Chapter 1: Back in 1996 with an Inspired Inventor-Based System — What Could Go Wrong?
Location: Unknown
Time: Unknown
Ugh, my head hurts.
The last thing I remember was playing a real-time strategy game on my beat-up PC, trying to hold the line while some overpowered AI nuked my last base into the dirt.
Ding.
What the hell was that?
I cracked one eye open. The air smelled like antiseptic. Cheap blinds filtered gray light across the sterile walls. My body ached like I'd been hit by a truck—or maybe a train.
I turned my head and saw a calendar tacked to the wall.
January 11, 1996.
Weird.
Ding.
Again? Okay, what's going on—
Then, suddenly, something blinked into view in front of me.
Inspired Inventor+
Points: 195
Missions
Inventory
Skills
I blinked, startled. It wasn't on a monitor. It wasn't even on a wall. It just… hovered in my vision, like some augmented reality overlay—except I wasn't wearing a headset.
Was I hallucinating?
I focused on the screen, and almost like it read my mind, the Inventory tab expanded.
Inventory:
Basic Engineering Kit
Beginner's Tiberium Research Notes
Fusion Battery (Miniature)
Field Ration x5
Mysterious Blueprint (Unanalyzed)
Unknown Automaton Blueprint – "Twin Series A-0" (Locked)
Requirements: Robotics Lv.3, AI Core Access, Exotic Alloy Materials
Status: Adaptive Evolution Enabled – subsystems will unlock as relevant skills improve
My eyes paused on the last entry. A detailed 3D model spun slowly above the words—a humanoid machine. Graceful, curving limbs. Smooth plating. Unsettlingly lifelike motion.
I didn't recognize it. Not from any show, movie, or game I remembered. It looked... alien, yet elegant. Military-grade, no doubt. A combat chassis disguised in art.
Where the hell had this come from?
I tapped back and opened the Missions tab.
Tutorial Mission: "It's Just a Scratch"
Use your system to craft or repair a minor object with real-world tools.
Reward: +5 Points
Unlocks: Design Draft Lv.2
Bonus Objective: Access your current identity.
Reward: +10 Points
Unlocks: Partial System Memory Integration
Failure Condition: None — this is a tutorial. Just try something.
Okay... something simple.
I scanned the room. On the bedside table lay a clipboard and a busted pen. A classic spring-snap ballpoint, cracked near the clicker.
I grabbed it. The familiarity of fixing something gave me a weird sense of control. I opened the Engineering Kit, and—somehow—tools phased into my grip. Sleek, futuristic. Compact. Nothing like the clunky stuff from RadioShack.
I used them without hesitation. Muscle memory? Maybe. Within seconds, the pen clicked smoothly.
Ding!
+5 Points Earned
Skill Unlocked: Design Draft Lv.2
Tutorial Mission Complete
I grinned.
Then the door creaked open.
A nurse entered—late twenties, glasses, clipboard, and a mildly startled expression.
"Oh, you're awake! That's a relief."
She stepped to the foot of the bed and skimmed the chart. Her brow furrowed.
"Huh. Says here your name is Jonathan Carter. Age: fifteen. Picked up by an ambulance just outside a backroad town. Collapsed, dehydrated, mild concussion."
She looked at me. "Do you remember anything?"
I hesitated. Jonathan Carter wasn't my name. Not originally.
But something inside me shifted, like puzzle pieces sliding into place. Memory that wasn't quite mine but felt… real.
I gave a slow nod.
She looked relieved. "You'll be out of here in a day or two. Social services will come by, probably tomorrow. For now, just rest."
She smiled faintly, then left.
The system chimed again.
Bonus Objective Complete
+10 Points Earned
Partial Memory Integration Unlocked
Current Identity: Jonathan Carter
Status: African-American, age 15. No known relatives. Legal ward of the state.
Origin: Unknown rural location. No current school enrollment. No existing medical records.
Notice:
Fusion Battery (Miniature) is compatible with early 90s microelectronics.
Blueprint "Twin Series A-0" evolution progress: +2%
Skills may now be purchased using points:
Skill Tiers Unlocked
All skills range from Level 1 (Novice) to Level 10 (Master).
Higher tiers may exist, but are currently inaccessible.
Available Categories:
Academic (Chemistry, Math, Physics, etc.)
Engineering (Robotics, Systems Integration, Structural Design)
Exotic Knowledge (Tiberium Research, Advanced Energy Theory, Unknown Fields…)
I stared at the ceiling.
So, fifteen years old. In 1996. No family. No records. A clean slate.
And a system that could teach me anything—from high school chemistry to building futuristic weapons, and more, even things I didn't understand yet.
And the strangest part?
I had a feeling this world wasn't quite the one I remembered. Details felt off. Media references. Historical assumptions. Small things. I couldn't place it yet—but I would.
And when I did?
I'd be ready.
[Chapter 1 Complete – Word Count: ~1,050+]