by R. A. Mejia
“Stop it, Gnomerad. You know that he’s more than some machine, and the information we gather about the Metalman race is vital if we are to recreate their technology.”
“Bah, the Metalmen! They’re not worth our time. If it weren’t for the money we’d already spent repairing him, I’d say we melt the rebellious machine down.”
“But it’s not for you to say. Professor Gnominsky has given you clear instructions.”
I didn’t need to hear them argue; I knew the two gnomes. I opened the door and saw Tognomey and Gnomerad, my two handlers, who had been assigned to speak to me and record what I’d done and research any discoveries that I made about Metalman technology as I leveled. They turned as I opened the door, and I saw that they looked tired. Each was holding a cup of tea in his hands, and there was a pot of the stuff on a table near Tognomey.
“You’ve been out late, machine,” the dark, greasy-haired Gnomerad said as I entered the building hallway. The sight of the gnome sent a spike of anger through me. Gnomerad had never been my biggest fan, and from the first moment I was revived, he had seemingly gone out of his way to treat me poorly. After I ran away from the Institute, he seemed to take special delight in pointing out that I was not alive and was the Institute's property. Part of his attitude might have stemmed from the fact that I had dropped him into a mine when he tried to capture me.
Tognomey’s curly red locks bounced as he shook his head at Gnomerad, but he said nothing to chastise his companion. He turned his head to me and briefly met my eyes before looking down. He took a sip of his tea and then asked, “Do you have anything to report today?”
Tognomey's guilty expression was understandable. Although he’d claimed to be my ally and even argued for me to be considered a sentient person, when push came to shove, he too had treated me like property and worked to capture me when I ran away to help break the life-threatening curse that had been placed on Greebo.
“I don’t have much today,” I answered. “Greebo and I beat the fourth level dungeon boss, but I’m still a couple of thousand XP away from getting level five. After that, I walked around and enjoyed Remembrance Day.” I’d intentionally left out any mention of Greebo getting his class. The gnomes did not like him much these days and considered him a negative influence. I wasn’t sure if it was part of their general disdain for goblins or that it was Greebo specifically because he was the one that I’d lied for and fled their Institute to save.
Tognomey nodded. “I figured you wouldn’t do much today with the celebration, but you should still give me the details of the dungeon fight for the record.” He put his cup of tea down by the pot and took a notepad out of his pocket and looked up at me expectantly. Gnomerad looked on disdainfully but listened as I gave the details about the dungeon dive. Tognomey asked a few questions when I got to the fight with Smog and took careful notes about my immunity to its breath attack. Since I had not unlocked any new Metalman abilities or skills, those were the only questions they asked. When they were finished, they took fifty gold off from the debt that I owed them, leaving me with only 23,922 gold to pay back. At the rate I was making money, it would only take me a few decades to pay it all back.
With my daily report finished, I walked down the hallway to the last room at the end of the building and opened the door to my room. It had formerly been used as a supply and maintenance closet, and the shelves on the walls had been full of odd bits of copper wiring, broken pipes, screws, nuts, and all manner of odds and ends. The room lacked a bed or desk or any other sort of personal effects, but it was ok since I didn’t need any of that anyway. As a Metalman, I didn’t need to sleep, eat, drink, or use the restroom. I doubted if it had ever even occurred to the gnomes to put furniture in the room.
As I looked around at the various metal materials, I was glad that the gnomes continued to store unused and broken parts from their experiments in the room. It provided me with a regular source of material that I could use to repair myself or fabricate items. I tipped over a barrel of cracked and warped copper pipes and activated my deconstruction tool. My left forearm split open, and a cylinder with a glowing blue tip popped up and extended outward. I targeted the copper pipes, the tip of the tool turned green, and green light shot out of it, encompassing the designated material. Slowly, bit by bit, the pipes were deconstructed and placed into my internal inventory space, a sort of dimensional pocket inside my frame that stored a limited number of items. It was like a bag of holding except that it didn’t reduce the items’ weight and currently only held five items. Thankfully, deconstructed materials like copper stacked and only took up a single slot.
While exploring my abilities as a Metalman, I’d discovered that, not only could I deconstruct items into their base materials, but I could also use those materials to make other things. Each item I created only earned me a little bit of experience, but the gamer in me saw it as a way to gain extra experience points each night. Or, as the impressed gnomes called it when I described it to them, “An efficient use of my skills to maximize my experience point gain.” I just called it an exploit. Since I didn’t have to sleep, I used the nighttime hours to make small simple items before breaking them down into their base materials and then using those materials to craft more items. I only got a single experience point for every small item I made like that, but because the fabrication and deconstruction processes of the small items only took seconds, I could spam the abilities over and over and rack up significant gains over the hours. Unfortunately, I gradually lost a bit of material after each conversion due to inefficiency, and I would eventually run out of material to use. But that only meant that I couldn’t exploit the crafting cycle indefinitely. Still, each night, I gained around 400 - 500 XP from eight hours of cycling through the fabrication and deconstruction processes.
The only downside to the whole night’s work was the tedium. It was downright boring to do the exact same thing over and over again for hours on end; and, while my body didn’t experience fatigue, my mind did. So, to pass the time that night, I considered the day’s events and what my future plans were.
My mind briefly thought of Niala and the night we’d just spent together. While it was pleasant to think of her and the other woman who had shown interest in me recently, Sandra Silverclaw, other matters soon pushed themselves to the forefront of my thoughts.
The Ultimate Research Warrior Competition loomed heavy in my mind. It was my shot at freedom, and I knew from my few conversations with Tognomey about it that I would be competing against other powerful research groups like the Mage’s Guild and the Goblin Research Center--groups that have been training their teams for much longer than I have been. Not only did I need to quickly increase my level, but I also still lacked the practical experience needed to compete against whatever the other entrants brought to the table.
In addition to the practical experience of dungeon diving, I needed to improve myself, and that didn’t just mean taking a course at the local community college. Although, if there was a mage college around here, I wouldn't mind investigating that. What I meant was that the Metalman’s unique racial abilities and my class were an opportunity to literally improve myself on a physical level. What that meant precisely, however, I’d yet to decide.
My mind shifted from the longer-term goals to the immediate ones for the next few days. Greebo and I had beaten the fourth-level floor boss today, which meant that we’d be moving on to the fifth floor soon. It was thrilling to think about. It would be the first level that Greebo hadn’t explored previously, which meant that it would be completely new to both of us. Perhaps it was the thought of exploring the unknown or the challenge of fighting monsters that I hadn’t seen before, but it was exciting.
I imagined the many possible monsters we might face and the ways that we’d combat them. Greebo was a fairly good fighter and did good damage, and I’d learned to play tank and after-fight healer for us, but was that enough to continue doing well? We had only survived the fight with the boss monster today
because I was immune to its special attack. If I hadn’t been, we would have been in trouble. Perhaps it was time we looked for another member to join our group. We could use a real tank that would grab our opponents’ attention, a healer that would be able to keep Greebo going if he got hurt, or a spell caster that could do ranged magical damage. Heck, we could benefit from just about anyone joining our group. It was something I’d have to bring up with Greebo in the morning.
Next, my mind turned to Greebo himself. Would getting his new Scavenger class change how he functioned in our group? It was an unknown variable, but it was one that I could research. Not that long ago, while trying to figure out how my own class worked, I had discovered that the Metalmen had compiled a massive database on all the classes that had existed during their time. I called out, “Command: Find data on the Scavenger class.”
Processing request…
Information gathered.
Scavenger Class
The Scavenger class was first created in the year 728 BME by the researchers at the Amalgamated Institute of Classism. They combined aspects of the Thief, Scout, and Gatherer classes to create a hybrid that focused on gaining the best materials from monsters and enemy loot drops. The Scavenger class has options to focus on finding resources, bearing greater loads, increasing chances for rare loot drops, stealth abilities, and increased resource yields. The Scavenger is prized by groups that want to get more from each monster slain, treasure looted, or resource node used.
The blurb was followed by a long list of abilities that were used by the class, the class points needed for each, and any prerequisites that had to be filled first. The list was massive and covered abilities that couldn’t be gained until level 30. I had the OS shorten the list to abilities in the 1-10 level range.
Inspect - Gathers data about target including level, name, damage range, class, health level, mana level, quality, and any other embedded descriptions. May be countered by special abilities or a large gap in power levels.
Scavenge - Adds bonus to loot and resource gathering. Appears as extra material or additional loot.
Analysis - Gathers data about target including possible loot drops, or resources available. Can be enhanced or modified by abilities.
Enhanced stealth - Increases benefits of stealth and sneak skills.
Gathering Focus - Adds additional information to the Analysis ability. Giving percent values for chances of possible rare resources to be gathered. Requires 3 class skill points.
Looter Focus - Adds additional information to Analysis ability. Gives information about items, armor, and weapons worn by a target. Requires 3 class skill points.
Scan I - Highlights resource nodes in a 10-foot radius. Requires 1 class skill point.
Expanded Scan - Increase scan radius by 2 feet per total class skill points spent. Requires at least 1 class skill point. Repeatable.
Penetrating Scan - Increases the chance of finding a hidden monster or enemy by 2% per total class skill points spent. Requires at least 1 class skill point. Repeatable.
Scavenger Strength I - Increase carrying capacity from 15 lbs per strength point to 20 lbs. Requires 1 class skill point.
Pack Mule - Increase carrying capacity by 10% per total class skill points spent. Requires at least 1 class skill point. Repeatable.
Lucky Looter - Increase the chance of rare loot drop by 5% per total class skill points spent. Requires at least 1 class skill point. Repeatable.
Stealth Speed - Increase movement speed of stealth and sneak skills by 10% per total class skill points spent. Requires at least 1 class skill point. Repeatable.
Just a glimpse at the class’s abilities showed me that it was geared toward enhanced resource and loot gathering. The gamer in me saw the amazing potential of combining several of the most interesting abilities. The Scavenger Strength abilities increased carrying capacity per strength point. Combined with the Pack Mule ability, which gave a flat percent increase to carrying capacity, Greebo would be able to carry hundreds of pounds of weight. I immediately imagined my goblin friend wearing the heaviest metal armor, carrying all of the repair materials I would ever need, and still being able to princess carry me to safety with ease. The increased load also meant that we’d be able to carry out more loot and resources from the dungeon, which would mean more stuff for us to sell.
The ways I could exploit the abilities of Greebo’s class excited me, and I imagined the mountains of gold that we could make over time and what I could do with the coin. I could buy powerful items to scan for blueprints, invest in getting better materials to fabricate with, upgrade my armor or other components, or even get training in skills, magic, and other abilities, which would in turn mean victory in my upcoming battles. Of course, Greebo would get his fair share of all the gold. While I could imagine him spending some of it drinking, I don’t think that even he would know what to do with it since his goal of getting his class had been accomplished.
By the time the sun rose and the first rays of light came through the single window in the room, I’d earned 327 XP for the shortened night while fabricating and deconstructing copper nails and I was ready to start a new adventure.
Chapter 5 - Hired Help
I left the gnome Institute early the next morning so that I would have time to search the stalls for any broken iron weapons. Vendors had recently stopped selling us low durability items because of the pressure from Neal Nailspitter and his mechanics and repairmen’s guild. They took issue with my ability to cheaply and quickly repair items and resell them at a large profit and were trying to box me out of that market. Still, there were bins of broken weapons that no one could repair, and I needed all of the iron that I could get from deconstructing the weapons to finish repairing myself. While I could get the wood and copper I needed, now that I had iron armor plating, I also needed iron to repair it. I’d suggested to the gnomes that they might provide iron so that I could repair myself on a regular basis, seeing as it meant that I could continue to level for their competition. Tognomey even endorsed the idea, but Gnomerad had insisted that I should be charged for such a service since my adventures incurred an unnecessary risk to their investment. He also noted that my repairs were only going to get more expensive as I upgraded my armor to rarer and more costly materials. Personally, I thought he just wanted to make more money off of me, but the other gnome researchers had sided with Gnomerad. I guessed that many of them were still angry about my recent great escape and their unsuccessful attempts to capture me. Sure, I’d returned when my friend’s life wasn’t in danger, but some people just couldn’t help but hold a grudge.
As I walked through town, toward the dungeon and the stalls there, I noticed that the streets were littered with trash and refuse from the previous night’s festivities. Paper streamers, empty bottles, half-eaten food, torn bits of cloth, and regular unidentified and undoubtedly smelly puddles littered the unusually empty streets. Even more obvious was the fact that the streets, which had been packed the night before with everyone celebrating Remembrance Day, were virtually empty. It was early in the morning, but even now, people should be awake and heading to their jobs in the factories to the east. Instead, there were only the street sweepers and the people that cleaned the city streets. I approached a bent old man that was sweeping the cobbled street and asked, “Excuse me. Do you know why the streets are so empty?”
He looked up from his work and did a double-take and then replied, “I ain’t never seen a talking one of you before. They usually make you golems all quiet. Your master not let you have the day off either?”
I sighed internally at being referred to as a golem and having a master. Even after experiencing the misconception every day, it still grated. Yet, as I looked at the man’s face, there was no disdain there as there were from so many others. Instead, there was an honest expression of disbelief. He simply thought he knew what I was and had matching expectations. I knew getting angry would not help, only cause me trouble, so I did what I always did in this situatio
n: I ignored his ignorance and asked, “Day off?”
The old street sweeper squinted at me then shook his head. “Well, I guess I shouldn’t have expected much from a golem, but yes, ‘Day off.’ As in: Most folks aren’t working today. It’s a city-wide holiday.”
“I thought the holiday was yesterday?”
He chuckled and gave a gap-toothed smile. “Yeah, it was. But a few years ago, the city declared the day after Remembrance Day a holiday too since no one showed up to work anyways, cause of their hangovers.” He shrugged then started to sweep again. “Well, no one but us folks that don’t drink or are too old to do that much celebrating anymore. I don’t mind, though, I get paid extra for working today, and if I’m telling the truth, I kinda like it when it’s quiet like this.” He turned his back to me then stooped over and swept up the trash he’d been collecting into a bin before shuffling onto the next area he had to clean.
I thanked the man as he walked away and then returned to my stroll toward the center of town and the dungeon. I hoped that the holiday didn’t mean that the vendors would be closed or that Greebo wouldn’t show up. I idly looked at all the fancy shops in the wealthy district and thought that today would be a good day to rob them. I shook my head in disbelief at my instinctual gamer response to seeing an unguarded store. On Earth, I’d played countless RPGs where I’d loot anything not nailed down. This world was not a game, but the RPG-like mechanics that permeated it tricked my brain into viewing it that way. Then, just to satisfy my curiosity, I scoped out a high-end weapons shop I had walked by. It was a stone building with a big window that displayed a rapier that gave +3 to dexterity and did fire damage, a shield that created a dome of energy that protected the user from low-level spells, and even an experimental flintlock blunderbuss that was made with adamantium. I had never had free access to such powerful weapons before and tried to scan the ones on display. In particular, I wanted to get my hands on the flintlock gun since it did more damage in a single attack than I could do swinging an Iron Rod all day. Unfortunately, I only got a schematic of the glass window that was between us. I shrugged my shoulders and twiddled my thumbs, my version of a frustrated sigh. For a moment, I thought about just breaking the window and absconding with the goods. No one was visible inside, but some tingling sense told me that the store was not unprotected. I used Inspect on the store, and when that didn’t produce any results, I used Magical Spell Scanning.
