One list showed the most common names people had given their Cycogs: a mass of HALs, EDIs, Datas, Doraemons, Bishops, Benders, Marvins, Ultrons, GLaDOSes, and Cortanas. No way for me to see how many were called Dio.
This was all very interesting, but I had to wonder why Dio had suggested I check the site out. Top ten lists hardly seemed worth taking the time to mention.
I began looking through the website pages again, and found it: a new tab on the [Contact Us] page. [Pattern Submission].
"Dio, if you were here, and not a floating mote of whatever, I’d totally think about hugging you."
Submitted patterns would be reviewed, and if accepted, players would be able to select them when acquiring in-game clothing, buttons and patches, internal and external Snug decals and entire Snug skins. I hadn’t designed anything suitable to use on the entire outer shell of a Snug, but I definitely would be—mainly so I could use it myself. As it was, my designs would work fine for buttons, patches, and decals.
I read rapidly through the terms and conditions, to make sure there were no rights grab involved. Ryzonart was offering actual royalties: minute, but not limited to in-game currency, even though players would be buying the patterns with in-game credits. I submitted everything I thought would work, and was just sitting back to take a quick break when an email notification popped up. From the Ryzonart Pattern Approval Team.
I stared at a list of acceptances. That had been quick enough to be automatic, but surely Ryzonart would have some kind of vetting process. Did they already have a Synergis office set up, with their staff working at five times the pace? Or was it Dio?
That felt very weird. Dio was fiction. But Dio was definitely aware of the real world, and had directed me to Ryzonart’s site. Could te have been waiting to approve my designs? My own personal advocate, pulling strings on my behalf?
Outside the game?
I frowned all the way through uploading designs to the last of the major sites, and then logged right back in. Once I walked out of the Soup, however, I couldn’t decide on any questions to ask, so I just headed to my cockpit chair, to gaze out at my view. Late afternoon again. My internal clock was never going to recover from this virtual life.
A mote of light drifted into view. Cycogs didn’t exactly have a lot of readable body language, and te wasn’t changing colour, but I decided that Dio was curious.
"Thank you for the tip about the website," I said.
[[You’re welcome. And pensive?]]
"What’s the price of all this, Dio? Will you tell me?"
[[The best things in life are free. Or come at the cost of a modest monthly subscription.]]
"That’s a no, isn’t it?"
Dio didn’t answer, drifting down to rest on the toe of my left boot. I sighed, then looked at my internal clock.
"Still another couple of hours until my next lan training. I guess I’ll see if I can make any progress on this Prestige Challenge."
20
alt
Character creation is a time suck of epic proportions.
Disconcerting as I’d found the naked-me aspect of the Core Unit character creator, it had at least given me a starting point. Proving Ground offered me an empty room and no premade characters to use as a template, just a series of selection boxes and sliders.
The [Species] drop-down held only the not-a-species choice of [Humanoid], which produced a kind of skeletal stick-figure surrounded by a shadow suggestion of flesh.
I sat there, reading through the options, then decided I’d make Kaz, which was going to be an interesting process in itself. I’d played Kazerin Fel through half a dozen games, and he’d been Hume, Night Elf, Chiss, Sylvari, Miqo’te, and Rithari. All humanoid, and useful for fast, dextrous character classes, but I didn’t really have a set image of Kaz otherwise.
There were at least some details I could start with before worrying about the fine points. Where possible, Kaz was tall, fit, and on the skinny side. He’d been blue, green, even covered in fur, but I decided that when human he had black hair and light brown skin. I gave him strong, narrow hands, and lean features with an aquiline nose, then thought about things like claws and pointed ears, but in the end settled on making his eyebrows fine and sharply-slanting. The result was almost Fae: a touch of difference to fit a fantasy-themed game.
I hesitated at the [Reproductive Characteristics] options. It was easy enough to start by picking [Set 2], but MMOs usually didn’t give you genitals, and I’d never had to think about Kaz' penis size. I remembered Python-Bro, shuddered, and left Kaz at the default.
Then, because I’d already spent an hour of game-time making Kazerin Fel, I quickly entered his name and selected [Confirm].
Kaz disappeared, and my bodiless viewpoint shifted to the shadow of an arch of pale grey stone. On one side a massive door stood, barely visible in the bright contrast of sunlight and sky from the opposite direction. Scent—must and damp overlaid by a green note of sap—and the roar of water made their presence felt, but fell away as the camera zipped out into the sunlight, rising as it did so to give a rapidly diminishing view of a castle with a dominant central tower, surrounded by bridges and waterfalls. It receded into the distance, until only the sparkle of a purplish crystal at the top of the central tower marked its location from a distant point on top of a great circular wall.
My viewpoint paused atop the wall, then dropped rapidly down to a double ring of buildings at the outside base of the wall, and passed through a shingled roof to a basic bedroom, occupied by a sleeping and still naked Kazerin Fel.
The Proving Ground has opened.
A monarch must be found.
Challenger, answer the call.
Set forth.
Touch the Heart.
And Rule.
The shadowed ceiling seemed to be painted with griffins. Blinking muzzily, I lifted a hand toward painted wings, but then looked at the hand instead. Long fingers, short nails, and skin a different tone than I was used to. I found myself glancing to my right, to find the source of that stranger’s hand, but I was alone, and those strong fingers belonged to me.
Sitting up, standing, taking tentative steps, all brought a sharp sense of dislocation. Much longer legs than I was used to, and the way stepping worked felt both looser and more constrained. And the [Reproductive Characteristics] were definitely a new experience.
My grand prestige adventure as Kazerin Fel started out with me briefly checking out his equipment, until the recollection that Dio watched my Challenges made me cringe. I looked around for some clothes instead.
The room—like the buildings I’d glimpsed—did not look particularly modern. There were no light fixtures: what light there was leaked through window shutters. Beside the bed was a small table, and a single chair over which was draped black, brown and cream clothing. The only other thing I could see in the room was a mat of braided straw, a door, and that shuttered window.
Forgetting the clothing, I opened the shutters wide, giving the occupants of a balcony opposite a fine view of my bare chest. I quickly stepped back, covering my pecs, and then laughed. Ridiculous!
The chuckle came out deep and unfamiliar, and I pushed the shutters closed before spending some quality time saying: "Kazerin Fel" and "Greetings" and anything else that came into my mind. My words, my way of speaking, but in the baritone register I’d chosen from the character creation options. Being a different variety of human was a bigger adjustment than being a cat had been.