Online Fiction

Almost as exciting as the chance to have archeologist Brian Harris' dig sites modeled in an interactive virtual reality is the chance to alpha-test the newest Terramyr Online game for the company providing the tech. The arrangement is simple, test the game, play the main storyline, and report any glitches. In return, the game's main designer will render fully virtual models of the dig sites that will not only ensure Brian's successful graduation but set him up for life as he uncovers the secrets hidden within a trio of ancient Chilean volcanoes.

There's never enough time to really enjoy life, not when you're Russian Weapons Engineer Vlad Nardoir. Vlad has done a number of things in his short time in Eldgard. He's helped capture an Imperial fortress, defeated a corrupted demigod, and created a Crafter's guild where all are welcome. But Vlad's greatest challenge is yet to come. With a timer counting down until the Vault of Souls changes locations, leaving him completely without a lead for its resting place, Vlad will need to battle against time, a powerful hidden evil, and his own internal darkness to destroy the vault in time.

Bilda FOH Smartown has the biggest civilization in Avila. He brings in billions in ad revenue. Everything is branded. For instance, you can partake of a foamy ale in the Troll and Tourniquet pub - sponsored by Texatron Auto-air, the cheapest deals on the best air cars - or pull the lever at the High Summer Hangings - courtesy of Blue Bird Neon. Perhaps you’d like to sponsor a battle and ride with the fiercest centaurs, or hire a bard and seduce a princess. Everything and anything has a price tag in Bilda’s empire. Revenue is king, and coincidently, so is Bilda.

Renate Bergmann haut ab: Raus aus Berlin, rein in die vermeintliche Ruhe ins brandenburgische Spreeweide. Dort, wo Stefan, Ariane und die Kinder wohnen und der Alterswohnsitz auf Renate wartet. Kaum angekommen, gerät sie mit Bürgermeister Brummer aneinander. »Kandidieren Sie doch selbst!« muss man ihr nicht zweimal sagen. 82 Jahre hin oder her: Der Adenauer und Renate powern in diesem Alter erst richtig los. Deshalb hängt schon bald Renates Wahlplakat an jeder Dorflaterne. Ohne Raute zwar, aber mit schickem Blazer. Das Auge wählt schließlich mit!

Gemini Fowler and company have come a long way in a short time. They've strengthened their bonds through endless challenges and an incredible dungeon crawl beneath the perilous Plague Barrens. Now, they'll face a new challenge as conflict with the royal regent, Governor Zane, looms. Mercenaries pursue. Troops amass. But Gemini and company have a secret weapon: the Foundation Stone.

A suspenseful, racy, and achingly honest story of the entangled lives of six young women and men as they take Silicon Valley’s hottest dating app public. Tara Taylor runs six miles every morning, never eats after 09:00 p.m., is the first to arrive and last to leave the office, but is starting to wonder why she bothers. When her old Stanford flame, Todd Kent, asks her to join his four-person team handling Hook’s IPO, the deal of the decade, she sees her opportunity to break through the glass ceiling and justify six boyfriendless years of sacrifices for her career.

Black knights. Dastardly pirates. Bloodthirsty rebels. And those are the good guys. War is coming to the Midlands. Like a kettle ready to bubble over, cities teeter at the brink of boiling, all while a spymaster fans the flames. Witness the rise of the Violet Order. It was always coming to this. Freedom isn't given, it's wrenched from the choking grips of those who would stifle, contain, and control. Legends are rife with noble heroes standing over vanquished enemies, but reality is more grisly.

Coral joined the immersive virtual reality video game Travail Online because her waitressing job, like so many other jobs, was automated by a growing robot workforce. She starts as a Seamstress, hoping to craft useful clothing in-game to sell for real life cash. The game, however, has other ideas. She soon discovers a knack for peeling the skins off creatures she never thought she'd lay hands on and crafting grotesque wearables from them instead.

The year is 1855, and on the LNWR train to London, a criminal is being escorted to his appointment with the hangman. But the wily Jeremy Oxley, conman, thief and murderer, has one last ace up his sleeve: a beautiful and ruthless accomplice willing to do anything to save her lover, including committing cold-blooded murder... When Inspector Robert Colbeck learns that Oxley, his nemesis, has once again escaped, black memories of their shared past leave him no choice but to do his duty.

When Noah invites Penny on his first-ever European tour, she can’t wait to spend the summer with her rock-god-tastic boyfriend. But between Noah’s jam-packed schedule, less-than-welcoming bandmates, and threatening messages from jealous fans, Penny wonders whether she’s really cut out for life on tour. She can’t help but miss her family; her best friend, Elliot; and her blog, Girl Online.

After breaking his arm during the first try-out of last season, Robby is determined to make the football team this year. Even if he does make the team, he's not sure he'll have the skills necessary to lead the team to victory.

A dazzling world of wonder and power. Gifts from the game gods for every person. The perfect magic for every user. Seth, a popular streamer, can’t wait to see what this new world has in store. The game boasts algorithms designed to read biometrics and brain patterns to find the perfect magical fit for the user. In fact, the game company is so sure they will always be right that you can’t remake your character. The unthinkable happened. The safeties and the guarantees failed, not just once but apparently only to them.

Tad Lonnerman is having a crappy day stuck in crappy traffic late to a crappy meeting. On the bright side, his game development career is the only non-crappy thing he has going for him, so life isn't all bad. At least until he dies. Now Tad finds himself uploaded to a beta test of Haven, an unannounced hyper-immersive MMO where the dead have a second chance at life. It's not virtual reality, it's digital reality. A true afterlife online. Except Haven isn't exactly blissful paradise.

I don't want to settle down with some Alpha-born pup my father chooses. As the firstborn daughter to an Alpha, I know my life goal should be becoming a Luna and birthing new Alphas, but all I want is to join the Werewolf Guard. I want to kick some evil supernatural ass and protect the people I love, not create the next generation of entitled little Alpha pups.

Charlie Mason (a.k.a. Mace) is a former detective of major crimes who is forced to retire. His former captain offers him a job as an in-game constable for the hottest virtual reality game around, Immersion Online. This down-and-out detective knows nothing of character creation, leveling up, or magical artifacts. He is a noob. He spawns in the Wilderbrook - a group of human and humanoid villages hundreds of miles from the nearest city - to learn the ins and outs of the game before he assumes his role as a constable in Grandview, one of the largest cities in The Great Realm.

Begleite James, unseren unerschrockenen Abenteurer, Streamer und Bug-Jäger, wenn er sich kopfüber in das erste echte VRMMORPG stürzt und die digitale Realität erforscht, die von den Entwicklern unter Verschluss gehalten wird. Keine Previews? Keine Infos zu Klassen oder Rassen vor dem Start? Was kann da schon schiefgehen? Vor allem, wenn du in dem vom alten Ägypten inspirierten Reich startest. Mit einem Charakter, der an einen D&D-Kleriker der alten Schule erinnert, nimmt James die Welt von Sosaku Online mit Speer, Schild und heiligem Feuer in Angriff.

Living in a virtual game world sounds like the ultimate dream. Plenty of action, intrigue, and guess who gets to be the big hero? But what happens when that digital reality gets flipped on its head? Bad guys are after your sweet loot, your fancy title is loaded with unrealistic expectations, and achieving such a high level comes with a big fat target on your back. Something has to give, so when a new crusader faction rolls into town, Talon senses an opportunity.

Thrown into a conflict beyond the scope of anything Bye-Bye ever imagined, he will be tested in ways he never imaged. Whether that means stopping a war or just taking the girl he likes on a date, he certainly has his work cut out for him. Tensions are rising and if Bye-bye and his friends can’t put a stop to a brewing war, Anvilton and Hammerton might just destroy each other. That is, if the other adventurers don’t destroy them first. With the odds stacked against them, will Bye-bye and his friends survive the Mountain Valley War?

Kevin was a young man enjoying his college life when a car jumped the curb and crippled his body. Unable to support himself and dependent on others to meet his needs, Kevin was slipping into depression when his best friend convinced him to play a new game called Genesis Online. The concept was simple: a revolutionary artificial intelligence controlled the game world and adapted it to the actions of the players. Even the developers didn't know what course the game could take as it evolved.

In 'A Fault on the Line' you will meet a husband who values a televised Hibs v Hearts game more than his wife’s life.This short story features in the collection 'Reheated Cabbage' and is available unabridged on audio for the first time. Hilarious, shocking and hugely entertaining, it has all the classic Irvine Welsh ingredients.