Blake woke and noticed a blinking alert in the corner of his vision.

Ugh… I feel like shit. What happened?

Suddenly, his heart raced as everything came rushing back. He attempted to roll on his side, but instead yelped in pain. The spearhead, still embedded within his right shoulder, moved, and widened his wound.

Blake gently tried to extract the spear, but it remained lodged, and received only agony for his efforts. He craned his neck to inspect the wound, but the hide armor blocked his view.

I guess I just yank it out.

He grasped the shaft of the spear, inhaled deeply, and pulled with his full strength. The weapon was ripped from his shoulder, along with a healthy dose of flesh. He immediately slapped a hand over the wound to stop the gush of blood, and activated his Focused Regeneration.

Hopefully one hundred times normal healing is enough. Actually, wait! The achievement!

Blake continued to ignore the notifications that vied for his attention and checked his status.

Lord Blake Summers, Scion of Humanity

Combat Classification - Level 1

Chi - 19%

Mana - 52%

Psi - 61%

Aether - 94%

Attributes - Increased by 69%

Physical Power - 31.7[3]

Physical Stamina - 23[1]

Physical Resistance - 25[3]

Magic Power - 15.2

Magic Stamina - 15.2

Magic Resistance - 25.4[2]

Achievements -

First Kill

First Clear

First Solo Clear

Directive Enthusiast

Master Solo Warrior

Slayer II

Scavenger Prime

Super Human

Faction Pioneer

Directive Follower

Omni-Warrior

Combat Connoisseur

Mark of Cain

General Skills -

Summon Companion

Spatial Storage

Analyze II

Spells -

Chi -

Focused Regeneration - 2%

Mana -

Improved Flame Shield - 1%

Psi -

Directed Mind Blast - 3%

Aether -

Guided Spatial Step - 5%

Nano - 294m

Directives -

Build a new expansion town at least 50 miles away

Gain 1,000 faction members

It had been a while since Blake reviewed his full status. Despite his pain, he could not believe how much his achievements already increased his attributes. In comparison, after almost ten years of non-stop killing in his past life, he had accrued only a twenty-five percent attribute increase.

Yet now, a mere two months after he was inducted into the Collective, he sat at an impressive sixty-nine percent increase. He had the attributes of someone that was level five or six, and he was still only level one.

How long was I out?

Blake finally opened his notifications. He ignored the scenario reward, as it was not time-sensitive, and moved on to the many messages he had received.

The first was just a simple question from his mother about dinner. Another asked if he would be late. When he failed to respond and missed family supper, he began to be bombarded with concerns from both parents. There were no messages from Oliver.

Well crap, I better let them know I’m okay.

Blake contacted both his parents through holo-chat, and was surprised with how quickly they both answered.

His mother gasped and covered her mouth with a hand, while his father’s eyes widened, and he asked, “Are you okay?”

Shit, I forgot I’m injured.

All of his exposed skin was heavily burned from the ignited caustic liquid, and thick, dried blood coated both his left and right shoulder. Luckily, they could not see the deep bruises which covered his body, nor the spear wound in the back of his thigh.

“Don’t worry, it looks worse than it is,” he lied. “I’ll be just fine in a couple of days.”

He could tell neither parent believed him, yet they did not press the issue. Instead, his mother asked, “What happened?”

“I beat a scenario two levels above me. I won, but got a little hurt doing it.”

Peter’s eyes narrowed. “I thought you were done taking big risks,” he accused.

Blake raised both hands before him, and immediately regretted it as blood squirted from his wound the moment he released pressure. He immediately returned his left hand to the injury and winced at their reactions to the gruesome sight.

Donna’s eyes widened in shock, while his father’s jaw dropped.

A moment later, his mother recovered and demanded to know what happened.

Blake took a deep breath, and explained, “I got stabbed by a spear.”

“Wait, weren’t you fighting those Mander thingies?” she asked, confused. “From what I saw, they don’t have arms. How do they use a spear?”

Blake nodded. “Yeah, that was the plan, but the Architect had other ideas. A group of aliens were transported to the same scenario, and I was forced to kill them.”

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“Good aliens or bad aliens?” Peter interrupted.

“Oh, definitely bad aliens,” he answered quickly. “They’re the same ones that are gonna invade Earth.”

“You mean like you’re invading the Manders?” he pointed out, dryly.

Blake frowned. “It’s not the same thing. I’m not coming through with a massive army to commit genocide.” He then changed the subject, away from the philosophical. “What time is it?”

“It’s almost nine a.m.,” his mother answered.

Good, then it’s only been about fifteen hours or so since I passed out.

“Okay,” he nodded. “I’m gonna claim my reward and then head back as soon as I can drive.”

“No, you aren’t,” Donna corrected. “You’re in no condition to drive. I’m going to go down there myself and pick you up.”

Blake tried to shrug, but neither shoulder wanted to respond. Instead, he nodded and replied, “Sure. That’ll work.”

After he said goodbye, he navigated his interface and chose to accept his reward. A list of four level three items was presented to him.

The first option was a necklace that would raise his Physical Stamina by four. While it sounded amazing, it did come with a few drawbacks. The necklace would cancel the single point he gained from his plated boots. It would also replace his current chain, which granted him three Physical Power.

The additional three Physical Stamina would be a Godsend when combined with the twenty-five-fold increase to healing Focused Regeneration granted him. It would increase the speed at which he healed by almost ten percent. However, he forced himself to examine the alternatives.

His second option was a new jerkin. It boasted all the advantages of his current chest piece, as well as additional protection from attacks. In his opinion, its only downside was that it had no sleeves, and did not grant attributes.

Would it have blocked the ice spell, or the Koza’s spear?

Blake doubted it. If level three armor could make you invulnerable to the same level monsters, there would be no risk, therefore no reward.

The Architect’s all about forcing us guinea pigs to take risks.

Blake snorted and moved on. Third was a spear capable of channeling chi. The energy would pass through the hilt of the weapon and infuse its tip with a magical sharpness. While imbued, it would not break, and could more effectively pierce through physical or magical armor.

Of course, it also soaks up chi like a bitch.

Blake checked his interface’s energy gauges and saw that his chi had already decreased over twenty-five percent. Focused Regeneration healed at an incredible rate, but it was far less efficient than the standard spell.

Still worth it.

The last option was a pair of hide leggings. Like his current pair, they would self-repair. However, in addition to that, they would grant him two Physical Power.

Maybe it could help Jeff?

Blake shook his head in disappointment.

If the attribute were something that was not already increased by nano-gear such as Magic Stamina or Power, he might have selected it. Unfortunately, he already gained three Physical Power from his necklace, and the boosts would not combine. If he wore both, he would only gain the attributes from the chain, while the legging's increase would be ignored.

“So, the choice is between a necklace I only wear when I need to heal, better chest armor, or a chi spear,” he said aloud.

After only a moment of consideration, he discarded the chest armor. With it, he would likely become invulnerable to level zero and level one enemies. However, he did not fight low level opponents. He constantly pushed himself to fight above his own level.

Eventually, he decided to select the spear.

The necklace would grant him greater healing now, but he was unlikely to die from his current injuries. The extra seven or eight percent faster healing would save him little time now, and would be useless to him when he was uninjured.

The spear, however, would allow him to pierce through magical protection such as a chi user’s Hardened Shell, or an aether users’ Force Resistance. In addition, its penetration scaled with his Magical Power attribute, something that was abnormally high for his level.

Blake shifted uncomfortably, and tried not to scratch his shoulder. The wound itched beneath his armor, and he could not wait until the sensation was gone.

A half hour later, his mother informed him she had arrived. His spear was constructed by nano-machines, so he collected it and shuffled painfully to the entrance. He used the new weapon as a crutch as he hobbled out of the portal and through the canyon to the gravel road where his mother waited.

When she finally saw him coming, she hopped out of the vehicle to help.

“Oh my goodness, Blake!” she fretted as she slipped her arm under his to relieve some of his weight. “I thought you said it wasn’t that bad! You can barely walk!”

“No, I said it looks worse than it is,” he corrected and checked that he would not bleed on the seat. “And yeah, it hurts right now, but by tomorrow I’ll be mostly better.”

Donna helped him into the passenger seat with an ever deepening frown, and then tossed his new spear in the bed of the old truck. When she entered the driver’s side door, Blake asked her a question before she could needle him about his health.

“So, how’s the faction hall upgrade going?”

His mother slammed the door shut behind her and put the vehicle in drive before she looked over at him. After a moment, she shook her head and answered, “They finished it yesterday.”

“That’s great!” he responded, enthused. “Have any leads for another two constructors?”

She nodded. “Yeah, Kuruk knows a lot of people on the Rez that could use some work. I’m going to interview a few of them this afternoon to see if they’ll be a good fit.”

Blake frowned. “Can they be trusted not to go to the police?”

His mother laughed. “Evidently, the Apache aren’t big fans of our government.”

“I wonder why,” Blake added dryly.

“Kuruk assured me they won’t turn us in, despite the reward.”

“How big is it?”

“They’re offering twenty-five thousand for any information that leads to the arrest of you or Oliver.”

“No reward for you or dad?”

She shook her head. “No, but we’re ‘wanted for questioning’.”

Blake snorted. “Yeah, I’m sure that’s all they want. So, how many people from the Rez do you think we can hire?”

“Ten or so for now. Although Kuruk says that once people start getting paid, word will spread.”

He grimaced. “Hopefully it doesn’t spread too far. I’m sure most won’t turn us in, but there’s always someone…”

Donna nodded in agreement.

“So, how long till Oliver gets his Alchemy shop?” He changed the subject.

“We have to finish the Glassblower workshop first. Then we need ‘off world materials’ for the alchemy shop, which should take another three days to finish. He’s been asking about it hourly.”

“Well, we won’t get any wood from the Mander caves,” he said sardonically. “Are the cops still at the fire tower?”

She shook her head. “No, it looks like some federal agency moved in. There are tents everywhere, and they put up some barriers so no one can see inside.”

Blake cursed under his breath. “I guess we’ll get our materials from the goblin portal.”

His mother smiled. “Don’t worry about it, Montgomery and Jeff have it handled. Jason and Owen are going to join them once they finish their scenario and collect everything we need.”

He smiled.

It’s nice to have problems handled by others for once.

“What else did the faction hall upgrade open up?”

“Let’s see…” she trailed off as she navigated her interface. “Looks like upgrades for buildings, an enchanter shop, tannery, tailor shop, armory, and evidently, the warehouse is an option now.”

“That’s crazy,” he furrowed his brows. “So, if I didn’t choose a warehouse as my free building, all that wood and stone would’ve had to be moved by hand up to now.”

His mother nodded. “Metal really saved us some time with that suggestion.”

“Yeah, he did. I wonder if the Pinetop warehouse will work for the Payson expansion?”

“You can always ask Metal,” she suggested.

“I will when we get back home. I’m not sure what’ll happen if I summon while we’re driving.”

“So, what are your plans?”

“I’m going to transfer some more nano to the treasury, and then take the rest of the day off.”

“Good!” she vehemently agreed. “You’ve been working yourself too hard. Maybe you should take a few days off to recover.”

Blake shook his head. “No, there’s too much to do. I figure by tomorrow morning, if we can’t use the warehouse, I’ll be well enough to load up some wood and stone into a trailer and drive it to Payson. Then, I can start construction on a faction hall for the expansion town. While I’m there, I should probably check out the portal, too.”

His mother glanced at him. “Are you sure that’s a good idea?”

Blake waved away her concerns. “I’ll be fine,” he assured her. “It’s just Arachne.”

“What are those?”

“Think of a cross between a person and a spider,” he began.

“Oh my God!” she protested. “That sounds awful! How big are they? Are they intelligent?”

Blake chuckled. “Most are short, about four feet tall, but weigh about the same as me. They can talk, but I wouldn’t really consider them intelligent. I’d say they’re on the same level as goblins. You can communicate with them, but they aren’t exactly rousing conversationalists.”

“Spiders that can speak,” she repeated. “What do they even talk about?”

Blake half shrugged, and then winced when his shoulders twinged. “The usual.” In a high-pitched voice, he mimicked, “You food, we eat!”

Instead of the expected laugh, she looked at him in horror.

When they drove through the factional town’s gate, the newly upgraded faction hall dominated the view. The architecture reminded him of a mix between ancient Greek construction and modern Mediterranean.

Large stone pillars lined the front of the building, while the top was roofed with red slate tiles. It was an oversized two stories, and had multiple walkout balconies on the second floor.

“What is that, ten thousand square feet?”

Donna smiled, proudly. “Jordan measured it. According to him, it’s almost fifteen thousand square feet if you include the underground jail.”

Blake whistled.

“I forgot how big it gets.” He turned to his mother. “Hard to believe that at level one, it’s the size of a shack.”

“Well, it definitely looks impressive now.”

“Just wait till the next upgrade,” he said knowingly.