Meet and Greet

'Oh yeah, ya' like that?' Cody was talking in his sleep while dreaming about a crush in high school.

Grandpa Ira watched and put an end to it once he began to make kissy faces, "Boy, wake up!" Ira kicked his foot and worried about a fist of fury for a moment, but nothing happened, Cody just rose from the dead.

After letting out a big stretch and a look-see, he noticed his Grandma was STILL cooking.

"Either I slept a long time or Grandma became superhuman."

Ira chuckled, "Well, it is a little of both. Now you gonna' stop passin' out on me so we can talk about this creek we find ourselves up?"

Cody nodded and laid back down, "I am ALL ears, Papaw."

Ira wasn't dumb but he wasn't "familiar" with the whole gaming system which led him to ask, "So, why levels? It seems dumb."

Cody sat up like a zombie once he heard a staple in game design being criticized by an "uninitiated."

Cody looked him dead in the eye, "Seems like the 1911 is an outdated model."

Ira froze like someone had walked over his grave, "I...understand."

After a bite of homemade beef jerky, the conversation continued, "Well, the real answer is that it is a nice and easy way to convey power in simple terms. I would think that monsters have a similar system to help them." Cody grabbed a bit of jerky and began to chew.

Ira nodded, "Do you think aliens exist at Area 51? Clearly the Government was gung-ho about all the secrecy, almost like they were ready for it. Hell, you said it yourself, it was so weird how fast they caught your coworkers in the NDA's."

Cody was thinking back to that, 'Maybe Ira has a point, how do you coordinate a Government Operation like that without pre approval?'

Cody and Ira sat for a few minutes, then Cody received a message, [Hello, Cody, you are exceeding the 200% Experience buffer allowed by the system. Please allocate your Status Points.]

Cody shook his head, "The whole voice and text thing is getting on my nerves."

Ira was confused, "Did you customize it yet, mine plays Johnny Cash."

Cody looked at him, "Uh, how did you do that?"

A giant smile grew on Ira's face, "Oh boy, never thought I'd live to see the day when YOU need help with technology from little old me." He was clearly too happy about this, "But if you must know, you just do what you did in your tutorial."

Cody deadpanned, "So, tutorial hmm?"

Ira nodded, "Ya' know, the whole course with the Orbs and the whole "saving a town" thing we went through."

Cody just stared, "Nope. Didn't do that at ALL."

Ira was confused and Cody was frustrated, "Did the System skip me because I was familiar with it?" He looked back at his memories and felt the ending to the whole "interrogation" thing felt rushed.

Cody wanted to know more, "Gramps, what else do you remember about that?"

Ira stopped drinking from his beer, "Well, we went over basic terminologies throughout the world. Then we had a small quest chain within the town, the green guys attacked on their dumb pigs, then we went to the tavern and drank for a while." Ira nodded, "Then all that happened was I picked my Class, chose a Probationary Way, then I signed papers with a weird spider..thing.." Cody could tell Ira was freaked out just like he was.

Cody also noticed something huge, "YOU GOT TO PICK A CLASS?" Ira nodded and took a swig, "I chose to be a Forest Ranger, walking the Way of the Soldier." He did a half and half gesture with his hand, "The bonus wasn't as good as some of the other ones, but it was pretty clear that the huge boost to Stamina Recovery would help with the mountain terrain sapping an old fart like me."

Cody felt like he was going to be sick, so he laid back down as Ira went to retrieve another "cold one."

He sat for a moment and said, "Status!"

…

"Uhhhh?" Cody was confused, but he felt the strong urge to meditate.

'Okay, I think I understand, follow the urge.'

While he laid there, he placed his feet together on the bed. It took him a while before, but he immediately felt the flow going through him.

[Status Page (Full): Cody Colt-Yang.

Class: [Way] Monk Initiate (Epic)

Health 100/100-Mana 100/100-Stamina 96/100

Level 0 (236%)

Strength- 7

Agility- 8

Vitality- 10

Endurance- 10

Intelligence- 10

Wisdom- 10

Willpower- 9

Perception- 7

Unspent Status Points: 0 (16 -Potentially)

Skills:

Active: True Fist of the Monk (Linked)

Active: Empty

Passive: True Fist of the Monk (Linked)

Passive: Empty

Traits: Eternal Refining Body of Harmony (Unique)

Titles: Blessed One (Epic)

Way: True Way of the Monk]

Cody felt like his head was going to pop.

'THE RUSH!' He squirmed in his mind, but his body was perfectly still.

'What the hell is all of this?' Cody was reading the sheet in front of him and saw his class and a "way" or whatever it was, he certainly did not choose those.'

[Your choice was confirmed and you have agreed upon it with your life essence.]

He looked around in his mind and couldn't see any orb of light, 'How are you speaking to me?'

[It is through a default scan of your brain that I am able to interpret your thoughts and behaviors. This option can be turned off, but for best odds of survival it is advised to leave the setting on.]

He could understand that the "vibe" he had been getting was the feedback of this "thing" that was inside of him. He wondered why this was standard across the universe.

[The Consciousness wishes to see sentient life continue to exist, but it is not fair to other forms of life to simply wipe them out and extinguish their odds as well. No. The Consciousness merely provides a bridge of understanding and a good will that you will weather the hardships.]

Cody felt a flood of information enter his head from millions of different species, just images, but important details of life and having lived. He also felt an emotion that to interfere would be cruel as most beings grew arrogant without struggle, then those beings would one day challenge him, again…

Cody felt anger and strife. Human emotions in a "God."

He felt loss, the reason he will never interfere that much again.

He also felt a challenge. An open invitation to those that think they could have done better, try.

The Consciousness might be worshiped as a God in many Universes and Dimensions, but it would never dare to judge another, merely guide.

At the end, he felt a small amount of peace that has come from a very, very, very long life.

Cody could understand, resentment wasn't what the being was looking to create, merely a form of motivation. It wasn't about collecting the cream of the crop, merely letting those who wanted to survive do so.

He felt it was funny, an ultimate form of benevolence, he wasn't here for the 14 or so billion years so he is just continuing that.

The being was the opposite of the cruel Gods in novels, but perhaps not always, not fully benevolent either. A absolute neutral.

Cody snapped out of it, 'But if he is neutral why did I get fucked over by not being allowed to choose my class and stuff?'

A strong sense of acknowledgement slammed into him and sent his consciousness flying in his mind. He thought it was just a vertigo until he noticed the text WAS ACTUALLY WHIPPING AROUND!

[You have been granted an audience with The Great One.]

"Hehe, XD." a voice said from nowhere.

"I chose your class and Way because you had the audacity to enter True Meditation for 10,000 years in front of me." The being chuckled and he felt genuine amusement.

The Consciousness continued, "NOW GO! I have books and television shows to read!"

-----------

Cody woke up glowing a golden sheen, "What...the….fuuuuuuuuuck?"

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