The apartment always smelled like coffee. Not the good kind. The cheap kind. The kind that came in oversized pstic tubs and somehow managed to taste both burnt and watery at the same time. Kainen was the one responsible for it. Or guilty of it. Depending on who you asked.

  Rori leaned over the small kitchen counter and peered suspiciously into the mug he had just handed her. She tilted it slightly, inspecting the dark liquid like a scientist evaluating a hazardous substance. "This," she announced, wrinkling her nose, "looks like poor life choices and regret." She then wrinkled her nose at its acrid smell. Kainen didn't even gnce up from his own cup. He took a slow sip, completely unbothered. "It's coffee." Rori raised an eyebrow. "Those are not mutually exclusive." Rori's senses were exceptional and only getting stronger each day, and the smell alone, while reminding her of home, was god-awful.

  From the couch, Lira ughed softly. She was in the middle of pulling on her jacket, her long silver hair spilling over one shoulder as she struggled with the sleeve. "You said you wanted caffeine," she reminded Rori, amusement flickering in her eyes. "I wanted good caffeine," Rori shot back. Lira finished adjusting her jacket and tilted her head toward the kitchen. "You live with Kainen." Rori paused, considering that. Then she sighed. "...Fair."

  Kainen set his mug down on the counter, still looking mildly unimpressed by the entire conversation. Internally, he was already running through the day's logistics. Registration. Neural sync. Character creation. He had done this before. The girls had not. Which meant today would almost certainly become complicated. Everything involving Rori becomes complicated.

  Across the room, Rori stretched dramatically, raising both arms above her head. Her shirt rode up slightly as she leaned back, completely unaware—or unconcerned—with the effect. "Today," she decred proudly, "is the day." Kainen immediately focused very hard on the kitchen counter. He was absolutely not looking. He had learned that lesson years ago. "Try not to break anything," he said dryly. Rori grinned. "No promises."

  Outside, the city was already awake. Traffic hummed through the morning streets. Towering buildings reflected the pale sunlight between their gss faces. Digital billboards flickered overhead, cycling through advertisements every few seconds. Most of them dispyed the same thing. AVARICE ONLINE. The most immersive VRMMO ever created. Ten billion pyers. Endless worlds. Real rewards.

  Rori practically bounced down the apartment stairs, taking them two at a time. "This," she announced excitedly, "is going to be awesome!!" Behind her, Lira followed more carefully, gripping the railing as she descended. "You're way too excited about this," she said. Rori turned halfway down the stairs and walked backwards for several steps. "You're not excited enough!"

  Kainen exited the building, st ensuring the security panel was enabled before slipping his hands into his jacket pockets and stepping onto the sidewalk. The street outside their apartment complex was retively quiet. Small cafes. Corner markets. Rows of aging apartment towers stacked toward the sky. Just another district in a world that had long since run out of room for people.

  Directly across the street stood a small white building. Clean. Simple. Almost boring. A glowing sign above the door read: MYTHIC NEURAL INTERFACE CENTER. Rori stopped mid-stride. Her excitement faltered for just a moment. "...That's it?" Lira blinked. "That's the Avarice clinic?" She tilted her head slightly. "It looks like a dentist office." Kainen stepped off the curb and crossed the street without slowing. "Most dangerous things do," he replied calmly.

  The inside of the building was far rger than the outside suggested. The lobby opened into a long, sterile hall filled with bright white lights and polished steel surfaces. Gss walls separated different rooms containing equipment Rori couldn't even begin to identify. At the far end of the hall sat something far more recognizable. Rows of sleek pods. Each one is shaped like a futuristic capsule. Inside them, translucent gel shimmered under soft blue lighting. They looked less like gaming devices... and more like something you'd find in a hospital intensive care ward.

  Rori stopped walking. Her eyes widened. "...Wow." She slowly turned in a circle, taking in the entire room. "That is way bigger than I expected." Lira nodded quietly beside her. "Same." Kainen wasn't surprised. He had been here before. The technician behind the front desk gnced up from his tablet. "First-time instaltion?" he asked.

  Rori immediately raised her hand. "Yep." Lira hesitated for a second before lifting hers as well. Kainen simply tapped the small metallic disk embedded at the base of his neck. "Existing interface." The technician gave a short nod. "Understood." He gestured toward a set of reclining medical chairs along the wall. "Instaltion takes approximately thirty seconds." Lira frowned. "Instaltion of what, exactly?" Rori leaned forward eagerly. "The chip." Kainen corrected her without looking away from the equipment. "Neural interface."

  The technician opened a small sealed container, revealing a metallic device roughly the size of a coin. Thin silver prongs extended from its underside like delicate spider legs. "It connects directly to the spinal cord," the technician said ftly. Lira froze. "...Directly?" she asked, her voice ced with concern. The technician nodded. "Yes." Rori's grin returned immediately. "That's metal." Kainen closed his eyes briefly, a small hint of a smile on his face. Of course, she likes that part.

  Rori hopped into the medical chair, her excitement evident. "Alright, let's do it." The technician applied a cold antiseptic solution to the back of her neck. She shivered. "Okay, that's cold." The technician reminded her to remain still. Rori pushed her pink hair aside and leaned forward slightly. The impnt hovered just above her skin. For a brief moment, nothing happened. Then the prongs deployed, snapping downward with mechanical precision. Straight through skin. Straight into the vertebra beneath.

  Pain detonated along her spine. Rori jerked forward with a sharp cry. "...AH!" Her fingers clenched the armrests as electricity seemed to race through every nerve in her body. For a moment, the world turned white. Okay, that was a terrible idea. Then, just as suddenly as it started, the pain vanished. The impnt locked into pce with a soft metallic click. A faint blue light pulsed across its surface. "Connection stable," the technician said calmly. Rori slowly lifted her head, her pupils wide. "...Okay." She rubbed the back of her neck. "That sucked." Then she grinned again. "But also kinda awesome."

  The technician tapped something on his tablet and gestured toward the gss doors at the end of the hall. "You may begin your dive." The doors slid open with a quiet mechanical hiss. Beyond them, the pod chamber stretched farther than Rori had expected. Rows of sleek capsules lined the floor in perfect symmetry, their surfaces reflecting the sterile lights overhead. Soft blue indicators pulsed along each unit. Everything about the room felt... quiet. Controlled. Important.

  Rori stepped forward first, her excitement already returning. "So these are the famous Avarice pods." She approached the nearest capsule and leaned over the edge. Inside, a translucent gel shimmered faintly, disturbed by the room's airflow. It looked thicker than water but clearer than gss. Curiosity got the better of her. She reached down and poked it. The gel parted around her finger and immediately flowed back into pce. "It's warm."

  Behind her, Kainen walked over and gnced inside. "Neural conductive fluid," he expined calmly. "It stabilizes the signal between the impnt and the pod." Rori tilted her head. "You say that like I'm supposed to know what that means." Kainen smiled slightly. "It means it keeps your brain from frying." Rori poked the gel again. "Well, that's comforting."

  Lira stepped beside them, staring into the pod with visible uncertainty. "...We're supposed to lie in that?" she asked. Kainen nodded. "Yes." Rori climbed up onto the edge of the capsule before either of them could say anything else. "Well, obviously." Without hesitation, she slid into the gel. The fluid parted around her body and closed again almost instantly. It was thicker than water but surprisingly comfortable, supporting her weight evenly as she settled back.

  Her eyes widened slightly. "Oh wow." She lifted one arm experimentally. The gel resisted the motion slightly but flowed smoothly around it. "This feels weird." Kainen folded his arms. "Give it a second." Rori shifted her shoulders, letting herself sink deeper. Then she grinned. "Okay, I kinda love it." Across the room, Lira was still staring at the pod she had been assigned. She gnced toward Rori, then toward Kainen, then back at the pod.

  Her internal monologue was much less enthusiastic. That needle went into my spine. Now I'm getting into a tank of mysterious glowing liquid. This is a terrible life decision. She took a breath. "...Okay." Slowly, she climbed onto the edge of the capsule and lowered herself into the gel. It closed around her shoulders with a soft ripple. Her eyes widened. "Oh." She lifted one hand slightly. "...That's actually not bad." Rori gave her a thumbs-up from the neighboring pod. "See? I told you."

  Kainen waited until both of them were settled before stepping toward his own pod. Unlike the others, there was no hesitation in his movements. He had done this dozens of times before. Still, a small part of his mind automatically reviewed the procedure. Neural connection. Full sensory immersion. Pain feedback. He paused for half a second. They're about to experience a full dive for the first time. This should be interesting.

  He climbed into the pod. The gel closed around him smoothly. Above them, the pod lids began to lower. Soft mechanical sounds echoed through the chamber as the capsules sealed one by one. Blue light flooded the interior. Rori felt the gel shift slightly around her as the system activated. A calm female voice spoke inside the chamber. "Preparing Soul Dive." Her grin widened. "Oh, this is happening."

  Across the room, Lira felt her heart begin to race. "This feels very dramatic." Kainen closed his eyes. "Just rex." The voice continued. "Initializing neural interface." Rori felt a faint vibration at the base of her neck as the impnt activated. The sensation spread outward along her spine like gentle static. "Synchronizing consciousness." The world around them began to dim. Lights faded. Sound softened.

  Lira felt the strange sensation of her body becoming distant. As if she were slowly floating away from it. "...Kainen?" His voice reached her through the fading darkness. "You're fine." Rori ughed quietly. "This is so cool." The voice spoke one final time. "Entering Avarice." Darkness swallowed everything. For a moment, there was nothing. No sound. No sensation. No gravity.

  Then, a cheerful chime rang. And the world began.