“What, now?”
It looked like I’d managed to surprise him. He dropped all formality. “What’s the haste? Ae you in a hurry to get even with someone? Or is it about a girl?”
“It’s about me. Let’s get it on, then!”
With a surprised whistle, he glanced at his watch, paused for a couple of seconds and pointed towards the sports shop, “Go get your gear and get changed. Did you take a subscription? You have ten minutes — okay, fifteen — to get your ass in gear.”
“What should I buy?”
“A helmet, gloves, bandages, shoes, skipping ropes... you won’t need any of that now,” he said confidently. “You might never need them, in fact. Go get yourself some sneakers, a pair of shorts and a T-shirt. Time’s running.”
I barely made it. He took me to a small room about twenty by thirty feet where we started straight away. A pile of mats was heaped up in one corner; two more were occupied by punch bags.
The ten-minute warmup completely did me in.
“I told you,” the coach snickered. “And we haven’t even started yet.”
By the end of the training session my jaw was aching. My arms were dropping off. And all that I’d done was learn to keep my stance and practice left-right combinations. I liked the fact that instead of just ordering me around, my coach had taken the time to explain things to me, peppering them with funny and enlightening stories from his rich sporting past.
The session ended with countless exhausting pushups on my fists and some twists from the waist which made me feel like throwing up. Licking my grazed knuckles, I listened to all the instructions that he was trying to drum into my head,
“Start your morning with a proper workout, not just a wake-up. I want to see you sweat. Do you run? That’s good. No elevators. You should take stairs everywhere. No smoking. No overeating. Lots of sleep. I want you to drink a lot of water, preferably a glass every hour. Buy yourself a rope and do some skipping every time you reach for the TV remote or your telephone. Always look into the eyes of those you’re talking to. You’ll use that in the ring. Absolutely no drinking! And then you might have an almost negligible chance of getting somewhere. Got it?”
“Yes, sir!”
“Good lad. Go get showered. Come back the same time the day after tomorrow.”
“Can I come tomorrow, please?”
“No way,” he snapped. “You won’t have enough time to recuperate.”
“I will!”
“I’ve seen stubborn guys like you,” he said sarcastically. “None of them lasted more than a month. But it’s up to you. It’ your money. In that case, I’ll be waiting for you tomorrow at 8 a.m. If you’re even one minute late, you don’t need to come.”
“Affirmative! See you tomorrow!”
I left the gym feeling excited. I'd just started leveling a very important development branch; I’d enjoyed the training; I’d liked my new coach, and...
And I’d also got a new system message,
Your Stamina has improved!
+1 to Stamina
Current Stamina: 6
You’ve received 1000 pt. XP for successfully leveling up a main characteristic!
Level 6! It was double the level I’d had three weeks ago! Of course this was only a piece of alien software; of course it was due to its booster which had accelerated my development threefold — but what it did mean was that I could have done the same on my own without any alien help and it would have only taken me two months.
I bade my goodbye to the coach but didn’t go to the shower. They had this wonderful air-conditioned treadmill room at my disposal. Why not use it to bring my Running level up?
No sooner said than done. Earlier that morning in the gym, I’d only fallen a fraction short of my goal, and I fully intended to make up for it now.
After eight minutes of running, I received a new message,
Congratulations! You’ve received a new skill level!
Skill name: Running
Current level: 2
XP received: 500
Finally! This had proved the hardest skill to level up. How many miles had I clocked up on my internal meter! How much sweat and pain in my bursting lungs! How much gunk had I brought up! I’d gotten the impression that the leveling up of this particular skill had been cursed as if there’d been some nasty debuff cast on me. A bit like in Fallout where a perk can give you an advantage while aggravating something equally important just to balance it out.
When I got back home, Alik was already busy in the kitchen.
“I’ve walked your mutt,” he informed me, casting angry glances at Richie. “I had to run around the block after him. He chased after some bitch and I only just managed to catch him.”
“Thanks! What’re you making?”
“Just some stew. I bought some meat in the shop. Not much, just five pounds or so.”
“How much? You think you can eat all that?”
“Hey, you don’t know me. I love a good stew,” he said, sniffing the aroma in the kitchen. “Everything all right?”
“Yeah. I can barely stand on my feet. Call me when it’s ready, I need to pack up. I’m moving out tomorrow. Oh, and would you please feed the cat?”
“No problem. D’you have any onions?”
“Yeah, in the grocery shop.”
“I got it. I won’t be a moment,” he said, stirring the pot.
I looked at an empty packet of pepper on the table. He didn’t like his food bland, that’s for sure.
I spent the rest of the evening packing, eating, talking to my homeless roommate and reading Robert Cialdini’s Psychology of Persuasion.
I kept reading until I finally achieved my reading goal for today:
Your Intellect has improved!
+1 to Intellect
Current Intellect: 19
You’ve received 1000 pt. XP for successfully leveling up a main characteristic!
I went to bed early because all of my reserves — bodily and spiritual as well as willpower — had been absolutely drained.
When I was already lying in bed, I remembered the Major’s request and opened the Wanted Criminals page of our local police site.
It only listed nine names. Murderers, terrorists, drugs and arms dealers, rapists... Nobody had made me a judge but it was in my powers to bring them to justice.
I immediately initiated a search which produced zero results.
The program kindly informed me that I had 1 KIDD point missing. I had their pictures and names, as well as dates and places of birth. I needed another piece of data. And to get it, I needed to either go through the Major completely exposing myself to him, or search for it myself hoping that the criminals were on social media.
I just wasn’t up to it at the moment. My hand holding the phone fell listlessly onto the bed. I flaked out.
As I awoke the next morning, my internal clock was nearing 6 a.m. I felt totally broken. The physical exhaustion I could understand: after all, I’d had two workouts the night before, weightlifting as well as the boxing session. But I also felt strangely apathetic. I had absolutely no desire to get up. I didn’t even feel capable of walking the dog — or do anything at all, come to think of it.
I stayed in bed and tried to go back to sleep but I couldn’t. I just didn’t want to get up, as simple as that.
I opened my interface hoping that the sight of my stats might cheer me up a little.
Philip “Phil” Panfilov
Age: 32
Current status: sales rep
Social status level: 10
Classes: Book Reader and Empath. Level: 7
Married
Wife: Yannina “Yanna” Orlova
Children: none
Main Characteristics:
Strength: 8
Agility: 6
Intellect: 19
Stamina: 6
Perception: 8
Charisma: 14
Luck: 10
Secondary Characteristics:
; Vitality: 89%
Satisfaction: 78%
Vigor: 61%
Metabolism: 72%
My low Vigor and Metabolism could be explained by the fact that I’d just woken up. Ditto for Satisfaction: I was hungry and thirsty, not to even mention the fact that I’d received no quest rewards for quite a while. As for Vitality, it had grown 20% over the last three weeks. Just think it used to be 69%!
So everything seemed to be fine. What was wrong with me, then?
I opened my profile and began scrolling through it.
Found it.
I couldn’t have noticed it earlier because the list was too long to have fitted into my mental view in its entirety.
Self-Confidence: 59%
Self-Control: 70%
Spirit: 21%
Mood: 34%
Why? I’d just had a good night’s sleep. Why was my mood so low?
I summoned Martha and asked her.
“Good morning to you too,” she said, sounding slightly offended.
“Are you being funny?”
“I’m not. Your Nicotine Withdrawal debuff is about to expire. The program is mirroring the real-life consequences of quitting smoking. That requires a lot of energy so I’d better switch off.”
She disappeared.
“I see. Thanks,” I said into empty space, unable to take my eyes off a faded icon of the Nicotine Withdrawal debuff. It was flashing with the tiny little numbers of a countdown.
Nicotine Withdrawal
Duration: 14 days
Your body is deprived of nicotine!
Nicotine takes part in your body’s metabolism. -5% to Metabolism
Warning! High probability of a spontaneous Enrage!
Warning! Your aggro radius has increased!
-3% to Satisfaction every 12 hours
5... 4... 3... 2... 1...
Bang!
Bang!
Bang!
The Nicotine Withdrawal debuff has expired!
+30% to Satisfaction
Happiness I
Your Satisfaction levels have exceeded 100%
+50% to Vigor
+1 to all main characteristics
Duration: as long as Satisfaction levels exceed 100%
Your Perception has improved!
+1 to Perception
Current Perception: 9
You’ve received 1000 pt. XP for successfully leveling up a main characteristic!
Your Stamina has improved!
+1 to Stamina
Current Stamina: 7
You’ve received 1000 pt. XP for successfully leveling up a main characteristic!
The relief at the debuff’s expiry felt as refreshing as a cold shower after a hot sauna. A tidal wave of relief flooded over me. It was as if I’d finally let go of a heavy boulder which I’d been lugging around all this time.
I had a momentary anticipation that something important would happen over the next two or three days, something that would bring a close to my past life and open up a new phase.
Also, I really wanted to see Vicky. As soon as I cleared up a few chores — like moving, getting divorced and quitting my job — I’d have to speak to her straight away.
It must be Happiness working its magic.
Chapter Thirty. Drop Like a Stone, Rise Like a Phoenix
“Don't ever get angry at a man for stating the truth.”
Ayn Rand, Atlas Shrugged
AT 8 A.M., I had my boxing session. I needed to get my butt in gear. I scooped up all the workout clothes from the dryer and shoved them in a sports bag, adding a pair of gym shoes I’d bought last night at my new fitness center.
Then I dressed in my business clothes as I wouldn’t have the time to go back home and change.
I crept into the kitchen trying not to awaken Alik. I made myself some coffee, fed the critters, added a Caffeine buff bonus to my Vigor, then took Rich for a walk.
When we came back home, I gave him a long hug. Richie laid his head on my shoulder and waited patiently for me to let go of him. Then I left.
At 8 a.m., I was already at the gym. The coach seemed a bit surprised by my arrival. He yawned and we started training. He kept both of us awake with his jokes and snappy commands.
Now I was convinced that on top of accelerating my development, the leveling booster also improved recovery. That could be the only explanation why today’s session had felt even easier than yesterday’s. It was as if I hadn’t spent another hour pumping iron followed by a running practice and a murderous boxing session with my martial-arts champion coach. To train every day had been the right decision, after all.
As I was doing a series of pushups to finalize my training for the day, I received a new system message,
New unblocked skill available: Boxing
Current skill level: 1
XP received: 200 (for learning the skill)
Then I received another confirmation of the fact that all skills were interconnected,
Congratulations! You’ve received a new skill level!
Skill name: Hand-to-Hand Fighting
Current level: 2
XP received: 500
That made sense. Still, as I leveled up, the gap between skills might grow resulting in the weakening of the connectivity between them.
After the gym, I started doing my rounds, visiting more clients from my list. Prior to every meeting, I checked the map to make sure that the persons I needed to see were available. Soon after the second meeting, I received a new level in Vending, and after the third one, in Communication Skills. Those two skills seemed to be interconnected too because both seemed to require establishing friendly contact with potential buyers. Now I had level 6 in both which qualified them as professional.
Soon after midday, just as I graced the doorstep of my third client, I received a phone call from Svetlana Messerschmitt, Richie’s fourteen-year-old owner.
“Hello? Is that Phil? This is Sveta. How are things?”
“Hi Sveta! Are you back already?”
“We’ve just arrived now. We’re at the passport control in the airport. What time can I come and pick Richie up?”
“How about four p.m.?” I asked, trying to work out what time I might have to see the removal guys and go to my new apartment.
“Absolutely! Can I have your address, then?”
The meeting with my third client wasn’t a success. No matter how hard I tried, their director refused to see me point blank. His secretary insisted he was “out on business”. My map told me otherwise. I did my best to convince her but just couldn’t get past that unyielding woman who must have followed her boss’ instructions to the letter. If he didn’t want to see someone, he expected her to fall on her sword rather than let someone through.
By lunchtime, I was ravenous. It wasn’t just the training but also the fact that I’d skipped breakfast. I decided to treat myself to a quick set menu in a nearby restaurant. One portion wasn’t enough for me; I ordered another one, getting the feeling I was stocking up on fuel. My Spirit, Satisfaction and Vigor all began to restore, building me a new body molecule by molecule as they grew new muscle tissue, tendons and ligaments.
Back in the office, I didn’t see any of my friends so I went straight to Pavel and reported to him the results of my meetings from the last two days. I made a special point of describing the meeting with the guy who’d asked me for a cut of our price. I derived great satisfaction from the cringe on his face.
“Screw them,” he said. “As for yesterday’s other clients — the butcher and the supermarket chain — we’ve already signed the contracts. The first deliveries will be on their way tomorrow.”
“Excellent. That’s all, then,” I glanced at the watch. It was time for me to go. Sveta would arrive any moment. “I need to be on my way. I’m moving apartment today.”
He nodded his understanding. “That’s not a problem. A man’s got to do what a man’s got to do.”
I shoved my chair aside and climbed from behind the d
esk.
Without looking at me, he continued, “Shit, I’m already toying with the idea of firing everyone and giving you their salaries.”
“Pavel, please...”
“I’m only joking,” he said. “Or maybe not. Come on, piss off.”
On my way home I called Kira to tell her the news and invite her to my housewarming.
“Phily,” she said sternly, “You really should get a decree nisi first, then start partying. Or have you changed your mind? Are you two back in your love nest already?”
“I don’t think I love her. I thought I did when I was in fact only jealous. But that wasn’t love. It was a habit, more of an attachment really. Or my wounded pride, maybe. Whatever, but it certainly wasn’t love.”
Kira pricked up her ears. “Jealous? Of whom? Did she give you a reason?”
“I didn’t need it. And when I did get it... I already told you that she’d found someone when she’d left me. When I had a reason to be jealous, I didn’t feel like it. Can you imagine? I’d even imagined all sorts of adult scenes in my mind but nothing stirred inside me.”
She sighed. “It’s normal. It’s very often that people confuse love with other things. Are you angry with her?” she asked, arriving at an unexpected conclusion.
“Oh no! Everything was all right with her, as you well know. It was my fault, I have nothing more to say about it. What do you think?”
That was a pretty self-explanatory question. Still, she replied,
“It wasn’t only your fault. At last I don’t think so. It takes two to tango. When a couple splits up, the fault lies with both even though one can be less guilty than the other. Don’t even argue with me. You know very well how much hassle I had with my own man. But did I do something to help him change? I argued with him, I moaned and bitched, I refused to talk to him, I tried to mold him after my own taste while not realizing you can’t change anyone by force. You need another approach.”
Her confession surprised me. “What kind of approach do you mean?”
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