"To this day, I'm still not sure if [The Endless Spring Droplet] Lyla gave me was a gift or a curse, but I take it for the spirit it was given and so it eeks out narrowly as a gift."
-The First Emperor
When Dimitri told Solis there was a camp, he expected to see dozens of people running around with weapons and paper maps. Maybe a decently sized building where someone was looking over a map stitched together from scouts like Dimitri. It wasn’t an uncommon sight anymore after all.
In the days after the first system announcement – the one that told everyone they had fifteen days until monsters were real and thirty days until their lives ended – people had surprisingly banded together.
Not as a singular cohesive group, of course. There was actually a lot of faction violence, gang recruitment, looting, extortion, land claims, and the like going on, but even that, Solis saw as people binding themselves to each other.
Factions meant organization, even if they turned their members to violent ends; it meant there was at least a system in place for when things went to shit. Some of those groups were objectively awful, larping at greatness or power, but in many cases, they provided safety. It was better than what he had gotten.
The National Guard had shown up in their mid-sized town. They set up a temporary base at the college, then vanished a week before the countdown hit zero, taking more than they had left behind.
So, when Solis stepped into yet another open cavern with a singular small hand crank lantern to see four people, two of them children, his heart fell.
"Is this everyone?" Solis quietly asked no one in particular. "Does anyone here know English?"
Confused expressions, betraying their lack of understanding, filled the dimly lit cavern.
Solis was halfway to saying “Curses” when a middle-aged man with dark skin in jeans and a Doctors Without Borders tank top spoke up in a vaguely Southeast Asian accent, “Yes, although it is not my first language.”
Solis gave the doctor and the others a warm smile, which wasn't hard for him, given the number of younger siblings and cousins that had come running to him whenever one got a scraped knee. "Nice to meet you all. I'm Solis." He took a seat and pointed at his chest, emphasizing his name for the others who didn't speak English and weren't translating.
"Nice to meet you, Solis. My name is Samir. You've met Dimitri. His wife, Ira, is here as well. The two young ones are little Anneliese and Hans. Siblings." Solis gave each of them a nod. With Solis's flashlight pointed straight up, everyone's faces were better illuminated.
Ira looked like a strong woman. She was well-built, with broad shoulders; she had some weight to her, but it made her look jolly rather than unhealthy. That jollyness was undercut greatly by a deep sadness about her frame, but by the way the children hovered about her, she was holding it together. She gestured Dimitri over, and they started conversing in Russian.
The siblings were around middle-to high-school age. Hans hopped from leg to leg, full of energy. In fact, both siblings seemed like they had far too much energy, but while Hans's way of expending that was large movements, Anneliese just scribbled in the dirt, drawing various monsters with their heads chopped off.
‘That can’t be healthy,’ Solis thought.
“Is this where you were teleported or did you find your way here?” Solis asked Samir instead.
“Teleported here,” Samir confirmed. “We’ve explored the tunnels, but it’s slow going since at least one of us has to stay with the kids.”
A beat of silence passed before Solis asked the main question on his mind. “Is this everyone?”
“Yes,” Samir spoke bluntly. “Dimitri found you? He explored the caves higher up, is there an exit or some water source up there? Are there others with you?”
Solis shook his head. “No food or water. Or people, unless you count monsters. It’s rough up there. Nominal Tier III outside the mountain and Tier I in the higher levels of the caverns.”
“You came from outside the mountain?” Samir’s voice sounded hopeful, and Solis wasn’t looking forward to dashing those hopes.
“I was outside when the System descended. Got lifted with the mountain. Barely survived. Have you read the new System notification?”
Samir nodded, “Poor tidings. An increase in that much land means it’d be harder for anyone to find us here.”
Solis thought of the military base that had been so close by. He really hoped that either he or they had been sent far, far away. He didn’t trust Greenly not to just bomb the shit out of the mountain without checking for survivors.
Digging in his pack, Solis produced his other canteen and unscrewed the lid, spotting a note neatly tucked in that he hadn't seen before.
Endless Spring Droplet
This canteen contains an Endless Spring Droplet. Any water added will be converted into an Endless Spring Droplet identical to water. By injecting mana into an Endless Spring Droplet, the user may create more of it at a rate of 1000 mana to one quart of Endless Spring Droplets.
‘I’m starting to think Greenly didn’t actually want me to die?’
Then he turned over the note, and his smile widened ever further.
“Solis. Please stay safe. I managed to sneak in some extra supplies for you. I’m so sorry this happened, but I’ll take good care of Fami until you get back. You’re the fastest of us, so that better be soon. I know you can do it.
Yours,
-Lyla
He grinned down at the note for a long second before folding it and placing it in his pocket. “I got this real fancy water. If we put mana into it, it’ll give us more. It should solve some of your problems for now. We should put a little in each of our bottles so we never run out."
Samir took it, looking between Solis and the canteen. “This is not some kind of sick joke, yes?”
Solis let out a small laugh. “Unless it’s also being played on me, no. It was part of the supplies given to me.” He showed the doctor the side of the note that explained how it worked.
The man proceeded to retrieve his own pack along with an empty plastic bottle. Gently, he poured some from the canteen into his own. He placed it on a level part of the floor and lay on his stomach. Gently, he marked the current water level with a Sharpie and then focused intently on the bottle.
Solis, from his spot, didn't see a change, but when Samir stood again, he had a large grin on his face.
“It requires much mana, but it appears true.”
“That’s awesome,” Solis went in for a high five, and Samir startled for a second before returning it slowly and awkwardly.
"You are oddly calm for all of this,” Samir said. “Especially coming from a Nominal zone and almost dying. We are somewhat safe here, but there are still monsters. What level are you?"
Solis nodded. There were some questions you just didn’t ask and were considered rude or potentially dangerous; level wasn’t one of them.
“Seven, and I wouldn’t say calm. I haven’t talked to people in a while. I’m just… really glad to see all of you. Also, this place is safe.”
“Safe?” Samir questioned, and it was Solis's turn to raise an eyebrow.
“Yeah, the System isn’t trying to kill anyone. Especially not children, so it wouldn’t have teleported them to anywhere they couldn’t survive. Also, the corruption levels here are Minor Tier I, monsters rarely spawn in places like this, and when they do they’re weak. One to three range. Did you not know this?”
Samir shook his head. “No, before the teleport, I was in a Nominal Tier I zone in Africa.
“Damn, that must have been difficult. I’m sorry man.”
“Think nothing of it. I went to help people and I did, just not in the way I thought. Knowing that Minor zones are less dangerous, while I had a feeling, having it confirmed is a relief, if only a little. I am still prone to worrying.”
“Well I’m glad I could ease your mind. Uhh, not to sound insensitive, but how does everyone talk? The mana regen here is low and [Translate] eats through mana.”
“It has been difficult, but we manage.”
A cleared throat made Solis jump. He turned to see Ira.
With a momentary glance away, Solis saw Dimitri playing with the two children. Dimitri was pretending to be a turtle as he slowly crawled around, and they tried to jump on his back. Ira held out a notebook, and to Solis’s surprise, he could read the writing, "Can read some English. Can't listen."
'Oh, thank fuck.’ Solis had to stop himself from pumping his fist in joy. If Ira could read, that meant she could translate for Dimitri. Samir could speak English, which left the kids. He looked at them playing with Dimitri again, before shaking his head.
Children existing in an apocalypse was rough. Because caring for children was always difficult, yeah, but also because they’d have to grow up in the apocalypse, which sucked. He’d do his part to protect them for a while, but Ira and Dimitri seemed to have that well in hand already.
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Solis quickly went about recapping his conversation with Samir in his notebook – a personal one, not the bestiary that Greenly had given him. Ira looked like the world had lifted from her shoulders after being updated about the situation. She closed her eyes and nodded, writing one last thing down. "Thank you. I'm going to sleep now," and with that, she excused herself.
After a beat, Samir asked another question. “You mentioned the System wouldn’t send children to die. Why do you think that?”
“The message it gave. It said it was teleporting people that would certainly die away. Then at the end it’s request was that we don’t die. I find it hard to imagine something that went through that much effort to save people – and that wants us to live – would try to kill anyone, much less children.”
The older man considered those words for a moment before nodding, "The way it talked during activation, it did seem like that. I hate to admit – I believed this all was a prank for far too long. Some drug or toxin or experiment."
Solis had to bite his tongue to stop from offering up a comment. He didn't want to interrupt the man, and he obviously had something to get off his chest.
"Then monsters came,” Samir continued, “and they didn't stop for two weeks. Then I was no longer there. I just hope that everyone else was also teleported away." Samir looked off into space, lost in thought.
Solis clapped the doctor on the back, giving him a beaming smile. “Well you’re a doctor right? The System wants people to survive, so it probably sent you all where you could do the most good.”
“You speak of it almost like God.” Samir questioned.
“Don’t worry, I’m not one of those new world fanatics. I think it’s just code and that whoever made it was kind.”
Samir said nothing for a moment, looking off contemplatively, so Solis moved the conversation along.
"Did you have to fight a lot?" Solis asked, in equal parts because he was curious and because he wanted to keep the man talking. If the conversation tapered off into awkward silence, he might just throw himself off the mountain in embarrassment.
"Ha," the man let out a small chuckle, "No. Not so much. We were beset by monsters, and I am a doctor. The local militia were the ones who fought. I tried to save those I could. It was… there were some wounds there I had no idea how to treat. I thought I had seen it all."
"Did the skills help?" Solis continued coaxing.
"The skills. Oh, yes, the [Skills]. I do not trust them, yet they help so much, and so I am forced to use them."
Solis stared blankly at Samir, "You don't trust them? What?"
"You trust them?” Samir shot him a dubious look. “I've met few people who do. Accepting power from an unknown source is the Devil's work." His gaze flicked to the Russian couple and the sleeping German kids. "I do not believe it is the Devil, but the sentiment remains. How can I trust something that I do not know how it works?"
"It tells you!" Solis exclaimed in a whisper, more disbelief seeping into his tone.
Samir waggled a finger and clicked his tongue. "It tells me what it does, but not how. Before you, er... exclaim more, I will repeat that I do use the skills. I could not fulfill my oath as a doctor if I did not. But I do not like it, and I fear nothing anyone says will convince me at this time.
"Stubborn," Solis smiled in his best attempt at good-natured ribbing.
He didn't feel as joyful or animated as he acted. If anything, he'd pay money to curl up into a ball in the corner and have everyone fuck off for a week while he rested, but he knew that was the exhaustion talking.
They were all human and in this together. He refused to contribute to any divisions or be difficult to get along with – not right now. Maybe in a few years, if he managed to survive, he could lock himself in a room and process everything, but those revelations would have to wait.
"If I ask your skills and your system question, are you gonna be weird about it?" Solis put forward.
Samir hesitated, his eyes narrowing and going shifty for a moment. Then he realized where he was and relaxed. "I will show you nothing, but I will tell you about it."
—
All in all, Samir put points in about where Solis expected the doctor would. What he did not expect was for the doctor to be a whole level higher than him, at his cap, with a class. The man never showed Solis his sheet in full, but Solis did his best to mentally note down what Samir said and later wrote it down in his notebook. He was also pretty sure Samir was lying about his System Question recharge rate, as he had not stated what it was until Solis said his -- and even then, he matched the number.
"Hey," Solis said, after Samir was done recounting his sheet. "How in the world are your skills so high?"
Samir was lying down at this point, and he shifted to face him. "Nominal zones are bad. Very very bad.”
Solis stared at his notebook before nodding, "I see. Everyone seems tired, so I'll take a watch just in case. I'll get Ira or Dimitri to tap me out if I get tired."
With an appreciative nod, the doctor turned onto his side, and in an instant, the man's light snores filled the air.
—
The conversation with Samir had been enlightening for Solis. He hadn't taken a class yet, though he could. He had a lot of options, from mage to engineer, but he hadn't chosen yet. Not due to indecision or fear, but because that's what he had used his System question on.
Everyone had one question when the System made itself known. Anyone could ask any question and the System would answer it truthfully to the best of its ability. Solis asked how to get the class that would best suit himself and each of his friends. It gave him the how, just not the what.
His and his friends were all complex, and required a specific stat distribution. Fami's even required her to make a prediction that everyone else ignored and then came true.
Her class likely had to do with the parable of Cassandra. Something divination-related. Solis had no clue what his class was, just that his requirements were strange. He needed to be at least level ten, a pure [Resonance] build, and he needed something called a [Dimensional Palimpsest Core].
It was a ludicrous ask, mostly because he didn’t know what a [Dimensional Palimpsest] even was, yet somehow it called to him. It felt natural, and he wanted it. Every moment he didn't have it, there was this pit in his chest he couldn't quite shake. Like he wasn't where he was supposed to be.
Best of all, Greenly basically confirmed they existed when he asked about it during Solis’s “exit interview.”
He didn't know what the class was, and he'd prefer to take a temporary class on the way, but he was afraid that would mess something up. Whatever the class was, it would really be the best fit for him.
He felt it in his soul.