The Young Pyromancer

The newly-dubbed Kirito looked around in shock. He... was in the game? After shock came wonder. He was actually in a game. Or, as the wraith looked down at themselves in astonishment, she was. This was awesome! Suddenly, Kirito's face fell. Her parents, her friends... She'd never see them again. The revelation hit her like a wave, her body visibly buckling. She dropped to her knees, overwhelmed with a strange mix of horror and jubilation coursing through her. The being formerly known as Larry didn't know what to feel.

Yeah!

Wow. Now that's dedication.

And the shard people wait until the end, according to what I've read.

Larry sat back in his chair. He was all set up for the game. He had a swivel chair, because he assumed that the VR would require him to turn around. He had chips and some water. He had his laptop, ready to look up any bugs or issues that might come up. And most importantly, he had the game itself. He picked up the headset and sensors. The headset was smooth, with a blue and white pattern and a red logo on the front. The sensors cinched on easily, with a catch release for fast removal. The devices were individually powered, and buzzed momentarily when they all had synced. Larry had been saving for this game ever since he had first heard of it. He had only been able to purchase the equipment last week, but he had gotten word that there was going to be a reset today, and so had waited to begin until now. With a deep breath, he slid on the headset. At first, the screen was totally black. A ray of light appeared, then another, until the screen was filled with bolts of light. It felt like he was in the Millennium Falcon, jumping to lightspeed. Slowly, a character selection phased into view. There was an optional personality quiz, which Larry quickly filled out. It didn't have a lot of the standard options you see on internet quizzes, and it adapted to his answers. Impressive. As he completed the test, a window popped up, with a spread of different icons to click on. Moving his hand, Larry marveled at the smooth response. He selected the largest icon, which opened to reveal a status sheet. A female wraith, huh? Larry thought. Apparently the test algorithm had determined this the best suited for his playstyle. He decided to choose this one, as if he didn't like it, he could always reset his character. He hit the accept button, and he created a username and password. Surprisingly, no one had used the name he chose. It was a name from a popular anime, one where the character was trapped in a game rather like the one he was about to play. He pushed the accept button, and felt a strange sucking sound. He had disabled the tutorial, as he wanted to learn from scratch. Plus, his system-generated character was crafting-based, so Larry doubted it would help him much. A message popped up. Strangely, the interface seemed to integrate itself into his vision, not appearing obviously unless he focused. Strange. Larry turned himself to the message, and grinned. He had timed his entrance into the game perfectly, and the update kicked into effect immediately after he had appeared. The surroundings jumped, and pumpkins and decorations sprang to life around him. Still, something seemed off. Oh well. He glanced at the message once again, really reading it. As he did, a growing suspicion began to swell up inside him. No, it couldn't be... (Heh, that name is ironic) Welcome to the game, Kirito. Enjoy your stay.

I’m waiting to post until Voidus fixes my stats/items and answers my pm questions to post.

A newcomer? Probably a Minor Epic, judging by the fact that they didn't seem to be too arrogant. Probably perception based. "Well, for starters, don't go into South Common." Nicroburst started ticking off fingers. "The Epic there is named Typhon. He's really big and dumb, and just stays there, but anyone who goes in dies. Next, don't go through areas where the air seems weird and shimmery unless you are completely sure of the time distortion ratio and that it isn't a wall. If it's an area of slowed time, then you could be stuck there for years while only seconds pass for you, and if it's a wall of distorted time, you'll get stuck there for days or weeks or until someone gets you out. And it isn't very pleasant." Nicroburst grimaced. Not pleasant was an understatement. When he had first come to Olympia Polaris, he had thought the distortion was water vapor or something and had gotten taken in by Epoch's goons temporarily. Getting stuck in the barrier was like getting slowly sucked through a straw, then being inflated back to proper size by some kid with a bicycle pump. Where was he? Ah yes. "If you see a black forcefield, that's where some sort of light Epic has set up. It's not certain death, like South Common, but people who go in there either can't or won't talk about what happened inside. Some people have come out insane, others with portions of their memories missing, and still others never come out at all. There are regular supply runs for food, but besides that, not many people go in or out anymore. The Epic there supplies a large portion of the city's electricity in exchange for the food." Nicroburst scratched his hair unconsciously. "In the west there is the Belt, a group that is led by a gravity manipulator named Orbit. They supply a drug-like substance called Amberlight. Past them is a large group of Minor Epics. They aren't much of a threat, but there is a bunch of them. I would advise staying away from them, as they act a lot like petty thugs." "Below and to the east of the middle of the city is an area covered by webs. Don't go there. No one really knows for sure who or what is in there, but there are a bunch of spiders." "If you are after somewhere to stay, I would advise either Epoch's territory- he's the one who creates the barriers, an area still under the control of the old government, or a place where there aren't many others around, like the north. That's where I am." "Oh, and if it's night and it looks like it's raining backwards, get inside or you will start losing your memory." Nicroburst grinned at Stephany. "Any questions?"

So do I get my stats now?

No, I mean how. EDIT: NVM

So how do we play?

How easy will it be to earn skills in this? Because if it's really easy, wouldn't starting with a higher level in 1-2 skills be better? Also, what language are we using for the runes?

Probably will let him be able to recognize magic better then.

Who are you using it on?

I'm interested. Did the werewolf ritual go well?

Unless it's a sparklepire.

Yeah, but they get to be a werewolf!

I am not sure whether you meant you were casting it on someone else or yourself.

Wednesday is Halloween. scedule clearing up. Halloween is a traditional time for dark rituals. ... Voidus, what are you planning this time?

Not if you are wielding him. Maybe we should ask what would happen if a Nicrosil burner wielded him instead of touched. Also, what would happen if Hoid got Nightblood? Would Nightblood kill Hoid? Would they go on a rampage?

What about a Nicrosil burner?

Hopefully I can get my own stats by then!

Viktor moved over to the new Epic. Cautiously, since apparently those tentacles were plasma. Or so the man said. If it was plasma it should radiate heat, and act as a plasma torch to whatever it passed through. Viktor smiled. He had gotten that knowledge soon after he was Turned. The original owner was an overweight, balding man in a lab coat. Funny how even though he was a theoretical physicist he still wore a lab coat. It protected him from what, chalk dust? That man had lasted almost a month before he snapped. Having your talents forcibly extracted from you, the knowledge and expertise of a lifetime slowly drained from your mind tended to do that to people. Of course, Viktor took more care with those whose skills were useful, or rare, but the man didn't seem to have anything valuable. Though Viktor didn't know. After all, he couldn't drain someone's skill if he didn't know it existed. Except if he did a general drain, but that was terribly inefficient. Viktor focused back on topic. He was supposed to be nice to the newcomer, so he settled into the chair opposite 'Tendril', holding out a cup. "Care for some tea?" One of the things Viktor drained most often, if he had time, was tea brewing. It had started out as a joke, but then he discovered that knowledge like that didn't affect people too much. Many times people didn't seem to notice. Of course, since almost no one was actually good at making tea, the amount he could drain wasn't very large. Especially once he started getting good at it and the diminishing returns kicked in. Still, Viktor enjoyed tea, so it was worth it.

Click on the link at the top of the thread of the bookstore.

OOOH! Smart.

Okay.