The conversation with Shelley was short and to the point. Though she was interested in going to Kragga that evening, Alan had pushed it off till later, tomorrow morning. He was still locked out, and didn’t want to have an awkward conversation about why he’d died in the game with a potential business partner. He couldn’t have been gone for more than 5 minutes, but when he returned, it was clear on the faces of Adrian and Nick that they had already decided what was going on.

“So who is Shelley?” Adrian began with a grin.

Alan was about to respond when Nick cut in. “Man, it's been less than a week! What is going on? First you break up with Denise, then you go to Cosmos --and I might as well add you let me and Adrian go on and on arguing about it in front of you-- and now you're talking to a new girl named Shelley?!” Nick grew increasingly more loud and excited as he went on. “You have got to tell us what’s going on!”

Adrian looked a little annoyed, but followed his friend, just more tactfully. “It sounds like there might be a few things you hadn’t gotten to yet when you were telling us about the break up.”

Looking at his two friends, Adrian, patiently waiting, his hands folded in his lap; and Nick’s meaty hands choking his napkin, Alan felt as if he wanted to tell them everything. His throat tightened at seeing his friends again, the first time in so many years. He reached for a glass of water, debating on telling them everything he knew. How the future played out, about his time travel, about how one of them died... That was until he saw his ring. He instead firmed up his jaw, plastered on a smile and tried to share his experiences around Cosmos.

He began by sharing his good fortune at making some early trades and his experiences on his first planet. He stayed away from giving too much advice about starting a character, but let them know that the blogger “TravelsInWonderland”, sounded like they knew what they were talking about. When he shared a little about Shelley, they both seemed surprised, disappointed and oddly enough relief. She was just a potential business partner and only had interests in planet Kragga. He even tried to convince them that he only saw her as a potential business partner too. Though, he sensed they were a little doubtful, especially when he described what she looked like. He avoided sharing too much about her background, only that she represented a business that might be interested in some of the scrap there. He also didn’t tell them about how much money he’d made and what he’d been able to purchase. Honestly, he didn’t want them to ask too many questions, not yet anyway.

Adrian spoke first, “Well it is a relief to hear that you are doing so well both in Cosmos and in the dating scene. From what my cousins say, it's never good to hop from one relationship to another.”

“Are you kidding me!” Nick jumped in, “I don’t know much about this girl, but what kind of lady wants to go look at a dump for a date. I bet she has the hots for you!” And giving a side grin to Adrian he said, “Besides, it sounds like this could be a great rebound girl! I’ve had plenty of girlfriends and the one right after the really serious breakups were always great!

Adrian rolled his eyes, “I don’t think you can count any of the girls you’ve dated as a ‘serious girlfriend.’ I think you’d need to date them longer than a month.”

“Hey, I’ve been deadly serious about every girl I’ve ever dated, They’ve just never truly understood that I needed to put myself and my boys as priorities.” Nick said in a cavalier tone. Alan and Adrian laughed at that point.

Nick flushed slightly, and looked at Adrian. “Hey, at least I go on dates. It’s not like my only date I’ve been on was with my cousin.”

“Hey man, she needed a date to the prom.” Adrian said defensively. “Her boyfriend wasn’t able to go last minute. I was just helping out!”

Nick was about to respond when Alan stepped in. “Guys, we just graduated from high school! We'll have plenty of time to date. But right now I am happily single, and that means we can finally spend some time doing things together. I say we make the most of it.”

“That's what I’ve been trying to say all along,” Nick agreed. “So me and Adrian are all set up for Cosmos tomorrow. We’ve already got reservations. Since you're the expert do you have anything in mind?

Alan nodded. He proposed to his two friends that they meet him in Kragga. Though Nick had his heart set up on a party planet, and Adrian had been debating between a few space hubs, they both agreed to meet Alan in Kragga. Alan had promised to make it worth their while. He offered to buy them each a Matter Ring. After demonstrating his own, they were sold on the idea. They planned on meeting at the Comsos’ pod hub the next day at 8:00 am the next day.

Alan had a little time before meeting his parents. While he’d been getting ready that morning he’d asked to have dinner with them, and if they’d be okay inviting his siblings too. They of course were thrilled. Before then, he wanted to run a few errands. He still had just under $100,000 dollars after purchasing the 6 pods for his family, and it was burning a hole in his pocket.

The first thing he did was call up Corbin, the Cosmos attendant. “Corbin, this is Alan. I was wondering if you could set aside 2 basic rings for purchase tomorrow..”

“Yes sir, Alan, please note that we no longer have the bonus 500 credits for the purchase of a basic ring this week for first time buyers. However, for new customers you can receive 100 credits for the purchase of a basic ring.”

“That’s fine, it's for two of my friends tomorrow. They’ll be the new customers.?”

“Of course sir. Your total will be $5000. Just please let the front desk know.” Corbin hesitated for a second before speaking, “I should inform you sir, that since the embargo, you should let your friends know that they will need to acquire VE energy that is earth enabled in order to use their rings on Earth. Otherwise they will be limited to using it in Cosmos.” He made the last point a little hesitatingly, as if he’d lose the sale.

“Corbin, thank you for telling me.” Alan offered genuinely. “I’ll be there to pick them up tomorrow.” Alan ended the call and reminded himself to give a generous tip to Corbin. It was pretty clear he hadn’t been following the script on that last part, and he appreciated the service.

Driving his car Alan made his way around town. He stopped by the grocery store, and camping & recreation store for a few supplies. Sleeping bags, food, cooking equipment, basic gear that he knew would be useful in Cosmos. Ever since it was allowed to spend 24 hours a day there just in case he encountered a situation where he couldn’t log out.

It was especially important to bring food. You could absolutely die in Cosmos if you were ‘stuck on world’ and ended up “starving to death” of course this was pretty rare, and you wouldn’t actually die in reality. It was just often very unpleasant. Matter rings of course were excellent and slowing down the delay of perishables. He could keep produce fresh for months, and other non-perishables for quite a long time. It was comical when a few humans would rent places on alien worlds and complain that there was no refrigerator or pantry. What wasn’t so funny was the checker at the grocery store who seemed appalled at the two grocery carts filled to capacity for only one teenager.

At the rec store, he bought everything he needed to spend weeks roughing while also picking up two more 4-wheelers, and a lot more gasoline while he was at it.

Finally, he stopped by a store with large red letters in front called “Locked n’ Loaded.” Stepping inside, Alan smelled tobacco and gun oil. A man in a red flannel shirt sat behind a counter with rows and rows of rifles and shotguns. Along the walls, glass displays held a variety of handguns and on lower shelves every kind of ammo imaginable. Looking up to the man behind the counter, he had a goatee and his hair was cut high and tight. Behind him there was a large yellow flag with a rattlesnake, and the words ‘Don’t tread on me’ written across it.

“What can I get for you young man?” The burly voice came from behind the counter.

Alan didn’t need long to decide. In his past life many players during the embargo used regular guns and ammo while playing Cosmos. VE energy wasn’t all that easy to get if you were on a ‘rural planet’ and people wanted to save it for other essentials. It wasn’t until alternate energy weapons came on the market that it slowly changed. But those first weapons went to governments and other large agencies. It wasn’t until Humanity had transferred completely to a space fleet that gunpowder guns were deemed too inefficient. In reality, traditional guns actually did better against certain opponents.

“I’d like two AR-15s and two .45 semi-automatic pistols.” Alan paused. “I’d also like a few thousand rounds of ammo for each, and some extra clips.”

Slightly taken aback at the order, the man behind the counter paused. Then with practiced nonchalance asked, “So what do you need the guns for?” As he removed an AR-15 rifle from the shelf.

“I’ve been playing a game called Cosmos, I don’t know if you’ve heard about it. I thought they would be good for self-defense.” The owner gave him a peculiar look.

Recognizing the guy had no idea what he was talking about, Alan altered his story slightly. “Anyway, in the game you defend yourself from aliens and monsters. And I had the thought that maybe it would be good for me to be able to defend my own home, you know in general.” He finished a bit lamely.

The owner nodded, “Yeah you can never be too careful. You never know when someone’s going to try and break into your home. Alien’s included.” He winked

Alan completed the purchase and wasn’t sure how serious the guy took him.

By that time, Alan made his way to his parents house. He saw his brother's car in the front. His whole family was there. Walking in he was greeted by his whole family. His little sister Alice gave him a big hug. His older brother James, and his wife, Audry, along with Alan’s parents all greeted him in turn, hugs and hellos all around. Dillan, his 2 year old nephew, was playing with some blocks on the floor, and didn’t seem to take very much interest in the commotion. Alan made sure to go up and say hi to him, and presented him with a toy action figure, trying to make up for lost time, as he hadn’t been a very good uncle. His strained relationship with James up to that point had also distanced himself from James’s family.

They ate buffet style, quickly devouring Mom’s lasagna and garlic bread. He still couldn’t believe how amazing everything tasted after so many years of going without it. It wasn’t long before everyone was full and Alan wanted to announce some business.

“I wanted to let everyone know that all six of you, Dillan included, now have 1st series pods in your name. I was able to complete the purchase.”

“What! Really!?” Alice, his sister, was the first to respond. Followed by a few milder exclamations by his brother and sister-in-law. His mother on the other hand offered a “I knew you would do it.” While his father nodded calmly. “So does that mean we are going to be able to go back?” His sister questioned. Alan nodded.

Despite his mother having gone back to Cosmos a few times, the rest of the family hadn’t had a chance to visit Cosmos since their initial visit. Alan had made sure each of them had clear enough instructions to avoid a lot of the early pitfalls of starting a new game. This included what genetics to take, what to avoid, the best knowledge downloads to take, as well as better planets to visit, and which ones to avoid. He most some general instructions, reserving his sister and mom with the more specific instructions on certain issues.

Alan briefly shared with them the 1st series pods benefits , handing them their ownership documents. :

Free Access to Terran Market : Available to Pod Owner

Immediate Access to Terran Auctions: Limited to 1st series

Plus 1 Stat point for 1st Series Permanent Pod Purchase: Limited to 1st series

Access to Planety Relocation 1x only. Limited to 1st series

10% Discount off first purchase of Terran Market Property Limited to first 1 series

1x Instant ticket to Iridescent Nebula Limited to 1st series

“There are some wonderful benefits here,” Alan began to explain, “But I want you to make sure that you don’t use your planetary relocation and 1x instant ticket to the Iridescent Nebula for now. And for what it’s worth I wouldn’t bother with the 10% Discount either, I’ve actually got a place for us in the Terran Market already.”

As they were reading through the documents. Mom spoke first. “What is this Iridescent Nebula?” Alan, conscientious of who might be listening on his ring, answered vaguely. “I’m not exactly sure, but I imagine it must be good for it to be included as a reward.” She nodded vaguely. Alan knew exactly what the Iridescent Nebula Limited was and that reward alone made the purchase well worthwhile. But it would have to come later.

Audrey spoke next. “It says here there is a Non-disclosure agreement about the benefits?”

“Yeah, I guess Cosmos tries to keep the rewards for some of these items under wraps for now.” Alan shared.

“That seems a little odd for a game, wouldn’t they want to advertise the benefits?” She offered cautiously. Audrey had always been a little shy, but when she did speak it was often to the point.

“Honestly, I think it’s to protect the consumer of 1st series pods, and to not make the benefits too well known for now. I think it's more of a ‘secret reward’ for those who are willing to commit to the game.”

She nodded, accepting the explanation. However, Alice had a different response. “So does that mean I can’t tell anyone about all the cool stuff I get with my pod?” She asked. Alan responded somewhat seriously. “I know I wouldn’t, you could end up losing it if you do.” She frowned. “Dang, I was looking for something new to add to my blog. But I guess people will probably be excited about hearing that I got the first series pod.

Alan’s eyes narrowed and he started to put pieces together, “Alice, what blog?” He tried to sound calm.

At his question, Alice flushed. “Well, it was meant to be a surprise.”And gave a sidelong glance to her Mom. “But, I was looking online, and didn’t see any good advice for Cosmos. Nothing like you gave me at least. So I figured why not, and I included a lot of the experiences of the family.” She continued more quickly as Alan’s eyes began to widen. “I know you said not to mention it to my friends, but the blog is totally anonymous! And I’ve already got like over a million hits!...” Alan had to sit.

Confused at his response she continued, “I totally helped Mom promote a demonstration with one of her products she plans to sell at business too, and it totally got like over 100,000 hits already! I mean isn’t that like great news?”

Alan felt numb, and began to fiddle with his ring, aware of who was on the other side.

“You seem disappointed,” His Mother began, “Alice was just trying to be helpful, besides this could turn into something quite profitable for the family. We just set up the account to accept revenue for the ads on the blog and the video is sure to bring in business both in ad revenue and the store.” Her and Alice were clearly not expecting such a solemn response to the exciting news.

Alan sat there, stunned. Obviously Cosmos was aware of the outlandishly good starts his family had when starting Cosmos. Would it really matter at this point if other people were benefiting from it as well? In fact, maybe it was a good thing. Alan had wanted to help humanity as a whole, and now that he was under constant surveillance, maybe having his sister share some of the knowledge he’d gained, though more indirectly, would be good. Taking a deep breath, and hoping his ring would suddenly paralyze him he asked, trying to sound cheerful “That sounds...Amazing...I’m just a little surprised is all. What's it called?”

“It’s called ‘TravelsInWonderland’” She announced proudly, “You know, because I’m Alice and because it's all about me and my family's experiences in the wonderland of Cosmos!”