Chapter 3

Chapter 3

"An unexpected twist"

Will dedicated the next three months solely to learning. He continued his communication with Pak, better known in gaming communities as LightTerror, who provided him with many helpful links and tips, just like he had promised. This finally helped Will make his decision - —Rogue. This class seemed to suit all of his needs and game style: good damage dealing potential, stealth, and the ability to pick locks and get through high level areas without having to battle every enemy within it. Not long afterward, Will received an invitation to a secret forum from Pak; a place to discuss RMT, ToS, mining, twinking, botting, MQ'ing, and such - the dark side of the gaming world,. No one gave away their top-secret strategies for making a living in MMOs, but basic principles were made clear, which was more than enough for Will.

As it turned out, people were not only selling outfits and gear, but also tips about raid bosses, epic quests, instances, and many other things. Clans would pay top dollar for any kind of insight that could make them more influential. But, perhaps, the most profitable asset was video blogging. Every top gamer in every clan had a video channel and millions of views, tons of ads, and unbelievable revenues as a result. Many television channels aired video game shows as well. Pak had a contract with one of those.

The money Will earned was not anywhere near to what top gaming stars made, but it was good enough to buy a new apartment, a new car, and other luxuries. Games, which Will always thought of as mere entertainment, appeared in a whole different light, and he was determined to never return to his old life. He was certain about one thing - taking a chance was worth quitting both his jobs.

The advertising campaign started two weeks before the release. The general public nuts. "It's colossal! A groundbreaking game!" screamed every tabloid and TV commercial. First trailers that Will saw on VideoWorld made his jaw drop. What he saw was nothing like the many games he had played at the gaming center. Those two clowns at the restaurant were right; it was a new era of virtual reality.

With the official site of the game up and running, the forum section became flooded with new topics and thousands of messages. A built-in translation tool helped people from all over the world share in their excitement. The game craze gained momentum day after day. Soon enough, more detailed information on game mechanics, character development, and available game classes and races was introduced. This one was different from any other game.

The world of Ascension had been built in a way that a level 1 player could kill a level 50 or even a level 100 enemy. That, however, was not an easy task to accomplish in fact, there was roughly a 0.00001% chance of it happening, but it was better than nothing. The more unwary you were, the less of a problem to your enemies your high level was - they would kill you despite you being ten times stronger. Two weeks felt like a day with all this fuss about the game. The game that became the most debated topic on the internet even before its release.

Corporate people who stood behind the AI felt secure about their creation, but not about the servers. It took their finest scientists ten years and some serious brainwork to make the miracle named The Emperor - the very core of Ascension. They lauded The Emperor as the pinnacle of AI evolution the first machine to ever step beyond Asimov's Three Laws of Robotics. This AI could directly interact with human consciousness. Subordinated to The Emperor, AI Imitators and more advanced AIs were in control of the NPCs - from the simplest mobs to the quest NPCs. The advanced AIs could learn and evolve without affecting the balance in the game, meaning that a simple Goblin from some barbaric tribe could become the leader of that tribe and rule the area, but could not take over the world unless that was consistent with the scenario. It was things like this that were The Emperor's jurisdiction. All of this was explained in full detail on the game's site.

Will lay nested in the capsule. The headrest with sensors felt soft to the touch. He closed his eyes and sank into the dark. In a moment, a beam of light enveloped him, sucking Will inside it.

An incredible panoramic bird's eye view stretched out before his eyes. Beautiful mountains with snow-capped peaks stretched towards the valleys in the north, where miniature towns with castle towers and cathedral spires sprawled, surrounded by deep blue seas and oceans.. In the distance, a giant tree with its crown rose above the clouds, with giant birds resembling dragons soaring around it. The entire scene breathed with glorious magnificence and splendor.

A gravelly, raspy voicestarted the narrative. It carried Will away into the story of how it all began:

"Thousands of years ago, in the times of ancient Gods, a great Evil brought chaos and destruction into this world and death, suffering and despair to its inhabitants. A portal from the Netherworld had been opened. The disciples of Darkness ruled the continents for hundreds of years, in a reign of blood and murder, until the Gods decided to put an end to it. They sacrificed their flesh to perform a ritual and seal the portal. The world was divided into a hundred Floors, each locked with a fraction of their souls. As centuries passed, the memories of that horror slowly faded into oblivion, and people sought to unlock the gates and put the fractured world back together again. Prophesy has it that the Gods will return to reunite with men once the final seal is broken… Are you willing to fulfill the prophecy and become the one true hero who opens the gates? Many have tried and failed. Remember, what was once locked may best remain that way…"

"Wow!" the story gave Will chills. He watched the world change before his eyes; forests morphed into barren deserts, huge oceans dried out and refilled with water again. He saw entire races go extinct and new ones be born, and great empires ravaged by war descending into ruins. He saw the Gods fighting forces of Evil, their epic battle scenes making his heart skip a beat.

The developers had done a superb job - it appeared as much more than just a game to Will. It was realistic and thrilling, and he yearned to start playing already. He was still dazzled by the spectacle of it all when a menu popped up. A lilting female voice brought him back into focus.

"Would you like to create an account?"

"Yes!" Will exclaimed.

"Scanning your physical parameters, please wait. This may take a moment…

Synchronization complete.

Would you like to customize your appearance now or leave your current parameters?

Note: to protect your real life identity, a security protocol will be applied to your character. See par. 24.2, Safety measures."

"Leave current parameters," Will stated.

"Done.

To optimize your gaming experience, you may adjust your sensitivity settings. Higher settings will make your adventure more realistic. Use this option with caution, as the sensation of pain may feel very real. When playing in high sensitivity mode, you will get more rewards in the game. Whether it's real adventure you seek or just an amazing experience, you can always change these settings in the menu. Resetting sensitivity from higher to lower will make your rewards and bonuses unavailable to you until you revert to your previous settings. Choose wisely."

Will had read about it, but he didn't remember rewards being mentioned.

"What are the optimal settings?"

"Optimal is 50% and below. If you want to expand your perception, 60% and above is recommended."

Considering the pros and possible cons, Will wanted to make sure he got this part right.

"If set to 100%, could it hurt my physical body?"

"No, that is impossible. You will only feel the so called phantom pain. The game interacts solely with your mind."

"Fine. Set to max."

"Done.

To change these settings, you will have to restart the game.

Choose your race from the list below."

The list was a long one: Undead, Goblin, Half-Demon, Suldar, Dwarf, and Reptiloid,just to name a few. Will had seen it on the website before, so he wasn't going to peruse it. He knew exactly what he was looking for.

"Human."

"Choose your class."

"Rogue."

"You have chosen your race and class successfully.

Enter your name."

"White RAVen."

"Congratulations, this name is not taken.

Would you like to select the Floor? You can skip this step to have it selected for you randomly. Only the first three Floors are available to you now. The higher the Floor, the higher the level of its habitants…"

"Select for me."

"You selected a random Floor.

Loading…

Player character created successfully.

Appearance created successfully.

Loading…

Loading compl… #Error/#…

Have a great adventure and good luck, White RAVen!"

"Wait, what?"

Everything went dark again, and then a flash took Will to the starting location.