"Jericho, what is the skill you worked so hard on that can help the town?" s.h.i.+arra inquired.

"This." Jericho replied as he used the ability create water. The water fell to the ground turning the dry dirt to mud. "It will take some time to fill up their well but if I can go into it, I can do it faster."

"Why is that?" The woman followed up.

"It is the secret the water elementals asked me to be careful who I tell. You have given me no reason to distrust you. However, since it seemed very important, I decided only to tell the people I know well in real life. I hope you understand." He replied.

s.h.i.+arra smiled with a light laugh. "Good, I was worried you would be overly naive and tell me just because we have adventured together a few times. In truth, the two of us are still technically strangers despite gaming together these last few days."

Jericho nodded. "That is true. Either way, when we get into the town, help me get into the well. I'll worry about the water issue. You and my little sister can go help out the village in other ways so you aren't bored."

"Okay." She agreed.

"I am curious though, what's a guild, and why were you so jumpy at that guy's friendly conversation?" Jericho inquired.

The armored woman shook her head. "You know nothing about the cruelty of ma.s.s multiplayer games, do you? Thankfully this isn't the only VRMMO game out there so the effects have been spread out a bit. That guy wasn't friendly. I was just surprised that your audience went as far as to verbally chase him off."

The bard frowned. "I kind of feel bad for him. He only wanted to know the answers to a few questions and invite me to whatever this guild thing is and he got yelled at because of it. But, you have not answered either of my questions." He pointed out.

s.h.i.+arra shook her head. "You don't have to feel bad, those people have thick skin; they can take it. A guild is a group that works together to achieve goals. On the surface that is a great thing however underneath most guilds is a political game someone as soft-hearted as you wouldn't appreciate. Often guilds will wage war on each other and bully others because they are stronger. Having tricks like your cloning ability can give them the edge in these large fights. He wanted you to tell them how to get the ability so they could take advantage of it. As for the guild invite, he wanted to rope you into a situation where you earn them money. By my count, you have earned almost two gold piece in these last few days just for playing in the streets. They probably would have done things like a contract where you do concerts for them and they take most of the income. Some might even try to get you into a real life contract. Joining a guild would be great in the short run but it is typically harmful to someone like you or Princess in the long run."

The bard sighed. "Thank you, for watching out for us. Ill intentions or not, Emerald Flame shouldn't have had to go through that. Just because someone has 'thick skin' doesn't mean that other's words don't affect them." Jericho pulled up the messaging system and typed up a message.

"What are you doing?" Princess inquired noticing her brother go silent for a bit.

"Hopefully I'm making a friend." Jericho replied unknowingly sending the snowflake that caused the avalanche.

***

Emerald Flame, despite his high status in the Vextor guild, didn't have many friends. His guild mates treated him with respect born from fear, avoided him, and even spread nasty rumors about him. He didn't like them much, but he had been gaming with them for years. Because of their history together in past games, he joined them again in this one. Because of the things his guild asked him to do, he was frequently victimized and easily enraged. He knew in his head that he brought most of it onto himself but his emotions spoke otherwise.

At Emerald's request, some of his guild mates were keeping tabs on where Jericho traveled. The battle team he was in charge of had seen the power the music had in the water elemental fight and wanted to incorporate it into their guild one way or another. The mage had originally been given the task to try and recruit Jericho and learn his secrets. Since he was the most respected group leader in the area, the job became his.

As they stealthily followed Jericho and his companions south, Emerald couldn't get out of his mind the words the audience had shouted at him. He was only doing his job. "Why did they have to get so aggressive?" He muttered. "It's all..."

A notification appeared interrupting his thoughts.

[New message from Jericho the Bard] [Emerald Flame, I'm sorry you were treated harshly by my fans. Humans can be cruel sometimes. While I have no intention of joining a guild at this time, I wish you great fortune in the future. I hope you will continue to enjoy listening to the music I play and continue to be the great person I sense you are. This is also a game, it is supposed to be fun right? Remember, you are a survivor, not a victim. Sincerely Jericho the Bard.]

The mage stopped in his tracks. "He… cared enough to message me by name? I'm a survivor huh? It's a bit sappy, but I never expected to see anything like this in a game." He took a deep breath, light moisture filled his eyes as all of his suppressed frustrations resurfaced with better understanding. He started writing back. [Jericho, thank you, you really are a kind person. I will do my best and I wish you the best as well…

He paused in the middle of his message as he contemplated things. Sometimes a few well timed, simple words can bring clarity. "A game is supposed to be fun? When did I forget that?" He continued mumbling.

"Yo, Master Emerald, you doing alright back there?" One of his team members in armor made of plants asked.

"No, sorry Brotillian, something very important came up, I have to go. I'm calling off the mission." He turned to leave.

The group got a notification. [Emerald Flame has left the group.] They were silent as they watched the man who was filled with drive just moments ago walk off. "Wait! What about…" Brotillian shouted to the running figure.

"Forget it, we are no longer going after Jericho." He shouted back.

The war-hammer wielding teammate came forward. "Brotillian, what are we going to do?"

"We keep going." He told his remaining teammates. "It will be easier to 'negotiate' without Master Emerald losing his short temper."

Emerald pulled the message, he was in the middle of writing, back up. [… I'm asking for myself. Would you be willing to be my friend?] [Friend request sent to Jericho the Bard].

He had just continued walking when he received a reply. [Jericho the Bard has accepted your friend request.]

[Absolutely! I would love to be your friend! Like I said before, I had the feeling you were a great person. And while this is a game and not real life, my sister says I am a really good judge of character.]

The mage was stunned. It had been a long time since someone had said words like those to him. "Is this a fantasy or something? How can these games have someone kind like you?" Emerald Flame nodded to himself. A resolute look donned his face. [Jericho, Thank you, again. I must warn you, my former guild is following you to try and learn your 'secrets'. Currently there are five of them heading your way. Originally the five of them and I had come up with a plan to use your sister as leverage to extort the information out of you. I left them and told them to stop but I doubt they will. Guard your sister well. I am going to move to one of the towns in the north. Come visit me sometime!]

[Thank you for the warning, Emerald. I knew you were a great person! I will let you know when I am up north!]

The mage smirked and sent a message to one of his only real-life friend who was not part of his guild. [Dark Lord, I am betraying Vextor. My former guild is targeting Jericho and his sister Princess. They must be stopped. Also, can you help me level back up in Zhery village in the north? I am resetting my character.]

A reply came. [Bold, I like it. What changed? Any ideas on how to stop them? And I can certainly help you in the north but I need something first.]

[I'll explain what changed later. My idea? You saw it for yourself earlier at the well; tell me, what is the only thing scarier than a guild? Of course, what do you need? I haven't left the guild, informed them of my betrayal, or reset my character just yet.]

***

Jericho received the warning from Emerald. "I never would have guessed that he and his friends were plotting against me. I'm glad he is a good person underneath that rough exterior."

A familiar voice whispered in his head. {I saw the message, if I might suggest it, princess is your sister, she has water walk. Have her join you in the well. She can dance to bring rain while you work. It shouldn't be a bad thing for her to know that you are a water elemental.}

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{That's true. Thank you Glaw for suggesting that.} Jericho smiled.

"I take it things went good?" Princess beamed.

Jericho nodded before frowning. "There is going to have to be a slight change in plans though." He turned to s.h.i.+arra. "Princess will have to join me in the well. She can dance and bring rain. It will help speed up the process. You can help out around the village." He sent a direct message to the warrior. [According to my new friend, the Vextor guild is targeting Princess to get to me. They are sending 5 players. I will do what I can to keep her safe. Please do the same. She looks up to you like an elder sister.] He smiled thinking about the ridiculous conversation about marriage they had on the way to school that morning.

s.h.i.+arra nodded

The three finally arrived at the thirsty nameless village.