Dungeon Core Online 1 Chapter 1

"I think everyone is." James knew the group having the conversation well. They were seniors at his high school and were a part of the 'popular' crowd. James sighed and tuned them out, turning his attention to the poor excuse for lunch before him, his thoughts drifting.

The game they were talking about was Dungeon Core Online. It was a brand-new Virtual Reality Massively Multiplayer Online Game, or VR MMO for short, releasing that night. For the past two years the game had been hinted at, but very little had actually been shared. That is, until two months ago, when the developers finally allowed the masses a brief glimpse into the world. The game promised not only complete freedom in character creation and growth but a constantly evolving threat. A dungeon that apparently grew with the characters in the game, growing ever stronger, and offering ever increasing rewards, as players worked together against it.

James knew the cool kids wouldn't normally be diving into a 'nerdy fantasy game'. What made this game so appealing, what was going to pull them away from their first-person shooters and sports games, was the appeal of the countless rewards. Ever since society became fully integrated into the virtual world in 2042, games that promised increased rewards generated the most hype. This was because anything you gained in game could be turned into real life currency. That meant a brand-new game, promising ever growing rewards, would obviously draw in the largest crowd.

At least, that is why James was certain so many people would be logging into DCO tonight, abandoning their other characters, their other games, to immerse themselves into this new game. Even in the year 2057, humans were still always chasing after a single thing, wealth. That was why James was sure the others would play. For him, he didn't care for money. In fact, he had earned quite the fortune through his adventures in the Warcraft Universe. The reason James was looking forward to playing DCO was for the excitement of the unknown.

With a grin he stood and headed out of the cafeteria, his mind already swirling with fantasy, his heart throbbing with excitement. All that stood between him and his new adventure, his new life, was-

James's foot suddenly found itself caught on something, and as he toppled to the floor, his plate scattering food all over his clothes, he saw one of the seniors smirking. They had purposefully tripped him.

"Watch were you're going," the largest of the group, Dwight, said with a sneer. James slowly stood, noting that while his clothes would need to be washed the rest of him was okay. He was especially glad his glasses hadn't broken. Every student had to have a pair of Augmented Reality, or AR glasses on for lectures. The school offered basic sets to every student, but James had used some of his funds to order himself a special set.

Most AR glasses had a basic processor and the ability to use the public WiFi to allow users to view the augmented world around them and access the internet. James's glasses were top of the line, giving him not only the crispest AR experience available but also access to his own WiFi network. On top of the increased browsing and processing speeds he had, he was able to link his glasses via his private network to his immersion system at home.

Full immersion was only initiated from 10pm till 7am, an effort by the government to regulate society on the same time schedule and to prevent immersion deaths. In the early years of full immersion, many people began to completely reject the real world, choosing to stay fully immersed until they died. The government didn't' care too much about the loss of human life, but the loss of a work force had started to lead to a decline in the real world, so restrictions were established.

While you couldn't fully immerse outside of the set time, if you had access to your immersion system, say through high powered AR glasses, you could still access many features in the countless games, from monster training mini games, to gear customization and item transfers. It also gave you access to the immersion auction house, where players from around the world traded countless items and services in exchange for V Coins.

James's glasses served as his escape from the drab life he lived as a junior in High School and he would have hated to have to use the schools set for the day.

"Sorry about that." James mumbled as he picked up his tray, trying his best to ignore the senior's snickers as he started to walk away from them. They loved to pick on him, and the fact he didn't have any friends in school made him an easy target.

"Say, Specs." That was the nickname they had given him, because of his upgraded AR glasses. They had tried to steal his glasses once, but James had made sure they were retina locked.

"What?" He paused and turned slightly, knowing all eyes were on him in the cafeteria.

"You like nerdy things, right?" Dwight was grinning wickedly. James just stared at him, refusing to respond.

"D asked you a question, punk." Rick, the second largest senior and Dwight's best friend, hopped off the table he was sitting on as he spoke, eyes narrowing at James. James knew he should just answer them and be on his way. But he really wasn't in the mood. Especially with mashed potatoes dripping off his shirt.

"Yeah, I like nerdy things." He replied through gritted teeth. Why were there never teachers around when this happened to him.

"So, you going to be on DCO?" Dwight was looking James up and down, his grin growing.

"Probably." James replied, shrugging his shoulders.

"Tell us your username, maybe you can play with us." Dwight had an evil look in his eyes. One of the greatest benefits of full immersion was the ability to become whoever or whatever you wanted. Only the government could find out which usernames were linked to individuals, and while many people chose to share their given usernames with their friends, James kept his secret. Partially because he had no friends to share it with, and partially because he was certain if bullies like Dwight found out what his username was, they would endlessly harass him. He got enough of that in the real world, he didn't need it in the virtual world.

"I haven't figured it out yet." James lied through gritted teeth.

"Well, maybe we can help you figure one out." Rick walked casually towards James, looking down at his hand which he was clenching and unclenching into a fist. James knew exactly what type of help he was about to receive. He needed to get away, fast.

"Thanks, but I'm sure I can come up with something on my own." James backed towards the door, silently praying for some sort of help. A split second later a bell rang throughout the cafeteria, signaling the end of lunch, and his salvation. As he escaped from the seniors, saved by the bell, he let out a sigh of relief. All he needed to do now was survive the rest of the day.

Chapter end