I knew the second when the money was credited to my bank account.

My interface updated the numbers automatically:

HP: 130/130 + 400/400

PP: 300/300

MP: 528/528

CP: 264/2640

AP: 240/240

PSYDEF: 50

$ 715,736

XP: 9815/12500

Ethics: +252

“Does this mean you’re rich?” asked Anne.

“Rich is relative,” I replied. “A house like this costs about $350,000.”

Anne frowned. “That seems like a lot.”

“We’re talking two floors, a thousand square feet on each, four bedrooms, and a garage for two cars. The going rate in this neighbourhood is $175 per square foot.” I shrugged. “If your dad had a mortgage or monthly payments to make on the house, we wouldn’t have made it this far.”

Anne nodded sombrely. “Are you any closer to figuring out Cure?”

I shook my head. “Even Prophet’s Roulette isn’t telling me much nowadays.”

“Is it still working?”

“For now. Each use costs 500 MP.” And nine out of ten times it failed, producing random garbage. “The worry is - when I reach Level 9? It goes to 550. At which point I have to put a point into Int or Wis if I want it to keep working. And when I reach Level 10…..”

“... it costs 600.” Anne bit her lip. “Which you can still hit with Hypercaffeine….”

“But at some point, even with Hypercaffeine and everything else, I’m going to lose the ability,” I replied.

“So you figure out as much as you can until then,” Anne said. “Any luck on the other stuff?”

“I think I’ve cracked Plasmium,” I replied. “But it’s… tricky.”

“Tricky how?”

“Essentially, plasmium is a small, condensed ball of superheated gas - plasma - held together by a combination of magnetic fields. The energy it emits continuously is what keeps a heavy power pack running.”

Anne’s eyes widened. “That’s going to be incredibly hot. And radioactive.”

I nodded. “Hence it needs shielding to use effectively. The plasma itself is a very small quantity - a few grams. It just stores the energy. The real trick is the shielding.”

“How do you shield it?”

“The shielding has to block five types of radiation - alpha, beta, gamma, neutron, and X-rays. Which is why a plasmium block requires lead and plastic.”

“Oh, that’s good. Lead and plastic should be easy to get.”

“It needs a very specific type of lead and a very specific type of plastic, but yeah. I can get the raw materials for a plasmium block for around $200.” I sighed. “Unfortunately, I can’t get the MP required that easily.”

“How high can you get with Hypercaffeine?”

“600 MP. I need 800 MP for a Fullersteel Javelin. And a Heavy Power Pack requires 2000 MP.”

“Ouch.”

“So a Fullersteel Javelin would require eight more attribute boosts, and a Heavy Power Pack would require 41.”

Anne winced. “That’s… really a lot. Any way you can reduce that?”

“You mean, like alternative ways to make the Heavy Power Pack?”

“Maybe. Or if you could figure out a way to store your MP……”

A new notification flashed across my field of view.

NEW QUEST ALERT! MENTACAPACITOR TECH!

THE MENTACAPACITOR IS A DEVICE THAT ALLOWS YOU TO STORE MENTAL ENERGY AND USE IT IN A SINGLE BURST.

DISCOVER HOW TO MANUFACTURE, CHARGE, AND USE MENTACAPACITORS.

REWARD: BLUEPRINT UNLOCKED: SMALL MENTACAPACITOR.

There was a way around the MP limit problem?

“Have you ever heard of a mentacapacitor?” I asked Anne. “It’s a tool that allows one to store mental energy and use it later.”

“Never heard of one. Did you get a quest?”

“Yes… and it’s a doozy. I have to figure out how to make one….. I don’t even know where to start.”

“Well, let’s focus on getting you to what you can make, then. By the way….”

“Hmm?”

“Do you have any better armor designs?”

“Everything more advanced that nanofiber weave is spectacularly heavy. And needs a heavy power pack.”

“I’d be happier if you could figure something out. Or maybe enhance the existing armor. Ultragorilla nearly had you, and he isn’t even the strongest shifter out there.”

“I know - there may be something I can do, but it depends.”

“On what?”

“On whether Lady Lumina takes my call.”

Lady Lumina had an office in downtown Tanisport.

The secretary sent to escort me led me past cabins with people working on desktops and arguing on cellphones. We walked by a conference room with a group of people arguing heatedly over coffee and sketches on a whiteboard.

“What’s going on in there?” I asked her.

“The Marketing department,” she explained. “They’re working on image merchandising.”

“What’s that?”

She gave me a pitying look. “As you may be aware, Lady Lumina endorses certain products. The department is responsible for ensuring that each product’s representation of her tallies with her brand image.”

“Oh.” I’d seen ads with Lumina. “Does she charge for endorsements?”

“Of course.”

I was led into a large cabin where Lumina sat. The superheroine was in her costume and mask, reading a report on her tablet.

I took a seat. “Thank you for seeing me, Lady Lumina.”

The superheroine nodded. “We didn’t get the chance to speak after New York.”

“Sorry about that. I didn’t want to talk about stuff in front of the Blackhats.”

“A sensible choice. So what did you want to talk about?”

“... I’d first like to offer my condolences for The Flying Storm’s death. I didn’t know him for long, but he seemed a dedicated guy.”

“Indeed, he was,” replied Lady Lumina. “Are you aware of how he died?”

“I’m afraid not.”

She shrugged. “It’s not common knowledge, but he was shot by some of the aliens near Times Square. I think they had a nest of some sort - snipers. They hit him with some sort of long-ranged rifle.”

“I’m sorry to hear that.” I thought back to that day. “Did you get the sniper?”

“No, the US Army got him. Some special unit went in and flushed out the alien.”

“Ah. I’m glad to hear that.”

“I’m actually quite impressed. It’s difficult for the Army to take down an alien that strong. The mayor wants to give them the keys to the city.” The superheroine shrugged. “Anyway, what can I do for you?”

“I wanted to ask if there was any technology recovered in New York. From the aliens. Stuff that I could examine.” I paused. “Like we discussed.”

“We did promise you that. For any technology that you helped recover. However, you weren’t with us during the battle?”

“I was with a U.S. Army unit.”

“Have you spoken to the Army about their operations, then?”

“Er… I’m not sure how to contact them.”

“Is that so.” Lumina’s face was neutral. “Have you a lawyer?”

“Yes - McCarthy and Butterfield.”

“They can help you get in touch with the Army personnel you were embedded with. The Army has the first right of examination on any technology recovered from an attack.”

I frowned. “You promised to let me examine stuff.”

Lumina tensed. “I would remind you, Mr. Belessar, that this is my office. Kindly do not raise your voice.”

: bro, stay calm

I hesitated.

Had she really meant it? Getting me alien tech?

Analyze could get me a long way ahead, if I could use it on some alien tech.

: don’t push

: understood

“I apologize,” I said. “It was not my intention to offend you. I’ll be in touch with the Army.” I stood up and bowed. “Thank you for your time.”

Lumina nodded. “You are welcome. I trust you will play a more active part in the next defense.”

“I could have just e-mailed the Army myself,” I grumbled to Anne, “instead of wasting my time with Lumina.”

“You didn’t know. Did McCarthy give you any pointers?”

“He told me to e-mail DURABLE’s public email address. Said to mark it for attention of the U.S. Army, and Lieutenant Doyle’s unit.”

“And did you?”

“Actually, I need you to.”

“Oh, right. All e-mails through the secret smartphone in the locker accessed only by my nanobots, got it. What do you want to say?”

A few minutes later, the e-mail was on the way. “I hope I get an answer sometime this week. Or at least this month.”

“Let’s hope…. Hey! There’s an answer.”

“What, already?”

“Dear Mr. Belessar, we are forwarding your request to the U.S. Army Office of Public Information. We will contact you within seven days with a response. Thank you, Alex Lovall, Assistant Director - Tanisport Office. Wow. You got a response from an Assistant Director? And in five minutes?”

“Don’t tell me that all e-mails get the same response.”

“Well…. There are only five ultrahumans in Tanisport on the leaderboards - maybe an e-mail from one of them is serious business for DURABLE?”

“... You might be right. Huh. Maybe I’ve been going about this the wrong way….”

“So maybe you should be going to DURABLE and the Army, who appreciate you, instead of the other ultras who don’t.”

“That may not be fair to Lumina, you know… she’s probably still grieving for her friend.”

Anne shook her head. “I grieved for my mom. I grieved for Avra and Shyam. I didn’t start being rude to people who are trying to help.”

“So what do you think it is?”

“I think she doesn’t trust you, plain and simple. What makes no sense is why.”

“The deaths,” I pointed out. “My power doesn’t really have a clear way to limit damage - I end up killing a lot of people. Maybe if I had a paralysis ray or a more effective stun punch?”

“Your knockout blow doesn’t work until you’ve beaten someone to within an inch of their life, and you can’t seriously be saying you’ll pull your punches. Not after Ultragorilla.”

“I’m not planning to pull my punches. Every battle I’ve been in has been against people who could kill me with their bare hands, slice me to bits with their lasers, or tear my brain apart - and that’s not even counting the aliens.”

“Hey - we just got another e-mail.”

“Seriously?”

“Dear Mr. Belessar, thank you for reaching out to us. We are sending your request to the relevant regimental authorities and will be in touch with you shortly. Major Laura Swanson, Department of Public Affairs, U.S. Army. Whoa - that was fast.”

“I’ll say. Do we have time for lunch now, or should I expect another e-mail before that?”

The unit being offered the keys to the city of Tanisport was First Platoon, Beta Company, led by Lieutenant Doyle.

“That’s the best news I’ve heard all day,” I remarked to Anne.

“They’re being posted to Tanisport for rest and recuperation,” added Anne. “And they really want a way to get in direct touch with you.”

I sighed. “Maybe I need to get an untraceable cellphone.”

“You think you could make one?”

“I’ve been wishing really hard for it to become a quest or a blueprint to unlock, but no luck. And Analyze doesn’t help me with cell phones.”

“Well, maybe you can find some place to get one. There’s got to be a market for these things. Maybe a black market.”

“And where exactly do I find a black market cell phone?”

“What makes you think I’d know? Oh, there's another email from Lieutenant Doyle. He says that the boys would like to invite you to a … small get-together." Anne pursed her lips. "Do they mean a party?"

"Sounds like one….."

"You should go."

I frowned. "Really?"

"They invited you. Besides, it'll be good to get out of the house. Live a little."

"I can't. Public appearances would put bystanders at risk."

"You seriously think they're going to attack the U.S. military?"