Mediocrity is something that everyone is bound to encounter throughout the lengthy journey that they refer to as their lives. Some more than others, but that was a perceived fate for myself, Mark Nicholson. I was a guy who believed it was my destiny to waste away working in the warehouse for individuals I would never meet or recall the name of.
The constant routine of traveling from home to work and then from work to home had me seeping down with the depths of despair the longer I was caught in the vicious cycle. If you were to ask me about my current predicament, I would likely tell you that I was no different from any common machine. I stood at six feet and two inches tall and hailed from African-American descent, I often felt small and insignificant in the grand scheme of things.
Unfortunately, even to myself, I was often not unremarkable in my own eyes, but my deep-rooted insecurities caused me to shy away and stand within the shadows. My inherent ability to conceal my presence and, in essence, become a fly on the wall was something I learned early in my lifetime.
As I stood there, I learned to become soaked in the conversations of others despite not really caring about the specifics of the conversation. That was just the way that I was, so I just often embraced the nature of myself.
The current time was nine o'clock, and the familiar sound of tape being slashed was often drowned out by the loud beeping of the nearby machinery. Standing within the confines of one of the many workspaces of the facility, I found myself reminiscing about the desires I had once possessed.
Naturally, one may find me standing there doing my job of opening the overabundance of boxes and locating the proper location to slide them in. Despite having mixed feelings about the job, I took my job extremely seriously,
"How idiotic can a bunch of people be? It is a simple job, and these fools can't do the job even the most basic commoners could do."
A wrinkle in my bushy brows formed as I spoke with the utter disappointment and annoyance I felt when I located an error one of my predecessors had left behind. My glasses began to slide down the slit of my nose following the comment. Tilting my head forward allowed me to gain a better viewpoint in order to assess the situation appropriately.
Quickly, I used my unoccupied hand to slide them back into their rightful place. I once more found myself standing amongst the sea of cardboard and dust that lined the shelves in front and behind me. I had a lanky but yet lean frame that stood out amongst the much smaller boxes.
My eyes squinted, and my thoughts began to circulate. These types of mistakes often brought out the verbal disapproval and animosity that I reclusively kept locked within. I utterly despise the sheer incompetence of most of my peers who worked the same job.
My slim fingers twisted the unkept edge of my bushy and untrimmed mustache that wrapped around my upper lip as if I were some vaudevillian. I found myself taking some semblance of pride in my facial hair despite the lengthy time it took to grow it, but my mustache had yet to be connected to its goatee counterpart.
Much like my mustache, my goatee and sideburns remained untrimmed and bushy as that was its natural state. Dumbfounded with stupidity, I spoke once more out loud to air my grievances,
"This clearly says this box belongs to 66 -64 -Tier 4 - Position 5. People who slip up and make errors like this lack both the brain cells and mental fortitude as a damn Jumping Spider. Now, I must correct this issue."
Issues like that often pop up during my shift, and at this point, I became more frustrated as things progressed throughout the night. My fingertips would easily fit within the grooves of my trusty silver boxcutter as I slid the blade down back inside to place it safely in his utility belt. It was his duty now to correct the transgression. Crouching down to one knee, I slid the medium-sized box safely from its place on the bottom shelf.
"Then you should correct the issue without a single argument. That is what Jesus would do. He would do what is necessary without complaint. After all, when he took to the cross for your sins, he did not voice a single complaint."
The sudden, confrontative voice slightly spooked me, but my nerves soon loosened when I recognized the tone of the voice. Glancing over from the corners of my eyes from the crouched position I resided in, a response was due immediately,
"Bonner. Jesus healed the injured and tended to the lame, and as a reward for his labor, they strung him up like common livestock."
The response prompted a chuckle from the group as I rose to my feet to greet the person greeting me. My brown eyes immediately associated the two individuals who now stood before me with familiarity. Standing before me were my closest friends who worked the shift with him.
The one who spoke was Bishop Bonner, who was referred to as Bonner by those close to him, and the other was Qayshaun Bedgood, often referred to as Q or Jacket. Bonner was the smaller of the two when it came to height. Standing around five feet, eight inches tall, Bonner was the closest thing we have to a monk.
The male had a darker skin shade than myself, but he was arguably the healthiest of the three, if not by a slim margin. He actually took the time to work out, and his physique was more toned and trained.
He held Christian beliefs for the most part and used them as a guiding principle, but ultimately, like the rest of us, his hypocrisy reared its head at times. His hair was black like ours, but it was much shorter and more trimmed than mine.
While mine was akin to a wild and untrimmed medium-sized afro, Bonner's short afro had a more kept and refined look. We did have one physical aesthetic in common, and that was our glasses. We both had comically bad eyesight, as we are both nearsighted, but Bonner had superior eyesight, as mine was destined to get worse as I aged.
Bonner is an individual who holds his moral etiquette on a pedestal and would not hesitate to call out others for breaching it. It was always an experience to witness Bonner call out some poor sap on Infinity Unleashed, just for his ill temper to flare up, and he contradicts himself right there.
Q, on the other hand, had a different build than us. He was more stocky and darker but could not grow facial hair. However, he always insisted it was on the way when I mentioned it. The hair on his head was a different case, though.
He had no problem growing there and was often seen braiding his hair to maintain it. He was about five feet ten inches tall and had brown eyes like the rest of us. All three of us are of African-American descent, so it's only natural that we have similar physical aspects.
Personality-wise, Q was typically more impatient than the rest of us and more instinct-based, especially regarding video games. He was a man who spoke his piece whenever he wanted and let his opinions be known with confidence. Although we all squabbled from time to time, Bonner and I respected his opinion, and the vice versa was also true.
He was quite the jokester when we were in high school, and he was always there to make us laugh. We all participated in a friendly rivalry in that regard. Always attempting to one-up each other with our snarky remarks and our overall asshole nature.
"That's not the point, Mark. You gotta do it, so might as well do it." Q asks teasingly.
"I ain't got to do anything but be black and die. Fixing the mistake of some smooth-brained imbecile wasn't in my job description.", I retorted.
As we spoke, the loud ringing of a bell echoed throughout the facility, which was the indicator needed for us to recognize that it was time to head home. We looked at each other, but the unspoken desire to head home was common amongst our collective. With long strides, all three of us would inevitably clock out from our jobs and walk out of the door of the facility where we work after another day spent as essentially cogs in the corporate machine.
As we moved past the security measures of the exit, I could hear the heavy patter of the rain outside the facility. Though I anticipated the rain would happen due to the weather report, it appeared that the rain had come earlier than I imagined. I was caught off guard since I didn't bring a jacket, and the fact that I hated it when my clothes got wet didn't make the experience any better.
"So, You gents, hopping on Infinity Unleashed tonight? I believe that there was supposed to be this massive update earlier today. There is supposed to be a big event going on. ", I asked the two once we made it to the car and entered it.
Infinity Unleashed is a major MMORPG game I have played for a while now. Bonner and I discovered it together a couple of months ago, so we've been playing it longer. Q, on the other hand, wasn't that big on the genre, but I was able to convince him to download it.
Infinity Unleashed boasts of the user's ability to direct their destiny and have nearly infinite choices in their experience. It is a world that sits outside our own with superpowered beings, where one person could be a world-saving knight, and another could pursue their dreams of being a baker on the same server.
It was indeed a marvelous game, and since it was the Nerve Core Virtual Reality set, it allowed for full immersion for the player. It didn't take a genius to figure out why something like that became an instant hit on par with the Call of Duty games.
For the last two months, the boys and I have been logging in together and doing whatever we deemed interesting at the time, but this next update was supposed to be a game changer. I read online that the company that runs the servers stated that there was supposed to be this huge event that happens if you were logged on at midnight tonight.
"Yeah. We still have to finish what we were doing yesterday anyway. We were close to the edge of the map. That Lynx beast was supposedly there, and you'll get mad XP if you manage to defeat that thing. It's on par with a mythical beast.", Bonner answered.
Since we all worked together and lived in the same apartment complex, we decided to carpool to and from work as the only one with his license. I was our designated driver, and as I drove us home, we usually talked game jargon to pass the time.
"I think it's a level 60 monster, so that that shit will be hard as fuck. No problem, but y'all gotta make sure to keep me alive. I'm looking at you, Bishop.", Q added. A smirk appeared on his face when I glanced into the mirror.
I snickered lightly as the meaning of the jab sparked the memory of the event. It was common for Bonner to completely abandon us or his teammates in first-person shooters or MMORPGs despite being the character we rely on for healing. It was what would be referred to as a "Bonner Moment."
A Bonner Moment occurs when a person breaks down under stress, and indecision clouds their mind. They then decide that the best action is to flee without thinking of others, even when better options are available.
"Now listen. It was your own fault that you charged those weak-ass Kobolds and got down. Them bitches were like level 37, and you were only level 25. There were like twelve of them.", Bonner says.
"It was your fault. Mark came in to help, but you just left us. You were our healer, and you ditched us just to go die anyway."
"Nah. You ran in and got Mark killed, too. I can't heal y'all like that. My spells got them long-ass cooldowns. Honestly, they still need to buff that. I have to wait twelve whole seconds just to heal someone. It shouldn't be like that."
"A lot of the stuff in that game is unbalanced. That's why you see many small Kitsunes running around the place. They are amongst the strongest races they have to offer. Especially full-bred Kitsune Knights and Mages. They are incredibly busted.", I chipped in.
It did not take us long to reach our respective homes, and the rain didn't waver throughout the long commute. Our conversation stopped there for now, but we all agreed to log on tonight and play until midnight to see the event for ourselves.
There was little time left until said event occurred, so I undertook my after-work routine of showering, eating my dinner, and logging on—which generally took an hour.
Nothing unusual had happened at first, but I grew excited by the prospect of the secret event that would happen in a few minutes. I sat down in my Nerve Core VR gaming chair and synchronized my senses to the console's party system once I put on the helmet.
In an instant, I had what would be described as an out-of-body experience, and I was linked to our established party.
"Well- Well, look who decided to show up. We were just talking about you.", Q mused as soon as their avatars came into play.
Bonner snapped, "You're late, Mark. Do better." I was quick to retort.
"Pot meet Kettle. You are always late, Bonner. Late to every fight, Late to every decision. I arrived on time. You two are early in this specific instance. Anyway, are things set up on y'all end? I'm logging in as we speak."
They both confirmed that they were logging in to the game as I was. The familiar jingle of the theme music started playing, and as usual, the standard NPC characters appeared on the screen in a cinematic video, but something unusual happened.
While no defined main character exists besides your avatar, a few notable ones appear throughout our journeys.
There they all were, moving to the rhythm of the surprisingly catchy theme song and unleashing their badass fight choreography. As I was enjoying myself, a thunderous boom could be heard outside the gaming set, and darkness ensued.
"Tch- The power went out.."
At least, that is what I had initially thought. Sitting there with my headset on, I could not see or sense anything but darkness. Perks of virtual reality, as one may expect, but after all the hours I lived in that environment, I could tell this experience was fundamentally different. Drifting within this newfound limbo, I began thinking that this must be the new event promised to be used by the developers of Infinity Unleashed.
A black hole event, perhaps? No. That couldn't be the case. There has been no indication of such a thing in the game's history up to that point. For the lack of a better phrase, I was at a loss. I could not firmly grasp the situation as it appeared that my perception of my current reality was being bent and twisted.
It remained like that for minutes until I saw a light at the end of the tunnel—not figuratively, but literally. Within that tunnel of darkness was the first indication of change I had encountered since my introduction to the event. The power of this light was blinding, so much so that I instinctively closed my eyes. Even then, I found that this light pierced even my eyelids. It was inescapable.
Left floating towards the light, I could sense an uncharacteristically pleasant feeling wash over me. It was like stepping into a perfect temperature shower after a long work day. I washed all the grime and worry that I had picked up instantly. Stress, pain, all of it was no more. It was almost angelic, but as I feared, all good things must come to an end.
As more of the light enveloped my body, I could sense that my equilibrium was suddenly thrust off its axis. I began to shake as my body started experiencing intense pain from various parts. My ears, mouth, and lower back were all shooting with burning pain that I had never encountered before.
It was as if something was tearing those areas apart. It was the worst feeling I had encountered in my entire life. My body withstood a car accident, and my ACL was severed into oblivion. This was bad, but I had no way of shutting off this pain. I wish that I did, but I couldn't. In the end, I was powerless before it, and I hated it.
I hated it with a passion. My nerves felt like electricity shot throughout my body, and my blood was replaced with boiling magma. Everything was happening to me, and it was all due to that mysterious light. The light expanded until the darkness that was once there was no more.
'The hell is going on?! What the hell is happening?! Why is this happening?! Why am I so heavy?!'
Those were the questions racing through my mind, but as suddenly as the pain started, it had ceased. Like a heavy stone dropped into a still lake, I fell out of the light.