Chapter 13

I awoke just after midnight, instantly feeling something had changed. Nora was still cuddled into the crook of my arm, and sleeping peacefully. I examined my power, and found a small pocket next to my corridor of power. There was a second pocket next to it, but was empty, while the first held a 1 gram cube of elementally pure platinum.

I could sense that the second pocket was twice as large, it could hold 2 grams of anything. I knew that American bills were required by law to weigh 1 gram. I could store 2 bills in the second storage slot. I reached out with my power and brought my wallet to myself so I wouldn’t wake Nora.

I carefully removed two bills, a $5 and a $20. I brought them to my hand and tried to absorb them, directing them into my storage container instead of into the energy storage corridor. They refused to go. I scanned the bills with my power, and realized they were dirty enough to weigh more than 2 grams. My power cleaned them, and with nary a sound, the two bills disappeared.

I could sense them there. I conjured the bills into existence from my left hand, I dropped them onto the floor, and kept conjuring. 2 grams, $25 a second. I stopped, suddenly wondering if I had just wasted a storage slot. My power collected up the bills, and as they touched my hand hanging over the side of the bed, I vanished them back into energy.

My power brought me a glass of water from the bathroom. I set it down on the bedside, and collected exactly 2 grams of water. As the ball of water touched my hand, I directed it to the storage slot. The bills disappeared, and the ball of water was left. I moved the cup to my hand, and vanished the water into energy. Then from my fingers I released balls of water, 2 grams each.

My power reached out, and selected the tiny bit of gold leftover from making the newest necklace. I brought it to my hand, and directed it into the second storage chamber. I could sense it was ⅓ of a gram. I filled my hand with six pieces, and merged them into a cube. I moved the cube to storage.

I conjured a platinum cube, and moved it onto the bedside table. I conjured a gold cube, and split it in half, reabsorbing the energy from the unused half. I directed the gold cube into the first slot. It refused. I double checked it was the same weight as the platinum cube, then reduced it by a few hundred atoms to ensure it was lighter. I tried again. It didn’t work. I tried the second slot and it went in immediately.

I tried with water, and a few other things, but the first slot was locked down to holding, and reproducing only 1 gram cubes of platinum.

I had a little bit of silver from the coins I had purified, so I brought it over, stuck it in storage, and replicated until I had a 1 gram cube. Then I placed it and a 1 gram cube of gold onto the bedside table. I reached my thumb to touch the 1 carat flawless diamond on my ring, and slotted it into storage. I replicated a dozen, and placed them on the bedside table. I conjured the stone back into the ring.

Satisfied that I could replicate anything that was no bigger than 2 grams, I went back to sleep. At six, I jolted awake. I had suddenly realized I had converted all the dollar bills to energy, and not left a copy. The late night experiment had cost me $25, but then I glanced at the diamonds and the gold and silver on the nightstand, and considered it a big win.

Nora had rolled away in her sleep, so I carefully got out of bed. My powers remotely started the keurig in the kitchen, and luxuriated in a hot shower. My coffee cup met me in the bathroom, as I stepped from the shower. I sipped the robust brew with cream and sugar as my power converted all the water on me into energy.

My senses reached out, it was slightly below freezing outside. I stepped into the walk in closet, pulling on clothes. I moved to a sitting area facing the windows. It was mostly dark outside, but I could sense the sun just below the horizon as a continuous source of high energy neutrinos, passing through the crust of the earth.

As I sat enjoying my coffee, my powers went to work. I used the gold and silver to create an alloy, then shaped it into a small rectangular 5 sided box. I added small loops on both of the long sides of the box, on one side they were parallel with the box, on the other they were turned ninety degrees. I was making the links to a bracelet.

Once I had the link created, and ensured it was just under 2 grams, I stored it, and then replicated one. I replicated the second so it’s loops materialized inside the loops of its neighbor, until I had fifty links. I carefully conjured the last two links into place, connecting the bracelet as I held it around my wrist.

With the bracelet in place, I began to bring various elements, replicating them to fit the hollow place inside the five sided box, and insert them into the box. I wasn’t worried about being poisoned thru my extra tough skin, or nickel turning it odd colors. I filled the bracelet, each link with a different element. Mostly metals, but I did fill one with diamond as a source of carbon.

I admired my new conjuring tool, then turned my attention to the diamonds. I merged five of them, then stored and replicated it twice, merging them to create a 10 carat 2 gram stone. I shaped the stone into a brilliant cut. It really was terribly gaudy. I carefully added the tiniest flaw to it, and slipped it into a small envelope.

I stored a 1 carat flawless diamond, then replicated it 10 times, and stored the group. Then I conjured the group onto the low table in front of the couch, and picked one. Using my conjuring bracelet, I scattered nickel through it, turning it a medium brown. I added a slight flaw, and placed it in an envelope.

The second, I infused with nitrogen, in a specific pattern, turning it a deep orange color, and added a flaw. The third became a light yellow, then a green, and a black, all from nitrogen in the air, and all with a random flaw, that would not diminish their value but make them believable.