Yvestell

Prologue: The One-World Theory

"Our brothers and sisters, our intellect has bloomed! Onwards to a world crafted by our hands. Yes! Where our thoughts and ideas breathed a living soul unto invention. This work of the collective mind anointed us, the whole of humankind, as Gods! Welcome to-"

The proclamation would resonate across the globe, echoing for months preceding the unveiling of their invention at ICONIC Inc. The visionary behind the voice was Emiliano Valerie, the architect and chairman of ICONIC. Decades prior, Emiliano vacated a prestigious role within a tech leviathan, fueled by visions of the impossible. Amidst skepticism and doubt, he laid the cornerstone of his enterprise. Their quest? To birth a true and fully immersive virtual world. The drive behind ICONIC was pure, unadulterated wonder-the tales of youth, the games, and the shows that ignited envy in every soul, young and old, lamenting, 'Why does not our reality mirror the fantastical?

It took several decades for their vision to materialize, and at the dawn of the year 2052, Chairman Emiliano would deliver a speech that cemented itself as the highlight of the century. His introduction of the ICONIC Complete-Dive Gear shattered the ceiling of science fiction, coupled with the revelation of a game tailored for this epochal invention.

Their research revealed that the human brain required 'familiar' stimuli to actualize the fabric of virtuality. In other words, it has to be grounded in the real. It isn't possible for a person to embody a cat, or any other creature besides human. You cannot see a new color or hear a different range of frequences. You're human, doing human things within a world sculpted for humanity. But that is only true for current technology.

Date: 03/27/2052

The markets all around the globe were flooded by waves of people wishing to get their hands on the ICD gear. A global sensation went around every person like the flu, an obsession. The months leading to the device's release, trailers and first-hand reviews came out, all of them singing praise of the impossible achievement of virtual reality. Heaven on earth made by us.

In a matter of a few weeks, it was estimated that over half a billion units were sold. And every account meant one more player inside ICONIC's virtual world. The servers were at peak at all times, so much so that it almost broke the game. And this is all happening even though ICONIC expected their servers to reach full capacity. The players were relentless that a week after the launch, ICONIC set hourly limitations to their playerbase. The next three months became a segment in history where humans of this generation were able to experience adventure. Born too late to discover the lands of Earth. Born too early to explore the cosmos. But born at the right time to adventure Yvestell.

Date: 07/05/2052

[Day of the First Contact]

In the first week of April, Yvestell received a global update. Everyone in-game and out, were in left in a state of shock. The borders that were once set inside Yvestell were dissolved and the horizons beyond could be seen. Some players were even posting pictures of their maps, now expanded and seemingly showing uncharted locations that defied prior existence. This unforeseen evolution was unexpected as the current state of Yvestell was yet to be fully explored. It's like dressing up an infant with adult attire. But no one complained. Adrenaline permeated the air.

Simultaneously, within the hallwed halls of ICONIC, panic engulfed the creators. None of this was planned for. The game had autonomously updated itself. The head of AI division feared that their AI went rogue and somehow Skynet was manifesting itself. But after delving deep, it became clear that the AI was not the root of the problem. If not the AI, then what? This question flipped the entire company upside down. From the sudden and extreme measures rolled out to keep the incident under the rugs, and the frenetic rush to figure out the why, the top dogs at ICONIC earned sleepless nights.