I gaped. The quest had said something about winning an item from Earth, but I’d never imagined this.

“Is that a motorcycle?” Ruby asked as she too rose to examine it.

I laughed with delight. “It’s my motorcycle. Or, maybe it used to be.”

The color scheme was the same custom midnight blue of my GS1300, but as I paced around the bike, the many differences sank in.

It was like Cyrus had taken my old bike and given it a sci-fi upgrade. The bike was a bit longer, sleeker, with larger wheels and smooth tires with slitted holes running down the center. Twin objects that looked like jet thrusters extended behind the seat, while more tubes pointed down along both tires.

I didn’t know what it meant, but the more I looked at it, the more I loved it. Finally, Identify kicked in.

“Switchblade Skimmer of the Trailblazer. Legendary. This unique item started as a boring Earth motorcycle, but has evolved into a vehicle of exploration and conquest. Upgrades include:

Mana Core. Engine is powered by a legendary quality energy crystal.

Hover Bike. Ride on a cushion of air up to 2 yards above the ground.

Soul bound. Item is bound to your soul. Cannot be stolen or lost. Does not consume space in inventory and can be summoned or banished at will.

Self Repair. When banished to your inventory, will self repair over time.

Weapons Battery. 3 slots for defensive capabilities, and 2 slots for offense. Upgradable. Can absorb spell scrolls, weapons, or items with magical effects. Note: spells or effects may be altered to fit Switchblade’s systems.

Starting battery: Shield Dome. Defensive. Creates a defensive dome of magical energy to deflect most weak to moderate attacks. Shattercore Ballista. Offensive. Launch a magical bolt straight ahead to deliver explosive damage. Rate of fire: 1 bolt per minute.”

I whistled softly as I read the description, then placed my hand reverently on the smooth faring encasing the front of the bike. As soon as I touched it, a tingle of energy flowed up my arm and I felt the bike. A flood of information poured into my mind like when I gained a new ability and I instinctively understood how the bike worked.

“What?” Ruby asked as I stood there with a stupid grin on my face. That’s right, she lacked Identify.

“It’s my old bike from Earth, but evolved into some kind of sci-fi battle platform.”

“Can they do that?” she asked with a frown, then chuckled. “Obviously, they can, but why don’t we see other advanced tech? I mean, most of us get medieval fantasy weapons. Those energy rifles you took from the zombies are the only other tech I’ve seen.”

“Good point. The zombies were from the second stage. Maybe the technology will evolve with each level.”

“Maybe, although the nymph queen used a trident.”

“Sure, a trident that could cut a man in half faster than a laser.” The image of the cloud split in half above her came to mind and I shivered. I’d grown a lot in the first 3 days, but I was still nowhere near powerful enough to take on something like her.

“I have to find Jane and try this thing out!”

With a focused effort of will, Switchblade disappeared. I checked my inventory and found a new tab with a slightly ethereal look to it labeled Soulbound Items. Inside, I found Switchblade, complete with a status bar listing power levels, damage levels, time to full charge, time to restoration, and a listing of both offensive and defensive abilities.

“So who exactly is Jane?” Ruby asked in a teasing tone, eyes twinkling.

“She’s my brother’s girlfriend. She’s an even better biker than me. She’s going to love this.”

“Oh.” She shrugged. “Let’s go find her.”

Jane nearly exploded with impatience to see Switchblade by the time we left Stepstone behind. The only signs of the recent battle with the bulls was a huge open swath of clear ground where the grasses had been trampled flat.

When I summoned Switchblade, Jane gasped, then laughed and rushed around it, examining every component. She asked about every piece until I finally said, “I don’t know about that either. I just got it, remember.”

“Then get your lazy butt on the bike and let’s test it out!”

Switchblade didn’t have a kickstand, but stood upright all on its own. When I settled onto the comfortable seat, the bike whirred to life with a quiet hum, not the throaty growl of most bikes. A screen opened where my LCD would be back on Earth. It listed status and power levels, but lacked any buttons. I would trigger the weapons with my will.

This book's true home is on another platform. Check it out there for the real experience.

Gripping the handlebars, my grin widened. The bike was proportioned perfectly for me. I quickly scanned the controls and realized it didn’t have a clutch. No gears, then. I guess the magical crystal powering it didn’t need any.

The front brake lever was situated in front of the right grip like normal, as was the rear brake pedal by my right foot. I wasn’t sure how brakes would work on a hover bike, but I’d find out.

“Go already!” Jane laughed.

I gunned the throttle.

And nearly fell off the back of the bike as it accelerated a lot faster than my old GS ever had. That bike hadn’t been a slouch, but Switchblade was like an electric vehicle, able to kick in 100% power instantly.

Jane’s laugh chased me as I recovered my balance and quickly mastered the throttle. Tall grasses whipped at me as I tore across the plain. Guards protected my hands, but I lacked a helmet.

The information dumped into my mind gave me an intuitive understanding of the bike’s non-Earth functions. The left grip had a throttle to control altitude. I quickly learned that I could indeed adjust from rolling over the ground like a traditional bike to soaring up to 6 feet. That put the wheels just above the tops of the grasses, and I laughed as I zoomed over the plain, leaving tall grass waving in my wake.

Turning was pure joy. As I banked, additional thrusters fired and I suspected some kind of hover magic helped under the covers too. I found I could turn so hard, I skidded across the air before the thrusters could catch up. The bike responded instantly to my commands and the ride was smooth and controlled.

Weapons testing came next. I accelerated so fast the whipping wind nearly blinded me. I’d have to get my hands on some goggles or something. In moments, I flashed across the plain and neared one of the hills leading up to the higher mountains. There, I sighted on a lone tree and mentally triggered the Shattercore Ballista.

A bright blue beam of energy erupted from the front of the bike. Shaped like a giant crossbow bolt, complete with a thick-bladed head, it shot forward at twice my speed. It detonated against the tree in an impressive explosion of splintered wood.

I slowed to inspect the results. When the dust cloud cleared, the tree had been reduced to a field of charred splinters. The air smelled burned. That was as strong as Thunder Punch! Aiming was intuitive. All I had to do was point Switchblade at the target and let loose.

I was tempted to target some of the bulls massed on the far side of the plain, but resisted the urge. They wouldn’t give me enough experience. I planned to hunt bigger prey as soon as possible.

By the time I returned to Stepstone, a large crowd had gathered. Word of an actual motorcycle had spread all across the settlement and two dozen people clamored to try it out. Even Tony and Burns were there, along with a couple other leaders of Stepstone.

The first stood out like a bright rose among brown grass. The shapely woman had long strawberry-blond hair and wore a sparkling white blouse and slacks a blinding shade of pink. Her brown leather jacket might have dampened the effect a little if it wasn’t covered in flourescent green clovers.

“Crystal Bennett. Level 23 baby human. Team One Piece.”

It took a minute for the character to click into place for me. On that one, Cyrus had to work a bit harder. Crystal had to be playing the role of Jewelry Bonney, the character with age-altering abilities. I couldn’t wait to see what powers she got.

The other was a burly older gentleman with close-cropped white hair and intense blue eyes. He wore only a pair of simple brown trousers and a blue linen shirt.

“Paul MacDonald. Level 21 baby human. Team Great British Baking Show.”

I nearly laughed. He did look a little like Paul Hollywood, one of the judges on that show. Isabella loved binge-watching every season. Watching it always made me feel hungry.

Jane barely waited for me to hop off before leaping into the saddle and gunning Switchblade. She tore away, her laughter trailing behind.

“That’s an amazing item,” Burns said as the town leaders gathered around me and Ruby.

Tony added, “Yeah, we got special quest reward boxes too, but now I’m thinking I got shafted somehow.”

“Why? What did you get?”

A medieval longsword appeared in his hand. It was a beautiful, double-edged, two-handed sword, with gold highlights on the handle and an odd matte black finish instead of the expected steel sheen.

“Mark III Sword of Piercing. Epic. Transmutable.”

Tony smiled as he hefted it. “I love this sword, don’t get me wrong. It’s supposed to be nearly indestructible and I can change it into different shapes of roughly similar size.”

“That’s incredible.” A flexible weapon like that could turn the tide of a lot of battles. Tony was on team Marvel, and I’d already pegged him as being Cyrus’s choice for Iron Man. Calling the blade Mark III was a dead giveaway.

“How about you?” I asked Burns.

He hesitated, and I forgot all about the question as Jane somehow jumped Switchblade up out of the grasses and high into the air. In midair, she twisted the hover bike into a full 180, pointing back in the opposite direction, but still flying backward.

The bike’s faint distant hum intensified into a loud whine as flames blasted out the rear thrusters. The backward slide slowed so fast, it was a marvel Jane didn’t tumble off the back. Then the bike shot forward like it was fired from a cannon.

Jane disappeared back into the grass only to reappear a moment later, again rocketing above the supposed 2-yard height limit as she tucked into a barrel role. She spun 3 times before disappearing into the grass again.

A moment later, she shot out of the grasses, aimed straight at us. She accelerated until people started murmuring nervously. At the last second, she slammed on the brakes and the bike whined as counter thrusters and its hover magic kicked into overdrive, slowing the bike so fast I would have catapulted over the handlebars. Jane braced herself against what looked like several G’s of force, bringing the bike to a stop right in front of me.

“I’ve got to get me one of these!” she laughed.

As 20 voices shouted for a turn, I stepped close to Jane and asked, “How did you make it do all that?”

“You’ve barely touched the potential in this thing. Run it along the ground, then when it hits an obstacle, thrusters in the front tire fire to bounce over it. I used that to jump it above its normal limits. That’s when I realized I was no longer limited to maneuvers my tires could handle. I was flying for Stryker’s sake. I used the directional thrusters to spin the bike, then floored it.”

How long would it have taken me to figure that out? Jane loved pushing the limits even on Earth dirt bikes too. I’d seen a video of her riding up a 30 foot vertical cliff. Mind boggling.

She reluctantly dismounted and patted the front faring. “I’m officially jealous, Lucas.”

“I’ll let you ride again. Promise.”

I banished Switchblade to a lot of grumbles. I didn’t know most of the people clamoring to ride my new bike, and even on Earth it wasn’t normal to let just anyone take your bike for a spin. Besides, we’d consumed a chunk of the bike’s power with our high octane maneuvers.

Tony said, “Lucas, we’re about to hold a meeting of the leaders of Stepstone. I’d like you to join us to report on what you saw on the second stage.”