[SOLO] Christopher: Enter

[Christopher]

The clock in the corner of the screen showed that it was 12:01 am, but it was really wasn’t. Christopher giggled as he thought of how silly the game developers were: they checked they time on the client’s PC rather than the actual time. All he had to do was change the time on his computer to roughly 12 am and download the files from the website to begin playing.
Within two minutes he’d created his character. He’d been planning this moment for ages: he knew exactly what class and subclass he wanted. Just before clicking the ‘confirm’ button, he spared a glance at his incomplete homework. That could wait until he was finished with this game. With a deep breath he confirmed his character build, and for a few seconds nothing happened, then with a jolt something did happen: something much more substantial than what Christopher was expecting. A wave of black overcame his vision for a few minutes, and he felt a suspicious sensation that he was falling through the void. He tried to inspect his surroundings but he couldn’t see anything at all, not even his own body.
After what seemed like an eternity Christopher found himself lying on unrealistically soft grass. His vision cleared and there, directly in front of him, were what seemed to be a run-down rendition of the houses in parliament.
‘Where am I? What’s going on, I thought this was an MMO!’ he yelled to nobody in particular, because the streets were devoid of all life. He supposed this was his price to play for logging in before the game was due for release. Upon quick inspection of his menu he realised there was no log out option.
Trillions of doubts and worries swirled through his mind, but Christopher paid them little attention. For the first time in his life, he was somehow happy. He felt powerful. He felt purposeful. He felt like this world had a place for a social outcast like him.
He felt alive.

Word Count: 335.

[Christopher]

Filtering sunlight through his outstretched hands, Christopher’s eyes narrowed as he considered his options. On the first hand he was a sorcerer and fighting was his class’s specialty. He could summon lightning, control objects with his mind and impale a creature with a shard of ice all at the expense of a bit of mana. His subclass, exorcist, allowed him to neutralise pesky foes. He wondered where the nearest mob spawning zone was.
On the other hand, Christopher was an alchemist. With mana he could form contraptions to boost and shape his energy, using filaments and mana crystals and... all that talk of machines was making him drool. Perhaps he needed to work on containing his excitement.
Inspecting his inventory, Christopher equipped the old translucent bluish-purple crystal ball which started to float around him. While he was at it he also inspected his tan-coloured robes which seemed to be made of burlap or wicker or some similar material. Focusing back on the crystal ball he found he could move it around psychically and maybe even whack things with it. Upon experimentation he found he could definitely whack objects with it at the expense of the ball’s durability.
‘This is so eerie without people. I wonder how long I have until the game gets officially released.’
Christopher supposed he was probably best off waiting until the influx of new players arrived. Yes, that sounded good. He found a suitable position to take a seat at and prepared for the long haul. He was sure he’d be here a while.

Word count: 258
Total word count: 593.

[Christopher]

His time alone went surprisingly quickly and soon enough the town was flooded with new players. It began with just a smattering; the prepared ones like Christopher who knew what character they wanted. There were cat-men, elves, dwarves and a whole host of other people here. He noted his own tail and small fox ears that would grow the more he levelled.
Another five minutes passed and the whole square was filled with players like him. There were curious ones, already experimenting with their new skills and abilities. There were anxious and scared ones, calling for friends and loved ones with unshed tears heavy in their eyes. There were social ones, already making friends and alliances with fellow newcomers. Christopher silently wondered who he belonged with; definitely not the homesick. For Christopther, the one certain thing was that he was having more fun here than he’d ever had in real life.
Christopher quickly grew bored of watching the crowd and got up and dusted the fresh dirt off his robe. He decided now was the time to do something and that something had to involve his skills. Not wanting to take his chances on beasts yet he decided he’d try out one of his favourite skills: Psychic Conductor. It was essentially telekinesis and the thought of this excited him to no end.
From his experimentation during the hours of waiting, he knew that he could simply say the name of the spell to perform it. Focusing on a flowerpot about 6 feet away, he said softly to himself ‘Psychic Conductor’ and a string of something like lightning shot out from the crystal ball towards the flowerpot. He then found that he was able to pick it up with his mind to some degree, however he was sure that a momentary lapse of concentration would cause the pot to fly away. He began to make it spin through the air, fully aware that this was attracting odd looks from those around him. He couldn’t help but smile at this. This smile seemed to make him lose track of the flowerpot which, when he looked back at it was smashed against the ground.
‘Oh dear. I’d best get out of here before people notice.’
His marginal success with the telekinesis had lent him confidence; he thought he had a chance against some of the beasts this world had to offer. With his crystal ball floating around him Christopher Mayford departed from what had been the houses of parliament and searched for new experiences.

Word count: 421
Total word count: 1014.