The light was super bright, it burned right through his eyelids. He rolled over, trying to get it out of his face. "Fuck, why's the light on?" he groaned internally, trying to put his thoughts together. His thoughts were all jumbled as he lay there on his side, covering his face. Realization slowly hit him, jolting him awake like a speeding train. His eyes squinted against the blinding light as he quickly sat up, but then immediately fell back to his side. A sharp pain shot through his backside, making him wince and curse quietly. Not having any padding on his butt was a major blow to his pride – he didn't have much going for him as it was already.
He blinked away the tears and looked around. Whoa, he thought, this definitely ain't my car. This was an unfamiliar place, and he was kinda slow on the uptake. Some people would have already figured that out way sooner. I was up all night gaming. We had a raid boss dropping awesome loot. I couldn't miss that, he said to himself, trying to justify his lack of awareness.
The room was totally bare—just a plain white space with no colors, sounds, or anything else to look at. The walls, ceiling, and floor were all the same, and even though there was no visible light source, the whole place was lit up. It was like the air itself was glowing, and it was already starting to give him a headache.
He walked over to check out the closets on his right and shivered as a draft hit him. Looking down, he was surprised and totally embarrassed to find himself completely naked. The room was cold, and he was shrinking fast, he needed to find something to cover up his shame. He touched the wall, but it was cold and made of some weird material he couldn't recognize.
His last coherent memory was of driving with Caleb, his phone was ringing non stop. The lights toward the freeway had been green the whole way, but then everything had shifted. The world around him had faded to black, and just like that he blacked out, he had caught a glimpse of something surreal—a screen hovering in front of his face. It had a cryptic ass message, something about starting, or maybe commencing some sort of initiation. All that reeked of isekai and other world stuff.
Caleb was right, I needed to get out more, he mused. He wasn't a total hermit, but being social was a drag. He was content with his hobbies: reading, gaming, and hanging out with Caleb and a few close friends from college. Dating or random hookups were not on his radar; he was saving himself for marriage. He wasn't a prude or anything; he just wanted his own knight in shining armor to sweep him off his feet, which most people these days thought was crazy.
That floating message that popped up earlier was so bizarre, so out of place, that he'd just assumed it was a fatigue-induced hallucination. He took some deep breaths, trying to calm his racing mind. There were no doors, windows, or any visible exit – even if this was some messed up prank, he still had to figure out how to get out and worry about where he was later. Feeling uneasy and hungry, he needed to find some answers – and maybe some snacks too.
He stood there, trying to figure out what was going on when a notification popped up out of nowhere.
DING
The sudden noise scared the crap out of him and he tripped over himself, falling flat on his already sore butt.
"Son of a…" he wheezed through clenched teeth as he rolled onto his side.
He finally got back on his feet, wobbly and shaky. He shook out each leg, trying to get the feeling back. That annoying notification wouldn't go away, blinking at him like a chat message, no matter which way he turned. He combed his hand through his hair and checked the flashing notification.
This couldn't be real; it had to be a hallucination. Things like this just didn't happen. Then again, considering the sharp pain in his rear end from the fall, it probably was. Reaching out, he tried to touch the floating window. At first, nothing happened, but then his fingers began to tingle as if something was there. As he moved his hand, the window seemed to stick to it, like on a computer screen. The tingling in his fingers felt like tactile feedback as he tapped the window to the side, watching it shoot over to his left like a hockey puck.
Character Creation is now starting. Welcome!
The notification opened and was accompanied with a ding as he clicked on it. Like a touch screen, he quietly thought as the notification informed him that something was starting.
Man, someone was probably watching him, he thought. A few seconds went by, and even though he'd just napped, he was already tired of waiting in the bright white room. He was cold, his butt hurt, and the bright light was giving him a headache. He wondered again if he'd been kidnapped by aliens or had died, but before he could freak out, another notification popped up with a ding!.
Preparations have been finalized. Commencing character creation.
The room got even brighter, like, way brighter. It went from a dim glow to a freaking lighthouse, and he couldn't see a thing. As the light chilled out a bit, his eyes adjusted, but his headache got way worse. He looked down at himself, still floppy and unchanged, but noticed a chair and table had appeared in the middle of the room. The room was still clean and annoyingly bright.
"Hey, is someone there? Don't mess with me, seriously, it's not worth it," he yelled out into the room. It's gotta be aliens, or some weirdo, probably, he thought to himself.
Greetings, inhabitants of the Milky Way Galaxy, of the planet Earth.
This marks the commencement of your introductory and Character Creation phase.
All Inquiries will be addressed during the remaining five minutes of this phase.
Staring at the floating notifications, he started to understand his new reality. He let out a breath he didn't realize he'd been holding and walked over to the chair, gently sitting down. It was cold, like metal, and he was not pleased.
The universe known as the Milky Way Galaxy has surpassed a threshold that permits entry into the multiverse and everything contained within
Please select a Name
The notifications pinged, and he frowned at them. He checked out the notification window and saw an arrow in the corner. He clicked it, and another window popped up. He went through the notifications one by one, trying to figure out where he was or what he was supposed to do to get out. Everything he read just made him more confused. Then a keyboard appeared, probably for him to type a name or something, and he started to feel a knot forming in his stomach from the unease of his situation.
His stomach felt better as the knot disappeared, and he noticed another change in the room. A timer with big black numbers had appeared on the middle of the white wall across from him. It looked super out of place and was counting down from an hour, showing 59 minutes left.
59:13
"This is just great," he said sarcastically to the empty room. "Just like in a horror movie – I'll probably die with my pants down." He checked out the new notification asking him to pick a name. He wondered if it was like a gamer tag or his real name, absentmindedly picking his nose as he thought about it. He'd read enough stories that started out with characters acting like everything was just a game only to be alleviated of that notion usually along with their head.
He typed "Knight" into the floating keyboard—it was his last name, and he totally loved it. Compared to other people's last names, his was seriously awesome.
Better to be safe than sorry, A voice said inside his head, settling on using his last name. He didn't know the rules of this place, and those windows weren't telling him anything. He figured names probably meant something important here – if he was right, he'd be ahead of the not game, and if not, well, he still had a cool name.
He didn't want something stupid like "bonerknight69" floating above his head for everyone to see if there was even a slight chance others would see his name. He didn't want to look like a complete idiot. He gave it one last look, made sure it looked good, and clicked accept. The window closed and a new one popped up.
Congratulations, Knight!
Your character's race, Human (H), will begin at level 0 by default.
Human (H) – This race type can only freely be found in the newly developed worlds, or as slaves elsewhere. Humans are known to be the weakest race and typically do not survive long on any planet. The vast number of humans throughout the multiverse causes them to be viewed as lower life forms undeserving of respect by the other races. Humans boast a wider and more balanced build than other races and are capable of great diversity in their route to power.
Stats gained per level: +2 to all stats, +2 Free Stat Points.