Asylum: Saving the World

There's a Price for Everything

I stopped and listened carefully. 

"Heeellllpppp!" 

Right. That is a faint cry for help. I cannot be mistaken. Where is it from? I looked around, trying to find the direction. For sure, someone needs me right now. I looked around. Wait, is that a mound? There seems to be a mound a few meters away from me. I stared at it. A mound? My intuition is telling me to go nearer so I did. 

While walking, I can hear the cry for help getting louder and louder. I can now see that the thing is not a mound either. It just seems to be a pile of soil. It is as if someone is digging a hole. The soil looks fresh, too. There's a hole indeed and there is the place where the cry seems to be coming from. 

"Heeelllpppp..." I can hear cry louder now. 

I knelt on the edge and looked down the hole. I almost lost my mind when I saw the one asking for help. She is b****y and she looks as if she is going to die if she won't receive help anytime soon. Her blood formed a pool all around her. I can feel my heart beating so fast. In real life and even here in the virtual world, I hate blood. I may be able to tolerate it if it's my own blood but not if I am seeing it on other people.

"I'm here to help. Can you stand up and reach for me?!" I shouted.

Slowly, the player turned her head to look at me. She looks so weak, so fragile. Her eyes lit when she saw me as if she saw hope. She shook her head and spoke in a very soft voice.

"No, I can't. I'm injured badly," she answered weakly. 

"Hang on, I'll find help!" I shouted to encourage her. 

Wait, I can't help her like this. I need to think of a way. I tapped the gadget on my hand and looked for some ways that I can help. There is a stock room and I can see a rope there. However, I can see that I need to trade some portion of my energy if I wanna get it. I didn't think at all. Things like this are non-negotiable. I tapped it and exchanged some energy. Immediately, I felt weaker but it's okay. I am holding the rope now in my hand. I looked around and saw a big tree. There, I ran fast and tied the rope there. I immediately ran back, holding the other end of the rope, and threw it inside the hole. 

Slowly, I went down. I have to rescue this player no matter what it takes. I can feel the difference in my strength because of the transaction I just had just to get the rope. I went down slowly. It took me how many minutes to go down. The moment I reached the player, I examined her body. She has wounds all around. Where did she get all these? I frowned. Anyway, regardless of the answer, she has to receive temporary treatment. 

I tapped the gadget again and realized that everything has a price. Amazingly, the currency is energy. That means that I have to replenish my strength after this or else everything will be depleted. I tapped the first aid kit and immediately, I felt weaker again the moment I traded some of my energy. I tended the wounds of the player. I felt pity for her as I saw the wounds on her body.

"What happened to you?" I asked. "Why do you have a lot of wounds and why did you fall into this hole? 

She looked at me. She smiled faintly.

"I don't know. I can't remember anything..." she answered. 

I was taken aback. She doesn't know? My mouth opened but no words came out. I just bowed my head and continued tending her wounds. The bleeding has to stop now or else she would lose a lot of blood in no time. I don't want her to die. 

"I need to close your wounds and sew them. Close your eyes," I said when I needed to close her major wounds. 

She could faint if she would continue watching it. I saw her close her eyes. At that, I injected the anesthesia. It's a good thing that this first aid kit contained anesthesia. After a few minutes, I started sewing her big wounds. I can her face. She grimaced at the injection but not at the needles pricking her skin. That means that the anesthesia worked. 

I spend lots of time closing her major wounds and bandaging. She has five. Now that I'm done, I tied my body with hers and planned my way to go up. I may feel weaker but I can still manage to carry her body with me. Ygritte's body and skills are really amazing. In the real world, I would never be able to do this. Here, I can and it feels so great. I feel like a real hero saving the world with my own skill and extraordinary strength. I smiled at that thought. Who would have known that I can be this even just in the virtual world?

"Buddy, you need to hang in there and be strong. We need to go up together," I said.

No response. Her eyes are closed. It seems that she is unconscious now. I breathed deeply. This is it. We have to do this. Slowly, I climbed up. The hole is not too deep but having a setup like this where I have to drag a wounded player with me while climbing up, it is really a big challenge. I am so careful not to injure her more. I paid extra attention to the sides where she had wounds on her body. She may feel pain if they are pressed. I can't add to her existing pain. That would be cruel. 

I felt like it's forever. It's too long, but I can't give up. She has to live and I have to survive, too. I am feeling weaker now. I am even panting but I kept looking at the distance that we have towards the ground. We're getting nearer and nearer and I can't give up now. I kept on encouraging myself. I can't give up. We have to survive.