Chapter 3 - The System

 

A few minutes earlier..

I remember falling.. I remember the struggle with that madman up until he vanished with his strange hocus-pocus. The adrenaline, the fear.. How much I panicked when I found myself in this damp and cold, deathtrap. I still feel the pain in my feet as I ran desperately looking for a way back to shore. The burn in my lungs dragging me down after the first 200 meters. When I saw the first crab monster I screamed and ran past it as quickly as I could. I would have never seen the second one coming if it wasn't for you. You spoke to me for the first time and that jolted me into avoiding being pounced on. I couldn't understand a word you were saying. I think it was Latin.. It must have been, it sounded so much like Italian! And then the images came, the colors and sounds you projected before my eyes. You were trying to communicate.. I know that now, but then? I thought I had gone mad! You somehow taught yourself through me.. or maybe it was through my world? You learned how to speak! You told me your name was Mariah but that you weren't a person. You said you were a.. representation? You were the personified connection I had with the Evergreen.. whatever that is.

I taught myself growing up, that all problems can be fixed. You just need to know how.. I think that's why I became an Engineer. And THIS problem I had no idea how to solve. You did though.. You said you'd be my partner, that you would guide me. Maybe a sane person wouldn't have trusted you, I'm not sure I still do.. But I want to.. I want to survive.. I want to know what happened and I want to be able to the man I've dremt of being. No more standing on the sidelines.. No more living life behind a closed window. If you can help me reach that point, then I'll do whatever crazy thing you ask of me! Do you hear? Am I.. awake? No.. I'm asleep. Are you there? Somehow.. I feel you're here with me.

                                                                            • • •

Berto blinked open his eyes to a glass ceiling. A vast dark blue sea stretched across his vision. Within the waters he could see strange creatures swimming about, leviathans and mutant critters that abruptly reminded him of his dire situation, causing him to sit up with a gasp. The water was an inch higher than before. He had passed out but guessed that it mustn't have been for long.

Mariah: Welcome back User Berto. Although we do sympathize with your predicament, we would suggest not losing consciousness inside a Rift in future endeavors.

"It's not like I did it on purpose.." Berto complained and reached for his wounded leg, only to find it completely healed. "Wai..what?" he blurted out, stunned by what he was looking at. There was a barely visible scar, indicating where he had been wounded but his flesh had mended back together in a matter of minutes and to a degree he had thought impossible for such severe trauma. His missing muscle tissue must've had completely healed since his foot could move freely and with no pain whatsoever.

Mariah: If you are ready User Berto. We should not delay your level up any further. Displaying Status Screen.

The young man blinked and suddenly there it was again. A screen magically displayed in front of his face just like the games he so often indulged in.

Mariah: You have 8 Attribute points available for distribution.

Berto steadied himself as he was overloaded with all this madness and checked his stats as if he were a hero in an RPG. Maybe this was all in his head but he had given in too much already to back out now. He was about to find out how magical this 'Evergreen' really was. "Uhm.. Mariah, what's the general baseline for a stat?".

Mariah: Values from 9 to 11 have been calculated and found as an average for any normal human. Your Vitality being at a 7, indicates you have a lacking physique and weak constitution. Your Intelligence however is well above average.

"Oof.." said Berto with a pained expression when he saw his Vitality stat. "Is that why I'm always sick? Ok.. drop 3 points into Vitality and 2 into Brawn. Let's bring them up to the average at least.. Aaaah" he went on as he studied his statistics further. "Whaaat's Spirit?".

Mariah: Spirit gauges your Mana Reserves, Mana Regeneration, Magic Resistance and Aptitude. Additionally, Spirit is a representation of your general awareness and perception as an individual.

"Well that sounds important, I'll bring that up to an average as well. That leaves me with... 2 points. Oh man.. This feels too important to just mess with and experiment. I may not have a chance to level up again! I need to have my wits about me.. and.. maybe be less clumsy. What's Agility for in general Mariah?"

Mariah: In general, Agility governs speed of movement, dexterity, balance and hand-eye coordination.

"Hell, this is exactly like a game! Ok yes, 1 point in Agility and Spirit. That should be 8.." Berto said and waited to see what would happen. A second later.. nothing. "Mariah? Wh.. WOW!" the young man managed to say when a pulse of golden light engulfed his entire being with a *WOOSH*.

Mariah: Attribute distribution complete! Improvements implemented. New Status available..

* User : Alberto Ferantelli - Level: 2 *

Health: 12/12

Brawn: 10 (↑2)

Agility: 11 (↑1)

Vitality: 10 (↑3)

Mana: 1/1

Intellect: 15

Charisma: 10

Spirit: 11 (↑2)

Skills:

1) Engineering lvl 4 (B)

2) Bypass lvl 1 (C)

3) Pain Mitigation lvl 1(B)

4) Insight lvl 1 (A)

Mutations: None

* Status update complete *

How do you feel User Berto?

The young Engineer remained there slacked jawed for a second, trying to come to grips with what just transpired. The Status Screen faded away as soon as he was done reading. He took a deep breath and stood up. His back didn't hurt.. such a familiar pain by endless days of working at a desk and nights of gaming, now gone. There's was no crick in his neck. He could breath more easily and his entire body felt lighter. "Mariah.. Mariah I think it worked!" he exclaimed with a tremble in his voice.

Mariah: We know Alberto.. we know. Now.. New Side Quest issued. ''Escape the Sub-aquatic Railway Rift''. Are you ready?

"No, but.. let's do it anyway!" Berto answered with a smile, more confident than he had ever mustered before.

                                                                          • • •

Berto picked up another one of the stones from the caved in tunnel and chucked it behind him. Every stone weighed at least 8 to 10 kilos, his biceps were burning and every throw seemed more and more like him, flailing his entire torso rather than simply swinging his tired arms. He wiped the sweat off his brow and continued. Every now and then he would pause, calculate and choose a different piece of rubble to move. He was avoiding pieces that could cause a landslide or allow an increase to the rate the water was flowing in. The plan was to find the emergency hatch, open it and swim to the next hatch down the railway. There were many flaws with his plan but there were no alternatives. No where else to go. He wondered how the hell would a party of Champions deal with this trial and challenged himself to do better. Think of smarter solutions.

"Mariah? Are you.. magic?" he asked feeling stupid the moment the words left his lips.

Mariah: Humans refer to any force or phenomenon they do not understand as magic. In that regard, for you.. We are magic. However.. if you are referring to the force channeled by the so called Champions, otherwise known as Mana, then no. We are not a construct of Mana.

"Haha.. So, I don't understand what you are. How about YOU walk me through it.. Who and what are you? Are you some sort of connection to a higher power?"

Mariah: Your last assumption is correct.

"And you're called Mariah? I'd expect something fancier, no offense of course.."

Mariah: You should be focusing on the task at hand User Berto. However we understand that you have questions. We will answer the most distracting one but only if you promise to leave the rest of them for when you are safe..

"You're not gonna even let me pick the question? Fine.. I am so investing into Charisma once I get out of here..". Berto mumbled the last part in frustration as he took a step back for a wider view of the tunnel. He then went back in, approaching the right side of the collapsed tunnel, quite certain that his goal should be only a few more meters deeper.

Mariah: As we have stated before. We are the Collective.. we are thoughts, memories, experience, dreams and hopes of many who have been. We are your connection to the Evergreen. Dubbed thus by your ancestors, the Evergreen, is everything that was, is and can be. It is energy unlimited, creator of new and recorder of old. It flows through the universe and in many ways IS the universe. It connects your world to others like it and has been called other things in eons past, even God, as it was first perceived as such.

Berto dropped the last piece of concrete he carried and had trouble closing his jaw upon listening. "Ok.. I expected something big but isn't that TOO big? I mean.. Why me? Better yet, why in general!? Why would a force like that, seek connection to a human?"

Mariah: That is a question for another time User Berto. But.. to satiate your last inquiry. The name, memory and personality of the User Mariah was chosen as your Moderator, after considering your own personality and predicament. We the Collective, concluded that she would best suit your needs and was more likely to gain your trust. We are, at the same time, Mariah and yet so many and so much more..

"Wait.." the young man interrupted, almost dropping his heavy burden on his foot. "You said User Mariah! You were like me? You were a person connected to this Ever..". Berto's reply was cut short. From the corner of his eye he saw something strange. It was as if a piece of broken concrete, resting atop other like it, was somehow moving closer to HIM ever so slightly. He was standing still so he was either getting dizzy or the damn thing was moving on its own.

The young engineer allowed his feet to buckle under him in a split second decision, as a pincer the size of his head whizzed by him, leaving a scratch on his cheek! By allowing himself to fall to the ground like that he escaped from a clenched pincer around the neck or head. He then looked up at a hermit crab, the size of a rottweiler, crawling down the debris and throwing a "clawed backhand" at him! Berto saw the blow coming but froze. Should he dodge? Block? Could he EVEN block that?! Life was quick to answer his question with a *THWAP* to the face and he went tumbling back 1 or 2 meters.

Mariah: Critical hit received. 3 HP lost. 9/12 HP remaining. Get back on your feet and cover your vital areas!

The voice in Berto's head shouted that last part like a Drill Sergeant, catching him off guard but thankfully shocking him into compliance. The young man struggled back up just in time to back away from the advancing monster. After putting some distance between them and taking an actual breath for the first time in three seconds, Berto finally noticed the words hovering above his opponent's head.

The tag read, Hateful Hermit Lv.2  and was accompanied by a red bar, which Berto immediately assumed, represented its health or life points. "Making everything like a game for me.. Thanks Mariah.." said as he forced a smile and kept jumping away from pincer swipes! He felt something swaying loosely from his body as he moved and soon realized that he still had his tie around his neck! He yanked it loose and took it off, as it was distracting him, but held onto it.

The crab kept attacking and scuttliny towards the young man, trying to close the distance between them. Berto moved clumsily but sure enough he did not fall nor trip. His lungs were burning but he felt that he could go on for a few minutes more! Only one Level up and the difference in his physical ability was apparent! The boost in his mental stats didn't take too long to show either. He suddenly became aware of the crab's ruthless but simplistic attack pattern, this gave him an idea. He grabbed his tie firmly, one hand on each end of the accessory. He stood still and counted on the crab making a simple thrusting jab and surely enough the monster obliged. With a quick motion, Berto allowed the monster's pincer to pass through the loop he had created with his tie and stepped behind it. He pulled with everything he had left and tried to flip the crab on its back!

The magical beast tried planting its legs into the slick manmade surface beneath it to no avail, a moment later it was on its head flailing about. Berto almost fell to the ground out of exhaustion. He rested his hands on his knees and started panting heavily when a searing pain shot up his ankle to his entire body. He let out a yelp and felt hot liquid running down his foot.

Mariah: Critical hit received. 3 HP lost. 6/12 HP remaining!

"Why does it keep scoring criticals against me!?" Berto whined as he jumped away from the crab's deadly vice grip.

Mariah: Because you keep allowing it to target your vital areas!

"Well two can play at that game!!" he yelled back angrily. He couldn't shout at the monster so Mariah unfortunately became the target of this comical outburst. Limping on one foot, Berto approached the heaviest block of concrete he could lift and did so. He loomed over the crab and slammed its underside with the heavy piece of debris. *CRACK* The words, Vulnerable Area Hit -4HP, popped out of the monster and the young man swung again! *CRACK* Vulnerable Area Hit -3HP. Berto raised his weapon a third time but was interrupted by a pincer slamming against his knee!

Mariah: Damage received. -1 HP lost. 5/12 HP remaining!

"OUCH! Son of a b.. WILL YOU STOP!?" yelled the frustrated man and accidentally dropped the block of concrete onto the crab monster. With a heavy *THUD*, concrete colored carapace, blood and crab meat splattered in every direction as the monster became mush.

Mariah: Hateful Hermit Lv.2 defeated! 35XP received! Minor Achievement unlocked, *First Blood* Defeated your first opponent! Award: You can choose one the three following Skills and obtain it: 1) Hide (E) 2) Craft (D) 3) Dodge (C). Congratulations User Berto, you survived!

Berto was already lying on the floor, gasping for air. He rubbed his aching face, trying to get the pain to subside. "Fuuuck me.." he said with a sigh.

 

Suprise update!! Bonus Chapter release in hopes of getting a bigger audience for the story. Fingers crossed and hope you enjoy reading Limitless!!