Twelve Selves

Virtual Game

   A new age of technology was here. Today every kid with enough money would get the new virtual online fantasy game. The technology was advanced, and very costly, it was 50 thousand dollars for the game. Although it was a fair price to be one of the first put in a brand new virtual world. Approximately 10 thousand people would join despite the price. Imagine, being able to get the experience of living in a different world. Feeling, hearing and seeing all of it's wonders first hand. Taking a weapon in hand and using it to fight a dragon, with out actually being in danger. It was going to be amazing.

   Guile's mother had bought the expensive game with money from her pocket, she was a billionaire, she had worked for a man who sold voyages to colonize Marus, a neighbouring planet. Technology was advanced, especially compared to the wooden age world he had just come from where big ships were the newest man made achievement. He remembered who he was, that the world he was in was active because of him now. He had been sleeping in another world and in the night he spirited away to this world; world number 8.

   Guile looked out his window from the third floor of his mansion. He checked to see if the delivery truck was coming with his new game every 5 minutes, he was so anxious he felt he might explode. Guile lay in bed staring at the ceiling unable to do anything but anticipate. He had short golden wavy hair and powerful blue eyes, his face was fair and bright with excitement.

   A young maid came in with his breakfast, and Guile sprang up and asked "Is it here?" the maid blushed at his cute elated face, she didn't want to ruin it.

   "Your breakfast? Yes sir," she smiled.

   Guile sighed disappointed, but appreciated the humour, "Thank you for the food. I wish they'd hurry up, they said it'd be here today!"

   "It's 9 in the morning. It'll come later in the day sir," the maid put the mouthwatering eggs and bacon with a side of fruit plate down on the table, "Enjoy the meal," the maid left.

   Guile sat crosslegged at his floor level table and ate. He wished the game would come sooner.

   The package came in the afternoon nearing the evening. Guile had been watching television after he calmed his nerves but when he heard the "Forward Thinking Industries" truck pull up they all came back again. He yelled YES and ran outside. The men pulled out the box with the game and the system it needed to be played. Guile thanked the men, who were specialized in the game's set up, several times. He directed them to his room and they put it together.

   It was a helmet made to sense thoughts. In the virtual reality you would control what your character did and said without having anything happen in real life. Your brain  would send signals to your character instead of sending signals to your body. The game would give you signals too, for instance, if you touched an apple in the game it would feel like an apple and if you were hit by a blade you would feel it, but it would only be a prick of pain. You wouldn't be able to feel other characters though. You'd see the world through the eyes of your character. You would be able to hear surround sound from the helmet. Lastly certain things, like flowers, in the game would give off smells and the food would smell like food.

   This was all made possible by years of brain research. It started with a prosthetic arm that moved like a real one through brain signals. From there they researched other brain signals, ones that would allow people to see and hear again. After they were done making thousands of people's lives better they made a game using all of their research. Guile was living in an amazing time.

   They had Guile lie down as if he were sleeping and they put the helmet on. While he was inside the game his brain in real life wouldn't send most signals to his own body. Everything keeping him living could be used because the character in the game wasn't alive. So he'd just lay there on his bed until he logged out or somebody from outside turned it off. Of course laying there for hours would be harmful to your body, so the game had a 8 hour charge. You could only play it for 8 hours and then you'd have to leave it for 8 hours to play it for 8 hours again. You could also do a soft log out, where your character was left motionless while you were in the real world. This would not cut into your 8 hour play time and it would charge during this. Your character could be left standing there doing nothing or with a message or shop over his head.

   Guile learned all this and calibrated his settings for the helmet. A sound chimed showing off the range of the volume and the surround sound. The FTI logo appeared and faded into the sky that had appeared. The clouds moved slowly across it and below there was a field of grass blowing in the wind. He could feel the warm wind. It looked and felt real.  

   A message popped up telling Guile to hold his hand out. He did and he saw a hand, a default one from the system, but he was controlling it. He was told to and did a series of commands and actions by a gentle sounding woman's voice. It started with looking left, right up and down. Then he Identified things by smell and by sound, he had to tell them which direction the sound came from. He had to throw a ball at a target and swim, the ocean appeared below him and he fell in. After he was done the voice of the system said thank you. Guile was forced into real life. The grassy plain faded away and he heard the machine turn off. He opened his eyes seeing his room again through the helmet.

   "Amazing," Guile was unable to say anything else.

  "That's what everyone else said," laughed one of the men who set up the machine "Well it works. I hope you enjoy your new device. We have to go set up the next one. See you," and he and the other guy left.

   Guile was about to put the helmet back on to start up the game when his maid walked in and told him there was dinner. He didn't want to eat but his stomach said otherwise, he couldn't play the game on an empty one. 

   He sat down at the table. Even though it was a mansion it was homey. His mother sat at the dinner table and the maids brought her and Guile their lobster meals.

   "Where's dad?" Guile asked.

   "Getting his machine calibrated..." his mom sighed.

   "He didn't tell me he was getting one."

   "Me neither..." his mom wasn't impressed.

   Guile laughed. He ate and half way through the meal his father came down.

   "SO COOL!" Guile's dad bellowed, "Right son?!"

   "Yes,"

   "No," Guile's mom humoured, adding, "He's been practically choking on his dinner trying to force it down so he can get to it," She didn't like Guile getting a game that blocked off reality so much but she couldn't force him to not get it, if anything Guile was determined.

   "What's your IGN going to be son?" Guiles dad asked.

   "Guile, obviously," he always used his name when he could.

   "I'm thinking about maybe an anagram of my own name... Maji!"

   "Wow that's actually a good one," Guile's father had made up some pretty stupid names before... Jammin... like he was Rastian,  he was the farthest from it. Rast was an island country, the people there's accent made it sound like they said jammin when they said yeah, man. He defended it by saying his name was pretty much in it, but it was still stupid.

   "You guys are so pathetic," Guile's mom gave a weak laugh.

   "Thanks mom," said Guile.

   Guile finished his meal and went upstairs to his room to play it. His mother said bye son as if it was the last time she'd see him again, overdamatizing the situation.

 Up in his room he put on the helmet and selected "Play: Wayfarer".