I nod at his words, glad to have caught up with them. Now that the hunters knew how to loot properly, they were able to generate actual Credits from the System. Right now, everyone was putting a small portion of their earned funds into a pool so that the Council could purchase the community garden from the System with the goal of creating and stabilising the city’s food sources. On top of that, Lana reports that the initial batch of materials I gave have mostly been used up and either resold to the System or given to the hunters as protection. The levels of the crafters were increasing and some were even talking about getting the hunters to sell their materials direct to them so that they could process the materials and sell it all at a higher price to the System. Looks like we are slowly getting an economy into place, but we’re miles away from creating a safe zone for the entire city.
“You tired of running around alone yet?” Lana asks, finished with her meal already. I’m not exactly sure where she put it either – one moment there’s a full bowl of food need to her, the next it is empty and she’s eyeing her brother’s. He surreptitiously moves his own bowl closer to him and away from her.
“I was the only one who had a vehicle,” I point out defensively and Lana shoots a look over at Mikito and Richard. The two look at one another and then sigh.
“You haven’t asked us what we’ve been doing with our credits,” Richard says.
“Didn’t think it was any of my business,” I reply and then exchange a nod with a departing family. While we were gone, it seems Lana had let it become known that we had a working hot shower and we’d become hygiene central – for a modest fee. Between those who wanted a hot shower rather than washing in the glacial river and the workers on the concrete wall that Ali and Lana had arranged to start building in front of the house, my once peaceful abode is busy little haven. Still, it leveled up the construction workers skills and gained me a System recognised set of defenses so I’d call it a win overall.
“We bought a mana engine and a mana battery from the Shop. We’re installing it in a truck now, should be ready in a day or two,” Richard shares and points a finger at me. “Raven’s Circle actually has a truck of their own too as of today.”
“How much did it cost?” I enquire, curious.
“6,000,” Mikito replies, finishing up her noodles and holding the bowl out for more from Lana. Lana complies, filling it up while I blink. Not as bad as I thought, but still, yeesh.
“So you don’t have to play Lone Ranger anymore,” Lana follows up, blue eyes narrowed at me. “If you’re willing to wait a day.”
I nod slightly at her words, recalling the fight earlier today. She’s right – if I hadn’t been able to slide into the next dimension, I’d be dead right about now. Then again, I’d be dead many times over without the QSM. “Be good to have some company. Most times, I’ve been finding people in groups anyway so this could be helpful.”
Richard nods and Mikito inclines her head before returning to her food, “You planning on hunting tomorrow then?”
“A bit. There’s a conversation I need to finish first though,” I give Ali a very pointed glance before continuing, “and then I might need to do some training. After that, yeah, hunting. Need to earn my keep.”
“There are reports that the eagles are mutating, the one’s near the cliffs? I’m thinking I might see if I can tame one of them. I could use the help though,” Richard says.
“Sure,” I glance past them out to the backyard where the puppy-ponies sit. Most look the worst for wear, scars indicating where previous injuries have accumulated. Interestingly enough, Lana has added a mutated red fox to the group who lazes in the sun by itself, watching the gamboling Huskies with a lazy eye. Surprisingly, they all seem to get along quite well – a side effect I’d guess of being pets now.
I smile quietly as they nod back to me and then I look down, staring at my right hand as it holds the chopsticks. I put them down quickly and slip my hands under the table, not wanting them to see the trembling. Yeah, okay, company would certainly be nice.
The next morning after my shower, I turn to Ali, “Alright, care to explain?”
“Well, a man and a woman really love one another…”
“Ali!”
“Electromagnetic force – it’s one of the fundamental forces of nature,” Ali sighs and waves. “It does include electricity, but it also involves things like light, magnetism, hell, even friction. You’ll gain an affinity for it, so you’ll be able to manipulate it in small doses.”
“Ah… well, let’s do this then,” I shrug. I’m not sure I understand the full uses of this, but there’s no point in worrying till I can actually use it.
For a moment Ali just stares at me before he grumbles, floating up and putting a hand to my forehead. The next thing I know, I’m lying on the bed with the worst headache I’ve ever had.
“What the hell! You could have warned me!” I shout at Ali and then immediately regret it.
“I figured you’d faint again anyway,” Ali smirks, looking me up and down and sighs. “Good news or bad news?”
“Just talk. Quietly,” I hold my head in my hands, already casting a Minor Heal. Instead of speaking, Ali just flicks up the notification.
Elemental Affinity Gained (Electromagnetic Force)
Affinity: Very Poor
Congratulations!
For gaining your first Elemental Affinity, you have been rewarded 2,000 Experience Points.
“You suck at this. Seriously. You’re barely above the grade that the System recognises and that’s because I had to get in there and shove,” Ali shakes his head. “You won’t ever be able to use this fully, but at least you aren’t blocked off other affinities either.”
I groan, clutching my head. Minor Heal doesn’t seem to help, so I keep my eyes shut and focus on the most important thing that Ali said. This headache – it’s all his fault.
An hour later, I’m able to open my eyes without ice picks being jammed into them. At that point, Ali makes me start training. Makes, as in nags me till I agree to actually spend some time exploring this new ability. The exploration itself is relatively simple, a form of guided meditation. Surprisingly, the spirit’s actually serious and there’s not even a single joke about my too tender feelings or the like.
It’s a frustrating couple of hours, the feeling that he’s speaking about at first not at all graspable and then when I finally manage to sense it for the first time, only for brief moments. It takes until nearly the end of the session when I begin to really feel it, to be in the moment and sense the forces flowing through me and around me. It’s only for a moment when I finally manage to grasp the senses, I realise it’s all around me, the shifting of forces. For a moment its like I live in the Matrix except instead of ones and zeroes it’s a humming stream of energy that encompasses everything.
I definitely need to work on this.
Unfortunately, as much as I’d like to play with my new toy, I’ve got plans for the rest of the day. As I join both Mikito and Richard outside the house, we start walking towards the bridge and the Millennium Trail. Walking through the neighborhood, I can see the beginning of decay throughout the subdivision. Destroyed windows, uncollected autumn leaves, dry and brown lawns and discarded garbage that hasn’t been picked up, snow run-off that isn’t taken care of, even the occasional unwashed blood splatter. No one is here to clean up, take care of the homes and it shows, even the occasional whiff of rotted meat reminds me of the compost bins that haven’t been collected.
When we leave Riverdale itself to cross the bridge, I note that the ice still hasn’t left the river though the fishermen are out. Interestingly, a new addition to the fishing groups are the hunters who stand with guns at rest, watching over the fishermen. I guess even the fish have gotten more dangerous. We pass by the S.S. Klondike as we come off the bridge and I pause, staring at it for a moment, an idle thought passing through my mind. I push it aside though, the white sternwheeler has been laid up for years.