June 6th, 2065

Ryan Jennings realized they were in trouble as soon as the alarms started blaring. As the sudden whirring sirens engulfed them, his wife and son came to a dead stop just ahead of him. In a digitally rendered landscape where the grassy field and the blue sky looked utterly real, his family waited for his reaction.

He glanced at the other families who, moments before, had been enjoying the day. They stood frozen, shocked by the sudden turn of events. Ryan ran to his son, Mike, who looked up at him, already disappointed. Mike had been anticipating this trip for months; celebrating his sixteenth birthday at Epiphany16, the new state-of-the-art virtual game world. Ryan felt Olivia’s hand close around his. “Honey, what is going on?”

Before he could answer, the people around them bolted for the portal. Ryan threw aside his medieval sword and grabbed Mike’s hand. “We have to get out of here, NOW!”

His son’s hand pulled away. “Ah, Dad. It’s nothing,” Mike protested. “This is probably a gimmick. They want you to fall for it.”

Ryan shook his head furiously. “No. It was in the liability waiver they forced us to sign. If the alarms go off, we have to evacuate to the nearest portal immediately.” Mike sagged. Ryan felt sorry for Mike, but he knew the situation was urgent. He had read every word of the liability waiver. It was a disgusting document that absolved Cloud Nine Systems of all damages. When he’d read about the sirens, Ryan had wanted to abandon their plans and head back to Boston. But Mike had been so stubborn about spending his weekend at Epiphany16 that Ryan finally relented. He cursed himself for it now.

A man collided with Mike, knocking him to the ground.

Enraged, Ryan turned to scream at him. No time for that! he thought. Don’t get distracted. Get them out of here! He picked up his son and held his arm, then reached for his wife, Olivia. Lucky for us, we didn’t get too far into the realm, Ryan thought. We’re maybe ten minutes away from the portal.

He started running, pulling Olivia and Mike with him.

“Ouch,” Olivia complained as he jerked her arm, but she raced along with him.

“Get moving, Mike!” Ryan shouted.

They sprinted through the tall grass as swarms of people fled past them, their eyes wild with fear. The alarms blaring overhead reminded Ryan of the nuclear test sirens he would hear as a kid. Where are the sirens coming from? he wondered. There were no speakers in sight, and yet the sound enveloped them. They were breathing heavily now. Sweat coated Ryan’s skin. He glanced at Olivia. Her light brown hair clung to her damp skin. He concentrated on the portal ahead. Just another hundred yards, he estimated. The portal bounced in his vision as they ran. He saw people leaping through the portal like they were diving into a swimming pool. That’s going to make for a hard lan—

Through his ringing ears, Ryan heard a loud descending hum that sounded like a machine powering down. Then, abruptly, the sirens stopped and the realm turned black. A startled hush rippled through the darkness. Ryan waited for his eyes to adjust to the gloom, but they weren’t adjusting. The realm was pitch black and as silent as a tomb. I can’t feel the ground! he realized suddenly. Ryan peered down and gasped.

The green field was gone. They were floating in a desolate void. He noticed infinitesimal pinpricks of light, barely distinguishable, circling in the darkness. He turned to Olivia but saw only her darkened, vague shape. Her blue eyes had transformed into black ovals.

“Daaad,” Mike cried, squeezing his hand.

With dawning horror, Ryan realized he couldn’t feel his wife's or son’s skin anymore. What he felt in his hands was oily and cold. Oh my god, have they shut the game down? he thought. They’re not going to leave us in here, are they? Cutting through the absence of sound were the cries of other families left behind. But Ryan couldn’t see them in the darkness. On his right, he heard someone shriek. Ryan turned toward the sound, but his body remained stationary, hovering in the complete vacuum. More people were screaming now. Their desperate cries rose like a twisted chorus of human misery.

“Baby, what’s going on?” Olivia sobbed. Ryan gawked as black tears flowed from his wife’s eyes. “I… I… don’t—” A new ascending hum flooded their ears, rising in pitch and volume, surrounding them. Pixel by pixel, Ryan saw the landscape take form again. The grass below him materialized in green hues, and the sky above him shone once more. He watched in astonishment as his bones, muscles, and skin traced new lines along his recoloring body. He glanced at Olivia and saw her blue pupils redrawn over the white globes of her eyes.

The people around him were numbed, silent again. In an instant that seemed to last forever, they stared at their family members in complete shock.

Then someone yelled, and absolute panic ensued.

The horde of people charged for the portal. Ryan, Olivia, and Mike raced with them. The surrounding families shouted and screamed. Ryan saw someone go down and get trampled by the crowd. Dear God, he begged, please get us through this!

As they ran toward their escape, the portal ahead of them blinked out of existence.