Chapter -21474836326 (Just One of Those Days)
Ada stood in the entryway of her soulscape and immediately started to run for the alcove where she’d met with Lovelace each time previously, but skidded to a halt when she saw the guide instead running for her. Once Lovelace was close enough, she threw an orange disk at Ada like a non-copyright infringing flying disc.
“Take it and go,” she yelled, “it’s the best we have for what you need, and we don’t have time to fuck around. RUN!”
Surprise plain in her face as the disk smacked into her, Ada still managed to catch hold without letting it fall to the floor. Glancing at the label, she saw that it read simply [Breaker]. Trusting that Lovelace probably knew what she was talking about, Ada turned and left.
A slew of notifications rang out through Ada’s mind, but she willed the system to hold them in reserve until she had a chance to figure out what was happening around her. The bag and sheet were gone, but she felt her wrists bound firmly behind her back, and there was noticeable weight around her neck. Opening her eyes and taking in the dim surroundings, Ada found that she was on her side on a wooden floor, but all around her were metal bars, likely iron, but she’d have to check to be sure. Around a meter above her was a wooden ceiling that only continued for a short distance beyond the bars. Ada checked the floor again and yes, the floor was the same, the wood extending past the bars for roughly the same distance as the ceiling, beyond which was a rough hewn stone floor. Ah, she thought, she was chained inside a cage. The weight on her neck was most likely some kind of slave collar.
Immediate surroundings identified, Ada looked around for what else she could see from her limited vantage. There were another set of cages on the left and right of her, and in the dim light, Ada could just make out figures slumped over in them much in the way she was. She could also hear a whimpering coming from further away, but she couldn’t see whoever or whatever was making the sound. And that was it. She couldn't make out any of the walls around her, but Ada did finally see that what little light there was available was coming from higher up what she guessed was the wall before her cage.
Since it looked as though she probably wasn't in any immediate danger, Ada finally called up the notifications that had been waiting patiently for her review.
[*ding!* Congratulations! Your class [Beloved of the Forge - Metal] has evolved and become [Breaker - Metal]!]
[Breaker] -- You stand opposed to the exploitation and oppression of the weak and vulnerable by the institutions which are supposed to provide the safety and welfare they desperately need. This is the first step of many on your path to becoming the unstoppable force of destruction this world never wanted.
[*ding!* You have unlocked the class skill [Sunder Arms]!] Many people have arms and also carry them. Increased damage caused when attempting to sunder the arms of your enemies. Passive skill, -2290 mana regen
[*ding!* You have unlocked the class skill [Curse Eater]!] Curses masquerading as buff skills are used by those in positions of power to oppress and control the very people they are supposed to protect. Break down and consume curse effects placed on you with increased potency per level. Passive skill, restores mana whenever a curse effect is consumed.
[*ding!* You have unlocked the class skill [One Woman Wrecking Crew]!] If your day keeps going this way, you might just break something tonight. Walls, doors, shields, or ceilings: nothing placed before you will stand up against your resolve. Improved impact force based on your momentum when encountering stationary objects per level. Passive skill, -1367 mana regen.
[*ding!* You have unlocked the Class Skill [Dance]!] Dance, Breaker, dance. Improved perception, proprioception, and motor control when moving to your own beat. +1% dexterity per level.
[*ding!* [Curse Eater] has consumed one stack of [Guardsman’s Buff] and you recover 1584 Mana]
[*ding!* Good Job! [Curse Eater] has leveled up! 1 -> 2!]
[*ding!* [Curse Eater] has consumed one stack of [Guardsman’s Buff] and you recover 1584 Mana]
A case of theft: this story is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.
[*ding!* Good Job! [Curse Eater] has leveled up! 2 -> 3!]
[*ding!* [Curse Eater] has consumed one stack of [Guardsman’s Buff] and you recover 1584 Mana]
This continued for a bit until finally,
[*ding!* [Curse Eater] has consumed one stack of [Guardsman’s Buff] and you recover 1584 Mana]
[*ding!* Good Job! [Curse Eater] has leveled up! 7 -> 8!]
[*ding!* [Breaker] has Leveled up! Level 8 -> 16! +8 Free stats, +8 Strength, +8 Dexterity, +2 Vitality, +2 Speed, +2 Mana Regen, +8 Magic Power from your class, +2 Strength, +3 Dexterity, +5 Vitality, +3 Speed, +2 Mana, +3 Mana Regen, +5 Magic Control for being a Forgeling (Living Construct), +1 Magic Power from your element per level!]
[*ding!* Congratulations! For reaching level 10, you have unlocked the skill [Unravel Enchantment]!] You have spent extended time under the influence of harmful persistent enchantments. Unravel unattended magic and consume the lingering mana. Active skill, restores mana according to the complexity and mana stored within the enchantment unraveled.
[*ding!* [Curse Eater] has consumed five stacks of [Guardsman’s Buff] and you recover 7920 Mana]
[*ding!* Good Job! [Curse Eater] has leveled up! 8 -> 13!]
[*ding!* [Breaker] has Leveled up! Level 16 -> 17! +8 Free stats, +8 Strength, +8 Dexterity, +2 Vitality, +2 Speed, +2 Mana Regen, +8 Magic Power from your class, +2 Strength, +3 Dexterity, +5 Vitality, +3 Speed, +2 Mana, +3 Mana Regen, +5 Magic Control for being a Forgeling (Living Construct), +1 Magic Power from your element per level!]
Now that the pending notifications were completed, Ada noticed that she could feel a new sensation within her mind, somewhat similar to a limb waking up after sitting on it for a while. Closing her eyes again, she probed around her consciousness but could not quite grasp what it was or what it was doing for her. The tingling faded and she was left with a sense of a ring around her neck that was pulsing brighter in her mind about once a second before dimming slightly, only to pulse again. While holding onto that feeling, Ada allowed her mind to drift, and she felt another two similar rings, though they were not nearly as bright as her own and did not pulse as hers did. Beyond those two were several more of the same, though they were dimmer still, and she had less of a precise feeling of where they were.
Trying to figure out what this was, Ada checked her status page and noticed that her mana was not regenerating, or at least was not increasing. Since she wasn’t moving around, she should be regenerating around 16 mana every second according to the active monitoring she'd set up. Instead, she watched as her total mana ticked up by that amount, only to then drop back down by 20 points. Something was draining her.
Putting that issue aside for the moment, she continued down her status, reading over her new class skills once again. [Curse Breaker] was undoubtedly to thank for her return to consciousness. Unfortunately, the rest of her new skills didn’t seem like they would be immediately applicable. She paused at [Dancing], which seemed out of place, until she read over the description again, which cause her to roll her eyes. Though, despite the unfortunate pun, the skill would likely become useful in combat eventually.
Ada paused at [Unravel Enchantment]. She read the description. Then, she read the description again. Could this possibly be the answer to the neck rings she was sensing? Aiming her new sense at the glowing orb around her neck, Ada fed a single point of mana into the skill.
[Unravel Enchantment has found an unattended source of mana. Do you wish to consume it? Y/N?]
Ada accepted the prompt in her mind, and the bright ring around her neck started to dim, ever so slowly, until finally, it went dark.
[*ding!* [Unravel Enchantment] has consumed [Inscription: Direct Target Mana Drain, Individual]. You gain 22,744 mana.]
[*ding!* Congratulations! [Breaker] has leveled up! 17 -> 23! +8 Free stats, +8 Strength, +8 Dexterity, +2 Vitality, +2 Speed, +2 Mana Regen, +8 Magic Power from your class, +2 Strength, +3 Dexterity, +5 Vitality, +3 Speed, +2 Mana, +3 Mana Regen, +5 Magic Control for being a Forgeling (Living Construct), +1 Magic Power from your element per level!]
[*ding!* Good job! [Unravel Enchantment] has leveled up! 1 -> 14!]
The two rings to either side of Ada snapped into focus, but she could tell they were still outside the range of her skill. Deciding to not bother wasting more effort on that, she extended her senses through [Metal Manipulation], feeling for all the metal close enough to work with. There was the very obvious collar around her neck, along with the shackles on her wrists and ankles, all of which had a chain running between them, with another chain running from the back of the collar, out through the back of the cage, and then attaching to what she decided was likely a wall anchor around 2 meters off the ground. Besides those items, Ada positively identified the bars around her as iron. The best way she was able to explain that ability was that iron had its own flavor, which was different from the copper, steel, and tungsten she had been playing around with in the past few weeks, but nevertheless familiar.
Deciding on a plan of action, Ada began hollowing out all of the nearby iron, creating a layer of black iron sand on the floor behind her.
