“All done,” she said. She looked up smiling, but her face fell as she saw Nori. The other woman was staring at Nathan, concern written all over her face.

***

Nathan found it hard to breathe and beads of sweat covered his forehead.

Whatever the Tec Infusion did to him, it was profound. He could feel every fiber of his being affected. Rewritten. He gritted his teeth and turned his attention back to the hovering messages. The best thing he could do was to finish the process as quickly as possible, then, maybe he could breathe again.

Racial Traits (Human-Scion, 16% Relict compatibility)

Existing Trait Found: Universal Potential.

Grants +5% Tec Infusion, +10% to total score.

Path Selection:

Unlocking restricted Paths.

Note: Once selected, a Path cannot be changed. All future crossroads will derive from your Path.

Option one: Overlord

Command lesser beings and bend them to your will

Primary: Control, Intelligence, Awareness, Appeal

Secondary: Agility, Strength

Option two: Technomancer

Interact and control all types of technological systems

Primary: Control, Intelligence, Awareness, Agility

Secondary: Strength, Appeal

There was no doubt in his mind what to pick. Even before the Calamity, Nathan was never really comfortable with other people. He could never envision himself leading or commanding others. Clenching his teeth and feeling like he was about to be pulled apart, he made his selection.

Light shone out of his body, streaming toward his temples and forearms.

Nathan sighed in relief as the pressure inside of him eased.

Attribute points to Assign: 3

He quickly redistributed the points he was given, then checked his Status.

Nathan, Human-scion, level 3 (5 Tec)

Path: Technomancer (score 17)

Attributes:

●       Strength 1 Ⓢ

●       Agility 2 Ⓟ

●       Intelligence 4 Ⓟ

●       Control 4 Ⓟ

●       Awareness 4 Ⓟ

●       Appeal 2 Ⓢ

Conditions:

●       Tec Infusion Boost +5%

●       Score boost +10%

“Nathan, are you alright?”

The young man looked up in surprise to see Lana’s concerned face mere centimeters from his own.

He took an involuntary step backward and nodded.

Lana looked unconvinced but let the matter drop. She turned to the other woman. So what Path did you choose?”

“I had a tough choice between a Hunter, which specialized in long-range weapons, and a Navigator. I went with the Navigator.”

Lana looked at her as if unbelieving what she heard, then she bit her lower lip. “I know I don’t know you very well, but Hunter sounds more like your thing.”

Nori’s face hardened. “I’d go with that, except I don’t see any alien long-ranged weapons lying around, do you? Besides, we have something better than weapons.” She tapped on the wall appreciatively. “It might be a long shot, but I was hoping choosing Navigator will let me operate this baby. If we have an alien spaceship at our disposal, surviving this new Earth is going to be a lot easier.”