December 31st, 2029 – the final sunset of the decade cast a golden hue across the hostel window as Kael sat cross-legged on his bunk, VR visor resting in his lap. The air was thick with excitement; news had already spread like wildfire across the internet. Godless Domain—the first-ever full-dive virtual reality MMO—was about to launch at midnight.
Kael's heart raced. At sixteen, he had never expected to be a pioneer of something so monumental. A loner in the real world, often overlooked and left to his own devices, Kael had always gravitated toward games. But this—this was different. It wasn't just a game. It was a new world. A chance to start over.
He checked the time again: 11:57 PM.
The room buzzed with muffled conversation from other dorms, likely others counting down to the launch. Kael slipped the visor over his eyes, logged into the pre-registration page, and held his breath.
Welcome to Godless Domain.
You are the first to register.
His hands trembled. A chime sounded in his ears.
As the first registered player, you are granted 10 physical item selections from the Creator's Vault. These items will be delivered to your character upon official game launch.
"No time limit to claim these," Kael muttered to himself, grinning. "Perfect."
Please create your character.
Kael hesitated. This wasn't something he wanted to rush. He stared at the blank field for a moment before typing in the name:
Nova
It fit. Short, memorable. A new beginning. A star.
Please choose your starting attributes. Distribute 25 points among the following: Strength, Agility, Endurance, Intelligence, Perception, Dexterity, Willpower.
Choose 5 starting skills.
Kael leaned back, eyes scanning the screen.
He had read enough beta leaks to know that no one chose a class at the beginning. Instead, the system observed player behavior and automatically assigned a class at Level 10, based on skill usage and attribute distribution. It was brilliant—and terrifying.
"I need balance," he whispered. "Something flexible."
Attributes:
Strength: 4
Agility: 5
Endurance: 4
Intelligence: 3
Perception: 4
Dexterity: 3
Willpower: 2
Starting Skills:
Swordsmanship
Cooking
Herbalism
Archery
Stealth
He didn't want to be just a fighter. A balanced character would help him adapt, survive, and maybe even surprise the system when it tried to assign a class.
The screen pulsed once.
Character creation complete.
Training instance now available until official launch.
Would you like to enter the training zone?
Kael hesitated for just a moment.
"Enter."
The world dissolved into light.
Word count: 598
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