Author's note: This is my first story on Royal Road. I've been knocking this idea around for a while, probably since I got hooked on my first LItRPG. I've played with this first chapter for a bit, and finally got it close enough to submit and move on. 

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"Dude, you should see the incentives they have going on right now."

James held up a hand to stop the argument that they'd already had countless times before from starting again. Undeterred, Sarah waved his hand off and plowed ahead.

"They're ri-diculous. Remember Scott? Did labeling?"

James pondered for a minute. "Scott? Red-haired guy? Super tall?"

Sarah nodded. "That's the one. Went online two weeks ago."

"Noooo, he seemed like such a regular guy," James groaned. "Everyone is falling for that 'perfect life' junk."

Sarah dropped the nutrient-fortified soy blocks she was packing into boxes back on the conveyor belt they came from. "Need I remind you that the Pity Program is defunded at the end of the month. No more spaghetti, no more scrambled eggs, no more chocolate. We're back to eating this crap we've been packaging for the last eight months."

James sighed. She was right. The Pity Program (or, as the government officially called it: the Get America Working Program) was going to be shut down at midnight on the last day of the month. As it turned out, paying people to do manual labor that was several orders of magnitude more cost-effective and efficient for automated machines to do was draining more funds from the cash-strapped federal budget than it had to spare. The latest ex-celebrity commander-in-chief had promised in his campaign to 'bring back jobs', which he did. Part-time jobs. That paid less than the federal minimum wage, thanks to a loophole. Jobs that weren't going to exist past nine months.

"Fine, Sarah, fine. I'll go with you to a recruiter tomorrow. We listen to his sales pitch and we're out of there. You're buying a pizza after."

Sarah couldn't wipe the grin from her face for the rest of their shift.

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James and Sarah lay in the stacked bunks of their ten by twenty apartment. Ever the gentleman, James had let Sarah have the top bunk since the well-worn bottom bunk doubled as couch and dining room. After an instant ramen dinner, the two had gone straight to bed. 

After an hour of staring at the ceiling, Sarah ventured a whispered, "James?"

Tired of staring at the sagging second-hand mattress of his roommate, he replied, "Yeah?"

"I know you don't want to digitize because you think life is tied to your body, I think the quantum brains are just like a prosthetic limb... we'll agree to disagree on that one."

James nodded. "Deal. That argument is old, tired, and goes nowhere."

"Okay, so I have another question: What's so great about this life that it's even worth living?"

The question took James by surprise. It took him a moment to respond. "I mean... it's real. It's authentic, right? This apartment is... awful, but it's wood and paint and drywall. The other is just... ones and zeros."

"Hmm. Well, I guess I'd rather have a 'ones and zeros' steak than government soy blocks. Endless beaches, perfect weather, a mansion with all-you-can-eat of anything you'd ever want."

For just a moment, James let his imagination wander. "Books. I'd want a library in my house, every good story ever written in it. Maybe... in a forest, next to a stream. With a big bed, like a queen- no, a king-sized mattress. You could open the windows and watch deer and raccoons play in the water."

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Sarah giggled. "I could be down with the woods. I mean, just because we could each have our own mansion doesn't mean we'd have to. We could each take a wing of a small castle if we wanted. As long as there's a beach close."

There was silence for a few minutes before James spoke again. "Sarah, how long have we lived together?" 

"Umm, nine years? It was the summer before we started high school. My dad took off and you got released from that awful foster home, we pooled what we had and got that first apartment. Remember how the shower never got above, like, room temperature?"

This time James laughed. "Yeah, and we were so excited about this place because the water actually got hot. Now we know to alternate days because of how long it takes to heat up for a second shower."

"You're my only family, James."

"And you're mine."

While some people balked when the two roommates told people that they were just good friends, not a romantic item, it was one hundred percent true. Meeting each other at low points in their lives and leaning on each other for the support to get through had built a strong, family bond between the two. They were more like twins now than anything else.

"I think- I think I would have digitized a long time ago if you'd have gone with me. I just- I just don't want to go without you."

James had known that for a couple of years now, but this was the first time Sarah had ever said it out loud. Somehow that made it more real, and he felt the guilt he'd been ignoring.

"I'm glad you haven't left me," was all he could say.

They lay in silence after that until they both fell asleep.

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"Yeah, yeah, of course. We can definitely get you into one of our luxury worlds. We've actually got a new one just coming online, they try to keep the population in each capped at about a hundred million. I'm sure we can set something up like that, forest castle? Yeah, I know we have some models we can show you."

The Digitization Recruiter spoke a mile-a-minute, leaving very little room for James or Sarah to say anything.

"But, actually. No, well... I've got this other deal, real attractive offer. It's for an alternate world."

Sarah looked at James with an eyebrow raised. He just shrugged back. He'd only come to make Sarah happy, it didn't really matter to him what the Recruiter pitched.

With a nod from Sarah, the Recruiter launched his spiel. "Okay, so... it's a fantasy world, like Dungeons and Hobbits or something, just-there's dragons and things, right?"

The skepticism was growing on Sarah's face, but the Recruiter blazed ahead.

"Anyway, the numbers in there are a little stagnant, not as many people transferring to or from, and the boys upstairs are trying to shake it up a bit, get some fresh blood in there. Here's the deal, you ready for this? You go to this world, you sign up for ten years minimum before you can transfer to another world, and they give you a- this is great, so rare, so rare- they give you a personal digital assistant. Huh? How great is that?"

James finally perked up. "A full AI assistant? Permanent contract?"

The Recruiter's mouth quirked up like a fisherman that just had his first nibble all day. "You got it. Newest model AI, permanently bound to your account. You do ten years in, you know, elves and magic land, and you get to take your AI with you when you leave. Could be a butler, whatever. These things, they're basically alive themselves. Fully aware. Carry on a conversation, play video games with ya, anything."

Sarah wasn't as familiar, so she looked at James for an explanation.

James leaned closer to try to keep their conversation somewhat private. "So, you can't take anything with you into a digital world, right? Everybody starts fresh, no silver spoons? Well, there's one loophole, they let rich people bring a personal AI of theirs in with them. I've never heard of them giving you an AI to sign up, that's insane. We'd have to save a dozen lifetimes just to get a first generation AI."

"These are twelfth gen," the recruiter interrupted, obviously not concerned about their privacy. 

"Right," James added. "So... a hundred lifetimes? A lot. It would take a lot of money."

Sarah's eyes suddenly twinkled. "Soooo, you're considering it now?" she asked James.

Put on the spot, caught between his guilt for being the reason Sarah had stayed and the allure of the insanely valuable incentive to digitize, James didn't have an answer.

The Recruiter looked closer at his digital display, then checked the time. "Oh, folks if you want in on this one, you're going to have to decide. The notes here say that this deal expires today, and we're closing in... seven minutes. Even if I stayed late with you guys, they won't accept the offer after hours until tomorrow, and the bonus is off the table then."

James looked at Sarah's pleading expression and committed to make a decision. Quickly. Without giving himself the time to doubt, he locked eyes with the Recruiter.

"Let's do it."