Downfall And Rise

by Nathan Thompson

  “The second one,” Stell groaned. “The first one is just more evidence that your planet has too many dirt-bags in it.”

  I shrugged.

  “Anyway, can I spend three skill points to raise each of my three magics, and just hold on to the fourth for now? Since I don't have a favorite weapon style yet or anything?”

  “Sure,” Stell replied. “But you can't increase a skill too much beyond your Risen level. Not with the points you get from Rising, anyway.”

  “Good to know,” I replied. “Alright, let's go...”

  Assigning the points turned out to be intuitive. I just willed it and there they went. It was another intense experience. It felt like I had compressed a whole bunch of exercise sessions and classes all into a span of about fifteen minutes.

  I was starting to realize that not everyone could handle Rising. Well, I mean they could if they wanted to. But the experience was so strenuous that it was hard to want to do it again. And it got harder each time, for each component of each Rise. That included the surge from beginning the process, followed by the increasing my abilities, and ending with the strain of absorbing new knowledge and skills. But the euphoria afterwards was unbelievable. Much like working out, I guess. For some people, the pain and effort of exercise makes it difficult. But others live off of getting that second wind and the improvements to their body, and so they use that to push through the pain.

  I hope I would wind up in the second group, at least when it came to being a Challenger.

  I put three points each into Strength and Dexterity. Then I put five points into Constitution, and the last point into Charisma, giving me a score of 20 in every ability. Then I put three of my skill points into each Ideal-related magic skill. I looked at my new score afterwards:

  Wes Malcolm

  Race: Human. Origin: Earth (Challenger)

  Growth Level: Second Rise (Spark)

  Path: Unknown

  Saga: Unknown

  Profession: Unknown

  Vital Pool: 400 points

  Stamina Pool: 400 points.

  Mana Pool: 310 points

  Strength: 20

  Dexterity: 20

  Constitution: 20

  Intelligence: 21

  Wisdom: 26

  Charisma: 20

  Speed: 23

  Deftness: 20

  Wits: 26

  Will: 29

  Rise Points Remaining: 0 (can increase the six primary traits at a 1:1 ratio, or the four secondary traits at a 1:2 ratio.

  Insight into the Following Ideals

  Earth: lvl 2

  Air: lvl 2

  Lightning: lvl 2

  Skill List truncated

  Spell list truncated

  1 skill point available.

  Signature Spells have improved since last viewing.

  I blinked after reading everything.

  “How do you feel?” Stell asked tentatively.

  “Ready,” I replied. “Ready to take one good look and stop doubting. Stell,” I turned to face her. “If this works, then when I come back I'm going to apologize for all the doubting, yelling and moodiness. And I'm going to thank you for the incredible opportunity you've given me and fight wholeheartedly for your people and their dreams. Give my regards to Guineve and Breena. And Merada as well. Furthermore, please make sure Merada knows she doesn't have to sleep with me as a reward for helping her with that Challenge. I don't want people to start feeling obligated to do that.”

  “Wait,” Stell said as her eyes widened. “What?”

  “I think I'm about to get pulled back,” I said quickly. “Bye Stell!”

  “No wait,” she protested. “What do you mean she-”

  But I had been right. The mists suddenly shifted around me.

  I woke up to utter agony. My pain was screaming along every nerve, throwing an absolute fit with the slightest movement.

  You're wasting time! It shouted. How could you even fall asleep during the day! Everything's ruined now! Just lie back down!

  That was right, I realized. I had taken a nap during the day. I opened my eyes to look around the room. Just doing that made my pain explode again.

  You screwed up! It screamed. You slept wrong and screwed up! Just like you always do! Just stop moving!

  I wanted to scream myself, it was so bad, but I was too frightened to risk moving my throat muscles.

  You screwed up! My pain kept screaming. Everything's ruined because you screwed up! Just lie back down and give up!

  For a second my vision blurred, almost to a red color. My waking pain had never been this severe, I remembered. But I wondered what could be the cause of it. Just thinking that seemed to make my nerve endings scream at me.

  Stop thinking! My pain shouted. You always think too much! You always ruin things! You always have to meddle!

  What? I thought. I personified my pain and doubts out of habit, but this was different. I started to try and move, to fight through it and think, to focus.

  Wrong! Something shouted along my nerves. Wrong! Wrong-wrong-wrong! Wrong-bad! Stop betraying your body! Stop betraying! Stop betraying!

  For a brief second, I thought I was finally going full-on crazy. Then I remembered I was done thinking that.

  Focus, I told myself. Pick something and concentrate on it.

  No! My pain shouted as I stared at an old movie poster on my wall. Stop betraying! Stop betraying! Stop betra-

  It suddenly diminished.

  I felt like I was exercising mental muscles I just recently gained. The screaming in my nerves settled down to a dull murmur, a complete reversal of every morning in the last two years I had before now. In a matter of a dozen or so seconds, my waking pain had gone from the most intense I had ever experienced to the most controllable I had in years. I shifted, grabbing my bedside table for support, and heaved my body to a sitting position.

  My head swam briefly, but only briefly. The dizziness was gone almost instantly, not even lingering a little, like it used to. Deciding to risk it, using just the table for support, I pulled myself to my feet without my cane.

  My head swam again. I felt my balance sway for a few moments. Then it settled down, to where it just felt like I was standing on a boat.

  I laughed, and it barely hurt. I took a step forward, keeping my hand on the table, and my balance swayed again. Then it settled down. I'd still need my cane to walk, just to be safe. But I wasn't guaranteed to fall over instantly if I had one hand free. At least not for the first few steps.

  Remembering my last visit to Avalon, I hurriedly tried to pull up my shirt with one hand. It was extremely difficult, which was also encouraging. Before it would have been impossible.

  In less than five minutes, I had my chest bare. I reached for my nearby phone and activated the camera function, setting it so that I could see myself.

  Muscle definition I did not have yesterday, or even this morning, was there now.

  A laugh tore out of my throat, shaking my head a little and causing more pain. I didn't care. I just kept laughing, and felt myself sway all over the place. Every second I didn't fall just made me laugh harder. I felt tears start to fall down my face.

  I had done it.

  I had proved my pain wrong, my fears wrong, my community wrong.

  I had proven them all wrong.

  Whatever happened next, whatever setback they tried to come up for me, it didn't matter.

  Because I wasn't going crazy. I was part of something incredible, something beyond my wildest dreams. And the best part was, it wasn't some kind of escapist fantasy.

  Because it enabled me to come back here, and win.

  Slowly but surely, I'd get my body back.

  Then I'd find a way into college, find a way to be something, anything again. Maybe they'd let me retake the test and I could finally pass, maybe not. I didn't care. I'd just find another way in, take out a loan or something. Or I'd find a way to get a job. If I kept getting better I could finally learn how to drive a car. Then I c
ould go anywhere. Maybe I'd be able to achieve my dream of engineering cities. Or maybe not, maybe there was something else out there that I'd enjoy just as much. But I was the one that got to make that choice now. Not my sickness, not my psychologist, not my enemies.

  I decided to make one more dare. Well, two, technically. First, I let go of the table I was holding onto.

  I swayed for a few seconds, but as long as I didn't make any sudden moves, I could maintain my balance. That was a success. Before it usually took me pressing against something with at least one hand, or sitting down, to not be in danger of falling. Now?

  Ten seconds. Fifteen seconds. Thirty seconds. I might even be able to do this all day.

  Time to take another risk.

  I lifted one leg up, without holding onto anything, and took a step forward.

  It was hard. Everything felt like it was trying to turn both sideways and upside down. I wanted so badly to reach out and grab the nearby table that I hoped was still on my right. But I didn't. I kept enduring the swimming sensation and planted my foot firmly in front of the other. I almost leaned too far forward and fell right then and there. But again, I didn't. I needed to stand still for about a minute before everything stopped spinning. Then, taking a breath, I tried it again.

  The same thing happened. My head swam, and I almost pitched to far forward. But I still made it, and after a wait, I found I was able to stand on my own.

  Then I got really excited, and I finally lost my balance. But I grabbed the desk before I fell on the floor.

  I laughed. I had lost maybe years of progress after that jerk had hit me in the back of the head. And I still hadn't recovered to the state I was at the start of test day, after I had beaten that boss back in Heroes Unbound. But this was definitely the biggest leap in progress I had ever made in a single day- scratch that, because it hasn't even been a whole day, just a midday nap. I started laughing again, so hard my head shook, and it hurt, but I didn't care. I heard Mom call out from the other room, asking if I was okay, if I had fallen again. I couldn't stop laughing long enough to answer her.

  That got me a knock on my door, and I heard her holler for my sister. I was finally able to shout out that I was fine. I'd tell them later. And I'd probably ask them to keep it a secret too, so that some asshole didn't show up to ruin my progress again. I wanted to be ready for when they tried again. And I knew they would. But it didn't matter.

  My enemies had spent all that effort, all that planning and money, just to try and keep me from taking two steps forward.

  They failed.

  Internal scans complete. Updated info available. Please review recent report

  New Log of Subject Anonymous, Triple-Flagged Entry.

  As everyone has already noticed, subject has begun to break Containment on his own, despite Containment's autonomous escalation. We have confirmation that Containment is displaying an increasing degree of autonomy as subject continues to overcome protocol. However, projections still indicate that Containment will not break its own established parameters until long after subject has completed the procedure.

  Before everyone panics, please note that the new brain scans are also-at long last- proof of relevant data. Subject's improvement to his physical body, as well as the internal changes noted, are proof of outside involvement. Finally, we have confirmed that there are long periods, usually at night, where absolutely no data is collected from the subject at all. Such a thing is supposedly completely impossible, as no brain activity is supposed to be both permanent and only found in former subjects.

  Recommendations are to increase surveillance on both the subject and Containment. Increasing outside pressure may be necessary however it is important that we no longer attempt to manipulate Containment's internal protocols. Such actions are currently classified as a needless risk and may only encourage the subject to break Containment on his own, or, even worse, somehow compel Containment to break parameters.

  Further surveillance, however, will enable us to both collect more data and figure out how to finally generate said data on our own.

  If we can do that, Rhodes, you and your son can go nuts on the boy for all I care. We'll deal with the consequences afterwards, when we're all gods.

  Team Lead Out.

  Another week began back home. I decided to show Mom and Sis a little bit of improvement so that they could get excited with me. I kept it slow and didn't show off my new muscles. That was hard, because I really wanted them to know, but I knew they'd start asking why, or how, if my progress was too rapid. Then I'd have to come up with some lie to explain it, and they'd see right through it because they're family and I'm only good at lying to people who I know how are out to get me. Then they'd corner me and force me to tell the truth, and I'd have to tell them that I've started going to a magical world of monsters and fairies and beautiful woman where I'm becoming this fantasy super-hero who can do magic and kick ass.

  Call me paranoid, but I figured that conversation wouldn't go well.

  So I took it slow. I let myself walk just a little better with the cane in front of them. They still got excited even over that much. I told them it felt like the damage from the attack was wearing off.

  I told them I wanted to hurry up and finish high school, preferably before the year was up. I asked Mom if there was a way I could go only to Ms. Springsen's class and maybe get the rest of my education online or at a local junior college.

  That got her so excited she ran over and hugged me, before she could remember hugs usually hurt.

  Apparently, she had been waiting to talk to me about trying again but had been afraid to. She was afraid she had pushed me too hard earlier and had been criticizing me instead of just being there for me when I needed her. She hadn't expected me to want to try again so soon, and she hadn't expected me to come up with my own plan.

  She didn't mention anything about how the lawsuit was currently going. I chose not to ask but I figured that the school and the football team were trying to settle with her. I didn't hear anything about the criminal investigation Davelon mentioned either. I decided to ignore both for now and began trying to read books, to see what random facts I could remember the next day.

  When I tested myself, I was pleased with the results.

  I tried the physical therapy exercises again, trying to see if I can do them longer. Then I actually felt my pain intensify, and it felt like something in my nerves was panicking. It hurt so bad I almost quit right at the start, but when I fought through it I found I could do everything just a little better, exert just a little more force, hold limbs just a little straighter, and for longer periods.

  I hadn't been able to do any of that before, even when I was getting better playing Heroes Unbound. Back then, my balance had been improving and my pain tolerance had been increasing, but it was more like I was learning to work around the problem. Now, it felt like the problem itself had been solved, if only by a tiny bit.

  It was still incredibly encouraging. I couldn't wait to figure out how to get back to Avalon so that I could find a way to get better again.

  In fact, I realized I needed to get back to Avalon. I needed to apologize to Stell for freaking out back there and for biting her head off and for all those times I called everyone a hallucination.

  That needed to be my focus, I realized. Get to Avalon. Save all their worlds and whatever else they needed me to do and find a way to keep growing in the process. If I had wanted to make a game play comparison, it was time to both power-level and go super-completionist. Stell had also said certain skills carried over. Could I learn something that could help me out over here?

  Actually, I wondered, did that work both ways?

  Could I keep exercising and learning over here, and then see if it would improve my projection in Avalon?

  There was only one way to find out.

  I talked to Mom again about taking an exercise break, instead of going straight back to school. The question surprised her. Apparently, the doctor hadn't wan
ted me to go back yet anyway. It was too risky, he said. Especially in what was currently being investigated as an unsafe environment. She hadn't known I had wanted to go right away, and now she was worried maybe I was pushing myself too hard. It was a little funny to think about how she had see-sawed so much from worrying I wasn't taking things seriously to now worrying if I was being over-committed. But then again, maybe being a single parent isn't easy, especially when your kid's had the problems I've had.