by Tao Wong
Next up would be the Galactics. There’s obviously Labashi and Capstan. As a mercenary and adventurer respectively, both of them would likely have a rough idea about the Galactic political ecosystem. Unfortunately, from what I recall, Capstan actively attempts to stay below the radar. And Labashi probably would charge me for any information I could access. As for the third option, well… Never mind.
“What would it cost to upgrade you with a Galactic political subroutine and the knowledge?” I ask Kim as a thought crosses my mind.
“…”
“Kim?”
“ASSESSING.”
Interesting. Considering Kim’s an AI—one that literally runs much of the background processes and day-to-day of all my settlements—the pause seems to be somewhat long. There’s no logical reason for it to take the AI this long.
“A TIER III POLITICAL SUBROUTINE UPGRADE WOULD COST EIGHTY-SEVEN THOUSAND CREDITS. PLEASE NOTE THAT SUCH AN UPGRADE WOULD ONLY BE VIABLE TO BE RUN ON CURRENT SETTLEMENT RESOURCES. AN UPGRADE ON YOUR NEURAL LINK OF ONE HUNDRED NINETY-SEVEN THOUSAND CREDITS WOULD BE REQUIRED TO HOST MSYELF AND THE SUBROUTINE.
“ADDITIONALLY, ANOTHER FOUR HUNDRED FORTY THOUSAND CREDITS WOULD BE REQUIRED TO ACQUIRE THE NECESSARY INFORMATION LIBRARIES. A FURTHER RECOMMENDED FOURTEEN THOUSAND CREDITS PER THIRTY-FOUR POINT THREE DAYS SHOULD BE DEDICATED TO NEWS AND POLITICAL FEEDS TO ENSURE THE LIBRARY STAYS CURRENT.”
I wince, doing the math quickly. That’s a lot of money. Credits. I’ve got a ton right now, but it’s still more than I’d like to spend. As I hesitate, another notification flickers up on my screen.
“LORD GRAXAN ROXLEY HAS SENT A MESSAGE REQUESTING YOUR PRESENCE AT THE FIRST AVAILABLE OPPORTUNITY.”
Right. And that’s the other Galactic I was very carefully not thinking about. Unfortunately, outside of some of the acquaintances I had—including a rather loquacious Galactic down in the States—I can’t imagine anyone else who can provide a better overview of Galactic politics. But as always, Roxley comes with his own bag of problems.
“Ali.”
“Yeah, boy-o?”
“Ah. You’re back.” I grin, thankful that he’s done with the Shop. You never know how long the damn Spirit is going to take haggling. But come to think of it, with the time differential in the Shop, it’s not that surprising he’s back. “Do me a favor. Buy Kim the political upgrades and knowledge he needs. Once that’s done, I need both of you to get together and review the voting information. I want to know who’s working with who, who we can potentially turn, and who we can make a deal with. If you need to, get Lana involved.”
“What are you going to be doing?”
“Shopping. Then I’ve got a date with Roxley.”
“Ooooh….”
“Not that kind,” I send the last thought back rather heatedly.
I just get a mental chuckle, which makes me grit my teeth. As I stand, getting ready to go to the Shop myself, I notice a rather heated discussion in the viewscreen focused on Katherine’s meeting. A quick thought has the volume increase.
“I understand. Ms. Weingard, but—” Katherine says placatingly, only to be cut off again.
“But nothing. It’s been five years now and our children are amok, acting like little barbarians. We’ve been promised a proper education system for our taxes and we’ve seen nothing!” Weingard snarls, slapping a wrinkled hand on the table.
I frown and double-check her Level, noting she’s only a Level 31 Baker. No real danger to Katherine. Well, physically at least. Unless she accepts a baked treat. Or goes into a gingerbread house.
“That is an exaggeration. The children are being taught in a secure environment using the System tools, many of which have been designed to encourage learning in both areas of individual strength and weaknesses of the child,” Katherine rebuts calmly.
“Blue screens and homework that no one but an AI sees. And the class sizes are outrageous. Fifty children per teacher. How are they expected to learn anything?” Weingard snaps. “When I was a teacher—”
“We are struggling to find more teachers, it’s true. I’d be happy to include you in the roster if you wish,” Katherine slides in. I detect the slightest twitch of her lips when Weingard flinches. “But the teachers are only part of the teaching apparatus. The children are all coached directly by the AI teaching assistants during classroom time. When they are undertaking physical classes and activities, we have a significantly smaller ratio and expect to have one teacher to ten students by the end of this year.”
“Let’s talk about that. They’re being taught to kill,” Weingard snaps. “How can you condone that?”
“Self-defense is only one of the many physical activity classes. And only for the older children,” Katherine says frostily. “Physical education for younger children is focused on other, less directly dangerous activities such as sprints, gymnastics, and dodge ball.”
Weingard snarls, ready to rebut, when the older man beside her places a hand on her shoulder. She calms almost immediately.
The older Indian man speaks. “We understand that you are doing the best you can, but our organization is concerned at the nature of the schooling being provided.”
“Oh?” Katherine says.
“For example, there are content concerns. One of our members’ sons came back from class, discussing and showing pictures of the various injuries that poisons may incur. It was very disturbing for the parent,” the gentleman says.
“That seems a particularly useful piece of knowledge in this world,” the portly auburn-haired man next to Katherine butts in. A quick query shows that Cory Gentile is the bureaucrat in charge of this entire program.
“At six? They should be studying their alphabet at that age!” Weingard snaps.
“The child in question was given access to this knowledge during his free play time for completing his language studies,” Cory says.
“Still, we have heard your concerns. We will undertake a review of the current open curriculum for younger children. Now, I’d like to speak about the early experiments with the apprenticeship program. It is, we believe, a significant success at providing skills to children, and early indications shows that graduates have a higher number and stronger Class variants after completing the program,” Katherine says, cutting in and getting the meeting back on track.
I lower the volume now that the likelihood of violence has dropped. Well, that was interesting. I vaguely knew that we’d set up a mass schooling system where we provided food and a secure environment, but I’d never dug into it while I was here, allowing others to run the situation. And it seems since then, it’s been expanded. Still, I’d have thought they’d have found more teachers by now.
The answer that Kim provides makes me chuckle wryly. We did find more help—but the vast majority of them have been dedicated to where our highest children population numbers are—those five years and younger. Between natural biological inclinations and the System’s ability to promote pregnancies, we’ve seen a giant population boom. Right now, the settlement is straining to keep these overpowered, System-assisted children in check. I tap my lips, considering what to do, when I get a slight beep of a new notification.
“LORD ROXLEY IS REQUESTING AN ETA.”
I grunt, glaring at the notification before dismissing it and my earlier thoughts. Right. I have a job to do and so do these people. As much as I’d love to get involved in sorting out an incipient problem, it’s neither my area of expertise nor where I can contribute the most. In the end, I’m a failed ex-computer programmer who’s very good at kicking ass in this new world. The big questions are best left to the professionals.
Chapter 6
For the first time in years, I find myself back in the Shop. For a moment, I get a sense of déjà vu as I look around the bright yellow interior, the fox-like attendant coming up to me with a wide smile.
“Redeemer! It’s a pleasure to see you once again,” Foxy says. “I have a room prepared for you, if you’ll follow me.”
“Of course.” I let myself be guided without protest, curious to see what he’s got ready for me. A part of me is wary that he’s looking to exploit my newfound wealth, though another part notes that Foxy hasn’t tried to pull a fast one since the first time. Still… “I need a refill of my original loadout. But let’s upgrade it all.”
“Of course. I understand your Personal Assault Vehicle has suffered significant damage? Do you wish to repair or replace it?” Foxy says, hands clasped.
After hesitating, I say, “Neither for now.”
As much as I’d love to, Sabre’s usefulness in its current form has long since passed. I’d get more bang for my buck if I picked up a normal bike. Heck, I could probably borrow a vehicle from the Settlement’s fleet if necessary. While I might be able to have them upgrade and fix Sabre from the settlement funds, I’m actually not sure if that’s viable with the way the Credit rules are set up. And if it is, I have a sneaking suspicion Sabre would no longer be mine. No. I’m probably better visiting Kamloops and dropping it off with the Artisans there to see what they can do with the mangled remains of my PAV. Worse case, it’ll get them a few Levels and Skills while they work on it. Best case, I might actually get Sabre back better than ever.
“Ah, before I forget. This was left in our care on the off-chance you might visit us,” Fox says and flicks his hand. In it is a small, shiny bracelet.
I stare at it, confused for a moment before recollection hits me. “Talk about déjà vu.”
I take the bracelet and slap it on my arm. A moment later, I get a notification that my Quantum State Manipulator has come online and is available for use. I chuckle, recalling how useful this little gadget was when I first started out. The ability to semi-shift to another dimension let me sneak, fight, and kill creatures well above my Level. These days though, nearly all the settlements have Quantum Locks of one form or another, making the gadget a lot less useful. Hell, I even met a few monsters in the Forbidden Zone that had the very same ability.
“Do you require anything further from me, Redeemer?” Foxy asks, and I nod.
“You have contacts with Enchanters and other Artisans able to layer spells, no?” I say, getting a nod back. I pull a dozen throwing knives from my storage.
Foxy inclines his head while miming taking the knives. At my nod, he picks up one and studies the small, dark red and black throwing knife I crudely shaped from a Level 140 monster’s tooth.
Toothy Throwing Knives
Handcrafted badly through the use of improper and inadequate crafting tools, these throwing knives come from the rare drop of a Level 140 Awakened Beast.
Base Damage: 180
“Amazing material. The craftsmanship is sub-standard but there is sufficient material to reshape it I believe. We can certainly reach out to our contacts,” Foxy stares at me for a moment. “For such material, I would be loath to have anyone but a Master craftsman undertake the enchantment. However…”
“They’re expensive. How much?”
When Foxy offers the quote, I almost choke. It’d wipe out the majority of my recent windfall.
“And the enchantment…?”
“Many Master craftsman are… hmmm… artistes of the highest order. They will not guarantee the type of enchantment till they see the material and item they are to work on and inspiration has struck.” When my eyes narrow, he continues placatingly. “But many powerful, famed weapons have resulted from such expenditure. At the least, I am certain they will add a Return enchantment to these.”
I nod slowly, pondering my options. These weapons served me well in that other place and are my first—and only—attempt at creating my own tools. I always promised myself to upgrade them if I could, and here, I have a chance. I just have to get over the fact that I’ll be beggaring myself again. Well, relatively speaking—especially if you add in my other upcoming expenditures.
“Do it.” I sigh, handing over the other knives and pulling out a couple of larger, foot-length knives of the same material. “Now, I’m going to need some new clothing, better armor—perhaps something with a nanoweave and self-repairing function—and additional Skills and Spells. I’m thinking…”
Foxy nods, dark eyes glinting with barely hidden avarice as I list the Skills and Spells I want. Foxy only interrupts me occasionally to make a suggestion when he considers my choice sub-optimal. A part of me wonders if I should have brought Ali for the haggling, but decide that I can let the Spirit loose later if it seems I’m getting too raw a deal.
An hour later, I’m alone in the private room, slowly coming down from the repeated mental and spiritual injections of information. It seems picking up Advanced Class Skills—the highest Level Skills I can get that aren’t part of my own Class Skill tree—is a bit more wearing than purchasing Basic Skills. If it weren’t for my frankly outrageous Willpower and Intelligence attributes, I’d probably have to take these integrations slower. Though that does raise the question of why I could integrate previous purchases of Advanced Skills from my Class so well. Perhaps it was due to the fact they were my own Class—did the System somehow imprint and prep the body for those Skills? More questions that I have no answers for. At least, not yet.
Dismissing the thought, I go through the slew of notifications that have been waiting for me since I started this process.
Analyze (Level 2)
Allows user to scan individuals, monsters, and System-registered objects to gather information registered with the System. Detail and level of accuracy of information is dependent on Level and any Skills or Spells in conflict with the ability. Reduces Mana regeneration by 10 permanently.
Truth be told, this Skill is unnecessary so long as Ali is around. But as experience has proven, my Spirit will not always be around—especially now that he can materialize and is liable to getting banished. As smart as he is, Ali’s not much a fighter and has a bad tendency to get distracted in the middle of particularly intense battles.
Harden (Level 2)
This Skill reinforces targeted defenses and actively weakens incoming attacks to reduce their penetrating power. A staple Skill of the Turtle Knights of Kiumma, the Harden Skill has frustrated opponents for millennia.
Effect: Reduces penetrative effects of attacks by 30% on targeted defense.
Cost: 3 Mana per second
Quantum Lock (Level 3)
A staple Skill of the M453-X Mecani-assistants, Quantum Lock blocks stealth attacks and decreases the tactical options of their enemies. While active, the Quantum Lock of the Mecani-assistants excites quantum strings in the affected area for all individuals and Skills.
Effect: All teleportation, portal, and dimensional Skills and Spells are disrupted while Quantum Lock is in effect. Forceable use of Skills and Spells while Skill is in effect will result in (Used Skill Mana Cost * 4) health in damage. Users may pay a variable amount of additional Mana when activating the Skill to decrease effect of Quantum Lock and decrease damage taken.
Requirements: 200 Willpower, 200 Intelligence
Area of Effect: 100 meter radius around user
Cost: 250 + 50 Mana per Minute
Elastic Skin (Level 3)
Elastic Skin is a permanent alteration, allowing the user to receive and absorb a small portion of damage. Damage taken reduced by 7% with 7% of damage absorbed converted to Mana. Mana Regeneration reduced by 15 permanently.
Elastic Skin is probably the most expensive of the Skills I purchased as it’s an exclusive Skill from another Class—the Burrowers. It’s also really expensive in terms of my Mana Regeneration, but the combination of damage reduction and Mana replacement is useful. Most other Skills I browsed were either pure direct damage reductions or had minor benefits in other areas. Like Stoneskin, which makes you slightly more impervious to fire and has a higher damage reduction against abrasive type effects. At 7% of 7%, the actual amount of damage absorbed and converted to Mana is, like, point five percent of the damage taken, which is rather pitiful. But it’s better than nothing.
Overall, the entire shopping spree’s focus on Skills was to shore up some of my major weaknesses and make me harder to kill. While I still feel I don’t do enough damage, I figure being harder to kill means that I have a longer period of time to really put on the hurt. It does mean that I’m losing eighty points of Mana Regeneration per minute from all these Skills, but since I haven’t spent my free attributes yet, that’s an easy fix. I split two-thirds of my ninety-eight free points between Intelligence and Wisdom, increasing both to new highs.
I also picked up a few spells, some of which I’d call utility spells—like Earth Shape, Mend, Speak to Chlorophyll, Oxygenate, and Chill—on the off-chance that I ever get abandoned in the middle of nowhere again. Others are variations of my existing spells, like Ice Blast—an almost word-for-word equivalent for Inferno Strike. While I’m not a huge fan of spells because of the length of time and focus they require for casting, my higher Intelligence and Willpower means that I can do both and fight with minimal issues. Still, I much prefer instant-cast Skills.
For all that, I did pick up a few interesting new spells, spells that I desperately wish I’d had before.
Create Water
Pulls water from the elemental plane of water. Water is pure and the highest form of water available. Conjures 1 liter of water. Cooldown: 1 minute
Cost: 50 Mana
Scry
Allows caster to view a location up to 1.7 kilometers away. Range may be extended through use of additional Mana. Caster will be stationary during this period. It is recommended caster focuses on the scry unless caster has a high level of Intelligence and Perception so as to avoid accidents. Scry may be blocked by equivalent or higher tier spells and Skills. Individuals with high perception in region of Scry may be alerted that the Skill is in use. Cooldown: 1 hour.