Arcane: Broken Mechanism

The next week was much more difficult than the previous one. Finn kept his word - the workload increased, and Sirion had to practically run non-stop. Every morning he woke up before dawn, collected his things and went to Finn to receive another task. The day turned into a series of running through the dirty and dangerous streets of Zaun.

The tasks varied from simple deliveries to more complex assignments. Sometimes it was to deliver a small package to one of Finn's allies, sometimes - to buy something valuable from a merchant or bring a necessary item from the lair of one of the neutral groups. All this required attention, speed and the ability to keep your mouth shut.

"You again?" Jerry grinned, noticing Sirion at the entrance to Finn's office. "Good job, boy, you keep up the pace. I thought you'd fizzle out after the third day."

Sirion just nodded, unable to even keep up the conversation. He really felt drained. Fatigue was growing with each passing day, but there was no stopping. Finn gave clear instructions and clearly expected each task to be completed flawlessly.

Besides, all of this was useful to him. The more tasks he completed, the more he learned about the area, the streets, the people and groups. Sometimes he even managed to get something useful for his inventions. However, the time for working with the system and his own projects was becoming less and less.

One evening, returning to his room, he did not even lay out the materials he had managed to collect during the day. He simply collapsed on the bed and lay there until his consciousness switched off. The system gently notified him of a small progress in his skills, but even this could not please him.

"Another week of this pace, and I will simply die," flashed through his head. But Sirion knew that there was no use complaining. He needed to find a way to get out of this endless series of assignments and use his unique system to turn the situation around.

Sirion leaned back in his chair, breathing heavily. Every evening ended the same way - he forced himself to work on the system, despite his fatigue. It had become something of a ritual: returning from yet another mission, he spent his last strength on creating small tools to gradually increase his skill level.

On the system screen, the progress looked encouraging:

"Engineering: Level 3 (24/30)

Design: Level 3 (24/20)"

Each new device, even something as simple as a screwdriver or a wrench, helped him better understand the capabilities of the system. He already felt that the level of skill was growing, and with it - confidence in his abilities.

"If I continue in the same spirit, I will soon be able to move on to more complex projects," Sirion thought, running his eyes over the system menu.

Despite his fatigue, he began to get used to the new rhythm of life. The constant work and assignments from Finn were exhausting him, but they gave him an opportunity to better navigate Zaun and its inhabitants. Sirion had already learned not to get lost on the streets, knew where to look in search of the necessary parts, and even made some useful contacts.

By the end of the week, he realized that he was starting to "fit in." Fatigue was still pressing on him, but now he could focus not only on survival, but also on his own plans. Every evening, sitting at his desk, he imagined more complex mechanisms: something that could become his first real invention.

"Just a little more. As soon as I finish this race of assignments, I will begin to implement my ideas," he said to himself, feeling a slight surge of determination.

This time, he decided to try to start drawing a more complex device. And although his eyes were already sticking together from fatigue, Sirion opened the drawing panel of the system and began to sketch the first lines. He had been planning for several days to start creating this thing that would help protect him if something happened.

Sirion sat at the table, holding a pencil in his hand. In front of him was a blank sheet of paper, on which he began to sketch out a design. The idea of ​​creating a weapon had been occupying his thoughts for several days. He decided to focus on a powerful and simple design - a pistol reminiscent of the classic Desert Eagle.

He signed the drawing: new project. Name: "Desert Eagle".

The interface flashed before his eyes, and a drawing panel appeared in front of him. Sirion carefully began to draw the main parts: barrel, bolt, trigger, magazine. His idea was simple: to create a powerful weapon capable of penetrating even light armor plates.

As soon as the sketch took shape, the system issued a notification:

"Project: 'Desert Eagle'.

Required materials:

- High-strength metal - 8 units.

- Reinforced alloy - 3 units.

- Polymer composite - 2 units.

- Firing mechanism - 1 unit (ready-made or composite)."

Sirion frowned as he studied the list.

"It's not much, but it won't be easy to assemble," he muttered, noting that he already had some of the materials. However, he knew for sure that he would have to find the missing parts to complete the project, especially the firing mechanism and the polymer composite.

The system added another notification:

"Current rating of the blueprint: 67%. Optimization is possible. It is recommended to increase the reliability of the bolt and improve the barrel cooling."

Sirion sighed, looking at the screen.

"Barrel cooling, then... Okay, let's try to improve it," he said, returning to the blueprint.

Now his task was not only to find the missing materials, but also to refine the design so that the pistol would be even more reliable.

Sirion dug into his work, adding more details to the drawing for the cooling system. He outlined the vents along the barrel and thought out the design of the heat-dissipating plates, which should improve the pistol's stability during long-term use.

"Current rating of the blueprint: 78%. Design improved. Reliability increased. Expected stability: high."

"Already better," he muttered, looking over the result with satisfaction.

Now he had a practical task: collecting the missing materials. Most could be tried to find in the garbage heaps of Zaun, but the firing mechanism was more difficult. It was a precise and specific part, which was unlikely to be freely available.

"We'll have to look in more important places," he said to himself, closing the drawing panel in the system.

He stood up, wiping his hands from imaginary dust, and looked at his watch. It was still early morning, and he had some time before Finn would require his presence again.

Sirion quickly packed his things, deciding to head to one of the parts of Zaun where he had once seen storage facilities. If he was lucky, he might find something suitable there.

***

When he got there, he looked around the old buildings. The warehouse looked abandoned, but that didn't mean it was safe. In Zaun, any such place could be a haven for gangs or a pack of hungry creatures. Sirion snuck inside through a broken window. His gaze immediately stopped on the piles of metal, spare parts and tools.

Sirion crept along the wall, trying not to draw attention to his movements. Through the dirty glass of the broken window, it was clear that the warehouse was far from empty. Several men were walking around inside, judging by their clothes - representatives of one of the local gangs. They talked among themselves, lazily patrolling the territory.

"Of course, everything couldn't be too simple," Sirion thought, carefully examining the room.

He noticed metal beams crossing the ceiling of the warehouse. They were heading deeper into the building, right above the piles of scrap metal and crates.

"We'll have to take the upper route," he muttered under his breath, pulling himself up and grabbing the ledge under the window.

Sirion pulled himself up with his arms and carefully stepped onto the first beam. It creaked a little, but the conversations below continued - he hadn't been noticed yet. He moved slowly, balancing over the heads of the guards. Each beam was a challenge for him: rust and dust threatened to tear him down. Coming closer to the center of the warehouse, he stopped and looked around. The pile of metal, visible from the outside, lay to the side. There were no people near it - an ideal opportunity to go down and inspect the supplies. He carefully lowered himself to the lower level, grabbing an old chain hanging from the ceiling. The chain creaked, but he landed almost silently.

"Excellent," he whispered, starting to sort through the metal parts.

Each time the system highlighted a suitable part, he quickly took it into his inventory. Having found several metal plates, wires, and finally a firing mechanism, Sirion was pleased with the result.

"Detected: Firing mechanism. Condition: damaged. Suitable for recycling."

"Well, this is better than nothing," he said, taking the find. His heart began to beat faster when one of the guards suddenly moved towards him.

"Okay, time to get out," he decided, slowly backing away.

He looked around and noticed a ventilation shaft. It was a risky exit, but there was no better option. Sirion climbed into it, trying to move as quietly as possible. The noise of the ventilation grate made the guards wary, but fortunately, they decided that it was just rats.

"Those damn things again," one of them muttered, returning to his work. Sirion crawled out of the shaft on the other side of the warehouse and found himself outside. Taking a deep breath, he quickly left the area.

"Too close," he muttered, dusting off his hands and heading home.

***

Sirion climbed up to the central level of the city, looking around carefully. It was already past evening, and the streets of the middle level of Zaun were much livelier than he was used to seeing in his area. People were rushing about, vendors were calling out to customers, and all of this mixed into a loud hum.

His thoughts focused on what he had managed to get from the warehouse. He immediately hid the parts he had found in his inventory so as not to attract unnecessary attention. However, he still lacked several components to complete the planned project.

"I need to buy the rest," he muttered, quickening his pace.

Benzo's shop was closer to the center of the level, and the walk to it took some time. Sirion tried to stay away from large crowds of people so as not to be unnecessarily conspicuous. When he finally approached the familiar door with the peeling sign, a strange feeling of calm came over him. He quickly straightened his jacket, took a deep breath and went inside.

"You again," he heard Benzo's hoarse voice, who was just sorting through a box with some old parts. "What, do you need anything else?"

"Yeah," Sirion nodded, taking a note from his pocket with a list of necessary spare parts, which he had made beforehand on the way to the store. "I need this."

Benzo squinted, running his eyes over the list, and sighed.

"Polymer composite, reinforced alloy... durable metal? Not much you want, boy. It's not lying around on every corner. But I think I have something," he turned away, starting to sort through the shelves behind the counter. "What do you need all this for?" he suddenly asked without turning around.

"Oh, I need it for work," Sirion froze for a second, but quickly found an answer. And immediately bit his tongue after these words. Work in Zaun could have a wide range of occupations. From ordinary to murder and robbery. Often, many were engaged in theft.

Benzo chuckled briefly and threw a few parts on the counter.

"Okay, I believe you. This is all I have. 9 silver gears, if you want to take everything."

"Expensive", - Sirion noted, but after thinking for a moment, he still reached into his pocket for money.

"Expensive? Boy, you will come here more than once, so stick to places like this. Either pay, or go look for them on the streets", - Benzo grinned. Sirion reluctantly counted out the money and handed it to the old man.

"Thank you", - he said briefly, taking the parts, planning to throw them into the inventory a little later.

Sirion was just about to leave, when the door of the store swung open with a loud crash, and a small white-haired boy flew inside. Ekko, in his usual worn shorts and a T-shirt, easily held a large box with assorted junk. Metal fragments and parts of strange mechanisms swayed menacingly on the edge, as if they were about to fall out.

"Benzo! Look what I found!" Ekko shouted excitedly, kicking the door with his foot so that it closed.

"Can you at least open the door properly once?" Benzo said irritably, without even turning around.

"Well, you should have praised me first," Ekko said with feigned indignation, putting the box on the floor and wiping his hands on his pants. "I found cool stuff! Here, look!"

The boy immediately began to unload his "catch" from the box: metal plates, bent wires, a couple of old, rusty gears, and some large, but clearly damaged mechanism.

"Now, now..." - Benzo turned around to examine the finds. - "Hmm... This is better than your last "hunt". Maybe some of this will even be useful."

Sirion, standing by the door, involuntarily watched what was happening. Ekko seemed to be beaming with pride while the old man was sorting through his finds.

"What are you standing there for? Were you going to leave, no?" - Benzo suddenly threw over his shoulder, noticing that Sirion was still there.

"Yes, I'm on my way", - he answered shortly, but Ekko turned to him, examining him with interest.

"Oh, it's you!" - Ekko exclaimed, instantly recognizing Sirion. The boy broke into a wide grin, almost jumping up and down with joy. - "Look, you promised to help me! Remember? Last time we saw each other! You left so quickly, I didn't even have time to thank you for... well, for just talking to me," - Ekko blurted out quickly, filling the entire room with his enthusiasm.

Sirion didn't even have time to get a word in before the boy continued:

"Well, I have a bunch of stuff here that needs fixing. Well, maybe not exactly a bunch, but definitely three or four that I've already tried to fix, but they... um... exploded. One time I almost set my hair on fire, can you believe it?" - Ekko vigorously ran his hand through his white hair, as if proving that it was still intact. - "But now that you're here, you can help me, right? You're a great engineer!"

"I never said I was a great engineer", - he sighed. - "I said I knew my stuff."

Sirion smiled faintly. The boy's sincerity and his open, almost naive approach to people contrasted sharply with the gloomy atmosphere of Zaun.

"You really do have a talent for not giving people time to think", - he calmly noted, folding his arms over his chest.

"It's not a talent, but... um... how can I say it... a feature!" - Ekko immediately retorted, giggling.