Charles scratched his chin, looking over his scant few options. None of them seemed like anything he really wanted to try out, but he really did want to play the Game. He thought about it, but put the thought aside for a moment, minimizing the Game, and opening up a Firefox window.
He checked the PHUK forums for any news on the progress of the situation. However, instead of a lot of tangible information, he came across a lot of flames. One man said he was posting under his son's name and that he was filing a lawsuit against the company because his son logged in as a seamstress who apparently made Gold on the side in a whorehouse.
The story goes on to say that the child was raped by the NPC's and that the developers must worship satin. Charles cringed at the thought of a parent attacking the Game he loved so much, but the boy was only thirteen, so he could see where he was coming from.
On the other hand, he also knew that no NPC, brothel or otherwise, would ever rape a character even in this A-Rated Game because the designers implemented certain rules for interacting with such NPC's. Sure, it broke a bit of the Suspension of Disbelief, but this Game was still a Game after all. It had it's own rules, though lax, given it's setting.
Charles thought about it for a moment. Why was a thirteen-year-old playing an Adult, 18+ Game? That's against the ESRB rules in that it's no longer the companies concern as a child shouldn't even be playing the Game to start with... they can't even sell the Game in stores because of it's content, and it says so right on the website!
Charles looked back to the Game itself, no longer minimized. A whore, he thought it over. Never would have thought to choose that option if it presented itself. Then again, how often does one even get a chance like this? Why would you spend time playing something that isn't really your thing? You wouldn't... but if given the chance to pick up a story or idea part-way through... knowing that its a short-lived event, well... why not?
He looked over his choices. What would he never think to or otherwise be able to ever play? Well, he saw a Pet. You can't play Pets, even. The designers of PHUK pre-played and balanced each and every race in the Game, even the animals... so the controls should all be the same.
Charles smirked, "Once in a lifetime," he said without looking at anything more than the level of the character. There was a corrupted image of what looked like a female Elf character standing where the pet would normally stand on the character select screen. He clicked on "Enter World", and everything faded to black.
The suit worked it's magic. It didn't physically change you, but it felt that way. As you eased into the Game, all your tiny efforts became big results. Walking didn't require more than a mere muscle movement, nor did anything else... that's what made it almost VR. Technically, Charles was still in his room, but since he didn't really need to leave the chair, he could stay at his computer and never even feel it.
The wolf he now was stood up on all fours. The feeling of wind in her fur, the snow under her feet, the scent of prey animals in the wind. It was different and exhilarating. The scene was overlooking a mountainside and a town down below... there was a hut just behind her with a warm fire cooking. Perhaps this was the trainer's player-made home?
Charles sat down and felt a strange absence between his hind legs. The wolf looked down at herself, and Charles could see and feel her... what term would he use? Bitch-hood? No, too vulgar... Still, the point was there that he was female... and dead in the snow beside her was a female elf.
Making a slight motion like shaking the snow out of her fur, Charles was able to bring up some of the stats of the character. Interestingly enough, the Elf was currently listed as a Pet, just like on the character select screen. Would this mean that "Snowy" would have control over a humanoid, usually Player-controlled character?
Suddenly his mind was filled with commands that rename pets and make them do actions and speak. Should he? Could he? Most people never even think of their pets watching them in the act. It would be like making your own porn.
As he tried to remember how much it cost to Resurrect, he heard a howl reach up into the night's sky from somewhere deeper in the woods. It was another wolf Charles realized. The translation came roughly across the lower portion of his vision and said simply: "[Male Alpha Wolf]: 'I am lonely. Where is my pack?'
Charles turned Snowy's head to look up the mountain. A pack might be neat, but with the system like it was, how did he know it wouldn't be a fellow Player screwing around? And what of this Elf?... or the town below?... or the sights and scents of his current character?
Snowy let out a whine as she became undecided... to Charles, it felt natural.