Shared World Project - Ch 2

(NOT FINAL EDIT)

The fact that I’d spent nearly half my savings to have this chance to see Katie again made me pause at the floor-to-ceiling window of my San Francisco apartment, wondering how much longer I’d be able to afford the place. It didn’t matter though. If there was one thing I’d learned from her death, it was that life was fleeting and stuff didn’t matter. Why collect trinkets and dollars in a bank account when you could wake up one day and cease to exist? 

What came after death was beyond my comprehension, but I was pretty sure money wasn’t part of it. 

Staring out at the hyperloop trains and holographic billboards of the city, crowds walking around under fluorescent signs and all staring at floating screens as if that was their lives, it was clear the majority of people didn’t get this. A humorous thought, I realized, considering that what I’d really just spent a small fortune on was yet another ‘thing,’ a game to some degree… and something that I couldn’t take with me. 

But if they could really make me believe I was with Katie again? Fuck it. Money should be spent on experiences. Or maybe it should be spent on helping those in need, but at that moment and ever since her death, I certainly had felt in need.

The system sat in its own room of my flat. A chair with surrounding equipment and haptic suit, gloves—the whole shebang. I’d loaded the LivreCorp sim already, but sitting in the chair, feeling my chest constrict and my left eye twitching, I figured I’d get some light gaming in first. If this was going to be as real as they said, I needed to unwind. And if it was some corporate bullshit set up to take advantage of suckers like me, well, I needed to get my mind ready for that. 

And if that was the case, I’d be walking right into LivreCorp the next day ready to knock their CEO the fuck out. In my younger days I’d actually considered going pro in MMA, gotten real serious about it, too, until Katie came along. She didn’t exactly have a problem with me fighting, but she talked about a life together, about having children, growing old. 

While that didn’t mean I wouldn’t be able to fight, I had no intention of quitting, until a young guy named Ruiz knocked me out in a fight and it gave her such a scare.  When I came round I saw she’d been sobbing. The look in her eyes—I just couldn’t do it to her anymore. That had been the last time I’d fought, and since then I’d dived into my work, taking on any extra shift I could. Like I was looking for a distraction.

And then she was gone. 

Dead. 

Leaving me with nothing but my anger and a desire to punch something. So I got back into training, and even started looking for virtual reality games that would allow for an escape. My boy, Brad, was online, already logged into our favorite MMO. It was called Gods End, and was about the old gods challenging the modern rise of angels and demons. You could play on either side, and he had a Death Servant while I had a level fifty-one Angelic Host. It was badass, and had been taking up a lot of my time since Katie’s passing. 

I found myself in a dome of golden light, wings sprouting from my avatar’s back as I stretched, and then I pulled forth my golden, flaming sword and took up a defensive stance as I scanned the minimap and joined Brad’s party.

“What’re you doing in here, DbagSlayer69?” Brad asked. 

“Fuck you. That’s not my name.”

He laughed. “Point being… thought you had other plans.”

“I do.”

“You’re really going through with it?” Brad’s death character charged past me, ripping into the Colossus with his scythe, setting me up for a heavenly fire spell. 

I cast it, then charged in with my blazing sword. “Think I shouldn’t?”

Silence followed as we hacked away at the massive fucker. His character pulled back, casting a wall of souls, then did a dance. 

“Really?” I asked, unable to get to the Colossus until it beat through, or Brad dismissed, the wall. 

“Here’s the thing,” the voice came through, strained. “I’ve known you since we were, what… twelve?”

“Eleven.”

“Fuck that’s a long time. We’re getting old man—I mean, not so old… but lately, you might as well be dead yourself.”

“Thanks, ass.”

“You asked, so I’m getting real.” His character stopped dancing, then turned to me so it was almost like Death himself was telling me this last part. “I don’t get it, but if this is what you need for closure, then fucking do it. Because I want my boy back.”

His words stung. I almost took off my rig, but then chuckled. “Good. I’m glad you’re on board. So let’s kill this son of a bitch, huh?”

“All yours, bud. I… I fucking need a beer. I’ll see you tomorrow.”

He clicked off and his avatar vanished before I could even counter. Shit, this was affecting him more than I’d realized. But at the moment, I had a Colossus charging toward me, massive bloody hooks swinging. 

At least I’d get some satisfaction from this game. Still pissed at Brad for signing off like that, I started swinging like a madman, taking more hits than I should’ve. But then the Colossus over-extended and I came in with my sword, lighting him the fuck up. 

He staggered back, fell, and then exploded into piles of loot. 

For a moment I stared at the loot spewing forth, my sword glimmering with angelic light as stats popped up from my latest kill. Level fifty-two, not bad. The most important part read:

Class: Angelic Host

Level: 52

New Skill: Fire and Brimstone

I grinned, having been wanting that skill for some time. Fire and Brimstone meant blasts from the sky that easily took out hordes of enemies, and I looked forward to using it. That would have to come another day though, because at the moment it was time to finally see Katie. 

Or, almost. First I pulled off my gear, went to the fridge for a beer and a chunk of some good ninety-percent cocoa chocolate, and closed my eyes. As much as I knew it wasn’t going to be the real Katie, my insides were stirring like a tiny beast trying to claw its way out. The last time I’d felt this way was when she’d taken me to meet her parents. 

This wasn’t the time to dwell on the past, though. Well, not in the sad, drinking-a-beer way. A fancy, new high-tech way? No problem. 

'I chugged the rest of the beer down and finished the chocolate, checking my breath as I headed back to my VR equipment. A stutter step and I laughed at myself. Who checks their breath before logging into a simulation? This guy, apparently. 

Enough procrastination. It was time. 

I settled into my rig including the nerve sensors and put on the haptic gloves before pulling down the headpiece. Selecting the LivreCorp’s logo, I then opened the simulation. My surroundings warped from black on the edges and their logo in the middle, to the green of the grass, with trees here and there to provide fake shade, and a gentle breeze thanks to my super expensive system. Not everyone had that, but I wanted full emersion. This sim even had the scent built in, though I’d have to get replacements for my system if used too often. 

My first thought was that they’d fucked up. There was no sight of Katie anywhere. One vast, open field, and me. Nothing else.

Then a form appeared in the distance, looking my way. She was a silhouette, only a shadow. But then I was running, sprinting, and she was there, that lovely smile with the dimples I remembered so well, spreading wide across her face. She ran when I was close, leaping up into my arms and wrapping hers around me with a laugh. Her eyes took me in with a moment of confused excitement, but she didn’t say anything yet, simply leaning in and kissing me. 

Hot damn, her lips felt good. Exactly as I’d remembered. Not perfect, like when one imagines, but slightly too wet in her over-eager way. The little things were what made it feel real though, and this was perfection. 

When she pulled back to look at me, she shook her head, eyes roaming over my body and then back to my face. “Ryan…”

“It’s good to see you.” I took her hand and nodded, then led her along the grass toward one of the hills nearby. “Let’s just… walk.”

She nodded, biting her lip, and then laughed. “I can’t believe you’re here. This is so—wow, just wow.”

“I know.” 

We reached the top and I stood there, staring at her as she watched the breeze move over the grass, toying with it and sending gentle waves toward us. She leaned into me, burying her face into my neck, breathing me in. For a long time we stood like that, then walked until we found a stream where we could sit and dip our feet into the cool water. While I knew I wasn’t really getting wet back home, the sensors and neurological nodes sure made it feel like water was moving around my feet. 

For a while we sat there, her asking me about my job and about my gaming with Brad. 

“You’re… doing okay?” I asked, knowing how stupid it was considering the reality of the situation. It took my full concentration not to break down and lose it. 

She nodded, but looked away, distant. For what seemed a full minute this lasted, until finally she turned to me, put her free hand on top of mine where I held her other, and shrugged. 

“Will you be visiting me often?” 

It struck me as odd that she’d even think about it this way, but I supposed she had to. She was part of the program. LivreCorp likely got more credibility based on the amount of time logged into their system. That, and if my Katie were in this strange place, she’d know I had to leave, but would want me to come back as often as possible. I was almost able to buy it. 

“Sure,” I replied, and then kissed her again. Unlike the first kiss, where it had been pure ecstasy at the sight of each other, this one had a hint of my acknowledgment of her not being really there. It spoiled the moment, so that when she looked away again, uncertain, I took it as my cue. 

“I can’t wait,” I added, and then stood, giving her a nod, and signed out.