Prisoners of VR

9th June 2048; Tuesday!

7:50 AM!

"Seems you have resolved yourself." Rahu smiled, glanced at the suitcase in Deepika's possession and walked forth, not commenting on the matter. "Have you had breakfast?"

"Not yet," Deepika said as she followed him.

"Let's have it first. My cycle will be delivered in the meantime." Saying so, Rahu sat down in the cafeteria situated at the topmost floor of the hotel, having a simple Dosa for breakfast.

While eating, he asked her, "Can you multitask?"

"In what form, sir?" Deepika thought for a moment and replied, "I have trained for that. I can move my body the same as usual even while controlling my drone."

"Military uVR Earths are specialised regarding Augmented Reality, so it's natural you can do that." Rahu drank some water and patted his stomach, "What about Virtual Reality?"

"Can you connect to it while moving in reality?"

"Is that...possible?" Deepika stared incredulously, "Only in a state of deep sleep can one enter their Virtual Space. Through training, I can engage with Virtual Reality within three seconds. But, I haven't seen anyone capable of entering Virtual Reality while awake in reality."

"That's pretty strange," Rahu frowned, "You see, the previous Chief was an expert at this. Even while playing badminton in reality, he could connect to his Virtual Space and work there. He's the best in the country."

"I...never knew." Deepika bowed in apology.

"Leaving that aside, I'm not on the previous Chief's level, but I can engage with Virtual Reality at least while walking in reality." Rahu finished his breakfast and washed his hands, watching Deepika follow suit as he said, "I'll train you in this regard. To keep up as my secretary, you need to get used to it."

"I'll try my very best!" Deepika saluted.

The duo exited the hotel and stared at two subordinates part of Rahu's security team. In their possession were a cycle and an umbrella. Judging by the dirt in their hands, they had been busy assembling the cycle once it had been delivered.

"We checked it, sir." One of the subordinates saluted Rahu, "There are no issues with its function."

"Good work," Rahu boarded the cycle and affixed the umbrella on the rear carrier. Whistling a tune, he began to drive towards the office.

Pulled up in his Augmented Reality was a GPS, displaying the route to the DOVA Branch he was in charge of.

His uVR Earth blinked with a blue light as Rahu pulled up a playlist and listened to the songs. Through the neural connection, the song played in his mind, the sensation no different to hearing from a pair of headphones.

He minimised the noise-cancelling aspect, for he wouldn't be able to react to anything if he couldn't hear his surroundings. Adjusting the cap covering his uVR Earth, he calmly pedalled.

Deepika followed right behind him through her car. They didn't make it obvious as all the cars were from different brands, sporting a variety of colours just as the common populace possessed. But they were all part of his convoy.

It seemed like Rahu was driving through traffic, but all the vehicles in his proximity were part of his convoy. Eleven cars, one van, one tempo, and five bikes.

Rahu had already interacted with his security team in the morning. So he was aware of their identities. Staring at the convoy, he thought, 'At least in New Delhi, I can go alone, since there was a DOVA Agent above me that was in charge of the place. But here, I'm the top dog.'

So, he couldn't refuse the convoy. If something happened to him, his security team would be held accountable. Therefore, even if he ordered otherwise, they would refuse and continue to protect him.

Now that he thought about it, when he was walking to the hotel with Deepika the previous night, there were people stationed in the roadside shops observing the pedestrians nonchalantly. They were his security team, constantly maintaining a perimeter of his surroundings while disguised as common people.

It made Rahu realise the authority he currently wielded. Since he was the Chief of the Chennai DOVA Branch, part of the southernmost state of the country, any cases related to uVR Earth that happened in the state and beyond the southern border also fell under his jurisdiction.

'I hope I don't die from exhaustion.' Thirty minutes later, he arrived at the DOVA Branch, a 14-storey complex spanning an area of 30 Acres, situated smack dab in the middle of the city.

There was a parade at the entrance as the Department Heads of every single institution within the branch had come out to welcome him.

9:00 AM!

"I heard this DOVA Agent is an eccentric troublemaker." The Superintendent of Police, Kumaravel Pandian stood at the entrance to the building and wiped his sweat with a kerchief, glaring at the blazing sun for a moment. He was a lean middle-aged man with a prominent moustache whose ends were slightly twirled.

"He's eccentric, alright. He's arriving on a cycle." The Branch Administrator of Finance, Deepak Kumar spoke in irritation. He was an old man with a conservative viewpoint. "This is what happens when a youngling is given too much power."

"He's arriving on a cycle? Seriously?" Kumaravel was stunned. The group of people of importance at the entrance of the DOVA Branch engaged in a discussion while they waited to welcome Rahu.

In the meantime, the person in question had entered the building through the rear gate and headed straight to the Chief's office.

"Good work," He nodded at Deepika for leading him through the rear entrance in advance so that he wouldn't have to be held back by the greetings. Just exchanging pleasantries would take a few hours at least, since the number of people of importance was just too many.

The Branch Chief had been absent from the seat for three days already. Work was continuing to pile up, so he couldn't put them behind any longer. "Exchange greetings to them on my behalf later."

"I'll get it done," Deepika said as she took a seat and connected to Virtual Reality.

Rahu did the same and entered her Virtual Space, staring at a room filled with large monitors of flashing images. Deepika handed over a tablet and pointed at the first case, "This case has been pending for three days already."

"A suicide case?" Rahu frowned, "That should be handled by the police..."

He stopped upon reading the contents of the case, "The concerned individual has holed up in his Virtual Space and has refused to return to reality?"

"Yes, and since he only has Class 1 Endurance, his neural network has already shown signs of damage." Deepika expressed worry, "He has remained in Virtual Reality without rest for more than 80 hours. His family admitted him to a hospital, so his body is fine thanks to the treatment. But his mind..."

"This is a dangerous case indeed, especially since Worldcraft is set to launch soon." Rahu then looked through the other cases, "Okay, this is the most urgent. We'll go there immediately. Plan my itinerary to maximise my efficiency."

"Okay!" Deepika began to prepare a travel route immediately.

Having discussions in Virtual Reality was not only secretive but also time-efficient. After all, time flowed ten times faster here, allowing them to conserve a lot of discussion time.

Returning to Reality, Rahu accompanied Deepika and entered a secluded room on the same floor.

There was a berth in the centre, strapped on which was a man slightly older than Rahu. He was kept sedated while a machine nearby monitored his vitals.

The machine was being controlled by a man through his military uVR Earth. Therefore, if the DOVA Agent were to get up, they'll know.

Seeing Rahu's arrival, the man with the military uVR Earth stood up and saluted, speaking, "The Agent has been unconscious all along. We have also supplied his body with only the bare minimum nutrients necessary."

"What have you found out regarding him?" Rahu asked, "Which country's DOVA Agent is he?"

"Sir, about that..." The man with the military uVR Earth hesitated before speaking, "He's not on the list."

"Since we can't extract any data from his uVR Earth, we're at a loss."

"What about the masked man? His 3D Avatar." Rahu asked next, frowning.

"That's the issue here." The man with the military uVR Earth expressed his confusion, "The masked man was the 3D Avatar of a DOVA Agent from Kazakhstan, Talgat Musabayev. What's bizarre is that Sir Talgat died three years ago. He was already an old man by then."

"But the one in our custody is pretty young and he's been registered as an Indian Citizen under the name of Rakshat Gupta."

"How...is this possible?" Deepika was startled by the information as she turned around to gaze at Rahu, "Can anyone equip a DOVA Agent's uVR Earth and exhibit its power?"

"If a DOVA Agent were to die, the country they belong to would confiscate and seal their uVR Earth. Based on their design, no third party can extract any form of data from it. So, they are useless once the user dies. But in honour of their services, their uVR Earth would be sealed and protected with care." Rahu said solemnly, "And, no matter what uVR Earth it is, once it has bonded with an individual, it can never be equipped by another person."

"Every single human brain has its unique signature that can never be forged. So..." He stared at the unconscious individual before him, "Who the fuck are you?"

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