Liam Blake’s Saturday had been unremarkable so far, a lazy Florida morning transitioning into a humid afternoon. After a light lunch, he found himself back at his desk, the heart of his sanctuary. The glow of his dual monitors cast a familiar, comforting light as he checked emails, scrolled through forums, and brainstormed ideas for a new game concept. But then, a subject line caught his eye:
“Exclusive Beta Access – Are You Ready for the Next Level?”
Intrigued, Liam clicked it open. The email was sparse, almost cryptic. No sender name, just a plain text message with a single sentence: “Experience a game like no other—insert the attached CD to begin.” Attached was a file named BetaKey.img, along with instructions to burn it onto a CD.
A grin crept onto Liam’s face. The whole thing had a retro, almost underground feel to it. It reminded him of old gaming forums from the early 2000s where niche games would spread like secrets whispered in dark alleys.
He glanced at the small box of old tech shoved under his desk. Somewhere in there, he knew, was his external CD drive. Dusty but functional.
After rummaging through the box and enduring a few sneezes, Liam pulled out the drive. He wiped it down with an old microfiber cloth and plugged it into his PC. As he waited for the drive to light up, he found a blank CD and burned the image file onto it.
Moments later, the disk spun to life, its hum filling the room as a new icon popped up on his desktop: “Begin Adventure”.
“Let’s see what you’ve got,” Liam muttered, double-clicking the icon.
The installation process began innocuously enough. A progress bar crawled across the screen while cryptic lines of text flashed beneath it. Halfway through, the screen flickered, and his webcam—unused and almost forgotten—lit up with a faint red glow.
Liam froze. “That’s… weird.”
Before he could react, the screen went black. The webcam buzzed audibly, and in the same instant, a sharp beam of light shot out, striking him squarely in the chest.
The last thing Liam saw was a blinding flash, then… nothing.
When Liam opened his eyes, his surroundings seemed familiar but off. He was still in his room, yet everything had a strange blue hue. The air felt heavier, tinged with an electric hum, as if the very atmosphere was charged with energy.
“What the…” he murmured, rubbing his temples. His head throbbed slightly, and his body felt weightless, like he was floating just above the ground.
The details around him seemed hyper-realistic but artificial. The posters on his wall shimmered faintly, as if made of pixelated glass. The glow of his monitors seemed brighter, their images distorted and flickering. Even the air smelled different—crisp and metallic, like the moments before a thunderstorm.
Liam moved to the door and twisted the knob. It didn’t budge.
“Locked?” He tried again, harder this time, but the door refused to yield. Panic began to creep in.
Crossing to the window, he peered outside. Instead of the usual view of the apartment parking lot, there was… nothing. Just an inky black void that seemed to stretch infinitely. No stars, no moon—just a deep, endless darkness.
“Okay. Not normal,” Liam muttered, backing away.
He tried opening the window, but it wouldn’t budge. Even the latch seemed fused in place. It was as if every escape route had been deliberately sealed. Frustrated, he sat down at his desk.
“If this is a dream, it’s way too detailed,” he said, booting up his computer. The screen came to life, but the operating system was unrecognizable. Gone was his familiar desktop; instead, a blank interface greeted him, adorned only with a single search bar.
“Hello?” he typed into the search bar. Nothing happened.
He tried again, this time typing more forcefully: “What is going on?”
The screen remained unresponsive, save for the blinking cursor. Frustrated, Liam leaned back, the chair creaking under his weight.
Then, the door creaked open.
Liam’s heart jumped into his throat as he shot to his feet. A figure stepped inside, silhouetted against the faint blue light spilling from the hallway. They paused, their posture tense, as if equally shocked to see him.
It was a woman, around his age, with short, dark hair and sharp, calculating eyes. She was dressed in an outfit that looked part tactical gear, part futuristic armor. A faint glow emanated from a device strapped to her wrist, its screen filled with symbols Liam didn’t recognize.
They stared at each other for what felt like an eternity.
“Who the hell are you?” Liam finally blurted.
The woman raised her hand, palm out, as if to calm him. “Wait… you’re real?” she asked, her voice edged with suspicion.
“Of course, I’m real! What does that even mean?” Liam snapped. His voice was shaking, but he tried to mask it with indignation.
The woman stepped closer, her gaze narrowing. “You don’t know where you are, do you?”
Liam shook his head. “No, and I’m hoping you can tell me.”
She hesitated, glancing around the room as if expecting someone—or something—to interrupt. Then she turned back to him, her expression softening slightly.
“I think you’ve just been pulled into the Grid,” she said.
Liam blinked. “The Grid? What… what are you talking about?”
Before she could answer, a low rumble reverberated through the room, making the walls vibrate. The woman’s face hardened.
“We don’t have time for this,” she said, moving to the door and peering into the hallway. “If you want to survive, you’ll have to trust me.”
“Survive? From what?” Liam asked, his voice rising.
She turned back to him, her eyes dead serious. “From whoever brought you here.”
Before Liam could respond, the rumble intensified, and the room’s blue hue deepened ominously. The woman grabbed his arm, her grip firm.
“Let’s go,” she said.
And just like that, Liam’s mundane Saturday was officially over.