Saturday, June 8th, 2176 - Five years before the Emergence
Fun Run Amusement Park, Upstate New York
The sun was nearly setting on the quaint amusement park. Small crowds of parents and their children, as well as the occasional group of teenagers made their way through the rows of carnival games and into queues for modest roller coasters and other attractions. There was a small building in the corner of the park, walls constructed of glass and steel bars. Through the glass, one could see a small lobby, and a set of stairs that led underground. A digital display sign near the front doors of the building flashed the words;
No Entrance. Show in Progress.
"My name is Oren Astor. I'll be your host for today!"
The young man with caramel colored skin hovered steadily in the air above a small metal landing. It was a showroom, no bigger than an average black box theater. The metal landing was square, and on all sides, there were bleachers a couple feet away from the edges. Looking out at the crowd of smiling children sitting on the bleachers surrounding him, Oren gave a small wave. The kids responded with waves of their own, and a resounding "Hello Oren" prompted by the adult chaperons accompanying them.
"Alright everyone, I want to start with a question. Does anyone here know who started the sport we know as Chasm Diving?"
A little dark-skinned girl with her hair in a ponytail raised her hand immediately. Oren pointed toward her and gave a small nod.
The girl stood up and spoke. "Chasm Diving was founded by billionaire William Borick in 2083, two years after the discovery of an ancient carving in a ruin found in the Pacific Ocean. The carvings showed a—"
"Hold on, hold on—" Oren interrupted. "We're not there just yet, friend."
The kids around the little girl began to snicker and laugh, ignoring admonishments from the chaperons. Seeing the confidence drain from the girl's face, Oren hovered over to her, and gave her a fist bump.
"What's your name?" He said, voice light as a feather
"L-Lily" She replied softly. She turned her blushing face away from him as he smiled at her again.
Flying back to his post above the metal landing, he addressed the crowd once more.
"My friend Lily here is right. William Borick, founder of the Borick Corporation, was somewhat of an adventurer. Using his wealth, he funded an expedition into the Marianas Trench, and found an ancient ruin depicting strange things. Scientists today believe that these ruins are actually evidence of a previously undiscovered human civilization! Isn't that crazy?"
He began to tell the tale of the Marianas Expedition, and the ruins found deep within, as well as the carvings that would be the inspiration for the world's largest sport. Though, as he continued on with history, Oren felt the attention spans drifting from him, so he played his trump card. He loved doing the children's shows, because it meant he got to skip most of the annoying historical details, and get right to what he was good at.
"Okay okay. Enough with the boring stuff. You guys wanna see something really cool?"
The eyes of the bored children suddenly lit up as Oren turned slowly to gather all of their attention.
"Then let me show you what it means to be a diver."
With that, Oren stretched his right arm out to the side, and a silver helmet shot out from an opening in one of the walls. He caught it with practiced precision, and threw it up in the air. In the time it hung, he used his foot thrusters to boost him into the air, twisting and orbiting twice around the helmet before catching it and putting it on. The trick caused a momentous applause and loud hollering from the children. They crowd examined Oren, who now stood fully donned in his suit.
"This, my friends, is a D.R.C.E. But you can just call it a Darcy." He spun slowly as he spoke so the audience could see the whole ensemble.
"It stands for; Diving Rig for Chasm Expeditions. They began as a modified version of the enhanced armor used during World War 3."
The children stood completely silent now, in awe of the majestic suit before them. Oren always thought this part of the show was funny. Truthfully, if it had not been for the dramatic lighting and the fact that most of these children likely have never seen a professional-grade Darcy in person, his own would seem quite dull. He wore a Borick Corporation Standard D.R.C.E. It was steel gray and silver, with red LEDs in the joints and a black tinted visor. While it was still a marvel of engineering, it paled in comparison to the models that top Divers wore, let alone the special editions that the Spectrum Divers were issued.
"It allows me to move swiftly through the air, and provides me protection from harm. There are lots of different models, and many companies that make them. This one is the most common model used by Qualifying and Second Class NADL divers."
He paused a moment. "Well, I guess it's time I really show you this thing in action huh?"
The kids all nodded and watched as the metal landing beneath him began to split open. When it was fully open, Oren looked at the kids, saying "See you down there". With no further warning, Oren shut his thrusters off and dove headfirst into the dark hole that await him below.
The kids grabbed onto their seats and looked to the adults for reassurance as the bleachers began to rumble. Steadily, each of the bleachers lowered beneath the opening, revealing a large glass window and a deep hole. There were pillars, bridges, and several other formations of rocks decorating the hole. In the ground, and in some of the rock formations, small gates and trapdoors can be seen. Once the bleachers reached the bottom of the hole, they saw Oren there behind the glass. He sat on a large rock, clearly designed so that all four sides could see him properly. Once he saw the kids settled, he stood up on the rock.
"This is the arena where expeditions are held. Expeditions are what we call matches in the Chasm Diving world, and these arenas are called Chasms. This one is much smaller than the ones you'll see in a real match, and is only one layer deep. See, the ruins that William Borick discovered depicted warriors jumping into a deep hole to fight monsters unlike anything we've seen on Earth. Seeing this, he was inspired to create a sport mimicking the events. Fast forward nearly a century later, and now it's the biggest sport in the world!"
Oren reached his arm out again, this time upward. The light flashed and thunder sounds boomed from speakers. When the room recovered, Oren held a trident proudly above his head.
"This is my weapon of choice, a trident. It's also the weapon used by the number two diver in the NADL, Spectrum Diver Alex Azul, who also happens to be my favorite Diver. Though, her trident is much nicer than mine." Oren chuckled embarrassedly, and some of the audience laughed with him.
"So, we're gonna do a short modified expedition. Speaking of 'we'—"
On cue, two other divers wearing the same gear as Oren flew down from above. One was a little taller than him, and the other one was stockier than Oren.
"This is Mary," he said pointing to the tall figure. "and this is Herman." He pointed to the other diver. "They'll be my opponents for today."
"This game is only gonna be around twenty minutes, but I promise it'll be entertaining." Mary said.
"Be sure to watch closely. You wouldn't want to miss when I win." Herman added, pumping a triumphant fist in the air.
Oren gestured to Mary and Herman who pulled out their weapons; a short sword and blaster respectively. They each went to a corner of the chasm, and the sound of gears and mechanisms whirring set off a fire in Oren's heart. He wasn't a pro, and he didn't think that going professional was in the cards for him, but being a Showdiver was the next best thing. He may not be able to rise through the ranks to become a Spectrum Diver, but he could bring the joy of Chasm Diving to kids in the same way that had been done to him.
As the mechanical cacophony had come to a close, Oren closed his eyes and took a deep breath.
"Let's put on a show." He whispered to himself.
And with that, a loud buzz signified the beginning of the Mock Expedition.