I KNEW it, just knew it....

My partner in heinous slaughtering on my game on the Internet is.... 14 years old. Bingo! He's probably a young boy. Because girls would want to be magicians or healers, or something like that. Or evil thieves, if they want to act out in a game. Just an assumption.

He appeared like clockwork at three p.m., and had a surprise for him. Gave him my old level three swords and a shield that are all souped up for extra protection. The downer was, he can't use them yet because his level isn't high enough. Yet.

He was suspicious. ' Whaddaya want for it?' ' Nothing. Maybe one day you'll have something I need and can ask me.' That was before the fatal question. Because, you see, I mentioned I was late because I'd been writing yesterday about my Dad, who is 96, and overnight the wheels in his mind must have clicked.

And today, out of the blue, he asked 'How old are you actually, really?' So I told him and asked 'And you?' 'Fourteen'.

And I said, 'I KNEW it! Listen I hope you don't mind fighting monsters with an oldie.' And he said, 'I'm (still) on.' I said, 'Fine.' He said 'good'. He probably thought I would reject him... seemingly.

So he asked if a friend could join us, and I said 'of course...' So 'coverman' joined us, and as the game doesn't have many avatars, he looks like my figure. He was lost for a moment, and I asked 'da kid', 'hey where did my evil twin go?' Which made him laugh, 'good one'. Whatever, the knight suddenly returned as a titan, coverman was making a joke about I should be glad I looked like him, and lets stop chatting and kill us some skeletons, and then it was business. If you join forces, you can level up faster.

There is lots of strategy involved. And suddenly, the 'kid' says, 'have you been to the temple in Dratan?' I said no, hadn't gotten a map to teleport there, and just get lost among creepy monsters.' It's in another desert realm, very unappealing. And he said, 'I know the way, let's go'. And this window pops up, because we are a group and split the loot, and I got to be the leader of it. Because I'm levels ahead of them. Flattering, very flattering. LIke 'great, am leader of the vicious boy scout knights.'

If two on-line figures are doing crazy stuff, three was sort of wild. The journey to the temple was harrowing, and I got stuck with a basilisk that just wouldn't give up, and they came back to save me... and we got in, and it was cool.... and then the server connection broke. So I have a standing invite to meet at 3 p.m (for now... school will soon be in session) and they are as different as night and day. The original kid is monosyllabic. But has a sense of humour. Coverman has a big mouf. Real Berlin lip. But is funny.

People at lower levels help with getting on, that is what I like about the game.

I was dense when the knight came back as a Vulcan and wanted into the group, and I said, 'How do I do that? What button to push?' And he explained, I did it and he said, 'thank you.' I replied with 'You learn something new every day.' And got 'Ha!' Oh, he's heard it before.

If the kid were anyone else, I would've scrammed out and blocked him. But I think this sort of game, violent as it can be, has some usese. You learn to cooperate... (US Congress, anyone?). And you learn to be polite and respect other players. To help one another out where you get stuck, and someone with a higher level certainly learns from the lower level playes because they got stuck and learned something. It's win win.

And it doesn't matter that there isn't sound. I like the quiet to concentrate on what to do next.

As to children in Berlin.... as long as the Wall was up... Graz was among many cities who planned summer vacations for the children inside, and they would train down here, and we would host the guardians at the hotel once they had been delivered, and those kids spent a month on farms in the outdoors, and fresh air, and I hope that there are generations who look back on that with some sort of happiness. I know they bonded with the families who hosted them.

And the Wall was up for a very very long time.

No one knows about compromise, ya know? That was a horrible time for them.

The kid is ok. And have not much to say to him other than what pertains to the game.