Mental Energy and the makings of a Scholar

As soon as Michael closed his eyes, the myriad tiny noises that pervade the background of day-to-day life disappeared, to be replaced by the steady sound of rainfall and occasional rumbling of thunder that had become so familiar. In a way, the abrupt shift reminded him of changing tracks on an audio disc. Initially the sensation was quite jarring, but the process was becoming familiar and the shift was now associating itself with a freedom from constraints and a dedicated focus time.

Michael quickly got off the replica of his bed and 'stretched' his body, even though he couldn't feel it. Some day he'd figure out what he needed to do to upgrade this space to a place where he could feel his body! Then he could do other things, like train. For now, though, he had plenty of things to read.

"Ok, System - let's retrieve all of the Mathematics textbooks I scanned."

<<Retrieving.>>

Suddenly a giant stack of books appeared on the replica of Michael's reading desk. Combined with the height of the desk, it almost reached to the ceiling! Michael stared at the tower of knowledge, daunted.

"I think I might have got a bit overboard with the scanning..."

He started to think about other potential approaches. After several minutes of contemplation, he tentatively asked the System a question.

"Since all of these books are essentially virtual anyway, and there must be some duplicate information in there... can we compile these down? Like, Merge them all into one book?"

<<Subject's suggestion is possible. It will require the expenditure of some mental energy on the part of the Subject in order to boost the processing.>>

"Mental Energy?"

<<Correct. Mental Energy is a System-specific approximation of the overall available resources of the Subject when applied to problems of the primarily mental variety. It is a combination of various factors - Subject's ability to focus, physical condition, available bioelectric resources, and numerous other factors.>>

"Another Stat I haven't heard about? Are there a lot of those?"

<<Yes.>>

"What's my current Mental Energy?"

<<Subject has not yet unlocked associa-->>

"Nevermind. I should try to figure out the underlying aspects of my other stats at some point. For now, I guess... how much of my Mental Energy will compiling the Mathematics book take up?"

<<With Subject's current capabilities, approximately 90% of available energy would be expended to compile the entire collection of scanned Mathematics material into a single source.>>

"Ninety Percent? That can't be healthy, right?"

<<At 90% expenditure, Subject will experience severe lethargy, nutrition deficiency, and minor physical trauma. With proper nutrition and rest, Subject will recover in approximately 24 hours.>>

"This sounds like... a terrible idea."

<<Subject asked if it was possible, not if System would recommend it.>>

"..."

<<...>>

"Well, then, maybe we should put that on hold for the time being. Shoot. Although there's plenty of time til the competition, so maybe holding off for a bit wouldn't hurt. System, are there any ways for me to improve my Mental Energy, or make it cost less? Your statement seemed to imply that one of the reasons it would cost so much is because of my current capabilities?"

<<Correct. Improvement of Subject's mental capabilities to a certain tier would reduce the cost of performing this task, as well as make a number of other modules available for unlock.>>

"New modules? Like what?"

<<Subject has not yet unlocked the-->>

"Forget it... What do I need to do to improve my mental capabilities?"

<<There are a number of methods available, some of which Subject is already performing.>>

"Oh? Like what?"

<<Aerobic Exercise, Proper Nutrition, Proper Rest, and continued Education all gradually increase the subject's physical condition. The following are other potential avenues for improving the Subject's mental capabilities.

- Nootropics

- Mentally Challenging Pastimes

- Musical or Linguistic Skill Acquisition

- Mental Enhancement Modules provided by the System>>

"Well, I know that at least one of my missions already has a Mental Enhancement Module as a reward, but... more immediate options would be better. What are nootropics?"

<<Nootropics are substances that may improve cognitive function, particularly executive functions, memory, creativity, or motivation, in healthy individuals. This includes amphetamines, racetams and certain benzylpiperidines. System has also found reference in one of the Subject's scanned texts of an herb called 'Bacopa monnieri', or 'herb of grace' which indicates that it has positive effects on cognition.>>

"Sounds... a little scary. What about the other options? Can you give me examples?"

<<Is Subject requesting a mission?>>

"No, no! I was just wondering what kind of pastimes could be considered mentally challenging enough."

<<A classic example is the game of chess.>>

"As if I wasn't enough of a nerd already... so, learn an instrument, learn more languages, and play chess? Now that you put it that way, if I could do all that, I'd be a pretty classy individual..."

Michael sat down on the edge of his bed as he contemplated his options. Maybe it was due to his rather tame upbringing, but the topic of drugs just seemed... too risky. Eventually, he gritted his teeth and decided to go with it. What was a few more missions, after all?

"Ok, System. Can you generate some missions for me for these subjects? Just... don't make them too hard, alright? I need to be able to clear them before the competition."

<<Affirmative. Generating Missions...>>

"You're enjoying this, aren't you?"

<<...That is impossible.>>

"So you say..."

<<[Mission: Train your Brain]

Description: In order to perform exceptional tasks, one must strive to be exceptional. Enhance your capabilities by completing the following missions:

- [Mission: Chess Initiate]

- [Mission: Piano Novice]

- [Mission: Aspiring Polyglot]

- [Mission: Amateur Artist]

Reward: Lucid Space enhancement.

[Mission: Chess Initiate]

Description: The Game of Chess is the Game of Life. It is heralded as the game of kings and scholars. Achieve an official Chess Rating of 1200 and defeat a provided opponent.

Reward: Mental Enhancement Module (1/4)

[Mission: Piano Novice]

Description: The piano is considered one of the most versatile instruments. Furthermore, there is a strong correlation between musical skills and mathematics. Achieve a level of proficiency in both Musical Theory and Piano of Grade 1.

Reward: Mental Enhancement Module (1/4)

[Mission: Aspiring Polyglot]

Description: Learning a new language has been shown to improve memory, problem-solving and critical thinking skills, concentration and the ability to multi-task. Become conversant in one additional language other than English and Latin.

Reward: Mental Enhancement Module (1/4).

[Mission: Amateur Artist]

Description: Open up your creative side to the limit. Produce 10 works of art to the System's satisfaction. Art engages the creative aspects of the mind and acts as an outlet for expression of the artist's innermost thoughts and feelings. It doesn't matter what medium you work through, just make art!

Reward: Mental Enhancement Module (1/4)>>

Michael glumly reviewed the presented information. While he had asked for it, and the System had been quite generous in the rewards, as not only would completing these missions benefit him but he'd also end up with an enhanced Lucid Space and a Mental Enhancement Module, he still felt like he was a gambler throwing good money after bad. He was already concerned about not having enough time, and now he had four more missions to complete!

Still, each of them could be taken one step at a time once he figured out what he would need to do to complete them, and a little more variety would probably be helpful. It was just becoming more and more important that he set himself up a good schedule. He decided that the following evening would be another take-stock session, and he would spend some time coming up with a plan to tackle each of his outstanding missions, as well as constructing a formal routine with the System's help.

And he reminded himself once again that after he completed all of these, he'd be a pretty impressive individual!

"Maybe I could even catch the eye of a pretty girl or two," he mused. However, when a few of the women he'd encountered in the past week or two popped into his mind, he quickly blushed and cleared his mind. No time for that when there are missions to accomplish!

With that decided, he opted to put the textbooks away for now and go back to his philosophy reading. That would give him an opportunity to calm down and focus on something else. He had the system generate the book again and he lay down on his stomach on the fake bed with the book open in front of him while the sounds of the storm from the recesses of his memories rumbled away outside.