Chapter 2: Exploring the Explorer system

Thinking I was still dreaming; I sat up and opened my eyes. The blue screen did not go away. I waved my hand threw it, and felt a static electric charge as my hand pased.

As a test I tried to move it with my hand. To my shock it moved when I graspt it. After about a minute the windows text disappeared, and I was left alone in my one-bedroom apartment. It was a Saturday and I didn't have to work; I worked a nine to five job weekdays as well as some weekends when required. I was also taking online classes to complete my bachelors. I didn't have a girlfriend to speak of, and my only debt was from my associates in physics wich I would have paid off in a year.

To test and see if I was still dreaming, I pinched my hand. It hurt and I still had five fingers. So yes, I was awake, I tried closing my eyes and thinking about the blue window and saying status in my head. A window popped up in my vision. "Status; Home world – Earth 5% explored, Worlds visited: Earth 5% Astral Plane 10%, Abilities: Astral projection, Score: 1000." I focused on the word abilities, and a smaller grey window popped up." Abilities: Skills gained or modified in some way threw the system. Only system approved, or system purchased skills are augmented by the system. For example, you may be able to read but the system does not set that as an ability unless you purchase a skill asoshated with reading. If you were to purchase the skill reading threw the system, it would then be added to the skill list and you would be able to purchase languages and reading comprehension or bosted reeding speed." I willed the blue window closed and focused on Astral projection. "Astral projection: The ability to project your consciousness onto the Astral plane, any damage done to your astral body while using astral projection will not affect your physical body. Stats; will 20 lucidity 20 energy 60. To activate skill, get comfortable and focus on astral projecting for thirty seconds. One energy is used every minute, and one energy is regenerated every ten minutes.

After closing the grey window, I focused on activating the shop that was mentioned. A large list of skills appeared. Looking threw them I saw skills varying in price most of the skills valued in the millions. There was on skill that I saw in the list that caught my eye. It was called portal. It cost ten million points. Create a permanent two-way portal to any location in the local multiverse. At the bottom of the screen there was a custom skill. I didn't have enough points for the full portal skill so I decided to try and make a custom portal skill. I named it Limited Portal: creates two-way portal to a location you have previously visited or to a random location. When you make a portal in a location it becomes easier to make a portal in that location again. Portals can feed off various sources of energy. The new skill only cost nine hundred points. This was because of the limitations placed on the skill. After I finalized the skill I confirmed the purchase.

A new blue window popped up." Congratulations on making your first skill. Dew to this being your first custom skill it was much cheaper than normal." I closed the window and rechecked my skill list and willed the skill Limited Portal to show more information. A grey window popped up. "Limited portal: The ability to create and maintain a two-way portal to any previously visited location, or a randomly generated location ( random location means not all locations will be life sustaining, you have ben warned!). Energy upkeep and initial cost depends on size and various other factors. Portals possible Earth, Astral plane, Random. Stats: energy 60 Portals 1/1. To create a Portal focus on creating a portal for 30 seconds.

I looked around my apartment. I had fallen asleep on my couch trying to astral project, so I was in the living aria. I didn't have much, my three-thousand-dollar gaming computer I built myself was the most expensive item I had in the apartment. And there were only 3 rooms a small bathroom with a toilet and stand up shower, a bedroom with barely enough room for the bed and dresser, and the living aria which contained a couch the small kitchen and my gaming set up. I went into my room and removed everything from my small closet. It was mostly varying plane shirts and jeans; I also took out the shelf and bar that the shits hung on. I was left with a plane wall to work with that was little bigger than the door, nothing I took out was attached with screws or anything so the landlord wouldn't get mad. I once asked to put up a puzzle my grandmother gave me before she died, and they blew up.

I focused on creating a portal. An icon of a portal appeared in my vision most of it was gray but it was loading. After about 30 seconds my vision was overlaid with what appeared to be a grid system. "Specify the primary location and size of the portal." When I focused on the back of the closet, the grid overlay in that aria turned blue. There was a counter in the lower left of my vision that stated the initial cost and upkeep of the portal. If I made it take up the hole backwall the cost of the initial portal was 100 and the upkeep was 10 per minute. So instead I made it about as big as a sheet of paper. The initial cost was ten energy and the upkeep was one energy per minute. "Next specify the secondary location of the portal. Earth, Astral plane, or Random." I chose astral plane. "Would you like the portal to open in the corresponding location, another specific location, or random." I focused on the corresponding location. A confirm window popped up I chose to confirm and my vision returned to normal but with an energy bar 49/60 on the bottom of my vision.

I sat down and focused on the skill astral projection. There was an icon of man in the lotus position with a floating transparent man above him attached by a silver cord. It took 30 seconds to load and when it finished, I felt my self shifted to the Astral plane. It was like going under water, but I could breath perfectly normally. I opened my eyes, not much had changed except I was in my astral body with my rings and sword. And the clothes were back in the closet. I moved the clothes to the sides and saw the portal. I wanted to test its ability, so I looked around the room for something to put threw it. I found my crystal collection under my bed and put every crystal that would fit threw. It appeared to work but I wouldn't know for shure until I went back, so I decided to look for something unique to put threw. I went to the living room and took my couch, I used the ability to compress objects in the astral into purer versions. I pushed it from the side until it hit the wall then I focused on compressing it further, it started to look like an amethyst crystal the further I compressed it the smaller and purer it became. I compressed it until it became the size of a brace ball. It looked like a dark amethyst with veins of silver running threw it. I took it to the portal and put it threw. Then I looked at my energy bar I had 3 energy left. I was shocked, I was only here for maybe 5 minutes at most. I focused on going back and I suddenly snapped back to my body. I felt fine, just then I heard a pop and saw the portal snap shut. I looked at my energy. It said 0/60. And on the floor of my closet was my crystal collection scattered with a large pure amethyst right in the middle with a veins of silver running threw it.