As they rode back to the police station… the squad car smelling absolutely awful… Grey relaxed. He could actually break out of the car now; he had a level of strength that, previously, was limited to power-lifters. He had a few minutes spare to level up; so he might as well do so.

While it might be nice to get everything evened out and fully effective, and he was interested in seeing what effects he got out of higher-level Venom especially, the Undead Creation thing was the real kicker. He just had to see what it was capable of when upgraded.

He wasn’t quite there to the level of Stamina he’d achieved as a human… and that was important for constantly using magic… so of course he dumped the three free points into it, and chose to improve Undead Animation.

Ability Upgrade used! Options available, choose from the following!

Ranged Animation: While standing on a ritual circle, you can animate corpses at a distance, allowing for effective use mid-combat.

Sentient Animation: Given time you can create permanent, sentient, undead. These creatures will tend to have some loyalty to their creator, and can be forced into control using Undead Control, but are their own, thinking beings, and almost always rebel if treated as simple minions. This ability is banned in most Committee territories, as it is believed a soul is forcibly trapped in the body, unable to reincarnate, while the creature persists. No additional powers are granted, but they can gain levels like any other sentient being, choosing powers of their own.

Infectious Animation: You can create Infectious zombies out of somewhat intact corpses, and Infectious ghouls out of corpses with are almost perfectly intact. When a victim is slain by such an undead, it will eventually, typically within two hours, rise as another infectious undead. This ability is banned in most Committee territories for obvious reasons.

Empowered Animation: You have the ability to imbue an undead of lower level than yourself while being created with additional necromantic energy, granting it other powers. The abilities you grant must be related to those you already possess; at this time you would be capable of creating Undead with venomous, curse, or stealth abilities, as well as basic weapon skills; Undead Creation or Control cannot be gifted to a nonsentient undead. These Undead are effectively higher level for the purpose of both Control and Animation abilities depending on the powers granted..

* Additional options will become available as these upgrades are combined; with all upgrades, it would be possible to, at a distance, create a sentient, infectious, empowered undead, whose victims would also arise as empowered undead.

He had been expecting a buff to the level of Undead he could make. This… was both better, and worse. Maybe he couldn’t make an undead higher level than himself. Fine. He still needed all of these. A handful of Infectious undead in a town he could isolate would create a crisis that the Chosen would be called for… and he could have a host of empowered undead, oozing with curses and venom, ready to swarm over them when they arrived.

For the moment, the most useful option would be either Ranged or Empowered. After a moment’s consideration, knowing that the undead themselves would be immune to venom, he chose Empowered; a pack of worker ant zombies that dripped paralytic venom into their victims, or even go into stealth? Could be absolutely nasty. Though maybe upgrading Venom would be good next, see what kind of fun he could get added.

He almost regretted taking the Assassin options at all; by now, he could already have had both the next Animation and Control upgrades. But no… he might need the ability to deal some significant damage on his own in the future.

He checked his status as they approached the police station.

Nathan Grey

Serpentfolk(Human)

Hand of Death(Hybrid)

7

Strength

14

Endurance

18

Stamina

25

Agility

23

Mind

22

Power

18

Abilities

Intimidating Shout(Insects, Rats, Humans), Undead Animation 2(Empowered Undead), Undead Control 1, Curse 0.5, Venom Magic 1, Stealth 1, Assassin’s Strike 0.5

Skills

Minor(Melee Weapons, Persuasion, Automotive Repair, Examine, Mana Manipulation) Moderate(Survival, Sales, Ranged Weapons)

Titles

Insect Slayer III, Rat Slayer II, Human Slayer, Ranged Slayer II, Vehicle Slayer(Front-Runner), Looter

Boons

1 x Vehicle Upgrade

He was accumulating titles fairly well now. Hopefully there were some related to Necromancy he could pick up; buffing the creatures he called in further would be useful.

When they arrived at the station, there were a few other cops there; looking just as exhausted as the two Grey had been dealing with… albeit not as bloody.

One of them standing at the door looked them over… and nodded. “Hell yeah, Alvarez. Level 5. Kickass. Need more of those. Gonna stay human?”

The one Grey hadn’t learned the name of… apparently Alvarez.. Nodded. “Of course. Gonna go Peacekeeper, too.”

The other man nodded appreciatively.. As they passed through the door. “Come on. Showers are this way. Clean up and we’ll help you get the paperwork sorted.. Then the boss is gonna want to talk to you.”

If you stumble upon this tale on Amazon, it's taken without the author's consent. Report it.

As they passed through a locker room, there were at least a dozen men and women sitting on benches, chatting; they looked tired… but hopeful. And all of them looked to be in absolutely perfect physical shape; several of them even looking like elves, even.

As he entered one of the shower stalls, turning on the hot water, thankful for the fact that a police force of both genders mandated a certain level of privacy, he directly dumped his clothes into the storage space; he couldn’t put them on that way, they just appeared in his hands, but….

The hot water felt incredibly relaxing. His body wanted to just melt into it and exist there… he had to pull himself away. For a Serpentfolk, apparently they were warm-blooded… but still loved the heat.

He shut it off, having to force himself not to just turn the hot water back on; normal cool air feeling like a shock afterwards. After drying off, he put on a set of clothes from Joshua’s closet; a long-sleeved red flannel that would be more appropriate for winter, but he just felt cold; and a simple pair of jeans… the boots, though… too small. Again. He could either put on another ill-fitting pair of shoes, or go back to flip-flops… so he suck with the flip-flops.

As he stepped out, drawing a few odd looks, he stepped back into the locker room… he couldn’t quite decide where to go, but fortunately Alvarez stepped in; wearing a fresh, clean uniform; and smiled. “Well, mister Grey. Come on. The boss can help get your paperwork sorted.”

***

When thinking ‘boss’ in police terms, Grey had always imagined a heavyset, older man. Grey hair. Gut. When the ‘boss’ hits level 5, though, even if they stay human… apparently that meant they got reset in age. The man sitting behind the desk didn’t look a day over 20, with dark skin, shaved-short hair, and a muscled frame that filled out the uniform; and a label of ‘Simonson’ on his shirt.

As he stepped in, the boss held up a hand before Alvarez could leave. “Hold up. You knew mister Grey before, correct?”

“Yessir. He complained about the neighbors a few times, we met… a few months ago, last. Used to be in a wheelchair, and, well. Not the most clear in the head.”

He gestured at the chairs. “Well then. If you could both sit down. You’re Joshua Grey?”

Could the man have a lie-detecting spell? Best to stick to the truth.

“I’m Mister Grey, but not really the one Alvarez here knows. I don’t remember him… and when I looked at the faces on the family photo… I recognized some of the faces. I knew they were my family. But… I could only name two or three of them.”

He inhaled deeply… and then exhaled more slowly. “I have probably suffered some form of brain damage. I am not the same as I used to be, even before I turned into a snake.”

He nodded. “Have you killed anyone, since this started? I understand you were a Korean war vet, and I’m not gonna judge anything from your past. But since this… system kicked in?”

“Yessir. The day of the event, I shot a gentleman named Martin; he had been partially eaten by a giant animal, and it had done something to keep him alive while it was eating him… half of his body had been chewed off.”

“I was also forced to defend myself from humans once… but since the system came the only times I’ve used a weapon… on a human… since this started were because someone drew a weapon on me… trying to steal a weapon of mine because of its rarity… or they were lying there helpless and wounded after a monster attack.”

The ‘boss’ gave a nod. “Gonna give it to you straight, here. I’m a Peacekeeper. I’ve got a power that lets me prevent lying in a room I’m in, and it lets me know if someone lies. So… I can sign off on your paperwork, and we can get you a new ID.. We’ve only got a handful so far, but we’ll get more, with time. The politicians wanting us to get everyone’s faces and IDs to match is playing hell on us, since they gotta be at least level 5 for that… and its hard to get someone at the DMV to that point while they’re behind a desk.”

He slid a signed document over. “That should cover you on that side, just bring it to the desk there. So. Now that I’ve got the hard questions out of the way, and we know you’ll get an ID…. and not arrest you….”

“..How would you like a job? A man with combat experience and a healthy young body could be useful to the El Paso Police Department at a time like this, and I hate to say it… but your social security is going to end as soon as they discover you’re no longer physically that old.”

If he became a cop, he’d be stuck doing so many things that didn’t contribute to his primary mission. On the other hand, they would definitely get into fights that would help him gain levels…and perhaps help get him the Elf-slayer title, just in case Nightfire was an elf?

“... Not sure I want to be a cop, sir. But if the shit hits the fan, I’m willing to get my hands dirty. Maybe a contractor or something.. I know you’re not a sheriff, but if we could do something where you only ‘deputize’ me… and pay me… if an emergency pops up?”

“You do realize, if the Chosen are right about half of things… and they’ve played us straight so far… its gonna be constant emergencies for the next decade.”

“I understand. But my feelings towards extensive paperwork and after-action reports are about the same as my feelings towards rats, at this point.”

Simonson shook his head. “We can probably arrange something. In fact, there’ve already been suggestions…. Alright. I’m sorry, but you can’t head home right now; we’re putting the whole neighborhood up in the Motel 6 for tonight, and somebody with an ‘Ability’ is patching up the damage overnight… somehow. Would you like a ride there?”

“Back home, actually. I don’t need a wheelchair anymore… so I want to trade in my van. Get something a little more fuel-efficient. So… need to get my documents sorted at the DMV, pickup my van, and then go car shopping.”

“Ooof. Sounds like a busy day. I’ll have Alvarez take you home then, and you can get to it. Just remember to stop at the Motel 6 tonight, they’ll have a room waiting for you.”

***

The DMV was remarkably easy with a signed note from the police asserting his identity, alongside all the required documents; he left with a temporary ID immediately, and promises of a mailed one… assuming the mail kept running.. In a few weeks.

It was interesting, as he drove into the car dealership; everyone was simultaneously trying to act like it was business as usual, and as if the world was about to end.

As he drove up to the lot, it was hard to remember that, not that long ago, he himself had been a salesman…. He shook his head, looking at the vehicles…

From what he’d seen, upgrading a vehicle would improve its gas mileage, make it more durable, self-repairing even, and otherwise be fine… and if it was already upgraded for that, it could also have its capacity increased. Which… was nice. Unfortunately, he wouldn’t likely be able to get any vehicles that were already upgraded.

On the other hand, this wasn’t a ‘tool’ upgrade, that could be used for anything. It was vehicle-specific. Would it be special, because of that?

He wanted something high gas-mileage. Small. Manueverable. But he also wanted something he could use for mass-murdering ants if the event came again.

After thinking for a bit, he decided the best option would be an electric truck; if upgraded, it might be able to just run on a solar panel or something.

He spent the next half-hour driving around the dealerships, checking; before concluding that the only option available was at the ford dealership; a Lightning… and when he got out at the ford dealership… a salesman immediately started approaching… following him as he headed to the Lightning.

“Ahh… hello, sir! Unfortunately, we’re not able to do loans at present, we’ve been having issues getting things approved. If you want..”

He held up a hand… “I’ll trade you the van and… a third of a pound of gold coins for that truck.”

The salesman blinked. “........ Let me get my manager.”

He was driving out of the dealership within minutes… and came to a stop at a Dennys across the street, holding onto the steering wheel, focusing. Thinking about using the upgrade.

Lightning(Uncommon)

This is a simple mass-produced electric truck by the Ford motor company; excellent cost effectiveness for driving was marred by limited range and towing capacity compared to the diesel versions of the truck.

Recovering: This vehicle is both unusually durable for one of its build, as well as having the ability to slowly self-repair so long as it is not completely destroyed. This process will continue so long as the vehicle remains running.

Efficient: The electric systems are augmented by Mana, allowing the truck to run for in excess of three thousand miles between charges, as well as improving its power and top speed.

Nice. He was definitely going to get a solar panel and bolt it to the roof.. Might just be trickle-charging, but he could run it forever at that rate. Or at least, til the panel died.

Now… time to get some mediocre food… catch some sleep at the Motel 6… and then check the Guild app again. See how Sledge and crew were doing, maybe.