“What the actual fuck...” I said aloud as  a blue screen popped into my focus. I had been sitting in my room watching dumb videos on the internet when it seemed to pop out of no where.

“ Do to a mana overflow you universe will now be entered into the systemverse. This will result in drastic and mostly deadly changes to your current dimension. Please prepare yourselves as best you can. More information will be given at a later time via your status screen”

I felt my breath grow fast and legs grow numb with confusion and panic as I tried to wrap my mind around what was in front of me.

The screen was semitransparent and a deep almost purple blue, the font neat and crisp not unlike a text book or any other piece of official looking writing.

Just when he was about to jump out of bed he felt a startling pain in his eyes. It felt as if someone had poured lemons into them and he cried out in pain. I stumbled into the hallway with my eyes closed tight on hand guiding himself to the bathroom, all thoughts of the screen consumed by my pain. I had no real plan what to do but the pain demanded action not thought.

I stumbled into the bathroom with tears rolling down his face. With one hand on the countertop and the other on my eyes  I tried to open my left to see what was wrong with them.

However just like it had appeared the pain vanished in an instant leaving me teary eyes and confused looking at myself in the mirror. I stood in a stupor after such blinding pain and sudden relief he looked at myself in the mirror because that seemed to be the only thing his mind could handle at the moment.

Something seemed off with my reflection but I couldn’t quite figure it out. I looked at myself in his old gray sweatshirt and black shorts my hair the same medium length  pushed the right it had been since high school freshman year summer when I decided to grow it out a bit from his unattractive buzz cut.

I didn’t know why he was thinking these thoughts of 3 years ago in this stressful situation, maybe that was just my mind trying to calm him down with what I did understand. When I stopped thinking of the past and also stopped thinking of why I was thinking of the past I realized two things, that I wasn’t wearing my glasses when the pain had started and shouldn’t even be able to read the words on his sweatshirt without his glasses with a ridiculously strong prescription.

While this was worrisome the small countdown that had shown up in the top left of the bathroom was much more frightening.

“Jesus!” I said whipping around to look at it but it moved with my vision almost like the spots you get from looking at the sun

“9:47”

I felt the panic begin to reasert itself in his mind, but I it down this time.

“Think Russel what the hell is happening” I said aloud again trying to muster some semblance of calm. That was when another screen popped into his vision the same dark blue this time reading “the omegerverse system will allow allow some information to be given to all beings in this universe for the next 9:26 seconds”

“what the hell are you?!” I almost screamed losing myself to confusion again.

The text changed again, saying “I am the help section of the systemverse system meant to give beings a chance to understand and be ready for the changes about to come to this universe”

“What changes?”

“The influx of mana will allow all special of animals and plants to evolve at an accelerated rate. This will cause the death of many humans who will evolve at a much slower rate”

“We I be evolving too?” I asked omg what the hell how the hell is this even possible.

“Humans have the mental fortitude  to resist such changes to their form and very few will be evolving as the beasts and plants do”

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“How do we resist?”

“ It is in your human nature you have already begun resisting. Humans have access to a different aspect of using mana the level portion of the system through this and been able to perceive the system and not just be changed however your DNA seems fit. You will be able to change your evolution through the level system which will give you access to skills attribute points”

“Won’t we be at a major disadvantage because we evolve slower?”

“Yes” the text read which made me furious.

“What can we do then are we just fucked?” I asked.

“Please be more specific in your questions”

“How can we evolve?” I asked my teeth grinding in frustration.

“Humans and other intelligent life forms may level by killing other mana creatures and consuming their mana for themselves”

“So we need to eat to level up? Wait I asked evolve not level up” I said to the blue screen feeling more confused and less scared.

“ while eating will provide you with levels to some extent especially from highly evolved creatures you will gain mana from killing creatures as the mana has been processed by the being and now needs a new host. This will allow you to distribute the stolen mana and evolve how you see fit. This is how you will be able to evolve/level.” The screen read clarifying the distinction between the level and evolution.

“So the only way to get stronger is to kill this evolved stuff?” I asked trying to wrap my head around the idea

“ You can evolve by taking training now that the mana has entered your universe. It will not be as fast but it is a viable option.”

“What training is best?” I asked  if I can get strong enough then killing these evolved beings shouldn’t be to bad. Wait why am I just ready to kill things I should be thinking of how to get help not fight.

“ From what the system can see your human fitness training should suffice but should be much more intense due to the mana being allowed into processed into your body’s speeding up the process of recovery. This is the reason you can see without your glasses and all non infection born illnesses have gone away. However there is no proper way to train your affinity in ambient mana usage the closest the system can identify is meditation but there are some small but important distinctions.”

“Wait I thought mana was in plants and animals how can we manipulate it?”

“ It is nearly impossible to manipulate the mana inside of another being but the ambient mana in everything from rocks to fire life and death are possible to manipulate. All being also have a certain type or types of mana they are able to manipulate easier because of their affinity to it”

“Affinity?” This is sounding more and more like a goddamn video game

“Mana affinity is able to be seen from your status screen. Not even the system knows why some creatures are given affinities over other but is largely assumed it had to do with many factors from bloodline to personality and physical traits. It will be much more difficult to manipulate mana outside of one's affinity”

“Wait how do you not know aren’t you part of the mana?”

“I am the system placed on the mana eons ago I do not know my purpose other then to give access to ones status and skill screens.”

I then hear a high pitched howl coming from outside the window.

“Time expired”