Harper

The chromatic bubble was there peeking through the cracks in her walls and covering her sky. From one breath to another it was gone. Wind picked up and the sweltering heat of a summer night gave way to a brisk morning.

Harper looked out the window of her door.

Facing down a steep grade, a valley opened up into her view. This rock her Hub was transported onto matched her Earth science of tectonic activity. It was one large rock sitting at an angle poking at the sky. Dotted with a few straggly trees, there was little to no cover for hundreds of feet before her. Opening the door and walking around, Harper found little cover around the whole Hub. On the plus side, no attackers could hide. The trade-off was that her Hub stuck out like a sore thumb.

Finishing her circuit of the building mind abuzz with how to incorporate the rock into the building, her periphery vision caught on a splotch of color in the valley. Covering her eyes from the cloudless daylight, she saw a clear red white and blue flag pattern. Worn by a lean woman who was waving at her.

Gathering her courage, Harper started down the slant to the stranger. On the way, she gathered more information. She could see distant hills far further than her transition place had been, and the prison she had called home was now expanded to a whole world. Looking over her shoulder, the Hub was on the steep side of a mountain.

While they approached one another, Harper tried scanning. After getting about a football field apart, it worked.

[Amber ~ Lucky

Otherworld human

Class: Freedom zealot level 1]

Level 1, so maybe everyone was arriving near the same time? Or leveling was just really hard?

Comforted by her low-level, Harper gathered more details as they approached. What she had assumed was a flag pattern was actually her pajamas. Amber held a pillow in one hand and a crude spear in the other. Her blond hair was drawn back in a ponytail. Approaching even closer, Harper could tell the clothing was worn with faded spots but not dirty like two days in the forest had done to her attire.

“Howdy!” Amber called up at her.

“Um, hi.” How are you supposed to greet someone after the apocalypse?

“You wouldn’t happen to know where we are, would ya’?” Amber asked.

“Uh, from what I read, we are in Leternum. I don't have a clue of where this place is in relation to anything.” Harper replied.

“Thanks.” Amber smiled. “I knew I liked the look of you. I’m an excellent judge of character, you see. Anyway, how do you reckon we get home?”

Harper gulped. “I uh… I don’t think we can.”

“Yeah, I was afraid of that. Don’t worry, I’ll get you home just you wait. Who are ya anyway?” Amber stepped forward giving her a confident smile. It was Lora’s smile.

“Thank you, name's Harper.” Harper’s eyes got glossy. Changing the subject, she added. “What skills do you have?”

“Skills, did ya say?” Amber got thoughtful. “Well, I was always good on the farm growing up, can shoot a one-inch grouping at a hundred yards with my Glock, and Crawford says I kiss sweeter than honeysuckle. Somehow I get the feeling that wasn’t what you was talking about.”

“I meant world skills or system skills.” Harper continued. “Like, I was awarded a hiking skill from running around in the transition phase a bunch.”

“Oh, I didn’t hardly spend time in the transition phase.” Amber nodded sagely.

“Okay then, you have a lot to get caught up on. Just remember to be really careful with selecting anything permanent like magic. My magic makes me feel fear unless I expend it.” Harper said.

“That won’t be a problem. I did figure out the magic stuff, and it don’t feel nothin’ like that.” Amber pointed to the tree line. “What you say we check that out before you fill me in on what I’m missing?”

Harper followed the line of her arm. A chromatic bubble hung underneath the protective bows of a droopy tree. If it had been Earth she would’ve called it a willow but here she was unsure.

“Alright Amber. But I’ll fill you in back at the Hub.” Harper turned and pointed up the hill.

“Hold up.”

Harper turned back and saw a suspicious scowl across Amber’s face. “How’d you know my name.”

Caught in the gaze of a fearsome predator wielding a monster trophy as a spear, Harper felt keenly aware that she hadn’t brought a weapon of her own. That being said, Amber was laid back, hugging the pillow with the spear held loosely in the crook of her elbow.

“It- it’s a skill. Like I was going to explain.” Harper hurried. “Maybe you can learn it. Just look at me and think ‘scan.’”

“Psh, I can learn anything.” Amber squinted one eye before both flew open. “Well, I’ll be damned. Let’s go.”

“Just like that.”

“Yuppers, just like that. I trust you plenty. If you was a snake worth worrying ’bout, you wouldn’t have let slip you know my name. Plus like I said I'm a good judge of character."

Walking together, Harper was again reminded of Lora. Giving an instant trust that just wasn’t earned. It’d always made Harper jealous of the freedom to be that trusting.

Shortly after, they stood in front of the tree. Looking at the bubble.

Scan

[Mathew Gains Starling

Earth raid transfer

Entry quest

1) Complete

2) Incomplete. (Monster corpse absent)]

“Dang, he won’t be getting out. I wonder how many people were transferred and how many won’t make it.” I’m doing these apocalypse conversations all wrong. Harper chastised herself.

“Nah, he’s got this.” Amber put on a lopsided grin. “Tell you what, we’ll make a bet. If he pops out o’ there, I get first dibs on the next handsome man who walks into your Hub. If he don’t, you get first dibs.”

It was just so perfect and stupid and so like Lora. Harper nodded while wiping her eyes.

~~~

Mathew

DING

Mathew hardly noticed the notification at first. After all, he went through, even the success of it working wasn’t much of a balm.

Welcome to Leternum, your new world. Adapt. Live.

Transition phase.

1) Vanquish the monster.

2) Prove a crafting skill.

After having the basic skills that will be required to succeed in Leternum you will be placed into the main world of Leternum. Enhanced skill growth is granted to aid this transition phase.

Congratulations on having the foundational skills to thrive on this planet. You will not be a valid target for inter-cosmic raiding for the next 237 years. Citizenship to Leternum granted. As a citizen you will have access to Leternum specific class options. Live and be strong.

Awards: Unrefined pallet - Eating slime mold and live monster flesh you truly have no taste. Enhanced buffs from consumables.

Grower - Gaining 3 stat points. Training requirement to reach prime status reduced.

Sure foot - Spending days on a slippery surface unbalanced less than 1% of the time. Adhere to surfaces with your feet at will.

Unwitting Occultist - Practice the taboo of infusing a weapon with your health and magic. Occultist activities will not trigger automatic notifications and have additional privacy.

Adapter - Gaining a racial hybrid. Spectrum overlap doubled.

Fate Breaker - Do the impossible, in this case complete a transition requirement without the necessary components. Broken free from chains of fate, you will naturally gather broken strands to empower yourself. For better and worse, your fate can no longer be tracked.

Outsider survivor - Survive contact with an inter-cosmic entity. Hey bud, thanks for scooting out of my agency’s temporary world. We were worried you’d stay there forever. With this award, I’ve given you a coupon for free legal support for one incident/issue that occurs on the inter-cosmic scale.

Recovering from his most recent ordeal, Mathew took a minute to read everything over. The last award wasn’t in any way like the rest of the message. Most of the menus felt like blue boxes with text. This one was organic in a creepy way, a certain rolling eldritch flesh feeling. To give credit where credit is due, it was just as functional and well put together. Who am I to complain about appearances?

[Class menu

Current class offering: Carrion Soldier

This lost racial class (Carrion Beast hybrids) was destroyed for the crime of Occult activities. Be wary for following their footsteps. Carrion soldiers are based on the Carrion Warrior, second caste of the hive. Above workers only, they form the largest group. What they lack in elemental affinity, they make up for in durability and creativity.

.2 per level stat progression rate

+2 durability

+10 skill levels in ambush conditional ambush

+10 skill levels in living skeleton weapon

+8 skill levels in mental attack

+8 skill levels in digestion

+1 skill level in controlled evolution

]

Behind the menu, there was more information. Just like magic was based on the highest skill level, classes were offered based on a more complete total of who you were. Somehow he didn’t think handyman and mechanic would come back around on his list of available classes.

It was interesting though none of these menus required the weight on his willpower to maintain. That threw off almost everything he’d theorized as far as consistent rules went.

Was this an advantage of being a citizen, maybe?

Enough distractions just pull the trigger. Mathew psyched himself up to accept the class and move on. The memory of his most recent difficult decision somehow clicked. If he could do that, he could press a mental button.

A wave of tightness swept over his body as adjustments to durability flowed through him. That was it. No awful transformation making him feel even less himself. It was a nice change of pace. Mathew drew a cold mental shell over his mind and focused on the next mission. All is time here was spent getting ready with the minimum necessary skills. He had to be ready for war by the end of this transfer process.

So he dove into his perks.

[Active perks 3

Pending perks

Living skeleton weapon 2

Digestion 2

Mental resistance 1

Mental attack 2

Disabled perks none]

With this many perks to choose from, Mathew hoped he may be able to digest a fragment of information of the larger world before he got there like he did with living ability and learning an ability. Though if it wasn’t obvious, he wouldn’t have the time.

[Living skeleton weapon ~ perk tier one

Controlled Reconstruction - Increase control over bone modifications

Infinity bone - Increase bone strength and durability by investing reserves

~ Perk tier two

Magic bone - Craft skeleton weapons with known magical effects

Ability channel - Align skeleton weapons to a known ability]

His cold mask slipped for a moment. Infinity magic bone. Mathew chuckled and moved along.

Both tier two options were excellent, according to his digging through the information behind the menu. The issue was he wasn’t good enough for it yet. His usage of magic and might abilities was pretty slim so far. Even though controlled reconstruction and infinity bone gained benefits over time, it was an immediate benefit. Both tier two perks were beneficial over time that he couldn’t even take advantage of yet. Survival demanded he take every edge he could before reaching the hellscape the transition prepared him for.

Selecting the remaining tier one options, Mathew moved on. He had a lot of perks to get through and the transition period was ending.

[Digestion ~ perk tier one

Conversion - Efficiency of reserves processed increased by 100%. Use digestion magic to metabolize reserves

Storage - Soft cap on reserves increased 500%. Transfer reserves to a creature by touch

~ perk tier two

Apex phage - Open one slot to mimic the Digestion of any life form you have eaten

Feeling the time to transfer pressing on him, Mathew started making snap decisions. Conversion was an easy yes. Storage an easy no. Finally, apex phage yes.

Magic shifted within him. As a wave of his hunger spread out from his stomach, saturating all his tissues, a lens-shaped slot opened up in his throat. A moment of panic that it was blocking his throat passed as he breathed a full smooth breath. Trying to adapt to the new feeling, Mathew relaxed and tried to ignore it.

[Mental resistance ~ perk tier one

Defiance - 50% more benefit from the mind stat resistance

Deception - Cloak your mind and your will from perception

Awareness - Increase awareness of mental influence over time while within the influence]

Only one point and they were all excellent. Awareness would have been so good for him against the hammer hand wraith. Defiance had a simplicity that almost made Mathew drop a point into it and move on. Considering his ambush skill, deception would work best with his total ability. Maybe it would even let stealth train up his skill so he could get the other two.

Last perk. Mathew could feel the time allowance stretched tight like the bubble gum of a teen trying really hard to look like they don’t try hard.

[Mental attack ~ perk tier one

Control - Mental attacks are 25% stronger

Manipulation - Greater control when unraveling mental constructs

Understanding - Skim surface thoughts to spy for information]

Unraveling the mental construct of the wraith had literally saved his life. That perk was purchased before he even made it to reading the last one. Who had never dreamed of the power of mind-reading? Two no-brainers, latter Mathew had finished his selections and stopped demanding more time from the transition process.

Wrapped in a chromatic bubble, his feet were lifted off the stone. Quick as a blink, he was dropped to the ground.

Sound erupted around him as he landed poorly. The insects of the land singing the song of their people was jarring after so many days of mostly the muted sound of his own footsteps. Forcing open his squinting eyes, he searched the blessed brightness for a monster.

Did someone just say, “eh, you’ve got this one?”

Blinking away the bright light, Mathew saw two women. A shoeless blond hugging a pillow, wearing pajamas and a smirk. The other brown-haired and a mouth twisted like a sour taste.

Pushing off the ground with his sword as a cane, Mathew asked. “Monsters?”

“No hoss, just us.” The blond drawled. “Least for now, anyway.”

Walking past them, Mathew noticed them shifting defensively. He’d grown used to it in everyday life in his city but after two days without contact, seeing it again stung him more than he thought it would. No matter.

Stepping out of the shade of the tree, he dropped to his knees in the sunlight. Warmth reached through his tattered button-up shirt and he reveled in the light.

“Whoa there, you okay.” The blond spoke again.

“Yeah.” He started laughing. Before he became too awkward, he added. “Just need a minute.”

It was more than a minute before he got back up but they waited for him patiently. For that, he thanked them in his heart. “Sorry, it’s just been a rough couple of days.” Mathew hung his head.

“Ain’t nothing.” The blond spoke again as Mathew cataloged her as the leader between the two.

“Are you hurt?” The mousy lady spoke up finally. Gesturing at the mangled flesh sticking out of the armor of his right forearm.

Memories of the pain from the last hour flashed across his mind. His status fixture laid out the lasting damage.

[Health 205/330 (120 reserved due to crafting damage)]

“I was, but I’m better now.” Mathew lied. He put on his most charming smile as he stood and hid his pain. “Name’s Mathew and I’m pleased to meet you.”

“I’m Amber and this is Harper.” Amber gestured as she spoke. “Just met and were fixing to go back to her place, an’ get all caught up. You uh, got something in your teeth.”

So the world did find a way to change his face. “Harper was it?” She nodded. “You don’t happen to have a mirror at your place, do you?”

“No…” Harper trailed off. “But my tablet has a camera. Let’s get going. I don’t like being exposed like this.”

Following the two up the hill he stopped where the loam, grass and leaves met slanted gray stone. I will be defined by my whole life and not a few small moments of it. Stepping onto the slant, he caught up quickly. A short walk later and they had arrived. The overall visual effect it had was that of a nest tucked into a stone with a giant blue egg sticking up from it.

Harper gestured at the structure. “This is my Hub.”

The room-sized not-quite-a-dome was more impressive than the overgrown tent he’d first imagined. Its construction method was beyond anything he could figure out. And he’d framed up houses before. Like melted wax, the wood fused itself together.

“Needs a sign.” Mathew quipped.

“For your information, it has one. I just left it in the tutorial.” Harper had both her hands resting on her hips.

The knot that he was going to be feared by the only other people he’d met in this strange land loosened.

Entering an odd door, they spread out as much as the space allowed. Given a full half of the place was taken up by a small house, there wasn’t a lot of space. So Mathew did what seemed least threatening and sat down against a wall.

“I’ll get us fired off.” Amber started. “So last night, I may have been enjoyin’ myself a bit. Well hydrated, as they say. Anyhow, I went home alone as Crawford was too embarrassed about how I made fun of him having a bad case of whiskey dick despite not going that far with him. Where was I? Oh yeah, alone and sleeping off the hooch. Something wakes me up and all of a sudden, in the middle of the night. And if you know anything, know I sleep like the dead when I’ve had too much. So I wake up in the middle of the night with a blasting red light. Scares the hell out of me, so I grab my bed real tight and then…”

She leaned forward, expecting the rest of the group to be gripped by her tale. Amber leaned back after picking up on their apathy. “Well, you all went through it too so I guess you kinda know. Ehm. Anyway, Next thing I know and I’m on my mattress in a tree. Nothing but my pillow, bed and pajamas. ‘Bout the time I started hollering at Samantha, she’s a prankster ya see, this big ol’ varmint is climbing the tree at me. Some angry carnivorous Porcupine. I scramble to get away before I can think straight. Fall off the far side of the branch and knock my mattress over on its side. We both hit an embankment but I catch a branch. The poor beast. I feel a little bad about it. But my mattress is still stuck into its quills, ya see. So when it hits the water, it don’t come back out. At this point, I know something isn’t right. So I take the broken-off quills and lash em to a branch with a vine. Then ding and bam I’m here. Give or take.”

Wow. She literally fell into getting out of the transition process. Mathew rose his brow. “You said last night?”

“Yeah.” Amber leaned over and breathed into Mathew’s face.

“Blegh.” Mathew waved the boozy breath away. “I believe you, just checking I heard you right.”

“Two days for me.” Harper piped up. “I mean two full days, maybe some more on each end.”

Harper took a deep breath and started speaking. “I had time to prepare before arriving. I wasn’t sure how much stuff I could bring, so I kept it simple. Two knives a tablet and charger with a treasure trove of survival books. Oh and a hatchet. I had good luck and found this spring of water.” Harper gestured at the crystalline pool. “Hurrying along. I killed a boar, got building magic, and my monster starved to death.”

Respect. Killing a boar wasn’t a small feat. Shy or not, Harper just rose to badass status.

It was his turn to speak. He knew it but…

“I was transported to a wasteland. Covered in glowing fog. Only me and the monster. When I’d kick its ass, it would go insubstantial and feed off my mind until it healed.” The sky sure was pretty. Looking up kept his eyes from leaking. “Days of fighting to survive, then I finally found out how it survived using me.” Mathew gulped to steady his voice. “After I killed it. Poof. Nothing to craft with. Just me and an endless slab of rock.”

“We can see the rest, hun.” Amber patted his leg. “You may not have picked it up yet. Focus on anything and think scan really hard.”

Mathew looked at his barbed sword, memories of tearing it out one awful inch at a time. Wielding his will, he focused.

Scan.

[New skill awarded: Scan 1]

[Carrion Ripper

Crafted from the living bone of a hybrid carrion soldier this blade is aligned to corruption magic.

Passive: Improve tolerance to temperature. Comfortable range expanded 20 degrees Fahrenheit

Active: +1 skill in ambush and mental attack when using this weapon.

Permanent:

40% affinity +.1 durability

90% affinity +1 durability

Equip Yes/No]

When you had gear, you equipped it. That’s just how it was. Selecting yes was automatic.

[Carrion Ripper equipped

+10% starting affinity racial

+10% starting affinity aligned magic

+20% affinity growth

Racial cost: Daily reserves cost of 20 reserves will be drawn from your pool to maintain Carrion Render. Additional reserves will be drawn from your pool to repair damages

Magical cost: Daily reserves cost of 10 reserves will be drawn from your pool to grow corruption alignment]

“Eeep. Where did it go?” Harper rubbed her forehead. “I can’t see the window anymore. It closed on my intelectus.”

“I equipped it. Sorry I didn’t know it would be a problem. What’s an intelectus.” Mathew asked.

“When you pull up a scan or your status fixture it makes a separate mind thing to handle all the new stuff. I had one of mine talk to me.” Harper replied. “I hope I don’t sound crazy with voices in my head or anything.”

“Ain’t nothing but crazy right now that’s how you know it’s normal.” Amber smiled. “So what’s the plan, how do we get home?”

They sat together in silence for a bit.

“Home is where good people are.” Mathew said, thinking about Jenifer, Trent and the memory of Pa. “Most of the good people I know are probably here on this world somewhere. So we get home by making one.”

They both looked at him like he’d grown horns.

“What?” Mathew asked.

“Nothing just I didn’t expect… well I shouldn’t judge a book by its cover.” Amber nodded, agreeing with herself.

“Heh, I’m not getting by on my good looks. So I got to have something up here.” Mathew tapped the finger of his bone gauntlet to his temple. “Speaking of, can you take a picture?”

As Harper went into the roofed room to gather her tablet. Mathew focused on Amber. Scan

[Amber ~ Lucky

Otherworld human

Class: Freedom Zealot level 1]

Ah, so they could see he wasn’t fully human anymore.

“So what does a Freedom Zealot do?”

“Whatever she wants to.”

“Ha, it’s all right there in the name. How did I miss that.”

Harper returned, “Say cheese.”

“Mimolette.” Mathew grinned.

“Got it.” Harper showed him the picture. “What is, whatever it was you said?”

“Fancy French cheese a pretentious… acquaintance of mine had once.”

Mathew looked at his new teeth. Like his barbed sword, the pearl-on-the-border-of-silver teeth had layers of black lines running through them.

“Damn, Grills was right.” Looking up, he explained. “Grills is what we called him. Can’t even remember that scrappy little shits real name. Anyway, he joined us when we got to the streets. He was obsessed with getting a fancy grill. Like wearing a gum wrapper obsessed. Every time I’d give him shit about it, he’d tell me I’d get one someday.”

They all laughed together. It was a good balm to the ache that grew from confirming this place had changed him another way. I am the choices I make, the rest doesn’t matter.

Warmth had finally settled into his bones and the stress of the last few days. Well it was still there but it just didn’t matter as much. Amber had fallen into getting out of the tutorial, Harper had just built a wall and made it. Maybe his transition was just more challenging than it had to be. Accepting an offered hunk of pork jerky, Mathew let himself hope for the first time in a few days.