Skill Invoker System

A Skill Invoker

10:05 AM

[DAY 2 OF APOCALYPSE]

Drake Miller woke up hungry. It seemed like Zeus not only electrocuted him but also drained every nutrient from his body.

"Damn! I haven't eaten anything since the apocalypse started," Drake murmured as he crawled.

"Zeus. I never knew someone like him existed in this apocalypse. Zombies are not my only problem in this world; people like Zeus and his followers are a major cause for worry," Drake murmured.

He reflected on how powerless he was in the encounter with Zeus, and it gnawed at his pride.

"I swear I'll never be found in such situations again. Now I know, for me to get stronger in this world and survive, I need to level up," Drake murmured, reflecting on some video games and books he read in his teenage years.

"It's just like the book by Alpha-Pen Original, titled the My Superhero System. Just like Jack, the protagonist, I probably have to seek opportunities to level up," he muttered, and with a push, he stood to his feet.

"The next time Zeus meets me, I will be a formidable force to contend with."

With those words, he panted, trying to contain his hunger enough to focus on the task at hand.

"I have to go out of town to find my mother. I don't care if I lose my last life pack in the process; she's all I've got."

"But how do I get past all the zombies at the outskirts of town? I saw a lot of them from the roof last night."

Drake's entire body was extremely weak; at this point, he was living fully on his human abilities, having no single strength amplified by the system.

Beep!

Suddenly, he raised his head when he heard that notification beep in his head again.

NOTIFICATION:

INFORMATION:You were killed by means of electrocution by a fellow system upgrader, Zeus. Be aware that this is your last life. Henceforth if you die, you will stay dead.

STRENGTH: 0%

SPEED: 20%

DEATH CHEAT: 1 LIFE PACK

TIP: Your physical body is weak. You may scan the city for any supplies to feed on. Consider the grocery store 2 km away from your current position.

Anger coursed through Drake's body like a current.

"Damn you! You never told me that there were so many others with a system too. And you never mentioned mine was the most useless," Drake said through clenched teeth.

"I wouldn't have been killed by Zeus if I had known that there were others like me with malicious intentions," Drake said, his chest rising and falling in anger.

Beep!

NOTIFICATION:

CORRECTION POINTS:

There are not so many others with a system like you said, but only a selected few.

No system is useless. Your ability to upgrade as a system upgrader is your key to getting ahead of others. Every system is unique and grants different opportunities for leveling up.

Zeus' system is different with unique abilities, and so is your system different from his in its own unique ways.

Zeus is leveling up above so many other upgraders because he worked harder for it. While you slept through the night, Zeus helped gather survivor groups scattered and trapped in various parts of the town.

NOTE: To gain an advantage, you have to be alert and always ready to take on tasks I provide. I provided 3 tasks in the last 6 hours of the night, but you were asleep. You could have gained amazing rewards and a chance to level up.

After listening to the robotic voice, he sighed.

"Every choice I make has consequences in this place. It is true what you mentioned earlier. How do I earn more tasks now?" Drake said, realizing the consequences of his past actions on his system.

"Be active and vigilant. Some tasks present themselves to you in cryptic forms while I may notify you of others." The voice echoed in his ears.

"Good Luck!"

Swap!

The voice suddenly disappeared, and Drake rubbed his face and pulled down his hair in frustration.

His white long-sleeve shirt was ripped several times slinging the arm and chest region, blood and mud stains all over.

"I need to grab some supplies, maybe some food and water, and-"

Drake couldn't finish talking to himself before a young woman's voice interrupted.

"A backpack! If you're going to get food and water, you need a backpack to store them. Food and water have become extremely scarce ever since the apocalypse started," the young lady said.

She was dressed in a black jacket, worn over a black top, and black leather pants.

"Who are you?" Drake asked, his brows drawn together.

"I'm Elisa, a survivor like you. Before you ask, yes, I also obtained a system last night," she said.

Drake was unsure how she knew that he had a system.

"How do you-"

"All system upgraders know a system upgrader when they see one," Elisa said, walking closer to Drake and reaching out to the broken frame of his heirloom locket.

"Mine is a mysterious gem I found and stole from an antique shop. I merely stole it because it looked beautiful; then the police chased after me, I was desperate to run away, and I got hit by a truck. Boom, I woke up next, and all I found was the police men chasing after me were all dead, with holes in their heads, their brains sucked out by some dead but living humans."

She narrated, and Drake sighed.

"How did you obtain your system?" She asked, curious.

Drake's mind went through the moment he found out his girlfriend was married all along. As if that wasn't enough pain, they killed him and ran away.

He didn't want to share the story.

"Well, it's a really long story, but I got this locket from my grandmother. I bet she didn't know it would turn me into this one day, when she gave it to me," Drake said, and she smirked.

"What's your name?" She asked.

"Drake, Drake Miller."

Drake said, and she stretched a hand toward him, requesting a handshake.

"I'm sorry, but I don't think it is fine to shake a stranger in a world like this," Drake mentioned, and she chuckled lightly, before realizing he was serious.

"Why?" She asked.

"I just experienced the worst moment of my life. I met another system upgrader who called himself the god-summoner. I cannot trust another system upgrader ever again," Drake expressed his fear and reason for being cautious.

"Zeus? You met Zeus and you're still alive?" Elisa said, and Drake's brows drew together.

"You know Zeus?" Drake questioned.

She was thrown into confusion.

"Yes, of course. I have seen him kill 3 different system upgraders before my eyes since last night. He claimed their tasks and leveled up. That is one of his tricks to level up above everyone else. He steals people's tasks, works it, and gets the rewards," Elisa said, and Drake's eyes widened in shock.

"Why would he do that? I thought we are all survivors and our main goal should be trying our best to survive the Zombie apocalypse…" 

Anger surged through Drake, after he heard what Zeus was doing to fellow survivors.

"I only survived him by chance, but with my left arm fried by his lightning. I relinquished my task for him, but after he claimed it, he still chased after me wanting to kill me. I tried my best to sneak out and he managed to do this to me," she added.

She used her right hand to roll up her left sleeve, revealing her left arm, and that's when Drake's mouth widened.

Her left arm from her wrist up to her arm was indeed fried by lightning. No wonder it looked erect, and as if she couldn't jerk her left elbow at all.

"I'm so sorry for your arm," Drake said, anger coursing through him towards Zeus.

"Why should he be so heartless?" Drake murmured.

"The main thing is, how did you survive him?" Elisa said, shock evident on her face.

"I didn't survive him; he killed me..." Drake said carelessly.

Shock gripped Elisa. She wasn't sure if she just heard correctly.

"Excuse me? You died, and you're still here talking to me? If there is anything this system doesn't give, it is extra life. I, including everyone I've met, only have one life. That is the life through which we were given a second chance when we received the system newly. If we die, we stay dead," Elisa said.

Shock gripped Drake as he realized that she was serious.

"Not even Zeus has two lives. That is why he is so obsessed over gathering protection pyramids used in integrating body shields," she added, and Drake's brows drew together.

It all made sense to him now. A system upgrader as powerful as Zeus was still struggling to get the only protection pyramid Drake found. 

It probably meant that he truly had no extra life and depended on body shields for protection.

"It all makes sense now. Zeus had a bowl of protection pyramids but was still fighting me for one," Drake muttered, looking into Elisa's eyes.

"I need to understand how you survived Zeus; please be honest with me," Elisa said, desperate for an answer.

"Well, I- I don't really know answers to a lot of things here. I think I'm as confused as you are," Drake explained, withholding some vital facts about his death cheat.

Elisa's eyes were wide open in shock.

"Why are you looking at me that way?" Drake asked, surprised at how Elisa was staring at him in awe.

"Did you gain any extra advantage over other? Because I'm yet to understand what is happening here. It is either you actually didn't die or you didn't meet Zues in the first place," Elisa said, still in awe of Drake's system.

"I did meet Zeus, okay?" Drake said, walking forward and leaving her behind.

"Now if you'll excuse me, I have to find my mother. I've wasted enough time here," Drake added, still walking towards the next street. Elisa followed him behind.

"If you truly died then… you have no idea the power of what you have," Elisa added.

With those words, Drake turned around, his eyes narrowed at her. He thought his system was the most useless, but maybe he had special advantages.

"What system did you obtain?" she asked, curiosity peaking.

"I think—" Drake murmured, trying to recall.

"The-uhhh... S-Skill Invoker System," Drake mentioned.

Elisa's eyes widened in shock once more.

"Oh my God..." she whispered.

"It is you!"