Prisoners of VR

"Cyber...God?" Karthik muttered as he closed his eyes and entered his Virtual Space. He possessed an Industrial uVR Earth, one that was equipped to run an entire industry. With the popularisation of uVR Earths, more and more people were equipped with the same.

As a result, one could work from home, even if they were part of a labour-intensive job. Karthik ran a textile business. His factory created cotton fabric and was involved in the process from collecting cotton from their seeds to the final dyeing stage of the fabric.

All of them required labourers. Originally, workers would work in pretty dangerous environments where all sorts of harmful fumes floated around in the air. With the advancement in labour laws, it was mandatory to equip every single worker with safety equipment.

It was hard to make a profit after considering all safety parameters. But with the arrival of uVR Earths, things became simpler.

Karthik whipped up contracts where the employee was bound to his company for 20 years. In exchange, he would equip them with an uVR Earth. The advantages of possessing a uVR Earth were tremendous, but the costs were equally exorbitant. Hence, such a contract was a win-win situation for both parties.

Moreover, uVR Earths were insured by an insurance company under Pomegranate Corporation itself.

The advantage of possessing an Industrial uVR Earth was its widespread connection to machines, especially automation robot arms.

Once Karthik takes a seat in a comfortable cabin within his factory, his uVR Earth would synchronise with his entire factory, mirroring its form in his Virtual Space.

The same factory that existed in reality was displayed in the Virtual Space, down to the last fragment of dust. But it was just a projection of reality, nothing more nothing less.

His employees, when it\'s their time to work would arrive at a room next to his cabin and sleep there. They would connect to his Virtual Space through Virtual Reality, entering while equipped with motion capture suits.

Each motion capture suit was fitted with dozens of sensors, connected to an android in reality. All the signals necessary to operate them were transmitted from Karthik\'s uVR Earth.

The employees would move around in the Virtual Space and perform their work while in reality, their respective android would mirror their actions. This way, work was being performed without any threat to one\'s life.

Moreover, since the employees were working in the Virtual Space where the environment could be controlled to be pleasant, they could work to their utmost potential.

Karthik only needed to buy one motion capture suit 3D Model and customise it according to the employees. It was damn cheap.

Since people didn\'t need to walk in the factory, all footpath areas could be removed. This saved a lot of space, allowing for maximised setup of machines. Even maintenance work could be performed by the robot arms attached to the ceiling with a crane.

The time in the Virtual Space of an Industrial uVR Earth flowed at the same rate as reality. And its sole function was to run an industry. And for it to operate, one must first register their factory with Pomegranate Corporation and obtain the necessary licence.

Only the factories licenced to his control were accessible in his Virtual Space. And since Karthik entered his Virtual Space from a godown that wasn\'t his property, his industry settings weren\'t activated.

Though, as the nature of his Virtual Reality settings was, his Virtual Space was the same godown. It was scanned and readily created. There was the figure of the youth seated in the chair, but what Karthik saw was just a projection of reality. He couldn\'t interact with it.

All he could interact with was an individual standing before him, two metres away, one touted to be the Cyber God.

The moment Karthik stared at the Cyber God, the settings of his Virtual Space changed. A gust of wind slammed into him and forced him to kneel. He was stunned, wondering what just happened.

His Virtual Space was supposed to be under his full control. It was here that he exercised complete dominance, one where he could be a God. "How?"

"Look at this," The Cyber God snapped his finger as a large human brain, attached to a bunch of equipment, one of which was also an uVR Earth manifested.

It resembled an altar, with the brain situated at the top, encased by a glass dome. There was a transparent palm print on its top. Faint arcs of electricity flickered across the brain as the Cyber God observed Karthik, "Everything that happens in your Virtual Space is processed by your brain through your uVR Earth. So, if the wind is generated here, the necessary information is processed in your brain."

"Of course, the signals in your brain move through the uVR Earth. So," The Cyber God snapped his finger, causing it to snow, "Once you scanned the QR Code, I could bring this brain here. It is working nonstop. And all this information is being processed by your brain. It\'s similar to how some viruses trick the immune system into believing they are its own cells."

"The QR Code acts like a Virtual Reality Communication invitation. You are automatically accepting the invitation the moment you scan the code. Moreover, the recipient of the invitation is me and this brain. That\'s how we\'re able to appear here."

"Then...you fooled me?" Karthik stared in fear.

"You see," The Cyber God seemed intent to speak his mind, ignoring Karthik\'s mental state, "So, through the actions performed here, I send data to your brain and fool it into thinking that these are its own thoughts. From there, manipulating your uVR Earth to do my bidding is easy."

"Get out! Get out of my place!" Karthik shouted and intended to send the Cyber God out of his Virtual Space. But, nothing happened even after a couple of minutes passed.

"That signal to eject me has been intercepted." The Cyber God smiled, "It failed to reach your uVR Earth. Having been living in the brains of people for decades, I have learnt the pathways for a large number of signals in the brain. I can intercept them faster than you can think up a response, since your reaction is instinct while mine is data-driven."

"This is a 3D Model of my brain, you see." The Cyber God patted the altar in pride, "I created this after a lot of research. I call it the Manav Altar. With it, I can influence your thoughts and actions."

"T-This is impossible..." Karthik trembled in terror, especially since he couldn\'t leave his Virtual Space. It was as if he was trapped. "What...the heck are you?"

"Manav Sastry, that\'s my birth name." The Cyber God smirked, "But you\'ll be addressing me as the Cyber God, after a round of convincing, of course."

"You see, your Virtual Space is situated in your brain." The Cyber God patted Karthik\'s head, "Everything that you experience in your Virtual Space is data that are processed in your brain. So, when you allow a third party to enter your Virtual Space, you\'re basically granting them access to your brain."

Karthik\'s eyes widened in realisation as his limbs trembled. He stared at Manav, terrified, listening to the latter\'s explanation with no hope of escape.

"When you grant them access, it creates a mode through which they can hack into your brain itself. Those dumbasses from Pomegranate Corporation don\'t even understand the full application of the technology they had created. Of course, everyone that is using Virtual Reality Communication doesn\'t even realise the danger they\'re subjecting themselves towards." The Cyber God snorted.

Right at this time, the Manav Altar emitted brainwaves that Karthik\'s brain processed. The brainwaves consisted of propaganda data, feeding into Karthik\'s mind and overloading him.

The more one hears, sees, and talks about something, the more they are influenced by it. That was why since ancient times, media was the perfect tool to influence and brainwash the masses.

But even then, if you refused to listen to propaganda, you could at least shut your eyes and ears. That used to be an option back in the day. Unfortunately, that wasn\'t possible for Karthik, since it was transpiring in his head.

Through the Manav Altar, propaganda data was being fed to Karthik\'s brain nonstop, so much so that a mere two hours later, his character had been affected to such an extent that even Anita wouldn\'t have recognised him.

In the meantime, the Cyber God was focused on a calculation, sighing once he obtained a result, "This brain is damn weak. It can only manifest me in reality for one second."

"Shit, it\'s another dud."

Manav\'s true goal here was to find someone that could manifest him in reality for at least a couple of minutes. Such people were valuable tools that he could put to use. "Well, at least his hatred towards Rahu is genuine. I did well planning for a possibility. And as I thought, Rahu went in for the kill."

"Stupid brother," He smirked once before shaking his head, "I haven\'t felt such joy before. As expected, teasing a sibling is the best feeling there is."

"Cyber God, how should I exact revenge on Rahu?" Once the first round of brainwashing was complete, Karthik prostrated on all fours and bowed until his forehead touched the ground.

"Do nothing for now. You\'re too weak to even make Rahu sneeze." The Cyber God snorted, "A month later, the VRMMORPG, Worldcraft will be released. Make preparations to spend most of your time in it. The hidden purpose of this Virtual World is to train and increase your brainpower."

"Once you accumulate enough brainpower to manifest me for more than a dozen seconds, you can exact revenge on Rahu." The Cyber God then pointed at the Manav Altar, "I can feel your thoughts through it. So, if you wish to consult me about anything, place your palm on the imprint and channel your thoughts to me. I\'ll respond if I deem it worth my time."

"As you command." Karthik bowed in response before asking as his eyes glinted, "If I were to train zealously in Worldcraft, would my brainpower one day reach the same level as a DOVA Agent?"

"In theory, yes." The Cyber God smirked.

"Excellent!" Karthik grinned hideously.