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LOCATION: IDYLLIC ISLE OF LIGHT
CITY: SEYCHELLES
DATE: SEPTEMBER 2, 2026 | TIME: 10:15 AM
Moira Blackwell was happy. She was in her mid-fifties, and had been dealing with all the early challenges of aging. Menopause, weight gain, thinning hair, hot flashes, and restless nights.
There was a general creeping sense that her best years were in the rear view mirror. Her lack of sound sleep didn't help her mental state, either. She was quick to anger, always on the edge of mild depression.
And Gideon's trysts that he never hid as well as he thought he did weren't helping either. But it was his attitude toward her that had the greatest impact on her.
She used to be the center of his world. When he began making money, real money, they would take these lavish vacations all over the world. The people they would travel with were wonderful men and women who felt just as fortunate and lucky as Moira did to have a taste of wealth.
But later, when Gideon's business moved into defense and arms, the people he surrounded himself with were harder for her to stomach. Their dark, cynical view of the world was hard to listen to without letting it rub off on her.
She found solace in the wives of these powerful men. They banded together like their lives depended on it, and it somehow helped to ease all the pain and frustration Moira was experiencing.
But when Vitalyx and Rejuvenex came along, it changed everything. Suddenly with perfect health and a near unlimited lifespan, the very notion of living just seemed so much… brighter. Innately happier.
When the people in whatever this "Idyllic Isle of Light Scenario" was, had picked the Special Challenges, she was scared. Why rock the boat? Sure, she panicked a little bit when she found out they were stuck there with no contact with the outside world, but at least they were in paradise.
However, when she woke up on the first day of the Special Challenges to find the island transformed, she and all the others ran around with smiles on their faces as they investigated all the changes.
The children shrieked with joy as they climbed a high ladder to slide down a long waterslide that ended in a cordoned off section of the ocean.
When they landed in the water, they could see schools of colorful fish swimming around a transparent barrier, and they yelled out in laughter again.
One of the children slipped as he was climbing the ladder, but some sort of force stopped his fall and kept him safe. Dozens of parents had been watching, and when they saw the invisible safety measures in place for the children, they relaxed quite a bit.
On the second full day, Moira had decided to take up one of the adult challenges. It was an obstacle course that crisscrossed the entire island.
She asked Rourke to do it with her the first time, and he agreed. She thought there was unlikely to be any serious danger, given what she saw with the children, but she still felt safer with him around. At least for the first run through.
Moira had been a cheerleader in high school and had also run track in college, so she was no stranger to athletics. But that was also more than thirty years ago, so Rourke being nearby just felt prudent.
"Do you want to go first, or would you prefer to follow me?" Rourke asked.
Moira thought for a minute.
"I feel like pushing myself. I'll go first, but don't stay too far back, okay?"
"Of course, Moira. I'll be right behind you."
The obstacle course started south of the infinity pool, near the ocean. Moira tightened the laces on her running shoes, took a deep breath, and began climbing the ladder to the first platform.
It was around thirty feet in the air, and from her vantage, she could see the children lined up for the waterslide. They seemed to have no interest in anything else as of yet, and that was fine with her. So long as they were happy and enjoying themselves.
She looked forward from the platform, and one of those System notifications appeared.
---
System Message
Moira Blackwell
You have elected to begin:
Special Challenge #18: Obstacle Course
There are three difficulty levels to choose from.
No further information can be given at this time.
Please choose: Easy / Medium / Hard
---
Moira smiled. She was feeling good today. She selected Medium, and waited for what came next.
---
For selecting Medium for your first run, your experience points will be doubled.
Good luck.
Reminder: No harm will come to you in [Idyllic Isle of Light Scenario]. You may experience pain, but all injuries will be healed overnight.
---
She turned back to Rourke and waited for him to finish with his own System messages.
"What do you think experience points will do for us?" she asked.
"I'm not sure, but let's gain some and find out."
Moira nodded, then turned back toward the platform. What was a safety enclosure before was now open. A rope bridge extended far in front of her, high above the beach and ocean, and into a forest beyond.
"Here goes nothing," she said as she stepped forward onto the bridge.
As soon as she did, two things happened. The sky above grew darker with storm clouds, and the wind picked up. Down below, she noticed sharks circling in the water.
There was only one rope under her feet and two higher she held onto with her hands. That, and thirty feet of space were all that separated her from the sharp teeth in those horrific jaws.
She couldn't take her eyes off of the sharks, and a gust of wind almost knocked her off. But she held tight and didn't lose her footing.
Rourke put his hand on her shoulder.
"Just think of it as an illusion," he said. "The System said we're safe. Injury maybe, but not death."
Moira laughed nervously.
"I still don't want to be chewed by sharks, even if it wouldn't kill me!"
"I was going to say there are worse things, but… Yeah. I'll admit as an Aussie, becoming chewing gum for a shark sounds like a shitty day."
Moira turned back toward him, holding onto the ropes tightly. Then she burst out laughing.
"Chewing gum? It makes me wonder what the Hard difficulty would have been like."
"Let's just focus on what ahead of us," Rourke said. "We can try the Hard difficulty tomorrow."
Moira almost lost her balance at that, but she chuckled as she started moving forward.
This time, she kept her gaze focused on the forest far ahead of her instead of the dangers lurking below.
Ten minutes later, Moira stepped carefully onto the next platform. When her second foot was firmly on the wooden slats, the weather changed back to clear skies and birds chirping.
It was like a switch was flipped, and it happened all at once.
Rourke joined her and looked around.
"Nicely done," she said.
"Thanks! I'm kind of proud of myself right now," Moira said, beaming. "Now, I wonder what's next."
As if on cue, a barrier closed behind them, and the platform started rising higher into the air.
A few minutes later, and they were now looking down on the treetops that had towered above them.
---
You have cleared Stage I of the Obstacle Course.
You have been awarded 25 experience points.
---
A handle appeared above Moira, along with a harness. The handle was connected to a zip line that stretched far ahead through the trees.
She couldn't see what was beyond the first tree, only a hundred feet in front of her, but judging by the height at which they now stood, she assumed this was going to be a long ride.
"Want me to go first?" Rourke asked.
Something about it gave her pause, so she said yes.
"Okay," Rourke answered. "Once I go ahead, I won't be able to help you. So this is how it works."
He showed her how to clip on the harness so she would be safe from falling.
"And then," he said, turning to face her with his back to the forest, "you push off and enjoy the riiiiiiide!"
Moments later, Rourke was gone.
"Can't be that hard, right?" she muttered as she hooked herself into the new harness that appeared out of nowhere once Rourke was clear.
Moira pushed herself off the platform just as Rourke had shown her, and as she sailed through the air, she began gaining speed faster than should have been possible.
Suddenly, she heard monkeys chittering on all sides.
"Oh no," she said as she saw poop flying through the air toward her.
She ducked and dodged as well as she could, but she couldn't avoid all of them.
When she landed on the platform, Rourke was doubled over in laughter. He was sitting on the wooden platform, but his clothes were pristine.
She removed the harness and was about to ask him how he'd dodged all of it, when her own clothes flashed and she was clean as well.
Then it was Moira's turn to laugh.
"I have no idea what this System is," she said, snorting in laughter, "but it sure has a sense of humor!"
---
You have cleared Stage II of the Obstacle Course.
You have been awarded 25 experience points.
---
The obstacle course took them two more hours to complete, and featured different challenges, both mental and physical.
At the end, Moira had to admit that she thoroughly enjoyed herself. She had a few bruises, but nothing that wouldn't heal by morning.
And, whatever it was worth, due to the experience being doubled, she ended up with 300 experience points.
She wondered how they could be used, but the System told her nothing. She decided she would invite one of the wives to join her the next day and see how they did.