The adventurers slowly float to the bottom of the ravine, courtesy of Orianna's casting of the spell 'Feather Fall', and land just about a hundred feet or so from the base of the wizard's tower. They quickly start to make headway towards it.

"Holy crap, that was the coolest experience of my pirate life so far," Kohl says, exhilarated from her descent.

"Oh you're a pirate? How was life on the three seas?" Turtle asks, intrigued. "I don't think I've ever played a pirate before, maybe I'll try it out on my next character."

"It's just backstory, I haven't been to the ocean yet as a player. My sidequest is to one day captain a new ship, seeing as the one from my past got shot down by rivals. I was the only one from my crew to survive." Kohl feigns wiping away a tear for her old shipmates.

Turtle's interest grows. "Wow, that's an intense sidequest. Mine is just to make a bunch of NPCs happy through my music, and make my bard college proud."

"There's a bard college?" Orianna asks.

"More than one, actually," Adam says. "But I'm not too knowledgeable on the difference between them."

"I'd be happy to explain it to you guys!" Turtle looks thrilled at the prospect. "So there's--"

Seamus interrupts, pointing at the looming cobblestone tower straight "Hey, look guys, we're finally here! Let's focus, story time can wait."

Turtle's brow furrows. "Well, I wouldn't exactly call it a story, more like an explan--"

"So, what does everyone think? Should we knock, or break the door down, or-oh, maybe I should try picking the lock?" Seamus starts scrolling through his inventory, trying to locate his 'Thieves tools'. "It's about time I got to use these things."

Adam gestures towards Seamus's lockpick and the stately oak front door. "Sure man, give it a shot. Definitely never hurts to sneak your way in."

Once the rogue successfully picks the lock, the group enters the large, circular ground floor with minimal furniture and spiral staircases running both up and down.

"How many floors do you think this thing has?" Kohl asks.

"Five, if memory serves," Turtle says, scratching his bread. "Not counting the basement."

Seamus slides over near the descending stairs, trying to get a glimpse of what lies below. "The dude has a dungeon? I wonder why kinda creepy, messed up stuff he has down there. Should we go check it out?"

Adam looks hesitant. "I don't know if we should go rifling through the wizard's stuff without any proof that he's evil. Let's go fight him then explore after. I'm betting he's on the top floor, let's start there."

"But he could also be in the dungeon! If I were an evil wizard, that's where I'd be doing all my evil experimenting." Seamus crosses his arms in defiance.

"Dude, it's like, lunchtime. He's probably taking a break from the evil stuff right now." Adam sighs when Seamus appears unconvinced. "Alright, let's put it to a vote. Top floor or basement, guys?"

Turtle raises his hands up. "I'll refrain from the vote to avoid a tie. Plus, I remember this quest, so it doesn't seem fair."

The others nod, and state their opinion. Kohl sides with Seamus, the other two girls with Adam.

Up to the top floor the party goes.

As they ascend, the adventurers catch glimpses of the other floors. The second floor consists of cooking equipment, food storage, and a dining area. There's a pot of stew bubbling over a fire, and the game code sends a whiff of meat and spices to each of the players.

The third floor has two separate sleeping areas and a couple of chamber pots. The scent provided to the players this time around is much less pleasant.

As the friends climb the stairs past the fourth floor, they notice it's entirely filled with mahogany shelves and hardcover books. There's an ornate desk with a variety of quills off to one side. Sage resumes her elf form for the final climb, preparing for combat.

On the fifth floor, they find a dusty room filled with boxes and junk, and a blue-robed human wizard standing at the center. With his back to the party, the wizard speaks to a human teenager with long, unkempt hair and black clothing lazing on a well-worn couch. All the teen's attention appears to be fixated on the crystal ball in his pale hands.

"--perfectly good bed downstairs, I don't see why you would rather be way up here--"

Adam clears his throat, causing the wizard to whirl around in surprise. He peers at the party, smoothing his short white hair and goatee.

"Dude looks like a thin Colonel Sanders," Seamus whispers to Kohl. She nods.

"How the hell did you all get in here?" The man's voice echoes throughout the room. He then turns back to the teen with narrowed eyes. "I thought I told you to lock the door, you never complete any of your tasks! I need an apprentice, and you are falling short."

Turtle steps out from the rest of the group, approaching the wizard with his hands in clear sight and a smile on his face. "Greetings! I accompanied these travelers here but seek a conversation with you on a separate matter. I'd like to request your assistance enchanting my ale, and would be willing to provide my services as a bard in exchange."

The wizard raises a well-groomed brow, and takes a second to ponder Turtle's proposal. "Hmm, that sounds like a fair trade. I was thinking of hosting a dinner party next, but a decent musician can be so hard to find."

Turtle nods sympathetically. "Doesn't help that you live at the bottom of a chasm, I'm guessing."

The blue-robed human waves his hand in dismissal. "It's not as big a deal as you would think, actually. Summoning reagents are so cheap these days." The wizard turns to the rest of the party. "So, what did the rest of you want then?"

"We heard from a bartender back in the village of Avernley that you have been terrorizing the nearby lands and burned a town to the ground. Is this true?" Adam says, standing at the front of the group with perfect posture.

The wizard rubs his chin and he looks the five of them up and down with great scrutiny. "It's not true."

The five quickly make 'Insight' checks as the wizard continues talking. He doesn't appear to be lying.

"Avernley, you say? There's only one tavern there, and I know it's owner Tyrin well." The old man's hand moves to cover his mouth as he lets out a snort of laughter. "And his wife even better!"

"Wait a second," Seamus exclaims in disbelief, "are you telling me that dude sent us here to kill you cause he found out you screwed his wife?"

The teen sighs as the homewrecking wizard doubles over with laughter. "Tyrin is even stupider than I thought! Did he seriously think any of you could put a scratch on me?"

"Hey!" Kohl says, "Don't underestimate us, mister…what's your name?"

"You don't know me? I'm Master Erwin, a respected wizard across the land!"

The five party members just stare back, the name not ringing a bell. Master Erwin sighs in disappointment.

"Wait a second," Orianna says, "are you my wizard mentor?"

"Hell no, not unless you want to start paying me for guidance and advice. Never understood why other mages signed up for that job. It's a thankless task." The wizard jabs his thumb towards the teen, who's still watching the crystal ball as if it were a smartphone screen. "One child is plenty, thank you very much."

Orianna looks embarrassed. "Oh sorry, it's just that I had picked up this book from the Spire and--"

The wizard looks to interrupt, but Kohl does so first. "Oh, that's your kid? There was some woman back in the village saying you stole her child, is this him?"

Master Erwin sighs. "Ugh, sounds like my ex-wife alright. Playing the victim yet again. See if any of you can make this lazy ingrate do anything he doesn't want to do. I can't even get him to have lunch with me half the time."

"Can't you just, I don't know, teleport him?" Seamus asks.

Master Erwin appears stunned by the suggestion. "Wow, that's actually a really good idea, can't believe I didn't think of that sooner." The wizard snaps his fingers, and the teen starts to disappear.

"Dad, wai--"

"Too late, son. See you next summer!" Master Erwin waves goodbye before turning his attention over to Orianna. "Now what was that you were saying about a book from the Spire ruins? May I see it?"

Orianna's eyes dart around the room, unsure of how to handle the situation. Everyone around her just shrugs, equally as lost. Turtle seems intrigued.

"Ah, well, my quest is to give it to my wizard mentor, so--"

Master Erwin waves his hands to dismiss her words, his expression nonchalant. "It's fine, it's fine. Us powerful wizards all know each other. If I could get a better idea of the book's contents, I bet I could point you in the right direction. Consider it a favor in return for not"--the wizard stifles some laughter--"killing me, okay?"

Orianna opens up her invention and clicks a button to share her sidequest item with Master Erwin. He immediately opens it and starts flipping through the pages, a smile spreading across his face as he does.

"Yes...yes...this is it! I've finally found it!" The wizard cries with obvious glee.

"Found what? What is it?" Orianna asks, the NPC's change in demeanor putting her on edge.

"The lost book of Netherspeer!" Master Erwin kisses the cover of the book he clutches in his weathered hands. "Now I can finally take over the world!"

The wizard's alarming words ricochet across the room, setting all six adventurers on edge. Not even Turtle saw this coming, and his ever-present smile fails to appear.

"Wait, what? I thought you weren't evil and this was all one big misunderstanding," Kohl says, instinctively reaching for her swords.

"Well, I wasn't evil when I lacked the power to take over the world. Now that the opportunity has arisen to achieve perfect dominion, of course I'm going to take it. I'd be a fool not to!" Master Erwin glances over at the other wizard in the room. "I'm sure whoever your mentor is would've done the exact same thing. Unless they're one of those annoying do-gooders who just would've destroyed it."

Seamus nods along with all of the older wizard's words, feeling a kinship in his soul.

"We're not just going to sit here and let you take control of the world for your own selfish purposes," Adam says, pulling out his greatsword and indirectly revealing to Master Erwin that he himself is one of the lawful good people the wizard disdains. "Come on everyone, it's time to stop this--"

The wizard snaps his fingers, and the screen before Adam, Orianna, Seamus, Kohl, and Sage abruptly goes white.

Before anyone can make sense of what's going on, the world comes back into focus, although this time the five are all outdoors.

"What the--why are the trees pink and blue? Is this a glitch?" Seamus asks, taking in the bizarre view.

Kohl squints, trying to make sense of her surroundings. "I'm not sure, but I'm seeing the same thing. Is the sky yellow for you too?"

"Guys," Sage says, everyone turning at the sound of her soft voice, "I think this is the fairy realm Turtle was telling me about earlier."

Adam looks aghast. "If that's true, that would mean we're on a whole other plane of existence. We have no way to get back without another insanely powerful magic-user that can teleport us."

"Oh crap, we're stuck here?" Seamus kicks at some blue grass in frustration.

A fairy floats by and glares at the rogue for disturbing a turquoise ladybug-looking insect. She casts a spell that zaps him lightly on the nose.

Rubbing his nose, Seamus says, "Well, could be worse. At least Turtle isn't with us--"

There's a light popping sound, and a familiar red-haired dwarf pops into existence. A few lingering sparkles drift off his newly-enchanted beer barrel.

Seamus finishes his statement with a few curses instead. Sage looks absolutely thrilled to see the bard, and the others just appear neutral.

Turtle dusts himself off, and gives the group a big grin. "The good news is, my ale no longer gives you a debuff no matter how much alcohol you consume." His smile turns upside down as his message turns less pleasant. "The bad news is that Master Erwin seems pretty set on wreaking havoc throughout the entire world we were just on, couldn't talk him out of it."

Orianna whimpers, her eyes wide with worry. "Guys, I'm really sorry I gave him that book, I had no idea."

Adam rests a hand on the tiefling wizard's shoulder. "It's all right, Orianna, you couldn't have possibly foreseen this."

Seamus whirls around to face Turtle, who he previously had been trying to ignore. "Why didn't you warn us, man? I thought you were supposed to have this game like a billion times."

"I mean, I may once have read about this happening in a random thread online, but I thought it was a joke." Turtle shakes his head in amazement. "This honestly is blowing my mind right now. We kinda broke the game, in a way. I feel bad for all the other players over there right now. Their playthrough is about to get real weird."

Adam sighs, contemplating the group's opinions. "Seems to me like we can either find a way to get back and clean up our mess through this realm, or we kill ourselves and start new characters from scratch in our original one."

The group members apart from Turtle groan at the idea of abandoning their avatars and beginning anew.

Acknowledging the party's decision, Adam clears his throat for dramatic effect. "Ladies and gentlemen, I've got a feeling we've got an epic journey ahead of us. Onward!"

~~~

Word count: 2401

Total word count for completed story: 22702

Author's note: Thank you so much for reading! This has been so fun to write and I hope it was enjoyable to read. :)

Have a wonderful day!