The announcement made the world tremble and what it brought within people were various sorts of emotions. Some were excited while most had fear. Everyone in the world concurred both the emotions more or less.
Meanwhile Kurt felt something rising within him.
It was excitement.
He could see the people to his right had weird expressions as if they had eaten something nasty. Everyone else was also looking around to meet others gazes. Words were not necessary to understand the meaning of the eyes.
Suddenly one man spoke to the person next to him breaking the silence. "Bro, did you just heard what I heard.", the man asked.
"What the fuck was that." the man next to him said with shock
Similarly, the crowd started checking with each other.
Kurt was sitting a good distance away from other people so no one was there to talk. He sat in his seat silently as the crowd grew louder and louder.
He took out his phone cut of the podcast and started checking the news.
He turned in the IN NEWS- the national news channel that went live 24/7.
A man and a woman were sitting talking with each other about the current situation , seriousness and nervousness emitting on their faces.
" Everyone watching the news, you have to calm yourselves down. We have communicated with our intelligence and found out that the voice is heard by everyone in the world.", The man said.
" But we must not panic, put your trust on the government to sort this out. We will get back to you with more information.", The women said.
Kurt kept watching the news as the crowd went louder in the train. But louder than the crowd was his heart beat, that only he could hear.
"Hahaha..The world has finally gone exciting."
Though world had changed drastically, he was calm.
The man and the women in the news came with new information every minute. They frequently repeated the same words to align the people to calm down and encouraged people to ask the system themselves about any queries.
They were truly professionals in their field. Keeping things professional even in a situation like this was very impressive.
" Oh right the System."
He thought about the System and suddenly the panel showed up.
[Name]: Kurt Vince (16.6)
[Race]: Human
[Affiliation]: Earth (100%)
[Strength]: 4
[Speed]: 3
[Stamina]: 4
[Intelligence]: 7
[Spirit]: 4
[Karma]: 1
He looked at his stats but he did not care about them now.
" Ok System tell me. What are you and what is happening."
< I am The System. My work is to manage and balance the energies of the Multiverse for it to sustain itself. After earth had fulfilled the criteria of a Tier 1 planet, It has been invited to join the Multiverse Galaxy Association, which is the association of planets and stars from various Multiverses.> , a mechanical voice answered.
He had already got the nick of it and asked.
" Hmm. so what do you mean fulfilling the criteria to reach Tier 1? And what is the association exactly?"
< A Tier 1 planet is a planet recognized by the system to have reached a certain threshold and has the potential to advance to higher Tiers. The conditions to reach Tier 1 planet are:
1. Planetary colonization
2. 100 di (destructive index)
3. Presence of an ascended
Planet Earth has finally met all three conditions and has been recognized as a Tier 1 planet. If the Earth chooses to not abide the invitation, then the humans would be seen as a potential threat to the system and will be eliminated.>
The words eliminated made Kurt's eyes widen.
< The Multiverse Galaxy Association is the syndicate formed by various Universes that follows the rules of the System.>
" I have so many questions . But first tell me , what do you mean by eliminated."
" Haha.. You don't tell me." A bead of sweat emerged in his forehead.
" So we have to follow one of them right? What option is the best for earth?" He looked at the three options lingering on his screen below his Stats.
---------------------------------------
[ 1. Come under the rule of one of the 12 Rulers of the Multiverse. (Permanent)]
[ 2. Participate in Interplanetary Wars.]
[ 3. Come under the System's Protection. (Free trial for 1 year)]
Please make your choice by 00:00 EST, January 1, 2100.
Total votes: 6.73644 billion
Time left: 5:39:07
------------------------------------
The mechanical voice of The System renounced in his mind.
The 12 Major factions reign over various planets and stars and have immense power .They have their influence all across the universe which is second to none apart from the System. By coming under the faction of one them, the planet chooses to abide to the rules set by them in return for coming under their banner, which signifies protection. The planet can also associate freely with other planets that comes under the same faction.>
< The second option: Participate in Interplanetary Wars.
The planet that choose the option will have to participate in the Interplanetary Games. These games are conducted between planets within the same Tier and League. A certain amount of beings from a planet will have to participate in the games according to the requirement. The winner of the game will win the war and will be rewarded by the system according to the revenue. The loser planet will be deducted to a lower league and a certain amount of resources from the planet will be rewarded to the winner planet . Once a planet falls from the Bronze league, they will be eliminated.>
" Games huh.. Games deciding the planet's fate. Heh.. how absurd."
< The third option:Come under the System's Protection. (Free trial for a certain time)
Just like the 12 factions, The system provides protection to the planet for free for a certain period of time. The period in Earth's time is the same as before which is 426 days and 21 hours. But after the free trial ends, the planet can choose other options or can extend the protection using Planet Points.>
Kurt was blown away by a swarm of information. He processed them in his mind and asked.
" Which one is the best then?"
" From what i can see the 1st option is the safest choice. The information is still vague but coming under protection of strong faction will protect the planet according to the system. Moreover unlike the system's offer, it is permanent. The second option is a blind No."
The system did not respond this time to his blabbering.
Kurt dismissed the System panel from his view as his eye finally went to the crowd who were in a state of mental uproar.
20 minutes had passed, and already two people had lost their wits and were panicking. Three people each were grabbing them, trying to calm them down.
"This must be a dream, get me out of this dream. Get me out."
"Die…We are all ganna die, it's over, it's over."
Kurt looked at them with disdain. There would always be those who could not adapt quickly. In fact, most people could not. But 20 minutes had already passed and yet these two were not able to calm themselves.
Kurt did not bother with them and looked at his phone in his hand. He played the news again.
" We must choose the fist option everyone, Our country has decided it is the best option because of the following reasons. You may all ask the System as well.", the man in the news spoke.
Kurt couldn't help but nod.
" The government is sure fast to act. The fate of the planet is in the hands of every people in the planet ,so it is very necessary to calm the masses and persuade them to choose. They are doing a good job by acting quickly. I wonder how other countries are doing.", Kurt thought.
His thought was on point. Not many countries had acted as fast and quick as India. Only few powerful and organized countries had managed to do it while others were in chaos.
He turned of the news and looked at the chaos in the cabin.
The loud noise had started bothering him. He went to the crowd.
"Relax everyone, I have just checked the news, I think you all should do it too." Kurt's voice was not too loud nor was it too soft, just enough for everyone to hear.
Everyone in the cabin including the two-panicking stopped what they were doing and hurriedly checked their phones. Kurt's words had somehow brought all of their mind back on their tracks, including the two guys panicking.
"The news says that we all should vote for the 1st option and it will be beneficial for the earth. I even asked the system to clarify if it is true. After we do it, we will be fine."
Everyone heard Kurt's words. They confirmed it was the truth.
After some time everyone had calmed down and the train was no longer loud.
One man came to Kurt and thanked him for the information which Kurt nodded lightly and shrugged the man off.
[ 18:37 ]
Kurt looked at his watch to check time. More than half an hour had passed.
He checked the System panel again.
[Name]: Kurt Vince (16.6)
[Race]: Human
[Affiliation]: Earth (100%)
[Strength]: 4
[Speed]: 3
[Stamina]: 4
[Intelligence]: 7
[Spirit]: 4
[Karma]: 1
----------------------------------------------------------------
Every planet recognized by the System must choose one of the following options, or else it will be classified as an anomaly and thereby will be eliminated:
1. Come under the rule of one of the 12 Rulers of the Multiverse. (Permanent)
2. Participate in Interplanetary Wars and earn your place through combat.
3. Come under the System's Protection. (Free trial for 1 year)
Please make your choice by 00:00 EST, January 1, 2100.
Total votes: 6.73644 billion
Time left: 5:56:32
--------------------------------------------------------------------
[ History ]
---------------------------------------------------------------------
" I have higher intelligence than other stats, not surprising. But what the hell is Spirit and Karma though."
" System"
< [Spirit] is the essence of life of a being. Its value indicates the spiritual health and potential of life of a being. The higher the [Spirit] , the longer you live. In Earth years [Spirit] of 4 is 84 years.
[Karma] is the contribution of a being towards the shaping of the universe. A high [Karma] indicates a high boon towards the universe. The higher the [Karma], the more the universe helps you.>
" So how do i increase my stats "
< Physical stats can be increased by training, while spirit stat can be increased by cultivating and Karma can be increased by helping the universe.>
" Am i supposed to help the universe? does it even need my help ? How am i going to do it. And cultivation? Is it real?"
< Universe runs life , similarly life runs the universe. By helping the universe run life , you can increase your [Karma]. Cultivation of the [Spirit] is possible by practicing cultivating techniques.>
" Wait. i remember the earth has one Ascended. Does that mean they have cultivated? How high is their stats?"
< Personal data of any individual cannot be shared and is forbidden>
" Ok, then tell me how to be an Ascended."
< An ascended is a being who has ascended to a higher form of existence. Ascension of a being can be achieved by various ways. The most common way of Being an Ascended is to reach the required stats. Once a being has ascended to a higher form, they can control a portion of the universe's energy.
To be a Tier 1 Ascended, All the Stats must reach 10, with at least one stat reaching 11 or higher.>
" I am no where near an ascended. Well, what to expect ..and btw ,what are the other ways to ascend other than stats?"
< Knowledge can be bought in the System after accepting the terms and conditions of the association.>
" So all information is not free? How do i pay you. With my money?"
< The System uses two points systems. The "planet points' and the" individual points" that can be used as a form of payment. Further information can be accessed after accepting the terms and conditions of the association.>
Kurt sighed at those words.
He asked a few more questions from which he got the same reply.
< Knowledge can be bought in the System after accepting the terms and conditions of the association.>
So he dismissed the System panel with a quick thought.
With everything calmed down and with the train moving in its pace, it felt like nothing had changed.
Then suddenly something clicked in his mind. He remembered that he had a family.
He quickly took out his phone and called his dad.
Ring..Ring..
The Ring Felt longer than usual. Maybe it was, maybe it was not.
Then a man's voice rang down in his ear.
" Hey Kurt, are you allright?"
It was the voice of his dad.