The Spider Queen

(Andromeda Star System- Delta Quadrant)

(Private Starship- Cabin Room #43)

A sleek black starship quietly sailed through the endless void of space.

It was outfitted with the latest barrier technology and two plasma cannons were mounted on its exterior.

The starship was a medium class vessel capable of housing around two thousand inhabitants.

However, at the current moment other than the crew… there was only one.

The sole guest onboard the spacefaring vessel lived in a cabin room on the upper deck. This was a private suite around the size of two-bedroom apartment.

It came with a pool, spa, gaming room as well as other luxurious amenities designed to make the journey as relaxing as possible.

A beautiful hybrid girl with four blade-like appendages sat down on a chair in the corner of the room and enjoying the peaceful atmosphere.

Sophie reached for the cup in front of her and took a small sip. The sweet taste of hot chocolate flooded her mouth.

The rich and creamy flavour of the chocolate and the delightful aftertaste of the cocoa brought a small smile to her face.

There were few pleasures in life that were better than a hot chocolate drink.

The hybrid girl took a handkerchief and wiped the sides of her lip when she finished drinking.

She looked outside a nearby window and saw the vast emptiness of space staring back at her. Hundreds of small rocks, dozens of planets and a few comets could be seen in the distance.

No matter how many times she had experienced space travel… seeing the universe up close always made her feel small.

Sophie hummed softly as she stretched out her arms lazily.

She had been travelling on this starship for around two days now and would be reaching her destination tomorrow.

Planet Caorn.

A planet in the center of the Andromeda Star System and used to be the home of an alien civilisation that had long gone extinct.

It was to be the location where the Inter- University Tournament would take place.

The most powerful cultivators from the four great universities would be participating along with students from the lesser-known educational institutions.

She was the captain of the second years.

It was a tremendous honour since it meant that Zrudread University believed that she was the strongest sophomore in the entire school.

Sophie fidgeted with her hands as she felt a bit of nervousness. It may seem silly, but she didn't want to let her father down.

Duke Peterlor was the captain of Atlas University during his time in college and he had won first place in the tournament.

Sophie wanted to follow in his footsteps.

She would have been feeling more confident about her chances were it not for…

"Fuck…" Sophie cursed as she felt another sharp burst of pain. The hybrid girl doubled over and tried not to vomit as bile rose up in her throat.

Her transition to the void stage was neither smooth nor painless. Instead, every few days her body would be racked by pain.

These attacks occurred randomly, and she had no control over them. It was fortunate that she had managed not to have an episode in front of complete strangers.

But how long could her luck last?

What if she was incapacitated during a match?

Sophie coughed violently and tiny flecks of blood stained the white table in front of her. She took in a few deep breaths and then gently exhaled.

By now she was used to process.

She no longer bothered with pain relief medication or drugs since the relief would only last for a few minutes.

And taking them in excess simply built up her immunity so truthfully those few minutes were now just a couple of seconds.

All she could do was focus on her breathing and ride out the pain until it subsided.

The hybrid girl closed her eyes and tried to think of happy thoughts or something to distract herself.

She remained in the same position for around fifteen minutes until she felt the pain slowly fade away.

"Thank god," Sophie quietly muttered before letting out a small sigh of relief.

She checked her wrist communicator and saw a few unread messages from her friends and girlfriend.

Most of the messages were about how she was feeling and if she was excited to meet the other captains.

Cleo sent a long message reminding her to eat properly and to make sure to take medication if the pain got too severe.

Sophie replied to her girlfriend telling her not to worry and then turned off her communicator.

She continued to stare out of the window watching the countless stars that winked and blinked in the distance.

Hot balls of gas that would burn until their cores eventually collapsed, or they exploded.

Sophie wasn't in the mood to cultivate tonight especially after what had just happened, so she got up from her chair and walked over to the bed.

She had a few options to pass the time until tomorrow.

She could sleep and get a good rest or… play some videogames. No… what was she thinking?

Sleep was definitely the smarter option…

Sophie turned off the light and tried to get some sleep, but her mind kept focusing on the meeting tomorrow.

The other captains… the press… the expectations of being the daughter of Duke Peterlor…

These thoughts get running through her mind one after the other as she tossed and turned on the bed unable to sleep.

Sigh… alright… maybe she could check out that new virtual reality game that came out.

Sophie turned back on the lights and the harsh glare caused her to rub her eyes. She reached into her storage bag and pulled out a white headset.

The headset was shaped like a large helmet and contained several neuro link attachments that would directly connect to her brain.

Virtual reality technology was quite advanced and once inside a game it was possible to feel, smell, taste and experience all kinds of different sensations.

It was for this reason why certain R-rated games were banned for minors.

Sophie slipped the headset over her head and her vision slowly faded away to darkness. She accessed her game library and selected the new game that had just come out.

'NPC In a Fantasy World'

Cheerful upbeat music began to play, and the world burst into a white glow. Sophie closed her eyes and when she reopened them, she was lying down on a broken mattress.

There was a cracked mirror in the corner of the room, so Sophie took a glance at her reflection to see what she looked like.

Huh…

A dirty woman wearing what could only be described as tattered rags stared back at her.

She was not beautiful by any stretch of the imagination with misshapen facial features and large pimples across her forehead and cheeks.

This was certainly a unique start.

Sophie tried to get out of the bed but was stopped by several holographic windows that popped up in front of her.

[Choose Your Profession]

[Beggar] [Slave] [Criminal]

She tapped the windows to see if there were any other options and apparently there weren't.

These were the only choices that she had.

Well… she didn't want to be a slave and who the hell would play a game where they had to beg for food or money?

Sophie tapped the criminal option and the other windows slowly disappeared. She waited for a few seconds, but nothing happened.

"Hmm… maybe I need to explore?" Sophie muttered to herself as she got up from the bed and looked around the room.

There was a rusty knife hidden below the broken mattress and she managed to find a small pouch with two bronze coins tucked away inside.

Sophie noticed that her outfit didn't have any pockets, so she was forced to carry the knife in her left hand.

She left the room and found herself standing in a filthy alley with roads made of cobblestone and houses hastily constructed from wooden materials.

People wearing torn or partially destroyed clothes walked around the slums with various expressions on their faces.

Anger… despair… grief…

A middle-aged man wearing an eyepatch slowly approached Sophie and looked up and down her body with barely concealed disgust on his face.

"Oi Rat… the big man has a job for you to do," the man growled as he refused to take a step closer.

"He's waiting for you in the usual spot… don't be late."