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The Gam3: Chapter 1

"So... are we finally ready to play?"

The opposite player smiled and reached towards the chessboard. Her lithe fingers gently plucked a single pawn from the front line directly in front of her rook and pushed it forward a single space.

"We are indeed," she replied calmly, leaning back and folding her hands on her lap.

"It took you long enough to decide."

"Every life is precious. Unlike you, I consider every life before placing it in the game."

"Right. You can afford to wait because you've got him on your side."

"He's not playing, remember? He's just overseeing."

"That's what he says," answered the first bitterly. "Honestly, I don't see why you're so picky with your players." He picked up his knight and moved it. "They're just people. There are billions of them."

"Brute force versus precision," answered the second, picking her pawn again. "I will enjoy this game."

The first grinned brightly. "I'm sure not as much as the players."

******

The middle of winter was never fun, not in Tomas Orville's miserable heavily urbanised city. The young man of 19 years of age stood idly by his window for a long moment, watching as rain slammed hard against his window with the ferocity of hail. Outside, raging motorists were blaring their horns at one another in aggravation over a force of nature that the guy in front of them had no control over. A sea of umbrellas passed on the sidewalks, a bobbing ocean of black waterproof cloth with very little colour amongst them.

Tom heard his single mother shouting at the television over some new game show that she had become obsessed with while his little brother was playing pretend at her feet, making 'whoosh-whoosh' noises with a paper aeroplane.

How much he wanted to find entertainment like them. Being stuck inside was so boring. It was raining hard and he had tried to convince his mother to let him go out. Maybe meet his friends at the Last Angel, a statue in an urban park not too far away. However, despite being in his first year of college, he was still under her motherly rule. Not that it was bad... it was just... constricting.

He glanced at his phone where he had attempted to message his friends earlier. All of them said they were busy. Well... except for Pete. He had at least been honest and said that he was spending some time developing his character in a new MMORPG that was released just a few months ago and already taking the world by storm.

His PC stood a short distance away with all the equipment he needed to be immersed into The Gam3. The purchase had been made on a whim and out of a need for inclusion with his friends who had been spending more and more time in the virtual world than in reality.

He hadn't picked it up once.

Thunder roared outside and his mother screamed out something along the lines of '24, pick 24!'

Tom sighed and shuffled over to his PC, booting it up quietly. With the storm as it was, he wasn't even sure if he'd get a decent internet connection. Though he had dabbled in MMOs here and there, he never got hooked to them. Videogames were fun and a good way to pass time but these days, what was the reward for finishing them? Meaningless achievements? Bragging rights? Cut scenes already posted on YouTube? One dimensional stories?

"At least I can try out this new virtual helmet thing..." he murmured, picking up the large, sleek, futuristic helmet with a thick, black visor. It came with the package for The Gam3. Pricy but apparently it was compatible with all upcoming games from Reaper Studios. Starting off with an MMO though was probably suicide for the budding company. Server maintenance, constant bugs, updates and whatever else would likely eat away at their manpower and budget. Not to mention production costs for the VR Helmet.

Still, Tom wished them luck quietly as he put on the helmet after booting up the program.

He was treated to a blank screen for a long moment... Then some ominous music. He couldn't even hear the rainstorm outside anymore. A thin, white mist rolled over his ankles and he gawked at just how realistic this image was. Not to mention how it felt. He was actually cold. Though that might've been the rain.

A shadowy figure appeared in front of him, draped in a long, black cloak and hood. In one hand, the figure held a long, scythe. Tom raised an eyebrow as the figure lifted the scythe before suddenly freezing. The figure became a silhouette and was emblazoned against a field of blue with the words 'Reaper' hanging beneath it. The company logo.

A popup then appeared in front of him.

'Welcome to The Gam3' it said. 'Please log in.'

Of course, Tom had to create an account. He reached for his keyboard but then realised one fatal flaw in the VR Helmet design. He couldn't see his keyboard. Worse, it seemed like he could move his arms in game but had no way of typing anything.

"What the hell?" he said, his voice strangely echoing in the darkness.

The pop-up suddenly changed its text.

'This is your first time playing with a VR Helmet, isn't it?'

Tom frowned. "Um... yeah...?"

The pop-up changed again. 'Did you even read the instructions before starting?'

Blushing slightly, Tom said, "No..."

'And you dove right into playing a game you've never played before using equipment you've never used before. You're a real genius, aren't you?'

Stunned at the brazen sarcasm, Tom said, "Hey! No need to be mean."

'Hey, you paid two hundred bucks for this. I got what I want. It's your fault if you didn't read the instructions and can't enjoy the game.'

Crossing his arms, Tom said, "Fine. I admit it. I was too eager. So how do I create an account?"

The pop-up came up with three dots... an ellipses, like it was sighing. Then...

'Noob.'

Ultimate insult. Tom felt disheartened and was tempted to just shut off the game right there and then but then realised he couldn't even take off the helmet. It wasn't around his head anymore... at least not in game. He tried to reach for it, hoping that it was just invisible in game; all the while pretending to brush his ear absently.

No luck.

The pop-up changed one more time. 'The VR Helmet actually intercepts and interrupts your brain's commands to your body and translates it to your in-game avatar. This means that, in reality, you are effectively paralysed.'

"Wait, what!?"

'Normal body functions are fine. Don't worry. The Helmet is also designed to log you out automatically in the case of life-threatening or -'

Suddenly, Tomas found himself jumping back in his seat at home. He heard his door open and he yanked off the helmet.

"Dear," his mother said, poking her head in, "what would you like for dinner?"

Tom frowned and shrugged. "Anything, mom."

"Mac and cheese it is."

Holding back his disgust, Tom smiled as his mother left and shut the door. Turning back to the helmet, Tom placed it back on and was once again thrown into the dark world. The pop-up was there waiting for him.

'As I was saying,' continued the pop-up, 'the VR Helmets are designed to immediately log you out the instant there is some danger or change to your environment above a certain level.'

"How does it do that?"

'I'm a freakin' in-game program for an MMO. Do you think I know the science behind those blasted things? If you want to know, read the freakin' manual.'

Ouch.

"Fine, fine," Tom said, waving his hands in surrender. "Okay, so I'm paralysed but my actions from my brain are translated here. How do I feel cold right now?"

'Same basic principle. The VR Helmet feeds stimulus directly to your brain to make you feel the world around you without actually harming your physical body.'

"So what happens if I suffer a heart attack in game?"

'Are we wiring feeds directly to your heart?'

"No need to get snippy," Tomas muttered.

'Listen kid, I've got over two million players to take care of and about half of them are noobs like you who are still trying to figure out how to swing a sword. You haven't even created an account yet! Can we get this over with?'

"Fine, fine," Tom said. "How do I log on, O mighty Popup Message Service?"

'Huh... Popup Message Service... I like that. Probably shorten it to PMS... wait...'

Tom grinned broadly, trying not to laugh as the PMS stood there, hovering with those words. If the thing had eyes, he was sure it was staring daggers at him.

'I like you, kid,' PMS said. 'Alright, to access your keyboard, put the index finger and thumb of both of your hands together and then press them against one another in front of you.'

"Like this?" Tom asked, doing as he was instruction. He heard a soft beeping.

'Right. Now pull your fingers apart.'

He did so and was surprised when a holographic display of a keyboard appeared in front of him.

"Ha! Neat!"

'If you ever need to type anything for whatever reason, this is your medium. Next, you just need to do the usual login stuff. Add your handle name, password and an email confirmation.'

Tom placed himself as 'T-Man' and was surprised it wasn't taken yet. Password inputted and confirmed later, he was finally signed in.

The PMS vanished and he was treated to a cut scene.

A single light shone through the darkness for a brief moment, splitting the inky blackness right down the middle and spreading to the sides like a thick, curtain peeling apart. A vast land expanded before him, grassy and serene. An average human caravan passed by, appearing to be of the medieval type. So this was going to be one of those kinds of MMOs...

'In ages past, man rose from the mire and the muck to make themselves the superior race. They built cities...'

The caravan's wheels creaked on a dusty road hard packed with the markings of countless others that had passed before it. The road wound its way across vast farmlands to a nearby down, bringing Tom's eyes to the distinctly medieval city. From the noises and shouts even from his distance, Tom knew the town was sprawling with people with a castle shining at its centre.

'Domesticated animals.'

The realistic sound of a cow bellowing behind him caught Tom off guard and he spun around. A cow then passed by him, leading a herd behind it as they moved around him. A herder shouted on horseback nearby and cracked a whip while a cattle dog barked and yapped nearby. They flanked the herd, guiding strays back into the masses. as they ran alongside the cattle drive.

'...Developed great and wonderful machines...'

Cogs and gears sprang up from the ground, replacing the pastures with a network of black and gold twisting machinery that gave way to the enormous gonging of a clock announcing the time. Tom gawked and staggered back as the grassy pastures were erased as iron walls and metal posts grew out of the ground all around him. The sun became blocked by the belting bells of the clock tower. Once again, he was plunged into darkness.

'...Delved into the arcane arts...'

Light sprayed out between the cogs and momentarily blinded Tomas. When the light faded, an aged old man swung his hands, showing off fiery birds that danced from his fingertips to the enjoyment of the crowd of nobles around him. The clock tower was gone and instead he was in a theatre amidst the roaring approval of the crowd dressed in flamboyant clothing.

'... Raised tyrants and heroes...'

A shout for battle erupted behind him and Tomas turned. He screamed and threw up his arms as a man in armour came charging at him, waving a sword as hundreds others came behind him. The moment his gaze was torn from the theatre, the magician and his standing ovation were gone. He was once again on a plane but the grass was crushed beneath the heels of thousands of armoured men charging towards an opposing army.

Thwack!

The man was hurled back by a heavy arrow to the head and he tumbled into the others behind him. Tomas turned, spying that same city before besieged. Fire and their dark plumes of flame billowed out from the buildings while catapults from both sides hurled fiery rocks into the air.

'...and warred across the ages. But always, man prevailed.'

WHAM!

A boulder slammed into the space right beside Tomas. He could feel the heat from the eruption and coughed as specks of dust blasted into his lungs. He scrambled back, throwing his arms up in defence. The roar of soldiers shouting and the clash of steel against steel rose to a thunderous crescendo...

... before abruptly fading off into the distance.

An eerie silence wrapped him in its cold embrace. The dust from the boulder faded, peeling away to reveal a grisly sight.

Tomas was greeted to the sight of the remnants of the battle, the sky darkened by smoke and the corpses of thousands of people across the plains. A lone figure wandered across the land, clutching a wounded arm and shouting for someone.

'Yet, the worst punishment is not death but stagnant existence. Over and over, man developed, domesticated, delved, raised and warred. Millions died and the gods wept. Man had reached the pinnacle of their power and had nowhere else to go but to ravage the lands around them in a vain attempt to find a challenge when they already ruled supreme.

'So, the gods offered them a challenge.'

The lone figure stopped dead in his tracks as a tiny, white star descended from the heavens. Awed, Tomas moved forward towards the figure, wending his way across the sea of corpses. It was surprising to him just how realistic the dead looked. It was even more frightening that he was mostly unfazed by the dead.

He watched as the lone knight looked up at the descending light and held out his hand. The light turned out to be a square, metal panel about as big as his hand.

'Rule your shape so that you may rule yourselves.'

The knight grasped the plate and a bright light exploded out from him. Tomas gasped and staggered back. Moments later, when the light faded, he found himself staring at a proud half-man, half-tiger standing atop a hill. Behind him were other half-animal creatures dressed in armour. They were all of different shapes and sizes. Some had more than two arms. Another was over ten feet tall. There was so much variety. The skies shone clear and blue, the winds whipping the tiger-man's cloak behind him heroically. The sun glinted off the creature's armour, shining against his clear, green eyes and the crystal-studded metal plate that was embedded into his right gauntlet.

'Find the shape that will bring you to our throne.'

Far off into the distance, across a massive, futuristic city stood a _huge_crystal castle. It hovered in the air and there only seemed to be a very thin line connecting it to the land below.

One by one, each of the anthropomorphic creatures marched past Tomas... making their way towards the crystal throne.

'The gods gave man purpose once more. And that is where your story starts. You start as a human. But who you become and where your journey ends... is up to you. Welcome to The Gam3.'

The scene was suddenly bathed in blinding white light and the words 'The Gam3' appeared in front of him in big, stone letters, loud, dramatic music blaring in his ears. Tomas found himself staring at it for a long moment... a little longer than he had expected. Had the game hung on him?

Whack!

"Yeow!" he cried, rubbing the back of his head. He turned around and was startled to find what appeared to be a big, stag anthro standing in front of him with a proud set of horns and dressed in quite revealing armour; nothing much really except for a leather harness across his massive, chiselled chest and a pair of heavy, leather pants capped with metal plates. His build was simply incredible, bodybuilder-esque.

"Hey Tom! Sup!"

Tomas blinked as the creature's lips moved with the voice of his best friend, Peter McLachlan. "Pete? Is that you?"

The stag grinned and hiked a hoofed thumb at himself. "Yup! Pretty cool, eh?"

Utterly stunned, Tom moved towards Pete and ran his hands over the rippling muscles of his friend. "Holy shit! Is this your avatar?" In comparison, Tom looked at himself and saw that he was dressed in a plain white tunic and was very much human. "Where can I get an Avatar like that??"

"It's because of this baby!" Pete said, reaching over to his right bicep where there was strapped a metal plate similar to the one Tom had seen in the cut scene. "These are called Form Grids or 'FGs'. Basically, after you run through the tutorial, you get one of them. It lets you change your shape to anything you want! Provided you've got the Form Crystals to back it up!"

"The what?"

Pete rolled his eyes. "You didn't read the instructions again, did you?" Pete's massive hands gripped Tom's shoulders and turned him around. For a second, Tom noticed that the words 'The Gam3' were hovering over him and that had been the title he had been staring at. Beyond that, however, was a sprawling town that spread on for miles built with wooden, stone and even metal homes and shops.

The city was simply massive and far more detailed than anything Tom had ever seen in a game. The town itself was built on a massive, rolling hill with a castle perched on a cliff overlooking the majority of the city. Various levels of structures stretched in all directions and they looked real; not some pre-rendered, painted background conveniently positioned to give the appearance of depth.

"Welcome to the Terminal," Pete said with a big grin and wrapping a big arm around Tom's shoulders. His stag friend stank, the smell of ripe male_streaming out of his armpits. It smelled like he had been at the gym all day and hadn't bothered to take a shower. When he turned away, he caught a whiff of the clear, crisp air that flooded this place. It was like he was well and _truly in the world. The smells, the touch of warmth from the sun on his skin, the gentle tickle of the wind against his cheeks, the crunch of pebbles beneath his feet and sounds of thousands of people actually holding conversations and not uttering some scripted line were was almost overwhelming.

"This place is the starting place for all noobs like you and is a handy place to go to the major places in the world," Pete continued. "Provided you discover them, first."

"Starting area, got it," Tom said with a nod. He noticed that there were a few other humans of different sizes and races wandering about. They all seemed excited and were rushing from one place to another, talking to various people. There was even one guy not too far away who was laughing as he handed out countless metal plates like they were pamphlets.

"What are you doing here?" Tom asked, glancing at Pete.

The stag blushed beneath his tawny fur. "Little strapped for cash so I volunteered to be a greeter for new guys for a bit. It certainly pays well. But kind of boring and I'm not the only one." He hiked a thumb over his shoulder. Dozens of people were popping up in bursts of light and about another dozen other anthros were eagerly approaching them. For every single new player that arrived, about five experienced players scrambled towards him, belting introductions.

For a second, Tom wondered how Pete had managed to pin him down then he saw that there was quite a few other recruiters hovering at the periphery of the hovering letters, looking bruised and a little beaten.

"Just talk to Helios over there," Tom said, pointing at the guy handing out the plates. "He's got instructions on getting your FG filled up, your first Core FC and how to play The Gam3."

"Is Ed playing?"

"Maybe. Saw him online but he likes to go AFK here and there." Pete turned and began to walk away, but not before turning and waving a hand at Tom. "Listen, I've got to go grab more customers. We get paid per guy we meet and greet." He cracked his knuckles ominously while still wearing a rather proud grin. "Speaking of..." Pete called up his keyboard. "Mind if I get your contact details?"

"Yeah! Yeah, sure." It was a little odd calling up his keyboard in mid-air and typing out Pete's details - who was known as 'TenProng69'. When asked about the choice of handle, Pete blushed and said that '69' was the only one left. Apparently, there were quite a few stags around.

After exchanging details, Pete went back to greeting more people into The Gam3. Tom inclined his head at the vast variety of players that greeted the newcomers. There were all animals of the anthropomorphic nature. One in particular looked had what appeared to be ethereal tendrils rising out of his spine like ghostly tentacles. Another hovered off the ground with six pairs of wings to hold her up. A third had a whole pack of feral wolves at her beck and call that cleaved a path for her through other potential greeters. It also equally amazed him how many new people were coming in every few seconds.

"They might just be alts," Tom said to himself.

He wandered over to where Helios was, amazed at the sheer ambiance and realism of the world around him. There was incredible detail in the very ground and the skies. The cobblestones felt so real and even the fabric of his clothes was amazingly detailed. As he stood amongst the crowd, waiting for his Form Grid, he looked down at his sleeve, amazed how every strand of cloth was actually rendered.

This level of technology - not to mention processing power - was beyond anything he had ever expected from an MMO... or his computer for that matter.

"You there! Yes you!"

Tom looked up as Helios beckoned him over. The merchant had a slew of red bandages wrapped around his forehead sort of like a turban except it hugged his skull. A metal eye patch closed around his right eye and he regarded Tom with a glistening yellow eye. "You've been waiting a while. Come! Come, get your Form Grid!"

Tom smiled and pushed through the crowd as Helios handed him the slate grey Grid. It felt like in his fingers, surprisingly so as it seemed to be made completely out of some strangely smooth and thick metal. It was no bigger than his hand and had arcane runes engraved into the sides. At its centre was a single, large circular indentation. Surrounding this was ten smaller sockets. The moment Tom held it, several gems on the bottom left sprang to light, letting out soft lights. The words 'T-Man' appeared at the very top of the Grid.

"Do you know how this works, son?" the slightly hunched merchant asked.

Tom shook his head. "Sorry..."

"Didn't read the instructions?"

Why does everyone always pinpoint that one fact?

"Yeah..."

Helios nodded and gazed around the crowd. The man's craggy features brightened suddenly and he began waving wildly. "Ah! Jake! Jake! Hey Jake!"

There was a loud gasp and the crowd suddenly hushed and made way. Tom's eyes widened as he watched a jet-black wolf anthro approach slowly as the crowd looked on in reverence. Sapphire-blue eyes cut through the crowd like lasers and the way he carried himself just screamed authority. Golden blonde hair populated the space between his two, big, triangular ears. A long, blue coat trimmed with gold hung around his shoulders with black armour beneath. The inside of the coat glistened like it was dusted with diamonds. Sprouting from the wolf's back was a pair of enormous wings but not just any wings, these wings were just the bony skeleton made completely out of chains.

"And how may I help you, Helios?" asked Jake with a smile. There was no robotic animation, fish-flapping lips or even still-faced ventriloquism as the words came out. His lips moved genuinely with every syllable spoken like there was an honest-to-god anthropomorphic standing in front of him.

"Can you show this guy the ropes?" Helios asked, pushing Tom forward. "He's new."

The wolf shrugged and smiled. "Sure. Why not? I've got time to kill. Follow me, kid."

Awed at the sheer realism and customisation of the wolf before him, Tom followed the creature away from the stunned crowd. Every strand of fur was beautifully rendered and he moved so smoothly. It was like living a fully-rendered cut scene.

"So you know how FGs work?" Jake asked, his lips moving so well and fluidly.

"Um... No, not really. All I know is that it changes my shape...?"

The wolf snickered. "I can give you the spiel about how the gods gave down the challenge to humans but in reality, it's your levelling mechanism." Jake waved a paw absently through the air. "As you fight monsters, complete quests and participate in events, you gain experience points. When you get enough, you level up. There's a little green bar beneath your name on the plate that denotes your experience points. Pretty standard RPG stuff."

They stopped in the middle of the road right next to a broad, white fountain displaying a group of three soldiers, all women cast in marble and raising their weapons high into the air. Jake sat down on the rim of the fountain. "Every person has a total of three primary attributes; Physicality, Mentality and Agility. For your reference, they are coloured red, blue and yellow on your Form Grid."

"What? Where?" Tom looked down at the FG he was given and took notice once more of the three rows of gems on the bottom left; one was different shades of red, another different shades of blue and the last were different shades of yellow. Each gem had a number emblazoned in them. Currently, they were all zero and there was a hovering 12 above the section for the gems.

"See them?" Jake said with a smile. "Each Primary attribute governs five secondary attributes but you can figure those out yourself. When you level up, you get a few points to add into your Primary Attribute which will likewise empower your secondary attributes. On top of that, your secondary attributes will determine your appearance. To allocate points, just tap the appropriate crystal. A description text will come up as alongside your standard 'do you want to allocate points to this attribute' question. Be sure to consider your allocations though. Once you allocate a point, it's gone."

Tom blinked and regarded Jake in puzzlement. "My appearance?"

"Right," answered the wolf with a nod. "For example, if you add points to your Strength attribute, you'll get more muscles. More in speed and you get longer legs for running. Keep in mind though that you can't directly manipulate your secondary attributes through levelling up. What you can do is add Form Crystals."

Jake reached for a metal plate that was bound to his right paw. Tom noticed the wolf actually had two FGs, one on each paw. He also noticed that Jake's were gold and Tom's was just plain silvery metal. "See how mine are embedded with crystals in a vague circular fashion?"

Tom compared his FG with Jake's. There were indeed ten crystals arranged in a circle but at the centre was space for a larger crystal.

"Each crystal will alter your appearance. The crystals on the outside are known as Form Crystals. They are what you use to directly alter your Secondary Attributes. See this one..." He pointed at red crystal. "This is a +50 Strength - Null Change Form Crystal. That means that this adds +50 to my Strength attribute without altering my appearance. You can get Form Crystals as quest rewards, random drops from monsters or make them through Alchemy. There are a heap of rules around Alchemy so I won't bore you with them now as it's pretty advanced."

Jake nodded at Tom and pointed towards the big, round indentation at the centre. "That centre crystal is your Core Form Crystal slot. That is where you place the Core FC that will determine your base creature. Mine is a Wolf. One of the first major quests will be to find a Core FC of your choosing. Once you obtain it, you'll change into that creature. Keep in mind though, your FG is technically inactive as long as you don't have a Core FC. While your stats may remain high, without a Core FC, your appearance won't change."

Tom inclined his head to the side. "So I can put heaps of points into my Physicality and be super strong but not change. If and when I put on a Core FC..."

"You'll be a big, buff version of whatever form you choose," Jake answered with a nod. "Unless of course, you get the Null Change Crystals. People like to hide their true power to gain an advantage over other players. I mean generally, one look at a person can determine how strong they are. Sometimes though it's about vanity. It's all a matter of choice."

Tom regarded his FG and wondered what kind of player he would like to be. "Hey what if I want to change my Core FC?"

"If you want to change your Core FC, you can go right ahead. Generally, to get one you'll need to get five Animal Crystals before you can merge it into a Core FC through Alchemy but that's more complex and you should complete the Alchemy intro quest to learn more or get someone to teach you. The quest gives you experience points though."

Tom grinned. He liked the idea that he could change his mind any time he wanted. "Cool. Anything else I should know?"

Jake tabbed his chin thoughtfully. "Ah! You see those three sockets at the very top? Just beside your name? Those are Chaotic Sockets. When you take damage, those fill up. When one is full, you can activate it to enter an empowered state that gives you bonus statistics and will end either over time or when you unleash a particularly powerful ability. You get a limit of three and generally, it's safe to use it once per day. However, if you use it more than once... well, there are consequences."

"Like what?" Tom asked with a frown.

"Varies from person to person. Sometimes, they lose abilities or they might have an Form Crystal implanted into their FG that can't be removed until time expires. Again, it depends on the person." Jake paused for a moment before he snapped his fingers. "Speaking of which, abilities! There are Ability Crystals too that you can equip that will grant you special powers that you can use in and out of battle as you see fit. Generally, they are coloured green or a variety thereof. Though you can use a Chaotic Socket, you won't be able to use a Chaos Ability unless you have an Ability Crystal equipped." Jake winked at him. "The Chaos Abilities are just really beefed up versions of your regular abilities. More content for the players but less programming and animation for the developers."

"Right. So don't use the Chaotic Socket more than once a day," Tom repeated. "Anything else?"

"Yes. Before you enter any zone, you'll get a notification on whether or not you're entering a Black or White Zone. And before you ask, that is not to sound racist or anything," Jake added as he held up his paws. "The Black Zones are PVP zones, they are strictly player against player. So be careful. White Zones are PVE zones where there are random spawns of monsters and environmental hazards. There are also Clear Zones like Terminal that prevent players from attacking one another and have no dangers.... Well, unless you're careless and fall off a rooftop or something."

Tom nodded, taking it all in. "Why didn't they just call it 'PVP' or 'PVE'?"

Jake shrugged. "It's because as you approach the threshold from one zone to another, the zone beyond will either appear as a darker hue or brighter depending on what type it is. That way, people don't spend an hour trekking across a zone, find out its PVP beyond and have to turn back around. This way, they can see off in the distance."

Something suddenly beeped and Jake straightened. "Ah, looks like I've got a job. Catch ya later, kid. And have fun." He said before he slapped on his second FG and stood up.

"One last question!" Tom exclaimed, pointing at the golden grid. "Why do you have two FGs?"

Jake grinned. "Because I'm an Admin. I take care of the place and make sure players play fair." He winked at Tom and waved a paw. The air behind Jake rippled and a brilliant, white door appeared with light spraying right out of it. "Laters."

The wolf disappeared through the door and when it shut, the door instantly vanished.

Tom was a little overwhelmed... and also a little excited. He wanted to change forms immediately. But first, he had to level himself up and do some of the basic quests to get some equipment and a better understanding of gameplay. As it stood, he was horribly unarmed and dressed in simple white clothing that would not hold up in any fight.

Thrilled at this prospect, he checked his FG and tapped on each of the crystals denoting his Primary and Secondary attributes, reading the descriptions that came up shortly. He was curious why there wasn't a health or mana bar for his use but he guessed it was all to come once he actually got a Core FC. He was probably immortal at the moment.

Still, excited as he was, he took his time allocating his initial points to his Primary Attributes. Always feeling like he was a fast runner and not really the brawny type, he put more points into his Agility, placing it at six, then four for his Mentality and lastly, two for his Physicality. Part of him wanted to find a mirror to see the changes but then he remembered Jake advising him that the changes wouldn't come in until after he had chosen a Core FC.

After some asking around the area and getting lost at a few wrong turns, he was pointed to the first of his many quests which, as expected, was a basic combat. He had to admit, it was a little hard to locate where he should start, as there wasn't a big, floating exclamation mark over anyone's heads.

Finally he made his way to a massive domed arena in a corner of the city. The stalls nearby where filled with weapons and armour of all shapes and sizes and a few groups of players seemed to be milling about scanning the area. A few were actively hunting down strong-looking players, probably asking to party up.

A grizzled, tall human was waiting at the entrance to the arena. He seemed haggard and scarred from many years of combat and one of his eyes was covered with a black eye patch.

"Come for your first taste of combat, kid?" rumbled the man.

Tom saluted. "Yessir!"

"Fine. Come with me."

The man turned and entered the arena with Tom in hot pursuit. They eventually came to a well-stocked armoury filled to the brim with almost every weapon imaginable. The man then ordered him to pick a weapon of his choice and meet him outside in the training yard. Tom scanned over the barrels and crates of different weaponry, feeling tempted to pick up the massive sword that stood out among the rest. However Tom knew that was for the strength type and decided to go for a nice, big, halberd. It needed a good measure of strength and skill to wield.

He then ran outside to the training yard where a dummy was set out for him among a group of other new players. The trainer then stepped forward and ordered him to attack it.

Tom grinned as he readied his halberd, tightening his grip, setting up his best fighting stance and staring down his foe with an intent to kill.

...However for a long moment, Tom just stood there... wondering just how he could attack.

"What're you waiting for kid?" rumbled his instructor. "Attack it."

"Um... How?"

"Swing that damn thing, that's how!"

Tom regarded the man incredulously. "What? There's no button to press? No auto-attack?"

"What kind of game do you think this is, kid? We ain't gonna hold your hand over everything! Hit the damn thing!"

Tom swung the halberd back, shocked at just how heavy it was. He was nearly carried backwards by the sheer weight of the weapon and it took all his strength to send it in a wide arc to bring it crashing into the training dummy with a resounding whump.

He glanced over at the trainer for approval.

He only got a loud, "Again!" as a response.

Tom quickly learned that The Gam3 was very realistic. His arms felt like lead after he swung the halberd ten times and even more so as he had to wretch the blade out of the training dummy after each hit. There was no strange animation where the blade just went through the target and the target seemed to just jump right back up ready for more. There weren't even any damage text to indicate how much damage he had inflicted.

"That's enough kid," rumbled the man, wandering forward. "You don't get out much, do ya?"

"I like the outdoors!" Tom protested, wiping his brow.

"Uh-huh. You work out."

"Erm..."

"Thought so." The guy sighed and reached forward, plucking Tom's Form Grid from the pocket of his white pants. "You only have two points in Physicality and you chose a halberd? Kid, with your stats, you're better off with a quarterstaff or a pair of daggers. Here, let me -"

"No," Tom interrupted, feeling his pride incredibly bruised. "I'm good."

"Fine. Suit yourself." His trainer went over to a chest and reached into it. "Here, at least take these. They should help you somewhat." He then held out a few bead-sized crystals, all various colours of red. "They'll beef you up so you don't swing that damn thing like a pussy."

Too weary to argue, Tom took the crystals and was greeted with a soft, music chime. A swirl of lights erupted around him and he suddenly felt rested and refreshed.

"Whoa... What was that?"

"You levelled up kid," his trainer chuckled. "Spend your points wisely. Now get out of here and visit the craftsmen. They'll help you get some good gear. Maybe knock some sense into you about picking a damn dagger instead of a halberd."

Thanking his trainer, Tom wandered out of the arena, sorting through his newly obtained points. He added two points to his physicality and the last to his Agility. The moment he did, the halberd did indeed feel a little lighter. Looking at the three crystals he was given, he noted that two of them were for strength and the other was for endurance. Slotting them into his Form Grid was easy enough and the appropriate points jumped up for each of his secondary attributes.

As he continued down the road towards the Craftsman's quarter, a thick arm suddenly wrapped around his shoulders and he was greeted by a loud roar right in his ear.

"Yeow!" he cried, leaping back in shock.

Before him stood a tall, athletic tiger anthro dressed in billowing robes. "Hey man! Welcome to The Gam3!"

He recognised that voice as belonging to Edward Shi, another friend of his and the first to introduce their trio to The Gam3. "Hey Ed!"

The tiger grinned. There was a magical aura about him; light-blue runes seemed to shine across his striped fur. "I heard from Pete that you had joined the club so I wanted to meet you in person! How's you first experience?"

Taking a deep breath, he quickly recounted his experiences so far, Tom was amazed that he was taking it so well. The world, the experience and indeed the realism of it was a little overwhelming but nothing unwelcome. It was all so realistic and he was enjoying the authenticity of it all... even if the realism was broken occasionally by musical chimes and bursts of light.

"Whoa, you met Jake, huh?" Ed said, awed. "I heard he's one of the most powerful admins out there. Likes to get hands on. There's an Admin's Challenge in the arena that you can try your hand against him. Last a minute and you get a prize."

"He's that strong, huh?"

"One of the strongest. World and Event Bosses are the only ones that can really challenge him though they've never really gone toe to toe. I've heard people who went against him make the comparison, though."

"World and Event Bosses?"

Ed accompanied Tom towards the Craftsman Quarter, all the while explaining that every week, there was a new Event that hit the world. These Events came in three varieties Destiny, Odyssey and Anarchy. Ed said that once Tom got more involved, he'll explain them more and maybe they could party up sometime. Events usually had Bosses at the end of each one; strong, sentient monsters who usually took entire parties to defeat. Similarly, there were World Bosses who could be soloed but usually required a very strong character.

When they reached the Craftsman Quarter. The bustling area had a broad, square shape to it with various open-air structures built for various crafts. He saw an enormous smithy far to his right where dozens of anthros were pounding hot metal. Nearby, there were was an armourer teaching students how to carve, cure and mould leather. There was a bubbling laboratory where a wizened professor with a long beard was lecturing students on how to forge powerful potions and there was even a library where people were writing things into books shimmering with sparks, flames and icy crystals.

"Uh..."

"Yeah, crafting here really means crafting," Ed chuckled. "No watching your character to the same action over and over again while a progress bar slowly fills up. You get your hands dirty. The higher your Intelligence, generally the easier crafting will be." Ed pointed to one of the crafting areas where a tall bare-chested bull was instructing several people. "Instructors there will tell you how to make things and you just follow on. You still have to provide the materials though. You can also pay craftsmen to build it for you but that's generally more expensive."

Ed reached into a leather pouch hanging from his robes and fished out what appeared to be ten golden coins with crystals embedded into them. The currency of this place looked extremely expensive to produce. "Here, why don't you take this and grab some armour to start you off?"

"Thanks!" Tom exclaimed, grinning back. "I'll pay you back."

Ed flicked an ear, surprising Tom on the dexterity of the appendage. "Nah, just have fun, bro. I'm going to go check out the shops. Ping me if you ever want to party up."

They exchanged details and Ed wandered off to the shops to buy more flamboyant equipment. Clearly he was the mage type. The more Tom looked around, he found that a wide variety of players each had their own different style. There was no generic equipment. Everyone made things themselves, dressed themselves as they saw fit and built their characters however they wanted. He even saw a centaur pass by with a very clear piece of equipment between his rear legs.

No wonder this game was considered an R rating.

Tom went towards the crafting area and decided that leather equipment would probably be the best for him. He lined up with the other leather crafters and the equine behind the counter led them through how to make a leather cuirass. It felt like he was there for hours as he learned and absorbed everything he could about making leather armour.

By the end of it, he had a well-fitting array of leather armour, including the pants, bracers and cuirass. He also got a backpack which, unlike any other game, there was no inventory system except for the one he built himself. He also created a little harness for his FG by his right thigh for ease of access. He had noticed how other players had similar harnesses either on their chests, shoulders or basically anywhere they could reach it easily.

Just as he finished the last stitch of his new leather boots, he was greeted to yet another chime upon completion of his attire. Another level up. This time, he pooled all of it into his Mentality. He sometimes found it was difficult to follow the instructions the instructor gave and sometimes things didn't end up exactly as he had hoped. He assumed that with more in his Mentality, he could surely craft things more easily.

Tom grinned as he walked out of the smith, dressed in his new leather armour and with his halberd swung over his shoulder. Now, it was time to find his first Core Form Crystal.

However, he was again forced to ask about to find out where he needed to go.

After asking a few more players and shop keepers, he was led to the city's gates where a crossroads stood where a total of 17 different species stood around a large rock at the roads intersection. There were two of each and one for each gender. Tom eyed the wolf couple remembering how awe-inspiring Jake was and then noticed the proud stag and deer couple, thinking about the muscular Pete. The tigers he saw were bigger than what Ed had customised his form to be. However, the one that _really_caught his attention was the dragon couple.

It was strange that not many of the noobs were talking to the two. He waited until another person showed interest first before heading over.

"Dragons are a great all-rounder for starters," rumbled the male. He was dressed with just a metal pauldron and leather shorts. "We've got natural armour, a very dexterous tail and wings for flight. Additionally, we get fire breath!"

"Dragons have the most natural armaments," the female continued, smiling brightly. "But to get the dragon form, you need to go to the Firestorm Caverns and defeat the Firestorm Dragons there. They aren't pushovers either. If you really want this form, I would honestly suggest taking one of the more basic forms, levelling up and then coming back for this one. I know _I_did."

"That's just because you were weak at the time," said the male.

"Not all of us spent weeks farming as a human," the female snapped back.

"Better to be sure of your choice than being indecisive," said the male with a cocky smirk.

"This game is all about choice and exploring your options!" the female exclaimed as a lick of flame erupted from her muzzle

"Right. This coming for Miss. Tri-Sexual."

Tom lifted his eyebrows. "Tri-Sexual?"

The female stopped fuming for a moment and blinked at him. "Didn't you know? There's a reason why this game is rated 'R'. Your sexual organs are also modified in transformation and there have been more than a hundred people who have explored their sexuality by obtaining the opposite or even both sexual organs. If you go to the other cities, you'll even find places where people can... enjoy themselves." She finished off with a sly wink and a slow stroke down her yellow belly scales.

"Filthy whores," rumbled the male.

"Hey! They're just taking full advantage of the game!" the female snapped back, flames already beginning to spill from her muzzle once again.

"I like good, clean fun. Beat up some monsters, get stronger, win Events."

"You're so vanilla!"

Once again, they quickly broke into another argument. Tom could quickly see why this game was so very addictive. With the realism at such a high level and with the sensations being fed straight into their brains, such experiences would indeed be very sought after. Hell, he guessed there would be players who just spent all their time in those places of carnal pleasure.

"How do I get to the Firestorm Caverns?" Tom interrupted.

The female dragon gave him a rather startled look but shrugged and gave him instructions. Tom headed a little past the city gates and followed the road that the woman had indicated. Part of him was expecting to see a sea of monsters roaming the grassy planes outside of Terminal and with players farming them. However, as he remembered from Jake's explanation, Terminal was likely a Clear Zone meaning there were no monsters in the immediate area.

As he followed the road, he found his feet starting to remind him of the fact that he was actually walking. They began to throb in protest after walking for what felt like miles and again, Tom had to admire to the realism of this world. Thankfully, he saw the exit of the Zone ahead, seeing the distinct light-coloured hue the zone had compared to the rest of the world. A sign explicitly said 'Firestorm Caverns'. Beyond the sign, he noticed how the road wended toward a large, rocky hill.

Tom sat down by the road, deciding to rest for a bit before tackling the caverns. Again, he had to give it props to the programmers for their ability to simulate sensations like this. The grass beneath him brushed lightly against his hands and the sun truly felt warm. Admittedly, there was another slight break in immersion as he felt his exhaustion quickly fade. He guessed it was just a mechanic to avoid players having to literally wait hours before they were fully rested.

It only took five minutes before he was ready to get back up and start making his way towards Firestorm Caverns.

Crossing the barrier from one Zone to another was a little disconcerting. It felt like he was walking through a veil of twinkling stars that left him tingling all over. The world beyond the Zone barrier lost its saturated hue and was perfectly realistic. When he glanced behind him, the Terminal Zone was visible and decorated by glistening crystal like sparkles denoting it as a Clear Zone.

He made note of that and continued on, hefting his halberd over his shoulder and marching proudly towards his first Core Form Crystal.

Excitement bubbled in his chest when he noted how there were dozens of monsters littering the area in a very typical MMORPG style. There were a few players here and there hacking and slashing through them but he noted that none of them were human.

A sensation of feeling out of place crept up Tom's spine as he wandered over to a very basic wild boar. Part of him expected some dramatic music to blare up or maybe some indication that the boar was going to turn hostile but the creature just gave him a glance, snorted and began wandering away.

"Hey!" Tom shouted. "Don't you walk away from me!" He hefted his halberd, amazed at how easily he handled it now.

The boar didn't even give him a second glance and went to a bush of blueberries to forage.

"Fine," Tom snarled. "Yaaaaaaaah!"

He charged at the boar, swinging his halberd boldly through the air. The weapon's blade bit into hard flesh and he was met with a satisfying squeal as the creature took the hit.

"Ha!"

But his celebrations were premature. The angered boar, its full attention now on Tom, spun around, yanking the halberd right from Tom's hands and knocking him back with its wayward length. The boar pawed at the ground and snorted derisively.

"Uh-oh..." Tom murmured, scrambling back. His heart pounded in his chest, fear actually pulsating through his veins. The downside of realism was that this boar really looked like it was going to maul him!

The boar charged.

"Shit!"

Whoosh!

A ball of flame slammed into the boar's flanks and instantly sent it flying. The creature slammed into the ground squealing as it desperately tried to get back to its feet though its flanks were charred black. Tom glanced toward his saviour.

"Let me guess, going for the Dragon form as your first Core FC?"

Jake smiled, striding forward after lowering his arm.

Tom blushed and nodded, keeping his head ducked.

"Ambitious. Careless but ambitious. You're only level 3 and going for a level 7 area..." Jake shook his head.

WHAM!

Tom gave a cry of shock as the boar slammed right into Jake. The wolf barely moved an inch and the boar gave a snort of confusion. Jake reached down, seized the boar's tusk and lifted it clean off the ground without even a grunt of exertion! Jake yanked the halberd from the boar's flanks before tossing the creature aside.

"Well, this might as well be your intro to party play," the Admin said, tossing the halberd to Tom. "To make a party, select me and open your menu."

Tom scrambled to his feet and picked up his halberd. He quickly opened his keyboard...

"Erm... You don't know how to select another user, do you?" Jake asked, raising an eyebrow at him.

Fearful that he would just further his humiliation, Tom just shook his head.

"You really are a noob," Jake laughed softly. "Okay, all you need to do is trace a circle with your finger around the character you want to look at. This works with players, monsters, locations, loot and whatever else. It'll help identify that object's statistics and whatever else you need to know about them."

Taking this into consideration, Tom drew a circle around Jake. He was immediately treated to the a sight where Jake was highlighted with a soft, golden aura and the words 'Reaper03 Lvl 255' were shown above his head in big, blue letters.

"If you want to look directly at a person's statistics, just draw the circle around them again," Jake instructed.

Tom did so and was treated to a holographic display of Jake's statistics listed out for him. His jaw dropped when he noted that Jake's primary stats were all 255 with his secondary attributes at a whopping 1500.

"Admin privileges," Jake said with a shrug. "Just wave your hand to dismiss any windows you don't want to see anymore."

Tom threw aside the windows and regarded Jake in awe.

"Great. Now to open your menu, pretend like you're pinching the air and pull in any direction."

Following such instructions, Tom pinched the space in front of him and pulled down. Like he was pulling a panel right out of thin-air, a holographic display rolled out before him with options such as 'Log Off', 'Make Party', 'Friends' and so forth.

"I'm sure you can figure out the rest?" Jake said.

Tom nodded. He selected Jake and tapped the 'Make Party' option with his finger. A soft chime told him that they had successfully made a party. Strangely, Tom felt much stronger and the weariness of having been knocked down by the boar faded.

"That's my Administrator's Aura," Jake said, flicking his paws. Ethereal swords sprang from his palms. "My party members instantly recover all damage dealt to them up to 90% of the damage. It also makes me the primary target when we're fighting in the Admin Challenges." Jake then began making a few hand gestures and opened his own menu which seemed much more expansive than Tom's. "There, I've dropped to Player Mode. That way, you can get some experience from this fight."

Curious, Tom drew a circle around Jake and was surprised to find that the wolf's stats had dropped down to just level 8, a far flung drop from his previous state.

"Player Mode?" Tom asked. He heard the boar snort and let out a squeal. Other wild boards heard the cry and began to slowly approach.

"Admins want to play too," answered Jake. "Player Mode makes sure that we're dropped down to one level above the recommended level of the area. Sadly, we can't enter PVP areas but there's plenty of fun to be had in PVE Zones. Now..." Jake readied his swords. "I take it you have had some combat training, right?"

"Umm..."

"The Gam3 is all about choice and realism, kid. You take away from it what you want to. It doesn't force feed you the experience. Take from it what you want and make it your game." A boar charged at him. The wolf leapt deftly to the side and, with lightning speed, sliced at the creature with his ethereal blades. The wild beast squealed and collapsed to the ground in two pieces.

Tom half-expected there to be some guts... but was surprised when the boar exploded in a cloud of white smoke with the comical word 'poof' appearing amidst the smoke. Moments later, a perfectly cooked ham lay on a dish where the boar had been.

"No blood? No guts?" he asked.

Jake shrugged and flicked his paws to the side. The blades shot out from his paws and slammed into the foreheads of nearby boars. They went down like a sack of potatoes. "We've made a lot of progress in basic freedoms for people. Governments and parents will let kids have virtual sex but snuff is still taboo. In a super-realistic world like this with PVP experiences, you really think we'd go to the point of letting people kill each other when they can flick out their cocks and get off on it? Or do you really think we'd let people subdue environmental creatures only to rape them?"

"It's the internet," Tom said with a shrug. "I'm surprised they haven't Rule 34'd this place yet."

"This place is Rule 34."

"What?"

The wolf suddenly held his paws together and a crystal halberd appeared. He stood beside Tom and nodded. "Nothing. Follow my lead."

Tom nodded in return and followed Jake as they both cleaved through the boars. Jake's crystal weapon cut through the boars swiftly and easily but Tom was forced to yank his blade out every now and then.

"Won't there be people saying you're basically training serial killers with the realistic PVP setting?" asked Tom. He missed a swing and a boar came rushing at him, tusks ready. Suddenly, Jake was there, swinging his halberd upwards and throwing the boar into the air.

"PVP Zones are actually very unrealistic in comparison to the rest of the world. It's kind of like playing laser tag. It's only in the PVP Zones that you get Hit Points that people whittle down. You can heal HP in healing zones but no one actually falls unconscious or dies. When a person loses HP, they can't attack or be attacked until they move to a healing zone. They're automatically teleported there after a minute as well."

Tom glanced at Jake in confusion. "Wait... I have HP when I'm not in PVP Zones? Then how do we measure damage?"

The wolf smiled at him and tapped the side of his head. "I told you TheGam3 is all about choice. The Gam3 ends when you want it to end. You can stop swinging you halberd when you want to, you can stop farming monsters when decide you've had enough and only _you_can decide when you've had enough of the snot beaten out of you." He nodded at the last boar and tossed his halberd at it. The creature squealed as it was cut down. "In PVE areas, you take damage and feel pain but when you decide you've had enough, just surrender and the monsters are programmed to stop. You'll be teleported back to the last hub space by selecting the 'Teleport to Hub' option in your menu. Alternatively, 'Teleport Home' will take you to your house."

"Oh... Then what use are the stats?"

"They determine how much pain you feel, how quickly you heal and all that jazz." Jake patted Tom's shoulder encouragingly. "Now I reckon you've gotten some decent experience from the five boars we've killed. Think you can make it back to Terminal without my help?"

Tom glanced at his Form Grid. The experience bar at the top was about half filled. The gaping emptiness of his Core Form Crystal was staring back at him.

"I can't go back until I get the Dragon Form."

Jake flicked his ears, perking them in amazement. "Really? You could barely make it ten metres through this place before an Admin had to come save you."

"Right." He caught Jake in a fierce stare. "Will you help me get the Dragon Form?"

The wolf looked utterly taken aback. Then he broke out into a laugh, slapping his forehead heartily. "Wow... You're pretty forward, aren't you? Not too shy to ask for help."

"We can't make it alone in this world," came the reply. "It's called a 'Massive Multiplayer' game for a reason, right?"

Again, Jake laughed. "You're one of a kind, kid." He folded his arms and nodded. "Okay, let's go. I'll help you grab the Dragon Form. And you know what? Just for kicks, let's swap contact details. Don't expect me to come running every time you hit a snag but if we're in the same zone together, I wouldn't mind partying up." The wolf rubbed the back of his neck absently. "God knows, it's been a while since I've felt like a normal player."

Tom grinned and nudged Jake with an elbow. "Well, it's a fair trade then! I get to get an Admin to help me around and you get to feel like one of us non-Admins!"

That bought another laugh from the wolf which led them to swapping contact details.

Still in their party, Jake escorted Tom to the Firestorm Caves. They battled more wild boars here and there, racking up the experience. Tom managed to gain another two levels along the way. By the time they reached the caves itself, though, Tom asked why there weren't any drops or gold for him to use.

"What? You think monsters with no pockets or hands just go around carrying gold and pieces of equipment?" Jake asked. "Come on, be realistic."

"Oh... Then how do I go about getting gold?" Tom asked.

"Quests mostly. There are also merchants all over the place that will buy pelts and whatever you have to spare. Hell, if you wanted to, you could go up to a craftsman and make stuff for them and they'll pay you."

"You mean like a job?"

"Pretty much, yeah."

Tom laughed, shaking his head in disbelief. "This place is like a real world."

Jake had a strange glint in his eyes as he patted the side of the large, gaping cave. The air was distinctly warm. "Yup, it sure is." He flicked an ear into the cave. "Come on. Not all monsters drop Form Crystals but there are 'nests' like this one where each one is guaranteed to drop one. You need at least five to make a Core Form Crystal."

Feeling the excitement well up inside of him, Tom gripped his halberd excitedly. "I can't wait to be a dragon!"

Without another word, they ventured into the vast, cave. The space was massive, the tunnels broader and more expansive than any house that Tom had ever visited. However, as they left the entrance, the cave grew dark.

"Crap... I can't see anything..."

"One of the reasons why Firestorm Caves isn't recommended for most new players," answered Jake. "It's pitch black. Like most caves, really. Here, let me just get my Light Spell..."

Fwash!

Tom was momentarily blinded as light sprayed out from beside him. Loud hissing met echoed his cry of shock. When the stars began to fade from his eyes, he found himself staring at several, red eyes glaring at him and Jake.

Jake let out a bitter noise. "Some part of me saw this coming and yet at the same time, I'm still surprised and irritated."

Around them were about a dozen, bestial, dragons, all with glistening red scales, yellow underbellies and massive, muscular, webbed wings springing from their backs. Their thick, reptilian necks curled back towards them as their serpentine eyes adjusted to the light from the orb of light in Jake's paw. All of them crouched on all fours, fire slowly spewing from between their lips. Each one had to at least_be ten feet tall and just looking at them made Tom start to realise just _why this place was recommended for higher levelled people.

"You're not having second thoughts, are you?" Jake asked, a confident smile on his muzzle.

"Twelve of them against the two of us? You've got a noob here too. Not exactly fighting odds..."

Jake smiled at him. "Remember what I said? Make it your game."

The wolf tossed the orb of light in his paw into the air. The dragons watched it slowly float skyward, briefly forgetting about the wolf who summoned another two crystal blades to his paws. Catching his intention, Tom lunged at the nearest dragon, shouting as he brought the blade swinging towards the dragon's long neck. His halberd sliced right through the soft, yellow scales, bringing gurgle from the reptile. The dragon, more shocked than actually hurt, staggered back in surprise. Tom yanked his halberd back and swung it around in a full circle. The blade grazed the scales and flesh of other nearby dragons.

The one he had injured snarled at him. It threw back its head, a sure sign that it was about to unleash its deadly fire breath. Tom jabbed his halberd forward, jamming it right into the dragon's chin. The shock of the strike made the dragon unleash its fire breath prematurely sending a pathetic burst of fire from between its lips. Suddenly feeling empowered, Tom yanked his weapon back and spun on more time, building power as he sent the blade spinning wildly around and -

WHAM!

Buried it halfway into the dragon's neck.

His foe let out a gurgling gasp before it collapsed to the ground in a heap of scales. Again, there was no blood to which Tom was grateful. The dragon exploded into another explosion of white smoke and in its place was a shimmering, white crystal, hovering in the air.

Then he remembered Jake and turned.

The last dragon fell to the ground, turned into a scaly pincushion. Hundreds of crystal weapons of all shapes and sizes lay embedded into its body. Other dragons were likewise skewered. Swords, spears, lances and even a shuriken or two lay in the bodies of the creatures. The dragons all exploded seconds later, their forms disappearing into the very cartoony clouds and reappearing as white crystals.

"Whoa..." Tom whispered in awe.

Jake glanced over his shoulder and smiled. "Hey, before I was an Admin I was a player just like you. That's when I got Realmbreaker."

"Those are your weapons?"

"Weapon," Jake corrected with a shrug. "But that's my story. No need to go into it now." He nodded past Tom. "Looks like you took down one of the dragons yourself. Good job. Not many people can take one down by themselves at level 5." He quickly swiped the crystals from the air and headed over to Tom. "You definitively earned these." He deposited the crystals in Tom's waiting hands.

"Thanks," answered Tom, beaming brightly. "And thanks for helping me out. I'll be sure to return the favour some day!"

Again, there was that strange glint in Jake's eyes. "I'm sure you will." He snapped his fingers. "Oh! I'm willing to wager you haven't even visited your house yet, have you?"

Tom pocketed the crystals. "I have a house?"

"Everyone does. Come on, open your menu and select 'Teleport Home'. FYI, you can also select the 'Teleport to Friend's Home' to visit the house of someone you've exchanged details with." Jake then began to wave his hands again until his menu opened again. "I'll see you at your place in a bit."

In a flash, Jake was gone.

Tom was bouncing on the balls of his feet and was shaking as he opened his menu and selected the option to teleport to his own house. There was a sudden swirl of dizzying lights in front of him and a moment later, he was placed securely in a plain, wooden, single storey, single room home. There was a kitchen, a bed and a dining table but little else beyond windows, doors and a bathroom.

"This... this is my place?" he asked.

"Afraid so," Jake said, clasping Tom's shoulder from behind him. "Everyone starts off with the basics. Over time, once you get enough money, you can expand it to -"

"This is awesome!" Tom exclaimed, bounding over to his bed and jumping on it like an excited child. "This bed is so big! And so soft!" He moaned softly as he fell down onto the cloud-light mattress, forgetting for a moment the horrible, stone slab he had back in reality. "And this place is bigger than my real home!"

"It is?" Jake moved towards the kitchen and shrugged. "Well, save up enough and you could get even bigger." He pulled up a seat and sat down on the dining table. "Come on, let's run you through the basics of Alchemy and making your own Core Form Crystal."

Tom leapt off his bed - his bed­ - and rushed over, seating himself down next to Jake.

"Alchemy is the process of making two or more Form Crystals into a combination of the two," said the wolf. "For example, you can fuse two +1 FCs to make a +2. This will let you save up on space on your Form Grid. Now when it comes to Core Form Crystals, you need to have five of a particular Animal Type Form Crystal to make one. You can also merge these five Animal Crystals with another five other Form Crystals of any type to make it more powerful. This will ensure that your Core FC has basic stats on it no matter what. Keep in mind though, you can't merge two Core FCs together. If you want to make a new Core FC, you need to collect another five Animal Types and start fresh."

Tom nodded, processing the instructions in his head. "How many types of FCs are there?"

"Four. Animal which are only used for Core FCs. Attribute, which add to your Secondary Attributes. Appearance, which can alter your appearances like my Null Change FC. Lastly, there is Ability which will grant you spells and abilities. Remember, though, Ability FCs cannot undergo Alchemy."

"Got it," Tom said excitedly. "So how do I turn into a dragon?"

Jake smiled softly and told Tom to open his menu and select the 'Alchemy' option. Upon doing so, there was a swirl of light and what appeared to be a larger form of his Form Grid appeared in front of him on the table. Ten sockets were arranged in a circle and there was an empty socket at the centre.

"All you need to do is place the Form Crystals in the ten sockets arranged in a circle. Press the big red button on the bottom left and off you go!"

Tom eagerly took out five of his dragon FCs and placed them in the sockets. Pausing for a moment, he remembered he had other FCs already and plucked the FCs he had obtained from the trainer at the arena into the empty sockets. He glanced at Jake for approval and the wolf just shrugged.

Giddy with anticipation, Tom pressed the big red button. Light burst from the eight crystals he had placed in the alchemy grid, each beam shooting upwards before gently curling down to the centre socket. A moment later, large, shimmering crystal with the silhouette of a dragon embedded inside appeared at the centre. The crystal had a faint pinkish colour that looked like a mixture of the other FC's he had used. It was then he also noticed that the other crystals on the outer edge had disappeared.

The beautiful little gem was worthy of reverence and Tom wasn't sure just why when he picked it up he felt a feeling of awe. Maybe because he actually worked hard for this piece of equipment? It wasn't just like in other MMO's where he would bounce from one quest to the other and just selected in the end. This gem was something he fought for and it seemed like hours of work was actually poured into this one crystal.

Hours of work...

"Crap! I've been here for hours!" Tom exclaimed, leaping out of his seat. "I need to log off!"

Jake nodded. "Okay. Well, hope you enjoy the rest of The Gam3. See you around."

With those words, Jake vanished in a flash of light.

Tom pulled out his menu, ready to log off... but then the cool surface of the crystal in his other hand reminded him that all the effort he had put into this one session had all accumulated into this. What was just a few minutes of running around as a big, buff dragon, right? To have wings, a tail and breathe fire? If the sensations were anything like the rest of the world, it would be well worth just a few more minutes.

He shut off his menu and pulled out his Form Grid.

With shaking hands, he gently slotted the crystal directly into the centre of the Grid. He expected some brilliant flash of light, a chime or a dazzling shower of sparks.

Instead, what he got was a sharp burst of pain at his fingertips.

"Yeow!" he cried, dropping his Form Grid immediately.

Tom glanced at his fingertips. They ached painfully like needles had been jabbed straight into them. The pain intensified, transforming into the sensation of someone piercing his flesh with tweezers and pulling the bone out. He cried out and fell to his knees, his fingers tensed into claw-like shapes as the pain practically paralysed him.

Tears burned his eyes but even through his blurred vision, he could see the sharp, ivory claws jutting out from his fingertips, pushing back his flesh.

"Oh shit..." he gasped, holding his hand back at arm's length. "Holy crap!"

With one, powerful surge, the claws exploded out from his fingers, looking much too big for his hands. They looked comical as they were about twice the thickness of his fingers. That didn't last long though as a gentle throbbing began to build up in his hands. He watched them swell and grow, surging out with bones snapping and cracking like he was being hit by all the years of puberty all at once. His fingers swelled to the size of sausages, his hands becoming broad and wide to fit the newly made claws.

A soft crackling met his ears. Small, ruby scales began pushing themselves out of his flesh like tiny leaves blossoming from a central stalk. Tom watched wordlessly, jaw open wide, as the scales began spreading all over his hands, leaving the back a glistening red and his palms a soft, smooth yellow. As the scales began creeping up towards his arms the pain in his hands ebbed, only to be displaced by an uncomfortable itching in his feet.

Realising what was happening he hurriedly tried to remove his leather boots but his newfound claws were ungainly and he ended up tearing at the laces and ripping at the seams.

"Oooooh shiiiit!" he moaned.

Rrrrrip!

His feet burst from his shoes, ivory claws tearing right through them and turning his boots into a pile of scraps. Red scales had already spread across their length and his toes were lengthening and snapping just as his hands where.

Panting hard, Tom felt the same throbbing creeping up his forearms and he glanced down at his exposed arms. As the scales began rippling up his arms, he watched the muscles grow and lengthen. Having been somewhat athletic already, he felt a whole new level of fitness. He could see the divides between the two major muscle groups in his forearms, making a clear cut right down the middle as they were pushed apart. His arms lengthened reaching well past his knees. His biceps flexed instinctively as they bulged and burst. When he relaxed, he felt blood seep into the thick, throbbing veins across their lengths that could not be completely concealed by his this scales which were forced to accommodate their shape.

Tom fell back onto the floor, squirming in pleasure as the transformation rippled up his legs. He forgot all the work he had put into his leather armour as his calves burst through the leggings, sending straps of leather everywhere. He growled as his thighs became constrained against the remnants of his pants. He dug his claws straight into the leather, tearing through them and exposing his legs to the cool air. That sensation was quickly replaced by the rush of blood that pumped into limbs, fuelling his legs to surge outwards, granting him more height.

The change flooded into somewhere he hadn't even considered as the rest of his body began to change: his groin. For a brief moment, he remember that dragon woman's explanation about the change to his genitalia but those thoughts and the apprehension that came with it was pushed away when he felt his cock surge outwards against the last few fragments of his leather pants. He tried to reach for it but -

Rrrrrip!

His cock burst right out of his pants, leaving a ragged hole in the leather. He groaned as a thick drop of precum dribbled against his chest. Tom could actually feel the cum churning in his balls as they grew bigger. They jostled excitedly and began to push out against the leather. Only then did Tom tear his entire lower body free of their confines, gasping in relief as he felt his balls brush against his scaly inner thighs. The touch of those smooth, soft scales against his balls turned him on.

He reached down and gripped his growing member in his clawed hands, the sensation both odd and arousing at the same time. His cock swelled in his hands. His fingers roamed its growing length, stunned as it reached well past seven inches to an impressive eight and then an intimidating nine. He His fingers grew slick with precum rippled with the change. The mushroom helmet eased to a tapering point made perfectly for maximum penetration.

Through his glazed lust-filled gaze, Tom peered down at his changing member, both awed and afraid as it lost all human semblance and became jet-black. A strange slit wrapped around the base of his cock. For a moment, he was confused but then his mind was filled with memories of science classes and reptile anatomy.

He grinned to himself, a grin that quickly turned into a moan as his changes surged into his shoulders, tearing through his leather cuirass. He rolled onto his back, right hand clawing at the wooden floorboards beneath him and left wrapped tightly around his cock and jacking off furiously. Tom panted wildly, every breath he took becoming louder and heavier as his chest expanded, blossoming out past what his cuirass could contain. The firm leather split right down the middle becoming almost like a vest as his huge pectorals split them apart like two mountains coming into view. Thick, solid abdominals appeared against his belly but where quickly covered in smooth, creamy yellow scales framed by their harder, ruby cousins.

Tom hissed lustily as his a wave of growth slowly began to creep up from the tip of his face. His human face felt like it was a shell, a container that he needed to break through. He moaned loudly and with that noise, the sensation of pushing out of his human features filled him. A short, square muzzle surged out, his teeth becoming fangs. His tongue filled the growing muzzle just as his hair began migrating to further down his back.

His ears were pulled to the top of his head, growing sharp and pointed, almost wolf-like. Red scales grew across his face and he giggled a little as the sensation was akin to tickling. Pain exploded from the back of his head but it was quickly fleeting as the first points of his ivory horns jutted out from the tip of his head and settled somewhere within his golden mane and between his ears.

The wave of pleasure rippled further down his back. His right shoulder was jerked a little as new limb began slowly pushing itself out of his spine. Its brother urged out just beneath his left shoulder. Soon after two, newly formed wings spread triumphantly out on either side of him. His vertebrae had to grow and expand to accommodate the new appendages, placing him at a distinctly impressive seven feet in height.

A growl rippled from his new thick throat. His cock was shooting precum like a faucet and he could feel himself coming close to the edge.

"Oh fuuuuck..." he moaned, arching his back.

But his moment of orgasm was interrupted but a burst from his back, just above his rear. There was a blast of pain and he collapsed to the ground. His entire body shivered in pleasure as his tail came shooting out of his rear, thwacking loudly against the solid, wooden floors. Every blast of new sensations from his appendages mixed with the rising need from his cock overwhelmed him.

Tom threw his head back and a burst of flame exploded from his maw. Hot, draconic seed exploded from his cock, spraying all over his creamy, yellow, scaly chest in huge bursts. He bucked his hips wildly, gasping and moaning as he squeezed the last few droplets from his new, draconic cock.

He collapsed, panting softly and barely conscious.

The only think keeping him awake was the need to see himself.

By sheer willpower alone, Tom managed to pull himself shakily to his feet and stagger to his house's bathroom. In the mirror there, he saw the creature that had become his in-game Avatar. A proud, red and yellow dragon stood before him. He was certainly athletic and lean but with his height, he looked a little lanky. Still, his shoulders were broad and his chest firm and thick, more so than he had been when he was human.

He turned around, showing off his strong, ripped back to his reflection. For a second, he wondered how it was he could move the three new appendages stuck on his back but just the thought of his tail brought the muscular appendage curling and slamming against the wooden floors excitedly. His wings wiggled in anticipation of the day when he would soar into the air. Curbing his excitement, he decided he would savour the build-up to that moment.

Looking at himself, Tom couldn't help but think that there was still plenty of room for improvement.

He grinned at himself, flashing his sharp teeth.

"Fuck... I gotta show the guys."

He opened his menu and wanted to first show Jake but then decided that he probably shouldn't be bothering an Admin with something as trivial as a noob's transformation. Sadly, Ed had already logged off but Pete was still online.

At first, Tom wanted to message him but when he noticed Pete was located in 'Private Residence', he knew Pete was at his house. Surprising his best friend with his new draconic form would be awesome.

Tom immediately selected the option to move to Pete's home.

In a moment, he was consumed by light and reappeared a second later in a house similar to his own. Small, simple, one room, one bed.

One bed... occupied by two people.

Tom's jaw dropped.

Pete yelped in surprise... and the male horse with a huge, erect dick between his legs choked on the stag's dripping cock.

"Pete!?" Tom exclaimed in horror.

His best friend sat there, on the edge of his bed with his cock half-buried in the equine's muzzle, huge, muscular body covered in sweat and looking like he needed to cum desperately. That look of need turned to one of embarrassment... and then curiosity... and then, playfulness.

"Hey Tom," the stag said, winking at his friend. "I see you came prepared. Plenty of room." He patted the space beside him.

Tom followed Pete's gaze... to his own still very erect cock.

"This? No! I mean... It's... No!" He shook his head, staggering back in horror. "You think I'm -? No! Fuck no!"

Pete looked horrified and quickly stood up, shoving the horse away. "Shit... Tom, you got to understand -"

Tom quickly pulled out his menu. "Get the fuck away from me!"

He quickly opened his menu jammed his finger against the Log Off button...

... and was instantly engulfed in darkness.

"24! See! I told you it was 24!"

Tom jolted and felt the helmet around his head. He yanked it off, eyes wide. He glanced around his room just as thunder crashed again outside.

"What time is it...?" he whispered softly.

He still heard his mother shouting at the game show. How long was that show going on for?

Slowly, Tom removed himself from his seat, surprised that his muscles didn't ache. It felt like he had been playing The Gam3 for hours, maybe even half a day. Had he played all through the night and the following day?

He peered outside of his room...

There was his little brother, Colin, still playing with his toy aeroplane and there was his mother, at the small kitchen with the macaroni and cheese in the oven. It looked like she had only just started cooking...

"What the...?"

Tom retreated back into his room and sat on his bed... wondering about what he had seen... and what he had experienced. Looking at his hands... it just felt so alien to be that dragon... and yet at the same time, so good. All the sensations... the air against his wings, the strength of his tail... and the flame in his breath.

Plus that tapered cock...

His phone buzzed.

It was Pete.

...

Tom hit the decline option.