Pearl’s words rattle around in my brain for the rest of our overly long fabrication work. ‘Ladies and gentlemen don’t go to war–they stay at home and pretend they won’t be next’. It feels like she’s quoting someone from how easily she said it, so obviously I won’t know who it is, but it almost felt… casual and flippant. Like an inside joke.
I almost ask her about it a hundred times, but for some reason, it triggers the system’s censorship every time I do. Not her explanation about how she remembers things through whatever she did to the crystallized shellraiser–that’s obviously fine and not at all important knowledge. But some random quote that might just be from a novel she read?
Yeah, censor that shit. Wouldn’t want me knowing dangerous things like that, system, now would we?
It takes almost three hours to put the coin holster together. For a chunk of glass and wood with shell circuitry that sits on my forearm lined with coins that supposedly regenerate themselves from my inventory, it looks pretty good. All the shell pieces are used like metal traces in circuits, connecting the important pieces together, but also as the parts that give commands. They line all down the part that’s meant to press against my skin, feed through every coin nook, and cluster around the inside of my wrist and elbow with the parts that actually process whatever magic Pearl put inside of it.
The glass is mostly just the frame, but considering how it’s apparently harder than steel, it’s also the armor for everything else. Leaving the wood to be used in smaller parts, creating gaps between the glass and the shells wherever it’s needed and in the place of straps to keep it comfortably on my arm.
Before I start working on the next piece, I test it a dozen times to make sure it actually fits right against my arm. And that the slight tingling I feel coming from the shells isn’t them cutting off my circulation. Pearl repeatedly assures me that they aren’t, but her explanation gets censored to all hell, so she could be flat-out lying to me. I don’t think she is, but it’s still a possibility.
“Does it fit right? Did I do anything wrong? I can try to fix it if it’s not perfect.” Pearl worries over me like a grandma making sure a knit sweater fits right. “It should be completely comfortable with the everdriftwood straps, so if it isn’t–”
“It’s more than fine, Pearl.” I cut her off before she can get herself even more worried. We still have two more things to put together, after all. “It still tingles, but that doesn’t look like it’s something we can get rid of. Now, can I please identify it?”
She purses her lips and hums worriedly, but eventually gives up with a sigh. “Oh, okay. If you really want to.”
Yes, in fact, I do ‘really want to’. I’ve wanted to for almost twenty minutes now, but she keeps stopping me for some weird reason or another. I’m beginning to think I won’t like what my system tells me. That won’t stop me, though–I raise the inside of my arm up to my eyes and focus my mind on it. Just in case I get a blast of censorship right away.
“Identify.”
The outline of a screen pops into view between me and the holster. I wait impatiently for it to fill in, but after a few seconds of it doing absolutely nothing, I start to worry. More seconds tick by, and with every single moment that nothing happens, my worry only grows. Is the system completely censoring the item description? Or… wait.
Does the system not have a description for it since nobody’s ever made it before?
“Pearl, does that slate tell you exactly what this thing’s supposed to do?”
She nods slowly, then hops over to the glass slate. “It says that by connecting a Class Card to it, it can automatically draw out coins to be used for spells. Apparently taking a coin from the holster is supposed to be faster than taking one from your inventory, so even if you want to throw one, this would be faster.”
“And that’s it?” I frown and push the screen frame out of the way. “All that work just for a holster that holds my coins?”
“Well… no, not technically.” Pearl says slowly, then taps the slate. “It says here you can put mana into it to create ghost quarters, but you… um… don’t have mana. And you already have a spell that converts Worth into ghost quarters. So it’s kind of useless for you?”
I rap my knuckles against the bracer with a thoughtful frown. Sure, I don’t have mana, but I do still have a Soul stat. If all of my spells have to be used through coins, and their effects only scale with how much Worth is in that specific coin, then Soul would be completely pointless. Either making it a perfect dump stat or giving it some other use I haven’t even thought of yet. Well, no matter what, I should still link this thing to my Class Card before I write it off as useless.
I raise two fingers and summon it between them, then reach down and tap it against the little glass lens near my wrist. It glows gold for a split second, then the holster flashes with veins of the exact same colour. I flex my fingers a few times as the tingling sensation on my arm fades away, only to be replaced by… something a lot weirder. Like having another body part strapped to my arm that’s brand new, and that my body has now decided is a part of me. One that it can now completely ignore until something happens.
Connection established with: Unknown Shellraiser Mechanism.
Altering Soul stat to account for this change.
Working… complete.
Check the stat sunscreen to see the extent of the changes.
…Okay, better check that first, I guess.
Shellrisen Soul
Increasing this stat increases the number of mechanisms you can be connected to, while also increasing their efficacy and decreasing the mental or physical strain of using them.
Some mechanisms have Soul requirements before they can be equipped.
In addition, any shellraiser abilities outside of mechanisms are also augmented by this stat.
I really, really hope that’s a net positive change. Soul seemed like a completely useless stat before, but that was with one or two Mind backing the description. If I somehow screwed myself out of becoming the strongest wizard of all time for a coin holder, then I’m going to be pissed. Especially because the damn thing’s description is particularly unhelpful.
Shellraiser Mechanism: Arm-Mounted Coin Holster.
Connection established: Worth or coin-like objects can be designated to replenish the slots in the mechanism.
Further details will be revealed as you discover them.
The damn thing’s telling me to figure it out on my own. Not only is that annoying, but it also really puts a damper on the whole ‘all powerful system’ thing. We already know the holster is supposed to do other things–they’re written on the blueprint. So why can’t the system just… transfer that information into the description?
“So? Does it work?” Pearl asks, her body tense with excitement and nervousness. “I think I did everything right, but even one misplaced shell piece can screw up all the mana circuitry. Or it can make the glass way weaker than it’s supposed to be.”
“No idea, since I don’t have enough coins to fill it.” I sigh, but hold out my arm anyway. “New coin thing, fill yourself with the rest of my skeletons.”
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A flash of gold accompanies the rest of my skeletal coins filling some of the slots–four out of the six, to be exact. It looks like way too few coins to properly protect myself and Pearl, which makes me want to go back to the frozen pile of sand. But that place is hours away. I need to find some other way to replenish my stock that doesn’t risk screwing everything else over.
Pearl leans in and hums to herself. “It looks like it works. The coins are held in place by a thin layer of constricting magic, it’s properly connected to your Class Card, and it doesn’t look… too uncomfortable. Can you help me with the other two projects, or do you need a break?”
I blink slowly as I push the thoughts of refilling away for later. “I’m good to keep going. How about you? Can you actually help with this, or are you here for mostly moral support?”
“Moral support is help.” Pearl pouts, but doesn’t say anything more.
I take that to mean there’s a good long stretch of work and conversation ahead of me. With a wince I press the small of my back, then lean forward to get a better look at the weapon I’m about to put together. It’s somehow even more complicated than the holster, and from the looks of the amplifier, it’s even more complicated than the weapon.
Looks like I’m pulling an all-nighter if I want this done before tomorrow.
----------------------------------------
Well, it took even longer than expected, but after nearly six straight hours of complex puzzles I’m finally done. I smile with pride as I gently run my fingertip down the razor-sharp blade made of shellraiser shells and slide it into the glass and wood sheathe that accompanies it with a satisfying hiss. The matrix sits right next to it; a hexagon of wood and glass decorated and etched with shellraiser shells that are supposed to empower me somehow.
There’s only one, teensy tiny, itty bitty, absolutely major problem–my soul stat. With only one of it to my name I can only connect one of these things to my Class Card. I played around with my system a little in the few breaks I took and found that they appear under my spells and skills tab, which has been renamed to spells, skills, and mechanisms. It’s as easy as pressing on one name and ejecting it to switch which one I have equipped, but I was kind of expecting a real boost in power.
Not… whatever it is I have now.
Shellraiser Mechanism: Shellbound Knife.
Connection established: insert Worth or coin-like objects into the handle to empower this weapon.
Further details will be shown as you discover them.
Shellraiser Mechanism: Personal Empowerment Matrix.
Connection established: insert Worth of coin-like objects into the heart of this mechanism to empower yourself.
Further details will be shown as you discover them.
The worst part is that everything costs Worth. The matrix does literally nothing without them, the holster only makes it easier to use coins, and the knife… well, I guess it’s still a knife even if I don’t put anything in it. Not sure if that means I should use it as my one connected mechanism or if it’s better off not being connected at all.
I sigh and grab the sheathe and the hexagon, then toss the both of them into my backpack. The thing’s been good at keeping everything else intact, so might as well trust it with them.
“What’s the heavy sigh for?” Pearl asks with a tiny yawn. “Is it the same as a few minutes ago, or is it a new thing?”
“Same thing as before. Finding out that everything needs to be coin-powered when that’s the one thing I’m seriously short on is annoying.” I swing the pack over my shoulder and raise my chin at the last blueprint. “So what are we going to do about blueprint number four? Any reason we didn’t start on it while we worked on the others?”
“Oh, there’s a very good reason. Just not one we have control over, unfortunately. Most of the materials are the same–wood, glass, and shells–but we’re missing a vitally important compound; raw magical extract.”
Raw magical extract? That sounds like something I could’ve bought from Gil’s shop. Or a quest reward I haven’t been offered yet.
“Alright, then; how are we supposed to get that?”
Pearl sighs and shakes her head. “I don’t know. We had entire processing operations for it way back when and a bunch of magical stuff to run through them. Minerals rich in the raw magic of the earth, plants that consumed magic through their roots, water that sat above an ancient sunken ship; that kind of thing. If we had some way of breaking down your shell shards and mixing them with the right acids, we could turn them into the extract.”
“But we don’t have those things here.” I finish for her when she doesn’t. She nods in confirmation with a defeated look, but I’m not quite there yet. “What about potions? Do you need that extract to make them?”
“No, you can use tinted extracts. Like… fruits and animals and stuff that have properties you want to put into the potion. A potion made with pure magical extract would be way more expensive than a normal one, and not necessarily any more powerful.”
A smile pulls at my lips as I pull my water bottle out of my backpack. “What if–and I’m just spitballing here–someone had a water bottle that magically purifies anything inside of it? And she also had a useless mana potion she emptied into it in the hopes that it would give her fresh water?”
Pearl stares down at the water bottle in disbelief, then up at me with unbridled excitement shining in her eyes. “Please tell me that isn’t a hypothetical. Shelby, please tell me you aren’t kidding around with me!”
I set the bottle down on the platform and gesture at it. “Take a look for yourself if you don’t believe me.”
She does just that; scampering down my arm to press her face against my water bottle with pure anticipation. A thick blue powder lines the inside of the filter that glimmers like crushed sapphires mixed with freshly fallen snow. The rest of the bottle is filled with a silvery-white liquid that shimmers and twists as if trying to make a whirlpool on its own.
“Oh my gosh, it actually worked.” She gingerly runs her hands up and down the bottle as if it would shatter from too heavy a touch. “I haven’t seen a filtering setup like this since… well… ever! And you just got it for free when you appeared here?!”
“Indeed I did.” I confirm with a nod. “Will that be enough raw mana to make the shell?”
“It’s more than enough! We’ll have to use about half of it to make the shell itself, and then a quarter for a layer of liquid between the shell and the power core, which leaves us with another quarter to play around with! Can I use it? I promise I’ll put it towards something useful for both of us.”
“If it means I get the power core, you can knock yourself out.”
Pearl squeals happily and hugs the bottle. “Thank you! Thank you thank you thank you! I won’t disappoint you! Give me five minutes to look over the plan again, then I’ll get started on… it…”
A massive yawn interrupts her excitement and brings her pause. She reluctantly looks at the raw extract, then sighs and steps away. Her fingers stick to it for as long as physically possible, but eventually even those fall away as she clambers up my arm to her shell.
“I wish I wasn’t this tired, but I am. And if we’re going to make something as important as the power core shell, I can’t make any mistakes. Can we spend one more night here?”
I clench my jaw and steal a glance at the door tracks that lead up the ceiling. One more night might not sound like much, but I can’t spend that much time being useless. But I’ve got a potion that can partially remedy that–in one way or another. I grab the flask of bottled sleep, swipe over to my information tab, and finally check it out.
Bottled Sleep
A low-grade twist on a stamina potion that recovers alertness and removes fatigue.
The effects are purely mental; your body will not heal as it does when it normally sleeps.
“Do potions work on you, Pearl?” I ask as I take a small sip, then shudder as a horrific flavour combination of intense ginger and burnt coffee assaults my tastebuds. “Oh, god, that’s horrible.”
She raises an eyebrow at my reaction, curiosity written plainly on her face. “No, they unfortunately don’t. What does it taste like?”
I wipe my mouth and shudder again. “Like I just poured ginger ale into an ashtray and slurped up the thick slurry.”
“...I don’t know what either of those things are, but that sounds horrible.” She says with… is that jealousy in her voice? No, it can’t be. Who would be jealous of this garbage?
“Okay, then. Can you open the door for me?”
Pearl looks at me like I have two heads, but nods anyway. “Not that I don’t trust you, but why?”
I walk over to the door to let her press her hand to it. The entire thing starts to rumble the second she does, and I shift my backpack to make sure it’s as comfortable as possible. Don’t want it smacking against me every time I take a step.
“Because I’m about to have a few free hours that I’m not going to spend sitting around doing nothing.” I say as I watch the door rise into the roof. “There’s a trove of barely raided skeletal ghost quarters just a few hours from here, and I’m going to remedy that.”