Opening Moves (The Gam3 Book 1) (21 page)

Alan blankly looked at the desk for a few moments, staring it for a while trying to will some connection to form. Nothing happened. His machine-connection powers only worked under certain circumstances, probably requiring an AI of some sort. Alan looked around, trying to find an on switch. Nothing.

Hesitantly, he said aloud, “Turn on?” and the surface of the desk lit up; a holographic image of a blank monitor appeared before Alan. The vertical screen faced Alan, and had no visible width.

“Um, contact Chief Administrator 170,” Alan said. The monitor began displaying messages:

Contacting…

Contact established.

Please wait, Player Adampwnage, the Chief Administrator is busy. In the case of an emergency, please state the emergency. To report a possible error, please state the nature of the error. Estimated wait time: 12 seconds.

Alan waited 12 seconds, and then the monitor flashed. It began showing a series of rapidly opening and closing screens, diagrams and messages. Alan caught a glimpse of a man covered in cybernetic implants, a cyborg. It was difficult to get a glimpse of his face, as there were constantly windows in front of him, flickering in and out of existence without his touch.

“So, you’re the newest potential Machine Lord. Let me make one thing clear, you are not special,” the Chief Administrator said without looking up from the various screens. He continued his work, simultaneously conversing with Alan at a rapid pace.

“You were chosen for this class. Not by some god or prophecy, but by a sophisticated algorithm. The Administrators are charged with balancing this game, and in order to do so we grant members of the newest race to join the Game specialized items and classes, to level the playing field. Otherwise, once the time limit was up, they’d be obliterated. Well, you'd be obliterated. We make things more fair, giving the,” he glanced at a screen, “humans a fighting a chance.

“The fact that you are able to become a Machine Lord is a privilege, a path that we have set you on from the start. By analyzing the population, it was determined you are among those that would receive a specialized AI program. The program that you downloaded was several times more effective, capable of learning at a much faster speed than any other such program, capable of understanding, of growth. It is actually the same program used to create new AI Administrators." Alan opened his mouth, trying to get a word in, but the Chief Administrator simply barreled on.

"Additionally, we arranged your more advanced capsule to be sold to your mentor for your use, and then notified the Titan’s AI, to request you board the Titan and eventually merge your AI with it. I see here that the merge is currently taking place, and would like to caution you not to allow such merges so easily in the future without taking the data you add to your AI to an Administrative Center to be scanned. There are multiple viruses and such out there, though it is one of my jobs to annihilate such travesties. I'm also supposed to be monitoring whatever it is the Empire is up to... oh well, priorities, priorities.

"Now, you may be wondering why I am telling you all this. I am telling you this because you should know that once you step off this ship, all the hand holding will be done, and because you are not to utter a word of us helping you to anyone. It was simply a lucky series of coincidences that you should dissuade people from looking into. I suppose it also serves as a reminder of how we may take away these perks as easily as we gave them to you. But we won’t do such a thing, you’re allowed to play the Game as you wish.

"Now moving on… hmm, let’s see here, yes, on to advice,” a large diagram opened in front of the Chief Administrator, covering the entire screen.

“Alright, I already told you about not accepting data from strangers, although I suppose you don’t need to be as wary of most registered data brokers, if they do plant a virus of some sort and you discover it you’ll be paid well and then some. Oh, right, the nature of the Game,” all the screens closed, and Alan finally got a full view of the Chief Administrator.

His face seemed to be marred by multiple scars, burns and other wounds, with large patches of his skin replaced by metallic plates. He might have once been human-like, and the Chief Administrator was definitely humanoid, but it was difficult to tell beneath all the modifications. His eyes, his ears and his nose were all replaced with cybernetic augments, making Alan unsure if he was talking to a machine, once living, or a living being, once machine.

Wearing a simple blue space uniform, with an insignia that Alan assumed represented his rank, the Chief Administrator stared into Alan’s eyes, and said, slowly, “The Game is not just a Game, nor was it originally designed to be such." The Chief Administrator took a deep breath, then continued.

“The Game will change you, more than you ever imagined you could change. This fact tends not to be widely spread to newer players, but gamers 
evolve
, the capsules evolve them. Nothing noticeable, at least not at first, but higher tier capsules evolve their users 
further
, to match the abilities and skills and attributes of their in-game character. You see, once you become a Machine Lord, you will become one both 
inside
 the Game, and 
out
.

"The liquid found in capsules is trillions of nanomachines that work to ensure you are connected to the Game. But they also develop and transform the body and mind. Of course, you won’t ever reach the full potential of your in-game character, but with the highest tier capsule you might reach a tenth of it. Your
reality 
will change… in fact, it already has. The Game has always been an out of body experience. By now the nanites have added countless immunities to your body, eliminating any disease that might have once contaminated it. They’ve also increased your natural lifespan by, let’s see here… nearly 200 of your years. And that isn’t even taking into account the fact that a single real life second is a bit over four in-game seconds.

"You should know that you are now something more than you once were, and perhaps something less. You are now a player whether you like it or not. Such is the nature of the Game,” the Chief Administrator said. He stared into Alan’s eyes for a few seconds more, then returned to his screens, opening and subsequently closing another onslaught of messages, requests and reports.

“Well, you seem to be taking this rather well, but then I suppose that’s part of why you were chosen to be a Machine Lord. Contact me again once you’ve decided to become one, or not. This should be your choice. I advise you make it before your AI finishes merging, as it will doubtless convince you to go forward with this change, as it was designed. Proceed to the Administrator in the med-bay, and notify them of your decision. I’m a busy man. If you have any questions direct them to the Administrator there.”

The screen closed, and Alan stared at the white screen blankly. He supposed he was taking this rather well. The fact that his body had been changed and was currently evolving didn’t alarm him too much. From the sound of it, the changes were all upgrades. He was sure some might be worried about their potential loss of humanity, yet Alan felt sure of himself. He would be able to tell if he was no longer human, right? And who ever said being human was such a great thing? There were countless atrocities that had been allowed by humanity before the Game came, and they had only been stopped when the Administrators had stepped in despite the fact they could have been stopped just as easily before the Game. This was a chance at power and knowledge on a scale he’d never known before, and he may have been manipulated into this position, but he would accept this gift with open arms, for surely that was what this was, a gift.

His resolve steeled, Alan stood up, and proceeded to the med-bay.

***

The med-bay turned out to be a fairly large room, with a series of four overly-large capsules in the middle of the room. Each looked like they could easily fit a Predecessor. The walls were covered by a series of compartments, divided into around a hundred metal boxes, each holding various medical supplies. Standing next to the entrance behind a counter was a sleek android that looked to be a copy of the Administrator in his Home. The Administrator had a white circle on its forearm, which Alan understood to be the universal symbol for medic.

Uh, hello,
Alan sent.

Greetings, traveler,
it responded.

I’ve decided to become a Machine Lord.

Oh, no further questions? Not even about the cost?

Well, I guess I’ll look at that information.

Of course.

The implant in-game menu opened up. Alan was reminded that he’d had two implants previously installed, the Computer-Human Enhanced Interface and the General Status Enhancer, and wondered if some limited version of them were now part of his actual body. They probably were.

The Machine Lord implant was apparently an upgrade to the Computer-Human Enhanced Interface, and required a series of obscure, doubtlessly rare and expensive items. Or a class mark, which he had been conveniently awarded earlier. The procedure also cost 250,000 credits, 1000 ability points, and would take a week of in-game time to complete. That left him with 500 ability points to spend afterwards on class skills. A new series of options had appeared in the abilities purchase menu as well, and he needed to decide what to do with the marks he’d been awarded. But all of that would come after the procedure. Alan could see why it was so hard to decide to play your own class rather than the recommended one, as the cost was quite prohibitive.

The Machine Lord implant would take up two mechanical slots and one biological one, filling up all the slots Alan had for implants. He’d gain another two slots at level 100, then two more at level 1000, and so forth, if he remembered correctly. It looked like the talented, machine communication, and AI interaction abilities were requirements for the augment. This implant would develop the talent skill, and apparently also upgrade the hypercognition skill. A series of other unknown bonuses were also there. Alan also met other hidden requirements for the class. He looked over the screen one last time, then let the Administrator know:

I’m ready.

Very well, please proceed into the closest medical capsule.

Alan walked over and climbed into the capsule, sinking into the pool of what he now knew were nanomachines. He closed his eyes, and drifted into unconsciousness.

Alan slowly opened his eyes, trying to remember where he was. His most recent memory jolted into place, reminding him exactly what had occurred before he’d undergone the procedure. He hadn’t remembered his memory being that good, and it wasn’t, at least not before whatever had changed. Alan grinned.

The capsule cover slowly rose, and Alan sat up, gazing about the room in surprise. The blank compartments on the walls now had digital tags clear as day, listing various chemicals, DNA samples, tools and other information. The Administrator had a tag as well, a simple miniature message bar that displayed: “Senior Executive 03821A3CC7, Titan Medic-Bay.”

Alan began to climb out of the capsule, and this time he truly 
saw
. This must be what it was like for Eve. He could anticipate where his foot would land on the ground, the exact angle and force with which it would meet the floor. The effects that air resistance would have on his body as he moved through the air. The level of artificial gravity that was imposed in the ship. The 
material 
the floor was made of, and all of its properties. All this information suddenly was apparent to him, clear as day. He felt like a 
god
.

Alan stepped out onto the floor, then promptly slipped, falling forward. Alan hurriedly thrust his hands forward to break his fall, but the angle was off, different than what he expected. His hands simply slowed the fall instead of stopping it like he intended. His head thudded onto the floor.

Dazed, Alan blinked, then recalled the series of events. He had stepped onto floor, then had taken his other foot out of the capsule, planning on balancing with precisely the right amount of force, timing it so he could use the forward momentum to then easily lift his other leg out of the capsule except
—

Except your perception of time is now different, 
a voice sounded in his head.

It sounded similar to Eve in his mind, perhaps slightly deeper. The AI sensed that this change annoyed him, and reverted back to Eve’s normal voice. Alan knew that it did this without it ever saying anything. He was simply aware of the change.

Sitting on the floor, Alan waved his hand back and forth in front of him, trying to get a sense of how much his timing was off by. He tried to concentrate on the movement, ignoring all the equations that sprang into his head. He silently communicated with the new Eve, and came to the conclusion that his perception of time was maybe a tenth slower than it had originally been, which meant that he could react to things 10% faster. Apparently, he could also directly access all of Eve’s data, and the calculations she performed. That was how all the information about the room and gravity and what-not had appeared in his head.

Unsteadily, Alan rose to his feet, trying to get used to this new perception of time and information. It was odd, having his body react a split second slower than he was used to. Alan proceeded out the hallway and back to his room, slowly and steadily, holding onto the wall. He came to the conclusion that he should first talk to the Chief Administrator as the new information he gained would doubtlessly influence his decisions.

He passed by a few Haxlards on his way back to his room. As he glanced at them their names, health, psi-energy, shield-energy and class would pop up above their head. This was apparently all information that Eve 2.0 had acquired from Titan’s AI. Alan decided to keep calling the AI Eve, and accessed Eve's information on the Haxlards.

It appeared that they followed a sort of class system, with their masks representing the field each worked in. A blue mask signified service or basic grunts, green meant a skilled worker of some sort, silver represented assassins or spies, red was reserved for elite warriors and gold, which Alan had yet to see, represented royalty of some sort. Being an Ultihaxlard was a difference in rank rather than a difference in race, signified by the marks on a Haxlard’s mask. That was how Eve had identified Pharaoh as an Ultihaxlard.

The five minute trip to the Med-bay turned into a 15 minute trek, but Alan managed to reach his room, tripping over his feet only a few times. He was starting to get used to things, he thought. Then he opened his mouth to turn on the table. He had intended to simply say turn on, yet what emerged from his mouth was a jumble of the syllables that sounded off to him. But the desk lit up.

Alan saw how the technology worked now: it simply adapted to the user's needs. He put his hands on the desk and a keyboard appeared. Alan could set up the table like a desktop computer, and the desk would simply supply the monitor, keyboard and mouse; it was just a matter of requesting them. If he chose to, Alan could also forge a mental connection to the desk, but he decided to stick with the mouse and keyboard he was used to. For now.

A few keystrokes later, it didn’t matter that his perception was a bit off as long as he hit the keys in the right order, he sent a message to Chief Administrator 170. It appeared there were also a few digital networks that he could access, basically a series of universal internets.

This time, the Chief Administrator immediately accepted his communication request, and launched into discourse. The Administrator talked as fast as he used to, despite everything else having slowed down.

“Hmm, I see you’ve chosen to join our brotherhood, welcome. Now, onwards, toward the future. As a Machine Lord I’m sure you’ve already realized your perception of time will be a bit different. In extreme situations you may further slow down your perception of time by many orders of magnitude. Adjusting yourself to these varying perceptions of time can take some getting used to, but you had better master it as I see you have a semi-combative subclass, a rogue, which is interesting.

"
Machine Lords generally stick to non-combative roles, doing more administrative work or research, but I suppose it could be quite useful in the heat of battle. I advise you set up some sort of signal with your AI to immediately exit out of any sort of hypercognition mode, as pain can be magnified severely. After all, if you’re experiencing time a hundred times slower, and you’re stabbed by a knife, you’ll experience the pain for a hundred times as long. That’s why most Machine Lords avoid active combat roles. It’s also actually one way that people die in real life due to the Game, severe pain that overloads their brain. But usually the Game stops things before that happens or the user loses consciousness. Anyway, you’re now a Machine Lord.

"Don’t spread any information about a Machine Lord’s capabilities. Or else. You’ll also be better off if you don’t disclose your class to anyone else, as even though not much is widely known about Machine Lords, we still have clear counters and weaknesses due to our low psionic ability and dependence on our machine implants. Your abilities may slightly differ from another Machine Lord’s abilities as well; it seems to be a somewhat customized class based upon a player’s performance during the Tutorial tests. Also, you should make sure to actually learn important information, not just have your AI store the data. You’ll be able to recall the information and take it into account much more easily that way.

"In case you were wondering, I am a player, and did not start out as a machine or AI, and was only recently promoted to my position as one of the 200 Chief Administrators. You’re the first person I allowed to become a Machine Lord, so try not to screw too much up. Just try to help your own race, the humans, as I’m sure you will. If you do somehow become super powerful, that’s fine as well, just remember that I try to keep the balance, no matter which way it tips. But, well, as Administrators our power to influence the Game and the politics of the Game is rather limited. That’s a different topic though.

"Anyway, as I guess I’m the sort of class leader of the Machine Lords, let me know if you encounter any class specific problems or difficulties. Should you perform tasks for the Administrators, I may share additional information about the class with you. Oh right, I’m also supposed to set up your class quest. Hmm… What will your future be like.

"Right, well, you may or may not know this, but as most beginners don’t, or at least shouldn’t, I suppose I should tell you anyway. Once you reach level 100, you’ll stop getting 5 ability points a level and only get 1 ability point each level. Then, at level 1000 you’ll only get 1 ability point every two levels. Yes, I know this is unfair as the XP requirement for each level grows almost exponentially (the growth is linear, don’t let anyone convince you otherwise), but it allows lower level players such as yourself to match up more evenly against higher level players. It also demonstrates the importance of the Gifted/Skilled abilities, but you have them already I’m sure, as they’re a prerequisite for the class implant.

"You should also know once you successfully complete the Tutorial, that is, when you finish the Learning the Basics quest, the credits you have remaining will be multiplied by five. That includes any credits you may have paid someone or given away, which is why everyone gives new players such a discount, in case you were wondering. We Administrators force them to, otherwise the players would be ripped off left and right, then send endless complaints to us. I suppose we should just multiply credit rewards by five, but that’s how the Game was set up originally, and we aren’t allowed to change certain basics like that.

"Right, moving forward I advise you join a guild or find a sponsor. In the Game the majority of players join an institute or academy, places that essentially power level a player to level 1000 and teach them a number of useful skills. They have all of what would be considered in most games to be the ideal farming grounds, with entire planets designed around power leveling. You’ll probably want to join a more combat-oriented academy, but the cost is prohibitive, generally hundreds of thousands of credits, hence why you should join a guild. They’ll pay the cost of the academy, provided you sign a contract to be a member of the guild for a member of the time.

"Based upon your results and class, I think you should join the Black Rose guild. I’ll actually recommend you to a contact I have there. This is the last free favor though. I guess you could pay me with the marks you’ve managed to acquire from the Tutorial though. Any questions?”

With a split second pause, he continued.

“No? Well, if any spring to mind, message me in a chat window and my AI should respond within a few milliseconds. Bye.”

The communications window closed. Shortly after, Alan got a message:

CA170: Oh, I forgot to give you your class quest. Here you go. It should be… interesting.

Alan read over the quest a few times. It seemed somewhat obvious the Chief Administrator had simply written the quest text himself. How he had reached such a position, Alan wasn’t sure, although he did seem to be multitasking quite a bit, performing other tasks while conversing with Alan. Alan wondered why exactly the Chief Administrator had chosen to be an Administrator. As if he had somehow read Alan’s mind, the Chief Administrator sent Alan another message:

CA170: By the way, in case you were wondering - balancing the Game efficiently is my current main objective. Unfortunately my race, the Hunaan, are now virtually extinct due to improper Administrative balance. Don’t let that happen to humanity! Good luck.

Alan began to feel sorry for the Chief Administrator, at least until Eve brought up a piece of information for Alan. The Hunaan race had a thriving colony set up in real life in some far off solar system, they were just virtually extinct, which meant they had little to no influence in the Game. Shaking his head, Alan tried to access the alien internet to research the guild that had been recommended, but was stopped by a message. Apparently he had to finish the "Learn the Basics" quest first.

The basics turned out to be the manual that Icewolf had originally given Alan to learn about the rules of the Game. As a Machine Lord, Alan was also forced to memorize a few more manuals about things like the various alien races, factions, technology and the alien internet, called the globalnet. There was also apparently a freedomnet, used by the Republic, a empirenet used by the Empire and a haxnet used by the Haxlards, but most players used the globalnet which was monitored and setup by the Administrators.

With his new-found memory, Alan managed to learn all this information in a week. At Eve’s suggestion, he also studied a few more subjects, pretty much every core science subject: mathematics, physics, chemistry, engineering and biology, while expanding his computer science knowledge. Each morning and evening, Alan also progressed through a series of complex exercises suggested by the Chief Administrator that were supposed to improve his balance. They seemed to work fairly well, although Alan continued to feel a bit off. Still, a day before the Titan arrived at Khersath, three and a half weeks after Alan first entered the Game, he learned enough to satisfy the Game.