My job is to make air conditioning work.
So why the fuck is mine not working?
No, it's not because I'm a shit technician...
An unpleasant, sticky sweat clung to Mark's body when he woke up, sprawled out like a kid trying to find comfort. The nice, cooled air of his apartment was gone, and instead humid, hot air replaced it.
He woke up fast. The lack of AC, no electric hum from his electronics, and strange, unfamiliar smells immediately sent alarm bells ringing through his mind.
His eyes snapped open, and he saw an unfamiliar wooden roof. He rolled his head to either side, lifting it slightly so as not to rustle the bed.
A greenish-blue glass window let in distorted light into his extremely plain room. There was a cabinet, his bed, and a door, all made of a light wood material. Other than that, it was dead silent. Not even the chirping of birds as he slowly rose from his bed which, glancing down at it, he saw had a plain wooden frame. A bit of movement let him feel rough, unpleasant bumps under the linen sheets too.
Was I kidnapped?
Cold shivers replaced the heat as he swallowed fearfully, standing up as quietly as he could. There was literally nothing to investigate other than the cabinet which, upon tiptoeing over and pulling down the handle, revealed nothing but plain tunics with leather strips for the waist.
What the fuck... he thought, feeling the rough-textured clothing. What's with these weird clothes?
---
-WELCOME USER!-
---
"AH!"
Blue text suddenly appeared in front of his face. He stepped back, startled, and hit his heel on the corner of the bed frame, but the adrenaline made it numb. Despite this, it was still silent after he froze to listen for any approaching footsteps, his breathing shallow as he strained to hear anything beyond his own pulse.
-Don't be afraid, user. You are safe for the next twenty-four hours!-
"Who are you?" Mark whispered, unsure if it would reply. "Or what are you? Where am I?"
-I am Oracle, your smart information management system and guide. Designed and authorized by ***** to assist you in becoming proficient with this world's environment.-
"Hey!" Mark pointed accusingly at the asterisks. "Authorized by whom? Who kidnapped me, and where am I?"
`You, Mark, are on Kosmos in your starting settlement. According to my data, your last planet was Earth. Consider it void.'
"What? Bullshit!"
Mark's head snapped toward the door, ignoring the system's blue text box and immediately went to open it. Bright light blinded him temporarily, forcing him to shield his eyes until they adjusted. Then he looked around, dumbfounded, his thoughts stalling as reality failed to line up with anything familiar.
His building was a little hut on top of a mound.
Lush green grass blew in the wind along the slope with a forest of oaks and beech trees surrounding its base on all sides. The mound was tall enough to see just over the treetops all around giving him an open view in every direction, and nowhere to hide.
"No way..." Mark breathed, staring dumbfounded before his eyes drifted toward the sky.
"Two suns?!" Two small yellow blips hung in the sky, half the size of Earth's sun.
So they're the same age as our sun but... what? Further away?
An echoing roar snapped his attention to the treetops as a creature flew low toward distant mountains, its silhouette massive even at a distance.
-Kosmos, unlike your previous world, has many 'fantasy' species. Orcs, goblins, dragons, beastkin, and elves are a few of the most common to mention.-
"But... why?"
-Why?-
"Why am I here?!"
-Access denied. Please review your settlement to begin.-
"WHAT SETTLEMENT?!" Mark shouted, gesturing at the treetops surrounding him when a larger blue screen shimmered into existence in front of him.
------
Kingdom: N/A
Settlement Name: N/A
Population: 1
Stability: --
Foundation Points: 100
Gold: 10
------
Foundation Points Costs:
Invite Settlers: 25
Hut: 20
Well: 10
Storage Shed: 10
Relocate Building: 5
---
Tool workshop: 50
Tannery: 40
Farms - 10 + (2 * acre amount)
------
"..."
Mark was lost for words. Dumbfounded? Confused?
Is this seriously going to work? he thought doubtfully until his finger pressed on 'Hut'.
The moment he did, a faded light-blue blueprint of a hut appeared and hovered in the air in front of him, and Mark stepped back again in bewilderment.
"Holy shit?! Wait, won't people find this weird if I start summoning and creating things out of thin air? No, more than weird! They'd think I possess godly powers."
-Correct. You are a Ruler and are considered one of God's chosen. There are kingdoms that have formed naturally and then settlements such as yours. More options will become available as you progress.-
"Native kingdoms? You mean kingdoms with a normal king and not a Ruler? How's that possible? Wouldn't people flock to mine or others like mine?"
-Most Rulers do not survive long. If a Ruler's land is destroyed or conquered, the Ruler loses his power. The result is often the Ruler is killed, reduced to a slave, or becomes a normal citizen of this world.-
-Only three Rulers have ever made it historically.-
-The first was tyrannical. She formed the Great Demonic Empire and turned half of the world into a barren, desolate wasteland filled with monsters and demons.-
-The second, Ruler of the High Elves, created Avalon. A prosperous High Elven ethnocentric state built out on this world's Great Lake. The Ruler converted his race to High Elven and has since lived with his people there in isolation.-
-And the final, most well-known, hid his power, and the land became known as the Sanctus Empire. People caught glimpses of his work and believed it to be God's blessing the land. Thus, its alternate, more modern name is the Holy Empire.-
-The Holy Empire believes Rulers such as yourself to be a threat. Whether a false apostle because you are not from their Ruler's family or a potential coming disaster like the Great Demonic Empire, they will kill you.-
Rubbing his chin, Mark asked, "Huh. So one gave us a bad reputation, one doesn't give a fuck and created arrogant assholes on a lake, and the other hid his powers. Their pope and top officials may know the truth, but I'm a threat to their power."
"I can change my race?" Mark blinked in realization, his attention immediately shifting to the implications.
-If you desire. That option is not available to you yet.-
"What about the lady who made the Demonic Empire?"
-She asked her system if she could make an evil-aligned settlement. Her request was granted at the cost of becoming a demon. As one could imagine, this created many challenges for her but to our surprise, she succeeded.-
"Right..."
So there are results and events this system can't predict. That's both good and frightening to know, Mark grimaced.
When his gaze returned to his settlement screen, he realized his initial panic and disorientation had disappeared. Nervousness still twisted in his lower stomach with uncertainty toward the future. At the same time, though, an excited feeling was beginning to bubble and rise to the surface.
I'm settling a little quicker than I should, he thought, staring at his hand that no longer trembled. I have no choice but to trust the system and believe my life, as of this moment, is on the line.
Mark took a deep breath in and slowly breathed out, closing his eyes for a second.
"How do I get more Foundation Points and gold?"
-Grow your settlement, defeat enemies, engage in diplomacy, and survive. More systems will become available with time.-
Mark nodded, mentally filing it away like instructions on a job site.
"And where is my settlement in relation to these three Ruler empires? Or any other large kingdoms?"
-You are on the south-western peninsula of the eastern continent. To the east is the Holy Empire. To the south are the mountains inhabited by both friendly and dangerous creatures, from dwarves to dragons. West leads you over the ocean to the Great Demonic Empire, and north takes you to native kingdoms.-
-You will find various native and Ruler settlements in your region, but nothing built up and prestigious. It is known as the Outer Lands, not due to a lack of abundance, but a lack of development.-
"Understood," Mark said sharply, treating it like training. "How many settlers arrive when I use Foundation Points?"
-Results vary depending on settlement size and luck. With your current size, one to three families.-
"Are working-age males guaranteed?"
-No.-
Fuck. So I can get settlers that are all old, or all children, or a mix of the two and women. The chances of that are probably low, but I'm in the middle of the wilderness here, it looks like. They are either settlers or survivors, and if they're survivors, the males will be missing, dead, or injured.
After relaying his thoughts on this to the system, another blue text box from Oracle replied.
-The chances are low, but not zero. You can be unlucky.-
"Well," Mark began, raising his hands to begin controlling the building's placement.
"Time to get started."