Dutch Babies with lemon sauce and a light dusting of powdered sugar had been cleaned up and everyone was sitting around the kitchen table.
"What's the plan again?" Tess looked at the kids.
"Watch you two."
"If you disappear, lock the house down and don't leave."
"If you're frozen for a long time, same thing."
"We don't go anywhere or do anything until the food runs out."
"If we have to leave we go to Owen's house."
The twins' alternating statements ended and Zavier and Tess nodded. "Perfect," Zavier said. "Alright Tess, you ready?"
She looked at him and nodded. They held hands, pulled up the notifications, and selected "Yes."
Skill Selection: Tess
"Welcome Tess Torres!" a disembodied, artificially cheerful voice chimed through a black space. Light faded in from everywhere at once and mellowed into the warm glow of shaded lamps on end tables. She was sitting in a high-backed leather chair which was quite comfortable, not that she was willing to admit that to this voice. She opened her mouth to ask what was happening but was interrupted before she could say anything.
"You undoubtedly have questions and I will be happy to answer them! But let me give you a brief explanation of why you are here. First, let me congratulate you on being one of the forerunners of advancement in your civilization! You stand among the greats of your population as only approximately 1% of your population has earned special titles. You truly are an unparalleled paragon of excellence and talent!"
Tess rolled her eyes at the obviously canned, pre-set message that said a lot without saying anything at all.
"Due to your amazing efforts at," the computer paused for the briefest of instants, but it didn't escape Tess, "defending someone helpless, you have been granted a boon! Your reward is a defensive skill or ability and will be immediately added to your character sheet, along with the requisite knowledge to properly use it."
Everything outside of the pool of light surrounding her faded to blackness and a large white rectangle blinked open in front of her. It looked for all the world like a movie screen.
"The list of skills and abilities that The System can create are nigh-infinite, so this process will help you narrow your options down to a few that are suitable for you. Let's begin by eliminating everything that is not defensive."
A solid black square appeared on the screen, taking up all the space except for a small, white lip around the edge. Holes appeared in the black in rectangular blocks. "Now, let's eliminate anything above level five." More holes appeared and Tess realized she was looking at skill descriptions. "And finally, let's eliminate any that would conflict with your current build." More holes appeared. It looked like the biggest QR code she had ever seen.
"Oh my god, there's so many!" she muttered to herself as she leaned forward intently.
"That is true! The number of pre-set skills for you to currently choose from number in the millions, so we will need to narrow those options down!" the voice said cheerfully. "To do that we are going to run through some exercises. These will help us determine which options synergize best with your intent and goals. First, I want you to imagine the most important thing to you."
Her family flashed in her mind instantaneously. More holes appeared.
"Now picture them in danger." Tess's heart sped up as she closed her eyes and replayed the moments they'd been in danger recently.
"Now focus on the parts that you would most prevent if possible." Tess thought back through the last few days and thought of Cass crying, Luna shaking in fear, Zavier walking outside alone. "Fears are too generalized. Assistance is needed to narrow scope."
Without warning Tess was flooded with fear that reached heights she'd never felt before. This went so far beyond fight or flight that she wasn't completely sure her cells wouldn't fly apart. She realized she couldn't feel her body and couldn't open her eyes. She was locked inside her mind with only the most excruciating, ripping, flooding fear she had ever felt.
"What do you fear the most?" a cheerful voice whispered behind her. "Think." and Tess did. Images of the squirrels appeared and she brushed them aside. They barely registered. The snakes followed soon. Even the wolf that towered above her in her mind didn't scare her. They were ripples in the tsunami that was flooding her right now. She saw Luna shaking on the couch and this held on longer, but it faded. Cass being disarmed by the Scamperer held on even longer, but this faded as well. Zavier going outside alone and watching him be chased by the wolf held on even longer than the others, but that faded when she admitted that she'd never truly been scared for him. She knew he could get himself out of any situation, no matter how dire it looked. The view changed to Zavier's ripped arm but that faded even more quickly. She knew The System would heal them if they leveled."
"Hmmm…" the disembodied voice sounded more distant this time. "Your ability to feel fear seems greatly reduced from the average. Let's try something new."
The images flashed through her mind again but this time something was different. This time Tess was gone. Not just out of view, but GONE. She knew with certainty that in this vision she had died on the first day of The System. She had slipped up with the machete and died before anyone could get to her. Images flashed of her family in the living room, crying in mourning. Zavier putting on a brave face for the kids but sobbing in the bathroom. Cass shutting down into paralysis and Luna deciding she was going to become strong enough to avenge her mother, only to die a few days later. Tess's heart broke and the voice sounded cheerful.
"Excellent! 87% of options eliminated! Let's narrow them down a little more." The visions rewound and Tess was back. If she could breath she'd have exhaled in relief, but all she could do was watch. The camera moved behind her on the day that the Scamperer had attacked their window. Only this time instead of shooting it she'd fired too quickly for Zavier to drop and she fired two bullets through the back of his head, his forehead exploding and shattering the window.
If Tess had been in a physical body with an actual heart in this moment it would have stopped cold. Even the visions paused for a moment and waited for her stalled brain to catch up. This was… this was… Tess couldn't even formulate a finish to that thought. This was beyond anything she could have imagined. In her worst fears her mind wouldn't even let her get close to the thought of hurting Zavier, much less killing him. If this had happened she didn't know that she wouldn't have immediately turned the gun on herself.
The scene changed again and Tess prayed a silent "Oh god no no no no no…" when it showed her and the twins in the yard fighting the Scamperer. It jumped onto Cass's shield and pulled him down but, when she went to stab it, her Toxic Weaver Dagger slid down the fur and into Cass's shoulder. He screamed as the poison worked into his bloodstream towards his heart. The Scamperer took advantage of her hesitation and ripped Cass's throat out in a spray of hot blood that covered her face. Then it turned and leapt at the frozen Luna. Tess launched herself after it, machete swinging in a wide arc. She misjudged and, instead of intercepting the Scamperer, the sharpened edge slid through Luna's neck.
The Scamperer stopped and looked at the fallen body in confusion then up to Tess. It didn't even seem inclined to attack, just staring at her in surprise. The weapons fell from Tess's nerveless fingers and she tilted her head back just as the creature launched itself at her throat.
"Simulations complete!" The cheerful voice brought Tess back to artificial reality. She couldn't move. Her whole body was a single taut muscle strained to snapping. The arms of the chair creaked under her fingertips and she could hear her teeth grinding. She wanted to throw up.
"Congratulations on a successful simulation! You have narrowed the skills down to a few categories. I have further eliminated any redundancies or any that were not seamlessly compatible with you. The ones that remain are the most synergistic with your style. Oh." The cheerful tone stuttered for a second as it seemed to notice Tess.