Chapter One
Madelyn
“Are you ready?” Smolder asks.
He’s a hunched-over alien with antennae sprouting from his green head and a scraggly blood-red beard, his one eye watches me from the observation deck of the spaceship.
Of course, I know he’s not really a green-skinned alien and that his name isn’t really Smolder, but part of the charm of the video game Star Search or any game is that we have no idea who the other person is.
It's part of the charm for me, anyway, because it means I get to hide behind my computer screen. After a long day of college classes, there’s nothing like relaxing on the multiplayer video game, searching the stars with my crew mate, Smolder, a person I’ve known for six months now.
Maybe known isn’t the right word, because another feature of Star Search is it modifies your character’s voices, so when Smolder speaks it comes out high-pitched and eerie, to match his species.
I press a button on my keyboard, directing my avatar to move forward and join Smolder at the observation window.
Through the glass, the star sparkles and beckons us. We’re going to fly right to the center of it and harness its power, adding to our resources so we can make the return journey to the trading outpost… hopefully, with some star power to spare so we can turn a profit.
“Genevieve?”
My name fits my avatar, tall, beautiful, thin, and composed. Genevieve is nothing like me, with her high cheekbones and her obedient hair, never frizzing around her shoulders like mine. Her body is without curves, like a runway model, and she wears a startling dress that is completely out of place on our spaceship.
But I don’t care. It’s fun to pretend to be beautiful, even if it’s only in a game.
“Yes, I’m ready,” I tell him.
My voice is sophisticated, with the tenor of a song.
“Okay.” Smolder emotes, causing his avatar to grin. “Then let’s go.”
The mission goes well and soon we’re gliding through the emptiness of space back toward the trading outpost. Star Search is a massive game, a huge world full of emptiness between the star systems. The point of the game is to find stars, harness their power, accumulate resources, and build bigger and better ships… all while defending ourselves from space pirates and raiders.
Mom thought it was silly when I explain it to her, but it’s difficult for any non-gamer to understand just how freaking immersive it is.
With nothing left to do but watch for pirates as we drift through space, Smolder and I hang out in the command room, the surveillance system showing us the vacant area around us just in case attackers take their chance.
I shift in my chair, glancing at the clock. “I have to get going soon.”
“Getting some extra work in?” Smolder asks.
I nod, even if he can’t see me. I don’t bother to emote it. “Yeah, this project is kicking my ass, but it’s so rewarding.”
“You’re awesome, Gen. Game design and programming. You’re a force to be reckoned with.”
I blush, this time relieved he’s not watching me. “I wouldn’t go that far…”
He chuckles. “Well, I would.”
Smolder and I first met on the Looking for Groups page when the game first launched. I wasn’t sure what drew us to each other, but we quickly found we could sink easily into conversation, sharing banter and laughs as we set out to conquer the stars.
I’m even tempted to say we have chemistry, a spark here, something. Yet every time I think that I have to caution myself.
I don’t know who Smolder is, and I have no idea what he looks like. I know he’s a man and he’s forty-three years old… at least that’s what he’s told me. He could be lying, but a strange instinct tells me he isn’t, tells me he would never lie to me.
It’s a stupid thought to have, and I try my best to reason notions like that away.
At least I know I’ve told him the truth about me. I’m nineteen and a college student, but I’ve never sent him a picture and he’s never even heard my real voice.
“What about you?” I ask him.
His avatar is completely still. I wonder if his real features are tensed up. Smolder is always cagey when it comes to his personal details, beyond what he’s given me, making me wonder if he’s got something to hide.
Maybe he’s in his mom’s basement, the stereotypical teenage gamer. He could be a woman. Or maybe he lives across the street. I simply don’t know.
“I have some late-night work to take care of too.” His avatar wanders over to the customization station. As he speaks, his beard changes color, his one eye flitting and becoming two. “I’ve been thinking, Gen…”
“Hmm?”
“I’d like to meet.”
My hand tightens on the mouse for a second. After a pause I sit back, feeling like all the breath has been sucked from my body.