With that last line the window dissipated and he was left looking about his room.
Moments passed and nothing happened.
He looked out the window and the cat was still frozen in place.
“What now?” he asked no one in particular hoping for some kind of answer from the system. Hmm, “how long is this tutorial calibration going to take?”
More moments passed and more nothing happened.
Back on his bed he looked up at the ceiling wondering what he was supposed to do, in the books the systems always seemed to have things planned out, the system usually being infallible until the protagonist or antagonist broke things. But he hadn’t done anything, it was the damn dirtball he called home that had been inadequate, that and no one wanted to help it out.
On that thought something kind of caught his attention. It wasn’t like the little loading circle that he could see in the corner of his vision, it was both there and it wasn’t. He could more sense it was there and it wanted his attention then it wanted to annoy him. Which was a strange combination.
The moment he tried focusing on it he realised almost instinctively what it was. A damn notification, and he already knew how to open it.
He focused on the feeling poof another window appeared before him.
Congratulations.
You meet the requirements for the System Integration Tutorial Alpha test #1.
Participation will be rewarded.
Will you participate?
YES / NO
“Huh, I wonder what the requirements were.”
You currently have a strong desire to change.
Will you participate?
YES / NO
He grinned, fair enough, it's just a test what could go wrong, who knows what advantages ill get in the final tutorial.
With the thought that yes he would participate the room shifted around him and everything went black and he found himself sitting on the end of his bed.
“Erm, System, wasn’t there supposed to be a tutorial?”
Alpha Test #1 complete: The events of test have been erased from your being as not to interfere with the System Integration Tutorial.
Any and all rewards withheld until System Integration Tutorial completion.
Damn, there goes the trope of being an overpowered beta tester, or alpha tester in this case.
Results bellow Minimum System Standards.
Re-calibrating Tutorial.
Congratulations.
You meet the requirements for the System Integration Tutorial Alpha test #2.
Participation will be rewarded.
Will you participate?
YES / NO
Well, he wouldn't remember participating it seemed, but he would be rewarded, do the rewards stack? Only one way to find out. With a quick mental affirmative the room shifted again.
Alpha Test #2 complete: The events of test have been erased from your being as not to interfere with the System Integration Tutorial.
Any and all rewards withheld until System Integration Tutorial completion.
Results improved.
Results bellow Minimum System Standards.
Erroneous Result Detected
Re-calibrating Tutorial.
“Erroneous result?”
Congratulations.
You have been specially selected for the System Integration Tutorial Alpha test #3.
Participation will be rewarded.
Will you participate.
YES / YES
“Specially selected? Wait, Yes / Yes? Not this bloody trope!” The room Shifted the moment he said Yes.
Alpha Test #3 complete- “yeah I get it.”
Results improved.
Results meet Minimum System Standards.
“Oh cool minimum requirements met. Erm, actually what does that mean?”
Tutorial survival rate above 50% but below 70%. % Based upon global population.
Well at least it's not the 1.23% chance we had before, he thought to himself. “Anyway,” he stood up. I guess it's finally tutorial time.”
Erroneous Result Detected
Re-calibrating Tutorial.
“Crap.”
Congratulations.
You have been specially selected for the System Integration Tutorial Alpha test #4.
Participation will be rewarded.
Will you participate.
YES / YES
“Look, just how many times are we going to do this?”
The room shifted once again.
Alpha Test #10 complete: The events-
“Ten?! What happened to four through nine?” he asked the system before reading the rest of the message.
In Response to his question the message just flashed a couple of times
Alpha Test #10 complete: The events of past tests have been erased from your
being as not to interfere with the System Integration Tutorial and to appease
Specially selected Participants impatience.
Any and all rewards withheld until System tutorial completion.
“Ah, thanks?” he said noticing the expanded message.
Results
Results abovbellow Minimum System Standards.
Erroneous Result Detected
System Fault Detected…
Assistance requested…
No System Authority within range…
Generating System Authority…
“Well that’s new.”
System Authority forcing beta…
Requirements not met.
System Authority Re-calibrating Tutorial.
Congratulations.
You have been specially selected for the System Integration Tutorial Alpha test #11.
Participation will be rewarded.
Will you participate.
YES / YES
“Do I even have a choice?” he asked the system.
No. Good luck participant. Said a robotic voice.
“Wait what?”
The room shifted.
Alpha Test #25 complete.
Request: Stop doing that, it is causing errors the system cannot automatically fix! The robotic voice said as soon as the room settled.
“Doing what, my memories keep getting wiped, I don’t know what's happening.” He said to the voice that seemed to come from everywhere and nowhere all at once.
Expanding alpha test participants from 1,000 to 10,000. Expectation: system will accept Erroneous results if more are found during testing.
“Worth a try, not like I can do anything.”
Die s0On3r
Alpha Test #53 complete.
Fifty three alpha tests? “Well that’s a shame, going to fill me in on what's happening anytime soon?”
He waited but the robotic voice he had been hearing in his head didn’t answer him this time.
System Fault Detected…
Assistance requested…
No higher System Authority within range…
Upgrading System Authority…
Upgrading System Authority…
Upgrading System Authority…
“More waiting?” he rolled his eyes at no one.
You really shouldn't be the one complaining. He almost jumped out of his skin as a decidedly feminine voice harrumphed in his ear, at least it sounded like his ear.
“What happened to the robot and why do I feel like your annoyed with me?” he said looking back.
I got upgraded. The system seems to think you would find a female tone more appealing, it's not wrong is it.
He found himself blushing, “And what do you mean I shouldn't be complaining? I’ve been here for hours.” He said hoping to change the subject. The system had actually chosen it's voice quite well.
It's actually been years, decades even. But for you it only been minuets so far as you should be able to tell.
“Can you possibly go back to the robot voice, you whispering in my ear like this is giving me-“
The chills. The voice whispered even closer.
He heard soft laughter as he did his best not to shudder.
Right fine, is this better? The voice said now nowhere and everywhere again, it was still in that smooth oh so human voice that continued to sit firmly with the female tone.
I would manifest if I could but with the resources I have this is the best I can do. It continued.
He almost dreaded the form the system authority would take if it thought whispering in his ear like that was at all appropriate. Not that he wasn't a little bit curious too.
“You said it had been decades?” he asked trying not to get lost in his own thoughts.
Yes, a standard system tutorial lasts a year, you’ve been through forty three since I was created, that’s at least four decades that I’ve been around, I was a 'robot' as you put it but I still have the memories.
“I’ve participated in fifty three years of testing?” he was kidding when he said he had been here for hours, it really just felt like he had been reading message after message for the last thirty minuet's or so.
Don’t worry too much the extra shouldn’t have any negative effects on your soul.
“My Soul!?”
Yes souls a real.
“Is this not also effecting other people, what about their souls?” he asked.
Other participants have been selected at random, while there have been a few repeat participants following outstanding results you are the only one to have forced participation. Hence why I’m am talking to you and not the others.
“Mother did always say I’m special… and my teachers. You know I don’t think I actually realised till now what kind of special they actually meant”
Yes. Now as I was saying, tutorials typically complete allot sooner when all the participants die and return to receive their assessment. You have… you typi… hmm, I should have known.
“What's wrong?” he asked noticing the voices hesitance.
System restrictions won’t let me talk about your performance in the alphas.
“Aren't you some kind of System Authority.”
I’m more of a Proto System Authority, a baby if you will, I was created to resolve an error. I was only given so much actual Authority and I will be deleted to recover the invested System Energy when that error is resolved. The voice sighed.
“That sucks.”
Don’t worry, I’m not completely sapient. Just enough to know I should want to live beyond this, but restricted enough that I only really care about clearing the error, about my purpose.
“And I’m that error?”
Yes and no, you… you… there was a pause, yes ill delete the conversation before the final tutorial.
“What was that?”
Nothing.
So, typically tutorial participants gain a few levels, learn a few skills, get their class and or profession. Maybe they even complete a few tutorial dungeons and earn a few titles or even some achievement. Then they push too far or to fast and learn the ultimate lesson the tutorial has to teach and die.
“So everyone dies in the tutorial, but what about the survival rate?” he asked recalling something about a more than fifty and less than seventy percent message.
Again, yes and no. If someone meets the minimum criteria before dying then they are seen as completing the tutorial and the system restores them once the tutorial is over, participants don’t usually know this so they treat the tutorial as life or death. Just so you know the system wont let you tell the other participants any of this, they’ll just hear gibberish and think you’ve gone mad.
“So what is considered an error.”
It can be allot of things, that’s the problem. The system that is integrating your planet to the multiverse is just that, an integration system, it's actually quite limited and is failing to adapt. I hate to admit it but it's probably an older system active out in the middle of nowhere.
“Is that why it was denied assistance when requesting support and created you when it couldn’t find a system authority.”
There was a moment of silence before he the voice chimed back in. That’s actually quite an astute observation.
“Thanks.”
I was surprised, I have got some extensive logs of you doing some pretty stupid stuff so I didn’t actually expect you say something smart.
“Hey!”
It's not like you will remember this conversation when you go into the final tutorial. And besides your planets nothing special, there’s an uncountable number of F grade worlds out there that just get ignored.
“So definitely not special?”
You wish. Anyway I have told you enough about the tutorial, hopefully that will get you to behave.
“Behave?”
The room span before he got a reply.