It took several minutes of her reaffirming what she’d seen, but soon, her parent’s faces turned from confusion to surprise as they started to ask more and more questions. What was the shape of the brick? How far off the floor was it? How deep was the hole? Did she see any internal mechanisms?

The more she talked, the more excited her parents got at the idea that possibly the first recorded mechanical device had been discovered, and it was still functioning after thousands of years buried in sand underwater.

After an hour of describing, debating, and hypothesizing, her parents had gotten as excited about the discovery of sophisticated technology as she was.

Had she succeeded in getting her parents to forget about her being in a hospital?

No.

Was her mother still thinking about flying out to Santorini to bring her back home?

Probably.

Her saving grace had been a text message she and her mother had received from Doctor Galloise letting her know that she’d spoken with Doctor De Mar with the museum. After speaking with Doctor De Mar at the museum back in Athens, Leta would be assisting the assistant curator in organizing the findings and working on cleaning each of the artifacts.

It was the archaeological equivalent of being put on desk duty, but it was a necessary step in examining and learning from what they’ve brought up.

Obviously, Leta wasn’t pleased with the idea of dropping out on the Mesopotamian site, but she felt she wouldn’t get a choice in the matter at this point.

Maybe she could convince Doctor Galloise to let her back on the boat to help with photography and packaging. But for now, she took comfort in the fact that Doctor Galloise would let her do anything associated with this dig.

The discussion of the dig and what she’d found - minus the alien technology part that she didn’t bring up - plus the knowledge that Leta would be going back to Athens and away from weeverfish was enough to calm her mother down.

“So, you’re canceling your flight?” Leta inquired with a voice full of hope.

Naomi tucked her chin and scowled as only a mother can do, saying nothing.

Her father chuckled with an amused grin. “Yes, Letty Love. I think we’ll cancel our flight to Athens. I’ll speak with my brother and see what they think about us staying for a few days as an impromptu holiday.”

Thomas gave her mother a knowing look as if challenging her to say ‘no, let’s not go on holiday and head back to rainy Seattle.’

Finally, Naomi let out a deep breath. “We’re taking a trip to London.”

“Absolutely.” He agreed without hesitation.

“You’re taking me to Angelina for brunch.”

His nod was a little slower this time. “Of course dear. I loved that chestnut crepe. It tasted expensive.”

“I’m going to eat every single Mont-Blanc they’ve got on the shelf, and you’re not going to smile and tell me I’m pretty.”

“The most honest words to ever come out of my mouth.”

There was a knock on the door and the nurse poked her head in.

“Parent’s checking in on you?” She asked, closing the door behind her.

“Convincing them not to freak out,” Leta replied, then realized her mistake when she saw her mother’s frown. She’d responded in perfect Greek.

“Your Greek has really improved.” Her father commented with a grin.

“Thanks. Those language apps have been beneficial.” Leta smiled awkwardly through the lie.

The nurse looked between her and the phone, “I can go through this quickly with you now if that’s okay. Would you like to translate for your parents?”

“I guess. Go for it.”

Thankfully, the nurse kept it short and reiterated what the doctor had said. Everything looked good, and she was to stay the night for observation but would most likely be released early tomorrow morning.

With this, Naomi’s manic energy began to subside and she leaned back into her husband’s chest for support. It was as if her concern and fear for her daughter’s safety had been keeping her propped up, and now there was nothing left to keep her going.

“We’ve raised a tough girl.” He said quietly, his thumb rubbing calming circles around her shoulder. “She’ll be well. How about we spend some time with my brother, take a trip to London, and we’ll see about visiting Annika and Leta in a week or so.”

Naomi closed her eyes and nodded, licking her lips as she made her decision. “Okay. We’ll stay here for a bit.”

Thomas kissed her temple as if in reward for her decision.

‘God, they’re so lovey-dovey they make me puke.’ Leta looked around uncomfortably at her parent’s cuddled. “So… see you guys in a few days and not a few hours?”

“Don’t push it.” Naomi squinted her eyes but the bit of anger was gone.

Leta chuckled, “I’ll be out tomorrow, so I’ll text you once I’m out.”

This book was originally published on Royal Road. Check it out there for the real experience.

‘Talk to you later’ and ‘Good night’ were shared between them before Leta finally closed the video call.

“Well, it’s just you and me, Gada.” Leta relaxed into the bed.

[Would the Host like to practice their new skill?]

She smiled wickedly. “Absolutely.”

Leta felt a childlike thrill, a giddy anticipation that mirrored the excitement of Christmas morning. She took a deep breath, focused, and willed her phone to rise. It obeyed, ascending smoothly as if guided by an unseen hand, until it hovered before her eyes. Leta’s breath hitched; it was breathtaking, magical.

[Congratulations, Host. You have succeeded in performing your first action of the software, Magician’s Hand.]

She held out her hand and willed the device to lower into her open palm gently.

“This is so cool.” She giggled and looked around the room for other things to play with.

She unpacked her essentials: toothbrush, charger, deodorant. With a deep breath, she willed the toothbrush to rise. It ascended smoothly, hovering serenely in the air. Attempting to duplicate the feat with the charger, however, proved more demanding. Her mind, struggling to maintain focus on both objects, felt like it was trying to operate on two separate radio frequencies at the same time. Her concentration wavered, causing her toothbrush to wobble ominously.

After several struggling attempts, she changed her approach and placed the items side-by-side. Focusing on them as a single entity, she willed them to rise. They wobbled precariously at first, but with a surge of effort, they lifted, hovering at eye level before succumbing to her loss of concentration.

‘Damn… why do I feel so out of breath?’ Leta huffed.

[The performance of the software is based on the host’s statistics. Mentally training software such as a magician’s hand relies on higher levels of mental fortitude to execute actions. The host currently has a mental fortitude rating of 15, which is slightly higher than that of an average human. This allows the host to perform the desired actions, which an average human cannot perform. To increase the output for skills, statistical numbers must be increased.]

‘How do I do that?’

[Statistics can be raised by repeated use of the skill or action. Additionally, the host can invest inert nanites into specific statistics on a one to 1,000 ratio.]

Leta chewed on her lip as she thought that over. She could grind out, exercise the skill repeatedly, or use the nanites to jump ahead.

It seemed like, even in the world of alien nanites, there was still a pay-to-play scheme.

Sighing, she mentally opened up her stats.

[Height: 167 centimeters

Weight: 68 kilograms

Bone Density: +1.2

Power: 11

Speed: 10

Stamina: 10

Reflexes: 12

Constitution: 10

Mental Fortitude: 15]

‘Can you explain what all of the statistical measurements mean? I’m assuming power makes my muscles bigger, and mental fortitude makes me smarter, but I’d hate to assume wrong.’

[Measurements listed are necessary factors for program output. Increases in these statistics will result in physical and cognitive changes as nanites are rerouted to support these new developments. For example, an increase in power would increase muscle mass to produce an increase in output force. An increase in mental fortitude would result in an increase in gyri and sulci in the brain, which allows for faster and deeper cognitive processes.]

‘Um, I studied history, not biology. What’s the gyri and sulci?’

[To put it simply, these are folds of the brain which, in turn, increases the brain’s overall surface area and thinking capabilities.]

‘Oh. Well, now it makes sense when they say people have a smooth brain. So, speed decreases fat in the muscle and increases endurance, right? What about the others?

[Reflexes focus on the speed of nerve-to-brain communication, allowing the host to register, categorize, and respond to an outside force. Stamina governs the distribution of energy within the body. A host could have high levels of power, but if their stamina is low, they are highly susceptible to becoming sluggish and slow as their bodies cannot distribute the energy needed to sustain their mass. Constitution is the overall resilience of the host’s form to physical harm. High constitution ratings indicate the amount of outside trauma a host’s body can withstand before injury.]

‘I’ll be honest I don’t like how you labeled that as ‘trauma.’’ Leta articulated with a raised eyebrow.

[An external attack such as blunt force is considered a trauma. The Host should also note that changes to stats can also affect the Hosts in unexpected ways. For example, a significant increase in power can increase overall body weight and decrease reflex stats. Increases in mental fortitude may weaken the Host’s energy and stamina as bodily functions are redirected to supporting an overworked brain.]

“Jeez, thanks for telling me that now before I start dumping points.” Leta grumbled.

[By balancing your stats, the Host can avoid medical issues resulting from sudden increases in a particular stat. However, the Host should keep this in mind for future upgrades. It should also be noted that internal characteristic additions can also increase stat numbers without affecting other stats.]

‘Awesome. Okay, so what’s my budget then?’

[The Host currently has an available inert nanite count of 3,507, which equals three available points to upgrade stats.]

‘Hm… any suggestion on where to put those points?’

Gada was silent for a moment, but Leta could almost feel a buzzing in her blood, as if the nanites were whispering among themselves.

After a minute, Gada answered.

[Current uploaded software such as Electric Misconduct and Magician’s Hand require high mental fortitude to execute desired results. It is suggested that the host use all available nanites to increase this stat, thus increasing the output of this software.]

Leta nodded, “Okay, then. If I’m not in danger of a stroke, please put 3,000 points into mental fortitude.”

A sensation of fingers trailing over her brain sent shivers down her spin as her vision momentarily went white before suddenly coming back online.

Leta blinked, waiting for something to happen.

[Mental fortitude has successfully increased from 15 to 18.]

“That was it?” Leta asked quizzically, fully expecting something more dramatic.

[Correct. The Host’s default stats in mental fortitude were already above average before class integration.]

Leta focused back on the items in her lap. As before the toothbrush and phone charge wobbled drunkenly into the air, but this time if felt easier, the strain on her mental muscles lighter. Where a handful of times Leta had felt out of breath, she now felt like she could comfortably keep this up for a few hours.

The handle to her room rattled, breaking her concentration as the objects fell back onto her lap just as an older woman with a hospital staff badge came in carrying a tray of food.

A slice of bread, small star shaped noodles in what looked like chicken broth, a baked chicken breast, half a lemon, and a glass of water.

“Delicious.” Leta smiled as earnestly as she could despite the mean reminding her of some bad cafeteria food she’d once had in high school.

She was starving though, and at this point she’d eat a paper bag if they told her it was edible. It didn’t mean she’d enjoy it, though.

‘Can you turn off my taste buds?’ Leta spooned the soup, realizing that the broth was a lot thicker than she originally anticipated.

[Negative. Under extreme circumstances, pain messages between nerves and the brain can be temporarily shut off. However, dinner is not considered an extreme circumstance.]

‘I think it’s about to.’ She whined, resigning herself to eating what was given to her and hoping that sleep would at least come easy tonight.