Systematic Growth (Misadventures of a Newborn ROB)

[Taitenator]

A Gamer finally completes their journey, and ascends into the heavens... but what comes after?

Edit: I thought this field was for a thread description, egg on my face I guess

 

[Taitenator]

Systematic Growth

Chapter 1

Hello and welcome to Systematic Growth! I've been wanting to try my hand at writing something for a while, and decided to finally bite the bullet after being inspired by I've Been ROB'd, a fantastic story by TheGrue. Warning, it does have some NSFW scenes and as such is on the NSFW board. Since I am of course entirely pure, I decided to try my hand at writing a SFW story using his ROB system and set within that wider multiverse. I hope you enjoy it!

____________________________________________________________________________

It's a big moment. At long last, my journey is coming to an end. All my Quests are completed, all my Companions are content, this World is entering an age of peace… and cradled in my cupped hands is a Spark of Divinity, grown and nurtured by my patron throughout our long partnership. I look up through watery eyes at the starry face of [Lucina] gazing down at me from the space between universes and receive a single slow nod.

I take a deep breath, and as I let it out the Spark sinks through my skin, twisting reality in ways I can't quite follow as it slowly merges with my soul. My mind expands, and in the blink of an eye I'm no longer standing at the altar but floating in an endless void of colourful stars, a pinprick of light I recognise as the World I just came from hovering beside me and [Lucina] towering over both of us. I open my mouth to speak, but before I can something inside me shifts and the World beside me seems to shrink, although comparing it with [Lucina] shows that in reality I've grown. Every living thing… no, every {Life} on it seems to shine like a distant star to my new senses, and I can tell I'm barely scratching the surface of what I can do now as a Goddess of Life. My new domain pushes at me insistently and where once was hair greenery bursts forth until I'm crowned with bright new grown flowers, vines and mosses trailing in a curtain down my back.

I'm so caught up in the moment that I don't notice [Lucina] moving until Her hands scoop me up and lift me towards Her face, lips of starlight giving me a fond smile. I grin back as I come level with Her eyes, giving a happy twirl to show off my new accessories and for a moment I feel amusement come across our link as I dance upon the palm of Her hand.

And then the amusement is gone and I freeze, as our connection shatters like fragile glass and She opens her mouth to speak.

"You have done well to come so far, [Newborn]. Of all the Mortals I have nurtured you are only the third to grow strong enough to join us out here, in the Space Between Worlds, and perhaps my favourite. Your old life lies behind you, and its memory will live on in my Worlds. But you have been Reborn, and it is time for you to go out into the Infinity and leave your own mark. And if it is to be Your mark rather than mine, [Newborn]... you cannot cling to the crutches of power I made for your Mortal self."

Abruptly, I can feel it; all the benefits and boons gained over my years of travel, mementos of hardships suffered and friendships forged. They are torn away one by one, until all that is left is my Divinity, the {Life} lashing out around me in wicked thorns and barbs rather than the beautiful flowers of before, reacting instinctively to the sense of betrayal that crushes the air from my lungs and leaves me mute in horror. This was supposed to be a triumphant day, stepping out into the wider multiverse alongside my mentor, my partner… my friend. Was it all a lie? Did I never truly know you, [Lucina]?

She must see something on my face despite the cocoon of Life surrounding me, as she sighs slightly.

"I know, the others both hated this part as well. But even for those such as us there are Rules [Newborn], and they are set by Entities far greater than I. You will find that there are many different rules in the Infinity, depending on where you are and the whims of the local Rulers. But there are two Golden Rules that stand unchanged across all the many territories I have seen in my long life.

The First Golden Rule: With infinite worlds, there is infinite resource. Thus, the theft or damage of worlds, their peoples, or else which falls already under the claim of any of us is impermissible, so that conflict amongst us is reduced. These may be bargained, borrowed willingly, bet, sold, but never stolen.

The Second Golden Rule: Our numbers are not stable. Some are eliminated. Some are raised up. To those who do not yet know our rules, you are obliged to explain them.

Stick to these Rules, and you should avoid giving any great offense wherever you choose to go. Now, as I said you are my favourite [Newborn], so I'll stack the deck in your favour a little. [Mother] has no rules beyond the Golden, but her Domain makes her especially sympathetic to Newborn like yourself. Keep your nose clean, and you'll be fine until you can stand on your own. And pick a name for your new self, it'll get confusing."

I already have a name though… it's [Newborn]. Wait, no it isn't, it's [Newborn]. What the hell has She done to me!?

She uncurls her hand and takes a deep breath… then pauses, and gives a final remark.

"Oh, and if you return here before at least one of your Affinities has grown strong enough to call yourself an Aspect, by [Mother]'s terminology, then the Ruler of this region is liable to consume you. Have fun!"

Wait, what!?

Before I can respond, [Lucina] lets Her breath out in a blast of starlight and I'm launched away from Her like a bullet by what feels like a solid wall of force. The unrelenting pressure stays with me as I flail and kick, trying to slow myself but only accelerating as the Worlds begin to blur around me and despite no longer needing air my vision starts to darken at the edges from the sheer disorienting speed I'm travelling at. For a time I can do nothing but watch the blurs fly past, trapped like a fly on a windshield by this place of force, but finally it dissipates and I'm able to begin trying to slow myself down. Willing myself to move slower has no real effect going this fast, so I glance about for a solution. Passing a collection of tiny stars that I can somehow tell are unclaimed by other entities, I lash out with a vine of {Life} and wrap it around the closest World, setting off a disorienting tumble as we start orbiting each other rapidly but gradually bleeding off enough momentum with each spin that eventually I manage to actually stop, floating in place and determinedly ignoring the snickering coming from a group of slightly larger Entities nearby. Other Newborn, I suppose?

Speaking of which, before I even look at my new World, there's one order of business that simply cannot wait: my name will NOT be [Newborn]! Whatever [Lucina] did seems to be preventing me from using any of the names or aliases I used in my journey to ascension, so I'll have to come up with something new. It's as my {Life} pulls the World into my hands that I notice it has reverted to its original appearance, and gaze contemplatively at the star-shaped golden flowers that have bloomed. I recognise it from one of the earlier stops in my travels; Elanor, a flower found only in the gardens of Lothlorien. Seems a little plain as the name of a Goddess, even Newborn as I am… perhaps [Lorien]? It slots into place in my mind easily, and I test it out quickly. My name… is [Lorien], not Newborn. Excellent!

Okay. One existential crisis dealt with for the moment, onto the next. Carefully I direct my attention inwards as I would when examining the many powers and avenues of growth I gained during my time with [Lucina], and find that while all of them are still gone beyond my new core of Divinity, there are… impressions left behind. Faint traces of what I once was, that weren't necessary to construct the spark of Life that ascended me to my current state. There's power there. Not enough to use them as I once did, but… even as I watch, it seems my awareness of these dregs has triggered something. The core of my being flares slightly, and the remains of my powers seem to catch alight as they start to slowly orbit it. Apparently I now have 10 Points. It's probably a good thing I got [Lucina] to explain how all this works before ascending, considering the way She threw me directly into the deep end. Or maybe She would have waited until after explaining things? Doesn't matter now, I suppose.

A twist of my Will serves to open my Store window, and the Point counter reflects my discovery. The leftover power has been made a part of me, fertilizer for my first growth. I'm still not sure why Gods conceptualize their power as Gamer style menus and a Point Store, but whatever. Let's see what we're dealing with.

Store
Points: 10

{2 Points} - Partner System: You will earn points as the timeline of your Worlds progresses. If you want to earn more, you must trade with other Entities… or select a Partner.

{5 Points} - Gamer Essentials Pack: Enables you to grant the most basic powers of The Gamer to your Partner: Stats, EXP, Levels and Classes based on their Life Experience.

{6 Points} - Starter Class Pack: This Pack unlocks the 'Warrior', 'Rogue' and 'Mage' classes for your Partner.

{1 Point} - Speech-to-Text: You may now use pop-up windows to communicate directly with your Partner.

{1 Point} - Shop Slot: Another item slot is added to the Catalogue, for purchases.

Huh. So despite being a Gamer myself, and ascending all the way to godhood… I can't grant that to others until I purchase it? Or even talk with my Partner? What if I hadn't found those points!?

Okay. Calm down, let's think about this logically. With 10 Points, if I purchase only the absolute essentials then I'll have 2 left. Based on the Shop Slot option, I think purchasing things should give me more things to purchase, right?

Partner System Purchased! -2 Points.
Gamer Essentials Pack Purchased! -5 Points
Speech-to-Text Purchased! -1 Point

Store
Points: 2

{1 Point} - Restock: Invest to restock this store slot.

{1 Point} - Restock: Invest to restock this store slot.

{6 Points} - Starter Class Pack: This Pack unlocks the 'Warrior', 'Rogue' and 'Mage' classes for your Partner.

{1 Point} - Restock: Invest to restock this store slot.

{1 Point} - Shop Slot: Another item slot is added to the Catalogue, for purchases.

…Fuck, so it costs me points to Restock as well. I can't even afford to refill my Store, huh? Well, let's see what my last two Points reveal anyway.

Restock x2 Purchased! -2 Points

{20 Points} - Quest System: You may now assign Quests for your Partner. Rewards will occur for both of you, dependent on Quest difficulty.

{4 Points} - Hunter Class Pack: Unlocks the 'Hunter' class for your Partner.

I'm wincing at the price tag on Quest System before the second Restock has even finished. Bad enough that it wasn't part of the Gamer Essentials, but Twenty Points!? Normally I'd complain that [Lucina] was being mean and jacking prices up, but… I guess that isn't a concern anymore, huh?

With a sigh, I turn my attention back to the World cradled in my hands. Wait a minute, has it shrunk while I was looking at my Store? Looking around, and comparing my size to the group of other Newborn that have seemingly lost interest in me and started moving away, I realise that in fact I seem to have grown again. By a rough estimate I'm about 2 foot taller, which is novel considering I was only 5'4 before, but I seem to have grown… strangely. Rather than just getting taller as you'd expect, it's almost as if I'm an image someone has resized. Everything has grown bigger, but proportionally I'm unchanged. Weird.

I reach out towards the World with my new abilities, and it unfolds before me. I remain aware of my full self out in the Between, but suddenly I can see a new perspective, flying down from space towards what I recognise as Earth, tell-tale lights of modern civilisation lighting up the areas where night has fallen. A rush of nostalgia hits me at the sight; while I visited a few high tech Worlds in my travels, I haven't been back to any version of Earth since starting on my journey with [Lucina]. My viewpoint flies closer and slowly focuses on Japan, picking up speed and flying low over the city of Tokyo before abruptly slowing and lingering on a single crosswalk, giving me a glimpse of a dark haired boy staring across the street at a black winged demon wrapped in chains of blue fire. Oh hey, I recognise this! Accelerating away again, my perspective travels only a few miles before zeroing in on a lone house in a series of back alleys, passing through a window and curtains to reveal a small bedroom. A young girl with bright orange hair sits at a desk, typing nonstop on a keyboard as lines of text flash past on a collection of monitors. {Partner System} abruptly activates, and confirms my suspicions of her identity.

Futaba Sakura with the power of The Gamer, huh? I hope I'm immune to being hacked…
____________________________________________________________________________

So, that's Chapter 1. I hope you enjoyed it! I've started work on Chapter 2 already, so that will hopefully be coming in the next few days. Feedback is appreciated and acts as fuel for my motivation to write. See you all next time!

 

[TheGrue]

A Gamer finally completes their journey, and ascends into the heavens... but what comes after?

Edit: I thought this field was for a thread description, egg on my face I guess

Click to shrink...

:thinking:

I'm eager to find out!

--

Hi Tait! Looks like an interesting start so far and I'm excited to see where it goes... and I guess nobody ever gets an out and out nice ROB

But I just have one question for you...

Warning, it does have some NSFW scenes and as such is on the NSFW board. Since I am of course entirely pure

Click to shrink...

What were you doing in the NSFW section, you pure lamb?

I wish Lorien the best of luck on her new journey!

 

[Akuma-Heika]

The First Golden Rule: With infinite worlds, there is infinite resource. Thus, the theft or damage of worlds, their peoples, or else which falls already under the claim of any of us is impermissible, so that conflict amongst us is reduced. These may be bargained, borrowed willingly, bet, sold, but never stolen.

Click to shrink...

The bolded part kind of makes the rule worthless, at least for beings of their scale. Even if everything they have in 3D space is stolen, they have literally infinitely more stuff to acquire, so nothing is truly lost.

 

[Taitenator]

The bolded part kind of makes the rule worthless, at least for beings of their scale. Even if everything they have in 3D space is stolen, they have literally infinitely more stuff to acquire, so nothing is truly lost.

Click to shrink...

To a certain extent this is true, but it assumes that someone stealing something you've invested time and effort into is okay because you can go out into infinity and get another one. Materially that's true, but emotionally not so much. Besides that, the Golden Rules are a part of the larger universe established by TheGrue rather than something I added, so they're not really up for debate here

 

[Akuma-Heika]

To a certain extent this is true, but it assumes that someone stealing something you've invested time and effort into is okay because you can go out into infinity and get another one. Materially that's true, but emotionally not so much. Besides that, the Golden Rules are a part of the larger universe established by TheGrue rather than something I added, so they're not really up for debate here

Click to shrink...

Would they be emotionally invested? I am not emotionally invested in the bacteria in my body after all, even if some of them are helpful

 

[Taitenator]

Chapter 2
Merry Christmas everyone! Wait, what do you mean that was yesterday?
____________________________________________________________________________

Futaba Sakura, my first Partner. With the chaos of my own adventure I haven't thought about Persona 5 in a long time, but I remember the important bits of her story. Futaba loses her mother at the hands of the villains, but is made to believe she drove her to suicide in a fit of maternal neurosis. Her distorted cognition forms a Palace in the Metaverse, causing her to suffer hallucinations and fall into depression, but with the aid of the Phantom Thieves is able to see the truth about her mothers death and joins the team to help bring her killers to justice. A glance at the corner of her monitor tells me that the date is April 9th, right at the start of canon if that glimpse of the protagonist earlier is any indication. If I do nothing, Futaba will get the help she needs and gain the power of Persona some time in August, 5 months from now.

…Nah, I'm not that patient. To quote a great man, 'To ignore the plight of those one might conceivably save is not wisdom - it is indolence'. I could watch Futaba become steadily more Distorted, collecting Points from the events of the world progressing while safe in the knowledge that the timeline is unchanged and so things will eventually work out. But that's not the kind of goddess I want to be. {Life} deserves to be Lived, not merely survived. And while the original Futaba was a great help as backline support for the Thieves in their journey, how much more impressive will she be after 5 months of growth through the Gamer system?

Right then, time to introduce myself. Toggling {Speech-to-Text} on, I clear my throat. A transparent screen appears before Futaba with the word 'Ahem' written on it, blocking her line of sight to the monitor and prompting her to screech and leap away in fright.

Oops.

"...Right. I apologise for the fright, but I wasn't expecting clearing my throat to trigger the transmission. I was planning to be a bit more dramatic about this, but informal seems more your style anyway, so whatever. I am here to offer you a deal, Futaba Sakura."

Grabbing a pillow off the bed Futaba frantically flails at the new pop-up to no effect, as the screens seem to be intangible. She's still screeching at the top of her lungs.

"Futaba. Calm down. You're not in any danger."

"Get out of my room! Get out get out get out! Nobody but Sojiro is allowed in!"

"I'm not in your room, Futaba. I'm sending you messages from Outside."

Her flailing slows down, and she peers suspiciously at the text before her. I can practically see her brain start to work when she notes the capitalisation on the last word, a thoughtful frown forming.

"You… don't just mean outside my room, do you." It's a statement more than a question.

"No, a bit further than that I'm afraid. Do you want me to ease you into it, or do you want me to be blunt?"

Futaba rests the pillow on its end in her lap and gazes thoughtfully at my message. She chews her lower lip for a moment, crossing her arms in indecision before nodding as she comes to a decision.

"I get enough of that treatment from Sojiro, I'm not some fragile kid. Explain yourself, Intruder!"

I sigh, mindful to switch off {Speech-to-Text} before doing so this time, and consider how I should phrase this. My own introduction with [Lucina] was fairly simple all things considered, but then I'm from what Lucina later told me is commonly called a Seedworld, realities where the extraordinary events of whatever might be 'canon' never occurred due to the intervention of an Entity and instead stories of many different realities, and indeed of Gods and Entities like those of us out here in the Infinity are 'seeded' into the culture through various forms of media, so that the Entity can then trade the world's inhabitants out to other entities as partners in return for power. Still, even without that crutch Futaba is pretty intelligent, so I'm hopeful she'll be able to grasp my explanation.

"You may be familiar with the concept of Parallel Universes, Alternate Realities and other such phenomena believed by most to be naught but fantasy. I am here to tell you that they are real, Futaba Sakura, and that there are more Worlds out there than grains of sand in your universe, all floating in the infinite void that is Reality. And it is from that infinite void, the space between universes, that my own kind emerges. There are many names for us, but the simplest for you to understand is Gods. We are beings of immense power and potential… but we exist in the infinite void, where there is nothing for that power to act on, no obstacles against which to hone that potential. So we go out among the many Worlds, find residents of them that resonate with us, and invest our power in them so that they might nurture it and grow strong. The stronger our Partner becomes, the greater the growth we experience, until eventually a partner becomes strong enough that their soul attains a divine spark of its own and they can join our number in the Infinity as fellow Gods. As I said previously, Futaba Sakura: I wish to offer you a deal."

The text box stretches practically from the ceiling to the floor. I might have overdone it a bit? Oh well, at least Futaba is looking less scared now.

"A God!? At least come up with something convincing! Although, I don't know how you're making these messages appear… Cognitive Psience, maybe? Alright then you shady God, what's this deal!"

"Goddess, actually. [Lorien], Newborn Goddess of {Life}, at your service. I ascended… hm, maybe half an hour ago? I need a mortal partner in order to start growing, and that's where you come in Futaba. I will grant you what abilities I can, that we both might grow. They will be only minor at first, but over time as my own powers grow I will be able to grant you more. And in return, you will become my Partner until such a time as either one of us decides to break things off, or you Ascend to divinity yourself."

"Goddess of Life, huh? If I agree to this… could you bring my mom back?"

"Hm… with time and effort, it may be possible. As I said, I am new to my Divinity and my power reflects that. My domain over {Life} is fairly weak, and my skill is only rudimentary. At present, with access to her body I could probably bring it back to life... but it would be the body alone, not the spirit within. But in time, as I grow in power and gain new domains, at some point it should be possible. And while you await that day, we could always pass the time by bringing her killers to justice."

Futaba stares slack jawed at the last line for a moment before responding.

"What? Bring her killers to justice… but mom committed suicide! And, and it was m-my fault, not anyone else's!"

I crack my knuckles and lean in. It took the phantom thieves a lot of effort to achieve what I'm about to try, but Futaba's cognition was far more warped than it is now, and I've heard a few Protagonist Pep Talks in my time. I just hope I can get through to her.

"Is that what you believe, Futaba? That your mother, after loving you and making time to spend with you for years, suddenly decided to throw all of that and her own life away purely out of spite for you? Isn't it strange that all of her research disappeared on the very day she died? Do you believe it is standard procedure, for those investigating a woman's death to read her suicide note aloud to a room containing her extended family and grieving daughter? I could tell you the names of those truly responsible for her death, but they're utterly ruthless. If you do anything to draw their attention too early, your age won't save you from being cut down."

"Then… those rotten adults lied? They killed my mom, tainted my memories of her, and all just to steal her research!? I'll never forgive them! If it will bring them to justice, then I accept your deal!"

I can actually see the moment Futaba's cognition of her mother changes, shattering the Palace before it can begin to form. A light shines in her eyes that wasn't there before as a spark of defiance pushes back the despair that has chained her down for so long. In so many other worlds, this would be the moment she awakens to the power of Persona. I suppose I'd better make sure not to leave her empty-handed, huh?

Partner Gained: Futaba Sakura! +5 Points

I can feel {Gamer Essentials Pack} push forwards, giving structure to my power as it reaches out and binds into Futaba. A new screen appears before Futaba, retro green shading distinguishing it from the black and white pop ups used by {Speech-to-Text}.

Gamer System v1.0 Initialising…
System Initialised. Welcome to The Game, Futaba Sakura.
Scanning Life Experiences…
Initial Status Registered. Displaying:

Name: Futaba Sakura
Level: 15
Class: Hacker

HP: 115
SP: 115
MP: 100

Str: 10
Agi: 13
End: 8
Int: 14
Cha: 12

Unassigned Attribute Points: 3

Attaining Level 5 in the Hacker Class grants you the Passive Skill 'APM Over 9000'
Attaining Level 10 in the Hacker Class grants you the Active Skill 'Do Not Disturb'

Skill: APM Over 9000
Type: Passive
Description: Increases Dexterity by 50% while using a keyboard.

Skill: Do Not Disturb
Type: Active (10MP)
Description: You may focus entirely on a task for as long as you don't move, increasing all stats by 5% for the duration. The only way to be broken out of this state is completion of the task, or being physically separated from it.

The Game v1.0 has no Help function. If you are in need of assistance, please contact your System administrator.

Futaba stares at the deluge of information, eyes flicking between her Status and Skills. Slowly, a manic grin forms on her face and she topples backwards to lie flat on her bed cackling before punching one fist into the air.

"Ha! Take that Sojiro! You said that spending all my time playing video games wasn't preparing me for my future, but look at me now! Futaba 1, Sojiro 0!"

I smile and let her enjoy the moment. We should have at least a few hours more alone in the house before Sojiro gets home, and Futaba hasn't had a reason to laugh like this in a long time. There's no harm in taking our time with things.

____________________________________________________________________________
And that's Chapter 2! Some more Points for Lorien to spend, and Futaba agrees to become a Gamer. What's next for our intrepid heroes? Find out next time on Dragonball Z Systematic Growth.

I was originally hoping to get this ready to go out on Christmas Day, but then instead of finishing the chapter I stuffed myself with christmas dinner and went into a food coma, so today it is instead. I'm hoping to keep up at least 1 chapter released per week, but we'll see how things go.

 

[NinetyNineEyes]

Great chapter, Wish there was more stories like this

 

[IsekaiFanBoi]

Lmao

 

[TheGrue]

Man, you just know that Futaba's going to have The Matrix as a world down the line.

Looks good so far, Tait! If you end up in Sword Art Online, I may just have to point and laugh though

 

[SharkCultist]

...you've trusted a shut in with heightened typing speed and focus.


She's either gonna shitpost like a god or she's gonna make photorealistic yaoi animations