novelraw Chapter 255 255: The Calculator's Gift
Chapter 255 255: The Calculator's Gift
The next day, Tatehan and Torvan sat in Torvan's workshop, surrounded by the usual clutter of tools, half-assembled devices, and holographicstuffs.
The atmosphere was relaxed and casual, the kind of environment that came from two people who had spent enough time together to be comfortable in silence as much as in conversation.
Tatehan was drinking from a bottle of soda, some Martian brand he had picked up from the base's commissary, carbonated and vaguely citrus-flavored, though it did not taste quite like anything he remembered from Earth. Torvan, on the other hand, was nursing a glass of alcoholic wine, a deep red liquid that caught the light from the overhead panels and felt like it glowed faintly in his hands.
Torvan had offered Tatehan a glass when they first sat down, holding up the bottle with a grin and saying something about how it was one of the better local vintages, smooth and not too strong. But Tatehan had declined, shaking his head and raising his soda bottle in polite refusal.
He had almost been addicted back on Earth. Back when he was still living with Gavin.
Then when the world was normal and the biggest stress in his life was whether he could afford rent and groceries at the same time. He had drunk to take the edge off, to quiet the noise in his head and to make the days feel a little less heavy. It had crept up on him slowly, the way those things always did, until one day he realized he was reaching for a drink more often than not.
He had stopped. Eventually. With effort. And he had promised himself he would not go back.
Now, as Tatehan with an enhanced body that could process alcohol faster, metabolize it more efficiently, handle quantities that would have knocked his old self unconscious, the idea was tempting. His system could probably handle it without any of the downsides he had dealt with before.
Probably no hangovers and no sluggishness. Only the pleasant warmth and the loosening of tension.
But he was not doing it. He had made that decision the moment he arrived on Mars, and he was sticking to it. He would be alcohol-free on this planet. No exceptions.
So he drank his soda, and Torvan drank his wine, and they talked.
They had gotten pretty close lately. Not in the way that Tatehan was close with Riven or Lyra, where there was constant banter and shared experiences in combat, but in a quieter, more grounded way. Torvan was someone Tatehan could sit with and not feel the need to perform, to be the Knight or the Battle Commander or anything other than just himself.
And Torvan, for his part, seemed to appreciate having someone who was genuinely interested in the work he did, someone who asked questions and wanted to understand the technical details instead of just nodding and moving on.
Right now, Torvan was working on an upgrade for Tatehan's helmet. The helmet itself was resting on the workbench between them, its sleek silver surface reflecting the light from the overhead panels. Torvan had disassembled part of the interior, exposing the circuitry and systems that powered the visor, the communications array, and the audio enhancements.
He was adding a new feature. A projection system that would allow the helmet to display holographic data directly in Tatehan's field of vision, overlaying tactical information, targeting reticles, environmental scans, and anything else that might be useful in combat. The system would integrate seamlessly with the existing heads-up display, pulling data from the armor's sensors and presenting it in a way that was intuitive and non-intrusive.
It was a good upgrade. Torvan had explained the concept to him a few days ago, sketching out diagrams and running through the potential applications, and Tatehan had been immediately on board.
To get stronger, he did not have to rely solely on his abilities, his fighting skills, or his weapons. He could add technology to the mix, turning his armor into something more than just protection: something that actively enhanced his combat effectiveness.
So they sat, Torvan working with his hands while Tatehan watched and asked the occasional question, and the conversation drifted naturally from topic to topic.
At one point, Tatehan decided to ask something he had been curious about for a while. He leaned back in his chair, taking a sip of his soda, and then he looked at Torvan.
"So," Tatehan said, his tone casual, "which weapon did you awaken your ability from?"
Torvan paused in his work, setting down the tool he had been using, and he looked up at Tatehan with an expression that was somewhere between amused and sheepish.
"A calculator," Torvan said.
Tatehan blinked. "A what?"
"A calculator," Torvan repeated, grinning now. "You know, those little handheld devices people use to do math."
Tatehan stared at him for a moment, processing that, and then he let out a short, incredulous laugh. "A calculator? That's crazy, lol."
Torvan chuckled, nodding. "Yeah, I know. Most people get swords, guns, hammers, all that cool stuff. Well .. I…I got a calculator."
He picked up his glass of wine, took a sip, and then continued.
"It was one of my dad's, actually. He was an engineer, worked on infrastructure projects all over Waython Hollow. He used that calculator constantly, running numbers, checking calculations and making sure everything added up. I was eight years old, messing around in his workshop one day, and I picked it up. Just started pressing buttons, punching in random numbers. And then the System activated."
Tatehan leaned forward slightly, intrigued. "And your dad just... let you keep it?"
Torvan nodded. "Yeah. I told him I had gotten an ability from it, and he just smiled and said it was mine now. He got a new one, and I kept the old one. Still have it, actually. It's in a drawer somewhere around here."
He gestured vaguely at the workshop, and Tatehan could not help but grin at the idea of Torvan keeping his awakening weapon tucked away like some kind of nostalgic keepsake.
But it was necessary though, your awakened weapon being damaged meant the end of your ability. So Torvan was right.
"So what ability did you get from a calculator?" Tatehan asked, genuinely curious now. "Like, super math powers? The ability to solve equations instantly?"
"What ability?"