章 1: Part 1; Prologue
Loneliness is a rather interesting feeling, oftentimes it can make even a crowded bus feel like an empty sea, or a full house feel abandoned.
Hundreds if not thousands of bodies seem to blur together in everyday monotony, their voices just becoming meaningless background noise.
Though that's just how some people would rather it be, the isolation being preferable to dealing with other people face to face… to deal with whatever the other is feeling at that moment.On days like this the sea of voices seems to die down amidst the gloom and freezing cold air. The dark gray overcast clouds painted a melancholic image of the city while the first snowfall seemed to bring some comfort to it.A figure stops for a moment to gaze at their surroundings… an odd sense of nostalgia washing over them.
Standing before them was the entrance to a park, one they could never hope to forget.
"4 years… it's really been 4 long years since that day…" their mind danced with bittersweet memories that felt a lifetime away now.
Memories of a dear friend and family member who'd vanished in the blink of an eye.
Yet it was curious, why did they walk to this park today of all days? They never visited the park frequently, rather it was often a place they were drawn to when something was about to happen.
They came here before getting that life changing phone call.
Before getting a promotion at work.
Yet it was also the place where they were informed of their mother's passing.
Yes, this place was always a sign of some kind.
Though It couldn't possibly be today, everything had been mundane, without much sign of changing.
Normal and stable just how they liked it… everything right where it belonged.
Still an odd sense of unease shook them right to their very core.No, there was no way anything bad could happen, It was just the gloomy weather messing with them again.
After all today was a day for excitement, it's not everyday a new promising RPG comes out for the Reflection.
It was an artsy name for a full dive VR device that felt a bit cringe worthy, but with its cutting edge tech no one argued.
Reflection mastered full dive immersion to the point that it became hard to distinguish virtual from reality at times.
So many top of the line games and social hubs had been developed for it and it'd even started to become a go to staple for most developers.
So the premise of a massive open world RPG inspired by some of the greatest RPGs in history was enticing.
Though apparently it'll act partially as an MMO in some regards such as multiplayer, but supposedly it was amazing according to beta testers and early reviewers.
As for the game itself it appeared to be a dark fantasy world set in its dying days.
The last great lord denied the end and used his powers to hold it off.
Now a natural decay is overtaking the lands and death has descended.
The outlanders, players, have been summoned from across space and time to solve the issue.
All who have ventured towards the great lord have perished along the way.
Now only the outlanders remain to decide the fate of this world.
A rather interesting premise with glowing reviews from critics and early players alike… and now once midnight rolls around they can start as well… so why?
Why won't this feeling of unease go away?
What about this day brought them back to this old park… and why, why did it feel like a dark shadow was lingering over them?
Surely it was nothing, just their mind playing tricks on them.
Nothing bad could possibly happen.
Reflection had always been well protected and examined hardware with no possibility for death.
Oneiornautics being a well known studio who have made top of the line games for Reflection.
Hundreds of millions of dollars have been poured into this game.
Marketing has been everywhere.
Everything will be fine.
Nothing should go wrong.
Nothing can go wrong.
It had to be nerves getting to them, stress and anxieties reaching a peak from everything going on.
Sure they'd never really taken part in anything like an MMO or really been much for interaction but hey there's a first for everything.
Upon taking a shaky breath of cold air to calm themselves they focused on the path home once more.
It was kind of the store owner to let them pick it up early enough to get fully set up, they'd have to repay the favor eventually.
Their walk home was a rather quiet and uneventful one thankfully, perhaps it really had just been nerves getting to them.
The snowy ground easing their mind a bit, it had been a nice change of pace from the everyday grays and browns they'd grown used to.
As usual the house was dark and quiet when they entered. Likely no one was home or had already left at this point.
It was just a standard two story house, there was nothing one would notice by looking at it. Though the small amount of light peering in through the windows coupled with deafening silence gave it an almost surreal feeling.
To them it almost felt like something out of a dream at times, especially with how devoid of life it was.
Quietly they trudged up the stairs and into their room which was equally devoid of any signs of life.
No posters, pictures, or really any personal belongings.
The only things that were visible were a few textbooks sitting on a shelf, the pc tower with its accompanying monitor stationed on the nearby desk and lastly the Reflection itself.
Outside of those things the room only had a bed and an office chair.
Without much thought they tossed the plastic bag containing their game on the bed and booted up the pc.
While waiting on everything to load their eyes fell onto the Reflection once more, such a peculiar device.
Reflection had originally been created as a means for virtual therapy according to online news articles.
Images of the actual therapy machines showed a large lounge type chair with a bunch of odd looking machinery built in.
The model released to the public though was just this simple helmet, almost looking like something a motorcyclist would wear.
Apparently this version still has all the benefits of the bigger therapy models though, including the bleed through effect, just at a much slower speed.
Well it didn't matter to them as they never noticed anything, it was just amazing VR that used nanotech to achieve unbeatable full dive.
If the tech really did help people rather than being something purely for profit then hey, good for them.
With the pc now booted up they grabbed the game from their bed and gave it a quick look over.
"Astral Flow"... such a ridiculous name but one that stands out at least.
It's also rare for computer games to get physical copies these days. What's more surprising is that the disk actually has the game on it, apparently it's a work of magic according to dataminers who got their hands on it earlier than most.
Some people were already playing it in offline mode before the servers got opened to the public.
No launcher install or third party software needed, just the game, an internet connection, and the Reflection.
It's meant to be played in online mode but they left in the offline option so that way it's playable once the servers shut down. According to the devs it's for preservation's sake, as they want people to always be able to revisit it even when it's a relic of the past.
After a bit of installation and device set up the game was ready to be played.
Soon enough the servers would be up and everyone would be hopping on.
It was time to dive in.
The helmet slid snuggly onto their head and the dark visor made their room appear pitch black.
Once on the helmet created a firm but breathable seal around their neck to ensure the helmet couldn't be removed. Sudden removal of it without following safety protocol had resulted in some issues for people in the past.
"Welcome to Reflection" became displayed on the visor as it booted up soundlessly, the machinery in the helmet already getting to work as the screen began to change. Their vitals and other statistics were on display.
[1 New Application Found: Astral Flow]
[Launch now?]
It was really time, all the anxiety from earlier began to melt away and a bit of excitement took over.
Not wasting another moment they executed the voice commands.
"Begin launching Astral Flow"
[Beginning Astral Flow]
[First Time Launch Detected]
[Beginning New Dive Protocol]
[Dispersing Nanotech, Please Breathe Deeply and Relax]
Exhale… and Inhale…
It was almost scary how easy it was for the machine to do its job and get the nanomachines flowing through the body.
[Syncing…]
[Syncing…]
[Nanomachines Synced]
[Please Assume Comfortable Resting Position and Continue]
"Continue"
[Beginning Full Dive, Please Relax]
[You Should Begin Feeling Tired]
[Fall Asleep and Awaken in the New Reality]
[Begin Your Dive]
Slowly they closed their eyes, feeling their conscious drift away.
It almost felt like slowly sinking under the ocean's waves.
Though it was eerily relaxing as they drifted into unconsciousness.
Darkness took hold as they fell deeper and deeper down into the abyss.
Until they reached the bottom where they awakened.
It was unusual for a Full Dive to start out in pure darkness like this but not entirely unheard of.
What was weird though was the lack of any menu or signs of an intro.
While gazing around a voice began to speak, one they could hear but couldn't place.
"Outlander thou art formless… remember thy form and awaken anew"
A puddle of dark liquid began to rise in front of them, slowly mimicking their shape or lack thereof.
The figure before them was nothing more than a shapeless pale figure, no hair or any defining features.
"This is your current form Outlander… please remember thyself."
There was a menu pop up this time, one showing character creation details.
So this is the avatar creation, it's surprisingly detailed, right down to the smallest facial blemish and wrinkle.
It even has an option to upload a photo and make an avatar based on that.
They had never been too picky though so with no real preference they just made the first thing that came to mind.
After the model was finished a new menu popped up, a starting class selection.
Now while in more traditional RPGs this would determine your path, here it was only a start. This system was inspired by more action oriented RPGs and, as a result, classes merely helped you specialize earlier.
Anyone could make any build they wanted.
Pure strength, Spellsword, Healer, and the list goes on.
The challenge now was figuring out what build to do and what class to start as-
Or so they thought, soon the perfect class met their eyes and they locked in instantly.
"Thoust remembered thy form?"
One final menu pop up occurred asking for confirmation.
With a smile on their face they accepted, ready to get on with the adventure.
They'd been waiting for this and nothing was going to stop them from enjoying it.
The model dissipated back into the viscous black liquid and melded with the floor.
"Then travel forth outlander, your fate has arrived"
A light began shining in front of them, it was bright but clearly some kind of door. Not wasting a single second they began running towards it. Darkness melted away as the light became ever brighter, blinding them by the second.
Sounds of other players talking began to fill their ears as they neared the exit. Sunlight warmed their skin and the smell of fresh air kept their lungs filled.
With one last step they broke out into the new world.
A fantasy plaza filled with new adventurers looking around in amazement at what lay before them.
"Welcome to Lindrick, Outlander, your adventure begins now."
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