Chương 6: Shopping

I jerked awake, almost falling from the chair. The computer screen was still on, and my drool had made its home on the keyboard.

"Shit, I can't afford a new keyboard," I cleaned the keyboard using my shirt. Thankfully, it still worked. The computer screen was displaying an article on Lindy Hop. The Lindy Hop is an American dance which was born in the African-American communities of Harlem, New York City, in 1928 and has evolved since then. I summoned my skillcard next. Lindy Hop Mikhael was a man of freedom. Nobody or nothing was ever able to confine him. He loved dancing yet found all the dance forms too restrictive and confining.

So, he made a form of his own, with a lot of hopping. Recorded in the Akashic system in the year 88775 Both told a different story. Why? The root of the difference lay in the dates. Our records say 1928 C. E., meanwhile, the Akashic system states that it's year 88775. It doesn't follow the Earth's or the universe's age either; they are 4. 5 billion and 13. 8 billion years old, respectively. I am not the first one to ask these questions. Everyone wonders, how does the Akashic system manage time?

Desummoning my card, I summoned the second card I earned yesterday while I switched the tab. Order placed successfully, pick it up at our store in Walker's Tower. I had ordered a card, and now I was left with enough money to buy four packets of instant noodles. I don't even have the money to pay the rent, which is due next week.

Ordering the card was a hard decision, but if Skillmerge works the way I had guessed, then after merging this with Snicker, it should give me a card which could help me greatly going forward. I did say I needed to do more experiments before I could take big risks, but I don't have time. I want to know more about Pyiari, and as soon as I can. I slept in yesterday's dirty clothes. So, first I got rid of the jeans. It now smelled of blood, and the cut on it was big; getting it patched will be hard.

Sad, it was one of my favourites. I gave myself a good scrub, washing away all the dirt and hardened blood. A good shampoo too. I only wanted the dirt to go, but why did a bunch of my hair leave too? I don't wanna go bald like my father. I am only in my twenties. After the bath, I cooked a packet of instant noodles. Only seven are left in stock now. People say instant noodles are tasty, but not when you eat them daily.

After eating, I left my apartment and took a bus to the Walker's Tower, which took one instant noodle's worth of money. The Walker's Tower is a place where a riftwalker can find anything and everything they need. The sixty-floor tower contains various stores, most owned by one of the guilds. I went through a thorough inspection at the entrance. The increased security due to the act of terrorism last year was still being maintained.

I passed through the air curtain and was instantly greeted by the cold air, opposite of the scorching heat outside. The ground floor was a common area mostly filled with restaurants. Meanwhile, the upper floors were territorial, belonging to specific guilds. The higher you go, the bigger the guilds you encounter. I had to go to the seventh floor. Not wasting any time, I took the elevator. I had to wait a minute before it arrived. Seven people exited, and four entered, including me.

The elevator stopped at literally every floor and took five minutes just to reach the seventh floor. This floor was a lot quieter than the one before. The white marble shone bright under the bright lights. There were various stores belonging to many small guilds or strong individuals. The store I was looking for belonged to the Truman Guild, or family. All the guild members belonged to a single family; outsiders were not allowed.

A case of literary theft: this tale is not rightfully on Amazon; if you see it, report the violation. Even their store was named The Truman Store. The automatic doors slid open, and the receptionist greeted me.

"Good afternoon, sir. How can I help you today?"

"I booked a card earlier."

"Can I get your name, sir?" He asked while looking at the computer placed on the desk.

"Clark Benz,""I can see your booking right here. I will call the holder. Why don't you look at our collection of cards while you wait." He pointed deeper into the store, where a myriad of cards were displayed. I nodded and went to check them out. The receptionist picked up the telephone and made a call, probably to the holder. The cards displayed were not real. A skillcard cannot exist physically, hence a holder is needed for trade. Holders are people who carry many cards, duplicates or unique.

Most do not belong to them, but to their employer. The cards displayed were props with their descriptions inscribed on them. Most were copper, but there were some silver mixed in, too. A single gold card was being displayed, a note below it read 'Not for sale, belongs to Guildmaster Eric Truman'. Armour of Impenetrability Enstarn was a great warrior, but he was an even greater blacksmith. He crafted all the weapons the Gods, the Asuras, the heroes and the villain used.

Every weapon made after followed the blueprint he made. He gave away all that he crafted, keeping only two things with himself, one of which was the Armour of Impenetrability. Recorded in the Akashic system in the year 1874. Armour of Impenetrability lets the wielder summon it anytime and anywhere. Copper cards contain things any normal human can do. Silver cards use magika; the most popular example is the fireball card or body augmentation card. Gold cards go one step beyond that, giving you a broken ability.

Yet, they are not the strongest. This card, which literally summons an armour that no one can penetrate, can only amount to gold. The strongest cards are diamond cards. All of them break some kind of logic we had set. Only three have been registered to date, and I am the fourth. With Skillmerge, will I be able to make something as strong as the Armour of Impenetrability? There is a silver armour skill which makes your armour harder and a summoning skill which lets you summon marked items.

What will happen if I merge them? What can I do if I have the resources? Will I—"Sir," the receptionist's call broke me out of my thoughts.

"Your card is here." Another man with a messy beard and a potbelly had joined. He was the holder. He summoned the card that I had booked. It was of brown colour. Even a copper card took all of my savings, I could not imagine how much a silver or gold card would cost.

"Here, check it if it's the one you booked." He handed me the card, and I read its content. Delay Winston had a rare disease that caused a delay between his thoughts and movements. He had to learn to live with it. Recorded in the Akashic system in the year 286435 Delay lets the wielder delay their movement by five seconds.

"Why would you want to buy a card like this?" The holder asked. The card was worthless. No walker would want to delay their movements, and it isn't rare either; therefore, it holds no collectible value.

"I have a use for it,""As you say, not that I care."

"Sir, how would you like to pay?" the receptionist asked. Can't you just gift it to me? You have so many cards, and this is practically worthless.

"Card, please."

"Thank you for your patronage. Please take your skillcard from the holder." He extended a hand towards me, physical contact is required for the transfer of skillcards and a handshake is used for that. But I can't do that, if I hold his hand, we would start dancing. No choice, only one option left. I dapped him, and it was a perfect one at that. The sound echoed throughout the quiet store.

"What are you doing?"

"Handshakes are out of fashion now, we dap."

"I did not know that." I felt something knocking in my chest; it was the skillcard. I let it in and felt the slight tingle of it assimilating inside me. I let go of his hand and summoned the card for final verification. It was delayed.

"Thank you,""No need," the holder answered and took the staff-only door to disappear.

"Sir, did you like any other card while looking around which you would like to buy?" No, thanks, I am already out of money.

"No,""Then, do visit us again" I nodded and left. Right now, I just want to reach home and merge the two cards. After spending another instant noodles' worth of money on the bus ticket, I was at my home. I summoned all three of my cards. Snicker, Delay and Skillmerge. Two brown and one translucent card floated in front of me.

"Activate Skillmerge," Magika left my body; this time, I was ready, so I did not fall on the ground. All three cards started glowing and encircling each other. Using the diamond card as a base, the other two danced on top of it. Slowly merging together. White light consumed my vision, and when it was gone, there were only two cards left. One was translucent, and the other was white. Finally, my first silver skillcard.