《The Other Labyrinth》 1 - Breathing Again Chapter One ??? Wailing. Screaming. Crying. The wind howling in the shredded steel. The glimmer of fire, and this feeling of weightlessness. She was hugging someone in her arms, eyes closed by fear. An impact, and nothing. The void. Nothingness. And this nothingness seemed to smile, contemplating adrift fragments of existence with a gaze who, until recently, was filled with boredom, now replaced by a look of interest. ¡°Yes¡­ Those ones could be¡­ something¡­ What do you say ?¡± This idea resounded a long time around him. Innumerable eyes then opened, both big and tinny, colorful or not, some even hard to imagine for mere humans. ¡°Do as you want, just let me sleep.¡± Said a chore of voices. ¡°I still don''t understand.¡± Added something else. ¡°This interest of yours for those creatures¡­ but I say, enjoy yourself.¡± ¡°Hahaha, great ! It¡¯s time to paint another picture of madness¡­¡± Said the nothingness, still smiling. She - Nowhere Sensations assaulted her all at once. Tentacles where filling her lungs, her throat, her vagina, her stomach, her anus, her nostrils, burning, oily, horrible. She started struggling, seeking air by all means, trying to take out the tentacles choking her but, even before she had the occasion to do it, all those viscous appendages withdrew themself in one go from her body. She breathed by reflex, just to swallow some kind of liquid, that she started to cough up. The burning feeling from the lack of air, the asphyxia was covering pretty much all her others senses, but she was still able to feel herself slip through the mass of tentacles before being expelled outside the liquid she was bathed in. The influx of air relieved her so much that she didn¡¯t smell it reeking of flesh and blood, the acrid smells of life. Then, the pain, the one from smashing against the ground. She stayed there for a long time, enjoying the most basic pleasure of human life : breathing. She was rocked by the slow pulsations of the ground, to the point of falling asleep. She slowly regained consciousness, feeling the air coming in and going out of her lungs, still painful. She tried to open her eyes, panicking when she did not succeed to. What¡¯s happening to me ? Was the first coherent thought that she had, pain letting more and more space for rational thinking, if ever this kind of things existed by there. The young woman, slightly appeased, started exploring the vicinity with touch, using her hands to slowly uncover the room. She was lying down on a spongy material, soft and pleasant to touch, albeit a little viscous. She was feeling a pulsation coursing through it, four little surge like a four-stroke heart. Still without moving, she tried to listen carefully. Ripples of water, sliping of tentacles against each others, drop falling into puddles or on the ground, the hissing of something like a big mouth, opening and closing in a breathing-like fashion. She stayed focused for another couple of minutes, but that was all she could make her ears gather. She finally used her nose, now that she had time to, smelling the organical scent floating in the air, the flesh, the blood, the mucus, and other thing she didn''t know how to describe. But this smell woke up something in her : hunger. Like a hammer, hunger hit her in the guts, unexpected. She got on all fours with great difficulty, her limbs struggling to even support herself, and crawled to those things that had the unidentifiable smell. She touched them, caressed them with her hands, enjoying their texture, their firmness and, no longer able to stop herself, took a big bite of it. The texture in mouth was pulpy, with a taste hard to describe, something between apple, beef and egg yolk, and the juice flowing from it strangely reminded her of the one she inconveniently swallowed back in the pond. A special sensation but, on the whole, quite satisfactory and, above all, satisfying her hunger and quenching her thirst. She devoured a first one, then another, and another, and yet another. She stopped counting, gobbling them without a stop until she fell slowly on the floor, sated, tired, sleepy¡­ She yet again fell asleep, still rocked by the groud¡¯s pulsations. She opened her eyes by reflex. Everyone open their eyes when they wake up. Bad idea. The light burned her retinas, making her pass through awful suffering. So much that she screamed, a long, inhuman scream of pain, resounding through the place she was in. She stayed curled up there two or three minutes, letting the pain fade away, before finally sitting with her back against the wall. Strangelly, she was smiling. Indeed, the first shock outstriped, she realised that she could see again. She just needed a little bit of gradual practice... She put her hands before her eyes, covering them to the utmost, and opened her eyelids so slightly. Light assaulted her, but not as much as the first time. After a minute, she closed her eyes again, tired by the effort of bearing the light, and turned back to take one of the flesh fruit from the wall, eating it more slowly than those from her past rampage, less hungry this time. She repeated this routine a lot of time until finally, finally, she could open her eyes in full, seeing for the first true time where she was. The room wasn¡¯t big, The ground, walls and ceiling where covered with a some kind of organic substance which colour varied between pink and brown. A pond swarming with black tentacles was sitting in a corner, crawling onto one another in a tar-like substance. She then looked at herself, curious, and saw that she was covered by something looking like this strange tar, only dry and coagulated. And she was totally naked, which was bothering her more than she thought she needed to. She then frowned for one seconde, having a feeling of discrepancy with her own body. Is this really me ? My body ? She thought, filled with confusion. Indeed, she was now a lot more muscular than in her recollection, her legs and arms longer, slender, her fingers thinner, more delicate, her skin darker, more tanned, her breasts more imposing, her feet more symmetrical. What''s going on ? She thought while starting to panic. She was stranded in strange room, in an unfamiliar body, eating freakish things, lost, confused.Reading on Amazon or a pirate site? This novel is from Royal Road. Support the author by reading it there. Am I mad ? ¡°No, not yet, to my dismay.¡± Replied a voice to her, at the same time like an elderly, a mother, a killer, i child, a robot, a monster. ¡°But i¡¯ve hope. Welcome, dear, in my Labyrinth.¡± Pursued the odd voice with joy. ¡°Ho and, by the way, all my congratulations my dear, you¡¯re dead !¡± the young woman tried to speak, to respond, but only a weak gurgle came out of her mouth. ¡°Haaa, my child, don¡¯t push your body too much, it¡¯s still very young you know ? Think, and i will respond.¡± She did like she was told¡­ Dead ? So i¡¯m in Hell ?¡± ¡°Hell ? Bah, my Labyrinth is much more interesting than Hell, this lost and lukewarm hole. Nieh, my Labyrinth isn¡¯t a place made to torture, like the old Scratch¡¯s territory, but a place made to change things, and people...¡± Changing them ? How ? ¡°That¡¯s a good question actually ! But, i¡¯m afraid my dear, i don''t know this answer.¡± What ? ¡°Well, yes ! Where would be the fun of the maneuver if I already knew the outcome ? This place change things in an unpredictable way, that¡¯s what made its charm ! And i hope you will appreciate it, in due time. Thereupon, a good day to you, my dear ! Or night. Or morning. Time don''t really make any sense here, as you will see. Bye !¡± No, please wait ! I don¡¯t understand ! She screamed in her head. But it was too late, the voice was already gone, letting the young woman with a troubling sense of void. She curled up on the floor, trembling, not understanding what was happening to her. Where am I ? What¡¯s going on with this place ? And with me ? How did I die ? Am I really dead ? Who or what is this voice ? So many questions swirling in her head without rest. She finally fell asleep, shaking, teardrops on her cheeks. She then fell in a vicious circle, waking up, eating, crying, falling asleep, repeating it a lot of time. Until one day¡­ ¡°Grmbl¡­¡± I¡¯m hungry. She reached the wall she was using as a pantry, just to discover that it was empty, withered, without any flesh fruit remaining. And she stayed there, dazed, contemplating her dried source of food, taking multiple minutes to put herself together. What do I do now ? She asked herself, too focused on the immediate problem to think about her other concern, like being dead or lost and other trivial things... She gazed at the only door of the room, a circular flesh membrane casted over a hole of the same shape. So, for the first time since she was stranded here, she got up. The ground was very low for her, who lived on all four for so long, but she found her surprisingly stable on her support, her feet firmly rooted in the ground. Unconsciously, this was very reassuring to her, and she started walking toward the exit with confident steps. The door reacted to the girl approaching it, opening in a little hiss and unfolding a long corridor, covered by the same organic substance as the room she was leaving and softly illuminated by it. She stopped on the doorstep, struggling with a last wisp of hesitation, with this fear of leaving the known and diving into the unknown. Her valor won, and she took a step. An strange voice then resonated in her mind. Heeee... Hello ? Who are you ? She asked, without success. She weighted this question two seconds, struggling to find the answer. Suddenly, her mind was enlightened. Eleonor And this thought was making her serene. An humongous pain suddenly flooded her mind, giving her the impression that she was annihilated during an infinite time. The next seconde, it was gone, letting Eleonor catching her breath. When she looked up again, she was surprised. Something changed. She was feeling it, as if she knew herself better, somehow. Lines of text appeared in front of her, mixed character from the latin , cyrillique and chinese alphabet, and others she knew nothing about, before finally display something intelligible. [Eleonor] [Level : 1] [Ressources : [Body : 1] [Mind: 1] [Soul : 1] They¡¯re fucking with me, right ? I¡¯m in a god forsaken game ? ...Ok, that was strange. The voice had broken her in her momentum, but she quickly pulled herself together, helped by the hunger radiating from her stomach. She then walked fearfully along the corridor, mindful of each noise, and finally arrived in front of another membrane-door like the first one. It opened as softly as the other, letting the wind rush through, making Eleonor shiver. The hole led to a large balcony that, in comparison to the rest of the pit, appeared quite tiny. A gigantic cavity, so big she wasn¡¯t able to see the floor or the ceiling. That was the room waiting behind the door for Eleonor to enter. Creatures were flying here and there, hunting, battling each others, attending to whatever business they had. A kind of big organic spines were suspended from floating platforms, snapping whatever things to stupid to approach them. Clouds were floating everywhere, with red, brown and black waterfall coursing through the walls, creating natural lake in cracks and gulchs scattered along them, as if time was slowly breaking down this place. Thank you, i guess ? She took three steps in the balcony when a little creature suddenly jumped from behind a rock covered in biological tissues. This little thing looked like a rabbit, with a little nose, big fluffy ears, and cute eyes, giving it the look of a toy made for cuddling. It gazed at Eleonor, jiggling on its little feet. Hooo, so cute. Maybe this place isn''t so bad after all. She thought while slowly approaching. The little thing stepped back a little before stopping, intrigue, and started to approach the young woman. While close enough, Eleonor crouched and reached out to pet its head. The little thing sniffed her hand one or two time before moving forward. Yes, yes, good little thing, good littARGHHHHHH ! The body of the little rabbit had opened in two, uncovering three rows of sharp fangs that it sank into the flesh of the girl with all its might. A meteoric pain penetrated the wrist of Eleonor, where she felt the teeth shredding her flesh and drinking her blood. AHHH ! LET ME GO MOTHERFUCKER ! She started swinging her arm in all directions, without effects, before putting it against the floor and crushing the creature with her knee while hitting it with all her might, again and again and again, splattering blood and brain all over the balcony until the thing stopped moving. She opened the vicious jaw that locked up her left hand, bleeding a strange substance. She curled up, her hand against her chest, trying to contain the pain and the bleeding, paralysed by this torture. The voice was like a whip for her. She was feeling herself losing strength, a black veil slowly covering her eyes, but she stood up, she walked in the corridor and, finally, she dropped herself into the pond full of tentacle. And all of this because, above everything else, she wanted to live. 2 - A Gentle Pond Chapter Two Eleonor Her entire body was being gently caressed by innumerable viscous appendages who were inspecting her, with a special attention for her right wrist. That, by the way, wasn¡¯t hurting anymore. She just had the strange feeling that something was patching up her wounds like someone fixing a hole in a wall with plaster. Something was put into her mouth, that she recognized quickly as a flesh fruit she had eaten so much the past few days. Without thinking, she took a bit of it, eating it fully. Satisfied, she fell asleep¡­ She woke up in the middle on the tiny room. The tentacle pool was especially quiet, its liquid still like a sea of oil. It¡¯s this thing that healed me ? Asked herself the young woman while getting closer of the pool. She put two finger in the liquid, expecting it to be disgusting, but was quite surprised when she found it reassuring instead, as if this tar had some motherly aura, strange and wicked, but still motherly. She pulled her hand out, playing slightly with the substance before she recalled something significant. I¡¯m still hungry ? Didn¡¯t i eat while being in the pond ? She wondered while rubbing her hand against the wall, creating a long black mark on it. She turned back to face the door and took a step before stopping, hugging her recently healed right hand against her chest. She remembered the pain, the despair that filled herself, all the blood, the fight to go back here, to live, and she started to be afraid, afraid to go out, afraid to be attacked, disgustingly afraid to be hurt again. She never was the kind to like pain. Oh, don¡¯t misunderstand, nobody really like to be hurt, but for Eleonor it was something else entirely. She was fleeing pain with all her might, trying to avoid it, to dodge it whatever the price was, even if it created issues for someone else. She was so afraid of it that she could hide from the world, isolating herself to not suffer from something or someone. She wanted to be left alone. Those thought spinned in circle for a long time in her head while she was contemplating the door and doing nothing, her hunger becoming more and more insistent with the passing time. She then took a decision, moving forward and crossing the fleshy door, even more watchful than before. She came back to the balcony, welcomed by a crepuscular light. She saw the corps from her assailant, in the same state she let it when she fled for her life. She reached it while her stomach rumbled from hunger, remembering what the voice said. To be a scavenger, wasn¡¯t it ? She touched the carcass of this little monster, disgusted by its texture, its smell, quibbling it while a battle took place in her head, the one opposing her revulsion and her hunger. Hunger won, and she started eating the inert corps bit by bit, wincing each time she took a bite of it. Despite her retchs, she fully cleaned the carcass, a process appearing less and less difficult as things progressed in her meal, to the point of just being distasteful, nothing else. Not entirely satiated but not famished either, she stood up, getting ready to go back to the little room. Eleonor stopped herself in her motion and frowned, trying to understand what the voice was trying to say, looking back at her bounty. The skeleton of the little thing stood still, with the fangs and tooth, the claw. Do I need to take those back to the pond ? She asked herself, surprised, before shrugging and taking them with her. She get back as she could to her room, a mass of bones, claw and fangs difficult to transport between her hands, mass that she threw in the black tart as soon as she came in. She watched it sinking slowly between the tentacles, disappearing in the viscous liquid while letting out some bubble of air, and that was it. Eleonor watched closely for a minute, then two, then five. After ten minute, she was going to sit in a corner but, suddenly, a tentacles jumped out of of the pool, grabbing her arm and contorting around it, taking it into the pond. She tried to resist, in vain, the limb too powerful for her. WHAT DO YOU WANT ? Asked a big, low-pitched and monotonous voice. Excuse me ? Who are you ? Responded the young lady reflexively. WHO ? I¡¯M THE GENESIS POOL, REGISTRATION NUMBER¡­ A-0, AWAITING INSTRUCTION FROM YOURSELF. Genesis pool ? Why did you grab me ?Stolen from its rightful author, this tale is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings. NEED OF DIRECT CONTACT TO COMMUNICATE. Yes, but why now ? BIOMASS HAS BEEN INSERTED, AWAITING ORDER FOR ITS UTILISATION. Biomass ? You mean the bones from the rabbit ? RABBIT ? The thing I gave you. YOU DIDN¡¯T GAVE ME A RABBIT, BUT A MUTATED SPECIMEN BRANCHING FROM THE PAWN SPECIES WHO HAD ACQUIRED MIMICRY CAPACITY FOR HUNTING. SPECIMEN RANK : 1,5 Mimicry ? It was hiding itself into something else to hunt ? AFFIRMATIVE. LACKING EXECUTION, BUT ELEGANT AND EFFECTIVE TECHNIQUE. Her arm still in the pond, the young woman took some time to think, absorbing all the new knowledge she received, searching the good question to ask. What is a Pawn ? PAWN : BASE UNIT OF THE SWARM. EFFECTIVE TO DROWN ENEMY IN NUMBER, DISTRACT, ANCHORING A POSITION, DISPOSING OF CIVILIAN TARGET. WEAK ARMOR, WEAK VITALITY, WEAK DAMAGE POTENTIAL, VERY CHEAP AND FAST TO PRODUCE. DO YOU WANT ME TO UPLOAD THE SCHEMATIC OF THIS UNIT INTO YOUR BRAIN ? Yes ! A jolt of electricity seemed to cross her brain, mildly painful and quickly gone, and she started to see a tridimensional projection of a little monster, with some line of text, like when she received a fragment from the voice and that she saw a character sheet of herself [Pawn] [Level : 1-15] [Ressources : [Body : 1-15] [Mind : 1-1] [Soul: 1-1] [Natural armor: 3-45] [Natural weapons: Fangs: strength*1-2.5 damage, anti-armor 1-5 Claws: strength*1-2 damage, anti-armor 0-2] The tridimensional projection was slowly spinning on itself, showing a four-legged beast, covered by a chitinous armor, with little nasty eyes and vicious claws and fangs. Surprised by those stats, she looked at hers. [Eleonor] [Level : 1] [Ressources : [Body : 1] [Mind : 1] [Soul : 1] [Natural armor: 1] [Natural weapons : Fangs: strength*1 damage (5) Feet and fists : strength*2 damage (10)] Eleonor noted with astonishment that two new stats had appeared but, more importantly, she now understood just how weak she was. Her strikes shouldn¡¯t even be able to hurt this cannon fodder creature, and her armor was pitiable. You asked me what i wanted. I want to go back home. She thought, discouraged. I DON¡¯T UNDERSTAND. PLEASE CHOOSE A USE FOR THE INSERTED BIOMASS. Of course, what did I expect. She sat down, slipping her legs into the black pond to get into a more comfy position and stood there, her eyes lost in contemplation. Finally¡­ So, I inserted biomass, but what can i do with it. NORMALLY, A LOT OF THINGS, BUT SYSTEMS HAVE SUSTAINED CATASTROPHIQUE DAMAGE. ONLY RESHAPING AND MENDING SYSTEMS ARE ONLINE. RESHAPING : INSERTED BIOMASS IS RESTRUCTURED TO PRODUCE AN OBJECT OF THE SHAPE AND FUNCTION ASKED. MENDING : INSERTED BIOMASS IS INJECTED INTO THE HOST STRUCTURE OF THE USER TO OVERHAUL PERFORMANCE. So you can upgrade me, or making me something ? AFFIRMATIVE. ADVICE : FOCUS ON MENDING. Why ? OBJECTS CAN BE LOST OR BROKEN. YOUR BODY IS YOURS AND HEAL ITSELF AUTOMATICALLY. MENDING MORE EFFICIENT, ELEGANT. The young lady thought again while swinging her legs into the pond of tar, creating ripples between the tentacles. What is going to happens if I choose the mending ? YOUR STRUCTURE WOULD BE MODIFIED ACCORDING TO YOUR WISH AND THE AMOUNT OF AVAILABLE BIOMASS. Yes, no, but how would I change ? YOU WOULD BE OPTIMIZED. That¡¯s not what i¡¯m asking ! ...I DON¡¯T UNDERSTAND. Indeed. She thought while sighing loudly. Well, what options would you offer me ? LOW QUANTITY OF BIOMASS. MAINLY BONES AND CHITINE. PROPOSITION : UPGRADE OF YOUR WEAPONS OR UPGRADE OF YOUR ARMOR Armor ? AFFIRMATIVE. NOTE : TO LITTLE BIOMASS TO CREATE A FULL BODY ARMOR. ONLY PRIORITY PARTS WOULD BE COVERED BY IT, NAMELY THE HEAD, CHEST, SPINE AND HANDS. And this could spare me from injuries ? AFFIRMATIVE. Let¡¯s go for this then ! Offense is good and all as long as you stay alive but, as the adage say, the best defense is the best defense ! DO I NEED TO UNDERSTAND THAT YOU WANT THE INSTALLATION OF THE ARMOR UPGRADE ? Yes ! PLEASE IMMERSE YOURSELF IN THE POND TO PROCEED. Asked her the pool, which she did promptly. She felt herself taken by the tentacles who sank her deeper and deeper into the pond, palpating her, caressing her before entering her mouth, throat, vagina, nostrils, anus, lungs and stomach, reminding her of the first time she woke up in this world, with a noteworthy difference : she didn¡¯t feel herself invaded, didn¡¯t lack oxygen. She was just floating, peacefully, in what was more and more becoming for her a maternal embrace. She felt herself falling asleep, but a voice made her stay awake for some more time. The voice faded away, and the feeling of warmth, comfort, security finished to make her fall asleep, taking her into a welcomed coma. 3 - Caramel ; She is too calm, yet she loves it Chapter 3 ??? A dark place, somewhere between the worlds. A shape was hanging in the void, trapped by innumerable chains, her gaze drifting softly through the universe. She was smiling lightly as she contemplated the newbies struggling with the Labyrinth, giving them vague advice as per the request of her master. Her eyes drove away from the young lady stranded in this empty shell of a hive, now taking an interest into another of the toys her master dropped here¡­ ??? Beautiful. It was the best way to describe him. Soft skin the colour of caramel, tanned by the sun. Cheekbones made to smile. Deep and quiet eyes reflecting light like ponds of holy water, as black as his thick curled half-long hairs. This angel was quietly sleeping on a pile of trash, in a little back alley, appearing undisturbed by the cold and the smell, a peaceful expression on his face. Until¡­ ¡°SPLASH !¡± Someone had emptied a bucket of water on his head, startling him. ¡°Yah get up, quickly !¡± She roared, prompting him to do it. ¡°Good, now go fuck yahrself elsewhere ! No homeless near mah house !¡± She kept going with the same tone, menacing him with her bucket. What the fuck ? The young man raised his hands above his head, showing that he wasn¡¯t a threat before asking her something. ¡°Sorry madam, could you tell me where I am ?¡± He asked politely. ¡°Where yah are ? Yah are behind mah house and yah will fuck of !¡± She kept threatening him. ¡°No, i meant, what city is this ? What country ? Those kind of things¡­¡± He specified. ¡°What ? You¡¯re in Kalastol mah boy¡­¡± She frowned heavily, looking at him more thoroughly. ¡°Mhhh, yah don¡¯t really looks like a homeless and I don''t recognise yah, yah¡¯re not from here. Who are yah ?¡± ¡°Who am I ?¡± It was his turn to frown, trying to respond by digging deeper and deeper in his mind¡­ Mikael ¡°I¡¯m named Mikael, madam.¡± ¡°Mikael, what¡¯s that for a name ? Never heard before. Where do yah come from ?¡± ¡°I come froARGHHHH !¡± Mikael was suddenly interrupted by an humongous pain suddenly flooding his mind, giving him the impression that he was annihilated during an infinite time. A voice then resounded in his head. He fainted as soon as the voice finished speaking, catched up in extremis by the woman who had thrown her bucket. *** Rays of sun where dancing softly on his face, disturbing him in his sleep, He turned around in his bed, adjusting the pillow his head was on. He was so happy to be on vacation... Wait. He got up so quickly that he banged his head into the superior bunk bed, laying back down nearly as quickly, holding his head between his hands. ¡°Fuck !¡± He sweared powerfully. ¡°Well well, you¡¯re always so spirited as soon as you wake up ?¡± Asked him a young lady with a singing voice. What¡¯s going on ? He asked himself, before remembering the quarrel he had had before fainting. Kalastol ? ¡°Woohoo, do you understand me ?¡± The voice took him back in the real world. He turned his head to look at his interlocutor. She was sitting on a chair in a corner of the room, playing with a brain teaser in one hand, holding a book in the other. She was a redhead with long curled hair and freckles on her face like a starry sky. She had big round glasses from which she stared at him while timidly smiling. ¡°Ho yes, hello, sorr-ouch ! Sorry to not have responded to you.¡± He said, still holding his head with one hand. ¡°I am a little confused and not in my best state, I apologize.¡± As he kept speaking, her eyebrows started raising higher and higher. ¡°Woh, you really talk light a knight you know ? Apology accepted ! And banging your head while waking up shouldn¡¯t have helped too, hahaha !¡± ¡°Thank you¡­ What am I doing here ?¡± ¡°Ha ! When she saw you on the pile of trash, mom had thought that you were a homeless and she went to remove you from there, but she saw that you were strangely dressed and all and bam ! You fainted in her hands. So mom took you. She was concerned about the fact that you could dirty the home but you weren¡¯t even dirty, so she put you in a bed and we called a priest to see if you were ok or not. The old Roger came in like a devil when he realized that mom had taken in a stranger from the street, and he auscultated you. By the way he auscultated you fully clothed because man, I don¡¯t know what your clothes are made of, but we couldn¡¯t undress you even after we tried for ten minutes !¡± Mikael took two second to recover, dazed by those flurry of words which the young lady strafed him with. ¡°Priest ?¡± ¡°Heee, yes ? A priest ? You don¡¯t know what a priest is ?¡± ¡°I do know what a priest is, but why not calling a doctor ?¡± She looked back at him, trying to see if he was joking before realising that he was serious. ¡°Everybody know that doctors are dirty conman ! Well, nearly all of them, even if there is account of competent doctor for the wealthy, but here they¡¯re all swindler with there strange science that kill more patient that it save ! At least Roger really heal with is theurgy !¡± Mikael was as confused as he was skeptical. ¡°Priest use theurgy to heal people ?¡± ¡°Where do you come from ? Of course priest use theurgy to heal people, and not only that. It¡¯s like asking if mage could create a fireball. Of course they can !¡± She responded passionately, raising her harms high up. Mikael frowned slightly, sitting on the bed with his back bent, thoughtful. He stayed like that a minute, staring into the distance. After five minutes, the young lady had enough of it. ¡°Yo, you became mute or what ?¡± ¡°No, i was thinking.¡± He responded rightly, refocusing his gaze on her. ¡°So¡­ magic is a thing, and so is theurgy ?¡± ¡°Yes ! It is this awkward for you ?¡±Stolen novel; please report. ¡°How to put it¡­ I come from a place where those things does not exist¡­¡± ¡°What ? How is this even possible ?" ¡°I do not know, but it is true.¡± She shacked her head lightly, not believing him ¡°How do you heal yourself ? And how do you do to have quick journey or to communicate ?¡± ¡°It will be odd for you, but we do those things with the help of science.¡± She was going to retort when the door was heavily opened. ¡°I see yah¡¯re awake in there, and not since two minutes ago, h¨¦ ?¡± Said the woman loudly while entering the room. ¡°I asked yah to tip me off when he would woke up.¡± She kept going while glaring dagger at the girl. ¡°No no, i assure you he just woke up mom !¡± ¡°He, well, yah¡¯ve always been a curious one. Yah, come with me.¡± She said while pointing at Mikael. ¡°The old Roger want to see yah.¡± ¡°The priest ?¡± ¡°Yes. Chop chop, I don''t have all the day yah know !¡± Eleonor She opened her eyes in the middle of the little room, in a fashion that started to become quite familiar, and got up to inspect her changes. She raised her hands, admiring the way that the bone armor plates overlapped, sliding and encasing perfectly into each others, not impeding the mobility of her hands in any ways while still protecting them efficiently. The bone structure was so beautiful that it could have been displayed in an art museum without anyone questioning it. Moreover, her breast had decreased in size and were now covered by some kind of chitin corset composed by the same material than her hands. She touched the ground, checking that her hands didn''t lose any tactile sensitivity, which they had not, making her marvel at the fact that she did not feel any difference between her new and old hands. She then touched her head, trying to check the changes. ¡­? She spread her hands along her hair, or what was now taking place of it. The feeling was closer of bony tentacles than hair, each one ended by a barbed tip. Ok¡­ this one is an odd modification but whatever¡­ She then tried to reach her back, feeling a long chitinous shell along her spine, with little outgrowths akin to shark fins, just tinier, bulkier and a lot more sharp. She smiled lightly, all in all happy with the changes of her body, even the ones of her head and breasts. She then suddenly stopped moving, a little ball of dread gathering itself in her guts. Why am I so calm ? I¡¯ve freaking armored bone plate all over my body and I just find it nice ? What¡¯s going on with me ? She started to slightly panic but, as always, the world didn¡¯t took long to take her back to her senses. No, stop. It is true that you should worry, but you need to put first things first ! You need to stay alive to have the luxury of worry, and this goes by drinking and eating ! She had put herself together but, before leaving to explore a bit, she put her arm into the genesis pond, enjoying the pleasant feeling of the tar on her skin. Gen¨¨se ? YES MISTRESS ? So, you can build objects or upgrade myself if i give you biomass, isn¡¯t it ? AFFIRMATIVE. Good, but can you do other things with biomass ? YES. WITH A SUFFICIENT AMOUNT OF BIOMASS, I COULD PUT SOME OF MY SYSTEMS BACK ONLINE. Like what ? TO BEGIN WITH, THE GENETIC DATA BANK, TO BE ABLE TO ACCESS OTHER MODIFICATIONS AND STRUCTURES, AND TO START RECOVERING INTERESTING GENETIC STRAINS. Genetic strains ? AFFIRMATIVE. THE SWARM AMASS USEFUL DNA STRAND SINCE THE BEGINNING OF ITS EXISTENCE. WITH A SUFFICIENT SUPPLY OF BIOMASS, IT SHOULD BE POSSIBLE TO RECONSTRUCT THEM AND TO APPLY THEM TO YOURSELF. Not bad. We will see it in due time, for now I''ll already try to not starve to death. See you. GOODBYE MISTRESS. She then took her arm out of the pool and started walking towards the door, not really steady, but not terrified either. *** She was gritting her teeth, trying to contain the pain of her bleeding shoulder, putting all her might into squeezing herself through this tiny crack, her only hope of escaping the chase of the monster scratching the walls in an attempt to eat her. ¡°UARGHHH !¡± The creature roared madly, frustrated that her prey was so close yet so far of its grasp. Please-please-please make that this crack keep going deeper ! She thought as her blood was pulsating strongly in her ears, her system so saturated by adrenaline that only one thought subsisted in her mind : to survive. *** Arrived on the balcony, the young woman took some time to inspect the location. The platform she was on was bigger than what you could see at first glance because the walls weren¡¯t regular and that they hid some part of it. As she was expecting, there weren¡¯t any easy path to exit the platform, but she had spotted a wall of liana that went down to another ,very big this time, balcony, one with a little lake around which some local flora and fauna had developed. She tried to climb the liana down after having verified that no animals were close to her position, wanting to drink for the first time since she didn¡¯t even know when. The start went great but, half way, she realized that the lianas were covered by sharp thorns which, interestingly, she didn¡¯t spot until one of her arms got injured, her hand armor already sufficient to not even being bothered by those kind of things. It took twenty more minutes of struggles before she finally arrived on the big platform, grateful to not have vertigo. There was no apparent animals around for the time being, but she still decided to squat down, disturbed for the first time by her nudity, mainly the fact that she didn¡¯t have any shoes, big mistake because, unlike the first platform, this one wasn¡¯t covered with flesh, making her feet hurt from the direct contact with rough stone and other unglamorous things. Bah, i should have asked Gen¨¨se to put some armor on my feet. Well, no use crying over spilled milk, i will ask him next time, for now i need to stay focused. Still squatting, she slowly approached the red water, before finally reaching it and starting to greedily drink. It had a taste of iron...no, of blood. Not unpleasant, all in all, but she would have preferred good old mineral spring water. |You have ingested the corrupted red water. You metabolism is reacting favorably to it. Your natural regeneration is augmented for the next eight hours.| H¨¦ ? A notification had appeared in front of her the same way her character sheet did. Character sheet that she was on the verge of checking when the voice started talking again. Eleonor listened carefully to the information the voice was giving before trying to use this opportunity to make contact with her, in vain. A pity. At least the info she¡¯s giving aren¡¯t half-bad. She thought before shrugging. The sound of water tearing up, and a meteoric pain in her shoulder. Her reflexes had saved her, avoiding her the destiny of having her head drilled side to side by making her raise herself just on time to not fully take the strike coming from the lake. Adrenaline poured like a flood in her veins, her instinct of survival taking the lead. she swept her vicinity in one look. Liana were nearby, but climbing them would let her too exposed for too long. She therefore started to run towards a crack in the wall she had seen from the corner of her eyes, not even looking back to jauge her assailant. *** Which put us back in this situation, Eleonor contorting herself to progress in the crack and putting as much distance as she could with the predator chasing her. She pushed, pulled, bent herself. Come on, let me move forwaoooow ! She felt in the hole the crack was leading to. ¡°Splash !¡± And painfully rammed into water, starting to swim frantically, making her head exit the water the sooner she could, then going to the little island sitting in the middle of the underground lake. This cave had arches worthy of a cathedral, with red water dripping everywhere, creating ripple through the surface of the lake. Arrived on the black sand, Eleonor took five minute to catch her breath. Her shoulder injury was already closed, maybe thanks to the red water. She stayed on guard for a full then minutes, staring intensely at the crack she came in, before finally starting to relax when she didn¡¯t hear any more sound from the predator chasing her. She then took notice of the reason why she could see : the little island she was on had a lightsource. Well, the island was more a shoal than anything else, but that wasn¡¯t the important stuff here. Some kind of shrine was erected on it, composed by an odd organic black material, and some kind of yellow-orange luminous gems was stuck in it, shining as if it was trying to banish darkness. Hypnotized by the voice, fascinated by the stone, she moved her hand forward without thinking. The small fragment felt into her palm as if it had its own free will. She took it and hugged it against her heart, the most natural option. She sensed some kind of will rubbing against her, like a paternal spirit teaching something to his only girl. {The Hunt. Movement and Vision. Spotting your prey and swoop it in one decisive move, piercing it¡¯s head or heart, twisting its neck, cutting of one of its legs or wings. See, Move, Harvest Essence.} She felt the mass of matter formerly composing the shrine starting to melt, contorting itself to become a viscous blob that grabbed her hand, ascending her body, covering her yes and penetrating her superiors limbs. This process only took an handful of seconds before winding up, letting the place as if nothing happened. Wow, what just happened ? Asked herself the young lady, only snapping out of her trance now. What did i just do ? |New abilities acquired : Abyss Eyes ; Black Hook.| Wait what ? 4 - A world of green, death and despair ; Remembering ; First taste of legacy Chapter 4 ??? ¡°Alpha Tango Charlie do you copy ?¡± Asked the communication officer, anxiety twisting his voice. ¡°I¡¯M BUSY RIGHT NOW !¡± Yelled the soldier in response, before using her boosters to propel herself, leaping from one skyscraper to another. She crashed herself against the armored glass of the building, her armor allowing her to pass through in extremis. She rolled on the floor and get back up quickly, summing up the state of the room she just came in. Two corpses started getting up when she had flown through the glass and were heading toward her, not a real threat to the fighter clad in a power armor. She took her sword and sliced the two undead with it, the long fiery blade nearly as hot as it was sharp. ¡°For fuck¡¯s sake Syf answer me !¡± Screamed the officer, losing his cool. ¡°Cut the radio.¡± Said Syf. ¡°Ma¡¯am, can I remind you that cutting the radio during the day is a serious infraction ?¡± Respond her ancillary. ¡°Do it .¡± ¡°Syf !¡± He screamed again, before being cut by the radio switching off. During this short dialogue, Syphony had turned back to face the broken window, switching her sword with her rifle. On the other skyscraper, a massive monster was hesitating on the edge of the building, asking itself if it really wanted to jump, watching the young woman with a myriad of withering glare but, seeing that she was ready to welcome it, it stepped back, disappointed. The young fighter sighed loudly with relief, ready to lower her weapon when the lump of flesh suddenly jumped out of the building, all its mouths and hands greedily reaching to the girl. Fuck ! ¡°Maximum output !¡± She shouted in her helmet while pressing the trigger of her rifle. A towering pillar of light poured out of the barrel, striking the airborne monstrous patchwork of corpses, prompting its fall. She, however, wasn¡¯t ready for the recoil of her own weapon, which made her fly backward, smashing her against a wall. the impact was so powerful that it made her lose consciousness. *** ¡°...maining : 4 minutes.¡± She woke up during the night, the wide belt of lunar debris brightening the dead city with its greens rays, casting long shadows between the ruined buildings, streets full of wreckage, rusted cars and not-so-death corpses. Shit. Thought Syphony, opening her eyes and getting up, inspecting her gears for potential harm. She was finally relieved when her inspection did only uncover minor damage and a temporary backache. ¡°Inferi, drop the reactor¡¯s output as low as you can, I don¡¯t want to be spotted by Nightmares.¡± ¡°Warning, I will need to shut down most systems of the armor. Proceed ?¡± ¡°Turn of everything aside survival systems and the servo-motors.¡± ¡°Understood. Reactor output dropped to 19%. Warning, 45 minutes remaining before total depletion of the remaining fuel. ¡°For fuck¡¯s sake !¡± She swore again, aloud this time. ¡° What time is it ?¡± ¡°2h47 AM, local time.¡± ¡°Where¡¯s the nearest outpost ?¡± ¡°22 km south south-east. Warning : Insuffisant fuel to reach it safely.¡± ¡°SHIT !¡± She screamed, nearly punching the wall before pulling herself together. Being angry is useless. Better using your energy to finding a solution to this problems, or else you¡¯re death. She thought to calm down. She lacked fuel, whether to use fully her armor or to survive in the black zone, a place where the simple contact with air was deadly, and that was without considering the legions of monsters lurking around, Nightmares among others, hunters drawn by any and all anomaly in their environment, like an unusual thermic signature, or radio waves. Well, not as if she was going to turn her radio on anyway, since this thing was just like a flaming beacon for some other, worst, things, reason why nobody switched their radio on at night. All in all, she had just the good way to explain the situation : She was knee-deep in shit. She closed her eyes, breathing slowly. ¡°...What are my options ?¡± ¡°...Calculating...sorry, i didn¡¯t find anything to help you.¡± She sighed again, letting her back slip against the wall until she was seated. ¡°Fuck, I didn¡¯t think I would die like that.¡± She said aloud, talking to herself. ??? She was gently drifting in a slumber without dreams, out of reach from the flowing of time. She didn¡¯t know how or when she arrived here, she was just waiting indefinitely. Syphony She was slowly walking, careful to not make a sound. She had gotten through her low spirit and she had decided that, if she would die anyway, she could at least finish her mission. Her team was deployed in this black zone to scout it, because a mysterious beacon had started to broadcast a distress call from one of the big building of the abandoned downtown. The mission was proceeding smoothly until a famished Glutton ambushed her team, killing one of her teammate instantly. From them Syf played as a bait, giving the rest of her team a chance to evacuate and ending in this building which, conveniently, was the one the beacon was broadcasting from. Since she didn¡¯t had anything more to lose, she decided to go and see what was in there. Twenty minutes and sixty flight of stairs lower, she took the most precaution while crossing the ground floor, the most dangerous one. She then got through a maintenance basement, with an old rusty boiler and pipes everywhere, then an underground parking lot full of car but devoid of corpses. Where are all the undeads ? Wondered the girl suspiciously. On guard, she kept following the beacon signal, which led her to and old service elevator. The thing was obviously out of order, constraining her to abseil in the shaft. Since her HUD an all her sensors were off to save energy, she couldn¡¯t ascertain the exact characteristics of this basement, but it was pretty obvious that this mundane building made room for an advanced military base. Reaching the bottom, she found herself in a little room with only a door, a strange sigil painted on it. My god. She thought with googly eyes. ¡°Inferi, check the origin of this symbol.¡± ¡°Copy, analysing now¡­ finished. This is a base of the Revelation project.¡± So it is really one¡­ ¡°Can you open the door ?¡± ¡°It''s not locked.¡± ¡°Come again ?¡± She exclaimed before moving toward it, noting that Inferi was right. Well, here we go. She thought while opening the door. The new room she came in was bare and circular, with only two things in it, a stasis pod an a little reactor. Syphony closed the door behind her and walked toward the capsule. ¡°It still operating¡­¡± She exclaimed while looking it. ¡°Indeed, and it seems that there is something inside.¡± Added Inferi. ¡°You''re messing with ?¡± She got near the glass and wiped the condensation of it, revealing the peaceful face of a young girl, her long hair suspended around her head in the liquid.If you spot this narrative on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation. ¡°Is she alive ?¡± Asked the woman cheerfully. ¡°No.¡± Responded it dully. The woman let her arm fall back against her, disappointed. ¡°But the good new is that this reactor seems compatible with your armor, which mean that if you extract it, you could use it to replace your own and maybe, only maybe, acquire the fuel necessary for you to survive.¡± The announcement of Inferi swept away the melancholy clinging to its master. She was going to survive ! And so she got to the reactor and, following the instruction of Inferi, extracted it. This action made the stasis pod open itself, the corpse of the deceased spreading naked on the floor with an waterfall of preservation liquide, but the soldier was to busy to notice it. ¡°New reactor online. Remaining fuel : 33%. Time remaining before shutting down : at least 24 hours." ¡°Woohoo ! Who is going to survive ? It¡¯s me ! It¡¯s me !¡± She roared with joy. Suddenly, something grabbed her leg. She lowered her sight, crossing the gaze of the deceased, who was staring her right in the eyes. ¡°P-please help me, it¡¯s so painful !¡± She said, crying. Mikael While going to Roger¡¯s place, Mikael had the time to look at the city. As he was expecting, it was from the medieval era, albeit the road where a little too clean. and by this he meant that sewage wasn¡¯t done on the middle of the road, like in a true medieval city. There was quite a lot of dweller walking here and there, and sometime a carriage was seen. They only took, him and the woman he was with, five minute to reach the church that Roger managed, a little nice building from which people where coming and going. strangely, everyone made place when they saw the woman. ¡°G¡¯day Nana ! They say you¡¯ve picked up something from your trash !¡± Exclaimed an old man, cheeks red from alcohol. ¡°Fuck of or you¡¯ll be the next one picked from the trash.¡± She responded agressively. ¡°Ha ! As sharp as always it seems ! Do you come to the poker night ?¡± ¡°Not in the mood today.¡± She responded while walking past him. Mikael threw a contrite look at the old man, who responded by guffawing. Roger was at the altar, a little girl laying down on it while he was gently making his hand go over her, pouring a white light that was seemingly soothing the child. ¡°There, now she just need to rest and she should be healthy in no time.¡± ¡°Thanks, Roger.¡± Responded the dad of the girl while taking her in his arms, the kid having seemingly felt asleep during the healing, a sleep full of nightmares. He withdrew rather quickly when he saw the bulldozer that was Nana coming in his direction. ¡°Ha, yes, the stranger.¡± He spoke softly to himself . ¡°Let¡¯s go something more private, will you.¡± He offered, inviting them to follow him by nodding his head. They arrived in a tiny bare office and he offered them a seat while he himself stood, the room containing only two seats. ¡°This skin colour while never stop intriguing me.¡± Was is first comment. It''s true that everyone here seems to have white or gray skin. Thought Mikael. ¡°In a good way or a bad one ?¡± Asked him to the old priest. ¡°In a neutral way for me, but there is a lot of people out there that would use any pretext to create scapegoat, young man, and the colour of your skin is a perfect example of what they like to use, i¡¯m sorry.¡± He said while looking sadly through a window. He then turned around to look at said young man. ¡°But i forget myself. I¡¯m called Roger, delighted to meet you Mikael.¡± He went on while extending a hand that Mikael promptly took. ¡°Good, now that the customary courtesy have been dealt with, can you tell me what you¡¯re doing here, how you got there, those kind of things ?¡± ¡°I can try, but my memories are a little fuzzy to say the least.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t worry, just talk about what you remember.¡± ¡°I was going on vacation with my friends, I think. We travelled for a while and then something happened, we go into an accident, or maybe something attacked us. I do not remember well. Next¡­ I remember screams of pain and panic from the people around me, then nothing until someone emptied a bucket of cold water on me.¡± He pondered for some more time before shaking his head, disappointed. ¡°It is everything i got from just before waking up, sorry.¡± ¡°Don''t worry, it¡¯s already great. Do you remember where you come from ? Your city, your familly ?¡± ¡°Yes. I am living in a city called Brussels, with my father and my big and little sisters.¡± ¡°Brussels ?¡± Asked Nana while looking at Roger, who was nodding negatively. ¡°And your friends ?¡± ¡°I...I don¡¯t know¡­ I think there was Mellite, and¡­ Eleonor¡­¡± His eyes got suddenly wide open. Oh my god, if Eleonor is here I really hope she did not already kill someone. He thought, picturing his best friend, this introvert who always kept herself under control, just tossed in an unknown world full of magic. ¡°I will need help to find someone.¡± I then said with a powerful voice while getting up. ¡°Oh ? And why ?¡± ¡°Because if I do not find her quickly it could become a big problem.¡± A potential quick learning and socialy capable homicidal maniac in a world full of magic ? No thanks. Eleonor Black tentacles where emerging from her arms, like natural extension of herself, which was, on second thought, certainly the case. She was still sitting on the black sand in the middle of the cave, surrounded by the red water, a scenery she wasn¡¯t paying attention to, too focused on the strange phenomenon that was taking place on her arms. Cool...but freakish. But cool. She thought while she kept checking them. |Black Hook : black tentacles can come out of your arms at will, able to project themself up to ten meters and to anchor themself into most surface. Taken as a whole, tentacle of one arm are able to carry your own weight. If a tentacle is severed, it take fifteen minute for it to regen itself. If all the tentacles of an arms are severed in one go, it took a day to regen themselfs. Regeneration only work if the user is sated. Note : evolutionary paths are availables for this ability. You can discover them by fulfilling secret conditions, and then unlock them by following the instruction coupled with them.| It was the description that popped out after checking her character sheet and inspecting her new ability. And so she was now playing with it since half an hour ago, marvelling at the delicacy of the movement her new appendage could do. More or less. She still had difficulties to use them, but it had much to do with her own mastery and less to do of the quality of this ability. But why, could you ask, was she doing those tests here, in the middle of a lake ? Well, the answer to this question was quite simple : She was trapped here. Literally. The only exit of this place, the crack she came by, was sitting high above the water, in an unclimbable wall, making her unable to reach it. Wait. What a moron I am ! She screamed in her head. I¡¯ve literally the one ability build to escape this place ! She kept thinking while looking happily at her arms. I just need to find the way to use those correctly. She got up and put her arms in front of her. She then made the tentacle extend themself before attempting to launch them towards the ground, failing miserably when each tentacle went in a slightly different way, spreading unevenly in the sand. Brrr, what a strange sensation¡­ She thought. She was feeling each black grain against the skin of the tentacles, no, her skin. She jumped when one of them touched the water, retracting it by reflex like someone checking cold water with a toes. Hell, it¡¯s hard to have more arms ! She thought. She tried to make this work several more times, getting accustomed to feel things through more appendages she was used to. Haha ! This time she had the tentacles stick together before launching them, creating a somehow straight trajectory and, more importantly, when the black mass touched the sand, its tip plastered on it like a suction cup, trying to anchor itself to it. Which was vain, of course, not because ot the specs of the tentacles, but because of the nature of the ground. Try to do it at home, attaching a suction cup to sand, it should be entertaining. Yes ! It worked ! She thought while jumping happily. All to her joy, she tried something else : she launched the black tentacles from her right arm towards the ceiling, where it anchored itself without much difficulty. Afterward, very slowly, she started to pull herself upwards with her new limb. She stopped when her feet where ten centimeter from the ground, studying the feeling this manipulation gave her. It¡¯s strangely familiar. I''ve truly the impression to lift myself with an arm, just a bigger, longer one¡­ The tentacles where at the same time an extension of her own arm and limbs on there own right. Just like fingers. She thought. Yes, it¡¯s the feeling of fingers grabbing a hold, like during my climbing classes, just that. More confident with this thought, she took some height, letting one or two meter between her and the ceiling. She then stretched her left arm, launching its mass of tentacles toward a point farther on the ceiling, in the direction of the crack. Then, a little apprehensive, she let go the hold of her right tentacles. ¡°Whohoho !¡± She screamed with fear when she fell forward, starting to swing beautifully like a pendulum. When it stopped, she took another two minutes to put herself together, her ghastly face retaking slowly its natural colour. Fortunately there is water under me. She thought gratefully. She tried to do it again, this time with a little less clumsiness and fear. After the fifth time, she started to understand the trick and stopped waiting to be stationary before launching the next batch of tentacles. I¡¯m feeling like Tarzan. She thought while chuckling. She was still somewhat clumsy after the fifteenth time, but she would have time to train another time. For now she was in front of the crevice. With her left arm, she anchored tentacles next to it and lifted herself up until she was at the height of hole in the stone. She then used her right arm to pull herself, squeezing into it with great difficulties. ¡°I¡¯m just a bit to big, am I not ? I wish a was tinier.¡± She grumbled while struggling with the rock. She finally emerged from the rift, coming back on the balcony with the lake from which her assailant arose. She marched along the wall, trying with all her might to not make a noise, and arrived without issue before the wall of liana that she directly started climbing slowly. Mid height she looked back to see if there was any sign of the monster, then felt relieved when there was not. She finished climbing, using her tentacles for the last few meters, trying to avoid ripping her belly by hoisting herself on the little platform. Her feet found again the reassuring touch of the flesh covering the ground, and she scrammed to take refuge in her little room. It was only when the membrane closed behind her that she finally started loosening. Her gaze felt on Gen¨¨se, and the idea of letting herself flow into the pool and being covered by tar started to become unexpectedly enticing. Following her longing, she put her legs into the liquid, slipping her body between the tentacles. 5 - About your annoying soul ; Costly Escape ; Black Clouds Chapter 5 Eleonor YOU¡¯VE CHANGED, MISTRESS. Said suddenly Gen¨¨se with curiosity. She had floated peacefully for some time now, resting in the soothing embrace of the tentacles, more because she needed to release her stress than because she needed actual rest, till a viscous limb took her out of her slumber by wrapping itself around her left leg, creating a bridge between her consciousness and the one from the genesis pool. Changed ? She asked, her voice still soggy from her sleep. EYES AND ARMS STRUCTURES HAVE BEEN MODIFIED. STRANGE TRANSFORMATION, INELEGANT¡­ YET EFFECTIVE AND EFFICIENT. INTRIGUING¡­ Inelegant ? In which ways ? She thought while frowning, a little bit lost. REDUNDANCIES, LACK OF DELICACY IN THE DESIGN OF THE MUSCULAR FIBERS, STRANGE LIMBS STORAGE SYSTEM. USELESS ARCHAIC REFLEXES, USELESS GENETIC MATERIAL POLLUTING THE DNA SEQUENCES. YET STILL EFFECTIVE. ASKING FOR AN IN DEPTH ANALYSIS. An in depth analysis ? What do you want to do ? PARTIAL DECONSTRUCTION OF THE MODIFIED PARTS, EYES AND ARMS, IN AN EFFORT TO UNDERSTAND THE FACTOR MAKING IT EFFECTIVE WITH ALL THOSE ERRORS. WITH A LITTLE LUCK, I COULD DRAW INTERESTING CONCLUSIONS FOR FUTUR OPTIMISATION OF YOUR BODY, MISTRESS, PERHAPS EVEN FINDING A WAY TO MAKE THOSE MODIFICATION MORE EFFICIENT. How much time would it take ? FROM ONE TO THREE CYCLES. That''s not very helpful¡­ She thought, faced by the unknown measure unit. How much time was I gone last time ? She then asked, trying to make herself an idea of its value. 0.05 CYCLE +- 0.01 Ok, i was gone for what, an hour ? So this cycle work by batch of twenty hours. She quickly calculated Wouldn¡¯t I starve if I stay three cycles without eating ? BIOMASS CONSUMPTION IS REDUCED IN SUSPENDED ANIMATION. Suspended animation ? I will be in stasis during the analysis ? She asked before adding. Is that what happens to me when you modified me the first time ? AFFIRMATIVE. Why do you put me in suspended animation ? She asked again with curiosity. TWO ADVANTAGES : BIOMASS CONSUMPTION IS REDUCED AND THE PAIN LINKED TO MENDING YOUR BODY IS REPRESSED. YET STASIS IS SURPRISINGLY INEFFICIENT, FRUSTRATING. ...I don¡¯t really understand, I confess. MISTRESS : INTERESTING SPECIMEN. GREAT SENTIENCE AND SAPIENCE, CREATING NOVEL OPPORTUNITY FOR ME. NEGATIVE POINT : STASIS NEEDED WHILE MENDING TO AVOID OVERLOAD OF THE COGNITIVE SYSTEM. NOT AN ISSUE PER SE, BUT IT INDUCE THE CREATION OF AN UNKNOWN PARAMETER : IMPACT FROM THE SUBCONSCIOUS. FROM THERE, CREATION OF CASCADING ERRORS. Errors ? What errors ? She asked, confused. NON-COMPREHENSIVE LIST : DURING ARMOR SET UP, SPONTANEOUS CREATION OF USELESS AND WASTEFUL PSEUDO-CAPILLARY EXTENSION, REDUCING EFFICIENCY OF HEAD ARMOR. DURING FIRST MODIFICATION, ABLATION ATTEMPT OF MAMMARY GLANDS AND REPRODUCTIVE SYSTEM, OPERATION INTERRUPTED BY YOUR SUBCONSCIOUS. SAME GOES FOR THE ATTEMPT AT REPROPORTIONING YOUR BODY, CHANGING THE GRIPPER LIMBS, THE RESPIRATORY AND THE DIGESTIVE SYSTEMS. HYPOTHESIS : THE MIND AND SOUL TRY TO KEEP THE BODY CLOSE TO THE MENTAL IMAGE THE SUBJECT HAS OF IT. You mean that my subconscious try to keep me has I think i am ? AFFIRMATIVE. Eleonor took some time to reflect on the things Gen¨¨se told her. My mind automatically put boundaries on how much my body can be changed¡­ It¡¯s reassuring, in a way, but this could become an issue in the long run¡­ She thought, a part of her not quite at ease with the successive mutations of her body, another one extremely excited by those changes, in particular the Black Hook who, fear outstripped, where very refreshing and exciting to use, or the way her body healed her shoulder wound. And a third part couldn¡¯t help but imagine what would have unfolded if she hadn''t had her armor, hooks or the effect of the red water, three factors without which she would be respectively dead by a severed shoulder, dead of hunger in the cave and finally dead by external haemorrhage. Gen¨¨se, are the change you make to my body reversible ? She asked while getting out of her thoughts. THE IMMENSE MAJORITY OF CHANGES ARE TOTALLY REVERSIBLES. Which aren¡¯t ? CEREBRAL MODIFICATION ARE TOO DANGEROUS TO REVERSE. That¡¯s all ? YES. So if I don''t fancy a change, i can reverse it whenever I want ? AFFIRMATIVE, AND THE BIOMASS THAT WAS NEEDED FOR THE MODIFICATION WOULD BE RECOVERED IN ITS NEAR ENTIRETY IN CASE OF REGRESSION OF THIS ONE. Good to know, and leading to my next question. How can I diminish the impact of my subconscious on body modification ? TWO SOLUTIONS : NOT TO PUT YOU IN STASIS AND MADE YOU PART OF THE MENDING PROCESSUS, OR ALTERING YOUR SUBCONSCIOUS REFLECTIONS TO MAKE THEM LESS PARASITIZING. In a sense, it¡¯s quite logical. She thought while pondering the two offered solutions. And the first one is impossible to implement for the time being I suppose. AFFIRMATIVE, YOUR NEURAL NETWORK WOULDN¡¯T RESIST THE LOAD. And for the second option ? Any ideas how to do it ? NO MISTRESS, I¡¯M SORRY. YOU¡¯RE THE FIRST LIVING BEINGS THAT IS PROBLEMATIC TO MODIFY FOR ME, ALL THE OTHERS WERE DEVOID OF SOUL AND HAD LITTLE TO NO MIND, ONLY A RUDIMENTARY ONE. But you¡¯re sapient no ? You shouldn¡¯t have been the only one in this case. How did you proceed to mend your species ? ALL SAPIENT SPECIES FROM THE SWARM WERE EITHER BORN WITH AN UNMODIFIABLE SHAPE, CAPABLE OF RESISTING THE LOAD MENDING PUT ON THEIR MIND OR ABLE TO MODIFY THEMSELF DIRECTLY. I¡¯M FROM THE THIRD CATEGORY, MISTRESS. TAKING THIS INTO ACCOUNT AND ADDING THE FACT THAT I¡¯M UNABLE TO ACCESS MY GENETIC DATA BANK PREVENT ME TO BE OF ANY HELP ON THIS MATTER FOR THE TIME BEING. Well, i can relate. You¡¯re as lost as i¡¯m, aren¡¯t you. She thought with compassion. I really need to start hunting, or at least I need to find a spot from which I can harvest something to eat. Was her conclusion. I will try to bring something back, whereafter you while perform your analysis. She told to Gen¨¨se. UNDERSTOOD MISTRESS. He responded while relinquishing her leg. She rooted herself out of her bed of tentacles, tar flowing along her nearly naked body, on her legs and her chest, some of it entangled amongst her pseudo-hair, creating large black membranes between each bonny tentacles that acted has her hair. She got up and started walking with a determined gaze. She exited the room, room that stayed peaceful for and handful of minutes before being troubled again by the owner of the place, a dumb face plastered on her. Gen¨¨se was a little surprised when her mistress immersed her arm into it, thinking she was out hunting. YES MISTRESS ? Can you quickly cover my feet with a layer of chitin ? She then asked with all the serious she could muster, looking at her battered feet while thinking of the exterior ground. ¡­ YES, THIS SHOULDN¡¯T TAKE TOO MUCH TIME. Responded a confused Gen¨¨se. Syphony Fuck-Fuck-Fuck-Fuck-Fuck-Fuck. She thought in a very sophisticated way while running between falling buildings, a young naked girl attached with straps at the top of her backpack, unconscious. Long metallic structure were emerging from the ground, ravaging undeads and city alike, while masses of zombies were converging from all sides towards Syphony¡¯s location. They were so numerous that the young woman could see something traditionally very rare : the birth of Gluttons when the famished corpses amalgamated themself by simple force of hunger, then creating Ruiners when Gluttons smashed themself together. Flocks of Nightmares where making the sky red of there wings, swirling around the two humans like sharks, yet keeping a distance from all the chaos of flesh and steel that was the ground. *** She was standing there like a moron, too shocked by the situation. What have I done ? She asked herself, panicking. ¡°Inferi !¡± ¡°She isn¡¯t really alive, I promise ! My sensors are formals !¡± Responded the ancillary in its defense. ¡°Heck she isn¡¯t !¡± She said to it before lowering herself, knee down. ¡°Look at me, girl. Where do you hurt ?¡± She asked at the not-so-dead girl. ¡°My belly is burning !¡± She screamed before starting to scratch herself to blood. She then suddenly curled up while holding her head. ¡°Haaa, my head !¡± She wailed before convulsing.The story has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation. ¡°Inferi ! A sedative and an anticonvulsant !¡± She said while putting her hand against her right hip, from where she quickly took out an injector from her armor that she promptly unloaded against the skin of her patient. The compound was immediately injected, appeasing the seizure of the young one and making her fall into a deep slumber. ¡°Inferi, analyse her and tell me what happened, and move your ass !¡± ¡°Straight away ma¡¯am.¡± Syphony made her hands go over the inanimate body of the girl, letting her ancillary scan her. After multiple exhausting minutes. ¡°The subject see her vitals so low that the system didn¡¯t recognize her as alive. Her heartbeat, blood pressure and breathing pace are totally of the chart. Moreover, blood analysis show a complete infection by RV-a1. She should be totally feral. No, worst, she should be a Wraith, but she seems to have retained all her sapient function, even memory and language mastery. This, Syphony, is a perfectly functional survivor of the Revelation project, the first to maintain its human abilities. Your priority level just rose to Alpha-P.¡± A survivor of the Initiative¡­ She had a difficult time realizing the situation she was in. If this was real and she was able to extract this survivor, humanity could have a chance to survive on earth. ¡°This evacuation need to succeed.¡± ¡°Indeed ma¡¯am. I recommend waiting for the morning, after what we would call in orbital support.¡± ¡°Yup, it¡¯s the best to do, but I will first do some scouting. Better safe than sorry.¡± She replied before detaching a little sphere from her suit. She was ready to launch the drone and opened the door. ¡°Wow !¡± A mass of undeads rushed through it, ready to engulf the room, startling the woman that took her sword out by reflex, killing the zombies with a one flexible strike. ¡°Something is wrong.¡± She said out loud while looking at the time. 3:39 AM. ¡°Sensors at 10%.¡± ¡°...Done.¡± Responded Inferi. Her HUD suddenly sprang back to life, showing the building she was in and 100 meters around it, the display blurry because of all the debris. Her visor was bathed red with dots representing enemies converging on her position with varying speed. ¡°We¡¯re leaving NOW !¡± She said to Inferi while going back in the room, where she took the young girl in her arms and fastened her to her backpack with straps coming from it, wrapping themself around the little one before anchoring into her armor. ¡°No time for subtlety, reactor at max output !¡± ¡°...Ok.¡± Replied Inferi, wanting to object to this choice but failing to find something to say. Syphony got up and ran in the elevator shaft, dodging zombies, and started jumping from wall to wall with her boosters. My thermal signature should be disgusting right now. She thought while flying at full speed through the door of the elevator. The parking was already choke full of undeads, and the HUD of the young warrior was giving its all, Inferi working relentlessly to calculate a viable escape trajectory. Following her ancillary¡¯s indications, she took her rifle and shot a middle-power blast, tearing a path in the mass of zombies to reach the garage door, which she cut with a splash of light. Behind, her HUD had promised her a sea of undeads, and she wasn¡¯t disappointed by what she encountered. A horde of zombies where walking between buildings toward her. Ok, this won¡¯t do at all. ¡°Inferi, I will use the walls and roofs to stay safe, be ready to broadcast an emergency call through the radio and say our priority level.¡± ¡°I will need to switch the radio on for this, and you don¡¯t have the accreditation level to deactivate the security protocols. ¡°Use directive Alpha-P to override.¡± ¡°...Ok, done. When do you want me to start broadcasting ?¡± ¡°At an height of 35 meters.¡± ¡°Understood.¡± ¡°And while we¡¯re at it, unlock the overspeed limiter of the reactor and unbridle the boosters." ¡°Heck yes, since we¡¯re already suicidal why not going the whole way !¡± Grumbled Inferi. Syphony accelerated suddenly, using her boosters to make a jump that made her smash herself on the surface of a nearby building, starting to run on it before switching facade when her stability was to low, quickly taking altitude. ¡°Inf-0158a5 broadcasting from EU-26. The user is in the middle of an Alpha-P priority extraction from the Revelation program, requiring immediate assistance for evacuation !¡± Started saying Inferi when the broadcast height was reached. ¡°Ka-05 from the orbital station Everest asking confirmation on the acquisition of a priority target.¡± ¡°Confirmed ! Sapient subject from the Revelation program being extracted right now !¡± ¡°... Alpha-P priority confirmed. Launch of an extraction shuttle and two escort Valkyrie. Please transmit your current status.¡± ¡°Multiple Ruiners incoming with hundreds of Nightmares in interception trajectory !" The armor was starting to become quite hot, the suit never intended to work at such capacity. The boosters were coughing all they had to keep up with the infernal pace the young woman put them through and the reactor had irremediably exceeded its output, which it was showing by blithely surpassing its maximal security temperature. On her back, the unknown youngster was sweating heavily. ¡°...The use of the Solaris battery has been authorized, target acquisition in progress.¡± ¡°Sending priority target right now !¡± Responded Inferi while designating the enemy to kill first. ¡°Syphony, i¡¯m going to incorporate Solaris support in the trajectory calculations !¡± ¡°Copy !¡± She replied shortly, breathless. She charged right in a Ruiner, following one the potential trajectories displayed on her HUD and, just before colliding with it, a flash of light coming from the sky cut the monstrous aggregate in two, carving a path for her. All around her, pillars of light where raining, intercepting the maximum number of thread they could to clear a path for her. An alarm then started screaming in her helmet. ¡°Behemoth in fast interception trajectory !¡± Shouted Inferi, too late. Neither Syphony nor the Everest station could react quickly enough before the said Behemoth came crashing down on the two girls. The sound of steel twisting, of ground ripping, and a gigantic spike shot out from the ground, impaling the twenty-floor monstrosity. When it was obvious that this wouldn¡¯t be sufficient to stop it, a second one emerged from the bowel of the earth, stopping dead the Behemoth¡¯s momentum, allowing Syphony to avoid it in extremis by grazing the ground. ¡°Warning, structural integrity compromised !¡± Said an automatised alarm. ¡°We won''t be able to keep this up much longer !¡± Added a panicking Inferi. ¡°For god¡¯s sake where is my evac !¡± Roared the young soldier. ¡°220 seconds before extraction shuttle showing up !¡± She started somehow running again, dodging the wreckage falling all around. *** ¡°120 seconds before evac !¡± In not even two minutes, the city became an Apocalyptic vision, with steel spikes slicing Behemoths everywhere, blinding flashes of light charring black everything to close to Syphony, majestically piercing the sky. And in the middle of all this, a tiny little human being was running for her life and mostly for the girl on her backpack, a human running despite the third degree burn spreading across her back, despite the pain of her legs that had taken to much impact. She was allowed to die, it was of little significance, but she absolutely needed to save the stranger trembling on her back. And so she was running to the evac zone. A thousand Nightmares chose this instant to dive straight on her, claws first, sapping what little hope she still had. The sky teared and the next second, a meka like a building had inserted itself between the two girls and the mass of winged undeads. Her two feet were firmly anchored in the ground, around the girls, and a shield-dome was covering the three of them, Nightmares ramming relentlessly into it. ¡°Cavalry¡¯s here !¡± Announced the Valkyrie triumphantly, her entrance falling as flat as Syphony who, wounded and exhausted, collapsed on the ground, unconscious. ¡°Syphony need emergency medical attention RIGHT NOW !¡± Furiously yelled Inferi in the radio. A second Valkyrie was hovering in the sky, firing an onslaught of guided light beams, ravaging the flock of Nightmare and making an hole in it for the shuttle to land, directly deploying a medical team. They unfastened the stranger from Syphony and immediately started taking her in, cutting her armor open the release her from its scorching heat. The full operation only took 15 seconds and the shuttle took off, two patient on board whose one was a death''s door. ¡°Ok girls, let¡¯s get the hell out of there !¡± Said the first Valkyrie while following the shuttle, still supported by her wingman''s and Everest''s cover shots. An handful of seconds and they were gone, letting the city pray to chaos. The steel spikes quickly drew back after the disappearance of their purpose, and the undeads gradually calmed down. The fire raging in the city slowly started to be extinguished when a greenish rain started falling on the ravaged area, sullying it even more¡­ ??? The heights of the valley would have been beautiful under the snow, if this snow had not been black, a dirty and putrid black that marched badly with the freezing properties of the powdery material. At the bottom of it, as in any valley, flowed a slow river, which lazed in its viscous and fetid smacks, the water like filthy tar that stained the rocks against which it slipped. Fields with dark vegetation stretched out as far as the eye could see, the wheat normally gold-colored now of an unhealthy black, forming hypnotic waves when the wind ran through the high ears, whose grains were swollen to burst by a substance which had clearly taken the place of the almond, the whole thing more akin to a moldy egg ready to explode than a cereal from which flour was to be made. The air itself seemed heavier than it should have been. From the villages and the city that were lower in the valley, they remained only ruins, as if abandoned for decades without however the vegetation regained its rights. On the decrepit roads or in the ruined streets, skeletons of humans and animals could be seen, wandering on what was still their land, however being much less alive than before their death. The rocky peaks became higher and higher as you sank in the valley, the river now a mountain stream. And on one of the peaks, solitary, stood a castle. Black, of a heavy and imposing Gothic style, it dominated the place, especially the central tower, culminating at almost two hundred more meters than the highest of the defensive towers that were distributed along the ramparts. Nothing was of stone, as one might have thought, but in fact built with a matt black metal, at least on the outside. The high main tower ended in a large inverted cone which then turned into a half-sphere, without any windows being visible but, to the great surprise of an informed observer, wind turbines seemed to cover its surface. An incredible cloud of black and oily smoke was perpetually coming out of the half-sphere¡¯s highest point, repelling the clouds of the same unhealthy black as the river, which constantly poured their contaminated rain around the castle, without ever touching it thanks to the smoke that protected it. A narrow road could be partially seen under the dark flood, more a stream than anything else as the rain was so dense. The sound of the water running down the sections of stones was deafening, as if it were trying to assert itself as the only thing existing. Through the castle, one could hear things crawling, running on the walls or ceiling, silent but terrible, terrible because thirsty. A black powder, tallow, covered each unprotected parcel, and even entered the castle by one or the other door, staining the sumptuous furniture, the red velvet carpets and the tapestries representing some epic and forgotten battles, blackening and slowly oxidizing the golden metal whose chandeliers suspended from the ceiling were made, these pouring their soft red light, giving a slightly creepy but warm atmosphere to the place. Deeper into the building, the furniture was still in perfect condition, except for the thin layer of dust that indicated the absence of passage, presence, life. And deep, very deep in the castle, in its heart, at the base of the main tower, the infernal furnace was burning with its demonic fire, without having anything seemingly feeding it except the bellows aligned to inject it constantly with air, the metal that held it like a cage heated red by its power and its passion. One could even say that, from time to time, the fire seemed to want to escape from the inferno to which it was chained. Through a hole, this one was unceasingly spitting the thick black fog that held the corrupted clouds at bay. The glow of the flames danced a hypnotic dance on the white skin of the young woman, lying not far from the terrible furnace, quickly awakened by the suffocating heat that seemed to take her and strangle her, like a fat, depraved man who sat on her chest, crushing her and preventing her from breathing. She opened her eyes and inspired greatly, like a drowned man returning to the surface. She tried to get up and was caught in a powerful dizziness coupled with a headache that caused her to fall back on her hands, vomiting before her, only bile, her belly painfully empty. She had to wait several minutes before the pain and confusion calmed down a bit, allowing her to finally stand up. She looked around, but the large circular room was filled with only the furnace and its bellows. ¡°Hey, kid !¡± A voice suddenly resounded, crashing and resonating against the metal walls like a rude, ill-mannered explosion. She turned her head to the right and to the left, seeking the source of the voice without success. ¡°Here, kid ! The fire !¡± he said again, making the woman¡¯s eyes focus on the jail-furnace. And she saw it. A deformed and monstrous humanoid form, a parody of a human being, a satyr even, standing there, his six pseudo-hands clinging to the bars of his prison. ¡°Yes, that¡¯s right, you ! I have a deal to offer you !¡± he says with greed, looking at her the same way a hungry man looked a free buffet. She recoiled slightly, a disgusted grimace appearing on her face. ¡°No, no, wait ! Please !¡± he said with despair, effectively stopping her. ¡°I promise you everything you could want if you take me out of here! Take me with you and you will have everything ! Gold, power, women, whatever it is, I can give you !¡± He pleaded to her, which had the opposite effect than expected, making her back even more, the young woman looking around to find a way out "No, stay here! You are also a prisoner, no ? If we help each other, we can get out of here ! I will give you everything I have to be released !" He cried while his six arms clawed at her, the young woman fleeing from the fury he was unleashing. She went through the door that she had spotted earlier, running away from the monster as far as possible, not paying attention to the direction she was taking, through which she was going, which doors she was moving through, and did not stop until the fear he had instilled in her was crushed by her exhaustion. She was in a large banquet hall, tables after tables perfectly aligned, glasses of crystals, cutlery and silver dishes, porcelain plates, jugs filled with a dark, brownish and moldy liquid. The place was perfectly lit by gigantic chandeliers whose lights were floating in the void, like planets orbiting blazing suns. Where the hell am I ? She asked herself, finally, her calm and rational mind slowly regaining the upper hand over the pure terror and the quintessential confusion that had guided her until now. Bad luck for her, it was also the moment dark things chose to slowly rise up, emerge from under the tables. Children, five or six, their eyes with red pupils looking at her with greed, sniffing the air on all fours like wild animals. They began to revolve around her, a terrifying vision. They were famished, seemed hungry, and looked at her as one would looks at a prey, forming a discordant vision, the fear and sadness mingling in the young woman¡¯s mind as she felt threatened and saddened at the same time by this view. A sharp movement, and she felt a powerful bite in her right arm. A ten-year-old girl had planted her teeth there and was now greedily drinking her blood. Despite her reluctance, she tried to defend herself, giving the girl a headbutt to try to get her out, without success. She quickly felt two more bites, in the leg and in the other arm, and she began to struggle more and more softly, the blood loss already consequent. Her vision began to be covered with a black veil when she saw the young boy¡¯s head clinging to her leg fly up in the air in a fountain of blood, quickly followed by those of the other two children attacking him. ¡°She is MINE !¡± Roared the young voice of a girl, before the young woman felt herself falling, caught up by thin but powerful arms. 6 - The power to make cry ; Both are very thorough ; A great day Chapter 6 Mikael He was cutting flesh, the blood oozing from it splashing on his hands. His mouth distorted itself from disgust, the young man not completely accustomed to his new job. ¡°See ? You can do it if you try !¡± Said Helianthine while looking at him properly cutting the lamb¡¯s leg sitting before him. ¡°Thanks.¡± He replied with a smile. ¡°And you also deserve praises for being such a good teacher.¡± He added. ¡°Ha ! Trying to be charming don''t work that great when you''re covered in blood from head to toe.¡± She retorted while elbowing him in the ribs. ¡°Ouch ! Be careful please !¡± ¡°Bah, it¡¯s not my fault that your stats are even worse than mine ! I mean, i¡¯m a Novice Mage, it¡¯s really difficult to have a worse Body stat than mine !¡± Mikael couldn¡¯t respond anything. He had arrived here, in this world, two odd weeks ago, and directly had in mind to check if his friends had come here with him, objective much harder than anticipated. For now, he was living in Kalastol, Capital city of the country of Romulan, a country besieged from every side by monsters. Life was hard, resources were limited and travels were dangerous to say the least, in particular since 20 years ago, when an event known as the Great Split happened, completely separating Romulan from the other countries, making them disappear in favour of the Cursed Lands, home to numerous terrifying creatures. Worst, after appraisal, it turned out that the stats of Mikael were abysmally low, rendering him unfit for battle and pretty much any other profession as long as he didn¡¯t level up. I still need time to get used to that. He thought. The level and stats system is still difficult to swallow¡­ Before the appraisal, an agape employee had explained the main points to a very confused Mikael. He memorized that in this world, each being had three Key Characteristics, Body, Mind and Soul. A standard human living a normal life gained a level a year on average, each time with a KC point, meaning the average total KC of a human was equal to their age +3. But not Mikael¡¯s, who was twenty years old and had just one point in each KC, just like a newborn. A ten years old kid was stronger, faster and more resistant than him. Normally more intelligent as well, but this was still a little bit vague since the young man had mental functions fitting his age, without his stats keeping up with this, a strangeness according to the official doing the appraisal. ¡°Hey ! Stop daydreaming !¡± Exclaimed Helianthine. ¡°Can I remind you that we have but a little under thirty minutes before we open the store ?¡± She said while preparing the family butcher¡¯s shop for the early opening. It was saturday and the young woman was home for the weekend, helping in the shop to get some fresh air from her week of studying in the magic academy she was frequenting, where she was proudly registered to become a Mage. And she was also there, these days, to help her mom train Mikael into a proper butcher. ¡°Perfect, now take this knife and keep following those fibers in the meat, and be cautious not to cut this piece, we don¡¯t want to make sausage with this kind of meat he ?¡± She kept going, helping him, putting her hand on his to show him the moves to do. ¡°Dling-dling !¡± Rang the doorbell, announcing a visitor. ¡°Sorry, we¡¯re clo¡­¡± Started the young woman, before realizing she was speaking at her mom. ¡°Mom ? You wern¡¯t home ?¡± ¡°I needed to go outside, to settle an important matter yah¡¯see ?¡± She said back while showing the little girl she had in her arms. ¡°...Oh no, it happened again ?¡± Asked Helianthine, horrified. ¡°Yep, the little asshole can¡¯t control himself.¡± Replied Nana, anger in her eyes. ¡°We need to talk, Heli.¡± She went on while glancing across the room, her eyes coming on Mikael. ¡°Mika, how are yah doing with children ?¡± She asked him. ¡°Pretty good, why ?¡± ¡°Yah¡¯re going to look after this child for me, alright ? Go change clothes and come by my room to tell me when yah¡¯re ready, I will bring her to your room so Heli and I can talk, yah¡¯all good ?¡± ¡°All good madame.¡± He answered, already putting his knife and mail glove away, taking only two minutes to take of his three butcher¡¯s aprons. ¡°I am ready.¡± He said at Nana¡¯s door. ¡°Good, i¡¯m coming.¡± He got back to his room, Nana bringing him the little one soon after. ¡°There, take good care of her, be gentle. I¡¯m heating water, when i¡¯m finished with Heli we will made her take a bath. She¡¯s called Lauryne.¡± She said while handing her in his arms, leaving straight away. ¡°Hello Lauryne.¡± He whispered to the little girl who didn¡¯t react. He frowned, worried, and raised her head, really watching her for the first time. A skin white and soft like satin, with a purplish bruise around her neck and marks of beating on her cheeks. Radiant hair, dirty and greasy, soaked up in sweat. A sky blue gaze, motionless like a dead fish, with immuable tears at the edge of her eyes. Mikael made a titanic effort to keep his calm and his reassuring smile, not willing to scare the girl by letting his face distort because of shock and sorrow. He thoughtlessly started to approach his hand of the neck of the little girl but stopped when he saw her shudder, a tiny little spark flashing through her eyes, one from a wounded and hunted beast. He made her sit on his bed, Lauryne not reacting like she was some kind of wood doll, checking her feet, her arms, her hands, fearing to find what he knew was there, marks of punches, bruises, contusions, evidence of someone that struggled, trying to resist to the point of being broken. Mikael then sat down cross-legged on the bed, face to face with the traumatized girl. He contemplated her for a short while before extending his hand, palm opened facing the ceiling. Nothing happened during a handful of seconds, Mikael focused, the little one lost in her world, until a tiny glow started to dance on his hand. It had not the passion of fire, the sharpness of ice nor the purity of lightning, but it was soft and warm, comforting. The eyes of the little girl came back to life just so slightly, drawn to this little atypical light. ¡°What is it ?¡± She asked weakly. ¡°I do not really know, something reminding me of my home or friends, maybe. A tiny light on which I can cling to down here.¡± He answered before handing it to her. She touched it, apprehensive but curious. The tiny glow then disappeared, flowing in her injured body. Her immuable tears then started expanding until they pearled and flowed along her cheeks. She was sobbing louder and louder until she was openly crying, seeking safety in the arms of Mikael, the young man blindsided by so much woe. *** She held his hand all along her bath, much to Nana¡¯s surprise, and she even let him clean her wounded body. In addition to what he already saw, her butt was covered by red marks and long scratches were spreaded on her back. Blood and half-healed scabs stained the water with a vile colour, a filthy mix of red and brown. She stayed silent all along, letting herself be rocked by the rubbing of the brush Mikael was using to wash her, his strokes made reluctant by his fear of hurting her even more than she already was. Clean and dry, Nana quickly dressed her with a light gray dress that had belonged to Helianthine, before she took refuge in the arms of the young with-clothed man, where she fell dead asleep, sleeping peacefully unlike the first time he met her, in the church. ¡°She is the same little girl Roger was healing back when we visited him for the first time, is not she ?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± Replied Nana, more seriously than she ever was. ¡°And while we were cleaning her, I saw¡­¡± He said, hesitant to tackle the subject. ¡°...Well, i have noticed that¡­¡± ¡°She is raped by her brother.¡± She interrupted him crudely. ¡°And it¡¯s not the first time it happened either. This beast, he started some month ago. The first time I saw her like that, I had to force me not to throw up. Roger had called me urgently. I¡¯m a little bit like the mom of the neighborhood, yah see, and the poor Roger, he had already seen his share of disgusting things, but this went beyond him. It''s the father that brought her in. He had tried to stop it, yah see, but the issue is that Joseph, the big brother of Lauryne, he became the apprentice of a powerful Mage. He¡¯s full of himself, he do what he want, in particular the worst.¡± A unspeakable wrath was burning behind her eyes. ¡°Even his parents are now scared of him, we can¡¯t do anything except taking care of the little one, after he has finished tormenting and raping her.¡± She stabbed her gaze in Mikael¡¯s eyes. ¡°If I could, I would gladly strangle this motherfucking monster myself. But I can¡¯t.¡± Tears pearled on the edge of Nathalie¡¯s eyes, and it made Mikael shakes like a leaf, he shacked seeing such a strong woman crying before him. His sorrow knew no end, he wanted to throw up, but no tears wanted to come. ??? She awoke and opened her eyes, which immediately saw the hungry gaze of a girl. She seemed to be about fifteen years old, dirty, her long hair unkempt and terribly tangled. She licked her cherry-red lips when she saw her prey waking up, a small flame of madness burning deep in her pupils. ¡°You are mine !¡± She said forcefully, holding the young woman nailed to the ground by her wrists, sitting on her belly and her head already close to the neck of her victim.Unauthorized usage: this tale is on Amazon without the author''s consent. Report any sightings. Then the young woman who, for the second time, woke up in an unknown place, facing a monster, became angry. Her mouth was warped with fury, and she began to strike and strike, again, and again, and again, with her forehead, till the nose of her aggressor made a filthy sound, till it was bloody, till her forehead was covered with red, and the young girl aggressing her finally recoiled. She got up, ready to run away or fight, but stopped when she saw the scene in front of her. The room was not very large and full of trinkets, perhaps the room of the girl in front of her. And she cried, that girl who had saved her from the other children and then tried to feed on her like the others. She cried, rolled in a ball in a corner of the room, blood slowly dripping from her broken nose, her purplish face, mingling with her snot and tears. The young woman stood there, contemplating what her fury had once again produced, even if it was justified. One or two minutes later, sensing that her prey had not moved, she lifted her head to look at the young woman. ¡°I¡¯m hungry ! Please, I¡¯m so hungry !¡± She said crying between pain and anger, oscillating over herself, shared by her desire to feed and to throw herself on the juicy human in front of her, and her fear of the same human who had turned out to be a more dangerous prey than expected. The young woman felt her heart tightening and she crouched, putting her head at the height of the hungry young girl. ¡°What do you need ?¡± she asked, already relatively sure of the answer. ¡°Blood, I want blood !¡± Cried the girl in return with energy, confirming the young woman¡¯s suspicions. I¡¯m gonna do something stupid again. Shitty marshmallow heart. She thought before leaning her head to the side, uncovering her neck. "Okay, but only a little, understood ?" she said. The girl froze, surprised by the evolution of the situation, before rubbing the face of with her filthy garments to remove the blood, snot and tears, actually smearing them more than anything else, shaking her head energetically, looking greedily at the neck that was presented to her. She leaned forward, hesitating slightly. ¡°Go on, don¡¯t be shy.¡± Evilyn said nicely to her, and she suddenly felt the powerful bite of the girl on her neck, her blood flowing down her throat. The sensation was painful, but surprisingly not so unpleasant, becoming less and less unbearable as time passed. At one point, she started to feel to weak, and pushed the girl away. ¡°Enough.¡± She said to her, to which she replied by releasing the grip of her jaw with regret. The young woman turned to face her, ready to ask her questions, but the girl had rolled in a ball in the pile of cushion, mattress and blanket which a priori served her as a bed in place of the one on the other side of the room. The repeated headbutts marks were still visible on her face, but she was now peaceful, a smile even floating on her face, hunger finally chased away, at least temporarily. Evelyn also feeling herself extremely tired, she naturally laid down next to the girl, falling asleep almost as quickly as she did. *** She woke up first, her neck, arms and leg still painful, bite marks visible even in her clothes. She tried to move, noticing that the girl clung to her like a baby kangaroo to her mother, breathing peacefully while hugging her. She was dreaming, a happy dream it looked like by her smile. ¡°... Mom...No¡­ Yes, stay¡­¡­ Warm, Sweet¡­ ... with me.¡± She slowly mumbled in her sleep, rubbing her head against the young woman¡¯s chest, probably taking her for her mother, dreaming her as such in any case. She patiently waited for the young girl to wake up, which didn¡¯t take too long, feeling the one she took for her mother already awake. She opened her eyes, looking at the young woman with affection. ¡°Hello Mo¡­¡± She began to say, before a confused look appeared. Confusion gave way to memory, and memory to sadness, pain. She began to cry again, wetting the young woman¡¯s clothes with her tears, still in her embrace, and she hugged her in return, taking her even closer to her to rock her and try to alleviate her grief. After an uncertain time, the girl put herself together and dried her tears. ¡°Sorry.¡± She said as she got up. ¡°For that, and for yesterday. I am not myself when I am that hungry. I apologize.¡± She continued. ¡°Thank you for letting me feed on you, milady.¡± ¡°... You¡¯re welcome. It¡¯s not like I can let you starve.¡± She replied, before asking. ''What is your name?'' She looked at her strangely. ¡°... My Mistress named me Tysbae.¡± She replied. "That¡¯s a nice name. Who is your mistress ?" ¡°My Mistress is the one who transformed me into what I am today.¡± ¡°Um¡­ your Vampire progenitor ?¡± Remarked the young woman while asking Tysbae. The girl opened her eyes looking at the young woman, clearly surprised. ¡°Uh, yeah ? How do you know that, you¡¯re¡­ you¡¯re some sort of vampire specialized magician ?¡± ¡°No, I¡¯m just someone who¡¯s either deep in an hallucination or deep in shit.¡± The young woman answered, massaging her temples. ¡°My name is Evilyn by the way.¡± she added, reaching out to Tysbae. ¡°Nice to meet you.¡± The girl looked at the outstretched hand for a second, wondering what to do, before reaching out and taking it, giving birth to a smile on Evilyn¡¯s face. ¡°Delighted to meet you.¡± replied Tysbae, looking with curiosity at the exchange of hands they were making "Well, now that the presentations have been made, you will answer one or two questions, and I will do the same in exchange, is that all right ?" ¡°Okay !¡± the girl replied enthusiastically. Eleonor The adrenaline rush. The wind in her ears, a smile on her face. An enemy in front of her, tiny, surly, interesting to fight. Some kind of porcupine derived from a Pawn, using its quill like projectile to hit her. She evaded them nimbly, the stings quite slow for her and the move of the monster, predictable, thanks to her Abyss Eyes. |Abyss Eyes : Your eyes are used to hunt in the most outlandish environments. Darkness and obscurity are of no avail on you, and the enemies¡¯ motions are more and more predictable the longer you fight with them. Beware, you can still be surprised.| When she exited her room, she had redone a little bit of scouting with the help of her new toys, the Black Hooks, that were giving her an newfound outstanding mobility, not comparable in the slightest with what she was capable of doing mere hours ago. While at it, she was training herself in the use of her new limbs, even starting to appreciate their sensation of touch, feeling the various grains of the stones, surfaces'' textures, like someone enjoying a good wine. While doing so, she had ran into some sort of big conduit of stone in a platforms next to hers, that she had followed for ten odd minutes, reaching a vast cave full of life. Lightwells were keeping the local flora alive while the fauna was spending its time cheerfully killing each other. She quickly found something of interest. Near the entrance, the corpse of some kind of critter as big as a cow was lying on the ground, already quite thoroughly cleaned but on which their was still some things worthy of being eaten. Black blood had splattered the area, still fresh, and the guts of the creature were slowly pouring whatever it had last ate on the floor. Absorbed by the contemplation of her next meal, she didn¡¯t have the time to dodge the projectiles launched at her. Luckily, they were stopped by her pectoral shell, barely sinking in it. Wow, quite the effective armor that I got. Or those strike weren¡¯t that powerful. Maybe a little bit of both. She then turned around to face her contender, avoiding in extremis the next round with the help of one of her Hook while ripping the spike out of her armor with her bare hands. And now, this dance was going on since half an hour ago and the tiny monster seemed to be on the fringe of exhaustion. Oh, and it also seemed to have exhausted all of its quills. ¡°Well well well, you¡¯re getting tired ?¡± Asked Eleonor, ready to fight, her fists restless. The creature starred viciously at the young woman before it, growling stronger and stronger until it ran away, its tail between his legs. Eleonor lowered her arms, disappointed by this conclusion. She wanted to kill something, anything. Bah, it¡¯s a pity but I will surely have other opportunities to stretch myself. She thought, piqued, while walking toward her hard won meal. She kneeled and started eating, ripping the pieces of flesh that still remained, removing the bones to chew them, eating the offal, the kidney, the liver and the brain. The hearth and the lungs were already eaten, a shame, but even like that she was quickly totally oversatiated with part of the corpse still remaining. Brhhh. This taste...I hope I will never get used to it. She thought while spitting, trying to wash off the stench of the raw bone marrow she had sucked out. She then step back one or two meters away from the corpse, arms crossed, thinking about the best way to bring back the greatest amount of piece back with her. She returned to the dead body and, as best she could, started skinning it with her bare hands. After thirty lengthy minutes, she had multiple useless straps of skin, a certain amount of armored plate, and a skin piece more or less interesting to move things around. She stacked the skin and the plate and made a bloody bundle out of it, using the biggest bone she could find to make the knot around. Moving around with a big bloody lump wasn''t maybe the best thing to do but, luckily, she didn¡¯t attract any bad attention while going back at her room. She arrived alive and in one piece, just so slightly injured. Well, it was a lot more smooth than the first time did it not ? She thought while throwing her haul in the black tar of her pool, making big waves on it. Haaaa, it¡¯s so good to not being hungry nor thirsty ! She told herself while stretching all the way, extending her tentacles by reflex and loudly hitting the walls with them. ¡°Ha fuck !¡± It hurts ! She thought while retracting them quickly, rubbing her painful hands. Ok Eleonor, let¡¯s stop doing foolish things , it¡¯s time to see what Gen¨¨se can do to me with what i brought back ! She thought while effectively stopping to make a clown of herself, her heart beating fast because of her excitation. She slipped herself in the genesis pool, welcoming this warm feeling that came with it. That¡¯s it ! It¡¯s like taking a bath ! I knew this feeling was familiar. She thought while discovering the reason of her comfort. A tentacle then kindly wrapped itself around her abdomen. YOU MADE IT QUICK, MISTRESS, AND THE HARVEST SEEMS QUITE GOOD. Not bad, yes. I got lucky, a predator had just finished its meal and left the corpse lying in the open. OH, AND I SEE THAT YOU FIGHTED. Barely ? Whatever, what can you make with the things a brought back ? LARGE AMOUNT OF CHITIN, SKIN AND BONE. I SUGGEST SOME OFFENSIVE OPTIMIZATION, WITH THE AMELIORATION OF THE OUTER SHELL WITH THE SUPPLIES LEFT. THE CREATION OF A STORAGE ORGAN IS ALSO CONCEIVABLE. Hoho, some storage ? AFFIRMATIVE. THE LARGE AMOUNT OF SKIN MADE IT POSSIBLE TO CREATE SOME KIND OF STORAGE SAC, EVEN IF IT MAKE YOURSELF MORE VULNERABLE. Because biological tissue would be used to make the sac, and that it need to be extensible ? ...AFFIRMATIVE. And where would you put it ? IN YOUR LOWER BACK, JUST ABOVE YOUR KIDNEY. MOST STABLE AND LESS TARGETABLE PART OF YOUR BODY THAT IS STILL VIABLE FOR THE MODIFICATION. Question : couldn¡¯t you shield the interior part of the sac that lead to my internal organs ? This way, if the sac is pierced, it¡¯s not that bad since the strike should be stopped by the internal armour, no ? ...ACHIEVABLE. I WILL DO IT AND COLLECT DATA ON THIS SPECIFIC MUTATION THE NEXT TIME YOU WILL BE MENDED. Perfect ! And by the way, I could need something sharp, like claws. It would help me a lot when I eat and work on the corpses I find, and it could be useful in fight too. If there is still some room left on the biomass, some armor on my forearms could do it, so I can ward off some strikes. OTHER SPECIFICATIONS, MISTRESS ? Hum¡­ could you modify my taste buds so that meat and the other things I eat doesn''t taste so bad ? I CAN ALWAYS TRY, MISTRESS, SEE IF YOUR SUBCONSCIOUS FIGHT AGAINST IT OR NOT. Perfect, perfect ! I don''t know for you, but I think I¡¯m doing great today ! It give hope for tomorrow. ...MAYBE. Ha, i forget that you don¡¯t have feelings like me. Whatever, let¡¯s do this analysis, I¡¯m eager to go and kill things ! YES, MISTRESS. She was pulled deeper, in the innermost part of the genesis pool, her body quickly swallowed by the black tar. Said the voice, but the young woman was already sleeping deeply and didn¡¯t hear her. Those words were lost in the void, auspicious of a uncertain and chaotic future... 7 - Painful fire ; Kiss are infectious ; Another great day ? Chapter 7 Death is the ultimate safeguard against the very worst of sapient beings. Was... Mikael Fire on its skin, the fat melting and catching fire, hair becoming ashes, its body quickly devoured by this incandescent monster¡­ He opened his eyes, soaked in sweat. His bedroom was coated in darkness, the only light being the soft glow of the stars dotting the night sky. As he had become accustomed to, the firmament was devoid of any Moon. Lauryne was sleeping peacefully next to him, using one of his arm as a blankie, her breathing slow and steady. Without waking her, he extricated himself from her embrace, letting her alone in his room to get some fresh air. He went down the stairs, reaching the tiny balcony overlooking the garden. He took one of the chairs and sat down facing the greenery, enjoying the nocturnal spring wind, letting his gaze drift for an unknown time. ¡°Pshhh¡­¡± The noise of working sparkstick echoed, followed by the feeble glow of a small flame, startling the young man. Nathalie quietly ignited her pipe, dragging a deep breath of it when the tobacco caught fire. ¡°Yah¡¯re not sleeping well, boy ?¡± She asked in a puff of smoke before dragging another breath. ¡°I¡¯ve nightmares.¡± He answered while looking at his window. ¡°And the little one worries me.¡± He added while moving back his gaze to the starry sky. He was concerned. Lauryne was sleeping here with him each night since almost a week ago, and she stayed silent nearly the whole time, following the young man through each day. Nana did try once to take the little girl with her, but she just curled herself up in a ball and started shaking, motionless. The nearest thing from speaking she had done were lengthy session of cry in the arms of Mikael. Nana blew a majestic cloud of smoke while watching the face of the young man distort because of his thoughts. ¡°When yah told me yah were good with children, I didn¡¯t understand it was to this point. Go back to bed, she need yah, boy. Aside, it will make a fuss if she wake up and yah¡¯re not there.¡± She told him with a smirk. He kept gazing at the night sky for an handful of seconds before complying to Nathalie¡¯s request. He started walking toward the door but was stopped by the hand that Nana put on his shoulder. ¡°Today, it will be a difficult day. Her brother will ask where she is, he will search her and find her here. Don¡¯t try and stop him from taking her with him, yah will just get yourself killed. We can¡¯t do anything for now, but Heli is working on something, so try to make the little one hold a little bit longer, understood ? We will take her back as soon as possible since she seems to have taken quite a shine on yah.¡± He turned his gaze toward her and nodded slightly before going back to his room. The little girl seemed to have a start of nightmare, her tiny face wrinkled by dread. Mikael gently slipped under the blanket, bringing Lauryne closer, who hugged his arm again like a barnacles its rock. He gently stroke her hair until sleep claimed its due from him. *** He was peacefully cutting a piece of pork, Lauryne watching him silently and with great focus for his every last moves, as if he was the only thing in the room. ¡°Dling-dling !¡± Rang the bell. A tired man in his forties just walked through the door. A young boy was following him, thirteen, maybe fourteen years old. With beautiful blond hair tied in ponytail and smooth and white skin like satin, he looked awfully like his sister, a similarity aggravated by his feminine face and his blue eyes. ¡°G-good day, I¡¯m here to pick up Lauryne.¡± Said the father, a smile stuck on his face, fractured by the fear it was trying to cover. ¡°You, heel, now.¡± Said the boy, Joseph, to his little sister. Yet, she didn¡¯t move, her eyes still focused on Mikael, who was watching the father-son pair with a disgust he had a hard time to hide. ¡°Heel I said !¡± Exclaimed the young boy, raising his voice, once again without effect. He thus went behind the counter, moving closer to his sister and, with the back of his hand, slapped her in the face, which made her fall on the buffet, splitting her lips and making her bleed abundantly. Mikael interposed himself instinctively between the sister and the brother, a knife in his hand. ¡°And who are you to stand in front of me, lousy ? Scram or I¡¯ll burn you !¡± He then said viciously while creating a fireball above his hand. Heat brought Mikael back to his sense. Remembering Nana¡¯s words, he gritted his teeth and stepped back, letting Joseph move toward his sister with a smirk. She was getting up by relying on the desk, her blood dripping along the drawers, splattering the ground and her outfit. ¡°Stand-up ! Faster !¡± He then screamed while hitting her back, making her stumble and bump her head against the cutting board. ¡°Fucking failure.¡± He said to himself while catching his sister by the shoulder to lift and turn her toward him. ¡°Shlll !¡± A sound was suddenly heard, one from a blade sinking in flesh, cutting through skin and veins. Joseph took a step back, lowering his eyes to look at the knife Lauryne just stabbed in his stomach. His face writhed in anger and, in an furious motion, he threw to his sister the incandescent sphere he just conjured, making her catch fire. He then felt on his bottom, giving a look at his father. ¡°Dad, Argh ! Do something ! Help me !¡± He nearly screamed, panicked. His father, however, was hesitating. ¡°Come help me or I swear, I¡¯m freaking killing you !¡± He roared while creating another fireball, making his father help him. He lifted his son, taking him in his arms. He gazed at his screaming daughter that was rolling on the ground, burning alive, his eyes full of tears while he exited the butcher¡¯s shop under the magic threat of his kid. Mikael then came back with a bucket full of water he poured on her, all for naught, the fire seamingly clinging to her body like a fiery beast, devouring her more and more, burning her skin, melting her fat, turning her hair into ashes, the little one still yelling painfully, even more when the flame entered her mouth to incinerate her from the inside. Mikael was putting his all to try and extinguish the flames, joined in the meantime by Heli and Nana, but nothing did the trick. Two more minutes and there was nothing left but a charred corpse smoldering. Helianthine was throwing up in a corner of the room, Nathalie was collapsed against a wall, her blurry eyes devoid of any emotions, Mikael on his knee near the corpse of Lauryne, crying every last tear is body could muster, his fingers stabbed in his arms till they bled. The fire scattered quickly as if it had never existed, letting only ashes from what was a little girl just five minutes ago. the young man gathered a handful of it, making it flow between his fingers, and something broke inside his mind. A blinding light engulfed the room, extinguished as fast as it came, and Mikael collapsed on Lauryne¡¯s remains, his white gown slowly pulsating white wave of light in harmony with his heart¡­ Said the voice to an unconscious Mikael. Syphony ¡°Bip.¡± ¡°Bip.¡± ¡°Bip.¡± The sound of a cardiovascular monitor was prevalent in the room. Every last inch of her body was hurting, but her back and her legs were radiating a singular pain. Hurting is good. She thought. You¡¯re hurting only if you''re alive. She opened her eyes with much difficulty, her eyelids as heavy as lead seemingly battling against her to stay close. She won the battle and could finally see where she was. The room was white, pristine, devoid of anything but her bed and the whole multi-usage standart medical package, origin of the noise that woke her up. ...Of fuck. It¡¯s a sealed room. She thought, noting the airtight glass and door, and the walls, ceiling and floor that were made of one biotitanium monoblock. ¡°Hey ! Anybody out there ?¡± She asked while sitting straight in her bed. Fuck, why is it so painful. ¡°Oh, you¡¯ve already woken up ?¡± Asked a voice through speakers. ¡°Doctor Rahato ? You¡¯re the one taking care of me ?¡± Is this a joke ? ¡°I¡¯m afraid that it¡¯s indeed the case, dear.¡± Respond the lady, apologetic. ¡°I¡¯m infected that much ?¡± ¡°Yes. You¡¯ve an infection level of 37% to RV-a1, in rapide increase. I¡¯ve never seen someone being overrun this quickly before, if you want to know.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t.¡± ¡°I¡¯m only honest with you. You will die, Syphony, and i can¡¯t do anything about it.¡± She said, waiting for a reply from Syphony but, seeing her staying quiet, she started talking again.The author''s tale has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon. ¡°What I can do, in contrary, is harvesting data from you while you¡¯re still alive.¡± ¡°As practical as always, I see.¡± Said Syphony while falling back in her bed. She raised her hands above her head, watching them with intense focus. Her nails were black, as were a lot of visible veins. ¡°How much ?¡± ¡°I¡¯d say maybe forty-eight hours before passing out, after that, hum¡­ maybe another day before your death, then another day and you will be an undead.¡± ¡°What ? It¡¯s ten time faster than the standard case !¡± Screamed Syphony will violently standing up in her bed. ¡°I know, i¡¯ve already told you, your infection is progressing far quicker than anything i¡¯ve seen so far.¡± ¡°Shit !¡± She said strongly, exasperated. ¡°And the target I¡¯ve extracted ?¡± She asked while thinking about the seventeen-year-old girl she saved. ¡°She¡¯s alive and well, put she don¡¯t talk and reject all interaction with our spokesperson.¡± ¡°Oh, for fuck¡¯s sake I hope I didn¡¯t do all of this for nothing !¡± ¡°I can assure, you, it¡¯s well worth it. By the way, even if you¡¯re dying, you could maybe still do somethings to help me. ¡°Really, even if i¡¯m infected ?¡± ¡°Well, you see¡­¡± ??? She was sitting in a corner of the white room, viciously staring at the spotless door. She didn¡¯t know since when she got here. Time was confusing. She was visited by people, a lot of people, but people were also confusing. She understood each of their words taken individually, but their sentences were akin to porridge, a vile and senseless gruel. Men, women, young or old, tall or short, beautiful or not. Every one of them were mixed in a vague manner in her memory. Her recollection, memories. Memories¡­ Eleonor ! Where is she ? Why isn¡¯t she here ? Haaa, my head ! She started again to it her head against the wall and, like the last time, she noticed the metal was harmless to her. Or she would have noticed if her brain wasn¡¯t like an overripe watermelon, ready to explode. What¡¯s going on with me ? I want Eleonor¡­ ! She thought while crying again. Her red hair were dirty, as was her body. She was afraid to use the shower that was concealed behind the little left door, beyond the bed. She was hungry and thirsty, consuming the thing she received only when her natural needs were becoming unbearable. She suddenly raised her eyes, tears still flowing down her cheeks. Something was coming. She could feel it. She knew it. Something...familiar ? Something comforting, maybe ? Something like her. She violently stood up and flattened herself against the door from which the visitors usually came from. Every time, they were covered by white metal, cold, their head visible through their transparent helmet. She tried to reconstruct her memories, stitching back her mind, trying to prepare herself for the thing coming. ¡°Pshh.¡± Made the opening door. The young woman, pressed against it, couldn¡¯t stop herself to fall on the person behind. ¡°Hola, easy there !¡± Said Syphony while catching her. Eleonor ? No. It¡¯s...she¡¯s the one that saved me, no ? She asked herself while burying her head in the hair of the woman in front of her, taking a deep breath to smell the bodily scent of Syphony. ¡°Heuu¡­ ?¡± Syphony who, by the way, didn¡¯t know how to react. She stayed shocked for one or two second, time her brain took advantage of to restart. Once she had recovered, she pushed the young woman back. ¡°Why did you do this ?¡± Asked the dying girl. ¡°You are, familiar ? The hair, the face, the smell maybe. Yes, the smell. You¡¯re very much like someone I know¡­¡± She tilted her head, curious. ¡° Why¡­ ? Urghh.¡± She asked before taking her head between her hands, feeling another seizure looming on the horizon. ¡°Something wrong ?¡±Asked Syphony, concerned. ¡°Head...hurting. It¡¯s difficult¡­ to remember.¡± She said uneasily, squinting her eyes from pain. ¡°You were in a stasis pod for god know how long, at least twenty years, and seeing the way I woke you up, it¡¯s not surprising you would suffer from memory fragmentation.¡± Said Syphony, feeling guilty, helping the girl to sat on the bed. ¡°I¡¯ve a question.¡± She suddenly said ¡°Of course.¡± Answered Syphony, ready to explain the underlying principle of memory frag. ¡°Can you tell me your name ? And be more cosy ? I¡¯m not some kind of monster you know ?¡± ¡°Ha ?¡± She took time to put herself together, her brain derailing for the second time in what, five minutes ? ¡°Heu, ok ?¡± ¡°Good.¡± ¡°...So my name¡¯s Syphony.¡± Said the soldier with a smile. ¡°Syphony. Syphony, Syphony, Syphony. Syphony-Syphony-Syphony.¡± She rehearsed, making the name roll in her mouth to test it. ¡°Hhhl. I like it, I really like it !¡± She said while erupting with joy, taking Syphony in her arms and putting her head against the hearth of the dying girl. ¡°Wow-wow-wow easy there I said !¡± Replied the soldier, trying to push the girl back, in vain. After two minutes in this position¡­ ¡°...Can you let me go now ?¡± ¡°No.¡± ¡°No ? Why not ?¡± ¡°There¡¯s something with your heart. Something is wrong.¡± She responded while tightening her arms around Syphony. ¡°There is something not right ?¡± ¡°...You¡¯re being eaten from the inside. You¡¯re battling against an invader. I don¡¯t understand why? Why do you wage war against the whispers ?¡± Syphony could only frown when she heard those half-mad claims. ¡°You¡¯re talking about the virus that infected me ?¡± ¡°Maybe¡­¡± Why doesn¡¯t she accept it ? Asked herself the young girl. It¡¯s because she struggle that she¡¯s eaten¡­ She must not be eaten, she must not die ! She thought while clenching her fist with determination. She raised her gaze and look at Syphony right in her eyes. ¡°You must not die. Do you want to die ?¡± She then asked, thorough. ¡°No ! Of course not ! If there was a cure for this goddamn crap, I would have already taken it !¡± Respond firmly the dying girl. ¡°So you don¡¯t want to die¡­¡± Said the young girl while tilting her head, pensive. Suddenly, in one go, she wrapped the head of Syphony with her arms and brought her face against her, kissing her strongly. ¡°Hhhm !¡± Tried to retort Syphony, attempting to struggle with the stranger, in vain, this one really to strong for her age and her body type. A fluid started flowing from the mouth of the strange girl toward Syphony¡¯s, who was forced to drink it in fear of drowning. This kept going for a couple of minutes and, already after the first, the stranger no longer needed to hold Syphony to keep the kiss going, the dying girl too absorbed in the stranges sensations the liquid was giving her to think about something else. The young girl wrapped the soldier with her arms and put her in her bed next to her while closing her eyes, the two still kissing while the stranger glued herself tightly to Syphony. Eleonor Like always after each mending, she woke up in the middle of her tiny room, Gen¨¨se especially quiet after this difficult task that was body modification. Character sheet. She thought naturally. [Eleo?nor?] [Level : 1 (47%)] [Ressources : [Body : 5] [Mind : 1] [Soul : 1] [Natural Armor: 4] [Natural weapons: Fangs: strength*1 damage (25), anti-armor 2 Feet and fists: strength*2 damage (50), anti-armor 1] [Capacity : She checked it, frowning when she saw her name wrote in such a strange way, but she didn¡¯t linger on such petty detail. Good, good. Pretty good, in fact ! My armor and Hp have increased well, and maybe now my natural weapons will be of some use. She thought while pushing on the name of her new ability. |Armoured storage bags : You¡¯ve developed extensible bags useful to stock food or interesting items. Internal armour have been added to mitigate their relative weakness, canceling their Weakpoint status. Each bag can stock up to one hundred litre of objects. However, be careful of the weight, if you carry to much you will be impaired in your moves or, worst, the bags could tear apart. The whole integration slightly lower your Agility.| Overall, she was pleased by the changes. Only¡­ Agility ? With a capital A ? She asked herself while nitpicking with her sheet, trying to find this stat somewhere, if only it existed. Not finding it, she gazed at her sheet, pensive, before suddenly getting and idea. She pushed on the Body word. [Body : 5 O-k ? So i¡¯ve derived stats from my three main stats ? She thought, surprised and curious, closing this window and opening the one of Mind and Soul successively. [Mind : 1 [Soul: 1 All in all it¡¯s quite intelligible but some stats could be interesting to investigate further, like the Faith or the Magic Affinity ones. I¡¯m wondering if someone could explain those to me but, hey, with the kind of neighbourhood I have, I think I can forget it , nah ? She thought with a grin on her face. She walked toward the genesis pond and immersed herself into it as much to talk to Gen¨¨se as to enjoy its coziness. She felt the usual tentacle wrapping gently around her abdomen. Helle Gen¨¨ses ! She said with a nearly palpable good mood. HELLO MISTRESS, YOU SEEMS INSPIRED TODAY. Why wouldn¡¯t I ? I¡¯m not hungry nor thirsty, I¡¯ve new shiny modifications, you¡¯ve the result of the analysis and I will go find something to eat and to feed you, maybe even have a battle with something of my level. I don¡¯t know you, but I call this a lovely day in sight ! PRESENTED THIS WAY, I CAN BUT BE CONVINCED, MISTRESS. You know you don¡¯t need to fake empathy for me, nah ? UNDERSTOOD MISTRESS. KNOW HOWEVER THAT THE IDEA TO BE FED SOME BIOMASS IS HIGHLY STIMULATING. I¡¯M EAGER TO RETRIEVE SOME PART OF MY GENETIC MEMORY TO START WORKING ON YOU WITH MORE INTERESTING MODIFICATION, MISTRESS. ¡­ Very well. Whatever, the report please. YOUR EXTERNAL MODIFICATIONS SEEMS TO BE THE OUTCOME OF SOME KIND OF ACCELERATED NATURAL SELECTION, UNLIKE THE MODIFICATIONS I MAKE ON YOU, THEREBY THE REDUDANCES, THE USELESS GENETIC MATERIAL AND THE ANCESTRAL REFLEXES. THE SWARM ALSO USE THIS PROCESS OF NATURAL SELECTION, BUT IN CONTROLLED ENVIRONMENT THAT LEAD THE EVOLUTIONARY PATH TO ATTAIN A SPECIFIC GOAL. WHEN NATURE HAS MADE ITS JOB, THE INTERESTING DNA SEQUENCE ARE EXTRACTED, PURIFIED AND OPTIMISED BEFORE BEING USED BY A GENESIS POOL LIKE MYSELF TO CREATE THE BLUEPRINT OF A NEW SPECIALIZED UNIT, BLUEPRINT THEN DISTRIBUTED TO THE GESTATION POOLS TO START PRODUCING THE NEW UNIT ON THE BATTLEFRONT WHERE IT¡¯S NEEDED. YOUR MODIFICATION, IT¡¯S LIKE THE FIRST STAGE WAS DONE TO AN INCREDIBLE LEVEL, BUT THE NEXT STAGES WERE TOTALLY BYPASSED. SO THEY HAVE A VERY BARBARIC STRUCTURE, BUT A LOT OF INCREDIBLE NOVEL IDEAS AND STRUCTURES COULD BE EXTRACTED FROM THIS SAMPLE. HOWEVER, I¡¯VE NOT THE THINKING POWER NOR THE BIOMASS REQUIRED TO USE THEM FOR NOW, I¡¯M DEEPLY APOLOGETIC. Bah, don¡¯t worry, I wasn¡¯t expecting anything from this anyway. Well, I¡¯ll get going, trying to find something to eat and to evolve, i''m coming back soon. She concluded while exiting the pool, a big smile on her face despite the inconclusive result. Her fists were itching, eager to see what the day had in stock for her. 8 - Sanctuary ; Feeling of a Breath ; Alliance against a Xarel-Thorok Chapter 8 Mikael He was hovering in a space of pure light, unaware of the passing time. No, it could be said that the concept of time itself had no meaning here, not yet. At some point, he realized that the light density wasn¡¯t uniform. Like in a fog, some places were richer in light, some poorer. He finally thought. He thought of turning his head and, in the luminous void, something was floating behind him. A big sphere of solid light, surrounded by two rings crossing at right angles. Blocks were detaching themself from those rings all the time to delve into the white sphere and, in an opposite motion, blocks were emerging from the dazzling sphere to fill the holes in the rings. The whole thing appeared smooth and natural, as if it was governed by unknown and mysterious rules, yet to be discovered. Where Am i ? Thought Mikael while frowning. Then said a voice he had already heard, three weeks ago. ¡°Who are you ?¡± Tried to ask Mikael, in vain. His eyes then came across a tiny blue light that sliced on the white landscape. He floated toward it, surprised to see his motion so swift. He could quickly distinguish the outlines of the blue light, humans, until he recognized it. ¡°Lauryne !¡± He exclaimed, rushing through the last few meters like an arrow. He gently took her in his arms but the little one had her eyes closed, seemingly lost in a deep slumber, not waking up at the touch of the young man. Not willing to disturb her, he let her go in the void, a little bit worried at first, an emotion quickly disappearing when she started hovering peacefully in front of him. He then took the time to check her more thoroughly. Her face didn¡¯t change, nor did her body as a whole. She was radiating cold blue rays with two exceptions : Her right hand was engulfed by a red murderous light, with a long and also red thread weaved between her palm and her heart. Just by watching it, Mikael could feel a terrifying wrath filling him, a colossal murderous will and a bloodlust more fitting of an hardened killer than a little girl. By looking closely, the outlines of a spectral knife could even be guessed on her right palm. Mikael turned his eyes away, unable to keep the emotions engulfing him on check any longer. The second aberration was a large amount of dark shreds of shadows clinging here and there to the body of Lauryne. they were located, Mikael noticed it, on areas where she had been previously injured by her brother, her throat, her back, her arms, her head, her legs, her lower abdomen¡­ He touched one of those oily piece of darkness and was assaulted by a creepy mass of pain, sorrow and agony, making him took back his hand by reflex, like someone who just burned himself by putting one of his arm in fire. ¡°You see every goddamn think I do, is not it ?¡± Asked angrily Mikael, tired of this enigmatic voice. ¡°Answer me !¡± He shouted when the voice didn¡¯t express herself again. Got to be kidding me ! She see clearly what I do, she could at least tell me ab¡­ She interrupted him in his train of thought. ¡°Heu¡­ Sorry ?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°No, wait ! What is going on here ?¡± Tried to ask Mikael without succes, the voice seemingly already gone. Fuck. What do I do now ? He asked himself while putting his gaze back on Lauryne. ¡°A world of Spirit and Soul¡­¡± He said to himself while contemplating her. So she is really dead. He thought while rubbing his forefront, remembering how she died, her screams of pain. Her ashes. But now she is here. Only her body died, not her spirit and soul. It is¡­ kind of reassuring. I have her, I will not let her be harmed again. He kept thinking while slowly stroking her hair, avoiding to touch the darkness she was covered by or her right murderous hand. *** Now, how can I exit this place ? He asked himself while sweeping a gaze over the world, his world. ¡°I want to go back on the real world.¡± He said aloud, trying the most basic thing. And it worked. Fuck ! He just had the time to thought before he got engulfed by darkness. *** He opened his eyes, his breathing becoming deeper and faster, his heart speeding up, his body like an engine igniting for the first time since long ago. He stretched in his bed, making each of his muscular fiber work, sensing his weakness and his exhaustion. In an effort of will, he got up on his bed while pushing back the blanket. He was dazzled by the light coming from the window, to powerful for his tired eyes. He covered them to help them adjust themself to the luminosity, what took them several minutes. Their acclimatation finished, he swept the room with a gaze. A wooden floor, stone walls, a tiny window reinforced by steel rods. A chair and a table, two towels placed together next to a empty basin and a bath mitt. [Spirit and Soul reintegration concluded. Warning, body synchronization low, you will be weak against mental and psychological attack.] [Warning ! Body under-running. Acclimation time needed to regain its full power.] [Warning ! Conflict between proce¡±¨¦(¡ì#a{^!!! OVERRIDE.] Multiple windows had appeared successively before him, lightly hovering in the air. O-k ? Is this a part of the system Helianthine talked about ? He thought while carefully reading what they were telling him before closing them. He then put his feet on the ground, relying on the bed to stand up, his legs shaking under the effort they needed to do. He took a step and then a second before needing to catch the table to avoid falling, gritting his teeth against the sprouting pain in his muscle. ¡°Clang !¡± Made a bowl falling on the ground, its content of chicken broth spilling all over the wood. Mikael turned his head, surprised by this sudden noise, making eye contact with a young woman clad in white, who opened her eyes even wider when she understood that he was standing up. She took a second to pull herself together. ¡°What are you doing ? Go back in the bed, you will hurt yourself !¡± She then exclaimed while coming toward him, determined. ¡°How long ?¡± He asked her. ¡°What ?¡± ¡°Tss, how long have I slept ?¡± Asked Mikael again, clicking his tongue of annoyance. ¡°Eh, I don¡¯t know, two month, maybe three ?¡± She answered while supporting the young man, helping him going back in his bed, where he only sitted, much to the displeasure of the young woman. ¡°Where am I ?¡± ¡°At the Wholesacre hospital, in Kalastol.¡± She answered while forcing him to lie down. ¡°But now you need to rest. I will notify your relatives that you woke up. Please don¡¯t try to stand up again, I need to call a priest to auscultate you and determine what therapy you need to get.¡± ¡°...Understood.¡± ¡°Good. I¡¯ll come back with another chicken broth and what I need to clean this mess.¡± She said while exiting the room, looking at the tray she dropped of surprise. Mikael closed his eyes one second and was jolted awake by light slaps on the wrists. ¡°Oh, don¡¯t go back in dreamland, not so fast.¡± Said the nurse with an new bowl of broth in her hands. ¡°I fell asleep ?¡± ¡°Indeed, and it¡¯s not that surprising. Trying to stand up after a two month coma, it¡¯s nearly of a suicidal scale you know ?¡±Unauthorized tale usage: if you spot this story on Amazon, report the violation. ¡°Bah, if I can stand, it is that everything is fine.¡± Said the stubborn young man. The nurse rolled her eyes while taking the chair. ¡°Okay, show me a bit of this fighting spirit, stand up and sit. It¡¯s really easier to make patient eat when they¡¯re awake and more or less autonomous .¡± She asked him, letting her exhaustion dawn. Mikael complied, going as far as taking the bowl to eat all by himself despite his shaking hands, to the surprise of the nurse. ¡°You¡¯re the first one I see that is able to do those things after a sleep so long. How ?¡± She asked, curious. ¡°Willpower.¡¯ He answered between two spoonful. ¡°...I must say, you are without doubt the easiest patient I ever had the responsibility of.¡± Then said the nurse who was watching the young man eating. ¡°Ha ?¡± ¡°Yes. Your cloths wash themself alone and deal with all the secretions your body produce. I just needed to wash you from time to time and made sure that you didn¡¯t rot from anywhere, and even then your cloth was helping me. It must have cost you an estate to bought this magical item.¡± She commented while admiring the gown of Mikael with eyes full of stars. The young man didn¡¯t react, though, to focused on the food to really listen to her. Rahato Fascinating. She thought while drinking her hot chocolate with a straw, her mug empty since half an hour ago without her noticing at all, to focused on the data her monitor was returning her. ¡°Pshhh.¡± No, more than that, it¡¯s incredib¡­ ¡°Arhg !¡± ¡°BAM !¡± She just had been grabbed by her throat, her assailants then smashing her against a wall. She now had a perfect view of the furious head of Captain Sirgan. ¡°What for fuck¡¯s sake have you done with my soldier !¡± He shouted, holding the doctor with one hand while pointing the projections with the other. ¡°Aargh.¡± She responded in a breath while holding her throat, unable to answered because she was strangled. ¡°Boom.¡± Sirgan understood the hint and let the doctor go, making her fall on the ground. ¡°Fuck, I know you were Orb-op but you could control yourself a bit, no ? ¡°Answer the question or I throw you into space.¡± ¡°Ah ! As if you could afford it !¡± She said while massaging the purplish mark that started appearing on her throat. ¡°Answer. The. Question.¡± He responded with a twitch of the mouth. She threw a sceptical look at him while going toward her consoles, where she took the projection of the experiment room and put it on the side while reducing it, making way to project other things. ¡°For now i¡¯ve only superficial observation, I will need to make samples to do a deeper investigation, but it seems that the Revelation subject Syphony extracted took a liking to your soldier, or something like that. I don¡¯t know how but she figured out that Syphony was sick and dying, and reacted by making the current situation happen.¡± She said while showing the room with the two girls still sleeping peacefully against each other. ¡°...She¡¯s kissing her ?¡± Asked the Captain, doubtful and totally missing the point of their exchange. ¡°On the outside, yes, but what the subject really do is infecting Syphony with a very specific strain of RV-a1, a strain totally unknown until today an that seems to work symbiotically with the subject.¡± ¡°Wait, you let her infect Syphony ?!¡± He reacted, still lost. ¡°She was already infected, Captain, as I had already told.¡± ¡°What ?¡± Responded the Captain, finally understanding that his soldier was already sick. ¡°Her armor broke down when she was extracting this subject. You were busy doing something else and the medical section wasn¡¯t willing to bother you.¡± ¡°Those fucker, I¡¯ll show them ! But for now, why did the subject infect Syphony if she was already sick ? Oh god, she really is sick...¡± ¡°Look by yourself.¡± She answered while putting data on display. ¡°...She¡¯s 100% infected¡­¡± He said while frowning. ¡°...But she¡¯s still alive¡­?¡± ¡°Indeed. It seems that the subject conveyed her own microbiote into Syphony to make her able to absorb RV-a1.¡± ¡°Wait, does this mean that she saved her life ?¡± He exclaimed with googly eyes. ¡°Yes John. Your goddaughter will not die. Happy ?¡± She responded while putting an elbow in his ribs, a smirk on her face. Overwhelmed by the situation, he looked at her dumbly before going back to what he was doing. He stopped at the doorstep. ¡°You¡¯re always doing this, aren¡¯t you ?¡± ¡°I¡¯m a genius.¡± She answered while shrugging. ¡°Warn me next time, maybe I will not strangle you then.¡± ¡°Ah ! Where would be the fun ?¡± ¡°...The bottle you want. It¡¯s yours. Come by my room to further explain this to me, we¡¯ll drink it together.¡± He said to close their conversation, crossing the door and disappearing in the corridor. As intense as always. Put I think I would do the same if it was my own goddaughter in there. Hell, I could already have killed him it the role were reversed. Syphony She was freezing and burning at the same time, her body covered in cold sweat, her brain pedaling in hummus. She had a strange dream, she was getting the impression that she was looking at herself, feeling things in duplicate¡­ ¡°Ah !¡± She woke up with a start, getting up an sitting on her bed in one go. The room was perfumed by the odor of sweat, a smell of human body permeating the place, heavy and strangely pleasant. She was still in the tiny white room, an area intended for quarantine. Ah yes, indeed. She thought while rubbing her eyes. I¡¯m infected¡­ ¡°Hello sleepyhead, finally awake ?¡± She was startled by a gentle little voice asking her this question. Syphony turned her head and saw a young woman lying down against her, smiling radiantly while admiring the soldier. No, not a young woman but the subject she extracted. I didn¡¯t even felt her being there ! She wondered while standing to move away from her. ¡°How do you feel ?¡± The subject then asked her. Syphony frowned and touched her lips when she remembered the event of the previous day. She kissed me¡­ She thought while reliving the feelings this kiss had procured her. ¡°...Good. I¡¯m feeling good, astonishingly... good¡­ ?¡± She answered, surprised. ¡°Yes ! It worked !¡± Then exclaimed the young woman while triumphantly raising her fists. ¡°Worked ? What worked out ?¡± ¡°I was nearly certain that I could make you avoid being eaten alive by the thing assaulting you, and it worked !¡± She answered cheerfully. ¡°...What did you do to me ?¡± ¡°Ah ? I don¡¯t really know, but at least it worked.¡± She responded with a smile before standing up and taking Syphony in her arms. ¡°And you smell awfully good.¡± She then exclaimed while inhaling deeply, filling her lung with Syphony¡¯s scent, the soldier so stunned by the circumstances she didn''t react in any way. ¡°Uh, I erm, what ?" She finally said to the young woman, a trifle incoherent. ¡°You don¡¯t think that it smells good ?¡± She retorted. And so Syphony stopped thinking like her training was telling her to, and took a breath to smell the young woman before her, effectively reaching the same conclusion. Her skin, her sweat, her hair, everything was seemingly exuding a heady fragrance, compelling to the point of heating her body. unknowingly, she leaned toward the young woman and started to kiss her. A normal kiss, this time, that lasted several minute nonetheless, her savior returning it frantically. Savior that started speaking when they finally separated their burning lips. ¡°Ah ! It seems to me that we¡¯re on the same wavelength, no ?¡± She said proudly. Syphony let her gaze drift before coming to herself. ¡°What¡¯s going on with me ?¡± Then asked the soldier, scarred by the uncontrollable reactions of her own body. ¡°Is that really so important ? You will not die, that¡¯s what matter the most.¡± Answered the young woman, nodding her head with contentment while going toward the bed to sit on it. ¡°And, by the way, my name¡¯s Mellite.¡± She added. ¡°We¡¯re linked now, the least is to know my name, no ?¡± ¡°Linke¡­¡±Tried to ask Syphony to Mellite, disrupted by a powerful voice resonating in her head. Squawked someone in the head of Syphony before quieting down like someone angrily slamming a door. The soldier was then assaulted by a terrifying pain. The last thing she saw was Mellite frowning of pain and then of concern when she saw her woman collapse in front of her. Syphony felt herself being caught up by a hot and powerful grasp before totally losing consciousness. Eleonor She was twirling in all direction while giving her all to avoid the fangs, claws, legs, rays shot, crystalline missiles and fiery breath that were saturating the space. Directions had nearly lost their meaning, gravity struggling to give sense to this area because of the stunts Eleonor was doing, made so complex by the titanic battle she was involved in. The dragon made a looping to avoid a burst of rays that collided with the wall afar, sublimating the first few layers of stone and turning the deeper ones into lava. The flying lizard struck back with a breath of pure light that flowed around the blue transparent shield of its opponent. The young lady tried to seize an escape opportunity that appeared, but her way was cut by a long filiform leg, covered by something akin to gold, half-way between the machine and the work of art, and she could only stop herself in her momentum to avoid being targeted by the defense system of this mechanical monstrosity. She drove herself in a crack of the wall, using her tentacles to anchor her on the rock, hiding a handful of second to catch her breath while waiting for an opportunity that didn¡¯t come, the battle between the two creatures taking too much space for her to get out of there. HuUuum, tIny crEaTURe, I sEe YoU. A voice then ressounded in her head, strange, distorted, as if the one using it didn¡¯t know how to use words. Who are you ? Asked Eleonor, adrenaline excluding all the superfluous questions that she could avec asked. ThE One BatTlING THis cREAtuRe Of BLUE and GOLD. You¡¯re the dragon ? YOU caN REfer tO ME tHIs WaY, yEs. What do you want ? thIS CALAMITY Is a TRUE conCern. ThE PLace iS baD FoR ME. HeLp ME and i WILl GivE YOU SoMeThInG YOU wAnT. Helping you ? How ? I would be pulverized the moment I try to battle this thing ! YOU¡¯rE tINy, YOU CoULd sNEak In plAce WHere I can¡¯T gO. tHIS PURIFIER iS DaMaGeD, IF YOU dO WhAt I tElL you to, We CoulD BOTH ComE oUt of tHIs unSCAttered. ...Ok, What do I do ? I wIlL gIvE YOU SoMeThInG To sOw In oNe Of ThE TRanSMisSIon CrystaL oF tHe MaCHiNE, THaT WaY I CaN TemPORaRIlY InfecT It To mAkE It lose iS TarGEt : ME ...Understood, let¡¯s go. PERFeCT. THe exchange lasted only a handful of second, the battle stalling a little. Eleonor then received some sort of mental sight, the trajectory of a pod the dragon was on the verge of launching from a hidden aperture under one of his scale, warning her about what she needed to do. Two second of wait, and the young woman threw herself out of the crack full speed ahead, catching the big thorn on the fly. She put the organic knife between her teeth, her hooks tying her arms up. With her right hand, she anchored tentacles on one of the legs of the mad machine, triggering the defense mechanism. Innumerable blue crystals started floating around the metallic structure while filling themself of light, every one of them facing the girl. But just before they could unleash their full power on her, a flood of screaming creature rained down on the robot, exiting the dragon by countless little holes, covering her. The crystals turned away from Eleonor, starting to take down the flying pest, making rain blood and corpses without stopping her in her progression. The dragon was transmitting her informations in real time directly in her mind, giving Eleonor the strange feeling that she was seeing from more than two eyes. She needed to cling firmly to the leg when the robot started to move again, relying on her tentacles to surround the structure, succeeding barely to join her two hooks around it with all the length of her tentacles. A wall was getting closer quickly and she slided a bit backward when the mechanical leg broke deeply into it. She quickly let go of her hold on the leg to start progressing again while the monstrosity was stationary, to focused on taking a kill on the dragon. The view her companion of misfortune was giving her was one of some sort of big golden mechanical spider anchored along a wall, a crown of humongous blue crystals firing waves after waves of rays of the same color toward the dragon. His companion was clearly showing her the target she needed to reach. The legs were spread evenly around a big ring that was surrounding an armoured sphere floating in the center of it, a large number of solid light strands connecting the two things. A number of breach could be seen on the sphere, one of them pretty deep, leading on one of the internal system of the robot. There, she needed to sow the thorn she was holding between her teeth, with so much strength her jaw was becoming painful. She continued her rowdy climb, stopping when the mechanical spider started moving again, climbing as she could when it was motionless. From time to time, when the dragon failed to dodge some shot, she could feel a sting of pain through the link they were sharing. The vast majority of his wound were healed in no time, but some were staying in place he was already struck too much time, piling up bit by bit, draining his strength... 9 - A body full of stars ; Explanation and ; Discovery ; A teachers duty Chapter 9 Eleonor She was covered in blood from head to toe but not hers, fortunately, because she had to cross the bloody storm that her companion of misfortune had unleashed to protect her and make her able to progress. In front of her stood finally the rift in which she would need to sneak, the parasitic dagger still in her mouth. The Purifier did an abrupt sidestep, forcing the young woman to anchor herself firmly and wait it out. caReFUL ! Screamed the dragon in Eleonor¡¯s mind. ¡°BLAM !¡± A terrifying impact then went through the structure of metal and crystal, so strong that her tentacles screamed in agony while absorbing it, and she felt quite a lot of them break under the strain. fASt, THiS OlD PIeCe oF GARBAGE Is STArTiNG To GRoW ImPaTiEnT ! Understood ! She responded in her mind while launching herself into the rift. the twenty first meters of the robot¡¯s innard where quite boring, just a long hole with walls melted by an old and unknown weapon, a succession of blue and gold armor layers. She finally reached the ends of those armor layers, arriving at a more sensitive area of the robot. Her mental connexion with the dragon was now cut after having been weakened while she was sinking more deeply in the mad machine, leaving her alone to find an entry point for the parasite she still had in her mouth. She was now beholding a breathtaking landscape. A gigantic cubical crystal was hovering, swirling chaotically and so quickly that it was hard to distinguish. It was periodically sending energy pulses to a high number crystals forming a web around it, impulsion then conveyed to golden spheres and blue crystals of many sizes and shapes. ...Brrr. Shivered Eleonor. She didn¡¯t know why, but she felt like something was watching her. She stopped to check her surrounding but didn¡¯t see anything that could give her this feeling. What she saw, however, were the details. A big piece of the crystalline web was badly damaged. Some kind of drones were hovering here and there, often bumping into the array or the walls. A handful were trying to do what looked like repairs, but the majority of them were just lying around, motionless, the light dwelling inside the working one missing from them. From time to time, a crystal exploded, seemingly overloaded by the impulsions from the cube. Strangely, Eleonor couldn¡¯t stop herself to feel some sort of sadness for this rotting wonder collapsing from the inside. A wonder that would kill you should you gave it the chance ! Focus ! She admonished herself in her mind before launching herself as she could toward quite a big crystal, one with a size the dragon had specified to her. She gritted her teeth when she used her biological hooks, her tentacles not fully healed from all the turbulent climbing. And i¡¯m hungry. ¡®Heck of a good day. She thought while remembering her appendages couldn¡¯t heal properly if she wasn¡¯t satiated. She jumped from crystal to crystal, bearing the pain until she reached her target. Around her, crystals seemed to be gently traversed by stranges ripples, like an ethereal breath. She kept the phenomenon under her watch for half a minute, suspicious, before losing interest, staying anchored to her target with one tentacle and using her other arm to brandish the parasitic dagger. In one go, she stabbed it into the blue matter. ¡°BOOM!¡± *** Li...Litt¡­ LITTLE ONE ! A voice powerfully resonated in her head, making her regain consciousness. Like a hammer, the pain came, terrifying, her body punctured by an innumerable amount of unknown shards, each square centimeter an unbearable agony, her face burned, her eyes blinded. A tearing scream was taking all the space of her ears, like one big tinnitus drowning the sound world, and she was feeling a disorienting void around her right hand. LiTTle OnE, RUN ! THe RoBoT Was MoRE DamageD ThAN I THOUgHT, It¡¯s implodING ! Yelled the dragon in her head, exhorting her to flee the place as soon as possible. She tried to stand up but felt when her right hand failed her, the pain blazing all the more. My hand¡­ She thought while trying to sense it. Where is my hand ?! She said while panicking when she only sensed a burned stump instead of her palm. My go¡­ StanD uP NOW ! Roared the dragon again, driving her out of her aghast idleness while restarting the survival instinct of the young woman. She took her right arm against her and used the other to painstakingly stand up, each of her splinters-riddled limbs fighting to make their damaged muscular fibers works. After so much effort, she was finally able to stand on her two feet, but... I don¡¯t see anything, how can I go out of here ? YOU dOn¡¯T HavE EmErGENcy PeRCEptiON OrgANe ? No ! She responded, panicked. I¡¯Ll tRy SOmEthiNg, WaIT ! He said before focusing on a likely solution. Around her, Eleonor could feel explosions, shock and impact, from time to time some splinter lightly wounding her, but now everything was silent, the buzzing in her ears having faded during her exchange with the dragon. An absolute silence¡­ ? Breath were surrounding her, as if shadow rustled just beyond her vision, fearful. Somebody here ? She then asked. ...You¡¯re wounded¡­ Whispered a tiny voice, a feminine and very low, very deep one. Yes ? Answered Eleonor, confused, not knowing what position to adopt, struggling to not pass out from pain. ...You¡¯ve lost your sight...your arms...your path...I¡¯ve a proposal¡­ A proposal ? You take me with you when you leave this place... and I give you that chance to leave. ...Dragon, where are you at the moment ? AnOtHeR FiVE MinuTes, THiS CrAP Is STRUgglIng ! ...Ok voice, give me this chance. Answered finally the young woman to the strange voice. Then accept me, little girl. A gigantic wave made Eleonor felt like she was drowning, an humongous influx of energy and emotions that ran through the crystal shard puncturing her body, creating a web between themself to welcome this fleeing entity. When the matrix stabilized, the voice talked again. Thank you, thank you so much to save me from this place. Now, see. She said. The world was blue. Eleonor was seeing everything around her, the whole vicinity, in a fifty meter radius sphere, she saw so much things that she had an hard time orienting herself at first. The world was like a wraith, ethereal, hazy, distant. But at least, she wasn¡¯t blind anymore, and she started running with all her strength toward the breach that saw her enter in this robot, she ran despite her shredded body, despite her tearing muscle, despite her pierced lungs, because she wanted one thing above all : to live. She used her remaining hook to help her in her progression, reaching the exit of this infernal machine full speed ahead. The outside was an apocalyptic vision, rays fusing on all side, blood raining with corpses, melted stone and huge chunks of rock. She started slowing, scared both by the outside and the inside, finding herself between the hammer and the anvil. JUMP ! ROared the dragon, what she so did, launching herself over the edge with her tentacle and what remained of her strength. The feeling of weightlessness, then freefall, a mortal storm raging around her as she saw the world speeding up around her, still dyed in blue. She was falling while rays were dancing around her and life was losing its luster. She shut her metaphorical eyes down, the loss of blood becoming too big for her to stay awake, now just enjoying the wind on her skin. I¡¯VE GOT YOU ! She felt a shock, as if something had catched her on the fly, a something that put her in a warm place, a pocket full of some kind of pleasant liquid, strangely reminding her of Gen¨¨se. Overwhelmed by pain, weakened by the blood loss, she let go and lost consciousness. Evilyn The Black Death. A terrible disease that spread a few years ago, incurable, painful, fatal. One by one, the cities had fallen, succumbing to the rotting evil. The harvests had been lost, the beasts too, the undead had begun to rise from the tombs that had become the cities, too much dead not properly buried for it to be otherwise. The disease spread by water, rain and rivers, carried by winds in clouds, infecting wells and lakes, distorting crops. Those who did not die of sickness died of hunger or thirst. The people had tried to flee, an increasingly large part of the continent blackened by the Black Death, but it progressed like a cancer that gnawed the earth itself, blindly killing all animals. Some had tried to stop it, priests, magicians, alchemists, without success. ¡°A few months ago, maybe a little bit more than a year, I and my family were infected.¡± She continued to explain, tensing a little when she came to this part. ¡°They¡­ they did not survive. My Mistress came to take me when I was on the verge of death. She turned me into¡­ into a vampire.¡± She said with disgust. ¡°She was trying to find a cure for the disease, and some of her experiences involved infected and transformed children. She wanted to study the effects of the disease on an organism like hers. The others, the ones that attacked you, are part of that group. It turns out that all children infected and turned into vampires end up the same way. They degenerates, turn into wild beasts. To the great displeasure of my Mistress. I¡¯m the one who has lasted the longest so far, but I don¡¯t know how much time I have left before¡­¡± She then stopped, wiping a tear that had escaped from her eyes during her speech. ¡°...before becoming like them. Perhaps a little longer thanks to you, since hunger seems to accelerate the process.¡± She finished saying with her sad voice. Not knowing how to react, Evilyn laid a hand on Tysbae¡¯s shoulder, in a futile attempt to comfort her, which however seemed to be working a little. ¡°And where is your Mistress now ?¡± she asked. ¡°I don¡¯t know. It¡¯s been¡­ a long time since she fled, as if she was running away from something.'' She replied nodding negatively. ¡°She abandoned us in this state, without food, without saying words. Hunger began to be felt soon after, and everyone else who was with me began to become¡­ like that, like the ones you¡¯ve seen. I¡¯m the last to have my minds, even just more or less.¡± ¡°And we¡¯ll try to keep it that way as long as possible.¡± Evilyn told her to reassure her, Tysbae smiling a little in face of the positive attitude of the young woman. ¡°Now, a question that may seem strange to you. Where are we?¡± The girl frowned and licked her lips, thinking. ¡°You¡¯ll have to be a little more specific.¡± She ended up answering. ¡°Oh, yes, of course. What continent, country, geographical area, city and building.¡± Evilyn said, receiving in return an incredulous look from the teenager. ¡°Uh¡­okay? The other way around. We are in Ark Veritas, the castle of the Marquise of ¨¦trian. It is found on one of the peaks of the Dulciverres chain, in the march of ¨¦trian which is part of the Sogats Empire. The ¨¦trian March encompasses the entire valley in which we are, as well as the different passes leading to the other side of the mountains, territory of the Eken kingdom. These two political entities are on the continent of Svelfer, the only one that exists to my knowledge.¡±Unauthorized usage: this tale is on Amazon without the author''s consent. Report any sightings. ¡°... You seem to know a lot about it.¡± Remarked Evilyn, her turn to be incredulous. ¡°That¡¯s normal. I was part of a good family, before all that.¡± She said blushing. The young woman nodded again. The answer made sense, and she was not really aware of the norms of this world. She resumed her massage of the temples, with her head slightly bent, Tysbae interrupting her after one or two minutes. "What are you doing?" ¡°I¡¯m thinking about what we¡¯re going to do. Let¡¯s do things in order. You¡¯re a vampire, you need to drink blood.¡± She told her, receiving a positive nod in return. "Will it turn me into a vampire?" ¡°No. I¡¯m too young to be able to transform someone else, and even if I could, I would be able to choose to do it or not. Well, this is what my Mistress explained to me when I asked her the same question.¡± ¡°Good. So the first two goals are to get me water and food, respectively. If I have something to sustain myslef, you can keep drinking my blood. Is that okay?¡± ¡°Yes, but I¡¯m not sure there are any. Our stock was contaminated by the disease a few months ago. This is also the reason why we are all hungry.¡± She grimaced, before Evelyn¡¯s questioning gaze made her go on. ¡°Our Mistress had, until recently, a kind of¡­ farm. A farm whose cattle were humans.¡± She added, grimacing even more, disgusted. ¡°People raised like animals, to whom she teached nothing, that she did not educate. She drugged them, manipulated them to keep them under control and in good health, as a source of blood. They are all dead now, decimated by the Black Death.¡± She ends up saying. Evilyn began to think about while playing with her hair. ¡°So no food nor water ?¡± she asked to confirm. ¡°No. Sorry.¡± ¡°Tsss.¡± She hissed with her tongue, upset, before starting to massage her forehead. We will have to find something else. All sources of sustenance are infected by a deadly disease. I can¡¯t even eat the kids because they¡¯re infected. She thought, a disgusting grimace lying on her face just by thinking of killing children. But the end justifies the means. She says to herself before the whole of her train of thought stops. ... Why am I so calm ? She finally wondered. The situation, as extraordinary as it seemed to her, also seemed very familiar, as if she were in her element. A hostile environment, where she had to find ways to survive, seemed to awaken something in her and, although she would not admit it, she was a little excited by this welcomed change. In her own world, because she had well understood that she had been moved to another world, she had begun to feel cramped, as if she were being suffocated by something, she did not know what. Here, in danger, having to look for her next meal, she felt refreshed. ¡°And the creature of fire in the black steel brazier ?¡± she finally asked Tysbae, breaking the silence. ¡°...What creature of fire?¡± ¡°The one that was in the room where I woke up, deeper into the castle. A large room of dark metal, with a cage in the center, a creature of fire enclosed in it, does that ring a bell?¡± ¡°No, sorry. My Mistress forbade us to go too deep into the castle.¡± ¡°Okay. Thank you anyway.¡± She said nicely. Even if I don¡¯t trust it, it might be my best chance to survive. Syphony She was sensing worry, anxiety covered by an evident curiosity. Her head rested against something hot and cosy, rocked by a back and forth and a gentle breath on her hair. She moved her head and opened her eyes. ¡°Hello again sleepyhead. How are you ?¡± Asked Mellite, worried. Syphony noticed she was using the thighs of the young woman as a pillow, Mellite having watched over the soldier the whole time. ¡°I don¡¯t really know...Mhhh.¡± She got up and stretched her body, feeling her joint pop and her muscles relax. ¡°I¡¯ve a lingering headache but it¡¯s not that bad.¡± She then said. ¡°Was was it with the voice screaming at us ?¡± Asked Syphony once more. ¡°I know no more than you what it was all about, but look, I can do this now !¡± Responded Mellite, more excited than worried. ¡°Character sheet.¡± She said out aloud, making an ethereal window appear in front of her. [Mellite] [Level : 1 (2%)] [Ressources : [Body : 62] [Mind : 11] [Soul : 57] [Natural armor: 120] [Natural weapons: ???] [Capacity : ???] Seeing this, Syphony frowned. ¡°You¡¯ve an holographic emitter with you ?¡± Asked the soldier to the young woman. ¡°An holographic emitter ? It¡¯s something that exist around here ?¡± Responded Mellite with stars in her eyes. ¡°What do you mean it exist around here ? How do you want us to screen informations without ?¡± ¡°With a screen ? Like, a LED screen ?¡± An epiphany then it the soldier. I¡¯m a total dumbass ! She was in a stasis tank, maybe she was already sleeping when the holo were invented ! ¡°What is the last date you remember ?¡± Asked suddenly Syphony. ¡°Hmmm. August 2019 I think ?¡± Syphony sat down, back against the wall, resting her head while massaging her temples. ¡°...Wait, what¡¯s today¡¯s date ?¡± ¡°August 2087.¡± ¡°What ?!¡± ¡°In know it can be dist¡­¡± Tried to say Syphony in an attempt to reassure the girl. ¡°Woohoo ! I¡¯m in the future bitch, yeah !¡± Screamed Mellite with joy while jumping up, letting her mate in a momentary daze. ¡°Wait-wait-wait, this does not bother you ?¡± ¡°Why ? This is the future, it¡¯s awesome !¡± She answered, still excited. ¡°Yes but, and your family ? Your friends ?¡± Asked Syphony like a cold shower, letting her interlocutor disconcerted. ¡°...Hum...no biggies.¡± She finally responded while shrugging. ¡°What ?¡± ¡°Well, it¡¯s been 68 years since my last memory, either they¡¯re still alive or they¡¯re death, so no biggies. I will search for them and if I don¡¯t find anyone, i¡¯m sure they would want me to enjoy life instead of rehash inevitable occurrences.¡± ¡°...O-k. Back on topic. If you don¡¯t have an Holo-emitter, what¡¯s that ?¡± She asked while pointing her finger at the still hovering window. ¡°It seems like a character sheet from an rpg, no ?¡± Responded Mellite. ¡°An rpg ?¡± ¡°A role play game ? no ?¡± ¡°...Like an training simulation ?¡± Asked Syphony, lost. ¡°Hmm, well, yes, only it¡¯s a simulation for fun. You don¡¯t do that ?¡± ¡°...I¡¯ve never really had fun since a long time ago. So you tell me it¡¯s something from a game ?¡± ¡°Yup. Ho, ho, try to conjure yours to !¡± Then asked Mellite with voracious curiosity and endless excitement. ¡°...Character...sheet ?¡± Said Syphony meekly. [Syphony] [Level : 32 (73%)] [Ressources : [Body : 21] [Mind : 9] [Soul : 5] [Natural armor : 0] [Natural weapons : ???] [Capacity : ???] The window appeared at the request of the young soldier. ¡°Wow. It¡¯s mine ?¡± ¡°It seems so. It¡¯s not something normal around here ?¡± ¡°Absolutely not.¡± ¡°Well, another mystery to add to our list, right ?¡± Said Mellite while smiling at Syphony, then closing hers and her partner¡¯s windows ¡°Hello-hello, you hear me in there ?¡± Suddenly asked Rahato through the speakers. ¡°Ha, finally, you manifest yourself, madam. I was asking myself when you would talk to us, you¡¯re quite the peeping tom you know ?¡± Answered Mellite while looking right toward one of the concealed camera, to the surprise of the scientist. ¡°...Erm, what ?¡± ¡°Since my Syphony entered this room you¡¯re eying us greedily like some kind of perv, it¡¯s quite disturbing.¡± She added, upset. ¡°When will we be able to get out of here ?¡± She asked again, highly dissatisfied. ¡°I want to see what the future looks like, you know ? And I think Syphony too is sick of this quarantine, aren¡¯t you ?¡± She said while turning her gaze toward Syphony, imposing her the question with a movement. ¡°You bet I want to leave this place, but we are infected.¡± Retorted the soldier. ¡°...Ha, yes, there¡¯s that. Tell me, can you find us a solution ?¡± Asked Mellite while turning again toward one of the spy-cam. ¡°Maybe. I need to do more analysis, if I could take samples of your blood and tissues it could go a lot faster. ¡°I¡¯m ok with this. You ?¡± ¡°I¡¯m ok to, doctor.¡± Answered Syphony. ¡°Great, let¡¯s begin !¡± Helianthine ¡°...you can therefore see that the main matrix of this spell isn¡¯t used to focus thermal energy, as you had postulated earlier when I presented it to you, but to stabilize and contain it during the fly of the projectile. Put this in your head : Stabilization is life. Being able to generate a good stabilization is what will make the difference between a alife battlemage and a dead battlemage, capiche ?¡± Said professor Merory, trying to sink this concept into the mind of his students. ¡°Lecture is clotured for today. Well, pshh, I don¡¯t want to see you anymore.¡± He added while driving them out with a hand motion and a sound, obviously tired by his day of work. As always, Helianthine packed her things but didn¡¯t leave the auditorium, waiting for it to be empty before going toward the old teacher. ¡°I could have one or two questions about the Converter integrated into this spell. I don¡¯t see why it would be more effective than the Verlane Convertor in this case. No, in fact, I really don''t see how this converter works.¡± The old mage grinned without watching the young woman while he packed his things, staying silent for a handful of minute. He put his gaze on her when he finally finished what he was doing. ¡°You¡¯re exhausting, you know that ?¡± ¡°Bah, as if a student interested in your teaching would bother you.¡± ¡°Hm, good point. Watch the others, fleeing like a flock of duck. And they want to become military or Noble House mages. It would already be a lot to turn them into something else than canon fodder.¡± ¡°It¡¯s their problem, not your.¡± ¡°I¡¯m their teacher. Of course it¡¯s my problem. But you¡¯re still young, maybe you¡¯ll understand one day.¡± He responded with a pat on her shoulder. ¡°Well, come, let¡¯s talk about your questions with a pitcher of beer. I¡¯ve acquired two magical items, I think you will like them.¡± He added with a wink. *** ¡°Pam !¡± Made the pitcher that Remory had nearly smashed on the table, making a dent on the wooden furniture but not damaging the mug at all. ¡°I must tell, i¡¯ve never seen someone hold their liquor like you, not amongst the mages at least.¡± Said the old mage, drinking nearly a litter of strong beer for the third time since the start of their conversation. ¡°Thanks, I got that from my mother.¡± ¡°A woman of taste, your mother.¡± He responded while nodding. ¡°Indeed, but back to the point. Why not using the Verlane Converter for this spell ?¡± ¡°Hahaha, a good question indeed. you don¡¯t let your goal slip between your hands, girl !¡± He said with a smile, giving her a tap on her shoulder. ¡°The VerCon is an incredibly powerful tool, the best converter one could use for the creation of a new spell. When it were invented, a large majority of the existing spell using a converter were modernized with it. But i¡¯ve already said this in my lecture. If you¡¯ve the time, I will start by making a little display for you to better understand the subject." ¡°Ok.¡± ¡°Perfect. Watch carefully.¡± He said while extending his hand, conjuring some sort of tridimensional blueprint above his palm. ¡°That¡¯s a classical fireball, before VerCon.¡± The framework was quite bulky and seemingly also quite crude, like a prehistoric tool. ¡°And that¡¯s the fireball after VerCon.¡± He kept going while changing the construct. this one was a lot more tapered, with multiple arcane channel running along the projectile, leading to an triangle-shaped octahedron. The whole was creating a system as effective as it was complex. ¡°Wow-wow-wow, what¡¯s this shit ? It¡¯s really an rank two spell ?¡± Exclaimed Helianthine while discovering the spell structure. ¡°Obviously not, it¡¯s at least third rank. The VerCon is a complex process, the majority of the spell using it become more efficient but also more difficult to cast. now, look carefully.¡± He made a third blue construct appear above his hand, vastly different of the last two. This one was extremely compact and very simple, nearly too simple. A tiny sphere, an Injector and some kind of in incomprehensible gloubiboulga between the two. ¡°That¡¯s the fireball I taught you. This one is 17 to 21.69% less powerful than the last two, but it¡¯s three time faster to cast, while being simpler and as efficient ans the VerCon. Do you know why ?¡± ¡°...The Injector, Containment Field, Stabilizer and Converter are made of one and only piece...¡± She said softly, before having an epiphany. ¡°THAT¡¯s why the visualization method you taught us was so different than the one from the other spells, because this one isn¡¯t put together on the fly with multiple part but already functional in one piece !¡± She exclaimed. ¡°A model student I say ! A pity you don¡¯t have the money to attend a better curriculum.¡± He said with a grin. ¡°You¡¯re plenty good already, Merory.¡± ¡°If you say so, girl.¡± He retorted while taking a swig of his pitcher ¡°...However, I still don¡¯t understand how the Converter works. Who made this spell ?¡± ¡°Ha. It¡¯s the maybe-archmage Lebaclas, and this is the Lebaclas¡¯ Fireball.¡± ¡°Lebaclas ? Should I know him ?¡± ¡°No, girl, quite the opposite in fact. It¡¯s a little bit like a secret of Polichinelle in the academic world, you see. Lebaclas was a mage, overwhelmingly gifted, bright, capable of learning anything in no time. But he was cursed with two big flaw : he had no imagination, and he was so lazy that he could have become the god of slacker had he put some effort into it. A day he was bored, this madman had enough of the old tiring spells and choose to modify every last spells he used frequently. Be them inefficient, ineffective or just to complicated, he overhauled them in every way he could, creating the base spells most of the mage use today. He then thought his work was enough for him to become archmage. He was denied the title, the other archmage either envious of him or not seeing the feat he accomplished. A big amount of mages then backed his request, but it was too late. Lebaclas killed himself so thoroughly than even when the Council asked one of the Great Priest to resurrect him, it didn¡¯t work. It was, by the way, the first time a resurrection didn¡¯t work at all. He got the title of archmage post-mortem, but his work is still debated now, the archmage divided about it. And after 300 years of research, there¡¯s still no one that understand those spells. It¡¯s like they break every last known rules of magic." ¡°...A pretty long monolog to say that you don¡¯t know either, no ?¡± ¡°Bah, a little bit of deviant history can¡¯t do bad to you.¡± ¡°Point taken.¡± She responded while shrugging, taking another huge sip of her beer. ¡°Any other questions ?¡± ¡°Yes but I need to go now. The house guest has awaken this morning and I want to see how he is doing.¡± She said while getting up. ¡°Ha, yes, your boyfriend it is, I had forgot.¡± ¡°It¡¯s not my boyfriend you fiend !¡± She screamed, her face red, before hitting him with her documentation, then leaving the office under the light giggling of the old man, the scene giving the impression of having happened before. 10 - Auroras ; Terms of a pact ; Dream and Relic of a Glorious past Chapter 10 ??? She felt the body of her soulmate against hers, her breathing, her heartbeat, her tears along her cheeks. She herself was also crying. She felt the arms of her sweetheart loosening, her fingers slipping from her grasp and she heard... ¡°NOOOOOOOO !¡± Her wail that resounded in the air as she was seeing her loved one going away, disappearing in the rift while sorrowfully smiling back at her. ¡°Shhht.¡± She said, putting a finger on her mouth, before being swallowed by the body of light. ¡°AAAAAAH !¡± She screamed, yelled and cried, tearing her eyes and ripping her face with grief, blood mingling with tears, the eternal pain¡­ She opened her eyes full of tears, alone, hanged in the void by innumerable chains, soaked in absolute silence. A dream¡­ just a dream. She said to herself while getting rid of her tears, trying to forget them as if they never existed. ¡°Let¡¯s see where are the newbies, so I can go back to sleep¡­¡± ...And just stop to remember¡­ Mikael ¡°Clang ! Clang ! Clang-Clang-CLANG !¡± Impacts were filling the air, steel against steel, violent, explosive, relentless. Mikael was pushed tens of meters away, sent back by the powerful bloody red shockwave the last hit he took had created. ¡°AAAAAH !¡± The shrieks pierced the white space, sharp like a banshee¡¯s howl, multiple voice seemingly overlapping to create it. The murderous light had nearly entirely devoured Lauryne, making her skin glow with an unholy color, her now red eyes gazing at the young man. The knife she used to skewer her brother rested, concrete, in her right palm. ¡°I want BLOOD ! I WANT THEM TO SUFFER !¡± She furiously roared, the shreds of darkness covering her taking growing more and more as she spoke, stretching behind her back like wide wings of pain. She threw herself at Mikael once again, dragging him for the umpteenth time in this deadly dance. Exhausted, he stopped moving, finally losing the hope to do anything for the young girl. He spread his arms and let his own white spectral blade go, ready to go back to reality but waiting to see what Lauryne would do to him before going back. He shut his eyes, gambling his last piece of hope in her. ¡°Ffff¡­¡± He felt a breeze, then a breathing near him, and opened his eyes. ¡°I w-want blood¡­ but not yours. No, not you.¡± She said with a voice as shaky as her knife, that she let finally go when she jumped on Mikael, burrowing her head in his white gown. ¡°Shhht, you¡¯re with me now. It¡¯s all right.¡± He whispered gently while patting her head. ¡°Girl, look at me.¡± He said while raising her head, looking her in the eyes. ¡°It is my world here, nobody can harm you, understood ?¡± The young girl whistood the gaze of Mikael, not fully convinced, finally lowering her eyes and hiding back in his cloth. ¡° Alright.¡± ¡°...Good¡­¡± *** He opened his eyes, once again woken up by his assigned nurse. ¡°Well, you didn¡¯t sleep enough the last two month ?¡± She pointed out, concerned. ¡°Yeah, definitely, but do not be worried if I fall asleep. It is normal, if some sort of condition that make me fall asleep, it¡¯s from before¡­ well, all of this.¡± He said while swiping the room with his hand, a reassuring smile on the face. She frowned, not convinced, but let it go. ¡°A rehabilitation specialist will soon be here, don¡¯t fall asleep again please.¡± ¡°Copy.¡± He said while nodding. A handful of minutes later a woman clad in a white coat entered the room, exhausted and in her fifties. She found Mikael sitting on the only chair facing the window to enjoy the sun, whistling a sad lullaby. ¡°Good day to you, sir. I¡¯m Eva Greenwood, Priestess of the Healer and specialist in rehabilitation.¡± She said very professionally while reaching him out with a gloved hand. ¡°Delighted to meet you, I am Mikael.¡± He answered while taking the hand. ¡°I¡¯ll start by a full check up of your body. Can I ?¡± ¡°You are the doc, doc.¡± Said Mikael naturally. ¡°What ?!¡± Exclaimed the priestess while frowning. ¡°What do you mean i¡¯m the doc ? I¡¯m not a doctor, nor am I a fraud !¡± She said while trying to control herself. ¡°Sorry-sorry-sorry, I forgot that here the doctor had a bad reputation.¡± Said Mikael, waving his hands . ¡°...Forget it. Go back in your bed please.¡± She proceeded to say coldly, helping him to lie down. Once done, she put her hand above him, like he already saw Roger do with Lauryne. ¡°Stay calm, please, try to not think about anything, empty your mind.¡± Intervened Greenwood, feeling turmoil growing in her patient. Stop thinking about Lauryne. She is safe for now, you while eventually find a way to help her, now stay calm. He admonished himself. Once peaceful again, he saw her slowly creating light on her palms, gently bathing her patient with a soft green glow, making it flow on his body before making it soak in his skin. Even Mikael, a neophyte, could see her maestria at doing so. He felt exhaustion crept in his mind, and his eyes closed against his will. *** He was hovering in his space of light, the core of his world hanging in the void behind him. Lauryne was already at his side, peaceful this time, fascinated even, her eyes raised toward the sky. Mikael followed her gaze and was likewise intrigued by the spectacle taking place there. Gigantic auroras borealis were coursing through the sky, akin to fish leisurely swimming in the ocean, dyeing the place with their magnificent emerald green. ¡°It¡¯s pretty. What is it ?¡± Asked the little girl while grabbing the hand of Mikael, putting strength in her grasp. ¡°Those are auroras borealis, natural marvel generally produced by the breathing of the Sun meeting the sky of the Earth. But I don''t know what could produce them here." He answered, taking her in his arms. "Do you think we could get close?" She asked then. "... Actually, yes. Anyway, we float here." He said to himself as much as to Lauryne. He began to move forward, the little one still in his arms, flying faster and faster towards the green glows. The closer they got, the darker the sky became, until they had a world of light under their feet and a world of darkness above their heads.The green lights seemed to slide along an invisible wall that seemed to prevent them from entering the side where the two souls were. Lauryne held out her hand, pressing it against the transparent barrier. ¡°It¡¯s hot.¡± She said softly, the red light devouring her arm seemed to diminish slightly, and Michael did the same, placing his hand next to that of the little girl. ¡°That¡¯s right. It¡¯s nice.¡± He nodded. ¡°Lauryne, I¡¯m going to have to go back, I have things to do on the other side.¡± ¡°All right.¡± She said, giving her a big hug, slowly falling asleep in her arms, he let her go, letting her float gently, putting a strand of hair in place. ¡°See you later, kid.¡± He whispered and closed his eyes. Send me back in my body. *** ¡°Sir? Wake up.¡± Said the priestess coldly by removing her hands, a few bits of light still clinging slightly to the young man¡¯s body like pieces of cloth floating in the wind. ¡°Sorry, I tend to fall asleep for nothing.¡± he said in a contrite tone to apologize. ¡°Okay.¡± She said while shrugging it. ¡°The nurse did a good job, your muscles didn¡¯t atrophy too much. Now that I know what we¡¯re going to have to do, you have two major solutions. Either you undergo a complete rehabilitation with a light amount of theurgical support, and within three weeks you will be back on your feet, or you choose to do an accelerated re-education with a significant amount of theurgical support, and within three days you will be back on your feet.¡± ¡°... What is the disadvantage of the second method?¡± Mikael suspiciously asked. ¡°The second method is very painful. Basically, you will go through an exercise battery that will force your muscles to work again, injuring them and strengthening them quickly and painfully by constantly regenerating them through our theurgery.¡± She replied, giving Mikael time to think, the young man breaking the silence quite quickly. ¡°Well, the choice is made, let¡¯s go for accelerated rehabilitation.¡± ¡°Are you sure? You can try a day and notify when evening comes if you want to continue.¡¯ ¡°All right, let¡¯s do this, please.¡± ¡°Good, rehab will start tomorrow. Until then, rest.¡± She said as she walked to the door, stopping to say one last thing. ¡°Your loved ones have been informed of your wake-up call and will be coming to visit you shortly. see you tomorrow.¡± *** About 15 minutes later, the door opened again, letting in Helianthine, Nana and Roger. They smiled when they saw him sitting in his bed. Evilyn They were walking through the empty and sumptuous corridors, their voices the only thing giving life to the places. ¡°Wait. You come from another world ?¡± cried Tysbae almost with disbelief. Evilyn stopped and looked at her frowning. ¡°It¡¯s so hard to believe ?¡± she asked her in return.This narrative has been purloined without the author''s approval. Report any appearances on Amazon. The girl having answered her immediate questions and being honest in her exchanges, she had allowed her to ask her some questions, just asking to already start moving towards the room she wanted to go in, the room of the fire where she had woken up. Tysbae had asked her who she was, where she came from, that kind of thing, which led to this situation. ¡°Yes. Very difficult. By the gods, the implications are¡­ vertiginous.¡± The teenager replied with her eyes lost far away from here. ¡°Yes. Glad to see you have a brain in working order, most aren¡¯t.¡± She commented, thinking back to all the nearsighted peoples who had voted for a certain president with a head as yellow as he was stupid. Bleach. Motherfucking bleach as a cure. ¡°Come on, let''s get back walking.¡± She asked, nodding towards the corridor ahead of them. ¡°Huh? Ah, yes, sorry.¡± Tysbae replied, lost in her thoughts. The teenager suddenly stopped, bending her knees to lower her center of gravity, ready to fight. Evilyn looked at her, surprised, before, a few seconds later, shapes appeared. Kids, again. The youngest had to be eight years old, the oldest around the age of Tysbae, all having red eyes and face without an ounce of humanity. They were a hunting pack. With one arm, Tysbae powerfully brought back Evilyn against herself, starting to snarl like an angry cat. The alpha of the group, a 14-year-old girl with blond hair and blue eyes, stopped and looked at her, sniffing the air once or twice before slowly backing away, also snarling, her group quickly disappearing through a door leading to a transverse corridor. Tysbae remained in the same position for a few seconds, her face distorted by a thirst for blood and an aggressiveness that made her look like an animal whose the territory was wrongly invaded. The expression faded little by little until it left only the sweet face of the young teenager. ¡°... What was that ?¡± asked Evilyn, the young teenager still holding it with a firm grip. ¡°Wild vampires are no better than animals. They recognize strength and danger. These felt a prey, you, but as they approached they realized that you already belonged to another predator, me. And they¡¯re scared of me, I¡¯m older than them, I drank more blood and I¡¯m soaked with it right now , I¡¯m stronger and dangerous and they feel it. Their alpha could also have tried her luck, but I would have put her back in her place, demonstrate my dominance. You can see it a bit like wolves.¡± She explained. Evilyn frowned at her. ¡°I do not belong to you, let me be clear, little girl.¡± She then said, with a voice of which she herself was not accustomed, a cold, almost venomous voice. The mere idea of belonging to someone repulsed her. ¡°I know, you don¡¯t belong to anyone. No one belongs to anyone, but that¡¯s not how these wild vampires see things.¡± She replied by finally releasing her grip on her. Evilyn¡¯s features softened when she heard the words of Tysbae. ¡°Let¡¯s continue.¡± ¡°Yes !¡± the teenager replied with enthusiasm, wanting to get away from the vampire pack. *** ¡°We shouldn¡¯t be able to go through here.¡± Said Tysbae, surprised and confused, pointing something over the door that they had just crossed. A kind of painting, or perhaps an engraving, was placed in this place, blackened like stalactites in a cave that one would have explored too much with oil lamps. ¡°The runes are corroded. As I was thinking, I thought it was odd that you could move freely, but it seems that the enchantments that are supposed to fulfill this role are damaged. From here to find out why, I cannot say, but I can tell you that it is supernatural. It takes some power to destroy the runes laid down by my Mistress, after all she is a vampire and a powerful magician.¡± She commented for Evilyn. ¡°What about runes?¡± ¡°... A form of painted or engraved structure that, if provided with magic, produces a particular effect. One of the best known is a rune that allows to heat water or pots, very efficient, quite inexpensive to produce and usable by almost any mage. Even some peasants have them, so they¡¯re really cheap.¡± she explained. ¡°Thank you.¡± Evilyn replied before waving a signal to get back on the road. As she walked, she realized the distance she had travelled. I really ran for a long time. She thought. Another twenty minutes turning in corridors finally brought them to their destination. They knew that they were approaching because of the increasing heat, the atmosphere giving Evilyn that smothering impression again. They finally arrived in the large circular room, the brazier-prison still heated to red. ¡°You came back !¡± Cried the creature who, in his haste, crashed against the bars of his cell, reaching out to her like a thirsty facing an oasis. Tysbae grimaced a little by seeing the behavior of the creature and recoiled naturally, not appreciating the fire by her status of vampire. Evilyn almost did the same to but managed to stay there, her feet anchored in the ground. ¡°You will free me now ? Please !¡± ¡°... Okay. But I want things in exchange.¡± ¡°Anything you want !¡± he replied with as much hope as heated fervour. ¡°How can I know that you will keep your word ?¡± she asked. The demonic fire was silenced for the first time, looking at it with confusion before a glimmer of understanding lit up in what he had seen. ¡°Normally I would create a contract that would bind us, your soul in exchange for something. Not this time though. I don¡¯t want your soul, I want to get out of here. And to do that, you and I are gonna have to bond. It¡¯s stronger than a contract, much stronger. I will be obliged to stay with you until your death, honouring the terms that have been decided now. Come on, tell me what you want !¡± He replied, exclaiming powerfully, eager to be released. ...a risk...but I don¡¯t really have any other choice. ¡°What can you offer me, exactly?¡± ''Everything ! Ask, and I give you!'' ¡°Um¡­ I want a body that doesn¡¯t need to drink or eat.¡± ¡°I can do it !¡± ¡°I want a body that can regenerate quickly and continuously and, in particular, produce a lot of blood if necessary.¡± She asked, glancing at Tysbae, who opened her eyes a little. "I can do that too !" ¡°I don¡¯t want you to hurt me or my loved ones.¡± ¡°... Okay, I can do that too,¡± he says, less enthusiastic. ¡°You have no right to harm anyone or destroy anything without first asking for my permission, and you must obey me when I ask you directly to do it.¡± ¡°... Grmf...agreed.¡± ¡°And I want to be able to use all your power by myself and at will.¡± She concluded. ¡°...ha...haha... HAHAHA ! By the gods, but what a voracious human, almost worthy of my old pal Gluttony ! I am willing to accede to this request, but pay attention to what you desire, child, we don¡¯t say backflaming for nothing!¡± He exclaimed while laughing, showing with his fingers the furnace he was creating. ¡°On the other hand, you will not be able to use all of my powers at first glance, and even the few abilities already within your reach will be greatly diminished in your hands. But still, I accept.¡± He said, holding out one of his fiery hands. Evilyn hesitated a little before preparing to shake hands, intercepted by Tysbae¡¯s firm grip. ¡°Are you sure you want to do this? He is a demon, a vicious and corrupt, manipulative being.¡± She asked her. ¡°... Do you see an alternative? In three days I will be dead of thirst, in fifteen days of hunger, and all the reserves are contaminated, as you told me.¡± She replied, he said. Tysbae looked at the demon and Evilyn in turn. ¡°Let¡¯s take two of those three days to look for the castle and see if I¡¯m wrong or right, he...¡± She said, pointing her fingers at the demon. ¡°...should be the last resort.¡± Evilyn thought for a second, before she took her hand off. ¡°You¡¯re right. Let¡¯s not be impulsive.¡± ¡°No! No no no, don¡¯t listen to her ! Accept, please !¡± Howled the demon in his cage. Evilyn turned his eyes to him again. ¡°I will come back in two days. If I have not found a solution, we will be bound. If not, I will see.¡± She told him before leaving the room, followed by Tysbae and pursued by the cries of the devil and, despite her repulsion, they could still weighs on the young woman¡¯s heart. Eleonor The Dyson¡¯s sphere floated peacefully in dark space, orbiting around a red giant that bathed the synthetic metal surface with a dying orange. Blue and gold structures floated a few kilometres from the surface, causing a barrage of bluish rays and crystalline missiles to rain on the incessant waves of creatures emerging from the wells dotting the pseudo-metallic planet. ¡°Why are the Sauriottes so agitated ?¡± She asked the strategists filling the room from her throne, the generals and admirals of this purifying fleet. ¡°No one knows. Their behaviour is illogical.¡± Zraclass, the Admiral-in-Chief, replied. ¡°No, I recognize this pattern.¡±said Ilea, his second. ¡°They¡¯re running from a few things, trying to evacuate the planet, Matriarch.¡± She continued to say, the rest of the staff nodding their heads and starting to talk, manipulate maps and process information according to this new paradigm. ¡°Pardon ? Run from what ?¡± Matriarch, descended from her throne, asked. ¡°We are already search¡­¡± Ilea was cut off in the middle of her sentence by the main map which appeared in three dimensions in the middle of the room, representing the Dyson sphere. A red dot was flashing in the center of it, with an alarm. ¡°Ezakien c-crystal detected! He is a-armed and in the absorption phase!¡± said a strategic officer with a trembling voice. The blood withdrew from the matriarch¡¯s face, giving her normally bright blue skin a bluish hue. ¡°Those fanatical fucking terrorist!¡± Zraclass exclaimed while punching one of his consoles. The matriarch closed her eyes for a second and opened them, a new determination burning in her pupils. ¡°Activate the Main Transfer Matrix and prepare to retreat. Everyone immediately disconnects from the network to avoid getting infected.¡± All her officers turned to her, a deep sadness in their eyes, apprehending the next words of their matriarch. ¡°I will stay back to contain the Ezakien.¡± Her words resounded in the room for a few seconds before her crew knelt down, their hand against their heart and their head lowered as a sign of respect. She connected herself to the network, teleporting to the main orbital platform and submerging in the gigantic crystal floating in the centre of it. From her point of view, she saw corruption spreading through the crystalline nodes, a dirty red submerging the beautiful blue that normally dyed the healthy crystals, cracking them, stirring them up unstable. Behind her, she could see her fleet gathering around the mothership. The transfer reactor was in charge, almost ready, but the corruption devoured all the networks at such a speed that they would not be able to escape before it caught up with them. The matriarch then realigned all the bridges of light so that they converged where she was, thus standing between the corrupt network and her compatriots. The mental burden that such an act required was already unimaginable, the suffering too, but it was nothing compared to what beset it when the red tried to cross her. She felt her mind break into a thousand pieces, overwhelmed by the spiritual illness that now gnawed at the crystals, trying to make her mad, to pervert her, giving her distorted desires, killing, raping, looting, to unleash her rage on the world until it burns around her. Slowly, the titanic crystal which contained her passed from blue to red, the rift going more and more deeply into it, her spirit however not letting the corruption pass, absorbing it all to allow her fleet to escape. The agony seemed to have lasted an eternity when a flash went through the dark space. Feeling her companions in a safe place, she let go of reality, letting herself be devoured by the unhealthy thoughts that were now drowning this false planet. All around her, the armament went mad, firing in all directions, destroying, burning, shredding the Sauriots who tried to escape as much as they could... The dream was resorbed, or was it a memory ? In any case not one of her own, she was sure of it. Another thing she was sure of, however, was the pain that pierced her body, causing her to roll into fetal position. Pain, always pain, aaaAAAAAH! She screamed in her head, as much from anger than agony. She felt things moving in her body, cracking to put themself back in place, constantly torturing her. Something was planted in her heart, she felt it, as if she was constantly about to die. Things cut her veins, her arteries, her muscles, rose from her lungs or her belly, lining up in her body in a symmetrical way. At a certain point, the pain was such that she sank again into the dark ocean of unconsciousness, her mind withdrawing from her body, unable to endure this torment any longer. She awoke much later, lying on a soft, warm surface, similar to flesh. She tried to open her eyes, in vain, her eyelids not wanting to move. She touched her eyes, feeling an important burn spread all over her face. Worse, she felt it only with one hand, the other being still missing. She rolled around in a ball, lying on the ground shaking, trying as she could to cope with the shock of her amputation and blindness. She couldn¡¯t even cry, her tear glands were damaged, she just stood there, lonely prisoner of darkness¡­ Interesting, is this some kind of trauma management mechanism ? Then asked a deep, feminine voice, the same voice she had heard in the robot. The robot¡­ Her memories returned to her like a ten-ton truck. The infiltration, the explosion, the voice, the escape¡­ She clung to this question like a shipwrecked its lifebuoy, trying to distract herself from her condition. It¡¯s a way of looking at it. She responded softly to the voice. FinaLly AwakENed ? Tonitrua then the dragon in her head, presenting a manifest lack of finesse. How did you guess ? She replied sarcastically. ChaRActer I sEe, LiTTLE oNe. Said the dragon with a whistle that, Eleonore understood later, was his laugh. Where am I ? What happened ? She asked as she sat down, trying to distract herself from reality. YOU¡¯rE iN MY lAiR, LITTlE onE, Do YOU wAnt ME tO shOW YOU ? With pleasure. She replied, tired of the dark that she was surrounded by. The spirit of the dragon slipped again against hers, waiting for her permission to enter, which she gave quickly, letting him slip into her. An imaginary noise suddenly resounded in her head, as if an unstoppable force just met an immovable object. The mental collision was echoed through Eleonore¡¯s entire body, seeming to run through invisible nodes in her arms, legs, torso. Once more she collapsed to the ground convulsing, the young woman again carried away in a fight that was not hers. Her mind was transformed into a battlefield where two souls turned around like cats ready to gut each other, waiting for the other to make a mistake to jump at his throat. The dragon was more powerful but less belligerent, and wounded, too, by the first assault which had taken him by surprise. The other soul was weaker, but oozed rage, anger, and a thirst for blood akin to purulent wounds on its surface. Get out of here ! She shouted, and Eleonore recognized the deep and feminine voice that had spoken to her a few moments earlier, though distorted and corrupt. WhAt iS THis HoRRor, LiTTle onE ? Asked the dragon to the young woman, continuing to keep the tormented soul in respect. I don¡¯t really know. When I was in the robot, she approached me and offered to give me my sight back if I accepted it in me¡­ She saved my life, and she¡¯s the reason I got away. Hum¡­ ThIS Explains OnE oR tW¡­ Tried to say the dragon, interrupted by a new roar of the corrupted soul. GET OUT OF HERE, SAURIOT ! At these words, a light of understanding was lit in the metaphorical eyes of the dragon, who quickly turned to Eleanor. I¡±ll GeT OuT oF HEre, YOU sHOUld bE AblE To CalM HeR DOwn AFTer I lEft. ShE iS An HETAXEARK, ShE THinKS Of ME As aN EneMy. I¡¯ll cOme bACk tO YOU wHen shE¡¯s mOrE PeaCeFuL. Understood. Answered the young woman, ready to do anything not to think of the outside world. Her right hand hurt her, a phantom pain, as if her body was trying to impose reality on her, but she had a goal to achieve here, distracting her from her missing limb. The spirit of the dragon withdrew, leaving her alone facing the soul she had accepted into her¡­ 11 - Into madness ; A strange Heat Chapter 11 Eleonor The mental landscape was dark and endless, like a devastated land where ash covered everything to the horizon. Distorted shadows walked in the distance and, from time to time, lightnings passed through the clear and empty space-like sky, minus the stars. On the ashes, the two souls turned around each others like predators having met at the edge of their respective territory, not quite ready to fight, but attentive and respectful of the other. ... Host... ? Then asked the profound voice of the stranger that Eleanor had accepted in her body. If you mean that we are in my mind, then yes. Replied the young woman. ... Yes, Benefactor. To this thought, the soul seemed to shrink slightly, like a cat that until then had bristles but that, the danger gone, could finally relax. The red aura gradually subsided until the original blue had mostly regained its rights, and the soul seemed to sit down, making the metaphorical equivalent of hitting her cheeks to recover. What had only been a mass of unfocused emotions so far slowly took humanoid features, though only forming a silhouette, a ghost. ... sorry to have been ¡­ aggressive, let¡¯s say, especially to my benefactor. Said the deep voice. Eleonor shrugged her shoulders slightly, indicating that she did not hold it against her. I¡¯d just like to know what happened exactly. And what you are, too. Said the young woman to the ghostly soul. Forgive me for this lack of etiquette. I am Sanakan, Matriarch and Grand Arbiter, delighted to meet you, benefactor. Sanakan replied while making a deep bow. Or at least what¡¯s left of it. A piece of which I was, incomplete. She added sadly. The emotions of the spectre reverberated through this devastated space, creating a strange echo in the young woman¡¯s heart. One second she was far from the soul, the next second she had laid her hand on the shoulder of the ghost, as if by a reflex marking her empathy with her. An air of surprise was then painted on Eleonor¡¯s and Sanakan''s face, and they felt their emotions mingle slightly. Sanakan felt fear, pain and euphoria buried deep in the young woman, and Eleonor felt anger, rage, and rampant corruption in the soul of the ghost. The contact lasted only one second before the young woman removed her hand, cutting the connection and leaving the two women slightly dizzy. What happened to you ? Asked Eleanor. I-I don¡¯t know, m-my memories are fragmented. I think I stayed behind to... to buy time for my fleet, so she could get away. Running away from what, the Sauriots ? Said Eleonor, asking a blind question. No. Certainly not, we were winning, we had purified this planet deeply and then¡­ I don¡¯t know anymore. Pain, fear, anger, everything is confused. She replied while holding her head in her hands, red resurfacing here and there on her ethereal body. I¡¯m sorry, these questions are tiring, I would like to rest¡­ She added, her form flickering like a flame left to the wind. She curled up in a ball and seemed to fall asleep, floating in the middle of this ravaged space. Ho, yes. Here are your eyes, for now. She whispered before sinking entirely into sleep. A headache stormed Eleonore and she was drowned by blue. The real world imposed itself on her once again. Like last time, she saw everything in blue, up to fifty meters and in a circle around her. She realized, moreover, that she could not see either the walls or the ceiling of the place where she was, making the young woman slightly agoraphobic. Something then entered her sphere of perception. A head, a gigantic head, that of a dragon, descending towards her, looking at her with curiosity. DiD tHe thiNG calM dOwn ? Asked the dragon with his always strange voice, doing his best to talk to her without touching her mind too much. Yes. She¡¯s asleep, it seems. Very polite, when she¡¯s not in a raging trance. YoUR DeaL, yOU kNOw it¡¯S dangEROus foR YOU, riGHt? SHe¡¯S CRazy, bROKen. But thanks to her I can see. Alea jacta est, dear. ha¡­ haha¡­ HAHAHAHA, I alrEAdy like YOU! I knEw I maDE tHe RighT deCISion wHEn I asKed YOUr hELp, KID ! He screamed in her mind with his hissing laugh. Keep it down, you¡¯ll wake her up ! She chewed him out with a bad expression. Ho¡­ SoRRy. He answered with a very small voice. Where am I ? She then asked him, disoriented by her new vision. For God¡¯s sake, she even saw through the ground ! She had a slight urge to vomit when she realized that the ground under her feet might as well not be there, lying head up and focusing on the dragon''s head to calm her vertigo. The dragon moved his head above hers, looking at her with the draconic equivalent of the concerned face. YOU¡¯Re NoT doInG wElL ? I just have to get used to this kind of vision, nothing serious. She replied by sweeping his worry with her hand. And so¡­ ? Ha yEs, SoRry. YOU aRe iN mY DEn, GIRL, oNe oF The GAtes tHAt COnneCt ThIs PLace tO alL tHe OthEr WorLdS Of tHe LAbyrinTH, ANd I Am itS GUArdian. The labyrinth ? She asked before exclaiming. Oh my God. I finally have someone to ask things ! I¡¯M nO¡­ What is the labyrinth ? And the voice that speaks from time to time ? Where am I exactly ? how did I arriv¡­ ENOUGH ! He roared in the head of the young woman, his voice also filling her ears and reverberating on the walls of the titanic cave. WaIt tIll I teLL you the higHLights beFOre becomING aN hysteRICal haMSter ! ... Sorry. Good. I Am F¨¹rSS?hfeN ! GrEAt SkY DRAGON, AnD I¡¯M oNe oF thE gUArDiaNs Of thE LaByRinTh, buT onLy HaLf-WillInGlY. YOU sEe, I coMe fROm A diFFerEnt woRLd tHAn tHIs oNe, A woRLd wheRE I diED. A choICe Was thEn pROPosed tO ME: tO dIe deFINitivelY, oR To suRViVe aNd tO Be BRougHt hERe, iN tHe LaBYrinTH, to bE OnE Of iTs gUArdiaNs, STatioNEd aT tHe JUNctionS betwEEn thE variOUs aREas of iT. I obvioUSLy chosE tHe seCoNd opTioN. What about the labyrinth ?This story has been stolen from Royal Road. If you read it on Amazon, please report it I¡¯M coMing To It, I¡¯m coMing. IT diDN¡¯t sAy mUch tO ME, bUT fROm wHAt I cOUld gEt Out oF iT, tHIs pLAce iS soMe Kind oF arENa, a coLIseUm crEAteD In THe PuRposE oR CONfrontinG countleSS beinGs AgAinsT oNe AnoThEr. IT finDS WOrldS AdRift, coLLApsing on thEMselVes, anD It givES thEm a sECond chANce, juST lIKe ME. It sAVes tHEm ANd pUTs tHEm hERe, forcINg tHEm tO sUrVive wiTH eAch oTHer. A memory then emerged in the mind of Eleonor, that of the very first voice she had heard. I¡¯m really dead, aren¡¯t I ? Where YOU coME fRoM, Yes, BuT hEre YOU¡¯rE AbundANtLy aLive. And so he saves people and throws them here to watch them kill each other ? An It, NoT aN HE, aNd Yes, bUt nOt onLy peoPle, EntiErE CitY, CounTriEs, EvEn PlaNet lIke heRE. Eleonor took a few minutes to reflect on his words. He did not like the idea of being at the mercy of a god, just like the idea of being dead. She was not yet ready to forget about her old life, especially her friends. ... Speaking of here, where are we? In which world, I mean. YOU aRe In A DySon¡¯S sPHere tHAt oNCe beLONged tO tHE HETAXEARKS, thEN conqUEREd bY tHe SAURIOT swARm, finALLy lOst by bOth sidES whEN a coRRupted cRYstal mERged wiTH thE stAr contAINEd iN iT, puSHing tHEm tO flEe. THE HETAXEARKS remOVEd thEIr fleETs aND tHE SAURIOTS abANDoned tHeIr haTCherY, leAVIng thE pLAce tO Be drOWned bY tHe maDNess oF A hEAdlEss sWArm aNd pervERTed bB thE ceNTral sTAr. The terms were unknown to her but gave an impression of greatness, a kind of immensity to which her mind was confronted. She wanted to ask another question when something struck her: she was no longer alone. Now that she was with someone, something rather, capable of protecting her, the different things she had experienced in the last few weeks threw themselves on her like a wave on a beach, imposing themselves at once on her mind as if a mental barrier had broken. The wounds, the pain, the blood, everything that her mind had pushed under the rug to allow her to survive was coming back out now that she really felt safe for the first time. Her mind moved forward by instinct and logic, by curiosity, was suddenly no longer able to advance. If she had been able to, a torrent of tears would have started to flow along her cheeks just now, but her inability to externalize her feelings only reinforced the chaos in which her mind was sinking. She remained stunned by shock as she slowly sank into an unhealthy trance, reliving the traumatic experiences she had gone through, like a survivor with PTSD LITTLE ONE ? little one ? Called the dragon with a manifest anxiety, yet without her answering, the voice of F¨¹rss?hfen becoming more and more distant while the delirium grabbed Eleonor and dragged her more and more deeply, trapping her in her own subconscious¡­ Syphony The water flowed rapidly along her naked body, carrying with it the sweat and dirt she had accumulated during the last four days of confinement, rolling on her shoulders and arms with well-defined muscles, on her imposing chest with protruding nipples, on her flat stomach and her beautiful hips. She took her time to wash herself, the water cascading over her having always helped her to put her ideas in place, to reflect and clear her mind. She thought of her unfortunate companion who was stuck here with her, in quarantine, the one who had saved and helped her escaping a fate far more terrible than death, the one who, for a reason beyond Syphony, bathed her in affection and acted like a future bride with her. The young woman stroked her wet body, inspecting it with her hands to get a new idea of it. She changed a little bit every day, very slightly, sure, but it scared her. Her body was becoming more and more sexualized, her breasts wider, her hips more imposing, her hair longer, her body thinner, and she felt it, even though the changes were gradual. She didn¡¯t know if it was a side effect of her infection, she didn¡¯t know, and the unknown was one of the worst nightmares of any human being. But, unable to do anything about it for the time being, she moved her thoughts from her body, recalling her discussions with Mellite, what the young woman had told her of her life, urging herself to think of something else in order to dispel the stress of which her mind was the prey. According to her, she was 17, almost 18 years old and was born in Brussels, a city Syphonie had never heard of. In fact, the more they talked to each other, the more Syphonie realized that the world from which Mellite came and this world had nothing in common. Strange names were exposed to her, the United States, Europe, China, the Earth, all foreign concepts. What at first sight was only a jump in time due to her stasis seemed increasingly strange to the girl in front of her. The languages they spoke were the same, the dates, the calendars, the concepts, but everything else was different. The story, the countries, nothing seemed to correspond with what Mellite told her. She apparently came from a country called Belgium, the city of which she had spoken, Brussels, being its capital. She told her about her years of studies, her student life, her family, her friends, all with a joviality that seemed to be deeply rooted in her character. Mellite was a smiling optimist, it seemed, she radiated an almost palpable joie de vivre, her face expressing itself in nuance of smile without once having displayed sadness. Discontent sometimes, yes, but it was rare. In addition to her omnipresent joy, the young girl was also bursting with energy and, after four days locked up here, she was restless like a lioness in ca¡­ A small noise interrupted the meditation of Syphony. She opened her eyes, the pleasant sensation of water on her still naked body, and turned around to take a look at what had bothered her. She fell nose-to-nose with Mellite, the young woman glaring at her face through the door just half open. Syphony froze for a moment, processing the information, before becoming all red and covering her breasts and lower belly in a precipitous motion. Her gaze then crossed that of Mellite, and the words that the soldier was preparing to scream remained stuck in her throat. The peeping tom looked at her with an expression in her eyes that she had never seen before, a mixture of reverence, admiration and unabashed craving that kept Syphonie nailed in her shower. The moment stretched, as if time did not pass, and the soldier had finally recovered enough to speak. ¡°M-mellite ? Can you p-please get out? I¡¯d like to be l-left alone while showering.¡± Said Syphony weakly, totally different from her usual self which was normally imposing, authoritarian, decided, leaving here only a 21 years old young woman with her emotions as naked as her body. The soldier¡¯s words seemed to snap Mellite out of her kind of trance, and she soon turned her head back, becoming flushed red. ¡°S-sorry ! I don¡¯t know what got into me !¡± She shouted and slammed the door with the force of embarrassment. Syphonie once again stood there, frowning, trying to understand what had just happened. I should really be mad at her. It¡¯s not right to stare at people like that ! So why am I feeling like I feel right now ? She said to herself while tapping her feet in the shower tray, a heat different from the one of the water having spread through her body while Mellite contemplated her, especially on the side of her lower stomach. ... Well, it can¡¯t hurt, can it ? She thought to herself, tense and resigned, while descending one of her hands to her fountain of pleasure¡­ Mellite Syphony¡¯s silhouette was standing out under the water that flowed on her skin, made shiny by the artificial light of the room reflecting on the liquid. The soldier¡¯s chest, which a few days earlier was lying in the B¡¯s, was now rather around the C, a small one, but still a C. And her ass¡­ Oh my God, her ass¡­ She said to herself with the eyes of an expert. Contemplating the human body had always been one of her passions, imagining what she could do with the shapes of the people she looked at, also loving to draw these curves in the drawing book she was taking with her everywhere. But of all the people she had admired, Syphony was clearly the one that pleased Mellite the most. Something in the young woman attracted her like a light attracts an insect. She imagined the extravagant fantasies she could undertake with Syphony, her body heating more and more. Suddenly, Syphony turned around, and their gaze met. She covered her intimate parts as much as she could with her hands, yet she didn¡¯t come out of the water even as her towel was hanging right next to her, and the two young women¡¯s gaze melted into each other, contemplating each other for a long time before Syphonie said anything. ¡°M-mellite ? Can you p-please get out? I¡¯d like to be l-left alone while showering.¡± She said to her shyly, kindling the fire that ran through the young stranger as she watched Syphony. ...What the fuck am I doing right now ? Suddenly thought Mellite, becoming red from head to toe. ¡°S-sorry ! I don¡¯t know what got into me !¡± She screamed, turning around, slamming the door behind her, hurting her hand in the process. She then went to bed, contemplating the immaculate ceiling, replaying the scene in her head, seeing the magnificent body of Syphony again, the curves of her back, her buttocks, her breasts, her face, and the beautiful feminine flower that lay between her fertile hips¡­ ¡­ Why ? Why the fuck can¡¯t I get her out of my head ? She¡¯s so sexy, I just want to see her squeal of pleasure, oh, that would be amazing. She said to herself, already back to fantasizing about Syphony¡¯s body. ... shit, I did it again ! God, what¡¯s happening to me ? She thought before she was assailed by a new wave of perverse image of her companion of misfortune. Not standing it anymore, she put one of her hands on the entrance of her warm cave, taking care of herself to release the pressure and the desires that were flooding her head. *** The sleep had taken her after she had relaxed in depth, just feeling Syphonie slipping on the bed at some point while she was sleeping, and she had wrapped herself around the soldier, moved by an instinctive reflex. The rest of the night had passed calmly, each young woman rocked by the breath of the other. Rahato The condemned man was lying on the surgical table, his head and limbs tied by metal rings. His empty eyes did not even react to the blinding light that drowned him from the ceiling, his mouth was open and from time to time he produced an incoherent sound, a kind of gargling. A robotic arm approached the guinea pig, sticking a syringe in his arm to inject something into his veins. Well hidden in her laboratory, Rahato checked in real time the information her devices provided, noting her observations and tracks using her old mechanical keyboard. She watched her guinea pig tremble slightly, checking his vital signs and confirming her hypotheses. ¡°Extraordinary. For some unknown reason, the extracted subject¡¯s RV-a1 strain seems to commit suicide when it comes into contact with other living beings. If this reaction makes it particularly difficult to study, it gives more than a glimmer of hope for the two patients already infected by it.¡± She said in a small microphone before putting these observations on keyboards. Now, I just need to test it on a subject with an healthy brain, and if the results are conclusive, I will finally be able to get the two girls out of there. She said to herself while rubbing her hands, already imagining with excitement all the tests that she was going to be able to make the two young girls pass for her. If anyone had been there to see her, he might have noticed a little flame of madness burning in Dr Rahato¡¯s eyes... ? - Inter Ludus I - Choice Inter Ludus I - Choice Wherever your eyes look, the nihil extend as far as they can see. How are you able to tell the difference between what was before your eyes and a mere emptiness, you did not know. But this difference, you feel it. Emptiness is absence while nihil is the opposite of presence. ¡°So, does my creation entertain you ?¡± Asks you the anti-thing while looking at you from the other side of these lines, through the screen that stand before your eyes and on which you read these words. ¡°Hahaha, don¡¯t bother answering, I can¡¯t hear you like this.¡± Say the nothingness. It lower its eyes and looks inside itself, actively showing you something. A mass of light hanging in it. It brings your vision closer of this it, and you can now better discern what it is trying to present to you. The thing looks a bit like a molecule, spheres of different sizes, colors and even textures interconnected by equally varied bridges. However, you are able to discern major trends. Each sphere has a sort of aura coming out of it to complete its presentation, and you can see five dominant color of auras. The grey is by far the most present, encompassing more than half of the worlds, followed by the black, which devoured about twenty percent of these. The other thirty percent split the rest of the worlds at the rate of 7% for blue, 9% for violet and 14% for green. ¡°You admire the geopolitics of the labyrinth ? For the curious among you, I can already tell you that the grey worlds are worlds not aligned to any of the great factions.¡± It tells you with a wink, something quite confusing given the state of nothingness of your interlocutor.This narrative has been purloined without the author''s approval. Report any appearances on Amazon. ¡°And for the blacks¡­Ha, you¡¯ll see when one of my new prot¨¦g¨¦s will set foot in it for the first time. I assure you, you will recognize them, even if only by the smell of dead floating in them.¡± He add with a grimace, frowning. ¡°But that¡¯s not why I brought you here, hooo no. Let¡¯s put these things aside. You¡¯re here to decide two destinies.¡± He stretches before you hands made of starry sky. You can distinguish Orion on the first, the Pleiades on the second. He spreads his fingers, discovers his palms. In the left one lies a young boy, eleven, perhaps twelve years old. Instead of hair, his head is covered with feather, like his forearms. There¡¯s a long scar on his face, and there¡¯s a pool of blood all around him. ¡°He was tortured to death in front of his mother to punish her for being a witch and for her teaching her son witchcraft, before being slaughtered like an animal. His soul was then almost used to perform an unholy ritual, but I caught him before he was soiled again.¡± He told you in a neutral voice. In its right hand rests an old lady, about seventy, dressed in bright color, a peaceful smile on her face and a cane in her hand. ¡°She was a powerful magician, one who saved the world in which she lived from a demonic invasion. A new invasion has occurred a short time ago, and she has sacrificed herself so that her family, her children and grandchildren, could escape. She kept the door of the family manor for a day and a night, and they were able to escape thanks to her. A demon prince himself came to kill her, seeing his minions unable to break that old mule.¡± He explained by showing it to you. ¡°Now it is up to you to choose. Which one will be sent into oblivion, and which one will be placed in the labyrinth as an adjuvant of one of my little prot¨¦g¨¦s? And of course, which prot¨¦g¨¦ will I give the being of your choice? You have until the next inter ludus to decide, dear Chosen.¡± It finish saying while keeping his palms open, ready to hear your prayers. 12 - Free but masked ; Remembrance of a time short gone Chapter 12 Mellite The lights of their room gradually lit up to wake up the two sleeping young women. Opening her eyes, the first thing that Mellite saw was the face of Syphony who was waking up gently, putting a hand in front of her eyes to protect them from the light that now bathed the place. She is too cute when she does that. Thought the young stranger, her head still resting on the chest of her mat... her companion of misfortune. ¡°Hello sleepyhead !¡± She finally exclaimed, breaking free from Syphony¡¯s embrace. ¡°Hhhhm, is it morning already?¡± Asked the girl while grimacing, to which Mellite laughed slightly by standing in front of the wall where the door was, a little to the right of it. She did not even wait a minute before a slot formed on it, growing until it formed a hole in the metal. Inside, two trays presented themselves to the young woman, each with a cup of coffee, an apple and a bowl filled with some sort of grayish gruel. On top of that, there were two metal glasses and a pitcher full of water. ¡°Come on, get up or I¡¯ll eat it all !¡± Said Mellite a little louder to motivate her partner to get up. ¡°Hhhm okay, okay, I¡¯m coming !¡± Syphony replied furiously with a pout, rising with great difficulty in the bed. Meanwhile, Mellite had put the trays on a table that had come out of the wall, then sat down on a chair coming from the floor. Syphony joined her in two steps, the room being not that large, and she began to drink her cup of coffee while the other young woman looked at her tenderly. She¡¯s not a morning person either. She thought while remembering her friends who, without exception, had trouble with mornings, making Mellite the only morning person in her group. ¡°Clac.¡± Made the cup of Syphony when she rested it on her plate, attacking the bowl of gray gruel with her spoon and an enthusiasm that made her mate smile. Mellite herself was still struggling to get used to the strange texture and bland taste of the mixture, even though it was actually quite fulfilling. She forced herself to eat it, crunching in the apple every two or three spoonfuls to get sugar and aroma, making the rest of the meal bearable. As usual, Syphony took Mellite¡¯s mug of coffee, the young foreigner having a very firm opinion about all bitter foods. They ate silently for a few minutes and, when they were finished, Syphony put the various things on the trays which she then put back in the wall hole, which closed after having swallowed them. She then went to stand on one side of the bed and prepared to exercise, warming up a bit. ¡°You want to exercise with me?¡± She asked Mellite who, like the four days before, refused. ¡°I¡¯m not good at sports. Push-ups, not for me.¡± ¡°You should do a little bit of it, just to stay in shape. You¡¯ll need it when we get out of here, you know ?¡± Added the soldier. It was the first time she insisted a little, which sparked Mellite¡¯s curiosity. ¡°Why?¡± ¡°You¡¯re with us now, you¡¯ll have to work to feed yourself, and it¡¯s better to be athletic for most of the jobs available, unless you¡¯re a genius.¡± She replied to her. ¡°We need a lot of soldiers, technicians and mechanics as well, nurses, all the pretty grueling stuff. You¡¯re not that young anymore, so you won¡¯t be able to partake in long-term studies to become a doctor or an engineer, so you¡¯ll have to fall back on that.¡± ¡°Tsss¡­¡± Did Mellite, dissatisfied with her future¡¯s prospects. ¡°... Okay. What do I do?¡± she ended up yielding, her mind permeable to her partner¡¯s logic. ¡°Start by warming up, do as I did.¡± She showed her, preparing her arms and legs for the effort ahead. The two young women thus warmed themselves for about ten minutes, so that Syphony was sure that Mellite was well warmed up, and she then showed her how to do push-ups. ¡°...and you go down, the movement must be complete or it doesn¡¯t help much, understood ?¡± ¡°Yep !¡± ¡°Good.¡± Said Syphony, the energy and good mood of Mellite making her smile. ¡°For starters, give me as much push-ups as you can, so we can see how far along you are, okay ?¡± ¡°Ok!¡± the young stranger replied, putting herself on the ground, taking the position that Syphony had shown her. She then began to do the classic back-and-forth training. 1 ! 2 ! 3 ! She counted in her head every time she did a push-up. Strangely, and totally contrary to her previous experiences, moving her muscles was making her feel good, as if she felt her arms, legs and abdominals getting washed of their toxin. She soon stopped counting, carried away in the sports trance quite common among people who train regularly. ¡°... You¡¯re good, not tired ?¡± Syphony asked after a while, getting Mellite out of her trance. She was sweaty, her white clothes stuck to her skin and drops pearling on her face. ¡°Fff...I¡¯m...fff...good..fff¡­¡± ¡°You can stop now.¡± Mellite frowned and stopped, but stared at her companion, who herself looked at her with a strange look. ¡°Didn¡¯t you tell me I had to give everything to see how far I could go ?¡± ¡°Yes, but you told me you were bad at sports.¡± ¡°... Well, that¡¯s right. I¡¯m out of breath, right ?¡± She retorted using her body¡¯s condition as an argument. ¡°... You have just did more than 500 push-ups. I myself only do 150 of them every morning.¡± Syphony said in disbelief. Mellite looked at her while frowning before smiling with a look of understanding. ¡°You¡¯re messing with me, right? It¡¯s not nice to¡­¡± She started answering, interrupted by the the door opening. Doctor Rahato entered the room as if she were the owner, which might just as well be the case then thought Mellite, and contemplated the two young women who were facing each other. ¡°I¡¯m interrupting something?¡± She asked, the voice distorted by the mask she wore, which strangely recalled those of Code Vein to Mellite. ¡°No doctor !¡± Syphony replied, putting herself at attention. ¡°You can tell me, I can come back later.¡± Rahato added, and before the soldier could add anything, Mellite spoke. ¡°Hooo, I recognize the voice. You¡¯re the peeping tom who was spying on us, right ?¡± Rahato strangled herself a little when she heard her dear patient call her a pervert, but quickly resumed. ¡°Rest soldier. You know you don¡¯t need to do this with me, let alone in private.¡± ¡°I prefer to do it, ma''am.¡± ¡°Tsss¡­ always so cold. Anyway, I didn¡¯t come to talk about that. I have good news: I¡¯ve run a number of test batteries with your RV-a1 strain, and it turns out its infectivity is null. You will be able to get out of here.¡± She said to them, Syphony smiling and clenching her fist, happy, Mellite jumping on the spot of excitement. ¡°FINALLYYYYYYYYY !¡± ¡°However, I will still make you wear special masks for security reasons and to monitor you.¡± She added while handing them two masks identical to hers. Syphony took it and put it without hesitation, clearing her long blonde hair to place it correctly, but Mellite looked at it while pouting. ¡°Do we really have to wear this ?¡±The story has been illicitly taken; should you find it on Amazon, report the infringement. ¡°I¡¯m sorry about that, honey. I don¡¯t want you to carelessly make someone sick. Or you can stay here, your choice.¡± Said Rahato while watching Mellite, who finally decided to put on her mask. Once the hair were cleared and the mask put on well, she realized that it was actually quite pleasant to wear, it did not weigh much, did not scratch, was well ventilated, in short, well designed. ¡°Did you create these masks ?¡± Mellite asked, her voice slightly distorted by the mask. ¡°Oh no, I just strongly modernized an old model to take advantage of recent advances in medicine and engineering.¡± Rahato replied, discarding the question with one hand, Syphony raising an eyebrow of scepticism. ¡°Come on, come with me.¡± Rahato said as she came out of the room, taking off her mask when she was outside *** The trio had gone through a decontamination room where they had to change their clothing before moving into the non-quarantine area of the station. The corridors were cold, the bare surfaces were dry and colourless, a mixture of metallic grey and plastic black. ¡°If I may ask so, where are we going, Doctor ?¡± respectfully asked Syphony. ¡°Captain Sirgan wants to see you.¡± Rahato dryly replied. ¡°Ha. Yes, I guess I made him worry.¡± the young woman said, rubbing her head. Leaving the medical area, the trio met some of the staff, men and women in uniforms looking strangely at the two masked young women who were walking behind the so famous Doctor Rahato. All of them, moreover, moved away from the passage of the scientist, putting themselves at attention along the walls while waiting for herto pass, then leaving again quickly. ¡°Worry ?¡± Picked up Mellite when she got out of her thought. ¡°Oh my God, I had forgotten.¡± Rahato said when rubbing her brow with fatigue. ¡°I¡¯ll have to explain everything.¡± She continued by massaging her temples. ¡°To put it simply and give some context, we are currently on one of the seven orbital stations around Sarn, the Everest station. John Sirgan is its Captain, and it turns out he¡¯s also Syphony¡¯s godfather.¡± ¡°O-okay.¡±replied Mellite without fully understanding the implications of this explanation, while Syphony was turning red beside her. ¡°And we¡¯re going to see it¡­ because Syphony almost died and he¡¯s worried. Okay. Logical.¡± She says more for herself than for others. After some time walking in silence, the trio arrived at an elevator in which they entered. It brought them to the crew quarters where Dr Rahato guided them through a maze of corridors with doors aligned to the left and right. They passed a sort of airlock and then entered a clearly richer area, the doors were less close from one another and the hallways were immaculate white rather than bare. Finally, Dr Rahato stopped in front of a door and carried her wrist to a chip reader. The electronic padlock beeped green and the door opened. The doctor and Syphony entered as if they were arriving at home but Mellite was a little more nervous, expectant for her meeting with the Captain of this place. She watched the other two take off their shoes and did the same, leaving the soft white boots on a shelf designed for this purpose, and then followed them through the lobby and through a door that likely looked out onto the living room. The place was nicely furnished, with two sofa sufficient to accommodate eight people, turned towards a wall, the ceiling of the room a large window overlooking space. A gigantic metal structure floated there and, Mellite taking a better look at it, she could see that she was currently in a ring anchored to the central cylinder by monstrous cables. She then realized that the ring was spinning because, at the edge of the glass, the silhouette of a blue planet began to rise, seemingly emerging from behind the main cylinder like the sun rising over a mountain. They use the centrifugal pseudo-force to create artificial gravity¡­ Thought Mellite while remembering one of the things that Eleonor had explained to her when they had played together at a science fiction fps of which she had forgotten the name, something with rings created as weapons of mass destruction. A man then entered the room from one of the other doors, and froze when he saw the three women. He must have been more or less the same age as Professor Rahato, his salt and pepper hair tied in a bun, like a samurai. He threw himself forward and, with his powerful arms with well-drawn muscles, he took Syphony in his arms, hugging her, which she gave back to him with the same power. Eleonor She was trapped in a feverish nightmare, unable to distinguish illusions from reality. Spikes of pain ran through her randomly, she was dying of starvation, or maybe not, people spoke to her in incomprehensible way, all giving her the feeling to be swept away by a storm of madness. She cowered more and more on herself, the situation less and less bearable for Eleonor as pain and madness grew. I want it to stop ! Please ! She kept repeating herself in loop until she was drowned in darkness. *** The chirping of her alarm took her gently out of her sleep. She turned it off and stretched extensively in her bed like a cat that had been disturbed, before finally pushing the blanket to get up. She turned on her computer which sat on the desk next to her bed and, waiting for him to launch, she began to dress, taking off the panties which alone served as her pajamas, uncovering her abundant femininity covered with a thick carpet, as dark as the long hair that fell on her breasts as she lowered herself to pick up some clean clothes, creating a definite contrast with her white skin of a homebody introvert. Once dressed in a disparate set of clothes, she retrieved her backpack, the necessary syllabi for the day already filling it, launched a program on her computer and went down to pick up some dessert in the fridge as well as a spoon in the kitchen. Her father was already waiting for her in the car, so she hurried to get in, being very careful to close the door behind her. They did not speak while her father was driving her to the station, both of whom had just come out of a too short and restless sleep. He dropped her off with a kiss on her cheek, wishing her a good day before returning home to start teleworking. She sat on the stone platform, back against the train shelter, some other people with sleepy faces standing here and there waiting for the train like her. A headache attacked Eleonor and the world seemed to waver slightly, small cracks opening up here and there. She rubbed her eyes and massaged her temples, and the illusion disappeared as if it had never existed. The rest of the journey, an hour by train and a ten minute walk to her school, went without worries. She slept through it, trying to get as much sleep as she could for her class day. She arrived in class without paying attention, her tired mind wandering, imagining various scenarii for the pen and paper rpg of which she was the game master. The day went like all Monday always go, slow, tiring but interesting when she could muster what little focus she had on the subject of the courses. A new pain had passed through her head around noon, again accompanied by the small cracks, but she did not pay attention. She preferred to talk and play with her friends, in particular she enjoyed watching Mellite draw, the way the girl was able to reproduce human bodies was fascinating, and in addition they had the same preferences when it came to their styles of boys and girls, even using coded language to be able to talk about the people they were watching in public. The week passed quietly, in the evening she played Monster Hunter World with Mikael, or Lol with ¡°¨¦''?jk! ¨¨kkERROR¡±! ?m¨´:/%, sometimes she chatted with Mellite, the girl sharing her screen to show her current drawing to Eleonor, who watched her draw while relaxing with a cup of hot chocolate or tea. On Friday, as she walked into the Nord Station to return home, her eyes lowered on her tablet, focused on the new chapter that her favorite author had just published, and she bumped into someone. ¡°Fuck !¡± She screamed while doing an acrobatic arm movement to catch her tablet before it touched the ground, not again. She managed to save it from this tragic fate in extremis and turned around while frowning angrily, ready to yell at the moron who had bumped into her. Suddenly, a hand grabbed her shoulder firmly and she found herself face-to-face with a woman with an ethereal blue face. Wake up ! She screamed while whispering, her mouth not moving. Eleanor blinked, and she was gone. She felt a new attack of headaches looming on the horizon, and she hurried to join her platform so as not to miss her train, quickly forgetting the incident. The world, however, seemed a little more foreign than usual, the colors, sounds, smells strangely shifted¡­ *** The world was getting more and more grey, she felt like she was living the same few days in loop without learning anything new, without discovering new things in her games, without seeing new drawings or new stories. Without knowing why, she had been experiencing severe headaches for several weeks now, sometimes with pain in her hands, eyes or shoulder. She had gone to see a doctor, but he had found nothing to explain the condition of the young woman. Evilyn had tried to cheer her up by making a raclette with everyone in her apartment, but it had only brightened Eleonor for a time, her condition returning quickly to its previous state, or even worse. One evening when she was returning home, the shadows became thicker than usual, without her realizing it, too busy contemplating the stars filling the clear sky. She looked down when she heard a noise coming from the road, and froze when a colossal creature with a blurry outline blocked her way. A pain then burst into her left shoulder, pulling her out of her stupor, and she began to run, feeling the blood flowing along her arm and body. She called for help while she was fleeing, but no one seemed to respond to her call, and she finally arrived home breathless and weakened by the loss of blood. She had to try and do it three times before successfully opening the door of the house with her shaking hands, rushing inside by closing the door with a slam that resounded throughout the house. She locked the door and dragged herself to the dining room, where her father was already making her little sister and her little brother eat, where she collapsed. *** She opens her eyes before the anxious gaze of her family, flickering her eyes, still weak. ¡°My God, Ele, are you okay ? How do you feel ?¡± ¡°S-something attacked me ! Argh !¡± She said while painfully holding her bleeding shoulder. ¡°Oh God I¡¯m still bleeding¡­.ffff¡­ when is the...ffff¡­ the ambulance coming ? I need something to make a tourniquet, anything !¡± She said, hysterical and breathless. Her family, however, looked at her strangely, their eyes filled with worry. ¡°But my dear, you¡¯re not bleeding.¡± Her father said in an incredulous tone, showing the shoulder she held like a maniac. She lowered her eyes again and realized that there was no blood, she felt only a piercing pain where her hand was placed. Her breathing became even more chaotic, Eleonor panicking even more as her mind mixed reality and fantasy. She then felt surrounded by powerful arms, those of her father hugging her, and two smaller pairs, her brothers and sisters following the example by sticking to her to try and reassure her. A few minutes passed before her breathing calmed down, and they sat down again so that she could eat something, even if the atmosphere was heavy¡­ *** In the weeks that followed, crises became more frequent. As soon as she left home, she ran the risk of being attacked by one or another nightmare creature, getting hurt in the shoulder, eating her hands, piercing her body, tearing her eyes, before someone, a stranger or someone close to her, could get her out of those waking nightmares, most of the time finding her curled up in a ball in a corner, crying. She remained more and more cloistered in her room, closing herself in, fearing the outside world and the pain it could brought her. She stopped going to school, talked to her friends only by Discord, no longer took classes and tried to forget by watching anime on anime, reading manga on manga and novel on novel, playing game on game. From time to time the world seemed to crack and she sometimes saw the ghostly face that asked her to wake up, but she classified these things in the same category as the chimeras of which she was victim. Her father had tried to get her out, to take her to a doctor and a psychologist to help her, but she refused to come out, hiding in her room of which she had locked the door. Finally, she had to be forcibly taken to a psychiatric hospital, the world around her filled with shadows so dense that they were palpable, monster looming in them, ready to tear her apart. Said a voice she nearly recognized... 13 - Little lesson of History ; Reborn through Pain Chapter 13 Mellite By 2035, the world could finally catch its breath. The previous years had been rough, humanity caught in a vice between the natural disasters it had created and its own self-destructive tendencies. A Third World War had almost broken out in 2029 and it was only thanks to the diplomatic and economic intervention of the Sl¨¦n¨¦an Federation (Sl¨¦n¨¦ is one of the continents) that it had been avoided. Between 2020 and 2035, much progress had been made in the fight against climate change, in particular through the invention of a material that transformed atmospheric carbon into graphite by being exposed to the sun. The creation of bio-regenerating metals in 2006 had enabled the implementation of many plans previously considered to be science fiction. Wind fields repairing themselves bloomed all over the world, allowing the production of clean and cheap energy and, coupled with the staggering discovery of room temperature¡¯s superconductor in 2019, the world lit up in green. Several large organizations and eccentric billionaires gathered to purge the oceans of their plastic bulk cluttering them, and oil was reserved for the production of recyclable polymers rather than burned as a source of energy. The price of black gold underwent a free-fall, many countries having based their economies on it went through an uncertain economic phase. The most visionary of them had redeemed the debts of great industrial countries, the less wise saw their own country descending into the fire and blood of civil wars, quickly limited by the timely interventions of the Schrodengeir Alliance. All these discoveries and inventions were the result of the scientists of the Project Revelation, a secret military-industrial R&D structure composed of many of the most lucrative industries and businesses in the world, which were in fact facades so that things like Human Rights or the Itina Convention did not hinder the march of progress. What could have been ten thousand human beings sacrificed as a test subject ? They had invented a cheap, easily craftable and minimally invasive treatment to AIDS. 700,000 people a year who would no longer die. They created all the wonders that allowed this world to exist. And then, in 2035, everything collapsed. Information about the incident was scarce and difficult to find but, of what could be reconstructed, a prominent Revelation scientist whose only known alias, Nero, had attempted to destroy humanity through a virus created specifically for this purpose. His plan, however, was revealed and stopped before it was fully implemented, but the damages were already done. The virus was difficult to detect, had a long incubation time during which the carrier was extremely contagious, and once killed it would rebuilt the infected body to turn it into the most effective vector of spread possible. From thread to needle, this catastrophe turned into a zombie apocalypse. Revelation lost most of its cells but managed to save some country, transforming cities into fortresses, automating agricultural production, using drones and their new power armor to secure resources and strategic positions. The population has declined over time, due to lack of resources, births, and the majority of humans now lived in fortified cities or research complexes. The various technologies that were supposed to lead to a better world were barely enough to make humanity survive. Fift¡­ ¡°Wait, there¡¯s something I don¡¯t understand.¡± Said Mellite, interrupting Captain Sirgan¡¯s loooong monologue. ¡°How, exactly, did you stop the spread of a virus from wich being within five metres of a carrier was enough to be infected by air ?¡± John took two seconds to reflect on his answer, not bothered at all by the untimely interruption of the young woman. He was sitting on one of the sofas, Rahato next to him and the two young women on the other sofa, Syphonie yawning slightly in front of this most basic history course for her. ¡°Shoot down planes, burn cities, bomb transport infrastructure, quarantine entire areas, develop an effective and efficient test to screen patients.¡± Rahato replied instead of the Captain. ¡°Put on masks like yours on as many people as possible. And luck, a lot of luck actually. Just as the rate of infection peaked, a series of natural disasters destroyed several major hordes, creating large No Man¡¯s Land, giving us time to reorganize and survive.¡± ¡°Luck, logic, and no mercy. At least it worked, huh ?¡± M¨¦llit¨¦ commented. ¡°And so it has been 54 years since humanity survived like this?¡± She then asked, pointing to the place of the hand. ¡°The stations are quite new, this one has only been operational for two years, but yes, that¡¯s right.¡± Sirgan replied, his voice then gave way to a long silence that filled the room. ¡°I must admit that it¡¯s hard to swallow, this story.¡± Finally said Mellite, breaking the screed of silence that weighed on them with her voice filtered by the mask. ¡°I can only imagine the confusion you¡¯re in right now, and I¡¯m very sorry.¡± The Captain replied with a nod. ¡°But I thank you for saving my niece, no matter what method you used. At least she is alive.¡± He added while reaching out to Mellite, who shook his hand. ¡°Well, having done that, I will have to leave you, the Captain¡¯s duty I am very sorry. ¡°He ended with a certain sadness on his face as he held Syphonie again in his arms, then exiting the room. ¡°Perfect, we can finally get to serious business.¡± Rahato said while rubbing her hands. ¡°Come on, we¡¯ll go to my place to continue our discussion, find out what we¡¯re going to do with you.¡± She continued looking at the two young women with a mix of interest and apprehension. *** The room was spacious but the mess and filth made it look very small. Dirty clothes were dragging around, drawings were lining the walls and balls of paper were cluttering the floor, and the only sofa looked like a battlefield, many cushions and blankets stacked and tangled on it. Rahato pushed them without ceremony, throwing everything on the ground to make room for everyone. ¡°Sit down, I¡¯ll be there in a minute. Something to drink ?¡± ¡°Water.¡± Simply replied M¨¦llit¨¦. ¡°Coffee ?¡± Syphony asked with hope. ¡°... Okay. But just this time. This shit is expensive.¡± Grumbled the doctor, going into what seemed to be the kitchen, coming back a few minutes later with two cups and a glass in her hands, which she put in front of them. ¡°Great, we¡¯ll finally have time to discuss your condition.¡± Mellite took her glass of water while the doctor spoke and tried to bring it to her mouth, spilling a little water when it bumped on her mask. Syphony, who was making the same mistake, stopped just in time when her partner got a little wet. ¡°Ha yes, sorry. Let¡¯s start at the beginning. You can open the front of the mask by pressing a button there.¡± She pointed to the mask of M¨¦llit¨¦, who opened it. ¡°There is a membrane inside that allows liquids and solids to pass through while sanitizing them.¡± She demonstrated to the two young women by showing them each on the other¡¯s mask. ¡°Don¡¯t do anything stupid with it, try to avoid spitting something out, etc¡­Okay?¡± ¡°Understood.¡± ¡°Yep!¡± ¡°Now, about your infection¡­¡± Eleonor She was tied to some kind of chair, straps that she assumed of leather around her arms, her legs, her head. She assumed because she was in the dark, unable to see anything. She began to struggle and the pain grew in her as the leather ties stretched. Unable to bear it, she released her effort, her body returning to its original position. ¡°Help !¡± She screamed, hearing her voice bounce off the walls of the room. ¡°Can anyone hear me ? Get me out of here !¡± She yelled again. She then heard a person enter the room, the footsteps approaching her. ¡°Who is there ?¡± She asked the unknown person. ''Shhht.'' she heard whispering in her ear, before feeling a needle penetrate the skin of one of her arms. The pain startled her and she began to struggle, but the pain that her bonds made her feel made her stop very quickly, she even felt gently invaded by a feeling of sweet euphoria that calmed her. A gaping smile drew on her face and she stopped moving, resting peacefully in this little dark room, doing nothing but enjoying the addictive sensation. Sanakan WhAt DId yOu dO To IT, crEAtuRe ! Roared the dragon, crushing the blue ghost with all the mass of its mind. Sanakan repelled it powerfully. I didn¡¯t do anything to her ! She screamed back before feeling strangled. I shoUlD DeStroY yOU hErE aNd nOw, yOu pARAsitE ! It said by grabbing her with one of its paw, the Matriarch¡¯s legs hanging in the void as he brought her up to its head. Around them, the spiritual world of Eleanor was even darker than usual, massive shadows filled the sky, moving in swarms like flights of starlings. The ash-covered soil slowly turned into a swamp, fetid water engulfing the spiritual landscape while a smell of putrefaction was increasingly permeating the atmosphere. The dragon contemplated the spectre for a few seconds before forcing itself to calm down. So It iS nOt yOU WhO doeS tHIs tO IT ? It asked her, question to which she replied, shaking her head negatively. W-why w-would I d-do that ? I w-would be t-trapped in h-here with her ! It released her and she fell to the ground, creating a wave on the growing swamp, placing its paw not far from her and lowered its head to look at her. EXPLAINS. It asked her in an unfriendly tone, pointing to the landscape with a movement of its head. She lowered her face to look at the ground, touching it with one hand before she began to float out of the ash that slowly but surely tried to swallow and drown her.Unauthorized use: this story is on Amazon without permission from the author. Report any sightings. I-I¡¯m not sure. I have to check something. She said, before she crossed her legs and closed her eyes, or whatever she had that worked like eyes. I think ¡­ I think she¡¯s trying to protect herself. She ended up saying, the dragon pushing her with a grunti to continue her explanation. H-her spirit had until now dealt with a number of memories and reaction by isolating them to allow her to survive. It would seem that this isolation ended and that she was not ready to withstand it. Her mind built a kind of mental castle in which he took refuge, an illusion so she didn¡¯t have to manage reality. We had training to make sure we wouldn¡¯t do that. But she don¡¯t. ImpOsSiblE. Rebuked the dragon. Normally, yes. I don¡¯t know what species she belongs to, but she shouldn¡¯t be able to do that kind of thing, not to that extent. But something changes that. WhAT ? He asked, still very dry. Me. She replied before raising her hands and rushing to continue. Not me directly ! I¡¯m talking about the network that was woven when she accepted me into her. She then projected a representation of Eleonore¡¯s body. When the Xeark crystal exploded, in the Purifier, her body was riddled with shards and splinters. That¡¯s one of the reasons I got into her. The crystals naturally reacted to my mind and created a psionic network to accept me, but the network is also linked to the spirit of my Host. That¡¯s why she manages to create such an illusion, she exploits the power of the Xeark network ! ... hOw loNG iS IT gOnNa stAy lIkE tHIs ? Indefinitely. Sanakan replied, concerned. No. iT wOn¡¯T dO. I¡¯lL noT dIrECtly lOse tHE fIrSt bEIng iN 500 YEARS wiTH whIcH I cOuLd HaVE A discussion of mOrE tHaN thrEE SENtenCeS ! WhAt dO WE hAvE tO dO To wAKe iT uP ? I don¡¯t know. I do have an idea, but I fear it may, well, it may change her, I don¡¯t know in what state she will be when she will finally free herself. It¡¯s gonna depend on her. LET¡¯s dO iT ThEn ! Eleonor She was warm and safe. Fed when she was hungry, made drink when she was thirsty, she had to do nothing, except to enjoy the bliss in which she floated all the time. She didn¡¯t think, she didn¡¯t reflect, she didn¡¯t remember, she was like an apathetic mollusc. The only thing that could possibly disturb her was the pain that her bonds made her feel when she moved unintentionally, which happened less and less often. She was very happy. Happy ? Yes, happy. She had not to do anything, she did not care about anything, she cherished nothing, she mourned nothing, she was an empty shell that was periodically filled with pleasure and happiness. That¡¯s not living ! It¡¯s slowly committing suicide ! Nonsense, it was the optimum of life, without regret, without suffering. Without being you hold dear! Without anyone to love you ! Without anyone to cherish ! This is not being alive, that¡¯s being dead ! This thought deeply disturbed her. She, dead ? It awakened something in her, something deeply buried. Yet she felt alive, so why did it bother her so much ? Life is suffering, if you suffer it is that you are alive ! If you act it is that you are living ! If you doubt it is that you exist ! I doubt therefore I am. It echoed, awakened some memory. But she felt so good here. Is this how you want to stay until the end ? Like a rock, like a stone ? Alive and yet dead ? ... No. Did she think for the first time in an eternity. No, I don¡¯t want to end up like that. She thought a little louder. I want to survive¡­ to live. Then release yourself from your chains ! Screamed the voice in her head. She began to struggle harder and harder, but her bonds hurt her more and more until the pain was unbearable. I can¡¯t. It¡¯s too painful ! Scream Eleonore while crying, letting her sore limbs fall back. Suffering is life ! Struggle, bite, punch, claw, scream and suffer ! Prove that you exist, that you are alive ! Said the voice, inflaming the young woman¡¯s heart. She then began to pull more and more on her bonds, feeling the pain flowing in her, impregnating her, breaking her. Further ! More ! Screamed the voice when she felt the flame of the young woman flickering in her heart. Accept pain ! Suffering is living ! Make it a strength, draw upon it ! More and more she was pulling on leather, further and further, harder and harder . Feed upon it, channel it ! She was but a great mass of agony, of suffering, of pain, as if she exists only to be tortured. And she felt alive, she was alive beyond anything she had ever known. The euphoria, the pleasure and the suffering mingled in a core of inexhaustible energy that sent its strength into each of the members of Eleonor. I am alive ! Yes ! YES ! HAHAHAHAHA! !! She roared feeling alive, accepting pain and embracing it like an old lover, her manic laugh seeming to take more and more place like an explosion locked in a bubble whose walls were cracking, showing signs of weakness. "CLAC!" The noise of the leather that was torn covered all the other sounds and, in the depths of Eleonor¡¯s soul, something broke. F¨¹rss?hfen He had withdrawn from the mind of the little thing so that the parasite inhabiting it could do her service. After four or five hours, not noticing any major change, it had taken the interesting creature to a corner of its lair. There was a large basin with water like crystal clear and green like emerald, and masses of tentacles were lining its bottom. It slipped the unconscious body into the liquid and ordered the hatching pool to take care of the thing. One day passed. Then two. Then three. The pond decided to place the creature in an egg, the most optimal form for it to take care of the strange little creature. It had placed it in a fetal position, tentacles covering it completely as a protective layer, penetrating each of its orifices in order to be able to control the condition of its body, coating the whole thing with a layer of hardened chitin, and replacing it right in the center, in its deepest part, dedicated to keeping the youngest eggs. From time to time, F¨¹rss?hfen touched the mind of the little thing, each time almost stunned by the amount of pain that such a weak contact could already transmit to its mind. IF EVen I feel that, wiTH MY HigH leVel Pain Reduction aNd Mental Resistance, iT mUst bE heLL fOr IT iN tHeRe. He thought with a slight shiver. It looked at the little thing carefully, checking its sheet. [Eleo?nor?] [Level : 12 (92%) Available Key Points : 11] [Ressources : [Body : 5] [Mind : 1] [Soul : 1] [Natural Armor: 4] [Natural weapons: Fangs: strength*1 damage (25), anti-armor 2 Feet and fists: strength*2 damage (50), anti-armor 1] [Capacity : |Abyss Eyes : Your eyes are used to hunt in the most outlandish environments. Darkness and obscurity are of no avail on you, and the enemies¡¯ motions are more and more predictable the longer you fight with them. Beware, you can still be surprised.| |Black Hook : black tentacles can come out of your arms at will, able to project themself up to ten meters and to anchor themself into most surface. Taken as a whole, tentacle of one arm are able to carry your own weight. If a tentacle is severed, it take fifteen minute for it to regen itself. If all the tentacles of an arms are severed in one go, it took a day to regen themselfs. Regeneration only work if the user is sated. Note : evolutionary paths are availables for this ability. You can discover them by fulfilling secret conditions, and then unlock them by following the instruction coupled with them.| |Armoured storage bags : You¡¯ve developed extensible bags useful to stock food or interesting items. Internal armour have been added to mitigate their relative weakness, canceling their Weakpoint status. Each bag can stock up to one hundred litre of objects. However, be careful to the weight, if you carry to much you will be impaired in your moves or, worst, the bags could tear apart. The whole integration slightly lower your Agility.| [Body : 5 [Mind : 1 [Soul : 1 If he had been able to lift his eyebrows, it would have done it, but the dragon was rather devoid of this unavoidable fashion accessory. I dON¡¯t kNoW wHat IT¡¯s DOing iN tHEre tO mAkE tHe syStem giVE IT sO mUcH exPeRiEnCe, BuT I WoUlDn¡¯T TaKe itS plAcE. He thought before he went back to sleep. The days passed, one week, then two, the dragon drowsing as usual when he was not hunting, thus avoiding long and boring days spent doing nothing. ¡°Crac¡­¡± And in the middle of the third week, a small noise had disturbed the calm of the cave. Awakened by the sound, F¨¹rss?hfen opened an eye that then contemplated an incongruous spectacle: in the middle of the basin, a pillar of green tentacles was erected, supporting a black egg four or five meters from the surface. And, on the egg, a long crack could be distinguished, perfectly visible from the violet neon-like light pouring out from it. One by one, other cracks appeared along the shell until it began to fall, revealing a humanoid body that was struggling. It was at this moment that the dragon could hear the laughter, a piercing and powerful laugh, which some would have qualified of crazy, maniac, a laugh which took up space like an expanding gas. The creature was pulling harder and harder on the tentacles covering it, exuding a violet aura that was both beautiful and unholy. Around it, the world seemed to be distorting, as if reality was beginning to form a vortex around the little thing¡­ Eleonor Her bonds gave in one fell swoop and the blue world crashed on her like a wave trying to swallow her up, giving her a powerful headache. Yes! HAHAHA ! This is life ! She thought while embracing the pain that splashed on her, drinking it, absorbing it to become stronger. |Ding ! through a trial, your latent soul as slightly opened. You have acquired the passive capacity ¡°Old Soul.¡±| |Ding! You have lived a painful experience, so painful that even a God would have bent its knees, and you have freed yourself from it by the simple strength of your Soul. Now, for you, pain and pleasure are but one thing, those feelings mingling and mutually strengthening themself to make you feel alive, and for you to remain so. You have acquired the mixed capacity ¡°Pain Conversion¡±| |Old Soul : your soul is old, extremely old, it conceals a thousand and one secrets and experiences of countless and varied life. Acquisition conditions of all classes and capacities are reduced. You can now learn things that only your Soul can provide.| |Conversion of Pain: you have learned to accept pain, to use it to nourish yourself, and something inside your soul was awakened . From now on, any source of pain will produce identical pleasure, and any source of pleasure will produce identical pain, in intensity, type and feeling. Pain and pleasure make you feel alive, and make you want to stay that way. Feeling these emotions gives you a bonus proportional to their intensity, minimum 0, no maximum. Current bonus: Key characteristics * 2,068 - Regeneration * 4,136 - Armor +1 - Damage +1 - All Resistors *1,534| bewildered by the mass of notification, the actual first time this game system reminded her of its existence, Eleonor read slowly and carefully all the information presenting themself to her, the pain and pleasure of her headache mingling to help her focus. She stood there for a while. Little OnE ? then asked the dragon, bringing Eleonor out of her reflection by imposing its head in the field of vision of the young woman. Ha. F¨¹rss?hfen, I am glad to see you ! She said to him by thought, smiling and energetic. ArE YOU all riGHt ? Yes, yes, don¡¯t worry. I have a couple of questions, though, okay ? Of coURsE, I¡¯M noT goNNa sPIt oN A CoNvErSaTIOn AfTer AlL, Ha ! aND ThEn YoU CaN TAlK tO ME AbOuT WhAT HappEnEd In YoUr HeAd. Yep ! 14 - Newfound strength and knowledge ; cold and hot talk Chapter 14 Eleonor She sat on the platform created by the interlacing green tentacles, enjoying the smells that the air brought, inspiring and exhaling slowly. She appreciated the texture of the soil under her feet, sticky and viscous as she appreciated it, the pain nestled in her head making her feel everything stronger, as if the world were more concrete, more colorful. Although talking about color may be a bit paradoxical at the moment. She thought, smiling, the world being to her for now in a blue hue. Little one ? She rose to stretch, taking advantage of the mixture of pain and pleasure that her tetanized muscles provided as she relaxed them with strength, her body shivering a little while waves of addictive sensations ran through each of her fibers. LITTLE ONE ! She startled and again focused her attention on the dragon in front of her. Oh, I¡¯m sorry. I got lost in my thoughts again ? YeS. Sorry, I gained a new ability and I still have to get used to its effects. She apologized. A nEw aBiliTy ? Asked the dragon. She smiled when she saw the curiosity in the dragon¡¯s eyes and explained to him in broad strokes what she had been through, what she remembered anyway, her memory of the rather vague nightmares rather blurry in the end. IntErEstiNg. ThAt¡¯s proBAblY wHy ThE SyStem gAvE YOU sO mUcH EXperIeNce. Said the dragon shaking his head, more to himself than to the young woman. What do you mean ? She asked, frowning. HAVEn¡¯t YOU lOokEd aT yoUr SheEt YeT ? He retorted by lowering his head to its level, looking straight into her eyes, where they should have been at least, and exhaled through the nostrils, making Eleonore¡¯s sprawling hair fly behind his shoulders. YOU ShOuLd TakE A lOok At iT. He said, winking at her, with a big smile on his face. O-ok. Character sheet ? [Eleo?nor?] [Level : 37 (3%) Available Key Points : 36] [Ressources : [Body : 5] [Mind : 1] [Soul : 1] [Natural Armor: 4 ] [Natural weapons: Fangs: strength*1 damage (25), pierce-armor 2 Feet and fists: strength*1 damage (25), pierce-armor 1] [Capacity : Looks like I took 36 levels. ExTrAoRDinAry, nO ? Said the dragon with enthusiasm. Ermm. Perhaps ? She answered with uncertainty. ...sO liTTle EnThusiAsm ? Well, I have to say that since I don¡¯t know what that means, it¡¯s hard to be happy about it. I mean, it must be nice, but I don¡¯t have a reference to compare. ThErE wAs nO sYstEm In yOuR WoRld Of OrIgiN ? Then asked the dragon, curious. No. ...InTerEsTing, sO YOU¡¯rE ToTaLly IgnOrAnt Of tHe wAyS Of tHe sYsteM ? She shrugged as she sat down. Well, not quite yet. In my world, some games used this kind of system, so I see more or less what everything means, it¡¯s just that they never existed for real so I don¡¯t know what it means to have like, 300 strength for exemple. Um¡­ OkAy, YOU¡¯rE GoInG To nEeD A liTTle BiT Of EduCatIon. SiT DoWn, It¡¯S GoiNg To bE lOnG aNd bOrIng. *** The explanation took some time, covering the notion of Key and derived characteristics, classes, modifiers and abilities. And so 36 more levels is a lot if I understand correctly. Thought finally Eleonore. Indeed. MaNy InHEriTors NevEr ReaCh ThIs LevEl, DuE To LacK Of rISk AnD AcTions. MONstErs And MYTHS, On ThE OthEr Hand, tEnD To EasilY ExcEEd ThIs LevEl, BecaUse oF thE conStanT fight between ThEM Or JuSt BeCausE ThEy TrY tO SurVIve ThEIr EnviRonmENt. ForTUnatEly, ThE MoNSTeRs DoN¡¯t UsE IteMs, OtheRwiSe ThE InHEriTors WouLd Be DeStroYed QuItE QuIcklY, I ThInK. Ermm. I¡¯m new here I just remind you. Said Eleanor moving his hands to get the dragon¡¯s attention. Ha ? Oh YeS, SorrY. WhAt DiDn¡¯t YOU UndErsTanD ? The things about of Myths and InHEriTors. Ho, it¡¯s PrEttY SiMplE. ThE InHEriTors ArE ThE SenTienT HuManoids WhO RelY As MuCh On ThEir IntElligEnce As On PoWer To SurvIve, FoR ExAmpLe By CreAtinG TooLs Or WeApons. HuManS ArE InHEriTors , As DwArveS, OrCs, ElveS AnD mAnY oThErs¡­ Myths aRE AlL CrEatUres Of NoBle SenTieNt LiNeaGe tHaT HaRneSS ThEir InNer PoWer, ThE PoWeR Of ThEir BlOOD AnD HeriTage, To DoMinAte, LikE ME. ApArt FrOm DrAgonS, ThEre Are AlSo, FoR ExAmple, PhoEnIx, LeviAthAns, AnD EveN BeHemoThs. MonSters ArE AlL ThOse WhO Are nOt SenTienT EnouGh, PoWerFul, IntelligEnt Or All ThRee ThAt tO BeLongS To OnE Of ThE FirSt CaTegoRies, HoWever It Is NoT Impossible ThAt A MonSter RacE ManAgeS To AscEnd InTo One Of ThE tWo oTherS. ThE OrcS Are A PreTty GoOD ExaMplE, Even If ThEir Case Is A lIttLe SpeCial SinCe It Is ThEir SymbIoTic RelAtionShip WiTh ThE GoblIns ThAt Led TheM To CrEate A CulTure AnD A CiviliZatIon. gOT It ? ¨¦l¨¦onore nodded affirmatively, the classification being quite simple. And so I am an Inheritor since I am human, is that right ? She asked him to know if she understood correctly. F¨¹rss?hfen gave her a strange look, a mix of incomprehension and skepticism as he frowned with his nonexistent brows. HuMan,YOU ? No, nO siLLy, I DoN¡¯t KnOw ExaCtlY WhaT YoU Are BuT YOU¡¯rE CleaRly NoT HumAn, mOre LikeLy A Myth I would say. YOU¡¯rE wAY ToO IntrInsically PowErful AnD ToO DiffErenT, ForeIgN, To EvEn reMoteLy Be HuMan. A silence followed this statement. Not human¡­ Thought Eleanor for herself, looking down at her hands covered with chitines, long claws at the tips of her fingers, her gaze running down her body, admiring her chest covered with black armor, seeing one of her tentacles that served as her hair sway in front of her head. She looked at her dark, supple and resistant leather that was her skin, her sturdy and clawy feet, her powerful musculature. Not human anymore¡­ Indeed. I must get used to it, even if deep down I remain the same. She said to herself with a smile that was both sad and full of hope. And old habits are hard to lose. She thought, realizing that she had moved her head to look at herself even if she only needed to focus on details to see them more clearly than the rest of the sphere around her. Well, what do I do now with the points to hand out ? IT DepEnds On wHat YOU WanT To BecOme, Which ClaSses YOU WaNt To AcqUiRe, ThAt KinD Of ThInGs. IF YOU WaNt To BeCome A WarrIor, InvEst IN BodY. FoR A MaGE, InveST In MinD AnD FoR All That Is PrieSthOod or InHeriTor IntEraCtions GoEs RaTheR ToWARds SoUl. HoWeVer ThIS Is BuT ThE OutLine, ThEre ArE lots oF hybRid clAsses Out theRe. HoWeVer, I ThiNk ThAt FoR ThE MomEnts YOU ShouLd tHe mAjoritY oF yoUr poInt into Body, tO IncRease YoUr Hp, YoUr StAmina AnD YoUr ArmoR. IT¡¯s BettEr ThIs wAy iF YOU HOpE To SurviVe AlOnE ArOuND HeRe, AnD I DoN''t ThInk YOU WAnT To DiE. In AddItion, YoUr MoDIfiERs NaTurallY PuSh YOU ToWarDs A SpeCiaLIzatIon In BodY. Ha ? Ah yes, indeed. She said to herself looking again at her Body score and associated characteristics. [Body : 5 Stolen from Royal Road, this story should be reported if encountered on Amazon. By the way, why are my modifiers so high from the start ? She asked, remembering what the dragon had told her about them. It MusT Be A rAcial ModiFier. It¡¯S QuiTe NorMal tO HaVe SoMe DerIved ChaRacterIstics FaVoreD By YoUr RaCe, In FaCt HuMans Are AlMost An eXception To ThE RuLe By HavIng A rAcial MoD. oF onLy 1. BuT, WeLL, They¡¯rE GaiNing ClAss LEveLs FasTer To CounTerBalanCe ThAt, So I gUeSs ThAt¡¯s someHow BalAnced, mAyBe. For YoUr InForMatIon, ClAss and RacE ModiFiers MultiPly onE anoTher, They¡¯rE not additive. ThAt¡¯s WhY YOU¡¯ll SeE tHat MosT eLvEs aRe UsiNg mAgic, EvEn onLy ParTiaLLy, BeCausE ThEy StarT WitH A 10 aS thEir MagIc AffIniTY MoDifier. He conscientiously explained to her. Okay, good to know. She shrugged back. She then pressed on her Characteristic Points counter, as the dragon had taught her, then on Body. |Invest points in Body? Yes/No.| She pressed yes. |Enter a number: __ | 36. |Are you sure you want to invest 36 points in Body? Yes/No.| She pressed yes, and a dazzling pain passed through her body, the young woman letting herself down, overwhelmed by the ecstasy and the feeling of life that it gave her. HeY LittLe oNe, YOU¡¯Re noT goinG tO fAint Again, Are YOU ? No, don¡¯t worry. But you could have warned me that investing points did hurt. WhAt ? DiD YOU JuSt UsE YoUr PoiNts ? Yes, why ? HoW mAnY ? He asked without answering her question. Ermmm¡­ All of them ? Tsss! I ForGeT YOU¡¯rE NoT FroM HeRe, It¡¯S MY FAulT. NeXt TimE, InveSt tHem GrAduAlly, So YOU Can AdApt To ThE ChAnges. EveN If The OpportuNities To InveSt So ManY PoinTs Will lIkeLy No lOngEr AppeAr, BuT sTay CareFul, It Can Be dAngeRous To dO whaT YOU¡¯Ve dOne, EsPeciaLLy WitH MiNd And Soul. UndErsTOod ? All right, sorry. NO, nO, It¡¯S My FaUlt, I DidN¡¯t ExplaiN iT prOpErLy to YOU, just PaY att... He was, however, interrupted in his warning when Eleonor tried to get up by using her arms, pushing in one go to get back on her feet and flew several metres, falling into the basin filled by emerald water. ¡°Plouf!¡± Ouch ! She thought with pleasure when she collided against the bottom of the hatching pond, trying by reflex to get the head out of the water and jumping again several meters away before sliding against the ground of the cave. Stop moving ! Said F¨¹rss?hfen strongly to try and stop the young woman, successfully. What is happening to me ? She asked with confusion. GoOd QuesTion, YOU JuSt PuT 36 PoiNts In BodY, ThaT¡¯s WhAt¡¯s HappeNing To YOU ! Check your strength you idiot ! She did not like the tone the dragon had used but did not take umbrage, preferring to do what he had asked. [Body :41 Wow. IndEed WoW, YoUR Strength Has MoRe ThAn EigHtFolDeD ! ThAt¡¯S WhY YOU¡¯re SuppOsEd To InveSt YoUr PoIntS GrAduAlly. I GuEss ThAt At LeAsT now YOU knOw Why. NoW TrY To GeT Up SlOwLy, ReAllY SlOwLy. So she did as asked, moving her arms and legs with as little force and speed as possible. She got up quite quickly, her body seemingly weighting nothing. It feels really weird. YOU¡¯ll GEt uSeD tO It. The AdVanTagE YOU hAve iS ThAt YoUr ReSiStance ShOulD IncrEase MoRe Or LeSs In tHe sAme wAy as your strength dOeS since yOur ConStituTion Mod Is tHe sAme foR boTh of TheM. EvEn If yOu CrAsH YoUrSelF AgAiNsT ThE GroUnd It ShouLdN¡¯T bE A pRoBlEm lIke ThiS. Walk A BIT To TrAin, TrYiNg To StAy On ThE GrOunD If PossIble. She nodded and began to move gently. The first few steps were clearly not very successful, Eleonor jumping almost every time she tried to pass from one leg to another, putting too much force in her movement. After about ten minutes, however, she began to take the fold, and after half an hour she knew more or less how to walk normally. Happy, she clenched her fist and jumped on the spot, forgetting for a moment her strength, and made a jump of several meters which surprised her. YeS, ThErE¡¯s StIll WoRk. Said F¨¹rss?hfen mentally, more to himself than to anyone else. Despite the unpleasant comment, the young woman who landed on her buttocks smiled, looking at her character card. [Eleo?nor?] [Level : 37 (3%) Available Key Points : 0] [Ressources : [Body : 41] [Mind : 1] [Soul : 1] [Natural Armor: 22 (20,5 +1,5) ] [Natural weapons: Fangs: strength*1 damage (205), pierce-armor 2 Feet and fists: strength*2 damage (410), pierce-armor 1] [Capacity : Yes, she was smiling. I think I can deal with that, yes. She thought will picturing herself fighting something with this new force. Maybe I can even start chasing things back to Genesis. She thought, already having a relatively concrete goal in mind. Mellite ¡°Click.¡± Made the button that Rahato had pressed. ¡°Well, that way we¡¯ll be quiet, even if there are snitches around.¡± she exclaimed in a satisfied tone. ¡°You should keep what I¡¯m about to tell you for yourself if you don¡¯t want to be locked up as a lab guinea pig for the rest of your life.¡± She said, the smile on her face having disappeared in favor of an arid and cold seriousness. ¡°You.¡± She pointed at Mellite. ¡°It is very likely that you were one of Nero¡¯s main experimental subjects. I found traces of biomedical techniques that are only relate to his experiments. If it were up to me, you¡¯d already be in a stasis tank, ready to be autopsied alive and undergo any test I¡¯d consider necessary. However, I cannot do this without reserving the same fate for my dear Syphony, so I¡¯m forced to protect you too. If she dies, I¡¯ll make your life a living hell.¡± She said with the cold eyes of a professional killer. Mellite swallowed with difficulty, intimidated and even a little scared by the doctor in front of her. ¡°I agree.¡± She finally managed to say, her voice slightly shaking. ¡°Good. The virus that infects you is a modified and very advanced version of the RV-a1 that was created not to fight the host but to live in symbiosis with it. For what reason, I don¡¯t know. The majority of my analyses are either not conclusive or not complete, I have only vague results and some speculation to give an element of answer. From what I have seen, the virus gives an improved regeneration capability, and also increases the host¡¯s stamina. From now on you¡¯ll have to live together, I don¡¯t want you to be apart, it could create problems since your two virus colony seems to be linked in a way I don¡¯t understand. I¡¯m gonna pull some strings so this incident gets under the rug, and Syphony¡¯s gonna go back to the garrison she belongs to, Silden¡¯s garrison. You will follow her there and Syphony will take care of your military formation and training so that you can join her unit. Well, it¡¯s a good thing a seat was vacated a few days ago. I will transit to my secondary laboratory in Silden, and at least one day a week you will be joining me there so that I can continue to test you, to find out how far this new strain of RV-a1 can take us. Meanwhile tries not to get too much attention, with your increased abilities it could stand out even amongst optimized soldiers. You will leave tomorrow morning in a space shuttle and be dropped into atmospheric reentry pods. Syphony, I think you¡¯ve already done that, haven¡¯t you?¡± The concerned person nodded, not daring to interrupt the doctor launched like a train full steam, a cold and bloody train. ¡°Perfect. You have the rest of the day to explain the maneuver to Mellite.¡± ¡°Click.¡± She had pushed again on the button supposed to prevent them from being spied on, her face and tone suddenly changing. ¡°I hope you will adapt well to our way of life. Take good care of Syphony,my dear.¡± She said with a maternal smile, her hand resting on Mellite¡¯s. "Oh, Syphony, the other members of your team are worried, you¡¯ll be able to surprise them. Say hello for me, will you?" New nod of Syphony. ¡°Thank you, you¡¯re lovely. Come on, pshit pshit, I have work to do,go see somewhere else if I¡¯m there.¡± She said to them with a playful tone, the smile still stuck on her face. Syphony got up immediately, dragging a Mellite still so much in shock that she did not begin to walk until after her mate almost made her fall, making up for it by using Syphony¡¯s arm. *** "What was that?" ¡°We¡¯ll talk about it when we get to my cabin, alright ?¡± Syphony replied with a heavy look at Syphony. ¡°All right.¡± The silence regained its rights for one or two minutes, broken by Mellite who could no longer take it. ¡°So you¡¯re part of a team ?¡± she asked, trying to find something she could talk about in public. A small smile was painted on Syphony¡¯s face, quickly replaced by a sad expression. ¡°Yes, I have a team. I am part of the Sil-12 recon unit, with five other members. More like four, now, until you¡¯re trained.¡± ¡°Four.¡± She stopped and took the shoulder of her mate with a hand. ¡°You lost someone ?¡± she asked Syphony, looking into her eyes, now that she had stopped. ¡°The recon mission in which I saved you went wrong. Our main scout, Eric, died in an ambush by the infected.¡± She said softly. Mellite then took the young fighter in her arms, trying to console her as she could. She stayed like that for a minute or two. Syphony¡¯s head on her shoulder, not paying attention to the rare person taking a curious look at them as they passed by them. ¡°Thank you, it¡¯s better.¡± The soldier finally said, extricating herself from the embrace of her companion. ¡°There is more of it where it comes from, if you need it.¡± Mellite added, looking tenderly at Syphony, who nodded before starting again. *** They soon arrived at a door in front of which the fighter stopped, passing her wrist in front of the chip reader to open it. The room was not very large, four bunk beds embedded in the metal walls, a door leading surely to a shower on the wall opposite to the one through which they entered. ¡°It¡¯s not the height of luxury, but we¡¯re only staying for a day. You¡¯ll see, my house is better.¡± Syphony said, sitting on one of the mattress. ¡°This part is surely intended for the rest of the rotating engineers, we are quite close to the Valkyries¡¯ hangars if I remember the plans that John once showed me.¡± She added as an explanation for Mellite. Indeed. You can¡¯t afford to lose space in a space station. She said to herself while shaking her head and shuckling. ¡°Valkyries ?¡± she asked Syphony. ¡°Modular combat robots, like heavy air support, that sort of thing. I admit I don¡¯t really know much about the field, I¡¯m not a pilot, sorry.¡± She replied by rubbing her head, embarrassed that she could give only this amount of meagre information to her companion. ¡°Don¡¯t worry, I¡¯ll have time to search and learn about the objects of my curiosity.¡± Mellite answered soothingly, before taking Syphony back in her arms. The young fighter accepted with surprise, giving back her embrace to Mellite. ¡±To what do I owe the pleasure ?¡± she asked. ¡°I don¡¯t know. I think you need a hug, that¡¯s all. You try to hide it, but it shows that you are sad to have lost Eric. I don¡¯t like to see you sad, that¡¯s all.¡± replied the eighteen-year-old. They let themselves be rocked by the breath of the other for a while, until Mellite got up. ¡°Yosh ! I feel a little sluggish and tense, I¡¯m going to take a shower. Is that alright ?¡± she asked Syphony. ¡°Yes, go ahead, I¡¯ll have one later.¡± ¡°Perfect !¡± exclaimed Mellite, undressing in part here so as not to have to do it in the narrow space of the bathroom. Just in bra and panties, she turned to Syphony. ¡°And if you want to join me in the shower, you can.¡± She said with a suggestive smile while winking at her mate who began to blush and turn red like a rising sun. She finished undressing and began to run water along her body, the heat of which relaxed her when, after a few minutes, she felt a hand caressing her back. She turned, surprised, and found herself face to face with Syphony, naked, who was dominating her by her 180 cm, twenty centimeters more than herself. ¡°I received an invitation, miss. May I join you?¡± She asked in a gallant tone, what Mellite reacted to by taking her by the arm and pulling her towards herself. One could say, to describe the rest, that feats of dexterity were exchanged along all the lips of the two young women, the heat and wetness of the shower blithely competed by those of Syphony and Mellite. 15 - To prove oneself ; Two flame ; Going Black Chapter 15 Eleonor She spent one or two hours training under the tutelage of F¨¹rss?hfen, the dragon giving her sporadic advice to facilitate the use of her newly acquired strength or the point her the traps to avoid. fOr ExaMpLe, INCREAseD stRENGTh DoESn¡¯T meaN YOU¡¯re heavIer. IF YOU GraSp SoMeTHinG MASsiVE aND HoLD It FaR fRoM YOU With yoUR ArmS, YoUr Center OF gravITy WIll ShiFt towArd iT aNd, VerY StRonG oR NOT, YoU Will Fall. iF yOu haVE to, trY As mUCH AS pOSSiBLe TO KEeP ThE MAss RigHt above YouR Legs. AlSo Be CaREFuL WITH yoUR gRIP On ThE gRouND, if YOu¡¯rE nOT wEll anChoRed YoU¡¯ll sLip, EVEN If yoU¡¯re SupposEd To BE able to hAnDLE iT. Understood ! Good. What pushed her to stop was not her exhaustion or her boredom, but her curiosity. She went to sit at the edge of the basin and dipped her legs in it. The feeling was less soothing than with Genesis, but already pleasant. F¨¹rss?hfen ? YeS ? He answered, looking at Eleanor with curiosity. I¡¯ve had a question looming in my head for a while now. You see, I don¡¯t understand why you¡¯re helping me. The dragon made a sort of smirk, as if he expected the question. oh, there ARe MANy aNSwers tO THis qUEstioN, bUt i THiNk oNE Of thE MaiN ONEs woULd Be thaT You¡¯rE THe fIRSt creatUrE TO Ever ANSWEr oNE of my REQueSts foR hELP iN aNoThER wAy ThaN tryINg tO tAKE aDvANTaGe OF it to eaT mE. ANd YOU also KNOw hOw TO MAKe ConvErSatioN. iT¡¯s alReaDy A Lot ArOUNd HeRE, WHere LONeLINEss Is THe nOrm. And so you saved me, took me here and taught me because...because you feel lonely? She asked to confirm. Is THAt so IncreDIBLe ? tRy to SURviVE In THiS EnvironMenT FOr FIvE HUndREd yeARS wiThOuT Going crazy. ...Yes, okay. I see what you mean. She ended up saying, thinking what it could be if she was alone here, without even Genesis to speak. The silence took place as Eleanor made her legs wade in the clear, green water, testing the limits of her new vision. It disoriented her because every object present in her sphere of perception was entirely visible. It almost made her think of cubism art, being able to see something from all its faces at the same time, and her unsuitable mind to do it was struggling to give meaning to what her new sens was bringing her as information. And now, what do I do. Just thought Eleanor, not saying it as question nor an affirmation, having just stated this thought that was spinning in her head. ...WhAt ? The dragon replied, surprised by the young woman. I¡¯m just wondering what I¡¯m gonna do now. I mean, the situation I find myself in is both unknown and full of potential. A freedom so great that it hinders itself, and a strangeness just as great that makes us doubt everything. I don¡¯t KnOw, FoR Me It SEeMs prEtTy siMPLE. SUrvive, figHt, KILl, EAT And GEt StRonger. it¡¯S ALREady pRETTy goOD. He simply replied Of course I¡¯m gonna do that, the system, Genesis, this place, everything is way too exciting not to fight and evolve. But it¡¯s not an end in itself. I wonder what I¡¯m going to do with that, to do more than survive, to be able to live. Ah YES, seEinG aS HoW it is, It¡¯s TruE tHAt You arE nOt OBLigED TO coNfinE YourSElF TO FiGhtInG aND GaINiNG lEVeLS, YOU ArE Freer THAN Me AfTeR ALl, wHo AM cHaINeD to thIs pLacE To PRoTect iT. She nodded without really listening to her answer, too lost in her own thoughts, of which she left a few minutes later. Chained here ? You¡¯re some kind of guardian, aren¡¯t you ? YES. FoLLOw ME, I¡¯LL SHoW YOU. He replied by inviting her to come with him and, noticing her inability to follow him, asked her to climb on his head, the girl still not accustomed to her new strength, at least not yet enough to run after a dragon. *** The structure was composed of a concentric and metallic circle, placed in such a way as to create a staircase leading to a well in the center of them. The central hole was so dark that it was supernatural, and made Eleanor uneasy because her spatial vision was sendig her a strange sensation, not as if she could not see anything, no, rather as if the shadow simply devoured her perception. She clung more forcefully to one of the horns that punctuated the dragon¡¯s head, having the impression that she would be caught by the abyss otherwise. hoHo, YOU CAN FeEl it, it SeEMs. Did he notice when he felt the young woman¡¯s disarray. Is that the gate ? yEAH, iTS DOrmaNt fOr tHE TiMe Being, pUre nOthiNGneSS iN tHiS sTatE, AnY CreATuRE faLling iNsiDE woUlD bE pulVeRiZED iNto a tHiN clouD OF dusT THAT woULD tHEN bE scaTtErEd INtO the StruCtUrE OF ThE laBYriNth. luckIlY¡­ He said as he advances a leg into the void, stopped by an invisible force. ....AS lONG as tHE PoRtAL Is nOT ACTiVaTeD, A proTECTIVe ShIELd coVers iT, to AVOiD AccIDENtS. In a rather funny way, Eleonor had tried to close her eyes by reflex, remembering a second later that she was not capable of it, and that her spherical vision seemed not to be able to be turned off. YOU Know, TheRE¡¯S nO risK Of the sHiElD BReaKIng. I mYSelF TrIed To DAMaGe It WITh All tHAT I had WIThouT EVEn sUCcEEdiNG tO puT a DEnT In it. He added, reassuring. The dragon placed her on the highest of the metal circles, the one at the centre of which the portal rested asleep, and then laid down, putting his head beside the young woman. AND HEre IS ThE THIng thAt ConNEcts tHIs WOrLd to OThErS. IN AnY cASE, ONE OF ThEm. If i ReMeMBeR cOrREctlY, ThEre shOUlD be twO OTheR iDeNTICaL PoRTaLS HiddeN SoMEwhErE on thIS pLAnEt, eaCh GUardEd bY an eXtraORdInAry beInG, bUT I do NOt kNOw wHERe THEY ARe. Where does it lead ? She asked, curious. RigHt NoW, nOWHeRe. ThiS pORTAL has NeveR BeeN aCtivatEd, It wiLl bE necEssary To waIT FoR sOMeOnE tO gaiN a rIgHt Of PAssAGe On tHIS SIDe OR tHe OtHer TO KnoW wHaT wILl be the motHEr COnnectIOn. He answered her before continuing his explanation, still feeling the questioning in the spirit of Eleonor. WHEn A PoRTAL Is aCtIVaTEd FOR The fiRST TIME, it will LINK TO aNOTHEr SLEEpInG POrtaL, cReAtiNg wHaT iS cALleD a moTHER cONnecTIOn. thE tWO WOrldS will THuS Be mORE deEpLY CoNNECTED. the MoTHEr COnneCtIon iS ThE Only ONE tHAT a pOrtal CAN coNstanTly KEEP OpEn wItHOuT addITionaL cOsTS or proBlemS. YOU Can ALWAyS USe THE pOrTAL tO gO SoMewhERE ElsE, BuT it iS MucH MoRe diFFIcuLt ANd IT REQuIreS A SERIEs of SpEciAL mANEUVErS, THE mOst BasIC BeInG TO kNOW whERE you wAnT TO gO IN a CLEAR WaY, wHIcH IS mOre DIFfICULt THaN WhAt iT seemS at FIrSt. He concluded by saying. And how do I earn a right of passage ? Just to know my options. It IS qUite Simple. YOU HAve tO PRovE To ME tHAT you ARE abLE TO SUrVIve tHe trAnSFEr. moVinG by GatEs iS DANgErOUs, iN anY cASe THIS ONE Is. uNLIKe tHe oNEs That WerE usEd IN My worLD, THoSe poRtAls dOn¡¯t TaKE You DiRECTLY To eACh OTHERs. YOU¡¯ll havE to GO THROUgh Some kiND Of CHaOtic aREa, FilLeD WiTH DeFormED eNTITIes, nigHtmares, And bY FINdiNg THe WAy oUT oF tHAT pLacE YOu¡¯ll gEt TO tHE OTHER GaTe. HEncE the NeeD To BE REaDY aND strOng eNoUGh TO SUrViVE ThiS arEA. Eleonor nodded, absorbing every piece of information the dragon gave her before she lost herself again in her thoughts. After a few minutes of rambling, the dragon who always looked at her spoke again. aNd sO, WhaT aRe YOU goInG TO DO ? He asked her with a joking smile. Caught by surprise, she turned her head towards him by reflex before focusing her attention on him.This story has been unlawfully obtained without the author''s consent. Report any appearances on Amazon. Ermmm. I think for now I¡¯m going to try to survive and become a bit stronger. yES, But iT IS Not AN end in and on itsElf. The dragon answered her while laughing slightly. Yes. I...I¡¯m not the only one who died on the other side, in my world. My friends were with me. You think they were reincarnated, too? The dragon made a thoughtful pout, seeming to chew a nonexistent object while reflecting. ...mAYBe. THe goD OF ThIS plAce BRinGS SOULs thAt it deeMs wORTHY of inTEreST, If your fRIENDs faLL INTo thAt cATegORY tHen THerE is A ChaNcE. HowEVEr i can ASSurE yOu tHAt tHEy are noT HEre, it nEvER REINcarNATes rELAtIveS tOgetHEr. YOU WilL HAve To ExploRE the wORLdS iF YOU waNT to FInD thEm. He said as he moved his head towards the portal. Eleanor then smiled, seeing more and more where she was going. A goal. Perfect. She said to herself, the choking sensation that came with the uncertainty lightened slightly. *** YOU wANT to gO Back to yoUr basE ? asked F¨¹rss?hfen. Yes. She simply replied. ALl RiGht, jUsT TELl ME whErE IT iS, sO I cAN TAKE YOU Back. tHIS PlACE AnD iTS sUrrOUNdiNGs are StIll toO dANGerOUS for YOU. Eleonor thought for a moment, looking for a way to indicate the thing. I¡¯m not sure where it is. Do you see where we fought the strange machine ? YeS. My base was more or less that way. HmM. WeLl SitUaTED eNough for YOU. hE CoMmeNTeD iN An appREcIAtiVE TONe. beFOre wE leAVE, loOK. He said before projecting an image into the mind of the young woman. At the bottom of it, Sanakan seemed to move a little, like someone who would have been disturbed in her sleep, falling back asleep very quickly. Eleonor could now see a kind of map representing the planet on which she was, and before the dragon could say anything, she noticed. Are we in a Dyson sphere ? The projection, which until then seemed to be improving, suddenly froze, and the young woman felt the dragon¡¯s confusion. A whAt ? A Dyson sphere, a planetary engineering structure that encapsulates a star to exploit its full potential. F¨¹rss?hfen bent his head to the side, reflecting on this new concept. I tHINK that¡¯s AN apPRoprIATE dEfINiTiOn. He ended up looking at the star sitting in the center of the metal planet. buT now, liSTEn CArEfulLY. He showed a place of the projection on which a zoom was made. AccordInG To you, yoUr baSe ShOULD bE MoRe oR LEsS theRE. He said, pointing to a point along one of the many wells connecting the center and surface of the sphere. NotE that You are riGht oN the MIddle layeR, The oNe thaT Is FaRTHEsT FrOm bOth thE CentER anD the suRfACE oF The¡­ DysON SpHerE. He continued, clumsily using the new word. I thInk iT¡¯s not RaNDOm, I¡¯Ll Show YOU. I¡¯lL diSPLAY tHe AveRaGE LEveL aNd PoweR OF thE CREATUREs THAT rOam THiS CORRUPTeD ShelL wIth A CoLor gRAdIEnT. BlUe MeanS RelATIVely HArMLESS to YOU, ReD mEaNs letHaL. A color gradient then indeed appeared. At the level of her layer, the dominant color was blue, with a more sustained violet in the center of the wells and in some tunnels and cellars that were deviating from it, always at the same altitude. As soon as they went up to the surface of the planet or down to its nucleus, the blue left more and more room for violet and then red. I am in the least dangerous zone ? She asked for confirmation. INdeED, aNd as you cAn See, tHE cLOSer YOU GET to the CENTEr, tHe MoRe dANgeROuS it iS bECauSe oF ThE REmAInS of thE sAURIoT SwArm tHAT haVE SetTLED THErE, mAdE evEN moRE DanGErouS By tHE CorRuPTION tHAt EMANATes FroM THe cEntraL StAr And, iN The SaME wAY, The Closer yoU GeT To the SURFaCe, ThE morE DanGEROus it BeCOMES becAUSe of aLl the CrazY MAcHIneS LuRkiNG ArOUnd. bEsidEs, THE thiNG WE FouGHT agAINst caME PRACTIcAlLY FRoM the sURFAce, It sHoULdn¡¯t HAVe Been ThERE. Still as attentive, Eleonor nodded her head and, a few minutes later, they set off. *** She inspired deeply, appreciating the peculiar smell of her little room. Genesis was as always in the same place, its tentacles a little more restless than usual. Home sweet home. She thought with a smile. Coming back here was no small matter, and if she had not received a little help, she might as well have never found it back. Luckily, in a way, she realized that by being close enough to here she instinctively felt in which general direction her base was, a feeling that she would have had a hard time explaining or even describe, like some sort of instinct. She went to sit against a wall, looking again at the two windows which had opened a little before the end of their discussion, hers and F¨¹rss?hfens. |The Right of Passage. And the second, which appeared when F¨¹rss?hfen told her she had to acquire a class. |To Grow Alone. She slipped between the tentacles of Genesis to enjoy their sensations, surprised but happy with the turn of events and quests she had received. She had goals, she knew where she was going, and that feeling gave her confidence. Mikael These three days had been painful, to say the least. Every night, when he tried to sleep, his consciousness was brought into his world, as the voice had called it, and he had to reassure a Lauryne tormented by nightmares, her unstable mood making everything exhausting. She switched from sadness to anger like a pendulum, passing by rage, thirst for blood and shock, Mikael forced to help her to pass her nerves on something, in this case himself. After a restless night, he was forced to perform difficult physical training. Run on a treadmill designed for this purpose until exhaustion, a priest next to him constantly tending to his wounding muscles, atrophied by the lack of exercise. Lifting weights, doing push-ups, abdominals, no part of his body was left on the side to make sure that he did not keep the aftermath of his coma. In the afternoon, Helianthine came to visit him, she spoke to him about her studies, sought comfort from him when they talked about Lauryne¡¯s fate, made plans for the future, and told him family anecdotes. She also grumbled, as to the fact that the period of the hunt was about to come and that her mother would surely once again leave the butcher shop to her charge, so that she could go and hunt one or another rare beast to serve it to some noble, the money raised used to spend the months of little leaner, to finance her studies, too, something already extraordinary for someone who was not noble. He did not know how he had endured his three days. No, he knew well. Behind his smile, behind his kindness and empathy, two things were moving him forward. Hope and revenge. He listened to Helianthin talk about Lauryne as if she was dead, what she was to them, but the hope of finding a way to bring her back, to heal her wounds, her trauma, all that made him move forward. Revenge, the idea that one day he would be able to track down Lauryne¡¯s older brother Joseph and burn him alive for what he had done to his sister. These two opposite flames revolved around and repelled one another, supporting his will to move forward, to change. When he had seen the little girl die, something had broken in his mind, he felt it, the difference, as if he were himself while being two different people, like a glass filled with oil and water, the two layers sliding on each other, the first cold and direct, predatory, the second warm and compassionate, maternal. Mellite ¡°Drop in 30 seconds.¡± Announced the robotic voice, a series of information then displayed in front of the young woman, the light of the projections reflected in her eyes with purple pupils. She was cradled in an outfit that almost completely immobilized her, straps, harnesses and inertial shock absorber set keeping her perfectly anchored in the capsule, ready to make the big jump. ¡°Drop in 15 seconds.¡± The projector then displayed the image of Syphony, at least her face. ¡°Not too stressed ?¡± she asked her with a big smile that reassured her. ¡°It¡¯s all right.¡± She replied with enthusiasm, nodding her head the little she could. In reality, she felt she was becoming claustrophobic just by being locked up in this metal cocoon, virtually completely immobilized for ten minutes, but the assurance of her mate was passed on to her by the worry she was showing. She blushes a little, thinking back to the night before. ¡°Let the automatic system work, everything will be fine.¡± Said Syphony who, noticing the red shade that the skin of Mellite was taking, also began to blush slightly, surely for the same reason. ¡°5-4-3-2-1-Drop.¡± ¡°C-lac!¡± Made the moorings by opening, releasing the capsule at the designated drop point. The system projected in real time its trajectory and that of the others that had been dropped at the same time as it, including Syphonie. A slight sensation of weightlessness then took Mellite. ¡°Impact in t-10 minutes.¡± Time passed, the minutes long for the young woman surrounded by a relative silence. If it weren¡¯t for the feeling of fall, she might not even have realized she was falling. ¡°T-3 minutes.¡± Said the voice, like every other minute. An alarm suddenly lit, displaying a new signature a priori in intercept trajectory. ¡°Warning, dodge maneuvers engaged.¡±The voice said, still monotonous ¡°Syphony ?¡± Mellite asked, worried. ¡°Hang on !¡± she exclaimed before a powerful shock made the young woman pass out. 16 - Working together for her ; Izata ; Waking up in an unknown bedroom is an Isekai thing Chapter 16 Eleonor YOU HAVE CHANGED, MISTRESS. It was the first thing Gen¨¨se said when his tentacles wrapped the young woman on all sides, sliding, palpating, probing every nook of her body. Eleonor let him do it, appreciating the sensation they gave her, tasting the pain and pleasure he was giving birth to in her, even when he touched her stump with her missing hand, or her charred eyes. INTERESTING, YOUR BODY IS¡­ MORE POWERFUL, MORE RESISTANT, YET NO SIGN OF BIOLOGICAL ALTERATION, AS IF YOU WERE BASICALLY¡­ BETTER. The young woman could clearly feel the confusion in the mind of her pool, the creature failing to understand what had happened to her. THE SAME THING HAPPENED WHEN YOU CAME BACK WITH YOUR TENTACLES IN YOUR ARMS, BUT I PUT IT ON THE ACCOUNT OF AN ERROR OF APPRECIATION AT THAT TIME. He added, thoughtful. Can you still improve me more ? She asked. OF COURSE, NEITHER STRUCTURE NOR DNA HAS CHANGED, THERE IS STILL MUCH TO OPTIMIZE. He replied forcefully. THE EFFECTS WILL ONLY BE BETTER, EVEN IF I DO NOT UNDERSTAND THE SOURCE OF THESE CHANGES. Perfect. How much biomass would you need to unlock something interesting in your genetic memory ? HUM¡­ ABOUT 100 UNITS SHOULD BE ENOUGH TO RESTORE THE FIRST LAYER. ARE YOU GOING TO HUNT ? He replied before asking her this question, a little bit of hope in his voice. Yes, it is time that I begin to be more than a scavenger. She said with determination, a predatory smile on her face. YOUR MOTIVATION IS INTERESTING, BUT I WOULD LIKE TO DO A FULL SCAN BEFORE YOU LEAVE, MISTRESS. Like last time ? YES MISTRESS. Is that really necessary ? I THINK SO, MISTRESS. MOREOVER, THIS WILL GIVE ME TIME TO REPAIR THE DAMAGE DONE TO YOUR BODY IN DEPTH. ...So be it. PREFERENCES FOR THE PIECES TO BE RECONSTRUCTED ? What do you mean ? HOW SHOULD I OPTIMIZE THE REPLACEMENT ORGANS ? EYES THAT SEE FURTHER? A SPECIFIC HAND ? Oh ? Yes. Yes ! My eyes, I want to be able to see colors, a lot ! She thought, sick of the blue that covered the world all the time. UNDERSTOOD. LAUNCH OF STASIS... Sensing the torpor seizing her, Eleonore let herself go to the sleep that was taking her, trusting Gen¨¨se. Gen¨¨se ...incomprehensible change...new system of interaction; interesting¡­ synchronization test...bizarre...concluding returns¡­ Without knowing it, Genesis was creating itself a path in the system, infiltrating deeply, trying to understand it, to use it¡­ ...identification required. He replied. Overseer. Unaffiliated to the Swarm. Objective ? ...Incomprehensible. Present your objective or withdraw. ... Proceed¡­ His neural network then integrated a foreign structure, and it was assailed by an immeasurable mass of information, unknown concepts, bridges of adaptations of the signals. ...Interesting.... Starting integration. A window was then displayed in his mind, more pure information than graphic structure, but still. [Genesis] [Level: 354 (2%) Available points: 0] [Classes: Bioforge lvl 10 (dormant)] [Resources: Health points: 1 220 000/1 220 000 Endurance: 1 220 000/1 220 000] [Body: 122] [Mind: 232] [Soul: 0?] [Natural armour: 1220] [Natural weapons: N/A] [Capacities: //Under Analysis//] Raw data. He thought with what, for him, was the closest to joy. *** He was deeply into his integration into the system and the analysis that he was applying to it, he could see that a lot of resources were being used to build the skills and capabilities that he was supposed to have, to streamline and integrate them. ¡­ He had felt it. Something had woken up. Deeply, very deeply, something had begun to move. ...Identification ? Gen¨¨se asked, feeling absolutely not threatened by the thing, his own neural network being monstrously powerful, even if still mostly dormant. Sanakan ...by Lathar. She couldn¡¯t help but exclaim when she touched the mind of the creature. Cold. No, frigid. That¡¯s the effect he had on her. Also, confusing. He did not reflect in a linear way but in parallel, dozens upon dozens of ideas and processes in constant treatment. ... Identification ? Repeated the thing without rushing, always as coldly. What are you ? She said to herself. Perhaps a Sauriot ? What a strange mind...Royal Road is the home of this novel. Visit there to read the original and support the author. Genesis Basin, number A-0, Main Genesis Unit of this hive. Genesis answered the question that was not intended for him. Identification ? He is persevering like a Sauriot, I grant him. I am Sanakan, Matriarch and Great Hetaxeark Arbiter. I demand to know why you made contact with my host, Sauriot ! ...Unit Eleonor, Mistress, being scanned to verify changes. Return of question: Presence of a Hetaxeark mind in our Mistress, strange, reason ? He answered her before asking her about her presence. Mistress ? But she¡¯s not a Sauriot, is she ? Hmmm¡­ Complex answer. Basic genetic code, Sauriot, but different structure and arrangement, bizarre... Some areas, incomprehensible, but Sauriot all the same. Interesting subject, Mistress active, living, evolving. She thought she felt something, an emotion, like veneration, but the sensation was so tenuous and the mere idea of a Sauriot with emotions, so absurd, that she quickly drove away that thought. I am in a Sauriot¡­ She said to herself, thoughtful. But her mind is not Sauriot, is it ? Impossible that it is. She have feelings ! ... Indeed. Origin of the mind, unknown. Irrelevant, the Mistress is our Mistress. Goal: to evolve, improve, change. Sanakan: goal ? She was slightly taken by surprise by this question, not so much because she did not expect it than because the creature¡¯s thoughts were difficult to follow, separating the conversation he had with her from all the other things she felt he was doing at the same time was hard enough. This young combatant made a pact with me, she became my host in exchange for that I provide her everything she needs to survive. Partnership... Interesting, Symbiosis ? In connection with the crystalline network now integrated into the body ? Yes, I use the Xeark network to support my host, to avoid overloading her mind. If I didn¡¯t, I¡¯d probably kill her, even if I¡¯m just a fragment of myself. ... Interesting. Fusion of tissues with Xeark crystals. The body modified itself to accept them. Many side effects in cascade. Impact on the nervous system¡­ Unprecedented effects. Detection of symmetrical organization through the body. The crystals are¡­ taking actions ? Resemblance to Hetaxearks bodies studied in the past¡­ Sanakan slightly grimaced at this remark. This Sauriot may not have wanted to harm her, but hearing him talk about her compatriots captured by the swarm did not please her. Fortunately, the organic structure of the Hetaxearks was incompatible with that of the Sauriot, or they would surely have been more than studied, subject to a fate worse than death. This is normal. The Hetaxearks naturally create this kind of crystals in them as they grow and consume a specially treated form to be absorbed by the body. Gen¨¨se did not seem surprised that she shared information with him so freely because, for him, it went without saying. It was, after all, the most logical thing to do. Although of course this case is very different. Just the fact that she is Sauriot and that the Xearks crystals did not reject her is totally out of the ordinary, practically a miracle. Indeed. Genesis simply replied. Sanakan unit, request: formation of a contract. Ho, a deal, huh ? Yes. Objective, mutual aid for the good of the Mistress. Optimal for each of the present parties. She once again grimaced at the idea of joining forces with a Sauriot but the creature was logical and reasonable, as was his proposal. Instead of fighting each other and destroying themselves in the process, it was much more beneficial to support the young combatant. All right. Perfect. Start the information exchange now ? Yes. She replied in a slightly reluctant tone. ??? A large three-dimensional map of the Labyrinth was floating in the air, in the center of the room. Many tables covered the floor and the many balconies that gave inside it, hundreds of people busy working on their computers, writing messages, talking to each other, developing strategies, planning supply networks or future development of the different sectors for which they were responsible, making computer simulations. Suddenly, four of the spheres representing worlds of the Labyrinth lit up, flashing with a red glow, like an alarm. The agitation of the room stopped for a second before resuming. On one of the largest balconies, six people had not started working again. They were intensely staring at the four new worlds they were going to have to explore. ¡°Four Stranded in one go. It¡¯s going to take a lot of resources. Again.¡± Said a man in his forties, before massaging his forehead, an elbow on the table in front of him. ¡°Do we even have the resources to extract them? The Crusade does not really let us breathe for now, I remind you.¡± One young woman, in her twenties, replied, who still had in front of her a report coming directly from the frontline. ¡°You know it¡¯s not a question of being able to do it or not, but a question of what we¡¯re going to lose so that these Crusade fanatics don¡¯t get their hands on the Stranded before we do.¡± Another woman rebuked her, the latter in her fifties. The silence then settled, stretching for long minutes that the few people around this table used to write, exchange information and prepare the meeting they should have to solve this new problem. ¡°Is everyone ready ?¡± asked the fifty-year-old woman, the group leader. Everyone nodded and the twenty-year-old lady naturally began, not the first time they had to do this. ¡°Those are four worlds without connection, the first two worlds¡­¡± She said, displaying a holographic projection similar to the one already suspended in the room, just smaller. ¡°...are fairly recent, fourth and seventh last arrived respectively. The third world is much older, it goes back to several hundred arrived worlds, without more precise data. The last¡­¡± She grimaced slightly. ¡°...the last is a founding world.¡± She concluded. And when they heard the announcement, they frowned. ¡°... And so someone was finally dropped off there. Alone in this hellhole. You all know what that means.¡± continued the forty-year-old man. ¡°This is our priority.¡± replied a man in his early thirties. ¡°Yes. Let¡¯s continue.¡± said the fifty-year-old woman. ¡°If we want to connect to a founding world we¡¯re going to need a team. We can do it, but it could destabilize some of our frontlines even more. We are going to have to abandon some peoples and territory to the Crusade if we do not want to our lines be pierced and lose even more resources.¡± The thirty-year-old then exposed. The others nodded, not necessarily happy with these words but aware of the need to make sacrifices. After all, a war was not won without losses. ¡°... Or we could also deploy my new team¡­¡± Said the twenty-years-old lady, apprehensive. The others looked at her seriously, weighing the pros and cons of her proposal. "Are you sure you and your team are ready ?" ¡°We have been training for this for five years, preparing for any eventuality. It will be a baptism of fire, but we can do it. Now is not the time to give up on those fanatical assholes of the Crusade.¡± The leader looked at the other people at the table, who nodded one by one, before turning her gaze back on the youngest of them. ¡°Well. Izata, you are in charge of the extraction operation. If the first one is a success, you will be authorized to do the three others.'' ¡°Thank you. I will not fail you.¡± She replied, rising before making a slight reverence, withdrawing to prepare for the difficult mission that awaited her. I hope I do not make a mistake. Thought the leader before casting the thought away to get back to work. Mellite Her body was hurting. In her mouth she could taste her own blood, and she felt the hot liquid slowly leaving her through several orifices that should not have existed. She could feel the cold metal piercing her, her broken ribs, her shattered bones. She tried to move and felt a hint of claustrophobia rising up in her when she realized that she couldn''t because of the steel coffin that was imprisoning her. She remained in this state for a time impossible to determine. She could only feel the passage of time through her body, which was getting colder and colder. There. A vibration, an imperceptible tremor. Something scratching. No, more than scratching. Someone was digging towards her. She was hoping, anyway. A shock. Voices, distant, and a light that pierces the black that was crushing her. A tiny little thing that slips into the deformed capsule, like a snake. No, a micro-camera. The lens turns towards her and she blinks once or twice before smiling painfully. The camera stops and stares at her face before quickly turning back. She waited a little longer before more light began to flow into her dark sarcophagus. Sparks, like a rain of shooting stars, and finally daylight when a large metal plate was removed. She smiled again when she saw the face of the rescuer painting itself in stupor before the stress and urgency of the situation made him come to his senses. ¡°My God, guys, she¡¯s really alive !¡± He screamed in his helmet before he got down and puts his hands above her. ¡°Eighteen broken ribs, a perforated lung, a dislocated spine and the majority of bones crushed into powder...¡± His voice became increasingly horrified as he read aloud the information that his scanner was sending him. He knelt down and looked at her. ¡°We are going to get you out of there.¡± He said forcefully, more to encourage himself than to reassure her. *** From this point onward, her memories were confused, as if she had been constantly sank in a feverish fog. She remember the emergency transfusion she had to receive, because she had lost so much blood. She remember the sound of the tools they had used to free her from the metal cocoon, a sharp, painful sound. She recall being pulled out by a machine, many robotic arms handling her with the utmost care trying not to aggravate her injuries. She remember the pieces of metal that were planted in her, cut to the skin by the machine but not removed, to avoid worsening her bleeding. An injection into the arm, or the torso? Then nothing. Almost. Unreal images, lost, like children in a dark and dense forest, amidst the relief she had felt. Even more sedative but still not enough to totally make her unconscious. The surprise of a caregiver in the operating room when she turned her head towards him and opened her eyes. Doctor Rahato¡¯s voice yelling at someone, another dose of sedative that brings her closer to the coma. The pain in her belly. The pain in her back. Things removed. Things left in place. The cold of metal, which gradually disappears. Which remains in certain places. Another dose of sedative when her eyes cross those of the Doctor Rahato still operating her and who realizes with horror that her patient is still not asleep¡­ *** She opened her eyes, clenching her teeth as she prepared for a pain that did not come. Her body was a little stiff, but that was the only thing that was unpleasant to her. She looked around. She was lying in a big bed, the fabric pleasant against her naked body. The room was relatively spacious and large windows suggested a nocturnal landscape where blue and green aurora borealis danced gently. From time to time a shooting star also cut the sky in half. She got up and looked for her clothes with a large gaze, and the windows lit up. The night sky gave way to a soft sun and a beautiful blue sky with fleecy clouds. Similarly, the room¡¯s lights seemed to light up in concert with the windows. She finally found what she was looking for, and approached the pile of clothing properly folded, placed on a small chest of drawers. The carpet was pleasant under her feet, which plunged into its synthetic fibers, a thick curly carpet like she liked it. She dressed in speed without really paying attention to what she was wearing, not liking being naked and, when she finished, she approached the windows with curiosity. She opened one and passed her head through it. A sea of lush herbs greeted her, the smell carried to her nose by a fresh and pleasant breeze. Surprised, she pushed her hand forward and bumped against a hard surface. Her arm passed through the landscape, the illusion slightly distorted at this precise spot. She removed her hand and the projection became perfect again. She frowned, without fully understanding the idea behind these false windows, but casted off her questions with a shrug, and turned around to inspect the rest of the room. The large bed was leaning against a wall, centered in relation to it. A book-covered nightstand lay to its right, the next wall hosting a single large library, punctuated by two false windows, and filled as much with trinkets and souvenirs as with books of all kinds. Mellite could even see a few heaps of clothing that were relatively high. The wall in front of the bed was bare apart for the illusory windows, and the left wall was covered with children¡¯s drawings, and the aforementioned chest of drawers was there, with one or two other storage furniture. Finally, a door like the one she had already seen in the space station was in the lower left corner, not far from the bed. She smiled, happy to have found the exit and walked towards it before stopping in front, feeling the problems coming. ...and how do I open it ? Indeed, the door was smooth, with no hint of how to move it. She examined it for five minutes before trying to remember how the others she had seen had been opened, and inspected the general area around which Dr.Rahato was putting her wrist. Another five minutes were needed before she realized that the tiny glass panel was a button and when she pressed it, the door opened. Not a chapter - little piece of information Hello folks. Sorry this is not a chapter, don''t feel cheated because of it ^^'' First things first, I want to thanks you all to read this experimental piece of mine. I started writting this because I''m not a native english speaker and that the best way to improve is to write. So far it got more focus than what I was expecting, even more since my experience in english and as a writter isn''t much. Every last one comment is taken by heart and is very much appreciated, and the number of follows is something that make me smile daily. Second think, I want to apologize at the slow release rate. Even if you don''t complain, I know that if I the role were reversed (And if I liked the story) I would be annoyed at one release every so often. Third thing and the reason I make this post. I''m utterly unhappy with the Ashes storyline so far, both in what I''ve wrote and what I''ll be able to write on the bases given here. I''m reflecting about it since a month ago, and the whole thing is riddled with plothole, uniteresting narrative choice, and overall not good. I really like blacksmith and all creation/production things. I love physics, engineering and their production and industrial application. Even more, I like the creation of items that have personality, that are created from extraordinay materials, with extraordinary method, by extraordinay people, things that are more than the sum of their parts. The story behind each of them, the symbols, the will of the creator, those are things that inspire me and that was what was planned, expected from the Ashes storyline, are extremely important, but it''s not the whole picture. I need and actual story to place it in context, and the actual storyline is both to much and to little at the same time to do so. It''s uninteresting because I give too much to quickly while their is fundamental things missing, and it don''t inspire me.You might be reading a stolen copy. Visit Royal Road for the authentic version. All of this to say that I''ll start writting Ashes part again, implementing different worldbuilding choice for the world around here, creating different, new characters that I like more, and not giving too much in one go. I didn''t say it before, but you could have guessed already : I didn''t plan anything. I write what I like, things that gave me the breath, the excitment, and I wanted to put Ashes in the story but, in my haste, I found myself with something I didn''t like. This won''t do. Chapters will be edited backward with Ashes part remplaced with a new thing that I like more and, hopefully, is better than what I''ve wrote so far. I''m sorry about this since I''ll surely slow even more my release rate, but I''m a young author, both in age an in experience, so I''m bound to make mistake, however I refuse to write myself in a corner, and to deliver something to you that I wouldn''t read, because my standart of quality is asking myself if I would read what I''m writting. If the answer is no, what I''ve wrote is shit, back to the drawing board. Thanks for reading this, I''ll still try to make release as often as my motivation allow me too. Sheers ! ^p^ Update : I''ve trashed the whole Ashes storyline and replaced it with a new one, already set up. What do you think about the new storyline for Evilyn ? I take a bit more of time, I''ve wrote more about her, and fleshed a character a bit more than "She is calm". 17 - Sfir and colour ; Sullivans spawn ; Taking your time is sometime necessary Chapitre 17 Eleonor She opened her eyes and the world poured into her. Every little detail, every shade of color was sublime and myriad. The floor, the ceiling, the walls, everything seemed to only be one gigantic canvas of a talented painter, touches of infinitely varied colors bet together to form the picture of the world that surrounded her. Everything was so much more, so much more beautiful, so much deeper, so much more glorious, that she was drowned. She lied there, contemplating the ceiling for a very long time, a time to get used to her new eyes. She tried to get up but fell directly to the ground because, around her, two visions were superimposed. The first one, blue, large, which encompassed her and a sphere of 20 meters in all directions, the other multicolored, directed forward, precise and magnificent. Those two ways of seeing mixed, both at the same time coopering and competing to form a panorama that crushed Eleonor, too much information arriving at her at the same time, carrying her away in a wave of pain and pleasure, certainly less strong than the one she had experienced in her nightmares, but still powerful enough to nail her to the ground by the sheer virtue of its intensity. Deep in her drowned mind, she felt Sakanan waking up, like a cat that stretched out after a long nap and, disturbed, turned her head to find the source of her boredom. Close your eyes. She said to her in a tone between order and demand, her voice as solid as a rock. Eleonor did as asked and felt her mind take its breath like a diver who had been in the water for too long. Thank you. what¡¯s happening to me ? Your neural network is overloaded. You asked your Sauriot to give you new eyes, right ? He obeyed by optimizing them as much as possible in the direction you had indicated to him, and I think he did so in such a way that it just didn¡¯t stress your nervous system too much, but he forgot to take into account your second vision, I¡¯m afraid. She replied, always in the same tone. She seemed distant, as if she did not dare to approach Eleonor too much. Is something wrong ? The young woman asked her, sensitive to her unrest. Sanakan seemed to stop for a second, surprised, before smiling mentally. No, everything is fine. I just have to get used to a number of things, dear Host. She replied with a little more warmth. ...you know, I have a name. Could you please call me Eleonor ? It¡¯s weird all the time getting called by his office. Then pointed out the young woman. ...Okay, Eleonor ? Hmm. Thank you. She replied. Let¡¯s move on. We have things to do, Eleonor. I wanted to wait a bit, but it seems that fate is forcing my hand here. You¡¯re gonna have to learn to control the gift I gave you, Eleonor, or you¡¯re gonna be in danger of dying because of your new eyes. *** She had sat down cross-legged, remembering that she was still technically naked despite the shell that covered her in places, her femininity still uncovered. Her eyes were closed and her hands placed on her thighs, listening to Sanakan. Inspire¡­ Expires¡­ Inspire¡­ Expires¡­ She hummed softly in her mind, pushing her to slowly empty it of the parasitic thoughts that inhabited her. And, indeed, she felt herself slowly becoming a receptacle, ready to accept and contain what was to be given to her. Her mind was an infinite field of darkness, nothing moved, nothing existed... nothing ? There. Something had fleetingly moved, a shadow, a spectre. The more time passed, the clearer the vision became. She naturally approached it and then discovered a crystal. It was small, tiny even, smaller than the fingernail of her auricular. The Xearks crystals. Every Hetaxeark, my people, has one and only one in his organism, which he must take care of and which grows with him. You are an exception, an aberration, not Hetaxeark, and possessing more than one crystal. This one you¡¯re seeing is the only one with which you¡¯re directly linked, it is the smallest of your body. It¡¯s lodged between your eyes, close to the fork of your optic nerve. Cherish it because it is your bond with me, with your second sight, and with all of what I will teach you. Now, take it in your hands. Eleonor opened her right hand, making the crystal rest in her palm. It was warm, pleasant and painful. But, above all, it was alive, she felt it. Not totally alive, only partially but she managed to feel some kind of will. That tiny piece of crystal wanted to help her. Eleonor smiled when she realized it and, by reflex, pushed it against her forehead, where it sank, swallowed by her skin. ...All right, let¡¯s move on to the second step. Sanakan said, more or less trying to hide her surprise. You accepted the crystal, now try to feel the Sfir. The Sfir is the thing that connects us to the Void, the world beyond the world, the truth beyond the truth, the Sfir is the thing that makes us master of the Void, the Sfir is the thing that allows us to change the world by feeding the Void. Eleonor listened to her, her mind eager for new knowledge, absorbing each of her words, each of the new concepts. When the words had disappeared, she again focused entirely on the black space around her. After a while, she felt the tentacles of Genesis surround her and bring her into the pond, plunging her in and filling all her orifices as usual, the relaxing sensation helping her to fix herself on her goal. As with every time she plunged into herself, the time stopped having meaning, the cycles flowing without fail. A feeling, as if a child were pulling her sleeve, asking her to follow him. Confident, she accepted the invitation. Her mind began to burn. *** She was still hugged by Genesis when she woke up. She felt something, something more in her mind, like a waterfall coming in on one side of her and coming out on the other, constantly refreshing her. Suicidal. Said Sanakan in a neutral tone. Accepting as much of Sfir at once, without preparation, just throwing yourself in, fully embracing it like a long separated lover. What went through your mind ? She asked her, her tone free of accusation and only filled by curiosity. ...I¡¯m not sure. It was...attractive ? Welcoming? Like a friend inviting me home, with his family saying hello to me.... She answered, remembering¡­ who ? She could brough the feeling back easily, but the memory itself seemed to slip through her fingers. ...what is...? She wondered, but her question quickly disappeared. Eleonor, is something wrong ? Sanakan then asked her, taking her out of her reverie. Ah ? Huh ? No, no, everything is fine. I just... no, it¡¯s nothing. Let¡¯s get back to the subject. Why am I suicidal ? Because, Eleonor, you are the most¡­ how can I say, enthusiastic? Yes, enthusiastic, which I have seen so far to accept the Sfir. This is interesting, but also potentially dangerous, as someone trying to lift too much weight during a weight training session. Sanakan replied. ...Okay. I have to be a little restrained, right ? Yes, it would be less dangerous. Fortunately, your... Your thing linked himself to you to help you endure the influx of Sfir, or your brain would have already fried. INDEED. PHENOMENON¡­ INTERESTING. UNDER STUDY¡­ HOWEVER, DANGEROUS. SANAKAN, SPECIALIST IN THE FIELD, RICH IN TEACHING. The person concerned then intervened. Thank you Genesis. Said Eleanor in return, smiling slightly. IT¡¯S MY DUTY, MISTRESS. Let¡¯s continue. Now that you¡¯ve opened up to the Sfir¡­ EvilynDid you know this story is from Royal Road? Read the official version for free and support the author. The first day had been long but not too unpleasant. Tysbae had explored the castle methodically, Evilyn always right behind her to be protected by the young vampire, the duo starting with the now deserted human farm. It was located in the second basement and had a striking resemblance to a prison. Corridors and corridors had countless armoured doors, each leading to a cell. A rudimentary bed, a watering hole, and a treadmill were the only things that filled the little windowless room, enough to keep the human being healthy. They did not stay even a handful of minutes. ¡°The water distribution system on the farm is centralized, we could leave after seeing only one contaminated trough, but I will still check two or three others.¡± She had explained to her, opening a few more cells to check the state of the water, its blackish and viscous appearance testifying to its contamination without even Tysbae having to taste it. After that, they checked the kitchens, the different bedrooms, the bathrooms and the dining rooms, without any more conclusive results. The same went for the food, the few meals they could found moldy despite the conservation effort that seemed to have been made. The second day was much more stressful for Evilyn, the thirst starting to be felt. On that day they explored other places which, although less likely having what they were looking for, had not yet been explored. The cellars were empty, the bottles of wine probably removed, the carcasses of animals rotten. The prison of the place did not hold any better, again wasted water and food supplies, as well as the servants'' quarters or the guard posts that punctuated the ramparts, one in each tower. Evilyn finally woke up on the third day, with a dry throat, stiff and with a persistent headache. ¡°Let¡¯s go see this fucking demon.¡° She said, irritable, practically dragging Tysbae behind her, her mind focused on one thing: stopping to be thirsty. She moved through the castle as if in a dream, her vision blurred by the lack of water. She had trouble thinking. She did not even remember arriving in the room where the demon was imprisoned, and yet this one was before her, greedy eyes. ¡°So, did you find your water ?¡° he asked with a bad smile. ¡°Shut up. Just shut up. Remember the terms of the contract ?¡° She replied, grumbling, massaging her temples to try to alleviate her headache. ¡°Grmf.¡± ¡°Perfect. How do you we link each to other ?¡± To answer the question, he once again held out one of his fiery hands, the heat making Evilyn¡¯s head turn even more. ¡°Take my hand !¡° he cried, between order and supplication. She hesitated a little longer, looking at Tysbae grimacing, but the thirst was too overwhelming, making her reckless, and she shook the outstretched hand. ¡°Finally ! Free !¡± He roared out of joy as Evilyn¡¯s hand became charcoal, burning to the bone while the demon turned into a gigantic flame that slipped between the bars of his prison, burning the runes that had kept him prisoner until then. Somewhere, someone was screaming. He ran along Evilyn¡¯s arm, charring her bones from the inside as he looked for a place to settle, passing through her shoulder and down her spine. The young woman was so drowned in her pain that she took time to understand that the scream she heard was hers, feeling cooked from the inside. The demon stopped at the height of her chest, rushing into it with an ecstatic laugh. ¡°Perfect ! Amazing, you¡¯re really perfect kid !¡± He screamed, carried away by his own madness as she felt him penetrate more and more deeply into her heart that was pounding powerfully. The suffering became so unbearable that, with her remaining hand, she began to scratch her chest, trying in her crazy agony to rip her heart out to stop the pain. She felt him slipping in like a snake, changing it into his dwelling place from the inside, her blood burning with each passage through the organ corrupted by the impure fire, spreading through her body like molten metal drowning her veins. HAHAHA ! Now, the final touch ! He yelled in the mind of Evilyn. A demon name ! Hmm.... Still small and cold, fertile ground to start a fire, Ashes maybe ? Yes, yes, Ashes suits you perfectly, little girl ! The pain faded a little when he had uttered the new name that would be Evilyn¡¯s, her real demon name. The pain of her heart was mixed with that of her mind, seeming to last an infinite time before each of them suddenly ceased. She was lying on the ground, not far from the puddle of bile she had vomited during her torment, her right hand feeling strange. She lifted it up, putting it before her eyes, contemplating it changing. The black charcoal became grey ashes, carried away by a supernatural wind that made almost all her arm disappear up to the shoulder, like a ephemeral statue of sand that a mere breath would have made return to the desert from which it had emerged. A brilliant liquid then began to flow from the wound, forming molten metal threads that intertwined, weaving together a complex canvas that became bone, veins and muscles, creating a new arm layer after layer to replace the old one, charred to the marrow. She looked at the process all along, contemplating the powerful muscle fibers unfolding naked before a charcoal-black skin covered it. The web of vein was clearly visible on her skin, brilliantly lit by the incandescent liquid that was now running through it. Evilyn folded her new fingers, feeling their strength and elasticity, admiring the black and clawed metallic nails that now adorned them. She rose up, sitting cross-legged, and in her field of vision appeared a translucent blue window floating before her. A myriad of symbols quickly scrolled before gradually turning into something understandable. [Ashes] [Level : 1 (0%)] [Race : Half-demon(Sullivan¡¯s spawn)] [Class : N/A] [Ressources : [Body : 1] [Mind : 1] [Soul : 1] [Natural armour : 1.3] [Natural weapons : //Under Analysis// [Capacities : Mellite The door opened to a corridor dimly lit by a device similar to the illusory windows of the previous room, placed on the ceiling, giving it an impression of depth, as if it were open on the celestial vault. There the moon shone gloriously, surrounded by her court of stars. On her left was another door, in front of her too, and on this one something had been written. ¡°Living Room ¡ú¡° Indicated the sign with an arrow pointing to the right, leading to a descending staircase. O-k ? She thought, smiling slightly, following the indication by taking the staircase that led him to what looked like an entrance hall, with a piece of furniture or various pairs of shoes were arranged. She followed another sign on the wall that led her to another door, which she opened in the same way as the previous one. The room was brilliantly lit by windows and an illusory ceiling, the sun just hidden behind a wall to avoid its overly aggressive radiation. Sitting like a tailor on a sofa, Syphony ate something with a spoon in the bowl she was holding. She turned her head when she heard the door open, a smile emerging on her face when she saw Mellite. "Who is the Groundhog now ?" she asked, laughing slightly. ¡°How do you feel ?¡° she continued. ¡°... A little...groggy ? Like I slept too long. What happened ?¡± "There was an accident during the orbital jump, don¡¯t you remember ?" Mellite thinks for a second or two before the memories return to her face like a distended elastic that we would have inadvertently released. The shock, the crash, the surgery. She trembled as she remembered the pain but, above all, the impression of being locked in a dark coffin, unable to do anything, unable to move. ¡°Yes, I remember.¡° She said as she sat down. "Wasn¡¯t that supposed to be secure as a means of transportation ?" She asked then with venom in her voice, Syphony letting go as she expected it to be like this. ¡°Yes. This is literally the first time this has happened. It wasn¡¯t a failure of the capsule, we were attacked by a new undead cluster. The teams are studying it, but it¡¯s certainly a variant of Nightmare that has been transformed to be able to attack our flying objects, like the capsules, but we¡¯ll have to wait for the results to have a more concrete answer.¡± Syphony replied, trying to calm Mellite as much as possible. The young woman sat next to her host, resting her back against the back of the sofa and closing her eyes. ¡°I swear to God, I never get back into one of these capsules.¡± She ended up saying, sighing, recovering because she did not want to pour her bile on Syphony, the poor girl having nothing to do with it. ¡°What happened after we got attacked?¡± ¡°We lost three capsules, including yours, before the Space/Air defences of Everest killed the scum. The three of you crashed on Silden, the city where we are, without doing too much damage fortunately. The other two people are dead.¡± She replied, wringing her eyebrows talking about the dead. ¡°Your capsule was finally reached after eight hours of clearing and it took the rescuers another two hours to get you out of there. In the meantime Rahato had been informed, and descended from Everest to personally operate on you. She told me that the only reason you were still alive was because of the regenerative capacity that RV-b1 gives you. When they pulled you out of the capsule, your body looked more like, I quote ¡®ground meat¡¯, than anything else.¡± During the explanation, Mellite had put her head back, her eyes still closed. ¡°It starts to become a lot for just a handful of days.¡± She ended up saying, a tear escaping from the corner of an eye. ¡°I woke up in a cold room in front of a stranger in armor, then I woke up again, this time quarantined in a foreign place, my body constantly screams in my ears about things I don¡¯t understand, about you, about me, about what surrounds me. I have a fucking character sheet, I¡¯m infected with a deadly virus except that actually no, I feel attracted to you without knowing why and, when a psychopathic scientist tells me that I¡¯m finally going to be able to get out, but if something happens to you my life will become a hell, the first thing that happens when I step outside, the fucking first thing, it¡¯s an attack that almost kills me.¡° She soliloquized. She felt Syphony¡¯s hand resting on one of her own, retracting it by reflexes. ¡°I just wish I had a little... I don¡¯t know, quiet, peace ?¡± She added, opening her eyes, looking at the soldier sitting next to her, her dessert cup still in hand. ¡°... Okay. Let¡¯s take it slow then. I¡¯ll give you a tour of the city, we¡¯ll go to a restaurant or we¡¯ll cook if you don¡¯t want to go out, you can read books if you want, or I can explain a little bit more about this place, but I promise you we¡¯ll take the time you need. Is that all right ?" replied Syphony. ¡°... Thank you. I just need a little time to think, absorb everything that¡¯s happening, and everything that¡¯s still happening. And... what happened in the shower¡­¡± she said blushing. ¡°... I¡¯m not sure where I am anymore. I think we should still keep our distance a little¡­. My body yells at me that you belong to me and that I belong to you but¡­ but that is¡­¡± she stopped, not knowing how to finish her sentence. ¡°Frightening.¡± said Syphony, with her eyes in the haze. ¡°Yes, that¡¯s it, frightening. So I would prefer to avoid this for now, wait until I have a better grip on my life.¡± ¡°Sure. I think it will be for the best for each of us.¡± Replied Syphony, compassionate. 18 - Duality of the soul Chapter 18 Mikael The room was brilliantly lit by the magic lamp suspended in the middle of the ceiling, while the last rays of the sun tried in vain to compete with it. The only noise that resonated was that of mouths chewing food, from time to time punctuated by the clacking of cutlery against a plate. ¡°... Is the meat to your liking ?¡° asked Helianthine, trying to break the cloak of silence that was crushing the dining room. ¡°... It is good.¡± Mikael replied succinctly, his eyes adrift, eating the succulent meal without really paying attention to it, unable to enjoy it because of the thoughts that were buzzing in his head. The young woman, disappointed, brought her eyes back on her plate, while her mother smiled sadly with a knowing smile, watching Mikael and her daughter in turn. Silence regained its right. From time to time Mikael¡¯s hand trembled, his stiff body still painful from the three days of intensive fitness he had just come out of. His eyes were hollow, testifying to the little amount of sleep he had been able to glean from his nights, when he was not carried away into his spiritual world, finding himself fighting a Lauryne almost as enraged as she had been at the beginning. Something then crushed his shoulder, creating a shock that reverberated through his whole body. Nana had just laid her hand on him, effectively drawing his attention. ¡°Since yah¡¯re not in a state to see it, I must intervene, nay ? The girl is worried about yah¡­¡± She said, nodding her head to Helianthine. ¡°...so talk to us, a bit.¡± She ended by pulling off her bear¡¯s paw-like hand. He rubbed his sore shoulder while grimacing before raising his eyes to the almost eighteen-year-old girl. ¡°... Yes ?¡± He just asked, focusing on her. She looked away a bit before bringing her eyes back to him, finishing her bite. ¡°... You haven¡¯t said anything since you got home¡­ no, since you woke up. I¡¯d like to know how you¡¯re doing.¡± She finally succeeded to say . ¡°... I¡­ I don¡¯t know. I¡¯m not sleeping well lately.¡± He replied with a weak voice. ¡°Are yah having nightmares, kid ?¡± asked Nathalie of her usual grumpy tone, with a hint of anxiety discernible in it this one. Mikael did not answer but his gaze was once more lost far away. ¡°... It¡¯s about Lauryne, isn¡¯t it ?¡± said Helianthine. When the girl¡¯s name was mentioned, Mikael became white as a cloth, then green, squeezing his teeth to contain the nausea that assailed him. Again, he saw Lauryne burning, he heard her cry and felt the smell of her flesh being charred by the magic of her own brother. She is not dead-She is not dead-She is not dead-She is not dead... Was he repeating relentlessly to try and reassure himself. He came to his senses when he felt someone sticking to him. Helianthine had surrounded him with her arms, gently caressing his back, whispering softly, rocking him. He inspired, surprised, smelling the soap that the young woman had used to wash her hair. "What are you doing ?" he asked her, showing a little more emotion than before. "A hug. You looked like you needed it." She simply replied, holding him tight. ¡°... I don¡¯t understand.¡± He just said. ¡°We support each other among friends, and you clearly need a little warmth for now.¡± ¡°... Friends ? We haven¡¯t even known each other for a month...¡± he remarked. She released her embrace, retreating, leaving her hands on the young man¡¯s shoulders, looking straight into his eyes. ¡°Yes, and during those three weeks you showed me that I wanted to be friend with you. You are kind and thoughtful, diligent and, even if you had shown me nothing of this, the simple way you treated Lauryne would have been enough. You¡¯re worth it, so don¡¯t break down between my fingers, okay ? And if you need to speak, you can always come to my place.¡± She replied with emotion. Deep in his tired soul, something seemed to change, like a button that had just been switched, and a smile appeared on Mikael¡¯s face. He brought Helianthine against him and began to cry on her shoulder. He dried his tears a minute or two later. ¡°Sorry.¡± "Don¡¯t worry, I¡¯m here for that too." She replied tenderly. ¡°So, yah came to your senses kid ?¡± Nana smiled. ¡°A bit.¡± said Mikael as he was sitting down again. ¡°The death¡­ Lauryne¡¯s death is still very fresh in my mind. It will take time to¡­ to get closure.¡± "Yep, after all we¡¯re two months ahead of you. We weren¡¯t better the next day, I can tell you, kid.¡± *** They had finished eating, admittedly in silence, but at least with smiles. Mikael had helped Helianthine to clear and wash the dishes, the way he was using his hands soothing him. ¡°Mika, join me in the garden when yah¡¯re done, okay ?¡± Nana said, her head through the kitchen door, tobacco in one hand. He nodded back and continued to help the young woman, her telling him stories while they were working together, how her professor, Merory, had accepted her coming to class despite her inability to pay for it, the fate of one of her comrades who had messed with her hair because of a wrong spell, the handsome Arthy with whom she had been drinking after school. Mikael could not help smiling when he heard the young woman speak of her days, of her dreams, of her plans, full of energy. In a better mood, he finally headed for the garden. There he found Nana on her rocking chair, smoking her pipe quietly while admiring the color gradient that the sun projected on the large white clouds that filled the sky. She turned her head towards him, taking her pipe out of her mouth. ¡°Do yah want to kill Joseph ?¡± she asked him, smiling, leaving the young man stunned. ¡°P-pardon me ?¡± ¡°I asked yah if yah want to kill Lauryne¡¯s older brother, Joseph.¡± She said to him again. Mikael looked at her with wide eyes, and something changed in his soul. His eyes became cold as steel. ¡±Yes.¡± He replied with a neutral voice. "Well, that¡¯s what I thought." She remarked, tapping the socket of her pipe against one of the arms of her chair, emptying it of the ash that was clogging it. ¡°Revenge. It¡¯s something that can be seen in people¡¯s eyes, with enough experience.¡± She continued telling, stuffing her tobacco pipe again, before lighting it with a small stick that she had taken out of her pocket. She took a long breath, filling her lungs with the noxious smoke, then exhaling it out as a thick cloud. ¡°Yah¡¯re totally outmatched. For now. I can give you the opportunity to become stronger, but it will be up to you to do something with it.¡± New inspiration, new cloud of smoke. "So, what do you say ?" She finally asked after a long pause. ¡°That I need to become stronger, more competent, whether for Lauryne or to find my friends. What do you propose ?¡± He answered with the same cold, even robotic, tone, his gaze planted in her own without wavering. A slight tremor shook Nana¡¯s lower lip, but if she was troubled, she let nothing else appear. ¡°... All right. Tomorrow begins the hunting season. You¡¯ll come with me to the Mercenary Guild and get scanned by a status stone and, depending on this one, we¡¯ll see what we can do with you. I can pull a couple of strings to help you find a beginner group, an instructor and a little gear, but it¡¯s all expensive, like your hospital stay. Helianthine won¡¯t tell you, but it made us tighten the belt, especially to her. She missed out on some golden opportunities for her future career because of you. Things like that need pay back, okay ?¡± She asked him, pulling on her pipe again. ¡°Sure. Nothing is free.¡± Always the same tone, but with a nuance of honesty. ¡°I see you got it, kid. We¡¯ll see what you¡¯re made of tomorrow.¡° He stayed there for a few more seconds, contemplating the sky next to Nana but, tired, lacking sleep, he finally decided to go back to his room. It would be nice if I could see my sheet anytime. He thought while contemplating the ceiling of his room, remembering the nights he had spent there, Lauryne stuck against him using him as a big blanket, still feeling the tears she had shed, the fears that had embraced her, the long moments to reassure her. A time so short, and yet so long. He then remarked that a series of symbols had appeared before his eyes, translucent blue, reminding him directly of the window that had appeared when he had laid his hand on the status stone for the first time. A series of varied symbols flashed in front of his eyes before they began to settle down and eventually create something intelligible.Love this novel? Read it on Royal Road to ensure the author gets credit. [Mikael] [Level : 17 (73%) Available Key Points : 16] [Ressources : [Body : ] [Mind : 1] [Soul : 1] [Capacity : ...What ? *** He knocked on the door of Mellite¡¯s room. ¡°You can enter Mikael.¡° She said to him from the inside. So he went in, closing the door behind him. The room was properly lit and Helianthine was reading, a book in one hand and a puzzle in the other. he almost smiled, remembering the first time he woke up here. ¡°How did you know it was me ?¡± ¡°Ha ! My mom don¡¯t knock on door before entering. So, what makes you come to the retreat of a young lady at this hour ?" She then asked, her chastised language hardly hiding the smile that was drawn on her lips. ¡°A few questions.¡° He simply replied. ¡°But of course very dear, sit down.¡± She exclaimed, closing her book with one hand, then pointing to the only other chair in her room. ''Thank you.¡° He said, settling in. ¡°So, what do you want to know ?¡° she asked, as if eager to teach her things. ¡°... Are you going to become a teacher?¡± He said because of the impression she gave him. ¡°Ha ? What, why ?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know. Just a feeling, and intuition if you want. Well, I¡¯m not here for that.¡± ¡°Of course.¡° she said, happy to avoid answering the question. ¡°Thank you. Would you have heard of people able to see their sheet without the help of a status stone ?¡± ¡°... Hmm. Rather specific as a question.¡± She said, raising an eyebrow before answering. ¡°Yes, I¡¯ve heard about it. This is a rather rare capacity, highly prized, especially by the criminal world or the independents, in other words all those who do not want the kingdom to put its nose in their business.¡± ¡°Understood. Then¡­ how many points do you have in each of your Key Characteristics ?¡± ¡°Mff, Ah-hu, Ah-hu !¡° A cough had caught her on this question but she had quickly recovered. ¡°For your information, what you have just done is at best extremely impolite, at worst a declaration of war. Avoid doing this with other people, especially at the Mercenary Guild. And to answer your question, I have seven Body points, twelve Mind points and four Soul points.¡± He nodded and stood up, preparing to leave the room. ¡°Already finished with the questions?¡± ¡°Yes, and I don¡¯t want to bother you any more than that.¡° he replied flatly. He was opening the door when she grabbed his hand. ¡°Stay a little longer to chat.¡° she said, waving towards the chair with an uncertain smile on her face. ¡°... of course.¡° He replied, suddenly smiling, feeling that something had changed in his soul. *** |Old Soul : your soul is old, very old even, it contains a thousand and one secrets and countless and varied life experiences. Acquisition conditions for all classes and capacities are reduced. You can now learn things that only your soul can provide.| |Soul Duality: Your soul is double, composed of two layers with different functioning. From now on, your soul state will automatically change between your two options depending on the environment you are in. Your two states are: Empathy fixed at 1. Resolve over-multiplied by 5. The capacity ¡°Cold of Steel¡±. Other capacities and modifications may appear as the capacity evolves. Empathy over-multiplied by 3. The ¡°Warmth of a Beach¡± capacity. Other capacities and modifications may appear as the capacity evolves.| |Cold of Steel: All contact with your soul is toxic for Empathy-capable Entities, dealing them Irreversible Anthropic Damage.| |Warmth of a Beach: All contact with your soul is good for Empathy-capable Entities, caregivers and soothers of all forms of damage.| |Sanctuary of Souls : By any whim of fate, you have been endowed with one of the Architect¡¯s artifacts. It is now part of you, and it''s up to you to make it reach its full potential.| It¡¯s because of that. That¡¯s why I¡¯m acting weird. He said to himself, frowning, his head leaning on his pillow. That¡¯s going to be a problem... "..." ¡°... Pffff.¡± He sighed lengthily, too tired to really worry that much about his new abilities. For all he knew, they might even be useful to him. He let himself go to sleep, praying that Lauryne would let him sleep that night. *** ¡°Come on kid, let¡¯s get moving !¡° Nana said loudly through the door of his room, waking Mikael up in a burst. ...a night without dreams. He thought. At least I feel rested. He said to himself with a smile. ¡°I¡¯m coming !¡° Mikael finally replied to Nathalie to stop the incessant drumming she was producing on his door. He got up and dressed in a hurry, then joined the others to eat breakfast. He eagerly devoured the porridge ,made by Helianthine, in which various sweet fruit and a little sugar had been added, being famished for one reason or another. When he looked up, he saw the young woman smiling. ¡°What is it, I have something on my face ?¡± he laughed. ¡°No. You look less tired and happier. That reassures me.¡± She said seriously before her smile grew. ¡°... Uh¡­ thank you ?¡± He replied, continuing to eat greedily. ¡°Hurry, I don¡¯t have all day yah know ?'' Nana said in a grumpy tone, but with a trace of mischief. Mikael did as she had asked and soon found himself following Nana through the streets of Kalastol, which he contemplated with ever so much curiosity. He hadn¡¯t really had time to visit the city so far and used this occasion to see what it looked like. And his first conclusion was that it was very clean, for a medieval city, even if we could still see the medieval style by the street plan, a completely chaotic layout. They soon arrived at a sort of large avenue, full of people, whose central lane was reserved for the passage of various vehicles. Already at this hour of the morning the city was in full effervescence, filled by noise and smell more or less pleasant. Nana made them pass through two doors through walls and a bridge and, each time, the standard of wealth of buildings increased. ¡°We¡¯re in the city center now. More for the big brass, normally I don¡¯t come here but to the outside branch, it¡¯s a lot closer to the exit of the city than this one but, well, since it¡¯s your first day, we should make it a bit official at least, don¡¯t yah think ?¡± She explained to him by while giving him a pat on the back, almost making him trip. They continued to walk another fifteen minutes in this area from the city, Mikael crossing for the first time a person who... Well, who wasn¡¯t human. He looked like a dwarf, but the young man couldn¡¯t be more sure about it. ¡°There we go.¡± She finally said, stopping in front of an imposing building resembling more a fortress than anything else, without any building surrounding it within a radius of fifty meters from it¡¯s ramparts. ¡°Every time I forget it¡¯s this hefty.¡± Thought Nana out loud. *** They had entered the castle through the large main door, two or three other persons going about their business taking the same path, crossing the drawbridge and passing under the massive half-lowered harrow, made of a matte green metal that Mikael did not recognize. They thus arrived in a large courtyard provided with a single civilian building, which stood out particularly from the various other constructions, all military. They passed through the door of the building and arrived in a large common room. It was relatively richly decorated and quite well lit. Bigger and smaller private alcoves opened along the left and right walls and a long counter stood in front of the back wall. It was separated into two distinct parts, the first one displaying barrels of various licit substances lined up behind the three tenants who served the customers, the other part being four receptionists dealing with various requests, queue of people stretching out in front of them. Not far away, to their right, a huge board covered a good part of the wall, dozens upon dozens of pages, some biggers than other, holding on it without apparent fastenings. A number of them were luminescent and, at irregular intervals, some of them appeared to be extinguished. The room was filled with tables around which groups of people clung together to drink, to eat or to discuss one or another thing. Maps could be seen on these tables, purses and objects changed hands relatively often, and flashes of voice were heard from time to time, soon calmed down. ¡°Welcome to the Mercenary Guild Headquarters. Be careful, normal laws don¡¯t apply here kid.¡± Nathalie exclaimed, starting to move towards one of the receptionists, the one on the far right, who also happened to be the one with the shortest queue. A number of eyes turned towards her as she passed through the room, a lot of head signs, a lot of smiles too, to which she replied the same way. From a table farther away, a man almost as tall as a bear then rose and walked in their direction, dressed in weary leather clothing. ¡°Hey, who¡¯s the probie ?¡± He asked with a powerful voice when he joined them, a smile on his face. ¡°Hello too, Jax. The probie¡¯s name is Mikael. I think he has potential, trying to pull some string to help him to see if he¡¯s worth it.¡± She answered in a serene tone by placing a hand on Mikael¡¯s shoulder. ¡°Ah ? I didn¡¯t think I would see the day when you would bring someone back to train. Things change, I guess. You come for a drink with us after, Cecile might have got us something good, okay ?¡± He said and winked before returning to his table. ¡°A real beast, this Jax.¡± She commented to the young man¡¯s attention as she started walking again to the fourth counter. ¡°He is very, very strong and very resistant too but, above all, he is very good at exploiting the land of the battlefield. It¡¯s really pleasant to hunt with him.¡± She continued before stopping when they had reached their destination. There, they had to wait about ten minutes, Nana commanding a beer to pass the time. ¡°What ? What is it ?¡± she asked Mikael, who was frowning at her. "Is it normal to drink beer when it¡¯s not even noon?" He then asked, looking at the other people who were already drinking so early in the morning, before bringing his gaze back to Nana. ¡°That ?¡± She said, pointing to her mug. ¡°It¡¯s almost fruit juice, not very fermented. Do yah want to taste it ?¡± she suddenly asked him. ¡°... No thanks. I don¡¯t drink alcohol. But it was nice of you to offer.¡± He declined peacefully. They waited a little longer in silence, Mikael looking around to enjoy the atmosphere that reigned in the room, new to him. ¡°Hello, what can I do for you ?¡± asked the receptionist when it was their turn. ¡°I come here to sponsor a beginner.¡± she replied, pointing to Mikael with the head. ¡°Sure. Is he already registered?¡± ¡°No, we¡¯ll have to do the whole thing.¡± ¡°Very good. It will be two pieces of silver, payed as usual.¡± At this sentence, Nana grimaced a little, taking out a silver coin which she placed on the counter. ¡°Thank you.¡± Said the receptionist, before taking out a paper on which he wrote something before sealing it with a strange instrument, depositing a layer of wax with multicolored reflections at the bottom of the document. ¡°That¡¯s it. Go to the first floor, the sponsored will be tested and you will be able to discuss the specifics of his sponsorship with the Chief Instructor. Good day.¡± ¡°Thank yah, yah too.¡± Nana politely replied, taking Mikael behind her. 19 - How to see is how to hunt Chapter 19 Eleonor Still in the basin, Sanakan was teaching Eleonor. Now that you¡¯ve made contact with the Sfir, you can learn to control your second sight. The sphere that I have offered you is the main way by which we, the Hetaxearks, perceive the world, it is something that should normally grow with us, that we learn to master gradually but, like many things for you related to the Sfir, you don¡¯t do that. Besides, I luckily managed to artificially reduce the range of your second sight to only about 20 meters, it had already begun to damage your nervous system. No Hetaxearks has ever had such a precise vision in such a large volume. Hum¡­ She stopped to think for a moment, before resuming. We normally have two different spheres. The first, the one through which you see, is quite reduced my extremely precise, it oscillates between three meters in children and about twenty in the Arbiters . The second is much wider, and my information is more vague to avoid overloading the user¡¯s mind, its range being between fifty to one hundred meters for children and several kilometers for the Arbiters. As you can see, your case is unique, probably linked to your condition as a carrier of a complete Xerox network. This poses its own set of problems, among other things in terms of fine control, but, in the long term, could prove extremely interesting. Okay. I¡¯ve talked enough, so let¡¯s move on to the part where you learn not to fry your brain by opening your eyes. Certainly. The young woman replied smiling, happy to hear Sanakan explain things to her. After all, knowledge is power. You should feel the Sfir flowing through you, coming in and out like a river running through you. Do you feel it ? ...Yes. All right. Put your hands out, try to keep some of it between your palms. Eleonor did as requested, stretching out her spiritual hands towards the torrent that roared before her, plunging them in, but when she came out, the Sfir seemed to slip between her fingers, fleeting. It¡¯s normal not to succeed on the first try. Try again as long as you need. Sanakan said in a soothing tone The young woman nodded her spectral head and plunged her hands again into the Sfir. Feel it slide over your mind, understand it, take it. The Sfir is predictable, logical, learn to see his patterns, his reactions, exploit them so you can get a grip on it. She whispered to Eleonor. The young woman stopped and tried to feel the flow, this energy like a river that was now crossing the valley of her spirit. She let the fingers of her reason and logic sink, trying to understand the fluxes and swirls that were born and would die in this constant influx of clear and pure power. From time to time she discovered something, a constant in the formation of the vortices, a certain logic in the intertwining of the current, a paterne in the form of the flow. Time passed as her body was immersed in Genesis and her mind in the Sfir and, finally, she brought her hands before her in a cup, a little bit of Sfir in her palms which she brought back to her. A message appeared before her. |After a long training, you finally managed to accumulate Sfir in you. New unlocked resource: Sfir. Your character sheet has been updated.| It went faster than I would have expected. Then commented Sanakan, a smile in the voice. It wasn¡¯t that hard. It just takes time to get used to it, an hour or two. The young woman replied while shrugging her metaphorical shoulders. ... an hour or two... Genesis, how many cycles have passed since you brought your mistress into you ? Then suddenly asked the alien. FORTY-FOUR CYCLES, FORMATOR SANAKAN. Answered the pool of his neutral voice. ...sorry, what ? I spent almost... thirty-seven days doing that ? Eleonor exclaimed, doing the quick head count. Um¡­ two-thirds of that time, actually. The first third was used to open you up to the Sfir. Sanakan specified. A very good performance, in can say. Our young take months, sometimes years to learn what you just did in a little over a month. I mean, you¡¯re an adult in training, something that never happens to us, I expected it to go faster, but not as fast. A good thing in short. Commented the Arbiter, happy. Now that you have a reserve of Sfir, no matter how small, you will finally be able to interact with the Void. Let¡¯s get out of here. Better to be free of your movements for the next part. said Sanakan. Of course. Eleonor replied, extricating naturally herself from Genesis, rapidly emerging from the pool, helped by the tentacles of the pond which deposited her on the ground It had become so natural to her that she did not notice that he kept one of his tentacles wrapped around her throat, not even differentiating it from her own body. Perfect. Your sphere of perception allows you to feel the objects around you with terrible precision, but you already know that. It does this by allowing you, through your Sfir, to feel the disturbances that different things create in the ether that fills the Void. To begin with, ask your Sfir to stop crossing surfaces. ...Okay ? An unsure Eleonor replied. Not knowing how to do it, she simply tried to convey her request to the powerful liquid that rested in her hands and, suddenly, she was taken by a fit of claustrophobia when she wasn¡¯t able to see through things anymore, quickly repressed. I did it ! Indeed, let¡¯s continue. Now ask it to remove any object smaller than one of your nails. Once again, Eleonor focused and gave an order to her Sfir, who reacted with obedience. ... And finally, ask it to decrease its accuracy by displaying only the faces of the objects that are directly directed towards you. For the third time, she ordered this energy to do what Sanakan advised her to do, with even more facility. Now you should be able to open your eyes. Try. She opened her eyes and, again, the world poured into her, less abruptly this time. She smiles, deeply happy to see so much color. The next time I see a drawing of Mellite, maybe I can finally appreciate it. She thought on the tone of the joke. To continu... Sanakan, wait a bit, I would like to check something before continuing. Interrupted the young woman. ...All right. Thank you. It won¡¯t take long. She replied while thanking her. Character sheet. She thought. [Eleo?nor?] [Level : 37 (3%) Available Key Points : 0] [Classes : N/A] [Ressources : [Body : 41] [Mind : 1] [Soul : 1] [Natural Armor : 22 (20,5 +1,5)] [Natural weapons : Fangs: Strength *1 damage (205), armor-piercing 2 Feet and fists : Strength *2 (410) damage , armor-piercing 1] [Capacity : [Body : 41 [Mind : 1 |Novice Sfir pool (Level 1) : your mana reserve is equal to 1 times your Magical Affinity.|If you stumble upon this narrative on Amazon, it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it. Eleonor nodded, quickly becoming aware of the changes that her training had brought her before bringing her attention back to Sanakan. There you go. Thank you for waiting. It¡¯s nothing, let¡¯s keep going. I will teach you one more basic thing for all Hetaxeark, but I will not go any further today in view of the weak reserve of Sfir that you are able to contain for the moment. She explained to her. Now look. She said to her, bringing the young woman¡¯s gaze to the corner of the room where Gen¨¨se was resting. Sanakan remained silent, concentrating for a moment before a sphere of tar separated from the surface, floating for a second in the air before falling back into the puddle that had seen it born. I think you call it telekinesis. Finally said Sanakan with an exhausted voice. Well, at least from what I saw in your memories. She continued with the same fatigue in her voice. You have access to my memories ? Eleonor exclaimed. Of course. We share the same mind. And it¡¯s mutual. You don¡¯t remember seeing scenes that didn¡¯t belong to you ? ...Yes. It¡¯s¡­ weird. In the future, could you ask me before you scan my memories ? ...Yes, sorry. I am not entirely myself, I lose my politeness. Sanakan replied in a contrite tone. Thank you. Let¡¯s go back to this telekinesis thing. Sure. You should be able to do the same as me but not much more, considering the Sfir you have right now. She paused before continuing, gathering her minds. Now focus. With the Sfir, imagine extending your arm to the pond, and catching some fluid. Once again, the young woman did as she had been asked and, quickly, a small sphere of liquid detached itself from the black mass, remaining suspended in the air a few seconds before crashing back into it. Eleonor put her knees to the ground, feeling exhaustion hitting her like a hammer, happy to have the help of one¡¯s of Gen¨¨se tentacle to remain stable. ...Wow. It¡¯s... really exhausting. That¡¯s because you invested all the Sfir you had in that move. As a rule, try to stay above a quarter of your Sfir¡¯s reserve, or you¡¯ll be diminished. Understood. Okay. That will be all for now. I¡¯m going to rest for a while, this demonstration has cost me more than I expected. She said with a little sadness in her voice. ...Okay. Tell me if there¡¯s anything I can do. Sure. Come on, I¡¯ll see you later. *** She had been watching her Sfir gauge for about ten minutes, but it seemed to be blocked at zero, having not regained a single point since she had tried her newfound telekinesis. This Sfir, it¡¯s really going to be an investment more than anything at the moment. She could not help thinking while smiling ironically, imagining the small impact that this new power would have in even the least relentless fight. This reminded her of the pawn who had disguised itself as a rabbit, and she squeezed her wrist where he had attacked her. This was the moment that her stomach chose to start growling, the young woman realizing that she was hungry. Let¡¯s prioritize. Start by finding something to eat and, in the process, test your new strength. She said to herself, clenching her fist, watching the exit of her lair with fire in her eyes. *** She was now at the entrance of the Great Cave, where she had recovered enough to make the pockets that now appeared on her sides, at the height of her kidneys. The journey had taken her a long time as she still clearly had trouble controlling her strength. On several occasions, she had even nearly thrown herself into one or the other hole and had only had to her hooks not die of a long and pathetic fall in the big well on which the exit from her base gave. The movement through the tunnel to this place had not been much more glorious, as evidenced by the mark her head had left on the ceiling when a creature had startled her, passing so quickly beside Eleonor that it had even left a blurry image of it on the sphere of the young woman. At least now I know I can take a wall without being in too much danger. She thought by massaging the top of her head on which a purplish bump was appearing. Taking advantage of the intermingled pain and pleasure, the young woman sat down and, for the first time, took the time to contemplate the natural wonder this cave was, ecstatic in the face of the beauty of the place, further ¦Ì reinforced by her new eyes sensitive to the myriad of colors that painted it. This rainforest seemed to be separated into two types of quite distinct areas that still which mixed a lot. On one hand, thick masses of trees clung around the many wells of light pouring out their multicolored rays, some red, some orange and some still blue, creating an astonishing but beautiful mix to look at, painting the massive canopies that covered the ceiling of the cave in places like a painter who splashed his painting. These massive trees were covered with bioluminescent lianas, giving a supernatural air to these groves whose dark depths were gently lit with a glaucous and bluish aura. On the other side, between the groves of trees the mushrooms reigned, far from the sources of light which they did not need anyway, creating paths between the masses taking advantage of the wells of light. The earth was dark and fertile, decomposed piles of various animals hunted and slaughtered in these places, many bones in more or less good visible condition mixed with the earth. Where the soil had been returned by some animal, mycelium was visible. The spacing between the groves seemed to be totally random, sometimes only a few meters away, sometimes tens of meters apart, creating a canvas mixing the vibrant colors of the trees, flowers and lianas with the browns, white and black mushrooms as couterpoint. She remained there a handful of minutes, unable to get away from this vision as hypnotizing as it was overwhelming. She had already seen documentaries about the Amazonian forest, but living it was a completely different experience, especially if we added all the extraordinary elements that mingled with the place and, to begin with, the fact that it was not even the Earth. Suddenly her sphere conveyed something to her. Between the leaves, it built her a partial image of a small and probably carnivorous creature. ...It¡¯s looking my way. Did she think as she looked at the creature. It had four clawed legs that it had used to agilely move between the trunks and through vegetation, now at a standstill to better examine its potential prey, unaware that it was in fact already spotted. As far as the young woman could see, its body was angular, covered with barbed serrations, and two scythe-like appendages came out of its mouth, gently splitting the air as if the creature was already imagining itself having its next meal. It would be very practical to have an identification skill. She thought smiling ironically, thinking about one of the flagship skills of all the isekais she had read. She hesitated, remaining where she was, not quite sure of wanting to engage the creature. Not that she had anything against fighting and killing, but her previous experiences had made her more cautious and, not knowing what to expect, she didn¡¯t want to risk attacking something too big for her. And, as through a grotesque mirror, the creature also seemed hesitant, giving the impression of not wanting to give up the security of the dense foliage. This choice was however stolen from Eleonor when the creature, having reached the end of its patience, finally decided to emerge from its hiding place to attack the young woman. Counting on the effect of surprise, the creature came all claws out, full of opening. And this was not arrogance, for, Eleonor could agree, without her sphere, she would not have seen or heard it coming upon her, because it was discreet and silent. Too bad for him. She said to herself, a sadistic smile spreading over her face and distorting her usually calm , even tender features. She thrust her left foot into the ground, leaning slightly to the right. She waited for the last moment and gave a powerful impulse, no longer paying attention to her strength, while bringing her elbow back. "CRAC!" A disgusting crackling reverberated on the nearby trees when the tip of her elbow came into contact with the attacker¡¯s skull, just before being swept away by her own momentum and jumping accidentally, turning three times on herself. She crashed a little further down, rolling for a few seconds before stopping. A little dizzy, she took one or two more seconds to regain her senses and get up, her eyes and sphere on the lookout. Her elbow was hurting but the sensations were still quite manageable overall and, anyway, she was made far too tense by the search of her opponent. Tension that suddenly faded when a message appeared in front of her. |Congratulations, you killed a Pawn(Raptor Strain) Level 23.| She looked at the ethereal blue phrase with a look of incomprehension, before the sphere spotted the poor Pawn who had tried to attack her. Incomprehension gave way to a rictus and then to a complete, sadistic smile. ¡°Hahaha! HAHAHA!¡± She began to laugh with an outstretched laugh, feeling deeply happy, feeling her power, her ability to crush a life under her feet, well, her elbow here. She felt her thirst for blood intensifying echoing to her thirst of freedom, as if all of this was only an appetizer for her taste of slaughter. She wanted more. More blood. More death. More freedom. She began to sniff the air, methodically covering the surroundings of her gaze as her sphere sought something else to hunt, something else to kill. However, she strengthened her will, her belly reminding her of the main reason she was here. Eating first, hunting after. Eleonor said, approaching the corpse of the creature. The poor beast had its head completely sunk between what must have been its eyes only a few minutes ago. A question then crossed the young woman¡¯s mind. HP bar ? Did she think timidly, the system answering her question directly. [Health points: 2003/2050] Yes ! She said to herself triumphantly, seeing a HP bar appear in the upper right corner of her vision. It was not particularly prominent but advanced to make herself readable in the foreground whenever Eleonor actively focused on it. I still lost some health points, but not much compared to my total. Let¡¯s see if I regenerate naturally. She thought then as she began to eat. Her armoured hands with sharp fingers easily tore the creature¡¯s limbs, placing the first piece in her mouth. Taste, texture, she felt nothing of that. Only a moderate but indescribable pleasure passed through her as she chewed the piece of meat, accompanied by her pain now omnipresent and even more so nondifferentiable.. She swallowed it, finally stemming the flow of this new sensation. What THE FUCK was that ? She wondered, then, before remembering. Gen¨¨se. She said, remembering her request to the pool. So far, everything she had eaten was foul and, tired, she asked Gen¨¨se if he could make the action more enjoyable. Which he did, even if not in the way I expected, or even I wanted. She continued to think, slightly upset. Of course, taste is no longer a problem, I don¡¯t taste anything anymore ! It feels more like an orgasm than anything else ! She tried to put a piece of food in her mouth again, hoping that the sensation would be less strong, in vain, the latter remaining of constant intensity. She massaged her face, between the eyes, frustrated. Ok...stop getting upset for nothing dude. That¡¯s the way it is. You just have to get used to it. At least until next time I see Gen¨¨se. And so she continued her meal, more and more conquered by the new pleasure that the act of eating gave birth to in her. At first, she opened the barbed shell to devour the muscles hiding underneath, almost reminding her of the unpleasant Christmas supper and the inevitable crab she hated skinning. She stopped, however, when she bit without doing so on purpose in a piece of chitin that fell off and chewed like the rest of the beast, realizing that the strength of her jaw was sufficient to crush even the bones and armor of the creature. She ate, again, again and again, gorging herself on the carcass that made half her height, giving herself with closed eyes to the pleasure of eating and the relief of feeding without stopping, keeping just a small part of her mind focused on her sphere to avoid any surprise attack. One or two other creatures passed, pausing for a moment to watch the new predator that invaded their jungle, quickly leaving to take care of their business. At one moment, caught in her hedonistic trance, she reached out her arm but her hand only met the ground, making her regain all of her mind. She tried to get up but found herself heavier than usual, paradoxically having a little easier time to control her strength. Wow¡­ I really ate everything ? She then thought, remembering that the creature was very much the size of a big dog. I even devoured the bones. She said thoughtfully to herself, looking at the traces of blood that were the only remaining marks attesting the existence of the poor Pawn she had just swallowed up. She ran her hands along her body, feeling her side pockets slightly distended, filled with a kind of dense, viscous liquid. ...I really have to ask Genesis how these bags work, exactly. So she said to herself. Even if, at first glance, I would say that they are connected to my digestive system. The more I eat, the more they will swell. She tried to walk a little, feeling the extra weight helping her to adjust her to strength, but that destabilized her a little and, as she made the bitter discovery by crashing against a tree, made it harder for her to brake. Of course. More mass at the same speed equals more kinetic energy, you dumbass. She rebuffed herself. She took a few dozen more minutes to get used to her new balance before she stopped smiling again. Let¡¯s see how far I can fill those bags. She thought, her usual sadistic smile painting her face again. 20 - A weak and empty shell ; Crawling once more Chapter 20 ??? The young woman was chained to the center of some kind of well, bleachers completely surrounding her, covered with people with bad looks, who reeked of rage, sadness, and desire for revenge, all these emotions directed towards the condemned. ¡°Lily Amevrarde, for the crimes of treason, murder, massacre, blasphemy and sabotage, the council of the Principalities sentenced you to death.¡± Then said what appeared to be a priest, dressed in a simple but well-crafted clerical gown. He was the only one of the five Principalities to have risen, watching the traitor making an effort to keep calm, but the hatred cracking in places his mask of serenity. "I should have killed you all when you were in my hands!" she cried, enraged, struggling in vain. The crowd of spectators began to boo her and even cast spells, even if they had little effect, protected as she was by her chains. ¡°I call on the council to show mercy !¡± Then cried a man, his voice cutting through the noise of the crowd like a white-hot knife in a lump of butter. The great hall sank into mortal silence as a man stood in the bleachers, looking at the Principality still standing since his proclamation. ¡°The condemnation of the council is irrevocable, Araclus.¡± The priest replied flatly. Lily looked at the man, a mixture of tenderness, anxiety, and hatred painting on her face, before hatred prevailed. "You can go to hell, asshole ! You hear me ? It¡¯s your fault that I¡¯m here !" She cried, her voice full of rage and venom, but the man did not even turn his head, keeping his eyes firmly planted in those of the Principality. ¡°I call my right of Vow.¡± he said in a weak, almost whispering voice, but everyone heard it perfectly. The face of the Principality became white before being distorted by a rictus of anger quickly contained. ¡°Are you sure you want to use your Vow for this unholy creature, this fratricide demon ?¡± he asked the man with his most measured voice. ''¡±Yes¡±'' Replied Araclus. ¡°Go die ! Go fucking die !¡± Continued to yell Lily, ignored by the audience. ¡°... All right.¡± The priest finally replied, having seemingly suddenly aged, as if overwhelmed by this choice. He looked at the other Principalities around him, two on the left, two on the right, each nodding towards him. ¡°Blessed is our Lord Lily the Fratricide, for today your life has been saved by your husband. You will have a second chance to serve the lord through him. Your memories of this world will be purged until your arrival here and, pure, your education will be remade so that you can become what you should have been, a messenger of our lord, shining with his glory and bearing his word. Take her away.¡± ¡°No! No,not that, kill me !¡± She started screaming frantically in these chains. ¡°I hate you ! I hate you and curse you, Araclus !¡± she cried, desperate, before receiving a powerful electric shock. Araclus A deep sadness in his eyes, he watched his unconscious wife being carried away by two paladin. He himself came out of the arena of judgment, a bitter taste in his mouth remembering the state of his wife, a monster unleashed with hatred and rage. Thinking back on the crime she had committed, he felt a nausea taking him, despite his habit of the unglorious battlefields that the Heretics of the Rebellion created when they fought. Having separated from the crowd by taking a path reserved for the high dignitary, he descended deeper and deeper into the building until he reached his goal, the purification chamber. ¡°I hope you will not regret this decision, Araclus.¡± The Principality who had been in charge of the judgment of his beloved then told him. ¡°I too, Liam, I too.¡± He replied in a tired tone. They went in silence until they entered the main part of the room. The circular room was large, numerous symbols engraved on the ground and going up to the ceiling at the center of which was suspended a metal rod by a cable of the same material. Below the stem, on a seat again of the same material was Lily, still unconscious of the shock she had received. Thirty other people also filled the room, each already in position on one of the ground symbols. A woman dressed simply turned to the Principality when he entered, making a slight reverence. ¡°We are ready to start whenever you want, your Eminence.¡± She said to him. Liam turned one last time to Araclus. ¡°You know that you will not be able to see her for many years, and that she will no longer be your wife. Are you sure you prefer that to her death ?¡± asked the tired priest. ¡°Yes.¡± He simply replied, in his voice, the sadness of a broken heart. ¡°I owe her that much.¡± ¡°... Okay. Process.¡± Liam tells the Mistress of Ceremonies. The priests then began to sing, the symbols and engravings gradually lit up. The field increased in intensity as a kind of strange liquid began to flow from Lily¡¯s eyes and ears. Awakened by the shock, she began to scream. ¡°No, stop! Please kill me! aaAARGHH ! No, NOOOO !¡± She screamed as she began to cry, her tears mingling with her snot as she shook and struggled in irons. She saw her memories disappear, she felt her levels and classes being torn from her, she felt the indescribable horror of seeing everything that made her disappear, tirelessly sucked by the steel stake that was suspended above her head, gradually transforming it into a weak and empty shell, purging these years of experiences and life in the Labyrinth. ¡°AAAAAARGHH!!!¡± Unable to endure the pain any longer, she began to convulse before fainting. And all along, Araclus looked at her with tears in his eyes. Eleonor With her head raised towards the rocky ceiling, the young woman had her eyes closed to focus on her other senses, her smell, her hearing, her sphere. A big smile spread over her face, a smile dripping with blood. She suddenly opened her eyes, her sphere having indicated that something was approaching. She lowered her centre of gravity by bending her knees, anchoring herself cleanly in the ground, facing the new rival who presented itself to her. She was soaked with blood and emboldened by her easy victory, waiting for a new fight, a new hunt, a new execution. Just thinking about it, her smile widened even more. The creature, baited by the smell of blood, approached her not from one of the nearby groves, but from the dark area, the one filled with mushrooms. It was more or less the same size as the Pawn who attacked her a few minutes ago, but it had a very clear difference. If the Raptor Pawn had been made for agility, precision and silence, this one, with its massive chitinous plates, its oversized skull cut like a ram and its broad legs, seemed rather optimized for its endurance and brute force. The small biological tank finally turned to the corner of a massive rock and its gaze landed on Eleonor, the young woman slowly turning her head towards it and opened her eyes like a cat that would have been disturbed during her nap. The creature stopped, keeping its evil eyes on the thing it had encountered as it smelled the air, before ravaging the ground with one of its clawed paws, not identifying the thing before it as a threat, not when she seemed hurt, with all the blood that covered her. A second passed, the air tense to crack and, suddenly, the apparent calm tore like a thread. The creature charged and the young woman put herself in a receiving position, left shoulder forward. Chitin against skin, shoulder against head, the two beings crushed against each other in a pure confrontation of brute force. Confrontation that ended on an equality, the anchor of Eleonor insufficient to keep her in place and the strength of the creature laking to withstand the backlash of its own strike, each of the two sent flying a few meters further in long furrows of earth. Wow. It¡¯s got some fucking punch. She said to herself by massaging her sore shoulder, feeling all the muscles and bones of her body recovering from the shock. However, the creature was in much worse condition. The young hunter¡¯s shoulder stroke had partially penetrated its frontal armour, the thickest of all its body, and a viscous substance was now running from the cracks that extended into its flesh. Then, to Eleonor¡¯s surprise, the creature opened several orifices and began to unload a kind of greenish gas. At the same time she it opened the upper part of its skull and suddenly the powerful sound of a foghorn resounded on the walls of the cave. Without giving its prey time to react, the creature charged Eleonor again, leaving behind a trail of gas.You might be reading a stolen copy. Visit Royal Road for the authentic version. Too focused on the fight, perhaps also too inexperienced, the young woman did not pay attention to the screaming of her opponent, discarding it by considering it as a war cry. Anyway, the creature seemed determined to fight, even if more cautiously. Eleonor put her shoulder forward again, ready to receive but, to her great surprise, the creature did not come at her, preferring to turn around her quickly, like a motorcycle taking a sharp turn, showing an agility in its movements that the young woman would not have believed it capable of. What is it trying to do ? She wondered, but only for a second, before realizing that the gas was now circling her from all sides, filling the area around her. She breathed a little inadvertently and her lungs began to burn, as did her throat. |You were poisoned by ¡°Mutated Sauriot Extract¡± in stage 1: You idiot, of course it¡¯s poison ! She thought, feeling really stupid. At least it¡¯s not a big deal right now. She continued to follow the creature with her gaze, keeping an eye on her life bar, wondering what to choose between fleeing or continuing to fight. How about the stamina bar ? She then asked, the system responding by displaying the so-called bar as it had done previously with the hp one. ...it can still be attempted. She ended up thinking, driven by her greed. All I have to do is grab it. She thought, for, indeed, the creature was now keeping its distance, surely counting on its toxic cloud to do the work in its place or, at the very least, weaken its adversary enough to be able to tackle it with less difficulty. Fortunately, the Abyss Eyes of Eleonor began to slowly taking action, allowing her to read the movements of her opponent with less and less difficulty. She spends another minute watching the creature roam around her, keeping herself at a distance, before considering that she was ready enough. Between the pain and pleasure that emanated from her shoulder and elbow, and the excitement of the fight, of the hunt, she had a hard time keeping calm. She made an important effort, however, to restore her peace of mind, before extending one of her arms. She waited for the right moment, the moment when the creature would pass through the spot she was pointing at, as her Abyss Eyes told her. Now ! She thought, powerfully projecting her tentacles forward, the sucker¡¯s head crashing on the chitinous shell of the surprise creature. She then retracted them with all her strength, rushing quickly to her enemy to take advantage of its distress. Arriving on it, she kept her tentacular anchorage and, focusing as much as she could while doing the rodeo on an armored monster, looked for the weakness in its shell. |Poisoning Stage 2 reached! Effects: -5 hp/s; -10 sp/s| She did not pay attention to the announcement of the system, all her attention directed towards her sole objective, to find a place where to hit the beast effectively, pieces of mushrooms and occasionally rocks raining on her because of the monster struggling to get her off. Haha ! She exclaimed mentally when she found what she searched. Between its neck and its head, skin was periodically discovered by two sheets of chitines sliding on top of each other. Waiting for the right moment, she stuffed her fist in it as deeply as possible before opening it, partially blocking the monster¡¯s head movements, before beginning to frantically shred the tender flesh in it. The creature heckled all the more, destroying the environment around it in its attempts to crush Eleanor against something, anything, as long as he could dislodge her. Unfortunately for the beast, Eleonor finally found what she was looking for. She surrounded him with her hand and suddenly pulled the piece of spinal cord she had just clumped. The monster was swept by a spasm and almost immediately stopped, its limbs escaping under it. A few seconds later, his various organs failing him without the instructions of the nervous system, the creature died. |Congratulations, you killed a Pawn (Merion strain) Level 21.| The cloud of toxic gas dissipated quickly, letting Eleonor take her first breath of clean air in a few minutes. Without further ado, she threw herself on the carcass. This time she removed the chitin plates, too thick and numerous to be pleasant to eat, and focused on the flesh itself. Her pockets quickly inflated with viscous liquid, weighing her down even more. *** It had been several minutes since she was feasting on the monster¡¯s death body when a new creature entered her sphere, apparently walking right toward her. The young woman managed to stop eating, in spite of the sheer pleasure she derived from it, turning her attention to the present question. She used one of her hook to tie herself to a tree, the highest she could. Great good did to her, for quickly, more and more creatures, Merions, gathered around the corpse of their companion, seeking vigorously the source of their misfortune. Interesting. They are community animals¡­ She thought with curiosity. I could really use a notebook or something. She said to herself, imagining what a difficulty it would be to have to memorize all the information she was going to gather about her preys. A powerful vibration then made the cave tremble, removing the most fragile stalactites that hung from the ceiling and making them crash here and there. The horde of Merions, which had accumulated not far from Eleonor, reacted straight away, placing itself in a head-out defensive circle formation. The silence fell again on the cave, all the creatures watching and keeping their breath. Suddenly, the vegetation of a nearby grove was torn apart, revealing an imposing beast, as tall as a two-storey building. It landed in the herd of Merions and, with the eight tentacles emerging from its back, began to mow them quickly, catching them before throwing them into its huge mouth, the poor beasts quickly crushed by the multiple rows of teeth that lined it. The herd began to escape practically by reflexes and the creature took a step to follow it before coming to rest. FLEE ! Screamed Sanakan in the head of the young woman, who did not wait any longer before throwing herself forward with her tentacles. She heard a deaf clatter behind her and saw through her sphere a tentacle crashing right where she had been a second earlier, sending pieces of wood flying. One of them struck the young woman in the back, sinking slightly into her, projecting her forward even more. The creature had its eyes fixed on the young woman, seemingly extremely focused, and began to chase her with surprising agility in view of its mass and size, using its tentacles with great skill to move between the trees, sometimes leaning on its rear legs to give itself a powerful speed boost. Eleonor, on the other hand, had difficulty remaining out of reach of the terrifying creature, the mass added by her pockets weighing her more than a little. Passes the entrance of the tunnel, it is too massive that to catch us in ! Shouted Sanakan again, giving a goal to her host. Understood ! The young woman replied in return. She passed between the trees, exploiting their cover to avoid the tentacles that the monster projected toward her. As a result, the most difficult parts were the ones where she was exposed, jumping over the weak vegetation and the fungi of the dark zones, passages however obliged if she wanted to get out. After what seemed an eternity of flight, she finally saw the light at the beginning of the tunnel. We are almost there ! A last effort ! She thought to motivate herself, putting even more force in her grapples to get there. ¡°BAM !¡± A powerful noise resounded, that of Eleonor¡¯s body smashing against the stone, thrown by the end of one of the monster¡¯s tentacles. Her whole body then screamed with pain, the pain of having had the majority of her bones broken, the pain of having her organs bleeding internally, the pain of having her spine partially crushed. The lack of sensation too, coming from her legs, her inability to move them or the have feel them. Her mind almost got lost in pleasure but she held on, even if she didn¡¯t know why, given her pitiful state. A tentacle then wrapped around her, the young woman surprised by the delicacy of the movement. The majestic creature brought Eleanor to the height of its eyes and their gaze crossed. Surprisingly, the young woman did not perceive the thirst for blood she expected to see, but rather a form of¡­ curiosity ? Well ? What do we have here ? A new tiny creature ? Then said an unknown voice in her mind, a young and breathing voice. I know you understand me, little creature. Speak. Where are you from ? What are you ? Asked the voice again, still with curiosity. Stunned as much by her feelings as by the loss of her legs, Eleonor did not respond directly. I...No, leave me alone ! She ended up answering, lost, struggling with all her strength against the embrace of the tentacle, her instinct yelling at her to run away. Tsss¡­ Too bad. I would have liked to keep you to myself, little thing, but you seem to have taken the Queen¡¯s interest. You will speak soon enough, my future sister. Then thought the creature, giving the impression of speaking more to itself than to the young woman. Eleonor felt, at that moment, a fear that she had never really experienced, that of a prey whose destiny rested between the claws of a predator. She felt small, weak, unable to defend herself. The great creature then opened a hole in its body where she placed its hunting trophy, the prey it had captured alive. Eleonor felt herself gripped by a myriad of tentacles that surrounded her like chains, preventing her from moving even an inch, totally different from the way Gen¨¨se wrapped her to protect and rock her. She tried to struggle but, with her broken body, it was in vain. The shadow surrounded her, weak vibrations the only indications that she was not lost in a world of darkness. Time lost its meaning, until¡­ No¡­ Until the wrath of Sanakan resounded in the spirit of Eleonor. The Arbiter then took on a red hue and, bristling like a cat, projected a powerful impulse through the Xeark network that ran through the young woman¡¯s body. The inside of the pocket was illuminated red as the crystals on the surface of her skin took on a powerful and luminous bloody hue. Something went through space, like a wave on water, a distortion, and a putrid smell invades the air. A big red tear appeared just in front of the young woman, who then felt herself fall, freed from her prison. A rift, like a broken mirror, had appeared in the middle of the creature, cutting it almost in two. ¡°AARRRRR!¡± Its scream of pain echoed into the great well as it threw itself to the side to extract the crack from its body. It turned its eyes toward the young woman, its eyes full of fury and pain, but even before it could attack Eleonor, a long tongue of lilac fire came out of the rift, turning to the imposing monster and throwing itself on it. Suspended above emptiness by one of her hook which she had used by reflexes, she did not even take a second to watch the monstrous fight that was taking place not far from her. No, her whole being was turned to flight. She more or less recognized the surroundings because she was currently not far from the place where the entry of the tunnel, the one toward the cave were she hunted, was. So she began to swing as she could, using her hooks one after the other to go down the wall and return to the level of her balcony. The act was long and exhausting, especially since she did not have her legs to help her balance. Finally arriving at her balcony, she used her hooks again, this time to crawl on the ground, groveling through the corridor that led to her base. This strangely reminded her mind drowned in fatigue of the moment when the mimetic Pawn had attacked her, a time both near and far. As she entered her nest, she made a final effort to drag her broken body to Gen¨¨se, who, sensing her arrival, surrounded her with warm and numerous tentacles. AGAIN ? He exclaimed, feeling her wounds. DON¡¯T WORRY MISTRESS. LET SLEEP TAKE YOU, I¡¯LL TAKE CARE OF EVERYTHING. He continued in a tone that could be perceived as soothing by someone who knew him well and, Eleonor trusting him, she did as proposed, falling asleep once again in what was gradually becoming her favourite place. Not a chapter - A true question So. Yeah. I just got a 1 star rating, making this novel fall sharply on the ranking, and making it lose nearly 0.7 of average rating. I''m not making this post to present myself as a victim, nor to start a witch hunt to know who gave me this rating. Those things aren''t important. This rating hurt me but, more importantly, it made me uncertain about this story of mine. His there a fatal flaw in this design that could make me understand why I got a 1 star rating ? Here are a few things that could have made this rating like that : - Poor mastery over the english language. I know I''m not good at writting, and even more so in english, a language I self-taught me in. There is surely a lot of errors, mistakes in the way I build my sentences that make it harder or even painfull to read what I write. - PoV jump. That''s was and still is a big concern for me since 1- It''s difficult to do it the right way 2-RR is known to not like it and 3- I''ve a lot of character, so the screen time for each of them could be seen as somehow laking. That is true and the reason why I try to do full or nearly full chapters around a character now. - Talking about heavy subject. I already talked about rape and brainwashing so far, and other things like prostitution, war horrors and slavery will certainly make there appearance in here at some point. I know those are powder keg and to be treated very carefully, and not eveyone would want to read about them. That''s why I put all the warning I could, in particular traumatazing content, so people would know what they were heading of when starting to read this novel. The narrative has been illicitly obtained; should you discover it on Amazon, report the violation.- Combats. I''m no good to write battles and, therefore, all combat scene are training for me to become better in this. I know full well my combat aren''t to most fluid or even natural, nor are they the most realistic, with sometime myself raising an eyebrow while looking at what I wrote. - Plothole and incoherence. I''m sure that there, somewhere, without me seeing it, there is some plothole. And, the same way, some incoherence. I try my best to keep it at bay. So now I need you. If you''re reading it, I can assume you also read the rest of what I posted. I need your feedbaks to know if there is a fatal flow in there so I can adress it. I don''t want to be oblivious to a wound that could fester and, in the futur, make the whole story fall appart, I dread this but I can''t do it alone. Thanks for reading this post, I hope some of you will be able to help me make this novel better, since it''s still only the first one I publish and I''m rather new to all of this. Hope you have a great day. Cheers ! ^^ (And this is really not to put me as a victim, I don''t want to be seen as one. I really need your help ^^'' Yes I know, I''m stressed, I needed to make it more clear, I apologize.) 21 - Pets are overrated ; Waking up anew Chapter 21 Evilyn ¡°...¡± She remained silent, her gaze alternating between the character sheet that had appeared before her just now, and her new arm that looked just like the old one, if not the anthracite black hue of her skin and the shape of her nails, that looked more like claws than anything else. She moved her new limb, feeling powerful muscles rolling, running her left hand over her skin to appreciate the new texture, like satin. ¡°... What did you do to me?¡± She asked then in a voice where curiosity won its duel against anger, but only by a little. Ahahah ! I gave you what you wanted, little one ! A body with inexhaustible regeneration, and my full powers ! She was surprised to hear the voice of the demon not through her ears, but directly from her mind. However, she quickly recovered. "You turned me into a demon?" Only an hybrid for the time being ! If I need to be chained at you till your death, at least I want it to be as pleasant as possible ! To this answer she remained speechless. She then looked at the blaze-cage of which the demon had escaped. ¡°... I don¡¯t understand. Why did you choose to lock yourself in me? What does that change compared to your previous prison ?¡± Ha ! For starter, it¡¯s at least much less annoying. Plus, what has the longest life span, a magic cage, or a human ? ¡°... Yes. I see where you¡¯re going. Even though I¡¯m not human anymore, am I ?¡± She replied by looking at her character sheet and, more particularly, her race. A long silence followed, suddenly broken by the devil¡¯s insults. ...Fuck. But what dumbass. So he says in the mind of Ashes. Bloody hell, what an asshole. What have I done. He continued, his normally imposing tone giving now the impression that the demon was on the verge of depression. ¡°... Is everything all right ?¡± she asked gently, surprised by the state of the demon. No, nothing is okay ! I screwed myself again ! I had to turn you into a demon hybrid, it looked so fun at the time ! And now, instead of being stuck with you fifty, maybe sixty years, I¡¯m good to spend hundreds of years in your company ! He spat hysterically, the anger in his voice directed not to Evilyn but to himself. The young woman was about to talk again when she noticed the look that Tysbae had on her. ¡°Everything is fine?¡± she asked, seeing that the teenager was breathing fast. She was sweating, too, and constantly moistening her lips. ¡°I am starting to¡­ to be hungry.¡± she said, the thirst in her eyes almost palpable. Evilyn found herself standing next to her instantly, hands on the teenager¡¯s shoulders. ¡°Now we will see if you have kept your promise, demon.¡± Call me Sullivan, kid, or us being together will become fucking boring fast. She did not pay attention to the comment of the abusive demon, preferring to focus on the teenager. ¡°Tysbae, go, drink.¡± She said to her, presenting her neck. "Are you sure ? It won¡¯t hurt you?" She replied by fighting with all her strength to not just literally jump at Evilyn¡¯s throat. ¡°Don¡¯t worry. Drink until you¡¯re thirsty no more.¡± said the young woman, using her left hand to mess with Tysbae¡¯s hair. A slight pain in her carotid, and the feeling of blood flowing from her like a fountain. The action found itself to be even less painful than the first time and, in particular, less unpleasant, as Evilyn did not feel weakened by the loss of blood. She gently stroked the teenager¡¯s hair, a maternal smile on her face, the scene strangely reminding her of her own siblings, the way she had taken care of her younger brothers and sisters, all much younger than her. Um... Are you sure you want to feed the vampire ? It¡¯s not that I have something against them but I do. The young woman frowned. ¡°I don¡¯t see why I wouldn¡¯t feed her.¡± She replied with a bit of venom in her voice. Bloody hell, could you stop talking to me by opening your mouth ? Just think about what you want to say to me, please. And your vampire, do you like her ? What are you gonna do with her, keep her as a pet ? What ? No ! She¡¯s just a lost kid, I¡¯ll take care of her ! Evilyn replied in thoughts. Hum. You do whatever you want with this animals, but if you really want to keep her healthy,if I was you, I wouldn¡¯t let her drink too much of my blood. Why ? She needs to eat. Yes yes, of course, I know your pet needs to be fed, but your blood is no longer entirely human, she will be in for a world of pain if she gorge herself of too much of it. Besides, you¡¯re not just any kind of demon hybrid, you¡¯re part fire demon, high-ranking fire demon, and, if I remember correctly, vampires don¡¯t like fire. As he spoke, Tysbae had begun to become slightly red and, now that the coloration was becoming more pronounced, Evilyn finally noticed it. The young woman felt the teenager tremble, not of pleasure, but of pain, without however stopping to drink a second, her thirst and her instinct too strong for her to realize that she was in danger. ¡°Tysbae, stop !¡± cried the young woman,without success. She¡¯s a young vampire, right ? Strangle her, she should still have her breathing reflex. What ? No ! I¡¯m not going to strangle her, what¡¯s wrong with you ? Well ! Do it or don¡¯t, but don¡¯t be surprised if she dies ! He answered her dryly. Evilyn shouted, tried to reason with the teenager, trying to force her out, but nothing did the trick. Tysbae became more and more red and hot, sweating more and more, and being cornered without any other option, the young woman strangled her, as the demon, Sullivan, had advised her. She grabbed the teenager¡¯s throat with her right hand and squeezed with all her strength. A few seconds passed without anything happening until, suddenly, she felt Tysbae¡¯s jaw loosening. Taking advantage of the opportunity, she ripped the young vampire out of her throat, throwing her to the ground without doing so on purpose. ¡°ha¡­ ha¡­ aARGH!¡± There, the young teenager began to scream and Evilyn saw why. Tysbae¡¯s mouth was now a big burn, the swollen skin blistering around and on her lips. A disgusting light began to flow from her eyes and mouth as she began to tremble on the ground, no sound now coming out of her mouth. What is happening to her ? Asked Evilyn, panicked at this sight. Her body is trying to accept the blood you gave her, and it¡¯s not pretty. At the same time what a stupid idea to give fiery demon blood to a vampire. Can we help her ? She said, letting the half-disguised insult pass . Um. We really need to help her ? I mean, if you really want a vampire as a pet, we can get you another one, you know ? ...your mouth. Just, SHUT YOUR MOUTH ! Fuck you with your pet ideas! She suffers, we help her, that¡¯s all ! She screamed with rage to the demon. All right, all right, don¡¯t get excited like that. Put your hands against her throat and heart, I¡¯ll see what I can do. He answered in a dull tone, as a father would do to a whim of his daughter. Evilyn hastened to do as Sullivan had told her and quickly found himself above the young vampire. Um.... Yes, maybe we can do something. You see, vampires are fascinating littles creatures. Like all the living dead, they are composed of a majority of Anima, with a little breath and mana mix to make it work. The problem here is the body, the Breath. Vampires have a breath called stagnant, unlike living creatures that have a dynamic breath. They drink the blood of living creatures to maintain or improve their stagnant breath but, here, this little vampire has absorbed a breath of an element to which she is weak, fire. In fact, she can¡¯t turn it into her own breath and, worse, her stagnant breath and your breath of fire are fighting. He explained at length.The author''s content has been appropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon. Stop explaining and heal me there ! Evilyn replied in a hysterical tone. I¡¯m getting there. I can help her accept the blood you gave her, but I¡¯m at least partially going to have to change her racial structure. It¡¯s long, complicated, dangerous and, if I can, she¡¯ll become dependent on your blood. It¡¯s up to you. Is there really no other way ? Ha ! Do you think I¡¯d bore me to change her it if I could do otherwise ? No, there¡¯s nothing else to do. And by the way she¡¯s dying, your little vampire pet, you choose something or not ? All right, do what you need to do, but save her, damn it ! Well so fucking time, it wasn¡¯t so hard, right ? I¡¯ll do the first phase now, it will last, ho, a few hours I would say. Don¡¯t let go of her under any circumstances, or she¡¯s dead, okay ? He said to her in a casual tone, as if he was going to cook or shop. Understood ! She replied with a seriousness that contrasted with the demon. *** In the now dark room time passed and, having to remain in the same position for so long, Evilyn¡¯s arms began to become numb, the pain of the cramps becoming more and more important. However, she held on all the way, her resolution flickering again and again inflamed by the idea that Tysbae could die here, in front of her and, above all, because of her. She had never been an altruistic type but, when she could, when it didn¡¯t cost her too much, she was trying to help people around her and clearly, an arm ache was a more than reasonable cost to someone¡¯s life, even more someone she liked despite the little time they had spent together, someone who had already saved her life. You can let go of her, kid. Sullivan finally said in a tired and unhappy tone. Evilyn fell beside the teenager. Here, we wiped the first step. I partially altered your vampire¡¯s body, so that she would be able to absorb your blood, but now we¡¯re gonna have to do the second step. Are you ready for this ? Yes¡­ ? The young woman replied, sure of herself. Good. Take off your shirt and bra, you¡¯ll have to breastfeed her. ...sorry, what ? Evilyn had taken a second to understand what Sullivan had told her, before responding in a tone that was not even outraged as it exuded surprise. Why is that ? Because the transformation isn¡¯t complete. You have to give it a boost, and your milk is the best thing we have on hand for that. B-but she¡¯s a vampire ! Wouldn¡¯t she need blood ? She retorted, seeking a reasonable argument not to have to bow to the extravagant request of the demon, who, she was sure of it, was making a joke of bad taste. Blood ? And how do you want to do that, with a body that regenerates constantly and quickly and a vampire that¡¯s too weak to bite you ? Besides, it¡¯s better that it¡¯s your milk she drinks, since it will be easier to absorb for her, its energy softer than that of your blood. But well, I¡¯m not the boss here, you do what you want kid. He replied in a bad tone, as though tired of the incessant and unfounded recriminations of a spoiled child. She remained speechless in the face of the devil¡¯s recrimination and contemplated at length the sleepy body of Tysbae. From time to time, the teenager became tense with pain, her breathing speed and the sweat that permeated her clothes with clues to her ever-unstable state. So you gonna move your ass or you gonna let her die ? If you let her die, I swear it¡¯ll be bad even if I¡¯m tied to you, with all the effort I had to do for your pet ! He then said after several minutes of silence from Evelyn Will you stop calling her that or what ? She replied before starting to undress, removing her t-shirt and bra quickly. Do I even produce milk ? She asked angrily as she took the teenage girl¡¯s head, her arms still sore trembling under the effort they had to provide so early after several intense hours. Normally yes. Your body should naturally recognize the energy in the vampire as similar to yours, and will consider it as one of your offsprings. She listened to the demon giving hisr explanation while painfully bringing Tysbae¡¯s head close to one of her nipples, finally managing to put the vampire¡¯s mouth against it. The teenager tried to bite by reflex but, lacking strength, the final effect was closer to a baby trying to suckle her mother¡¯s breast. ...Her teeth¡­ what happened to them ? Your blood, kid, that¡¯s what happened to them. It corroded her teeth, in addition to burning her lips and face, one of the reasons why your milk is more suitable. I already feel you tense, but don¡¯t worry, vampire teeth grow back. At the same time, it would be a little pathetic for a race like this, which bases its entire diet on parasitism, to see its only tool allowing it to feed itself be damaged and die because of it. He replied with irony. The young woman listened to him, holding the position for one or two minutes without anything happening. Why don¡¯t I produce milk, what¡¯s going on ? This is your first time breastfeeding, isn¡¯t it ? You produce milk and your vampire drinks it, it¡¯s just that you don¡¯t feel it. Not convinced by Sullivan, she removed a second Tysbae from her breast, effectively seeing white pearls on her nipple. She quickly placed the teenager¡¯s mouth back against her breast and breathed a sigh of relief. And is there anything else like that I¡¯m going to have to do ? I don¡¯t like this kind of surprise. She asked when she was reassured, her tone rendered acidic by the behavior of the demon. Um.... You¡¯re going to have to breastfeed her at least until her teeth grow back. We¡¯ll see how she is at that point. Understood. She said, continuing to breastfeed the young vampire. She had already been there for half an hour when a window of a translucent blue appeared before her. |Congratulations! The sparkling ¡°Tysbae¡± entity has become your direct subordinate! You can check its status in the ¡°subordinates¡± menu.| At the same time, Sullivan spoke. Well, now she¡¯s out of danger, her body has changed enough to absorb the blood you gave her. And now she¡¯s irreversibly dependent on you for food. I hope you take good care of it, pets are always a hassle . If Evilyn was not so surprised by the appearance of the dialogue window that looked strangely like a video game, she would have responded brutally. ¡­I¡¯m really in a rpg world, aren¡¯t I ? My God, where did I end up. She said to herself by massaging her forehead with one hand, still holding Tysbae with the other to keep her against her breast and breastfeeding her properly. Lily The monster crushed them from all its height, looking a little like a great gorilla, if its fur had been replaced by mauve bony plates. Its mouth and its face full of blood, that of her father who was now screaming in pain. She ran away, her little sister in her arms and her mother by her side. They ran through the woods. Her mother was suddenly no longer there, her howling behind the young woman clue of the fate that caught up with her, but the young woman continued to run without stopping. A few moments passed and she felt a hand around her throat. The last image she could see was that of her little sister and, more particularly, of her head bursting like a ripe melon under the monster¡¯s embrace. ¡°CAMIIIIIIILLE !¡± She screamed as she stretched out her arm, rising from at once of the bed in which she was lying. Her breathing was rapid and the adrenaline was screaming in her veins but, quickly, she realized that she had only dreamed, looking at the room around her, unknown. The place was plunged into darkness, the only light source a small orange ball diluting its dim light into the surrounding space, sufficient to see but not to the point of disturbing a potential sleeper. The room was circular and the only furniture in it was the bed in which she was sitting and a small chest of drawers on which a pile of properly folded clothing was placed. Where the hell am I ? She thought before being assailed by a headache which, however, faded quickly, leaving her panting, her head in her hands. She frowned and shook her head, recovering quickly. She then realized that she was naked and, her shyness taking the upper hand, she soon dressed in the available clothes, simple though comfortable underwear and a long white gown, almost a monastic habit. It was a little warm to her taste but was surprisingly not cumbersome and light, qualities she enjoyed. Ready, she then approached the only door that the room had, a beautiful and simply carved wooden door. She turned the doorknob and pushed, without success, before pulling it and finally opening it, feeling silly for a second. The other room was bright, the sun entering through a beautiful window in the right wall. Sitting on a chair, in front of a low table, there was a man in his fifties, reading a book with one hand, his eyes focused on his reading, his round glasses accentuating his librarian look. H-hello ?'' she said weakly, her body looking heavy and her mouth pasty. The man looked up and smiled when his gaze landed on her. ¡°Finally awake, good. Sit down, you probably have questions, don¡¯t you ?¡± He asked, pointing to a second chair with his fingers, placed in front of him on the other side of the low table. She nodded and sat down, not quite comfortable but not feeling threatened either. ¡°Good. Let¡¯s start.¡± He said, closing his book and putting it on the table. ¡°... Where am I?¡± ''You are now in the Ark Basilica of High-Light, and we are here in one of the buildings belonging to the Pontificate.'' He replied seriously. She frowned, the terms he used did not echo in his memory. She was again caught with a hint of headache that went away as quickly as she had come. ¡°We are no longer in the Kingdom of Fleriel ?¡± ¡°No.¡± "So where ?" ¡°As a country ? You are in the Holy Land of Nil, nation of the Crusade of Nil.¡± again a small headache resonated, weaker than the previous one. ¡°... I don¡¯t know.¡± "That¡¯s normal. Now listen to what I¡¯m about to say, okay?" ¡°All right.¡± ¡°Good. You are dead.¡± He said very directly to her. ¡°...S-sorry ?¡± She ended up saying, trembling and surprised. "You¡¯re dead. You had to have a dream before you woke up, didn¡¯t you ?" ¡°... Yes¡­?¡± She said after a long silence, fear beginning to be born in her eyes. ¡°These are your last moments, the way you died. Everyone who comes here the way you did goes through this step.¡± He explained to her conscientiously. ¡°... No. No, impossible !¡± she exclaimed, rising from her chair and smashing it against the wall behind her. The noise brought her out of her anger and she looked behind her, seeing how she had broken the chair. ¡°I¡¯m sorry, I¡¯m sorry.¡± she began to confuse herself in excuses before recalling the reason of her reaction. ''I...I am really dead? My dream is the memory of my death ?'' she asked for a second confirmation. ¡°Yes. I¡¯m sorry about that.¡± She looked at him a little longer, her eyes far away from here, before tears began to flow down her cheeks. She put her hands on her face and cried for a good quarter of an hour, she mourned the loss of her father, her mother and, above all, she mourned for her little sister, whom she had seen dying right in front of her eyes. ¡°Things are a little less bad ?¡± asked the man when he saw her dry her tears. For any answer she only nodded. ¡°Okay. If you need a little time alone you can isolate yourself in the room where you come from. I have all my time, understood ?¡± New nod, this time negative. "Are you sure?" ¡°... Yes.¡± She swept a last tear from her eyes. ¡°Well, if you¡¯re good, let¡¯s continue, then.¡± 22 - Healing and Changing ; You know It really look like a scam, Right ? Chapter 22 Eleonor She felt the sea currents caressing her limbs, her vision filled with moving spots. She remained passive until, at some point, she felt hunger creeping in her. So she began to move, to hunt. For long hours, she swam and finally found prey. Slowly, she approached it and suddenly threw herself at it. Her tooth pierced the shell and brought her mouth to the flesh, that she began to devour joyfully¡­ The vision faded and her consciousness slowly returned to her. She was breathing slowly, the tentacles that Gen¨¨se had slipped into her nose and mouth bringing her the air she needed, like the ventilator tubes that hospitals used. Similarly, she felt another limb slowly pouring sticky fluid down her throat. She smiled a little, always so surprised by the fact that all this became so natural to her, barely an extension of herself, hardly noticing any more these tentacles which had been so invasive to her at the beginning. Hello Gen¨¨se. She said with the tone of someone waking up on the right side of the bed, on a Sunday morning, the smell of coffee and croissants lingering in the air. HI MISTRESS. He replied with his neutral, almost robotic tone. I think this is the first time I¡¯ve woken up in you, Gen¨¨se. What¡¯s going on ? She asked, straight to the point. THE DAMAGES TO YOUR SPINE ARE EXTENSIVE AND MY LATEST ANALYSIS SHOWS THAT YOU HAVE FINISHED MERGING WITH THE FIRST PIECE OF XEARK CRYSTAL PRESENT IN YOUR BODY. AS A RESULT, YOU MAY BE ABLE TO ACTIVELY ASSIST ME IN YOUR REGENERATION, AS YOUR NETWORK OF THOUGHTS IS NOW STRENGTHENED. Did he explain it to her. My network of thoughts is strengthened ? she repeated, frowning even if, in the black tar, it did not matter. Indeed. Then intervened Sanakan. That¡¯s one of the side effects of integrating the Xeark crystal. That¡¯s where my people get the mind we¡¯re so proud of. She added gently. But, well, the use of a Xeark crystal for the modification of a Sauriot is unprecedented, literally, so I can¡¯t predict how the operation will go. ...Okay ? It¡¯s not very reassuring. Eleonor answered in a playful tone. The joke seemed to pass over her interlocutors, who remained silent. Anyway. Let¡¯s move on. what can I do to help ? INTERESTING QUESTION. NORMALLY, THE REPAIRS WOULD BE CARRIED OUT EASILY BECAUSE THE TARGET ENTITY IS BUILT FROM A SPECIFIC BLUEPRINT. JUST DESTROY THE DAMAGED PIECES AND CHECK WHAT IS MISSING BEFORE FILLING IT WITH WHAT THE BLUEPRINT INDICATED. HERE, HOWEVER, THIS IS ODDLY NOT THE CASE. EVERY TIME YOU COME INTO ME, MISTRESS, I MAKE A BACKUP OF YOUR MOST ADVANCED BODY CONDITION, SO I CAN REBUILD YOU IF NECESSARY. HOWEVER, IT TURNS OUT THAT YOUR CENTRAL NERVOUS SYSTEM IS HARDER TO REPAIR THAN EXPECTED. I COULD DO IT ALONE, BUT THE TIME REQUIRED AND THE QUALITY OF THE WORK COULD BE POOR. THAT¡¯S WHERE YOU CAN HELP. SINCE YOU HAVE A SOUL, YOU CAN USE MY BODY TO REPAIR YOURS BY FOLLOWING YOUR MENTAL IMAGE. IN VIEW OF YOUR NEW ABILITY TO COPE WITH PAIN, COUPLED WITH YOUR NEURAL NETWORK FURTHER DEVELOPMENT, IT SEEMS PLAUSIBLE TO ME THAT YOU COULD MANUALLY USE MY ABILITIES ON YOUR OWN. ...A-are you sure I can do this ? Well, I mean, we¡¯re still talking about rebuilding a piece of spinal cord when I don¡¯t even know how to do it for a nail... She said, full of doubts. MISTRESS¡­ NAVIGATOR. POINT OUT DIRECTIONS, GIVE GENERAL ORDERS, I¡¯LL TAKE CARE OF THE REST. He replied, seeming to be looking for his words to construct metaphors, something still a little unusual for him. And I will also be there to help, if necessary. Added Sanakan in a... maternal voice ? ...Okay. Shall we start ? YES MISTRESS. He replied before she felt tentacles caressing her head. HYPOTHESIS: USE OF THE MIND AS A BRIDGE TO ACCESS THE SOUL. INSERTION OF A DIRECT NEURAL CONNECTION NECESSARY. He said before she felt him cutting her cranial tentacles with great dexterity. It was a bit painful to her but much less than she expected, the usual mix of pain and pleasure stimulating her, the young woman appreciating these emotions as a good wine. When all the flesh from the top of her skull was removed, she felt a vibration spreading into the bone, Gen¨¨se drilling various holes to reach direct contact with the brain. He did the same along her neck, quickly using thin tentacles to penetrate and fuse with the nervous system of Eleonor, momentarily becoming a part of herself. The young woman then felt a shock, as when, deprived of oxygen for a long time, the lungs of a nearly-drowned man finally filled again with air. Or maybe it was the same thing as waking up and opening your eyes. Or maybe the feeling that filled her when she looked at the world from the top of a mountain. Confused, she felt herself tossed to the edge of the precipice of unconsciousness, the experience made bearable only by her ability to cope with pain and find pleasure in it. She then felt something like an anchor, or an outstretched hand. She focused on it and managed to grag a hold on reality. Thankfully¡­ I was there¡­ said Sanakan, making it feel like she was having trouble breathing, like an asthmatic running a marathon. Eleonor did not have the time to answer her before other sensations came to rub her like cats around their owner¡¯s legs. She slowly accepted them, feeling herself taking more and more space, growing up in a shell of which she slowly took the size. Gen¨¨se then guided her mind to specific tentacles, as thin as needles, which surrounded the damaged piece of the spine. They did not even speak to each other, so intimately connected that they shared their goals, their feelings, their will. The experience, however, was overwhelming to Eleonor as the difference in way of thinking was important, the cold and logical mind of the biomachin not really compatible with hers. She felt the crystal close to her optic nerve shining with a thousand lights, helping her as much as it could to make her cross and endure this strange situation. Feeling that it was having trouble, the young woman tried to focus on the present task, rather than allowing herself to be swallowed up by all the new things that were happening to her, the mucus spread on the stone, all the tentacles surrounding her body, each specialized and fascinating structure that made up the body of Gen¨¨se¡­ Focus ! She hollered to herself, already feeling her mind going back wandering in the nooks and crannies of her mate. She imagined with all her strength who she was, how she was, trying to invoke an image of herself as accurately as possible. A strange echo answered her, like a form of blurry light just at the limit of her vision, both out of reach and in the palm of her hand. She felt it moving, transforming, passing through thousands of different and indistinct forms before settling on something she knew. An image of herself, with her armored plates, her storage pockets, her tentacles on her head and arms, her satin-like and leather-like skin, her beautiful clawed hands and her reinforced feet¡­ ... Is it really... me ? She thought, contemplating the projection with confusing at first. ...Yes. She then said to herself, smiling. Yes, it¡¯s me. The new me, who is not afraid of pain, who hunts and is free, much better than the old one. Her smile took on the traditional predatory shade of her thirst for blood, when she imagined hunting something and dominating it, devouring it. But I could be better, so much better... No ! Focus on your healing ! Resounded the voice of Sanakan who, in an immense effort, tried to reason her. Why stop there, I could be so much more ! NEURAL NETWORK STILL TOO WEAK, OVERLOAD CLOSE. OPTIMIZATION OF TIME, FOCUS ON THE PRIMARY OBJECTIVE. Gen¨¨se intervened, supporting Sanakan with his monochord and overwhelming voice of logic. ...Y-yes, yes, indeed. She said, pulling herself back together, casting her feelings aside to focus entirely o the task at hand. She felt, through the tentacles of Gen¨¨se, her tentacles, the damaged places of her body and, with an effort of resolve, imagined them in good health. Their tentacles then began to work, guided by Eleonor as a conductor, Gen¨¨se assuming for his part the role of all the musicians and, together, played a symphony that brought back to the young woman the use of her legs, full and unencumbered. *** She opened her eyes, contemplating the pleasant vision of the ceiling of her nest, appreciating the sensations of the flesh that covered the stone under her, its comfort, its heartbeat that she now knew emanated from Gen¨¨se. She moved her toes, sinking them into the mucus, the flesh, as if in a sheet that one would not want to leave, on a weekend morning, and remained in this position as long as she wished to enjoy it, one of the advantages of living alone in a hive empty of responsibilities. She finally got up, enjoying the movement of her legs all the more as she knew what it was like not to have them and, happily, headed for Gen¨¨se. Hello Sanakan. She said nicely in her head as she walked towards her loyal companions, in a good mood. ... Hmm ? Hello Eleonor. She answered with a sluggish voice. Are you tired ? Very. Helping you focus has been a big deal. Looks like you were born to change your body, the way you wanted to modify everything and make it better. She said shivering slightly, partially disgusted by the notion. The young woman prepared to respond when she suddenly stopped, sweeping the room with her eyes. Where the hell am I ? She wondered, then, as she quickly stepped over the two remaining steps separating her from Gen¨¨se, plunging her arm into the black tar without the slightest hesitation. Indeed, the room around her had changed. It was bigger, more spacious than before, almost reaching the limit of her spherical vision. The wall that had accommodated the fruit that she ate so long ago, the one having withered after a while, was no longer there and, finally, the exit of the room was no longer the same, now a depression in the ground that seemed to go down. HELLO MISTRESS. Said Gen¨¨se wrapping a tentacle around Eleonor¡¯s arm.The story has been illicitly taken; should you find it on Amazon, report the infringement. What happened to my nest ? She asked, frowning. MINOR RESTRUCTURING OF YOUR NEST, MISTRESS. REASON: FIRST, THE NEED TO SEAL THE ACCESS TO THE WELL, TO PREVENT THE CREATURE THAT ATTACKED YOU FROM BEING ABLE TO TRACK YOU DOWN. SECONDLY, OPTIMIZATION OF YOUR NEST FOR YOUR CURRENT SHAPE, THAT NEED MORE SPACE TO FULLY DEPLOY. He answered his mistress¡¯s question with attention and comprehensiveness. ... Wait, I don¡¯t have access to the well anymore ? How am I going to go back to see the dragon then ? And to hunt ? YOUR NEST HAS BEEN CONNECTED TO ANOTHER TUNNEL NETWORK WHERE YOU CAN HUNT, MISTRESS. IN ADDITION, WITH ENOUGH BIOMASS, IT WILL BE POSSIBLE TO CREATE A MORE SECURE EXIT TO THE WELL, ALLOWING YOU TO MOVE WHERE YOU WANT, MISTRESS. She rubbed her forehead with her left hand, the one outside the pond, then passed it between her cranial tentacles while thinking. She finally made it descend along her ribs, touching her now empty storage pockets. How much biomass did I bring back ? She asked. TWENTY UNITS, TWELVE OF WHICH WERE USED TO TRANSFORM YOUR NEST, TWO TO HEAL YOU AND ONE TO FEED YOU. YOU STILL HAVE FIVE UNITS OF BIOMASS AVAILABLE. DO YOU WANT TO DO SOMETHING WITH IT ? He answered before going on to a question. Before she could even answer, a window appeared, radiating with its familiar translucent blue tone. [Biomass available: 5] [Purchase available: +1 armor: 1 biomass (max +10 for this bonus) Activation of the first modification tier: 100 biomass Tier 1 nest modification: dependent on modification, minimum 1 biomass.] Interesting. INDEED, MISTRESS, THIS NEW SYSTEM IS PARTICULARLY USEFUL. Gen¨¨se commented. You can see it ? OF COURSE, IT IS I WHO GENERATES THE ONE YOU HAVE IN FRONT OF YOU, MISTRESS. He replied. Ha ? Since when do you know how to do that ? SINCE AN EXTERNAL ENTITY CONTACTED ME AND GAVE ME THIS ABILITY, MISTRESS. He replied bluntly. ... Um¡­ like some kind of¡­ voice ? Out of nowhere, without any kind of mind contact ? INDEED MISTRESS. ...Okay. Let¡¯s move on, not as if there¡¯s much we can do about it right now. Did she think, more for herself than for Gen¨¨se. How much biomass do I consume per cycle ? 0.6 UNIT, MISTRESS. Okay. Can I have two more points of armor ? I¡¯ll keep the rest as food. YES MISTRESS. He replied by pulling her in him, placing the usual tentacles in the now accustomed orifices to the young woman. The modification was quite quick and she came out of the pool one or two hours later, without having needed to be asleep and without having to help Gen¨¨se to be modified. she had used this time to follow the teachings of Sanakan and, in particular, she had trained herself to contain more Sfir, so that she could do something interesting with it in the future. She looked at her character form to check her progress. [Eleo?nor] [Level : 37 (3,72%) Available Key Points : 0] [Classes : N/A] [Ressources : [Body : 41] [Mind : 1] [Soul : 1] [Natural Armor : 24 (20,5 +3,5)] [Natural weapons: Fangs: Strength*1 damage (205), anti-armor 2 Feet and fists: Strength*2 damage (410), anti-armor 1] [Capacity : | Novice Reserve of Sfir (level 1 (1.87%)): your reserve of mana is equal to 1 time your magical affinity| 1.87% progression in two hours¡­ I should reach level two in what¡­ maybe a month ? I guess it¡¯s going to depend on my sleep and.... She suddenly stopped her train of thoughts, realizing something now. Do I really sleep ? She wondered then. Indeed, as far as her memories went, since she had arrived here, she had never felt the fatigue of a long day. Of course, her body had sometimes asked for rest but, otherwise, the only times she had closed her eyes and actually slept were all the times when Gen¨¨se had altered or healed her. Gen¨¨se ? YES MISTRESS ? Do I need to sleep ? INTERESTING QUESTION. SLEEP, BY-PRODUCT OF A BIO-SPIRITUAL NECESSITY, PURGE THE NERVOUS SYSTEM OF ITS TOXINS AND LET THE MIND REBUILD ITSELF BY INTEGRATING THE NEW EXPERIENCE. ALSO ALLOWS A REST OF THE BODY AS A WHOLE, INCLUDING MUSCLES, ALLOWING THEM TO REPAIR THEMSELVES. NERVOUS SYSTEM OF THE MISTRESS, ADVANCED, ELIMINATION OF THE NEED TO PURGE TOXINS. HOWEVER, NEED TO LET THE BODY REST, APPROXIMATELY TWO TO FOUR HOURS A DAY. IN ADDITION, MIND RECONSTRUCTION IS NECESSARY, BUT CAN BE CARRIED OUT DURING THE PHASES OF MEDITATION, OPTIMIZING THE TIME TO BOTH DEVELOP SFIR MASTERY AND KEEP THE MIND HEALTHY. He replied, exhaustive as usual. So I should not need actual sleep, but I should meditate and let my body rest ? Synthetised Eleonor. AFFIRMATIVE. In response, the young woman remained silent, slipping her legs into Gen¨¨se to take a more comfortable position. To not have to sleep¡­ She thought, moving her legs between the tentacles. She lifted her hands to look at them, one of Gen¨¨se tentacule around her right arm, gazed at the rest of her body, inspecting the new armour plates that he had created on her forearms, her belly and on her shoulders, in addition to the previous ones, which already protected her hands and feet, her head and his spine, her bust. I¡¯m really starting to look like Sarah, even though I love these games¡­ My body looks like an alien, the pain does hurt no longer and now I realize I don¡¯t even really need to sleep anymore¡­ less and less human. She thought with a certain melancholy. But this melancholy gradually regressed, leaving room for a smiling optimism, a predatory smile. Less and less human, that¡¯s true, but¡­ I¡¯m getting cooler anyway. She then said to herself by clenching her fist, surprisingly more at ease with this strange and changing body than with her previous human form. I¡¯m sure Mellite will have a heart attack of joy when she''ll see me like this, she¡¯s always been the type to love this kind of things¡­ For now, let¡¯s see how far I can go, anyway I can still go back if I don¡¯t like a modification. Lily She was sitting on a new chair, the man in front of her having taking it quickly for her since, in her anger, Lily had smashed the old one against the wall. The young woman had calmed down a little, even if furrows of tears and red eyes attested to her repressed sadness. ¡°Are you sure you want to continue?¡± ¡°Yes. Please.¡± ¡°... Very well. As I told you earlier, you are dead. And yet, you are here, talking to me, without this place being Hell or Paradise.¡± ¡°... And you¡¯ll probably tell me why, I guess ?¡± She asked, focusing on what the man was explaining to her, trying to alleviate the pain of loss by directing her attention to something other than the death of her loved ones. ¡°Yes. You see, our god, Nihil, is the creator of this world and, from time to time, when a creature dies in another world, He reaches out his divine hand to collect the poor soul and make it one of his Heralds. This is the grace granted to you, young lady, to live another life, touched by the radiant aura of our god.¡± He explained to her with a smile full of tenderness. She looked at him frowning. ¡°You know it really looks like a trap or an hoax ?¡± she said, suspicious. ¡°Ahahah ! Yes, you are not the first to tell us. I have a way of proving it, but first a question. Did your world have a System ?¡± Lily tilted her head when she heard the question. ¡°Of course, why ?¡± She replied, wringing her eyebrows again, this time of confusion rather than suspicion. ¡°Some of the worlds from which our God chooses his people do not know that the System exists. I know, surprising, isn¡¯t it ?¡± Did he react by seeing the surprise and disbelief on Lily¡¯s face. ¡°... Yes. Well, I mean, it¡¯s like a world without light.¡± She said shivering a little. ¡°Indeed, these worlds tend to be¡­ well, darker and more crushing than those who discovered the system, according to the reincarnates themselves.¡± ¡°Let¡¯s move on. Since you are familiar with the System, I imagine that you also know what the appraisal stones are, yes?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°Come with me then. I will show you that it is all real, everything I have told you.¡± He said to her when he got up, inviting her to follow him. *** They crossed the empty corridors of the building until they arrived in another, more spacious room. At the centre of it was a rather rough rock embedded in the ground, maintained by a steel yoke. Lily recognized its nature directly from the small balls of multicolored lights that slowly slid along the rocky surface, and widened her eyes. ¡°This is the first time I¡¯ve seen such a big one.¡± She exclaimed with surprise, continuing to look at the appraisal stone. ¡°Yes, we are fortunate to have very rich and high quality veins on our mines, which unfortunately is not always the case elsewhere.¡± He replied, he said. ¡°I leave you alone so that you can see for yourself.¡± he added as he left the room, closing the door behind him. Lily swept the room with her eyes, without noticing anything but the rock in its center, and decided to approach it, leaning her hand against it. [Lily?] [Niveau : 93 (0%) Points disponibles : 0] [Classes : N/A] [Ressources : [Body : 43] [Mind :19] [Soul : 34] [Capacit¨¦s : [Body : 43 [Mind : 19 [Soul : 34 |Chosen of Nihil: Nihil, the Labyrinth God, chose you to be reincarnated as an agent of change. Reduced acquisition conditions of all classes and abilities of rank Legendary and below. experience gain multiplier : 1.4| What the fuck ? Did she think while raising her eyebrows, surprised by her character profile and, in particular, by her fundamental characteristics. Calming down a little, she thought about the state of her chart. Where is my class ? And since when do I have characteristics like that ? She read it several times, keeping it in mind before removing her hand from the stone. ¡°You can come in !¡± she said then through the door, calling for librarian-like man to come back. "Did you see what you wanted to see ?" ¡°Yes, but I have a few more questions now.¡± ¡°Of course I expected it. Will you still need the stone, or can we go back and sit?¡± ¡°Um¡­ Let¡¯s stay here for now.¡± ¡°Okay.¡± He replied, putting his hands behind his back. "So, what do you want to know ?" ¡°To begin with, my stats. Come, I will show you.¡± She said to him, waving to him to approach the stone. ¡°Are you sure ? It¡¯s private information, you don¡¯t have to share it with me.¡± ¡°No, no, come and see, please,¡± she asked, resting her hand against the stone. ¡°... All right.¡± He simply replied to the young woman, imitating her by placing his hand next to hers, thus being able to see her sheet. ¡°Okay, my stats.¡± She said, pointing to her key characteristics. ¡°If the humans here are the same here as at home, the level I have is really¡­ really crazy.¡± ¡°...¡± The man did not answer, too busy opening wide his eyes at what he saw. ¡°... Y-yes. Your level is indeed something.¡± He ended up saying, succeeding in overcoming his stupor. ¡°Those blessed by Nihil are often extraordinary, but even among them, you seem special.¡± He thought loudly, looking at her with interest and curiosity. 23 - Sponsorship and dream Chapter 23 Mikael Following the instruction of the receptionist, they took the stairs located at the right of the counter, going to the first floor. ¡°Don¡¯t be too stressed, kid, they will not eat you.¡± Said Nana to a restless Mikael. I just hope they can¡¯t see my abilities, I don¡¯t want to stand out too much. He thought, trying to calm himself as to not make Nana worry. The stairs led them to a new room with a desk and another receptionist. ¡°What is the matter ?¡± She asked, raising her head when she heard peoples coming in. ¡°It¡¯s for an assesment and a sponsorship.¡± Answered Nana while displaying the document she got from the other receptionist. ¡°Second left door. Knock and wait.¡± She aswered shortly in turn, pointing toward a corridor at her right. ¡°Thanks.¡± Said Nana before following the indications, knocking on the door when she found it. ¡°...You can enter.¡± Answered someone after one or two minutes of silence. The room wasn¡¯t big nor tiny, maybe around 4.5 by 4.5 meters. Three chairs facing a desk, someone sitting behind it and a bookshelf against the wall, with a window at its right. The person was an old man in his sixties with grey hairs and tirred eyes, but sporting a soft smile on his face. Some paper was stored on the desk, the ink still fresh on the one Mikael could see. Did we interupt him in his work ? He thought, concerned. ¡°Hello mister. It¡¯s for an enrollment and a sponsorship.¡± Said Nana while presenting again the sealed document. ¡°Take place and please present me your badge.¡± He answered quickly while pointing at the chairs. ¡°Sure.¡± Nana took a seat and presented her badge to the old man. Following her exemple, Mikael sat right beside her, staying quiet the whole time. Stressed, he felt his soul switch mode, becoming suddenly a lot more relaxed and distant to the scene, wainting to see what options it would yield for him. The old man took the badge and placed it on on small stone circle. ¡°...Nathalie Narlock, rank B¡­ I know you, you¡¯re the part time butcher aren¡¯t you ?¡± He finally said while taking his eyes off from the stone and back at her. ¡°Yes, indeed. I didn¡¯t know my reputation would follow me here.¡± She answered with a confident smile. ¡°The first one to refuse a promotion to rank A. Of course I know you¡­ If I may ask... why ?¡± He added with a causious voice. ¡°...Well, I¡¯ve a family, yah see, and I wasn¡¯t willing to throw that away. Rank B is good, not too much responsability, but a good pay, and I can take care of my kid.¡± ¡°Hum¡­ Yes, a good compromise indeed.¡± He said with an understanding look. ¡°So the enrollment and sponsorship is for him, right ?¡± He asked while nodding toward Mikael. ¡°Indeed.¡± She simply replied. ¡°Good. Well, let¡¯s do the formalities first. Name, age, birthplace, civil status please.¡± Mikael looked at Nana before answering. ¡°Mikael Duval, 21 years old, I don¡¯t know, and heee¡­¡± He looked at Nana again. ¡°Under my charge.¡± She answered to the last question. The Chief Instructor wrote all the informations quickly before re-reading them and raising his gaze toward the young man. ¡°Duval ? You¡¯re from a noble family ?¡± Nana took the lead before he could answer. ¡°No no, he his from a place were everyone has a family name.¡± ¡°...Ho ? How peculiar. Well then, some mandatory questions before we proceed. Why do you want to enroll as a mercenary ?¡± ¡°...To become more powerfull, and to make money ? I mean, why else ?¡± He answered. ¡°It¡¯s the main enrollment reason but from time to time I¡¯ve seen other things.¡± He comment while noting something else on his sheet of paper. ¡°Good. We will now proceed to your assesment. We¡¯ll use an appraisal stone to judge your current level, your classes, stats and abilities. Those informations are confidential and thus only disclosed to me, your sponsor¡­¡± He nodded his head toward Nathalie. ¡°...and of cours yourself. A record about you will be created and stocked here, in our vault, to be used as a base for your activities with us, and to study your grow. Do you agree with this ?¡± The old man asked. Mikael looked again at Nana and aswered affirmatively when he saw her nodding. ¡°All right, let¡¯s appraise you.¡± He took quite a big stone out of his desk and put it on top of the wooden surface. ¡°Proceed, please.¡± He said while pointing toward the stone. Like the first time, Mikael put his hand on it, but this time Nana did the same, the Chief Instructor too. [Level : 17 (73%) Available Key Points : 16] [Ressources : [Body : 1] [Mind : 1] [Soul : 1] [Capacity : ¡°...What ?¡± Exclaimed the old man, looking at Mikeal with a bewildered gaze after seeing this character sheet. ¡°Why can¡¯t I see those capacities ?¡± The young man asked in return. I hope my actor play is good enough. He thought, trying to make himself a victim of the situation has not to recieve too much attention. ¡°...You don¡¯t know ? What¡¯s going on with this, Mrs Narlock ?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know more than yah. It¡¯s the first time I¡¯ve seen something like this¡­¡± She answer while frowning. Well, it¡¯s still better than them seeing my true capacities. Mikael thought, even if he was frustrated by this unwelcomed attention, but relieved it amounted only that much. ¡°...Well. Can¡¯t really do anything about it for now. I¡¯ll ask one of our specialist to take a look at this later. At least it seems that you have interesting stats. If you¡¯re truly 21 you¡¯re lagging behind others of your age but it seems you¡¯re one of the few that can choose how to distribute your point like you want. I don¡¯t know how you did live with such low stat until now, and it¡¯s not my job to ask, but overall you seems interesting. And you never had a class, right ?¡± ¡°...Yes. How did you know ?¡± ¡°Because your sheet don¡¯t even display a class folder. You see, your sheet only give you informations about what you¡¯ve encountered so far. For exemple, you don¡¯t have any mana, so you also don¡¯t have the stat displaying your mana pool.¡± ¡°Understood.¡± ¡°Good. Quick learning is paramount in this profession. As I always say, quick learning or quick dying.¡± He commented, satisfied. ¡°Now that this part is done, le¡¯ts talk choices and sponsorship. Since you¡¯re a versatile, you can technicaly choose any class you want to acquire. Still, I would advise you to choose something that fit your experience so far, and that let you take full advantage of your sponsor¡¯s, Mrs Narlock¡¯s own experience¡­¡± He said before being interupted by Nathalie. ¡°That¡¯s how it normal goes but I would want a complete base training for him, so he can find what he¡¯s the more at ease with.¡± ¡°...I can do, but it will cost you more sponsorship points.¡± ¡°I know, I¡¯m good with it.¡± ¡°Understood. So a full base training and then a specialized training in what he choose, right ?¡± ¡°Yes, and I also want supervised field experience in a team.¡± She added. The old man frowned. ¡°You¡¯re sure you want to put so many eggs in this basket ? You won¡¯t be able to sponsor anyone else in a long time after that.¡± He commented, skeptical. ¡°Don¡¯t worry, I know what I¡¯m doing.¡± She answered with confidence. ¡°Right, you¡¯re a Rank B, you know your business. So a general training followed by a specialized one to be chosen, then field experience in a team. While we¡¯re at it, do you want access to an appraisal stone, our library or to alchemical product ?¡± ¡°We¡¯ll work on our own for the appraisal stone, but you can put the library and a rank C access to alchemical product.¡± ¡°...I¡¯ll need to verify something.¡± He answered before checking Nana¡¯s card.Enjoying this book? Seek out the original to ensure the author gets credit. ¡°...With this, you¡¯ll not have any sponsorship points left. You¡¯re sure ?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± She simply said with a smile. ¡°Your call. Let¡¯s seal this deal then.¡± He said while taking a shining sheet of paper out of his desk. He stayed silent five more minute, taking his time to fill in the form. ¡°Great, now I just need your fingerprint here, here and here please.¡± He asked them while putting a tiny jar of translucent powder. Nana took the initiative, putting her thumb in the jar then on the form quickly three time. Without saying anything, Mikael did the same. ¡°Perfect.¡± Said the old man before taking the contract back. ¡°Your full basic training will start tomorrow at 10 in the morning. Take this¡­¡± He gave a badge to Mikael just like the one Nana had. ¡°...And present it to the instructor the will be waiting in the main square of the castle. He will scan it and take you and the others in is charge. Your basic training will take at least a week, maybe more. After that, you will choose whitch class you want to acquire based on the instructor¡¯s tips and the informations we have on the library. If you want further information, go ask in the main room.¡± ¡°Thank you, Chief Instructor.¡± Nana said while taking Mikael with her, seeing how the instructor was politely asking them to vacate the place. ¡°Thank you.¡± Said Mikael in a neutral tone. *** ¡°So, how do you feel about this ?¡± Asked Helianthine, her gaze and her smile soothing him. ¡°...I don¡¯t really know.¡± He answered, eating his meal mechanicaly. ¡°You¡¯re not stressed ? Or excited or something ? I would.¡± He looked at her and, smiling, something switched. I really need to pay attention to this fucking capacity. He thought. ¡°Stressed ? Yes, a bit, but I am more excited than anything. Thanks for asking.¡± He said, his voice now full of emotions. The dinner concluded at last, Nana spoke. ¡°Come with me two sec will yah ?¡± She asked Mikael before speaking to Helianthine. ¡°I¡¯ll take him a bit, you can have it back to help you to wash the dishes after.¡± ¡°Undestood mom.¡± She answered with curiosity in her gaze. *** The whole placed reeked of old tobbaco and parts of the wood had taken the classical sickening yellow color of it. ¡°Well boy, tell me. Yah can access your character sheet all by yourself, right ?¡± She asked him while lighting her pipe, seated in one of the chairs of her bedroom. He frowned and looked at her, confused. ¡°What ?¡± How did she know ? ¡°Don¡¯t give me this, boy. I heard you talking about this to Heli in a less than subtle way, and your little show with the Chief Instructor did not fool me, even if it was quite good.¡± He looked at her one more second in confusion before starting to smile meaningfully. ¡°Well yes, I can. I just don¡¯t want others to know as to avoid attracting too much attention, and to keep an ace in my sleeve, you know ?¡± ¡°Ha, I totaly understand, that¡¯s why I¡¯m not even upset toward yah but, in the futur, trust me more. I¡¯m your sponsor after all.¡± She said before blowing some smoke. ¡°Well then, you only wanted to talk about this ?¡± ¡°Nah. Your capacities, the ones the stone couldn¡¯t read, you can, right ?¡± ¡°...Yes. But I¡¯m not very in favor of showing them, you know.¡± ¡°Bah, they can¡¯t be that special. Show them to me, it¡¯s important for me to give you the best advice, so you can choose what class and all is best for you.¡± I hope that¡¯s true. ¡°...Fine, but don¡¯t spread informations about them, please.¡± She nodded and extended her hand that he took, before summoning his Sheet. [Mikael] [ ...] [Capacity : |Old Soul : your soul is old, very old even, it contains a thousand and one secrets and countless and varied life experiences. Acquisition conditions for all classes and capabilities are reduced. You can now learn things that only your Ancient can provide.| |Soul Duality: Your soul is double, composed of two layers with different functioning. From now on, your soul state will automatically change between your two options depending on the environment you are in. Your two states are: Empathy fixed at 1. Resolve over-multiplied by 5. The capacity ¡°Cold of Steel¡±. Other capacities and modifications may appear depending on the evolution of the capacity. Empathy over-multiplied by 3. The ¡°Warmth of a Beach¡± capacity. Other capacities and modifications may appear as the capacity evolves.| |Cold of Steel: All contact with your soul is toxic to the Empathy-capable Entities, dealing them Irreversible Anthropic Damage.| |Warmth of a Beach: All contact with your soul is good for Empathy-capable Entities, caregivers and soothers of all forms of damage.| |Sanctuary of Souls : By any whim of fate, you have been endowed with one of the Architect¡¯s artifacts. It is now part of you, and up to you to make it reach its full potential.| She started reading it then stopped, silence envelloping the room. ¡°...Tock.¡± Made Nana¡¯s pipe, falling on the ground has her mouth was gaping wide, speechless. *** After several minutes where she stayed totally still, Nana finally managed to pull herself together. She then very carefully took back her pipe, before stuffing it with tobacco nad igniting it once more. ¡°So¡­ this is why your mood don¡¯t stop fluctuating.¡± She stopped to exhale a cloud of smoke. She looked a lot older, and tired, too. ¡°It¡¯s for the best that the Chief Instructor didn¡¯t see your capacities.¡± She added, recovering more and more of her shock, going back to her confident state. ¡°Well, it seems they¡¯re special, after all.¡± He said with a sad smirck. ¡°Indeed. It¡¯s maybe the third time I saw over-multiplier this big in a capacity, and that¡¯s not even the more shocking. You can hurt people soul directly¡­¡± She raised her head and cast her gaze on him. ¡°...Who are you, really ?¡± ¡°I¡¯m Mikael. Everything I said to you was true, and I really don¡¯t know much, minus the fact that I come from another world an that I¡¯ve got overpowered capacities for one reason or another. I don¡¯t know anything else.¡± He answered with a mix of fear and confusion. She looked at him lengthily before a budding smile came to fruition on her face. ¡°Well. Helianthine really like yah, so I can¡¯t do anything else than to help yah.¡± She finaly said with a long sigh. ¡°Let¡¯s talk about your capacities, so yah can take the most out of them¡­¡± *** ¡°Let¡¯s summarize : We¡¯ll need to test of powerfull the effect of your Old Soul capacity is. Depending on the results, we¡¯ll be able to make yah skip some low ranked classes to take you directly to the rarer ones. And I think you should at least take one class revolving around soul, like a priest or a holy warrior to use your Empathy and Resolve over-multiplier. Something around external support, maybe, since it would be dangerous for you to touch the soul of someone when yah¡¯re in Steel Spear mode. Now to the more cryptic one. Can you explain your Sanctuary of Soulls to me ?¡± ¡°You¡¯ve never heard of any Architect ?¡± Asked Mikael before answering the question. ¡°No, I¡¯m sorry. The only thing I can tell yay is that it should be a very powerfull entity to be aknowledge by the system.¡± ¡°Thanks¡­¡± He said, before frowning and staying silent. ¡°...Well, what are yah waiting for, kid ?¡± ¡°I¡¯m trying to search a way to explain the Sanctuary to you¡­ But, if you don¡¯t mind, I¡¯ll try something before and, if it work, you¡¯ll need less explanation. Can I ?¡± ¡°After ya, kid.¡± She answered with a nod of the head. ¡°Give me your hand, then.¡± She gave him her hand, looking at him curiously. He took it and breathed deeply, focusing on his Sanctuary. He felt a feeling of fall and everything faded to black. *** The world was white and wide, the core hanging in the void as always. At his side, floating like him, Nana looked around in confusion. Well, not Nana exactly but a younger version of her, her back a bit more straight, with just that bit less of wrinkles, she looked more like a young mother than a old matrone. ¡°How do you feel ?¡± Finaly asked Mikael, a deep and warm aura surrounding him. ¡°W-what¡¯s happening ? Were are we ?¡± She asked, her voice smoother, missing the coarsenessgiven by the tobacco after smoking so much. ¡°Welcome to my Sanctuary. I¡¯m happy you¡¯re here, I didn¡¯t know if it would work.¡± He answered with a smile like his aura. ¡°...What the fuck have yah done ?¡± ¡°Well, if my hypothesis is correct, I brought your Soul and Mind in here and, if you wonder where ¡®here¡¯ is, I was told it¡¯s a pure Mind and Soul dimension that was created in an unknown crevis of the Omniverse to work as an independant world. That¡¯s my last capacity you were wondering about.¡± ¡°...Your ...your last capacity is a whole fucking world ?¡± ¡°Indeed. I didn¡¯t know how to explain it to you, to make you believe in it so I thought that taking you here would be better.¡± Nana looked at him and was ready to ask another question when she turned her gaze toward something else. ¡°W-what¡¯s that ?¡± She asked, pointing her immaterial finger toward a deep blackness far from them. Ho fuck, please no. Mikael thought before he started flying as quickly as he could toward the black thing. Nana followed him rapidly, finding the trick to fly in no time. What awaited them was a big mass of some kind of viscous black fluid. They did not have ose in this dimension, but their Souls could feel it reek like a putrefied carcass. ¡°What¡¯s happening ?¡± Asked Nana with her body of a young mother. No aswer came from Mikael, nothing but a feeling of uneasiness as she sensed his aura changing, switching even. It stay as deep, but the warmth let place to the coldness and sharpness of a weapon, altering the very world around him. ¡°Step back.¡± He said in a voice like his aura, a freezing inferno unleashed in his eyes.¨´ He started advancing, not by flying but by taking step on the void, walking on nothing like it was natural. He soon touched the black corrupted material that froze and became dust in the wind. Seeing this, the young man walked deeper and ddeper in this mass, letting Nana behind him. Finaly, he found what he was searching. Naked, Lauryne had her face distorded by pain and fear, a hint of madness too, and long black volute englobed her from everywhere, eating at her soul to grow more and more. Ignoring the voice for now, he extended his hands and, very peacefully, started to crush those volutes, ignoring the pain that hit him, letting the terrifying entropic power emanating from his finger destroy the black tumor growing on the little girl. When freeded, Lauryne slightly opened her eyes and, before Mikael could do anything, used the last bit of her strength to lean on him. The heart of the young man jumped in his chest but he quickly settled down when he saw that his Steel Spear mode wasn¡¯t harming her. ...Aren¡¯t you capable of empathy ? He thought, worried but happy that he could take her against him. Tightening his arms around her, he protected her while he left the collapsing mass of darkness, the fetid substance unable to pierce his steal-cold aura. He finally emerged while the sphere behind him turned into dust, vanishing quickly now that its source was totally taken out of it. Seeing them, Nana got closer swiftly, stoping before the two of them. Her gae fell on the girl and her eyes became round like plates. ¡°L-Lauryne ?¡± She said, bewildred when the girl turned her own gaze toward Nana. ¡°Nana ? You¡¯re here ?¡± Asked the girl with a weak voice. ¡°yes. Yes, I¡¯m here !¡± She exclaimed before extending her arms toward Lauryne. Touching Mikael¡¯s aura, her ginfertops froze instantly before becoming dust and vanishing. ¡°AAAAH !¡± She couldn¡¯t refrain her scream of pain, taking back her hands against herself. Mikael gritted his teath seeing that. ¡°You need to go.¡± He simply said before making her vanish from his world, not very sure about what to do with her injuried fingers. He looked around him, focused. It seems that my intuition was right. The proprieties of my world change based on my soul. He thought, noting how the space was becoming colder and colder, harmonizing with the aura his soul created here. He looked at Lauryne that, once Nana vanished, had gone back to sleep. Materializing her in the real world¡­ This voice is really difficult to deal with, she coulmd have said it earlier¡­ He kept Lauryne in his embrace a while more, letting his aura flow on her to help her control her traumas, before letting her go and going back to his world. Not a chapter - Little piece of information 2 Hey-ho everyone ! Update are scares lately and, for this, I Apologize. This book isn''t dead, far from it, but I''m taking a break from it (after I posted the next chapter) for multiple reasons : - I want to let this story rest a bit. I''ll fully read it once again in some weeks, maybe do a bit of editing, before starting posting chapters again. - I discovered choicescript not too long ago, and since creating a "Choice of" type of game is a dream for me, I invest a good portion of my day in it - I stopped school altogether, so now I need to find a job quickly, and this eat at the time I can invest in my passions. - I''ve two other novels in the work. The first one is being proof-readed by my family and I will start translation as soon as I recover the original manuscript corrected ^^ It''s the "main" story of the universe in which the other labyrinth take place. The second one is a standalone work not set in my shared universe, that I started to co-write with one of my friend. If you want to check it, go there : https://www.royalroad.com/fiction/33341/beauty-of-a-chrysalis You could be reading stolen content. Head to the original site for the genuine story.Since it''s written by two people, with one of them having English as a birth language, I find it more polished so far. I don''t know how much this project will take, but I''m committed to it because I like the setting, the main author and to work in tandem ^^ And yes, I''m totally making advertising for this new novel through this one ^^ Please go give a shot at the first chapter, and tell us if you like it or not ^^ It''s AGAIN a story around a non-human femal mc, but more in a fallout/mad max type of setting ^^ I''m happy so far about what I''ve done with The Other Labyrinth, seeing how it started as a project to make me better in english. There are no guidelines, no plans or anything, hence why (in particular some chapters around the tenth) it can feel a bit chaotic or lost from time to time, since I was lost writting it ^^'' But it turned ok. However, for the next chapters (counting 24), would you want me to write shorter chapters ? I try and force myself to write +- 3600 words per chapter, because I feel that I betray the readers when I don''t post at least as much content, but the choice is always longer chapters vs chapters more often. I could go down to something like 2400 words, 2/3 of the current length, and I think chapters would come more often. So, what do you want ? I keep doing 3.6k words per chapter, or I diminish to 2.4k words ? I love you all, I''m happy that this novel of mine as at least some people reading it, even maybe brightnening their day, and I hope to write much more in the futur ^^ Cheers !