The Systems Challenge - Chapter 72: Better Than Nothing

As a child with an unattainable dream, I yearned to become a Hero, but I veered off the right path. Looking back, my aspiration to save others was nothing more than a foolish dream. I now realize the magnitude of my sins and the impossibility of atoning for them.

The world is full of mysteries. Strange, seemingly unexplainable events occur more often than we may realize. A young boy may catch an illness no doctor can explain. An office may catch fire for no apparent reason. And perhaps, someone may die a sudden and unexpected death – their bodies blighted beyond recognition.

Avery Asteria was far from having anyone's dream job. Family circumstances had him drop out of school and flying around the expanse of space looking for treasure among the discarded trash in an old ship his father had been restoring. It was far from glamorous work, but it was all he could do to earn the money he needed.He was not the only one looking for fortune among the stars, though. One day a score that looked too good to be true led to a run in with a band of pirates. With some quick wits and a bit of luck, Avery managed to escape the worst, but he ended up missing out on collecting the valuable salvage he had his sights on.Having lost a large chunk of his gear in his flight from the pirates, Avery seemed to be truly at the end of his rope. However, a twist of fate led him to discovering an experimental vessel that had been lost to the far reaches of space.With this new ship in his possession, his prospects were looking up. It had everything and more than what any spacefarer could want. And Avery was going to use it to become the leader of the greatest band of mercenaries in the galaxy.

Four years after the Third Nightmare, something unexpected happens. A group of people find themselves in a strange theatre, which tells them to react to someone's story...?