Some of the most compelling oddities of the System lie in the ways in which it impacts language. The very way we speak, write, and even think has been subtly and undeniably impacted by the System in numerous areas.
One of the most well-known, yet least understood, is the capitalization of concepts important to the System. Indeed, the word itself must always be capitalized when referring to the entity that grants Classes – you may refer to a system of measurement with a lowercase ‘s’, yet it is functionally impossible to write, say, or even think of the System without the emphasis of a capital letter. The same, of course, is true of Classes, as distinct from a class taught in school, Levels, and so on.
Speculation abounds as to whether the change in language has anything to do with the way the System functions, or is something completely arbitrary and capricious.
- Rufus Veres, Level 29 Prolix Historian, Oddities of the System
I made sure the safety was on before sitting down against one of the walls, placing my gun next to me.
“Level up,” I said with a mix of enthusiasm and dread.
[WELCOME TO LEVEL 2! – ]
“I got it, thanks PAST,” I interrupted, then used Inspect.
Huh, my Shotguns Skill leveled… I wonder when that happened? It must have been when I killed the big spider and passed out. OK, let’s get this over with. I braced myself, then said, “PAST, put my free point into Barrier.”
I hoped it would be better the second time, since I knew what to expect. It was not. When I’d finished moaning and cursing, I slowly sat up. I took several deep breaths, trying to calm my racing heart. While I waited, my stomach growled fiercely, reminding me that the only thing I’d kept down today was that small loaf of bread.
I doubt I’m going to find anything to eat here… I need to finish this Wasted Tutorial and get back home!
“I’m ready for the chest now,” I told PAST.
[VERY GOOD, GUNNER ZIMMERMAN! HERE IT IS!]
My second reward chest was bigger than the first. I hoped that meant it was better, too. Aside from the size, the only difference was that it was numbered ‘2’ on the top. I opened it with an excited smile, revealing a set of body armor. It was in a style that I hadn’t seen before but it matched my helmet. Picking it up, I was happy with how light it seemed, though I was sure that it wouldn’t be as strong as heavier armor. Identify.
Item: Composite Combat Body Armor
Level: 2
Type: Medium-Light
Condition: Excellent
The armor consisted of front and back plates, both of them shorter than I was used to seeing on the town guards’ breastplates, and there was some kind of padding on the inside. I held it up to my body to check the size, but as soon as I touched it to my chest I was interrupted by a message.
Do you wish to attach the Composite Combat Body Armor to the Gunner Class Armor baselayer?
“Sure.”
Apparently I wasn’t going to have to figure out how to put the body armor on, because suddenly the back half of the armor seemed to dissolve momentarily. Before I was sure what had happened, the chest piece was pressed firmly against my baselayer and I felt the weight of the armor settle onto me. Confused, I reached awkwardly around my back and confirmed that the back plate was in place as well.
Weird yet convenient, I decided. My bandolier had somehow slipped through the armor and was now strapped across the chestplate, still fitting perfectly even though it must have had to expand in the process. From what I could see looking down at myself I liked the way the armor looked.
The dark grey color matched my helmet, and the hard ‘composite’ plate fit snugly to my chest. It extended down below the bottom of my ribs in both the front and back. Below the hard plate, the padding extended into a section of thick, black fabric that extended down to the top of my hips. Pressing against it experimentally, I discovered that it was stiff but flexible. The same thick fabric protected the small gaps along my sides between the breastplate and backplate.
Feeling a great deal safer, I tested moving around and aiming my gun, even running through the reloading drill I’d made up earlier a few times. Satisfied that my movements weren’t impacted by my new armor, I was about to ask PAST to move on to the next part of the Tutorial when a thought occurred to me.
“PAST, do I have enough Essence for an item?”
[INDEED YOU DO, CITIZEN!]
“Why didn’t I get a notification?” I asked in exasperation.
[YOU WERE UNCONSCIOUS AT THE TIME, GUNNER!]
“And you didn’t remind me after I woke up?”
[REWARD REMINDERS ARE NOT ENABLED BY DEFAULT! YOU MAY CHANGE YOUR SETTINGS ONCE YOU COMPLETE THE TUTORIAL! DO YOU WANT YOUR ITEM NOW?!]
Sighing, I told PAST yes, and I received another mod, identical in appearance to the first – a small, glowing white orb. Identifying it brought up almost the same message as last time, the only difference being the Level.
If you discover this narrative on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the violation.
Item: Weapon Modification
Level: 2
Effect: Unknown
I placed the mod against my gun for a moment and waited. As soon as the color changed, a new message appeared.
Item: Weapon Modification – Attuned
Level: 2
Effect – Weapon: Variable Choke – enables the user to control the spread of their shot
Type: Passive
I tried placing it against my bandolier, but nothing happened. “This mod won’t work with my bandolier?” I asked.
[THAT IS CORRECT!]
Well, at least I don’t have to debate about what to do with it… I held the mod against my gun, and a few seconds later it was absorbed just like the first one. I examined the gun and found another new switch, this one on the side of the gun just above the trigger. There were two positions, each with a tiny diagram above it. The one it started on looked like a ‘<’, while the other was an ‘=’.
My improved Shotguns Skill informed me that the first one indicated an ‘open choke’, while the second was a ‘full choke’. The open choke would spray the pellets out wider for close range fighting, while the full choke would reduce the spread so I could better hit targets further away. I also noticed another change. The magazine tube under the barrel looked longer, subtly changing the balance of the weapon. I Inspected it to confirm.
Item: Gunner Class Shotgun
Type: Pump-Action
Capacity: 5/5 + 1/1
Modifications: Infused Barrel, Variable Choke
Condition: Excellent
Current Infusion: None
Interesting, it can hold another shell now. I looked at my bandolier and noted that it too had added a new loop and a sixth shell. Inspect.
Item: Gunner Class Ammunition Supply
Type: Bandolier
Capacity: Six Shells
Mods: None
Condition: Excellent
Current Ammo: 4BK x 29, 1300 fps
Damage: Medium-High
Damage Type: Physical
Penetration: Low
Spread: Normal
Ammo Cost: 3 mana per shell
Fill Time: 18s
OK, so the ammo description has changed a bit too. If 29 is really the number of pellets, it was 27 before, so that’s good. And I think where it says 1300 now it used to say 1250, so I assume that’s also good. I knew my Class Items would Level up with me, it’s great to see that actually happening. There’s a couple things I want to check, and then I can head out after my mana is full. I just wish I had something else to eat…
“PAST, what does fps mean in my ammo description?”
[INVALID QUERY!]
Ugh, fine. What else do I want to know? I thought for a moment before trying again.
“What happens to shells that are removed from my bandolier but not loaded into my gun?”
[CONJURED AMMUNITION IS ONLY STABLE WHEN IN YOUR BANDOLIER OR MAGAZINE! ANY CONJURED AMMUNITION NOT PROPERLY STORED WILL DISSIPATE AFTER TEN MINUTES AND THE MANA WILL BE LOST!]
I thought about what that meant. If I had something to carry extra shells, I could make some more in advance of a fight. Unless my Absorption got a lot higher though, it would be hard to come out ahead on mana. I stretched one more time.
“PAST, open the door to the next stage.”
This time the door opened into a very small room, about six by six feet wide and probably about eight feet tall. It had a dull metal floor and walls and was about as brightly lit as the safe room, without a visible light source.
“That… looks like a dead end,” I commented. It looks like a deathtrap, actually, but I’m not going to jinx myself by saying that out loud.
[ENTER THE ELEVATOR TO PROCEED, CITIZEN!]
I wasn’t sure what an ‘elevator’ was, but I knew I had no choice. I stepped forward into the small metal room, and without warning I felt the entire room shudder and start to descend rapidly, with me trapped inside! I whirled around, my first instinct to jump back out the door, but the way was blocked as the elevator descended past the floor outside. Already there was only a small gap at the top and even that quickly disappeared as the ‘elevator’ continued to drop.
Unsure what to do, I crouched and waited, my gun covering the opening in the metal as I watched the rock continue to slide past. Perhaps a minute later, a new gap appeared at the bottom of the door and the room finally slowed to a halt, the opening now facing into a large, brightly lit chamber.
Warily, I examined the new space without leaving the elevator. It was very different from the dark caverns earlier. The floor was covered in the thickest, greenest, softest-looking grass I’d ever seen, nothing like the dull green-brown of the sparse grass that barely covered a small section of dirt next to the school in Sunland. No, this grass actually looked welcoming, which made me immediately suspicious.
The room appeared to be roughly circular in shape, and it was huge, at least a hundred feet across. The walls went straight up, made of smooth rock that curved into a domed ceiling overhead, with none of the rock formations I’d seen earlier. I swallowed and mentally made a connection.
This room is like where I fought the scorp, and the one where I was supposed to fight the big spider. It looks like this new stage of the Tutorial is just skipping the smaller fights, so I bet whatever is in there is at least as dangerous as the big spider.
I moved near the door and carefully reached out with the barrel of my gun to poke the grass. When nothing happened, I extended my least favorite foot and lightly touched it with my toes, expecting it to try to eat me. The grass just sat there, feeling as soft as I’d imagined. I gathered up my courage and stepped out of the metal chamber and onto the grass. Immediately, there was a slight rumbling and the elevator started rising behind me, leaving only a smooth, featureless wall behind.
I turned back to face the center of the room, eyes searching for my next opponent as I stepped forward slowly.
