Damn I wish this day could end. I finally got my hands on a ‘full immersion headset’ and a copy of the newest game on the market, it is a must play apparently.

My fingers slide over grain of the wooden school desk, my eyes occasionally looking up. Mr Rogers still droning on about maths. I sigh quietly.

Only fifteen minutes left. The rest of the class sharing the same mentality, everyone’s interest in listening waning. Next to me is Lewis, my friend who had introduced me to the full immersion headset and got me hyped about ‘Sky Frontier’, sleeping through the class as usual.

After what felt like an eternity, the school bell rings, a wave of relief washes through the class room as everyone springs to life, grabbing their books and rushing out the door. Lewis is still asleep.

“Hey, wake up man” I say as I shake his shoulder.

“Is class over?” Lewis mutters, still shaking off his drowsiness.

“Yeah”

“Sick!” He exclaims as he stands up. “We have a game to play. We will play at nine alright?”

“Yeah” I sigh.

“Jeez what’s up with you? You are like, half dead.”

A full day of classes tends to suck the life out of me. Lewis hurriedly picks up his books and paces to the door before he turns back to me.

“Oh yeah Julian.”

“What?”

“When you start, meet me outside the church.”

“Alright.” I answer as I pack my things.

*

I slip myself into a plain blue shirt and a comfy pair of shorts. My teeth freshly brushed. The best part about the headset is that you can play it while you sleep. The clock ticks, eight fifty. I scan the game cover once more. The letters ‘Sky Frontier’ illustrated in a royal golden colour, an intricate red dragon weaving between the letters. I flip the case to read the back.

‘Welcome to Divum, a world unlike any other, the solid land you once knew now shattered into millions of floating islands, now infested with dragons and other monsters.

Work together to overcome new challenges or carve your own path. With millions of different skills and dynamic classes created by the players the possibilities are endless.’

The words below are highlighted,

'The hero who slays the mother dragon will be rewarded with 30% of the profits made from Sky Frontier’

I could definitely use that money. With my gambling father and my mum who is struggling to pay the bills with three part time jobs, several thousand dollars would really help.

I open the box and take out the white chip inside, neatly sliding it into the slot in my second hand ‘full immersion headset’ I then switch off the light switch.

Well, I would have to be the first guy to kill that dragon to get the money, unlikely.

My back lands on my messy bed with a whump, the springs of the bed creak. My fingers fiddle with the headset, after a few silent moments I slip it over my head and align the interface over my eyes.

“This game better be worth several months of my savings” I grumble aloud as the machine hums to life and my eyelids close.

My body jumps, as if my consciousness is ripped from my body.

“Whoa” I exclaim in surprise.

Everything before me is white, pure white. Very quiet bells ringing in the distance. Suddenly a blue window opens before me.

Welcome to the world of Divum

Please select your raceHumanA race with balanced stats, infinite possibilities.ElfHigher mana and magic stats, however has lower physical stats, strongest in a magic related class.OrcThe Orcs have no magic capability, the race with the highest physical stats. All abilities use energy rather than mana.AvaAvas have the lowest stats out of all the races, however they makes up for this with their ability to fly with their wings.

Love this novel? Read it on Royal Road to ensure the author gets credit.

“I don’t know!” I exclaim as if the interface could hear me.

I don’t really want to be an orc or an ava, so it is just between human and elf, but I don’t really think I am a magic kind of guy, so I guess that leaves me with human.

“Human” I proclaim into the abyss.

Now calibrating avatar.

A mirror image of myself materialises in front of me, slightly tanned skin, my body lithe, with only small amounts of muscle definition, much to my dismay and medium length black hair with a side swept fringe.

The avatar wearing a slightly dusty cream coloured shirt and a pair of baggy brown pants, held together with a leather belt and an iron buckle. The detail is impeccable.

What is your name?

I open my mouth to say Julian, but decide against it.

What are some good usernames? E- El.. Sor- Zelph… Zephyr! That’s a good one.

“Zephyr”

Character creation complete. Say ‘Finish’ after reading the rules.

1. Talking publicly about the outside world and your daily lives is forbidden, use the private chat function. Doing otherwise results in a temporary ban.2. Racism will be closely monitored, and could result in a ban.3. These are the only true rules of Sky Frontier, any other rules made by players and NPCs can be broken without a banning punishment.

Fair enough.

“Finish”

Everything fades into darkness.

*

I raise my hand to cover the glare of the sun, my face flinching. Once I adjust to the light I look around.

Players of different races walking around, ambient noises of people bartering and the occasional clang of metal.

The sun light warm against his skin. The area is open with various beautifully carved stone buildings surrounding the area. In the centre is a complex fountain made out of marble.

“Wow” I utter in awe.

Welcome to the city of Lorburn.

I step forward and back opening and closing my hand. I move myself closer to the fountain and dip my fingers gingerly in the water. My fingertips feel cold and wet.

Everything is so life like.

Still slightly stunned by the surroundings, I awkwardly walk aimlessly around the town centre, still getting used to moving. I bump into something solid.

“Hey, watch it!” The towering figure warns.

He is at least half a metre taller than me, and much more muscular. His skin pigmented a green tone. He must be an orc.

Oh yeah, I need to find Lewis.

“Could you tell me where the church is?” I ask the orc.

He points in a general direction.

“Thanks”

I awkwardly pace onward.

*

Eventually I manage to walk, and soon after run. Approaching a tall steeple tower in the distance.

That must be it.

A sudden soreness in my legs suddenly kicks in and feet come to a very slow walk.

What the hell?

You have run out of Energy.

In the corner of my eye I see my health bar, below that a blue bar and below that a slither of orange, probably what’s left of my energy bar.

I grimace, it is going to be a long walk.