Chương 55: 54-New Dawn

Dawn let her power flow slowly into the young woman holding her hand. Her journal was filled with useful advice on how to use her powers effectively. The trick was not releasing it all at once, but as a trickle. It was the only way to avoid the sudden influx of magic knocking out the receiver, plus it had one unexpected benefit—the young woman could see Dawn's own status screen during the process, and could select her starting Competency from among the nearly eight hundred that appeared in it.

"I have chosen Tailoring," the young woman, Sandra, told Dawn, smiling.

"I always wanted to design clothes. Much better than that lousy, broken Gunner class they made me choose." Dawn forced herself to pay attention to the young ex-soldier. She was getting a heady rush of power as she gained a level, and it could be distracting. Each time she activated someone, directly or through a proxy, her level increased by one.

"That's nice, Sandra. Remember: release the power carefully when you use it, and remind the person you activate to do the same." She checked her own Status screen. She was level seven now. She had already declassed the other six Feds who would choose their starting Competency today. When she walked out of the compound, she would be level 13 and have access to her third Competency. That meant she could indirectly activate 13 people, reach 26 levels herself, and gain her last Competency and her Class.

She would hit level 99 before the week was over. She would keep activating others, but her own level would not increase over her natural Alpha cap. Dignity had insisted that Dawn activate the nearly three hundred Feds that had chosen to switch sides and fight with them. It was a win-win situation: Dawn gained levels easily, and the Feds chose their own starting Competency, something not possible with Savants, who could only teach abilities they themselves possessed. She said goodbye to the assembled Feds.

"I will be back tomorrow. Use the time to choose a strong foundation for your class." Then she hurried out of the building. She did not want them to see her as the level-ups kept hitting her. It was embarrassing, like having an orgasm in public. Dignity had made a big point of having everyone make a run at their dream Class. She waited patiently, drinking a coffee until the last of the new levels pinged. She checked the abbreviated version of her status screen.

She was loath to admit it, but she was terrified of having to teach a group of ten-year-olds. She had been the cool, distant university professor who delivered her lectures, graded her students' papers, and had little to no direct contact with them. She had a feeling that wouldn't cut it here, so she chose her powers to help her through the harrowing experience. Level 14. Dominant Intelligence, Inferior Strength. Legacy (3): Alpha Prime (Restricted). You are the original Alpha.

You gain no Choices in this Competency as you level up. Activation (0): Activate one sentient being, granting him the System active in your current location. Cooldown: 24 hours. The Alpha Prime may use the power on herself, gaining a level each time she does so. Reset (0): Reset an enhanced character, making him lose all acquired levels and expunging the system from his person. It can be used on oneself. Requires permission. Learning (0): Gain a level each time your powers activate someone. Capped at 99 levels.

This is the only way you can gain experience. You have no quest slots. Transmission (0): Your activation power is transmitted when used on others. Each new Avatar can use it once. The total number of Activations during a single cooldown period can't be higher than the Alpha Prime's level. Unused Activations are lost when the Alpha's cooldown resets. Teaching (2): Knows how to convey knowledge in a way that others can learn from.

-Inspiring Teacher (2): Your students get a bonus of up to 50% of their Intelligence when trying to learn from you. Their final stats can't exceed your own Charisma or Intelligence, whichever is higher. Bardic Tongue (1): Knows how to hold an audience, telling stories in public. -Fascinating Storyteller (1): Add 50 % to your charisma when trying to hold the attention of a non-hostile audience by telling a story. There was a lot to unpack here.

Her Alpha legacy was both like and unlike the one Penny, the original Alpha who brought the system to Earth, had. Dawn's Journal explained that each time she reset herself, her powers would undergo minor modifications to adopt some of the characteristics of that world's System, while keeping most of their nature intact. That was the reason she could only offer Competencies in her current reset.

Necessity had heavily modified later Alphas' templates, basing the ability to activate others on the Teaching competency and exchanging most of her Alpha powers for a flat rate of XP gain and a dangerous weakness—automatic Exile when failing a quest—a quest assigned by the Coven. Arimel feared Alphas—they were necessary instruments to be kept on a very short leash. Well, she was an Alpha, and she had no leash. She sighed. She had arrived at the new school. She gathered her resolve and went for it.

Five minutes later, she was having a coffee with the rest of the teaching staff.

"If it is any consolation," said Mr. Spaulding, "we are all just as terrified as you."

"I am taking the teens, those fourteen and up," said Mel.

"Most are Avatars, but we have a couple of Citizens. We also have Aram, Olana's son, who is currently in the process of choosing his Class."

"And one Scion, Elena is sixteen," Spaulding reminded her. Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on the original website.

"Elena is actually part of the staff: she is taking the kids with an apparent age between eight and twelve, and thank God for that." Mel knew that particular group would eat up any other teacher, including herself.

"Her group is solely made up of Scions and Citizens."

"Mr. Spaulding here,""Call me Chuck, please."

"Chuck will take the twelve- to fourteen-year-olds who recently got a Class, that is, most of them. He will help them acclimate to their new circumstances."

"Dawn will help the small group that came from Milwaukee." Mel did not offer any further explanation, but the implications were clear—she was to act more like a bodyguard than like a teacher. If the Answer ever breached the city, Dignity wanted those kids activated as soon as possible—they would become the main targets.

"The eldest girl in that group is called Alice. She is fourteen, but she is to remain with the group because she is the only one who can calm Anne. She has a panic attack each time she leaves the room," Mel explained.

"We don't know her real name. She won't talk. Ever. And she only allows Alice to touch her."

"Bullshit," snapped Dawn.

"You do not trust Alice because she is systemless and came from Milwaukee. That is the only reason you are keeping her with that group."

"She is not systemless, Dawn. Teaching works on her. She chose her first Competency this morning, Drawing. What I told you is the truth. She does not want to leave the other girl's side." Dawn blushed, realizing she had made a fool of herself. For an instant, she wondered what kind of life she had lived throught the Aeons. She had learned many things, but trust did not seem to be among them. Five minutes later, she drew a deep breath and entered her classroom. Twelve kids were waiting for her.

Ten of them looked at her with fear on their faces. Alice, a teen with brown hair and brown eyes, was the only one who appeared relaxed.

"Hi," Dawn said to Alice, smiling. Anne was the last one. She clung to Alice, burying her face into her friend's chest while clutching a Minnie Mouse doll in her right hand. What have these kids gone through?

"Hi, all, my name is Dawn, and I am going to be your teacher," she said, a bright smile on her face.

"I am going to sit here, because teachers get the best desks, you know," she told them smugly.

"Oh, my God," she exclaimed dramatically as she noticed the globe on her desk. Is this your planet? I did not even know what it looked like. It is beautiful, but I don't know the name of the places." She leaned closer and told them conspiratorially, "I come from another world, but that is a big secret. No one can know. Can you help me so that I don't look too dumb? What is this big chunk of land called?" she asked as she pointed at a continent.

"Europe?" asked a young kid, shyly raising his hand. Ten minutes later, the kids were screaming the names of the places Dawn pointed at. Many times, they would not know the answer, and Dawn would act as if she were delighted.

"Ha, got you on that one. I win!" Alice would whisper the name of the place to them, and they would scream it, laughing, much to Dawn's apparent chagrin. Anne did not even look at her. That night, when she went home, she admitted to herself that she had actually enjoyed the experience. She kept a room in the same inn where she had lived all those years, when she had maintained that fictional identity as a Susan, a waitress. Marla, the innkeeper, did not know how to handle the situation.

They had both finally agreed that she was still the same person, even if with a different name and memories—if they had been friends before, there was no reason they could not keep being so. She once more checked the diary she had left for herself. It was infuriatingly sparse. It only contained basic instructions on how to use her powers and a recount of the events that led to the destruction of her world. She could not understand her own actions.

If the diary was an emergency plan in case the original Dawn did not destroy the Icosahedron, why not give herself a trove of knowledge?

"Because you were a pain in the ass," Jenna had explained to her.

"You only gave basic instructions and put us through tests that could very well have ended us. You were a big believer in fostering personal autonomy—if we could not make it, we were not worth the effort. It seems your past self is making you go through the same routines. Serves you right."

"Oh, my God," Dawn had answered.

"I was an asshole."

"You can still evolve into one, give or take a few billion years of experience," Billy added helpfully. Later that night, she fell asleep and dreamed of Anne running through the streets of Milwaukee, fleeing an unknown pursuer. It was not a good dream. The following morning, she repeated her usual routine. She first went to the compound where the Feds were staying. She activated the first volunteer, a large man called Allan, who wanted to learn a farming Competency.

Dawn had decided to build her class around her current job as a teacher. If she were to perform that role, she would do it well. She could always reset herself. Anne could not. Perhaps she could choose something that helped Anne heal? How about something that could take those awful memories from her? Perhaps she could evolve the Healing Competency so it could address mental trauma? She chose Healing as her fourth and final Competency, sealing her Class. You have chosen Healing as your fourth Competency.

You have unlocked your Class. You are a Word Healer. Class Perk: The Right Words. Your Charisma doubles when you try to heal, soothe, or calm with words. She waited until the rest of the level-ups hit her. She was now level 28, with a significant increase in all her stats, including her Intelligence. She relaxed her mind and let her instincts pick the next Choices, not even bothering to look at them. If her theory was right, and her former self had conditioned her own brain, she would pick the right ones.

Everything seemed so clear now. A tough chess match had turned into a Tic-tac-toe game. Previously hidden solutions suddenly became obvious; there were other ways to reach Anne without resorting to memory magic, something she was loath to do. She would not activate a young child with the System—it was a desperate measure that could end up harming Anne instead of healing her. But there were other tools—instruments that inspired the soul instead of rearranging it.

She spent the rest of the morning enthralling the kids with beautiful tales that taught and entertained, making them part of the lesson. The Bardic Tongue empowered her words, enhancing the kids' already vivid imaginations as she told them legends from her world and their own. Her words lifted their minds, making them experience the tales they described. … the wind in their faces as they shouted 'We are Heroes!' addressing a giant figure in the sky… …

the heat of charging Arcana in their hands as they surged from New Belona, ready to stake their lives against that of Fillan the endless… … the heavy weight of a spear as they challenged the Sea of Chaos and the Tribulation of Chicago—I sing the Chant, I wield the Spear… They saw, heard, felt, tasted, and smelled those tales, and all of them taught the same moral—we can survive anything this world can throw at us as long as we do it together. We don't have to be afraid.

Her magic paved the way, but the truths she spoke came from the heart. Her Class was just a bigger, shinier World Globe to help the kids accept what she had to teach. Finally, the lesson was over. The kids looked at her, awed. She had brought the legend of Babylon to life and made them part of it. She looked at Anne, and this time she did not look away. Seeing that, Dawn smiled. Anne smiled back.