I only realized this had happened, though, because I was interrupted by a sharp burning pain in my left arm, tearing me from the trance. I quickly found the source of the pain. On the underside of my left forearm, the first and last zeros were now inflamed ones.
A memory of a similar pain as we captured the cat-monster popped into my mind.
I smiled and traced my fingers over the warm skin.
To celebrate, I searched the kitchen and claimed a Diet Coke as my reward. I went upstairs and checked on Aurora as I savored the cold beverage. She still slept soundly a few feet beside Alex. I returned to the stool, taking a moment to relax.
Once the power was out, the days of cold anything would be gone. Well, at least for a few months. At some point, the world would become the fridge.
I pushed the useless thoughts aside—not useless, just in the way at the moment. I finished the last sip before returning to work. Time ticked by as I combed through the hundreds of thousands of threads. Sometimes, I would go one by one. Sometimes, I’d focus on an entire section at once. Occasionally, I’d pull back and examine the big picture.
Something shook me and pulled me from my focus.
“Dan! You there?”
I squinted, blinking the morning sunlight out of my eyes. “Huh, what?”
“Why didn’t you tell me you got hurt?”
I followed the voice to see Alex scowling at me. She had heavy bags under her eyes and a tangle of messy hair. “It, uh... didn’t hurt that bad,” I mumbled.
“I should have checked you over before heading to bed. Now you have a nasty scab that’s dried into your shirt and covered in alien germs.”
I licked my dry lips. I opened my mouth to respond, but my stomach beat me to it.
“I don’t want to hear it. Go sit yourself down on an actual chair in the kitchen. I can’t have you passing out again to then fall and crack your head on the floor. You’re lucky I’m here.”
I stood and stretched. Pain rippled down from my shoulder. I hadn’t been asleep, but I might as well have been. My body ached from not moving all night. I made my way to the kitchen.
“Here, take her.” Alex shoved Aurora into my arms. “I’m going to use the bathroom real fast. I’ll be down in a moment.”
I waved behind me as she ran up the stairs. I often lost myself in my work, but this was something else. I had been dead to the world. Alex had said several things to me before I came to. I’d have to watch out for that in the future. It was time well spent though. I was closer to a solution for Aurora.
I sighed and slumped down in the chair. One thing was for sure though. I had gotten no sleep last night. I was exhausted—my stomach growled again—and starving. I grabbed an apple from above the fridge. Thirty seconds later, it was gone. The snack only roused my hunger. Unfortunately, it was the last one. I searched around for any other food out in the open, but came up empty.
I settled into a chair and tried to remember if there was anything I needed to discuss with Ami. I fought to stay awake but dozed as the minutes passed. The stairs creaked, and I shook my head, trying to physically clear the mental cobwebs.
“Okay, let’s get that shoulder patched up.” Alex whipped around the corner and headed straight for the first aid bag still on the table. She wore tight jeans and a long-sleeved button-up, similar to mine. Her auburn hair was brushed and pulled it up into a loose bun. She spun around and looked me over.
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“You’re going to need to take your shirt off. Can you do that? Don’t if it hurts too much.”
“I got it.” I laid Aurora down on the table. I tried to remove the wrap, but the pain and exhaustion caused me to stop. “Okay, I might need help.”
Alex helped me remove the wrap, flannel, and T-shirt. When she got to where my T-shirt stuck to my skin with blood, she wet the area and peeled the scabbed fabric away from my shoulder, bit by bit. Pulling the final piece free, she slid the shirt the rest of the way down my arm. A trickle of blood streamed down my skin, and she wiped it away with my T-shirt.
Picking Aurora back up with my good arm, I closed my eyes and let Alex do her thing. She rummaged through the bag again before starting. She stood close, and I smelled a flowery perfume. The gentle rubbing and prodding lulled me into a daze. A sharp zing shocked me awake, and I jerked back. My stomach growled again.
“Sorry, sorry, I should’ve warned you.” Alex wiped away the blood from the small wound I had torn open. “You’re definitely going to need stitches again.”
“That’s fine. Let’s just get it done.” I closed my eyes and clenched my jaw as she stitched my skin back together.
“Alright, all done. Now wait there while I make you some food.”
“No, no. I’m fine. I think I’m just going to head straight to bed.” I yawned and started to stand, but Alex gently pushed me back down.
“Your stomach’s said more to me this morning than you have. I’ll be fast. And you need food to help you heal while you sleep.” She opened the fridge, looked it up and down, and then moved to the freezer. “Hash browns and sausage sound good?”
“Sounds great.” I leaned Aurora against my chest and patted her back. I yawned and closed my eyes. The kitchen sounds were comforting white noise but pulled me somewhere dark if I let my thoughts wander. My mind drifted in the strange half-awake limbo until Alex tapped my shoulder.
“Dig in.”
I rubbed my eyes. Alex placed a plate of sausage, hash browns, and some sort of fried diced vegetable dish on the table in front of me. I grabbed the fork and shoveled everything into my mouth, only chewing when necessary. A minute later, I set my fork down. I closed my eyes and yawned. My eyes didn’t like the morning light.
“Would you like seconds?” Alex asked.
I nodded. “Sure, I’ll take whatever’s left.” I heard Alex take my plate away and, a moment later, set another one down. I squinted to see another full plate and started in on it as well. Finishing the last bite, I downed the glass of orange juice Alex had set by my plate at some point.
I stood and stretched. “Alright, I’m heading to bed.” I glanced at Alex. Her plate was already empty.
“Thank you for breakfast. It was exactly what I needed.” I pointed at the bandage on my right shoulder. “And thank you for this too.”
Alex smiled back at me. “You’re welcome.”
“The monster didn’t move all night, so you should be good. Still keep an eye on it though. Wake me up if it does anything.” I shuffled toward the stairs and yawned again.
“Goodnight,” Alex called after me.
“See you in the morning,” I replied.
“Too late for that,” Alex chuckled.
I swiped my hand at her and lumbered up the stairs. I opened the master bedroom to see evidence of use.
I glanced behind me in the other bedroom to see the alien monkey’s feet in the other bedroom.
I trudged over to the bed and laid Aurora down. Realizing I was still shirtless, I grabbed a random shirt from the dresser and crawled under the covers next to Aurora. I rolled over onto my side and placed my hand on her chest, feeling it rise and fall. I took Aurora’s tiny hand in mine. She squeezed. I listened to her steady breaths as I fell asleep.
A vast ocean of nothingness stretched out before me. The silent void was like a calming lullaby. Nothing mattered, and it was okay that nothing mattered.
I opened my eyes, the exhaustion from moments ago only a vague memory. I was in our front room again. Dishes clinked down the hall, and Jordan yelled at his brothers up the stairs. His voice was just muffled enough that I couldn’t hear what he was saying.
Even with whatever emotional dampening happened here, my heart still ached. I closed my eyes and took a moment to listen to their sounds. When it finally became too much, I wiped my eyes and pulled up my status.
= = =
Name: Daniel Atkins
Class: The Queen’s Champion
Synchronization: 13%
Skills: Basic Blade Proficiency | Basic Fate Binding | Basic Shield Proficiency
Constitution: 1
Intelligence: 0
Dexterity: 0
Strength: 0
Arcana: 1
= = =
I smiled at my status. I knew I had gained two attributes, but an entire thirteen percent synchronization in a single day blew my one-percent goal out of the water. Maybe I’d reach full synchronization faster than I thought.
I had gained one Constitution and one Arcana. Since the ones were on the ends again, the attributes on my arm must be in the same order as the status. I made a mental reminder to do some tests tomorrow. I knew Ami said it wasn’t a direct power-up, but I still wanted to try some things out.
“Hey, Ami, you there?” I called out into the house.
A moment later, Ami walked in from down the hall and smiled at me. “More questions today?”
“Just one for now.” I let her take a seat before asking. “A.M.I. stands for artificial mana-weave interface, right?”
Ami nodded. “Correct.”
“So, the word mana-weave that’s used there. Is that similar to what I do when I use Fate Binding? I ask because Fate Binding seems to just be weaving mana together.”
Ami shook her head. “They are similar, but in only the most general sense. Your Fate Binding works with mana the same way a jeweler works with gold, while my mana-weave is the gold used in a circuit board.”
“Way more advanced than I can handle. Got it.” I glanced around the room, looking for something to write my thoughts out on.
I stood and conjured a whiteboard on the wall behind me. I grinned. “Okay, thank you, Ami. I’m going to spend some time going over some stuff. I’ll let you know if I have any questions. I’m sure I’ll think of something.”
Ami stood to leave.
I uncapped the marker I had materialized into my hand.
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