Sophie spun around as Derek laughed coming in her part of the apartment. Derek was her older brother and he never understood her love of unicorns. His monkey jumped off his shoulder and grabbed one of her figurines.
"Derek! Get your monkey to put that down!" Sophie yelled.
"After you give me back my journal," Derek said, suddenly serious.
"I didn't take it."
"Then who did? The only people who are allowed in this apartment are you, me, and Dad. I know Dad didn't take it, so that leaves only you, Soph."
"Well, I didn't take it. Maybe Dad actually got a date and they found it and threw it away." Sophie glared at him. He glared back at her. He was seventeen, but even as a nine year old, he had been a good writer. Messing with his journal was a major no-no and even his weird little monkey named Frodo, knew it. "Look, I don't know where it is, now make Frodo put down my unicorn!"
"Frodo, Unten."
The unicorn was placed at her feet. "Why is he German? Monkeys aren't native to Germany."
'"That's why he's German."
"Let's see the problems with my brother. First off, you have a pet marmoset that responds to German and is named after a fictional character that you hate. And that's just the first point. I have about twenty more."
"Give me one more thing," Derek said. He knew he could get Sophie, his thirteen year old sister, in a lot of trouble. Her eyes got wide.
"You're just trying to get me in trouble. Well, I'm not going to fall for it, so the jokes on you."
"What are you two arguing about now?" Their Dad called from door.
"You just got here! How would you know we're fighting?" Derek said leaving her room. Frodo stared at her.
"Grab on you dumb monkey." He continued to stare at her. She growled and picked him up. "Come on." She went out to the main room which had a living room, a kitchen and a front hallway. Sophie's Dad was staring deeply into Derek's eyes. "If you two are going to kiss, I'm not going to watch." Derek burst out laughing and Dad let out a shout of victory. Once Derek calmed down, he explained.
"We were having a staring contest," Derek said.
"I won," Dad said sounding proud
"You are both children," Sophie said. Frodo jumped out of her hands. He climbed up Derek's pants.
"I still, don't get where you got that monkey, Derek," Dad said. Derek shrugged.
"He was a gift," Derek said.
"Right, anyway, I got you kids something I want you to share."
"We aren't kids!" Derek yelled.
"I'm not sharing with him!" Sophie said.
"You are legally kids, until you're eighteen and you have to share for about a week until the shop gets another so don't go making fuss," Dad said. Derek rolled his eyes.
"Fine," Sophie said. "Now, what is it?"
"A game that you can play together on the TV until next Monday when I get the other one and then you can play it separately on your own computers. Okay?"
"Okay, what's the game?" Derek asked.
"You have to play it to find out. And you'll have a great chance to play it when I leave for my date tonight at eight."
"You have a date?" Sophie and Derek said in unison. Derek sounded disgusted, but Sophie sounded optimistic. Their Dad described his date and Sophie kept him talking until he was out the door.
"Have a good night, Dad," Sophie said.
Derek rolled his eyes.
"Get over yourself, Soph," Derek said. He got up and headed for his room.
"Where are you going?"
"Where do you think? I'm going to write."
"I thought your journal was missing."
"Well, while you were trying to run a verbal background check on Dad's date, I found it in Dad's trash can. He must've not liked it."
"You're not going anywhere."
"Why not?"
"You are going to stay here and play this game with me."
"You play it on your own."
"Dad said we have to play it together."
"Well, Dad's not here."
"I don't care. He wants us to play it together, so we will."
"Sophie..."
"Derek, he's finally getting past mom, who died almost ten years ago. He wants us to get past our differences and to play this game, whatever it is, together."
Derek took a deep breath. "Fine." Sophie smiled triumphantly. "Set it up." She almost jumped over to the TV with the game. A few minutes later they were both sitting on the couch, watching the game load.
"I wonder what it is."
"What's with the camera?"
"I don't know. It was in the box, so I set it up." The loading screen faded and a unicorn appeared on the screen.
"What the heck is that?"
"Oh my gosh! That is the most real looking unicorn I have ever seen!" Sophie was ecstatic.
"Chill out, Sophie. It's just a unicorn." Derek rolled his eyes.
"Welcome to my game, kids," The unicorn said. "I'm the creator and this is far more than your little ordinary games. This is a real world. If you die in here, you die for real. If you can't escape, you lose and I get to take over your life. Now, come on in to my world. Welcome to your end."
"Now, it's pretty cool," Derek said.
"I don't think so," Sophie said. "Uh, Derek, do you remember standing up? Or leaving the room?!"
"What?" Derek said, turning to look at her. "Do you remember Frodo jumping on you and you changing clothes?" Sophie looked down and discovered a Kim Possible style outfit on her body.
"Says the writer in real combat boots."
"What?" He looked down and was shocked to see military boots and clothes on his own body. His normal attire was jeans and a V-neck T-shirt. This was a stark contrast for him.
"There is only one level," The unicorn continued. "You have to escape from a jail, underwater. I have made it quite possible for your escape and you will not die from travel. The only thing is that the other dangers are truly dangerous."
"Sophie, I don't think this is a game. Did it have controllers?" Derek said.
"No, I don't think so. Wait, you don't think he was telling the truth, do you?"
"Yeah I do and I think the 'game' started about a minute ago. Check it out," Derek said pointing out the jail bars that had just appeared. A guard walked by.
"Oh my God," Sophie said.
"Keep your voice down."
"And you would know what to do in prison, how?"
"Let's just say, out of all my friends, I'm the most sane."
"Yikes."
"Yep. Come on, the guards are gone." Derek led Sophie, with Frodo on her shoulder, out of the cell and past other cells with real people in them. Most of them weren't smart enough to figure out that it was real. They were laughing and playing around while the smarter ones weren't able to do anything physical and were literally trapped for the rest of their foreseeable life. As far as Sophie could tell, Derek and her were the only ones trying to escape. She thought they were home free for the diver tanks that she could see by the tank exit. That is until a guard appeared in front of them. Sophie yelped as Derek, who had almost been expecting it. He delivered a quick blow to the guard’s throat and temple. The guard pretty much collapsed in front of him.
"How did you do that?" Sophie whispered.
"I watched the Sherlock Holmes movies," Derek said taking a deep breath. "And I have insane friends."
"Never lose those friends." Derek nodded. "The tanks are over there." Sophie pointed.
"I see them. Come on." Derek grabbed her wrist and lead her through the shadows. He turned a corner and shoved her back. Derek cursed.
"What is it?" Sophie asked.
"Three guards between us and the tanks."
"So? Do that little trick thing that you did with the other guard."
"Won't work. I've been through the options. The only way both of us can make it to the tanks, is if we work together. That means that you've got to take out a guard. Think you can do that?"
"Nope. I have no training of any kind. I don't even watch crime shows or action movies. I'm of no use." Sophie said, sitting against the wall. Then her eyes lit up. "What about using Frodo as a distraction? I get him close to one of the guards and have him attack, then you take out the guards one by one. The others won't notice until there's only one left-the one with Frodo on his face. We don't have to worry about reinforcements, because, that unicorn forgot cameras."
"That's actually a pretty good plan. Do you know the German word for attack?"
"Yes, because I study German in my spare time. Of course not! What is it?" Derek covered Frodo's ears gently.
"Angriff," Derek whispered. Frodo still perked his ears up under Derek's hands, like he knew that he was supposed to do something even though he hadn't heard the word clearly. "Remember to say it so that he can hear you." Derek took his hands off Frodo's ears. Sophie found it strange that Frodo had stayed on her the entire time they were here.
"Thanks. I'll go around to the farthest guard." Derek nodded.
"Hey Soph?"
"Yeah?"
"Be careful."
"I will bro." Sophie carefully crept across the wall opposite the tanks, toward the farthest guard. She slipped quickly into the shadows as he turned around. She looked up and saw the water pressing down on the prison. She took a deep breath and looked back at Frodo. She was close enough to the guard the see the whites of his eyes. "Frodo, Angriff." She pointed at the guard. Frodo jumped from her shoulder and literally charged the guard. Sophie held in a laugh when the little monkey latched on to the mans face and his two companions could rip it of. She saw Derek sneak toward the closest guard. He hit the guard on the side of their neck as hard as he could. The guard's eyes rolled up into his head. The other two were still preoccupied with Frodo. Derek moved closer to the mass of men, and repeated his action to the one that didn't have Frodo on their face. He two fell to the ground with his eyes rolled up in his head. Sophie left her hiding spot.
"Sophie, get the tanks ready. Including a small one for Frodo," Derek said.
"Got it." Sophie went about that while Derek prepared to face his last foe.
"Etspannen," Derek said. Immediately, Frodo leaped off the man and ran to Sophie. The man gasped and looked up.
"Hey, wait a second. How'd you get this far? You're a kid with a kiddy sister!" The guard said.
"We got here like this." Derek preformed a perfect round-ouse kick that landed right on the guys temple. Derek managed to keep his balance as he righted himself and his final opponent fell to the ground.
"We're good to go. Come on, Sophie said. Derek turned to see Sophie holding up a tank set for him with a tank already on her back with a tiny tube connecting to a mask on Frodo's face and a regular sized tube that connected to the mask she had in her hand. Somehow, both Sophie and Frodo had on wet suits. Derek grabbed his tank and put it on. A wet suit appeared on his body and they put on their masks.
"Lets roll." They left through a pressurized chamber and went into the water. They swam to the top as quickly as they could, using hand signals to communicate when necessary. When they hit the top of the water, the water disappeared along with the wet suits and diving tans. Frodo jumped to Derek. Sophie looked down and saw that her own clothes had returned. Derek's had to, apart from the combat boots that were on his feet.
"Well, we're all most back to normal, combat boot boy."
"'Quit it. We're still floating in nothing. Kind of like when we started this mess."
"Yeah.' Right then, the unicorn reappeared.
"Well, well, well. Congratulations, my little friends. You are the first to ever escape from my prison. You have shown me my lacking security. Also, you have shown my your skills in karate-Oh, what was your name again?-Derek. Enjoy your lives. I'll see you again if you so chose."
"Not on your life," Derek said.
"Your loss. Fare thee well Derek and Sophie." Then they were back on the couch. Derek looked at the clock. It was almost ten o'clock at night. The door opened, making both of them jump.
"Hi, kids. How'd you like your game?" Dad said, closing the door and hanging up his coat.
"It's definitely a two person game," Sophie said.
"Yeah. You don't need to get us another copy. We can share this one," Derek agreed quickly.
"Was it that bad?" Dad said.
"No, it was, um..." Sophie started.
"It was that good," Derek finished.