The next morning, I called in sick to work. My manager—a perpetually angry man named Derek who seemed to take
personal offense at my existence—sounded almost pleased. "Don't bother coming back," he said. "You're fired."
Three months ago, that would have sent me into a panic spiral. Now, I just hung up and smiled.
I had bigger plans.
The Admin Panel was still there when I woke up, hovering at the edge of my vision until I focused on it. I'd spent half the
night exploring its features, and what I'd found was intoxicating.
Chapter 1: First Contact
The system was exactly as described. I could recruit Subjects by offering them an invitation—a psychic, conceptual offer
that they could accept or reject. If they accepted, they'd gain access to a Subject Dashboard where they could view
available tasks, complete them for Points, and spend those Points on wishes that I (or rather, the Regulator) would price
based on their metaphysical weight.
And here was the beautiful part: I automatically received 30% of every Point they earned. I could adjust that percentage
higher if I wanted—hell, I could take 100% and give them nothing. The system enforced my absolute authority.
But I needed Subjects first. And for that, I needed to touch someone.
I showered for the first time in three days, put on my least wrinkled clothes, and headed out. The city was the same as
always—gray concrete, gray sky, gray people rushing past each other without making eye contact. I'd lived here my
whole life and never felt like I belonged.
Today would be different.
I walked to the nearest park—a small patch of brown grass and broken benches that the city council had optimistically
labeled a "community space." There were a few people scattered around: a young mother with a screaming toddler, an
old man feeding pigeons, a woman around my age sitting alone on a bench, typing furiously on her laptop.
My eyes locked on the woman.
She looked... tired. There were dark circles under her eyes, and her clothes were rumpled like she'd slept in them. Her
laptop screen showed what looked like a job search page, dozens of tabs open. As I watched, she closed her eyes and
pressed her palms against them, shoulders slumping in a gesture I recognized intimately.
Desperation.
Perfect.
I'd spent the night planning this moment, and I knew I needed to be careful. I couldn't just walk up and grab her—that
was assault. I needed a reason for contact that wouldn't immediately make her scream for help.
I bought a coffee from a nearby cart and approached her bench, deliberately stumbling as I got close. The coffee—still
hot, unfortunately for me—splashed across my hand and onto her arm.
She yelped and jumped up. "Oh my god!"
"I'm so sorry!" I said, putting as much mortification into my voice as I could. "I tripped, I didn't see—here, let me—"
I reached out with a napkin, and she reflexively grabbed my wrist to stop me, her fingers touching my bare skin.
Contact.
The system registered it immediately. I felt something click in my mind, like a door unlocking.
SUBJECT INVITATION TAB UPDATED
New candidate: Jessica Hale
Age: 24
Occupation: Unemployed (recently laid off)
Current status: Financial distress, depression, housing insecurity
Recommend immediate invitation.
Jessica was still talking, something about her laptop and being careful, but I wasn't really listening. I was staring at the
information that had suddenly flooded my awareness. The system had analyzed her completely in an instant—not just
basic facts, but her emotional state, her vulnerabilities, her pressure points.
She was drowning, just like I had been. And I was about to offer her a lifeline.
With a thought, I selected her profile and initiated the invitation sequence.
CONFIRM INVITATION TO JESSICA HALE?
Once sent, the offer will be psychically transmitted. Subject will perceive a binary YES/NO choice.
If rejected, all memory of the event will be erased from reality.
Yes.
Jessica froze mid-sentence. Her eyes went unfocused, staring at something I couldn't see. I watched as her expression
shifted—confusion, disbelief, hope, fear, all flickering across her face in rapid succession.
She was seeing the offer. The Contract explaining itself directly into her mind. The promise of Points, of wishes, of
desires made real in exchange for completing tasks.
Thirty seconds passed. Then a minute. She swayed slightly, and I realized she wasn't breathing.
Then she sucked in a sharp breath and whispered, "Yes."
SUBJECT ACQUIRED
Jessica Hale has accepted the Contract.
Subject #001 activated.
Dashboard initialized.
Standard greeting package sent.
Jessica's eyes refocused on me, but she was looking at me differently now. Not just as the clumsy guy who spilled coffee
on her. She knew. The system had told her everything—that I was the Sovereign, the Admin, the one who controlled her
access to the wishes she could now purchase.
"You're real," she breathed. "This is real."
I smiled. It felt strange on my face, like a muscle I'd forgotten how to use.
"Welcome to the Contract, Subject #001," I said. "Let's talk about what you want."
We moved to a more private bench, away from the other park visitors. Jessica couldn't stop staring at her Dashboard—
the interface only she could see, floating in her vision. I could access a mirrored version through my Admin Panel,
watching as she explored the tabs.
"I can see my profile," she said, voice shaking. "And there's a... a Wish List tab. It says I can write down anything I want,
and the system will tell me how many Points it costs."
"That's right," I confirmed. "The Regulator handles the pricing. More metaphysically significant desires cost more Points."
"The Regulator." She looked up at me, and I saw the fear in her eyes. "The thing that can take total control of my body if I
break the rules."
So she'd read the fine print. Smart.
"Only if you violate the Axiom of Sovereignty," I said. "Which means trying to harm me or subvert my authority. As long as
you don't do that, you're perfectly safe. This is a mutually beneficial arrangement, Jessica. You complete tasks, earn
Points, and buy whatever you want. I take a percentage, and we both win."
"What kind of tasks?"
"Whatever I assign. Could be anything—errands, information gathering, jobs that need doing. I set the parameters,
deadline, Point reward, and any other constraints. You can accept or reject them freely."
She bit her lip. "And if I reject them?"
"Nothing happens to you. Rejected tasks just get moved to a queue where I can potentially reassign them to other
Subjects. There's no punishment for rejection."
That seemed to ease some of her tension. Good. I needed her to see this as an opportunity, not a trap. Fear was useful
for ensuring obedience, but cooperation was more valuable.
"Try making a wish list entry," I suggested. "Something small. See how it works."
Jessica hesitated, then focused on her Dashboard. I watched through my Admin Panel as she navigated to the Wish List
tab and began to type—or rather, think. The interface accepted mental commands.
WISH LIST - SUBJECT #001
Entry 1: "I wish for $5,000 in cash, legitimately acquired with proper tax documentation"
Processing...
POINT COST: 47 Points
Note: Price reflects metaphysical work required to alter financial records, create legitimate paper trail, and manifestation
of physical currency.
"Forty-seven Points," Jessica read aloud. Then she navigated to another tab. "And I have... zero Points currently."
"Because you haven't completed any tasks yet," I said. I pulled up my own interface and quickly created her first
assignment.
TASK CREATION
Recipient: Subject #001 (Jessica Hale)
Description: "Purchase a burner phone and deliver it to me at [address]"
Type: Standard
Deadline: 6 hours
Location Constraint: None
Reward: 15 Points
Special Notes: None
TASK ISSUED
Jessica's eyes widened as a notification appeared in her vision.
"You have a task," I said. "Check your To-Do tab."
She did, and I watched her read the details. It was simple, straightforward, and paid enough Points to make it worthwhile
without being so generous that she'd question the arrangement.
"This is..." She trailed off, then looked at me with something I hadn't expected: gratitude. "Thank you."
"Complete the task first," I said. "Then thank me."
Jessica completed the task in four hours. She showed up at my apartment with a cheap prepaid phone, still in the
packaging, and handed it to me with trembling fingers.
TASK COMPLETED
Subject #001: First task completed successfully.
+15 Points awarded.
Tax collected: 4.5 Points (30%)
Subject net: 10.5 Points
Sovereign net: 4.5 Points
"I can see the Points," Jessica said, staring at her Dashboard. "They're real. They're actually there."
"Create more wish list entries," I told her. "Figure out what you want. I'll have more tasks for you soon."
She nodded, but she didn't leave. Instead, she looked around my shithole apartment—the stained walls, the bare
mattress on the floor, the mini-fridge that was my only appliance.
"You live here?" she asked quietly.
I felt a flash of shame, then anger at myself for feeling shame. "For now."
"But you're the Sovereign. You have all this power. Why are you living like this?"
"Because I just got this power yesterday," I said flatly. "And I'm going to use it to fix that. Along with everything else that's
wrong with my life."
Jessica nodded slowly. Then she did something that surprised me—she smiled.
"I believe you," she said. "And I'm going to help. Whatever you need, Sovereign. Whatever tasks you assign. I'll complete
them."
After she left, I sat on my mattress and stared at my Admin Panel.
SOVEREIGN STATUS
Total Points: 4.5
Active Subjects: 1
Point Tax Rate: 30%
Tasks Issued: 1
Tasks Completed: 1
Four and a half Points. It wasn't much, but it was a start.
More importantly, I'd proven the system worked. I'd recruited my first Subject. I'd issued a task and collected my tax.
I was no longer powerless.
I pulled up my own wish list—the one I'd been afraid to write out until now, like putting it into words would make it too real,
would invite the universe to crush this fragile hope.
But fuck it. I wasn't that person anymore.
SOVEREIGN WISH LIST
Entry 1: "I wish to be physically attractive—conventionally handsome by societal standards, well-built but not overtly
muscular, clear skin, symmetric features."
POINT COST: 127 Points
Entry 2: "I wish for a luxury penthouse apartment in the downtown district, fully furnished, with all utilities paid and legally
owned under my name."
POINT COST: 253 Points
Entry 3: "I wish for immunity to all diseases, perfect health, enhanced physical stamina and recovery."
POINT COST: 312 Points
Entry 4: "I wish to never age past 25 years old."
POINT COST: 891 Points
Entry 5: "I wish for mastery-level skills in persuasion, negotiation, reading social cues, and charismatic communication."
POINT COST: 164 Points
The numbers were staggering. I'd need thousands of Points to make myself into the person I wanted to be.
But I had time. And I had a system that would let me recruit an army of Subjects to earn Points for me.
I added one more entry.
Entry 6: "I wish for the complete psychological and metaphysical erasure of my capacity to feel guilt, empathy, or moral
restraint."
POINT COST: 1,247 Points
WARNING: This wish will fundamentally alter Sovereign's core personality and decision-making processes. Recommend
careful consideration before purchase.
I stared at that warning for a long time.
Then I dismissed it. I didn't need that wish yet. Maybe I'd never need it.
But it was good to know it was there.
Just in case