[Ding!]

[Welcome to the Shovel System.]

[Loading... Please Wait]

Jackie Lewin's heart pounds in his feeble chest as he witnesses the system's word's floating in the air. He blurts, "Why did it write out 'Ding!'?"

He shakes his old head to clear the thought.

He sees the forest around him but focuses on the translucent floating words that stay in his field of view no matter how he turns his head.

"Is this in my head? What is this? I think my grandson said something about it. Now, what was that?" Jackie leans forward on the shovel, peering at the loading circle spinning before his eyes.

His dull gaze brightens up, "I recall! Alternate Reality, no, wait, that doesn't sound right, Holoternate reality, no, Augmented reality!"

"Those holographic shovels look just like the one I just grabbed."

The interface has stylized holographic shovels for the border, the words printed in an easy to read large font for his aging eyes. Old Jackie then realizes that he can see the words with clarity.

Jackie nods, standing straighter as his back abruptly sends pins and needles of pain sprouting up to his shoulders. He hunches back down onto the shovel for support, reaching around for his cane.

His hand returns empty, and he pulls his worn bifocals from his pocket, slipping them on. He looks around while the loading prompt continues to spin. "Now, where did my cane get to?"

He sees the snow-capped mountain spread out beneath him in all directions, covered with purple trees with giant red and heart-shaped purple leaves, making him think about the elephant ear plants he grew in his back yard for a while. The trees tower hundreds of meters tall, several in the distance have snow-capped crowns challenging the mountain peak for dominance of the skyline. Streams of multi-colored light swim and float through the boughs of the forest of enormous trees.

Several white lights swirl around Jackie as the wind kicks snow wisps around him.

The sky is clear and blue as far as he can see, the sun of the world is just like he remembers. He sees strange blue glowing crystals of various sizes growing from the peak around him, faint blue wisps of light floating into them.

Several wisps of light drift harmlessly through him and away with the wind. He pauses, realizing that he should be feeling deathly cold on the top of this frigid peak.

"What's going on here? And, thinking back, why did I act like a child and chase that fella in the store? I feel like something had me." He cups his chin and admires the view as he draws a blank about this issue. "One thing's for sure; I'm not in the Lonestar State anymore. This view... my buddies would be jealous to death if I could share it. Haha! " He forces a smile as his brows tremble, and a sigh escapes his lips.

His lips tremble, and he feels wetness slip down his wrinkled cheeks. Moving his rough hand, he wipes his face and looks at the tears on his hand.

Jackie leans on the shovel for support. "The..The view moved me... I'd love to lie and say that, but I'm scared. This is probably the end of the line for me. My meds. Fiona... I suppose I'll be with you sooner than I thought, I know I've made you wait a long time for me, I'm already seventy-eight now, I'll finally know if I've done right by you with our babies. I wanna say that they all done us proud."

He rubs his eyes as his vision blurs, more tears sliding down his face to pelt the snow under him. His breath shudders, and he wipes his eyes. His unfocused eyes look into his memories and the long life of challenges and difficulties he faced and overcome.

His eyes gradually regain focus on the strange new world around him, and his breathing grows stronger and more determined. He clenches his fist, and his eyes light up with clarity.

"Fiona, I'm sure this will be one damn good story to tell you when it's my time." Jackie nods his old head as the holographic loading symbol explodes into an array of menus and information.

[The Shovel System Level 1- Integrity 1/100]

[User Jackie Lewin]

[Shovel Points: 100(-30)]

[Age 78]

[Exotic Contamination: 0]

[Body: Pure]

[>User Statistics]

[>Store - Locked]

[>Lottery - Locked]

[>Skill Tree - Locked]

[Special Abilities 2 /12]

[Dimensional Dig - Locked]

[Basic Environmental Protection - Active, Consuming SP]

[Skills]

[Shovel Mastery - Incompetent]

He looks over the system interface and a box pops up, [Welcome Package has arrived, would you like to open? Yes / No] Jackie puzzles over it and nods, causing the words to fade away. A moment later three icons appear, showing three gift boxes.

He looks at the first gift box, causing it to unwrap its blue ribbon and the top to pop off. The box fades away to reveal a small shimmering vial. He reaches forward and grabs it instinctively, the warm glass pulses in his hand, warming up his frail body.

He inspects the vial and a description box appears in his vision.

[Good Coffee. For those times when you need some get up and go, this is the tonic you need!]

"Gah! What the devil is this?" He pops his neck and pockets the vial in his coveralls.

He looks at the second box, causing it to reveal its contents. A glowing orb appears and a system prompt appears above it,

[Learn Shovel Self Defense? Yes/No]

He pauses and lifts an eyebrow. He tilts his head and scratches his chin, "I suppose there might be some dangerous critters about down in those woods."

Jackie turns his attention to his shovel to examine it, his eyes abruptly snap open, "Oh dear!"

The shovel's once pristine chromed head, handle, and polished wooden staff now look beaten up and corroded, rusty. It is as though it's been left out in the sun and rain for decades, practically on its last legs.

"Is this what Integrity means? Why is it so low?" He puzzles over the change in appearance for a few moments, turning the battered shovel this way and that in his knurled hands.

He plunks it back into the snow and leans on it.

Jackie looks at the infobox and nods, "Might as well. It's all I got now." The Yes option highlights and swirls down into the strange glowing orb.

The orb pulses and then explodes into a flood of light, images, and thoughts that rush forward and pummel themselves into the old-timer's head. Jackie shouts and stomps, grabbing his head between his hands as he falls over the shovel, sprawling on the ground while he lives through years of impossible training in his mind, poses and footwork welding themselves into his memories one after another.

His vision returns as the sun reaches its apex in the blue sky and his breathing returns to normal. He gasps and uses the shovel to push himself to his feet, glaring at the system display, "Warn me next time!"

He rubs his back, pain shooting throughout his body and causing him to lean on the shovel for support. "I can't take falls like that. I'm going to bruise."

Jackie Lewin gazes at his display. A new addition has amended itself to his skills.

[The Shovel System Level 1- Integrity 1/100]

[User Jackie Lewin]

[Shovel Points: 70(-30)]

[Age 78]

[Exotic Contamination: 0]

[Body: Pure]

[>User Statistics]

[>Store - Locked]

[>Lottery - Locked]

[>Skill Tree - Locked]

[Special Abilities 2 /12]

[Dimensional Dig - Locked]

[Basic Environmental Protection - Active, Consuming SP]

[Skills]

[Shovel Mastery - Incompetent]

[Shovel Self Defense - Incompetent]

"Well, I'd better give it a try." His legs move apart into a digging stance, he then gracefully moves the shovel around like it's an extension of his arm. The air stirs along the length of the rusty shovel. He slides between poses, easing the shovel along different arcs and trajectories, finally ending with a jab into the earth, stomping down with his feeble foot. The shovel punches through the ice and half-way up the handle, causing Jackie to topple forward, grabbing on for dear life to not fall.

He rights himself and chuckles, "Well, it's just snow." He spreads his legs apart and draws the shovel back out of the ice and snow, patting the moisture from the blade.

The old man gazes at the last box, wary and eager to see what it holds. The box unwraps itself, and Jackie's eyes light up.