Planet Hero- Civilian

by M. A. Carlson

“Okay, and how do I do that?” I asked. While I had no idea what I would do with Nanos, I was intrigued by the concept. Plus, I had superpowers. There was no way I wasn’t going to learn to control my ability, no matter how long or short my stay in this world was.

  Light smiled. “How about I teach you?”

  “Sure,” I said.

  Light led me over to a grassy area and told me to have a seat before sitting down across from me.

  “Close your eyes,” Light instructed.

  I wasn’t sure what closing my eyes was going to do but I humored him.

  “Now, send your focus inward,” Light said.

  “You’ve got to be kidding me,” I groaned, opening my eyes to stare at him incredulously.

  “What?” Light asked, meeting my gaze unflinchingly.

  “Really? Send my focus inward? Is this a bad kung-fu movie?” I asked, wondering once again if I wasn’t hallucinating.

  “Hmm, I’m not sure I understand,” Light said, looking honestly confused at me.

  “You sound . . . silly saying it like that,” I said.

  “Oh, do your heroes not speak this way?” Light asked.

  “No,” I said. “And we don’t have heroes, not like you do here anyway. We don’t have powers, we don’t fly without an airplane, we are not able to move faster than a speeding bullet, and we do not shoot lasers out of our eyes.”

  “I apologize. We have learned over the years, that citizens feel . . . reassured and even hopeful when they hear heroes speak this way. I thought that as you are more like a citizen that this would put you at ease,” Light explained.

  “Well don’t, just . . . be direct. Scientific if you can manage it,” I said.

  Light frowned. “Scientific, huh? I’ll try. Okay, close your eyes again, and before you complain, it should help you block out distractions. I would also have you plug your ears, but seeing as you need to hear me, we can skip that for now.”

  I nodded, only slightly reluctantly. I closed my eyes again.

  “Now, within your body there is already a very small tamed Nano colony. It exists within your Bio-Energy Converter,” Light said.

  “Which is where?” I asked.

  In response, I felt a hand pat my stomach, just above my navel and below my diaphragm. Then Light explained, “It is in the center of your intestines and connects to all your internal organs, lungs, heart, kidney, liver, pancreas, and so on. If you concentrate on it, you should feel something. I’ve heard some people describe it as a burning feeling, others as a cool feeling, for me it felt like the sun on a bright spring day.”

  I cocked open an eye to look at him. At least he had the good sense to look slightly embarrassed.

  Light shook away his brief embarrassment and with a stern look, he said, “Focus.”

  I suppressed a smirk and resumed the mental exercise. I tried to feel for that area of my stomach.

  Light tried to coach me along, saying, “It can help to think about your ability, what your ability does.”

  That was great help. Time and Space. What exactly was Time and Space supposed to feel like? Time . . . this was taking too long. Space . . . I wonder what space is really like. Is it all . . . floaty and out of control? Is it really cold? Or is space like that closet at home that you just can’t stuff anymore junk into? And then I felt a kind of emptiness. Or was that just hunger. No . . . no, definitely an emptiness. And it had a kind of pulse, fast then slow then fast again. Was that time?

  “Do you feel it?” Light asked.

  “I think so,” I answered. Trying to puzzle out what this was exactly.

  “Good, focus on it and feel it. Just keep feeling it. Focus on how yours feels,” Light instructed.

  “For how long?” I asked.

  “Until you can differentiate between it and the wild stuff around it,” Light answered.

  Wild stuff around it? What was that supposed to mean? I didn’t feel anything around it. I asked for clarification, “So, if I keep feeling . . . whatever this is, I will eventually feel something else around it?”

  “Correct,” Light replied.

  I frowned. This felt so strange. That said, I never would have made it through medical school if I didn’t learn to focus single-mindedly on a task, like studying anatomy. So I sat there, feeling the pulsing emptiness in my gut. Eventually, I started to wonder if I really was just hungry when I felt something . . . off. It was like something with a different rhythm rubbed against mine for an instant and then it was gone.

  I must have perked up because Light seemed to have noticed. “Starting to feel it?”

  “Should it feel like something with a different rhythm rubbing against mine?” I asked.

  “For you, that might be the case. It’s different for everyone,” Light replied. “For now, just keep focusing on it. Eventually, you’ll be able to feel those . . . odd rhythms more easily.”

  He wasn’t kidding. After that first bump, I felt another, then two at once, then more. It wasn’t overwhelming and there didn’t seem to be a lot of them, or maybe there was, and I just couldn’t feel them yet. Either way, I reached a point where I was feeling them regularly and not with increasing frequency. So, I asked, “I think I’ve got the feeling, what’s next?”

  “Okay, so you know your rhythm, next time you feel one of those odd rhythms, try to pull it into your rhythm or try to send your rhythm into it. You might need to try a few different things to find what works for you,” Light explained.

  The next odd rhythm I felt was gone too fast to try anything as were the next fifteen. Eventually, I started trying to anticipate when the next odd rhythm would strike. When it did, I tried to grab on to it and it stopped. I was so surprised it worked that I let it go. I groaned in frustration but tried again. It took a few minutes to grab another and hold it. This time, I tried to push my rhythm on to it only for my rhythm to do nothing except to push it away, letting it get loose again. The next one I grabbed, I tried to pull into my rhythm only for it to bounce off and flitter away. The next attempt I tried to surround it but that did nothing. Ah, how I love the scientific process, hypothesis and experiment. I wished I had a notepad to take notes on my various experiments. Finally, after exhausting everything I could think of doing to it with my rhythm directly, I tried to just change the rhythm, and it worked. It took time, first to get it to feel like empty space. Then to add in the fast and slow pulsing of time. Eventually, the odd rhythm was gone and only my own existed. It was effortless to then pull that matching rhythm into my body.

  “It worked,” I said.

  “Nicely done. Make sure you check your ‘Status’ to confirm. Wouldn’t want you to think you’re cultivating only to find out you really haven’t been,” Light said.

  Davis Malory

  Aliases: N/A

  Occupation: N/A

  Alignment: Neutral

  Milestone: 1st

  Nano: 1/1,000

  Body

  Athleticism: 1

  - Strength: Average

  - Agility: Above Average

  - Accuracy: Above Average

  - Speed: Average

  - Stamina: Average

  Resistance: 1

  - Physical Resistance: Average

  - Energy Resistance: Above Average

  - Mental Resistance: Above Average

  Recovery: 1

  - Physical Injury: Average

  - Nano Energy: Average

  Ability

  Power: 1

  - Time: Weak

  - Space: Weak

  Control: 1

  - Time: Weak

  - Space: Weak

  “Hey, it says I have 1/1,000 Nano now,” I said excitedly.

  “Good, you just need to do that 999 more times to reach your 2nd Milestone,” Light said with a laugh. “Then you’ll be attributed 2 enhancements to work on improving either your Body or Ability.”

  “No problem,” I said sarcastically.

  “But you might want to get something to eat first, we’v
e been out here for almost six hours,” Light said.

  “Six hours?” I asked in disbelief. Six hours to gain one point of Nano. Did it really take me six hours to convert just one wild Nano? If it really took six hours then it would take me about 250 days if I did nothing but cultivate, not even counting any time for sleep and other necessities.

  “Don’t worry, that was just the first step,” Light said, seeing the look I was now giving him. “Granted, this is something we start teaching children usually, but as an adult, you should be able to pick it up much faster.”

  “Oh, great,” I said. If this was something taught to children, I could see why a year or more to gain a single Milestone would be acceptable.

  “Look, let’s go eat and then I can give you some tips that will help,” Light promised, guiding me back inside the building.

  6

  I was surprised by how much I ate. I didn’t even notice I was hungry until I smelled food and my stomach gave an embarrassingly loud rumble. After eating, Light led me through the building and back out to the atrium for more learning.

  “Okay, so you learned how to tame wild Nanos, or at least one Nano,” Light started. “The trick is to learn how to tame more than one at a time. It will significantly increase the speed at which you can cultivate Nanos and build up to the 2nd Milestone.”

  “That’s good, I was afraid it was going to take me a year to build up that much,” I said, feeling relieved. “So, how do I get started?”

  “Just like last time, close your eyes and focus on feeling the wild Nanos,” Light instructed.

  I fought against my desire to sigh and closed my eyes. It was much faster this time, feeling my Bioenergy Converter and the wild Nanos that ran rampant all around me.

  Light continued, “Now, once you feel them and feel like you’re ready, begin. As you work on the first, try to stay open to more Nanos coming within your sphere of influence. Once you are comfortable doing both actions at once, start adding the new Nanos to your cultivation process.”

  Just like last time, I grabbed hold of one of the wild Nanos. Before I even started trying to change its rhythm, another came close and I grabbed it as well. Holding two was as easy as holding one. Then I added a third and a fourth. After I had a hold of forty-four wild Nanos, it seemed like no others were coming closer to me, or I just couldn’t sense them.

  So, I started coaxing the Nanos I was holding to match the rhythm of my own Nano colony. Having experienced this once before, I felt like I had a better handle on the process, which in turn made it feel like it went a lot faster this time. However, the dark skies above me suggested that was not the case. Still, 45/1,000.

  “Better this time?” Light asked, seeing my eyes open.

  “I think so, but how long did that take?” I asked.

  “Almost 9 hours,” Light replied.

  “Did I do something wrong?” I asked, concerned by the increased time it took.

  Light shook his head, “No, the more Nanos you try to cultivate, the naturally longer it is going to take. How many did you manage to tame, fifteen, twenty?”

  “Forty-four,” I answered, hoping that was really good. If he only guessed fifteen to twenty, there was a chance I did exceptionally well.

  “Hey, that’s pretty good for your second cultivation attempt,” Light congratulated me. “Tomorrow, you’ll want to try to double that number.”

  “Is that even possible?” I asked. “It felt like after I had the forty-four, I couldn’t sense any more Nanos around me.”

  “Very possible,” Light said. “As you increase your Nano cultivation, the more acutely you will sense the wild Nanos. You’ll see next time you cultivate. For now, you’ve done a lot today, you should get some rest. We can start again early tomorrow.”

  I could only nod.

  A few days passed like this. Cultivation after breakfast, cultivation after lunch, and cultivation after dinner. Cultivating was the only thing that was keeping me from going mad with worry over going home . . . of worrying over my sister. So, just like in medical school, I threw myself into the work. And just like Light said, with each successive cultivation, I was able to draw in more and more Nanos until one day, I heard a chime and a new message appeared in front of my face.

  Congratulations! You’ve reached the 2nd Milestone. The Nanos have accumulated within your body to a point in which it is now possible to enhance your Nano Evolved Body or Abilities. Be intelligent with your decisions as all choices are final.

  You may now open your Status and apply two points of enhancement.

  I couldn’t help but grin a little.

  “What’s with the grin?” Light asked.

  “I just reached the 2nd Milestone,” I answered proudly. “Did I set a new record?”

  “Not even close,” Light answered with a laugh. “Still, not bad. Do you know what you want to enhance?”

  “My abilities of course,” I answered. I had the chance to build up superpowers. Who wouldn’t want to make their superpowers stronger? Then again, I had yet to use my powers so there was still the possibility that my superpower was lame. I mean, I hoped it was going to be awesome, but there was always a chance it wouldn’t be.

  Light smiled and nodded. “That is usually where we have children start, ideally we want them to get their ability scores up to Weak before we start teaching them how to use them.”

  “Weak? But I started at Weak, I thought that was bad,” I said.

  “Well, that is a surprise,” Light said. “I wasn’t given the results of your scan, so I had no idea. Anyway, most children start at Zero or Very Weak. Zero means they have an ability but absolutely no control or power in the ability. Children with a Zero don’t usually become heroes. The gap between them and other children is just too large. Not that there aren’t the occasional outliers. Anyway, starting at Weak is actually really good.”

  I nodded. That was interesting to hear. But I didn’t completely understand why it was such a hurdle to overcome.

  Light grunted, “You know, I don’t think I ever asked you what your ability is?”

  “Oh, I have Time and Space,” I answered.

  Light tilted his head. “I don’t think I’ve heard of Time and Space as an ability before. Space yes, Time . . . I’m not sure about Time. Anyway, I’ve never heard of that combination. I wonder how that is going to work.”

  “Uh, no, I mean I have Time as an ability and Space as a second ability,” I corrected.

  “Ooh, dual abilities, those are rare. And the both of them started at Weak?” Light asked excitedly. “And Time? I’ve never heard of Time. Then again, I don’t know everything.”

  “Yeah,” I replied.

  “I’m a little jealous, I only have Light as an ability,” Light lamented. “Still, my Light will power up quite quickly compared to your dual abilities. That said, you will have a lot more versatility in what you can do. For now, if you intend to improve your abilities, I would choose one ability to enhance first. Get one ability to Below Average before you work on the other. Also, I would split your points between control and power, raise them up equally until you know what you can do with your ability. Then you can decide if power or control benefits you more. You might end up raising both up equally forever.”

  “What about your Light ability then? How did you raise it up?” I asked, before realizing it might have been rude to ask something like that. “Sorry, is it rude to ask?”

  “Culturally, yes. People usually won’t discuss how they develop their Body and Ability, especially not heroes. We tend to covet our development plans, especially when villains might use that information to kill us. But I know your situation, so I don’t mind helping you out,” Light said with a friendly smile. “I raised both control and power to Average by my 20th Milestone. Then I was able to really evaluate how to best progress my ability. As a result, I boosted my power to Good and now, at my 38th Milestone, I’m just starting on my way to Very Good.”

  “Wait, you’re a 38th Milesto
ne? Then you’ve gained what, 74 enhancement points?” I asked, confused as to why his power was only at Good.

  “That’s right,” Light answered with a friendly nod.

  I hoped he’d volunteer an explanation. When none was forthcoming, I asked, “Why are you only Good if you have had that many enhancement points? Or did you put all your enhancements into your Body?”

  Light didn’t hesitate to answer my question. “My Body is Average across the board. I suppose I should explain how the enhancement points work. From Zero to Very Weak, from Very Weak to Weak, and from Weak to Below Average requires five enhancement points each. From Below Average to Average, from Average to Above Average requires ten enhancement points each. From Above Average to Below Good to Good and from Good to Above Good requires twenty-five enhancement points each. Above Good to Below Excellent requires fifty points. From Below Excellent to Excellent to Above Excellent also requires fifty points each. And from Above Excellent to Master requires five-hundred points. I’ve never heard of anyone that has reached Master level, but New Haven is a small city.”

  That actually explained a lot. It also made me sigh. It would need four more Milestones to raise just one of my abilities to Below Average in both Power and Control. Ten Milestones past that to get to Average. And finally, another fifteen Milestones to get my other ability to Average.

  “Anyway, once I get my power to Excellent, I’ll be investing in my Body, probably start by balancing them at Average. After that, I’ll be working on bringing my Recovery of Nano Energy and Stamina up to Good,” Light continued, his eyes now focused on the space in front of him. I guessed he was looking at his Status.

  “What do resistances usually start at?” I asked. If Light was just now planning on raising his Resistances to Average, then were mine abnormally high?