A ring of mist-wrapped mountains encircled glittering elven cities, their white spires rising like frost from the valleys. In shaded ravines, deep under the roots of the world, she glimpsed goblin markets lit by torchlight, where the air shimmered with heat and the jingle of coins. Beyond that, rolling plains gave way to oceans dotted with sailing ships crewed by humans, dwarves, and stranger races still.
Arthur’s voice carried a touch of reverence. “Antumbra is fantasy with magic, moonlight, and legends. You can travel anywhere, take up a cause, pledge yourself to a kingdom or a guild… or go it alone. Elf, goblin, human, dwarf, changeling, race choice shapes your path, and every faction has its own tangled politics and hidden dangers.”
A warm, lilting voice joined the tour. “I am Phantasos, your guide to the dreaming realms. Here, your stories are written in starlight, and danger sleeps in every shadow.”
Before Mav could reply, the scene shifted, towering steel and neon skyscrapers punched into a bruised twilight sky. The streets of Penumbra teemed with movement, caped champions leaping between rooftops, masked villains trading blows in midair, and crime bosses running deals in back alleys glowing with digital graffiti. Explosions painted the horizon, followed by the sonic booms of superhuman speed.
Arthur’s tone sharpened, almost amused. “Penumbra’s a place where mutation is power. You can be a savior in the light or a shadow broker in the dark. Choose the champion’s path, clean up the streets, save the civilians… or run the rackets, recruit gangs, build an empire. Every ability, every mutation has a chance to become a wild card and one you can’t control.”
A deep, hammer on anvil voice rumbled through her audio feed. “I am Hephaestus. I forge your strength from the fire of your choices. Heroes, villains, both are tempered in the same flames.”
Then the sky fractured, and they plunged into Umbra. The light was dim and rust colored, the air thick with ash. Jagged ruins rose from endless wasteland, half swallowed by creeping black fog. She heard the distant, inhuman howl of something hunting. Below, survivors huddled around guttering fires, weapons close at hand.
Arthur’s voice lost all its humor. “Umbra is survival horror. No kingdoms, few safezones and too many zombies to count. Everything wants to kill you and most of it can. The AI here doesn’t pull punches.”
A cold, resonant voice echoed like stone breaking. “I am Chernobog. Here, only the strong, and the powerful endure.”
The view snapped back to their mountain terrace. Arthur gave her a grin, lifting his tankard. “At least you’ll only be playing in the fun one.”
“Damn,” Mav began after experiencing the flyovers of the different scenarios, “those are quite diverse. How the heck did they come up with such a different set of experiences?”
“Well, I wasn’t in the initial development part, but from what I’ve seen, the creators built these worlds out of some of their favorite resurgence games, movies, and TV shows. Turns out the gaming community has similar tastes. Honestly, diversity is how you hook people and keep them coming back. WannaBe has been doing that for years. It’s kinda their thing,” Arthur replied, waving into the air and creating six glowing screens before them.
“No, I get that they’re a gaming company and that’s their bread and butter, but you’re telling me they just made up these scenarios based on personal tastes? And it worked?” Mav asked, brow furrowed.
Arthur shrugged. “Yeah. Not to be glib, but… yeah. The two behind this whole venture are both incredibly creative and wildly different from each other. With this level of immersion tech, they could’ve made nearly anything and it would’ve been a hit. The genius move was leaning into the hottest entertainment trends and giving players the chance to live out their preferences.”
“Before we get into those,” Mav gestured at the hovering screens, “I’ve had a question rattling in the back of my mind.” Arthur nodded for her to continue. “These three worlds must be dangerous, with each one getting harder and darker than the last.” He nodded again.
“How do you deal with the danger…” she paused, shaking her head, “no, that’s not quite what I mean. Not the danger itself, but what the danger does. The trauma. Being shot, impaled, eaten by a zombie, how are people not lining up for therapy afterward?”
Arthur grinned. “Damn, you ask good questions.” He popped a small cake into his mouth and tossed another to Mazor, who caught it midair with a graceful twist. “That’s where the nanoneural stimulation comes into play.”
“Basically, the game rewires the neural pathways connected to traumatic in-game events, muting them. Take our little… scuffle.” He rubbed his jaw where she’d hit him. “What do you remember?”
“Well, shit, I remember…” She trailed off, her face screwing up. ‘That’s weird, we just fought, but the details are fuzzy.’ She concentrated, trying to pull it into focus, but it was like trying to remember a dream, vivid moments now blurred.
“Wow,” she said finally. “I can remember some things, how you blocked a punch, maybe a step you took but the rest? It’s gone. Feels like a dream.”
“That’s exactly it,” Arthur said, miming a hammer hitting a nail. “The tech monitors your vitals, Olivia’s specialty, not mine and when it detects trauma, it alters those fresh memories, softening them into something dreamlike. After a few hours, you’re left with only fragments.”
“So even if I die in there, I won’t remember it clearly?”
“Right. You’ll keep any important details you need to learn from, but the emotional hit is dulled. It’s for mental protection. You’ll understand better after you’ve been through it yourself.” He raised his brows at the screens, silently asking if she was ready to move on. She nodded and settled deeper into her seat.
Each screen pulsed with light as labels at the top displayed scrolling information.
“Statistics, Gear Classification, Materials Classification, MOB Classification, and last but not least, Classes & Subclasses, Perks,” she read aloud. Then, frowning, she asked, “What’s a MOB?”
Arthur grinned. “Perfect question for a noob. MOB stands for ‘mobile’, basically, a computer-controlled NPC. In most games, MOBs are hostile, while NPCs are non-hostile.”
“So, generally speaking, a MOB’s the baddie and an NPC’s the goodie?”
“Yeah,” Arthur said with an approving nod, “that’ll work for now.” He motioned toward the array of floating displays. “These first four screens are standard across all three scenarios in Eclipse Nexus. The last two? Those are specific to Umbra. Classes, skills, perks, those all change depending on which scenario you’re in.”
Extending his arm toward the furthest screen, he made a slow, deliberate fist and pulled as if drawing it through the air. The display glided forward, stopping to hover directly in front of Mav, while the other five drifted back and winked out of immediate focus with a casual flick of his hand.
“These,” Arthur said, tapping the corner of the screen, “are your statistics for all three scenarios. No matter which one you’re in or if you hop between them, they carry over. Any gains you make in one will follow you into the next, so you never lose progress.”
He stepped back, giving her room to read, as the glowing list resolved into clear categories:
- Brawn – Strength, carrying capacity, blunt melee damage, climbing ability, jump distance and height.
- Fortitude – Endurance: how long you can perform strenuous actions, go without rest; primary hit point modifier.
- Intent – Focus: aiming accuracy, calm under pressure, target acquisition, steadiness for held shots; main perception modifier; secondary lockpick modifier.
- Grace – Agility: lightness of movement, attack fluidity, drawing/reloading speed, landing from jumps or falls; main dodge modifier; main lockpick modifier.
- Quickness – Dexterity: movement speed, attack speed, draw/reload speed; secondary dodge modifier.
Insight – Wisdom: - (Antumbra) Connection to monastic studies, depth and replenishment speed of monastic arcane energy.
- (Penumbra) Physical mutation knowledge, alteration, and application.
- (All Worlds) Strategic detail recall, situational awareness, schematic comprehension; main hack modifier; main loot modifier; secondary perception modifier.
- Reason – Intelligence:
- (Antumbra) Connection to arcane knowledge, depth and replenishment speed of arcane energy.
- (Penumbra) Mental mutation knowledge, alteration, and application.
- (All Worlds) Speed of thought, strategic application, implementing schematics/plans; secondary hack modifier.
- Customize – Adaptability: out-of-the-box thinking, schematic creation or modification, strategic creativity; main scavenger modifier.
- Presence – Charisma: attractiveness, leadership ability; secondary loyalty modifier.
- Allure – Charm: emotional appeal, the ability to draw others in; main loyalty modifier.
- Fortune – Luck: chance for special events, rare loot drops, dodge bonuses, skill success, reduced gear wear.
Pandemonium – Chaos: increased chance for rare spawns or unexpected situations; inversely related to Fortune.
“These numbers run from zero to a thousand plus,” Arthur explained, “though hitting four digits in anything means you’re in the top fraction of a percent of players. Some stats are more vital in certain worlds than others, but every single one has its use. How you build them… that’s on you.”
When Mav reached the bottom of the statistics list, she looked up at Arthur and asked, “So… is there a test? Because if there is, I’m going to fail. Do all gamers actually remember all this minutia?” She laughed softly, already certain she knew the answer.
Arthur chuckled. “No, Mav, they don’t.” With an easy motion, he ‘pushed’ the first glowing screen away and reached to ‘pull’ the second one into place before her. “I mean, sure, some players remember a lot of this stuff, and a few have it all memorized. Others just focus on how the stats interact and build their avatar to squeeze out the most potential.
Then you’ve got the folks who just… wing it, play for fun, and don’t care about the numbers. There’s no single ‘right’ way to play, though some people will swear otherwise. My advice? Play in the way that makes you want to keep coming back.” He flashed her a roguish grin.
Stolen content alert: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences.
Mav’s eyes drifted to the wine bottle in the bucket. She wished she hadn’t hurled her glass at Goo earlier, but as if the world had heard her thought, another glass shimmered into existence beside the bottle. Tilting her head in mild wonder, she picked up the still cold bottle, poured herself a measure, and marveled that it felt every bit as real as before. She took a sip, savoring the crisp coolness and the familiar flavor. ‘Now this… I could get used to. Self-replacing glassware? Yes, please.’
Arthur’s voice drew her attention back. “Alright, let’s move on. I’ll tone it down some for you and brush over the cool parts, it’s not like it’ll matter much for your journey,” he glanced at her sheepishly, “and I may geek out a bit on this sometimes.” He gestured toward the new screen. “This is the Gear and MOB classifications section. They work on an E through Sigma tier system. It can get pretty game heavy here, so for now? Just skim it, once you’re playing, the patterns will start to make sense.”
He stepped back, letting her eyes scan over the shifting rows of icons and text as the next layer of Eclipse Nexus’s complexity unfolded in front of her.
Arthur waited for her eyes to settle on the new data before explaining. “Gear in Eclipse Nexus is graded on a scale from E at the bottom to Sigma at the very top. It’s a universal system across all three worlds, so whether you’re swinging a sword in Antumbra, firing plasma rounds in Penumbra, or trying to jury-rig a weapon in Umbra, you’ll always know where your equipment stands.”
He pointed at the columns and their corresponding icons as he spoke. “E-rank is basic, starter gear, found almost anywhere, cheap to repair but fragile. D and C are your common working tools, reliable enough to carry you through most early challenges. B and A-tier gear is where you start seeing specialization, better materials, higher stats, maybe an enchantment or two if you’re lucky.”
He flicked his fingers and the display shifted to a gleaming row of rare items. “S-rank that’s where the real chase begins. These are memorabilia drops, pulled from the developers favorite shows, books, movies and games, usually earned from high-tier bosses. They are the absolute pinnacle. Those items are nearly mythical, requiring dangerous quests, rare components, and often cooperation between skilled players to obtain. But when you’re holding Sigma level gear? You’re a walking legend.”
Mav tilted her head at the sight of a S-class memorabilia, Galadriel’s Gift, the bow on the display. Its string shimmered with light, and the limbs seemed carved from some living crystal that pulsed faintly with color.
Arthur grinned. “Yeah… that one? I've never even touched it outside the dev environment.” He gave a small shrug. “S gear isn’t just about raw power, it can unlock abilities you can’t get anywhere else. But you won’t stumble into it by accident, every tier you climb takes commitment.”
He swept his hand again, the gear screen shrinking into the air as another flared to life beside it. “And now… the MOB classification system. You’re going to want to pay attention here, because it’s not just what you fight, it’s how dangerous it is when you do.”
Mav dropped her head in her hands, trying to hide her grin. Arthur was in full lecture mode and geeking out at top speed. She wanted to give him her attention, but it was like sitting in a dry class with only the professor who was interested in the subject.
Arthur tapped the air and the screen rippled, transforming into a rolling list of creatures, constructs, and downright monstrous silhouettes. “MOBs, mobile, hostile NPCs are classified using the same E through Sigma ranking system as gear. The letter tells you how tough they are, but also hints at their behavior and what kind of rewards you might get from taking them down.”
He pointed at the bottom tier. “E through C are your bread and butter enemies, low-level threats, good for farming materials, sharpening your skills, and padding your loot stash. Individually, they’re not much to worry about, but in groups, they can overwhelm the unprepared.”
The screen shifted to darker, more imposing figures. “B and A-tier MOBs? These are your serious mid-game challenges, elite soldiers, specialized beasts, heavily armed gangs. They require more than just raw power, you’ll need tactics, teamwork, or some clever use of the environment.”
The projection darkened again, revealing monstrous shapes wreathed in shadows, glowing eyes staring out. “S-class MOBs and above are where nightmares live. They have unique abilities, custom AI routines, and attack patterns that adapt to your moves. You might face a S-class MOB only once in an entire campaign, and if you survive, you’ll remember it. They drop rare loot, unlock achievements, and sometimes even alter the game world for everyone when they’re defeated.”
He swiped to an image of a massive dragon wrapped in molten chains, its wings half-shattered yet glowing with inner fire. “That beauty? S-class raid boss from Antumbra. Took forty-eight players, three hours, and more than a few deaths to bring it down. Worth it, though, the loot haul changed the server economy for weeks.”
Arthur grinned. “Moral of the story? Always know what tier you’re walking into. E-tier is a stroll through the park. Sigma-tier… well, that’s a dance with the reaper.”
Arthur’s fingers danced across the air, pulling up a new list filled with shimmering icons, ore veins, bundles of herbs, coils of wire, even glowing crystalline shards. “Materials follow the same E through Sigma ranking system…” He trailed off noticing her gaze was shifting around the table.
“I think I've entered the geek zone,” Arthur said with a hearty laugh. Mav started to protest but he stopped her with a raised hand. “No, I completely geek out hard, and you’re not here for all this information, you won't need it unless you do, and then you can just ask, how does that sound?”
She smiled back with thanks in her eyes. “I’d love a crash course in the games mechanics that speaks to my background and understanding of systems, but for now could we abridge the explanations?”
Arthur took one look at her expression and waved the rest away. The screens collapsed, materials, classes, mods, all of it folding in on itself like a lecture mercifully canceled. “You don’t need the deep dive,” he said. “Not yet.
That stuff’s for optimization, theorycrafters, and people who enjoy spreadsheets.” He met her eyes, steady and serious now. “What you need is enough to move, enough to survive, and enough headspace for the work we’re actually here to do. The rest will still be waiting if you want to dive in deeper.”
“That would have been info overload, thanks!” Mav muttered, her eyes glazing slightly as she skimmed the dense wall of text. She followed Arthur’s advice, absorbing what she could and letting the rest wash over her. “It looks simple, but I’m guessing once you’re in the middle of it, it’s a rabbit hole of complexity?”
“Yeah,” Arthur admitted with a wry grimace. “It’s deceptively simple, until it’s not. There’s a deep complexity under the surface, and even I don’t know every detail. But here’s the gist, and that’s enough for what you’re going to be doing. I forget how overwhelming this can be for a noob.”
Her expression dropped into suspicion. “What’s a noob? Is that some kind of insult?”
Arthur barked a laugh. “Hell no. Noob’s just shorthand for newbie, someone new to a game or activity. Totally neutral. Well… mostly.”
“Oh.” She dropped her gaze. “Sorry I thought you may be picking on me, I might be a little touchy, and yes, it is slightly overwhelming.” She paused, biting her lower lip for a second then her eyes brightened.
“Another question Arthur,” she began and seeing his lifted eyebrows continued, “you showed me three scenarios,” she asked holding up three fingers and dropping each one as she named the three scenarios for Eclipse Nexus, “Antumbra, Penumbra and Umbra.” She paused and he nodded in confirmation, “does all this transfer between the three scenarios like the stats?”
He beamed at her, a geeky grin so big it practically lit the veranda. “Come on, I'll answer while we walk. Training bower first, then Antumbra,” he said, offering his hand like he already knew she’d take it. She set her wine glass down and reached for him. With an easy, almost arrogant tug, he lifted her from the chair.
Goo exploded off her shoulder with a scandalized squawk, wings flapping wildly as he tumbled into the air. “Excuse you!” he chirped in indignant digital staccato, tail snapping like an offended cat’s. “Some of us were settled, thank you.”
Arthur pretended not to hear him, but the slight twitch at the corner of his mouth gave him away. He let go of her hand and, with a theatrical flourish, bowed low. Mazor leapt from his shoulder to join Goo in the air, both AVIs circling above as he said in a mock-formal tone, “Milady,” and gestured for her to walk ahead.
‘She’s taking to the TIER like it’s second nature,’ he marveled inwardly, noting how she instinctively caught her balance after being pulled up so quickly.
Mav laughed and dropped into a playful curtsy. “Milord,” she murmured before sauntering past him toward a stairway at the edge of the balcony. Arthur followed, their two companions darting and weaving overhead, Mazor spitting tiny fireballs at Goo, who banked away with a teasing flick of his tail.
The steps wound down toward a path flanked by redwood sized trees with smooth, silvery bark and azure leaves, marking the border of a majestic forest. As they entered, smaller versions of the giant silver trees lined the way, their bark glowing softly to light the path. The woods were sparse, few plants grew in the filtered light between the towering trunks.
Mav’s eyes darted from one detail to the next, marveling at the artistry behind the world’s design. Spiderwebs caught the faint breeze, insects buzzed and clicked, and along one branch, crimson and green caterpillars munched steadily. On the ground, a line of neon yellow ants marched, each carrying a vivid blue leaf like a sail.
“So…” Arthur began suddenly, making her jump. He laughed, earning a reflexive punch to the arm that only hurt her own hand. He kept walking, grinning. “You asked if classes and skills, transfer between the three scenarios.”
“In a sense, yes. Stats are universal, like I had said, they carry across all three. Skills do too.” He stepped over the trail of ants without a thought. Mav did the same thinking, ‘if he is avoiding stepping on them, then it's smart that I do too. Who knows what they could do to me, melt my skin or burrow into my flesh, ugh!’ she shuddered at the thought.
“Some things don’t though. Gear changes to match the scenario, some weapons will change as well. Your class will change totally, each scenario forcing the player to develop different skills and responses to different stimuli.” He told her as they crossed a small arched bridge over a clear stream. “The classes develop over your first ten levels in each scenario, the tutorial phase.”
Bright fish held steady against the current with lazy flicks of their tails. Arthur paused midway, pulled shimmering pebbles from a pouch, and handed her a few before tossing one into the water. A fish darted forward, snapping up the pebble. Color rippled down its length in a breathtaking rainbow shimmer. Mav gasped and dropped her own pebble, delighting in the burst of shifting hues. She rested her chin on the railing, watching the colors fade.
Arthur gave her the moment in silence. With a light touch to her shoulder, he nodded toward the path, and they walked on.
“Once you’ve done the tutorial for all three worlds,” he resumed, “you can shift freely between them. Make sense?”
“Let’s see… stats and skills transfer without change,” she said slowly, her eyes unfocused for a moment. “Classes don’t, you need to complete each tutorial first. Then you can swap freely?”
“Close enough to be exactly right,” he confirmed. “Not that it matters, you’ll be spending your treatment entirely in Antumbra. It’s challenging, but way less stressful than the others.”
They reached a long flight of forest-carved steps. “Thanks Arthur, again, sorry for asking for less information, with everything going on it was a lot and my brain got wiggly.”
“Not wiggly, board,” he said warmly, bumping her shoulder. “And that’s ok, if you decide to keep playing after therapy, we’ll dive into all that later.”
“We’ll see,” she replied honestly. “No offense, but I don’t get the allure of gaming. This…” she gestured to the silver lit forest, “is stunning, but spending so much time here feels, well, wistful. Umm sorry, no offense.” She shot him a quick, apologetic look.
Laughing and dropping a heavy hand on her shoulder, Arthur said, “None taken, little lady, none taken at all. Being in here lets my brain shift gears into a whole different style of problem solving. Honestly, I get my best ideas while popping Zeds, slicing up goblins, or taking out Space Cowboys.”
“Oh, not killing the Gangster of Love?” Mav teased, a mischievous smile tugging at her lips, wondering if Arthur would catch the century old song reference.
“Hell yeah, baby, crushing Maurice into dust,” Arthur replied with a laugh. “’Cause I’m a picker…”
“I’m a grinner,” Mav jumped in, finding the tune. Together, they belted the chorus off-key:
“I’m a lover, I’m a sinner, I play my music in the sun. I’m a joker, I’m a smoker, I’m a midnight toker. I sure don’t want to hurt no one!”
They finished laughing uproariously, and Arthur gave Mav a playful shove that nearly knocked her off her feet.
“Jesus, Arthur,” she said, grabbing his arm for balance, “you’re as strong here as you are in the real world!”
“Stronger, actually,” he admitted, steadying her with a gentler grip. “Faster, too. When we get to the training bower, I’ll show you, we’ll run you through a quick test to set your in-game baseline, then we’ll go over the statistics system in more detail.. When you were scanned for your avatar, the system also ran a biometric scan to give you starting stats. The test just fine tunes it.”
“Oh joy,” she moaned like a student told they’d have a test in the morning. Arthur laughed and she went on, “so my character starts from where I’m at in the real world?” Mav asked. “What about my legs, then?” She bounced lightly on her feet for emphasis.
“Injuries or disabilities don’t apply in-game unless you want them to,” Arthur explained. “Some players choose to reflect their adapted body, others don’t.” He gave her a much gentler nudge this time, and they continued down the last of the forest steps, both humming the Steve Miller Band tune under their breath.