Once again, everything went white. I was back in the same place I traveled to after the accident with my arms—where the Coeus told me about the gift and its untapped potential.

  Welcome back, Andrew, and just in the knick of time, it seems. A disembodied voice said.

  I looked around, and unlike last time, I could actually see something in the sea of white that lay before me. A yellow glowing orb floated above the ground about 40 yards in front of me.

  “Why am I back here?! I need to go back now!” I yelled.

  Are you in such a hurry to embrace your demise? The orb said. The orb flashed brightly with each word spoken. It sounded robotic, yet somehow, I could feel a sense of humanity in its tone as it spoke.

  “Anthragor has to pay! I have to do something!” I shouted.

  Spoken like a petulant child, Andrew, we have entrusted you with the gift and still you act recklessly. You endanger yourself, your friends, and the galaxy at large. You must learn to show restraint. This battle is merely a precursor to the war that will come.

  “Then what would you have me do, Coeus? I need help; I need guidance. I cannot continue to carry this burden without the guidance I need to become stronger.” I clenched my fists as I spoke, anger and regret consuming me.

  We have offered guidance, Andrew. We have watched from afar and allowed this farce of a reaping to persist all so you could have time to progress. This war will not be won in mere months. No, this war will last for decades, and you will lose much along the way. We need you to be hardened in the furnace of war and loss; only then will you be able to do what must be done.

  “So, what now? You allow me to watch my crew and my friends die so that I can become what? Hardened? What is the value of that? What is the value of being alone and broken? I can’t do this alone,” I said, my voice breaking slightly.

  We will offer you a choice, Andrew. Either choice will allow you certain…benefits.

  “Let me guess; each choice will also offer me certain disadvantages. I’m tired of this bullshit. If you want to unseat the Council, why not do it yourself? Why keep investing in me? You give me a curse for every boon I receive! Why? Why not just give me what I need to do the job and be done with it?” I asked.

  The power you have been given is enough to destroy the council, Andrew, but unchecked power can be dangerous in the hands of any single being. We have purposely held back your ability to unlock the full potential of the gift. True. We only do this, however, to allow you to mature into the warrior you will need to be. You wouldn’t put a precious, fragile gift in the hands of a child and expect the child to keep it safe, would you? In much the same way, we need to ensure that you have matured enough to handle the power you have inherited. Once we are satisfied with your development, you will know the true power of the gift. Until that time, you will be given power in increments. This is not debatable, Andrew.

  “I watched my friends die… doesn’t that mean anything to you?” I asked as I sat down and put my head in my hands.

  We have watched countless trillions die in our time, Andrew. We are tired of death and will soon separate ourselves from the physical plane of this universe. We understand your pain and will offer you a path to remove that pain. You must now select your boon. This choice will not be easy, Andrew, and you must consider both options.

  My interface suddenly populated with my available choices.

  Power up – Gain 25 levels and the equivalent stat points to support the levels. You will be returned to the Bloodhound and, as the sole remaining faction member, declared the winner of Dungeon 1 of the reaping. Upon returning to the Bloodhound, you will be given coordinates to the second dungeon of the reaping.

  Do over – A small wormhole will be created upon activating this skill. The other end of this wormhole will open in your exact location 30 seconds in the past. Remember that once the timelines sync, your past self will be erased. This skill can be used as much as you choose, but you will lose one full level from your most significant stat, creating a soft cap until the stat points regenerate. Regeneration time varies based on the affected stat. If any particular stat is zeroed out by using the skill, it will be fatal for the user. Use with Caution.

  “You’re telling me I can go back in time? I can warn the others about Anthragor?” I asked.

  If that is your decision, then yes, you can. We would advise caution when using that particular skill. Timelines are tricky, and wormholes are fickle. We would recommend selecting Power Up as it would prepare you for the next dungeon or whatever else lay ahead. The choice, however, is yours, Andrew.

  “Okay, I choose Do over.” I didn’t even hesitate.

  The skill was highlighted and was added to my abilities list. I could think about it and activate it if I wanted.

  “Okay, send me back now,” I said sharply.

  We intend to, Andrew, but first, you need to be aware that something is coming soon. Victory in this dungeon is more important than anything else. Your friends are important to you, but we doubt any of them would place their own lives over billions of other innocent lives. Please consider this upon your return. You should also be aware that your past self will initially not understand what is happening. You will have little time to convince yourself to work with you if you are to stand a chance against Anthragor. Andrew, we wish you luck. We will be watching.

  With those words, I blinked and was back on the Alcaran Moon. Anthragor was still smiling and holding Tiff’s limp body in his hand. I didn’t waste any time, mentally selecting Do Over on my interface, as time and space warped around me. As the warp retracted, I stood exactly where I had been when I activated the skill. I looked back to see my past self approaching the sphere.

  “Get back to the Crew!” I yelled. Past Andrew turned and looked at me, “Wh…What, Who?” Past Andrew stammered.

  I turned and ran toward the crew at full speed, arriving in seconds. Tiff looked shaken. “No time to explain; I’m me. Anthragor is in the sphere. Get ready, everyone!” Just as I finished saying the words, Anthragor shot out of the top of the sphere. I rushed over to Tiff and grabbed the interstellar vacuum tube from her back.

  “Everyone, get back now!” I shouted and activated the tube, throwing it on the ground right where Anthragor landed. “We meet again, Primate!” He yelled as the vacuum tube activated. A black dome erupted from the tube, and a vacuum formed where Anthragor stood. He was sucked toward the tube and unable to fight against the force of the vacuum was held in place. Anthragor screamed and struggled against the weight of the total vacuum of space, clawing at the ground with his bottom hands, trying to escape the pull.

  Past Andrew ran up behind Anthragor as he struggled, firing two shots with his sidearm. The rounds were ineffective. The level 75 enforcer was too strong to be severely injured by my level 15 sidearm.

  Kaj, seeing the urgency of the situation, shot up into the air and then flew down, slicing his scythe down the back of Anthragor’s left leg, causing him to fall to one knee with a howl. Kaj looked at Past Andrew and me. “Guns will not work; blades are sharp at any level, however, if you can land the blow. Strike now! Strike Fast!”

  Anthragor was wounded, but a wounded animal was often more dangerous. He swung his red blades furiously and growled, trying to connect with me or past Andrew. I knew we didn’t have long before the timelines would sync, so we needed to act now.

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  “Andrew! Daggers, now!” I said to…umm… to myself. This was weird, like really weird. I also summoned my set of daggers as Past Andrew leapt toward Anthragor’s back, his own daggers ready. Just when Past Andrew was about to strike, Anthragor released the ground he was grasping to hold himself in place and swung his clawed hands wildly, knocking Past Andrew to the ground as his daggers went rolling. I leapt toward Anthragor as he scratched and clawed like an animal, panic evident on his eyeless face.

  Just as I was about to strike, he dropped the sword in his right upper hand while simultaneously stabbing the sword in his left upper hand into the ground to use as an anchor. He caught me by the throat in mid-air, just as he had done to Tiff before. With his right bottom hand, he grasped my left hand to ensure I couldn’t stab him with both daggers and activate the black hole ability.

  “Your parlor tricks can’t save you, primate. I will end you, and then I will end the life of each of your crew. Take solace in the fact that you won’t have to watch them die screaming.” Anthragor growled.

  I swung my left hand down and buried the dagger into the space between his two right arms.

  “Grrrr.” Anthragor growled as he tilted his head and smiled, “An inconsequential wound from an inconsequential being.”

  I lowered the visor on my helmet so Anthragor could see my face, “Go Fuck yourself Anthragor.” I smiled at him as I dropped the dagger from my right hand into Past Andrew’s waiting hand. He had recovered and jumped toward me as Anthragor held me in the air. Past Andrew stabbed the remaining dagger into Anthragor’s chest and grabbed hold of the dagger I had plunged into the space between his arms to keep it in place.

  “Get back, now!” Past Andrew shouted, “Take care of the crew, I’ve got it from here!”

  Anthragor released his grasp on me, and I fell to the ground, rolling back away from the scuffle that was ensuing. Past Andrew wrapped his legs around Anthragor’s body and strained, digging the two daggers deeper into Anthragor’s body. The timer on my interface clicked to zero as the black hole ability activated. Anthragor and Past Andrew were imploded into nothing as I watched their bodies contort and break under the pressure of the black hole.

  You have defeated Level 75 Enforcer General

  Error – results incomplete…

  Error – Unable to calculate reward based on defeating enemy more than 50 levels higher than current level.

  Please wait….Please wait….Please wait…

  Calculations complete!

  Experience Earned…Calculating Experience for defeating an enemy more than 50 levels above your current level… Master System AI is incapable of correctly calculating Experience points, as defeating an enemy more than 50 levels above your current level shouldn’t be possible.

  Master system AI calculating. Please wait…Outcome: Master System AI has relegated control of all internal skills to user – Andrew Timothy Dawes. Master System AI has completed experience point calculations.

  Experience Earned!

  You have leveled up! Current Level – P-40

  Addendum - The Master System AI has opened an investigation with the Universal Council Board of Ethics and Compliance. The Master System AI regrets to inform you that the investigation will be concluded when and if the Universal Council’s board of Ethics and Compliance finds that the participant, Andrew Timothy Dawes, acted of his own volition without the support of unauthorized outside entities, classes, or gear. Please allow up to 30 Earth days for the council to conclude its investigation. The Master System AI hopes you have enjoyed your experience and encourages you to take an exit survey at the conclusion of the Level 1 Dungeon.

  The influx of experience and stats hit me like a truck. I doubled over as my body underwent massive external and internal changes. Screaming in pain, I reached up to stop Tiff as she rushed over to help me.

  “I just gained 25 levels at once. Gimme a minute to acclimate.” I said through ragged breaths.

  “25 levels at once?! That shouldn’t be possible. How?” Tiff replied, concern on her face. I screamed again as another influx of experience points hit me. Space warped around me, resulting in a something that looked like a heat mirage all around my body before finally consolidating and allowing me to catch my breath and get my bearings.

  “That was…intense,” I said, standing shakily and pulling up my stats to check them.

  Name – Andrew Timothy Dawes

  Race – Human

  Level – P-40

  Class – Havok Bringer

  Stats –

  Strength – P-40 – 0%

  Intelligence – P-40 – 0%

  Dexterity – P-40 – 0%

  Defense – P-40 – 0%

  Current skills:

  Health stim activation

  Stamina Stim recovery

  Current abilities :

  Pulsar Blast – Planetary class ability. Upgrade status – 24%

  Big Bang – Planetary class ability. Upgrade progress – 05%

  Do Over – Galaxy class ability – Upgrade progress – 0%

  I noticed a few things immediately. All of my stats were at straight-up level P-40. I was kind of okay with that as it would allow me to train them equally and hopefully avoid the logjam I was worried about. My skill no longer showed the fucked up descriptive imposed by Randi. I was more than happy about that. I also saw that my new ability, Do Over, was labeled as a Galaxy class ability. That was interesting. I was aware of the Planetary Class;, it seems like the next progression was Galaxy class. It also meant that Do Over was a higher rarity ability, which made sense as it literally created black holes and played with the concepts of time travel. Again, I needed to sit down with Tiff and discuss this in detail, if we ever had a few minutes where we weren’t fighting for our lives.

  I looked up at the sky and lifted both of my middle fingers. “Hey Randi! I guess I won this round, you petty little bitch!” The sky rumbled with the sound of thunder as I smiled.

  “Maybe we leave that alone for now?” Tiff said, walking over to me. “We have plenty on our plates without pissing Randi off more.”

  I looked at her with a wry smile. “You called him Randi!”

  Tiff shrugged. “I tried to keep it professional, but that guy is a major dick. Randi suits him. So, what exactly just happened?!”

  “It is a long story, but basically, I got a new ability that allows me to travel back in time 30 seconds. I can’t use it often, and the price is hefty each time I use it. Anthragor surprised us, and I needed to come back and warn everyone. When I hit level 15, I was transported back to commune with the Coeus and received the ability. My past self must have been aware that his time was limited, so he sacrificed himself to save the rest of us. After that, I gained a bunch of levels for defeating Anthragor, and the influx of so much experience hurt like a bitch. I’m good now, but we need to have a conversation later about some weird things I am seeing on my stats.”

  Tiff looked at me, her mouth open in disbelief. “Oh, that’s all? I thought it might have been something impossible that had no relevant explanation. Glad to hear it was just you breaking the laws of physics and gaining 25 levels at one time like it’s no big deal.”

  I laughed as I walked over to the spot where Anthragor had imploded. Two jagged red blades were all that were left in the spot now, so I identified them.

  Blades of the Blood Nova –

  These blades were forged in the heart of a red nova. Refined over millennia and infused with the blood of countless fallen foes. The blades will inflict bleed damage over time and will scale to the level of foes within 25 levels of the wielder.

  Abilities – Blood Nova –

  Blood can be infused into a target with successive strikes, allowing the wielder to track the target over time. Once the infusion is complete, the wielder can activate Blood Nova, causing the infused blood to explode from the target and return to the blades.

  Genetically bound – these blades will be genetically bound upon equipping and can only be unbound upon the wielder’s death.

  I picked up the blades and transferred them into my inventory. I would talk to Tiff before I decided what to do with them. I was walking back when the sound of munitions fire caused me to stop in my tracks.

  WHAP, WHAP!

  Everyone immediately dropped to the dirt. I had forgotten about the two remaining Lacertine troops. I came back to the point before I had killed them.

  “We got ‘em, Cap!” Matty said as he and Jax both propped their rifles up on the debris to the side of us, aimed and shot one round directly through each of the two remaining Lacertine troop’s heads.

  “Done and done; hows about we get off this rock now,” Jax said.

  “Guys! I need help!” Loren shouted from behind us, “Claire is hit! Someone help her!”

  We rushed over to where Claire was lying as Loren tried to help her. Immediately, I knew there was nothing we could do. One of the rounds had caught her in the neck, shattering her spine and rupturing her carotid artery. She was dead before we even reached her.

  “Noooo!” Loren yelled as she cried over her friend, “Someone help her, please!”

  I looked at Matty and Jax. They both had tears in their eyes as they reached down to grab Loren’s shoulders and pulled her away.

  “There is nothing we can do, Lo; she is gone,” Matty whispered in her ear as he pulled her into a hug.

  In that moment, I knew this was the loss the Coeus were speaking of; this was the pain I would become so familiar with. I reached down and closed Claire’s eyes for the last time, and I wept for her with the rest of her friends. “We will not leave her on this moon. She is a part of our crew, and we will see her buried properly. We will bring her back to the Bloodhound for now. Matty, Jax, can you get her to the Rover? I asked.

  “Yeah, Cap, we can do that,” Matty said.

  “Everyone, I know this is hard. I’m sorry I failed Claire today, but we have to finish this and get off this moon. We owe that to Claire; she gave her life for this, and we can’t stop now,” I said. We need to loot these bodies and find that key to access the relay. Everyone, start searching. Let’s figure out how we can finish this and get back to the Bloodhound. Then, we figure out how to make the Council feel the same pain we are feeling today. Humanity will not just lie down and let our world be taken, it’s time we make them understand just who they have pissed off.”