"At this point, we're just doing… whatever." The world's richest man said, "It's public knowledge that we've been creating this ginormous supercomputer, this quantum megacomputer. We finished it a month ago. It's self repairing, self expanding, and eventually will be the size of a continent… maybe. So anyways, we have this AI running on it, controlling the whole thing, and then it started doing everything better, even replacing itself multiple times over."
"Wait, doesn't that-" the interviewer started to ask.
"Yeah, we're pretty sure it's the technological singularity. So anyways, we've been asking the AI—we call it Al, with a L—all sorts of questions, how to fix global warming and what not. It isn't possible according to Al by the way, but anyways. So we want to figure out its limits, we ask it to run a fully simulated universe. It does that, the universe has been growing, so we ask it to add stuff to it, magic mainly. And at that point, somebody goes like 'would be cool to see what that universe is like,' and so we ask if it's possible…"
"And?" The interviewer asked, leaning closer.
"And it totally is. VR has existed for decades, proper brain to computer interfaces for a few decades, and now we took those two together, and amplified it a million fold. Fully simulated bodies, brains, everything, in a full universe. So then we have this idea, and I was like why not. And here we are, announcing the best possible fully immersive VR MMORPG, where everything is fully simulated beyond the atom. Where every single NPC is self aware, where anything and everything can happen in an ever expanding universe. Made on a whim, but I was in there for a few hours, though it felt like a day thanks to this cool time compression, and it was the best thing ever. Heh, I might even decide to never leave the game again."
"That sounds… honestly, kind of horrifying. But hey, a new game, made by a super genius AI, ready to be explored by anyone with a BCI. And, it's free to play! But shouldn't you make some sort of announcement on reaching the singularity, instead of announcing this game you made on a whim?"
"I- probably. I guess we just did."
—
Kai slowly allowed his eyes to drift away from his phone screen. He was in his hospital gown, on the bed, spending his days wondering if he'd ever feel again. If he had any money, he could buy a chip that'd go in his spine, and allow him to feel his body, move it, through his BCI and Bluetooth. But he didn't have the money, and was left with… nothing. He would be in the hospital for life, doing what few jobs he could on his phone to pay the bills.
The author's tale has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.
"So, what do you think?" His dad asked Kai. "It could be the escape you've been looking for."
"I'm in this hospital because of QUANTA, we lost the legal battle against them, and now you're saying they're the ones who can give me my body back?" Kai had his phone speak for him, since he couldn't even move his mouth. But a game wasn't reality, no matter how well it simulates it.
"It's almost indistinguishable from reality, only limited by your BCI. I tried it yesterday, for a few minutes." Dad said. "Your friend, Martin, introduced me to it. He's been playing for five days now, ever since it came out. He's tried to contact you multiple times, wants you to join him."
"I could walk again?"
"Absolutely, and from what I hear, a whole lot more."
Sure, Kai had lost his body thanks to QUANTA, an Ai car gone rogue, but maybe, just maybe, Kai could get his body back.
A few hours later, once he had some privacy, Kai let his eyes drift back to his phone screen. Kai willed the phone open. With his BCI connected to his phone, Kai could use it much quicker than anyone could with fingers. It didn't take long to find QUANTA's website, and a link to everything about ECLIPSE.
'ECLIPSE, aka the Enigmatic Cybernetic Landscape with Infinite Possibilities and Seamless Exploration, is a state of the art, fully simulated…' it read, nothing new. Kai kept scrolling down the page. 'Anyone with a BCI the equivalent or better than a "Braindancer 3.0, 500Ghz" and an internet connection of over 50GB/s is capable of joining, for free!' That was a check, the hospital wifi was fast, and if anything, one should spend money on a good BCI. Kai's dad had said so, when he'd gifted Kai his first and only BCI at the age of seventeen. And luckily, it had survived the accident.
Satisfied that the requirements were met, Kai began searching for a connect button on the website, reading small bits of information, 'QUANTA tech doesn't recommend staying in the game for longer than eight real hours in the game a day, or 48 in game hours. While the full dive technology keeps your muscles from atrophying by stimulating them, it doesn't magically make you eat, or clean up any normal bodily functions that may occur during gameplay.' Kai glanced at the IV connected to his bloodstream, and the hospital room he was in. Yeah, that was irrelevant to him. 'Because of these limitations, we offer a long time join service.' That was interesting enough, maybe Kai could look for more information on that later.
'ECLIPSE has an in-game gold currency available in the starter area. One gold can be bought for ten dollars, or exchanged for ten real life dollars. We added this feature because why not, it is a real life incentive to have fun, and do in game jobs. A hundred thousand gold coins, and you're a millionaire!' Now Kai was getting more excited. He could do something he enjoyed, and get money for it. No need to work online through his phone. Maybe he could eventi buy the Bluetooth connection for his spine, or .
'In ECLIPSE, each player has access to a screen, where in addition to seeing their character information and ongoing quests, one can find standard VR screen functions, you will have access to the internet through it.'
Finally Kai found his way back to the top of the page where the connect button rested. After a slight hesitation, Kai pressed it, and everything went black.