Homestead Survival

<27 July 2024, Denver CO, 0630>
[Theo]

"It's like I said last week, Theo," Mr. Pesset said with a slimy tone, "Victor has simply been performing better. I wish I could help you out, but at this time, I don't think that you deserve a raise. Besides, you are too emotional."

Theo rolled his eyes, "Yeah, and last week, my handwriting was 'too messy.' Don't worry, I get it."

"I'm glad you understand, Theo, now get back to work." Mr. Pesset turned in his chair to begin typing.

"Yep. Have a good day." Theo said and stood up, walking out of the building. He worked the night shift, and not surprisingly, Mr. Pesset had forgotten. He was notorious for picking favorites.

Theo got into his car, wishing he had more money to buy a new truck, and left the parking lot outside the dilapidated building where he worked. He was about to return to the slum flat he called home when he decided otherwise.

"I have a four-day weekend, so I might as well enjoy it," Theo muttered to himself, and instead, turned west at the next light to head to the highway and then up into the mountains.

Several hours and a roadside nap later, Theo found himself at the foot of the Grand Mesa, two minutes from his favorite campground, passing a sign that said 'Hamish waterfall trailhead.' Before setting up camp and racking out for the night, Theo decided to take a quick hike.

"Three miles round trip and I have maybe an hour and a half of daylight left..." Theo thought for a moment, "I can work that."

He pulled over at the trailhead, grabbed the daypack he kept in his car for just such occasions as this, and then took off at a brisk pace.

[Julia and Courtney]

"Why did we do this hike when we are doing the overlook tomorrow?" Courtney asked Julia as they trudged down the trail to the trailhead.

"Because," Julia said, breathing in between words, "we both... agreed to it... and said... we should... exercise more."

Courtney grumbled and was about to respond when a deep voice spoke up from behind them, "On your left, ladies."

They both stepped to the right and watched as a tall man practically jogged past them with a pack that was larger than someone moving that fast had any right to carry. They both watched him pass and then stepped back onto the trail to continue at their pace. Courtney spoke up, "He sure was moving."

"True," Julia said, wondering where she was going with this.

"But I did get a good look at..." Courtney started to say, and Julia's groan cut her off, then both of them started giggling.

"No, but really, did you see his legs?" Courtney asked.

"Yeah," Julia said grudgingly, admitting to herself that the man had a rather nice pair of calves.

"I know you liked those dad calves." Courtney teased.

"True," Julia said, mixed feelings rising up. Part of this camping trip was to take her mind off her most recent breakup. "Come on, maybe he knows something we don't; we should hurry up."

"Okay," Courtney agreed, respecting her friend's wish not to talk about anything right now.

They hiked at a slower pace as they chatted for another twenty-five minutes when they heard a pair of feet descending the trail. They both looked, and it was the same man. He saw them coming and stepped to the side, letting them continue their upward progress. He spoke again, "You've got about a half mile to the top and probably forty-five minutes of sunlight left, good luck!"

As quickly as he had stopped and let them pass, he started off and jogged just as quickly downhill as up. Courtney looked at her, "Okay, now you can't argue that he wasn't hot and that he apparently did the trail that quickly... I wonder if that stamina applies elsewhere."

They both laughed, and then Julia looked at the setting sun. "Well, regardless of his bedroom prowess, he is probably right about the distance and the daylight. Do we want to push through, or do we head back?"

Courtney thought for a moment, "We should head back and get a jump start on drinking."

"Sounds like a plan," Julia said, turning back, "just remember not to get too sloshed; we are doing the overlook tomorrow."

"Okay, mom..." Courtney said in an exaggerated voice.

<28 July 2024, Grand Mesa CO>

[Julia and Courtney]
"It is too damn early, and I am way too hungover for this," Courtney grumbled.

"I tried to warn you last night," Julia said, nursing her own headache but faring far better than Courtney. "We have gone like a mile, and we need to be to the top before five-thirty. We wanna see the sunrise."

Courtney grumbled, "Fine, fine, fine. I'll get a move on."

They continued to hike for a while when they heard a semi-familiar voice call out from behind them, "On your left, ladies."

[Theo]

Theo was glad he had decided to work for the Sunrise Overlook hike. He knew he could not jog it like the waterfall hike the other day, but he liked to push himself, so he started fifteen minutes later than he normally would have.

His breathing came smoothly, and even as he pushed, his pace grew a little faster. He heard grumbling ahead of him, and then he saw headlamps lighting the trail, and the lights revealed the two women from yesterday. He smiled, thinking to himself, "Good for them."

As he approached, he spoke up and slowed down so as not to scare them by running at them out of the dark, "On your left, ladies."

They slid to the right side of the wider trail, letting him pass to their left. One of the women called out to him, "Good luck!"

"You too!" Theo called back before he picked his pace up again.

[Julia and Courtney]
As the man passed them again, pushing a pace that she was unsure how he maintained, Julia called out, "Good luck!"

His voice from the dark called back, "You too!"

Then Julia and Courtney were alone again. Courtney looked miserable but stood up tall, "All right, let's go."

Julia raised her eyebrows as she started to push harder with her friend. "What got into you?"

"He is going to be at the top," Courtney said, her tone playful, "and either you can talk to him, or I will talk to him, but if we can't get there to have a conversation with him, then it's a moot point."

Anger bubbled up in Julia's heart,

"I...." She paused, took a deep breath, and responded to Courtney, "I agree, let's get going."

The next six miles were eaten up faster than either woman had ever done this particular hike before, and over the next hour and a half that it took, they didn't once catch a glimpse of the man. Courtney was breathing hard, "Who the hell is he, and what kind of cyborg is he that he can hike like this with a massive pack?"

"Just think..." Julia said between breaths, "Cyborg... Penis."

Both of them laughed as they labored to reach the top. A sign on the side of the trail told them that they only had a few hundred yards to go.

"Let's go!" Courtney cried, and they both gave one final push just as the sunrise began to appear.

[Theo, Julia, & Courtney]

Theo was sitting on the collapsible camp stool he kept in his pack and heating some hot chocolate with a Sterno can when he heard giggling. A female voice called out, "Let's go!"

A few minutes later, both of the women he had passed a while ago stepped onto the flat surface of the overlook. They had made it to the summit of the hike just as the sun crested the horizon, casting light across a breathtaking scene. Before the three of them, the grand Mesa was lit up.

One of the women, the blonde, spoke to the other, "Alright, Julia, I forgive you for waking me up so early. This is worth it every time."

"I'm glad, Courtney," the brunette, apparently named Julia, said, about to continue speaking when she got cut off.

Theo had been letting them chat quietly when he had seen something that made him blurt out, "What the fuck is that?"

In the distance, the still visible moon had a bright burst of eerie light blue light that momentarily outshone the rising sun. Halfway between the moon and the horizon was a cube that seemed to shimmer with the same blue light. As the three of them watched, the cube approached the moon and impacted it, sending a visible cloud of material into space.

"What the hell!" Julia said, turning to Courtney, "We should go..."

She trailed off as writing began to appear in her vision. Theo and Courtney would have responded, but they were also seeing the writing.

>System Node Installation Complete.
> Planet: Y-7F63C-3
> Local Designation: Earth
> Beginning Planetary Analysis

The next two minutes were frightening, as no matter how much Theo, Julia, or Courtney struggled, none of them could move. Theo even saw a bird in the distance frozen in the air.

> Planetary Analysis Complete Results to Follow
> The Planet Y-7F63C-3 has met the requirements to be inducted into the System. It fails to meet several physical requirements, but the System has approved remedial reformation to solve this issue. All other issues will be resolved over the next 17 Delshak...
> WARNING! - Conversion Error Detected
> Engaging Localized Unit/Name Conversions...
> Earth has met the requirements to be inducted into The System. It fails to meet several physical requirements, but The System has approved remedial reformation to solve this issue. All other issues will be resolved over the next 60 days as the ambient Mana is elevated to a galactic minimum. At this time, all sentient beings over the age of the galactic majority (16 Earth Years) are requested to describe what type of class they would like. This process will be automated for all others going forward.
> Users, please accept the System when prompted.

After all of this was read, they could move again, and Theo, Julia, and Courtney, along with every other sentient on the planet, heard a voice in their head.

"User, do you accept the System?"

Before Julia or Theo could respond, they heard Courtney laugh, "Haha, what the fuck, I must still be hammered. No Fuck off drunk system thing."

As soon as she finished speaking, a gout of flame that matched the blue color of the light from earlier erupted around Courtney, and in a moment, she was gone as if she had never existed.

"Courtney!" Julia cried out.

"What the fuck!" Theo said, jumping to his feet from his stool, now able to move.

Again, they heard the voice in their heads.

"User, do you accept the System?"

"Yes," Theo said hoarsely, not knowing what to expect.

When he didn't burst into flame, Julia followed suit, fear filling her voice. "Yes, I accept."

[Theo]
"What do you desire to be? You may respond silently in your mind to all future System queries." The System voice said in his mind.

Theo's mind immediately played out fantasies of adventure and battle; in his mind, Vikings ran wild, and warriors faced evil. All of this happened, and the voice began to offer him a variety of classes. Theo was about to pick when he decided to stop and think for a moment.

"Can I ask you to show me a list of the best possible classes for me?" Theo thought and got a response in moments.

"Understood. Processing. Please pick one of the following base classes, as they have the highest compatibility with your skills, abilities, and desires."

Theo was presented with a list of five classes.

Homesteader - A basic class that focuses on things such as farming and building a personal home.

Small Holder - A person who owns or manages an agricultural holding smaller than a farm; this is a beginning path to a noble class.

Countryman - A class focused on the survival of the class holder at the expense of those around them.

Reaper - A class that focuses on harvesting has a unique form of combat.

Son of the Soil - A person who works the land or keeps livestock, especially on a farm. This class has high evolution potential.

[Julia]

"What do you desire to be?"

Julia's mind immediately panicked. Fantasies of adventure and battle all ended in death. She did not know what to do. She had played games and loved some of them, but for the most part, she had no desire to throw herself into conflict.

"I want a class that will let me survive. Can you help me pick?" Julia's internal voice was pleading by the end of her statement.

"Understood. Processing. Please pick one of the following base classes, as they have the highest compatibility with your skills, abilities, and desires."

After a strange thrum of power, Julia was presented with a list of three classes.

Sanctuary Keeper - A hybrid class that excels at maintaining a stronghold, providing defense during battle, and offering restorative abilities.

Hearthwarden - A class deeply attuned to maintaining and defending a homestead.

Caretaker of the Grove - A class that acts as the bridge between nature and civilization, ensuring the land around the homestead flourishes.

[Julia and Theo]

The narrative has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.
Julia and Theo picked their classes, and then they waited, unsure what to do. Almost fifteen minutes later, a message appeared.

>Final Classes Selected. Welcome, Humans, to The System.
> All Sapients secured in their current area. Begin Remedial Reformation
> Current Planetary Surface Area: 196.9 Million Square Miles
> Galactic Planetary Standard Surface Area: 25.127 Billion Square Miles.
> Surface Area to be increased by a factor of 127.613
> WARNING: Gravitational balance of Star System impact probability: 93.7%
> Querying for solutions...
> Solution found. Entire Star System to be Remedially Reformed by a factor of 100.
> Begin Scaling...

Theo and Julia were reading messages as quickly as they appeared. As they read, a blue barrier popped up around them, blocking off a roughly 25-foot by 25-foot box around them. They looked at each other.

"What the Fuck is going on?" Julia asked hoarsely.

"I don't know," Was all that Theo could say in response as they watched reality begin to reshape itself.

> Size Scaling: 10% Complete
> Gravity increase detected. Begin Mana Seeding to negate.
> Size Scaling: 15% Complete
> Mana Seeding: 5% complete.

Both Theo and Julia took a breath and felt Alive.

"What the hell!" Theo said, flexing his arms, feeling like he could throw a car.

"This is insane," Julia said, feeling the power flood her body as well.

> Size Scaling: 25% Complete
> Mana Seeding: 20% complete.

At the same time, Julia and Theo felt something wash through them and instinctively knew that they could now access their class skills.

> Size Scaling: 55% Complete
> Mana Seeding: 60% complete.

Before their eyes, space seemed to warp as the Grand Mesa expanded and then suddenly split into several Mesas that were many times the size of the Grand.

> Size Scaling: 70% Complete
> Mana Seeding: 100% complete.
> Mana Seeding Complete, Begin Mana Condensation.
> Mana Condensation Rank: D - 63%

Suddenly, Theo and Julia saw a message in their eyes.

> Local Area Message:
> WARNING: You are in what has been designated as a high mana density zone. It is recommended that you accept teleportation to a low mana density area. Staying in this area presents many potential opportunities for gaining power and strength, but also drastically increased risks. Please decide in ten seconds.

Theo read the message and quickly decided what to do; silently, he responded to the message. "I will stay.

Julia was panicking, she didn't know what to do, she thought for a moment, and tried to think of what her dad would say if he were still alive. She knew he would say that sometimes risks had to be taken, but not to get hurt doing something too risky.

> Local Area Message:
> WARNING: Five Seconds To Decide.

"Okay," Julia said out loud, not sounding very excited at all. "I will stay."

> Local Area Message:
> Thank you both for choosing. As a reward for the additional risks you have elected to take, you will be granted a reward after System Induction is complete.
> Target Mana Density Rank A+

> Mana Density Concerns Negated, Continuing...
> Size Scaling: 76% Complete
> Mana Condensation Rank: D - 71%

They watched as the messages appeared one after another.

> Size Scaling: 80% Complete
> Mana Condensation Rank: D - 75%
> Local Area Message:
> Mana Condensation Rank: C - 15%

> Size Scaling: 85% Complete
> Mana Condensation Rank: D - 90%
> Local Area Message:
> Mana Condensation Rank: B - 27%

They felt the strange, powerful sensation getting stronger and stronger.

> Size Scaling: 95% Complete
> Mana Condensation Rank: D - 99%
> Local Area Message:
> Mana Condensation Rank: B - 87%

> Size Scaling: 98% Complete
> Mana Condensation Rank: D Average Achieved.
> Mana Condensation Completed
> Local Area Message:
> Mana Condensation Rank: A - 97%

> Size Scaling: 100% Complete
> Local Area Message:
> Mana Condensation Rank: A+ - 100%

> Activating User Systems and Interface Abilities...
> System Initialization Complete. Once Again, Welcome to The System.

A bright string of text floated in the air for a moment before Julia and Theo; it seemed to be a location indicator.

<GRAND MESA OF SUMMER, A+>

"Grand Mesa of Summer, huh?" Theo said to himself, looking around, oblivious to the woman standing next to him. The small plateau that overlooked the former Grand Mesa had once been a couple of hundred feet long and fifty or so wide; now, it was several miles long and nearly a mile wide. The rough prairie grasses and native plants seemed to have been rejuvenated and were healthier than Theo had ever seen.

"What now?" Julia asked no one in particular.

Theo and Julia both jumped and turned to face each other. Theo spoke first. "Wait, you decided to stay, too?"

"I didn't stay because of you!" Julia blurted out, as the idea of being stuck in the woods with a strange man made her concerned.

Theo shrugged, said nothing, and packed his things up before turning and walking away. He was preparing to head out and find a place to camp for the night when he heard a thump behind him; two small golden chests had appeared. Each had a holographic display hovering above it that had either 'Theo' or 'Julia' above it.

"That must be the reward that we were promised," Julia said, sounding dejected, as she stepped up to her chest.

"Welp, let's see what the system gave us," Theo said, opting to be cordial as he stepped up to his chest and placed a hand on it to open it. Instead of opening it, the chest dissolved as soon as he touched it. What was left behind was a pile of items.

They both quietly scooped everything up, Julia casting weary glances over at Theo. Theo stood up and turned his back on Julia. Heading deeper into the forest on the new, larger overlook.

"Where are you going?" Julia called out.

"Away," Theo said without stopping, "good luck."

[Julia]
Julia was shocked. She waited for something else to happen, another prompt to appear, or something; she distracted herself for a moment by going over her reward from the chest. Julia had a bracelet, a yellow gem, and a shirt in addition to a small pile of gold coins with strange symbols on them.

She examined the shirt and realized that she instinctively knew what the shirt was. " Tunic of Thermal Oblivion. It will keep me at a comfortable temperature in any natural temperature. This is all fucking weird."

No matter how weird it was, she realized that she would appreciate the warmth that it would provide. She then looked at the bracelet and suddenly knew what it was. "Aegis Bracer, redirect a portion of the damage that I would take to someone else. Well, that is fantastic. I would love not to be damaged, and I would love to have someone else here. What the FUCK!"

Julia then sat down and cried a little bit.

[Theo]
Theo had moved rapidly to find a place to go over what he had been given and was currently sitting on a stump in a small clearing, roughly a quarter mile from where he had left the brunette woman, Julia.

Part of him wanted to go make sure that she was good to go, but she had made it clear that she was here for her own reasons, so he would leave her be. Instead, he was looking at the objects in his hand.

Theo had a strange-looking garden trowel, a dagger, and a yellow gem. Theo noticed that each item projected a sense of what it was into the mind of the holder and that if you focused on it, it would give you details.

"A Master Tool that takes on the shapes of a massive number of different tools. A Grade 'C' dagger, and a skill gem called spatial storage. Interesting, how do I use this?" Theo said to himself, trying to trigger the use of the skill gem and failing. He shrugged after several minutes and put it in his pack.

"Alright, let's figure this class out and see what we can do," Theo said, using the instinctive knowledge that the System seemed to give him to open his status screen.

"Okay, so I seem to be Constitution heavy and Charisma light," He chuckled to himself, "that sounds about right."

He looked at his skills and quickly read their use. "Claim, Farming, and Strike. They seem simple enough, but I get the feeling that they will change as I change."

He was about to delve into what he could do with them when he heard a scream from where he had left the brunette, and no matter what she had said, that was not something he could ignore.

He stood, taking his Dagger in one hand and the master tool in the other, forming it into a long-handled woodcutting axe. "Guess it's time to save a damsel."

[Julia]
After wiping her eyes, Julia had come to a conclusion. She was a little bit in over her head.

"That's fine, though," Julia said to herself, "I can do this. I made the decision, so I will deal with it."

She thought of the tall man who was somewhere out in the woods and grumbled to herself, "Why did I have to blurt out what I did. I don't want to misconstrue anything, but having a big, burly man around would not hurt my situation."

She shook her head, "No use lamenting the past. Let's look at this status screen; I know I can access it."

As she performed the mental twist that was required for the status to open, she marveled at how she simply knew how to do this now. She continued to be impressed as the status screen opened.

Julia had played video games with her ex, so she had a pretty good idea of what the stats were: "Okay, Strength, Dexterity, Constitution, Intelligence, Charisma..."

She trailed off as the only one that she did not know stumped her. "Meta... like metaphysical?"

She shrugged and then looked at the skills that she had. "Okay, three skills. Bond, Ward, and Retaliate. They each have ranks, types, and descriptions. First one..."

Julia mentally clicked on the Skill, once again impressed by how she simply knew these things now, thanks to the System. " Okay, first Skill. Bond is a rank S special skill that allows the user to bond with another user. This does not bind them in death. This does provide many unique abilities and perks. Can not be reused until the target of Bond dies."

Immediately she was frustrated, "Fucking great, the super special unique skill that I have is to bind myself to another person, and the only other person here is a crazy woodsman who is hiding in the trees somewhere!"

Another thought entered her mind, but she crushed it quickly, "No, it's probably for the best that Courtney is not here..."

She moved on quickly from the thoughts of her former friend. "Okay, second skill, Ward is a B- Rank Skill, which allows the user to place a ward on a surface; the ward will provide a basic level of protection and minor functionality depending on the level of the user."

Julia thought about this for a moment and then cast Ward using the inherent knowledge that came with the Skill. A small rune of arcane origins appeared and glowed with a faint blue light next to her. She smiled and cast it several more times until she had a small circle of runes roughly six feet across in which she stood. "Okay, so I can use rune circles to protect myself. That is nice to know that I can have some basic safety."

Julia thought about laying down another ring of runes around her current one, but decided to check the last Skill she had before doing anything else. "My last Skill is Retaliate, it's an A-Rank passive that says, 'When the User or the target of Bond (Rank A- or higher) is dealt damage, strike back at the attacker, dealing damage based on the User's CON and META. Can stack with the target of Bond's attack skills."

"FUCK!" She cried out at the universe, "I bet this whole class hinges around that fucking Bond skill. Why the fuck did I have to decide to stay out here!"

She was about to walk out of her circle to try and think of a solution while she looked for something to eat, when a low growl stopped her in her tracks. In front of her was what she would guess was a mountain lion. She stepped back from the ring of runes and waited, hoping that the circle would protect her. The lion jumped at her, and she screamed.

[Theo and Julia]
Julia watched as the lion struck a shimmering barrier, and the rune on the ground that had stopped the lion glowed and seemed to shatter. In a panic, she recast Ward, and another rune bloomed into place, just in time to receive the next lunge of the lion. A system message appeared.

>Local Message: Combat System Engaged.

As she finished reading the message and recasting Ward yet again, she saw a tall form sprint out of the trees with weapons in hand, and all three of them suddenly had nametags floating above them.

{Summer lion, Level 03, A+}
{Theodore Oskar Sorrenson, Level 01, B-}
{Julia Brahmin, Level 01, B-}

A moment later, Theo slammed bodily into the lion, knocking it back. Julia felt a burst of power as Theo must have used a skill; the hand holding the Dagger lunged forward, scoring a line of blood on the lion. In response, the lion growled and lunged forward, raking its claws across Theo's shoulder.

Julia, meanwhile, was desperately casting Ward over and over, layering her small protective wards four or five deep. She watched as Theo hacked and slashed at the lion, and the lion lunged in and out of Theo's attacks, doing more damage than Theo could. It was becoming painfully obvious that Theo could not win this battle on his own. Julia desperately thought to herself, "What the fuck do I do? I don't have a skill or a weapon to help someone I am not bonded to. Wait, I could Bond him..."

As she debated what to do, the lion lunged at Theo, who looked like he was on his last leg. She finally decided that she had no other options. She willed the Bond skill to activate.

>Local Message System Activated:
>Reality Alteration Engine On-Line
>Localized Combat Hold Initiated
>Local Chrono Stasis Field Initiated
>Skill 'Bond' Initiated

Do you wish to activate Bond on User: Theodore Oskar Sorrenson, Son of the Soil - 01? This action can not be reversed or changed until the death of the target. Please confirm.

"I do," Julia said out loud, and she and Theo, who were frozen in time, along with the lion, felt an influx of power rush through them.

>Initialize Skill.
>Subject Theodore Oskar Sorrenson does not meet the minimum requirements for bond formation.
>Issue: Health is too low
>Solution: Activate Healing

Theo caught his breath as he felt a wave of energy wash over him, invigorating him and healing all of his wounds.

>Both Subjects now meet the minimum Bond requirements
>Begin Bonding...

Energy so abundant you could almost see it in the air between the two of them pulsed faster and faster until it was thrumming through the air between them so fast it felt like a solid bar of power. Finally, it snapped into something that they both knew would be permanent instantly.

"Congratulations on being the first of your planet to cast an S rank Skill successfully! This does not grant you a Planetary First title. Due to the nature of the Skill that was cast, please take note of the following information."

Suddenly, writing floated in the air in front of them.

> Bond cast successfully...
> The following effects are active now:
> 1. Achievement sharing (Both, limited)
> 2. Location Awareness (Julia Only)
> 3. Skill Enhancement where Appropriate (Both)
> 4. Due to the nature of the Bond, Skill will level up with the use of enhanced Skills and Bond effects instead of repeated use.
> Please note that as you both level, gain new skills, and exercise the Bond, it will unlock new effects.
> Long live the bonded pair.

"What the fuck." They said in unison.