Multi-Dimensional Merchant System

Oliver pulled in next to his friends' cars at the house they rented together and put his truck in park. Checking the time, he knew they would all be back from class by now. Glancing around cautiously and not seeing anyone nearby, he grabbed the two 40lb bags of fertilizer from the passenger floorboard and activated the commission. Within seconds the bags disappeared and 800 credits were added to his funds. He gave a silent cheer for himself at the thought of adding $8000 to his bank account.

Just as he was about to make the transfer, he paused in thought. “The system said it is secure, but two sudden windfalls in a day would still look a little suspicious... But a weekly paycheck won't raise any red flags as long as I keep the amount reasonable.”

With a firm nod, he closed the system again and grabbed his bags, heading inside. Opening the door, he saw his friends right where he expected them to be: Gary playing on his phone, Marty doing homework at the table, and Ed playing his favorite video game. At the sound of the door opening, they all stopped what they were doing and started talking over each other, wanting to know where he went and worried about him.

With a warm feeling in his heart at their worry, he waved them all down before dropping his purchases in his room and joining them. “I feel fine, guys. I just needed to run out for a few things real quick. Nothing to worry about. Well, except me almost getting arrested.” He couldn't help but laugh at the comically shocked looks on their face.

The three nearly exploded with curiosity, demanding to know what happened. Giving them a brief rundown on his little excursion, he left out any mention of the system, painting the experience as just a stupid misunderstanding and bad luck with a computer glitch.

When he mentioned Officer Ramirez, Gary interrupted his story for more details about her and whistled softly at her description. “Did you get her badge number Oli? If she's as hot as you say, you should definitely look her up. Maybe she likes younger guys, right?”

Oliver, knowing his friends would just keep giving him hell if he didn't fire back at them, waited for his friends to finish teasing him before he gave them a mysterious smile. “No, I didn't get her badge number, just her phone number. Her private number.”

His friends sat there speechless and exchanging looks as he finished his story. They sat there for a moment, just staring at him until Ed spoke up. “You are going to call her, right? I mean, this is some shit right out of a movie or something. I mean, you're not still hung up on Jess or anything, right?”

Oliver gazed off at nothing as he gave his answer some serious thought. The cheating, and the breakup, had hit him pretty hard. Jess was his first serious girlfriend since high-school, after all. But after all he had already been through in his life already, processing it was surprisingly manageable. Despite him being 'zen' as his friends always described it, he wasn't one to forget or forgive betrayal, so any mixed feelings had been quickly purged. “No, I'm not hung up or anything. She made her choice. I'm not going to beat myself up over someone like that. As for Officer Ramirez...” Oliver shrugged as he focused back on his friends. “I don't really know her that well other than to say she seemed... Nice maybe? Compassionate and serious about her work, for sure. Physical attraction and being nice isn't really much to go on, though.”

As the other two booed at him, Marty just chided him gently. “How are you going to know her better if you don't ask her out? It's pretty obvious to us that you're interested in her, so why not go for it man?”

Oliver nodded his head side to side noncommittally. “Maybe. But we're also in very different social circles. It's not like I can invite her to a college party. Even if she was interested, everybody would freak out if they found out I brought a cop. And could you imagine her introducing me to people she knows? She would probably catch a lot of flak over dating a 'college kid', as most of them are likely to see me.”

“Just think about it, bro. It's not like you've got to decide right this second, but I think, deep down, you already know what you want to do.” Marty's words echoed in his mind long after they had all split off to do their own thing for the evening.

Homework sucks, especially homework in a subject Oliver had little interest in. It wasn't that he was bad at science, just that he didn't enjoy it. But it was a core requirement, even for a music major like him. Music was his passion, and even as he sat down at his desk with his chemistry book, he longed to pick up his violin. The temptation of the system rested in the back of his mind, further distracting him.

He forced himself to power through chemical equations and notations. Every time his mind drifted towards he system, he resolutely pulled it back on task. As amazing as the system was, he wouldn't allow himself to give up on his dreams, even for the admittedly crazy amount of money he could make.

Oliver sighed in relief the instant he was done and dropped his pencil. See it was still early enough, he decided to practice the performance piece he had chosen for the violin. La Cadenza by Henryk Wieniawski was a complicated piece, just at the edge of what Oliver could play even with his decade of violin practice. His fingers flew up and down the string, eyes blazing with joy that he was able to create something so beautiful. All thoughts of the system flew from his mind, born away on the musical notes as Oliver's spirits soared. Deep down he knew he hadn't perfected the piece, but in that moment everything felt right.

He let the last notes hang in the air for a moment before he played it again and again, correcting small flaws and just flowing with the music. When silence finally fell, Oliver just sat basking in the feeling of freedom music always brought him. Slowly putting away his violin, he took his time turning his attention to the homework he had assigned himself: digging through the mess of commissions to find those suitable for him to complete.

With the fresh notebook in front of him, Oliver scrolled through page after page. Hours passed as he read entries, writing down all the ones he knew he could finish as well as a few he thought possible with some work and worth the effort. Like the commission requesting a powerful ghost or spirit, there were many he couldn't see a way of doing. As midnight rolled around, he had gone through hundreds and compiled a long list. Well, long to him, he amended in his mind. He had just barely scratched the surface of the commissions offered.

His plan centered around simple, repeatable commissions. The Spice of Life and Fertilizer were still on the list, and Oliver high-lighted several others he could easily handle with his next visit to the store to pick up fertilizer.

Sew Unfortunate – I am a tailor by trade. Bandits have disrupted trade from the Helma Province, resulting in a shortage of cloth. I am offering 10 credits per yard of cloth so I may continue my trade. (Repeatable)

Noteworthy- Paper has become far too rare! How can a government operate without proper paperwork? I can offer 1 credit per page of decent quality paper. No scraps or damages! (Repeatable)

Siege Supplies – With our city about to come under siege, we are laying in additional supplies. We can offer 1 credit per pound of edible foodstuffs. Any medical supplies for treating our soldiers will also be suitably rewarded, depending both on their quantity and usefulness. (Repeatable)

Soap – I shall spare you the unnecessary details. I require soap for bathing. 1 credit per ounce. (Repeatable)

Looking through the list he had made, an interesting pattern emerged before his eyes. At first, he thought some posts had been repeated several times. As he read them over again, he took in the subtle differences. Different wording to the post, different credit amounts offered, different quantities... His eyes narrowed as the answer hit him. “Even on a college campus there is an overlap in needs and wants. Paper, pencils, books, clothes, food... Across the entire multiverse, there should be more than just a million commissions just asking for food or something. Theoretically, the number should be infinite... But not everyone can post commissions. Or even see them.”

Oliver nodded slowly at his one words, before laughing softly to himself. “That should have been obvious from the start, or else I would have seen some story online of a crazy guy ranting about it. I bet some people that can post commissions never actually do, for whatever reason.”

After a moment, he shook off his musing. As curious as he was about the mysterious workings of the system, it wasn't that important right now.

Turning back to his notes, he opened his laptop and brought up the pages for a few online retailers. “I can spread things out further by buying somethings online and having them shipped here. Though sooner or later my friends will get curious... Unless I tell them I'm sending care packages to people in need. It's believable and still mostly truthful. That should work.”

With his computer open, he checked his bank balance and started ordering. It was time to really get this rolling.