《Human & Humanity》 Chapter 1 The aim of man above all things is to survive. The world ended. It left us, me, derelict with only the possessions of the system to assist me. The day it occurred was March eighteenth of the two thousand and twenty fifth year. I remember the day specifically because I was with my father, which was not an often occurrence with his busy schedule; he was a captain in the US Military. We met at a cafe, no, it was a bar, to discuss my schooling. The captain¨Chow I referred to my father¨Cwas angry with me for dropping out of school. The name of the university now eludes me, but his fury was clear in my mind. ¡°Dropping out of fucking school Hiro! The fuck is wrong with you. I bet you think this shit is real fucking funny. Wasting my money, my fucking benefits. Huh? It wasn¡¯t a rhetorical question. I want a fucking answer,¡± Captain yelled. The patrons in the establishment didn¡¯t even flinch. It was a military bar. Cursing out arrogant young men was likely a typical occurrence. And I probably had a smirk on my face as I often did, so I fit the part. ¡°School is fun, but it''s just not right for me. I¡¯m sitting in these Gen-ed classes bored out of my mind, and I¡¯m still not even sure I know what I want to do. I think I need time off to just figure things out,¡± I said. ¡°No, what you need to do is to make a decision on your major. Sitting in those Gen-ed classes ain¡¯t going to fucking cut it anymore. You hear me? You''re going to stay in school, choose your major, or you¡¯ll enlist. No son of mine is going to be lounging around trying to find himself. This the real fucking world, not no TV show or a fucking book. The decisions you make or lack thereof define you, and as of now they define you as a real fucking loser.¡± The captain continued to speak for long after that, but I chose to sulk like the child I was. Our inability to meet eye to eye on things had turned me away. I know now that there was wisdom in his words, but at the time the wisdom wasn¡¯t so obvious. The story has been illicitly taken; should you find it on Amazon, report the infringement. While I rotated between staring out the window at passerbyers and pretending to listen to the Captain the ground started to rumble. It was an earthquake caused by the arrival of the system. I didn''t know it was the system at the time, but I knew something was wrong. I could hardly remember ever getting an earthquake in Virginia. When the shaking finally stopped, Captain and I, along with the other patrons, got a message delivered directly to us by a strange screen. The screen floated in front of our faces like a hologram. It said: [Welcome humanity to the system¡¯s embrace.] I looked to my father. ¡°You seeing this? Is this you guys?¡±(referring to the US military) ¡°Yeah, I see it, but I don¡¯t think it¡¯s us. But maybe it is. I wouldn¡¯t have the clearance to know,¡± Captain said. ¡°I need to get back to the base.¡± I glanced at the people around us. They were staring forward and swiping at where the system screen would be, obviously they saw it too. The system had delivered the message to everyone; man, woman, child, None of those distinctions mattered to the system. All that mattered to the system was its purpose, to spread. ¡°Let¡¯s head back to my car,¡± Captain said. He had a grimace on his face and I could see stress lines forming on his forehead. They¡¯d been a permanent fixture on his weathered face since I was a child. ¡°What about aftershocks,¡± I asked. ¡°Doesn¡¯t matter. We need to get back to base,¡± Captain said. The drive back to base that followed was quite intense; Screams of anarchy had broken out in the streets. The freak out was because the system screen refused to disappear. The best you could do while the screen was active was move it to the edge of your vision with a feature that most didn¡¯t figure out till the tutorial. As we pulled through the Base¡¯s barriers which were surprisingly undefended another message appeared on the screen. It said: [Prepare for system integration.] The car swerved as the new message blinded Captain, but he managed to pull safely to a stop on a sidewalk. ¡°Take the apartment key from my pocket. I need to go check in with the commander. I want you to wait in the apartment, ok?¡± Captain was flustered; showing emotion was so unlike him. Even as I search my memory I can¡¯t remember him showing any emotion other than either anger or the occasional smug satisfaction. But in that moment, in the car, I remember seeing fear in his eyes, and I haven''t forgotten it. ¡°Yessir,¡± I mumbled in agreement, but my mind was elsewhere, thinking of what the messages could mean. ¡°Hey Hiro,¡± Captain said, drawing my attention to him one last time. ¡°We¡¯ll continue our conversation about school later, once things have calmed down.¡± With those parting words, I stepped out of the car and watched him drive away. And that was the last time I saw my father. Chapter 2 The first step is often the hardest I awoke on a beach from a slumber I hadn¡¯t known I¡¯d taken, my last memory being the outside of an apartment. [Welcome to the embrace of the system Earthling Hiro Johnson. Keep track of your tutorial progress with your status and mission log. Good luck!] ¡°W-What the¡­? Where am,¡± I said. My head whirled around, but I saw no one. ¡°Hellooooo¡­.¡± My shout went unanswered. The only sound was the roar of the surf. I focused my eyes directly at the screen. It was hard to do anything else with the faint blue image right in front of my face. ¡°¡®Embrace of the system?¡¯ What the hell is going on,¡± I whispered. Gingerly, I reached out a hand to touch the screen. My hand went right through it just as it had when I was on the military base. The system was a thoughts based structure. It couldn¡¯t be affected physically. The screen I was seeing wasn¡¯t truly there. It was merely a creation of the system''s prompt to aid my mind. But I didn''t understand that at the start, so for a long while I sat there on the beach utterly perplexed. After a while, far longer than I care to admit, I managed to make my status appear. It took me thinking of a video game I¡¯d played as a kid for it to work. The status read: [Designation: Hiro Johnson 0000127460118] [Level: 0] [Class: unchosen] [Active spells: 1. Unchosen 2. Unchosen 3.Unchosen] [Passive spells: 1. Unchosen 2. Unchosen 3.Unchosen] [System Arts: 0] [Body: 1] [Mana: 0] [Spirit: 0] The tale has been illicitly lifted; should you spot it on Amazon, report the violation. Most of what was written was incomprehensible to me. There were no descriptions, and no explanations. What was on the status screen was all that I saw, not much to go off of for a system newbie. The mission log page though, was much more helpful. My first log looked something like this: [Mission Log:] [The end of the Earth is not the end of humanity. Survive integration with the system and enter the tutorial.] [Status: Completed. Reward available.] [Power is taken not given. Kill a hundred monsters.] [Status: 0/100] [Welcome to the fold. Complete the tutorial][Status: 0/3] ¡®The end of the Earth is not the end of humanity.¡¯ I think I read that line a hundred times over before the words truly sunk in. And it wasn¡¯t because I was an imbecile or anything, I just had a very hard time adjusting at the start of the tutorial. Reflecting, maybe it had been shock. I stood up, and brushed the sand off my jeans while I assessed the beach. It was unassuming, something you¡¯d see on a postcard. Palm trees and white hot sand and water so clear I could see rocks and seashells underneath the waves. The clear water gave way to an endless ocean that stretched to the horizon, and beyond the beach laid a rainforest thick with tropical foliage. It was definitely not Virginia. There was nothing to go off of, so I started to walk along the beach. In one hand I carried my shoes¡ª I hated getting sand in my shoes. And to help with the scorching sun I took off my faded graphic comic tee and wrapped it around my head. Like that, I walked the beach in the hopes I¡¯d catch sight of someone who was equally as perturbed as I, but the farther I walked the more I began to doubt anyone was near. When minutes stretched to hours my faith in finding another person waned. I stopped walking, and started thinking of survival. The sun wasn¡¯t going to be out forever. Night would soon be upon me, and I could ill-afford to be caught unawares. I settled on a sleeping spot closer to the treeline after gathering what resources I could find. The resources amounted to firewood, kindling, a few rocks, and a large stick. The resources minus the large stick were used to start a fire. The large stick I used to create a little lean-to hut; the type I used to make with my father when he took me camping as an adolescent. Instead of regular leaves, I used fallen palm tree branches as the cover. As I laid down to rest, an alert from the system screen popped up in front of my eyes. The screen had been gone for a bit, so it truly caught me off guard when it appeared. The screen said: [Last chance to accept mission reward] [The end of the Earth is not the end of humanity. Survive integration with the system and enter the tutorial.] [Status: Completed. Reward available.] The line about a reward was something I¡¯d glanced over earlier while I was in shock, but I¡¯d given no credence to it. ¡®What reward except chaos could possibly be waiting for me?¡¯ I think I thought something along those lines when that couldn''t have been further from the case. I mentally accepted the reward, and as I did, I heard a loud thud in the sand next to me. I scrambled to my feet not knowing it was the system reward¡¯s arrival. I assumed someone had snuck up on me in the night, but the system message log informed me otherwise. After a few calming breaths I walked over to where thud sounded, and unsheathed my gift. The system reward was a sheathed short sword, the length of a forearm, my first, and most important weapon. ¡°Hello Widower,¡± I mumbled. Widower was the sword''s name according to the system. It sparkled a bit under the moonlight, and its edge looked sharp. ¡°Keep me safe through the night, ok?¡± The knife of course didn¡¯t answer, but I felt far safer with it. I tucked Widower next to me under the lean-to and thought of the conversation I had with my father until I fell fast asleep. Chapter 3 Mother nature is the greatest teacher. I left my camp in the early morning determined to find a water source¡ªthe thirst was getting to me¡ªbut I quickly encountered difficulties. The first difficulty was the dense foliage further inland. There were no pre established paths through the rainforest for me to follow. My path forward was my own to cut. The other major difficulty, this one more damming, was my fear of the unknown. Every time I heard a rustle or saw the flight of a bird I felt the need to stop and to make sure nothing was near. I was in a constant state of alertness. Paranoia. It made me tire faster, and eventually I was forced to take a break in a small clearing near a thicker trunked palm tree. I wiped the sweat from my brow and sat down below the tree for shade, then summoned my system page. [Designation: Hiro Johnson 0000127460118] [Level: 0] [Class: unchosen] [Active spells: 1. Unchosen 2. Unchosen 3.Unchosen] [Passive spells: 1. Unchosen 2. Unchosen 3.Unchosen] [System Arts: 0] [Body: 1] [Mana: 0] [Spirit: 0] The system page looked the same as it did the night before. The day prior I¡¯d likened it to a video game status sheet. It met all the criteria. There were levels and spells and stats, but unlike a game, there were no rules, only the mission log. And according to the mission log, I was in the tutorial, a proving ground for something more. All I needed to do was to live long enough to see that something more. As I considered the page further something roared in the distance. The roar sounded like the shrieking mix of a stuttering turkey gobble and a lion, or maybe a tiger. I wasn''t an expert in pre-integration animals. Startled, I closed my system page¡ªit was possible with single thought¡ª and raised Widower. My eyes scanned the canopy, searching for the roar maker. I saw nothing besides the flora¡ªbright green leaves and colorful flowers that I¡¯d overlooked the beauty of during my walk. The animal that had made my heart beat so fast was nowhere to be seen.The narrative has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the infringement. I waited, listening and watching until both became tiresome tasks. Nothing was coming. The roar had come from far away. I¡¯d worried myself over nothing. ¡°It''s getting to me. Crazy already in less than twenty-four hours,¡± I giggled to myself before plopping down on the earth, exhausted. There was something about the humidity in the air that made me feel sluggish. I planned to leave after another short rest. The previous rest was moot because I''d gotten all worked up over the roar. I leaned my back against the tree, and against my will, I was lulled to sleep. ************************* I awoke under the cover of night to the sound of crashing in the forest. Fear seized me instantly, and I reached for Widower, but my hand couldn¡¯t make it. My entire body was immobilized; something had bound my lower half, including my hand, to the ground. Though I couldn¡¯t see what held me down, I could feel it¡ªthick and coarse, like rope. ¡°H-Hello,¡± I choked out. My throat burned as I said the word¡ªI had no saliva. The burning sensation wasn¡¯t exclusive to my throat. My whole body was burning up. It was like I had a fever, but the sickness was everywhere. Something was wrong with my nervous system. I gathered my courage and started to thrash against the bindings. The more I moved the worse it got for me; the bindings tightened around my abdomen and throat restraining my lungs. It was as if I were caught in a Chinese finger trap. As I gasped for air, my hand brushed up against the pommel of my sword. My crazed effort hadn¡¯t been for naught. I¡¯d loosened the bonds around my hand just enough to reach Widower. I slid the blade closer to me while struggling to breathe, and used it to cut the bindings on my arm. Widower was so sharp that just a touch from its edge could cut the bonds of whatever was holding me. I was freed in the matter of minutes. ¡°Who is there? Why did you tie me up?¡± I cried out into the darkness. Blindness and fear turned me into an armadillo. I was balled up on the ground with my sword pointed outward in case someone wanted to throw themselves on it¡ªa cowardly action far from the stories that cling to my name, but I was not yet that man. When no answer came, I was forced to buck up. I was in the jungle at night. Anything could come for me, and I doubted following the path back to the beach would be smart. I dragged myself from my curled up position to a standing one, and tossed the rope bindings under my arm¡ªthey were closer to strong vines than actually rope. There were trees around me. I could climb, and sleep in a tree. My thinking was the person who¡¯d tied me up wouldn¡¯t be able to get me there. I staggered forward in the dark, my only source of light the reflection of the moon on my sword. Somehow I made it to the treeline without falling. I chose a tall tree, a different tree, than the palm trees around. It had a sturdier base and looked easier to climb. I sheathed my blade and placed it in my mouth, and bit down hard on the sheathe to keep it there. It left my hands free to climb. The climb was rewarding but difficult. After minutes of excruciating effort I found myself with my legs tied to a large branch with my back leaned up against the trunk of the tree¡ªMy years in boy scouts weren¡¯t wasted. I was safe. **************************** I cried that night in the tree. Reflecting, I feel ashamed, but lucky that my first lesson on survival wasn¡¯t fatal. I survived my first night in the jungle.