Yikes, I lost that much health? A feeling of dread settles in my stomach at the realization that if I hadn't leveled my vitality, I might be dead right now. Okay, getting used to this body and my new stats is at the top of my priority list now. I can't keep slipping up in the middle of fights. If just a knife could do this much damage, how much could a gun? How much could a bomb do, or a Brute, or Hookwolf? Fuck, I'm getting distracted. Healing. Right.
I got the skill, and it looks like it used one mana. How much health did I gain though? I decide to heal myself further, and grab ten strands of mana this time. I can barely keep my concentration up, but I manage to detach eight of them and direct them into the cut. The other two fizzled out, and the mana went... somewhere. I can't really tell where they went, but checking my heart, they didn't come back to me. So that means that if I grab more than I can handle, I just lose it? Damn. I run my fingers over the cut, and it's gotten significantly smaller, enough to pass as a bad scratch. Good enough for now.
"Menu."
Spoiler: Menu
Yep, it cost me ten mana. I got back nine health though, so is the exchange 1:1.125? My [Heal] skill is at 45% XP though... and it was at 5% before I added eight more strands... I see. My [Regeneration] skill healed a point, looking at the XP it went up by 2%. So the ratio for [Heal] is 1:1? That's actually pretty good. I grab eight more strands of mana, directing them into my arm. I can feel the nerves reconnecting, sinew mending, and skin growing back. I never thought healing like this would be so painful, but I guess it makes sense. Looking down at the gash, it's gotten slightly better, but it's still gushing blood. I try for nine strands, and they all just barely make it to the wound. It's looking noticeably better now, still a deep cut, but good enough that I can start running as I heal without flinging blood everywhere.
I start running back, trying to grab mana strands at the same time. With every step I take, my focus shifts, so it's hard to handle more than five strands at a time. After a minute or so, I feel my mana reserves get low, so I stop pushing it. Looking at my arm, it's almost fully healed, just a slight beaded line of blood left, and I can't even feel the scratch on my face anymore. Splendid, and just in time for me to enter the Market. Passing the now familiar sight of everyone packing up their stalls and tents, and putting away merchandise, I spot Fugly Bob's in the distance. As well as a portly man in an obnoxious apron anxiously pacing around the front door. Fuck.
I quickly lower my hoodie sleeves, pull my hood down, and slow my pace, trying to act casually as I walk over. He sees me quickly, his face lightening up as I can see the worry dissipate. It's disconcerting how quickly he's gotten attached to me, he must be missing his son pretty damn bad.
"There you are, lad. You're almost 30 minutes late! Do you know how worried I was?! Boy, you-" I zone out as Daniel's relief quickly turns into a lecture. I feel bad enough that I just let him get it off his chest, and nod along. After a few minutes of stern words, and a lot of staring from the other stall owners, he stops to catch his breath.
"I didn't mean to worry you, I just got caught up with my own matters, and then I got mugged on my way back. Sorry for not coming and working like I said I would." I apologize. His expression fades from being anxiously worried, to understanding, to even more worry, and finally to guilt.
"Oh, lad, are you alright? You didn't get hurt, did you?" He hurriedly walks over to me, giving me a once over. I was under the impression that being mugged wasn't something to worry about, given we're in Worm... oh. I probably triggered memories of his son. Damn, I'm fumbling this conversation hard.
"Yeah, I'm alright. Something spooked them, and they ran." I decidedly don't tell him about my wounds. After fussing for another second, he steps back, takes a deep breath, and regains his bearings. It's weird to see someone so worried over me, my own parents got over my antics years ago.
"Okay. Do you still need to stay the night?" He implores, almost pleading with me. Now that I have powers, should I really stay with him? If I'm going unmasked, he'd definitely be in danger by associating with me. Honestly, I'm fine with finding a place to sleep out on the streets for a couple nights, until I can either get my own place, or find somewhere I can squat. Yeah, it's for the best I stop staying with him, as much as I like his company.
"About that... the situation has changed again. I really shouldn't stay with you any longer." I try to be tactful, but I see his face drop and his whole demeanor shift. He looks... unstable, like he desperately needs a lifeline to cling on to.
"Are you sure, kid? I know how dangerous it is on the streets at night. Do you have somewhere safe to sleep?" His words come out painfully, as if he's struggling to keep himself from overstepping. He obviously doesn't want me to go, but I don't think he wants to force me to stay, either.
"Yeah, I found a nice place near the Market that I can shack up in. I'll be safe." I lie, though not entirely. Thinking back to the ship I found, I could probably make that my home for the time being. It's secluded, mostly intact, lets me train whenever I want, and can be fixed up fairly easily. It doesn't seem like the fact I found a place to live reassures him, though. As his eyes shift from worry to understanding and back to worry, I find myself wanting to just give in and accept his help. And I would, if it didn't put him in danger, but as is, I would hate to see something happen to him or his wife because of me. Eventually, Daniels face settles on resigned, and he speaks once more.
"I see. At least stay one more night with us, so we can make sure you're ready and have all the supplies you'll need." He slowly says, enunciating each word like it's painful. I nod, and at least some of the weight on his shoulders seems to lift. He nods back, and turns to walk to the back lot of the restaurant. I follow, kicking the dumpster as I pass by it. My grudge still holds true.
Daniel's truck looks the same as the last I saw it, with my bagged uniform still squarely in the bed. He climbs in the driver seat, and I use my newfound strength to effortlessly jump on to the side bar. I'm almost proud, before it sets in that I'm feeling proud over managing to step onto a truck, at which point I deflate. Daniel seems to find that funny, as he chuckles, some of his good mood returning to him. The drive is mostly silent on the way back, any attempt at small talk eventually bogged down by the still oppressive mood. As I'm jostled by the same pot holes as last night, I stare out the window watching the city lights fly past, seeing the same murals, same gang graffiti, same run down buildings, and same situations, even seeing another robbery on the same street. No Nazis tonight, small mercies, yet it fills me with dread all the same. How does Daniel see these same sights every day and every night, and still get up the next morning just to see them all again?
It sets in that, yes, I'm really in Worm. This isn't a dream, this isn't a game, and this isn't something I can take lightly. I've made good progress today, I found a way to gain more power and I have a rough plan of what to do with it, but is that enough? I only have a couple weeks to get strong enough to survive before the infamous escalation starts. Will I be ready by then? Will I be able to stop at least some of the events that led to the drastic chain of events resulting in the end of more people than I can fathom?
There's no use in worrying about it. Either I can and I will, or I can't and I'll try anyways. I just need to plan, and then train. When should I debut? I summon Craig's wallet, and find the business card. The date and time reads April 1st, 9:00 PM. That leaves me... ten days? Should be enough time to get strong enough to be comfortable crashing a Nazi party. I put the wallet back in my inventory.
Bakuda only starts doing heinous shit after Taylor meets Lung, so I have two or so weeks to get strong enough to take her down. Should I interfere with Taylor fighting Lung? There's a lot of risk involved, not just with Lung rampaging around but also with the Undersiders being there. Lisa seeing me just once could put my entire existence at risk. But on the other hand, if I can interfere with Taylor before she tries to help the Undersiders, without letting them see me, I can stop a lot of the shit that happens in the story dead in its tracks. I don't even need to get on her good side, or try and convince her to be a hero. As long as I can stop her from joining the Undersiders, I should have a lot more leeway with my planning. I wish I could just take the safe path, but I think I have to take risks here. Too much is at stake to not try everything I can. I don't know the date that Taylor goes out, so I somehow need to figure that out. I can't put her under surveillance, she'd notice with her absurd bug range. Maybe if I get rid of Bakuda before everything starts, Lung will be too preoccupied to go chasing the Undersiders? That should stop them from meeting Taylor.
Okay, temporary plan. Train as much as possible, when I'm comfortable with my strength I'll go scout out the meeting point for the Empire, maybe lay some traps, then on April 1st, I ambush them, round them up, and make my debut. That should put me in good standings with the PRT, and I can ask them if they know anything about Bakuda. Depending on the information they have, I'll go scout around and try to find her, and if I can, I'll take her down as soon as possible. The longer I leave her, the more bombs she'll have, and the more esoteric they'll be. I don't have a very strong desire to be turned into glass, although I do think I'd make a fine sculpture. That should extend the period I have before shit hits the fan tremendously, and I'll make another plan after that succeeds or fails.
Done with my musing, I tune back in to the real world just in time for Daniel to start pulling into his driveway. The comforting rumbling of the engine stops, and we both hop out of the truck. I follow him through the creaky front door, and we're both greeted by Angela when we walk in. She gives a hug to Daniel, and tries to pat my head again, but I duck it this time. I was expecting to see the same flash of guilt she had after she pat my head the first time, but she just smiles at me like she knows a joke I don't. Hmm... ominous. I have the vaguest hunch she finds me cute, and I really don't know how to feel about that.
A mouth watering scent makes itself known to me as I take a second to breathe. Damn, coming back to a home cooked meal this good is almost convincing enough to get me to stay. Almost. As we all sit down at the dinner table and exchange pleasantries, I dig into the pasta in front of me like a starving man. Angela has the cooking skills of an angel, and the timing of the devil, cause she waits until my mouth is full to start asking me questions.
"So how was yer day today...? Oh my, I don't think I ever got yer name." I take a second to respond, struggling to swallow the immense amount of pasta I decided to cram in my mouth. After a few attempts, I clear my throat, and reply.
"It's Jack. I had an... eventful day. Learned some things, made some progress on personal goals, got mugged. Pretty good day, honestly." At the dawning horror on her face, I quickly realize I'm being misunderstood once again. She's probably taking it as me 'just' getting mugged is a good day for me, rather than the mugging ultimately resulting in a positive outcome, and thus ending the day on a high note. I really hate that I look like a teenager now. It's bad enough to be thrown in Worm, but it's worse to have people pity you just because you look young.
Is this how Vista feels?
"Oh, you poor thing. You didn't get hurt, did you?" She tries to stand up, but I wave her to sit back down. She looks confused, but thankfully takes her seat once more.
"Okay, listen. I appreciate you guys worrying about me, but you really don't need to. I'm a cape." I drop the bomb on them unceremoniously. Their faces synchronously go from confusion, to shock, then to disbelief. It's kind of impressive how in tune they are with each other. Couple goals, I guess? I can tell they don't fully believe me, so I decide to show them absolute proof.
"Watch." I dramatically throw my hand out in front of me, facing my palm upwards so they can see it. I grab a single tendril of mana, bring it through my arm to my hand, and call out the empty wooden skewer from my inventory. It floats above my hand for a moment, before falling into my waiting grip. Their eyes widen at the minor magic trick. Not the most impressive power to show off, but it's at least proof that I'm a cape.
"Oh... that... explains a lot, actually." Daniel mutters, still staring at the skewer in my hand. There's kebab sauce leaking onto my hand, so I put it back in my inventory. His eyes search my hand, trying to find where it went.
"I guess you really don't need our worry then, huh." Angela responds cheerfully, taking this news shockingly well. I say as much, and she chuckles, "Well, ya haven't exactly been normal. I had my suspicions, but I didn't want to assume."
Have I really been that abnormal? I guess it would appear that way, I don't exactly act the age I look. Still though, she's way too comfortable around an unknown cape. I wonder...
"Say, you were involved with Lustrum, weren't you?" I question, she looks about the age to have been active back then. She looks shocked, then chuckles.
"Oh, no, not at all. I used to work with the PRT, before I met Daniel and got whisked away." She clearly has fond memories, given the wistful look she has, while Daniel looks proud. I just can't see this kind southern woman as a PRT foot soldier, but it would explain the lack of surprise at my reveal.
The conversation lulls, so I go back to stuffing my face with delicious pasta. They seem to take that as an invitation to start eating themselves, and we fall into a comfortable silence. Not exactly the outcome I was expecting, but I'll take this over an awkward explanation about my past any day.
We all finish up at the table, and Angela starts collecting our now empty plates. I move to stand up to help with the dishes, but she shoots me a look that promises a stern refusal if I push my luck, so I reluctantly relinquish my plate. Daniel beckons me out of the kitchen and I follow him to the living room as he sits down on his leather couch.
"I'm... a lot more comfortable with you being out and about, knowing you can protect yourself. But I want you to know that my wife and I both appreciate your presence here, and you're more than welcome to drop by any time you want. If you need help, need a place to stay, want to talk to someone, or just want to relax, please, stop by." He sounds a lot more relaxed than he did outside of Fugly Bob's. I'm glad.
"As much as I'd love to, I don't plan on hiding the fact I'm a cape. I have unique circumstances that let me be unmasked without much hassle, and I prefer it that way. So you two would be in genuine danger if anybody saw me coming here when I gain a reputation." I explain to him. His face falls for a moment, but perks back up quickly. Guess he's resolved himself. "I will say, though, that I'm more than willing to come work at Fugly Bob's. You shouldn't be in too much danger from just that much."
His expression brightens immediately. Man, this guy is way too good for Worm. It gives me hope to see that not everything in this backwards world is grimdark.
"I'll make sure to keep your outfit with me then, lad. We've gotten some cape endorsements before, but having an honest to god cape working with us? Would be one hell of an advertisement." His eyes regain the twinkle I saw in them the first time we met, and I resolve myself to working at Fugly Bob's for at least a couple hours a week. Maybe a shift on a weekend, or something.
The conversation devolves into well meaning jabs at each other, before we both start to get tired. I dismiss myself first, asking to borrow his shower, and he points it out to me before heading to bed himself. I wash the grime and sweat from the long day away, make sure all the dried blood sloughs off of me, and get out. I set my bloody clothes aside to wash tomorrow, change into pajamas, and head to bed feeling a lot better about this new life I've found myself in.
I drift to sleep with a smile.A vibrant light hits my eyes, forcing me to wake up. I sit up in a bed that's not mine, wearing pajamas that aren't mine, and I'm quickly reminded that I'm still in Worm. What a great thing to wake up to. Shaking my head to clear my thoughts, I blink the last remnants of drowsiness out of my eyes and regain my bearings. Daniel's sons room looks the same as it always has, with the exception of the clothes I've moved around. Come to think of it, I haven't actually learned that kids name yet. Huh.
I absentmindedly go through the motions of my morning routine as I plan for the day. I mentally count the money I have left, and I only have about sixteen dollars. Not nearly enough to fix up all the issues with the ship I plan on staying in. How can I make money? The obvious answer is Fugly Bob's, but that's not exactly the most lucrative job, and I need money fast. I'm not strong enough to be carelessly running around stealing from villains, and I'm not going to steal from anybody innocent. What to do...
On second thought, nothing's stopping me from running around the Boat Graveyard and taking materials to add to my ship. Not only would that be free, it would be a good workout, and I can reinforce the ship while I'm at it. Perfect.
I come back to my senses halfway down the stairs, wearing a Protectorate graphic tee and khakis. I guess I don't have a fashion sense while on autopilot, yuck. Too late to change now. With my plan for the day formed, I step into the living room to see Daniel waiting for me by the front door, with a backpack sitting on the floor next to him. That's new. He must've heard me enter, as he turns towards me with a grin.
"If you had taken any longer, I would've had to leave ya! Catch!" He tosses the bulging backpack at me, and I barely catch it before it hits me in the face. Guy's got an arm on him, I'll give him that. I take a look inside the bag as he starts talking again. "I went through the basement and managed to scrounge up some supplies for ya. A first-aid kit, some duct tape, and old clothing from my construction days. Might be a tad large on ya, but they're durable. Plus, a couple o' blankets. Don't want you freezing at night."
I feel gratitude swell in my chest as an unbidden smile makes its way onto my face. He's already done so much for me, and yet he's still doing more. I'll need to pay him back as soon as I get some money.
"Thanks, Daniel, this means a lot. I'll put it to good use." And I will. I was already planning on buying duct tape to fix up some holes, but this saves me the effort... and money.
"No worries, lad. Come, we have to hit the road before traffic gets nasty." He says, holding the door open for me. What a gentleman. I throw the backpack in my inventory before rushing out the door, catching a glimpse of Daniels eyes widening at the blatant display. Guess he's still not completely used to it. He follows after me, speed walking over to his truck and getting in while I do the same. He starts the car and we're off, talking about everything and anything. He's driving much faster than before, and every pothole we hit damn near bounces me out of my seat. I wonder if he was slowing down before because I was a kid, and now he's comfortable hitting the gas since he knows I'm built sturdier than that. Whatever the case, we make it to the Market in record time.
I stumble out of the truck, still disoriented from the sheer g-forces I was just put through. Daniel steps out with a laugh, the bastard. I look at him crossly, but that just seems to make him happier. Lesson learned, don't let Daniel drive me around until I get some sort of skill that makes me more durable to pot holes and high speeds. Hmm... I actually should make that skill. Or at least a skill that makes me more durable all around. I already have [Regeneration], but that doesn't stop me from getting hurt, it just helps me get better after. A skill that turns me into a conventional 'brute' would be very useful. And if I can get it up to the point of ignoring bullets before April, I'll have a massive advantage against the Nazis.
I keep that idea in mind as I say farewell to Daniel and walk through the Market. There are a lot of different stalls today, new foods, clothes, trinkets, even somebody selling... puppies? What the hell? Does this happen often? Everybody else around is acting like it's perfectly normal, so I guess people come here to sell pets? Weird. I spot Asad in the crowd, and give him a wave. He spots me as well, and my glee at seeing him turns into shock as he furrows his brows and starts running towards me. He's definitely still mad over me paying yesterday. I hear a scream of indignation resound behind me as I book it, leaving him in the dust. After a minute I'm pretty sure I've lost him, but I might as well keep running to the Boat Graveyard. Gotta get level up [Running] somehow.
I stop running when I reach 'my' ship. I bask in the wind as it carries the scent of algae, water, and rust in from the bay. Honestly not the worst place to live. I have one hell of a view out into the water, I don't have to deal with people very often if at all, there's a pleasant sound of birds chirping, and I'm not that far from the Market. There's definitely ways it can be better though. I frown as I kick a rusted plate off the hull. If I'm going to live here, I'll have to do a complete makeover, starting with all the rust everywhere. A spotless ship would stand out from the rest of the graveyard, but I can't really find a reason to care. If somebody is going to ambush me while I sleep or something, they're going to put in the effort to find where I live regardless. Actually, I have magic, right? What if I make wards? Alarm traps, shields, illusions... the possibilities are endless. Another item to add to my ever growing list of things to try. Speaking of... lets get started.
I enter my ship, kicking off some of the rust as I do. Time to do some strength training to warm up. I stretch a tendril of mana out of my hand, and summon all the metal plates in my inventory a few feet in front of me. The first lands in the sand with a soft thud, but the rest land on top of metal, creating a series of loud clangs that ring out and echo through the ship. Wincing from the unexpected noise, I summon my backpack in my hands, and start attaching the metal sheets. While trying to shove the tenth metal sheet into the relatively small opening of the backpack, I realize something. This isn't going to work long term. There's only so much space I can fit metal on myself, and what happens if my strength grows to a point that I can't fit enough weight to level it up? I'm screwed. So I need a way to condense the weight, ideally so I can carry it around all the time, and increase the weight when I need to. The answer strikes me like a bolt of lightning.
Gravity.
I have magic, I can use magic, I can use magic to manipulate gravity. Holy shit. This is a childhood dream come true. Okay, I just need to... wait. How would I go about influencing gravity? I only know how to use mana within my own body, and that's mostly taken care of by the mana itself making skills. The manipulation I've done so far is intent based, but how to I tell it make artificial gravity? Fuck it, I'll just give it a try and go from there.
I bring a strand out of my heart, leading it through my right arm. I've noticed that it's easier to handle mana inside me than outside, so using my arms for extended reach is much faster than making it go through the air. I let it come out of my palm, feeling it writhe in the air aimlessly as my control wavers. I crouch down in front of one of the metal sheets in the sand, and I guide the tendril to float above it. I try telling it to 'make gravity', but nothing. I try to tell it to 'become dense' in hopes of simulating gravity, but it only wavers for a second before fading as I finally lose control of it. Damn. Okay, new idea. I grab the metal sheet, grab another strand, and guide it into the sheet through my hands. It struggles for a second, before entering it with an odd pop feeling, like it had to break a barrier to enter. Weird. Now that it's inside, I stand up, and drop the plate. The mana stays attached to it for about a foot of free fall, before I can feel my connection to it snap. No matter. I grab yet another strand, position it above the sheet now back in the sand, and focus all my attention on making it replicate what it felt. The tendril does nothing but dissolve into motes of fading mana. I sigh in mild frustration.
Okay, I need a new perspective on this. I walk outside my ship, and just stare out into the bay, watching the waves. Maybe I'm making this more complicated than I need to. I guide a strand of mana out to a foot in front of me, right over a pile of sand, and I focus on it. I feel the way the mana moves and pulsates, how it feels almost alive as it wriggles. I conjure a mental image of the strand pulling in everything around it, and send that image through the link I have with the strand. The strand wiggles violently for a second, and then condenses into nothing more than a thin rope of mana, rather than the wispy spiral that I'm used to. The line detaches from my heart, wrapping over itself into an invisible ball of mana. I watch in awe as individual grains of sand start to fall upwards, slowly forming a small sphere around where I can feel my mana being drained to. Success.
I continue to watch in fascination as sand keeps gravitating towards the quickly growing sphere in the air. The ball grows bigger and bigger, and I can even feel the force emanating from it becoming stronger as it grows. I'm so awestruck by the sight that I fail to notice my mana plummeting, further and further. It's only when it's almost empty that I realize, and hurriedly dissipate the line. That could've been bad. Still though, I can't help but feel giddy at the fact that I can actually manipulate gravity. Or at least make my own gravity, I'm pretty sure actually manipulating gravity is way out of my league for now. Extending mana from my heart and condensing it into a rope again, I find it much easier than before. This time, I send it through my leg and out of the bottom of my foot into the ground, letting it rest about a foot underneath me, and I start pulling. My knees buckle a bit as I suddenly feel slightly heavier. Not by much, around the same as I felt carrying one of the metal plates, so about thirty pounds? I cut the flow to it before it can use up the last dregs of my magic. It ate damn near everything, but it's only strong enough to add thirty or so pounds for around a minute... it'll be a while before I can work out using it. Damn. Not to mention how expensive it is to use, a mana point every second is way too much for me to spend casually.
I'll put that aside for now, until I have enough mana to make it worth using. I can increase my max capacity by leveling my Magic stat, but that doesn't help me too much for extended use of skills. Is there any way to increase the speed of my mana coming back? I don't think I can make a skill for it, as using mana to make more mana doesn't make a lot of sense, and my system is definitely not generous enough to let me exploit it like that. Even if I make a skill that lets me regenerate mana faster at the cost of not doing anything else, like meditation or something, is it worth my time? It'll regenerate anyways, and I'd rather level my other stats while I wait. Speaking of, I should really be working out while I'm thinking, the grind waits for no man.
I gather all the metal sheets back into my inventory, and start to run around the graveyard looking for one big panel I can carry. I find a large block of metal resting next to one of the more damaged ships, and it's just enough for me to carry around while I'm running. Perfect. I continue running around, collecting various plates of metal that I think could cover holes on my ship, or just look heavy enough to let me keep leveling my strength. It's actually really nice that I don't feel fatigue when I stress my muscles or run anymore, it's not something I've ever thought of but it feels... freeing, to say the least. To not have to worry about aches and pains, or slowing down when I get tired. Although it doesn't let me improve my vitality anymore, I guess that's a negative. What's the opposite of a silver lining? I'm getting off topic.
After I have a suitable amount of metal, I run back to my ship. The reserves in my heart feel about halfway full, and taking a look at the sun, it's been about... thirty minutes? Maybe a bit more? Considering my max mana is seventy, that would put my regen at about one point per minute. That's not bad... but not great. It does seem faster than it regenerated when I first started using it, so maybe it comes back faster the more of it I have? If that's the case, leveling my Magic stat should take priority. It's just too useful for me to only be able to use for a minute at a time before running out.
I drop the block of metal I've been carrying, as well as the panels I started stacking on it when it got lighter. Should I spend my reserves grinding my new gravity spell, or making new skills? Thinking about it, the only skill I really want at this point is a resistance skill. That shouldn't be too hard to make, right? I guide a tendril of mana out of my heart, before thinking about it for a second, and making a few more. I guide one to my skin, one to each organ, and one to my heart, attaching them all. I let them writhe around my organs for a bit, before I feel them settle, and fade. I think that worked?
"Menu."Health: 150/150
Mana: 36/80
Strength: 18
Dexterity: 13
Vitality: 15
Magic: 8
Skills:
[Gamer] Level: N/A
Quantify your existence using magic.
[Running] Level: 10, 33% XP
Your ability to run. Passive.
[Power] Level: 3, 17% XP
Amplify your strength using magic. Active.
[Regeneration] Level: 5, 92% XP
Your ability to heal wounds. Passive.
[Heal] Level: 3, 12% XP
Your ability to heal wounds. Active.
[Gravity] Level: 3, 6% XP
Your ability to create gravity. Active.
[Resistance] Level: 1, 0% XP
Your ability to resist damage. Passive.
Inventory:
Kofta Kebab x2
Wooden Skewer
Craig Killian's Wallet
10 Foot Rope x2
Backpack
Shovel
Fishing Line
Flashlight
Pocket Knife
Lighter
Dull Kitchen Knife x2
Old Backpack
First-Aid Kit
Duct Tape x6
Old Shirt x2
Old Vest x2
Old Pants x4
Knitted Blanket x2
It worked! Oh it feels nice to make a skill work on the first try. But, is it a percent decrease of damage I take, or a flat decrease, or even a nullifier for damage under a threshold? What's the least amount of damage that I can cause to myself to test? Hmm... I kick my foot against a metal plate, trying to stub my toe. Ouch. Okay, that definitely did damage to me, and answered none of my questions. Maybe I should just wait until it's a higher level, before trying to figure it out. And the only way to level it is, presumably, by 'resisting' damage. Fun.
I feel like this system is turning me into a masochist.
Anyways. Looking at the menu, I'm seeing a massive problem. It's fucking ugly. Unsorted skills, a massive list of everything in my inventory, it's just terrible to look at. Is there anything I can do about it though? My menu is opened by channeling mana to my eyes... I wonder.
"Menu."
Instead of looking at the menu, I feel the strand of mana going to my eyes. Now that I'm actually paying attention, it feels super efficient, leagues above what I'm doing with my strands. If I can mimic that, could I make my skills more efficient? Actually, if I can figure out a way to mimic it, I won't have to say menu out loud anymore! Okay, I need to figure this out as soon as possible.
"Menu."
I take another look at the bizarre strand connecting to my optic nerves. Instead of the spirals and rough pathways of my own mana, it's much smaller and much denser. Even denser than when I use [Gravity]. I make a strand of my own to follow it, and try to condense it. I can only get it to make a fairly thin line, about the width of a finger. Which is much better than when I started, but still far away from the mana being sent to my eyes. That strand can't be thicker than a hair. Interesting implications aside, I send my mana into the strand making my menu appear, and use it to convey my intent to make the menu look better. Taking a look at the menu, nothing has changed. I cut the flow to my menu, and it fades even faster than my own strands.
"Menu."
This time, instead of attaching my own strand, I convey my intent for the menu to turn green at the same time I say "menu". And it actually worked! Instead of the translucent blue I've become accustomed to, it's turned into a pale green. So it is possible to edit my menu, hell yeah. I close and open my menu again, wishing for it to become a deep purple. It works. Okay, testing time. I'm going to open my menu again, but this time instead of wanting a color change, I'm going to try and sort my skills by active and passive, putting them under drop down menus.
"Menu."