Curiosity burning, Ethan continued down the lone path, the terrain growing stranger with each step.
While he was wandering, marveling at the sights, he remained blissfully unaware that, somewhere deep within the world of Ethereal, chaos was brewing.
The ragged old man, the NPC he had encountered when he started the game, was searching for him with frantic desperation.
"Where did that kid go? Where the hell did he run off to?"
A glowing interface hovered in front of the old man, its projection shifting rapidly as his hands manipulated it. Ethereal's map flickered like a slideshow, zooming in and out across different regions.
Finally, with an exasperated gesture, the old man brought up an image, Ethan lying unconscious inside his VR capsule.
