Fifteen or so minutes had passed. Freys eye lids fluttered in rapid succession. His body then following with a jolt bringing him to a seated position.

 

“Hnghhh” he let out a groan in frustration.

 

This “update” thing, sucks ass! Goddamn, what kind of fuckin game gives you a seizure to level up?

 

Frey, looked down at himself, only to be greeted by multiple large lacerations across his abdominal region and just slightly further down, his member, hanging free.

 

“Fuck me.. my dick’s out!” he exclaimed in a tone reminiscent of someone who’s given up on life, completely ignoring his wounds.

 

_____________________

 

< CONGRATULATIONS YOU HAVE LEVELLED UP >

 

< YOU ARE NOW [LEVEL 1] >

 

< YOU HAVE UNLOCKED [SKILLS] >

 

< YOU HAVE UNLOCKED [PERKS] >

 

< YOU HAVE UNLOCKED [MAGIC] >

 

< YOU HAVE [5] UNALLOCATED [STAT POINTS] >

 

< YOU HAVE [1] UNALLOCATED [SKILL POINT] >

 

< YOU HAVE SUCCESSFULLY AWAKENED [MANA] >

 

< [MANA POINTS] ARE NOW AVAILABLE FOR USE >

 

____________________

 

Woah, spam much? Do I get a class now?

 

As if to answer Freys question, the Systems voice echoed.

 

________________________

 

< ACCESSING [RECORDS OF GAIA] >

 

< DOWNLOADING [USER HISTORY] >

 

4%…9%…18%…37%…53%

 

It’d better not be accessing the “History” I’m thinking of right now, that’d be a bloody breach of privacy!

 

71%…88%…99%…100%

 

< DOWNLOAD COMPLETE >

 

______________________

 

Ok… What now?

 

*Bing* A chime rang inside Freys mind eliciting a jolt.

 

______________________

 

< YOUR FIRST [CLASS] IS NOW AVAILABLE FOR SELECTION >

 

< WOULD YOU LIKE TO CHOOSE YOUR [CLASS] NOW >

 

Yeah. Why not?

 

< [CLASSES AVAILABLE] >

 

< [THIEF] APTITUDE: COPPER >

 

< [MARTIAL ARTIST] APTITUDE: SILVER >

 

< [BARD] APTITUDE: GOLD >

 

< [DRUID] APTITUDE: LEGENDARY >

 

< [MAGE] APTITUDE: GOLD >

 

_____________________

 

Frey wondered why he didn’t see “Warrior”, “Swordsman” or anything of the sort.

 

Aptitude?

 

_____________________

 

< [ APTITUDE ] >

 

< These grades represent an individuals inherent ability within each [Class] or [Profession]. Aptitude grades are regarded highly by every new [Awakened]. These grades serve as a guide in choosing the best [Classes] for an individual. [Classes] and [Professions] in which there is no aptitude, are not available to the individual, although through perseverance, one may raise their Aptitude in any given [Class] or [Profession]. These grades in ascending order; Copper, Silver, Gold, Platinum, Heroic, Mythic and lastly Legendary, are determined via [The Records of Gaia]. >

 

and…? What exactly are “The Records of Gaia”?

 

< [THE RECORDS OF GAIA] >

 

< Information collected regarding all of the inhabitants on what is known commonly as “Earth”. These records contain all information regarding an individuals achievements, skills and pre-update professions. These records continue to grow as long as the individual lives. This is then converted into a quantifiable metric for use by [The System] in order to assess [Class] and [Profession] aptitude. >

 

______________________

 

That explains my lack of choice.

 

Frey couldn’t lie to himself, being something like a death knight would have fulfilled a power fantasy sixteen year old Frey could only have dreamed of.

 

Frey simultaneously felt proud and insulted as he read over his Class options.

 

Ok, so, basically the 5 years of Brazilian Jiu Jitsu and Vocal classes are finally paying off? Thief though?

 

Frey could only think his youth, fraught with shoplifting adventures, must be to blame.

 

Oi! Those were multi-billion dollar corporations, consider it charity. I was hardly a “thief”.

 

Freys eyes were then drawn to the “Druid” class.

 

Legendary… I’m an absolute unit? I have a legendary aptitude, as a druid, a fuckin druid. He thought to himself smirking in his arrogance.

 

Looks like my obsession with Plants was worth it, thirty-thousand dollars later, and I’m finally seeing a return. Years of minimum wage pay checks… they definitely went to good use.

 

“Righto! I choose Druid.” Frey said without a second thought.

 

< ARE YOU SURE >

 

< YES/NO >

 

“Yes!”

 

Frey flinched in anticipation of another painful event.

 

No pain came to him, he only received a new notification.

 

____________________

 

< CLASS [DRUID] OBTAINED >

 

< CHOOSE YOUR [PERK] >

 

Thorns of Nature (I)

 

10% increase to [Physical Damage] on forested terrain.

 

Nature Sense (I)

 

15% Increase to [Perception] when on forested terrain.

 

Animal Communion (I)

 

Sense the emotions of Animals [<LVL5] within a 10km radius.

 

So.. animals have levels too huh? Whatever this “update” is, it must have changed everything.

 

But seriously, who the fuck would want to sense an animals emotions? The fuckers are horny or hungry about ninety percent of the time.

 

I don’t know ayy, Nature Sense sounds pretty cool to me.

 

Enhanced senses… I could see an aphid before it even so much as touches my plants.

 

Frey, on many occasions in the past had issues with aphids, in particular they loved the fresh growth on his newly planted rose bushes and the blueberries he had planted against the house in the back yard.

 

I wonder if aphids have levels?

 

“Eeeghh” Frey shuttered at the thought of what a high level aphid might be capable of.

 

It’d be able to suck the life out of a plant in seconds.

 

The more he thought about it the more heated he got. He wanted to wipe them out of existence.

 

Coming back to the matter at hand. Frey came to his decision.

 

“I’ll take Nature Sense.” Frey stated aloud forgetting the System responded to his thoughts.

 

____________________

 

< OBTAINED PERK >

 

Nature Sense (I)

 

15% Increase to [Perception] when on forested terrain.

 

___________________

 

Ok, now let’s have a geez at my Status.

 

________________________

 

Status

 

Name: Frey

Race: Human

Faction: None

Classes: Druid [LVL 1] (1/3)

Professions: 0/10

Level: 1

Experience Points: 5/200

Health Points: 70/100

Mana Points: 120/120

Stamina: 95/150

 

Stats

 

Agility: 10

Dexterity: 8

Strength: 10

Endurance: 15

Vitality: 10

Toughness: 7

Intelligence: 13

Wisdom: 12

Perception: 12

Spirit: 16

 

(+5 Points Remaining)

 

____________________

 

Wait a minute, where’d my last name go? It was there last time I swear!

 

_________________________

 

< PREVIOUS FAMILY NAMES ARE NO LONGER NECESSARY >

 

< PRE-UPDATE FAMILY IS INCONSEQUENTIAL >

 

< YOU WILL CREATE A NEW BLOODLINE BASED ON YOUR OWN MERIT >

____________________

 

Woah!Woah!Woah! I’m only twenty-three mate, I’m not starting a “Bloodline” any time soon. Whoever… Whatever’s running this thing, if you can hear me, you’re fucked in the head mate!

 

Frey wasn’t upset about the loss of his last name, he himself forgot he even had it most days. He hadn’t had a very good relationship with his family.

 

Having disassociated from them and the family name they shared when he was a still a teenager.

 

Avoiding pointless debate, Frey decided to allocate his points. There wasn’t much he could do to argue an otherworldly voice in his head.

 

Five points… mmm. Considering the wounds on my stomach right now. I think I could use a little more toughness.

 

I’ll just add em all. Frey concluded, having zero doubt in his mind.

 

Frey was always confident in his decision making. His friends would say he was a little too confident sometimes.

_________________________

 

Stats

 

Agility: 10

Dexterity: 8

Strength: 10

Endurance: 15

Vitality: 10

Toughness: 12

Intelligence: 13

Wisdom: 12

Perception: 12

Spirit: 16

 

_______________________

 

Frey felt a wave of energy, equivalent to the five stat point increase, sweeping through him. He felt invincible for a brief moment. It was utterly euphoric.

 

Frey clenched his fists for no reason other than to release some of the energy flowing through him. He felt more powerful. Sure, only his Toughness may have increased, but it felt more complex than that. It felt as if he had altered himself on a deeper level.

 

_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_

 

After a couple of minutes adjusting to the feeling of his changed body, he started to browse all that he had missed in his notifications.

 

Frey opened his quest tab.

 

_____________________

 

< QUESTS >

 

A Survivors Rise

 

You are lucky enough to be part of the 20%, you have survived the [Update]. You must now take your first steps into the New World.

 

Slay 20 Monsters, Beasts or Awakened

 

1/20 Slain

 

Reach Level 5

 

Level 1/5 Reached

 

____________________

 

Nah, no fuckin’ way! Only twenty percent…only twenty fuckin’ percent and it wants me to kill more? More people?

 

There’s no way! I would have heard something. The world would be in shambles.

 

Frey lived fairly isolated, his nearest neighbour being five kilometres away. It wasn’t implausible to of not noticed the death and destruction happening in the world around him, especially seeing as he spent hours unconscious the day prior.

 

Frey began to wonder if his family were a part of that statistic, brushing aside any interest in the newly acquired system.

 

Realistically they had a one in five chance of survival. He didn’t like his family but he didn’t wish them death.

 

Frey, still within the walls of his greenhouse, began pacing. His mind had been preoccupied with all the notifications from the system until now, but at that moment it became filled with the prospect of all his friends and family being dead.

 

He didn’t have many friends, but the few he did have, they were inseparable. He had long since weeded out the fake friends after graduating high-school.

 

As Frey paced he passed plants that had been knocked over, plants that had been eaten. He passed by the destruction of his passion with complete ignorance. His mind stuck, stuck repeating the same questions.

 

Is Mag ok? Is Aiden? My sisters? My mother?

 

Before long he left the greenhouse in a stupor. Making sure, despite his melancholy, to latch the door. He wouldn’t repeat the same mistake twice.

 

He walked inside, the cool morning air of the mountains nipping at his heels as he did. Frey was still naked, and covered in dirt from his fall.

 

Despite this he walked straight to his room, to his bed. He lay there. Not sleeping, but contemplating.

 

-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-

 

I need to see for myself! Frey finally concluded in the afternoon following the discovery.

 

His phone had provided no answers, the wi-fi was out, no effort he made seemed to bring it back. He had spent hours mulling it over and he eventually decided he had to see for himself, a part of him still refusing to believe any of it to be reality.

 

Frey, finally for the first time that day, put some clothes on.

 

He wore a long sleeve tee, with Japanese lettering, katakana specifically, and a print from his favourite anime. Coupled with tattered skinny jeans.

 

He wasn’t handsome, he was a fairly average looking individual, but his dress sense and aesthetic more than made up for it.

 

Frey then went outside to grab the shovel from the greenhouse where he had dropped it after falling unconscious a couple of hours earlier. It still glistened with the green blood of his prior enemy.

 

He had a feeling he’d be needing it, it was almost a certainty in his mind although he hoped he wouldn’t need it.

 

Having no idea what was out in the world now, he wasn’t partial to finding out unarmed.

 

Frey contemplated for a second on whether or not he should take his moped. Reminded of the sounds it made when struggling up the hilly roads of the mountain, he made his decision.

 

Nah, that’ll do me in. It’s bound to attract unwanted attention.

 

Frey strode back through his house with a swiftness begetting someone with unshakable confidence.

 

He swung the front door wide open and took his first steps into the new world.