Both Heaven and Hell have always worried that, someday, some sort of unambiguous evidence would appear that would reveal the War to the mass of humanity. It's just that nobody ever expected that it would be shrink-wrapped - or available in any computer store with any pretensions towards coolness, for that matter.
This unlikely camel's straw is a new VR MMO RPG called Sword Art Online. The premise is fairly straightforward: the protagonist plays a human fighting their way up a fantasy castle so vast that entire miles-wide landscapes occupy its hundred floors. Simple enough, and harmless ... theoretically.
The first problem is that following the Beta, the game's designer decided to use the radical new computer interface (the NerveGear) to kill anyone who died in the game. Or anyone who was logged out by those around them. The player's log out button was deactivated.
Horrific as this was, if that was all it was then it'd probably have come down to some frustrated Malakim and Cherubim going looking for Kayaba Akihiko to show him the real art of the sword - and possibly a screaming match between Vapula and Jean.
Unfortunately the setting the players were then dumped into wasn't the flying castle of Aincrad. It was the first circle of Hell, right inside the Gates of Hell - and the Angels of Fiery Judgement don't let anyone out.
The players are teleported not to the starter city but to a vast hall surrounded by a fiery landscape. Kayaba Akihiko is looking down at them from a balcony.
"Attention players. Now, as the more perceptive of you... CAN YOU ALL HEAR ME AT THE BACK? Good, now where was I? Ah, as the more perceptive of you have probably realised by now, this is Hell and I'll be your Devil for stay here. You can call me Lucy, if you like. Why not be informal here, as well as infernal...? Just my little joke."
"Now, I'm sure you've all noticed the logout button is missing from the main menu, so you're all going to be here for quite a long time. I'm sure you'll have plenty of time to get to know each other... except for those whose friends and families have chosen to remove their nervegear."
"No, they haven't escaped. Instead the 213 players in that situation will be in another Hell for all eternity... but I'm getting ahead of myself. Those neat little helmets of all are programmed to introduce your brains to a powerful burst of microwaves if... now let me see... oh yes. If anyone tries to remove them or if you die in this game."
"WILL YOU STOP SCREAMING! Now, any questions?"
"Why am I doing this? Why because I'm your Devil, remember? Anything else?"
"No... can't help you there. This is a video game, so there are no toilets. Damnation without relief, if you've read your bible."
"How do you get out? Finally, a good question! Well, of course, Hell has a way out. You just have to descend through all nine Circles of Hell, defeating the Demon Princes that rule each Principality and then dethrone Lucifer - that's me - in the Lower Hells."
"Now then." He checks his clipboard again. "I believe we've covered everything, so this concludes your orientation for Damnation Online. I'd wish you all a good day... but that's not precisely the idea."
There was however, one way out of this death-trap - a way that didn't involve condemning yourself to the real Hell through suicide, that was. The 10,000 players had to fight their way down all nine Circles of Hell, through the Principalities of every Demon Prince (including Shal-Mari, the legendary city of wickedness), enter the Lower Hells and there defeat in combat Lucifer himself. Upon his defeat, so swore Kayaba.
And as it happened, Kayaba was as good as his word.
One heroic mortal with a sword managed to defeat the game's Lucifer and upon this victory Kayaba logged the players out.
Justice had been done, and with a sword. Archangel Laurence would be proud to pledge that hero as a Soldier of God.
Lucifer, it is said, has indicated he'd very much like to give this hero his personal attention should he happen to end up in Hell.
Of course, that's where the problem is. Thousands of surviving players have been released back into their Earthly lives with months of experience of dealing with what - judging by descriptions quickly obtained by both sides - was a very accurate idea of what Demons are really like. Including what they do on Earth.
Eventually someone's going to put two and two together and come up with 'Hey! These buggers are actually wandering around!' - then proceed to post this epiphany on every computer board that he or she can access.
This will be bad. The last thing anybody needs is even a distorted version of the Truth out there. Hell doesn't want to be shot at and too many of Heaven's defense strategies require a human populace that won't joggle their collective elbows.
Just to make things a hair more tense, 300 of the surviving players weren't logged out. And Servitors of both sides have confirmed that some manner of Infernal Intervention took place. This confirms in the mind of Dominic that the entire matter is the fault of Vapula but in fact he's wrong.
In fact, it's the fault of a disaffected Servitors of Lightning . You see, once upon a time there was a certain Outcast Seraphim of Lightning who got that way from arguing one too many times that the Archangel of Lightning's policy of suppressing anti-demonic devices among humans, well, sucked. Normally, Jean probably would have just reassigned the Servitor, but it really isn't a good idea to give even an Elohite Superior the finger.
Left to his own devices in his role as Kayaba Akihio, the Seraph went ahead to pursue his goals. He's even managed to escape heavenly justice for this, since he was portraying Lucifer in the game and in defeat scattered his forces among the surviving players.
a/n: those familiar with the SJG website for In Nomine will probably note I cribbed quite a lot of the text from one of the fan scenarios - partly because its a direct inspiration.
D for Drakensis
You're only young once, but immaturity is forever.
This unlikely camel's straw is a new VR MMO RPG called Sword Art Online. The premise is fairly straightforward: the protagonist plays a human fighting their way up a fantasy castle so vast that entire miles-wide landscapes occupy its hundred floors. Simple enough, and harmless ... theoretically.
The first problem is that following the Beta, the game's designer decided to use the radical new computer interface (the NerveGear) to kill anyone who died in the game. Or anyone who was logged out by those around them. The player's log out button was deactivated.
Horrific as this was, if that was all it was then it'd probably have come down to some frustrated Malakim and Cherubim going looking for Kayaba Akihiko to show him the real art of the sword - and possibly a screaming match between Vapula and Jean.
Unfortunately the setting the players were then dumped into wasn't the flying castle of Aincrad. It was the first circle of Hell, right inside the Gates of Hell - and the Angels of Fiery Judgement don't let anyone out.
The players are teleported not to the starter city but to a vast hall surrounded by a fiery landscape. Kayaba Akihiko is looking down at them from a balcony.
"Attention players. Now, as the more perceptive of you... CAN YOU ALL HEAR ME AT THE BACK? Good, now where was I? Ah, as the more perceptive of you have probably realised by now, this is Hell and I'll be your Devil for stay here. You can call me Lucy, if you like. Why not be informal here, as well as infernal...? Just my little joke."
"Now, I'm sure you've all noticed the logout button is missing from the main menu, so you're all going to be here for quite a long time. I'm sure you'll have plenty of time to get to know each other... except for those whose friends and families have chosen to remove their nervegear."
"No, they haven't escaped. Instead the 213 players in that situation will be in another Hell for all eternity... but I'm getting ahead of myself. Those neat little helmets of all are programmed to introduce your brains to a powerful burst of microwaves if... now let me see... oh yes. If anyone tries to remove them or if you die in this game."
"WILL YOU STOP SCREAMING! Now, any questions?"
"Why am I doing this? Why because I'm your Devil, remember? Anything else?"
"No... can't help you there. This is a video game, so there are no toilets. Damnation without relief, if you've read your bible."
"How do you get out? Finally, a good question! Well, of course, Hell has a way out. You just have to descend through all nine Circles of Hell, defeating the Demon Princes that rule each Principality and then dethrone Lucifer - that's me - in the Lower Hells."
"Now then." He checks his clipboard again. "I believe we've covered everything, so this concludes your orientation for Damnation Online. I'd wish you all a good day... but that's not precisely the idea."
There was however, one way out of this death-trap - a way that didn't involve condemning yourself to the real Hell through suicide, that was. The 10,000 players had to fight their way down all nine Circles of Hell, through the Principalities of every Demon Prince (including Shal-Mari, the legendary city of wickedness), enter the Lower Hells and there defeat in combat Lucifer himself. Upon his defeat, so swore Kayaba.
And as it happened, Kayaba was as good as his word.
One heroic mortal with a sword managed to defeat the game's Lucifer and upon this victory Kayaba logged the players out.
Justice had been done, and with a sword. Archangel Laurence would be proud to pledge that hero as a Soldier of God.
Lucifer, it is said, has indicated he'd very much like to give this hero his personal attention should he happen to end up in Hell.
Of course, that's where the problem is. Thousands of surviving players have been released back into their Earthly lives with months of experience of dealing with what - judging by descriptions quickly obtained by both sides - was a very accurate idea of what Demons are really like. Including what they do on Earth.
Eventually someone's going to put two and two together and come up with 'Hey! These buggers are actually wandering around!' - then proceed to post this epiphany on every computer board that he or she can access.
This will be bad. The last thing anybody needs is even a distorted version of the Truth out there. Hell doesn't want to be shot at and too many of Heaven's defense strategies require a human populace that won't joggle their collective elbows.
Just to make things a hair more tense, 300 of the surviving players weren't logged out. And Servitors of both sides have confirmed that some manner of Infernal Intervention took place. This confirms in the mind of Dominic that the entire matter is the fault of Vapula but in fact he's wrong.
In fact, it's the fault of a disaffected Servitors of Lightning . You see, once upon a time there was a certain Outcast Seraphim of Lightning who got that way from arguing one too many times that the Archangel of Lightning's policy of suppressing anti-demonic devices among humans, well, sucked. Normally, Jean probably would have just reassigned the Servitor, but it really isn't a good idea to give even an Elohite Superior the finger.
Left to his own devices in his role as Kayaba Akihio, the Seraph went ahead to pursue his goals. He's even managed to escape heavenly justice for this, since he was portraying Lucifer in the game and in defeat scattered his forces among the surviving players.
a/n: those familiar with the SJG website for In Nomine will probably note I cribbed quite a lot of the text from one of the fan scenarios - partly because its a direct inspiration.
D for Drakensis
You're only young once, but immaturity is forever.