Chapter 2016: The System

With the shape of the artifact decided, Ning and Crownus finally turned to the more important question of what the System itself should actually do.

They had already agreed that it needed to be useful to ordinary people without relying on damaging Souls or constantly drawing absurd amounts of Energy. That removed a large number of possibilities immediately, but it still left them with enough options to spend some time considering.

Ning brought up the first idea.

"What about a Spying System?"

Crownus turned toward him. "Explain."

"Something that helps the user gather hidden information. It could identify lies, reveal secret records, detect surveillance, find weaknesses in security, maybe even show information about people that isn’t normally available."

Crownus considered it carefully.

The idea had obvious value, especially in a galaxy where humans and Mekharans were constantly trying to infiltrate one another’s societies. A System capable of exposing hidden threats would be useful to almost anyone involved in the war.

The problem appeared as soon as they considered how it would actually work.

"Where would the information come from?" Crownus asked.

"Hmm... I suppose it should come from you, since you know everything."

If they wanted it to reveal secrets, then something had to gather those secrets first. And with Crownus being the Galactic Will, he would know all the secrets.

"You would need to monitor everything personally," Ning said. "And the System can be updated with information each time the helmet is placed back to recharge."

"I don’t think that works as well," Crownus said. "Even if it did, what about after the war ends? What would be the point of the System then?"

Ning frowned. "Yeah, it would lose a lot of its necessity when the war ends."

They abandoned the idea.

The second possibility was simpler.

"A charger," Crownus said. "The System could provide power instead."

Ning thought about it for a moment. "A supercharger."

The helmet could supply enormous amounts of Energy to whatever technology the user connected it to. A pilot could keep a mechanical body running far beyond its normal limits, power weapons that would otherwise drain their reserves, or operate damaged equipment after its normal Energy source had failed.

For people living in the middle of a large interstellar war, that sort of System would be incredibly valuable.

Although, that brought on an entirely different issue that Crownus hadn’t immediately thought of.

"We would basically be giving someone a charger that needs a charger of its own. I’m not sure it’s that fun a System to use."

Crownus did not disagree.

Ning shook his head.

"We need to figure out something that is uniquely a System and not something simple that has no need to bond with a person. None of these ideas feel like a System."

Crownus agreed, and they discarded the second idea as well.

The third idea came from keeping the same technological focus while changing what the System provided.

"Instead of providing Energy, we could provide them with something else instead," Ning said. "Information."

Crownus looked toward him.

"Not secret information like the spy System. Useful knowledge."

That immediately opened up more possibilities.

"Instead of powering technology, the System could teach its user how technology worked. It could help them understand damaged machines, identify problems, determine what needed to be replaced, and eventually figure out how to improve whatever they were working on," Ning said.

Crownus thought about that for a while.

"A repair System."

"Repair and improvement," Ning said. "If something breaks, the System teaches the user how to fix it. If it’s already working, it teaches them how to make it better. An Upgrade System."

That solved several problems at once.

Knowledge required far less Energy than directly powering machines.

More importantly, it would remain useful regardless of how advanced the surrounding civilization became.

Crownus seemed to realize the same thing.

"This function would not depend on the current level of technology."

"Exactly."

If the user lived in a civilization with interstellar ships and giant mechanical bodies, the System could teach them how to repair those things. If civilization collapsed and everyone was reduced to surviving with stone and wood, the System would still have something to work with.

Crownus looked toward the barren surface of the planet they were on as he considered the idea.

"Even fire could qualify."

Ning nodded. "Someone figuring out how to reliably make fire is using technology. So are they when they shape stone tools, build a furnace, make a wheel, or wire a reactor."

The scale changed, but the principle remained the same.

That made the System far more durable than either of their earlier ideas. It did not depend on one particular form of Energy, one species, or even one level of civilization.

Crownus appeared satisfied.

"This could work."

Ning agreed.

The next issue was making sure the System did not become too powerful too quickly.

Crownus asked, "What restrictions should be placed on the user?"

Ning had already started thinking about that.

"If it can instantly repair and upgrade everything around them without limit, then we’re going to create another problem."

A person with unrestricted access could walk into a military shipyard and begin improving an entire fleet in days. They could transform primitive technology into something generations ahead of what the surrounding civilization understood.

That might sound impressive, but it would also make the System impossible to control.

"There should be a limit to how much the user can repair or improve within a certain period," Ning said.

"A daily limit?"

"Weekly might be better."

That gave the user enough time to accomplish meaningful work while still forcing them to choose what was important. If they wanted to repair ten different machines, they might have to decide which ones mattered most.

Crownus considered it. "Weekly feels too limited."

"We can increase the limit," Ning said as he smiled slightly.

"Through Quests," Crownus said, slowly nodding.

Ning grinned. "You read my mind."

Crownus nodded at him. "I did. You’re starting to absorb quite a bit of the Energy that belongs to me."