In the beginning, there was a girl who played a game…

The menu option appeared before my eyes:

Calamity Lara/ Short name: Cala, Level 94, Title: Warlord, Class: Assassin.

Statistics:117256 kills; 3 deaths

Activate?

Of course, activate!

Cala stood just a bit taller than me, and I was already considered a tall girl. Her hair was a sleek raven black, cropped short to her head, and her piercing grey eyes had a steely blue tint that gave them a mesmerizing quality. It felt as though an extra light was shining from those eyes whenever she looked at you. Her long, delicate eyelashes hinted at some non-human ancestry flowing in her veins.

She had a lithe, powerful body that moved with the speed and grace of a predatory cat. Her black leather armor clung to her like a second skin, effortlessly stylish. Her small, pert breasts, slender arms, and long legs completed her striking figure.

Her nose was originally perfectly straight but now had a slight deviation in the middle; a while back, a healing spell didn't work perfectly. Yes, even magic has its blunders. While a visit to a high-level specialist and a decent amount of gold might have fixed it, it wasn't on Cala's priority list.

Her rather thin lips defined a relatively wide grinning mouth, displaying two rows of perfectly white teeth.

Yes, that wide grin was mine: I was glad to be her, and her stylish clothes were my personal contribution. When I took over her character and assumed the identity of Cala, her dress was primarily utilitarian, but I've always believed that life requires more than just practicality.

I slowly flexed my hands, clenched and unclenched my fists, stretched my legs, and rolled my shoulders.

I had to get used to being her... it only took me a few seconds to adjust. It's incredible how quickly our brain adapts to a new body, one that's stronger, better, faster, and still mine.

Finally, I took a deep breath and let it out slowly.

"Warlord?!" I chuckled with satisfaction as the memories flooded back into my brain. Yes, I was one of the organizers of several successful raids on noteworthy enemy cities. The fire of battle, the rush of adrenaline, and the thrill of risking my life for a cause - nothing compares to that feeling. And let's not forget the reward of all those shiny gold coins lining my pockets. A sense of pride and nostalgia washed over me as I reminisced about my past conquests.

I chuckled. As strange as it can be, the avatar has its own memory which adds to mine. I am Cala here!

I cracked my neck. So, let me go meet my friend Spartacius!

Why did he call Cala a cheated character? Oh yes, because I didn't play her from the beginning; I didn't create her myself. I have her from a friend; we met in real life while I was working on a game-related school project, and he let me take over his account. That's how I got Cala. Well, that's another story.

Taking over Cala's character didn't feel like cheating; it was more like an adoption. Even though the memories I had of her weren't originally mine, I still felt like they belonged to me because Cala is a part of me now. I remember everything she went through, the good and the bad, the betrayals and the moments of glory.

I sighed. Memories of why I stopped playing flooded back. How could I forget? It wasn't because of Cala or the game but rather because of me, Dolores. When I was leaving, becoming myself, I was starting to feel incomplete. I was afraid that I would fall too much in love with the idea of me being Cala; that's why I stopped playing her.

Now it felt like coming back home. I took another deep breath and enjoyed the feeling of being alert, of being alive, of being Cala!

I entered the lobby. A lot of people were there, and everybody was in a hurry.

I went with quick steps towards the wall that opened portals to private rooms and called as he instructed me:

“Spartacius' room!”

As I walked in, I saw him waiting for me - a relative handsome warrior with blond hair standing about 1.85 meters tall, a little taller than Cala. His patchy armor didn't cover his six-pack. Oh yeah, low-level armor. He seemed a bit taken aback when he saw me - clearly, he wasn't used to seeing me with this avatar.

“It's me, Cala!”

He smiled happily.

“Wow, you look sexy!”

A red panel blinked above his head: careful, minor 14 years.

He had to use the word 'sexy' ... I sighed. I am here with a kid!

At first, my instinct was to run, but after the initial shock wore off, I started thinking. I had first met him when I desperately needed a co-pilot and mechanic for a car racing game. He was one of the few who volunteered, and he quickly proved himself to be more than qualified.

After we completed the Paris-Dakar rally together - an event that only exists now in Dreamland - I added him to my friends list. We finished eighth out of thousands of participants, with me as the driver and him as the co-pilot. We've been a good team there! I'll need to make a note of his age in the character tab.

Unlawfully taken from Royal Road, this story should be reported if seen on Amazon.

He’d proven himself competent, and we’d bonded like good comrades. Why should I dismiss him now just because I learned how young he is? Sure, Mephisto is a dangerous game for kids, which is why I got the warning. But he has the system’s protection, so nothing bad should happen to him.

Does this reflect poorly on me? What does it say if I become friends with juniors? Is my mind not mature enough?

I shrugged the thought away. We’ll have fun!

He had asked me to help him complete a quest in Mephisto Chapter 2: Remove the Lynx from Lilytown's forest, which was why I had reactivated Cala. The mere fact that he had prompted me to bring Cala back to life was reason enough for me to assist him.

I grinned and said, "Isn't this outfit something? It took me ages to find all these pieces and put them together!"

It was true - I had spent at least half of my game time raiding the auction house or chasing rare mobs to get the perfect ensemble.

Before he had a chance to comment, I said: "Come on, let's go kill that beast!" -then I turned towards the wall - “Mephisto, chapter 2.”

Another door opened, but this time it had the form of a magic portal.

You are entering Mephisto's world. A New Reality! No repetitive quests, no fixed outcomes. Help build the world with your imagination! Fight for good or bad, be an angel or a demon! And many more pictures and slogans plastering the wall, each one more enticing than the last.

The greatest and most popular game online!

We entered the game. I needed a couple of seconds to adjust to the different light. It's as if it would have more colors than on Earth. The graphics were amazingly well done. Each time I joined the game, I had this moment of wonder; each time, I was stunned. It looks better than real! It must be the incredibly high computing power that enables this. I remember seeing the billboard displaying the number of users when I entered the lobby. It showed numbers in the millions of users playing Mephisto, and all their computers were made available for the game! Millions, tens of millions of computers power connected! The computing power they achieved goes off the charts!

But the real magic lay in how they made all those computers work together seamlessly, creating the greatest and fastest computer ever built. And all of this computing power was being harnessed for a game! It was truly mind-boggling.

“Hello, lady Cala.”

A sweet voice woke me up from my thoughts and made me smile. I turned and saw her: a beauty to fall in love with! I admired the cascade of incendiary red hair falling over her bare shoulders.

"Hello there,” I replied, smiling back at her.

Her hair shimmered like little flames in the sunlight as she turned her head to smile at me.

She was reclining on a bow, sporting a trapper outfit, and carrying a bag filled with arrows over her shoulder. The sight of her standing against the untamed forest was breathtaking, and to top it all off, she was the most skilled fire-arrow shooter I had ever met - my Alice.

I looked around. I could not see any issues or simplified background parts; I could see perfectly, near and far, the image going into details everywhere. I could even smell the forest. Mephisto – more real than reality. Oh yes, nothing compares with Mephisto!

Seeing her, Spartacius wondered out loud, waking me up from my reverie:

“You still have a rogue archer from Chapter 1 as your bodyguard? I heard they are good for nothing.”

Alice stood by my side, still smiling, as any NPC should in the face of an insult, but I could sense a slight reaction in her eyes and a tightening of her grip on her bow.

I shrugged; there was some truth in what he had just said. I think the former Cala – Markus, the guy from whom I have the character - kept her because of her looks. While there were possibly other more efficient mercs* in Mephi**, none could match her beauty.

“She is OK. She is level 84.”

That's all I could tell in her defense.

“Whoa, that's a high level! How many years does it take to get your merc there? Crazy! But you should see what a sorcerer from one of Chapter 3 cities with level 84 can do!”

“About eight to ten or so? Yes, yes, I know. Your choice to level them; I prefer her.”

“Should I also hire one?”

“I would suggest so, you need to arrive in Chapter 3 to be able to hire a sorcerer, and you need help to arrive there.”

“OK, that makes sense. Can you lend me some gold to hire one? I'll give it back to you once we get the reward!”

“Sure, let's go to the camp before visiting the town. Wait! Don't run! We'll rent a pair of horses, or we will be walking for the next hour...”

The ride to the rogue camp should take less than ten minutes, and I'm willing to lend him the money to hire a horse. Luckily, a good spot is nearby to buy or hire horses.

This travel time is a controversial topic in Mephisto, generating many serious discussions. Players spend at least half their time traveling from one point to another. Yes, there are portals, and higher levels have more mobility; you can port people, ride a coach, or even get a flying mount, but still, you waste a lot of time just traveling and doing other mundane things.

Well, the argument is that this is not a shooter game. This is a realistic fantasy game. Do you want to travel faster? Raise your level, learn spells, buy expensive mounts, and use other tools. Not an easy task.

Oh well, this is hard-core Mephisto. Why do people like this?

Alice came closer to me to chat, interrupting my confabulations.

“Slaver gangs have been reported in the vicinity, and a couple of settlements raided. What precautions should I take?”

Slaver gangs... Those come from the Golden Empire.

The empire was an aggressive power, and the republic had suffered considerable losses in its current war against the orcs. The orcs had rebelled against Mephisto, and the republic's idiots in charge thought it was a good moment to get rid of the orc tribes living at their northern border. They attacked instead of supporting them as a buffer against Mephisto. Oh, well, they sent three armies there, killed many orcs, and lost two. The third army retired in disarray after suffering heavy losses. Now they were feverishly trying to recruit a fourth army.

I sighed:

“I fear the empire is testing the republic's resolve and capabilities. It may come to war. You should go scouting in front of us. Don't risk anything.”

She nodded; nothing else needed to be said. She would scout and warn us in case of any trouble.

I looked around, comparing things in my mind. I should now be shopping with Clara and Lola.

A shopping tour has its appeal, and with Lola, it is always fun, but Clara, her older sister, is a pain in the ass. I live with the two sisters in a rented apartment; Lola is my schoolmate, and Clara, her one-year older sister, is 'the adult in the room.' Yes, true; without her, our parents would not have allowed us to relocate to this school, but she overplays her 'adult' role; that's so tiresome.

We just had a heated argument about why I didn't want to go shopping with them.

I snorted with disdain. Forget Clara! I am now in Dreamland, Mephisto's World, and I am going to raid… yeah, I am going to kill a poor Lynx in a beginner's chapter. Chapter two. And I feel good. Let's go get that beast!