Chapter 3: Chapter 2

The warm sun above his head gave Rydel the first signal that things were different around him. Though he had just watched the sunset fall over the world of Neo Cosmos, the star that illuminated the world was still high in the sky. Gone were the plains of Averngale and its famous cliffs. Rydel found himself in the center of a dense forest. Tall mountains to the northeast and southeast served as the only visible landmark over the towering oaks and ashen trees that surrounded him.

Is this… another game? Rydel leaned down and touched the ground. 

The dry dirt gave way beneath his fingers and left a fine layer of dust on his skin.

The detail is insane!

Neo Cosmos had complete freedom of movement, light impact registration to let you know when you got hit, and a small amount of smell and taste injected straight into your brain. It was different from the real world, but there was just enough there to help fool your senses and lose track of reality for a bit. This, on the other hand, felt  too real. The individual grains of material that clung to his fingers were too fine and completely unnecessary for a game to have. No one needed to feel their avatar get dusty. Rydel lifted his hand to his lips and licked it.

“Bro…”

Rydel spun in place, alarmed to find Quinton standing behind him with a disgusted expression on his avatar’s face.

“I was just…” Rydel felt his face turn bright red, one more thing that shouldn’t have been possible in Neo Cosmos.

“Uh huh.” Quinton turned away pointedly and glanced at the forest around them. “So what is this? An extra event or something?”

Rydel didn’t answer. His gaze fell back onto his dusty fingers as he pondered the information entering his mind.

I can taste it. Actually taste it. It shouldn’t be this real. Rydel decided to experiment by picking up a handful of dust.

“Hey Quinton.”

His friend turned just in time to get the handful thrown directly into his eyes.

“Oi!” Quinton cursed loudly and stooped down to rub his eyes out. “What was that for man? I wasn’t going to judge your dirt fetish!”

Rydel smirked and was about to make a snarky remark when the distinct sound of a sword being drawn made his heart skip a beat.

“Should I kill him now that his vision is impared, master?” An angelic voice asked heartlessly.

Rydel turned to once again find that he was not alone here, wherever here was. The six companions that he had summoned to watch the sunset stood stoically in the same line they had arrived in. The one who spoke was Rydel’s own companion, Elizabeth.

Elizabeth Graystorm stood a few inches short of Rydel’s own character. She was a high elf beauty, with long braided golden hair, crystal blue eyes, a thin sharp face, and an elegant posture. She wore a navy blue dress that stopped around her knees where her long socks left a small gap to view her fair and flawless skin. The socks disappeared into animal hide boots which were positioned in a way that told Rydel his companion was ready to sprint at Quinton if he gave the word.

“No, no!” Rydel threw his hands up and stepped in front of Quinton. “I was simply testing something. He’s not an enemy.”

The NPCs relaxed their postures slightly and Rydel felt their eyes all fall onto him.

She spoke. Rydel’s head spun from the event. What’s going on?

“And what, pray tell, were you testing? How to make me blind?” Quinton demanded as he continued to rub the dirt out of his eyes.

“No. Sorry. But I shouldn’t have been able to do that. Neo Cosmos limits our actions to a set of moves and skill sets. Even abilities like Pocket Sand or something don’t actually require you to scoop up some dirt. It just happens. Besides, there’s no dirt to pick up in Neo Cosmos. You can walk over the ground, push plants out of the way, or climb a tree, but look.”

Rydel stooped down and tore off a fist full of grass and let them fall out of his hand.

“You’re not supposed to be able to do that.”

“So what does it mean?” Quinton asked, glancing around.

“Yes master, what does that mean?” Elizabeth tilted her head and gazed at Rydel.

She did it again. Rydel’s unease grew.

Quinton lifted an eyebrow at Elizabeth before yawning loudly.

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“Well I’m sure you’ll figure it out man.” Quinton stretched his arms above his head. “I wasn’t ready for a special event tonight. I’ll see you in the morning.”

Quinton swiped his hand to open his menu and frowned when nothing appeared. He tried to do it several more times to similar results.

“What happened to the menu?”

Rydel swiped his own hand in a similar motion and was likewise unsuccessful at opening his menu.

“I knew something was off.” Rydel said as he went through every command motion he could remember, but nothing caused a response.

“What’s going on man?” Quinton’s voice rose a little bit as panic began to creep into their systems.

“Don’t worry.” Rydel tried to keep his own nerves in check for the sake of his friend. “There’s a built-in voice command that will automatically log you out if there’s ever an issue. Just say system  followed by force shutdown. You should see a little window pop up and all you have to do is press or say the word confirm.”

Quinton took a stabilizing breath before uttering the command.

“System force shutdown.” Quinton called out loudly.

Rydel watched his friend pause and look around at the air in front of him for a few moments before saying the command again.

“System force shutdown.” He paused for a second before shouting. “System force shutdown! Confirm! Come on! Confirm!”

Rydel tried it as well, but just like the menu commands nothing came from their efforts.

“I’m not sure what’s wrong, master, but perhaps one of us could assist you?” Elizabeth once again addressed Rydel.

He noticed there was a bit of pleading in her voice, like she desperately wanted to be of service to him.

“If my magic knowledge isn’t satisfactory, perhaps Jade could use her own?” Elizabeth gestured to a girl near the center of the six NPCs.

Jade wore her usual dark lavender Robes of the Underworld and Rydel could make out the rectangular shape of her Tome of Summoning being held in her right hand. Jade had pale skin and cold gray eyes that were so flawless they made her look almost porcelain in nature. Though she always had a vague and uninterested expression, Rydel detected a yearning in her eyes very similar to Elizabeth’s own. Jade nodded enthusiastically when Elizabeth offered her services.

“It’s not really a magic issue…” Rydel stepped closer to Elizabeth and inspected her closely.

This was the same face that he had painstakingly created and tailored to be his ideal companion. Every detail, from the softness of her cheeks to the shape of her womanly figure was exactly how he remembered making it. Yet there was something different about her. Something new. Elizabeth’s fair skin flushed a deep crimson as Rydel’s face drew close to her own. He could feel her breath tickling his neck as she began to pant softly. A small vein in her neck pulsed quickly and Rydel could physically hear the pace of her heart quicken at his presence.

“You’re real…” Rydel whispered in wonder.

Elizabeth trembled and her hands clenched and unclenched at her sides. Rydel could tell she desperately wanted to throw herself at him, but some unseen force was holding her back.

“Please… Master…”

Could it be the summoning behavior? 

When NPC’s were warped to a new location they had this weird tendency of staying in the exact position they were summoned to until they were directed to move or follow their player. In every other situation the NPC was free to move of their own volition. If those behaviors remained present here, then Rydel suspected Elizabeth was actually stuck in place.

“You can move-oof!” 

Elizabeth leapt from her position and nearly knocked the wind out of Rydel. She latched her arms around Rydel and hugged him tightly.

“Master! Master! Master!” Elizabeth laughed with tears of joy as she clutched her player close.

This isn’t so bad… Rydel thought sheepishly as the girl of his dreams looked at him with devoted adoration.