NOVEL WEB 2. Falling Moon
Chapter 2 – Falling Moon
Mike
His brain had short circuited at the scene before him. For a moment he considered whether he was hallucinating from the pain due to his ankle. But this didn’t feel like any weird trip he had experienced during his strictly legal frat parties. Even so, he could not decide how this was even possible.
First, he took a stupid dare to sign up for this wretched trip to impress some chick at a bar. He didn’t even remember her name anymore since she never showed up at the meeting venue for the groups. Next, he was paired with a lump of fat to go on a hike. And now he was lying on the forest floor with a broken ankle because of some kid who barely reached his waist.
And all this before the bloody moon started breaking apart. He was having such a good time a few hours ago, that he wished he could turn back time right now. At least his other team member was not a total loss. She was a looker in the typical girl next door kind of way. And given how naïve she was, it was only a matter of time before she fell for him. They all did. At least till the day he dumped them for greener pastures.
Ding
“Huh?”, Mike said as he heard the familiar notification tone from a generic mobile phone. But the thing was, they didn’t have any electronics on them. That walrus-man of a trainer had confiscated everything that had anything bigger than a AA battery.
Weirder still, he was feeling no pain at all. He wanted to turn to look at his foot but realized he couldn’t. His body refused to listen to him for some reason. A see through screen appeared in his vision, displaying text summarizing what a hollow robotic voice was saying… in his head?
Extinction level event detected. Calculating species survival rate. Please standby.
Estimated survival rate is 2% of all species.
Results deemed unacceptable.
Initiating emergency integration procedure Alpha-7-2-4-Gamma.
The world suddenly winked out and Mike saw nothing but white. He was not even sure if he was seeing at all. His senses were shot. The robotic voice he just heard felt like it was coming from everywhere all at once. Or maybe from inside him, he was not sure anymore.
And now he was having an out of body experience of sorts. He saw his fully nude body floating in front of him. The strange text box stayed in his vision no matter which way he turned. Although turned would be an incorrect statement, since he didn’t really have a body. It was more like he moved his focus where he wanted. Before he could fully grasp his new reality, that weird voice from earlier continued, updating the text box.
Welcome to the multiverse Homosapien # 14875663145. Due to unfortunate circumstances, you are being prematurely inducted into the multiverse. Since your world is unlikely to survive the process, a one-time class-D genetic modification opportunity has been granted to every member of your species. You have 200 system points to spend towards this upgrade. Choose wisely. Please note, any future upgrades will require exceptional talent or resources to accomplish. Feel free to ask any questions
Available Modifications
Description
Cost
Enhanced physique
Raise physical stats. Can choose between strength, constitution, and dexterity.
5 SP per point increase
Enhanced mental acuity
Raise mental stats. Can choose between intelligence, willpower, and perception.
5 SP per point increase
“What the hell?” Mike thought, looking at the floating text. “How do I get out of here?”
Please distribute points to proceed further.
The robotic voice chimed in. This looked like the stuff some of the geeks he used to bully were into. Confused about everything, he decided to just go with it for now.
“Dump all points into physique,” he said with a sinister smile. If this weird dream was real, might as well just go superman.
Please specify the breakdown. STR will increase muscle mass, CON will increase bone hardness/skin toughness, and DEX will improve ligament flexibility.
Mike understood the principles of muscle mass and bone strength, having spent his entire teen life in the gym. He knew athletes took a more balanced approach to maintain flexibility. But he preferred the raw strength achieved by pumping iron and did not care much about flexibility.
“100 SP into STR, and 100 in CON. These guns are all I need to impress the ladies,” he replied with pride while trying, and failing, to flex his biceps.
Request confirmed. Please stand by while genetic mods are added. Injuries detected. For optimal chance of survival, all prior injuries will also be fixed in the process.
This was the first piece of good news he had heard all day. If this was the real deal, he needed to be in top shape to beat the shit out of that kid. The added strength sure would be sweet.
While he fantasized about the torture he would inflict on the squirt, he saw his body being modified in real time, growing bulkier, far exceeding the standards of professional body builders. He looked like a certain green-skinned superhero he was a big fan of as a child.
He also noticed that with a mental command he could make some minor changes to his appearance, like hair length and color. Nothing too outlandish, like adding an extra eye, but enough to smooth out his already dashing looks.
“How you like me now?” he thought as he worked on the detailing like a sugared-up toddler with access to more candy.
“Just you wait kiddo,” he thought darkly before looking at his final form. “You won’t even know what hit you”.
………………..
Erwin
Welcome to the multiverse Homosapien # 14875663781. Due to unfortunate circumstances, you are being prematurely inducted into the multiverse. Since your world is unlikely to survive the process, a one-time class-D genetic modification opportunity has been granted to every member of your species. You have 200 system points to spend towards this upgrade. Choose wisely. Please note, any future upgrades will require exceptional talent or resources to accomplish. Feel free to ask any questions
Available Modifications
Description
Cost
Enhanced physique
Raise physical stats. Can choose between strength, constitution, and dexterity.
5 SP per point increase
Enhanced mental acuity
Raise mental stats. Can choose between intelligence, willpower, and perception.
5 SP per point increase
Erwin read and re-read the notification text being shown in his vision. He assumed the body floating in the weird white space must be his avatar. He had played enough MMORPG’s and read sufficient LitRPG books to know what this was.
This was his character creation page. And if there was one thing he was good at, it was games (which his old man hated the most about his blubbering son). He was not going to waste this golden opportunity. This was his golden ticket out of the hell created by human society. No more judgmental stares about his physique, or his passion for games, or his timidness. When behind a controller, he was unstoppable.
“What do each of the stats do?” he asked as a list appeared in his vision.
Strength: Increases physical power and health pool (STRx10).
Constitution: Increases resistance to damage and health regen (CONx2).
Dexterity: Increases flexibility.
Intelligence: Increases memory and mana pool (INTx10).
Willpower: Increases mental resistance and mana regen (WILx2).
Perception: Increases reflexes, awareness and improves the six senses.
“What are my current stats?” he enquired to what he assumed was his personal AI assistant. A new window with a green background appeared.
Name: Eric Connor
Age: 18 years
Race: Human (F)
Level: 0
Class: None
Level: NA
Subclass: None
Level: NA
Stats
Strength: 6
Constitution: 6
Dexterity: 4
Intelligence: 8
Willpower: 3
Perception: 7
“What is the average value for a typical human?” he asked, not liking some of his stats. Although his INT and PER were decent. Good reflexes were a must for any kind of computer game, and he had really good memory, a fact he wished he could rub in Jenny’s face.
The average value in any stat for a 30-year-old human of planet earth is 10, although exceptional specimens may exceed these values. These stats increase with age as the body matures, or ... bzzz.
“I see. So having values above 10 would make me superhuman by Earth standards?” he asked as he floated around inspecting his body in detail.
Affirmative. Although your stats can be incr… bzzz… Having stats above 15 would make you an Olympic level athlete.
That buzzing sound snapped him out of inspecting his avatar. He had briefly stopped listening to what was being said, hoping to review it when he was done. But the window had closed for some reason and refused to let him pull up the last two text logs. All he recalled was that stats above 15 were Olympic level. And using 200 SP, he could raise 40 stats in total.
He always played the paladin role in his MMORPGs. So decided to split his points to bring his resource pool stats up to 15 each and dump the last points into PER for some extra reflexes. He theorized that DEX was something a melee needed more so he left that stat alone for now. He would start specializing once he got his classes. For now, he wanted balanced stats.
Name: Eric Connor
Age: 18 years
Race: Human
Level: 0
Class: None
Level: NA
Subclass: None
Level: NA
Stats
Strength: 15
Constitution: 15
Dexterity: 4
Intelligence: 15
Willpower: 15
Perception: 10
He saw his avatar filling out places he always wanted but could never dedicate the time to work on. He finally had a six pack, and all it took was the world ending. He scoffed at the realization, since his father had said something similar once. He decided to change his hair, eye color, and remove the pockmarks from his skin. Those had gotten him bullied a lot in the past.
Satisfied with his final loadout, he smiled, waiting for this next chapter of his new life. A life he was determined to make for himself so that he was not the bottom feeder in the societal hierarchy. He would be near the top, dominating others for a change.
………………..
Jenny
“Kyaaaa! Why is my body naked?” Jenny screamed loudly.
Or at least tried. She had no clue what was going on. One moment she was hiding behind the stud of a man in the middle of a forest, and the next she was staring at her floating body with a bunch of text in her vision.
It looked eerily familiar to the screenshots her lazy elder brother used to share with his gang of misfits during their D&D night outs. Growing up watching her brother waste away his amazing talent by trying to be a game developer had left a deep impression on her.
Sure, he was a successful game designer who had a nice house and happy family, but he could have been so much more. At least that’s what her mother always said.
Please distribute points to proceed further.
“Points, what points? And where the hell am I?” she projected her thoughts in the most annoying tone she could muster.
People always seem to just give her what she wanted when she used it. So, she deduced it should work on whichever psychopath was using this computer-generated voice.
“You better let me out before my mom hears about this,” she screamed.
As stated earlier, due to the extinction level event currently in progress on your planet it is imperative that you choose your genetic mods quickly. You may ask more questions if you need further information.
“Yeah, no. I am not doing squat till you get me out of here,” she was sure this was some kind of prank her brother was trying to pull, to get her to accept his gaming life.
If so, she was not going to play along with this charade. She was going to be a successful law-abiding citizen with international academic acclaim like her mom.
Non-disputable verbal confirmation required to forgo genetic mods. The mod package will be replaced with a standard starter kit in this scenario.
“I don’t want any mods you psycho. Happy now? Now let me out of here.”
Affirmative. Request to forgo mods accepted. You will be provided with a standard starter kit of supplies in exchange, to increase your odds of survival. Good luck Homosapien # 14875666527.
Nothing happened for the next 30 seconds. “Well? What are you waiting for? I thought I was free to leave.”
All sapiens will be released at the same time when the modification process has been completed. Please standby.
“You gotta be kidding me.”
………………..
Aenon
“Well, that’s new,” Aenon thought as he took in his surroundings. There was nothing of note except his body and the strange hologram in his vision. The hologram lingered till he mentally dismissed it but could pull it open again to review the long text. He needed more information before making any decision.
Ever since he ran away from his last foster home, he had not had much contact with technology. If this was some weird new tech he was not familiar with, he was not taking any chances.
“Who are you?” he asked neutrally.
There was no reason to incite violence if it could be avoided. He might be a prisoner right now but till he figured out their motives, he was just going to play nice.
I am Universal Observer # 4S875-113 assigned to monitor your planet around 3 billion years ago.
“Why is my body floating here?”
You are within your soul space. Your consciousness, or soul as some call it, is separate from the physical representation of your body, also called an avatar. Your body physique is determined by the ratio of your physical stats while your face can be customized for aesthetics. Your actual body is within an unbreachable cocoon of pure mana.
“What do you mean the ratio of my physical stats?”
STR, CON, and DEX empower your muscles, bones/skin, and ligaments, respectively. STR will raise your overall power, while a high CON build is recommended for those who intend to soak more damage. A low DEX will make your body very inflexible.
He liked this disembodied voice. Clear and concise answers are what he loved the most. “Where are you? And what is going on right now?”
My node was located on the satellite body you call the moon. Due to a catastrophic collision with another object of significant mass, my main body is compromised. By my calculations, the pieces of your moon will hit the surface in approximately 7 days, which would cause significant destruction to the current planet. In accordance with my sub routines, I have activated the emergency integration protocol and sent out a distress beacon to the main System.
“How long till the main system receives the signal, and will we get help from whoever is controlling it?”
Unfortunately, due to damage, my main communication array could not be activated. My distress beacon transmits messages via light pulses which should reach the nearest node in about 4.24 years. You can expect help to arrive in about 5 years. Also, no one controls the System.
In other words, they were on their own. It seems like the main objectives right now were to survive the falling moon debris, and then somehow make it 5 years before whatever help is supposed to arrive.
“How are you still operational if your main body is destroyed?”
I have minor nodes embedded deep within your planet. They do not have the main body’s capabilities but are sufficient to run the emergency sub routines.
“Why do you need minor nodes?”
Minor nodes are used for… bzzzzzzz… Please distribute points to proceed further.
“Hmmm. That was weird. Repeat last answer,”
Minor nodes are used for… bzzzzzzz… Please distribute points to proceed further.
“So, this is either due to the damage or there is something else at play here. No matter. What does the integration process do exactly?”
The integration process will saturate the atmosphere with raw mana, leading to the rapid evolution of native species. This will make them more durable and hence increase the odds of survival when the moon debris hits the surface. It will also unleash the System.
“I see. What is the System? And why was it leashed?”
The System is an all-encompassing entity that governs on an intergalactic scale. Its sole purpose is to create and maintain powerful lifeforms. It was restricted on this planet to… bzzzzzz… Please distribute points to proceed.
Now he was sure there was something fishy going on here. The last text box had closed without his input and the log for it was missing. But it didn’t look like he could do anything about it. He tried rephrasing the question in multiple ways over the next 15 minutes with no luck.
Deciding this was as much info as he could extract out of this entity, he moved his focus to his floating body. He could focus and change his appearance, like removing his numerous scars or even changing his hair color. But he saw no point in doing so.
“Is there anything else I can do with these 200 system points?” he asked curiously.
Yes
This was the first time he got an incomplete response by omission. Not by some buzzing error. Whoever had designed this voice assistant didn’t really want them to have all the information.
“Well can you tell me what other options I have?” he asked crossly.
Yes
“Go on then. What can I do with the points apart from the genetic mods?”
Please distribute points to proceed.
“What if I don’t want to use my points?” he was starting to get annoyed now.
Non-disputable verbal confirmation required to forgo genetic mods. The mod package will be replaced with a standard starter kit in this scenario.
“What if I don’t want the starter kit either? What is in that kit anyway?” After about 30 seconds there was a response.
The kit includes a one-time use, resurrection token. In case of death, you will be restored to full health at a safe location. You must choose an option to proceed.
“Is time frozen outside this weird white space around me?”
Negative. Time is flowing as normal. My main body is too damaged to restrict the flow of time.
“So, it is possible to mess around with time? Good to know. Would you have frozen time if this was a normal integration and not an emergency one?”
Affirmative to both the questions. Please distribute points to proceed.
“I want to leave this place without spending my points or taking the starter kit. I am worried the others may wake up and somehow attack me while I am in this state.”
No participant may leave the mod selection phase till all sapient modifications are done. Please distribute points to proceed.
“I am not spending my points without more info.”
Time is of the essence here. The modification process can take up to 2 days. If modifications are not complete by the time the debris hits the planet, no one will be able to leave. This will cause the extinction of all sapient lifeforms on the planet. Please distribute points to proceed.
“Well, I guess that means we are going extinct. We had a good run I suppose,” he replied flatly.
Results deemed unacceptable. Please distribute points to proceed.
“Not happening.”
Refusal to comply will trigger persuasion protocols. Please distribute points to proceed.
He was done with this farce. If there was one thing he hated above all else, it was being taken advantage of. Many of the so-called adults in his life had been doing that. He was not about to let some robot voice continue that trend.
“Do your worst,” he whispered and braced himself. Pain was an old companion after all.
Starting persuasion protocols in 20 seconds. Please note the protocols will cease as soon as the points are distributed.
He thought he knew pain, but as the countdown ended, he realized how wrong he was.