MINUS ZERO

Never seen hands.

At 6:30, the sunrise shone on the blue building of the Internet station. As an early bird, Juray was awake, he offed the table lamp and walked, opened swipe the curtain of his room window curtain letting the light in. He turned and saw the side-hanging calendar. There on the date 24 July was circled green, the next day, as the anniversary of the game.

"It's just today the wait," he said walking to the table, full messed up with textbooks, notebooks, notepads, pencils, and a calculator. Picking out from the side drawer the M.Z card he said inwards solemnly,

"A new start with new rules, new games, and especially new players. The game will release something new too and before that, a special ability as a gift for being in this game will be upgraded or given to all the above thousand players of this game. Starting from level 199.....

I wasn't having hope but, this time..." he went and sat on his bed still staring at the card, "This time no one will use me. I'll do it with Cecil"

Today and tomorrow were weekends, Juray started the station earlier. He arranged chairs, on lights, cleared the ground, and managed the counter.

Some employers were leaving and a few were staying. It was expected that in the bright morning more than 60 players would definitely enter at a time so, he was preparing the table.

"Hey kid!" he looked up at the employer who was dusting the counter " the game's anniversary will be tomorrow. I am sure lots of crowds will be available turning this place into a market. Did you hear any necessary arrangements from the boss?"

"No, not yet" answered Juray "He will be here to ready the arrangements of the station by afternoon."

"Then when is the ceremony starting?" he asked again.

"It's at 6 'O clock sharp in the evening" answered the boy closing the drawer.

"WOW! that late?" surprised the man.

"Yeah," agreed on the boy "the last time it was at the start of the day means at 12 O clock but, I guess there might be some easiness this time."

"People mostly are empty-minded at that time. I hope you too will catch up a computer before the hyenas take all."

Juray giggled and replied, "Those are Fans. ...." both laughed and turned to their works.

By noon, the place was really a market. Students of teens to middle-aged, youths all were sitting near computers and playing. More than steps, keys typing were heard. Some shouted in achieving, some talked to another player online, some discussed, some played in single silent and some in-group.

Juray was busy helping a player with the headphone and gave it back. The player thanked him and carried on.

In the station's computers, there were two headphones placed properly by every computer. One is a normal type, the other with glass.

Normal headphones were for Dimensional gate or any other. Whereas, with glass, the bar was for Minus Zero. Juray could understand by these headphones who was playing what.

As he was in the center, looking at the other floors up, his sight caught a brown-headed, thin figure going up to the third floor.

"It's him...!" spoke his surprising heart.

When he took a step to follow, his shoulder stopped him by a hand. In stunned he looked back and saw two same boys smiling at him. They were two years older than him and were students of the same university.

"Yamato and Tomaya!" exclaimed Juray in surprise "How are you two?"

"Good" answered Yamato.

"We heard about your level up," said Tomaya "finally, you made it. So how did it go?"

"Death in my throat" commented Juray "I have to admit I was scared out of head...."

"Then I guess success finally looked at you," said Yamato "so we cane to ask you whether there's a spare computer?"

"Follow me." he went to the counter, opened the touch screen, checking the number he replied, "seat No: 2396 and 2397 on the L side are free. You two need twin computers too, no?"

Both smiled and were about to walk away when he asked, "So how are twin star dragons?"

Both stopped and turned back, rising their thumbs and Yamato replied, "We are in level 148". Juray raised his brows in surprise and they walked away.

In the afternoon, the boss arrived and gathered all the employers. They stood in the side with the boss sitting on the counter with the leg on the other, explaining the arrangements to take for the next day before the ceremony. What to be done and where to go or send which player where. They made sure no interrupting or crowding would occur.

In the evening, after shift duties, Juray still had to work cause the station was over floating like the busiest airport in the world. Players were eager to play a lot before the anniversary as much as they can so, they could enjoy the new turn.

Juray was checking around for anyone who needed help, on the first floor, second, and then third. When he was about to get down, he remembered the figure and looked back again at the last corner.

Curiosity conquered him.

Pacing by paces, towards it he went saying inwards, "I don't know why I get eaten up to know that guy. There are lots of players around but..." he reached and watched from behind, "I want to know what player is he?"

Been an employer in the station for quite a long, he got experiences of looking at player's fingers. The way they danced movements and typed on the keyboard and produced sounds like gentle, heavy, smooth, harsh, or soft. Their shape and length he recognized them their type.

When he got behind the boy, to his surprise, they were hands he never had seen before: Skeleton slim, thin long fingers with bent from center joints, when it moved, the bones of fingers were visible till the wrist with few veins on it, the nails were long length, good cut and tidy, white skin beautiful with no marks or scars and felt light by seeing it. His typing was seemed heavy as thou, he would break the keys under his fingers but, the keys were smoothly getting pressed like it was enjoying the hits of fingers. No harsh sounds were heard from him.

"I think he isn't a normal player....." thought Juray in surprise staring at it "A player more than expert. Could it be he's a professional player?" he grew confused "but if that's the reality then, why would a great player walk into this station? What gives him a will to enter a place of the normal player instead of his own great nest?"

When he was drowning in his thoughts, the boy looked back at him which startled him. Without a word, he turned back to his game.

Juray felt dismayed for disturbing him but, since the boy didn't say anything he thought of watching some of his ways of playing.

In an open area, full of waterfall entering a hollow, an unnamed character came down and stood in the center of the river. All around him were waterfalls, lakes, and rivers, the only piece of land was the stone he stood on.

The water begin to get boiled up, all the falls stopped and a huge long water body basilisk rotated around facing him with its hot streaming mouth. That water was the poison that could finish the fight in one blow.

The basilisk stared with its purple pearl eyes at the prey, raised high to the air, came down with a great speed straight to the fighter with its wide mouth.

The character didn't take any serious step instead he changed his sword into a long sharp rock blade and strike horizontally with full force, slicing it into two as the body came down easily into it. Passing the snake far enough as he still stood there, he crushed his sword out and the snake splashed on the air covering the entire hole with the weave of water.

The character stood there all soaked from head till toe. He swiped back his head and sighed.

"STAGE CLEAR!

RESULT: Dimension 1- cleared in 10 sec

Dimension 2- 11 seconds

Dimension 3- 11 seconds

All the others had 11 except the 1st one.

The boy saved it and ejected his card. Offing the game by taking off the headphone, he got up and passed by Juray.

"Ummm...hey" spoke the employer.

The boy stopped.

Juray 's throat was choked by the words, that was stuck in there. He swallowed his guts and spoke again, "I.....I know you play dimensional gate....however, tomorrow is the anniversary of Minus Zero...would you like to come and see it?. The player will be crowded in here."

The boy's lips were shut and he walked out without the slightest breathe.

"I hope it's accepting" hoped Juray with a smile.