Oliver awoke to a pounding migraine and intense nausea. Chilled to the bone from lying in mud for the past few hours, he was glad to see the light of early morning breaking through the trees. What had he been doing out here? Whatever it was, he swore to never drink that much again.
As his mind slowly cleared, memories of the previous night trickled back. With a gasp of realization, he leapt to his feet, only to stagger and fall to his knees as a spike of throbbing pain stabbed through his forehead.
User Initialization Error!
No mana field detected . . .
User Initialization failed . . .
Unable to restart . . .
Error report forwarded to System Administrator . . .
Error! Local System Administrator Role undefined . . .
Error! Insufficient mana to elevate report . . .
Initialization aborted . . .
Basic System Interface activated. All higher System Functions are currently unavailable. Please seek assistance from your nearest System Service Node or System Support Representative.
If you feel this Status is in error, please terminate and restart your life processes to reset your System Instance.
“What. In. The…” Oliver froze as his mind finally processed what he’d just experienced. “Oh… damn. Okay. Okay… breathe, Oliver. You’ve got this. You’ve watched enough isekai anime and read enough gamelit to get through this. It’s… uh… uh… Right. System Status.”
Status is currently unavailable. User has not completed Initialization.
Caution! Insufficient localized mana to attempt User Initialization. Please seek assistance from your nearest System Service Node or System Support Representative.
“Well. I broke it. Is there some sort of system menu I can access to see available functions? … System? You there? Menu? System Menu? System Inventory?”
Inventory is currently unavailable. User has not completed Initialization.
“Alright. So, there’s an inventory of some sort. Let’s try System Options. System Settings?”
Settings are currently unavailable. User has not completed Initialization.
“Well, I could just keep guessing at commands, but they’re probably all unavailable. So, the next step would be to do what? Find mana to initialize this thing? Or maybe I should find my way back to camp… Or go look for the meteor, which I guess would be a meteorite at this point. And… I’m rambling to myself.”
Oliver quickly came to the decision that finding the meteorite—the apparent source of this System—would be the only reasonable course of action if he wanted answers. Surely Dennis had already left by now or would be gone by the time he got back to camp. So, there was no reason to rush back. Nothing had bothered him through the night while passed out, so any dangerous animals were probably still avoiding the area. Yep, finding the meteorite had to be top priority, assuming it held answers of some sort.
He approached the edge of the crater, only to find that the energy field had collapsed, allowing the area to be filled with murky water. Wisps of faintly glowing blue mist arose from the water’s surface at the center of the crater, a steady stream of vapor spreading into the air before burning away in the light of the morning sun.
Taking a deep breath, Oliver stepped into the water expecting his feet to sink into the soft, muddy bottom of the swamp. Instead, his steps were met with what felt like solid rock only a couple of inches below the surface. Each step forward drew the glowing mists to him, swirling as if to envelope him before vanishing. Oliver’s heart thrummed with excitement and a hint of trepidation as he approached the exact point of impact.
There, just below the surface, lay a glowing blue-green crystal the size of his fist. Roughly round, the surface was covered with a perfectly symmetrical array of five-sided and three-sided pyramids in something vaguely resembling a very bumpy dodecahedron.
“Well, here goes nothing.” With a shrug, Oliver grabbed the crystal. A new screen with a color matching that of the crystal filled his vision, a gray haze obscuring everything else around him.
Dungeon Administration Node 01 (inactive)
- Activate Dungeon Administration Node
- Destroy Dungeon Administration Node
- Access Log
“Inactive, huh? Looks like we have something in common. Let’s try Access Log.”
Dungeon Administration Node 01 System Log
[19ß3AL7я216] [Earth.θρ7] [DAN.01] Status: State Validation . . . Validated. DAN.01 active. System subroutines validated. Transpheric metadeviation 0.13%. Initiating local metasphere analysis.
[19ß3AL7я224] [Earth.θρ7] [DAN.01] Status: Local metasphere analysis complete. Possible Earth-??7 existence confirmed.
Atmospheric mana concentration: 0.01%.
Atmospheric aether concentration: 29.03%.
CAUTION! Abnormal aetheric concentration detected. Analysis paused.
Update. Aetheric concentration within minimally acceptable tolerances. Additional mana generation phases queued. Analysis resumed.
Local sapient species detected, labeled Terran.θρ7-1. Terran.θρ7-1 indicates 2.11% deviation from standard Human template. Deviation within standard tolerances. Genome Defragmentation subroutine queued for Terran.θρ7-1.
Initiating System Initialization procedure.
[19ß3AL7я226] [Earth.θρ7] [DAN.01] ERROR: Unknown attacker deals 37 damage to DAN.01. System Initialization interrupted. Planetary orbit destabilized.
[19ß3AL7я229] [Earth.θρ7] [DAN.01] Status: Planetary surface impact detected. Deploying local exclusion field. Activating repairs.
[19ß3AL7я331] [Earth.θρ7] [DAN.01] ERROR: Local exclusion field has experienced critical failure. System Initialization failure. Unable to restart. Error report forwarded to Local System Administrator Role.
[19ß3AL7я331] [Earth.θρ7] [DAN.01] ERROR: Local System Administrator Role undefined. Insufficient mana to elevate report. Error reporting failed.
[19ß3AL7я331] [Earth.θρ7] [SYSTEM] WARNING: Unauthorized User Initialization detected. Directive, Priority Zero: Terminate Unauthorized User.
[19ß3AL7я332] [Earth.θρ7] [DAN.01] ERROR: Mana concentration critical. Entering low power mode.
[19ß3AL8д147] [Earth.θρ7] [DAN.01] Activity: Unauthorized User access to DAN.01 detected. Offensive measures inactive. Defensive countermeasures inactive. Termination of Unauthorized User failed. Self-Destruct failed. Insufficient mana concentration.
“Did… Did you just try to kill me? That’s not very nice.” Conflicting emotions washed over Oliver—frustration, curiosity, a flicker of fear, but mostly grim determination. “If I’m reading this correctly, then the whole System wants me dead. But it also looks like starting up the System didn’t work and there’s nobody around who can fix it. That’s… interesting.”
Turning to make his way back to camp, the spark of an idea flared in his mind. As he walked, Oliver carefully tended that spark, feeding it until it burned bright enough to reveal a plan. The logs seemed to indicate that this was the first exploration—no, not exploration—the first incursion into his reality. Confirming the existence of a “Possible Earth-??7” made that clear. That meant this “Dungeon Administration Node” was certain to have access to higher permission levels than the standard user.
Oliver returned to camp to find that Dennis had indeed already left. It was only a mile or so back to the boat launch and their cars, so Dennis shouldn’t have trouble making it out on his own. The fire had burned down, but the small pile of wood revealed that Dennis had gathered some fallen branches in case Oliver returned. He’d left behind all of the camping gear, so Oliver was able to slake his thirst and eat the last of his trail mix. He’d need to find more food soon, but he had more important concerns for now.
“Alright you, time to see what we can do.” Oliver grinned as he sat down and began to closely examine the crystal. He carefully inspected each facet and each sharp point, looking for any physical access points. Failing to find anything but perfectly flawless crystal, he opened the DAN menu and cycled through various ideas for commands as they occurred to him, anything that didn’t require him to Activate or Destroy the node—neither option seemed as if it would go well for him. He briefly considered trying to force a diagnostic routine, but he worried that if it figured out what was wrong, it could automatically repair itself… which also would end poorly for him.
Over an hour of failed attempts later, Oliver’s determination began to wane, though he had made some progress in determining proper command syntax and possibilities, even if he hadn’t yet discerned viable commands.
“Maybe I’m overthinking this. Perhaps something like… Dan dot zero one, Access User Login.”
Standard User login unavailable on this node.
“‘Standard user,’ not just ‘user’ that’s unavailable? That’s promising. Dan dot zero one, Access Administrator Login.”
System Node Administration
Input username and password.
“Okay, so, the initialization failed, and the node recognizes humans, and this node was originally in orbit where it shouldn’t be accessible. So… can we assume human or human-like laziness and use some common login defaults? Dan dot zero one, username Admin, password is left blank.”
Invalid Username and/or Password.
“Alright. Dan dot zero one, username Admin, password Password.”
Welcome back, Administrator.
“Ha! Laziness for the win.”
A list of system options filled Oliver’s interface as he searched for something useful within the admin panel. Options related to the node’s functions were unavailable due to its inactive state, at least according to the error messages when he tried to access them. However, Oliver found himself unable to stop grinning once he realized that the few active options seemed to provide direct access to the System
Quickly discovering a detailed status menu for the node, Oliver quickly checked it. The detailed status menu confirmed his suspicions—the node was indeed inactive due to a lack of sufficient mana. He also determined that the node was passively generating a small amount of mana, but all generated mana was dissipating into the atmosphere. Given the evidence, he assumed that the failed exclusion field might have been designed to contain and concentrate mana. So, logically, putting the node inside a container where mana could build up would be dangerous, unless he could find a way to rescind the termination order. If he could just…
“Aha! Users, Roles, and Permissions.”
A new screen opened stating that this was a full list of all System Users in the “Local Metasphere,” whatever that might be. The entire list consisted of only a single entry:
- Oliver Benjamin Stone (Unauthorized User)
“Making progress…” Oliver opened his user settings, finding them relatively straightforward. He took a few minutes to read through the entire list of settings, then read through them again. Making a mistake here could prove to have serious and unforeseen repercussions. So, he focused to make sure he only changed options he thought he understood.
Name, Lineage, Age, Sex, and other basic statistics were going to remain just as they were. They were all text fields where he had to type a specific entry and couldn’t select options from a list. Sure, the options seemed obvious, but he couldn’t begin to guess what practical effect altering these variables might have and wasn’t willing to provoke the System into enforcing changes that might disrupt his core identity. With a shudder, he tried not to imagine what would happen if he submitted changes with a typo…
Other entries, such as Class and Profession, were currently blank and unable to be edited, likely because he hadn’t actually completed the User Initialization process. Working his way down the list, he made several minor tweaks within what he decided was a reasonable risk. Most importantly, he removed the entry flagging him as an unauthorized user.
Oliver set his User Role to System Administrator (Local Metasphere) with all Permissions granted. While higher access tiers did appear to exist, assigning himself a higher level role wasn’t feasible. A notice accompanying those tiers indicated that assigning them required approval, which clearly meant oversight from someone already controlling the System. Gaining the attention of an executive with the authority to deny or revoke his changes was a prospect that Oliver preferred to avoid at all costs.
He tweaked several other options which appeared important. Most notably was Progression Potential, which he set to the maximum possible. His adjustments made, Oliver carefully rechecked everything one final time and quickly selected “Submit” before he could think better of it.
Update to User Settings pending completion of User Initialization. No mana field detected. Insufficient User mana to support Initialization. Changes will be applied when User accesses sufficient mana.
“Huh. Okay then. So, we’ll count that as a partial success. Modifying node settings comes next, then we’ll see about modifying… Ah, Nodes, Roles, and Permissions.”
Oliver quickly confirmed that DAN.01 was the only node currently registered with the System in the Local Metasphere and already had the highest permissions level that he could set. Worryingly, he found an entry for Core Personality, which was set to “Pending.” This he quickly changed to “Terminal Access Only.” He did not need his node to develop a personality and start thinking for itself, at least not until he was better established and could ensure it wouldn’t turn against him. Sorting through the options, he disabled several other features that he suspected would work against him or deny him access to System features, including disabling passive mana generation. Saving the settings, he found the node faced the same situation he did: the settings wouldn’t update until the node had sufficient mana to activate.
As Oliver began to delve into deeper System settings, his focus was disrupted by the sound of an approaching motor boat. Startled, he looked up to see a small group on a Park Ranger craft making their way towards his camp. He waved as he stowed DAN.01 out of sight in his backpack. With a relieved smile, Oliver stood to greet the group as they arrived, hoping they interpreted his nervousness as relief at being rescued so quickly.
As the boat slowed next to the shore line, the park ranger called out, “Hey, you Ollie?”
“Yeah, that’s me. Did Dennis send you?”
“Sure did. Said something about a shooting star and you getting lost in the woods,” he added as he killed the motor and one of the others jumped off and tied off a line. “Said you needed a rescue. Looks like you had your share of trouble.”
Looking around at what was left of their camp, Oliver couldn’t help but laugh. “There actually was a meteor impact last night. Best I can figure, it was about a half mile or so that way. Threw all kinds of debris up this way, but we survived it. I got lost out in the dark last night trying to find where it landed. Never did find anything and made my way back when the sun started coming up. I could use a ride back.”
“Upset as that boy was, we had a search party all ready to go find what was left of you. Glad you made it back okay. Get packed up, and we’ll get you back to base camp.”
Oliver stomped out what was left of the fire and kicked mud up over the coals before wrapping what little they’d packed in what was left of the tarp and shoving it into his pack on top of the node crystal.
“I’m ready to go when y’all are. Permission to board, captain?” he asked with a jaunty faux salute.
“Ha. Get your ass on the boat, so we can get back. You’ll need to fill out a report when we get back. Medic needs to check you over before you can be released.”
“No worries though,” the medic chimed in. “I can get that checkup taken care of on the ride back.”
Several hours later, Oliver returned home. After completing the necessary paperwork and assuring Dennis of his well-being with a promise to call him later, Oliver found himself seated at his computer desk, keyboard shoved aside to make room for DAN.01. Thoughts and worries churned relentlessly through his mind, creating a maelstrom of uncertainty and anxiety. Frankly, he had no idea what to do.
The “01” numbering on this node made it clear that this was just the beginning, the first node of many that would soon follow. No matter what he did, the world as it had been was over. The world just didn’t know it yet.. The question echoed in his mind: What could he actually do about it?
Oliver’s listlessly flicked through the screens available to him through the node, each less helpful than the last. Most options lacked any sort of description or explanation for what they did, and recklessly changing things could prove disastrous. Whoever was supposed to run this thing clearly was intended to already know what these settings did or had a more thorough explanation granted through their own System Instance. Perhaps he could get more once he Initialized, but there still wasn’t enough available mana.
If he tried to tell someone, he would at best be committed and drugged to treat his obvious mental illness. At worst, he’d be killed and the node would be taken and used for something nefarious. Maybe it would just be stuck somewhere and mostly ignored while incompetent elected officials pretended to do something and corrupt bureaucrats argued over who should have it until it was too late to do anything useful.
He could destroy the node, but that would at best just delay things. Whoever sent this one would likely just send another in time. That wasn’t a solution any more than handing over the node to the government.
If he kept quiet and used the node for himself, he could personally benefit while the rest of the world descended into chaos. Though uncertain, he recognized that he had to take some kind of action. Perhaps he couldn’t change the course of events on a global scale, but he could at least prepare a small segment for the arrival of the System.
“Okay, stressing out about this isn’t helping. I need to do something to help figure out a path forward. Time to make use of the greatest invention known to man! Spreadsheets!”
Minutes slipped into hours as Oliver happily lost track of time inputting, organizing, and collating what information he could glean from the System into a spreadsheet. He wasn’t really satisfied with it as it was, but he could take the time to add formatting, pivot tables, and some useful graphs later. For now, just having the information available at his fingertips was good enough. He didn’t care what anyone else thought; spreadsheets were awesome.
As he analyzed the data, Oliver’s mind sorted through the possibilities. He identified trends, evaluated connections, and discerned potential anomalies that demanded further investigation. His excitement grew, fueled by the prospect of understanding the hidden truths within the underlying code of the System.
Mana field detected. Sufficient mana available. Restarting User Initialization.
“Mana? When did…” Oliver was unable to finish the thought before darkness claimed him once more.