Realm Wars

Chapter 8

Arriving home after a double shift was always a good feeling. Except when a smelly trash-ton is sitting at your doorstep.

That evening when dash returned to her trailer, she found a cargo bin sitting at her doorstep. Inside of it sat the trashton that had caused the lockdown. After removing her mask, she examined the machine. Rust stripes tarnished its chassis. "You look like you just came out of the cyberwars." She crinkled her nose. "And smell like it too." Dash wheeled the robot inside, then took it to her personal workstation and hooked it up.

She pressed a few buttons on the holo-interface, instructing the system to clean the trashton. Honestly, she needed a shower to0. While she waited for the cleanser pool to boot, she rubbed her hands together. They always kept it so cold inside this damn place. Many clones joked that the facility should be renamed the Ice Cube, and she agreed.

Beep.

Click.

Whir.

The system lit up and the program activated. The platform lowered, dipping the trashton into an oil cleansing bath. "I'll deal with you tomorrow."

Dash looked about the trailer and sighed. A pile of dishes sat in the sink while a mountain of clothes lay on the floor. She pointed at the mess. "And you are future me's problem as well."

Right now, it was time to relax.

Dash rubbed the back of her neck, glad that her day was over. "Time to take the armor off," she said, unfastening her utility cuff. As she peeled away each piece of her enviro-suit, she could feel her body relax more and more. The holocom chimed, breaking her train of thought. It was a reminder. Tomorrow was Soren's trifecta file-day. She shook her head and removed her boots. "That old geezer, I can't believe he's turning 111."

Dash removed a dirty dish, from the couch, then plopped down. She grabbed one of the recreational plugs from the coffee table and inserted it into the uplink vein in her forearm. Next, she connected the other end of the cord to her neural headset and donned the goggle-looking gaming device. A virtual reality displayed before her eyes. Unlike the blocky graphics from the outdated plug at the dig site, this next-gen device generated in ultra definition. And the neuroleptics it secreted were stellar. Every muscle in her body relaxed as the sedative set in. The feeling was euphoric.

Her avatar loaded and she found herself in The Market, which was basically the digital equivalent of a megamall for video games. Players from across the interverse could log-in and interact with each other here. Some chatted. Some traded. Others came for... entertainment. A scantily dressed female avatar caught Dash's attention. The woman belly-danced atop a stage, while a patron ogled her figure, tossing bit-creds every time she flourished her aft in his face. Dash shook her head. For all anyone knew, the dancer could be a greasy old man in real life. Contrastingly, it was possible that the patron might be a young kid. But how could anyone ever know for sure? That was both the upside and the downside of plugging. Anonymity. In the interverse, you could be anyone. You could do anything. The interverse was a place you could act out your wildest dreams, your freakiest fantasies, or your darkest desires, and no one could ever judge you.

For Dash, it was an escape from the outside world. Here, she didn't have to hide behind a work mask or business attire. Here she could just be herself.

Now, fully integrated with the digital world, Dash could use her mind to control her avatar's movements. She walked past several shops waiting for her dashboard interface to populate. Some peddlers offered weapon enhancements, others potions and buffs, while even others offered new vehicles and mounts. At the far end of the mall walkway, she scoped the adventure she was looking for. Dragon's Keep. The entrance resembled the jaws of a monster. Snarled lips revealed sharp fangs. Glowing red eyes glared back at passers-by. Flashing lights above the monster's brow read The Ultimate Journey. According to her home-screen, most of her friends were already in the game, playing raid missions for the Sins of the Serpent campaign. She passed through the door and her avatar teleported to a loadout selection screen.