Bibliomancer ~ 3!

~ Three ~

His parents may have filled out most of the paperwork, but getting to the whole adventure thing was quite a bit more involved than Wendy had initially let on. The nurse—or maybe administrator, Sam wasn’t sure what she actually was—had run him through a bevy of tests, most of them extremely uncomfortable and rather invasive. There were blood draws, MRIs, a short physiological examine, and a standard physical, which included a two-mile run with adhesive pads clinging to his chest monitoring every bleep of his heart.

He had no idea what Eternium was going to be like, but if this was what it took just to get in, Sam had to imagine it was going to be unlike anything he’d ever experienced before. Just… hopefully in a good way. This felt more like joining the military.

And now, Sam found himself lying flat in a sleek white capsule—the space a little claustrophobic—as a strange headset lowered down onto his head. It wasn’t a full helmet like some of the simpler VR headsets he’d seen around for years, but rather a simple woven band with a gem attached to the middle. The gem itself was about the size of a dime, gleamed like a diamond, and glowed with a faint otherworldly light. The odd band settled onto his temples, the gem resting gently above the bridge of his nose.

Honestly, Sam wasn’t sure what to expect next, but it wasn’t the thin line of text that appeared in the air above him. The message was simple and straightforward:

Do you want power*? Yes / No

Huh. That was an odd question.

Not whether he wanted to continue, but whether he wanted power. Sam thought about it, turning the question over and over in his mind. Did he want power? He’d never really dwelled on the idea before. He wanted to get good grades—but he’d done that. He wanted to have fun and to enjoy life. He was working on that right now. Someday, he wanted a girlfriend and maybe to start a family, though that seemed like a hazy event far, far, far off in the distance. But the idea of actually wanting power was a new concept for his young college mind. He noticed there was an asterisk, which connected to a hyperlink.  

Sam wanted to get into the game, no doubt about it, but after spending hours and hours in preparation, he wasn’t in a blind rush. So, curious, he mentally selected the option.

The prompt vanished, replaced by a wall text.  

Power is a weird thing, kid. Some people are content to live the life mapped out for them, others not so much. Select no, and you’re still going into the drink, but you’ll find the world of Eternium a kinder place. Run an Inn, work your way up as a Tailor, maybe even unlock the path to Master Craftsmen. Choose power, though, and you have the chance to change the world through force. Wield the elements. Slay the monster. Even become the monster, if you aren’t careful. But stay frosty, because power comes with a price—prepare for Major Discomfort and Maximum Effort!

After reading over the short description, Sam exited back to the initial prompt, which stared at him like a giant eye, unblinkingly waiting for him to make a decision. This decision sounded like it had some far-reaching implications for the next several months of his life. Although the idea of running an Inn or being a Master Craftsman had a certain appeal, Sam knew he had his whole life to deal with the status quo. But how many chances would he get to wield the elements or shake the foundations of the world? Not many.

Now, he decided, was the time to adventure.

“Yes. I want power.”

Good Choice. Now, do you know what is about to happen? Have you read the terms and conditions*?

Sam noticed there was another hyperlink next to terms and conditions, and decided it would probably be a wise choice to at least give it a gander. Immediately, a block of script a mile long appeared in the air before him, packed with jargon and legalese so think even someone with a legit law degree would have a tough time wading through the thick of things. Instead of really reading through the intimidating wall, he scanned over the headings, gaze bouncing along, looking for anything that sent up a red flag. Already this was giving him a headache. Every prelaw class he’d ever taken insisted he finish reading it to the end.

So far, though, everything was pretty mundane.

Besides, this was just a video game—even if it was a really advanced one. He glanced at the slider. He was only a quarter of the way done. Booo! What was the worst that could happen? He scrolled all the way to the bottom without really looking at the rest, then headed back to the question and selected ‘Yes’ once more.

The words flashed a brilliant scarlet.

Ah, so close, yet so far away. Okay. Prepare for pain. Also fun! Probably. Hopefully? We’ll see, I guess. Yes / Yes

Well, that wasn’t ominous or anything. With an intro like that, maybe he should’ve finished reading those ToS after all…

“Hey, is that right?” Sam called out, hoping the nurse would be able to hear him. But no reply came. “Hello? This says prepare for pain, that’s gotta be a typo, right? Someone? Anyone?”

He raised a hand to beat on the lid, but then a roiling liquid poured onto his face, filling his mouth, funneling into his nose. He coughed, hacked, but the liquid—oddly goopy and gelatinous—made it nearly impossible to move. Yep. Definitely should have read those ToS all the way to the end. He was already regretting his choice. He tried to hold his breath, but couldn’t, and as he breathed in… air rushed into his lungs.

In the span of an eyeblink the pod was gone, and he found himself in a blank white room; utterly featureless save for the words hanging in the air in front of him like a storm cloud:

Welcome to Eternium! There is no saved data for your profile. Would you like to make a new character? Yes / No

Well, he was here to chew gum and play Eternium, and he was all out of gum. Easy answer.

[Great! You will only be able to have a single character profile at any given time while in Eternium—no alts, sorry about that!—so choose wisely. If you start a new character at a later time, all progress with the current character will be lost forever, including skills, items, and any gold which is actively on your character (though gold can be transferred through a secure in-world banking account)! Would you like to select an available starting class or undergo tests and trials to see what the right choice is for you? These tests may unlock different or even unique classes based on your ability. But be warned! Taking the tests and showing low aptitudes may reduce the number of available classes! You can exit these tests at any time! Start Game / Take Tests]

Sam glowered.

More tests.

He didn’t want to take any more tests, he wanted to play the game. Some small part of him demanded he just select the ‘Start Game’ option and dip his toes into the waters. After all, he could always come back and recreate a new character later if he needed to. But he’d skipped over the ToS and was already deeply regretting that decision. Plus, he’d been gaming long enough to know that earning a potentially unique class—especially right out the gate before almost anyone else was on the server—could have some huge long-term benefits. And since he’d be in the DIVE pod for six in-game months, some added long-term perks definitely wouldn’t go amiss.

As annoying as the idea of more tests was, starting off on the right foot would be worth whatever hardships or minor delays came with it. So, reluctantly, he reached out a hand and selected the ‘Take Tests’ options.

The air around him shimmered, and suddenly he was standing in a cavernous hallway. The walls were a rough reddish stone, eight or nine feet across, and pockmarked from time and the relentless onslaught of the elements. Wow. The graphics were absolutely amazing. Uncanny, actually. He raised his hands, examining his fingers which were indistinguishable from the real things. There was a soft sigh of wind, the sound gentle in his ears, followed by a cool breeze brushing across his cheek. The cave was rather cold, which was another surprise, and the air smelled faintly of sea salt and ocean spray. He slowly treaded over to one of the walls, trailing his digits across the surface of the stone.

Grit. Nuance. Texture. Heat. Every sensation was there.

Orange County was beautiful, but the beaches down in San Diego were some of the best in the world, and his family had often trekked down south during the summer months to soak up the sun and sand and surf. One of Sam’s favorite spots in all of California was the Cabrillo National Monument, nestled at the tip of the Point Loma Peninsula, due south of Ocean Beach and just west of Coronado. It wasn’t a flashy place, nor were there many beachgoers. Instead, there was a small visitor center and a long-standing monument to Juan Rodriquez Cabrillo, who was the first European explorer to set foot on the West Coast of the United States.

A stone lighthouse overlooked the expansive waters of the Pacific, but the real treasure of Cabrillo National Monument was a mysterious cave, tucked away near the waterline. Sam had found it with his sister. They’d edged past the tidepools then carefully picked their way down the Bluff Trail, which terminated at a set of step stone steps that hugged the edge of a rather steep cliff face. At the bottom, hidden from prying eyes, was a beautiful cave gouged into the rock. Getting in was only possible at low tide, but the view inside was to die for.

Literally, if you stayed there until high tide.

One of Sam’s favorite places in all of California, and this odd hallway reminded him of it. The same porous walls. The same sea-salt smells. He glanced down and found fine white sand beneath booted feet. Sam smiled and shook his head. Already this game had blown his expectations out of the water, and he was only in the testing phase!

The air in front of him shimmered and danced, a single word materializing before his eyes: RUN!

Huh, that was crazy. Why would he run? This place was absolutely awesome. Truthfully, he wanted explore deeper into the cave—see if maybe there was loot or some other cool things hiding in the nooks and crannies of the rocks. There was a thump behind him, the ground trembling beneath his feet. Slowly he turned, moving as though he were stranded in molasses. Rolling toward him like a runaway semi was an Indiana Jones sized boulder, easily ten feet tall by eight feet wide, which took up every available inch of tunnel space.

Suddenly, the ‘Run’ prompt made a whole lot of sense. With a yelp, he spun and took off, legs pumping beneath him. Too late. He didn’t make it five feet. Fear and pain in equal measures flashed through his body as the boulder bulldozed him, crushing his frail form like a Styrofoam cup beneath a truck tire.