“With the System’s arrival, came the demise of Humanity. Foreign power, in the form of the universe’s energy known as Essence, altered the genetic code of the fauna and flora of Earth. What was once harmless, gained sentience and hatred. What was once prey, become predator. What was predator, became killer. Yet, these were not the true enemies of Humanity. For with the System’s Blessing, came the arrival of true terrors. Monsters, myths, and creatures of endless origins whose sole purpose rested on the eradication of Earth and her people.”

Ruha the Wise, Master Seer of Eden, “History of Eden”

First came the light. Magical and flowing like a crashing river. A swarm of color dazzled Jax’s awakening mind. Then, the pain. It ebbed beneath his skin. His entire body groaned in discomfort while his head pulsated in tune to his heart.

Finally, came life. As if struck by a bolt of electricity, Jax’s groggy mind jumpstarted to life while his lungs gasped for air. As if resurrected from death, he spasmed awake. Choking sobs escaped his mouth. Eyes, tinged with tears, struggled to comprehend. His mind restarted, delivering sentience and life to him. As it did though, a strange text appeared in his mind.

Assimilation of Zone X-2287 complete.....

Welcome inhabitants of Zone X-2287, formerly known as ‘Earth’, to The System....

Implementation of The System and all accompanying Laws have been established....

Say ‘Menu’, ‘Status’, and ‘Achievements’ for more information...

Further information is available upon discovery and advancement.....

Enjoy....

Seconds ticked by. Breath by breath, Jax finally regained control and full consciousness. As he did, so too did he see the words that seemed engraved in his mind. He read it once. Then twice. Then a third. Each time, the reality of what was happening becoming more and more apparent to him. Before he could read the message again however, it disappeared. Then, just as it faded away, a series of flashing lights exploded in his eyes. Hiddens strength surged in his veins. Blood roared in his ears as an euphoric sensation of bliss shot from his feet to his head. The sensation was beyond comfortable. It was exhilarating. Empowering. Power seemed to hum beneath his skin, cackling like electricity. Burning like a flame. Resonating with his very soul. It was all he could do to pray to God and he gorged himself on the stimulus. Then, like a switch for a light was switched, it was cut off. In the absence of the euphoric overload, new ‘words’ floated in his mind as they pounded his head like a migraine demanding his attention.

Name: Jaxson Stratford

Age: 24

Race: Human

Class: N/A

Level: 1 (0.00%)

Health (/regen per hour): 195/195 (97.5)

Stamina (/regen per min): 198/198 (.99)

Mana (/regen per min): 211/211 (1.05)

Vitality: 15

Fortitude: 15

Resiliency: 16

Strength: 15

Agility: 16

Intelligence: 17

Wisdom: 16

Perception: 16

Control: 17

Charisma: 16

Tenacity: 15

______: __

Unspent Attribute Points: +4

Congratulations! You have unlocked the Achievement [ Being of Strength ]! Your beginning Stats are all at or above the Human minimum of 10. You have earned: +1 Attribute Point

Congratulations! You have unlocked the Achievement [ Bearer of Strength ]! Your beginning Stats are all at or above the Human average of 15. You have earned: +3 Attribute Points

Congratulations! You have unlocked the Achievement [ Newbie ]! You are a newly Blessed inhabitant under The System’s governance. As you are under its protection, you are granted a choice of one Skill. You can choose: [Mana Bolt], [Empowered Strike], [Regrowth], [Frenzy].

The migraine in his head intensified. Each new message demanding his attention. It wasn’t necessary. As each message appeared in his mind, his eyes grew wider and wider. As he read each word, the wilted smile on his lips bloomed. Never before had it shined so radiantly then in this moment.

“Oh...my...god...”

Breathless, the words escaped his mouth as he leaned against a wall. Vacant and with a stupid grin, he stared into space. Dazed, he tilted his head to watch Duke. The pup, trembling slightly, pawed at Jax’s hand.

“Oh...my...god...”

Lifting one hand to his face, he stared at it. Studied the lines that etched themselves on his palm. Then, he slapped himself in the face. Hard. With a resounding clap, the sting on his check and numbness in his hand pulsated in tune as Jax’s smile grew wider and wider.

“OH! MY! GOD!”

Then, with a shout of exuberance, the strange atmosphere was shattered. Jumping to his feet, Jax began laughing heartily as he wrapped his thin arms around Duke’s body. In a tumble, the two went down, one dog barking with one man laughing.

“Holy shit Duke! Holy shit! It’s like a video game! A freaking video game!”

Laughing in uncontrollable glee, Jax and Duke tumbled across the floor. Jax’s eyes glazed over. His smile as wide as possible. Finally, his dream was coming true. The ability to level up like a character in a game. To become powerful by simply wiping out monsters. The ability to command devastating powers. The chance to be a Hero. To be a God.

It took a few minutes before Jax was finally able to calm down. When he finally did, he found himself recalling the last ‘message’. Like a voice in the back of his head, the previous ‘messages’ all lingered just beyond reach. A simple thought and focus was all it took though for one to appear. Focusing on the last message, he willed it forward. At his giddy command, the ‘message’ appeared as if directly before his eyes. Tangible. Solid. Foreign.

With a simple focus, he looked over each of the Skills listed. As if answering a command he had yet to voice, the System message before him transformed. In its place, a new list appeared. A list of Skills.

Mana Bolt (Rank 1: 0.00%): Condense your Mana, forming a bolt of energy to shoot. Mana Cost, Range, and Damage is based on Intelligence and Skill’s Rank

Empowered Strike (Rank 1: 0.00%): Condense your Stamina, infusing a strike to deal increased damage. Stamina Cost and Damage is based on Strength and Skill’s Rank

Regrowth (Rank 1: 0.00%): Channel your Mana to accelerate the body’s recovery to heal wounds. Mana Cost and Ability Effect is based on Intelligence and Skill’s Rank

Frenzy (Rank 1: 0.00%): Unleash your Stamina, producing a burst of power which increases your Agility and Strength for a limited time. Stamina Cost and Ability Effect is based on Vitality, Fortitude, and Skill’s Rank.

As he pursued the System Message, Jax’s enthusiasm skyrocketed. It was exactly as he thought. The Skills provided were just like beginner skills in any game. Yet instead of choosing a class and gaining a class for that class, in this case the skills came first. The thought was interesting. Afterall, if you gained skills before a class, wouldn’t the class become based on the skills chosen up to that point? Would that mean that everyone could have a unique class? How could you even gain skills without having a class though?

It didn’t matter though. Those were thoughts for another time. All that mattered were the Skills before him. Or rather, one Skill. As he looked over the Skill, reading and re-reading the text, his giddy breathing hitched like a rabbit in heat. No other Skill mattered. From this point on, he was going to be all-powerful.

He was going to be a mage.

“Mana Bolt! Please! I choose Mana Bolt.”

Mentally demanding as his voice pleaded, Jax longed for the Skill. Then, it as his. As soon as he mentally choose the Ability, it felt as if a piece of him that was missing had returned. As if something that was on the tip of his tongue was firmly grasped in his mind. In his mind, he felt it. The Skill as it lay dormant. Waiting to be called. Waiting to unleash divine power.

What came next, was inevitable.

Jax planted his feet and assumed a shooter’s stance. In his hand was no gun though. Only his index and middle finger that pointed toward the empty living while his thumb rested on his other two fingers that were closed. The dim room, now without any electricity, did little to damper his mood. Instead, as his voice rang out, a powerful and haughty tone echoed in the quiet house.

“Mana Bolt”

Jaxson activated the Skill. Or rather tried to. Confusion lit up his face as the Mana Bolt never appeared. Nothing at all happened. Julian, standing still, looked at his hands that remained in position with nary a flicker of power in them. His confusion lasted only for a moment before the heated desire throttled through him. His eyes brewed like a raging storm as he yearned for the spell to work. As he commanded it to work.

“Mana Bolt”

And like a match given flame, the Skill ignited. The feeling of something cold, a strange and foreign power, appeared in the center of his chest as it spread out towards his right hand. Then the foreign power was given form. In his right palm, a flash of pale blue light appeared as a pencil sized bolt of a blue plasma-like substance coalesced on the tip of his index and middle finger. The substance seemed alive. A sliver of blue electricity that remained hole. Small, but deadly. Then the bolt of energy was gone. What remained, was a pinky sized hole in the living room wall that was burned slightly black. Exactly where his fingers were pointed.

Yet Jax’s smile dimmed as he saw the truth behind the ability. His mana had decreased by 30 just by activating the spell. Quick math told him that he would only be able to cast the spell a total of seven times. It would be enough.

“I’m gonna be a mage! Here that Duke? I’m gonna be a mage! Just like in a video game. I’m gonna become a Hero! Hahaha...”

Grinning like a fool, Jax lost himself in the moment. Already, his imagination was running wild. Images of himself casting fireballs. Of calling the wind and rain in a storm of magical damage. Of flying in the sky as he rained down Skill after Skill on his enemies. He could see it now. The future. His future.

There was no fear in him. What had he to be afraid of? This was exactly like a video game. Exactly like all those books he read. Where the world turned into an Apocalypse as God transformed the Earth to allow humanity to advance to the next stage of evolution. Only this was real. Only now, he could finally have the life he wanted. No more looking for a job. Working in the rat race. Marrying. Going through life numbly. Then dying. Now, he had a path. A true path. A purpose.

“This is it boy,” he babbled to Duke as the dog sat before him. “This is it. This is it...” Mumbling to himself, Jaxson scrambled to his feet. Realization at his current predicament hitting him like a slap to the face. He didn’t have time to waste.

In a flurry of movement, Jax sprung through the house as Duke followed hot on his trail. Like a tornado, he ran rampant through the house. Doors were locked. Food was removed from the fridge to the bathtub that was filled with ice. Clothes, supplies, weapons, and any thing of use was searched for and located.

In only an hour, the house that Jax so religiously kept neat and tidy had become ruined. The results though, were promising. Jax was decked out in his grandfather’s old military attire from Vietnam. Leather boots, shined and oiled to immaculate grace, connected to baggy cargo pants and a matching utility vest. Beneath the vest, was a standard issue bulletproof vest from the Fairview Police Force that his grandfather had served under until his death. Finally, strapped and latched into any available pocket were a variety of tools and knives, with the army’s standard issue KABAR resting in his left hand.

Standing in the living room, Jax admired his reflection from the patio screen door. While baggy, his height allowed the equipment to fit his rather tall frame. Coupled with his surfer-boy looks that made him appear 19 instead of 24, Jaxson Stratford looked like a teenage playing war. The fire in his eyes though. The eager smile that barred feral teeth. The opened chest and uplifted chin. Those spoke of desire for battle.

“Duke,” Jax whispered. His voice, eerily loud in the silent house, caused the unrest in his gut to increase. “Duke, guard the house boy. I need you to stay here and guard the house. Can you do that? I’ll be right back. Just need to see...see what is going on.”

As he kneeled to pet Duke, his anxiety spiked even as Duke’s tongued licked his check. It had been over an hour since the Apocalypse had descended. But in that time, he had heard nothing. Felt nothing. Saw nothing. Something was going on, and he had to know the truth. Besides, some adventuring would do good for him. A chance to find some monsters and level up. To take the first step on his journey to becoming a legend.

Hand pressed against his heart, Jax couldn’t stop the pounding that threatened to burst from his chest. This was it though. This was his moment. With a final glance toward Duke who looked longingly at him, Jax unlatched the front door’s deadbolt. His sweaty hand gripped the knob, and before he could second guess himself, he flung open the door.

Light from the evening sun poured in and blinded Jax. Warmth, heavenly and welcoming flooded over his being as Jax involuntary raised his arms to relish in the sensation. Then, as he opened his eyes and his cocky smile widened, the warmth left him. In its place, a haunting chill flooded his senses as all the hair on his body stood up. For on the other side of the door, in the empty cul-de-sac of his neighborhood, stood two monsters.

Goblin Scout (Level 3)

Goblin Scout (Level 2)

The creatures, no taller than four feet, were covered in tribal tattoos that appeared burned into their pale grey skin. The tattoos, maring their lean forms, were highlighted only by the blood. Crimson and dazzling, blood traced over the Goblins’ protruding tusks and painted their elongated nails. Blood that coated the second Goblin Scout’s dagger. It was all Jax could focus on. The blood. The bloody and crazed smiles of the two childish fiends as they turned to look at Jax who towered twice their size. Then, before he could react, the two Goblin Scouts dashed forward and Jax’s imagination met reality.