One morning, the wake-up announcement had been delivered, but we collectively ignored it. We did, however, wake to the sound of some excited Neogens entering our room. There were three of them, two girls and one boy.
“Rise and shine, friends!” the boy exclaimed.
“Can I help you?” Aaron asked with a small degree of sass, still not totally awake.
“I’m Seth. This is Amelia and Keli. We heard that you’ve been here for three days and still haven’t been in the VRC”
“VRC?” Rachel asked.
“Virtual Reality Chamber!” Amelia said with glee.
We exchanged glances. “Now when you say virtual reality,” I began, “do you mean big, clunky headsets with bifocal screens?”
“Heck no,” Keli replied. “This is 100% total immersion using salvaged neural gear from Eltech.”
That woke Aaron up. “Friends, take me to the VR Chamber,” he said, rubbing his eyes and pushing back his hair..
“Sweet,” Seth said, then he looked at Mark. “Sadly, we haven’t yet learned how to put robots in VR simulations.”
“Leave that to me,” Mark said.
After getting dressed and grabbing a quick breakfast, we all followed the three Neogens to this VR Chamber. Along the way, we learned about their powers. Amelia remembered everything she heard, saw, felt, and learned. All of it was stored permanently in her mind. Keli could teleport short distances at will and Seth could alter the density of his molecular structure, allowing him to perform feats like walking through walls or even deflecting projectiles.
After a few minutes, we arrived at our destination. It was basically a large room with about fifty beds, each connected with wires that converged into a single console in the middle of the room. One would simply lay in the bed, adjust the headrest where the neural interface was, the allow the administrator to set up the virtual scene.
“We normally use this for training purposes,” Seth explained. “Our brightest coders installed models of actual Demons in the program.”
“But don’t worry,” Keli reassured us. “It’s not real; you don’t really die and you can’t feel pain.”
“So basically like real life for me,” Isaac said with a massive grin on his face.
“Once the program reads your avatar as dead or critically wounded, you are pulled from the simulation,” Amelia said.
We walked over to the console and got a look at the interface. There were options to choose how many players, which training drill, the difficulty, and several other preferences.
“My personal favorite is fighting the Titan, but that might be a bit too advanced for you guys,” Seth said.
“That’s funny, considering we’ve fought against an actual Titan and you haven’t,” Lynn remarked.
“Whoa, you fought a Titan?” Seth looked both scared and impressed. “How’d you guys make it out alive.”
“We didn’t all make it out alive.”
“Oh, I see. I’m very sorry,” he turned back to the interface and began typing. “I know, let’s try Swarm Survival.”
“That sounds kinda terrifying,” Cora said.
“Don’t worry, I’ll make sure nothing happens to you,” Aaron said confidently.
“It’s virtual reality Aaron, I’m not stupid.”
After a moment of uncomfortable silence, Seth indicated the program was ready.
“Go ahead and lay down on a bed,” Amelia requested.
As we did so, Keli explained the rules.
“Basically, you guys start out in a massive clearing in the middle of a forest. It’s at night so vision is limited.”
Amelia continued, “Once the drill begins, a Swarm will emerge from the forest and your job is to kill them all with the weapons provided. Ammunition is replenished but only at the end of each round.”
“So we can’t use our powers?” Rachel asked.
“Unfortunately, we haven’t found a way to integrate our powers into the VR program,” Seth replied. “That would involve hacking into the various engines defining the world and it’s a real struggle trying not to destabilize reality. But in my opinion, it’s better to learn how to survive without superpowers; that way, it’s easier to survive with superpowers, am I right?”
“That’s probably the dumbest thing I’ve heard all day,” Lynn said blunty.
“It’s still early,” Seth said with a wink.
“Anyway…the number of Demons will increase as you clear more and more waves,” Keli continued. “However, the larger the Swarm, the more time you get before the next wave.”
“Time to do what?” I asked, laying onto a bed.
“The ultimate objective is to get to the beach, which is some random distance past the trees in any direction, since the island is a circle,” Amelia said. “So you have a choice: Go for the beach early and brave the few Swarm inside the dark forest…”
“…Or survive in the clearing for as long as you can, and after killing a massive wave, make a run for the beach,” Keli said. “The only downside to that is if the next wave starts while you’re still in the forest, you’re kinda screwed.”
“Sounds like my kind of drill,” Aaron said with a confident smile.
“OK, let’s do this,” Rachel said.
The rest of us agreed, and as we settled into our beds, Keli teleported to each one of us, adjusting our neural headsets. Seth moved aside and allowed Mark to examine the console’s various input parameters. After some tinkering with the options, Mark went to a bed and connected himself to a single wire.
“Alright, my body won’t be there, but I will be able to interface with the simulation and guide you through it.
“Awesome,” Seth said. “Everybody ready?”
“Ready,” we replied in unison with the exception of Cora, who started to say, “I immediately regret th-”
And with that, Seth started the simulation. My headrest grew warm, and the bed began to vibrate. My mind slowly went blank, as if I was falling asleep. When I awoke, I found myself in a clearing with the others. The sky was dark purple with two white moons pouring light over the area, and we were surrounded by tall trees about fifty feet in every direction. On the ground in front of us were some guns, swords, crossbows, and a small stack of ammunition. Aaron, Lynn, and Isaac each grabbed a rifle. Cora took a crossbow. The swords were sheathed in black scabbards, and Rachel and I each hooked one to our belt.
“This is so freaking cool!” Aaron said, looking around. Just then, a booming, female voice echoed in the sky:
Attention! Round 1 will being in thirty seconds!
“Oh shit,” Cora looked very nervous.
“Relax, it’s not real, remember?” Aaron said in a mocking tone.
“Aaron, I swear…”
I noticed that over the past few days, the two were bickering more than usual, and not in a friendly way. I wasn’t sure why, but I suspected it had something to do with the transition from the danger of the outside world to the safety of our new Sanctuary. We slowed down, and were able to think past basic survival instincts. Our thoughts became more complex, more subjective, and more about our future. Consequently, perhaps the two were now slowly discovering their incompatibility. But this wasn’t the time to ponder over our group dynamic, we had some virtual Demons to kill.
Taking position, we made sure to face every side of the forest. My hands were shaking, and I wished nothing more than to be able to use my power. It wasn’t always reliable in stressful situations, but I felt safer knowing I had it as a kind of lifeline.
Round 1…Start!
We began to hear moaning and screeching as the Swarm came running from the jungle. There were only about ten, and our gunners were able to kill them as they left the treeline. One by one, the bodies of the Swarm disintegrated into digital nothingness. Isaac lowered his gun, looking quite pleased with his work.
“Well that wasn’t so - “
Round 2…Start!
“What the shit?” Isaac fumbled around with his weapon,
quickly raising it back up.
This time, around 20 of the Swarm emerged from the forest. We gunned down most of them, but when the time came to switch mags, Rachel went ahead and quickly dispatched of any remaining Demons with her sword. Aaron reloaded least frequently, since he never missed a single shot.
“What I wouldn’t give for my airgun right about now,” Aaron said as he picked up a box of bullets.
By my calculations, the number of enemies are increasing exponentially each round. Mark’s voice had been amplified as it sounded from the sky, just like the announcer.
We barely had a minute to prepare before Round 3 started, and not much more for the next. That was when the female voice began to tell us how long we had between rounds. Near the end of Round 5, Rachel and I each had to kill several Demons with our blades, giving the others time to reload. They came very close to using up all the ammunition allotted for this wave. I was skilled enough with a sword, but my swings were heavy and I couldn't quite commit to a perfect stab. Rachel’s attacks, however, were mechanical and calculated. She was aiming for decapitation, but a strong jab to the chest seemed to work just fine too.
Round 6 will begin in 3 minutes.
“I don’t know how much more we can take,” Lynn warned.
“Agreed. I say we make a run for the beach,” Isaac suggested
“We don’t even know how far the beach is,” I said.
“I think we can tough it out for another couple rounds, it’ll give us more time to run,” Aaron suggested. “Just make every shot count.”
“Easy for you to say,” Cora commented.
Assuming each enemy is killed with the minimum number of bullets needed, and no shots miss, you will be able to survive three rounds before the allotted ammunition is no longer sufficient.
“So, realistically, we have one more round left,” Rachel said.
“Speak for yourself, my perfect aim has nothing to do with my power,” Aaron replied.
“Here’s an idea,” Cora began. “Why not kill as many of the next wave as we can, but leave a few of them still alive. The next round won’t start until we clear the whole wave, so then we can make a run for the beach without worrying about any more of the Swarm popping up in the forest.”
We paused for a moment.
“That’s brilliant!” I said. “It’s so simple, I can’t believe I didn’t think of that.”
“Well, honey, that’s why I’m the genius and you’re just kinda smart.”
“I’m trying to read the game code to find exceptions…it's mostly hidden variables and functions. But based on the data available, it could work.
Cora was about to respond but was cut off by that familiar voice in the sky.
Round 6…Start!
A Swarm of hundreds came charging out of the woods in every direction. Rachel and I had no choice but to use guns to mow down as many of them as we could. If one of them got too close while one of us was reloading, Cora used her crossbow to buy us some time. After what seemed like an hour, our ammo was just about depleted. Each of us had about half a magazine left, which we decided to save just in case for the run to the beach. For now, we each picked up a sword and stood back to back, facing every direction. There were a few dozen Demons left, all quickly advancing from the treeline.
“Don’t stray too far from this position,” Cora said, catching her breath. “Let them approach, advance for the kill, then immediately retreat back.”
With this plan, we were able to cut down most of the Demons. When the attacks started to subside, we stopped a moment before killing our next target to make sure it was the last. Eventually, there was only one left. Rachel raised her sword.
“Wait!” Cora called out. “That’s the last one, I think.”
“Ok, now we head to the beach,” Aaron said.
Rachel kicked away the last Demon and we all ran into the jungle. Within seconds, the light of the moon faded and the Demon’s snarling was no longer audible. It wasn’t just dark, it was pitch black. I could barely see my sword in front of me, let alone any of the others.
“Ok, which way?” Isaac asked, breathing heavily.
This place is an island. Head in any direction, away from the clearing, and you’ll eventually get to the beach.
“Eventually.” Aaron repeated.
“You should probably put away your weapons,” Cora said. “You won’t need them, and we don’t want to risk killing each other.”
“What? You don’t trust me with a sword?” Aaron asked.
“Again, Aaron, it’s a simulation,” she replied impatiently. “But were this real and you had your power, then no, I still wouldn’t trust you with a weapon in total darkness.”
“Whatever you say then,” he said, throwing the blade down.
The rest of us did the same and Cora dropped her crossbow as well. We followed the sound of Aaron and Lynn’s footsteps deeper into the forest. I kept tripping over tree roots, running into low-hanging branches, and swatting away the occasional insect.
“Who had the time to code all these bugs into a simulation?” Lynn wondered.
“I don’t know but when I find out, we’re gonna have words,” Rachel responded, slapping a fly on her arm.
We were then startled by the female announcer’s voice. Warning: Swarm units will self-destruct in one minute.
“Damn.” Cora said, disappointed.
“Well, so much for that plan,” Aaron said calmly.
“Must be a system protocol to stop people from trying stuff like this.”
I’m sorry, but -
“Yeah yeah, hidden code. It’s all good,” Aaron told Mark.
“Guys, I don’t wanna die,” I said nervously.
“It’s not real, we can just try again,” Lynn said.
“I don’t wanna simulate death either!”
“Maybe we can try to make it through the next round?” Aaron suggested.
“All of the new ammunition will be at the clearing and we so cleverly dropped our weapons. When the next round starts, it’s over,” Rachel reminded him.
“Well then, our only choice is to get to the beach.”
We thought for a moment, then agreed that this was our only option. We continued to sprint further into the jungle, unsure of how far we had yet to go.
Warning: Swarm units have self-destructed. Round 7 will begin in 5 minutes.
That seemed like plenty of time, but with each passing minute, my legs got heavier and the forest got darker. I was comforted by the fact that if this was real, I would be able to use my power to buy myself more time. I would scout out the forest, find out how far the beach was and then maybe we’d have a more efficient strategy. I then realized that the Parents didn’t have powers. This simulation was their reality, and they were still able to survive. I felt some kind of strange obligation to win this game for them, and so I picked up the pace and controlled my breathing. It was a miracle we didn’t constantly trip or run into a tree.
Round 7…Start!
We immediately began to hear moans and growls coming from every direction. The further we ran, the louder they got.
“There it is!” Aaron yelled.
“I see it too! There’s a light up ahead, between the trees,” Lynn said between breaths.
“Finally,” Isaac said, “I didn’t thi- OH SHIT!”
I heard a thud behind me followed by something growling and Isaac screaming.
“Go on without me!” he yelled, followed by, “OK can someone please wake me - ”
Player has disconnected.
The Swarm were upon us now. I made the mistake of turning around again, and saw them advancing at an alarming speed. The approaching light barely lit up their faces, and even though I only caught a glimpse, their level of realism was both frightening and impressive. Picking up the pace, we made a final sprint towards the light.
Suddenly I saw a dark figure jump out from my right and attack Cora several feet ahead of me. We were close enough to the light that I cou
ld see the Demon’s face, and it was surprisingly realistic. The pale skin, the cold, lifeless eye sockets, the sharp teeth; all were incredibly detailed and vivid. Whoever designed this model had almost certainly seen one in the flesh.
Running at full speed, I kicked the Demon off of Cora and turned back to help her. But she was already up and pushing me towards the light. The growling from behind us grew dangerously loud and these last few seconds felt like hours. But we were lucky enough to reach the beach without another attack. We emerged from the forest and ran as far from the treeline as we could. Expecting the Swarm to come pouring out the forest, we were relieved when they didn’t. Within seconds of my feet landing on the soft sand, I could no longer hear the sounds of our adversaries. Slowly approaching the water, I squinted against the light of the setting sun on the horizon. The others were also resting as they admired the view. It really was the perfect beach setting. The light brown sand welcomed the bright blue waves onto shore. The orange sun gave the sky a warm glow, and the calm breeze sang and danced all around us. I continued to walk towards the water, but when I was about ten feet away, I hit an invisible wall.
“What the - ?” I put my hand up and once again felt some intangible force stopping me from going any further. Mark then provided an explanation.
The area beyond this point is only rendered for visual purposes. Players cannot enter or interact with anything past this barrier.
Moments later, the announcer spoke once again.
Congratulations! Five out of six players have completed the simulation in one hour and forty seven minutes. Please prepare to exit…
The world around me went dark. The forest, the beach, the setting sun, they all disappeared and soon I was surrounded by absolute nothingness. A second later, I woke up in the VRC along with the others.
The Children of New Earth Page 14