I found something worse than waiting for the preorder to open up, and that was waiting for the game launch to open. According to the company, the servers that help relay information are a special kind of new technology that sends out brain signals. This allows for all the information for your character stored on the server to be relayed back to the other users. 

This controlled movement, items, armor, and appearance. Everything about the character. All personal data about the player themselves was stored on the device. This meant that the player would never have their personal data out in the open. Of course, if things go as my dreams have been going, the character's appearance does not mean much of anything since your real appearance would override it. 

I haven’t had that dream in the past few nights. Mainly because a few nights ago, after dream after dream of fighting that massive monster, it was killed. In the end, though, after sustaining so many wounds, it seemed I might have died. The people who fought were also killed one after the other. From what she could tell, she and a few others survived until the end. From what she could tell, it took them almost an entire month to kill it. The attack patterns were not grasped until only a few people were left. The weak point, which was the back of its neck, also did not surface until the monster was almost dead.

Everything from the game to the monster was imprinted in my mind. It's strange because I can forget many things within just a few days, but ever since those dreams started, I have been able to remember them all. 

But what was killing me at this time was the fact that the clock was ticking but not ticking fast enough. This is probably my fault. I have been lying on my bed for an hour now with my headset on, staring at the timer in front of my eyes as if I was possessed. 

As soon as I got the headset, I spent almost three hours calibrating it. Normally, it’s only a ten-minute setup, but I was worried that things were not perfect. It scans your entire body as well as your appearance. This enables you to feel more natural in your avatar. You don’t need to get naked or anything like that since it only takes your height, weight, body build, and facial features into consideration. 

“Ten seconds!” I cried out as I kicked my feet up into the air. This was the moment of truth. The time when everything I have been dreaming about would become fact or fiction. If it is fact, then I will use all my knowledge to grow as strong as possible as quickly as possible. If it is fiction, I will just enjoy the game and live out my days as I have. There is nothing else I can do otherwise. 

“2! 1!” The screen in front of me flicked, and my vision went black. When my eyes became clear again, I found myself in a very familiar room. I do not know if I had wanted things to turn out like this. Maybe I was hoping for it. But at the same time, I was scared. Because the room I was in was the same room I dreamt about, the character creation screen of Mortal Online. 

The company never showed the character creation screen to the public and only some videos of the game world. So, I know I never saw anything about it online. And I know the only place I did see it was in my dreams. “Maybe it’s just a coincidence?” 

If it was, then what I was about to do would really not be good. But I decided to do it anyway. “I will just keep my real appearance. No changes.” 

I was standing in front of a mirror that reflected back my body and my original appearance. In my dream, this was also the same. They used this as a basis for all characters. 

“Are you sure?” A voice echoed through the room. I paused and looked at myself. I was definitely not the prettiest girl on the block, that was for sure. I was about to answer yes when a thought came to mind. I do remember some people bringing their in-game appearance out of the game. Was it a kind of cosmetic item? I never asked since I had never looked into the cosmetic stuff. There were not many people who had a change in appearance, but maybe it was something worth looking into. It had to be something that came about before things became real.

With this thought in mind, I decided to do a mix. “Can you mix my current appearance with that of a dark dragon race?”

The image before me began to change, and soon, a new me stood in front of me. I looked around at myself and nodded my head in appreciation for what I was seeing. I could feel both the horns, wings, and tail. They even felt very natural to my body, as if I have always had them. 

“Not bad…. Can you replace the dark dragon with a fox kin?” I asked.  I did not expect a response since I would not get one. I looked at the fluffy tail and the cute ears on top of my head and nodded in appreciation. To be honest, looking at myself as a fox girl made me actually think I was pretty cute. For some reason, it seemed to match me. While I did like the dark dragon, this seemed to match me much better. But I was still unsure; there were still a few races I wanted to check out. 

I know this would all be for naught if I was unable to find the item that allowed me to keep my appearance, but I really wanted to create a new me. A me that was unlike the me of the past….