I was incredibly excited. Today was the start of my beta testing trip. I had already unloaded my computer and clothes, and was sitting in the chair waiting for the technicians to help me into my rig. A knock at the door had me jumping out of my chair in a rush to complete everything.

“Hello sir, my name is Matt. Before we get ready there is a final checklist to go over. You are Martin Shellby?”

“Yes, but please just call me Marty.”

Making a note, Matt continued, “Excellent. Do you have everything unpacked? No open food or beverage containers? Phone number and email programmed into the pod? You have recently showered and did not put on any chemicals like aftershave or deordorant?” Nodding at all of his questions I was mentally hurrying him through his list. “Excellent, please strip naked and enter the pod.”

As I sat down in the chair, Matt methodically went through and double checked everything. Leads were attached to my chest and head, a medical cuff around my bicep, and an IV inserted into the quick button on my arm. “Comfy?” he asked as he pressed a button, and a quick nod was all I was able to get out before my thoughts got fuzzy and my eyes closed.

I came to in a living room. It was barren, nothing on the white walls and beige carpet. On a small end table in front of a black couch was a tablet with a flashing screen. I picked it up and pressed the accept call button, and came face to face with Emily.

“Welcome to your new home Marty. This is the area you will default to when you log out of Oblivion Online. You can add anything you want with verbal commands. Go ahead and try it.”

“Okay…. Add overstuffed armchair.” At my command, a wire outline of a chair appeared next to the couch. As I moved my eyes around, the outline moved as well.

“At this point, you probably see the wireframe of your chair. To finalize it, say confirm chair.”

“Confirm chair.” A chair matching the couch materialized around the wireframe.

“Excellent. Now if you look to your left there should be some doors.” Sure enough, there was a dark red door with OBLIVION written in golden script. Next to it was a brown door with no labels on it. “Obviously the dark red door lets you log into the game. The brown door will offer prompts when you try and go through it. Café is the communal area where you can meet your fellow immersion testers. You can also be invited into their apartments once you have been added to their friend list. That’s all there is at the moment, so I’ll leave it up to you what you want to do.”

“Thanks Emily, I’ll worry about decorating some other time. Should I use this tablet for my reports to you?”

“Yes please, that is the easiest way. All communications from this will be flagged high priority, but should there be something that needs immediate attention say 9-1-1- Expedited. That will flash emergency and any manager will be on with you within 10 seconds. Anything else? No? Great. Enjoy the game.”

After the screen went dark, I quickly set it down and made a beeline for the Oblivion door. I opened it and after taking a second to admire the swirling dark vortex, stepped into the game.

User detected. Special protocols activated for user. Initiating Monstrous Opening.

After that blue box flashed in front of my eyes, I saw the remains of a ruined temple materialize around me. Motes of light swirled around me and coalesced into broken pillars and shattered wooden benches. The stone floor was pitted and peppered with scorch marks, and the altar had been shattered so thoroughly that it was impossible to determine what deity was originally worshipped here.

“Ah, yet another one of these supposed heroes has decided to eschew the light races and embrace the beast within.” Spinning around and crouching in a ready pose, I saw an old man with a dark robe. It took a few seconds, but I finally realized what was truly creeping me out about him. His robe was shifting constantly, though there was no wind. Almost as if the body beneath it refused to settle upon one form. “Oh hoh, this one is observant. Fear not boy, I’m not after you, for now. Right now the most important question is this: What beast lives within your soul? In the deepest, darkest parts that you hide away lest all discover. Society frowns upon the beast, but without the beast there never would have been a society at all. Pity, how civilization requires its own history to be cleansed. So, what do you have living in there hmmm?” As he finished speaking, a blue box popped up with my options.

Race

Description

Bonuses

Limitations

Evolution Tree

Goblins

The most ubiquitous and adaptable of monsters, goblins breed faster than rabbits and are deadlier, but not by much

20% resistance to poison, experience gain reduced by 75%

Technology limited to poor steel weapons and leather armor. Magic unavailable.

Max level: 20

Myriad evolution paths, minimum common material

Gnoll

Often referred to as lesser Beastmen, these bipedal creatures’ society resembles their wolven cousins.

Bonus to damage and attack speed in groups of three or more, experience gain reduced by 45%

Technology limited to poor steel weapons and leather armor. Tier 2 magic.

Max level: 35

Multiple evolution paths, minimum rare material

Dark Elves

Machiavelli was a bumbling amateur to the Dark Elves. A vicious society that values cunning above all else, most lack the requirements to rise above the level of slave.

Bonus to dark magic and mana regeneration, experience gain reduced by 40%

No Technology limitations. Unable to learn light magic higher than tier one.

Max level: 75

Fewest evolution paths, unique materials required

Kobold

Legends say these are the descendants of dragons. Much like the chicken is a descendant of the Tyrannosaurus Rex.

Bonus to earth magic and slight resistance against slashing attacks. Experience gain reduced by 50%

Technology limited to steel weapons and leather armor. Tier 3 magic

Max level: 50

Few evolution paths, rare materials required

Troll

Basically a lobotomized giant, their strength is unmatched

Physical damage received reduced by 15%, health regen doubled. Experience gain reduced by 65%

Stone age technology, basic elemental magic possible

Max level: 40

Multiple evolution paths, rare materials required

Imp

The lowest class of demons, their small size helps them remain unnoticed.

25% resistance to fire, experience gain reduced by 75%

Stone age technology, basic leather armor. Access to obsidian weapons.

Max level: 20

Myriad evolution paths, minimum common material

“I have a few questions before we begin. Why do all of these options have reduced experience gain?”

“Because we are monsters boy! The gods of light have deemed us unworthy of their blessings, and we are cursed. We can’t rise above certain levels, and even getting to the same levels requires much greater feats.”

“Ok, that’s going to suck. What about this ‘monster evolution’?”

“Our saving grace bestowed upon us from the dark lords. When a monster reaches their maximum growth, occasionally they may come upon a material that will allow them to evolve. Take the simple goblin. Weak, fodder for most dark armies. Yet when he reaches level 20, a simple mana stone is enough to cause him to evolve into a goblin shaman. Though his level will drop back down to one, his stats will remain the same. That is why lower levels of a higher tier monster are far more dangerous than they seem.”

Nodding my head at his explanation, I was beginning to see why the experience gains had been reduced for the monsters. “Can you undo an evolution once evolved? Or are you stuck with your decision?”

“Life offers no second chances. You are stuck after you have evolved, so be careful.”

“Will the rarity of the evolution material have any outcome on the”

“ENOUGH! I have answered all the questions you need. Decide, boy, which of these lurks within. Then, we will help it to become your new skin.” Deciding that the old man with the shifting body had a point, I looked over the options one more time before pressing one to decide my fate.

Congratulations, you have chosen Kobold as your race.

Kobolds are a lizardlike race that lives in cave systems. Their leathery skin is pebbled with proto-scales that resist slashing type attacks. They use earth magic with their claws to cut through solid rock. Born in communal clutches, family ties are nonexistent. Societal position is based on strength and personal skill.

“Kobolds, eh? First one to have chosen that, but it probably won’t hurt you. Kobolds make fine monsters. Now, let’s set up how you want to be seen.”

“Before we do that, would you mind answering a few questions about kobold society?”

Giving me a sideways glare, the old man answered curtly, “Quickly, and don’t test my patience.”

“Are there any colorations that are taboo? Or have certain societal implications?”

With a sly grin he answered again, “Finally some good questions. All black colorations are priests. Albino kobolds are sacrificed to the gods shortly after birth.” Waving to his left, a generic kobold appeared.

With that in mind, I set about changing it to meet my desires. I kept my height of 5’8” the same, but took off a little of the belly fat I had put on. I went with a light gray and brown camouflage pattern to hopefully break up my outline while standing next to a cave wall. The snout was slightly protruding, with sharp teeth. With no external ears, slits for nostrils, and slit pupils, there was definitely a reptilian vibe. As I hit the confirm button, the creature in front of me exploded into shards of light that rapidly orbited me for a few seconds before flashing into me. I lifted one arm and saw I had completely changed into a kobold.

“Now that you are finally a proper monster, what is your name?”

Thinking about it, I wanted an uncommon name. I would need to be an independent jack of all trades if I wanted a successful character. Getting by using out of the box thinking and making the best out of the most inane ingredients, I would pay homage to one of the greatest tinkerers in television history. “Angus MacG.”

“Angus MacG? Once again an odd name, but if that’s what you wish then that is what you shall be called. Before you start, I highly suggest that you familiarize yourself with what racial abilities you have. Good luck, monster.”

Old man might not be patient, but he does have a good point. Thinking about racial abilities, another blue window opened up.

Racial ability

Description

Darkvision

Living in complete darkness has caused kobolds to develop darkvision. This allows a black and white vision even in the utter absence of light, but only for a limited range. Improving the proficiency will increase the range

Mana Excavation

Infusing their claws with earth mana allows kobolds to disintegrate solid rock. Improving proficiency will decrease the mana cost and increase the tier of rock affected.

Well, those would most definitely be helpful living in caves. Time to see how it feels to be a kobold. Pressing a button to finish the tutorial, my vision went to darkness.