At the top of his visor popped up, [Project Phoenix Day 2038-10-05-17]. Jack looked at the display twice.
“Alfred how long have I been here?”
“Two days, sir.”
“Exit Project Phoenix!” he screamed at the top of his lungs.
♦ ♦ ♦
Jack pulled the helmet off. “What the fuck! Two days. Why didn’t you pull me out?”
April pressed her hand against his chest. “Relax. It was only two hours.”
“I feel like I’ve been up for hours.”
“That’s normal. It takes time to adjust to the simulation, it speeds your brain up to 24 times its normal limit.”
“Yeah, we used that in company meetings, but they only lasted 5 minutes or less.”
“Many people find it easier to cope with if they meditate while in the game. If you relax your mind in game, you’ll do fine; physically you’re still fresh. We’re keeping track of your vitals here on screen. How about a short break and then you get back in?”
“Okay.”
April showed Jack the bathroom, and the small kitchenette that had been set up for him. Everything he needed aside from a bed, was in the basement. They’d clearly thought of everything.
“April?” Jack adjusted the seat to tilt up an inch more than previous time.
“Yes.”
“How many people have you had do this?”
“Don’t worry, it’s completely safe.”
“I’m a prisoner, I don’t really have a choice. I’m just curious how many others like me there are.” Jack placed the half-helmet on himself, while April strapped it in behind him. “I mean, what does the FSB care about Project Phoenix for?”
“Focus on the game, not our motives. Otherwise, you’ll be burning trash in a work camp. Now get in there.”
He did as he was told. “Activate Project Phoenix.”
Chapter 6
Project Phoenix Day 2038-10-05-19
Alfred’s voice came through Jack’s headset. “Welcome back, sir. Are you ready to continue the tutorial?”
[Confirm] [Decline]
Jack blinked on [Decline]. “Can I just skip the rest and get into the game?”
“Yes, sir. Please select your starting location, or say elaborate to see more about a selection.”
[Space Station] [Earth Replica] [Mars Colony] [Random]
“Elaborate [Space Station].”
Project Phoenix offers three [Space Station] starter options. [Space Station: Earth] [Space Station: Jupiter] [Space Station: Kuiper Alpha]. Each offer their own advantages and starter pack of equipment. You can select a [Space Station] by blinking on one, or say elaborate to read more about a selection.
“Elaborate [Space Station: Kuiper Alpha].”
[Space Station: Kuiper Alpha] is the first of six planned space stations in the Kuiper belt. Deep space miners and explorers use the [Space Station: Kuiper Alpha] as their home base. Several spacial rifts occurred naturally visoraround the Kuiper Belt, and [Space Station: Kuiper Alpha] was built to take advantage of three of them.
Starter equipment includes [Silver: Spacesuit] [Copper: Rifle] [1,000 yuan]
You can select a [Space Station] by blinking on one, or say elaborate to read more about a selection.
[Space Station: Kuiper Alpha] sounded good enough to Jack, and the idea of being farther out in the solar system than any human actually had been intrigued him. He blinked on [Space Station: Kuiper Alpha].
You have selected [Space Station: Kuiper Alpha].
[Confirm] [Decline]
Jack blinked on [Confirm], and for a few seconds everything went black. Then he stood in the middle of a massive space station.
Jack looked up. Eight levels of walk ways hung over his head, but it felt like he was standing on earth. He jumped; the space station had the exact same level of gravity as earth. He wondered if the simulation had been programed to handle gravity properly, or if the space station had been programmed to simulate earth’s equivalent gravity.
Alfred’s voice came through again. “Welcome to [Space Station: Kuiper Alpha], sir. You’re on the docking level. Select [Floor Plan] to see a full layout of the station.”
Jack wasted no time. “Alfred display [Floor Plan].”
A three dimensional display of the space station shown before him. He waved his hand, and it passed through the image without disrupting it. The station looked remarkably similar to SpaceX’s new plans for the Mars Orbital Habitat. “Great artist steal.” Jack thought.
The floors were numbered 1 through 8 and the bottom level, three times the size of any other level, labeled D.
[Level 1] was a giant translucent dome, made of a carbon crystalline material. Jack looked up and could see the color-dance from the magnetic shield being bombarded by dust particles.
[Level 2] was the entertainment level, and held everything from restaurants to a casino.
[Level 3] had a section labeled departure.
“Alfred, what’s the section labeled departure for?”
“That’s where the spacial rifts can be accessed, sir. A great place for new members of the station to find work.”
“Work?”
“Yes, sir. Rent, Food, and Water rations will cost you an average of ¥1,200 yuan per day.”
“I’ve only got ¥1,000 yuan.”
“Yes, sir. May I recommend the departure section on level 3? There’s usually a bid for jobs there.”
Jack didn’t understand that appeal of a game where you needed a job to make money, so you could afford to play. The elevator ride to the 3rd floor gave him time to contemplate this. He hoped the jobs would at least be fun. They’d have to be. Otherwise why were over a billion people playing this game daily?
When he stepped off the elevator he was floored away by the sea of bodies, huddled together in massive swarms. The room could fit 100 people comfortable, but twice as many had crammed themselves in. At the far end of the room were three massive arch ways with blue neon signs displayed, [Spacial Rift: AC1I] [Spacial Rift: AC1II] [Spacial Rift: W359I].
People stood on raised podiums, scattered throughout the room. It reminded Jack of a poorly executed con he’d attened in his youth. Booths had been placed at the last minute with no planning. When Jack looked at them a display would pop up showing what job they were trying to put a team together for.
He made his way through the crowd towards the archways and practically tripped over his own feet as an absurdly attractive woman atop a podium caught his eye. She had her helmet off and held it at her hip, allowing her fiery red hair draw people in. Her hair was cut short and spiked, not a common look outside of the game. Her nose and lip both had a silver loop in them, and he realized her eye color shifted between blue, red, and purple.
“Excuse me.” Jack said.
She looked down at him from her podium. “3,700 yuan, plus 10% of the loot.”
Jack hadn’t read the job details.
Five man team needed to raid Alpha Centauri mining complex.
Gear Level - Open
Risk Level - Gold
Loot Level - Silver/Blue
Slots Open - 1/5
“Well?” She asked. “We need one more man. Are you in or out?”
“I don’t know. I just got here.”
She laughed at him. “You’re a noob?”
“Yeah.”
“And you chose the Kuiper station? You’re fucked!”
“What?”
“They just opened this up as a starter station, because players who died were getting pissed at having to start over at Mars and work their way back out here over and over.”
“Can you help me? I want to learn and I’m willing to work for half price.”
A pop-up showed on his visor. Lucy inspected you.
“You weren’t kidding.” Lucy said. “You’re still in the starter gear.”
“Yeah. I just got her a few minutes ago.”
“I tell you what. I’ll accept you and give you my backup gear. It’s worth a
bout 4,000 yuan. In return you’ll do as I say and if you survive, I’ll give you 5% of the loot. Deal?”
“Yes. Thank you!”
Contract from Lucy - raid Alpha Centauri mining complex
Pay - 5% of loot value.
[Confirm] [Decline]
Jack blinked on [Confirm] as fast as possible.
“Switch to channel Lucy Fucks Hard”
“How?” Jack asked.
Lucy laughed at him again as she stepped off her podium. “Fucking noobs. Tell your AI to switch to channel Lucy Fucks Hard.”
“Alfred switch to channel [Lucy Fucks Hard].”
On the left-hand side of his visor a translucent chat channel popped up.
Lucy: There he is.
Chris: Hey.
Talon: Welcome.
Mike: Fresh meat!
Lucy: Jack, tell your AI to link channel. It will stop the chat window and open the audio.
“Alfred, Link channel.”
Jack is now linked.
The team came through loud and clear in his head, along with Alfred. With just Alfred it had been bearable, but the new chatter overwhelmed him. He had to squint his to focus on his surroundings while their voices ran on in his head.
“You can tell your AI to mute at any time.” Lucy said. “Guys lets keep it down for a few minutes while the noob adjusts.”
She tapped on his visor, and he looked at her. She gestured for him to follow.
He’d experienced group chat in the office before, but it had never felt like this. Four new voices joined in, and Jack wondered if that was how schizophrenics felt.
“Hold tight guys.” Lucy said. “I’ve got to run the noob back to my room to get him geared up. We’ll leave in 15 minutes.”
Jack followed her to the lift.
“Like what you see?” she asked.
“Umm, sorry.” He’d been inadvertently staring at her ass while she walked and she’d caught him when they stepped into the lift.
“Don’t be. Just don’t lose focus on the mission and get yourself killed.”
Chapter 7
October 5th, 2038
April checked Jack’s vitals on the monitor. His heart rate was through the roof, but his brain activity remained within normal parameters. Even though Jack’s adrenaline levels spiked, April doubted he needed any help. Besides, If he died so early in the game, she’d have to cut him loose and send him to the labor camps.
Her intercom buzzed, and she pressed the flashing red button. “Agent 6 dot 14, 32.”
“How’s the subject doing?”
“Good, sir. He’s been in for a little over two hours.”
“Send me an encrypted update the moment he comes out.”
“Yes…” Her boss hung up before she finished.
“I’m screwed if this doesn’t work.” April thought. She looked back to the monitors. His vitals were normal again.
April took a deep breath and took another sip from her coffee. If she couldn’t prove her theory about Project Phoenix by the end of the month, it could just as easily be her sent to a labor camp.
Chapter 8
Project Phoenix Day 2038-10-05-19
Jack stood before the archway for [Spacial Rift: W359I]. Fully geared, thanks to Lucy, with: [Gold: Space Suit] [Silver: Gravity Boots] [Copper: Laser Rifle] [Blue: Wrist Radar].
Lucy convinced him to hand over his ¥1,000 yuan for the blue item. He’d been reluctant, but figured he owed her for giving him the chance. Besides, the radar would mean he could see threats before they came, and hopefully keep them alive. Lucy had a [Blue: Wrist Adrenaline], which gave her a massive boost of focus and speed for when the shit hit the fan.
“Okay, fucktards.” Lucy said. “The plan’s simple. We go through, rent the rover, drive north and take down the mining complex. And we don’t kill anyone!”
“You’re never any fun.” Mike said. “What’s the point of being pirates if we don’t kill people?”
“If you kill the wrong person, they’ll put a hit out on us.” Chris said. “If we only rob them, they’re less likely to retaliate after the fact.”
“Are we robbing players or NPCs?” Jack asked.
The four of them laughed, and Talon said, “There are no NPCs. Unless you count the AIs.”
Jack started second guessing the plan. “Why not just mine ore for yuan then?”
“You go right ahead.” Lucy said, “It’s only like 300,000 yuan for a micro class mining ship.”
“How the fuck do I earn that much?”
“You don’t” Talon laughed. “You send credits to your account like a normal person, or you take out an in game loan.”
“Enough chatter. Let’s go.” The archway shimmered with a blue glow, and Lucy ran through it.
They followed behind, with Jack bringing up the rear.
The trip lasted nearly a minute, and felt as if his body had been pressed into pancake before being blown back up again like a balloon. It took him a few seconds once they reached the other side to refocus. HIs heart raced, and he kept checking himself to make sure he was in one piece. Lucy helped hold him up, his legs had turned to jelly.
“You’re fine noob.” She said, “You’ll get use to it. Mike puked the first time he went through.”
“Yeah bro, it’s all good.” Mike patted him on the back. “Deep breaths.”
They were standing outside a two story complex on a cliff face of a mountain stretch, making it impossible to see north. The arrival pad was suspended in mid air by cables that had been embedded in the rock face.
They followed Lucy to the rover depot and climbed into an oversized go cart, that had been refitted to operate on the alien planet. Jack had to sit in the storage bed since he was the new guy, and Lucy took shotgun. Chris turned the key, and the engine fired right up.
Lucy turned on the map display on the rover. She pointed on the screen and a dot appeared. “That’s us.” She pointed again about 50 kilometers north. “That’s the mining complex.”
“Got it.” Chris let the clutch out and the rover jerked forward. “My bad. It’s been a while.”
A ramp led from the arrival pad to the bottom of the mountain, allowing visitors access to the planet’s surface. Jack’s visor said they were at least 300 meters in the air, but the rover was fast and they made it down the ramp in under a minute.
“Ammo check.” Lucy called out
Everyone checked in that their guns were loaded and ready.
Jack sat quietly in the back while the other four bullshitted with each other and cracked jokes. Occasionally they’d say something to him or ask a question, but for the most part they let him be. It suited him, he was still adjusting to the game, especially the realistic distances and time frames it took to do anything. It was a great thing the game played at 24 times the speed of real life.
Jack was wondering about sleep, and what would happen if he were to spend a full 24 hours of real time inside the game at once.
“There it is.” Lucy was standing on her side of the rover. “Mike scope it out!”
Mike rested his rifle on the roll bar as Chris brought the rover to a stop.
“Three men outside.” Mike said.
“Ok.” She said. “Radio silence join the channel.”
“Alfred switch to channel [Lucy Fucks Hard].”
Mike: Do you want me to take them out?
Lucy: No. I said no killing. Chris you drive us in, and we’ll hop out. Shoot to disable, not kill.
Chris swung around the complex to the west, so they came in from the north west side, hidden by hills of stone until the last minute. The whole mining area looked like volcanic island, except the rocks were purple and blue, rather than black.
Chris hit the brakes hard when they were under 20 meters from the front entrance. The rover fishtailed, but Chris’s skills slid them into the perfect position. They stopped. Jack’s cargo bed faced the guards, and in the moment of hesitation on their part, Jack opened fire. He aimed for the closest man
’s leg, and to his surprise the flash of green light tore through the mans suit. There was no blood, but the man fell to the ground clutching his leg.
Before Jack could take aim at another guard, Mike and Lucy were out of the rover and shot them.
Lucy: Jack, there’s [Suit Tape] in the back. Patch them up, so they don’t die.
Jack dug around until he found a golden roll of adhesive fabric, nearly as wide as his thigh. “Space age duct tape?” He thought. Mike had disarmed the men while Jack had been finding the tape, and helped Jack patch up the guards holes. Mike also used some kind of liquid that hardened quickly, to handcuff the men’s arms in front them.
While they’d been dealing with the guards, Talon had planted explosives on the entrance door.
Talon: The base is shielded. I don’t know if it’s pressurized. Watch out!
Lucy: Wait.
Lucy pressed a button on her suit and suddenly her voice boomed out with a megaphone effect. “Stand back from the door. We’re going to blow it. Put your hands up and you won’t be shot. We’ll give 15 seconds to put your helmets on.”
“15, 14, 13…”
“3, 2, 1.”
The moment she said 1, Talon hit the button. Fire engulfed the front of the front of the complex, and scorched the rocky surface up to 10 meters away. It had been a good thing they took cover around the corner with the guards.
The four of them charged the complex, while Chris stayed in the rover with a gun pointed at the guards. He wouldn’t hesitate to shoot them if they moved, Jack assumed.
Four men were standing inside the complex, with their arms raised, backs against the wall.
Lucy’s voice was back to normal. “Are there any more?”
One of the guys spoke up. “No, just us. Please don’t kill us!”
Lucy: Knock them out.
Mike and Talon fanned out and used stun guns to knock the men out.
Lucy: Jack check for others.
The room was a large circle with four doors, or three and a giant hole from the explosion. The first door led to storage containers.
Jack: I found the ore.
Mike: Way to go Jack!
The others carried out the containers to the rover while Jack continued his search. They knew which ore would be worth the most so it was irrelevant for him to help.
Jacked In Page 2
