Leaving the casino with their platinum membership in hand and £10 million in the bank, John and Tommy jumped in a cab heading back to John's small studio flat. They discussed the night's events on the journey home. Rushing through the door, John went straight to his old beat-up PC. As he waited for it to boot up, he thought to himself, maybe he should update to the latest model. But then he shook his head, realizing that just because he had some money, there was no need to be extravagant. This old beast did what he needed.
Finally, as the computer logged in, he went onto the website for the Open Oaks Riverside development. The average cost of a penthouse was £3 million. "Fuck me John, look at the prices!" Tommy leaned over, looking at the screen, exclaiming in shock. John ignored it as he continued to look. Then he found it, the video showing the property that had him dripping saliva down his chin. Three bedrooms, private terrace, a steam room, entertainment room—everything they would need.
"What do you think, Tommy? Two care home boys living in a place like this. I think this is the one," John said. Tommy looked with great interest, his eyes shining, thinking about the possibility. "It's your money, John. I am happy with whatever you choose."
Still feeling unsure and a bit lost by the unfolding events that still seemed like a fantasy to him, John quickly went through the process using his new Coutts account. Everything went smoothly, and half an hour later, £1.6 million was transferred from his account. An appointment was made to sign the final paperwork and pick up the keys at 9 am the next morning.
"Well, that's it, Tommy. We've got ourselves a new home. I think it's time to quit the supermarket and concentrate on Revelation12." John's mind started working on plans for the future. Could he make a living out of the game? He was unsure if he should quit his job. The money he won would not last forever. He still needed an income. Despite the risk, John had that feeling again, a feeling that came upon him at different times today. Following that feeling and urge had led him to this point, and he decided to follow it again.
Logging into the 4Horsemen website, he placed an order for two VR pods. In three months, when the game was out, his new life would begin.
The process of ordering the VR pods was not a simple transaction. He had to arrange to have an interview with the company to be scanned. Apparently, each pod was custom-built with your biometrics, and your real physique affected your avatar. You could make small changes; for instance, if you were overweight, you could change to a smaller physique, but your general features would be the same. Inside the game, there were also some nutrients needed to be taken so the brain could process the time dilation. Being 24 hours inside the game counted for 12 hours in the real world, and the brain and body needed help to adjust to these conditions. The company provided the necessary nutrients. All this took time, but he had three months until Revelation12 came out. This gave him plenty of time to prepare.
All the forms were signed and an appointment was made for both of them in two days. John shut down the PC and said, "That's it, Tommy. No going back now. It's gonna be a busy day tomorrow. We've got some shopping to do. We need to furnish the new house and update our wardrobes. We've got to look the part."
Tommy, accepting everything settling in, smiled with a grin ear to ear. One stroke of luck had changed their lives. All those dreams as kids of having something of their own—a house, nice clothes, money—it was all now within their grasp. Tommy was not going to let this opportunity go. He would make something of himself inside the game. He would not sponge off his friend. He would take this opportunity to pay his way in the future and was already searching for all the information about the game on his phone. But surprisingly, information was very slim. All the company said was that this was a new unknown world waiting to be discovered, and success or failure was in the hands of the players. Outside the basic class list to choose from, nothing else was available.
With this, they both put serious consideration into what class they would play and discussed the pros and cons of each class. There were your typical classes like archer, a long-ranged DPS type; warrior, a defense-heavy tank; assassin; mage, a mana medic or priest-type class; weapons master a pure DPS class; and more exotic classes like necromancer, master of
Tommy was always the warrior class, a brawler in real life, and the idea of going toe to toe with monsters and beasts really interested him. Meanwhile, John was still undecided. A mage seemed like fun to play, but did he have the skillset necessary to unleash the power? Most VR games had overpowered mages in the right hands but were also a graveyard for many players who could not master the intense concentration needed. Still unsure, he decided he had some time to consider it and headed off to get some sleep.
In his dreams, the same green jade gem was floating in blackness. But this time, he could hear a conversation. There were no people, only the green jade gem, but someone was talking. It was a woman's voice. "When will you learn? Our fate is sealed. This will be the fourth time. You know this is the last time. If you do this again, they will notice and take action." Silence followed for what seemed like an eternity until a reply came. It was a soft voice, a kind voice, like that of a loving grandfather. "It has to work. He's our last hope. Already, he is on the right path. We just have to hope luck is with us this time. It's all we have left." The jade gem faded away until there was just blackness, and John fell into a dreamless sleep.
The alarm clock buzzed, and John woke up, lingering memories of the strange dream staying with him. This was the second night he had a strange dream. "He's our last hope? Were they talking about me?" Shaking his head and slapping himself on the face, he said, "Get a grip, John. You got lucky yesterday. Now you're developing a god complex, thinking you're someone's last hope. It was just a dream."
Getting up, he shouted out for Tommy to wake up and got in the shower, trying to put the dream out of his mind. But try as he might, he could not shake the feeling that there was more to it than just a dream. The feeling he got, the fact that Ragnarok slipped something, an expert like him should never do, and the fortune he made from it. Shaking it off, he decided there was no point in worrying about this. He was just overwhelmed with everything that had happened. He quickly washed up and got ready to head to his new home. Walking down the road towards the open Oak Riverside development, John and Tommy were excited for the day ahead. They decided to walk since the complex was only five minutes away. It was strange how wealth was so close to such poverty, but that's life - wealth and poverty simply five minutes apart. They reached the main gate of the complex, and a security guard stepped out and asked them what they were doing, refusing to believe they had an appointment.
The security guard sneered at Tommy and said, "You don't belong here." Tommy took a step forward, ready to face up to the security guard, but John calmly placed his hand on Tommy's shoulder, saying, "Leave this to me." He reached into his pocket and made a phone call. "Hi, yes, it's Mr. Rogers here. Yes, yes, I'm completely happy with the property. I'm currently at the front gate, in fact. Would you mind coming down to meet us? There's a slight problem."
The security guard started to lose confidence and stuttered, "Who... who is that? Who are you talking to?" John looked at him, smiling, and moments later, a well-dressed woman approached them from the complex. She held out her hand to shake. "Hi, Mr. Rogers. I'm so glad to meet you in person. We've done all the paperwork, everything is ready. All you need to do is sign your name, and I'll pass over the keys."
Not taking her hand and with a look of annoyance and confusion on his face, John looked directly at her and said, "I'm sorry, Jane, was it? But your security guard kindly pointed out that me and my friend are not the type to belong here. So, I don't think I'll be going forward with the sale." Jane looked over, staring daggers at the security guard, who seemed lost and losing control of the situation.
"I'm, um, I'm sure the security guard didn't mean to offend you. I'm sure it was a mistake, and he would apologize. I'm sure we can work this out," Jane said, trying to find a solution.
Facing Jane, John said, "You would like to work this out, Jane? Well, here's what I would like: that man right there, sack him. A fool like that should not be working here. In fact, Jane, if you want my business, this fool needs to be blacklisted. An idiot like that should consider being a supermarket security guard as the limit of his career." Jane's eyes widened with each word; she could not do this. He had a family, kids - he was a good man, a good employee. He had been working there for ten years. How could Jane destroy someone's life like that? She looked at John, unsure.
"I'm sorry, Mr. Rogers. I don't have the authority to agree with you or disagree. I think I need to make a phone call. Would you mind waiting momentarily?" Nodding his head in agreement, John stood there waiting. Tommy glanced over at him, wondering what he was doing. John had a feeling the Royal Retreat Platinum card was not so simple. The Coutts account and ease of buying the house - something told him this card was powerful, but he wasn't sure how much. Now seemed like a good time to test it out. There could only be two outcomes: one, the security guard's life was ruined as a consequence of looking down on him and Tommy, or two, they found another place to live. There was no real loss involved, so John patiently waited for the outcome.
With a sigh and a look of resignation, Jane put away her phone and looked at the security guard with pity. "Stu, I need you to collect your belongings and leave immediately." Walking back over to John, a pained expression on her face at what she had just had to do, she said, "Mr. Rogers, my employer has agreed with you. This situation was unacceptable, and you will never have to see Mr. Wilson again in any establishment in the country. If this is acceptable to you, may we continue on with our business?" John's whole demeanor changed, a relaxed, carefree smile on his face. Looking directly at Stu, the security guard, he said, "Sure. Let's not let undesirable people waste any more of our time." Walking past the security guard, chuckling, Tommy stood for a moment in shock. This was cold. He knew John had a mean streak, but this just seemed on another level. Walking up beside him, Tommy leaned in and whispered, "Dude, don't you think that was a bit much? You just chucked a live grenade into that guy's life."
John's face briefly turned serious again. "How many times, Tommy? How many times have we had to face that sort of crap and accept it, powerless to do anything? We live in a world where might is right, and I refuse to be wrong ever again." The pair walked on in silence, making their way to the office. John quickly dealt with the contracts and was handed the keys. As they entered their new apartment, they took a look around. John smiled again and said, "We're one of them now, Tommy. Time for the good things in life to come our way."