Chapter 1

Mal remembered when VR was just a fantasy, a wisp of a dream on the distant horizon like flying cars for everyone. Now here he sat in his omnipod waiting for the boot up sequence to complete. Today was the day! The very first REAL virtual reality experience, you know connecting your brain straight to the machine, rather than these cheap knockoffs with haptic suits, hand controls, and goggles.

Mal was as excited and nervous as an astronaut preparing for his first launch to the Mars base. He was actually strapped into his omnipod like an astronaut would be. Safety precautions and all. The lights began to dim around him in the ‘pod as the boot up entered it’s final countdown. He could see that peripherally under the visor of the Nethelmet that connected his mind directly to the game.

Mal closed his eyes in eager anticipation as he counted down the seconds til midnight when the clock rolled over to January 1st. He was ringing in the new year with a bang he thought to himself with a chuckle. All his friends from college were out partying but he knew given the choice they would gladly trade places with him. Mal thought of his parents in that moment and how grateful he was they rewarded him with this omnipod for passing his classes after the debacle that was his sophomore year.

His mind started to relax and he entered a hybrid state that was between dreaming and being awake. Disorientated for a moment Mal started to feel weird like he wasn’t in his body anymore as his consciousness shifted to the virtual space. Then with a rush of color and sound he was suddenly in the character creation room.

It seemed like he was looking at himself in a full length mirror though he knew he was in actuality sitting in his omnipod. Mal lifted his hands up and looked at them as the figure in the mirror did the same. All he could think was how amazing it was!! It seemed so real yet he knew it wasn’t.

A prompt suddenly appeared floating in front of eyes that he could easily read. This was the interface that he had read so much about and studied.

Would you like to change your appearance?

Mal gazed at himself in the mirror looking past the translucent text. He was pretty tall at 6’1 and had a solid athletic build from all those intramural sports. Dark hair with dark eyes and a handsome face made Mal feel pretty lucky he had solid genes.

Would you like to change your appearance?

Well duh! Mal quickly selected ‘Yes’ just by gazing and at that choice and willing it to be so. As he did a host of options appeared on the mirror around his character as well as floating text before his eyes.

First things first he thought and he started to adjust a slider interface with his mind. Looking at the mirror as he adjusted the muscle bar and they slowly started to increase. He paused when he reached soccer star type levels, he wanted some bulk but not like some linebacker. And then a couple more inches in height and a few more touch ups and he was set.

As he started to think about how people were on the ‘net he was glad he was locked to a certain extent into what he could he choose. For example a fat middle aged man couldn’t pretend he was 19 year old buxom cheerleader. But there were other customization options that quickly got Mal’s attention.

One of the choices on the side of the mirror said ‘Change Race?’. Interesting he thought since the contents of virtual world had been kept almost a total secret by the testers and Omni Inc. Those lucky souls who had been already in the virtual world and would have a leg up on players like himself.

Intrigued he selected ‘Race options’ under that choice and was overjoyed when he saw the choices.

Human Elf Orc Sprite Gnome Dwarf Astral Undead Vampire Goblin

And on and on the list went went with at least 30 choices each with their own sub choices like High Elf or Mountain Dwarf. Then on top of all those many options were mixed races where you could play with a cross breeding mini game.

Wow. Just wow. There had been intense speculation what setting the developers would use. Many had guessed sci-fi or cyberpunk. Some even thought it would be a mirror of Earth allowing you to go places you knew but with superpowers or something. Many had guessed and hoped (Mal included) that it would be High Fantasy. This list of races pretty much confirmed it for him that it would be high fantasy because this list was something right out of Tolkien.

Mal did a fist pump and let out a whoop. This is what he dreamed about since he was young playing video games and tabletop dice games centered on this genre with his friends in his free time. Not to mention the countless books he’d read in this vein.

As Mal’s elation slowly passed a stuck feeling crept into his chest, what to choose? He had no idea what would be best or what he would enjoy more. He scanned up and down the list highlighting one then another getting more info.

He threw his hands up in the air in exasperation, they all looked cool! Then he spied in option he hadn’t noticed yet as it was off to the side that said ‘Random’ he zoomed in on this one and a prompt popped up.

Warning this truly randomizes a strictly human character from stats to starting location. Once confirmed this choice is irrevocable. If chosen there is the chance for hidden benefits not able to be picked as normal.

Mal read it again carefully and was leaning towards this option as he was having trouble making a choice. The hidden benefits potential really sold it for him he would just have to cross his fingers he didn’t get a crap roll of the dice. So he’d be a ‘random’ human, sounded good to him. He could always reroll if he had too, he hoped.

Making his choice he selected ‘Random’ and ‘Yes’ to confirm at the warning screen and suddenly he felt like he was falling through blackness as the mirror room dematerialized around him.

Colors rushed by him like he was falling through a rainbow waterfall and his speed seemed to be gathering to terminal velocity. Mal felt a touch of trepidation to go along with his enthusiastic euphoria at the rate at which he seemed to be falling.

And then with a popping sound he was there.

Looking up from a position flat on his back Mal gazed up at the not quite blue sky that had a purplish tint to it. It was like a sunset but it couldn’t be he reasoned as the orange orb of the sun hung high in the sky. It was breathtakingly beautiful and looked oh so real to his delight.

Welcome to Planus Terrestrial adventurer!! As you have chosen random and due to your rare abilities you have been given, you have been spawned in a challenging starting area to balance this out. Live, breathe, conquer! Good luck adventurer!

A bittersweet message to be sure Mal thought to himself but rare abilities sounded great and he was sure he could overcome whatever starting area the AI of the game threw him into. Little did he know what was to come.

Focusing on the stick figure man in the corner of his vision he brought up his vital statistics. He started pouring over his starting stats but nothing really jumped out at him. Looked pretty standard according to the info given out in the days leading up to launch. All his stats were 5 points higher at least than the baseline 10 so that was good.

Mal, level 1, human adventurer Strength 15, effects melee combat Dexterity 15, effects ranged combat Agility 20, effects movement speed Constitution 15, effects total health points Endurance 20, effects total stamina Intelligence 15, effects total mana Wisdom 15, effects mana regeneration Charisma 20, effects interactions with others Skills, none Abilities, Star kissed HP, 150, MP, 150, EP, 200

Not too shabby he thought looking it over. Starkissed, what the hell was that, as no information was forthcoming on that even when he focused on it. Mal was pleased with his boosts to Agility, Endurance and Charisma starting at effectively double the baseline. All told he was 55 points above the starting point of said baseline which he was sure was much more than if he had chosen his points. Random was looking better and better by the moment.

Then he looked around his starting area and his heart sank.

Taking a full 360 view around him he was deep in a dark red forest. The pseudo pine trees had pinkish red needles on them and the ground was covered in a crimson moss. Shadows abounded under the thick canopy. The place had an ominous aura and gave him the chills.

Knowing this was supposed to be a challenging starting area Mal was starting to second guess his choice of random. In most MMORPG’s he’d played there was usually a starting type town with Non Player Characters that had quests and so on to get players off on the right foot. Not a damn thing like that here. There was nothing for it however he would just have to figure it out.

Checking out the clearing he was in more closely he saw a small post nearby. He walked over and examined the post.

Blood Forest spawn point

Huh. So he was in the blood forest it seemed to be and it didn’t sound forbidding or anything. Then he noticed something glinting on the ground near the post and sure enough there was a small dagger.

Crude dagger, Damage 1-3

Looking down at himself Mal was totally dismayed to see he was just in ancient type boxer briefs still. So basically he had nothing except this crappy dagger and was deep in the blood forest with no idea where to go.

Not the most auspicious start.

Mal hoped this starkissed ability was worth all the trouble because the stat bonuses on his attributes were great and all but he would have boosted those eventually.

He looked around trying to decide which direction to begin his journey towards. Doing something which to him seemed like smart thinking Mal dug a furrow into the ground marking the direction and shape of the shadow from the post. Now if he died he could respawn here and roughly know which direction he had moved in.

Then with another bright idea Mal headed to the edge of the clearing to the largest of the blood pines and attempted to get close to the trunk. He was hoping to climb up for some higher vantage point and maybe he could see where to go. He was denied as pain shot through him. The pinkish red needles on the tree weren’t like pine trees in the real world they were sharp and seemed just like hypodermic needles.

Mal’s heath points starting dropping from all the pin pricks so he quickly backed away feeling a dull pain like he just got a tattoo. It was interesting the way they had set up the pain you received from injuries. There was some pain involved but according to the manual it was never enough that you would go into real shock from an injury like you would IRL or In Real Life. He watched his health bar go back up at a sluggish rate now that he had removed all the ghastly needles.

With a shrug Mal decided to choose a direction at random.

With a last glance at the shadow of the spawn post Mal set out. At first he set an easy slow pace trying to be somewhat quiet hoping to be sneaky. The oppressive nature of the forest was weighing on him. The minutes slipped away as he trekked along.

Soon as he moved along Mal kept thinking he was hearing something skittering or clicking just out of his sight. Then he almost was sure he heard it. It didn’t sound welcoming at all. Mal began to run as the skittering and clicking got closer. It sounded like multiple creatures.

Mal looked over his shoulder and was terrified by what he saw. 6 red wine colored spiders about the size of a house cat were chasing him. They were clicking away at him as their mandibles were hungry for meat. Mal hated spiders and he knew this would be nightmare fuel for him, even more so if they caught him.

The fear put a burst into Mal’s speed and he was glad to see he was pulling away from the disgusting looking spiders. Worry crept in on top of the fear though as he watched his stamina bar slowly deplete in the corner of his vision. Lordy he hoped he could maintain this pace.

As he ran on half naked, clutching his dagger tightly in his fist, Mal started to hear some other noises other than his labored breathing and the clicking of the spiders. He heard other denizens of the forest make note of the frantic chase. Off to his right in the distance he heard a loud roar that sounded like a lion. Just great! Just what he needed he thought.

The other sound he heard was a deep thrumming sound and Mal recognized this sound from a trip to Niagara Falls before, it was surely a large waterfall. Hoping the spiders weren’t good swimmers he adjusted his path heading straight for the waterfall sound.

Mal took a second to appreciate the moment. Never before when he had played a videogame had he ever gotten the rush or thrill that he was getting now. Hell even IRL he had few adrenaline spikes like he was getting now totally immersed in the game. The sprinting through the forest with pursuit close on his heels, the VR made it seem so real. The threat was real enough of being caught by these spiders he thought but nonetheless he had a determined grin plastered on his face.

After a couple more minutes of the chase and Mal’s stamina dropping, the trees started to thin out some. Mal was glad for his agility and endurance boosts otherwise he figured the spiders would have caught him by now. The sounds of rushing water had intensified and he couldn’t quite pull away from the spiders.

He had considered stopping and fighting the spiders but since they looked so nasty and probably had some kind of venom he didn’t want to risk it. Also this was apparently a challenging area, so he needed to get away from his pursuers and to an easy area so he could start grinding his experience levels up.

Then with little warning he burst from the trees at full sprint and had to slam on the brakes. There in front of the starkissed human was a 30 foot high cliff with the waterfall plummeting into the water down below him. A quick glance showed him to the left there was an upward slope that the river ran down from, with rocky and unforgiving looking terrain.

To Mal’s right looked like much easier going it being a downhill slope and much less of the rocks and debris. Mal turned and started sprinting to his right along the top of the cliff. The spiders had made up a lot of the ground on his 90 degree turn because they cut the corner as soon as he moved perpendicular to them.

Not good Mal thought as he glanced back at the shorter distance between him and the spiders. He wasn’t sure but it looked like there were more than 6 now but he didn’t have time to count so he put on another burst of speed. Also he spared a look at his half full stamina bar at the corner of his vision. The slowly diminishing green bar made him start to seriously doubt his chances of getting away at this point, stat boosts or not.

Suddenly with a roar a massive sabertooth tiger burst from the trees ahead of Mal along the cliff line. The new player skidded to stop looking at the great beast. Whelp I’m not gonna outrun that he thought not looking forward to being eaten alive. The red striped beast starting a slow lope toward him gaining speed thinking of the fresh meat it was hoping to soon be munching on.

Mal looked up the slope at the horde of spiders tumbling down the hill and it was a terrifying sight. Turning back down the cliff line all he could see was a blur as the tiger raced toward him. With no other options the human did the one thing that was left available to him other than a suicidal fight.

He leapt straight out into the air off the edge of the cliff.

As the beleaguered human fell through the air he heard the 2 forces above and behind him collide with angry clicks and a fearsome growl as combat was joined. One of the spiders was flung right off the cliff with a mighty swipe of a clawed paw and fell through the air just behind him.

There was a pause for Mal and he seemed to hang in the air. He pinwheeled his arms and pumped his legs trying to aim for the dead center of the river hoping it was deep enough to dampen the fall from this height.

With a huge splash Mal plunged into the river and disappeared below the surface. Tumbling along with the current he started kicking for all he was worth because drowning sounded even worse to him than being eaten alive.

Breaking the surface Mal gasped life giving air and coughed up some of the water he had swallowed. He was able to keep his head above water just barely but to his dismay he saw his stamina was dropping even further from the strenuous effort it took to stay afloat in the churning river.

You have gained +1 endurance from your efforts and exertion! Onwards and upwards!

Mal barely registered the prompt as he struggled against the river. He vaguely wondered what would happen when he ran out of stamina. Somewhere in his mind he recalled something about HP dropping and not being able to move when that happened but he wasn’t sure.

Looking at his stamina bar being at one quarter full, Mal started to kick towards the side walls of the canyon he was in, with cliffs on either side. He had little hope at this point but maybe there was something he could grab onto. Just as he had that thought he saw a piece of driftwood rushing past him in the river and he quickly latched onto it.

It was just the respite he needed. The level 1 player hung onto the large branch thankful there were no pink needles on it. With a heave he threw his arms over it and it kinda supported his weight and his stamina stopped dropping. The green bar didn’t go up either but at least it wasn’t dropping. A small bit of hope filled him that he may make it out of this jam after all, you know unless another waterfall was ahead with an even greater drop.

Mal watched the red spider get swept away past him down the river due to it’s lighter weight and less drag it was absolutely flying down the surface.

The river dragged Mal along and he maneuvered past any sharp pointy rocks in his path. He didn’t even want to think what would happen if he hit one of them at this speed. After travelling what had to have been at least a mile at a rapid pace the river started to spread out wider and slow down. Rather than being high pressure and shooting down the canyon the added width let the whitecaps become fewer and farther between. The sheer cliff walls also began to recede as well.

With this bit of relief the human started thinking of making his way for one of the sloping banks on the sides. The river settled that for him though because there was a bend in the flow of the water ahead and the sandy beach there collected things, as the current hooked around the meandering river. Collected things including him and the spider!

He saw it up on the beach and it had yet to see him. It looked like the gruesome thing was missing some legs from the brutal tiger paws swipe. The spider was leaking dark ichor and stumbling about.

Mal drifted up onto the beach and trying to be as quiet as possible he waded out of the river. He spied a large rock on the beach not far away because he had lost his dagger somewhere in the currents and struggling to survive. Lifting the sizable rock with a suppressed grunt Mal snuck up on the disorientated spider.

Congratulations! You have learned the skill Stealth! They can’t hit what they can’t see!

Mal ignored the prompt in his vision because he was totally focused on the spider leaking it’s life blood and spitting water out of it’s gaping maw. He circled around behind the ugly arachnid and crept closer to striking distance.

Then the time was right and the weary human pounced on the wounded thing. Smashing the rock into the spider’s face over and over again. Green goo flew everywhere and the spider slumped over dead.

Congratulations! You have learned the skill Sneak Attack! Double the damage equals double the fun! You have been awarded 1584(384 Starkissed bonus) experience points for slaying Red Spider level 12

Ding!

Rejoice! You have acquired enough experience to progress to level 2, you have 5 stat points to assign plus 3 additional for the Starkissed ability for a total of 8, May your journey continue adventurer!

Mal collapsed on the warm sand with a huge smile on his face. Man what a rush! This game is going to be great he thought as he closed his eyes to take a break.