After Chloe heads upstairs, I do a bit of trawling around several closets and drawers looking for anything that might make for a good weapon. I don’t immediately see anything that stands out to me. The idea of throwing flailing clothes hangers about as improvised throwing stars briefly crosses my mind, but that’s a bridge or three too far even for me. Similarly, although the idea of throwing cards sounds cute, I’m not sure there’s a lot of destructive potential.
No, wait, there’s probably some sort of tarot-based class that can throw cards around. Charge [Ether] into them and use them to mimic spells. Maybe some [Reality Mage] variant?
That thought leads me down further rabbit holes as I start thinking of all the different class possibilities I could have had. I’m very content with my class personally, but I do muse about what other classes might be out there, mostly so I can start devising countermeasures. I quickly stop when I realize it’s a fool’s errand trying to match wits and imagination with a nigh-omniscient system. The only real possibility is to prepare as much as I can and hope that it’s enough to keep us alive.
I start thinking more about what sort of weapon I want to craft for myself. I start with the more mundane weapons, the classic fantasy staples of swords, spears, axes, and bows. They’ve been in use more or less since antiquity, and their simplicity to create makes them favorable first choices. As much as I like the prospect of flying around in an airship, raining hell and fire down upon any who threaten us, I don’t think my measly Level 3 self is going to be coming up with the schematics for anything like that anytime soon. Maybe at Level 300?
The prospect of riding around in an airship makes me happier than I know how to express in words. I’m sure that it’s what my class wants to do, but the satisfaction at the thought is even greater than that. Something related to my past life? I wish I could remember at least something about who I supposedly am or was or… I start to groan in frustration, but restrain myself for Chloe’s sake. I try to remember something, but after a few minutes of failing, I move on.
I don’t like the idea of a melee weapon. I’m not going to outpower people with martial-focused classes, the [Fighters] and [Paladins] and similar. And I don’t have the [Speed] to slip into the defenses of [Mages] and similar who will try to pepper me from afar. No, the true power of my class is in its versatility out of battle, and its progression path over the long horizon. I need to fight like I did against the spider earlier. Stay at range, assail it from afar, and only come into melee when the enemy is incapacitated.
A bow would be the obvious choice for this, but I’m not exactly muscular, and my [Strength] stat is far from my priority. A crossbow doesn’t sound bad, although I’m not sure the exact firing mechanisms behind them. I also think crossbows require quite a bit of physical strength to fire, and they have a slow recharge time. A good option for when I need maximum power over a single shot, but not a good primary weapon against masses of enemies or in a fight against humans or intelligent enemies empowered by the System.
Guns would be a logical choice. Sadly, Chloe and her family don’t have any, and with the apocalypse upon us, I doubt we’re going to find anyone parting with their weapons anytime soon. This is more of a short-term concern, though. Pre-System guns might be useful for a few levels or so, but the power of mundane weapons from the old Earth is going to drop off as people become superhuman in every way. Even without investing in my [Strength], I still have enough to do dozens of push-ups without stopping, and I definitely didn’t have that capability this time last night.
Instead, I go with the simple, if somewhat archaic blowgun as a first weapon. Simple to produce, easy enough to wield, and I can probably make a second one for Chloe. The tradeoff is limited stopping power, which is why I want to try to enhance it with [Ether] as I should be able to. Even better if I figure out a way to fire solid [Ether] projectiles.
My [Flash of Insight] suggests that this is not only possible, but a key part of my class. Heck, with a few modifications to the skill, I might be able to repurpose it. I stealthily close the bedroom door as I experiment a bit. I hold a single unit of [Ether] in my palm and prepare the skill, but I hold it back at the last second rather than discharging it. My hand glows with the blue-white light of those new-fangled ultrabright headlights that scream ‘I’m going to see all around me, and I’ll blind every other driver around me to do so!’
I focus on trying to compress the energy into a smaller and smaller sphere. The [Ether] fights me, but eventually, it starts to coalesce in the center of my palm. I try to push it further, but once it gets down to the size of a golf ball, it becomes too difficult to push further. I grimace. If this is as much as I can concentrate [Ether] in my palm, I won’t be able to use it as an effective bullet.
I sweat. I didn’t realize until just now how difficult this is. Like taxing a completely new set of muscles for the first time. Instead, I try holding the [Ether] in that state for as long as I can. I last about five minutes before I release my skill. I lie on the floor and catch my breath. Hopefully Chloe doesn’t notice that I worked up a sweat when I sidle into bed later.
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I see a new System notification pop up in the corner of my eye.
[You have unlocked the General Skill: [Basic Ether Manipulation, (Rank I)]. Would you like to unlock this skill? (General Skill Slots Available: 6/6)]
Apparently my [Touched by the Multiverse] is not considered part of my Skills, and therefore doesn’t take up a skill slot. Good to know for the future. I’m obviously going to take the Skill, but I want to see exactly what it does first.
[[Basic Ether Manipulation, (Rank I)]: You are naturally inquisitive and seek to better your understanding of the world around you. Not content to use Ether to power Skills like most, you seek to manipulate the fuel of the universe at its most basic level. This Skill will assist you in your journey. (Note: This skill has multiple ranks. Ranks will increase once certain conditions are met.)]
I find it a little strange that none of my other Skills have ranks. Maybe they will develop into different Skills with more powerful or general effects later on?
I try the same thing as before, and I see a bit more success. I’m able to compress a single unit of [Ether] down to the size of a quarter before it gets too difficult to continue. I’ll have to keep working on this later if my goal for an [Ether]-powered blowgun is to work properly. I also imagine Chloe can get a similar skill given she has a magic-focused class, and I’ll have to teach her in the morning.
Instead, I spend the rest of the evening analyzing the canister I got earlier. It’s an absolute masterwork of engineering. Hundreds of glyphs too small to make out with the naked eye and etched into the sides. I suspect without proof that they somehow define the properties of the canister, or regulate the flow of Ether within.
I grab a sheet of paper from downstairs and bring it back up, where I begin to trace the glyphs I can identify. I have no success with causing the paper to look like anything more than a piece of paper with scribbles on it. Most likely, there are even more components of the glyph that I can’t make out at this resolution. I curse silently, bemoaning the limited tools for my craft.
I also make a mental note that crafting some sort of goggles with high magnification needs to be high on my list of priorities. That, being able to see Ether, being able to mimic the effects of the [Identify] skill I really wish I had.
My last question concerns the Ether canister I have. If I open it and release the stored Ether, I might get some insight into my [Basic Ether Manipulation] skill. I might also be able to understand more about how the device works. That information will be invaluable for sure.
However, the risks are too great. I don’t know how much Ether is stored inside, nor do I know the ramifications of releasing it all at once. Plus, there’s the opportunity cost of having a one-time [Ether] restorative. If there were some method of recharging it, that would be ideal, but I have to assume it’ll be consumed permanently. At the very least, it’s not a decision I’m willing to make without Chloe’s counsel.
The night has not been fruitless, but the hour is growing late and my strength is fading. I set everything down by the floor in Chloe’s bedroom and hop back to the bathroom to rinse my face and shoulders off. Honestly, another bath sounds really nice, but I don’t want to risk waking her up. That, and her mother should be home soon.
I’m surprised she’s not, given it’s nearly 10:00 PM. She must really be working late. I guess our jokes earlier were more accurate than we’d thought. I head back to Chloe’s room, only to be greeted by the phone buzzing. Her mother is calling, and I step back into the entertainment area to answer.
“Hello, Mrs. Jacobs. Sorry, it’s Sera. Chloe headed to sleep a good while ago; I saw you on the caller ID and decided to answer for her.”
“Oh, hi Sera. And thank you,” she says. “She’s okay, then?”
“Yeah, sleeping soundly. A long day for everyone.”
Mrs. Jacobs laughs. “Isn’t that the understatement of the century? Anyway, I’m still doing okay. Unfortunately, there’s been some hooliganry going on downtown since early this evening. Our building is secure, but we’re on lockdown until law enforcement takes care of the situation. So I’ll be staying here overnight and I’ll try to get back home first thing in the morning.”
“I’ll let her know in the morning. And, I think you and your colleagues should handle your System initialization sooner rather than later, if you haven’t.”
“You really believe in all this stuff?”
“After everything I’ve gone through and experienced today–” I whisper the next part. “–including your daughter gaining the ability to heal people with her touch, yes, I have no choice but to believe.”
“You’re–” She pauses. “Not joking, are you?”
“I’m not. Please don’t tell anyone else; we’re trying to keep quiet about our abilities. And I think it would be best if you did the same. I’m sure some of those hooligans, as you called them, are looking for a chance to use their new powers on unsuspecting people.”
“I– I see. I will take your words into consideration.”
“Thank you.” I yawn. “If I may, I am about ready to sleep myself. I’ll let Chloe know you called when we wake up in the morning.”
“I appreciate it. Talk with you later, Sera. Bye bye.”
I say my goodbyes and hang up. I yawn again as I plug Chloe’s phone back in and slide in next to her. Her bed is plenty large, so thankfully we each have more than enough space and can even sprawl out a bit.
I reflect upon the day. And surprisingly, especially considering we just went through the literal apocalypse today, it was a pretty good day.
I pass out less than a minute after my head hits the pillow.