“Nah, Bill,” I replied, and lowered my voice to a whisper, “I wanted to talk to you about the Kabishiyama pods.”
Bill grinned and said, “Ah, so you heard we were getting them, eh? Well, we don’t have them set up yet, and they won’t be available to use until Sosaku Online is released. How did you find out about them anyway? We haven’t started advertising them yet.”
“No one said anything. I figured you guys would be getting a couple of them, at least for your team, but the upgraded powerlines on the new extension are what cinched it for me. The expansion was already rigged for a pretty hefty power draw, so adding in more amps for the current generation equipment was way overkill.”
Bill sighed, “I see. Please keep it to yourself, we didn’t want to advertise anything about the pods until just before release of Sosaku Online. No need to get a crowd of people gawking at the hardware as its installed and delaying things. What did you want with them anyhow?”
“With everything we know about Sosaku Online, the only way to fully enjoy the game is with one of the Kabishiyama pods. If I’m going to keep the credits flowing, I’m going to have to go all in. So… I’d like to make a reservation?”
A wide grin split his face as he replied, “Hah! A reservation, eh? Well, you have been a pretty steady customer of ours since we opened this joint, and you’re not a total newb, so I’m willing to work something out with you. First off, strict confidentiality. I don’t need every streamer who’s ever played a game here to come knocking on my door looking for a deal. “
“Second,” he continued, “instead of the normal rate I’ll set you up with a discounted rate if we can agree to a set time period. The longer the timeframe, the better the deal I can give you."
"Keep in mind that these pods are a whole new world of technology. The company has been quiet publicly on them, but their sales team has told us that they are designed for long periods of play."
"There are systems built in to deal with bodily waste and nutrition and the like," he continued, and nodded in agreement at my sceptical expression. "Yeah, I know, but thats what they said. Some real space age shit. But even though that is possible, we are probably going to place limits on how long a pod can be occupied so everyone gets a chance to play. If the demands go down, we might change that up.”
Chuckling as he saw the expression on my face he continued “Yeah I’m pretty sure you’re going to be maxing out those limits aren’t you, James?”
I nodded as he continued, “Now lastly, the ‘catch’. The arcade gets a cut of your stream revenue while you are using our equipment.”
I opened my mouth to object, but he held up his hand and interrupted. “That percentage is how we can stay in business. These pods are damned expensive, and we’re going to be paying them off for a while. Sound fair?”
In the end I managed to negotiate him down to a five percent share in my stream revenue in addition to a daily rental fee of two hundred credits, which got me sixteen hours of play time a day.
Additionally, I got a buffer of four hours a week of overflow time that I could use in case I was in the middle of something time critical when my normal play session would end.
Once that buffer was gone I would have to pay overage fees for the time, which were quite a kick in the proverbial teeth. And the most important part, on launch day I was guaranteed a full twenty four hour session.
It was a pretty hefty investment, but I thought I could afford it, at least for a little while. We got the paperwork in order, and I set up the autopay options to start on launch day, confident that I would be able to be one of the first to jump into Sosaku Online.
Now it was a matter of finding something worthwhile to do in the weeks until official launch.
...
Chapter 2
The materials and equipment I put up for sale on Talion Online eventually sold. It wasn’t as much as I'd hoped for, but it would cover a meal or two for my family.
I filled the rest of the time before the release playing some old school competitive shooter games. I even managed to score another bounty when I accidentally discovered a hole in one of the newer maps in Battlezone 2497 that a player could use to get into the opposing team's base and camp their support staff without being detected.
The Battlezone bounty was only a hundred credits, which was on the low end of things, but hell, money is money.
I scoured the web for information on Sosaku Online and the Kabishiyama pods, but their teams were doing one hell of a job keeping things quiet. There was a lot of speculation on what to expect though.
Some skeptics attributed their silence to a probable flop, while many were heralding the game as the best thing to happen to humanity since the invention of the internet.
I set up my streaming channel, engaged in some good-natured banter with my subscribers as we spit balled and imagined what the new game would bring, and prepped the hype.
I promised my viewers a glimpse into the game as soon as I was able to edit the footage together, as livestreaming was a no-go at launch.
The secretive nature of Kabishiyama was causing all sorts of headaches for the streaming services, as no API’s were provided for the pods. Sure, I could use the old VR headset interface, but what was the point? People wanted to see the new shiny.
And now it was almost here. Sosaku Online was set to go live at midnight and everyone was psyched. I stood in the crowd gathered at The Lobby waiting for the doors to open.
Use of the new Kabishiyama pods sold out about five seconds after Bill and his partners began taking orders. I was damned glad that I secured my rental well ahead of time, as the prices were almost double what I locked in.
I was pretty sure Bill’s partners were pretty pissed at the deal he had given me, but a contract is a contract, so I was set, at least for the time being.
The rest of the VR setups were sold out as well. Those who couldn’t get in on the Kabishiyama pod action still wanting to plunge into the game on launch day.
Those who came late to the party filled the rest of the room and waited to watch the live video feeds supported by the legacy VR equipment.
At 11:30PM, the staff led me and nineteen other lucky players into the new section of the arcade and to our reserved pods.
They looked like something out of a deep space sci-fi movie; a shiny silver torpedo, the top sitting in the open position. The inside was padded with some new type of memory foam, and there was little evidence of any sort of wires or video screens from the outside.
The technicians verified we had all signed our waivers and agreed to all the software agreements.
Earlier in the week we were all given copies of the device manual, Terms of Service, EULA, and disclaimers to review and sign.
The pods functioned using some pretty complex nanite technology, so people with specific allergies or health conditions were not allowed to use them. Luckily, I had a clean bill of health.
There were also some aspects to the technology that some might find objectionable.
I didn’t dig too deep into the nuts and bolts of it all beyond the basics. Once the program was engaged, I would be injected with nanites that would allow me to experience the game world as if it were reality, while blocking out the real world until deactivated.
There were some other functions involving removing bodily waste and providing nutrition, but I didn’t want to make myself nauseous thinking about it.
Basically, the system fed you enough to keep your body healthy, exercised your muscles to keep them toned, and disposed of the waste.
The real wonder of these pods: spend enough time in the pod and never have to poop again.
The agreements were pretty standard for VR software, the only difference being the aspects related to the nanites, feeding, and waste management technology... and the bit related to pain.
I wonder how many other people realize that full immersion meant FULL IMMERSION. You were going to feel everything that happened to your character.
With fifteen minutes to go before launch, the techs gave us a brief safety tutorial, repeating the info we should all know from reviewing the manuals.
I glanced around and saw some people who obviously skipped that part, and probably just signed everything without bothering to read.
I winced in anticipated pity for those folks.
The safety talk was somewhat reminiscent of old school airline presentations. A pre-recorded spiel accompanied by pantomimed activity: How to safely climb into the pod, how to activate the device, and how to get out again in case of emergency. While the pod was active, we would be pretty much oblivious to the outside world.
At the five minute mark, the safety dance was over. “Good luck!” I said, waving to the other players as I climbed into the pod, seeing some return the gesture and others just looking at me in confusion.
I pulled the lid closed and tapped the startup button. After a second or two of total darkness, the inside of the lid lit up.
*** Kabishiyama Full Immersion Virtual Reality Pod Mk2.7 initializing… ***
*** All selections using the pod screen interface can be performed via either touch or voice confirmation. After initial pod integration, selections will also be available via Telemetrics. ***
*** Would you like to initialize Sosaku Online v1.0 (Yes/No)? ***
“Telemetrics?” I asked aloud.
*** Query Received: “Telemetrics?” ***
*** Answer: Telemetrics is the measurement of brain wave patterns. After initial pod integration with the user, the operating system will be able to recognize the brain wave patterns associated with simple answers with an accuracy of 99.825%. ***
*** Would you like to initialize Sosaku Online v1.0 (Yes/No)? ***
Interesting, no wonder these pods were so expensive. Reading brain waves, now that was neat, I thought.
I read the interior clock. 11:59PM. Guess it was time to get this rolling, I thought and said “Yes” out loud.
*** Initializing Sosaku Online v1.0...***
The material inside the pod expanded to conform to my body, I felt several small pinches at various points around my body as the nanites were injected, and then my senses went completely blank.
No sight, no sound, no taste or touch. If I could feel my heart, I was positive that it would be beating in panic. But seconds later sensation returned. My entire field of vision was still black, except for a single line of text and a countdown timer.
*** Sosaku Online Servers Available in 30...29…28…27… ***
It was seconds still until midnight. I watched the timer tick away, getting used to the way I was now perceiving things.
I could feel my arms, legs, fingers, etc. but there was no external stimulus. It was almost like a sensory deprivation tank, except for the countdown. Pretty damn sweet.
The timer continued, ticking away the last few seconds as I readied myself for whatever was to come.
*** 6…5...4…3…2…1... ***
*** Connection Established. ***
*** Loading… ***
The developers of this game were obviously fans of the classic Star Wars flicks, because the loading screen was an homage to the old hyperspace graphics in those movies. A quick moving star scape giving the impression of impossible speeds. I dug it.
The hyper drive medley completed, leaving me standing in a small white room, facing myself in a full-length mirror. I beheld myself in all my mundane glory, clad only in some generic undergarments.
Never was it more apparent that I should take a little time each day to work out than that moment. It was a little strange that the game knew what I looked like, but they probably had some sort of scanner in the pods, or some other technological sorcery.
To the left was a display of some statistics, giving me my first glance into the attribute system of the game. Each attribute started with a flat ten.
Strength
10
Agility
10
Constitution
10
Intelligence
10
Wisdom
10
Presence
10
Fortune
10
I focused on each stat and confirmed their functions. Everything was pretty standard for an MMO game.
Strength affected damage and carrying capacity. Agility gave bonuses to dodging, ranged weapons, stealth abilities, and other acrobatic type skills.
Constitution governed hit points, stamina, and resistances to disease and poisons. Intelligence was the prime arcane casting stat and also affected the time needed to learn new things and Wisdom impacted mana regeneration and perception-based abilities.
The two remaining stats were new to me. There was no Charisma stat. Instead, this game had a Presence stat that served as an indicator of your personal presentation, your force of personality.
Unlike the other games I was familiar with, Presence was tagged as the primary skill for divine magic, with Wisdom as the secondary stat.
The other new skill, Fortune, was simply what its name implied: Fortune. Luck. A small modifier to the RNG that could turn the tides in your favor. How much of an impact? Who knows?
To the left of the mirror was a list of races: elves of all sorts, several subspecies of dwarves, halfkin, and even a few types of humans. Mystical races from multiple schools of real-world mythos were there as well: dryads, satyrs, leshi... even gremlins.
There were also some that I had never heard of before that appeared to be custom built for this game: A type of wingless dragon-like humanoid called Drahk’nari, and a race of what looked like tropical fish people called the Ai’qular. The variety was almost too much.
I skimmed through the list and watched as my reflection changed to show what I would look like as that race. I briefly selected the Ai’qular option and it was pretty surreal to see myself sporting a yellow crest with scaled blue skin and gills. I quickly ruled that out without even looking at their stats.
I looked pretty badass as a Drahk’nari, but I feared that spending eight plus hours a day living as something that far from my normal body was going to mess with my mind.
If I was playing through a normal VR interface, I would be all over it, but the full immersion was already weird enough without adding a snout, horns, and a tail to the mix.
I decided to narrow my choices down to those that didn’t go too far from what I was used to, nixing all of the super exotic races and dwarves, goblins, and hobbitlike halfkin as well. I didn’t want to spend my digital experience with my face at crotch level to the rest of the world. One wrong step and I’d be wearing gorilla goggles… No thank you.
I started with the first of the humans, reading through the summary.
Base Race
Human
Sub-race
Karillian
Natives of the Republic of Karillia, located on the western content of Kor, the Karillian people are known throughout the lands as learned scholars, diplomats, and merchants. These humans are curious by nature and prefer to solve their issues with words and mediation over violence; however, they do possess a skilled military and are willing to back up their words with force when the need arises.
Racial Benefits
Racial Detriments
Versatile
Improved chance to learn new skills.
Improved chance to increase skills.
Minor penalty to stamina regeneration.
Minor penalty to health regeneration.
Silver tongue
Minor bonus on all trade checks.
Minor bonus to literacy skills.
Minor penalty to relationship checks with Njords, Krek, and Trollkin races.
Minor bonus to relationship checks with Sun Elves, Star Elves, D’ar Dwarves, and Drahk’nari.
Karillians appeare
d to be a pretty standard human race; Traders and diplomats with an established kingdom. They got along well with the civilized races and not so much with the wild ones.
With this race selected my overall appearance remained the same, but my tighty-whiteys were replaced with a medieval European style outfit. A brown tunic cinched with a leather belt, leather pants, calf boots, and a half cloak. Pretty standard fare.
I scrolled to the next option, seeing my appearance change again. My normally smooth-shaved cheeks were replaced with a thick beard strung with what looked like small amber beads.
My tunic and pants were replaced with furs and more rugged leathers, with a short wool cloak draped over my shoulders. I looked like one rugged motherfucker. I read through the description, absently stroking my newly acquired beard.
Base Race
Human
Sub-race
Njord
Hailing from the icebound Njor islands, this race of fearsome warriors rules the northern seas. Sailing forth on their sleek longboats, they ply the waters both for trade and plunder. Guided by the diviner priests, these rune-linked warriors are feared throughout the north for their battle prowess.
Racial Benefits
Racial Detriments
Born Raider
Crimson Sands Page 2