"Got it, my AI is over powered, the capsule even more so, and I'll start paying you back once I'm done with the tutorial. I'm still not sure why you decided to take this risk for me, but let's get started," Alan said, walking up to the capsule.

As soon as he was a few feet away the capsule opened, revealing a pool of silvery liquid a few feet deep. Alan looked over to Icewolf for reassurance.

"Think of it as an investment; I have the capital and want to sponsor a friend I know is a capable gamer. I'll have some jobs for you once you've finished the Tutorial, but focus on that first. And remember, it's just a game!" Icewolf said.

Taking a deep breath, Alan climbed into the capsule and submerged himself in the liquid, which felt like fluid gelatin. The lid closed over him, leaving him in complete darkness. Panicking, Alan began thrashing about, sure he was going to drown. This was some cruel joke; a way for aliens to harvest gullible, unintelligent humans. Yet when he opened his mouth he realized he could somehow breathe this liquid. Alan took a few deep breaths, then faded into unconsciousness...

Chapter 1

A ray of light broke Alan's reverie, a dream he couldn't recall being real. He had been in a serene, white room, or so he thought, but was now lying in a field of yellow, dried out grass. Looking around, he briefly panicked, but then remembered he was in the Game. It was amazing how lifelike everything was. The touch, the sight, the smell… everything seemed so… real to him. In fact, it somehow felt more real, which didn't make any sense.

Everything around Alan was crystal clear. He had always had a bad sense of smell, and his vision wasn't perfect. Now, though, he could see the tiny drop of water on an individual blade of grass nearly twenty feet away. He also smelled everything, from faint dewy grass to animal scat to lemon trees.

Trying to get a grasp on where he was, Alan looked for noticeable landmarks. He was on top of a small hill in some rural part of what he assumed to be California. There were two small buildings: a quaint one-floor farmhouse with a small garden in front and a barn that had been turned into a house with a few rusted solar panels on the roof.

There was a dirt road between the homes, but where it led Alan had no idea. There was nothing else but forest and brush as far as he could see, up and down the hill, or mountain, or whatever it was he was on.

Standing up, Alan looked down at his body in surprise. He clenched his fist, then took a few steps; Alan felt more fit, more in-shape than he ever had in his life. It was like he was at the peak of his fitness level back when he had ran cross-country, although he’d quit since it was too painful. He felt like he could run a six-minute mile easily.