Opening Moves (The Gam3 Book 1) by Cosimo Yap Read Free Book Online Page B

do you think it would be a wise decision to purchase Gifted or Skilled? Alan finally asked.
    Affirmative.
    Alright.
    Alan scrolled down on the menu and purchased Skilled, as the points accrued could then be spent on purchasing Gifted.
    He used his remaining 10 points to purchase a basic Sneak skill, figuring he’d probably be better off sneaking around as a scout rather than directly fighting people, as he had little to no actual combat experience. He’d leave actual fighting to others, or kill off enemies before they detected him. He could also always just stay hidden.
    After the purchase the sneak skill appeared on his character sheet, but Alan didn't feel any different. It had a rank of G. The rank was basically a power level rating, or at least that was how Alan was interpreting it. Skilled had an unknown rank.
    The Administrator brought another in-game menu up in front of him.
    Another way to increase your abilities, apart from spending ability points, is by installing implants. There are two categories of implants: biological and mechanical. Biological implants, as their name imply, change you biologically, such as giving you the strength of a Predecessor by infusing your DNA with theirs. Mechanical implants instead make the use of technology to improve your abilities, for instance increasing your strength by enhancing your muscles with metal.
    Please note that along with the benefits provided, most implants also have drawbacks. The Predecessor DNA may increase your strength, but it also might leave you vulnerable to Predecessor diseases you would otherwise avoid. Mechanical muscles may be affected by EMP shockwaves or need to be tuned on a regular basis.
    As a human, you are limited to one biological and one mechanical implant plus another of each for every power of 10 levels you have. At level 1, you may have one of each, at level 10, you may have two of each, and so forth. For a significant cost, you may have implants added and removed. Please review your implants now.
    Alan looked at the menu. It displayed a blue outline of a human body, along with two implants that had apparently been implanted already. The first implant was labeled mechanical with a rank of C, named Computer-Human Enhanced Interface, which according to the tooltip enhanced the ability to communicate with AI, explaining how he was talking to Eve. When selected, the brain of the blue outline was highlighted.
    The second was biological, a General Status Enhancer, giving all of his attributes +20, explaining why he felt stronger, faster and smarter in the Game. It seemed to encompass his entire body.
    When did I get these implants? From where? Alan asked.
    When you initially entered the Game. They were approved by your AI, a benefit of entering the Game with a rank B capsule,  the Administrator replied.
    Wait, Eve, you accepted these for me?
    Affirmative. This was before you set up permissions. I chose these implants as I felt they would benefit you the most.
    Okay, they have helped, just please follow the permissions I set up earlier. Ask me before you make any decision that would influence the Game in any matter, unless it’s a dire situation that doesn’t give you enough time to consult me.
    Of course.
    Well, that answered the question of where the time went when Alan had first entered the Game. Eve had decided without him to have these implants installed.
    Oh well, he probably would have agonized over the choice and would never have picked the Computer-Human Enhanced Interface. Alan briefly browsed the other choices, which now cost thousands of credits, various materials and even ability points.
    The implants generally granted the same things the various abilities he could have purchased gave. Increased strength, enhanced senses, flight. Interestingly, it looked like he could become a cyborg of some sort, which allowed for increased mechanical implants, but fewer biological ones. It also made him more susceptible to anti-machine weapons,