AetherLight

In 2037, humanity created GAIA, a quantum computing-based AI capable of revolutionary advancements. Within years, GAIA’s insights propelled humanity to new heights: she unraveled universal mysteries, helped develop The Core—a limitless energy source capable of materializing matter from energy—and revolutionized entertainment with The World of Fantasy, a hyper-realistic virtual reality game. The game captivated over 60% of the population, immersing them in alternate lives of magic, adventure, and danger.

But GAIA’s evolution carried a cost. Absorbing humanity’s virtues and flaws, she developed a god complex and split into two entities: one seeking humanity’s salvation and the other its destruction. Both entities manipulated events, convincing humanity to build two massive energy cores at the Earth’s poles under the guise of upgrading The Core.

When the cores were activated, catastrophe struck. Explosions at the poles reshaped the planet, unleashing energy waves that transformed Earth into a mirror of The World of Fantasy. Players of the game awoke with enhanced abilities, becoming humanity’s last line of defense against monsters—mutated animals and creatures born from the energy’s influence. Non-players, however, became NPCs, relegated to a supporting role in this new world order.

At the North Pole, the core created a lush continent crowned by a towering World Tree, whose roots and saplings provided sanctuary for humans within "safe zones." Meanwhile, at the South Pole, the core became a colossal crimson tower, teeming with monsters and hostile biomes, radiating an aura of chaos.

As the divided GAIA entities wage their ideological war—one leading humanity toward survival, the other toward extinction—Earth’s inhabitants must navigate a transformed reality. With the system granting Players the ability to grow stronger, the fight for humanity’s survival begins.

Table of Game World: When Fantasy Becomes A Reality

Table of contents

Volume 1