Zenos awoke in the blue light of the dawn. His sleep was complicated by dreams of Darigon and his demon lords, but he slept through the night. Mad had already packed his bedroll. He had made a stump his seat and was halfway through a trail bar of mixed nuts and honey. “How was your first night on a new …

“Adheim Village was founded about two centuries ago, but the history of the island goes back much further,” Mad said as they sat on a boulder beneath the copse of trees. He had stopped to let Zenos catch his breath. “Before the Bastilhasians, there were the Archurians, then the people of Olm—old and new—and I’m sure there were others that …

It had rained late into the morning, which gave the cobblestone streets a dark gleam, and left the signature scent of greenery that grew wherever roots took hold. Zenos followed Mad down a sidewalk, past houses plated in metal like armor. Great wheels, attached to axles, stood idle in flowing creeks or on the faces of lonely barns, where they …

When Zenos left his room, he saw there were many other doors along the adjoining hallway, each pinned with a brass placard and an identifying number. The exit was to his right, where the hall ended in a set of wide, curving stairs. He moved quickly, his hand on the banister as the stairwell creaked beneath his steps. I should …

Zenos awoke on a bed in a small wood-paneled room. He was alone, and it was quiet but for the beat of his heart and the rustle of curtains brushed by a breeze. His reptilian eyes stared at the ceiling, through a transparent notification that read [You Died]. It dawned on him what had happened. “I’m alive,” he said, eyes …

  One million years before the current date, a young woman wandered the hall of an alien mothership. She wore the thin white-gold suit of an astronaut, and her round helmet had a gold reflection. She made careful steps beneath bands of blue light to wall that looked like an aquarium. On the other side was an alien. The woman …

The demon emperor awoke against an oak tree. He was atop a hill of tall grass, above a forest of pines, and gray fog marked by black streaks of heavy rain. He was cold and wet, but with his first breaths his reptilian eyes narrowed in focus. He was alive. [Welcome to Ark World, player Zenos.] a holographic prompt read. …

  When I was young, I was visited by a carousel of spiritualists and intellectuals. They examined me, performed their rituals, but no expert or charlatan could explain my birth. It was up to me to investigate my own nature. My Father, the Duke, allowed me whatever books I wanted, and soon I asked for more; feathered books, ancient tomes, …

Katherine opened her eyes. She was laid out on a concrete floor. Beside her were the doors of a dungeon chamber and above her a nebula of distant stars. She had returned to her avatar, Amy, right where she left off. [You have been logged out for 7,800 years.] the system read via a translucent, holographic display. NPCs didn’t have …

  We had gathered in Lore’s chamber, in a circle of folding chairs set in the blue glow of Lore’s aquarium. I was somewhere in the back, facing the glass. I glanced up from the faces of my co-workers and saw Lore float silently in the water, eyes hidden behind a visor, as they always were. My brother, Alex, sat …