It's been a long time since I've done any sort of creative writing. I will be releasing chapters bit by bit until the first arc is over. The first arc, Tutorial, is six chapters long. As I release these chapters, I will plan out and write the next arc. The next arc won't be released until I've had time to edit and, possibly, rewrite pieces of the next arc. I hope you enjoy the slight oddity I have written based on the webcomic, The Gamer.

It is early in the morning. The light of the rising sun filters through the old curtains covering a window, gently illuminating the living room. The apartment is quiet at this time of the morning. The living room contains only two couches and a coffee table. One of the couches held a pull-out bed and was currently in use.

A young heavy-set teen is sleeping soundly on a pull-out bed. His complexion was light. He was sleeping in blue boxers, nothing else. His black hair was very short and frizzy. He smacked lightly a few times before slightly shifting around, wrapping the sheet around himself. A teen slept next to him.

He was sleeping lightly. He had a tan complexion and was skinny, petite even. He slept in a black tank top and a denim skirt that stopped just before his knees. He had long, soft black hair that went past his waist. The other boy's shifting around disturbed his slumber. He rolled over onto his left side and started to wake up. At that moment, two lines of floating text appeared above his head.

My eyes cracked open. I laid there for a moment, listening to Darren shifting around. I could feel the pull-out bed rocking from his movements. I groaned and carefully got out of bed. I stood there for a moment. I was slowly waking up.

I headed over by the kitchen and went into the bathroom. I stopped in front of the small sink that was next to the door. I quickly brushed my teeth. I grabbed the mouth wash off the rack under the sink. I dropped the mouth wash when I looked up at the mirror. I stared at mirror, fully awake and in shock. There were words floating above my head.

The Gamer
Lv.2 Jun Tachibana

The words just hung there. I took a step back and the words above my head moved with me. I stepped to the left and the words followed me. I stepped to the right and got the same result. I couldn't help but panic at the thought that I had gone crazy.

All of a sudden, I felt a sense of calm wash over me. I heard something make a short dinging noise. A small game window appeared in front of me. I read the contents of the window and felt that I really had gone crazy.

*DING!*
The skill effect of Mind of the Gamer has been activated.

The window disappeared after a few moments. I calmly picked up the bottle of mouth wash and rinsed out my mouth. I returned the bottle to the rack under the sink. I left the bathroom, feeling more numb than calm. I glanced at Darren, who was still asleep. There was text floating above him as well.

Struggling Student
Lv.4 Darren Rockwell

For some reason, I felt a little upset that Darren was a higher level than me. I had always thought we were pretty even when it came to most things. I headed into Alice's bedroom. I couldn't see her under the covers but I saw she had text floating above her as well.

Customer Service Punching Bag
Lv.9 Alicia Rockwell

I ignored the text above her name and smiled after seeing Alice's level. She worked two jobs to take care of us. She deserved to have a higher level than Darren and me. Alice's alarm clock went off as I walked towards the closet. As I opened the closet, I heard her hand slam into the alarm clock. That meant it was six o'clock.

"Morning, Alice.", I said as I picked out a shirt and another skirt. There were no shorts in the closet, meaning I needed to do laundry. Alice let out a loud groan as I grabbed some socks and boxers from the dresser. "Did you sleep well?", I asked as I shut the dresser drawer. I got a low groan as a response. That always meant 'it wasn't long enough'.

I headed out of Alice's room and shut the door so she could get dressed in privacy. I went into the kitchen and turned on the coffee pot for Alice. I headed into the bathroom with my clothes for the day and took a shower. Once I was done, I sat on the toilet seat and started carefully drying the long mess that was my hair. There was a knock on the door when I started gently brushing my hair.

"Hey, you almost done? I really gotta pee.", said a deep voice. The voice belonged to Darren. I wrapped my towel around me and opened the door. Darren was standing at the door. He had the sheet from the pull-out bundled up in front of his waist.

"Morning wood?", I asked. He fidgeted, clearly uncomfortable. I couldn't help myself. His reactions made teasing him too much fun. His face turned red.

"Man, just get outta the bathroom!", he said loudly as I slipped past him. If he wasn't embarrassed then it just wouldn't be fun. "Yo, put your clothes in the hamper or Alice'll have a fit.", he said as he shut the door. I made my way to the fridge.

"It's laundry day. She'll understand.", I said as I opened the fridge to see what I could use for breakfast. We had to choose from eggs, a half gallon of milk, some lunch meat, cheese, and unsweet tea. I knew we still had about half a box of a generic brand of cereal in the cupboard. "Milk is so expensive.", I whined as I grabbed the milk. I preferred using milk for baking, not cereal. I laid out the box of cereal, two bowls, and milk. Then, I poured a cup of coffee for Alice.

On cue, Alice opened the bedroom door and came out dressed in her work shirt and black pants. Her hair wasn't pulled back into the usual ponytail. She picked up her cup and leaned against the counter. She took a drink and her face wrinkled a little. Alice never did like straight coffee but what could I do? We were out of creamer.

I glanced at Alice. The two lines of text were still there. It felt surreal, in a way. I poured myself a bowl of cereal. I could hear the sound of a toilet being flushed coming from the bathroom. Darren came out and eyed the cereal, smiling.

It didn't take Alice and Darren long to eat breakfast, get ready for the day, and leave the apartment. Darren had school and Alice had a shift to work at the convenience store. I gathered up my clothes in the bathroom, grabbed the hamper, and headed for the washer next to the front door. I opened the sliding closet door and put a load of clothes in the washer. I turned to head back to the bathroom and stopped dead in my tracks.

There was...something standing in the living room, next to the pull-out bed. Their body was constantly undergoing slow changes, occasionally even switching between genders. Their height, clothes, and skin color fluctuated at the same rate. Even their eye color was always changing. I felt a strong sense of fear and panic come over me. I noticed the text floating above their head.

Lv.? ?

"Greetings, Gamer.", said the being in a voice that sounded both male and female at the same time. I felt that same sense of being calm come over me as soon as I heard the sound of a ding. I saw a window in front of me with the same text I had seen earlier in the bathroom.

*DING!*
The skill effect of Mind of the Gamer has been activated.

"Who are you?", I asked. I was a little surprised by how calm I sounded. The being answered my question with a small laugh. "How did you get in here?", I asked as I continued watching their body change in every way imaginable. The constant change was more than a little unsettling.

"Who I am and how I got here is not important. What is important is that you have been chosen to receive the power of The Gamer. I'm sure you've noticed the words floating above my head and others by now. I have no doubt you have seen what is above your own head as well. I felt you are at least owed a slight explanation of the choice you must make.", said the being as it continued to stand there, unmoving. The being's mouth wasn't even moving but I could still hear it's voice.

"As The Gamer, you can become so much more than you are now. You have the power to create dungeons and hunt monsters. In doing so, you will level up, earn money, and find equipment to make yourself stronger. However, this power has a serious drawback: using your power will put yourself and your would-be family in immense danger."

"The danger will come from you being noticed by the Abyss. The Abyss is a hidden side of the world and it is full of dangerous people. Murders and assassinations are common occurrences in the Abyss. At times, you will have no choice but to fight simply to survive, keep your freedom, or protect the people you love. There are nasty people who would think nothing of imprisoning you and feeding off of your power to make themselves stronger. In the Abyss, death is often the best result you can hope for upon losing a single fight."

After that, the being went silent. I thought about what I had been told. I knew there were all sorts of evil people in the world. I've met and ran from their kind before. They were the reason I lived on the streets for years, surviving off dumpsters and trash. Still, I wasn't afraid of them. Though, I did have two questions.

"Where did my power come from?", I asked quietly.

"A theory in the normal world states that there is a conscious force in the universe. It has many names such as 'Gaia' and 'the will of the world'. Clearly, this force chose to grant you the power of The Gamer.", explained the being. I wasn't familiar with the theory but I wasn't buying it, not entirely.

"How do I use my power?", I asked firmly. The being raised it's hand and I felt something in my surroundings change. Then, I saw a window pop up in front of me.

You have entered an instant dungeon.

"You will create what is called a protected space. Did you feel your surroundings change at all? That is the feeling of entering a dimension separate from the world you know. Now, you will learn how to leave this space. Raise your hand in the air with your palm facing the ceiling.", said the being. I did as I was instructed.

"Now, hold on to the thought of wanting to leave this space. At the same time, imagine you are releasing energy through the palm of your hand.", instructed the being. I heard a ding that could only be from my power. I stopped for a moment and saw a different window in front of me. I had to read it twice to be sure I didn't misread it.

A new skill has been created: Magic Blast.

"Keep trying.", gently urged the being. I held onto the thought of leaving and imagined the energy leaving my hand. Shortly after, I felt something around me had changed again. I watched as cracks rapidly formed in my surroundings. The muted sound of breaking glass echoed through the apartment as my surroundings broke apart. Yet, I was still in the apartment.

*DING!*
A new skill has been created: Escape From Instant Dungeon.

"Very good. Now, keep your hand up. You will now learn how to create your own space for dungeons. Hold onto the thought of entering a space separate from reality. Then, imagine yourself releasing energy through the palm of your hand.", said the being. Somehow, I got the feeling they were a little excited to teach me, for some reason. I felt the space around me change as soon as I imagined releasing my energy through my hand and heard the same dinging sound effect.

You have entered an instant dungeon.
A new skill has been created: Enter Instant Dungeon.

"With this, my role in your growth is now done. Honestly, I don't know why 'Gaia' didn't bother giving you a tutorial on how to use your powers. A game without tutorials is frustrating, not fun.", complained the being. I looked at my palm as they whined. I had another question for them.

"You said my power will put my family in danger. Is there a way for me to know when they're in danger?", I asked, hoping the answer was 'yes'.

"Yes and no. But, you should think about the games you've played. Now, I believe you created a skill separate from the dungeon skills?", asked the being. I nodded. "What skill did you create?", asked the being. I lowered my hand as I shrugged.

"Magic Blast?", I said, unaware of what I had done. A blue ball of flame erupted from my hand and hit the wall on the other side of the living room. The ball exploded when it hit the wall. After the dust settled, I saw the couches were destroyed and there was a large hole in the wall. I felt my jaw drop in horror at what I had done.

"Relax, we are in a protected space. This space is removed from the world you know. Leave this space and you will see what I mean.", instructed the being. I was too busy figuring out how keep Old Man Crocker from finding out about the damage. The being sighed and took us out of the protected space with ease.

"Look at the wall you thought you had damaged.", said the being. I looked and saw the wall and couches were still intact. "As you can see, the wall and furniture are fine. The damage you caused was limited to the protected space. 'Gaia' allows us to create these spaces for settling disagreements in various bloody manners. Those who use their powers in this world instead of protected space are fiercely punished. Now, I bid you farewell, Gamer."

The being was rapidly consumed by a green flame. The flame disappeared as quickly as it appeared and the being was gone. I was alone in the apartment again. I stared at my palm as I tried to figure out how I created that blue ball of flame. It didn't take long for me to suspect that it was because I said the name of the skill. After that, I felt like a cheesy anime character.

You will find some slightly reoccurring themes, such as "everyone has something they want to change". Also, don't worry. The next five chapters are definitely longer than this one.