Log Out, Log In

The buzz around the new VR game, Elysium, was impossible to ignore. Marketed as the most immersive experience ever created, it promised not only an escape from reality but the opportunity to live out the most exhilarating, surreal fantasies. Players could literally “dive in” and experience a world of their own design. The excitement was palpable, and the game quickly became a sensation, with millions of eager players jumping into the virtual reality dream.

For Amelia, a college student on break, the promise of Elysium was too enticing to resist. She had always been a fan of virtual reality but had never tried anything this advanced. It was said that Elysium used a new neural interface technology that tapped directly into the brain’s sensory centers, creating a seamless, hyper-realistic experience that was indistinguishable from reality.

On a quiet afternoon, she strapped on the VR headset, eager to see what all the hype was about. The moment the screen blinked to life, she was no longer in her room. She stood on the edge of a vast, mist-shrouded forest, the sound of birds in the distance and the crunch of leaves beneath her feet. Her heart raced. She had arrived in Elysium.

The game began with a tutorial, teaching her how to navigate the environment. She wandered through the forest, marveled at the vivid colors, and explored a town where she interacted with NPCs that felt almost human. Everything seemed flawless—until the moment she noticed something odd.

A figure in the distance caught her eye. A tall, shadowy man, standing perfectly still at the edge of the town square. Amelia blinked. The figure was still there, but when she looked closer, she realized it wasn’t supposed to be in the game. No NPC should have been positioned like that. He wasn’t a part of the environment; he was out of place, like a glitch.

“Is anyone else seeing this?” she muttered under her breath, adjusting her headset. But there was no one to hear her. She tried to walk past the figure, but as she did, the man turned his head slowly, his eyes glowing an unnatural red.

Amelia froze.

The man’s mouth opened, but instead of speech, a low growl echoed in her mind. You shouldn’t have come here.

Before she could react, the figure lunged toward her. She stumbled backward, her heart pounding in her chest as the world around her seemed to warp and distort. She scrambled to log out of the game, but the interface wouldn’t respond.

She slammed her palms against the invisible interface, her breath becoming shallow as panic began to set in. Elysium was supposed to be just a game. So why was it starting to feel real?

Then, in a blur of motion, she was back in her room—panting, drenched in sweat. Her hands trembled as she pulled off the headset, her heart still racing. She sat in stunned silence, trying to shake off the lingering sense of dread.

The room was quiet. No glitches. No shadowy figures. Everything was normal.

She let out a shaky laugh. “It’s just a game. It’s just a game,” she whispered to herself, but a nagging feeling gnawed at her gut.

But then she saw it.

There, on her bedroom door, was a scratch—a jagged mark as if someone had dragged a claw across the wood. Amelia’s breath caught in her throat. She hadn’t seen that before she logged in.

Shaking, she stood up and approached the door. The scratch was deep, fresh, and too perfect. She had to be imagining things. Right?

She quickly glanced at her phone to check the time, but it was dead. Her phone had been fully charged just minutes before, but now, it was completely drained.

Before she could react, her computer screen flickered to life, even though it was supposed to be off. On it was a message: Did you enjoy the game?

Her pulse raced. She backed away, but then the lights flickered, and she heard a faint whisper behind her.

You can never log out.

Amelia spun around, but there was no one there.

Heart pounding, she grabbed the VR headset again, desperate to escape. She put it back on, hoping to return to Elysium—anything to make sense of what was happening. She clicked on the “Log In” button, but this time, something was different.

Instead of the familiar game menu, she was staring at a dark, endless void. Her body jerked, and she felt a sharp pain in her head. The air was thick, heavy, and cold. The ground beneath her shifted like sand, unstable and unnatural.

“What the hell is this?” she gasped, panicking.

Suddenly, she was no longer in her room at all.

Elysium had come for her.

Now, she was standing in the very forest she had explored earlier, but everything was wrong. The trees were twisted and gnarled, their branches like fingers reaching out to grab her. The man—the one who had spoken to her in the game—was standing before her again, his red eyes glowing in the dim light.

“You didn’t listen,” he said, his voice cold and ominous. “You can never leave.”

Amelia screamed as the man reached for her, his hands like claws. But just as he was about to grab her, she felt herself being ripped from the game, pulled back into her own reality.

The transition was abrupt. Her surroundings shifted again, and she found herself back in her bedroom, gasping for air. She scrambled to remove the headset, but the moment she did, her phone buzzed on the nightstand.

One new message.

It was from an unknown number: You shouldn’t have tried to leave. We’re coming for you.

Her hands shook as she dropped the phone. The scratching sound from before filled her ears, louder now, as though someone was clawing at her door.

She couldn’t escape the game.

And now, the game was following her.

The door creaked open slowly, the shadows gathering in the hallway beyond. Amelia turned to face the darkness, the cold grip of fear wrapping around her heart.

She wasn’t alone.

And the game had only just begun.