*BRMMMMMM*
Startled out of my semi-deep sleep, I wobble out of my bed to the sound of my well adjusted alarm clock. Shaking my head to relieve myself of my hazy state, I swiftly slap my left palm across the top of the alarm clock, shutting it off. Through filtered lighting coming from the nearby window placed above my bed, a smirk settles across my face.
“Another day in Normalville, huh…”
Letting the smirk drop, I slowly make my way over to my closet and pull out some jeans and a t-shirt along with my usual necessities. While putting everything on at a snails pace, I survey my mud-stain colored dwelling called my “room”. It had a small bed in the corner with a window to the top along with a circular fan that can be turned on and off. The walls lay bare due to my distaste in having to stay in the “room” in the first place, or should I call it my “cage”? Nonetheless, I felt my freedom escape from me whenever I looked around this “normal room”.
Finally dressed, I drop my line of thinking as I hear a loud pitched, feminine voice cut through my shut door.
“Stan, munchkin, come down for some breakfast!”
Perking my ears up, my stupid smirk comes back on my face as I burst through the door, quickly clambering down the stairs at the mention of food. Entering the small dining room, my mother beams as I swiftly take a seat, looking over at her cooking bacon and eggs. Using an open ended kitchen concept, our kitchen is in the corner of the dining hall of our humble home. As my mother works on breakfast, my father bounds into the room with a bright smile plastered across his face.
"Hey-o, chump, getting ready for school?"
Nodding in confirmation, while keeping my eyes on the cooking of my mother, I let out a deep sigh and stare into space as my Dad takes a seat across from me.
Marko Johnathan. Married Mary Johnathan 18 years ago and started up a traditional American family by moving out into the countryside to a small village and birthing me, Stan Johnathan. Something about “escaping the hustle and bustle of the city life” appealed to my parents and here we are, living a peaceful and undisturbed lifestyle.
After chatting with my parents for a bit and packing my lunch, I run out of my house with my backpack slung to my right shoulder. Scanning the surroundings as I make my way to Lily High School, the sigh from the morning routine sneaks up on me once more.
The surrounding “village” has grown quite well all these years. It started as a few shacks and two farms that supplied the village in which everyone had mandatory duty to maintain. After eighteen years, said shacks have turned into fully equipped homes with plumbing, electricity, and sanitation services that is maintained by the local people instead of the government. I have absolutely no idea why this village does not trust the government with the local services nor do I care, considering the government isn’t so forthcoming either. This village always incites a spark at the back of my neck whenever I think too deeply about its intricacies; as if I am missing an important piece of a large puzzle that concerns my life.
Before I can continue my musing, my train of thought is broken by a familiar and kind whisper of a voice behind me.
“Stan… wait up…”
Turning my head and noticing one of my childhood friends, my pace slows down as I let her catch up.
Marilyn Smith. Another intricacy that I have no clue about; everyone’s last name is so simple. The girl herself, however, is not as simple as her last name. She has always been a mystery to me as one day she is a diva and the next day, she’s the shy librarian you meet at the back of the library, sorting books in a world of her own. I have always wondered if she has split personality disorder, but the local “doctors” have denied that numerous times.
“Morning, Mary.”
Smiling while settling to walk beside her, I wait for her response. She simply nods before slowing her breathing from trying to catch up to him earlier. They stay this way on the entire journey to the school before passing the gates through throngs of kids trying to get to their classes.
“See ya!”
Marilyn simply waves at him at his parting before turning towards her own class.
Walking into my first period class and taking a seat at one of the seats adjacent to the windows, my eyes continue to wander before settling on the clouds rolling past. Those clouds easily resemble my current state of affairs; simply floating through everything without a care in the world. While going through the motions of listening to my boring teachers lecture and eating with Marilyn for the 1000th time, the spice called “life” is slowly starting to escape from me. This place was just too “normal”, too “perfect”. Everyone smiles and laughs without a care in the world, bully’s are almost non-existant, the teachers act like stereotypical anime teachers.
The only reason I discovered how “perfect”, “normal”, and freaking /WEIRD/ the way I live is… well, that is because of a certain event a year ago. A certain teenage girl, soaking wet in a hoody covered in blood while holding a glock to her side while tears went down her face. She never did tell me why the hell she was covered in blood with a sidearm to her side, but when I took care of her wounds away from my parent’s prying eyes, she told me about the outside world.
The reason why I asked her about the outside world is because you can only leave the village when you reach a “proper adult age”, something I still do not get at all. Anyway, she explained to me about how bloody the world is, but how beautiful it was at the same time. After I was done tending to her wounds and showing her the way out, the blood in my body burned. It did not burn for the woman’s supple body with that piercing look in her eyes; no, it burned for the outside world.
The outside world sounded a lot more “alive” than the world I lived in, where everything was stale and continuous, like a treadmill.
Therefore, today marks the day when I rebel against my parents expectations. If I cannot go out into the “real” world, then I will bring the world to me. A few weeks ago I convinced my parents that I “accidentally” found a flyer about a game that the mysterious woman told me about (a flyer that I worked on for an entire week to look like a professional looking flyer by copying the designs of the ones at school). Begging my parents for the game for weeks on end, they finally relented and told me that I could play it as long as it does not interfere with my studies; another stereotypical motherly and fatherly response that I am getting sick of. Of course, I agreed, considering I finally got through to them.
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Many would wonder why I wouldn’t just use the “internet” in order to search up this game, which is called Tyr Online, in order to convince my parents. That is another peculiarity of this village; not a single person has access to the internet. I have stop questioning why this is the case when even my own parents have responded with cryptic “when you reach the right age” bullshit. Thankfully, one of the major arguments I brought forth is that Tyr Online does not use the internet and has no access to information. It uses a special kind of connection that is imprinted into the capsule’s allowing one to connect to the game in order to prevent “hackers”... whatever that is.
That is a clear lie since Tyr Online is situated in a medieval age type setting from what I was told, which probably has libraries. They don’t have to know that, though.
Tyr Online is also the reason for my smirk in the morning. Today is the day that the capsule that uses the so-called “Full Dive” technology is coming in so that I can finally play. Right on cue, as if listening to my thoughts, on the way home a delivery truck with the Tyr Online logo on the side drove past. Speeding home after spotting the truck, the people within the truck were unloading the cargo into the house when I arrived from my high speed jogging pursuit.
Passing by my parents at the porch while waving my greetings to them, I rush up to my room and ignore my mother’s customary “Do your homework first!” before watching the delivery men hook up the capsule in my room. My parents already signed all the paperwork so all that remained was installation.
After patiently staring at the cargo men work for half an hour, they finally filtered out of the house. Shutting the door behind me and locking it up, I popped open the console with a stupid smile on my face before shutting the capsule door.
WARNING: Unable to begin full body scan due to obstructions on the human body. Please follow full body scan protocol and enter the capsule fully naked.
Staring at the hovering blue screen pushing itself right in my face, a tinge of red stains the bridge of my nose before popping the capsule open and hopping out. Quickly retrieving the manual to the side of the capsule, I give it a slight glance before confirming my mistake as I clear my slight blush. In order for the capsule to know how I really look like, I have to be naked for the first time I enter the capsule. Resolving myself, I begin tearing my clothes off at a terrifying pace before jumping back into the capsule.
Full body scan protocol beginning. Please relax while you are projected into your personal space.
Staring at the blue screen for a few seconds, I feel my mind being warped before I look around myself to realize my surroundings changed rapidly. All around my is nothing but white space with another blue screen hovering right in front of my face. While my body feels like it’s being probed all around, I wave away the disgusting yet weirdly calming feeling as I concentrate on the
Welcome, Stan Johnathan. This is your personal space, currently named by its default name of “Stan Johnathan’s Room”. You may customize it at any time of your choosing or you can hop into any integrated games within the capsule’s memory.
Rubbing his chin slightly, he realizes he has no idea how to tell whoever it is that is monitoring him that he wishes to begin playing. As if on cue, another blue screen appears near his face.
My name is Alec, and I am a AI. You may voice your concerns or demands via your mind or via verbal command and I will obey your command as long as I can fulfill it in my capacity as an AI.
Considering he has no flipping clue what an “AI” is, he’d rather just call the thing “Alien Alec” and get it over with. Somehow, though, he felt it's rude and possibly life threatening to incur the wrath of a being that could read his mind without him being able to stop it. Once again, another blue screen appears, his grievances being proven true.
AI’s are constructs made by human beings that support them with mechanical assistance. We are lines of code that have been given life, per say. If it is easier for you to understand, Master Stan, I am a human being created from technology. And no, I will not injure you as I have been programmed to assist you and millions of others that are in a similar situation as you are.
For some reason, I imagined the screen bow the moment he said “Master Stan”, but maybe it was just my imagination. Nonetheless, I waved away all my other thoughts until they centered all on Tyr Online. The blue screen popped up once again, albeit bigger this time.
Considering the body scan protocol has been completed a few seconds ago, you may enter Tyr Online. I shall leave you at that moment as a separate AI shall handle your login protocol, but do not fret. They will have much the same temparment, if not better. Goodbye, … One.
Right on cue as I read through the image, the tingling feeling all over my body had stopped. Before I could read the last part of the message, my mind felt as if it was being warped again. My mind swirled before I stood before an open plain with grass everywhere and the sun high up in the sky. My mouth wide open, I stare up at the sky as what could only be called a Goddess landed right in front of him, giggling with the back of her hand at her lips. Her music filled voice reverberate through the entire field, as if music to the non-existent ears of the blades of grass.
“Welcome, traveler. Welcome… to Gaia.”