From here on, the individual rooms were divided with information about the piece of tech each room was holding pasted outside. With a quick look, Ank determined their VR game room was - Room seven. As he walked towards it Crey followed while trying his best to not stare and examine these high-tech robots and machines with the gaze of an enthusiast machinist.
After reaching the room, both of them entered and found the broad room containing vertical capsules like pods lying in a systematic manner in the whole room. There must be about fifty or sixty VR pods lying at an angle with some of them in use and the rest of them open to use for anyone.
"What do you mean by 'unlike other academies' ?"
Ank had given up on figuring out this man as his eyes were already lit in anticipation for a decent fight in a VR Game. The machines here although they weren't comparable to the highly customized capsule he was used to playing, it was the game immersion and fight itself which gave him rush and excitement, not the tech.
Therefore he answered quickly as he walked to the corner to use a slightly more new-looking pod.
"Don't you know ability ranking is a real thing! It may not be visible at first but in the long run the more powerful your ability, the more powerful Evolved Fighter you could be. Even customized Exo-armor for specific abilities are more dangerous than general ones. Therefore, the majority of other academies not only on Earth, even elsewhere have strict standards and labels on genetic abilities for the entrance of students.
Maybe because Terra is the oldest of all and is training students before genetic drugs were widespread. It does not have such an assessment for the new students. Therefore all non-specialized students of Earth apply here."
'So that's why Uncle chose Terra for me. Hmm.'
Crey wondered as he saw Ank fiddling with the adjoining cabinet and after a few seconds replied with a grin.
"Both of these are good to go, let's enter."
Crey wanted to ask him for briefings but seeing the impatient eyes of Ank he couldn't bring himself to embarrass himself anymore. He nodded and was about to enter his compartment when Ank beside him opened his jacket and then quickly stripped down to the underwear.
Crey had a shock on his face as he observed the quick actions of the individual. Both of them were of almost the same six feet height but the chiseled, six-pack powerful body of Ank was certainly a surprise beneath his lanky clothes. Ank observed shock on Crey's face and responded with his own confusion,
"What?"
"Do we need to remove clothes? I have heard you don't need to since helmets can simulate pretty effectively."
Ank rolled his eyes as he explained,
"That is for common and cheap VR compartments. This is a high spec model necessary to play 'Old Earth'. You have to connect your whole body for the full immersion and correct experience and incitement of nerves with minimum latency online.
It is stated by the company that you could perform at eighty percent of your best in the Virtual world. Which is pretty revolutionary in today's world. That's why not only is this tech made in limited quantities and super expensive, its sale is also kept under check. Now enter and let's play a match."
Crey raised his hand as he waved it in negation,
"No man! I am new to this game so maybe I will just get used to it or check out game mechanics. You can play as you like, no need to babysit me."
Ank raised his thumbs up and then slowly lay on the forty-five-degree mechanical bed of the compartment which slowly raised to perfectly receive the body of Ank. He raised his hands to grab the elastic helmet and put it on his head and then closed his eyes. With one click the cabin closed, obscuring the Ank from the view of Crey who had witnessed the whole procedure.
"Well, I should give it a try too."
Grumbled Crey as he removed his jacket and shirt. His thin naked body came into view. It was of healthy ember color but unlike Ank's six-packs and well-shaped chest he was skinny but wiry. Though his whole body from his arms to legs was riddled with little scars here and there, these scars now have mostly faded away. He put his clothes in the compartment below the pod and was about to enter his pod.
'Click...click..swish"
When suddenly a mechanical pod in the very front of his row opened and his gaze inadvertently fell there to see a spontaneous sight. A tall girl with a Bob-undercut brown hair climbed out of the chamber. Her athletic tough body was bursting with energy, especially when every inch of her body was glinting with sweat. She was in her underclothes with a black sports bra.
Suddenly she turned back and met the gaze of Crey who was suddenly caught off-guard while staring at her. There was an indifferent and unimpressed look in her eyes as she gazed at the body of Crey who nearly felt the same way the girl was feeling just a second before under his intense gaze - uncomfortable.
"Is there anything?"
It was the girl who broke the silence, as she asked while raising her single eyebrow in question and Crey calmly lifted his hands in no offense motion and replied calmly,
"No, nothing… "
She nodded curtly as to him as a fellow examiner or maybe as a fellow gamer, or maybe as a fellow rich man…..honestly Crey had no idea as he watched dumbly without any response as she walked out while grabbing her clothes from her pod drawer.
Crey shrugged as he had no idea what she meant by that as it must be some kind of sign language of the super-rich which he couldn't understand as an outcast in this place. So he didn't bother and threw the incident out of his mind but not before commenting under his breath,
"She is gorgeous though!"