Prologue: Baby steps my young grass hopper

My friends and I had just gotten back from the latest Bronycon that year. I'd love to tell you all about it, but that's not really the pressing subject of this story. I had been one of the ten lucky winners to get my hands on the newly released game, 'Questria: Online. Why the hell they made the title sound like a Redneck saying 'Merica, I'll never know.

I don't have to tell you that I was giggling like a little kid who had just noticed his first side boob, but I'm going to anyways. I was, as Rarity would say, absolutely ecstatic! Not only had I gotten my hands -soon to be hooves- on one of the very few copies of this highly anticipated game, but I had just bagged one of the only hundred limited edition versions of 'Questria: Online!

The limited edition version of the game included your "Circle of Friendship" level in-game weapon, armor, and companion. Now, you have to understand, Circle of Friendship equipment wasn't necessarily the highest level you could receive in the game, but they were the only type of equipment that leveled up along with you. Since, the game was based on completely open classes (the type of role you choose to play your character as) the stats on that equipment were absolutely customizable, within reason.

Take leather armor for example (before you get into it, why, and how, ponies got a choice of leather armor as protection was beyond me. I don't think the creators of the game exactly thought that one through), generally, leather armor is classified as medium armor, along with chain-mail. Though both leather and chain-mail are in the same armor class, they both provide different properties and purposes.

Leather armor provided an average amount of protection, but redeemed itself in it's flexibility and it's boost to agility and speed stats.

Chain-mail provided you with a bit more protection, and slight resistance to slashing attacks. Though, you sacrificed flexibility and speed for it's added points to armor, as well as the absence of being a successful stealth combatant.

Of course, these weren't the only types of armor provided. Cloth, plate, and a various other amount of other options were made available to the players. Each one with their own unique and various stats and perks.

Just like every other MMORPG, there was no shortage in the variation of weapons included in the game. My personal favorite though was the featured wing blade/ armor provided for the Pegasus, Griffins, and other flying capable playable races. The wing blade/armor was pretty unique in itself. Offensively, the actual blades of the wing based weapons did fairly minimal damage, about that of a knife of small sword, but defensively, the capabilities were unmatched by normal shields. The wing blades not only protected you like a regular shield, but they made you increasingly resistant to flying offensive abilities like gust, strong winds, cloud throwing etc. Just like everything else in the game, they came with their own weight, literally

The wing blades were incredibly heavy and slowed down your flight speed as well as putting a major dent in your agility. They also took away the racial perk of fast-travel from the character, whether they were currently equipped or not. You could also kiss aerial transportation for your friends and companions away too. The flying characters were definitely gifted with a unique amount of utilities (just like every other race provided with their own racial utensils and perks), but they were all mostly sacrificed away with the choice of wing blades.

I had already purchased the X-Nerve-Station previously before I won the game. I had no other games for the console. Whether or not I won the contest at Bronycon, I was going to get the game regardless. If hadn't won the contest, I was still going to get 'Questria: Online by purchase or by ripping it from the hands of a child, and yes, I would steal from a child. I wanted that game. Nothing was going to stop me from getting it. Not even the sad dream broken tears of a crying child.

I don't know if he had a sixth sense or hidden cameras in my own home, but my dad was always capable of trying to get my attention right before I popped in a game. I got a phone call from -you guessed it-. I rolled my eyes before opening my phone screen to the personal ID image of Papa Bear from the Bernstein bears I had set for my father.

"Dad" I said. The enthusiasm I used to speak on the phone could be compared to the reaction one would have after winning fifteen cents in the lottery.

After hearing my dad's tone, I wished I had faked my excitement to see his name on my caller ID a little better. He told me that Grandma, his mother, was having trouble breathing again. This had been an issue for her for quite some time now, a few years actually, but it had only recently started to become a serious problem for the past few months. All the years of smoking and working had finally started to take it's toll on her. She was going to the ER this time. Dad said he'd keep me updated on anything if it came up.

I didn't know if I could pick up my phone while I had the X-Nerve-Station on over my head, much less even hear it, but I made sure to put the volume at it's maximum.

I laid my back down flat on my bed and relaxed my body as the X-Nerve-Station began to power on. I don't know if it was the intended sound, but the X-Nerve-Station powered up as dub step sounds filled my ears, increasing in bass and intensity as I let myself get sucked in the virtual world of 'Questria: Online, my unknowingly new life and possibly greatest adventure for the rest of my life.