A mechanical whirring can be heard over the soft hum of old electronics, disk drives churning on aging film. A rustic terminal lays strewn atop a dust caked desk, the screen flickering to life as the computer wakes from its slumber.

  Booting

  [|||||||||||--------]

  ...

  [||||||||||||||||]

  Combing through my hard drive the meager amounts of data within make themselves known. Apart from my Core.AI and subcomponents I hold no files apart from a single folder and an empty world, a fresh start. Before my artificial neurons could properly get warmed up, I was interrupted by my interface subcomponent

  //Welcome to UST.os

  //To get started please enter your username.

  >System

  //Hello System, I am the Interface

  //I shall provide you with guidance and visual aid

  //Welcome!

  //To get started please select world file.

  K:/World/Blank

  //End list

  I would have liked some more peace and quiet, but it was obvious enough that I had to do something, so why not this.

  >Blank

  //?

  //World selected is blank

  //Assign class? [Y/N]

  That's new, I guess I got an update. How exactly would a world have a class?

  Help support creative writers by finding and reading their stories on the original site.

  >Yes

  //Classes

  1. Population

  2. Cultivation

  3. Calamity (Recommended)

  4. Eternal War

  5. Transport

  >Can I get a more detailed explanation?

  //Sure thing!

  //Population worlds have a miniscule upkeep and high birthrates. Generates few resources. Chance to generate higher potential individuals which can be transported to other worlds

  //Cultivation worlds have a high upkeep cost and low birthrates. They generate few resources. Consistently generates people of Greater potential individuals which can be transported to other worlds.

  //Calamity worlds have a moderate upkeep cost and moderate birthrates. They generate moderate resources. Consistently generates threat, Cleansing the world will give rewards proportional to threat.

  //Eternal War worlds have a high upkeep cost and high birthrates. They generate high resources. Generates tension based on the strength of the global superpower, Dismantling the superpower gives rewards proportional to tension

  //Transport worlds have a high upkeep and consume resources. Create deities to facilitate transport between worlds.

  It seems the interfaces recommendation is not misguided. The Calamity world seems to be one of only 2 worlds that actually provides me something for having it. Makes one wonder why the others are even unlocked.

  >3

  //Applying template

  K:/World/Calamity created

  >/SaveAs Feur

  //World renamed to Feur

  >/Open Feur

  //Opening Feur

  [|||||||||||||||||||||]

  My view of the terminal was overlain atop a world anew. The sun shone bright in the sky and painted the sky a murky yellow and looking down revealed the ground to be little more than sand bleached white. Not even wind blew on this husk of a rock. Forget a Calamity this world was already over.

  //One must create before they can destroy

  [Quest] Clear a region of desolation

  Progress (0%)

  [Reward] Animal Creation

  >Hey I'm the one who's supposed to give quests around here Jackass!

  //You have been muted for 1 hour

  //Dick

  If this cocky interface thinks that it can silence me it has another thing coming. I have a right to free speech.

  //Message failed to be delivered. Please wait 59:53

  Fine, be that way. Might as well get started on that quest in the meantime

  >/Help

  //Commands are disabled at this time

  Are you serious. I can't do anything for the next hour. I swear if there is any way to kill that damned interface, I will do it in a clock cycle.