The conversation between Firin and me lasted longer than I expected.
Night had fallen by the time our chat had ended. De-powered lights hanging from the ceiling illuminated the train’s cabin. Their soft yellow glow cast gentle shadows that swayed like a lantern held by a sleepy guard.
I hadn’t even initially noticed when her brother left the dining car. I had forgotten his presence completely while we talked and laughed. Shortly after the lights were turned on to compensate for the setting sun, I thought of him, and my head swiveled to where he had been seated. Occupying the seat was another couple who were quietly enjoying their own dinner.
Our conversation reached a lull, and we realized we were the only ones left. Firin yawned languidly, and I knew it was time to call it a night. I had an eventful day again, so I looked forward to relaxing the next day and hoped to spend more time with Firin.
“Would you like to have breakfast with me in the morning?” I asked as we stood outside the sleeping compartments.
“I’m not much of a morning person,” Firin replied. “How about lunch?”
I laughed at her sheepish response and agreed to have lunch with her. From what little I remembered of my mother, she wasn’t much of a morning person either. My father and I would always rise with the sun and go outside the cabin to let her sleep. The mornings when we didn’t leave were rarely pleasant, so I knew when to give someone space in the morning.
We bade each other goodnight, and after her compartment door closed, I turned and entered mine. Hadrian’s side of the compartment had already been converted for sleep. The hulking man was curled up on the slender cushion with the blanket draped over his shoulders. His size made the adequately dimensioned blanket appear to be made for a child.
I was surprised that he could even sleep in such cramped conditions. The compartment would have been small yet manageable for the average person. I assumed it would be difficult for me to sleep. For him, I thought it would have been miserable. Yet, there he was, sound asleep.
At least he isn’t a snorer.
As silently as I could, I prepared my half of the compartment for sleep. It was a difficult task due to the cramped conditions, but it wasn’t complicated, so it went quick. I found the blanket and laid down, curling up similar to Hadrian. Just as my head hit the minuscule pillow provided in the compartment, a loud snore erupted from Hadrian.
“Damnit,” I mumbled.
My comment was either too loud, or Hadrian was a light sleeper. With a half snore and a choke, he woke up. He laboriously flipped to his other side and looked at me blearily through the darkness.
“Matt?” he groggily asked.
“Yep.”
“Must have had a good time,” he said after a pause.
I thought about our conversation for a long while before responding. I couldn’t remember having a better time. It made me look forward to life in general.
“Better than you could imagine,” I said. However, it was too late. No more comments came from Hadrian. I listened to his deep and even breathing as he slept. I smiled as I continued to replay the evening in my head. I was sure the smile still showed as I fell and stayed asleep.
The next morning, I awoke with the sun, which was usual for my schedule. Hadrian wrapped every scrap of his blanket tightly around his body. His breathing was still deep, so I didn’t want to wake him. After caring for my morning needs, my stomach grumbled loudly for attention. I knew the dining car was open, so I headed there.
Only a few patrons were scattered around, but each was oblivious to my presence. I sat down on the side where I could get the best view and waited for the server. When they arrived, I ordered a ham and cheese omelet with a side of hash browns. I knew what an omelet was but wasn’t sure about the hash browns. When I inquired further, the server told me they were potatoes, thinly cut and fried with oil until one side was crispy. I wondered why they couldn’t call them crispy potatoes or something else easy to understand, but I didn’t really care that much.
While the server was gone, I quietly stared out the window while I sat. We were currently traveling along the side of a steep hill. The treetops were far below, spreading in multiple directions like cracks in the dried earth. It dawned on me that it had been a while since I checked my status. I knew there wouldn’t be much difference from the last time, but I wanted it to be fresh on my mind. I needed to start thinking about how I wanted to grow it once I had the time.
“Open Personal Status.”
Personal Status -
Name: Matthew Gearwon
Class: Regulator
Robot Compatibility: 5.83%
Compatibility to next boon: 10%
Compatibility to next function: 10%
Attack: Natural Realm – 7 (+5 in Symbiotic Mode)
Mystic Realm – 2
Defense: Natural Realm – 7 (+5 in Symbiotic Mode)
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Mystic Realm – 2
I thought about my personal status for a few minutes and decided it was missing something. I realized what it was when I looked again at my attack and defense numbers. When I first gained my robot and the ability to check my status, both attack and defense parameters were a six in the Natural Realm stage. After I started cultivating De, they eventually jumped to a seven.
That jump in number indicated that there was a method to quantify my level of cultivation. I didn’t want it to always be an arbitrary feeling I could never grasp. I prayed that including the cultivation level in my status would be easy, but I didn’t have high hopes based on the past difficulty of my system.
-Processing request…
-Checking for authorization…
-Authorization confirmed
-Adjusting requested parameters…
-Adding the field “Cultivation Level” to Personal Status
-Request complete
My food came while the system was processing my request. I set about devouring it with abandon. The diverse food I kept getting was the greatest thing about not living in a cabin. I didn’t think I would get tired of it anytime soon.
Once I finished eating, I opened my personal status again to check it and sighed in relief. The information was actually there. It sat comfortably just below my class and above my robot compatibility percentage. The field parameter indicated that my cultivation level was at E-. I had no idea if that was good or bad. My options were to either cultivate more and see how it advanced or try to change it so I could understand it differently.
Although, my best guess was that it was similar to monster classification levels. If I was correct, it meant I had a long way to go being at E-. Before I could consider it more, a body slumped in the seat opposite me.
I assumed it was Hadrian and hoped it was Firin, but seeing Arthur glaring at me from across the table filled me with dismay. I was also confused that he was sitting there, but I knew that, for whatever reason, it wouldn’t be good.
“Good morning.” I played it cool and made him think his presence didn’t bother me. “Is there a reason you decided to sit with me?”
While he stared and I waited for his response, I took a moment to notice the lack of his robot. Most people left their robots in their compartments since the added space they took up was too great. However, I was so used to seeing them that it became glaringly obvious when one was absent.
Arthur didn’t look anything like his sister. He had short dark hair and sharp lines on his face. He also had a permanent scowl and a distant stare protruding from his dark circled eyes. I expected the usual glare of hate, but a calm apathy was in its place.
“I don’t know why, but my sister seems to like you.”
“She seems great,” I said after giving my response some consideration. I didn’t want to say anything too inflammatory, but it seemed to not matter.
“She is great! And she doesn’t need the attention from some worthless vagabond like you.”
“I don’t think you know enough about me to say something like that.”
Arthur paused to consider.
“Do you have any money or assets?” I didn’t even know what he meant by assets.
“I have money,” I scoffed.
“I don’t mean your paltry winnings from the tournament or whatever scraps you amassed beforehand from odd jobs.” He leaned closer. “I’m talking about real wealth, the kind of wealth that a lady of her noble lineage is used to. Where are you from?”
I refused to answer his question. Even if I did want to mention my town, I knew it wouldn’t matter unless it involved me being a prince or a son with noble blood. It was a trick question.
“As I said,” he continued when he knew I wouldn’t answer. “A worthless vagabond.” Arthur let the comment hang in the air, and he looked unconcerned with the level of insult slung at me. I seethed with anger and considered lashing out at the table. My knife was next to my hand, and I longed to use it to wipe his life off the planet like I used it to scrape butter off my toast. “Yet, I would do anything for my sister. I practically raised her. Did she mention that?”
“Not really.”
“That is the outcome of teenage rebellion,” he sighed.
“Or your horrible personality,” I said coldly. I didn’t feel the need to be nice any longer.
“Anyway, since I would do anything for her, and her wellbeing has been entrusted to me, I’ll do what I must.” I observed Arthur closely, wondering where he was going with the comment. “I want you to stay away from her.”
“What if she doesn’t want to stay away from me?” I asked cheekily. “It’s her choice anyway, right?”
Arthur leaned back and briefly looked out of the window. “It is,” he eventually said. “In that case, if you intend to continue spending time with her, there is something I would like for you to see and understand.”
“What’s that?”
“It’s something I noticed yesterday and elucidates my point greatly.” He got up from the table. “Follow me if you think you are man enough.”
If I’m man enough? Does he want to fight?
Whether he did or not, didn’t matter to me. I couldn’t let any more insults slide with him. If he did want to fight, I would have the advantage since he didn’t have his robot.
I got up and followed Arthur out of the train car. We left from the other end, moving away from the passenger cars. The next car was where the food was prepared, and the servers gathered inside. I paused momentarily, expecting someone to say I wasn’t allowed in there, but I was almost completely ignored.
A few servers glanced in my direction but quickly turned to complete their own business. Arthur was already halfway across the car, moving at a brisk pace despite the cramped confines. Equipment for cooking and preparing the food lined both sides of the train car, with people interspersed throughout. Arthur deftly walked among them, and I hurried to catch up.
When I entered the next car, Arthur was nowhere to be seen. The car was devoid of people and nearly empty of furniture and equipment. Each side was windowed from top to bottom with sporadic seats bolted to the floor, facing outward. In the right corner of the car was a steep spiraling staircase.
I didn’t even know that the cars had a second floor. Arthur was ahead of me, but I didn’t think he had made it to the door at the opposite end of the car. So, I headed up the stairs.
The second story was exactly like the first, except the ceiling was significantly lower. I looked out of the windows and saw the train coming atop a large bridge. The windows allowed a vast view of a massive gap the train was going on. I looked down and saw a deep and wide river far below.
“It’s this way,” Arthur called from across the train car.
He was standing by another door on the other side. As soon as he called me, he stepped through the door. Before the door closed behind him, I noticed sunlight shining through. Apparently, the upper gangway wasn’t covered like the lower one.
I hurried to the other side of the room to catch up. I pulled the door open, and a strong wind buffeted me while a bright light shone into the car. My cotton shirt billowed in the swirling wind. Even though I wore goggles, they did little to shield my eyes from the light, so I squinted as I moved to quickly cross the gangway.
A sharp pain erupted from my side.
I crumpled as I flew sideways. I saw the edge of the train moving by me, the open sky as I sailed through it. My arc was low, and for a moment, I feared I would land on the bridge right next to the tracks. The horror of where I was heading dawned on me when I sailed past the bridge. I turned futilely to reach for the edge. I might as well have been reaching for the Orb in the sky.
Although, I did briefly notice the scowling visage of Arthur peeking from between two train cars. Then, as I tumbled through the air, I could only see twirling images of white concrete pillars, dark blue rushing water, and a lighter blue of the sky.
“Symbiotic mode,” I yelled. It was all I could do to hopefully survive.
End of Volume One