It takes Erik a while to overcome nausea. His brain might be 67% compatible with VR, but he hasn't deep-dived since he was a teenager. When his head finally stops spinning, he slowly looks around. He's inside a dimly lit space and there are four faceless avatars representing the Draconian races floating in front of him.
"Normally, a player would be given a thorough psychological test to determine which race is their best fit," Nala materialises next to him just a few seconds later. "We can skip this part for obvious reasons."
"Is there any chance I might not be good material for a Celestial?" Erik worries.
"Not likely," she waves her hand. "I know that you used to be a helicopter pilot so you're not afraid of heights which is an essential prerequisite for a Celestial. As for your personality, you're definitely not a type for a Clawfang or a Dragonkin. Do you feel drawn to the Earthborn?"
"Not at all," Erik shakes his head. "I'm not interested in genetics, biology and plants."
"The test is not needed in your case, Lord Erik," she assures him. "Besides, His Highness has already started transforming you. Say 'I choose' and the name of your desired race to initialise the process."
Erik steps closer to the faceless avatars, trembling slightly in anxious anticipation. This choice will determine his future. Is he really prepared to do it? Does he truly want to become a different species? He considers his parents and his heart aches. This will certainly alienate him from them.
But then he thinks of his beloved and all doubts disappear. He wants this with burning passion not just for Ryuuto's sake but for his own sake as well. He wants to protect Ryuuto as much as he wants to be able to defend himself. He wants to have six hundred years to spend with the love of his life and he wants to be strong.
"I choose Celestials!" he says without any hesitation and gasps for breath when his body starts floating and gets enveloped in a strange tingling energy.
"In the case of Celestials, a body type is pretty much predetermined to be a lean build, but it will be based on your current physique," Nala explains. "Expect to be thinner than you currently are, but nothing dramatic since you're lean already. Also, we're keeping your real facial features for better immersion so let's skip to the hair customisation."
"I want something natural," Erik ponders when a colour palette shows up in front of him and he notices blue and violet.
"These are perfectly natural hair colours for Celestials, Lord Erik, the Viceroy has violet hair," Nala reminds him.
"Still," he's browsing the palette for a long time, comparing various shades carefully.
If he's dissatisfied with his choice later on, he can still dye his hair, but that would be an unnecessary bother. He has to choose something he will like for centuries if possible. What would suit him best? Nala materialises a virtual mirror for his convenience so that he can try on various colours. What would good nice next to Ryuuto?
He discards black, blue and violet right away and tries various shades of brown. Some of them look nice and he would like them as a human but they are simply too plain. Should he try blond then? It was never his preferred colour before, but considering he's changing his entire species, he might as well radically change his hair.
"Oh, Royal Consort, that really suits you," Nala exclaims when he tries an even brighter blond out of pure curiosity.
"You think so?" he inspects his hair in the mirror.
"Try longer hair," Nala suggests and shows him how to adjust the length. "Not that it's important now, you can always grow your hair later, but just to see it."
"Oh, that's...!" Erik widens his eyes when the bright blond he tried on a whim starts to stand out. It looks flashy but still reasonably natural. He ruffles his hair which is reaching slightly under his shoulders.
He would never go for the kind of hair Ryuuto possesses since something like that fits only his androgynous beloved, but maybe something he could tie into a ponytail isn't a bad choice. Damn, golden hair would look gorgeous next to Ryuuto's silver, right?! Erik would be nicely complementing his husband.
"I'll go with that," he decides after carefully considering all the pros and cons and taking forever in front of the mirror.
"Let's proceed to wings then," Nala nods happily, content with his choice. "Brace yourself, Lord Erik."
"Brace...?" Erik doesn't understand when suddenly something starts violently pushing into his spine.
He's astonished that he feels a sharp pain. Fuck, he forgot that Draconia was a hardcore game with pain perception! Fortunately, the pain doesn't last for too long and, in just a few seconds, he feels something weighing heavily on his back. He turns his head to check, but his new limbs are covered with pulsating energy so he can't see much.
"You need to choose the colour and the pattern of your wings first before the system can generate them fully," Nala explains. "Choose wisely because this process can't be reversed."
When Erik gets presented with the options, his head spins again. He had no idea there were so many combinations. He tries to imagine what would Aefener like the most, but then he remembers that his beloved has no preference for colours or patterns. This is something Erik has to choose for himself because he will be stuck with it for centuries.
He tries various combinations one by one. The pulsating energy disperses each time and shows him what he chose, but nothing quite clicks with him. Moreover, Erik isn't a Celestial just yet. He has no idea what exactly makes wings beautiful or average-looking.
"Take your time, no rush," Nala tells him when he looks at her desperately. It's been over an hour, but she doesn't seem bored.
"Nala, I'm lost here," Erik sighs. "How did the players choose before?"
"They didn't care about it as much because they considered Draconia to be just another game," she shrugs. "They either had their favourite bird in mind for inspiration or they asked the system to randomise."
"I should have asked Ryuuto after all," Erik regrets.
"The Prince went for the snowy owl," Nala says and materialises a picture to show him.
"Huh? Ryuuto didn't have pure white wings from the beginning?" Erik is confused when he looks at the picture. The snowy owl's wings are also mostly white, but they are black-patterned.
"Every Celestial has unique wings," Nala starts explaining. "It wasn't permitted in the character creation to choose pure colours because that would result in repetition. However, since the late Celestial Emperor also had white wings, we wanted to keep the tradition. We decided that the player who earns the title of the embodiment of magic gets a makeover. The same for the second-best player."
"So that's why Ryuuto often complains that his wing colour is boring, it was forced upon him," Erik finally understands. "He likes white, but he prefers patterned wings. How did he become the Celestial Emperor anyway?"
"You don't know?!" Nala frowns.
"Ehm," Erik feels embarrassed about it. "I mean... it was just a game so it never seemed important to ask."
"Lord Erik, Draconia Online isn't just a game, it's a simulator," Nala has to remind him. "The system takes one's latent abilities and inner tendencies, amplifies them and manifests them fully. His Highness didn't become the Celestial Emperor just because he's such a good gamer. The Imperial Guard is full of super proficient gamers. He became the Emperor because he was born to rule."
"That he was," Erik admits. "So, there was a competition or something?"
"We planned for that, but it wasn't needed in the end," Nala smiles proudly. "His Highness soloed ten entry-level dungeons in a row before other players even managed to leave the tutorial zone. He ranked first with an overwhelming score and gained millions of followers on Vortex in just one week."
"Got it, holding a competition after that would be a joke," Erik understands. "He didn't catch your attention with that feat?"
"Of course, he did, we were astonished," Nala nods. "However, at that time nobody could have anticipated that the player known as Aefener is half-Divementis and His Majesty's lost heir. We were just looking forward to having a strong Celestial Emperor to help up in the upcoming war."
"And the Viceroy? How was she chosen?" Erik is curious.
"As the Celestial tradition dictates, we left that decision to the newly appointed Emperor," Nala says. "His Highness continued conquering dungeons one by one and when he finally teamed up with someone who could keep up with him, it was Her Excellency Liana. It was her who convinced him to start a proper guild and claim the palace."
"Sounds like Ryuuto," Erik chuckles and looks at the picture of the snowy owl again. He likes those wings, but choosing them might be too sore for his beloved since it was his preference originally.
"What about something exotic?" Nala suggests and shows his various pictures of colourful tropical birds.
"That would be a nightmare to coordinate with my outfit," Erik rejects that idea. "Can you show me hawks? I've always liked hawks."
"Sure," Nala overwhelms Erik with many different subspecies of the hawk.
"There are this many?" Erik sighs and starts going through patiently them one by one. "Oh, what species is that?" he stops when one particular kind catches his attention.
"Northern Goshawk," Nala looks up quickly.
"It is both white and grey," Erik considers. "It would look great next to both Ryuuto and Gotrid. Not that I need to consider Gotrid, but still..."
"Let's try it on then," Nala smiles and makes Erik's wings transform in an instant. "I know that you can't move your new limbs just yet so let me do it for you."
Erik's wings spread to their full size so that he can better appreciate their colours. A virtual mirror shows him different angles and he spends several minutes evaluating himself. He has to admit that he likes what he's seeing.
"Are these unique? Really?" he makes sure. "Ryuuto will be able to tell that they belong to me and me only?"
"I don't have a Celestial perception, but these wings are definitely unique, Lord Erik," Nala assures him. "You will be able to tell the difference when your brain adjusts. Are you happy with the choice? Can we proceed?"
"Wait, what about clothes?" Erik realises. "Do I have to wear a robe?"
"Clothes aren't important now, you'll be changing your gear as you progress through levels," Nala waves her hand.
"Clothes are important," Erik mumbles under his breath. He was always into fashion but ever since he started to earn some serious money thanks to working for the Celestial government, it transformed into an obsession of sorts. Part of the reason is that he's desperately trying to look elegant next to his husband who's naturally beautiful without even trying.
CONFIRM YOUR CHOICES
A window pops in front of him. Erik gives himself a few extra minutes to double-check everything. He took several hours in the character creation, but his choices will affect the rest of his life. Hopefully, a very long life.
He touches the holographic confirmation button and everything around him including his body dissolves.