Alexander went to let go of Brick’s hand, but the big man held on. “You’d… do that for me?”
“Of course he would, you big lug. Now let go of him before you crush something,” Sasha scolded him.
Brick immediately let go and looked sheepish again. “Shit, sorry man. And thank you. Again.”
“You’re welcome, buddy.” Alexander turned toward Max. “How ‘bout you?”
Max pretended to think it over for a bit. “To be honest, it sounds like a great gig. Getting paid to play, and all that. But I’m not all that excited about moving from my place, and that whole thing about starting over at level one just sucks, so I’m kinda on the fence.” He paused. Sasha took a deep breath and was preparing to lash him when he held his hands up. “Tell you what. Somebody get me the phone number of that hot receptionist upstairs, and I’m in!” He winked at Sasha, then Lainey. Lainey actually laughed.
“Lainey, not to put you on the spot or anything. But have you decided what you want to do?” Alexander gave her his best puppydog eyes.
“Oh cut it out, cheezeball. That hasn’t worked on me since you convinced me to let you ride your bike after your dad locked it up. And you broke your damn arm.”
“I’m sorry Lainey. I really don’t mean to pressure you. Honestly,” Alexander said, “like dad said, you’ve got some time to think about it. Though, I will point out that if you do want to join us, this is the perfect time. We’ll all be starting again at level one. So you can level up along with us. But again, no pressure.”
“Laaaaineyyy!” Sasha said. “Forget the doofus. I’ll put pressure on you! Do it for MY sake. I could use another woman in the group to help me deal with these three. You have NO idea what it’s like!”
“Not exactly a selling point, Princess Sasha!” Lainey laughed. “I’m still thinking about it. It’s a big commitment. I’d be giving up every other aspect of my life. And Alexander, I love you, I do. But I don’t know that I love you enough for 18 hours a day every day,” she patted him on the head.
“Fair enough,” he grinned back at her. “Ok. So to conclude our business, Max and Brick, I’ll have them set you up with corporate housing. Do you want to be here at the compound? Or we can get you a map… hey, Heimdall?”
“Yes, Alexander?” Heimdall’s voice boomed over the room’s intercom, making Brick jump. Alexander thought maybe Heimdall was messing with Brick after the scene in the lobby.
“Can you display on this room’s holo the map of available corporate housing locations?”
“Certainly Alexander. Here is your map.” A 3D holo map of the city appeared above the table. Several locations around the city were marked with blue dots. Max and Brick both leaned in for a closer look.
“Once you guys have a picked a spot, we’ll have teams install your pods. The apartments come fully furnished, so you won’t need to move any furniture unless you want to. We can have all your stuff put into storage in one of our facilities if you like. However you want it.” Both men nodded.
“Since dad said we can keep all of our stuff, I propose we all log in tomorrow morning using our normal gear. Hit the bank, clean out our old guild house and get moved into the new one. Then we can store all our gear and the contents of the guild vault, and it’ll be waiting for us when we log in through the pods.”
“So, that’s what you were talkin’ about.” Brick chuckled to himself. Still studying the map.
“What, buddy?” Alexander didn’t follow.
“When you were bullshitting the king. Talking about all your training and your dad being important, and running your own empire. I thought you were just blowing smoke. But you really are a prince guildmaster! Its funny cuz it’s true!” Everyone laughed along with him.
The next morning they all logged in and ran their errands. They decided there was plenty of furniture in the new guild house, so they agreed to rent the old house out furnished rather than sell it. They removed all their valuables and transferred them to the new house. Brick found a taxidermist and gave him the snake head to clean and mount. Max reminded them that they should all get their riding skills before their characters reset. Richard had promised them they’d retain all their learned skill. Normally players in Io had to wait till level 20 to qualify to ride mounts, so they all went to the stable master for training. They decided to put off their selection of mounts from the king, but they did purchase the largest available draft horse. It was built like a Clydesdale on steroids. They left it stabled there, assuring the stable master they’d pick the horse up in a week’s time. The three guys then went to purchase a heavy duty wagon and park it at the house, all in preparation for Brick’s future beer runs. While they did this, Sasha ran next door for her first lesson with Lydia and let her know that they would be away for a couple of days. Lydia, concerned that they might get themselves in trouble while they were away, insisted on teaching Sasha two new healing spells, and giving her a dozen healing potions.
By then, everyone needed to take care of the real world business of getting moved and completing their medical tests before their first immersion. The friends each went to the suites on the third floor and logged out.
Chapter Seven
Wolves and Bunnies and Boars, Oh, My!
Alexander’s pod was set up in his bedroom. There was more than enough space in the large room, and it was conveniently close to the bathroom so he could shower after coming out of immersion. He was sitting on his bed wearing a bathrobe while a nurse technician was doing one last check of the pod’s systems. She had already checked his vitals, twice, and talked him through the immersion process.
Lainey was having a similar experience in her own room, Alexander knew. She had decided to join them on their first day of full immersion, though she had not yet committed to it joining them full time.
Sasha had elected to accept a suite in the guesthouse, and was probably nervous. Which meant she was definitely giving her nurse a hard time.
Brick and Max had chosen apartments in the same location downtown. Brick so he could make a quick cab ride to see his family between immersions. Max claimed it was because there were several good bars and his “favorite strip club” nearby. Alexander thought it was to be near Brick.
“Ready when you are,” the nurse patted the pod.
Alexander walked up the ramp to the platform next to the pod. Dropping his robe, he stepped in with one leg, the nurse holding his arm for support and balance. Getting the other leg in, he sat down with his legs out in front of him. The nurse helped him fit the neural net over his head, and then the mask that covered his nose and mouth. Once all was secure, Alexander laid back in the pod as the nurse closed the door above him. The pod began to fill with Sasha’s blue slime. It was warmer than he expected. As the pod filled, he felt his body being lifted from the bed of the pod and suspended. He breathed deeply, the air coming through the mask with almost no sound. He closed his eyes and tried to relax.
After a few seconds he began to wonder if something went wrong. Nothing was happening. There was only blackness. Just as he was about to try and sit up to alert the nurse, a pinpoint of light appeared in front him. The light grew larger, closer, as if he were speeding down a tunnel toward it. In just a few seconds the light expanded around him, and the sense of movement ended. He found himself standing in a white cube, the surfaces gleaming slightly. This must be where the pod’s AI would be testing him for the syncing process.
“Greetings, Alexander,” an unmistakable deep, rich voice came to him seemingly out of nowhere.
“Good morning, Odin!” he smiled at the room. “I should have realized you’d be running the pods as well as Io. Dad didn’t tell me. It’s good to see you! Well, hear you.” With that, Odin appeared in the room with him. Modeled after the Norse god, Odin was 8ft tall with silver hair and a missing eye. Muscular and imposing in a way only the all-father could be. No toga for this god. He was dressed in leather pants, a linen shirt with ties in the front, and what looked to be wolf skin boots.
He smiled at Alexander in a fatherly way. “It is good to see you, as well, my mortal friend. Though I see you every day in Io, you cannot see me. It has been too long since we’ve talked.”
Being his parent’s child, Alexander had learned to code shortly after he’d learned to read. As a young teen, he had spent summers working at Jupiter Technologies with his dad. He’d even written some of the code for Io, and for Odin, and he’d played games with Odin. Strategy games were what Odin liked best. He’d told Odin countless stories from his mother’s favorite myths, all to help develop the AI’s personality. One of the most rewarding experiences of that time had been when Alexander had called up Odin at the beginning of a summer, after nearly a year away. Odin had observed that Alexander had changed, grown taller. He’d had to explain to Odin about how people grow from infancy through adulthood, and eventually die. Odin had asked how long Alexander would live, so he explained that too.
Odin had said “I don’t want you to die, Alexander. And I don’t want to die either.” So Alexander explained to Odin that as an AI, he would essentially live forever. Or as long as mankind lived. An amusing side effect of that conversation, from then on Odin referred to all the staff he interacted with as “mortals”.
“Your father and I have agreed that basing your Avatar’s skills on your own current physical abilities would not serve our purposes here. So I have already established a baseline for your physical stats. Of course, from our time together, and your time in Io, I am fully familiar with your play style. I think you will be pleased. For this reason, we have some time while your companions undergo their physical trials…”
He’s not going to say it. No way. Alexander held his breath.
“Would you like to play a game?” Odin said with a huge grin on his face. “BAAHAHAHA!”
Alexander had made the mistake of uploading a certain classic movie as part of Odin’s development several years before. The AI was highly amused, and for weeks kept randomly simulating total global thermonuclear warfare on developer’s holo screens.
“Ugh. I can’t believe you said that! Big nerd,” Alexander shook his head.
“No, seriously,” Odin made a hand motion and a table with two chairs appeared in the room. “Part of the syncing process includes puzzles and game play. All part of the neural interface learning what goes on in that head of yours. The results will be part of the formula that determines your avatar’s mental stats, as well as some of the skills and abilities that will be available to you”
So over the next hour, Alexander and Odin played games. Alexander solved puzzles. He answered questions that started with “what would do if…” and “if you had to choose…”. There were even some Rorschach cards, though Alexander suspected Odin was just messing with him at the point. Killing time while the others caught up so that they’d enter the game together. Which actually gave him an idea.
“Hey, Odin, buddy?” Alexander began. They were playing chess, and Odin was pretending to think about his move.
The Quantum AI could obviously calculate all possible moves and all possible following moves to those moves in a microsecond. “Yes, mortal?”
“I was wondering if I could ask you a small favor?”
Odin looked up from the chess board. “You would ask a boon of the all-father? Speak, and I shall consider it.”
Yep. Definitely killing time. Odin didn’t need Alexander to speak, as he was currently plugged directly into his brain. His chess pieces had been moving with just a thought. “I was hoping you could do a little something to mess with my buddy Brick once we get in game. Nothing big. Don’t tank his stats or anything. Just a small joke?” Alexander asked.
“BAHAHAHA!” Odin’s laugh was loud and long. “I like Brick. He is much like me. Though Heimdall does not seem to like him. Something about a rampage?”
Now it was Alexander’s turn to laugh. “So, you’ll do it?” he pushed.
“I shall consider it” Odin replied.
Fair enough.
“The sync is now complete,” Odin announced. “It is time for avatar creation.” The table disappeared, and Alexander had just enough time to hop to his feet before the chair went away as well. “Your previous avatar’s class was ‘Knight’. You focused mainly on physical attacks and skills that increased your melee damage and likelihood of critical hits. While it is important for your development that you continue with a certain level of physical activity, I think you’ll find some interesting mental possibilities are open to you now. Io can be much more flexible for fully immersed players.”
Odin made another hand motion, and the cube became a large circular room. The walls all around him were filled with alcoves. Each alcove had a copy of Alexander’s avatar in differing armor types, with an assortment of weapons in racks next to them. There was also a pedestal with a book in front of each alcove. Alexander spun around slowly, taking in each one. There were roughly a dozen alcoves.
“I have taken the liberty of selecting those possibilities that best suited you,” Odin explained. “Though if none of these are to your liking, there are many more to choose from.” Alexander stopped moving and looked to Odin. The giant indicated the alcove right in front of Alexander “This one is nearly identical to your previous avatar.”
Alexander stepped forward. The words “Classic Knight” were written on the book in front of the alcove. The Avatar itself wore the same armor he’d worn the last time he logged in, including the legendary chest piece, and there was his oversized two handed sword. There were other possible weapons in the rack as well. A small shield. One handed sword. Spear. War hammer, and others. Weapons for several possible Knight builds and fighting styles. Alexander opened the book to the first page.
Classic Knight: Alexander
Build: Melee dps
Health: 100 Level: 1
Mana: O Experience: 0/100
Stamina: 10 Dexterity: 5 Armor: ? Health Regen: ?
Strength: 9 Wisdom: 2 Defense: ? Mana Regen: 0
Agility: 7 Intelligence: 6 Phys Attack: ? Magic Attack: 0
Luck: 8 Charisma: 7 Stamina Regen: ? Race: Human
Alexander’s first thought was My stats! They’re so low, forgetting for a moment that he would be starting again at level one. Taking a closer look, he nodded his head. This build was indeed very close to his old toon. His attack skills didn’t use mana, they used stamina and depended on strength to up the damage, so it made sense that those would be his highest stats. Agility helped him dodge attacks as well as to move behind enemies for attacks that had better crit chances. But the intel number seemed higher than it should be.
“Odin, 6 Intelligence?” He queried.
“You are smart, for a mortal.” Odin responded. “This number was a result of many factors, including the testing you just completed, my own knowledge of you, and your previous game play. Like when you figured out how to kill the dungeon boss quickly.”
“Ah, ok thank you Odin,” Alexander said. “How would intelligence factor into this avatar’s performance?”
“Minimally. This avatar has no mana pool, and no abilities that involve casting, at least at low levels. High intelligence will affect your crit chance in a small way. Your luck as well. You are, of course, free to increase your stats with free attribute points as you level up. The attribute points that are awarded automatically will go toward strength and stamina for this avatar.”
“I see.” Alexander begin to see what Odin meant when he said possibilities. If his melee avatar couldn’t use his higher intel, what about some of the others? He looked at the other alcoves. The one to the right of the Classic Knight was another Knight form, this one in heavy plate armor. Likely some kind of tank build. Alexander passed by that one. He’d never liked the idea of clanking around in heavy armor. The next was dressed in leather and the prominent weapon was a bow, so a ranged melee class. Ranger. The group already had Max to fill that role. Next. This one was clearly a rogue or thief build. With dark leather armor and an assor
tment of daggers for stabbing and throwing, and a set of lockpicks prominently displayed. This one would play a similar role to his knight, being melee DPS, and the play styles were at least a little similar; mainly getting behind the mobs and striving for crits, only this one included a stealth factor. Curious, Alexander opened the book.
Rogue: Alexander
Build: Stealth/Melee dps
Health: 100 Level: 1
Mana: O Experience: 0/100
Stamina: 10 Dexterity: 7 Armor: ? Health Regen: ?
Strength: 6 Wisdom: 1 Defense: ? Mana Regen: 0
Agility: 9 Intelligence: 6 Phys Attack: ? Magic Attack: 0
Luck: 8 Charisma: 5 Stamina Regen: ? Race: Halfling
Interesting. So the stamina remained high, which made sense as this was still a melee fighter. But the strength and agility stats had basically switched. So more focus on speed and dodging. And the dexterity was much higher. Probably for lock picking.
The Greystone Chronicles: Book One: Io Online Page 12