The Lag (The Game Master: Book #1) by Alex Bobl

the girl's hands quivered, so angry she was. "Quit playing me!"
    Attila stepped toward her, the arrowhead nearly stabbing his forehead. "Here, have a look if you don't believe me," he drew the bow aside and brought his Book right up to her pretty little nose. "Let's open our eyes wide and look carefully!"
    The framed screen flickered, rippled with interference. Not any old interference, either: it looked like some kaleidoscope gone mad. Attila tried to access the map. No way. He started a couple of programs which failed to open, too. Nothing worked.
    He looked up at the girl. She stood motionless, the bow lowered in her hands. She definitely looked scared.
    He felt uneasy. Apparently, it wasn't just the portal that had packed up. Everything had: the chat, system messages, the PM box and the navigation. And the bank! Gryad wasn't some small corner shop, oh no: it had the budget of a small African country. They should have fixed the bank already, surely?
    "Listen," Yanna said, mulling over something. "This doesn't look good," she removed the arrow from her bow. "The portals and all. We must try the emergency logout and-"
    She didn't finish. Both heard screams coming from behind the Crooked Lake.
    "What kind of day is this!" Attila grabbed his sword.
    They ran toward the noise. Something had changed around them; the place didn't feel the same. There were no distinct changes: they seemed to be spread thinly over the entire world. A bit like a morning mist: it made your clothes all wet even though it wasn't raining.
    Attila wished he could stop and concentrate on his surroundings, listening in to the weird sensations. That might suggest an explanation of this hunch that everything just wasn't right .
    They were finally back by the lake, next to the stone pipe where the murky swill splashed against the rusty grating. Someone was moving and groaning in the bulrushes by the sewer. A burly Pioneer stood up on one knee with his back to Attila. He wore a round helmet, a mace slung across his back.
    Cautiously Attila walked around him and peeked at the bearded blue face behind the visor. A half-orc. This was Beast!
    Beast sniffed heavily. He stretched his arms out in front of him just like he'd done earlier when casting fireballs. A dozen feet away from the shore, the lake bubbled, its murky water rippling. The ghoul resurfaced by the pipe and shook his head free of algae. His enormous mouth was fringed with horned spikes.
    Attila stepped back. His shoulder brushed Yanna who'd stopped behind him. Without saying a word, she raised her bow.
    He couldn't believe the speed at which she loosed off arrows. Snap, snap, snap , twin arrows kept piercing the mob's hide.
    Gryad had two types of mobs: mutants and monsters. Mutants were more or less humanoid; some even boasted some rudimentary intelligence, like this ghoul or a harpy. This category also included giants, zombies and some of the undead such as walking skeletons and liches. Monsters were mainly of magical nature: sniffer wolves, chimeras, armadillos, sabretooths, basilisks, winged inches and many-headed hydras.
    Beast turned round for a look. Seeing her, he ducked down face to the ground. But instead of fleeing for dear life the ghoul charged at them, pin-cushioned with arrows. Raising a cascade of murky water, the creature rushed onto the shore and came directly for them. Arrows kept thumping against his skin but he couldn't care less.
    Halfway to them the ghoul's shape began to fade, his outline dissolving in the air, droplets of blood splattering everywhere.
    "Sturdy as hell," Yanna commented as she reached for two more arrows. "Come on, Blue, smoke him!"
    "I can't!" a desperate Beast raised his head and tried to crawl along the bank. "I'm all empty!"
    The monster had enough arrows in it to kill a platoon and still he wouldn't stop. Attila spread his legs wide and raised his sword, preparing to meet the bastard. Luckily, the ghoul had to wade through a lot of water on his way which