Matustos

  I found myself in a sterile white room, extending further than I could see in all dires. There were no noticeable light sources but it was almost tht.

  "Fuck, did I die?" Even to my own ears, my voice sounded panicked.

  Shit, who was going to take care er, my German Wolfhound buddy? He had just turned 2 st month. He was going to be so upset. I could already see him stressing out.

  Maybe my parents could take him in. He was well behaved, and had just finished an obedience course. So they should have no problem handling him.

  "No, you actually didn't die. Stop wasting time with useless w." A cheerless voitoned.

  I spun around, I was sure there hadn't been anyone or anything there before.

  "What the...Who are you?" Perhaps not the best approa an unknown situation, but what else was I going to ask.

  A faceless, something, sat at a simple bck desk, with nothing on it. A glowing human shaped being in a dull gray business suit, the ck of a face didn't stop me from feeling stared at.

  "Please sit, Mr. Crestwood. While I have more time than you could possibly ceive, you are on something of a clock." The thiure at a chair, that wasn't there before it suggested sitting.

  Yeah, this was all kinds of screwed up. Yet, somehow I didn't feel like I had a choice. So, yeah, I sat, while poking at my own skull to see if it had gone soft. I didn't think I was insane, or halluating, but how would I know?

  "Please review the Offer Packet." Again it gestured at a piece of white paper that just appeared out of nowhere. The paper read: The undersigned will gain access to the SMC Store of Powers and Items, in exge for employment.

  "Employment to do what? What kind of powers? Who are you people?" I was b on pissed off while still being half frightened out of my gourd.

  I kept asking for several minutes, and the only response I got back was, "Please Sign." It refused to answer what it meant that I didn't die. It just sat there.

  In a surge of furious emotion I started ranting and yelling. ioe that, once I had gotten started, it took a while to wind down. I felt a little better though.

  To tell the truth, I had no idea what to make of all this. I stared into the distance, risking blindness from the gre. My inner hamster wheel was ing, but her of us saw another way out of this.

  Eventually, it sank in, nothing would ge until I signed. But I still didn't want to ply, I hated being forced into this. Whatever this was.

  I had thought a few times about attag the Desk Thing, but each time some primal survival instinct screamed that would be the st thing I ever did.

  I tired hitting myself a few times. ion, and no ge iuation other than a sore hand. When I walked far enough away from the desk, it just appeared in front of me again. I tried running, same deal. When exhaustio in, I went to sleep, sort of. However, long my fitful nap sted, nothing had ged.

  "FUCK!"

  My mind was having a really hard time accepting this. Part of me thought I had died, whatever the Thing had said, and this was my afterlife. What had I doo possibly deserve this?

  I sighed as a sense of fatalism set in. I didn't see anything else to do, I sighe paper.

  "Please step through the door." The Desk Thing poio a green door that appeared behind me. Fine. Anything was better than this pce. I opehe door and stepped through.

  The same type of room but in green. Another desk this time silver colored. Another Desk Thing this time wearing a bck suit.

  Seems I was wrong.

  "What now?!" I yelled in frustration. I had thought I would be doh this. I wanted out of this pce.

  "Please attach the Bonding Branch to your left wrist." It waved at a short and odd looking branch, with soft looking silver gray bark and nine purple leaves, jutting off of three smaller brangs.

  "How do I do that?" Not actually expeg an answer. Why should they start now?

  "Just pce it near your skin, on your left wrist, it will take care of the rest." I gritted my teeth, but plied, certain I'd get trapped in the same fug loop as st time if I didn't. The branch ed around my arm of it's own accord. Thousands of tiny green fibers burrowed into my skin, eatrusion was apanied by pulsing waves of something I didn't have the words for yet. I felt deeply distrubed.

  "What the hell?" I tried shaking it off my arm. Way too te for that. I only slightly calmed down when I realized it didn't hurt, in fact it felt almost soothing.

  Several lines of goldeers, (Runes? Hieroglyphs?) appeared in my mind. They kept altering until finally...

  [ Wele to the Great Tree System ]

  [ Please Think 'System' to plete the bonding process ]

  Alright? 'System.'

  [ Name: Ryawood

  Css: N/A

  Race: Human (Terra 213,451)

  Body: 5 / Reflex: 4 / Tech: 5 / Intelligence: 3 / Cool: 3 / Will: 4 / Spirit: 6 (+2 Modifier)

  pany Points: 1000 / Tree Points: 0 ]

  [ Please note discrepancies may have occurred. System will be adjusted as User adapts to their new paradigm ]

  "What the fuck is this? A Game, I don't py games. Why would you pick me for this?" I'm sure my face was burning red from anger. Was this some simution? I'd heard they were w on things like this. But this was way too real.

  "Please step through the door." This Desk Thing pointing behihis time the door was red.

  "Fuck." I muttered. Some more twisted part of my mind noted I was saying that word too much, perhaps I should expand my vocabury.

  Sure enough, a red room of the same type. This time the desk was gold. This Desk Thing was wearing a green suit.

  "What is going on, this time?" I was getting desperate to escape. The ers of my eyes kept twitg, a stress rea, that I found terribly unpleasant.

  "Please select your starting package." It gestured toward two boxes on its desk, one was e, one was blue. Other than the color, there was no disable differehat I could detect. I picked the blue o vanished.

  "Please step through the door." I almost told it to shove it, but I cked the energy.

  Have you ever cried because you were that pissed off, or that emotionally drained? I was, and I felt no shame in it. I just wahis to end.

  The door was silver this time, and so was the room. The desk was green, and the Desk Thing had a Red Suit. What do all of the colors even mean?

  "Just tell me what is going on!?" I wasn't doing so well, a well of nausea was building inside. My vision was starting to blur. My breathing was bored. Something was very wrong.

  "Please pick your panion." Two Statues were on the desk. One a golden wolf. One a copper tree man? I picked the Golden Wolf. The statue vanished.

  "Please Step through the Door."

  A golden door followed by a golden room this time. The silver desk had a blue suited Desk Thing.

  "Please no more..." I was muttering. I'm fairly sure I was losing my mind, as well as my health.

  "Please Select your starting Fas. Roll the Wheels."

  That was different. Two gray Hexagonal Boxes on stands with k handles. I tried spinning one. After it stopped, a ball fell out from a spout I hadn't noticed before. The ball was blue with a golden W. The urple markings on it. It vanished.

  I spuher box. The ball this time was blue with a silver S. The S had blue markings on it. It vanished.

  "Please wait while we set up your starting point."

  I sat in the chair it poi. Too draio care, I barely had any sense of self left.

  I thought 'System'. Thinking that maybe I could get some ahere, but nothing had ged. I sat staring at that s trying to uand it by sheer force of will. All in vain, I was too unfamiliar with the base logic of games.

  I zoned out. My mind drifted seeking something it might uand.

  "Please Step through the Door." The door was just made of white light.

  I hurriedly stepped through, hoping this was over.