Reeon leaned back in his chair, a box on his lap. Christmas gift wrapping littered the floor despite it being February already. The only light in the room emitted from a small angular Monitor connected to his Quantum Computer. His legs were aching today, which he had learned over the years was a sign something bad was going to happen to him soon.
He massaged both his rail thin thighs down to his knees and further until eventually making contact with ice cold metal. Back and Forth. He couldn't really alleviate his pains but the motion gave him something else to focus on.
Looking down and returning his attention to his late christmas gift, Reeon could barely make out advertisements and hardware specs in the dim lighting of his room. Despite the poor visibility he could tell purely from the shape of the box.
'This is definitely the older model.... That useless old bitch.'
If you were able to see his face behind his long messy black hair and the dull lighting you could make out his displeasure. He groaned and whined before looking back down at the console again.
The Nirvana 2.0 released 2 years ago and lacked many features of its newer sibling The Nirvana 3. However it should still suffice for Reeon's needs. The advertisements on the box promoted a free trial of the best MMO game of last year, Empyreans Call.
'If this doesn't work Ill for sure give her a piece of my mind'
Reeon opened the packaging, breaking the precious factory seal. Inside was a Sleek black headset and a few dongles for connecting to his QPC. He eagerly and carefully attached the few cables and adjusted the strap of his new device onto his head.
Despite the throbbing in his legs he was oddly.... excited? When last did he feel excitement? He's been living like a Zombie since that day....
The Gloom did not have time to sit on him for long as the screen behind the black visor sparked to life. In an empty void Reeon floated. Several menus and alerts appeared before him. He glanced over all the options carefully. His gaze then focused on the only game preinstalled. Empyreans Call. Licking his lips in anticipation he selected the lone application.
Suddenly, green frameworks of geometry and sequences of code flashed, flowed and zoomed past and around him. The green structures erected themselves into the shapes of mighty and tall mountains, lush forests and massive open plains. While the streams of codes and numbers became the open sky, vast waters and lakes. A dim grey Sun formed in the sky.
It was a visual spectacle. Soon however this sight was stolen from him, replaced with a cold cramped darkness. Reeon had heard about this. The game had officially started. A voice, loud and righteous sounding reverberated in his head.
"Wake up my child. Regain your lost light and return to our fight against the profane." The Voice boomed.
Reeon assumed this was the "call" that the game was named after. A cheeky grin appeared on his face. Suddenly the sound of a great stone being dragged and removed deafed his ears. Despite its outdatedness The Nirvana 2 had some potency in delivering its realistic effects.
Light finally reached Reeon's eyes again. The great heavy lid of his coffin had been graciously removed by his disembodied benefactor.
Reeon extended his arms and stretched. The immersive capabilities of this game were no joke. He could feel almost as though he had just awoken from a great slumber. His eyes felt heavy and his body sluggish. But he could feel something else. Something familiar.
He lifted himself out of his former permanent resting spot carefully sitting on its edge. Looking down, there they were. 2 legs... He felt somewhat sick.
'What if this doesnt work...'
Despair and doubt easily overtaking his mind. He was really a pessimist now. Taking a deep breath and gathering all his courage Reeon closed his eyes and pushed himself off the ledge of the coffin.
When he opened his eyes again he was standing. For the first time in 4 years. A mix of absolute glee and wonderment filled his face. And the best part? He could feel them too. Soft, fleshy and full of power, not cold hard metal.
Reeon wanted to jump with joy however there were still things to be done. As soon as his feet made contact with the ground a pop up window had appeared before him. A simple character customizer. Players in EC were given a wide range of options in terms of character creation. Gender, Age, and all things in between were fully adjustable.
It was totally possible to make a 1:1 recreation of your own face! Which is what he mostly did, however giving himself a slightly sharper jawline and more confident features. After confirming his choices the window became like a jet black mirror. Reflecting his face and features. Black ragged hair, sharp eyes like a cats with slight bags trailing underneath. A light weight dark brown leather armor covered his body. The only real piece of protection coming from a thin iron breastplate.
'Looking good...'
Letting his excitement die down and finally taking the time to examine his spawning area he dismissed the menu.
He was in a small, dank crypt. His coffin was jet black and placed in the center of the room, its massive lid lay beside it. There were cravings and engravings running intricately along all the walls. A massive tapestry long torn and faded hung on the roof above. Obviously he couldnt make out what was depicted. Four tall metal braziers littered the corners of the tomb and all in various states of disrepair. One however remained lit. A small blue hazy flame breathed the only light in the room.
The only other noticeable features of the room were 2 large stone doors serving as an exit. Resting besides it was a completely black Halberd about 1.6 meters long a bit shorter than Reeon. This was his assigned weapon it seems. He retrieved the ebony polearm and a menu appeared in front of his eyes displaying its name. "Midnight." A fitting name he thought. Then affixed it to his back.
Resting both hands on the Massive doors, Reeon pushed with all his might. He could feel the strain in his arms, legs and back. The stone doors rumbled but slowly budged open A thin golden light seeped from between them.
His legs were aching again. A Journey was about to begin.