CJ sat there, mouth agape. He considered his current environment and the company he was in. At this very point he could see a game like screen straight out of his favorite rpgs. Well not exactly like them. His slate was more grey than blue, and it had subtle crack running diagonally through it. His inner child was playing hopscotch across his heart. He still had a stack of blinking messages. Just before he accessed the next one, a round and soft tea cake bounced off his forehead.

“Pay attention,” hissed Monty before sitting back up.

“As I was saying, if you would consent to being my harbinger of change, I can bestow you with boons that will give you an edge in all the conflicts to come. Make no mistake, we have a lot of work ahead of us. The goddess really botched the ascension of our planet. There should have been a slow increase to this planet’s mana levels. Instead, it is like hundreds of volcanoes erupted primordial ooze all over the world. I’m surprised there isn’t a visible coating of mana all over everything. I doubt she will be attentive in this world and is probably using herself as a plug to hold back the worst of it. Amateur hour,” complained Sun Wukong.

“So, you’re saying it’s not supposed to be this bad. How do we fix it?” asked CJ.

That smirk appeared on Sun Wukong’s face again. CJ realized he’d just given away any advantage he had in this negotiation. His instinct to save people, laid bare through his ascent up the stairs, and his willingness to go along with what was just said had sunk him.

“Firstly, do not access your slate until we are done talking. The gifts I have for you may… alter some options and choices for you. With that said, I need you to shuffle these cards while we talk. It will help attuned them to you,” answered Sun Wukong before sliding a stack of octagonal shaped cards across the table toward CJ.

CJ picked up the deck with curiosity painted across his face. They all had a picture of a monkey climbing hand over fist up a pole that looked exactly like the one CJ helped dig out. The outer edges of the cards were lined with gold. The deck was only slightly thicker than a standard deck of playing cards. CJ had spent some time as a dealer in the casino’s when he needed to make rent. He never thought he’d be shuffling for an old god. With that thought in mind he decided to make a show of it. He flipped the middle of the deck out and spun it around the side before collapsing the top and bottom of the deck back together. Then he rolled the middle section over the top all while maintain eye contact with Monty. The bunny seemed unimpressed.

“You know, I’ve watched you practicing that at home. Try something new,” huffed Monty.

“Ooh, tough audience. You were saying?” CJ addressed the question back to Sun Wukong who was enraptured with the ease with which he shuffled.

“Right. What you are shuffling are your potential boons granted by me. You will be able to select three. Once done please put them face down on the table. Their faces won’t become visible until after that,” muttered Sun Wukong who was now watching CJ flip groups of cards across his fingers and make some disappear.

“Stop it. This isn’t an audition, and we need to wrap this up,” snapped Monty.

“You’re familiar is correct. As we converse here in your mind space mutations are surrounding the crater. Time is slower out there than it is in here, but it isn’t stopped. I’m using the burning trees in conjunction with a mana lattice to ward off any predators. It will only last as long as the fires do,” commented Sun Wukong after tearing his attention away from the shuffling.

“Bottom line, you need to make you picks so we can get on with this,” grumbled Monty.

“Okay, okay. Don’t be so pushy,” said CJ as he pulled three cards and lay them face down on the table.

After that he handed Sun Wukong the deck back. He greedily grabbed it and attempted to mimic CJ’s card tricks. This resulted in a shower of cards flying all around the three of them. As Sun Wukong attempted to grab them all out of the air, CJ could have sworn he noticed one of the cards he’d chosen twitch a little. After the monkey king screeched his frustrations out like a chimpanzee at the elusive cards, he sat back down and gestured for CJ to take a look at his cards.

Pull One: Unlocked Arcanum- This card allows the recipient access to all tiers of Arcanum. From tier one elemental magic to tier six temporal effects.

“Tiered magic? Can you explain a little about that?” asked CJ dumbfounded.

“Tier one is your basic earth fire wind and water spells. Tier two is the realm of the astral, so think psychic, charm, and illusions. Tier three is where deific power comes from. Tier four is dimensional. Tier five houses celestial and gravity based magics. Finally tier six handles time. I recommend avoiding the last two. Without proper training, they can cause more problems than they solve. All together they are considered the Tiers of Arcanum. An all too pompous nomenclature if you ask me,” answered Sun Wukong before gesturing for CJ to continue.

Support creative writers by reading their stories on Royal Road, not stolen versions.

Pull Two: Kinetic Energy Converter- You can convert incoming Kinetic Energy into Mana Regen. The amount is dependent upon the volume of energy converted.

“So, like if I’m falling out of a tree I can consume the energy as mana. I assume mana is what is used to fuel my Arcanum?” CJ asked hesitantly.

“I’m actually not sure. No one’s ever gotten that card before. Honestly didn’t know it was in there,” answered Wukong now looking disinterested.

Pull Three: Tireless- You have infinite stamina. Run Forest, Run.

“Holy crap, no fatigue!? That’s amazing. Wait. Can I just run and refill my mana bar with the Kinetic converter?” asked CJ excitedly.

“Wow, no. Re-read the description of that boon,” answered Wukong sarcastically.

“Right, it says incoming not outgoing. Guess I’ll have to play around with this,” said CJ sheepishly.

“Then you accept? Great. Start with the Harbinger’s message and proceed through the rest of your prompts,” commanded Wukong as he got up to clear the table.

Harbinger- As Sun Wukong’s Harbinger you possess the ability to reconnect cracked slates. This is called Harbingers Grasp. Once connected there is no turning back.

Please choose a class from the following options. Once chosen you will have access to that class’s ability tree.

Rogue

Warrior

Scout

Templar of Fate

Magician

The last two options had a slight rainbow energy outlining the letters. CJ didn’t deliberate long knowing Magician was really his only option considering the boons he received.

Class: Magician- This class is an expert in unaspected magic. For example, a spell that doesn’t require any one of the four elements to cast. You will be given a starting spell set and some abilities that match this potential. Unlocked Arcanum has been detected. Spells from all tiers of Arcanum are now viable to add to your spell list. Your starting spells can be found on your spell book tab. You currently have access to the following spells:

Smoke screen- Common Spell/Air Magic

Choking Hazard- Common Spell/Unaspected Magic

Half-a-Bitch- Uncommon Spell/Unaspected Magic

“Wait, what?” exclaimed CJ before searching through his tabs to find his spell book.

Half-a-Bitch- Uncommon Spell/Unaspected Magic: Costs 50 mana. Target is sliced in half by a blade of refined unaspected mana unless their will is stronger than the casters.

“Holy crap! Monty! I can cut someone in half with my mind,” CJ said with a little too much excitement.

“Oh Yea, how much does it cost?” asked Monty.

“Fifty mana,” replied CJ.

“And how much do you have?” asked Monty.

“Well… I don’t know. I haven’t found that yet,” sighed CJ.

“It should be listed on your first tab along with your attributes. Maybe go through the rest of your prompts before you start jackin yourself off,” sneered Monty.

“Disgusting and hurtful,” mumbled CJ.

You have reached level 3; you have two undistributed attribute points.

Attribute

Score

Intelligence

20

Strength

10

Speed

20

Agility

10

Wisdom

10

Luck

0

“I have three attribute points to apply. Where should I put them?” CJ asked mostly to himself.

“Your Intelligence is going to be the major attribute for a Magician. The higher it is the stronger your spells will get. That score helps determine your will power. Smarter enemies will more easily be able to shrug off your spell effects,” explained Wukong who was now wearing a mortarboard and black robe.

“Intelligence it is. What about the abilities I get through the skill tree? I know, I know read the rest of your prompts,” said CJ.

New skills acquired: Nothing Up My Sleeve and Hand is Quicker Than the Eye.

Nothing Up My Sleeve- Passive, Dimensional storage limited to items that can fit up your sleeve.

Hand is quicker than the eye- Card tricks, picking locks, picking pockets and sleight of hand are second nature to you. Upon use of this ability your hands are effectively invisible to others.

“Now that’s cool. So, I can store anything as long as I can get it up my sleeve?” asked CJ as he looked around for anything small, he could jam into his sleeves.

Wukong gave him a knowing nod of recognition. The god had cleaned up the table before CJ discovered his new ability. Monty was practically vibrating to say something.

“Game recognize game, Wukong. Monty, do you have something you want to say?” asked CJ.

“Would you please, for the love of all that is holy, go to your familiar tab!?” answered Monty through clenched buck teeth.