It took over seventy seconds - a number Tom knew because he started counting - before animation flooded back into Dimitri. The older man shifted uneasily on his seat.
“It’s an interesting request, Tom. But, pray, please tell me, why exactly do you want them?”
Tom furrowed his brow, not understanding the context:
“What do you mean?”
“I mean,” Dimitri said patiently. “Are you leaning into a strength or rebuilding an old battle style?”
“Both.” Unbidden, he glanced around the room worriedly, as he didn’t want to give away anything to potential enemies. “Are we sure this is secure?”
“Very much so. This is the most secure place within human control. So, why do you want these two schools of magic?”
“I want teleportation because it’ll be my main method of mitigating damage.”
“Recapturing your old style?”
Tom frowned. He realised that he was being trapped by his own words.
“Yes and no.”
“And, previously, did you rely on spells or skills when teleporting?”
“Skills.”
“And do you know your spatial affinity?”
He shook his head.
“And your lowest known affinity?”
“Seventy-one.”
“Well, that makes it easy. I’m not getting you teleportation spell forms.”
“Why?” he asked even though he knew the answer based on the questions asked.
“The simplest teleportation spell starts at tier two. With your low affinity and no prior experience with spatial spells, you’ll just waste your time trying to create a spell at that level. Having it available will also screw over other kids. They’ll all want to learn Body Shift as a step to get to Blink, but it’ll be beyond them.”
Tom couldn’t help but look around again:
“But you’ll get me precognition, right? My affinity is in the mid-nineties.”
Absolute stillness filled Dimitri for a moment. Then he swallowed and shut his eyes:
“A hero of humanity. Mid-nineties, that’s… are you serious?”
“There’s no point for me to lie to you. I need you as an ally.”
“There are lots of reasons to lie, but I’m willing to accept you’re not doing so. Mid-nineties, that’s high. That’s ridiculous. When your affinities are that high, do you even need materials to learn spells and skills?”
“Yes, you do. I take it your reaction means that you’ll help?”
Dimitri shook himself:
“Um… sure… if your precognition is so high, then my concerns of the spells not working don’t apply.” His fingers tapped his thigh rapidly, and he was staring up at the roof as he reasoned everything out. “Screwing up others is still a concern… and, um … I’ll need to get the council on board, but they owe me enough favours, and there must be some research that precognition in children causes better outcomes. Even if I’ll have to make up a case study to submit, I can swing that. Yeah, I guess I can get the council on board. It’ll take a year and the council won’t like it, but I’ll get it pushed through.”
“Do they start at tier two as well?”
As though a switch was flicked, the other man’s focus switched back to the current conversation:
“No, the precognition school of magic has numerous tier one spells such as Treasure Direction, Sense Hidden Intent, Danger Hunch, Camp Site Assess. They all share the commonality of imprecision and high failure rates, but, having said that, they are very useful spells to have in your team. Not that the tier really matters - research says that trying to jump straight to tier one is as impossible as doing that with tier two. Even peak tier zero is beyond most people’s capabilities. For the typical child and reincarnator, precognition spells will be too complicated. I can’t put it in the general supplies, but I think I’ll be able to get them included in the specialised material cupboards.”
“That’ll be very helpful.”
“What else were you after?”
“I want access to the bat lair.”
“There’s an established process for that. Get your general combat rating to two and confirmed by trial administrator. It will then give instructions on how to get access.”
“No, that’s way too long. I need access now.”
Dimitri massaged the bridge of his nose once more.
“Tom, it’s more complicated than that. The rules are in place for a reason. They’re not just arbitrary.”
“I’ll be careful.”
“It’s not that, Tom. Why do you think nearly every adult you see has zero fate?”
“Because they’re dedicating fate to the community.”
“Exactly, and are you aware that about a third of that goes to this orphanage? Haven’t you ever wondered why there have been no deaths since you got here?”
“Of course I have.” His fury had been unleashed because of the fear on multiple occasions, but it wasn’t just fate. The facility was hardened. “Are you sure?” he questioned. “Because, as I see it, there are spells to stop falling, and illusions to keep kids away from other dangerous points.”
“No, no, no. Those precautions wouldn’t have been enough all by themselves. There are thousands of objects and places in this orphanage that can kill an inquisitive child. There is no such thing as spell protections that are that perfect. It is fate that does the heavy lifting. You know that blanket fort in the main gym? There is no way that would have been allowed back on Earth. It’s a death trap, but no one’s ever died in that. It’s because of that fate protection.”
“This is interesting, but I don’t understand how it’s relevant.”
The tale has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.
“The prayer for the orphanage is very specific. Even with almost two thousand people contributing, it has to be limited to work at the level it does. One of those limitations is that it only works if you’re playing within the rules. You go do stupid things on the obstacle course, then you’re protected. It’ll let you get hurt, but everything that happens to you will be able to be healed. You’re not going to get permanently brain-injured or kill yourself. But if you sneak down to the lairs without that general two combat rating, then none of that accumulated fate will be helping you. You can die.”
“I don’t care. I need access.”
“No, absolutely not. It’s too dangerous. You might have your memories from a previous life, you might be a hero of humanity, hell, you could have been the most important of them, but that doesn’t mean shit right now. You’re in a four-year-old body without any spells.”
“No! I have spells.”
“Shit ones don’t count.”
“Heal Cut and Purge Foreign Substances are not shit. They’re efficient and upper mid-tier zero.”
“So, you’re focused on healing first. Am I supposed to care or be impressed?”
“They’re good, and I have sideways evolutions to support them.”
“Good? No, they’re pedestrian, and you know it.”
“And I have a skill that effectively quadruples my mana regain, so I can use them regularly.”
“Tom, you have, what, ten base mana? Your full mana pool can’t even heal a large non-fatal injury.”
“With a skill I have forty.” He was lying a little by claiming that, but Dimitri didn’t need to know.
“Tom, I get it. I’ve been in your position. I, too, wanted to rush, but guess what? You don’t have a choice. With only an access to biological attribute growth and no experience shop, you have to take it slow.”
“No, I have to train against the bats. It’s essential that I develop Danger Sense.”
“And with your precognition affinity you’ll get that easily before you reach fifteen. This is not a sprint; it’s a marathon.”
Tom threw his hands up in the air:
“I don’t know why you’re being stubborn. Do you want to know why I’m pushing? It’s not because I hadn’t considered the risks. I have, and I understand the threat the bats represent. I’m only considering it because I’m going to get into the divine championship before I turn seven, and Danger Sense is needed for that.”
Dimitri’s eyes widened, and then he burst out laughing.
“I’m serious.”
“Do you know that requires a general combat of four? You’ll be fighting monsters five to ten times faster than you. And you can’t cheat, because the GODs do the judging.”
“Yes, I’ve done the maths. Spear Mastery, Power Strike, Lunge, Spark, Touch Heal, Danger Sense and a trait like Corrine got will get me there comfortably.”
“That’s an impressive and ambitious development list, but even if you manage it, I’m not sure it’s enough.”
“It is. I have a title that gives me sideway evolutions. Spark and Touch Heal will hit twice as hard as they normally do. I can almost guarantee it. With my extra mana, it’ll be enough.”
“Yes, I understand. You were a hero of humanity. Your starting traits and titles are impressive, but it’s not Divine Champions’ Trial level of impressive.”
“I can also see through illusions, and I have that Fear Reflect ability. I don’t know where it comes from, but I doubt it’s so niche it only protects against fear. So, I’m probably protected against mind attacks more generally, which will put me at a massive advantage against lots of monsters that would easily defeat most people.”
“Yes, that was you down there that time, wasn’t it?” Dimitri raised his hand, and Tom felt a pressure on his mind. It was like a sharp spike that was supposed to drill through into his brain, but, while he could feel the intent, no pain came with it. Dimitri winced and massaged his brow. “Yes, evidence suggests it covers everything. It’s a high-tiered spell, or at least a legendary title. I don’t want to encourage your stupidity, but that reflect ability is worth a lot. Potentially even in the divine trial space.”
“So, I’ll have offensive power with spear and Spark, survivability from Touch Heal and Danger Sense, and immunity to mind attacks and illusions. If I get a trait to deal with high-speed opponents, I’ll get that rating.”
“I don’t think you understand what a general combat rating of four means. What you’ve listed is good, but not enough.”
“I would usually agree, but Danger Sense will be backed by a mid-nineties affinity. That will protect me from most threats in and of itself.”
“You still need a solution for speed.”
“A trait if it turns up, otherwise I’ll find another alternative. I’ll think of something. But the point is it’s worth a gamble. Dimitri, you have to understand, these environmental engineering projects are not the panacea. They’ll fall short. We’re way behind. The crystal slime attempt was good, but it’s not working as planned.”
“It’ll still work, but it’ll take longer than expected. We knew they’d eat each other. We just didn’t realise they would be willing to share the minerals with each other after they did so.”
“Dimitri, it’s not going to be enough. Every single one of those projects needs to go perfectly, and we still might not make it.”
“They have more upsides than what is written.”
Tom stared him down.
Dimitri broke eye contact first.
“Fine, but something else will come up.”
“Exactly. We’re not in a position where we can play safe. Me getting into that divine champion trial will help close that gap.”
“Will it? Or will it kill you? Fifty percent of the best and the brightest who make it into that meat grinder die.”
“Taking that risk is worthwhile. Losing by a little is still death for billions. We might as well swing for the rafters.”
“Your facing bats still risks your death. I personally don’t think a slight improvement is worth the chance of you dying.”
“I survived last time.”
“It was one bat, and you were covered by the community’s fate, then. The prayer for an orphanage is two paragraphs long. I’ve studied it. We don’t get penalised for risks we fail to foresee. We know now you can see through the illusion, so you’re blocked with other methods.”
“I still need access.”
Dimitri was thoughtful for a moment.
“I can supervise you. If I’m there, you can’t get in trouble.”
“You mean babysit?”
The other man smiled, which was an answer enough.
“No, I can’t afford to have you there. It’ll hinder the skill acquisition. I don’t need perfect safety, I need speed.”
“Me being there will delay you little.”
“No. If you’re there, I won’t develop Danger Sense in time. I have a deadline. Dimitri, you’re overthinking this. I’m not a child to be protected. I’m an adult, and I can make my own decisions and I’m putting my foot down. My skills and experience will let me survive.”
“Lairs are dangerous, Tom. You’ve got bosses and unexpected clumps of...”
“I know how lairs work. I’ve cleared thousands of them in the tutorials.”
“Thousands?” Dimitri raised both bushy eyebrows. “I find that to be unlikely.”
“I was in the tutorial for over forty years.”
“Oh… I see. You’re a hero. I really should have expected something like that.”
“I’m an adult. I can make decisions.”
“Fine, I’ll grant you access on two provisos. Is that acceptable?”
“Depends on what they are, doesn’t it? I’m not about to give you a blank check.”
Dimitri did not smile:
“The first is that you always carry the anti-venom.”
“I’m not suicidal. There is no way I would go down there without an antidote.” More precisely, not taking an antidote with him would limit him to only forty minutes of training after being injured. If he didn’t have to worry about the deadly venom, he would be able to train for longer. Not that he was going to tell the overly protective Dimitri that.
“Second, you take this.” A plain necklace appeared in his fingers. It was made of a tarnished copper metal and looked cheap. Even in magic sight, it did not look impressive.
“What is it?”
“It’s a very expensive emergency beacon. The underlying functionality is simple, but the obfuscation layers on it are extensive. You carry it, and, if you get in trouble, you use it.”
Having such a get out of jail card would increase the time it would take for him to create his skill, but Tom understood its utility, and, if carrying it was what he had to do to receive permission, then it was a small price to pay.
“Agreed.”
“You’ll be restricted to delving only on Wednesdays and Extentdays.”
Tom nodded at that. Two days a week was better than expected. With weeks in Existentia being eight days, humans had adapted their existing calendar by adding in the unimaginatively named Extentday to the calendar. Then, to get days in the year right, they had extended each month to six weeks and added in the month of Thoruary.
“Those are the days when I’m the only adult on staff. I’m only authorising you for the bat cave. You know which one it is. Don’t go down a different one, or I won’t give you access to the lairs anymore. When you enter the main cavern, if you turn left instead of right, you’ll find an alcove that contains weapons and antidotes.”
Dimitri explained how to make sure he got the right antidote. It was all very logically set up.
The other man looked him in the eye.
“Our time is almost up. I won’t be providing access to the bat lair until you’ve done the legwork to set up the emergency meeting. You won’t like it, I won’t like it, but we’ll do it to protect ourselves and human ranking points. Understood?”
“I won’t forget.”
“And then after that, I guess I’ll see you on Extentday.”
Tom nodded, and they finished two minutes early. There were other things that Tom wanted to ask, but going before the deadline was less suspicious than going right to the last minute, so that is what he did.