Hello to you all, dear readers. Welcome to a new and original fanfiction! Well truth to be told, the original idea in this fanfic has been inspired by an anime called "Sword Art Online" but the whole content and supplementary ideas are totally mine. Please review, comment and subscribe (There are some elements that I do not own and will never own so you'll know by yourself). Thanks for all your support and I hope you enjoy reading:
A Time for Heros: Utopia
by LE_MALEM
"Speech": Normal Speech
"Thought": Thought
"Speech": Admin's Voice
The 21st Century is full of marvels, full of changes all over the world. Every single person didn't expect this monumental event to happen but it happened. Nobody believed that all the video gaming companies such as Nintendo, Ubisoft, Gameforge,... and many other famous and well-known companies will unite themselves in a big project, the biggest that humanity has ever faced. They thought that the trailer in Youtube was a fake, a scam, a sham but when they saw the game's release in front of them in the video games shop, Hell on earth broke loose. People were trying to snatch the virtual helmet from the shops! Gamers, gamereplayers and even otakus were fighting to get the game that "will make their life look real" according to the slogan since it puts the gamer in the heart of the game itself. The fact that many people wanted it made it impossible for everyone to get it because it was limited to one hundred-thousand copies all around the world so not everyone had the privilege to play such a revolutionary game. The name of the game itself sounds like a paradox in the ears of people and how can such a simple name might attract this many? The name was "Utopia", as simple as that. But little we knew about the game and little we knew that we were going to face the unpredictable, the unknown.
?'s POV
A well-known gamer was installing the legendary game onto his PC. The game didn't need a DVD or some sort of stuff that can break easily. It just needed the helmet to be plugged in and the PC to access the data while playing. This gamer was too excited because as soon as the game finished installing, he put his glasses in his pocket and put the helmet on his head. Everything was tactile so he input his information and made the character. It's then that he saw a screen telling him:
"Would you like to record your real-life experience via Youtube Livestream and share it all over the world?"
"Yes" "No"
The gamer was in absolute delight as he selected "Yes". Now he could see his entourage, himself and other people. He started talking:
"Alright folks! This is ..."
?'s POV
Another well-known gamer did the same thing:
"Hello and welcome back to the gamereplay! I'm ..."
?'s POV
And another well-known gamer bought the game and did the same steps:
"Howdy guys! ..."
?'s POVs (I am going to simply put well-known gamers I know so no need to repeat this again and again)
"Hey everybody, it's ..."
"Hello and welcome to my playthrough..."
"Hello guys, ... here and with me is..."
"..."
Who could have thought that such famous gamereplayers were into it! I mean it's not like most of them to play that kind of game! But my luck was insane as I was the most unpredictable person to have access to the game. How should I start this?
Personal POV, Tunisia
Tunisia is a 3rd world country that can be found in the extreme north of Africa. I was watching the trailer of "Utopia". A mix of anger, envy and jealousy was right now inside of me. I couldn't take it.
"Why it's always 1st and 2nd world countries that have everything? Why should I live playing hacked games all my life? All this because of the damn international credit card policy that our government has."* I shouted at my PC loudly, as if somebody will hear me, but as expected nobody would hear me as my parents left the house for a big trip to Saudi Arabia. I sighed heavily.
My name is not that important but I can say that I'm a 21 years-old university student. Normal looking, a little fat for sitting too much behind the PC, bags were all around my eyes from looking too much at the PC so anything that I say is related to the PC because my life has been in a PC since I was 3. I went to the kitchen, took a one and a half liter coke and some biscuits and started eating. I finished everything, put the plate into the sink, the empty bottle into the trash bin. When suddenly I heard a very loud noise.
"I'll be damned it's the hellish bell again!" I ran to the door, opened it and started yelling when I realized it was the mailman "WHAT do you want- oh Mr. Mailman, what a surprise!" I said sarcastically.
"I have a package for you Mr. D.H. (My initials)" said the mailman.
I was perplexed. It was impossible for me to pre-order anything from the outside and I don't have anyone I knew except my parents but I understand that my parents need the money for their big trip so... *sigh*. I took the package and my name was really in there so I signed everything and bid farewell to the mailman as I went inside the house shutting the door tightly.
I put the package in front of me, staring at it and thinking:
"It's not ticking so it couldn't be a bomb! It's not emitting air so it's not poison gas! It's not sparkling so it's not a tazer! So what the hell does this package come from?"
After being sure that the package is safe, I started to open it. I couldn't believe my eyes. It was a box of an "Utopia" virtual helmet. It was something out of this world. I went to wash my face then I came back and the box was still there. It wasn't a dream! There was a note on the top of the box. I opened it and read it aloud:
"Dear Mr. D.H.
You were chosen from millions of people from Youtube to be one of the one hundred thousand players to participate in the real-life gaming MMORPG known as "Utopia". Oh thank God my luck didn't betray me for once. We wish that you'll find your gaming experience enjoyable. The game will not start until the one hundred thousand participants are connected to the game so hurry up and don't waste your and your gaming friends' time. Gaming friends? As if I have anyone I know in this world who is my gaming friend." Oh how wrong I was when I said those words. I threw the letter away and opened the box. The helmet was on plain sight.
"HALLELUJAH!" I yelled as strong as my lungs could bear. I picked it up and went to my PC. I plugged it in the USB port and waited till it finishes installing the game. Meanwhile, I searched my room for something, something that is valuable for me. Oh yeah I found it, my sword with a dragon handle and a curvy edge with many beautiful shapes.* The game took it time to install but it was totally worth it. I put my sword on my right hand and the helmet on my head.
A screen appeared telling me to customize my character. Oh well the usual stuff that can be found in an MMO I guess. I customized it so that it was nearly as real as I am in real life, except of course the fat I have.
"Classes hmmmm? You can choose 2 classes at a time but when you choose 2 classes, you'll have to choose who is the dominant class and who is your secondary class. If you do that you'll have only the basic techniques for the secondary class. Sounds realistic enough." I said that out loud as I chose Assassin and Mage.
"Are you sure you want to confirm these settings?"
"Yes" "No"
"Yes I do!" I selected "Yes" as he told me to name your character.
"L, E, that little 8 button thingie (_), M, A, L, E, M" I pressed "Confirm".
"Your nickname cannot be changed throughout the game, are you sure your name is "LE_MALEM"?"
"Yes" "No"
"I know my own nickname, of course I agree." I selected "Yes".
"Would you like to record your real-life experience via Youtube Livestream and share it all over the world?"
"Yes" "No"
"Nah, it won't be necessary!" I selected "No" as I felt my body entering comatose state little by little as I found myself in the game. Opening my eyes and seeing my hands, I confirmed that I'm looking exactly as I described in the character description. I thought where could I find the menu and as soon as I thought of it, it appeared in front of me. There was the typical stuff like Inventory, Skills, Friend list... I cringed when I saw that.
"As if I will make any friends in this game! I'll bet it's like any other game. Only that we start at the same time according to the letter. Meaning that it's the 1st day for everyone." I said as I tried to walk and it went smoothly. Just think that you're doing something and you'll do it. I felt like running so I opened the map in front of me to locate the village's exit. I ran like the wind, as expected from the assassin type player. I stopped in front of the exit, catching my breath. I looked far away as I saw the wolves. Typical for a beginner's first steps to have to fight wolves at first. But before I stepped outside, I heard something...
"I see a guy there! I'm going to ask him! Hey you over there..."
"Huh?" Seeing as no one was nearby, he was adressing me. "Who is he talking to? It's like he's talking to two people at the same time. Is he sane?" I thought.
"Hello! Sorry to have to startle you like that," the guy said "but could you please show me a little bit the basics of fighting in this game?" As he approached, the guy had long blonde hair, elvish ears and a beautiful baby face. I thought he was a girl at first due to his skinny stature but he didn't have any... assesements in the chest level so I assumed it was a guy.
"I think you have chosen the wrong person. I'm also a beginner like you, like everyone else here maybe?" I answered.
"Huh? But from the way you're running I can tell that you have at least some experience in the game." the guy was a little taken aback from what I said. Maybe I was too rude. I decided to take a different approach.
"Hmmm, I might have understood somethings about the game. Maybe I could help you. I was going to attack these wolves to test the mechanism of interacting with the enemy. Ok then follow me!"
"Oh chweet!" he said cheerfully, "Ok lead the way! By the way I'm an Archer type!"
"That tone! It is very familiar to me!" I thought, shaking my head "Oh yeah! Then you must have some distance then. You'll cover me because I'm a Magical Assassain!"
The elvish-looking guy and I went to the prairie of wolves as it was announced in front of us. I tried to attack but the wolf's senses were sharp, as if it was a real wolf. I felt a surge of power in my BETA blade as I attacked the same moment as the wolf, banishing him out of the game.
"Hey, dude! The game is realistic just as I suspected! You must know what the enemy does, assess the situation and then plan for your attacks." I said out loud as the guy was watching.
"Oh! So that's why my attack pattern was wrong! Ok then I'll give it my best shot." he notched an arrow into his bow as I was in a guard stance from a wolf. He aimed and shot the wolf to the neck when it was trying to deliver a fatal blow to me, killing it instantly.
"I think we are going to be good buddies you and I, don't we?" he said happily.
"Oh please cut it out!" I said "I'm planning to solo this game. Now if you want to kill some mobs with me, be my guest, other than that..." I noticed how upset the other player was but I was totally serious about my decision.
Anyways, we were hunting for like two hours, wondering if the time is also real, well guess what, IT IS! The sun was about to set so it's time to say goodbye to the game.
"I think I am about to logout, dude! Thanks for the tips and if anything is wrong, don't hesitate to call me." He opened the menu to logout but...
"What in the... Hey, man! Is there a bug in this game? Where is the logout button?" asked the player.
"Well it's definitly..." as I opened and scrolled through the menu, I found no logout button. Silence overcame me as I tried to search all the sections. "Where is it? WHERE IS IT? If this is really a bug in the game, it's not even funny!" I said to him.
"Well true that! Maybe if we go back to the city we will find out something!" he told me. I nodded as we used the Warp Crystal to warp back to the city of Xenoph.
City of Xenoph
The players were assembled in the main hall, discussing how there was no logout button in this game. Of course this issue caused such a ruckus as anyone would have chores and stuff to do. I blurted unintentionally to the Archer:
"Thank God my parents are in Saudi Arabia for a very long time!"
"Thank God that mine are on a very complicated business trip!" he said laughing as I laughed with him. The laughter didn't stay long as the whole sky became red. Hexagons where the word "Error" written in them were found all over the sky. The players and I were gasping as a big figure appeared in front of us. It was a red hooded spectral figure with no face and no legs. It spoke in a commanding voice:
"Ladies and Gentlemen gamers all over the world, first of all I would like to welcome you to "Utopia", the game where everything is about to change for you as persons and as gamers. I am the Admin and you can call me Mr. G. As you have noticed, all of you can't find the logout button. Well I must say that is fortunately and definitly not a glitch in the game, it's a feature."
This caused some ruckus between the players but that didn't stop Mr.G from talking.
"In order to logout from this game, you must beat the game and I mean beat the whole game without losing your life points. Not only you will die when losing your life points but you will die in the real world as well. Also any communications, including Youtube Live Streaming has been cut to the outside world!"
"WHAT THE HELL? Tell me this is not true!"
"I want my mommy!"
"This is bullshit!"
There was chaos in the players' minds. Believe me when I say I was in total fear when I heard him too. I just didn't show it at all.
"You son of a nutcracker." The Archer whispered an insult, bitting his thumbnail. "Now seriously, I've heard that insult before. I know the guy who insults like that!"
"Sadly this is true as our database reveals that 300 players lost their lives by having someone omit their helmet. So there are only 99700 players still in-play. If anyone beats the final boss in the game, he can have any wish he wants: Money, power... and of course will be free from the game. So I wish you all good luck and by the way, there is a present for all of you in the inventory!"
He said that as he vanished into thin air. The sky was normal again as I looked into my inventory.
"A mirror!" I touched it as it enveloped me into a white light. When my eyes came to, I stared at myself. I felt even more realistic, a little more fat, half-bald haircut... as if it was really me.
"Hey, dude-" I stopped in my tracks when I looked into the dude. He had a good stature, big eyes, a goatee beard, medium-sized lips and nose and a spiky hair due to gel. Even without the glasses I now knew who he was. I pulled his hand to an alley and pushed him away.
"Hey what in the..." he said as I went through the menu and put my profile status as private and I added the player as a friend.
"Do as I did, PitchingAce88. If you want me to trust you, never reveal yourself too much because we could be targets of player killers in this game!"
The gamereplayer thought about everything and nodded silently as he put his status in private.
"But how did you know who I am? Why is my vision blurry?" he asked as I noticed something: PitchingAce88 has glasses but where are they? I checked something in my inventory. "Now it's called just Sword huh? Wait a second what's that?" I saw something I thought I wouldn't see my whole life: My sword was in the inventory.
Spirit of the Dragon
Equipable by: LE_MALEM only
Unique weapon
Upgradable as the level goes up
Unbreakable
Power: 10-25
"A sword with no stats and very good attack for a beginners' sword. Maybe some new elements will be added as long as I play with it!" I thought equiping it. I felt a surge of power beyond my wildest dreams. I felt somehow complete. I turned to Ace and I said:
"Hey Ace! Look at your inventory! Your glasses are in there!" he was looking at me weirdly but he still complied and eventually found his glasses and equiped them.
Glasses of True Insight
Equipable by: PitchingAce88 only
Unique weapon
Upgradable as the level goes up
Unbreakable
Dexterity: 5
"This is out of this world! I can't believe my glasses were an equipment!" he said
"Yeah neither do I when I saw my sword!" I said as I held my sword in front of him. "I guess it has to do with the fact that I was holding my sword when I was ready to play this game!"
"Actually that's an interesting point! I put my glasses in my pocket before starting to play too! Maybe the game has read every single part of our body, even the clothes and the additional stuff that we carry!" he explained.
"It definitly is! Oh man! I can't believe it! Ace is talking to me right now! I really wished to play a game with you. I guess my wish became true indirectly!"
"Yeah! But you still didn't introduce yourself!" he pointed out.
"Oh yeah! I am the dude who gives you comments in Skyrim and Pokémon Conquest! MALEMization, remember? But now I am with my original nickname LE_MALEM" I said proudly but I feared the worse. And the worse came as Ace had a hard time pronouncing my nickname. "Oh please forget it, you can call me M if you want to."
"No no. I want to pronounce it, M- MA- MALEM, yes that's it MALEM! Really you must be from a foreign origin MALEM."
"Arabic origins yeah." I amended "Let's not waste any time Ace. We must level up ourselves and our weapons before anybody else does! We must finish this game before we get killed."
"I'm right behind you!" Ace said enthusiastically as we ran to the wolves' prairie, leveling up like crazy.
End of Chapter 1
Phew that was hard but I finally started my ultimate and original fanfic! I hope everyone likes it and pinpoint the mistakes if there are any please! Thanks!
*This is true! Nobody in my country, except import/export businessmen has the right to earn an international credit card. I use this a lot as an excuse for being poor.
*You can see my picture in my Youtube profile MALEMization carrying the sword in question and I lied about owning it. Truth to be told, I found it in a jewelry store and I decided to take a picture of it.