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Chapter 9: Gotta read 'em all
🕑 Added 2024-04-04 21:16:46 +0000 UTCFrank squeezed around people as they passed by, keeping a hand on the antlers strapped to his back so he didn’t hit anyone with them. He got a few curious glances thrown his way, but everyone was too busy with their own work to really spare him any attention, and he made his way to the main desk unimpeded.
The desk was as busy as the rest of the building. There were a few people working it, helping to direct citizens, like Frank, to whatever services they were looking for. Assuming, of course, that those services were currently available.
He edged past a man who was raising his voice at one of the folks behind the desk. “They stole my car! What do you mean you can’t help? You have police here! And that man said earlier that the government is here to keep order! Hah!” he scoffed. “So much for that. There are monsters in the streets, and criminals out in broad daylight. And what are you doing about it?”
Frank tried to tune him out. Everyone was having troubles right now, and sometimes it was best to just step back and realize that the people who were trying to help were doing their best with what they had.
He nodded at the frazzled looking receptionist in front of him, and she gave him a tired smile. “Hi. How can I help you?”
“Hi! Actually, I was looking to get a book or two from the library, for Skills.”
“Right.” She sighed a bit. “We are giving out Skill books, but they are only available for our volunteers. If you want something from the library, you’ll have to commit to doing a bit of work with the city.”
He could tell she was bracing for an outburst. He glanced at the man on the other end of the desk, still irate, and just nodded to the woman. “That sounds reasonable. Who would I talk to about that?”
She visibly relaxed, and pointed over to a small study room. “You’ll find the volunteer coordinators in there. They can provide you with some options for volunteer work, and more details about Skill books.”
“That’s great! Thank you.” He turned to make his way over, but hesitated.
“Actually, I have another question. Is there anywhere to sleep here? I was planning to get to my apartment, but it’s over on the other side of the city, and I hear that things aren’t… hospitable over there.”
She grimaced. “Yeah, my place is over there too. I was lucky enough not to be home when… everything happened. It’s bad. I think there will be plans to explore or try to clear the monsters out but…” She shook her head. “Who knows when that’ll happen. In the meantime, the city has taken over a few buildings down the street.” She wrote down a quick note with directions for him. “They’re taking everyone they can at the moment.”
He pocketed the note gratefully. “Thank you. It’s been a long day.”
She chuckled and gave him an understanding nod as he walked away.
He shuffled into the study room and stood by the door, looking about. There was nowhere to sit. There was hardly any room to stand, especially with the antlers on his back. I really need to find somewhere to stow these things.
A few men and women worked at desks in here, sifting through maps and reports. As Frank watched, one of them briskly walked to a board at the side of the room, and pinned a map of the city up. There were a number of markings on it, along with a legend for what they meant, but he couldn’t read any of it from this distance.
He startled as a gruff voice addressed him. “Are you here to volunteer?”
A gray haired man sat behind the nearest desk, looking at him.
Frank nodded. “I was hoping to get–”
“A Skill from the library, yeah yeah,” he interrupted, waving his hand. “You and everyone else. You want some magic Skill, and we need people to do some work for us.” He picked up his pen, pulling over some papers from a pile at his desk. “What skills– or Skills– do you have that might be useful?”
He stood a little straighter. Despite how flippant he came across, the old man had a sense of authority to him that Frank hadn’t come across often in his life. “Well, for skills from before… I can’t really say I have anything that would be useful. I worked tech support. Skills, though, I have some useful ones for crafting. I’ve picked up [Enchanting] and [Artificer], but I’ve only figured out how one of them works so far.”
The old man's gaze sharpened, and he stroked his chin. “Hmm… [Enchanting] and [Artificer]... What is that, making magic items?”
“Yes, I believe that’s how it’s supposed to be used.” He said, nodding.
“And those antlers on your back,” he pointed, “Did you get those yourself?”
“I did, yes.”
“Mutated animal, or monster?”
“As far as I could tell, it was just a weird deer.”
The man grunted. “Okay. Here’s what we’ll do,” he said, grabbing a blank sheet of paper. “You’ll go see Victor. He’s the librarian. He’ll set you up with a new Skill to help with the ones you’ve already got. You’ll help our people make some new gear to fight the monsters on the western side of the city. Something a little… sturdier than what you’ve got on,” he said, gesturing at Frank’s cardboard armor.
“Then,” he ripped off a section of the paper, “your obligation to us will end. You’ll be free to continue volunteering, as we’ll be sure to need more manpower. When things settle down and we can get back in contact with the government, we’ll be able to work out a more permanent pay structure.”
“What’s your name, son?”
“Uh, it’s Frank, sir.”
“Frank.” He stuck his hand out, and they shook. “I’m Anthony. It’s good to have you with us, kid.”
He handed a bit of the paper to Frank. “For now, take this to Victor. He’ll get you sorted. Then, get some sleep and come back tomorrow. We’ll be putting you to work.”
With that, the man– Anthony– went back to his work. Sensing he’d been dismissed, Frank muttered his thanks and left.
He made a quick stop at the front desk to get directions to Victor, and was directed upstairs. As he ascended to the second floor, he found that there was a short line at the top, other civilians like himself with small scrips to exchange for a Skill book.
It didn’t take long for him to get to the front of the line. Soon, he found himself in front of Victor, the librarian. Standing by a table set against railing overlooking the first floor, the man was not what Frank was expecting from a librarian. The man was decidedly ‘punk’ in aesthetic, with dark tones, chains and spikes.
He pushed his glasses up as Frank approached, extending his hand wordlessly for the scrip. As he read it, his brows shot up. “[Enchanting]? [Artificer]? Fuck yes, man. Did the system give you some kind of magic resource for those?”
Frank shook his head. “I had to use blood to enchant things.”
“Metal.” He gave Frank a thorough scan, and read the scrip. He nodded. “Yeah, I think we can round up a few options. Wait here.”
Victor walked off, perusing the shelves. It didn’t take him long to come back with three books. He set them down on the table in front of Frank, each side by side. “Now, how this works is that I’m somewhere between the wand salesman from Harry Potter, and Professor Oak. I have selected a few options for you, and you can choose one.”
He gestured grandly at the three books. “Now, young Frank Ketchum. Which starter will you choose?”
