It's been two more years I’m 5 now and my stats have increased.
1. Max Colson 2. Seare: lives lived: 1
point balance: 124 points “at the start every life you get :121 points: for your gained achievements”
body: 3 (+) “determines raw physical power”
Sub stats body:
Athletics: 1 (1+) “determines your durability and speed”
Annihilation: 0 (+) “determines speed and control for large weapons”
Street brawler: 0 (+) “increase speed and control with hand weapons”
Reflexes: 2 (+) “determines evasion and speed”
Sub stats body:
Handguns: 1 (+) “better at reloading and firing faster”
Blades: 0 (+) “quicker and better at handling”
Assault: 0 (+) “better fighting in and around cover”
Technical ability: 4 (2+) “represents technical knowledge, and ability to handle cyberware”
Sub stats body:
Crafting: 1 (2+) “how to find, use, and make things”
Engineering: 1 (2+) “ability to see loot and materials you can use”
Thought speed: 3 (+) “determines Netrunning ability”
Sub stats body:
Breach protocol: 0 (+) “ability to hack people and things, and make hacking daemons”
Quick hacking: 0 (+) “how many and strength of your hacks on people and things”
Cool: 2 (+) “resilience and composure and control over yourself”
Sub stats body:
Stealth: 0 (1+) “understanding of how to hide sneak and avoid.”
Cold Blood: 0 (1+) “ability to handle killing”
Bought ability’s:
“artists hands” you have complete control over your fingers and hands.
"keep pumping” your heart doesn’t stop unless you are braindead or mentally unstable, even if its removed blood will keep flowing through your body at an even pace. Warning can be painful.
"numbness” you can control what pain gates are open with your thoughts instead of massaging them.
“fast hands” when working you can move your hands at double speed.
"remember recipe” remember all cooking recipes you have made.
“maker” know how to change recipes to fit the stuff you have on hand.
When I remember the game, all stats had a base of three, then you decided where your extra ten points went for main stats. Sub stats didn’t have anything. I have gained levels in tech from disassembling and reassembling my smart gun to the best of my ability’s my mom is pointedly ignoring the fact I’m tinkering with her spare gun. She did put her foot down on me wanting to take apart the wreath. Saying that if I break it, I won’t be able to go to school until she gets a new one, so I went along quietly.
My neck still feels like its burning every time I log out of the wreath, but every tech has problems, my mom was furious when I tried to fix it myself. And failed and just got it to spark violently. Victor told me there was nothing to be done about that and you will get used to it. the sores I used to feel disappeared when I leveled body and reflexes. I also started editing the db’s my class gave me leveling up my thought speed when I did. It sucked when I turned annoyance to the max and almost destroyed the wreath in hatred for how stupid people were. Then it ended I threw up and fixed it.
My keep pumping skill helped a lot keeping me from having heart attacks when I messed up. today I wanted to talk to my mom, about school. I was out of the basics that I already knew by heart math up to negative and irregular exponents. I knew math further well but now in school I would learn new things about cyberware and such. We were sitting on the couch relaxed. When I sprang it on her.
Seare: “I want to go to school.”
She shot up no longer laying down but sitting looking at me she absentmindedly turned off the tv.
Kiri: “I think that’s not a gr-”
Seare: “before you finish, I don’t want to go to normal school. I’m already past 8th grade math. I want to go to a tech school.”
She looked worried at me.
Kiri: “everyone will be 24 years or older… that almost 5 times your age!”
Ahh, child brain wanting to go fast. I could always take it slow. The game doesn’t start for a while.
Kiri: “and it will be the first time you are in an actual classroom. Yes, your smart and I think eventually you will do amazing in the company, but not yet.”
She’s right. But…
Seare: “instead of a collage level class how about I do a lower grade of class. Where I could learn to be in a class with those older than me but not as older as what I said before?”
She was swaying in her seat thinking.
Seare: “it will be any school you want. I won’t fight about my classes, and I’ll pass any class you put me in.”
She was probably already going to say yes, but I don’t want this to be a bad thing for her. I wonder what classes she will choose?
Kiri: “ok, I’ll need to think about this.”
I smiled and laid down in her lap again and as I was falling asleep, I saw it, she was smiling, not her usual smile but a corporate smile. Uh oh I said I would pass any class. She’s going to be difficult. My eyes closed and she fell happy, I can pass any class I’ve never not passed a class.
I woke to my alarm as usual. And saw my mom on her work computer, she usually leaves to work. The company saying our home isn’t secure enough to work. I crawled over tired still and sat in her lap and looked at the computer. She was sending an application to Arasaka Academy isn’t that the place David went to, he was 17 then, wasn’t he? Its so hard to remember. He died in 2075. Two years before the game. So, I can’t do 5 times my age but 3 is fine. probably me egging her on causing that and my showboating. Mom thinks I can do that class I will do that class.
Seare: “so what am I going to learn there?”
Kiri: “first year people will be about 15 years old. You are my little genius, you used to say that you wanted to not show off to others, but you said you wanted to pass these classes. So, let’s see how far you go.”
She was looking at me with pride. She ruffled my hair.
Kiri: “you want to be in tech collage so you will be in tech class here, also basics of coding. I’ve also seen how you mess with your db’s so a smaller class on video editing. That is if I can get this letter to the right person.”
She was smiling then stopped at that. I now remembered what world I was in, greed is the underline in every action. people can put that aside for a few people. My mom got so much high with her intellect and greed. I probably would have been in school before enow to show off to others for some reason or other, but she put that aside for me.
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Kiri: “this letter will make you legally fourteen, if I get it in.”
This made me remember my goal. Do good in my new life. Sure, I could get a small job and live happily with my mom until she dies of old age then me, but that’s not my goal. I want to put aside my greed for others when I can. And I want to make it so the world can do that to more than the small group of people you love.
First, I will help. Just wait for it.
My mom left after finishing writing it and went to deliver it to a specific person. I don’t know who but if she is able to I’ll be in the class next month when it starts.
For the next month I didn’t have school, extra 8 hours a day. But because I was going to a school in person. I could risk breaking my wreath and started taking it apart. while taking it apart I realized what I was missing. Tech went above four. I could use a skill point. It looked different from the game. There was more options. I looked through and decided on,
“disassemble” you are able to know how to disassemble whatever your hands touches “dependent on tech level”
It looks perfect for me. While I was holding the wreath I felt each individual pieces. I knew that if I learned more I could do more, make more material come from it.
After I disassembled it, I realized a problem. I don’t know how to reassemble it. I was putting it back together, badly. When the door opened, and mom came in with someone. I looked up, me sitting in the middle of a circle of machine parts. The man next to her looked me over. I decide to act like nothing was wrong.
Seare: “Hi mom, what’s up? Who’s this? ”
Kiri: “His name is Carlos going to be one of your teachers, he came with me to determine if you truly are able to join his class.”
Okokokokokokok! Calm. Collected. I put on my fake smile. Haven’t used it in a long time, but it went on perfectly.
Seare: “Hi, I was just messing with my wreath, I wanted to see its insides, I was just putting it back together. But I can do that later.”
I got up carefully went to the kitchen and sat at the table and waved a hand at another seat. Carlos was staring at the disassembled mess that was my wreath. Mom was looking exasperated at me. But took control over herself and had the same exact face I had on my face like mother like son.
He eventually looked up and sat across from me.
Carlos: “can you put it back together? You took it apart perfectly, no damage to any piece, smudges everywhere yes but that’s normal. But I looked and you aren’t putting it back together properly. So can you put it back together?”
Seare: “not yet. But eventually I will.”
He smiled and nodded, turning to my mom.
Carlos: ”He can join the class.”
Then he walked out. she turned to me.
Kiri: “YES”
She grabbed me lifted me up and onto her shoulders. And we left the apartment.
Seare: “where are we going?”
Kiri: “you will be out of the house for hours on end now, you need a phone! And we should get a treat you blew his socks off I’ve never heard of him giving a compliment.”
That made me smile. We got weird looks as we walked down the street to a 24/7 and inside, she got me a Arasaka phone. She put I in her number. So now I could call her. She doesn’t have a phone, her eyes is her phone. We then got noodles at a stand and went home.
Seare: “so, why did he not ask about my age or anything.”
Kiri: “I got the papers in and then got to meet him and convinced him that you were fourteen but never went to public school because of your height but wanted to try it now.”
Alright nice job mom.
Kiri: “that is one of three, you got the car mechanic’s teacher the one we wanted most, now you need to meet the video editing teach and the coding teacher. I’ll set up meeting’s, Carlos saw me and sprung this meeting with you earlier than we said because he had time. I’m glad everything worked out ok.”
She started rambling so I shoved her onto the couch jumped up and laid with her. She laughed quietly and we went to sleep.
my mom had me wear proper school cloths to meet the other two teachers. I entered the coding class, and the teacher looked me over, turned her screen over pulled up a program letting the image of a duck walking what direction of the cursor.
Sisley: “my class has already gone over the basics during the summer, show me that your caught up. make something similar.”
She pushed her chair back, and I pulled up another chair. My mom looked worried because I haven’t touched a keyboard. But after pressing the arrow keys I felt the rhythm. My artists hands not letting me miss the key I wanted to press, fast hands making it a cakewalk. I would need to tell mom that I had practiced on my own before. I should slow down. I stopped using fast hands. And after three minutes and made its so a bunch of pixels floated to the mouse on their own.
Sisley: “good, job. Yeah, you can stay but I won’t be treating you differently from any other student. Just because you were sheltered.”
I nodded and we left to the editing studio. There was a man sleeping in a chair waiting for us.
Mins: “hello, I’m Mr. Mins, watch this and if you can handle it, I will let you stay in my class.”
The video was a a man walking down the street but randomly there was sudden peaks of emotion each emotion it never ended and when it did it was to little emotion that I wanted to hurled. When it ended, I used numbness to close all my feeling gates. So I could rest for a minute my heart should have been going a hundred miles a minute but it pumped normally its just in my brain. Mom went to hold me to calm me, but I just crouched down and waited it out stood up and looked at him.
He was genuinely surprised.
Mins: “you won’t have to work on anything that bad, that is to test your limits. I usually throw up and have to sit for an hour after watching that one. you took fifteen minutes and are back on your feet. You pass, I will teach you how to make something like that feel normal.”
I was still shaky as we walked home, we saw at least five different crimes committed during the walk but nothing happened to us so it was fine… man this world needs fixing. Next week school will start. And I had an appointment with victor and my mom said we needed another piece of gear.
It was pretty late, about 10:30 pm when we arrived, mom said hi to Misty and we went downstairs.
Victor: “what can I do for you tonight?”
He had a nice tone of voice but also slight worry that came with working with someone from Arasaka.
Kiri: “my son will be leaving the house for school, and I want him to have a way to protect himself. But I don’t want large cyberware because he’s so young.”
I barely know anything about cyberware other than Davids sandy, gorilla arms, cyberdeck and arm rockets that main had in the anime. So, I just leave this conversation for my mom, I would learn later I had no need to learn now.
Victor was puzzled and went to the wall of crates opening them one after another. Then stopped.
Victor: “what about a mono wire? They are expensive but they are expensive for a reason?”
My mom pursed her lips in thought. Wait I do know that one, lucy from the anime had that the wire that can cut through things.
Seare: “how much is it.”
Victor: “ 12950 new, the one right here will cost 10,000 eddies. A little under the cheapest pristine cars by about two thousand.”
Shit, sure my mom was in the lowest section of rich so we could by it but it would be a huge investment. She tapped her foot.
Victor: “there is also arm slot gun you can with a mental command release a gun from inside your arm?”
Kiri: “we will get the mono wire.”
I took the pills again and when I woke, I had a cartridge connected to the bones in my left arm. It looked like a spiderman web slinger, but it was bigger. It hurt a lot, the skin touching it felt like it was being held against ice and the bone felt like it couldn’t move without pain. I almost screamed in pain when I woke but he handed me a pill and I drank it fast. my hand started twitching but the pain went away it still felt cold and wrong but when the pain stopped, I could deal with it. I looked at my hand and forced it to stop twitching.
Victor: “nice job kid, you just had a big change. You shouldn’t get any more cyberware for a long time. come with me I will teach you how to use your new tech upstairs there is a boxing ring we won’t fight but it’ll be easier to teach instead of in this mess.”
My mom was asleep, I was under for an hour, and it’s now almost midnight. So she fell asleep, I left her there and send a message on my phone about what me going with Victor.
We walked upstairs two flights of stairs. Inside was a boxing ring that felt made me feel like I was back home. one of my friends went to a boxing championship didn’t win but I came to all their games. We entered the ring.
Victor: “ok kid, tell the wire to shoot out in where your hand points.”
I lifted my hand not pointing at Victor and thought shoot forward…nothing happened I looked up to see Victor chucking at himself.
Victor: “you haven’t decided on a command words. Sorry I forgot.”
We went over to the side I plugged in my interface plug to a computer and saw the coding for the wire, they were all voice commands stupid, I started coding like I would in a game. And changed it, it would now shoot out in a straight line if I flicked my wrist after thinking “shoot it” in the past ten minutes. And to shoot it out if I flicked my wrist three times in a row. A second code was added that if I though dull, then my wire wouldn’t be able to cut things. I looked up and saw that Victor was setting up a punching bag, but it looked different made from metal.
Victor: “you’ll cut through normal bags kid, so I need these.”
I unplugged from the computer and walked over.
Seare: “thank you, Victor.”
Victor: “call me Vic.”
Seare: “then call me Siri.”
He smiled and so did I. and over the next three hours I learned how to use the Monowire and realized how great it was.
At the end I felt weird again like I did a week ago. I got to level four in something! I get a perk every time I get to level four, ok. Its in body, and in street brawl… Monowire levels street brawl.
I look over the perks I can get, and can’t decide, but the one I like most, is pressure healing.
“pressure healing” the more pressure you feel the faster you heal.
I chose that. And I feel a weird feeling in my arm the muscles that were tired from the workout I just gave them were getting less tense as they healed faster. It was now 3 am. I spent a half an hour coding and three working out and learning the Monowire. I washed of the sweet and grime and saw Vic smiling.
Vic: “your no corpo child, are you?”
Seare: “unlike last time I was here at I’m legal 14 no longer 3 years old like last time. by the way, so no children here.”
I winked at him, and he laughed.
And about being a corpo, what is that about, I am my mom works for a a bunch of corpo’s and is considered one by them and I’m her son?
Vic: “your body, you work out even though your so young, I can see muscles and only a little fat on you. You aren’t being babied, your used to hard work as you only needed one break in the three hours we practiced.”
Seare: “corpo’s aren’t weak though, they all have high end cyberware.”
Vic: “yeah sure, corpo’s aren’t weak but they don’t have grit in doing hard things, you do. And you going to me for Cyberware, sure I’m good but my wares aren’t as pristine as the ones Arasaka supplies.”
Seare: “we aren’t full corpo’s we are the bottom tier of rich, we came here so late at night because my mom used her one day off every other month to help me meet my teachers. So, I will work harder and climb high, off the board she made for me. Ill pull her up too.”
He smiled at that. Nodded.
Vic: “kid, no Seare, I’ll remember you, so come back anytime. Come with me, I will help you with this.”
I we went back downstairs, and he went to through a case of db’s and grabbed one.
Vic: “This is an XDB, its illegal, it shows someone who went cyberpsycho and died. This person had a that Monowire your using, it will help train you to use it at the level of an edge runner, but it’s makes you feel Cyberpsychosis, so only do what you can handle. It was used in the net, so its special.”
He held it out to me and I grabbed it stuffed it in my pocket, mom wouldn’t let me watch this.
Seare: “thanks, Vic.”
I walked over to my mom woke her and told her about training to use it with Vic and we left saying goodbye to Vic.
End of chapter: Three