Ding!
Kai's eyes snapped open to the sound of a notification chime echoing inside his skull. Not through his headphones. Not from his computer. Inside his actual head.
He was still slumped in his desk chair, controller imprinted into his palm, neck screaming from sleeping at a ninety-degree angle. The monitor was still on, showing his character exactly where he'd left him twelve hours ago.
He took a quick glance at his phone. 7am.
Which meant his parents had most likely gone to work.
Classic Tuesday morning.
Except for the part where his brain was apparently making RPG sound effects now.
Great. Finally lost it.
He'd always wondered when the complete mental breakdown would hit. Three years of self-imposed isolation, surviving on energy drinks and spite, zero human contact except for his mom's disappointed food deliveries. Honestly, he was surprised it had taken this long.
Ding!
There it was again. That cheerful little notification sound, like when you completed a quest or unlocked an achievement. His games weren't even running.
Kai rubbed his eyes and immediately regretted it. His hands smelled like stale chips. When was the last time he'd washed them? Or showered? Or done anything that normal humans did to maintain basic functionality?
Don't think about it. Just ignore the brain sounds and maybe they'll go away.
He reached for a fresh Monster Energy from the mini-fridge next to his desk. The can was cold against his palm, real and solid and definitely not a hallucination. Unlike whatever was happening inside his head.
Ding!
[Entertainment System Initializing...]
Kai nearly choked on his drink. That wasn't just a sound. That was words. Actual words appearing in his vision like a heads-up display, floating translucent text that followed his eye movements.
[Welcome, User Kai Tanaka!]
"Oh, fuck no." He set down the can and pressed his palms against his eyes. "Nope. Not doing this. This is not happening."
The text didn't disappear. If anything, it got brighter, more insistent.
[System binding successful! Congratulations on your selection!]
Selection for what? The psychiatric ward?
Kai stood up too fast, nearly falling over as his legs remembered they existed. The floating text moved with him, staying perfectly centered in his vision like the world's most inconvenient contact lenses.
"This is a breakdown," he said out loud, voice cracking from disuse. "I'm having a complete psychological break. Mom was right. I should have gotten that job at the convenience store. Normal people don't see floating text."
[User distress detected! Please remain calm. Tutorial will begin shortly.]
Tutorial?
The word made his gamer brain perk up despite the existential crisis. Every game had tutorials. Basic instructions, starter missions, learning the mechanics. But this wasn't a game, this was his actual life, and his actual life didn't come with helpful instruction manuals or friendly AI guides.
Ding!
[You have been selected for the Entertainment System beta program!]
[Objective: Transform your life through strategic social engagement!]
[Warning: Failure to comply may result in negative consequences.]
Kai stared at the messages floating in his vision.
"This isn't real." He said it louder, like volume could make it true. "This is stress. Or malnutrition. Or that expired energy drink from last week. Brains don't just... develop user interfaces."
But even as he said it, part of him, the part that had spent thousands of hours in virtual worlds, was already analyzing the system. Clean design, intuitive layout, responsive to his eye movements. If this was a hallucination, it was a remarkably well-programmed one.
Ding!
[Tutorial preparation in progress... Please stand by.]
[Tip: The Entertainment System is designed to help users achieve social success and personal growth!]
Kai laughed, but it came out more like a bark. "Social success? Me? Have you seen me? I'm a twenty-two-year-old hermit who smells like a gaming convention dumpster. I haven't had a real conversation with another human being in three years."
[Analyzing user profile... Analysis complete!]
[Current Social Level: 0/100]
[Current Charisma: 2/100]
[Current Life Satisfaction: 5/100]
"Okay, that's just insulting." Though honestly, five points for life satisfaction felt generous.
Kai stumbled to his computer and opened a new browser tab with shaking fingers. His search history was usually just game wikis and pizza delivery sites, but today called for something different.
"hearing video game sounds in head"
The results were not encouraging.
Audio hallucinations. Schizophrenia. Gaming addiction psychosis. When to seek immediate medical attention.
"Shit. Shit shit shit." He clicked through article after article, each one painting a grimmer picture than the last. Apparently, auditory hallucinations were a Thing. A serious Thing that required therapy and medication and all sorts of real-world interventions that Kai was spectacularly unequipped to handle.
Ding!
[Research detected! Very thorough, User Kai!]
[However, the Entertainment System is not a hallucination.]
[We are a revolutionary personal development program utilizing advanced cognitive integration technology!]
Kai stared at the cheerful message floating over his search results about mental illness. "Advanced cognitive integration technology" sounded like marketing speak for "fancy way to lose your mind."
He opened a new tab and tried a different approach.
"entertainment system beta program"
Nothing. No results, no company websites, no user forums complaining about mysterious brain interfaces. Which either meant this was so cutting-edge it wasn't public knowledge yet, or his brain had invented an incredibly elaborate delusion complete with fake corporate terminology.
Ding!
[Curiosity is excellent! You're already showing improvement!]
[Previous search history indicates 67% gaming wikis, 31% food delivery, 2% miscellaneous.]
[Today's research represents significant behavioral deviation - progress already!]
The system had been monitoring his browser history. That should have been terrifying, but Kai was too exhausted for proper terror. Besides, if something was going to judge him based on his internet usage, floating text in his vision was probably the least of his problems.
He slumped back in his chair and reached for his controller out of habit. Gaming was safe, predictable, controllable. Unlike whatever was happening to his brain right now.
[Gaming detected! Excellent stress management technique!]
[However, tutorial will begin shortly. Please prepare for your first mission!]
"My first what now?"
The text pulsed brighter, like it was excited. If floating text could be excited. Which it couldn't, because floating text wasn't real, because normal people didn't develop personal HUD systems overnight.
Right?
Kai closed his eyes and took a deep breath. When he opened them, the text would be gone. This would all be some weird dream, or stress-induced hallucination, or maybe he'd finally snapped from too much caffeine and social isolation.
He opened his eyes.
[Tutorial will begin shortly!]
[Prepare yourself, User Kai! Your new life awaits!]