Lair

by Carl Stubblefield

  The Run and Go by Twenty One Pilots. Success rates x 120.

  As Gus ran he tried to see what happened when he stepped on the water as the waves flowed inward, preparing himself to trip. He was glad to see that it did not affect his running significantly, because he scarcely touched the water, skipping across like a stone with each step. He instinctively knew that it would not hold his weight, and that something besides his momentum was keeping him above the water. He had begun to hear a whistling as the air rushed by his ears, and moving through the air at this speed began to dry his eyes, pushing tears out the sides. All of a sudden there was a slight pop and the noise disappeared. At the same time, Gus’ eyes felt shielded and he could see without squinting, as if he were wearing goggles.

  “Nick, wha—” Gus began, trying not to lose his focus.

  “Ether is directing air around you in such a way to allow you to pass through it more efficiently, with less friction and its effects.”

  Gus nodded and noted that there was a strange interaction with the ground and water as he took a step; he wanted to look to see what was happening. He dared not take his eyes away from his forward path, however, since things were speeding by so fast. The beach reappeared and Gus aimed for it, bracing himself for the speed increase of the next song.

  Ready to Run by Dixie Chicks. Success rates x 720.

  Gus had hated country music at one time in his life. Then he got a girlfriend who loved it, and trying to be as agreeable as possible, he finally gave it a chance and found some songs he could tolerate, and others he actually liked. He was grateful now to have more songs he was familiar with to use for his song chains. He didn’t have Google to help him remember any more obscure titles. Unique songs would be precious, so every one of them counted.

  The jolt of the speed increase almost made him veer off into the jungle and crash violently into something. He barely recovered, leaving plumes of sand flung in his wake. Wide-eyed and heart beating, more from the adrenaline rush than exertion, Gus pushed ahead. Another chime sounded, but Gus barely paid it attention. As the last seconds of the song ticked away, Gus focused.

  Run by George Strait. Success rates x 5040.

  This is what Gus was waiting for. He found he was able to run across the water, skipping like a stone and avoiding the debris totally. One unforeseen challenge was the flexible nature of the ebb and flow of the water with the waves. After moving along for a minute, his TimeSight or his subconscious must have done the calculations and adapted because it was effortless to cross the surface. This ability arrived just in time, because he was able to adjust his trajectory and avoid an area strewn with debris from a rockslide. The huge boulders sped by as he rocketed past. Sounds began to become deeper in pitch, stretching from the Doppler effect as his speed increased.

  To Gus’ point of view, the waves moved more slowly, and his ability to see what was ahead of him increased. He knew there would be a shoal coming up, so he veered to the left, ten degrees towards the water. There. Now bring it back toward the shore. He was definitely feeling a pushing sensation behind himself, maintaining him at this speed. He felt like a mosquito on the windshield of a sports car. The song was almost unintelligible as George’s voice had dropped to a deep bass.

  “Nick, let me know if I miss anything,” Gus said through gritted teeth, eyes intent on the path ahead. He noticed that his own voice sounded normal, unaffected by his speed.

  “Certainly,” Nick replied curtly.

  When the next song hit, Gus was unprepared for the change.

  Run-Around by Blues Traveler. Success rates x 40,320.

  Gus felt like his mind had been shoved open like someone was kicking in the doors. Multiple chimes sounded one atop the other and his log kept filling with messages.

  XP notices pinged left and right amidst the level up notices. Gus ignored it all and tried to focus on what he was doing to avoid peeking at them to avoid a level up euphoria that would distract him and break the song chain. Forcing his eyes forward and away from the data on the edges of his display, he continued running. Time appeared to slow down even further, and Gus saw himself fly quickly past the volcano, circle another peninsula, and start wrapping around the other side of the volcano. The island extended away from the volcano on this side, and Gus saw, analyzed, and processed what was ahead, behind and below him. Even at this speed, this allowed him to absorb and passively scan everything around him. It was a rush unlike he had ever experienced and he felt a slight twinge similar to the feeling of leveling up, but with much less intensity. It was exhilarating nonetheless.

  The feeling surged through him, like liquid light flowing like syrup first through his head and extending to his whole being, and seemed to sustain him during the strain of his current movement. Glancing up, he saw that he was at forty percent on his stamina and MP bars. It amazed him that he was able to sustain this level of movement with less effort than when he started.

  John Popper’s words stretched out into unintelligibility as TimeSight asserted itself to another level. Gus was circling around the other side of the island in no time, and wondered and worried what would happen when he hit the next song. He did not get the chance to find out, because as he rounded another curve of the coast, he was back on the same side of the island as Atlantis Beach. Gus consciously slowed himself, to not overshoot the familiar beach.

  He could feel energy seeping from him and being readily absorbed by the ether, bleeding off heat and kinetic energy to safe levels. The effect slightly chilling him as momentum was wicked away, displaced to who knew where. Nick had helpfully placed a figure of the island on the upper right of Gus’ display, and gauging where he wanted to stop made the process of slowing to a halt much easier.

  “Nick, stop playlist!” Gus gasped, not wanting to risk pushing his limits any further. The feeling of liquid light drained away, and as it fled Gus felt an intense fatigue set in, both physically and mentally. With the need for constant focus gone, he eagerly looked at his logs, and the level up euphoria hit him at once. He trotted to a stop and was elated he had the earlier foresight to bring a chair down to the beach. He collapsed into it, and the last thing he saw was his log streaming past.

  You have leveled up the skill: TimeSight

  You have leveled up the skill: Dash

  You have leveled up the skill: Dash

  You have leveled up the skill: TimeSight

  You have leveled up the skill: Dash

  You have leveled up the skill: Dash

  LEVEL UP! Congratulations, Level 7 reached!

  You have (5) additional stat points to assign.

  You have leveled up the skill: TimeSight

  You have leveled up the skill: Dash

  You have leveled up the skill: TimeSight

  You have leveled up the skill: Dash

  You have leveled up the skill: TimeSight

  You have leveled up the skill: Dash

  You have leveled up the skill: TimeSight…

  …

  Gus let the notices fly, levels and FP bonuses sped by that he couldn’t read until he heard another fanfare as another level was reached.

  LEVEL UP! Congratulations, Level 8 reached!

  You have (10) additional stat points to assign.

  Smiling, he closed his eyes and drifted into sleep.

  Chapter Twenty-Five

  Weapon of Choice

  45 years ago…

  Methiochos was nearly done. Overseeing the loading and preparations of the ship were going well, but there was so much to do. He had to get this right the first time, because there would be no chance of getting more personnel or supplies after the bio-stasis field was in place. Still, what he had should be sufficient; five hundred of the best supers that he could find, loyal and dedicated to him. In a spot of luck, he had even convinced some of the world’s best researchers to join him.

  He turned a corner, and headed back to the bridge of the transport. Two children ran headlong into him on the busy walkway. He nearly ye
lled at them until he noticed who they were. Archon’s little brat Basil and the girl who always followed him around. Methiochos had never really been comfortable around kids, especially in what amounted to a military facility in his eyes, but this kid especially rubbed him the wrong way. Having to deal with his endless questions and his nosy nature was only one of his annoying traits. Plus the kid was going to be a legacy one day.

  He would get his powers thanks to his family rather than having any merit himself. Methiochos just knew that Archon was eventually going to put this kid in place as his successor, despite the contributions he and the other members of the council had made over the years. It was one of the reasons he was making his play now, and he only needed to keep it together for a little longer. Methiochos put on a kind expression, forcing it in place. If he wasn’t the boss’ son…

  “How soon are you going to be done? When can I come visit?” Basil started, more questions ready to spill forth.

  “Whoa, there! So many questions! And there’s a lot of heavy equipment moving around. It isn’t quite safe for you two, especially with the men on a time crunch. I nearly bowled you over—what if I had a hover-loader and rounded that corner? I know you’re excited, but I just want you guys to be safe.”

  “Alright…” Basil said dejectedly and began to walk away. Turning back, he said over his shoulder, “…but you’ll tell us what it’s like when you get there, right?”

  “Of course,” Methiochos said, happy that the boy was mollified so easily, then continued on his way.

  The little girl by Basil’s side was still playing with her doll. She didn’t like eye contact, and the doll helped her be around other people. When she looked people in the eye, she saw things. So many things, and a lot of it was ugly. She didn’t mean to look at the man, but he had startled her and she had taken just a glimpse. Her mom told her that for now it was best not to talk about her ability with others, and that when the time was right, she could share it. She had told Basil, but he was the only one. He didn’t think she was weird, either, like the other kids, so that made it ok.

  As the two walked back, she mumbled, “He’s lying.”

  Basil’s head perked up. “No, M is my dad’s best general. What are you talking about?”

  “He’s trying to fool your dad.” The little girl then began to tell Basil all of the things that she saw in the brief instant she peeked into the big man’s eyes. The more she spoke, the angrier Basil became. He had admired Methiochos, which made the betrayal all the worse.

  Even though he was young, Basil was tenacious. His dad called him his little pitbull, because once he became engaged, he did not let go or quit. Basil began to form an idea on how to make Methiochos pay.

  ###!###

  Day 7 2:09 AM

  7:10:27 remaining

  Gus woke up with a start. Where am I? He looked around, disoriented, his neck sore from sleeping at an odd angle in the chair. What are you doing sleeping outside, idiot? Did you forget there are zombies stalking you out there? The tiny sliver of the moon gave just enough light to navigate with, so he grabbed his backpack and made his way back to the master suite. He stretched and the soreness soon faded, but he was still exhausted from his earlier exertion. Pushing himself to the point of collapse was great for leveling, but he could have easily been attacked. Shaking his head at his stupidity, a quick peek at his watch showed it was two in the morning. He wearily made it to bed and crashed for the night.

  ###!###

  Earlier than expected, Gus awoke full of energy. He was surprised that even though he had pushed his Nth to the limits, that they rebounded just as strongly. He had hoped he hadn’t accelerated their shutdown with his expedition yesterday.

  Though it was still dark outside, Gus got ready for the day. Time to place those sweet stat points, then unlock some goodies from the control center. Gus rubbed his hands together and opened up his stats. A quick peek showed Dash had reached level twelve and TimeSight was at level six. Both would be a big help when fighting the Dark Nth.

  He tried to think about where he was lacking. With more abilities, his MP pool was becoming more important, so he knew intelligence was something to raise this time. He could do with an agility boost also, to better engage the Mantids. His stamina was ok for the moment, and he had already given constitution a good boost the last time he dropped points. Perception was good at its current level, and maybe luck could use a point. After deliberating he decided to put five into intelligence, four into agility and one into luck. He stopped to admire the changes as he began to feel his body react.

  He was using his skills more and more, and it was difficult to manage MP during the heat of battle. As his skills increased, he wanted to avoid the killer headache that accompanied MP depletion. As his powers evolved in the future, he would have to allocate more and more MP to utilize his skills. There was a benefit in being able to handle close combat situations, but as time went on, he hoped he could get more solid attacks that he could fire at a safe distance.

  Gus felt a shudder along his body and the tightness and exhaustion in his muscles unwound as if he had just undergone an instant form of massage therapy. Rolling his shoulders, his movements felt more fluid. On a whim, he tried to see if he could do the splits, and was shocked to see that he actually could, without effort or strain.

  What other changes are there to my physicality? I need to quantify just how much each stat point affects things like my speed, strength and stamina. Checking his countdown timer, he was cutting it close to when things would start shutting down according to Nick. Time for experimentation after level ten.

  Gus moved to the bathroom mirror and tried to see if there were any physical changes. Increasing his agility didn’t seem to alter his physical appearance, but he felt better about himself overall. He was pushing himself past his old limits more than any time before, and was satisfied that his life was turning a corner. He did one last check of his stats before heading to the control room.

  Gus Vannett

  Level 8

  Agility: 15

  Constitution: 14 (13+1)

  Charisma: 8

  Strength: 12

  Perception: 16

  Intelligence: 15

  Luck: 7

  HP: 260

  MP: 220

  Stamina: 260

  He settled into one of the chairs in the control room. Finding the Foundry in the facility management console, he unlocked it and the associated sub-facility Defense. Clearing his logs, he saw that through all the level ups yesterday, he had accrued another 1400 worth of FP. That brought him up to 5500 FP. Score!

  Gus did a little dance in his chair, reminiscent of one of his favorite online podcasts. The upgrades took a healthy bite out of that total, leaving him at only 1500 FP. Another shock was that he was only 200 XP from hitting level nine. After a brief pause, the dancing resumed with more fervor.

  Apparently, the Foundry took up an entire level of the manor. After a longer than usual elevator ride, the doors opened to large banks of machinery, all powering up and coming to life. There was a small control room that stood overlooking processors, and vats beginning to issue steam from their depths.

  Keying on the control panel, he was able to see a display showing the current capacities of the Foundry and an empty work queue. Gus accessed the available items that could be fabricated in the Foundry. While a number of items were grayed out and inaccessible, there was still an overwhelming amount that the Foundry could create. So much so that it took a while to move from page to page, seeing many similar items with barely perceptible differences.

  Gus found an options tab and set restrictions to look at armor first, suitable for level eight use. He had to further narrow the scope to specific armor types, surprised to see some armor utilizing things he had only seen when playing D&D. He found chain and plate armor, in various materials: metal, plastisteel, array glass, composite, hybrid, etc.

  Various colors could be chosen, except specific Faction colors.
Still, the available options vastly multiplied the amount of items to be sorted. Soon he had chosen what basically amounted to greaves, vambraces and a cuirass to add to his suit, choosing a basic gray that seemed to match the overall shade of his suit.

  Once he had chosen the pieces to be fabricated, there were multiple options of material and surface texture. Gus chose a lightweight material that had a layered core and could resist puncture—just what he needed to avoid sharp claws. Gus found he could also have an external texture similar to coarse sandpaper. Maybe that could blunt a sharp talon that tried to scratch him, making it less deadly. With the items queued up, he was directed to be scanned for his measurements.

  The system directed him to a scanning circle, much like the one in the training arena, to get his measurements to design the armor. Halfway through the scan, an alarm went off and the process stopped. Rushing to the monitor, Gus wondered what new complication had arisen. Sensing a ‘fetch quest’ in his future, Gus read through the alarm. The news, however, was shocking.

  2.4 lbs of Kroutonium detected. Do you wish to incorporate this into armor fabrication?

  “Wait, what?” Looking at the scan, he saw a representation of himself, rotating like an avatar in a video game. On his avatar, Razorback was highlighted in the scan sitting in the scabbard at his side. Pulling Razorback out he stared at the crude blade that he had made by hand, with a little help from his skills.

  Did I waste any of this making it into a blade? Gus thought about the tiny triangle he had removed to make the blade tip. I need to go back and get that… Gus’ thoughts sprang into overdrive. If Razorback really was made out of Kroutonium, it should level along with him, based on his levels. Activating Wreck-ognize, he noticed that the stats indeed had improved. Also that there were some new notices: