When my vision returns, I am sitting amongst countless players in the stands of the great colosseum. I almost couldn’t believe my eyes at the sheer amount of people crammed into this space. Not everyone was transported all at once though. I can see people slowly trickling in, which I think was done in order to not overload the servers.

On my left sits a powerful looking man dressed in a few pieces of copper armour. He must have started hunting monsters off the get go and solely done that, as when I look above his head there is a giant green [Level: 4] symbol. Talk about cheating... It takes 60xp to get to level 4 and it took me half an hour just to get to level 2. These green symbols are only present above someone’s head when you are focusing on that person, otherwise with this many people it would be a sea of green.

On my right sits a petite female gamer. She’s wearing a hood over her head concealing her face, but otherwise she wears the standard villager clothing and is carrying a kitchen knife and a wooden short sword. She must be an assassin type as well as I can recognize the starter weapons. It seems she also has been working on levelling as I notice a green [Level: 3] above her head. In EndGame Online, as long as one is within 5 levels of the person, they can see the level above the player’s head. Otherwise, it will show [Level: ??].

Sitting in the middle here I feel like a bit of a noob, but as I look at others in the vicinity I notice many level 1’s and 2’s. This makes me feel a bit better about myself.

While i’m looking around, the guy on my left takes the initiative to strike up a conversation.

“Hi, my name is Darkbond, level 4 knight, pleased to meet you.” He introduces himself in a very polite manner. He seems like an upright kind of guy, one you could rely on, but that’s just conjecture. He offers me his hand to shake.

“Hello,” I pause for a moment. “I’m Quinn”

“Sure is surreal, eh? What class are you?” As I have my weapons concealed within my inventory, it is impossible to determine my class through just looking at me.

“Oh, I’m a level 2 assassin. Here I was thinking I had got a bit of head start, but i’m nowhere near you.” A hint of admiration can be heard in my voice.

“Haha, I got lucky and spawned in an area infested with monsters. Compared with some of the others that spawned near me, i’m a bit lacking.” He blows it off as if it were nothing, but compared to my starting spot it already sounds better. “What was it like at your spawn point?”

“Ahh well I got dropped off in the grasslands and had to make my way slowly to a farming village on the outskirts of the city” I reply with a self deprecating laugh. “Although, I did manage to get some experience with blacksmithing along the way”

“Blacksmithing, eh? You seem like a good guy, would you be interested in joining a guild with me and a couple friends?” Asking with an honest smile, it is hard to refuse this guy. “We are planning on becoming one of the top guilds in EndGame Online and just so happen to have a need for a blacksmith.”

“Thanks, but i’m not looking to join a guild at this time. It’s still too early, and besides I don’t plan on becoming a professional full time blacksmith.”

“I can respect that, but if you ever change your mind you can just find me.” Although he says that, I can see the disappointment in his eyes. “Here, let me send you a friend invite so we can stay in touch.”

Notification Player Darkbond wishes to become friends. Do you accept? Yes No

Friend invites can only be sent when a player is right next to you, but after that messages can be sent instantaneously across the world. I quickly select [Yes] and see a second name appear on my friends list.

Thinking of a way to earn some free experience out of this encounter, I offer a business proposition to Darkbond.

“I just had an idea. If you and your friends could supply me with the copper ore or bars, I could make you guys some equipment at a low cost.” That should spike his interest. I believe he will be willing to accept this offer since he was willing to invite a total stranger.

“Alright, you have yourself a deal! Copper ore only costs 5 Tor at the general store, the only problem is the supply stock.” He seems to be pondering over how to make this work. “Alright, how about you give me 3 days and i’ll have your ores.”

“Sounds good to me, that’ll allow me some time to level up and practice”

It’s a good thing that most people are too lazy to learn the production skills, otherwise I wouldn’t be able to find such a good deal. After making those ten copper daggers I only have 25 experience, that’s still a far cry away from the 960 experience needed to advance to level 2.

“So, what do you think the game creator will talk about in this presentation?” Curious about his opinion, I inquire.

“If you’re asking my opinion, I see it as a form of appreciation as well as a talk about what went into the game’s development.” Darkbond looks to the sky as he replies. “A year or so ago I watched an anime where the game’s developer did something similar and that’s what he talked about.”

“Oh? That’s curious.”

I think this whole thing is a tad ridiculous, but who am I to question the game developer.

“How about you? What do you think about this presentation?” Turning to my right I ask the petite assassin a similar question; however, she treats me as I were not there. She might be one of those stuck up rich girls with eyes on the top of her head. I let it go and turn my head towards the stage.

I watch as a middle aged man with dark black hair wearing a royal purple gown walks to the centre of the arena. He’s taking his time, but I can see that each of his steps is even and methodical. From this distance I cannot quite make out the expressions on his face even with my enhanced vision, but I imagine he must be grinning as his eyes survey the crowd.

He takes his place in the centre and the ground beneath his feet begins to rise. A massive stone pedestal erupts with him standing on top of the pinnacle looking down at us players in the pits. As this is occurring, the countless conversations between players begins to dwindle down into a low whisper. Occasional coughs can be heard as the crickets play their melody.

With his arms raised he shouts to the masses “Welcome, My friends! To EndGame Online!”

An onslaught of cheers erupted from all around. It is so loud that even I feel like joining in. I look to my sides and see Darkbond cheering his head off, but when I look to my right the female assassin has remained quiet and remains with her eyes fixed ahead of her. To each his own; even i’m not that big on cheering.

The purple robed man continues speaking with a voice of grandeur.

“As you may have noticed, I am NOT Isaac Fletcher. Nor am I a credited creator of EndGame Online.” He pauses for a moment as if to let that sink in.

““huh?””

“What’s going on?”

At this time, the whole game flickers and a group of four similarly robed figures appear from the sky; however, their actually appearance is shrouded in darkness.

“You can call me Cris Varnyne, and these fellows,” He waves his arms to point to those robed figures, “Are my lovely associates. They will be your Game Moderators. Their identities will remain anonymous, but they will be among you every step of the way.”

I don’t like the sound of this. This whole display has taken a dark turn while my mind plays out different scenarios.

The man takes on a mocking expression. “Now, you might be asking yourself ‘what is going on?’or ‘how is this related to the game?’”

*Ahem*

“Let me tell you a little story.” A smug sneer adorns his face. “500,000 players enter a game to escape reality. But, then along comes five righteous individuals and they turn that illusion into a reality. End of story.”

"The moral of this story is: We are in total control of this game, and yet, Sky Royal Studio’s is forced to continue it’s operation. That is, unless they wish for you all to cease to exist.” He starts laughing uncontrollably, so much so that tears come to his eyes. *Ahem* “But, they wouldn’t want that now would they.”

“As for our purpose, the outside world is aware of it. However! You, my friends, shall be left in the dark.” He goes throught the motion of making a toast with an imaginary wine glass.

EndGame Online’s creator is Isaac Fletcher. One of the world’s top geniuses. He has a PhD in quantum mechanics, neurology, and computer science. He is the developer of EndGame Online, and even personally designed the headgear that connects us to the system. But, somehow these five freaks managed to bypass this genius and entered the game through a back door.

Cris continues his speech. “I would like for you to take this time to open up your user menu’s.

“Go ahead, I’ve left a little surprise in each of your inventories”

I reluctantly open up my user menu and select to bring up my inventory.

User Menu Inventory >>>>>>> Inventory Copper coins 63 Silver coins 1 Small rat furs 4 Barley bread 8 Small map 1 Copper dagger 1 Small hammer 1 Iron tongs 1 Kitchen knife 1 Wooden Short Sword 1 Disposable Phone 1 Equipment Character Skills Friends List Map Bestiary Players Notes Settings Logout

I notice within my inventory there is a single use disposable phone that was not there previously. Cris continues talking, but right now I don’t know how many people are in their right minds.

“Now, that phone is a single use item and lasts for 1 minute. Think carefully before using it. I’m sure some of you may have noticed by now the [Logout] button is unavailable. Don’t worry, this is intentional and not an error, but rather was programmed especially into EndGame Online’s coding. The location is near impossible to find, so we will be enjoying each other’s company for quite some time. Hur hur.”

“W-Wha-What is he talking about?” I can hear Darkbond mumbling to himself beside me. All around me players look on in silent shock. “I don’t believe it...” “This can’t be happening to me..” “What’s going to happen to us”

The sound of Cris’s speech drags on. Obscuring their voices. “The phone allows for one call to the outside world. It doesn’t have to be used immediately, but I added it for those who wish to send a message to their loved ones. Be aware, the outside world has already been notified of your situations, but your phone calls can only be 1 way conversations.

“You may have noticed that certain characteristics of your avatars are exactly the as same your body in real life. This realistic experience was made possible through Isaac Fletcher’s ingenious method of accessing and exploring your memories. You’re memories have not been alter or tampered with in any way, nor will they be exposed. Rather, your entire consciousness, your ‘soul’ if you will, has been uploaded to the system and is now under our control.

“The authorities have been notified that any attempts at removing or meddling with the device is futile. However, if they ignore the warnings there will be only one result. Your brain will be forcefully disconnected from your consciousness, and your body will be left as a vegetable rotting away in the hospital.”

“Fret not!” Raising his voice he begins shouting hysterically. “There is still hope! All you need to do is beat the game by clearing all 100 islands and dungeons. By that time we will have achieved our goal and will no longer concern ourselves with you. You will soon call this world your home as you work together and compete against each other. I had a peak through the system files, so I will give you a couple hints. Am I not a magnanimous ruler? Each island is connected via a teleportation network only accessible after clearing each of the dungeons. The islands themselves are like separate worlds with their own self-sufficient ecosystems.

“However, I would like to remind you that EndGame Online has now become your reality. A second reality if you will. It is no longer a simple game. Should your health drop to 0, there will be no revival. No second chances. At that moment,” He pauses, “Your soul will forever be a part of the system.”

I suddenly feel the urge to vomit blood as I imagine the horrors to come. My biggest fears have come to play. I look up to the top left corner of my screen where I can see a large red horizontal bar with the numbers 110/110. This has now become my lifeline in this game of death.