It was time. I would finally be a xeno-engineer, a very prestigious job as of last decade. Something I worked the entire latter half of my life for. All I needed to do was pass this interview, competing against hundreds of people—easy, right?
“Nova, are you there?” Oh yeah, the interview has already started, huh? "Are you okay?” Come on, say something, Nova; you aren’t gonna get a job just staring at the interviewer! “Do you need water or something?” It’s getting hard to see; what’s happening to me? “Here, let me get you some water.” I vaguely heard the door close, but I was more preoccupied with the floor rapidly approaching.
I woke up in my bed to the TV playing upstairs before remembering what happened to me. “Dammit, Nova! Not again!” No way I got the job, not after passing out at the start of the interview again. “Fuck it, I’m going for a walk!” I ran upstairs and outside before my parents dragged me into a conversation.
It was already night, and there was something unfamiliar in the air. I couldn’t quite place what was wrong, though. Then I looked up to see a massive and growing rift just, in the sky. “Fuck now I am really losing it, huh? I need to take a break from job searching; it's not like I am getting anywhere.” still, the rift kept growing as I looked at it, and after a couple of minutes, I started to doubt I was just going crazy, especially when the sky exploded.
I woke up again, but not in my bed this time. No, I was in a gray room with nothing but a pedestal in the center. “Such a dreary place; who designed it? Where’s the door?” Without much else to do, I went to look at the pedestal. It was like an iPad, with a blue screen covered in orange text that was hard to look at.
Welcome. It is to our great shame that your universe was destroyed as a byproduct of our escape, and we are doing everything we can to correct the situation. However, we need more personnel to sustain the more significant population. We, the Archmages of the system, would like to offer you the job of dungeon and terraformer. Your job includes terraforming a section of the planet, Enyo, to support a thriving ecosystem and designing a dungeon to train the inhabitants of our planet for raids from and to the Voxlings. If you accept this position, you will be given all the necessary tools for your job. You can deny the position, and your soul will be returned to your god.
-System communications(Call me Will)
Accept/Deny
“So, I can either work to terraform a planet or go to hell; no way god lets me into heaven- there isn’t much of a choice, is there? What even is a voxling?” No response. “Okay, fine, I accept.”
Thank you for your coming years of service; this space is separate from time. Please take advantage of that to process any emotions over your untimely death before passing through the disintegra- I mean portal behind you.
Unauthorized reproduction: this story has been taken without approval. Report sightings.
-System communications
As it stated, there was a blue swirling portal behind me. Not seeing much point in stewing in my emotions, I went through the portal. What’s the worst thing that could happen? “Oh god, it fucking hurts! WHAT THE FUCK HELP!!!” The most painful thing imaginable, that’s the worst that could happen. It felt like my nerves were being stabbed one by one. In the end, I passed out before being pulled all the way through the portal.
The third time is the charm, so let’s hope this is my last time waking up after passing out today. “Seriously, they could have warned me about the pain; why did they have to make it hurt so much?!” My voice sounded strange, robotic.
Notice- Tereformer #3812 is awake.
Welcome, Tereformer #3812. Please open your status and make the pending choices that will form your future purpose so we may begin the tutorial. You can open your status by either saying “Open status” or imagining it opening with the intent to open it
-System communications
New questline!
Name: The tutorial.
Objective: Open your status window
Time limit: 20 minutes
Description: All journeys start somewhere; let’s start yours by figuring out what and who you are!
Rewards: Refill all motives, free level
Penalties: loss of a level(Note: should your level drop below zero, you will die)
“Open window! Don’t kill me! Please! I already died!”
Name: Terraformer #3812 Race: System Core Class: Terraformer Skills* Traits* Inventory
Questline update!
Objective: Open your status window -> Choose your name, class, skills, and trait.
“Okay, first of all, I am a human, not a system core, and how am I supposed to do that? Do I just tap on the name section?” I reached out to tap on the name section, realizing I couldn't
move. “WTF? Where are my arms!” I don’t have arms or legs, come to think of it. It was hard to tell because there is nothing but stone everywhere, but I didn’t have a head or an edge to my vision; it was just a sphere of being able to see, and my non-existent head was starting to hurt.