The Events of Brenden’s 2nd birthday party are something that went unnoticed by anyone. To my family, Riley wasn’t feeling well, and I was merely a sleepy baby.
Not a single person took notice of how strange it was that the two of us had collapsed at the same time, mainly due to the fact that my playpen was positioned behind the couch, so I was relatively out of sight. In contrast, my brother had always been a strange lad, so everyone chalked it up to another one of his episodes.
Unfortunately, only three days later, when Riley was set to return to Japan, I noticed that the effects of my Coercion skill had diminished drastically, and he was essentially back to his old way of treating our father.
Yumiko, on the other hand, was another story; sitting in my stroller at the airport, I watched Deeana and Yumiko saying tearful goodbyes, much to the disgust of Riley, something which made me smirk.
In the short time they had known each other, thanks to my efforts, the two young ladies were so close that Yumiko even stayed the night at Deeana’s, leaving Riley out to dry.
When it came time for my turn to say goodbye, I was forced to give my older brother a big hug, but when I ended up in Yumiko’s arms, I peppered her cheeks with kisses and didn’t miss the opportunity to peek down her shirt, earning myself a nice view of her small yet perky breasts.
’Nice, a little dark for my tastes, but they are totally suckable,’
"Bye-bye, Yumi Onee-chan!!!" rubbing my cheek on hers while staring down at her shirt like the pervert I was; I didn’t forget to melt her heart by calling her the Japanese phrase for big sister, something that caused the young lady’s eyes to light up with happiness.
"Awww, little Taylor, I’m going to miss you so much. Don’t forget to keep big sister DeeDee company in my absence." Giving me a big kiss on the cheek, Yumiko reminded me of something unnecessary, as I already viewed Deeana as one of my belongings; still, I nodded in understanding.
Standing behind my stroller, Deeana smiled warmly as she watched the interaction between Yumiko and me while Dad, Amanda, and Brenden said their goodbyes to Riley.
Waiting outside the gate, we stayed in the airport until Riley’s plane left, and that was when it dawned on me that I was doing something out of the ordinary in the future.
’I forgot how lax security was pre-9/11…well, I guess we will get there when we do…but if I am to fulfill my plan for that, I need to get stronger…plus, I need access to Natural Alpha particles…’ Glancing at Brenden happily talking to the air in his stroller, I sighed.
’Little brother, I can only wait one more year for you to return, and even that is cutting it too close. If I wait till your third birthday, I am only giving myself two months to reach the Peak of No-Rank…’
Two months…if I was a basic human, that would be MORE than enough time to pull off reaching Alpha-Rank because, realistically, I would only need a couple of Instance Runs before I would reach the max level; however, with the vast amount of XP I required at 6C, not even a hundred runs in Basic Instances would suffice to get me to level 1.
’I was hoping you’d return to the past by now; that way, I’d have you backing me up in the higher instances, but if you don’t return soon, I won’t have a choice but to enter the (++) Instances alone….that is if I can actually get enough funds even to buy the token.
If any other Returner could hear my thoughts, they would be laughing their asses off. A No-Rank child wanting to enter (α++) Instances was absurd; there were millions of better ways to kill yourself than try that; however, I was well aware of the dangers involved in what I had planned.
Frankly, although confident I could survive, I wasn’t really that sure if I’d be able to accomplish anything significant by venturing into those levels of instances alone.
Without proper Gear and strength, my attacks would do almost no damage, meaning my only option would be surprise attacks or assassinations.
Watching Riley and Yumiko’s plane leave the tarmac, my mind drifted off to the coming year and the combination of physical training along with gathering the funds I needed to achieve if I wanted to complete my Event Quest.
---
October 28th 1996
Standing in my bedroom… alone, I double-checked that everything was prepared for the road ahead of me.
I had spent the last year swiping things that wouldn’t be missed from my Grandpa’s safe, ensuring I’d have enough High-Alpha coins to purchase the small wooden block resting in my left hand.
That’s right; it was time for me to leap headfirst into the most dangerous situation I could put myself into. As if lady luck had turned her back on me, making matters worse, Brenden’s third birthday had come and gone without him showing any signs of having returned from the future, a fact that was both disheartening and disappointing, as it meant I’d be facing the Instance Alone.
Luckily, I had a contingency plan in place in the event he didn’t return in time, one which involved me coercing my family not to notice my absence, burning a vast amount of wealth on potions, Gear, food, and the stupid token in my hand.
But that wasn’t all. I ignored the distinct LACK of any money at all in my wallet, and my eyes drifted to my stats, making a tired smile creep up on my lips.
{Talent Rank: Beta}
{Talent Growth Rate: 0.1%} *4 x Modifier*
{Alpha Particle Count: 115/5}
{Physical Offense: 1.6}
{Physical Defense: 1.6}
{Intellect: 26}
{Meta Physical Offense: 4.26}
{Meta Physical Defense: 4.25}
{Stat Points: 0}
[Skillbar]
{Available Slots at Beta-Rank 8.}
{Slot 1: Talent Skill: (Major Plus) Coersion}
{Slot 2: Talent Skill: (Major) Psy-Tag}
{Slot 3: Circulation Skill: (Minor) Hidden Vestiges of Physicality}
…