But the real reward wasn’t the money. The system had been strangely quiet, but as we left the recycling center, it finally spoke up:
Ding! Congratulations! Quest completed. Rewards issued: Mechanical Engineering skill. New blueprint unlocked: Advanced Air Purifying Fan.
Just don’t let Amy make the fan by herself, she is clumsy and dumb!
“DON'T MAKE ME MURDER YOU!” Amy shouted.
Ding! Well since I live inside of you, that would require you to kill yourself, and Randy, and Alex. I guess I have to keep my statement of Amy being dumb…
I hurriedly opened the system to check our new stats and distract Amy.
Clean Planet System
Randy
- Lifespan: 23/120
- Cultivation: NA
- Skills: Mechanical Engineering
- Blueprints: Advanced Air Purifying Fan
Amy
- Lifespan 25/120
- Cultivation: NA
- Skills: Mechanical Engineering
- Blueprints: Advanced Air Purifying Fan
Alex
- Lifespan 23/120
- Cultivation: NA
- Skills: Mechanical Engineering
- Blueprints: Advanced Air Purifying Fan
“Wait, what kind of blueprint did we just get again?”
Amy pulled up her system menu and read aloud, successfully diverted from the system’s insults. “It’s called an Advanced Air Purifying Fan. The fan is equipped with new magical technology that purifies air as it spins, leaving the air cleaner. When no pollutants are detected, it creates spiritual energy.”
Alex looked intrigued. “Sounds like something out of a sci-fi novel. How does it work?”
It has a unique vibration system that purifies the air that passes through. Leaving the air clean and refreshing!
“Those stupid Parisians could have used this.” Amy chimes in. “Smelly bastards.” I scrolled through the details in my own system. “It says it takes about $50 worth of parts we can buy at Ace Hardware. We could probably build it today.”
“That’s amazing!” Amy exclaimed. “If this works the way the system says, it could help clear the air in a classroom or a gas station, grocery store, a fart infested room, or any small space. I hope it works really well, while I no longer have asthma after taking the pill. It was mainly air pollutants that would make my asthma act up.”
I couldn’t help but think how useful this could be in a classroom. With fresher air, there should be less people that are out sick, or won’t come to class because some student hasn’t learned the benefits of deodorant. I know I am no longer a teacher, but that doesn’t mean I have forgotten what it is like. The idea of improving the air quality for future students was both exciting and practical.
“Well, let’s not waste time,” I said. “We’ve got our reward, and now we just need to build this thing. I’m sure Ace Hardware isn’t too far.”
The narrative has been taken without permission. Report any sightings.
We hopped back on our bikes and pedaled over to the hardware store. We picked up some copper wiring, some screws, some LED lights, and various metal components—all the necessary materials listed in the system blueprint.
Once we got home, we spread everything out on the kitchen table. Amy and I followed the step-by-step instructions from the system, which displayed the build in a holographic overlay only we could see. Alex, our eager assistant, handed us the tools and helped with some minor wiring. Of course, I could hear him grumbling about stupid 5-year old hands. Within a couple of hours, we had completed the fan. The system then added some magical touches that could not be replicated by us.
“There,” I said, stepping back to admire our work. The fan looked extraordinary—it resembled a large bubble wand but metal and way shinier— there were no fan blades, just a big open hoop that the system said sucked in polluted air and spit out fresh air. What should we do now?
“Let’s test it out,” Alex said excitedly.
We plugged it in, and with a low hum it turned on. At first, nothing seemed different. But then I noticed a faint glow coming from the center of the hoop. The soft, blue light indicated that it was transforming pollutants into fresh air. It was subtle, but the room felt fresher almost immediately, as though a light breeze had swept through and carried all the dust and allergens away.
“That’s incredible,” Amy said, stepping closer. “I can already feel a difference.”
“Me too,” I agreed. “The air’s... cleaner somehow.” Even Alex, usually a bit sensitive to dusty environments, didn’t seem to have his usual sneezing fits. “I think we just made something that could change lives.”
If the air purifying fan could make such a difference in our living room, what could it do in a classroom full of students? I had always hated seeing kids struggle with breathing issues, especially during the winter months when the heating system would stir up dust. Now, we had something that could potentially help alleviate that.
“Let’s make a couple more,” I said. “One for each room in the apartment and one for Alex’s classroom, (two bedrooms plus living room) plus let's make one to try on the tennis court. It’ll be good to test it out in different environments.”
We got to work, building four more fans over the weekend. The blueprint was straightforward, and with the experience of having already built one, the rest were even quicker to assemble. By Sunday night, we had five fully functioning advanced air purifying fans and $250 less in our bank account.
Monday came, and I was still working at the shitty delivery job. I took the test fan with me, just to see how well it would perform in the truck. I had a car adapter afterall.
When I arrived at work, the manager, Bert Kreischer, greeted me with a friendly handshake. “Yo, welcome to work. Are you excited for next week?” he said, walking with me to the loading docks. I was confused at first. Was he talking about Alex’s first day of school? But I never told him about my family. “Oh you mean Harry Potter.” Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, book 5, was about to be released, and Bert The Machine was a fan. “I have already read it.” I boast, because well, I HAD already read it.
“Don’t joke. If the book got leaked online I would have known about it.” I smirked and said, “Yeah, I am excited, just look at my face.” I pointed to my expressionless face. “I got this cool new fan that I made, want to see?” Purposely changing the subject. It worked.
“You can build electronics? Maybe you should open a Radioshack.” he joked.
I explained the air purifying fan, giving him a vague description of it being a new type of technology I’d recently developed. I didn’t mention the system or the magical aspect—it was still a little too strange to explain. Besides my family, no one else needed to know.
I pulled him to his office, plugged in the fan and turned it on. Within minutes, the room felt noticeably fresher, and he seemed impressed.
“Wow, this is nice,” he said, breathing deeply. But I could tell that he wasn't really paying attention. We engaged in a bit more small talk before he left to get to know the other new employees. I spent the rest of the day making my deliveries and restocking shelves. While driving around I had the fan plugged into the cab of the truck. The air was so fresh, what a great fan!
When I got home I told Amy and Alex about my successful trial of the fan in my delivery truck. I remark. “We still need to test it on the Tennis Court.” Amy replies happily that now is as good a time as any. So we grab our rackets, balls, and the fan and head outside. While heading outside we ran into Emiliano and had a short chat. “Emiliano, what do you call a girl standing in the middle of a tennis court?” Emiliano looks at me in confusion. “Annete.”
“...”
“I have to go make dinner, see you later.” He high-tailed it to his apartment. “Wasn’t that funny.” I ask. Neither Alex or Amy responded.
Was that a joke? I hear the system utter in confusion.
“Screw you guys, I’m going home.” Amy rolled her eyes at me and said, “Cartmen. I mean Randy. Stop being a bitch and let's test the fan.” We then completed our epic journey of 100 meters to the court and started playing while Alex set up the fan.
“Well, the air does feel fresher, but not much.” I reached that conclusion after playing for an hour. “Yeah the area inside an apartment is nothing in comparison to the cubic feet of air outside. But hey, the fan still works great inside small enclosed spaces!” Was Amy's response.