章節 1: An Irresistible Offer
The world was drowned in gunfire.
Hundreds of which follow as explosions rip through the land and sky. Hundreds of aliens exploding, dying in their last screech as it rip through their lines.
A young man stood, watching as hundreds die before him. His eyes stuck on the vision as he spoke in complete confidence. "Send in the last reserves."
His trap was now set.
"By your will." a voice answered, a sound coming from a being, an insect of great tusks.
And with his words, hundreds more follow, simple grunts and insects pouring through the lines of tanks and soldiers. Breathing their last as gunfire rip through their bodies, their blood drenching the land in its color.
"It's done. Have all your men follow the plan. Wait for the signal." The man spoke, his reserves exhausted. The battle resolved with the sight before him.
With such, the ground rumbles, tens of great beings tearing through the land as they back off. A fact he knows they see, as the predicted signal rise above the sky and the thunderous footsteps of hundred men follows.
Tanks and mechs flood his surroundings, each one entering a state of readiness as they take control. Soil erupting from the force of their step before the young man mutters, "Explode."
A single word was enough, the confidence in their steps wobbling as the land beneath them crack and their world erupt in green. An explosion so powerful the sky shudders.
He smirks, the shouts of agony leaving a taste of victory. Soldiers burn, the mechs and tanks creak at their weight, the land groaning as they prepare for the charge headed their way.
But prepare as they can, it all ends the same.
"Victory."
'''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''
The young man rips the helmet off of his head, revealing a young man with black hair and one whose eyes held nothing but exasperation. His name, Sullivan Roth.
He sighs, "Well, that was quite boring."
"Dude! You just reached the top one of the server." A voice shouts in excitement, another sound of the helmet being ripped.
Sullivan tried to stand before a young man grabs his shoulder, one whose eyes held boundless excitement as he shook him, "Sully! That was insane!"
The young man, one whose hair shined like gold and whose eye shined brighter that any diamond, was a young man named Mike Belfort.
"It was not." Sullivan shrugs him off as he spoke, "The quality of gameplay has fallen drastically." His eyes fleet across the helmet, "Though it could be because of all the players that has left."
He walks to the kitchen as he continued, "Most of the player seems to have left, even the renowned pro players have left the game entirely."
"C'mon! Don't say it like that! You crushed the competition!" The man jumps, "I'm sure if they were still there, you could've wrecked them!"
Sullivan takes a meal off the fridge. "I doubt that. I've watched them before. Their level is above that of mine." He takes a bite of his sandwich. "Though I believe I can at least draw out a tie."
Mike rolls his eyes. "Don't underestimate yourself! You're way better than them. You should join that new game they're making!"
Sullivan raises an eyebrow. "What new game?"
Mike jumps to his computer, their shared apartment coming to view as he jumps above the sofa. Directly onto their shared computer, clicking through in quick succession and revealing a site.
"Warrior's Edge! The newest game, made for the newest Immers Console." Mike raises his fist, "The height of programming, built with the Imagine Engine 7. It has full body control, a feeling of the five senses, a world within a mind."
Sullivan looks at his friend, deadpan as he replied, "What are you? An ad?"
"No! I'm a fan!" Mike shouts, his hand raised.
"Well, I can see that." Sullivan chuckles, wiping the meal off of his lips. "But as things stand, I cannot possibly use the time I have for studying and invest it in a game."
"A game!? This isn't just a game!" He jiggles his hand around the monitor. "This is the future! The world's newest form of entertainment!"
Sullivan shakes his head. "Even if you say so, I'll remain adamant in my pursuit of a degree. One which I intend to use to achieve my stress free life."
Mike moans in anguish, "C'mon, that's so boring!" He clenches his fist and stands at their sofa. "Can't you at least dream more!? Dream of fame and power! Dream of endless riches! And reach for the stars!" He grabs him. "With your brain and my charm, we could conquer the world!"
Sullivan rolls up a newspaper and slaps him off the sofa. "First of all, get off the sofa. Second of which, how exactly does a game relate to us conquering the world?"
Mike nurses the top of his head before he looks up. "Oh? Didn't I tell you?" He walked to their computer and opened a site. "The new game's gold currency can be exchanged with actual money."
Sullivan nods, "I see." He stiffens at the fact before he walks to his side. "How much money are we talking about here? I don't think-"
He stops before his eyes widen in shock, "Is that? What I think it is?"
"Yep! The chart for the exchange of currency." Mike nods in satisfaction.
Sullivan watches the line rise and fall as he mutters, "If the hype for this game is anything like yours. This currency would explode, wouldn't it?"
"Yeah, obviously." Mike says as he sat back at the sofa, his teasing smile evident as he asks, "Now, how do you want us to do this?"
Sullivan sighs in exasperation. "You and your teasing."
Mike tilts his head as he gave out a cute expression. "Teehee."
'''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''
Sullivan slams a large compilation of documents, his face filled with grim determination as he walked around the room, "Now, I have compiled here all the necessary files."
Mike grabs one. "Wow, that was quick." He peruses the documents. "Everything and anything about the game is written here? Right?"
"Yes!" Sullivan spreads its sections. "There are a few things here that have captured my interest, especially their guild system, one that prevents a total domination of a game."
"Oh, I heard this one. I think they got some backlash from that."
"Yes, yet they remain adamant about keeping it. Forcing every guild in a minimum of thirteen members. Quite creative, really, certainly best for their other systems."
"What system?" Mike asks.
"The Battalion creation system, one where you are allowed to create at least fifty Npcs, each one at your command. You can create them or get them through quests, improve and adapt them with every item you gather. Basically, create an army of your own making."
Sullivan sways in excitement. "It is a thing of beauty!"
Mike, though, chuckles, "Calm down." He then stops, "But this would be a problem for us, wouldn't it?" He holds his hand together. "We can't get friends."
Sullivan stops at his words, "You are right." He sits down, his hand tapping his chin in thought as he spoke up, "We should push this aside for now."
"Yup, let's wait till it becomes an actual problem." Mike chirps.
Sullivan nods, "Yes, let's."
He then pushes another file, "Then here comes the magic system. An actual lifelike magic system, one that takes great inspiration from various elements."
Mike then reads, "Water, Air, Fire and Earth." He puts it down, "That's a bit small, isn't it? I'm sure these game developers wouldn't want something so simple in their game.
"I assumed the same. So I propose to look out for any hidden elements. Preferably something close to Light and Darkness or Life and Death."
"I'll look out for it." Mike then stops, remembering something before he spoke up, "I also browsed a few forums while you were out. Apparently, there's a special event in the first hour."
"That is most unusual. But their systems have been the most unusual, so I would give such a thing a bit of credence." Sullivan the pushes out another set of documents.
"For now, thought, we must make ready. If we want to take this seriously, we would have to master its controls. Controls that require complete and utter mastery over one's body."
Mike takes one and reads through it. "I see. We can't even change our body in the game."
"Of course! Such action would lead us to a difference, a difference that we would have to adjust to every time we decide to enter."
"It's fine, I guess. But how do we gain that mastery?" Mike peruses the document, and he stops. He rereads his plans before he mutters, "No, I'm not gonna do that."
Sullivan glares at him. "May I remind you that you were the one that started this discussion?" He leans back, his hands intertwined as he spoke. "I have considered yoga, but if we are to be martially inclined, martial arts are the only option."
Mike sighs. "You really know how to suck an excitement out of the game."
"Yes, well, if you really want me to invest our time here, it is only right we do it perfectly the first time, yes."
"Yes, fine." Mike stands up shout, "Let's do this!"