“Oh my god. The Dead Zombie is standing as if that throw didn’t even hurt him.”
“Look! There comes the Paladin’s of Light. The Dead Zombie is cleaning house!”
“Join us next time on Death Bringers!!”
“Look out!!...”
He could hear the television turn from behind.
The bartender groaned and tossed the remote on the back counter. “There’s really nothing but drama on that show. Hey buddy, bar is closing.”
He stood and walked towards the counter and tossed a few credits onto the counter. “See you tomorrow Frank.”
“You have a good friend. No driving now.”
He stumbled outside and looked at the sky. Night time had never looked so clear. Stars twinkled and the sky was clear enough to see them at their brightest. The cold air filled his lungs. He put on his heavy cloak and walked down the sidewalk.
Groves Nine is known to be a very peaceful side of the city. Even during the day traffic is rarely seen in this area. Businesses keep from entering the area. The only reason to travel to this part of the town is to visit the various gentleman clubs and bars. Many of which are not as seedy as the ones in the red light district but the service is much better and friendlier.
He leaned back in his chair and stared the window. The apartment shook as the train passed the building. The lights from the train illuminated his empty room. A few blankets rested in the corner of the room while unworn clothing dangled from broken hangers in the closet.
He leaned forward in his chair and tapped his notebook with a pen. He took a deep breath and sighed. He tuned out the sounds around him and began to write:
To whomever finds this letter….
MMORadio
As told by Arzada Solace
Chapter One
In all my years I never thought that someday I would find myself living a most uneventful life. Had I know this then maybe I would have savored the adventures I had before coming to this planet.
In my younger years I lived on a planet named Blythe which in their language stood for, never-ending. Blythe was a strange planet. I traveled there one day and found myself caught in a complex series of storylines. From the story about a man that never lost his memory of his past life to a girl whom possessed the ability to control the demon and angel inside of her which allowed her to defeat the deadly underworld leader, Queen Lilith.
I escaped from the planet and traveled deep into the galaxy of dragons. It was here I found myself trapped in a war between two boys. One had been labeled the Prophecy while the other was named the Prodigy. Both of these young boys were given the ability to change the galaxy.
I have seen the ends of time and I have seen the beginnings. I have even traveled to the unconsciousness of the cosmos and have lived in the fantasies of the dimensions.
Yet in all my travels I have never come across a planet where music was used as a weapon and as a way of uniting the people together into peace and harmony. However, something like that wasn’t easy, especially when the planet is plagued with technology.
This planets history is a strange one. Much of it has been rewritten in order to keep a form of piece amongst the inhabitants. It almost reminds me of Blythe.
In the year 34XX, technology on this planet advanced so far that it allowed for better entertainment. An old corporation which I have battled for years known as Rayne Corp., appeared once again. They became the leading company in online gaming. Using the latest technology, Rayne Corp. gave players the ability to wire in to a network and live within an online game. However, I have always known Rayne Corp. to cause trouble and that case still remains true. On October 22, online gaming took a turn for the worst. Gamers could not jack out of the system. They where forced to stay in the game world and live out their lives as their alter ego. This marked the beginning of the troubles and the start of Rayne Corps power. Only four days later, a program in the system was activated. Citizens awoke to find their homes had changed. Their city had been altered and turned to a city found in an online game. Before long states and countries changed into lands that only existed in computer code. Gamers united and saw this as the only chance to play an online game for real life. Unfortunately, they had not expected that death remains the same.
I can remember it as if it was just yesterday. I stepped out of the shuttle and looked at the crowd. I wasn’t sure what my mission was going to be or what the problem even was. I then spotted the person that summoned for my help. It was at this point, that our story begins…
“Hey, Crin!! Over here!!”
Arzada smiled and walked over to his caller. “Hey, Keith, it’s good to see you again.”
“Good to see you too, Crin.” Keith shook Arzada’s hand.
“Its not Crin anymore. I left that name a long time ago. My name is Arzada now.”
“Arzada? You don’t mean that same crazy old man do you?”
“He wasn’t that crazy. Besides, he was my mentor and it’s just a way of honoring him.”
“I don’t know. Arzada De Laric doesn’t exactly have the same ring to it anymore.” Keith walked with Arzada towards the check in terminal.
“Actually, I dropped that name also and changed it to Solace.”
“A crazy old man and man of evil. I don’t understand what was wrong with your original name.”
“It’s not like I really wanted to. I struggled to get off that planet and the only way to fully break free of its grip I had to change my name and basically start life over again as someone new.”
“Well, I guess. But, still you’re the only remaining De Laric in existence. To change your name is like killing off the De Laric’s.”
Arzada placed his passport on the counter. “Arzada Solace. ID number 102280. Destination, St. Locust.” He took signed his name on a form and handed it to the lady behind the counter. “Thank you.” He picked up his bags and headed for the exit. “Don’t worry, just because I changed my name doesn’t mean I killed off my family’s life line.”
“I would surely hope not. Otherwise my job has become useless.” A figure covered in shadowed leaned against the wall.
Keith leaned over to Arzada, “He’s still following you?”
“Sadly, yes. What about your guardian? I don’t see her around.”
Keith smiled. “Due to a glitch in the system she was reassigned and I was recorded as being dead. So I don’t have this feeling of death standing over my shoulder anymore.”
The figure sunk into the wall. “We can have that changed.”
“Uhh…he’s not really going to tell them is he?”
Arzada continued to the exit. “He’s just joking around. Besides, it’s not his concern anyways.”
Keith turned off the car. “Well, doesn’t look like we are going anywhere. This traffic jam seems to be a mile long.”
Arzada rolled down the window and listened to the horns and radios. “I always wondered why people honk their horns at times like this. It’s not like its going to help any.”
“Humans are idiots. Just the other day I was cooking something on the stove and reached for it and wasn’t even thinking to use the pot holder. Burned my hand and dropped the pot on the floor. So now I have burned hands, burned feet, crack in the floor, and a pot with a dent.”
“That’s because you ARE an idiot Keith.” Arzada laughed. “Anyways, so what’s the deal? This city looks like a pretty normal city.”
“Actually, this is the only normal city left on the planet. The rest of the planet is stuck in phase changes.”
“Phase changes?”
“I don’t really know how to explain the situation. I’d rather Inhibitor give you the briefing.”
Arzada rolled up the window enough to cut down on noises from around them. “Start from the beginning.”
“Ok. Well, do you remember Rayne Corp.?”
“How could I forget? I’ve used to spend most of my time hunting down their operations.”
“Several years ago Rayne Corp. set up operations on this planet.”
“What? There’s no records of that happening.”
“I know. That’s the weird part. We investigated and turns out that Rayne Corp. had a second division. They dealt mainly in gaming technology. It was to be used to train soldiers in virtual worlds. However, after we took down Rayne Corp. this division fell into the shadows.”
“Until now.”
“Correct. Rayne Corp. Second Division has been established. And according from to our operatives, this is not the main headquaters.”
“So there’s more.”
“Yea, lots more.”
“Do we have anything on who’s running these operations?”
“Not really. We do have something though. Do you remember Project Celestia?”
“Yea, it would have wiped out a quarter of the Dragon Galaxy had it not been stopped.”
“Do you remember the creator?”
“He was digital dictator that was deleted when his database crashed after we infected it with viruses.”
“The CEO of this Rayne Corp. Second Division, seems to have the same abilities that the digital dictator had only though our reports show that it’s not the same person. Now all we need is a name for this shadow boss.”
“Not many have the ability to control the digital world. Only three people that I know of can do that and one is deleted. I wonder which this one will be.”
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