Start the Game (Galactogon: Book #1) by Vasily Mahanenko Page B

I never heard the end of his sentence, for the stars became lines, leaving hundreds of parsecs between us and the Training Sector.
     
    Your Rapport with the Qualian Empire has decreased. Current Rapport: -100,000.
    You have earned the “Qualian Pariah” Achievement. You have reached the limit for negative Rapport with this Empire. From now on, all enemies of the Qualian Empire will be neutrally disposed towards you—and all close allies of the Empire will try to destroy you.
    The shadow guilds of Galactogon wish to meet with you. The rendezvous point is Planet Qirlats in Confederation space. Your contact person is Hilvar.
     
    “The shadow guilds are curious about me!” squeaked Lestran, who it seems also received some kind of notification.
    “Where are we going, ya great curiosity?” I asked my excited partner.
    “Haven’t the slightest idea! I picked the first coordinates I saw and sent the ship there. We’re coming out of hyperspace in a minute—then, we’ll see where we are.”
    “I received a notification that some people want to have a chat with us. But I’m not about to head off to a meeting with strangers unprepared. It’s eight in the evening at the moment. We’ll pop out of hyperspace, find the closest planet, land on it and take a break. We can reconvene tomorrow at nine, you down?”
    “No need to ask, sir! I’ll be here on deck waiting for you at 8 a.m.!” replied my partner, unconsciously switching to a deferential tone.
    “In that case, I’ll need your help. I will leave my armor onboard. It needs to be repaired. You’re an engineer, aren’t you? You can use this as a chance to gain some experience with your robots…Will you do it?”
    “Sir, you are insulting me. You’ll barely get a chance to blink your eyes, before everything will be brought to a better state than it ever was! Here we go, leaving hyperspace now…”
    The star-lines contracted back to points, the hum of the hyperdrive fell quiet, and The Space Cucumber froze in infinity…
    “Surgeon, are you okay, sir?” Lestran became worried after a few minutes. I had never yet been in deep space and so far from planets, stars, people…My mind understood very well that I was only in a game and that everything around me was merely the play of my imagination and modern technology, yet my heart still trembled in reverence. Before my eyes lay the blackness of infinity, a testament to the fact that a person is no more than dust mote in an enormous universe—it was an unforgettable sensation…
    “Are there any planets in the vicinity?” I asked my partner, trying to speak in my normal voice. I didn’t wish to show Lestran the awe Galactogon just made me experience—a few hours would go by and I would become acclimated to these surroundings. Until that time, I preferred to maintain my composure.
    “Scanning now…There are two star systems within ten minutes’ flight from us. One is planet-less, while the other has a gas giant and several small asteroids. Judging by the description, the Altan Alliance battled the Voldan Alliance here. Human players were involved in that battle, so all the planets have been stripped of resources entirely. We are in a dead sector…”
    “An excellent place to lie low for a bit. No better, in fact. Head for the system with the asteroids. By the way, can anyone find us?”
    “Unlikely. The Qualians, even if they give chase, only know our vector. They have no idea how long we were in hyperspace. I know this is just a game, but even in a game there must be some logic. Look—what do you think of that planet?” Lestran pointed at a humongous boulder that we were slowly approaching.
    “It’ll do. Work your piloting magic and set us down. We’ll meet tomorrow as agreed—at nine…”
     
    The cocoon’s cover slid aside, after which the built-in seat lifted my poor body practically vertically, easing my egress. A convenient thing, these modern game cocoons. Only a few years ago, the player