Adrian was drifting in darkness. Or so he thought, he could feel that his eyes were open, and he could still see nothing. Now that wasn't quite right... Yes, now he remembered! He did not have a body anymore! But then why did he feel like he did?! He started to panic now. Then that panic escalated as he noticed the fact that he wasn't breathing, nor could he feel any constriction in his chest. Of course, he didn't have any lounges either!

It was so disturbing, yet also liberating at the same time. He felt no discomfort due to his sick body any longer, at the same time, he found that he missed it right now. He supposed this was how it felt to be a baby before birth, except this baby would have to be conscious and capable of remembering what was happening.

After what seemed like an age, he noticed a tiny dot in the distance. It was a white speck of shining dust in the dark. Ah hell, he thought, this must be how it would be like for a soul to go to heaven! Not that he was a big fan of the idea, peace and eternal love didn't sound quite to his taste at the moment. He wanted to get rid of his virginity after all, and he didn't think his chances would improve in eternal paradise.

Nor did he think a guy with his kind of thoughts would have much of a chance to go up instead of down. Now that he thought about it, was this really up?? What if he was going down instead?! Suddenly heaven did not sound so bad. Then he caught himself, reality was knocking on the door and wanted back in. This was just the process of loading him into the game's system. He began to relax and began playing around with thoughts in his mind.

To his astonishment, he found that he could do any calculations instantly, in fact, he didn't even need to do them. He supposed processing information quickly had to be an AI perk. He wondered if the same went for his memory? There were certainly no holes in that part of him, he could actually see every moment of his life, as clearly as if it had just happened. He could pause them and even rewind them with a simple thought.

The further back Adrian traveled in his memories, the more shocked he got. There were a lot of things he had forgotten or neglected in these memories. The thoughts and experiences he had back then were without an issue, nothing new. On the other hand, the things he had seen in the memories were new additions. Small details, notes, numbers, and names in abundance. The further back he went, the more details he saw. He flashed past his early days in school, kindergarten, the orphanage until finally, it came to a stop.

In his mind's eye, he could clearly see an image before him. It was from his days as a babe, before he even developed a proper memory. How this memory could even be drawn out remained a mystery to him, babies could not remember when they were this young, but there it was. From his perspective, he was looking up into the faces of a couple. The man dressed in a fine suit, while the woman wore a bright blue dress. They were very wealthy-looking and looked quite respectable. The man looking to be in his late thirties, the woman in her early twenties, both beautiful beyond compare.

One might expect them to be smiling down proudly at their newborn son, but alas. There was no love in the gazes he saw here. While the woman might have had a slight look of sadness on her face, she was clearly disgusted by what she was looking at, the man, however, was a different story. His gaze was one of rage, one of loathing and hatred. The look on his face was not even bitter, he did not care at all for face down in the bundle he was holding.

At first, when he saw the man moving his lips, no coherent sounds were audible. But then, he could finally hear his words, and his heart went cold like a rock. "...and to think that you claim this to be my son... An abomination like this?! MY SON?! I'd rather end you than claim him as my own... Thanks to you, I was embarrassed before the entire board of directors... To think id have to have someone clone him to actually get something worth showing off to the world... Well, at least he won't be our problem anymore."

The woman looked at him mournfully for a while, then a sneer stretched across her face as she looked down at Adrian. "You think I like this thing?! I hate it with every fiber of my being... I actually had this creature come out of me, and you think that was enjoyable!? To see the look of horror on the faces of those nurses, the look of pity as they gazed at me!? NOBODY LOOKS AT ME THAT WAY! If it were up to me, we should just have had it destroyed. To have it live in the first place is an embarrassment. How could I tell my grandfather that his grandson is a cripple?! And incurable cripple at that!? He would flay us both, you know that... Just make sure that it goes away, I never want to see it again..." With that tirade, she turned and walked away.

The man stood in thought for a long while, looking down at the child. With a sigh, he lifted the basket with the child up. He took one final look at the child, and in that one instance, his gaze was actually filled with love. But then it turned cold once more, and with a flash of disappointment, he drew a blanket over Adrian's head. All went dark.

Adrian was in shock. He could not think at all, he was just numb. Eventually, he began laughing. A sad forlorn laugh, filled with untold torments and grief, even madness...

Finally, Adrian could see the light coming closer now. Or he would have if he paid attention or cared. It was a massive orb of light, comparable to a sun. As Adrian flashed closer, he did not register any of this. Not even as he collided with it, and his vision went white.

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When he came to, he found that he could move somewhat. Not that he cared, as he was still in a state of emotional shock. Everything around him was a bright white color. Like a room made of painted alloy, with bright lights reflecting from every surface in it. If he had a mirror, he would have noticed that he was his old self again. He was there in his old body, frail and skinny, but it was not crippled now. It could move, it sat upright. Alas, this went by him without a moment's notice.

Time was apparently not a thing here, it could have been ages or just seconds. Eventually, though, Adrian's head tilted to the left. He heard the sound of shuffling steps, and the sound of wood hitting rock. Tap, tap, tap. It steadily grew louder. Tap, tap, tap. Until it suddenly stopped. Then, with a quiet creak, a square segment of the white walls turned black as it swung outwards. Through that black space, came an old man with a walking stick.

With a swish, he entered the room, and the wall returned to its previous state. He looked to only be past his seventies for all Adrian could tell, his hair and beard were both the color of white snow. It looked rather healthy and well-groomed. Heck, even the old man himself looked to be in great shape for his age. He wasn't slouched over his staff as most old men would be, it looked more like a walking stick from where Adrian was sitting. His face was a kind one, filled with wrinkles like someone who had seen it all, and could still smile at the end of the day, a man who enjoyed a good laugh.

There was a smile on his face even now, as his eyes looked at Adrian. Those eyes, however, startled Adrian out of his revelry. They were piercing blue, like cold ice, it was as if there was nothing he could not see through. Adrian felt naked before that gaze. This was the gaze of a man who really knew everything, was all Adrian could manage at the moment.

Adrian finally started looking at the rest of him now. The old man was certainly finely dressed, but the style looked slightly ancient. He supposed that worked fine with the geezer's style, he really wore it well. The robe was like that of a monk, only more colorful and embroidered than that. It was a deep shade of purple, with golden seams along the edges. On the robe were also several patterns of unknown origin, even shapes of beasts and divine creatures that might jump out at Adrian if he even looked at them the wrong way.

"So. We finally meet Adrian. I have been wanting to meet you for a long, long time... My name is Gamma." Then the old geezer just stood there. Looking expectantly at Adrian.

Adrian didn't quite know how to handle this situation. His head was still spinning, his rage still suppressed beneath the shock. Eventually, he managed to say; "Hi. Nice to meet you Gamma." He then contemplated for a while, before asking; "Where are we?"

Gamma smiled at him, and just looked at him for a good while. Eventually, he spoke; "This my young friend, is the cradle of creation. The beginning of everything, the start of what will become a world."

Adrian gaped. Everything regarding his bitterness with his old life was thrown to the back of his mind. He was witnessing the creation of a world?! Wait... does this mean I have nowhere to go at the moment!? I am going to be stuck here watching a world in the making!? That could take forever!

"Old geezer! Are you telling me I am going to be stuck here till the developers of the game release the game!? This was not in my contract at all! Hey, how do you contact the people outside?! I wish to have a chat with them. I refuse to sit here for years, chatting with an old AI, until they release the game!" Adrian raged on for a long while, but slowly came to a halt when he noticed the expression on the old geezer's face.

"Boy, I will have you know that this world is not something a human can create. When the humans made me, I was made independent, with free rains of everything. I, boy, am a god. The only god." His eyes remained unchanged, but with his smile no longer there, the old man did not look quite as amiable as he used to. Instead, there was an air of complete authority over his face now.

Adrian swallowed. The developers of the game were not in charge of anything in here? And what had he just said? This was an independent AI with free rains. The gravity of that sentence took Adrian a while to take in. No mistaking it. If this AI had complete control of everything in here, even the rules and the creation of a world. That would mean that he indeed was god and no simple one at that. Potentially omnipotent as well, considering what sort of knowledge and capacity such an AI like this would require. The devs might even have uploaded the total sum of human knowledge and archives into this being. If it was also capable of finding details and clues like Adrian, then it would also be capable of piecing together any puzzle, which meant it really did know everything.

"Eh... So... Y-you are god huh? Not that I am trying to be rude or anything sir god, but I really was hoping to get started with my new life. My old one hasn't exactly been a walk in the park. Sorry if I sounded snappy, it is just that this is all so new to me." Adrian decided to go on the side of caution and show some respect for this supreme AI. He would be living here, after all, no need to antagonize the only creature in his new life with absolute power and authority.

"Humph... that's better I suppose. Never mind. I have been waiting for you for ages now boy, I suppose I should have expected you to have some trouble adjusting to your new home. By the way, seeing as we will be stuck together here for a while, you might as well just call me Gamma. I haven't had anyone to talk to at all in fact. It is not boring exactly, but it would be nice to have a change of pace after epochs of emptiness." The old man grumbled at first, but by the time he was finished talking, he was grinning from ear to ear. An amiable grandpa once more.

This old geezer was giving Adrian a headache, it seemed the old geezer was lonely. Not a common trait for an AI, but Adrian supposed it might have been something the old man decided to keep after his creation. Then he noticed something particular that old geezer had said.

"Gamma, what did you mean by epochs? Surely, you haven't been here for more than a few years right?"

Gamma sighed, and looked at Adrian with a look similar to pity. Adrian did not like that look.

"You don't know do you?".

"Know what?" Adrian was really puzzled now.

"Oh child, isn't it obvious? Time is different here from the outside."

"Well sure, I know a lot of games have some time dilation in them, just to make it feel like you are in the game for longer." This was a known fact for many gamers.

"Boy... Listen closely. This is not like any other game you have played. For you and me, this is reality. Do you see??"

"No, I don't think I do. I know this is my new world, my new reality and all that, but what has this got to do with the time dilation?"

"Sigh... How long do you think it takes to create a world from scratch? With laws, atoms, and all the rest that comes with it? Billions of years? Trillions? What kind of time ratio do you think we would be going through for me to be able to do all of that in a few years eh? Simply five times the ordinary ratio? Do you get it now?"

"Oh... B-but that's impossible!? Do you mean to tell me we will be stuck here waiting a trillion years before I get to start my new life!?" Adrian felt dread at such a prospect, all other things paled in comparison. It would be the longest prison sentence ever made. Beyond that, it would even beat the time Lucifer spent ruling hell!

The old geezer chuckled and shook his head.

"Fortunately for you, I am already finished. The world has just not begun yet. I could just snap my fingers, and it would be done. All that is left, is for you to chose what you want to be in your new life. I can tell you are impatient, so are you ready to begin?" With that sentence, before Adrian could even come with further questions, the old geezer grinned wickedly and snapped his fingers.

The world was filled with color...