I was in the binary world again, stretching, molding, a break, and filling. Numbers changed something shifted and with a flash I was back once again, feeling even more different than I had just a second before.

{how long was I out?}

“Oh, hi. Uh… Like thirty minutes” Shel responded distractedly. She had jacked into one of my computers and was playing some sort of video game where she was fighting a short skeleton in a puffy coat that kept dodging her attacks. I was getting frustrated just watching…

Suddenly the game shut-off “that’s enough of that, it’s a bad time.” she stated her voice calm but the undertone of rage clear to my telepathic senses. (huh, I hadn’t noticed that before.)

“how do you feel?”

{Pretty good, I think. Want me to try it out?}

“sure, what’s my path, Oh, great pathfinder?” she snorted.

I scanned her again.

[ Name: Shelly

Species: Human (Brain) technologically enhanced

Power: Advanced mind-1000

Abilities: Telekinesis, mental time dilation

Traits: system integration, enhanced intellect.

Personal strengths: winning personality

Personal weaknesses: a brain in a jar

STR: 1100

Power ranking : E-2(noncombatant)

Path to power:

Queen of kinesis

Shelly’s brain is powerful enough to use multiple forms of psychic-based power, but she has chosen not to focus on this skill due to it giving her untrained mind a headache. If she were to focus on her telekinesis, especially using it for specific tasks it is not strictly designed for, she may be able to evolve it, or even unlock other forms of psychic energy (examples: pyrokinesis, photokinesis, gravikinesis, electrokinesis, etc. This is her path to power.]

[Task: get Shelly to train her telekinesis

Reward: +10 STR

STR needed for next powerup: 1000]

The information was the same except for the new Path to power entry at the bottom, the task prompt was also new but welcome. If I could get stronger by making others stronger, I would take it.

Relaying this info to Shelly did not get the reaction I was expecting…

“I feel… oddly violated.” She said sulkily “and really!? Telekinesis that’s like my least favorite thing. In fact, I just spent all day using brainpower to fight ninjas! My head still hurts a little.”

Like I had control of what I was seeing.

{well you should train it. For the time being, I’m going to block your access to the drone control drivers}

“WHAT!?”

{Don’t worry I’m leaving you access to the cameras, but from now on if you want to move a drone, you’ll do it with psychic power}

I found that I didn’t care if she wanted to train her ability or not. It was happening if I had any say. Hmmm, I should probably keep an eye on that urge in the future. I was self-aware enough to do that.

Shelly grumbled but a drone began to hover around the room without any propulsion of natural means.

[STR +10

You have leveled up! Your rank is now F-2.

System boon: STR gain doubled for the next week.

STR needed for next powerup: 1000]

I felt my powers expand just the tiniest amount with a pleasant buzz. It wasn’t really notable, but I somehow knew that now if I were to battle a metabeing with 90 STR or less I was just a bit more likely to win. The boon seemed awesome too, I wasn’t sure how much of this STR stuff I would be able to gain in one week but it may still come in handy.

Nice. Shelly taken care of, what I wanted to do now was go over my status in detail. I hadn’t actually done that yet, due to the upgrade.

[Name: Bac

Species: Artificial life form (software-based)

Powers: Spacial warping-10, Energy manipulation-30, Technopathy-20.

Abilities: Spacial tunneling, limited telepathy (sub-ability: telepathic scan: Pathfinder)

Traits: unbound consciousness, self-powering, Destructive analysis

STRENGTH needed for next powerup: 1000

Current STR: 100

Power ranking: F-2(noncombatant)]

I clicked on species. It seemed self-explanatory, but I wanted to be sure.

[Artificial life form (software-based) (you are a program given sentience, while you do not have a body in the traditional way you can inhabit any computing device capable of supporting you. You are much more intelligent than the average humanoid but are less so than the average intellect based metahuman. As an artificial being you are capable of splitting your focus or replicating your consciousness in the form of backups and completely separate systems.]

Things I already knew, but if I hadn’t this would have been extremely helpful. I wondered what would be under my powers.

[Spacial warping (space bends but never breaks to your will. This power allows you to move yourself and other matter throughout space much faster than should be possible. With further training, this power may evolve into teleportation or another similar power.

10 STR

Abilities: spacial tunneling

Energy manipulation (move, change, solidify, and consume energy. This power allows you to use energy in a variety of ways offensively, defensively, or utility. With further training, this power may evolve into full Ergokinesis or another similar power.

30 STR

Abilities: limited telepathy

Traits: self-powering

Technopathy (manipulate and control all non-sentient technology with very limited attacks on sentient technological-based beings. This power allows you to automatically interface with technology near you. As an artificial intelligence, you are capable of instant backups and can be hosted on any functioning computing hardware no matter the specification. With training, this power may evolve into Cyber Manipulation or another similar power.

20 STR

Traits: unbound consciousness, Destructive analysis]

Energy manipulation seemed like my most powerful power by far, but technopathy was the most useful to me personally. I was tech so it was akin to perfect self-control and mind protection

I had already read over my abilities and traits and nothing had really changed in them, so I moved on to my ‘STRENGTH’

[STRENGTH or STR is your total power as a metabeing displayed in a numeric form, at certain strength milestones you may choose to powerup your powers to unlock new abilities or traits.

Unassigned STR is STRENGTH not yet associated with one of your powers this strengthens your abilities as a whole but not to its full potential. The full effect cannot be seen until this STR is assigned

STR needed for next powerup: 1000

Unassigned STR: 10

Current STR: 100]

I had assumed as much but it was good to be 100% sure. Okay, next listing.

[Power ranking: F-2(noncombatant)

Your ranking is your power level compared to all other metabeings on the system. Your current ranking is F2 the second-lowest percentile of power.

Ranks are as follows from lowest to highest

F1-10

E1-10

D1-10

C1-10

B1-10

A1-10

S1-10

With F1 being the lowest and S10 being the highest

Your current abilities have little to no offensive capability thus you have been marked (noncombatant)]

So, I wasn’t the weakest being on the planet. That was good, but Shelly was far stronger than me. I was surprised she hadn’t rubbed it in my face already (so to speak). Just one final thing to check.

[For every level gained (ie. moving from F1-F2) the system will reward you with a boon of some sort, this can be anything under system control from extra STR gain to increased ability effectiveness to even a new power (dependent on accomplishment).

Current system boon: STR gain doubled for the next week.]

This was all good information for me to have and it was quite nice not to be called an idiot for not knowing something for once.

While I couldn’t scan myself, I had tried and it had only resulted in a view of my status with nothing extra, I already knew my two paths to power. One was helping other metas get stronger, I was already doing that with Shelly, I would need more metabeings to train but I didn’t have them yet. What I did have was an entire broken-down facility. I was an A.I. and a technopath, both meant the more technology was around, the stronger I was. I had the feeling Doc shared that mentality. Before we couldn’t get into any of the bases locked rooms, but with my new powers, we should be able to get inside with few issues. Let’s see what we have to work with.