~~~(POV: Justin Xander)~~~
~~~(Location: Inn Bar, Geonia City, Aeternitatem Genesis)~~~
~~~(Day, Date, Time: Saturday, April 13th, 7:39 PM PST)~~~
~~~(Current Age: 19 Years)~~~
Players all around the Inn's tables and bar stands are talking to each other. Discussing activities they've done today. My eyes turn away from the nearest group of friends, and my attention falls on my reflection in the mirror behind the bar's drinks.
I'm only able to see parts of myself. My blue eyes lock onto themselves, and thoughts of the last two days enter my head.
Aside from my Mythical class and the newly crafted weapon I have. The only thing I can think about is the Bloodline Reflection I did at the Church of Darina. I wasn't expecting to see or experience anything from that.
Instead, I was shown a scene I would've never thought possible. It was like looking into a mirror. The only difference was the person I was looking at had white hair and angel wings.
The nun I spoke to at that time said no matter who someone is or where they come from. They have ancestors they can find through the Bloodline Reflection. She never said that the ancestors we see are from AG.
At the time, I didn't pay attention to what she was saying. But now that I'm thinking about it, it poses more questions. Is the Bloodline Reflection for players a scenario created by the game's AI? That's the only rational answer I can think of with what I know.
I didn't have my class at the time of the Bloodline Reflection. However, getting my class was only achievable through Bloodline Reflection.
Maybe it's a scenario posed for the class itself, and whoever has it is substituted as the person you see. But that theory in itself has holes in it. Since I got the class a little after I arrived in AG with the rest of the players.
It's not like I did a secret quest or beat a hidden dungeon for this class. I was given a simple two-step quest to unlock an unbelievably powerful class. The whole quest centered around looking into Bloodline Reflection.
Looking at my supposed ancestors. Still, it was not confirmed if they are ancestors specifically in AG. Even more confusing, how would a video game know any actual ancestors you have? The entire process of how I came into possession of my class doesn't make sense.
I want to believe that the AI in control and game designers are just brilliant in what they've created. It's not like games in the past haven't had quests and moments like the one I experienced in them.
But when I felt that power enter me... When the copy of me shoved his hand into my chest... It was a feeling I've never experienced in my life. Not in a VRMMORPG I've played before.
After a few moments of silence in my head, a small sigh escapes my lips as I lean against the bar counter. Looking at my reflection in the mirror across from me again. The truth is I can't do anything about what I saw and felt.
Not yet.
I know nothing about this game besides what I've learned in the past two days. Maybe it's just AG being a game that creates and provides quests and scenarios you've never seen before.
"Can I get ya anythin', kid?"
My eyes shift from my reflection to the man tending to the bar. While you can drink and eat in VRMMORPGs, it's not like it'll actually feed you. I've been watching players chug down alcohol in here, and they're unaffected.
The same goes for the food. While the taste and feeling of the food are genuine, they do nothing other than that.
"Not in terms of food or drink. But if you've got any rooms available, I'll take one."
The male bartender in his late 30s smiles and pulls a room key from under the bar counter. Sliding it across the table in my direction. I catch it with no problems.
"It's 15 Copper a night."
Instead of answering, the amount due for payment is immediately pulled out from my inventory by the system. Leaving me with 6 Bronze and 26 Copper. I go upstairs and enter the room I've rented for the night.
After I'm done playing tomorrow, I'll log out for the night. My real body needs solid food in it, and going more than three days in a row without eating solid food isn't a healthy habit. The gaming pods have IVs and nutrient bags, but those only last so long.
I'll have to replace them when I get off tomorrow night.
While it's not late in the game, and players are still grinding, I'm exhausted from the amount of time I spent crafting (Monument of Sin.) I don't know how long I'll be in Geonia or its surroundings, but this place will be home until I'm ready to leave.
I'm likely over-leveled for any of the quests around here. But that's something I have to figure out, too. Do quests adjust to your level when you first acquire them, or are they at a predetermined level that doesn't change?
So much still to learn. When I get off tomorrow night, I'll spend some time on the game's forums searching for answers to any questions I've got. If someone's found the answers out, it'll save me time researching on my own.
My body bounces up and down as I land on the bed. Eventually, coming to a rest. My eyes feel heavy, and they slowly begin closing.
Soon, darkness encompasses me as I fall into a calm slumber.
~~~(POV: Darren Fulwhitter)~~~
~~~(Location: Fulwhitter's Blacksmith, Geonia City, Aeternitatem Genesis)~~~
~~~(Day, Date, Time: Saturday, April 13th, 9:21 PM PST)~~~
~~~(Age: 43 Years)~~~
Slam!!
Slam!!
CRACK!!
---[You've failed.]---
"GODS DAMN IT ALL!!!"
All I can do is grit my teeth and kick away the broken metal now littering the ground. My jaw creaks and cracks in my ears. I stand up from my chair and glimpse myself in the mirror. My face is flushed red, and veins around my temple and neck pop up.
I turn away from the mirror and walk to the already-prepared metal waiting in a barrel. I grab the end of one and lift it out. Walking back over to the forge and shoving it in.
Taking a seat back on the chair. My rage and frustration take a moment to subside. Since it'll take a few minutes to get the metal to the temperature I want, all I can do is think about what I saw today.
Never in my life have I seen an Ancient grade weapon being crafted. Not only that, Zaediel crafted a weapon that I've never even been close to crafting my entire life. I've been blacksmithing since I was 13 years old.
I've been doing this for 30 years.
A kid I've never met or seen before walks into my shop and asks if he can try out blacksmithing since he unlocked a skill for it and then creates a weapon with a grade that'll drive Kingdoms to war.
"Who the hell are you..."
Watching such a feat done in my own smithing shop has damaged my pride considerably. The best grade I've been able to produce for a creation of mine is Rare. I know it wasn't luck that caused him to make such an item.
No matter what he says to hide the truth, it's evident to a person who witnesses what I did that Zaediel is something special.
He was crafting the item far above a beginner level and surpassed me and anyone I know in the blacksmithing community.
On his first fucking try!
My blood boils as the moments replay in my head again. Seeing that it's possible has motivated me. Seeing someone so much younger and inexperienced than me making something I've only done in my dreams inspires me.
And at the same time, it pisses me off.
I swear if he doesn't come back here so I can see it again, I'm gonna lose my mind.
My attention turns to the metal in the forge. It's reached the needed temperature. I pull the metal out with tongs and place it on the anvil.
Slam!!
Slam!!
~~~(POV: Justin Xander)~~~
~~~(Location: Inn Bedroom, Geonia City, Aeternitatem Genesis)~~~
~~~(Day, Date, Time: Sunday, April 14th, 6:45 AM PST)~~~
~~~(Current Age: 19 Years)~~~
As the rising sun on Geonia City breaks through the window of my room, it forces me to wake up at a time I'd rather not. I lean up in the bed and stretch my arms. I look over at the window and see the sunrise over the walls.
I stand up from the bed and adjust my back. After a few moments of stretching some more, (Monument of Sin) is equipped as I open my inventory and place the weapon in the little weapons tab next to my miniature character.
The weapon appears on my left waist in its sheath.
"A new day, another adventure."
Today marks my third day in AG.