"Experimental mode, engaged." the avatar's voice resounded, but I was too stunned at my surroundings to notice.
I stood in the Newbie Village, breathing deeply to not remain shocked. The Newbie "Village" of Vivius that I was in was nothing more than a single building. A single straw building with an elderly man sitting on a log outside watching me with eerie eyes.
According to the rumors that I read online, this place should be a city filled with despairing newbies about their inabilities to leave. On top of that, there should be beggars hounding the higher leveled players that come in (which is one of the reasons why they don't visit Vivius anymore), begging for them to take them outside.
Apparently the monsters outside the city are extremely aggressive, and will kill on sight. Their levels are exceedingly terrifying, with a base level of nearly 20-30, destroying the armorless newbs that can barely feed themselves, let alone gear their bodies. If not for those rumors, I wouldn't have been horrified to come here.
Now that I'm here, however, I'm horrified for another reason. There's not a single player around. That's right, I'm the only player in this single-shack village in the middle of the forest. The trees that are surrounding the village block out just enough light to illuminate the village without any direct sunlight, leaving me feeling slightly.. Uncomfortable.
I shake off the feeling, and take a step towards the old man.
In a flash, his eyes open the moment I step closer and killing intent emerges, surrounding me and threatening to snub out my existence. His eyes radiate red, stunning me and I fall to the ground, unable to breathe. What the hell is this monstrous man in front of me? It's like I'm looking at a dragon, let alone a man. His aura is completely enveloping me, the sunlight, and even the trees. I can't.. Breathe..
"Hoo~, to think a lowly traveler would come to Vivius. State your purpose, Vampire. I don't have all day to care." the man boomed, his voice shaking the trees and letting loose the birds that were watching. They flew away in fear.
"I-I.."
"Speak up, Vampire. I can't hear you over your whimpering."
"Where.. the hell am I?!" I managed to choke out, still under pressure from the old man.
The old man stares at me with an odd expression, then bellows out in laughter. After rubbing his beard a few dozen times, he stares at me once again, this time, without the pressure.
"I see, I see. I assume you're one of those rumored Adventurer's, no? Interesting. Very interesting." he said.
I try to say something, but what comes out is an unintelligible squeal, similar to pigs in a culling. The old man laughs again, then sits back down on the log, legs crossed, his attention still untorn.
"Listen, pig, I don't have all day. If you're like those other adventurer's that came to learn the Way of the Dragon from me, you're sorely mistaken. I do not take pupils. Instead, I kill those that are weaker than me. You would be wise to walk away from this area."
The narrative has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the infringement.
--
A elderly man in a suit was watching a screen in a room labeled as "Player's Moderation". As a game moderator, his job was to view various players and, as most gamers would understand, moderate their actions. In his hands was a cup of coffee, he had not slept the night before since the game had been introduced.
Moderators are seen with an eye of respect in the light. In reality, this man was the cause of nearly all of the fake information posted on Nova Forum's online. He took pleasure in seeing new players spawn in a "Recommended" area that he posted online, only to be torn to shreds by monsters and respawn in a city hundreds of miles away.
He took a sip of his coffee when the door slammed open behind him, surprising him and spilling his coffee onto his lap.
"God damnit, child! Can't an old man drink his coffee in peace?!" he yelled, to which the man behind him ignored.
The man that came in pushed up his glasses, analyzing the situation.
"No, sir. Did you not ask me to inform you when interesting things happen in-game?" the man replied, piling paperwork on top of the table in front of the old man. "As a Game Moderator, you should be more self-aware." he quipped.
The elderly man sighed, wiping the coffee off of his shirt (to no avail, of course).
"Then what is it? I don't have all day, child." he said, turning to the man.
The man with the glasses smiled. "It seems THAT boy has started to play Final Destiny Online."
More coffee was spilled. The old man stood up in excitement.
"Good! Good! Hahaha! This will be fun. What are his player details?"
"In front of you, sir."
The old man looked down, spotting a childish looking face that seemed to detest the world. He grinned as he sifted through the files. Much to his surprise, the child chose the race of Vampire, and was logging into Vivius.
"It's a damn good thing we inputted the log-in delay for these situations. Five minutes of real-time. How long has passed since he logged in?"
"Four minutes, twenty six, no, seven seconds." the man replied.
"Tell me these things before, damn you! Child! Log him as experimental mode, and spawn him near the Dragon Emperor! Go now, child!" the old man bellowed, pushing the man with the glasses out the door. The man immediately ran to the control room, inputting the orders,
The old man started laughing.
"This is fantastic. To think he would start playing the game that killed his parents. Hahaha, this will be interesting. Hahaha!"
The man kept laughing as a paper fell to the ground. On the paper was a label:
Experimental Mode - Reality will take control. Player is unable to have a status, and no stat points will be given. Level is dependent on abilities, not experience. Race and class can never be changed. Experimental Mode cannot be overridden. Account cannot be deleted.
--
Please take your time to review and rate. I'll make sure to post Chapter 3 shortly.