Eternal slumber! It should be more like eternal choices. No wonder one needed an eternity to go through all these choices. Not to mention one had to dream to comprehend such mind-bending graphics.
Wait…
Dreams happen when one is asleep. AKA: slumber. Eternal slumber! Okay, it makes sense. Tetsu nods to himself.
This technology is centuries away from what humans can imagine. Tetsu read another long-ass bond that wanted him to serve another almighty entity. This one resembling a cat with its head on fire.
Tetsu might not have seen much of his world, but his imagination made him one of the weirdest people alive on Earth. Test him through a lie detector test and he would pass with flying colors for all the weird creatures he and Kile have seen. All of these were made up in their minds during their free time. Yet, keeping that in mind, he would still say he met weirder creatures down here, from your usual humanoid creatures that claimed otherwise to your general fantasy creatures. These were manageable, as he had a rough idea about their origins. All of them were way off, yet a familiar sense still eased his mind.
The problem arrived when the bizarre creatures asked him to bow and serve them for life. Eyes asking for his blind fate. A voice asking to never speak, a sensation asking to surrender his senses, and so on and so forth.
Keeping the concept of immortality in mind, he had but one ground rule for selecting his bond. “Not to be a slave!” He would’ve cursed if he could’ve. You didn’t want to piss off the strongest entities or any guy a level above you in this new world. Something told him little to no laws had his survival in mind. Based on every description he read so far, survival of the fittest was the concept of his new reality.
“Still doesn’t mean I am going to take orders from a goddamn hammer.” Tetsu exited another bond offer. “Is Thor a slave to his hammer?” He remembers a few scenes from the comic. “Fuck! A topic for another day.” He makes a mental note and checks the other orbs.
Back in outer space, everything seemed the same, except for an instinctual awareness that he wouldn’t fall asleep even if he tried. Along with the distinct sense of how he can leave this star gazing or selection room to the next room.
“Did I have a time limit?” He double-checks all of his notifications; glad he didn’t delete them. “No time limits!” He concluded.
He willed himself to take a step forward and stepped into an open field of green planes and blue skies. Here, tiny grassings were swayed by the winds while the light blue hues of the skies shifted from shades of pink and orange and back to blue. Tetsu couldn’t express the atmosphere, but something appeared off. Even though all of his instincts were forced into a soothing state, his gut told him that it was just the calm he experienced before the storm. His mind warned him not to trust what he saw or felt, like some kind of danger alert.
By reflex, he steps back into the bonds room. “We need a powerful bond.” All of his personalities agreed.
Hours flew by… Tetsu had but one demand which seemed like the only demand even the deities wanted. Free will for power and survival.
“Makes you wonder.” Tetsu declined yet another bond. This one directly asked him to surrender his soul. In most, he had to really concentrate to find the underlining.
“Wanting to live your life on your rules is still a dream,” Tetsu concluded. Yet the almighty gods weren’t able to force him to surrender, which was so weird. “Are there no bullies, or do all of them have an agreement, or is someone forcing them to follow certain rules? Is will hard to control unless given permission?” He wondered. “There’s something I am still missing.” He added another mystery to his to-solve list.
“How about my will my rule bond?” Tetsu questioned and found the bonds reduced to a countable number. “Who said stars can’t be counted?” He joked to himself and read through a few until he had yet another epiphany. “Can I move on with all the knowledge, skipping the bonds on the whole?” He waited for a reply, not sure who was even replying. “Just the general knowledge… So that I can create my own path?”
No system messages pop up. “Ah! Well.” He takes a step as his vision goes blank.
═─┈─{═3═}─┈─═
[Welcome to your tutorial grounds. No natural…]
“Can we please skip these positive criticisms?” Tetsu cancels the notification. “Third of my notifications are already filled with those.” He steps out into the open fields, this time losing the connection to step back into the bond’s room.
[Tutorial will end in 394210Minutes. Reach Warrior status for successful integration.]
[Current Status]
[General Info]
-*--*----*--*--
Name: Tetsü K Tenco.
Race: Human {---} Level: O | Initiate |
Class: N/A.
Affinity: N/A
Bond: N/A
--*--*----*--*--
[STATUS]
Health Pool: - 60/60
Mana Pool: - 0/0
Fatigue: - 50+
-*--*----*--*--
[INDIVIDUAL STAT’S]
Dex: 2 :: Flex: 2 :: Flash: 1
Stamina: 2 :: Rex: 1 :: Fort: 1
-*--*----*--*--
Senses: 7 :: Regen: 3 :: Tork: (-3)
-*--*----*--*--
Will power: (-8) :: Perception: 10 :: Intellect: 8
Luck: (-44)
Free Points: 0
-*--*----*--*--
Titles: N/A
-*--*----*--*--
“Did I miss a few steps?”
Tetsu takes another step forward. A thin layer of mist surrounding his feet disperses as his feet touch the grass plains for the first time. His bare feet caress the tender blades of grass beneath them, embracing nature’s gentle touch. Before he could enjoy the sensation, a notification blocks his view.
[Warning! You are entering the tutorial area with no affiliation to Mana, bonds, Affinities, class, or required stat’s to withstand the tutorial’s harsh environment.]
“Wait. What?”
Tetsu’s foot lands with a firm foothold. The mist around Tetsu dissipates as he materializes into the tutorial grounds. His foot got heavier. Not that the planet had a stronger gravitational force. Tetsu has been in a simulation where the gravity is heavier. This isn’t that. This feeling was more like the planet wanted him to bow and surrender to its might. With every step, his body would try to sink into the vicious environment where the air had the properties of water. Tetsu had to push with his very being just to stay alive.
═─┈─{═2═}─┈─═
The tutorial had begun. And his first hurdle, his first opponent, was nature itself. He desperately wanted to step back and pick any bond, hoping to survive. But it was too late. He lost the connection to step back. He cursed himself in every language, then begged the thing that got him here to give him another chance to select.
“How am I so dumb?” He remembers his luck stat and forcing himself to step forward, ignoring the system warning.
Every fiber of his body pulled in a different direction. His eyes bulged out, blood dripped through every pore, and lungs shrunk into itself. Yet he stood on his two feet, buckled together, hunched forward, and foaming out of his mouth. With every passing second, his body wanted to rip itself to shreds.
He cursed himself for underestimating the tutorial. The obvious clue of his instincts warning him when he tried entering the tutorial unprepared.
Memories flashed across his mind. All the obvious warning messages taunting him before he died. He wanted to cry, but his tears were filled with more blood than water. “Always the same.” His feet gave in, sending his knees crashing onto the ground. “Overthinker!” He cursed himself.
“Overthinking is a power.” Kile’s words flash into Tetsu’s memory. “Normal is overrated.” Kile forced a hysterical laugh. “Overthink toward a solution.” He reminds Tetsu.
Tetsu grasps the tiny grassings with all his might. “Think.” He cursed himself, going through every scenario. After what seemed like hours, his mind reminded him of the warnings he got from the system. He opened the last warning and focused on the one concept.
Mana.
With all his focus on a single word, he shuts his eyes. “Mana!” Tetsu uttered and refocused his mind. His mind slowly dwelled on the familiar words inside the warning notification. Bonds were the concept he knew all too well about. Surrender one’s will to live. Before his mind dwelled deeper, Tetsu refocused his thoughts. “Mana!” He whispered.
First, the warning message told him about mana. Maybe Mana was more essential to survival than the bonds itself. “Or is Mana how gods became gods?” He threw this idea far back into his mind. “Focus,” He went back to the warning. “Let’s say Mana is the first step to everything. Later comes the bonds, affinities, classes, and stats.” Tetsu tries to open his status menu, but the pain overwhelms his senses. He rules out every other possibility and concludes that only his mind worked, while the rest gave up or are in the process of giving up. And until he figures out Mana, he’s going to be a sitting duck ready to be skinned alive. “Perhaps even after.” He throws another possibility far behind his mind. “It felt like I skipped a few steps.” He gritted his teeth.
Mana.
Tetsu had no clue what the word Mana meant. His world surely didn’t have any concept that even sounded the same. Fantasy and myths. Tetsu tried to imagine Mana in a magical sense. To concentrate all of his energy into unlocking its meaning, he let the pain consume him. Overwhelmed by the and his mind singularly focused on Mana, he let his body crash to the floor.
[Warming! Fatigue has crossed 70 points. Once the reading crosses 100 points, it will cause permanent damage to the shell & soul.]
With his entire mind focused on a singular task for the first time. With a slimmer of hope to survive the first round. Either with the help of the system or any miracle, he wasn’t picky. Tetsu decides to pass out.
═─┈─{═1═}─┈─═
Two voices argue behind the scenes. Their voices couldn’t reach the fields, but their eyes saw it all.
“Looks like our first initiation failed.” The first voice spoke out. “Only one human entered the fields.” He monitored Tetsu for a while. “For some reason, the code placed him farther away from the recommended drop zone. Far into a hostile environment, nonetheless.”
“Are you sure?” A grumpy voice growled back.
“Well... he is unconscious on the floor. Where do humans breathe from again?”
“Are you asking me?”
“No sir! He’s definitely blocking his own air holes. Sir.” The first voice stiffened as he noticed the grumpy voice for the first time. It belonged to his manager.
“Great. Get him out. Wipe his memory. And start again.” The Manager commanded.
“Yes, sir!” He saluted and typed on his system screen. After several error notifications blocked him from further typing, he had no choice but to report to his manager. Which meant he had to talk to him again. “Sir!” He whispered, hoping he wouldn’t grab the Manager’s attention. Unlucky for him, his manager had very sharp ears.
“Make it quick. I have other initiates that would drop any second now.”
“Yes, sir.” Scout stomps his feet, throwing another salute. Still scared out of his mind, he stares at his manager without revealing the issue at hand.
“Better talk before I bite your head off.” The manager warns him.
“Previous initiation stages are closed and we can’t send him back.”
“Identify him and check his level, fool.” The Manager growls louder.
“I did, sir. He doesn’t… have any.”
“What the woolf do you mean?” The Manager grinds his teeth, making a huge crunching sound. “The deities forgot to introduce him to Mana? They had but one job. Which woolfin bond did he choose?”
═─┈─{═E═}─┈─═
Eternal slumber! It should be more like eternal choices. No wonder one needed an eternity to go through all these choices. Not to mention one had to dream to comprehend such mind-bending graphics.
Wait…
Dreams happen when one is asleep. AKA: slumber. Eternal slumber! Okay, it makes sense. Tetsu nods to himself.
This technology is centuries away from what humans can imagine. Tetsu read another long-ass bond that wanted him to serve another almighty entity. This one resembling a cat with its head on fire.
Tetsu might not have seen much of his world, but his imagination made him one of the weirdest people alive on Earth. Test him through a lie detector test and he would pass with flying colors for all the weird creatures he and Kile have seen. All of these were made up in their minds during their free time. Yet, keeping that in mind, he would still say he met weirder creatures down here, from your usual humanoid creatures that claimed otherwise to your general fantasy creatures. These were manageable, as he had a rough idea about their origins. All of them were way off, yet a familiar sense still eased his mind.
The problem arrived when the bizarre creatures asked him to bow and serve them for life. Eyes asking for his blind fate. A voice asking to never speak, a sensation asking to surrender his senses, and so on and so forth.
Keeping the concept of immortality in mind, he had but one ground rule for selecting his bond. “Not to be a slave!” He would’ve cursed if he could’ve. You didn’t want to piss off the strongest entities or any guy a level above you in this new world. Something told him little to no laws had his survival in mind. Based on every description he read so far, survival of the fittest was the concept of his new reality.
“Still doesn’t mean I am going to take orders from a goddamn hammer.” Tetsu exited another bond offer. “Is Thor a slave to his hammer?” He remembers a few scenes from the comic. “Fuck! A topic for another day.” He makes a mental note and checks the other orbs.
Back in outer space, everything seemed the same, except for an instinctual awareness that he wouldn’t fall asleep even if he tried. Along with the distinct sense of how he can leave this star gazing or selection room to the next room.
“Did I have a time limit?” He double-checks all of his notifications; glad he didn’t delete them. “No time limits!” He concluded.
He willed himself to take a step forward and stepped into an open field of green planes and blue skies. Here, tiny grassings were swayed by the winds while the light blue hues of the skies shifted from shades of pink and orange and back to blue. Tetsu couldn’t express the atmosphere, but something appeared off. Even though all of his instincts were forced into a soothing state, his gut told him that it was just the calm he experienced before the storm. His mind warned him not to trust what he saw or felt, like some kind of danger alert.
By reflex, he steps back into the bonds room. “We need a powerful bond.” All of his personalities agreed.
Hours flew by… Tetsu had but one demand which seemed like the only demand even the deities wanted. Free will for power and survival.
“Makes you wonder.” Tetsu declined yet another bond. This one directly asked him to surrender his soul. In most, he had to really concentrate to find the underlining.
“Wanting to live your life on your rules is still a dream,” Tetsu concluded. Yet the almighty gods weren’t able to force him to surrender, which was so weird. “Are there no bullies, or do all of them have an agreement, or is someone forcing them to follow certain rules? Is will hard to control unless given permission?” He wondered. “There’s something I am still missing.” He added another mystery to his to-solve list.
“How about my will my rule bond?” Tetsu questioned and found the bonds reduced to a countable number. “Who said stars can’t be counted?” He joked to himself and read through a few until he had yet another epiphany. “Can I move on with all the knowledge, skipping the bonds on the whole?” He waited for a reply, not sure who was even replying. “Just the general knowledge… So that I can create my own path?”
No system messages pop up. “Ah! Well.” He takes a step as his vision goes blank.
═─┈─{═3═}─┈─═
[Welcome to your tutorial grounds. No natural…]
“Can we please skip these positive criticisms?” Tetsu cancels the notification. “Third of my notifications are already filled with those.” He steps out into the open fields, this time losing the connection to step back into the bond’s room.
[Tutorial will end in 394210Minutes. Reach Warrior status for successful integration.]
[Current Status]
[General Info]
-*--*----*--*--
Name: Tetsü K Tenco.
Race: Human {---} Level: O | Initiate |
Class: N/A.
Affinity: N/A
Bond: N/A
--*--*----*--*--
[STATUS]
Health Pool: - 60/60
Mana Pool: - 0/0
Fatigue: - 50+
-*--*----*--*--
[INDIVIDUAL STAT’S]
Dex: 2 :: Flex: 2 :: Flash: 1
Stamina: 2 :: Rex: 1 :: Fort: 1
-*--*----*--*--
Senses: 7 :: Regen: 3 :: Tork: (-3)
-*--*----*--*--
Will power: (-8) :: Perception: 10 :: Intellect: 8
Luck: (-44)
Free Points: 0
-*--*----*--*--
Titles: N/A
-*--*----*--*--
“Did I miss a few steps?”
Tetsu takes another step forward. A thin layer of mist surrounding his feet disperses as his feet touch the grass plains for the first time. His bare feet caress the tender blades of grass beneath them, embracing nature’s gentle touch. Before he could enjoy the sensation, a notification blocks his view.
[Warning! You are entering the tutorial area with no affiliation to Mana, bonds, Affinities, class, or required stat’s to withstand the tutorial’s harsh environment.]
“Wait. What?”
Tetsu’s foot lands with a firm foothold. The mist around Tetsu dissipates as he materializes into the tutorial grounds. His foot got heavier. Not that the planet had a stronger gravitational force. Tetsu has been in a simulation where the gravity is heavier. This isn’t that. This feeling was more like the planet wanted him to bow and surrender to its might. With every step, his body would try to sink into the vicious environment where the air had the properties of water. Tetsu had to push with his very being just to stay alive.
═─┈─{═2═}─┈─═
The tutorial had begun. And his first hurdle, his first opponent, was nature itself. He desperately wanted to step back and pick any bond, hoping to survive. But it was too late. He lost the connection to step back. He cursed himself in every language, then begged the thing that got him here to give him another chance to select.
“How am I so dumb?” He remembers his luck stat and forcing himself to step forward, ignoring the system warning.
Every fiber of his body pulled in a different direction. His eyes bulged out, blood dripped through every pore, and lungs shrunk into itself. Yet he stood on his two feet, buckled together, hunched forward, and foaming out of his mouth. With every passing second, his body wanted to rip itself to shreds.
He cursed himself for underestimating the tutorial. The obvious clue of his instincts warning him when he tried entering the tutorial unprepared.
Memories flashed across his mind. All the obvious warning messages taunting him before he died. He wanted to cry, but his tears were filled with more blood than water. “Always the same.” His feet gave in, sending his knees crashing onto the ground. “Overthinker!” He cursed himself.
“Overthinking is a power.” Kile’s words flash into Tetsu’s memory. “Normal is overrated.” Kile forced a hysterical laugh. “Overthink toward a solution.” He reminds Tetsu.
Tetsu grasps the tiny grassings with all his might. “Think.” He cursed himself, going through every scenario. After what seemed like hours, his mind reminded him of the warnings he got from the system. He opened the last warning and focused on the one concept.
Mana.
With all his focus on a single word, he shuts his eyes. “Mana!” Tetsu uttered and refocused his mind. His mind slowly dwelled on the familiar words inside the warning notification. Bonds were the concept he knew all too well about. Surrender one’s will to live. Before his mind dwelled deeper, Tetsu refocused his thoughts. “Mana!” He whispered.
First, the warning message told him about mana. Maybe Mana was more essential to survival than the bonds itself. “Or is Mana how gods became gods?” He threw this idea far back into his mind. “Focus,” He went back to the warning. “Let’s say Mana is the first step to everything. Later comes the bonds, affinities, classes, and stats.” Tetsu tries to open his status menu, but the pain overwhelms his senses. He rules out every other possibility and concludes that only his mind worked, while the rest gave up or are in the process of giving up. And until he figures out Mana, he’s going to be a sitting duck ready to be skinned alive. “Perhaps even after.” He throws another possibility far behind his mind. “It felt like I skipped a few steps.” He gritted his teeth.
Mana.
Tetsu had no clue what the word Mana meant. His world surely didn’t have any concept that even sounded the same. Fantasy and myths. Tetsu tried to imagine Mana in a magical sense. To concentrate all of his energy into unlocking its meaning, he let the pain consume him. Overwhelmed by the and his mind singularly focused on Mana, he let his body crash to the floor.
[Warming! Fatigue has crossed 70 points. Once the reading crosses 100 points, it will cause permanent damage to the shell & soul.]
With his entire mind focused on a singular task for the first time. With a slimmer of hope to survive the first round. Either with the help of the system or any miracle, he wasn’t picky. Tetsu decides to pass out.
═─┈─{═1═}─┈─═
Two voices argue behind the scenes. Their voices couldn’t reach the fields, but their eyes saw it all.
“Looks like our first initiation failed.” The first voice spoke out. “Only one human entered the fields.” He monitored Tetsu for a while. “For some reason, the code placed him farther away from the recommended drop zone. Far into a hostile environment, nonetheless.”
“Are you sure?” A grumpy voice growled back.
“Well... he is unconscious on the floor. Where do humans breathe from again?”
“Are you asking me?”
“No sir! He’s definitely blocking his own air holes. Sir.” The first voice stiffened as he noticed the grumpy voice for the first time. It belonged to his manager.
“Great. Get him out. Wipe his memory. And start again.” The Manager commanded.
“Yes, sir!” He saluted and typed on his system screen. After several error notifications blocked him from further typing, he had no choice but to report to his manager. Which meant he had to talk to him again. “Sir!” He whispered, hoping he wouldn’t grab the Manager’s attention. Unlucky for him, his manager had very sharp ears.
“Make it quick. I have other initiates that would drop any second now.”
“Yes, sir.” Scout stomps his feet, throwing another salute. Still scared out of his mind, he stares at his manager without revealing the issue at hand.
“Better talk before I bite your head off.” The manager warns him.
“Previous initiation stages are closed and we can’t send him back.”
“Identify him and check his level, fool.” The Manager growls louder.
“I did, sir. He doesn’t… have any.”
“What the woolf do you mean?” The Manager grinds his teeth, making a huge crunching sound. “The deities forgot to introduce him to Mana? They had but one job. Which woolfin bond did he choose?”
═─┈─{═E═}─┈─═
