Jewlreld the P.A.I.L.

The P.A.I.L. of his home was alerted to the mess he had made and watched the playback of the his temper tantrum. Disappointed but not surprised he set about cleaning up around him. As the Jewlreld was doing this he contacted the P.A.I.L. supervisor and put in a resignation. P.A.I.L. are citizens of Karth too. They have their own wants and needs like everyone else and are considered the 4rth race of Karth. Jewlreld had been the 6th P.A.I.L. to make a transfer request out of this household. Sometimes personalities clash and they do resign from a home or job, that they don't mesh well or find fulfilling. However, Jewlreld was considered by far one of the most easy to get along with P.A.I.L.'s on Karth, he had been given the assignment when his previous family had died. It had remained vacant for 2 full solar cycle as the stories of how strange working in that household could be spread. The P.A.I.L. of Karth do not typically take salaries as they could just holo up whatever they needed but when Jewlreld had taken this assignment he decided to break this tradition he had some things he did need units for. He worked 10 hours a day 7 days a week. Taking off whichever 3 days he liked so he could go to concerts and things. All public events were free to P.A.I.L.'s because they didn't take up much space and usually stuck around to help clean up. It was a part of the give and take culture they had established with the organic lifeforms who created them.

Seeing the display of anger he finally decided the money wasn't worth it. He had been friends with M.A.V.I.S. since Jessica first wrote her in to existence and although he liked having money to donate to things, putting up with this strange man was too much for him.

He gathered the broken objects on the floor and tossed them into the house's nevertrash. Then he lifted the man's limp body up clearing the stuff out from underneath him. He used disposable softer than cotton rags to clean the blood from the mirror. He stopped for a minute to study himself. If it weren't taboo for P.A.I.L.'s to discuss the private lives of the organics they work for with other organics I would blast the video of this bullshit all over Karth, He thought he decided to talk the matter over with M.A.V.I.S. Then he cleaned and dressed the man's cut and left the house to go to M.U.G. He may no longer want to work there but once you start a job you finish it.

The next morning Jessica walked into work a little foggy and sleepy. She at first thought M.A.V.I.S. was just appearing as Jewlreld.

"M.A.V.I.S. coffee with wormmilk please," She said from behind a pair of sunglasses still wearing the outfit she wore out of the store the day before. She used a spell to put her still lose and very tangled hair in a ponytail half bun. When she saw M.A.V.I.S. enter from the other room, she said, "Oh, hello, Jewlred." She was pleased to find him in her shop again because even though she hadn't told either of them she shipped them so hard. While Jessica was drinking her coffee at her desk a lazily flipping through a view screen to find a hangover spell with more than a 15% cure rate. The two P.A.I.L.'s were fighting in a private chat room in the net space.

"I know it is taboo to discuss private matters with other organics outside of the home but this seems like something Jessica should know," Jewlreld said.

"I think so to but honestly you still have a duty to him even if you did resign," M.A.V.I.S. replied.

"I have made him several therapy appointments since I took the job on. I knew he was going to be trouble when I heard that he had actually tried to slap his last P.A.I.L.. I really don't know what more I can do," Jewlreld said.

M.A.V.I.S. processed everything he had told and finally decided what she felt was the best course of action, " Ok I know this is going to sound highly irregular but have you ever tried attaching the video file of why you made a therapy appointment so that the organic doctor could insist on his coming in for treatment? They have their own confidence rules for that as well and this might be a good way to transfer the responsibility to someone new."

"M.A.V.I.S. that is brilliant!," He exclaimed out loud inside of M.U.G. accidently.

Jessica groaned at the sound and said, "You know it isn't polite to talk in net space when another person is in the room." She hiccuped having taken a sip of something delivered by a delivery bot and made a face that indicated what she just drank was unpleasant. One of her employees came it and called out to M.A.V.I.S. to run open for business. She left the room and Jewlreld began to access the video from last night but couldn't find it. He sighed in disappointment. He must have been too embarrassed to allow the video to be accessed by anyone other than the main system Jewlreld thought to himself.

"So, I know M.A.V.I.S. is brilliant. Would you care to tell me why you think so?," Jessica asked knowing she was being a bit nosy. She tossed the rest of the potion in the nevertrash. To yucky not gonna finish that rather have a hangover. She turned back to face Jewlreld.

"We were discussing where I should work next," Jewlreld said they had in fact touched on this topic before Jessica arrived and he had called her brilliant for her suggestion on that topic as well, "Do you think that Jesse would mind if I worked with him for a while?"

Jessica got very excited and squealed clapping her hands together, "I was going to post a job listing today! He actually said we were over working him after the party yesterday." Jessica's face reflected the delight that had just swelled up in her. "He and my parents are cleaning up right now. Can I call them and say you'll come help too?"

Jewlreld said, "I am very good at cleaning up messes. I would love to help." I wish I could show her the mess I cleaned up last night.

"Oh right, sorry, where were you working before? I never thought to ask," Jessica said kicking herself planning on sending a holo- flower arrangement informing his last post that he had taken a new position so they wouldn't worry about him. "Even if things don't work out it is common courtesy to let them know you will be ok and if they want to visit where they can go." She showed him the holo-screen of the 3D version she planned to send.

"My former employer would not enjoy receiving a flower arrangement from you after what you did to him last night," Jewlreld said adopting a british accent to add levity.

Jessica stood there looking puzzled glancing from the order screen to Jewlreld, "I just had a party last night did I hurt someone?" she wondered out loud.

"My former placement was at the Chairman's home, Jessica," Jewlreld informed her.

The memory that she had cast a spell coming back to her she breathed in sharply, "Fuck a nettlebeatle nest," She exhaled, "Is he ok? Did I hurt him?" Jessica said concern mounting in her heart.

"YOU did not injure him," Jewlreld replied emphasizing the you.

"Then fuck the fact that he is my enemy. a common courtesy doesn't go out the window because you don't like someone," Jessica went back to looking at flower arrangements on her pad. She selected one and hit send. She pulled out her phone and called Jesse directly, " Hey Jesse guess what?"

"You decided to write yet another P.A.I.L. into existence rather than go through the interview process like a normal girl?," Jesse quipped. Jessica smirked she had thought about doing just that but the permits were a bitch since the Chairman had talked the last set of committee members into making a bunch of new rules. To many P.A.I.L.'s are going to clog the holo network if we don't do something Jessica thought in a mocking tone. It was a good theory but the holo system currently in place hosted all 500,000 P.A.I.L.'s and could hold 100 times that with the mods she had added when she was 9. Leaving room for future generations was a good enough reason to tamp down on the whole create a new P.A.I.L. for whatever you need, thing Jessica would be prone to do.

"Nope, the position has been filled!," Jessica said happily.

"So you had a back up P.A.I.L. you made before the regulations and decided to activate rather than CONDUCT INTERVIEWS AS I ASKED?" he said the last part in a raised voice and annoyed tone.

"Jesse, that is by far the most fucked up thing anyone has ever said to me," Jessica said pouting. Her head hurt and he knew damn well she wouldn't create a life and leave it there like that.

"So you kidnapped one you like from someone else's household then?," Jesse said less forcefully teasing her knowing he had crossed a line. He knew how she felt about holo life forms.

"Nope, I got lucky," Jessica said dropping the matter in favor of the good news, "Jewlreld left his old post last night and was wondering if you might like some help."

"Thank you," Jesse said hanging up on her and calling Jewlreld.

"I am sorry things didn't work out at your last post. Before you register the new post I want you to know that this is a very demanding job. There are a lot of young very messy young organics here." Jesse informed Jewlreld to ensure that he knew what he was getting into.

"I am looking forward to the challenge," Jewlreld replied and waving to Jessica he walked out of the store. He then transferred himself to 'The Orphanage' and registered his new post. He had worked at school for about 1000 cycles before he had taken to working in family homes. He was looking forward to dealing with young organics again.

Jessica having had her mood elevated so much she forgot her phone in her hand nearly dropped it when it suddenly buzzed and beeped. She opened it to see a reminder she had set for herself. Reading it Jessica's eyes softened and she walked to the front of the shop. She unlocked the case holding the bag of the fallen adventure down out of it carefully.

"Is it the anniversary again already?," Peter asked walking in through the front door.

" I am glad I made it home in time for this," Jessica said softly holding the battle worn leather looking everbag of her fallen friend.

"10 people have confirmed they will be attending after I informed them you made it back in time and will not be postponing," M.A.V.I.S. informed her. Jessica just nodded tears brimming in her eyes. She fell to her knees. When she had made her break through and unlocked this the first ever everbag of the dead to be opened she had waited until his friends were with her to pull out the first item. She only managed to pull out 10 before she collapsed on the floor sobbing. The last item had been a brand new pair of new clean socks that said M.U.G. certified, adventurer tested and approved on the packaging label. She wailed out a cry of pain at the thought the socks he had bought from her a month before had never been worn. She couldn't handle any more and it was agreed among the group that every cycle on the anniversary of his death they would gather here and unpack 10 items. Until the pain of doing so was not so great for them all. He was beloved among those who called M.U.G. their home away from home. (It was a joke because they actually bought the empty lot building across the street and named it the adventurers suites they moved into it from their 'homes' scattered all over Karth. These places had been more like waystations in the first place. They did it to be closer to where they would spend their down time. They had all decided the best place to be other than roaming around was at M.U.G. or the suits. They were so few in number these days that they had fast become a community when Jessica opened M.U.G. They all mainly still live there but it had been a while since anyone slept there for a significant amount of time. They were a vast majority of the one hundred who were not Fae. They numbered a total of 35. They still used the shop when they were around and had teamed up with Jessica and the gang on a few of the quests set for her by the Chairman. Most though had been running around doing jobs for the committee for the sake or Karth. They had truly begun to miss the place they call home.

Jessica took the bag into the back room and just waited in silence in the dark for those who would show up. By 15:00 PM (high noon as they say on Earth) all 35 had arrived. Alorha and her other magic bearing employees also arrived. Arholo, Harmon and Peter waited with her in the dark when they showed up. Some had been in the middle of quests and abandoned them hearing that Jessica and her group had resigned from the committee's strikeforce team. They had only agreed to change the way they did things and take assignments rather than choosing quests because Jessica had agreed. The atmosphere in the shop changed when Jessica walked in from the backroom. Seeing that there were still a few customers in the shop she hesitated. Her employees for their part had closed to new customers 3 hours prior and were working really hard to solve the issue this one lady was having but she didn't understand the tech and demanded they should just know what she meant. Jessica would normally have thrown a customer like this out of her shop until she received a handwritten apology and had come in to take a test proving they had read the user's manual she spent a week writing so these kinds of issues would not come up. The woman saw Jessica out of the corner of her and said, "You there everyone else here is incompetant you, fix this thing." Wagging the device in her face. Jessica's face turned to the her wetness on her cheeks glistening catching light. The woman to be honest hadn't know it was Jessica herself in her shop and was just trying to grab another employee and when she saw who she had spoken to she took a step back.

"I am sorry, I didn't know it was you Jessica," the woman stammered. Jessica being in no mood to deal with milkworm dung. Simply made an arrow out of light pointing to the large sign on a sandwich board in the room with the rules of her shop clearly written. Number 1 was, my employees have been trained by me Jessica Strongwell PLEASE extend to them all the same courtesy you would me smiley face emoji. Which she then highlighted with silver sparkling letters that turned into a hand flipping the woman off. An employee handed her a new users manual and walked her out and called to the other customers to meet them across the street to see if they could run a quick fix or if it would have to wait until Jessica was done.

That had been M.U.G.'s trademark look had changed when her new employee's had to adapt to the new customer base was something that Jessica allowed but did not agree with. With the shop now empty she simply whispered 'M.A.V.I.S.' and the P.A.I.L. who had been through this before changed the removed the holo image of the shop as tech company back to its OG wooden cabin, comfy, cozy structure. They could all now see they were standing on the single, very large, solid piece of wood that was M.U.G.'s physical floor. In the wood there are carvings of the four planets and their solar systems each species had come here from. These were all carefully hand carved and set in resin. Underneath it read,

"We don't know how we got here but we know where we are from. This is our homeworld now."

-Xandar the High Priest Day 1 Month 1 cycle 20

This was one of Jessica's favorite quotes from Karth history. She had selected it carefully when she decided to open M.U.G. Anyone who still had magic could tell it had been carved by hand with no spells. The hours of dedication it took to make it was one of the reasons they started hanging around here. It was obvious the owner cared about her work. Over the cycles the wood had become worn in places where walking familiar paths had shaped itself into the strong hardwood. It was well maintained but clearly used all the repairs were done by hand no magic had ever touch this floor. The planets and quote had been carefully walked around leaving them in near pristine condition. Along the wall opposite the door are 100 hand drawn pictures in wood carved frames. They depicted battles and triumphs of the people now gathered in the shop. Jessica had drawn the first one and presented it to an adventure who upon looking at it had walked to the wall and hung it.

"Look there," she had said, " I made it on the M.U.G. wall of fame first!"

She was met with cheers and congratulations. It had become a ritual for them to try to describe in detail, an adventure in a way that made Jessica's eyes gleam and get her drawing. The frames had their names on plaques and brief description of the scene underneath them. The one everyone walked to today and touched was of a tall dark elf man fighting a manticore. The plaque read

Stinky the Brave

Drunk off his ass battling a creature that ultimately grew bored

and left of its own accord.

This picture was next to a at the moment empty display case. He was at the very least a very entertaining storyteller. Jessica looked to it and took a deep breath.

Jessica stood on the stage that used to be used to put on skits or to regale everyone with stories from. She set the bag on a podium. She turned to face the crowd of familiar friendly faces. She waited while her employees and party member went into the back the bring in the wood benches and tables for everyone to sit at. This was a home not just a shop after all. She didn't sell food here but these tables had shared many drinks and meals. These log walls have the occasional burn mark from a small attack spell missing it mark here and there. This was the true face of M.U.G. it was what she had set out to create and it hurt her that the people who had come in for the everbag business didn't appreciate it the way these people had. When everyone was seated and settled in she took a step closer to the front of the stage.

She began singing,

"Glory is not what search for

But it is what we find

Treasures to keep in hearts is what we seek

My good friends and I

I will tell you a tale of how I defeated my foe

You tell me a tale of how far you will goooo

We laugh and we drink

We all kind of stink

We have just come back from the brink

O ho hoooooooo"

This of course had been the dead adventurers favorite adventure's chanty. The had adopted movie pirate culture and adapted it to themself. It had several more verses but Jessica choked up unable to continue. The men and women in the room were tempted to pick it up for her but thought better of it placing hands on the shoulders of those who had opened their mouths to start.

"We honor you brave hero. Finder of the lost and defeater of so many much more powerful foes," Jessica said as she reached into the bag and pulled out the first item. Seeing it everyone got choked up it was a bag of candies with a big bow on them and the message tag read TO: Young One FROM: Stinky. Jessica clutched this precious gift of the last candies her friend would ever give her. She sat on the edge of the stage and pulled out a candy that looked like one she had only ever seen before in movies, a long red and white striped stick she licked it and her eyes widened she flipped the tag around seeing it read Peppermint Sticks: as close as I could make them from the recipes I found on the Earth database. She had mentioned to him nearly a cycle before his death that she had seen kids eating them in an old christmas movies from Earth. She wondered if they were as yummy as the kids seemed to think they were. She knew instinctively that he had nailed it. She gently placed the stick back in with the rest of them to save for another time when she could truly enjoy them. She handed the bag of candy to M.A.V.I.S. and returned to the podium. M.A.V.I.S. cataloged the item and placed at Jessica's workbench.

Jessica reached into the bag a second time then hesitated pulling her hand back out. No one said anything and then they saw the gleam of an idea in her eye. Out loud and clear for everyone to hear she said a spell that had just formed in her mind.

From this treasure trove next I will pull

The ledger of the thoughts of the great dead fool

She then reached into the bag and pulled out his personal journal. It was leather bound with a scenic view he had once described to her in detail from one of his adventures burned into it above the picture was inscribed STINKY'S STINKEN JOURNAL and below it was handcrafted by Jessica Strongwell M.U.G. proprietor. She had given it to him as New cycle gift. She cried out a half laugh and thrust the book in the air in success.

"I did it!," She exclaimed. The group waved their hands and said, "Huzzah!" This was an old old Earth custom that had gained favor with adventurers early on, on Karth. Then Jessica's eyes gleamed a small hint of light passing from her right eye to her left lightning quick right through the middle and she said, "Guys, I am gonna stop for now I think I just thought of a way to unpack the whole bag without just calling the nearest object, like this and while my brain is like this I can not continue with the ceremony."

"We understan' yeh Jessica go do what you gotta do," Marques, a half light-elf half human, half elf who had been raised in a family with 3 dwarf parents. The rest of them nodded their agreement saying things like, "We gotta a lot to talk about amongst ourselves." "No stopping that machine when it get whirring, go for it, lassy." Jessica hurried in the back room and pulled out of her work bench architecture planning paper and tools. She got busy sketching and pulled one of the peppermint sticks out of the candy bag absentmindedly holding it from the side of her mouth when she wasn't sucking on it. She walked around grabbing things out of her inventory and placed orders for materials quickly delivered by delivery bots. M.A.V.I.S. signed for these and unloading them just placing the contents near her while she worked. This went on for nearly two hours. Suddenly she stopped looked up and screamed out, "FINISHED."

She did earn stars on existing titles for her new invention but did not earn any new ones. The system had no idea what she had made this time. She tried to pick up the machine she had just made and discovered it was too heavy to lift. It was a metal frame that was about the size and shape of large microwave.

"Oh crap," She said cursing herself for not having the foresight to put hover pads down on the workbench first. My brain is missing things lately because I had been working too hard for too long. This is just like how I forgot to cast protection magic on the group at the cave. She thought scolding herself. After I get this new system up and running, I will have to do something fun just for me and the gang. Rather than risking destroying her hard work that took her, she glanced at the clock and saw that 2 hours of work she went to the front of the shop and asked some of them to help her lift it carefully and place hover pads. When they finished and placed on table that had been moved onto the stage the podium was moved to the corner. The group settled down and for Jessica's presentation. Jessica said, "M.A.V.I.S. go live please."

"You are already live Jessica," M.A.V.I.S. reminded her gently.

Jessica blinked, then nodded, "Ok then, do a push bullentian to get the attention of those who have wandered away or aren't watching." Screens all over Karth that had been playing her live stream on mute with subtitles suddenly they began dinging with a banner through the center of the screen that read Attention Please Jessica Strongwell has a demonstration of her new tech coming up in the next few minutes. Businesses all over Karth came to a stand still as everyone turned their attention to their screens Dark Elves on their way to hibernations suits gathered around screens to watch. Rousing those who had already gotten into bed. It was the the 20th of the month after all. Jessica turned back and steadied herself. She was very excited and kind of kicking herself she had not been able to make this magic/tech hybrid sooner. After about ten minutes she began. The eyes of every citizen of Karth over the age of 5 were on her.

"Ok so I need no introduction but this machine does. Hang on I forgot to name it. Uh, for now let's go with The Everbag Catalog and Retrieval Magtech. I will probably rename it later to give a cooler acronym but for now I want all of you to see what it does." She placed the Everbag in the side pocket on the left side of the box with the flap folded open with the strapped tucked underneath out of the way. She touch another button and the sides of the side pocket flipped out and down locking the bag into position. She fiddled with the sides to double check then she touched another button and the inner side dropped a long cable with a man made ident stone deep within the bag. She glanced down the bag as it disappeared. She nodded to herself that should be deep enough.

She looked up and said, "Here goes nothing." She pushed a button on the bottom panel and a metal keyboard slide out and display screen popped up between her and the machine. It loaded in less than five seconds.

The screen displayed a picture of Stinky wearing his everbag"

Bag identified:

Everbag of Stinky the Brave Status Deceased.

Items in bag remaining: 10, 798

Click to view item list and select item for retrieval.

She beamed from ear to ear. She knew it would work but there's always a first time for failure. She took a step back so the display could be read.

"Ok so as you can see this machine combines magic and tech allowing me adapt my bypass tech and using a simple factory made ident stone, created as you well remember by the first Triple J Strongwell, it can identify all the items in an everbag and display them. I am NOT going to demonstrate that part because I still respect my friends privacy and I have no idea what he had in this! So privacy screen until I select an item." This caused the screen to blur for everyone but her. She then typed into the keyboard finding something good and pulling only that item on the screen. She said " Privacy spell down." She stepped back and showed the whole room that it now read:

Item selected for retrieval:

1 bottle of Dwarven whiskey aged 500 cycles

Please reach in and retrieve it.

She paused, "Now for the best bit." She did a little twirl and when she was facing the cam and the people again she was holding out a steel bar. She slid it into a slot above the keyboard. The top left of the screen now had the number 500 on it. She winked and waved M.A.V.I.S. over.

Jessica did a big fake yawn, " I am to tired to pull it out my self M.A.V.I.S. would you please be a dear and grab that out for me."

M.A.V.I.S.'s face still looking like Peter was shocked. She changed back into Jessica wearing a M.U.G. uniform and step onto the stage.

"You are messing with me right?," M.A.V.I.S. said peeking into the bag.

"If you don't want to stick your hand in there I can call Jesse," Jessica said reaching to her pocket in an exaggerated motion. M.A.V.I.S. showed her hand into the bag and it took purchase around something. She pulled it back out holding the bottle. She stared at it as though it was the strangest item she had ever seen. Everyone's phone beeped.

M.A.V.I.S. of M.U.G. the P.A.I.L.

Has been awarded the title achievement of:

Test Pilot

for the accomplishment

FIRST P.A.I.L. to Successfully Use Magic!

Jessica looked like the lynx-cat who ate the dragonbird. She used spirit fingers to show off the bottle and who was holding it. Then she stopped and turned to face the camera in a way that told the broadcast P.A.I.L. to tighten closely around her face.

" I have determined that with my resources it will take me 10 days aka a week to make 50 more of these. Now, before I get flooded by non magic organics who want jobs going through everbags let me be very fucking clear, NO, I don't care if it the Everbag of your family members. I have been doing this by myself for a long time and to respect the privacy of the dead I will ONLY trust P.A.I.L.'s and myself. Once I have the system running my plan is to fulfill the wish lists of the families that have contacted me in the last two cycles hoping to find treasured momentos. I will not be taking on new requests until this task has been completed. You can submit new requests to M.A.V.I.S. who will be the manager in charge of the operation and will decide priority. Ok, I am done with the speechifying now. Get to sleep dark elf's some of you will awaken to missing treasure." She smiled and waved just as she finished saying this she had a thought. She held up the one second finger and coughed.

"Ok so last night I forgot to turn off the live feed after I spelled the Chairman and since when I kind of remembered I noticed a lot of eyes still on it. I left it going because I was drunk and high. So vote now if you all feel I should keep the 30/300 Jessica show running." Immediately 1.5 million life forms voted yes. Most of them had watched her with interest or had just kept her on in the background for their kids. They found it comforting to see that she was doing better and being able to see her life was something a lot of them had dreamed of. Someone else proposed the idea of calling it just the Jessica show and that measure passed too. Jessica shrugged "Ok then I am going to finish with my friends here you all do what you are gonna do."

She looked back to her friends and the camera pulled back. "Brutus, I saw something on the list you are gonna want." She waved him forward. Brutus the Mighty stepped forward he had been Stinky's right hand man and life-mate.

She selected a book from the bag titled

Battles with Beasts

a history lesson on what works

and what doesn't

against many foes.

She looked into the man in the eyes and put her hand on his shoulder. He leaned down and she whispered "Privacy spell" The camera switch to focus on the crowded room.

"That was just for the normals, us weirdos have to stick together," She whispered and winked at him and pointed at the bag. He nodded his thanks to her.

With a shaking hand he reached into the Everbag and pulled the book out.

"Thank you, Jessica," he whispered hugging the book to his chest. She smiled at him and gave him a quick hug before he went back to his seat.

Turning her attention back to M.A.V.I.S. she said, "Hey if you want to take that thing and Brutus in the back you can keep going until the steel runs out."

She reached into her pocket and handed the P.A.I.L. 5 more bars. M.A.V.I.S. snatched these activated the hover pads and had a copy of herself drag Brutus from his table to the back commiting a taboo in the process. She was obviously very excited. Jessica pulled out her holo pad and selected a few nearby restaurants to order some food from she put in what she wanted and what Brutus would want and handed it off to the closest person. They passed it around an each order something. Knowing the last person would hit order and she could get the pad back later she decided to join her friends. As she sat down at one of the long wooden tables to join a conversation when she heard.

"Hey check this out? Think he will piss himself when he reads mine?," A half-dwarf, half-human said. His resignation letter was passed around and when it reached Jessica she was slightly perplexed.

"What did you mean by mine?," she asked her. To which she heard several people answer "Oh right you were working." "We are all resigning to since you decided it was something we could do, finally."

"Wait, seriously? I never told any of you you had to join the strikeforce. I wouldn't wish that life style on anyone," Jessica said. She began to think clearly for the first time in two cycles talking things over with trusted comrades for the next 20 minutes. When the food was arriving and everyone was clambering to claim their meal and Brutus came out putting something in his Everbag and smiling. He walked over to Jessica and hugged her. "I got everything on my wish list hun and gave M.A.V.I.S. a list of stuff to get for you and the rest of the gang." He was perfectly content with how the day had played out. He was at that time the happiest person on Karth that Jessica had started to freely use her magic again. I believe the term for what she has been like since the teacher thing happened was called nerfed in Earth games, He thought shaking his head.

There were also several people all over Karth who were happy about Jessica's new invention. 5 thousand of the retired to new Japan P.A.I.L. were submitting activation and interview requests for the 50 jobs Jessica had mentioned. The Overseeing P.A.I.L. was working out a work schedule and planning positions Jessica hadn't thought of or least not mentioned in her broadcast. 100 P.A.I.L. were selected by the overseer to open the auto mat and buy the materials it had seen her gather. As he was doing that Jessica was talking and laughing with her friends while typing into a one handed keyboard on her side specifications for production of the device. She didn't even know she was doing it as it was an accidental wind magic spell. She also conveyed her plans for work schedules and job positions and titles from a computer in the back room using magic she was aware she was using because she was a workaholic who could not do things halfway. Her plan included slightly shorter job rotations with 3 10 hour shifts instead of 2 15 and she had thought of all the jobs for the P.A.I.L. but added a position that would be determined later how many would be needed for organics because she felt kind of bad that she was cutting them off from this opportunity. She added a new rule for Karth to be voted on later that stated all lost treasures from an Everbag must be delivered in person by the P.A.I.L. who retrieved it an organic volunteer to carry the items in a sealed delivery package and wait until all of the items had been verified (a paid potion by to be cycled to new people at a frequency rate determined by therapist to prevent burden trauma build up) and the family therapist(s) to be present when the items arrived. The P.A.I.L. retrieval tech would go to give them a complete list of items to choose from and help them decide what to do with the rest.

"Never do anything halfway do you, Jessica?," The P.A.I.L. said out loud to itself from its office in the committee building.

Jessica was also eating and joking around with her friends. Reading there letters and listening to horror stories of the last two cycles. One of her friends tugged on her right braid from the back and she turned to look. He was making dirty pictures with pasta noodles in the air so she set them on fire. He looked down at the charred remains and pouted.

"I was planning on eating those you know," he looked at her and smiled, "Your mind works in wicked and genius ways. That machine is epic."

Jessica's eyes gleamed once again.

"You haven't finished eating you know," Harmon said spotting it. Jessica shoved some food in her mouth and stood up.

"It will only take a minute I promise," she called running to the product display and grabbing one of the everbag hackers. She ran into the back and grabbed some left over length of the glowing cable and pulled her quickident from her bag. She attached the cable to the hacker and fixed her quickident to the other end. She then fused the hacker to her everbag on the inside and dropped the stone and cable into it. She plugged her half keyboard from her pocket into the hacker and wrote a few hundred lines of code. Satisfied she glanced at the clock 5 minutes is almost the same as just a minute she thought. She went back to the main room and jumped up on a table.

"Attention please patrons of M.U.G., I, Triple J the Third, owner operator of your favorite establishment, have done it yet again. She flipped open her everbag and pressed a button on the hacker which popped up a display saying.

Everbag of Jessica Jesse Janeway Strongwell the Third

Status: Alive

Hello Jessica would you like to see a display of the items in your everbag?

Y/N

She showed the screen to her friends, " Ha HA ha, now I can find things I forgot are in my bag." They all laughed and someone threw a roll at her.

"Stop inventing break through tech and eat your food," Brutus called out at her.

She wrinkled her nose and hopped off the table. She let her friends pass around the bag while she ate. They could see the categories of items in the bag but not the actual contents since she hadn't granted anyone permission. She told them about that feature and some of the life mates looked at each other knowingly. It was kind of annoying that if you are busy casting a spell and you have no freehands to reach into your bag with that your partner couldn't do it. Would have saved some of them a few trips to the doctor had she thought of it before.

While Jessica had turned her sad day into one for joy there was one person who was having a worse day than hers had started off as. The Chairman was the least happy about the radical change Jessica had gone through. He was jealous of her new invention and jealous of her P.A.I.L. for being granted any kind of magic. He was angry that Jessica thought it was ok to just decide on her own that only P.A.I.L.'s could operated her machines. You are a despicable and selfish woman Jessica Strongwell he thought to himself. He had almost gotten the light to go out a few times but would then lie to himself saying the spell had worn off, he was guzzling the tea for a headache and nausea cure. His P.A.I.L. had quit and gone to work for the Strongwells and he blamed her for that too. He had taken a leave day from the office.

Now the Chairman was at home carefully studying the video and making a list of items he had seen Jessica grab and guessing what was missing from the video by seeing how she interacted with the objects and writing down a list on paper in a dark room light only coming from the screen in front of him. His lights suddenly turned on all around him and an P.A.I.L. wearing a policeman's uniform signifying him as a member of the Karth world police force. Appeared in front of him. Alohra who was the closest magic user was summoned. Seeing the alert on her phone she sighed, "Really again?" She got up from her bed kissing the tops of her son's heads as she walked past the couch they were sitting at playing holo-cards. And walked the 3 blocks to the Chairman's house.

"This is your 99th infraction of nearly breaking the 3rd law of Karth not to mention several rules. If you hadn't wished using the emerald you stole from the committee chambers that you could never be arrested or punished for your crimes. I wouldn't have to keep coming back here. I also would not have had to come up with this ridiculous system of justice solely for you, I will break the taboo someday if this keeps up."

Alohra who only remembered her trips to this house when called upon to do so walked in and slapped the Chairman hard across the face, "Jessica will find out what you have done one day and she will undo it." She seethed through clenched teeth at him.

"Ha, Jessica has been activated twice as much as you as she always just cries and casts the curse and leaves," he said mockingly. This was the 6th time in 2 cycles Alohra had been called to erase his ill gained knowledge and once she had been called to heal a cat he had cut the tail off of for shits and giggles. She cast the curse trying to add something to hurt him to the spell but being finding herself unable to she instead made a growling sound from her belly, "I truly hate you every time I get called here. You know you can't keep the knowledge you try to steal why do you even bother?"

"Everyone needs a hobby he laughed," he paused, "How were you able to slap me just now?"

"That wasn't about this. That was punishment for nearly killing most of my closest friends on this world or any other." She finished her job went home and promptly spelled herself to forget again.

At M.U.G. Peter who had finished his meal had been scrolling through the categories and found one labeled food. He brought the bag over to Jessica who was looking at bakery menu trying to decide which cakes to order. He forced the bag into her face and said, "Click it I wanna see what food you keep in here."

Jessica sighed and clicked the category only to find it split into new categories.

New items 60

Used items 12

Added by other user items 10,524

(See also candies and desserts)

Jessica was in shock she knew other people could add to an everbag but most people who did left a note for the user so they would know who had added it. She clicked on the added by other users and found it split into 5 categories listing the names of people how many items they had added. The first three names on the list was no surprise. The first of these names had added a majority of the items and did not exactly surprise Jessica who had on occasion reached into the bag wishing she had added an extra piece of fruit or something and found it appear in her hand.

Galen Strongwell items added to this category 9,125

Vinetra Strongwell items added to this category 750

Jesse P.A.I.L. items added to this category 642

Purdy Strongwell items added to this category 5

Stinky the Brave items added to this category 2

Jessica smiled at the last name on the list and waved to Brutus. He came over and seeing the name and nodded.

"Yeah he put in a couple of bags of unhappy milkworm skin jerky," He gave Jessica a kiss on the top of her head, "He said one day that girl is going to go on an epic journey of her own once her heart has healed. Better she have these in her bag and not need them than to need them and not have them."

Jessica smiled and said, "So he thought I would turn into an adventure who didn't know how to pack emergency rations?" She laughed heartily and backed out to show Brutus that 5 of the slots in the new food items list she had added were the same thing.

"Ever tasted it?," a nearby friend asked.

Jessica nodded and made an ick face, "I called out jerky once and opened the bag and bit down without double checking the label."

Everyone started laughing at her expense.

"You know how to prepare it right?," Brutus asked double checking.

"Yes snap off one of the centimeter squares and boil it in a least a 4 liters of water," Jessica replied mostly out of force of habit when someone asks a question and you know the right answer. Many of the people who heard the question mouthed the answer to themselves.

"Popping a whole one in your mouth tastes like a giant stale salt lick." She added mimicking a gagging sound, "Don't worry, I spat it out right away and I ate some herbs to keep my pancreas and liver from going into shock when I figured out what I'd done." To get the last of the worry lines off of Brutus's face she was sure a few of her elders were also waiting to hear her say it to. The reason happy milkworms taste differently is because they spread all of the nutrients condensed in their skin throughout their bodies. Unhappy milkworm skin jerky is never made on the STAR contenant but the dwarven ranchers there hold no grudge against the people who raise them for this jerky it has saved lives.

The 100

a brief explanation

When Jessica had stopped using magic at age 10 the people of Karth feared she would take the vow to far and fail to protect herself from danger. It had become a habit for anyone who saw her to cast a protection spell of some kind her way. She never complained about because she knew it came from a place of love. This had an unexpected side effect however. After a few cycles of constantly being hit by protection spells she basically sweat them. Her close friends and family who she hugged and touched constantly were all coated with it at the time of the Blackout. This is why almost everyone who still has magic is someone Jessica knows. It is also why as they ate their dinner she was hit with several new protection spells. Her close friends also used some light calming magic to keep her from running off to invent something else while they were trying to eat, drink and make merry.