6 Creative evacuation procedures

Tension ran through his mind, as Zanir knew his time was running out. He grabbed his father Kevin and quickly removed the rope that was supporting him. He was now able to support Kevin's weight, with the addition of the Aqua subroutine. He only needed it to hold for a split second.

Zanir activated the subroutine and confirmed his idea to get out of the lake. He was going to eject some of the water out as a jet, to propel himself and his father, out of the lake.

The absorption rate and force both went up dramatically, now that the Aqua subroutine was activated. It would exclusively handle the calculations for liquid and had been thoroughly optimized like all system subroutines.

Kevin was surprised when Zanir had dived into the lake and was even more shocked by what he saw next. He could almost swear, that Zanir was emitting a faint golden glow, around his body. He even appeared to be floating!

"Dad I'm going to get you out of here! Hold on tight!"

Kevin had no idea what his son was going to do, but he knew that he wouldn't have dived down into the lake without a backup plan. He trusted his son and grabbed onto Zanir even tighter.

Torrents of water erupted from Zanir's feet. The force threw him and Kevin into the air. If it had it been a clear day; it would have been quite the spectacle. Luckily, the rain was thick enough to obscure vision, it was very convenient at the moment.

Both Zanir and Kevin landed on the deck of the pier with minimal damage. While they were falling, the system was able to eject some water to slow them down. It wasn't enough to stop them from crashing, but it did prevent major injury.

Marvin, Bart, and all the other farmhands were surprised, seeing Kevin and Zanir come flying out of the storm. Quickly, they moved over to help them both up.

"Glad ta see you're alright what the heck happened out there?" Bart bellowed out, over the sound of the storm.

"I'm not sure myself," Keven shouted back.

Everyone turned to Zanir. He recognized the look they all had and knew that they wanted to ask him questions about what had happened. Zanir couldn't think of an excuse, so he tried asking the system what to do.

[Recommend Host pretend to pass out]

Zanir coughed up water twice. Provided by the system, it was quite convincing, to those around him. They had no idea, that it came from the system, and not Zanir's lungs. Therefore, no one protested when he 'passed out'.

This would give him time to catch up on the system notifications. Like most people, Zanir hated seeing the new message notification. For some reason, that little icon irritated him. It must have been leftover feelings, from having a cell phone back on earth. He always had to check his voicemail, whenever it popped up.

He decided to check the appendix that was logged earlier, while he was being carried back home.

[Host has 2 appendix pending review]

[Appendix 1:

Additional materials were acquired during scheduled absorption task as listed]

[Material analyzed:

Name: Gambusia affinis

Type: Fish

Rating: Level 1

Description: The mosquitofish is a species of freshwater fish. Being quite small in size they usually reach a length of only 2.5–5 cm (1–2 in) long.]

[Material analyzed:

Name: Dikerogammarus villosus

Type: Shrimp

Rating: Level 1

Description: Also known as the killer shrimp. It is fast-growing species of amphipod crustacean which can grow up to 30 millimeters (1.2 in) in length]

[Material analyzed:

Name: Unknown

Type: Photosynthetic organism

Rating: Level 2

Description: Sample did not fully match any known materials in the database. 96% similarity to algae chloroplast but, there are unknown modifications to the remaining material. Projections show irregularities in the photosynthesis as a result. Further testing required]

[Material analyzed:

Name: Crimson kipper

Type: Fish

Rating: Level 5

Description: Red herrings actually exist in the world of Norantal. Cross-referencing memories reveals that they are a small magic beast with a mysterious power. They can never be found when actively searched for and can only be found by coincidence.]

[Appendix 2:

Aqua subroutine has been reactivated]

[The Aqua subroutine handles the absorption and dispersion of liquid materials. This particular subroutine will analyze and catalog the liquids automatically for the Host. There are safety protocols installed on the subroutine which will assist Host by increasing buoyancy in event of an emergency. Please be advised that the duration is severely limited at the initial level. Host is encouraged to stay safe.]

[Upon reactivation the subroutine has used the collected water to establish your world's spatial water. It has been treated by the system to remove contaminants. The spatial water will be upgraded and adjusted according to further material samples collected.]

After listening to the prompts, Zanir reflected over the information he'd received. He was still processing it when he arrived back home. Apparently, he'd caught several smaller creatures, in addition to the fish, which he now knew, was called a red herring.

Marvin and Bart handed Zanir over to his father. His mother was relieved to see them both back safe and sound. She thanked all the farmhands and helped Kevin take Zanir inside to his room.

Zanir lied in bed for a few minutes, as he heard his parents conversing. Sarah was asking Kevin about what had happened, and he was recounting the events to her. As they were talking, she asked if Zanir was alright.

Zanir couldn't stand the thought of letting his mom worry about him, so he 'woke up' in his bed. His parents were both relieved to see that he was alright. He also knew that he couldn't avoid answering the questions about what had happened, any longer.

The farmhands had all left earlier, so the Coffey family could recover. Zanir had come to a decision, now that it was only his family present.

"Mom, Dad... I have something to tell you"