Chapter 001: The Forger Begins
September 21st, 2017
Like always, it is the sound of my alarm that wakes me up.
Blindly reaching towards my nightstand where my phone is, a task made more difficult by my sleep addled mind, it takes me a few tries, but I eventually manage to grab a hold of my phone and turn the alarm off by sliding my finger properly across the screen. However, instead of getting up, I put my phone back on top of the nightstand and prepare to go back to sleep.
Honestly, I don't know why I even bother waking up this early. I no longer have lectures to attend to nor essays and/or projects to work on as of receiving my bachelor's degree a three weeks ago. Or maybe, I just can't be bothered to change any of my phone's settings, who knows?
However, right before I fall sleep again, the real reason behind me continuing to wake up this early makes itself known by jumping on top of my bed and nudging my face with its wet, cold snout as it whines insistently and demandingly at me.
I groan. "Ugh… okay, okay… I'm up, girl. I'm up, sheesh…" I say as I open my eyes, coming face to face with a fully grown, black furred German Shepherd intently staring at me. The moment she notices that I'm looking at her, she lunges forward and attacks my face with her tongue. "Gah! No! Lexi! Stop that!" I exclaim while trying, and failing, to push her away.
Eventually, Lexi determines that my face is licked enough to her satisfaction and grants me mercy from her show of affection, much to my relief. Don't get me wrong. I love her. I really, really do. But she can be rather rough and intense when showing affection despite normally being rather well behaved. And that can get a bit irritating when the end result is your face being bathed in canine saliva.
However, when Lexi's only response to my glare is a doggy grin as she happily pants while looking at me with puppy eyes that shouldn't belong to a dog her size, my annoyance bleeds away into nothing.
With a fond sigh, I reach towards her with both hands and start to scratch her favorite spots, which are right below both her ears. She closes her eyes and whines in pleasure as I do this, lowering her head as if into lean into my touch. I just roll my eyes at her. "What am I going to do with you?" I wonder out loud as I continue to pet her, much to Lexi's obvious enjoyment as her fluffy tail threatens to fly away from how much and fast its wagging form side to side.
I eventually stop petting Lexi for a while, which she deems as "not long enough" going by how she whines and looks at me. I raise an eyebrow at her. "I'm not about to spend the whole day just giving you pets. And neither are you if you want breakfast and a morning run. What is going to be?"
The way she stares at me before she huffs and jumps off the bed makes me belief for a moment that she can actually understand the English language and it's not the first time that it happens. I know that she is "a very smart girl" according to… my parents…
As my train of thought comes to a halt, I feel tears gathering in my eyes and lump forming in my throat.
"…fuck," I mutter, my voice thick as I reach towards my eyes with my hands so I can aggressively rub the tears away while at the same time trying to swallow the lump in my throat. To my lack of surprise, my actions are futile and soon enough I'm sobbing like the child I'm not supposed to be. Nonetheless, I continue to repeatedly dry my eyes and cheeks with my hands and get rid of the feeling of my throat closing up.
I can't help but think that reacting like this every single time I think about them, even in passing, is pathetic for a grown man like me, especially after a bit more than two weeks have passed since they died. But I know that after what happened, this kind of reaction is normal, especially considering how close I was to my parents and the fact that it's not everyone that has a front row seat to seeing their parents being murdered in cold blood.
Unable to stop them, the memories of what happened that night come to the forefront of my mind…
Enjoying a celebratory dinner at Inzerrillo's, a fancy Sicilian restaurant within Gotham's East End…
My dad, David, bragging about my accomplishments to anyone who would care to hear…
My mom, Lucia, gushing about how proud she and lamenting about how fast I grew up…
Finishing our dinner…
Leaving a big tip for the cute waitress and walking out of the restaurant and into the adjacent parking lot…
Making our way towards where Dad's car is parked…
Me realizing that I somehow forgot my cellphone back at our table and going back to get it while my parents continuing to make their way towards the vehicle…
Retrieving my phone…
Being stopped by the cute waitress and getting her number after a few minutes of mutual flirting…
Walking out of the restaurant for the second time…
Making my way to where I know the car is parked and my parents are waiting for me…
Turning around a corner to see a sedan with fully tinted windows stop behind my dad's car, stopping it from exiting the parking slot…
My parents stepping outside of the car in a hurry…
A man wearing a trench coat and a fedora stepping out of the sedan…
A very distinctive whistling sound…
My mother, gasping in shock and freezing and going pale in the face as horror grips her…
My father, reaching towards his waist when the trench coat and fedora wearing man as he pulls out a silenced gun and points it at him…
My father, dropping down to the ground with a bullet hole in the middle of his forehead…
The anguished scream of my mother, abruptly cut off as she also falls to the ground with a bullet hole on her temple…
My parent's murderer getting back inside the sedan before I can get a good look at him…
And then-
[Connection to Domain of Protection failed.]
My thoughts are rudely interrupted by the sudden appearance of a now familiar notification window floating in midair, right in the middle of my field of vision. The window, colored a royal purple with bright golden letters, innocently floats there, unmoving, as I stare at it with my tear-streaked face.
At the sight of it, however, the mix of negative feelings that make their home in me whenever I think of… what happened… quickly transform into rage and I snarl at the window.
"Fuck off," I hiss at it and thankfully that's enough to make it disappear. I have learned that any form of dismissal, either verbal or mental, is enough to make it go away, though not permanently.
In the past three weeks, ever since… that happened, those notifications have started to appear at random, always announcing a failed connection to a domain, which I don't have a clue as to what it could mean. At first, I thought they were merely visual hallucinations, my mind playing tricks with my perception of reality as a consequence of my most recent trauma. A hypothesis that was aided by the fact that no one else seemed capable of seeing them or interacting with them, which I could.
However, after a week of seeing these windows appear at random, another thing happened that made me revaluate my thoughts on them just being hallucinations.
Turning towards my nightstand, I looked at the seemingly normal looking key that was laying right next to my cellphone. It might look normal, like any other key that you would by anywhere that sold a key/lock combo, but it was anything but. Far from it.
The most mundane aspect of the key that makes it different from other keys is that apparently, it is a universal master key that works on any door, or at least on every single door that I tried it on both inside and outside of my house, without exception.
As for the not so mundane aspects? Well, when I put the key into the lock of any door and open it, instead of revealing whatever would be inside that door, I'm taken into another place entirely. And it doesn't matter which door I use, if they key is inside the lock, I will be taken into that place.
Adding up my not hallucinations in the form of notification windows and the fact I can go into another reality through any other using a key that appeared inside my pocket one day out of nowhere, I can only come to the logical conclusion that I have somehow acquired superpowers.
Now, why would acquiring superpowers be a logical conclusion to anyone not a kid? Well, because while still extremely rare, to put it mildly, when compared to the entirety of the world's population, incredible abilities beyond what a human should be able to manifest have begun appearing seemingly at random but with steadily increasing frequency over the course of the past two or so years.
Now, most would consider getting superpowers a good thing, thinking themselves lucky amongst the fortunate, and normally I would as well, but considering the timing and that one of the most popular theories out there is that in order to get superpowers you have to go through an extremely stressful/traumatic situation, I believe that me not being enthusiastic about my superpowers should be understandable.
Between my parents and superpowers, I would choose my parents an infinite number of times over, no hesitation. Unluckily for me, though, I didn't even get the opportunity to make that choice.
My anger allowing me to stop myself from becoming a crying mess again at the thought of my parents, I take a deep breath and with more effort than would otherwise be necessary, I get up from the bed and walk out of my room and into the hallway so I can make my way towards the bathroom.
Once I get there, I take a look at my reflection, the furrowed brows, the scowl and the redden sclera of my eyes doing a rather excellent job at expressing how I'm feeling right now. With an annoyed click of my tongue, I turn on the faucet so I can wash my face with cold water, which hopefully is going to help me cool off.
After being somewhat successful, I proceed to brush my teeth and then take a piss and a shit. I would also take a shower, but I'll be pointless since I'll be working up a sweat during Lexi's morning walk/run so I'll bath afterwards.
Once back inside my room, I put on a gray hoodie, a pair of black shorts and matching sneakers. The September weather in the morning is rather mild on average though in this early in the morning it can get decently cool, reaching temperatures of sixteen degrees. However, since I actually enjoy cold temperatures, this is not an issue for me nor for Lexi either, since she has a surprisingly thick coat of fur.
Before I leave the room for the second time, I grab my phone and the key that can take me into a separate dimension that has its own storage facility, the basic things a person would need to live comfortably in this day and age, a fully equipped gym (for some reason) and a set of basic facilities that would conveniently allow me to make use of the field of studies that I focused on during my college years and then some.
At least that aspect of my powers isn't completely useless…
[Connection to Domain of Crafting Magical Items failed.]
…unlike the case in point once again floating in front of my face as if it doesn't now that the mare sight of it irritates me greatly.
A glare and a totally deserved aggressive dismissal later, I'm walking out of my room with nothing disrupting my field of vision nor annoying me with its mere existence. After going down the stairs, I cross the threshold of the living room and go in the kitchen/dining room combo, where Lexi is impatiently waiting for me sitting in front of her bowls and giving me a look so impatient that I wouldn't be surprised if she starts tapping her paws on the wooden floor.
I roll my eyes at her. "Don't be such a drama queen. You were only waiting for ten minutes tops," I tell her and Lexi's only response is to motion towards her empty food bowl and to increase the intensity of her stare. With a shake of my head, I approach the pantry that is dedicated exclusively to her food cans and open it up.
I grab one of each of the three varieties of flavor and put them in front of Lexi. "Alright, which one is going to be today? Chicken, pork or beef?" Did I fail to mention that she is completely and utterly spoiled? No? Well, here is the proof.
Tail wagging in clear excitement, Lexi spends a few moments sniffing at each one of the cans before she settles for the one in the middle, nudging it towards her food bowl and looking up at me with that adorable doggy grin of hers.
"Pork it is then," I grab her chosen can and pull it open so I can pour out her food into the bowl. Like the good girl she can be when she chooses to do so, Lexi waits until all the food is inside the bowl and for my signal before she starts eating with the characteristic enthusiasm of a dog. While she is enjoying her breakfast, I put the unused cans back in the pantry and change the water of her other bowl.
With Lexi happily eating away her first meal of the day, I move to procure my own. I'm in the mood for some scrambled eggs, bacon, toasted bread, and orange juice but I honestly lack the motivation to actually go through the process of making all of that, so I just grab a bowl, some milk and a bland cereal that is supposedly healthy.
By the time Lexi finishes inhaling her food, I'm barely halfway through my serving and for the next few minutes I manage to not fall prey to her pleading eyes by refusing to look at her, no matter how much she whines and/or nudges me. I refuse to let her overeat, especially since we'll be exercising shortly, and considering how weak I am to her puppy eyes, I'll fold like a bitch and open another can of food for her.
After I finish eating the cereal, I drink the left-over milk and take the bowl and the spoon to the sink. I then go back to the table and grab the milk gallon and the cereal box and put it in the fridge and the pantry it belongs to, respectively, and then I grab Lexi's bowl and take it to the sink to wash it along the bowl and spoon I used so don't have to do it later during the day when my lack of motivation hits its peak.
Lexi gives me the stink eye, very obviously for ignoring her ploy to get a second serving of food, and I shrug it off as I wash the dishes.
After finishing the dishes and leaving the bowls and spoon to dry off, I turn towards Lexi… who is still glaring at me. I raise an unimpressed eyebrow at her. "You better stop looking at me like that if you want to go out," I tell her, and she visibly perks up at the last word I spoke. "I'll wait you by the door. Go get your leash."
Lexi forgets her annoyance at me and zooms out of the kitchen the moment she hears the word 'leash'. Snorting, I walk towards the main door, grabbing the house keys and a small sports bag on the way. Right after I finish strapping the bag around my torse, Lexi zooms in, her folded leash firmly grasped in her mouth.
I take it from her and showing that she actually has self-control and just refuses to use it, Lexi stands perfectly still while I hook up the leash to her collar. She doesn't really need a leash, since she is not aggressive and actually likes to stay close to make, but the rules of the Aparo Park, which is where we are going, state that all dogs must be properly leashed.
I don't have the need, interest, motivation and/or time to deal with whomever would complain about an unleashed dog this early in the morning, so the leash is going to be used. Thankfully, Lexi doesn't care about it one bit.
After making sure that I'm not leaving anything we might need behind, Lexi and I step out of the house. I lock the door up with the house key and soon enough we are walking towards the park located withing Gotham Height's. Well, I'm walking, Lexi kind of speed walking as she stays a bit ahead of me, as if leading the way.
In actuality, the 'agreement' between Lexi and I when it comes to walks is that she sets the pace and I decide our route or where we are going. Lexi is smart enough to know that as a hardly athletic human, I can't run as fast nor as long as her so she actually never goes faster than what would amount to a throttle for the two of us.
[Connection to Domain of Assistants established. 'Stockpiles' has been acquired.]
The moment the notification window appears in my field of vision, I freeze on the spot, Lexi also quickly coming to a halt as she feels me stopping all of the sudden.
The reason for this is the information that was suddenly and smoothly shoved into my head by… something… when the notification window appeared.
The information is about the new additions that will be provided to my Personal Reality, which is the other dimension I can access to by inserting the key that randomly appeared in my pocket two weeks ago into any door before opening it. These new additions are six different Technical Dolls, or T-Dolls, … one of each combat type… one of them which should already be there… and the rest appearing one by one within the warehouse of my Personally Reality after a certain amount of time in between.
After the new information finishes settling in, I lightly shake my head, ignoring Lexi's inquisitive nudge to my knee and shuddering a bit and not because of the cool temperature. The more off-putting aspect of what just happened is that the information didn't come with memories of acquiring said information.
While acquiring the knowledge out of the sudden was a seamless process, dealing with the fact that I know have said knowledge isn't as much.
When I hear Lexi's worried whine, I shake my head again and look down at her to give her a reassuring look and pat on the head. "No need to worry, Lexi. I'm good…" I trail off as I focus on the notification window and its words. "…but it seems like my powers aren't as useless as I thought them to be."
Lexi's only response was only to blink in confusion at my words while leaning into my head pats, tail wagging gently behind her.
"Of course. I forget that you aren't as intelligent as you lead me to believe sometimes," I say and Lexi just gives me a doggy grin as she pants, long tongue hanging out in an admittedly cute display. "C'mon. Let's go to the park before it gets filled with people."
As we resume our trek towards the Park, I mentally dismiss the notification window and actively resist the urge to head back to the house to check out the T-Doll that should be there waiting for me. If we don't go to the park and spend at least an hour there, Lexi would be annoyed with me until the time for the next meal comes around and that's not something that I want.
Besides, according to the basic information that I got about them; the T-Doll is going to stay put until receiving instructions from me. In other words, she can wait for a bit. While on the other hand, Lexi won't.
When we get back to the house from the park, I pick up the rolled newspaper from the mailbox before going inside. After closing the door behind me, I detach Lexi's leash from her collar and she trots away to do what dogs do after spending more than an hour running around, which is to take a nap of course.
After unstrapping the sports bag and leaving in its place, I take the newspaper to the kitchen and leave in the table to read it during one of the many periods of boredom I know I'll be going through during the day. After drinking some orange juice and cleaning the glass immediately after, I make my way upstairs towards my room, only pausing for a moment when I catch sight of Lexi already sleeping on Dad's comfy reclining leather chair.
Unlike this morning, I take a deep breath and manage to suppress the emotional agony that comes when I think about my parents and how they were taken from me. Unlike this morning, my mind is fairly clear and not as sleep addled, so I can actually control myself from becoming the pathetic mess that I know my parents wouldn't want me to be.
To be completely honest, the only reason that I'm even trying to move on is because I know that my parents would be extremely disappointed if I allowed myself to waste away mourning them. Knowing them, I'm fairly sure they wouldn't even want me to mourn them at all, but since that's not something can't help, I gave myself until the start of my internship in a week at Wayne Industries to start actively trying to move on.
[Connection to Domain of Quality Size failed.]
The notification window appears again, and I become annoyed once again when I look at it, though maybe not for the same reason I normally would. Not that I know that I can get knowledge and stuff like full gynoids from it, or at least from whatever or whoever is sending them, what annoys me is seeing the message that tells me that nothing is going to happen.
If I'm not going to get anything, why even bother notify me? I can only assume that it is to annoy me.
With a roll of my eyes, I dismiss the notification window and give the napping Lexi another look before I walk up the stairs. I go directly into the bathroom and after removing my dirty clothes, but not before pulling out my cellphone and PR (Personal Reality) key and putting them on top of the toilet's closed lid, I put them inside the hamper and proceed to take a shower with warm water. And no, my like of the cold does not extend to showering with cold water, if anyone is wondering.
After making sure that I'm reasonably clean and not smelling of sweat, I stop showering and dry myself off with one of the towels from the nearby rack. After drying myself, I tie the shower around my waist, pick up my cellphone and PR key and step outside of the bathroom and walk towards my room.
There, I remove my towel and throw it, alongside my cellphone and PR key, onto the bed. Since I don't plan on leaving the house unless Lexi feels up for another walk, I just put on a t-shirt and basketball shorts, leaving my comfy slippers for my feet… speaking of which, I'll look into getting some dog themed ones. And if they look like Lexi, all the better.
After making that important mental note, I grab my phone and the PR key from the bed and walk out of my room, closing the door behind me. Then, I turn around and insert the PR key into the lock before opening once again, revealing a space completely different from the one I just walked out of.
The portion of my Personal Reality is made up by what I dubbed as the Entrance Hall, since it's just a five cubic meters sized room that serves as the access point to the real contents of my exclusive dimension. The room is made up by four concrete walls and a ceiling painted gray, a white ceramic floor and single wooden door on each of the walls.
The door behind me obviously leads back to the last entry point taken to the Personal Reality, in this case the hallway in which my room is located on the second floor of my house.
The door in front of me leads to the portion of the Personal Reality that is used to store things, considering that it's filled with shelves, I can only assume that storage is it's intended purpose. When it comes to its size, it might not be longer than a soccer field, but it certainly is wider and the ceiling is twice as high as the Entrance Hall's, meaning ten meters. So not an unsubstantial amount of space dedicated to storage, I'd say.
The door to my left leads to facilities that are not meant to be used as living quarters, which right now includes the workshops and the gym. The workshops are fully stacked with the equipment and the resources needed to work with metals, leathers, fabrics, electronics, chemical compounds, and computers. The gym is also fully stacked with all the exercise machines one can imagine and it even counts with a dedicated sparring area.
And finally, the door to my right leads to a housing complex that has a single master bedroom with its own bathroom, a kitchen/dining room combo with a fully stacked pantry and fridge, two half baths, two rooms that seem like they could serve any purpose and a few small closets, one of which is filled with cleaning supplies. It also counts with working electricity and running, adjustable water.
And I haven't even gotten to the best part yet. While having a personal, separate dimension that only I can access is awesome to say the least and to put it very mildly, there's an aspect of this dimension that makes it invaluable: it restocks itself when the resources, supplies and food that came with it are used.
Yes. That's right. I have an infinite supply of basic resources to use in the workshops and of foodstuffs that can be acquired by a middle-class family without any cost at all. Apparently, my Personal Reality cares not about logic nor several of the scientific laws that rule how actual reality behaves and I'm not mad at that nor will I complain.
Now, this aspect of my Personal Reality is not without limits, and it is a rather arbitrary one that never fails to annoy me whenever I think about it. I can't take out individual resources outside of it if I have the intentions of selling them. I can only take things out of my Personal Reality if it's something I created using the resources or if I have no intentions of selling them.
I don't know how it can make the distinction, since for example a few days ago I walked out of the Personal Reality holding a basic motherboard I made with all the intentions of selling and it didn't disappear from my hands the moment I walked back into my house, but, considering that my Personal Reality is not big on logic or even making the tiniest bit of sense, I guess I just have to learn to accept it.
[Connection to Domain of Quality Durability established. 'Robust Engineering' has been acquired.]
I pause, assimilate the knowledge, and dismiss the notification window. I guess I can now make anything I build last for literal centuries in exchange for taking a little extra time during the building process… somehow. It is kind of nifty, I would say, but not particularly useful right now.
Anyway, moving on…
With a sense of building excitement, I can't really help, because I'm going to interact an actual android and that is every nerd's dream, I walk towards the door that leads to the storehouse and only hesitate for a second before I open the door.
My storehouse actually looks a bit like a hanger, with a smooth concrete floor, metal walls and ceiling to go along with the metallic shelves and lofts that line up the walls. However, I have already seen this part of the Personal Reality quite a few times before, so I my focus go to the newest addition, who is already standing at attention a few feet away from the entrance, an even expression on her pretty face as her reddish pink eyes lock with mine.
"Mauser 98k, at your service, Commander. Please allow me to sweep aside the obstacles in our path," she says and salutes, bringing attention to her kind of oversized sniper rifle when compared to her somewhat short stature, her naturally husky voice possessing a raspy quality that made it even more pleasant to hear combined with her German accent.
And hearing how she greets me confirms that she automatically acknowledges me as her Commander, which is a weight off my shoulder. Thanks to the basic information I got, I know that it is impossible for her to harm humans unless ordered or in self-defense but knowing that I'll be able to give her commands that she is going to have to obey is another layer of reassurance that I don't mind one bit.
I give her a nod and the best welcoming smile I can manage right now as I approach her. "Welcome, Mauser 98k. At ease," I greet her and notice how her posture becomes less rigid at the end. "My name is Alessandro Cross and as you know, I'll be your Commander from now on. I trust that there weren't issues with your production?"
Kar98k shakes her head. "None whatsoever, Commander Cross. All my systems, bio-mechanical and software, are working at optimal capacity. I'm ready for operational deployment at your leisure."
"That's good to hear. But don't worry about being deployed any time soon. We need to wait for the rest of the squad to be ready after all," I tell her, not really feeling like telling her that I don't really have any combat missions to send her, or the other ones by the time they arrive for that matter. Considering that they are Combat T-Dolls, I don't see that turning out well.
I'll have to come up with something, aren't it?
Kar98k tilts her head curiously but ends up nodding in understanding after a short moment. "Understood. A sensible and prudent decision on your part, Commander Cross. The more teammates on the field, the lower the risks of failure are."
"Correct," I nod, going with her rather reasonable assumption. "For now, I'd like for you to familiarize yourself with our HQ and your personal room. Also, since we will be working together for the foreseeable future, I'd like for us to get to know each other better."
She tilts her head again. "Get to know each other better? For what purpose?"
Nervously, it takes me a bit to answer but Kar98k doesn't seem to mind nor find anything suspicious with it. "If we know each other better, we'll have more synergy during operations, meaning that our success rate would increase."
"Ah. If that's the case, I will gladly endeavor to get to know you better, Commander Cross, hmhm," she concedes, chuckling lightly at the end with a tiny smile.
I give her one of my own at that. "Good. And since we are on that page, feel free to call me by my given name while off duty and outside of active operations. Being informal with each other will help us in getting to know each other better."
Kar98k gives me a slightly surprised look before she smiles again, noticeably wider than before, and nods. "Understood… Alessandro."
…for some odd reason, I really like how she says my name. Normally, I would request to be called 'Alex', since the nickname is not as much a mouthful as my actual given name, but there's something about Kar98k, almost like an air propriety, that makes me feel that having her use the abbreviated form of my name wouldn't fit her.
"Thanks. On that same note, how would you like to be called during informal situations?" I ask her curiously, wanting for the both of us to be on the same page.
That question actually gives her pause and she hesitates before answering. "I… wouldn't know. Karabiner Achtundneunzig Kurz is the only designation for my person that I know," she says, her voice and expression not giving away how she feels about that. "I wouldn't be opposed to you giving me a designation more to your liking, Alessandro."
In other words, she wants me to name her. And I don't know how to feel about the fact that it is not the weirdest request that I have gotten from a girl before by far.
I give her a tentative look. "Well, if you don't mind…" I trail off, looking her over up and down. And no. I'm not checking out the extremely attractive German themed gynoid in front of me that has to do everything I tell her and that is a train of thought I will top following right now. Back to naming her… let's see. Karabiner I-won't-even-attempt-to-say-that Kurz… hmm…
[Connection to Domain of Quality Efficiency failed.]
My thoughts are interrupted by the notification window appearing, telling me that I'm getting nothing, which only annoys me and makes my right eyebrow start twitching.
Kar98k obviously notices and gives me a curious and confused look. "Is there something wrong, Alessandro? You don't have to force yourself to give me a new designation. It is not something I have an issue with," she tries to reassure me.
I shake my head and dismiss the notification. "No. Don't worry about that for now. I'll explain it later. And I would be honored to give you a name that you can views as more than a mere designation," I tell her, getting another surprised look followed by a smile from her. I ignore the warmness in my cheeks and think about it for a moment before one occurs to me. "How about Karabina Kurz? It's based on your designation, so it should be easier for you to adopt as your own…" I trail off, feeling a bit unsure of my suggestion.
"Karabina… Kurz…" She tries it out slowly, the name sounding way better on her lips than it does in mine. After a short moment that feels longer than it actually was, she smiles her biggest one yet and nods, a pleased and almost grateful expression on her face. "I find this name quite to my liking, Alessandro. I'll treasure it dearly, hehe…" she says, her voice adopting a teasing quality as she giggles at the end.
As my cheeks become warmer than before, I look away from the newly dubbed Karabina and try my best ignore the embarrassment I'm feeling as well as how she is looking at me right now is making me feel.
"Uh, yeah, right, erm…" I scramble to get my wits back and after a moment I somehow manage to latch onto something that will help me stop making an ass out of myself in front of the sexy combat gynoid. "Let's give you a tour of the HQ. Be warned, it's not much but has everything we need."
Looking more amused than what an AI piloted android should, Karabina gives me a nod. "Of course, Alessandro. I shall follow your lead," she says, her knowing voice perfectly matching her expression.
…I'm in huge trouble, aren't I?
The moment I walk out of my Personal Reality and remove the key from the door after closing it, I give a sigh of relief. Despite the air of dutiful seriousness and almost prideful propriety, Karabina proved to be someone that enjoys teasing others more than what her demeanor would lead one to believe, something that isn't aided by the fact that I encouraged her informal behavior.
Despite spending more time feeling embarrassed and hot under the collar that I'm comfortable with, I don't regret my decision one bit. With the knowledge I now possess, I know for a fact that the only reason they aren't full-fledged human is because they aren't made out of flesh and bone and even that is debatable considering the biological elements that make up their bodies.
Anyway, what I' m trying to say is that I want to help them feel less like 'just Combat T-Dolls' and more like 'girls that just happen to be scarily efficient and deadly combatants', which I know can be achieved by having a relationship that goes beyond Commander and subordinates with them. If that means having to endure Karabina's teasing and whatever antics the rest of T-Dolls that should arrive in the following days, so be it.
And it's not like Karabina's teasing is that hard to endure anyway…
Shaking my head and allowing myself a smile, I open the door to my room, revealing it and confirming that my Personal Reality is properly closed. I don't really need to do so, but I want to get into the habit of keeping it closed whenever I'm not inside of it. And Karabina, the only occupant that would want to get out, is currently busy designing her own room in the housing complex, which apparently appeared when she did.
That's my Personal Reality for you.
Leaving the door to my room open, I make my way downstairs and the sound of my step's alerts Lexi of my incoming presence, who appears at the foot of the stairs to wait for me with a wagging tail and a pleading expression on her face, puppy eyes at full blast.
Without hesitation, I look away. "No, Lexi. Your next meal is not until noon. That's still three hours away."
Somehow knowing that I'm denying her what she wants, Lexi whines and puts a sad expression on her face as her tail stops wagging.
I catch this from the corner of my eyes and some of my resolve wilts away. "…I suppose I can give you some treats. Just because you are a good girl," I relent begrudgingly, mentally cursing my weakness when it comes to her. I also feel that my newly acquired obsession is playing role, since I know that I wouldn't have relented as easily before today.
At the word 'treats', Lexi perks up and a doggy grin appears on her face as her tails start wagging again, losing all semblance of the previous sadness she was supposedly feeling.
…I think I have been tricked.
Making my way towards the kitchen, pointedly ignoring the way Lexi smugly follows after me, I open one of the pantries and procure the bag of her favorite treats, which are basically dried bacon. That's something that the two of us have in common. The two of us wholeheartedly believe that bacon is the food of the gods and that anyone that thinks otherwise is a filthy heathen.
Knowing better than to just leave the bag out, I pick a handful of the treats before putting the bag back inside the pantry and closing it up. Lexi watches me intently as I approach the table and grab today's newspaper. Might as well read it since I have nothing better to do right now.
[Connection to Domain of Crafting Magitech failed.]
I click of the tongue and a quick dismissal later, I'm walking towards the living room, my aim being sofa that takes the most space out of all the furniture. When I lay down on one side and Lexi does the same on the other, my reason for choosing the sofa instead of the armchair becomes apparent.
When I start unfolding the newspaper, Lexi whines and nudges me intently. I roll my eyes and put the newspaper down before I proceed to give her the bacon treats one by one, actually taking more than time that one would think because Lexi takes her time to savor and enjoy the dried strips of bacon, something that I don't blame her for. It's bacon after all.
Anyway, after finishing her treats, Lexi looks like she'll be satisfied until her next meal at noon… I hope. You can never be one hundred percent sure when it comes to her after all. However, with that in mind, I take advantage of the fact that Lexi looks ready to take another nap to read what today's iteration of the Gotham Gazette has to report about the happenings within Gotham City.
Unsurprisingly, Batman and Robin are on the front page, apparently due having stopped a three-way gang war from escalating beyond the initial few conflicts between Black Mask's gang, the Russians, and the Cartels. Apparently, for who knows which time this year, the three notorious criminal groups were fighting over expanding their controlled territory within The Bowery.
The next piece of relevant news is that Commissioner James Gordon intercepted and captured an illegal shipment worth more than a million dollars of military grade weapons' shipment coming into the main Gotham Docks from the Middle East. There are no conclusive suspects behind the attempted smuggling operation because the masked criminals managed to escape the clutches of the police after a short but intense shootout.
In other words, just another Sunday in Gotham City.
The rest of the news is just fluff in my opinion: some guy named Harvey Dent announcing he'll be running for the DA position, the successful re-opening of the Tin Roof Club after coming under new management in the form of the well-known socialite Selina Kyle, Wayne Enterprises starting yet another charity foundation to help the homeless in Gotham City and the temporary closing of the Gotham Zoo because of several renovations that are going to be made to several animal's habitats.
After finishing reading the newspaper, I put it down on the wooden table that's in front of the sofa and lean back into the backrest, my thoughts focused Gotham's law enforcement force, both the legal ones and the vigilantes.
It should come as a surprise that after the murder of my parents, my opinion on them isn't the kindest one. To be honest, when it comes to the Gotham police force, it was never exactly kind in the first place, considering that Gotham has always been a shitshow when it comes to the number of crimes that are committed all over the city on a daily basis, but after being hit personally and directly by the criminal elements of Gotham, my opinion, which now also includes the vigilantes, has taken a nosedive.
I know that it's not exactly their complete fault that my parents were murdered in cold blood right in front of me, but there is also no the denying that if the Gotham City Police Department was more competent and less corrupt and/or if Batman and Robin were more effective at their self-imposed crusade against crimes, the chances of my parents not being murdered that night would have been significantly lower.
When it comes to the GCPD, the only one that seems to be doing anything worth even mentioning is Commissioner Gordon, who as a police officer is restricted by laws that in my opinion benefit the criminals more than they do the decent populace living in Gotham. And I'd rather not get started on the fact that is common knowledge that at least ninety percent of the police officers of the GCPD are corrupt…
As for Batman and Robin, I actually recent them more than I do the GCPD. While you can make the case for the GCPD being restricted by the laws of this country and state, the same does not apply to Batman and Robin. Despite actually fighting crime more regularly than what the GCPD does, as vigilantes they are considerer criminal themselves, which means that they are not restricted by words written on a piece of paper.
For some reason, which I can only assume are moral ones considering whom they act against, Batman and Robin refuse to deal with the criminals they fight in a more… permanent fashion, which would actually help decreasing the number of crimes being committed by virtue of actually reducing the number of criminals in the street.
Now, you can make the totally valid case of not every crime being deserving of permanent termination and while I'm inclined to agree, since the degree of a punishment should be equal to the crime committed, I would say that making it physically impossible for the criminals that commit those crimes is an acceptable option in my book.
The argument of there being criminals that only do it because that's the only way that they can use to put stuff on the table sounds reasonable enough to defend the position Batman and Robin take when it comes to dealing with them, except for the fact that even with there being several Wayne Enterprises and government foundations dedicated to helping the homeless, low-income households and supposedly reformed criminals, the combined reports saying that tens of thousands of Gotham citizens have been successfully helped in the past five years, the crime rates have hardly changed after Batman began his vigilantism.
[Connection to Domain of Magical Facilities established. 'Crafting Stations' has been acquired.]
My mental rant abruptly comes to a halt after the appearance of the notification window, this time telling me that a connection was established and it being my only warning before the absurd amount of information is shoved into my head.
After I assimilate everything and the knowledge settles, I go over the information regarding the new additions to my Personal Reality and when I do, some of which were made to my Workshops and some were to the area dedicated to the Workshops.
First, is an Obsidian Work Bench located in the middle of the room dedicated to my Workshops, which can be used to craft a… honestly ridiculous number of different things, provided that I have the materials. The next one, a Titanium Forge and a Mythril Anvil were added to my Metal Workshop, removing the limits I previously had when it came to metalwork and giving my access to an even more ridiculous amount of stuff that I can now craft… as long as I acquire the materials, of course.
The next addition actually comes with its own area and it's one that gives me pause as I comprehend what I can do with it. The Demon Altar, when compared the Obsidian Work Bench, the Titanium Forge and the Mythril Anvil is quite limited in terms of the number of things that can be crafted through it, but what can be crafted with it makes up for it, even if some of those things are things that I'm never going to craft on principle even if I somehow acquire the thankfully very specific materials they require.
An Alchemy Table, which allows me to concoct a very wide array of potions with varying effects, is added to my chemical workshop, which is fitting even if the new addition is magical in nature. A Loom, which lets me use silk as an ingredient for a substantial number of things, and a Dye Vat, which lets me craft dyes and some paints, are added to my fabrics workshop.
For the Tinkerer's Workshop, which essentially allows me to combine different accessories into a single one while maintaining the original effects, a new area is added to my Personal Reality and the same can be said for the Imbuing Station, which allows me to create items knows as Flasks, which are basically temporary enchantments inside a bottle.
Once I finish going over everything, I take a deep breath to center myself, going over the implications of what the latest iteration
Before receiving this last… upgrade… from my power, the nature of which I'm starting to slowly figure out thanks to the rather obvious pattern that is forming, I was complaining about how the GCPD and Batman and Robin aren't actually making things better for Gotham City and I am even inclined to say that the vigilantes are actually making things worse, since they are actually forcing the masterminds behind the criminal groups to act smarter and more cautiously, which is not a good thing.
The crux of the issue, at least from my perspective, is that Batman and Robin limit themselves to just dealing with the crimes and the criminals doing the crimes, neither addressing what led up to the crime nor what the consequences will be after their intervention, which more often than not is sending the criminals they rough up a bit into the Blackgate Penitentiary for a few weeks until they are bailed out, returning to the never ending cycle that makes Gotham City the shithole that saw my parents being murdered.
Slowly, in order to not wake Lexi up since she is already sleeping, I stand up as I'm filled with determination. Without any input on my part, I recall the words from one of the first lessons I remember my dad giving me after I asked him what he decided to become a career firefighter.
I remember the smile on his face before he told me, and I quote, "If you can, you must do good. It's your responsibility put what you are good at in the service of other people. There is no greater blessing that being able to help those that can't help themselves." Ever since I heard those words, I've been doing my best to make them one of the things I live by and I'm not going to stop today.
The power that I previously thought as useless as irritating except for the Personal Reality has actually given me everything I need to start making a real change. The squad of T-Dolls once all of them arrive, which is going to happen before the week comes to an end… the Crafting Stations, which I can make use of right away even with the material I already have…
I can make a difference. A difference that the GCPD are unable to make. A difference that Batman and Robin are unwilling to make. As I am right now, there's not much I can personally do in a direct fashion, but through the use of the T-Dolls once the squad is complete and what I can create with the Crafting Station, I'm off to a good start.
I stretch for a bit before I start to make my way upstairs. There is work that needs to be done.
Acquired Perks
Stockpiles (Girl's Frontline) (50CP) : We can't let you set off empty-handed; here's 5000 Ammo, Parts, Rations, and Manpower to get your army started (it takes 30 of each to make a baseline T-Doll, while the most consistently powerful Dolls cost something like 600/400/100/600 for a reliable chance of getting them). Each purchase gets you another 5k. * This is not just normal ammo, parts, rations and manpower, you can combine them to make T dolls which are AI-piloted android fire platforms for military operations. Plus the ethereal 'manpower'.
Robust Engineering (Dune) (300CP): Ten thousand years of stagnation in technology is a very long time... and now you know how to apply the lessons of those millennia to the construction of anything you have. Mass production does not exist any longer and even relatively common items are made as if masterwork quality, because aside from obvious cheap items, they have been built to last longer than the person using them. Expect anything you construct by hand to be able to last centuries, as long as you take a little extra time while you make it. With the amount of time you're going to be around... you may need that sort of quality.
Crafting Stations (Terraria - Journey's End) (300CP): Crafting Stations Stations that are used with your ability to craft items. Each of them is easily collapsible with your inventory ability. Cost is for advanced.
Basic Comes with a workbench [any style], furnace, iron or lead anvil, and three of the following crafting stations: Alchemy Table, Sawmill, Loom, Cooking Pot, Dye Vat, Heavy Work Bench, Keg, Teapot, Class Kiln, Ice Machine, Living Loom, Solidifier, Extractinator.
Improved Comes with a workbench [any style], hellforge, iron or lead anvil, demon or crimson altar, and four of the crafting stations listed above or in the following list: Tinkerer's Workshop, Imbuing Station, Bone Welder, Honey Dispenser, Sky Mill.
Advanced Comes with a workbench [any style], adamantite or titanium forge, mythril or orichalcum anvil, demon or crimson altar, and five of the crafting stations listed above or in the following list: Crystal Ball, Autohammer, Blend-OMatic, Meat Grinder, Decay Chamber, Flesh Cloning Vat, Steampunk Boiler, Lihzahrd Furnace.
Author's Note: This is my attempt to writing a story using the Celestial Forge after binging Brockton's Celestial Forge and taken quite the liking to it.
A quick explanation of how this is going to work: There is a jumpchain document known as the Celestial Forge which has most crafting perks from jumpchains recompilated within it. In order to get a perk, you need to reach a certain work count and roll for it and get it if you have enough CP for it. This means that other than establishing a character and a very vague storyline to follow, I will write things as I go depending on the perks I roll.
Special thanks to Fornax for his advice and patience when dealing with my stubborn ass. Also, he can vouch for the randomness of my rolls.
Hope you enjoy it!