PftA Book 2 - Chapter 42

Chapter 42 – The Usefulness of a Deserted Island

My attempts at levity were only successful because they involved food. That was okay. As long as they worked, that was what mattered.

The mood lightened significantly as various dishes were prepared using raw materials I had collected from rifts during the last few years, though I was peppered with questions from everyone during the entire meal.

I answered everything I could, and I made sure to remind them to review the game guide on my site, which had been moved to an Atlas server several months earlier. Lisa added a few new articles, one of which specifically covered the differences between the game and our new reality – like the five spell limit, how to gain skills like Mana Manipulation and Direct Casting, and the lack of a respawn function.

I hesitated to add the last one, but I knew someone would complain that it hadn’t been spelled out when one of their friends didn’t reappear after getting killed.

Things were going well, and everyone was starting to relax until Mom received a call from the hospital asking her to come in. One of her work friends had mentioned that Mom could heal in the game, and her bosses had rightly assumed she would gain the same abilities in real life.

They’d practically begged her to come in and help with the sudden influx of patients.

Remembering Mom’s comments about the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU), I volunteered to accompany her. Though some of the tiny patients might need a little Life magic to become well, I felt confident that I’d be able to help those who mostly needed time to develop properly. And for those only requiring a touch of Life mana… I’d learned how to manipulate the Self-Healing spell to provide a little help.

Everyone could use every type of mana at least a little bit. There really was no such thing as having zero affinity for an element. It was just infinitely harder, and the system wouldn’t help at all.

That wasn’t the only reason I offered to go, though. I knew the roads were a mess, and I doubted Mom would make it to her destination without problems. The trip from my apartment to my parent’s house normally took more than an hour, and that was without rifts and mobs causing issues.

The hospital was even farther.

While I could have just used Phaseto find the hospital (which I’d never actually been to) and then teleported us there, it felt like a good time to use one of the devices I’d created specifically to make traveling to unfamiliar locations easier.

It was a simplified version of Ros’s chariot. His had been a card-sized crystal that could turn into a vehicle or a small shelter. It was the last gift he’d gotten from his mother before he was disowned for being affinity-less, and since he’d been a noble before, his chariot had been really nice.

I studied it over the years that I’d partied with the group. Even though most of the runes and enchantments were obscured – because almost any enchantments placed on items above Tier Four tended to be – I was still able to learn and extrapolate a lot.

My creation was not nearly as nice, nor could it change shapes. It could, however, change sizes.

I’d made it out of PT2 Space-attuned wood, and the entire egg-shaped device was covered in an array of enchantments. It could expand to accommodate six seated adults, but I kept it small for our journey to conserve mana.

It took some coaxing to convince Mom to enter my creation, but she eventually climbed inside. Showing her news footage of the roads between Pensacola and Fort Walton had helped persuade her to give it a chance. With everything going on, the roads were practically impassible.

“What if it loses power or something hits us?” she asked nervously as she pulled on the chair to ensure it was attached to the floor of the travel pod. It didn’t move.

“The pod won’t lose power. It’s actively drawing in mana to power itself. If something did happen to the gathering array, I could power it using my personal mana,” I replied.

“And if something hits us?”

“We have shields. Actually, we have a [Barrier], since shields usually only go in one direction and barriers can do a full 360,” I said with a smirk. “Also, we’ll be invisible, so nothing is going to target us.”

“What about radar? Or birds?” Natalie chimed in helpfully, causing my smirk to grow.

“Regular birds aren’t an issue, and I used Light and Void for the [Invisibility] array. I don’t think mundane radar will get through it,” I added confidently. I’d used my small conveyance several times already and hadn’t had any issues, so I felt pretty good about its ability to bypass most – if not all – mundane sensing capabilities.

Natalie gasped. “Where did you get Void materials?”

I looked at my Healer friend and tilted my head. “Any rift that leans toward Space will also have a chance of producing Void materials. The elements are similar enough for overlap,” I replied before adding, “It’s just like Space and Force. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve come across Force mobs thinking they were Space mobs specializing in Telekinesis.”

“So, where is the Space rift? You never took us there.”

“St. Louis.”

I activated the enchantments – including one to create windows around the top half of the pod. Having no windows was too unsettling, as was making the whole thing translucent.

As we rose into the air, Mom said, “Is that what you were doing in St. Louis?”

I glanced at my mom and her horrified expression. “Yep. But I was never alone. I don’t think I ever got seriously injured, so it was safe enough.” Realizing what I’d said, I added, “That’s mostly because Robert was a full tier higher than the rift. He also has specialized training and experience that made it easier for him. I would never say that delving is a safe activity, but there are ways to make it safer.”

Since no electronics had started failing yet – nor should they for several days still – I had no trouble navigating to the hospital in my small travel pod. Natalie loved flying and practically begged me to make her a travel pod before we made it halfway to the hospital.

Mom seemed less enthused, but I was confident she’d come around. With the [Barrier]s I’d included, the pods could be used as an emergency shelter in a pinch. I was sure she’d appreciate that little piece of functionality.

The only real issue was that they were only PT2 since that was the material I had to work with. Once people and creatures grew stronger than that, the pod wouldn’t be nearly as secure. While it was possible to purchase higher-tier material from the Atlas merchants, the cost was beyond what I could afford.

I landed the pod in a small, wooded area across the street from the hospital to stay out of sight of any cameras. I figured approaching on foot would be less suspicious than appearing out of thin air.

After shrinking the pod to roughly the size of an actual egg, I placed it in my ring, and we headed into the hospital. It didn’t take long for Natalie and I to get registered as volunteers once we proved we could heal. Despite the numerous skeptics amongst the hospital staff, the demand was too high to reject potentially life-saving abilities out of fear. We were both assigned watchers who followed us around and observed everything we did, but it was only a small inconvenience.

Most of my time was spent in the NICU using Time magic to heal the premature infants Mom had been so keen on saving. Many would have struggled to survive once the power went out had someone not stepped in, so I was happy to help. I had to stop and Meditate to refill my mana several times, but by the time we left the hospital, every infant was in perfect health and ready to be released.

Not that they would be released right away, but they could have gone home.

I’d needed Mom’s help with a few patients since they were beyond what my minor application of an adapted Self-Healcould handle. Thankfully, Mom was a fast learner, and her years of working in the medical field showed. We left several hours later, tired but feeling like we’d each accomplished something worthwhile.

Seeing how effective we were, it didn’t take long for hospitals to put out a request for anyone with healing magic.

“If your dad and I move into the apartment you rented, it’ll be impossible to make it here for work,” Mom said solemnly as I expanded the pod large enough to fit us. I’d told them about my plan to have them live in the housing towers, and while they both initially rejected my offer, I felt like I’d made headway in convincing them.

The fact that she’d brought it up said a lot.

“Even if you stayed at your house, it would be hard to commute,” I responded as I reattached the seats. “Your cars won’t last more than a week or two. After that, you’d be stranded. I’m also worried something will happen to you out there,” I said with a frown, remembering the scene I’d witnessed after the Apocalypse started in the other timeline.

It had been very… traumatizing.

“If you’re really determined to stay outside of town, Robert helped me build a secret bunker in the backyard for you guys. It wouldn’t take much to show you how to use your Nature and Earth magics to get in, though it would still leave you without any way back to civilization. Unless you’re willing to use pod…”

Mom had Life and Nature affinities, while Dad had an Earth affinity. Both would be able to use the bunker if I showed them how. But without the ability to reach others, they’d have a hard time. My parents were pretty social, even if they thought otherwise.

“You can always do both,” I added when I noticed her expression. “You can stay at the apartment, and I’ll show you how to get into the bunker in case you guys need a place to bug out. I already made you a pod,” I added, motioning toward the egg-shaped conveyance. “I’ll show you have to use it after things settle down. This is my last night of moderate freedom for a while, and I’d like to spend at least a little time relaxing.”

“What do you mean?” Mom asked, her voice raising in distress. “Why would you be losing your freedom?”

I chuckled. “It’s nothing like that. I’m just going to be really busy for a long time. Rhona gave me the night to get you all situated, but my team is already working. Grant is the only other native on my team, but he turned her down when she offered the same thing to him.”

“What about Bell? Doesn’t she work for Atlas, too?” Mom asked before glancing at the other person present. “And you?”

I could sense Natalie shaking her head, though I was too busy getting us moving to look. “I don’t do the same kind of work Duo does. I’ll be helping set up the medical pavilion tomorrow. It should have been built earlier today. I’m not sure what Bell will be doing, but I don’t think she’s involved in the same kind of projects as Duo, either.”

Like Bell and most of my friends, she also called me by my gaming nickname.

“What kind of projects are you involved in, Emie?” Mom asked with a hint of suspicion.

I glanced back and smiled tiredly. “Portals, rifts, deliveries, and a little bit of Enchanting. I don’t do much with the Enchanting part anymore, but I still help out occasionally. Mostly, I’ll be serving as a delivery/taxi service and helping stabilize the situation with the rifts.”

Given the sheer volume of rifts appearing, I knew my personal time would become very limited once the sun rose. Though Rhona had given me the night to get my family settled and handle whatever personal matters came up, it had been a grace on her part. My contract had been very clear that my time belonged to Atlas during the transition.

There were no Time Mage concessions anymore. Now that the Reintegration had begun, things were going to get hectic. I’d warned my friends and family already, but I wasn’t sure they understood just how much would be expected of me, especially given all the extra training and advantages I’d gotten.

I was grateful that Mom and Dad decided to stay at the new apartment, though it took a couple of trips for them to retrieve everything they wanted from the house, even with near unlimited storage. Within two days, Mom was working with Natalie as a healer in the medical pavilion outside the nearby MT2 rift. So far, only Atlas personnel and the handful of early awakened living nearby were delving the rift, but I anticipated that would change once the first wave of people reached Tier Two.

For the next two weeks, I spent between twelve and twenty hours per day delivering the culmination of our work in R&D and managing the rifts along Interstate 10. Most of my time was spent dealing with rifts, but that was to be expected, considering the highway stretched along the entire southern United States.

Thankfully, the large team responsible for clearing and maintaining the major cities along I-10 had a couple of Earth Mages who were able to construct a temporary wall on either side of the highway, leaving only the ramps open. It wouldn’t keep all the beasts and monsters from accessing the road, but it would cut down on a lot of the problems.

I only had trouble twice before the power went out.

The first time, I was attempting to deliver items to a military base and got surrounded by armed soldiers intent on capturing me for ‘Homeland Security’ purposes. I was tempted to leave them with nothing, but I returned later using an [Invisibility] talisman and simply left the delivery on the desk of my point of contact with a short note expressing my discontent with the soldiers’ actions.

While I knew that the military base’s leadership had been briefed, at least to some degree, I didn’t think the same could be said for every service member assigned to the installation. To avoid encountering the same problem again, I opted to use [Invisibility] during my deliveries from that point forward.

When the second bit of trouble came, I decided not to be so nice to the offenders.

I hadn’t thought it necessary to use [Invisibility] while adjusting semi-secluded rifts. I still used it in heavily populated areas, but I was in a relatively rural area. I didn’t feel like it was necessary, given my relative strength.

My hubris almost came back to bite me.

Thankfully, I was wearing a responsive [Barrier] talisman that activated when a hail of bullets flew my way without warning. The talisman blocked the projectiles, allowing me to activate my [Invisibility] talisman without injury. Had I not been wearing the [Barrier], the failsafe in the crystalline cuff bracelet that Master Kairos gave me would have saved my life, but that would have been unbearably embarrassing.

It would be hard to claim I was capable of surviving in a dungeon if a bunch of barely awakened, anti-alien fanatics seriously injured me.

Not that their bullets were likely to kill me – unless they managed to hit my eyes or something. But they would have hurt and quite possibly incapacitated me for a brief time.

Thankfully, I was fine.

I listened as the fanatics yelled about aliens and alien lovers while they crashed through the lightly wooded area toward the rift. Two of the attackers believed I’d fallen inside after being shot and wanted to go inside and make sure they ‘finished the job.’ The lone female in the group had been the loudest one advocating for this option.

It seemed she was a particularly bloodthirsty fanatic.

As soon as they got close enough, I locked each of the offenders’ bodies in a coating of Space mana, freezing them in place and keeping any sound from escaping. Had they reached Tier Two, they would have been able to resist the effect, but none had even reached level five. I could tell by how my mana interacted with them.

I made myself visible and shook my head. After tsking a few times, I said, “Wow. You guys are really pathetic, you know that? Here I am, working my ass off to keep monsters from overrunning your town, and what thanks do I get? A bullet in the back.” I sighed melodramatically, though inside, I was seething. “You’re lucky I’m a nice person.”

As I spoke, I pulled the six individuals closer with my mana.

Moments later, they were all on the prison island I’d established after brainstorming how to retaliate against Tier One or Tier Two attackers without violating the Accords. I’d given it a lot of thought, and while responding with deadly force was justified when attacked with deadly force, it didn’t feel fair.

But leaving attackers unpunished was the height of folly, and the island had been my solution.

I’d found the small island while training with Stella, and I’d already ensured there was a source of fresh water and no rifts on the small patch of land. There were several underwater rifts nearby, but they wouldn’t pose a direct threat to any inhabitants.

At least, I didn’t think they would. There was always the chance that one of the creatures would be capable of hunting on land. But I’d made a reasonable effort. As far as I was concerned, they were lucky I’d given them that much.

I had contemplated teleporting anyone who attacked me to Antarctica. However, even though the Accords wouldn’t count it as murder, I knew doing something like that was practically the same thing as encasing them in ice.

It was still better than they deserved, I felt. They’d attacked me from behind without even talking to me. Hopefully, they’d have time to ponder the error of their ways while enjoying the safety of their new home, far from any of the icky aliens they were so scared of.