Open Sesame

It was early in the morning, and Jack had been discussing the results of the experiment with the assistant all night, and they had concluded two important facts. First, the ability itself is able to cross dimensions since this is its main purpose. It is not able to hijack regular portals that transport objects inside a dimension, but it is specifically designed to cross dimensions. Second, the only way for this ability to connect two dimensions is by having an existing connection at hand. This means that, if two dimensions are not linked, this ability will not work. If an ability user creates a storage dimension, they will always be connected to him even if it is closed. Fey would then be able to sense that connection and hijack the storage dimension by forcibly opening a portal to it herself, but only if she is near the person who has the connection. For Jack, this was quite the problem since neither himself nor anything else is connected to Earth's dimension. Even if he perfected this new ability, it would not bring him back home.

Jack sat in his cave and pondered about possible solutions to this new problem. "You said that creating a dimensional jump device such as yourself would be difficult on this planet, but can we make a really bad one that only sends a small object? Then we could send a portal ball squeezed into a box and send it to Earth. Then I could try to connect to it using my normal and the inter-dimensional portal abilities."

The assistant paused before it answered due to it performing complex calculations in the background. "The principle of sending a portal to Earth does sound plausible, but I do not have sufficient data to validate this hypothesis adequately. Regarding the bad dimensional jump device, there is no such thing. Any dimensional jump device is of high quality since it would not work otherwise."

Jack sat in silence for a few minutes, "Maybe we can find another emergency assistant that still has the dimensional jump function. Didn't you say the Rasp were in the area anyway?"

The assistant responded immediately, "That would be incredibly lucky but also equally unlikely. Since I was able to access the information networks, I have been searching for signs of the Rasp but could not find any reference to contact. It is even possible that the Rasp have entirely left this solar system and are not performing any observation of this planet's cultures. If that is indeed true, then there would be no way to contact them since they would not listen to signals sent from this planet."

"That sucks," Jack said quietly. "Let's learn the storage hijacking ability fast and then move on. How long do you think it will take for me to learn it?" Jack leaned back and lay down on his mattress while closing his eyes. He started to feel annoyed by his poorly set-up home in the cave and was thinking about the most efficient way to create a real home.

"I think that you will be able to learn it in just a few hours. I have scanned and extrapolated Fey's ability which allows her to guide you more effectively. Training more with her might be a waste of your time unless you want to spend more time with her," the assistant said.

Jack opened his eyes and sat back up, "Really? Let's go now!" he said excitedly.

"We do need a storage ability user in order to perform the technique, but, with my help, you do not need them to have their storage dimension open, as Fey required from you. It is sufficient to practice with any storage dimension user even if they are not currently activating the ability. After analyzing the impact of your own storage dimension on the Sym energy in the environment, I have confirmed my earlier assessment that one of the humanoids you have killed was a storage dimension user. It also became apparent to me that the link to the storage dimension remains intact even if the user dies. This brings about many possibilities for both you and Fey since there might be many storage dimensions remaining in the world after hundreds of thousands of years. You could recover varying treasures that were thought to be lost," the assistant expanded.

"Awesome, let's go now. Which one was it?" Jack asked as he had jumped up and opened a portal.

"It was the humanoid whose head you melted when you were protecting the group of travelers. You did bury him nearby if you recall," the assistant said.

"Oh yes, I do. Let's go." Jack was just about to step into the portal when the assistant interrupted him to notify him of a new message. Since Jack did not like the device's notification sounds, he had muted them and tasked the assistant with notifying him when it was convenient. This way, he had an assistant take care of his communications as well.

The assistant said, "Fey has texted you and thanked you for the opportunity and that she is looking forward to your meeting later today."

Jack paused for a moment, "Teenagers really are insecure. Now I feel bad for canceling. Send her this: 'Glad that you learned a lot. Let's reschedule tomorrow. I will let you know when I am free.'"

The assistant sent the message and Jack jumped back to the area where he buried the humanoid he had killed. He walked toward the shallow grave and exclaimed, "Fascinating, I can actually sense the fluctuations as well. This must be the storage dimension. Even with its brain gone, the link is still there. What do you think a humanoid is hiding in there?" He walked until he stood on top of it and thought for a moment, "...Do I have to dig it up?"

The assistant interjected, "You do not. You can now follow my guidance and I will show you how you can open the storage space yourself. It should take you about two hours. Also, Fey has responded with: 'I am very grateful for your help. Without you, my future would look bleak since I will not be able to decide my own fate. I hope that you will continue to help me. Faithfully, Fey'"

Jack had sat down to focus better, but opened his eyes after hearing the message, "Damn, that girl is clever. She realized that I was dumping her and pushed all the right buttons to get me engaged. Well, the women on Earth are wizards when it comes to indirect rejections, so the ones here must have a knack for it too and sniff them out from a mile away." Jack closed his eyes again and began to focus. He followed the assistant's guidance and tried to open the storage space using the ability he had copied from Fey. He gradually made progress, but it was a tricky skill since it did not require him to create something entirely new but was more akin to creating a key that fits into a specific lock. He felt like an old-school lockpicker who was trying to open a safe or maybe like a hacker who was trying to bypass a security system. It was a fascinating skill and he wondered if there were other uses for it than only accessing storage spaces. Maybe it was possible to hijack others' skills as well. Intercept their teleportation, steal their meteor-like explosion projectiles, or even nullifying skills.

"Jack, you have another message. Should I stop notifying you for the time being?" the assistant interrupted.

"No, it's fine. The skill does not require that much focus. What is it now?" Jack answered.

"She writes: 'I am sorry for my last message. I might have overreacted. I was just scared that my new found hope would be crushed. Have a good evening,'" the assistant recited.

Jack sighed and kept focusing on his ability. Then he said, "Text her this: 'We can do one last session now but I cannot promise anything after that.' If she says anything but yes, then mute her and do not notify me anymore." Jack focused further and felt like he was getting the hang of this ability. The principle was entirely different from all of his other abilities. Normally, he would start with gathering energy in his body and would then send it outwards. This was true for portals, detection, his frying hands, and even the healing skill, but storage hijacking was different. He first needed to deeply sense the existing link to the other person. Then he has to model a key that would be able to open that link. The ability therefore starts on the outside and then moves toward the inside of his body. It is entirely reversed. "I got it!" he exclaimed loudly while opening his eyes. "It's easy when you know what to look for. It's almost like a game where you just have to match the shape you feel with the shape you create. Is every shape different?"

"Yes," the assistant said, "just like every lock will need a different key, it is logical that each link to a storage dimension has a different shape. Some might be more complex than others, but you should be able to crack them in under five minutes. Also, she said yes."

"Ok, let's pick her up and let her play one last time. I wanted to be more kind after all, and I did learn something valuable from her," Jack said as he opened a normal portal and quickly jumped to Fey's apartment complex, followed by a jump straight into her living room through a window portal. "You're a clever girl," he said as he looked at Fey, who had already been dressed to go out even so late at night. Fey smiled with tired eyes since it was very early in the morning. She must not have been able to sleep all night, Jack thought, which explained her early message. "Let's go." He put his arm on her shoulder and both jumped back to the rocky desert where he had been practicing by himself. When they had reached the humanoid's grave, he turned toward her and asked, "Do you sense anything?"

Fey looked at him in confusion and answered, "I sense your storage dimension."

Jack held her gaze and responded, "What else?"

Fey closed her eyes. She stayed like this for a minute, then opened them again and said, "There is another storage dimension below us in the ground."

Jack smiled, "Exactly, I am opening it now." He focused and recreated the shape for the key and matched it with the dimensional link of the humanoid buried underneath. He then followed the guidance of the assistant who showed him how he needs to open the access into a portal. It felt natural to Jack since he had been opening portals dozens of times a day, so this part was not difficult. The hijacked storage portal had a curious appearance since it was not covered by a dark and purple fog like the normal portals and also did not allow a preview as the window portals do. These hijacking portals had the appearance of a distorted mirror and were entirely colorless, which gave them a transparent look. From far away, it would be nearly impossible to notice them, and only when one was standing in front of them, their large oval shape with the disfigured mirror image gave their existence away.

"What a strange look," Jack said. "I wonder why it is a mirror instead of just being dark like the normal portals. I thought storage portals allowed you to see the other side through the entry." He then placed his right hand on the mirror to test its firmness, but was surprised when he was not able to penetrate it. One of the things Jack had noticed as a fact after learning so many different abilities is that they are inherently intuitive. The ability user will often feel how something works before they will understand it. And in the same way, Jack felt how these hijack portals work. He needs to touch the surface and then activate the key to appear on the other side. He was not walking through the portal but was using it as a teleportation medium. He grabbed Fey's hand and activated the key. Both Fey and Jack disappeared from the spot they were standing on and reappeared in a new environment that appeared like a jungle. It was lush and green with the sounds of insects and birds everywhere around them.

"Didn't you say that storage portals were usually small and just provided storage space in a type of zero-gravity space?" Jack asked the assistant in his mind.

"Yes, that is what I have read in my database. I am not familiar with any human who has ever created such a complex dimension," the assistant answered.

Fey looked around and was amazed by the unfamiliar environment. Her country had many forests and rich agriculture, but such a humid and warm weather that gives rise to so much natural diversity was new to her. There were many regions on their planet that had such environments, but Fey never had the privilege to visit them. This place reminded her of the rainforests in the east which are famous for their large animals and rich natural resources.

While Fey admired the curiously shaped trees and large flowering plants, Jack used his detection ability to scan the environment in a near two kilometer radius. He concluded that this dimension was huge since he could not find the end, and even the sky looked like it was endless. He did not see any stars, but a thick fog obstructed his view, so he could not be sure. He addressed the assistant, "Are you sure this is a storage dimension? It looks like a different planet to me."

The assistant was silent for a few moments as it analyzed all of the data available to it, "The Sym energy density is higher than it is in the normal, low-density areas. I am not sure if this dimension has been created or if we have actually jumped into an existing dimension."

Jack looked at Fey, "How are you feeling? The Sym energy is higher here." She looked at him with a thoughtful expression and said, "I feel fine. I do not think that it's dangerous since I would start getting headaches like when you go to high-density areas."

Jack looked back at the environment. If he had actually jumped to another existing dimension, then maybe the humanoid creatures hold the key to what he was looking for. They could have found a way to naturally link to dimensions separate from their own and without any pre-existing link. Unfortunately, all of the humanoids he has met so far have been hostile to him, and, even if they spoke, they were difficult to understand. But this presented Jack with a new goal. Hunting humanoids and finding out their secrets.

"Ok, time for you to go home. This might be dangerous," Jack said to Fey while walking toward the trees. It was safer for her to return since he did not know what he would find.

"But why? This is just a forest," Fey complained, still thinking that this was her last chance to make a breakthrough.

Jack turned around and looked at the girl, "This dimension is from a humanoid creature. I don't know what might be creeping around here."

Fey, shocked at the revelation of who this dimension belonged to, stayed firm, "I don't care. I will stay until I am able to do what you did. If I can't learn that, my life is over anyway." Her eyes were filled with resolve.

Jack sighed, "Fine, I will jump ahead and you will follow through a portal. Never complain. Always just follow my commands." His goal was to use window portals to jump four kilometers ahead and then to use his two kilometer detection radius to scan the area. It would take him about 5 minutes to identify any objects of interest, so Fey had 5 minutes of practice time per jump. Jack also thought that the window portals that do not have exit portals but propel the user forward in an instant are too hard on the girl's body, so he would set up a portal at his destination and have her jump there gently through a normal entry portal. He also explained to her the principle of the key and the lock as well as the way to shape the energy into the right fit in order for it to work. If she was smart, she would figure it out. While Jack was scanning the area, the girl would try to hijack his small storage portal.

The two scanned the environment for almost two hours and Fey made great progress with her ability. She could feel that she was close to figuring out the secret to hijacking a storage dimension. And, even though Jack had not specifically told her, he had concluded that it was indeed possible to access the storage dimension of the deceased, which would give her an extremely high value in her family since she could have a monopoly on global treasure hunts.

Jack, on the other hand, had found nothing. This place seems to be an endlessly large planet with only animals and insects inhabiting it. He found no creatures and no intelligent life. The medium-dense Sym energy would suggest otherwise, but there was nothing. He decided to return by himself another time and to speed through the environment instead of only doing small-scale scans. He looked at Fey, "Ok, let's return, I will come back another time."

Fey followed Jack obediently as she was still practicing her skill and was in deep concentration. The two returned to the entry portal and left for the rocky desert they had come from. Jack put up a portal for Fey to use that led back to her apartment and then thought some more about the implications of what he had discovered since he felt like he was missing something important. He set up a portal to his cave and, without thinking much about it, was about to step through to the other side. Only when he realized that Fey was still following him, in a deep trance, he stopped and put his hands on her shoulders, "Hey, are you there? The place behind this portal would kill you, so don't just follow me like that."

Fey snapped out of her dream and looked at Jack with big eyes. Her eyes softened and she said, "I know I'm close, please just a little more."

Jack changed the destination of the portal and the two went to the house in the fallen city of Jalk. He let the girl sit on a chair while he prepared some food. After the two had eaten, he sat down to meditate and further explore his new hijacking ability since there must be a truth related to it that he had missed. What if he could simply connect to any dimension? How would he shape the key? He also asked the assistant to identify how the brain regions that accumulated the Sym energy in the humanoids brain differed from humans since this might be a valuable clue. As Jack was trying to solve this puzzle, Fey was making progress with her own ability. She had been able to partially open a portal and it seemed like what was holding her back most was not a lack of talent but a lack of Sym energy. She must have noticed it too since she stopped practicing and lay down on the big couch in the living room. She had learned everything she needed to learn and the rest will depend on her ability to accumulate more energy in the brain region as well as gaining practical experience. As Jack focused more on his own abilities, he heard a loud snoring behind him and started to smile. "Finally," he said out loud. He picked up the girl and brought her home to her apartment through a portal. Then, he went into his cave to accumulate more energy and continue exploring his new hijacking ability. He could finally take off the fox mask which had been bothering him for a while.

An hour after he had returned home, he received a message. 'Thank you. - Fey'