Chapter 78
Preparation
While sitting next to Jason in the cafeteria, Leo messaged Mr. Osmond.
Future Man 10/16: I'm going to send over my list, but first I got to ask. Mr. Osmond. Did you alter my school ID? I don't know what my school ID number was, but it was interesting how the agents noticed a 5191 in my ID because of that alien prophecy.
Teach: Did I alter your school ID?
Future Man 10/16: I remember you fiddling with my ID two Saturdays ago, and the agents commented on the number.
Teach: I would prefer not to answer that question. You will find your school ID number matches the number in our system. It occurred to me that if some Guardian is going to show up and save us, that wasn't here last time. You are the obvious person for it to be, due to your unique qualifications.
Future Man 10/16: An interesting theory. But Guardian is not a character class I've been offered. I have been offered Paladin/Rare, however. Possibly better than Guardian.
“Leo. Leo. Are you awake?” Jason was looking at him, concerned. “The class bell rang and you're staring off into space.”
“Yeah. Just tired.” Leo stood up.
Teach: I see. It was just a thought. Paladin/Rare is impressive. Let me know if anything comes up.
Future Man 10/16: I'm sending you a list of supplies for us and a list for me. Before you cry about my personal list, remember I did get tortured for you.
Leo could swear he felt Mr. Osmond sigh over their connection.
Teach: Send me the lists and I'll see what I can do.
School passed quickly.
Future Man 10/16: Angie. Want to train? I need to raise my stats.
Zrrkr #1: Not today, Leo. You know I want to get you back for the last time we fought, but things are insane right now.
Future Man 10/16: Wouldn't have anything to do with your sister and some counterfeit Bio-Blessed, would it?
Zrrkr #1: Do not get me started. I want to kill my sister, but someone else may beat me to it. And I'm so mad at that stupid alchemist guy!
Future Man 10/16: I guess it's me and my backyard tree again. I'd offer to help you, but I'm pretty sure I'm a liability. I'm counting five drones following me right now. Good luck.
Zrrkr #1: You too.
That afternoon saw Leo hitting and kicking the elm tree in his backyard, deep in thought.
How do you prepare for the end of the world?
He noticed he was getting better. Punch punch kick, block duck kick kick dodge, swing.
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His movements were faster and easier. He had a long way to where he'd been in his previous future, but he was sure any fight with Brick and his cronies would go differently this time.
“Imp. Do you know anything about the aliens and the end of the world? Did they cancel or change anything?”
I'm sorry, Leo. The aliens do not inform me of their plans. From my perspective, nothing has changed.
“I suspected as much.”
Not to be a nag, but claiming and leveling up Paladin/Rare will put you in a much better position should this end of the world happen. I would point out that your chances of gaining anything better than Paladin/Rare within the next ten days are vanishingly small.
“I know. But I don't want to choose a character class until I know what's going on. And at this point, I have no idea.”
Leo had given a lot of thought to what he could do differently this time around. Because of the changes he'd made. This apocalypse would be very different for him. Instead of being a shunned freak, one step from being an Afflicted himself, he'd be a sought-after implant wearer. That didn't mean he wasn't stocking up on non-perishable foods and supplies, though.
Last time around, most of the surviving city residents had sheltered in the city stadium. A good defensible location. He tried to think of everything the survivors could have used last time around. Food. Clean water. Sanitary supplies. Decent places to go to the bathroom.
Yeah. they needed to order a bunch of porta-potties. And toilet paper.
He'd put everything he'd thought of on the list he'd sent to Mr. Osmond. And he'd already bought candy bars, protein bars, jars of peanut butter, and multivitamins. It's hard to keep a balanced diet during an apocalypse.
“Oh. Shit. Imp. Is it possible to use Demon Tears to speed up your implant replication process? It would really help if I could make two implants by the end of next week.”
Leo couldn't believe he hadn't thought of it before.
I'm sorry, Leo. Demon Tears are useful for many things. But implant replication is not one of them. I can replicate myself once every thirty days. I don't know of any way to speed up this process.
“Dammit.”
He continued to work out.
***
Wednesday, October 8th, 2059
7 days to Armageddon
Leo lay in bed, exhausted. It was early Wednesday morning and Leo, as usual, had slept poorly. The Professor was sending everyone on his contact list page after page of end-of-the-world instructions.
The Professor: Let me first state that it's unlikely the aliens are being honest with us when they say they won't end the world. Even if the world does not end as predicted, the aliens may do something else and preparedness is essential.
To that effect, I strongly recommend everyone reading this should know the location and quickest route to your nearest, monster-proof, emergency shelter and tell all your non-implant-wearing friends.
To determine if your shelter is monster-proof...
With a groan, Leo slowly dragged himself out of bed. After working himself to the bone, he'd joined his sister for an unremarkable dinner, watched TV while listening to her complain about some idiot implant wearer, and fell asleep while reading the latest book Mr. Osmond had lent him, titled “Sun Tsu and the Art of War.”
It wasn't the worst book he'd ever read. It was full of phrases like “know the enemy and know yourself,” and “when on death ground, fight.” Unfortunately, the book's advice was either obvious or impossible to implement. He knew the enemy was stronger and faster than he was. Not helpful. And the problem with fighting on death ground is you tend to die. A lot. He knew this from experience. Hence the term death ground.
To add insult to injury, The Professor had sent him what was practically a book via implant messaging. He didn't disagree with The Professor, but the man went on and on... Leo mentally scrolled down page after page of implant messaging.
The Professor: Most implant wearers will gravitate towards combatant character classes. But I want you to consider non-combatant classes, like say janitor. What does a janitor do? They clean chemical and biological waste products and create an environment hostile to organisms that might seek to harm us. Such a skill sounds very useful in the apocalypse. Not to discount combatant classes, but if you have the choice between, say, Swordsman/Common, Janitor/Epic, or Garbageman/Legendary. Consider choosing one of the latter. Not to be immodest, but I chose a non-combatant character class to improve my memory and cognitive functions, and I have indirectly killed hundreds of imperialist police and soldiers around the globe by aiding freedom fighters.
Leo sighed. Unfortunately, he was still expected to go to school.