Peter scratched his head as he sat back at the table. He handed his wife her mug. “Okay, I’m officially confused. Why does it take eight times longer to level a class with four energy types?”

Blake shrugged. “I have no clue, that’s just the way it is. A single class costs a hundred million nano to buy the first level, dual-class cost two hundred million nano, tri-class is four hundred million, and omni-class is eight hundred million. Each step up adds another magic type and gives you another spell per level of that new type.”

“But the more classes you gain, the more it takes to level, so you’re always behind everyone else. Is that right?” his father verified.

“Yep.”

“Wouldn’t that make you actually weaker?”

“Yep.”

“Then why the hell do you plan to do that?” Peter asked in exasperation. “I thought you said you needed to get as strong as you possibly could.”

“I plan to.” Blake agreed. “But I also gained a title and a few achievements that will make what I want to do possible. Because I’m the first human to join the Collective, I get twice the nano as everyone else. I get more nano for completing directives, and my attributes are increased as well.”

His mother finally interrupted. “Last I checked, twice the nano isn’t eight times.”

“It is if you solo the scenarios.” He explained. “Almost everyone with a single class fights in scenarios with four people. I always did. Any more people in your group and it’s too inefficient, any less and it’s too dangerous. But, the nano is split four ways. Now, I’ve seen a few parties that contain two dual-classes, and they can work as well, but it's still riskier. The more people you have with you, the safer it is.”

“Then why don’t you do that, then?” Donna asked as she collected the plates now empty on the table.

“Because we tried that before, and we were too weak. The alien leader that attacked was an omni-classer. It had all four types of magic and was higher level than us. There was nothing we could do to stop it, even with hundreds of us attacking.”

“And you think, getting an omni-class yourself will allow you to stand up to it?” Peter asked between sips of his coffee. He leaned forward, eager to hear his answer.

Blake nodded. “That’s the plan. Like the Architect says, the higher the risk, the higher the reward.”

“That’s a lot of pressure to put on one person.” His mother noted, her voice laced with concern, as she filled the dishwasher with their breakfast plates.

“Oh, I don’t plan on doing everything myself. I’m hoping you two can help me as well. And Oliver, eventually.”

“Of course we’ll help in any way we can.” Donna agreed as she returned to the table. “You’ll always have a place to stay, food to eat, and whatever else help you need.”

“Thanks for that,” Blake nodded. “But I was actually talking about the faction I’m going to create. We’re going to have thousands of people joining us. They all need to be managed and coordinated, planning needs to be done, and a city has to be built for it.”

His parents exchanged a glance. “Uh… son,” his father said. “We don’t know how to do any of that. Are you sure you don’t want someone else to fill that job?”

“Wasn’t mom a project manager? That’s pretty much what they do, right? And, don’t worry, I’ll help you and answer any questions you have. I’d try to do it on my own, but that wouldn’t leave me with any time to level. But, the most important thing to me is trust. You wouldn’t believe how many factions were destroyed from within by assassinations, mutinies, and lack of trust between the leaders. If you two are in charge while I’m gone, I don’t have to worry about a knife in the back when I sleep.” Blake suddenly grinned. “At least, I hope I don’t have to.”

When his father snorted in amusement, Donna gave her husband a sharp look. She turned back to her son and said, “THAT, at least, I can promise you. What about Oliver? He needs to be part of this as well.”

“If he ever comes home again…” Peter mumbled.

“Actually, I saw him yesterday. He showed up to grab some food from the pantry and I ran into him.”

Donna leaned forward. “How is he? Does he look healthy?”

“He seemed fine, at least, maybe a little pale? Well, he was fine before I told him my plan, anyway. He thought me being from the future was hilarious. After I said I’d heal him though, he got pissed and left.”

His father nodded. “Yeah, that’d piss him off, alright. Every time we bring up a new medication to try, we don’t see him again for a week or more.”

“Why?” Blake asked.

“There’s no cure for Parkinson’s disease.” Donna said sadly. “The medicine only treats the symptoms and has side effects of their own. We think he wants to forget all about it and just party. Every time we remind him that he’s sick, he gets angry.”

“Well, there’s a cure for it now.” Blake stated evenly.

“Yes!” Peter blurted. “He can choose chi and heal himself!”

Blake winced. “That’s probably not a good idea. Low level spells won’t fix his issues, and it would take years to get them to a high enough level to cure him. It would be better if I get an alchemist to make him a healing potion. It won’t take as long, and in the meantime, he won’t die in a scenario when his hands shake too much to hold his sword steady.”

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“That DOES sound better,” his mother agreed, a light seemed to return to her eyes as Blake spoke of healing her oldest son. “Where do we get an alchemist?”

“First, I have to create a faction. Then, we have to level it up high enough to build an alchemist workshop. Only then can we appoint someone an alchemist. After that, I don’t know how, but they level up their non-combat class in some way and eventually unlock the ability to craft the potion Oliver needs.”

“Wait.” his father said, just as excited as before. “If a potion can heal anything, we can make millions. We won’t even have to worry about betting on the mega-bowl.”

“It’s faster, but it's not THAT much faster.” Blake corrected him. “I doubt an alchemist will be high enough level to make one before Invasion day.”

“Oh…” his father deflated. “That means Oliver is gonna be sick for a while then.”

Blake nodded.

“Well, that just means we need to create this faction as soon as possible.” His mother said. “How much longer until you can do that?”

“Well, it costs a billion nano, so it’s going to be a while…”

Donna frowned. “Well, a billion is a big number, but that doesn’t really tell me anything.”

“Well, I gained almost ten million nano for the scenario I did yesterday.”

“That’s great.” Peter said. “That means you just need to complete a hundred of them, and we’re good.”

“More than that. First, I need to upgrade my attributes. If I’m stronger, I can take on the scenarios faster and safer.”

His father nodded along. “How much does that cost?”

“Well, I plan on maxing them out first. You can only raise twelve attributes per level, and each time I do, it costs ten million nano before I get my class. So, that’s a hundred and twenty million nano there, and more later on.”

“Would getting your class first make it easier?” Peter asked.

Blake shook his head. “The opposite, actually. Once I get my class, I have to fight monsters with access to magic as well. It’s safer right now.”

“But, you’ll have magic too, and more of it.”

“Yeah, but right now, the monsters are predictable. There are thousands of different spells. If they cast one that I’m not ready for…” he shrugged.

“It sounds like it will take months.” Donna said.

Blake nodded. “It will, which is why I need to start now.”

His father looked at the microwave clock and suddenly shot to his feet. “I’m going to be late! We’re supposed to open in five minutes!” He glanced back at Blake. “Sorry son, but until we make that money from the Mega-bowl, the restaurant pays the bills.”

“I understand, I need to get going too.” Blake said and then stretched.

“Wait!” His mother stopped him. “How are we going to check on you when you’re doing these ‘scenario’ things?”

“I promise to text you every time I get back.” Blake assured her. “But my phone won’t work inside the portal.”

Donna frowned but nodded.

After he hugged his parents goodbye and handed his gold chain to his mother, he wrapped himself in the bloody jacket and ensured he had his standard supplies. Without a baseball bat for a weapon, he rifled through the kitchen and decided to bring a thin butcher knife. The blade was only eight inches, but it had a longer reach than the pocket knife, and beggars could not be choosers. Unfortunately, it did not have a sheath, so he was forced to wrap it in thick fabric before he stuffed it into his jacket pocket.

Hopefully the next scenario rewards me with a better weapon.

Once he was ready, he hopped on his bike and began to pedal down the road. It had snowed overnight, but the roads were already clear. In the shade, small drifts of powder remained, but it was hard for piles to last long in the cloudless sky.

Despite the stiff breeze fighting him as he turned North on the main road, he quickly reached the airport. He hopped the fence, hid his bike, and climbed the rocks once again. The portal remained invisible to his senses, but with far more confidence than before, he leapt off the ledge.

Blake fell for a moment before his body was sucked in. His vision blackened and words appeared before him.

You have re-entered a combat scenario you have already completed. Would you like to increase the difficulty?

No.

If he raised the difficulty, he would be forced to fight against goblins with magic. While not every goblin would contain a combat class, enough would that he would likely die. He would stay with classless scenarios as long as he could get away with it.

Defeat the goblins to complete the combat scenario.

Good, another elimination scenario.

The kill objectives were by far the simplest. You either killed them, or they killed you. However, there were plenty of other objectives the AI could assign. The type he hated the most were the protection missions. They varied between carrying a crying infant through enemy territory to a stronghold, or defending non-combatant villagers from attack.

If the attackers decided to wait two days before they made their move, you were stuck twiddling your thumbs. Goblins were poor conversationalists, and their food tasted awful. Worse, if enough villagers died, you failed the mission and were not allowed back through the portal to Earth.

At least he had his group mates for entertainment in the past. He dreaded the idea of a solo protection mission.

The text disappeared and the void of blackness was replaced by bright light. His body fell to the ground, where he was able to catch himself with only a small amount of difficulty. The already sore muscles of his legs protested from the rough treatment, but he ignored them as he observed his surroundings and searched for any threats.

Well shit…

Directly before him was a cave. Blake stood in front of a cliff face that rose forty feet or more. Behind him was an open plain of grassland that stretched into the horizon. The gently sloping hills looked comforting and peaceful under the cloudy sky.

Unfortunately, once he looked at his map to confirm his hunch, he found that the plains were unavailable to him. Just a few feet behind him was the scenario boundary. If he walked only a short distance from the cave entrance, the AI would give him a warning. If he stayed outside the bounds, he would be punished, and if he was obstinate enough, he would be killed.

The only path forward was through the dark cave.

Cave missions were far more difficult than open forests, because they did not allow him to run and maneuver. The goblins tunneled in small warrens where he was forced to duck under low ceilings, and grasp out his hands blindly as he navigated the darkness. There were almost always torches spread throughout, but there would be large areas where he would be unable to see. Unfortunately, flashlights and his cell phone were useless. The Architect always disabled all forms of electricity on the planets it conquered.

The only advantage this environment gave him was the narrow corridors themselves. As long as he chose his choke points wisely, he would only need to face a single goblin at a time. With no spells to worry about, he could take advantage of their lack of even rudimentary tactics and defeat them soundly.

Blake withdrew his covered butcher knife and unwrapped the blade. As before, he wished his friends were there to assist him. He then took a deep breath before he stepped into the darkness.

Hopefully the first goblin has a spear.