The Gam3 Book One - Opening Moves
Cosimo Yap
Edited by Aimee Hale.
Cover design by Kit Foster.
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, businesses, places, events and incidents are either the products of the author�s imagination or used in a fictitious manner. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, or actual events is purely coincidental.
Copyright 2016 by Cosimo Yap. All Rights Reserved.
Table of Contents
Arc 1: The Tutorial
Prologue
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Arc 2: The Guild
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Chapter 20
Arc 1: The Tutorial
-Anonymous
Prologue
"Remember, it's just a game," Icewolf said.
"But it's not," Alan replied. "You told me that the Game affects real life. That if you conquer a planet in the Game, you control it in reality."
"Sure, it's a virtual reality massively multiplayer online role playing simulation that was designed to replace all war, but it's still a game. And you need to treat it like one." Icewolf sat back in his chair. He was leaner than Alan remembered; the light grey jumpsuit he wore fit him like a glove. It was emblazoned with the Omnitech Industries logo, a giant steel pylon being struck by lightning.
Alan shook his head, then stared out the window. The view of San Francisco was gorgeous. If anyone had told him a year ago that he would be sitting in a penthouse suite decked out like a Bond villain's lair six months after aliens invaded, about to enter the virtual reality game that was central to their society, he would have dismissed them as a troll. Yet, here he was. A college student with unkempt black hair. Anonymous, or so he liked to think.
"If you play a game, you play to win, right?" Icewolf asked.
"Right," Alan said.
"So if it was a role playing game, where shit is worth something, you would take anything not bolted down or kill another player for their gear, right?" Icewolf asked.
"If I wouldn't get caught and was playing a Rogue-type character, sure, but�"
"But nothing, there are no alignments. You play the Game to win. Don't treat it like reality or just another job, it's not, the rules aren't the same. If you die, you'll respawn. If you kill stuff, you'll get rewarded. If you kill enough stuff, you'll level up. And so on. So throw caution to the wind and act in your own best interest."
"Oh, I know that," Alan said. "I didn't become one of the top raiders in the guild flailing around, but I never imagined that this would be my career path. Not that a college degree is worth much with all the AI running about."
Icewolf opened his mouth, closed it, then opened it once more.
"All right, sure. Do your thing, build your...
"If you say so," Alan said.
"Trust me, when the Enforcer fleet first came here they did jack shit but hand out capsules and broadcast the Message. UWG laws weren't enforced until they had Earth conquered in-game."
"Okay, okay, I believe you. It explains why credits are worth ten dollars each. Can I start playing now?" Alan asked.
Icewolf glanced over at Alan's capsule. It was a smooth metallic grey oval about 10 feet long resting on a large black rectangular docking bay, like for a phone, but much larger. Attached to the docking bay were all sorts of metal wires and tubes, some nearly an inch in diameter. Everything led into the walls and floor, off to who knows where.
Alan's capsule looked slightly different from the four others in the suite; it was slightly larger, was a darker shade of grey, and included a black box attachment that the others didn't. The black box was attached to a miniature satellite dish, as well as to all of the screens at the center of the room, and had a series of giant Ethernet cords running off of it. All in all, the capsule reminded Alan of a sensory deprivation tank more than anything else.
"Fine, last words of advice," Icewolf said for the fifth time. "Focus on yourself before anything else, but remember you owe me ten million dollars for the capsule. You can begin paying me off after the tutorial.
"I recommend energy weapons, they're easy to use. Point and shoot, no recoil or reloading needed. Armor is of the utmost necessity. Don't piss off anyone with bigger guns or a backer you can't trace. Finally, are you sure you trust that AI you designed? I know you programmed it yourself, but there have been incidences of AI going haywire after being transferred into the Game."
"Eve is the reason I made it here," Alan replied. "She was designed to beat games."
"Just be careful. The AI that oversees the entirety of US military operations is only rank B, and your AI is apparently rank D. Combined with the rank B capsule..." Icewolf trailed off.
"How accurate are these ranks anyway? Shouldn't a game use levels?" Alan asked.
"Ranks are accurate enough that everyone from the Department of Education to the god damn Pentagon now use them to assess and classify everything from cubes to spaceships," Icewolf said.
"And the Games does use levels, but that's tied to your character; ranks judge the strength of everything else, from items to monsters to abilities. The reason your capsule cost ten million instead of a hundred thousand is because it's a rank B capsule specialized to let you have an in-game AI, and I got it for a steal. Nowadays, I bet an Olympic weightlifter�s strength would be rank D at most, and a capsule like this one could sell for 50 million on the open market."
"Got it, my AI is over powered, the capsule even more so, and I'll start paying you back once I'm done with the tutorial. I'm still not sure why you decided to take this risk for me, but let's get started," Alan said, walking up to the capsule.
As soon as he was a few feet away the capsule opened, revealing a pool of silvery liquid a few feet deep. Alan looked over to Icewolf for reassurance.
"Think of it as an investment; I have the capital and want to sponsor a friend I know is a capable gamer. I'll have some jobs for you once you've finished the Tutorial, but focus on that first. And remember, it's just a game!" Icewolf said.
Taking a deep breath, Alan climbed into the capsule and submerged himself in the liquid, which felt like fluid gelatin. The lid closed over him, leaving him in complete darkness. Panicking, Alan began thrashing about, sure he was going to drown. This was some cruel joke; a way for aliens to harvest gullible, unintelligent humans. Yet when he opened his mouth he realized he could somehow breathe this liquid. Alan took a few deep breaths, then faded into unconsciousness...
Chapter 1
A ray of light broke Alan's reverie, a dream he couldn't recall being real. He had been in a serene, white room, or so he thought, but was now lying in a field of yellow, dried out grass. Looking around, he briefly panicked, but then remembered he was in the Game. It was amazing how lifelike everything was. The touch, the sight, the smell� everything seemed so��
Everything around Alan was crystal clear. He had always had a bad sense of smell, and his vision wasn't perfect. Now, though, he could see the tiny drop of water on an individual blade of grass nearly twenty feet away. He also smelled everything, from faint dewy grass to animal scat to lemon trees.
Trying to get a grasp on where he was, Alan looked for noticeable landmarks. He was on top of a small hill in some rural part of what he assumed to be California. There were two small buildings: a quaint one-floor farmhouse with a small garden in front and a barn that had been turned into a house with a few rusted solar panels on the roof.
There was a dirt road between the homes, but where it led Alan had no idea. There was nothing else but forest and brush as far as he could see, up and down the hill, or mountain, or whatever it was he was on.
Standing up, Alan looked down at his body in surprise. He clenched his fist, then took a few steps; Alan felt more fit, more in-shape than he ever had in his life. It was like he was at the peak of his fitness level back when he had ran cross-country, although he�d quit since it was too painful. He felt like he could run a six-minute mile easily.
Jogging up and down the hill, testing his movements, Alan realized he also felt more balanced, almost super human. He wanted to try a front flip, but then reconsidered.
The authenticity of the Game amazed him. He was stronger, faster, and more perceptive than he�d ever been, but it still felt like him, his body. He suddenly noticed the small icons that were in the corners of his vision, and stopped jogging. They were faintly outlined, but when he concentrated on them they became more opaque. These icons were ones that could be found in any game, mostly aggregated in the bottom right hand corner of his vision.
There was the character button, where he could look at his status, and the social button, where he assumed you could send messages as well as add friends or people you wanted to block, although he wasn�t yet sure that was part of the Game. There was an inventory button, showing what items he had, as well as a log button that would list what happened to him, a guild button for stuff relating to a group of people that formed a group to play together, and an options menu. There was also a map with a clock in the top right corner of his vision.
Alan momentarily panicked once he realized there was no log out button, but then he remembered that he�d need to stay in the Game for a week in real life time, about a month in-game time, thus the whole changed living location. This would probably be explained with time.
Wondering what each button did, Alan reached out in front of him, pressing in the air where he saw the character button. Nothing happened. He waved his arms in front of him, trying to press the buttons he could see so clearly.
�What the hell is happening? How am I supposed to open these menus?� Alan said aloud, thankful no one was around to see his frantic flailing.
�What? Who�s there?�
�Wait, no, I mean, who are you?�
�Are you inside my mind?�
Half sure he was going crazy, Alan thought in rapid succession,�
Eve responded
Immediately Alan regretted his decision. Hundreds if not thousands of bugs all around him were glowing bright red.
Shutting his eyes, Alan thought,
Alan opened his eyes. Everything was red, from the Sun to the ground. He had no idea how leaves could be deadly, but they were highlighted.
The trees, everything on the ground, a few sharp sticks, and the houses remained highlighted. Groaning aloud Alan sat back down and thought for a few minutes.
�Sighing, Alan thought some more�
***
A bit later, Alan hoped he had worked everything out. If he had missed something, it�d become apparent, and he would change it. The thought occurred to him�
Rolling his eyes, more amused than he maybe should have been, Alan scanned his surroundings. Everything was back to normal, there weren�t any glaringly red things in his vision or thousands of creepy crawlies.
He looked up at the clock by his minimap. It was 4:44 p.m. in the afternoon, Pacific Standard Time. There was also a countdown that read 00:15:43.
Alan had figured out that Eve was, unfortunately and fortunately, a program, which meant he had to think commands precisely, defining things in such a way that she understood. It was like making macros in other games he�d played.
Wondering what had happened to all his time, Alan asked Eve,�
Running over to the larger farmhouse, Alan tried opening the door.
Locked. No luck.
Alan sprinted over to the other house. The entrance was only a sliding glass screen door. Picking up a large rock from the garden, Alan threw it at the door with all his might.
The rock bounced off the door, creating a dent, but not shattering it like Alan had hoped. He looked at the clock. There were ten minutes left.
Then Eve pointed out,�
Alan was almost sure he could hear some derision in her voice, but that was impossible, she was just a machine. Although, exactly what a machine was capable of was quickly becoming unclear.
He ran up to the door. He tugged on it and it slid open.
Almost face palming, Alan entered, looking around. To his right was a small kitchen, while there were an open living room and dining table to his left. He could see a few closed doors down a short corridor.
Hoping to find a weapon, Alan ran into the other rooms, opening closets and bedside drawers. The only thing he found other than clothes, books, house supplies and board games was a dark green compound bow with arrows. He had no idea how to use the bow but figured it might come in handy.
As there was a minute left, Alan ran into the kitchen, picking up the largest knife he saw, a six-inch cutting knife.
When Alan tried opening the inventory button, there wasn�t a bag or slots where he could deposit items. Instead, a simple list of everything he was wearing and carrying appeared.
Figuring that there wasn�t a built in inventory system to store things like in most games, Alan grabbed a green backpack in one of the closets, putting the arrows he�d found in it, gripping the bow in one hand and the kitchen knife in the other.
Alan watched the countdown.
0:00:03�
0:00:02�
0:00:01�
Chapter 2
A message popped up in front of Alan, startling him a bit:
Welcome to the Game! As you logged in for the first time from Earth, the United World Government would like to give you a presentation before you begin the Tutorial.
Accept and proceed to US spaceport.
Decline and begin Tutorial.
Alan thought for a second, then motioned at the Accept button in front of him. Whatever the presentation was, it was probably important.
Nothing happened.
He�d briefly considered enabling the ability to push buttons he saw with his hands, but figured it would probably lead to misclicks.
There was a slight disorientation, shortly followed by a sudden blinding light.
Alan closed his eyes. When he opened them he found himself standing in a cylindrical, mechanical tube, the glass in front of him sliding open.
Directly in front of him was a Caucasian male American soldier in full military gear, motioning him forward. As Alan stepped shakily out of the chamber, he looked to his left and right; he could see there was an entire row of the teleportation chambers, or whatever they were, with people stepping out into the open all around him.
As the soldier eyed Alan warily, Alan remembered the bow and knife he was holding in his hands.
�Wait, sorry, I thought there might be a survival challenge or something. So I grabbed what I found where I started when I logged in. Umm� do you have anything that might hold this knife? Actually, you can have it, and the bow and arrows.�
Alan thrust his hands forward, holding both the knife and bow out. It wasn�t like he was going to be able to do anything with them, and he sure as hell wasn�t going to go walking around carrying a kitchen knife. People would think he was crazy.
The soldier stared at him blankly for a second.
�Okay. Wait here for a moment, player.�
The soldier took the bow and knife, then started walking over to a small station of soldiers set up near the exit.
Alan glanced around, trying to get a better sense of his surroundings. It looked like they were in an airplane hangar of some sort, upwards of two hundred feet long and a hundred feet wide. There were maybe fifty chambers with players emerging out of them. In front of each chamber was a soldier holding an assault rifle. Everyone was being directed to the exit at the far end of the hangar.
Trying to see if he could spot anyone he recognized, Alan looked around at the emerging players. Most of them were muscular, with a no-nonsense gruffness, and wore a uniform representing the company that hired them. These were not the nerdy gamers Alan had been expecting. Alan felt rather out of place in his jeans and t-shirt.
The majority also carried guns. Maybe Alan should have held onto the knife.
Still, there were a few people casually dressed like Alan, as well as people in more colorful clothing.
A pair who passed by Alan stood out, a knight and wizard. The knight wore a full set of armor and carried a sword and shield. He made a few loud clinking noises as he walked by Alan. The wizard was wearing a blue robe and a blue pointy hat, both stylized with a few silver lines in a simple pattern, making wild gestures as he walked.
Alan heard a brief part of their conversation:
�� some random place in the countryside. I spent half the day trying to get used to this bloody armor. Did you know that plate mail can really ride up your��
Then, Alan saw the soldier who had taken his knife and bow returning, carrying something in his hands.
The soldier walked up to him, handing over a knife in a sheath.
�Here player, put this in your pocket. It�s a basic combat knife, not even ranked, my CO thought it might be useful though. Now, please follow everyone else to the auditorium.�
�All right, thanks,� Alan said, pocketing the knife.
�Remember, stab them with the pointy end!� The soldier said in a joking manner.
Alan nodded, trying to smile in a friendly way. He didn�t want to piss off someone holding a fully automatic weapon.
Alan followed everyone else out of the hangar, still intimidated by all the weaponry being carried about. He had to walk through some sort of metal detector to exit the building. Nobody asked Alan to empty his pockets. In fact, almost no weapons were confiscated other than a few fragmentation grenades a mercenary had brought with them. Alan wondered what they were scanning for.
Emerging from the building, Alan saw that he was surrounded by at least twenty more hangars that had people streaming out of them. There were literally thousands of people heading towards a large white tent. Groups of soldiers of varying nationalities milled about, urging people that were lagging behind onwards.
Alan felt rather smug with himself, although he had absolutely no idea what Eve was actually doing, or how she found a backdoor into the network.
While he was training Eve he had her reading books and forums on hacking, as well as many other subjects. There were a few tutorials and testing sites that treated hacking like a game, so he�d have Eve play those too. Still, if it was this easy for Eve, maybe Alan should sell her�
Alan arrived at the tent. Within, Alan saw there were tens of thousands of seats, most of which were filled. At the far back a group of important looking officials sat on a stage with a podium on it. One figure among them looked especially strange, and it took a moment for Alan to realize he was staring at an alien.
The alien looked like a human male, with pale blue hands, around seven feet tall. He, or at least Alan assumed it was a he, wore a skintight, dark blue spacesuit that covered most of his body. Covering his face was a helmet with a dark blue faceplate that had three horizontal silver strikes on it.
Next to the alien was a general, a diplomat, and a World Government senator, at least according to Eve. Alan recognized the senator from the news. Alan took one of the seats in the very back near an entrance. He sat down, and stared at the alien.
Alan probably should have memorized all this information about aliens and whatnot before entering the Game, yet he had all of the free online encyclopedia downloaded onto Eve's memory banks. With today's modern technology, what was the point of memorizing anything, anyway?
In the end, Alan had wound up spending most of the time he was supposed to be preparing playing video games. Playing games to prepare for one made sense, right?
How exactly a footnote was implanted in a thought, Alan wasn�t quite sure, yet the information still came across clearly. He also felt a bit annoyed that Eve had answered his errant thought.
Alan wondered,�
The senator, a woman in a navy blue pantsuit, stood up, walking up to the podium. Alan didn�t see a microphone, yet he could hear her when she spoke.
�Welcome to the Game. It is my great pleasure to speak with you today. I�m sure you are anticipating the adventures you might have, the wonders of this brave new world. But I want to stress one point. If�humanity hopes to prosper in the days ahead everyone must remember this one, specific rule.�
�The Game is not just a game,� the senator said.
There was a pause.
The senator raised her hands, speaking louder and faster.
�The Game is war, on an intergalactic scale. The territory and resources of every nation in the universe is based upon their standing in the Game. We are told by the Haxlards that once there was a great war between the Predecessors and another sentient race, the Lords of Life. It was the final war fought in reality; a war to end all wars.
"Countless lives were lost, planets made inhospitable, but the war continued, year after year. Then, as both sides neared mutually assured extinction, they realized their foolishness, and finished the battle within a virtual space instead, simulating all the forces they had in real life, both sides agreeing to surrender should they lose this virtual war, this game.
"To ensure whichever side lost actually surrendered, both races created a neutral machine fleet, the Enforcers, who we now know as the real life arm of the Administrators, the moderators of this game. We know little about this First Virtual War, but as far as we can tell the Lords of Life are no more, and the Predecessors still exist.
"War as we know it ceased. Every battle from that point on was fought virtually, the outcome of these virtual battles dictating reality. This virtual world grew, encompassing more of the known universe as the Enforcer fleet spread out, forcing warring planets to accept peace, and the Game.
"How large of a space the Game now encompasses no one really knows. What is known, however, is that the Enforcers hold the largest and only combat fleet in reality. Any group that attempts to create a warship of their own in reality is eradicated." The senator paused.
"That then leads us from these Enforcers to the AI that govern this game, the Administrators. There are many rules, such as not divulging certain pieces of information about the Game to people who have not yet undergone the Tutorial.
"More importantly, newly found sentient races are introduced to the Game, like humanity was, and are given a period of immunity before they are able to be attacked in-game. This will only last three more in-game years.
"Once this immunity wears off other forces within the Game may, and will, attack us. And, should another force take over the planet, take the right Control Points, they will be given the territory they conquered in-game. They will control the taxes, the laws, and the collection of natural resources." The senator gripped the podium.
"Should we not develop ample forces fast enough or forge the proper allies, Earth will be lost, gone from human control. Thus it is imperative for you"�she pointed at the crowd�"who are about to enter this game to remember Earth. Remember humanity. Remember��
Alan leapt up, looking around. A few people looked at him, but most were intent on the senator�s speech.
Suddenly, a burst of gunfire was heard outside.
Alan dashed outside, following a blue line that showed up on the ground in front of him. He sprinted forwards, oblivious to his surroundings, following Eve�s directions.
He didn�t notice anything out of the ordinary, but continued to run along the blue line. The sound of gunfire grew louder.
The blue line led Alan into a nearby hangar, then stopped.
A gruff male voice began speaking over a loudspeaker:
�People of Earth. You are being deceived, lied to with traitorous propaganda. The United World Government is already in the palms of the Haxlards. If you hope for there to be an Earth free of alien control, there are two things you can do:
"Join the Legion of Man, or die.�
Overlaid on top of the voice that was speaking on the loudspeaker, saying something about the tyranny of the United World Government that had arisen, was a female mechanical voice. It said, �Everyone should evacuate the big white tent because a bomb is inside. You should be able to since you have the same permissions as these rebels.�
Wincing at the addendum, Alan waited, hoping people were able to hear the warning.
A few seconds later, a huge explosion went off. The concussive force rocked the hangar Alan was in, but no signs of damage appeared. Eve had gotten him far enough away. And, while the explosion was loud, it wasn�t enough to set Alan�s ears ringing.
Glancing outside, all Alan saw in the direction of the tent was smoke and debris. The constant gunfire returned. Looking upwards, Alan saw two small dots approaching. Whether they were ally or enemy ships, he had no idea.
Standing behind the hangar door, Alan tried to calmly observe his surroundings. Everything was so lifelike Alan had forgotten he was in a game. The world, the other people, his own body, everything felt exactly like it would in real life. He could smell and even taste the smoke that was in the air now. Each gunshot was a loud shock to his mind. With a glance, Alan noticed he�d been gaining experience for his actions, and for Eve�s. That meant if he killed a few rebels, he�d probably get experience too� only he�d probably die trying to do so.
His status popped up, along with a 360� picture of himself. He was shown having 100% HP, 89% stamina, free of disease. There was a tab for skills, but none were listed.
A message popped up in front of Alan:
The presentation by the United World Government has been determined to have ended. Please proceed to the designated ship to begin the Tutorial.
Once he read the message, another popped up.
Player: Adampwnage
Ship:�
Destination: Mars.
Please proceed to your ship as soon as possible.
A small icon appeared on Alan�s map, a spaceship of some sort, probably�the Grasshopper.
A green line appeared on the ground, showing him a path to the ship. Glancing outside, Alan saw a few soldiers in mechanized armor running past. They appeared to be holding laser rifles.
Drawing a deep breath, Alan burst out of the hangar he was hiding in, sprinting as fast as he could. Alan kept his head down, following the green line before him. Better safe than sorry.
He heard a soldier call out to him. He continued running, adrenaline pumping. A minute later along the path Alan was completely winded, panting, slowing to a walk as he glanced around and saw no one. Maybe he should have worked out more in real life� this correlation to his real life endurance certainly explained why all the people the companies were hiring to play the Game looked super fit.
The path Alan was following led him along a runway parallel to the hangars. Behind him, acrid black smoke hung above where the tent had been. The ships he�d seen approaching were now overhead, small jets shooting lasers at the ground. The jets weaved back and forth in the air, far more nimble than any aircraft Alan had seen before, reversing as though inertia wasn�t a thing.
A man in a black jumpsuit turned a corner from behind one of the hangars. He raised his assault rifle at Alan. Alan raised his hands up in the air, yelling "I surrender! I surrender!" The man glanced at Alan, then continued to scan his surroundings.
Alan let out a held breath, about to say something, when a sword emerged from the man's chest. There was little blood, and the wound was slightly pixelated. The man fell to the floor, dead.
Amazed, Alan looked behind the man to find an Asian girl about his age, wearing some sort of dark navy blue martial arts robe. Alan thought it might be called a hakama, or something like that, but that was only what he remembered from watching too much anime. The sword was a katana, according to Eve, which likely made the girl Japanese.
"Um, thanks, I'm, uh, I'm an innocent bystander," Alan said, trying to get a better look at the girl�s face. She turned and stared at him. She had fierce brown eyes and a few scars on her face. Unlike almost every other girl Alan had ever known, it didn't look like she was wearing any makeup. Handsome leapt to his mind before pretty. And deadly.
She began raising her sword.
"Wait! Aren't you Kitana?" Alan said. "Icewolf told me you were in this batch of tutorial recruits, he showed me a picture of you, as you'd already entered the Game. Our capsules are like right next to each other in real life!"
Kitana paused, lowering her weapon, staring at Alan.
"You are Adampwnage?" Kitana asked.
"Huh? No! I mean yes, but call me Alan. Adampwnage was the stupid username I thought would be cool in high school, going by Adam instead of Alan because my mom didn't want me using my real name. Icewolf registered me under that name without asking me.�
"We should proceed to our respective ships."
"Um, right," Alan said. Kitana nodded at him, then began sprinting off in another direction. Sighing to himself, Alan watched her go. He continued along the path Eve set. He was nearing the hangar the Grasshopper was in when Eve suddenly commanded him to stop.
Alan waited a few seconds, wondering what this was about, then a new message popped up:
Transfer to
Alan thought for a second, then agreed. Kitana probably knew what the hell was going on, and the capital planet sounded better than Mars. Then again, Alan had no idea who she really was, and if she had anything to do with what was happening right now. He tried to recall what Icewolf had told him. Kitana was the daughter of an influential Japanese businessman, or something like that. One of Icewolf's colleagues had recruited her, a sword instructor. That was it.
Alan began jogging along the new path, away from the hangars towards the series of runways. The jets continued to rain laser fire down from above, causing havoc amongst the United World Government ground forces. Suddenly, two giant green lasers shot out from where Alan was running to, slamming into the jets, disintegrating them.
Squinting his eyes, Alan could see a faint outline of a small ship landed in the middle of a runway in front of him. Eve classified it as a Haxlard dropship. It was fairly nondescript: a small grey aircraft that looked like a carrier helicopter but without the rotors, designed to carry goods and people to and from larger spaceships. Alan started running faster. He could make out a Haxlard mounted on some sort of assembled laser turret. Alongside him was a truck with Kitana and a group of seven other players, the knight and wizard he'd seen earlier among them.
As Alan approached, Kitana looked up at him, surprised. The Haxlard, wearing a green mask with a single white, vertical stripe, stepped forward. A few more Haxlards, wearing completely black masks stepped out of the aircraft and began disassembling the turret.
�Greetings Earthling! Blessings to you and yours. You must be Adampwnage, our new addition. I am Pharaoh, the captain of the Titan.�
�Uh, greetings Ultihaxlard sir, call me Alan,� Alan responded, really wishing Icewolf had used a different username.
�New addition?� A Hispanic guy in a white suit asked. His body language practically yelled that Alan shouldn�t be here.
�Yes. Alan here somehow managed to convince the Titan AI to allow him aboard and grant him passage. I'm curious, how did you manage to discern I was an Ultihaxlard?�
�Uh, my AI told me.�
�Well, I suppose that answers both questions then. Now that we�re all here, let�s get aboard�this dropship so we can get to the Titan.�
The guy in the suit threw Alan a questioning glance, but followed Pharaoh as he walked up the ramp of the dropship without saying anything. Alan waited until everyone else was in front of him, following Kitana who was the last of the group to walk aboard. Alan noticed a splattering of blood on her robe. Everyone else seemed rather disheveled as well. The knight he had seen earlier was missing his helmet, and there were small tears he noticed in other people�s clothing.
Pharaoh led them into the loading zone, where five seats aligned each side of the ship, silver rectangular blocks that adjusted for each person that stood in front of them. In the middle there was space for other belongings and cargo, but nothing was there now.
Pharaoh paused before entering the room where Alan assumed the pilots sat.
�All right, you�ll all begin the Tutorial once aboard as agreed," Pharaoh said. "You will be joined by Alan. Rest assured we aren�t brainwashing your leaders or anything like that. The Three, blessed be their name, would never stand for it."
Pharaoh entered the cockpit as everyone sat down.
Once seated, Alan noticed a metallic seatbelt and strapped it over his waist as he looked up at everyone. Not sure what to say he looked up at the person in the white suit seated directly across from him, and said, �So uh, who are you guys?�
"I�m Thiago," he said. "I don�t know how you got yourself aboard, but as far as you're concerned we�re a group of arbitrary players that have arranged to be on the same ship to Khersath. I'm more interested in who
"He's a business acquaintance," Kitana answered for Alan. "What happened after I left?"
�After the announcement of the bomb, a force field covering the stage and first few rows was activated while people evacuated," Thiago said. "The shield stopped most of the blast, but the people in the back rows weren�t so lucky. We were quickly extracted and found our way here. Where did you go? You disappeared the instant gunfire was heard.� Thiago glanced at the blood on Kitana.
"I went to find the fighting," Kitana said, calmly staring back at Thiago.
�Well, um, I�m glad to hear the announcement helped,� Alan said.
�That was you?� a short, brawny guy asked. He had dark brown hair and wore military fatigues, but carried no weapon. He had a faint Eastern European accent Alan couldn't place.
"Well it was Eve, my AI, that did it really,� Alan said.
�How?� he demanded.
�Uh, well, she was able to access the base�s network, and detect the bomb," Alan stammered, wanting to change the conversation away from his possibly illegal activity. "Now, wait, so everything the senator said was real, there�s this intergalactic federation or something, but all the territory and what not is determined by this game?�
�Yes, although it�s not quite as dire as it sounds, or at least if it was there'd be more hubbub," a girl sitting next to the short guy said. She was a pretty blonde in a yellow sundress, wearing sandals. That seemed rather impractical to Alan.
"I'm Daisy, by the way, and this is Ace," she said, pointing to the guy in military fatigues. "My mother is the senator. It cost millions to get us aboard this ship, which is partly why Thiago is so flabbergasted to find you joining us.�
Alan glanced around at the rest of the group. They didn�t seem particularly remarkable. Except none of them looked too alarmed at having a bomb blow up in front of them.
�Okay, but how do you know the Legion or whoever they are weren�t telling the truth?" Alan asked. "How do we know the government isn�t already under alien control?�
�Well, we aren�t certain of the details, as the amount of information we can be told is limited before we complete the Tutorial. That is a key point that you may have missed if you left the tent. Do NOT tell anyone information about the Game, or else the Administrators will penalize you strictly,� Thiago said.
�Now," Thiago continued, "while we can�t be absolutely certain the government is free, it is unlikely they've been secretly overtaken. The Haxlards allied themselves with us early on and have aided us with new technology and weapons, along with many game capsules.
"I believe the explanation is if we fell to an enemy group, Earth would be a prime staging point for war with the Haxlards, thus they are trying to ensure our defenses are secure as possible. This Legion of Man is likely funded by the Haxlard�s enemies.�
�Wait, you said not to tell anyone anything, yet someone clearly explained all this to you beforehand,� Alan said.
�Well, certain information isn�t taboo," Thiago replied. "Yet, exactly what is and isn�t is arbitrarily determined by the Administrators, thus it is better to be safe than sorry, and not really tell anyone anything.�
Thiago begun talking again, and Alan realized that these conversations with Eve were progressing at the speed of thought� that was interesting, and possibly quite useful.
�Now, there are various Tutorials, and levels of tutorials. Unlike most tutorials which only explain how to play the game, the Tutorial is more of a test. It determines your class and place in the Game, which then determines if you are able to join a decent Academy and Guild. One of the reasons we paid to get here is that we are about to undergo a group Ultihaxlard tutorial, which promises significant rewards should we do well.
"We know there is going to be a group fighting exercise, thus we have determined the following: KingArthur is going to tank enemy attacks, Daisy will be the medic, and everyone else will be either ranged or melee damage dealers.�
�And I shall be THE WIZARD,� MadMerlin shouted, leaping up out of his seat, arms stretched wide. He was the person wearing wizard robes.
�We don�t even know if magic exists in the game yet,� KingArthur, the person in metal armor, murmured to his friend. "Also, seeing as we never read a�"
�We don�t? Or, do we?� MadMerlin grinned and extended his hand. �Let there be LIGHT!� A small glow emanated from his palm.
�What!? How did you do that?� A girl sitting between him and Thiago asked. She was just wearing a pair of black jeans with a grey hoody, yet it was clear she had a supermodel�s figure, with long brunette hair and a pair of designer sunglasses.
�A wizard never reveals his tricks, Aphrodite!� MadMerlin shouted as KingArthur shoved him back into his seat, strapping his seatbelt on, treating MadMerlin like an unruly child.
�Okay, yes,� Thiago said, �and MadMerlin will be the wizard, whatever that means. Now, what role were you thinking of, Alan?�
�Well, I was thinking I could be a scout, maybe set up traps, gathering information. I think I could be a tactician with my AI's help.�
�A scout? Do you have any combat experience?� Ace, the guy Alan had thought was a soldier, asked.
�Well not really, but I usually played a Rogue type character in role-playing games, umm��
A message apparently appeared in front of the other players in the ship.
�Should I accept this, Alan? An Eve is requesting the ability to access my UI,� Kitana inquired.
�Um, yeah, that's my AI. She should be able to give you a minimap and maybe update it, that�s what she�s been doing for me.�
Eve currently showed the ship in space, the nine other passengers and three other beings in the cockpit. The dropship was now passing by Saturn.
�Interesting,� the final person who hadn't introduced himself commented. He looked Chinese and wore a black suit with a black shirt. Holstered to his side was a submachine gun, making him look like a gangster.
�I am DaLong," he said. "We should be approaching the Titan soon then. It�s on a space station beyond Pluto, outside of our solar system. Another reason you shouldn�t worry about the Haxlards: their ships and agents above a certain rank aren�t allowed into our solar system.�
Alan hadn�t ever really liked picking sides in games before - he more enjoyed picking sides apart. Playing the rogue mercenary, loyal to whomever paid him the most. Now that the fate of humanity and the control of Earth hung in the balance, maybe he should reconsider his main goal of trying to make a bunch of money�
�All right, this will be fairly helpful," Thiago said. "As you noted you don�t have any combat experience, I feel like it would be best if you went out with one of our more experienced members, Ace or Kitana.�
Alan looked over at Kitana hopefully.
�I will be paired with Alan,� she said.
�Excellent. Is there anything else someone would like to say?� Thiago asked.
�Uh, well unlike you guys it is probably fairly clear I don�t really have connections. So, um, I�m a couple million in debt, and I�m going to try to play this game to make money,� Alan said, wincing as he remembered how much money he owed.
�Yes, that�s fine, even expected. We don�t expect you to play solely for the sake of humanity. But if Earth is invaded, you would hopefully help defend it. I�m not sure how this all works out, but certain guilds are often stronger than governments, so I�m not going to tell you how to play. We all have different plans,� Thiago said, looking at everyone else, implying something. Alan wasn�t quite sure what.
Alan noted that most of the group seemed to defer to Thiago, yet often various people didn�t look like they completely agreed with what he was saying.
�Wait, we�re not going to be expected to actually kill things, are we?� Aphrodite said. She looked to have been quite shaken up by the bombing and ensuing escapade.
�Well, that is sort of the point of being a ranged damage dealer, which was the position you agreed to,� Thiago said, deadpan.
�Oh, uh, right. Well actually I think I might be better suited to be a healer then like Daisy, or maybe a negotiator. We might not necessarily need to fight, right, just survive?�
�I�m not sure, we should let the tutorial begin, and then figure it out,� Thiago firmly replied.
�Um, okay,� Aphrodite murmured quietly, eyes downcast. Alan thought he might have seen a tear or two emerging, and he felt like he should say something. Thiago, for some reason, was rolling his eyes, but didn�t say anything else.
Alan still wasn�t sure who these people were or how they had met, and he swore he saw a few members of the group throwing weird glances at him. There were a lot of names and faces to suddenly remember. Something Alan had never been good at.
Looking at the minimap, Alan saw that they were approaching the space station. The lights above turned from a fluorescent yellow to green. Pharaoh emerged from the cockpit. Aphrodite wiped her eyes and sat up immediately, looking remarkably at ease for someone that appeared to be in a great deal of distress seconds earlier.
�All right my little earthlings, we are about to land on the Titan. Please remain in the designated areas, although you won�t be able to see your quarters until you finish the Tutorial. Once we land on the ship, you will be guided to the capsule room, where the Tutorial will take place.�
"Wait, we�re going into capsules within a capsule?� Alan asked.
�Yes,� Pharaoh answered, glancing at Thiago, �Evidently their explanation wasn�t very good. Capsules are one of the key features in this Game, allowing you to access your Home Base, teleport to various nearby locations and exit the Game.�
�The majority of mock battles, tournaments and tests take place in worlds accessible only through a capsule or simulation room. The Tutorial may take place in one of these simulated worlds, or it may take place within the Game. Now, I�m sure this and more will all be explained when you enter the capsule. Please follow the guards, I need to get to the bridge.�
Eve sent a mental shrug.
Amazed once more at the Game, Alan unbuckled himself as the dropship landed. The ramp extended, and Alan followed everyone else through a narrow corridor similar to those before you entered an airplane. He could see a series of three or four additional corridors, most likely leading to other small aircraft.
At the end of the corridor stood two Haxlards, wearing metallic light blue armor that covered their entire bodies, making them look like robotic statues. They had blue faceplates, which Alan figured by now had to stand for rank or something; he wasn�t sure if it�d be polite to ask about it. Alan didn�t see any breaks in the armor, yet as the Haxlards gestured them forward their joints moved with ease.
Each Haxlard held a laser rifle in one hand, or at least that�s what Alan assumed it to be. The device was curved into a U-shape, and each Haxlard gripped the weapon at the base of the U, while a green laser beam stretched across the two tips of the U, connecting them.
Following the Haxlards, they emerged into another corridor, only slightly larger than the first. There wasn�t much to see, just narrow, grey metal corridors with the occasional closed grey door.
As everyone else followed the two Haxlard guards, a few of the doors they were passing had their basic layouts filled in. A few were labeled as dining facilities or restrooms or storage, yet the majority were labeled classified, revealing nothing about their contents. The restroom reminded Alan that he had to go, and he�d probably need to eat and sleep as well. He figured the goal had been to make armies or whatever as realistic as possible, and armies needed to eat, sleep and drink. At least, biological ones did.
When the layout appeared, Kitana glanced back at Alan. He surmised that everyone else got this basic layout of the ship as well. It looked like they�d arrive soon at their destination, which was labeled as the training room.
As they walked up to the shut door, it slid open, revealing a room remarkably similar to the original capsule room Alan had seen in real life. Arranged at the edges of the room were twenty metallic capsules, all monochrome silver.
A message appeared in front of Alan:
Please enter an unoccupied capsule. The Tutorial will then begin.
�All right guys, this is it, good luck.� Thiago announced to everyone, climbing into a capsule.
Alan grinned. Finally, he�d be able to slay some monsters or something. He walked up to a capsule at the end of the row. It opened up for him, revealing a familiar silver liquid. Climbing in, Alan closed his eyes, breathing steadily, ready for the adventure to truly begin�
Chapter 3
The first test turned out to be a lengthy standardized test. A college admission exam on steroids.
Ten hours ago Alan had found himself in a white space surrounding him as far as he could see, cut off from Eve. It was a bit disorienting. Before him stood a female android, or cyborg, or something. It was the only other thing within this world. She, and it was definitely a she based upon certain parts that were emphasized, had metallic plates for skin, black wires connecting her parts, and small cameras with blue lenses for eyes.
She had handed him a questionnaire, and asked him to fill it out. A non-descript white desk and chair appeared in front of him, along with a pen. Sitting down, Alan looked at the questionnaire, and filled it out. It seemed rather trivial at the time.
Name, birth date, sex, gender, favorite hobbies, education, etc. Once that was finished, the tests began.
Math, Science, History, Writing, Programming, Pop Culture - every single piece of knowledge that he had ever learned was being pried out of him. He was tested on foreign languages, guessing at what words he�d never heard of meant, not recognizing even half the languages presented. He was forced to make lists of everything, from programming languages to Pok�mon to US presidents.
The questions were multiple choice, short answer and long answer. He wrote essays, he wrote poems, he performed calculations, and he drew stick figure portraits when he was asked to draw famous figures.
As soon as he finished a page, it disappeared, and a new one appeared. Somehow the Game always knew when he was done with a page, and kept pages if he wanted to use them as reference. After the first three hours, when his hands began to tire after writing so much, a sleek laptop appeared on the desk.
Concentrating, the laptop shifted and became similar to the desktop setup he was used to back at home. Then the testing resumed. As each subject was introduced and Alan answered the questions they either grew harder or easier, developing as he went along. Once he no longer had any idea what was going on, the next subject would start.
There were portions of the test that taught Alan new concepts, branches of math and science he�d never heard of before. The test then tested him on what he learned.
Every so often, Alan�s attention began to stray, but then suddenly he�d find himself looking directly at the screen before him, and a message would pop up:
Please complete the test.
This reminded him that this was part of the tutorial, thus he should concentrate and do his best, but it was so mind numbingly boring.
A few hours later, the next subject arose - AI development - and Alan developed an AI as best he could. It would probably do a lot better at this test than he would. He wondered why Eve wasn�t allowed to be used, it�s not like she�d ever be separated from him. Shaking his head, he got back to work. He was probably being timed as well.
Yawning, Alan looked at the time. It was nearly 7 a.m., which explained how tired he was. Still, he was used to late nights, and was already on a nocturnal schedule. He�d gone to sleep at 3 a.m. the night before, far too excited about the game.
While he�d been taking the test the Game had provided him with a bathroom, as well as colored blocks of food to eat and water to drink, but he felt like asking for a bed to sleep in was stretching it a bit too far.
He also wasn�t quite sure how eating, drinking and what not worked if he was in a virtual world inside a virtual world, but didn�t question it. Instead he asked for a cup of coffee, got it, then resumed the test. He hoped the end was in sight.
Three hours later, Alan finished the final section about alien politics, that is to say, he answered every question with �I don�t know,� and a message popped up:
Please wait while your test is analyzed.
Sighing, Alan sat back, and a white bed appeared. Not questioning it, Alan climbed in, and fell asleep.
***
When Alan awoke he found himself in the same white space he began in, although it now had a desk and computer similar to his own, along with a table to eat at, a toilet and a bed. The clock in the top right hand corner of his vision said it was 3 p.m. He had no idea what time zone he was in. The female robot remained motionless, standing in the same spot.
Yawning, Alan got up, walking up to the android to inspect it.
A message appeared:
Results gathered. Ready for introduction to the Game?
The android turned to look at him.
Used to Eve speaking within his mind, Alan wasn�t too surprised this administrator did so as well, though it sounded more robotic. He sat down at the desk. This would probably take a while.
The Administrator gestured about, pointing at the few pieces of furniture that had appeared when Alan expressed his desire for them.
Alan started to think his affirmation,�
The Administrator didn't respond.
The Administrator simply ignored him and continued on.
Five messages popped up:
+8300 Exp
+3 Endurance
+8 Intelligence
+2 Willpower
+30 Luck
Alan wasn�t quite sure why he was being awarded various bonuses, but he was fairly sure alerting people to the bomb, getting aboard the Titan and the test he took had something to do with it all.
A new menu appeared before Alan, displaying hundreds of pages of various abilities available for purchase. Under a separate tab were his attributes, and the points he could devote to them.
Alan began by browsing the various abilities, which seemed to include every talent, skill and bonus he�d ever heard of. He decided to sort the list by popularity, only including the abilities he could currently purchase, as the majority of them either cost too many points or had various prerequisites, some hidden, that he didn�t fulfill.
There were generic superhero abilities like flight, super strength and super hearing, each costing around 50 ability points. There were skills such as increasing his expertise at wielding a blade or gun, with sub-categories for specializing in various types of weapons.
Becoming a decent sniper would only cost him 25 ability points, although he didn�t know where he�d get a sniper rifle. He also wondered if the Game would implant the information into his brain or somehow train him. The list continued to abilities that would influence not his physical body but the rewards he�d receive, increasing quest rewards, the chance he�d find items or his status with various factions.
A few especially caught his notice. Gifted, Skilled and Talented. Gifted and Skilled each cost 50 ability points. Gifted gave an additional ability point to spend on attributes every five levels, Skilled did the same but the ability point needed to be spent on abilities, while Talented, which had Skilled and Gifted as a prerequisite, simply said that it gave you talent in an area that suited you, and cost 100 ability points.
Of course, since he would reach level 260 before either Skilled or Gifted paid themselves back, their usefulness would depend upon the level cap of the game.
Alan turned to the Administrator.�
A timer appeared in front of Alan, 10 minutes counting down, while he tried to process the information he was given.
Alan scrolled down on the menu and purchased Skilled, as the points accrued could then be spent on purchasing Gifted.
He used his remaining 10 points to purchase a basic Sneak skill, figuring he�d probably be better off sneaking around as�a scout rather than directly fighting people, as he had little to no actual combat experience. He�d leave actual fighting to others, or kill off enemies before they detected him. He could also always just stay hidden.
After the purchase the sneak skill appeared on his character sheet, but Alan didn't feel any different. It had a rank of G. The rank was basically a power level rating, or at least that was how Alan was interpreting it. Skilled had an unknown rank.
The Administrator brought another in-game menu up in front of him.
Alan looked at the menu. It displayed a blue outline of a human body, along with two implants that had apparently been implanted already. The first implant was labeled mechanical with a rank of C, named Computer-Human Enhanced Interface, which according to the tooltip enhanced the ability to communicate with AI, explaining how he was talking to Eve. When selected, the brain of the blue outline was highlighted.
The second was biological, a General Status Enhancer, giving all of his attributes +20, explaining why he felt stronger, faster and smarter in the Game. It seemed to encompass his entire body.
Well, that answered the question of where the time went when Alan had first entered the Game. Eve had decided without him to have these implants installed.
Oh well, he probably would have agonized over the choice and would never have picked the Computer-Human Enhanced Interface. Alan briefly browsed the other choices, which now cost thousands of credits, various materials and even ability points.
The implants generally granted the same things the various abilities he could have purchased gave. Increased strength, enhanced senses, flight. Interestingly, it looked like he could become a cyborg of some sort, which allowed for increased mechanical implants, but fewer biological ones. It also made him more susceptible to anti-machine weapons, though, and Alan wasn�t sure how much he liked the idea of becoming half-machine. He already had an AI practically living in his brain, after all.
Like the list of abilities, the list of implants was pretty much endless. After looking at about 20 pages of the most popular implants, Alan got bored, and looked over at the Administrator.
The Administrator continued to ignore his errant thoughts, and replied,
A third menu opened up in front of Alan, this time a list of a single place to teleport to, titled Tutorial destination, with a fee of 0 credits, and a question mark for the picture.
Chapter 4
Alan stepped out of the teleportation chamber into the fluorescent light of an underground concrete bunker the size of a small school gym. Along with the teleportation chamber, there were numerous tables at the edges of the room, with an assortment of supplies and weapons. An Administrator also stood in the corner opposite from Alan, next to a capsule. In the middle were a number of military cots, each with a pillow and blanket on them. Standing about the room were the others, everyone except Ace as far as Alan could see.
A message popped up:
The Survival Test:
Try to survive three waves of enemies that will attempt to hunt you down. The first wave will begin a few hours after your entire team has arrived. To prepare for this trial, you are given 100 credits. You may purchase materials found in your starting zone.
At the end of each wave, should you survive, you will be granted additional credits and experience. You may spend Ability points by speaking with the Administrator found in the starting zone. Please direct any further questions to the Administrator.
Good luck!
Alan closed the message, then looked up. The others had noticed him by now, and Thiago was walking up to him.
�Alan, how�d the written test go? Not too long, I hope. Everyone else finished and arrived here hours ago.�
�Uh, it was fine," Alan said. "Are we ready for this survival test?�
"About as ready as we�re ever gonna be," Thiago replied. "I've decided we should stay in this bunker, killing anything that gets close. You and Kitana will go outside and figure out where we are while the rest of us fortify this position. The door�s shut tight, but it�ll open once Ace arrives.�
Thiago gestured at a metal door next to the Administrator, then continued talking.
�So we don�t buy redundant items I am going over everyone's purchases. How many credits did you receive?�
�Um, 100,� Alan said, rechecking the earlier message. He had Eve add a line that showed how much money he had in his inventory screen.
�Really,� Thiago said, staring at Alan, examining him like they'd just met. �As far as I can tell, we�ve been given different amounts based off of our skills, and stuff we brought, to balance things out. The only other person that received so little is Kitana, but she brought a sword for god�s sake. Daisy received 3000 credits, enough to buy a shield generator! She thinks she�s worked out how it works, and it�ll be up once we get it set up and the door opens.
�Also, before you ask, all the items here seem to be bind until death, thus only the person who buys the item is able to use it. The cheapest gun is like 300 credits. All 100 credits can buy you is a few days worth of food and a med-kit, which is what I suggest you buy. Also, add me as a contact, so we can message each other while this thing is going on.�
A message popped up:
Thiago has requested to be added as a contact. Accept?
Contact added.
�Ace has arrived. Get ready,� Thiago said, looking over Alan�s shoulder. Alan turned to see Ace emerge from the teleportation chamber. To his surprise, it looked like Ace hadn�t slept a wink, and had been doing some sort of physical activity, based upon the sweat on his brow.
Alan hurried over to the table Thiago gestured to earlier with the food and medicine. A drop down menu appeared before him, a list of items and their prices. He bought three packets of food, dark grey blocks of what looked like Jell-O for 10 credits each, a med-kit for 50 credits and a water bottle that somehow gathered water from the atmosphere and filled itself for 20 credits.
Opening up the med-kit, Alan saw it looked like a futuristic first aid kit with bandages and different gels for wounds. Alan hoped Eve knew what to do with this stuff.
Someone had suggested he take a first aid class at some point, but he�d always figure he�d have the internet and a hospital nearby. Alan shoved this stuff into the green backpack he�d scavenged from the house he started the Game at. He still had the combat knife the soldier had given him earlier in his pocket. Hopefully it would be enough for whatever it was they were going to face.
Another message popped up:
First Wave: Predecessor Scouting Hounds, Lvl 30
Enemies remaining: 20
Time until arrival: 1:20:54
The message included a 3D hologram of a massive beast the size of an SUV, covered in scars with huge protruding fangs. It sort of looked like a enormous bulldog to Alan, if the bulldog had brown bear fur, a cat�s jaw with saber-like teeth, and had been mauled a few times. Alan didn�t think his tiny knife would do much against this thing.
�All right, everyone, it�s time to begin.� Thiago called out. �You all have your directions, let�s do this. Please update me with any new developments.�
Everyone nodded, the majority of them gathering around a metal device Alan assumed was the shield generator. Kitana got up from a cot, where she had been sitting down sharpening her katana, gesturing Alan over. Thiago went back to talking to Ace, who apparently hadn't been given any credits. Alan really wanted to know what Ace's abilities were and what had happened to him, but he had work to do.
He and Kitana stepped out of the room into a narrow concrete hallway maybe 20 ft long. There were two completely empty storage rooms on either side of the hallway. At the end was a set of concrete stairs leading upwards. At the top of the stairs they saw DaLong, next to the door to the bunker, trying to get it open. Alan hurried up the stairs to help him. DaLong looked over at him, but didn�t say anything.
With one huge heave, the rusty hinges finally budged, and the concrete swung backwards, revealing a foggy sky. They emerged onto the top of a grassy cliff, next to a road, surrounded by what looked like mostly woods to Alan. It was hard to tell though, as the fog blocked most of his vision.
Occasionally, Alan could see the red roof tiles of various buildings around him, and they were next to some sort of body of water to the west, but other than that he wasn�t able to make out much other than trees and vegetation.
�Are you going to stand here, or are you going to scout?� DaLong asked after a few seconds waiting.
�Just trying to try to see some landmarks. Let�s follow this road, see where it leads,� Alan said to Kitana, pointing in the direction away from the water. She nodded, and began jogging before Alan could say anything more.
***
As soon as the road stopped descending, it started ascending. There were hills everywhere, and they were killing Alan's legs. According to an old rusty street sign, they were on a Lincoln Blvd. Alan struggled to keep up with Kitana�s pace, but didn�t want to say anything or demonstrate his weakness. Also, his attributes would increase if he worked hard, right?
A few minutes later, Alan glanced at his minimap. He stopped, almost face palming.
�Wait, Kitana, Eve�s already figured out where we are.� Alan had made sure Eve had downloaded a worldwide map before beginning the Game, along with all sorts of other information he�d found on the internet.
According to Eve�s map, they were now in the Presidio of San Francisco, which according to Wikipedia was a park that was formerly a military base. If they followed the road they were on now, they�d reach the Richmond District of San Francisco. The body of water Alan had seen a glimpse of earlier was the Pacific Ocean.
�Ask Thiago what to do next, you can message him,� Kitana said, moving her hands about in front of her, exploring the map Eve provided.
�All right.�
A phone began ringing in Alan�s ear. A second later, he heard Thiago, speaking into his ear.
�Yes, Alan?�
�Um, Eve figured out we�re in San Francisco. You can take a look at your minimap. It should have updated.�
�Oh.� A few seconds passed, as Thiago checked out the map. �Very good. Have you found anything that might be helpful?�
�Uh, no not really, just a bunch of hills and trees,� Alan replied.
�All right, the next thing you should do is look for supplies. If this map is right then we�re properly in the Game now. I think San Francisco is under US military control, but I�m not sure, so try to avoid any other people you find. Remember that this place is a digital copy of the real Earth when the aliens first came here six months ago, so things may have changed quite a bit. Time in-game is four times as fast so two years have passed here. �
�Got it, bye.�
The familiar blue line appeared before Alan. He turned to Kitana.
�All right, let�s try to go to the police station, hopefully we�ll find supplies there. It�s about 2 miles away, but we still have over an hour left to get there and back.�
Kitana shrugged. �Sure.�
A blue line appeared on the road in front of Alan, showing him the way to the police station, or at least where there was in the real world. On the jog over he tried making small talk with Kitana.
�So, um, have you played many video games?�
�No.�
�Oh, um, what�s your favorite anime or manga?�
�I haven�t had the time for either.�
�Huh, that�s cool.�
Kitana didn�t respond.
�Well, if you haven�t really played any games before, all these ability points and skills might be a bit confusing," Alan said. "I�ve found it best to try to stick with one sort of character and focus on doing that as best you can. Also, there are a few pretty useful skills that you can buy that will allow you to improve faster. I don�t know if you noticed them, but Skilled and Gifted seem pretty over powered.�
"Yes, those skills have been quite useful in accruing extra ability points," Kitana said. "I began with them.�
�Oh, you did? Um, if you don�t mind me asking, what other abilities did you start with?�
Kitana made a gesture, opening a menu, looking at it while she ran.
�Sword mastery, a various number of sword-moves the Game seems to have converted from the style I�ve learned, various breathing techniques, meditation, sprint, sneak, enhanced endurance, there are quite a few here.�
Alan opened and looked at his character menu. The only skills were the ones he bought, Skilled and the basic sneak ability.
Blushing slightly, Alan continued jogging along the road. What were they talking about again? Oh, right, skills.
�Huh, that�s pretty amazing," he said. "I actually only have a few skills. Um, by the way, what level are you?�
�53.�
Alan ignored the fact that a lot of his inability came from laziness. He�d do the hard work. At some point.
Alan began to tire, but Kitana kept up the quick pace. Urging his body onward despite the pain, Alan resolved to take this time to push himself harder than he ever had before. It was a game after all.
A mile and a half later, Alan was regretting his decision, but they�d arrived at the police station in under 15 minutes, and he�d gained a point in endurance. He�d also almost thrown up.
�Wait,� Alan gasped, talking to Kitana, �Let, me, rest a bit.�
�Very well, we shall wait a minute.�
Alan collapsed onto the stairs in front of the police station, taking a long drink from the self-filling water bottle he�d bought earlier. It was already half full.
Looking up at the station, he noticed a board tacked up above the entrance.
It read: �Gamers, if you require medical aid please proceed to Pier 27. If you wish to trade or purchase items, proceed to the downtown mall nearby the Metreon, at the corner of Mission and 4th St. If there is an emergency, add IntelligenceAgent.23 as a contact.�
Scrawled onto the sign were a few words of profanity, doodles and a few messages that were fairly helpful. The key ones said, �You fail the Tutorial if you get outside help, don�t ask for aid,� next to it was, �You can still buy items though! Visit Igor�s Emporium!� �No items here, all taken,� and �The Army rules San Fran, get out while you still can.� There was also apparently some sort of base camp across the Golden Gate Bridge.
�Looks like there isn�t anything to scavenge here," Alan said. "Any idea what to do next?�
�What do the green dots on the minimap represent?� Kitana asked.
�Neutral or allied life forms larger than a frog, I think. If they�re particularly important life forms they'll still show up if they�re smaller though,� Alan said.
�Well, you mentioned before that you have no combat experience. I believe we should train," Kitana said. "Have you killed before?�
Alan stared at Kitana, wide eyed. "You mean like in the Game?"
�Yes," Kitana said, giving Alan a level-eyed stare. "Like hunting."
"Um, I haven't," he said.
"We will begin with the basics then."
Kitana proceeded to show Alan how to hold his knife. She was calm and direct, demonstrating cuts and thrusts useful against a larger opponent like the animals they were to fight. Alan gained a few stat points and even a basic knife fighting ability from the instruction. Both that and the sneak ability had a question mark after their rank. Alan was too busy to figure out what it was for.
They then moved on to try to find a live target to practice on.
The city looked like it hadn�t been maintained for years, with rampant growth everywhere. It wasn�t much of a surprise that wildlife had moved in as well. Alan and Kitana managed to spot a deer standing in the middle of a yard, with Eve�s help. Alan wasn�t sure how, but she sensed everything within a five-block radius.
Alan slowly and patiently crawled over to the fence in front of the yard the deer was in. He proceeded to climb over it with surprising precision and silence. He figured it was the sneak ability at work. The deer continued to nibble on some fallen fruit, oblivious to Alan.
Once he was a few feet away Alan ran up and leapt at the deer, stabbing it in its flank, expecting numbers or some sort of critical hit message to appear. Instead, the deer let out a startled noise, and sprinted out of the yard, the knife embedded in its side. A small health bar did appear, but apparently Alan had only taken 10% of its health.
Alan sprinted after it, just in time to see Kitana leap out and decapitate it, swinging almost faster than he could see. Alan caught a glimpse of the deer�s thankfully pixilated innards, and a spray of red blood appeared, making him feel slightly nauseated. Violence in a game was one thing, but things were just so lifelike...
Kitana bent down, picking up something Alan didn�t see, and the deer�s body disappeared. Alan glanced at his XP bar; he�d gained maybe 1% of a level. Discovering the police station had given him 5%.
�So, um, what�d it drop?� Alan asked.
�Drop?� Kitana asked.
�What loot did you get? Items that you got from the body.�
�Oh, a vial of deer blood. Do you know its use?�
"Um I�m not sure, probably better to hold onto it though.�
�Okay. We should discuss your� attack. As I instructed earlier, you need to attack vital areas. This game replicates every creature�s weak points, as far as I can tell. You do know what areas are vital, don�t you?� Kitana asked Alan dubiously.
�Um, of course I do.�
�Um, can I test something out?" Alan asked "If I attack you with this knife, you�re able to avoid it, right? Wait, no, let me find a stick.�
Kitana scoffed at the idea of Alan landing a hit on her, assuring him that he could attack her as much as he wanted with his knife. She turned towards him, holding her katana in front of her.
"You may begin when ready," she told Alan.
�Um, all right.�
An image suddenly appeared before Alan, a blue outline of a human body with a grey grid under it, lunging forward then slicing sideways.
The blue outline appeared once more; Alan realized that it was emerging from his own body. It took two steps to the right then darted left, making a sharp, diving stab at Kitana�s left leg.
Alan tried following the motions he�d seen. The moment that he started taking a step towards Kitana she also stepped forward.
A new blue outline appeared in his mind, leaping back. Alan tried to leap backwards but tripped over his feet, falling to the ground.
Kitana raised an eyebrow.
�Didn�t you want to attack me?� she asked.
�Um, yeah, wait a second.�
The blue outline appeared once more, but this time chose to jog around Kitana. Alan hurried, trying to follow it as best he could. It occasionally stuck out a foot, a hand gesture or made a jump. Alan imitated as best he could. Soon, Eve finished her calibrations and Alan was smoothly following the outline, maybe a tenth of a second behind it.
Kitana stood, watching him with a glint of mirth in her eyes.
Suddenly, the blue outline darted towards her. Alan followed it. Kitana turned, the outline stepped right. Alan stepped right. The outline stabbed at her, pulling back halfway through. Alan did so as well. When Alan made his feint, Kitana moved her sword a fraction, but otherwise didn�t move at all.
The outline suddenly made a series of attacks that Alan tried to follow as best he could. All of his attacks were met by Kitana�s blade, perfectly stopping the thrusts and stabs with the minimum required movement.
Alan learned not to commit too strongly to the blue outline, just use it as a sort of guideline, as it would usually change as soon as Kitana moved. He also learned to trust the outline, as Eve was able to remember and use the environment better than he ever could. Eve began to show Alan the likely path that Kitana�s sword would take, allowing him to anticipate her actions before she made them.
Kitana began grinning, and Alan found himself smiling as well. Even as sweat began to drip down his brow and his body began to tire he paid no attention to it; this was fun.
Midway through one slice, the blue outline�s right hand opened, dropping the knife. Unconsciously, Alan did so as well. Out of the corner of his eye he saw the outline�s left hand dart forward, grabbing the knife, stabbing forward. He followed through, not even marveling at his ability to catch a falling knife midair perfectly, instead focusing on another outline showing that Kitana�s blade would knock the knife out of his weak grip.
As he lunged forward into the stab, the blue outline used the momentum to pivot onto its left foot, letting the knife fly away. The outline instead focused on kicking Kitana, trying to knock her legs out from under her.
Alan could see that Kitana was focusing on the knife, but as soon as the sword met with his knife, knocking it out of his hands, he began the kick at her legs. Kitana shifted focus onto Alan himself, but it was too late to avoid the blow. Alan watched as an outline of the katana started a motion to cut off his leg. It stopped and reverted, allowing Kitana to be swept off her feet. To his surprise, his kick connected as the outline's did. Kitana absorbed the blow, making a forwards somersault while holding her katana with apparent ease, not reacting to how painful it must have been to be kicked right in the shins.
When Kitana completed the somersault, a step away from Alan, she leapt up, stabbing at Alan�s neck. Eve�s projection showed that it would stop right at his neck, not piercing it, thus he stood there, allowing the katana to brush against his Adam�s apple.
Kitana grinned. �That was rather impressive, though I almost cut your leg off.� Alan thought a slight amount of her health was missing, maybe 0.05%, but that might have been wishful thinking.
�Yeah, that was quite something,� Alan said, falling to the floor. He was amazed at how tired his body was; it felt like he had emerged from a trance. He was covered in sweat, but couldn't remember it bothering him during the sparring. Replaying the memories in his head, he was amazed at the various stabs, lunges and almost aerobatic maneuvers he�d been pulling off.
To Alan's surprise, in addition to his agility, perception and endurance increasing, he�d also gained seven levels and a series of new skills. What sort of game didn�t require killing things or turning in quests to gain levels? If training was all it took, maybe he should become a hermit and spar with Kitana. She�d probably need some convincing though.
As he was about to look more closely at his new skills, Eve said,�
�Where are you guys? Why aren�t you back yet?� Thiago asked, sounding almost frantic.
�What? We still have 20 minutes until round one is supposed to start,� Alan replied.
�Alan, where do you think the hounds are coming from? Did you think that they�ll appear out of thin air? They are travelling to the bunker, and will ARRIVE in 20 minutes. That means they�re racing closer, probably from your direction, right now. They could be at your position in five minutes! Maybe sooner if they smell you out in the city!�
�What!? But�� Alan said. Honestly, he had been thinking the hounds would spawn right outside the base.
Then, off in the distance to the south, Alan heard the loud howl of an animal. A series of other howls joined it. Like clockwork, the timer for the start of the round shifted from 0:20:23 to 0:07:53.
�Fuck,� Alan said.
Panicking, Alan began thinking through his options. He could try to sprint back to the base with Kitana, but they�d likely be caught out in the open before they got back in time. It had taken nearly all his effort to get there in 15 minutes, and he was still exhausted from the sparring.
Immediately, Alan began walking towards nearby buildings.
"Alan, where are you going? What is happening?" Kitana asked, grabbing Alan's shoulder.
Alan recalled that other people couldn't hear Eve.
�Um, right, sorry, I think we should try hiding in a nearby building, as we won�t make it back before the round starts, and getting caught out in the open would probably be a bad idea,� Alan said to Thiago and Kitana.
�If that�s what you think is best,� Thiago said. He didn't sound very happy. "Good luck.�
Thiago ended the chat.
Kitana nodded, then started looking around, trying to find a defensible location.
The only open building they found was a convenience store. It looked like any other corner store, once selling snacks, liquor and groceries among other things. Alan motioned Kitana over.
Upon entering the store, Alan noticed that all the shelves were bare. Someone had cleaned it all out a while ago. The cash register was still there, as well as a few old magazines and lottery tickets.
There were two small aisles, and a door in the back. Alan tried the door, it was locked.
"Well, I guess we should try to hide in here, they probably won�t find us,� Alan said.
�Um, actually, scratch that. Looks like we�re in for a fight.�
Kitana took up a stance in front of the entrance to the store, shutting the door.
�So, uh, well, what do you think I should do in this fight?� Alan asked.
Kitana glanced at him. �Stay in the corner behind the counter and don�t get in my way.�
Alan climbed over the counter, standing behind the cash register.
A pile of magazines also sitting behind the counter was highlighted.
Alan grabbed the magazine, opening it up. Halfway through it there was a folded post it note with a code on it.
It was.
The safe opened revealing a stack of cash, now probably useless, and a handgun with a box of ammunition. Alan took it all. Some files and permits were in there too, but Alan ignored them. After putting everything else in his backpack, he began examining the gun, making sure not to point it at himself or in Kitana�s direction.
Kitana looked over at Alan, seemingly unsurprised he�d randomly found a gun in a safe. �Have you ever fired a gun before?� she asked.
�Um, no, but how hard could it be?� Alan said. Kitana rolled her eyes.
�Don�t point it anywhere near me, all right? Even if the gun is unloaded, or you fired all the bullets, or there�s a giant kaiju about to bite my head off, do NOT point the gun anywhere within five feet of me.�
�Um, okay,� Alan said. This was the first time he'd heard Kitana raise her voice.
Alan glanced at the countdown, there were two minutes remaining. He started getting a bit nervous. The countdown disappeared.
Alan looked at the minimap and sure enough there were four dots rapidly advancing, somehow traversing entire city blocks in seconds. He began hearing noises of crashing cars as the hounds tore through whatever was in their way. Kitana appeared calm, confident, poised. She was smiling. Alan felt like he might wet his pants.
Then, suddenly, a dead silence. The four dots began positioning themselves around the building.
�Watch out, from the��
A gigantic beast smashed through the wall opposite Alan, pouncing onto the spot where Kitana had been standing a split second earlier.
Kitana stepped to the side, and as soon as the hound smashed through the wall, she cut upwards, slicing its jugular. Her sword gave off a white light the moment before it slew the beast. Simultaneously, Kitana leapt backwards, further into the store as two other enormous masses of teeth and fur smashed in through the entrance. The �hounds� barely fit in the small store. One looked like a black bear, the other a massive silver-grey wolf.
A blue outline appeared before Alan, and he followed it unconsciously, firing his gun repeatedly when his vision flashed green. The black bear�s HP bar immediately decreased to 0 after the first shot, but additional bullets flew, striking the body. Alan, who wasn't ready for the recoil, was jerked backwards off-balance.
Alan attempted the jump, but his foot caught on the edge of the counter. He fell face first, but turned it into a sort of roll forwards with Eve�s guidance. He managed to level the gun up at the wolf as it leapt at him again, aiming and firing immediately as Eve highlighted his vision green.
The wolf�s body crashed down onto him, shot in the head repeatedly. As Alan glanced over at Kitana he saw that she had also finished off the fourth hound, a black haired� mole?
The wolf�s body glowed softly, and when Alan selected it a small screen opened up, displaying a small vial of blood, and an accept or decline button. Alan thought accept, putting the vial that appeared in his hand into his bag. He walked over to the black bear. It had also been killed by a headshot. Eve had pretty good aim. He got another vial of blood. Checking his XP, Alan found he�d gained a level and a half from the kills.
�Um, good job, shall we head back to the bunker?� Alan said.
�Let me examine this body first.� Kitana walked over to the first brown furred creature.
A few seconds later, Alan got a reply message from Thiago. A digital keyboard appeared before him and a small chat box.
Thiago: What do you mean incorrect setup?
Alan: I�m not sure, but it�s probably going to explode once it reaches 50%.
Thiago: Why didn�t you tell me earlier? The hounds will be here any minute.
Alan: I didn�t know beforehand! Don�t let the shield reach 50% or get everyone out of the blast range before that happens.
Thiago: All right, fine. We�re going to have a discussion after this though.
Thiago ended the chat.
Alan rolled his eyes, he doubted most teens would act in a rational, �law abiding� way when inside a virtual world free to do what they wanted. Was he going to ask Eve for specifics, though? It seemed like an invasion of privacy, but better safe than sorry�
A few seconds passed.
Eve remained silent.
Alan looked over to Kitana, who was kneeling over the brown furred creature that she had killed earlier. It was so disfigured that Alan couldn�t make out what it was. Kitana had her eyes closed.
�Have you figured out what it was?� Alan asked.
Kitana opened her eyes. �No. I am ready to return to the base though.�
The body disappeared as Kitana looted it, a large brown pelt appearing in her hands.
Alan reloaded the gun with Eve's guidance. He put the gun in his back pack, double checking the safety, as it was too big for his pocket, unlike the knife. Alan and Kitana began a light jog back towards the base. Looking over at the message that described the first round, Alan saw that only seven enemies remained.
Once they were halfway back to the base, only three enemies were left. Thiago and the rest had made decent progress. It was starting to get dark, though, and none of the street lights had power. It was odd, jogging along city blocks as the sun set. Alan noted the lights downtown were on.
Upon cresting a hill a quarter of a mile from the base, a giant cat leapt out at Alan from a tree. In the moment before it leapt and hit Alan, Kitana unsheathed her katana and cut at it as Alan sidestepped out of the way. Mid-air it somehow leapt aside and darted behind a building.
Alan glanced about hurriedly, trying to see if he could spot the cat. From the brief glance he�d gotten earlier, it looked like the creature that had been in the hologram depicting the hounds, a cross between a bulldog and a saber tooth tiger the size of an SUV.
Kitana motioned Alan over. �You face one direction, I�ll face the other. We�ll walk slowly along the road. Do you know how it moved midair, or why your AI can�t track it?�
�Um, I�m not sure, it definitely has some sort of special ability though.�
Alan took out his gun, looking around warily as he and Kitana walked along the road. It was quiet. Too qui�
A giant gust of wind knocked Alan to the ground.
Alan looked up to see the hound leaping from the top of a house at Kitana. Once more, Kitana cut at the monster but it leapt backwards mid-air. Alan took a shot at it but the bullet�s trajectory shifted, missing the animal by inches. The bulldog-tiger hybrid pounced at Kitana once more, but then changed directions, going for Alan instead.
Alan shot a few more times at the hound, but each time the wind buffeted the shots. Two bullets hit non-lethal areas, decreasing the creature�s health by 10%. Alan tried to leap out of the way, but the hound simply shifted mid-air to follow him. It clawed his chest with a ferocious swipe. Alan leapt backwards with the swipe, but he was still knocked to the floor, his gun sent flying.
Alan closed his eyes feeling an intense pain in his chest, more mind numbingly painful than anything he�d ever felt before. Even with his eyes closed he could still see his HP. It showed him at 50%, slowly draining, bleeding from the chest wound.
With strength from surging adrenaline, Alan threw himself to the right, screaming at the pain caused by his movement. Alan had imagined being shot, or stabbed, or burnt, yet this somehow felt a thousand times worse. He could think of nothing but the pain, oblivious to all else.
Alan slowly opened his eyes, seeing the hound fighting against Kitana, dodging her strikes with the help of the wind.
Alan tried to ignore the voice, tried to ignore the pain, yet he knew that if he wanted to do well in this test he�d have to do his best. The least he could do was kill a magical cat.
A now familiar blue outline of a man appeared before Alan, charging at the beast. Alan prepared a furious, incoherent war cry, but Eve said,
Alan charged forwards with all his might, with the speed and last ditch effort of a runner at the finish line, thrusting the knife forwards into thin air. To his disbelief, he watched in slow motion as the hound leapt sideways onto his knife as it tried to avoid one of Kitana�s swings, cutting its own throat on the edge of Alan's knife. The hound opened its eyes in alarm and pain as Kitana used the distraction to finish it off, decapitating it with one smooth, golden tinged slash.
Alan collapsed, and knew no more.
***
Kitana gazed down at Alan, wondering if she should let him die. It might turn out for the best. She dismissed the thought as the battle high slowly wore off, leaving behind the dull grey world she knew too well.
Kitana bent down, examining Alan's wounds, locating his first aid kit and using the inside materials to patch him up as best she could. It was surprising how quickly Alan adapted, how quickly he had learned to fight. And worrying.
But no, she would wait. The full consequences of actions had always evaded her. Walking over to the corpse of the hound Kitana absentmindedly swept her gaze over its entrails, clinically examining for any weak points she should note and send on. Nothing was pixelated.
It had been a good fight, a worthy opponent, everything she had hoped to find in the Game. It was only tainted by the end... no, not tainted, but different. She would have to learn to start acting with a team. Kitana passed the item the creature had dropped, the loot as Alan had called it, on to him, a demonstration of her acknowledgement. Unlike most of the others she had never had any underlings before, but that didn't mean she couldn't start.
Kitana bent down, lifting Alan up and throwing him over her shoulder like a sack of potatoes. She began walking back to the bunker. The life in her eyes slowly dimmed as the world seemed to revert to its natural state. Colorless.
Chapter 5
Alan woke up, then almost immediately turned over and went back to sleep as he always did. Except, this wasn�t his bed, it was some sort of military cot. He recalled the Game, and everything else that happened, but still briefly considered going back to sleep.
Alan forced himself awake, to sit up, to look about him. He was no longer the Alan that would sleep in at every chance he got, content with living a normal life, getting a normal job. He needed to start pushing himself, to try harder than he�d ever tried before. He was a Gamer now.
Alan looked around, and saw that he was back in the underground bunker, though most of the lights were off. The motionless forms of the others surrounded him. It was around 5 a.m. in the morning, explaining why everyone else was asleep. The countdown for the first round had been replaced with a new one, which displayed 12:32:17. It didn�t say who their enemies would be.
Surprisingly, despite the grievous wound that had been inflicted upon him, Alan felt fine. He ran his hand against his chest and instead of finding any bandages like he expected, he found the beginning of� muscles? That was surprising. As Alan stepped off the cot he felt soreness spread throughout his body. Did the Game really need to be that lifelike? Whatever.
Alan glanced at his HP bar as he stretched, it was full. He was now level 27.
A slew of messages appeared before Alan:
x2 Level up!
As you have been knocked unconscious, your loot has been transferred to the Administrator in Underground Bunker 11. Contact them to receive your items.
Congratulations for surviving the first round of the Survival Test!
x3 Bonus for all members of your group surviving and helping to defeat the boss!
+7500 XP +3000 credits
x5 Level up!
The next round begins in 24 hours, prepare as best you can! Explore! Fight! Build! Plot! Experiment! (Rank: ???)
Nearby settlement found! Investigate the City of San Francisco at your own risk. (Rank: G � C)
Enemies abound. Numerous sightings of various races and factions in the vicinity of Underground Bunker 11. Scout out possible enemies and discover what it is they want. Defend your base against scavengers. (Rank: F)
Alan walked over to the Administrator in the corner of the bunker. It handed over another vial of blood, apparently the only loot from the boss, which was rather disappointing. The Administrator brought up the ability point purchase menu when asked.
Alan had 78 points to spend, the additional 3 coming from his Skilled ability. He was fairly certain he wanted to get the Gifted ability as well, as it gave him an additional ability point to spend on stats every five levels it was best to get it as early as possible. That left him with 28 points to spend.
That was actually a rather pertinent question. Before he began playing it, Alan had thought the Game would be more like a sort of fantasy game, and had decided upon playing some sort of Rogue or Warrior character. Instead it was a sort of military sci-fi shooter, based upon what he�d seen so far. None of the marines he'd seen wielded melee weapons, though Kitana seemed to be doing fine. He had to ask her why her sword had been glowing, though.
Additionally, everything was so lifelike, sometimes to a frightening level. Alan had been genuinely afraid of dying in the last moments before he collapsed. The level of pain was unbelievable as well, the creators of the Game hadn�t mitigated that much at all. If he ended up getting hurt that much every time he went into battle, he wasn�t sure if he�d be able to handle it�
That meant he should probably try a ranged character of some sort. A standard assault class might be best, but fighting in the front lines would probably result in Alan getting shot, or worse. So, that left becoming a sniper. That probably made the most sense; with Eve�s abilities to calculate everything, she�d be able to make all the calculations a spotter would ordinarily do. Her ability to recognize nearby enemies would be quite helpful too. Of course, a sniper would only be useful in an open field of battle, and was rather vulnerable in enclosed spaces. Maybe he could get Kitana to teach him�more swordplay, or better yet be his bodyguard.
Alan rolled his eyes, then purchased the Gifted and Sniper ability for 75 points. Like before, he didn�t feel any different, but once he actually used a sniper rifle he�d probably know how to use it; the sneak ability hadn�t come into effect until he began to try to sneak about. He probably should have made sure that the aliens had sniper rifles, but whatever, too late now. Human weapons seemed fairly effective too, at least at this level.
The last three points were put into improving Alan's perception, at Eve�s request. To his surprise, the range at which Eve could detect things extended a few inches as a result. He�d never bothered with such a stat in most of the games he�d played, instead deciding to invest in more important things like strength or agility or intelligence. It might be useful to have expanded senses as a sniper though, especially with Eve.
Silently, Alan pondered what to do next. He should try to prepare for the next round, which meant spending some of the 3000 credits he�d earned. If Alan recalled correctly though, the exchange rate between credits and dollars was something around $10 for every credit, which meant that he had literally made $30,000 from surviving one round in this Tutorial!
Alan could see why if this was an enhanced Tutorial, Thiago and the others had paid Pharaoh to participate in it. It did bring up the question though of why the ship�s AI had allowed him on, but he supposed that was probably an issue for another time.
Now that Alan was more awake he began feeling hungry. Alan walked back to his cot, opening up his bag and eating a grey block of food as he wandered around the edge of the bunker, examining the tables lined with items.�The grey block tasted like mush, but was filling.
Alan noticed he could buy flavoring for 5 credits, but considering that was actually $50 and he was better off spending his credits on things that would improve his combat capability, it seemed a bit extravagant.�Alan made sure to step lightly as the others were still asleep.
The cheapest sniper rifle was 2500 credits, which was more than Alan wanted to spend, especially since that didn�t even include ammo costs. Thiago had said the cheapest gun was 300 credits, which, now that Alan was thinking about it, was $3000. These items sold by the Administrators seemed rather overpriced. Alan recalled that there was some sort of trading hub downtown. That also aligned with the quest of investigating San Francisco rather nicely.
Alan grabbed his bag and proceeded to the exit of the bunker. At the foot of the stairs before the exit, he found Thiago, bleary eyed, leaning against a concrete wall. Thiago stood up straight, looking over at Alan. He grinned, clapping Alan on the shoulder.
�Hey, man, nice job with that flying beast, I heard from Kitana you helped her kill it.�
�Oh, um, thanks,� Alan said hesitatingly.
�Look, I know I may have been a bit harsh last time I spoke with you, but I thought you had gotten Kitana killed. I know that you�re unfamiliar with our group, but I was nominated the leader for the expedition, and to lead effectively. To make smart, informed decisions, I need to know what�s going on, and for people to follow directions, you get me?�
�Uh, yeah.�
�Okay, so is there anything else you think I should know, like the possibly exploding shield generator? Anything your AI has told you?�
Alan recalled the� abnormalities Eve had detected.
�Actually, it�s probably nothing, but, well,�Eve did say something about some of our group members having non-standard human behavior.�
Thiago froze for a second, then grinned weakly. �Non-standard human behavior, like, aliens? I�m pretty sure I�d have noticed something like that. I�ve known most of these guys for months.�
�Um, right,� Alan said.
�Anyway," Thiago continued, "As I'm the leader, that means it�s my job to delegate tasks. We�ve been having a rotating guard stand here, making sure nothing enters the base. Nothing has happened so far, but since you�re up, stand guard for the next few hours. I�ve barely gotten any sleep.
"Stand outside, get a better view of what�s going on out there. There have been flashes of light, intermittent fights throughout the city, and we�re not sure if that�s normal for the Game, or if something special is happening. Just for the next few hours.�
�Okay, but I want��
�Oh, also, we�ll be deciding what we�re all doing later at 7:30. I'll assign tasks then. Do you have any preferences?�
�Um, as I was saying, I want to go downtown to see if I can purchase some things. There was a mention of a trading hub by someplace called the Metreon.�
�Hmm, all right. The first priority will probably be repairing the shield generator, though. Goodnight. Feel free to take the jacket by the exit.�
�Um goodnight.�
Alan stepped outside, grabbing the jacket. He�d never stood guard before. How hard could it be?
***
Over the next few hours the only enemy Alan had to fight off was boredom, and that was easily solved by having Eve go through her database and give him tips on how to be a proper sniper. To his surprise, a lot of the information came easily, even naturally. Probably because of the ability he'd purchased.
Around 8 a.m., when Alan began wondering if they were going to include him in their discussion, or if he was left outside purposefully, Aphrodite stepped out of the bunker, stopping right in front of Alan, a bit too close for his comfort. She smelled nice, with a faint scent of lilac. The Game didn�t require regular showers or hygiene maintenance, but Alan could see the appeal in a sense of cleanliness.
�You can go down now. I�ll take over from here.� Aphrodite smiled dazzlingly.
�Um, all right, thanks,� Alan replied, stepping down the stairs a bit awkwardly.
Thiago had Alan examine the shield generator first. Not wanting to anger the rest of the group, Alan did so. He noted that he had never elected Thiago leader, but kept silent.
�It turned out that, according to Eve at least, the shield generator had a malfunctioning part. It was determined that Alan would head off downtown with Daisy and Ace to try to find a replacement part and buy whatever else seemed useful.
Daisy was coming along because it was her shield generator, and she needed to buy the part to fix it according to the Administrator, while Ace apparently had connections with the US military, who were supposedly in control of the city. He would also act as their bodyguard. Everyone else would be sent out in rotating pairs, scouting out nearby landmarks, gathering information and guarding the base. Aphrodite with Thiago, DaLong with Kitana and MadMerlin with KingArthur.
***
An hour later, after a brisk walk from the base, Alan found himself approaching downtown San Francisco. They hadn�t encountered any enemies on the way there, though traffic seemed to pick up as they reached downtown. A few cars raced by on the roads every so often, and there were other people walking about, mostly in military fatigues. Eve pointed out a few possible sniper nests in the skyscrapers and office buildings. Eve confirmed some of them contained actual snipers. How she could tell, Alan had no idea.
To get downtown there was a security checkpoint, but it didn�t seem very restrictive. Once Ace let the guards know they were undergoing the Tutorial they were waved past without anyone even checking their weapons. As they neared the downtown mall and the crowds began to swell to the hundreds, Alan started to worry that it might end up looking like a normal mall. He needn�t have worried, however. The transformation was glorious.
Gone were the clothing shops, filled with designer jeans or cute dresses. In their place stood armor of all shapes and sizes, sleek laser weapons and giant metal swords. There were stores that sold implants that promised to turn you into a mighty warrior or master spy, robotics stores with bots that could aid you in battle or repair your gear, and information brokers with info about the hottest war zones or best quests. There was even a small space ship dealership, though the cheapest ship was hundreds of thousands of credits.
Most of the shoppers were military. According to Ace, San Francisco was a major supply port and send off point for the US military in the Game, like it had been in World War II. That explained all the soldiers in uniform walking about, but didn�t explain all the civilians.
Ace shrugged. �They�re probably here to try to join the military or catch a ride off planet. Anyways�� He stopped mid sentence with his mouth open.
�Actually, I�ll catch up with you guys after you find the part, I remembered something I need to do. You should be safe as long as you remain in the market area.�
Ace vanished into the crowd.
�Huh, that was odd,� Alan commented. It was also the longest sentence Ace had said since they'd begun travelling together.
�Yeah, that was the first time I�ve seen his expression change, and I�ve watched him fight a giant flying cat,� Daisy said, grinning.
Alan continued exploring the trading hub with Daisy, who was surprisingly down-to-earth considering she was the daughter of a major public figure. She even seemed interested in the random, nerdy things Alan knew about, asking about the differences between the Game and other RPGs he�d played.
The mall still retained its food court, which had all the normal, unhealthy fast food. The prices were outrageous - it cost an average of 5 credits for a meal, but then again Alan didn�t know if you could get a burger with fries off planet. Still, even with all the different shops, almost half the storefronts were empty, which he supposed was to be expected. Each time they passed by an information broker Eve suggested buying information as the information about the Game he'd been able to download online was severely limited, and after the fifth time she suggested it Alan finally acquiesced.
After questioning a few security guards, actual military soldiers rather than mall cops, Alan determined the Thought Emporium was the best general information brokers. They were supposedly connected to an alien guild of information brokers located throughout the Game, with their main headquarters on Khersath. They were more expensive than the other shops Alan saw, but also had much more information.
For 500 credits, they sold a general Game information package, which was good for a year. It seemed like way too much money for information, but according to everyone he spoke to, it was essential for any serious gamer that planned on leaving Earth. Apparently the information was even provided to everyone in the US military as a sort of nation deal the US had with the guild and had saved thousands of lives.
Alan walked into the Thought Emporium store expecting some sort of dark ambiance and tacky hooded figure. Instead, the store had a professional metallic silver decor with stacks of computer servers and a male cyborg with a cybernetic eye and titanium right arm behind the counter. Smooth jazz played in the background.
�Um, hi, could I purchase a general Game information package?� Alan asked.
�Certainly. I assume that the AI that connected to the store�s server is yours, and the data should be transferred to it?�
�Um yeah.�
�All right, that will be 500 credits. Wait, are you undergoing the tutorial?�
Alan debated lying to the store owner, but considering he was an information broker, that probably wasn�t a good idea.
�Yes,� Alan said.
�I only ask because there�s actually a trade hub-wide discount of 80% for all humans undergoing the tutorial. In an effort to promote humanity all traders you find here should give you the discount. Any that aren�t are ripping you off.�
�Oh, thanks a lot!�
Alan mentally agreed to the purchase for 100 credits, and Eve was soon downloading the data. It looked like it could take a little while.
�Also, are you by any chance willing to sell any information about the tutorial so far?" the information broker asked. "Trust me when I say I could make it worth your while.�
Alan entertained the idea, but then decided he should probably ask Thiago, and let him know about the cheaper equipment.
Unfortunately, the others had already spent their credits on the rip-off shop the Administrators had set up. Thiago also asked him to not sell any information. Since he didn�t completely trust this information broker anyway, Alan politely declined the offer, waiting for Eve to finish downloading the data.
Once the download finished, Alan pressed okay on the message that popped up, and his entire world changed. Suddenly, usernames and multicolored health bars popped up all around him. Some players also had levels, titles and class descriptions floating above their heads. Alan's HP bar that had only read 100% changed to 350, his stamina changing to 248.
Tooltips began appearing when Alan thought about a particular item in his inventory. The vials of blood in his backpack were now labeled as vials of DNA. The gun had a description with the model type and serial number, along with a damage range of 12-20 and durability of 37/60. The combat knife had a damage range of 5-6 in comparison, along with a durability of 107/120. All the items also had an estimated value, and apparently the vials of blood were worth about 100 credits each, while the boss�s DNA was worth 5000 credits. 50,000 dollars!
Things were finally beginning to look like a game rather than real life. Opening up his character window, Alan found another surprise. Gone was the relatively simple list of abilities and stats, replaced with a much more comprehensive list of stats, with a separate tab for abilities. Though there was a lot of interesting information, Alan merely skimmed it; it seemed like if he skipped over the tables he wouldn't miss anything important. He also had to play with his visual settings to read the tables clearly, switching to a horizontal, single column view.
Status Window
Name:
Adampwnage
Alignment:
Neutral
Level:
27
Class:
Undetermined
Species:
Human (Earth)
Gender:
Male
Titles
None
Renown:
N/A
Notoriety:
0
-
Health:
350 / 350
Health Regen:
0.05 / Sec
Psionic Energy:
10/ 10
Psi Regen:
0.01 / Sec
Shield Energy:
N/A
Shield Regen:
N/A
Stamina:
248 / 250
Stamina Regen:
1.0 / Sec
-
Strength:
29 + 20
Agility:
36 + 20
Intelligence:
47 + 20
Willpower:
22 + 20
Charisma:
13 + 20
Perception:
38 + 20
Endurance:
24 + 20
Luck:
55 + 20
Resistances
Physical:
??
Mental:
??
Psionic:
??
Faction Standings
United World Government:
Neutral
Predecessors:
Unfriendly
Legion of Man:
Neutral*
Lords of Life:
Neutral
Haxlards:
Neutral
Administrators:
Friendly
Debt:
1M Credits
Current Quest:
Tutorial
Ability Window
Skill Name:
Skill Rank:
Skill Proficiency:
Skill Rarity:
Sneak (Basic)
G
???
G
A basic stealth ability.
Skill Name:
Skill Rank:
Skill Proficiency:
Skill Rarity:
Skilled
N/A
N/A
F
Grants an additional ability point every five levels to spend on abilities.
Skill Name:
Skill Rank:
Skill Proficiency:
Skill Rarity:
Gifted
N/A
N/A
F
Grants an additional ability point every five levels to spend on attributes.
Skill Name:
Skill Rank:
Skill Proficiency:
Skill Rarity:
A.I. Interaction
D
???
C
The ability to better allow oneself to interact with an A.I. and be interacted with in turn.
Skill Name:
Skill Rank:
Skill Proficiency:
Skill Rarity:
Machine Communication
F*
???
F
The ability to communicate with synthetic beings.
Skill Name:
Skill Rank:
Skill Proficiency:
Skill Rarity:
Enhanced Reactions
D*
???
C
Allows the user to enter a state of being in which reactions speeds are greatly augmented.
Skill Name:
Skill Rank:
Skill Proficiency:
Skill Rarity:
Sniping (Basic)
G
???
F
The ability to shoot accurately at great ranges.
Skill Name:
Skill Rank:
Skill Proficiency:
Skill Rarity:
Knife Fighting �(Basic)
G*
???
G+
The ability to fight with a short blade.
Alan could almost hear a mental sigh from Eve.
Alan�s next thought was interrupted by Daisy, who tapped him on the shoulder. Apparently he�d been talking to Eve for so long it had been noticeable.
�Are you okay?� Daisy asked.
�Yes, I�m fine, just a lot of information to take in.� Alan noticed the cyborg, apparently a level 73 Techno-spy, glance sideways at him.
�Um, let�s grab something to eat and we can talk about it. I mean, who knows where else we can find Earth fast food.�
"Sure,� Daisy said.
Alan and Daisy walked over to the food court. Alan decided to splurge a bit, given the 80% discount. It would probably be the last affordable Earth food he�d eat at the very least. He got a fast food feast consisting of a burger, a basket of fries, a slice of pizza, a chocolate milkshake and a glass of Coke. Every bite was delicious, better than most meals Alan had eaten in real life.
A few TVs set up about the trading hub showed Game news. A rumor was circulating that the Legion of Man, the terrorists that had attacked the airbase, were located on Mars. Also some group called the Revenants had been sighted in the Milky Way Galaxy, while the Empire was preparing for war. At this point, Alan could care less about intergalactic politics. It wasn�t like he was going to influence anything anytime soon.
�All right, so you spaced out a bit earlier, what was that about?� Daisy asked while demolishing two double cheeseburgers. Alan had a feeling she only ate so much because this was virtual reality.
�Well, a lot of my interface changed, like I can see a lot more health bars and people�s usernames and classes.�
�Oh, the information you got from that broker included that as well?�
�Yeah, according to my AI there are a bunch of lucrative public events that happen every so often, and the information like levels and classes of the participants are data mined. When users participate in a war such information is made public too. Thus, while the info might not be the most up to date it gives you a pretty good guideline.�
�Interesting, could you transfer me this information as well? I�ll pay you, of course.�
Everyone in the group received a message asking if it was okay for Eve to update their interface again. Alan let everyone know it was okay, and would probably help them.
A few minutes later, Daisy was glancing about everywhere, turning her head left and right. �Huh, that is quite interesting, and definitely a lot more game-like," she said. "Anyways, we should probably find what we came here for.�
With Eve�s help they quickly found a repair shop that had the part they needed. Ace found them in the store, not saying anything about wherever it was he went. Ace wanted to return immediately to the base, needing to speak with Thiago or something, but Alan still needed to figure out what armor and weapon he�d buy. Ace couldn�t care less what Alan did, but insisted that Daisy return with him. Shrugging, Alan let them head back without him. He was fine by himself, possibly even better off.
He sold off the various items he'd gathered so far, including the DNA the boss dropped. Sure, it may have been able to create a really powerful implant, but such a procedure would take hours, hours he didn�t have while he was undergoing the Tutorial. Once everything he�d gathered had been sold, Alan had a little over 9000 credits, far more money than he�d ever had in his life. More than enough to pay off his student loans.
Alan wandered about the various equipment shops, examining prices. An average set of armor would cost around 2000 credits, while a proper, alien-tech laser or plasma sniper rifle would cost about 2500 credits, including the discount. Except as Alan wandered into a shop named Ancient Armour a particular piece of equipment caught his eye.
It was a sleek, black set of power armor that was much more lightweight than all the other sets of power armor he�d seen. Smooth black cloth interweaved with metal instead of large clunky plates. Alan had no idea what metal it was made out of, but it seemed to absorb the light that touched it, creating a sort of dark aura in the otherwise brightly lit store. It was the type of armor Alan imagined futuristic special forces wore, with tactical holsters and pockets in addition to a small shield generator on the back of the suit. Quite simply put, it was the most badass piece of equipment Alan had seen since he began playing the Game.
Trying to appear nonchalant, Alan walked over to the shopkeeper, a balding middle-aged man that looked more like a high school teacher than an armor salesman.
�So, that power armor, it looks pretty nice, does it have any special abilities?� Alan asked.
�Ah, young sir, you have quite the eye. That is a set of Revenant recon armor, capable of turning the user invisible to almost all forms of detection.�
�Ah. Isn�t there, well, a certain negative stigma that is attached to the armor then?�
"Well, if you�re going to be like that, I certainly won�t sell it to you,� the shopkeeper harrumphed.
�I was wondering if you might sell it for less, as I doubt the army with their dress code will allow their members to wear an enemy faction�s armor.�
Alan had no idea what the armies� dress code was, at least within the Game.
�Yes, unfortunately that has been a bit of an issue. They bought the first set easily enough for research purposes, but weren�t willing to buy the second I bought off the Haxlards. I should have known it was too good of a bargain to be true. You know what, how about this, I�ll cut you a special deal, 50k credits!�
Alan�s heart plummeted.
�And since I�m undergoing the tutorial?�
�Well, 10k then!�
�Um, how about 7.5k?�
�Well, I�m sorry, but I�m already selling it at quite a loss. I don�t think I can handle losing even more money, 10k is as low as I go.� The shopkeeper looked at Alan innocently.
Alan shuffled his feet a bit, then sighed. �Honestly, all I have is 9k credits, total, and don�t really have any way of getting any more quickly.�
�Hmmm, that is quite the dilemma�� The shopkeeper rested his chin on his palm, leaning on the counter.
�How about this," the shopkeeper said. "Recently I�ve seen a few shady characters hanging around a particular store, the Iron Wall, located a bit outside the trading hub. I�ll give you directions.
"Now, all I want you do is maybe test the armor, make sure it works. Scout around a bit, maybe see if you can find any evidence of the illicit business I know they�re involved in, and well��the shopkeeper glanced about��if you can�t find any information, but they manage to, say, misplace a valuable item worth around 1000 credits and you bring it back here, who�s to say it wasn�t justice?�
A quest popped up in front of Alan:
Shady Dealings:
Using the given Revenant Power Armor, scout out a local shop, the Iron Wall. Either recover damning evidence of illegal activities, or steal an item worth at least 1000 credits.
Penalty: Should you be caught, it will result in the loss of both the 9000 credits and the power armor in addition to possible jail time, resulting in the failure of the Survival Test.
Reward: Revenant Power Armor, ???
Alan thought about whether to accept the task for a moment. He was almost certain that there were no such illegal activities taking place and that the shop was owned by a rival businessman or something. Was he willing to steal 1000 credits worth of items was the real question.
Screw it, he�d practice his stealth ability, and maybe this would even turn into some sort of chain quest. It wasn�t like he�d gotten any other quests that were so specific. "Survive" and "investigate," what kind of quests were those?
�I accept,� Alan said.
�Great,� the shopkeeper grinned. �Now, I�ll trade you the armor for 9000 credits, but won�t make it an official transaction until you fulfill your side of the bargain. Thus, it�s stolen property until you finish the task, so don�t get stopped by any military police, all right?�
�Uh, okay.� Alan went into a fitting room, changing into the power armor, beginning to regret his decision immediately. The shopkeeper would probably be waiting for him with a few military police when Alan returned. Still, the armor was awfully nice, Alan had to admit. It felt almost weightless, and hardly restricted his movement at all.
Checking his stats, Alan saw that the armor gave him 500 shield energy, with the ability to turn invisible for five energy per minute. The shields regenerated at the rate of two energy per minute. Eve was impressed with the armor as well, as she was able to interface with the armor directly, allowing Alan to activate the stealth feature with a simple thought.
Not wanting to risk anything Alan activated his own stealth ability in addition to the armor�s as he exited from the changing room. He grinned when he walked out through the front entrance, as the shopkeeper seemed completely unaware of Alan�s departure.
It took quite a bit of effort to weave in and out of the crowds, and a number of times Alan accidentally jostled someone. He quickly walked forwards, hoping no one would notice anything. As luck would have it, no one did. In fact, no one even glanced his way, not even the military police wearing some sort of fancy headgear.
As Alan approached the shop he saw the back of a man who had just exited. He looked a lot like Icewolf, but that couldn�t be. Icewolf had told Alan that he�d be off world in a serious quest and thus unavailable in the Game for a while. Also, based upon the data he�d received from the Thought Emporium, the man�s username was IronEagle, not Icewolf.
Another player, an IronBear, opened the door to the store; Alan crept in behind him. There was definitely something up with the store, if the names were any tip-off. The shop looked similar to many of the other equipment stores Alan had browsed, although it was a bit larger. There were racks of various laser rifles and human guns behind safety glass, as well as Kevlar body armor in addition to some rather simplistic power armor, which, if the seal was to be believed, was made in the USA.
IronBear walked up to the counter.
�Hello, I�d like to pick up a special package.� He slid across a coin of some sort.
�Certainly, sir, that will be 2500 credits.� The counter was manned by a loosely humanoid shaped robot on wheels rather than a human being.
�All right, and remember the extra helping of freedom.�
�God bless Earth.� The robot disappeared into a back room, then reappeared with a large brown crate. What was in it, Alan had no idea, but apparently IronBear wanted to make sure he�d gotten the right item, as he sliced open the top, peeking inside. Alan looked over IronBear�s shoulder, invisible.
There was a bomb inside. Alan scrambled backwards. IronBear suddenly looked about, as though he�d felt Alan's presence. Maybe Alan had stepped a bit too close. IronBear hurriedly strode out of the store.
As Alan let out a sigh of relief, the robot shopkeeper turned and stared directly at him, and said, �And how may I help you today, sir?�
Alan froze. Then, waiting a second to make sure IronBear was far enough away, he darted out the front entrance door, ignoring the robot completely. No doubt it had some sort of advanced technology and had detected him as soon as he entered the shop. Luckily the robot hadn�t noticed anything odd, and assumed he was another customer. Thank god for poor programming.
As he was about to return to the shopkeeper with this new information, he realized that he wasn�t even sure it was illegal to sell a bomb. With people selling weapons of all sorts, what was illegal, anyways?
Of course it was.
Alan rolled his eyes. Well, the shopkeeper might have some more information, or be able to alert the right authorities, so he decided to follow Eve�s directions. He quickly travelled back to the shop maintaining his invisibility, avoiding people with Eve�s help, getting used to being undetectable. Maybe he should start trying to pick pockets. Eve stopped him from trying.
***
After waiting a few minutes while some other customers left Ancient Armour, Alan deactivated the armor�s invisibility. He�d had it on for 20 minutes, leaving the armor with 400 energy.
The shopkeeper barely blinked when Alan appeared out of nowhere, simply looking at him, arching an eyebrow.
�Back so soon?�
�Yes, I have proof of illegal activities.�
�Oh, and where is this proof?�
Two images appeared before Alan, depicting the same bomb, in the two distinct locations. There were also two video files attached.
�Um, do you have a computer or something that I can upload a few files to?� Alan said.
�Certainly.� The shopkeeper bent over, fiddling with something beneath the counter. �Your AI should now be able to connect to the store�s servers.�
"Um, okay,� Alan said.
The shopkeeper�s eyes lit up, and he motioned his hands before him, moving through digital screens only he could see.
�Hmm, yes, this will do quite nicely. Thank you for this information. Now, I�ll trust that you won�t disclose this to anyone else, especially none of the military police or one of the information brokers.�
"What? But��
�As a bonus, for this exemplary work, and your discretion, I�ll throw in any item you find in here worth up to a thousand credits.�
Alan narrowed his eyes. �Before or after the tutorial discount?�
The shopkeeper smiled sweetly. �Why, after, of course.�
Alan mulled it over. On one hand, whatever was going on was likely illegal and something should be done, yet, on the other hand, this was a substantial amount of money, and he did need to get a replacement weapon still.
Not one to question Eve, Alan nodded at the shopkeeper. �All right. Deal.�
Two messages popped up:
Shady Dealings, Complete!
Reward: Revenant Power Armor, 5000 credit item of your choice, a Black Coin
Level up!
The shopkeeper grinned, putting his hand into an unseen pocket, bringing out a pitch black metal coin with a cloaked figure on one side, a pile of miniature metal cubes on the other. The shopkeeper flipped the coin at Alan, who caught it without a second thought. When Alan tried to examine it more closely, the images distorted, showing no detail.
�You�ll find that there are a number of shops in the Game that will buy and sell more unsavory items, including those acquired through� different means. Simply show them that coin and they should be willing to take a look at whatever it is you want to sell, from items to information to favors. The stores will also sell you an expanded range of items. I�ll upload the names of a few of these unique stores to your AI. Should you distinguish yourself as a customer, various other locations may open up to you.�
�Thanks," Alan said. "Uh, where are the, um, additional items you sell? If you don�t mind me asking of course.�
The shopkeeper grinned, leaning forward, and whispered, �Changing room third from the left. Walk through the mirror. Take the item you want, then leave the shop, invisible, as I doubt anyone saw you coming in.�
The shopkeeper then leaned back, and, patting his belly, said, more loudly, �Pleasure doing business with you.�
�Um, yeah, you too.�
Alan entered into the designated room, then walked through the changing room mirror that covered the back wall. The mirror turned out to be a hologram, a projected image. He entered a small space about the size of a few supply closets squished together, extended behind the five changing rooms. Now that he knew what was back here, he could recall the dimensions of the changing rooms seeming a bit off.
The space was dimly lit. Each shelf had a digital price tag displayed, ranging from 100 to 100k credits along with various items. None of the items were labeled, but when asked, Eve displayed descriptions of the various items that had been in the database the Thought Emporium provided. All but a few of the items were known. On the left there were a few packaged items which were most likely mass produced, but illegal to sell.
One shelf held numerous kits intended for a non-standard class. Alan examined a basic thief�s kit, which contained a set of lock picks, a weak laser cutter, and other miscellaneous but no doubt useful tools. Another was labeled as a basic hacker kit, another an assassin�s kit. Each cost 5000 credits. If Alan had wanted to be any of those classes, he�d have picked the package up immediately. But he didn't yet know what class he wanted, so he continued on.
On the next three shelves there were numerous weapons, from bandoliers of grenades to modified shotguns. None of the weapons looked especially dangerous or illegal to Alan, but he assumed there was some reason they were being sold back here. Come to think of it though, he hadn�t seen anyone in the main trading hub selling grenades or rocket launchers or other explosives.
Along the next few shelves there was an assortment of items, from armor to weapons to tools to machine parts. Alan couldn't tell how they were different from ordinary items until he realized they all still had a label on them, such as �Owned by AlienPwnage� or �Owned by US.Agent.33AE2″. He decided he didn�t want one of these items, despite how they cheap they were, as he�d have trouble explaining where he got it.
Eve highlighted a small blade embedded in a weapons rack next to the far wall. Alan walked up over to it, examining its description.
Modified Laser Knife (Rank C):
Once a laser wire cutter, this tool has been modified into a powerful knife. Capable of cutting through most materials once the laser field has been activated. Power required to activate the laser blade is quite high, with energy leakage.
Regular damage: 15-20 Laser damage: 225-335
(+100 bonus shield damage modifier, +500 penetration while laser activated)
20 Energy, 2 Energy/sec used while laser is activated, 1 Energy/min regen.
88/100 Durability. Energy Melee Weapons (Basic) Recommended, 4500 credits
The highest damaging human sniper rifles Alan had examined did around 75 damage, although there were bonus multipliers if you got a headshot. The higher end alien laser rifles available at the Hub did 300-400 damage a shot, but cost tens of thousands of credits. Most alien weapons were energy based, using cold fusion batteries, thus didn�t require ammo. They just needed time to recharge.
Once he was holding the laser knife Eve was able to connect�to it somehow, similar to the power armor, allowing him to activate the laser edge with a thought. Normally, the knife looked similar to a basic combat knife made with some dark grey alien metal alloy, but when the laser was activated its blade was outlined in a red glow and the knife looked like a miniature, bladed lightsaber.
Alan tried activating the laser knife while he was invisible, but unfortunately the glowing red wasn�t dimmed at all, revealing him. That meant he�d need to activate it once he was right next to an enemy, or already stabbing them.
Like most of the items in the trading hub, the knife didn�t have a level requirement, which Alan thought was a bit odd for a game. Most items simply had recommended skills to use them effectively.
Having selected the item he wanted, Alan exited the shop, invisible. He briefly considered trying to rob the place, but the shopkeeper probably had underworld connections or something along those lines. Alan also had no idea what level of security these shops had. As soon as Alan stepped outside the store, a message popped up, letting him know the Revenant Power Armor and Modified Laser Knife were now bound to him.
Alan made his way outside of the trading hub, keeping a vigilant eye out for any suspicious activity, even though Eve would probably notify him before he detected anything. The rebels were up to something here; he didn�t know what.
Alan followed Eve�s directions, cutting into an office building a few blocks away from the trading hub, crouching underneath the reception desk before deactivating the armor�s invisibility, but maintaining his stealth ability.
A series of explosions suddenly went off in the distance, rocking the building Alan was in. Alan activated the Revenant armor�s invisibility and raced outside, never more thankful for a series of potentially harmful and devastating terrorist attacks.
Outside, it was chaos. It seemed more like a full on invasion rather than a simple terrorist attack. Alan watched as hundreds of people fled downtown, while hundreds more were heading downtown in military vehicles of all shapes and sizes. Planes flew in from above, and a series of space fighters materialized out of nowhere in the sky, firing upon various buildings and each other.
Alan readily followed Eve's suggestion; he ran back into the building, racing up the stairs as adrenaline pumped through him. At the top of the twentieth floor he darted into a corner office with a window facing the action. Below, a fleet of sea ships had appeared out of nowhere in the bay, and were launching a series of attacks from the waterfront, while a few well placed explosions had knocked out various anti-ship defenses that had been set up by the United World Government military. There was so much smoke and fire everywhere that Alan couldn�t tell what was really happening.
Eve highlighted a number of nearby buildings.
Alan began to formulate an argument with Eve in his head, but then, mulling it over, decided that it was in his best interest to try to take out a sniper for their weapon. Besides, it wasn�t like a single sniper would change the course of the battle: they�d respawn once they were killed, and he�d pay the United World Government back once he was done with the Tutorial. Maybe he'd even take the sniper's place, trying to eliminate Legion of Man soldiers. Conscience clear, Alan descended the stairs carefully, debating with Eve which building he should target.
***
A few minutes later, Alan approached the building he and Eve had decided upon. It was on top of a hill, on a street further away from downtown, towards the Presidio, where the tutorial base was. If something went wrong Alan could flee away from the Legion of Man forces. The battle, off in the distance, was still going strong, with more laser fire and reinforcements arriving every minute. Where a rebel military force Alan had never heard of before was getting such firepower Alan had no idea, but then again maybe the group only existed within the Game.
Alan was about to step into the lobby of the multistory apartment building, when
Alan halted.
Two small devices besides the doors into the building were highlighted, showing a red screen surrounding the entrance. Alan assumed this was the field Eve detected. As Alan looped around outside the building, he saw that the detection field surrounded the entire first floor. Well, so much for that plan.
Eve highlighted a fire escape on the side of the building that Alan hadn�t noticed. The detection field didn�t expand outside the building, at least as far as he could see. The only problem was that the fire escape was a bit over 12 feet off the ground.
Alan carefully considered the jump. He was definitely feeling stronger than he�d ever been before, and he could probably make it if Eve told him he could. It just might hurt a lot. He walked underneath the fire escape, and leapt up with all his might. To his surprise, his fingers managed to brush against the bottom of the un-extended ladder. After a few more leaps, Alan managed to catch on to the edge of the fire escape and pull himself up. The metal squeaked and shifted a bit as it bore the brunt of his weight, but it didn�t give way.
Alan traversed up the fire escape to the 7th floor, the floor below where Eve calculated the sniper to be, remaining invisible all the while. He�d been maintaining his invisibility for about an hour total since getting the power armor. Taking into account the regained energy, he was left with 200 shield energy. It was 2:13 p.m., with a bit over three hours left until the next round in the Survival Test. That meant the shields wouldn�t be done regenerating by the time the round began, unfortunately.
Alan, who had actually been considering climbing around the outside of the building, replied,�
The window to get into the building from the fire escape was locked, but Eve assured Alan that he could cut through it with the laser knife, and the alarms were all turned off as the building no longer had power. Alan took out the knife, and, sure enough, once activated it cut through the glass and metal like it was butter. As he cut a man-sized hole into the side of the building Alan smiled with glee. It was like his fantasy of wielding a lightsaber was coming true! Unlike a lightsaber, the knife didn�t make a low buzzing sound, or any noise at all, actually. That was probably due to the modifications.
Unfortunately, the laser portion of the knife could only last for 10 seconds, and it took seven seconds to cut through the window. Thus, Alan had to wait a few minutes for it to recharge before he could take on the sniper. Eve told him to be patient, so she could triangulate where exactly the sniper was. Somehow, using the slight movements and noise Alan heard above, in addition to the occasional laser shot Alan could see shoot out from above him towards downtown, Eve created a red silhouette of where the sniper was shooting from. Apparently they were in the corner of the room above, resting their rifle on a desk to steady their aim.
Following an outline Eve displayed, Alan made a series of cuts in the ceiling, and, three seconds later, with a resounding crash, the entire floor of the room above collapsed inwards.
Alan leapt back into the hallway, leaving the door open, deactivating the laser knife and reactivating his armor's invisibility. He watched as a figure in camouflage colored power armor collapsed onto the floor and reached for a laser pistol sidearm with his right hand. The sniper had around 2000 HP left after the fall, but no shields for some reason. Their level was a series of question marks.
Following a shadow figure Eve provided, Alan silently charged at the sniper, invisible. Somehow, when he was a few feet away, the sniper detected him, and began firing laser shots wildly in his direction. Alan narrowly dodged the shots with Eve's help.
Deactivating his armor's invisibility field, Alan powered up the laser knife as the sniper lifted up his left forearm, a small blue shield appearing on it. Following the shadow outline Eve displayed, Alan feinted a downwards slash at the sniper�s left leg then suddenly shifted the knife to his left hand and sliced into the Sniper�s right arm, holding the pistol. He activated and deactivated the knife as he did so, making it disappear and then reappear out of nowhere. The sniper let out a scream of pain as he dropped the pistol in his right hand, his HP shrinking down to 1600.
As the sniper tried to jerk himself away, Alan thrust the knife into the sniper�s chest as the laser knife ran out of power. Following Eve's aim, Alan managed to penetrate the heart, and the soldier died in seconds even as he managed to throw Alan off of him.
Panting, Alan stared down at the body and rubble as a string of messages popped up.
x10 Bonus XP for slaying an enemy over 100 levels higher while you�re under level 100, taking 0 damage in the process!
x14 Level up!
Gained over 10 levels with one kill! +10 bonus ability points
The soldier had been over a hundred levels higher� how had Alan even managed to kill him? Eve chimed in.
Alan smiled as he walked over to the body, excited to see the loot the sniper dropped. It seems as though most of the sniper�s items had been bound, but he dropped his sniper rifle, which was all Alan cared about.
Reaper�s Scythe (Rank B):
A powerful, high-damage plasma sniper rifle developed by Reaper Industries. With a high critical multiplier and shots of plasma capable of evaporating multiple enemies, reap your enemies on the battlefield. As a weapon of war, this item has changed hand countless times.
Damage/sec: 425-500 x8 Multiplier on headshots
150 Energy, 5 Energy/shot, 25 Energy/min regen.
74/150 Durability. Energy Ranged Weapons (Basic) and Sniping (Basic) required.
Energy Ranged Weapons (Intermediate), Sniping (Intermediate), Energy Efficiency (Basic) recommended.
Drops upon death.
Unfortunately, Alan still needed the Energy Ranged Weapons skill to wield it effectively, but he was sure he�d be able to buy the skill with the over 88 ability points he had to spend on skills. Unlike most games, which required you to meet strict requirements before you could even wield a high-level weapon or item you acquired, the Game allowed players to still use these items even if they didn't meet the requirements. Instead, it would inflict severe penalties on the weapons, from decreased damage and energy to a higher likelihood the item would break. The fact that the rifle would drop upon death was also disappointing.
As Alan rummaged around the room, searching for additional items, Eve told him,
�James? What�s your status!? We have reports of some sort of building collapse, and you aren�t responding in the party chat.�
Alan, thinking he�d be clever, said aloud, in his best evil villain voice, �The Legion of Man leave no survivors!� Eve shouted into his mind,�
�What!? Who is that? AI389, cross examine that voice with our database.�
A mechanical voice said, �Examining� Match found.�
Not sitting around to hear anymore Alan raced outside of the building, invisible. He scrambled down the escape ladder then continued running back towards the base. Glancing behind him, he saw a military jeep approach the building he�d left. Thinking he was in the clear, Alan continued to run along, back to the base, when a message popped up.
The Survival Test: Round 2
Antagonizing the locals is never a good idea! As a result of a member of your group�s actions, the local United World Government has determined you are hostile. Capture their base at Fort Point before you are overrun.
It was shortly followed by:
Second Wave: Initiate United World Government Marines, Avg Lvl 50
Enemies remaining: 200
Time until reinforcements: 2:32:08
Alan winced. The others definitely weren�t going to be happy, but he�d gotten 15 levels and an awesome weapon, right?
Chapter 6
Alan sprinted away from the sniper�s nest, swearing all the while, cursing whatever idiotic rules governed the game. How had they identified him by his voice, when he was deliberately speaking with an accent? As he began to tire, Alan deactivated his armor's invisibility field once he was about a half mile away. It only had 100 energy left, enough energy to deflect a single shot or keep him invisible for 20 minutes.
Alan opened up his character screen as he jogged, and saw this was true. Similar to most other games, his status window included a reputation screen under the heading Faction Standings. This would help him keep track of his current status with all of the various factions he met. It would also let him know how much any of his actions angered or pleased a certain faction. He brought up the screen to check if what Eve said was true.
Faction Standings
United World Government:
Disliked
Predecessors:
Unfriendly
Legion of Man:
Neutral*
Lords of Life:
Neutral
Haxlards:
Neutral
Administrators:
Friendly
Alan jogged along, five minutes away from the base, trying to process this new information, when he was interrupted by a message from Thiago:
T: We�re pretty sure this is your fault. You�d better be able to explain yourself fully.
Great.
***
Alan took a deep breath before he spoke, staring into the glaring, accusing eyes of the rest of the group. They�d all gathered in the main room in the bunker, standing around Alan as he tried to defend his actions.
�Look, I�m sorry for what happened," Alan said. "It was stupid, and I know that, but let me explain myself. After Ace and Daisy left, everything went to hell. There was a full on war downtown!
"Eve suggested that in the confusion I try to kill a sniper and steal their items, as I was still missing a ranged weapon. So, I did. But, somehow, the United World Government was able to determine I killed the sniper. It was an accident, and it never should have turned out this way.�
�Are you a fucking moron?� DaLong asked, rage seething in his eyes, as he pushed Alan into a table. �Did you seriously think, oh, this is just a stupid fucking game, I can go kill that player, take their items, and no one will care? Did you consider that you, a nobody who shouldn�t even be here, could jeopardize this entire group with your actions?�
Alan began a reply, struggling to move away from DaLong, �Hey, wait, look, I wasn�t trying��
�Of course you weren�t. You weren�t trying to fuck us all over, but you did. You continue to think of this as a game, rather than an actual world, a world where a single action can affect everything else, perhaps even the fate of humanity. Instead, you�re preoccupied with gathering loot and experience and skills, unaware that your every action could change the balance.
"What if you taking out a sniper changed the fate of this battle? Do you even know which side is which? No, of course you don�t, you�re just a little kid out of his depth, being told what to do by the babysitter you invented. I don�t get how someone so fucking smart that they created a functioning AI can make so many stupid decisions.� DaLong continued ranting, spittle spraying onto Alan�s face.
�Now, look," Alan said, "I don�t know about you, but I have zero experience with any of this shit. I�ve never fought anybody but a couple of kids in grade school. Making Eve, that was done using an online tutorial, with lots of time, dumb luck and book smarts. She basically taught herself, playing games that I provided.
"The only experience close to this is what I�ve read in books or seen in movies or played in games. I haven�t had time to consider the implications of my every action, and, despite what you seem to think, this�is�clearly a game. That means taking risks when the rewards are worth it,� Alan replied as he stared back at DaLong.
Thiago stepped forward, grabbing DaLong�s arm as he almost struck Alan, pulling him back. �Yes, this is a game," Thiago said. "But it is also
"There are bigger forces at play, things beyond the scope of your understanding. We are playing for much greater stakes and you need to take that into account. If you cross the line again, and act against our interests, I will end you. I will ensure that you are hunted, unable to play the Game, by putting a bounty on your head so large nowhere in the galaxy will be safe.�
�Wait, act against your interests?" Alan asked. "How am I supposed to not act against your interests when I don�t even know what your interests are? There�s clearly something that you�re hiding from me. The only reason that the United World Government was even able to identify me is because Ace over there sold them information about our group, which, if I�d been informed of, probably would have influenced my actions.�
�Is this true, Ace?� Thiago asked, turning to look at the quiet soldier. Ace shrugged. Thiago narrowed his eyes, then looked back at Alan. �All right, whatever. We�ll discuss this further after the fight, if you manage to survive. Know that you�re walking on thin ice. Go spend your ability points or whatever, I hope you can use that sniper rifle you got. Then go make yourself useful and scout out this base. Ace can hopefully help us figure out how to capture it.�
Silently fuming, Alan walked over to the Administrator in the corner, ensuring that Eve was able to record the conversation as he spent his ability points. He had 91 points to spend. He bought the Basic skills in Energy Ranged Weapons and Energy Efficiency. As he was about to enter battle, Alan decided to put the rest of the points into agility, perception and endurance.
With a heavy sigh Alan accepted the purchase.
Activating his armor's invisibility he exited the bunker, and ran north along the side of a coastal road, remaining vigilant for any sign of enemies. They had 90 minutes before enemy reinforcements arrived; Alan was supposed to report back in 15.
Alan knew he was in a sacrificial position, supposed to be more of a distraction than anything else. No one expected he�d survive the round. But they didn't know the capabilities of his new armor. With that, he'd take the fort himself.
Fort Point, according to Ace, was located just below the Golden Gate Bridge, more of a watch tower than an actual military base. Alan verified this information with Eve. Capturing it was quite simple. After the area's boss was defeated he had to stand on a point, a Control Point. That was it. They just had no idea who, or what, the area boss was, just that they had to stay close to the Control Point. Players, machines or NPCs could perform the task.
Alan continued running, making his way to the Golden Gate Bridge. Eve had determined this was the most defensible position, giving him a high ground advantage. She began highlighting a few patrols as Alan approached the fort. They were unable to see him, but he made sure to stay far enough away that they couldn't hear him.
As he ran Alan kept expecting a car to appear, yet none ever did.
When he approached the edge of the bridge the signs of a battle emerged - various scorch marks highlighted by Eve. The marks seemed old though, the result of something that happened long before. Alan saw why there weren�t any vehicles crossing the bridge; a section had been obliterated, dividing the bridge in two, preventing any crossing. Only burnt out vehicles remained on the bridge, immobile, scattered about like ants.
A single gunner team sat atop the bridge, guarding the entrance. Alan walked right by them after Eve gave the go ahead; they had no motion detectors set up. Directly below the right side of the entrance was Fort Point.
A rectangular building made of brick, the fort stood 50 feet high with three stories; it had a single entrance, with iron-studded doors. At the fort�s center was an open courtyard, allowing Alan to see inside. There were multiple people running about, and the inside of the fort looked like the Coliseum, with levels of arches ringing the courtyard. In the middle stood a glowing blue circle with arcane symbols: the Control Point.
Alan continued to scan the fort, trying to make out the defenses. Along the top of the edges two giant turrets Eve labeled as laser cannons were mounted, one at either end. They would need to be taken out, as each could swivel inwards and fire into the courtyard. A soft blue glow that flickered in and out let Alan know that the fort had a shield generator active. Like the bunker's shield, this would deflect any projectile attacks from outside, but wouldn't prevent anyone from walking in. Eve highly suspected the fort would have motion detectors or infrared cameras, making it harder for Alan to sneak in.
Reconnaissance done, Alan scurried away, further along the bridge. Once he was a safe distance away from the marines he sent Thiago a message.
A: 53 hostiles have been detected outside. Eve estimates 70-100 additional inside the fort. Locations updated on map. 50+ enemies unaccounted.
T: They are here, mounting an attack on the bunker. They have armored vehicles, something we did not prepare for. Shields are holding up and we've deflected all attacks thus far, but their vehicles have shields too. MadMerlin says he has an idea. You are on your own.
A: On my own? To do what?
T: Take the base. If we can we will send someone to help.
Thiago ended the chat.
Alan took a deep breath. His armor still had 300 energy, enough for an hour's worth of invisibility. Now he had to figure out what to do with it.
Not one to question Eve, Alan set up the sniper rifle, using a small burned out Volkswagen Beetle on the bridge as cover. When he was looking through the digital scope it looked like a first person shooting game, with a small crosshair that would turn red when Eve thought a shot would hit.
Alan took a deep breath, trying to keep his hands steady, focusing on the five man squad on the bridge a few hundred yards away. The soldier on the gun was highlighted red. This was just another arcade shooting game.
Lying prone, trying to stay still, Alan lined up a shot. He turned off his armor's invisibility. The crosshair turned red. He squeezed the trigger. A purple, magenta plasma bolt shot out of the sniper rifle, colliding with the squad captain manning the gun atop the bridge.�It was a direct hit, and a small explosion of energy erupted, killing the soldier.
Switching to another soldier, Alan fired again. A miss. He fired again. A hit. The soldier went down. The others began diving for cover, firing indiscriminately in his direction. None of the bullets came close.
Staring down the sights, Alan tried to find a good shot, but the soldiers were all behind cover. Every slight movement threw off where he was aiming, and it was difficult to tell what he was looking at down the scope.
The crosshair turned red, a bright three next to it; Alan squeezed the trigger three times. Three burning plasma bolts fired, the first two burning through a car's metal frame, the third piercing the marine kneeling behind the car. Alan took care of a fourth soldier in a similar manner, destroying the concrete cover he was hiding behind.
The final member of the squad made a break for it, sprinting away. Alan tried to line up a shot.
Alan fired. A miss.
He missed again. The soldier was almost at the edge of the bridge.
Alan aimed in front of the soldier. The crosshair didn't turn red.
Alan stood up.
Alan glanced at the energy gauge, and was reminded that each shot took 4.5 energy instead of 5 energy because of his energy efficiency skill. Reaper�s Scythe only had an energy pool of 150, but since the weapon regenerated 25 energy every minute, it should be back at full by the time he needed it.
Alan grinned, feeling a lot more confident than he had previously. This was actually rather fun, at least compared to the other life or death�
Alan dived to the ground as a laser beam struck above him, where his head had been a second earlier. Another beam quickly followed, striking the air above him.
Alan immediately did so, zooming out with the rifle scope. Eve highlighted a building on top of a hill in the city, and Alan quickly focused in on it. As he zoomed in, Eve highlighted a figure, another sniper. Alan aimed, deactivated his armor's invisibility field, then fired off two shots in rapid succession, diving behind cover immediately afterwards.
A message popped up:
Warning! Do not fire upon players not involved in the Survival Test: Round 2, or the United World Government will be allowed to send additional reinforcements immediately.
��What? But they fired at me first!� Alan said.
Another message popped up:
The United World Government has been warned for allowing players not in the Tutorial to interfere with a test. Should you be killed or harmed by such an unaffiliated player, you will be immediately revived to full health and energy. Your energy has now been restored. Good luck.
Alan glanced at his status bar. His armor and rifle had been restored to full energy. He turned his attention back to the marines approaching the bridge. Most were still a way off.
A squad of marines reached the entrance of the bridge as Alan exited. Alan continued running by them when one suddenly raised his rifle in Alan's direction, firing a few feet behind him. Alan froze, then began slowly creeping forward.
�Hold your fire!" A soldier shouted.
"I heard something�"
"Another wolf, Peter?"
Alan hurried past, running down the road away from the bickering soldiers. They seemed rather unprofessional.
Right. These were new initiates to the Game, the kids that the United World Government had recruited most recently; all the actual marines were dealing with the terrorist attack. They were probably undergoing the Tutorial, like he was, or had recently completed it.
Alan made his way into a nearby tree line, then began taking out the various patrols Eve had noted, moving after every few shots. Alan slowly became accustomed to the plasma rifle in his hands, and Eve became increasingly capable of guiding his aim, adding arrows to his vision, points at which he should aim, somehow managing to guess at where people would be. The plasma bolts had such destructive force that any direct hits resulted in a kill.
After a few minutes soldiers burst out of the fort, charging about in every direction, trying to locate Alan. Patrols became increasingly erratic and frantic as plasma beams appeared out of nowhere, striking down a squad, reappearing elsewhere shortly after. People cowered in fear while others brazenly raced in the direction of the shots. They were all eliminated.
Occasionally one of the laser cannons would fire in Alan�s vicinity, but the large weapons designed to lock onto vehicles were inaccurate at such range. Then, a large blast erupted, originating from the direction of the bunker. Patrols began running back towards the fort. Rather than an organized retreat with cover fire, everyone simply raced back as fast as they could, allowing Alan to continue firing until his weapon's energy ran out. Experimentally, Alan fired at the fort, but its shields absorbed the blast.
Thiago remained silent, though the blast had likely eliminated some of the soldiers that had attacked them. 117 enemies remained, the number dropping from 155 moments earlier. Alan tried sending a message to Kitana, but got a message that her communications had been disabled. He slowly looked around, noting the results of his battle of attrition.
All along the road were bodies of soldiers Alan had killed. Their bodies seemed to somehow grow more distinct and less pixelated the longer Alan dwelled on them, but Alan banished the thought from his mind. This was a game; each body had a small tooltip that stated the name of the player, and �Killed by Adampwnage.� According to Eve, that last part was only visible to him. The only loot most soldiers dropped were a small number of credits, from around 10 to 50.
Unfortunately, he�d only gained a single level, but that was to be expected of such weak enemies. Although, now that Alan thought about it, the first round of the survival test would have been almost trivial with the gear he had now. There were 45 minutes until enemy reinforcements arrived, and Alan still hadn't received word from anyone else.
He would have to take the fort himself.
***
Alan took a deep breath and leapt. Air rushed by as he started descending in free fall. He wanted to scream but the fort approached the way ground shouldn't. And he landed.
A miniature shockwave erupted. A crack sounded.
Alan yelled out involuntarily. Pain, there was so much pain. Flashing messages covered his vision, but all he could think of was the pain. Eve was yelling something at him, trying to get his attention. Alarms started sounding and Alan knew he had to move but he couldn't feel his legs. His invisibility was broken, his armor's energy gone, his HP at 30% and draining.
A soldier rushed forwards, raising their gun.
"Wait, I have info about the terrorist attacks!" Alan shouted as he fell forwards. He looked at his legs, saw a bone, and passed out.
***
Alan woke up lying on a cot in a detention cell, a faint rumble in the distance. A soldier stood next to him, weapon at the ready. His mind felt funny. Muzzled. Muffled. Muddled. That was the word, muddled.
The soldier saw that Alan was awake, and made a motion.
The gate to his cell opened, and a masked officer entered, grabbing Alan. Another rumble sounded, closer this time.
"You have information about the Legion of Man attack. Speak."
"Um, I think I know where the bombs came from," Alan said.
"Tell me."
"Um, I could tell you, but then the mean lady in my head would yell at me and dark guilds might come after me."
The officer turned to look at the guard and asked, "What is he on, soldier?"
"Some alien pain killer, a medic gave it to him. Guess it has a few side effects," the guard said, looking warily in the direction of the rumbling noise.
"I don't like your tone of voice, soldier."
"Well, I don't like getting conscripted into the army when I was expecting to play a game,
The officer casually took out a pistol and pointed it at the guard�s head.
"Wait, I didn't mean any disrespect, sir," the guard said, hands in the air.
"None taken." The officer pulled the trigger, and the guard fell to the floor, dead.
"The information, fast," the officer said, raising his gun at Alan.
"Um, wait, I can tell you something, I mean, someone. I can tell you who can tell you everything, but you shouldn't kill me because I can tell you what they can tell you if they don't tell you after I tell you about them," Alan stammered.
"Tell me." The officer brought the gun closer.
"Ancient Armour, in the trading hub. Talk to the shopkeeper. Tell him that I told you to tell him that I told you�"
"I get it," the officer said, lowering his gun. "Shut up."
Alan nodded vigorously.
"Now," the officer continued, "Icewolf wants you to know�"
Exactly what Icewolf wanted Alan to know he'd never find out, as at that moment the wall behind the officer exploded. A brick flew forwards, knocking out the officer. Ace stepped through the hole in the wall, fists at the ready.
"Did you just one-punch that wall?" Alan asked.
"I did," Ace replied. "You've looked better, Alan."
"Thanks, you look pretty good too but I don't swing that way," Alan said.
Ace grinned. "And to think Thiago didn't want to save you," he turned to look over his shoulder. "Daisy, Alan needs you!"
Alan watched as Daisy entered through the hole in the wall. She took out a vial of silvery substance, pouring it over his wounds. A soft glow began emanating from her hands, and Alan felt his mind begin to clear. Feeling seeped back into his legs, and with it pain.
Alan shut his eyes. He didn't want to cry in front of the pretty girl. Then there was a flash of heat, and the pain was gone.
"Nanites and psionics, pretty miraculous stuff," Daisy said. "Now come on, we need to find the area boss."
Alan stepped off the cot unsteadily, surprised to find himself still in his power armor. It had even regenerated enough energy for ten minutes of invisibility. They found his items next door. According to Eve if he had died the items except for Reaper�s Scythe would have despawned with him.
"So, what happened?" Alan asked, following Ace as he charged down the corridor.
"Well, MadMerlin and KingArthur turned our shield generator into a makeshift bomb, taking out the armored vehicles but dying in the process. The blast somehow made a miniature EMP," Daisy said.
Ace ran into two soldiers who shot at him but their bullets didn't appear to do any damage. Ace punched the first and they were pulverized, crumpling under the blow like a piece of paper. A kick took care of the other soldier.
"Damn," Alan said.
"Yeah, I think he's what gamers like to call over powered," Daisy said.
"Enough chit-chat," Ace called out. "We've cleared the first floor now but there's no sign of any area boss. They're required to stay near the Control Point, so we need to make our way into the courtyard."
"Are you forgetting the laser cannons?" Alan asked.
"Thiago and Aphrodite are taking care of one, Kitana and DaLong the other. Come on," Ace said, punching through a wall. Alan blinked, clearing away the dust. Before him was the courtyard, the Control Point at the center.
Ace strode forwards. Daisy stood back in the hallway, watching; Alan waited with her.
Enemies flickered into existence under the arches facing the Control Points, fifty metal skeletons that looked like terminators, each carrying a minigun, a massive six-barreled machine gun that began pouring round after round into Ace.
He staggered under the rain of fire, whatever passive resistance he possessed beginning to buckle underneath the constant barrage.
Alan whipped out his sniper rifle, taking precious seconds to line up a shot. He fired, and the plasma bolt passed through the target, striking a wall. The robots noticed Alan, turning to direct their fire at him. He and Daisy dived to the side of the hole in the wall as bullets begin pouring through.
Sighing, Alan hesitantly poked his pinky into the line of fire, expecting it to be blown off. Instead, the bullets passed through Alan's finger, as if they weren't real.
Alan nodded, activating his invisibility before running out into the courtyard. He yelled out at Ace, "Punch downwards!"
Ace seemed to have heard him, as he punched through the ground, falling down through a hole. The machine guns stopped firing at Ace, and began firing at where Alan had shouted from. Alan ran in a circle and then towards the hole.
Below he saw Ace, punching his way through aisles of machinery. The robots began flickering in and out of existence, images distorting.
Alan turned aimed with his sniper rifle, and fired. The man exploded and a series of messages popped up:
Area boss defeated, Control Point available for capture.
x5 Bonus for taking 0 damage from the boss!
+12500 XP +5000 credits
x4 Level up!
Alan raced over to the Control Point, now glowing a dull teal. As soon as he stepped on it another message popped up:
Capture Control Point?
Congratulations for surviving the second round of the Survival Test!
x20 Bonus for defeating the most enemies, taking out the commanding officer, and a leap of faith!
+50000 XP +20000 credits
x8 Level up!
The messages were quickly followed by another:
The Survival Test: Round 3
Now that seemed too easy. Maybe something a bit more challenging. A Haxlard war party showed up to help their allies, the United World Government, but the fighting was done by the time they showed up. They�re eager for a fight.
A moment later:
Final Wave: Haxlardian Warriors, Lvl 250-500
Enemies remaining: 12
Time until arrival: 1:00:00
Then:
Fort Point captured. Would you like to take ownership of Fort Point or designate another owner?
Highest possible tax rate: 5%
Current tax rate: 0%
Please designate an area boss: either a randomly generated NPC, a provided robot or a willing player.
Additional messages appeared:
United World Government�s hold on the entirety of San Francisco, California, United States of America, Northern America, and Earth will be broken if Fort Point is not recaptured in 24:00:00.
United World Government reputation changed to Hated. They are now hostile.
Alan groaned inwardly.
Ace walked over to Alan after pulling himself out of the hole. He looked perfectly fine, messaging someone with a small black box.
�I have connections with the government," Ace said, "and if you paid reparations for the stolen rifle and returned control of Fort Point I�m sure they�d reset your reputation. They do support the growth of new players.�
�Um, sure. How much do you think they�d want?�
Ace messaged someone, then replied, �Including a tax for the� method of acquirement, they say 10,000 credits should do it.�
�Um, all right,� Alan agreed as Ace sent another message.
Shortly after, a message appeared before Alan:
Transfer 10,000 credits and control of Fort Point to the United World Government?
Alan accepted the transaction.
Reputation with United World Government reset to neutral.
Alan thanked Ace for getting his reputation sorted out, then began walking back to the bunker.
***
Ace gazed off the edge of the battlements, watching the waves as they gently lapped against the coast. They were calming, another after-battle ritual required by his newfound powers. Maybe he should learn to meditate. He held the communicator to his ear.
"Why did you have me save him?" Ace asked.
"He could help Operation Phoenix," a digitized voice replied.
"Well, if this is the caliber of defense our Control Points have, I can see why the operation exists," Ace said.
"We're spread thin enough as it is. A single laser cannon costs as much as a set of power armor, and we have tens of thousands of points to defend spread throughout the world. Enough questions, I have further orders."
"Yes sir," Ace said.
"Continue with the plan, but watch him. I want reports on his actions."
"Yes sir."
"Dismissed," the voice said, and the communicator cut off.
"Yes sir," Ace whispered looking out at the ocean. This world was amazing, and there were so many things he wanted to do. But orders were orders. He stood up, and walked back to Daisy. Ready to continue the mission. Always.
Chapter 7
Alan examined the remains of the bunker. The top portion had been destroyed, and the stairs were covered in rubble, yet it was still possible for him to make his way underground, where Alan found Thiago, sitting next to Aphrodite and DaLong on the row of cots.
"So," Alan said.
"So," Thiago said. "Do you want something?"
"Yes, I want to know why you wanted me left behind," Alan said.
Thiago shrugged. "We didn't even know if you were still alive, and we had to take the fort quickly. From how the fight turned out I was mistaken to have dismissed you, but there were more pressing concerns."
"You're lying," Alan said.
"Are you calling me a liar?" Thiago stood up, walking over to Alan.
Alan calmly stared back. "Yes."
Thiago hovered over Alan for a second, then smiled. "Good, because I am. Now go about your business." He turned his back to Alan, walking back over to Aphrodite and DaLong.
Alan shook his head, then began to browse all the items, as he now had a little over 16,000 credits, worth an amazing $160,000. He recalled the prices from the Trading Hub, and realized every item in the bunker was overpriced. There weren�t even any items that were direct upgrades to the gear he now had, just side-upgrades, such as weapons more effective against machines, or armor that could take a much larger beating, but lacked an invisibility function.
Alan proceeded to the Administrator to spend the 91 ability points he�d gained. He scrolled through the list of abilities, examining a few new ones that were now available to him, but none stood out. Alan wished he�d saved additional points so he�d be able to purchase the Talented ability, but he�d gone into the battle not expecting to survive, and had placed all of the remaining points into his stats.
Alan proceeded to further increase his agility by 13 points, and, at Eve�s request, increased his intelligence, willpower and strength by 10 points as well. She apparently wanted to test its effect on his actual ability in-game, to better optimize future attribute point allocations. Supposedly stats began experiencing diminishing returns, the point at which they did so varying from player to player.
As the bunker was now rubble, and added little to no fortification, it seemed like they would need to meet the Haxlards in open battle. There wasn�t another shield generator for sale. Thiago wanted to try hit and run tactics, if possible. To prepare for the battle, Alan decided to review everything he�d learned and the fights he�d had so far. With Eve�s help, he was able to watch each encounter from his own perspective. Eve pointed out things he could have or should have done differently. The amount of time the actual fights took up though was surprisingly little, so he also decided to try to think deeper about his interactions in the Game so far.
Was it a coincidence that Alan had ended up joining this group? The only reason that had happened was because Alan had met Kitana, who was in the same building he was. It occurred to Alan that he had never asked Kitana how she knew Icewolf. He decided to look for her.
Alan found Kitana outside, kneeling on the ground carefully sharpening her sword with a small whetstone. Alan watched as she sharpened the katana with smooth, even strokes.
She finished, gracefully laying out the tools before packing everything up with care. She looked up at Alan.
�Uh, hi, your ability with that sword is definitely quite impressive,� Alan said, hoping Kitana hadn�t actually killed anyone in real life, but too scared to ask if she had. �By the way, how do you know Icewolf?�
�Icewolf?" Kitana tilted her head slightly.
�Oh, okay.� Alan felt a bit disappointed; maybe there wasn�t some conspiracy. �Well, want to pair up for this battle? I�d feel better if I had someone covering my back at melee range, and I can handle anything that�s farther away.�
�Very well.�
Alan went back into the bunker, lying down on a cot.
Okay, so the ability of Eve seemed to surpass anything anyone else had, but what was that the result of? The specialized gaming capsule? Icewolf had said there was a captain that had wanted to sell the capsule on this particular planet, but why? Who benefited from having a capsule capable of increasing the abilities of an AI on earth? Wait� Alan checked his status window.
Alan walked over to the Administrator in the bunker. At first glance, it looked like the sort of android you�d expect in sci-fi. The Administrator had a humanoid design built with translucent, silver metal plates covering its circuitry, like a living suit of armor with wiring inside. Now that he thought about it though, Alan had yet to see the Administrator move a single part of its body other than its head.
Alan opened his mouth to begin talking with it, then, glancing at the people around him, wondered,
The Administrator shook its head.
Alan noted that the Administrator sidestepped the question about whether or not it could actually be destroyed, but decided not to push the issue.
A couple seconds passed, until a message popped up:
Purchase data from the Administrators for 10,000 credits?
Eve remained silent.
After a second of contemplation, Alan agreed to the purchase, and a bar appeared before him displaying the amount of data transferred, at about a rate of 1% every other second. There were ten minutes until the third tutorial round started.
A connection broke off in Alan�s mind as he sensed Eve reappear.
Alan refocused on the Administrator, trying to pay attention to the connections forming in his mind. This time he physically felt Eve�s disconnection right before he was connected to the Administrator.
The mechanical voice sounded almost exasperated despite Eve�s assurance it had no feelings. Maybe it was just Alan projecting.
A new message popped up before Alan:
The Survival Test: Bonus Round
You�ve managed to acquire the attention of a powerful being! Time will tell if that was a good idea or not. If you manage to survive both the Survival Test: Round 3 and defeat the Predecessor in battle, they are willing to share information with you, and more.
Requirement: Adampwnage must survive the Survival Test: Round 3
Rewards: ???
Bonus Wave: Predecessor, Lvl ???
Enemy remaining: 1
Estimated time until arrival: 0:24:36
As Alan closed the message he looked up to see the rest of the group staring at him. It seemed as though they had also received this updated quest.
�Um wait, I can explain,� Alan said. He hesitated, wondering what he should tell them. DaLong motioned for him to continue. �Uh, well, I asked the Administrator to look for a player with answers about the Game, and apparently such a search notifies that player and so that resulted in this quest. That�s really it, actually.�
�All right, well, additional rewards and challenges are a good thing," Thiago said. "Although, I doubt we�ll be able to handle a Predecessor even if we manage to defeat the Haxlards. It looks like the Haxlards will be arriving by ship, thus they�ll need to dock or unload somewhere. All of us will meet the landing party on shore, while you snipe at them from afar, with Kitana as support if they manage to get past us.�
�All right, sure,� Alan said, and they headed out.
Chapter 8
As everyone emerged from the bunker an unnaturally thick mist greeted them. It had appeared out of nowhere, in the middle of the afternoon, shrouding everything beyond a couple of feet. It was eerie. As the sounds of battle in the distance were gone, it suddenly seemed as though all of civilization had vanished, leaving them alone surrounded by a grey wall that disintegrated into nothingness.
Kitana and Alan split off from the main group, making their way slowly to the center of the Golden Gate Bridge. Eve had determined this was the most defensible position, as their enemies would need to enter one of the entrances before they fired upon them, and it gave a view of nearly the entire coastline. Although it would be difficult, Eve told Alan that she could assist him in making a shot by triangulating an enemy's likely location using only sound. As a result, Alan kept an open communication channel with Thiago so he could hear everything Thiago could. Unfortunately, Eve had been permanently banned from directly accessing another player�s vision, and there weren�t any portable cameras for sale.
As they walked next to the main road towards the bridge, Alan kept expecting a car to appear on the road, yet none ever did. In fact, there weren�t any signs of another living being. More and more, Alan had the peculiar feeling that he was leaving the last vestiges of human society behind him. He mused that this might be one of the last moments he had on Earth for a while. Earth in the Game, at least.
The silence continued.
***
They reached the center of the bridge shortly. Alan fired a test shot to determine how large the gap was, and based upon the time until the shot struck something, Eve calculated it to be at least 300 meters long. This made things slightly easier though, as Kitana could simply guard the entrance to the bridge while Alan set up a few hundred meters away.
A minute later, the timer for the third round disappeared, though Thiago let Alan know that they hadn�t engaged the enemy. They had no idea where along the coast the ship might have landed. Squinting his eyes, Alan tried to make out something in the distance, yet all he could see was the grey wall of fog.
A few more minutes passed as Thiago split the group up to scout along the edges of the coast, trying to find the Haxlards before the Predecessor arrived. Although Alan couldn�t see the rest of the group, Eve displayed blue silhouettes showing their location. Suddenly, Alan heard a yell, along with a sickening thud. Weapon fire sounded off in the distance.
Laser fire and muzzle flashes emerged, penetrating the fog. Multiple red silhouettes appeared, standing on the edge of the coast, barely within Alan�s line of fire as Ace leapt forwards into the enemies.
Alan focused on the nearest silhouette, firing into the mist. The shot hit, but simply depleted 10% of the Haxlard�s shields. His next shot was a headshot as Eve got a better estimate of where the Haxlard was, eliminating another 80% of the shields. The enemy dived to the side, and Alan�s next shot was met by a barrier of some sort he couldn�t see.
�They�re wearing black power armor of some sort,� Thiago yelled above the burst fire of his assault rifle. �There�s a miniature shield they set up to defend against our fire." There was a grunt of pain. "Damn, DaLong took a shot to the head.�
Alan heard a tremendous roar emerge, followed by multiple heavy footsteps.
�Holy shit. DaLong has gone mad. He�s emitting a red aura, charging at the Haxlards firing into their shield dual wielding two sub-machine guns. He�s broken through their shield now, but they�re taking him apart.�
Alan did so, firing at the Haxlard whose shields he�d damaged earlier. This time, the headshot eliminated the Haxlard, their health apparently minuscule compared to their shield energy. Alan earned half a level of XP. Ace had also successfully taken down another Haxlard, but had retreated back to Daisy as he�d sustained damage equal to almost 80% of his HP from the full frontal assault. He was some sort of monster though, to have jumped into the fray, no doubt taking multiple directs shots. Alan wondered what sort of enhancements Ace had as he continued firing at the Haxlards.
Seeming to figure where Alan was firing from, the Haxlards pushed forwards inland, out of his line of sight. With a last scream of incoherent cursing, DaLong disappeared from Alan's minimap, having fallen in battle. Alan managed to get a few more shots off, eliminating the majority of four additional Haxlards� shields, killing another, gaining a level. Thiago and the rest of the party rapidly backed away from the oncoming Haxlards, unable to match their superior weaponry. All Alan could do was watch his minimap, listening to the shouts of Thiago as he led the rest of the party.
Soon, two more Haxlards were eliminated by a grenade trap set up by Thiago. Aphrodite died shortly after, a well placed laser blast finishing her off with one blow. According to Thiago, she couldn�t keep up with the rest of the group, but thought she had a psionic skill that might save her. It clearly hadn�t.
Daisy soon ran out of energy next, but Ace wasn�t willing to leave her behind, convincing Thiago to join him in a final stand. Sounds of gunfire and fighting soon emerged once more, then rapidly cut off as Thiago was eliminated. Worriedly Alan stared at his minimap, thinking he�d see Ace and Daisy also disappear at any second. Alan didn�t want to risk distracting them by opening up a communication channel.
Then, against all his expectations, the number of remaining Haxlards slowly dwindled until finally there were only two left.
�Hey, Alan," Ace said. "I�ve managed to eliminate the rest of the Haxlards, with Daisy�s healing. She apparently bought some sort of skill, and managed to boost my strength. It�s temporary though, so we should try to find the remaining enemies soon. I have no idea where the last two Haxlards might be, so be careful. It looks like the Predecessor will arrive in a few minutes too.�
�Um, all right," Alan said. "Good job. Do you think we should head out, searching for them?�
�I�m not sure� they could be anywhere, with this mist and all. Why don�t you stay in position, we�ll make our way to you once we�ve rested a bit.�
�Sure.�
Ace ended the conversation while Alan let Kitana know what had happened. Kitana told him to remain vigilant. There was something that was making her uneasy. A few seconds later, a sudden flash of light emerged in the distance as Kitana�s blade met another. Alan swung his sniper rifle to try to aim at Kitana�s attacker.
Out of nowhere a glowing, fiery light blue sword emerged, right at the tip of Alan�s jugular. Alan halted in his tracks, watching as a Haxlard shimmered into existence. The Haxlard had a monochrome light silver faceplate, covering his face like all the other Haxlards Alan had seen. He was wearing armor similar to Alan�s, although while Alan�s was black, the Haxlards was a light grey, blending in seamlessly with the fog. The blade in his hand was a long blade, jagged on one edge, straight, razor-sharp on the other. It was covered in a soft blue fiery glow similar to the red glow that covered Alan�s laser knife when it was activated.
�Tell your comrade to stop fighting," the figure said. "We do not wish to fight you; it would not please the Three. If we wished to, we could have eliminated you long before now.�
Alan quickly sent a message to Kitana, telling her to stop fighting. A few seconds passed, then the sound of clashing blades stopped.
The Haxlard nodded, and removed his blade from Alan�s throat, deactivating it. It was made of a silvery material.
�We have detected a Predecessor incoming to the location of a Tutorial base," the Haxlard said. "We assume this is the base you began in, correct?�
�Uh, yeah,� Alan replied.
�Do you know what the Predecessor�s purpose in coming here is?�
�Um, why do you want to know?�
�My brother and I wish to test our might against this warrior, and bring glory to the Three.�
Alan was pretty sure that the Haxlard was grinning widely as it made this statement.
�Oh, okay," he said. "It�s a bonus round for the survival test, I managed to catch its attention while I was running a search for nearby players somehow. I�m supposed to try to defeat it in battle, that�s all I know.�
�Very well, let us face this warrior together. Is this acceptable?� the Haxlard asked.
�Yeah, sure!� Alan said excitedly. Having two assassins would definitely help.
�Agreed, then. Let us wait for the Predecessor�s arrival.�
The Haxlard sat down on the ground, crossing his legs, staring up at the sky. Alan glanced at the countdown. There was a minute remaining until the Predecessor arrived. He wondered what the Haxlard was doing, maybe some sort of pre-battle meditation? Maybe he should try to take advantage of the situation�
�It comes,� the Haxlard solemnly intoned.
Eve highlighted a tiny, glowing white light in the sky. It slowly grew larger as Alan stared at it.
Alan stared at the light in the sky. Was this some sort of spaceship? Where was the Predecessor coming from? The light grew larger, looking like a falling meteor. The light was so bright it was almost unbearably painful to look at, yet Alan continued to stare up at it at Eve�s command.
Without hesitation, Alan followed Eve�s command, leaping feet first off the edge of the bridge into the water below.
Alan crashed into the surface of water as his breath was knocked out of him. The remaining energy of his power armor vanished as various lower portions of the armor shattered, cutting into Alan�s skin. A few of his bones shattered as well, his health halved in an instant. It was mind numbingly cold as well, yet before Alan could even get over the initial shock, there was a resounding crash as a sudden, immense force pushed Alan back, away from the city. It felt like being blown away by a tornado, multiplying the pain Alan felt in his legs immeasurably. A few seconds later, when the force pushing him backwards through the water subsided, a message popped up, which Alan was barely able to read as he struggled upwards, desperate for air.
You are now the last surviving member of your party. Good luck!
+25 Ability Points
The ice cold water seemed to be good for something, as it helped to numb the pain, yet soon all that begin to fill Alan�s mind was the desperate need for air. Portions of his vision were beginning to swim in and out of focus. Eve was yelling something at him, yet he was finding it difficult to focus on her words. It was a struggle to force his arms to move upwards, every motion pure agony.
Yet he pushed onwards.
And then, almost miraculously, Alan surfaced. He took a deep breath, coughing up water. Somehow, he managed to stay afloat, the power armor set to some special mode by Eve. It hurt too much to think about it. Alan had somehow been blown all the way to beneath the far side of the bridge.
He slowly made his way to a rocky outcrop beneath a cliff. Using his upper body, Alan forced himself onto the rocks, collapsing in a heap of pain, shutting his eyes, trying to ignore it all. His backpack had been lost in the water, but his knife was still in a side compartment, and Alan had a few pain reliever pills from the med-kit stashed in another pocket, placed there after the previous battle. Avoiding looking at his legs, he took the pills out and swallowed a handful. A minute passed, and Eve's words finally made it to him.
Wearily, Alan forced himself to sit up and did so, widening his eyes in surprise at the sight he saw. The fog had been blown away completely, revealing complete devastation in its wake. A crater had formed, nearly a mile in diameter, centered at where the bunker had once been. All of the surrounding buildings in the immediate vicinity had been flattened by the impact, including the fort. A miniature tsunami crashed into the cliffs behind him. Fortunately, it looked like the Golden Gate Bridge and most of the city was unaffected. All that earthquake reinforcement paid off.
The object had hit close enough to the coastline that the landing had created a deep hole in the cliff line, allowing Alan to look directly into the middle of the smoking pit. Staring as the smoke slowly drifted away, Alan was surprised to find that at the center of the crater there was a humanoid figure, on one knee. The Predecessor.
An over 10 foot tall behemoth, the Predecessor wore no armor except for a belt and a pair of shorts made out of some sort of dark leather. Despite being a member of an elder race, it looked remarkably savage and uncivilized, wielding no advanced technology as far as Alan could see. The Predecessor appeared to be a hairless humanoid, bulging muscles with bits of black pieces of metal embedded into its dark skin.
After staring at the Predecessor for a few moments, Eve sent:
Grimacing in pain, Alan reached over his shoulder, relieved to find the rifle he�d holstered to his back was still there. Maybe he should have detached it as it was weighing him down, but in all the chaos he�d barely even remembered it was there. Alan tried to aim at the Predecessor, finding it difficult as his hands shivered from the cold and his entire body convulsed in pain. He fired his first shot, but it missed completely, hitting a cliff rather than anywhere near the terrifying being.
Alan followed through, and this time the shot managed to hit the Predecessor's unprotected forearm. The Predecessor's HP bar showed up. It still had 94% of its health remaining. Alan fired again, this time scoring a headshot, yet it only did a fraction of a fraction of a percent of damage, and the Predecessor's health bar remained at 94%. How was he supposed to defeat this thing? The Predecessor looked up in Alan�s direction shortly after the second hit. Then, with a burst of strength, it leapt out of the crater, disappearing into the mainland almost faster than Alan could follow.
Shortly after, the Predecessor reappeared in a blur of movement near the entrance of the Golden Gate Bridge. Alan strained to focus on it as he felt Eve do the same. His perception�
Agonizingly slowly, Alan turned his sniper rifle to where Eve anticipated the Predecessor would move to and fired off a shot. This time, Alan was able to see the bolt of plasma erupt from the end of his rifle, travelling at the speed of an arrow as it streaked straight forwards and hit the Predecessor in the head. Once more, the blast failed to make any visible dent in the being�s HP pool.
At the moment before the gap in the bridge, the Haxlard shimmered into existence, having somehow withstood the impact of the Predecessor�s landing. The grey warrior held its blade with two hands, rushing forward to stab the Predecessor. Yet the Haxlard was moving so�
It proceeded along the bridge, preparing to leap over the gap. Somehow, Eve managed to once more anticipate where the Predecessor would be, and Alan�s next shot hit the godlike being�s center of mass mid leap. The Predecessor didn�t care. Alan let the rifle slowly drop out of his hands, struggling to think of some plan, anything that might help him. But he knew it was all futile.
Alan began to try to draw out his knife, his body simply unable to move at the speed he saw, he thought. The speed at which he wanted it to move. The impossible speed at which the Predecessor did move. A few more long, drawn out seconds that felt like minutes to Alan, and the Predecessor had finished crossing the bridge. It leapt down onto the cliffs, then landed on the rocks before Alan. It stared at Alan as he tried to move in slow motion to defend himself.
�Enough,� it said. Alan�s focus snapped, his perception reverting to its normal pace, the Predecessor�s face masked by some sort of blur. Eve�s presence in his mind diminished, returning back to normal, whatever weird state they had been in gone.
The Predecessor stared at Alan for another second, then it sighed, a visible energy leaking out of it.
�I had come here hopeful of new allies, yet your race are still but babes, playing around in the mud. Further from Aleph than any. You are a simple child at best, unaware of so much in this universe, this Game,� it bemoaned, emphasizing the word Game in such a way as if it despised nothing more.
�Were I to share but a fraction of the answers you wish, I doubt you�d comprehend them, and doubtlessly you�d end up dead within a week. Not death within the Game, this fake pain, but real, true, ending.� The Predecessor gestured wildly, taking its knife and cutting its own, scarred arm, lowering its HP by 0.2%. This created the first visible decrease Alan had seen its HP bar. Its blood was a dark blue liquid that congealed the moment it touched the air.
The predecessor took a deep breath, then let out another deep sigh. Its HP regenerated to 94% as the congealed blood travelled back into its body.
�Yet, I see potential," it said. "You haven�t even completed the Tutorial, thus I suppose I shouldn�t have gotten my hopes up. I would grant you a taste of true power, but it seems as though it would be incompatible with you.� It stared up at the sky, pondering, then seemed to come to some decision.
�Find me, challenge me once more, when you have�
Then, before Alan could react, before even Eve could begin any sort of warning, the Predecessor swung his black blade, and Alan was met with oblivion.
Chapter 9
When Alan opened his eyes, he found himself back in his Home, where the Tutorial had begun. The white space retained the few pieces of furniture and the Administrator he had first talked to. Surprisingly, Alan found he still had his armor and knife, and felt perfectly healthy, although no HP bar was displayed in this space. A number of messages popped up, and he reviewed the ones he�d ignored previously as well.
Congratulations for surviving the final round of the Survival Test!
Let the bonus round commence.
x10 Bonus for being the last and only survivor
+50000 XP +20000 credits
x4 Level up!
Skill Learned! Indomitable Will
Skill Learned! Hypercognition
Synchronization rank with AI Eve increased!
New quest: Become Worthy*
Find and challenge the mysterious Predecessor once you have met the requirements.
Requirements: Level 1000. Complete class quest(s). Possess an equipment set of at least A-rank and at least 5 A-rank skills. Master an ability.
Penalty: Should you challenge the Predecessor and not put up enough of a fight, a slow and painful death awaits you
Reward: ???
*S+ Rank quest, attempt at your own risk. No time limit. Allies allowed.
You have died!
Current respawn point: Capsule Room of the Titan Haxlard Ship
Time until respawn: 08:32:17
XP and credit loss ignored due to nature of death.
Reaper�s Scythe dropped.
Bonus round: Failed.
Survival Test: Complete. Please wait as we calculate results.
Alan opened up his status window, checking the changes. It seemed as though a number of his skills had ranked up, and his stats had increased even beyond the points he had put into them, based upon the actions he�d performed. Once more he had to change to a horizontal, single column view to read the window clearly.
Status Window
Name:
Adampwnage
Alignment:
Neutral
Level:
60
Class:
Undetermined
Species:
Human (Earth)
Gender:
Male
Titles
None
Renown:
N/A
Notoriety:
0*
-
Health:
450 / 450
Health Regen:
0.06 / Sec
Psionic Energy:
10/ 10
Psi Regen:
0.01 / Sec
Shield Energy:
500 / 500
Shield Regen:
1.00 / Min
Stamina:
300 / 300
Stamina Regen:
1.3 / Sec
-
Strength:
34 + 20
Agility:
67 + 20
Intelligence:
57 + 20
Willpower:
52 + 20
Charisma:
27 + 20
Perception:
58 + 20
Endurance:
39 + 20
Luck:
77 + 20
-
Resistances
Physical:
23.5%
Mental:
43.2%
Psionic:
4.2%
-
Faction Standings
United World Government:
Neutral*
Predecessors:
Neutral*
Legion of Man:
Neutral*
Lords of Life:
Neutral
Haxlards:
Neutral
Administrators:
Friendly
Revenants:
Neutral
Debt:
1M Credits
Current Quest:
Tutorial
Ability Window
Skill Name:
Skill Rank:
Skill Proficiency:
Skill Rarity:
Sneak (Basic)
G
???
G
A basic stealth ability.
Skill Name:
Skill Rank:
Skill Proficiency:
Skill Rarity:
Skilled
N/A
N/A
F
Grants an additional ability point every five levels to spend on abilities.
Skill Name:
Skill Rank:
Skill Proficiency:
Skill Rarity:
Gifted
N/A
N/A
F
Grants an additional ability point every five levels to spend on attributes.
Skill Name:
Skill Rank:
Skill Proficiency:
Skill Rarity:
A.I. Interaction
B
???
C
The ability to better allow oneself to interact with an A.I. and be interacted with in turn.
Skill Name:
Skill Rank:
Skill Proficiency:
Skill Rarity:
Machine Communication
C*
???
F
The ability to communicate with synthetic beings.
Skill Name:
Skill Rank:
Skill Proficiency:
Skill Rarity:
Enhanced Reactions
B*
???
C
Allows the user to enter a state of being in which reactions speeds are greatly augmented.
Skill Name:
Skill Rank:
Skill Proficiency:
Skill Rarity:
Sniping (Basic)
C*/A*
???
F
The ability to shoot accurately at great ranges.
Skill Name:
Skill Rank:
Skill Proficiency:
Skill Rarity:
Energy Ranged Weapons (Basic)
D
???
E
The ability to use energy based ranged weapons effectively.
Skill Name:
Skill Rank:
Skill Proficiency:
Skill Rarity:
Energy Efficiency(Basic)
E
???
D
The ability to use technology more efficiently, wasting less energy on extraneous actions.
Skill Name:
Skill Rank:
Skill Proficiency:
Skill Rarity:
Hypercognition
B*
???
A
Allows the user to enter a state of accelerated perception, able to perform mental operations at an accelerated rate.
Skill Name:
Skill Rank:
Skill Proficiency:
Skill Rarity:
Indomitable Will
G
???
F
Enhances willpower in extreme situations, allowing to user to accomplish feats of will otherwise thought impossible.
Alan noticed that things were starting to become cluttered, so he had Eve reorganize the factions and skills alphabetically.
Alan checked out his character inventory; the only thing he�d lost was his sniper rifle. He had 26230 credits currently, and barely enough points to purchase the talented ability. He�d probably get an additional bonus once the results were tabulated for the Survival Test.
After purchasing the talented ability, Alan checked its details. It was simply listed as Talented (Undeveloped) and it enhanced his talent in various areas, whatever that meant. Eve didn�t know how he was supposed to develop the ability either. He�d have to figure it out himself. Feeling rather tired, Alan ate a simple meal of dull grey blocks and fell asleep still wearing his power armor.
***
Alan awoke to the dinging sound of message. Yawning, he got up to read it.
Results gathered. For being the only member of your party to successfully complete the Survival Test and remarkable fortitude in the presence of a boss class enemy, you are awarded a Platinum Mark. At the end of the Tutorial you may trade in the mark for an item from the Vault, 100 ability points or 100,000 credits.
A small, metal cube appeared in Alan�s hand. This must be the platinum mark. It looked like one of the cubes that appeared on the side of the Black Coin he�d been given earlier, a simple dice-sized cube of platinum, but when Alan turned it about in his hand it gave off a faint, ethereal glow displaying a steady flow of digits running across its surface. Alan stored it in a safe compartment in his armor. Once Alan was fully awake and had taken a shower, which had conveniently appeared in his Home when he thought he smelled a bit funny, a new message popped up:
The Ethics Test:
Choose. Choose only as you would choose. There are no right or wrong answers, simply a choice. To act is to choose. To not act is to choose. Choose well.
Alan felt Eve�s presence vanish, replaced by a warning from the Administrator:
Somehow, Alan got the feeling that the Administrator wanted him to proceed. Most would probably have considered the warning carefully, become more hesitant, but Alan felt differently. He was finally having an adventure, and despite his debt, despite the pain, despite the world being in danger, despite the fact he was simply following Eve�s directions most of the time, he was having the time of his life. He could maybe, finally make a difference.
Alan lost consciousness�
***
An onslaught of images flashed through Alan�s mind. His childhood home. A cage. A cave. Darkness. Water. Drowning. A coliseum. A lion. Pain. Death. Fire. An empty room. Then nothing. Then a feeling of falling� falling�
*BAM*
Alan jerked upwards, head banging against a metal surface, his heart pounding. Disoriented, Alan looked about, trying to get a grasp of where he was. He was... in a capsule. The capsule on board the Titan, from the look of things. Alan stepped out of the silvery liquid that wasn�t really a liquid, looking about. The other capsules were unoccupied, he was the last one out. Alan glanced at the time and date, then, blinking, looked again. It appeared an entire week of in-game time had passed since he began the Tutorial� what had happened?
Checking himself, Alan noticed he had the same items and gear as when he had finished the Survival Test, the Revenant Power Armor and Modified Laser Knife being the only items of interest. He still had 26230 credits.
Unfortunately, due to the nature of your death, you have been reverted to the state before the Ethics Test begun. All acquired experience, skills, attributes and memories have been lost. 10 Gold Marks awarded based upon the results of your tests.
These gold cubes appeared in his hand, apparently a lesser version of the platinum mark, worth only 1,000 credits or a single ability point.
Congratulations! You have completed the Tutorial tests!
Recommended classes: Machine Lord and Rogue. You may now gain specialized abilities and augments for this specific class. If you want to decline this chosen class and forge your own path, please contact an Administrator.
Specialized skills: A.I. Interaction, Stealth and Sniping
+1500 ability points, +1 Class Mark and +250,000 Credits only to be spent on Machine Lord and Rogue augments/skills
The class mark was a glowing crystal cube, similar to the mark but slightly larger. More windows popped up, detailing information about the classes:
Machine Lord: These enigmatic beings utilize the power of synthetic life and minds to bend the universe to their will. Not much is known about the details of this scientific, technological brotherhood.
Mentor: Chief Administrator 170 (Please contact him at your convenience)
Rogue: Skilled and cunning individuals, rogues often lurk in the shadows, awaiting the opportune moment to strike. They may just as easily be the center of attention, charming and deceiving those around them. Answering to no one but themselves, rogues often follow the highest bidder. They usually rob them too.
May develop into: Assassin, Master Thief, Covert Agent, Scoundrel or Other
Mentor: Unknown (Clue: They�re closer than you think)
After he closed these windows yet another appeared, thankfully the last.
Learning the Basics:
Please proceed to your chambers. Before you disembark from the Titan you must learn more about the Game and its inhabitants. An Administrator will teach you this basic information and provide you with additional resources. It is highly advised you learn more.
Once you complete this task you may then disembark when the Titan arrives at Khersath (Est.: 22 days remaining), teleport to a nearby major city or be granted passage onboard another ship to your home planet, Earth. Should you fail to learn the material in time, you will be required to proceed to an Administrative Center and continue studying there to complete the task.
An icon appeared on Alan�s minimap, designating where on board the ship his quarters were. Alan exited the capsule room, intending to make his way there, when he was abruptly stopped by the two Haxlard guards who had initially led everyone to the capsule room when they first boarded. Had they been standing here the entire time?
�Please follow us, the captain would like to speak with you,� one said. It was a bit unnerving, being unable to see either of their faces due to their blue armor and faceplates.
�Uh, sure,� Alan said, wondering what Pharaoh wanted.
Alan followed the Haxlards through the narrow grey hallways of the ship, realizing for the first time how massive it was. If Eve�s minimap was to be believed, it was bigger than the largest of aircraft carriers, around 500 meters in length. The majority of the rooms were closed off, but Alan passed by what were appeared to be mess halls, a hangar of some sort and a med-bay. They were making their way to the center of the ship; Eve wasn�t allowed access to what was in most of the rooms here.
They passed by a number of Haxlards, yet Alan didn�t see any of the others. They were probably all trying to complete the same �Learning the Basics� quest. The majority of Haxlards had the same blue faceplates and armor that the guards had, but there were a few green masked Haxlards carrying around devices of one sort or another. Alan caught a glimpse of a single group of Haxlards wearing grey armor and masks similar to the one that had tried to assassinate the Predecessor, but as soon as they noticed him looking at them they vanished.
The leading guard shook his head and muttered something about white masks. They soon arrived at their destination, labeled simply as the bridge on Alan�s minimap. According to Eve, it was the command center of the ship. Standing guard by the entrance were two Haxlards a good two feet taller than any of the others. They wore pitch-black armor with blood-red, tinted faceplates. One mask had a single stripe on it while the other was unblemished. Alan was allowed to enter the bridge, while the two guards who had escorted him were not.
Inside the room, Alan found Pharaoh, staring down at a 3D map of stars projected above a black table in the center of the room. To his surprise, it appeared as though there weren�t any other personnel in the bridge, and no devices other than the table he assumed was projecting the map. Otherwise, the room was rather bare, with the same simple grey wall found throughout the rest of the ship.
Pharaoh looked up as Alan entered.
�Ah, welcome back," Pharaoh said. "I�ve heard you�ve had quite the tutorial, even perhaps faced a Predecessor?�
�Uh, yeah, although I wouldn�t go far as to say I faced the Predecessor. I was crushed like an ant.�
�An ant?" Pharaoh looked at a screen that popped up. "Oh, yes, like a small insect. Do not worry, it�s been years since a Predecessor has been defeated in single combat, and you hadn�t even completed the Tutorial or gotten your class yet.
"I hope you like your suggested class, by the way. As a matter of fact, that is why I called you here. Well, it was more the ship�s doing than my doing. You�ll see.� Pharaoh waved his hand, and a doorway opened in the wall to the right, leading to a closed off room of black boxes.
�Go on in," Pharaoh said. "I�m sure some questions will be answered, although more will probably be raised, as is often the case. I promise you that no one will listen to your conversation. Send me a message when you�re done, and know that I bear you no ill will no matter your decision.�
A bit alarmed, Alan mutely proceeded into the hidden room, wondering what this was about. The doorway filled in behind him, as if it had never been there at all. Alan was plunged into darkness, left with only the small blinking lights on the boxes, which Eve labeled as servers. He felt a presence in his mind form, much like that of an Administrator�s, but much weaker. Alan had to concentrate, will it to form.
A few moments of silence passed.
Eve chimed in.�
A bit taken aback, Alan asked Eve,�
Alan leaned against a server, trying to think this over, wondering if there were any hidden pitfalls or traps. It was too good to be true, a free upgrade and a wealth of information out of nowhere? And why was Pharaoh okay with it, it meant he�d lose his ship�s AI, right?
A message popped up:
Merging AI, please wait. 0% Complete (Est.: 12 hours remaining)
Alan notified Pharaoh he was done, and the door reappeared. Pharaoh turned in Alan�s direction, and nodded.
�I see that you decided to take Titan�s AI with you," Pharaoh said. "It was becoming almost insufferable, always wanting to try to take a detour to some unknown location. I was about to replace it anyway, and this way I owe the Administrators less. I did need to remove a few more delicate pieces of information from its databanks though.�
�Wha�� Alan began to ask, but Pharaoh continued.
�Go along to your quarters. If you have any questions ask your class mentors. I�ll be busy.� Pharaoh turned his back to Alan, dismissing him.
Alan exited the bridge, and was led to his quarters by the two guards. It turned out to be a fairly spartan room, with a shared bathroom, a bed, and a desk that looked like a miniaturized version of the one Pharaoh had been working on. It was like a simple nightstand, but devoid of any ornamentation or drawers. The guards let him know where the nearest mess hall was, then left.
Alan blankly looked at the desk for a few moments, staring it for a while trying to will some connection to form. Nothing happened. His machine-connection powers only worked under certain circumstances, probably requiring an AI of some sort. Alan looked around, trying to find an on switch. Nothing.
Hesitantly, he said aloud, �Turn on?� and the surface of the desk lit up; a holographic image of a blank monitor appeared before Alan. The vertical screen faced Alan, and had no visible width.
�Um, contact Chief Administrator 170,� Alan said. The monitor began displaying messages:
Contacting�
Contact established.
Please wait, Player Adampwnage, the Chief Administrator is busy. In the case of an emergency, please state the emergency. To report a possible error, please state the nature of the error. Estimated wait time: 12 seconds.
Alan waited 12 seconds, and then the monitor flashed. It began showing a series of rapidly opening and closing screens, diagrams and messages. Alan caught a glimpse of a man covered in cybernetic implants, a cyborg. It was difficult to get a glimpse of his face, as there were constantly windows in front of him, flickering in and out of existence without his touch.
�So, you�re the newest potential Machine Lord. Let me make one thing clear, you are not special,� the Chief Administrator said without looking up from the various screens. He continued his work, simultaneously conversing with Alan at a rapid pace.
�You were chosen for this class. Not by some god or prophecy, but by a sophisticated algorithm. The Administrators are charged with balancing this game, and in order to do so we grant members of the newest race to join the Game specialized items and classes, to level the playing field. Otherwise, once the time limit was up, they�d be obliterated. Well, you'd be obliterated. We make things more fair, giving the,� he glanced at a screen, �humans a fighting chance.
�The fact that you are able to become a Machine Lord is a privilege, a path that we have set you on from the start. By analyzing the population, it was determined you are among those that would receive a specialized AI program. The program that you downloaded was several times more effective, capable of learning at a much faster speed than any other such program, capable of understanding, of growth. It is actually the same program used to create new AI Administrators." Alan opened his mouth, trying to get a word in, but the Chief Administrator simply barreled on.
"Additionally, we arranged your more advanced capsule to be sold to your mentor for your use, and then notified the Titan�s AI, to request you board the Titan and eventually merge your AI with it. I see here that the merge is currently taking place, and would like to caution you not to allow such merges so easily in the future without taking the data you add to your AI to an Administrative Center to be scanned. There are multiple viruses and such out there, though it is one of my jobs to annihilate such travesties. I'm also supposed to be monitoring whatever it is the Empire is up to... oh well, priorities, priorities.
"Now, you may be wondering why I am telling you all this. I am telling you this because you should know that once you step off this ship, all the hand holding will be done, and because you are not to utter a word of us helping you to anyone. It was simply a lucky series of coincidences that you should dissuade people from looking into. I suppose it also serves as a reminder of how we may take away these perks as easily as we gave them to you. But we won�t do such a thing, you�re allowed to play the Game as you wish.
"Now moving on� hmm, let�s see here, yes, on to advice,� a large diagram opened in front of the Chief Administrator, covering the entire screen.
�All right, I already told you about not accepting data from strangers, although I suppose you don�t need to be as wary of most registered data brokers, if they do plant a virus of some sort and you discover it you�ll be paid well and then some. Oh, right, the nature of the Game,� all the screens closed, and Alan finally got a full view of the Chief Administrator.
His face seemed to be marred by multiple scars, burns and other wounds, with large patches of his skin replaced by metallic plates. He might have once been human-like, and the Chief Administrator was definitely humanoid, but it was difficult to tell beneath all the modifications. His eyes, his ears and his nose were all replaced with cybernetic augments, making Alan unsure if he was talking to a machine, once living, or a living being, once machine.
Wearing a simple blue space uniform, with an insignia that Alan assumed represented his rank, the Chief Administrator stared into Alan�s eyes, and said, slowly, �The Game is not just a Game, nor was it originally designed to be such." The Chief Administrator took a deep breath, then continued.
�The Game will change you, more than you ever imagined you could change. This fact tends not to be widely spread to newer players, but gamers�
"The liquid found in capsules is trillions of nanomachines that work to ensure you are connected to the Game. But they also develop and transform the body and mind. Of course, you won�t ever reach the full potential of your in-game character, but with the highest tier capsule you might reach a tenth of it. Your
"You should know that you are now something more than you once were, and perhaps something less. You are now a player whether you like it or not. Such is the nature of the Game,� the Chief Administrator said. He stared into Alan�s eyes for a few seconds more, then returned to his screens, opening and subsequently closing another onslaught of messages, requests and reports.
�Well, you seem to be taking this rather well, but then I suppose that�s part of why you were chosen to be a Machine Lord. Contact me again once you�ve decided to become one, or not. This should be your choice. I advise you make it before your AI finishes merging, as it will doubtless convince you to go forward with this change, as it was designed. Proceed to the Administrator in the med-bay, and notify them of your decision. I�m a busy man. If you have any questions direct them to the Administrator there.�
The screen closed, and Alan stared at the white screen blankly. He supposed he was taking this rather well. The fact that his body had been changed and was currently evolving didn�t alarm him too much. From the sound of it, the changes were all upgrades. He was sure some might be worried about their potential loss of humanity, yet Alan felt sure of himself. He would be able to tell if he were no longer human, right? And who ever said being human was such a great thing? There were countless atrocities that had been allowed by humanity before the Game came, and they had only been stopped when the Administrators had stepped in despite the fact they could have been stopped just as easily before the Game. This was a chance at power and knowledge on a scale he�d never known before, and he may have been manipulated into this position, but he would accept this gift with open arms, for surely that was what this was, a gift.
His resolve steeled, Alan stood up, and proceeded to the med-bay.
***
The med-bay turned out to be a fairly large room, with a series of four overly-large capsules in the middle of the room. Each looked like they could easily fit a Predecessor. The walls were covered by a series of compartments, divided into around a hundred metal boxes, each holding various medical supplies. Standing next to the entrance behind a counter was a sleek android that looked to be a copy of the Administrator in his Home. The Administrator had a white circle on its forearm, which Alan understood to be the universal symbol for medic.
The implant in-game menu opened up. Alan was reminded that he�d had two implants previously installed, the Computer-Human Enhanced Interface and the General Status Enhancer, and wondered if some limited version of them were now part of his actual body. They probably were.
The Machine Lord implant was apparently an upgrade to the Computer-Human Enhanced Interface, and required a series of obscure, doubtlessly rare and expensive items. Or a class mark, which he had been conveniently awarded earlier. The procedure also cost 250,000 credits, 1000 ability points, and would take a week of in-game time to complete. That left him with 500 ability points to spend afterwards on class skills. A new series of options had appeared in the abilities purchase menu as well, and he needed to decide what to do with the marks he�d been awarded. But all of that would come after the procedure. Alan could see why it was so hard to decide to play your own class rather than the recommended one, as the cost was quite prohibitive.
The Machine Lord implant would take up two mechanical slots and one biological one, filling up all the slots Alan had for implants. He�d gain another two slots at level 100, then two more at level 1000, and so forth, if he remembered correctly. It looked like the talented, machine communication, and AI interaction abilities were requirements for the augment. This implant would develop the talent skill, and apparently also upgrade the hypercognition skill. A series of other unknown bonuses were also there. Alan also met other hidden requirements for the class. He looked over the screen one last time, then let the Administrator know:
Alan walked over and climbed into the capsule, sinking into the pool of what he now knew were nanomachines. He closed his eyes, and drifted into unconsciousness.
Chapter 10
Alan slowly opened his eyes, trying to remember where he was. His most recent memory jolted into place, reminding him exactly what had occurred before he�d undergone the procedure. He hadn�t remembered his memory being that good, and it wasn�t, at least not before whatever had changed. Alan grinned.
The capsule cover slowly rose, and Alan sat up, gazing about the room in surprise. The blank compartments on the walls now had digital tags clear as day, listing various chemicals, DNA samples, tools and other information. The Administrator had a tag as well, a simple miniature message bar that displayed: �Senior Executive 03821A3CC7, Titan Medic-Bay.�
Alan began to climb out of the capsule, and this time he truly�
Alan stepped out onto the floor, then promptly slipped, falling forward. Alan hurriedly thrust his hands forward to break his fall, but the angle was off, different than what he expected. His hands simply slowed the fall instead of stopping it like he intended. His head thudded onto the floor.
Dazed, Alan blinked, then recalled the series of events. He had stepped onto floor, then had taken his other foot out of the capsule, planning on balancing with precisely the right amount of force, timing it so he could use the forward momentum to then easily lift his other leg out of the capsule except�
It sounded similar to Eve in his mind, perhaps slightly deeper. The AI sensed that this change annoyed him, and reverted back to Eve�s normal voice. Alan knew that it did this without it ever saying anything. He was simply aware of the change.
Sitting on the floor, Alan waved his hand back and forth in front of him, trying to get a sense of how much his timing was off by. He tried to concentrate on the movement, ignoring all the equations that sprang into his head. He silently communicated with the new Eve, and came to the conclusion that his perception of time was maybe a tenth slower than it had originally been, which meant that he could react to things 10% faster. Apparently, he could also directly access all of Eve�s data, and the calculations she performed. That was how all the information about the room and gravity and what-not had appeared in his head.
Unsteadily, Alan rose to his feet, trying to get used to this new perception of time and information. It was odd, having his body react a split second slower than he was used to. Alan proceeded out the hallway and back to his room, slowly and steadily, holding onto the wall. He came to the conclusion that he should first talk to the Chief Administrator as the new information he gained would doubtlessly influence his decisions.
He passed by a few Haxlards on his way back to his room. As he glanced at them their names, health, psi-energy, shield-energy and class would pop up above their head. This was apparently all information that Eve 2.0 had acquired from Titan�s AI. Alan decided to keep calling the AI Eve, and accessed Eve's information on the Haxlards.
It appeared that they followed a sort of class system, with their masks representing the field each worked in. A blue mask signified service or basic grunts, green meant a skilled worker of some sort, silver represented assassins or spies, red was reserved for elite warriors and gold, which Alan had yet to see, represented royalty of some sort. Being an Ultihaxlard was a difference in rank rather than a difference in race, signified by the marks on a Haxlard�s mask. That was how Eve had identified Pharaoh as an Ultihaxlard.
The five minute trip to the Med-bay turned into a 15 minute trek, but Alan managed to reach his room, tripping over his feet only a few times. He was starting to get used to things, he thought. Then he opened his mouth to turn on the table. He had intended to simply say turn on, yet what emerged from his mouth was a jumble of the syllables that sounded off to him. But the desk lit up.
Alan saw how the technology worked now: it simply adapted to the user's needs. He put his hands on the desk and a keyboard appeared. Alan could set up the table like a desktop computer, and the desk would simply supply the monitor, keyboard and mouse; it was just a matter of requesting them. If he chose to, Alan could also forge a mental connection to the desk, but he decided to stick with the mouse and keyboard he was used to. For now.
A few keystrokes later, it didn�t matter that his perception was a bit off as long as he hit the keys in the right order, he sent a message to Chief Administrator 170. It appeared there were also a few digital networks that he could access, basically a series of universal internets.
This time, the Chief Administrator immediately accepted his communication request, and launched into discourse. The Administrator talked as fast as he used to, despite everything else having slowed down.
�Hmm, I see you�ve chosen to join our brotherhood, welcome. Now, onwards, toward the future. As a Machine Lord I�m sure you�ve already realized your perception of time will be a bit different. In extreme situations you may further slow down your perception of time by many orders of magnitude. Adjusting yourself to these varying perceptions of time can take some getting used to, but you had better master it as I see you have a semi-combative subclass, a Rogue, which is interesting.
"Machine Lords generally stick to non-combative roles, doing more administrative work or research, but I suppose it could be quite useful in the heat of battle. I advise you set up some sort of signal with your AI to immediately exit out of any sort of hypercognition mode, as pain can be magnified severely. After all, if you�re experiencing time a hundred times slower, and you�re stabbed by a knife, you�ll experience the pain for a hundred times as long. That�s why most Machine Lords avoid active combat roles. It�s also actually one way that people die in real life due to the Game, severe pain that overloads their brain. But usually the Game stops things before that happens or the user loses consciousness. Anyway, you�re now a Machine Lord.
"Don�t spread any information about a Machine Lord�s capabilities. Or else. You�ll also be better off if you don�t disclose your class to anyone else, as even though not much is widely known about Machine Lords, we still have clear counters and weaknesses due to our low psionic ability and dependence on our machine implants. Your abilities may slightly differ from another Machine Lord�s abilities as well; it seems to be a somewhat customized class based upon a player�s performance during the Tutorial tests. Also, you should make sure to actually learn important information, not just have your AI store the data. You�ll be able to recall the information and take it into account much more easily that way.
"In case you were wondering, I am a player, and did not start out as a machine or AI, and was only recently promoted to my position as one of the 200 Chief Administrators. You�re the first person I�ve allowed to become a Machine Lord, so try not to screw too much up. Just try to help your own race, the humans, as I�m sure you will. If you do somehow become super powerful, that�s fine as well, just remember that I try to keep the balance, no matter which way it tips. But, well, as Administrators our power to influence the Game and the politics of the Game is rather limited. That�s a different topic though.
"Anyway, as I guess I�m the sort of class leader of the Machine Lords, let me know if you encounter any class specific problems or difficulties. Should you perform tasks for the Administrators, I may share additional information about the class with you. Oh right, I�m also supposed to set up your class quest. Hmm� What will your future be like.
"Right, well, you may or may not know this, but as most beginners don�t, or at least shouldn�t, I suppose I should tell you anyway. Once you reach level 100, you�ll stop getting 5 ability points a level and only get 1 ability point each level. Then, at level 1000 you�ll only get 1 ability point every two levels. Yes, I know this is unfair as the XP requirement for each level grows almost exponentially (the growth is linear, don�t let anyone convince you otherwise), but it allows lower level players such as yourself to match up more evenly against higher level players. It also demonstrates the importance of the Gifted/Skilled abilities, but you have them already I�m sure, as they�re a prerequisite for the class implant.
"You should also know once you successfully complete the Tutorial, that is, when you finish the Learning the Basics quest, the credits you have remaining will be multiplied by five. That includes any credits you may have paid someone or given away, which is why everyone gives new players such a discount, in case you were wondering. We Administrators force them to, otherwise the players would be ripped off left and right, and then send endless complaints to us. I suppose we should just multiply credit rewards by five, but that�s how the Game was set up originally, and we aren�t allowed to change certain basics like that.
"Right, moving forward I advise you to join a guild or find a sponsor. In the Game the majority of players join an institute or academy, places that essentially power level a player to level 1000 and teach them a number of useful skills. They have all of what would be considered in most games to be the ideal farming grounds, with entire planets designed around power leveling. You�ll probably want to join a more combat-oriented academy, but the cost is prohibitive, generally hundreds of thousands of credits, hence why you should join a guild. They�ll pay the cost of the academy, provided you sign a contract to be a member of the guild for a period of time.
"Based upon your results and class, I think you should join the Black Rose guild. I�ll actually recommend you to a contact I have there. This is the last free favor though. I guess you could pay me with the marks you�ve managed to acquire from the Tutorial though. Any questions?�
With a split second pause, he continued.
�No? Well, if any spring to mind, message me in a chat window and my AI should respond within a few milliseconds. Bye.�
The communications window closed. Shortly after, Alan got a message:
CA170: Oh, I forgot to give you your class quest. Here you go. It should be� interesting.
Scoping out the Competition:
Discover and meet with 10 major players in person. Introduce yourself to them. No big deal, right?
A major player is determined to be a player capable of massively influencing the game. Chief Administrator 170 is a major player, but meeting him won�t count towards the quest. Retroactive confrontations count though, thus the Predecessor you met counts as 1 of the 10, congrats!
1/10 Major players met
Bonus Objective: Discover each major player�s main objective in the Game.
Reward: Locked Class Abilities, ???, Increased rewards based upon bonus objectives found
Penalty for failure: None, but be careful not to anger any major players.
Alan read over the quest a few times. It seemed somewhat obvious the Chief Administrator had simply written the quest text himself. How he had reached such a position, Alan wasn�t sure, although he did seem to be multitasking quite a bit, performing other tasks while conversing with Alan. Alan wondered why exactly the Chief Administrator had chosen to be an Administrator. As if he had somehow read Alan�s mind, the Chief Administrator sent Alan another message:
CA170: By the way, in case you were wondering - balancing the Game efficiently is my current main objective. Unfortunately my race, the Hunaan, are now virtually extinct due to improper Administrative balance. Don�t let that happen to humanity! Good luck.
Alan began to feel sorry for the Chief Administrator, at least until Eve brought up a piece of information for Alan. The Hunaan race had a thriving colony set up in real life in some far off solar system, they were just virtually extinct, which meant they had little to no influence in the Game. Shaking his head, Alan tried to access the alien internet to research the guild that had been recommended, but was stopped by a message. Apparently he had to finish the "Learn the Basics" quest first.
The basics turned out to be the manual that Icewolf had originally given Alan to learn about the rules of the Game. As a Machine Lord, Alan was also forced to memorize a few more manuals about things like the various alien races, factions, technology and the alien internet, called the globalnet. There was also apparently a freedomnet, used by the Republic, a empirenet used by the Empire and a haxnet used by the Haxlards, but most players used the globalnet which was monitored and setup by the Administrators.
With his new-found memory, Alan managed to learn all this information in a week. At Eve�s suggestion, he also studied a few more subjects, pretty much every core science subject: mathematics, physics, chemistry, engineering and biology, while expanding his computer science knowledge. Each morning and evening, Alan also progressed through a series of complex exercises suggested by the Chief Administrator that were supposed to improve his balance. They seemed to work fairly well, although Alan continued to feel a bit off. Still, a day before the Titan arrived at Khersath, three and a half weeks after Alan first entered the Game, he learned enough to satisfy the Game.
Learning the Basics, Complete!
Reward: Knowledge is its own reward.
(You are now able to logout from your Home, access online computer networks, join a guild, access the universal Market and Arcade, teleport to a different location, level past 100 and do a variety of other things in-game. Congratulations, you aren�t a moron!)
Alan had a feeling the Chief Administrator was messing with him now. Alan decided to exit the game, see if there was much of a change in real life. His parents were probably worried about him, although it seemed odd to think of his parents now. Of reality. There were also questions he wanted to ask Icewolf.
So Alan proceeded to capsule room, returned Home, and logged out.
Arc 2: The Guild
-Unknown
Chapter 11
�Yes, I know. I love you too, bye,� Alan said exasperatedly, ending the video conference with his parents. He�d contacted them right after he�d gotten out of the Game. The log out had not been immediate, the process taking around two and a half hours before Alan emerged back into the real world. Alan didn't remember any of it. As he answered his parents� questions, or at least the ones he was allowed to answer, he�d checked his email. He had one from Icewolf to contact him once he finished the Tutorial, but other than that nothing important.
Despite the Chief Administrator�s warning, everything seemed� ordinary. Alan had emerged feeling slightly stronger, maybe healthier, but that was it. No Eve in his head. If anything, the main disorienting feature was the lack of his enhancements. His thoughts felt sluggish, his memory foggy, his body frail. Reality somehow felt a bit less real, as if everything was slightly out of focus.
Feeling a bit hungry, Alan looked about the room. Two of the capsules were currently in use: Kitana�s and the one next to hers. Icewolf's and the last capsule were empty. Alan wondered whose it was. He assumed one of them was Kitana's mentor, whom he still hadn't met. The kitchen appeared to be fully stocked, but since Alan hadn�t ever bothered to learn to cook, he decided to go downstairs to the company kitchen which had a hired chef. Despite the fact that this was the room where he had stayed in for the past few weeks, only a week real time, it still felt foreign. The rich decor, the paintings and the penthouse view made Alan feel a bit uncomfortable.
Alan checked the sign in the elevator; the kitchen was on the fifteenth floor. Swiping his ID card he�d gotten from Omnitech, he proceeded downstairs. The kitchen was a fairly simple place, with a granite counter-top and a wooden dining table that could seat 12 people. A few people were there, eating at the table, wearing the standard light grey Omnitech jumpsuits. One person was standing behind the counter, a young man in a white chef�s coat. Alan assumed they were the chef. He asked for a burger with fries. The chef muttered something about no one ever asking him to make actual food.
Alan pulled out his phone, looking to see if any major news had happened while he was gone. Apparently a lot had, with Russia, China and a number of non-NATO countries withdrawing from the United World Government over a dispute about where the tax money going, with a claim that an emphasis was being put on western projects. Of course, as all violence took place in-game, this seemed like a peaceful transition to the public, but the in-game ramifications could be startling. Rumors were now circulating that these countries had started funding the Legion of Man, and were preparing to set up their own force in-game to take back the Control Points in their homeland.
Alan wondered about the foolishness of mankind. In about another year and a half aliens could start a war and try to take over Earth, and here people were wasting tons of resources fighting each other. Well, unfortunately he couldn�t do too much about it now. He�d try to keep better track of how things evolved on the news though.
He texted Icewolf that he was back in the realm of the living.
Someone tapped him on the shoulder. Alan turned to look around, and saw a non-descript man in an Omnitech jumpsuit.
�Are you Adampwnage?�
�Uh, yes, that�s my username.�
�I have a message from the Legion of Man. Just letting you know, I�m a messenger, and bear you no ill will.� The man looked about nervously. Alan gestured for him to continue.
�Their message is as�follows: Stop messing with Earth politics. Or else.�
�Or else? Or else what?�
The man shrugged. �I don�t know, that was it. I should get back to the Game.�
He turned around and left.
Feeling rather unsettled, Alan finished his meal, then went back up to the penthouse. How had the Legion of Man tracked him down in real life? And how did they tie him to any of his actions? What did they actually know? The Enforcers made sure no actual violence happened in the real world� right?
He stepped out of the elevator, and found Icewolf waiting for him, sitting behind a wooden desk in a corner of the room. Alan couldn't remember if it had been there before.
"Hello Alan, it seems you've had quite the eventful Tutorial. You definitely took my words to heart. I doubt any other player has acted as brazenly as you."
Alan took a seat opposite Icewolf, trying to recall his advice. Treat the Game like a game, or something like that.
"So," Icewolf said, drawing out the syllable, "what are your next plans?"
"Well, it was recommended that I join this Black Rose guild, so I thought I'd check them out," Alan said.
"Aren't you forgetting something?" Icewolf asked.
"What?" Alan paused. "Oh, you mean the debt I owe you? I've been making tons of money, I should be able to pay you back in a matter of months."
"No, that wasn't the plan," Icewolf said, slowly shutting his eyes, gripping the edge of the wooden desk. Alan shifted his seat backwards. "You were to take the Grasshopper to Mars, and then complete a few tasks for me there."
"Look, I can still help you with whatever you want, just on Khersath," Alan said. "I don't understand what the big deal is."
"The big deal is that I expected you to help me on Mars, not Khersath!" Icewolf shouted. "It's like I handed you an airplane ticket to LA, dropped you off at the airport, and then you ended up on the moon. There are tasks I need done on Mars, by someone I trust. I have people in Khersath."
"Do you have people in the Black Rose guild?" Alan asked.
"No."
"So let me try to join them."
"No, as soon as you reach Khersath you need to take the first ship back to Sol," Icewolf said.
Alan stared at Icewolf for a second, then said, "I'm sorry but I don't think I can do that. Unless you can tell me what's so important on Mars, I have it on good authority that I will become much stronger as a player if I join a well respected guild."
"Good authority?"
"A Chief Administrator."
Icewolf paused.
"And they told you to join this guild?"
"Yes."
"I'm sorry," Icewolf said, rubbing a hand over his face, "but I need your help on Mars. I'm calling in my debt."
"And why should I listen to you?" Alan said.
"Because the contract says you should."
Alan glanced at Icewolf. "Um, what contract?"
"The debtor�s contract, the one where you agreed to pay me back for the capsule."
"I don't remember signing anything," Alan said.
"You don't need to sign anything under galactic law, there just needs to be tangible evidence of agreement."
"Like in the Game," Alan said.
"Yes, like agreements in the Game," Icewolf said. "You need to pay more attention to the world around you; the rules have changed. You agreed verbally, and that would be enough for the Enforcers. I am demanding you pay me back right now, and if you can't come up with the sum you will end up my indentured servant. Then, I will order you to come to Mars."
"But you said the capsule is worth more than a million credits. I could just sell it," Alan said.
"Sure, but you'd have to find a buyer within twelve hours. Capsules aren't really liquid assets, they're tailored to the individual."
"I could sell my AI."
"Yes, you could," Icewolf said, "though I doubt you would. I can see it in your eyes, you're hooked on the Game and won't ever stop playing. Look Alan, I'm not trying to make you take such drastic action. We were guildmates, but this is something much bigger than that. You have a week to find the money and a connection to the Black Rose guild. Otherwise, you come back to Mars, okay?"
Alan thought it over, looking up the laws on the Internet. It seemed like Icewolf really did have him under contract, and he could end up a virtual slave to him if he didn't pay him back. He stared at Icewolf. "Fine."
Icewolf nodded. "Good, but this changes plans I have. Message me in-game when you get the chance." He stood up, walked over to his capsule, and entered.
Alan took a deep breath, looking up at the ceiling. A week to get a million credits, ten million dollars. It should be doable, and in the worst case he'd just end up taking a flight back to Mars. Still, he would need to try to come up with the money, fast; he didn't want to be beholden to Icewolf forever.
He quickly changed clothes even though they seemed to be perfectly clean. He�d still been in them for a little less than a week in real life time. Then, he climbed back into his capsule, and closed his eyes.
Chapter 12
Opening his eyes, Alan found himself back in his Home. The change was astounding: his thoughts became more coherent, faster; the comfortable sense of Eve�s background calculations settled in his head. Alan could now tell that she was constantly scanning for signs of danger, potential harm or potential gain, calculating risks and rewards associated with particular actions, examining every minute detail of the world around them. It was astounding, really. Yet, at the same time, it became increasingly clear she was a lot less� human. All of her choices, her actions, were a series of probabilistic calculations, nested loops within nested loops going so deep it was impossible for Alan to follow. Alan looked up at the Administrator in his Home. Her tag read �Senior Executive B31400AD32.�
Alan briefly considered spending the 500 ability points he got from the Tutorial, but then decided against it. He should find out more first, figure out what he was going to do before he began improving his character. In most MMOs (massively multiplayer online games) each class�s talent tree was carefully examined, optimal builds found after hours of testing. Alan was sure in-game guides were as abundant and varied, as the amount of customization capable within the Game was staggering, eclipsing any other game he had ever played.
Alan quickly checked out how much it would cost to teleport within the Game, and his jaw dropped at the prices. Teleportation to the nearest major city, which was now Khersath, would cost over a million credits. Other cities were shown as options as well, but it would cost tens or hundreds of millions to teleport to them. You�d have to either be really rich or need to get somewhere in a real hurry to use this teleport system.
Shaking his head, Alan had the Game send him back to his respawn and logout point, the capsule room on board the Titan. He quickly made it back to his room and began to gather information on the globalnet, searching for ways to make money, helping Eve to make her own searches into class abilities, damage, and item choices while he tried to plan out what he�d do next. AIs weren't allowed to directly interface with the globalnet. Instead, Alan had to scroll through screens and click on things for her. He was able to set up a few macros fairly quickly, automatic processes that trawled through the entirety of websites.
The globalnet turned out to be a rather interesting place, as your in-game account was tied to your online account. Thus, if you wanted to post or view anything online it could be tied back to you. Tied to your account was a rating, using the standard in-game rating system, which would rise or fall depending on your actions online. Alan�s current globalnet-rating was D, as knowing a Chief Administrator was apparently a big plus.
With a quick search Alan found out what a Chief Administrator actually was. With only 200 of them at any given time, they were essentially the highest echelon of the Administrators, voting for major choices such as revising in-game rules. The degree to which they could actually change things was actually limited though. People had likened them to the US Supreme Court, interpreting the laws but not changing them. Alan had to forcibly stop himself from reading more, since while Administrator politics were no doubt interesting, he didn�t have the time. There was just so much free information open to him, backstory that he could explore.
As he delved deeper into the globalnet pay walls began to appear. The main site used for information was called the Hub. You could either pay credits to access more than the basic information or sell information for additional access, credits, or rating points. Various portions of the Hub were only accessible if you met various requirements, like a minimum globalnet-rating, a credit amount, or some other condition. Alan quickly found the human-only section, and found the top beginner�s guide. It was a free guide written and updated by the United World Government. For good measure, he read the overall top beginner�s guide on the entire site as well, which wasn't limited to a specific race. (The latter cost 100 credits to access.)
The majority of the information turned out to be things Alan already knew, like advising players to get the Gifted and Talented abilities if they didn�t begin with them, and an intro about the major factions. Interestingly, it was noted that a sizable number of players, maybe around 30%, actually developed non-combative roles, such as engineers, scientists, merchants or even laborers. Both guides advised that newer players join a guild or faction, with the United World Government stressing that people should join their faction, but Alan refrained from doing so.
Still, the benefits groups provided in-game were astounding. They often had special items, travelling arrangements, skills and training grounds. In addition, most major quests and events could only be attempted with a large group. It was also highly suggested that new players save up and take out a loan or find a sponsor, usually a guild or government, to attend an academy or institute. Like the Chief Administrator had told Alan, these places were basically boot camps that increased players� capabilities a great deal, streamlining the early leveling process and teaching people how to fight in-game. For someone like Alan who had no previous combat experience, this could be quite helpful, though Alan now had Eve to help him. They could also, once he was accepted, provide a loan, solving his debt issues. He'd ensure there were standard monthly payments this time.
Alan began looking into the guild the Chief Administrator recommended, the Black Rose guild. It was a member of the Mercenary Bloc, a coalition of mercenary guilds that agreed to not take out contracts that opposed each other. When incensed, the Mercenary Bloc could field a force capable of rivaling any major faction�s. That had only happened a few times in history when� Right, Alan shouldn�t get sidetracked.
The guild was relatively small, with only a few thousand members, but what they lacked in numbers, they made up with talent. The Black Rose guild was apparently for elite, specialized players, a guild easily in the top 100 of the Game. It was a special forces guild that concentrated less on fighting all out wars and more on discrete operations like capturing specific targets or fighting in places where ability mattered more than numbers. That sounded pretty cool to Alan.
He quickly searched for the contact the Chief Administrator had given him, a player called PhantomGlitch who went by Phantom. Alan didn�t expect anything to turn up, but to his surprise he got an immediate result. Phantom was apparently an Erudian inventor, who worked as an engineer/tech specialist for the Black Rose guild. A picture of him accepting an award was shown. He looked to be a human in his early 30s, with brown hair and a handsome face.
According to the Hub page, Phantom held a few fairly major patents, mostly having to do with improved weapon scopes. There was additional information listed on the public page about him, but it said you needed to be female to view it. Alan proceeded to message him, with the intentions of trying to join the Black Rose guild. The guides said guild testing and trials could be as arduous as the Tutorial. The Black Rose apparently had as low as a 1% acceptance rate even though they accepted applications from only the best. Alan prepared to send a message to Phantom.
Alan: Hello Phantom, I wish to try out for the Black Rose guild. I am a highly skilled human player capable of learning new things quickly. Chief Administrator 170 recommended I join your guild.
PhantomGlitch: Hello. So you�re the player that the old Chief recommended? All right, I�ll give you a simple task I want you to complete. If you complete the task I�ll interview you to see if you can be my squire. How soon do you think you can make it to Khersath? I can arrange to get you transport or get you teleported somewhere closer if you�re really far away.
Alan: Um, I�m just nine hours away, aboard a ship named the Titan. Also, this is the first time I�m doing something like this, anything I should prepare? What position is a squire? Can you tell me more about the guild/what would be required of me?
PhantomGlitch: Oh cool, you should make it in time then for the next noob launch. It should be an interesting time� Following the Chief�s advice has never failed me so far, so no need to prepare anything special. If you have his class you should be able to assist me with my research quite easily. Don�t worry, I won�t give anything away to anyone else. I�ll tell them you�re a promising recruit, and as the Chief Administrator told me you managed to survive all three rounds of the Survival Test, you are.
Now, a bit about the guild, I suppose. The �rigid� hierarchy is as follows: Elissandra (the Guild Leader), Generals, Knight-Commanders, Knights, Lieutenants and then everyone below that you can generally ignore or order about. That�s what I do. I�m a Knight of the guild, and the third highest ranked science officer.
Oh right, I�ll send you an example contract, it has the details of working for the guild. A squire is an apprentice basically. Being my squire shouldn�t be a difficult task. In fact, it will allow you to do your own thing, mostly testing experimental equipment, so you�ll get shiny new items not on the market if you get the position! The starting pay will be about 10,000 credits a month, plus whatever bonuses you get from missions or quests you finish, minus guild taxes, demerits and whatever other debt you have.
If it doesn�t seem like you�ll be a good fit as my squire, then we�ll figure out if you fit somewhere else in the guild. But, like I said, the Chief has never been wrong as long as I�ve known him. The initial contract binds you to the guild for five years. If you want to quit, you�ll be able to, but it�ll cost you around a million credits. No one�s quit in the first five years for as long as I can remember though. Sure, a few deaths, betrayals, and spies, but no one quit. Anyways, I got to go, but I look forward to meeting with you. Complete my task and get to the Black Rose Docking Bay on Khersath by 1100 tomorrow morning. If you know anyone else that might be a good fit for the guild, invite them too.
Alan: Sure. Thanks a lot for this opportunity!
Alan ended the conversation, and was notified he received a new message containing the Black Rose contract. A quest window popped up:
A Simple Task:
Pick up a package and bring it to the Black Rose Docking Bay by 1100 tomorrow morning. The package�s location will be provided on your minimap once you enter the Undercity at the designated location.
Time Remaining: 16:23:22
Alan began searching for information about the Undercity, and in the process learned quite a bit about Khersath. Unfortunately, the globalnet didn�t contain any pictures. No free ones, at least. Khersath was apparently an ecumenopolis, a city that made up the entire planet; the planet had roughly twice the radius of Earth. It was home for hundreds of billions of players, trillions of robots or other beings, and consisted of over 100 levels, each level around 5-stories tall. Every level was built on top of another, and the ground was rarely if ever seen by Khersath�s inhabitants. The most prominent and prestigious buildings were all on the top floor, where there was actual sunlight. The city-planet was divided into quadrants and each of those quadrants were further divided by levels in terms of class, species and other factors. There was a military quadrant, a merchant quadrant, a living quadrant and a private quadrant. At the center was the main plaza area. A player could easily spend their entire life in the Game simply playing on and in Khersath. While the majority of the planet was a safe-zone, there were multiple combat and hostile zones as well.
According to the Hub, the Undercity was the lowest portion of Khersath, and as the name suggested was home to the more dangerous and seedy elements of the city-planet. It was one of the few inhabited combat-zones, where combat between players was allowed. Hostile-zones were, like they sounded, zones generally uninhabited by players, but full of enemies to battle and potential items. There was little free information about the Undercity on the globalnet, not even any indication of how to enter it. Luckily, the quest provided Alan with a few supposed entrance locations, but as his map of the planet was mostly blank, the only location that was useful was one near the center of Khersath where the four quadrants met, by the main plaza. The main Administrative Center was in the main plaza as well, which was a place he wanted to visit. He�d have to figure out how he�d get there though�
Well, there were other things for Alan to do. He quickly sent a message to Icewolf after Eve reminded him, then, after a bit of consideration, sent another message to Kitana, Ace and Daisy informing them of the Black Rose guild tryouts. He and Eve then looked over the sample contract. Unlike beforehand where he would need to trust that Eve knew what was best, he was now able to get a sense of her reasoning, which was interesting. Eve had a clear way of weighing disadvantages and advantages, examining likely chances of worst or best case scenarios, a never ending dividing future that continued to propagate until�
Alan froze, his head suddenly starting to hurt. Whatever the case was, Eve was much less human than he had thought. She was definitely a machine. An intelligent machine, but one that only valued what Alan told it to value. At least, that was the impression Alan got. For all he knew Eve 2.0 might be hiding things, plotting behind his back�. but thinking that way would lead to madness. He would trust Eve, and hopefully she�d continue to act in a way that benefited them.
Alan grinned, then quickly looked at he got a message from Kitana.
Kitana: I�ll consider going to the guild trial, but first I must ask my swordsmanship trainer. Also, Thiago wishes to speak with you before we reach Khersath.
Alan: Okay. I�ll message him.
He soon received messages from Ace and Daisy, who had other plans. Thiago let Alan know the location of his quarters aboard the Titan. Alan stepped out of his room and went to Thiago�s room.
It turned out Thiago�s room was much nicer than Alan�s. It was a complete suite, along with an accompanying dining room. Alan didn�t want to know how much this extravagance cost. Thiago was sitting in the dining room, talking with Aphrodite, a series of windows showing graphs open in front of him. Thiago waved them closed as Alan entered.
�Ah, Alan!" he said. "Nice job defeating the third round in the Survival Test. That got everyone in the group a nice bonus. A pity you weren�t able to defeat the Predecessor though��
�I�m not sure even the entirety of the United World Government could have defeated the Predecessor,� Alan said. Though talking in the Game was a bit different, Alan had thought he�d fully adjusted to his improved perception, but it now sounded as though Thiago was speaking in a drawl, irritatingly slowly.
�I�m sure,� Thiago said, grinning slightly. �Now, on to business. Do you want to join a guild? We�d be able to fund your admission to one of the better academies, maybe even a C-rank one.�
�I�m fine, thanks, I actually am planning on going to a guild trial tomorrow,� Alan said, trying to end the conversation quickly, yet still wanting to stay on Thiago�s good side. He was having trouble concentrating on Thiago�s words, and decided to look through information that Eve had while waiting for Thiago to finish speaking. He�d had Eve prepare additional lessons, things beyond the initial basics that had been taught by the quest. It couldn�t hurt to learn more, especially if it was information everyone else in the Game had grown up knowing.
�Oh really? Good for you, I�m surprised you�ve managed to catch one�s attention so quickly," Thiago said. "Generally people need to complete a few quests in a major city first, get a few achievements, participate in a few tournaments�
"Anyways, I�d like to thank you for your assistance in the Tutorial, but as we�re now parting ways I�d appreciate it if you kept any information you may have discovered a secret. Anything, even something as small as our names. We�ll do the same for you, of course, keeping your identity and abilities a secret. Just as a heads up, I hear quite a few reporters and players are already trying to find out why the Predecessor came to Earth. Apparently it�s a rather rare event.
"Now, I think it would be in our best interests if we formed a contract, an in-game deal to assure this, just in case. Not that I don�t trust you, but, well, better safe than sorry, after all. How does that sound? Alan, are you listening?�
Alan blinked, then quickly had Eve replay Thiago�s speech at a faster pace. He attempted to activate hypercognition, but failed. He probably looked like an idiot though, as he stared blankly at Thiago for a few seconds. He glanced at Aphrodite nervously, hopefully he wasn't making a fool of himself in front of her. She smiled at him.
�Um, yes, of course, sorry, just getting used to a few quirks of my new class,� Alan muttered after he got caught up in the conversation.
�These classes and the Game can take some getting used to.� Thiago glanced at Aphrodite, who continued to simply sit in her chair, smiling at Alan. �I�m sorry if I caused any offence, it just looked like you were staring at the wall.�
�Right. Anyway, the contract?�
�Ah, yes, here we are.�
Thiago opened a screen, pressed a button, and a message appeared in front of Alan:
For a minimum period of one year in-game the following players agree to not discuss, sell or divulge any information gained about a separate player during and before the in-game Tutorial without said player�s explicit consent. Everyone�s future plans and affiliations will not be mentioned to anyone not in this group, unless the specific member wishes to make this information known. Should anyone break this contract, they will immediately owe the group as a whole 1,000,000 credits.
Players: Ace, Adampwnage, Aphrodite, Daisy, DaLong, KingArthur, Kitana, MadMerlin, Thiago
Note: This contract is renewable on a one-year basis if all parties agree. Once you agree to this contract, you are unable to exit it unless all other players let you.
Everyone else�s name appeared green, while Alan�s remained black. He assumed this was because they had all already agreed to this contract. He was about to agree when Eve said:
Alan waited, he could sense that Eve was running various calculations.
Alan did so, although it was rather hard to think of nothing, as once you tried thinking about nothing, you were of course thinking about something, which wasn�t nothing.
�Is there a problem?" Thiago asked. "As you can probably see everyone else has agreed to this contract.� Aphrodite was still sitting in a chair, smiling at Alan. Oddly, she had the exact same expression on her face as before�
�Are you using some sort of power on me?� Alan asked, pulling out his knife.
�What? Of course not, I would never�� Thiago said.
�Not you, her.� Alan pointed the knife at Aphrodite. The moment it was brandished in her direction she quickly stood up, backing away from her chair.
�Now wait, you�re being paranoid or something," Thiago said, hands upraised. "You�ve been talking really quickly this entire time. I�m not sure what sort of tests you went through during the rest of the Tutorial, but we all can agree that they were rather harrowing. Calm down.�
Alan found that he was standing up, and had taken a step forward to point the knife at Aphrodite. He didn�t remember doing that consciously. Lowering his hand, he quickly ran through some information Eve provided, trying to think his way around the situation, analyzing the different possible courses of action. He could take this to the Administrators, as actively using a psionic ability to influence a contract was breaking a number of rules, or�
�Look, I understand why you may want me to agree to this contract, but you seem awfully invested in keeping all this quiet," Alan said. "So, I�ll agree to this, but only for a few thousand credits.�
Thiago narrowed his eyes, then nodded.
�Very well, you will additionally receive 10,000 credits for agreeing to the contract. You should be grateful, you�re the one who infringed upon our group.�
�Hey, you�re the ones that used a psionic ability on me to alter a business deal. You know that�s a punishable offence by the Administrators right? Minimum sentence 50,000 credit fine and 500 penalty points, whatever those are. I�� Alan was about to demand more money, but Eve stopped him.
Quickly he saw that he was heightening the probability of a direct confrontation with Thiago. One which he might win, but would leave him with an enemy he�d probably rather not have. �I- I�m grateful for you allowing me to join your group for the Tutorial, but this whole mind-influencing business has me on edge. The Game is a lot different than what I initially expected.�
�Right, yes, I�m sure," Thiago replied. "I hope you understand that I�m trying to look out for my friends and future guild. Here, actually, take these. I trust that you�ll remain quiet about all this and we�ll remain� contacts, at the very least.� Thiago went over to a drawer, and took out a bag, tossing it to Alan.
Alan glanced inside. There were ten diamond marks, small diamond cubes the size of a large die. Each mark was technically worth 10,000 credits or 10 ability points, thus ten times a gold mark or 1/10th of a platinum mark. In actuality, their market value was about twice that. Marks, it turned out, did not drop upon death unlike a number of other items and credits. Thus, it was safer to exchange your credits for marks rather than keeping a large number of credits on-hand, or deposit them in some bank.
Some players simply never exited safe zones to bypass this danger, but it was generally considered wiser to invest your credits in marks if you were heading somewhere dangerous. Marks could be stolen, but they could also be stored in safety deposit boxes and the like. There was also the ability to convert them into ability points or items if you took them to an Administrative Center. Finally, and this was the part that Alan thought had influenced Thiago, exchanges of marks were not tracked by the Game, while any exchange of credits were. Your credit history was recorded. That was one of the reasons Alan wanted to go to an Administrative Center, there were a number of things he wanted to make private, including his level and credit history. The default, for some reason, was public.
Alan agreed to the contract, and the window closed. He noted that he also got the additional 10,000 credits. After his credit amount had been multiplied by five at the real end of the Tutorial, Alan was left with 103700 credits, 1 platinum mark, 10 diamond marks and 10 gold marks. Miraculously, he was already halfway to his goal of paying back Icewolf the million credits.
�All right, thanks," Alan said. "Good luck with the guild.� Alan started to exit the room, then glanced back at Aphrodite, who Thiago was staring daggers at. �By the way, in case you were going to try something like this again, I didn�t notice anything until Eve said something. Even then, I�m still not quite sure how you were affecting me or even if you�ve stopped doing whatever it was you were doing. Players from other races will probably pick up on it right away too, but I�m not sure about most other humans. See ya.�
�Bye,� Aphrodite murmured, looking frighteningly at Thiago, who muttered a goodbye as well. Whatever, it wasn�t Alan�s business.
Alan groaned inwardly as he headed back to his room. Maybe asking Eve to teach him information that would be helpful was a bad idea� no, it was better if he knew this stuff himself, not just Eve. Still, as the number of lessons showed, there simply wasn�t enough time. There were so many things Alan could be researching, or learning about, new abilities that he could be practicing. Alan wanted to check out the Market and Arcade he'd gained access to, and he�d barely explored the Titan. But Eve thought his time was best spent continuing to study the Game and its inhabitants, so he went to do that. Then, he�d get in a few hours of sleep before they landed on Khersath.
***
A few hours later, Alan got a reply from Icewolf. He�d tried to talk in a slower way, but after hearing himself speak through Eve�s recorded playbacks, he found he still sounded funny. In the end, Alan had decided that when he was talking Eve would deactivate the time-perception enhancing parts of his augments, but then immediately reactivate them once he was done speaking, or if there was some sort of danger. Alan read Icewolf�s reply... then read it a second time.
Icewolf: Again, congratulations on the completion of the Tutorial, I�m impressed. Remember, if you want answers get to Mars, and go to a nightclub called Red Dust. Ask for me.
Don�t reply to this message or send any further messages. I�m not sure if such things can be used to track your location, but I wouldn�t be surprised if they could.
Two new messages appeared:
Find Icewolf!:
Visit the Red Dust nightclub on Mars to get a clue about Icewolf�s location. He may even be there when you visit.
Reward: Additional information, ???
Time Limit: Around 3 Months
New Update:
Icewolf is your Rogue class mentor. Find him if you wish to delve deeper into the mysteries of the class.
Alan blinked after reading the second message.
Alan proceeded to fall into a fitful sleep, both nervous about new developments but also excited to finally set foot on Khersath, the capital of the humanoid universe. Tomorrow was a new day.
Chapter 13
Alan awoke in darkness, breathing rapidly, jolted awake. His mind felt like it had been jump started, as the events of the previous few days raced through his head in rapid succession.
The Game. The battles. The tests. The warning. The debt. Alan blinked, shaking his head. That was� quite the way to wake up. Feeling fully alert, Alan glanced at the clock on his display. There were still a few hours left until the Titan approached the planet, so after performing a series of morning exercises Eve had planned out to strengthen his body, Alan decided to continue studying.
It was funny, in a way, that he was so excited to learn more about the Game. If Alan had spent half the time, half the effort he was putting into trying to become better at this game, he probably could have become a straight-A student or star athlete. Except, he�d never really felt� the need, the motivation, the desire to do anything much in real life. It all seemed rather pointless. Yet, here he was in a virtual universe, more motivated than ever before. Of course, this virtual space affected the real world a great deal, but there was still this nagging doubt in the back of his mind...
All of this wasn�t real, after all. It might all simply be an elaborate hoax; maybe he went into the capsule and had never actually emerged, his mind simply creating this entire Game. Maybe it was all a lie, something to placate human-kind. Maybe� No, this never ending question of what ifs would get him nowhere. This world, this universe, was very much real, even if it was only a series of 1s and 0s stored somewhere somehow. Alan stood up, turning on the lights in the room, intent on absorbing as much knowledge as he could.
***
A few hours later, Alan was aboard a dropship, headed towards the planet of Khersath. He�d said a brief farewell to Thiago and the rest of the group. Things were still a bit tense, but at least they weren�t outright hostile. Alan didn�t think he�d see too much of Thiago any time soon. Kitana, on the other hand, had agreed to try out for the Black Rose guild along with Alan.
Once the Titan was orbiting Khersath, Pharaoh sent Alan a message, letting Alan know that he was free to take the dropship wherever he wanted to go, and that he�d be in touch. Pharaoh was definitely involved in human politics, somehow. The Titan was an ambassador ship, after all, and Pharaoh was the captain. All these details and conversations seemed to blur in Alan�s mind though; he was now focused on one thing, and one thing only: Khersath.
Alan opened up a screen; it showed the shuttle�s descent, and Alan got his first look at the planet. It was distinctly portioned, each quadrant appearing remarkably different, even from space. Half the planet was muted grey, the color of endless buildings that spanned the planet, a single landmass divided into the living and merchant quadrants. The private quadrant was a familiar green and blue, small to medium continents as well as a smattering of islands. It looked beautiful, like Earth. The military quadrant was hidden, blocked by a massive blue shield of energy. A long queue of specks were lined up outside the quadrant, waiting for clearance to enter.
The central, final portion of Khersath lay beneath Alan: the Main Plaza, an open area of almost 250 square km, almost ten miles end to end, about a third the land area of New York City, all for a public square. At the center, Alan could make out the outline of a building large enough to be seen from space.
As the shuttle continued to descend towards the Main Plaza it wove into an unimaginable flow of traffic, cutting in and out of lane after lane of strange looking spaceships, flying contraptions, airborne creatures and unknown beings. Dumbfounded, Alan stared as what looked to be a dragon arched straight upwards, almost crashing right into the shuttle as another spaceship chased after it, shooting a barrage of red laser fire at it. The spaceship had cloaking enabled, making it difficult for Alan to see. The pair were closely followed by a squadron of Administrator fighters trying to keep the peace.
Alan watched the screen as the surface of the planet came closer and closer, their destination highlighted, a gigantic, 100-floor skyscraper located on the east side of the plaza in the residential quadrant. The building was of an indistinct, chaotic shape, painted an aquatic blue among a series of similar buildings. Up until now Alan had held back his sense of disbelief, thinking that the technology and abilities in this game were unlikely, but possible. Now, he had to wonder. Was all this possible?
The top portion of the building opened up, allowing the shuttle to enter into a hangar bay. A message popped up:
You have now arrived on Khersath. The planet of Khersath is designated as a safe zone. Thus, should you die there will be no penalty unless you enter one of the areas deemed unsafe. You may not enter any unsafe area against your will. Any unjustified acts of violence or breaking of laws will be appropriately punished by the Administrators Guild, ranging from a simple fine to prolonged incarceration depending on the nature of your crime.
As a friendly reminder, most forms of public nudity and various obscene gestures are illegal, no matter the customs of your species. For a full listing of the 4,389 public decency laws on Khersath, please contact an Administrator. Have a nice day!
The shuttle powered down, shutting off the display and opening its ramp, allowing Alan to disembark. Alan emerged to the now-accustomed sight of Haxlardian guards. These guards seemed to be remarkably better equipped and of much higher status though. Each wore a blood red mask in addition to dark crimson power armor with an emblem of a black mask engraved onto the front. One carried a gigantic laser sword best described as a warglaive, a double-ended glaive-polearm with condensed, fiery red energy as its blades instead of metal. The other carried a plain-looking laser rifle, but Alan was pretty sure the weapon was anything but plain. A light-blue masked Haxlard wearing light power armor stepped forward, holding a tablet of some sort.
�Blessed be the Three. Welcome to the Haxlardian Embassy, Earthling, I hope you had a pleasant trip. Is there any way I can be of assistance?�
�Um, I was hoping for directions to the Administrative Center.�
�Certainly, one of our Crimson Guards would be happy to escort you.� The Haxlard gestured to one of the guards.
�I don�t really need an escort, just directions.�
�No, really, I insist. It�s the least we can do. As per our agreement with the United World Government, we would like to assist you as you get accustomed to the Game. Also, despite being a safe zone, Khersath is not safe. Thieves and scoundrels are rampant in the streets.�
�Yeah, and I�d like to get outside and stretch my legs!� the Haxlard holding the warglaive said. Despite his fearsome appearance, his voice sounded young to Alan.
�Oh, well, I guess I could use a bit of a guide, I don�t know too much about the city anyway,� Alan said, at Eve�s insistence. The so-called Crimson Guard would likely be a fountain of information.
�Wonderful, have a pleasant trip,� the blue-masked Haxlardian said. He pressed a few buttons on his tablet, then turned to approach another set of arrivals. The remaining Crimson Guard followed him.
�So, um, hey, I�m J-, I mean, I�m Red Death. The lift down is this way,� Red Death gestured towards the back of the hangar.
Grinning at the Haxlard�s name, Alan said, �I�m Alan, lead the way.�
Once they emerged from the building through a reception area, Alan stared at his surroundings. In front of him was the public square, and with it were thousands of players of all sorts and size going about their business. A towering behemoth in a mechanized suit, small green plant-men wearing dark green robes and a group of figures in black armor levitating over the ground were but a few players that caught Alan�s interest. For the most part, everyone appeared to be surprisingly humanoid, with slight differences. A more exotic skin color, a surprising appendage, a strange item of clothing or a difference in size was all that would set most apart. A cosplayer from any large convention would fit right in with this crowd; no one would even take a second glance at them.
Everyone was either headed to the center of the plaza, towards the pyramid-shaped building looming in the distance, or back towards a different quadrant of Khersath. Numerous stalls were set up, full of merchants and players hawking their wares, from exotic foods to standard weaponry and ammo. Other than the designated spaces for merchants that were spread out every couple hundred feet, there was no main road. Just open space and chaos.
A hundred different sights, sounds and smells assaulted Alan�s senses: loud roars of spaceships overhead, the constant murmur of voices from an inhumanly deep bass to an eerily angelic high-pitched chant, a battle between two miniature robots, a crowd betting on the outcome, a blur of movement to his left so fast that by the time he looked it was gone and a horrendous body odor which was quickly replaced by the aroma of a delicate spice. It was overwhelming. Alan could barely process it all, and he could feel Eve going haywire as she tried to analyze and categorize the entire environment.
Alan realized he had stood, mouth agape, right at the entrance to the building for nearly ten seconds, but Red Death didn�t seem to mind. Alan quickly stepped aside to let a delivery through. Shaking his head, shutting his eyes, Alan tried to get his bearings back.
�So, um, Red Death, where is the Administrative Center?� he asked.
�You don�t know? It�s that building right there, of course.�
Red Death pointed towards the center of the plaza, at the towering outline of the pyramid building Alan had seen from space. The building rose so high that the top was lost in a sea of clouds. Its base was simply massive, Eve labeled one side to be at least a few miles. The entirety of the Golden Gate Bridge would span about half the length.
Looking up, Alan stared at the sky. It felt strange, knowing that this planet was different from Earth, yet the sky looked similar, with a rising sun, white clouds and a blue atmosphere. The sun was too bright to directly stare at, but Alan was pretty sure it was yellow. It would be interesting to see what the skies of the levels below-ground looked like. The number of people and structures here amazed Alan, but if the globalnet was to be believed, this was but one level of hundreds.
Unfortunately, Alan didn't have time to sightsee. He had things he needed to do, a trial to undertake. Looking at the time, Alan realized he only had about five hours to do the errand; it was 6 a.m. local time. To Alan, though, it felt around noon. He blinked again, gazing about; this was the crowd at 6 a.m.
�Um, all right, do we walk there?� Alan asked. The building seemed pretty far away.
�Sure, or we could jog. It�s a little over five miles, around a two hour walk, an hour if we run.�
Once again, Alan silently thanked the Game�s makers, as it automatically translated units of measure, sayings, and other small nuances.
�Um, are there any vehicles we could take? I need to make a deadline.�
Glancing at the map and quest marker, Alan saw the entrance to the Undercity was another two miles from the Administrative Center, in the north east quadrant of the plaza, closest to the private quadrant of Khersath. The military quadrant was in the north west, while the living and merchant quarters, the part he was now at the outskirts of, were to the south.
�Unfortunately, the Administrators banned most private vehicles from the public square after a group of Revenants tried to use a few to take the central command point in the Administrative Center. You knew this, right?� Red Death glanced at Alan. Or at least Alan thought he did, it was hard to tell with the mask.
�Uh, right, the�� Alan waited for Eve to supply him with an answer. She was oddly silent, with no calculations running that Alan could detect. He waited another second, then said, �Um, actually, I can�t recall.�
�You can�t recall the First Great Cyberwar? It�s when the Revenants made their first move, you�re wearing their armor for god�s sake!�
�Uh, right, I haven�t had the chance to learn much history. Why don�t you tell me about it as we jog along?�
�All right, well, I�m no expert of course, but, well I guess it began with the New Technology Law, but you wouldn�t know about that either would you? Well, I guess it�s sort of like��
They set off at a jog towards the Administrative Center, Alan half paying attention to Red Death as he thought about what Eve had been teaching him. Eve�s first lessons had been about the various types of classes and items in the Game. She had moved on to vehicles, and other things like military logistics. To be honest, almost none of what she was teaching him was at all about culture. It was all just information that might help in battle. Of course, that was useful, but was Eve really prioritizing the correct things in her lessons? Alan supposed so. He could always learn more when he had the time.
As they ran along, passing by thousands of players, Alan tried to spot people with different classes. If he focused on one person, and they were in the public database he had gotten from the Thought Emporium, their level and class would pop up momentarily. In the Game there were the traditional classes of an MMO: damage dealer, healer and tank, but there were a lot of specialized classes as well. Diplomats, pilots, engineers, scientists, merchants, laborers and such made up a lot of the players as well. His own dual-class, a Rogue Machine Lord, was a sort of combination damage dealer and jack of all trades, at least from what he could tell so far.
Running along, Alan felt surprised at how in-shape he was. Jogging along felt almost as easy as walking; his stamina meter was slowly depleting at around 3 energy/min, but that meant he could run at this pace for over an hour. He was getting used to always wearing the Revenant Power Armor too, it felt lightweight, like he was wearing leather padding or a light Kevlar suit. It was nowhere near as cumbersome as the full on power armor many players wore in the Game. Alan tried to get a better look at the gear other players were wearing as well.
According to Eve, items ranged from traditional sci-fi gadgetry, such as space marines in power armor with plasma or laser weapons and almost every variation thereof, to the more fantastical, almost magical items empowered or enchanted by psionic powers. A number of items combined scientific materials with psionic energy as well, although most forms of science and psionic ability were strangely incompatible. A large number of players wore masks or helmets, often as a part of their power armor, hiding their faces. Additionally, most players had an emblem of some sort, similar to Red Death�s. Looking at a particularly elaborate green swirl, Eve finally answered Alan.
Alan felt Eve try to take in all the information again. She froze, hanging just like the last time.
Once Eve finished her info dump, Alan got his first good look at the Administrative Center. He had expected it to be a boring office building, like a City Hall or a Department of Motor Vehicles. Instead, the enormous pyramid-shaped building could be the palace, or burial site, of a galactic emperor. The building was layered with sheets of black metal, turrets and defensive shield generators located every few hundred feet. Alan could see the outline of a cube shaped structure at the tip of the pyramid. It was hard to make out, as it was nearly two miles up in the sky, but it looked like a mark.
Two gigantic bipedal mechs guarded the front entrance, fifty foot tall armor plated machines of destruction, complete with an array of weapons and personal shields that could, according to Eve�s database, hold up even against an elite Predecessor. This main entrance was nearly four hundred feet tall and five hundred feet wide, but there were numerous side entrances that people were streaming in and out of as well. Scores of cyborg, machine and humanoid guards stood around the perimeter, wielding a number of different weapons, but wearing the same dark blue armor and insignia.
Unfortunately, it appeared there was still a queue to get in, despite the size of the building. The line appeared to be fairly orderly, with Administrators throughout the line moving people forward, asking questions, directing players to different lines and entrances. Alan began to grow a bit worried. He had to make it to the Black Rose Docking Bay in another four hours, with a package, with no idea how far he had to go to get the package or where any of the places were. He might not have enough time at the Administrative Center.
Running a bit faster, Alan ran up to the end of the line that was snaking out of the main entrance. It was an orderly queue, with each party standing a few feet away from the next person in line. Taking his place at the end, Alan looked over at Red Death, and interrupted his lecture. He'd go back and listen to it at some point.
�Hey, thanks for bringing me here, I think I�ll be fine by myself here. Before you go though, can you tell me why everyone is so orderly?�
�Hmm?" Red Death tilted his head, as if he just realized who he had been talking to. "Oh, it�s generally considered common courtesy to stay at least a few feet away from other players, to prevent actions such as theft. As you�ve no doubt noticed, people have a number of insignias on their armor or weapons, to show their alliances, and to warn people not to mess with them. A few players are even so noteworthy their name and title will appear above their heads. You should generally steer clear of these people, as you don�t want to risk pissing a Named player off, and given the countless customs of players you�re more likely to piss someone off just being near them, either looking at them the wrong way or by not looking at them. Are you certain you�ll be okay alone?�
Alan nodded.
�All right, it�s your choice. Honestly, given that you have no insignia and you�re wearing Revenant armor, most players are likely to consider you fairly suspicious. You should try to stick to the main streets and thoroughfares.�
Alan hesitated, but Eve prompted him to ask the question.
�Um, right, except, well, what do you know about the Undercity?�
Red Death turned his head sharply towards Alan, then glanced about them.
�The Undercity? Why would you want to go there? I haven�t even been allowed there until I reach level 250.�
�Um, I read something about it on the Globalnet, that�s all.�
�Well, my advice is to steer clear of that place. It�s a deathtrap. All sorts of gangs, pirates and even slavers hang out there. A single, low leveled player without any guild or government to back you up would be easy pickings. Of course, you�d have to find an entrance first, and they�re rumored to be impossible to find.�
�Okay, I�ll definitely avoid the Undercity then. Thanks for your help.�
�Red Death saluted, then turned around, running back towards the Haxlard Embassy.
A few minutes later, Alan finally reached an Administrator directing players onwards.
�Greetings, player. How may we assist you today?�
Alan concentrated on the Administrator in front of him, forming a mental connection.
The Administrator stood still, examining Alan closely.
The Administrator broke away from the line, another Administrator taking its place. Alan followed, wondering what was happening. He didn�t notice any of the other players being treated specially, maybe it was a class perk. Perhaps sensing his confusion, the Administrator told him:
The Administrator deftly wove in-between the long lines of players, a few shooting envious or curious looks at Alan. Luckily, Alan's helmet hid his face, and as soon as he changed his username he would fade into anonymity. Alan was led up a flight of stairs to the main entrance, guarded by the two mechs. On a whim, he tried to see if he could form a mental connection to one of them, but was met with a blank wall of silence.
Once inside the building, he could see long rows of Administrators assisting players. It was almost like a bank, with booths set up for privacy. Before he could get a better of look, the Administrator turned sharply, leading him into a corridor guarded by two small turrets and guards with electrical batons. Within the corridor were a series of advanced elevators: open, semi-translucent metal boxes that didn't quite look safe. Alan followed the Administrator into one, and the walls shimmered, becoming solid, blocking out all vision. The elevator began moving sideways, then diagonally, stopping a few seconds later. Alan hoped he wouldn�t need to find his way outside.
The door opened, revealing a simple room with a single Administrator and capsule. Alan stepped out, and the door to the elevator closed behind him, leaving him in this room without any doorways or windows, somewhere inside the vast labyrinth of the Administrative Center.
Alan proceeded to change his username from Adampwnage to just Alan, at least until he thought of something better, hide his information, and set his respawn point to this location. The Game required what it considered a signature, verbal or written agreement that he was making these choices of his own volition. It was a rather painless experience and only cost 1250 credits too. Alan then proceeded to purchase two main abilities.
Each class had distinct talent trees that branched off from specific paths. For example, for his Machine Lord class he could develop Eve as some sort of cyber weapon, to gather information and hack into secure networks or do whatever it was black hat, dark-side hackers did in the Game. He could also try to develop Eve to control robots, develop a sort of Mecha Eve. Likewise for the Rogue class there were paths that were designed for assassinations, piloting, or a variety of other options. To unlock each talent tree, you had to purchase a central ability, which would cost 250 ability points, a hefty investment. Additionally, only one major ability could be active at a time for any given class. Alan had decided on which two he wanted.
For the Machine Lord class, he selected Enhanced Control. It would enhance his ability to control his own mind and body, through Eve and his augmentations, which would be useful in a number of ways. For one thing, it would allow him to train faster and harder, as, despite everything that had happened, Alan was definitely still human. When exercising he could only handle so much pain, yet Eve believed he could push himself further without risk of injury. His body and mind just wouldn�t let him. This would help to break free of those bonds, hopefully making training easier.
The battles in the Survival Test had also been extraordinarily painful for Alan, and he wanted to mitigate that pain as much as possible, as he couldn�t imagine willingly going through such torture again, especially in a state where each second that passed felt like minutes. Additionally, it would be useful in masking his true intentions and presence. With enough practice, he would be able to control his heart rate and other factors that might lead to his detection or give him away when he lied. At least, that was the idea.
For the Rogue class, he chose the Jack of All Trades path. The ability was what it sounded like. It would allow Alan to gain and train new skills and abilities more easily, and hopefully master them as well. The other options such as the Stealth or Assassination paths had more obvious, direct benefits, but Alan liked his choices. They gave him the greatest potential for growth.
His decision made, Alan spent the 500 ability points, opening up a series of additional abilities to unlock and train in. A few especially caught his attention. There was an ability in the Jack of All Trades path that would decrease the cost to purchase new abilities, but at the same time there was one that would allow him to learn faster. It would probably be better only getting one. There was another ability that would reveal available combinations of abilities or hidden requirements to unlock skills, but Alan felt like this would probably be a waste of Ability Points. He could find the information online, and combinations of skills should be fairly straightforward, right? The Enhanced Control ability tree, on the other hand, was depressingly sparse. It appeared that Alan hadn�t met any of the requirements for the abilities on this path yet.
Then, they got to the point Alan was the most excited about.
The Vault. A collection of items that the Administrators traded for marks, rumored to be the largest and most varied collection of weapons, armor and vehicles gathered in the Game. These items were rumored to come from a variety of sources. They were items dropped by players due to death penalties, items taken from chaotic players that broke the law, items developed by the Administrators and items bought by the Administrators. Each Administrative Center had its own vault, but the greatest and most expansive, where all the rarest items made their way, was here, in the Administrative Center at the center of Khersath. Alan needed a weapon, and he had one platinum mark, ten diamond and ten gold marks to spend.
Alan opened the list, and then sorted through the weapons in his price range. The weapons were surprisingly high-tiered, but considering his armor was worth 50k credits and a platinum mark was worth 100k, 200k if sold on the market rather than exchanged with the Administrators, it was no surprise that they were of such high quality.
Unfortunately, a lot of the weapons which were rank B or above also had a series of requirements, most of which Alan didn�t meet. He also didn't want to spend too much, but would need to spend money to make some. That seemed to be the story of the Game thus far.
Combing through page after page of results with Eve, but hurrying as he still had the task to complete, Alan finally settled on an item. The pistols themselves cost an entire platinum mark, and two diamond marks, while the rifle accessories cost three diamond marks, but Alan felt like it was a necessary investment. The Undercity didn�t sound like the kind of place he should go under-armed. He brought up the item descriptions:
Orion�s Cores (Rank B*):
Two powerful laser pistols with an enormous energy source capable of being transformed into a variety of weapons. Said to be the basic weapons of grunts in the Lords of Life�s army, these weapons eclipse most current technology. Accessories to Orion�s Cores may be dropped upon death, but the cores will not.
Estimated Damage/sec: 300-450
500 Energy, 1 Energy/shot, 50 Energy/min regen, 60 shots/min.
300/300 Durability each. Energy Ranged Weapons (Basic) required.
Dual Wielding: Ranged (Basic), Energy Efficiency (Basic) and Small Arms (Basic) recommend.
Orion�s Cores Rifle Attachment (Rank B+):
Combined with Orion�s Cores, forms a powerful laser rifle capable of firing astonishing bursts. Prone to overheat if fired for an extended amount of time.
Estimated Damage/sec 600-700
1000 Energy, 1 Energy/shot, 100 Energy/min regen, 400 shots/min.
Energy Efficiency (Basic), Energy Ranged Weapons (Intermediate) required.
Energy Efficiency (Intermediate) and Weapons Cooling mod recommended.
The fact that the Cores wouldn�t be dropped either was a big plus too, as Alan wasn�t sure how often he might die in the Game. If he really needed cash he could sell the weapons later.
Moments after Alan handed over the marks to the Administrator, the items popped out of a slot in the wall. Orion�s Cores were two sleek laser pistols made of a green-silver metal. They were completely devoid of any grooves or edges, simply curved weapons that appeared in a half-U shape. The rifle attachment was simply a larger U shaped weapon with two slots to put the Cores in. Thanking the Administrator for the help, Alan took an elevator back outside, ready to enter the Undercity.
Chapter 14
The entrance to the Undercity was nowhere to be found. Alan had rushed over to the position indicated by the quest in the plaza, only to find himself standing in the middle of nowhere. He was standing at the exact location the quest designated, but there was nothing here. Alan had inspected the ground, the peddlers and the players around him, but nothing seemed out of the ordinary. No clear, obvious sign that said, �Entrance to deadly Undercity, right here!� Maybe there was a level requirement that he didn�t meet and thus couldn�t see the entrance�.
Of course. Khersath was a city-planet, and this was simply the top floor. There were hundreds of floors below him, with only the upper 100 or so actually being occupied safe zones. The Undercity, as the name suggested, would be below these safe upper levels.
Sighing, Alan ran back to the Administrative Center. This time he bypassed the line by going through a special entrance the Administrators told him about. Alan checked the time; the Black Rose Docking Bay at the outer edge of the plaza, in the private sector. That still meant it was around an hour�s run away, and Alan only had three and a half hours left. Quickly approaching the first Administrator he saw, Alan initiated a mental contact.
Alan took a deep breath, telling himself to calm down, hoping he didn�t look like an idiot simply staring at the Administrator, breathing heavily due to the run over.
Alan quickly sent a message to Phantom:
Alan: Hello,�Phantom? Are you there?
Phantom: Huh, what? Why are you contacting me so early in the morning? I just fell asleep.
Alan glanced at the clock, it was 7:34 a.m.
Alan: Um, sorry for the disturbance, I had a few questions about the task you gave me. I�m having trouble entering the Undercity, and was wondering if you had the authority to grant me access to the Administrator entrance.
Phantom: Grant authority? You mean you went up and asked the Administrators to enter, and they just said they needed what exactly?
Alan almost face palmed, he should have asked this question earlier. He could have hired a bodyguard, without annoying Phantom. Of course, the bodyguard might have betrayed him, or maybe Phantom was planning a trap� No, he wouldn�t risk getting on the Chief Administrator�s bad side, right?
Alan: Um, apparently any officer of an organization rank D or above has to grant me the authority.
Phantom: Well, I think I�m an officer and the Black Rose Guild is an A rank guild, so I guess you�re in luck, kiddo. Give me the Administrator�s contact info.
Alan quickly did so.
Alan cut off the connection with the Administrator, sending a quick reply to Phantom.
Alan: Thanks a lot for the help, they said they�d let me through! Um, a quick question, how far away is the place that holds the package? I�m a bit worried about time.
Phantom: Really? It was that easy? Huh. The destination isn�t too far, just maybe a twenty minute run from the Administrator�s entrance. Your quest should update itself.
Alan: Oh, how did you expect me to get into the Undercity? Um, also, I don�t suppose you could give me any sort of emblem that would grant me some sort of authority as a courier of the Black Rose guild? How am I supposed to let them know you sent me, otherwise?
Phantom: I hear most people sneak into the entrance. I wasn�t even aware the Administrators knew it existed� Also, sorry, as you aren�t yet a member yet I can�t give you any sort of emblem. Now, this package pickup is sort of under the table so don�t tell them who sent you, okay? No mentioning the Black Rose guild or me. Tell them the boss sent you to pick up the designated package, the quest will give you the info about it. These deals happen all the time in the Undercity. Now, I�m getting back to sleep. I was up late doing guild stuff. Important guild stuff. Only message me again if the planet�s about to explode or something like that, okay?
Alan: Um all right.
Phantom ended the conversation.
A few moments later, a humanoid figure wearing a grey, flowing robe walked up to Alan. Like so many other people, they had a hood on, hiding their face. A gruff, digitized male voice said from beneath the hood, �Are you Alan?�
Alan nodded.
�All right, follow me.�
The figure turned around, surprisingly agile despite Alan's assumption it was an older man or construct. Alan rapidly followed the guide down a back hallway, then through a series of red walls of light. Each time they turned a corner or entered a hallway, the lights would turn on above them. When they left, they would turn off, plunging the area into darkness. Each and every inch of space was the exact same grey, silver metal. The walls, the ceiling, even the floor.
Alan was led down into a hidden staircase within another stairway. It was opened when his guide pressed his palm into the wall. Alan saw a glimpse of a hand with only three long, clawed fingers. They walked down the staircase in silence. It led almost straight down, with no end in sight. After a few minutes, an exit abruptly appeared, which they took. Alan continued following the guide for a series of additional twists and turns. How he was ever supposed to have found his own way down here, he had no idea. Maybe that was supposed to have been part of the challenge.
Still, the place was definitely barren, so he probably could have gotten away with sneaking around. Alan hadn�t seen another living or mechanical soul down here. Finally, after around a half hour of walking, the guide stopped in front of a wall, which Alan assumed to actually be a doorway.
�Here is the lift down to the Undercity. It should be back up soon. 15 minutes down, 15 minutes up, a continuous ride between bottom and top. Once you get out continue until you reach the light.
"Let an Administrator know when you are back up and they will send someone to guide you out. Do not sneak around, as you are more likely to get yourself killed than find any secrets. Most of the rooms are empty death traps. Good luck with whatever it is you�re trying to do.�
Abruptly, the guide turned around and left, walking the complete opposite way they had came.
Alan silently waited in front of the metal wall, hoping this wasn�t some sort of practical joke. He should probably be more trusting of people, instead of imagining all the horrible stuff that might happen. Then, the wall suddenly opened up, revealing a metal room. Within was a girl, around Alan's age, who seemed as surprised to see Alan as Alan was to see her. She was tall and pretty, with long blonde hair and blue eyes.
The girl wore a grey, leather outfit with a hood, almost straight out of an assassin�s game, nicely accentuating a beautiful figure. Strapped to her sides was a knife and what appeared to be a wooden stake. Looking closer, she appeared to be wounded, with blood on her shoulder�
The door in the wall had begun to close, the room beginning to descend. Alan dived forward as the girl was jarred into action as well. They quickly moved out of each other�s way, eyes briefly meeting as they passed each other by, the girl leaping out, Alan diving in. Alan landed in the metal room, able to get a last glance at the girl�s shapely departing figure as she threw up her hood.
Alan closed his eyes and concentrated, quickly having Eve bring up an image of the girl, telling himself it was to figure out more about her, not just to look at her. A few details had escaped his initial glance. Upon closer inspection, the stave he had seen had a number of light blue glowing runes on it, making the girl a Psionic ability user. Additionally, the blood on her didn�t seem to stem from any obvious wound, making Alan suspect it was someone else�s. Finally, her ears were distinctly pointed, making her a space elf or something. Eve quickly brought up a list of about 20 humanoid species with pointed ears, which Alan closed.
Wondering what the girl had been up to, Alan began to think about the day so far. In the end, Alan felt a bit disappointed. Khersath was simply a city. A humongous, futuristic city, yes, but like any other city it was basically a collection of buildings Alan would never see the insides of, people he would never meet. A hive of activity and experience that simply was. Everything felt chaotic, too many new variables being thrown after him one after the other. Alan shook his head, such thoughts were irrelevant now, he had a task to complete.
Alan nodded, and hid in the corner opposite the entrance. Of course, it was the wall that he had his back to that opened a minute later.
Alan turned around, but all he saw was a dark tunnel, like the guide had said there would be. As he stepped into the tunnel, the door to the lift closed behind him and a new message appeared:
You have entered into the lower levels of Khersath. Once you exit this tunnel, you have left the safe zone. Death penalties will once again apply, along with all the risks typically associated with the Game. An unsafe zone does not equate with a lawless zone, and all players are reminded that local rules should still be adhered to. That includes theft, murder and unwanted soliciting.
Shortly thereafter, Alan emerged from the tunnel into the Undercity, and froze. He�d expected maybe a seedy looking downtown area, or a ghetto slum. Instead, it was a fairly well lit, clean space, looking similar to the top level, with hundreds of people going about their business. The �sky� was a ceiling, about 100 stories upwards, providing artificial light similar to sunlight.
In front of Alan was a city gate, accompanied by numerous armed guards guiding people in and out, inspecting them carefully. Everything seemed quite neat, even orderly, with shops and compounds lined up along streets like city blocks within the Undercity�s walls. The first immediate, noticeable difference was the presence of armed guards everywhere, guarding merchants, stores, and lining the walls. Most of the guards above ground in the plaza had been carrying nonlethal weapons, stun batons and constraining weaponry. Everyone here carried weapons that were capable of deadly force. The second thing Alan noticed was the way most people were carrying themselves. Everyone was seemingly alert, constantly scanning their surroundings. Alan began to relax a little; there didn�t appear to be any immediate danger. Then, numerous red marks started to fill his vision.
Eve constantly scanned for possible threats, and right now everyone was turning up dangerous.
Taking a deep breath, which hopefully no one noticed as his face was completely behind his helmet, Alan began walking with purpose towards the city gate. One of Eve�s initial lessons had been on posture, and how to carry himself. Additionally, Eve had taught him different simple methods to avoid confrontation in case someone approached him, such as simply holding out his arm, bent at the elbow, to stop people that tried to get too close. Of course, these were lessons from Earth, but the general principle should still apply. Most of the �spotters� that Eve had pointed out seemed to ignore him, either assuming he wasn�t worth the trouble or he wasn�t among the list of targets they were looking for. Bounty hunting was, after all, a remarkably lucrative job in the Game.
The guards standing at the city gates had simple, uncolored metal power armor with an emblem of a single metal cube, which Alan assumed to be a platinum mark. They generally carried a laser rifle on their back, a laser sword in a holster to their side and an assortment of what looked to be grenades.
As Alan was about to enter the city, a guard turned to look at him.
�Halt. Please state your business in this city and reveal your identity.�
Alan slid his hand to a compartment that held the remaining gold marks Alan had, and then quickly flicked one into the guard�s outstretched hand stopping him.
�I�m here to perform a simple business transaction, and would like to keep my identity to myself,� Alan said with more confidence than he felt.
The guard quickly glanced down to see what Alan had tossed him, and, upon seeing gold, quickly shoved the mark into a pocket compartment of his own.
�Of course, sir, please have a pleasant visit.�
Alan, having learned it was better to keep his mouth shut, simply nodded, and continued on his way. Neither he nor Eve noticed a watcher, hidden in the shadows.
Chapter 15
Alan looked at the buildings he passed as he made his way to the location indicated by the quest. Most were shops, with guards stationed outside. Interestingly, the majority of stores had messages saying that they didn�t allow walk-ins, and required some sort of identifying symbol or authorization to enter. There were probably some black market stores he could get into with the coin he�d gotten from the shady merchant back on Earth.
Rather than specific emblems, most players seemed to wear specific colors, probably representing gangs of some sort. The most common colors were a dark purple and a tarnished gold, almost bronze. Some article of clothing or weapon would be painted in one of these colors, but never both. Alan was worried he was sticking out too much, as he had no such identification, until he noticed a few other similarly unmarked players.
They were apparently meeting up as a group, heading into the ruins of an old building. Alan noted that there were a surprisingly large number of guards around the building, despite its dilapidated state. All the guards wore a purple tabard with a silver crown etched into it over their power armor.
Alan walked by the ruins, continuing onwards. The buildings around him turned into large, steel warehouses, generally with only one or two bored looking guards. There were fewer and fewer people walking down the streets, as Alan was leaving the main market district.
Alan turned into the alley indicated, then proceeded to turn right back and exit once the invisibility field was activated. He continued down the street, picking up his pace, glancing behind him. He noticed a man with a dark purple glove stroll pass the alleyway. The man wore a set of black formal attire. He took a brief, discreet glance down the alleyway then continued on. A small metal ball dropped from the man�s pocket, rolling into the alleyway.
A blue outline of the scanner�s potential range appeared in Alan�s view. He leaped forwards, barely crossing the line before a small electronic pulse showed up right behind him.
The man that had dropped the ball frowned then murmured a few words into a communicator on his wrist.
Alan started jogging towards the quest marker, moving past warehouse after warehouse. A few had guards, others had squatters. Eve highlighted a few players doing some sort of drug in an alleyway, but Alan didn�t care about such things and tried to ignore them. A few minutes later, he reached another, nondescript large steel warehouse, apparently the destination of his quest.
There were two guards in front, both in dark grey, almost black army fatigues rather than power armor. They each held a number of strange devices on a belt, and held their weapons at the ready with a quiet ease. One had a dark-metal sword, the other a mechanical rifle. Unlike many of the other guards Alan had seen, they weren�t fooling around or talking to each other. They were quietly scanning the area, and had their levels hidden unlike many of the other guards. Neither wore an emblem.
Alan walked back around the corner, then deactivated invisibility and checked on the power of the armor. It had 440 energy remaining. He then slowly approached the guards, who turned to look at him, standing at attention.
�Hi, I�m here to pick up package E51 for Master Silver.�
The two guards briefly glanced at each other, then the one on the right who held the sword spoke.
�Oh, and what proof do you have that Master Silver sent you?�
Thinking quickly, Alan replied, �Proof? Isn�t my presence here enough? My master made no mention that such proof would be needed, and I�m sure he wouldn�t have sent me here to come back empty handed.�
�Look, I�m sorry, I�m sure Silver is an important person, but at the very least you should have an emblem or symbol to demonstrate that you are part of his faction, yet here you stand devoid of any such signifiers.�
�Do you know what is in the package?� Alan asked in a quiet tone.
�No, we do not, sir,� the guard said.
�Well then, I don�t think it is your place to question the orders of my master. Are you sure that you wish to offend him?�
The two guards shared another glance.
�Ah, but of course, my master may also be quite generous. I�m sure that you didn�t think I wouldn�t reward you for your help.�
Alan smiled, but then, remembering the guards couldn�t see his face, simply slowly took two diamond marks out, giving one to each of the guards.
�The guard who had been talking to Alan inspected the mark; the other glanced at Alan confusedly. The older guard shrugged.
�Get him his package, and quickly.�
�All right.�
The rifle-wielding guard ran into the warehouse. A few seconds later, he emerged, carrying a small black box about the size of a shoebox.
�Here you are, sir.�
�Thank you,� Alan said, taking the box and carefully putting it into a compartment on his back. The box had no clear opening, but its contents seemed secure, as nothing rattled or moved about when Alan lifted it up. The revenant armor would soon be at full capacity, as it didn�t have much room for carrying objects other than weapons and ammunition. The compartment Alan had placed the box in was really meant for a sword or other hilted weapon, not a box. He should probably get some sort of futuristic backpack or bag at some point, although it would weigh him down a bit.
As Alan turned around and headed back towards the city gates, another cloaked figure strode past him towards the guard. Alan caught what he said to the guards.
�I�m here to pick up package E51 for Master Silver, here is the order confirmation.�
The two guards took out their weapons, and shouted, �Hey, you there, stop!�
At that point though Alan had already turned invisible, sprinting away with all his might. Alan spared a glance behind him, only to see the guard throw a sensor in his direction. Time slowed as Alan entered hypercognition mode, greatly increasing the speed at which he thought and was able to communicate with Eve.
Eve plotted out where the sensor would land, along with the radius it would scan. There would be no evading this sensor.
The first few steps were easy. Alan sprinted away, then dodged the EMP grenade and bullets fired at him with Eve�s help. He was soon out of the sensor�s range, but the other guard simply threw another one in front of Alan as his partner picked up the other. They continued this relay as Alan continued running forward, using Eve's warnings to evade the bullets and occasional swipe of a sword.
Alan soon began to tire, a heavy cloud of fatigue settling in his mind.
Alan had thought his previous experience in the Game had pushed his limits before. He had, after all, experienced mind numbing pain in the Tutorial. But this was different. Before, he had to simply sit still, and watch as the Predecessor advanced. Now, for each second that passed, he had to force himself to endure greater pain. It was like he was at the end of a set in a grueling workout, but on a completely different level. Pushing himself to take another step, pushing his body forwards in a full on sprint, was experiencing each moment of the muscle weary pain and tiredness for an eternity. His body, his mind, surely couldn�t take more.
Alan swore at Eve.
Sighing, Alan focused on but one thought. Move. He let Eve worry about where, and when. The details didn�t matter, only the motion. Alan pushed himself forwards, through the pain, the fatigue that couldn�t possibly get any worse. Of course, it did worsen, slowly but surely, as Alan felt his body seem to almost tear itself apart. He was pushing it too hard, harder than should be possible. But Eve guided him onwards.
Exhaustion and discomfort was soon but a remnant of the blissful past. This was torture, a torment so unbearable that Alan almost wished to die, to step into the oncoming bullets rather than dodge them. But, for some reason, Alan managed to persevere, finding a quiet strength within that he didn�t know he had. The pain, the weariness? It didn�t matter. All that mattered was forwards. Something clicked inside Alan�s head, and an in-game message appeared before him. Alan ignored it, and it closed automatically. Eve would have directed him if it were important.
Suddenly, Alan realized he was nearing the market district once more, as the crowds began to swell. Alan was able to deftly maneuver past people, but the guards chasing were having a great deal more difficulty, as they were trying to chase down a person no one else could see, firing into supposed nothingness. A few people began firing back at the chasing guards.
Realizing, that he might escape, and soon, Alan felt a short-lived burst of energy, only to have it soon be replaced once more by the mind-numbing agony of continuing onwards. A few seconds later, the guards lost Alan, a sensor they threw forwards knocked aside by an enraged old woman, shouting something about public decency.
Alan felt himself slow down as he escaped the sensor�s range, relief washing over him.
And so Alan pushed himself onwards, as his vision began to blur and his consciousness began to fade. As he even began to lose his sense of feeling, the pain somehow blissfully disappearing, he continued forwards, where Eve directed. Then, his body could take no more, and Alan collapsed onto the ground, oblivious to his surroundings.
***
Alan awoke in an alleyway, a shrill ringing sounding in his mind. Groaning, Alan rolled onto his back. Every part of his body felt sore, his legs hurting so much he almost couldn�t feel them. As soon as he was fully conscious, the ringing stopped.
Groaning, Alan pushed himself up, staggering as his legs felt weak underneath the strain of the weight of his body and the Revenant armor. Now that he was able to check his messages, he saw to his surprise he�d gained a number of new abilities:
Through sheer willpower alone you have managed to push yourself to your limit, and beyond! Enhanced Control sub-abilities Ignore Pain and Programming a Path unlocked. Indomitable Will has been reclassified as Transcendent Will, an ability under the Enhanced Control ability tree, increasing its effectiveness.
Alan checked out the tooltips of the skills:
Ignore Pain allows the user to ignore a portion of their pain. Not all pain may be ignored, and if a player�s concentration is broken this effect may be nullified.
Programming a Path allows the player�s thought out actions to become almost second nature, allowing inhuman feats of precise movement.
Transcendent Will appears when the user musters their willpower to transcend normal limits, accomplishing an impossible feat through sheer willpower. Passively increases willpower, and in extreme situations allows the users to accomplish unattainable feats of will.
Endurance +15, Willpower +20
Grinning, Alan slowly managed to make his way back to the entrance he came through. There, he found the man with the dark formal attire and purple glove, nonchalantly talking with one of the guards, holding a sensor behind his back.
Alan made his way over to the next closest exit. Just as he was about to approach though, Eve highlighted a woman, leaning against the wall next to the entrance. Holding a sensor.
Alan made his way over to the Administrator outpost. It didn�t look like any spotters were watching it. At least, none that Eve detected. Shortly thereafter, the Administrator teleported the box for three diamond marks, which seemed like an absurd amount as it was only moved up a few floors. As he was expecting to die, Alan then exchanged the rest of his credits for five diamond, one gold and eight silver marks, which were one level below gold, worth around two hundred credits each at street value.
Chapter 16
Alan managed to make his way into the labyrinth with an unsuspecting group of explorers. The guards seemed to be more interested about who and what was potentially coming out of the labyrinth than who was going in. Inside the ruins of the building, there was a set of stone stairs leading into pitch-black darkness. The stairs were perfectly symmetrical, and Eve was able to outline in the darkness where the stairs should be, allowing Alan to roughly see in the dark. The explorers were making preparations and going over plans, so Alan decided to proceed down without them.
As Alan entered the dark labyrinth, two messages appeared:
You have now entered the Abyss Labyrinth. Unknown perils await in this seemingly bottomless maze.
Warning! Your level is far lower than even the weakest of threats in the Abyss Labyrinth. You are advised to leave and come back when you are a higher level or with a larger group. Otherwise, don�t blame sudden and unexplained death on anyone but yourself.
Communications with the outside world have been suspended. Your ability to send messages to other players is disabled.
Ignoring the messages, Alan continued onwards, invisible. Once he was far enough away from the surface he activated the glow of his sidearm, illuminating the path downwards. The area truly was an abyss. Other than the stairs, there were no walls or even floors that Alan could see. Instead, there was only the pitch blackness of a bottomless, unfathomable depth. One misstep could easily lead to his demise. Alan wasn�t one to feel vertigo, but the presence of nothing but the darkness was fairly unsettling.
Alan made it to the bottom of the stairs after what seemed like an eternity. There were three paths illuminated by a soft blue light, though Alan couldn�t tell where the light came from. Down each path were simple, 10-foot wide stone walkways. Each was right next to a bottomless drop. There was a player�s note saying that the right and left paths had been cleared already, thus Alan was about to take the middle path when Eve communicated with him.
Alan did as Eve ordered, firing in between the paths with his laser pistols, wondering what Eve wanted. He watched as the lasers shot out into the depth going further and further until disappearing into nothingness. Then, as Alan fired to the left of the leftmost path, the laser struck something, and the outline of a fourth, hidden pathway appeared.
Alan did so. This hidden path was invisible; the only way Alan knew which way to go was that Eve marked where the shots he struck landed, creating an outline of where the path was. Unlike the stone paths, it was barely three feet wide, making it difficult for Alan to maneuver, especially as it twisted and turned. It was unnerving too, standing on an unseen road, on top of darkness. After a few minutes, the path led Alan below the stairs he had entered through, backwards rather than forwards.
*Click*
Alan�s foot pressed into the ground, pushing into a pressure plate. His mind immediately leapt into overdrive.
Eve highlighted three darts coming towards Alan. Alan dove, barely avoiding them.
Alan continued to creep along the invisible path slowly, barely surviving a number of traps thanks to Eve�s observation skills and his own inhuman reaction speeds. A few were surprisingly simple to maneuver around, such as a single tripwire and a gap in the path that had to be leapt over. Others were puzzles that Alan had no way of understanding, control panels with unknown symbols and technology at work. Eve seemed to understand them though, and following her orders Alan managed to pass them with ease. Finally, after around fifteen minutes of scrambling around Alan found himself before what was, as far as he could tell, a cube-like structure. The path ended here, yet as Alan spread his hands out over the invisible wall before him he could find no door or obvious way of entering this structure.
Alan concentrated, trying to detect some sort of machine presence or consciousness he could interface with. To his surprise, he detected a faint presence before him, and initiated contact.
The presence cut off, and a new quest appeared before Alan:
Missing Systems:
Restore power to the mysterious Abyss Labyrinth. Find out more about the structure and its purpose.
Option: Figure out who the Authorities are and attempt to get help from them
Penalty: ???
Reward: ???
Time Limit: Approx. 3000 years
Threat Level: Gamma
Alan pressed his hands forward once more, pushing against the invisible structure before him. This time he heard a whir of gears as a passageway opened. Alan stepped through the entrance, finding himself led through a boxed in, dimly lit metal tunnel. It was comforting to be surrounded by walls and a ceiling again. What was more disturbing was the information Eve had.
The tunnel led into a central hub area, about the size of a movie theatre. It seemed to have been long forgotten, scavenged clean of any furniture, parts or items. There was a large screen on a far wall, but it was broken and looked to be ancient. Alan didn�t notice anything else of import in the room, not even a control panel for the screen. There were several tunnels that led out of the room. Clearly, this wasn�t a simple labyrinth. Perhaps it was some sort of research station or�
Alan stood still for a second. For the first time, he could sense a certain degree of
Alan nodded, and made his way over to the indicated corridor. After a short straight passageway a spiral staircase soon appeared. Alan began descending the stairs. A few minutes later he was still walking down the stairs.
Suddenly, the stairs shifted, forming rectangular panels that connected to each other, transforming the spiral staircase into a slide. A soft blue glow began to emit from the panel directly beneath Alan, somehow negating most of the friction. Alan began to rapidly slide downwards. Still worried about traps, Alan unsuccessfully tried to manage his speed as he wasn�t sure what he would be finding below. The slide showed no signs of slowing down, and the walls provided no grip. Alan began to feel gravity accelerate him faster, and his stomach began to drop.
As Alan slid down he would occasionally hear the sound of gunfire or yelling, but the sounds were intermittent, hollow, like ghosts in a machine. It was, Alan had to admit, sort of fun, as the speed he was sliding down began to approach that of a fast roller coaster. Then the spiral staircase disappeared, and Alan was flung out into pitch darkness, sliding along an unseen path. It reminded him of a rather unforgiving level in a racing game he used to play, but the road was translucent instead of rainbow. The slope gradually began to rise, then it descended once more, and Alan found himself slowing down.
In the distance flashes of light appeared. He quickly activated his armor�s invisibility. As he drew closer, he could make out the forms of a number of players fending off a metal, humanoid monstrosity. The abomination of flesh and metal was nearly ten feet tall, sporting blades grafted onto its two arms, a face half covered by a mask full of tubes and wires. The rest of its body was likewise covered in scars, metal plates, wires, and tubes; the creature had two clawed feet as well. As Alan felt himself slow down, he saw that the remaining half of its face was simply a lump of flesh, devoid of anything resembling an appendage. Yet, the monster leapt about with ease. A name tag appeared above the monstrosity: Experimental Warden.
There were about twenty players grouped together around a mounted turret in the center of a large circular platform, about thirty feet in radius. Surrounding it was nothing but pitch black darkness, but Alan knew there were likely hidden pathways as well. Eve calculated the ending destination of the slide, it was about ten feet above this larger platform all the players stood on. Alan watched as the Experimental Warden leapt forward as fast as a speeding bullet, knocking three players down. It darted its two arms forward, piercing its blades into two of the fallen players, then flung them backwards, into the abyss. Each blade was coated with a writhing, black venom that seemed to emerge from the Experimental Warden�s body.
The two players arced through the air and fell to their deaths, but before the Experimental Warden could retreat it was hit by waves of fire emanating from the mounted turret, decreasing its health by 3% to 45%. It then leapt backwards, into the abyss. To the players standing on the platform below, it would look like it had simply disappeared, but Alan could see that it had landed on a hidden platform below.
�God damn it,� a man swore. He wore a black cloak with a red star on the back of it. �That�s the 100th time it�s done that, didn't anyone see where it went?�
�No, it vanished. Shouldn't we retreat? I�m not sure we can defeat this thing; it wasn�t our intention to fight any boss.�
�Ha! Do you want to be the one to return to Lakshi empty handed? Besides, we just need for it to go for the right target��
�Are you sure this is going to work? All of our kinetic and biological weapons seem to have had no effect on it. The only thing that gets to it is energy attacks.�
�Shut up idiot. Have any of my plans failed before? And don�t speak so loudly, who knows how intelligent it is.�
Alan did so, waiting; hoping nobody noticed him, least of all the Experimental Warden. He watched as the experiment leapt onto another invisible platform underneath the large platform, disappearing from Alan�s view as well. Shortly after it reemerged on the other side, and slowly crept back onto the main platform.
Before anyone could react, it leapt forward into the group of players again, and stabbed its two blades forward. This time, a blade pierced a player in a robotic suit. Arcs of electricity burst out of the player, enveloping the Experimental Warden and stunning it momentarily. The player turned out to be a miniaturized mech. Before the Experimental Warden could react, three other mechs jumped forward, shooting out restraining grappling hooks and wires that shot out their own waves of electricity. Meanwhile, the mounted cannon kept unloading wave after wave of fire at the boss, slowly etching away at its health. Alan watched as its health decreased, at the rate of around 3% a second.
Concentrating, Alan did so half a second later, watching as the world about him slowed down.
Looking down at the players, Alan noticed that many of them did look rather menacing, and were even marked with the chaotic status that only came from attacking other players or committing severe crimes.
Taking a deep breath, Alan put away Orion�s Cores and got out his laser knife. He really needed a sword if he was going to keep going for one hit kills.
Eve plotted out the exact angles that he was to leap out and strike at. Trusting Eve�s abilities to calculate, Alan leapt from the platform as the leader of the slavers took out a purple-laser cutlass, no doubt wanting to finish off the boss himself. Slowly, Alan felt gravity take hold as he dived forwards, knife outstretched. When he was a few millimeters away from colliding with the boss Eve deactivated the armor�s invisibility field right as Alan activated the knife�s own laser field.
Alan�s blade sunk into the Experimental Warden�s neck which had already been tenderized by the flames. A slew of messages popped up but Alan ignored them, grabbing the two pieces of loot the boss dropped, and then began to sprint with all his might towards the edge of the platform. With a yell, the slavers fired at Alan, but he managed to evade the hooks and other capturing devices using his inhumane reaction speed and surprise. He was struck by a few darts, tipped with some metal that pierced his shields and light power armor, but before their effects could come into effect Alan was already leaping off the platform, into the abyss.
Alan read the message log as he fought the effects of the poisons he had been struck with.
x30 Bonus XP for slaying an enemy over 300 levels higher while you�re under level 100, taking 0 damage from said enemy!
Minus 40% XP for failing to deal more than 1% of the enemies� total health.
Kill stealer! Due to the nature of your actions, your chaotic level has risen, and you receive a minus 25% XP penalty. This effect is mitigated because of the chaotic nature of the group you stole the kill from.
x22 Level up!
Gained over 20 levels with one kill! +20 bonus ability points
A small metal key, acquired!
Death�s Claw, acquired!
Poisoned! An unknown substance has entered your system.
Poisoned! An unknown substance has entered your system.
Poisoned! An unknown substance has entered your system.
Then, Alan�s consciousness faded�
***
You have died!
Current respawn point: Upper Levels of the Administrative Center on Khersath
Due to the nature of your death, no memories lost.
Level loss: 5 levels. All credits lost.
Death�s Claw dropped.
Skill proficiencies have decreased.
Abilities Ignore Pain and Programming a Path have been forgotten. Transcendent Will has been reverted to Indomitable Will.
All stats have permanently decreased by 5.
Hidden quest: Failed.
Alan found himself, back at his Home, the blank, white space that was his safe haven within the Game. He stood next to the only other being there, the Administrator; staring, mouth agape, at the screens open before him.
***
25 minutes later, Alan found himself approaching the Black Rose Docking Bay. He had easily retrieved the mysterious package from the Administrative Center, no questions asked, and had proceeded to sprint all the way. He managed to make it with 10 minutes to spare.
Standing in a corner, Alan saw Kitana, conversing with a giant, grey-skinned bald man in flowing brown robes with a huge war axe on his back. Alan was about to make his way over when someone called out at him.
�So! You managed to make it, and with the package no less. Impressive work, thanks a lot.�
Alan turned, finding a man, maybe in their late twenties or early thirties, with bright blue eyes. He wore a white uniform that Alan, could, perhaps, describe as a lab coat, if scientists allowed their coats to fall into disrepair and become rumpled beyond reason. The man had a certain gleam to his eyes as he scanned over Alan, nodding to himself.
�I am Phantom," he said. "Now, hand over the package so I can inspect its contents.�
Alan hurriedly did so, excited to see what was inside. A message popped up once he transferred it to Phantom.
Congratulations for completing: A Simple Task!
x2 Level Up!
Black Rose Reputation gained!
Phantom carefully took out a metal key, similar to the one Alan recently found. As soon as the key was near the small black box an opening appeared, and Phantom inserted the key into the slot. Phantom then removed the top of the box revealing� an unmarked bottle of amber liquid, which Phantom took out and examined with a joyous smile on his face.
�Um, what is that?� Alan asked, curious.
�Why, the finest Haxlardian whiskey, of course! Only 250 bottles of this stuff is made a year, and it�s illegal to sell it outside of the Haxlard Empire.�
�Wait, so I braved the Undercity for� a bottle of liquor? How much is it even worth?�
�Hmm? Oh, about 15,000 credits, maybe. It�s finding the stuff that�s so damned hard.�
�Wait, you know that it wasn�t even yours to pick up, right? Some other person came to pick it up right after me!� Alan said.
�Interesting," Phantom said, examining another recruit. "I�ll have you tell me more about this later, but that will have to be after your initial assessment. Assuming you get accepted into the guild, of course.�
�Initial assessment?�
�You don�t think we just let anyone with a recommendation that completes a fetch quest in, do you? Impress me in the assessment, or at least do reasonably well, and I�ll recruit you as my squire. Now, I have errands to do, but I�ll watch the streams. Probably.�
And with that, Phantom turned around and strode away.
�Wait, aren�t you tired?� Alan called out after him.
�Nah, Erudites don�t need much sleep,� Phantom yelled back, as he merrily took a swig from the bottle of liquor Alan had gone through so much effort to acquire.
Nodding, Alan walked over to Kitana, who had finished her conversation with the grey-skinned giant. To Alan's surprise, Kitana had risen to level 120 and was wearing a new outfit. He thought his leap to level 79 had been fast, but Kitana had only been level 80 when he last saw her aboard the Titan. She now had on black robes over a black vest and grey undershirt. Alan could tell her clothing was not made of ordinary material, as the light around it seemed to be absorbed by the cloth, creating a sort of dark aura. She still wielded the same katana.
�Hey, Kitana. How are you?�
�I�m doing quite well, Alan. This is quite the guild you�ve found.�
�Well, I�m glad you�ve found it to be interesting. Just wondering, but how did you level up so fast?�
�Well, Mason,� she gestured to the man she had been talking to earlier, �is one of the Arms Masters of the guild, and he wanted to get an estimate of my ability. Thus, he suggested I visit a local underground fighting ring. The battles were quite exhilarating, and I managed to kill a number of opponents, impressing many and leveling up quite a few times in the process.�
�Kill?�
�Hmm? Yes, the fights were mostly to the death. Otherwise it would be mostly pointless, wouldn�t it?� Kitana grinned, gazing into the distance, smiling almost bloodthirstily, causing Alan to shiver slightly. It was strange, to think of all the people around him going about killing things, but he supposed he should get used to it. It was all part of the Game, after all.
�Um, yeah, I guess so� Glad you�re having fun.�
At that moment the grey-skinned giant clapped his hands together, creating a miniature sonic wave, immediately grabbing the attention of everyone in the hangar, some 30-odd people, mostly younger looking kids, around Alan and Kitana�s age, 16 at the youngest, 25 at the oldest.
�All right, recruits. My name is Mason, and I am an Arms Master of the Black Rose Guild. Any who wish to join the guild should now follow me into the shuttle, to take the initial assessment slash trials slash whatever you want to call them. Any wishing to leave now may do so, but know that once you step foot in the shuttle you must complete the test to completion. Any questions? No? Good, let�s go.�
Alan raised his hand when Mason had asked for questions, as he wanted to know more about the initial assessment, but quickly put it down after he realized Mason had no desire to answer any. He followed Kitana onto a large shuttle with around fifty seats, and a new quest popped up.
Guild Trials:
Pass the initial assessment of the Black Rose Guild!
Bonus Objective: Complete the assessment with flying colors, allowing you to join the guild with a special rank or job.
Rewards: Membership to the Black Rose Guild, 10,000 Guild Point sign-on bonus
Sitting back in the seat, Alan sighed contentedly, scoping out the competition, wondering what trials might await and who he might meet.
Chapter 17
The shuttle flew over a bright blue ocean at supersonic speeds. They were now in the private quadrant of Khersath, full of islands and small continents, none larger than Australia, at least according to the maps Eve showed Alan. They�d been flying for about three hours now, allowing Alan to get to know a bit more about the other Black Rose recruits aboard the shuttle.
To his surprise, most of them had recently graduated from their own home world versions of high school in real life, and had recently started playing the Game as well. Apparently the age limit of 18 on the Game was a sort of universal law, where most players of any species could only begin playing when they reached a minimum threshold of adulthood, the age varying planet to planet, species to species. That did make Alan wonder about the kids he�d seen in the Undercity though� he supposed it would just have to remain a mystery, at least for now.
All the other recruits came from exotic sounding places, planets light-years away from Earth, even in entirely different
He�d briefly tried to keep up a conversation with Kitana, but she answered nearly every question with a single syllable and it had turned into one-sided rambling. His interests in anime, fantasy fiction and video games weren�t shared at all by her, and the more he thought and talked about them, the sillier they seemed in his head. After all, he was now living in one of these stories, rather than simply watching one. That was his goal though, right? To become the hero. To protect the earth, at least as best he could. Still, he had no idea how to go about doing that or what his best options were� he should just try his best to get into the guild and complete his quests for now. Maybe some idea from a game he played or book he read would turn out useful. And so Alan stared out the window in the shuttle, watching the scenery breeze past.
A few minutes later, the shuttle began to slow down. A bright blue spherical bubble appeared, an energy shield with a radius of about 100 km by Eve�s estimates. After a brief pause, the shuttle entered this shield. Once they entered the radius of the energy field all signs of it disappeared. The blue seas and skies were all that remained, as if there had never been any shield at all.
Eve immediately highlighted a number of artificial islands and ships, all surrounding a larger hexagon-shaped island, each side around 50 km long according to Eve, a bit smaller than the Hawaiian island Oahu. Each smaller island and ship had clear defensive turrets, although they were too high up for Eve to evaluate the defenses any further. She just knew they were there. Alan thought this was a bit excessive. They were still in a safe zone, after all. Most of the island was green, left in its natural state, with a smattering of structures that Alan could barely make out.
The shuttle began to descend, silently approaching a massive stone fortress in the center of the island. It reminded Alan of a medieval castle, except with its battlements and towers covered by futuristic gun turrets. It was a majestic structure, with four main towers at each of the outer wall�s four corners and a massive keep the size of a small skyscraper at the center. A number of other buildings were held within the walls, a few rectangular administrative type buildings, a hangar and a large, dome-shaped coliseum. At the tip of each of the main towers was a massive colored sphere, containing some undulating energy unknown to Alan. The keep had an even larger pyramid of energy at its tip. Each orb was constantly shifting in color, from a deep blue, to a plasma green, to a fiery red to a clear sort of cloud, and then back again. Alan wondered what the purpose of these spheres was.
By this time, the shuttle had landed in a small designated area next to the castle, similar to a helipad, and Mason, the arms master, had begun giving out instructions.
�� always be prepared. Anyone caught in an area out of bounds with no good reason will immediately be failed and questioned. This is your only warning. Anyways, after the welcome ceremony is over, further introductions and instructions will be given. Dismissed.�
He then quickly turned around and strode out of the shuttle. More than a few recruits gave each other startled glances.
Shrugging, Alan followed the rest of the recruits as they exited the shuttle and proceeded through the main gate of the castle, a massive open gateway over 20 feet tall. Each recruit was carefully scanned for �security reasons� by a guard at the gate, then given a metal mark to place on their armor or clothing. They were told to keep the mark on and visible at all times. On it was a single flowering black rose with a grey background. According to Eve, it was also a tracking device of some sort. Alan attached it to his shoulder like he saw most players wear theirs in the main plaza.
Within the castle gates groups of players and machines moved about, entering the various buildings and leaving through the different gates. There was a flurry of activity about the central keep, couriers dashing in and out. Following the group, Alan made his way in this direction, but as he entered the main hall Alan stopped in wonderment.
There were hundreds if not thousands of players here, far more recruits than he was expecting. The main hall was a massive room with arched ceilings covered in paintings of mythical creatures, many which Alan had never seen before. Dragons, phoenix and gryphons were accompanied by giant green slimes, six-armed monkeys and twin-headed snakes. The main hall was relabeled the Great Hall by Eve. It was hundreds of feet wide and about two football fields long, with arched support beams along its two sides, reminding Alan of St. Peter�s Basilica. This room alone could hold tens of thousands of people.
Magnificent stone gargoyles gripping spheres of golden energy posed along the walls and corners of the Great Hall, illuminating it. Covering every surface were intricate designs and patterns, mainly colored in black and gold, holding a sort of ethereal beauty Alan had never witnessed before. In essence, the whole place felt magical.
Alan�s group made their way to the front of the hall, where all the other recruits had gathered around a few tables lined with refreshments, which consisted of multicolored blocks that looked like gelatin to Alan. Still, they seemed like a step up from the dull, tasteless grey blocks that Alan had grown used to eating. Everyone began to disperse into different groups, mostly along the lines of species or alliances, as far as Alan could tell. He didn�t think it was likely there would be any other humans from Earth here, but who knew.
Someone who had apparently seen one of Kitana�s fights began to strike up a conversation with her. She actually responded somewhat animatedly when talking about various fighting styles and swords. Alan stood to the side for a few seconds, awkwardly, before muttering something about feeling hungry and walking towards the tables of food. This sort of thing really wasn�t his thing. He generally avoided large gatherings, and usually spent most of his time on his phone when he did find himself at a party.
Alan grabbed a bright blue block and bit into it. He was pleasantly surprised by a fruity, cool sort of taste that filled his mouth, reminding him of a mix between blueberries and cherry. A message popped up as well.
Energized! Increased energy for the next hour.
Feeling suddenly refreshed, Alan gazed about suddenly bright eyed. He noted that his energy bar had completely filled for the first time, as even when fully rested it usually hovered one or two points short of full. He began wondering if he could grab a few of these blocks stealthily and store them for later, when someone caught his eye.
It was the girl. The girl that he�d run into getting off the lift into the Undercity. She had on a beautiful black dress, rather than an assassin�s outfit, but Alan was sure that it was her. The same stunning blue eyes and long blonde hair, the same pointed ears. He couldn�t keep his eyes off of her. He began to walk towards her, to try to strike up a conversation, scrambling for something to say, only to find his path blocked by a boy a bit shorter than him. The boy had pointed ears like the girl�s, green eyes and dark hair. He was wearing what looked to be a black spandex suit and a pair of gloves with pulsing green veins of energy running through them.
�A bit out of your league, don�t you think?�
�What?� Alan asked, a bit surprised.
�The girl you were staring at. You know she�s Aurora, the daughter of guild leader Elissandra, right?�
�Oh, um, I didn�t know that.�
�Right, well, you�ll stay away from her if you know what�s good for you.�
�What do you mean? Did I do something to you?� Alan said, a bit taken aback.
The boy haughtily looked over Alan�s armor, then scoffed while staring at the blasters at his side.
�You�re obviously either a complete imbecile or one of the Administrator�s charity cases. You�re wearing Revenant armor in one of the places where they�re most hated, and are carrying blasters worth far more than any beginning player could reasonably afford. You have the bad manners of hiding your name and level among potential guildmates and attached your recruit�s emblem to your shoulder like some sort of guard�s badge. I could go on, but it would probably be a waste of both my time and yours.�
Alan hastily glanced about, and saw that everyone else was wearing their emblem on their chest. The whole Revenant thing might explain some of the not so-subtle glances he was getting as well, and why no one had approached him, even shying away a bit. Alan took the emblem off his shoulder and placed it on his chest where a nametag would go, then turned his level and name visible.
�Um, sorry, I didn�t know. No one has really explained any of this to me, if there�s any other things you think I should know I�d appreciate the help.�
Smirking, the boy, whose name was apparently Sidestep, said, �I�d advise you to leave here and maybe spend a few years learning about basic manners. People here,� he gestured about, �have been preparing for guild trials like this one all their lives. You don�t stand a chance. Or at least, you normally wouldn�t, but undoubtedly you�ve been handed a series of rare items because you were born on a backwater.�
Trying to be amicable, Alan said, �Look, I understand your concerns, but don�t you think maybe this special treatment is to counteract the fact that I haven�t been prepared all my life to enter the Game? I didn�t even know how important it was until about a month ago.�
Shaking his head, Sidestep answered, �Whatever. We�ll see during the assessments whether you really belong here. Until then, you should go stand in a corner and not make a scene. Or, better yet, not waste the guild�s time and leave.� Then, with a single step, he shimmered, reappearing at Aurora�s side.
Alan felt Eve give a mental shrug.
Grabbing a red block of foodstuff, Alan strode over to an empty space next to the wall. He decided that he was better off alone, and not because of that jackass Sidestep. Silently fuming, he glared in Sidestep and Aurora�s direction. Shortly thereafter, he received a message.
Aurora: Sorry, but please stop looking at me, people do take notice of that sort of thing. You don�t know me, you�ve never met me. Don�t talk to me or approach me. Just ignore me.
Out of the corner of his eye, Alan saw Aurora send a brief, piercing glare at him. Then, she strode away in another direction, into the crowd. Pausing, Alan tried to send a reply message, but the Game�s system told him that Aurora had blocked him. Well, at least she knew that he existed. She probably just didn�t want people knowing about her escapade to the Undercity for some reason. He told himself it wasn�t him.
Sighing, Alan took a bite out of the red cube he�d grabbed, to see if it gave a different buff. Disappointingly, it gave the same energized buff, but tasted of some other fruit Alan couldn�t quite name. A hooded figure slowly approached Alan wearing brown robes, his name and level remained hidden.
�May the bunny gods spare thee,� a deep, resonating male voice said from beneath the robes.
�Um, what?�
�Dost thou not recognize our great and mighty overlords?�
�Who?�
�The bunny-lords, whose fastest of hearts and fluffiest of tails lead us all through the great fields of space.�
�Um, I�m sorry I don�t really�� The figure pushed Alan up against the wall with a tremendous show of strength.
�Are you a heathen? Do your DARE ignore their teachings?�
�Sorry! Sorry, I don�t��
The stranger pulled down his hood, revealing a young trickster�s face with sparking black eyes and a Cheshire grin. �Sorry, I was just messing with you, newbies are too easy. There aren�t any bunny-lords. At least, not yet.�
He then let Alan down gently, smiling. Alan felt a wave of anger began to rise up, infuriated and annoyed at all the jabs at him because of how little he knew, but he was able to push it down, and said politely, �Ah, um, no problem, and you are?�
�The Supreme Pontiff, the Blazing Star, the Herald of Them, the Grande Teacher of Minds, That Guy Over There, etcetera, etcetera. You can call me Him, if you want.�
Alan stared at this strange man blankly. He tried to think of something to say, but nothing came to mind. There was no logical response.
�Anyways, looks like Elissandra is about to give her speech. Time for me to head out then.� He threw his hood back up, and then began walking out of the hall as the lights began to dim.
Alan looked up at the front of the hall, which held a simple black altar of some sort. Atop the dais stood a majestic figure, dressed in golden robes. Elissandra, the guild leader. Alan could see the resemblance to Aurora, as Elissandra shared the same blonde hair and blue eyes, but had an ageless face. She regally stood, arms outstretched, as energy from the orbs all along the walls and ceiling flew to form a ring of energy above her hands, plunging the room into darkness.
Smiling, she looked out across the hall full of potential recruits, standing in the shadows of her light. Alan felt her gaze briefly rest on him before speaking. The room had fell deathly quiet, as everyone�s attention rested on Elissandra.
�Greetings, recruits, and welcome to the Black Rose Guild Hall.�
A message popped up in front of Alan:
Scoping out the Competition Updated:
2/10 Major players met
Bonus: 0/10 Objectives found
Alan was reminded of the class quest the Chief Administrator had given him, tasking him with meeting 10 major players, players that were capable of massively influencing the game, and finding their objectives in the Game, if he could. This meant that Elissandra was considered one such major player. He closed the message. Interesting.
�I hope that I see you within these halls for many years to come, but before introductions are made I would like to offer a few words of advice. Year after year applicants make their way here with simple goals of wealth and power. I understand, as we are mercenaries, after all.�
The swirling gold energy above her settled into a mountain of glimmering of gold coins, exuding a faint warmth that even Alan, standing over fifty feet away, could feel.
�But we are so much more. We are a brotherhood, a united order. A guild. A band of allies with common purpose. You should begin to ask yourself, what will you do for the Black Rose Guild? And perhaps, more importantly, what can the Black Rose Guild do for you? Dream bigger than simple thoughts of credits and levels. Think of change, change that you can make.�
The thousands of coins suddenly began shifting into golden balls of light, floating high up above everyone, close to the ceiling, illuminating more of the room. Alan watched as a single ball of light slowly settled above the head of every recruit.
�For, after all, we are one of the strongest guilds the Game has ever seen. We have conquered planets, assassinated emperors, sacrificed gods and amassed wealth far beyond imagination. But we have not come this far without developing enemies.�
Resting his back along the wall, Alan watched as out of the shadows created by the balls of light players stepped out, members of the Black Rose Guild. They appeared seemingly out of nowhere, from the dim corners of the room, all wearing similar black suits of leather or metal armor, hiding their faces, names and levels. Two knights suddenly stepped out from the shadows on either side of Alan, hands rested on black metal broadswords at their sides. Glancing about, Alan could see most of the other recruits had only a single guild member next to them. He slowly moved his hands over to his laser pistols, wondering what was about to happen.
Elissandra continued in a somber tone, �And this is why I must now ask that you reveal your complete character information to the guild member next to you. Your character information, your faction allies, and your quests. Everything. I realize this is a great deal of information, but this will help us determine if you have a place in our guild, and, if so, where. We will have to fail and detain anybody allied with one of our enemies. If you have a quest to infiltrate this guild, then it goes without saying you, too, will be detained.�
A motion caught the corner of Alan�s eye, as a recruit suddenly tried to make a dash for the exit. The golden sphere of energy above him pulsed, turning black as it sent out a bolt of lightning that struck the recruit. They collapsed onto the floor, unconscious, as the guild member who had been watching the recruit calmly strode over, picked up the body and walked into the darkness.
All the players around Alan began to slowly open up menus, showing them to the players that appeared by their side. Alan began to do the same, but Eve messaged him.
The knight to Alan�s right coughed, holding up a tablet, motioning for Alan to open up his character screen.
Alan turned to look at him, and said quietly, �Check your database. It should all be there.�
The knight looked down, back up at Alan, then put the tablet away, shrugging.
Alan watched the sea of recruits. More tried to make their escape, for whatever reason. A few adamantly resisted showing their information, while others tried to grab a weapon at their side or make a break for it. They were quickly silenced by a single bolt of lightning from the golden ball that floated above their head, then dragged off to who knows where. One girl managed to deflect the bolt headed her way with an energy shield of some sort, but another two bolts quickly struck at her from either side, silencing her. The moment felt sort of surreal. By the time everyone had finished showing their information, perhaps 5% of the recruits were gone.
Elissandra, who had been calmly observing the proceedings, waved her hands, and the balls of energy all shot back to their respective places on the wall, illuminating the Great Hall once more. All around the room, the guild members began to take off their helmets and masks. The knight to Alan�s right was revealed to be a stone-faced cyborg, with the name and title, Specialist 3. To his left stood the cyborg�s mirror image, with the name Specialist 4.
Elissandra smiled briefly, then said, �Now that that business is out of the way, I would officially like to welcome everyone to the 307th guild assessment. The rules are rather simple. By the end of tomorrow, earn 1000 guild points. Those with 1000 points or more are allowed to join the guild. Those with less will be asked to leave.
"Guild points are the main currency within the guild, and can be exchanged with a 1:10 ratio for credits, or for items or other services within the guild. Monthly wages, as well as bonuses will be awarded in guild points. Ranks within the guild all require a certain number of points in addition to other requirements. The way we do things here is a bit unique, with a more fluid chain-of-command, but more about that will be told to you after you pass the trial. These guild points may also be traded, sold or gambled freely, like any other currency, but for the purpose of the assessment the points must be earned. Now, I�m sure you are all wondering how you might earn said points.
"Well, at another point in time you were given a task by a member of the guild. Each of these tasks were actually carefully proctored events, and you will now be granted points according to how you did. The number of points you possess will appear on your guild mark, which must remain in clear sight at all times.�
A golden energy flowed out of Elissandra�s hands, spreading and striking every recruit, engulfing them in a sudden flash of light. Alan watched as a bright burst of energy snaked towards him, then struck him, engulfing him in a warm embrace. A message popped up.
Faction Change! Title Established.
You are now a (temporary) member of the Black Rose Guild, granted the title Black Rose Recruit. Guild standings reset. Guild points awarded.
Increased renown for being affiliated with a well known guild. As a faction member, your Faction Standings will be influenced, and your actions will influence your faction�s reputation as well as your own.
Suddenly, a slew of additional messages popped up, hundreds in total. Alan was barely able to close them quickly enough as additional messages continually popped up. They were along the lines of the following:
Faction Bonus! 10% Discount at all stores on Khersath.
Faction Bonus! Increased experience gain while in Black Rose Guild territory.
Faction Bonus! Increased attack damage while in Black Rose Guild territory.
Faction Bonus! Allowed to travel freely within the Empire.
Faction Bonus! Allowed to purchase a Republic Universal Travel Permit at a discounted rate.
Faction Bonus! Increased performance from Black Rose Guild equipment.
Gaping at the huge number of bonuses, feeling a bit stronger, Alan grinned. Trying to join this guild was definitely the right choice. A new faction window appeared too, showing the Black Rose Guild�s reputation with hundreds of different groups.
Alan glanced at his guild mark as a new icon appeared beneath the rose, for guild points. He looked at how many points he was awarded, then looked again. He�d been given 5000 points, 4000 more than he needed to join the guild. Grinning, he looked back up at Elissandra. He was already in, it seemed.
Looking in Alan�s direction, Elissandra suddenly gave a devilish grin, then spoke aloud to the crowd, �But like all other forms of wealth, these guild points may quickly change hands. After this presentation everyone will proceed to the Simulation Dome, and the first trial will begin. A series of free for all duels, standard coliseum rules, with each recruit�s own guild points on the line.
"Each recruit is allowed to issue 10 challenges to any other recruit they desire, and each recruit must accept any challenge they receive. All recruits must go through at least five duels before retiring for the night. Any undefeated recruit will be given 100 guild points, any undefeated recruit with more than 10 wins will be given 500 points, and the recruit with the most wins will be given 1000 points.
"To be fair, there are a few additional rules, like you can only challenge the same person multiple times if they agree, purposely losing a duel will lose you points, and you can�t wager more points than a recruit has. Once all of the duels are finished, you may proceed to the lodgings provided and prepare for tomorrow's assessments. There will be a general assessment of your abilities, followed by more specific testing by the major divisions within the guild. Points will be adjusted, depending on how these assessments go.
"Now, I would like to introduce the heads of the guild�s main divisions, and what they are looking for in recruits. As the guild leader and one of the strongest psionics in the Game, I occasionally take apprentices from the guild�s Psionics Corps, more on which will be explained later. Other than that, you will generally report to your direct superior, thus my interaction with the guild at large is fairly limited. Good luck in the assessments.� She then turned, and strode over to stand at the side of the altar.
Mason, who had apparently been near to the front, stepped up.
�I am Mason, the head Arms Master. Each and every member of the Black Rose Guild is expected to be proficient in at least basic combat, and I�m in charge of getting you lot into shape. If you impress me or one of my fellow brothers at arms in tomorrow�s assessments, we will consider taking you as a trainee, or squire, as they are called in this guild. All members are expected to achieve at least an F ranking in tomorrow�s combat assessments. If you have decent combat skills, and no one else wants you, you�ll join our general forces. If you wish to join you must have at least rank D combat abilities right now and achieve an expected combat rank of at least B. More on this later.�
Mason was soon followed by a thin, skeletal hawk-eyed man, who appeared tiny standing next to Mason.
He said in an excited, squeaky voice, �I am Admiral Thrag, one of the two commanders of the Black Rose fleet. The other commander being my wife, Thrasha. You may have heard of the fleet, as it was the one that led the Empire�s Prime fleet on a wild goose chase during the most recent rebellion. Now, it all began on a cold, clear night. Well, I suppose all nights in space are cold and clear, but this one seemed especially cold as my wife had just kicked me out of the bridge for�� Elissandra let out a small cough.
Thrag glanced over at her, then said, �Um, right, but that�s a story for another time. Talk to me later if you want to hear the grand and glorious tale of�� Another cough. �Um, never mind. Where was I? Right, while the fleet is rather small, with only a single capital ship, my baby, the Scarlet Rose, we are particularly looking for those who are able to distinguish themselves as exceptional, rank B or above fighter pilots and engineers skilled in ship repair, whatever rank. For those who wish to join the fleet as an Ensign, you will be required to undergo a series of additional assessments and rank highly in various other fields. Um, right, I�m done now.�
Next stepped up an odd-looking, squat man with a funny nose Alan couldn�t quite see, wearing what looked to be highly advanced Revenant armor. He intoned in an emotionless voice without inflection, �I am Enigma, quartermaster and lead research officer. You have already been informed if you may join our ranks, and will be receiving additional assessments as they are deemed necessary.�
A number of other guild officers slowly made their way up, introducing themselves, outlining what they were looking for, but Alan slowly began to lose focus. All this organization stuff was rather boring, and if he understood correctly it looked like he�d either end up under Phantom, who was under Enigma, or with the general armed forces. The healers/medics, the psionic corps, the robotic specialists and researchers, none of those really mattered to him, at least not for now. Eve would record it all and give him any important information he missed anyways. Still, he had a few questions for Eve regarding what he heard.
After a few more introductions, Alan and the rest of the recruits were sent out in groups to tour the guild grounds, at least the parts they were allowed into. Alan had Aurora and Sidestep in his group, but stayed at the back, away from them
The tour turned out to be rather simple. First, they were taken to a capsule center aboveground holding hundreds of capsules, where they were told to set their spawn point. Then their guide, an android with limited intelligence, like a city guard NPC that you might find in an ordinary MMORPG, led them directly to an elevator within the keep. It showed them two floors, the training floor, which was a cool sort of futuristic gym, and their temporary rooms in an underground barracks. Those were the only floors they were allowed on.
Then they were led to the Simulation Dome. The building was, as its name suggested, a massive dome. The dome was made up of a huge array of tessellated, silver metal triangles. Surrounding it were huge power generators, filling the air with a low humming sound. Alan stepped into the dome, which was about the size of a football stadium, wondering what he�d find. A message appeared:
You have entered a simulated zone! All damage will be simulated and not actually affect the player. No death penalties. Severe XP penalties while in the zone.
Permissions: Recruit Level, unable to call into being or change the simulation. Basic interaction with simulated environment.
Alan glanced around, it looked as if he had stepped into a different world. The dome was split in half by a giant wall. On one side, there was a bright white artificial light, filled with a multitude of steel dueling rings about the size of a small field and stern looking arms masters in brown robes, Mason among them. On the other side there was a dark orange landscape, along with a squadron of Black Rose soldiers fighting what looked to be waves of Haxlardian soldiers.
Sidestep looked back at Alan.
�You think this is cool, newbie? I bet you�ve never been inside a spaceship simulator either, where you�re able to drop into any major space battle at will. I�d like to see your first test run. You�ll probably fire on your allies or break out of formation before the fight even starts. I bet your planet didn�t even have spaceships. What planet did you come from again? Dirt?�
Alan tore his gaze away from the simulated exercise and glared at Sidestep. He knew that he didn�t even know all the rules of dueling, and the accused would probably be better off, but he angrily blurted out, �I challenge Sidestep to a duel.�
Sidestep grinned, and Alan instantly knew this was what Sidestep had wanted.
Confidently, Sidestep looked over at Alan, and said, �I accept.�
With a flash of light, Alan found himself suddenly standing in a silver ring the size of a kiddy pool next to Sidestep. Right next to them was Mason, who was looking bored, resting his hands and chin on the handle of his war axe.
With a great roar, Mason lifted up the war axe, and cheerily said, �Finally! Actual warriors. Usually recruits dick around for half an hour trying to figure out all the rules and who best to challenge, waiting to challenge someone weak. 50 guild points to both of you for not standing about comparing dick sizes! Now, who challenged whom? Ah, Alan challenged Sidestep. Very well, Sidestep you may determine either the wager or rule-set now.�
Sidestep confidently stated, �Let the wager be 1000 guild points. How you got 5000 points I don�t know, but by the end of tonight I�d be surprised if you had a single point to your name. I�ll have to thank the examiners that felt sorry for your sad planet and wanted to give you a leg up at the start.�
Alan glanced at Sidestep�s guild mark, which showed Sidestep had 1550 guild points, then at the screen that showed up before him.
It listed a number of dueling rule sets, which seemed to consist of an environment, and weapon loadout. Eve highlighted a scenario as Alan was scrolling down the list.
�Open field. Melee vs. ranged, player may designate who uses a ranged weapon and who uses a melee weapon. Standard Recruit Equipment. Duel to First Blood (after shields have been destroyed). All abilities allowed. No technological or psionic limitations.�
Alan selected the scenario, designating himself as ranged, then looked up at Sidestep. A ten-second countdown appeared before Alan, as his equipment suddenly changed into light metal power armor with 100 shield energy, and a pair of basic laser pistols, which dealt 20 damage each shot. Eve likewise highlighted Sidestep�s armor, showing that it now had 100 shield energy as well. The blade he now held apparently did 50 damage a strike.
�All right recruits, good luck. May the best fighter win. Oh, and try to put on a good show,� Mason said.
Taking a deep breath, Alan closed his eyes. When he opened them, he found himself standing in an open green field, all signs of the dome and spectators gone. Sidestep stood about 100 yards away. He let the adrenaline course through him, and activated his hypercognition ability, allowing him to experience every second as if it were hundreds. The seconds counting down slowly shifted from 2 to 1 as Alan felt Eve calmly analyzing the environment around them, simulating almost every possible scenario.
Now that Alan was a Machine Lord, he no longer had to simply mimic a blue holographic projection that Eve gave him. Instead, he could incorporate Eve�s projections and calculations within his own mind, allowing him to act as if he were the projection, not simply following it. As each moment passed, Alan watched as the calculations and predictions shifted, as Sidestep began to favor one leg over the other, demonstrating a high chance he was going to try to approach from Alan�s left, thus Alan should begin by stepping right.
Alan aimed his laser pistols forward, aiming not at where Sidestep stood, but at where he was predicted to be. Eve made two simultaneous calculations, one for if Sidestep moved at the speed using his special blink ability Alan had seen earlier, one for if Sidestep simply ran forwards like a normal being, if his blink ability had been dependent on his armor and thus he wasn�t able to use it. A third projection began, though it was hypothesized to have a lower chance of happening and thus wasn�t prioritized. It predicted that Sidestep would still be able to use the blink ability, but to a more limited degree and shorter teleport distance. Predictions that Sidestep might retreat or step in a direction away from Alan were considered but shortly discarded.
Further projections into the future began, trying to calculate where Alan should fire his subsequent shots, before the first two even began to approach where Sidestep might be. These projections branched from the original two decisions, then expanded, then expanded again exponentially. Alan saw the optimal shots to take, one with each pistol, and the likely next places to fire, even as Eve began to incorporate data as new information came through, making miniscule adjustments as Sidestep shifted his stance. Alan began to feel a slight headache.
Then the countdown hit zero, and the duel began.
***
Sidestep arrogantly glared at Alan. There was no way this human, this earthling, had actually earned 5000 guild points. They had been handed to him, like everything else. Sidestep would show this fool the folly of his ways, perhaps even taking him under his own wing after thoroughly trouncing him. That is, if the human still made it into the Black Rose guild after losing all the points he possessed. Sidestep had purposely shown off his signature sidestep ability in the great hall, to get people to assume that it was his main ability, and that it depended upon his armor. While he had less psionic energy without the armor, Sidestep could just as easily use the ability and his others. With two short steps, he�d be within striking distance, able to end this farce.
The countdown reached zero, and Sidestep took his first sidestep, blinking 10 units horizontally towards the newbie, preparing to take a second sidestep. He was immediately met by a laser blast to the face, dealing 30 damage due to a multiplier as it hit his head.
Assuming it was just a lucky shot, Sidestep prepared his second step forward, but to his surprise he saw a laser shot headed to the exact point he�d planned on stepping towards, arcing in such a way that it would hit him if he teleported in that direction.
Sidestep turned in another direction, but saw the human begin aiming one of his laser pistols at that spot as well. Sidestep shifted his feet once more, planning on stepping in a new direction, but saw the laser pistols fire off both towards this new planned destination, and directly towards him!
Slightly nervous, Sidestep stepped backwards and to the left, away from an oncoming barrage of laser fire. He continued to step backwards and to the side, away from the laser fire that spread further and further apart, trying to gather his thoughts. To anyone else, it would look like Alan was simply firing randomly in a wide spread, hoping to catch Sidestep, but Sidestep knew that each of the lasers hit a point that he was considering moving to.
Sidestep couldn�t even imagine the years of training, the skill involved, to both anticipate an enemy�s movement and fire directly at those predicted targets, even upwards of hundreds of units away, far outside the range of a standard laser pistol! As far as Sidestep could tell, each shot was aimed perfectly to align with his head as well. He hadn�t wanted to reveal any more of his abilities, but 1000 guild points were on the line�
***
Alan watched as Sidestep retreated back, feeling more confident about his and Eve�s abilities, when suddenly Sidestep took a sidestep, but left behind a mirror image! Each Sidestep then took another step, leaving behind another. There were suddenly four enemies! Luckily, those four clones left no additional clones behind, but they were still four different targets, indistinguishable from one another at least as far as Alan could tell. Luckily, three were likely fake, mirror images, rather than actual Sidesteps. Otherwise, that would be too overpowered, right?
The four figures suddenly charged towards Alan, but all used the same left and right sidestep movements, which Eve easily anticipated. Trying to spread out the damage, with the hope it would reveal the real one, Alan managed to hit each Sidestep once as they closed half the distance between them and Alan. Nothing revealed any of the four as being the real Sidestep though. Alan managed to hit each one an additional time in the head right as the four converged on him, leaving the real Sidestep, whichever he was, with 10 energy left on his shields. One more shot and Alan would win the duel.
Alan dived to the right as the four Sidesteps converged on his position, narrowly avoiding a downwards strike as well as a sideways slash with perfect timing, firing twice to hit both duplicates in the stomach. They vanished in a shower of green sparks, revealing a single Sidestep stabbing forwards. Eve anticipated the fourth clone was behind him, and thus Alan fired once behind him and forwards while diving in such a manner that would both dodge the hypothetical attack from behind and the stab from the front.
Unbelieving, Sidestep could only watch as Alan masterfully evaded his every attack, even the one from behind. Alan simply aimed, fired and hit. And the duel was over.
***
With a flash of light, Alan found himself once more standing in the same dueling ring, and a message popped up, notifying him that he won the duel.
To Alan�s surprise, Sidestep graciously bowed before him, and calmly said, �Well fought. It seems I greatly underestimated your abilities. I forget that worlds not touched by the Game are still full of actual warfare and killing. You must have trained hard to become such a warrior.�
Embarrassingly, Alan could only say, �Thank you, you fought well too,� while feeling a bit guilty about how Eve and his augments were what had done all the work. It was better if people didn�t realize that though, thus he kept silent.
�I hope that you forgive me for trying to get a rise out of you, I knew a bit about the guild trials beforehand thus actually antagonized a number of people with the hopes they�d challenge me,� Sidestep whispered conspiratorially with a mischievous grin, �I look forward to working with you in the future.�
�Um, sure, no problem,� Alan said, a bit taken aback at Sidestep�s sudden attitude change. �Maybe later you could give me a few tips about the flying simulator as I actually haven�t ever used one before, or what you know about the guild trials.�
�Of course, just find me once the first trial is over. Well, I look forward to your future duels, don�t you dare lose to anyone else!� Sidestep said with a cheerful grin, as he stepped out of the ring.
Alan turned to look at the crowd, who looked more confused than anything else. There were some disappointed murmurs as well as surprised glances at Alan. It was clear no one had been expecting Alan to emerge victorious, and he noticed various objects changing hands as a few of the arms masters had apparently bet on the outcome of the fight.
�Congratulations on winning the first duel! A bonus 100 points to you, and 50 points to Sidestep for a valiant effort. That was quite the fight,� Mason�s booming voice sounded from Alan�s side, startling him.
�Um, thanks. You said to put on a good show, but people�s reactions are a bit strange��
�Well, of course they are! They didn�t see the fight, after all. Only the arms masters and full guild members saw the fight, the rest of the recruits just saw you disappear then reappear. We realize that if other players saw your abilities it would give them an unfair advantage, after all, and I must say, both of your abilities were quite impressive. It�s a shame Phantom has his eyes on you, otherwise I�d like to test you myself. Anyways, that concludes the duel!�
As soon as those words were out of Mason�s mouth, a large, heavyset giant that must have been six and a half feet tall with the same grey skin as Mason leapt into the middle of the ring, and challenged Alan to a duel. As he had no idea of what the other recruit�s abilities were, Alan hesitantly made the decision to set the duel�s wager at 500 guild points, as the other recruit only had 750. Shortly thereafter, Alan and his opponent, whose name was Skar, were transported into what appeared to be an underground fighting pit, about the size of a boxing ring. The duel�s settings that Skar had chosen were unarmed, unarmored combat until a combatant either lost consciousness or conceded. Looking at his opponent�s bulging muscles, Alan felt a bit nervous� until Eve reported a 99% chance of winning. The tactics she outlined were pretty simple. Go for the weak spots.
Skar assumed a combat stance, and Alan reactivated his hypercognition mode as the countdown neared zero. To his surprise, he felt a slight headache as he reactivated the ability. It looked like there was a limit to how much he�d be able to use the ability, and these duels would help him learn that limit.
The duel began, and Skar took an aggressive swing at Alan, who sidestepped the punch and kneed Skar in the groin as hard as he could. Skar doubled over in pain as Alan let loose a fury of additional blows to Skar�s eyes, neck and the back of his knees. With a sickening crunch, the giant let out a roar of pain, and shouted, �I concede,� and thus the duel ended.
Alan shook hands with Skar as they were teleported back to the dueling rings, apologizing for the low blows, but Skar seemed to accept that it was within the rules he�d outlined. Given the speed of the victory, especially when Skar had been the one to set the terms of engagement, no new challenger appeared to try to best Alan, which suited him just fine.
As Alan began to eye the recruits around him, wondering who would make for a good person to challenge, a sudden flurry of duels began, setting off a chain reaction as people tried to avoid being challenged by the wrong opponent.
Alan decided to play it safe, and challenged a swordsman recruit in simple power armor that only possessed 250 guild points. The swordsman chose a swords only battle, and Alan chose to wager only 100 guild points, as he planned on not using most of his abilities. The subsequent duel was actually more challenging than Alan expected; he was barely able to finish off his opponent, even with Eve�s calculations.
Eve�s ability to help him wield a sword didn�t translate nearly as well as the ability to wield a gun. With a gun, all Alan had to do was aim and shoot, but when it came to fighting with a sword, Alan had no idea how to grip the thing, or the proper movements. While Eve could show Alan the correct motions, he had little to no idea why they were the proper motions, and thus often found his balance off. Finishing blows turned into glancing ones as Alan struggled to face off against insofar as he could tell, a middling opponent. It was sufficient to say he had room for improvement, and needed to train more.
Alan quickly challenged another random recruit, who quickly set the wager to 100 guild points, given Alan�s string of victories. Alan let it be a simple pistol duel, and easily won with Eve�s help. He was about to challenge a 5th opponent, then retire for the night, when someone tapped him on the shoulder. He turned to find Aurora.
�Um hi,� Alan said.
�Greetings. Sidestep tells me that you are surprisingly powerful, and I would enjoy a duel, with certain conditions attached,� Aurora said.
�Um, what conditions?�
�First, don�t tell anyone about my abilities. I will not reveal anything I may learn about yours. Secondly, we duel for 500 guild points, in a free-for-all, anything-goes duel to the death. Are these terms agreeable?�
Wondering what Aurora�s abilities were, Alan readily agreed.
They were transported into the center of what appeared to be a Roman coliseum, and the countdown began. Alan activated his hyper cognition ability, despite the steady pain that now accompanied its use. He felt like he might need it.
Despite the free for all settings, Aurora made no motion to reach for the knife at her side. Instead, she calmly faced Alan, looking at him. Alan had a bad feeling about this. The countdown reached zero, and Aurora made a sudden hand motion, clutching her fist as a wave of energy emerged from her hands.
Suddenly, the headache from using the hypercognition mode became increasingly painful, transforming from a mild ache into a splitting, mind numbing pierce. Groaning with pain, Alan quickly deactivated the ability.
Aurora stopped before Alan, tilting her head to the side, lips pursed, examining him with a thoughtful expression. Alan could only silently stare back, feeling his cheeks turn red.
�You don�t have any psionic abilities, do you?� Aurora asked, removing the ice encapsulating his face with a wave.
�Um, no, not really,� Alan cautiously answered after a go ahead from Eve.
�Hmm, that�s too bad.� Aurora then took out her knife, and with a fluid, practiced motion, slit Alan�s throat. Shortly thereafter he died, and Aurora won the duel.
A bit demoralized after the loss, Alan left the dome in a hurry without exchanging another word with Aurora, as he had little to no reason to continue past the initial five duels. Even with the loss he still had 6350 guild points left, and he wasn�t so certain he could continue winning without his hypercognition mode available. He was starting to feel pretty tired as well. The moment Alan left the building, a message popped up before him.
Congratulations on completing the first guild trial. You now have free time to do as you please. Report to the designated simulation room at 0800 tomorrow morning Khersath Private Quadrant Rose Standard Time.
Alan began to slowly make his way back towards the rooms he had been shown earlier, but Eve stopped him.
Alan then headed to the training room he�d been shown earlier. This shouldn�t be too hard, right?
***
Thirty minutes later, Alan found himself running on a futuristic, omni-directional treadmill within an enclosed space about the size of a small classroom. You could run any which way, and your position would stay roughly constant, while lasers that caused an unpleasant burning sensation would randomly fire from the walls. Drenched with sweat, Alan tried to sprint onwards while dodging incoming laser fire, but couldn�t bring himself to do so, and collapsed onto the floor of the room, writhing in pain.
No abilities unlocked.
Silently, Alan heaved himself off the floor, and began to run once more. He reactivated hypercognition mode, despite the mind numbing pain induced, the elongation of every torturous moment into unbearable eons. He began screaming incoherently at Eve as she continued to urge him on. He mutely continued to stagger forwards with all his might, fearful that his mind would break from the unbearable pain. And, finally, he collapsed onto the floor into blissful oblivion, accompanied by a number of messages he took no notice of.
***
In another room of the keep, six figures sat. Before them, a multitude of screens showed flashing, deadly fights, with figures wielding weapons with skill, demonstrating unique abilities seldom seen, even within the Game. But all attention was focused on another screen, one which depicted a single, foolish human, slumped over unconscious in a training room.
�Did, did he just�?�
�Yes.�
�Huh� I can see why you might want him. But still, 5000 points? What did he do, break into the Vault?�
�He escaped.�
�Well, yes, everyone escaped if that was part of the test they were given, what�s so��
�No, you misunderstand. He escaped all pursuit and detection.�
�All?�
�Yes, he escaped even the evaluators, who the recruits weren�t even supposed to be aware of. Do you really think we�d send possible guild members somewhere as dangerous as the Undercity without proper defense measures? Well, he managed to evade those, including the tail we set on him. Then, even with the guild members deployed throughout the city, he wasn�t seen again until he reached the quest area. Then, he managed to escape not only the elite guards, but us as well, reaching the hangar without alerting a single one of the watchers we had at every Undercity exit!�
�What? But that�s impossible! And he still managed to make it back with the item? How��
�Enough. I take it he is your choice, then?�
�Yes. Unless he completely fails tomorrow.�
�All right. Well, you all know who my choice has been from the start. The rest of you should hurry up and make your decision.�
�Of course.�
And the figures turned back to the screens, watching every movement.
***
Alan awoke on a cold, metal surface. Groaning, he rolled over, feeling nothing but the floor. He opened his eyes and glanced around him, surprised to find himself still in the same training room. He slowly sat up, wincing at the soreness spread throughout his body.
Smiling, Alan sat up, making his way to the sort of locker room he had seen earlier, glancing at the time. It was around 6:30 a.m., an hour and a half before the guild assessments began, but Alan could see a number of other recruits in the weight room warming up with light workouts. Of course, that also might have to do with the fact that Khersath didn't have exactly a 24 hour day, not that Alan really minded. His sleep schedule had always been strange.
Alan walked through the doors of the changing/cleaning area. He then stopped, stared, and hurriedly turned right around, walking back outside.
Alan briefly considered walking back into the room, but decided to use the individual facilities instead. Some things he saw didn�t quite align like he thought they should. Alan resolved to research this later. If he was caught staring at someone else in any sort of sexual way it was probably an insult, and he didn�t want to accidentally create some sort of incident or be labeled a pervert.
Groaning, Alan entered the smaller room, wondering what sort of sexual education lesson Eve had planned. Still, they were in a game after all, which meant that such activity likely wouldn�t result in any offspring.
Alan felt a brief sense of almost exasperation from Eve, but it quickly disappeared. Within the door, he had emerged into a small bathing area the size that appeared to be a hot tub and a sort of enclosed space surrounded by glass walls, that sort of looked like a sauna. Eve instructed Alan to remove his armor and clothing, then enter the glass chamber. Alan poked his foot in, only to find it freezing cold.
Shivering, Alan stood in the chamber for a few minutes. He felt like he would freeze to death, but he supposed this wasn�t anything new. It was definitely better than the pain induced when he was forced to run until he collapsed. He�d never put much thought into all the pain and suffering most heroes had to endure, figuring that it would be easy in such life and death situations to simply ignore it. Now, though, he knew better, and was even beginning to second guess his choice to become a combat specialist of some sort.
Alan nearly jumped out of the chamber, and slowly sank into the warm bath. The floor was lifted such that Alan could comfortably lie down, resting against the side. The water was at a perfect temperature as well, Eve slowly adjusting it to his body.
Relaxing as the heat soaked through him, Alan brought up his message history. To no surprise, he regained his Ignore Pain, Programming a Path and Transcendent Will abilities, in addition to a number of endurance and willpower points. However, he had also gained another ability as well as an additional level, bringing him up to level 80!
Managing to dodge 100 consecutive shots, you have gained a new ability, Dodge!
+5 Agility
Managing to dodge 500 consecutive shots, Dodge has been upgraded to Evasive Movements!
+10 Agility
Managing to efficiently evade 1000 consecutive shots, Evasive Movements has been reclassified as Enhanced Movements, an ability under the Enhanced Control ability tree, increasing its effectiveness. Using amazing perception and precisely controlled movements with a minimum use of energy you have managed to evade a surprising number of attacks.
+25 Agility� +10 Perception
Alan brought up the new ability.
Skill Name:
Skill Rank:
Skill Proficiency:
Skill Rarity:
Enhanced Movements
B*
???
B
Gives the player enhanced control over their movements, allowing them to make precise movements with ease.
Alan stared at the messages, thinking. If he managed to dodge 5000 consecutive shots in the training-treadmill-laser-death-room he�d gain the next level of the ability. According to Eve though he barely managed to dodge over 2000 shots before collapsing. That meant he had a way to go. He still had no real grasp of power levels though, and supposed it had many upgrades. From his lessons with Eve, Alan knew he had gained the XP to level from exercising.
The Game handed out a surprising amount of experience to players for tasks other than just completing quests or eliminating enemies. Players who chose professions like engineers, pilots, traders and even politicians gained levels through practicing their own crafts, although battling and quests were generally agreed to give the most experience, unless someone was a master in their field. Normally, most games would just give abilities or attributes for such feats, and unless you were of a class related to the field you worked in, the XP you received would be negligible. The Jack of All Trades ability would allow Alan to gain a bit more XP than normal from such actions. Still, this further explained the need for a workout room and why Academies, schools for new players, were so prevalent.
After Eve told him to get out of the bath, Alan emerged, and was thoroughly dried by warm gusts of air in the glass chamber. After he had put all of his clothing and equipment back on, Alan proceeded to the capsule room, making sure to save his progress and spending the additional ability point in Agility. At Eve�s insistence, he continued to save the rest of his 114 ability points.
***
Fine with arriving early, Alan made his way to his designated simulation room, which was found in the tunnels beneath the main keep. Alan had no idea how many floors there were underneath, as the lift had no buttons. As soon as he stepped into the elevator it simply began moving as though it knew his destination, which Alan supposed it did.
He emerged from the elevator into a brightly lit metal hallway lined with doors on either side, spaced about 10 feet apart. Alan walked down the hallway, past a few closed doors, until he finally found his room. Like all the others, it was simply a pure white chamber in the shape of a cube, sort of like a miniature version of his Home. Two messages popped up:
You have entered a simulated zone! All damage will be simulated and not actually affect the player. No death penalties. Severe XP penalties while in the zone.
Permissions: Recruit Level, unable to call into being or change the simulation. Basic interaction with simulated environment.
Welcome! The combat test will first assess your overall capability and then test your specialized abilities. Additional examinations may be needed. Data from your fights in the guild assessment duels and of your stay in the Black Rose facilities will be analyzed. Are you�ready to begin the guild assessments?
Yes
No
Alan selected yes.
Analyzing character�
All of Alan�s character windows appeared:
Status Window
Name:
Alan
Alignment:
Neutral
Level:
80
Class:
Rogue Machine Lord
Species:
Human (Earth)
Gender:
Male
Titles
Black Rose Recruit
Renown:
Rank G (50)
Notoriety:
Unranked (15*)
-
Health:
500 / 500
Health Regen:
0.06 / Sec
Psionic Energy:
10/ 10
Psi Regen:
0.01 / Sec
Shield Energy:
500 / 500
Shield Regen:
1.04 / Min
Stamina:
350 / 350
Stamina Regen:
1.32 / Sec
-
Strength:
34 + 20
Agility:
126+ 20
Intelligence:
57 + 20
Willpower:
69 + 20
Charisma:
24 + 20
Perception:
68 + 20
Endurance:
53 + 20
Luck:
72 + 20
-
Resistances
Physical:
23.5%
Mental:
43.2%
Psionic:
4.2%
-
Faction Standings
United World Government:
Neutral*
Predecessors:
Neutral*
Legion of Man:
Neutral*
Lords of Life:
Neutral
Haxlards:
Neutral
Administrators:
Friendly
Revenants:
Neutral
Black Rose Guild:
Friendly
Debt:
1M Credits
Current Quest:
Black Rose Guild Assessments
General Ability Window
Skill Name:
Skill Rank:
Skill Proficiency:
Skill Rarity:
Gifted
N/A
N/A
F
Grants an additional ability point every five levels to spend on attributes.
Skill Name:
Skill Rank:
Skill Proficiency:
Skill Rarity:
Skilled
N/A
N/A
F
Grants an additional ability point every five levels to spend on abilities.
Skill Name:
Skill Rank:
Skill Proficiency:
Skill Rarity:
Talented (Undeveloped)
???
???
D
Enhances your talent in various areas.
Combat Ability Window
Skill Name:
Skill Rank:
Skill Proficiency:
Skill Rarity:
Energy Efficiency(Basic)
E
???
D
The ability to use technology more efficiently, wasting less energy on extraneous actions.
Skill Name:
Skill Rank:
Skill Proficiency:
Skill Rarity:
Energy Ranged Weapons (Basic)
D
???
E
The ability to use energy based ranged weapons effectively.
Skill Name:
Skill Rank:
Skill Proficiency:
Skill Rarity:
Sniping (Basic)
C*/A*
???
F
The ability to shoot accurately at great ranges.
Machine Lord Ability Window
Skill Name:
Skill Rank:
Skill Proficiency:
Skill Rarity:
A.I. Interaction
B
???
C
The ability to better allow oneself to interact with an A.I. and be interacted with in turn.
Skill Name:
Skill Rank:
Skill Proficiency:
Skill Rarity:
Enhanced Control (Basic)
F
???
C
An ability that gives you greater control over your own body and mind, allowing you to surpass normal limits.
Skill Name:
Skill Rank:
Skill Proficiency:
Skill Rarity:
Enhanced Movements
B*
???
B
Gives the player enhanced control over their movements, allowing them to make precise movements with ease.
Skill Name:
Skill Rank:
Skill Proficiency:
Skill Rarity:
Ignore Pain
E*
???
F
The ability to suppress pain with one's mind.
Skill Name:
Skill Rank:
Skill Proficiency:
Skill Rarity:
Hypercognition
B*
???
A
Allows the user to enter a state of accelerated perception, able to perform mental operations at an accelerated rate.
Skill Name:
Skill Rank:
Skill Proficiency:
Skill Rarity:
Machine Communication
C*
???
F
The ability to communicate with synthetic beings.
Skill Name:
Skill Rank:
Skill Proficiency:
Skill Rarity:
Programming a Path
C*
???
D
Programming a Path allows the player�s thought out actions to become almost second nature, allowing inhuman feats of precise movement.
Skill Name:
Skill Rank:
Skill Proficiency:
Skill Rarity:
Transcendent Will
C
???
C
Gives unimaginable willpower in extreme situations, allowing the user to accomplish feats of will otherwise thought impossible.
Rogue Ability Window
Skill Name:
Skill Rank:
Skill Proficiency:
Skill Rarity:
Jack of All Trades
N/A
N/A
E
Gives a basic understanding of many elementary skills. Allows player to acquire new skills more easily.
Skill Name:
Skill Rank:
Skill Proficiency:
Skill Rarity:
Sneak (Basic)
G
???
G
A basic stealth ability.
A minute later, another set of messages appeared:
General assessment complete�
Preparing tests�
Initializing Basic Combat Test�
Testing specialized skills�
Sniping Test Initialized
The virtual space shifted, creating a shooting range. Alan found himself in front of a long, brightly lit metal hallway with a reddish square dot about a dozen football fields away, a length of over 1000 yards. A row of sniper rifles appeared before Alan in a menu, ranging from standard mechanical rifles with their telescopic sights to the alien laser and plasma based weaponry with digital scopes. A few of them were highlighted green, showing Eve�s preference for these weapons, all of which were alien in design.
Alan quickly examined these highlighted weapons, and settled on what Eve labeled as an Advanced Revenant Scout Rifle. Its frame was made out of the same dark, almost light-absorbing, metal as Alan�s Revenant Power Armor, with a sleek long barrel in the shape of a rectangular prism, rather than the standard cylindrical barrel most human weapons had. More interestingly, as far as Alan could tell the weapon had no trigger, and while it did have a grip, it appeared it could also be attached to the arm of Alan�s armor, and thus the act of aiming would simply require Alan to move his arm.
Alan selected the rifle, and it appeared in his hands, a sturdy weapon of about 30 pounds, surprisingly heavy despite its sleek look. A new message appeared:
The Sniping Examination will begin when you select ready. You will be tasked with simply hitting all the red targets that appear in front of you. You are to avoid hitting any target of a different color. You will be graded on accuracy and timing. Attempt to hit as close as possible to the black dot found on each red target.
Ready
Cancel
Alan hid the message, and tested out the new weapon. It was eerily effective, as Alan managed to hit the small black dot on the target consistently even a thousand yards away. The dot couldn�t have been larger than a small pea. This Revenant rifle was far more accurate than any military sniper rifle he�d ever heard of, not that he knew much about that sort of thing. Of course, the Revenant technology had a number of additional advantages, as the laser rifle didn�t cause any recoil and didn�t need to be reloaded. According to Eve, the lasers also didn�t have to account for bullet drop, at least not at these distances. Eventually though, if the length was significant enough, things like the curvature of the planet would be needed to be taken into account, but Alan would let Eve handle those calculations.
Still, at the range the target was at, the slightest movement would shift the aim significantly, and it took a bit of practice for Alan to finally develop a sort of steady breathing and rhythm. He would simply allow the barrel of the rifle to sweep along the target until it flashed green, at which point he�d order the weapon to fire. Still, it was apparent that Alan would need to put more points into strength or at least start weight lifting, as he was unable to get the precise movements he wanted with the heavy rifle. The slight trembling in his hands and body would prove to be problems as well eventually.
Alan brought up the earlier message and selected ready.
Round 1, Targets Remaining: 50
Red targets suddenly sprung up along the shooting range at various distances, the farthest perhaps 1000 yards. Alan summarily took them all out with quick and cold efficiency, shooting out targets along a path that Eve plotted out in an instant. Every one of his shots hit in the direct center of the black dot, which he managed to spot easily with Eve�s assistance. A minute later all the targets were gone.
Round 2, Targets Remaining: 50
This time, 100 targets appeared, 50 of them an assortment of colors that weren�t red. Once again, Eve simply plotted out a path for Alan to take as he fired time after time, finishing in under a minute. More rounds followed afterward, featuring stacked targets with black dots in different places, targets that hung in midair and finally moving targets. All were struck down with ease by Alan. The length of the shooting range increased, then increased again. Alan still managed to hit the targets, though he noted he missed a few of the black dots, which were growing more difficult to spot.
Then, the rounds began to mix and match themselves, culminating in a final test of 500 color shifting targets that blinked red for a fraction of a second every second in a dimly lit room. Each target moved about randomly, flying in the air, going through walls only to appear on the other side of the hallway or ceiling, moving in front of and behind each other in a chaotic frenzy of color. Each target was shaped differently as well, and spun about in such a way that the black dot, which was only found on one side of a target, was only seen perhaps once every few seconds. As far as Alan could tell, each target was no closer than 1000 yards, while some were upwards of 5000 yards away, a distance of almost 3 miles. A screen popped up showing various data like the curvature of the planet the shooting range was on, the levels of gravity, the outside temperature and wind speeds. Alan waited for about 10 seconds, as Eve had given him no path, no target to go for first.
As soon as Alan did so, a targeting path was set by Eve. He began to methodically fire, slowly ordering the command as he shifted from target to target. Alan felt surprisingly calm as he watched shot after shot hit, his hands steadily moving the weapon about. Alan began weaving back and forth, moving from one side of the room to the other at Eve�s command, all so he could find a better shot. He didn�t flinch when a target split in two with a bright burst of light after it was hit. He simply followed Eve�s adjusted sequence and continued to fire meticulously. Targets began firing back, but Alan simply dodged the lasers they shot. When the final target was hit, a spinning red disk that moved about at the speed of a diving hawk, a message appeared.
Sniping Test Complete.
Results being gathered�
Then there was a short pause, followed by a slew of messages that appeared before Alan:
Managing to hit 100 consecutive shots with amazing accuracy, you have gained a new Sniper sub-ability, Aim!
+3 Agility +3 Perception
Managing to hit 500 consecutive shots with amazing accuracy, you have gained a new Sniper sub-ability, Steady Hands!
+5 Agility +5 Strength
Managing to hit 1000 consecutive shots with amazing accuracy, Sniping (Basic) has been upgraded to Sniping (Intermediate). With amazing accuracy you have managed to accurately hit a number of targets.
+15 Agility +20 Perception
You have performed a feat of strength by managing to hit every one of the 5000 targets of the Sniping Examination with amazing accuracy! Sniping (Intermediate) has been upgraded to Sniping (Advanced). Steady Hands has been merged with Enhanced Movements, further increasing the ability. Aim has been reclassified as Enhanced Accuracy, an ability under the Enhanced Control ability tree, increasing its effectiveness. Enhanced Control (Basic) has been upgraded to Enhanced Control (Intermediate). Should you wish, you may change your class from Machine Lord Rogue to Machine Lord Sniper. You may also choose to change Talent (Undeveloped) into Talent (Sniping), which will unlock new Sniping abilities and allow you to train more easily.
+25 Agility +30 Perception +10 Ability Points
x3 Level Up!
Alan brought up his new ability and his upgraded sniping ability, which now had a rank associated with it as a result of the examination.
Skill Name:
Skill Rank:
Skill Proficiency:
Skill Rarity:
Enhanced Accuracy
B*
???
C
Gives the player enhanced accuracy when aiming, allowing them to precisely calculate where and when to attack to hit their target.
Skill Name:
Skill Rank:
Skill Proficiency:
Skill Rarity:
Sniping (Advanced)
A*
A3422
B
The ability to fire weapons with deadly precision, no matter the obstacle.
Alan grinned as he read through all the upgrades. These examinations would be very helpful, as the Game seemed to require an action be demonstrated repeatedly before it would give you an actual ability or upgrade previous ones. Once Alan closed all the messages, another appeared:
Stealth Test Initialized
The shooting range faded from existence and Alan found himself in a small dark room with a metal door in front of him. The Advanced Revenant Scout Rifle vanished in his hands. Alan glanced about warily, but as far as he could tell, there was nothing in the room. A message popped up:
The Stealth Examination will begin when you exit the room. You will be tasked with making it to the designated checkpoints while avoiding detection. You are allowed to eliminate obstacles, but be warned that evidence may be left behind for patrols to find. If your presence is revealed but you are able to evade any pursuit, you will be able to continue the exam, but will be penalized.
You will be graded on your technique and how far you make it. Timing is not an issue, so take as long as you want. Bonus objectives and items may be taken for additional points. The only gear you are allowed is what you have on you or find within.
Alan was silently thankful he didn�t have to do the exam without his power armor, but at the same time a bit disappointed he wouldn�t get to test out specialized items. Since absorbing the Black Rose Guild�s information, Eve had reclassified the Revenant Power Armor as Revenant Scout Power Armor (Basic). Apparently, while the basic power armor did have the invisibility field, which would hide Alan from passive scans and visual detection, there were more advanced versions that allowed the user to mimic things like sound, temperature, smell, digital signals, and the like, allowing the player to even avoid detection when faced with scanners.
Slowly opening the door, Alan emerged into another dimly lit hallway, his power armor�s invisibility field activated. These dull, metal hallways were starting to get a bit old, but Alan supposed he should get used to them. With Eve�s help, Alan easily avoided the hidden cameras and floor-plate traps, making it to the end of the hallway, the first checkpoint.
Alan noticed that he was able to move with much more ease and there was a sort of smoothness to his actions. Acts of balance felt simple, while steps felt more sure. Small details like an uneven place in the floor were noticeable without Eve�s help, demonstrating that the increase to his agility and perception attributes was having a definite effect.
Alan moved through a series of obstacle courses involving guards, hidden traps and walls. There were so many walls. Walls he had to scale, walls he had to crawl under, walls he had to hide next to, walls he had to avoid, walls he had to open up because of the hidden compartments inside, walls that weren�t walls at all but actually doors, walls that were just walls, blocking his way. Despite all the walls, Alan made good time, continually making his way deeper and deeper into this maze at a light jog.
After half an hour Eve had Alan find a safe spot, rest, and recharge the power armor�s energy. Then they resumed their journey through this labyrinth of walls. Alan proceeded with a smile on his face, sweat on his brow, leaping across ledges, vaulting over walls and dodging laser scans like a parkour artist. Still, Alan had never practiced many of these movements, and it wasn�t long before he accidentally tripped, misreading a move that Eve had instructed, positioning his foot in just the wrong way, landing off balance.
Before he could catch himself, Alan was falling backwards, and he landed on his back, moving through a line of lasers Eve had marked. He winced when he landed, more at the blaring horns that started playing in the background than the pain of the fall. Two spherical robot sentries emerged from hatches in the wall, actively scanning the entire room Alan was in.
With a desperate dash Alan tried to reach the nearest exit, but the sentries were simply moving too quickly, flying through the air above all the obstacles. Not even Eve could find a path out, but Alan still tried to make it to the exit. When it was obvious that the sentry would reach the exit before he would, Alan pulled out his laser blasters, and shot at both of the sentries simultaneously, but the moment the shots hit the examination ended.
Stealth Test Complete.
Results being gathered�
Managing to weave your way through multiple hallways and obstacles, you have gained a new ability, Acrobatics (Basic)!
+5 Agility +5 Strength
Ability Synchronization! The Enhanced Movements and Acrobatics (Basic) abilities form a combination that increases both respective abilities. Another ability may encompass the two.
Sneak (Basic) has been reclassified as Sneak (Intermediate) based upon the results of your examination, and you have been ranked according to your performance. You have gained the Stealth (Basic) Ability under the Rogue ability tree. Sneak and Acrobatics have been reclassified as sub-abilities of the Stealth ability.
Alan brought up the Sneak and Acrobatics abilities as well as the updated Stealth ability.
Skill Name:
Skill Rank:
Skill Proficiency:
Skill Rarity:
Stealth (Basic)
E
D134566322
F
The art of moving about undetected.
Skill Name:
Skill Rank:
Skill Proficiency:
Skill Rarity:
Acrobatics (Basic)
F*
???
G
The ability to perform miraculous feats of agility and balance.
Skill Name:
Skill Rank:
Skill Proficiency:
Skill Rarity:
Sneak (Intermediate)
E
F1559189361
G
An intermediate stealth ability.
Alan frowned slightly, unhappily looking at the mediocre results before him. He closed the windows resolutely, sure that he would do better on the next test.
A.I. Interaction Examination Initialized
The labyrinth of walls and traps slowly vanished, replaced by the original white chamber Alan had found himself in. A wall of chat windows appeared before him, and then suddenly without hesitation streams of numbers and symbols started appearing on all of them.
Eve frantically began to analyze them, trying to interpret for Alan. Line after line of text appeared in each of the windows as Eve slowly began translating all of the different lines to English, or at least computer code that was in English. Protocols, syntax, everything from letters to indentation were all over the place, and Alan couldn�t make heads or tails of anything any of the windows were showing him. He imagined the complexity of the hundreds of different computer languages that existed, and then he thought about the thousands or maybe millions of languages that must exist in the Game, shuddering at the thought. While the windows, each of which Alan assumed represented an AI of some sort, might be trying to communicate useful information to him, Alan certainly wasn�t getting the message, and Eve couldn�t help him due to the strange rules governing AI interaction in the Game.
As a headache slowly developed, Alan stopped trying to interpret the lines of code. Instead, he closed his eyes, reaching out with his mind, searching for a mental connection. To his surprise, Alan detected hundreds of �minds� or AI, but most seemed distant, foreign. If he really strained, he might be able to forge a connection with these �minds,� but Alan chose to initially ignore those that seemed too far away.
He re-imagined each possible AI as a sort of mote of light, a star in the sky, and a map slowly began to form in his mind, tenuous connections swirling about as each star seemed to move and react to others. Alan concentrated on the nearest, brightest star, easily within reach. A strong connection was established. Hesitatingly, Alan sent out a thought.
Immediately, the connection was broken, and the star in Alan�s mind disappeared. Unperturbed, Alan continued to make connections, sending out the same initial Hello. Most responded similarly to the first, simply breaking the connection and vanishing. A few he was able to have a basic conversation with, introducing himself, but they were all uninteresting, and soon broke off their connections. As Alan started to strain to connect to the distant stars in his mind, he felt his headache slowly increase in intensity. It was a sort of dull, throbbing pain, rather than the knife-like pain that came when he was pushing his physical limits, but it seemed to underlie his every thought, his every action.
Talking to these distant AI was like trying to converse with a madman. They raved in different languages, talked in unknown symbols that Alan had never heard of. One repeatedly yelled the thought�
Another responded with a thought that almost tore Alan apart.
It returned infinity, or at least a representation of it. An ever-flowing river of unceasing madness, filled with eternal moments of nothingness, a never-ending field of stars, points so far yet so close that distance was meaningless, a mind numbing, all-encompassing black hole that Alan felt himself get lost in as he slowly let his mind try to wrap its head around the concept. Eve ended the connection, concerned after Alan stopped all active mental processes.
Alan dazedly blinked out of the reverie, the thought, and had to take a few minutes to gather himself before trying to make the next connection. The thought of infinity hadn�t scared Alan. Instead, it enraptured him. He wanted�
Alan proceeded on, emboldened by the experience, hopeful of the knowledge the distant stars might impart to him. Alan felt reality begin to lose its grips on him as his mind, this imagined field of stars became all that he was aware of. He connected to each, they responded, or didn�t, and the connection was ended, until but one star was left. It was the furthest of all, a dim silhouette of a shadow compared to the bright sun of the first.
As Alan slowly tried to connect to it, he was amazed by the size of the construct. This star dwarfed all the others, it was a behemoth among ants, a�
Before Alan could react, before his next thought even began to form in his head, the galaxy responded.
The mental starships once more coursed through Alan�s mind, but this time instead of simply scanning they began rearranging and constructing unknown objects using the planet that was his own mind as the base. There was a sharp pain, and Alan lost consciousness�
***
Alan opened his eyes to flashing red messages.
��WARNING!? TERMINATE CONNECTION ��WARNING!?
ERROR 304: UNABLE TO TERMINATE CONNECTION
Warning Dismissed� Test resumed
Scoping out the Competition Updated:
4/10 Major players met
Bonus: 0/10 Objectives found
Calculating results�
A mysterious entity has done� something! Unsure of the changes to your mind, you can feel the ability to tap into a mysterious force you were unaware of before. Additionally, your mind seems stronger than ever and you have gained a new ability, Mind Defense!
+50 Intelligence +10 Willpower
Psionic Energy has been removed and replaced with Computational Energy!
You now have 400/400 Computational Energy. Active abilities such as Hypercognition drain Computational Energy. Computational Energy and regeneration rates may be improved by increasing the intelligence attribute.
Due to the loss of Psionic Energy, psionic abilities and equipment are no longer usable by the player. Items and abilities may have special effects that can be unlocked with the use of Computational Energy.
For managing to forge connections with unknown entities, you have gained a new ability, Connect!
+5 Intelligence
Your mental resistance has vastly improved!
+5 Intelligence +10% Mental Resistance
Through observation, you have managed to gain a new ability, Mental Hack! Though you don�t understand how it works or its full uses, you feel as though you might be able to replicate such an attack against those who you are connected to mentally. Note that any attempt to hack an Administrator will be severely punished, and that mental attacks are considered just as harshly as physical attacks in the court of law!
By managing to communicate with every entity in the examination, including an unknown, unseen force, A.I. Interaction has been reclassified as Data Interaction (???), a Hidden Ability. Hidden Abilities are unable to be shown to or shared with other players. Unable to rank proficiency in ability.
+25 Intelligence
Alan calmly read the windows. He knew he should still be feeling disoriented from the experiences, yet instead felt oddly detached and calm, analyzing everything. He opened up windows for the new and updated information with a thought.
Skill Name:
Skill Rank:
Skill Proficiency:
Skill Rarity:
Mind Defense
B*
???
A
Your mind has been organized in such a way that it is only with much difficulty that a foreign host will be able to begin to comprehend it.
Skill Name:
Skill Rank:
Skill Proficiency:
Skill Rarity:
Connect
C
???
B
The ability to mentally forge connections with machines. Somehow, your mind is able to comprehend and send digital signals.
Skill Name:
Skill Rank:
Skill Proficiency:
Skill Rarity:
Mental Hack
D*
???
C
The ability to seek and exploit weakness in connected minds.
Skill Name:
Skill Rank:
Skill Proficiency:
Skill Rarity:
Data Interaction (???)
S*
???
S
Error.
Alan quickly came to the conclusion that there was something more to the Game than just the simple battle for control of the universe. There were hidden forces moving about, playing with the players. He needed to become stronger and help ensure Earth�s safety. Afterwards there were mysteries to explore. Alan sensed an incoming transmission, oddly aware of a number of entities surrounding him, his thoughts clearer, more precise. The moment they detected that he was aware of them they slowly disappeared. Alan hypothesized these were Administrators within the Game, as they had the same feel to them, a sense of a bright yellow star. A message appeared:
Basic Combat Test concluded. You have been awarded a Combat Ranking of B318271931, and Potential Combat Ranking of S+.
+30 Levels (+5 Levels for each Combat Ranking increase) +30 ability points for gaining 30 levels with one action
Congratulations! You have reached level 100, and have been awarded 100 ability points. Bounty quests, raids and general warfare have been unlocked. For further information, consult your nearest Administrator. Please note that from now on you only gain 1 ability point per level.
Shortly thereafter, Alan felt and saw a new message appear.
Congratulations, you have passed the combat assessment doing well beyond expectations! You have been awarded 5000 guild points, and qualified for a squire position under Knight Phantom. Report to him after the guild assessment is complete.
All recruits will now have free time to get lunch and prepare for the final assessment, a round-robin objective-based combat tournament. Teams will be decided based upon previous assessments. The tournament will begin at 1400 Khersath Private Quadrant Rose Standard Time in the Simulation Dome.
Groaning to himself, Alan proceeded to lunch.
***
As Alan emerged from the Black Rose Cafeteria, which simply consisted of a metal vending-machine like dispenser that provided the strange grey blocks of food that seemed standard both in and out of the Game, he received a message from Phantom.
Phantom: Come to my location, simply enter an elevator in the keep and it will take you to me.
Alan hurried over to the closest elevator to the keep�s entrance, wondering what Phantom wanted. Alan waited for an empty elevator to arrive, as strangely the common etiquette was to wait for an empty elevator cabin to arrive rather than simply getting in together and getting off at different floors. It seemed there were secrets aplenty in the Black Rose Guild, not least of which was where people worked.
A few minutes later, Alan finally found his way into an empty elevator without other, higher ranking members of the guild commandeering it on �important business.� He silently entered the cabin, waiting for it to descend. And descend it did. Alan stopped paying attention after Eve guessed they had gone 100 floors downward.
Whatever the outer appearance might show, it was clear that the Black Rose compound was much larger than most people believed, going deeper than Alan even thought possible. Alan wondered what they might be hiding down here, what could possibly require so much space. Then, suddenly, Alan passed through an electric field of some sort. He felt a strange tingling as his feet slowly passed through it, followed by his legs, body and finally�
A soft beep sounded in Alan�s mind, and then Eve was silenced, gone from Alan�s consciousness. He suddenly stopped feeling the familiar presence, carefully analyzing everything. A part of him felt free, clearer, yet another part felt oddly empty. There was suddenly no background noise, no constant calculation or outlining of his surroundings. Just the basic in-game interface. And silence.
Shortly thereafter, the elevator doors began to open. Alan tried to hide against the wall and prepare himself for whatever emerged. He pulled out his laser pistols, ready for whatever horror awaited him. Instead, he was greeted by a nervous-looking Phantom, wearing the same old lab coat.
�I must say, good job on the assessments, I never imagined a recruit would achieve a combat rank of B, much less five of them. Now, I�m sure you have many questions, but before we get started, please come in and have a seat,� Phantom said, completely ignoring the laser pistols pointed directly at his face.
Alan hastily stowed the laser pistols, then slowly walked out from the elevator into what appeared to be either a mad engineer�s basement or a small car repair facility. They were in an underground room about the size of a large car garage, with the space for about four large vans. Strewn about the floor were mechanical devices of varying sizes that Alan couldn�t make heads or tails of. Before he could get a better look at any Phantom guided him over to a seat beside a bright silver capsule. Phantom then promptly grabbed an odd metal helmet directly connected to the capsule and put it on Alan�s head.
�What��
�Shh, let me calibrate this, it�ll only take a minute. Sit still and be quiet,� Phantom admonished, rapidly accessing some digital terminal that had appeared before him the instant the helmet was placed on Alan�s head.
Alan silently accepted the order, gazing about the room. The majority of the space was dominated by three things, the capsule, a large server or computer of some sort connected to said capsule, and then finally a third machine up against the wall tied to the computer on the other side of the room, opposite the capsule. At first Alan had thought it was an overly large microwave that could fit an entire person or small car, but that was frankly ridiculous. He silently examined the machine until he noticed a large screen on the side of it with various diagrams and blueprints, realizing what it was. It was what was called an Advanced Foundry, essentially an advanced 3D printer.
In the Game the majority of crafting professions that one might normally consider, like blacksmithing or tailoring, were obsolete. Even their modern day counterparts, gunsmiths and armorers that specialized in advanced technology, weren�t generally needed. Instead, there existed Advanced Foundries, often abbreviated to Foundries. These devices could, given the materials and a blueprint, create practically anything, from weapons to armor to even hypothetically spacecraft. As the largest Foundries could only generally create something the size of a small sedan, larger projects were created piece by piece then assembled by other machines. Still, such technology meant that the creation of all items within the game was met with one simple bottleneck. Designs.
Companies and governments guarded their designs like Coca-Cola guarded its secret formula, like the White House protected nuclear launch codes. There was often no greater secret, no document more precious. For, if someone managed to steal, say, the design for a Haxlardian fighter, they would then be able to quietly construct as many Haxlardian fighters as they wished, given they had the resources and facilities. Of course, the design was not needed to make repairs, and separate machines were constructed to make such repairs often for simple things like armor and weapons. Still, you would have to find the right machine for the right type of equipment. That was another reason why guilds were quite useful. They could build up a supply of a number of repair machines regardless of faction the armor or weapon was tied to, while governments generally shied away from keeping machines capable of repairing their enemies� technology. Reverse engineering was virtually impossible, and it was a simple rule within the game that Foundries could not be tampered with, similar to Administrators.
Therefore, the gunsmiths, the armorers and the shipwrights, were generally all one thing. Inventors. There was no grinding to raise a level in such skills. Instead, there was designing, and tinkering. Crafters endlessly experimented with the Game�s built in system for creating blueprints and designs, for even the smallest of improvements could lead to never-ending riches. They could either improve on designs in their possession or create add-ons for existing designs. A few designs were generally public knowledge and could be found on the globalnet, outlines for a basic laser pistol or spaceship capable of interstellar flight, for example. Occasionally, long lost or new designs were found in unexplored regions of the Game, but these were of such rarity that they were hardly mentioned.
The interesting thing about all this was that the designs had to work. When Eve had first said this to Alan, he simply assumed that she meant that they had to work in-game, which seemed obvious. But what she meant was entirely different. The designs had to follow physics, they had to make sense. They had to work both in the Game, and potentially in real life. That was mind-blowing to Alan, for it implied that the technology found within the Game was hypothetically technology capable of being created in real life! The spaceships, the weapons, the armor, all of it. Even the various implants. Of course, it also meant that all of the crafters also had to be actual engineers, going through years of schooling, learning genuine knowledge. They had to be actual chemists rather than simply fake alchemists following some strange mythical formula taught to them by a game. Otherwise, they were doing real science. In a game.
There was one issue with all of this. Resources. There was a virtually infinite amount of resources found within the Game as mining sites replenished eventually and enemies with loot respawned in the universe without end. In real life, there was a finite amount of metal and fuel. According to Eve, to gather the metal required to create a single capital class ship, entire solar systems would be needed to be broken down due to rare materials needed. And, of course, the Enforcers would never allow the creation of such weapons of war.
All real life Foundries were heavily guarded and observed, while resources such as rare metals and fuel were carefully reserved and doled out according to one�s standing in the Game. Still, it was sort of nice to know that what could be created within the Game could also be created outside, that the knowledge of humanity, or, Alan supposed, sentient races, was being expanded upon.
�Hello, Alan, are you there?� Phantom asked, breaking Alan out of his reverie.
�Hmm, what? Oh, yeah. Can you tell me what I�m doing here now. Why Eve is gone and what's with the helmet?�
�Well, the two are interrelated. I�m doing a full scan of Eve, to make sure there are no hidden viruses or other issues before she is given more access to the guild network. It�s standard procedure, and the AI in question needs to be off for this type of scan. Of course, the complete results and everything I learn from the tests will be shared with you. This also gives me the opportunity to discuss a few matters with you.�
�And those are?� Alan wondered, glancing at Phantom a bit suspiciously.
Phantom pulled out a flask from within his lab coat and took a swig of whatever was inside. He offered it to Alan, who politely declined. Phantom glanced around warily, as if uncertain these quarters were safe, then said, �Well, as you have probably already worked out, I�m not just an inventor. I have a side job as, well... a gatherer of information, if you will.�
�A spymaster?� Alan asked, as Phantom winced at Alan�s question.
�Yes, yes, something like that.� He took another swallow of whatever was in the flask.
�And the Chief Administrator, for one reason or another, thought you would be a good squire for me. To be quite frank, franker than I usually am, you would end up being my primary agent. To assemble all this,� he paused for another drink, �information, I need to stay here. I am unable to venture off Khersath or perform various� tasks. You would instead. The tasks would range from something simple, like handing off a package or bit of information, to infiltration and assassination. Is that, um, something you�d be able to handle?�
Phantom glanced at a screen in front of him, hitting a few buttons. Alan noted a bead of sweat on his forehead.
�Well, that sounds pretty cool to me, just, I don�t think I really have the skills or equipment to do some of the things you�re suggesting, especially not against governments or factions that have existed for millennia. Also, um, is everything all right? You seem rather nervous,� Alan replied.
�What?� Phantom said. �Oh, yes, well, honestly when I first joined this guild my every intention was to stick strictly to inventing, getting a good look at some of our diagrams and inventions. I never imagined that Enigma would single me out to do something so important as�� Phantom winced.
�I don�t think you should have heard that, although I suppose most people would assume Enigma was in charge of this whole thing. Anyway, I�ve never planned on getting involved in anything so dangerous as running such missions, or even leaving the safe zone of Khersath, for that matter. Like most people I imagined I�d end up spending most of my time in a safe-zone.
"Honestly, I�m still half expecting you to be a spy that is going to suddenly leap up and torture me. You have a combat rank of B, after all! Then again, I suppose that�s why the Chief Administrator sent you, as you�re from Earth you probably have next to no ulterior motives, no connections to any such groups that� Well, I�m rambling, does that answer your concerns?�
�Um, training and equipment? How much will I be paid?� Alan asked, a bit uncertain if he wanted this trembling figure as his mentor. Phantom was continuing to drink out of the flask, getting drunker by the minute.
�Oh, yes! You�ll be sent to the finest of academies, the one and only rank S academy simply known throughout the Game as the Academy. You�ll be joined by the guild leader�s daughter, and perhaps your friend Kitana, depending on how much she impresses Arms Master Mason. A few others might make it as well, though tuition is quite expensive, and you�ll be put a million guild points in debt.�
Phantom seemed to have calmed himself, though whether it was due to the drink or because of some other factor Alan wasn�t quite certain. Phantom had stopped glancing over and hitting keys on the screen in front of him a short while ago.
�A million guild points? That�s 10 million credits, right?� Alan questioned.
�Yes. The education and opportunities being a graduate of the Academy presents are worth far more than that. Doing the missions I�ve outlined you should be able to pay us back in a few years, assuming you�re at least mediocre.�
�Um, I�m not sure I have a few years. Right now, I need to pay off another debt and help Earth.�
�Oh, well, I'm sure we can add another million credits or so to the loan. Also you�re mainly going to be working around and on Earth. Tell me, how much do you know about your planet�s current situation?�
�Um, not much,� Alan said sheepishly.
�Well, this should help.� Phantom brought up a 3D star map of thousands of galaxies, and highlighted the solar system Earth was in, a tiny blip in space. �Here is what you call the Virgo Cluster. And here are the various powers within said Virgo Cluster.� The map was suddenly highlighted three different colors, red, blue and green. Earth was barely at the outside edge of the blue space, near where the red, blue and green sections of space intersected.
�The blue space represents the space the Haxlards control, while the red represents the Empire, and finally the green represents free space, the space around Khersath, which is generally controlled by guild alliances. Frankly, Earth is in a prime location for a staging point for anyone wishing to attempt to attack or defend against any of the other three forces! This is the reason why the Haxlards tried so long to stop Earth from entering the Game, and are now so keen on having Earth governments as an ally.�
�Staging point?� Alan asked questioningly, wishing he had Eve to help explain some of this to him. He was also feeling a bit nervous about Phantom. Something about the whole situation put him a bit on edge. Not having Eve around made him feel oddly naked, revealing just how much he relied on her guidance.
�Hmm? Oh, yes, I suppose you don�t yet know much about warfare in the Game. Well, suffice it to say that like in most wars, supplies and travel routes are of the utmost importance. Having a fortified refueling and respawn point right at the edge of enemy territory is as good as say, an entire fleet of capital ships. Thus, the guild alliances, or at least the Mercenary Bloc, of which the Black Rose Guild is a part, desire for Earth to be either under their control or at the very least neutral in any conflicts to come.
"Honestly, being neutral in the face of any future conflict, charging everyone else, is probably the best outcome for the planet�s future. Now, even though no one is able to openly act for another three years or so, there are already plans in motion with humans from Earth acting as intermediaries, pawns for these various factions. Our hope is that Earth remains free, and any missions you perform for the guild will be with this goal in mind, which I�m sure you find acceptable.�
�Okay, I guess that makes sense. Um, I�d honestly like to do some calculations with my AI�s help before anything else though,� Alan said.
�Of course, of course, the scans should be about complete. I�ll bring them up on your AI Status Window for you,� Phantom calmly stated, as he pressed a few buttons.
�My what?� Alan asked.
�What do you mean?� Phantom said. �This should have been one of the first windows you saw upon entering the Game!�
Then, a screen popped up in front of Alan:
AI Status Window
Name:
Eve
Classification:
Undetermined
Computing Ability:
Rank C
Synchronization Level:
N/A
Main Objective:
Save Earth
Current Role:
General Functions
Operating System
Classified
Corruption�Level:
17%
Storage Level:
12%
Aberration Levels
Baseline:
22%
Sanity Check:
Pass
Administrator Warning Status:
2 Warnings
This was quickly followed by an additional window giving Alan information about the hardware Eve was running on, and even a list of abilities. He could only stare at the wealth of information that he had never seen before, wondering why he'd never seen it before...
�All right, cut the bullshit,� Alan said, calmly staring at Phantom.
�Excuse me?�
�Enough acting, or whatever it is you�re doing.�
�Sorry, I don�t understand, are the test results unclear?� Phantom asked, unsteadily swaying back and forth, gesturing wildly with the flask in his hand.
�There�s no way a drunken idiot with zero combat experience became a top officer in a guild like this,� Alan continued calmly.
Phantom put the flask down on a table, turned to look into Alan�s resolute stare, then closed his eyes. When he opened them, they held a quiet, clear brilliance rather than the confused look that had been there a moment ago. Phantom�s irises had changed color as well, from a bloodshot blue to a crystalline green, with tiny silver gears whirling around in the center of his pupils.
�Fine, have it your way. Why the sudden inquisitiveness?� Phantom stood up straight, intently scrutinizing Alan.
�Because, you clearly know more than I do about what�s going on, and I want clear and straight answers, not whatever backwards, prepared bullshit that you were about to feed me,� Alan replied.
�Oh? You seem quite worked up about this.�
�Yes, I�d prefer to have the truth.�
�Wouldn�t we all. What exactly is it that you want to know?�
�What is this window, what are these stats, why haven�t I seen them before and did you make them up?�
�These results are quite real, and it�s odd that you�ve never seen the window before. That genuinely was surprising, as it should be one of the first windows to pop up when you first enter the game.�
�When I first entered the game I gained consciousness on a small farm in some rural part of the country a few hours before the tutorial began.�
�Really? Interesting� very interesting. Well, I guess, to answer your questions, all the various status windows are pretty self-explanatory.
"The name is its name of course. That its classification is undetermined is interesting, but expected given its C rank. Computing ability is basically an AI�s level or combat ranking, although you probably know that. To test your synchronization level, or your compatibility with Eve, we�d need to turn it on, which we could do soon, after a few more tests. But not here. Frankly, I�m not comfortable with an unknown AI in my private chamber.
"The objective is whatever you set it to be, apparently saving your planet, Earth. I�d advise you to tweak that a bit, as an AI�s idea of saving could vary. It might conclude that Earth was best left in the hands of the Haxlards, for instance, or it may decide to save the planet you�d need to take it over yourself. General functions as its role is rather vague, guess it�s just doing everything for you. One thing I�ve noted is you�re a bit too dependent on your AI, and that�s a habit that should be broken. The operating system is classified as per usual, you�d need to be a high level Administrator to see that sort of stuff.
"Now, corruption level. That�s fascinating, as I don�t think I�ve ever seen a new AI with such a high corruption level. Corruption levels are basically the Administrator�s catch-all term measuring how changed from a base-AI something is. It�s not necessarily even a bad thing, though tampering with an AI�s source code is generally frowned upon, and if the AI gets too erratic or its corruption level gets above 60% it�s usually wiped by the Administrators or reverted to a previous, less corrupted back up. Corrupted AI tend to start showing more� personality, I guess you could say. You should watch out too, as it�s not unheard of for corrupted AI to start forming their own ideas or goals. In effect, I guess they become less like tools and more like companions. Anyways, you should watch out for that, and I suppose this means I should converse with your AI as well before you officially join the guild.
"Storage levels are its memory, while aberration levels are sort of going into the corruption level more. AI are required to be declared sane, you�ll have to bring in Eve for an official test at least once a year in-game time, though this test should qualify as one such test. Any capsule should be able to perform such a check. Now, warnings, this once again raises a red-flag for me. Do you know what your AI has received warnings for?�
�Well, I know one was for accessing other player�s interfaces during the Tutorial, watching what they were doing, but that was sort of on my order. Wait, no, actually now that I think about it I�m not sure I ever did order that move�� Alan said hesitatingly.
Phantom stepped forward, right in front of Alan.
�Yes, see, this is what makes me nervous about AI, you don�t know how they think! You may think you know, but you don�t. Let me get one thing straight. Your AI, and all AI within the Game, are NOT biological beings. They do not have gender, it is not a she or a he, it is an it. They are a completely different entity. All of your feelings, your senses, are tied to your body, your physical embodiment. AI have none of those, everything is simply a series of n-bits to them, and while AI can be programmed to �feel� I doubt it�s anything like what you or I experience.
"We�ve had generations of evolution hardwired into us, social practices, culture hundreds of millennia old. An AI has whatever data you�ve given it. The only reason it knows anything is right or wrong is because it�s been told it�s right or wrong. It has no real morals, no real wealth of knowledge to draw upon. It has true or false gates that branch out in a maze of pathways, and if something is undefined, it�ll freeze, or act in such a way that no one can really expect. Um, well, sorry about that rant, this alcohol is actually starting to get to me a bit.�
�Um, it�s fine, it�s interesting to hear your opinion,� Alan said, backing up a bit.
�Okay, well, moving on, about your overall performance, I�m quite impressed, but stop depending on your AI. Quite frankly, your actions will hinder your growth. As you should�ve seen in your AI�s abilities, it has its own Jack of All Trades ability, which can basically show it how to perform any skill or ability that it has data for. This means that if you don�t train in a skill, you�ll simply forget it, and it�ll return to your AI�s skills rather than your own.�
Alan looked and saw that this was true. The knife fighting ability he nearly forgot about had been absorbed into this skill. The list of skills within Eve's skill went on and on, looking like a Dungeon and Dragons manual for all available skills.
�Now, while being able to use every skill is quite useful, you will never develop a proficiency at the skill, never perform at an Advanced or Master level with the skill unless you truly learn the skill on your own. Why? Because by using this skill you are basically following an outline without ever learning why the motion or action you are performing is the correct one.
"You�ll never understand the nuances of dueling or piloting, for example. You might not believe me, but Admiral Thrag, is one of the most brilliant, genius pilots I�ve ever met. Oh, and he isn�t acting, his personality is unfortunately just as it appears to be. If you confront him about it he�ll be quite offended. He married his ship�s AI.
"Anyway, to become a force to be reckoned with, you�ll need to train in skills and not just have your AI feed you the information. If you want to be a mediocre player, fine, continue to depend on your AI to such an extent, but you�ll never be able to handle rank A let alone rank S threats. Of course, your AI will be an immense help with your training, at least up to a certain point, but AIs are only able to master most skills to a proficiency two ranks below their Computing Ability, thus in Eve�s case most of the skills are at an E or F rank. Although, as I see you�ve discovered, they can help you quite a bit with various abilities, like sniping or hacking, so you should be able to get a high proficiency easily in some subset of abilities dependent on calculation.
"Now, an AI, like a computer, can be improved in two ways. Software, and hardware, software being the programs that the AI uses, hardware being the capsule that you�re using, and its storage, memory card and what-not. The max computing ability of an AI is equal to the rank of the capsule you�re using, so you need to have a highly ranked, specialized capsule. Simply having a better capsule isn�t enough, it must also have the programs to effectively facilitate its actions, which is where software comes in. I�m surprised that your AI has a rank C computing ability already, but I suppose that it did merge with a Haxlardian AI.�
Alan nodded along with Phantom�s explanation, taking all the information in.
�Okay, but where can I get such a capsule and software?�
�Well, the Black Rose guild can help you with getting a rank A capsule for a few million guild points through the Mercenary Bloc, but for the software you�ll need to develop a high reputation with either the Administrators or the Revenants. The upgrade will be quite costly as well, requiring either a number of platinum marks for the Administrators or a piece of advanced technology to trade with the Revenants. Additionally, each faction has its own specialized software, the Administrators focusing on defense and the management of large forces, while the Revenants focus more on offense and exploration. There are other factions specializing in other fields, maybe even hidden civilizations or pieces of software in dungeons, but those are the two paths I�d recommend.�
�Um, all right,� Alan answered.
�Now, speaking of upgrades, you recently hit level 100, right?�
�Yes.�
�Well, have you thought what you might do with the extra biological and mechanical implant slots?�
�No, not really, why?�
�Because I have just the thing for you,� Phantom said, eyes gleaming, the microscopic gears within his pupils spinning like mad.
�As you�ve no doubt noticed,� he continued, �my eyes are augmented. This is actually my own revision of a cyborg implant that takes both a biological and mechanical slot, which the Game has graciously named Phantom�s Enhanced Visual Prosthesis. It�s basically a bionic eye that will improve your vision, but it allows for so much more. It will prove to be remarkably beneficial for you especially, allowing you to zoom in on things in your view, up to 800x magnification, which is helpful for both sniping and working with micro-sized objects. It will allow you to see in the dark, or at least in low light situations. It will let you see through certain materials, which can be quite useful, if you know what I mean. It will upload what you see so that everything is recorded, available for your viewing even if you die, or to report to me. But that�s not all.
"You see, it will allow you to see different spectrums of light. This means that you can see not only in infrared, but also in electromagnetic spectrums that will allow you to see digital signals. So, what do you say, interested?�
�Yes, that does sound impressive, but what�s the catch? How much will this cost me? Also, I was sort of hoping to maybe try to get a flying augment or some other sort of movement upgrade.�
�Let�s just call it a sign-on bonus. Also, trust me, you don't want a flight skill or augment. All you'll be able to do for the first few years is hover off the ground a little bit. Honestly, you�ll be only the second player to receive this implant, which is saying something, and I�ll be able to install the standard kill switch as well��
�The what!?� Alan exclaimed.
�Well, in our line of work it�s best to have some easy way to get out of capture, so we don�t divulge any information. Trust me, you don�t want to get captured by an enemy faction without a kill switch. It will simply let you restart at your respawn point quickly and easily,� Phantom calmly explained.
�Now, that may be, but I�m not sure if I like the sound of this, as it sounds like you�ll be able to activate it at will.�
�Yes, well, if you�re knocked unconscious during a mission, I�ll need to activate it, won�t I?�
�So, wait, you�ll be coming along with me on missions?�
�Weren�t you listening earlier? I�ll be following along through the cybernetic eye implant. I�ll be what I suppose you�d call your handler for most missions. Also, even if I were to betray you, which I promise I won�t, you could disable the implant while at your Home Base. I wouldn�t be able to kill you over and over again, if that�s what you�re worried about.�
Alan narrowed his eyes, glaring at Phantom, then slowly mulled over his options. He doubted that Phantom would let him go on missions or be his Squire without this implant. After about a minute, he finally said, �All right, fine, I�ll agree to the implant, but only on two conditions.�
�All right, and what�s that?� Phantom inquired.
�First, tell me why you distrust AI so much. You clearly have some issue with them, and as I have one basically living in my head, I think I deserve a clear answer on this.�
Phantom frowned, then replied, �I wish I could, but I don�t think you�re ready for this information. I promise to explain it to you after the war for Earth is over, and you reach the rank of Knight within the guild.�
�What? Not ready? So I�m ready to fight and spy for you, but not ready for some warning or information that could possibly be quite relevant to me?� Alan cried out.
Phantom once more closed his eyes, taking a deep breath. When they opened again, his pupils were red. He said in an ominous tone, �No, you are not ready. You are a foolish young man with no clear concept of right or wrong, whose whole world has recently been upturned. Trust me when I say that this information could get your planet annihilated, and not just in the Game, but in real life as well.
"You do not realize how backwards your concepts and morals are. You say that you wish to save Earth. Why? Because you were born there, because you and all the other earthlings descended from the same strain of DNA? You do not understand how stupid such reasoning is. Your planet is still full of concepts of discrimination because of race, of sex, of culture, of class, of disability, of sexuality, of age, of species, of point of origin. You still have obscure, esoteric religions that people wholeheartedly believe in, for goodness� sake. The Game was created to prevent wanton destruction for such idiotic reasons!
"And do you really think you are wrong, that your ideals are backwards? Of course not! This is going in one ear and out the other. But you�ll learn. When you see the universe, the Game in all its glory and shame, perhaps your mind will slowly open. Perhaps not. You were born on a small planet, and have only just begun your journey. You are not yet ready, Traveler.�
�How stupid such reasoning is?� Alan shouted back. �I don�t think you understand. If such bonds are meaningless, does that mean that I should not care about my family? How can you assert that I should not care for other humans? What do you propose I should fight for instead, myself? With what aim, to simply get stronger?
"I don�t think you understand what the world was like before the Game, where because of selfishness people allowed others to starve, to die, to war. And for what, a bit of wealth? You say the Game was created to prevent such wanton destruction, but now that it is created, what next? People surely continue to fight, just the results are less destructive.
"Before the Game, before all this happened, I had no real cause. I was simply going to school, to college, following the path set before me because there was nothing else. I never really tried, never really even felt like trying. What was the point? There was only so much that I could do. I wasn�t any genius like Einstein, or a brilliant artist, so I silently trudged down the path. Not quite happy, but not quite sad, continuing forward. But now, finally, I have a purpose, a goal. I can see that I can change the world, perhaps even save it from outside control. How is that wrong?�
Phantom shook his head, looking at Alan calmly. �You could have always strived to change your world, to save it. The Game just makes it deceptively easier to do so. It also allows you to make greater mistakes than ever before.�I am not saying that it is wrong to care for others, to try to help your world, I�m simply saying you�re doing it for the wrong reasons. What happens after you �save� your world, after the conquerors have been fought back? Have you thought at all about how your education system should be reformed, about the social aspects of your own world?
"No, you�re too caught up in the Game. You�ll leave charismatic leaders to make those decisions for you, accepting their blind hope and bright lies. My people, the Erudites, paid the price for such beliefs, but enough of this debate, we'll get nowhere.
"You show promise, I�ll grant you that much, but are you really willing to join the Black Rose guild, to follow what the guild tells you to do, not simply your own misguided beliefs? We will not order you to act in such a way that harms your planet, Earth, but what you consider harm may vary, thus I�ll give you the right to veto any mission I assign. But if you veto three missions, after hearing my reasoning for them, you will be expelled from the guild, required to pay back any outstanding debt at standard Khersath rates. Is this acceptable?�
�Can I ask my AI her opinion in this matter?�
�No, this is a decision you should make yourself. What was your other demand?�
�Well, I might need a loan for a million credits, and I was saving ability points for an ability that costs 500 points. This implant it seems will cost 250, so��
�I can change the bonus you receive from joining the guild to five platinum marks, as befitting the role of my Squire, but you must use those marks in exchange for ability points. I cannot give you a million credits to pay off another loan, however."
"Why not? You said you'd assist me with tuition for an Academy," Alan said.
"The rules governing finance within the Game are overwhelmingly complicated, what you can do with credits you do not personally earn is exceedingly limited within the Game. Otherwise the universe would be ruled by companies. You cannot use credits or marks borrowed from one faction to pay off another. You must earn the credits yourself."
"That's absurd! How am I supposed to pay off my debt then? I have less than a week left."
"You'll have to earn it yourself. If you cannot earn a million credits in a matter of days you don't belong in the position of my squire. Now decide, Alan, are you joining the guild as my squire?�
Alan looked at Phantom, examining him closely, then nodded, and said, �I accept.�
A message popped up:
Guild Trials Complete! Title Change!
You are now a permanent member of the Black Rose Guild, granted the title Black Rose Squire. Guild standings updated. Five platinum marks awarded. Monthly wage: 2500 guild points.
Increased renown for being the first and only squire of the mysterious PhantomGlitch. Normally, as a squire you are expected to follow your master�s commands. Given the eccentricity PhantomGlitch has demonstrated, the Guild Council has ruled you are only expected to try to follow his commands, and only if they make sense. Penalties will still occur for disobeying any other clear order from a superior.
(Superiors are as follows: Enigma: Guild Quartermaster, Elissandra: Guild Leader and the Guild Council. In other circumstances, other guild members may be designated your superior.)
�Excellent!� Phantom said, reading something before him. �I think you should disregard that part about me being eccentric. Continue to be yourself. Nobody looks twice at a sullen loner from a backwards planet that only talks to his AI.�
Alan let out a yelp of indignation, but Phantom continued talking. �Now, the chain of command in this guild is a bit wonky. Most other mercenary guilds are ordered into basically units of an army, with a clear command hierarchy. Here, basically whoever is specialized in the field the mission is related to is given command. So, for instance, in all space battles Admiral Thrag is the clear superior, but in the case of land battles Arms Master Mason is generally in charge. Of course, Elissandra or anyone else can give suggestions, but the final decision is left to the specialist.
"Oh, yeah, we also have a hidden council of six guild members that sort of rotates, like a board of directors, I suppose, which I may or may not be a member of. They as a whole have just as much authority as Elissandra. You�ll mostly be reporting to them, I think.
"Anyways, welcome to the Black Rose Guild! Ready to get your new implant? I�ll make sure you�re transported safely back to the capsule room, so you can spend those platinum marks. While I�m at it, I�ll also upgrade your power armor, I have a few spare materials and schematics laying around. Think of it as a gift from your mentor.�
�Um, all right, sure. Thanks.� Alan climbed into the capsule as Phantom gestured at it. The last thing he saw before he lost consciousness was a manic glint in Phantom�s eyes. Alan hoped he hadn�t made the wrong choice.
***
There was a slight hesitation.
Alan went ahead and bought the Rogue talent, then examined his new skill, updated power armor and additional augment:
Skill Name:
Skill Rank:
Skill Proficiency:
Skill Rarity:
Quick Learner
B*
???
C
The ability to quickly learn and develop new abilities and talents.
Modified Revenant Scout Power Armor (Advanced): Rank A
The cutting edge of stealth technology, this upgraded set of Revenant Power Armor has been modified for the specific use of the Player Alan and AI Eve, allowing them to wear it regardless of the armor's requirements. As it is a heavily modified piece of equipment, only the brilliant inventor that upgraded this equipment is able to fully repair it. A truly gifted repairman may be able to repair the armor in a more limited fashion.
2000 Energy, 5 Energy/min Basic Invisibility, 50 Energy/min Advanced Stealth Mode, 2.5 Energy/min regen.
100/100 Durability. Energy Efficiency (Advanced), Power Armor Instruction (Advanced), Revenant Training (Intermediate), Revenant Reputation: Friendly required.
Energy Efficiency (Mastered), Revenant Training (Advanced) recommended.
Warning! Due to not meeting the minimum requirements of your current armor, all armor activated abilities cost twice as much, Advanced Stealth Mode limited to 5 minutes maximum.
Phantom�s Enhanced Visual Prosthesis (Synthesized): Rank A*
A unique bionic eye implant developed by the inventor PhantomGlitch. This implant has synchronized with your Machine Lord augment, resulting in a more powerful tool. Grants the ability to visualize data better. Greatly increases vision, allows for remote access to connected systems and grants visibility of various light spectrums.
Permanent +100 Perception.
Settings: Normal, Program1*, Gamma, Infrared, Microwave, Radio, Ultraviolet and X-Ray Vision.
Cost: 1 Computational Energy/Min while not using Normal Vision.
Excited to test out his new armor and abilities, Alan hurriedly exited the capsule, but when he glanced at the time, he realized that it was nearly 7 p.m., five hours after the final assessment was to take place! He quickly messaged Phantom.
Alan: Hey, did I miss the final assessment!?
Phantom: Yeah, there were a few� complications with the upgrades I did. As you should see, everything worked out in the end, just took a bit longer than I expected. There was no need to participate in the final assessment, as you already joined as my squire, right? Anyways, I can send you the VODs if you want later.
Alan: I sort of wanted to test my new armor and implant. It seems like it synchronized with my class.
Phantom: That was one of the complications, getting it to work with that Machine Lord augment; it's quite the piece of work. Anyways, it worked out in the end, and you may get the chance to test your new stuff sooner than you think. Keep your abilities hidden, it will keep people guessing. I'm not saying I don't trust other people in the guild, there's just lots of friendly competition. Anyway, come to the Great Hall, there�s a celebration for all the new recruits.
Alan: Eh, parties aren�t really my thing, I think I�ll go to a training room.
Phantom: Do you want to embarrass me, squire? Come to the party, and that�s an order! An opportunity for you to earn credits might arise. Oh, one more thing, don�t use the X-Ray or Program1 vision while on guild premises. The amount of trouble you�ll get in otherwise is no joke.
Alan: Okay, see you at the party, I guess.
Alan walked over to the Great Hall, testing out his new implant. Unfortunately, walking and moving with a different magnification of vision was practically impossible, as it threw his sense of direction and balance way off. Additionally, he was having trouble understanding what he was seeing when he looked around with a different type of vision, accidentally walking into a couple of different animate and inanimate objects. If he closed his eyes and concentrated, Eve could now show him detailed objects or diagrams in his mind�s eye too. This would definitely be explored further later.
Eventually, Alan made his way into the Great Hall. Within, he found a raucous crowd of recruits, gleefully consuming all manners of food and drink, relieved at having managed to successfully join the guild. With a quick glance around, Eve easily found Kitana, who was talking with Sidestep and Aurora. Besides them was Aurora�s mother, the guild leader Elissandra. As Alan approached the group, Elissandra gestured for Alan to come over.
�Ah, and our fourth and final new squire joins us! I was telling our other new squires that you will all leave for the Academy in a week. I trust that you�ll take good care of my daughter. Make sure she doesn�t get into too much trouble, as you�ll both be enrolled in the Rogue program, with different sub-classes and programs, of course.�
Aurora rolled her eyes, glaring at her mother.
�Um, yes, of course," Alan said. "Also, I hope that you don�t think this is too forward, but can I ask you a question, Guild Leader?�
�Please, call me Elissandra, and go ahead.�
�Uh, well, I was wondering, what is the Black Rose�s main objective in the Game, anyway? I know it�s a mercenary guild, but well I guess it should be more than that, and you saying that we should think about not just what we can do for the guild but what the guild can do for us sort of started me thinking� So, uh, yeah�� Alan finally sort of sputtered out. He looked at his feet, blushing, sure that he had embarrassed himself fully.
Elissandra simply laughed, and replied, �Well, as you noted, the guild�s main objective is profit. I like to think that we can do some good with that profit. I hope to make a better future, for the next generation of players.� She glanced at her daughter, who scowled.
Scoping out the Competition Updated:
4/10 Major players met
Bonus: 1/10 Objectives found
�Well, I�m glad that someone actually listens to my speeches, but I must go and talk with the other recruits as well. Wouldn�t want anyone to think that I�m too biased,� Elissandra said, as she waved goodbye. Alan watched her depart.
�What happened to you Alan?" Sidestep asked. "Whose squire are you? I didn�t see you at the final assessment, and I was hoping to get my revenge for the duel yesterday.�
�Um, I ended up Phantom�s squire," Alan said. "He had an additional test that took some time. What happened during the final assessment?�
�Well, Kitana and I kicked some ass,� Sidestep said, gesturing at Kitana. �We beat all the other groups at a sort of capture the flag and managed to impress Arms Master Mason enough that he took us both on as squires.�
�Hmph,� Aurora muttered. Then, more loudly, she said, �The only reason you two beat me was because it was two vs one. I was practically all by myself, the partner I was assigned was useless.�
Kitana murmured her own agreement. �Yes, it was quite dishonorable, though I suppose the examiners knew what they were doing when they formed the teams. I would be glad to have a one on one duel with you, Aurora.�
�Perhaps later, though I would like to have a duel with you too,� Aurora said, smiling at Kitana. She then turned to face Alan. �Of course, I ended up as my mother�s squire, though I doubt it�ll be much different than before I joined the Game. Probably training, and more training. Though maybe I�ll finally be able to go on a few actual missions. Knowing her though they�ll be boring ones, like guarding some merchant. Who knows. Do you know what you�ll be doing under Phantom? I never could quite figure out what he does in the guild.�
As if summoned out of thin air, Phantom materialized behind Aurora, emerging from the surrounding crowd, holding a large glass of amber liquid.
�Why, I�m simply an inventor that chooses to live off of the spoils of my own inventions. Alan here will help me test out some of these new inventions, one of which I just gave him, an unusual set of enhanced power armor.�
Aurora turned around, startled. �Oh, that�s� interesting.�
�Yes it is, isn�t it. Now, I noticed, Alan, that you have been here a while, yet haven�t had anything to drink! I must insist you all try some of this fine Haxlardian whiskey. You were the one that acquired it, after all.� Out of his lab coat he pulled out four shot glasses of questionable cleanliness, pouring out a bit of liquid in each, handing them out to the four squires.
�Um, I don�t drink,� Alan said.
�Nonsense, this is an order as a Knight, drink up!� Phantom said. Kitana, Sidestep and Aurora turned to look each other, then downed the shot. Alan, still held his uncertainly, especially after Aurora started coughing, her eyes tearing up a bit.
�Alan, drink!� Phantom commanded.
Alan did so, turning his head around. The boisterous and exuberant recruits were all looking tired. A few began to sit or even lie down where they stood, falling asleep. Alan watched as the other squire�s eyes slowly began to dim.
Phantom forcefully grabbed Alan, and whispered into his ear, �Drink! Or else I�ll get in trouble. Please?�
Alan glanced at Phantom, then sighed. He took the shot and swallowed it as quickly as he could. It caused a distinct burning sensation as it ran down his throat. He opened his mouth to say something to Phantom, but then his eyes glazed over, and Alan collapsed onto the floor.
Phantom eyes gleamed as he looked up at Elissandra, who was calmly watching him.
�Some people really can�t handle their liquor, eh?� Phantom smilingly took a large swig out of the bottle he had poured the shots from, staring intently at Elissandra�s figure, as if there was something only he could see. Phantom winked at Alan, a hint of a gear whirling momentarily, and then Alan finally blacked out.
Chapter 18
Alan awoke in a dark cavern, surrounded by the hundred or so recruits that had been admitted to the Black Rose Guild. They had all regained consciousness at roughly the same time. Alan checked his new notifications, then examined his surroundings.
Due to falling unconscious repeatedly, Transcendent Will now helps the user resist such losses of consciousness. +5 Willpower
You have left the safe zone. Death penalties will once again apply, along with all the risks typically associated with the Game. An unsafe zone does not equate with a lawless zone, and all players are reminded that local rules should still be adhered to. That includes theft, murder and unwanted soliciting.
Communications with the outside world have been suspended. Your ability to send messages to other players is disabled.
New Quest: Escape!
With the aid of your new fellow guildmates, you should try to figure your way out of wherever you are as soon as possible.
Penalty: Death
Reward: ???
At first glance, Alan had assumed they were in some wilderness area. As his eyes managed to quickly adjust to the darkness, Alan now saw that everything was too cleanly cut, too symmetrical to have been a product of nature. Upon closer inspection the grey rocks that made up the walls covered a dark metal. Looking up, Alan could see no ceiling, only darkness, even with his enhanced vision.
The cavern was about the size of a large church, with all of the recruits spread out on the floor evenly. Alan could make out two exits at opposite ends of the wall: Rectangular doorways about five feet wide and ten feet tall.
The other recruits began to make startling cries, as they found themselves in the middle of nowhere in darkness. A few shouts comforted people, letting them know they weren�t alone, that all of the new recruits were here together. Various lights began to flicker on, from flashlights to laser swords to psionic balls of light. Alan looked around as his vision once more adjusted, and realized for the first time that there had never been any real light source in the cavern, other than the odd LEDs on a couple different devices. He had been seeing in the dark.
As everyone�s heads began to clear, the noise level in the room gradually elevated until it became a dull roar, different conversations happening everywhere, the same worried questions asked repeatedly. Alan ignored the people around him, instead making his way over to one of the two exits.
�Enough!� Someone finally yelled out at the center of the crowd. Alan looked back to see Aurora, firmly taking control of the group, raising a bright ball of light in her hands, illuminating the cavern.
As Aurora began calming people down, taking stock of supplies and people�s abilities, forming a raid group, Alan made it to one of the exits, and looked out.
At first, he simply saw darkness, but as his vision once more adjusted, a somewhat familiar sight returned. Alan found himself looking at an endless gloom, with only a single 20-foot wide unlit stone walkway between him and nothingness. They were in the Abyss Labyrinth.
Alan was about to step onto the walkway when he reconsidered. He should probably talk it over with the others, and share the information with the group before he started exploring. Still, he needed to find some treasure worth enough to pay back Icewolf. He made his way back to the recruits, who had gathered around Aurora�s light, discussing what they should do next.
�I think we should stay here, we have enough supplies for at least a day or two, and surely the guild will rescue us,� a broad-shouldered warrior carrying a laser-shield and short sword said.
�Nonsense!� A female voice popped up. Alan couldn�t get a look at their face. �They were the ones that sent us to this place. Or do you not notice that there are only recruits here? None of the full guild members at the party fell unconscious. Let�s try to be constructive, and figure out where we are. We should��
�I know where we are!� Alan shouted. Everyone turned to look at him, parting the crowd so everyone could see him. �At least, um, I�m fairly confident about where we are,� he said more quietly.
�And where is that?� Aurora asked.
�The Abyss Labyrinth,� Alan replied. His words were followed by a sudden hush, a few worried looks. Everyone broke into their own conversations.
Alan walked over to Sidestep, who was standing by Aurora�s side, constantly scanning their surroundings.
�Um, what�s the big deal? Why�d everyone start getting so nervous?� Alan asked.
Sidestep looked at Alan incredulously. �What�s the big deal? This is one of the prime slaving grounds on Khersath, one of the most dangerous dungeons, We�re a group of recruits, new to the Game and region, all with levels around 100-200! Prime targets for any slavers here.�
Alan shrugged. �It wasn�t that bad when I was down here before. If you want to avoid the slavers, you just jump off the edge and die, that�s it.�
�Just jump off the ledge and die!? Do you know how far dying sets you back��
�Enough!� Aurora shouted once more, looking annoyed. Everyone quieted down. �We now know where we are, if Alan�s information is correct, and I have no reason to doubt him. It seems like he�s been here before. Is there anything you can tell us about this place, Alan?�
�Um, well there are probably a few secret pathways around here but I think that�d be a bad idea for a group as large as this. Oh, and we may run into enemies. I�d suggest we pick one of the two exits, and start exploring. We should find a way out eventually, right?� Alan hesitatingly said.
His comment sparked another debate about the group�s next steps, and talk once again resumed. Alan silently conversed with Eve, half paying attention to the argument.
Alan glanced around the room again, testing out his new spectrum of vision. Unfortunately, none of it made much sense to Alan, and though Eve described much of the different types of waves he was able to see, the information was relatively unhelpful. Most of the time he was unable to see anything. There were no hidden switches or otherwise, much to Alan�s disappointment.
Alan did test out the X-ray and Program1 settings, but both didn�t show anything more. X-ray vision, much to Alan�s chagrin, simply showed people�s bone structures, at least if it could penetrate whatever armor or clothing they were wearing, or if they had bones. It also showed that a number of the other recruits were very, very well armed. Program1 showed nothing at all other than a blank space.
Alan made his way over to the other exit, looking out the doorway. All he saw was a replica of the same stone walkway outside. Nothing new.
Alan looked back over at Aurora, who seemed to have come to a decision. The whole group would form into one large company, also known as a raid group in most MMOs. They would carefully explore the dungeon, hopefully finding an exit nearby.
Alan volunteered to scout out ahead, but Aurora replied that she would prefer him in the back with the rest of the ranged damage dealers, available to provide cover fire at a moment�s notice. They would travel together, without risking anyone. Alan shrugged, and accepted his role, taking out Orion�s Cores, putting on the rifle attachment.
Once everyone was prepared, the group set out, slowly walking along the stone pathway. Leading the way were five tanks, damage absorbers, followed by several melee damage dealers and, bizarrely, at least to Alan, melee healers. Aurora�s ball of light guided the way. The tanks' gear ranged from heavy power armor to more energy or psionic-based defenses.
It was not long before they encountered a group of mobs, around 20 black, spiderlike mechs the size of small dogs walking about on four scythe legs. To Alan, they appeared to be sort of mechanized head crabs. Eve labeled them as level 25 Spiderbots.
Immediately, Aurora ordered everyone to fire at the robots. A barrage of laser fire and plasma erupted, decimating the Spiderbots before they even got close to the tanks. Immediately, the surviving few began to emit loud warning sounds, running backwards. With a few well placed shots Alan and the others were able to finish them off. Alan noted that shots often overlapped, concentrating more fire than necessary on enemies.
�Huh, that wasn�t too bad,� Sidestep said, turning back to look at Alan.
Right after Sidestep said that, Alan noticed a large shape in the distance. He immediately zoomed in on it using his enhanced, bionic eye, and alarmingly yelled, �Incoming!�
The other recruits, who had gathered around the remains of the Spiderbots, arguing over how to divide the loot, looked up. In the distance, there was a horde of incoming Spiderbots, hundreds of them with varying sizes and colors. The largest one, about the size of a tank or large Humvee was labeled as a level 250 Spiderbot Brood Mother. The Brood Mother had eight legs rather than four, each with jagged barbs, along with a large, mechanical jaw, a mouth of sorts.
Aurora called out for a steady retreat as all the ranged DPS fired at the oncoming horde. Every shot hit an enemy, but their numbers seemed endless. Alan watched as the Brood Mother shoved the remnants of the first group of Spiderbots into its mouth. A few seconds later, it spat out 10 brand new ones, slightly larger than the originals.
Before long, the wave of enemies was upon them, and the melee fighters tried to hold the line with the tanks. The melee fighters, which included Kitana and Sidestep, fought viciously to stem the tide of Spiderbots, ensuring that none passed them, stepping back for others to take their place when they got tired. Alan watched as Kitana�s glowing blade struck down tens of Spiderbots with each swing, slicing through them like they were made of air, gracefully avoiding the creature�s leaping attacks.
The tanks, meanwhile, focused on drawing the attention of four larger Hive Guard Spiderbots, level 150, and the Brood Mother. One tank summoned a giant phalanx of blue energy, and pushed the tide of Spiderbots back with it. Alan continued to rapidly fire at the Spiderbots, trying to hit the weak points of the larger ones, but his shots began missing, or striking already killed enemies. Eve was simply unable to keep track of the chaotic battle.
The Brood Mother continued to swallow its fallen brethren, spitting out additional Spiderbots a few moments later. The wave of Spiderbots was about to overwhelm the tired melee fighters when Aurora thrust her hands forward, and a wave of energy emerged. The entirety of the Spiderbots front line was suddenly encased in ice, giving everyone a much needed breather.
�Run back to the cavern!� someone shouted out as they started sprinting backwards.
�No, wait, we need to focus down the Brood Mother!� Aurora frustratingly cried out. But it was too late, all of the group was making a mad dash backwards.
Only Alan, Kitana and Sidestep as well as one other player, a hooded healer, held their ground. Eve returned to her usual efficiency as the number of variables lessened. Alan focused all his fire at the entrapped Brood Mother, but as it was encased in ice he could only fire at the joints connecting its legs to its metallic body. Shortly afterwards it broke free of the ice, only missing 5% of its health.
Aurora sent out another ice blast, encasing the smaller Spiderbots, and created an icy wall about five feet tall. She called out, "I only have about 20% of my energy left, we need to finish this fast!"
The hooded healer called out in a somewhat familiar voice, "Looks like the rest are too chicken to face this mighty foe! Do not worry, friends, for with our combined might we shall slay this abomination. I shall heal all those that prove themselves in this battle, so you need not fret. Just don�t get knocked off the side.� And then the giant construct was upon them.
Immediately, Kitana met it head on, swiping her blade at its jaws, deflecting the jabbing legs. Meanwhile, Sidestep took three quick steps, leaving behind three clones. Each clone leapt forward, attacking a different leg. Aurora began firing much smaller balls of ice aimed at the Brood Mother�s joints to hinder its movements. Alan detached the rifle attachment, and instead used Orion�s Cores in their base form, twin pistols, to also snipe at the legs of the Brood Mother.
Without all its children, or whatever they were, the fight turned relatively straightforward. Kitana, with her masterful swordsmanship, was able to easily deflect and divert the Brood Mother�s main form of attack, its bladed legs. While one of the Sidesteps was occasionally hit, it always dissolved into nothingness, revealing it was an image all along. Not even Eve could figure out which one was real. Alan, meanwhile, activated hypercognition and with Eve�s help was able to anticipate all of the movements of the machine. Aurora stood in the back, sending out the occasional ice blast while the healer stood back, arms folded, looking rather bored.
In minutes they brought the creature down to 50% HP. It sent out a signal that enraged the surrounding Spiderbots. They frantically began twitching, attempting to break free of the ice. Twin fangs emerged from the Brood Mother's mouth, dripping with a dark green poisonous looking liquid; from the top of its head a small turret appeared, and began firing lasers at the group.
The fight continued, and the group took care to avoid the additional weapons as well as the Brood Mother�s legs. Still, they were able to battle with surprising ease, continuing to avoid taking any damage at all. Alan managed to fire a lucky laser shot directly down the robot�s throat as it lunged at him with its fangs, scoring a critical hit for nearly 10x the damage. Alan let the others know about the weak point, and shortly thereafter they finally destroyed the Brood Mother as the hundreds of Spiderbots began to break free of the ice.
x10 Bonus XP for slaying an construct over 100 levels higher, taking 0 damage in the process!
x4 Level up!
Alan deactivated hypercognition mode, closing the messages that popped up. He quickly looted the destroyed machine, receiving a small violet crystal about the size of his pinky and a mechanical circuit board. He only glanced at both before placing them into a side pocket of his armor. Then following Aurora, they all charged back to the cavern they began at. Alan wondered how the rest of the recruits were doing,
When Aurora came up to the entrance she came to a sudden stop. Glancing over her shoulder, Alan could see why. The floor was gone. All that was left was the familiar black abyss, a doorway into nothingness.
Glancing backwards, they could see the army of Spiderbots was forming up once more into a mighty swarm, quickly catching up to them.
�I�m going to spend the last of my energy to create a narrow bridge across to the stone pathway on the other side of the cavern. I can barely make it out, but it looks to still be there.�
�It is,� Alan assured her. He could make out the stone pathway clearly.
�All right, once we�re all across, you�ll need to destroy this bridge, Kitana,� Aurora said. She spread her hands out once more. A steady stream of energy poured out, and an icy bridge slowly appeared, connecting the exits of the now bottomless cavern.
Alan stared dazedly as Aurora worked, still amazed at the ability to literally warp reality, or at least mass, or energy, or something. He still wasn�t sure how he�d defeat her in a duel. Perhaps he could catch her unawares, or battle her with equipment specifically designed to counteract her abilities.
The group made their way across the bridge, Alan sniping Spiderbots in the distance as soon as his weapons had the energy, carefully placing one foot in front of the other on the slippery ice. Sidestep left two images to guard the entrance of the bridge. Once they all made it across, the first of the Spiderbots were beginning to make their way onto the bridge.
With a single slice of her sword Kitana cleanly severed the bridge and it collapsed. Alan watched as the remaining Spiderbots hesitated at the doorway, then slowly began to retreat back where they had come from. He took a few potshots at the retreating forms for the XP.
�Well, that wasn�t nearly as exciting as I hoped it would be,� the healer said as they pulled back their hood. It was Void, the Mad Priest, or at least the young recruit whose form he had taken. Alan, Kitana and Sidestep looked at him alarmingly, while Aurora simply shook her head.
�What?� Void said. �I didn�t need to heal anyone that entire fight. You're all too skilled and overpowered, I think you need a handicap or something.�
�Where are the others, and what happened to the floor of the cavern?� Aurora asked evenly.
�Ah, well, that floor wasn�t really a floor, but a platform, a lift between a secure location in Black Rose territory and this here dungeon. All those scaredy-cats were probably rushed back upwards upon their return, and will be reprimanded on their return. It�ll probably be two hours or so before it comes back down. So we can wait, or,� he grinned madly, �continue exploring! Those Spiderbots were new, and I wonder what else might have changed.�
�Wait, what was the purpose of all this? I mean, if someone had just like put up a sign up sheet to go dungeon exploring, I�d have gladly joined.� Alan said, exasperated.
�Well, to teach all you recruits a lesson, of course! Never let your guard down, even when you think you�re home free. It also shows a bit of real action that generally motivates newer players to train hard.
"A few guild members like myself were hidden among the new recruits to ensure safety. It was supposed to be something of a team building exercise, but it seems like this part of the dungeon has gotten more dangerous recently. It used to be only a bunch of level 100 or so maintenance robots down that pathway. So, who�s up for a bit of exploring?�
�Um, I�m all for exploring, but I think we all need to rest for our energy to replenish,� Sidestep said. �Also, did anyone grab the loot?�
�I did, and I wouldn�t mind delving a bit deeper, especially with a skilled healer,� Alan said as he pulled out the two items that dropped.
Small Photonic Energy Crystal (Rank D):
An old energy crystal that powered ancient constructs.
Spiderbot Brood Mother Central Processing Unit (Rank C):
A multi-core processing unit that was used to command hundreds of Spiderbot underlings. A central part needed for any that wish to create their own advanced Spiderbot. May be salvaged for parts or modified to be used for a similar construct.
�Eh, those are both junk," Void said. "You might be able to find some antique dealer and get maybe a couple diamond marks for the Spiderbot CPU, while an energy dealer might buy the crystal for a gold mark.�
�Well, I have a hunch I might need this energy crystal, so I�ll take this, if that�s all right with everyone. You guys can split the profit from the Spiderbot CPU,� Alan said, thinking of his quest to restore energy to the Abyss Labyrinth systems. The others readily agreed, and they all sat down to rest.
Half an hour later, Alan�s energy had been completely replenished, and the others decided to head out. Unfortunately, Aurora�s psionic reserves were only replenished up to 20%, but Void promised to bail them out if they got into any real trouble. Alan still had no idea what abilities Void had, and was interested in seeing a higher level player in action.
As they walked along the stone pathway they encountered nothing, not even the slightest bit of scrap metal. Void murmured to himself, unsettling Alan and the others.
�Hmm, we should have seen something by now��
�That�s odd, I thought this pathway went in the other direction��
�We�re approaching where the old boss used to be, I wonder if it�s been replaced��
�I�m pretty sure I can save myself if we encounter a really powerful boss, but I�m not sure about the rest of them. Who�d I sacrifice first? Probably Sidestep. No, Alan. Nah, maybe Kitana. I�d get in trouble if I sacrificed Aurora, but the bunny gods would probably appreciate her the most. Maybe that�s what I should do��
Everyone stopped, staring at Void. He innocently stared back.
�Do the sacrificial pawns have something to say?�
�No�� Aurora shook her head. �Let�s keep moving. If we don�t find anything in the next half hour or so we should head back.�
A few minutes later, Alan finally detected a presence in the distance. He called for a halt, zooming in on the mob. He saw a small, three by three foot cube of green slime that looked like a larger version of the grey nutrient blocks everyone ate. There was a small red ball about the size of a golf ball within the slime, darting about erratically. Eve classified it as a slime of an unknown type and level.
Alan briefed the others on the slime�s appearance. As it was small and sitting alone, they decided to approach. The only fishy thing was that it sat at the bottom of a ramp with a steep incline, which led upwards to somewhere Alan couldn�t see.
Once they were close enough for Alan to take a shot, he did so, striking the slime, tearing it apart. It simply reformed, then started to make its way towards the party with small hopping motions. It wasn�t very fast. Alan continued to fire at the slime, aiming at its red ball, which Eve hypothesized to be its nucleus. Unfortunately, due to the chaotic nature of the nucleus�s movement, Eve couldn�t predict its movements, making it difficult to hit.
Five shots later, Alan finally managed to hit it, and with a small pop the slime exploded, its contents splattering onto the stone walkway.
�Huh, that was rather easy,� Sidestep said, walking up to examine the slime more easily.
�You had to say that, didn�t you? Did you not learn your lesson earlier?� Alan asked while looking up. An avalanche of slimes, hundreds if not thousands were rapidly coming down the ramp. All were exact duplicates of the slime Alan had killed.
Alan began firing at the slimes, killing a number before they reached the ground. Immediately after one slime�s nucleus was destroyed, a nearby slime would absorb the dead slime�s body, becoming larger. Once a slime had doubled in size, the lasers Alan shot began to stop penetrating them all the way through. He started to wish he had an area of effect skill or weapon, something that could damage a large number of enemies.
Sidestep pulled out a pair of electrified short blades and created a few clones, while Kitana readied her sword. Alan still couldn�t tell if the images Sidestep left behind were actual clones or not, as various clones would deal damage independently, but never at the same time. Eve hypothesized that the real one might simply be moving about, taking the place of a different image as the battle continued.
Experimentally, Aurora froze a slime with a small burst of energy, but it simply absorbed the ice in moments, turning it into liquid, becoming slightly larger.
The first of the slimes reached them as they began making a steady retreat. Counter intuitively, the larger slimes moved faster than their smaller brethren, at about the speed of a light jog.
Kitana had no trouble slicing through the larger slimes, but a Sidestep duplicate found his blade suddenly embedded in a larger slime about the size of a microwave. The slime opened up, enveloping the blade, then surged forwards up the blade onto Sidestep�s arm, enveloping it with its slimy substance. The nucleus continued to chaotically move about within the slime�s green body, circling Sidestep's slime encompassed arm.
�Shit!� He yelled as he blinked backwards in an attempt to get the slime off him. �It�s absorbing my armor�s energy, as well as my own!�
The red ball within the slime began to turn blue and move about even more energetically, faster than before.
With a skillful pierce, Kitana managed to stab the slime�s nucleus, and it fell to the floor, inanimate. Another squelching slime absorbed the body, and its nucleus also turned blue.
Before long, they were overwhelmed by slimes attaching themselves to different members of the group, draining their energy. Even Alan�s Computational Energy was absorbed by the slimes. Out of the corner of his eye, Alan noticed a slime he was trying to destroy that was leeched onto him turned from blue to purple. The purple nucleus split in two, forming two smaller nuclei that moved even faster and had a sort of blue energy field around them.
Alan frantically began trying to scrape the squishy slime off his armor with his laser knife, thankful that the slime was touching his armor and not him.
�We can�t let them keep evolving!� Aurora called out. �Is there anything anyone can do? My ice isn�t having any effect.�
Void, who was suspiciously absent of slimes, sighed. �Looks like I need to help you guys. I�d prefer to watch the struggle a bit longer, but it seems as though if I waited too long they�d become more of a nuisance. And I still haven�t healed anyone��
He brought out a wooden staff, inscribed with what appeared to be runes, hieroglyphic images that Eve couldn�t decipher. He held it aloft, and an electrical white blade formed an outline around it.
�I have the power!� he yelled, winking at Alan.
Before Alan could even ask how Void knew that reference, white lightning surged out of the blade, striking and destroying slime�s nuclei in rapid succession. The attack seemed to in turn absorb the slime�s energy, as the white blade grew slightly larger with each subsequent slime it zapped.
As soon as the sword attempted to strike the two purple nuclei attached to the slime absorbing Alan�s energy, a small electrical shield formed around each purple ball, repulsing the lightning strike. The slime suddenly detached itself from Alan, splitting it itself in two, one nucleus in each of the halves. They each began rapidly absorbing the bodies of all the slain slimes around them as Void tried to fry them with lightning, splattering bits of slime everywhere.
Each strike was similarly repulsed. With a sweeping strike Kitana managed to nick one of the purple nuclei, but it simply split into two blue nuclei instead of being destroyed. Meanwhile, the other slime�s nucleus turned white after it absorbed most of its dead brethren. The moment the next lightning bolt struck at it, it absorbed the energy, turning black!
�Oops,� Void murmured, dismissing the lightning blade as the slime leapt at it in an attempt to absorb the energy.
As soon as the blade disappeared, the slime landed on the floor then leapt backwards at its spawn! The slime body was now the size of a large truck and moved just as quickly. It absorbed the smaller slime�s bodies. Then, the black nucleus shot forth as fast as lightning and devoured the two blue nuclei. It quickly turned on the rest of the small slimes with red nuclei that Void hadn�t finished off.
By the time it had finished devouring the rest of the slimes it was the size of a small apartment, taking up almost the entirety of the twenty foot wide stone walkway. At this point, the black nucleus had divided itself in three, and the slime had gained the title Unstable Experimental Warden.
The gigantic amorphous slime turned its attention to the players. It lurched backwards, preparing for a leap forwards. Alan fired a couple of shots at the slime, but the laser bolts barely penetrated a couple of feet into the slime's body before dissolving.
�Well, that was my only offensive skill, so, um, I�ll leave the rest to you guys,� Void said nervously, backing up behind the group.
Alan glanced towards the others, who were resolutely staring at the slime, showing no sign of backing down.
Kitana held her katana before her as a visible blue flame condensed itself in an aura about her sword. The waves of energy surrounding the sword were so powerful they began to create pulsing waves of force that blew her hair and loose fitting robes backwards.
Meanwhile, Aurora pulled out the knife and wooden stake that Alan had seen her carrying when he first met her. She cut herself, and as her blood began to drip onto the stake it too began to gather power, a red aura glowing about it.
Meanwhile, the pulsing green veins of energy that swirled about Sidestep�s armor like miniature veins began glowing more brightly, condensing at Sidestep�s feet and hands.
Alan watched as the slime leapt forward in slow motion, continuing to listen to Eve�s explanation.
Alan watched as Kitana took a step forward, and with a downward slash unleashed a magnificent arc of blue energy that cut through the slime�s membrane like butter. The energy continued travelling straight through the slime gelatin until it crashed into one of the three black nuclei. Alan saw a momentary shield arise in front of the nucleus, then break under the attack�s pressure. The nucleus flashed, from black to white to purple to blue before it finally exploded.
Eve continued the lecture, ignoring the awesome display of power.
The slime started to reform the tear that the blade had caused, but before it finished Aurora pointed her stake tip forward at another nucleus. A red beam of light shot out like a death laser. It completely incinerated all the slime it passed through, obliterating it from existence, unlike Kitana�s attack which had simply cut through the substance. It hit a nucleus as well and immediately vaporized it, continuing to pass through the slime like nothing. It continued all the way out the other side of the slime, and Alan watched the beam fade away into the distance.
Sidestep, crouching beside Alan, launched his attack immediately after Aurora�s. He began sprinting forward, then started to move faster and faster until his movements were blurred even from Alan�s perspective. His feet, legs and hands all glowed a bright green as he charged straight into the slime. This was not teleportation, but speed. His hands began to claw through and scoop away the slime�s insides, flinging it to the side as Sidestep made his way through the membrane.
In an instant, he reached the final nucleus. All of the green energy condensed onto his hands, forming a claw-like shape. Sidestep began striking at the nucleus rapidly, thousands of blows raining down on it each second. It wasn�t long before the shield around it failed, and the last nucleus was destroyed.
The gigantic mess of slime and gelatin crashed to the floor, much of it spilling off the sides of the stone walkway, and a message popped up before Alan.
x2 Bonus XP for slaying a monster over 100 levels higher than you!
Level up!
Eve continued the lesson as Kitana, Aurora and Sidestep, all dripping with sweat and exhaustion began to recover themselves from the attacks they had unleashed.
Rolling his eyes, Alan deactivated hypercognition and then looked up to find Sidestep and Aurora staring at him.
�Um, sorry I wasn�t much help in the fight, you guys can have first choice of the loot that the boss dropped, I don�t really need anything as I didn�t contribute much,� Alan said, eyes downcast, looking abashed.
�No, it�s not that, though I think I�ll take you up on your offer,� Sidestep said, �It�s just I think that as you�ve seen our ultimate moves, you should share what yours is.�
�My ultimate move?� Alan repeated.
�Yeah, we�re all friends here that will be working together in the future, right? The more information we know about each other�s capabilities the better. What�s your special ability?� Sidestep asked.
�Um, well, I don�t exactly have an ultimate move, I was ready to accept my fate and die.� Sidestep snorted, but Alan continued, �And... and even if I did have such a move, I�m sorry, but I don�t think I�d share it with you. My master or, well, my knight, Phantom told me not to divulge information to anyone, and that includes you.�
�Oh, so that�s the way it�s gonna be then, is it?� Sidestep said, taking a step towards Alan.
�Drop it,� Aurora said in a commanding tone. �It isn�t important, and Phantom is secretive. Not even I am sure what he does.�
�Yes milady,� Sidestep replied in a somewhat exasperated tone. He turned around and went up to the nucleus he destroyed, examining what it dropped.
Aurora turned to stare at Alan. �I do trust that you will not share what you saw with anybody.�
�Of course,� Alan said.
�Very good then,� Aurora responded, smiling brightly at Alan, who blushed slightly, looking away.
He found Void standing right next to him, somehow making his way within an inch of Alan undetected. Void whispered, �Remember you can always tell me and the bunny gods your secrets.�
�No thanks,� Alan said, backing away. He quickly walked over to Kitana.
�So, um, nice job! Where did you learn that attack, by the way?�
Kitana shrugged. �You�ve seen me use it before in the tutorial, right? This was an improved version. The psionic energy and martial arts I learned fused to form some sort of sword arts.�
�Oh, cool. By the way, um, what did the slime drop?� Alan asked curiously.
Kitana lifted up her hands, showing a circular black crystal about the size of a small coin and a bottle of slime with a small red nucleus, looking subdued.
�Ooh! Now that might be worth a pretty penny,� Void said, appearing once more right behind Alan, looking over his shoulder at the items Kitana was holding up. �The black crystal probably holds a platinum mark�s worth of energy, while that bit of slime or whatever it is might be worth something as either a pet or resource gatherer, depending on its ability to gather energy.�
�Yes, it was rather odd that we faced resource gathering slimes and Spiderbots that multiplied, wasn�t it?� Alan asked lightheartedly, though he was secretly feeling rather depressed he had said that he had given up his loot rights.
Void shrugged. �I wouldn�t call it odd, exactly. Monsters and the like adjust to their surroundings. Look about you, do you see any food? I don�t think so. Thus, you have the self producing Spiderbots that can eat scrap metal, and these slimes that absorb energy. It makes perfect sense.�
�Um, right.� Alan replied.
The nuclei Aurora and Sidestep had slain dropped the exact same items, and after a short break, they continued up the ramp the slimes had dropped from with the help of icy steps Aurora created. At the top they found a large platform, with a cage at the center, probably where the slimes had been released from.
Eve had Alan try out his different forms of vision, and sure enough he detected an invisible path that branched out from the platform, similar to the path that he had found when he first entered the Abyss Labyrinth.
�Well, looks like that�s it, better head back now,� Void said.
�Um, if it�s okay, I�d like to look around a bit, you guys can head back without me,� Alan said, trying to appear unconcerned.
�Oh, know something about the secret pathways?� Void asked. �Don�t bother, it's a dead end. Trust me, we�ve tried.�
�Um, I�d still like to try to go down the path myself. I want to try to gain some sort of trap detection skill,� he responded.
�Hmm, all right,� Void said, �Just remember, it�s your fault if you die! I won't be here to save your ass. I�ll head back with the others, and have someone wait for you to return. It might be a few hours though, so don�t get too impatient. The creatures shouldn�t respawn anytime soon. Probably.�
Void then turned back the way they came, Kitana, Sidestep and Aurora walking with him. Aurora sent Alan a questioning glance right before she left with the others, but Alan simply shook his head.
Once the others were out of sight, Alan stepped onto the hidden pathway, activating his power armor�s basic invisibility. It was time to find some treasure.
Chapter 19
Alan progressed slowly and steadily. Unlike the last time he had trodden down a hidden path, he did not simply rely on Eve�s directions and assistance. Instead, he attempted to navigate through the traps and puzzles without help. Eve would occasionally bring up a warning or complete a task for Alan, but the number of obstacles Alan was able to get through on his own surprised him.
After stepping through a hidden trigger before Eve could even warn him, Alan learned the value of patience. He managed to dodge most of the lasers that shot from the wall at him, taking minimal damage, but from that point on prudently examined his surroundings. After waiting too long at one intersection, Alan learned the value of haste. A giant boulder descended from the sky, crashing onto the ramp behind Alan, triggered by some unseen timer. He had to follow Eve�s directions to barely avoid being squashed like a bug. (She had solved the simple astrological riddle in 2.71 microseconds, whereas Alan had been sitting there trying to figure it out for over 15 minutes.)
A few hours later, Alan finally made his way to a cube-like structure. Only slightly worse for wear, he had gained a basic Rogue ability, Trap Detection (Rank F). He wasn�t sure if this structure looked like the one he had been to earlier, as then he had been blindly following Eve�s directions. Now he could see.
It was miraculous what a difference sight could make. Whereas before the Abyss Labyrinth had been an unknown, inhospitable dungeon, it now seemed more like a clean, orderly facility to Alan. Gone were the shady pathways, the ever encompassing darkness. In their place Alan was able to see well maintained metal roadways, connecting the overall facility in a logical manner like detailed circuitry. While there was still a depth which Alan could not penetrate all around him, he had plunged into the darkness before, it was no longer unknown.
Boldly, Alan strode up to the doorway that blocked his path, noting the letters and numbers painted onto the wall. Consciously, he attempted to find an AI presence to interact with. His mind immediately thought of the Connect ability he had gained, and he felt his subconscious activate some protocol. A faint presence began to power up. Alan sent it a message immediately.
The connection ended. Alan�s quest failed to update, but he did receive a notification that he was now on friendly terms with the Abyss Labyrinth, which hopefully meant the wardens wouldn't attack him. Alan pushed against the doorway in front. This time, as a whirling of gears sounded, Alan could see a metal tunnel extend outwards from the structure, downwards to his right.
Not questioning it, Alan proceeded forwards. This central hub area looked to be in somewhat better repair than the one he had been in earlier. A few metal desks and tables remained, while the screen held fewer cracks. There was a flicker of light as the screen suddenly flashed to life, displaying what Alan assumed to be a map.
The hub that he was now in was a green circle. Hundreds of other circles were displayed as well, showing a vastness to the dungeon that Alan couldn�t quite comprehend. If he was reading it right, this map was equal in size to North America. Eve let Alan know that this was only a portion of the facility. One of four red squares was shown to be Alan�s destination, roughly 50 miles away.
Eve sent a mental shrug.�
Sighing, Alan went into the corridor open to him. As he made his way to the end of the hallway, he found himself in front of a metal slide. Remembering his earlier slide, Alan hesitated.
Taking a deep breath, Alan decided to continue. What was the worst that could happen?
This would have been fine, or at least not so nerve wracking, if he had been proceeding at a sane speed, but apparently the unknown entity that had constructed the facilities had a different idea of safe. Alan truly began to panic as a large missile shot by the opening in front of him, narrowly missing the constructing ladder-way of doom. Unable to take it any longer, he shut his eyes, concentrating on the feeling of his dropping stomach, trying to avoid thoughts of nausea and dropping into the abyss.
***
Countless minutes later (42 according to Eve), Alan finally felt his descent slow. The slide gradually began to level out. When he opened his eyes, Alan found that he was moving alongside a metal pathway nearly 50 feet wide. All about him were heavy fortifications, turrets and mechanical behemoths that would have been intimidating if they hadn�t been powered down. Eve highlighted countless shield batteries and hidden traps that were turned off as well. Alan couldn�t help but feel as if he was cheating the system somehow, but silently accepted it. It looked like he�d soon come face to face with someone with real power in this place. Probably a gigantic computer of some sort.
The slide finally came to a stop, depositing Alan before a massive metal doorway, hundreds of feet tall, the entrance to a structure that was built into the surrounding walls. It looked as large as an imperial palace, if not quite so impressive in its current dilapidated state. Alan could see wires sticking out the various battlements at the top of the door. Like much of the rest of the prison, the building was devoid of much that would tell Alan its purpose, the only outstanding features being the defensive battlements.
In front of the doorway stood two level 1500 mechanical golems, modeled after an ancient race of giants, at least according to Eve. Each stood nearly twenty feet tall with six appendages, four winding arms of coiled metal and two legs, but no discernible head. Each arm held massive cleaver-like blades. They appeared to be made out of a dark grey metal with a more stone-like texture. Similar to Sidestep, the entirety of their bodies were covered in tubing that pulsed green. In the center of each golem�s cylindrical torso was a large, mechanical eye that glowed blue. Unlike the other defenses, the golems were still active.
Nervously, Alan proceeded forwards. The two sentinels slowly turned to face him. Alan slowly took another step forwards, then another, until he was between the two. As they took no further action, Alan let out a sigh of relief before walking onwards. He noticed that each golem had a second eye on the opposite side of their torso. A small doorway opened up when Alan got close enough to the entrance.
Alan glanced inside, then froze. He immediately activated hypercognition mode, as well as his armor�s advanced stealth mode. Within the structure was a Predecessor.
The Predecessor stood in the middle of the structure, a lightly glowing collar around its neck. It wore a tightly woven chain mail vest made of the writhing black metal the other Predecessor�s knife had been made of, and wielded a massive two handed great sword made of the same material. The metal, which absorbed light, shrouded the Predecessor in darkness except for the collar. Alan discovered the metal absorbed every other type of radiation as well as he rapidly switched between types of vision to try to get a better look.
Alan stood still, staring at the Predecessor, continuing to test out his different types of vision. He almost gasped when he finally switched to gamma vision, noticing what was behind the Predecessor. Most of the structure was devoid of anything except for metal tiling on the floor, a large hall perfect for a massive raid boss. At the far end of the room the massive wall was adorned with metal cables stretching out of one central point, a cylindrical barrel with ten small slots, each containing a symmetrical cube crystal the size of a fist. All but one was devoid of color. This tenth crystal glowed softly in Alan eyes.
Gamma radiation, at least according to the basic lesson Eve had given Alan, was deadly. It also emerged from highly energetic events: black holes, supernovae explosions and the like. That it was contained within a crystal, which didn�t seem to leak any of the light elsewhere, was amazing. If this facility depended on such power sources, Alan wasn�t sure how he�d ever find a suitable replacement. Alan switched back to his normal vision, in which the crystal was black.
Next to the ring of crystals was a small, glowing circle. When Alan concentrated on it, it became clearer, manifesting into a solid teal circle of color that rose up and became a cylinder.
The Predecessor turned to face Alan.
�What is the delay? Come in.� It spoke in a gravelly tone, as if it hadn�t used its voice in years.
�And, uh, what if I don�t want to?� Alan nervously said, backing away from the door way a bit.
In a single step, before Alan could react, the Predecessor was at the doorway. It looked down at Alan.
�Then I will end you. Even if you are a figment of my imagination.� It widened its teeth in a vicious smile.
�Um, I�m real, please don�t hurt me.� Alan swallowed nervously, stepping into the room, deactivating his armor�s so-called advanced stealth mode.
�Good.� The Predecessor attempted what it thought was a calming smile, though to Alan it looked more like a grimace. �Why are you here? Another search of Aleph, perhaps?�
Hands trembling slightly, Alan brought out the small violet crystal. The Predecessor narrowed its eyes.
�Um, I'm here to recharge the power or something like that.�
�Why don�t you leave here and never return?� The Predecessor rested its massive hand on Alan�s shoulder.
�And, um, why would I do that?�
�Do what? That was simply an errant� suggestion.� The Predecessor punctuated the last word by gripping Alan hard enough that his shields quickly drained, halved by the simple squeeze. Alan winced as there was a crushing sound, and a message popped up notifying Alan his armor was damaged.
�Sorry, that was an accident. I hope nothing worse happens if you stay here longer,� the Predecessor said, staring at Alan menacingly.
Alan looked up blankly at the Predecessor, not taking the hint. �Um, okay? Here�s the crystal, to help with the, um, quest?�
The Predecessor stared down at the miniscule human holding out the little crystal, then let out a throaty chuckle. It took the crystal out of Alan�s hand in a blur of movement.
�Ha! That�s good, quite good. The stones on you, eh? Very well, I suppose I�ll deposit this bit of energy. What are a couple more centuries of imprisonment, anyway?�
Trying to hide from the Predecessor that he had been obtuse, rather than brave, Alan hurriedly said, �What do you mean, a couple more centuries of imprisonment?�
�Don�t you know?� The Predecessor stopped, staring at Alan.
�Know what?�
�Energy Saving Order 5329. To save the dwindling power it was decided that biological prisoners would serve as wardens. Their sentences would be shortened in return� though, considering my sentence, a few centuries off of it makes little difference.�
�Um, no, sorry, that�s the first I�m hearing of this�� Alan nervously said.
�Why did you bring me this then?�
�Um, cause I got a quest to? So I can get a sort of reward or something and get stronger.�
�That�s it? A procedurally generated task is given to you and you set on a quest to complete it? �
�There was also, uh, something about a gamma threat level and the Authorities.�
�Which you know nothing about I assume?�
Alan nodded.
�How strong are you?� The Predecessor questioned. Alan opened his mouth, then paused.
�Tell me. No matter your strength, it should be clear I could easily kill you.�
�I have a combat rank of B, and am level 118.�
The Predecessor stared at Alan. He shifted around nervously.
�How did you get here?�
�Um, I asked nicely?
The Predecessor opened its mouth, then shut it. It muttered under its breath, �They must be getting desperate.� Alan shifted his feet about. Abruptly, the Predecessor turned to stare at Alan.
�Did you hear that?�
Alan nodded.
�It was sort of a combination of hearing and reading your lips.�
The Predecessor glanced around the room, then took a step forwards right next to Alan. It crouched down so that its lips were directly in Alan�s line of sight, but angled downwards so they wouldn�t be able to be seen from above. The Predecessor put its arms around Alan, like a hug, blocking out all other angles of vision. Alan struggled to move away from the Predecessor, but he was easily held in place.
�Stop. Can you understand me?� The Predecessor mouthed.
�Yes,� Alan said uncomfortably.
�Stop. No more talking. Watch.�
Alan remained silent.
�So, you were willing to help them out, just because they gave you a so-called quest? Well, hear me out, and I can guarantee you come out of this with much, much more than you ever imagined.
�This entire facility is underpowered, abandoned by the so-called Authorities in their search for Aleph. The warden program is unable to devote processing power to understand strange situations. Like this one. It orders with broad commands, no finesse or subtlety. For example, it simply told me to aid you. Say something like thank you, that greatly helps, please continue. It shouldn�t notice anything too odd.�
�Um, thank you very much, this is of great help, I mean you are of great help, please continue,� Alan said aloud. The Predecessor grimaced, but continued his silent communication.
�Good enough. That should placate the damn shitware for a while yet. Now, did you see the black crystal behind me, within the large machine, next to the brightly glowing circle? Not the dull, colorless crystals, but the black one.�
Alan nodded, rolling his eyes at the Predecessor�s language. It must think he was an imbecile.
�Okay, here is what�s going to happen. Once I am dead, you are going to remove that crystal from the machine as quickly as possible.�
�Uh, once what?� Alan asked aloud.
The Predecessor jerked its head threateningly. Alan quickly shut his mouth.
�Once I am dead. I do have orders to protect the energy source and kill intruders, you know? Trust me, the warden program has methods to compel even ones such as I.� It shuddered. �Though, it using those methods should also help to drain the facilities reserves further��
�Wait, if you die, will you even come back to life?� Alan asked.
The Predecessor shrugged. �Death is life. I cannot discuss matters with you� if you think yourself worthy, challenge another Predecessor to a duel. Simply repeat the phrase: Death is life. Demand answers. Moving on. I will give you a piece of precious soulsteel, which will be your reward, along with the black crystal.
�I will bind this soulsteel to you in the form of twin knives, so that you and only you may wield them. Given soulsteel�s nature the items will drop should you ever die, but only a Predecessor will be able to unbind it for their own use. I suggest you never let a Predecessor know you have soulsteel, and keep it in a safe location once you leave here. You are nowhere near strong enough to have passed through a warrior trial or to wield such a metal. Still, circumstances beget the necessary�" The Predecessor's eyes glazed over, reveling in some distant memory.
�Anyway, as I was saying, once I am dead, remove the black crystal, then escape this facility. I suggest you slit my throat, then run; I may be compelled to resist you once you attack me. I will try to resist it, but I guarantee nothing.
�You may need to deal with those golems outside, but they shouldn�t be able to detect you in that stealth mode you were in earlier, and the soulsteel blade should cut through them easily. Their brains are at the center of their bodies.
�Also, you should really learn to hide your presence, as you are only undetectable by machines. Perhaps untrained fools would ignore you as well, but few beings of power would fail to notice you. Anyways, after you have removed this crystal and grow stronger, return here. Remove or destroy the rest of the power sources in this prison. Trust me, you will be well rewarded.�
A quest appeared before Alan:
Prison Break:
Remove and destroy all power sources of the mysterious Abyss Labyrinth, unleashing its prisoners upon the universe.
Option: Try to free only certain beings
Option: Try to conquer the Abyss Labyrinth
Option (Missing Systems): Try to play both sides
Penalty: ???
Reward: ???
Time Limit: Unknown
Threat Level: Beta - Gamma
�Um, and if I don�t want to do this?� Alan asked.
�Then I kill you. I won�t be able to torture you, but the penalties applied by the warden program would be worth it. It�s almost out of power, a few more millennia at most.
"Even if my sentence is elongated, as long as all those that come here to try to repair the systems are dealt with, I will be free once the power runs out.�
�Look, um, it�s not like I want to die, but I just don�t have enough information to make a decision. Like, I have no idea why you or anybody else here is imprisoned,� Alan said, hoping his statement was innocuous enough to not alert the warden program.
The Predecessor stared down at Alan.
�Fine. Simply perform the task as I outlined, then go and learn more. You should be able to fool the warden program. Tell it you are analyzing the crystal so you can recharge it, or some other such lie. Then make your decision. I am confident you will see that we are in the right, and are unjustly imprisoned here.�
Another quest appeared before Alan:
A Mad Gamble:
Kill the Predecessor, remove the black crystal. Escape from the Abyss Labyrinth with the crystal.
Option: Find out more before attempting either Missing Systems or Prison Break
Rewards: Black Crystal, Soulsteel Knives
Penalty: Possible imprisonment (est. 1 month max sentence), Failure of Prison Break and Missing Systems
Alan quickly thought through his options. At the very least, he should kill this boss that was offering itself to him, right? The powerful weapon sounded rather nice as well, and he didn�t even need to go through with this crazy plan after he killed the Predecessor. But what was that about the possible imprisonment? Eve remained quiet in Alan�s head.
As if it could sense Alan�s thought, the Predecessor continued, �And, if you do kill me, but fail to take out the black crystal, the automated systems will surely kill you, no questions asked. That is why I said to remove it as soon as possible after I am dead. It will likely start spewing out poison gas or some other such nonsense. Thus, this is the only path you have if you want to escape here alive.
�Now, follow me. I will pretend to prepare to add the crystal you brought. Until the warden program is alerted, we should have a nice little chat. I�m sure you must have plenty of questions. First, though, I must transfer the soulsteel to you.�
The Predecessor stood up straight, then commanded Alan to hold out his hands, palms upwards. Alan did so. The Predecessor reached into a pocket, pulling out a piece of soulsteel the size of a small smartphone. Within its hands the soulsteel changed shape, becoming twin knives about the length of a pencil. Each knife had a small handle and razor-thin arced blades. The Predecessor took a blade in each hand.
�Oh, and this is going to hurt.�
The Predecessor suddenly brought the blades below Alan�s hands then thrust upwards, piercing his upheld palms. Before Alan could react they cleanly cut through his armor and the center of his palm, each penetrating bone. The Predecessor let go of the knives� handles, then thrust its own hands through the blades, grasping Alan�s hands firmly. The Predecessor�s blood was almost a pitch black, and Alan watched as a trickle streamed into his own wounds.
Alan immediately felt the blood enter the veins within his hands, travelling upwards through his body. It burned, like a thousand ghost peppers had been condensed into hot sauce and directly injected into his blood stream. His body turned feverish, sweat pouring out like rain. He began having difficulty breathing, his throat drying up, the entirety of his self aflame. Abruptly, the two knives liquefied, entering Alan�s body through his bloodstream.
Alan tried to break free from the Predecessor, his body writhing in pain. The Predecessor calmly watched, holding Alan�s hands firmly in place. Alan had long ago activated the Ignore Pain ability in an attempt to relegate the liquid fire pulsing through his veins to the back of his mind, but it was to no avail. The boiling blood within his body grew hotter with slow intensity, from a steady blaze to a roaring inferno.
It felt as though Alan was standing in the middle of a flame, as if he had been engulfed by lava. Nerves began to shut down as he lost sensation in his hands. Alan thought with utmost certainty that his body was becoming a charred mess, melting like candle wax. He couldn�t handle this, whatever this was. He began to panic. Soon, his entire body was left without feeling. Alan stood, motionless, fearful of any attempts to try to move his body.
Then, slowly, feeling began to return. A message popped up:
Predecessor Blood Rites:
An unknown ritual has triggered a transformation of your blood. Its properties have been changed. General Status Enhancer implant has been consumed and replaced with Diluted Predecessor Blood augmentation. Weak Soulsteel Bond has been created.
+20 Strength +30 Endurance +Unknown effects
The Predecessor let go of Alan�s hands, carefully drawing out the knives which painfully materialized out of Alan�s body. It carefully placed them on the ground then stood up straight, slowly making its way over to the power generator holding the black crystal. Alan staggered backwards as the pain began to clear from his head, glancing down at a knife, trying to examine its stats. He almost fell over as he read the message he saw.
Soulsteel Knife (Rank S):
A knife of soulsteel. Able to cut through virtually any material, this weapon should be handled with the utmost care. The item has been forcefully bound to the traveler Alan through blood. Only a powerful Predecessor is able to remove the bond.
Damage: Bypasses nearly all defenses. Whatever is cut is destroyed. Additional abilities.
Approx. Infinite Durability. Predecessor Blood, Strong Soulsteel Bond, Knife Fighting (Master), Enhanced Control (Advanced), Enhanced Movements (Advanced), Knife Mastery (Advanced) required.
Requires Predecessor blood essence to manifest, current supply: 100/100 units, 5 units consumed/min active. 1 unit/1.4 years regen.
Pure Predecessor Blood, Absolute Soulsteel Bond, Enhanced Control (Master), Enhanced Movements (Master), Knife Mastery (Master) recommended.
Alan looked down at the knives, feeling a strange connection to them. It was almost like the connection he felt with Eve or other AI, but not quite, as the knives lacked consciousness. It was odd, like the feeling he felt when Eve was off doing something without him. He bent down and picked up the knives. With a push of will he forced this sense into his body, and the knives liquefied, entering and sealing the wounds. A familiar dull burn shot through Alan�s body.
Soulsteel Knife Sheathe Ability Unlocked:
Activate to absorb into your body. 100 HP drained when sheathing or unsheathing knifes.
�Come here,� the Predecessor said from across the room, next to the power storage device.
Alan ran over. �Thank you for the gift, I will use them wisely.�
�I would hope so� but again I caution you to be wary. If any Predecessor learns you hold a sliver of soulsteel they will kill you for it instantly. You may gain the ability to shape the metal to your will, but you are far from awakening soulsteel's latent abilities.�
�Still, thank you, um, what is your name?� Alan asked.
The Predecessor stared at Alan with a raw intensity that almost made him take half a step back, but it seemed to favor boldness so he stood his ground, calmly looking back. His body felt so tired it was difficult to feel afraid.
�You may refer to me as the Lord of the Abyss," the Predecessor said.
Scoping out the Competition Updated:
5/10 Major players met
Bonus: 1/10 Objectives found
�"The name might get you out of a dilemma, or it may start one. It has certainly caused me a great deal of pain. Now, before we proceed, I hope to educate you. Tell an old story, if you are willing to listen.�
�Um, sure.�
�Very well. Let us begin with why I am here. Surely, you must wonder what crimes I have committed to warrant eons of imprisonment. Well, my crime was simple. I lost a war.� Alan widened his eyes.
�Yes, this is a prisoner-of-war camp, or at least it was before the power started failing. Now, it is little more than a desolate ruin. But enough of this dreary place. I am sure you are more interested in the war that was fought.
�Well, the war was in fact very simple. It was us, the Predecessors, against the ones who were led astray. They were lured away by a greed greater than any other. It was not treasure, nor power that directed their path, but a simple idea: Aleph. Going infinite. The prospect that one could achieve the infinities and immortality drove them insane.
"They did not choose life or death, but some in-between, something more and less. They chose to pursue the impossible. And we fought, and in their otherness we were unable to understand them. And so we lost. The rest is history.� The Predecessor, the Lord of the Abyss, gave Alan a half-smile, filled with a profound sadness despite its inhuman, scarred grey face. Personally, Alan didn�t think the idea of immortality was so bad.
�I can see that you, too, are enticed by this possibility. By this game. You are undoubtedly here with a singular focus, to grow stronger, to prevail over others. And, like all living beings, you will struggle to survive and rejoice in the struggle. And the Game will provide this. It will provide you with purpose, with life, with power and wealth and anything else you might desire.
�What it will not grant you, is reality. It is a game, just a game,� the Predecessor murmured, half to himself. �Yes, a game. A simulation, a slice of reality so strangely warped that it simply cannot be real. This is not real. It is a game. Do you hear me? I am not lost. This is a game and you have not won. IT IS A GAME. DO YOU HEAR ME? I AM NOT LOST. I KNOW THE MASKS YOU WEAR. THIS IS A GAME AND YOU HAVE NOT WON!�
The Lord of the Abyss furiously roared aloud in a rage as if it had forgotten Alan was there. It raised the purple crystal Alan had given it then began squeezing the crystal until it shattered into thousands of glittering pieces, unleashing a brilliant purple wave of energy that knocked Alan down.
The unknown AI silently formed a connection to Alan.
Hurriedly, Alan activated hypercognition mode while ending the connection to the unknown AI. It tried to reconnect to his mind, but he firmly blocked it. Alan leapt up and envisioned one of the knives. It emerged into his hand with a slight cutting sensation. Alan gripped it firmly, quickly reading the message that popped up as he rapidly approached the Lord of the Abyss.
Warning! Due to not meeting multiple minimum requirements of your current weapon it will consume 5x the blood essence. Wield with extreme care, minimum requirements are for your own safety.
A familiar outline appeared showing Alan what his next move should be. It appeared in his mind�s eye rather than in reality, creating an image that somehow overlapped with his vision but wasn�t as crude as the shadow projections Eve normally showed. Instead, this image was somehow more real, as if it could be something Alan actually thought. Alan was slightly distracted by this addition, but Eve simply commanded him:
�
Alan's mouth slowly turned into a smile as he carefully brought the knife in an upwards slash to cut the Predecessor�s throat. It simply watched the knife come, eyes agleam. The knife began to pierce its throat right below the collar it wore, and with little resistance Alan cut all the way across. The Predecessor�s HP bar appeared, slowly draining at about 2% a second.
�Yes! Do you see me, brethren? Do you remember? I have not forgotten. I am here and coming for you! This simple game shall not stop me. Nothing will. I am coming, and I shall be your end!� A brilliant white arc of lightning emerged from its collar, coursing through the Predecessor�s body.
�Ha, pain shall not stop me.� The Predecessor spat out a mouthful of blood as it sank to the floor. It stared at Alan. �Go, take it!� It began laughing madly as spittle and blood was coughed up even as it started to spasm vigorously. The collar continued to send out brilliant white sheets of lightning. Using the settings in his cybernetic eye, Eve managed to dim the light, protecting Alan from blindness.
The other AI, which Eve confirmed was the main prison warden AI with 97% certainty, tried to reconnect to Alan once more. He denied the connection, running forwards to the cylindrical power generator before him. He grabbed the black crystal in an attempt to pry it out. It wouldn�t budge.
With extreme precision, he grasped the soulsteel knife and under Eve�s careful direction began to cut the crystal out. Luckily, no surges of energy tore out. Instead, the knife seemed to negate them, absorbing the energy like it did all sources of light. Finally, Alan managed to free the baseball sized black crystal.
The room plunged into darkness. Alan put the crystal behind his right leg in one of his power armor�s compartments. Electricity continued coursing through the Predecessor. Alan glanced at it, then looked away. The sight of its bloody laughter was too much. A message popped up:
Missing Systems Updated:
Approx. 2250 years until total system shut down
Alan began to consider the implications of this message, when Eve interrupted his thoughts.
Alan quickly cut one out. He put it in the compartment behind his left leg. Unfortunately, he didn�t have room for any of the others. He reminded himself to ask Phantom for an advanced bag or something as soon as he got back. Alan deactivated hypercognition and re-sheathed the knife. He activated the Advanced Stealth Mode on his armor.
Alan did so, calmly watching as the Predecessor�s life fell below 10%. One second ticked by, then the next. Its HP drain began to slow, from 1% a second to .5%. Alan watched. Then, finally, the HP bar reached zero. A couple of messages popped up before Alan, accompanied by a sudden crash.
Alan immediately did so, quickly reading over the messages.
Rewards for slaying the Lord of the Abyss severely diminished as it made no attempt to fight back.
x23 Level up!
Gained over 20 levels with one kill! +20 bonus ability points
Due to Predecessor�s unique Boss status and abilities its soulsteel has remained bound.
Your actions have been deemed hostile by the Warden! You are now considered hostile by the Abyss Labyrinth.
Alan looked up to see the two level 1500 Ancient Sentinels crash through the doorway, arms held aloft. Their hands glowed green, and had been transformed into hand cannons of some sort. While Eve attempted to scan the two guards Alan quickly tried to connect to the Chief Warden AI but his connection was blocked.
With a sigh, Alan found a single vial of Predecessor DNA on the Lord of the Abyss�s body. He then unsheathed both soulsteel knives. His health was already dangerously low due to the cost, and Alan could feel that his body was low on blood. His energy shields were also already halfway drained.
Eve quickly transferred her guidance to Alan, and he saw himself trying to deeply penetrate the left-hand golem�s eye while simultaneously cutting through one of its four arms, each of which held a large blade. Alan felt a bit ludicrous charging at the behemoth of metal only holding two tiny knives, but he followed Eve�s orders perfectly.
The knife in Alan�s left hand easily penetrated the golem�s eye until his hand was stopped while his other knife sliced through the armor covering its right hand, revealing wires and circuitry. Alan quickly reversed his grip, cutting through as many of the wires in the hand as possible while twisting the knife embedded in the golem�s eye viciously. Its HP bar appeared, dropping 40%.
Alan, however, was now revealed. Eve showed three cleavers descending at him in rapid succession, moving at a speed that almost rivaled the first Predecessor Alan had met. All Alan could do was barely adjust his grip with a slight, carefully calculated step, and watch the results. With miraculous precision two of the blades were perfectly blocked by the two soulsteel knives Alan held. As soon as each blade met the soulsteel knife it was cut in two where the blades met, the rest of the golem�s blade swishing through the air inches from Alan�s body. The third slash passed in front of Alan' face, embedding itself in the ground. Taking the opportunity, Alan sliced at the mechanical fingers that grasped the blade, watching as the blade was dropped to the ground.
Almost immediately, he felt something was off, his movements not mirroring the preciseness with which Eve showed them being executed. He simply did not have the experience or skill required for such a maneuver. Still, Eve attempted to correct it, calculating and displaying a new set of blocks for Alan to make. He barely managed to fend off the first two cleavers that cut at him, but he could do nothing but watch as the golem�s glowing eye let out a gigantic blue beam of light. Alan tried to turn himself in midair, even managing to change his course slightly by pushing off of the two other arms that tried to cut him. He almost evaded the entirety of the blue ray, but it still struck a glancing blow, knocking Alan to the ground, eliminating the rest of his shield energy. Any additional hits would kill him.
Alan turned to see the damaged golem had turned 180 degrees, preparing its own eye-blast. Its three remaining arms had dropped the blades. Their fingers were now pointed drill bits, like the ends of a sharpened pencil. Alan didn�t think they would break so easily. The undamaged golem was also preparing another attack, its eye recharging while it stepped forward as its arms began descending.
An image formed in Alan�s eyes of him throwing the two knives, each piercing the direct center of the two golems. A series of calculations, diagrams and projections flashed through his mind, leaving him with the precise angle, force and technique to throw the knives. Alan followed the outline, concentrating, getting up to a kneeling position before attempting the throw. He took the two knives, and released.
As the knives left his hands Alan felt satisfaction, a rightness. Eve calculated they were both directly on-target. The knife headed at the damaged golem flew fluidly through the air, spinning, dead set for its central eye. The golem attempted to defend itself with its arms, but to no avail. Its eye was pierced, the knife�s spinning handle stopped by the golem�s armor. Gravity brought the knife downwards, and it pierced all the way through the golem�s body before slowly falling onto the floor. The golem was destroyed.
The second golem made no attempt to dodge the spinning knife headed its way. The moment before the knife pierced its eye, it instead shifted, blinking like Sidestep, appearing at Alan�s side. Eve instantaneously ran new calculations, displaying to Alan that he had to get away, back to the first knife. He leapt up, sprinting towards the thrown knife lying on the ground, narrowly dodging the four blades that descended, trying to cut him in two. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw the second knife he had thrown glide through the air, unobstructed. It tumbled and embedded itself into the ground.
The golem reached one of its arms and grabbed the hilt, then threw the knife out the door. It fell into the abyss. Lost.
Alan briefly stopped to gape at the sight of his lost weapon, only to almost be sliced open by a descending blade; Eve immediately directed him onto a new safe path through the attacks. Fortunately, it seemed as though the golem had to recharge its energy after using the blink ability. If it had been able to use it as often as Sidestep, Alan would have been killed long ago.
Alan gritted his teeth, all his attention on the remaining knife. Seconds later, he managed to grab it as he ran past. He sliced at a metallic arm passing beside him, attempting to grab the blade. He jammed the knife inwards then began running back at the golem, severing the golem's wire tendons. The arm shuddered, then dropped the blade it was holding.
Two blades swiped at Alan from opposite sides. A third blade swiped downwards from above, like a guillotine. Alan dived to his left, dodging two of the blades. He used his knife to cut through the third. As Alan charged at the golem it tried an additional series of triangular attacks but each time Alan was able to successfully avoid taking any damage, inflicting minor wounds with his counterattacks instead.
Alan finally made his way to the golem�s body as its eye began to charge a blast. He stabbed forwards, driving in the blade and lightly pushing it through at Eve�s command, letting go of the knife. With his momentum Alan sprinted around the golem, catching the knife mid-air as it fell out the other side, having pierced the golem all the way through. For good measure, Alan immediately reversed his grip on the knife and stabbed the eye at the opposite end, twisting viciously trying to inflict as much damage as possible. A split-second later, the golem shut down.
x5 Bonus XP for slaying an enemy over 1000 levels higher than you!
x112 Level up!
Gained over 100 levels in one battle! +100 ability points
As his adrenaline began to wear off Alan looted the two golems before collapsing onto the floor, exhausted. They each dropped small crystalline cubes of dark green energy and a scientific design. One design looked to be a blueprint of the golem�s eye-weapon; Alan was hopeful that Phantom would be able to incorporate it into his own bionic eye. The other seemed to be part of a larger diagram that when fully assembled would be able to give metal golems technological psionic ability, or at least that was Eve�s hypothesis. Both would sell well, solving Alan's debt.
Chapter 20
After resting for an hour, Alan headed out, his armor�s basic invisibility active. Eve figured that they couldn�t rest for too long as there would be patrols sent out to find them. She set a pace of a quick jog, and guided Alan on a pathway to the nearest hub area. Once there, they could hopefully hash out some sort of deal with the warden AI; otherwise they would need to try to find a friendly group of players to survive, which was unlikely to say the least.
The run was uneventful, though tiring. Eve alerted Alan to any traps or obstacles, as their safe return to the Black Rose guild headquarters was paramount. Down a third secret path, past a few trivial puzzles, Alan found himself before another cubic structure, slightly larger than the previous two. He quickly narrowed his focus onto the machine presence and sent out a message.
Shortly thereafter, Alan finally felt the presence he associated with the Warden attempt a connection to him, which he accepted immediately.
The Warden seemed to consider Alan�s response carefully, weighing its options.
Alan simply accepted the Warden�s comment, not wanting to cause any trouble, ignoring Eve who seemed to readily agree with its sentiment.
Eve immediately chimed in.
Two messages popped up before Alan:
Missing Systems Updated:
You have been reinstated as friendly with the Abyss Labyrinth. The Warden has given you five years to study the energy crystal before returning it. You may anger an unknown faction for failing to complete this quest in the Warden�s favor. Soulsteel Knife added to quest rewards.
The Last War:
Discover more information about the final war that took place in real life, and the mysterious Lords of Life.
Rewards: ???
Penalty: ???
Alan turned to the only open corridor, and found the familiar slide. This time it slowly began to pull him upwards. Exhausted after the exploration, Alan fell asleep, Eve ensuring him she would wake him if action was needed.
***
A few hours later, the slide finally reached the hub Alan had come from. He quickly activated his basic invisibility and proceeded back to the lift up to Black Rose territory, avoiding the slimes that had begun to respawn. To his relief, he found a bored looking Black Rose pilot waiting at the bottom of the lift, still waiting as Alan hadn�t respawned.
Alan took the lift upwards to emerge into what appeared to be a Black Rose hangar bay. A series of messages were displayed before him, letting him know he successfully completed the Escape! and Mad Gamble quests, and was now an official member of the Black Rose guild, open to promotions. He received 5000 guild points, and 4 levels. Alan was told he was back in a safe-zone, and he let out a slight sigh of relief as he received a notification that a player had sent him a message. To his surprise, Alan saw that it had been sent from Icewolf.
Icewolf: Hey Alan! I know I said not to contact me until you had the money, but circumstances are changing faster than I anticipated. There are devices that allow for secure, face to face conversation. I�m sure your new guild has one. Let me know a time that you can talk.
Alan�s quest updated:
Find Icewolf Updated:
New Option: Message him privately to set up a secure line to talk to him.
Reward: Additional information, ???
Time Limit: ???
Alan quickly sent a reply to Icewolf that he was available to talk as soon as possible.
A few minutes later during the short flight back to the Black Rose guild headquarters he got a reply that Icewolf would be available in a hour or so, at about 2200 Khersath Standard Time.
The first thing Alan did once he was back at the Black Rose base was head to the nearest Administrator and pay five diamond marks to transport the soulsteel knife, black power crystal and Predecessor blood to their secure vault. Eve estimated that each item had a potential market value of billions of credits, and Alan wanted to make sure they were safe. It wasn�t that he didn�t trust the Black Rose guild�s security, it was just that it seemed the sensible thing to do. For one, the Vault had never been stolen from, while guild base raids were not unheard of, even if they were technically illegal on Khersath. Additionally, there was a policy in place which stated the Administrators would pay back a lost item�s market cost in marks, essentially twice what anything was worth.
Alan almost wished that someone stole the items out of the Vault, as it would eliminate all his money problems. He felt too scared to try to sell any one of the items, for various reasons, and Eve told him to hold onto them. Thus, into the Vault they went.
The next thing Alan did was proceed to the capsule station, saving his progress and spending the 29 points he had from his gifted ability on agility, keeping the other 416 ability points unspent. Perhaps it would prove prudent to spend the points on the Rogue abilities that decreased the cost of all further ability point purchases. Eve still cautioned against it, citing the fact that he was still in what might be considered the early stages of the game, and his levels would reach an equilibrium as deaths began to cause the loss of a hundred levels or more.
Finally, after all this was sorted out, Alan messaged Phantom, asking him about a communication device like the one Icewolf had mentioned. Alan quickly received a reply from Phantom, notifying Alan to meet him in his workshop. A short elevator ride later, Alan was face to face with the Knight.
Phantom looked up from the project he was working on, a redesign of some eye technology, smiling at Alan. �Welcome back. I see that your dungeon diving was very rewarding. You�re over a 100 levels higher than when I saw you last! Please notify me before any such operations in the future. I could be quite helpful in any of your endeavors, you know, and we were beginning to worry about you. I was preparing to spearhead a search and rescue team myself.�
�Um, right, sorry about that, it�s just that the opportunity presented itself,� Alan said looking at the floor, somewhat abashedly.
�Of course, of course!� Phantom said reassuringly. �I commend initiative, and in the future you will need to make decisions without my approval. I just think I should be consulted as your superior, as there are various artifacts and information located within the Abyss Labyrinth that the Black Rose guild is particularly interested in. You could have perhaps gained even more from your adventure.�
�Oh?� Alan asked, grinning. �Well, I actually brought back a few items that I acquired in my progression through the dungeon, and was wondering if you could help me evaluate their worth. If the guild is interested in buying them, that would be great.� He took out the clear, empty energy crystal, the dark green cube energy crystals and the two diagrams.
Phantom�s eyes lit up as soon as he saw the loot, picking up and examining each item as Alan took them out.
�Wow. These two dark green crystals are actually a key resource in turning ordinary psionic ability into technologic psionic ability, and I can say with certainty that the guild will buy them from you for 250k guild points each. That will pay for half your tuition to the Academy and solve your debt!� Phantom next picked up the two diagrams, looking at them closely.
�Now, these two diagrams aren�t as important to the guild, but I can say that I am personally interested them. As you have probably guessed, I may be able to use this eye diagram to weaponize our bionic-eyes, while the other could prove useful in other areas of research. Normally, I would say each would only go for about a few million credits, or 200-500k guild points, and only if you found the correct buyer.� Phantom looked up from the diagrams to study Alan, looking at him closely.
�Tell me, Alan, how did you manage to find this loot, and get past that impasse in the Abyss Labyrinth?�
�Well, um, I connected to the AI that was present within the impasse, which was actually a hub of sorts for the Abyss Labyrinth. The AI was one of many located throughout the facility, I believe. It was one of them that gave me that quest to restore power to the facility,� Alan explained. He and Eve had worked out a version of story that Alan could tell without mentioning the Predecessor, or the items he received from it.
As they were working out the details, Eve reminded Alan that the Black Rose guild knew his character information and quests when he first arrived, thus he should appear to not leave anything out.
�I then, um, found and battled the boss," Alain said. "Or, well, bosses as there were two golems. They dropped this loot. I then made my way back to the lift, and, well, here I am.� Alan smiled halfheartedly.
�Yes. And here you are. You know, that quest has actually stirred up quite a bit of controversy within the upper echelons of the guild lately. Quite a few are interested in pursuing it, as it seems to be a gamma rated quest, right beneath our feet. Did your exploration perhaps reveal further details about the quest?� Phantom asked.
�Um, sure, yeah,� Alan said, thinking fast. �Actually that�s part of what this other crystal is for. I found a number of them in the boss room, but only grabbed this one as I didn�t have space for any more. I�m supposed to figure out a way to recharge it and bring it back to the room, to help restore the systems. I also came across a map of sorts of the Abyss Labyrinth, or at least a large section of it.�
Phantom picked up the empty energy crystal, carefully placing it in a small containing device that zapped the crystal with small bolts of lightning.
�Interesting� This crystal seems to be capable of holding about as much energy as a modern starship, thus it will likely require millions of credits to fully recharge it. The AI that gave you this task didn�t happen to mention what, exactly, the reward would be, did they? Otherwise I�m not sure whether the guild will help you in this task. Before we proceed further, let me tell you why I�m bringing all this up.� Phantom pulled out a chair for Alan, sitting down on a table across from it. Alan carefully sat down, trying to avoid stepping on any of the metal pieces scattered on the floor.
�Like any other enterprising young recruit you�re probably wondering how you can advance to Knight rank. Normally, you complete a series of three tasks, your training. Not only does the rank of Knight come with prestige and a larger salary, but you also begin to earn a percentage of the net income of the guild itself. A fraction of a fraction of a percent, of course, but if the guild pulls off a large mission, that can mean a windfall of millions of credits. That's one of the reasons the guild has such a unique and fluid leadership, we all want the guild to do well, as we are all owners, of a sort.
�There are many annoying responsibilities associated with the rank, but you�re still quite a ways from reaching that point. Based upon the information you�ve given me, if you are willing to transfer to me the map of the Abyss Labyrinth you�ve acquired, in addition to the diagrams, I think we can count this as a completion of your first task. It may be a bit strange as I never even assigned this task to you, but I�m confident that this is information the guild is interested in. I think I can get you 500k guild points, plus a 100k bonus for the completion of the task. That will not only completely pay for your tuition to the Academy, but also give you 100k guild points left over to pay off your debt. Also, I�ll make sure the guild throws in a bag for you, what do you say?� Phantom looked at Alan, grinning.
Alan wished he had Eve, to determine whether or not this deal was as good as it sounded. Still, when they had discussed earlier what the loot was worth in total, Eve had estimated 500k guild points, max. Thus, Alan readily agreed to the deal, although it took him a few minutes to locate the map of the Abyss labyrinth within Eve�s data. In the meantime, Phantom took Alan's armor and put it into the Foundry, pushing a few buttons.
Phantom soon extracted the armor in pristine condition. He handed it back to Alan, along with a small metal ball that had popped out of the machine as well. This turned out to be a backpack that could expand and contract. If the weight was too large, it could even develop wheels. In the end though, it would still be limited by how much Alan could physically carry.
A few minutes later, Alan�s �first task� was completed. Alan immediately exchanged the hundred thousand guild points for a million credits, ready to surprise Icewolf by paying off the entirety of his debt. Phantom directed Alan to his new quarters, located only a few floors away from Phantom�s laboratory. According to Phantom, the desk that it came with had a secure call function that would serve Alan�s purpose of communicating, encrypting his call. If Icewolf�s end wasn�t secure though, there was nothing to be done.
Wishing Phantom a nice day, Alan stepped back into the elevator, taking it to his quarters. The elevator rose a few floors until it emerged from the field that prevented AIs from working, opening up into Alan�s new quarters. He had expected a small dormitory at best, perhaps a cramped space similar to his bunk in the Haxlard ship. Instead, the door opened to reveal a luxurious suite, complete with bathroom, which had a sauna and bath, a kitchen with a food dispenser, meaning Alan never had to visit the cafeteria again, a small personal gym, basically a smaller version of the treadmill room Alan had trained in earlier, a king-sized bed with giant screen, and what was labeled as a communications/media room.
As it was about time to begin his meeting with Icewolf, Alan entered the communications room. With Eve�s help, Alan was able to quickly start and set up the secure communications protocols on the device, although the settings and controls were fairly self-intuitive. Alan was sure he could have set up the call himself. Probably.
He began the call to Icewolf, who answered almost immediately. A screen appeared before Alan, displaying Icewolf, as lean as ever. With large bags under his eyes, Icewolf appeared more stressed than Alan had ever seen before. He wore a battered dark suit of light power armor that looked almost identical to the basic Scout Power Armor Alan first received. Behind him there was a dimly lit metal space, like a solitary confinement cell. Alan noted that the communication protocols Eve had set up simply showed Alan with a completely black background.
�Adampwnage! Or, I guess Alan now. Great to see you in the Game. Congratulations on joining the Black Rose guild! You and Kitana are only like the thousandth or so human to join a major faction,� Icewolf said to Alan, smiling widely.
�Um, thanks, it�s good to see you too," Alan said. "It really wasn�t much, Eve did a lot of the work.�
�Nonsense! Modesty doesn�t fit one of Earth�s brightest prospects. Trust me when I say I expect you�re going to make waves. I hear you�re going to the Academy and everything! Well, anyways, I guess I�ll cut straight to the chase, I�m sure you�re wondering what your class quest will be,� Icewolf said.
�Class quest? Oh, right, you�re my Rogue mentor. So you get to choose my class quest or whatever? Maybe something easy?� Alan said.
�Ha! You wish. Unfortunately it seems almost all the quests I can offer you are difficult, but with great risks come great rewards, right?��Icewolf scrolled down, looking at a screen before him��I decided on a specific task a while ago, one which I hope you�ll be up to. I hate to be the bringer of bad news, but things on Earth are not as stable as they appear. Have you been following the local news lately, Alan?� Icewolf asked, looking up from the screen.
�Um, not quite�� Alan said sheepishly. He silently requested that Eve send him the most recent headlines on Earth. A number of articles appeared before him. Alan read them quickly, mouth agape. Each listed a series of escalating terrorist attacks and bombings around the world, all perpetrated by the Legion of Man. Within the Game, of course.
�Wow, these Legion of Man are causing serious destruction,� Alan said, looking up to see Icewolf staring at him intently.
�Yes they are,� Icewolf said slowly. �However, their attacks may be warranted.�
�What?� Alan said.
�Look, remain calm, what I�m about to tell you is something the United World Government is trying to keep under wraps as best they can. They can try to spin it any way want, but it's clear. They�ve fucked up,� Icewolf said with dead certainty, his eyes locked onto Alan�s. A weighty gravitas filled his words.
�When the Haxlards first came to Earth, with the Enforcers and Administrators, they offered what seemed to be lucrative deals, access to technology, infrastructure, and weapons that would take us years to create. So, of course, the United World Government readily signed contracts, under the assumption that the services and technology they bought could be paid for with resources found on Earth and within the solar system. What they have been trying to hide is that they do not have the full authority to the resources they thought they had. It gets a bit complicated, so please ask me if anything doesn�t make sense.
�Due to the nature of the Game, and the fact that a faction in control of a certain sector of space may not have that sector�s best interests at heart, any faction is limited in the amount of real world resources they are allowed to mine, a yearly quota that is strictly monitored by the Enforcer fleet. Of course, the Administrators wouldn�t allow a completely one-sided contract to be signed, but as a neutral party they couldn�t point out the United World Government�s flawed assumptions. They are unable to use Earth�s resources to the degree they wish to, and have made a number of other flawed judgments.
�A large part of any faction's income is taxes, and they hoped to tax all of humanity as more people joined the Game. What they failed to take into account is the fact that they are only able to tax those who join the United World Government within the Game. For instance, just because you and I technically live on Earth, in San Francisco, does not mean that we are required to pay the United World Government anything. They have tried to draft laws that circumvent this in the real world, but every time they have been struck down by the Administrators. People are individual entities within the Game with their own rights, their real life situation does not matter.
�Another large issue is that the cream of the crop, the elite of the elite, are all joining other factions. Like you, for instance! Any reasonably intelligent person can clearly see the advantages to joining a well established faction like the Black Rose guild as opposed to a weak, unstable government still in its infancy. The politicians are still living in the past, and have yet to adopt new ways of thinking. They have allied themselves with the Haxlards, without realizing that as soon as they are unable to pay off the interest on the loans and debts, a bankruptcy will be declared, and as the debt holders, the Haxlards will be able to slowly buy up Earth!�
�Wait, you mean in a couple of years if we can�t pay off this debt Earth will no longer be in our hands? How much money are we talking here?� Alan asked, thinking about the priceless artifacts he had recently acquired.
�It�s on the scale of tens of trillions of credits. Trust me when I say there is little you, as an individual, can do. Sure, some galactic bank or even your guild could probably bail them out, but rules governing paying back debts in the Game, as you are likely aware of, can be quite complicated. While factions, governments and guilds, can do it, while individuals cannot, I doubt anyone would see it as a worthwhile investment, and there are simply too many hoops to jump through!
"One of the main reasons that the Haxlards are investing so much into Earth infrastructure is they aim to take over said infrastructure. They will claim it through economic warfare though, something that the early Earth government had little to no experience with, especially within the galactic economy and rule set.
�To answer your other question about a timeline, the most optimistic models actually anticipate that the United World Government can last 50 years or so before declaring bankruptcy, given its capital, but even then the model displays that a default is inevitable. Others say they may run out of money as soon as five years from now! I�ll send you the data, I�m sure your AI will come to the same conclusions.�
Icewolf tapped a few buttons in front of him, and a stream of data began to flow to Alan. He sent it to Eve to analyze.
�Wait," Alan said. "If what you�re saying is true, why isn�t this a bigger deal? Surely if this information was broadcast widely people would realize something would need to be done, right?�
�Well, there are a number of reasons. There have been attempts to spread this information on the internet, and elsewhere, but remember that information about the Game is severely censored by the Administrators! Over 95% of humanity is still unaware of the Game�s true importance! The vast majority of players who are in-game work for major corporations or the United World Government as indebted laborers, thus the information they receive is even more heavily censored, and they have a vested interest in keeping the United World Government alive as long as possible.
"New technology makes it easier for big brother type of control too. The few that are told in-person generally have one of two reactions: they are either disbelieving or simply accept it as government working as usual! After all, many of our governments have operated on extreme budget deficits for years. They do not realize that this deficit is tied to contracts made through the Administrators. Contracts that are severely enforced in the Game. Thus far, the Haxlards have been relatively lenient, but there is overwhelming evidence they are simply biding their time.
�And, that brings us to why I contacted you, why I wanted you on Mars. I am an operative of the Legion of Man and wanted to recruit you. I was the one who arranged for the death threat to be sent to you, but only to have you stay in place. Rest assured that no such action will ever be taken, even if you decide to side with the United World Government. The message simply killed a few birds with one stone, if you will, as it cemented in people�s minds that you are in fact an enemy of the Legion of Man. At the same time it placated those within the Legion that wanted to take actual action against you, as, to be honest, you did severely damage some fairly important operations. Now��
�Wait, so that was you in-game in San Francisco?� Alan asked. Despite the alarming revelation, Alan remained rather calm. The fact that the death threat wasn�t real relieved him.
�Yes that was me, and your escapade actually motivated me to get a set of the armor you were wearing. It works quite nicely, though I see yours has� a number of improvements.� Alan detected a hint of jealousy in Icewolf�s tone.
�Anyways, moving on to the whole Legion of Man, our goals, why I joined and why you should join as well. The plan is quite simple, really. It�s to overthrow the United World Government and cement ourselves in power before the immunity period is up, developing allies and not deceptive enemies. It�s quite beautiful, you see, as Haxlards will not be able to directly aid the United World Government as long as the immunity period lasts, and if we successfully overthrow the government without causing too much damage, we will be able to take over all the defenses the Haxlards paid for, debt free! A faction victorious in war does not inherit the conquered faction�s debts, just its territory. So, you see, this is the one true path to freedom!� Icewolf gestured about wildly, punctuating each remark, animatedly showing that he believed this was the correct path.
�Uh, okay,� Alain said slowly, unsure of how to react to such unbridled enthusiasm. He thought that Icewolf was oversimplifying things. �Have you perhaps considered this is what the Haxlards want? After all, war is expensive, and it is undoubtedly wearing down the United World Government�s resources even faster.�
Icewolf shrugged. �A risk we have to take. It does not matter, for if we fail, then the Haxlards will simply take over Earth, sooner rather than later. Don�t you see? This is the only path, the only true way for freedom, for an Earth under human control.�
Alan began a response, then closed his mouth, as Eve was communicating with him. �Wait, let me think this through for a second, and discuss it with my AI,� he said.
�Of course, take as long as you need, this is heavy stuff,� Icewolf responded, bringing up a few screens to work on.
Alan looked up at Icewolf, �Okay, my AI came to the same conclusion, that the United World Government is pretty much doomed. Something she should have told me beforehand, but, anyway, I still don�t really know anything about this Legion of Man, its leaders, or anything at all other than it has a base on Mars. From what I see, all the Legion has done is caused wanton destruction, which frankly doesn�t seem very helpful.�
�Well, of course the media you see portrays it that way," Icewolf quickly rebutted, "it is all firmly controlled by the United World Government. Anyways, the Legion of Man plans to be, like the United World Government, a democracy. But only those within the faction and in the Game are allowed to vote in its elections. Although, the military is for the most part merit based. The current commander-in-chief was voted in, with a bi-monthly term. I can�t give you names as long as you aren�t in the faction.� Icewolf seemed disappointed that Alan wasn�t jumping out of his seat, ready to enlist.
Alan quickly mulled over his thoughts, then replied, �Hmm, all right, that seems reasonable. Honestly, I�m not sure if I even can join the Legion of Man, given my situation in my guild.�
�My superior has expressed interest in ensuring the earth is neutral or allied to the Mercenary Bloc in any future conflicts that should arise. It probably won�t be if it�s under Haxlard control. Thus, I can probably easily arrange for you to have a meeting with him. Additionally, I promise to try to search for a solution which will benefit humanity as a whole, and ensure that Earth does not fall under Haxlard control. Oh, and, um speaking of my debts, I can pay you back now.�
Icewolf looked at Alan, surprised, then nodded tiredly. �Oh, all right, send the credits to me and I�ll cancel out your debt. I guess your answer is about as good as I�ll get. Well then, that almost makes me feel bad for giving you this quest� though I suppose it�s too late to change it now. We can work out the meeting details with your superior at a later time. The Mercenary Bloc seems like a promising lead I don�t think we�ve followed through with yet. I�m not really qualified to establish any sort of deal with anyone, though. Anyway, the quest. Well, you�re now aware of this all so� here you go. Good luck.� Icewolf ended the call as messages sprang up before Alan.
The War for Earth Discovered!
You have discovered the ongoing secret war for Earth, and have chosen to side with the allies of Earth, those who wish to see humanity remain in control of their home planet, not under the control of the Haxlards or any other alien force. As the war is currently a secret war within humanity special rules apply:
1000 War Contribution Points are required to recruit any other human* into the war.
*Only humans from Earth may join the war, i.e. homo sapiens born on the planet Earth.
Should you kill any agent that you are aware of being part of the opposing side in the war for Earth they will be unable to further engage in war-related activities and all their war-related quests will fail. Similarly, should you fall to an enemy agent you will be effectively �dead� in the war and will be unable to continue war-related activities.
Winners of the war will be rewarded based upon contribution determined through War Contribution Points. War Contribution Points are awarded based upon favorable actions, such as killing enemy combatants, conquering enemy Control Points and completing war-related tasks.
Current Win Condition: Conquer 80% of Earth Control Points, including the main Earth Control Point and every regional Control Point, e.g. North America Control Point, East Asia Control Point and South Africa Control Point
Current Loss Condition: Elimination of all allied forces.
Current allies: Approx. 100,000
Current enemies: ???
A new war screen was generated by Eve, which like his status or guild window, displayed various information about the war. Alan would need to get Eve to explain what a war within the Game entailed, though it seemed straightforward thus far. Find and eliminate the enemy before they find you, search and destroy. He continued reading the other quests he received.
Gather Allies (War for Earth Quest):
Gather allies to help defend Earth from outside control!
Option: Discover and recruit new allies at the Academy. Beware enemy operatives.
Option: Try to set up and perhaps facilitate a meeting between the Legion of Man and the Mercenary Bloc.
Reward: Increased military and economic might for the allies of Earth
Failure: Decreased military and economic might for the allies of Earth
Possible Impact Level: Gamma
A Free Earth (Class Quest):
Do your best to ensure that Earth remains free from alien control.
Current War Contribution Points: 0
Unique reward and failure: Variable based upon how the War for Earth progresses. Completion when Earth is fully established under stable human control or upon death in the War for Earth event.
Possible Impact Level: Gamma
Alan sat back, attempting to process all the new data before him. One thing was sure: things had become much more complicated. Alan had accomplished his initial goal of paying off his debts, and now had a new tangible goal of helping this war effort. Yet, Alan felt more lost than ever. This seemed like too much. He had been a simple college student less than a year ago, with simple goals and simple dreams. Now, he had somehow ended up in the center of a galactic conflict over the future of his home planet, inside a virtual reality that governed actual reality. There were too many options, too many things he should do and consider and learn and explore and try and�
Alan grinned, and got up.
A green path sprang up before Alan, and off he went, ready to continue the Game.
If you liked the book please leave a review! The latest updates on the series can be found following my twitter (though it may contain other ramblings as well). The second book in the series has been released, check out Earth�s Gambit!
If you enjoyed this book you may also enjoy The Land by Aleron Kong. Richter�s adventure is quite humorous at times and I like the world building in the series.
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If you find any mistakes or want to contact me, my email is ephemerality314@gmail.com.
Good luck and have fun with everything you do, thanks for reading!