System Lost: My Own Best Friend

Things are pretty tense after all the arguing, and even though we've only been awake for a couple of hours at most, I'm exhausted. I pull our cloak around me and curl up against the cave wall.

"I'm going to get some rest," I say. "Whatever you guys did really took it out of us, and we need to wait for the carcass to rest anyway. We can figure things out after a nap."

"Sounds good to me," Allie agrees.

Maggie doesn't bother responding, but I take that to mean that she has no objections. Between the bone-deep weariness, the lingering warmth of the basking rock, and the comforting weight of the cloak, I end up nodding off quite quickly.

* * *

For maybe the first time since I arrived in this horrible place, I sleep soundly and wake up feeling comfy and well rested. It's so nice that I don't even want to get up.

It's crazy how quickly I've recalibrated my standards for comfort.

I stand up to stretch, shivering slightly at the rush of cold air. The rock's warmth has been fully spent now and the cold is creeping its way back in from the tunnel.

"Anyone else awake?" I ask.

"Morning Allison," Maggie grumbles. "I guess you're back in charge now."

I blink, realizing she's right. "How did you know?" I ask. "I'm always a little fuzzy when I wake up."

"Lucky guess."

Something tells me she's not being entirely honest—of all the things for her to share in common with Violet. Maggie is pretty prickly, though, so I'm not going to press her.

"I guess it's just the two of us for a bit then," I observe. "Are you okay?"

"Me?" she asks. "Sure, why wouldn't I be?"

I shrug, checking on the lizard. I don't see anything dripping, and the pool of blood has dried out. I'll have to double check with Vi, but it looks like it's done draining.

"You and Vi both seemed kind of upset yesterday," I explain. "I just want to make sure neither of you are hurt."

"Why?" she asks. "You don't even know me."

"Not yet, no," I agree. "But I'd like to. And I don't need to know you to care."

"Well, I'm fine," she says curtly. "I don't care what that idiot thinks about me."

"Maggie..." I sigh. "Could you at least try to get along?"

"I said I'd play ball, didn't I?" Maggie groans. "Get off my case! You want to talk about something important, I'm here. Otherwise, leave me alone."

I purse my lips. I want to say that this is important, but it's pretty clear that Maggie has different priorities, and I don't want to push her boundaries. We can't really go anywhere until Violet wakes up, and as hungry as I am, I don't want to mess with the lizard carcass.

Instead, I idly check on my status.

[Allison: Tier 1 Human]

[Class Slot 1: Tier 1 [Unified Wanderers]** - Level 3/10

[Class Slot 2: Empty]

[Attributes]

Power: 2

Resilience: 18

Awareness: 2

Ego: 18

Will: 2

[Skills]

Parallel Wills (2)

The Beaten Path (Retraced Steps)

Oh, right. Maggie ended up with [Candle Enthusiast] after...after that.

I've got mixed feelings about it. Despite Maggie's standoffish attitude, I can't really be upset at her. What I saw when I looked beyond the candle's reflection was...traumatic. I shudder just thinking about it. Maggie not only took that on in my place, she embraced it. She saw how valuable magic could be, and even knowing how painful a path it would be to pursue, she enthusiastically volunteered.

I think there's more to it than just being obsessive or antisocial. She's suffering just as much as Violet and I, and she's got her own ways of coping. I can't hold that against her.

More to the point, if Violet is handling our physical needs while Maggie focuses on magic, then it falls to me to keep us all working together cohesively. If I can't even do that, then I really am just a worthless deadweight holding them back.

"Mags, what did you say your plan was for our new classes?" I ask.

"Pick a class with Power or Will as the core attribute," she answers. "Preferably one that's easy to advance. The skill doesn't matter—they're all worthless anyway."

I have to strongly disagree about the skills, but I guess if she thinks she can replace them with magic, I can see where she's coming from. I'm not going to let myself get baited into an argument, though, so I just skim through my available classes, focusing on the ones that fit her criteria.

First up are a couple of familiar old friends:

[Tier 0 Student]*

A novice seeker of knowledge, expanding their horizons.

Skill - Efficient Lessons: Increased Will when learning from a mentor or tutor.

Attribute bonus: Will

Advancement: Learn new information.

Honestly, not a bad candidate. We're constantly learning new stuff, and something tells me that Maggie's going to be particularly aggressive about studying our surroundings. That also makes the skill more appealing than it was before, since it will make it easier for me to understand Mag's...uh, unique way of trying to explain things.

[Tier 0 Thrower]*

Take an object from here, and send it over there.

Skill - Strong Arm: Increased Power when throwing.

Attribute bonus: Power.

Advancement: Throw things.

This one also looks a lot better than it did the first time I saw it. I thought it was a joke before, but it would be nice to fight things from a distance instead of nearly dying every time. Imagine if Vi could just throw our knife.

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Although if she missed, we'd be out a knife. Heck, if she hits we'd be out a knife if it doesn't kill the target right away. Hmm...I'm starting to reconsider this. Maybe we can harvest the spears from some rock snails?

I've got a few new ones worth looking at too.

[Tier 0 Thrill Seeker]*

An adrenaline junkie in search of ever greater sources of excitement.

Skill - Dauntless: Increased Will when resisting fear.

Attribute bonus: Will.

Advancement: Overcome dangerous or frightening situations.

I'm not really sure where this one came from, and it definitely doesn't sound like me, but I get the feeling that I'm going to be facing plenty of danger whether I like it or not. It would be nice to be less panic-prone when it happens, and get some free rewards in the meantime.

[Tier 0 Ascetic]*

One who rejects luxury and the pursuit of worldly pleasures.

Skill - Abstention: Increased Resilience and Will against worldly desires.

Attribute bonus: Will.

Advancement: Live only on bare essentials.

I'm not doing this on purpose, dang it! I don't want to take this one at all. As tempting as it would be to suffer less from hunger and boredom—ironically enough—taking that class traps me into a life of misery. Sorry, [Ascetic] but this hedonist has no interest in converting, thank you very much.

[Tier 0 Hedonist]*

One who revels in luxury and the pursuit of worldly desires.

Skill - Hollow Leg: You've always got room for seconds. Never suffer negative effects from overeating.

Attribute bonus: Ego.

Advancement: Indulge yourself.

Oh, hah frickin' hah. Wait, does that skill mean I can eat as much as I want without getting fat? That actually sounds pretty—no, bad Allison! Stay focused! There's one more to look at, and just the name has me a little leery.

[Tier 1 Novice Acolyte]*

You have looked into the endless beyond and rightly chosen to reject its unfettered Chaos.

Skill - Resistance: You are unable to channel magic, but the [World Engine] protects you from agents of Chaos. Dramatically increased attributes when resisting chaos magic.

Attribute bonus: Will.

Advancement: Deny chaos magic and rebuke those who wield it.

"Oh, wow!" I exclaim. "There's a tier one class being offered with Will as the core attribute."

"What?!" Maggie shouts. "Take it!"

"And it's all about refusing to do magic."

"What?!" she practically screeches. "Don't take it! Don't take it!"

I shake my head and chuckle. "Yeah, that's about what I thought. It's another one of those sketchy religious-sounding classes based on the [World Engine]," I explain. "It mentions something about chaos magic, but conspicuously doesn't actually link to an explainer."

"Really?" Maggie muses. "Hmm. [Chaos Magic]. And while we're at it—[Chaos], [Order]."

[Chaos Magic]

REDACTED

[Chaos]

REDACTED

[Order]

REDACTED

"Gee, something tells me we're not supposed to know about those," I deadpan.

Maggie was undeterred, however. "[chaos]?"

[chaos]

Complete disorder and confusion. Formlessness.

"Well that's just a dictionary definition," I point out.

"Yeah no shit, genius," she retorts. "But it confirms that capital-C Chaos has some sort of significant meaning apart from that definition. Now let's try [Magic]."

[Magic]

The direct manifestation of physical phenomena through the use of advanced classes and skills.

"Uh huh," Maggie says. "Thought so. I guess chaos magic is when you do it without skills. Looks like our mechanical overlord—or whoever made it—doesn't appreciate people doing its job for it."

"Hard to argue with that," I admit. "Do you think it's going to like...punish us, somehow?"

"Maybe. I don't think it's aware of us, though—or even really sentient. It's just a set of rules—infinitely complex, but still bound by its programming."

I raise an eyebrow. "Another of your random hunches? Is this one obvious too?"

"You say that with sarcasm, but yes. If the mechanism apparently in control of the entire world wanted us dead, we'd be dead. The fact that it offers classes to turn people into its agents suggests that it doesn't actually have any agency itself."

"I'll take your word for it," I sigh.

"Good."

Mags seems content to leave it at that, so I go back to looking over my class options. I rule out [Novice Acolyte], [Ascetic], and [Thrill Seeker] right away. The more I think about it, the more uncomfortable I am with anything that messes with my mental state. I mean...aside from the whole multiple personalities thing. I guess I've gotten comfortable with that surprisingly quickly, but since the alternative is going completely insane while I starve or freeze to death I guess I sorta have to be.

"What do you think, Mags?" I ask. "[Student] or [Thrower]?"

"How the hell should I know?" she answers testily. "Just choose already, so I can decide what to take myself."

"[Thrower]," Violet interjects. "If Magdalena insists on pursuing magic, then she should focus on mental attributes that will help her."

"Oh! Good morning Vi," I greet her.

"Good morning, Allie," she responds tiredly.

"I thought you were against the whole magic thing," Maggie sneers.

"I was—am—but I know I can't stop you, and if you end up melting our brain in the process you'll take us all down with you," Violet sighs. "So I'll just have to do what I can to prevent that."

"That's the spirit!"

I pinch the bridge of my nose and sigh. It's going to be really hard to get these two to stop fighting each other.

"Okay, [Thrower] then," I say, steering us back on course. "I'm a little worried that the skill and attributes will be wasted on me while I level it up."

"They will," Vi agrees. "Which is why you won't be taking it, I will. Maggie's end-goal is valid, but she didn't put any real thought into the process."

"Hey!" Mags protests.

Vi continues as if she doesn't notice. "If it was still just the two of us, Allie, then I'd have suggested combining [Candle Enthusiast] and [Survivalist], then having you level that up to fuse with [Unified Wanderers]. Even now, I think that's what gives us the most immediate benefits."

"But...?" I encourage her.

"But it's a little short-sighted," she admits. "It's better to balance our shared class out, while specializing with our individual abilities. Still, it makes no sense for you to train a Power-based class, nor for me to take something Ego-based."

"Magic requires every attribute!" Mags interjects.

"I believe you," Violet responds in a carefully measured tone. "But there's no reason for you to focus on Power right away. Your plan also concentrates most of our strength into a single class that only one of us can use. I suggest a compromise."

"That sounds good!" I say, to lend Vi some support. They're both so smart—I just need to encourage them to work together better.

"I'm listening," Maggie grumbles.

"We prioritize the grade of our shared class above all else," Violet suggests. "It's the most efficient way for all of us to gain attributes, and we'd be foolish to ignore that advantage."

"I guess," Mags concedes.

"For the third grade class, we want one that spreads its attributes out evenly across everything but Power," Violet says, holding up a hand to pre-empt Maggie. "I know you need every attribute, but just hear me out. Power is the least useful stat for you two and one of the most invaluable for me. Whatever else happens, I'm still doing most of the fighting."

"She's got a point," Allison adds, backing me up. "Even if we all need to be strong, Vi's the one who should be strongest."

"Depends on how you define strong," Maggie replies.

I shake my head. "It doesn't matter. Whatever I focus on is going to be what gets added to the main class next," I explain. "You'll get your Power, we're just going to train it in a more deliberate way. We can plan for the future without making too many sacrifices right now."

"Ok, sure, whatever," Maggie sighs with exasperation. "I'm sick of talking about it already. Who's taking what, then?"

I open my mouth to explain, but my own body interrupts with an embarrassingly loud grumble from my stomach.

"Hey," Allison hedges, "the lizard's done bleeding or whatever. Why don't we let Vi do her thing and then we can discuss it over breakfast?"

As much as I'd like to point out that we don't have the means to properly preserve the meat, and that even having drained the carcass it's going to be hours before I can finish butchering it—I could really use some quiet time to just work with my hands for a bit.

I don't know if Allison figured that out somehow, or if it was just chance, but I'm grateful either way.

"Alright, agreed. Let's table this until we've got some food in our belly."