VRMMO - Breach

Prologue

*Thrum*

Outside the window, Alice could see the rain dropping on the shiny streets of the Neon District. For hours, she could sit there and watch how the raindrops fell on the glowing lights and reflected bright pink and blue colors. She particularly enjoyed the rainy days, because, during the rainy days there were fewer people entering the place she worked in.

She was a manager at the Playland Club.

Just like typical gaming clubs, these places contained a lot of noisy computers and even noisier people. People were coming here usually to have fun with their friends, meaning only a group of people were entering. It was rare to see someone alone unless they had been a regular customer since the first days of opening.

*Noise*

The said computers were even now buzzing in the background. Hundreds of people paid no mind to the rain and still came to play their favorite games or just watch the announcements from the gaming world on a gigantic screen with fellow gamers.

Having no idea why those people found those video games to be so fascinating, Alice could only sigh. After glancing at the crowd to see if everything was alright, the girl turned her attention back to the window.

Outside, everything seemed a lot calmer. Her golden eyes reflected the neon district at its finest. Thankfully, today it was calm... which couldn’t be said about other days. After all, the Neon District was known for its regular presence of police because of certain events. A high crime rate compared to other districts.

Even now, every TV channel is just talking about that,

[Yesterday’s nineteen-hour siege of the pharmaceutical factory ended. Unfortunately, there are casualties among the civilian population. But it could’ve been worse had the police not arrived quickly.]

Alice turned her head towards the display of her computer and listened to the news channel of her city. On the screen, there was combat footage of the battle that occurred yesterday, and the presenter was retelling that battle’s aftermath.

[From the information given by the State Police, we know that the factory was actually a place drug cartels could hide their shaggy substances. The police brigade that went to investigate was attacked by the cartel members. They were heavily armed and prepared to counter the police forces and escape.]

The screen then switched to other footage. It was a civilian that was recording the scene, and even though most of it was censored, in the footage Alice could still see how the person died due to the bullet being reflected by the wall.

Another clip appeared. It was another civilian that was recording everything live. Fortunately, this person was much luckier than the previous one. The reinforcements arrived and got the man out of the scene by force.

[A state of emergency was declared and more forces were pulled to the scene. The long confrontation turned into a stalemate, with the surroundings becoming rubble due to explosives. Thus, in cooperation with the Special Task Department of the State Police and the State Security Service of Axis, they stormed the building at the last hour of this siege. Three hundred operatives from both units neutralized every threat in an hour, taking the lives of more than one hundred criminals.]

Alice stopped the news channel and went to read the comments section. All the time, she was doing this out of habit, not because she was interested in what people were writing there.

[Anonymous User #1: "My condolences to the families of the deceased and kudos to the police for their prompt action!"]

[Anonymous User #2: “It’s reassuring to live under the protection of these military men! We finally feel safer after ten years!”]

[Anonymous User #3: “But how did they even sneak in with the weapons and drugs?”]

[Anonymous User #4: “It’s about time they finally start doing their job! The Neon District has become a shithole in the past few years. I can't believe that some people still voluntarily live there.”]

The comment section soon became a debating place for conspiracy theories, as if this was staged. Some blamed foreigners, some blamed the government. Alice left the comment section at that moment.

This was just becoming more and more stupid. She wasn’t satisfied with life in this city. “Fuh…When will I get out of this hellhole?" She asked her reflection in the window.

*Clank*

The metallic door in front of the reception opened and closed soon after. Alice annoyedly looked at the door to see if another familiar gaming nerd was there, but no, she couldn’t recognize who even entered.

The person first cleaned the wet boots and took off the cap he was wearing. Then Alice could finally see the person. It was a WOAH! A man in his twenties. The dark brown hair seemed even darker while it was wet. The brown eyes and, mainly, the muscular body with a huge height! The man of her dreams was right in front of her. Could it be?!

‘No, Alice! You just saw him!’

Her mind was panicking. The man took the coat he was wearing. Alice almost bit her lip from seeing the stretched shirt on the man’s chest. Was he an athlete? The girl asked herself. Otherwise, she couldn’t comprehend how a man could have such an attractive body.

“Excuse me, lady.”

While Alice was being allured by the man’s attractive appearance, the said guy had already approached the stand and was staring down at the poor girl. She squealed in her mind, ‘Oh my gawd, he is so tall!’

“Welcome to the Playland. How can I help you today?” Alice greeted the potential customer with a smile. Her cheeks still managed to flush despite her attempts to conceal her emotions.

“I’m interested if I could have access to the computers for a few minutes.”

Alice was a little disappointed after hearing this. Only a few minutes? She wanted him to stay for at least a few hours. Why was fate so cruel to her?

"Or I saw the banner outside, it says you have a massive discount for a monthly subscription."

Alice's golden eyes sparked with hope,"Yes! Do you want to purchase it?"

"Yes, I do."

Instantly the girl dashed off somewhere and soon came back with something in her hands. Alice gave it to the man and instructed. This was an identification card for the Playland Club. Without it, nobody can enter and enter the facility.

First, they had to register,

"Alright, I should register you first. May I know your name?"

This book was originally published on Royal Road. Check it out there for the real experience.

"Simon Riley."

In a quiet tone, Alice muttered that his name was very cool. Simon chuckled at the girl's antics. Obviously, Simon had to also pay for the subscription, but it wasn't much, just a two-digit number.

"Alright, you are registered. Now, please follow me."

Alice left her reception corner. She showed him how he could use the card. Apparently, by just tapping on a door's sensor, it would automatically open. With a whoosh, the glass door opened and opened up a path for the two.

Alice proceeded to introduce this facility to Simon with great eagerness. This attracted the attention of other staff members who, for the first time, witnessed Alice so energetic. But seeing the person next to her, the reason was understood.

Playland Club was a monopoly, and this wasn't the only facility in Playland. This was just the biggest branch in the Neon District. In the past few years, they have made several innovations and become one of the most profitable gaming clubs.

"We also offer our own mini restaurant where you can have a quick meal."

"That's convenient."

With such short comments, Simon followed the girl around. It couldn't be said that he was interested in it, but since the facility's staff deemed it necessary, he followed around.

"This giant screen is just for highlights and news from the gaming world. But since Playland is popular for cheap access to VR technology, we use this to launch lives of different VR tournaments. Mainly of the Breach."

Simon's eyebrows perked up. He got interested in this so-called "Breach" game she was talking about. When asked about it, Alice gladly began to explain what it was.

"It's the new first-person game that suddenly became very popular. Especially among our citizens because one of the arcade modes is exactly the same city as ours."

VRMMO - Breach is a first-person game with both an arcade and an open world. The first is mini-games and the second is the world where you can freely roam around and do whatever you desire. Arcade, though, seemed to be the most dominating in terms of popularity and income it brought. The estimated amount of money that the arcade mode brought from TV broadcasts is 200 million credits. (Equal to 200mil US$) That's why the prizes for playing the game are rather low.

This was serious money in the game industry, and Breach, in particular, was only expanding at a rapid rate. Since the launch, only seven months have passed.

"Have you really not played it at least once?" She asked curiously.

Simon shook his head, "That's the first time I even heard about it."

"Woah, that's surprising. I thought everyone had heard of this game from those gigantic billboards all across the city. Haven't you seen them?"

"I'm a busy person and I usually don't go out, unless it's necessary."

"...I see."

Alice couldn't help but think about what kind of job Simon had. If he doesn't even go out and is in a closed environment all the time, how would he have such a nice body? She couldn't figure it out. But his mysterious appearance only made him more attractive.

"You can try it now. Should I teach you?"

"If it doesn't mess with your work, then please do so." He nodded with a smile.

"Alright. You see those capsule-like setups over there?"

Simon looked in the direction Alice pointed towards. There were indeed computer setups that resembled capsules, but they were open. In a sense, it resembled the scorpion, on the tail, which was curved like an arc and there was a massive screen attached, while under the arc there was a keyboard, a mouse, and headgear.

And the club really went overboard with installing hundreds of such setups in one room. They were separated by small soundproof walls for safety measures, but it's hard to imagine all the electricity they were consuming. Playland will likely have to pay millions only for the electricity bills.

"Let's also register you for the Breach Launcher."

Simon followed Alice to the nearby capsule and did as he was asked. First, he had to register on the launcher to actually start playing the game. The first step was done. A similar task appeared again, but this time he had to register on a certain server he wanted to play on. Heeding Alice's suggestion, he did so and registered himself on the server "Alpha".

{Choose a nickname for your character.}

{Nickname: Example - Coolguy123.}

"Oh, this is the hardest part. You must think of some cool name so that you won't regret it in the future."

Simon had no idea why this girl was whining so much about picking a simple nickname. Maybe she had a bad experience with picking names?

*Click* x 8

{Nickname: Deadropper}

{Are you sure you want to select the name “Deadropper” as your nickname?}

{Yes} {No}

As Simon clicked on the "Yes" button, Alice gazed at him, dumbstruck. For her, choosing a nickname in games was the most annoying part of creating her character. This man, on the other hand, chose a pretty good and unique name on the first try. It wasn't even picked yet! Ain't that something?

Then it all started, customizing their character's appearance. Alice this time played her role and helped the man greatly. The character actually resembled Simon, but... Alice so many times muttered that this was very beautiful skin, and he began to think that she was trying to court him.

"Too bad, there is no tattoo customization in the game yet."

Alice, from time to time, would look at Simon's left hand, which was entirely covered in tattoos. She was interested in what their meaning was, or whether they existed simply for their attractiveness... Well, it worked on Alice as her interest in him rose to the highest levels.

"You can dive into the game. I'll be back soon."

Once they were done, Alice left for the reception not with the words, "Come to me if you need help", but "I'll be back." Simon wasn't an idiot to miss this out. The girl was interested in him.

[Well, aren't you a lady swayer?]

"Shut up, doc."

Simon came to this place for a reason. He knew of the game Breach before arriving here, he even knew about this club. This is unbeknownst to Alice.

[I don't understand. Why won't you simply accept them even once?]

"It's part of my job, of course."

Simon Riley wasn't his real name. nowhere close to his actual identity. The only one who also knew about his identity was the guy who talked to him. The "Doc", a little helper of his who talked through the mini headphone in his ear for all this time.

[You know, you are not forbidden to have your private life. It just shouldn't get involved with your classified persona.]

"I'm aware, you just don't know when and where."

[Damn you in the SSS, always appearing on the TVs, yet nobody has the slightest idea who the hell you even are.]

SSS, otherwise known as the State Security Service, involves various departments whose jobs are to protect the safe environment for the citizens of Axis. Including the specialized unit, "Blank". Their mission and purpose are to crack down the crime and terrorism using the necessary amount of force without any consequences for the state.

In Axis, their appearances are regular because of the rampant crime, but nobody knows of their identities.

[Alright, you know what you must do. This could be one of the checkpoints where we get to find a big chain.]

"Yes, fully aware of that. How long do you think it will take?"

[If we are lucky enough, we can probably lure those behind the curtains in a few days... That depends on how good you are at games. Oh and of course the money, we have plenty of it.]

The crime was rampant, but due to the old methods, they were found quicker. The ways to hunt criminals always evolved. The outlaws had to evolve with them. The digital world, especially those of the VR games soon became involved in the underworld. The game Breach was one of the many, yet it is suspected that due to its large numbers, drug dealers especially use it for communication.

[It's hard to monitor these games in such activities, and we can't even go to the company. If we could just close it... things would've been easier.]

"That's for sure. You mentioned that I need to connect to one of the servers hosted for this club."

Those servers were just lobbies for the clubs; they were hosted for the people, of course. For them to assemble their teams and have close contact... the club could also benefit in case the strong team rises. It can sign a contract with a potential champion team.

"So, you think this club is involved in drug trafficking."

[And not only that, there is a trace of dirty money. We just need to confirm.]

"I'm diving in."

[Good luck, Simon.] He heard another giggle before the connection ended with a click.