DCO- Dungeon Core Online

Chapter 50

SPECIAL ANNOUNCEMENT

The message flashed in front of James’s vision. With it, a tone sounded, threatening to drown everything out around him. He glanced at Rue, and her eyes were focused on what he assumed was the same prompt.

SPECIAL ANNOUNCEMNT

The prompt header flashed again, scrolling in bolded, red letters, making it impossible to ignore. James and Rue had been spending a few final moments together, as the end of the current immersion cycle drew closer. There were only ten minutes to go, before James would be returned to the real world, as 7am brought about the end of the normal immersion time. An hour ago, the players had been removed from DCO, returning for their final 24 hours of immersion time, equal to 1 hour of real-world time, within the Zone, as was the norm.

“Here it comes,” James said aloud, practically yelling to be heard above the blaring alarm. He’d experienced such things before, though they were usually tests. Government messages, impossible to ignore. Even if people were in force sleep, they’d be pulled from it to view the message. Government messages, while immersed, could not be ignored. Period.

SPECIAL ANNOUNCEMENT

The words flashed once more, and then, disappeared. In their place, the message from the government. One James had been expecting, though the actual contents of it, he knew nothing about. A pit of dread opened in his stomach as he prepared himself to read the contents.

SPECIAL ANNOUNCEMNT

Regarding Preparation for Worldwide Immersion Event

In approximately 16hours [1100pm local time], a worldwide immersion event will begin. This event will last for 48 hours. In preparation for such an event, the following announcement will cover a brief list of important information. Additional facts and details will be posted to your local government webpage, as well as streamed hourly to all connected AR devices. If you have any questions or concerns, utilize the appropriate means to communicate directly with your local government officials.

All citizens are expected to be in their immersion pods NLT [1030pm local time]. If this time is outside your normal immersion time, note this event warrants an exception.

All emergency and official personnel are exempted from their essential status and are expected to join in the event for the duration. Individuals flagged as such can rest assured, they will be contacted if their services are needed

This event is a sanctioned government event. The P.L.O.T. has authorized the extended immersion time, and all citizens are mandated to participate in the program.

During this event, The Zone and other areas of the virtual world will be inaccessible for an extended, necessary period. Over the extended 48-hour period of the event, the Government will be conducting important maintenance and upgrades to the infrastructure utilized to provide immersion to the masses. The DCO server mainframe will be exempt from these upgrades, which will ensure the safety and wellbeing of all people within immersion.

All individuals who have not gained access to DCO will immediately be loaded into the game upon immersion and walked through character creation. Participation past that is not required or expected.

The P.L.O.T. has authorized the admittance of all those under the previously established safety age to also participate in this event. Parents of children under the established safety age will be spawned beside their children at the start of the event and will be granted special abilities to ensure they are able to monitor their children as needed.

Special measures have also been taken for any with children under the age of 5. For those affected, the government will be contacting you in a different manner shortly.

Due to the unique circumstances of this event, any individuals not registered as immersed by their mandated time will be flagged and subjected to suspicion of wrongdoing and persecuted in accordance with the law.

To all citizens, it is our great pleasure to be able to work with the team of DCO to provide this once in a lifetime event to everyone. The success of this 48-hour event will hopefully open the opportunity for similar events in the future. In order to ensure the success of this event, we ask everyone please adhere to the above. Please use the time before the event begins as you see fit to ensure you can focus all of your energy and effort on enjoying the 48-hour special.

Respectfully,

Jill Harkin

Peoples’ Legislative Office of Technology (P.L.O.T.) Government Liaison

The anger that filled James as he read the words was impossible to describe. The sheer audacity. The blatant lies. They were acting like this event was for the people. That it was meant to BENEFIT everyone, and allow them to upgrade the Zone and improve immersion for the people. All while knowing, full well, they were planning to trap everyone, forever, within DCO.

No. That wasn’t fair. He took a breath. Maybe Jill didn’t know what the government was up to. Maybe she was reporting what she believed to be true. That didn’t make it better though. The government was playing everybody. The elite assholes, those special, select few, were treating everyone like senseless idiots. And sadly, like lambs to slaughter, James knew full well they’d likely get away with it, unless he and his friends could stop them. A big if, by all means. And he figured as it stood, it wasn’t even a blip on their radar.

The government, based on everything he’d learned over the past few days, was used to doing exactly as it pleased, and getting away with it. After all, no one could counter them. They had all the power, all the resources, all the control. Even still, arguably, it hadn’t cost the people anything. Immersion was wonderful, freeing. People lived their lives in the real world spending time with loved ones, and thriving. And at night, they could be whoever, and whatever, they wanted, and do as they pleased. It was as utopian as possible.

But it was all a LIE. This existence, this state of living, wasn’t ENOUGH for those at the very top. They wanted the world, and they wanted it all to themselves. They didn’t want to take care of the people, which was quite literally, the job they’d signed up for by being part of the government. They didn’t want to govern. They wanted an existence where they had no worries, no responsibilities, and nothing to stand against them.

James felt his hands clench as these thoughts raced through his mind. He’d stop them. He didn’t know how. But he would. Because letting them win. Letting them get away with it, was too wrong. It was too… unfair. These people had it all already, and yet they still wanted more. There had to be a punishment, had to be a retribution, for their greed. For their willingness to cross a line that should never have been crossed.

“It’ll be okay,” Rue was at his side, hand gently on his shoulder. “We’ll make sure it’s all okay.”

James leaned into her, his body still shaking with anger, and said nothing. They stayed like that, until his world went black, and he awoke, once more, within his immersion pod.