"Frank Lepari, contact has been established. Be not afraid, you are in no danger" the strange voice repeated. Frank didn't sense any malicious intent from the voice, but strange disembodied voices also weren't part of his day to day. This simple fact resulted in the exact opposite of calm. Wild and frantic screaming issued forth from the young man. To Frank's credit, he didn't leave his seat despite searching in every direction while releasing a blood curdling wail. Try as he might, he couldn't find the source of the voice.
When the screaming calmed down to quiet sobbing, the voice continued on.
"You have been chosen to receive a great boon from the heavens. You may choose from a list of powers to aid you on your quest, there is no time limit on your selection. After you have chosen your gifts, you will begin your initiation and begin preparation for the Realm War"
Frank, trying his best to understand what he was hearing, only wanted the voice to stop and to go play his video game. He was silently praying and swearing off all drugs and alcohol, even allergy medicine. All this begging and pleading came to a screeching halt when a semi transparent screen appeared in front of him. White text on a dark blue background, giving off a ghostly pale glow.
"Oh fuck off, there's no way" He took a look at the unnatural floating display, then a look at the smoke still hanging in the air near his computer screen, then at his vape pen. He took it in his hand, stood up, and flung it hard at the farthest wall. Of course, when it hit a distance of about a foot away from him, it stopped dead in the air like a video stuck on pause. Of course, the "video" in question was seemingly any piece of reality not immediately surrounding Frank's body. Awful strange, this hallucination was so persistent in that one rule.
The overwhelmed man's breath caught in his throat before he let himself fall back in his chair, the screen still hanging in his vision, following his gaze no matter where he turned.
"Just gotta ride this out, it'll be over before long. There's no way this is real. Gotta get a grip!" Even with his face in his hands, the floating screen seemed to glow through the small gaps between his fingers. He finally let himself breath and took a good look at the text on the screen.
'Blessed champion, please begin the process of selecting your boons bestowed upon you by the Heavenly Host. Your aptitude for spiritual energy will be assessed and displayed once you willfully begin the process.' A blinking outline of a circle pulsed gently and evenly at the bottom of the text box. Frank's eyebrow twitched a little bit.
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"Why not just say 'press the button' or something? They made it sound so... absolute! This trip is just pissin' me off!"
With another deep breath he aimed at and pushed the circle on the "screen", as if it were real. He pulled his hand back when he felt a noticeable cold feeling and resistance where his finger met the "screen", it felt too real. Almost like the hyper realism of a detail in a dream that stays with you when you wake up. He tried again, pressing the button. He kept his finger on the button, it strained back against his touch almost like rubber or silicone, but cold to the touch. It almost reminded him of a cheap ice tray mold, except perfectly flat where it wasn't pressed in.
Nothing happened. What was he expecting? This wasn't real, it's just a bad drug trip. But Frank was too invested now. He tried again, this time really pressing into the button, his focus entirely on the feeling of the button. And then, with little warning he felt the screen shift around his finger like a wave, feeling as if the whole thing melted into liquid but retained its form while the text rearranged itself with the smooth flow of a stream. That stream then reached out and spread across his finger, a sudden cold shock through his arm.
"Oh God, this is it, this is the end. I'm having a heart attack, right? The devil's lettuce finally caught up with me and my heart is exploding!" He shook his arm, then held tight onto it, before he realized the cold feeling was gone just as quickly as it came, and the whirling blur of the screen seemed to fade back into text once again.
'Subject: Frank Lepari
Base Power Score: 100
Warrior's Discipline Bonus: Not Available
Virgin's Chastity Bonus: Not Available
Wise Sage Bonus: Not Available
Intoxicant Free Lifestyle Bonus: Not Available
Kingly Lineage Bonus: Not Available
Decadent Sinner Karma: 1.5x Requirements for Spiritual Power breakthrough at beginning of journey
Evil Sinner Karma: Not Present
Total Spiritual Power: 100 basic points'
"There's no way. I don't believe it. Virgin bonus? I lose out on something because I've had sex before? Intoxicant Free Lifestyle? Yeah right. Kingly Lineage?! I was born to the wrong family so I don't get extra points? Who thought of this nonsense?!" His gaze focused on the 'Decadent Sinner Karma' Entry, "And I'm being punished? For what, exactly? Ah fuck this, it isn't even real anyway! I'm just working myself up over nothing..."