I wrote this short story (aimed for 100-500 words, mine’s a bit over ¯\(ツ)/¯ ) for a holiday writing programme, focusing on the topic ‘Virtual Worlds’ but
honestly, I have already written a lot of sci-fi and tech and stufffff so yay? ig?
My story’s message is about the addiction and danger of Virtual Reality, and how in a world where everyone uses VR headsets as a neccesity,
people find it hard to stop relying on this technology products… yoi (ᵕ—ᴗ—), pls read now
Dancing on the Edge of the Blade
It’s truly a paradise. An oasis of vivid colors, and although everyone knows it is only a getaway from dull reality, the atmosphere is so real. You can move, sleep, interact, anything you can in the real world. Except it’s better. How will I ever live without—
My foot snagged a wire. Air whizzed past my face. Gravity yanked me forward, and the world tilted, as I fell through space and landed on my face. The air was thick with dust, and the grimy floor screamed years of neglect.
A broken VR headset lay, twitching and vibrating shattered pieces of glass and virtual desires put to waste.
I woke up in a monochrome world.
I sat up straight, shuddering, hands gripping the ground, head aching and bleeding.
I shakily stood up, my mind a mess of stars and emptiness. From a corner of the wall, a single window lets through a weak gloomy light.
There was a bed, tattered and messy. There goes the double-sized king bed. Clothes were lying discarded on the dusty floor, stained by food residue. Years of takeaway bags lay in a heap. There was a hum of machinery, and a fizzling wire where my VR disconnected.
Blood from a cut on my forehead was trickling down my eye, leaving a fresh red trail across my face. I stumbled towards a small cabinet, opened it to find unidentifiable rot, and dust. Lots of it. Also, the body of an unfortunate rat.
Staggering backwards in disgust, I hobbled towards the doors on the other side of the wall. Surely it was the luxurious balcony, leading to a private mountainside of emerald green. But as I heaved open the doors, a monstrosity greeted me.
There was a mountain. Not of trees and flowers and bushes, but of layers and layers of apartments. All squished together like a makeshift tower connected by superglue. The rusting skyscrapers spread across the land, as far as the eye can see. In the distance, factory smoke was billowing in the sky.
Homes were cramped together but devoid of boundaries. There were no fences, no barriers to stop people from falling off. From the windows of each apartment, I could see every resident obviously living in their virtual dream.
“Yes! I won the lottery! Again! Oh, life is good!”
I wheeled around and stared at my neighbor who, walking outside, staring down at his empty hand in excitement, fingers closed as if holding a lottery ticket.
He looked ridiculous.
He jumped around his balcony, marveling at the “bright” and “sunny” weather, despite the grey sky above.
Then he took a step towards the edge of the balcony. And another…
Automatically, I leapt towards him, pulling him in.
He yelped, defensively glancing around.
Seeing nobody, he continued walking. One step, two steps, right to the edge.
I did something I never thought I would do.
I grabbed his VR headset, wrenched it over his head, and smashed it on the floor.
The man woke up from his delusion straight away.
“What-! Why did you do that!”
Then he looked down. He saw his feet at the edge of the balcony. He saw ground level, small and meaningless, hundreds of feet underneath us. He saw the gloom.
He stepped back from the edge, trembling, as the weight of reality settled in.