Infinitium

Adam withdrew his consciousness from Ahrem and thought about the last fifteen years of his life he’d lived. Yeah, Ahrem was Adam, “technically,” but Adam had been hands, and mind, off for almost all of Ahrem’s life. He really wanted to give Ahrem a chance to learn everything and then absorb his knowledge all at once, except that hadn’t happened. Most of his education had been abstract. From the maps he’d seen in his memories, it looked like he was on another version of the Earth living near Arrone Italy. Though the technology level was closer to the 1950s. Internal Combustion existed, and electricity did exist but only in the big towns. When he realized that, he decided to let Ahrem do the living with his family and dilate time in his Soul Space.

Adam checked in every year or so to see if there had been any significant changes. Up until now, there hadn’t been, though he had finally learned a little about the political makeup of the world Ahrem was in. It seemed that Europe was comprised of a bunch of countries that now went by the single moniker “The United Nations.” To ensure that no attempts were made to separate back into the original countries the names of those countries had been declared illegal and if you must refer to your country of origin you did so by saying “My Country” or “Our Country.” It was actually a very well-thought-out bit of social engineering because if everyone was from “My Country” or “The United Nations” there was no chance to get into national-level arguments internally, though “The United Nations” was not the only Country on the planet. It seemed that there was an empire down where Southern Africa was and another one across the great sea to the west. “The United Nations reached east almost all the way to China, which had unexplored territories but no actual nations. At least that’s what Ahrem was being taught. How this was all playing out reminded him a lot of Germany and Austria prior to the First World War. Also, the United Nations seemed a lot like Communist Russia except that there was an underpinning of Religion here with “The Choice” that Ahrem would soon make.

Another thing that he noticed was that Ahrem didn’t seem to have access to his personal interface, though Adam could still utilize his at-will within his Soul space. Adam could even pull up Ahrem’s information and review it as he liked.

Name: Ahrem Bianci

Identity: Ahrem

Age: 15

Weight: 135

Birthday, September 19th, 1985

Abilities: None Chosen

Soul Type: Advanced

Soul Level: Copper, 100%

Soul Projection Level 1 Human

Attributes

Strength 10

Agility 9

Dexterity 11

Endurance 8

Constitution 8

Intelligence 6

Wisdom 6

Willpower 8

Perception 6

Charisma 7

Luck 10

Primary Stats

Carrying Capacity 68 lbs

Hit Points: 1

Base Health Regeneration:

Normal

Stamina 17

Base Stamina Regeneration

3 per minute

Mana: 16

Base Mana Regeneration

19 per minute

Movement

Normal Running Speed: 8 mph

Standing high Jump: 16 inches

Note. Falling Damage is not mitigated by maximum jumping Distance.

Base Attack

Unarmed Base Attack: 4

Max Damage: 8

Critical Damage Maximum Damage x2

Skills:

Gardening 1

Animal Husbandry 1

` Math 1

History 1

Reading 1

Writing 1

Football (Soccer) 1

All other skills are negligible

Simply, Ahrem was unremarkable, which worked for Adam. If someone was actually looking for him. He had a feeling “The Choice” that was coming up was a test of loyalty and also a way to test something else. What that something else was Adam wouldn’t know until it happened.

* * *

The day had finally come, Ahrem was going to make “The Choice” today and everyone would know that he was loyal to his country and the cause, no matter how many silly ideas kept popping into his head when he was dreaming. Ahrem looked at himself in the mirror. He wore simple black pants and a white collared shirt. Male or female it didn’t matter, all of those going to the Administration facility to make The Choice today were going to be wearing identical clothing. Those that chose to serve would come home. Those that did not, well they were never seen again. Supposedly they made their way... Ahrem shook his head to clear his doubts. He didn’t need to worry about what happened to those that made the wrong choice, he was going to be coming home tonight.

Ahrem headed downstairs where his mother and father waited at the front door.

“Ready to go?” his mom asked.

“Yes Mom, but don’t you worry, I‘ll be home soon.”

“I know you will son, you always make us so proud!” his dad said.

Ahrem gave his mom and then his dad a hug after which his mother straightened his shirt before he stepped through the open door, and they watched him leave as he started walking the mile he had to walk to get to the Administration building. A few hundred feet down the road Katie came out from her house where her parents also stood in the doorway watching.

“Hey Ahrem, mind if I walk with you?” Katie asked.

“Not at all, I think we’re the only two from this side of town that are walking in.”

“Yeah, everyone else is coming from the North side of the road to the west that leads toward the city, though most of those are just going to the administration building in the next town,” she said.

“Yeah, there isn’t much that way and the next town is only seven miles down the road. Hey, have you ever been in the Administration building?” Ahrem asked.

“Nope, have you?”

“Nope, come to think of it, I’ve only ever seen people step into the building,” Ahrem said.

“Yeah, now that I think about it. We only ever see people go into that building. We have seen some of the older kids the next day, but I don’t ever remember seeing anyone leave the building. They must be there late into the night,” Katie said.

“I wonder why it takes so long. I mean we just have to take an Oath right?” Ahrem said.

“Mom and Dad said there are some tests first,” Katie said.

“Really? My mom and dad didn’t tell him anything,” Ahrem said.

The rest of the walk went pretty quickly, and they soon found themselves in a line leading into the Administration building.

“Good Luck Katie.”

“See you tomorrow Ahrem.” Katie said as she stepped forward and a woman with a checklist asked, “Name?”

“Kathrine …,” Katie’s voice faded as she stepped into the building.

Ahrem watched as Katie disappeared into the building and stepped forward,

“Name?” the lady with the checklist asked.

“Ahrem Bianci” he answered truthfully.

“Proceed.”

Ahrem stepped into the building and walked around the corner where he expected to see Katie. Instead, he felt a tingle run across his skin and found himself in complete darkness.

* * *

Adam had been riding Ahrem’s mind, watching as he stepped into the Administration building when he was shocked by a prompt that appeared in his vision

Warning! Human Projection has stepped through a dimensional portal to an unknown location.

Adam returned his attention to Ahrem and started paying closer attention to everything Ahrem could sense.

* * *

A male voice spoke out of the darkness. “Please wait for a moment. Your body will adjust, and you will be able to see again shortly.”

Ahrem stood still and waited. After a few minutes, he was able to see that he was in a small room with very low lighting where a man sat behind a desk. When Ahrem focused his eyes on the man, he spoke, “Good,” he said as he rotated a nob on his desk and the illumination of the room increased to normal. “Please have a seat,” he said gesturing to the chair opposite him.

Ahrem sat down and asked, “Umm, How did I get here?”

“We’ll get to that after The Choice. First, I need you to place your hand on the desk in the silhouette of a hand.”

Ahrem placed his hand over the silhouette of a hand. His hand tingled then a screen popped up in the air between Ahrem and the man.

Projection Strength: Normal Human

Soul Strength: Copper

Allegiance: None

“What is that?” Ahrem asked.

“Well get to that in a moment. Display Karmic luck”

The display changed.

Karmic Luck: ERROR!

“Define error,” the man said. The screen changed again.

The Error results from a positive value that has no end.

“What does that mean?” Ahrem asked.

“That means that you are exactly the type of person we are looking for. My name is Peter Johansson. I am one of the Administrators that administer The Choice.”

“So, what is this Choice exactly? Ahrem said.

“The Choice is whether or not you will join the service of another much more powerful being for the rest of your transitory life.”

“You mean like to a deity or a god or something? I thought worshiping any Gods was forbidden. In fact, I know it’s forbidden because Mom and Dad made sure the whooping I received would remind me that the book I’d found while exploring an old factory would remind me. I know that you know that because after the whooping my parents made me report that I had found it and turn it in. They said it could be a test of loyalty.”

“How colorful. The reason the worship of any Gods is forbidden is because once you have made your choice our ‘God’ for lack of a better word does not need you to pay her lip service. She gets everything she needs from your choice. So, no one can be led astray, and none can fall to the worship of any other false prophets. All who make “The Choice” agree that they will never speak of it again and that they will report or punish any who come across such propaganda.”

As Ahrem was listening that little voice in his head whispered something he’d never heard before, Textrix. “Textrix,” Ahrem whispered under his breath as he tried to figure out why that word had popped into his head before he even thought to stop himself. The man across the desk froze for a second and then reached for something under the desk. There was a deafening roar, a feeling of pressure in Ahrem’s abdomen then he was tumbling away from the desk almost blown in half as his vision started to fade. The last thing he heard from the man still sitting behind the desk was “What a waste, CLEAN UP CREW to Suite 7a!”

* * *

The consciousness known as Ahrem traveled into Adam’s Soul Space and was absorbed by Adam as pop-up messages appeared in his vision. There was more going on in this world than he’d been able to learn as Ahrem. What would happen next was completely dependent on what the popup windows said.

Soul Projection Ahrem, Normal Human has died.

Location of Soul Projection is Quantum Locked. Souls may not travel into or out of that Location.

Initiate new soul projection at target location Yes or No?

Adam chose ‘Yes’

Utilizing previous soul projection material. Would you like to continue as modified to Normal Ascendent Human or switch back to your default attributes as an Ascendant Human?

Adam chose “Default Attributes” and then felt his soul surge up from his soul space into the deceased body of Ahrem as it started to knit it back together. In moments. His default attributes were quite nice. There wasn’t much he could do while he was healing so he checked his personal interface while he played dead.

Name: Adamantadine

Identity: Ahrem

Age: 15

Weight: 135

Birthday – September 19th 1985

Soul Abilities (Minimized)

Soul Type: Advanced

Soul Level: Copper, 100%

Soul Projection Level 104,879,885 Ascendant Human

Attributes

Strength 8.08E-11

Agility 8.08E-11

Dexterity 8.08E-11

Endurance 8.08E-11

Constitution 8.08E-11

Intelligence 8.08E-11

Wisdom 8.08E-11

Willpower 8.08E-11

Perception 8.08E-11

Charisma 8.08E-11

Luck 8.08E-11

Primary Stats

Carrying Capacity 7.27E-12

Hit Points: 3.59E-22

Base Health Regeneration

4.84E-27 per second

Stamina 8.98E-23

Base Stamina Regeneration

8.98E-21 per second

Mana: 1.80E-24

Base Mana Regeneration

1.20E-22 per second

Movement

Normal Running Speed: 1.62E-10 mph, 2.37E-10 fps

Standing high Jump: 1.35E-10 Feet.

Note. Falling Damage is not mitigated by maximum jumping Distance.

Base Attack

Unarmed Base Attack: 1.80E-22

Max Damage: 7.18E-22

Critical Damage Maximum Damage x2

Skills: See Fundamental Ability “Pansophical” above

It seemed that his age weight and birthday had changed to that of Ahrem. Everything else though looked like it’d stayed the same. He could read his Soul Abilities, but they hadn’t changed so he minimized them. Adam already knew that the synergy of a couple of those abilities had made it possible for him to do what he was doing right now. He didn’t need to double-check that information. What he needed to do was see exactly how many of his normal abilities he still had access to. First things first, he tried to connect with his nanites and found that connection did not exist. Not unexpected but fixable.

Adam utilized his Spellweaver ability to speed time up for himself to a ridiculously ludicrous speed so that years would pass before a single second did for Peter. As he continued healing, he stood up. Well, magic worked at least. Next, he willed his chaotic nanites into existence with the instruction set to accept the body he was in, infiltrate, convert, and create the mechanisms he’d need to be able to communicate and direct them as necessary. Adam also had the nanites start infiltrating all inorganic matter in the room he was in. That would take a little while, so he tried to pull up the Universal Interface. No luck. The Cosmic Interface? Still no luck. It looked like the Cosmos had all of those functions locked out. So, there was no really quick way to take over everything. That was going to make figuring out what was going on a little harder. Not Impossible though.

The nanites finished their infiltration and he received a shock. He was no longer on Earth. Also, spells were in place to simulate gravity. Adam set the nanites loose though any that left the temporal field around himself moved back into the normal passage of time and slowed right down. Adam wasn’t going to be able to get the information he needed that way. It looked like he was going to have to go all Sith Lord on the asshole that had just killed Ahrem.

Adam had his nanites start their infiltration, clean, and repair the chair he’d been sitting in then picked it up put it back at the desk, and sat back down. To anyone watching it would appear as if Ahrem had been on the floor dead and then he’d be sitting in the chair normally the next instant. He didn’t think there was a time-lapse camera that could have caught his movements at the speed he was moving at, which would just add to the mystery of what was happening.

Adam had his nanites breakdown all of the ammunition in the shotgun that had blown him almost in half then slowed his personal time back to normal speed as he looked up into Mr. Johansson’s surprised eyes as he dove for the shotgun and pulled the trigger again which made a loud “Click”

“Is there something wrong Mr. Johansson?” he asked innocently as Mr. Johansson pulled the trigger again and again. “It’s not going to work, would you like to sit down so we can talk for a bit?”

“But, But, But…”

“But I’m dead? Yeah, that was true, but I’m not now. So, pull yourself together, and let’s have a chat,” Adam said as he used his nanites to double-check and see if there was any technological surveillance in the room. Surprisingly there wasn’t. Next, he willed his favorite version of True Sight into effect and looked around. Sure enough, up and behind Mr. Johansson there was a scrying portal through which he could see a woman reaching for something on the desk in front of her. With a thought, he force-teleported her to him with his hand around her neck and snapped it with the twist of his thumb then dropped her to the ground. He also teleported some nanites into the room she’d been looking in on them from and had them start mapping it out.

Peter looked at him, looked at the women on the ground at his feet then jumped at him. Adam caught him with telekinesis and then locked him in a force bubble with only his head sticking out, unable to move. He hovered over the desk, his arms outstretched towards Adam as he casually got up and conjured a cup of coffee into his hand. Adam took a sip as he looked around. He probably shouldn’t have killed the lady. It had only been a few seconds so. He reached down, placed his hand on her head, and released his nanites into her skull with orders to stabilize and repair brain function while keeping her in a coma. he’d fix the rest of her in a minute or two. So long as this didn’t take too long, she’d be okay, he just needed to keep her brain alive.

“Leave her alone, you monster!” Peter screamed.

“Me the monster? You just blew a sixteen-year-old in half. I’m sure this wasn’t the first person you’ve killed and probably won’t be your last so shut up and know that if you answer my questions honestly I will revive her and you both might live.” Adam said with a hint of anger in his voice.

Peter smiled and bit down on this tooth, a moment later a nuclear detonation went off at Adam’s feet.