This S.O.B. System - Chapter 72

Stanislaw awoke on the cold hard ground. On the top of a plateau, underneath his feet were black jagged rocks. The sky was dark from thick black clouds, there was some light that peaked in between the clouds, but not much. He had watched a few videos on the internet about what to expect, but a part of him hoped they were wrong. A growing part of him was happy that they weren’t. 

He was tall, mostly muscular, with a square jaw and long black hair. In his black leather jacket and black jeans he blended in with the ground underneath him. Nothing he had prepared was with him. No weapons, food, or clothes. With no real family to speak of he had gone through the past week on his own. It had been eye opening to realize no one would be worried about him during the Initialization. 

With a grunt he walked to the edge of the plateau. Leaning over the edge he couldn’t see into the black abyss between where he stood and another plateau. Studying the gap it was at least 10 feet across, he doubted he could jump it. 

As he prepared to make his way into the gap 2 red glowing eyes opened a few feet below. With a curse he jumped back from the ledge. Chittering noises echoed from the gap, then more sounded from other places in the gap. Stanislaw backed up as the sound grew louder. The sky was dark, so he could not see well, but he did notice the long black fingernails reach up out of the gap. 

He continued to back away until he was a few feet from the opposite edge of his platform. The monster slowly raised itself up. Its arms were thin, the long fingers were easily 10 inches long each. The monster was all black, and hard to focus on in the fading light. The red eyes glowed, they were the only thing he could see for sure. Then with another screech the black ghoul like beast bounded toward him. Long arms and legs pumped as it shot forward on all fours. It was so rail thin it didn’t appear to have any muscles.

Stanislaw wasn’t about to give up so easily. The monster reached for him as it leapt in the air at him. He ducked and grabbed at it by the elbows. His grip firm, he twisted it around until he had one of its legs in hand. The monster bit at him as he held it by arms and a leg. Stanislaw pulled it down into his knee with a grunt. The beast wheezed out a breath as it bent in half. Its body broke like kindling in his hands. 

Tossing it away it yelped. The thing was somehow still alive, but refused to move from where he threw it. He turned back to the gap where others began to rise out of the crevasse. He would kill all of these monsters, and move on. With that thought the pop-up appeared. 

—

Wu tripped over his own feet as he ran. Of course this had to be at the top of a hill. His body uncontrollably tumbled down on the red rock planet. Dust was kicked up as he cursed and groaned. His head hit a rock and his lights were out. 

With a groan he slowly opened his eyes to see the monster over him. It sniffed his face. Long snout, and brown fur, it reminded him of a werewolf. Long fingers at the end of each paw he had watched it stand up to run after him, but it was more wolf than man. It sniffed him deeply as he barely squinted his eyes. Wu checked his hands, they moved despite his fall. The werewolf didn’t notice the slight movement. One of Wu’s legs was bent the wrong way. He knew it was time. Time to decide. Should he give up here, or fight till the last breath?

The beast heard something behind it, turning its head away. Wu’s body made the decision for him. His hand grabbing the snout of the beast he leaned forward and took a chunk of fur with his other hand. No other weapon available he sunk his teeth into the throat of the werewolf. It yelped, clawing at his lower body as it struggled. 

Immense power welling in him, Wu did not budge. He began chewing at the beast’s throat. Blood poured down his chin in a flood. The beast let out a groan as it shook its head. Wu somehow held on. His jaw ached but again he gripped it harder. 

He wasn’t sure how long he held on, but eventually his arms dropped the monster’s head from fatigue. As it fell he lost a tooth because he couldn’t unclench his jaw. The iron taste of blood in his mouth he breathed heavily as he looked down at the beast’s head. Its lifeless eyes stared straight ahead. Then the window appeared.  

—

Liam ran for all he was worth over the sand dunes. He had watched his brother sacrifice himself a few minutes ago to give him some time to escape. At that point living was the only thing Liam thought about. His brain had shut down at some point. All he could do was run. 

Cresting another sand dune he tripped a little as he saw a person only a few feet away. It was a man roughly 6 feet tall. Black hair tied back in a bun, he wore 2 katanas, one on each side. In a kimono, everything made him look like a samurai, but he was very white skinned. 

“Run!” Liam yelled as he stumbled to him. “Monsters!” He said pointing behind him between big gulps of air. 

A white light appeared in the man’s hand. A bottle of water materialized. “Drink this lad,” he said in a British accent that matched Liam’s. 

The young boy grabbed it happily. He chugged it down in 3 gulps and handed the plastic bottle back. “Monsters. Little pygmy things chased us. They got my brother,” Liam finally said as tears welled in his eyes. 

“Let’s go,” the stranger said. His hand on his sword he began jogging the way Liam had run from. 

Liam was chasing after him soon enough, hope brought back at the thought of maybe saving his brother. “Do you have a System yet?” The man asked. 

“No, do you?” Liam asked in between breaths. The man simply jogged to let him keep up. 

“I do. It’s the Samurai System,” he said. “As you can tell by my attire. System Shop makes stuff like this specific for you.” 

Liam was jealous. He had been dreaming of receiving one since the news over a week ago. People in London had been showing off their Systems. Even one of his friends at school had one. He and his twin brother had entered together and promised to help each other get a System. His brother had been hurt soon after they entered, and was unable to keep up. Now Liam was the only one left. 

“How do I get a System like that?” Liam asked. 

“Depends on the person. If I could teach it to you, I would,” the man said. With that the pop-up window appeared in Liam’s vision. 

—

Kenichi climbed down the rocky face of the cliff. The easy way off the cliff had led to a camp of snake people. He would rather risk the fall than try to sneak past. He was in the Tutorial on his own, as he usually was. As an orphan he had been raised in an orphanage. Unbeknownst to him the orphanage was used to recruit for the Yakuza. 

He had been a runner for them for a few years, relaying messages. At the bottom of the ladder he had turned 18 and they gave him his first job. Get collection money from some people. He had failed miserably at it, and been ridiculed out of their gang. Since then he had lived on the streets of Nagoya. 

Kenichi’s leg slipped on a rock. His grip tightened as he held on. Heart pounding he refused to look down until he was at the base of the cliff. When he got his nerves back he continued to climb down. He would survive this place. Giving up was not an option. His culture was littered with scenarios exactly like this. He would become the protagonist, and though he had no one back on Earth, he believed in himself. 

—

Genevieve had long curly red hair that went down to her shoulders. In her black hoodie she walked slowly through the dark woods. Pine like needles littered the ground, causing each of her feet to crunch as she walked. She had been in Marseille a few hours ago, and been teleported there. 

The area looked like Earth, except for the 2 moons and blue sun overhead. There were still trees, and weirdly shaped rocks, but it was all the same to her. She had been a shut in back in France, never leaving her home. On the chubbier side she had been with her family before teleporting, but no one was in sight now. She simply walked aimlessly. It grew quiet without her noticing. She continued to walk along, making no effort to hide her passage. 

It wasn’t until she woke up that she realized she had been hit over the head. With a groan she leaned up to see a 2 foot tall spider biting into her shin. With a scream she kicked at it. The spider’s 8 legs moved it expertly away. 

Gen tried to draw herself back but her legs would not respond. Numbness began to spread over her. Sweat breaking out she put her hand in her front hoodie pocket. The numbness stopped spreading around her waist. Almost too late she heard the spider skittering behind her. With a yell she pulled the large knife out of her pocket and turned stabbing the blade deep into the thorax of the hairy beast. Its legs curled up almost instantly. Breathing hard, she was a little surprised by the pop-up window. 

—

Ibrahim had been a data analyst prior to the Initialization. He wore glasses, had acne despite being in his late 20s, and had never held a weapon in his life. Now he stood in a line of other men as they faced what appeared to be orcs. 

The large pig-like beasts stood on 2 legs and grunted at them only a few feet away. Both groups were too scared to attack the other. A spear gripped in his hand he did his best to appear threatening. Other men around him yelled curses at the orcs in Arabic, Ibrahim didn’t waste his breath. 

The orcs were 5 feet tall with light green skin. Snouts for noses, long ears that drooped down their heads. They had the dumb look of a pig. A part of him wondered if they would be forced to eat them. Would it still be against Muhammad to do so? Would it be considered pork or man? 

Something was off about the whole thing. He had watched videos from the Community Guild and others. They always warned that the monsters were smarter than they appeared. The monsters most likely had Systems too and might be able to raise their stats. Tearing his eyes from the orcs he studied the area. 

He was with 9 other men, they were in an open field, there was a forest close to them, but the orcs had come from the field. A part of him slowly began to understand that they were being flanked. More scared of what lay hidden in the trees he yelled, “Attack,” to the other men. Leveling his spear he ran at one of the orcs. 

The others hesitated, but soon followed. As the only person for a few strides Ibrahim was knocked down by the lead orc. Before it could fall on him one of his human companions stabbed it in the gut. Then it became a field of bloodshed as men with weapons killed beasts without them. Ibrahim had gained a level from the fight, though barely contributing. 

A few men were injured, but most all would walk away. “Behind,” Ibrahim yelled. He could hear them walking through the trees. With that his pop-up window appeared. 

—

Lillian shivered as she walked across the ice. Wind howled in her ears as snow pelted her face. She juggled keeping her hands and ears warm. Born and raised in Canada she was used to the cold, but this was a little ridiculous. 

Fucking System stereotyping my country, she thought angrily. 

Her foot sunk into snow. With a sigh she was finally off the frozen lake. She looked around but there was only the white screen of snow around her. Cursing she simply kept walking. Suddenly she heard a shout from a different direction. 

Hope rising in her Lillian ran toward the sound. 3 dark figures appeared ahead of her. She was about to yell but was caught off guard by their matching robes. Heads covered by hoods they faced away from her. A part of her said to run, but another part said she needed help. 

“Hey!” She yelled to be heard over the wind.

The 3 figures turned to face her. Under their hoods they studied her for a moment. She put up her fists, ready for a fight. She had taken classes in Judo all her life, and it was about to pay off. One of the figures said something, Lillian couldn’t tell the language. With that signal they raised their hands and threw back their hoods. 

At first she let out a sigh, but slowly she realized they really weren’t human. No hair on their head or brows, they had a light yellow colored skin. Tiny holes for ears and a wide forehead, they looked male. What really threw her off was that they had the same face. They stared at her with identical eyes. The one in the center raised his hand. Inside his fist was what looked like a gun mounted to his arm. 

She stayed there for a second, ready to dodge the blast then disappear into the blizzard, but was stopped. “Oy clone army,” a man said in an Australian accent in the blizzard. Lillian heard the distinct sound of a lightsaber as a bluish glow appeared. The stranger ran at them.

A blast went off from the arm gun of the center clone, but the Jedi killed all 3 of them with one slice. All the while the clones never said anything. Simply fell dead and limp to the ground. A beeping noise began sounding from their dead bodies. The Australian raised his hand and the bodies flew away into the blizzard. 

“Hello my darling,” he said as he turned to her. Then a loud boom sounded as the dead bodies exploded. “Fucking clone people e’erywhere,” he spat. “Don’t like to leave spoils for people like a right cunt. Am I right?” 

Lillian didn’t know what to say. She was happy to meet someone, but right then she really needed some more clothes. As words formed in her mouth the pop-up appeared. 

Stanislaw awoke on the cold hard ground. On the top of a plateau, underneath his feet were black jagged rocks. The sky was dark from thick black clouds, there was some light that peaked in between the clouds, but not much. He had watched a few videos on the internet about what to expect, but a part of him hoped they were wrong. A growing part of him was happy that they weren't. He was tall, mostly muscular, with a square jaw and long black hair. In his black leather jacket and black jeans he blended in with the ground underneath him. Nothing he had prepared was with him. No weapons, food, or clothes. With no real family to speak of he had gone through the past week on his own. It had been eye opening to realize no one would be worried about him during the Initialization. With a grunt he walked to the edge of the plateau. Leaning over the edge he couldn't see into the black abyss between where he stood and another plateau. Studying the gap it was at least 10 feet across, he doubted he could jump it. As he prepared to make his way into the gap 2 red glowing eyes opened a few feet below. With a curse he jumped back from the ledge. Chittering noises echoed from the gap, then more sounded from other places in the gap. Stanislaw backed up as the sound grew louder. The sky was dark, so he could not see well, but he did notice the long black fingernails reach up out of the gap. He continued to back away until he was a few feet from the opposite edge of his platform. The monster slowly raised itself up. Its arms were thin, the long fingers were easily 10 inches long each. The monster was all black, and hard to focus on in the fading light. The red eyes glowed, they were the only thing he could see for sure. Then with another screech the black ghoul like beast bounded toward him. Long arms and legs pumped as it shot forward on all fours. It was so rail thin it didn't appear to have any muscles. Stanislaw wasn't about to give up so easily. The monster reached for him as it leapt in the air at him. He ducked and grabbed at it by the elbows. His grip firm, he twisted it around until he had one of its legs in hand. The monster bit at him as he held it by arms and a leg. Stanislaw pulled it down into his knee with a grunt. The beast wheezed out a breath as it bent in half. Its body broke like kindling in his hands. Tossing it away it yelped. The thing was somehow still alive, but refused to move from where he threw it. He turned back to the gap where others began to rise out of the crevasse. He would kill all of these monsters, and move on. With that thought the pop-up appeared. Congratulations You have awoken the WITCHER SYSTEM Accept rewards Y/N Wu tripped over his own feet as he ran. Of course this had to be at the top of a hill. His body uncontrollably tumbled down on the red rock planet. Dust was kicked up as he cursed and groaned. His head hit a rock and his lights were out. With a groan he slowly opened his eyes to see the monster over him. It sniffed his face. Long snout, and brown fur, it reminded him of a werewolf. Long fingers at the end of each paw he had watched it stand up to run after him, but it was more wolf than man. It sniffed him deeply as he barely squinted his eyes. Wu checked his hands, they moved despite his fall. The werewolf didn't notice the slight movement. One of Wu's legs was bent the wrong way. He knew it was time. Time to decide. Should he give up here, or fight till the last breath? The beast heard something behind it, turning its head away. Wu's body made the decision for him. His hand grabbing the snout of the beast he leaned forward and took a chunk of fur with his other hand. No other weapon available he sunk his teeth into the throat of the werewolf. It yelped, clawing at his lower body as it struggled. Immense power welling in him, Wu did not budge. He began chewing at the beast's throat. Blood poured down his chin in a flood. The beast let out a groan as it shook its head. Wu somehow held on. His jaw ached but again he gripped it harder. He wasn't sure how long he held on, but eventually his arms dropped the monster's head from fatigue. As it fell he lost a tooth because he couldn't unclench his jaw. The iron taste of blood in his mouth he breathed heavily as he looked down at the beast's head. Its lifeless eyes stared straight ahead. Then the window appeared. Congratulations You have awoken the VAMPIRE SYSTEM Accept rewards Y/N Liam ran for all he was worth over the sand dunes. He had watched his brother sacrifice himself a few minutes ago to give him some time to escape. At that point living was the only thing Liam thought about. His brain had shut down at some point. All he could do was run. Cresting another sand dune he tripped a little as he saw a person only a few feet away. It was a man roughly 6 feet tall. Black hair tied back in a bun, he wore 2 katanas, one on each side. In a kimono, everything made him look like a samurai, but he was very white skinned. Run! Liam yelled as he stumbled to him. Monsters! He said pointing behind him between big gulps of air. A white light appeared in the man's hand. A bottle of water materialized. Drink this lad, he said in a British accent that matched Liam's. The young boy grabbed it happily. He chugged it down in 3 gulps and handed the plastic bottle back. Monsters. Little pygmy things chased us. They got my brother, Liam finally said as tears welled in his eyes. Let's go, the stranger said. His hand on his sword he began jogging the way Liam had run from. Liam was chasing after him soon enough, hope brought back at the thought of maybe saving his brother. Do you have a System yet? The man asked. No, do you? Liam asked in between breaths. The man simply jogged to let him keep up. I do. It's the Samurai System, he said. As you can tell by my attire. System Shop makes stuff like this specific for you. Liam was jealous. He had been dreaming of receiving one since the news over a week ago. People in London had been showing off their Systems. Even one of his friends at school had one. He and his twin brother had entered together and promised to help each other get a System. His brother had been hurt soon after they entered, and was unable to keep up. Now Liam was the only one left. How do I get a System like that? Liam asked. Depends on the person. If I could teach it to you, I would, the man said. With that the pop-up window appeared in Liam's vision. Congratulations You have awoken the MIGHT SYSTEM Accept rewards Y/N Kenichi climbed down the rocky face of the cliff. The easy way off the cliff had led to a camp of snake people. He would rather risk the fall than try to sneak past. He was in the Tutorial on his own, as he usually was. As an orphan he had been raised in an orphanage. Unbeknownst to him the orphanage was used to recruit for the Yakuza. He had been a runner for them for a few years, relaying messages. At the bottom of the ladder he had turned 18 and they gave him his first job. Get collection money from some people. He had failed miserably at it, and been ridiculed out of their gang. Since then he had lived on the streets of Nagoya. Kenichi's leg slipped on a rock. His grip tightened as he held on. Heart pounding he refused to look down until he was at the base of the cliff. When he got his nerves back he continued to climb down. He would survive this place. Giving up was not an option. His culture was littered with scenarios exactly like this. He would become the protagonist, and though he had no one back on Earth, he believed in himself. Congratulations You have awoken the UZUMAKI SYSTEM Accept rewards Y/N Genevieve had long curly red hair that went down to her shoulders. In her black hoodie she walked slowly through the dark woods. Pine like needles littered the ground, causing each of her feet to crunch as she walked. She had been in Marseille a few hours ago, and been teleported there. The area looked like Earth, except for the 2 moons and blue sun overhead. There were still trees, and weirdly shaped rocks, but it was all the same to her. She had been a shut in back in France, never leaving her home. On the chubbier side she had been with her family before teleporting, but no one was in sight now. She simply walked aimlessly. It grew quiet without her noticing. She continued to walk along, making no effort to hide her passage. It wasn't until she woke up that she realized she had been hit over the head. With a groan she leaned up to see a 2 foot tall spider biting into her shin. With a scream she kicked at it. The spider's 8 legs moved it expertly away. Gen tried to draw herself back but her legs would not respond. Numbness began to spread over her. Sweat breaking out she put her hand in her front hoodie pocket. The numbness stopped spreading around her waist. Almost too late she heard the spider skittering behind her. With a yell she pulled the large knife out of her pocket and turned stabbing the blade deep into the thorax of the hairy beast. Its legs curled up almost instantly. Breathing hard, she was a little surprised by the pop-up window. Congratulations You have awoken the GHOST SYSTEM Accept rewards Y/N Ibrahim had been a data analyst prior to the Initialization. He wore glasses, had acne despite being in his late 20s, and had never held a weapon in his life. Now he stood in a line of other men as they faced what appeared to be orcs. The large pig-like beasts stood on 2 legs and grunted at them only a few feet away. Both groups were too scared to attack the other. A spear gripped in his hand he did his best to appear threatening. Other men around him yelled curses at the orcs in Arabic, Ibrahim didn't waste his breath. The orcs were 5 feet tall with light green skin. Snouts for noses, long ears that drooped down their heads. They had the dumb look of a pig. A part of him wondered if they would be forced to eat them. Would it still be against Muhammad to do so? Would it be considered pork or man? Something was off about the whole thing. He had watched videos from the Community Guild and others. They always warned that the monsters were smarter than they appeared. The monsters most likely had Systems too and might be able to raise their stats. Tearing his eyes from the orcs he studied the area. He was with 9 other men, they were in an open field, there was a forest close to them, but the orcs had come from the field. A part of him slowly began to understand that they were being flanked. More scared of what lay hidden in the trees he yelled, Attack, to the other men. Leveling his spear he ran at one of the orcs. The others hesitated, but soon followed. As the only person for a few strides Ibrahim was knocked down by the lead orc. Before it could fall on him one of his human companions stabbed it in the gut. Then it became a field of bloodshed as men with weapons killed beasts without them. Ibrahim had gained a level from the fight, though barely contributing. A few men were injured, but most all would walk away. Behind, Ibrahim yelled. He could hear them walking through the trees. With that his pop-up window appeared. Congratulations You have awoken the OMNISCIENT SYSTEM Accept rewards Y/N Lillian shivered as she walked across the ice. Wind howled in her ears as snow pelted her face. She juggled keeping her hands and ears warm. Born and raised in Canada she was used to the cold, but this was a little ridiculous. Fucking System stereotyping my country, she thought angrily. Her foot sunk into snow. With a sigh she was finally off the frozen lake. She looked around but there was only the white screen of snow around her. Cursing she simply kept walking. Suddenly she heard a shout from a different direction. Hope rising in her Lillian ran toward the sound. 3 dark figures appeared ahead of her. She was about to yell but was caught off guard by their matching robes. Heads covered by hoods they faced away from her. A part of her said to run, but another part said she needed help. Hey! She yelled to be heard over the wind. The 3 figures turned to face her. Under their hoods they studied her for a moment. She put up her fists, ready for a fight. She had taken classes in Judo all her life, and it was about to pay off. One of the figures said something, Lillian couldn't tell the language. With that signal they raised their hands and threw back their hoods. At first she let out a sigh, but slowly she realized they really weren't human. No hair on their head or brows, they had a light yellow colored skin. Tiny holes for ears and a wide forehead, they looked male. What really threw her off was that they had the same face. They stared at her with identical eyes. The one in the center raised his hand. Inside his fist was what looked like a gun mounted to his arm. She stayed there for a second, ready to dodge the blast then disappear into the blizzard, but was stopped. Oy clone army, a man said in an Australian accent in the blizzard. Lillian heard the distinct sound of a lightsaber as a bluish glow appeared. The stranger ran at them. A blast went off from the arm gun of the center clone, but the Jedi killed all 3 of them with one slice. All the while the clones never said anything. Simply fell dead and limp to the ground. A beeping noise began sounding from their dead bodies. The Australian raised his hand and the bodies flew away into the blizzard. Hello my darling, he said as he turned to her. Then a loud boom sounded as the dead bodies exploded. Fucking clone people e'erywhere, he spat. Don't like to leave spoils for people like a right cunt. Am I right? Lillian didn't know what to say. She was happy to meet someone, but right then she really needed some more clothes. As words formed in her mouth the pop-up appeared. Congratulations You have awoken the KOMBAT SYSTEM Accept rewards Y/N