It is important to remember that the False gods the &^￡*$* System has forced upon your people are merely Spintronic programs, players of their own game to which your world is just a *￡￡$*%$$$ board. They are your allies, yes, in that they wish your world to prosper – but they have their own agendas, too, for your culture and your people. It is not necessary, after all, for your species to be the inhabitants for your world to prosper.

- What you need to know to survive the Voidbound System, by &*%:”%^%

“Welcome back, Jonathon.” Were the first words he heard, as Jeeves materialized in his room - this was his actual room, he realised, not the afterlife copy.

“You have three hundred and ninety-two requests to respawn at this location. Shawn requests notification of your return to discuss the tabling of a 'hot wash' meeting. Colonel Mitchelson has also requested a meeting at your earliest convenience.”

“Of course.” Jonathan muttered. “Authorise the respawns: Tell Shawn I'll see him in an hour, and Mitchelson at five. Also – has Michael Black spawned?”

“Indeed, Jonathon.”

“Then I want to arrange a meeting with him. At seven.” Jonathan replied. “Right now... now I need to work on my development. Notify me ten minutes before I'm due to meet with Shawn... and please kindly ask Beatrice if she'll join me for breakfast at nine AM?”

“Certainly, Jonathon. Is there anything else?” the AI replied, after a moment. “Beatrice happily agrees.” his words made Jonathon smile.

“I'm glad to hear it. Dismissed.” As the AI faded from view, he pulled up his sheet and frowned at it: He was one XP away from level four. Once more, he opened up the spell creation, and put his mind to developing the best healing spell he could. He wanted something he could use at range, that could.. his thoughts paused, as the knowledge the system had given him combined with his intent, and he focused on assembling the spell, backtracking and modifying for what felt like an hour, though it turned out to be merely twenty when he was done.

Congratulations! You have discovered the Spell 'Greater Healing'

As this spell already exists in the System, you are not awarded Innovation XP.

As no-one else on your World has this spell, you have the right to rename it in your natural language, as the Creator of this incantation on your own world.

Would you like to do so?

He was getting used to this, and kept the name, though it was interesting to note that the 'level' the spell referenced was that of the target. So at his current skill level, It would heal forty points per level of his target – so considering his own sheet, if he was one of the targets, he'd heal almost half his health in one cast. Which probably explained the cost, but still. The spell would grow in power as he did, and never be useless. At grandmaster rank? It would probably be strong enough to raise anyone to full health from near death.

Congratulations! You have discovered and learned the spell 'Greater Healing'

Requirements: Life Magic (Journeyman 1)

Cost: 428 Mana

Upon casting this spell, the target lifeform recovers x Health, then recovers Health every cycle until at full health. They will additionally be cured of all ailments, Impairments and Infections that do not originate from a source with a higher grade in Life.

You have gained 1 XP for your assistance.

Congratulations! You are now level 4.

36 XP required for level 5.

You have gained 1 point in Perception (Deferred since death)

You have gained 1 point in Charm (Afterlife gain)

Perks:

Solid (Select one)

Liquid (Select one)

Gas (Select one)

Time (Select one)

Space (Select one)

Life (Select one)

Death (Select one)

Destiny (Select one)

Creation (Select one)

He was a little surprised at the attribute notification – he supposed he'd been focused on things for a while, on reflection: and quailed a little – even though he'd expected it – at the number of perks he had to choose. The increase in experience required had finally arrived, he glumly noted, moving on to happier matters.

He started with Life, a list he was already quite familiar with – and was surprised to note a new addition: Tailored: Metamorphic Specialization. It said it would increase the duration of any spells he cast that involved altering or mutating a subject temporarily, by a factor of the grade of his Life magic: for him, at journeyman level, that would be four times as long. He put it aside for now, and considered his choices for upgrades, eventually settling on Life Synergy to make his life spells even cheaper - a full twenty five percent reduction. The other perk lists were all new to him, and he spent some time considering what to get, with a view to future upgrades.

He eventually settled on the rest of his upgrades, after a lot of consideration.

Solid: Earth Mana - to enhance his Mana regen.

Liquid: Corrosive Excretions- In the event of more vampires.

Gas: Guarding Winds - To make him harder to hit.

Time: Danger Sense - To help avoid ambushes.

Space: Spatial Aura - To give his unarmed attacks more range.

Life: Life Synergy - For reasons already noted: Cheaper spells would last longer.

Death: Life From Death - Larry was all set up for raising the dead. This gave him a toe in the game, and he thought it gave him a better chance at getting more powerful minions.

Destiny: Aura of Experience - More Experience was never a bad idea....

Creation: Personalize - He had a pretty good idea what soulbound meant, that the equipment would be with him when he respawned, unlike the soldier's weapons. It seemed like a good idea.

That done, he opened up the store, looking for the magical blades Beatrice had mentioned – he definitely intended to take her up on her offer of lessons, and not just because she looked like a Greek goddess, and he wanted to spend more time with her. The extra length, coupled with the spatial aura, would give him that much more range. Speaking of that perk – he reached out towards the door, and found his eyes twisting: He couldn't reach it, but his hand was over there without his arm being longer and... his brain sort of stuttered, before the perk smoothly took over and reassured him he was fine, as he laid his hand back in his lap, feeling a little pale: This would take some getting used to. It was a bit like Dave, when he used that stutter step – but in the middle of his arm. He shuddered to think what that would be like when he upgraded it.

Perusing, he found a variety of blades, the majority of them aspected towards an element already – he was pleased to note than 'unaspected' blades were the cheapest in each category, and eventually found a short sword he liked the look of. It was vaguely reminiscent of a gladius, with a notable leaf shape to the blade – that, the description informed him, was 'honed to a molecular edge', and could be shifted into a ring that would size itself to the user. He did not have a clue what it was made of – the system translated it as a chemical formulae along with some diagrams he could make neither heads nor tails of – but it assured him it was capable of withstanding forces of upwards of three tons, and would never need sharpening. Checking the price – a somewhat painful 1322 SMU – he bought it. As he expected, it materialised in front of him: he promptly Soulbound it, and put it on. Tempted as he was to craft more spells, he should probably hunt down Shawn – just as the AI appeared to remind him.

Dismissing Jeeves as soon as he knew where Shawn was, he headed to the room

where his former boss and present administrator sat, looking at a wall listing monsters. The room he sat in was just off the map room, and had been set up to keep track of what they had fought, holding the data they had gathered. Shawn looked very thoughtful as Jon entered, looking over with a wry smile. “Welcome back.”

Jonathon smiled back. “The afterlife is... A thing.” he note, with a sigh, his gaze pulled towards the board: It listed Skeletal Snipers, Skeletal Blademasters, Trapdoor Vampires, Grenadier Rhinos, Vinerippers, Bone lords, Panzer-snails, Cobra Drakes, Skeletal Artillery that he'd heard of: and others, such as Shock Wolves, Cyberzombies, Spintronic wraiths, and Chameleon Pumas that he hadn't. He nodded towards it. “This our native wildlife?” he asks, a little bemusedly.

Shawn nodded. “According to the reports of everyone who came back or respawned.” he gave Jon an appraising look. “You Really alright? Bea said you were, but... Seriously? A vampire?”

Jon nodded. “Not exactly what you're thinking. I didn't get a good look at it, but it had at least two heads and tentacles. Also the ability to alter our respawn points: I got the impression he lives in a pocket dimension lair. I have no idea how we're going to spot them, but I grabbed some perks that might help.”

Shawn made a face. “So you levelled up. You're making me jealous – most of the others have as well.” he sighed. “Look. The colonel wants to run a hot-wash with every team, so we can all identify how to improve, what we need out there. I can wait for that. But I don't want to be stuck here all the time: I need to level as well. So can you pick someone else to be my second? To manage this place when you or I aren't here? Or are we going to alternate?”

This honestly had not occurred to Jon, and he blinked at Shawn's words. “Backup sounds better. Jeeves?” the AI shimmered into existence.

“Yes, Jonathon?” his fortification boss replied with all due subservience.

“Can I establish secondary roles for various positions, like Shawn would need? Or for any other position we appoint?” the apparition nodded.

“Of course, Jonathon. Just let me know whom you select as your secondary officers. I am at your disposal.” Jeeves replied.

Jonathon nodded, looking back to Shawn. “So, find someone to be your backup, and we can put them in place.” he paused for a moment. “Is that what you wanted to see me about?”

Shawn hesitated. “Thirty percent casualties.” he said, finally. “Of all the teams we sent out, four hours later nearly a third of you didn't come back. I mean sure, you respawn today, but... Everyone who would know – Bob, the guide – say that the first few days are when it is easiest. When the monsters are still learning how to fight. How the hell are we going to survive?”

Jonathon sighed. “I'm not sure.” he said, softly. “I think that's why we need to talk with the colonel. Figure out what we did right, what we did wrong, train and try again. Because if we can't hold this place three weeks from now? We're fucked.”

Shawn nodded. “We got a few dozen respawns this morning appearing – apparently several sites were overrun yesterday in the night.” his hand rose to his temples, rubbing at them. “Just... be ready for bad news, Jon. Hope someone has a plan.” Jon couldn't quite shake the feeling Shawn expected that person to be him.

On that depressing note, Jonathon made his farewells and went looking for Beatrice: He wanted to see her again, and he need to learn how to use his new toy. He eventually gave up the hunt after a fruitless ten minutes (The fortification was getting larger, he swore), and asked Jeeves to pass on his request she meet him at the training room.

She was there by the time he reached it, looking even more gorgeous, if it was possible: her smile lit up at his approach. “Ready to learn, Jon?” He was getting used to her attention, and managed to avoid a stammer as he acquiesced, and they moved within.

The room – configured for magical blades – took the form of a classic martial arts dojo, with the walls bedecked in the colours of magic, eye-twisting and searing in their patterning, the floor covered in fine, crystalline sand that shimmered in the light.

She drew her own blade from a scabbard at her side, nodding towards his own. “I see you bought one, too? The room is telling me we can't be hurt here, so let's begin...”

The next few hours were an experience. On the one hand, it was one on one time with a beautiful woman whom was clearly into him, with lots of intimate touches as she showed him how to properly hold the sword, how to stand, and so forth. On the other, while there was no damage from the injuries occurring as they sparred, they still hurt for a brief second to tell you they'd landed and how bad they were – and certainly to begin with, the terrifying sword maiden training him was landing some very painful strikes.

Still, by early-afternoon – when Bea suggested they grab a bite to eat – he had made respectable gains, having raised Magical Blades to Initiate 9 – and, due to the effects of the instruction chamber, a fairly staggering eight perks to choose.

Scanning over the list, he thought for a second, then bought 'empower Blade' eight times – each purchase allowed him to aspect his blade towards one of his schools: since he had all the schools, that was all he was going to purchase until he could use all twelve with it. He figured this would ensure he could cover all possible weaknesses – and when he mentioned this to Beatrice, she fully agreed.

“It's why I want your class, or one very much like it.” she explained. “Then focus on becoming a swordsmaster for the gang, I suppose – I did fence when I was a young girl, and I rather liked it.”

They spent the next half hour chatting about her youth and his, comparing the differences their ages had made to their experiences, before Shawn arrived: there was a red-headed dude he vaguely recognised from the recruitment sessions trailing behind him. Like everyone in the gang, he looked like a buff athletic guy who should be in a movie, all square-jawed with bright green eyes and athletic muscle.

“Jon? This is Gerald. I am appointing him my second – he's a retired manager, so I know he's got the chops, and he showed me his stats and he's got some skills that would help – I didn't even see the Administration skill when I was building mine!”

Jonathon and Bea both chuckled. “The skill list, by my estimate, had almost a thousand skills on it.” Jon noted, drily. “So I'm really not surprised. Good to meet you, Gerald.” he shook hands with the man, who smiled back. “Likewise. I don't fancy going out as infantry again, so I'm happy to stay here until we can build some decent armour. Always fancied being a tanker, and what I've found out about these 'mech suits' has me interested.”

They chatted a bit - Gerald had apparently served in the second world war, before working as a senior engineer at Chrysler before retiring. Eventually, though, they had to go their separate ways - Jon wanted to get cleaned up and looking his best, before meeting with the Colonel.

Half-way to his suite, he recalled he had a spell for that, and as he cast it, reflected he really need to organise his sheet. The number of perks and spells was getting... a bit much. So as he headed towards where they'd put the military group, he started seeing how he could alter it to be more user friendly – that had, after all, been his job the week before.

After some discussion with Colonel Mitchelson and another with Jeeves, the Military district – as he thought of it – was accessed through a single room. Mitchelson had asked for it for access control, and while he'd been considering it, Jeeves had pointed out that as the owner, he could lock or unlock any door he desired – he had not and did not intend to ever mention this last detail to any of the military members – just in case.

So when he entered the gate room, he was greeted by a private, who asked why he was here. In short order, was led towards the room Mitchelson had claimed, and configured the front as an office.

Mitchelson looked up as he entered, and gave a thin smile: The private closed the door behind him. “How was the afterlife?” he asked, his tone light with a grim humour.

Jonathon chuckled. “Illuminating. So what is it you wanted to talk about?” he took the chair opposite without asking. “This 'hot wash' I've heard mentioned?” considering the man opposite, Colonel Mitchelson looked harried, more than anything: If the first time he'd met him the man had been irritated and impatient, now he mostly looked overworked.

Mitchelson shook his head. “No, I still have my staff preparing that. Three things, really: First, thanks to your gang, all my troops can now fight again. Ms Pintek was quite helpful in that regard, and her instruction tablets saved a lot of time. What I want is firstly, that you give access to the Training facilities for me men: A daily block. Secondly, I'd like you to create some simple healing and group boosting spells that my medics can use. Thirdly, that for forthcoming expeditions, a squad of my men accompanies each of your groups.”

Jonathon thought for a moment, then nodded. “We can do that. Jeeves?” the translucent neon form shimmered into being. “Yes, Jonathon?”

“Set up..” he gave the colonel a look... “A six AM to ten AM slot in the training facilities for the men under Colonel Mitchelson's command – limit it to them. If that works for you, colonel?”

Mitchelson nodded. “And the rest?” he was rather brusque today – Jonathon resolved to ask Jeeves to film him in on what was going on later.

“I can create the spells easily enough – what sort of level have your medics reached? As for your troops coming with us – Assuming they have the skills to form a group, I'm all for it. We can discuss it more at the hot wash?”

“They've all achieved at least Beginner one.” Michelson replied, looking at a note, then giving a curt nod. “And yes, that's acceptable. Thank you for meeting with me, Jonathon.”

Frowning slightly at the dismissal, Jonathon departed – and the moment he was out of earshot of any of the soldiers, called for Jeeves. “What's going on with the army?” he asked, quietly.

“Certainly, Jonathon. His superior officer's location was overrun by some kind of monster yesterday, and he has no higher leadership to report to at this time. It seems he is contemplating the various contingencies he was given – Which include taking over this Fortification if he deems it necessary, though he has no idea how, and does not favour this approach: he has also discussed heading towards a location he referred to as 'Groombridge Air Base' which is apparently serving as a gathering point for nearby armed forces. I believe this is behind his desire to have his troops go out into the field – to gain not just combat experience, but an idea of just how hard it would be. They do not, at least, plan on deciding until after the defence event.”

“Well, that's good.” he sighed. “Keep an eye on them, let me know each morning how their plans are progressing, and alert me if they decide anything stupid, like seizing control – why do they want to do that, anyway?”

“Orders, Jonathon. His superiors apparently desire to stop 'warlords' and the breakup of the nation, and responded strongly to learning you had erected a 'Fortification' near the San Francisco Dungeon. Colonel Mitchelson explained, and this calmed matters, but it was still ordered as a contingency, at his discretion, should he perceive any abuse of the refugees.”

His mouth opened and then shut as he took this in. really, what could he say to that? He shook his head. “Right. Just.. Keep me informed. Actually – each morning, A transcript of any meetings or Communications he has over radio?”

“Certainly, Jonathon.” Jeeves replied. “Your cousin has agreed to meet you at seven. This is in a hundred and twelve minutes.”

“Right. Have him meet me in my room: I'm going to be working on more spells.” He certainly wasn't going to turn down more xp, so as he headed back to his suite, he pondered what sort of spells he could create for the medics.