cheat. But he couldn't accuse him before that happened.

Taking a good look at weapons and projectiles, he was surprised to find that some had bold designs and complex accessories, and most of them didn't make the weapons more effective. He ignored elaborate weapons and also the newest ones.

Finally he chose a kind of 5mm rifle, the only one of this caliber on the table. He checked the ammunition. All the others seemed to use BBs - spherical balls_ while the latter used pellets. If he was right, it would be more accurate than the others, and its impact would also be greater.

Unfortunately, it was a break-barrel type, which meant he would have to reload before each shot. The gun looked old and worn, but Glax didn't want to leave it with one of his rivals. Regardless of one's skill, it was more likely to hurt someone for real, and he preferred to be on the right side of it. In addition, the handle had wear marks that showed that someone used the weapon a lot. He hoped it was 'smooth.' And that a mistake by its former owner, and not its fault, had made it end up in Medon's stock.

"Why did you choose this one?" Medon asked.

"The spirit of the weapon spoke to me."

One man who was holding his hand to one of the guns looked at him in surprise.

"And what did it say?"

"That I have to avenge the former owner." Glax winked at the man, taking the gun and ammunition.

The man opened his eyes wide, taken by surprise, and laughed nervously.

Glax laughed too, but made sure to keep a smirk showing them he might be saying the truth.

Medon kept his poker face and took one of the guns after a brief indecision. A pistol that was also simple.

Glax guessed he preferred to get closer to the target. He risked more, but his mobility would be greater.

It could be an 'elegant' way to kill someone by accident. Glax would like to be wrong. But he was not going to make it easy for these amateurs.

They had no way of knowing that he was an expert sniper on 'Sniper's Creed', and his team had even won the continental championship 2 years earlier. He had dropped out of the team to finish college, before his parents freaked out.

He didn't expect it to be the same, but he knew he had more hours of experience with a gun and a maze than these guys.

Unlike Armorion, this was a game where he had the advantage.

Right?

::::::::::::::::

"Shit!"

He had barely entered the game and one of the glass balls had burst on his back, with a hollow bang.

All he could do was run and hide behind a wall, looking for the source of the shot.

It was dark, and the sounds were spreading strangely in that underground place. His finger rested on the trigger, which was very sensitive. He had only 8 projectiles and 5 opponents.

Some lamps with the same greenish light were the only sources of light in the makeshift maze. He had little idea of ​​the obstacles, but adrenaline was already flowing in his blood and Glax felt like he was going back to the old days. At least one thing was familiar to him!

In addition, he was sure he was the primary target, so his strategy should be to position himself as best as possible so as not to be hit. He had just one more glass ball on his back, the other three were on his chest.

Crouching, he came out of hiding after calculating his next move. He had seen a few steps and hoped it would take him to an advantage. This game was better with a team, visibility and headsets, but at the same time, it was like playing in the best VR in the world.

As he crossed the space from point A to point B, a bullet whizzed by. He wasn't the real Neo from the classic Matrix, and he couldn't dodge bullets. Even with relatively little force, such a projectile might not be enough to kill over a distance of more than 3 meters, but it could cause considerable damage.

Heart pounding, he reached the steps and climbed up on a small platform that led to a door. Still running, at a glance he saw the green light reflecting on Medon's blond hair.

Rotating his body just a little, he aimed his first shot at the opponent's back.

The gun in his hands vibrated with a CLICK! followed by a hum, and then the POP! of the pellet hitting the glass.

"Shit!" Medon exclaimed, absolutely surprised and irritated. He didn't seem to have any doubts about who had done this. Probably his friends or henchmen wouldn't have the audacity to shoot him in the back.

Glax ran down the stairs again, rejoicing internally and lamenting not being able to boast on the headset with friends. However, when he was coming down, one of the guys spotted him, and ran towards him.

Without turning his back, Glax reloaded his weapon, and this took the same amount of time as his opponent had to reach the first step. Glax aimed. His higher ground advantage allowed him to have a better view of his enemy's chest. He needed to be quick because the idiot could hit his face with what looked like a flamboyant *musketoon*.

As soon as the guy raised his strange, heavy rifle, Glax laughed.

"Dude, you didn't reload. What are you doing?"

"Oh, damn!"

He realized from the corner of his eye that Medon had already spotted them, and was waiting to see what was going to happen next. He was too far away to try to shoot Glax.

He also saw that the small maze was nothing more than obstacles like boxes and columns of bags arranged by the huge warehouse.

The man seemed to interpret Glax's inaction as indecisive and decided to reload. When he took one arm back, Glax shot him in the chest.

'The most boring part so far has been getting married!' Glax felt light and pleased with his new life. He took advantage of the moment to run towards his opponent, pushing his way through with the butt of the gun at the ready. It surprised the guy enough that he cleared the way, still confused by what to do. At the last moment, he spun around and grabbed Glax by the hair.

"Bro! Dirty game!" Glax used the butt of his carbine in a backward motion, trying to hit more bottles. The man defended himself by closing his arm over his chest, which allowed Glax to escape, leaving a tuft of hair in the guy's hands.

He did it in time, for he heard another shot in his direction. The shot hit his back, and Glax felt the impact being muffled by the thick layer of his vest.

He ran from there as fast as he could.

Now that he had a sense of where he should go, he ran forward, with a single stop to reload. He avoided two guys, who wasted their shots uselessly, and after a barrier made of burlap sacks, he reached the center of the hangar.

They put enough lamps around it so everyone could see the bell. However, before he got close to touching it, he was shot again. This time the shot hit too close to one of the vials, and it hurt. He was sure it was shot at close range and turned his face to see Medon hiding again behind the row of crates.

'Uh Okay, so that's your tactic.' Glax looked around. He took shelter behind some smelly barrels, and spotted three eavesdropping opponents like him. Like everyone else, he didn't have enough ammunition to neutralize the other players, and he wouldn't be able to get the powder if he hid. However, getting close to the bell was the most troublesome part. The opponents were expecting someone to cross the open space to shoot.

Glax looked at the bell. It wasn't as big or heavy as the Armorion's bell, but just a generic brass bell, at least for him, hanging from a rope on a beam in the ceiling.

He crawled with his weapon behind the barrier, until he reached behind a column, where he could stand again. Then he saw a small platform suspended by ropes and pulleys, at the end of the bag barrier. Medon had just gone up there. He was in a position of extreme advantage, ready to hit anyone who went out into the open.

'Jerk.'

CLICK-CLICKT. He reloaded, knowing it would betray his position. Attention turned to that side. A random shot went in the opposite direction. They were already starting to get anxious and see things in the shadows.

He sneaked in and positioned himself directly under the platform. It was a good distance from the bell, but he figured it wouldn't be a problem. He had enough ammunition, and they gave him much more precision than BBs. The carbine also had good strength.

Then, he was going to ring the bell with gunshots.

CLICKT. PLANG!

Glax smiled when Medon cursed. The platform shook, but what Glax imagined happened. If Medon risked going down now, he knew he was going to be shot at close range.

"You son of a bitch, what are you doing?"

Necks stretched out behind hiding places to see what was going on. But Glax ignored them. He rearmed and fired a second time, after taking aim.

"I'm ringing the bell."

This time he hit the rope. The shot grazed, and it was not enough to cut the rope completely. After all, it was not a video game! Only, somehow, his ability transferred perfectly to the actual world.

The guys came out of their hiding places, marveled at his perfect aim.

Glax hit the third and fourth shots, finally knocking the bell down with a crash.

The guys celebrated with him, and Medon even applauded.

"Well played, well played, Neo! Well, you won the game with an unusual tactic! But you did what you had to do! I can only pay my share of the bet!"

Glax tried to maintain a modest expression while receiving the admiration of the other players. It had been better than taking Medon out of the game. He was satisfied with his own shrewdness and strategy.

::::::::::::::::

"You son of a bitch! Let me out of here! Bastard! It's cheating, I won honestly!"

Glax ran to the door, realizing that they had tricked him. They locked him in a filthy, damp storehouse with a wet powder keg! And on the other side of the door, Medon and his men were laughing the hell out his asses.