New Eden: Live to Play, Play to Live

***POV A sheltered boy in England, before the game launch***

In the city of Birmingham, England lived a small sickly kid. His name was Winston Jr. Owen.

Winston was a kid that was born with a weak immune system. He had Caspase Eight Deficiency State or CEDS for short.

That meant he had virtually no antibodies to fight against viral infections and bacteria. He could die from a single cold if he ever caught one.

Winston's parents had sheltered him from his birth to now, making sure no one sick ever got close to him. They had done their utmost to keep him away from any risk.

But that also meant the kid never went to school. He was home-schooled until high school when he switched to online classes.

Winston had little to no friends since no one could come near him without being free of bacteria. He had lived his entire life either in his house or at the hospital.

Winston's parents were two well-off people, one a businessman, the other a renowned pastry chef. They had enough money to go around, so they spoiled their child as much as he wanted.

This was to compensate for the restrained living they put him through. The guilt from caging him his whole life ate at them slowly, and only relented slightly when they saw him happy with the gifts they gave him.

Little did they know, the only thing bothering Winston, in his situation, was the fact that he couldn't go outside. He couldn't go meet new people and make new friends.

He could probably never explore unknown places or climb dangerous mountains. Winston yearned to leave his mark on the world, but his sickness confined him to home.

So when he was surfing online and saw that a new video game was coming out soon and that it was in full VR, he became ecstatic.

He begged his parents to get him the required material to play the game. He already had a laptop, but it was far from powerful enough to run top games.

His parents couldn't refuse his demands, seeing how excited he seemed at the prospect of the game. They splurged on him once again, buying him a state-of-the-art computer.

Then they pre-purchased the game and the VR helmet, making sure he was ready for launch day. They had never seen him as happy as he became when received all these gifts.

Winston cried a little when he finished setting up the computer and the VR helmet close to his bed. He would finally explore some place other than the confines of his home, or the floors of the hospital.

There were only a few days left until the game release, and Winston talked solely about that at the dinner table and in their after-dinner conversations.

His parents were thrilled that something had finally stoked his passion as much and hoped the game did not disappoint him when it finally launched.

The days went by fast in the Owen household, as his parents were mostly gone during the day, leaving Winston to his online classes.

On the announced day of the launch, Winston's parents agreed to an early dinner, so he could be ready and on time for the game release.

Once he was done with dinner, Winston practically ran away from the table, telling his parents he loved them and running up to his room.

Winston threw his body onto his bed and grabbed the VR helmet off his desk. He jammed it on his head and launched it.

There was still around half an hour until the game started, but he couldn't care less. He watched the background screensaver of the VR helmet until the game unlocked on the interface.

It did so around fifteen minutes before the official release time. He had read on the website that it would let the players create their characters before the game launch.

He selected the game icon and clicked launch. Winston then felt sucked into his bed, like he was suddenly free-falling.

The feeling exhilarated him. Suddenly gravity became normal again, as he was standing on a white platform, with nothing but darkness around him.

In front of him stood a tall man with silver hair and pointy ears.

"An elf!" The boy exclaimed.

"Indeed, I am, child. Welcome to New Eden. Are you here to experience the adventure of a lifetime?" The Elven man asked.

"If I'm ready?! I can't wait!" Winston responded gleefully.

"Good. Very good." The elf responded.

"Your adventure will be fraught with unknown dangers and enemies beyond mortal reason. Are you ready to face such challenges?" He asked.

"Yes, I am!" Winston practically shouted.

He had balled his little fists, and his hype levels were going through the metaphorical roof.

"First, what should one call you, young adventurer?" The elf asked as an empty bar appeared before Winston's eyes.

"Um, can I come back to that later? When I know what race and class I want?" Winston asked the elf.

"Yes, by all means, young one." The svelte elf responded.

"Thank you." Winston said, giving a quick nod.

Winston then opened up the race window, looking at all the options. The only one that didn't attract his fancy was humans.

Why would he play human, if he already was one? In a game, one should never stick to convention, otherwise where was the fun?

But he couldn't choose what to go, either. The choices were many, and he didn't know what class would suit him the most.

Seeing the boy taking a lot of time, the Elven man helped him in his conundrum.

"What is it you desire to accomplish in this world, young man?" The elf asked Winston.

"Hmm. If I had to pick a goal for myself, it would be to pay back what my parents have given me my whole life." Winston answered, after thinking for a few seconds.

"And what would that be, young man?" The elf questioned again.

"I'd say protection. My whole life, my parents have protected me from the world, making sure I was never in danger." Winston replied, a pang of guilt and melancholy flashing in his eyes.

"Ahh. I see. So you wish to pay forward that protection?" The elf asked.

Winston thought for a moment, then nodded his head.

"In that case, let me recommend you to a race and class." The elf said, waving his hand at the menu in front of Winston.

The menu started shrinking, some races disappearing from it until only one was left. Dwarves.

Winston read the race description again and noticed that one of the two classes was currently highlighted.

"Shield bearer? That sounds like a tanking class. Doesn't that put me on the front lines?" Winston asked the elf.

"Ahh, yes. But that would make you a steadfast protector." The elf said, giving a slow nod.

"Dwarves may be a rowdy bunch and lack manners, but they are most honorable allies. Having a dwarf serve as your front line means your chances of surviving are highly elevated." He added.

Winston let that information soak in for a moment.

He wanted to pay forth the protection they gave him all his life, and this was a great way. He made his choice and tapped the shield bearer's class.

His body morphed to fit into his new race. His body grew bulkier, and a beard appeared on his face.

"At least I'm still the same height." Winston said, his voice sounding a few octaves graver.

"Now, what would you like to be called, young dwarf?" the elf asked, a smile still plastered on his face.

Winston thought about it for a moment and recalled the name a friend had once used for his dwarven character in a game of TTRPG.

"Gulnur Deepshield." He replied.

The name bar instantly filled with the name he chose, and he hit confirm.

After picking his race, class, and name, his character was finally ready for the adventure.

"Congratulations on finalizing your avatar, young dwarf. I wish you luck on your grand quest." The elf said.

"Know that whatever may happen on your journey, your decisions will define it. Now off you go!" The elf added, with a big smile, before waving his arm, making the scene before Gulnur fade away.

In its stead, a giant timer appeared before him. Only a few seconds remained on it, and Gulnur was happy to have made it before the game launch.

He wouldn't want to start late and be at a disadvantage. He watched the clock tick away the remaining seconds, his anticipation building up.

When the last second ticked away, the decor changed.

The black made way for bright colors. The darkness around Gulnur switched over to a flight view of a bright new world.

He was flying over a continent in the world of New Eden and could see the cities, forests, mountains, and other sights to behold. An announcement sounded all around him.

*WELCOME TO ALL, IN THIS NEW WORLD OF ADVENTURE CALLED NEW EDEN. MAY YOUR FUTURE BE BRIGHT AND YOUR PATH BE FILLED WITH THE BODIES OF YOUR ENEMIES. LET YOUR NEW LIVES BEGIN!*

Then his view changed again, spinning and turning until he was standing on the side of a road.

He looked around and up, only to see a cavernous ceiling high above his head. It looked like he was in a city, built inside a cave or a mountain.

The people walking around him were all stocky and bearded, except for the women, who were stocky and had hair down to their bottom.

Gulnur breathed in the air, tasting the earthiness in it, and tears rolled down his cheeks. This was what genuine air tasted like, not filtered air.

His adventures and exploring he had dreamt about all his life could finally start. He would make the most of it, savoring every moment to the fullest.

He grinned and stroked his newfound beard.

"Let my legend begin."