“Welcome, Alan.” It was Kara. He hadn’t seen her for a few days and had wondered where she had gone.
“Good to see you again, Kara. What brings you here today?”
She looked at him pensively before continuing. “I am here to let you know of an update which will be taking place for Cosmos.” She looked at him expectantly. When he didn’t, she continued. “When a new planet becomes active in Cosmos, there is an unrestricted time where new players can gain the full experience of Cosmos. However, because of the inherent dangers of introducing so many technological and cultural advances, Cosmos has developed and set in place artificial limiters. This is to protect the native species. Therefore, in order to give a smooth transition, the following restrictions will be enabled." A screen appeared in front of Alan as Kara continued speaking.
All imports of new technology from Cosmos to Earth will be restricted to those products already brought to Earth or those solely manufactured by ‘human hands.’ This includes weapons, medicine, energy, etc.
Please note that this may be an inconvenience to some players. Therefore, We are offering the following:
A 1x change of location for any current players to a new planet within 72 hours.
A virtual Terran Marketplace will be established as a convenient place to exchange goods. Foreign goods may be bought and sold at the Market, but the same restriction for Earth transfers still applies.
All time restrictions related to Cosmos are now lifted. You can now remain in Cosmos at all times.
A 30% tariff on all human-made goods imported to Earth from Cosmos as a means to encourage local production and buying locally.
A 30% tariff on all human-made goods at the planetary tech levels and above sold in Cosmos.
Do you have any questions, Alan?” She finished her explanation and waited expectantly.
Alan understood perfectly but felt he needed to show some semblance of surprise. “What does ‘made by human hands’ mean?” He queried.
“To clarify, it means that humans must produce an item for it to be sold in the Terran Market.”
“So, I’m planning on going back to Kragga. Would that mean that a salvaged ship would be under embargo?”
Kara's eyes widened slightly at his admission of going back to Kragga.
“Excellent question, Alan. Yes and No. If you were to repair the ship to full functionality, then no. Fixing an item does not allow it to be brought through. However, dismantling and using the metals, parts, and pieces to create something can be considered extracting and developing an item. This plays in your favor as these are abandoned vessels. But someone who simply purchases several parts and puts together an item would not qualify.”
“I see, so by extracting the parts from the salvage lands, I can use them for new productions?”
“That is correct.” She said matter of fact.
“What about the batteries which are produced by my ship manufacturing? The manufacturing was operational before the event but not brought to Earth.”
She paused. “No. Those batteries are manufactured by the species who built the ship, specifically the manufacturing machines.”
Alan knew the answer before she even spoke it. Rules were rules. But he’d been lucky to find the intact workshop to begin with. He’d already produced a lot of batteries.
"What about my VE generator?"
"Yes, that is fine, as it was purchased before the embargo. All energy it can produce is technically from human origin."
"And the Nyamisium?" He asked, already knowing the answer.
"That is considered a raw resource that, when turned in VE or other materials, are not restricted by the embargo."
Satisfied by the answers, Alan followed up with a few more questions. It made it appear he was getting clarification on a few other specifics.
“So what is this marketplace, and when does it open up?”
“The Market place will open in 72 hours. As a purchaser of the first series of Pods, you are entitled to free access and a 10% discount to a purchase of residency.”
Alan nodded. “Thank you, Kara. I think that is all I need to know.” He was considering his next step when Kara interrupted his train of thought.
“Did you know about the embargo and planet transfer?" When he didn't immediately respond, she continued, "I have monitored you closely, and it does not appear that you have the means or connections for such knowledge. The only potential connection, I have determined, was with the combatants you had engaged in with yesterday. They appeared to have had foreknowledge in connection with a previous violator."
Alan had expected a question, but not so directly. He'd had a fear all along with being labeled a cheater. Not knowing how she might react, he'd tried to come up with a possible explanation without directly lying to her. “When we had our other conversation about exchanging credits for precious metal exchange. You mentioned that you tried to limit how much we could gain access to things too quickly. I figured you’d have some way to make it hard to do business or trade with Cosmos. After I met with those guys yesterday, I figured the timeline would be soon.”
She considered his question before speaking again. “I understand the suspicion of the embargo, but how did you know we would offer a planetary transfer?”
He had no real explanation for it, so he didn’t try. “I guess I got lucky. Maybe I’d hire a ship or something to return to Kragga.” Alan was grateful he hadn’t spent all his credits to seem somewhat credible.
"Alan, there were significant consequences for the cheater related to the party on Mairkness. You must also be aware that the players you assisted in defeating were also penalized for their attempts. However, as their 'cheating' was ultimately inconsequential, in that matter, and they are new to Cosmos, the penalty was light." Kara did not appear satisfied with Alan's answer. "However, you have gained access to a piece of technology at the Astral Level that will have a high probability of impacting your level of play and advancement in Cosmos. You would likely face the most severe consequences if found to be cheating. It would be better for you to admit it at this point to reduce the penalty if that is the case."
The narrative has been taken without permission. Report any sightings.
Alan felt like he'd been sent out of an airlock into space, cold and alone in his struggle to save humanity. It was a path only he could tread. It was a feeling he'd felt before. He'd been on a spacewalk, working overtime to tear apart an alien freighter. When a pebble-sized meteorite overwhelmed his suit's defenses and drove him away from the wreckage, his energy reserves had been almost completely drained. It was eight hours of Hell. Eight hours spent at the edge of freezing, taking half breaths to conserve oxygen. It had only been the persistence of his parents calling the company after he'd missed dinner with them that led to saving his life. He would have just been another number lost in space after the expulsion of Earth if not for the people who cared about him. Could he do any less?
Ignoring the coldness, which he knew wasn't part of the simulation, Alan confidently ignored the warning. “No problem on my end Kara. Thanks, though." He changed the subject, ready to stop thinking about the potential consequences, "Kara, while I was on Mairkness, I bought a few gene serums. Could I possibly use them now?”
Kara appeared to suddenly shift from her solemn warning to her business-like manner. “Yes, of course. Let’s begin that now. I will go ahead and automatically extract your weak gene serums and apply them. Please wait a moment.”
Moments later, Alan felt a warm heat pass through his body, the serum beginning its work. It was much more pleasant than the first time. Not long after, his mind seemed to focus more on the room.
“Hi, Alan.” Kara said, “You’ve reached the maximum benefits from weak gene serums.” Alan nodded, somewhat groggy from the double dose. She spoke after he appeared more aware. “On the bright side, you added 8 GMU units. Checking his status, it read clearly as 34/38 GEU. A notification popped up.
NOTICE! VE Generator Trait is no longer over maximum GMU. The subject will no longer experience pain during a transfer of energy. Ongoing genetic modification: Freely able to transfer energy. It is now fully enabled.
Alan shifted his body and willed away the uncomfortable feeling from the upgrade. He moved energy to refill his ring. It was a relief to finally be able to use and transfer VE again without the agonizing pain that accompanied it. Alan let himself give a broad smile to Kara, who in return smiled back. He checked on the requirements for the GMU upgrade:
This ability is upgradable when the following have been met:
GMU: 34/52. (VE) Capacity at level 8. (VE) Production at level 8. Storage at Max.
Warning: Additional upgrades may lead to changes in physiology.
Hmm...that is strange. Before, I needed at least 20 GMU available over the cap for an upgrade. It looks like now, however, I only need 18. It looked to Alan as if part of his forced mutation had reduced how much he needed to upgrade. Looking at the other requirements, his mind went to his stats.
“I guess now would be a good time to check on my last combat report. Kara, can I see my rewards before going on the planet?" She nodded. Immediately, notifications popped up showing his fight from the previous day.
Combat Review: 1 Free stat awarded.
There wasn’t much in the way of combat rewards this time around. He couldn’t blame the system, though. It wasn’t like he’d done much anyway except nearly get shot and beaten. It was pretty unknown at the beginning, but you’d likely get a lot of stats at first, only to have them slow down later in the game if you didn't consistently challenge yourself. He then noticed another notification.
Big Spender LVL1: Make Transactions of 25,000 Credits. 1 Stat Awarded.
Big Spender LvL 2: Make Transactions of 50,000 Credits. 1 Stat Awarded.
***Bonus Award. You are invited to a special auction held at the Market Today for achieving this award within the first week.
His heart raced as his planning and risks had paid off. When he'd first realized he was back, he knew that doing whatever it took to get to this point was essential. Much of his plans had centered on doing whatever he could to get the money for this stat and, more importantly, the auction. In his last life, he’d only been able to spend 50,000 credits after years of playing the game. Yet, he’d managed to do it after one week. It's too bad it didn't seem to include the exchange for the VE Generator.
He shifted his attention to focus back on his stat points and the additional 3 free stat points.
There wasn’t much debate on where to put his points. He was going down the path of focusing on energy, and he didn’t hesitate to put as much into those areas as possible, maxing out his VE capacity and production. He held onto his remaining stat point, unsure what else might be unlocked. He didn’t need the intelligence boost, as that only helped his ability to download more info. And for his other unlocked stats, strength, and speed, he could work on those manually.
He looked at his player sheet.
Personal Modifier
Current
Available: 1
Description
Credit Balance:
46,315
Strength
(3/10)
Items:
Basic Tools
Electronic Tools
Food Ration
4-Wheeler
Energy Pistol
EV Exchange Generator
43 F Monster Nyamisium Core
1 F Monster Nyamisium Core
Droid
10 Doses of Nano heal
Battle Energy Gauntlets
….
Speed
(3/10)
Intelligence
(3/10)
(VE) Capacity
(8/8)
800 Unit Cap
102/800 VEU
(VE) Production
(8/8)
8 Units Per Hour
Everything looked good. His stats were updated, his genome taken care of, and an awkward conversation with Kara was successfully avoided. He hoped, at least.
“Kara, I’m ready to transfer to Kragga. After that, I think I'll go home to talk to my Mom. ”
“Alright, Alan. Please prepare for transfer.” She stated calmly.
“Before I go, I wanted to ask when the Terran Market opens?”
“The Market will open this afternoon at 12 p.m. your local time, and the special auction will happen this evening. You are welcome to access the Market via pod at this time.”
Alan nodded, “Thanks, Kara. I'll get going.”