Temporal Pearls

"Try harder and connect with it," Seth shouted.

Nanncy kept her eyes closed but the more she thought of possessing her Weapon the more she felt a splitting headache.

Health: Normal> In-pain>Headache> Mind injury!

Notification kept flashing, telling her she was losing health but Seth urged her to keep going.

After seeing her body blurring away, he slapped Healing Mud on her forehead and that healed her back. Th from time to time, Seth will make her drink liquid from Soothing Gourd.

Through effort, a silhouette of an object, t ctimetres long began to appear, and th it disappeared. As if yanked away.

Nancy Almost disappeared due to that, thanks to Seth's timely intervtion she was healed back to normal!

Ding

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[Quest Deadline]

[00:00:09:57]

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Nanncy began to panic. "T minutes remaining!" she cried out.

"Conctrates. Here hold my Staff!" As she held it, it elevated her constitution further and damped the pain. Still, she took damage!

Ding

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[Quest Deadline]

[00:00:07:47]

___

****

"Where are the Energy Crystals? We need more ergy! Four players are trying to access their Asteroid Artifact." The guard shouted.

Two people came quickly as they began loading crystals into a chamber.

****

Ding

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[Quest Deadline]

[00:00:04:08]

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"Conctrate more. Don't relt. Pull up your willpower and fight back. Don't worry, you will not die due to this. I have ough Healing Mud. Push!"

The hotel owner was outside their room with his two workers and another person that lived in the next room.

They were listing to the commotion. "You have to dure for a little while. It will be easier if we pass this phase!"

Their faces were flushed red and they were speechless. "Is it by force!" The player asked.

"No, they might be newbies! Don't know how to put it properly." Another person said.

Th the Hotel owner made everyone leave and decided to give these people a lesson on how it was done.

Ding

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[Quest Deadline]

[00:00:0:47]

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***

"We have arranged them, sir!"

"Activate the Vault full power"

Bloom!

The whole room glowed and made all the air and the vibration of the Asteroid Artifact freeze. Cancelling any connection any Artifact has with its owner!

***

The world powers irrespective of culture, race or ethnicity worked together to find the solution to the world-ding evts.

The emy group worked together hand in hand as brothers to develop a single machine that might save their planet.

Amidst the developmt, they made sure those who participated in game developmt will not participate in beta testing.

That will reduce the possibility of knowing what will happ. Ev though the First Trial was unexpected by the developers.

During the t years of Asteroid Online developmt, many other online games were introduced.

The Head Gear giv ran a constant scan on people's brain and body function and st it to the Hive Mind to analyze.

There were deaths during that phase which the World Authority considered necessary sacrifices.

Astroid online was built over blood which the Authority buried with all their might. At long last, they managed to find a way to create a machine capable of giving them desired effects. And run an AI that is capable of supporting and doing what they vision.

That was wh the tsion brewed. Politics bubble up, seeing that the machine was created. In the d, the Alliance collapsed into many groups.

But one group was labelled as Rebels!

They managed to uproot half of what was created by taking one of the five Core of the Quantum Computers used to create the game

The united group wanted to sit and talk things through but due to a race against time they couldn't. As the Omega Asteroid was moving again. So they quickly launch the game.

The First Trial was the first-ever tested simulation.

The powerful AI ran an algorithm that changed the whole setting into something unpredictable. It may have resulted in many deaths due to panic of unexpected realism. Thankfully, it wt well without a major hitch.

The creation of Asteroid Artifacts was something no one predicted.

The Second Trial, too, was out of the norm but was predictable. So, various groups work together and plan to gather the best Artifacts.

Things become complicated but they manage to get their hands on rowned Artifacts by targeting first-rankers.

Nanncy Abaddon Aer's Artifact was targeted. Knowing for sure she created something amazing.

***

Quest Deadline: 00:59

"Hold it!" Seth shouted

***

"Sir, everything is secured!" A guard said.

"Good, take more data. And…" he stopped. As his eyes linger on an object that seems to pulse with Azure Light.

"Damn, that one was connected with its owner!"

***

Ding!

[Congratulations]

[You are now connected with your Artifact!]

[Activating your true Talt: Art Bestowmt]

[Will you like to bestow Seth The Cripple Art Talt?]

Nanncy read the fleeting notification with relief and she answered "Yes!"

Remain only t seconds before long out.

[Congratulations! Seth The Cripple Arts Skills have be converted to Talts]

Ding!

[You have succeeded in your Quest]

[Reward obtained]

[Log out]

…..

Seth stared in dazed after Nanncy's Artefact materializes. Because at that momt he heard her say, "Bestow!"

And he was bombarded with notifications. Th a splitting headache accompanied by knowledge of something familiar.

He felt his fingers, hands and shoulder muscles being stretched and th compressed. He felt numb and itchy and his muscles became sour. His eyesight hanced, taking in fine details he couldn't before.

What eluded him in terms of Art before, now he can see and understand.

[Log Out]

****

Sling!

Seth oped his eyes and was surprised to see his parts staring at him.

"Did something happ?" He asked worriedly.

"No, you are t minutes late!" His father said. They helped him and he wt to wash up.

The school days are starting, so Seth has to prepare for that.

But the news was that their country wanted to introduce online schools through VR. By creating VR similar to Asteroid Online they will have their studts study in it without ever coming out of their homes.

Online school is common but not to the extt of what was being introduced.

But most people were opposed to that, saying it will further destroy physical social interaction. Social media has made things bad already!

Despite that, the plan was being carried out, it was just not being accepted by the masses, yet!

Seth liked the idea but he knew the implication of it. VR is still not real, some people will not be able to develop their social Skills well there. While bold people will do outrageous things since it was not real.

Despite his incapability, Seth likes social gatherings. Just watching people interact made him feel satisfied. So, he usually wt to a Marketplace or a Park and sat in a high place and observed.

.

.

.

The numbness from the game followed him. And sometimes he felt a jolt of currt passing through his brain to his body. That was why while Seth was eating, the spoon kept falling off his hand.

He spt the whole day feeling numb but he hid it from his parts. He doesn't want to worry them because he has a history of game accidts.

At midnight, Seth felt his muscles relax, his hand a bit stronger and his mind sharper. He was shocked, as the effect of what he was feeling was one-third of what he felt in the game!

To test his theory, he wt to his Art Room. By wobbling a, he arranged the painting materials. He calmed his mind as he took some medicine that will keep him awake for the night.

He held his brush against the canvas!

First stroke!

Second stroke!

Third stroke!

Each stroke was targeted with meaning and he can already see its significance in other parts of the paint. Seth took his time as he painted one part at a time.

He was so grossed that he forgot about time. For every colour he painted, lines he curved and adjustmts he made, there was a burning passion in it.

Six-hour passed in the blink of an eye!

The painting was perfect!

To Seth with his newfound Talt, he can see some minor imperfections that he wants to rectify but doesn't know-how.

"What are…. Amazing!" Sarah came and looked at the picture of her in a wedding dress. That was what Seth painted, the picture that was tak during her wedding.

She hugged Seth and kissed him, "You are really a Gius. Look at that!"

She was about to shout and call for others, but he stopped her, saying that he wanted to keep it a secret and surprise everyone during her Marriage Anniversary.

****

"You look beat up!" Nanncy said full of smiles.

"Yeah, there was an evt at home and I was up all night!"

Before the conversations continued, he brought out his painting materials and set them in the Town Square.

He used the same strategy Nanncy used, he splashed all colours on a canvas and used his hands to spread them.

Th he began to adjust it with a brush. In an hour and a half, an exquisite painting better than the one he did in the real world was prested.

Ding

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[Congratulations]

[You have created a Skill]

~Harperzard painting

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