Character Creation

After being immersed in the introduction to the game by Nana, Elian was returned back to the grassy field. 

"Now that we got that taken cared of, let's proceed to your character creation." Nana said.

Ping...

Before they can proceed, they were suddenly interrupted with a sharp notification, then a small screen popped up in front of Elian.

External Text Message [Pod]: Brother, are you there? How are you?

Elian then turned to Nana whose seemingly peeking on the message sent. He asked, "Can you see the panel?"

"Yes, since I'm technically the admin as well. I actually don't need to take a look to know the content, but it looks more real if I do so." Nana laughed.

"Hmmm, so I basically have no privacy in this space huh. Well it's not like I have anything to hide."

"Well, there's really nothing to worry about," Nana said reassuringly. "I'm just a strand of the mainframe, here to assist players. We can guarantee that no other players or admins have access to your information. Not even those who claim to be the 'developers' of the game."

"Ohh, interesting," he replied. "Anyway, how do I send a voice message?"

"You just have to say 'Reply Voice.' Simple, right? Actually, you can even customize the command to whatever prompt you like. And just so you know, if you're sure someone is still nearby, you can also initiate a call directly to their pod."

"Really? That's actually pretty convenient," he said with a small smile, then went ahead and initiated a call. Well, it wasn't exactly a call. It was more like linking his consciousness back to the pod. Only his voice came through, echoing from the pod's external speaker.

"Hello, hello. Can you hear me?" he asked.

Outside the pod, both Robert and Mia jumped, caught off guard by the sudden sound of Elian's voice. Mia froze for a moment, emotions welling up. It had been years since she'd heard her brother speak so clearly and coherently.

"Brother..." she choked on her words. 

"This is amazing, Mia. I actually have a body here. I can move and speak freely," Elian said, his voice full of excitement. He was clearly looking forward to the game itself.

Mia smiled, overjoyed. "That's good. That's really good." But then a thought hit her. She remembered reading something from the devs. A comment saying that a character's ingame body is based off 80% on the user's real body, and the other 20% comes down to luck. They called it "luck" because ATHENA handles that part, and no one really knows how she calculates it. One of the few known factors is the environment you first spawn into, which helps with the world building.

Worried, she shared her concern with Elian. She wasn't sure if his illness might carry over into the game.

But Elian just shook his head with a calm smile. "It doesn't matter. The fact that I can move in this world is already a miracle. This alone opens up so many possibilities. Who knows? Maybe finding a cure for my illness isn't so far-fetched after all. I really think it's possible."

Hearing his response, Mia didn't say anything else. She just told Elian he could go ahead and enjoy the game she and Robert would handle everything on the outside, especially making sure he got his nutrient solution.

Mia wanted to spend more time talking to Elian, but she could hear how excited he was just from the tone of his voice. She was genuinely happy for him, also, knowing her brother would be fine on his own was a relief.

Inside his personal space, Elian studied Nana for a moment. "Is ATHENA, the mainframe you mentioned, also a rabbit?" he asked out of nowhere. He couldn't shake the image of a mature bunny girl in a black maid-like outfit.

Hmm, that would look pretty good, he thought.

With innocence, Nana replied, "Nope! We can actually take any form we want. I just thought this one looked cute. Do you want me to change into something else?"

"No, that's fine," Elian said, shaking off the distracting thoughts.

"So, what do I do to create my character?" he asked, ready to move forward.

"It's actually pretty straightforward," Nana explained. "You can adjust up to 20% based off your real appearance like height, weight, arm length, and facial structure. You can also change your hair color and length, skin tone, and eye color."

As she spoke, a panel appeared in front of Elian.

Elian himself was already a striking figure, standing around six feet tall, with a broad chest and a lean, athletic build. His features were sharp, with a defined jawline, a high nose bridge, and deep brown eyes. His jet-black hair contrasted sharply with his pale skin, giving him a look that could easily pass for a model if he ever claimed to be one.

"Well, I think I'll keep my body size the same. I don't want things to feel too unfamiliar," Elian said thoughtfully. "For the eyes… maybe a dark green would look good. And let's go with long black hair. It might get in the way later, but I think it'll look cool. Let's try it."

He tapped [Preview], and right away, his eyes shifted to a rich dark green while his black hair began to grow longer, flowing past his shoulders.

With a wave of her hand? Or paw? Or whatever it was, Nana conjured a mirror in front of him so he could take a proper look.

"Hmm… someone might recognize me," Elian muttered, thinking it over. "Is adding a scar an option? Let's go with that, then. Cover my body in some deep, rough-looking scars. And yeah… a big one across the face too. Probably gonna look awful. Hehe... Let's do it."

Maybe being locked in his own room for too long thwarted his sense of humor.

What Elian didn't realize, though, was that the appearance he'll choose would have a major impact on his progression. And more importantly...

Dun dunn dunnn!

His character model would be permanent.

Maybe it was the excitement, or maybe just plain ignorance, but it never crossed his mind that ATHENA would also use his appearance to determine where he'd spawn. Players were usually placed in regions populated by people who looked similar to avoid disharmony or feelings of isolation.

After finalizing his character model, a prompt appeared asking him to choose a name.

"Hmm… since the 'chief of justice' in this game is ATHENA… then I'll be the Ruler of the Dead," he said with a smirk.

"From now on… I'll be"

"Hades."