Oct 25 (4 Days Later)
"I'm a Barbie girl in a Barbie world."
"Life in plastic, it's fantastic."
"You can brush my hair, undress me everywhere."
I spun my chair around, Barbie Girl playing in the background. "Imagination, life is your creation," I hummed the lyric.
Suddenly, the music cut.
"Sorry for interrupting, boss," Conrad spoke from my speaker, "but another one of your packages has arrived."
"Thanks." It got here early. It said 5–8 business days, but it got here in 4.
The living room was an absolute mess. Dozens of empty boxes littered the ground, electronics, most of them expensive. Taken apart, their inner components being repurposed.
"Finally." I opened the package. "Why the hell was this so hard to find?"
Inside was a micro welder, the name was pretty obvious. It was a very small welder, meant for delicate and precise jobs.
Using the nearby screwdriver, I pried it open, pulling out the electrode and inner components.
After throwing the casing away, I lowered myself into the basement. Now that Flappy Bird has taken off, I used part of my cut to fix up the place, transforming it from a secret distillery into a semi-proper secret hideout.
Which, at the moment, mainly consists of a set of black folding tables, a trio of computer screens, and some speakers either for listening to music or speaking to Conrad.
On the right side was a table with a trio of PCs, all of them taken apart and merged into a Frankenstein PC. Right next to it was a second compact, only a third of it completed.
Now that I have proper access to money, I'm building a second Compact, one with better hardware, and doesn't look like it's being held together by duct tape.
On the other side was another table, this one holding a large metal box. Welding tools, screwdrivers, drills, a large welding device.
"Almost done." I opened up the box.
It took me a moment, but I eventually equipped the mini welder to the tool head and power center.
"Aaaand… done!"
It was finally done. I've made my first Solid Box. These past four days, I've been busy. I've absorbed every skill, template, and ability, built the Solid Box, and fixed some stuff around the house.
"Should we give it a test run, boss?" Conrad asked.
"Yep, use the blueprint for the BPF," also known as the Black Power Fist from Boondocks.
A minute or so later, the Solid Box opened. A wave of steam burst out of it—it seems like it's having an issue regulating the heat exhaust.
Inside the Solid Box was a white glove. Since it's still an early prototype, it's not able to paint or customize any of the designs. So everything it fabricates is an eggshell white—but I kind of like it.
Like I said, the design was pretty simple: a white glove made of an insulated material, grey lines running through each finger. At the wrist was a small metal bracket, meant to both secure the glove and hold its power source.
After adjusting the gauntlet so it fit my hand a bit, I inserted a makeshift battery I designed for it. With a simple flex of my hand, the gauntlet let out a set of sparks.
"Cool." A sudden realization hit me—I just tested a gauntlet meant to release electric discharges with my bare hands. "Well, that could have gone worse." My impulse control is terrible.
"That's certainly a lot of power, but why exactly did you construct a glove capable of emitting 75,000 volts?" Conrad asked me. "I mean, you probably have a good reason, but I'm a curious A.I." Conrad let out a nervous chuckle.
"Isn't it obvious? Upgrade."
The Gacha has given me a new quest—one that is surprisingly easy to complete.
[Quest: Create a second Persona]
[Reward: 25 XP & ???]
It wasn't much, but every little bit helps.
If I wanted cooler stuff from the Gacha, like actual superpowers, I needed to level up—and so far, the Gacha hasn't given me too many options.
Technically, I could go out and beat up some bad guys, but that only gives me like 2 XP. I need 380 more to level up, which means I need to find and beat up 140 people.
Possible, but it would be a long process, and it definitely won't be quiet.
The only issue is, the Gacha apparently has requirements for what can be considered a persona.
Since I already had the Arkham Knight suit, plus the weapons, I was just going to use the Arkham armor and make that a new person. Unfortunately, the Gacha responded saying that this persona is not able to be registered.
It didn't explain why, which annoys the hell out of me. No error code, no hint, no "try again later"it was just no.
Great, love that, really helpful.
"So, what's next, boss?" Conrad asked.
"Now, it's time to check out the toys." I've been saving the Gacha items, but it's about time I check them out. "DRAW Predator Wrist Gauntlet."
The gauntlet appeared in my hand. It's slightly smaller than I expected it to be. It looks like it's been modified to fit my wrist—which makes sense. The Yautja are like eight feet tall and pure muscle.
"Wow… that seems dangerous," Conrad examined it through the camera. "I don't recognize the material."
I adjusted the gauntlet to my wrist. "It's alien technology. It's made of, and powered by alien materials." The control panel lit up.
Well… shit.
The panel was in an alien language, which made no sense. The Gacha can adjust it to my size, but not to my language?
Luckily, thanks to the language comprehension ability I got from Danny, it wasn't too hard to figure out how it works, though I still can't read it. It was like trying to program a tv in spanish, you have a rough estimate of what it says but you can't actually read it
"Now, let's see what this thing can do." With a simple press of a button, three metallic discs shot out.
The discs expanded mid-flight, small blades popped out as they struck the concrete wall.
Cool, but I have to be careful. If it can pierce a concrete wall, imagine what it can do to a human head.
"So it has a ranged attack, but what about close range?" I slid a dial.
A trio of blades popped out, jagged and razor-sharp. From the looks of it, the dial can be used to adjust the length of the blades.
"If those slots are for the blade, and the compartment above stores those discs…" I glanced at the ring on the underside. "Then what's this?"
The ring popped out, falling to the ground.
"Well, that's dis—" Before I could finish my sentence, a dozen long blades popped out of the ring.
"Word of the wise, boss—be careful when using that. They look sharp enough to take a finger," Conrad warned.
"Heh, I'm 80% sure I can regenerate limbs," I responded. "But the warning's been noted."
I picked the ring up, the blades retracted.
It's called the smart disc in the movies, but I've always called it the razor disc.
It's basically a frisbee that works like a boomerang. Also, it comes with razor blades that can slice through flesh like soft butter.
I'll have to test it later, but I can't exactly throw it in the basement. No room, and I might destroy something by accident.
"Alright, next item. DRAW Hanzo's Storm Bow."
Conrad examined the bow and quiver as they landed in my hands. "A compound-recurve hybrid bow? A little outdated, if you ask me, but to each their own."
I grabbed an arrow from the quiver, notching it as I pulled the string back. "Tell that to Hawkeye." The arrow flew through the air, it pierced the wall with ease.
Thank goodness for Lara's templates. You could have hundreds of men with automated weapons, but Lara can still kill every single one with just a bow.
Some of the arrows in the quiver were different. One had a suction point instead of an arrowhead, with a mechanism attached to it. Another one just had a cylinder.
"Nice." As carefully as I could, I opened them up and began to study them. "Conrad, take note. These are the Scatter Arrow and the Sonar Arrows."
"On it, sir." One of the screens began to display a simple schematic.
The schematic is pretty bare-bones, since Conrad's cameras are pretty normal. They don't have features that would allow him to zoom in and scan the inner workings.
The Sonar Arrow was pretty simple, it's just sound waves and a mechanism that activates when it impacts a wall.
Unfortunately, it seems like Hanzo relied on his training to use it. To a normal person, it would just sound like a set of beeps. Hanzo was able to make out people and outlines due to his training.
As for the Scatter Arrow, that's somehow simple and complicated. It's basically a frag grenade, but the shrapnel are mini arrows capable of bouncing off surfaces.
"Dang it."
"Something wrong, boss?" Conrad asked.
"It's nothing. With a few modifications, I can replicate them in the Solid Box, the issue is the material cost."
While I have money, I don't want to spend every cent on arrow material. Well… unless Omni Work becomes big enough that we can buy directly from suppliers. A thought for later.
After placing the bow down, it was pretty clear what I should check out next.
"DRAW, Genji's Ryu-ichimonji."
A sword appeared in my hand, I tested the weight.
With a simple swing, I sliced through the air. Then again, and again. Each slice was elegant, like it was second nature.
Well… it kind of was. I had Jin Sakai's sword techniques, a literal samurai. A part of me kind of wants to get into a sword fight, test my blade.
Probably wouldn't be a fair fight, though. From what I could tell from a glance, my sword was different. The material is unique, refined. In both the cinematic scenes and gameplay, it was capable of cutting through steel, and reflecting energy blasts or bullets alike.
"DRAW, Batgrapple." I placed the sword down.
The design was pretty simple, a high-tension cable with a magnetic motor. The hook is custom-made, capable of latching onto people, grappling onto surfaces, or piercing certain materials for proper anchoring.
I'll have to practice later. Lara gave me some info on how to grapple and swing, but nowhere near the level of Batman.
I checked the Gacha list. There were still three more things.
[Item: Assassin's Robes (Assassin's Creed)]
[Item: Complete Herb Set (Resident Evil Series)]
[Item: Advanced Multi-purpose Gauntlet (Resident Evil Series)]
While the herbs could be useful, I don't have a way to properly cultivate them yet. If I'm not careful, they could die, and I'll lose a potential super-medicine.
The A.M.G could be useful. It's basically a cybernetic, increasing the user's punching force to the point they could punch a metal door off its hinges.
As for the robes…
"DRAW, Assassin's Robes."
They appeared in front of me, and I immediately put them on.
Mine was a little bit different. Instead of white, it was a bluish-black. which made sense, I guess. Originally they were made white to blend in with monks. Considering monks aren't as common nowadays, that wouldn't work.
It also came with a built-in cloth mask, but it only covered the lower part of my jaw.
Hmm… I wonder.
The robe was cool, but it was missing something.
Every assassin needs a hidden blade. The Predator gauntlet would work. It's a little bulky-looking, but it fits underneath the robes.
I didn't stop there, though. I clipped the Batgrapple to my side, holstered Genji's sword to another, and strapped Hanzo's bow and quiver to my back.
It was unnecessary, but I also added the Black Power Fist to my other hand.
"Damn." Somehow, I looked both ridiculous and badass.
"Might I just say, sir—you look very…" Conrad struggled to find the word. "Skilled." An A.I. should not struggle to find answers.
Ignoring that, I'm wearing assassin robes, wielding both a bow and a sword, a hidden blade on one hand, a power fist on the other, and a grapple on my waist.
It kind of looks like I'm wearing cosplay.
Cool cosplay—but still cosplay.
[New Persona Detected: Would you like to register? Insert name (____)]
For real?
I considered it for a moment. I mean, it's not like there's any downside. I quickly typed in a name.
[Creed has been Registered]
[Quest completed: Create a second Persona]
[Reward: 25 XP & ???]
Let's go.
I quickly accepted the reward, wondering what the mystery gift was.
[Ability: Clean (Gacha)]
[Clean: Nothing special—just an ability that automatically cleans a persona's equipment and outfit. Only activates if a persona's outfit or equipment has been unused for at least an hour.]
Useful, but kind of disappointing.
RING. RING. RING.
"Dang, I gotta go." I grabbed my bag. "Leo—"
As I called out my name, my assassin robes and weapons vanished.
"I suggest putting some clothes on," Conrad said, with some humor in his tone.
My clothes vanished, all I had were my boxers
"Conrad."
"Yes?"
"Shut up."
===
Oct 28
"If you don't mind me asking, sir. Why are you sewing?" Conrad asked.
"Because I need a Halloween outfit, and the ones in the store are kind of basic."
"Makes sense. but why don't you just use one of your other outfits?"
"Two reasons. Those are for a specific purpose—they're only meant to be used when interacting with heroes or villains. Also, where's the fun in that? Why use an outfit given to me when I can make one?"
Conrad examined the outfit. "Well… it sure is interesting."
"Is there anything else?"
"You told me to remind you to roll on the 28th. Not sure what that means, but—"
"Thank you, Conrad," I cut him off. "Please leave. I need a private moment."
"Uh… sure." Conrad left. I disconnected the PC, just to make sure.
I smiled. "Time for another Gacha."
The screen lit up as it began to draw different cards.
It's not much at the moment—but it's frequent.
[No Bonus Card Found]
Damn—that's disappointing.
[Schematic: Ninja Smoke Bomb (TMNT)]
That's a scam. I could have easily made those.
[Skill: Leon Kennedy's Combat Knowledge (Resident Evil)]
Nice, I can kick the shit out of somebody and do a backflip after.
[Skill: Nick Ramos's Mechanical Knowledge (Dead Rising 3)]
Who? I've heard of the game, but I've never actually played it.
[Skill: Aiden Caldwell's Parkour Combat (Dying Light 2)]
Another game I haven't played. I hope this doesn't become a thing.
[Skill: John Wick's Combat Knowledge (John Wick)]
Does that include shooting, or just his hand-to-hand?
[Skill: Green Arrow's Archery (DC)]
Kind of convenient that I got an archer's skill after summoning the Storm Bow.
[Ability: Agent 47's Toxin and Poison Resistance (Hitman)]
That could be useful, but probably won't last against some of Marvel's BS poisons.
[Template: John Rambo (Rambo Series)]
I've actually never seen any of Rambo's movies. Most of them came out before I was born. It didn't matter, though. Everybody knows how dangerous Rambo is, I'm going to be a menace.
[Template: White Shadow (Boondocks)]
Was he real? The show tried to make it a mystery. Was he real or just a figment of Huey's paranoia? Then again, he did warn Huey when the government was after him. So he's definitely real, just very sneaky.
[Template: Ty Lee (Avatar: The Last Airbender)]
Ah, another of my childhood crushes. Realistically, though, she could mess somebody up. Her gymnastics, combined with her chakra-blocking, made her a serious threat in the show.
As I looked over the list, I realized most of them could be useful for my Ghost persona, make him look like some sort of elite black ops, something that could rival Black Widow… or even surpass her.
"Gacha, draw everything."