It’s a beautiful sunny morning. The hiking path is empty as Ten makes his way up.
“Mai, remind me again, why I am doing this instead of just staying home?”
The Digital Watch Pad on the back of his hand lights up.
“Well based on your current budget and debt, this is about all you can afford.”
“I know that, but why make me go outside … I finally took a day off, and you won’t even let me rest.”
“Research shows that a walk in nature has calming effects. Plus this is the same place you used to visit when you were young. Memories of happy times and the nice view of the forest surrounded by nature, is what’s best for you right now.”
“I don’t remember it being this steep though.”
Ten eventually makes his way to the top. His city behind him and a beautiful sea of trees in front of him. As the clouds clear a bit, the sun shines through and hits him right in the face. The sudden touch of warmth triggers a memory Ten hadn’t thought about for awhile.
He and his mother both stand at the very same peak looking down at the forest. They both look at a flock of birds flying through the sky making their way. His mother’s face blocks the sun but her smile is more radiant than any sun could ever be. She looks at him with her smile and tells him she loves him. She then lowers down to give him a kiss on the forehead. The moment her head lowered the sun was able to reach him and shun right on his face. His mother’s kiss and the sun’s embrace were for Ten a moment of love he somehow forgot.
Tears start to flow down his cheek.
“What’s wrong?”
Ten lowers his head and wipes the tears.
“Nothing, I just remembered me and Mom being here, she loved this place … its nothing.”
Suddenly the sky changes colors. Several streaks of light fill the sky. As if a set of falling meteors tried to make their way to this planet. Ten is mesmerized by the beauty of the chaos in front of him. Each streak seems to burn out before it can touch the ground. But then one single streak seems to be headed for the forest. It doesn’t burn out, and actually hits the ground creating a massive crater.
Ten stands in shock.
“Time to go home.”
Ten quickly turns around as if he didn’t see anything.
“Ten, no wait. WAIT!.”
“What? Did you not just see what I saw? Nah uh … clearly an alien race just landed to take all our blood and brain juice. They ain’t getting my juice. I’m out.”
“Ten, wait. If that is a meteor it will count as a precious metal. If you sell it, you can clear your debt and have enough money to retire immediately.”
Ten stops.
“Think about it Ten, no more boss nagging you”
“But it could be a crazy alien that will eat me.”
“Or it could mean no more days that are just like the ones before it.”
“It could be a new viral disease that will eat my skin and put me into a state of eternal pain as it kills and brings me back eternally.”
“Or it could be freedom from bills that never end.”
This pattern continued for about 10 minutes. But eventually, Mai was able to make Ten see the logic in her reasoning.
“Ok, I’ll go, but I’m going to need to prepare myself first.”
Ten looks around him until a big rock with sharp edges catches his eyes. He walks towards it and grabs the rock from the ground. He closes his eyes and imagines a world of numbers with the rock at its center. The numbers start swirling around the rock and Ten then starts a slow rhythmic chant that increases gradually in speed.
“∫_(-∞)^∞▒〖e^(-x^2 ) dx〗=[∫_(-∞)^∞▒〖e^(-x^2 ) dx〗 ∫_(-∞)^∞▒〖e^(-y^2 ) dy〗]^(1\/2)=[∫_0^2π▒∫_0^∞▒〖e^(-r^2 ) rⅆrⅆθ〗]^(1\/2)=[π∫_0^∞▒〖e^(-u) du〗]^(1\/2)=√π”
The rock in his hand starts to glow blue with a celestial radiance. The rock starts to disintegrate as its very molecules become undone. The particles start to float in a rhythmical pattern above his hand. They then eventually start going back to their original position. But they are then reassembled into a broadsword.
“OK, now I’m ready to go … NO wait, I’m going to need a shield too.”
Ten grabs another rock and creates a shield using the same process. He looks down at the shield and sword with a frown on his face.
“Ten, you ready?”
Ten looks around the beautiful field he is on and starts grabbing all the rocks and bushes he can find.
“Just give me a few seconds, I just want to be ready.”
After 30 minutes of Ten exhausting himself and completely ruining the beautiful field he was standing in. he nods to himself.
“Now I’m ready.”
“Ten, you are wearing 17 different armors, you have 9 different kinds of weapons on you, including a crossbow I’m pretty sure you don’t know how to use. You made 62 clay golems that can only walk and hit stuff, and you’re wearing a helmet with a metal cap under a steel hat.”
“What’s your point?”
“Take one step”
Ten takes a step and the weight of his gear brings him down to the ground unable to stand back up.
“Ten, we have to go down the hill into the forest, how in the world are those golems going to follow you?”
“Well, you know we can just walk.”
“Ten, that would take forever, and by the time we get there someone else will have definitely come to take whatever is there away. You should condense your armor into 1, strengthen your sword with the other weapons, and use the rest to make a hovercraft so we can go down there in the quickest and safest way.”
With a bitter face, he admits Mai is right.
“Ok, but I am not capable of doing all of that and you know it.”
“I will help you.”
“But this isn’t an emergency.”
“Based on your current vital signs, your financial situation, and the fact that you seem listless throughout most days, I am capable of justifying this as an emergency to solve your problems.”
“I don’t really know how I feel about that answer.”
“Let’s begin.”
The pad on Ten’s hand starts to glow even more. Slowly it starts taking over his entire hand, his arm, and then eventually his whole body. Ten eyes glow as he starts a chant far above his level.
∇⋅∇ψ=(∂^2 ψ)/(∂x^2 )+(∂^2 ψ)/(∂y^2 )+(∂^2 ψ)/(∂z^2 )=1/(r^2 sinθ ) [sinθ ∂/∂r (r^2 ∂ψ/∂r)+∂/∂θ (sinθ ∂ψ/∂θ)+1/sinθ (∂^2 ψ)/(∂φ^2 )]
The armor is reconstructed, his weapons are recombined and the golems are reshaped. Ten stands in a very beautiful armor, with a sword that could have been made for a god and a hovercraft that looks like it could take him anywhere in the world. Ten smiles as he looks at his gear, he whispers.
“Thank you.”
Mai hears him but doesn’t reply.
“…”
Ten gets on the hovercraft and makes his way to the center of the big crater. From a distance, he can see a shape at the center. The closer he gets the more he can make out the shape. Once close enough to actually see Demo, he stops the hovercraft.
“Yeah, I’m done, I’m going home.”
“Ten, wait! He might need our help.”
“This guy just fell from outer space, literally flew through the fires of hell, survived what I think was his spaceship couldn’t, and YOU think he needs MY help?”
“Clearly he is unconscious, and he might be a very high-level golem we could sell. Just get close enough to see if it’s breathing or if it’s an inanimate object.”
Ten looks at his gear and understands the risks Mai took to help him make them. He raises his head and slowly, very slowly walks towards Demo. Once he reaches Demo he sees that he is breathing. Demo looks peaceful but alive. Ten decides to poke him with his sword to see if he can wake Demo up.
The moment the sword hits Demo’s skin, his eyes pop open and a blast of energy radiates from his body. The blast hits Ten and he is flung back with amazing force. His armor completely destroyed, his sword shattered and his hovercraft in pieces. He hits the ground and lies there.
Demo is awake and looks around to see what happened and where he is. He sees Ten on the ground, and lowers his head again, with sorrow on his face.
“I’m sorry”
Chapter 3 Fin
