Private - First Steps

Struggling to create the perfect character was a common thing within RPGs, primarily due to the vast amount of possibilities offered by the character creation. From a variety of races to the tiniest details such as cheekbone angle, games offered all the necessary tools to turn a vision into (virtual) reality. The aforementioned difficulty was even worse for someone like Isao, a symmetry-obsessed artist with a wild imagination. Now he was in the same situation he had been in dozens of times before: stuck in the character creation screen of the game.

Admittedly, he was pretty frightened by the sight that was revealed before him when he first opened his eyes after entering the game. In front of him sat an eerily accurate copy of himself, and surrounding him was nothing but gray walls. At least the figure was sitting rather than standing. He had already forgotten what it was like to look in the mirror and see himself on his legs.

Isao took an unreasonably long time to decide, even more than he did with other games. This was much more than a character he got to play in a game, because he would practically become that character. It had to be just right, otherwise he’d get sick of looking at his own reflection.

Fortunately, he had a general idea. He wanted something simple, nothing like the eccentric characters he tended to create. Generally he used the character’s appearance to reflect something in his personality, or an idea, since he couldn’t have so much control over the character’s actions. But now he had absolute control - this character was clay in his hands, both inside and out. So he preferred to show his character through actions rather than appearance.

So with the theme in place, all he needed to do was properly reflect said theme.

When thinking simplicity, what first pops to mind is pale colors. White, silver, and so on. That settled the hair, skin, and eye color. And for the figure… He stopped to think once again.

‘I can be anything I want to be… huh?’

His hands moved instinctively, sculpting a body that matched his ideal self. Tall so he could stand proud again, athletic so he could run a kilometer or two or even three if he so desired… the perfect figure to do everything he can’t in reality.

As Isao removed moved away from the character, he took a deep breath, and a sad smile spread across his lips upon seeing his creation before him. He was thinking depressing thoughts again, just as he is about to enter the game and meet with Lucille, whom he excitedly texted with “its finally dun downloading!!” before hopping straight into TerraSphere. That wouldn’t do.

He gave himself a few gentle smacks on the cheeks, before reaching forth and tapping the confirmation button with determination. Once he did so, a prompt appeared, asking him to input a name for his character. It took little to no thought to input the word Yukisa into the text box. That was his go-to for every game.

Upon confirming his character’s name, the scene before him faded to black, just as it did when he booted the game. Before his vision returned, he could hear the sounds of wind blowing and waves crashing. Moments later he opened his eyes, and before him he saw a vast expanse of blue: the sea, sparkling as the sun shined overhead. His hands were slightly sunken into something soft, which he quickly understood was the white sand of the shoreline, as he leaned back onto them in a sitting position. His legs were stretched out, the cold waves lapping over them in a consistent rhythm…

‘Wait...’ Yukisa thought, coming to a sudden realization. ‘I… I can feel my legs?’

He didn’t even seem to care that his legs were freezing from the chilly salt water. His shock was too much for any reaction, and he could only sit there in silence, paralyzed. His eyes were glued to the pair of limbs that he was sure he would never feel again.

What felt like hours passed before at last the shock wore off. But even then, he couldn’t seem to move his legs more than just pulling them towards him. It was a long time since he had used them.

An exasperated sigh escaped his lips, and he flopped backwards into the sand. It was warm, in contrast to the cold feeling that stung his lower body.

“Maybe… I’ll just rest here for a while,” he muttered, somewhat upset. The excitement was draining from him as doubt in the hope he had harbored took its place.

 

As much as she had tried to forget about this strange, peculiar yet exciting sensation prickling underneath her skin, she hadn't been able to. Her first impressions had been... positive, to say the very least. Days had passed ever since, and she hadn't spared any bits of spare time available in order to continue her progress, taking on the quests that were available and exploring her skills until she found comfort in their usage. Those were the current goals on her mind, not to say she had yet to achieve any real progress in the game.

However, if years of gaming had taught her anything of value, it was that the game's experience would be much more enticing with the appropriate company, and soon, a name came to mind. Aware as she was of the press and restrictions circulating the game and its players, she made sure to contact the first person that came to mind on the very same message board that had introduced her to the world of Terrasphere. Along with the glitchy email were written a set of specific rules and precautionary methods designed by herself so her friend, Isao, wouldn't get into trouble.

To have dinner with her parents was always a delightful event of its own, if one were willing to ignore the unmistakable scent of paint and the many, many utensils brought to the table. She wasn't born an artist, unlike them, and so she wondered how did they learn to appreciate such things. The ping of a notification ringing from her mobile stole her attention from the glass of coke she was about to drink. It was with a certain upward quirk to her lips that she reached out to her phone, emitting a chuckle at the heartfelt enthusiasm displayed by her friend through the text message on her screen. Lucille hesitated, throwing discrete glances on her parents' directions who seemed to stay unaware of their daughter's doing.

''Who is it?'' Clearly, she had been in the wrong about that last assumption. Cursing her luck in utter silence, she glanced to meet the owner of the voice, her father.

''Isao,'' she replied with a shrug of her shoulders. Surely he'd remember the internet friend she had mentioned more than once. Careful as ever to keep the secret of her newly-found gaming endeavor, Lucille cocked her head to a side, as if to ask the reason of his interest.

''And what does he require of you? Is he okay?'' The eyes of her mother were narrowed as she spoke, eyes of piercing blue reflecting themselves upon the blonde's pale features, scanning the answers. If something important had happened, she'd like to be informed of it. It was her family too, after all.

''Yes, yes, of course he is... He asked me to review one of his papers, says he would like to have an opinion just in case.'' It was best to put the phone down and continue eating, but not before sending a brief text to inform her buddy in the current state of affairs.

Lucille

Don't get too carried away. It'll be a while before I can join you, but I'll try and make it there. Just be patient, okay? Actually... No, knock yourself out!

No response.

The blonde thought nothing of it as she continued with her daily routine, washing the dishes along with her family, offering more smiles and conversation so they wouldn't have to worry so much about what happened once the door in her room was closed and the headgear was on its rightful place, ready to offer the very much needed amount of action to release the tension.

Seconds that become minutes, and minutes that seemed to become hours seemed to pass as she went from area to area in search of the new player. As she heavily considered giving up on her quest to find her friend, Portia reached the final spot of her journey. She came across the coast with a belated sigh, eyes trained on every possible spot to discern any signs that might indicate her partner in crime's spawn point to be there. And how glad she was that she did so, for in the sand was a single male figure she recognized from previous games explored together.

''When I sent you that text, I didn't mean literally. Taking a little nap, Isa-- I mean, Yukisa?'' The youth announced her presence with a few words of her choice, bending her chest forward just as she clasped both of her hands behind her small frame, effortlessly managing to maintain the balance in her posture. If the sound of the sand sinking underneath her toes hadn't been enough, then this would certainly do. There was no possible way for him to avoid their encounter, not when Portia's features were situated inches above his own face. ''Maybe the fall caused you more damage than intended? I would understand that.''

 

More often than not, games that are excruciatingly difficult receive the grand title of “unplayable” from the interesting individuals that browse the world wide web. However, none of them will truly understand the meaning of unplayable as much as Isao in a game where knowing how to walk is a core mechanic. As a result of him having forgotten how to do something as basic as move his legs, he was incapable of actually playing the game. In some way, it was like he had bought a game that was incompatible for his system… except in this case, the system’s faults were on him rather than the manufacturer.

Yet despite the obstacle that stood before him - massive, intimidating and terribly frustrating - he didn’t seem to have any intention of logging out. Anyone who has played with him would know that he is the most patient individual possible, some even joking that he's “reached inner peace.” Regardless of how anger-inducing a game would get, he would never ragequit, and always ended up being the last one online after all of his friends couldn't handle the heat any longer. Instead, he continued to enjoy what he could of the game to its fullest, and Terrasphere was no exception to that golden rule. Not to mention, he had promised to meet Lucille here, so if he were to log off now she might take offense.

So he laid there in silence, glancing about the seemingly endless coast, into the horizon that likely held countless surprises. It would have been nice if he could actually go discover those exciting things himself, however with his vivid imagination, at least he was able to fathom what awaited him out there. Deadly but fascinating beasts; powerful, mystical artifacts; legendary heroes with the might to move mountains; all of those were likely waiting out there.

These were things you wouldn’t find in real life, that’s for sure.

And that left Yukisa thinking. How far would this game go? What was the extent to which this game felt like reality? Would it be just like the other VRMMORPGs he has played, except with simulated senses, or would it blur the line between game and reality to such an extent that at certain points he wouldn’t be able to tell the difference? If that were the case…

‘No, it’s too soon to make those assumptions,’ he thought to himself, lifting his sand-covered hands to brush his sand-filled hair back. ‘Don’t want to be one of those super angry people who pre-order a game based off the trailer, then complain that the gameplay was nothing like what they hoped for…’ he added with a chuckle, thinking of all the times he had to calm his friends down after they did just that. Most of the time, he managed to calm them down by giving them all the positives in the game, and he could even get them to play for a while longer if he made the effort to create a pleasant experience for them.

As he allowed memories to flood him, it seemed he had opened an opportunity for sleep to creep in as well. With his eyes shut and the pleasant rhythm of the sea, his mind soon shut down, and he was out cold.

​

°。°。°。°。°。°。°。゜。°。°。°。。°。°。°。°。°。°。°。°。°。°。°

​

It wasn’t clear how long Yukisa was in the realm of dreams (a question that perhaps a certain divine bluenette could answer), however it was clear why he had fallen asleep like that. Being the idiot he is, he stayed up the entire night waiting for the byte-heavy game to download so he could hop into its world immediately. And by immediately, he meant immediately, not sparing even a moment to catch some shut-eye.

Perhaps that time was best spent sleeping, though, as when he was half-conscious again, something other than the sound of waves crashing and seagulls squawking fell upon his ears. It was… a voice, it seemed. And a familiar one at that…

His eyes slowly fluttered open as he shifted in the sand, gradually returning to the waking world. And instead of the bright blue sky that he expected to find, above him was a familiar pale face with white strands of hair hanging from the head it belonged to. The silver-haired male squinted and groaned slightly as his still numb brain tried to process what he was looking at, and he even reached a hand up to touch the figure above him with his fingertips. As the grogginess finally left him, the pieces finally clicked:

‘Lu… cille..?’ he thought, only realizing a moment later what that meant.

“Rushi!” he shouted afterwards, his plain face lighting up immediately as he grinned warmly. If he could use his legs, he would have hopped up and tackled her into the sand with a bear hug at that moment, but unfortunately even after that nap, his lower body still wouldn’t budge. So instead he sat up, wrapping his arms around her waist and nuzzling her side affectionately. “You’re here~”

Even for Isao, that reaction was a bit more excessive than normal, but after having to lay there unmoving for so long, the amount of relief over seeing Lucille appear was overwhelming. He only somewhat released her when she mentioned something about a text, and he looked at her with confusion clear on his face. “Uh… I didn’t get any text,” he said, though that could have easily meant “I fell asleep before you sent it.”

“Eh? Fall?” the already confused boy asked, cocking his head to the side questioningly. His eyes drifted towards his legs, and if Portia paid close attention, she might be able to notice a glimpse of sorrow in them.

‘There’s no way she’s talking about that… she wouldn’t know.’

Taking a deep breath, he looked towards her again. The smile was still on his face, but there was a hint of sadness in it. “Maybe you’re right,” he told her, even if he didn’t fully understand what she meant. “Then, you wouldn’t mind helping me up, would you?” he requested, reaching his hand forth in hopes she would take it and pull him to his feet… something he couldn’t manage to do himself.

 

Affection. Too much affection. The relaxed facade she put on while greeting her partner in crime had faded into nothingness, a hint of pink dusting the high point of her cheeks as she took a step in retreat. But even then, her efforts were soon proved to be futile. The hugging beast had already caught her in his embrace and it seemed like he had few plans to let her go any moment soon. An awkward wave of her hand and a faltering smile later, she found herself wrapping her arms around his head in a light embrace, not enough to press him more against her side.

This... This was different. The brawler stood in comfortable silence as strange thoughts assaulted her mind, filling her consciousness with the fleeting scenarios she had imagined all throughout their friendship. A seemingly endless number of cities, streets, and countries separated the two, and to think they could meet face to face was anything but realistic. But Terrasphere offered them a third option, offered them the chance they would likely never get in real life to meet one another. Portia cocked her head to a side and attempted a reply to his words, only to let go a soft gasp that scraped his ears as tiny tears formed at the corner of her eyes.

''Yes, Isa... What's your name in here again?'' She brought a hand up to her face to wipe the remnants of humidity from her face, making an abrupt change to the heartfelt situation. There hadn't been any previous discussion as to what their player tags would be. As far as she was concerned, the only hint she currently had that this person was indeed the friend she had invited over to Terrasphere, was how he pronounced his name in the awkward manner he had always done. And if that wasn't enough reason... Well, he stayed put in the same place for minutes, and minutes, and minutes without even changing his spawn location hoping she would appear at any given moment. ''You don't mean I'm the only one who fell into the game, right...?''

In spite of all her intentions, he had to let her go eventually. This was a bad position for the pair and there were so many things she wanted to show him, teach him. Like any game the two had experienced together before, their early levels would be quite similar, all through efforts combined on a great attempt to achieve the endgame. Questing together, slaying monsters together, many things like that. Her bandaged right arm moved a little above Isao's, well, his avatar, head. Without any specific warning for him to be able to avoid what was to come, her opened palm started to assault the poor boy's head in a rapid succession of small, harmless hits.

Afterwards, both her hands wandered upwards until they met their destination at the little accessory holding her braid in place, allowing the woman to shut her eyes closed and let her fingers do the trick until the crown-shaped brooch fell into her empty palm, the little shards of crystal glistening in the light of the midday sun. When her eyes opened once again, the silver locks of hair fell unevenly upon her shoulders, and there was a certain resemblance to her real persona this individual would've been able to recognize from the real-life pictures she had shown him ages and ages ago. A familiar sight for sore eyes.

''Ah... I told you to stop eating much. Your ass is heavy enough as is,'' her lips didn't have to mutter a specific confirmation word for him to know she was going to help him. There was enough simplicity in her steps to inform the other person she would not wander far from his position. Quite the contrary, actually, seeing how she fell to her knees next to him, stretching out a bruised hand for him to hold while her other settled underneath his arm, holding him in place should he fall. This wasn't the first time the two played VRMMORPGs together, but the truth hit the duo as a splash of cold water. This wasn't just any game. This was a machine resembling reality, a fantastic version of it. ''But you never listen to me and here you are... We'll work on an exercise routine if you aren't easy to lift, I'll have you know that!''

Ever so slowly, she willed strength back into her legs as she set to rise from the sand underneath them. Along with her movements, she sought to pull Isao upwards with her, doing so with little ease. An extensive training regimen that included traveling by foot from location to location, slaying beasts almost thrice her size with her bare fists and legs, and running for her life should these challenges be much more than she could actually handle layered the female's build with a functional amount of muscle she could now put to use.

But hell, was he heavy.

 

The cuddle monster had no intention of stopping anytime soon. For the first time, Yukisa was this close to his beloved friend whom had been by his side more than those he knew in real life were, despite the thousands of physical kilometers separating them. Even if this was merely an illusion, generated by a game, was that so bad? Their relationship was purely online - which wasn’t all too bad, but anything that brought them nearer to being able to see each other outside of pictures, hear one another through something that wasn’t a voice chat… was more than welcome.

As heartwarming the first contact was, though, Portia clearly had better plans than to stand around and be embraced all day. After all, they had another world to explore spread out before them.

After a few questions that were all but ignored by the white-haired newbie, not registering in his mind as he was too caught up in snuggling his companion, she was already fed up with his excessive affection.

“Ow, ow, ow…” Yuki mumbled as Portia delivered a solid noogie to his undefended head, forcing him to finally release her from the shackles that were his arms. Yet despite how rough she was with his scalp, still he looked up at her with his usual warm smile. Though this was a mild example, there was truly nothing this special person could do to drive him away, no matter how painful. He was quite the clingy type, every little fight plaguing him until they make up.

“It’s Yukisa!” he told her enthusiastically when he realized she had asked his game tag. “But you can call me whatever you want, you know! Whatever’s comfortable for you.”

Whilst Portia prepared herself for the intense walking montage they were about to have, Yukisa continued to beam at her like he was the sun itself - brightly, but so brightly it might be a little unpleasant to look at.

Then, as her hand reached over to help him up, that smile vanished entirely. His eyes fixated on the the bruises that riddled her hand, concern filling the pink irises.

“What happened to your hand..?” he muttered with a worrisome tone, reaching over to gently take the injured hand and observe at it a little more closely. However, without providing him with an answer to his concerns, she grabbed a firm hold of his hand, took him from under the arm, and lifted him up.

“Ah- I’m sorry!” he told her, sincerely apologizing and bowing his head slightly when she commented on his weight. “Food is just so good…” Yukisa had always been known as somewhat of a glutton by his friends and family, and though Portia never saw him eating, if she paid enough attention while they were chatting online, she would likely be able to notice the fact that he almost always seemed to be stuffing his face while playing. Though, he was careful not to do it in a way that was obnoxious towards his buddies.

And so, the two set off for their romantic walk on the beach.

The pair spent a surprisingly lengthy amount of time in order to accomplish something that should have come to Yukisa as naturally as breathing. Somehow, no matter how much Portia would attempt to guide him or how much effort he put in, his footsteps were nothing but stumbles through the sand.

However, no matter the amount of times he nearly tripped over his own feet, Yuki was determined to push through. This was his chance to be his own person again. To finally have no need for someone to lean on... even if it meant embarrassing himself to this extent.

And his efforts paid off.

“Hey… I think I got a hang of it!” Yuki told his temporary mentor excitedly, slowly letting go of her to wander ahead on his own. His footsteps were wobbly, but they were footsteps nonetheless.

“I’m doing it!” he shouted happily, gradually picking up the pace until he was running barefoot in the sand. “I’m seriously-”

Tripping. He was seriously tripping.

His foothold slipped beneath him, causing him to lose his balance. Though it would seem he simply tripped, as he flailed about in an attempt to stay standing, it was clear something else had occurred… because the sand beneath him began to fall away as a red carapace emerged from below.

ENCOUNTER

<<Giant Crab>>
He didn't appreciate being stepped on​

Before Yukisa knew it, the surface beneath him transformed from being soft sand to a massive, clicking crab. And the crab did not look happy to be awoken from its nap.

Yuki, who had just learnt how to freaking walk, attempted to maneuver off of the crab with a graceful leap. But of course, rather than doing that, he did an awkward flip in the air and landed with his head straight in the sand right next to Portia.

What a great way to start his first encounter.