A warm rush of air swept past him, matching Sihle's jubilation. His brown, hairless skin broke into goosebumps as the majestic trumpets of the VRMMORPG: Odyssey echoed in his ears. Inside a black, inviting void, a machine voice chimed, "Cantos Industries welcomes you to your Odyssey! Please state character name." Sihle was ecstatic at the all-too-familiar voice.
Seven days earlier, he had been reborn on the day of his eighteenth birthday party. His past self had sent back select memories from years into the future. The memory infusion left him dazed, a little shaken, plagued by gaps and contradictions—but amidst the chaos, one truth anchored him: he had a purpose.
Faced with the surreal chance to save his sister's life, Sihle was overwhelmed with joy. While most of his memories about Odyssey had transferred intact, the reason behind such an extreme and dangerous act had not. He understood from his memories the inherent risk of time travel chief amongst them being death as the technology only had a success rate fifty one percent.
It troubled him in the very depths of his soul, but he focused instead on the money, power, and glory that Odyssey promised. It was the first project in human history that spanned the entire solar system. Where every major power could battle for supremacy.
What Sihle remembered with painful clarity was that his bright-eyed, bushy-tailed baby sister would be dead in less than six months. Next week, she would return from the Folded Land, and he would discover that her illness had been caused by Baron International. Unless he earned the money for her treatment through Odyssey, there were no other short-term options—even with his knowledge of the future.
Luckily, in his village, his friends had plenty of reasons to join the game. Whether for debt relief, revenge, greed, fame, or fun—each had a personal motive to follow Sihle into the fray. With his memories, he could train them into deadly players in the early stages of the game. Their growth beyond that would depend on their own effort.
Sihle had spent the week preparing his friends for the challenges ahead, using his foreknowledge to lay the foundations of an empire that could one day rival the Ten Glory Guilds. He also made a few clever investments in real-world companies likely to profit from Odyssey, hoping that those too would grow into future empires.
Now, as the seven dominant species shimmered into view within the black void, Sihle felt the awe-inspiring scope of Odyssey. The species displayed were only those native to Liguria, his starting continent. Each of the seven land continents had their own races and histories, with unique gifts and disadvantages. However, Sihle had no choice but to play as a human—he was the party leader, and they needed to register in the human kingdom where they would operate. In other games, they would have all chosen non-humans, but Asrugo, the small and otherwise irrelevant kingdom, was ninety percent human.
Sihle had convinced his friends that Asrugo's strategic location—granting access to three of the seven seas—was invaluable. The volcanic ridge called Dragon's Jaw protected its eastern border from rival empires. The largest volcano within it was a rank 5 Dungeon, and according to Sihle's memories, it was the only dungeon on the continent not under major power control. In his past life, a rank zero guild had used it to rise to rank five.
Sihle quickly selected the Barren Coast region as his spawn point. After a few seconds, he materialized inside a dilapidated wooden hall. The walls were formed from worn, triangular wood panels. A large sheet of rainbow-colored glass loomed in the doorway, greeting him with its shifting hues. Sihle stepped through the glass plane and entered Odyssey for the second time.
He immediately opened his character sheet, which unfolded in front of him inside a golden floral window. Sihle frowned at the absence of a unique racial trait. His character, Tyr, was ordinary in every sense—neither tall nor short, with short black hair and light brown eyes. The only standout feature was a distinctive white beard, a signature he carried over from avatars in past games.
Name: TyrRace: HumanDomain: NoneTitle: NoneClass: NoneProfession: NoneLevel: 0
Physical Attributes:Strength – 1Endurance – 1Dexterity – 1
Mental Attributes:Intelligence – 1Wisdom – 1Willpower – 1
Spiritual Attributes:Power – 1Force – 1Balance – 1
Tyr sent out his Risha, or spirit pattern, to his real-life friend list. Since he had registered at this cathedral by passing through the multicolored glass, Maria Mei was the first to join him. She was also eighteen—like all his friends—but more importantly, she was his unspoken love. In his previous life, he had lost touch with every one of them.
This time, Maria played as a high-realm being called an Arkenia. She appeared paler than her usual Asian self, but her bust was as full as her rosy cheeks and radiant smile. Her wings, to his surprise, were silver. He hadn't told her that an Arkenia's type was defined by their wings—she must have researched it herself.
John-Baptist's avatar was a tall, slim half-elf named Seren. He had dark green hair, sharp blue eyes, and a longbow slung across his back. Seren moved with practiced grace, his ease revealing the hours John-Baptist had spent honing his archery.
"Hey, guys!" he called out, his voice deep and gravelly. "Looks like we made it to Odyssey in one piece." He turned to Sihle and grinned. "Nice beard, man. I see you've been taking care of it."
Sihle chuckled, rubbing his beard absentmindedly. "Yeah, it's become kind of a trademark."
John-Baptist nodded. "It suits you. Maybe it'll give you a few extra charisma points or something." He winked, and Sihle rolled his eyes.
Mei laughed. "So, are we ready to start exploring?"
Sihle nodded. "Definitely. We should look for quests. We need to start earning credits if we're going to pay off these implants."
John-Baptist agreed. "Let's see what we can find."
Together, the group set off, their avatars moving in sync as they explored the worn hall and the world beyond. They were ready for whatever Odyssey had to offer.
John slithered closer, snapping his jaws playfully before saying, "I'm glad we did that one-week history course. Otherwise, I don't think I could breathe—let alone adventure—today." Across the game, this sentiment rang true. Those who skipped the week-long in-game history course were now sending long, profanity-filled rants about how impossible non-human races were to control.
With a flutter of wings, the Nineth Immortal pulled back to get a better view. She noticed folded golden scales on John's back, which she assumed must serve as fins while swimming.
Tyr said, "Looking good, man. Raul's going to be so jealous. Ign?"
Raul and John had been rivals for decades. They'd all attended the same VR college. Due to the rising demand for skilled labor, kids as young as sixteen now enrolled in threefold VR spaces. The term "fold" described the time dilation used in these environments. Raul and John had known each other the longest, both moving to the village as part of their education—and the government's development program, which earned them ownership rights there.
After taking a deep breath—clearly feeling the pressure—John said, "I think the closest translation is Sky Ocean Hunter. But during the history module, the others just called me Sky."
Unlike other games, players in Odyssey were required to learn the in-game history of their chosen people for one week prior to launch. This was implemented after months of protest from role-players and over seven billion letters—sent from Earth to Jupiter—demanding the concession from Overwatch. Odyssey was so massive that its seven player continents, seas, and realms each had distinct, non-overlapping histories. Legendary classes were region-specific and required serious research.