Maik didn't know the name of the guy who answered the question but his opinion of that guy shot up significantly when he spoke up despite the tense atmosphere. “I didn't really make any changes aside from adding to the Charisma and Endurance stats.”

  Dude you are awesome. Want to be friends ? So how he has increased his stat by up to 70. At least we put some improvement into our eyes. Didn't work !

  Maik reached up to feel his face only to realize that he still had his glasses on. His vision hadn't changed. Lifting the spectacles up, Maik only found, to his dismay, that his vision was still blurry without them. Not only that but now Maik realized that his eyes were even becoming annoyingly itchy too boot.

  This is bullshit. We were promised better perception damn it. Angry Displeasure. Its possible that what are experiencing is a hallucination ?

  Maik's brows furrow and a frown curs his lips downwards, voice hesitant and uncertain. “Huhh ? I chose to upgrade my perception but I still need glasses.”

  A girl, Grace, if Maik remembered her name right, was staring at them with her mouth agape. She shakes her head and then turners away in denial while the teacher, Mr. Boyd, spoke up to break the tension. “Now class, we have all clearly had a significant group experience and until we can be medically evaluated by proper professionals nothing is certain. The principles and deans are making efforts to get help to us as we speak. Experts with be able to figure out the current situation so I believe that the best course of action is to act as though this is just another natural disaster, like a hurricane. Stay calm and keep a level head...”

  Despite the clear authority in his tone as he gave a speech that sounded rehearsed up to this point his next words lacked the same assurance and were even shaken. “No more talk about... stat windows and modifications.”

  Maik and Jose's eyes met and the late teen could tell that Jose had seen, could still see, the HUD's display. The same was seen in Skips eyes and anyone else that would meet Maik's gaze. The teen continued looking around the room and meeting those gazes, mainly for Maik's own self assurance until Jose spoke up in hesitant tones. “Maybe its a group hallucination ? I heard about that kind of thing in a movie a while back.”

  Skip chimed in. “The one with the 2 magicians fighting each other right ?”

  Turning back to them Maik found that they were all nodding, having watched the same movie and talked over the twist ending multiple times. Maik was starting to compulsively rub his eyes at this point. The itch was getting pretty annoying at this point and Jose put a hand on his shoulder before speaking with concern. “Hay, be careful man, your eyes are kinda getting blood shot.”

  Maik snorts a laugh before brushing the other late teens worries and his hand to the side. “Phahh... Thanks but I'm okay. Unnnn !” The groan that escaped when a fresh spike of pain erupts in Maik's abdomen wasn't very assuring if the expression on Jose's face was any indicator, but Maik continued as though it was nothing. “They just itch is all.”

  Skip, who was still sweating and looking feverish pushed himself up into a sitting position with surprising effort so that he could whisper to the other 2. “Maybe its because you put all those points into perception but its taking a while for the changes to take effect ?”

  Jose looks at Skip with concern and Maik looks at him with worry and trepidation, frowning deeply while rubbing his eyes some more and just feeling his body hurt in all new ways. “Fantastic.”

  Jose looks around, seemingly to see if anyone was listening in and he seems to find someone by the change in the Spaniards expression. Behind and to the right of Maik was the guy who had spoken up earlier, when Maik had asked Skip about what changes the ginger had made to their stats.

  All 3 in the huddle friends turned to look at him as he swallows and then introduces himself with a big smile. “Hi, I'm Zachary, but most just call me Zak. Mind If I join you ?”

  It was Jose who gestured for the guy to sit and Maik scooted over to make room. He looked to be of Italian decent with very short and strait black hair, thick eyebrows and a dimple chin. “Sorry for eves dropping but you were the first person to speak out about....” He leans in to whisper. “The stats. I'm also feeling a strange tension in my muscles that making them stiff and its not going away.”

  I see Jose give him a flat look and then sigh. Still, the young man just glances around one last time before leaning back into our huddle and whispering. “Okay. Lets say that this is really happening. Why did you all just make changes immediately and in the middle of the day ?”

  It was obvious by the rest of the huddles slack jawed expressions that none of the rest of them had realized but Maik still had to ask. “Are you saying....” Maik paused for a moment to try and focus, to... command the HUD's display to bring up the stat sheet in order to confirm his suspicions. “Ohhhh.”

  The sheet was dismissed with another mental command a moment later. When Maik met the eyes of the others he could see from the others expressions that it was pretty obvious to anyone looking at him that he had opened the stat sheet up just now.

  Jose was nodding and continues to berate the others in the same stern tone. “Yeah, I haven't made any changes because I wasn't in the right frame of mind when..... whatever this is, first hit.”

  Jose gestures around helplessly. Its a somber feeling, one laced with regret. How could we have been so reckless ? Creative was chastised while Primal was indifferent to things like shame.

  After a moment of self reflection Maik simply apologized and then proclaimed that he was going to try and meditate, asking if Jose would tell me when the next batch of food showed up but Jose placed a hand on Maik's shoulder to stop him, his tone turning inquisitive. “Wait up. Speaking of your meditation... Do you know what the deal is with the Chi and Aura stats ?”

  Maik blinked a couple times at him and just had to ask. “Didn't... Cant you sense what those stats are for ?” Maik was able to intuit their meaning, not as easily as the other stats but still.

  Jose shook his head and Zak looked just as curious, though there was a light in skips eyes that said he knew. .... Interesting. Sharing our collective finding may reveal more information. So Maik settled back in and explained what he had gleamed from the interface thus far to the rest of the group.

  Skip adding in some more info on the race change options and there effects which Maik hadn't known about. Apparently different races had stat affinities and those stats could be upgraded easier and for fewer points. I bet you he changed race. What do you think he picked ? It seems that different people may have been able to intuit different aspects of the stat sheet, perhaps even the HUD's display. Primal emanated a Desire to know more.

  Zak actually piped up to mention that there seemed to be a notification function as part of the HUD's display in their vision now. “Yeah, I received the notification after I dumped most of my points into Charisma.” The other 3 gave him flat looks, or tired to before giving way to light chuckles and shaking heads. “Dudes ! Have you even played D&D ? Or any major RPG for that matter. Charisma is king.”

  Before anyone could start teasing the poor guy any further Jose gave Maik a pointedly demanding look and the late teen held his hands up in surrender. Wiping the smirk off his face Maik then addressed Zak with a reassuring tone. “Your okay dude. Its fine. Who doesn't want better dialogue options, right.”

  Zak huffs but Jose just redirects the groups attention back upon Maik the with seriousness of his tone. “Out with it then. What can you tell us about the Chi and Aura matter ? You've certainly mentioned those terms before today.”

  Maik nodded and began to explain the basics of his Qigong practices, even mentioning the purple bar in the bottom left corner of his HUD's display. This quickly turned into Maik walking the 3 others in the huddle through a meditation exercise for controlling the flow of Chi through the body to build its up and strengthen the mind body connection.

  “Just like that, breath deep and down into you abdomen. You should feel each breath in your kidneys. As you draw in the air visualize the energies collecting in the top of your head being drawn into the halo of your crown Chakra like a vortex."

  Maik use hand motions to aid in his explanation. "Pull this energy down the front of your skull, between the eyes and into your nasal cavity. Make sure that your tongue is pressed to the roof of your mouth, just behind your front teeth so that you can transfer the energy to your tongue and down your throat as it makes its way into your lungs along with the fresh air."

  Let the energy piggy back on the O2 as it enters your blood stream to be distributed throughout your body, focusing on getting that energy to your organs first. Liver, spleen, stomach, kidneys small intestine and then large intestine before collecting what is left at your root Chakra, centered at the base of your pelvis.”

  Jose started having a muscle spasm as the Chi became too concentrated and dense for him to handle. It surged and began to run wild inside him. In a panic, Maik rushed over and laid his hands on his friend with the desire to help. Likewise Jose wanted Maik to know what was wrong and was trying to explain as best he be could but when they made contact those two desires met.

  Maik felt it. There was an arch or static electricity as Maik reached out with their own Chi, almost instinctyally. Suddenly they were sharing information mentally, thoughts, feeling and sensory information started flooding into Maik's conscious.

  Through this shared perception Maik saw the rampant arch of Chi wreaking havoc in Jose's hip and leg. It was a long shot but Maik decided to go for broke and started sending Jose information back detailing how he would go about bringing the energy under control. With their combined effort of will Jose's slowly regained control, relieving the pain and subduing the spasms.

  Once things were settled with Jose Maik was about to resumed the instruction but a notification caught his attention.

  Tier 4 skill acquired - Sending - Beginner

  Form a mental connection with another being for the purpose of transferring information back and forth between you and them.

  This story has been unlawfully obtained without the author's consent. Report any appearances on Amazon.

  "One you have the energy swirling in the..." But Maik's instruction was cut off when Zak needed Maik's help as well. Skip managed to swirl the energy in his pelvis without Maik's aid thankfully.

  Once he was sure that the others could keep the pattern without further disaster he continued. "Then we just pull the center of the spiral out of the bottom of the root Chakra and then feed it up into the base of the spine." The other three were more cautious now and let Skip go first. This time it was too much for the ginger and Maik needed to help.

  The other two needed aid with this phase as well but afterward they were praised by Maik and encouraged to keep practicing. "The energy goes all the way up your spine until reaching the top of your head again. From there you repeat the cycle as many times as you can manage."

  Maik started to explain the prospect of trying to draw more energy in from the heavens and the earth but it was clear that the other three had their hands full with just this much. Instead they only managed to cycle the Chi that was already in their bodies and then only with constant help from Maik.

  The late teen started explaining that the point of this early technique is to fill the body with enough energy so that one can saturate ones self with enough chi to complete the full route. "... But that doesn't seem to be a problem. At least not right now any way. Were all jam packed with the stuff somehow."

  It was first Zak and then Jose that took a break, looked warn out from the efforts of trying to use the skills Maik were teaching. They explained that they were so focused on Maik's explanation Because they had felt and could still feel the energies flowing through their bodies. Only it was chaotic and painful. So when Maik's instruction helped they were all ears.

  It wasn't just them either. In fact Maik soon found out that many people in the class were complaining at this point about the absurd number of static discharges everyone was experiences. It was to the point that it was freaking people out and making some afraid to touch metal or other people.

  It was Skip who held out the longest, deep in meditation until he burst out in a hushed voice. “Hahh. I got it. I have the purple bar.”

  Jose and Zak brightened and looked hopeful but Maik was more relieved than anything. Supporting evidence for the theory that this is not a hallucination mounts. Ohh thank god. Maybe we're not crazy after all. Primal just radiated a sense of Validation .

  Soon after there was a mild commotion as the door opened and a food trolley was wheeled in. Maik, Skip and Zak were all feeling pretty hungry and so quickly excused themselves all at the same time. A light chuckle was shared before they all got up and headed for the line. Jose followed along just for the company.

  Maik continued to refine his explanation while they stood in line until the same girl who had gaped her mouth at them earlier called out in an annoyed and frustrated voice. “Mr. Boyd, their talking about the... Stats thing again.”

  Mixed looks were sent the 4s way that ranged from scorn to interested curiosity but Mr. Boyd's glare was stern. “Daley, you keep that talk to yourself and stop disrupting class.”

  What class ? Schoolsss Out For Ever Berrr nee narr nurr. Bitch quite holding up line. I Hunger.

  But while Maik's Creative mind was playing old rock music in the background his Analytical mind answered the teacher. “Yes sir Mr. Boyd.” An affirming nod was sent the teens way before the math teacher returns to his conversation with one of the deans over out of earshot from the class.

  The tattle tail had a smug look on her face when hers and Maik's eyes met. She even gave a satisfied huff. Ohhh you stuck up bitch. It is likely that she is anxious over her lack of control in this odd situation and this small amount of control is what she has latched onto as a coping mechanism. No reason to hold up line. ….... So yeah. A stuck up bitch.

  The food was nothing special. The standard high school fair. Pizza, mash potatoes and green beans with a little carton of milk. Not everything a growing body needs but it will have to suffice. Can we get seconds ? Desire Hamburgers.

  The meal helps but hunger still gnaws at Maik after the fact. Skip and Zak look just as dissatisfied but Jose seemed content with the meal, just siting there with his eyes closed.

  Is he meditating some more ? His breathing is wrong and his neck muscles are too tense but hes not doing to bad for a beginner.

  Zak shoots a questioning glance Maik's way, to which Maik shrugs and replies in a flat tone. “Hes probably giving the Qigong techniques I mentioned another try so that his purple bar shows up. I intend to do the same frankly.” Zak opens his mouth but Maik cuts him off. “I've told you enough to get you through today. I can tell you more tomorrow.....”

  Will we ever meet again after today ? Such things are not certain. We already explained things for an hour. He'll be fine. Want Hamburger.

  Maik glances at Skip but hes already settling into his own attempt at meditation so Maik follows suit. The energies were still sort of moving as the late teen had wished but..... If one would to refer to the flows of chi in his body as a plumbing network running through the body that carried the Chi like pipes carried water, then his pipes had little pin holes everywhere, leaking chi out in a haphazard ways. Not to mention the utter mess of their design and set up.

  Diving down into his being Maik looked over both the nervous system and the circulatory system. For the first time Maik could actually actually sense them. Maik had certainly tied this technique before but had never even come close to having this level of detail and perception of his inner workings.

  Was this an effect of the perception attribute boost, or being so thoroughly flooded with energy ? Who cares, its a real mess in here and its casing us pain. Primal Just projected a Desire for Action.

  Reining in both the Creative and Primal minds to analyze the situation more critically, Maik realizes that the majority of his pain was coming from those holes in the piping and some of the pain was coming from where the piping was poorly placed. Worse still, there were lots of places where the 'piping' was essentially jumping back and forth between the circulatory system and the nervous systme. It was easy to finds those spots sense they hurt the most.

  There were other concerns of course. The fact that nobodies phones were working, what was happening with Maik's family and hushed conversations between teacher and dean to name but a few. However, pain has a way of making you focus on it and what is causing it over all else.

  This was doubly true for the late teen, as he was in no small amount of pain at the moment. Thankfully the HUD's display seemed to have an interface that helped Maik examine his inner working with this new found clarity and accuracy. As a result the late teen was soon lost in the wonders of rebuilding their internal Chi pathways.

  Maik didn't really know how much time had passed but the moment that the late teen finished outlining a basic blueprint for how he wanted the pathways to run a new notification started blinking for Maik's attention. Much like everything else about the HUD's display, it didn't impede his vision. It was more like an awareness, like there was a second vision that Maik could see in their head.

  Skill / tier 3 : Mind & body connection – Beginner.

  Ones connection between their conscious will and their physical body through the use of Chi.

  "Interesting. It would seem that there are different categories for our skills based upon their tier." "Is this our only Tier 3 skill we have ?" Quickly Maik checked and found that this was not, in fact the only Tier 3 skill that the late teen had.

  Bio chemistry – Beginner

  Calculus – Beginner.

  Mind & body connection – Beginner.

  It would appear that Tier 3 skills are quite advanced. Only 3 ? we Suck. Primal Expressed Trepidation. Still, this is promising progress.

  As Maik continued to examine his inner workings he came to the realization that the first thing he would need to do I reroute a lot of the plumbing and add return pipes to complete the circuits. Maik further found that when the piping aligned with his blood vessels there was a lot less pain in those areas and the energy flow was much more natural. By contrast when the piping was combined with the nervous system it allowed for amazing control of the Chi energy.

  It seems we will need 2 separate systems to get the most out of this new abundance of energy. One for transferring the energy throughout the body and another for controlling more exotic effects. Dude, I'm not sure were smart enough for all that.

  Primal Felt a little Depressed by Creatives evaluation. Practice makes perfect. We need only apply our self, like any other exercise.

  That left Primal Feelimg much more Motivated. All right, lets get started, but where ? Improving our base line should take priority. So the pathways on top of the arteries is first. Alright. Primal projected the emotion of Agreement. Maik got to work fixing his plumbing.