I let out a gasp as I fell on some grey, rough stone. I had just been sitting at my desk at work putting together a data pull from the servers to make another report. Being obese and just over six feet tall meant that when I fell, it was far more painful than a smaller person falling. My tail bone was incredibly sore now and there was sure to be a bruise.
Looking around, I noted several other people had fallen on the ground and appeared just confused as I was. I kept looking around and saw that there were more people scattered about the stone plaza. All of them were just as confused as me. Several were in just their underwear or naked.
There were plain stone buildings surrounding the square plaza that looked like something out of Minecraft. Looking up at the sky, I noticed that it was a clear blue with the occasional cloud drifting past. The air was warm and comfortable, with no smell of salt or anything else. Just clean fresh air. The last time I smelled such fresh air was when I had gone hiking in Maine when I was a lot younger and thinner.
The confusing part was that I had been just at work only moments before and was teleported here. I let out a sigh. The first step is don’t panic. The second: accepting reality as it is, not how I wanted it to be. The last step was figuring out the rest of the steps.
I had read enough to narrow down the possibilities. It was either aliens, gods, super beings, or worse, a system.
“Status?” I said aloud.
I ignored the startled yells and discussions between other people since they didn’t appear to know anything either. One woman was smacking her phone against her head. Yes, give yourself brain damage in a critical situation, that will help you figure things out.
Nothing happened when I spoke and I was a bit thankful since a System meant throwing common sense out the window and represented untold death. Killing to get stronger was something that would see me on the “getting killed” part of the equation. I had less than zero combat ability.
Better check everything just to be sure.
“Menu, inventory, help, command, admin.” I tried several spoken words and thought them too, but nothing happened. Since the primary way to advance under a System was death and killing, I didn’t want to deal with something like that. With my fat body, I had little hope of beating anyone.
Aliens were my best guess since there didn’t appear to be a system. More spaceships and fewer grey stones were what I was expecting. I stood up with a groan, shook the dust off my body, and stretched a bit. At least I had some clothes on compared to other people. Getting teleported while in the middle of a shower or sleeping was quite unfortunate.
I am, or was, a business analyst, not a gymnast. That meant I sat at a computer writing code, creating reports, and e-mails. There were lots of e-mails. At least that was one benefit of being kidnapped. No e-mails.
I had nothing in my pockets since I took everything out when I sat down at my work desk. I wanted nothing impacting my overly large waist since that got uncomfortable.
Noting that some people had phones out, I wasn’t surprised they had no reception. Or their calls weren’t getting through? I had on my sweater since work always had the AC blasting or the heat low. I also had black khakis and sneakers. Business casual and comfortable were the key things to having a productive workday in the office. Also, it was hard to find other decent clothes in my size.
I rubbed my face and frowned. Well, I was going to be growing a beard unless I found a way to shave. I wasn’t too worried about food or water. Anything advanced enough to teleport a human being safely had enough power and knowledge to supply food and water. The stone buildings would supply shelter, so that was taken care of.
Still, I couldn’t just stand around with my thumb up my ass. The first rule for being rescued is to try to rescue yourself. I didn’t want to waste energy running around like some other idiots I saw. The key was the mindset of a fat person. Maximum gain for the least amount of effort.
I looked around but saw nothing notable aside from a circle of pillars in the center of the plaza. I counted eight of them. They were about as wide as my fat thigh and came up to about the middle of my chest. A solid four feet or a bit over a meter.
Some people walked by them and looked at them. One even poked a pillar with their hand, but nothing happened.
Most of them were scared, panicking, or talking to someone else. I rolled my eyes at that. Like anyone would know what was going on. Unless this was like the anime Sword Art Online where the creator hid with the players. I needed to be careful about making hasty assumptions.
I made my way to the pillars and confirmed there were no markings. No markings were found on the rough stone ground in the center either. It was all a dull grey. There appeared to be a very thin line of mortar between the separate stones on the ground, but the buildings and the pillars were single pieces, as far as I could tell. I placed my left hand on one pillar. Nothing happened.
The surface was slightly cold and smooth. Not surprising for grey stone. I checked my hand. No dust either. There didn’t appear to be any recent sign of rain or wind. A minor but interesting oddity. I put my second hand on the pillar.
That was when I was assaulted by mental images. I quickly yanked my hands back and the mental images disappeared. They were just blurs of color, but something had clearly happened. I looked around, but no one was paying attention to me. They were too busy being in shock or talking in small groups. I put both my hands on the pillar again and information entered my brain.
It was a weird experience and the first thing that jumped to mind was when I was a kid and blood got cut off to a limb and when the blood began flowing again, I would get pins and needles. That was like this experience, but with my brain. I could only wish it was as comforting as ASMR, otherwise known as brain tingles. Instead, it was knowledge being shoved into my brain, like rediscovering a limb I didn’t know I had.
I had 100 points and there was a store, oh no.
Fruit, 1 to 5 points depending on the size.
Clothes, 20 to 100 points depending on the article of clothing.
I could sense the clothes would be tailored to the person buying them.
I could parse the information by mentally focusing and the knowledge would appear in the front of my brain.
Water required a container.
I mentally thought about a container, but there was no option for such an item.
I thought about other tools, but the only options were sticks for 1 to 5 points based on size, as well as a wood club for 10 points.
I removed the hand and looked around, wondering what was going on.
Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on Royal Road.
“Do you know what is happening?” A middle-aged man had come up to me.
I introduced myself. “No, but I have some ideas. Name’s Michael.”
“Frank.” I shook his hand. I noted he was wearing white-collar clothes and appeared to be in better shape than me like he had just been out golfing. My mind quickly thought through the implications of our situation. Information was power, but the system-type store wouldn’t remain secret for long.
“I figured some things out. I was thinking we should form a team.” He appeared to be thoughtful, rather than just saying the first thing in his mind. I noticed he gave my fat body a look.
“What did you find out?” Time to take a leap of faith. Hesitation or trying to wheedle a deal now would only make me look untrustworthy and build resentment.
“There is a system. If you put both hands on a pillar, you get to see a point count and options to buy things. There was fruit, but water needed a container. Try it and then we can talk a bit,” I suggested.
He gave me a skeptical look but nodded.
I quickly went back to the shop.
No metal was present, and there was only a club. No armor either. No guide for sale. But an upgrade to the shop itself cost 1,000 points. Either we needed to pool our points, or there was a way to earn them.
I took my hands off the pillar and made my way over to Frank.
I waited for him to finish looking through the store and then he looked at me and muttered in a worried tone, “That was troublesome.” His face ran through several expressions before turning downcast.
“Do you want to team up?” I asked hopefully.
“Yes… Yes. So, what were you thinking?” He was clearly struggling to understand things after being affected by the knowledge and our circumstances. Thankfully, he agreed to team up. Otherwise, what I was planning would be a lot harder to accomplish.
“We need one or two more people, minimum. Decent shape, and more importantly low drama.” I began walking away from the pillars and he followed. I didn’t whisper since that would attract attention but talked quietly. People noticed whispers more than quiet talking.
We looked around. “What about those two?” Frank gestured at a man and a woman together. The woman was what I would call fugly, so the chance of interpersonal drama was low. They were both in decent shape. Still, they were already an established pair, which could lead to issues.
“That guy.” I gestured at a young Asian man. He looked lost and confused. A quick look around showed that the demographics probably meant most people here were Americans. This was based on the clothes, words I had overheard, and general demeanor.
Frank followed me to the young man. “Hello there, I am Michael, and this is Frank,” I introduced both of us.
“I am Jim Park Soon. Do you know what has happened?” Nope, but I wanted one more person. I tried not to think about how there was a store system and the long-term implications of such a thing.
“I have some strong guesses and discovered some things. Those pillars give access to points and a shop if you put both hands on them. It appears to be some kind of system store where you can buy things with points. My guess is aliens or a system-like construct transported us here. I was thinking we can all team up for safety and find a way to earn points.”
“Um, why me?” He sounded confused.
“You are young and fit. If you meant why we were transported here, no idea.” He quickly raised his hands in denial.
“I was studying in medical school. I don’t know any martial arts.” Well, that would have been nice, but medical school was a nice consolation prize.
“Even better. There is safety in numbers. Once more people realize that food can be earned with points, there is only one logical outcome,” I said.
“Forcing others to buy stuff for them,” Frank said with his head bent forward. I would have said violence and torture.
“Well maybe. That sounds nicer than what I came up with. I was thinking they would use game logic and kill people to try to take their points. I didn’t find a way to transfer them with the pillar. Frank, take my hand and think of exchanging points.” We did and nothing happened. We let go.
“Nothing. That means in a day or two, if they discover no other way to earn points, then people will murder each other to see if they can get points that way.” There was silence as both of the people in my newly formed group considered what I had said.
“Was there a way to return home?” Jim asked.
“No, but there was an upgrade option for 1,000 points. That means it is possible to earn more. Since there doesn’t appear a way to share them or a group purchase feature either.” There was suddenly shouting as the secret of the pillars was leaked by an idiot. I was glad we had moved away before that happened and drew unwanted attention from being the first to make that discovery.
“Team up?” I asked Jim and held out my hand. He hesitated for a moment before taking and shaking it. Then he shook hands with Frank. Perfect. Three people was good for a small group. The odd number meant that votes wouldn’t tie, and we could get to know each other better to form the core of a team before bringing on others.
“This was what I was thinking. Once the excitement dies down, we purchase bags or packs and supplies. Also, clubs as weapons. Then we try to find the exit to this city. My guess is that we are going to have to kill things to get points.”
“Kill things? What things?” Frank asked. I noted Jim looking at me as well.
I wanted to roll my eyes at the lack of common sense. There was nothing to craft, and this appeared to be a safe zone. That meant there was probably something outside the city or deeper within.
“This appears to be a game. An interface like that isn’t something that occurs in nature. The teleportation is also a clue. Games require competition. Just killing other people is too boring and can easily be done by whatever brought us here. That means there is something outside of this plaza that needs to be done,” I explained patiently.
“Either it is exploration or hunting and killing monsters. Maybe a combination. With no instructions, those are the two most likely requirements to earn points,” I finished.
“You think they are watching us?” Jim looked around nervously.
“Of course there is some kind of monitoring. How else will the system know if we earn points?”
“Makes sense. So, you want to explore?” Frank looked up at the sky. “Hard to tell what time it is.” He looked at his watch.
“You can reset it at dawn. That way, we know how long the day is and if we are on a different planet. Possibly work out if there is seasonality.” They stared at me. “I might be a fat tub of lard, but my brain is among the best of them. The real question is what direction we should leave the plaza from. Ideas?” I didn’t want to dominate all the decisions, but I also needed to showcase my value.
They came up with the idea I had of using the sun as a reference. In the end, we headed towards the sun once we purchased our supplies. The excitement and initial purchases had finally stopped at the pillars as people were talking near them.
We went over to one of the pillars after I asked if we could check after the group of two, the couple I had looked at before.
I spent the time looking around. Most people got some food and formed small groups, talking with each other. Some people left in various directions into the city, though not that many and only in small groups. Well, I wouldn’t complain about the lack of motivation to explore. The less competition the better.
This was a race. A race to get points and get stronger and I was already behind. Fear gnawed at my heart, along with cholesterol. If there had been a stat screen, with clear progression, classes, and skills, I would feel a lot safer. Instead, I had to make guesses and hope they would keep me alive. After waiting for a couple of minutes, they were finished, and I went into the system store first.
Backpack, 15 points.
Wood club, 10 points.
Five oranges, 10 points.
Five apples, 10 points.
That left me with 55 points.
The items appeared floating above the pillar, and I quickly packed things away into the simple pack. Just two straps for my shoulders and the pack itself, with no external pockets or adjustments. At least the pack came in my size.
Frank and Jim made the same purchases after me since we had discussed our options while waiting and didn’t want to linger at the store. I noted several people were looking at us but said nothing. There was a risk in being one of the first to make so many purchases, but there was also opportunity. What I hadn’t mentioned aloud were the self-improvement options that cost 100 points each.
Body, Mind, Spirit, Perception, and Aura. No stats were given and the initial cost for each of the stats was all the same. While it had been tempting to buy one right off the bat, that was a trap. A weapon and supplies were far more important to invest my initial 100 points on.
Once my teammates were done, we left the plaza and began making our way through the abandoned stone city.
“This place gives me the heeby jeebies,” Frank muttered.
“Keep alert. I will keep watch forward. Frank, you watch our left side and look up at the roofs as well. Jim, you look at our right side.” They gave me affirmatives as we made our way forward.
The city quickly became frustrating as it was laid out like an ancient city, all helter-skelter, with no grid pattern. This meant there were no nice straight roads leading to the edge. We had to backtrack at least twice after hitting a dead end.
Inside the buildings was nothing. Not even dust was present. After checking three of them, we stopped. If there was a special-looking building we would look, but the blocks of grey stone masquerading as buildings had no immediate value as far as I could tell.