This was it, I thought. I did it. I finally did it.

In the course of less than three weeks of intensive gaming, I have out-competed thousands of players for a new World Record -- the fastest 100% completion rate in the history of the Extended Edition Skyrim Full-Dive VR.

The 2040s saw a golden era of gaming. 2044's introduction of full-dive VR capsules combined with NeuraLink feedback and AI enhancement allowed players to experience full virtual reality that was quite close to the real thing. Many of the classic games -- Skyrim included -- have seen full VR remakes vastly larger and more beautiful than the original. The dedicated AI simulator faithfully reproduced the sights, sounds, and even tactile sensations while controlling the monsters and NPCs in a way that was so realistic, the player often felt like they were genuinely in another world.

Now, standing at the top of the Throat of the World, my character was taking in the beauty of this classic Skyrim world for what was likely the last time... after all, there was simply nothing left to do!

My character was a Nord Vampire-Lord—Harald Alrek, as I’d named him. A towering, unstoppable force, an “eternal ruler” in every sense. He clawed his way to the top of the Thieves’ Guild, becoming a Nightingale and Guild Master. Took over the Dark Brotherhood, becoming Listener. Walked into the College of Winterhold and left as Archmage. He tore through Skyrim, fighting in the Civil War for the Nords, even going so far as to kill Ulfric Stormcloak and steal his throne—just to spite him, he finished the job with a simple iron spoon instead of his own blade. He crushed the Aldmeri Dominion in the Civil War Victory DLC, single-handedly destroying entire armies of the Elves and forcing them to withdraw from Skyrim forever. He sided with Serana, crushed the Dawnguard, and put an end to Harkon. Traveling to Solstheim, he briefly put up with Miraak’s nonsense, before taking him down hard -- within his own dimensional lair no less -- to prove who the real Dragonborn was.

Then, finally, came the final battle—Alduin, the World-Eater -- truly an apocalyptic threat foretold to consume every soul in the world, and even the Gods themselves... yet another threat destroyed by his hand. Harald fulfilled his destiny, lived up to the prophecy, and saved not just Skyrim but the entire in-game universe.

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And what did he do after that? Ran errands for random townsfolk. Hunted down low-level bandits. Got stuck with meaningless, mind-numbing tasks. Every achievement -- no matter how small or insignificant -- was completed. Every herb harvested. Every meal cooked. Every potion crafted. Every corner of the map explored. Every dungeon cleared. Every Sweetroll (and every other bit of junk) stolen.  Every bandit and monster slain. Every glitch and mechanic exploited to the maximum, until his skill and stat levels far exceeded the usual cap; until a casually forged or enchanted kitchen utensil could easily take down a Dragon (something he chose to do not only for the achievement challenge, but the sheer ridiculousness of the act).

By the end of the challenge, every single skill, shout, spell, and ability has been acquired and mastered to its completion, and hundreds of Dragon souls were absorbed... yet, now that I was finished, the task felt meaningless. Empty.

I shook my head just thinking about it. No wonder the Dragonborn would go mad—no matter what they did, no matter how legendary the feats were, nothing ever really changed. I traveled from land to land, through frozen tundra, forests, swamps, and sharp mountain peaks.... and used the power of the Thu’um, Vampiric Powers, and  vast command of Forging, Alchemy, Archery, and Magic to crush every bit of opposition. Yet now, there was simply nothing left to do. Nothing left to accomplish. No-one left to impress.

"And when his task was finally done, he stood alone at the Throat of the World—the last Dragonborn in an empty, endless land, with neither beast nor soul in sight. And so..."

I mentally directed my Avatar forward, watching, in first person, as he took his final steps—

"The Legendary Dragonborn leapt from the Throat of the World… and fell to his end."

I closed my eyes and savored the spectacular sensation of falling -- which was truly exhilarating, feeling as though I went skydiving in the real world. The new NeuraLink interface provided realistic sensations of vertigo, rapid motion, and a refreshing breeze of cold air against my face. The mountain was tall, and my stats were mighty enough for a truly impressive leap -- and thus, the fall went on.

And on.

And on.

And on, for quite awhile.

And then the smell in the air changed to one of sulfur.

And my world went white.