"Oh boy, I sure hope you don't awaken the [Drone Class ],Buzz."
Amidst the uproarious laughter of his classmates, Buzz craned his neck around to stare at the young man who had just cracked the most unoriginal joke in his 16 years of life.
Buzz Sawyer's father was a Drone, mother was a Drone, older sister was a Drone, all four grandparents were Drones, and even if they traced their genealogy back a few generations further.... Drone was the only class they'd find.
It was a joke even within their family. If the dogs, cats, and cockroaches in their house could awaken classes, they'd probably be drones too.
But of course, when an outsider made that joke for the umpteenth time, Buzz didn't find it quite as funny.
And when this outsider happened to be the class asshole who thrived on bullying others, it became the opposite of funny.
Annoying. Infuriating, even.
A flash of violent intentions must have shown up in his expression, because the complacent smile on the other guy's face dried up.
In his nine years of school life, Buzz had been suspended forty-nine times for 'incidents involving violence'.
In a normal world, a troublemaker like him would probably be expelled after the score hit double digits. But this wasn't a normal world.
The entire human civilization was drafted for cosmic wars 199 years ago, fully controlled by superior alien races whose spaceships could withstand nuclear explosions without a scratch.
In this war, humans were practically cannon fodder. Only after awakening their classes, upgrading their attributes, and using their class talents to the greatest extent, could someone rise above the rank of a cannon fodder.
Unfortunately, some classes were truly not meant for such a promotion.
Guess which class was the most common example?
Unless one was an idiot, they could guess the right answer in one try.
The [ Drone Class ].
The majority of humans who underwent the awakening process became members of this Class. The annual statistics of awakened Drones stayed within the 75% - 80% range.
The remaining 20% to 25% were distributed in small fractions across all kinds of 'better' classes, like [ Mage ], [ Tamer ], [ Warrior ], [ Alchemist ], [ Crafter ], [ Hunter ], [ Techie ], [ Cleric ], and whatnot.
Hell, even getting the [ Farmer ] class was better than being [ Drone ]. At least the former allowed you to enter the Druid Race's territory and settle on a safe planet, far from wars.
What role could you play in this cosmic conflict if you happened to be a Drone?
Whatever your Commander orders you to.
A Drone's job was to listen, obey, and wait for resources to be allocated after a good day, however meager the allocation might be.
Work, work, work! Slave away like a mindless machine!
Serve mankind! Serve the true overlords of the cosmos!
And if you dare to break order, dare to ask questions... Hehe.
The System bonded to your body and soul would crush you like an ant. Your physical remains would be processed into fertilizers, and your spiritual remains would be fed to someone's soulbeast.
A rebellious youth might deem that to be a better outcome than a lifetime of slavery.
That's why, when a Drone disobeys, the law also punishes their entire family.
The parents and siblings get the maximum punishments, and the relatives separated by a generation, like grandparents, or a degree, like an uncle or aunt, receive a minimum penalty.
Occasionally, the death penalty of a Drone is executed through prolonged torture of the body and soul, just to set an example.
The System, which can even read one's thoughts and ideas, ensured that no real rebellion could ever rise among the cannon fodder civilizations. Dissidents were uprooted almost immediately.
"Heavens, even if I end up being a [ Drone ], please don't let that fucker Yosen awaken a class that could boss me around..."
With that sincere, but somewhat malicious prayer, Buzz followed his classmates into the [ CommunalAwakeningZone ], as scheduled that day.
This area was surrounded by fortified walls and electric fences, as well as a squad of soldiers, most of whom belonged to the [ Warrior ] class.
All of it was to protect the piece of alien technology at the central area—a Biocomputer that could connect to a living being's body and mind, capable of rewriting anything down to the smallest molecular level.
From outside, it didn't look like much. Just a five-meter-wide pitch-black sphere, its surface displaying rapidly processed commands and windows.
Their class of fifty students, led by some teachers and the school principal himself, gathered nearby as the officials working there came over to discuss the procedures.
While the students were nervously whispering to each other, Buzz heard Yosen's familiar voice say to a group, "Look! That's my Grandpa!"
Buzz's face darkened, noticing some uniformed men and women watching them through an elevated observatory in the distance.
Yosen's grandfather was the leading [ Farmer ] of their community. The distribution of food among twenty thousand civilian households was in that man's control.
It wasn't a surprise that he'd have the privilege to accompany the [ CountyCommander ] to watch the awakening ceremony where his grandson was participating.
Emboldened by that old man's presence, Yosen suddenly started chuckling as he surveyed the rest of his anxious classmates.
"Come on, guys. What's with those pathetic expressions? Cheer up! Even if some of you awaken shitty classes, my family won't let you down.
Once my father ascends to the [ CountyCommander ] rank, all of you can count on me to handle your troubles!"
Buzz stopped listening as a group of like-minded fellow classmates began to discuss their 'bright' futures under the control of Yosen's family.
Everyone was aware that regardless of which class Yosen awakened today, he had a comfortable future ahead, with multiple family members having such influential roles and excellent classes.
In fact, the fear of awakening something like the [ Drone ] Class was the driving force behind Yosen's friendly, talkative attitude today. Usually, he was much more overbearing.
His family's policy wasn't hard to guess. They wanted to control all the low-potential classes in the county, be it through force, friendship, or favors.
Yosen's Grandfather controlled the farmers of the county. Yosen's parents controlled tens of thousands of laborers through a group of welfare organisations. Yosen's older siblings had a wide network of graduates, both in the civil and military sectors.
Families like his were quite common these days, leading human civilization towards a feudal social structure once more. The larger, but weaker groups couldn't help but depend on smaller, but stronger groups.
Just like how more than half of the class flocked around Yosen despite his arrogant attitude.
A few, like Buzz, kept to themselves and watched the officials scurry around the Biocomputer, preparing to run the Awakening program.
Soon, names were called one by one.
Each student had to enter the 'belly' of the alien computer through a small opening, and undergo a very brief examination. The results were announced by a robotic voice outside.
"Drone! E grade talent!"
"Drone! F grade talent!"
"Drone! D grade talent!"
"Warrior! F grade talent!"
The teachers were used to the sight of unenthusiastic announcements and disheartened students being spat out of the sphere. The principal wasn't even paying attention until something interesting happened.
"Mage! C grade talent!"
A burst of applause and cheers enveloped the area as a short, but sturdily built girl staggered out of the black sphere, face pale.
A teacher hurried over to support her, but she pushed him away with a grimace.
Buzz knew that girl. She was one of his fellow 'troublemakers' in the school, an adept brawler who held the record of breaking the most teeth in one fight.
She had always lamented that she'd end up as a warrior, and once conscripted, there would be no one at home to take care of her sick father.
Her ending up as a Mage was unexpected. But a Mage couldn't avoid conscription either. In fact, it was even harder for Mages to return home after the mandatory service period.
Needless to say, she wasn't as happy as others about her awakened class.
Soon, it was Yosen's turn.
So far, he had been busy 'consoling' those who, according to him, had awakened shitty classes and useless talents, tearing into their distressed hearts gleefully.
With a confidence gained from successful gaslighting, Yosen strutted into the sphere. A moment later...
"Commander! C grade talent!"
"Fuck!"
Buzz's curse went unheard because of the loud cheers and furious applause of his classmates. Even the teachers were all smiles.
The principal was heard shouting, "Just as expected, that family simply has a knack for leading! Excellent genes!"
A newly awakened [ Commander ] would be given newly awakened [ Drones ], usually his peers in school, to train and gain experience together. If Buzz ended up a [ Drone ] like the rest of his family...
Suffice to say, he wouldn't live a good life. Yosen would take out years of frustration on him.
Sure enough, when Yosen returned to the gathering of the students, his hawkish gaze first fell on Buzz.
Flashing him the smallest hint of a cruel smile, Yosen looked away, replying to the congratulatory words of the other students with his usual arrogance.
"Hahaha! I told you guys, why are you even surprised?"
"I guess people like us are destined to lead. It's in our blood."
"My way of looking at our relationship has always been simple, guys. Don't forget your roles in society. You do your job well, and you'll earn my approval. I'm a fair man."
"And don't you dare to mess up my training data. I won't tolerate slackers and failures, or even mediocre Drones."
"You know my goal has always been lofty. Those of you whom I deem exceptional and cooperative.... I'll surely reward them beyond what they deserve!"
Buzz could sense that many of these comments were targeting him specifically.
The rest were meant to keep the other talents on their toes, make them feel that they were inferior; that they had to ingratiate themselves with Yosen for better prospects and a smooth life.
Eventually, it was his turn to enter the sphere.
When he began to walk towards the opening, an unusual quiet fell over the crowd behind. He could tell that everyone was interested in seeing whether he'd actually be able to break the generational pattern.
There was even a bet running somewhere in the school. But not even the most desperate gamblers had dared to bet in favor of a different class for Buzz.
The dark maw seemed to envelope his body and mind the moment he stepped inside. The world behind him disappeared, replaced by an empty void. The air, the noise, the sunlight, nothing remained.
Buzz couldn't see or even feel his body. He could only tell that he was conscious, capable of processing normal thoughts.
[ Analyzing genetics...]
[ Analyzing physique...]
[ Analyzing memories...]
[ Analyzing spiritual matrix...]
A series of prompts reverberated through his consciousness. The intrusion was a little shocking at first, but he calmed down, knowing that this was normal during the awakening process.
[ Assessing Potential...]
[ Assessing Class Compatibility...]
"Please not Drone, anything but Drone..." Buzz thought to himself desperately.
[ Determined Class: Drone ]
"Fuck You!"
Buzz roared with every bit of his energy.
It wasn't a physical roar, but his psychological disturbance must have been detected by the computer, because, the prompts suddenly paused for a moment.
'Uh-oh...'
Buzz suddenly regretted the outburst. This was a living, breathing computer with consciousness. If he ended up offending it...
Fortunately, as if the computer had decided not to take offense, more prompts showed up.
[ Determined Class: Drone ]
[ Randomizing Talent Selection from potential pathways...]
[ Selected Talent: Adaptability ]
Buzz was left devastated once more by his fated talent.
Adaptability was the most common talent among Drones!
How else could a Drone be exploited to the fullest extent?
[ Awakening initiated...]
Amidst his overwhelming sorrow, Buzz didn't even feel the modifications rewritten into his molecules, or the changes in his soul.
[ Final Overview ]
[ Class: Drone ]
[ Attributes: 1.25 (average of all attributes) ]
[ Talent: Adaptability ]
[ Talent Grade: SSS(Unique Title: MaximumAdaptability) ]
[ System Binding initiated... ]
"..."
Every thought in Buzz's head came to an abrupt halt.