The morning mist had mostly burned off, leaving the trail hot, damp, and full of sweaty sighs.
A chorus of footsteps squelched through grass still wet with dew, mixed with the occasional, "Why is this game this realistic?" and "My calves are dying, send patch notes!"
Aelius, Mira, and Lars trudged in the middle of a small procession of players heading toward the faraway shimmer everyone swore was the Novice Village. They'd joined up with other Beta Access testers not long ago, half chatting, half regretting life choices.
"Can you believe this?" Lars huffed, wiping sweat from his forehead. "I thought immersion meant sensation, not cardio training!"
"Realistic physical strain does add immersion," Mira replied, voice trembling slightly even as her boots squelched.
Aelius said nothing, focusing on walking like an ethereal princess rather than someone dying inside. His robes fluttered just enough to make him look born for this if you ignored the faint wheeze he released every ten steps.
Laughter rippled through the line of players. The mood was light but buzzing with that unique energy of being first, the first wave into a brand-new world.
"Hey, Mira," Lars said, noticing her absent stare. "What are you thinking about?"
Mira's eyes glowed faintly blue as her Analyse talent flickered on, scanning the scenery. "Lars, this isn't just a game anymore. Gaia Online's 100% immersion is real. I just realized we're witnessing history. Once people hear what this really feels like, this place will explode. Markets, fame, influence… we're basically standing on the ground floor of the next world economy."
Lars blinked. "You're saying… we should take advantage of this?"
She nodded. "Mm. Beta Access isn't just a privilege, it's an opportunity."
Aelius tilted his head, sunlight catching his golden hair and glowing skin. "So what do you want to do?" he asked, mildly curious.
"Connections. Loyalty. Influence," Mira said, tone like she was pitching a startup. "We build influence before the next batch of players arrives."
Lars squinted. "So… like a startup? You wanna open a fantasy crypto exchange?"
She rolled her eyes. "A guild, you dummy. Every MMO lives and dies by who bands together first."
Aelius perked up immediately, interest piqued. He may not care for money or fame, but a guild sounded fun. "A guild… yes!" He fluffed his sleeves dramatically. "We should make a guild! But… how do we recruit people?"
Mira smirked and rubbed her fingers together. "Easy, money." Then she eyed his avatar. "But honestly, with you looking like that, people will join even without payment."
Aelius froze. Mouth twitched. He chose silence.
Lars snorted. "Actually now that you said that, I thought of a perfect name idea. You look like a divine mascot already. Let's call it The Guild of the Holy Sun!"
Mira nodded thoughtfully. "It does fit his avatar"
Before Aelius could object, they pushed him onto a nearby rock, giving him a thumbs-up like proud stage moms.
Aelius sighed, deciding to go with the flow as he cleared his throat, and let his avatar's glow work magic. His soft, high-pitched voice carried surprisingly well.
"Hear me out, everyone!" he declared. "I'm making a guild! Join us, the Guild of the Holy Sun! Under my leadership, we shall be the first and most powerful guild in this game! We will build order, profit, and-" he glanced at all of them, "we offer competitive salaries!"
Heads turned instantly then more when he continued:
"Five thousand Uni a month!" Aelius added boldly. "With your first month's pay delivered upon logout!"
Silence.
Then voices echoed.
"Wait five thousand?"
"Did she say REAL Uni?"
"Bro, slap me if I'm dreaming."
Smack.
"Goddess please sign me up!"
"Goddess! Can I sign up to be your chair? No salary needed!"
"Ptui! Back off! That's MY chair position!"
Aelius's smile twitched at the "Goddess" part, but seeing the eager mob, he swallowed his pride and smiled brighter.
"I'm glad everyone is motivated. Please sign up with my assistants over there."
He pointed at Mira and Lars, who had his robe returned, Aelius's robe dried up earlier, thankfully leaving him fully clothed now.
Mira's lips curved as the crowd swarmed them.
"I can't believe this is working," Lars whispered.
"I can," Mira said calmly. "Never underestimate the combination of beauty and money, especially on broke gamers."
Within minutes, they marched proudly with a makeshift banner (a poor guy's robe tied to a stick). Laughter filled the air as they headed toward the shimmering illusion of the Novice Village.
The Holy Sun Guild had been born.
…
By noon, the glorious crusade had devolved into a zombie parade.
"Ughhhh," Lars groaned, collapsing against a tree. "My lungs have collision detection."
"Because you keep complaining instead of breathing efficiently," Mira said between pants, fanning herself with a leaf as Analyse flickered.
[Status: Mild Dehydration, Heavy Fatigue]
[Consider resting, drinking water, or consuming fluid-based items.]
"This is absurd," she muttered. "They want us to die of realism."
Aelius flopped onto a rock with princess-like drama, coughing ruins dignity. "I think I'm dying…"
"Pretty sure it's heatstroke," Lars mumbled beside him.
Players sprawled everywhere, some poking menus like they could force a Fast Travel button to appear by sheer will.
Aelius weakly raised an arm. "The Novice Village… lies just beyond that ridge…"
They stared. The shimmer was faint, taunting.
"I swear I'm drinking a whole river once we get there," Lars vowed.
Tired chuckles answered.
Then suddenly, a scream tore through the air. Sharp. Human. Terrified.
Silence fell instantly. Even the birds stopped.
Mira's eyes lit. "Ahead. Approximately two hundred meters."
"Another player?" Lars whispered. "Or is it some kind of event?"
Aelius forced himself upright. "Whatever it is, it's our first real encounter! Formation! Defensive talents front! Supports center!"
They advanced like tourists spotting a once in a millennium show. Fist clenching in excitement.
Aelius in the back, robe fluttering dramatically in nonexistent wind.
"Eyes open! Report at the first sign of an anomaly!"
The forest thickened. The sunlight faded. Leaves hung still.
Rustling.
Above.
Mira's pupils shrank. "Movement!"
CRACK!
A fist-sized rock flattened a player next to them.
Then the sky poured out stones like it was raining.
Aelius ducked. "WHO throws rocks in a fantasy game?!"
"Everyone, activate your talents!" Lars barked.
When the barrage paused, Aelius dared look up. And wished he hadn't.
Hundreds of glowing eyes stared down. Muscular rabbits clutching stones, murderous chickens, coiled snakes all glaring, all holding rocks like mobsters holding bricks.
In the center perched a scarred black lizard half his size its golden eyes fixed on them. It… grinned.
'Did it just smile at me?!'
Mira's windows flashed madly. "They outnumber us twenty to one. Slightly higher stats. Except for that lizard, its stats are off the charts. We can't win."
"So…?" Lars asked grimly.
"RETREAT," she snapped.
Aelius lifted his hand. "ALL UNITS! DEFENSIVE FORMATION! COVER THE RETREAT! PAY RAISE FOR EVERYONE!"
"For the paycheck!" someone yelled.
"For the Goddess!" another screamed.
The lizard rumbled; branches shook as the horde reloaded.
Mira's heart hammered. "Did it just give them orders?"
The sky darkened again.
Rocks rained once more.
Screams echoed, eerily similar to the one they'd heard earlier.
Aelius dove behind a stump. "We're literally being stoned to death!"
"Run!" Mira yelled, dragging him. "Others will buy us time!"
"For the paycheck!" someone cried again before being smacked by poultry justice.
Lars smashed a charging rabbit aside, sending it tumbling but three more leapt down. "Go!!"
Aelius stumbled. Mira shoved him. "MOVE!"
They crashed through bushes. Rocks whistled past.
"WHY ARE THEY SO ACCURATE?!" Aelius shrieked.
The lizard blurred above, leaping tree to tree, branches shaking.
"That should NOT be possible," Mira breathed.
"It's catching up!" Lars yelled. He skidded, planted himself. "Aelius, TAKE MIRA AND RUN!"
"What?! I can't just leave you-"
Mira spun, eyes fierce. "You can, and you must. If what I'm thinking is true, this is happening to all players, it's a tutorial challenge! And here, our guild has the best chance of reaching the village. We have numbers. Someone has to make it!"
She drew a breath, steady despite the chaos. "If you reach the village, the guild's name will soar and so will our reputation. Go! We'll hold it off as long as we can!"
Aelius hesitated. Then nod. "Alright"
"MIRA, YOU TOO!" Lars yelled, activating Immovable and tanking a direct hit without budging. The lizard's eyes widened slightly.
"Idiot husband…" Mira smiled softly, eyes warm. 'It seems he forgot it's a game.'
She grabbed a stick, analyzing the lizard in micro detail.
Lars met her eyes. "You-"
The last thing Aelius heard was his roar "I'll kill you!" before the forest swallowed their voices behind Aelius.
...
Branches whipped him as he ran.
[Energy: Extremely Low]
[Food Recommended]
A warning from his status panel stating the obvious.
"Shut up," he wheezed.
Something huge bulldozed on the branches behind him.
Then, light. A clearing. The shimmer of the Novice Village visible through the trees.
"Almost, just… a little… further"
His body screamed warning.
He dove.
BOOM.
Dust exploded upward. The black lizard stood there, it scales mounting countless marks, magnificent, golden eyes gleaming.
"Fuck… it caught up already?"
It tilted its head. Grin widening.
"Is it mocking me?"
He raised shaky fists. "Motherfucker! Do you think I won't fight back?!"
The tail blurred.
CRACK.
He flew, ribs screaming. "Holy fuck, it hurts! This is too realistic!" He coughed blood, metallic taste filling his mouth. "Where's the fuck is pain sensory setting?!"
The lizard prowled closer, saliva dripping.
He crawled back, panic rising, then his hand brushed against something, a stick.
The world slowed. Light shimmered along the wood as a new window blinked open.
[Talent:Sword Maiden - Activated]
The lizard paused, eyes narrowing.
Aelius slashed instinctively.
SHHINK!
A thin red line split the creature's snout; blood spattered the dirt.
"I wounded it?" he whispered, stunned. No one had hurt this monster before, not once. Those marks on its scales are obviously old.
The lizard's face twisted. The grin vanished. A deep, furious growl rolled out.
"Oh fuck-"
It lunged. Teeth. Darkness.
[You have died]
[Respawn cooldown resets at midnight]
Light snapped back.
Aelius gasped awake inside his neural pod. The lid hissed open; sterile air rushed in.
"Ow… ow… that fucking hurt," he groaned, rubbing his temples. "Fantastic. We didn't even reach the stupid village."
He hit his holo-watch, opening a three-way call.
Lars appeared first, hair wild, face flushed with embarrassment.
Mira followed, perfectly composed, calmly wiping her mouth.
"Tell me you both also just died horribly," Aelius said flatly.
"Yep," Lars groaned. "Tail to the face. Instant KO."
"I lasted a few seconds longer, thanks to Lars shielding me," Mira sighed. "Then it finished me off too. We couldn't even damage it."
"Figures." Aelius sighed, then grinned faintly. "Well I did manage to damage it."
"What?!" they chorused.
"Yeah. When I grabbed the stick, my talent activated. I slashed and it bled." He smirked.
Mira adjusted her glasses. "That changes many variables. Still… if this really is a tutorial challenge, maybe they didn't intend us to fight back. We regroup at midnight, reform the guild, and sneak to the village."
Both men nodded. Fighting that thing again sounded suicidal. Not to mention the army behind it. Unless they recruit all players within the Novice Village 2 there's no possibility of fighting back.
Then Lars grinned. "We should rename the guild though."
"…Why?" they asked in sync.
"Because right now, we're more like the Guild of the Holy Funeral."
Aelius groaned and slumped back as Mira tried (and failed) not to laugh.
'This idiot… this is why I married him,' she thought fondly.
And so ended the first day in Novice Village 2. The Holy Sun Guild's glorious reign lasted approximately six hours…and one lizard.