“What’s wrong, Blake?” His mother asked at his obvious distress. “Is everything okay?”

“No. It’s not. Here, see for yourself.”

Blake navigated his interface and requested a holochat with his brother. A moment later, Oliver appeared within his vision, and he immediately made the holo visible for everyone present to see and hear.

“Hey bro,” Oliver greeted him nonchalantly, while he occasionally glanced nervously over his shoulder. When he noticed their mother in the room, his eyes widened and his face flushed. “Oh, uh, how’s it going, mom?”

Oliver leaned against a short, squat tree with a trunk at least four feet in diameter. The alien nature of the arbor immediately drew the eye, as there was nothing like it on Earth.

Blake drew several deep breaths to calm himself. By the way Oliver phrased his words, Blake could tell that his brother did something to bring the cops down upon him. He was almost certain that this time, police corruption was not the problem.

Oliver had screwed up. Again.

Donna frowned, confused by the strange location. “What’s going on, where are you?”

Oliver scratched the back of his head. “Dunno, that bear planet, I think.”

Her confusion was slowly replaced by terror as she looked back and forth between Oliver’s strange location, and Blake’s rising anger.

“Will someone please tell me what’s going on?” She demanded.

“Oh, uh… I was being chased by… some people, and I had to get away, so I climbed the fire tower and jumped through the portal.” He grinned brightly. “I got away! Now I just need Blake to come pick me up.”

“Who was chasing you?” She asked, full of concern.

“Cops,” he admitted.

She gasped. “They’re after us again?!”

Oliver shrugged. “Guess so.”

“Wait, you said you ran to the fire tower. That’s nowhere near home.”

“Oh, uh, yeah. I got a ride to the grocery store, needed some snacks.”

Their mother frowned. “Why didn’t you go to the one in Show Low? It’s a lot closer.”

“Well…” Oliver trailed off as he tried to think of a reason for him to be there.

Blake did not give him the chance. “What were you really there for, Oliver?”

Oliver gave him an angry look. “Snacks, like I said.”

“We both know that’s bullshit.”

“Language!” Donna reprimanded him.

“If you want off that planet, you need to come clean,” Blake threatened.

Oliver began to panic. “I swear! I was just after some snacks!”

By the dark look on their mother’s face, she did not believe him either. Like most people, she did not appreciate being lied to. “Oliver Alan Summers, don’t you lie to me!” she commanded.

His brother seemed to deflate before their mother’s withering stare. He took a deep breath and hunched in on himself. In a low voice, he apologized. “Sorry. I just didn’t want to disappoint you again.”

“I’m more disappointed that you lied to me. Now, why were you there? Was it drugs, again?”

Oliver stared at the ground beneath him to avoid his mother’s accusing eyes. Slowly, he nodded.

“I thought we were through this! You said you didn’t need them anymore now that we have a cure.” By the end of her short rant, her anger had transformed into desperation. “What changed? Why?”

“I don’t know,” he shrugged. “I’ve just been sitting around, bored, for weeks. I just feel so… useless. Also, where the heck’s my cure…”

Donna cut him off. “Well, if you’re bored, we have plenty of work to do here. I can think of a hundred tasks that need doing. I gave you your space, because I thought you needed it, but that’s obviously not working.” She shook her head. “No, once Blake brings you back, you’re staying here, in the bunkhouse where I can keep an eye on you and can keep you busy.”

Oliver grimaced.

Blake finally got his anger under control. “There’s a problem with that,” he informed his mother.

Her head whipped around to her younger son. “What?”

“I can’t get him.”

“What do you mean, you can’t?!” she yelled, outraged now at her younger son.

“That’s a level zero scenario,” he explained patiently. “I’m level one. The Architect won’t let me in a lower level scenario.”

“What?!” she screamed in a panic. “Then how do we get him out!”

Blake sighed. “I don’t know,” he admitted.

“Jeff and I got this,” Montgomery offered from the open doorway. “We’ll go get him.”

Donna and Blake were so focused on Oliver, they failed to notice his two friends spying on the conversation from the hallway. However, since they had not been invited inside, they were prevented from entering the room.

“You might as well come on in and join the conversation,” Blake said.

Donna turned to Blake. “Will that work? Can they rescue him?”

He considered his friends’ chances of defeating the level zero Ursa scenario. They were untrained, unbloodied, and had average human attributes. Meanwhile, an Ursa was the size of a rhinoceros, had an incredibly thick hide, and could toss them around like rag dolls with just a flick of its paws.

But, his friends were just crazy enough to pull it off.

With a little help.

Blake had intended to train them himself, give them some level one equipment, and send them after the goblins. The small creatures were far easier targets for newbies, despite their numbers.

“Maybe, but they’ll have to use my rifle.”

“Wait, didn’t you say you don’t get any nano if you bring a gun?” Montgomery challenged.

“Yeah, but you aren’t going for the nano, you’re just there to bring Oliver back,” Blake reminded him.

“Why not do both?” Montgomery asked. “I thought you said we did this all the time in the future?”

“Yeah, but that was after years of experience.”

“You gotta get that XP sometime,” Montgomery argued. “Why not now? You can twink us out in some great gear, boost our attributes, and send us on in.”

Blake checked his own status and saw he held only eighty-seven mega-nano. Split between his two friends, it was enough for each to gain a single combat skill, and raise three attributes.

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Am I really considering this?

He had always planned to give his two friends nano before they tackled their first scenario. The gift would improve their chances of surviving, and speed them toward their initial class selection. However, that was only after he had properly prepared them for what they would face.

No, the Ursa are too strong for a first opponent, and there’s only two of them.

Blake shook his head. “Sorry, I’ll give you gear and nano, but you have to bring the gun.”

Montgomery looked hurt. “Don’t you have faith in us? I thought you said we fought together?”

“We did, and I do,” Blake argued. “But you don’t understand how dangerous it is.”

His old friend crossed his arms in front of his chest with a determined look. “How about this? If you want us to rescue your brother, we aren’t bringing any guns.”

Blake swore as his mother gasped.

Jeff frowned at Montgomery’s words, but did not contradict him.

Oliver finally spoke up as he inched closer to the tree. “Uh, I vote you bring lots of guns.”

Donna turned to Blake. “What if your father and I go?”

He wanted that even less. His entire family died just weeks after Invasion day. Blake had already promised himself he would do anything it took to keep them alive this time around. He did not even know if they were capable of ending a life.

He knew Montgomery and Jeff were up to the challenge, and every minute Oliver stayed on the Ursa world, he was in danger.

“No,” he shook his head. “That’s a terrible idea.”

His mother frowned.

Blake faced his friend. “If we do this, you have to do what I tell you.”

“For sure, for sure!” Montgomery enthusiastically agreed, while Jeff nodded.

His enthusiasm did not comfort Blake.

He then looked his brother in the eye. “Oliver, you need to stay put until they get there, okay? Don’t go exploring.”

“Oh, don’t worry, I’m not going anywhere. It feels like this place is trying to squish me like a bug. Good thing you gave me that magic bling. Without it, I’d be a pancake.”

“What’s he talking about?” Montgomery asked.

“The gravity on the Ursa planet is about thirty percent stronger.”

“Okay,” his friend shrugged. “So?”

Blake looked him up and down. “You weigh, what? Almost two hundred pounds?”

“Hey! I’m only one-ninety!” Montgomery corrected him and flexed. “And it's all muscle!”

He ignored his friend’s predictable faux outrage. “On the Ursa planet, you’re going to weigh over two hundred and fifty pounds. How would you like to go hunt down angry polar bears with over sixty pounds on your back?”

“Pssht,” Montgomery dismissed his concern. “That’s how much our PPE weighs when we go into a burning building. We got this,” he assured him.

Blake nodded. “What’s your Physical Power at?”

“Uh… How do I check?”

“Just think, ‘status’.”

“It says it’s six point one,” Montgomery read off the chart and then looked at Blake. “Is that good?”

Blake shrugged. “It’s above average.” He then turned to his other friend. “What about you, Jeff?”

“Six point nine,” he replied in his deep, rumbling voice.

“Nice!” Montgomery praised Jeff. He then turned to Blake. “What are you at?”

Blake smirked. “Twenty-four and a half without my gear.”

“Daaaammnnn,” Montgomery shook his head. “No wonder you could bench my car.”

Blake hurriedly got them on track before his mother could question him. “That’s the most important attribute against the Ursa. It gives you more strength and speed. The level one gear you’ll get will boost it by two, and you can raise it by another three with thirty mega-nano.”

“Mega-nano?” Montgomery asked, confused.

“Thirty million nanomachines,” he clarified.

“Okay, that’ll get me to eleven Physical Power, and Jeff to twelve. How strong will that make us?”

“Well, powerlifters and Olympic athletes are around eight or nine, so I’d say pretty damn strong.”

“Hell yeah!” Montgomery cheered.

“Hell yeah!” Came the expected response from Jeff.

“Hey! How come you’re gonna give them nano, but not me?” Oliver complained.

Blake rounded on his brother and pointed his finger accusingly. “Don’t you dare complain! They’re about to risk their lives to rescue you from your own mistakes. Now, sit tight and shut up so you don’t bring the Ursa down on you!”

He immediately ended the holochat session and turned to face his mother. He took a deep breath to calm himself before he said, “Sorry. I forgot how much Oliver can piss me off.”

His mother smiled. “You and me, both.”

“I’m going to get Montgomery and Jeff ready so they can bring him back.”

“Thank you, Blake.” She then turned to his two friends. “And thank you two as well. I appreciate what you’re doing.”

Montgomery waved her thanks away. “Don’t worry about it. We gotta stick together, right? We’ll kill those bears, sling your kid over our shoulders, and be back before supper.”

Blake nodded his agreement and asked his friends to follow him. He escorted them upstairs to the temporary armory and temporarily invited them inside.

When they entered the room, Jeff whistled in appreciation.

“Damn… that’s a lot of armor,” Montgomery noted.

“Yeah, I’ve been collecting it for a while. Now, before I pick out your gear, I’m going to transfer the nano to you. It’ll take a couple of hours to increase your Physical Power three times, so we should start that now.”

Blake grasped hands with Jeff and gifted his friend forty million nano. He then turned to Montgomery and took his hand as well. However, before he transferred over his hard-earned currency, he warned, “Remember, only upgrade Physical Power. Do not increase anything else.”

“Sure,” Montgomery easily agreed.

However, he knew his friend well and reiterated, “That means no Magic Power, got it?” he raised his brows.

The tall, thin man raised his hands in denial. “I got it! I got it!”

Blake nodded and transferred the nano.

“Remember, only upgrade it three times. The last ten million is for a combat skill.”

He walked them through the upgrade process and waited for them to complete it.

“Done,” Montgomery announced with a clap of his hands.

“Done,” Jeff agreed.

“Okay, since you’ll be fighting Ursa, you’re going to need to use spears and shields. They have the most reach, and will give you the best chance of surviving.”

“What kind of Mage uses a spear?” Montgomery complained.

“You aren’t a mage yet,” Blake reminded him. “And the kind that wants to live.”

“Fair.”

“Okay, now it’s time to purchase the ‘Spear Mastery’ skill.”

Blake again showed them how to navigate the menu and the long list of skills.

Suddenly, Montgomery bent over and clasped his head between his hands with a moan. Before he could collapse to the floor, Blake caught his tall friend and gently lowered him to the wooden planks.

Alarmed, Jeff asked, “Is he okay? What happened?”

Blake waved the question away. “He’s fine. His brain just got a bit overloaded by the new information. He’ll be back on his feet in no time.”

Jeff nodded and slowly sank to the floor against the wall in preparation. After he chose the skill, he winced at the overwhelming sensation, but refused to cry out or collapse. He closed his eyes and began to take in deep breaths to get through the process.

A few minutes later, Montgomery pushed himself off the floor and wiped the drool from his mouth. He mumbled, “I know kung fu.”

Blake rolled his eyes. “I sure hope not, or you’re probably going to die.”

“Spear fu, kung fu, same diff.”

A moment later, Jeff opened his eyes and climbed to his feet. He looked Blake in the eyes and nodded.

“Okay, let’s get you guys your gear.” Blake rifled through the pile of chest pieces and fished out a leather jerkin. “Here, put this on.” While Montgomery struggled to don the gear, he picked out a much heavier piece with steel plates embedded within it and gave it to Jeff.

Montgomery slipped his arms through the sleeves and said, “I’m surprised it fits over these guns!”

Blake shook his head. “Nano gear is always one size fits all.”

For the next ten minutes, he outfitted them in an entire set of armor and jewelry. He ensured they both had their Physical Power, Stamina, and Resistance upgraded, and then handed them a spear and shield.

Once everything was equipped, he told them, “Okay, let’s head outside so you two can spar. Knowing how to use a spear and actually using it are two different things.”

The two responded with a ‘Hell yeah!’, and followed him downstairs.

Blake smiled at their familiar catchphrase again.

This brings me back.

As Blake exited the bunkhouse and walked away from the structures, he saw their landlord dig through the soil of their new field.

I really need to transfer over nano to him like I promised.

He saw the old man struggle to use the farming implement and felt guilty. Unfortunately, he only had seven mega-nano left, thanks to his brother’s blunder, not nearly enough to uphold his side of the deal. He also needed to transfer nano into the faction treasury so Jordan and Brent could complete the faction hall upgrade.

We really need to start taxing people, so I’m not the only one contributing.

Blake shook his head and dismissed the concern for the moment. His mother could deal with that.

Non-combat classes earned a fraction of the nano that combat classes did. Until they had a sizable faction roster with multiple combat teams, a faction tax would be like a drop in the bucket.

I’ll set it up after we rescue Oliver.

“Okay, this is far enough,” he told his friends when they reached a safe distance. “Now, let’s see what you two can do.”