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Alex was staring in lustful desire at the list of interesting options, entirely consumed with decision paralysis.
Others didn’t have the same issue, however. John cleared his throat. “I know I’m not the only one who would fit the bill, but I would greatly appreciate being Weapons Officer, and I believe that I’d be good at it. The only issue I foresee is my mana pool isn’t that great. If I have to be the only source of power, then we might be in trouble. Still, I think I can make more of a few shots than many could with far more, and the wording seems to imply that I wouldn’t be the only source.”
Nods rippled around the table. That really was the easiest choice, and soon enough, everyone had agreed, though Kaylee seemed iffy about it. She didn’t seem ready to voice her doubts, however.
Pilar perked up at the more or less easy agreement and added in her own bid for a position. “I think I would be a great Shields Officer. From the sound of it, the position is more about all defensive systems, and I think I’ve proved I excel at close fire support.”
Alex huffed a laugh and a few others groaned at the pun, but for the moment, no one seemed to disagree, allowing the couple to lean back in contentment, their roles seemingly secured.
But then Kaylee cleared her throat. “I apologize, but I think that would fit Lenka better.”
Lenka perked up, her face clearly betraying that she thought so too, even if the less confrontational woman had likely been willing to just go with the flow.
Kaylee smiled, continuing. “She doesn’t have your depth of magic, but her entire build is about defending a position, if looked at in the right light. I had thought you, Pilar, would be a good Weapons Officer, because of what you just said actually.” She turned to John, a conciliatory look on her face. “I actually assumed that you would be the Engineer and Mechanic. Don’t you have a weapon modification class? Wouldn’t that position enhance those skills, and maybe allow you to apply them to the ship itself and your own weaponry as well?”
John tilted his head to the side, looking up and clearly considering her words.
There was a lull, and Alex decided to give a bit of a nudge. “Where do you see everyone else, Kaylee?”
She smiled gratefully. “Well, I saw myself as the Structural Officer, as I believe that might help me claim the ship itself as my base for my class.”
That got some startled responses as clearly most hadn’t considered that idea. Grant’s eyes widened. “That’s awesome! Great thinking.”
Her smile grew at the praise, seeming emboldened. “Alex should be the Helmsman.”
“What?” Alex blurted it out, but instantly regretted it. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to interrupt, but… why? I don’t know how to fly.”
“That’s not what the position is about though. Sure, you’ll likely gain some of that knowledge, but that’s what it says, not what it’s about. The Helmsman is the one who chooses positioning moment by moment. If anyone is the ‘leader in the front’ it’s the Helmsman. Sure, if there's a commander, the Helmsman takes the ship where he’s told to, but how and in what way? The Helmsman chooses. You have already helped build out several solid plans, and you’ve been shown to think on your feet, even recovering from seeming disaster. That’s the type of person I want with the entire ship in his hands.”
Alex suddenly felt that as a heavy weight… the whole ship in his hands. To give himself a moment to think, he asked, “What about Grant?”
Grant shrugged and spoke before Kaylee could. “I want to be the Medical Officer.”
Silence fell, and everyone looked his way in confusion.
The man held a straight face for a long moment before chuckling. “Nah, who am I kidding. I figured that I’d be the Internal Security Officer.”
The group let out a collective breath of relief, a few even chuckled, but unfortunately, it seemed that the ice had been quite thoroughly broken. Natasha cleared her throat. “I think that I would be a good fit for that position as well.”
Kaylee was nodding along, Alex momentarily forgotten. “I could see either of you in that position, but I want to offer you each another option.”
They both turned toward her, and Alex felt himself smile. She really was a good manager, working to understand those around her and bring out their best toward whatever end.
“Natasha, you have a couple of detection and sensing spells and skills. Also, given your primary class, you have some things that overlap with the ‘sixth sense’ that the Internal Security position seems to offer, isn’t that right?”
The Russian gave a slow nod.
“Then, if you were to take the Sensor Specialist position, that could enhance those senses since you don’t need the Internal Security one to grant them to you in the first place. In that way, we’d have two people able to sense and respond to danger within the ship. There is also the Navigator, which could give those same skills and spells a far greater range and fidelity. Though, it sounds like it might cause a lessening of the ability close at hand.”
Natasha leaned back, frowning, but clearly not upset. She was giving a slow, contemplative nod.
Grant was grinning in seeming triumph, but then Kaylee turned toward him. “I was actually considering you for Supply Officer.”
“What?” His head pulled back almost as if he’d been punched, a frown overtaking his features as well. “But… My inventory is tiny. I barely ever use it.”
“Exactly! This would shore up that weakness in you while providing the benefit to the whole ship.”
“I don’t understand. It seems like everyone else is aiming toward their strength, won’t we be better as a group if we do that?”
“Yes, I think.” She took a careful breath, nodding to herself. “The Supply Officer seems like the most generally useful position for its benefits. Most of us have various skills and abilities that fill the basics for ourselves. So, while enhancement might be nice, doing so for utility skills isn’t as useful. In your case, the lack could prove deadly, depending on how this scenario goes and on the state of Earth when we get back.”
Grant leaned forward putting his hands together—left hand around right fist—and resting his chin on them in thought.
Kaylee seemed to hesitate before sighing. “There is also that the Internal Security position seems like the perfect one for a non-Initiate.” That got everyone’s attention, and so she continued without much pause. “It sounds like we’ll have to deal with unknown situations, and dangers both inside and outside the ship. Those outside the ship will be tackled all together, but those inside? Whoever is in this position is going to be facing the unknown, possibly alone, in order to assess and see if others are needed. I might be wrong, but I think that if any of the crew dies—assuming it isn’t all of us dying together—the Internal Security officer will be that person. As such, I’d prefer none of my friends are the one to die.”
Silence filled the room.
She winced. “I know that’s a terrible reason for the decision, and I do genuinely think you each would fit well in the places I suggested for you, but I also didn’t want to hide that the last did inform my thinking.”
Natasha huffed a laugh and gave a small smile. “Thank you for the candor… I do think I agree with you. As the Watcher kindly reminded me, as a spear and shield user, my difficulty will be very close range. While the Internal Security position would lean into some strengths, it would likely only make that weakness more pronounced. Despite your advice, I think that Navigator would actually make the situation worse, giving me a better view of things out and away from me.” She nodded, clearly talking for herself as much as them. “I do think, however, that the Sensor Specialist position would both compliment my strengths and help me shore up my weakness of awareness of the closest threats that I might more effectively counter them.” She glanced toward Grant. “I will not begrudge you or her no matter what position you end up with.”
Alex thought he understood her logic. He didn’t think he’d come to that conclusion himself, but then again, he wouldn’t have chosen to wield a spear. So, he supposed that they just saw things differently to begin with.
Kaylee smiled and confirmed. “So, Sensor Specialist then?”
Natasha gave a slow nod. “I think so, yes.”
Grant sighed. “I hear you, I really do.” Everyone shifted to be looking his way as he continued. “But I think I’m still a better fit for Internal Security than any other, and it’s the way I want to go.” He then turned to Natasha and giving a hesitant smile. “That said, thank you for your words. I don’t want you to feel like you were convinced away from it just so I could take it. We are all trying to get stronger, but I don’t think this one choice will be so monumental as to be worth creating a rift in our group. We’re going to be working together for the rest of the tutorial at the very least, and that’s worth more than an unknown boost. Are you sure?”
The spear user gave a genuine smile, her features softening to a surprising extent. “That is kind of you to check. Honestly, I might have had some irritation.”
Grant sighed, already nodding, but she continued.
“That said, take it. We’re adults, and this just makes sense. A spear would be a terrible weapon in the confines of a ship, even a short one like I use. Your warhammer will be much more efficient in tight quarters. I could have made it work, but Kaylee is right, I don’t need the base benefits, and I can get more enhancement from the Sensor Specialist position.”
“Are you sure?”
She nodded definitively. “Yes.”
He grinned. “Alright then.”
Kaylee frowned, but after she took a deep breath, she seemed to accept the choices made. “Alright. Then, how do the rest of you feel about my suggestions?”
As it turned out, she’d had good points and basically everyone was happy to go with her ideas.
That just left Alex.
All eyes turned toward him, and he grimaced. “Are we sure we don’t want a non-Initiate as Helmsman? Or even some sort of magical AI? I hear a self-driving ship is the way of the future.”
That got a round of chuckles, and John shook his head, seemingly speaking for all of them. “You don’t always make the best decisions in the moment, but you don’t freeze, and your decisions always get us through. With time, I think you’ll get better and better, and if someone has to be in charge of quick thinking, quick reactions, and hard, fast decisions, I’d like it to be you.”
As Alex looked around, he found everyone nodding or otherwise expressing agreement. He was thinking more and more that he wanted to lean into magical item creation, especially if he was going to be coming out of this with a Legendary skill in that direction. Hopefully, the acquisition of that skill would improve his rune-related class option, and regardless, if he understood the benefits of ‘Helmsman’ then he would be able to better understand how his magical symbols fit into space around them and possibly how they might fit together.
All told, it might be a long shot, but given his companions’ thoughts on the matter, he didn’t mind making that gamble.
With a slow nod, he shrugged. “Very well. I’ll do my best not to let you all down.”
Grant gave a half smile. “Well, if you do, it’s not like we’ll be able to remember.”
John groaned, leaning back, and Kaylee smacked Grant’s arm.
“What?” The hammer wielder was grinning despite his protests.
Alex just laughed. “Fair enough, Grant. I’ll try to keep that in mind.”
They all sat in silence for a long moment before Alex turned to glance at the Watcher. “What do you think?”
The woman smiled. “I cannot advise you, but I can say two things. First, all of you could benefit to a greater or lesser extent from any of the positions. Second, Initiate Kaylee’s reasoning is as good as any I believe you all are capable of pulling together."
Kaylee laughed before covering her mouth and quieting. “That is both helpful and likely insulting at some level.”
The Watcher smiled but didn’t comment further.
Alex smiled and looked around, finding most of the other Initiates similarly entertained.
Natasha was frowning in clear concentration. Finally, the Russian looked up and met Grant’s gaze. “Are you sure you are up for this? Being responsible for protecting us and the ship from threats within?”
Grant didn’t respond immediately, clearly taking her question seriously. Finally, he nodded. “Yes. I can’t claim I will be perfect, but I will do my utmost, and I believe that I can do a good job of it.”
She regarded him for a long moment before nodding, her shoulders shifting as if she were letting go of a great weight. “Very well. I will agree.”
The Watcher nodded once. “I just need a quick confirmation from each of you, and I will grant your choices and send you off to your training.”
“Weapons Officer.” Pilar stated firmly.
“Shields for me.” Lenka’s tone was only slightly hesitant.
“Helmsman.” Alex felt resigned but did his best to keep it from his voice.
“Structural.” Kaylee added excitedly.
“Engineer and Mechanic.” John winked toward his wife.
Grant straightened, but before he said anything, he gestured toward Natasha. She gave a nod of thanks before speaking. “Sensor Specialist.”
He then finished them out with, “Internal Security.”
Kaylee then added at the end. “And we would like the Navigator and Medical Officers to be non-Initiates. We do not want the third to be a captain. If there are other options that could be randomly assigned, we would like that chance. Otherwise, Supply Officer will work well enough.”
The Watcher nodded. “You all agree?”
They all gave their agreement.
“Then it is done.”
Notice - Position Chosen, Title Earned:
HelmsmanDuties: Fly, guide, and help power the ship’s sub-jump maneuvers.Granted Benefit: Deepening and strengthening of skills and spells that have to do with three-dimensional awareness and movement. Disorientation is a thing of the past. You always know where you are and—with luck and practice—what is around you.
Apology Tutorial Addendum:Specific benefits to you will need to be explored. Crafted and granted memories will be granted at the start of the next scenario.
Alex barely had time to read the notice before the world shifted around him, and he found himself standing in a grassy clearing, surrounded by massive oak trees in an old-growth, widely spread out forest.
He hadn’t had a chance to fully take in his surroundings when a resonant, female voice reached him. “Well, scratch my back with a cheese grater. Someone actually met the qualifications?”