After closing the apartment door behind me, I quietly placed my bag on the floor, trying not to disturb the silence that enveloped the room like a thick blanket.
Without turning on the lights, which could have dispelled the cozy dimness, I carefully made my way to the table where my gaming set was already prepared.
In my fingers, I still held a glossy disc with a screaming and bright cover, where in large letters it was written: Adrenaline Rush VR.
—Oh, how provocative it is after all.
Its smooth surface felt cool against my palm, and its eye-catching design promised incredible adventures that required full immersion.
I couldn't remember a moment when my life had changed so dramatically? In the past, I could sit at my computer desk for hours, thoughtfully typing chapters for my book and intently choosing each word so that it accurately conveyed my thoughts.
But Akaha's promise sounded too tempting in his head: "Today you will learn what real extreme is."
Turning to the gaming chair, I sank into it and felt the familiar softness of the upholstery, which has recently become part of my new ritual.
—Well, hello again, my brother's gaming chair.
Carefully placing the device on my head, I felt a subtle thrill, like jumping off a cliff.
Connecting the disc to the system's central unit, I took a slightly deeper breath than usual and closed my eyes, ready to dive into a new world. Suddenly, Akaha's voice rang out.
—Is the connection enabled?
—It is.
The screen came to life in the air before me, like a spotlight, and the game's main menu appeared.
Everything was glowing with neon colors: crimson and blue lines intersected like the tracks of headlights on a night highway. Somewhere in the distance, the roar of an engine could be heard, turning into a heart-shattering bass.
It seemed that the sound was not just audible, but also vibrated in the chest, making the blood flow faster.
The inscription Adrenaline Rush VR appeared in huge letters, shimmering with electric light, and then disappeared, revealing the interface:
"Single-player mode. Online mode. Settings. A temporary stay."
—It's beautiful, isn't it?
Akaha asked with a slight chuckle, her voice sounding closer as if she were sitting next to me.
—It's... too loud!
—Get used to it. The main thing here is noise. Without it, the adrenaline won't wake up.
I grimaced, trying not to show irritation, but the corners of my lips betrayed me, twitching in a weak smile.
— Well, are you ready for the drift? Today you will know what adrenaline is, little sister!
— Ready.
Her words sounded both challenging and unbridled excitement, which seemed to be able to infect anyone.
I confirmed the login, and the world around me dissolved. For a split second, her consciousness hung in the void, and then, the dive.
My eyes opened to a new world. Before me was the track of a nighttime metropolis: neon lights stretched along the skyscrapers, advertising panels flashed with bright flashes, and the rain had just passed, leaving the asphalt wet and reflecting every spark of light.
Far ahead, beyond the horizon, I could hear the growing roar of engines, as if the very earth was vibrating with their fury.
I looked down and froze. The seat of a sports car, the smooth steering wheel that felt warm and alive.
The vibration ran through my hands, the seat responded to every movement, and a slight dizziness filled my chest at the sudden rush of speed.
—What a car model this is...
At that moment, the lights of another car flashed on the right, in the parallel lane. The car had an aggressive design, like a beast ready to break free from its chain.
Akaha was driving, and her avatar looked even daring: short neon hair, a sporty jacket, and her eyes glowed with a crimson hue.
—Well? Don't fall asleep there. In this game, speed is the oxygen!
I ran my tongue over my dry lips, feeling my heart pounding as if it were happening in real life, not in virtual reality.
Everything around me looked frighteningly real: the wet sheen of the asphalt, the monotonous sound of raindrops hitting the hood, and the deafening noise of the city.
—I'll... I'll try to keep up!
I managed to say, still unable to believe what I was seeing and hearing. A red light was flashing in front of the track. The roar of engines intensified, and the cars tensed, ready to take off at any moment.
—Three... two... one!
A second later, the cars exploded from the traffic light. The roar of the engines pierced my ears so sharply that I almost recoiled.
My heart sank, and my hands gripped the steering wheel as if I were in a real-time racing movie. The car leapt forward like a beast released from its cage, and the night was filled with neon lights.
The first turn took me by surprise. I jerked the steering wheel too hard, and the wheels screeched, causing the car to swerve, and I almost crashed into a barrier.
—Damn it!...Ah!
Akaha's calm voice came through the headphones, as if she wasn't speeding at over 200 kilometers per hour:
—Don't be afraid of speed! The main thing is to catch the rhythm of the track... The flow effect works here: if you enter the drift at the right angle, the car seems to guide you through the arc!
I gritted my teeth as I struggled to stabilize the car. Akaha slowed down slightly, as if taunting me, and took the next turn.
Her car looked like a predator in a dance, a perfect drift, with smoke from the tires and the glint of headlights reflecting on the wet asphalt.
—Look, you take the turn... you let go of the gas... you give the wheel a turn and you press the pedal again!
I watched as the editor's car glided along the curve of the road, as if the track itself was guiding it. No struggle, just a smooth, almost graceful movement.
—Do you feel it? The adrenaline rushes through your body. That's what people love.
My fingers were shaking, and then I gripped the steering wheel tighter, but at the same time, for the first time, that strange feeling that I had previously felt in the Log Apofis flared up in my chest: a mixture of fear and delight.
It was as if the world was momentarily narrowing down to one turn, one speed, one heartbeat.
My masha shot forward again, bursting into the shining tunnel of neon lights. The wheels screeched, the track trembled under the pressure of speed. I was gripping the steering wheel as if I were trying to hold back a wild animal.
The first turn, and the world went skidding. The asphalt whipped by the reflection of a wet line, the car skidded. The heart hit the ribs, the breath was disrupted. In that moment, it seemed that I had already lost.
But the body itself reacted: the steering wheel sharply to the side, a slight release of the pedal, and the car seemed to level out, sliding along the fence, as if on the blade of a knife.
— You see? Millions of players adore this feeling. The moment when you almost fall into the abyss, but still cling to the edge. This is the buzz. This is freedom!
I chuckled nervously, but inside something trembled and flashed. I gripped the steering wheel again, as if challenging the track.
"The second turn came too quickly, but now I understand the principle of motion."
The gas was released, the corner was caught, my car was sideways, the wheels sang with a squeak, sparks splashed from the tires.
Neon walls flashed, reflected in the raindrops on the asphalt. And this time the drift lasted longer and cleaner.
It was as if something new had opened in my chest: delight, freedom, wild, unbridled joy. I laughed loudly, desperately, like a child who was given wings for the first time.
Akaha looked at me sideways, a pleased smile playing at the corners of her lips.
—There, little sister, now you know why we're here.
The roar of the engine drowned out everything, but Akaga's voice cut through the vibrations of the metal and the whirlwind of speed.
—Log Apofis teaches you to fight, but here you learn to feel! Every turn is a challenge, every moment on the track is a battle with yourself!