Again, with the gifts? My parents got me a new game console today. I’m grateful, but the looks on their faces pained me. Their hollow hope is that their gifts will help ease the suffering. Some part of me wants to try to feel happy. But I can only don the mask with memories of better times. I need to cover my heart of despair.

I am a teeter-toter going up and down. One moment I’m sucked into the swampy mire of darkness, then I tip in surprise as I find my fists shaking from unconsciously clenching them in rage.

I wish gifts and toys could make me smile like the kid I’m supposed to be. Right now, I’m just distracted by the death inside my bones. Sometimes, I think I can actually feel them hollowing out.

Journal entry of Jordan’s one month after his cancer diagnosis

#####

Installation of System Upgrades Complete

Reboot complete

Error Code ****

The room and time were still frozen, but I could think despite the world around me being paused.

Explain!

Error Code ****

Abnormalities were detected while repurposing the original Arcana seeded system nanotech.

Systems A & Z retained and partitioned the rogue code and samples of the altered nanotech. The rogue nanotech is contained behind firewalls and physically encased within the bones of your two lowest left ribs.

Further analysis is required, but potential compatibility for future integration should be explored.

Why not just get rid of it?

A sample was analyzed before repurposing the nanostructure and replacing the existing code. Previously, unrecognized yet significant potential was found, and an override prevented the destruction of all preexisting nanotech. Two measurable categories had superior performance to available A & Z technology. Adaptation and replication were exceptional and couldn’t be achieved by either A, Z or a combination of both.

And you think it’s safe to keep it? And potentially worth the risk?

You are safe, and the potential for further understanding outweighs the risk. The rate of adaptation alone would help with your combined systems coordination. The speed of replication would allow rapid healing and regrowth. There are still many unknowns.

The current active nanotech ratio is 97% Arc and 3% Rogue. There was a balance achieved. If not restrained, the stored rogue nanotech would change the ratio to 70/30 with your updated Arc in the majority. While you could access all of the rogue nano and have a more substantial supply, the limited amount will allow for greater control over the unknown parameters of the not yet thoroughly examined tech.

So, you have it under control? Thank you…I guess. But why does it appear I am frozen in time?

Your upgraded mental processing can temporarily boost cognition to this rate, but it is not sustainable. I recommend returning to the approximate human rate of cognition for the time being. You need to adjust to your increased physical, cognitive, Arc, and Zan abilities. Please command the change.

Return to normal cognition and…perception of time.

Suddenly I was sucking in a deep breath as the shower resumed spraying my nearly prone body on the tile. I wasn’t lacking oxygen as my next breath was relaxed. I must’ve emptied my lungs during the seizure.

I took note of the clarity of my vision. I was seeing detail to a distracting degree. I rolled to my back and watched as the water hit me. Although showering at a regular speed, I could still identify and track individual drops and see the reflection of the room in each one I focused on.

Weird, I thought as I got my feet under me and stood up. Looking myself over, I still had some blood to scrub off. I grabbed some soap and finished that task. I only paused a few times when I noticed all the new muscles on my frame. I’d never had abs like these.

Is it healthy to be so lean?

As I toweled off, I caught myself moving with increased speed and unnecessary force several times. I didn’t hurt myself when scrubbing my face with a force that might have previously rubbed the skin off.

I didn’t know the extent of the changes, but at least my body’s durability matched the increase in strength.

How much time passed since I entered the bathroom?

Forty-five minutes have passed. The upgrade took 30 minutes rather than the 20-minute estimate, but you spent the remainder in the shower.

So I still have four hours till Felicity comes back. Any suggestions on what I should be doing to understand my new…powers?

Three recommendations

1: Learn to gather Arc

2: If enough Arc can be gathered, attempt to form an Arc construct.

3: Request training facility.

Don’t I need to keep my abilities secret or something?

Nothing you are capable of now should cause alarm at this time. You are already known by the higher authorities to possess both A & Z systems.

Everything about you will be scrutinized, but your goal should be to grow as rapidly as possible. If any of your actions go far beyond the standard threshold for either A or Z, then I shall alert you. Earth and your family need you to advance.

Geez, no pressure. Just the fate of the planet. Let’s get started then. Show me how to gather some Arc.

I was instructed to get dressed and find a spot to sit on the floor. I chose to go to the balcony overlooking the interior gardens. Walking around felt like jumping off a treadmill and finally being able to cover the distance with my steps. Every motion felt naturally graceful, more rapid than my body would typically move, and surreal.

I had never felt so good. Maybe it was the contrast to my recent tortured upgrade, but…

Just thinking about the blood-producing experience jolted me out of my awe and filled me with paranoia and gripping fear. But even that rapidly passed.

What was that?

You experienced extreme physical and psychological trauma. I have attempted to intervene subtly. I will not manipulate you, but I can blunt the damage to your psyche. Is that acceptable?

I hesitated while I considered. Yes, but alert me whenever you intervene to change my thoughts or mood. I don’t like the idea of mental manipulation, but I need the assistance for now. Will that go away?

Yes, expect improvement and a decreasing need for assistance.

Great. So what’s next? I returned to clenching my fist and flexing my arm. It felt great to see the defied muscles and additional bulk. I wasn’t bulging in muscle. After looking in the mirror, I thought I looked more like a CrossFit athlete than a bodybuilder.

Get comfortable on the ground.

I sat down, dropping the last few inches to the floor, and crossed my legs. I was surprised that the balcony creaked.

Yes, your mass increased, as did your density. But it’s time to focus. The balcony won’t collapse.

Begin by closing your eyes. This process is similar to meditation, but rather than clearing your mind, you need to focus it on your intention. Think about Arcana. What do you want from it?

You said I need to form a construct when I have gathered enough. So, the first step is to gather. So how do I do that?

Now that you have an intended goal focus your will and desire to pull.

Pull what?

What do you think of when you think of Arcana?

Support the creativity of authors by visiting the original site for this novel and more.

Gold flecks, gold in general…power?

Start with the dots and power. Imagine flecks all around you.

Okay. I pictured flecks charged with glowing energy floating, like dust, around me. I felt silly at first, just trying to imagine something I couldn’t see.

Is my imagination going to magically make them appear? I laughed. But my laugh caught in my throat as I suddenly felt the presence of Arcana. It truly was floating around me. It was like motes of dust at first, just like I’d imagined, but the mental image I had took on more significant substance. The motes grew denser and began to move. They were more concentrated than my mental imagery. They were cohesive, sticking together in clumps. Those globs moved in an invisible wind, like slowly swooping birds.

I watched the wisps dance and flow around me. I could see them for about five yards around my body. Beyond that distance, it was like a void in my mind’s eye. There was a lot more in the open air by the garden than in the room behind me.

Now pull. Picture drawing them toward your body.

That simple, huh? I pictured an imaginary hand reaching out to them. But they slipped around the hand. I then alternated, trying to pull with an invisible force or suction from my chest and hand. And only then did a few of the closest clumped motes sink into my body. I immediately felt them enter my physical body. It was warm and soothing, like sliding into a hot tub on a winter night. I continued, but the suction didn’t extend further than a handbreadth from my body or reach.

I still felt the initial influx of warmth spreading throughout my body as it passed over my chest. I felt a thump. It was like a giant finger tapped my side. I nearly opened my eyes but stopped as there was an immediate change in the ambient Arc around me. Suddenly, I saw the same gold clumps, but now, in such a density, I couldn’t see beyond them. A thick fog suddenly appeared.

I stared in my mind’s eye at the many layers of glowing globs. They formed a fog that turned darker before my eyes as the glow dimmed.

A gray color started to dominate as I saw dark ropes the width of my forearm snaking through the gold layers. They weren’t mixing but in the gaps of the already dense layers of gold. Like oil and water, they didn’t mix. I just watched, mesmerized by them for a minute, and then remembered my goal.

Gather

As I thought that single word, there was an instant change. The fog seemed to notice me. Rather than moving lazily around me, I felt like many eyes turned to peer at me. Several of the clumped Arc clouds condensed further while the Zan took up more space, fueled by an influx of even more Zan out past my previously limited view. As the two forces separated, I could see further out into the garden and noticed a monstrous presence of both Zan and Arc coming from two sections of the foliage.

My attention quickly returned to my mental body as the gold clumps, which I’d begun to think of as birds, started darting at me. It startled me but happened fast enough I didn’t react. My body responded to their impacts across my body with pleasure, and a moan escaped my mouth.

The gathering and absorption of gold arc clumps continued until none were near me. But reinforcements seemed to be drifting from the garden. I felt a fullness like I’d never felt before. Not something in my body but a new sensation.

Absent the Arc, there was only the black Zan close to my body, which no longer resembled rope floating around me. Instead, it had formed into a long serpent slithering in a coil around me.

I didn’t plan on training you for this, but try pulling the Zan. You will need to think more of cooperation than command. Be firm and show strength, as well as offer partnership.

I followed the advice. While keeping a distance, the snaking Zan, initially hesitant and dangerous, slowly constricted around me, and as much as I wanted to open my eyes, I fought the urge.

I was focused intently as I continued to offer my thoughts of strength and support. The head of the snaking Zan paused to turn pointing straight at my face. Then it snapped down and into my body by my lower left side.

“Awww,” again I moaned at the contrasting experience of cool and refreshing water flooding my body. The two feelings complemented each other in odd ways, like having air conditioning on a hot day and sitting by a fire on a cold one.

I wrestled my mind away from the pleasure, wondering if this euphoria was healthy. I also noted that the internal force of Zan and Arc appeared to condense around the ribs containing the rogue nano.

Is this going to be a problem? Isn’t that where the rogue nanotech is?

It is being assessed, but the gathering is not affecting the contained nanotech or code. It unexplainably increases your ability to perceive and gather the ambient mana.

The influx is drawn to the concentration of the old nano, but it can’t reach the partitioned portions.

The 3% rogue nanotech diffused in your body is processing Arc and Zan. You might equate the process to digestion, as it is rapidly consuming both resources. It is quickly decreasing the consumption.

We both watched in suspense as the Zan and Arc within the mental image of my body continued to decrease in density.

It has ceased. There is extensive data I need to analyze.

No projections accounted for this level of proficiency. You shouldn’t be able to perceive even a fraction of what you just absorbed for either Arc or Zan.

Without you having vastly more experience, it should have been impossible to sense that density and gather to that extent. Both resources are abundant here, but a beginner should only be able to touch the surface layers of either. You plunged deep into the local source’s output. You also saw the closest source of ambient Zan and Arc.

Yeah, it showed up after I felt a thump in my ribs. That rogue nanotech is more potent than you accounted for. Is it time to consider removing it?

Results are significantly better than expected, with no changes to your nanotech ratio or the contained code. It activated an unknown process, and like a beacon in the dark, it drew both to you.

For simplicity, let’s call the old code Rogue. It hasn’t pressed the boundaries in place physically or in code firewalls.

So, is it playing nice and helping?

Yes.

You said the ratio is the same. Even though it just absorbed a ton of Arc and Zan?

The influx was significant for your first gathering, but a substantial quantity remains after Rogue’s consumption. Your gathering doesn’t change the amount of Nanotech in your body. It is more akin to saturating your Spirit than filling your body.

It would be best if you learned to refine what you gathered to infuse your existing Arc Nano and Zan reserves.

The goal was to gather to create a physical weapon, not gather to condense internally. The amount is enough to achieve both if you can efficiently convert it. But one thing at a time.

Alright, what do I do next?

With your eyes closed, upturn your palms and bring them together.

I followed the instructions while still basking in the feelings of the Arc and Zan gathering. I’d ask later if it was going to cause any addictive compulsions that might alter my mind or behavior.

This part traditionally is more straightforward than gathering, but given your results gathering, I’m not sure how you will perform.

For now, picture a solid shape in your dominant hand.

Right hand, picture a shape. Okay, sphere.

Slowly, a golden ball formed from my palm. Like a 3-D printer was pushing it out of my hand until it was a fully formed sphere.

Stop there. Good work.

I smiled and opened my eyes. In my hand was a perfect golden sphere about the size of a golf ball. I closed my hand around it. It was firm. I attempted to squeeze it, and it held despite increasing the pressure.

The walls had been so thin, yet they were sturdy. I was shocked, and my smile widened. I made this.

Yes, try with your eyes open and do the same in your left hand but with another shape with angles.

I considered. Cube? No. Pyramid. I focused on my desire and paid more attention to the process. I felt the Arc I’d gathered inside me condense toward my arm, then down my hand. I was even more in awe, watching the pyramid form.

Your tetrahedron is even denser than your sphere. Now combine them and shape them into a knife or dagger.

In the future, you must condense the Arc more to make constructs that will stand up to an opposing Arc or Zan weapon, but for now, picture a knife.

I began to imagine a knife. I had owned several before the system arrived on Earth. And a couple of knives were given to me by my parents for protection after the System. But still, my favorite knife would always be a Benchmade Osborne Axis 940. I got one just before I found out about the cancer. It was like the last good thing before my world started to collapse.

My focus had drifted, and my eyes had glazed as I reminisced. But a wide smile grew as I looked down at the perfect knife. It was small for a weapon, but it replicates the folding knife I’d had on Earth. I grabbed it by the handle and tried to close it using the unique Osborne Axis. But it wouldn’t move. The knife I knew was a folding blade. This had come out as a solid piece of fixed metal.

That was exceptional—a fine knife. You should be able to reform that if you wish later.

Can’t I keep it?

Yes, you may, but you’ll need a case as the blade is sharper than any blade you’ve handled. The Arc metal will cut through any physical material excluding other Arc or Zan. Only a higher tier concentration or Sourced blade can compare.

Zan can form metal, too?

Yes, it can be condensed, but many in the Zan culture divide the tasks of creation and utilization. There is an entire crafting side of the Zancara people, while the nobility primarily utilizes the crafters’ creations. You will learn more later.

I was listening, but I felt an inspiration to experiment. Holding my Arc knife, I willed Zan to my hand and surrounded the blade. I forced it into the gaps and cut through portions of the solid handle. I only let the Zan chew through the places I remembered the joints and axis mechanism were. I overdid it in a few places but used Arc to fix my mistakes.

That was unexpected. You were already an anomaly, but you might still keep that knife hidden around Zancara people. They won’t like seeing the melding of Zan and Arc metal. It honestly shouldn’t work like that. I’d appreciate it if you reabsorbed it for analysis.

No thanks, and why can’t I blend them? Didn’t my armor have a blend before?

Yes, but that occurred during your acquisition of the Z system and wasn’t under your control. That was a very dense material, and I didn’t anticipate you could form it with such ease. The metals typically repel each other and are highly acidic. They like to eat away at each other, and weapons are frequently reworked when a confrontation between the two sides occurs. Weapon smiths are in high demand.

Wait. The two kingdoms aren’t on the same team, but who else do they fight?

Empires is more accurate. Quadrant-spanning empires. Did you think they only battle one another over worlds and resources? That is accurate, but only part of the economy. Have you forgotten what life after the System was like on Earth? Dungeons, creatures of mana, fighting for survival?

That is still the way of the universe. You have more significant challenges and higher expectations now. This planet is a civilized and tamed world. Most are far from that. The culture here doesn’t call them dungeons. They are known as Temporal Gates or TG. They are heavily trafficked and controlled.

According to the network information, you will get opportunities to explore them at the academy. One of your classes is Intro to Temporal Gates, and you also have a practical application to that in the afternoon in Temporal Gate Basics.

This might be the first time I’m excited for school. I didn’t get the classic midwestern education after the cancer.

Your classes have already begun, and your homework has been delivered to this address. You will need to make up the last two week’s study material. You are expected to be in class tomorrow despite lacking the time to catch up.

Do you know all this from Network access?

You have received several notifications that I’ve hidden while you focused.

Well, I understand, but please don’t hide things from me. Is there anything else I need to know or do before Felicity returns?

You should seek her out before the five hours is over and see if you can get started on the makeup homework.

“How am I excited about homework? Everything that’s happened has me so full of energy,” I finally voiced my thoughts.

"Let's see what Felicity thinks of the new me," I cheerfully joked as I got ready to find her.