Edward made sure to order the DDS as soon as Markus began to create his character. During that time, he scrolled through any relevant news posts about the game itself. His experience standing in the dark void of space had captivated him. His eyes were wide with excitement, and his breath quickened like a child's before Christmas.
However, he was disappointed to find that the game had almost no news about it. The developers, a small company under Desert Industries' umbrella, only released the poster for the game. There weren't any trailers or wiki pages about the game itself, so Edward and the rest of the player base were going in blind.
As soon as Markus was done with his character creation, he opened his eyes and slowly rose from his bed.
"Impressive, isn't it?" Edward spoke with a smile. Markus looked at him, then nodded his head.
"I can't believe how realistic they made it," Markus gasped, "It's unreal. I don't see how console and computer games can stand a chance against this kind of technology. As soon as the game reaches mainstream media, everybody will scramble to get their hands on one of these. Have you ordered yours?"
"Yep," Edward answered with a grin. He flipped his phone's screen to show Markus, "It'll arrive tomorrow morning. Wanna take the day off?"
"Fuck yeah," Markus smiled. Edward knew he shouldn't be saying these kinds of unprofessional statements to a superior from work, but he didn't care. Markus and Edward were friends before they were coworkers, "I'll text my boss and explain the situation. She should understand. Hell, half of the building might end up taking the day off."
"I wouldn't be surprised," Edward shrugged, "It just means we'll have to pick up our pace for the day after."
As promised, the deliveryman brought Edward's package to his home not long before lunch the next day. Edward lived quite a few miles away from Markus's apartment, but both of them were within walking distance of each other. While Markus lived in a large apartment complex, Edward's family owned a small motel on the other side of the block. Edward managed to get a room to himself as long as he promised to help at the front desk now and again.
Thus, when Edward's helmet arrived, he was all alone. He first dismissed the deliveryman before heading back inside. Once there, he brought himself to his bed and unwrapped his present. Luckily, everything the helmet needed was already included inside the helmet itself— excluding the power cord that would give the helmet its power. Therefore, besides the helmet itself, Edward was only left with the cardboard box and styrofoam. He quickly threw those to the other side of the room and prepared himself.
He visited the bathroom, had something to eat, contacted his family in case they needed him, and finally told Markus he got his helmet. The game was to go online in under an hour, so he spent most of that time scrolling through the web. Like the night before, he couldn't find anything on the game itself, so the only information he could study about it involved the art on the main poster.
Once the game was only five minutes away from service release, Edward turned his computer off, opened his window, and collapsed onto his bed. His headset was already plugged in and ready for him, so he only needed to put it on and press the power button.
With an excited smile, he did just so.
—
When he opened his eyes, Edward found himself standing in the vast dark expanse once again. He looked down at his hands and clenched his fingers, once more impressed with the game's realism. He brought his hair down to his eyes and looked at the dark midnight shade of black that faced him. He was momentarily surprised to find that his avatar's features were present even in the black waiting room. For a second, Edward wondered if this avatar would be used with every DDS game. Would he be conquering alien planets with the same appearance he used while adventuring in a fantasy setting?
Those questions became more important as the seconds passed, but Edward quickly stopped himself. He didn't let his curiosity distract him for too long.
︽
Would you like to link your account to this current headset?
(Doing so will claim this headset as your property, blocking the log-in process for any other account)
Yes | No
︾
"Oh, right," Edward smiled as he heard the familiar chime echo through his consciousness. He had seen this screen when he was using Markus's headset. He didn't even know what this function was supposed to be used for. It seemed to prevent the incentive to steal the headset, but Edward also couldn't allow anybody else to borrow it. Still, he assumed the function was a good idea if the headset suggested it. Edward pressed the | Yes | button and watched as the screen disappeared.
︽
This DDS has been registered with your identity.
︾
The screen disappeared as soon as it arrived. This time, it was replaced by a timer.
| 3:10 |
| 3:09 |
"Finally," Edward mumbled to himself in excitement. He was tempted to sit down and wait for the timer to reach zero, but he didn't want to get his pants wet from the few inches of water underneath him.
Edward and a million other players worldwide waited— most of them with excitement nearly bubbling out of them— as the numbers slowly drew closer to zero. The entire world waited in silence. Markus was in a similar situation himself- his character had become a blonde stallion of a man— as he watched the timer draw closer to 0:00.
Finally, the wait was over after what felt like an hour to Edward. A giant | 0:00 | hovered upon the floating screen before him. Then, the screen disappeared. The vast darkness around him suddenly turned white as it crept away for the brightness of the light. The puddle of water underneath Edward turned golden and opaque while the screen before him flashed blue.
︽
Welcome to Avalon Online!
︾