Replacement or not, they failed to achieve their ends. Why? I asked myself this often while working on the project anew. Intellectual failure? Perhaps. Moral or ethical second thoughts? Unlikely. Functionality? More likely. Disquiet clouded my mind. My work, however, persevered. -94.1 Seconds Post-Integration.

  They said the wicked got no rest. Boy, if that wasn't true for Clark and pals.

  The day after the multi-tool transaction, they had work. Climbing, pure Tower Climbing.

  Which would have been fine. Climbing during a general Monster Offensive? That was another matter.

  The biggest issue they faced was the constant stream of Containment Guards and fellow Leaguers who often made traversing the tower difficult. If columns of troops weren't blocking intersections -- in the store blocks or out in the connecting zones -- it was the constant alerts which drove them into battle.

  Their progress was slowed to a crawl. Which meant they Climbed only a couple of floors over the course of several days. If that pattern held, they would be lucky to get anywhere before they grew old and died of natural causes.

  When Clark returned to his dorm that first night after the transaction, he showered, had a hot meal, and spent his evening reading the instruction manual for his new multi-tool.

  The pamphlet didn't say anything he hadn't already assumed or that wasn't surprising.

  As Hermes had told him, the most noteworthy feature on the device was the 'optional rechargeability.' If one plugged it into an outlet with the included charger, the core battery magnified the blasting module for more stopping force. So, Clark, of course, did this right away, but it charged so quickly, he briefly wondered if he had incorrectly handled the tool. He thought to gauge the battery: a readout on the device showed a full charge.

  Other than the battery, there wasn't much noteworthy in the multi-tool's manual.

  The tool was powered by a magi-core which would never degrade. Which meant he could produce magic missile bursts on command and with a lot less trouble than when he used his League-sanctioned sword. That magic core would also never degrade, which was more than could be said for his blade.

  What was the real drawing point for the multi-tool was its upgradeability.

  The basic model he had, held so few features only because it was the base model.

  Flipping through the manual, he saw mention of features such as 'Melee Module Options' and 'Elemental Module Enhancements.' What those entailed exactly, he didn't know, but he knew he wanted to find out.

  Plus, if nothing else, the base model, although basic, doubled as a basic medium-to-short range weapon. Coupled with his sword, he now had defense options for any monster which tried to rear itself at him -- winged or grounded!

  That night was also when he received his first modified check which accounted for the loan he took out, to pay for the multi-tool.

  It wasn't as bad as he figured: he heard the notification and perked up:

  [Direct Deposit Now Available: +100 Standard Credits]

  If you encounter this story on Amazon, note that it's taken without permission from the author. Report it.

  Sure, a deduction of eighty was a lot, but he was steadily climbing the Ranks in both the League and Imbued Levels. He was due for another pay bump soon.

  He would manage.

  So, he went so sleep that night with a bright spirit.

  The next day was rough -- long shift, filled with lots of patience-testing waiting and monster slaying -- but he got through it.

  If there was an upside to his impromptu time as an on-the-clock Leaguer while he Climbed, it was he had ample opportunity to test his new Multi-Tool.

  Although the League and Containment Guard had made progress in halting the momentum of the Monstrous Offensive, that remained a far cry from blunting and stopping the offensive. Fighting continued throughout the Tower. Until the source of the Offensive inside 'Plague Central' was cleansed, the fighting would only intensify.

  While on duty the following day, Clark and Company fought a record number of Airhearts.

  A whole nest of them crashed out of some vent that led into the Dungeon Interior.

  When the nest flew from the vent, an alarm went off like Clark couldn't believe. Although a few Leaguers were present with he and Hera and Theo when the alarm sounded, they weren't trained in the proper use of the Magic Missile Technique. Which meant he and Hera had to pull double duty.

  And that was fine!

  It turned out that even a base model multi-tool was more than enough to deal with a gaggle of Airhearts!

  He focused his tool, took aim, and after imbuing it with a certain amount of mana from a Manipulation Dandy, he unleashed a blast.

  The shot hit the Airheart directly in its bulbous, milky eye, causing it to explode.

  Disgusting garbage rained down over several aisles as the plague-infused yogurt product and maggots which its large, creepy eye had been made from splattered to the floor.

  "Darn, buddy! You work that Tool like I work my own tool!" Theo yelped with a wink.

  Clark smiled and took aim at the next Airheart. He pulled the trigger, and the blast rang true -- another of the winged creatures died.

  Clark repeated the process several more times until the whole nest had been eradicated.

  It was a much easier struggle than he thought it would be and to add the cherry on top, during the altercation, he had even saved a father and daughter from a grisly fate when one of the fleeing Airhearts thought it would take an importune snack on its way out.

  How wrong it had been when he ended its life with a single shot.

  The father and daughter thanked him, but he remained adamant he was only doing his job.

  Though the world appeared to be going to heck-in-a-handbasket, and though he was also near-to-broke from the multi-tool purchase, life was going well for him. In the days following the transaction, he felt settled in a way he hadn't before, like pieces of his life were finally coming together.

  Not all was ideal, unfortunately.

  Two days from the purchase, he was stuck on the Front-End bagging.

  The customer wanted the impossible. Literally.

  Everything in one bag.

  Clark gave them the next to impossible and bagged their things in two bags.

  The customers didn't like that, of course, but there wasn't anything he could do about it. He couldn't have stuffed all their crap into one bag any more than he could demand the sun to rise and set outside its normal rhythm.

  They complained but he bore it with a grin. Normally, he would earn points for being polite, but not this time, which told him they had likely reported him to the System which negated any productivity bonus.

  Whatever.

  It was fine.

  The next few customers came and went without issue.

  The problem, as ever, was with how boring bagging was. How sore his arms got. How mechanical it all was -- the greeting of customers, the handover of their reusable bags, then the steady, unending surge of goods as they came down the belt. He had to be fast. Speed was important. He didn't want the customers to be inconvenienced by his slow bagging.

  When an alarm went off, he thought he was saved. "Finally," he muttered under his breath. "Something worth doing!"

  But he was not called to action.

  "Why aren't they calling me?" he muttered after a few minutes.

  Another customer approached. He handled their groceries with the same professionalism as the previous ten customers.

  Then he saw why he hadn't been called: another Leaguer, already on scene, rushed along the aisle to confront whatever beast had sprouted.

  He sighed and relented. He would be stuck here bagging stuff. Oh well. He had signed up for this, after all, right?

  Although the fighting in the other part of the store only intensified as the minutes dragged on, he wasn't called to fight. It made him chuckle.

  Why? There was a battle going on in the store block he worked and yet he was bagging some tourist's groceries. Funny how things worked out.