Chapter 63: More on Attributes

Hugh panicked and spent hours running on the beach in hopes of raising his stats. He quickly learned his stats didn't budge at all until he reached what he considered his limits and forced himself past them. If he took a break too soon, pleading a need to rest, nothing at all happened. He had to continue running beyond the point where his legs quivered with strain, his lungs burned, and he thought he was going to die at any second.

He didn't, which surprised him. Even when he pushed himself past the point where he would have given up in the real world, his body handled the stress. It wasn't happy about it and his mind kept screaming he couldn't take anymore, but legs kept answering his call and his lungs kept sucking down air. He never collapsed mid-step and blacked out, no matter how far he pushed himself.

During one of the few breaks he allowed himself to hydrate and regain some energy, he made the mistake of sprawling on the beach and closing his eyes. He woke with sand glued to his skin with sweat. His head rested comfortably in Dex's lap and the timer over his head read seven and a half hours.

His Navigator didn't seem to notice he'd woken. Dex continued staring out at the ocean, enjoying the warm breeze as it ruffled his hair. The expression on his face was so peaceful, Hugh almost hated to disturb him, but he didn't have much of a choice. He needed answers.

"What happened?" Hugh croaked out, his throat refusing to let him emit more than whisper. It felt like he'd swallowed sand—and maybe he had.

Dex glanced down at him and smiled. "Good morning. The simple answer is you exhausted yourself. Your body needed to rest, so it did."

"It's morning?" Hugh asked in confusion, staring up at the sea of stars still in the night sky.

Even knowing it was artificial, the scenery overhead was awe-inspiring. Such a view hadn't been possible from Earth's surface for generations. He realized, yes, stars truly did glitter in the sky like diamonds and jewels. And he could understand why the untainted view of the Milky Way inspired ancient humans to create so many wild explanations. The expanse spread across the horizon in vivid hues inspired him, too, when he saw it with his own eyes and not merely a satellite picture on a screen.

It was like cloud-watching. He could see the Tree of Yggdrasil, Jack's Beanstalk, a dragon roaring up toward the heavens, the path a chariot might cut across the sky—so many tales and myths came to mind, but now he truly understood what those ancient peoples must have been seeing when they came up with them. It was impossible to look upon the Milky Way and not think some mighty God had created it.

"Dawn is a few minutes away," Dex said softly, seeming to feel the same awe. "I have no doubt you'll want to continue training, but it's Thursday. You promised to meet the Director today."

"How much did I raise my stats?" Hugh asked, refusing to let Dex distract him.

"Five points in Stamina, three in Strength, and two in Dexterity. When you consider you haven't had an increase that big since Launch day when we spent all day biking, it's not bad."

Hugh groaned and slowly sat up. His throat felt drier than the sand he laid upon, so he took a moment to summon the thermos of water from his inventory and took several long gulps. When he felt like he could speak without sounding like a frog, he dismissed the thermos and declared, "This is impossible. How in the world am I supposed to raise my Dexterity to seventy in—what—sixty hours?

"Raising your stats isn't supposed to be easy," Dex replied. "If you're going to meet your goal, we need to find a way for you to increase them more efficiently. Running seems to focus mostly on increasing your Stamina with lower returns to Strength and Dexterity."

"And doing core exercises would likely increase Strength with lower returns in the other two," Hugh said, continuing the train of thought. "What can I do to increase Dexterity first and foremost? You mentioned crafting as a source of Dexterity before. Should I try that?"

"Unless you have a hobby I don't know about, it'd take too long using the crafting method since you'd be focusing all of your Dexterity into your hands. You'd receive better returns with something challenging to your entire body."

"So something like rock climbing?" he asked. "You mentioned we could make one using the cliff in the back yard."

Dex tilted his head as he considered it. "That might work, but I have no skills in the area to aid or advise you. It's like swimming—I'd need to be upgraded to do it."

"You didn't need an upgrade to ride a bicycle," Hugh replied in thought. "Why are things like climbing and swimming different?"

"Using tools is a skill every Navigator is given so we're able to function alongside our players from the start. It falls under the same system permitting me use of any weapon you provide me. The more I use a tool, the more proficient I become in wielding it. Activities like climbing, swimming, stalking, free-running, and gymnastics are considered learned skills in humans since not everyone can learn to do them. During Beta-testing, players complained it wasn't interesting when two Navigators clashed, since the higher level Navigator would automatically win due to their higher stats. It was then decided learned skills would be gated by skill points to allow players to provide us with another layer of individuality and make interactions more dynamic."

Hugh thought about it for a moment, then asked, "What are stats? I mean, I know what each of their titles are, but how do they really effect us?"

Dex's forehead wrinkled in confusion at the question. "I don't think I understand what you're asking. Skill points don't affect players. They're just a numerical representation of your abilities in the six major areas of human characteristics."

"But you said when there's a big point spread, the effect of the highest stat becomes more pronounced. How does that happen if our stats aren't affecting us? Why would high stamina make Frankie act like he was younger? Why would too much Empathy make me feel like I was on an emotional roller-coaster?"

"Oh, that. Isn't it normal? According to my reference files on human psychology, it is. When a person feels like they have more energy, they feel more youthful and naturally act that way. The same goes for Empathy. If you spend too much time with your head in the clouds, you lose track of what's going on around you. The loss of perspective makes it harder to cope with change, which makes you more emotionally sensitive. Doesn't it?"

"I suppose, but I don't think humans normally change as fast as Frankie and I have during the past few days."

"I promise you they can, especially when they experience a life-changing event such as leaving the physical world behind and entering Thrive. Think about the stories you've heard about how people react after nearly dying or losing a loved one. How do they act after winning a lottery or losing a lot of weight? Humans are very adaptable. If you weren't, Thrive never would have been considered a viable option for securing humanity's long-term survival."

"I guess I can see that, but it doesn't really add up for me. If stats are just a numerical representation of our abilities, then how can they be affected by the Tech we wear?"

"The same way a boxer who tapes their hands will hit harder than a boxer who doesn't. The Tech provides outside support and focuses your abilities. The better your natural stats, the more support the Tech can provide—within certain limitations, of course."

Hugh gasped and scrambled to his feet, kicking up sand as the answer to his dilemma presented itself.

"Tech!" he exclaimed, feeling like he'd solved an unsolvable mystery. "Of course! If I find some really good equipment, I should have no problem raising all my stats up to seventy in three days. Why didn't I think of that before?"

"I have no idea." Dex laughed and stood up next to him, dusting the sand from his clothes.