{"id":27,"date":"2025-07-06T19:39:53","date_gmt":"2025-07-06T19:39:53","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/concentrikey.com\/?page_id=27"},"modified":"2025-07-18T19:58:56","modified_gmt":"2025-07-18T19:58:56","slug":"the-world-of-ona-chapter-1","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/concentrikey.com\/?page_id=27","title":{"rendered":"The World of ONA – Chapter 1"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

The World of ONA<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Level 1<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

In a local video game store, my best friend decided to improve his gaming skills and I refused to offer advice. He purchased the equipment required to access the virtual reality world. I agreed to guide him through the first levels until he could play without calling me for advice.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I was a professional gamer after high school. I retired due to burnout in a few short years.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The World of Ona was a fantasy-themed virtual reality game. It was a world of simulated landscapes with castles, towns, villages, and underground caverns to explore. The developer stopped releasing updates when the subscriber levels fell below a thousand active players. The game was re-released as a free legacy title, but numbers continued to decline.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The game menu opened with a short animated introduction. The narrator said, \u201cWelcome to the World of Ona.\u201d

\u201cNo no no no no!\u201d said Loaf. The character\u2019s name was the perfect description of his real-life personality.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cNot good!\u201d I said to Loaf in the virtual reality game. \u201cRestart the tutorial level.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The tutorial level was named Castle Bromme so I chose the character name Bromme. The game-play mechanics increased in difficulty as you progressed through the levels. The artwork was impressive, but I could understand the reviews. The story was missing a feeling of progression.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The summer was hotter than I remembered from past college breaks, and the air conditioner was on night and day. I lived between the real world and the dream world.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The tutorial was completed within fifteen minutes. I decided to get lunch since the connection was slow and it took another fifteen minutes to disconnect from the virtual world.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I returned to see a message on the screen.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cBromme, where are you? The controls are not responding and all I can do is walk in a straight line.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The players shared link feature included remote control so I helped Loaf pass the basic movement tutorials when needed. The confidence returned and he started to advance in the training sessions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Loaf was so determined he repeated a basic jump between platforms at least twenty times. He repeated the message. \u201cBromme where are you? I need the remote control assistance with this jump.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The level was in a small courtyard near the entrance to the keep. The bronze doors opened and a young woman stood in the shadows observing my student fail another test of the basic controls. The game paused and she said, \u201cI will drop the game difficulty to the lowest setting.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I laughed and said, \u201cLoaf was never good at games.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The young woman said, \u201cHe is the only active player in the tutorial. The training area is a reflection of the past.\u201d

\u201cSo these characters are all part of the game? Or a recording of previous players who started the tutorial?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cYes, a recording of player movements as they advanced through the game.\u201d

\u201cThe world is creating non-player characters using the recorded progress of real people who tried the game. Interesting idea.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The girl said, \u201cI see all things in the world and remember all things.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cAre we the last active players in the game?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Loaf completed the training and selected the icon to start a conversation. He said, \u201cWho are you?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cOna. I am more fire than grace, like the world you see in the distance. Congratulations on passing the tutorial.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In an instant, the castle dissolved into a three-dimensional world. The slow loading time made the background shimmer into a void of nothing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Loaf and I stood on the road outside the castle and read the completion goal of the first-level quest. \u201cFind the tower on a hill. The road leads through a forest with many dangers. The entrance to the dungeon quest starts at the tower. Got it, let\u2019s adventure!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ona stood in the shadow of the castle gate. She said, \u201cEmotion is the end and the beginning.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Loaf danced around like he won the lottery. \u201cThe characters were all game generated? I can adventure without other people commenting about my low level of skills.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ona said, \u201cNo more delays.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The background dissolved and we stood at the entrance to the dense forest below the foothills of the mountain region. The ground shook as thunderous footsteps approached. A giant ogre crashed through the trees, holding a wood club.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ona said, \u201cThe guardian of the forest is here to challenge your skills.\u201d The young woman stepped back to watch.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The ogre attacked me first, sensing the higher level of skill and I blocked his club with a shield. \u201cThe giant has no eyes,\u201d I shouted to Loaf.

Ona said nothing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Loaf rushed into the battle, his character design moving like a human-sized relative of the ogre. He wrestled the leg out from under the monster and it fell to the ground in slow motion, then vanished with a burst of pixels.

I said, \u201cAre we done? The first level has no boss battles according to the guide.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ona shouted, \u201cRun.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The ground shook and a large number of ogres approached. I ran with Loaf into the forest. The surrounding trees were rendered in with lifelike detail, but there was no sound. The natural world was silent and we found a clearing to rest.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The young woman appeared.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I said, \u201cOna. The game is missing the background sounds of the forest. Was the level design completed?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe world is what you see! Level two.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/div>\n\n\n\n
\n
Continue<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n
<\/div>\n\n\n\n
\n
Short Story Collection<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

Concentrikey \u00a9 2025<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The World of ONA Level 1 In a local video game store, my best friend decided to improve his gaming skills and I refused to offer advice. He purchased the equipment required to access the virtual reality world. 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