Within moments, she was sacked out, her breathing deep and even. He didn’t move, just stroked her back. The day had been shit, but when Edie made him smile and curled up against him, things didn’t seem so bad. It was a shame she lived so far away, or he’d insist she sleep over every night, her arms locked around his waist as if she were afraid to let go. He . . . kind of liked that. He felt as if he were always chasing Levi, making demands of his brother. It felt weirdly relaxing to be with Edie and realize neither one of them made demands of the other.
It was nice. It was something he wanted every day. Without upsetting Edie’s sleeping form, Magnus reached over and grabbed his phone from the nightstand. He swiped his thumb over the screen and began to text with one hand, the other gently stroking her hair.
Hey, man, he sent to Hunter. You’re the real estate guru. Tell one of your guys that I’m in the market for a new apartment. Good neighborhood. Something with a view of the park, maybe. It needs to either be on the first floor or have at least two elevators.
The response pinged back on his phone almost immediately. Two elevators? Should I even ask?
Just in case one goes down, Magnus sent back. Basically stairs are a no-go for the new place. He didn’t want Edie to ever have to worry about being able to access the place. All one floor.
Hunter: Do you care what it looks like? Art style? Price?
Magnus glanced down at the woman sleeping against him, thinking about what she’d want. Then, he answered, No art style. Something that’s only a few mil, I think. Ten to twenty should be sufficient. He didn’t want Edie freaking out over the price too much. After a moment’s thought, he added, Make sure it’s cat-friendly.
Hunter: Cat . . . friendly? Was that auto-correct? Did you mean cab?
Magnus: No, I meant cat. Like meow meow. I want something with several rooms, too. And space for litter boxes.
Hunter: I see.
Magnus: I know it’s weird, man. Just put in my request.
Hunter: I have to ask. Are you . . . adopting several cats?
Magnus: Just one cat lady.
Hunter: I see. If you hear a shriek of “I told you so” in the air, that was Gretchen.
Magnus: Ha. Just let me know what you find. The sooner the better.
Hunter: I’m sure I can get something lined up for you this week. I’ll get my best guy on it.
Magnus: Thanks, man. And tell Gretchen I want this to be a surprise for Edie.
Hunter: She won’t say a thing.
Feeling rather satisfied with himself, Magnus switched out of text mode and went to download a few of the new games he’d seen at the con this afternoon. Might as well take the time to check on the competition while Edie slept.
***
When Edie awoke, it was dark in the hotel room. She sat up, rubbing her eyes, and checked the clock. Three in the morning. Whoops. She glanced around, but the bed was empty. “Magnus?”
The faint sound of music caught her ears and Edie got out of bed. She was naked, so she threw on one of the soft complimentary bathrobes the hotel had left for them. Cracking the door to the bedroom, she peered out into the living area of the suite.
Magnus sat at a desk, headphones on, music blaring so loudly through them that she could make out the tinny strains of guitars. His laptop was lit up and he was typing furiously. As she hesitated in the doorway, he cursed and hammered on the backspace key. Then, he rubbed his face and stared at his screen, clearly frustrated.
Was this a thing for Magnus? This was the second time she’d caught him working late at night . . . and nearly tearing his hair out in the process. Did the man ever rest? He had ridiculous amounts of money, but he was driven to somehow produce a new game instead of resting on his laurels. She padded toward him and touched his arm to get his attention.
Magnus looked up at Edie, then pulled out his earbuds. The music blasted a bit louder. “Did I wake you up?”
“Nope,” she told him. “Your rage was utterly quiet.” She gestured at the screen, which looked like nothing but lines of code. “What’s all this?”
He pulled her into his lap and wrapped his arms around her. “Just more fucking coding. I was looking at a few other games and noticed they’re all extensively using multiplayer co-operative play, and I’m wondering if that’s something we can do while still in an app versus a console game without breaking the entire system. But the problem I have is the same one I’ve been having—the different nations get over-powerful too quickly.” He raked a hand over his short hair again, rubbing through the bristles. “It’s not working. There’s something wrong with the concept and it’s inherently flawed. I just can’t get it to work. I need Levi.”
“Bullshit,” Edie told him. “You just think you need Levi.”
“No, I really do,” he protested, arms tightening around her waist. “He’s the creative genius. I’m just the grunt.”
“And I still say that’s bullshit,” Edie protested. “You’re smart as hell and you’re just as creative as him. You can do it without him. You’re just stuck in a mental rut and need to work your way out of it.”
“Which is why I need Levi,” he repeated.
She pressed her hands to both sides of his face. “You don’t. You can figure this out on your own. Just spitball a bit with me.”
He shot her an irritated look, but she ignored it and gestured for him to continue.
With a heavy sigh, Magnus began to speak. “Okay. So the point is that you start out at the beginning of your civilization. You’re randomly tossed into a fantasy continent, which is one server, or you can elect to become part of an existing country on the world server. From there, you start out as a small warrior and move up in the ranks. You fight other people for spots, and quests in-game can give you loot or temporary bonuses that work against other players. As you build up, you rise in the ranks of your kingdom and you can displace existing NPCs—”
“Wait, what’s an NPC?”
“Non-player character. Basically the computer.” He looked a bit irritated that she interrupted, and shook his head as if to clear it before continuing. “The NPCs or other players can build armies and take over neighboring kingdoms or band together to take out a rival. The problem is that there’s nothing stopping a player from playing for a day or two and then completely steamrolling the other players because he’s put in a bit more time or got a lucky loot drop. And once one player conquers the territory, there’s not a lot stopping him from completely unbalancing the game. It’s almost like I need something that will strip them of loot or . . .” His eyes widened. “Oh my god. Armor decay. Weapon decay. That could work.”
“Whatever you say, baby.” Sounded like gibberish to her.
“Maybe I need to add another level—instead of man versus man, I could add man versus environment as well.” He reached around her and began typing notes into the computer. “So not only will they have to deal with other players, but the environment will be against them as well. There can be rust for metal items, and wear and tear, and—”
“Weather?” Edie offered helpfully.
“Weather is good,” he agreed, typing furiously. “Anything that slows the game down without making it feel like a cheat. We could do world events and give bonuses to those who participate and also randomly penalize those who are exposed, like hurricanes on a coastal country. Or . . .” He looked at her, and then grabbed her shoulders excitedly. “The black plague!”
“I never heard a man so excited to say those three words.”
Magnus gave her a wild smile, and laughed delightedly. “Holy fuck. Plague! Natural disasters! Perfect!”