Bokuboy

This is the first chapter of three that I've written (third person perspective). I got to a point that I wasn't sure where I was going to go with it and that just killed the initial passion I had for the genre. I hopefully did it justice, brief as it was.

Steven was a good man. He lived a good life, had an ex-wife that loved him, two grown kids that loved him, and he was a successful business owner... until some punk chose to rob his convenience store. He hadn't fought or tried to delay the criminal, because he knew it wasn't worth his life to save money on his insurance premiums. It was best to cooperate and...

*BANG!*

Steven felt a mule kick him in the chest. He fell backwards against the shelving behind the counter and put a hand over the wound. Blood poured out over his fingers and he realized he had been shot, probably in the heart. The happy look on the punk's face from shooting him, enraged Steven.

Without a second thought, Steven scooped up the baseball bat that his night clerk had left by the cash register and leapt over the counter. A swing crushed the robber's hand and the punk yelled in pain, then his skull collapsed as the bat sunk into the side of his head by his temple. Two more swings crushed the idiot's skull completely and it left Steven panting from both exhaustion and blood loss.

As his vision started to fade and he collapsed to the floor, all he felt was satisfaction that no one else was going to suffer because of that punk.

*

Welcome, Owner!
The Store is an inter-dimensional business that caters to other worlds and dimensions. No matter where it is or what the circumstances, everyone needs access to their local store. It's your job to give them what they want or sell them something they think they want. It's a business, after all. You need to do what you can to make money and to keep your customers happy.

Steven stared at the popup and laughed. He laughed. He cried. He bitched about the unfairness. He groaned about the loss of his life over something so stupid... and then everything seemed to be okay.

As a first time Owner, you will have to start from the bottom and work your way up.

Steven groaned at having to do that. He had struggled for years to build up a good reputation and to get his stock up to a respectable level, and now he had to do it all again.

Fear not, Owner! Because of your previous experience, you have received the <EXPERT> Perk! All store costs have been halved and your profits doubled. Options not available to first time Owners have been unlocked and are only limited by your Store's <LEVEL>.
Current level of The Store: 0

That's just wonderful. Steven thought, sarcastically.

An extra-dimensional space has been created just for you. It's a dump.

Steven would have slapped a hand over his face in embarrassment if he had a hand... and a face.

Congratulations! The <EXPERT> Perk has unlocked the Maintenance Room. It has all the tools and materials you need to fix the place up to a basic standard.
Warning: Only first tier materials are available (wood, nails, brackets, and wall mounts).
Please upgrade the Store to gain new materials.

At least that's something. Steven thought and wondered how he was supposed to get to that extra-dime-whatsits and what he was supposed to sell if the place didn't have anything inside.

A basic starter pack has been deposited into your <INVENTORY>. Depending on how you set up your displays, you will make money and be able to purchase more packs to restock your Store. Packs available depend upon your Store <LEVEL>.

Before Steven could complain that he couldn't get anything more than a starter pack with a level 0 Store, he saw another popup saying his <EXPERT> perk had unlocked the first four packs and he had been given three times the normal first time owner's starting money.

When he looked over the options, he was glad he wasn't stuck with only being able to buy another starter pack with 500 basic military rations called MREs, 100 cases of water bottles, 50 survival knives, 10 machetes, and a single pistol with 100 bullets.

It did give him a decent idea of the first world he would be visiting, however. He had been gifted the starter pack, after all. He concentrated on the name MRE and a popup appeared to describe it.

Meal, Ready to Eat: These Military Grade MREs are the most advanced shelf-stable food in the world. Each MRE provides a complete nutritious meal anytime, anywhere. Simply add two ounces of water to the included flameless ration heater, wait 10 minutes, and you have a hot meal. No stove or other source of heat is needed.

Yep, I am definitely going to that kind of world. Steven thought. At least there's a large variety.

The funny thing was, as a business owner, he had taken the opportunity to use his extra funds to invest in a survival bunker. He knew the best items to have and keep for an extended stay in a limited space, usually underground, and the survivalist pack available in the store had them.

He bought it and it appeared in his <INVENTORY> immediately. He thought about buying the normal store contents and chose to not use up any more money. He would be raided and emptied if he stocked anything but the essentials. He just had to figure out how he was going to get away with selling them in a place that probably didn't have any currency.

The Store uses a Barter System as well as a Currency Exchange System. Instead of a set cost to buy things, you can appraise and weigh the value of different things to ensure you get the best deal and your customers are happy with their purchases. Currency values are automatically adjusted for your understanding.

Oh, thank god. That's a huge load off my mind. Steven thought.

You're welcome, Steven. Would you like to materialize inside your assigned dump? You have a lot of work to clean the place up and to set up shelves and things for your products.

You're not going to pretend that you're giving me the best setup? Steven asked with a laugh. He had completely missed being called by his name and not Owner.

You are too much of a realist to think of things in anything but practical terms. Lying would only anger you. Also, your own skills will improve it to your own satisfaction instead of being stuck with something that someone else designed.

Steven hadn't thought of that. It really was the best thing for him, because it would chafe him to be stuck in someone else's store to sell things. He had been his own boss for far too long to become a lackey.

Let's get this show started. Steven thought.

You will have an unlimited amount of time to fix and set up your Store before being sent to your first stop. However, you will not make any money during this time or earn Store bonuses. No achievements will be recorded and nothing else will unlock during your initial <SETUP>.

Steven thought about that. He knew that he wanted to clean up the whole place and wanted to set up shelving and racks for his products, because he was a bit compulsive to have everything ready. But, if he was going to lose achievements and credits by getting it all done right away, it might be better to only set up a very basic layout and put a few things out to start.

I can stay busy renovating while waiting for customers. Steven added in his mind and nodded his non-existent head. All right, I'm ready.

There was a bright flash and Steven was suddenly standing inside a wrecked ten foot by ten foot square. Broken shelves of wood and metal were smashed on the floor and there were large cracks in the walls and ceiling. The floor was dirty, as if someone had dumped a bucketful of dirt and grime with two large bags of garbage at the door, and the wind blew it all over the place from that direction.

Steven thought about cursing and bit his tongue. Calling this place a dump was a compliment!

He grumbled under his breath as he walked behind the small counter to the two doors there. He opened the door on the left, somehow automatically knowing that this was his living area. It wasn't as bad as the front of the store. The cheap folding cot had a threadbare mattress that had more broken springs inside than intact ones. The dresser was missing most of the drawers and the light didn't work.

Still grumbling, he left there and opened the second door behind the counter. This room was immaculate and contained a bunch of tools and things neatly arranged on racks and shelves. There was also a large multiple pizza oven on the far wall. There were six large doors and he walked over to it. None of the doors would open until he tried the top one.

It opened without a problem and inside there were stacks of wood of all kinds and all were within reach. He didn't question it and pulled out several 2x4s and 2x6s to start the basic repairs and left the wood panelling and shelving alone. He didn't want to miss getting free Store bonuses.

Steven took the wood out to the main room and sighed. He put it on the dirty counter and went back into the maintenance room to get the broom, mop, and bucket. He left there and went to the door just on the other side of the counter that he knew was a bathroom and opened it.

A very distinct smell slapped him in the face and made his eyes water. That's why it's called a dump!

Steven flushed the toilet several times before he left to get cleaning supplies from the maintenance room. He did a preliminary scrub-down of the bathroom, without much effort behind it, and wished he had a hose to just rinse the whole thing down to get it over with. The small shower stall had no door, the stall was covered in mildew, and the showerhead was cracked.

A sigh escaped his mouth as he filled the bucket with partially brown water from the sink and he added some cleaner. It sudded up well and he took that as a win. Steven went out into the main room and did a quick sweep with the broom and used a dustpan to drop it into the immovable garbage can in the corner of the room. The best part was that he dumped a lot of dirt and garbage inside and it never filled up.

With a basic clean-up done, he started to build very cheap and easy shelving to assemble. It was quick and dirty, looked like an uneducated teenager had put it up, and it worked. It just had to be functional for now and able to hold the important things he had for sale or trade. He put out two cases of water and thirty of the MREs, five knives, and one machete from the starter pack.

He also added ten thick blankets, five battery powered lanterns, a large box of candles, a box of rechargeable batteries, two solar powered chargers, ten flashlights, five road flares, a flare gun with ten shots, five air horns, several coils of rope, chains, locks, ten pry bars, and a standing case of baseball bats from the survivalist pack he had bought.

Steven went to the maintenance room to return his tools and locked the door, locked his living area door, and left the bathroom door open to hopefully let it air out a bit. With that done, he went behind the counter and saw a small stool there. It was wobbly and he didn't care, because he wouldn't be using it for anything except as a possible weapon.

I think I've done just enough to not stand out wherever it is I'm going. Steven thought and nodded.

Store Accessibility: Acceptable. Store Presentation: Minimal. Store Stock: Appropriate.
Accessing localized dimensional barrier. Inserting. Materializing into world. Done.
Welcome to the world of The Walking Dead!

“Fuck.” Steven cursed out loud for the first time in his life.