“Are you serious? You are not playing Ages Online?” asked the male student incredulously.

Sebast Koh shook his head.

“You are missing out, dude.” Without a second word, he turned around and sat himself next to another guy. Within moments, they were already engrossed in talking about the Game of the Year, about what profession the others are and how far they have gotten on the path to greatness.

Sebast sighed. Why was everyone playing this Ages Online nowadays? It even went as far as asking for a person’s in-game name as a form of greeting on the first day of college. It was supposed to be a fresh, friendly start to a new era of life and everything is already falling apart just because he is not playing what was touted as the best game ever like everyone else. Even the girls, who in twenty years back would have touted games as a guy’s thing and snorted whenever games were mentioned, were actively chatting about Ages Online. As a result, Sebast sat alone on the first day of school.

Actually, it was not that Sebast did not want to play the game. Like many others, he was very much excited about this revolutionary game when it first announced and it was only various circumstances that he decided to put trying it out on hold. First and foremost was the subscription fee needed to play the game; Yashita Corps, despite the promise of 5% of the organization shares, was still a profit-seeking company at heart and to recoup this potential loss, had imposed a hefty subscription fee of three hundred dollars per month on every account.

Furthermore, Sebast himself was involved in another free-to-play (F2P) game at that time and had no wish to abandon it for a newer one until he had finished scouring it for its entire lore and story. Indeed, he had always played games for their story and it was this reason that motivates him to reach for the highest level just to see how the story evolves and the plot resolves itself. The first day of school was also the day he had finally reached the highest echelons of the game he was playing and he would be done with the story once and for all when he gets back home.

“Thank you for taking this course, class. I am Professor Toh, and I will be teaching you guys on Virtual Realities.” The wizened man in front said. “Having said that, we should all introduce ourselves so that we can have a good semester ahead of us.”

“Sir, do you play Ages Online?”

The professor chuckled. “Of course. In fact, everyone in the department does. However, I won’t be revealing my IGN. I would prefer to play my game in peace and quiet. So let’s start with you here.”

“Hello there. Wong Xiang Jun here and I am an archer in Ages Online. EmiyaX is the name, with a capital X. Remember me, for I am a heroic spirit!” The male declared goofily. A few clapped, perhaps knowing reference from which he derived his IGN, but Sebast was indifferent. IGNs with ‘x’ or ‘z’ s are usually very unoriginal after all.

The introduction continued down the row until it reached a girl that caught Sebast’s attention.

When she stood up and bowed politely, Sebast could not help but notice how fair she was and how her long black hair complemented her glasses-wearing features. All in all, she was the epitome of the pretty girl-next-door.

“I am Beatrice Ann Chia. My in-game-name is ….Yunnie. Mage.” Her voice trembled, as though embarrassed to reveal her IGN to everyone else. No doubt after today, she would have a dozen friend invites to sort through.

“Ervin Liew. BlueLove, Cleric. Please add me for parties.”

“Han Xing Ting. I am a rogue specializing in poison and traps. I will be looking forward to partying with everyone here.”

“Derrilene Ong. Lifey, Guardian.” Her curt declaration sounded, but what caught the students’ attention was not her snappy attitude, nor the annoyed face she was showing. It was her character profession.

At the mention of a Guardian, the class erupted into furtive whispers.

“Did she say… Guardian?”

“Isn’t that a secret warrior profession?”

“Yea, and it seems to be the second advancement too.”

Ages Online, being a virtual reality and thus having more freedom than that of an ordinary game, is able to offer endless possibilities. This resulted in the ability to support and create many variants of the same scenario and professions were no different. With quests and professions changing and evolving as the game itself progresses, there is little wonder why Ages Online is touted as the most revolutionary game ever.

Rumour has it that secret jobs are only created and available for players when very specific conditions are met, making them even harder than unique drops to obtain. Those who managed to obtain one almost never disclose their methods, thereby ensuring that they are the one and only of that job. Of course, Sebast having not played it had absolutely no idea what being a guardian entails.

The introduction continued, until it reaches Sebast. A few people whom he had talked to before started to snigger.

“My name is Sebast. I… I don’t play Ages Online.” Another round of furtive whispers.

“He said he doesn’t play the game?”

“What age does he live in?”

He looked around and saw looks of pity. Some were smirking while a few outright laughed in his face. Now he had truly become the outcast of the class. Damn the guy who started all this introduction session with Ages Online. Damn that

Wong Xiang Jun. Damn that Emiya with an X.

“Now class,” Professor Toh started up again in an attempt to control the mirth heading Sebast’s way. “We have to respect Sebast’s freedom of choice here. If he chose not to play the game, we should not laugh at him for choosing thus.” Sebast glared at the older man, who luckily shifted his attention away and therefore did not catch it. Does the professor pity him as well?

The introductions soon ended and lessons started proper, but the damage had been done.

…………….

Back at home, Sebast wearily dumped his school bag onto the sofa and sank into the cushion. Today was the day he would finally be done with Yggdra Online. Though the game had fallen into decline due to the rising of Ages Online, there is still a cult following the game and the guild Sebast was part of had fought long and hard to reach what could be called the very end-game of the VRMMO.

Now that remains was to challenge one final boss –the Astral Daemon of the Nether Plane – for the Seed of Yggdrassil and there would be no more content left for him to explore. After a brief shower to energize himself, Sebast dragged himself into the capsule for the appointment with his guild and was promptly thrust into the capsule’s menu interface.

A disembodied voice came in the space of white.

“Yggdra Online.”

The moment the words left his mouth, his surroundings started to digitalize and morph. The familiar sound of the game’s theme song came into his ear as the background materialized itself into the landscape of Yggdrassil. The fact that they had always been fighting on the sacred tree itself had always fascinated Sebast to no end, and that half way through the game the demonic entity that had doomed the world below would show up to cause much destruction was the turning point for most players.

The tree was dying. Their only hope rests upon a seed he must now retake. All in the entire story was intriguing, but Sebast had always lamented the fact that it was all linear somehow. No matter how much he read the history behind the Withering or about the Tree, there was no difference between him and the other players who just skim through the quests with impunity. They would all arrive at the same point somehow, which is now.

“Ah… Beast. There you are.”

“Hey Beast.” “Howdy”

“Ready, Arkers?” Damon, the guild leader of the Ark of Covenant echoed in the caverns. They were in one of the hollowed roots of the tree, ready to eliminate the root of the foul corruption once and for all.

“Ready!” The members bellowed.

“Then we go! FOR YGGDRA!”

With that battle cry, the horde of players charged through the opening into the cavern, where a horned humanoid with flared and spiked wings stood waiting. In that moment, the first flames of magic sparked and swords of valor swung as the cogs of war kicked into high gear. The battle was long and tedious. Many deaths occurred in an instant, quickly remedied by high level resurrection spells the clerics prepared beforehand.

Beast was a knight, and it was with the favor of the Yggdrassil tree that he brandished his sword into battle. Halfway through the long skirmish, a loud agonizing cry reverberated through the grounds – Beast had pierced his blade into the demon and activated his most powerful skill – Consecration Burst. Golden runes drew themselves over the wound of the sword while glowing with suppressed power before exploding outwards with a blast of energy, causing the demon to crumple onto the ground motionless. The chaotic battle was brought to a sudden standstill with that one move.

“Did… did we do it?”

“We did it?”

“No, Arkers! Stay alert, this is not the end!”

“Puny little beings. The King of Daemons will never go down that easily!”

There was no reprieve. Before anyone could really celebrate or catch a moment’s breath, the monster was already back on its feet, having transformed into its final form. A grotesque mash of tentacles and flesh stood where the monster once was - a tumor that was ailing the great Tree of Life. A tumor that needed to be excised and destroyed.

Blood was shed and mana was burnt, but in the end the guild managed to bring down the demon once and for all. As Damon held the Seed of Yggdrassil in his hands, the surviving members of the Ark cried out in victory. Many hugs were shared and tears flowed as they celebrated the defeat of one of the hardest bosses in gaming history.

Sebast himself patted a few guildies he was close to in the back and approached Damon.

“Beast, so what do you want to do now?” The burly man asked. “I remember you said that this raid would be your last.”

“Yea.” Beast was Sebast’s IGN. “I am thinking of trying out Ages Online next.”

Damon laughed heartily, attracting the attention of the people present. “That game? The one that many people are in the rage about?”

“Yea.”

“Good luck then. “ Damon patted Sebast on the back. “The Arkers will mourn the loss of their best damage dealer but it is alright. We did defeat the final boss after all with your help. Be sure to come back and see us sometimes.”

Having obtained Damon’s blessings, Sebast gave him a grateful smile and logged out. Then, there he was back again, in the white empty space inside the capsule.

“Ages Online.”

“Yes.”

Once more, the surroundings began to digitalize, this time into a world of medieval fantasy. A banner of Yashita Corp flashed briefly before Sebast entered the world of Agaia proper. Immediately, he was brought to the character creation screen.

The voice this time was a smooth refined lady. Yashita Corps goes for the best after all.

“Beast.” One could not spell Sebast without Beasts after all.

“Yes.”

“Human”

“No.”

1. Kingdom of Honduria

2. The Caerheim Principality

3. States of Paverun

Sebast paused. From what he had heard from people gushing about the game, the kingdom of Honduria was the only choice they received for human races back when the game started. From there, they could then choose a major city for them to start in. Now that six months have passed since the beginning, the increase of choices of starting kingdoms from one to three could only mean that the geopolitical landscape had evolved as well. This was definitely unprecedented for a game, hinting at the potential it could really achieve.

“Caerheim.”

A principality meant a state ruled by a prince, which indicate that the land had not developed as far as the other choices yet. This also meant that opportunities are abound for upstarts like him, with much unique items and dungeons to be found. If he was lucky, he might even find a hidden profession.

1. City of Rydelin

2. City of Loyderidge

“Rydelin”

The world dissolved and rebuilt itself as suddenly and Beast found himself within the bustling market street of a large city. “This… is Caerheim?” Beast exclaimed aloud, much to the weird stares of the surrounding NPCs and users.

“Of course this is Caerheim young man. “ An old lady called from the roadside. “Rydelin is in Caerheim after all.”

“I am sorry, madam.” He apologized, embarrassed for having just shown his ignorance for all to see.

“Young one nowadays… Tsk.”

To say that Beast is amazed was an understatement. Not only did his movements and actions felt much more fluid than in Yggdra Online, the lady whom he had assumed to be an NPC had just told him off with lifelike reactions. Was this why Ages had been declared revolutionary by most? It was almost like he was living a second life here.

It took a while for Beast to regain back his senses. Only then did his gamer instincts kicked in.

“Inventory.”

A quick flash of the menu revealed that his bag contained a stack of bread rations and a water canteen, nothing else. Not even a weapon was provided, which seemed to indicate the need for newbies to obtain one before foolishly venturing out to challenge the wild monsters in the area.

“Map.”

Nothing .

“Huh?” It was only a few seconds later that he smacked his head in realization - There was no map function here. Maps had to be charted manually or obtained. The rest were up to one’s navigation skills. For too long he had been used to games that provide the map of the area for free and this just ramped up the game’s difficulty by a notch. But it was of no concern; he would just have to get his hands on a map later on.

“Character.”

Status WindowName:BeastLevel:1Profession:NoneRace:HumanGender:MaleTitles:NoneFame:0-Health:100Mana:100Strength:10Intelligence:10Dexterity:10Wisdom:10Stamina:10Luck:10-Equipment EffectsN/aRelationsN/a

As a newbie, there was little wonder that his stats are totally pathetic. Gone were the days he would be running around a game in a max level character. In this game of Ages Online, he will have to start all over again. However, it was alright. The journey to the top matters as most as the top but before he started on his leveling proper, he would need to do something else first.

“Young man, are you a first time adventurer?” A neatly dressed NPC approached Beast. “If you require help, I can offer you a friendly tut-“

Before the NPC could finish, Beast logged out.