Being a God, that never crossed my mind, as I knew I wasn't. Gods don't spend their sunny Saturday mornings amidst a feverish crowd of addicts, for a game no less! Considering my ex backstabbing me, my 17-year-old body still somewhat broken, two facts not related in the way you assume and outrageous facts I only learned of way too late, my crazy limitless adventure started serenely.

First off, a few days from now my pursuit of Magic raised questions I didn't want to ask, blowing my mind rather than getting it off of recent events. I've learned that sometimes you have to skip ahead to the action to succeed, so you could do the same, but let's start from the beginning, shall we?

Well, anyway, after seeing thugs almost kill a girl, me saving her, but getting very much broken in the process, I didn't mind serenity. I'd been skilled enough to overwhelm the scum, had I been ruthless enough, I'd have gotten out scratch-free. But morals had cost me my future, almost.

Thankfully I was now mostly recovered, having a clear conscience, as I didn't turn into a killer.

'Mom sure's happy about that, sigh.'

And my dad keeps reinforcing what true strength means. Being true to yourself, protecting others.

But I can hurt bullies, some have lasting reminders to not mess with me. I've trained from childhood on and knew how to kill before that. Several belts later, we'd learned not to, but I've always had a knack for applying devastating force. Trained to not follow the impulse, be measured in applying violence.

I learn like a sponge, but I am still fallible, make mistakes, get angry, emotional, am ruled by fear like everybody else, I'm not perfect. But I watch, I listen, I read, I understand, I recall easily; applying it, I act swiftly, yet, I also get bored, life's been both exciting and boring, I need more.

And I can't kill people.

Being young and exceptional, I'd begun to judge people like a sovereign. My parents had realized it before any damage was done, but from then on I'd to conform to ethics, no longer was I allowed to treat people badly because I could do better than them, and in time, that phase had passed and the need for the code was no more. I only compared myself to yesterday's self, happy to improve. Until the day I'd to make a judgment call, cripple or kill an assailant or…

No matter how gifted you are, time waits for no-one, the hours of a day, sleep and recovery, all that limits you, as does peer pressure, but that's a different story. Applying yourself swiftly and effectively, you can exceed limitations, stay ahead, avoid turning into a Joe Sixpack, make good on realizing your prodigious gifts. Being hungry, daring the impossible, giving that up had felt like dying to me.

Before the incident I had the next decade or so planned out, enough eventualities to enable me pursuing most anything I wanted alongside attending university. I've been going at a crazy schedule, pursuing long term self-improvement, until all of that collapsed and I nearly died irrespective of all my preparations.

…

In hospital, my soon-ex learned I'd saved another girl while out of town, a girl I'd never seen before. Melanie also learned I'd probably never walk on my own again, it's been that bad. Proceeded to spin me into a narcissistic adrenaline junkie who's only out to hurt people, all so she could safely abandon me. Her scorn, the people believing her, changed me.

I realized people often only see what you can do for them, once you're useless, they throw you away. Also, treating everyone with respect I thought I'd always done, but the following months taught me otherwise. From a thrill-seeking gifted athlete to a recovering ostracized almost-cripple. What lies can do to you…

…

During recovery my old friend Tom pitched F.I.O, Final Immersion Origin, a Full Immersion, FI, game promising players True Magic. Though not every player would wield Magic, it was simply too expensive. I wasn't quite interested at first, I can wield swords for real, kick butt, but you'll never move the fabric of reality itself, never shape etherial energies out here on good ol' Earth. Best you can do is skydiving, anything to feel alive, but Magic?

No, for that you had to enter the latest craze, a breakthrough in technology allowing players to truly interface with a game, no more icky nanogel filled VRPODS offering a subpar approximation filled with badly controlled monsters and all sorts of shortcomings, but a real world, filled with lifelike beings and graphics, smells and sensations beyond everyday life.

Orson Capito, founder of FIC, the Full Immersion Company, entrepreneur and now billionaire, from VR-headsets to ever more intricate full body VR gear, he's credited for all of FICs grand achievements, including FIO. However, fiercely protective of his privacy, he vanished a decade ago.

Said decade ago, in his last public appearance, he unveiled FIC's first VR Center in New York, housing 10,000 then revolutionary VRPODS. Only downside, that slimy nanogel performing nerve-stimulation on submerged you. Nonetheless, a worldwide success story, nowadays all major cities all over the world have at least one VR Center, together hosting hundreds of millions of players!

From Aria Crystal - Door Controller to Zebras in Time, more than just games, down to custom few-player instances. Adamant to revitalize your relationship? FIC's VRPODS had just the right experiences for you!

…

Enter 6 weeks ago, FIO got unveiled and with it, FI Centers sporting FI Tubes, the new standard, far superior to the old VRPODS. Contrary to the old tech, their inner workings remained a mystery. But at least submerging in icky gel became a thing of the past!

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Now you just stood in a roomy Tube, a viewscreen, translucent walls turning opaque once Full Immersion began, a frame supporting you while you were out. While you had to eat outside, sleep normally eventually, the Tube cleaned you, removed waste, and stimulated your body while playing, preventing degeneration, allowing up to 23 hours of gameplay, if you were crazy enough.

Best of all, you could still play legacy VR games with it! Yet few actually went back once experiencing FIO in its full glory. Hyper Reality, incredibly detailed and lifelike, a whole globe to explore, beyond real, the largest fantasy-themed world ever created!

…

Enter Tom, Jay and William, the latter two fully indoctrinated by my passionate friend, forming the M.O.G, the self-appointed Masters of the Game!

MOG, like Mogwais, cute little critters you never want to splash water on lest they multiply into Gremlins. Now I associated with them, at least during the free promo week, but kept protesting the ridiculous acronyms.

Long before that I used to tell them they'd stand no chance against teams with almost instant access to VRPODS. Still they tried and pretended their near manic obsession was fun and worth it! All the while sacrificing every bit of time and money they could scrounge up, barely passing their grades, having no life outside the Pods, now Tubes.

All that was about to change, they'd kept telling me. And so it did.

My friends were thrilled, could barely contain their excitement as news broke. We'd get a brand-new FI Center in our small 3,253 people town, more than capable of housing our whole community and then some! We couldn't think of a plausible reason why, none was given, but who cared? No more driving to the nearest real city for hours to join in the latest Full Immersion craze!

Now summer holidays had just started, there was no reason why they couldn't compete with the big boys!

The nagging suspicion, all that I'd pushed aside.

Convinced by the promise of experiencing True Magic, I'd studied the MOGs' compiled game data. Why not? Couldn't yet do my usual workout, saved 30 bucks a day, I knew it was too good to be true. And totally unreasonable, all of it.

…

Below a piercing blue sky, ever more hyped addicts kept streaming towards the dome-shaped FI Center, every teen and kid I could name along with plenty of younger adults, almost a third of our town bunching around, merry impatience, us 4 fairly close to the entrance.

As the many gates opened, us rushing in, we were greeted by large floors and incredibly pretty people. Was there any reason for employing only the young and pretty here?

Well, it mattered not to the MOGs, the self-proclaimed Masters quickly booked four Full Immersion Tubes and proceeded dragging me with them. How they knew where to go to, I had no clue or time to find out. A few minutes later I was put into a Tube which closed itself around me. At least I was prepared on how to proceed from here.

…

Outsmarting Character Creation, an obvious edge few pass up. Min-maxing, cheating, or just unfair composite effects, plenty means to break a game early. Equalizing everything leads to predictable outcomes, not fun for me. What would've happened had I resisted temptation? Never mind that, I didn't.

I've known my body, have studied extensively how a Human body works, far beyond what's needed to maximize my training efficiency and ability to wreck others.

'Mom wants me to become a doctor, meh. Dad's been against me skipping grades, suited me well enough, time's finite. This is just another hobby, get this done quickly…'

I've also seen my insides first-hand, can't recommend that, though. I'd apply that knowledge.

…

In that Tube, its smell screaming brand new, soon to be replaced by clean. I disabled tutorial hints, helpers, all the delays you'd normally face. Gaming isn't about wasting time, not to me.

Then the lights went out, sensations fading, my body weightless, shapeless. Drifting in a void, until just my thoughts remained. Saw, felt, smelled and heard nothing, darkness all around me, no heartbeat, nothingness.

The Dark Zone. I knew all you had to do was focus on your body, thoughts shaping the Avatar.

Foregoing cosmetics, innocuous at first, I felt my unbroken fingers, arms and legs, my hair, opening my eyes, seeing muscles form, blood flowing, heart beating, my unbroken body building itself from memory!

'That works, let's push, a little…'

I kept redefining my muscles, years of experience aiding tuning myself ever further. Making my Avatar faster, stronger, nimble and enduring. What I'd go for once my body recuperated to allow training in earnest again. A remarkable experience.

I got cocky, taller was a no-go, yet smaller… Lost the muscle, but felt 13 again! Giddy, a token victory bypassing that restriction aswell.

Reshaping to that best version of myself, 17, of course, I initiated the login procedure.

…

I should've started as barely crutch-free me, biding his time in a Tube until his flesh fully mended.

Starting as the best version of myself was a gift I hadn't expected. Not stopping to consider why and how I'd subverted security protocols, how it'd affect me, I just figured my innate knowledge awarding me a perk.

No dice, leaner, taller, stronger, normally such changes got easily filtered and supplanted with acceptable approximations. However, only one instance of wishful thinking got locked, how had creation broken badly, was it by my actions, really?

Could've gone wild growing Elven or Vulcan ears, changing skin tone, hair, eye color, superficial was dang easy! Player Avatars were pretty, usually, though not anywhere near the cream of the crop employees in the lobby. Mine looked like I always had, before the incident.

…

Playing to your strengths, growing from your normal body image to a superhuman, was a big selling point of FIO. You providing the template for stats and skills, selecting weapons and picking appropriate classes. FIO recognizing some knowledge and acquired skills was a bit creepy. Considering FIC needed to read far more than your surface thoughts to do that.

…

I'd face mind-bending, smut and real Magic, be near death once, was rushing into it, knowing nothing, dancing on a knife-edge. My Avatar's creation only the beginning, the sensation of a rebuilt perfect body the tip. Waiting, I wondered if my tweaks had earned me any significant boons, as I'd soon enter a restrictive Tutorial Zone exclusive to players up to Level 10. Only exceeding Lv10 I'd actually gain access to all FIO features.

I'd be playing at a 1:1 Ratio, not 3:1, missing the benefit of 3 game hours compressed into 1 real world hour. And be unable to message any players outside the Tutorial Zone, including the MOGs, plus a lot more. Thus I'd to rely on the bits drilled into me to find my way, acquire skills and farm most efficiently, there'd be no safety net worth that name.

Preparing for Full Immersion Gameplay, Please Stand By!

'Nothing will stop me from rushing towards Magic, who needs swords? Been there. No! I will succeed!'

A light tugging sensation and I was out of the Dark Zone, felt air, the game of my life began…