MTLNOVEL Chapter 5: The Contest
Neo stared at the quest notification with growing anxiety. A spacecraft repair contest? He barely understood the technology of this world, let alone how to fix it. But with the mandatory quest, he had little choice.
"System, where is this contest being held?"
[Contest Location: Xi Corporation Central Hangar, District 7. Event begins in 3 hours.]
Neo navigated through the city, following the waypoint on his HUD. As he walked, he tried accessing any information about spacecraft repair through his system.
[Basic to Advanced Spacecraft Knowledge Downloaded]
[Warning: Knowledge is theoretical. Practical experience required.]
"Great," Neo muttered. "Just great."
The Xi Corporation Central Hangar was massive—a gleaming structure of metal and glass that towered over the surrounding buildings. Various species of beings filed inside, many carrying tool kits and wearing uniforms with company logos.
Neo approached the registration desk, where a blue-skinned humanoid with four arms was checking in contestants.
"Registration?" the being asked without looking up.
"Uh, yes. For the repair contest."
The being glanced up, all three eyes blinking in sequence. "Name and credentials?"
Neo froze. "Neo Voxford. I'm... independent."
The being's expression was unreadable as it tapped on a tablet. "Entry fee?"
"Fee?"
"5,000 credits. Standard."
Neo's heart sank. 'System, do I have 5,000 credits?'
[Affirmative. 5,000 credits can be allocated from your 10,000 credit balance.]
Relief washed over him. "Yes, I'll pay the fee."
After registration, Neo was directed to a waiting area filled with other contestants. Everyone seemed to know each other, discussing technical specifications and swapping stories about previous repairs. Neo sat alone, desperately cramming information from his system download.
[Spacecraft Repair Contest Rules Accessed]
[Contest Format: Three rounds. Elimination after each round. Final round determines champion.]
[Round One: Diagnostics. Identify system failures in a standard XC-570 shuttle.]
[Round Two: Component replacement. Timed repair of designated systems.]
[Round Three: Critical failure simulation. Full system recovery under pressure.]
Neo felt a presence beside him and looked up to see a small, rodent-like creature with goggles perched on its head.
"First timer?" it squeaked in a surprisingly deep voice.
"That obvious?"
The creature chuckled. "You look like you've been dropped into a gravity well without a stabilizer. Name's Fizz. Repair technician on the outer rings."
"Neo. I'm... new to the area."
"Picked a hell of a contest to start with. Xi Corp doesn't mess around." Fizz adjusted his goggles. "Why enter if you don't know what you're doing?"
Neo hesitated. "I need the prize."
"Don't we all?.", "By the way, what tech are you using?, I can feel that it's there but can't seem to identify it ." Fizz was giving a scrutinizing glance at neo.
Before Neo could respond, a booming announcement echoed through the hangar.
"ATTENTION CONTESTANTS! ROUND ONE BEGINS IN FIVE MINUTES. PROCEED TO YOUR ASSIGNED STATIONS."
Neo looked at his HUD, which now displayed his station number: 42.
"Good luck, If ya need a any implants, Come find me." Fizz said, scurrying away.
A while later, Neo found his station—a small shuttle with its access panels open. A holographic display showed the current status of all systems, most flashing red.
[Round One Objective: Identify all system failures and propose repair solutions within 30 minutes.]
Neo stared at the shuttle, panic rising. Then he remembered the knowledge the system downloaded, Immediately, his vision sharpened. The system information in his HUD expanded, showing deeper layers of diagnostics. Neo could suddenly see patterns in the system failures—they weren't random. There was a cascade effect starting from the power distribution node.
His hands moved almost automatically, pulling up schematics and running diagnostics. It was as if some part of his consciousness knew exactly what to do.
When the buzzer sounded, Neo had identified seventeen system failures and logged repair solutions for each one.
[Round One Complete]
[Performance Assessment: 94% Accuracy]
[Status: Qualified for Round Two]
Neo stared at the notification in disbelief.
"Not bad for a newbie," Fizz said, appearing on the shuttle near his. "Let's see if you can handle hardware as well as you handle theory."
Round Two was indeed more challenging. Contestants were given specific repair tasks and timed. Neo's assignment was to replace a quantum fluctuation dampener—a device he'd never heard of until twenty minutes ago.
With the system's guidance, Neo managed to complete the repair with seconds to spare. His hands were steady, his movements precise, despite having no memory of ever performing such tasks before. The cybernetics on his body showing its superiority.
[Round Two Complete]
[Performance Assessment: 87% Efficiency]
[Status: Qualified for Final Round]
Only three contestants remained for the final round: Neo, Fizz, and a tall, thin being with metallic skin that seemed to shift colors with its movements.
"Hooo, lad you really tricked me, thought you were a newbie. Hehe. Oh! That's Xel'dar," Fizz whispered. "Three-time champion. Works directly for Xi Corp's experimental division."
The final challenge was announced: "Contestants will face a simulated catastrophic failure scenario. You must stabilize the craft and restore critical systems before detonation. Begin!"
Neo's simulation threw him into the cockpit of a spacecraft in crisis. Alarms blared as multiple systems failed simultaneously. The main reactor was overloading, life support was failing, and navigation was completely offline.
[Difficulty above player level. Guided assistance activating.] The system voice rang.
Something clicked in Neo's mind. It was like muscle memory he didn't know he had. His fingers flew across controls, bypassing damaged systems, rerouting power, and stabilizing the reactor.
Warning Screens blazed over the control panel.
Neo ignored the warning. He wasn't following standard protocols—he was creating new pathways, solving problems in ways the simulation wasn't programmed to expect.
When the final buzzer sounded, Neo had not only stabilized the craft but had restored 89% of its functionality using methods that left the judges murmuring to each other in confusion.
The announcement came after a long deliberation:
"The winner of this year's Xi Corporation Spacecraft Repair Challenge is... NEO VOxFORD!"
The crowd's reaction was mixed—polite applause interspersed with confused whispers. Xel'dar stared at Neo with unblinking, metallic eyes.
Fizz bounded over, excitement evident in his twitching whiskers. "How did you do that? Some of those solutions weren't even in the manual!"
Before Neo could respond, a tall figure in an immaculate Xi Corp uniform approached. The crowd parted respectfully.
"Congratulations," the figure said, voice smooth and modulated. "I am Director Vex. Your methods were... unexpected. Xi Corporation values innovation. Your prize awaits in Hangar 7."
As Neo followed Director Vex, a notification appeared:
[Quest Update: Contest won]
[Credits Received: 300,000]
[Reward Pending: Experimental Spacecraft]
Neo couldn't help but smile. Perhaps things were looking up after all.