That was not good news, Sevs thought. It was standard practice to have some orientation that helped newcomers learn the mechanics and get their feet under them. Usually, that meant a couple adventures where the guide got to keep most of the rewards. He had actually helped set some of the first ones up. They generally were worthwhile and benefited both parties. This didn’t seem so. Unless the cost of living was really so high.

Alex, reading Sevs face. “I know it sounds steep. It really is. But it is worth it. We cannot have people going around not knowing what we are doing. We have lost too much too many times from idiots messing around.”

“Why does anyone stay here?”

“Well, all worlds have their challenges. Many believe that the harder the challenge, the better the system gets, and they have a better chance to ascend. Others merely like it here. Once you get used to it, it feels more like a real civilization than any other main world I have ever been in. The system provides some tools, but that is pretty much it. Everything you see, we built for ourselves. Some of our leading players have been here for centuries.”

That was interesting. Most worlds were video games. Realism was not very popular, and Sevs hadn't tried it much either. “Well, I am not wasting the base I got in this tutorial without good reason.”

Alex nodded understandingly. “I called over an officer to help you get set up. I’m just here to welcome new arrivals. Ah, before he gets here, a bit of advice. Some here are really big into rank. Not quite like they are role-playing, but they take the game seriously. Think like a pro team. It's a bit annoying at times, but you want to be in the best squad you can here. Messing around will not get you very far.”

Sevs nodded, keeping that in mind. He would treat this as real as was reasonable. Just as he always did.

Alex’s desk sat in a T junction. Directly in front of it was the hall that Sevs came through. The newcomers portal, obviously. To the right was a similar door with an exit sign propped up against it. That was dark. To the left was the other direction. At the end of that hall sat a similar door to the one Sevs had entered this room from.

Just as Sevs turned to respond to Alex, the door snapped open. In strode a tall man with a stern look on his face. Alex stood quickly and snapped to attention. “Sir, a new recruit is here, sir!”

“At ease, soldier.” The man said as he returned the salute. “I will take it from here.”

This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

The officer turned to Sevs and extended a hand. “Lieutenant Dan, AD417.”

“X77, Sevs,” Sevs responded as he shook the Lieutenant’s hand. To his credit, Lieutenant Dan didn’t react to the name. He only nodded. “It is nice to meet you, Sevs. Would you come with me?”

Sevs followed him out the door and through a maze of hallways. As they walked, Lieutenant Dan started to explain some things. “You've been placed in a really interesting main world. It is not for everyone. It is brutal. It's hard to maintain the foothold we have carved out for ourselves. To accomplish this, we have had to work together in a way that most players never have to. You might be wondering why any of us stay here when we could go and play a more fun game. Well, there are many reasons. For me, it gives me purpose. Without this, I didn’t do well in any other world, but with the pressure, I rose to meet the challenge. That’s one reason.”

Sevs nodded. That sounded like something Father might have said. Life needs a purpose. The only way to find out is to take on as much responsibility as you can. Then you do your best. Thanks to the last fifteen years, he knew of these concepts, not only knew about them but had really learned what they meant.

The Lieutenant wasn’t done, though. “That is not the only reason people stay. Many choose not to as well. But once they decide to stay, like you, few people leave. No, the other reason people stay is that in this world, people ascend like no other I have ever been to. Maybe ten times the rate. Also, those who fail and are marked 'Not Suitable for Ascension' are exceedingly rare. It seldom happens to an active service member.”

That was very interesting. “Why do you think that is? I hadn’t ever heard that a world was better for ascension than others. Then why wouldn’t more worlds be like that?”

“Good questions Sevs, good questions. I also had never heard of it since coming here. In fact, I am not sure that it's true. That this world is better for ascension, that is. See, I don’t think for the average person it is better. I think it is merely better at weeding out those not suited for it. I’ve seen people break here. And you will too. They can’t deal with the pain and failure over and over again. They leave quickly. The only ones left are the ones who can take it.”

“Besides the pain of dying, there are very few consequences, though. Can that really break that many people? They just respawn.”

“That is mostly true. And it's a big reason we are not the same as a real military from history. After all, this is a game. There are limited consequences. Here they are more real than in other worlds I have played in. See, we are an armada of ships. There are a few deep space stations, but they move too. Respawn is based on ships. We can lose ships. They might never find their way back to us. For all we know, those players all left. Maybe they are still fighting out there somewhere.”

“What if a ship is destroyed?”

“Well, the crew can set their spawn points to a different ship if they can reach it, and there are slots left for them to fill. Else when they die, they get sent somewhere.”