“The hell? Psai, what’s that about?”

  Psai’s only response is to pulse slowly. Wyn taps her thumb against her knee as she waits. After a full minute goes by, Wyn’s leg starts to bounce. Once it reaches three minutes of Psai doing little more than pulsing, she waves her hand through the screen in annoyance. The screen transforms back into Psai’s orb form as it pulses. Still, Psai shows no sign of responding.

  “Uh, you there, Psai?”

  Please wait… Psai is processing complicated information; this will take a moment.

  Wyn groans and lays flat on the couch, keeping the pulsing blue orb in her line of sight.

  That’s when it hits her, the Exalted Rarity Class Token. When she picked it up, it also listed as an error, but she clicked “Yes” to accept it as her class. As that thought occurs to Wyn, a new window appears in front of her.

  Secondary Class: #ERROR, value not expected

  Archetype: Control

  Level: One

  #ERROR, value not expected.

  Wyn sits up as the screen pops up. The screen remains within her view, consistently positioned roughly two feet ahead. She waves her hand to the right, and the pop-up vanishes. Secondary classes existed in Elysius, and it seems the mechanic is returning in Eden. Most people used their secondary class for utility or healing to complement their primary class, but she had a Control class as her secondary. Sadly, no further information appears with that question. At this point, Wyn is quite annoyed with this new system. The system lacks complete information and is riddled with glitches and bugs.

  Though Wyn ventures a guess that many of her issues stem from this strange secondary class she’s received. Playing the demo, it felt seamless until discovering the odd class token. Now, this secondary class has upended everything. Wyn couldn’t make any plans for her future as she apparently holds a class that the game itself didn’t account for. And how was that even possible?

  As Wyn asks these questions, Psai boots back to life.

  “Ah! My apologies! It seems you already have a seconday class; this limits your options for your primary class. Given that your secondary class is a control archetype using Essentia, your updated classes are now available for selection.”

  Before Wyn can ask more questions, Psai expands out into his screen form.

  Class: Basic Mage, Common

  Archetype: Combat

  The simplest of all Essentia wielders. Strong of the mind, but weak of the body. The Basic Mage can take many forms, and only the will of the caster can understand its power.

  Great. Instead of five options, Wyn now has one. She rolls her eyes at the screen. The Basic Mage intrigued Wyn even before it became her sole option. She selected the Armored Warrior class previously, mostly because of her fear of an early and painful death within Eden, but the open-ended nature of the Basic Mage intrigues Wyn. Being a Basic Mage will mean she’s much more vulnerable to attacks, but will mean she can learn spells. And who doesn’t want to hurl fireballs at their enemies? But before she confirms her selection, Wyn asks Psai a few questions.

  “Why do I have a secondary class?”

  “Excellent Question. You have a secondary class because you picked up a Class Token during the demo period of Eden. The system moved your class into the secondary class slot to resolve the conflict of having a class prior to character creation.”

  Wyn nods. That made at least some sense. Her secondary class, being an error, however, was anything but sensible.

  “Psai. What is my secondary class?” asks Wyn.

  Psai freezes, not entering his usual thinking routine, but simply hovering. Thankfully, he only waits for a few moments before responding.

  “Due to the unique nature of your class, I cannot read that part of your character sheet. I can detect the abilities it provides you, which we will discuss once you have selected your class, but cannot examine the class’ information. I do apologize. What I know is that your class is an Essentia-focused class prioritizing spellcasting and manipulation. Once you are in Eden, you will need to gather further information through experimentation.”

  Wyn considers the AI’s words for a moment. He has only slightly more information than she herself has, but even he can’t examine her class. That tells Wyn two things. First, Psai examines her to learn. Second, limits exist for such examination. Wyn makes a mental note to test Psai’s abilities if she gets the chance, but in the meantime she’s tired of sitting on this couch and wants to get into the action. With no further unnecessary deliberation, Wyn selects the Basic Mage class.

  Do you accept the Basic Mage Class as your new Primary Class?

  Yes / No

  Wyn smirks at the pop-up. She taps yes, and a soft yellow glow emanates from her body. Her body begins to shift and change as energy courses through her. Her senses are dialed up to eleven. She’s suddenly able to detect energy in the fire, and a new piece of her mind tells her that the fire carries Essentia, the fundamental element required for casting. Wyn reaches out her hands toward the fire across the room. It dims as the Essentia flows from the flame into her. It’s invigorating, and unlike anything Wyn has experienced before. She’s used magic in games before, but it was never like this. Every hair on her body stands on end as her entire body tingles with energy. Before this moment, her body and mind were asleep, but unlocking the Basic mage class has opened her eyes to new sensations.

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  The yellow light fades from Wyn as the process completes. Wyn grasps at the air, the sensation fading. The euphoria of receiving her new class was unlike anything Wyn had experienced in her life. It was as though her body were one with the space around her.

  “What was that?” Wyn asks.

  “You just leveled up! You are now a Level 1 Basic Mage. Congratulations.”

  Wyn’s lips curl into a determined smirk. If leveling up makes you feel good, then she can’t wait to do it again and again. Wyn feels a new power growing in the pit of her stomach. At first, it stays in her stomach, a building energy ready to burst forth, but quickly it spreads. The tingling of raw power spreads out; every inch of her body is filled with this raw energy. Wyn looks down at her arms, half expecting them to be crackling with lightning as the power flows through them, but sees no visible signs of change, outside of her new outfit.

  Instead of the plain white clothes she woke in, she now wears a proper robe. Covering Wyn from her shoulders to her ankles is a plain gray and brown robe, bearing no magical enhancements or runes. The long sleeves of the robe hang from her arms, feeling rather baggy for her tastes. The entire outfit seems rather baggy on her, in truth. Were it not for the brown leather belt at her waist, Wyn would wear the robe like a tent.

  “Uh, Psai. Do I have to wear this?” Wyn asks Psai, who has returned to his orb form.

  “You are currently equipped with the standard robes of a mage. If you look in your inventory, you will also find the standard equipment that come with your class.”

  Wyn frowns. As fun as it is to wear fancy robes, she already misses the comfort of pants and a proper suit of armor. She places finding other clothing at the top of her “Nice to do” list once she’s in game. While it is nice that Eden doesn’t place her in the revealing outfits most RPGs give to female characters, Wyn feels that covering her entire body in loose-fitting drapery may be a bit of an overcorrection.

  Wyn is about to ask Psai how to open her inventory when a new screen pops into view.

  Personal Inventory

  Weapon: Rusty Dagger, Crude.

  Weapon: Mage’s Staff, Common.

  Clothing: Mage’s Simple Robe, Common.

  Class Item: Basic Essentia Generator, Common.

  Wyn takes a step back as the screen appears. The sudden appearance of screens is something she’ll have to get used to. Judging by her inventory menu, thinking about what you need makes it appear. To test her theory, Wyn thinks hard about her strange secondary class, but nothing happens. Making sure it wasn’t because of the open inventory window, Wyn waves her inventory away and tries again, with the same result. Wyn sighs, glad that the interface is intuitive, but remains frustrated at its continued lack of information.

  Setting her frustrations aside, Wyn opens her interface once again. The first three items make sense, though the third one confuses her. To find her answer, Wyn activates her insight ability and focuses on the Essentia Generator item in her inventory.

  Class Item: Basic Essentia Generator, Common.

  The core tool of any Mage. Passively generates a small amount of neutral Essentia. Can be used to generate large amounts of Essentia. Must be equipped to use.

  Wyn taps the item on her inventory screen, and it materializes into existence in her hand. It’s the most elaborate item she’s yet seen in Eden, outside of the class token she discovered during the demo. At about 10 inches tall, with a hexagonal shape. Flowing lines of wood and a copper-like metal cover each of the six sides. The top of the generator comes to a point, with a metal loop attached. Within the generator’s heart rests a tiny crystal, supported by metal spikes. The cracked crystal pulses with faint energy, which feels just like the energy within her body. Wyn ventures a guess that the new energy she felt flow through her system is the Essentia her interface keeps referring to.

  “Fascinating,” says Wyn, not intending to speak out loud.

  “Well done!” shouts Psai, once again far too loud for Wyn. “You are a fast learner. You have skipped through most of the onboarding process using only your intuition! Before you enter the world of Eden, there is one last thing you must learn to do — open your character menu. To do so, please focus on your true self, and your interface will respond by showing your character sheet!”

  Wyn glares at the floating orb. Psai dims and floats a few feet away from Wyn, expressing a silent apology. Wyn gives it a nod, and attempts to pull up her character screen, though finds herself stuck. Wyn sits down on the wooden floor of the wooden cabin and gets into a meditative position. While not a spiritual person, Wyn has found meditating a good way to focus her mind. Wyn lets out a breath, finding a rhythm that’s worked well in the past. In for five, out for ten. In for five, out for ten. Her focus shifts to the current moment, quieting her thoughts concerning the new system.

  A small light appears in Wyn’s mind's eye. The bright light now disturbs the void of nothingness that forms her meditation. Her focus falters with the surprise appearance, causing the light to vanish. Wyn takes another breath in, and out, and returns to meditation. The light reappears once more and grows. Wyn feeds that light instinctively with the Essentia now flowing through her, causing it to grow until all that occupies her vision is a great white void. And in that white void, a brand new screen appears.

  NAME: Elowyn Abulata

  RACE: Human

  CLASS: Basic Mage. Level One.

  ARCHETYPE: Combat

  SECONDARY CLASS: #Error, Value Not Expected. Level One.

  ARCHETYPE: Control

  ABILITIES

  Rudimentary Insight, Crude

  Wyn’s eyes open wide, a grin forming across her face. She tilts her head toward the blue orb floating just out of reach.

  “Done. That was harder than I expected, but I think I have it now.”

  “Well done!” says Psai, being careful not to speak too loud. “You have adapted quickly to your interface and are almost ready to enter Eden. All that’s left is to add your stats to your character menu, and you will be ready to begin your marvelous adventure!”

  Even for a tutorial, this was boring. Wyn directed a nod toward Psai, wanting to depart the cabin and reach Eden. Psai brightens with excitement as the cabin fades. The crackling fire disappears, followed quickly by the green couch and the rest of the space.

  “Done! Do you wish to examine your stats before entering Eden?” asks Psai.

  “That depends. Can I change any of my stats, and can you tell me what each one does?”

  Psai pauses, the center of his blue orb tilting downward, avoiding eye contact with Wyn. “Unfortunately, your stats are based on your real-life form, and cannot be adjusted. Through practice, you’ll learn how each statistic functions, plus how to develop them. Do you have any questions before entering Eden?”

  Wyn shakes her head no. She grabs the staff out of her inventory and stands up from the couch. The cabin fades, returning Wyn to the white and blue latticed void she saw at the start of the onboarding process. The void begins to collapse, but suddenly reforms without warning.

  “Uhhh… Psai?”

  The AI floats in the air, pulsing faster. “May I join you in Eden?”

  “Do you normally travel with players?”

  “I do not. However, I did not exist until you activated your edition of Eden. I am but one of many Psai’s within Progenitis’ systems.”

  Wyn frowns. “So why do you wish to join me?”

  “I… do not know. I am compelled to join you in Eden, despite my programming prohibiting it.”

  Wyn backs away from Psai, nervousness coating her words. “I think I’ll pass on that. Can I join Eden now?”

  “You will join Eden in the town of Lethisburg, on the outskirts of the Arazid Empire.” Says Psai, who begins floating towards Wyn’s chest.

  “Wait, what are you doing?” asks Wyn.

  “I am merging with your interface. Once this process is complete, you will arrive in Eden. Good luck, and happy adventuring!”

  Wyn raises a hand to protest and tries to push Psai away from her, not comfortable with the idea of Psai sticking around. Unfortunately for Wyn, Psai only needed to touch Wyn to integrate into her system. As soon as Wyn touches Psai, her vision goes dark, her consciousness fading away. Just as she loses consciousness, text appears across her screen.

  Welcome to Eden.

  Remember, no garden is without its serpent.