Caleb willed the people on the busy sidewalk to move aside. He glanced at his phone for, what seemed the millionth time as he bumped into a burly man in front of him. The man turned and scowled at him. He gave the man an apologetic look and quickly weaved back into the traffic.
After a while, he reached the apartment complex he stayed in. The once white-washed building of the old tower now stood out conspicuously against the shining metal and glass prefabricated buildings that surrounded it. It was far from even moderately comfortable, but Caleb had plans that required a modest lifestyle—for now.
Caleb darted up the staircase—past the indefinitely broken elevator—all the way up to his ninth-floor apartment. Panting heavily, he pressed his thumb into the electronic lock and entered his home. He kicked the door closed behind him, dropped his backpack on the floor, and hurried to his computer. He opened the analytics program for his website and studied it intensely. His heart thumped excitedly in his chest and a huge grin on his face. On the screen, a counter slowly ticked up, indicating the earnings from his website.
Caleb had a penchant for business and the entrepreneurial spirit to back it. Being brought up in a household where his parents’ idea of being business savvy was spending half their meager income on lottery tickets, he learned to be more frugal with any money he earned.
Caleb’s greatest loves were money and gaming. His ambition to combine the two came in the form of the world’s most popular virtual reality game: Frontier Realms. The only problem was the exorbitant cost of even the most basic VR equipment required to play the game. Frontier Realms provided the most immersive experience, requiring cutting-edge technology, but that prohibited most people.
Although gaming cafés were available for renting VR rigs, these establishments only provided the most common character options - usually warrior or mage types. As the game characters were bound to the rented equipment, you had to make do with limited choices. Furthermore, you couldn’t convert or cash out the in-game gold to actual money in these rental setups, which posed a significant drawback for Caleb. He desperately wanted his own rig, so that he could fulfill his dream to play Frontier Realms full-time and, hopefully, become rich doing so.
He had spent years developing a small side business—among other part-time jobs—to make his dream come true. He taught himself how to code and develop his website which started earning him a small, but steady income.
Four years ago, watching his favorite streamer play Frontier Realms, Caleb was struck by inspiration. He went on to develop an add-on for streamers, enabling their viewers to passively earn virtual currency as they watched. Through Caleb’s website, viewers could then use their accumulated virtual currency to purchase merchandise branded with the streamer’s logo.
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Years after he began this endeavor, Caleb now intensely monitored his balance ticking up towards his goal. A few minutes later, a loud cacophony of alarms beeped on his phone and computer. He grinned from ear to ear, his mind and body in momentary shock.
> Balance: $10,552
>
> B-2 NovaTech Neural Interface: $10,000 (100%)
>
> 30-Days NovaTech Long-Term Immersion Medication: $150 (100%)
>
> 30-Days Frontier Realms Subscription: $400 (100%)
>
> [Alert] Goal Reached!
Caleb had been dreaming of owning a VR rig ever since he heard of Frontier Realms, the game that had taken the world by storm. He had spent countless hours researching the best models, and finally settled on one that was slightly out of his price range that allowed for better immersion and comfort. He scrimped and saved every penny, eating cheap meals and foregoing luxuries, until he finally had enough to place the order.
The wait for the VR rig seemed like an eternity to Caleb. He had paid extra for rush shipping, hoping it would arrive as soon as possible. When the delivery finally came, Caleb practically ripped the box open in his excitement. He set up the rig with lightning speed, checking and double-checking every connection, eager to dive into Frontier Realms.
As he powered on the device, Caleb couldn’t help but feel a nervous flutter in his stomach. What if the power consumption was too much for the old apartment building’s electrical grid? What if he had made a mistake somewhere in the setup? The rig had a battery that would only allow for short-term usage, just enough for the player to log out safely. Caleb made a mental note to invest in a more long-term power solution, but for now, he was content to bask in the thrill of finally owning a VR rig and embarking on his Frontier Realms adventure.
He pushed his worries aside and focused on the screen in front of him. The rig hummed to life. Caleb took a deep breath and calmed himself. He looked at the small screen on the side of the headset of the device, which had a checklist of things he needed to do before immersing himself. The rig had a sophisticated medical monitoring system and there were a bunch of safety checks that Caleb was required to do before the game would even launch.
Caleb quickly scarfed down a nutrient bar and swallowed a handful of multi-colored immersion pills he had prepped ahead of time. The game’s strict medical requirements meant he couldn’t risk being locked out of the rig. Those only playing for short stints had it easy - just an empty bladder and they were good to go, but with a strict four-hour limit. Caleb had bigger plans, though, and was willing to pay top dollar for the necessary medication to play for up to twelve hours at a time. He was determined to make Frontier Realms his full-time job.
Once he completed everything on his list, Caleb donned the headset and lay down in his bed. Darkness filled his vision.