Chapter 6: After That, I Need a Nap

Trint was left on his own in the living room. With so much to consider. He took a short time to process the news of Cara and his family. Then he resolved to be glad they still were alive, and there was a way to get to them again. Exhaustion hit him, and he made his way to bed.

Several hours later, Trint woke. He spent long hours into the night reviewing what he heard and taking notes in an empty book he found in the new ring. He had come up with many notes but made a list to keep his head straight around the unorthodox changes.

So, secrets and working alone for the foreseeable future. Next, he would remember to balance his stats. How boring, he laughed to himself. Eventually, he would have a solid base and could do more strategic min-maxing.

‘I can’t mess this up. Right?’ Trint thought, ‘I know I need to get outside and fight some stuff, but right now, I have no skills, and I need to figure out what Pneuma is all about.’

“Pneuma, can you hear me?” Trint spoke to the empty room.

‘Yes,’ Trint heard the voice in his head but silence in the room. ‘There is no need to speak aloud; I can hear you when you direct your thoughts toward me. It is best not to say my name aloud. And talking to yourself will gather unwanted attention.’

‘Oh, ok.’ Trint remembered secrecy was going to be necessary.

‘Pneuma, can you help me get a skill?’ Trint hoped.

‘Yes, let’s get some skills for your Mind and Body.’

‘I can access your system directly. Watch as I access the system and show your display for you. Your currency total is under System – Resources/Currency Balance.

Currency Balance: $500 Q11

‘After food and other purchases, you don’t have much. Now let me help you by accessing some of your family’s resources. Checking your balance now.’

Currency Balance: $5.1 Q5 (Current iteration total: $5,100,500 Q11)

“Wow, am I rich now?” Trint shouted. ‘So one Q5.1 is 5 million Q11. How does this work?’ Trint asked Pneuma.

‘For every tier, there is a 10x increase in value. One Q10 is 10 Q11. You have a lot more funds available that you can pull from. At this point in Q11, you have nearly infinite resources to spend. But most of the stuff here is worthless. I have been instructed to direct and control your purchases. However, we have the funds to get you any skill available under i5. I am only to allow skills under a certain level of power. This will ensure you learn to walk before running, as your people say. You won’t need skills or use skills like others do.’ Pneuma explained. ‘You will also be expected to earn your Q by leveling a profession.’

‘So I am like mega-rich. And I can’t buy anything good yet?’ Trint summarized.

‘Correct. Think of it as an emergency fund trust account set up by your relatives. Besides, it is too risky to equip you with great gear or skills. But I will unlock some things in the store and purchase them for you. I want you to have a couple of store-bought skills. There are many skills, some can’t be purchased, and some are priceless and more powerful than the ones available in the stores. I could get you some of those, but that is not the plan. You are meant to get a few general skills. You won’t need to master them. Use them to prove your understanding and get used to your new body. You will need to adjust as you go. You will be powerful in battle when we utilize your Spirit and Soul. But I need you to learn to fight first. Then we will learn more of your inheritance.”

‘Not to worry. You and I will level and power up shortly. First, let me show you the level requirements for advancing to higher iterations and the life span or time frame maximums allowed for each.’ Pneuma showed him.

I11: Tutorial (1-year tutorial time frame starting at arrival)

I10: Levels 1-20 (1-year life span starting at arrival)

I9: Levels 21-30 (10-year life span starting at arrival)

I8: Levels 31-100 (100-year life span starting at arrival)

I7: Levels 101-200 (1,000-year life span starting at arrival)

I6: Levels 201-300 (10,000-year life span starting at arrival)

I5: Levels 301-500 (100,000-year life span starting at arrival)

‘I take it there are higher levels and longer maximum life spans when you go even higher?’ Trint thought.

‘Yes, but don’t worry about that yet. Time to access the skill store. I have narrowed down the skills you will start with.’ Pneuma stated as if it was decided.

‘I don’t get a say in this? I realize you know infinitely more, but can I pick one?’ Trint was surprised but thankful after seeing the list of skills when Pneuma showed the available categories. Then he began scrolling through skills faster than Trint could follow. There were so many his mind couldn’t even accurately guess. Trint had seen some skills when browsing the vending machines but only maybe a hundred. He previously saw a Mana Bolt skill for $5000 Q11. The same Mana Bolt skill was only $1000 Q11 here. The tutorial seemed to impact the price, and he guessed the people who could start with them.

Pneuma added the recommended skills to Trint’s System Store shopping cart. All were general skills far beyond his previous financial ability to acquire outside of help from Pneuma. They seemed to hit the basics; Movement, Regeneration, and Fighting with a weapon and Magic. They all seemed general, but Pneuma said better skills would come later.

Cart:

Movement Skill (Passive): [Increased Movement Speed], [Dodge]

Defensive Skill (Passive): [Increased Health Regeneration]

Magic Projection Skills: [Mana Bolt]

Sword Skills: [Strike], [Block]

‘Pneuma? This seems kind of basic. I had hoped for more powerful skills or powers. Couldn’t you get me some super rare and more advanced stuff?’ Trint protested

‘Yes, of course. There are vastly more powerful skills and magic. Magic systems and magic of higher Orders. That will come later. Right now, in the lower iterations, none of that matters. The system is just weeding out those who can’t make it at a basic level. If you started throwing around higher Order magic, the system might intervene; if it didn’t, you would still have a target on your back. Anyone more powerful than you that becomes too aware of your unique abilities will want to control you. I can’t have you getting delayed or angering the system now. Eventually, the average power level for others and the varied abilities will make yours seem more acceptable. When you get to i5, for example, the people vary in levels from 301 to 500. So they might assume you are near the top if you are more powerful than a 350 level. For the time being, no one will be able to account for what you can do. The iterations 10 to 8 are called the Mortal Realms by most. Once you get to the Spiritual Realms i7-i5, magic becomes much more than mere skills, and you find affinities, Titles, Spirit, and Soul become more widely used when you get there, and it is where you will shine as the adopted child you have become.’

‘For now, learn these skills. They are still good for progressing to the Spirit Realms. Besides, I will help you, and we won’t need to rely on these skills forever.’ Pneuma said.

The Cart of skills emptied, and Trint could tell the skills were now in his ring.

‘Pneuma, did you just buy those skills?’ Trint was surprised at the access Pneuma had but was also grateful. ‘Now, what do I do with these skills?’

‘Just lay down and relax. I will take care of the skill integration. It will take a few hours, and I will help by putting you to sleep. Otherwise, you would experience discomfort and pain when your Mind and Body adapt to the changes. When you awake, the skills will be ready for use. Just rest, and then when you wake, we will fight some baby monsters and get you some more stats. You are too weak for anything other than i11.’

Pneuma made i11 sound childish. And Trint was more than eager to grow past it and gain the power to get to his family.

‘I wonder if most people are as confused as I feel right now?’ Trint pondered as he got into the bed; he closed his eyes. Immediately his body was no longer under his control, but the next moment, he was unconscious.

Trint groggily woke up. He was greeted with system notifications galore. He continued laying in bed and went through them. Most of them informed him that his new skills had been acquired, and the integration had altered him.

‘Pneuma, why are the skills not visible when I look at the system readout of my body?’

‘They are there, but you can’t access views of your Spirit or Soul yet. I can bridge the gap that would normally keep them locked in your Body and Mind. There are other benefits that I will bring to your attention if you need them.’ Pneuma explained.

‘I can live with that. Can we finally go and fight something!’ Trint was ready to go outside the safety of the town. All the explanations and news of this new world and his adoption left him wanting to go ‘fight something.’ The time for rest was over.

‘Trint, it has been three days since you laid down for me to add your skills. Please eat some food from your storage ring. I purchased you a stock of food. Just eat a meal or two before we go. It took longer than expected for some reason. Also, while you were out, I did a full sweep of your system, and my access is blocked in a few areas. I should not be blocked from anything. Can you access ‘Patriarch,’ or are there any areas that are locked? Try finding those while you eat.’ Pneuma instructed.