“You ever been to the Arena before?” Allan asked Officer Price as he climbed into his friend’s squad car an hour later.
James nodded, “It’s a blast. Brings a whole new dimension to the game. I’m headed there tonight. Wanna tag along?”
“Sure.” Allan shrugged, “Why not? I’ve got nothing better to do anyway.”
“I thought you had plans with Lily tonight?” James raised an eyebrow, “What happened? Won’t she be annoyed?”
“I proposed to her tonight.” he sighed and held up a hand to stop him as James’ eyes lit up and was clearly about to offer a congratulations, “But she turned me down. I need something to distract me.”
“Dude...” James consoled, “I’m so sorry.”
“Don’t be.” Allan shook his head, “We’ve been having our squabbles for months. I should have seen it coming.”
“Do you mind if I ask what happened?”
Allan let out a heavy sigh, “I’m not ready to talk about it.”
They’d been having problems in their relationship for years. Instead of working out their differences, he opted to drown out his problems by escaping to virtual worlds.
Last year he got a $9,000 bonus from work, and he kept it a secret from Lily because he intended to surprise her with an impromptu trip to Hawaii. It probably would have been a much wiser choice considering his relationship would likely have remained intact… but right about the same time he got the bonus, a brand new NeuReality interface had just been released by CyberBolt Entertainment. He had heard rumors of the design for years, and though he was anxious about the required surgery, he couldn’t help but want to be part of the next generation of NeuReality gaming systems. After the surgery that installed a microchip inside his right temple, he found every excuse he could think of to jump into several virtual worlds created by CyberBolt. Lily often caught him staring off into space during important conversations – whereas meanwhile he was checking various game stats.
“What level are you at now?” James broke him out of his thoughts.
“Level seven.” Allan sighed, “What about you?”
James cringed.
“Come on!” Allan insisted.
“Nineteen…”
“What?!” Allan stammered, “How? Last night when we logged off you were at level fourteen. Are you playing while you’re on duty? ”
“Absolutely not!” James looked offended by the mere suggestion, “I take my responsibility to serve and protect seriously.”
“All right, fine.” Allan raised an eyebrow in suspicion, “So you tricked me and didn’t log off when I did.”
“Not so. I logged out of my avatar the same time you did.” He smirked.
“You can’t lie to me and keep a straight face.” Allan punched him playfully in the shoulder, “Spill the beans. What’s your secret?”
“Sleep.”
Allan stared at him blankly, “No, seriously.”
“I mean it.” James smiled, “That’s my secret. I level up during my sleep.”
“You have a cheat code?”
“No.” he laughed, “It’s a premium service that’s only available to members who visit the Arena. You can activate Sleep Mode, which is a service that allows you to lend out your avatar to those who can’t afford surgical microchips. It gives them a chance to play using their old primitive consoles, and meanwhile you get to level up during your sleep. You also get royalties.”
“Wait… I’m confused.” Allan sought clarification, “But isn’t your body connected to your avatar?”
“Yes.”
“Your avatar is synchronized to mimic everything your body does – even down to blinking and breathing.” Allan still didn’t understand, “So if someone else is controlling your avatar… how are you sleeping?”
Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences elsewhere.
“Sleep Mode controls your body’s natural circadian rhythm by tricking your brain to believe that your levels of adenosine have peaked. This effectively puts your brain into a temporary comatose state while you rent your avatar for use by other players.”
“So… in other words, somebody has taken over your avatar…” Allan raised an eyebrow in alarm, “Which effectively means that somebody is controlling your body?!”
“In layman terms, yes.”
“Dude, that’s creepy.”
“Nah – you get used to it.” James smiled as they pulled into the Arena’s parking structure, “I’ve been using the Sleep Mode service for the past year during their beta testing period with some of CyberBolt’s older games that they migrated over to the server. I used to wake up sore and bruised, but now I wake up having built more muscle. I’ve also lost twenty pounds, and I feel more fit than ever. My commander thinks I’ve been going to the gym to bulk up. If only he knew!” James chuckled.
“This is seriously crazy talk.” Allan shook his head in astonishment, “What if you got injured?”
“CyberBolt maintains a full medical staff in their arenas at all times as a precaution, but the injuries are next to none.” he assured as he parked the car, “Wait ‘til you see the arena, and then you’ll understand why. It’s an extremely safe and controlled environment, which is why Sleep Mode is only allowed to be activated inside the Arena.”
“Is any of this even legal?”
“CyberBolt has received full approval from the FDA, regardless of the fact that no drugs ever enter the system.” he nodded, “I’m sure you’ve heard about the protests however.”
“Protests?” Allan shook his head, “No, I haven’t.”
“A bunch of Congressmen are trying to get the FDA to classify NeuReality as a drug-like state of mind.”
“That’s ridiculous!” he scoffed, “Let me get this straight… they couldn’t keep the stoners from legalizing marijuana, so now these politicians are going after gamers?”
“They always need something to complain about.” James laughed, “Do you remember when the World Health Organization updated their definition of mental disorders to include Gaming Disorder a few years back?”
“Yeah.” Allan scoffed, “That was ludicrous. I’m glad CyberBolt lobbied to shut down that nonsense.”
They walked through the massive front doors of CyberBolt Chicago Arena and waited in a fairly short line. Above the desk a large screen advertised pricing for single-day weekday passes of $29.99, single-day weekend passes of $49.99, monthly Premium Member passes of $299.99 and annual Premium Member passes of $1,299.99. As he eyed the monthly pass figure, an idea struck him.
“How many people actually use this Sleep Mode anyway?”
“You’d be surprised.”
“How do you know?”
“Sleep Mode is pretty obvious to detect in other players.” James explained, “The avatar’s eyes are always closed. Most of us jokingly refer to them as zombies.”
“And you’re sure it’s safe?”
“Absolutely.” James smiled, “You sound tempted.”
“Well…” Allan struggled with his conscience, “I don’t really want to go home tonight, and $299.99 is way cheaper than any rent I could ever find. I could always take a shower at the gym…”
“They’ve got showers and lockers here if you prefer.” James laughed, “In fact, they even have a laundry facility and a food court on site.”
“No way.”
“Yep.” he chuckled as they approached the desk, “Sometimes I wonder how many people do exactly the same thing you’re thinking. CyberBolt had to issue mandatory hygiene requirements prior to entering the arena because some players were going for days on end without showering or even leaving for that matter.”
An attractive young woman wearing gold plated armor at the front desk interrupted their conversation, “Good evening officers. Can I interest you in purchasing our annual pass today?”
“I’ve already got mine.” James winked at her and held up a card, “But this is my buddy’s first time here.”
“Oh?” she gave a teasing smile, “How about you handsome?”
“I… uhh…” Allan hesitated, “Hang on.”
How much do I have in my checking account?
He pressed his right temple, and after a brief moment of static a virtual keyboard appeared in front of him. His fingers tapped away at the invisible keyboard as he pulled up his bank account.
Dang it. Not enough.
He quickly moved over some funds from his savings account, “I’ll take the monthly pass for now.”
“You got it.” she nodded, “That’ll be $323.98 with tax.”
Allan waved his hand over the NFC terminal to make the payment. He saw the charge get immediately deducted from his account with a Payee name of CyberBolt Entertainment.
The fully armored young woman pulled a fancy card out of a printing machine with gold lettering that said ‘Premium Member’ on it, and then offered a choice between two packages with gray cloth inside, “Your duds. Large, or Medium?”
“Large, please.”
She handed him his new membership card and the gray clothing, “Welcome to CyberBolt Arena, and thank you for choosing one of our Premium Membership options. A full breakdown of all your Premium Member benefits can be accessed by selecting the gold symbol in the top right corner of your HUD. Enjoy your stay!”
Allan turned to James as they walked past a massive set of doors that looked like the gates of Mordor, “Do all of CyberBolt’s employees dress like that?”
“Yes, at least here in the Arena.” he nodded enthusiastically and pointed down the hall, “And there’s also a gift shop where you can purchase a tailored full set of armor for yourself too – you just aren’t allowed to wear it inside the arena for safety reasons. I’ve been saving up for a certain set of armor for a while that I plan to put in a display case at home. All of them come with a software package for your Avatar.”
“Man.” Allan looked around at the impressive medieval décor, “Why haven’t I come here sooner? I’ve been missing out!”
“Yes, you have.” he nodded and pointed to the men’s locker room, “Let’s change real quick.”
----------------------------------------
© Copyright 2022 R.M. Mulder. All rights reserved.