A suddenly bright glow shone from Rex’s bracelet, he shielded his eyes as something appeared in the bright light. “Hey! Listen!” A small chirpy voice shouted out loud. On reflex, he swatted the thing away. “Why master?” The high-pitched voice sounded from the floor.

“Benni?!” Jo-Leanna stopped glowing as she went to pick up the bright annoyance. Rex was taken by surprise as he beheld such a magically different-looking person in front of him. “How did you survive?” She now resembled something he could only think of as an Ice Elf. Her hair was a shiny icy blue, with hints of deeper blues below to match her dark blue eyes. Her skin was a frosty color with small lines of a type of purple-blue light running along its surface in mystical patterns.

“I don’t get it either.” The little bright Spirit Benni floated up to Jo-Leanna's face. “When he said he could use me, I thought he wanted my core.” She then zipped over to the still glowing bracelet Rex wore. “He did use it, but not in a way to get rid of me.” Rex just stared at the bright glowing talking ball now resting on his wrist.

“Do you come with a dimmer?” Rex was tired of squinting into the light coming off this Benni.

“OH! So sorry Captain!” Benni shouted as her light dimmed to just outline her form, which was a mini version of Kid. “Benni reporting for duty!” She gave him a salute with a giddy smile.

“Okay then, Benni is it?” The little Spirit nodded. “Why are you coming out of my bracelet, and what exactly is your purpose?” Rex narrowed his eyes, wondering why Alfred would give him something with this little bugger in it. If it was to piss him off more, it was slowly working.

“Sir Spirit told me to become your Assistant, Captain!” She shouted in a salute again.

“No shouting, I can hear you just fine…” Rex rubbed his head at her loudness. Thankfully he had a thoughtful medical to help ease his pain. “Continue.”

“I was given the job to be your ‘buffer’ he said. Something about keeping the screens from you.” She bashfully looked down while fidgeting. “I’m not sure what I’m supposed to do, but there are all these notifications for you from the System sir.” She held up her hand as so many tiny blue screens tried to appear before she closed her hand making them vanish. “Is it really alright for me to see these?” She looked uncomfortable at Rex, her fear grew as his smile widened.

“Benni, you are my favorite so far.” Rex used his right hand to softly pat her tiny head. “Alfred knew that if I saw those, I would likely go insane and destroy everything just to rid myself of them.” He started to laugh off his anger, bettering his mood. “Don’t use that bright light or yell at me, and you’ll do just fine.” Letting out a deep breath he relaxed back into his throne. “So go ahead and read through them all, and summarize it for me.” Benni snapped her fingers and she was sucked into the bracelet.

“I have your weapon, Captain!” Goldielocks came back into the room as another explosion echoed out, but much further this time. She had a long rifle case in one hand, and a bulky suitcase in the other. “Smith is reporting outside company is trying to join the Event, so far a few have crashed with no success.” She deposited the cases before Rex while reporting on the situation to him.

“Why didn’t you change?” Rex was looking over the Sun Dwarf for any differences like he witnessed with Jo-Leanna. This question caught the girl off guard.

“Captain, there are many who use magic or an item to hide due to dangerous circumstances. Miss Rubee here is one of them, Kid’s family is sheltering her due to past events.” Jo-Leanna stepped down to help the confused Goldielocks to carry the cases closer to Rex. She picked up the rifle case to hand to him, letting the other girl take the heavier case. “Here you are, Captain.”

“Thank you.” He laid the case across his lap, ready to open up his prize as more distant explosions echoed out. “Let’s see what Alfred made me this time.” Rex rubbed his hands together in excitement.

“Wait!” Benni popped out of his bracelet again, placing herself between his hand and the latch of the case. “Not yet Captain!” She closed her eyes as she braced for another strike. Rex paused as he looked at the fairy-like creature. He grabbed her in his grip, making her yelp.

“Explain yourself.” He brought her closer so he could exam her better. She was a mini copy of Kid with fairy wings, and he could touch her instead of a light feedback system the newer holograms had before his voyage. “You are interesting.” Rex had never seen something like her before.

“Is this your first time entering a System sir?” Benni spoke quickly, holding back her usual high pitch yelling. Rex just tilted his head at the question. “Those entering the System from outer means are given a special ‘welcome’ gift of sorts.” She started to shake a bit due to his stare.

“What sort of gift?” Rex released his grip but held her on his palm while staring her down. She was visibly shaking now, unable to avoid his gaze.

“According to the System, it will double any item, gifts, and bonuses you acquire or receive within one hour.” Rex’s eyes shot open with surprise, all tension flew away from his face. “But there is a catch sir.” Benni was finally breathing normally again while looking down.

“Of course there is.” Rex sighed out, trying to gather himself again. “So what is it, Benni?” He asked her a bit more gently.

“All the items you get must be in your personal storage to get the bonus after an hour passes. If any get taken out or in during the process, it gets canceled.” She shivered as she braced herself, but was surprised by a laugh instead.

“So all you are saying is, and correct me if I’m wrong. This system thingy is not only going to give me magic but gifts as well, and if I store those and any item I currency have into storage it will all double in an hour?” Rex looked at his nodding little fairy, before throwing her in the air to fly herself. “That’s excellent news!” He stopped himself from standing just yet, his body was slower to recover than his mind it seems.

“Shall I accept all the gifts and store them, sir?” Benni hovered around the bracelet, with many little screens around her. Rex chuckled at the resemblance to Alfred. “Do you want to store these items as well?” She pointed to the cases.

“Leave me these, for now, accept all gifts and double them. Anything else?” Rex watched her poke the screens, expecting them to vanish, only to spread instead. “I’ll let you finish that first.” He was so happy Alfred prepared a personal helper for him, he would have to thank him later. A loud bang drew his attention to Goldielocks.

“I’m sorry Captain, the case was just too heavy to hold.” She was panting while hunched over. She dropped her heavy load on the top of the stairs. “What sort of weapon is this heavy? I’m a Mid T-3 even.” She stretched her back out while muttering something. Rex just chuckled a bit.

“You didn’t have to hold it up, you know.” He started to laugh at her a bit. She glanced downwards while being a bit ashamed at her foolishness. “Now on to business.” Clicking open the latches, magical light of varying colors in precise patterns flashed out for a brief moment. “Now this is what I’m talking about!”

“What is it, Lady Jo?” Rubee was confused by the weapon, to her it looked more like a magic rod, so she asked her more magic inclined friend. “I’ve never seen something like this.”

“It’s no Staff or Rod design I know about Miss Rubee.” Jo-Leanna said from the other side while studying the weapon laying in the case. She could make out the simple enchantment markings, but couldn’t make sense of why those were on it. “What is it, Captain?”

“This is the new rifle Alfred made for me.” Rex smiled as he ran his hands over the weapon’s sleek dark wooden looking, but metal feeling material. The barrel felt unbelievably rough for something looking so smooth. “This is a rifle, it’s a type of gun or ranged weapon my people were fond of using. I have no idea what sort of materials were used nor upgrades Alfred made to it.” He picked it up, it was so light in his hands.

“I never heard of those kinds of weapons before.” Rubee was leaning as close to the weapon as she could, her curiosity was obvious. “What sort of range weapon is it?”

“Open that other case first.” Rex set the gun back in the case while pointing to the heavier case on the ground. Rubee opened it up to reveal stacks of clear boxes with metallic gleaming ammo. "I'm guessing that's the ammo, definitely a newer version than I remember."

"They look so pretty." Jo-Leanna crouched down to examine the slightly glowing bullets. "What are they?" She poked one while staring intently at them.

"Those are called 'bullets' or 'ammo' according to Sir Spirit." Benni hovered over the case, it seems like she finally closed all the screens out. "Similar to how a bow uses arrows, the Captain's weapon uses these 'bullets' to fight with." Her hand glowed as a few different-looking bullets hovered out of the box.

"Why do they look different?" Rubee was studying the floating bullets next to Benni. "Are they like those magic arrows some crafters try to make?" Benni just shrugged.

"What I was told was, 'These basic bullets should last you for a bit, I hope.'" Benni used a bit of magic to mimic Alfred's voice, Rex looked impressed. "Majority of the ammo is Basic Bullet, followed by AP Bullets, MP Bullets, and finally IR Bullets." The four floating bullets fell back into the case.

"Did Alfred tell you how I'm supposed to load my gun?" Rex didn't see any magazines or openings for loading the rifle manually. He picked up one of the Basic Bullets to examine it. It looked like an expensive custom-made round with dim lines glowing in patterns around it all.

"Using your magic, you touch both the bullet and gun, then think 'Load'. Sir Spirit says the rest should naturally come to you, sir." Benni was holding a screen behind her back while looking a bit nervous. "Captain, would you like to accept all Achievement and Title rewards, sir?" She gingerly held out the screen with a yes or no on it.

"Yes, can you add them to the doubling?" She nodded as she hit the button and was assaulted by many more screens. Rex felt relief from not being on the receiving end himself. "Unless I need to okay something, just accept it all and double it, we can go through the items after that." He held up the bullet next to his rifle, after feeling a bit of warmth move through him, the bullet melted into the gun. "That's neat."

"What does this MP Bullet do?" Jo-Leanna was holding one in her hands as she studied it. "I can feel some sort of weird magic on it." Her eyes glowed while it seemed like she was reading something. “They can break magic barriers?!” Her head snapped back and forth between the bullet and black space.

“Hey Gol-ehm, Rubee.” Rex was secretly glad he didn’t have to ask her for her name, she turned her attention towards him. “What is Jo doing?” He pointed at the girl currently freaking out for some reason. Rubee stared at her friend for a moment, before picking up the bullet she held and her eyes glowed.

“She is using the Inspect spell sir, just like I did.” Her whole body was shaking, her face held fear. “Are these really a weapon?” She held out an IR Bullet for Rex to take.

“Which one is this one? I like the design of it, almost a pity to shoot this work of art.” Rex held a stunning piece of work between his fingers. “It’s almost like glass holding a white fire.” Benni zips around the bullet in his hand before pulling up a screen.

“According to the info left by Sir Spirit, this is the IR Bullet or Incendiary Release Bullet. It holds a small white-hot flare burst that gets released on contact.” Benni flew over to the bullet Jo-Leanna was holding, she finally calmed down. “This is the MP Bullet or Magic Penetration Bullet. It is made to shatter magic barriers or shields.” She motioned to the last one Rubee held. “That’s the Armor Penetration Bullet or AP Bullet, while the Basic Bullets are for normal usage.” Benni flew back to hover over the bracelet with a few more screens.

“Decent setup, hand me some more basics Rubee.” Rex was curious how many rounds his new toy could hold. “Benni, how do I carry the unloaded ammo?” He hoped there was a faster loading method.

“Just touch the case and imagine loading it all,” Benni called over the few more screens popping up. She was getting a bit frustrated now. “Why are there so many!?” Her yelling caused Rex to laugh. “What are you?” She tried to look around the screens at him, but more blocked her way. “AH!”

“How did they all fit?!” Rex touched the ammo in the remaining case, a bit of that warmth spread and everything flashed. The case was empty, while the rifle had gained some more glowing patterns. “What is this?” He focused on the gun as little holo lights magically appeared around the weapon. There was info on fire mode selections, the ammo amount left, and ammo type. It vanished with a thought as well. “I can’t wait to use this, but what about the cases?”

“I’ll carry them.” Rubee held out a hand with multiple rings on it, one gem glowed as the empty cases were magically stored. “Smith says he needs further instructions in the main courtyard, can you move yet?” She was halfway down the steps before remembering seeing Rex having trouble standing earlier. Jo-Leanna was standing beside him with a glowing hand on his shoulder, and a slightly embarrassed look on her face.

“Done! Now Update!” Benni shouted as she dramatically hit the screen away. A glowing wave of light flowed over Rex, making him take in a deep breath. It finished as he exhaled a huge black sooty-like cloud. “You should be feeling a bit better now Captain! You won’t get the bonuses till the timer hits zero, so try not to get any more gifts that will reset it.” She sighed as she deflated on Rex’s arm. “How do you have some many...forget, I rather not know.” She shivered as she touched the bracelet to disappear.

“Magic sure is handy.” Rex stood up, feeling a bit invigorated. “I’m ready to see more, lead the way Rubee. Stay close in case I need attention, Jo-Leanna.” He descended the stairs while shouldering the rifle. “Blondie!” The man guarding the door turned around to glare at Rex. “Go find Docket in the kitchen to get some sort of dinner feast ready, grab a snack if you’re hungry while you’re there.” Blondie blinked in confusion for a few moments before nodding heading off.

“This way.” Rubee lead them in the other direction from Blondie. “The castle is set up in a triangle formation. When the Defense Field is active, the castle points towards the connection path.” At the end of the hallway through some double door was a large circular room. “This is the back left tower, out that door is the central area. Up the ladder in the center will take you to the top for a better view.” She pointed out the door and ladder.

“You said Smith was waiting outside, so let’s not keep him waiting.” Rex marched off to the door. The more he moved, the more he felt energy charging him up. Opening the largest door in the room, he exited out to a sight he did not expect. “Blue sky?” His whole body stuttered, he nearly tripped while dropping his rifle. “Thanks.” Jo-Leanna grabbed his shoulder and lifted him back up with unbelievable strength, she just smiled as her hand glowed icy blue.

“Captain! So glad you made it out.” Smith came running to meet the group as more explosions sounded throughout the background noise. “I finished setting up all Spirit and Magic Defenses available. You were right about needing them, something is not right sir.” He was frowning as he looked over the front tower where the sounds of explosions were happening.

“There’s grass too? So soft.” Rex managed to avert his attention from the gorgeous blue skies above to the stunningly green velvet-like grass spread around the center area. He bent down to feel it as he made a mental map of his surroundings. The castle was an equilateral triangle with towers on all points with a cubic rock in the middle which he bet was the sealed up core room. The front tower pointed towards the so-called connection path, so enemies. “I need a better visual, take me to the front tower top.” Rex gripped his rifle in excitement.

“This way sir.” Smith turned to lead him towards the tower, which had steps leading up to the top along the wall. “The barriers are all set up and running smoothly. The summoned spirit soldiers are guarding the pathway in full defensive mode.” Rex was suddenly shocked when he magically reached the top step after taking only the first three. “I sort of expected some sort of response from the pirate who attacked us, but this is ridiculous.” Smith grumbled as more thuds and explosions sounded out.

“Woah.” Rex walked over to the wall, holding onto it for balance. The blue sky was gone, space in all its shining glory with more magical colors burst forth for his view, it slightly overwhelmed him. Managing to glance below, he saw land surrounding his castle, it was nice green grassland for a good half a kilometer before it just ended. Walking along the wall he came to the rounded-out tower portion. “Is that the pathway?” He pointed to the only place where the land lead off in a straight direction to a foggy area that wasn’t space.

“Aye, sir. Either we pierce the veil or they do.” Smith was calmly following Rex. “Up to you sir.” He straightened up a bit, ready for action.

“Are those the defense troops?” Rex pointed to the glowing fantasy armor unit standing before the fog. They held large shields, spears, axes, swords, with a few bowyers and one mage-looking figure. “Where were they during the meeting?” He leveled his rifle to activate the scope for a better view.

“Those are summoned spirit soldiers, sir.” Smith stepped forwards, afraid Rex was about to attack them. “Every Spiritship has access to them in a Defense Field. They are magical tools used to fight in place of actual soldiers, so most fights between ships don’t end in destruction.” Smith almost forgot that this new Captain did not know of any of this at all.

“So automated magical soldier?” Rex turned to Smith, who nodded just to diffuse the tension. “That’s good, have them stay on the defense. Better safe than sorry.” Shouldering the weapon he turned back to his small group. The explosions had been silent for a few moments now. “So what happens now?” Rex asked a bunch of confused-looking people.

“We wait for the Event Field to open?” Smith said it like it was common knowledge. “How little do you know sir?” He was looking at Rex concern plain on his face.

“I know nothing about any of this, my knowledge is only on lost things in the distant past.” Rex turned to stare into the fog. “I know it’s stressful having to dumb down your know how quiet a bit, but please put up with it until I’m caught up.” He closed his eyes listening for something. “It’s too quiet.” He raised his rifle as he crouched down to use the wall to steady himself.

“I could do with some quiet after all that racket.” Smith humped out as he crossed his arms. “Why are you so worried sir? We have some solid defenses, what’s the worst that can happen?” He started to laugh out before a gun barrel in his mouth stopped him short.

“Never repeat that phrase in my presence, understood?” Rex moved so fluidly and quickly none could react in time. “I have horrible luck already, I don’t need you tempting fate to through more at us.” He removed the gun from Smith’s mouth as he turned to watch the foil start to boil. “Too late, remember this Smith, you asked for it.” Aiming, Rex braced himself for anything.

“What do y-” Smith was cut off as a wail swarmed over everything, visibility was wobbling while fear was induced to the faint of heart. “What in the nine hells?!” Smith was on his hands and knees.

“Captain!” Jo-Leanna was sitting on the ground holding an unconscious Rubee. “What do we do?!” She was having trouble not shaking from the scream.

“Simple.” Rex was unaffected by the scream, except for the volume. “Survive.” The fog curtain slowly started to fade away.