Chapter 3.1 - Getting Started 1

I've been stuck in this pod for ten goddamn hours. Sure, the first eight weren't so bad because I spent them working on creating my [Mana Capacitor] in my [Personal Computer]. I also took a little time to dig through the [Utility Belt] of that last pirate I killed. I found a nice haul of 286 credits which I was more than happy to add to my total. In addition to the money, I found several magazines of ammo for his weapon and a nice item called a [Weapon Fusion].

Weapon Fusions

A weapon fusion is a small, prepackaged add-on that can be attached to any weapon to infuse it with magic.

Item Level - Fusions cannot be placed on weapons with lower item levels than their own. Multiple Fusions - You may place multiple fusions on a single weapon, but only if the total item level of all fusions is less than the item level of the weapon. Intallation - It takes 10 minutes per Item Level of the fusion to properly install it. Those with the Engineering skill subtract 1 minute per Rank in Engineering. Weapon Fusion: Spellthrower Item Level: 2 Description: This fusion allows you to load a single Spell Gem into your weapon at a time. You may only load Spell Gems that contain spells with a Casting Time of Instant. You may only load Spells Gems that contain a spell with a rank no higher than one half of the weapons Item Level. Once a Spell Gem is installed you may use it at any time, but must obey any rules required for casting the spell.

So the [Weapon Fusion] I had was pretty neat sounding, but also really worthless for the time being. I didn't even have a weapon I could install it on or any of the things called [Spell Gems]. Judging from the information presented they seemed like this games version of spell scrolls. I kind of liked the idea of spells being stored in gems, seemed more interesting than carrying around a load of rolled up papers everywhere.

After that was done there was literally nothing to do. I even took some time to log out, stretch, use the restroom and check my messages. Yet I am still stuck in this fucking escape pod. You'll have to pardon my excess swearing, boredom pisses me off. I just couldn't think of a reason it would take so long for rescue to arrive, according to my computer we'd only been six hours from making landfall when the pirates attacked. By my best guess, it shouldn't have taken any more than seven or, at the longest, eight hours for rescue to arrive.

Yet here I am, ten hours later and wishing I had something, anything, to do. I'd already memorized my new abilities and spells and come to the realization that I could definitely hold my own in a fight with someone else my level easily. I'd been here so long my HP had almost fully regenerated from me nearly killing myself. I'm really glad I didn't kill myself, that would have been an embarrassing story to relate to my friends. Sorry, I'm definitely rambling at this point, did I mention how bored I was?

An hour later, eleven hours inside of this fucking escape pod and I finally see another ship outside of the viewport. The huge ship silently glides through the black of space towards my pod. I watch it carefully, I have no idea who these people are and I'd been broadcasting my emergency signal for a long time so they could have been anyone. As the ship pulls alongside my pod I get a good look at the ships name, it's nice and brightly illuminated, Kagarezaka. No idea what that means, alien word maybe?

As the ship pulls closer the console in my pod crackles with static and comes to life and a strong male voice speaks, "This is the Pact Navy ship Kagarezaka contacting the escape pod on our port bow. We'll be pulling you into a cargo bay momentarily, please make sure you're strapped in it can get a little bumpy."

Not one to argue I make sure the harness on my seat is strapped around me tightly so I don't get thrown around the escape pod again and once more risk my death. I'd just spent the last eleven hours slowly recovering my health points, the last thing I needed to do was lose a large chunk of them again. I don't have to wait long before the entire escape pod jolts as its momentum is completely halted. Some sort of tractor beam or something must have grabbed onto the pod, I didn't see or hear anything before the pod jerked to a stop so odds were it wasn't a physical cable or anything like that.

I spend the next few minutes watching as I glide past the hull of the Kagarezaka, or maybe it's gliding past me? It's really hard to tell in space, so from my point of view I'm gliding past it! Eventually, I see a large opening that my pod is guided into, must be the cargo bay the voice mentioned. A few moments later there's a loud crashing sound and a jolt as the escape pod is set down on the floor of the cargo bay. My whole body suddenly feels heavier, it's kind of disorienting to suddenly feel gravity after being out of it for so long.

A short time later there's a loud clang of metal hitting metal followed by the same voice from earlier speaking over the consoles communications array, "Alright, the cargo bay is sealed and atmosphere has been restored. Welcome to the Kagarezaka, please disembark your escape pod."

Finally! I was one step closer to getting to civilization, though with the size of this ship it might be like stepping into a city. Alright, that's a bit of an exaggeration, if I had to guess this ship was only about five times the size of the New Dawn. I quickly unbuckle the harness and climb out of the seat to stretch and get used to standing on my feet once again. After being weightless for so long standing on my feet feels kind of weird, but a good weird. Stretching done I walk over to the escape pods hatch and give my override code to open it up.

As soon as the hatch opens the sight outside... well let's just say it's not really what I was expecting. I was hoping for someone nice to take me somewhere to get something to eat, I was thirsty and starving. I also really wanted a shower. Instead, I see half a dozen men wearing military armor and pointing the very large barrels of very mean looking guns at me. My hands are instantly up in the air, "Don't shoot!"

The six soldiers keep their weapons trained on me while a seventh man walks between them, "As long as you don't do anything aggressive they won't shoot. I'd like to ask you to disarm and remove your [Utility Belt] please. Once you have we'll escort you through the ship and to your quarters. Unfortunately, we're going to need to lock you there until your identity can be verified. I do hope you understand but we can't risk a potential pirate being loose on the ship."

What the man said made sense, it made even more sense with guns pointed at me by six soldiers. I think it's the best policy to not argue with bullets, or whatever those guns fired, so I slowly and very carefully did exactly as requested. I pulled out my [Mana Pistol] with just two fingers to show I had no intention of even trying to use it, then very carefully set it down. Getting the shotgun out was a little more complicated since it was over my shoulder, but I did my best to convey my intention to not pick a fight. With both of my weapons removed I took off my [Utility Belt] and set it down as well. Completely disarmed of my weapons I stepped away from them all and a little closer to the soldiers.

The man who spoke smiles, he's a pretty good looking guy. Uh, not that I swing that way. His hair was bright red and matched his eyes, his complexion was fair and he looked physically fit. He gestures to his right, "Right this way mister?"

Obviously, he wanted my name and I had no reason not to give it to him, "I'm Thomas Darkrose, a passenger from the New Dawn."

He nods, accepting what I say for now. It probably helps that I don't look like the pirates that attacked the ship, they seemed rather ragged and I was still wearing my nice starter clothing. "Welcome aboard the Kagarezaka Mr. Darkrose. I'll lead you to your quarters now."

I nod and start walking in the direction indicated by the man, "I don't suppose I can look forward to a meal, drink, and a shower? I've been stuck in that pod for eleven hours with nothing."

The man gives me another smile and nods, "We can prepare a simple meal and some water for you."

That was music to my hungry ears. I nod in appreciation and follow him, five of the six soldiers follow behind us to keep an eye on me while the sixth retrieves my items. I'm led through the ship, the corridors inside of it are pretty large, easily enough for the guards behind to all keep an eye on me. We pass by many doors with labels like 'Authorized Personel Only' and 'Danger: Explosives'. I don't think I want to go into any of those doors. After around ten minutes or so of walking we arrive at the door to the room I'll be staying in. My escort speaks up, "You'll be staying here until we're sure of who you are and that there are no outstanding bounties on you. We'll also be sure to send down a meal for you followed by someone to take your statement about what occurred on the New Dawn."

After he finishes speaking he touches the panel to the door and it slides open instead of swinging open. I step inside and the door slides shut, a green light on the panel to open the door on my side turns red. The room is bigger than the cabin I was in on the New Dawn, with a double bed, a small desk and chair, a lockbox I could put stuff into if I had any, and a door that leads into a small bathroom with a tiny shower.

An hour later I'd showered, eaten and was resting on the comfortable bed in the cabin, all in all... I was fucking bored again. You know, all the promotional videos had made it seem like this game was non-stop action and adventure, they neglected to even mention the hours you could spend doing absolutely nothing at all. I was contemplating logging out again to do a few things around my apartment when the door chimed and slid open.

Standing in the doorway was a seriously beautiful woman wearing a uniform similar to the man that had guided me to this room. I assume she's a crew member from the outfit. She's tall, at least six inches taller than myself and I was just an inch shy of six feet. All her curves were perfectly proportioned and shaped, nothing too big or too small where it mattered. Her hair was dark, black it looked like, and wound up in a tight bun on the back of her head. She studied me with her iridescent blue eyes from behind the lenses of her glasses.

I sat up in my bed as she greeted me, "Hello Mr. Darkrose, I'm Riva one of the Inquisitors here on the Kagarezaka. I'll be taking your statement and checking it against accounts from other passengers from the New Dawn as well as the ships manifest. May I come in?"

I make a gesture for her to come on in, "Please come in."

She gives me a curt nod and walks into the cabin and takes the seat from the desk to sit in and look at me. She looks down at the small digital data pad she had with her, "Right to business then. We have the manifest that the New Dawn submitted and indeed your name and picture are on the manifest so we're confident in your identity. We would still like an account of everything you did and witnessed during the attack by the pirate ship though."

I nod and explain most of what I did from the time the pirates attacked, my escape from my room, rescuing Nanase, and escorting her and the pink alien to the escape pods. From there I changed my story. In the time I'd had to myself I'd come to the decision that it was probably best not to admit to blowing up the New Dawn and pirate ship. I didn't know what laws this incident would fall under and I didn't want to have to take any responsibility for the destruction I had caused. Sure the cargo would have been stolen by the pirates but there was no guarantee that they would have taken the New Dawn itself and I really didn't want to have the price of the ship becoming a debt I had to pay off.

So my modified story was pretty simple, after dropping off Nanase and the pink guy I explained that I had returned to a console in the ship to check for any other survivors, I added in seeing the crew member being tortured to death. Then explained that when I returned to the escape pods only the one I took was left. I didn't exactly lie, I just didn't tell everything. I didn't know if inquisitors could detect lies or not so I thought it best not to tell a bold-faced lie.

When I finish telling my modified story Riva nods and scrolls through some data on her screen, "What you've said matches up with what Ms. Nanase and Mr. Buxolextox gave in their accounts." She looks at her pad for a bit longer then looks at me, "Do you know what caused the explosion that destroyed the New Dawn and the unregistered pirate ship?"

Technically, it was me. I can't say that out loud though or don't want to say it is more accurate so I sort of deflect, "From what I saw through the hatch viewport on the escape pod it appeared to be an A.C.C. meltdown, perhaps a self-destruct? Or maybe one of the pirates did something stupid?"

Fortunately, none of that was a lie, it did look like an A.C.C. meltdown because that's exactly what it was, and a self-destruct or one of the pirates doing something was a possibility. Framing it as a question instead of a statement also prevented it from being an outright lie. I know I'm skirting the truth with a minor technicality, but it works for me. Riva studies me for a moment so I give her a small smile. She doesn't return the gesture and keeps a stern look on her face while she returns to her datapad and adds some information to it.

"Thank you for your statement Mr. Darkrose. At this time you're cleared on suspicion of being a pirate. When we arrive at Gharstavh you will be placed on a dropship with other rescued survivors. From there you will be dropped off in the port city of Varion as the New Dawn would have done." When she finishes speaking Riva stands up and leaves the room without another word.

Skill Gained Deception 1/100 (+0 Charisma)

After she leaves I recline on the bed once more and sigh, too bad she left. It might sound misogynistic but wound up seeming women like her were almost always wild beasts once you got them out of their clothing.

A few hours later my door chimes and then opens, the man who had escorted me to the room was at the threshold. He gave me a smile and greeted me, "Hello Mr. Darkrose. We've arrived at Gharstavh and I'm here to take you to the dropship." He lifts up his arm and my [Utility Belt] is in his hand, "I've also brought your possessions, your weapons have been stored inside, please leave them there until you have exited the dropship."

I roll off of the comfortable bed I'd been dozing on and walk over to retrieve my [Utility Belt] and put it back on, "Thanks. I was worried I might not get them back."

The man laughs, "Well, we would have given it back to you after speaking with Ms. Riva, but after the account of Ms. Nanase and your own admission to using a grenade on board the New Dawn we decided it was best not to let you have such dangerous items for the time being."

I could have pointed out that even without the weapons I could have easily caused damage to the ship with magic, but wisely decide not to. I give the man a smile and gesture for him to lead the way, "Well let's go then, I'm excited to finally get planetside."

The man nods and leads me through the ship once more. A few minutes later we arrive at a large area with the dropship inside of it. I recognize a few of the people boarding as passengers from the New Dawn, mostly because of their uniquely alien looks. I even spot the thin pink alien, couldn't remember his name though. As I walk up to the dropship a familiar woman walks over to me and gives me a smile, Nanase, the woman I saved. "I'm so glad I got to see you again. In all the commotion on the New Dawn, I didn't have a chance to thank you for saving my life. Even if you did almost scare me to death in the process of saving me."

I make a dismissive gesture with my hand, "Sorry about scaring you, but I'm glad you're alright."

She nods, gives me another warm smile, and gets in line to board the dropship. I follow her and get in line behind her. Once on the dropship, I strap into one of the seats and relax. I was finally going to get onto an alien planet, from there I needed to do a little shopping and contact Reginald, Jeffs character.

Another half an hour later, a bit of a bumpy ride through the atmosphere, and we finally land on Gharstavh. When I disembark the dropship I take my first breath of air on an alien world. It smells... different from the air I'm used to in the real world. There's a hint of something in the scent of the air that I can't make out, along with all the other scents of a fully industrialized city. I walk over to the edge of the landing platform and gaze out onto my first alien city. The city of Varion is a sprawling metropolis of massive buildings reaching into the sky. Some of the buildings I can see have strange shapes and architecture, but for the most part, it doesn't look too disparate from cities back in the real world.

Welcome to Varion the Capitol of Gharstavh! Quest Complete Make your way to Varion the capital city of Gharstavh.

It has been a long journey with many trials and tribulations, but you have finally arrived at Varion! Rewards: Experience Experience Gained: 750 (500+50%) New Quest Now that you have arrived in the city of Varion head to Grizwalds Discount Ship Emporium to claim your free basic starter ship. Rewards: Minimally equipped Light Freighter

Oh? How very nice. Seems like I was going to get a little ship for free. Well, that would make it easier to meet up with Reginald halfway between here and wherever he is. As long as it had an A.C.C. so I could travel it would be good enough until we met up and he gave me the ship and gear he promised me. First things first though, I was finally in a city. It's time to upgrade my [Personal Computer] so it stops annoying the fuck out of me with its voice. Unfortunately, I was going to have to speak with it to find my way around, "Hey computer, do you have a map of the city?"

"Negative."

"Well can you get a map of the city then?"

"Affirmative. Connecting to the local wireless network. Downloading public map. Download complete."

Seriously hate the grating electronic feminine voice! "Alright then, plot a course to the nearest place that sells software upgrades for you."

The holographic display comes up and a map of the city appears with a little indicator showing where I was and a line leading into the city. I pull out my [Mana Pistol] and [Mana Shotgun] from my [Utility Belt], check that they're still fully charged and holster them. No point in walking around the city unarmed. Preparations done I follow the directions given to me by the computer. I could have asked for verbal directions, but I'm sure you understand why I didn't.

One hour and two credits for public transport later I find myself inside of an impressive store. The walls are lined with all sorts of different personal computers with prices ranging from fifty credits all the way to hundreds of thousands of credits. There were also dozens of video screens advertising the different software available and touting how much it would change my life. I ignored all of that and went to the shops counter at the back of the large brightly lit and glittering store. The man standing behind the counter, well actually the orc standing behind the counter gives me a welcoming smile.

He's big, I mean big a massive seven foot tall being covered in thick muscles and grey skin wearing a formal business suit. It's... really fucking weird actually. Normally when you see an orc in a game your first instinct is to shoot it in the face right? I mean, in every game I've played orcs were monsters who wanted to kill men, rape women, and just pillage and plunder in general. This guy though, he's just wearing a snappy business suit and working in a high-tech store like any other John Doe.

Seeing the confusion on my face the orc grins and speaks up with a deep baritone voice, "Welcome to Grizmok's, first time seeing an orc?"

I feel a tad taken aback but I shake my head and give him a smile in return, "Ah, no, not my first time seeing an orc. I'm just sort of used to orcs trying to kill me on sight, not selling me stuff."

The orc doesn't seem the least bit surprised or upset at my frank answer, in fact he laughs and nods, "That sounds about right. But we're not all like that, just like not all humans, like you, are pirates and the like."

I lift a finger, "Actually I'm Suverian, but I'm sure that's a common mistake since we look so much like humans."

"My apologies. Well, I'm Grizmok, how can I help you today?"

I lift up my left arm to indicate my [Personal Computer], "I just got this and the voice for the Artificial Personality is really grating on my nerves. I am hoping you have a nice soothing female voice that I can replace it with, as well as a matching female avatar."

Grizmok nods, "Ah, so you want a diva package."

I arch an eyebrow at him, "Diva package?"

He nods, "We have many packages for Artificial Personalities, one with a nice voice and matching avatar is referred to as a diva package. Some celebrity men and women even model for the avatars and provide their voices. It's how the package got its name."

I shrug, "Well I don't need a particular celebrity, in fact, I would prefer not to have a celebrity." I rub my chin as I think, "Can you show me the most uncommonly used diva package?"

The orc shrugs, types at a console built into the service desk and a moment later it lights up and displays an arrangement of ten holographic females, "Just touch the spot in front of the avatars to hear them speak a few lines."

I nod and go through the line touching the spot in front of each of the avatars to listen to their voices. All of them are pretty nice, but I rule out a few right away. The first one sounds a little too sultry, I didn't want to feel like my [Personal Computer] was trying to flirt with me. The fifth one has a childish voice, like a middle school girl so I rule that one out as well. I didn't need people thinking I was into that sort of thing. In the end, I select the seventh one in the line. The avatar looks like a human woman in her early twenties with long hair and a pretty smile, her voice is kind and sweet but she sounds like a woman, not a child.

"Ahhh the Celeste model. Not a bad choice. Until the traveler idols began to show up she was extremely popular. Now though, she barely gets sold to anyone. Pretty much everyone wants a traveler idol for their Artificial Personalities these days." Grizmok shrug as he speaks.

Travelers? Where had I heard that term before... OH! Right, that's what players in StarPath were called by the NPC's. Jeff mentioned it about a week ago when he was talking about the game. The developers deemed that all the players would be known as travelers, beings from another dimension that came here to explore. Or something like that. It was meant to explain our pseudo-immortality to the NPC's. After all, players come back from the dead and NPC's do not. Though players did die it was just a temporary thing, a minor inconvenience for us. It must make us seem like gods to the NPC's.

Grizmok pulls out a small stick, I recognize it as a [Data Chip] thanks to my [Computers] skill, and sets it on the counter, "Is there anything else I can get for you sir?"

I think about it for a bit and nod, "Actually yeah, I could use a wireless earpiece to connect to my computer for quieter communications as well as some game software for it."

I'd already spent over a dozen hours in this game doing nothing at all, it would help to have some entertainment to keep me busy on long flights. Grizmok nods and pulls out another [Data Chip] to set on the counter next to the Celeste diva package. Then he heads over to a shelf and retrieves a small package containing the earpiece. "The Data Chip contains the current top one hundred popular games and the earpiece I selected is a midrange model, unless you would prefer something else?"

I shake my head, that all seemed fine to me. I think for another moment and a bit of inspiration hits me, "Do you happen to have any upgrades for the artificial personality to change the way it speaks? To get rid of it saying things like 'Affirmative'"?

Grizmok gestures to the Celeste [Data Chip], "The Diva package already contains that. The personality will speak according to the model's natural patterns."

Oh, that was good to know. I couldn't think of anything else I needed, "I'm all set then. How much do I owe you?"

Grizmok types in his console again, then scans the items and a holographic display appears stating the total. Fifteen credits for Celeste, twenty credits for the games, and ten credits for the earpiece. A total of forty-five credits. I pay Grizmok and he hands over the items to me then speaks up, "Now that your business is concluded I was wondering if you would be interested in a proposal from me?"

That peaks my curiosity, I didn't have much else to do but get to the place with my ship and meet up with Reginald, so I could spend a little time listening, "Sure."

Grizmok nods, "Thank you very much. I was wondering if you would be interested in modeling for an Artifical Personality Avatar?"

Okay, wasn't expecting that. My first instinct is to say no, but again my curiosity overcomes that so instead I ask, "Why?"

Grizmok shrugs his massive shoulders, "Well, and please don't take this the wrong way, you are fairly attractive looking for a male Suverian and your voice is rather masculine without being overbearing. I think a model of you might sell fairly well and could earn both of us a few credits. On a full-color model, your dark purple hair and eyes would be fairly appealing to female buyers."

I think about it for a moment then ask, "How long would it take and what would my payment be?"

Grizmok smiles broadly, "The scan takes only a few moments and the voice recording takes at most an hour. If you agree I would be willing to give you a commission of twenty percent on all sales of your packages."

Twenty percent of a fifteen credit sale didn't seem like very much, it was only three credits. I think for a bit and counter his offer, "I'd prefer forty percent."

Grizmok grimaces and shakes his head, "I'm afraid that's a bit steep, how about twenty-five percent?"

I counter, "Thirty-five."

Grizmok sighs, "Thirty percent and that's my final offer."

I grin and nod, "Deal."

Skill Gained Negotiation 1/100 (+0 Charisma)

Grizmok smiles and pushes a button on his console, "Gorblar come and run the counter for me." His voice echoes through the entire store from loudspeakers.

A minute or so later another impeccably dressed orc that looks like he could be Grizmok's twin comes out from a back room and steps to the counter to take his place. Grizmok gestures for me to follow him into the back. Once there we go through the process of making an artificial personality avatar of me. The process is simple, if tedious. First, a quick scan to make a digital rendering of myself, then about an hour of reading lines from a script to record and digitize my vocal patterns so the avatar could reproduce the way I spoke. Given this experience, I had no intention of ever voice locking something.

When everything was done Grizmok hands me a digital pad outlining our contract. I read through it carefully looking for any potential loopholes that would let him get out of paying me, but everything seems right. Grizmok speaks up, "Once you authorize the contract I'll need the information for your GalNet Bank account."

I look up at him from the contract, "I don't have one."

Grizmok nods, "That's fine, just make sure you get one and send me the information so I can make a monthly deposit into your account. If you don't I'll keep the credits until you come to collect them."

I decide that I will open an account, I liked Grizmok and all, but I didn't want to make monthly trips here just to collect a few credits. The bank account would probably come in handy for other things anyway. That decided I authorize the contract.

You have entered a binding agreement with Grizmok of Grizmok's Electronics. You will receive a monthly payment equal to 30% of all sales of your digital avatar, synthesized voice, or packages containing either. This contract is valid for your natural lifespan or 250 cycles, whichever comes first.

I hand the data pad with the authorized contract back to Grizmok, after checking it he nods and holds a [Data Chip] out to me, "My contact information for when you open your bank account. It's been a pleasure doing business with you."

I take the [Data Chip] and stick it in my [Utility Belt] with my other purchases, "A pleasure doing business with you too."

With my shopping here done and a little extra, I head out of Grizmoks.