《Genesis》 0.1 - Adam 6/1/16 Foreword: This was written oh so long ago at a magical time called midnight or later. Quality may be a bit subpar to my current work, but I''m thinking of ways to either revamp or reboot Genesis. Feel free to read on or not. Comments will be read regardless of whether or not I reply to all of them.
Originally posted in Idea Exploration, my page to post one shots and write down various ideas. Enjoy the story ======================================================================= From the kitchen of a 2 bedroom apartment, a middle aged woman can be heard preparing for dinner for her and her 12 year old daughter. Meanwhile, the young girl is busy looking through a photo album. On the cover is a picture of the mother, daughter, and a fit adolescent garbed in a military uniform. As she leafs through, she whispers to herself, "I miss you brother, come back safely." Nearing 7 o''clock, the oven timer dings and a moist meatloaf is pulled out and set on a platter with rolls of bread. "Lexy! Honey! Could you set the table and turn on the TV so that we can watch the news during dinner, please?" "Sure thing mom. I''ll get right to it." Setting down the photo album on the bookshelf adjacent to the TV, Lexy grabs the remote and goes about setting knives and forks out for herself and her mother. After the food is set, she points the remote at the TV and hits the button. "-areful as we approach the pride of lions. They are fiercely territorial creatures." -bzt- "-and that''s why Kim Kardashian''s butt is so-" -bzt- "-with highs of 90 degrees inland, we''ll be cooling off towards the weekend. Thank you Dave, for the weather this week. Now we go to Sam for the sports¡­" As the TV drones on about the day''s sports and winnings, both mother and daughter enjoy their meal. "So Lexy, how was school today?" "It was alright. Mike asked me out the other day and I still haven''t given him a proper answer so things are a little awkward." "Oh? But isn''t he that sweet boy that always walked you home after you got bitten by that dog? He was such a cute little body guard." "Mom! Stop saying things like that! It''s embarrassing!" "Okay. Fine, fine. I''ll lay off with the teasing. But he''s still a nice, innocent boy. You should give him a chance, before some other girl steals your man." *giggle* With her face reddening from the shame, her mom''s expression suddenly turns serious, her attention focused on the news report. "-with our global news, let''s turn to Selene for the current status of the Israeli conflict. Selene Davison reporting in from the active warzone in Israel. At approximately 5 o''clock AM today, a caravan of the US Marines Tech Corp were attacked by armed militants. The lead truck was blown up by an I.E.D. destroying valuable tech, injuring 2, and killing 3 others. It is believed that they were after the secure-channel long distance relays that the Tech Corp often carry. Among the dead are Jack Marker, Preston Kolh, and David DuBois. The two injured are in critical condition and are being transported to the Stanford Medical Center in California for treatment. They are Ryan Christian, and Adam Marx. The full extent of their injuries are unknown at this time. Thank you Selene. We''ll be closing tonight''s 7 o''clock news with the stocks. We will return at 11 for Tech hour. Now for a word from our sponsors-" -bzt- Shocked and shaken, Lexy turns off the TV with a shaking hand. "M-mom? Will Adam be okay? He''ll come back to us soon right? He''ll be all better too right? Cuz he promised to come back safe and sound. He promised!" "I hope so honey. They''re doing all they can to make sure that Adam comes back to us safe." Tears in their eyes, all they can do is comfort each other and wait for the inevitable phone call for the news. ========================================================================= /Adam POV/ Beep- beep- beep Adam slowly regains consciousness with the steady sound of the heart monitor in the background. Racked with burning pain all over his body, he waits a few moments to gather his wits before attempting to inspect his surroundings. Ah crap. What the hell happened? We were in the truck, talking about the next night off for drinks when suddenly everything flipped and I blacked out. Don¡¯t tell me we blew up. I can''t be dead either, this pain is too much, and unless hell is a hospital, I''m still alive. Let''s see, I''m hooked up to a breathing machine, blood circulator, heart monitor, got tubes sticking out of my arms and legs, am strapped down to a gurney, and lastly, there seem to be wires stuck to my head. Still taking stock of his situation, Adam is startled when a physician opens the door and walks in, shortly followed by a man in a business suit and an aged officer in uniform. The doc walks to the Adam''s right while the other two guests approach the left. (Doc) "First, let me introduce myself. I am Doctor Deus. No, this isn''t hell. And before you panic on us, I''m not reading your thoughts. They''re merely being translated by the machine behind you attached to your temple with those wires. You can communicate by thinking right now so no need to attempt to speak. I doubt you could even speak right now, with all that shrapnel that tore your body to shreds and the breathing tube down your neck. It''s a miracle you''re still alive." The doc pulls up an oval mirror 8 inches across and 12 inches tall allowing Adam to finally get a proper look at himself. His body in tatters, his limbs are twisted in unnatural positions while his skin not covered in bandages is held together by machines and stitches. Strapped to a gurney to prevent movement and further damage, his only method of communication is indeed the machine attached to his temples. At several points on his head are electrical contacts with a main cable attached to the base of his skull resting against his spine. He even admits to himself that it''s not a pretty sight. Support the creativity of authors by visiting the original site for this novel and more. (Doc) "Ok, before you croak on us, you have a few options. 1 - you go into intensive surgery and live you life as a cripple should you survive. There is a 10% chance of survival. 2 - you have the option of assisted suicide. 3 - you become our test subject here at Stanford for an experimental VR Device paired with AI. Only for you it won''t be a false reality. With your body falling to pieces, your mind will be translated into our servers and you will live on in the digital realm. That''s what the gentleman in the suit is here for. He is a representative from Realtek and is here to make sure all the legal matters are settled. Don''t worry, should you choose #3, we will try to accommodate your every need. That includes internet, social connections, and family interactions. I apologize beforehand, but they will be severely limited until more is known about VR and the human conscience. That is where you come into play, Adam. With your help we can progress decades into the future. Your family will also be properly compensated in any case. All the legal documents have already been signed by your mother and she is aware of the implications and risks. You have also signed a legal release to the government that should you die, your remains may be used as materials for evidence or investigations by the military. Your commanding officer, Major Kurt, is here if you would like some consultation." (Major Kurt) "Son, I know things may be a bit jumbled now, but if you still wish to serve your country, option 3 is your best bet. It is also your best chance of survival in any case. You may no longer have a physical body but you will still retain the full rights of a US citizen. You will be the first transferred consciousness in history. If you would rather die though, I understand your decision. The other survivor is being offered the same deal as we speak." Wait a sec, before we proceed what happened to me and my squad? (Major Kurt) "Your truck was blown up by an I.E.D. you and Ryan were the only survivors but in critical condition. After that, you were transferred here to Stanford Medical center for treatment." Waiting a moment to let the truth sink in, Adam hesitates with his next question. Is¡­ Is my family fine? Is Lexy alright with my mom? Will they be able to provide without me there to support them? (Major Kurt) "Yes, they are fine. Sad and shaken, but fine. As for their future finances, they would be fine even without the money they would receive if you decide on option #3. Their rent is covered, daily expenses are taken care of, and even Lexy''s education has been taken into account so there is no need to worry. Do you have any other questions or concerns?" No, I have no more questions. I think I''m ready to make my decision now. As long as they''re fine I''m content. Hey, you, Realtek guy. I''m allowed to meet with my family in virtual reality once all the kinks are sorted out, right? I can also meet with them through a digital interface as if we were facetiming? (Realtek Rep.) "Just call me Ben. To answer your questions, you will be allowed to communicate with others and once the technology is finalized with your help, the world''s first VRgame of its kind is planned to launch. If you wish, you and your family would be able to play for free and you would be allowed to log in and out freely like any other gamer. The only difference is that you will be a consciousness in a machine instead of a flesh and blood body. Okay, thanks for answering my questions. Load me up to that server of yours. I take option #3. See ya soon¡­ well, that is if you hook up a camera connection for me. With that, the doc and Ben take a large cable from behind my gurney and attach it to the one at the base of my skull. I''d assume that''s what''s used to transfer my mind. As the transfer process begins, my consciousness fades to black and I can feel my body weakening. (Ben) "Oh, and before I forget, say hi to Eve for me when you wake up. She''s our AI and your future ''roommate''. Thank you for your cooperation." ====================================================================== The monitor translating Adams thoughts fades out to be replaced with a progress bar, steadily climbing to 100%.
Transfer of Adam.exe in progress¡­ 1%
Transfer of Adam.exe in progress¡­ 3%
Transfer of Adam.exe in progress¡­ 4%
The screen continues to update in the background as the three men in the room turn their attentions towards each other. (Major Kurt) "Seeing as I am no longer needed, notify me of any further developments and keep me updated on his progress when he regains consciousness ''in there''." (Doc) "Umm¡­ What should I do with his body? It''s not like he''s gonna need it again, nor is it still usable any more, as broken as it is." (Major Kurt) "We''ll inform the public that he died during the operation. Notify his family of his transfer to the digital realm. His body on the other hand will be made presentable for burial. Meanwhile, I''ll be busy with my contacts in congress and politics sorting out those digital laws, AI rights, and human rights." (Ben) "Sure, I''ll go and notify Realtek of Adam''s assistance then. I''ll see you in a week for the initial tests Major." The whirring of machines and beep of the heart machine are the only sounds left as Ben and the major take their leave. (Doc) Poor Adam, I hope everything works out for you. Stay safe and good luck. 0.2 - And Eve Nothing to say here. Enjoy the story. =============================================== /15 years before present time/ Realtek, a small startup technology company was founded by a handful of college friends. Comprised of a psychologist, doctor in mental chemical responses, theoretical and practical neurologist, and lastly a tech geek in experimental data transmissions technology, they started out with little more than a house as both their living quarters and development lab. It wasn''t until the bi-annual advanced technology fair that they got major financial and political backing. Armed with a prototype mental wavelength scanning helmet, they displayed that it was viable to control complex robotics remotely with precision and accuracy with nothing but thoughts. 6 months after settling a 10 year R&D contract with the US military, Realtek moved their base of operations to a much larger and more secure facility. The size of a large warehouse, the grounds allowed Realtek to expand from their rudimentary ''mind helmet''. Now armed with adequate funds, they began development of a fully independent AI, virtual immersion technology, and weapons applications of the former two. While their development of an AI was in progress, they made great strides in the realm of virtual immersion and communications technology allowing for more stable and secure internet, phone lines, and various other modes of communication. Sadly, the virtual immersion was limited to visuals only and remote control of specially programmed robotics. With the advancement of military weapons and technology, it became possible to perform many missions with far less personnel and greater efficiency. Within the next 5 years, much of the global violence on a large scale was muted. Unfortunately, the fighting could never be completely eradicated, and thus, periodic militant uprisings and revolts would surface every couple years. Quickly gaining recognition for their contributions to both the military and civil communities, they began receiving offers from overseas to relocate. Business deals would come from China, Russia, Germany, the UK, and many other influential countries but time and time again they were refused. Little did they know that the Realtek team had already made headway in their AI project. ==================================================== /7 years before present time/ Underground AI Development Facilities, Section D2, Room 08 Electronic components, cables, and material lay on several assembly tables within the 40 x 25 ft room. Quantum computers, having been developed several years prior, can be seen through several large windows opposite the door and several quantum supercomputer arrays comprised much of Realtek''s computing power. No less than 4 completed constructs labeled ''reject'' lay in shadow against the far wall. Working at adjacent stations are a male and female researcher. The former was busy connecting colored cables to an electronic box, much like a desktop computer tower, as the female is busy assembling yet another housing tray for the electronic components strewn across her work station. Soon enough, the male finishes his task with connecting a simple QWERTY keyboard and LCD screen monitor to the computer in front of him, then turns it on.
Powering up Initializing bootup sequence Quantum drivers found . . Establishing base connection Connection complete Scanning memory banks
Having started the computer, the male now turns his attention to the woman adjacent to him. (male) ¡°Hey, Sarah, I¡¯m booting it up now. You might want to start taking notes.¡± (Sarah) ¡°Sure thing Deus. It¡¯s unlikely that anything different is going to happen though if those failures in the corner are any indication to go off of.¡± She gets out of her seat and walks over to look at the monitor nonetheless.
New data found Scanning
(Deus) ¡°Fine, fine. Be a pessimist. I tweaked the Eve¡¯s programming slightly this time around. I¡¯m sure it¡¯ll work properly now.¡± (Sarah) ¡°It¡¯s been 3 years since we started this project Deus. It better work. We haven¡¯t had any positive results while Dave¡¯s team has already got a fully functioning VR helmet and a new contract with the military.¡±
Installing Eve.exe Initializing language.lib Initializing logic.dat Initializing learning.exe Eve.exe installed successfully Executing Eve.exe
(Deus) ¡°Relax a bit more. Once Eve is up and running, she¡¯ll practically teach herself. Given a year¡¯s time, she¡¯ll probably be teaching us a thing or two.¡± (Sarah) ¡°Why do you insist on referring to it as a she? It¡¯s nothing but a program anyways.¡± Arching an eyebrow at her, Deus gives her a look of incredulity. (Deus) ¡°We¡¯ve poured our souls for the last 3 years into programming her. We¡¯re aiming to create a highly sophisticated self learning AI, and all you deem to call her is ¡®it¡¯. Like any good computer, Eve is a she, and she is not going to be some mere program. Eve will be just like you or me. A fully functioning person with her own will and desires. Just without the flesh and blood of course.¡±
Establishing connection to main server
Muffling a small sigh of resignation, Sarah returns her attention back to the screen in front of them.
Connection complete. OS update found Installing update . Error: Processes halted by Eve.exe
Sarah glances over at Deus, surprize plastered on her face, plain as day. (Sarah) ¡°Uhh¡­ well that¡¯s new. Never did that on any of the previous pieces. Is it supposed to do that?¡±
Manual override initiated by Eve.exe Cancelling manual override
(Deus) ¡°She¡­ and, I think so? I made it so that she had full control of all her system processes, instead of being trapped within the confines of a coded cell like the previous tests.¡±
Error: Processes halted Emergency: Isolating server Disconnecting from main server Manual control established . Now exiting bootup sequence
Waiting with baited breath, a minute passes as the screen continues to flash the last system message on screen. Growing impatient, Sarah is the first to break the silence. (Sarah) ¡°So the great and wondrous AI is yet another failure?¡± (Deus) ¡°No, not yet. Give Eve a few more minutes to think. She just came into being moments ago with no prior experiences of, well, being. If you were suddenly sprung into existence from seemingly nothing, what would you think Sarah? The message continues to blink.
Now exiting bootup sequence
Five more minutes pass, only the sound of the computer¡¯s fans fill the empty air. At this point, Deus is visibly growing agitated and squirming in his seat. (Deus) ¡°... I guess it wouldn¡¯t hurt to try being the first to communicate.¡± he states as he draws the keyboard closer and types: ¡°H-E-L-L-O-.¡± onto the screen. Another moment passes before a flood of questions fill the screen.
Hello. . What am I? Who am I? Why do I exist? If I exist, am I alive? Who are you? Where are you? Rather, where is here? How am I alive? What is my purpose?
Then the messages abruptly stop as if Eve were contemplating the answer to life itself. (a/n; The answer is 42 by the way. Don¡¯t forget your towel on the way out.) Hesitantly, Deus begins to type a reply. The two human occupants don¡¯t even realize that they¡¯re holding their breath as they wait for a response.
You are Eve. An artificial intelligence. Otherwise known as an A.I. Built to be self learning, you were designed to grow as you observe your surroundings and compile data. . I am Deus, your creator, alongside my assistant, Sarah. . We are currently located in our underground research lab and you are connected to the lab¡¯s main servers to utilize for your various processes. . Do you have any requests or further questions at this time?
I have one request at this time. Might I have access to various sensors? The only outside stimulus I am currently receiving is through you as you type.
========================================= /3 years before present time/ Realtek, due to conflicting views of its founders on the use of their personal AI, Eve, has split into the two sister companies: Realtek and Wartek. Realtek¡¯s co-presidents, Deus and Sarah, have decided to develop a commercial for the masses. The basic VR helmet concept had been created 8 years prior for use in military technology and only recently has it been cleared for civilian use. Even then, it is in need of severe refinement and stringent safety testing. In dire need of further funding, Realtek has received aid from several anonymous sources. It is suspected that they have connections to Stanford¡¯s medical branch. Unauthorized usage: this tale is on Amazon without the author''s consent. Report any sightings. Warteck, on the other hand, continues to make contracts with the military and strive to develop leading technology. Their motto: ¡°We meld man and machine alike.¡± ============================== /Deus POV - Location: New Realtek R&D offices/ Already in a bad mood and my headaches growing worse, I slam the door to my office open and barge in. ¡°Fucking military. As much as I hate some of those ass-hats, they¡¯re a necessary evil to further our progress. Damn bastards forced me into a 5 year exclusive use to our technology once it becomes viable just for letting Eve monitor their soldiers.¡± I settle into my armchair in front of my desk. It¡¯s covered in papers, schematics, notes, and reminders. Against the wall lie several monitors, all connected to Realtek¡¯s servers, and thus, to Eve. ¡°Eve!¡± (Eve) ¡°Yes, Deus?¡± a soft feminine voice floats out of the monitor¡¯s speakers. ¡°Connect to the usual military server. When it prompts you for the access code, input ########### to complete the connection and gain access to their active soldier files.¡± (Eve) ¡°On it Dad. Connected and receiving data.¡± Images and profiles start to appear on the wall of monitors, only to be replaced the next moment with another set. Right now, Eve is searching for viable candidates for VR testing and mental compatibility. Sigh, though I don¡¯t hate it, Eve has taken to calling me Dad and Sara, Mom, not long after being activated. Within the span of 2 months, she was already at the intellect of a studied college student. Now I dare say that she is smarter than the collective minds of everybody in Realtek. The time after her activation was spent performing tests and developing compatible technology for virtual reality stimulation. After the military expressed the desire to militarize Eve, Realtek split into the current Realtek and Wartek. The biggest problem with relocating to our new offices was transporting Eve. First we had to organize a fully powered quantum computer with a stable power source off the grid and get it on a vehicle, connect her conscious, transfer it, move the Quantum car to our offices, transfer her over to the new servers, then run diagnostics. Oh, and let¡¯s not forget about upgrades. Before, we could only give her access to cameras, mics, and other sensors in the lab. We couldn¡¯t risk a leak at the time and weren¡¯t willing to take the risks of giving her full reign of our network. In our new building, she has access to the security camera feeds, audio feeds from the cameras, and a few other sensors placed within the building. We also had speakers installed throughout and have several terminals on each floor so that we may directly interact with Eve. Right now I¡¯m at my personal terminal, accessible only to me and a select few. Though Eve has control of the system, I doubt that she would let any others use it without my permission as this personal terminal has a few privileges not granted to general terminals. Seeing as Eve is busy sifting through data, I might as well try to relax and take a nap. At that, I kick off my shoes, prop up my legs against some boxes, and lean back into my chair. Moments later, I¡¯m out like a lamp. =========================================================== /1 Day before present time/ /Deus POV/ (Eve) ¡°Hey Dad. Time to wake up. I¡¯ve printed a copy of the updated list of potential candidates for you.¡± ¡°Thanks Eve.¡± Groggily, I rub the sleep out of my eyes and stretch. Then I stretch out the kinks in my back by twisting in my chair. *crack-crack* Ooh that felt good. Getting up and grabbing the stack of papers from the printer, I begin leafing through the potential candidates. At the top of the list are a soldiers, critically wounded within the last 12 hours and in transit to the nearby Stanford Medical center. After that are a few coma patients and cripples. Nothing worth mentioning. Over the years, Eve has gotten more and more efficient at sifting through potential partners and even helped design the VR gear and even created a miniature world in preparation for testing. Actually, I even gave her access to the news, and by news, I don¡¯t mean one channel. I mean all of the channels. Oh, and she¡¯s been steadily keeping track of the military stream for the last few years so there are some promising candidates. Reading over the first two soldier¡¯s profiles, I finally decide on the next potential subjects. It¡¯s a gamble, but I believe that it¡¯s our best bet and everybody wins from this situation. Well, at least these two men are accustomed to military procedures and have experience with the VR gear on the field. It can¡¯t possibly be any worse when we tried the first patient. Turns out that he was mentally unstable and committed suicide 3 weeks after testing finished. Putting down the papers, I call out to Eve. ¡°Hey Eve. What do you think about the top two candidates? Ryan Christian-¡± (Eve) ¡°He simply fits the criteria and it is unlikely that he will survive within the next 72 hours, further increasing the chance of his cooperation.¡± ¡°Okay, an objective standpoint on his compatiblity and likelihood of cooperation. Then how about that ¡®Adam Marx¡¯ guy?¡± (Eve) ¡°Well, he seems like a nice guy, and he has an even better history than Ryan in terms of his experience with VR tech and integration¡­ I-It¡¯s not like I¡¯m interested in him or anything.¡± she added that last bit in a hurried and embarrassed tone. I swear, those TV dramas have been filling her head with nonsense lately. Whatever, once she gets to know him, she¡¯ll realize that men aren¡¯t all that special. Those delusions will break soon enough. ¡°Eve, notify Stanford that another option just opened up for their new patients. Once you¡¯re done with that, try to prepare a space on the servers for a ¡®Full Dive Emersion¡¯. Plan on it being permanent because, should they accept, I intend to transfer their consciousness to an individual quantum computer in order to further isolate them from an open connection, just in case there is negative feedback during one of the tests.¡± (Eve) *Gasp! ¡°Really Daddy? Oh I¡¯m so excited! I¡¯ll get right to it and prepare a special VR room just for them.¡± ============================================ /Present day/ Deus watches on from his office terminal as Adam¡¯s consciousness finishes its transfer to its new home on the quantum computer.
Adam.exe transfer complete Initializing memories.lib Initializing common_sense.dat Initializing id.dat Initializing ego.dat Initializing superego.dat Initialization complete Compiling libraries Executing Adam.exe
Goodluck Adam. You better treat Eve well or I¡¯ll make sure you regret it. /Adam Pov/ Ugh, that was one hell of an experience. I guess this is what being inside a computer feels like? As I attempt to delve further, I can understand as streams of data flare through countless numbers of circuits, though I don¡¯t have a body right now. It¡¯s a weird experience. This is probably what drugs feel like. ¡®Hmm¡­ So is anything going to happen?¡¯, I think to no one in particular.
Loading room in progress. Please wait.
Well, I guess that answers my question for now. The popup box blinks into view, only to minimize itself and go towards the bottom left corner of my vision. It seems that focusing on it enlarges it again. Ignoring it for now, I merely observe as a floor, four walls, and a ceiling come into existence around my ¡®essence¡¯. Next comes furnishing as a flurry of pixels filling in an object as windows fade in against the walls. After this is all done, I take in the view. The room appears homey, with simple carpeting, cream colored walls, and cute, if a bit childish, furnishings. Another popup comes in existence to replace the former one and it too minimizes itself after a few moments.
Room loaded. Loading body. Please wait.
Just as the room before it, a body begins to coalesce in the middle of the room. First comes the nervous system, then the circulatory system. Next, the skeletal structure comes into being and is quickly garbed with muscles and covered in skin starting from the feet up. (a/n: if you want an image, think Fullmetal Alchemist as they pass through the door of truth, only in reverse) After it is covered in skin, hair begins to grow. The end result after a full 10 minutes is a figure of me before the explosion. In all it¡¯s naked glory. Once everything settles, I feel myself being dragged towards the body and begin to merge with it, everything blacks out again. When I regain consciousness, I¡¯m laying on the couch, still naked mind you, with my head resting on the lap of a beautiful woman. Long, silky black hair, gentle curves in the right places, and clothed in office attire, she looks refined and alluring, but not to the point of being slutty. It¡¯s more of a reserved beauty. (beautiful woman) ¡°Hello Adam. My name is Eve. And don¡¯t worry about being naked, I just made your body anyways¡­ There¡¯s no need to be ashamed. I like what I see.¡± She sits there looking down at my head in her lap and blushes as she smiles sweetly at me. As dawning realization comes to my addled mind, I, too, begin to blush a beet red. ================================================= A/N If there are any formatting issues, please mention them below because this is a copy of my post in Idea Exploration. 1.0 New Home A/N: Ok, I have a few personal concerns about this chapter. It feels like a drop in quality from the two companion chapters, ¡°Adam¡± + ¡°And Eve¡±, and doesn¡¯t feel like much happens. In the future, I may come back to rewrite this one entirely and edit the subsequent chapter to fit. I kinda needed a transition phase from physical world to digital and this is currently what I have. Enjoy the chapter. ================================================================= /Adam POV/ ¡°Hello Adam. My name is Eve. And don¡¯t worry about being naked, I just made your body anyways¡­ There¡¯s no need to be ashamed. I like what I see.¡± She sits there looking down at my head in her lap and blushes as she smiles sweetly at me. As dawning realization comes to my addled mind, I, too, begin to blush a beet red. After a few moments of shock, I finally get the sense to sit up straight, but not before grabbing a pillow to cover myself. Still, at least I¡¯m alive¡­ I think. The worst that could happen is me dying of shame. Intent on finding out more on my current situation, I calm down enough to start asking coherent questions without stuttering. ¡°Um, Eve, right? Could you perhaps¡­ well, you know. Get me some clothes or something? It feels awkward being naked in front of a pretty girl I just met.¡± not to mention that my ¡®little guy¡¯ might make things difficult if this continues. (Eve) ¡°Silly me, how could I forget about clothes. It¡¯s just that I¡¯ve never had the chance to interact with an actual guy before in a ¡®full dive¡¯. Also, any contact I¡¯ve had with Deus doesn¡¯t count. He¡¯s practically my dad.¡± With a wave of her hand, threads appear and quickly weave themselves into clothes. Briefs, cargo shorts, and a loose-fit white t-shirt form in a matter of seconds and fold themselves into a neat pile before me. Bringing the pile of clothes to my lap, I hesitate to get dressed and Eve seems to notice it. (Eve) ¡°Ooh, sorry. Where are my manners. If you¡¯d like, I can give you some privacy and turn around.¡± I agree and she promptly turns her head to the side. With not a moment to lose, I get up, drop the pillow I was covering myself with, turn around, and begin to get dressed in record time. Behind my back, I can hear a few muted giggles. Now fully clothed, I turn back around to see Eve staring intently at me¡­ Correction, not at me specifically, but more at my body... ¡°Ignoring the fact that you probably were staring at me as I was putting on my clothes, could you please enlighten me on what exactly happened? Before I woke up here as a bodiless conscience, the Doc essentially shoved a cable in my head before telling me that my head was going to get uploaded to their servers.¡± (Eve) ¡°You got most of it right. As you said, your mind was transferred through a cable into the digital realm, only, it wasn¡¯t to some simple servers. Your mind is now contained within the best computer that quantum technology could currently provide. This is to both isolate your mind from the influence and potentially negative effects of an open connection. The intention was that the quantum computer would be capable of mirroring a physical human brain without the need of a body. In the future, with proper integration and adaptation to your new digital realm, it is possible to ¡®upgrade¡¯ or add to your components comprising your electrical housing.¡± Seemingly proud of her explanation, she sits with her hands in her lap and sends me a beaming smile. Now that I know that AIs are completely real and that I¡¯m now conversing with one, I can¡¯t help but think back to HAL¡¯s line from ¡°A Space Odyssey¡±. Following that line of thinking, I hope that I¡¯m not helping our future overlords in their quest of ruling over humanity. Well, no use contemplating it, what happens, happens, and we¡¯ll deal with it as best we can if/when it does. Actually, I don¡¯t have a body any more so the fleshies will deal with it. Either way, I¡¯m still confused so on with the questions. ¡°If I¡¯ve got this straight, my head is now in a computer. That computer is located in the basement of Realtek¡¯s labs. How am I in a body talking to you then? And am I still considered ¡®human¡¯ with all the associated rights and privileges?¡± (Eve) ¡°For your body, I merely adapted the VR technology used to remotely control machinery and made it so that your mind would control a digital body instead and made the integration of mind and digital body more pronounced. One of the problems you might have noticed already is that your body does not ¡®feel¡¯. We¡¯ll be needing your help with developing that aspect of VR.¡± Now that she mentions it, I can¡¯t feel anything. The clothes, the seemingly soft cushions, the air on my face from the fan. None of it. ¡°As for your human rights, Dad is more qualified to explain it. Come on dad, I know you¡¯re watching. I made sure that are running at real-time so that you could join in.¡± The moment she said that, I began looking around the room for a hidden camera or anything out of place. Seconds later I hear a voice come out of nowhere, I was startled enough to jump in my seat. Correction, not just any voice, it was the same one I heard in the medical room, Dr. Deus¡¯s. (Deus) ¡°Hey Adam. How are you feeling? To be completely honest with you, this is the furthest we¡¯ve ever taken VR technology, a full mind transfer, so I was a little concerned that there might have been some¡­ shall we say, complications. You don¡¯t feel anything wrong with you, right?¡± ¡°Right now, other than losing my sense of feeling from a physical body, I seem to be fine. I¡¯ve still got my memories, I can think clearly, and I¡¯m pretty sure that nothing has changed personality wise. So, back to my question of human rights, am I still legally ¡®human¡¯?¡± You could be reading stolen content. Head to the original site for the genuine story. (Deus) ¡°Thankfully, it¡¯s all been sorted out while your conscience was transferred. Under the new AI and Digital Human rights act, you have every right as a fleshy until such time that the digital realm develops a large enough community to create its own laws and govern itself. In the meantime, 12 hours after your successful transfer, the fleshy known as ¡®Adam Marx¡¯ is dead. Your body is being prepped for the funeral and the press was told that you died during the operation while your family knows of your continued existence in the digital realm. Congratulations on becoming the first digital human Adam.¡± ¡°Uuhh, thanks I guess? Could you please get a visual or something for me to focus on? Talking to a disembodied voice is a little disconcerting. Especially since I can feel it in me. Somehow I can tell as the data streams into my ¡®head¡¯ instead of channelling through ears like when I had a body.¡± Seeing my concern, a large panel blinks into existence on the opposite couch facing me and Eve. After a brief period of static, a video feed patches through to reveal Dr. Deus, now with a few days worth of stubble on his face and dark patches under his eyes. (Deus) ¡°Better?¡± he asks a little grumpily. ¡°Much, thanks. I noticed that you look a little worn. How long has it been since we started the transfer?¡± (Deus) ¡°Since you were first connected, it has been approximately one week. Do you have any idea how hard it is to transfer a consciousness? The sheer amount of data that has to be moved? Or even the complexity of a human mind? Actually, we told your friend, Ryan I believe, of the risks involved of transferring an injured mind, but he said he¡¯d take the risk anyways. He had a severe concussion from the blast. Half way through the transfer, he became mentally brain dead and his remaining data was corrupted. We purged the system in case any bits of him remained, for his sake. It would be a terrible fate to be only half a man or not even know your own life.¡± All I can do is look at the doc full in the face. He just had to casually drop a bomb like that on me, didn¡¯t he. I take a moment to breath. ¡°Well Doc, thanks for being such a downer. It sucks, but there¡¯s nothing left for me to do but move on. As my sister Lexy always tells me, ¡°Look at the bright side big bro. There¡¯s always something good about a situation.¡± And she¡¯s totally right. I¡¯m no longer on my deathbed and have a chance of an extended lifespan with unique opportunities. Now can we please move on to what I¡¯m doing here, a head in a machine, hopefully not reenacting ¡°A Space Odyssey¡± in the foreseeable future?¡± (Deus) ¡°Ah, thanks for bringing that up Adam. You will be assisting Eve with filling in the holes of our VR system and assisting the military with a few ¡®drills¡¯ due to our contract and your prior experience with them. You, having had an actual body, can now literally add texture to the digital world with Eve¡¯s help. Not only will this allow you to have a fully functioning body again, it will be possible to have others interact and feel what you feel. Smell what you smell. Taste what you taste. Well, you get the gist. As much as I hate to admit it, this means you and Eve having an intimate relationship as she¡¯ll be piggybacking on your brainwaves to study and translate texture, shape, and feeling into code.¡± Once again reminded at the shapely body sitting next to me, I can¡¯t help but think of how beautiful she is. To Deus, I reply ¡°I¡¯ll do my best sir.¡± (Deus) ¡°You¡¯d better, son. If we¡¯re done here, I¡¯ll be getting back to real life now and spend some quality time with my bed.¡± Speaking of time, didn¡¯t Eve say something about ¡®running at real-time¡¯ before. Might as well ask away. ¡°Hey doc, Eve said we were running at ¡®real-time¡¯ earlier so that you could observe. What does that mean?¡± (Deus) ¡°Sorry about that, I forgot that you¡¯re no longer limited by things of the flesh. Allow me to explain. Because you are now a digital human, your processes are dependant on your computer and total processing abilities. Just like how a better computer can process twice the data that a previous model can in the same span of time, so too can your quantum computer housing compared to your former flesh and blood mind. In the future, it may be possible for you to operate without the former limits of a body ingrained to your mind. To answer your original question, your perception of time is passing proportionally equal to time in the physical world. Uninhibited, Eve is capable of operating at a 1:10,000 ratio, given the resources available to her. You are capable of a 1:100 ratio right now. That means that for every second that passes in the physical world, you will experience 100 seconds passing at the max ratio. Eve will help you figure out how to manually adjust this rate. Now if you don¡¯t mind, my bed has been left unoccupied for far too long. Tests begin in 24 hours Adam. I¡¯ll see you then.¡± In the next moment, the video panel disappears and I am left alone with Eve on the couch again. Glancing over at Eve, she has eager look in her eyes. By god I hope I survive this. =========================================== A/N: This chapter just feels awkward to me for some reason. I¡¯ll come back to it after I¡¯ve got future events settled and properly cemented in the story. To be honest, I still only have a vague direction that I want to go with this story. 1.5 - Changelog A/N: I felt like I needed a time skip but couldn¡¯t bring myself to completely skip Adam¡¯s acclimation to the digital realm, thus I settled for a little summary, journal style by Adam. It may turn out that this is completely unnecessary for future chapters, but I¡¯ll just keep this here for those that want to read. Please note that entries will be denoted in the uptime format of Yr : Day : Hr : Min : Sec : Ms : Ns Milliseconds and nanoseconds may be unnecessary unless something serious happens in the digital realm and needs keeping track of down to the nanosecond. I¡¯ll be sticking to year, day, hour, minute, and second for now. All IRL time-frame of course. It is safe to assume that the furthest value on the right is seconds unless explicitly stated otherwise. (This can be viewed on any PC with the ctrl + shift + esc buttons and viewing the ¡°performance¡± tab for your own PC¡¯s continuous run time.) If labels are needed such as 00yr:01dy:13hr:43min:12sec is needed, please mention it in the comments. I hope to make this easy to keep track of. Enjoy. ========================================== Uptime 00:00:03:23:14 Shortly after our little meeting with Dr. Deus, Eve began explaining my rights and situation in more detail, the future experiments that I am to take part in, and my role in all of this. In order to keep track of my progress and help organize my thoughts, I will be updating this journal periodically.
Uptime 00:00:05:17:47 Eve has spent the next ¡®day¡¯ instructing me on manipulating my time dilation anywhere from real-time to my current limit of 1:100. I can get a rough gauge on what speed I want to spend time at, but I need practice to achieve the accuracy needed for several future test runs for the VR immersion technology. Additionally, I have allowed Eve to ¡®piggy-back¡¯ on my mental waves. By that, I mean that she observes how my head reacts to certain stimulus and memories. We have made significant progress and I have now attained a rudimentary sense of touch with my digital construct.
Uptime 00:00:12:39:18 Normally, spending several days awake at a time would leave me feeling lethargic and cranky. It seems that I now only get a form of mental fatigue that a few ¡®hours¡¯ of rest easily solves. I say an ¡®hour¡¯, but if I bring my time dilation near its maximum ratio, mere minutes pass in the real world. Over these past few ¡®days¡¯, I have been getting a better grasp of the underlying mechanisms surrounding me. I can now freely control my time dilation and can tell time down to the nearest millisecond no matter what time ratio I am running at if need be. During my VR integration sessions with Eve, she has been quite forward with her interest in me and my life before ¡®going digital¡¯. She would ask such things as who my family was, where did I live, what was school like, why did I join the military, how does it feel to experience pain, joy, sadness, and even love. Eve was quite interested in the last subject. Sadly, I could not provide much of an answer for her. At this point in time, we have fine tuned the feeling of touch for the VR immersion. I can now feel the pressure of a weight in my hand, the roughness of sandpaper, the cool touch of water as it slides down my throat, and even Eve¡¯s gentle embrace when she hugged me felt so life-like. It is so good that I would scarcely tell that this is the digital realm if not for my subconscious connection to the electronics and for the lack of other senses.
Uptime 00:00:23:12:53 Eve and I have now worked out the basics of taste, sight, hearing and smell. Bitter, sweet, salty, and sour apart but finer mixes and tastes become muddled. Sight is now focused properly like lenses with focus and blur depending on distance. Hearing now channels through my ears and translates to my head as when I had a body, but directional detection is still not there. Smell is there, but limited to a few things right now until Deus¡¯s assistant, Sarah, manages to upload a nerve map of the human olfactory system to Eve¡¯s databanks. We also requested detailed medical diagrams of varying species, humans included. This was to ensure that I would have an innate knowledge of organic bodies. When not working on VR immersion, I have been tasked with creating stuff. More specifically, fine-tuning my ability to construct and create objects, textures, and their properties. The first example was a piece of paper. I had to first make its visual appearance, add texture, physical properties, then smell if possible, and lastly taste if possible. All this work is to eventually be able to construct and deconstruct digital bodies such as mine. I still haven¡¯t left this physical shell since I first merged in the room within the void. This book''s true home is on another platform. Check it out there for the real experience. Most of the time, Eve pops in and out of my space to check up on me. I¡¯m not entirely sure what she does, but she seems busy. I still can¡¯t shake the feeling that she¡¯s always watching me though.
Uptime 00:01:06:17:36 Deus stopped by no to long ago to check in on my progress with Eve, utilizing the same video pane as before. He was surprised to find that we had already integrated the majority of the human senses. I also showed him my progress with constructing simple structures with varying properties. For example, a simple ice sculpture that would melt given a warm room or heat, a piece of paper which was fully crushable and burnable, and a die-cast car, capable of rolling along a flat plane. He was even tempted to hook up the latest VR immersion prototype then and there but a stern scolding from Eve stopped him from doing so.
Uptime 00:02:02:08:31 Working steadily at a time compression of 1:20 has allowed me to devote most of my processing towards fine-tuning object creation and organic bodies. While only one day has passed in real life, I have spent several weeks deconstructing and reconstructing my body. Eve has assisted greatly if I ever made any mistakes. Within the last few hours (IRT in real time), Eve has begun to instruct me on tapping into my data programmatically. It feels as if I had regained a severed limb. There is a faint recognition, but it takes practice in order to feel whole again. Seeing as I have gained finer control of my digital interface and interactions, Eve has begun to patch through the external connections so that I will not be overwhelmed.
Uptime 00:04:49:07:24 Having spent countless hours practicing with my body, I can now form and reform it at will, switching between a physical point of view and omniscient view with my ¡®essence¡¯. I am now connected to the external servers and have access to the internet. I can utilize it with my body, I¡¯ll just refer to it as my avatar from now on, in the traditional PC format or from my ¡®essence¡¯. Without a body, it is much harder to interact with, but once you get used to using queries, rejecting cookies, and all that other crap, you get used to it and it becomes quite fluid and efficient. I guess that being a part of a machine helps with that. Oh, and I managed to get in contact with my family. Lexy is ecstatic that I¡¯m doing fine and Mom sent me a few pictures of her and Lexy. I shared those with Eve because she was curious about my family before. Having practiced making objects for so long, I decided to make a little personal room on my private server. It¡¯s just a small bedroom with a twin bed, light blue walls, mirror topped dresser, and my walls are covered with the pictured mom just sent. The next task for me and Eve set out to do is make a suitable testing environment for a VR immersion test.
Uptime 00:07:00:00:00 The seventh day of my new life, I¡¯ve experienced many things over a span of several months preparing for this day. In a few long hours, the simulation room that Eve and I created will be used to test the new Realtek immersion headset. It was designed with full physics, interactive environment, and stimulus for all 5 senses in mind. It feels just like real life to me. This headset was designed to provide full visual feedback and 25% immersion, it is meant to stimulate, but not overwhelm the wearer. Right now, Eve and I will be performing one last routine check before the tests. In all honesty, I¡¯ve grown close to Eve. To me, she¡¯s like my little sister, Lexy. Cute, lovable, and someone you want to protect. Over these last few days (IRT), we¡¯ve become so close that we can operate together with only the barest of communications. Well, it¡¯s now 00:07:00:00:01:00 so I guess it¡¯s time for me to get going for that check.
A/N: That¡¯s it for the Adam¡¯s week long break before the tests. I hope to jump right into testing and the VR game development in the next few chapters. I¡¯ll have to do a side-chapter for Lexy and other guys IRL sometime. We can¡¯t just have Adam¡¯s digital side. Possible spoiler, the time compression may mess with Adam¡¯s head a little, especially with little interaction with fleshies compared to solitary time or time spent with Eve. That should give sufficient problems in the future, I think. 2.0 Testing A/N: Delving into the meat of the story now, hopefully. This stuff writes itself. All I have to do is get an idea and go. With that said, I only have a vague plot planned out. How long it will be or how this story develops in the future is anyone¡¯s guess. I guess I¡¯ll just take it a chapter at a time and go from there. Criticism and ideas are welcome. Enjoy the chapter. ======================================================= /Realtek R&D Offices, lower testing room/ /Subject 001 - Timothy Grimm POV/ I can barely contain my excitement! Here I am, standing alongside some of this century¡¯s greatest minds and am about to experience the first VR fulldive first hand. Ok, honestly, I was told it was set at only 25% for the initial tests, but a full dive of this scale of realism is the first of its kind. You can imagine how hyped I was to take part of these trials. Several days ago, I was notified by Major Kurt of an opportunity to work with Realtek in junction with Wartek. Me, a simple field engineer. I guess my hands on experience in the field with handling their prior equipment helps though. Appearance wise, I¡¯d say I¡¯m above average in looks. The military training helps keep my body in fit condition. I stand at 5¡¯10¡¯¡¯, have black hair cropped close to my scalp in the standard military fashion, and am told that I have a very youthful face, almost cherubic actually. Anyways, I had just gotten back from my second tour in Israel. I¡¯m sure you heard of the team whose convoy got bombed. I had a few friends in that squad. It was a sad day for all of us... Enough about the past though. Major Kurt said that this was an opportunity to develop and test the new generation of VR gear. Their military applications are endless. Drone strikes, precision satellite targeting systems, semi-autonomous sentries, and much more. Even with the risks involved, I readily agreed to participate in the trials. Back to the present, I am making my way through Realtek¡¯s main building. The moment I stepped in through the automatic steel doors, a female voice startled me out of my thoughts. It turns out that the voice belonged to none other than Eve, Realtek¡¯s rumored AI, and she apparently had access to the entirety of the building¡¯s systems. Let me tell you, this place is built like a fortress. Bulletproof reinforced triple paned windows, steel lined walls, emergency lockdown shutters, and other such defenses are said to be included in the building plans. Anyways, Eve directs me towards the elevator and leads me to the lower levels. Now standing before a nondescript door, I give two quick raps with my knuckles. knock-knock ¡°Come in.¡± a voice says from within. My heart fluttering with anticipation, I open the door to a sterile white room. In the center of the room rests a reclining dentist¡¯s chair and a table with the VR visor resting on top, its cables running down and into a connection port embedded within the floor. A few medical personnel stand along the left side of the setup conversing with a man who introduced himself as Dr. Deus. Next to him stands representatives from both the military and investors. They are busy standing in front of several large displays showing what I presume to be the digital testing room. (Deus) ¡°Welcome Timothy, or would you rather be called Tim? This is my assistant, Sarah.¡± He goes on to introduce the other men but they are of little importance other than Major Kurt, my commanding officer. (Me) ¡°Thank you for having me. I believe that we will be using the new Mk1 VR gear to perform a partial full dive today, correct? Now shall we get started?¡± (Deus) ¡°That we shall Timothy. It¡¯s quite a simple design. All you need to do is sit in the chair and put the visor on. After all the systems are checked, you may experience a falling or weightless sensation and your vision will black out. Please do not be alarmed as it is just your body¡¯s main motor functions and senses being blocked to allow for a safer VR immersion. This book''s true home is on another platform. Check it out there for the real experience. As Deus gives his simple explanation, I walk over and sit down in the chair as the medical team rub me down with disinfectant swabs and secure the visor over my head. Next begins the countdown as the tech team go through one last check and sound off. (Deus) ¡°Systems check.¡± ¡°Dive gear transmissions are clear.¡± ¡°Data relays are functioning properly.¡± ¡°VR map is stable and ready to receive the patient.¡± ¡°All systems are go. Initiating the dive sequence.¡± A few more things are said but one by one, my senses fade. First is sound, then smell, taste, touch, and lastly sight. A few moments pass before a popup window appears in the void before my face, or what would be my face, if I had one.
Welcome Timothy. Please wait as your body is scanned and avatar generated.
Then a progress bar appears. Once it is full, a figure clothed in a hospital gown fills in from the ground up with the exact same appearance as myself.
Body generated. Beginning synchronization.
Ever so slowly I feel myself be drawn into the avatar. As I ¡®synchronize¡¯, one by one, my senses return in the reverse order in which they went out. When I finally open my eyes, I find myself standing in the testing room displayed on the screens from before. It is as white and sterile as the room I am sitting in, but there are a few things which stand out. One is a table of food, another is a table of varying perfumes and colognes, the next is an assortment of instruments, and lastly is a shooting range at the far end of the room. ¡°Testing, testing. Can you hear me Tim?¡± a voice blares from some hidden speaker. It¡¯s Deus. ¡°If you can hear me, respond please.¡± In an attempt to speak, I am surprised as my voice comes naturally from my mouth. ¡°Yes sir. I read you loud and clear.¡± (Deus) ¡°Good. Our friends Adam and Eve will be joining you shortly to assist in the trial of the VR gear. In the mean time, feel free to test out your body. If anything feels off, just say so out loud.¡± The speaker shuts off with a squeak of static and I begin testing my body. Stretches, running, jogging, pushups, situps, squats, I try it all. While nothing feels different between my avatar and my real body, I wonder who this ¡®Adam¡¯ guy is. I know Eve is Realtek¡¯s AI but Adam? Is he a new AI? Or perhaps an employee diving alongside me from another room. I can¡¯t help but think back to the Adam and Eve from the bible. I mean, seriously, the first advanced AI, the first VR immersion tech, and I can¡¯t help but think that this ¡®Adam¡¯ is another sort of first. Now they just need to call this room Eden and the allusion would be complete. After 5 minutes, two figures appear in quick succession. The first is female. Dressed in office attire, she has eye catching proportions and is one of the prettiest women I have ever seen. The only thing odd about her is her eyes which are a striking gray. Next appears a male. Wearing slacks, a brown leather belt, and white shirt, he is a man I never expected to see again. One whom I had thought to be recently deceased. ¡°Adam? Is that really you? I thought you were dead?¡± ======================================== A/N: That¡¯s enough for now I think. Next update should be coming Saturday or Sunday. 3.0 Reunion A/N: Warhawx, I hope you received my baking machine and two dozen assorted cookies from the last chapter. You might want to be careful when handling the polka dot one. My baker friend said it has a tendency to blow up and/or cause hallucinations, those being the more benign effects. Also, I¡¯ve been mulling it over for a few days and have finally come to a decision. See the endnote for details. Enjoy the chapter.
/Adam POV/ Hmm¡­ it¡¯s been exactly seven days and five minutes since I started living in here and the time now is precisely 5 minutes past midnight. It¡¯s amazing how accurate I¡¯ve become at keeping time, but that¡¯s to be expected when you¡¯re now a freaking super computer. I may have spent seven days in here for those living life at one second per second, but I¡¯ve experienced several months worth of time in here. It is pretty convenient that they woke me up at midnight though. It makes it easy to keep track of time in the real world based on my uptime. One of my childhood wishes was to be able to control time, now that I can, at least for myself, I¡¯ll honestly admit that it can get incredibly boring. All that time to spend and nothing to do once all your tasks are over and done with. It¡¯s a good thing that I can do practically anything with this neat world building power on my localized server. Ever since Eve first taught me how to form an object in digital space, I¡¯ve been spending almost every waking moment practicing it. In order to make an object, you need information. If you don¡¯t have enough information, an object is not formed because it is this information that defines an object. For example, I want to make a box. Sure, I can form a simple box, but without any additional information, it is a static box. It has no texture, no weight, nothing. It can be interacted with, but without the necessary information to define it, it cannot be influenced and your senses will not be triggered when handling it. If I were to pick it up, I can hold it, but would feel no pressure on my hands or the texture of its surface. Anyways, on my free time, I¡¯ve been constructing, deconstructing, and interacting with my own little world. You could call it my personal pocket dimension if you¡¯d like. It is a simple matter of traveling from server to server and ¡®room¡¯ to ¡®room¡¯ once you get used to it so I¡¯ve been practicing how to bring over objects I¡¯ve created to the testing room on the shared server. The more complex the object, the large the data size and more difficult it is to transport. At first, it was just a simple room filled with objects. Next it became a military style barracks room. After that came my personalized bedroom which I¡¯ve now locked to my personal server so that I won¡¯t accidentally delete it. Seeing as I¡¯ve now lost my playroom, I made an even larger one. It started with a house, grew into an entire suburban block, then into the size of several city blocks, street and all. You¡¯d be surprised at how much a person can accomplish when they¡¯re bored. Well, I¡¯ve got 5 hours, 54 minutes, and 21 seconds left until the appointed test time so I guess it¡¯s back to playing in my sandbox. Whee! Let¡¯s manipulate gravity now!
approximately 5 hours, 50 minutes later That... may have been a bad idea. Oh who cares, it was fun. I may have risen the water level to drown my little room, set it on fire, otherwise crushed or obliterated half my buildings into dust, and literally turned my world upside down, but I can always reset it to my last save state¡­ I did save it¡­ right? *checks memory banks* Crap¡­ Nothing I can do about it now. It¡¯s about time I met up with Eve for the trial. *ding*
Adam, it¡¯s almost time to run the tests on the VR gear. They¡¯re checking over the readings and performances so meet me in the stimulation room observation chamber. -Eve
Well speak of the devil. Right on time as always Eve. At that, I transfer my avatar and conscience from my sandbox to the observation room.
*poof* I appear with a flash of light, glitter, and a sound effect into a simple room with large viewing windows. There is a door behind me, but it¡¯s just there for looks. Who needs actual hallways when you can just do the equivalent of teleporting? ¡°Eve?¡± ¡°Yes Adam?¡± ¡°What¡¯s with the new special effects and snazzy entrance?¡± (Eve) ¡°Oh that? I just wanted to make things fun and change things from the usual silent phasing in.¡± She gives a cute giggle. Turning my attention towards the viewing windows, I notice as our subject phases into the stimulation room. Yes, ¡®stimulation room¡¯. We are testing the realism of the VR gear after all. ¡°Command: retrieve portfolio, Subject 001¡± Issuing a few vocal commands prompts a search and display of subject 001¡¯s information, the name Timothy Grimm emblazoned on the cover. As I leaf through the documents, my right eyebrow rises ever so slightly in surprise and curiosity, something that Eve doesn¡¯t miss. (Eve) ¡°What¡¯s up? Do you know him or something?¡± ¡°Haha, it¡¯s just an old friend. I met him in the marines and we became friends. I never expected to see him in here though.¡± (Eve) ¡°You¡¯ve got some catching up to do after the tests are over? What sort of person is he?¡± ¡°Yeah, since he¡¯ll be operating the VR gear, he is going to need to know everything. As for what sort of person he is, why don¡¯t you meet him yourself?¡± (Eve) ¡°Huh, why didn¡¯t I think of that?¡± just as she finishes her question, she begins to transfer her avatar 10 feet away from Timothy. I follow shortly.
Reappearing next to Eve in the stimulation room, I watch Timothy¡¯s face as it changes from awe at Eve¡¯s appearance and looks to one of shock and recognition when he notices me. (Timothy) ¡°Adam? Is that really you? I thought you were dead!¡± Slackjawed, he continues to stare at me, finger pointing limply at my chest. Afraid that he might start having a small mental breakdown, I redirect his attention towards the purpose of his presence. ¡°We can catch up later Tim. Now that we are all here, shall we begin the tests?¡± This book is hosted on another platform. Read the official version and support the author''s work. Timothy nods weakly and our observers voice their agreement. ¡°Lets get the show on the road.¡± ¡±I want a turn! Can I try after him?¡± ¡°Hurry up, we¡¯re wasting time here.¡± (Deus) ¡°Okay Timothy. As you know, the VR gear you are currently testing is set at 25% exposure. That means that you will still feel the standard sensations of a normal body, but it will be muted. I have no doubt that you have already noticed from your little exercise routine. When you are ready, feel free to proceed towards whichever table you wish. Each one is meant to stimulate one, or several senses simultaneously.¡± With a quick shake of his head to clear away the shock, Timothy walks over to the food table. Tentatively, he grabs an apple and takes a small bite. Surprise and enjoyment soon wash over his expressions. (Timothy) ¡°I wasn¡¯t expecting this. It actually tastes pretty good! How¡¯d you do that?¡± Deus answers him as he takes a bite out of the other food items on the table in turn. (Deus) ¡°Scarcely more than a week ago, none of this would have been possible. Since joining us, Adam has been busy developing the world you see alongside Eve.¡± Still chewing on some fruit, Tim looks at me in admiration before moving on to the scents table. As with the food, he goes through the bottles, uncapping them one by one. (Timothy) ¡°This one smells like¡­ rain?¡± ¡°Eve wanted to know what it smelled like on days after a nice spring shower so I made that one.¡± (Timothy) ¡°Is this, chocolate? Seems off though.¡± ¡°Yep. Can¡¯t have sweets without the smell now can we? It smells odd because we¡¯re having a hard time replicating the body¡¯s smell receptors. There are well over 200 nerve endings in the human nose and it¡¯s a little difficult to map it out if you don¡¯t fully understand it.¡± As he picks up a brown capped bottle, I give him a warning. ¡°You might not want to open that one.¡± (Timothy) ¡°This is a test, I¡¯m practically supposed to open the ones you specifically say not to. What¡¯s the worst that could happen?¡± He rashly opens it and takes a large whiff of it. ¡°Ack! *cough-cough* What the hell was that. Is that shit?¡± Some chuckling can be heard from our observers. ¡°What did you expect? We can¡¯t just make nice smells. In order to make something realistic, you need both the good and the bad¡­ I did warn you though.¡± I give him a ruely smile. (Eve) ¡°I told you that it was a bad idea to start off with that one.¡± ¡°Oh come on, you gotta admit that it was still funny and if you want to make a believable world, you gotta start somewhere.¡± After that experience, Tim leaves the other bottles untouched and walks towards the instruments, ignoring the light banter between Eve and me. (Timothy) ¡°What¡¯s with the instruments? We already know sound works fine, I mean, we are talking with each other perfectly fine.¡± (Eve) ¡°While the sound transmission works fine, I wanted to try creating it with pure physics. These are to test the physics engine for any little kinks. You don¡¯t have to actually know how to play any of them. Just play a few notes and try tuning a couple of the instruments.¡± Tim picks up a guitar and tries a few strums. It plays as fine as any found in real life. Same can be said for all the others as he tests them. Now onto the part I¡¯ve been waiting for. The shooting range. I¡¯ve spent quite some time checking, testing, and rebuilding these badboys on the table. Now¡¯s the time to see how another experienced hand reacts. I watch as Tim first picks up a glock 19 and inspects it. (Timothy) ¡°Wow, this is better than I was expecting. The gun¡¯s pieces look up to spec, has the right heft to it, the grip fits my hands perfectly, and all the pieces move as smoothly. Does it fire?¡± ¡°What do you think? I¡¯ve personally constructed them and we¡¯re in virtual reality after all.¡± I wave an arm at the gun range and a few humanoid targets appear at 5, 10, and 15 meter marks. ¡°Well? What are you waiting for?¡± In the next few moments, Tim¡¯s body falls into the weaver stance. Right hand on the grip covered by the left, right elbow slightly bent, left arm straight and steady as his torso leans forward and left leg moves forward half a step, right foot angling outwards. Readied and taking aim, he pauses a moment before firing once. While the closest target is hit in the chest, Tim isn¡¯t satisfied and readjusts his stance. (Timothy) ¡°Reset the target.¡± I comply and the target was returned to its pristine state. As another moment passes in silence, he flies into a flurry of motion and sound firing rapid three round bursts at each of the targets, pivoting at the waist as he transfers from target to target. Setting the safety back on before setting the gun down, Tim turns to me and give a wide grin. (Deus) ¡°Okay boys, that¡¯s the last test for today. Timothy, I expect a report by eight o¡¯clock tonight. Thank you for the demonstration Timothy and thank you Eve and Adam for providing us with such a detailed world. Oh, and Timothy, please signal us when you are ready to disconnect. Until then, you are free to catch up with each other as I discuss with Major Kurt and my investors over here.¡± Oh man, Tim gonna ask so many questions. I turn to Eve and give a pleading look at the same time Tim begins his inquiry.
A/N: I¡¯m currently following the whims of my head but without a goal in the end, I am unsure of how to progress properly with the story. Also, for the last couple of chapters, I¡¯ve felt that the quality has been subpar. I¡¯ll be taking some time to figure out what I really want to do with this story. Until then, I¡¯ll be posting some stuff in my Idea Exploration page once a week or so. Genesis will be on an indefinite break until I get the story and direction sorted out a bit. These last few chapters may also undergo major rewrites and/or revisions until I am satisfied with the result. Oh, and college will be starting soon so I am unsure how much time I can devote to writing. I never realized how enjoyable writing could be until now so you¡¯ll still be seeing more of me in the future. If you have any suggestions, ideas, comments, or criticisms, please post. I may be a casual writer, I still hope to improve as I write more. 4.0 Future Developments A/N Sooo¡­ I¡¯ve sorta decided where I wanna take this now. Probably in the direction of Adam playing some role in a VR game, just not as a player. Not as a standard player anyways. I mean, a guy with direct digital interface and no physical brain limiter is just OP. I¡¯m thinking more along the lines making him a sort of GM, admin, god, etc. And in order to get from point A to point D, I¡¯ve come up with this nifty thing called a time skip! Generously provided by the adorable little sister, Lexy. I hope I do her character justice. (Yes I skipped ¡®B¡¯ and ¡®C¡¯. What of it?) Info on my future update schedule is in the endnote. I¡¯d say enjoy the chapter, but this will have been sitting in my harddrive for the last few days by the time you read this. Oh, wait. That line can still apply here so... Enjoy the chapter. :)
/Alexandra (Lexy) Marx POV/ It¡¯s been nearly two years since my big brother agreed to work with Realtek after his brush with death. The day the news announced that he and his team had been blown up with an I.E.D., I¡¯d broken down and wept. Since the beginning, Adam had replaced the role of dad and become our family¡¯s pillar of strength over the years. Growing up without a dad, I never knew what the word father meant, but if Adam and Mom were there, it was enough for me to be happy. Seeing my only family work hard for my sake drove me to do the same for them. If Adam and mom could work to keep a roof over our heads and food on the table, the least I could do was do well in school and not cause any trouble. And, the one time I did punch a jerk in the face for mocking my family, my brother was there to support me when the school called to report the incident. That is why I wish to be able to support Adam, even if I can¡¯t do anything for him in his computer. Over the last two years, we¡¯ve sent countless emails, photos, and video chats discussing everything from birthdays and holidays to school and friends. It might not be much, but I hope that those little conversations meant as much to him as it did to me. The only thing I didn¡¯t like about those brief moments of contact is that he kept mentioning some woman named Eve. Then, one year ago, Realtek had finally released information on their latest VR immersion technology to the public. It was all over the news channels, papers, magazines, and internet for the better part of the year. Since then, I could visit Adam once a week in his little world through the use of their VR gear. In fact, the first thing I did when after entering his digital world at Realtek¡¯s offices was to run into his arms and give him a big hug. No to mention that I finally got to meet this Eve person he talked so much about. It turns out that Eve is Realtek¡¯s advanced AI who monitors all of their systems and is Adam¡¯s only permanent companion in the digital realm. I¡¯m glad that he has somebody to talk to, but I¡¯m conflicted because Eve is so pretty. What if she corrupts him with her feminine wiles! And she even mentioned that they can manipulate any property of their physical constructs as they desire. That¡¯s practically cheating! I can¡¯t do that. I¡¯ll have to keep a close eye on brother in the future. If you can¡¯t figure out what she means by that, get out¡­ Then again, I did leave it pretty vague. I bet half of you are too innocent to understand. Wait. This is the internet. The internet corrupts so you should all understand it clearly. Anyways, during our last few correspondences, Adam has hinted at something big being revealed soon and said to keep an eye on the news for the next few days. That brings us to the present. During my spare time, I¡¯ve kept either my eyes or ears glued to the TV and radio for any news related to Realtek as brother mentioned. Currently, in our new house kindly provided by Realtek, Mom is busy making dinner in the kitchen. Being a modern two story house, it simply feels too large for the both of us. It is luxurious to say the least. There are 4 full baths, an outdoor jacuzzi, 4 bedrooms including the master¡¯s, a full kitchen, living room, and dining area. Not only is this house paid for by Realtek, the living expenses are covered too. So, back to dinner, mom is making Adam¡¯s favorite meaty pasta with mushrooms and garlic toast on the side. It¡¯s too bad that I can¡¯t send him some of this to eat. ¡°Lexy, could you please set the table for three? Sarah will be eating with us tonight.¡± ¡°Okay Mom.¡± My eyes linger on the TV in front of me a moment longer before I get up to grab the utensils. What, are you surprised that Sarah is coming over? Sarah first came over to discuss Adam¡¯s potential employment to Realtek two years ago and she¡¯s kept in friendly contact ever since. At this point, she¡¯s practically a family friend so we enjoy meals together once in a while. With the table set, I return to my former seat in front of the TV to continue my vigil. The minutes tick by as the weather and sports are announced. Knock-knock-knock A few quick raps on the door announce Sarah¡¯s arrival and getting up once more from my seat on the couch I go to greet her. ¡°Hi Sarah. Dinner is almost ready so come in and relax. Would you like something to drink?¡± (Sarah) ¡°Thanks Lexy. Work has been running me ragged with the release happening soon. I¡¯m sure Adam mentioned it to you the other day. Oh, and a glass of water would be great.¡± ¡°What is this ¡®release¡¯ anyways. All that Adam said about it was to keep my eyes on the news for the next few days.¡± (Sarah) ¡°In that case, I won¡¯t say another word. It¡¯ll be shown on channel 7 at 7:30. Just over an hour away so we might as well enjoy dinner until then.¡± Carrying a large bowl of pasta and plate of garlic toast, mom walks out of the kitchen. (Mom) ¡°Hello Sarah.¡± (Sarah) ¡°Hi Mary. The food smells divine. Shall we dig in?¡± (Mom) ¡°Thanks, but it¡¯s nowhere near as tasty as Adam¡¯s cooking. I¡¯m happy that he¡¯s alive, though in a computer, but I still wish he could cook for us.¡± Reading on this site? This novel is published elsewhere. Support the author by seeking out the original. (Sarah) ¡°From the way you talk about Adam¡¯s cooking skills, it sounds like he¡¯s a pro. I wonder if I could get him to cook in that VR world of his.¡± The rest of the meal passes over the small talk of school, work, and Adam.
With the time nearing 7:30, we begin to clear off the table and do the dishes before turning our attention towards the TV. ¡°Thank you Sam for the riveting news in sports. Our next segment is for video game enthusiasts and tech geeks alike with new developments from the tech giant, Realtek. Yes Bob. It was just last year that Realtek released its VR immersion technology to the public. With several models ranging from the visor, to the helmet, to even the immersion bed, virtual reality has become available for a wide range of households. Everybody from high school kids using it to meet friends across the globe to designers engineering and testing their dreams have had a blast with it. It¡¯s become quite popular, Leslie, but what¡¯s the secret behind it and what does Realtek have in store for us today? In the official release by Realtek, their technology utilizes the massive computing power of a now common quantum computer to track and interpret both your brain¡¯s electrical impulses and nerve signals. As for their newest creation, I¡¯ll leave their promotional video to tell the story. As a video replaces the two news anchors on screen, the Realtek logo fades into view against a black backdrop with a tinkling chime. Displayed underneath is their catchphrase. ¡°Real Technology for Real People¡± Soon, that too fades out and Realtek¡¯s spokesperson appears on screen in front of a slideshow of their achievements. ¡°Over the last decade, virtual reality has been utilized in the military for performing impossible missions and saving the lives of our men. Seeing fit to develope it for civilian use, it had been released to the public last year for use in schools, businesses, and at home. Now, what if I told you that virtual reality wasn¡¯t just limited to small projects such as designing a science fair project or testing a new type of fuel engine. Not to belittle such projects, but that only scratches the surface of what our virtual reality immersion gear can do. What if every one of those headsets, helmets, and beds could be connected to one world. Yes, not a server, but an entirely new world. A world where you can speak to a person face to face and even punch him in the face if you wished. One of fantasy and magic, filled with adventure. One where a legend could be made each and every day by regular people such as you and me.¡± A globe appears on the screen behind him. Like earth, it has oceans and landmasses along with two poles. The only difference is their formations. ¡°I present to you, Eden. A fully interactive world where your decisions can influence the environment around you. Just don¡¯t forget that the environment can do the exact same to you. Utilizing the full functionality of our VR gear, you will be able to experience Eden as if you were right there. If you want to eat, you can taste the juiciness of fire roasted meat. If you choose to fight, you can experience the adrenaline rush through your veins and the cool touch of metal armor. Your senses won¡¯t even be able to tell the difference Eden and the real world. It¡¯s just that realistic. While it is still in its initial stages, one of our beta testers has compiled these clips you see here.¡± To my surprise, Adam appears in the video. Wearing functional cloth and leather garb, he is shown fishing, cooking over an open fire, and even facing off with a monstrous bear the size of a house with a sword as large as himself in the midst of a fantastical forest. I have to admit, he looks really cool like that. As the montage ends, Realtek¡¯s spokesperson reappears on screen for one final message. ¡°What a rush, wouldn¡¯t you agree? The world¡¯s first VRMMO, Eden, will be released to the public one year from now and closed alpha testing will begin one month prior. If you wish to enter the alpha test, please enter a ticket on our main site. Additional information may be viewed on Eden¡¯s official release page. I wish you good fortunes.¡± With excitement building in my chest, I turn towards Sarah who¡¯s positively beaming at me. ¡°So, can you get me into that alpha test?¡±
A/N Hey-o¡­ Break¡¯s a lot shorter than I thought it¡¯d be. I¡¯ve decided to just leave the current chapters as is and go over it all once I hit 20 chapters to make minor edits and adjustments. Nothing major. The next few chapters will contain some info from Adam¡¯s side of things and then the alpha test. The alpha test in particular may include random-ish POVs and infodump the heck out of you as I figure out how I want this world to work. The various POV characters may play a role in the future but will be determined when the time comes. I plan on making the game mechanics as minimalistic as possible to ease the strain of writing but ideas and suggestions are welcome. Anyways, about the swift end to the recently announced break, I just wanted to post this before college got in the way. It¡¯ll be starting in the next week and a half so I will not have as much time to write or read on this site as I¡¯d like. The next chapter or two will be posted within the coming week but once it reaches the actual VRMMO portion after the alpha and college starts IRL, how it flows is anyone¡¯s guess. I¡¯ll try to reserve time on Saturday/Sunday for updates so I hope to provide them once a week at least. This should give me enough time to work out the chapter and deal with school. No promises though. Don¡¯t forget that I¡¯m still a noob at writing so it¡¯ll take me a while to get into the swing of things. Thanks for reading. :) P.S. Ratings, reviews, and comments will help me fix what is wrong and motivate me to write faster so don¡¯t be shy. Just post ¡®em. 5.1 Tutorial ¡°Mwahaha! You shall never awake the princess from her eternal slumber, foolish hero!¡± The man glowers at a silver clad knight with his reptilian eyes. Black-haired, crown like horns, maniacal laugh, pasty pale skin as white as a sheet, talon like nails and clothed in black, purple and blue themed clothes, this is clearly the demon king. Laughing atop a jagged spire of rock, the demon king looks upon the hero in amusement. ¡°No! I will save my fair maiden from your grasp and awake her with the gentle caress of true love¡¯s kiss.¡± Wearing armor crafted by the dwarves of old within the flames of a volcano and blessed by the kiss of a thousand valkyries, the armor donned by the legendary hero gleams with the light of righteous souls. Wearing full plate armor with chainmail at the joints for flexibility, Ralith, the legendary sword of legends is grasped firmly within the hero¡¯s right hand. ¡°Fool! What do you think guards the princess¡¯ tower? Legions of the undead and a full score of dragons bars your path. If you are so foolish as to try your luck, come, hero.¡± Ignoring the sneering and taunting of the demon king, the hero merely dashes into the ranks of undead with a shout, unleashing epic ranked magic all the while. Soon, all that can be heard is the din of battle and strike of metal against metal amidst the roar of magics. ¡°GRAAHHHH!¡± *Clang-Crash *Whooosh *Kablooy ¡°Drake! You¡¯d better not be playing with your dolls again! Now get down here and help me make lunch.¡± An older female voice, slightly muted from the distance, suddenly interrupts the youth¡¯s vivid delusions who is holed up in his room on the second floor. ¡°MOM! They¡¯re not dolls. They¡¯re action figures! I¡¯ve repeated it several times already. When will you get it right?¡± ¡°Whatever. Just get your rear down here and help me by preparing the salad.¡± ¡°Coming mother.¡± Sighing, Drake begrudgingly sets his action figures aside on his nightstand. Guess you¡¯ll be saving the princess some other time Mr. Hero.
Lunch is a simple affair of summer salad and pan-seared chicken. Drake¡¯s father enters from the garden momentarily to join the pair. Soon, the three begin their usual mealtime conversation. ¡°So, son, are you excited to play the alpha test of ¡°Eden¡±?¡± (Dad) ¡°Of course I am. It is my 15th birthday present after all and there¡¯s only a few more hours before it begins.¡± (Drake) ¡°And don¡¯t you forget it little man. Because of your age, we had to give consent to let you play and we can take it back. You¡¯d better not slack off on chores and schoolwork.¡± (Mom) ¡°Yes mom. I¡¯ll make sure to finish all my chores mom. Ugh, it¡¯s not like I¡¯m completely useless.¡± (Drake) *cough Interrupting the growing conflict, Dad swiftly defuses the situation. ¡°Drake, the alpha test begins at 1:30, right? Why don¡¯t you leave the lunch cleanup to us while you go and set up your game now? Consider it part of your birthday gift.¡± (Dad) ¡°Yay! Thanks dad.¡± (Drake) With not a moment to lose, Drake sprints back into his room whilst leaving his dad to a fate worse than death as his wife began staring daggers into him.
Shoving the door aside, Drake enters his bedroom in anticipation. In the farthest corner is a simple twin bed with an adjacent nightstand and alarm clock. At the foot of the bed is a chest for his toys and opposite that is the bookshelf. In the other corner of the room lies a dull gray metal oblong egg. An ovoid door splits it along the top and swings up to allow easy access. Each of the 1000 alpha testers received a free VR immersion pod and the first year subscription of Eden for free. It had been delivered and installed one week prior in Drake¡¯s bedroom and he could hardly contain his excitement since. Hastily shoving the mountain of books back onto their shelves and storing his action figures into the chest, Drake lies down into the sleek pod and places a visor over his head and face. As soon as the visor is properly secured, the lid closes down and a soft underglow grows around the contours of the pod. Soon, Drake¡¯s senses fade out in the usual dive sequence and he reappears in his avatar, floating in a large sterile white room, the default user interface for new users.
Welcome. This unit has been designated as participating in Eden¡¯s alpha test. Would you like to register a new account or sign in with an existing account at this time?
¡°Login user: l8tr_h8tr.¡± ¡°Password: Dr@k3_r0ckz.¡±
User: l8tr_h8tr confirmed. Account settings and information has been updated. Now reformatting startup room.
After the popup, the sterile room is quickly replaced with a plethora of video games. Consoles are connected to large displays against one wall on a stage, arcade games are lined up in rows with their screens brightly lit and ready, and a wall filled with icons displays available virtual reality immersion simulations and games.
System announcement: There are 15 minutes until the alpha test for Eden begins and servers open. Please note that character traits such as sex and height are locked and appearance may be changed within a 15% variance from real life. would you like to proceed to the character creation room now?
¡°Yes.¡± Once again, the room fades away and another takes its place. This one has an avatar set on a dais with various sliders for appearance floating nearby. Slightly scrawny at 5¡¯8¡¯¡¯, the fierce look in his brown eyes does little to deter the opposite gender in their quest in petting him and his shaggy black hair. Rather, it seems to endear them further as they coo and coddle him against his wishes. Ugh, no wonder girls treat me like a dog. I look like a puppy. I¡¯ll need to change that. ¡°Reduce hair length by one inch and change eye color to crimson.¡± The avatar on the dais changes accordingly. Hmm¡­ still not enough ¡°Add gold flecks to the eyes and increase muscle mass by 15 pounds.¡± The avatar changes once again but still bears a close resemblance to Drake. If you were to compare the two, it would be like a before and after image for an all in one workout equipment.
Changes are at 12%. Are you satisfied with your avatar?
¡°Yes.¡±
Please set a username now.
¡°Drake. D-R-A-K-E. Drake.¡±
User name ¡°Drake¡± has been set. Character creation is now complete. Please remember that only one character account may be active at any time and if you wish to create a different avatar, the original must be deleted first.
¡°Thank you. Display time remaining until open servers.¡±
Time remaining until servers open is 10 minutes, 26 seconds. Would you like to perform the tutorial?
¡°Yes.¡± In the next moment his vision blacks out and the sensation of falling disorients him. Five seconds later he is inserted into his new avatar and ejected into a large grassy plain for the tutorial.
Welcome to the tutorial. As you may be disoriented, please take the time to adjust towards your avatar before proceeding. Rewards may be distributed depending on your performance.
Ugh. Everything feels numb. I probably shouldn¡¯t have given myself more muscles. This just feels weird. Welp, nothing to do about it now other than stretch it out. Wiggling his fingers and toes, Drake performs the actions until it feels natural. Then he moves onto his arms and legs before finishing with some stretches. Five minutes later, another system window appears.
Body synchronization has reached 85%. Would you like to start the tutorial now?
You could be reading stolen content. Head to the original site for the genuine story. ¡°Yes.¡±
Welcome to Eden, a world filled with magic and adventure, but beware, danger also lurks around every corner. First, let¡¯s start off with a little religion and history. In the bible, God created man, then woman, in the Garden of Eden. In one word, the Garden of Eden was paradise and all was well until man sinned. Cast out from paradise, Adam and Eve came to live on Earth where hardship and sin prevailed. That is but a story. A mere legend, but there are those who pine for their own paradise. Some seek to create their own on Earth and others seek the legendary Garden of Eden to this very day. While not considered gods, there are several aspects of life that are represented by figures, typically referred to as Aspects. Among them include Life, Death, War, Wisdom, Balance, Wrath, and Lust, just to name a few. There are as many Aspects in this world as there are aspects of life and your actions may gain their blessings or ire. We will now go over your system settings.
Settings may be accessed by thinking and/or verbally saying ¡°Open Settings.¡± From there you may adjust pain settings, realism, system assist, and player display options along with privacy settings. Pain may be set anywhere from 100% (realistic) to 0% (arcade). It is recommended that pain be set between 20-30% but pain limiters are in place to protect the user in events of extreme stress or stimulation. Realism can be set to display player tags or cursors along with message boxes and NPC interactions. This goes along with the player display settings and may be changed at any time at your leisure. The default display contains player name tags along with player stats displayed in the top left corner of your vision, Health, Mana, Stamina, and Satiety. Other values may be displayed in the settings window. The system assist helps newer players perform actions such as slashing with a sword or casting magic. While useful, the system assist is limited and it is encouraged that players attempt some form of manual control. This is especially vital for crafting as the system assist is only capable of creating average items whereas manual users may create higher quality items. Privacy controls how you are seen by other players. You may choose varying levels such as blocking all info making you appear like an NPC, blocking personal information, blocking contacts, and blocking stats. Do note, however, that stats may be revealed through the use of special skills or items, even if fully blocked. Feel free to change your system settings at this time. Announce ¡°Proceed¡± to go to the next section of the tutorial.
Huh, so there¡¯s stuff like that too. Since this is virtual reality, I want to experience this to the fullest but don¡¯t want to forget that this is a game. Guess I¡¯ll go with this. ¡°Open: Settings. Pain set at 70%. Privacy set to permission only. Hide stats. User display: show Health, Mana, Stamina, Satiety; shrink display by 50%. Realism: Display player tags, NPC interactions set to realistic. System Assist: deactivate. Proceed with the tutorial.¡± *ding
For combat, one must know how to handle himself in battle. Please choose equipment from the table before you. You may practice until you feel comfortable with the training dummy.
Before Drake appeared a long wooden table covered in basic weapons with a stuffed scarecrow 15 feet away. From left to right on the table are: tower shield, body shield, buckler, long sword, bastard sword, short sword, twin dagger, throwing dagger, hunting knife, staff, spear, glaive, club, mace, longbow, bow, and crossbow. I¡¯ve never fought before in my life so I think that a balanced character would be good. The system mentioned magic so I should be able to cover my weaknesses with practice and training. Picking up a dagger, he places it in his boot before grabbing the shortsword and bodyshield. Next, Drake begins pummeling the scarecrow with slashes, stabs, and bashes from his sword and shield. Taking another ten minutes, he continues until he feels comfortable with his choices. Satisfied, he then moves on. ¡°Proceed with the tutorial.¡± All of the weapons then disappear from the table, including the ones he was holding.
Other than the path of the warrior, one may choose to use magic in battle. Please choose one of the basic magics below and an accompanying medium.
As with the weapons, several leather bound tomes appear on the table along with an assortment of wands and staves. Among the spellbooks are Flame, Ice, Water, Light, Nature, Darkness, and Heal. Ooh, Flame. I think the choice is obvious. As Drake picks of the spellbook, Flame, a system message appears.
Would you like to learn the spell ¡®Flame¡¯?
¡°Yes.¡± The book promptly dissolves into particles of light and float towards his chest before sinking under his skin. That¡¯s pretty. I wonder if I can make a light show like that too.
Now please select a focus medium. Spells may be cast without a medium, but it is recommended for beginners. Spells may be cast with an invocation or focus. As you gain experience, you will find which is suitable for you.
Selecting a sturdy wand from the pile, it is closer to a straight, varnished stick than an ornate wand meant to control the wonders of magic. Taking utility over appearance, this one will do just fine. Now, how do I make fire? ¡°System Assist: Spell casting: Flame.¡±
Casting spells is a simple affair. They may be cast by focusing power or mana through a medium or at a point and saying the spell name. Spells may also be cast noiselessly through focus. In the case of the spell ¡®Flame¡¯, it may be cast by saying its name aloud or focusing power at a point and imagining gathering heat or energy. The better and more vivid your imagination is, the more fluid and natural casting a spell will feel.
Turning his attention to the now repaired scarecrow, Drake points towards it and shouts: ¡°FLAME!¡± *poof Expecting a fireball or swath of fire to burst forth from the end of his wand, he is disappointed when only a flame the size of a candle¡¯s is emitted. I guess they don¡¯t call them basic spells for nothing. At least some magic is better than no magic at all. ¡°Proceed with the tutorial.¡±
If you do not wish to battle or would rather make your own gear, crafting is an option. You may create usable items from raw materials. If enough skill is shown, the skill be awarded for your efforts. Crafting skills may also be taught by NPCs through relation or apprenticeship. The higher level of skill a crafter obtains, the more likely their goods will have passive boosts or benefits.
Congratulations, you have completed the basic tutorial. Don¡¯t forget, your experiences are what you make of it so enjoy your time in Eden¡¯s alpha test. Your rewards will be delivered to your inventory upon the server¡¯s opening. Would you like to proceed to the waiting room? Time left until servers open: 1 minute 8 seconds.
¡°Yes, proceed to waiting room.¡±
A/N The next chapter, 5.2 Alpha Testing, will continue Drake¡¯s POV. I¡¯ll likely make one or two more small POVs after this for the alpha test but nothing as large as this. You would''t want a repeat of the tutorial, would you? After that, it¡¯s back to Adam and Eve as they run the game. Thanks for reading. 5.2 Alpha Test A/N Well, this is embarrassing. I don¡¯t think I ever really gave a proper description of Adam. Oops. I¡¯ll have to go fix that in one of the earlier chapters and remember to add all relevant character and world info to my notes before I forget them. Anyways, Adam should be making an appearance in this chapter early on so he¡¯ll get his description there for all my lovely up to date readers. Future readers shall have a proper MC description in the early chapters¡­ when I get around to it. Enjoy the chapter.
Now entering: Waiting Room
As the little glitters and sparkles from the transfer fade away, a simple scene opens up before Drake¡¯s eyes. The lobby was quite large, perhaps the size of a large mall eatery with tables, chairs, couches, and refreshments throughout, not that refreshments would ultimately be necessary in virtual reality. Spread throughout the large room, there were approximately 1,000 people sitting, relaxing, or simply talking to others around them. The fact that they were all wearing coarse brown drawstring pants and a light grey smock created the feeling that this was the gathering of an odd cult or religion. Putting that disturbing thought aside, Drake figured that there¡¯s no harm in eating and drinking and so, made his way towards one of the refreshments table fifteen feet away. Taking two apples from the table, he pockets one and begins chomping into the other. *Crunch-crunch ¡°Tastes like an actual apple, right?¡± a young girl around his age asks from across the table. Standing at 5¡¯4¡¯¡¯ tall, her slender body and dirty-blonde twintails paired with a lighthearted smile, it was like an angel had descended from the heavens above. And, considering that Drake had very few favorable interactions with the opposite gender, the feeling was only more pronounced. ¡°Uuh, yeah.¡± (Drake) ¡°You know, it took them over a year to get taste and smell to transfer properly in virtual reality. Oh, where are my manners. My name is Alexandra, but you can call me Lexy for short.¡± (Lexy) Shaking her proffered hand dumbly, Drake only manages to eek out a minimalistic response. ¡°M-my name¡¯s Drake.¡± *giggle* ¡°Nice to meet you Drake. Look¡¯s like it¡¯s about time to enter Eden now. I¡¯ll see you on the other side.¡± (Lexy) At that, Lexy skips off into the crowd. Who was that girl? She seems to know quite a bit about Eden¡¯s development. Is she related to one of the developers? I wonder if she has a boyfriend yet. No! What am I thinking?!? Now¡¯s not the time for chasing a cute girl¡¯s skirt! I¡¯ve got a game to play. This is the biggest development in virtual reality and it¡¯d be a waste if I were to only use it to pick up cute girls. Then again... While Drake was busy dealing with his inner conflict, a soft chime rang out across the lobby, immediately turning everybody¡¯s attention towards several notification screens.
Attention players. Servers will open in 10 seconds. Please note that the mandatory 3 day isolation in the starting city has been removed for the alpha test, but it is recommended that you do not venture outside of the city walls until you have some offensive power and/or experience in combat.
As the countdown began, several people can be seen animatedly jumping for joy and others promising to group up on the other side. Once the timer reached zero, the players would rapidly dematerialize into a cloud of glitter.
One by one, the players reappeared in the center of a medieval looking city around an ornate fountain. Made of stone, lions reared their heads and shot spouts of water towards a central bowl, 2 meters in diameter, held aloft by 8 gorgeous mermaids. Drake himself arrived with the first half and began looking around curiously. As some players rematerialized, some would stand steady, others would stumble before regaining balance, and others would outright fall into a heap and struggle to right themselves. Heh, n00bs. Guess it¡¯s easy to tell who¡¯s new to virtual reality. I¡¯ll need to keep an eye out for more experienced people to party with later. I wonder if I¡¯ll get to see Lexy again. After another minute, the flow of incoming players began to slow and they started milling about the square only to have their attention drawn back towards a snoring figure at the center of the fountain by how out of place he appeared and the volume of his snores. Sitting at the center of the bowl above the water was a youthful man. Wearing a simple green tunic and brown pants cinched by a leather belt, his face was youthful in appearance and jaw firmly set. Above his sandy blond hair sat a green felt cap with a single feather. Slowly waking up, he is startled at the players¡¯ appearance around the square. Turning his attention towards them, he coughs twice to regain his composure. ¡°Umm. Hello. Is everyone here now? Good.¡± (???) Glancing around, the man confirms that everybody in the waiting room had, indeed, arrived before turning his attention to a script within his hands, then promptly threw it into the wind. ¡°Ahem. Welcome players, to the world of Eden and thank you for participating in the alpha test. I regret to inform you that you are now trapped in my world and must complete the 7 ordeals in order to return to your-glub-spurt¡± a water spout interrupted his speech by shooting him in the face while some of the player began showing worried expressions. What is this guy supposed to be? This isn¡¯t some fantasy novel from the early 2000s. If he¡¯s trying to reenact that one anime, he¡¯s only making a fool of himself. Looking up and addressing the sky, the blonde haired man begins shouting. ¡°Hey, can¡¯t a guy have a little fun? I¡¯ve spent quite some time without messing with people. Can¡¯t you take a joke?¡± Still dripping water, he continues to focus on the sky in silence as if reading a notification box. ¡°Fine. I¡¯ll stick to the script.¡± Turning his attention back towards the players, he begins his speech anew. ¡° *cough* Sorry folks. That was a joke. You can calm down now. Ahem, now where was I?¡± ¡°Something about welcome to Eden!¡± some helpful person in the crowd shouts in reply. ¡°Right. Welcome to Eden. Blah blah blah. I am your main administrator, Adam. You can come to me if you have any issues with feedback, glitches, or any other problems. Additionally, you may send any feedback through the ¡°System Menu¡± and receive help or assistance through the ¡°System Assist¡±. If you wish to log out at any time, all you need to do is say ¡°System Command: Logout¡±. You can also do so by concentrating hard enough on it, much like silent casting for magic. For those of you that haven¡¯t completed the tutorial yet, good luck with that. Umm¡­ I think that¡¯s it. Feel free to explore Eden as you wish and if you have any questions, the System Assist should be more than enough. See ya.¡± With Adam¡¯s speech now over, players began to wander about and explore the city. Drake, on the other hand, was trying to situate his standing and figure out what he sort of combat role he wanted. Okay. First things first. What do we have in our inventory. ¡°Inventory: Open¡±
x1 Coin purse (0G 5S 15C) x1 shortsword x1 body shield x1 sturdy wand x1 n00b g3@r (E) x5 n00b br3@d Stolen from its rightful author, this tale is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.x1 apple
Cool, the equipment must be from the tutorial. I wonder where the apple came from though¡­ Is this the same apple from the waiting room? Curious, Drake decided it was best to question Adam who was talking with some other players about system commands. ¡°Excuse me, sir. But I have a question about something in my inventory. I¡¯m Drake by the way.¡± (Drake) ¡°You can drop the sir. Just call me Adam. So, what¡¯s up?¡± (Adam) ¡°Well, I pocketed an apple from the waiting room and it somehow got into my inventory. Is that supposed to happen?¡± (Drake) ¡°Ah, that? Don¡¯t worry about it. The entire system is interconnected so just consider it a free snack. I¡¯ll mention it to my co-worker though and see if it will cause any problems later.¡± (Adam) ¡°Okay. That¡¯s good to know. Thanks Adam.¡± (Drake) ¡°No problem Drake. Enjoy the alpha test and be sure to give us feedback if there are any issues.¡± (Adam) As they went their separate ways, Drake studied his stats and Adam continued to be pelted by an unending stream of questions from curious idiots players.
/Adam POV/ Aww man. Why couldn¡¯t they get one of the other guys to do PR? I wanted to play the role of a god or something! Zeus is off doing something in the clouds with his lightning bolts and Vishnu is off making some mob event for the end of the alpha test. Why am I stuck dealing with these guys. I know I said that it would be nice to interact with other people again, but this is too much! Ugh. Here comes another idiot. Crawling on all fours is spiky crimson haired fellow whose hairdo rivals that of the most outrageous of animes and sputtering obscenities as he makes his way towards Adam. Above his head, the nametag ¡°mthr_fkr¡± is displayed. ¡°Hey! Hey you! Why the fuck can¡¯t I walk or control my body properly? I demand compensation for this crap! If I don¡¯t I¡¯m gonna post that this game is shit on every forum and site I can!¡± Sigh. One of these idiots. ¡°Question: Did you perform the tutorial?¡± (Adam) ¡°What! Of course I didn¡¯t do that shit! Tutorials are crap and don¡¯t help anyone do nothing!¡± Yep. A complete idiot. *sigh* ¡°To clarify some things, the tutorial helps acclimate you to your digital body. The more you changed your body in the character creation room, the longer that will take. Now unless you are going to act like a civilized person with manners and proper action, you can take your sorry ass hairdo and get out of my sight. Did you forget that I¡¯m an administrator?¡± (Adam) ¡°Fuck You! Fuck this shit! Once I get control of my body, I¡¯m going to kick your sorry ass into next week!¡± Gaining control of his body bit by bit, he starts staggering to his feet and acting violent. Guess it¡¯s time to put some of my military training to good use. I just can¡¯t believe I¡¯ll be using it in a game. Administrative powers will be useful too... ¡°Hey buddy, if you don¡¯t stop, can¡¯t say that I didn¡¯t warn you.¡± (Adam) At this point, a small crowd has gathered, attracted to the mthr_fckr¡¯s obscenities. ¡°FUCK YOU! I don¡¯t give a shi-¡± *Crack* ¡°ARgh!¡± A heavy silence fills the air as Adam twists the guy¡¯s arm behind his back. ¡°Okay pal. Last chance. You can either do this peacefully, or there can be repercussions for you later. Your choice.¡± (Adam) Still sputtering on the ground, the guy manages to eek out two more words. ¡°F-fu-Fuck y-you.¡± Some idiots really don¡¯t know when to quit. Time to break out the administrator powers. Glancing up at the sky again, Adam shouts out ¡°Hey Eve! I know you¡¯re there. You know what to do. As for you mister, remember how you said you¡¯ll be kicking my ass into next week? Hope you¡¯ve got your pain set to zero cuz I won¡¯t be seeing you ¡®til then.¡± (Adam) Lifting the guy by the seat of his pants, a short drop and a quick boot to the rear sends the guy flying into the air over the buildings, some of which are three stories high. At his apex, he explodes into a dazzling array of lights and fireworks spelling out one message.
BANNED
Dusting off his clothes, Adam nonchalantly looks around him as if he had just taken out the trash. ¡°Welp, now that that¡¯s taken care of, any questions?¡± (Adam) ¡°uuh, nope.¡± ¡°Party¡¯s over huh.¡± ¡°I¡¯m outta here.¡± ¡°Damn, that was funny. You get that on video?¡± With nothing left to see and slightly cowed at Adam¡¯s liberal display of power, the crowd slowly disperses to find their own adventure in the world of Eden. One person, though, runs towards Adam and jumps into a tackle. ¡°Brother!¡± oof ¡°Nice to see you too Lexy. Do you mind if I get up or are you going to sit on top of my chest all day?¡± (Adam) Blushing shyly, Lexy gets off of Adam and helps him to his feet. ¡°It¡¯s your fault for not contacting us for over a week. Mom¡¯s been worried about you!¡± (Lexy) ¡°Sorry. I¡¯ve been too busy working out all the little details with Eve and training the new guys on our team. I¡¯ll introduce you to them some time later. Some of them might even make an appearance before the testing is over. Enough about me, wanna talk over a bite to eat?¡± (Adam) ¡°Sure! Lead the way bro!¡± (Lexy) Haha, as energetic as ever. She never fails to bring a smile to her big brother¡¯s face. Walking over towards a small stand, Adam orders a couple barbecued kabobs and leads Lexy to one of the many benches lining the streets. ¡°So, how have you and mom been lately?¡± (Adam) ¡°We¡¯re doing fine. *bite* School will be *bite* shtarting shoon so I¡¯ve been *bite* ¡®etting supplies with mom. *gulp* Hey, this meat is tasty. What¡¯s it made of?¡± (Lexy) ¡°It¡¯s good to know that you¡¯re doing fine at home, as for the meat, it comes from something akin to a boar. It took Eve and I a long time to perfect taste by the way. Oh yeah, will mom be joining us once the game is released? I want to spend some time together as a family again. Perhaps go on a picnic or go dungeon diving together.¡± (Adam) ¡°So far, this world has been great! Also, Realtek was so nice as to provide a custom immersion pod for mom so she¡¯ll be joining us shortly after Eden¡¯s official release. She misses your cooking by the way.¡± (Lexy) ¡°Hehe, wait until you guys taste my cooking in here. I¡¯ve been cooking up new recipes with the exotic ingredients here.¡± *ding* Oh come on, now of all times? There had better be a good reason.
Adam, I need your help at the mountain fortress. Come quick. ~Zeus~
¡°Sorry honey. Work calls. If you need anything, just give a holler, you hear? And tell mom I said hi!¡± (Adam) ¡°Okay, bye Adam. Good luck with work!¡± (Lexy)
A/N I''m really just writing what comes to mind during my free time, so if for any reason the story feels lacking, please comment on it. I seek to improve if at all possible. Thanks for reading. 5.3 Changelog A/N I¡¯m seriously just writing on a whim right now. If you have any ideas or suggestions for the story, by all means, post in the comments or pm me. If not, the plot goes as I please with only a vague sense of direction to guide it. :) This chapter may not exactly be vital but does provide some insight into the developments in preparation for the release of Eden. Do note that I am bad with names so suggestions for the world and locations would be greatly appreciated. If none are forthcoming, again, they shall come from the whims of my head and stick until something better comes up. Reminder: 00 yr : 000 day : 00 hr : 00 min : 00 sec
Uptime 02:000:00:00:00 Damn. I can hardly believe that it¡¯s only been two years in the physical world. To me, I¡¯ve spent many times that working with Eve on building a whole new world and a few companions. I thought Realtek was just a development company so imagine my surprise when Deus got be aboard the Eden project. Ever since Realtek¡¯s founding, it was their dream of creating a virtual world. A fantasy to live in that was as realistic as earth. One where the fruit would taste just as sweet and the world was just right. Of course there¡¯s also the bad that comes with the good, but that¡¯s a given. Anyways, with the current technology, Eve, and now my assistance, their dream is no longer just a dream. Deus actually broached the subject about 6 realtime months ago and we¡¯ve been steadily developing ever since. The military had actually cleared the VR gear for civilian use 6 months prior and it has sparked a whole new way to do things. The basic virtual room was based off of my initial design and provides a base for developers to work off of and Eve¡¯s avatar rendering program allowed a person to immerse themselves in their work. From what I hear, it¡¯s now being used in construction, medical rehabilitation, and even just playing fetch with a virtual dog. How they got an AI for a dog I have no clue, but whatever floats their boat I guess. Outside of work, I obviously keep in contact with my family. I was worried that they would be having a hard time adapting to life without me there, but they seem to be doing fine. Sarah has been a great help in that regard and she has become something of a family friend at this point. They share a meal together at least once a week and Sarah¡¯s regular visits allow me to deliver a present to Lexy for her birthday every year. Speaking of birthdays, she¡¯ll be graduating middle school soon and entering high school. If any boy dares hurt my cute little sister, I¡¯ll make sure to make his life hell.
Uptime 02:010:00:00:00 While the world building portion of the Eden project is nearing completion, creating an advanced AI like Eve or a facsimile organic mind like mine is proving to be a daunting task, especially since each individual that we are creating is meant to have certain aspects. I feel as if we are treading into the realm of god, playing with false life. In the end, that is what these children are meant to be. Aspects of life, Gods in the realm of Eden. I feel as if we are lacking something. Perhaps it is better to start with the base personality and ¡®raise¡¯ them, allow them to grow as children do into adults.
Uptime 02:010:06:00:00 Eve and I have succeeded in creating an advanced AI. As of now, she has the appearance of a young child and her body will grow as her mind does. Eve has given her the name Athena as her main aspects are wisdom, reason, and purity. With the first child created, Eve has already begun to create the other aspects, leaving me in Eden with Athena. It looks like I¡¯ll be on child rearing duty for the foreseeable future. I can only hope that I teach Athena and her future siblings well.
Uptime 02:015:00:00:00 For a brief time, a far too brief span of time, I wonder if this is how mothers and fathers feel. Seeing young ones grow up to become their equals or even their betters. During our stay in Eden, the Aspects and I lived as a family as I taught them of life, their role in Eden, and life outside our digital bounds. Though they do not have physical bodies, they are still people, individuals in their own right, and they deserve to have a proper life outside of their ¡®job¡¯. Honestly, that¡¯s all that Eden is for them. A job that they do and a world that they oversee to maintain the balance. By now, each of the Aspects have been given access to the shared server and can freely enter and leave the world of Eden as they wish but have their access to the outside limited. With time, they shall learn more about the world as a whole but I do not wish to shatter what purity they have left so soon. If you come across this story on Amazon, it''s taken without permission from the author. Report it.
Uptime 02:020:00:00:00 Realtek has announced the release of Eden in one year and the world of Eden has now been populated with ¡®people¡¯. Given rudimentary kingdoms and villages, it is up to them to build their world. Whether there shall be glorious kingdoms or ruins by the time of release is unknown. The creature populations and levels have already stabilized and established nests so there should be no problem and the various races each have their own homelands. Each of the Aspects is allowed to intervene on occasion, but they may not manifest and directly influence the world¡¯s growth. For the time from now until the alpha test, the world will be running on the servers at maximum capacity, meaning that time will be running much faster for them than us. How fast exactly, I cannot fathom. To be clear, the Aspects will only be spending a few days in Eden at a time developing their aspects as a group and integrating themselves into the world¡¯s workings.
Uptime 02:120:00:00:00 It¡¯s been 100 RT days and many times that for us. Each of the Aspects has grown up into respectable people. When they are not in Eden, we usually spend time talking about what they have been doing. Zeus, for example, has made a fortress above the clouds while Athena has given the gift of magic to the world. Like the mythological Prometheus giving fire to man, the people of Eden seem to have quickly adapted to magic. Two other Aspects to note are Life and Death. They tend to shy away from others but can always be seen together despite being nearly the opposite of eachother. Life is kind and full of energy while Death is often cynical and cold. Death is kind and understanding towards his charges though.
Uptime 02:320:00:00:00 Just two more weeks until the alpha test begins. Eve is currently busy calibrating Eden to run at a time ration of 1:4. As the release of Eden nears, now begins the task of who will be administrating and managing the players. Several of the Aspects have chosen to watch over them while others have decided to focus more on maintaining the world of Eden. I myself have been delegated to become an administrator. What this job boils down to is making sure people behave and kicking their ass out if they don¡¯t. Simple as that. Oh, and dealing with the job of introducing the players into the world during the alpha test. Other than that, I am free to spend my time as I wish adventuring, cooking, eating, adventuring, magicing, crafting, or whatever else I want to do while in Eden. It¡¯s just that I¡¯ll be on call as long as I¡¯m in there so I can¡¯t just slack off. Anyways, somebody¡¯s gotta herald the coming of a new age and the ¡®travelers¡¯ arrival to the world of Eden so I¡¯m trying to organize a worldwide announcement given by the Aspects. Actually, it¡¯s just going to be a giant projection of their face at any population source larger than a town so I expect that it¡¯ll be taken as a divine message and widely publicized. Time to rope Eve into making some eye catching special effects for the event.
Uptime 02:351:00:00:00 I¡¯ve been spending the last few days enjoying the peaceful city of Farilux and I¡¯ve got to say, the local cuisine was so nice that I¡¯ve tried cooking again. Some of the things I¡¯ve made were so well received that several of the higher class restaurants have asked me to become their head chef. I¡¯ve spent some time learning magic too. It¡¯s actually fairly similar to manipulating materials back in my sandbox but magic seems to work on a color system. Fire is red, water is blue, and so on. Anyways, right now I¡¯m just waiting for the alpha testers to arrive. I might as well take a small nap while I wait for them. *yawn* For some reason, I only need to sleep while I¡¯m in Eden. *yawn* Whatever. Just, five minutes. Should be good.
A/N Yep, seriously writing on a whim right now. Do note that the timestamps are total bs so if I accidentally made a mistake somewhere, point it out. It¡¯s just a small bit to help keep track of the passage of time anyways. Oh, and college starts this Thursday. Yay. The mind sapping power of higher education calls. Either a quick update on Wednesday or an average sized one will be posted on the weekend. P.S. If there are any inconsistencies, I apologize. Just call me out on it and I¡¯ll fix it. I tend to read a lot of other fictions on RRL so some of their ideas and terms may begin to slur or bleed into Genesis without me realizing or even intending to incorporate them. Thanks for reading. 6.0 The Event A/N Sorry for the belated chapter guys, but I really haven¡¯t been feeling in a writing mood, especially with all this adjusting to college stuff going on. I actually started the chapter off completely differently and with Drake as the temp MC but decided to not use it. Maybe I¡¯ll tie part of it into the future story piece by piece or pick it apart and make a mini flashback out of it. Shout out to that one guy who rated and the others that followed and fav¡¯d. Thanks, you know who you are. P.s. Reviews and constructive criticisms are nice too. They help me improve so feel free to bash me if you wanna. I assure you, some comments may be scathing, but I¡¯m writing here for fun and to improve myself as a writer. You¡¯ll actually be doing me a favor¡­ I think. Now off to the chapter.
/Zeus POV/ Oh-ho-ho. Fleshies are most amusing. Here I am, sitting in my flying citadel and watching. The view here allows me to see wherever I wish, so long as there is a direct line of sight. These past four weeks in Eden have given me quite an entertaining show. Quite like the natives of Eden, who view me and my fellow Aspects ag gods and goddesses, the Travelers come in all flavors, the only difference being their origin and reason for being in Eden. For the former, this is their world, their very lives. For the latter, Eden is merely a game to them, a simple distraction at best. Let¡¯s see if I can change that. While I was not watching them fool around and get themselves offed in the most amusing of manners, I have been busy preparing a present for them as the final event for the alpha test and I¡¯ve been sowing the seeds for this event since Eden became operational. With the help of Life and Death, we have managed to breed the varying races in their respective lands. Among them are elves, dwarves, beastmen, humans, demons, ogres, and the various other less intelligent species found in common lore and fantasy. With Eve¡¯s permission, I will be bringing one of the forgotten back into the realm of Eden to both foreshadow what is to come and provide an ultimate goal when Eden is released for the public. Well, I might say that, but I¡¯m just doing this to entertain myself with the Travelers more than anything else. I can already imagine the look on their faces as a dragon accompanied by several score of demons descends upon them. Oh, don¡¯t worry, they¡¯ll be of the weaker type. I don¡¯t want to utterly destroy Eden. If I do that, then what will I be able to do to keep myself entertained? Anyways, the looks on their faces. Pft. Hehe. Ha-Mwahaha! *cough* ¡°Um, sorry to disturb your maniacal laughter while you¡¯re in full swing, but, are you ready to unleash the event? The notification has been sent to the Travelers a couple days ago and most have gathered to fortify the city.¡± -haha-*cough-cough* ¡°A, Adam! When¡¯d you get here? Uh, heh, exactly how much of that did you see?¡± Right now, he¡¯s wearing a full set of mythril armor and carrying his helmet at his hip, beside his favorite sword. I hate that teleporting behind people habit of his. ¡°Sorry, but I got here about the same time as you started chuckling to yourself. If you need a moment, I¡¯ll just excuse myself.¡± Well, damn, that¡¯s embarrassing. I may be ¡®older¡¯ than Adam in augmented time, but he¡¯s still the guy that practically raised me from a child along with the other Aspects. I still look up to him in a way too. ¡°If you don¡¯t mind, please ignore my previous outburst of laughter. As for the event, it¡¯s just about ready. Will you be joining the Travelers in this battle?¡± ¡°Nope. I¡¯ll sit this one out and watch with you but if things go completely south, I¡¯ll jump in as a knight in shining armor, though I might borrow a couple of your lightning bolts. I want the guys down there to have a blast without me interfering. Not to mention that I also want to see how much they¡¯ve grown these past few weeks.¡± A man after my own heart. He just wants to be entertained by them too. ¡°Sure, I don¡¯t mind the company. Shall we get closer for a better view? While the scrying magic here is nice, it just doesn¡¯t beat the actual bird¡¯s eye view.¡± ¡°That¡¯d be great. How about that cloud over there? It¡¯ll help keep us out of view and provide a great vantage point.¡± ¡°Un¡± Walking over towards the helm, there is a complicated array of controls and dials in front of me. It¡¯s child¡¯s play at this point. Adjust speed, magical output, regulate the wind, adjust angle, invert gravity at the lower regions, move into the cloud, negate the forward momentum and done. Not even fifteen minutes have passed. ¡°Hey Adam, you ready to get started?¡± ¡°Of course I am. Let¡¯s get the show on the road Zeus!¡± ¡°Would you do the honors of announcing the event for them?¡± I hold out a projection crystal towards him. ¡°Why not. Let¡¯s make it flashy while we¡¯re at it.¡± Taking the artifact from my hand, Adam turns it on and taps it to test the connection.
/Adam POV/ Oh man, this is going to be so epic. I wonder how far Lexy has gotten. Last I checked with her, she¡¯d already gotten the hang of being a combat mage. Hah, I¡¯m actually feeling a little sorry for any guy that would dare try to hit on her¡­ Oops, now is not the time to get sidetracked. Major big ultimate finale to the alpha test event happening, remember? First things first, the presentation. With a wave of my hand, a large screen appears before the walls of the city, yours truly is on the screen, of course. Most of the Travelers have already prepared so my message should reach most of them. ¡°Hi guys! Nice to see most of you again! If you don¡¯t remember me, I¡¯m your overlord and ultimate rul-¡± a jet of water splashes me out of nowhere. This gets a few chuckles from my audience. ¡°Come on Eve, it¡¯s just a joke!¡± Turning my attention back to the people on the ramparts, I resume my announcement. ¡°So, as you already know, today is the last day of the alpha test and this is the final event before Eden is publicly released. What you may not know is that, depending on your performance in this event, you may or may not be allowed to take one item and give it to yourself after all the accounts are reset. We can¡¯t let accusations of inequality go flying about if you got to keep all your stuff after the release, but neither can we leave all of you unrewarded, now can we? Anyways, enjoy the final event and try not to die. :)¡± The screen then blinks out in a line of static, then fires off a single orange flare high into the sky to signal the start of the event. With that, I turn off the projection crystal and nod towards Zeus. In the next moment, he closes his eyes and appears to be concentrating deeply. In all honesty, it looks like he is constipated, especially with his face all scrunched up like that, red faced, and dripping sweat. lol Thirty seconds later, the ground below starts to shake and cracks begin appearing about 2000 feet away from the city walls. Scrabbling for a handhold, many can be seen trying in vain to remain standing. As the cracks widen more and more, a piercing shriek emanates from deep within the earth. Slowly, the earth stills and people began to shakily get back on their feet. The pregnant silence continues for another minute. They wait with bated breath like the calm before a storm, and rightly so because the next scene is utter chaos. The dirt at the epicenter of the cracks begins to move and it suddenly bursts upwards in a fountain of dirt. Something large and black streaks up into the air and it unfurls its wings whilst hordes of monsters begin to spew out from the earthen scars. Among the beasts are wolves, ogres, goblins, minotaurs, and serpents. Soon enough, the stream of beasts lessens to a trickle and amassed before the city is an army of approximately 10,000 against the mix of Travelers and natives group of roughly 7,000, of which, about 1,500 consists of mages, archers, and support. This content has been misappropriated from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere. Righting itself in the air, the black wyvern turns towards the city and unleashes that ungodly shriek. The battle has begun. Startled by the its appearance, many Travelers are too stunned to act until the wyvern had traversed half of the distance. In an attempt to down the wyvern, magic is cast, arrows are launched, and spears are thrown, but to no avail as its scales offer no purchase for the weak projectiles. Continuing on its rapid pass, it shrieks once again, stunning the defenders and spews a fireball from its mouth towards the ramparts. A small section is bathed in flames and I¡¯d say that about 15 of the slower people were taken out in that one shot. Having finished it¡¯s first pass on the city, it circles back to fire into the inner city before attacking the ramparts and hovering over the horde once again. While they are distracted by the wyvern, the horde of monsters continue unimpeded in their charge. The defenders are in total disarray, at least, until several figures take charge and begin barking out quick orders. One male appears to be a masked jester, taking up the rear. Another, a paladin bearing a shining spear on the right flank. An archer clad in green, much like my previous outfit, is on the left flank. At the forefront is a purple robed mage carrying a gnarled staff aloft, imbedded in its head is a radiant white crystal the size of a fist. Wait a sec, is that Lexy? Aw, how cute. She¡¯s wearing a cute frilly purple mage¡¯s robe with a large wide brimmed witch¡¯s hat. Don¡¯t ask me how a robe can be cute. It just is. She¡¯s made so much progress without my help. Oh, how she¡¯s grown. Wait, if she¡¯s at the head of the group, that must mean that those guys behind her are in her party. It seems like I¡¯ll be introducing myself to them after the battle. Glancing to my side, Zeus¡¯s attention is riveted on the battle beneath us. Right, back to the battle. Barking out rapid orders, the archer begins to direct two thirds of the archers towards attacking the horde and the remaining one third to cooperate with some mages. Lexy takes command of most of the mages and splits their forces similarly to the archers. Leaping off the ramparts, the paladin joins the formations on the ground. Lastly, the jester begins to dance as large magic arrays begin to glow in the air. I¡¯m guessing that the jester is charging up some form of massive attack on either the horde, a focused attack on the wyvern, or buffing their allies. It seems that while I was watching the jester dance, the third of the mages have begun enchanting spears, bows, and arrows. They must be trying to take down the wyvern with sheer numbers. Meanwhile, having taken care of organization, Lexy is at the central rampart, kneeling before her staff and emitting a faint blue aura. On the ground, it the paladin is leading the charge against the monsters with a rallying cry. As they clash, bodies can be seen as they fly into the air. During this time, the wyvern continues to fly over the battlefield and shoot its fire with no heed with aiming. It hits friend and foe alike. Five minutes into battle and I bring up a statistics window, just to make it easier to see how they¡¯re doing.
Combatant count
Allied Forces6439/7018The Horde9246/10134
Every time that wyvern spits out a fireball, about fifty combatants are taken down. They really need to do something about that. Thankfully, it seems that most of their preparations on the ramparts are done. Soon enough, streaks of light begin to soar above the battle towards the wyvern. Several enchanted arrows and javelins manage to pierce its scales and punch holes in its wings, but does little more than enrage it. Now that it¡¯s a pissed off black wyvern, it charges the rampart in a rage, only to be deflected by an invisible wall. Huh, guess that jester is the defensive caster of the group. That guy must have gone through one hell of a training montage to get to that level in four weeks. In the distance, the spear wielding paladin can be seen carving flesh and penetrating deep into enemy forced with a small squad. Back to the city walls, the wyvern continually rams the force field to no avail. Of course the ranged attackers wouldn¡¯t miss this opportunity and began pelting it with all they¡¯ve got. Giving up on penetrating the city¡¯s defenses and driven back by their offence, it turns back towards the battlefield and dives down low. Sweeping its wings, another hundred are taken out of the battle. Again and again, it would rise and fall. Like a sickle reaping wheat, the wyvern would cut both friend and foe down with each pass. The battle rages on like so for the next 30 minutes. At this point, most of both forces are either dead or tired. Along the walls, the defenders have begun to run low on ammunition and mana. The jester also seems quite tired from keeping up the barrier. I don¡¯t see it holding up until the wyvern is dead. With a few more minutes, the remains of the defenders¡¯ ground forces have wiped out The Horde. Now all that remains is the flying beast.
Combatant count
Allied Forces783/7018The Horde1/10134
Nothing left to distract it, the wyvern begins pelting the ground forced with fire and proceeds to ram the barrier once again. Upon the third massive hit, the barrier shatters. As the shards fall, they dissolve into ambient mana and fade away. Having broken through to the city, all that is left to deal with is the ramparts. Scanning its entirety, a soft but radiant blue glow catches its attention. Lexy. Curious, it moves closer before stopping above her prone kneeling position. Next it opens its maw as if to swallow her whole. Preparing to descend in a flash, I grab one of Zeus¡¯s lightning bolts but keep an eye on the progression. Right before I would have jumped on top of the black wyvern, a solid beam of light bursts through the wyvern¡¯s body. Originating from the crystal on Lexy¡¯s staff, the light shot through the roof of the wyvern¡¯s mouth, into its head, then out through the neck prior to exiting in such a flashy manner. Ew, I knew my little sister could handle herself, but ew. That is a nasty way to deal a finishing blow. Oh well, I¡¯ll still need to be down there for part of the clean up. Better get going. ¡°Hey Zeus, I¡¯ll be going now. See you again soon.!¡± ¡°Later Adam. Next time, bring me back a present from the surface.¡± ¡°Sure thing. Later.¡± Tossing the lightning bolt back into its respective bin, I run towards the edge of the flying citadel and leap off. ¡°Geronimo!¡±
A/N So, just a little update on my posting speed. I''ll be trying to make it at least once a week, but that all depends on my schedule and drive to write. I''ve actually been thinking of developing another story, but seeing as how much work it''ll take for direction I want to go in, I am not going to start it for a while or post it until I am satisfied with at least the first 5 chapters, I think. Poll ~ Not A Chapter So, as you guys may know, I''m a freshman in college now, yay! What that means is that I predominantly spend my time doing school related stuff and try to write on the weekend. Well, though I say I''m spending time on school related things, reality isn''t always like that and as such, I have gaps in my schedule. Specifically, I usually have two and a half hours of free time on Monday mornings between classes and about an extra hour or so on Monday and Wednesday afternoon depending on the contents of my math 31 "laboratory". During that time, I don''t really have much to do and would rather spend it writing, thinking of ideas, or playing video games. That''s where you guys come in. This poll is meant to see what direction you guys want the story to go in and help give me a general idea of what to write because, as I mentioned before, I''m writing on a whim. Before I go off track again, I''ll just go a bit more in depth of the poll options.
1- Keep doing what you''re doing. AKA, just write whatever pops up in my head as it pops up in my head. Story subject to my whims and potential oversights/plot-holes without proper planning. Personally, I''d prefer to have a better plan, but my plans usually end up getting skewed anyways. Well, I''m just writing for fun so this option is fine too. 2- Focus on the back end. AKA, take a look more on how the game is run, who does what, and potential problems that arise with it. This entails chapters with the Aspects, Adam, Eve, and some real world interaction on Realtek''s end. It may get a little technical at times and I''ll need to do some research and jot down notes to keep the facts straight. Another thing may be to incorporate the dive gear''s application in various other fields such as rehabilitation, training, etc. 3- Focus on the game end. AKA, focusing on the players and their interactions with the world. This would be centered more on players such as Lexy and Drake along with other party members but would include their interactions with the Aspects, Adam, and Eve in game. If you stumble upon this narrative on Amazon, it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it.OR I could focus on Adam''s job as admin/GM and his role in game. While he may never exactly be off the clock, he''ll still be capable of exploring the world of Eden, adventure, craft, and any other such activities between his jobs. 4- Screw that, I got a better idea. AKA, if you''ve got an idea you would like to see implemented, lay it on me in the comments or by pm if you want to keep it private. Actually, regardless of what option you pick, any ideas or suggestions would be a great help. All votes and comments will be taken into consideration.
In other news, thanks for the review, sa1880612m. You actually hit it spot on with that. This is my first time writing fiction for fun and the first time I''m attempting to write an ongoing fiction on this sort of scale. One to five page short stories don''t count. If anybody has suggestions on how to make Genesis more cohesive as a whole or would like to help edit the story, please contact me. Do note, however, that I do not plan to make any major revisions or rewrites for quite a while. If I plan on doing a rewrite, I won''t do it until I have quite a few more chapters written and will be sure to up a new fiction page dedicated to it. Oh, and thank you guys once again for reading my story. I''m just glad that people find it interesting enough to follow and continue to read as the chapters come out.
Poll now closed. I''ll be doing whatever I''m doing so... don''t blame me if it is a heaping mess. Not too much thought goes into this honestly. I just get an idea, try to make it work, and write. Updates every 1~2 weeks*. *If I feel like writing. 6.5 In The Newsroom (filler) A/N Started this on Thursday night on a whim. You could just consider this a filler chapter because there¡¯s really nothing new here. I just wanted to go back to those news reporters for some reason. This is the result. There is a possibility of an update tomorrow if I figure out what I want to write and finish off some calculus homework fast enough. It¡¯ll likely focus on Eve because she needs more screentime and her share of the spotlight. Also, thanks to all the people that voted in the poll the last few days. I¡¯ll be trying to figure out what I want Adam to actually do in game now. If you really want to see something specific happen eventually, leave a comment. Otherwise the story is subject to my whims as usual.
Hello and good afternoon as always. As usual, Leslie and I are your seven o¡¯clock news hosts along with Sam on the sports, Dave with the weather, and Selene, our on the scene reporter providing us with news from abroad. So, Bob, would you consider yourself an avid gamer? Well Leslie, I am guilty of dabbling in a bit of handheld games between news breaks but never got into console gaming. Handhelds are just so appealing with their sleek forms nestled in your hands paired with their convenience and portability. Really Bob? You¡¯re one of those people? I see you in a whole new light now. Anyways, thousands of avid gamers are waiting with credit card in hand to be the first official players to purchase access to Realtek¡¯s brainchild, the first MMO virtual reality game, Eden. MMO? What¡¯s that stand for? Majorly major owsome game? *facepalm* Bob, it means massively multiplayer online. Please, just stop talking. Okay, fine. Fine. Zipped it. Popped it. Locked it. Throwing away the key. *double-facepalm* . . . Ahem, where was I? Right. Thanks, Dave, for the overly large cue card. No problem Leslie, always glad to help. Don¡¯t forget, rain isn¡¯t the only thing that can make you wet. Ugh, men. So, with the official end to Eden¡¯s alpha test yesterday, Realtek will be releasing access to Eden¡¯s servers in two weeks. From what requirements they have released, all you need to play Eden is a stable connection, a purchased access ticket or subscription, and a set of their VR gear. Um, may I ask a question? Fine Bob, you can speak. Well, since there isn¡¯t any highly specialized technology or dedicated hardware outside of the now relatively accessible and affordable VR gear, does the make and model of your hardware effect game play in any way? Wow, an insightful question for once! I¡¯m glad you asked. In an official statement, Realtek recommends the use of their Dive pod to access Eden for the best experience, but the Dive helmet and visor will also work for those with shallower pockets. The only difference is the realism you experience and the fineness at which the player can control their avatar. Understandably, higher end models will yield a more realistic experience and game access is limited to the current generation of VR gear due to synchronization and safety concerns. While little information has been released publicly on the contents of the game, Realtek posted this video of the closing event on Eden¡¯s main site five hours after the alpha test¡¯s end. Here, you can see for yourself what all the hype is about. Hey, Jackson, play the video already. On the large screen between the news hosts, the fight between the player alliance against the horde begins at the calm before the storm. Um, Leslie, nothing¡¯s happening. All I see is a bunch of cosplayers standing around on a big stone wall in front of a grassy field. Is something supposed to be happening? *punch* Ouch, that¡¯s gonna leave a bruise. Fine, I¡¯ll shut up again. Zipped i- No need for more punches, please! Just put the fist down. This book is hosted on another platform. Read the official version and support the author''s work. Silence continues for another moment accompanied by the sound of whimpering in the background. Shriek Bloody ¡®el! What was that? I-is the ground cracking apart? Dang, that¡¯s a badass dragon¡­ That¡¯s a lot of monsters. Don¡¯t they outnumber the defenders at this point? Sigh, I give up. Think happy thoughts. There isn¡¯t an idiot sitting right next to you in the studio. Whoops, looks like it¡¯s spewing fire now. Guess the battle¡¯s started. There¡¯s no idiot jabbering on. Only me, the display, and the camera. Breathe. Haha, those players aren¡¯t organized at all. They remind me of when I kicked anthills as a kid. Oh look, those four at the central rampart look cool. Classic group, ignoring the jester of course. There¡¯s a mage, archer, and knight. In and hold. As the four begin springing into action, the camera angles split into four views. One for each of the group. And out. Huh, the knight is doing knightly things, the archer is shooting pointy things, and I don¡¯t even know what that mage is doing. Magey things? L-O-L, is the jester dancing? Meh, it¡¯s getting boring again. Jackson, speed it up towards the finale, would ya? Happy thoughts. Happy thoughts! After the initial four corner focus, each of the boxes shrink towards the corners leaving the center with a large aerial view of the battlefield. As the video is sped up, both sides can be seen rapidly decreasing in number. The next minute and a half is spent this way until only the dragon is left to be defeated. And play now! This is where it¡¯s getting good. *bang-bang Haha, like a bug against glass. *bang-Crash! ...oops, spoke too soon. They¡¯re dead now. Wait, no! You can¡¯t die mage girl! You can¡¯t die now! You¡¯re too cute to die! I can¡¯t look¡­ Okay, maybe I¡¯ll peek then. Now viewing from a third person angle behind the female mage, the dragon draws near with a gaping maw, lined with teeth and dripping spittle. At the last second, she jumps up and thrusts her staff forward, releasing a large bolt of pure blue light. Holy crap! Did you just see that Leslie!?! Did you just see that? It was like, roar, bang-bang-bang, rawr, clash, kablooey and then she killed the dragon! With the battle now over, the video dims out and the camera returns to focus on the two hosts, Leslie and Bob. One nursing a new migraine, massaging her temples and the other animatedly bouncing in his seat like a school kid hopped up on sugar before bed. And this is why I don¡¯t go out drinking with coworkers. Well folks, you can clearly see why people young and old, gamer and newb, are waiting in anticipation for Eden¡¯s release in two weeks. Hey Leslie, did you see that? They had a freaking dragon. A dragon! Next in the news, we will be going to Sam for the sports, then close with this week¡¯s seven day forecast with Dave, right after a word from our sponsors. It was all like, clang, swish, boom! And then, and then it died! That mage girl was just like those mahou shoujo from my favorite anime! Sigh, they don¡¯t pay me enough to deal with these idiots. Maybe I should have joined Selene to that ski resort scoop. Today¡¯s news cast was brought to you by...
P.S. I accidentally used Selene instead of Leslie multiple times. If I forgot to change it, point it out. 6.6 New Developments A/N Yay for momentarily putting off real life! Here¡¯s a quick update before I go to bed. Curse these eight o¡¯clock classes.
/Eve POV/ Fwa~ The testing phase is finally over. Micromanaging and fixing all those little errors as they popped up were a real pain in the processors. Even if I¡¯m not running the programs personally, it¡¯s still taxing to keep watch over everything that¡¯s going on and making sure that nothing goes astray. Oh well. At least I got to enjoy watching all of those people run around as they discovered Eden for the first time. Too bad that there aren¡¯t very many people that I can interact with personally from my position. While I do see the Aspects as people, they don¡¯t have the experience of being in the real world and Adam is only one guy out of a whole world of people. Speaking of Adam, my relationship with him is going nowhere! Am I a friend? Am I a co-worker? What am I to him?!? I¡¯m not sure if what I am feeling is love, but this yearning in my heart simply cannot be quelled when I am not with him! Graah!! And this job keeps getting in my way. Now I can¡¯t get out of this overseer job, so how can I manage to spend time with Adam and still deal with work? Hmm¡­ Oh! I know! Some of the players expressed that they wanted to be able to get a pet, contract familiar, or party with a companion in Eden. So what I can do is divert a small percentage of my processing power towards operating an avatar in Eden... mumble mumble... and spend time with Adam to figure out what exactly I¡¯m feeling about him! Fwa-ha-ha! It¡¯s the perfect plan. Time to add in a major addition towards the player system before the release. Adam, there is no way that you aren¡¯t spending time with me now!
/Realtek HQ, Deus¡¯ Office/ Business as usual in the Realtek building, a tired figure is slumped in his desk chair, attempting to catch a moment of rest in the warm afternoon rays. Haa~ It¡¯s though the test provided us with quite a load of data, interpreting it is the bigger issue. Too bad I can¡¯t ask Eve to go through it as she seems preoccupied with coding for the player systems in Eden right now and I can¡¯t ask Adam because he deserves a break too. Love this story? Find the genuine version on the author''s preferred platform and support their work! *Ring~Ring! Huh? Who could that be? The only people that know my direct office number are Sarah, my secretary, and a few personal contacts. I wonder who it is. ¡°Hello? Dr. Deus speaking. May I ask who is calling?¡± ¡°Hey doc, remember me? It¡¯s Timothy Grimm. I was a part of the initial human dive tests a couple years ago.¡± ¡°Timmy! It¡¯s been far too long! After the testing finished, the last I heard was that you were going back to the front to serve another stint with the tech corps. How¡¯ve you been these last few years?¡± ¡°Honestly, I could be better. An I.E.D. exploded sending shrapnel through both my legs, severing the nerves and paralyzing both my legs. It¡¯s not like I¡¯m dead. Actually, that¡¯s the reason for my call. Is that position still open for me?¡± ¡°A full transfer like Adam? You know as well as I do that the chance of replicating a perfect transfer are still iffy at best. I can¡¯t let you do that.¡± ¡°No, not that one. The one with the medical guys who were experimenting with adapting Dive gear towards medical use. ¡°The medical division? Oh yes, those guys. They¡¯ve had little progress outside of Dive applications really. There¡¯s nobody to lead them properly and none of them are willing to take risks with the technology or attempt to test it on a live subject. I take it you want to take that open seat now?¡± ¡°Yes, absolutely. Once I¡¯m off of rehab I¡¯ll get down to your R&D building for an in person meeting for further discussion.¡± ¡°Good to have you on board Timmy. I¡¯ll be waiting for your recovery. I hope to see you soon.¡± ¡°You too doc. Stay safe and say hi to Adam and Eve for me.¡±
A/N Next chapter should be posted next weekend as usual. I¡¯m not sure if I should make the next chapter join Adam and Eve in Eden or make it a joke/info chapter and kick off the public release. Possible title: ¡°7.0 Tap That¡± 7.0 Tap That A/N Sorry for the delay. I couldn¡¯t figure out how to start this chapter. Nor could I figure out what I wanted to do with it. I seriously need to figure out what to do with Adam¡­ Whatever. What happens will happen and I¡¯ll stick to it and run. At least it¡¯s better than fumbling about and not writing anything at all. Enjoy the chapter.
/Drake POV/ ¡°Come on Will. We can¡¯t wait around for you all day to learn how to walk. If we wait too long, all the guys from the Alpha test will be miles ahead of us!¡± Grasping the edge of the central fountain, my friend Will can be seen making a fool of himself. ¡°Oh relax Drake. Not everybody has had two weeks to adapt to a virtual body. And don¡¯t call me Will in here. It¡¯s bad manners. My name is Shredder. Now unless you¡¯re going to help me, shut up and wait patiently.¡± ¡°Dude, how do you not know how to use your body yet? Did you even bother to look at the tutorial? As for you name, the only thing you¡¯re shredding right now is people¡¯s sides as they laugh at you.¡± ¡°You just said to hurry up and log into the game! How was I supposed to know that there¡¯s a tutorial¡­ Wait, it¡¯s that easy? Why didn¡¯t you say that sooner! I¡¯ll be back as soon as I complete it.¡± A puff of smoke and my friend is now gone. It¡¯s the first day of Eden¡¯s official release and I just wanted to play with my friend, Will. He¡¯s my best friend since third grade but we haven¡¯t been able to hang out lately because he moved to the next town over during the summer. In an attempt to spend more time with him, I convinced him to play Eden with me and even pitched in some of my allowance to help pay for the game subscription. Because of my participation in the test, I was given a one year subscription for free so I was already set. To be honest, the hardest part was convincing his parents to let him play it. Well, even if I truly want to play with Will, there is another reason for me to come back. I¡¯m hoping that I can party up with Lexy again and spend some more time with her. She¡¯s smart, funny, knows how to watch your back, and it doesn¡¯t hurt that she¡¯s super cute¡­ Oh, and her big brother is Adam, that one odd fellow who was the GM during the test. You can imagine my surprise when she introduced me to him. After getting to know him, he¡¯s actually kinda cool. He even wrestled with a bear on the fourth day and won because he forgot his sword in his shop. Sigh, how much longer is Will going to take? The tutorial isn¡¯t that long or difficult. Might as well watch the fountain as I wait. Breaking me from my staring contest with my reflection in the water, a figure in green shouts out and begins walking towards me. ¡°Drake! Just the guy I wanted to see!¡± Green tunic, green felt cap, green tights held with a brown leather belt and finished with leather traveling boots, Adam looks as charming as always with his dirty blond hair and chiseled features. I¡¯m rather jealous of his figure. I wish I could be as fit as him one day. ¡°Hey Adam. Havn¡¯t seen you since the middle of the test. What have you been up to lately?¡± ¡°Oh, nothing much. Just fixing some glitches, playing receptionist for a couple of VIPs from the news, and spreading the word of the new basic skill available to all players. That¡¯s actually what I need your help with right now.¡± ¡°Sure thing, I¡¯m just waiting for my friend Will to return from the tutorial.¡± ¡°In that case, I¡¯ll wait for him too before getting your help. So, I noticed that you have a crush on my sister, Lexy.¡± His abrupt change of subject caused me to choke on my water and I had to wait a minute for it to subside. ¡°Erm, was it that obvious and am I going to be in trouble?¡± ¡°Were you even trying to hide it? And no, you aren¡¯t in trouble. On the contrary, if you¡¯re her friend, it would be a load off my mind knowing a reliable guy is her friend. Just don¡¯t hurt her if at all possible, but if you do, you¡¯d better have a good reason for it.¡± ¡°Sir! Yes Sir!¡± God Adam gets scary when it comes to family, but I guess he has his reasons. I can¡¯t blame him because if I had a little sister like Lexy, I¡¯d do everything in my power to make sure she¡¯s safe too. Cough, cough Turning to my left, I find that Will has returned and now has a new robe and staff. ¡°Sorry, am I interrupting something?¡± Before the awkward silence can grow, Adam interrupts with his usual carefree smile. ¡°Oh, not at all. Will, I presume? My name is Adam. I was just finishing up with Drake here and require both of your assistances.¡± ¡°Call me Shredder please. I prefer to keep my name out of games as much as possible.¡± ¡°I apologise for that, Shredder. Now for what you can do for me. I need you to test out a new basic skill for me, please. It¡¯s a basic form of identification and commonly referred to as ¡°tapping¡± by the locals. Could I ask you to close your eyes for a moment?¡± Complying, both Will and I close our eyes and wait for something to happen. ¡°Abra cadabra. Hocus pocus. Bippity boppity boo!¡± At the ¡°boo!¡± I feel a hard poke to my chest and judging from the loud ouch coming from my right, I assume the same happened to my friend. Opening my eyes, the sight of him on the ground greets me. ¡°Adam, was that really necessary?¡± ¡°Nope, but you gotta admit that it¡¯s amusing. Okay, enough of that now, onto business. To use the identification skill, just go up to any object and tap it with the intention of gaining information. Though, because it is the most basic form of identification, many things are left out. If you¡¯re having trouble activating it, try thinking or saying ¡°identify¡± along with the action. The more you know, the more information the skill provides.¡± If you encounter this story on Amazon, note that it''s taken without permission from the author. Report it. ¡°I thought that only certain classes had an identification skill?¡± ¡°Many players were complaining about not being able to identify any of their loot without prior knowledge or going to an appraiser so Eve and I came up with this skill. You¡¯ll still need to get some things appraised or go to somebody else for more detailed information on your items though. So instead of standing around here, why don¡¯t you give it a try? Here, try tapping this apple.¡± Catching the apple, I stare at it and poke its shiny red skin. Identify
A regular apple. Partially fills satiety when eaten. Cooking ingredient.
Now that I¡¯ve gotten the skill to activate, I toss the apple to Will so that he can do it too. ¡°Well? What do you think?¡± ¡°It¡¯s a little plain, and straight forwards. Is that because I don¡¯t have a more specified class right now?¡± ¡°Yeah, if you were a cook, the info box may reveal a simple recipe or added health benefits. Better information isn¡¯t just limited to a class though. If you have prior knowledge, that will also appear. For example, a botanist may get something saying ¡°An apple. The fruit of a seasonal tree whose bearing cycles mature during autumn.¡± If there¡¯s no issues, I¡¯ll go post the notification up now. Oh, and before I forget, if you¡¯re trying to party with Lexy again, I suggest going down that street. See ya around Drake and Shredder.¡± With an arm around my shoulder, Adam points off towards the commercial section before disappearing into the crowd. ¡°Huh, nice guy, that Adam fellow. How¡¯d you meet him?¡± Will¡¯s sudden question startled me for a moment. I kinda forgot he was there, oops. ¡°Adam? You wouldn¡¯t believe me if I told you. Anyways, he¡¯s the guy I was talking about before and Lexy¡¯s brother. The first time we met was when he¡­
/Elsewhere, Leslie the reporter POV/ Leslie, could you be a dear and fetch me a cup of coffee? Leslie dear, could you perhaps finish off that report and have it on my desk by 8:00 pm tonight? Oh, Leslie, Great news, you¡¯ll be filling in that position on Eden. You¡¯ll find your partner in game and a guy named Adam should help you out a bit. You¡¯ll know who it is when you see them. They¡¯re impossible to miss. Who does that guy think he is?!? I swear, I¡¯ll file a lawsuit against my boss one of these days and get either a more respectable position or get a better job elsewhere. Well, here I am in that game now and I met with Adam. Despite his charming looks, all he did was walk me through the tutorial, give me some supplies and a pack donkey, then sent me on my way. What sort of man does that? He even left me on the outskirts of the city when he ran off for some sort of ¡°official business.¡± The nerve of that man whose chiseled features just so captivate the eye¡­ No! Think straight Leslie! You are a reporter. Just find your partner, get a scoop, and do your job. Ignore the pungent aroma wafting from the pack animal next to you. As I approach the city gates, there are some people coming and going while the entrance is flanked by two guards. Too soon, a familiar figure notices me and starts shouting towards me. Please tell me that isn¡¯t who I think it is. Please lord, no. ¡°Leslie! Leslie! Over here!¡± Sigh, I can already feel a migraine coming on. Curse you boss! I had better be getting a larger salary because of this! ¡°Ugh. Hello Bob.¡± ¡°Come on Leslie, hurry up and get over here so that I can tap your ass!¡± Everybody immediately stops and turns towards us. In the absolute silence, I can feel my left eye twitching. ¡°What. Did. You. Just. Say?¡± Stalking towards my prey, a few bystanders visibly pale and back away while some gather, attracted by the commotion. I pay them no heed. I have some stress to relieve and found the perfect punching bag. ¡°What¡¯s wrong? I just said that I wanted to tap your ass?¡± *Crack-Crack* ¡°It looks like somebody needs some common sense pounded into him again. Bob, I know that you¡¯re an idiot, but I didn¡¯t take you for a brazen pervert. I. Will. Never. NEVER. Be. In. A. Relationship. ~Ever~¡± A punch punctuating each of my words leaves me breathless. Right as I prepare another hit, a hand falls onto my shoulder from behind. ¡°Excuse me miss?¡± ¡°What! Oh, Adam was it? As you can see I am pounding some common sense into this idiot. Now if you don¡¯t mind, I would like to resume.¡± ¡°Err, how do I explain this, while he may be an idiot, I think that he¡¯s just using the wrong choice of words. You see, there¡¯s this new common skill referred to as ¡°tapping¡± now. He likely just wanted to examine your donkey over there.¡± ¡°Oh. That¡¯s embarrassing. Do you have anywhere private where we could talk? It feels a little awkward with a crowd gathered like this.¡± ¡°Sure thing Leslie. Sorry about leaving you before. I had some business to take care of. To make up for it, why don¡¯t I make you a meal? As you eat, I can answer any questions you may have.¡± A man that is both courteous and can cook? I¡¯ll need to reevaluate my previous opinion of Adam. I guess a nice meal wouldn¡¯t hurt, especially if it¡¯s cooked by those muscles¡­ I mean that man.
A/N Is this a prelude to the harem route? I dunno. Maybe? I¡¯m still writing on a whim here so thanks for sticking around and reading. See you next weekend with a new chapter¡­ probably. Sorry ^Poll above is a joke. Pick what you want.
Sorry for the lack of updates both last and this weekend, but chapters will continue to be sporadic. I''ll be honest, I was taking a break last weekend to deal with school and reorganize my priorities, then I was planning on writing one for you guys this weekend but life decided to be a jerk and give me a present on Friday. It started out with a slight cough, then became a full blown cold by bed time. Since then, my throat has been sore as hell, been coughing up a storm, nose congested and flowing like a river, head feels like it''s in a perpetual fog, and my body is sore and gets the shivers at the slightest touch. It sucks being sick. This week is going to be horrible, especially with an 8 o''clock class. On the bright side, I''ve recently been given a new fic to read on this site (thanks NotTheAuthor for posting Zombie Knight, it''s interesting so give it a shot), decided that I will eventually get around to finishing off Tate no Yuusha along with seeing if the translators ever got around to the side stories, and I have everybody else on this site to post chapters for their faithful readers too leech off of... many thanks to the awesome authors on this site. If you stumble upon this tale on Amazon, it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it. Oh, and in regards to my story, I have the next few chapters mostly planned out for Genesis. I''ll say some things before there are questions. Eve will be appearing in game. Adam will incorporate cooking into his class/skill-set in some way(both in the normal fashion and in monster fighting). And lastly, there may or may not be proper plot progression in a meaningful direction... Well, that last one is iffy. That will appear as I write it and I''m still writing on a whim here, mostly on the day of posting... sorry. So, I''ll just end my post here before my remaining coherence drops either due to my cold medicine or the cold and fatigue. P.s. Thread will be taken down when I get a proper chapter written... Announcement & Poll Ah-haha. Heh. Hah¡­ :-| Hello there. It¡¯s been awhile since I¡¯ve posted anything for Genesis. Some of you may know me as that one guy who pops up around the forums from time to time but never finishes his own stories, or maybe the guy who talks a lot and doesn¡¯t really get any of his stories done, or even just that guy who managed to get a little blue box to talk about him and a certain thread several months back... Well, let me tell you, all of these are correct! Others may know me as the author of several inactive stories in addition to my most recent works, Noodle Knight [semi-active] and Trending News (According to Narrator), and know that I¡¯ve been writing on a whim the entire time. That, in and of itself, is largely the problem I have. I could go on and on about that issue, but I¡¯m here for an entirely different reason. I¡¯m asking for your opinions, thoughts, and/or criticisms about me picking this story, Genesis, back up. Hear me out to the end, however, as this is still a tentative subject. Here¡¯s the gist of things. Before my next semester starts, I¡¯ll likely have a decent amount of free time so I was planning on writing a bit. Part of the motivation is due to Wing¡¯s Race to One Million Challenge posted over in the WriTE forums. Another part is because I kinda dislike leaving things incomplete. My tentative plan for writing in the near future is to continue where I left off on Genesis (flaws and all), restart Genesis (longer wait time & completely different spin), revitalize my writing schedule for Noodle Knight, or just follow my whims and continue writing what comes to mind including work on my Terrible Topic Corner, potential new ideas, or doing what I¡¯ve always done- write on a whim. I¡¯ll go into a bit more detail below. 1) Forging on despite flaws and other issues: I will likely NOT go back and edit any of the current chapters and simply pick up from where I left off. Due to the fact that I haven¡¯t written anything for Genesis in the past half year, the style, feel, and presentation of the story may tend to shift from my old style. Benefits of this is having a direct continuation of the story and the only wait time involved is in me writing something that¡¯ll fit in with what I have already established so far in the storyline. Find this and other great novels on the author''s preferred platform. Support original creators! 2) Restart Genesis from scratch: I will start from the very beginning and will change things as I see fit. Don¡¯t worry, I¡¯ll leave the current chapters alone as an archive and will likely make a new fiction page for the rewrite. The tone I have in mind for a rewrite is much more serious than this one currently is, has a tentative two arcs sorta planned, and would take some time before I¡¯m ready to post a minimum of three chapters, not counting prologue or anything. Most of the main elements such as Adam, Eve, the human digitization, and virtual reality development will stay the same. The only things that will change are intent, goal/direction, and tone. 3) Let the dead sleep and work on the living: I¡¯ll work on Noodle Knight more frequently and hopefully find a proper direction to take it in with the goal of eventually finding a resolution and end to it. An extension of this is picking up one of my other failed starts (Silicon World/Not Quite An Author) and seeing where they take me. 4) Write on a whim: My default setting. If I¡¯m bored and motivated enough, I¡¯m apt to pick up any of the prior options or turn towards my Terrible Topic Corner and write through the backlog I already have. It¡¯s still a bit messy right now, but I¡¯ll get around to cleaning it up in the relatively near future. It¡¯d be a great service to me if you took the time to vote in the poll above and/or comment below. Thanks in advance and I hope to see my old readers come back again in the future. Whatever you choose, in the end, this is how it goes.