Nevermore Ch. 01

Damian fought down the nerves as they arrived at the venue. He was more apprehensive about this Buck's do tonight than his wedding in 3 weeks. With Steve and Brendan in charge, anything was possible.

That said, he was pretty intrigued to finally come to the new VR Experience centre that had opened up in town. It opened with minimal fanfare - he just noticed it one day on the way home from the supermarket. The website was strangely cryptic but after asking around, he got the impression it was really just VR porn.

Still, rather than risking going too far with a stripper just before his wedding, he figured this was a safe option for a night out. His fiance had insisted on a month-long "no sex" rule before the wedding, and he was horny enough that keeping it in his pants would be a challenge.

It seemed all of them had been a little on the nervous side, as they had downed their pre-drinks in record time. Feeling a decent buzz, he walked through the nondescript entry with his 6 mates.

Once inside, the entrance was like a themed hotel, dim lighting, leather and brass fittings giving an overall steampunk vibe. An abandoned counter sat to one side, and Brendan approached it, dinging the bell.

A man walked out, looking like something out of a Doctor Who episode, sporting a waistcoat and bow tie, a shaggy mop of hair upsetting the formal look.

"Ah, welcome, my party of seven." He said cheerfully. "I wondered if you might be running a bit late. I hope you're prepared for the experience of a lifetime! Here at Nevermore, we pride ourselves on unique and...pleasurable experiences! I'm Toby, and I'll be your host, both in real-time and in the virtual world. I trust you've all completed the online pre-training activity prior to attending today. It is quite important."

"Yep, all done and accounted for." Brendan jumped in before anyone could answer. He shot them all a look over his shoulder, making sure they went along with him. Clearly he'd forgotten to send something around for them.

"Good, good." Toby surveyed the crowd, appearing to acknowledge their lack of preparation. "Wouldn't want you to end up in a situation you hadn't expected. Now, is this to be a series of individual experiences today, or are we sticking with the Buck's Do Special?"

Brendan answered for the group. "We'll stick together, I think. Can't have a Buck's Party while we're all off on our own."

Working his way around the group, Toby distributed a set of disclaimer documents, each more than 10 pages long. Damian flicked through it quickly, immediately bored by the legalistic terminology.

He looked at Brendan. "You read this through, right?" He asked. "Anything I should be worried about?"

"Nah, it's just the standard disclaimer bullshit. No one ever reads this. Just sign it and let's get into it."

The rest of the crowd quickly followed suit and Toby ushered them down the hallway to a series of individual dressing rooms. Damian entered his dark room alone and looked around him as the lights switched on automatically. The green walls surrounding him flickered briefly before adopting the same gothic decor as the entry way.

The effect was quite amazing, giving the illusion of standing in a period-style hotel room. He approached the walls and reached out, his hand disappearing through the furniture to touch the smooth screen behind it all.

The only feature out of theme was what appeared to be a reclining chair situated to one side. A smooth, black, shiny casing curved along the underside of the chair, with soft, deep-maroon coloured cushioned lining inside. Suspended from the ceiling hung the other half of the pod, lined with the same maroon cushion on its underside.

A brief shimmer caught Damian's eye, and he turned in time to see Toby appear out of nowhere.

"Hello Damian, I'm Toby, your digital guide." The hologram was remarkably lifelike. "While I may look like the person that met you at the front counter, please know that this is just the face of a digital construct. You might think of me like Siri, I guess, just with a virtual face and body.

"Nevermore uses virtual assistants like me, rather than human staff, to protect your privacy. Whatever I see or hear is kept completely private. You can call me for assistance at any time, just by calling my name.

"It's important at this stage that we run through the rules of the Nevermore platform. This is absolute state-of-the-art tech that we use at Nevermore. Reach out and touch the cushion in the pod over here. You'll see that it's an entirely unfamiliar substance, somewhere between a liquid and a solid. It will mold itself to your entire physical structure. Not only that, it can both respond to neural messages, as well as send them. While you're in the pod, your mind won't be able to tell the difference between the physical and the virtual.

"Now, Nevermore is designed to respond to your deepest desires and unspoken wishes. As such, it's important to have some control over your mind while you're in the platform. The old adage "Be careful what you wish for" has never been truer than it is in Nevermore.

"Your avatar in Nevermore will be an exact replica of your physical form. Based on feedback from prior participants, we have enabled some optional augmentations if you choose. For example, we could arrange an increased...ahem...endowment size if you desire for an additional $500."

Damian nearly choked. How much had this all cost if an optional extra is $500??

"Ah, no thanks, I'll be fine with what I have."

"Alternatively, we're currently offering a free upgrade with the standard package - the Jamie Lannister special - which includes a 30% increase in length and girth, enhanced abdominal contours, increased shoulder and arm musculature and a buttock lift. This comes at no cost, but does require you to agree to a few minor conditions - the use of testimonials (de-identified of course) in our marketing, ownership of the avatar, etc. Just some standard conditions. You can read them all here."

A hologram pops up in front of Damian, with a long scroll of more terms and conditions. He flicked through it quickly. It would be good to look a bit better in front of his mates he supposed.

"I'm sure it's fine." He says, skipping to the end and clicking the 'agree' button.

The hologram vanishes and Toby steps forward. "Well, I think we're all set then." He said cheerfully. "We'll just get you scanned so we can render your avatar. If you'd just get undressed and stand over here for me, we can get it sorted."

He gestured towards 2 glowing footprints on the floor. Damian looked over at him feeling suddenly awkward. He reminded himself that he was just a computer programme. Methodically he removed his clothes, folding them and placing them on a stool in the corner of the room.

Finally bending to remove his underwear, he stood, stark naked, on the designated spot, legs spread apart.

"Now, if you would just raise your arms out to the side like this." As Damian copied his posture, with arms outstretched, green strobing lights hit him from all directions, whipping back and forth across his body in a blinding display. There seemed to be a surprising focus on his genitals more than any other part of his body.

"And just follow my positions please." Damian followed obediently, as Toby had him standing with arms stretched up, squatting low to the floor, twisting and leaning in all directions. As he bent forward, hands gripping his ankles, and the green lights recording every detail of his body, Damian wondered if this was some sort of Buck's party prank. He half expected his mates to come barging in laughing at him.

When no such intrusion happened, and Toby seemed to have exhausted all possible positions, Damian stood again, blushing, and feeling humiliated. Even though he knew it was just a computer programme, it seemed so wrong to be taking instructions buck naked from a fully clothed man.

"Are we done then?" he asked, an edge of irritation to his voice.

"Just one last thing, I'm sorry." Toby looked almost embarrassed. "In order to properly render your avatar, the system will need to see you...ahem...engorged."

"You've got to be kidding." Damian started heading for his clothes. "This is all just a joke, isn't it?"

Toby answered quickly. "You would have read all about this in the orientation guide. It shouldn't come as a surprise. It's no problem if you're not feeling...up to it. I can provide some assistance if you need."

The display on one of the walls quickly changed to a porn scene, with a young, naked blonde woman performing oral sex on a well-hung suited man.

Already worked up, Damian felt a stirring almost immediately.

"Would you give us a minute then?" He'd come this far, there was no point in stopping now.

"Of course, sir." Toby vanished immediately, and Damian turned to face the full-screen porn shot.

A couple of strokes was all it took before he was standing at full attention. In fact, he was really starting to get into the scene. The girl really seemed to be trying to swallow that huge cock whole, and the guy was clearly about to shoot all over her face. He licked his lips, stroking away.

A flicker again and Toby was back, appearing directly in front of Damian.

"Ah good, I see you're all ready to go. OK, just stand back on the foot pads again."

Damian was blushing furiously now but with no way to hide, he complied with the direction, standing legs spread on the designated spot.

The green lights shot over him again, focussing entirely on his hard cock, standing at attention before him.

As the lights faded again. Toby spoke up one more time.

"And if I could just get you to roll back your foreskin for me there..."

"Oh, for fuck's sake!" Damian was passed arguing now. Complying once again, he exposed himself entirely, releasing the engorged, purple head of his cock from the confines of his smooth foreskin. Hands resting on the back of his head, he thrust his pelvis forward, giving the scanner a full view of his cock.

He blushed again as a drop of precum escaped the tip and ran lazily down the shaft of his cock.

Toby showed no sign of noticing his embarrassment, but now gestured over to the cushioned pod on the side of the room.

"OK, we have your avatar fully scanned now, and he's just in with the rendering team to make your selected adjustments. Shouldn't take more than a moment. If you'd like to climb in to the chair, I'll talk you through how this works."

Damian reached for his clothes from the stool by the door, but Toby quickly redirected him.

"No, those won't be necessary, sir." He directed. "You will need to be completely naked inside the pod. The system requires full contact with your skin. It is of course fully sanitised after every client, so please don't be concerned."

Trying his hardest not to think of what the last occupant had been up to in here, Damian climbed up into the pod, and lowered himself, naked, back into the soft, gel-like cushion. The pod seemed to ripple around him as if it were alive. He sank deeper into the maroon softness as the substance conformed rapidly to his body, sinking into every joint and crevice.

His legs pushed apart by the pod, he felt the cushion slide in between his buttocks. He gasped as he felt a quick ripple of pressure up between his cheeks, a fleeting contact racing across his most intimate parts. His balls were cradled gently by the soft gel.

It felt as though he were lying on nothing. Tentatively, he tried moving his arms and legs, and found that they moved freely, the cushioning substance conforming to him perfectly.

A soft whirr signalled the roof of the pod descending towards him. He looked up, and was taken by a brief moment of claustrophobia as the fully enclosed lid descended onto his reclining form. Starting at the feet, it angled down, closing the sides and completely enveloping him in the soft gel.

The gel extended up to his pelvis, and his cock, now flaccid once again was wrapped in the strange substance. Shocked, he felt his cock being adjusted, as the cushion wrapped both over and under him, coming into perfect contact with every inch of his skin.

Up his abdomen, chest, hands and arms, he was enfolded. Finally, as it approached his mouth, he panicked, unable to stand or move. Opening his mouth to cry out, it was quickly filled with the insistent substance. In the flash of an instant, his mouth cleared, leaving his airway somehow free despite being enclosed.

He took a couple of tentative breaths in the darkness, relieved to find no impediment. He felt his heart rate beginning to slow as the panic subsided. Testing the inside of his mouth with his tongue, he felt a slightly numb sensation.

"Toby?" he called out tentatively.

"I'm right here sir." Toby's voice seemed to come from inside his head. "Now, Damian, I need you to open your eyes. I know it's a little odd at first, but the construct uses a deep retinal scan, both to access your thoughts, and desires, but also to give you biofeedback."

Damian opened his eyes, and was shocked to see that he was standing back inside the foyer where they'd entered. He tried to move, but was entirely unable. His mind reeled as it split between an awareness of his naked body completely ensconced in a maroon gel, and the new information he was getting regarding his current surroundings. He looked down at his body, thankful that he was dressed in his own clothes again, at least here inside Nevermore.

Toby appeared before him once again.

"Now, you'll be able to move in just a moment. The techs are just finishing the avatar render. While you're waiting, I'll let you know a little of the background of how this works.

"As you'll no doubt remember from the orientation module, (a sideways glance here) your body is now completely protected inside the pod. This is the absolute pinnacle of technology. Not only can it give you instantaneous, zero latency bio-feedback, it can also model itself exactly to your body, and will efficiently take care of any necessary...bodily functions, for example sweat, urine and semen."

"So I can just piss in the pod and it'll clear it right away?" Relieved at Toby's affirmative nod, Damian realised he'd been busting to urinate since he arrived and really should have gone before it all started. A brief moment of concentration was all it took to relax his bladder and begin to empty it.

With a shock, he noticed the warm, wet spread of urine pouring down the inside of his pants. Toby looked over with a start.

"Of course, any bodily motions will be mirrored here in Nevermore sir!" he exclaimed. "Like anywhere else, we have toilets, etc. for your comfort."

Feeling like he was constantly being embarrassed here, Damian looked down in shame at his wet pants. The sharp odour of urine hit his nose.

"Never mind though, sir. We're still in training mode, so easy enough to fix that."

One of Toby's eye's twitched briefly and Damian's surrounding shimmered for an instant. He looked down again at a pair of trousers with no evidence of his shame.

"Now, while the pod is capable of some motion, it does not have the full range of mobilisation that the human body is capable of. The sense of movement in Nevermore is a combination of bio-feedback from micro-pressure transmitted to various parts of your body, combined with the deep retinal stimulation achieved through the VR.

"We're able to influence your sensory perceptions by directing impulses directly onto the neural network in your retinas. As far as your brain is concerned, you really are walking around, your hand really is resting on that benchtop, and yes, your genitals really are being...stimulated...by that mouth.

"Every action in Nevermore is interpreted as being 100% real by your brain.

"Now, importantly, as well as stimulating your sensory cortex, the pod is also able to read your intentions, your preferences, your very desires. Micro-movements of your eyes, much like in REM sleep, are picked up by the pod sensors, along with tiny muscle twitches, and nerve signals all through your body. They say the eyes are a map of a man's soul, and with this incredible tech, well, this is now coming true."

Damian reached up to scratch his arm, suddenly realising that he could move. He tentatively held his hand up in front of his eyes, touching his face, hair, body. He gripped his biceps, noticing how much bigger they were than normal, ran a hand down his flat stomach, and then looking further down...

"Ah, the techs have finished your avatar, I see. Just remember, this is a public part of the construct. Why don't you follow me to your private room to examine your avatar more closely."

Damian found himself back to the pod room, only now with no pod. Closing the door behind him, he looked over at a large mirror on the far wall, examining his reflection closely. Admiring his new augmented body, he wondered how much work he would have to do in the gym to look like this in real life.

Unable to resist, he undid his fly and pulled his new package out for a look. A large, heavy cock looked back at him through the reflection. It was recognisably his own, but certainly more impressive. He grabbed it in one hand, giving it a few test strokes, wondering vaguely what was happening to his real body back in the pod.

Incredibly, the self-stimulation felt exactly as it always did. For the second time since arriving, he stood in the room, slowly jerking himself off.

"Remarkable how quickly men reach for that the first time." He started as Toby appeared over his shoulder in his reflection, and quickly shoved his large, hard cock awkwardly back into his pants.

"Please be assured that I am only a digital construct, completely devoid of judgement or emotion, and entirely confidential. What happens here is really just for you.

"Now, your friends have chosen a Buck's night package for you all. Essentially that means you'll start in a strip club, and what happens from there is up to you. As the groom to be, we allow you control over Nevermore, which means it will respond to your own desires and wishes.

"This means that you should be careful to control your impulses or you may all end up somewhere unexpected.

"Now to protect your privacy, your friends are not aware that you're in control. They will have a similar briefing suggesting that the construct responds to the cumulative total desire of the group, rather than any single individual, so they won't know that it is coming from you."

Toby looks off into the distance for a moment.

"Ah, your friends' avatars are in the final stages of rendering, so if you've had enough of...ah...examining yourself, why don't we head out to the lobby to meet them."

Relieved to feel his erection receding, Damian followed Toby out into the lobby. One by one, his mates appeared beside him, looking a bit dazed and initially frozen as he was. A very slight shimmer to their appearance suddenly resolved as each of them unfroze and began testing out their new avatars.

Damian watched with interest as they all examined their bodies almost in unison, squeezing a bicep, feeling a pectoral muscle, before inevitably reaching down to give their package a squeeze. It seemed everyone had gone for the free upgrade.

He took the opportunity standing next to Brendan to talk to him quietly.

"What the fuck have you gotten us into?" he whispered, half-jokingly.

Brendan's eyes seemed a little wider than usual. "Well it looked good on the website!" he replied, sounding a little uncertain. "It can't be that bad. Just run with it, I say, and see where it takes us."

With everyone moving freely now, Toby quickly had them standing together in a circle.

"Now, we'll start the scenario for you all together. Remember, if anyone wants out at any stage, just call my name and I'll assist. Otherwise, have fun boys."