I feel myself stumbling. My forgotten reflexes fail to make sense of the situation, and I fall until I´m splashed on a white and even surface. I blink, not understanding where I am, how I got here. I move, and the lichen that still covers my skin crumbles, leaving only scratchy dust behind. I stand up on trembling legs, naked and confused. What happened to that old spell those sorcerers cast upon me? Why can I move? My muscles tingle and complain, dry and weak, screaming for nourishment. I look around. Everything is white. The walls are white, the floor is white, even the ceiling is white, harsh and sterile. Cold, like fresh snow. It´s so hostile and unforgiving, a bright lantern. A mirror that reflects light into every corner, into all the comforting hiding places of the non-existent dark.

There seems to be someone on the other side of the room, sitting on a chair sipping on a cup of something. My bloodlust spikes. My body vibrates in eagerness and anticipation after so long without stilling my gnawing hunger. I tense, ready to pounce. My palate aches, trying to salivate. I lick my canines, eager to bite, to rip and tear, to drink my fill, to cover the offending brightness in a crimson hue. I´m ready to close the distance, leaving no time to react. But then I stop, nearly falling over again.

Something is wrong. There is no smell. No blood. That figure is fake. It’s made of dancing lights, of swirling colors. Someone is teasing me, mocking me, laughing about my plight.

“Leave me alone, illusion,” I rasp.

The figure flinches. The cup in its hand breaks tinging like a bell, but no liquid is spilled. The figure blinks, then watches me, then blinks again.

“What?” Its eyes dart around the empty room as if looking for someone else. “You can tell? How? That shouldn´t be possible.”

“No idea of what you are talking about,” I mumble absentminded, marveled at the sound of my voice.

“Show me your status, User!” demands the illusion in an authoritative tone without responding to my question. To show him the what?

“I don´t swing that way dude… Even if I did, you are not even real.”

The illusion looks at me like I´m demented, maybe I am, I can´t tell anymore.

“Yes… You aren´t even fully integrated yet, you wouldn´t know,” His eyes fall upon me with derision. Like a patronizing grandfather commenting about the stupidity of the younger generation. “Just think the word Status.”

Leave me alone! What is all this rambling about some stupid status even about?

*Status:

Name: Ka´ain

Race: Human (Undead)

Age: 13827 years

Bloodline: Ancient Vampire (A) 0,3%

Level: 0

Class: None

Cultivation: None

Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on Royal Road.

Attributes:

Strength: 28

Agility: 47

Dexterity: 42

Endurance: 21

Vitality: 4/61 (Temporarily reduced due to severe blood-starvation)

Perception: 52

Intelligence: 19

Willpower: 64

Traits:

Universal Tongue

Skills:

Identify Lvl 1

??? *

A blue window has appeared from thin air. It tries to hinder my vision. What is this? Some kind of new curse designed to screw with my senses. An illusion to distract me with flimsy words that lack any meaning. No, no! I won´t be trapped again this time! It´s not even real. I try to catch its edges, to shove it away. But my hands just pass through it without resistance. Then it suddenly disappears into a shower of sparks.

The illusionary man is flicking his simulated fingers through the air, like looking for something only he can see, ignoring me completely.

I wander around the room, searching for any seams, a door, a way out. I need to get out. I´m starving and there is no prey in here.

“This can´t be real” mumbles the illusion somewhere behind me. “His stats are way to high for a level 0. This, this will screw with everything. This will jeopardize the colonization effort of the new planets. I´ll never get my promotion. I need to do something.

* A moderator has requested the judgement of the System upon you due to:

“Possible outside meddling detected. Multiple violations of fair play. User possesses an unfair advantage before System Integration. User is too old for an unevolved being. Possible fair competition and intervention thresholds exceeded. User exceeds the stats any level 0 on an unintegrated world should have by at least 2 to 6 times. User should be eliminated for the sake of keeping the balance.”

Scanning user.

Assessing.

No outside meddling detected.

Elimination request denied.

User is a native of Planet Dirt and can´t be left out of his home planets ongoing Integration*

Another blue window, stubborn and annoying.

“What is this nonsense?” cries someone somewhere. The illusion, sounding like a whining child.

*A moderator has called for the assistance of a System Administrator*

Stupid windows, pesky flies. Go away.

Another illusionary man appears next to the first one. They start rambling about something. I only half listen to it. What are they even talking about? Why does the first illusion seems so alarmed about me?

“No, you don´t understand. We need to warn al the seeded young prodigies of the guilds, the young scions of the sects seeking their rightfully owed fortune. This monster is a menace to this new world’s future elites. It could cause a galaxy wide stir.”

“Just eliminate him from the competition. I´ve heard of Vampires before. They are usually considered a plague. Barely rational. They are not even fully alive. Like dead men wandering around or something. Barely better than zombies. I think they are usually eradicated wherever they appear, you may have just cause.

“I can´t. I have tried. He has somehow managed to be considered a native by the System.”

“Maybe he his. That does seem to be a problem, doesn´t it?”

“It isn´t?”

“You are still young and new. It´s not the first time something like this happened on an Integration. Just send him into the Impossible difficulty tutorial. Problem solved.”

The second illusion is fading back out of existence.

*Ding

You are about to start your tutorial. Select the difficulty you want to experience. Higher difficulties are deadlier but have greater rewards. Choose wisely.

-Easy

-Normal

-Hard

-Hell *

I blink, another of these pesky windows again, refusing to disappear this time, no matter how hard I try to shove it away. It wants me to choose something. Why? Should I? Maybe it will finally disappear if I do. Maybe I´ll just wake up from this strange dream, still cast into stone. I don´t want to. Here I can move. Let me dream for a while longer. I´ll do it. I´ll choose. What do I choose?

*Moderator override.

You have chosen to enter the Impossible difficulty tutorial.

Prepare yourself*