Chapter 18: Big Up

I decided to just watch Jason for a little while as he mourned. I understood that it wasn't the best idea to be standing in the street after such a huge explosion because of all of the zombies that could be coming, but frankly I would not mind if they did. I would kill them all.

As I stood there, a blue system window opened up in front of me.

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Localized Time Limited Event Has Been Completed! You were the last one to wound the beast with a traditional weapon!

5000 System Coins

*Eris, god of Love has sent you a message.*

"Travis, thank you for completing my quest. You performed better than expected given the Beast's power and the one who controlled it. I look forward to giving you more quests, but you have put a smile on my face, and a frown on Zanoth's face. Thank you for that."

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I sighed. "Well at least I get some appreciation from the goddess."

Tessa walked up to me. "What?"

"Oh the system gave me the reward. I think I'm the only one who can actually use the shop among us, aren't I?"

"Yeah, open the shop up and tell me what you can buy."

I opened my system window and then selected the shop. I stared at the very few options and then frowned.

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Common tier Shop:

Common tier Skill Voucher: 2000 Shop coins → A random skill sheet of common better rarity will be sent through a portal to you. Rip the paper in half and Mana will be sent to your Soulstone.

Common tier Item: 500 Shop Coins → A random item of common or better rarity will be sent through a portal. Watch your head, it might be big or small!

Common experience potion: 500 Shop Coins → Raise the amount of experience you get from killing Beasts, Zombies, and other Awakeners by 20% for 24 hours.

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I turned to Tessa. "I can get out a random item for 500 coins, a random skill for 2000, or an experience potion for 500 coins. I have 5000 coins in all."

She nodded. "Well our priority is obviously weapons, so go for the item. Buy the same thing one at a time."

"Alright, that's smart."

I bought a single Common tier item and as I did, a purely white portal opened over my head. A shield fell out from it right towards my head. I jumped into the air and I grabbed it. I landed on the ground softly and then I inspected the item.

The item itself looked well made. It wasn't like a shield you would find at a renaissance faire. The shield was about an inch thick, and it was very solid, but also very heavy.

I tossed the shield over to Tessa who barely was able to catch it. "HEY! Why are you throwing that thing at me?! It's as heavy as twenty bricks."

I sneezed as a bug flew up my nostril. "Ah fuck! Excuse me. Anyways, you're an Awakener and I knew you could handle it."

I opened my system again and bought another Common tier Item. As I slammed the button down, the same white portal opened over my head again. A sword fell from the portal. I reached up and I grabbed the pommel as soon as I saw it.

'My reaction speed is faster than when I stole from the cookie jar, all those years ago.'

I took the sword, gripped it and then swung it through the air. White lines followed where the blade flew. I had broken the sound barrier with the edge of the blade by just swinging it through the air.

I grinned and turned to Tessa. "You were right, this sword is really well made. It's heavier than the average sword. It seems like it was made for an Awakener."

She grinned. "I'm always right."

I ignored her annoying remark, and I turned back to the task at hand. I opened my system window again and bought another Common tier item. As I did, I got an ax. It was a one-handed ax meant for splitting someone's skull and not a tree or stump. The blade was large and curved. It was meant for slicing through necks and skulls.

I set the ax on the ground, and I kept getting more and more weapons. I bought 3 more items, and I got two identical long spears and another sword exactly the same as the one I had gotten before.

I sighed. "Man, this is such a hard choice. I have 2000 coins left. I could get four experience potions or a skill. What do you think Tessa?"

She shrugged. "It's your choice."

I weighed the options back and forth for about a minute before deciding. I opened the shop and I bought the common skill. As I did, a glowing white portal opened above my head and a glowing white sheet of weathered paper fell from it.

I grabbed the paper, and I could feel Mana from it. I sighed and then I ripped the piece of paper in half. As I did, I felt the Mana travel up my arm and to the center of my chest where my Soulstone was. I turned to Tessa. "Hey, I need to change my consciousness to my Soulstone to take a look at this skill, please take care of me."

She took a few steps towards me with the spear she had taken earlier still in her hand. She smiled. "I learn new things every day! But yeah, I'll watch you."

I got down on the ground and lay there so I would not fall to the ground when I moved consciousnesses. As I switched to my soul, I saw the floating blue motes of Mana swirling around my soul, but there was another mote of Mana there too. It was white.

I drew the mote of Mana towards my soul, I would make it mine. As soon as it touched my soul, I felt a sensation, a feeling, a memory.

There was the sensation of piercing through another being with flesh. The feeling of focus. The memory was of a man running towards a woman with white hair and white clothes. The woman raised her hand at the man, a jet of Mana shot out through her hand and put a hole through the man's head. He fell to the ground, dead.

That was it. As the feeling, memory and sensation swept through my soul, the mote of Mana turned blue. Strangely, it did not seem like a normal mote of Mana. It was just as big as the others, but it seemed incomplete.

'If it's a skill and not actually Mana, it would need other Mana to activate, wouldn't it?'

I concentrated and sent a mote of my Mana towards it. The Mana instantly fused with the skill and glowed brightly. The skill glowed brightly for a second, but then stopped glowing as the Mana had been unsuccessful in creating the skill.

'What else would the skill need? Strangely, I keep recalling the feeling, memory, and sensation perfectly? A lot of the stuff to do with Mana has been emotions. Maybe I have to pull a mote of Mana towards my soul, fill it with those emotions and then fuse it with the skill.'

I tried it. I pulled a mote of Mana towards me, and I imparted the ideas to it. The mote of Mana began to blink white and then blue. I sent it towards the skill. As they fused together, they glowed brightly white and then I felt a pulse of concentrated energy pass up through my arm and then leave my body. Strangely, the mote of Mana that had fused with the skill unattached and began to glow less brightly blue than the others.

'Maybe the skill depletes the Mana? Oh shit! I used the skill. I hope it didn't hit anyone.'