Symphony Book 3: Edited Chapters 16-20 (Patreon)

Chapter 16: Notes

After the failure, Walker returned to Heph and found the man quietly speaking to Caddy.

 "I know, but do dey appreciate what we do? No, of course n-Creator!"

Walker gave him a smile and a wave, "Sorry about that. I just had to test a few things. So, let's look at these clothes you've made."

Heph handed a package to him while Walker handed over the extra quivers John had made.

Set of Premium Leather Clothing (Fine)

Item Tier: 4

Crafted by: Hephaestus, the god of Crafting, and Samuel the Founder

Description: This item was created using a new sewing method, allowing each piece to connect with the others through an ingenious clipping system. It is designed for comfort while still maintaining a protective shell.

"Where are you getting all of the leather?"

"Are you sure you want to know?'

"I mean-"

The god of crafting sighed, "We have a monster pen not too far away. Elder Rimi brings them in, our Founders get a chance to train against them, then weh use the leather and meat provided."

Walker made a face, "So you're just creating monsters for slaughter?"

He put his hands on his hips, "What did yah think was the point of the Conservatory?"

The Creator made a hushing motion with his hands, "Sorry, you're right. But still, it feels a bit wrong."

"S'only temporary, Creator. Once they're on the Conservatory, they'll be able to trade back the meat and leather as needed."

"Ugh," He said, slapping his forehead, "I still need to make the Currency system."

"The what now?"

"Don't worry about it. Look, can you get me, I don't know, a hundred of those leather outfits?"

"A hundred!" He said with a stumble.

"Yeah. Wait, I'm stupid." Walker walked up and grabbed ten sets. "These are all the sizes, correct?"

"Aye," Heph said, still confused about what was happening.

Walker and the clothes disappeared, then popped back in a moment later, throwing a hundred sets on the ground in neat stacks. "There you go. I'll need a bunch of different arrow types, weapons, maybe some plate mail and cuirasses..."

"Plate mail?"

"Oh, and you'll want to see if the other Primigenials will donate some of their soul to a few of your best items. It's gonna be great!" Walker gave Heph a thumbs up, then ran out of the building while the god of crafting cursed behind him.

He made his way over to Rimi and asked if he was able to make a few things for him that he wanted to surprise the Founders with, then did the same with Cagna and her milestones. Rounding out his needed rewards, Walker spoke to a few Primigenials, and then he was off to build some systems in his cabin.

Sitting down, he briefly considered just making a system from scratch using his new System Administrator powers, but decided it wasn't the best idea. He didn't know if they'd figure out it was him making all these changes, and the more times he did this, the greater the odds that they would. 

That needed to only be done when he had no other choice.

He clicked on Systems and looked deep into the system designer. Finding the one he'd discovered last time he'd had this thought, he pulled it up.

The Currency System:

A system designed by Creator Locke in the Alpha protocol of 3DG.

The Currency system allows the Creator to make and assign differing levels of value to virtually anything in their world.

Flexibility: Extreme

Difficulty to modify: Low

Note: This is based on a now-defunct system in the Alpha Protocol

There were no administrator notes on it, so without further ado, he picked it.

Would you like to merge these systems with another before finalizing your choice?

Yes/No

Walker selected yes, then picked the Adaptation system, as it had become his primary system of choice for anything that needed to run autonomously. He clicked the prompts that popped up and read through the preview that merging the two systems provided. There wasn't a great amount of change between it and the original, with only a new section describing the AI.

A moment later, it was done, and he modified the name to Currency.

Clicking on it, Walker was transported to the same dark room he always entered when first creating an AI, dreading what was coming next. Then, he had an idea. Instead of using his blood for the system to comb through, he formed his intent and put a very small amount of darkness on the tip of his finger. Touching the glass in front of him, he grew excited about what changes might occur.

A moment later, a huge golden chamber appeared on the screen. Coins were dripping and spilling over themselves as the image settled, and a large golden coin with two legs and two arms walked toward him on the screen.

"What have you done?" It asked.

"Umm, I don't know?"

The coin felt its body, "This doesn't feel right."

Thinking on his feet, Walker waved a hand at it, "You're fine, right?"

"I do not know...."

"Did you gain all of my memories like the previous AIs?"

"Yes, I did."

"Then I guess it's fine, right?"

"Yes…”

"Coolio. Your name is now Pennybags."

"What? Pennybags?" The AI somehow managed to make its face look insulted, even with two dashes for eyes and a straight line for a mouth.

"Yep! I need you to do some things for me, Mr. Pennybags."

The coin turned around, showing Walker its back as if it was considering rebelling against him. When it did so, Walker noticed that his own face was stamped in place of a great figure from his world's history. He tried not to laugh as the A.I. spun back around.

“Fine."

It only took him about ten minutes to explain the Note system and that he'd be working with John, the AI for the Territory system.

"Any questions?"

Mr. Pennybags held up a three-fingered hand, "One. How am I to work with John if AI systems are enclosed?"

Walker smiled, spent a few seconds forming the intent for connection in his mind, and then fired some darkness at the screen. A moment later, Neus popped up next to him, still seated, as John looked at them from his screen. Neus hollered and leaped out of his chair.

"Well, this is unusual," John said as he noticed the screen buttressing his own.

"I thought this would make things easier. John, this is Mr. Pennybags."

"I see. Hello, Mr. Pennybags." The Cardinal chirped out.

"Who are you talking to?" A shaking Neus asked, shaking behind the chair.

"Hello, John. It's nice to meet you."

"Okay then!" Walker said, waving his hands in the air to get their attention, "You're the first of many. Once I realized I could do this, it just became a matter of time. I'm tired of having to jump into every system. This way, we can all work together to push Symphony forward. Do you have any issues with this?"

"I do not." The Cardinal said.

"I do not either, as it is better than being alone." The Coin replied.

A single green arm raised in the air, "I do."

"What's your issue?" Walker dutifully asked.

"I don't have access to the Currency system."

"Interesting," Walker said with a hand on his chin, "So, what are you seeing right now?"

"I see you, standing in the darkness with nothing around you. Like you're floating."

"Alright, easy fix."

He quickly went into his overlay and assigned Neus to the Currency system, then had to wait a moment for the small green squirrel to be a little less small.

After Neus opened his eyes from the download, Walker asked, "How about now?"

Neus gave him a thumbs up, which he returned with gusto.

"Why have you connected us?" John asked, interrupting the pure moment.

"Because I need the donations that people make to the Territory system to have a numeric value. We built that some time ago, and now it's time to get it all working together."

"I see."

Walker explained how Notes and weekly stipends would work for a second time. He also included that a large stack of Symphonic Notes, or money for his solar system, would be called Sheets. He had a good time explaining the theme behind it, but nobody seemed particularly interested in listening.

Neus worked with him to create a bonus system based on total donations given, and Mr. Pennybags worked with John to create a series of smaller programs that allowed Territory holders to grant bonuses and move their currencies around as needed. It was all interconnected and integrated for the future..

Walker stepped out of the joint system feeling refreshed and ready for the next step. That was when he realized he’d never connected an exchange system to Mr. Pennybags. A quick system-link ensued, and he was all set.

Now it was time to experiment. Clicking on the System Editor, he looked at the abilities in his list. 

While the metaphysical realm had shown a series of grids, when he looked at these abilities, he instead saw blue nodes. Some, like the Subsystem Assistants, were interconnected, with long threads reaching out into space. While others, like the Life-Giver ability, stood alone and appeared deformed. As if they weren't built correctly.

He reached his hand toward the screen, pulling even more darkness out of the depths of his soul, and grasped it. As he held onto the node, he pushed the last bit of his soul's darkness, willing his mind to connect with what was happening inside.

Walker closed his eyes, moving and feeling by pure instinct. As he did so, he felt strange pushes and turns in his mind, like he was moving through a maze that had no end. As he reached each section, a general feeling overcame him of its purpose.

This area controls the system identifier

This area provides information to the Creator based on their overlays

This one tells the council when a change is made...

Without thinking, Walker snipped that part, opening his eyes and looking at the node as he absorbed the small piece of orange origin that had been holding it together. After he did so, the other parts shifted and moved, the node growing slightly smaller in his hand and turning minutely red before shifting into a rounder whole.

Walker continued to move around, identifying all of the different parts that made up the ability. When he finally found the part that limited the linking ability to only those systems that could be found in the designer, he didn't erase it, but instead started to plan out a very small change. 

It was annoyingly difficult to form his intent in his mind while also keeping it from spreading to his soul. A moment later, and with his Icon’s help, he felt that it was as it should be and pushed into it with his darkness-covered hands.

System Administrators can link to any existing system whenever they feel the need. Make sure a prompt is attached for confirmation.

The node grew in his hand, shifting pieces around as it did so. Walker grew alarmed as it bulged on one end, but he was worried over nothing as the node changed from a bright red back to the blue of its fellows. He also noted that the node was almost the same size as it had been before he cut out the alarm system. 

Walker looked around for a moment, the expectation of potential calamity held with his breath.

No announcement came, and nobody popped up on Sonata to eliminate everything he'd built.

 Inhaling with a shake, he felt his soul achingly low on energy. He hadn't done a great job in holding off using it, after all. It made him wonder how the other third-stage Awakened managed not to drain themselves on Earth constantly. Another question he'd have to ask when he had more time.

Walker clicked on Systems, then clicked on his abilities and the System Linker. A moment passed, and then he hopped back into the joint system.

"How's it going in here?"

Neus stood another inch taller than the last time he saw him, "All is well, Walker? Why?"

"Let me explain." Walker spent a few minutes breaking down how the exchange system would work. Then, he told them that they would have to include a way for Territories to create their own currencies and credits. When they asked why, he told them it was simple.

"Agency. The more limits we put on them, like Notes being the only currency, the more they'll want to rebel and start coming up with their own way of doing things. We want them to create territories. We want them to innovate and build their own professions. The greater their ability to be free, the greater our chance of seeing a truly remarkable world."

"So, what is the purpose of Notes? If they're going to create their own, personal currency anyway, why have it at all?" Neus asked with a raised hand.

Walker scratched his chin, then replied, "I want to use Notes as a reserve currency. That means that when, I don't know, Flurbos run out in a major city, Notes are still able to be used." He looked over at John, then at Mr. Pennybags, "That means we'll have to regulate Notes strictly to ensure nobody can create a monopoly on it. Notes need to spread across our worlds and always be accepted anywhere they might be."

After making sure they understood his wishes, he hopped out and went off to meet Heph, who was back in his smithy as expected.

"Hey, buddy."

Heph looked up from a hammer he'd been staring at, Caddy just behind him, "Hello, Creator. Twice in one day, that is quite the feat for me."

"Hah! I bet Neus would never say that," He said with a laugh. "I was just wondering if anything new had popped up in your overlay?"

"Me overlay? Hrmm..." He looked off into space, "Yah know, there is something there. What's changed? What is this?"

"It's an exchange system. Now, you'll be able to donate your own items for some money and reproduce them at almost no cost using the Territory system. Don't go too crazy, though, or you'll use up all of the magic in the area and I'll have to figure out a whole new problem."

"Bah!" Heph grunted as he threw his hammer down. "Yah cannot just copy things all the time. Materials need to be crafted, not produced from magic, as if their creation didn't mean a thing. You'll take the heart out of tha thing."

Walker shook his head, "I disagree. I agree with you that truly special items shouldn't be copied as if they mean nothing at all, and the drain on the magical area is quite intense from my own practice with it. But, for things like nails and screw? A basic piece of leather?" He shook his head again, "There's no reason we can't provide a little help."

Heph shook a fist at him, "Yah mark my words, there will be major problems in your world if anyone can grab anything whenever they want."

But Walker didn't hear him. His eyes locked onto Heph's fist, vibrating in the air, an orange and red glow permeating the air around them. His chest began to burn, then his vision began to go dark. Rather than let what was about to happen, happen, he turned and walked away, his breathing erratic.

It was so sudden. Out of nowhere, a part of him had wanted to attack someone who was helping him so much. It was terrifying. 

Walker moved far away from Heph and just kept on walking.

Chapter 17: A Mortal Problem

Virgil found Walker and Athena in his cabin a few hours later, already speaking as he entered the room.

"...Cresendo is complete. You never placed a return portal in the center, but that can be done when you have time. The second planet, Melody, requires a great amount of Water. That means we will have to make sure it is trenched and designed from the ground up quite fluidly, if you do not mind my pun."

"Ugghhh, Virgil. I'm not exactly feeling my best here, pal."

The huge squirrel shrugged, "I apologize. I was attempting to create some levity for the situation."

"There is no levity," Walker grumped at him from the bed, Athena already in a nearby chair. "I almost hurt Heph for no reason. No reason at all.."

Virgil tilted his head, "But by all reports, you did not. I am certain I would have heard of it.” He looked at him sideways, “I see nothing physically wrong with you.”

The goddess of wisdom stood up, "It’s not physical.” She looked at Walker, “I've asked a more knowledgeable person to speak with you. One you should have spoken to before going back to work."

"Don't tell me," Walker said in despair.

“My father, yes.” She said with a light nod, “But if you’d rather hold off on speaking to him, that can be arranged. However, he has much to tell you, and you need to listen. At some point, at least.”

Walker nodded, "And I'll do that when I have the time." 

Athena gave him a smile, but he felt something other than joy at seeing it. Just the barest of her teeth showed, and he felt like his chest was on fire. As if from nowhere, he found he could visually see the glow of her soul covering her body. Just the thinnest of golden layers were around her right now, but that was enough for him to feel something dreadful begin to wake up inside of him.

Hunger.

This time, he recognized what was happening. Holding it at bay by thinking of anyone, anything that didn't have to do with souls and the Awakened, Walker screamed at her, "Get out!"

Her face shifted from happiness to a hurt expression he had difficulty describing. When she noticed his face starting to twitch, she quickly ran out of the room, Virgil stepping forward to block his vision.

"Are you feeling okay, Walker?"

Feeling something bubble up in his chest, Walker hiccuped, "I don't know what's happening to me."

"Are you angry right now?"

Walker shook his head, "It wasn't anger, it was hunger. I wanted, no, needed, their power. It's like..." He had trouble describing it.

"That sounds like a Godeater problem, which is outside of my purview. While I can understand what hunger is, I do not suggest you begin to feed on the Primigenials."

Walker collapsed back onto the bed, feeling his energy dissipate. He pulled up the monitor and looked around Sonata. 

It felt a little creepy, but what else could he do right now? Even leaving the room could endanger his people. He watched as a few of the newest Founders laughed in the ping-pong room, then zoomed over to the cafeteria. They were serving some strange form of pasta, Demeter handing over a bowl to Dion with a smile he didn't return.

But, each time he found a smiling face or someone burning with ambition and curiosity, he began to feel the hunger. It grew so strong that he could even begin to see the weak Founder's souls through the monitor. His sensitivity to the Awakened must be going through the roof. Then he felt something else. Far, far away. More souls. Moving the monitor over to Remus showed him almost nothing, so instead, he moved it to Romulus, intent on seeing what had happened to his big temporal error and where this feeling was coming from. 

Strange creatures still walked the land. He did spy a few of Rimi and Virgil's experiments, dutifully eating the Inhabitor beetles in slow motion. He found one area where a series of walking trees were fighting a family of winged creatures, laughing in a frozen rictus as they attacked.

"Those are a problem," Walker mumbled to himself.

Virgil looked over from his own screen, "Indeed. Something else we will need to worry about."

Nodding, Walker moved the image around some more. Strange creatures abounded on Romulus. Mist-like monsters, packed groups of runners. Those who left a trail of fire behind them.

While he still didn't feel great about everything, Walker spent a good bit of time looking around Romulus for that feeling he kept getting. Moving the monitor again, he found a large group of creatures made of crystal. Some were pink and rose, others were green, blue, and even black. The huge ones were clear, with a throbbing light shining within. 

Quite a few of the creatures had just stepped out of a dark brown portal, and they all gave off an aura similar to an Awakened.

"Hey, Virgil," he said, his breath picking up a little.

"Yes, Walker." The Black squirrel said, turning to look at the screen with him.

"What do you think those are?" He replied, pointing at them.

"What does your identity say?"

"It's just a bunch of question marks..."

"I see...hrmm. I do not know. Those portals could open to anything and anywhere. Potentially even beyond the Origin itself. Based on my best guess, those are collections of energy formed within a crystalline matrix. Whatever place they have come from would likely be rather uninhabitable for organic lifeforms. Should you decide to enter that portal, there is a very good chance that you would die, even with your strength.”

"Maybe... but what if I could bring them here?" Walker said, getting an idea and considering how best to complete a task that had weighed on him for a very long time. "What if I could find a way to get them to go through a portal?"

"Why would you ever want to do that?"

"Because," Walker said with a tight smile, "They're Awakened."

"I....ah, I see." Virgil looked at his screens for a moment, "Not Sonata. Too great a chance for things to go wrong. Instead, let us place them on Fortis, the snow and mountain planet. You have already given orders for it to be a harder planet for the Founders to survive, but I believe those lifeforms would fit in quite well. Those who live, that is."

"You don't hate me a little bit for considering...I don't know, eating them?" Walker asked in some confusion.

"No, Walker. If you do not satisfy it this way, the only other option I was considering was to inundate yourself with primordial energy in the hope that some of the raw origin was contained within. However, if we did that, there was a very good chance we could worsen your situation. Without you, there is no point in everything else, and killing Founders and Primigenials on Sonata would only destroy your best chance of creating a harmonious world, as you once said. This is the best of a bad situation."

Walker sighed, "I agree, but still. It feels wrong. Very, very wrong."

"You already killed and absorbed Triton, did you not?"

Walker nodded, "You know I did.”

“Then simply consider them food to be consumed. Would it help if those creatures were similar to the Devil from your bible? Heinous creatures who destroy everything in their path?"

Walker looked at the image, noting the varied sizes of the creatures—they likely had children. None of them had attacked anything yet; they had just come out of the portal and were settling down in the area. 

He couldn't view them as devils, devastating hunger or not. 

However, the longer he looked at the image, the greater his drive to consume grew. It was powerful and only growing stronger.

Virgil noted how heavy his breathing had become and placed a hand on his shoulder.

"I'm okay," Walker said, putting his hand over the squirrels with a gentle squeeze.

He nodded, "So, what do you want to do?"

"Either I meet these creatures and potentially destroy them, or I destroy Poseidon. There aren't many options here." Walker said in a grim voice.

Virgil nodded again, "You also cannot speed up Romulus without being ready to step in yourself and destroy all of the creatures currently nesting there. The potential for them to drift to another world and continue drifting is too high. We also do not have any portals on Fortis yet. We will need to establish portals on both the mountain planet and Romulus so that it can be done without a problem."

"But still," Walker said, picking it up for him, "I have to make a choice."

"Yes."

Walker nodded, "Let's set up the portals and go from there."

"One moment. Fortis, as the largest planet, is the furthest behind in construction. I will need to spend quite a few resources to make it at least partially inhabitable for the crystalline lifeforms you will attempt to engage with. Do I have your permission?"

"You do."

"Then please stay here for a time while I complete the planet. Normally, I would not advise spending resources so heavily, but we are on a strict deadline, and I believe this potentially has great value for us."

"Thank you, Virgil."

The black squirrel stood up and headed towards the door. "You have no need to thank me, Creator. It is my pleasure to assist you."

Walker tried to reason with himself after Virgil left. Food to be consumed. Back on Earth, he never complained about a cheeseburger being delivered. Why should these creatures be different?

He knew it was a further step away from humanity, but he simply had no other options.

While he waited, Walker used up some of their space resources to create a portal in the center of Crescendo. He also placed a portal at the edge of the crystalline creatures so they couldn't miss it. He wasn't a fan of calling things that he might soon murder, creatures, so in his mind, he started calling them Crystal Nomads.

Now, he just had to solve the temporal problem. Walker pulled up the old task he'd been given, what felt like a lifetime ago, when he'd first caused this mess.

Temporal task given: Create a static temporal zone: Part 2

You've built a localized temporal anomaly and grasped just the beginning of what the temporal subsystem can do. Now, create a temporal zone that constantly slows down time, or speeds it up, without heavily draining your resources.

Localized temporal zone built: 0

Resources allocated for completion: 100 years

Reward for completion: Temporal subsystem Upgrade

Easier said than done, he thought to himself.

In hindsight, it wasn't Kwaya who had set up this trap, but the council. She had already been hiding by the time the Temporal strand had been found, so there was no way this was her work.

"Bunch of assholes." He muttered to himself. He wasn't quite as angry with them as the former System Administrator, but he wouldn't mind putting them through a few walls. Looking back at the task, the how of it was difficult. There were no instructions or notes. He knew he’d have to do this through experimentation. 

Walker pulled the monitor back over to the Nomads. The portal sat just beyond them in all of its glory, waiting for them to take the trip to a new world. But they were all still in slow motion. 

Walker clicked on Time. He zoomed out a little so everything from the brown portal to his was within it.

Then...nothing. No ideas. He punched the ground in frustration, causing enough of a shake in the room to knock over Athena’s left-behind drink.

Walker sighed, stepped into the World Editor, and prepared to delete only the liquid from the world. Sure, it was a lazy way to remove things, but it worked for him; plus, what was the point of nearly endless power if you didn't use it occasionally? 

Just before he confirmed the deletion, he looked at the liquid again and tried to think of when he'd last seen something like that.

Then it hit him. It was the same view he'd seen when the quiver he'd shrunk had turned into gunk in John's room. Of course, the viscosity was different, but the view was very similar. Making the quiver had been easy compared to a tier six. All he'd done was take the quiver's material and condense it into a smaller formation of cells.

"Condense it down..." He said to himself quietly.

Leaving the black liquid there, Walker stepped up to the door and spied a pink chair beyond the frame.

"Cagna...CAGNA!"

"Huh? Oh, hey Creator!" She said with a happy wave, "Virgil asked me to tell you to stay in your room for the time being. He seemed very sure that you should stay here."

Walker waved her off, then dropped to a knee with a sudden grimace, spitting out the blood that had collected in his mouth. He was growing more used to the feeling of desperate hunger, but something was damaging his insides.

"Walker! Are you okay?"

He shook his head, "Not even close. Please tell Virgil to have all Founders and Primigenials clear a path from the cabin to the Portal. I need to go now or I won't have enough time."

With a nod and a promise of swiftness, the pink squirrel ran towards wherever Virgil was at the moment. Walker sat down to wait, testing his idea as he did so. After he had confirmed that things would go as planned, he looked at Fortis and made a quick portal in an empty location. Virgil came loping over just as he finished.

"All is prepared, Walker. Please follow me."

Walker felt the hunger pull at him, "Fast, please."

"Certainly."

They jogged over to the portal. All the sites they passed, which were usually grouped with people, stood empty. It felt like a ghost town, and he didn't like it at all.

When he reached the portal, Walker hit the destination for Romulus one, the designation he'd given it at creation. The lights powered up with Walker already on the stage. The screen showed a huge group of crystalline creatures standing in front of him.

Virgil coughed, "Fortis will not be fully prepared when you arrive. I worked as fast as possible, but I only had a limited amount of time. Please forgive me, Creator."

Walker put a hand on his shoulder, "Nothing to forgive, friend." The stage started to pull him toward the screen, pulling his hand away from the large assistant. As he grew closer, he began to cover his body in a minuscule amount of Temporal energy.

"Walker! You don't know how they will interact!"

"Sure I do!" he called back, although Virgil was already frozen in place by this time.

Virgil didn't know that the portal system already had some Temporal energy within it. It had popped into his head when he stared at the liquid pooling on the table. In order to create a portal, the system punched a hole using the time strand. Time was the activator, and space was the fuel. He had tested mixing strands while waiting for Virgil at the cabin. They blended together as if they'd always meant to do so.

Walker moved through the portal and exited out the other side.

"Fucckkkk"

Hundreds of Awakened sat right in front of him, frozen in place and unaware that an alpha predator had just arrived. The burning in his chest escalated to one of serious pain and ravenous hunger, but with great effort, he persevered.

Walker grabbed the transparent strand of time in one hand, filtering over twenty years. In his other hand, a rattle rolling through it, he grabbed the blue of space. Leaping high into the sky, he combined his hands together. 

Far over the Nomads, a meteor of blue, wavering in and out of view, appeared. Walker pressed on the portion of space, demanding it open up. When it wouldn't, he tapped into the last touch of his darkness, the smallest piece he could. Instead of black falling into his hands, orange appeared.

Using the Alma in his hands, he pushed the intent at the space strand, demanding it spread and cover this area in time, speeding it up to the same allotment it had previously been slowed. A moment later, a blue flash erupted, a dome forming around him as Walker created a nexus of time and space. 

Once it grew to cover a large part of the planet, Walker twisted, and space condensed the twenty-year strand into just this small part of Romulus. He could feel the time strand straining against his abuse, but his intent won out. 

A moment later, a notification chimed in his overlay as he pushed himself toward the portal’s platform. Keying in Fortis One, the platform moved him toward his next destination.

Just as he entered, a series of discordant chimes rang out behind him as his Temporal energy ran out, and time reasserted itself to its standard speed.

Walker stepped off the platform and fell to his knees on barren ground. Small flurries of snow dropped down, but the world around him was still mostly flat and uninhabited. It was just him, the portal, and the blood he vomited into the ground.

Now, it was just a matter of whether the Nomads stepped in. The platform reset, and he looked up just as it reset on the other side as well.

By the time Virgil turned on the monitor and moved it over to Fortis, Walker had already fallen to the ground.

"What's he doing?" Cagna asked just behind him.

"Probably wondering how Fortis is so boring," Rimi replied beside her.

A small crunch sounded out from behind Virgil, causing him to turn away from the impending event. He spied Rimi, eating something out of a leather bag.

"What is that, Rimi?"

"Oh, it's popcorn. Would you like some?"

Virgil ignored that, "Why put it in your mouth? You know we do not process food like living creatures."

Rimi shrugged, "I don't know. I saw the Founders doing it and I was curious."

Virgil sighed and turned back to the monitor. As he did so, he noticed a few dozen crystalline creatures already stepping off the platform. Walker was sitting near the screen, likely too weak to stand.

"Do you have names?"

A series of chimes and jingles was their only response. One medium-sized creature stepped forward, its blue light glowing brightly within.

Walker crawled back a few steps, a torturous expression on his face. The Creator put a hand out as if to warn them to stay away, but the blue one stepped forward again. It turned to those behind it, a series of chimes echoing out.

One large red creature stepped up next. It reached down and lifted one of the smallest then cocked its arm back. The yellow creature tucked itself into a ball as the red one made a loud gonging noise. With a heave, it threw the creature directly at Walker's body.

Walker stood up so fast that he was hard to see. One moment he was sitting, the next, he was holding the yellow creature in an upraised hand. Already, the creature was unballing itself, an arm lifted in the air with unmistakably violent intent.

“You made this too easy." Grabbing both sides of the creature, Walker cracked it in half. 

A yellow light escaped from within, and the three assistants watched as Walker took it in with a breath. Looking down at the body on the ground, his head arched up, and he was suddenly surrounded by the power of his soul. Another group of crystalline creatures could be seen through the screen as they got on the platform in Romulus.

'YOU ASKED FOR IT MOTHERFUCKERS!"

"Motherfuckers?" A quiet voice said behind them, "Is that Walker?'

Virgil turned around and simultaneously turned off the monitor. Athena stood there, confused.

Virgil looked at the two assistants, who looked back at him as if waiting for what he would say. He cleared his throat, "No, that was a recording. Walker figured out how to record things and play them back."

"Really? That's amazing," she said, clapping her hands together. "I wonder if I can watch his favorite shows now. I've seen a few of his memories about Rick and Morty; it looks quite funny."

"Indeed. Indeed, it is. Now, I wanted to speak to you about training the Founders....."

On Fortis, Walker tore dozens of Nomads to pieces. He wasn't blacking out, not this time, and they just kept on coming.

So he took what he could get. After all, nobody ever turns down a good meal when they're hungry.

Chapter 18: Mythology

Walker looked out across the previously barren landscape of Fortis. Crystalline bodies littered the giant, soon-to-be icy world, each in its own delicate pose after the conclusion of its final movement. 

He had a moment of surrealistic rejection as his eyes tracked just how many had died. They had just kept coming; dozens, hundreds of them. The last batch had only been the last because he had zipped over to the portal, turning off the transport feature as hundreds more still waited their turn.

His appetite was finally satisfied, but it left him with a hollow feeling. It was as if the souls of the Nomads were empty, unable to fill the void within his soul fully. He turned back to the portal, ready to return to Sonata and the work that awaited him, then had an idea.

Tapping into the portal’s screens, he set it for Sonata, then programmed it to reconnect with Romulus every few days. That would allow new Nomads to cross over periodically, but without overpopulating the area. Nodding, he stepped onto the platform; then he was off to Sonata.

Virgil was waiting for him, of course.

"Howdy!" Walker said with a friendly wave.

"Feeling better, I assume?" Virgil asked.

"Much."

"Excellent."

"Yep!" Walker said with a laugh, stepping off the platform after it came to a rest, "Anytime I need a little soul pick-me-up, I can hop over to Fortis and kill some Nomads."

"You no longer feel any hesitation in killing them?"

He shrugged, "I mean, they're very warlike. To get the fight started, they threw a baby at me. That's super wild in my opinion. Either way," He shrugged again, "Fortis was supposed to be a challenge for the Founders. It all worked out."

The large black squirrel shook his head, "Walker..." Virgil said, for once, slightly stunned for words. When Walker looked at him, his eyes unfocused, then snapped over to him, "You have a few messages from the Alpha Protocol Council, would you like me to relay them?"

Walker nodded, already walking back to his cabin, "Just give me the short and dirty of it."

"I understand. They would like to know if you have any more inventions you would like to sell, and they are curious as to how you made the original Vaults in the first place. They are also curious if we have had any contact with the other councils."

"Maybe on the inventions. No, on how to make the Vaults. That can get us in some real trouble."

"Indeed."

"Regarding the other councils, have we?"

"Yes. The Psi Protocol is acting in a reticent manner, whereas the Bravo and Charlie Protocols are metaphorically foaming at the mouth."

"How many have we contacted so far?" Walker asked as they skirted around the construction training site.

"Only Bravo, Charlie, and Psi have responded. The others have either abstained or, like the Omega, have not responded at all. That is not surprising."

"Why isn't it surprising?"

They paused for a moment so Virgil could get Luna to stop yelling at the triplets, then moved on, "Regarding the Omega Protocol, they are unarguably the most powerful of the Councils. Their members are made up of vastly powerful entities who run the majority of the Evolver's faction."

"Who is the overall leader then?" Walker asked as they approached his small abode.

"I do not have that information, nor is it a guarantee that they are a member of any of the councils. It is not within any of the assistant records at this moment."

They passed through the cabin’s archway, but Athena was still missing. Walker assumed she was working closely with the Founders now that they were quickly approaching their trial period. Walker sat down on the edge of the bed and looked over at Virgil near the doorway.

"How are you feeling?"

"Fine, why?"

"Because you passed out the last time you attempted to use Temporal Energy."

Walker nodded, "Good pun. I was thinking about that. That was also around the time that I started dealing with the Godeater."

"Indeed. Have you had any contact with the system since?"

Walker shook his head, "Nope. It makes me curious, though."

"About what?"

"About the soul of a world."

Virgil looked confused, so Walker spent some time explaining what he'd discovered within the administrator program—about souls, constructs, and how the origin material within him was different from Alma's.

"So, the System is just a blueprint of a universal soul?"

Walker nodded on the edge of the bed, "That's what I think, yep. Based on what I saw in her memories, Kwaya knew it, and so did the system engineers within the Awakened. It's tricky. Everything is neat and organized within the System since the whole thing goes out of whack whenever something is added outside of its built-in harmony. It all comes down to souls."

"Souls... yes," Virgil said, his face looking deep in thought. Walker chose not to engage in that immediate conversation at the moment and moved on.

"Anyways, you were right about Fortis. I'm afraid you'll have to work on that before you can dive into Melody. Understand, I don't want to change the order in which the Founders travel. It should still be Crescendo to Melody, Melody to Fortis, and Fortis to Cadence, the Desert planet."

"You have not spoken of your plans for Cadence yet."

He shook his head, "Nope, I'm playing that one close to the chest. You'll understand once we get there."

"I see. You spoke of Fortis as a giant planet."

"Yep. Everything should be grander. I don't want just upgraded Earth creatures; I want the wild and the mythical—strange creatures that force the Founders to change and adapt. They should be at that point after already moving through two stages of the Conservatory anyway. Crescendo gave them a nice and organized approach to monsters. Melody will challenge them to look above and beneath them. But those are still external signs. I want big, and I want brazen. The first real challenge aside from the Boss battles."

"Such as?"

"Let me see here."

Walker clicked on the Entity subsystem, something he hadn't done in a long time. He scrolled through the options, finding the Magical Creature index only had a few names thus far, although the additions were intriguing. Earth's creatures were as long as ever, and he didn't see any new names jump out at him. But the Mythological line had a new tab within it. Norse.

Walker clicked on it and found the list populated with a huge assortment of different monsters.

"I can't even say half of these words."

"A polyglot you may not be, but thankfully, you can change names as necessary."

Walker looked over at him, "You don't think that's disrespectful to the original creatures?"

Virgil shook his head, "Your world, your monsters, Creator."

Walker internally agreed with him and decided to make a laundry list of monsters for Rimi to create. The first step was, of course, the giants. It was impossible to have a supposedly giant world without literal giant creatures inhabiting it. Walker clicked on the Risar to see what it described.

Risar: Norse Mythological Entities

Description: The Risar were smaller, behemoth-classed beings who enjoyed living within hills. While their size was still large compared to Earth's inhabitants, it was nowhere near the famed Hrímþursar or the venerated children of Ymir, the Jötnar.

"There's a lot more information than there used to be."

"That is natural, considering your progress within the protocol and your new role. Which entities are you looking at, Walker?"

"The Risar, I think?"

"Ah, yes," He fiddled with his screens, "I have looked through all of the mythological lines at this point. If you are attempting to create a giant world, you may have to go quite a bit larger. I believe the Risar would be a more apt fit for Crescendo, personally."

Walker nodded in agreement, "Make it happen."

"I will. You should also look at the Greek Cyclops, the Hecatoncheir, and the Trolls of the Nords."

"Got it."

Walker pulled up each.

Cyclopes: Greek Mythological Entities

Description: The Cyclops played a pivotal role within the mythos of the Greeks. Often, they were not as bloodthirsty as the other mythological creatures one could find within the Greek islands of Earth. Instead, they had a tendency to help those in need and were sometimes great craftsmen who built wondrous things.

Hecatoncheir: Greek Mythological Entities

Description: The Hecatoncheires are mutated beings whom the god Zeus and his companions freed during the battle for Earth's supremacy. They were often called the Hundred-Handed Ones due to their tendency to have dozens of appendages, which they could control with great dexterity and mental agility.

Trolls: Norse Mythological Entities

Description: Territorial creatures of great variation, Trolls reproduce at vast rates after their parents' initial abandonment. They are known to be bloodthirsty creatures with a slow wit and almost singularly focused mind. Due to their need for constant sustenance, Trolls have a tendency to kill and eat their own, becoming more powerful in the process known as cellular hypertrophy.

When Walker finished reading the description, a large set of ideas filtered into his mind. He better understood how Fortis would work now, especially with the Nomads buzzing around. But he had to know about the two giant types the Risar had mentioned.

Hrímþursar: Norse Mythological Entities

Description: The Second largest of the Behemoth-classed entities found in the Nordic mythological line, these creatures historically held a xenophobic stance against anything that didn't fit within their minds as superior beings. Although the Hrímþursar do well in their natural frost environment like their greater cousins, they often became subjects of the elevated Jötnar, forced to work subserviently and under great abuse.

Jötnar: Norse Mythological Entities

Description: The largest and most intelligent of the Behemoth-classed creatures in Ancient Earth's history, the Jötnar were a race of massive beings who often fought and won against the gods of the Nordic lands. With their massive size, the Jötnar were difficult to feed, and they would often enter into forced hibernation to stave off issues with their food supplies.

"What are you looking at?" Virgil asked when Walker felt his breath catch on the last description.

"Nothing."

"No, no Jötnar, Walker. That is a very bad idea. Did you really look at the Magical Creatures Index? Jötnar is listed there for a good reason." He tapped a finger on Walker's bedstand, "Do you really want one-hundred-foot-tall magical giants with high intelligence?"

Walker had to squish the little boy's imaginings that tried to pop up into place, "No?"

"Walker, it would be the end of Fortis."

He sighed, "Fine. Alright, I know what to do."

"Excellent. Let me go and procure Rimi so that we may proceed. Excuse me."

“Of course.”

Virgil left, and Walker occupied the time by pulling out a few strands. Temporal was translucent, while Space was blue. More than their colors, each had a different feeling to it. Life was green, which fit the archetype Earth had long ago conceived. It felt like growth. Progress.

He was still thinking about that when motion outside of his cabin let him know that Rimi and Virgil were approaching. He returned the life strand to his resources, not wanting to waste it as he only had a few thousand.

The Blue squirrel hopped over, excitement stamped on his face, "What do I hear about making giants?"

"Hey Rimi," Walker said with a smile, "I haven't seen you in a while. How are you?"

"Doing great, Creator," He replied with a happy thumbs up, "It was a real challenge to make those monsters for Crescendo, but it's all set up now."

"You did a fine job, Rimi," Virgil commented with a rare smile.

"Thank you." He moved over and sat on Athena's chair while Virgil's large size blocked the doorway. "So," He said, looking back and forth between them, his tail sliding from side to side beneath his rear, "What are you trying to create now?"

"Giants...." Virgil said slowly.

"Giants?" Rimi replied, veritably vibrating in his chair.

"Yep. Giants. I may have kind of..."

"Set up a huge cluster of potential planet conquerors on Fortis? Yeah, Cagna and I saw." He finished with a flap of a hand, "It's no big deal; we can just send in the Founders to clean them up."

"Yeah, but we were a little worried that they would take over too much of the planet if we left them alone for a long period of time," Walker clarified, "Thus, we're setting up Fortis before we do Melody. I wanted some big entities for a big planet, simple as that."

"I see...What were you thinking?"

Walker broke down all of the entities he'd read about except for the Jötnar. As much as he wanted one-hundred-foot-tall magical giants, Virgil was right. It would devastate Fortis. 

Maybe one day. 

He also spent some time renaming everything. Virgil was right about that, too. It was his planet, and he would do as needed to be done. Risar became Hill Giants, and Hecatoncheires, which was way too long, became Vicennials, meaning dozen-armed people. Lastly, the Hrímþursar became Frost Giants to make it easy. 

He also informed them both to make all of the wildlife much larger; otherwise, everything would starve. Virgil calmly pointed out that it would also require larger vegetation, which he agreed to.

"Okay, I think I've got it," Rimi said, hopping up from his seat as Virgil was already stepping out of the cabin.

"One more thing."

"Yes?" Rimi said, Virgil turning around to listen in as well.

"Make the giants a little dumber. I don't want super geniuses who are that tall. Bigger should be dumber, in my mind, otherwise they will certainly take over Fortis in its entirety."

"You got it."

Rimi and Virgil stepped away as Walker smiled to himself. Waiting a few seconds, then feeling that enough distance had passed for this last part, he yelled out, "And make the Cloud Dragons!"

Although he couldn't see it, Walker was sure Virgil was smiling again.

Chapter 19: Earning Rewards

Walker lay down on the mattress as he considered everything he still needed to do. 

If his guess was right, he had twenty-four hours until the Founders were meant to seed onto Crescendo. Twenty-four hours for final checks on food, planning, the quick handshake and hug as they moved toward a new place for the first time in their lives.

Of course, there'd be a big party the night before. He also knew he would have to deliver another significant speech to motivate the Founders further. But he still had a huge series of tasks to complete before then.

The Reward and Event systems needed to be created. Skills and Professions, too, while he was at it.

While he planned, the steady blinking of notifications in his overlay caught his attention for what felt like the hundredth time. He hadn't checked them in some time, with good reason.

When he first started in the Alpha Protocol, each notification was like getting a gift. Walker thought back to those simpler times, when it was just him and a small brown squirrel, staring at their creations come to life. Every moment was a wonder, and every new system felt like a challenge to overcome. 

When he looked at the notifications now, he only felt trepidation. 

The last notification he'd received had shunted him into a metaphysical space for a good amount of time. While he'd only lost a few hours on Sonata, he'd lost days in his mind. Days of stress and fear, of mental and spiritual exhaustion and great hunger. 

That had an effect on a person's focus, and Walker wouldn't be shocked to learn that he had some form of PTSD from dealing with all of the shoves and pushes that Kwaya and the protocol had put him through.

But he had a job to do. Still, his Sapients did not have their big empowerment. That one thing that could let them fight against the Monsters and their enhanced tiers. He had always designed the system to allow for branching jumps in strength, but the Sapients, his Founders, were about to drop in with nothing to bolster their own power. 

If those notifications had a reward within them that could ease his progress or even provide a secondary manner of gathering strength, he had to take it. With that thought in mind, Walker opened his notifications.

Due to the number of them, they were now organized by categories rather than flooding him all at once, which he greatly appreciated. He looked through the list, then clicked on one he knew hadn't come with any baggage in the past.

Evolution task complete: Evolve an entity: Part 6

New evolved entities: 100/100

Reward for completion: Diverse

...

Evolution task complete: Evolve an entity: Part 7

New evolved entities: 250/250

Reward for completion: Diverse

...

New evolution task given: Evolve an entity: Part 8

No description provided

New evolved entities: 134/500

Reward for completion: Diverse

- - -

Reward for completing the sixth evolution task:

Congratulations Dante! You've unlocked the Bond evolution!

The bond evolution allows entities to create a lasting connection with one another. This will increase an entity's empathic understanding and allow for greater communication with those with whom they are bonded.

. . .

Reward for completing the seventh evolution task:

Congratulations Dante! You've unlocked the Morphic evolution!

This evolution gives the entity to whom it is granted the ability to modify its body slightly. The greater skill they grow with the evolution, the more they will be able to do.

Warning: If an entity morphs its body to a great degree without understanding what it is doing, it may accidentally perish. It is recommended that only entities with high intelligence be granted this particular evolution.

- - -

It looked like the Council had given up on providing task descriptions once you moved past a certain amount. Still, he couldn’t complain about the results, and the bond evolution further reinforced his ideas of what to provide in the event rewards. 

The Morphic ability, on the other hand, was unique. He was a little worried that any monster who received the evolution would find a way to impersonate Sapients. That could create all kinds of chaos within the burgeoning world of Symphony. Walker mentally set it aside as he didn't feel his people were ready for that yet.

Walker scrolled to the next set.

Entity task complete: Create ten more unique entities: Part 2

New unique entities: 10/10

Reward for completion: Diverse

...

Entity task complete: Create twenty-five more unique entities: Part 3

New unique entities: 25/25

Reward for completion: Diverse

...

New entity task given: Create fifty more unique entities: Part 4

You have filled a world to the brim with the unique, the weak, and the exalted alike. Now, begin to produce a new world upon which you can further spread the majesty of your creations.

New unique entities: 49/50

Reward for completion: Diverse

- - -

That last wording gave him an idea of what the system was trying to do. Too bad he already had it. What would they give him in recompense for already having unlocked the Cosmic Genesis system?

Walker was a little disappointed that he hadn't reached the fifty-goal mark yet. But, as he had that thought, the last number trickled in just as he was scrolling to the rewards. He would have to thank either Virgil or Rimi when he had the chance.

Entity task complete: Create fifty more unique entities: Part 4

New unique entities: 50/50

Reward for completion: Diverse

...

New entity task given: Create one hundred more unique entities: Part 5

Filling an entire world with life is the ultimate goal of every Creator within the Alpha Protocol, and you have certainly succeeded in your endeavors. Now, develop your entities into entirely new species, allowing for a greater breadth of growth as you spread your plans across the cosmos.

New unique entities: 0/100

Reward for completion: Diverse

Reward for completing the second entity task:

Congratulations Dante! You've gained a new evolution chamber!

...

...error...

Advanced evolution chambers detected.

...

Congratulations Dante! You've gained a new advanced evolution chamber!

The upgraded evolution chamber, first invented by the 3EF rendition winner Bander Sotfam, allows for greater control of entity evolutionary modifications. Further progress by the Creator in developing unique genetic entities may result in gaining more advanced evolution chambers.

Reward for completing the third entity task:

Congratulations Dante! The Monitor ability has been upgraded!

Although the Monitor ability seems simple when first viewed, it can have great power in controlling and managing a Creator's world. With this upgrade, the Creator may now make an unlimited number of monitors of differing sizes.

Reward for completing the fourth entity task:

Congratulations Dante! You've unlocked the Cosmic Genesis system!

...Error...

Cosmic Genesis system detected.

Records being reviewed

...

...

The Cosmic Genesis system was chosen from a set of awards during the second battle of the Creator Wars.

...

Compensation package created.

Congratulations Dante! Due to having already unlocked the Cosmic Genesis system, you now have the ability to choose your own reward. Please review the following options which were randomly created from your previous unchosen rewards:

1. Gain the Colossi Genus

2. Unlock the Replacement system

3. Gain one Magic Chamber

"Well shit...." He said while looking at the options. It was just a rehash of what he'd seen several months ago, relative to his current displacement.

He looked back and forth between the replacement system, which sounded like something that might lighten their future workload, and the genus just above it. He thought hard about his options, as having another Genus that wasn't earthbound could have bigger implications than expected. 

Looking back at the first two options, he chose to ignore the third one. He didn't know what the chamber's purpose was, and while the Evolution Chamber was a great boon, he didn't want to make the wrong move with one of his rare reward choices. 

Knowing what Virgil and Athena's advice likely would be, Walker went with the safe option and selected the Replacement system. It was better to set up Symphony as a whole to be more thoroughly prepared for the future than to get a new Genus for his assistants to play with. The reward information filtered in a moment later.

Reward for completing the fourth entity task:

Congratulations Dante! You've unlocked the Replacement system!

The Replacement system is necessary for Creators who feel the need to create multiple designed ecological focuses in a warlike world. With the replacement system, your world will constantly maintain an equilibrious state with the proper amount of control.

"That should make Virgil quite happy," He said with a smile. It fell away a moment later, "Crap, at this rate we're probably going to need more assistants." Then he smiled again when he realized what that meant. With a shrug and an "Oh well," Walker looked at the rest of the notifications. 

The Primigenial tasks were beeping at him profusely, but that was a moment for later. He'd already spent longer than he wanted just combing through all the updates he'd been missing.

The Advanced Evolution Chamber was nice, as it was a handy replacement for the one he'd blown up when creating the first Foundation stone. The Monitor upgrade was a great pickup as well, and he found an option to allow his assistants free range of control with an attached cost. Walker selected Magic as that seemed to be in a constant state of growth with the unmodified Mana Trees. Based on his estimates, he'd never have to worry about it again. 

The Tree of the Gods hadn't grown for a hot minute, but that didn't mean more changes wouldn't eventually come to Sonata. Once again, Walker thanked his luck that he'd had Awakened who were willing to help him along the path. Without his upgraded memories and quicker physical reaction times, he'd never have kept up with everything that was necessary in managing his own Solar System.

Overall, things were only getting better and better. With that happy thought in mind, Walker clicked over to the system designer.

The first thing he had to do was create a reward system. Of course, that had already been thought of in the few thousand years that system designing had existed in the Evolver's multiverse, but the current model certainly lacked something.

The Prize System:

A system designed to allow entities to spin a wheel, receiving a pre-designated reward.

This system allows Creators to reward their entities based on set parameters.

Flexibility: Medium

Difficulty to modify: High

Resources used: Variable and Selective

Limits: The Prize System can only be used when at least two pre-designated rewards exist

Note: This system is a combination of multiple older systems found in the multiverse

It wouldn't work for a multitude of reasons, not to mention he'd still have to link it to Mac in the end. That could set off bells at the Center and cause him untold headaches. If he was going to create a new system from scratch and not burn through all of his darkness again, he needed to hide any of his actions within the system creation itself.

The big reason he wanted to create it separately from just having an event system, and the combination it would require, was that he had ideas for how to attach the Reward system to Milestones, potential Reputation systems, and, of course, Factions. 

This would be peppered throughout his future creations. That required him to take a current system that came close to matching it, and this was the best he could find. But still, it wasn't great.

Walker pulled up another system that seemed similar based on the name.

The Benefits System:

A system designed to compensate entities based on a specific and tracked performance.

This system allows Creators to reward their entities based on tracked requirements.

Flexibility: Low

Difficulty to modify: High

Resources used: Variable and Selective

Limits: The Benefits system only allows specific rewards to be given based on achieving set goals

Note: This system was designed by Creator JohnQ in rendition 2AO

This one was much better, but still too restricted. He knew the solution was to combine it with the Adaptation system, but that would be hellish for them. They would have very little to do as his plan was to create the Reward system for all other systems to pull from. Still, he didn't see much choice in the matter. Not if he didn't want to burn through a large allotment of his soul.

Putting it into the back of his mind for the moment, Walker pulled up the Tracking system.

The Tracking System:

A system built on the idea that everything a person does, should be recorded.

This system is designed to track any entities of the Creator's choice within any filters they choose to create.

Flexibility: Extreme

Difficulty to modify: Low

Resources used: A localized receptacle for storing information

Note: A system designed by Creator Ju in the alpha protocol of 2BC.

Walker was not a fan of the new note his System administrator view could now see. When he'd first planned out the Milestone system, he knew it was very iffy, morally. But he did not enjoy seeing a note that openly stated what he was doing could be akin to tyrannical or oppressive styles of governance. 

However, for everything to work, it needed to be done. He wasn't the one who had placed him here, and if he wanted everything to work as it should, sometimes things had to be sacrificed.

Again, he didn't like how that thought filtered through his mind. He'd have to come up with some checks and balances for what he was forcing on Symphony's systems. As the saying goes, absolute power corrupts absolutely.

Planning what he needed to do before diving into the world of System designing, he stepped out of his cabin and jogged over to find Rimi nearby. After he made a few requests, the blue squirrel hopped to action, and the new evolution chamber really came in handy for what Walker was asking for. He dodged a few questions from Virgil, asking the large black squirrel to stay focused on Fortis for the time being, then spoke with Luna about needing all of the assistants to be ready soon. After that, he spent a few minutes talking to Athena and answering some of the Founder's questions about what they would expect on Crescendo. He noticed neither Lucy nor Runner were interested in hearing what he had to say about their upcoming sojourn to the forest planet, but they did ask about the Unending Summit's trials, extracting a promise from Walker that he would conduct the event with them soon.

Finding Dion in the back of the group, he asked him a few questions and then performed a favor for the man. With a quick wave, he trekked back to his small abode and spent another hour of his precious time going through more of the designer's systems.

He found the Inciting Incident System, which gave him a good chuckle as the English teacher in him really liked that one. Connecting some dots, he had a vague idea of how the Event system would come together. Tracking, points, items from within Mac, and immediate translocation were all required.

 After another hour, he felt that everything was set to go, and he was only delaying what he needed to do. The Creator was confident of his power and his unique ability to make things that hadn't been seen before. After all, while it may have been a slight accident, nobody else had discovered the key to Immortality was a combination of so many different elements.

"You can do this." He said to himself quietly, then, without waiting another second, took the plunge.

Walker pushed his soul to cover his hands, then reached into his overlay and extracted a week in Temporal resources. As Virgil had pointed out, the first time he'd covered himself in it, he had immediately passed out for a good amount of time thereafter. But that was before he'd completed his soul and transitioned to the third stage. He had a vague idea in his mind that the effect would not be nearly as pronounced a second time.

With a week in his hands, he smothered it across his body, pushing a paper-thin covering of his soul outside of his body as he did so. This way, he would be contained within the Temporal distortion without it directly touching his skin. He normally wouldn't chance things like this, but as always, they were on a tight schedule and he had the ability to cheat time. 

Why wouldn't he take advantage?

Now, within his own sped-up time, Walker clicked on the Adaptation system and, using the system linker ability, connected it directly with the Benefits system. He felt as the system pulled him into the AI, but he immediately jumped back out. If he stepped outside of his Cabin, everyone would be moving so slowly that he wouldn't even get the chance to watch them blink. 

That was the goal of this, after all. He didn't want to waste any unnecessary time as he only had a week to create five systems, one after another. Looking at the System Splitter ability in his overlay, the tag Experimental jumping out at him, he realized it would be closer to eight. Walker sighed, then ran a multi-layered hand through his white hair. There was always too much to do.

At the top of his overlay, the notification that the system was now ready to be used came in immediately. The Center always seemed to match his speed no matter how much he distorted things temporally.

Walker went in and renamed the Adapting Benefits system to The Reward system. He would have to follow up with the AI after he was done within his personal time bubble.

Clicking back into the system designer, he chose the Adaptation system, the Inciting Incident system, and the Tracking system, before merging them all into one. The Inciting Incident system was specifically used to identify local areas with no restriction in size. 

That meant he could designate a planet where rewards would be generated, rather than just small areas. Based upon the information it presented, he could even designate all of Symphony, every planet within it, as a part of the rewards.

The Tracking system would allow him to create a points-based program, rewarding his Founders for their achievements. How they would receive those rewards was not yet set up, but he also had ideas for that. Walker waited a moment for the notification, taking much longer than the Rewards system did, then renamed the hodge-podge of information to The Event system.

Finally, he was at the moment he'd dreaded and been waiting for at the same time.

It was finally time to make the Skill system, and get his Sapients on a similar level of power to the Monsters of Symphony.

Chapter 20: An Unexpected Idea

Skills.....

Still within the Temporal distortion, Walker considered the idea he'd had long ago.

Monsters grew in power as they gained higher tiers. Each tier brought different strengths and abilities that the entity could then develop and enhance. The greater the tier, the higher the plane of magic they could touch upon, and the larger the breadth of their abilities.

To counter this, he had long ago decided that Sapients needed skills. They wouldn't have all the same magical prowess that monsters would have, as the creatures were born with the inherent ability to use it. Instead, Sapients would be able to choose their own classes. But classes were never the right word.

It wasn't a school, and he didn't want there to be "archetypes" that his people would pick. That was for board games. No, he needed his citizens to take control of their own fates. More agency. So, before he even started working on skills, he first needed to decide on the overall term his Sapients would come to understand as their own power. Their strength.

Professions wouldn't work. Even though they would be tied to skills as well, that would be a wholly different system that, to a degree, countered the soon-to-be-named class system. Roles and specializations wouldn't work either; neither would orders, guilds, or fellowships.

Walker searched his powerful lexicon. He went back into his mind to define the one word that would most fit the entities and the skills they would master. Names hold power, and this would be the system that stretched and bound all combat-focused sapients and higher-tier monsters together.

Sitting on his bed in his own stretched time, Walker ran through dozens of names, but none of them fit. They had to master these things not only to fit within themselves but also to mold them into their own unique skill set.

When he stumbled upon Authority and Sagehood, he sat on them for a long time. He liked the idea of Symphony having Sages, as the word had an old Latin root, and he continued to enjoy bringing Earth's history and the best parts of it over to Symphony's root language. The problem was that it failed his "Oomph" test. It didn't have power on its own.

The longer he thought of it and redefined what he wanted the value of the system to bring, the more a singular word appeared.

"Masteries..."

Mastering the skills and forming their own mastery ticked all of the boxes for him. He tried it out loud.

"I am a Master of the Spear..."

"I chose the Shield Mastery..."

"Masteries...the Mastery system." He said with a final nod.

An old memory resurfaced: Walker sat in a collegiate classroom while his professor droned on before him. He had mostly tuned the old man out because he had a tendency to say "um" after every third word, making it very difficult to listen in without spacing out completely. But one day, he had said something that stuck in Walker's mind: "You have to know the end before you can write the beginning."

That was why he spent so much of his precious time now thinking of something as simple as names for a system. The endgame was crucial, and he couldn't design the skills without first understanding what they would add up to.

"Masteries," He said with a final nod.

Now, he just needed to figure out the skills that came with them. Skills should level; there was no doubt about that in his mind. If Magic would gain power and strength the more you understood it, and Chipper's actions in the second battle surely proved that, then Skills had to have a fair and equal increase. 

Only, it took fifty years for an outlier monster like Chomp to reach tier four. He had to decide if skills should take a similar amount of time to build up, or if there was a better way of going about it.

Skills needed to level; that was set in stone for him. But did they need to continue past 100, or should something else occur? He thought on it for a moment, then put it in the back of his mind for further review after he got the system started.

Skills can be awarded through milestones, events, and the titles he still needed to make. But if he allowed Sapients to unlock skills through those systems, they would be non-standard. A Spear Master could, after completing an event, unlock a skill that has to do with climbing trees faster or swimming better. 

To complement his current naming conventions, he mentally called skills earned outside of the Mastery system as Extra Skills, so that he would have a divider in his mind. That, in turn, forced him to name the skills that Sapients unlocked with their mastery as Kernel skills, which brought a smile to his face. His Sapients wouldn't understand the value of the word Kernel until they unlocked magic. 

It would foreshadow the heights of their power as they moved along.

Skills should be offered as soon as a Sapient chooses their Mastery. Once the Mastery was selected, they should appear in a set that thematically fits the sapient's choice. It wouldn't make sense to unlock Spear Mastery and then get two skills focused on arrow angles and maintaining a shield. So that meant each skill, as it was created, had to be maintained with a specific pattern.

Walker workshopped what a Spear Master might get when first choosing their mastery. Off the top of his head, he thought up three different skills they might need: Fleet-footed, as in the ability to move quickly and surely; something pertaining to gripping the weapon; and, of course, knowing how to use a spear in the first place. Each would be necessary for a Spear Master to move forward within their domain of combat.

But the serious question was: how did that domain move forward? How would Sapients' skills become powerful over time? Should he find a way to combine them, as he was considering with the Title system? The Fleet-footed gripping spear Master?

Walker shook his head. "That sounds ridiculous."

Skills were important, but what was their point? 

As he'd done since the beginning of the protocol, Walker questioned the purpose of his work. He knew that the Skill system he had developed would work for Professions and Masteries, but he didn't know how to implement it effectively.

For several hours, Walker scanned through the System designer, hoping someone before him had attempted what he was trying to do now. A few showed some promise, with one, in particular, revealing the likely way his Primigenials had acquired their bloodlines.

The Talent System:

A system designed to instill unique talents within each entity born under the Creator's domain.

This system allows Creators to build unique talents directly into the genetic line of their entities.

Flexibility: Very Low

Difficulty to modify: Medium

Resources used: Primordial Energy

Limits: Some Talents may be detrimental to the entities. Random evolution of talents must occur, exacerbating the issue.

Note: This system was designed by Creator Manti S. C in Rendition 1PA

“That won’t work.” Walker continued through the System designer, not enjoying the next two, which had slightly similar builds to what he wanted to do.

The Lineage-Capability System:

A system designed to allow future generations to build upon specific skills within their family.

This system allows Creators to select direct abilities for their entities that can be passed on and enhanced across each new line of descendants.

Flexibility: Medium

Difficulty to modify: High

Resources used: Primordial Energy

Limits: Once a family line is given a specific ability or skill, it cannot be removed without terminating the entity's life.

Note: This system was designed by the Charlie Protocol Council, and is a combination of multiple older systems

The Absorption System:

A system designed to give specific entities the ability to absorb physical traits from their opponents.

This system allows Creators to select entities, giving them the ability to absorb matter and mass from those they have defeated in combat.

Flexibility: None

Difficulty to modify: High

Resources used: Primordial Energy

Limits: Once the entity is selected, it will always absorb the properties of the defeated, whether it wants to or not.

Restriction: This system was designed by the Omega Protocol Council, and is restricted to Omega Members only.

Note: As a System Administrator, you may overrule this restriction.

"What the ever-living fuck." Walker said as he scratched his head while looking at the last one. Absorbing matter and mass? Like...some kind of physical vampiracy? What do they do, compact their muscles and make themselves stronger?

He thought about it for a moment, finding uncomfortable connections between the Absorption system and the awakening of his soul. But the key difference, for him at least, was that he didn't take it away from other people. It was his soul empowering the rest of his body.

He stepped out of the System Designer, thinking it a dead end.

Walker stood up and began to pace as he wove through the situation. He couldn't use an old system; it wouldn't work. The only option available was to create a new system from scratch and possibly alert everyone to what he was doing. They'd find out eventually; he was just pushing things up a bit...right?

Walker shook his head, "No, even Kwaya said not to piss them off." Knowing the answer was right in front of him, Walker stepped into his memories. 

He spent hours of accelerated time combing through all of the experiences he'd been through since first arriving, cataloging them as if they were books and he, a librarian, returning them to the shelf. He finally landed on the moment Neus received his upgrade from subsystem assistant to the full thing.

"Wait a second...the notification was delayed and they couldn't find him..." Walker said in wonder, "If they couldn't find them, it means that dimensional rifts, like the AI's use, are exempt from the system's management...."

Walker eyed the dimensional strand in his resources. It numbered in the low thousands, much less than the others, but it was still within the limit of what he could do. He started to plan out what needed to happen, toying with a few strands to better understand them.

It took him longer than he wanted, and there were some monumental risks involved, but it might work.

"Piece of cake," he said with a sardonic smile, his eyes still on the Dimensional strand in front of him. The other strands, Karma, Kinetic, and Nullification, stared out at him from within his menu, but so did Consciousness.

Consciousness...Consciousness... he thought, tapping his chin. All of the other systems used Primordial energy, probably burning through them at a fast rate, but if I used a different strand right at the start, it could work.

What would happen if he imbued skills with strands of consciousness? He had thousands upon thousands of them. Thinking over Caddy, he knew that adding enough consciousness to anything would give it a minor form of intelligence; thoughts, instincts. 

Isn't that what the point of skills was? To imbue power and prowess into the hands of the entity it was bestowed upon? If every skill gained parts of consciousness as it grew in levels, it would be more effective. And, if the entity the skill was assigned to used them in unique ways, the consciousness would likely recognize that and adapt to better fit what was needed.

That could work.

But, if a singular genius managed to gain all the skills, every skill they could find, from events and milestones to Masteries and Professions, they would be unstoppable. Thus, his earlier thought of level restrictions made sense. 

He thought about that dilemma for some time, trying to see the ins and outs of the problem. Who could stop them if they gained every skill they could and went on a rampage? There had to be some form of limitation, something to slow progress for the Sapients just like Symphony's Monsters were restricted by how much magic inundated the area.

Then he had it.

In order to increase the level of each skill, the Sapient needed to find a new way to use it. Moving back to his idea on the Spearman Mastery, for Fleet-Footed to reach level 100, the entity assigned that specific consciousness-fueled skill would have to find one hundred different uses for it. Sure, a lot of Sapients would never move beyond the forty and fifty level mark, but those who had truly earned it would reach the peak goal of 100.

But, then what happens?

He was still staring at the Strand screen while he thought about it. He had given Caddy the consciousness strand for thought, but the little Monster hadn't truly been able to move and take on a life of its own until he'd added the life strand itself. Was that the trick? Should he build in, strand evolutions? Awakenings?

But if every skill could awaken, then wouldn't that also create a possible over-empowerment of Sapients?

Walker decided to imagine a hypothetical situation so he could test it out. Closing his eyes, he saw a small brown-headed child no older than eleven.

A small child huddles in an empty house. Their parents are gone, taken by Monsters in the night, and he only manages to finish one off that his parents had fought before they left in force. Inevitably, because of the Milestone system, he's unlocked his Mastery early due to killing a Monster. The boy chooses the Survivalist mastery and decides to learn all of the tricks of the running skill. They reach level 100 in the skill before they hit the ripe old age of fifteen. 

When they run, it's like the wind is carrying them. They're faster than everyone around them by leagues, moving from place to place before anyone gets a good look at them. But, they're angry, and their level 100 skill has awakened. The skill begins receiving the life strand and evolves as he continues to level it. Now, the skill that has only ever been used in anger, is advising the child. Moving him directly into the paths of others for no other reason than to cause harm. The child starts to wear armor as he runs...

Walker shook his head, "What the fuck was that?"

Nothing answered him, but he did feel a warmth in his chest. Rather than call out to the Book of Souls, he considered what had just happened. Every time he'd used the Book of Souls directly, he'd seen the past. Now, it was showing him potential futures. Mirrors of what could be. 

Walker was stumped for the first time in a while.