Chapter 2.1: Foot... meet Hog
Marvin was a normal 9-year old. He was lively. Tried to do what his parents wanted him to – but ended up not doing it. He had blond hair, blue eyes and rosy round cheeks. He was one of those people who seemed agitated all the time, even when they were doing nothing. He was mostly happy. He had 4 older brothers. Blue was his absolute favorite color. He would paint the world blue if he could. He liked building toy airplanes. He didn't have any special skills, nothing to really set him apart – except for the fact that he couldn't walk.
When Marvin was 7 he had fallen off a horse. At that time he broke his back. His family tried and tried to find a cure for him, but it couldn't be afforded on the insurance. Technology nowadays would permit the regeneration of his spinal cord but it was expensive. They weren’t poor, but they did not have millions laying around for spine regeneration. So Marvin lived day by day, confined to his wheelchair, doing things that could be done comfortably while sitting.
Marvin was homeschooled. He had tried going to school after the surgeries stopped, but he couldn't put up with the pitying looks he got from the other people. The kind acts they would all offer. One teacher even wiped his mouth when he was eating once. Just because he was confined to a chair did not make him an invalid.
He tried to be optimistic about life. He tried to be happy as most as he could. And he mostly succeeded. He was a cheerful kid – with a lighthearted demeanor. For him, it wasn't that hard to ignore the hard parts of life. Except for when he saw the puffy eyes of his mother. Except for when he saw the haggard expression his father would give him sometimes. Marvin thought his father blamed himself for the accident. His father had suggested riding that day. Marvin sometimes blamed him too, but he knew it was no one’s fault. Assigning blame was just a coping mechanism he had to constantly remind himself.
He knew that his handicap caused friction in the family. The relationship between his parents was strained – even if they tried to hide it - he knew. His brothers got less attention as a result of his parents constantly babying him. He would sometimes see their annoyed looks when they got overlooked. These were soon followed by a look of guilt… and then a look of pity. Always the pity.
So Marvin tried to fill his time with things he could do. That way he could forget the harsh realities of life.
Sometimes his best friend Alfred, Al for short, would come visit. They had been neighbors for forever and Al could usually ignore the fact that Marvin war paraplegic. Usually.
So they played soldier. They built train sets and puzzles. Enacted pretend battles, all the usual things that nine year olds did. But Marvin could tell when Al would get riled up. It was hard to contain the energy of a 9 year old. Marvin knew this best – he himself felt like that all the time. Like you wanted to move and let it all out! But he couldn't… so, he would tell Al that he was tired, and that they better meet up at some other time.
It wasn’t so bad. His parents loved him. His brothers used to tease him all the time… now they were nice. Greg, the oldest (he was 18) still treated him the same. Smacking him on the head and taking his things and calling him the ‘little cripple’. All of this hurt a little, but he appreciated it so much more because Greg was also one of the only people that treated him normal. Like he was someone. Just because he was confined to a chair did not make him an invalid!
But sometimes… it felt like it did. Sometimes at night, right before he fell asleep and he didn't have to put on a brave front for all of those around him – he was crushed with the despair of all the things he would never be able to do again.
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One day Marvin heard his parents arguing about something before he strolled into the kitchen. He stayed at the door to listen to what it was about.
“… can’t use him like that! He’s your own son!” His father shouted.
-“I’m not using him. I’m providing him an opportunity. You see how he is. How he tries to hide how miserable he is! I want to give him a chance to experience life again! On his own two feet!” His mother responded.
“It’s not right to use him as a promotion device. He’s a person! Not a brand or a logo that you can brandish about to get ahead in your career!”
-“How dare you! I would never use him for something so selfish! I am doing this for him!”
“This is ridiculous, I won’t listen to another word of this! This conversation is over!”
As his father continued shouting his reply, Marvin heard his hurried steps toward the door behind which he now was. His father yanked the door open to find Marvin sitting innocently in his chair.
“Breakfast ready yet?” Marvin asked with a tentative smile.
His father showed a momentarily shocked expression that soon morphed into a forced bright smile, a smile Marvin knew too well. He wondered about what his parents were fighting about but chose to wait for a private moment with his mother to ask about it. From what he had heard, that seemed the most promising way of getting an answer.
Breakfast progressed somewhat strangely. His parents knew he had heard some of their fight, but they could not guess how much. He chose to let them guess. His father left a while later sending his mother a look with some hidden message Marvin couldn't decipher. No matter. She’ll talk.
As soon as the door closed on his father, Marvin turned to his mother - with what he hoped was an endearing puppy-dog, bleary eyed and bushy tailed look - and asked, “Sooo, what was that about?”
His mother looked at him and gave him a half-hearted laugh and said, “Baby, I want you to make a decision now. Don’t do it for me or for your father. Think about what you want to do and then decide okay? We will support you with any choice you make. You got that?”
The serious talk scared Marvin a little, but he replied, “Okay. What is it?”
His mother: Sigh.
Sigh again.
Pause.
‘Oh God. What is she going to say? What is the worse that could happen?’
The sighing and the pausing was getting to Marvin, he wanted her to just get it out already. He was going to have a heart-attack. A perfectly healthy, well – other than the obvious, 9-year old kid was going to…
“My boss pitched a promotion idea yesterday.” His mother started.
‘Her boss???’ Marvin relaxed. What did her work have to do with him? She worked for one of the biggest advertising companies on the east-coast, but she was in one of the subdivision of the subdivisions. While her company might be glamorous, her job wasn’t.
“He came specifically to me for this idea.” She continued. “Because he knew you were my son.”
That part made Marvin refocus.
‘What do I have to do with anything?’
“Three months ago, the first ever virtual reality game, they call it Royal Road, was released in Korea. It has become increasingly popular. So popular in fact that Unicorn Corp., that’s the company that created the game, wants to launch a marketing campaign in the United States which my company is leading.”
Marvin was lost as to how any of this could relate to him, but continued to pay attention. The ‘ding’ would come at any moment.
“The idea for the campaign concentrates on the possibilities of the future, particularly concerning virtual reality.” Here she paused again, but then continued.
“They want to show how a handicapped person could live inside the virtual reality…
‘Ding.’
…Where all their disabilities didn't matter – where the interior becomes more important than the exterior. Where the impossible is possible…”
“Okay Mom, I get it.” Marvin interrupted.
“So this virtual reality game. You think it could let me walk again? Will it actually feel like I am walking though? I don’t see how that can work. It’s just a game.”
Marvin was a little annoyed. He wanted to be really happy about the walking part, but he was afraid of getting his hopes up… again.
After going to so many doctors that said they could do it, that they could make him walk agin - in the end they couldn't. The only possible way for him to ever walk again was the experimental surgery that their insurance wouldn't cover and they couldn't afford. He was afraid of letting hope rise again only to be crushed…again.
“But that’s just it Marvin!” His mother fervently answered with a gleam in her eye.
“They made me test out the game. At first I didn't believe it either. I didn't want to get your hopes up – in case it didn't pan out in the end. But they assured me it was to real that it felt real. And it did. It felt so real, I could barely tell it was a game. The only reason I knew was… well… because I knew!” She continued emphatically.
The story has been illicitly taken; should you find it on Amazon, report the infringement.
“They want to show your reaction to the game and show your first days in it. It’s actually a really expensive game but they said they would give you a free capsule – it’s sort of like the joystick – and a life-time subscription. So you could play as much as you want.” His mother said.
When Marvin didn't immediately reply, she added, “But you don’t have to do anything you don’t want honey. If you would rather not play, we don’t have to ever talk about it again. If you want to try it out and see if you like it, we can do that too. Whatever you want.” She said in an appeasing tone.
After seeing how committed his mother was to this game, how much she believed in it. He was convinced. If his mother thought this much of it, it must be amazing. It had been a while since he had seen his mother so excited about something so he said, “I want to play.”
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Three days later there was a blue, custom color that caused the three-day delay, capsule installed in the Montgomery household. After the crew that had installed it left Marvin rolled up to it. In the last three days he had read most of the instruction manual so he thought he knew what to expect.
He took a deep breath and got ready to get into the capsule. As he began lifting himself out of his chair his mother and father, who had been silently fretting beside him, moved to help.
“I can do it! I get into bed every day on my own, what's the matter with you guys!?” He snapped, he didn't mean to but he was a little high-strung.
Hope kept swelling up and he kept stomping it down, it was making his stomach clench in anxiety, his feuding and overbearing parents weren’t helping the situation much.
His father had been very upset when he had found Marvin reading the Royal Road manual the day before. His mother and him were able to keep the game out of conversation, especially since his father had termed the discussion as ‘over’. But Marvin had been so caught up in the intricacies of the game that he hadn’t noticed his father walk up to him from behind as he held the manual in his hand.
It was bound to come out that day anyway. Quite surprising that they were able to hide… omit the topic for even the two days that they had really. The only problem was the previous night had given his parents the opportunity to voice their views to each other over and over again. The tension in the air was palpable, Marvin tried to ignore it as he dealt with his own type of tension.
As his parents backed off but still stayed close, he said, “Could you guys please leave? I can really do this on my own.”
As his parents still looked on worriedly, he added, “I want to do this on my own. Please.”
That did it. They left.
Marvin took another deep breath. Tried to calm himself and lifted himself up into the capsule.
Connect to Royal Road?
Yes | No
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*Flash*
He was standing in a village square in front of a fountain. They were people mingling about doing business and talking to each other. It was a very busy place, he barely registered any of this. He was standing in a village square. As in to stand. Actively. To be on your feet, without any handholds. Tears burned in his eyes and he jumped, just because he could jump.
He jumped and he ran. And then he jumped and ran some more. He wasn't going to stop. If he could walk, he was going to enjoy every last second of it. He ran circles around the fountain and laughed in delight.
-“What’s that kid doing? He got a screw loose or somethin’?”
-“I don't know man. Maybe he’s a noob. I mean I’m a noob, I just started a week ago. But I don't think I went that crazy when I first logged on.”
-“Yep, definitely bonkers…”
Footloose, that’s the name Marvin had given his avatar, continued to run circles around the fountain. After he got tired of running circles he ran through the cobbled streets of Fort Feranisburg in the Kingdom of Kallamore. He had chosen to be human, he had also kept his original appearance, minus wheelchair. It was heaven, no it was Royal Road!
‘Haha, this game rocks!’
He ran all the way to the city’s gates, it was a big city and it took him upwards of two hours to get there. He hadn’t planned on it, he had just let his legs run and run and run. He went up some crooked allies and back again after encountering dead ends. He wasn't worried though; all he wanted to do was run.
As he was about to run out of the city gates one of the guards standing there stopped him. He was a tall man in metal armor with beady eyes. He was bald but had bushy red-brown eyebrows as well as a moustache that more than made up for his lack of hair on the top part of his head.
‘For a man with no hair, he has a lot of it.’
His head was slightly pointy at the top.
‘I wonder if he has trouble wearing helmets with a head like that.’ Footloose vaguely mused.
The man laughed in a low baritone and commented, “Sorry, but ye can’t leave yet boy. Why ye in such a hurry anyway? Ye make trouble?” He asked jokingly.
Hog, for that was the name the man went by, didn't see how this little imp of a boy could have done anything wrong. Footloose looked just like Marvin and Marvin had one of those angelic faces that can’t be blamed for anything.
“No sir. I’m just getting some exercise is all. Been a while.” Footloose was out of breath, running around that much had tired him without him realizing.
-“…Been a while? Boy ye haven’t lived a while. Come back in ten years and we’ll talk about what a while means.”
Hog looked the boy up and down in an appraising manner. Having come to some sort of conclusion he asked, “Son, what’s yer name?”
“Name’s Footloose sir.” He answered.
-“Son… that's a shitty name. Whatever made yer Ma come up with that? Well..." He looked a little chagrined.
"I am sorry for insulting yer Ma seeing as I don't know her and she might as well be a fine lady. But that ain'ta good name my boy. Take my name would ye? Hog. Now that ye see… that is a strong name.” Hog paused and looked at Footloose for some sort of validation. Footloose quickly nodded his assent.
-“Son, what ye need is a strong name.” Hog paused and seemed to be considering something. He mumbled to himself and then broke into a grin. “Foot! That's a strong name! Simple and right to the point! No point for all that flowery crap. Yer going to be a man someday. For that, ye need a man’s name.”
“Foot?” Footloose thought Hog to be quite strange but didn't add anything.
-“Now shoo – go, go… Off with ya. Come back in four weeks and then we’ll talk. Until then, I’m afraid ye gotta stay inside boy.”
Footloose shrugged and walked away. He had read the manual so he knew about the rules, he hadn’t intentionally tried to leave the city. As he was walking he heard Hog shout his name, he turned back towards Hog giving him a questioning look.
Hog just smiled and said, “Atta boy.”
Hog had called out, “Foot!” - and Foot had unconsciously responded. Foot sighed to himself and kept walking.
‘In hindsight Footloose might have been a bit much.’
Foot cringed at the memory of Hog referring to his name as flowery. Foot it is.
‘I should have introduced myself as Toe… I bet that would fall under Hog’s category of manly names.’
Foot started running again as he thought of other three letter words. ‘air, aim, cup, log, lap, lip…’
Hog watched as the young boy swiftly disappear around a corner. He was reminiscing about his son. Foot and him had a certain resemblance that went beyond appearance. They had this energy about them, this vitality that seemed to ignore the impossible. That same energy had gotten Hog’s son into a lot of trouble in his younger days… in fact it still did.
‘Wonder what that good for nothing is up to now? Should be coming back from one of his missions any day now…’
A satisfied smile crept into Hog’s face as he looked out beyond the gates. In the far distance he could see the forest that delineated the border between the kingdoms of Kallamore and Siradin.
Chapter 2.2
AND yes... I changed his name to Foot because I didnt want to type Footloose every time.