"No! I'm sorry! I don't want the anger, take it from me!" I screamed in desperation, trying to push all my irritation aside before I dropped the sword. I saw energy flicker from me into the weapon, and it returned to normal. As if on cue, the dragon shrieked as loud as it could and flew up like a bullet. The cave was filled with a high-pitched sound, the walls became distorted, and I began to hover over the solid ledge; but, through all the distraction, my attention remained with the sword. I realized it was the same one I'd seen in the coffee house.

Raskob! The water! The senses are like those I had after drinking the water!

All I would ever need, he said. Maybe the stuff was still in my system after all.

Maybe the stuff would save my life.

More energy occupied the room than seemed possible, from the construct, from myself, from the dragon, all colliding to form an overwhelming maelstrom. The more of myself I put into the sword, though, the more it overpowered the noise. I saw the monstrous dinosaur for the sloppy program it was. I saw every crack and flaw that stood between me and its exposed heart. I saw the rippling current that would bring me there and knew I held the weapon that could penetrate it. I allowed the currents to align around me and moved impossibly fast, shooting like a lightning bolt into the body of my enemy.

The beast's dying shriek decayed so quickly it barely sounded like anything at all. In the split-second of silence, I heard the sound of sparks whizzing around me.

Like a bomb, the game's massive energy erupted. I saw the body of the dragon crumble around me, crumbling into tiny pieces of paper. I realized I was falling from the air and the ground was shifting. The room itself, the entire construct, even my own elven skin was being reduced to - playing cards! The paper floor gave and I fell right through, the noise and light continued to intensify, I fell faster every second, feeling a vacuum of air - the massive forces of dissipating energy - I couldn't move - couldn't think - faster still - through whiteness - through-the-speed-of-light - a-cosmic-waterfall-falling-infinite-distance-infinite-speed-I-gasped-for-air-

The connection to the server cut off.