July 31, 493 U.C.
A fae woman in a dress huffed, sending her white hair flying. “Honestly, you are hopeless!”
That’s rude. I didn’t make this horrible language. “No, you’re hopeless!” I retorted in Faiin. Then I grinned. At least I’d picked that one up.
She rolled her eyes and pointed at the alphabet. “Again! Start with AAAAAAA-”
~~~
Like a screaming banshee, my alarm screamed its unrelenting song. I smashed it with my hand and rolled out of bed. Rotten alarm. I was finally getting somewhere.
With a yawn and a long stretch, I imitated a cat before taking a seat at my desk. Then I pulled up the internet and frowned.
Guardian Command Update!
The Galactic Collective - Everything we know!
Guardian System Upgrade!
Tower Layer Two! Advancing Guardian Certification!
I put in my ocular computer and powered it up. “Can you just tell me, Ela? And no tricks.”
Text began displaying rapidly.
Galactic Update in Progress…
“Why not summon me?” Ela asked.
“Promise not to get into trouble?”
“Promise!”
I invoked the spell.
“Yay!” Ela said happily as she fluttered around the room and landed on the desk. She grinned at me and straightened her gold dress. “Thanks, Casey!”
I giggled as she spun. “What are all the System Upgrades?”
“They incorporated streamers and followers. Yes, you have followers. Both of you. I could show you, but you’d have to make a contract to broadcast. Since you won’t meet, that isn’t happening. You should just meet already.” Ela sighed and studied her nails.
“I’m not streaming anyway.”
Ela batted her lashes at me. “The followers can watch and send you rewards as part of the quests. They can see them when Guardian Command issues them. We can give more information. And the fae have expanded the reputation rewards. They are significant and amazing. It’s too bad you’ll never get them unless…”
I ignored her jab and her attempt to trick me. I scrolled down.
Ela sighed. “They’ve also updated it to allow nobles and law enforcement to make requests since they are fighting. Are they really going to war?”
“Maybe. Who knows? That’s why I’m staying on Vuln. No one will fight here.”
“Good. You be safe.” Ela grinned and shifted her dress to match my magic girl outfit.
“Don’t let Dad see you wearing that, got it? He’s here.”
“I got it. I got it,” Ela said with a sigh. “Just do it already.”
“What about the Galactic Collective?”
“You’ll find out,” Ela said quietly. “They’ll issue requests to humanity. They have their own reputation and certification system. They ask for favors depending on what they need.”
“Who are they?” I started searching on the computer.
“A collective that oversees magic and several worlds.”
“And do they register people without consent? I assume they can’t.”
“You’re already registered for quests and reputation,” Ela said with a grin.
I groaned and closed down the news. Then I walked out of my room while Ela perched on my head. Cursing filled my ears. One of my cousins was visiting.
“Doing alright, Travis?” I called.
“God, no! This sucks!”
“Sorry,” I said sympathetically. “You’ll get used to it in no time. I did.”
“I’m not some goddamn alien like you!” He bellowed back.
That stung. I turned and walked to the kitchen. Honestly, I couldn’t wait for school to start. I needed another break from my family. Pulling out several ingredients, I constructed a hearty breakfast burrito.
“Where’s mine?” Travis asked as he walked inside.
I scowled and ignored him. He deserved it after that mean comment. Walking into my room, I debated it while I considered the inevitable training time. Oh, whatever. I don’t care. I slammed the door.
“Brat,” my cousin muttered from outside.
I finished eating, got changed, and then turned to Ela. “Sorry. I’m visiting a friend today.”
“Just let me fly! It’ll be fine!” Ela replied with a grin. “I can hide in your bag.”
“Sorry, Ela.” I ended the spell. Then I walked outside and up the corridor. I knocked.
“Hi, Casey. How are you?” Daniele asked as the door opened.
“Good. I need a break. My cousin is visiting. Can I come inside?”
“Sure. Why do you need a break?” Daniele stepped aside.
I hung my head a little as I walked in. “They are just being all bossy and mean.”
“Do we need to worry?” Denise asked. She looked at my arm with a frown.
“No, I ran into a tree,” I lied and regretted forgetting my hoodie. I looked at the medcast and checked the status. Another week.
“Uh. Huh. How’d you manage that?” Denise asked with that stern doctor expression.
“I slipped. It had been raining. I get spacey. Hi, Dr. Drake!” I waved.
“Good morning. Did you get breakfast?” he asked.
“I did. Thanks. I just needed some feminine energy.”
“I’ll leave you three to it then.” He chuckled and meandered to the kitchen.
“Did you see the news? Come on!” Daniele marched me to her room and then logged onto her computer. She powered up the guardian site. “You can get an app too. And you can watch them live. Some of it’s pretty rough. I didn’t realize how bloody it could get.”
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“Yeah,” I said without needing to look. I’d had plenty of experience with that. I studied the background of her computer. A pink-haired magical girl was standing there. “Rose?”
“Yes, I like her. She’s usually with Sunshine. You could be a yellow! Then we could team up!” A giant smile sat on Daniele’s face as she looked at the squad. She turned to me and giggled.
“That’d be fun!” I giggled back.
“You can donate to help them. Admittedly, they don’t need it, but you can also earn points by reporting crime or other things. They also have a shop. And they are going to invite more people to be guardians.”
“That’s cool. What else did they add?” I asked.
“They have a few little things. You can watch the guardian feeds. Some of them get censored. But some of the guardians are doing raffles on their streams.”
I leaned over. “Are they teaching Faiin?”
“No. You can also talk with a familiar. I picked a fairy; her name is Ama. Look!” Daniele pointed to the screen, which had a little fairy who suddenly woke up and grinned.
“Hello! Sorry to be so quiet. I got distracted. There were some integration issues,” Ama announced through the speakers while fluttering on the desk screen. “It’s so nice to meet you! I thought I’d take a second. You two seem like wonderful girls! I looked at your records. You should both go get tested for magic!”
Ela landed on the desk with a look of sheer glee.
“You are a traitor!” I mentally screamed at her. “This is not allowed!”
“Summon me!” Ela said while dancing on the desk.
“Yes! Yes! Yes!” Daniele chanted.
“I already had the test,” I said. “I failed. Maybe next year.”
“I’ll waive that for you,” Ama said cheerily. “It’s done.”
Daniele was far too giddy to pay attention to me. That was a very good thing. I rapidly began trying to calm my thundering heart and rapid breathing. Embracing my inner monk, I tried to become calm while Daniele did the opposite.
Daniele twirled, spun, and dashed back. “Of course, we’ll get tested! How are you, Ama?”
“I’m doing great. Since you are polite and nice, I’ll make you a contract! If you get tested with your friend, I’ll send you a plushie!” the horrible fairy said.
Another squeal rang through the air, deafening everyone within earshot. A flock of rotk tore off into the sky. I watched them while rubbing my ears.
Daniele took several breaths. “This is the best day. Did you need something from me, Ama? I can help!”
“Just get tested and be ready to help!” Ama said. “It’s fun to see you both!”
Daniele was grinning like an unsupervised kid in a candy shop; I was trying to imitate the world’s best poker player. Today was not my day.
“This is just so exciting,” Daniele said. “I’m so glad I finally got to talk to you!”
Ama giggled and gestured. “And here’s your quest!”
Quest: Get tested with your friend!
Reward: Ama Plushie
“Casey! We have to go get tested!” Daniele said instantly, vaulting back up from her chair.
“I have to wait for the cooldown.”
“It was waived. They want a full test!” Daniele grabbed my hand and headed for the door.
“I have to go with my grandparents. We can wait a little.” I took a deep breath. I’d need to plan for that. The treacherous fairy was making me do way more work. Luckily, even she didn’t know about Time Stop.
“But we can go. Please, Casey, please.” Daniele gave me puppy eyes. Her big brown eyes opened wide. Her lip trembled.
I sighed and gave up. “Alright, Daniele. Let’s get tested.” I followed her out and planned to use Time Stop to fake it if needed.
Daniele marched out of her front door with the most jubilant face in existence. “I can’t believe she’s getting me a plushie for doing this.”
“I know. She must think you have magic. That’s my guess.”
“That would be so amazing! Maybe that’s it!”
I followed the giddy girl through the streets while working through my plan. We had blood in reserve. I’d need to swap it out if forced. Unless. If she goes first, I can distract her! Ah ha! Nearly laughing maniacally, I walked into the towering guardian command. The doors were metal and bullet-proof glass. The hall was marble. There was a terminal in the entryway. Turrets were on the other side of the next set of doors. It was clear that the next one was by invitation only.
Daniele walked over and put her palm on the terminal. A needle pierced her skin. It filled a small vial with blood. Then it pulled it inside.
“One moment, please,” the automated voice said. “Would you like confidential results?”
Daniele looked around and just saw me. “No, thanks. – OH MY GOD!”
I leaned over. Then my own eyes widened. “Well, that explains why she said that she’d send a plushie.” I giggled hysterically. Ela had found me by chance, but she was foiled for the same reason. That made me giddy. I glommed her with a hug.
“Potential match. Request re-screen in three months,” Daniele said with a massive grin. “This is such a good day, Casey.” She held the little card up.
“I agree! Now tell your parents!” I let out a squeal, grabbed her hand, and pulled her back towards home. That was way safer.
“No! Get tested too!” Ela protested.
“Not a chance!”
Ela started spamming me with a quest which I ignored.
Daniele grinned and bolted down the streets with me. Several people dodged out of our way and told us to slow down. We ignored them as we raced down the streets, feet pounding on the cement and pavement.
Racing into the corridor, we dashed up to her house. Daniele burst inside with the card held high. “Mom! Dad! Guess what!”
“What, sweetie?” Denise asked as she walked forward. “You’ve been in a mood this morning.”
“Potential!” Daniele handed over the card with a grin.
“Very impressive,” Denise said and hugged her daughter. “Try not to get your hopes up too much, please.”
“But I have potential! Ama told me to do it!”
I nodded happily. “Yeah! Let’s demand your plushie!”
“No! You didn’t get tested!” Ela protested.
“That wasn’t the deal! She just had to get tested with me. I was there. Ergo, she got tested with me!” I laughed internally.
“Treacherous Casey! I’ll get you for this!”
“Look who’s a villain now!”
Ela pouted and stuck out her tongue. Then she laughed villainously and vanished.
It was all that I could do not to laugh as I followed Danielle into her room.
“I did it, Ama! And I have potential.”
“Yes, you did! I’m looking forward to your next one. I’ll send you the plushie.”
“I better head home. Have fun, Daniele.” I hugged her. Then I walked out the door and headed home.
“There you are,” Dad said as I walked in.
“Welcome back.”
“Casey, help your cousin with meals. You know that.”
“Sorry,” I muttered.
“No friends for a week. And don’t disobey again or the punishment will be worse. We need more supplies for Starb. There’s a list in your room.”
I groaned audibly, letting my wail roll through the hall like a call of the damned.
“Don’t start,” Dad said furiously. “This is for the greater good of humanity. Have you forgotten that?”
“No.”
“Then do it without the complaining.”
I nodded and glanced at my arm. That shut me right up.
“And I need you to execute the next phase of the plan this weekend.”
I nodded again. “Got it.”
“Channel your inner villain. Practice while you make potions.”
I turned and walked to my room with a sigh. Then I glanced up at the top of my contacts.
Galactic Credits: $0. Fae Reputation: 2000.
That was a development. Ignoring it, I made potions and practiced my villainy while I stirred.
Current Level 10 Current XP 97.98% Current Max Mana 8101.39 Regen per minute 13.50 Reputation 2000
Tier Skill Cost Tier 10 User Time Dilation (Haste)
- User experiences 256 seconds for 1 earth second.
- Force transference limited to 12.5%. 2 mana per earth second. Tier 6 Pocket Dimension
- 128 cubic meters of pocket space.
- Rapid stash and rapid draw.
- You may tether objects to your pocket space.
- Your pocket space preserves items inside. 32 mana Tier 6 Time Stop
- Caster leaves spacetime. They may remove and place things back in spacetime.
- You may control the flow of time in the demiplane.
- You may summon in willing living creatures.
- This automatically triggers if you take significant damage. 200 mana to cast.
Variable cost to move items in and out. Tier 6 Teleport.
- Teleports the caster or a willing creature.
- You may cast this on an unwilling creature if they are within ten meters.
- You may teleport inside an object, causing the matter to push outward.
200 mana for the caster.
400 mana for a willing creature.
1000 mana for an unwilling creature with no resistance.
- Short range casts cost less mana.
Tier 3 Attire Swap
- Locked to a single outfit. Current outfit set to Magical Girl Uniform.
- Attire cleaned on swap.
- Attire repaired on swap. 20 mana. Tier 3 Enhanced Body
-Caster’s body is enhanced by a factor of eight. 2 mana per caster second. Tier 2 Enchanting.
- Enchantments last twice as long. Variable cost. Tier 2 Potions.
- Potions last twice as long. Variable cost. Tier 1 Free casting
- Cast any spell you can replicate. Variable cost. Penalty of 8x mana. Tier 1 Familiar Manifestation. 20 mana to cast. 1 mana for each additional minute.