She wears a dark hooded cloak. It overshadows most of her face, sharp features deftly hidden beneath darkness. Poised, she stands carefully watching out for the slight ruffle of the leaves that sit below her boots, the movement of birds escaping from the quietest of noises. Her ears are listening for even the smallest of sounds, ready to attack. Suddenly, footsteps. With one smooth, swift movement, she crouches down, her knees scraping against the rough, serrated edges of hardwood. She scans the territory like a predator looking out for its newest prey.
A loud sound. The forest abruptly loses life. The footsteps go quiet. The crickets stop calling. The birds stop chirping. The girl reaches for her bow, skilled hands preparing for battle. She awaits the beast lurking beyond her vision.
Snap!
She whips her head around violently. Looking over her is something she has never seen before. It towers over her menacingly, its face contorted into a frown. Its eyebrows furrowed, and its eyes... They sparkle with hunger, little orbs spelling a horrific end for her. The monster makes the first move, its large arms swooping down to grab the girl. She reflexively dodges, draws her bow, and shoots with precision. It rebounds off the monster's hand. There's no time to waste. Before being grabbed, she manages to bring an arrow with her and stabs-
"Your time is up," the humanoid voice rings out. The forest disappears. No longer is the greenery, or the monster's sweaty palms. Rather, she is greeted with clinical white walls, her hands strapped to a chair and her head stuck in a metal contraption. She sighs, slightly struggling against the soft restraints before a robot assistant comes to help her off the chair. The robot didn't pretend to be human like the artificial voice did. It has a simple, short build designed with only a speaker, arms and wheels. She appreciates the lack of deception.
Click. The restraints are off. The robot moves to unplug the device from her head as well. When it comes off, she is greeted by a sudden wave of pain. Her vision blurs to black. A flash of the forest. A flash of the beast. She shudders.
"Ma'am?"
She stumbles backwards, and lands, hard, on white tile. Her vision clears. Her arms lift to cover her pounding head. "Fucking New Day technology!" she hisses beneath her breath. She takes a deep breath to steady her racing heart. Accidents like this only happen every once in a blue moon.
The assistant robot provides her with Aspirin. She gladly takes it to soothe the radiating headache. It does not dissipate. Afterwards, she walks out to the waiting room. The pristine glistening white walls, something she will never get used to. Such unnatural lighting, such unnaturally painted walls. That's why she escapes to the forest, one filled with uncertainty and monsters; She wants to see the lush green that she hardly ever sees in the New Days, and she wants the rush and the thrill of having to fight a beast that was nearly unbeatable. The humanoid waves at her, its head tilting awkwardly as an artificial voice sounds out, "Hope you had a nice day!" The girl ignores the humanoid and walks just a bit faster than before.
She takes the train home to her dingy apartment. The sight of her tattered, browning couch was a sight for sore eyes. Her head seemed to hurt even worse than it normally ever did. Once in a blue moon, sure, but these blue moons were growing too frequent for comfort. She rushes to the comfortable couch, carelessly flinging the door behind her and flopping herself onto it. She has a long day of work ahead of her tomorrow. More mindless typing and fatigue. She falls asleep almost immediately, and dreams of the forests again.
Her pain doesn't fade. She still visits the VR centre the next day.
"Hi, I'd like to book a room for 2 hours."
"Ma'am, I'm afraid you've already exceeded your personal weekly limit. By agreeing to take on the extra 2 hours, you also agree that Virl is not liable for any damages. Do you agree to these terms?"
"Yes, I do."
She signs the contract with a lack of hesitation. No matter the cost, she needed it, she needed the peace that the green forests give to her, the thrill that the monsters provide. There was no point in dwelling on her decision for too long, because she knew she had a lot of regrets. And, well... There's no way a blue moon would come again so soon. Overthinking spending too much time in a metal contraption made for the sole purpose of money-grabbing is surely going to be a mistake. She's sure that she will be visiting tomorrow and the day after as well.
The same robot assistant does its usual routine of strapping her hands to the chair and placing the device accurately on her head. It works diligently, or as diligently the girl believes robots can work, and she's all set yet again for another adventure, another escape into the lush green forests of the universe she has masterfully crafted for herself.
Except she isn't met with the fresh start that she always finds herself in after re-entering the simulation. Instead, she was in the death grip of the monster that was tormenting and plaguing her world yesterday. Strange. Well, she must dismiss the questions that bombard her mind now, because while she wants to escape the real world, the virtual one is supposed to be a place where she can run away from her misery.
She repeats the same motion that she attempted to do previously, stabbing the arrow into the monster's hand. Her valiant attempt fails, the arrow snapping into two. Crap. She's out of luck. She vigorously tries to shake off the monster's grasp, kicking hard and punching with as much strength as her virtual body could muster. It only angered the monster and caused it to smash the girl within his tight clasp. Her body stops struggling and lays limp.
The simulation ends, and her brain goes into shockwaves, unable to comprehend the gruesome end within virtual reality. It couldn't distinguish between the two worlds anymore.
"Ma'am? Are you alright?" The robot assistant enters the room, checking on its customer who behaved abnormally.
No response.