Episode #0 – Welcome to Fortune

Having just died, Eric Gast should not have started his afterlife by insulting a gamemaster that had limitless control over his existence. Yet this is exactly what happened when he entered [Second Life].

In 2153, one hundred fifty years after the launch of the original virtual world, Second Life, a big shot from the lunar colony bought all the rights of the already long forgotten virtual world and immediately launched his own version. The primary purpose of this virtual world was not entertainment, but perpetual life.

If the Second Life Application was purchased and installed on your personal memory chip, it would automatically back-up every aspect of your consciousness constantly. Upon death, it would transfer the last stable copy into the virtual world, [Second Life], allowing your existence to continue. The perfect way to cheat death for atheists such as Eric.

In 2444, the year that Eric died, [Second Life] was a gargantuan existence. There were countless servers with an equally large number of different themes and settings, providing something suitable for everyone, special snowflakes included.

When you breathe your last breath, the system kicks in and your consciousness is teleported to the server selection world. A NPC is present to guide you through the process.

First the NPC will help you decide on a server. Eric had known long ago on which server he wanted to start. He swiftly said, “[Monte Carlo]” out loud. A window showcasing the Monte Carlo Casino during its glory days was displayed in all its splendor.

Filling his days with games of baccarat, poker and roulette, sipping on cocktails, drinking fancy wines, eating gourmet meals, wearing tailored suits and tuxedos, lounging on yachts, watching and betting on the grand prix, entertaining young women in cocktail dresses and driving luxury cars. A millionaire playboy on the French Riviera. After living a life of poverty in the real world, that is the life he wanted to live.

After you select the server, you can alter your avatar. Removing scars, wrinkles and other blemishes, changing the color of your eyes, hair and skin, losing fat, gaining muscle, reduce age. You can even change your sex or race if you desire to do so. Depending on the server that you selected, the options are limitless.

Rejuvenation, increased height, new eye color , new abs, new teeth, new haircut, new outfit, a few extra inches. No unusual choices for Eric.

Finally, you have to confirm the name you wish to use. Your given name is always available, but custom names are unique per server. If your desired name is already taken, you are out of luck. Eric kept his real name.

Eric had selected his server, altered his appearance, chose his name, he was ready. He jumped into the window showcasing [Monte Carlo].

[Maximum Player Amount has been reached. Position in queue: 1240310]

The window didn’t let Eric through. Since the NPC guide couldn’t help him with this issue, he demanded for the presence of a gamemaster.

“Greetings. I hope your wait was not too uncomfortable,” said the gamemaster.

“Uncomfortable? My dream life is three feet in front of me,” said Eric, obviously agitated. “I can’t wait for one million people to get tired of my dream life before starting it myself.”

“One million two hundred forty thousand three hundred fifty-two customers have entered the queue before you did, to be precise,” said the gamemaster.

“No need to rub it in,” said Eric, “Just bump me up the queue already.”

The gamemaster told him that there was nothing he could do. That bastard, thought Eric, I have waited for years already. How could I possibly wait any longer?

His discussion with the gamemaster quickly escalated into a fierce storm of verbal brutality, all of the insults coming from Eric’s mouth. It was to no avail, the gamemaster thoroughly refused to bump him up the queue.

[Monte Carlo] was not going to happen anytime soon, but the gamemaster did offer Eric an alternative. Access to a server intended exclusively for inhabitants of the lunar colony.

Eric was overjoyed. You have to understand that it is next to impossible to become a resident of the lunar colony. Only the richest, most famous, most powerful people have the qualifications to live there. Enjoying Second Life with such esteemed characters, how could he not be ecstatic?

A large window, showcasing a pristine cloudscape appeared behind the gamemaster. If heaven existed, it might have looked something like this. Eric was visibly impressed.

“You can now enter Fortune,” said the gamemaster.

Eric quickly took him up on his offer, afraid that he might change his mind. [Monte Carlo] could wait, [Fortune] could not. Eric quickly said, “[Accept]”. The gamemaster left immediately as the window filled itself with text.

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[Currently loading Fortune]

Server Information

Server Change: Not Possible

Customer Support: Not Available

Player Messaging: Not Available

Earth Messaging: Not Available

Moon Messaging: Receiving Only

Server Settings

Theme: Fantasy

Difficulty Level: SSS

Death: Permanent Account Closure

Pain Perception: 100%

Laws & Regulations: None

Nutrition: Required

Sleep: Required

“That motherfucker!”

This is not a world for the rich and famous, this is a server suited for masochists, psychos, thrill seekers and people with a death wish, thought Eric.

Before he could protest the loading process finished.  

A force that Eric couldn’t see or resist against, dragged him into the window. The majestic cloudscape that he saw before, surrounded him now. He wasn’t able to enjoy it since the undeniable truth was looming in the sky in front of him.

[Welcome to Fortune]

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It took Eric a while to realize that he wasn’t alone. 

Thirty feet away from him stood a woman, unlike he had ever seen before. She said nothing, but one glance made it clear that this was no ordinary woman. Her hair was long, wavy, and perfect gold, falling brilliantly over her shoulders. A blindfold hid her eyes, but Eric was entirely convinced that beneath that thin strip of cloth he would have found the epitome of perfection. The piece of white see-through fabric that draped over her left little to the imagination and her cherry lips hinted at an unattainable smile.

This was a goddess. 

Next to her stood a massive stone wheel. An intense feeling of dread took hold of Eric when the wheel started to spin at a rapid pace. That wheel will decide my fate, thought Eric. He tried to move, but wasn’t able to.

The wheel slowed down, it was separated in a ridiculous number of spaces, each space held a symbol with an ominous glow. Some symbols were more common than others. He wasn´t certain, but Eric thought that he saw the white and green symbols far more often than blue and purple ones. 

Eventually the wheel stopped, all symbols stopped emitting light except one. I had no clue what it meant, but it was definitely a coin, glowing bright purple. Gold started raining down everywhere around Eric. He had no clue where it came from, but he didn’t care. I am rich. I am rich. I am rich, he thought as gold continued to pour down around him, forming small hills around him. 

As the last pieces of gold landed on top of the huge piles of gold surrounding Eric, the wheel started spinning again. When it started to slow down he realized that the symbols and colors were different from before. The spaces of the wheel showed different kinds of weapons, the symbols often repeating themselves. Eventually the wheel stopped at a symbol of a dagger, glowing dimly with a green color.

A rather common looking dagger materialized in his left hand. This better have some bonus stats, thought Eric. Before he could examine the dagger properly the wheel spun again. This time the wheel was showing pictures of armor and clothes. The wheel stopped at a grey symbol of something which could only be described as rags. FUCK!

When his carefully selected outfit vanished, Eric felt like crying, but he could only watch as it was replaced by a burlap sack that was likely to fall apart at any given time.

Why is it not slowing down, thought Eric as the massive stone wheel spun significantly longer than the previous three times. Let it be purple, let it be purple, repeated Eric in his mind as if it were a mantra. When it finally showed signs of slowing down Eric noticed that all the symbols were showing the silhouettes of animals. The wheel came to a halt, stopping at a symbol of a shark, glowing bright purple. Purple, fuck yeah, thought Eric.

[You have gained 203 followers. You currently have 203 followers]

The restrictions on Eric’s body were lifted, but the clouds which he had believed to be solid, refused to carry his weight any longer. As he started falling through the clouds, he noticed that the goddess was undeniably smirking. He couldn’t enjoy this sight for long as he and his acquired wealth entered a free fall straight to the planet’s surface. 

Passing through the blanket of clouds, an archipelago of six major islands, several atolls and numerous smaller islets started growing larger and larger as the ground approached. Two of the major islands had smoking volcanoes and the largest of all islands had a bright blue crater lake. The color palette of the archipelago below, gave off a distinct tropical vibe.

Sipping margaritas on the beach, sleeping in a hammock tied between two palm trees, stone grilling freshly caught fish at dusk. That is the tropical experience Eric could have had, but here he was, crashing into sea at terminal velocity. Seconds away from the inevitable outcome, he closed his eyes.

The initial splash went unnoticed by most, but the rain of gold captured the attention of many.