Fool's Gold

recently got a job at the local game store, Press Start Games. Now when I say "local" it's more like the next county over. Still, if I had to drive a bit to have my dream job then so be it.

Anyway, my name is Tyler and I was working a late shift the day before Halloween. I was sitting at the counter, half asleep playing the new Pokemon X and waiting for anyone to come in the door. It was a cold late October night so I could tell when someone entered when the room got cold. That's just what happened that night. Someone, carrying this big box filled with different video games new and old walked in. I woke myself up as he laid the box in front of me on the table. "Can I get this stuff traded in?" He asked. I said sure as long as the stuff works as we need to test it. I asked for his information and he seemed to be an average teen, probably found this stuff in his attic. I looked through the box to find some GameCube games, PS 1 games, NES games, SNES games, even some Atari 2600 games. Also some different accessories as well, nothing really special. Some cartridges had torn labels, some with rattling inside them, but none overly damaged so I took them over to the different consoles to test them. I had to of tested like 30 games, all of them worked, so did the 15 controllers he had. I gave him his 85$ for the stuff, and he left.

The next night was Halloween and again, I was working night shift. I was putting the stuff the guy yesterday traded in on the shelves when I noticed something, a gold NES cartridge. At first I thought it was a Zelda game but after picking it up I noticed it didn't have a normal label. It was a small glued on logo that read, "Nintendo World Championships 1990." My heart stopped, my eyes widened, and my jaw went through the floor. I could have sworn I got all the games out last night but here it was in my hand, one of the rarest NES games ever produced.

If you don't understand the NWC 1990 was a competition held by Nintendo in what else but 1990. After it 26 Nintendo Power winners received these gold carts as prizes. This just so happened to be one of those 26 prizes.

I placed the game inside the Nintendo as carefully as possible as not to damage it. I turned it on and was greeted with the NWC 1990 splash screen. That was the most I had ever smiled in my life. Just then I heard a faint knocking outside the door, I turn around but didn't notice anyone. So I turned back around and continued playing.

Now if you don't know already, the NWC game consists of three games, almost demo like versions of Super Mario Bros, Rad Racer, And Tetris. I was halfway through the SMB portion, to collect 50 coins, when I felt a sharp pain in my back. It was almost as if I was getting a spinal tap from a 12" needle. I doubled over in pain for a second before regaining myself. I searched around for what could of caused it but I was the only person there.

The pain soon disappeared so I thought it was just a weird cramp. After I finished the Mario section I went onto Rad Racer noticing that I was getting a migraine. I don't usually get migraines, headaches yes, but a migraine this bad never. I pushed on feeling more and more delusional, I could of sworn I saw faces in the corner of my eye, shapes that weren't really there, and voices. Oh the voices, every voice I had ever heard, crying, screaming, moaning. Something was making me continue playing the game, as if I was being hypnotized. By Tetris I was going insane, I was terrified, but I still played. The game was the only thing to keep me from going over.

Then the time ran out and the game was over. I threw the controller and shot up out of my chair. My insides were writhing, yet my body stood firm. I could see everything, hear everything, feel everything, smell everything.

At that point I blacked out, later I woke up to the bright light of a hospital bed. I tried to move but I was paralyzed, I screamed for help at at least 10 nurses and the doctor entered. They tried to calm me as I begged to know what happened. Finally they gave in and told me. They said I was seen running out of the store with the handgun from the safe. I shot 5 people before trying to shoot myself but I apparently collapsed before pulling the trigger. My blood contained a large amount of a neurotoxin and a high concentration of LSD. LSD was also found on my hands and on investigation, coating the inside of the store's Nintendo. The cartridge however was missing.

The teen who traded the games to me was never seen from again and he is suspected of being the person who injected the neurotoxin. So incase you ever see a NWC cart laying somewhere, please don't even touch it, just call the cops. Or else you might just be the next victim of Fool's Gold.