Chapter One

Edward Colt was a young man with a dream. Granted, that dream was to get to lunch early today, but the man was dedicated to his dream nonetheless. As he was sitting at his desk and watching the clock tick by, Edward felt the saliva in his mouth gather like a river to a dam, his mind filled with anticipation for the warm hotdogs he would purchase from the cafeteria. His stomach rumbled in hunger, though he tried to ignore it.

His coworkers nearby also stared at the clock in anticipation. Most of them hadn't eaten breakfast that morning, considering they were all called in early, so most of the office shared the same sentiment. Thus, when Edward looked around, he found most of his coworkers waiting with bated breath. Even Edward's boss, Markus, repeatedly tapped his pen against his desk as his knee bopped up and down.

Finally, the clock struck eleven! Everybody immediately stood up, a few of them donning their coats while a few others readjusted their ties. Edward was one of the few who wore a more casual attire to work, so he didn't have to bother with a coat or a tie.

"Finally!" Edward whispered in celebration as he joined the river of coworkers heading to the elevator. As he walked, Edward felt a hand slap against his shoulder. He turned, then was met with Markus's grinning smile. Markus was a cool boss, one of the best Edward had ever had, but that was probably because they had known each other for years. They had met long before Edward even began working for him. The two of them were of a similar age, with similar interests and ideals. To Edward, Marcus was his friend before he was his boss. 

"Care to join me?" Markus asked with a smile, "I was hoping to invite Megan and Frank as well, but I can't find them."

"Sure," Edward nodded as he began to walk by Markus's side. The two of them quickly found the elevator, though they couldn't fit inside as it was already full. A few other unfortunate coworkers waited alongside them as the elevator's doors closed.

As they waited for the next one, Edward turned to Markus and soon noticed the faint smile on Markus's face.

"What's got you in such a good mood?" Edward asked his friend. Markus turned to look at Edward, surprised for a moment before he pulled out his phone and turned it for Edward to see.

"Have you heard of this?" Markus asked. Edward looked at the electronic screen and squinted his eyes. His eyesight wasn't very good, especially when he was reading. However, after a moment or two of concentration, he managed to make out what he was seeing.

"Avalon Online? What's that?" Edward asked. Markus appeared to be showing him a video game poster, one of a game he didn't recognize. There was a young blonde woman in the center of the poster. Her eyes faced the viewer while a few knights surrounding her in defensive positions. They were standing in what appeared to be a green forest, though tall snowy mountains could be seen in the distance behind them. Layered over the game characters, the words 'Avalon Online' were printed in bold green lettering.

Edward wasn't a very big consumer of online video games, though he knew Markus occasionally kept up with the news. Thus, so did Edward.

"Desert Industries finally released the full dive gear," Markus explained. Edward's eyes widened in recognition. What little he knew about video game news usually involved Desert Industries, a famous tech company that consistently released next-gen gaming equipment every year since their founding. The full dive gear, an extremely popular product, was one of the few things that kept Edward interested.

Up until now, there wasn't much information available about this product. It was officially named the Desert Dive Set, or DDS for short. It was shaped like a thick biking helmet, though it was twice the size. The technology built inside the DDS allowed it to connect directly to the user's nervous system through advanced brain-scanning technology.

Edward knew that the product promised full immersion in a video game, supposedly in a way that would flip the industry from the ground up. No longer would players feel limited by a keyboard or a controller. With the DDS, they could control their game characters with their real muscles, or it would feel that way, at least. This would all happen while the player's main body rested comfortably at home.

Honestly, such a product was impossible to even believe in. Edward thought the DDS would fail when he first heard about it. He believed it might be released while full of bugs or maybe outright dangerous, so he didn't pay too much attention to its development.

However, when Edward looked closer at the game poster, he saw in the subtext 'sponsored and supported solely by Desert Dive Set' and his eyes widened once more.

"They've already made a game for that technology? When did the DDS release?" Edward asked as he turned his attention back to Markus.

"Just a few hours ago. Desert Industries released the game alongside the headset, so anybody who buys a headset will also own the game. I've already ordered one, myself," Markus explained. He put his phone back into his pocket, then turned to the elevator as the doors opened once more. Edward, Markus, and the few office workers left on the floor quickly shambled in. One of Edward's colleagues pressed the button leading to the ground floor, then closed the doors with the button just beside it. Markus turned back to Edward, "What about you? Are you going to get it?"

"A part of me still doubts it'll work. How much does it cost?" Edward asked, mildly curious. He was still skeptical but knew that if the product worked as advertised, it would be a massive success. The developers would be correct in stating that it would flip the game industry as a whole, considering both consoles and computers would become older tech that simply couldn't compete anymore.

"A little over three thousand dollars," Markus answered, causing Edward to whistle in surprise. When it was first advertised, expected costs ranged near the twenty thousand mark, "It's honestly less than I thought it would be, considering what it's been advertised to do."

"That's still quite a lot," Edward smiled wryly. Markus smiled in response.

"I'll let you borrow mine for a day, if it'll eliminate that doubt. It should arrive a bit before the day ends," Markus smiled. Edward turned toward his friend, then slowly nodded. He still expected the product to be a total waste, but he held a sliver of hope for its success.