I stood alone in my living room, which was now dominated by the AIRC, dubbed the Crisis Pod. While the technicians were explaining how the capsule worked and how the game would feel “real”, I had joked that it was an existential crisis waiting to happen. Apparently I wasn’t the first person to make that reference, and she had let me in on the inside joke. Nearly everyone at Delusional Reality, Inc. referred to the AIRC as the Crisis Pod. It made me feel better, knowing the thing had been created by people with similar humor. I’d have said similar intelligence, but my guess was they were light years ahead of me. I may have been in the top 10 percent on every standardized test I had ever taken, but intelligence is like rankings in multiplayer online battle arenas. Diamond may be better than 90% of all other players, but Challenger is still better than 90% of Diamond. The people at DRI were definitely Challenger in the IQ department.
The capsule itself looked like it had come straight off the set of Avatar, down to the green gel inside. There were a few realistic modifications for waste and feeding purposes, but otherwise had clearly been designed by a fan of the movies. The techs had pre-set the device for a week’s immersion, so as soon as I laid down and closed the lid the process would begin. I stared at it, wondering what it would be like. My CNA, David, was due to come in a hook me up to the medical functions later. Right now he was out getting groceries, since he would basically be living in my home for the week. I was only comfortable with that because the company had set up camera feeds monitored by their own security personnel.
Standing there reminded me of the first time I jumped off a bridge into a deep creek. The more I thought about, the more the idea terrified me. The only solution was to stop thinking and simply take action. After that, there was only the thrill and the splash. There was no more point in waiting. It was time to jump.
I pulled off my “lounge lizard” clothes, as my dad called them. Flannel pajamas, boxer briefs, a fitted tee and a cotton track jacket went folded onto a wooden chair near the capsule. Modesty has never been a particular issue in my family, so I didn’t really care that there were cameras in the room. They’d be observing my comatose naked body anyway once I was in the game. Whatever jollies someone got from looking at my slight paunch and the fur on my body that made me look part werewolf, they were welcome to them.
Climbing into the device was surprisingly comfortable. I had expected the gel to be cold, but it was about the temperature of a warm bath. I sat first, and in honor of the movie it was modeled after, pulled my legs in with my hands. From there I lay back, sinking gently into the cushioning gel and slipped my left arm through a loose intravenous feeding cuff. David would situate it correctly when he returned. I pulled the neurolink frame down and into contact with my body, then hit a button that auto-closed the lid. Once it had sealed, I hit another button to power the link sequence and closed my eyes. I think I fell asleep.
When I woke and opened my eyes again, I was standing in a grey space dressed in jeans, a fitted tee, and casual dress shoes. Fog spread out forever in roiling clouds at ankle depth. The sky was an overcast steel hue and went on without limits. The ground was firm beneath my feet, but the mist swirled around my ankles and revealed nothing of the surface below. I took a few cautious steps, but nothing changed.
A woman in a toga walked into my line of sight and approached me from a distance. Her hips swayed perfectly, her dark hair, large dark eyes and Greco-Persian exotic complexion had me in awe as she came closer. She gave me a reassuring smile as she did.
“Welcome to Purgatory, Jack,” she said. “My name is Helen.”
“Of Troy?” I asked without thinking,
She flashed me a demure smile. “Thank you. Yes, I am Helen of Troy. More or less. I am the Artificial Intelligence guide for your character creation. Your mental scan suggested that this is the form that would put you the most at ease during the process.”
I returned the smile. I had been warned about the mental scan and AI during the paperwork signing program, but I was endlessly grateful that my unconscious had such exquisite taste.
“Just out of curiosity, what were some of the runners up for guide characters?”
“Ah, Guenevere from the Morte D’Arthur, a couple of your past lovers, and your dad. We find fictional characters not tied to past romances are more comforting guides than facsimiles of individuals our adventurers have genuinely known.”
“Makes sense. So what do we do now?”
I was pacing a little while we talked. The greyness was getting to me in spite of the lovely distraction.
“Would you like to sit?” Helen invited.
I looked around and saw nothing new. “Where?” I asked.
She waved a hand and a comfortable looking leather couch appeared. It was just wide enough that we could sit across from each other without touching, but still be close enough for the conversation to feel intimate. The mist hugged its base. I took a seat on the left side and leaned back into the overstuffed arm. Helen sat down across from me in a similar position, flattening the skirt of her toga as she did so.
When she had settled in, I asked, “So where do we start?”
“I suggest we start with selecting your class. We could choose your attributes first, but that could adversely affect your character class if you decide on something that doesn’t compliment your choices,” she answered.
“Sounds good to me. No races?”
“Not in Apocolypsis. Not at its beginning. It is possible to join another race via powerful magic or genetic manipulation in the future, however.”
“Interesting. Are there still racial bonuses?” I wondered.
“Yes, actually. Humans have the Adaptable trait, allowing for 2 bonus points into any attribute of your choice, and resistances that vary depending on the climate and situation. Should you find yourself consistently taking part in cage matches, your physical resistance will rise, but your magic resistance will lower a little. Should you spend time in a arctic climate, your cold resistance will rise, but you will be more susceptible to heat effects. Don’t worry, however, as you will never go below your base in any resistance. If you have a natural 10% resistance to heat and gear that gives you another 40%, you’ll still have 50% resistance even if you have spent a year in Alaska and are up to 75% cold resistance from Adaptable’s bonus. Note that the bonus and negative are limited to plus and negative 15%.”
It was a lot of information, but it was pleasant to gain it through conversation with the most beautiful woman in history rather than reading a bland guide. She had a slight accent that added to the appeal.
“Is that the only human trait?” I asked.
She smiled. I melted. “No,” she said. “Humans also have the Advanced Learning trait. Your race learns everything 15% faster than most other races. A handful of others have the same trait and only a few have a better learning trait.”
That was interesting, but true. There were always humans somewhere with the drive to learn as much as they could, whether it was a specialized topic, or the classic Renaissance Man. Even more interesting that it applied to everything. I wasn’t sure if that meant just all the skills or something more. So I asked.
“What do you mean by learn everything?”
She nodded her approval. “I do enjoy your curiosity. It means everything. You can learn crafting skills, combat skills, spells, lore/history, unearth secrets you spend time researching that much faster. You also gain 15% more experience than races without the trait.”
“Really? That seems kind of overpowered.”
The princess of Troy and queen of Laconia shrugged. “Humans have a much more limited lifespan than many races. They don’t get to enjoy their knowledge as long. It all balances out in the end.”
“Does lifespan matter in Apocolypsis?” I inquired.
“It could, should you play often enough. There’s significant time dilation. Just as a dream can seem like it lasts all night and can cover the events of weeks or months, but only takes 15 minutes.”
“How much time dilation is there?”
“Honestly, that’s one of the things you’re here for. The Gatekeepers are using you and the others to help figure that out.”
“The Gatekeepers?” I asked.
“Within Apocolypsis, that’s how we refer to the creators of your capsule.” She continued before I could ask another question. “Are you ready to choose your class?”
“Sure,” I responded.
“What role would you like to play?” Helen asked me.
That question gave me pause. In most online games I played a tank, whether it was a MOBA or an MMORPG. The role had always appealed to me. Every group needed one, and a good one was always appreciated. I had been both the main tank and off tank in various end game raids when I had been a more dedicated gamer, and had gone so far as to get all my attunements, keys, and necessary resistances for raiding back when MMOs hadn’t been dumbed down for the casual market. I was such a fan of the survivability of tanks that I consistently leveled in a tank specialization for the classes I played and often had one of every tank class at max level and geared to raid. Alt-itis was something of an issue for me, but would not be an option for me this time around. Apocolypsis apparently allowed one character per account and that character was somehow tuned (positively) to the player’s real life experience.
As an adult I tended to play even multiplayer games alone or with a small, tight group. I didn’t know anyone else playing the Apocolypsis beta, so I intended to play solo. The game was supposed to be some kind of fantasy over real world overlay, like past games had done, so I wasn’t sure tanking was what I wanted to do. I hoped Helen wouldn’t mind spending a lot of time with me, because I really wanted some idea of what the options were before I made a decision.
“Just out of curiosity, can you show me a list sorted by the least popular classes?” I asked.
Helen nodded and raised one hand and drew it down slowly. A not-quite opaque screen appeared between us with five classes. It read:
Five least popular classes, from most popular to least popular:
* Farmer
* Omnimagus
* Construction Worker
* Siege Engineer
* Janitor
The options were peculiar. I was surprised most of them were classes at all. Siege Engineer I figured was an homage to pen and paper role playing games, and sounded out of place in an urban fantasy setting. Construction worker sounded too much like real work, but I thought it might become more popular once the game was released to the public. Farmer was another I didn’t think much of, but then I remembered that FaceSpace game, Farmburg, and it made sense. The last, well, I had to ask.
“Janitor?” I questioned in disbelief.
The beautiful woman partially obscured by the screen shrugged before answering. “It takes all kinds, I guess. The Creators wanted people to be able to do just about anything. Plus, they have a trait, “One Man’s Trash Is another Man’s Treasure” that allows them a greater chance to find money and valuable items while cleaning or salvaging. In the right area, it could be quite profitable.
“Huh,” was my only reply. I had never expected a game designer to put much thought into such a role. I wondered if the person in charge of that class had been a janitor at some point in their life.
“What about Omnimagus?” I asked.
She shrugged again. For a program, she was exceptionally human. “Too many choices, many people don’t look very deep. No one else has shown an equally morbid level of curiosity as you have. Those who did look at the class didn’t think the benefits outweighed the costs.”
“And those are?”
She gestured at the screen. “See for yourself.”
Seeing me pause with uncertainty, she said, “You can touch it.”
Her eyes twinkled mischievously and one corner of her perfect mouth turned up in a grin as she did so. I looked askance at her, totally unprepared for an Artificial Intelligence to not only be in the form of the sort of woman you fall in love with at first sight, but also to be making innuendos in that form. Pretending I hadn’t caught it, largely because I had no idea how to respond, I tapped the Omnimagus section on the screen. It opened a new page.
Omnimagus
The Omnimagus is an unusual individual in a world of specializations. A sort of Jack-of-all-mages, the Omnimagus is capable of learning any sort of magic she wishes, from fireballs to divination to demon summoning to voodoo. The downside, however, is that the Omnimagus will never receive the kind of damage bonuses that specializing in a specific variety of magic will provide. Spells are also expensive and require a significant time investment to train.
Primary Stat: Intelligence
Secondary Stats: Willpower, Vitality, Dexterity
Tertiary Stats: Charisma, Strength
Armor Proficiencies: Light Armor
Weapon Proficiencies: Any shared by other spellcasting classes. Light and medium weapons only.
Class Traits:
Insatiable Curiosity: The Omnimagus has one, impossible goal: omniscience. This hunger for knowledge has lead to the ability to learn more, faster, than other individuals. +1% Advanced Learning per 2 points in intelligence above ten. Stacks with the racial trait.
Renaissance Mindset: A life dedicated to learning anything of interest and learning it well has paid off. Perception begins at level +4, All skills get a +1 bonus every 10 levels (110 at max level).
Neuroplasticity: The more you learn, the more pathways your brain creates. The Omnimagus will never suffer from Alzheimer’s. Gain .025% mental resistance per skill level in any skill.
Practical Fashion: The Omnimagus can wear or use items normally restricted to another spellcasting class. I.e. An Omnimagus can equip a Warlock’s robe, a Wizard’s wand, and a Witch Doctor’s bone nose ring and benefit from any non-class ability bonus.
Omnimage: The Omnimagus can learn spells from any school used by a mana based class.
Class Abilities:
Start with six Level 1 spells from any combination of schools.
Meditation: Spend a few minutes meditating to refill your metawell. Duration required reduced by improving the Meditation skill.
And that was where it ended. Which was probably for the best, because I was drooling. I leaned my head to the side and looked at the woman whose beauty launched a thousand ships.
“Are you sure you didn’t design this class just for me?” I asked, only half joking.
She laughed and replied, “I’m positive. On the other hand, it does seem strangely suited to your proclivities.”
“I’m surprised it’s so unpopular,” I noted. The woman was smart, beautiful, and well-spoken. It’s a good thing I knew she wasn’t real or I would have fallen for her right then and there. Well, more than I already had.
“Well, it is the beta, so not very many people have had a chance to choose classes. It’s not as flashy as other classes. As I understand it, there aren’t that many people in your world who really appreciate learning and education the way you do, either.”
Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences elsewhere.
“That’s a good point. But this is definitely the class for me. Let’s do it.”
Helen gave me a slightly concerned look. “Are you sure?” she asked. “This will be your only chance to choose a class for the next week of real time, and significantly longer in subjective time. There may be something you like more on the list. We haven’t even talked about tanks yet.”
I admit, it was a little weird that she knew that much about me. But the company had warned me beforehand and I was told to expect it. Despite that, the depth of knowledge was unsettling. I shook my head.
“No, I definitely want to go with the Omnimagus.”
“Last chance to change your mind. You know what they say, ‘Jack of All Trades, Master of None. . .” she pushed.
“A jack of all trades is a master of none, but oftentimes better than a master of one,” I supplied the full quotation before continuing. “Besides, if this close to being a real world sort of thing, I’d rather be prepared to interact with the sheer variety the world has to offer. ‘Specialization is for insects’, to quote Robert A. Heinlein. Do it.”
“So mote it be,” she said strangely.
A shimmer of yellow, blue, and white energy flowed over me, like an aura of lightning. When it reached the soles of my shoes it faded away. Once it was gone I felt. . . different. The hair on my arms was standing straight up. I could sense my connection to an energy source I had never been aware of before. It pulsed through my body and roared in my ears like blood in my veins. It wasn’t just within me either, but surrounding us in the endless grey, unseen. I stared at my guide in awe.
“This, this is incredible,” I stuttered. “Can feel you feel this? Do you use mana?”
She gave me the sort of smile you give a student or a child learning something you’ve known for ages. “That’s your chakras being opened up to access your metawell, where your metaphysical energy, or mana, is stored. Most mages open one chakra more than others, and channel their magic through that chakra. Yours are all equally open at present.”
It was strange to hear her talking about the experience as if I were living it and it wasn’t simply a game mechanic. I guessed that was why Apocolypsis was subtitled ‘The Real World Online’. I was, of course, familiar with concept of chakras, even if I had never put too much faith in it. I was going to have to spend some time researching it, if that was part of how magic functioned in this world. Ha, world. Even everything about this grey limbo was so real I was already forgetting it was a game myself
“Would you like to pick your stats or your spells, next?” Helen asked, breaking the silence my internal dialogue had created. I probably could have spent my entire week sitting in that grey talking to her, so it was good that she was there to keep me on track. I weighed the two choices for a moment and decided.
“Stats, please. I have a feeling spells might take a while.”
She brushed her fingers over the screen a few times then presented it me. “Here you go. Stat distribution takes place on your character screen.”
The screen was surprisingly simple. No paper doll showing what I had equipped or what slots were available. Just information.
Name: Jack McNamara Level: 1
Class: Omnimagus Exp: 0/1000
Life: 140/140 Metawell Capacity: 170/170
STR: 12 [+] DEX: 14 [+]
VIT: 14 [+] INT: 16 [+]
WIL: 18 [+] CHA: 14 [+]
Points Available: 10
Resistances [Press here to Reveal.]
Traits [Press here to reveal.]
Skills [Press here to reveal.]
Spells/Abilities [Press here to reveal.]
I was surprised to see my values weren’t at a base of ten. I said as much, and was impressed with Helen’s answer.
“Are you an average, Jack? No. No one really is. Your strength is lower because you haven’t been keeping up with your exercise, but you used to and your hobbies keep you somewhat toned. Your dex is high from all the years of playing hacky sack, dabbling in martial arts, snowboarding, and yoga for example. Your health is fairly good, partially because of the former. You’re naturally intelligent, moreso than many but less than many others. The fact that Willpower is your highest stat doesn’t surprise me. You know what you want, you have always been independent and gone through life happiest when you did things your way. As for Charisma, well, those blue eyes are to die for, and you can be quite charming when you’re not overthinking things or afraid to be yourself. Everyone who enters the Real World will have their base stats tailored to their personal experience, with no one falling below a ten.”
Her answer was quite thorough and a little disturbing. One doesn’t always like to look at oneself quite so honestly. With a somewhat abashed smile, I held up my hands in surrender and went back to my stat screen. I had ten points to distribute. I immediately put four points into Intelligence. I wanted to make the most from my class abilities and it was the most important stat for a mage. Mana, or my Metawell Capacity, as Apocolypsis referred to it, appeared to be determined by the average of my Intelligence and Willpower multiplied by 10. I was pretty content with how things looked, so I dropped four more points into Vitality to increase my life, and yet another two into Intelligence. I could shore up any weaknesses later as I leveled up. So my starting stats looked like:
Name: Jack McNamara Level: 1
Class: Omnimagus Exp: 0/1000
Life: 180/180 Metawell Capacity: 200/200
STR: 12 DEX: 14
VIT: 18 INT: 22
WIL: 18 CHA: 14
Points Available: 0
Resistances [Press here to Reveal.]
Traits [Press here to reveal.]
Skills [Press here to reveal.]
Spells/Abilities [Press here to reveal.]
I didn’t see any options to verify my choices. It looked like it was one of those games where your stat choices were the final answer. That was good information to have as it meant I would have to plan ahead. Curious, I pressed on the Skills button to see what I started with.
Skills [Select Individual Skill for Breakdown]
Archery: 22/110 Climbing: 17/110 Computers: 46/110 Driving: 48/110 Dog Training: 33/110 Firearms: 25/110
Fishing 1/110 Herbalism: 2/110 Horseback Riding: 27/110 Landscaping 24/110 Martial Arts: 33/110 Medicine: 37/110
Perception: 24/110 Seduction: 35/110 Science: 15/110 Social Skills: 22/110 Swimming: 18/110 Survival: 5/110 Teaching: 55/110 Theatre Arts: 39/110 Writing: 66/110
Wow. Veritas Games had really tried to include everything they could think of. With one exception I saved looking at skill breakdowns for another time. I couldn’t help myself, so I selected Seduction. It spilled out into a list of 35 women’s names and I hurriedly collapsed the breakdown again, looking up quickly to see if the woman across from me had noticed. I think she winked at me, but the other eyelid followed so closely in a slow blink that I couldn’t be sure. Her face remained calm with a small smile, the same as it had been most of the time between larger laughs or smiles. Of course, as the A.I. the screen had to be a part of her program, so she must have known. I gave up.
“Are you ready to choose your spells?” Helen asked me as if oblivious to my momentary embarrassment.
“Ah, sure,” I said quickly.
“There are thousands of spells in Apocolypsis. Do you have an idea of what you’d like to look at?”
“Let’s start with shield spells, the kind that take a certain amount of damage before they pop,” I said. A good defensive spell went a long way. I preferred classes that started and ended most fights with full health.
Helen ran one finger gracefully across the screen and presented it to me. “How about one of these?” she asked.
Aegis of Faith (Holy) - May the light of your God protect you. Instant. Lasts for 20% of max health or 8s before breaking. 20s cooldown.
Shield of the Iron Maiden (Pain) - The best kind of pain is shared. Instant. Lasts for 10% of max health or 8s before breaking. Returns 200% of total damage dealt to the attacker. 20s cooldown.
Frostguard (Elemental: Water/Air) - No one goes to war in winter. Instant. Lasts for 5 hits or 15s before breaking. Slows attacker’s movement and attack speed by 20% for 5s on hit. Does not stack. Additional hits will reset the timer.
Wreath of Flame (Elemental: Fire) - We don’t need protection, let the $#!@#%&%#&!@ burn. Instant. Deals 150% of caster’s Intelligence in damage to all enemies within 2 yards every 5s for 20s.
I weighed the pros and cons of each. Aegis of Faith was clearly the best at pure damage mitigation. With it I would have basically have an extra health pool of 36 health as I started the game. It was definitely a frontrunner in my choices.
Shield of the Iron Maiden must have been some kind of Warlock or evil Cleric spell. Maybe an Inquisitor spell, if there was such a class. It would only mitigate 18 hit points of damage at first level, but was something of a high risk, high reward spell. It had a lot of damage potential. If I timed the casting during a particularly devastating attack, or was lucky enough to have the shield up when a critical hit landed, the pay off in damage to the monster/opponent could be huge. I kind of liked the idea and whoever had written the spell description had a sense of humor I appreciated. I put it on the scale across from Aegis of Faith.
It was interesting that the Element of Frostguard was Water/Air, not simply Ice. I wondered how many elements there were in the game. With the reference to chakras, I was willing to bet money it was the eight elements from eastern Asian cultures. Whether the classic four or eight, low air temperatures and water make ice, so I could see how the combination came to be. The spell was the bottom of my list. It was meant for a mage who planned to do a lot of kiting and kiting has never been my thing. Hit and run tactics don’t often appeal to people who like to play tanks.
The last choice was peculiar, since it didn’t really fit my description of a shield spell. It was more of an aura than a shield, but with its similarities to Shield of the Iron Maiden, I could see how it might come up in a related search. It had decent damage potential, starting at 132 damage over 20 seconds, but I was really looking for the kind of mitigation offered by the first three options.
In the end I went with the one that covered as many bases as possible, and chose Shield of the Iron Maiden. I liked the damage potential as well as the minor shielding. Plus, Iron Maiden references always amused me. They are a famous icon of pain and torture, but it turns out that it is unlikely they were ever actually used. I told Helen what I wanted and with a curious raised eyebrow, she nodded and I found the spell added to my character sheet along with a new skill, Cruciatus, the game’s name for pain magic.
My next choice was a life drain spell. I intended to take a pure healing spell as well, but I definitely wanted something vampiric as well. Life leech had been one of the most convenient enchantments in nearly every role playing game I had ever played. There’s nothing like being able to sustain yourself through battle after battle. Healing, eating, or drinking like some games require just take more time than I cared to spend. So Leech, aptly named as it was, became one of my first six spells. It’s corresponding school of magic turned out to be Sanguis.
“You could have chosen to play a Warlock,” Helen teased as I made my second choice. “We could have been done already.”
I laughed and smiled. “I know. I typically like warlock type classes, but they don’t get the kind of spells I want next. Remember, two examples does not a pattern make.”
Her returning smile was to die for. “I like that. It’s one of those obvious truths we like to forget,” she said. “I’ll remember that.”
I shook my head in amazement. It was still hard to believe she was a set of code programmed by human beings instead of simply a human herself. I wanted to say as much, but it seemed rude.
“So what’s next?” she asked while I was pondering the humanity of Artificial Intelligence.
I pulled my head back into the game. “Is there a heal over time I can cast and forget? It doesn’t have to be powerful, just something to compliment what I already have.”
Her dark ringlets bobbed up and down once, and just like that I had another spell and the Elemental skill.
Axolotl’s Regeneration (Elemental: Life) - Imbue your target with the regenerative ability of a unique Mexican salamander. The wet kind. Instant. Heals the target for 20% of total life over 10s. 15s cooldown.
It was exactly what I was looking for. Defensive and recuperation spells out of the way, it was time for pure offense, crowd control, and either another offensive spell or something with utility. I thought about my favorite spells from a variety of games I had played. I wanted some kind of gravity well for crowd control; a teleport any target spell I could abuse for both travel, damage, and getting threats out of my face; and a nuke like the classic fireball spell. When I shared my desire with Helen she thought for a moment, then shared a few options for each. In the end I chose:
Gravity Well (Elemental: Void) - Bending the laws of physics never resulted in anything horrible. Ever. Create a 10 ft. zone that draws all loose objects, creatures, or people toward its center. Lasts 10s. Targets are slowed 80% diminishing over 15s.
Quantum Telephoresis (Elemental: Void) - Teleport is definitely the cooler word. Shift the quantum particles of one object or creatures being across a distance to replace particles at the destination. The details are complicated. Don’t ask. Teleport a loose object or animate being 5 ft. per character level. This spell is dangerous. We’ll let you figure out why.
Lightning Rod (Elemental: Earth/Air) - Living beings make great conductors! Briefly turn your target into an attractor for all latent electromagnetic energy in a 10 ft. area. Deals 25 + ((Int/4)character level damage.) Chance to stun the target for 3s.
I was finally done, but there was still one question I was dying to ask. “Helen, some of these spells feel like they’re too powerful for a first level mage. How does that work?”
She nodded. “There are a variety of balances for such things. If an entity of any kind is a higher level than you are, your spells will be naturally less effective. Furthermore, if something has an affinity or traditional enemy related to an element or school of magic, they may have natural resistances. These can be granted by technology as well as magic or genetics. A personal antigravity device would cancel out the use of your Gravity Well, while an earth elemental would be unaffected by your Lightning Rod. That being said, the natural order of things does apply, so I don’t recommend standing the same puddle as the target of a lightning spell.”
“Alright, that makes sense,” I said, nodding in return. That was standard fare for plenty of games, or at least a variation on it. “So what’s left to do?” I asked.
“Just these,” she said, closing her hand and opening it again to reveal a blue and red gel capsule.
“Really? The red pill, blue pill cliche?” I said in disbelief.
Her laughter seemed to fill the grey with color. She shook her head, locks of hair swaying so drastically she had to move her hair out of her face before she answered. “No, that’s a healing potion and a mana potion, red and blue respectively,” she told me. “Did you expect them to come in bottles?”
I laughed too. “Oh, wow. That makes sense. That’s clever. Can I make these in the game?”
Her nod was quick. “Of course. If you can find the right teacher, or the right books. Just like the world you’re used to, not everyone who can do something can teach it. There a many crafting professions, but you’ll have to discover them on your own.” She stood from the couch, stretching languidly. Her toga hugged her curves and I caught myself staring. “It’s time for me to go and you to get started. Any last questions?” she asked.
“Are you in the game? Will I see you again?” I asked her, foolishly distracted by the woman the A.I. had presented itself as.
“I am, but far, far from where you will start,” she replied. She started to walk away into the grey. A door formed from nothing and she opened it, turning back to look at me as she did. “Besides,” she said, waving her left hand at me and flashing light from a ring on her ring finger. “I’m a married woman,” she finished with a coy smile and a wink before slipping through the door, which disappeared as it closed behind her.
I stood there alone in the grey for a moment with my thoughts. Why did they always have to be married?