Chapter 35: Just Chilling
Nox wasn’t really sure where you took an elf princess to "hang out" in a perfectly normal, functioning city district.
’Okay, what’s something that isn’t completely boring and might be vaguely interesting to someone from another world?’ he thought. He remembered an arcade a few blocks over. It was usually busy on weekends. Better than just wandering aimlessly.
"Come on," he said, already heading in that direction. "I know a place. Might be a bit loud though."
Serian followed, still keeping that little bit of distance, her eyes scanning the normal, bustling street. People walked by, cars drove past. It was all very ordinary, which probably made it even weirder for her. ’Loud? What manner of establishment is this?’ she wondered.
They got to the arcade. Music and game sounds spilled out onto the sidewalk. Inside, it was bright and noisy, full of teenagers and a few adults. Rows of machines blinked and beeped.
Nox walked over to an old racing game. The screen was on, showing some kind of demo loop. "Ever seen one of these?" he asked Serian.
She looked at the machine, her head tilted. The vibrant graphics and loud noises were a stark contrast to anything in back in her world.
"It displays moving images with great intensity. Some form of... entertainment device?"
He almost snorted. ’Entertainment device? Close enough.’ "Nah, it’s a game," he said. "You pretend to drive a car. Race other people." He pointed at the steering wheel and pedals. "Here, try it."
She looked hesitant. "I am not familiar with these... ’cars’. They move with such unnatural speed."
"It’s easy," he said, digging a coin from his pocket and dropping it into the slot. The game roared to life with an actual start-up sound. "Just steer, push this to go, this to stop. Try not to crash." He gestured at the controls.